230 Biog-rapliical Memoir of the late Dr Turner. 



afterwards, in person tail, slender, but sinewy ; of easy and en- 

 gaging address, fluent and aniirlated in conversation, and pre- 

 senting throug-hout all his intercourse with his fellow-students, 

 the happiest combination I have ever known of urbanity and 

 mildness with high spirit and independence. His character in 

 this respect was well developed at the meetings of the Medical 

 Society, of which he was in the Session of 3818-19 one of the 

 annual Presidents. On this often stormy arena, he was a spi- 

 rited and impressive debater, and also a universal favourite, by 

 reason of his never-failing good humour and conciliating dispo- 

 sition. That he was a President of this admirable institution 

 is of itself sufficient proof that he had now become a diligent and 

 successful student, a part of his character for which there is rea- 

 son to think, he was largely indebted to the stimulus of ambition, 

 first fairly kindled within him by what he witnessed at the So- 

 ciety's meetings in the earlier period of his membership. 



As a student, his attention was mainly turned to practical 

 medicine ; and with a view to a more exact cultivation of this 

 department, he first became a clinical clerk under the present 

 Dr Home, at that time the most popular of the clinical professors, 

 and he subsequently obtained the appointment of resident clerk 

 in the fever hospital. In this institution, recently founded on 

 account of the appearance of a wide-spreading epidemic, the 

 same which visited almost every great town in the British Em- 

 pire during the years 1817-18-19 and 20, Dr Turner had 

 ample opportunities of practical instruction ; for the particu- 

 lar variety of fever then prevalent, presented features of unusual 

 interest, and the comparative absence of fever in the epidemic 

 form for many years before, led to its being studied with unusual 

 assiduity by all practitioners in this city. Dr Turner's share in 

 observing and treating it was ample ; and he has left sufficient 

 evidence of the interest he took in this pursuit ; for the prevail- 

 ing epidemic formed the subject both of the paper which he was 

 required in rotation to present to the Medical Society, and also 

 of his thesis delivered on the occasion of his graduation. The 

 subject of the former was — " On the Continued Fever which was 

 epidemic in Great Britain and Ireland dui'ing the years 1817- 

 18 and 19, exemplified by a description of that which prevailed 

 in Edinburgh." The title of the latter is, " De Causis Febris 



