136 PATH 
objeft of his life. In its plan it was abfolutely unique, 
and the perfection to which he brought it rendered it the 
admiration of all who were capable of judging of its 
value. It embraced the grand delign of expofing to view 
the gradations of nature, from the moll limple ftate in 
which life is found to exilr, to the molt perfect and com¬ 
plete piece of animal mechanifm, that of man. This 
collection of anatomical faCts is arranged according to the 
functions they are intended to illuflrate, the different 
parts of animal bodies intended for fimilar ufes being 
brought together in feries, fothat the various links in the 
chain of perfection are readily followed, and clearly un¬ 
derflood, This arrangement comprehends four great or¬ 
ders : the firft, parts conftruCted for motion ; fecond, parts 
eflentia! to animals refpeCting their own internal economy 
and prefervation ; third, parts fuperadded for purpofes 
connected with external objeCts ; and, fourth, parts for 
the propagation of the fpecies, and the maintenance of 
the young. The Firft Order exhibits the fluids of living 
bodies in a feries, from the Ample colourlefs fap of fome 
vegetables to the coloured and coagulating blood; the 
mufcles, from the ffcraight Ample mufcle to the moll com¬ 
plicated flruCture with elaltic ligaments; the growth of 
bone, horn, fhell, Sec. and the varieties of joints. The 
Second Order comprehends the organs of digeftion, be¬ 
ginning with the hydatid, which is itfelf a Ample pouch, 
and pafling to the polypus, the leech, and more compli¬ 
cated animals, including a feries of flomachs, of inteftinal 
canals, and of the glands connected with them, as livers, 
fpleens, See. After the organs of digeftion follows the 
iyftem of abforbing vefiels, from the roots of plants up to 
the laCteals and lymphatics of different animals. The 
next ftep is to the heart, which, in the caterpillar, is a 
Ample canal, and receives various additions as we afeend 
in the fcale, until we find it a double heart in man and 
quadrupeds: this leads to the ItruCture of arteries and 
veins. Then the lungs are fhown in all their gradations, 
from the Ample vafcular lining of the egg-fhell, which 
ferves as lungs for the chicken, to thofe of the more per¬ 
fect animals, including gills. Sec. The windpipe and 
organs of voice are Aiown under their different forms. 
And, lallly, the kidneys are exhibited, which feparate the 
fuperfiuous fluids from the circulation. The Third 
Order takes up the brain from its funplefl ftate in-the 
leech, to the fnail, infeCts, fii'h, &c. upwards; the varieties 
of all the organs of fenfe in the different tribes of living 
things; and, laftly, the external coverings of hair, fea¬ 
thers, feales, &c. the weapons of offence and defence, as 
fpurs, hoofs, horns, flings, and eleCtric organs. As an 
Appendix to this Order, fome peculiar ftruCtures are 
added, fuch as the air-bladder in fifh, Sec. The Fourth 
Order includes all the variety of parts connected with the 
procefs of generation in plants and animals, from the 
polypus and coral to the perfeCt animals; thofe of females 
in the maiden and impregnated Hate, including the pro¬ 
ducts of feeds, fpawn, eggs, Sec. the pregrefs of incuba¬ 
tion ; the peculiarities of the fetus ; and the various or¬ 
gans for the nourifhment of the young. This (ketch 
gives a very inadequate idea of the amazing number of 
objeCts, from every department of nature, which the col¬ 
lection comprifed; but it contains, befides, a large feries 
of whole animals, arranged according to their internal 
flruCture, many of them the rareft ever brought into this 
country; fuch as the camelopard, hippopotamus, &c. It 
comprehends, moreover, a feries of lkulls of different ani¬ 
mals, and fkeletons of almoft every known genus; an 
immenfe number of calculi, urinary, biliary, and intefti- 
nal; a large collection of fhells and infeCts; and a moil 
complete aflortment of extraneous foflils. By his will, 
Mr. Hunter directed that this Mufeum fhould be offered 
to the purchafe of government; and, after fome negocia- 
tion, it was bought for the public life for the futn of 
15,000/. and given to the College of Surgeons, on condi¬ 
tion of expofing it to public view on certain days in the 
week, and giving a fet of annua! leCtures explanatory of 
O L O G Y. 
its contents. A large building for its reception has been 
completed in Portugal-flreet, connected with the College 
of Surgeons, in Lincoln’s-Inn Square ; and, in the fpring 
of the year 1810, the firft courfe of leCtures was delivered 
by Mr. Home and Sir William Blizard, 
One of the very firft furgeon9 of the prefent day, Mr. 
