45 



JOHN HUNTER, HIS LIFE AND WORK. 



By J. W. ANNINaSON, L.R.C.P. March 30th, 1886. 



John Hunter was a great siu'geon and anatomist who Hved in 

 the middle and latter part of the 18th century. No single man 

 of the present day fills a similar position, for he must be regarded 

 as Sir James Paget and Professor Huxley in combination — equal 

 to the former as surgeon, and excelling the latter as pliilosophical 

 anatomist. Of him Professor Owen says, "throughout his works 

 we meet with general propositions in comparative anatomy, the 

 like of which exist not in the writings of any of his contem- 

 porax'ies or predecessors, save in those of Aristotle." He was 

 born at Long Calderwood, Lanarkshire, in February, 1728. Dr. 

 Anningson touched upon the earlier part of his career, and then 

 said that when he returned from Portugal, where he had been 

 acting as Army Surgeon, he settled in London, adding to his 

 income by giving lectures on surgery and practical anatomy. He 

 was embarrassed and awkward as a Lecturer, and his ex- 

 pressions for explaining his new views about disease were often 

 so obscure as almost to be unintelligible. Occasionally he would 

 say, -'You had better not write that observation down, for very 

 likely I shall think differently next year." In the investigation 

 of scientific matters he took nothing for granted or second-hand. 

 He worked out everything for himself although he might have 

 heard about them in his brother's lectures or from men wliom 

 he employed to read for him. This meant a busy, fully occupied 

 life, so we find that Sir Astley Cooper — who with Abernethy and 

 Clive was among the number of his pupils — says, " Mr. Hunter 

 was, as Lavater said, a man who thought for himself, but he was 

 more ; he was the most industrious man that ever lived. He 

 worked from six in the morning till twelve at night and some- 

 times later. He would stand over the most minute object for 

 three or fom- hours before breakfast, dissecting and exploring it. 

 His vast museum — afterwards bought by the nation and now in 

 charge of the College of Surgeons — is a proof of what iudiistrj' 

 can accomplish, for it contains matter for seven years investiga- 

 tion." Soon after his return he built a house at Earl's Court, 

 Brompton, where he kept a large number of animals under con- 

 stant observation. Several anecdotes are told of his fearless 

 mastery over animals. His familiarity with them almost cost 

 him his life. He had however wonderful presence of mind in 

 dealing with them. In 1767 he was elected a Fellow of the 

 Koyal Society, and soon formed a conversation party among his 

 friends, who went to a coffee house to discuss matters alter the 

 formal meetings were over. In 1773 Hunter brought out in his 

 course of surgical lectures many opinions pecuhar to himself, 



