S70| Medicine. [Chap. IV. 



ger of bleeding to death, and large wounds, other- 

 w'lse in no degree hazardous, must often have 

 proved mortal for the want of this simple contriv- 

 ance. The first attempts to construct it were very 

 rude and imperfect 3 and it was reserved for Mons. 

 Petit of Paris, by adding the screw, to render it 

 much more convenient and powerful in the com- 

 pression of arteries. xVnother interesting improve- 

 ment in securing arteries belongs to the late cen- 

 tury. Instead of the needle and ligature, which 

 were formerly used for this purpose after operations, 

 the tenaculum, ovfoj-ceps, is now employed, which 

 produces much less pain, and prevents many ill con- 

 sequences of the old method. The first application 

 of the needle and ligature to surgical purposes, 

 'w hich is ascribed to Ambrose Parey, of the sixteenth 

 century, was a great improvement. Since that 

 time many variations have taken place in the mode 

 of using them 3 and in the course of the eighteenth 

 century, the different kinds of sutures have been 

 still further improved in many important respects. 



The treatment of diseases of the Head from ex- 

 ternal violence has been extremely improved within 

 the period of this retrospect. For this interesting 

 l^art of the progress of surgery the world is much 

 indebted to M. le Dran, Mr. Pott, Mr. Bromfield, 

 and others. 



The various species of Hernicc are much better 

 understood within the last fifty years; and much of 

 the progress in this branch of surgery is due to the 

 acuteness and indefatigable labours of the late Mr. 

 l^ott. Tlie disease termed Hydrocele has also, 

 within the same period, been investigated with 

 iiiucli more success than ever before ; for which mnch 



