the Botjal College of Physicians. 245 



That such sort of names convey any useful knowledge of 

 the composition or effects of things, is too absurd to be as- 

 serted. Suppose that the worshipful company of mer- 

 chant-tailors were to obtain his majesty's order, that ia 

 future breeches should be called peripygeia, — drawers, sub- 

 peri pvgeia, — waistcoats, perithorakidia, — and coats, hyper- 

 perithorakidia, — Will any man in his senses, will even the 

 authors of the New Pharmacopoeia, say that there is the 

 least reason to suppose our clothes will in consequence ot" 

 these changes be better fitted to our persons, or that our 

 orders for a suit will be more clearly understood ? But if 

 the omission of a stib in the order, sends us home black 

 satin instead of linen clothing to our tails, the evil is not 

 great, nor the mischief irreparable. The muriate instead of 

 the raZmuriate of mercury will, in an hour, transfer us from 

 the jurisdiction of the Royal College of Physicians to that 

 of the worshipful company of parish clerks. 



If the chemist in his laboratory chooses to puzzle his 

 head by ringing the changes ou ate and ite and et, and oiis 

 and ic, and such-like fancies, the mischief is not very great, 

 as life and limb are not likely to be concerned, and only 

 the studious part of the world trouble themselves at all 

 about the matter. But those who introduce these ever 

 varying dangers into practical life, are in conscience answer- 

 able for ever." mischief incurred by their wanton innova- 

 tions, although they may not be amenable to the Old Bailey, 

 nor liable to decoction, in law phrase boiling, on the statute 

 of poisoning. 



In defiance then of the clamour that may be raised 

 by the advocates of this pseudo science, let me exhort 

 those really learned physicians who are at the head of 

 the practice of London, (and who I know have no hand 

 in the foolish changes thus repeatedly attempted to be in- 

 troduced, but seriously disapprove and lament them,) to act 

 boldly, and unite to crush the evil which they feel; to tell 

 the king what they think of the mischief likely to ensue; to 

 state the evils they have known to arise from these changes 

 of names, (of which I am certain a most frightful catalogue 

 might be soon made out,) ahd to restore not only the ancient 

 Pharmacopoeia, purged of its real errors in the composition 

 of medicines, and brought up to the present improvements 

 in processes, not in names ; but at the same time to intro- 

 duce by his royal authority, throughout the three united 

 kingdoms, one uniform mode of preparing medicines, that 

 the same word may every where mean the same thing; and 

 that an unfortunate invalid may not, in audition to the pro- 

 Q 3 bability 



