A HISTORY OF SCIENCE 



to this simple and useful procedure. Hence Napo- 

 leon's surprise when, on calling in Corvisart, after be- 

 coming somewhat dissatisfied with his other physicians 

 Pinel and Portal, his physical condition was interro- 

 gated in this strange manner. With characteristic 

 shrewdness Bonaparte saw the utility of the method, 

 and the physician who thus attempted to substitute 

 scientific method for guess-work in the diagnosis of 

 disease at once found favor in his eyes and was in- 

 stalled as his regular medical adviser. 



For fifteen years before this Corvisart had practised 

 percussion, as the chest-tapping method is called, with- 

 out succeeding in convincing the profession of its value. 

 The method itself, it should be added, had not origi- 

 nated with Corvisart, nor did the French physician 

 for a moment claim it as his own. The true originator 

 of the practice was the German physician Avenbrug- 

 ger, who published a book about it as early as 1761. 

 This book had even been translated into French, then 

 the language of international communication every- 

 where, by Roziere de la Chassagne, of Montpellier, in 

 1 770 ; but no one other than Corvisart appears to have 

 paid any attention to either original or translation. It 

 was far otherwise, however, when Corvisart translated 

 Avenbrugger's work anew, with important additions 

 of his own, in 1808. 



" I know very well how little reputation is allotted to 

 translator and commentators," writes Corvisart, "and 

 I might easily have elevated myself to the rank of an 

 author if I had elaborated anew the doctrine of Aven- 

 brugger and published an independent work on per- 

 cussion. In this way, however, I should have sacri- 



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