VOL. XXXII.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 631 



A further Account of procuring the Small Pox. By the same. N° 375, p. 264. 



Mr. Owen was about 15 years of age, when he made the experiment on 

 tiimself ; and it cannot be doubted had the genuine small pox, the signs of them 

 on his face, and the mark on his hand, where he applied the matter, being 

 still so very visible, as to put that matter beyond dispute. I can aver, that 

 within the compass of 20 years last past, I have been so often assured of the 

 truth of the practice, not by children, but grown persons of undoubted credit, 

 that I am entirely satisfied it has been an immemorial custom in these parts; 

 and not only practised by boys at school, but also by many others of both sexes 

 more advanced in years, and consequently capable of distinguishing the small 

 pox from other distempers. There are now living, in this town and neighbour- 

 hood, 5 or 6 persons, who undoubtedly had that distemper after taking the 

 aforesaid method to infect themselves; one of whom, a young woman aged 23, 

 told me that, about 8 or 9 years ago, in order to infect herself, she held 20 

 pocky scabs, taken from one towards the latter end of the distemper, in the 

 hollow of her hand, a considerable time; that about 10 or 12 days after, she 

 sickened, and had upwards of 30 large pustules in her face, and other parts; 

 and that she has since freely conversed with such as have had the small pox 

 on them. 



To make it appear that inoculation is a sufficient preservative against receiving 

 the small pox a second time; about 6 weeks since, I caused my two sons, who 

 had been inoculated this last summer, not only to see, but even to handle a 

 child, dying of a most malignant sort of small pox ; and yet they continue in 

 perfect health. 



On a very exact inquiry I find, that out of 227 who have had the small pox 

 in the natural way, in this town and a neighbouring parish, since the beginning 

 of June last, 52 have died. 



Haverford West, Feh.'l, 1723. 



A further Account of buying the Small Pox. By Mr. Richard Wright, Sur- 

 geon at Haverford West. N° 375, p. 267. 



In Wales the custom commonly called buying the small pox, on a strict 

 inquiry, 1 find to be a common practice, and of very long standing ; being 

 assured by persons of unquestionable veracity, and of advanced age, that they 

 have had the small pox communicated to themselves this way, when about 16 

 or 17 years of age, being then very capable of distinguishing that distemper 

 from any other; and that they have parted with the matter contained in the 