Lawrence, in a LeCture at the College of Surgeons a few 
months ago, fpeaks of John Hunter in the following 
terms : “ Mr. Hunter is the glory of England in the 18th 
century. In vigour and originality of genius, in compre- 
henfion and depth of thought, in unwearied induftry, he 
has been furpafled by none. He was one of the men who 
gave a character to the age in which they live, whole 
names are affociated to the great asras of fcience, and who 
do honour to the country which produces them. Occu¬ 
pied by a laborious profeflion, and defraying from its hard 
earnings the expenfes of his multifarious inquiries, he 
accomplifhed what appears almoft incredible. What 
might he not have done, had his time been devoted ex- 
clulively to his favourite purfuits, and had they been 
aided by that pecuniary afiiftance and foftering fupport, 
which the rulers of mankind fo feldom and fo unwillingly 
fpare from their fchemes of war and conqueft ? He fur- 
veyed anatomy and phyfiology with the eye of a philofo- 
pher ; proceeding conftantly, with the aid of diflection and 
experiment, to afeertain the flruCture of animals, and to 
determine the nature of their functions. There is 
fcarcely a branch of phyfiology which he has not illuf- 
trated by fome original refearches, while he has examined 
each organ in every animal that he could procure. His 
Mufeum is arranged on this truly philofophical principle.; 
a plan followed by Arillotle, and to be completed, I hope, 
by Cuvier.” This laft eminent perfon is mentioned by 
the fame diftinguifiled authority, as one who hasfufrered 
no .corner of the wide field of zoology toefcape his pene¬ 
trating glance: “Equal (obferves Mr. Lawrence) to 
Buffon in enlarged views and comprehenfive grafp of 
mind, and much fuperior to him in patient refearch, mi¬ 
nute obfervation, and learned inquiry, he prefents a rare 
union of all the great requifites for promoting natural 
knowledge. He has been notlefs fortunate in his fitua- 
tion than in his qualifications; devoting his whole time 
to fcience, and furrounded by numerous able afliflants, he 
could avail himfelf, to their full extent, of thofe liberal 
inftitutions for the advancement of natural knowledge, 
and that uniform encouragement of talent, for which fci¬ 
ence will ever be indebted to the late French government. 
Accordingly, his progrefs has been every-where marked 
by improvement and difeovery.” 
Dr. William Hunter, the elder brother of John, was a 
very diftinguifhed phyfician, anatomift, and accoucheur. 
We have already devoted two pretty long articles in our 
ninth volume to the Hunters. We need, therefore, only 
add, that to William the profeflion is indebted for the 
difeovery of the membrima decidua rejlexa; and to remind 
our readers how much , we have availed ourfelves of his 
fplendid work, the Anatomy of the Gravid Uterus, in our 
articles Anatomy and Parturition, vols. i. and xviii. 
His Mufeum, which is extremely valuable, though of a 
different nature from that of his brother, is now in the 
univerfity of Glafgovv, having been fent there by Dr. 
Bailliefome years before the time mentioned in his uncle’s 
will. See JIunter, vol. ix. p. 481, 2. 
Among the molt diftinguifhed anatomifls of the 18th 
century, as enumerated by Haller in his Bibliothecas, we 
have the names of Morgagni, Window, Chefelden, See. 
which were dated in about the firft 30 years of that cen¬ 
tury, except Morgagni’s work, de Sedibus and Caufis 
Morborum, which he publiflied at an advanced age. 
Under the title of the perJ'eSt Jlate of anatomy, Halier 
reviews the works of Albinus, Senac, Monros, (the father 
and fon,) Nicholls, Lieutaud, Ludwig, Leiberkuyn, 
Daubenton, Camper, Walther, Meckel, Zinn, Fontana, 
Wriiberg, Spalanzani, Hewfon, Portal, Sabatier, Scarpa, 
Blumenbach, Troja, Sec. whofe writings extend to the 
time 
