LONDON. 
411 
at the £aftem front of the pedeftal. Thefe four figures 
have (hared the misfortune of the ftatue above $ for, except 
France, (whole nofe has been only bruifed and grazed by 
the (tony (form that feems to pelt inceffantly at thofe poor 
damfels, and the remains of which are feen on the (teps, 
mingled with broken arms, hands, and fingers,) they are 
all nofelefs. Some authors have declared thefe figures to 
be the work of Mr. Hill, who made the coloffal ftatues of 
the apoftles; while Pennant afferts that this monument 
“ rofe from the chifel of Francis Bird ; as did theConverfion 
of St. Paul in the pediment, and the bas-reliefs under the 
portico.” As the workmanfhip or defign is not calcu- 
ated to refleX much honour on the artift, we (hall leave 
the queftion J'ub judice, undecided; not, however, without 
intreating the ti uftees and guardians of this majeftic bafi- 
lica to order that this monument may be repaired, and an 
end put at lad to its unfeetnly and fcandalous appearance. 
On the north fide of the church-yard is a handfotne edi¬ 
fice belonging to the cathedral, and called the Chapter- 
houfe. In this building the convocation of the province 
of Canterbury formerly fat to confult about ecclefiaftical 
affairs, and to form canons for the government of the 
church. But, although the upper and lower houfe are 
(till called together by the king’s writ at every fefiion of 
parliament, yet they are always prorogued as foon as they 
have chofen prolocutors, and before they can have time 
to proceed to any kind of bufinefs. It is not generally 
known, that, on the day after the opening of a new par¬ 
liament, the clergy of St. Paul’s, the vicar-general, and 
proXors, being convocated in the choir, the fervice is then 
read entirely in Latin, and a Latin oration pronounced 
from the pulpit. This cuftom mull have been very ftriXly 
enjoined by fome deeds,and probably under pain of forfeit¬ 
ing great eftates; fo that the bi(hop, dean, and chapter, 
have not yet been able to rid theml'elves of this glaring 
remain of the popilh liturgy. 
On the weft fide of this houfe is Paul’s alley, leading to 
Paternofter-row, and well known on account of the Chap¬ 
ter coffee-houfe, which has long been, and is (till, a place 
of refort for literary men, and principally clergymen. 
All newfpapers of note, and weekly as well as monthly 
publications, are kept there in great order, and brought 
in files as foon as they are called for; fo that this houfe is 
vifited as much perhaps on account of the food which it 
brings to the mind as for that which it offers to the body. 
The late excellent Dr. Buchan, author of Domeftic Me¬ 
dicine, was a conftant vifitor here for the laft twenty 
years of his life. So regular was he in his attendance, 
that by fome he was called a rcfident , by others a 
fixture. To the (liort and imperfeX account of this 
worthy character in vol. iii. p. 4.81. (and which, more¬ 
over, has appeared only in the later editions of that 
volume,) we (hall add a few particulars.—Dr. Buchan, 
at an early period of life, had a turn for medical ftudies, 
and, even while a boy at the grammar-fchool, was accuf- 
tomed to aft in the capacities of furgeon and phyfician 
to the whole village. He repaired, however, to the uni- 
verfity of Edinburgh, with a view to the ftudy of divinity. 
