Ow Vaccinai'ioiU 321 



college, therefore, deemed it their duty, in a particular man- 

 ner, to inquire upon what grounds and evidence the oppo- 

 sers of vaccination rested their opinions. From personal 

 examination, as well as frorh their writings, they endea- 

 voured to learn the full extent and weight of their objec- 

 tions. They found them without experience in vaccination^ 

 supporting their opinions by hearsay information and hy- 

 poihetical reasoning, and, upon investigating the facts which 

 they advanced, they found them to be either misapprehended 

 or misrepresented ; or that they fell under the description of 

 cases of imperfect small-pox, before noticed, and which the 

 college have endeavoured fairly to appreciate. 



The practice of vaccination is but of eight years standing) 

 and its promoters, as well as opponents, must keep in mind, 

 that a period so short is too lunited to ascertain every point, 

 or to bring the art to that perfection of which it may be ca- 

 pable. The truth of this will readily be admitted by those 

 acquainted with the history of inoculation for the small- 

 pox. Vaccination is now, however, well understood, and 

 its character accuratclv described. Some deviations ironi 

 the usual course have occasionally occurred, which the au- 

 thor of the practice has called spurious cow-pov, by which 

 the public have been misled, as if there were a true and a 

 false covv'-pox ; but it appears that nothing more was meant 

 than to express irregularity or difterence from that common 

 form and progress of the vaccine pustule .from which ils 

 efficacy is inferred. Those who perform vaccination ought 

 therefore to be well instructed, and should have watched 

 with the greatest care the regular progress of the pustule, 

 and learnt the most proper time for taking the matter. 

 There is little doubt that some of the failures are to be im- 

 puted to the inexperience of the early vaccinators, awd it is 

 not unreasonable to expect that further observations will yet 

 suggest many improvements that will reduce the number 

 of anom'alous cases, and furnish the means of determining, 

 with greater precision, when the vaccine disease has been 

 effictuaily received. 



'i'hough the College of Physicians have confined them- 

 selves in estimating the evidence to such facts as have oc- 



Vol. 28. No. 112. Sept. Ib07. X currcd 



