166 Tribute to the Memory of 



knew no bounds. Hence, in the intervals of professional 

 business, he devoted not a Uttle of his time to the culti- 

 vation of his favourite studies, Natural History, Botany, 

 and Chemistry. Such, indeed, were the ardour and suc- 

 cess of his application to these studies, that there were, 

 perhaps, very few young practitioners of medicine, in the 

 United-States, who were more intimately acquainted 

 with the sciences which have been mentioned than Dr. 

 Walmsley. 



Besides his inaugural dissertation, Dr. Walmsley 

 wrote several papers, which, though small, are not des- 

 titute of value. His " observations on the external em- 

 ployment of the bark of the Tilia americana, or Ameri- 

 can Lime-tree, in cases of burns and scalds," is published 

 in the second part of this Journal*. This paper may 

 be read with much advantage. He also communicated 

 *' a case of Ptyaiism (apparently) produced by the exter- 

 nal application of the lunar caustic, or nitrate of silverf.'* 

 It is impossible to read this case without lending our 

 full assent to the author's doctrine, that impressions 

 made upon the solids, and communicated from one part 

 of the body to another, are sufficient to account for many 

 of the phenomena, which have been, in general, supposed 

 inexplicable upon any other principle, than on diat of an 

 absorption of medicines. 



But these essays constituted only a small part of the 

 author's labours. He engaged in an analysis of the 

 limestones of the rich and beautiful valley in which he 



• y\nicle IV. page 34 — 37. 



t Sec Pail I. Vol. II. Article XX. p. 117—119. 