But h is theological purfuits were foon interrupted by a 
predileXion for the mathematics, which proved more 
congenial to his mind. In this branch of fcience he foon 
acquired fuch proficiency as to be frequently employed as 
a private tutor to fome of his fellow-ltudents who were 
lefs precocious than himfelf. He was thus at once ena¬ 
bled and induced to continue at the univerfity during a 
period of nine years. This long refidence naturally led 
to an intimacy with many of the ftudents of medicine, who 
conflitute the majority of thofe who frequent that cele¬ 
brated feat of learning. He at the fame time obtained con- 
fiderable proficiency in botany, which delightful depart¬ 
ment of fcience continued to furnifli a fource of amufement 
for many years of his life. Dr. Buchan at length dedicated 
himfelf wholly to medicine; and enjoyed a familiar inter- 
courfe with all the celebrated profeffors of phyfic, particu¬ 
larly the late Dr. Gregory, whofe liberal opinions concern¬ 
ing medical knowledge probably had confiderable influence 
on his own future views and conduX. In confequence of 
the invitation of a fellow-ftudent, who had fettled in York- 
(hire, the doXor joined him for fome time in the practice 
of his art. A new incident tended not a little to extend 
his fame and improvement. On a vacancy for a phyfician 
to the Foundling Hofpital, then eftabliftied and fupported 
by parliament, at Ackworth, he declared himfelf a candi¬ 
date, and was eleXed, after a public competition or trial 
of (kill with ten profefiional men. While here, he laid 
the foundation of that knowledge of the difeafes of chil¬ 
dren, which afterwards formed the fubjecl of his inaugu¬ 
ral differtation, when he returned to Edinburgh to take a 
degree as doXor of phyfic, The title was, De Infantum vita 
confervanda ; it was much approved by the profeflors at 
that time, and now conftitutes the fubftance of the firft, 
and, as he ufed himfelf to think, the beft, chapter of 
that popular work, Domeftic Medicine. On his return to 
the capital of Scotland, for the purpofe alluded to above, 
he courted the eldeft daughter of Mr. Peter; on his union 
with whom he received a competent portion, and, in ad¬ 
dition, formed fome very refpeXable connexions, the lady 
in queftion being related, by means of her mother, to the 
family of Dundas, of which the prefent lord Dundas is 
the reprefentative. He foon afterwards returned to refume 
the duties of his ftatior. at Ackworth, where his eldeft foil, 
now in London, praXifing as a phyfician, was born. The 
doXor remained there until the inftitution itfelf was anni¬ 
hilated. Parliament withdrew the fixty thoufand pounds 
annually voted for its fupport, in confequence of which 
the whole fabric tumbled to pieces. On this, our young 
phyfician returned to Edinburgh, where he praXifed for 
ieveral years with fuccefs, and occupied his hours of lei- 
fure in compofing the “ Domeftic Medicine ; or, a Treatife 
on the Cure and Prevention of Difeafes by Regimen and 
Simple Medicines.” This was firft publilhed in 1770, and 
dedicated to fir John Pringle, then prefident of the Royal 
Society, with whom he was in fome meafure conneXed 
by his wife’s family.—The very general diffufion, as well 
as great celebrity, ofthis work, having rendered the doXor’s 
name exceedingly popular, he determined to try his for¬ 
tune on the wider theatre of London. His fuccefs was 
at firft very flattering; and, could he have withftood the 
allurements of company, which his convivial talents al¬ 
ways enlivened, and confidered the healing art merely as a 
lucrative profeflion, he might undoubtedly have amaffed a 
large fortune. But he too frequently preferred the fociety 
of an agreeable friend at the Chapter to the calls of bufi¬ 
nefs, the importunities of patients, and the purfuit of 
wealth. He however exerted himfelf at times ; and a lit¬ 
tle before the memorable revolution in France he repaired 
to Dunkirk, where he reftored a rich merchant to health, 
after his cafe had been relinquifhed as hopelefs by all 
the French phyficians. His magnum opus , the Domeftic 
Medicine, has experienced a fale far exceeding that of any 
other medical work ever publilhed in this ifland. It has 
gone through no lefs than twenty-one editions, many of 
which confided of fix and feven thoufand copies each ; and 
(till enjoys as extenfive a circulation as ever. In addition 
to this, it has been frequently republilhed in America, and 
has been repeatedly imitated, copied, and pirated, in vari¬ 
ous ways, as well as under different forms, both in Ireland 
and in this country. It is tranilated into every language 
of Europe, and even into the Ruffian. The reputation of 
the author appears to have been (till greater on the conti¬ 
nent than in his native country. From the late emprefs 
of Ruffia, the munificent rewarder of every fpecies of me¬ 
rit, he received a large medallion, of pure gold, with a 
complimentary letter, written at her imperial majefty’s ex- 
prefs command by the chancellor d’Olterman. He alfo 
received many other, complimentary letters, fome of them 
accompanied with liberal prefents, both from individuals 
and focieties in feveval of the Weft-India illands, expref- 
‘SA’-f- 
