245 
NOS 
of tlie eighteenth century, when the able and learned 
Dr. F. Boiflier de Sauvages, a profeffor at Montpellier, 
p'ublifhed the rudiments of his fyftem in 1732. This 
work, howaver, contained but an imperfect outline of 
his final claffification, which was not given-to the world 
until it had been matured by exteniive inveftigation, 
much reading, and afliduous application, for the fpace of 
thirty years. It was publifhed in 1762, under the title 
of “ Nofologia Methodica, fiftens Morborum Clafles, Ge¬ 
nera, et Species, juxta Sydenhami mentem, et Botani- 
corum ordinem.” This elaborate and ingenious fyftem 
has not only been generally referred to, but forms, in 
fa Cl, the ground-work of all the fyftems of nofology that 
have fubfequently appeared. It difplays an extenfive 
knowledge of the phyliologv and pathology of the human 
body, derived both from much perfonal obfervation and 
from an indefatigable perufal of the records of medicine; 
and, for practical purpofes, it has not been equalled by 
thole fyftems which have been fubfequently ere&ed upon 
it as a bafis, if we except perhaps that of Dr. Cullen. 
Encouraged by the example, and aided by the previous 
original labours, of Sauvages, feveral authors loon fol¬ 
lowed his fteps in the contrivance of nofological arrange¬ 
ments. The celebrated naturalift, Linnaeus, was one of 
the firft to extend his lingular Ikill in clalTification to the 
fubjeCt of difeafes ; and, after having publilhed the out¬ 
lines of his Icheme in a thelis in 1759, he printed his 
fyftem complete in 1763, with the title of “ Genera Mor¬ 
borum definita.” It conlifted, however, rather of a mo¬ 
dification of the fyftem of Sauvages, with a change of 
names and titles, than of an original arrangement; and 
it wanted the fupport of the medical learning and expe¬ 
rience which were fo confpicuous and valuable in the 
former. 
In the year 1764, profeftor Vogel, of Gottingen, pub¬ 
lilhed his fyftem of nofology, which was likewife a clofe 
approximation to that of Sauvages, but difplayed a con- 
liderable lhare of perfonal obfervation of the phenomena 
of difeafes; and, twelve years afterwards, profeffor Sagar, 
of Vienna, followed a fimilar method, and publiflied an¬ 
other modification of the fyftem of Sauvages, under the 
title of “ Syftema Morborum Symptomaticum,” Vienna, 
1776. In the mean time, however, Dr. Cullen, the ce¬ 
lebrated and able profeffor of medicine in the univerfity 
of Edinburgh, had alio publiflied his own fyftem of no¬ 
fology in the year 1772; which, although leaning upon 
that of Sauvages as a bafis, was much fhortened and con- 
denfed, by a judicious exclufion of a number of trivial 
genera, and of many affeCtions which are merely fymp-- 
tomatic, as well as by an union of feveral other genera, 
which were confidered as only more or lefs prominent 
fymptoms of the'fame effential malady, under one genus. 
This abbreviation of the fyftem has certainly contributed 
to introduce a more Ample and philofophical view of dif¬ 
eafes, by merging under a fmalier number of diviiions all 
the varieties of human malady; and thus, of courfe, re¬ 
ducing the number of curative indications, and render¬ 
ing the principles of pathology and of therapeutics more 
clear arid lefs complex. 
Other fyftems, of various merit, have fince been pre- 
fented to the medical public ; of which may be mentioned 
thofe of Brown, of Macbride, of Darwin, of Currie, &c. 
and laftly, that of Mr. Mafon Good, publiflied fo lately 
3$ the year 1817, and dedicated (by permiflion) to the 
Royal College of Phyficians. But, as none of thefe fyf¬ 
tems, we think, will fuperfede that of Dr. Cullen, which 
is known all over Europe, and is adopted as a text-book 
by the moft eminent practitioners at the prelent day in 
our own country, we lhall adopt it all'o as the ground¬ 
work of our forth-coming article Pathology. 
We lhall juft obferve, in conclufion, that it has been a 
fafhion, with many profefiional men, to decry the ftudy 
of nofology, and the method of teaching medicine upon 
a fyltematic nofological plan. But this can have arifen 
only from an imperfeCt acquaintance with its nature and 
VOL. XVII. No. 1174, 
NOS 
tendency, and a confequent inadequate eftimate of its 
utility. It is neceffary that every practitioner Ihould be 
enabled to diftinguifli difeaies by their figns, or fymptoms, 
if he would hope to cure them by appropriate remedies. 
Ke mult, therefore, pofi'efs in his own mind an arrange¬ 
ment of the charaCleriftic fymptoms of every difeafe, and 
efpecially of the diagnoftic fymptoms, or thofe by which 
it is diftinguilhed from other difeafes which refemble it, 
or with which it has feveral fymptoms in common. The 
queftion, therefore, appears to be, whether it is advifable 
to teach medicine according to a fyftem, in which the 
diagnoftic fymptoms are diltinCtly laid down, or to leave 
them to be learned by a vague and unmethodical courfe 
of reading and practice; a queftion which feems toanlwer 
itfelf. We are perfuaded, that the great fuperiority which 
is commonly feen in practitioners of good education, is 
to be afcribed, in a confiderable degree, to the nofological 
method of ftudying the principles of medical lcience, in 
which they had been early initiated. 
To thofe who have not been accuftomed to confider the 
fubjeCt, a Angle illuftration will perhaps demonftrate the 
truth-of this obfervation. The pleurify, for inftance, or 
inflammation of the lungs, though marked by many fymp¬ 
toms which are common to fevers and other inflamma¬ 
tions, is chara&erifed by the invariable prefence of thefe 
four fymptoms, which conftitute the nofological definition- 
of pneumonia given by Dr. Cullen : namely, “ fever, 
pain in fome part of the cheft, difficult refpiration, cough.” 
Now, in the abfence of any one of thefe fymptoms, how¬ 
ever fevere the others may be, pneumonia cannot be pre¬ 
fent; yet the immethodical praCtitioner is liable to com¬ 
mit ferious miftakes, in refpeCt to this difeafe, from a de¬ 
fective view of the pathognomonic fymptoms. Thus, 
wherever there is acute pain in the cheft, with difficulty 
of breathing, pleurify is often fuppofed to exift, and 
blood-letting immediately reforted to. But, if there is 
neither cough nor fever, or if there fhould be even cough, 
but the pulfe fhould remain natural, inflammation cer¬ 
tainly is not prefent, and blood-letting is unneceffary, 
perhaps injurious. Under fuch circumftances, the pain 
and dyfpnasa originate probably from a rheumatic affec¬ 
tion of the intercoftal mufcles, or from a fpafmodic con¬ 
traction of the fame organs, or of the diaphragm ; and, 
therefore, the appropriate remedy will be an opiate, or 
other antifpalmodic, aided by fome external ftimulant: 
yet, if there be aCtual inflammation prefent, and the 
difeafe is treated with opium and ftimulants, much ferious 
milchief will be produced. Again, cough and fever may 
occur together, and be accompanied even by fome degree 
of oppreflion of the refpiration ; yet, if there is no pain 
in the thorax, there is no adtive inflammation of the lungs ; 
the cough is, in this cafe, probably a fecondary or acci¬ 
dental fymptom, and the fever may be totally indepen¬ 
dent of it, and of fuch a type, that blood-letting, em¬ 
ployed under the fuppofition of removing inflammation, 
might irrecoverably deprefs the ftrength of the patient. 
Againlt fuch important practical errors the mind is moft 
effectually fecured when it is ftored with correCt nofolo¬ 
gical views ; for, where thefe are abfent, the praCtitioner 
is apt to proceed upon a mere empirical afi'ociation of cer¬ 
tain remedies with certain prominent fymptoms, without 
duly marking their combinations, or w-eighing their im¬ 
port; that is, without forming any clear opinion as to the 
aCtual feat, and nature, of the difeafe. 
NOSOPOET'IC, adj. Producing difeafes.—The quali¬ 
ties of the air are nojbpoetich; that is, have a power of 
producing difeafes. Arbuthwt on Air. 
NOSOV'SKOI, a cape on the north coaft of Nova Zem- 
bla. Lat. 77.15. N. Ion. 64. 14. E. 
NOSS HEAD', a cape on the eaft coaft of Scotland, in 
the county of Caithnefs. Lat. 58. 26. N. Ion. 2. 55. W. 
NOSS HEAD', a cape on the north coaft of Nofs Ifland. 
Lat. 60. 13. N. Ion. 1. 5.W. 
NOSS l'SLAND, one of the fmalier Shetland Iflands. 
Lat. 60, 12. N. Ion. 1. 5. W. 
3 R NOS'SA 
