The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:4383] From: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / To: Mr Robert Clerk (Clarke; Clerke; of Mavisbank) / Regarding: Colonel George Clerk (Clarke, Clark) (Patient) / 24 February 1779 / (Outgoing)
Reply, 'For Colonel Clarke' in New York,. The letter is probably to the Colonel's brother, Robert Clerk of Mavisbank, who had transcribed letter 1632, to which this is the response.
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 2 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 4383 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/1/11/121 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Outgoing |
| Date | 24 February 1779 |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Scribal copy ( includes Casebook Entry) |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | No |
| Regimen | No |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Reply, 'For Colonel Clarke' in New York,. The letter is probably to the Colonel's brother, Robert Clerk of Mavisbank, who had transcribed letter 1632, to which this is the response. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | No |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:1473] |
Case of Colonel George Clerk [Clark, Clarke, Clerke] who becomes excessively weak and feeble from chronic costiveness, breathlessness, and other chronic complaints. In New York he has a perpetual fever and stomach complaint and mentions consulting Cullen before but no firm evidence traced unless he is the same patient as Case 283 in 1768. |
24 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:1] | Author | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:3181] | Addressee | Mr Robert Clerk (Clarke; Clerke; of Mavisbank) |
| [PERS ID:2507] | Patient | Colonel George Clerk (Clarke, Clark) |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:421] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr Charles Blagden |
| [PERS ID:3181] | Patient's Relative / Spouse / Friend | Mr Robert Clerk (Clarke; Clerke; of Mavisbank) |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Cullen's House / Mint Close | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | certain |
| Destination of Letter | New York | New York | USA | North America | certain | |
| Mentioned / Other | North America | certain |
Normalized Text
For Colonel Clarke -
I am sorry to find his ailments continue so much the
same as when I formerly advised about him. He has
still a weak stomach, & slow bowels, with some feverish
heat hanging about him. I fear it will be impossible to
restore compleatly, & he must be satisfied with enjoying
some freedom from pain & uneasiness. He must expect
this especially from a proper regimen rather than from
Medecine & the Regimen he should be able from his
experience to direct better than any Physician could do.
It is not what I would attempt, without conversing with
himself, & because he may recieve from Dr Blagden
all the assistance to be got from Physic. But I shall
give a few hints, to be adapted by him more exactly
to the Colonel's constitution particular circumstances.
He can have recieved no durable benefit, but may
much harm from a Chearful glass. Former habits in¬
deed will not allow him to abstain from Wine alto¬
gether, & he should continue to take a few glasses every
day, & Madera is the fittest he can take.
Tho it be common to advise solid food & that almost
alone, & tho it seems also to agree with him yet people
generally go to an extreme in that way & I advise the
Colonel to keep his Stomach as light as possible, to take
the solid food very moderately, & to take of the lighter
kinds as much as his Stomach will bear.
His belly should be kept easy by as cool a medicine
as possible. I fear the Saline purgative might be tad cold,
but if neither Sulphur will answer nor Castor oil can be
employed, an Aloetic may be necessary: & aloes in sub¬
stance as less heating than in Tincture. I have found
a small proportion of Gamboge added to the Aloetic
pill of our Dispensatory, give a laxative that operated
easily in a small dose. I generally employ the Gamboge
in the proportion of a fourth to the Aloes. With respect
[Page 2]
to laxatives in such cases I find it useful to change
from time to time better the form & kind.
The most usefull part of regimen for Col. C. is frequent
gentle exercise on horseback or in a Carriage as the season
will admit.
It is possible he might be the better of a milder cli¬
mate than North America, but this relief would be neither
considerable nor desirable & considering the inconvenience
& difficulty that any great change of climate would sub¬
ject him to, I would not advise it, unless his exper¬
ience of mischief from the winter now passed should
urge him to avoid another.
Diplomatic Text
For Colonel Clarke -
I am sorry to find his ailments continue so much the
same as when I formerly advised about him. He has
still a weak stomach, & slow bowels, with some feverish
heat hanging about him. I fear it will be impossible to
restore compleatly, & he must be satisfied with enjoying
some freedom from pain & uneasiness. He must expect
this especially from a proper regimen rather than from
Medecine & the Regimen he should be able from his
experience to direct better than any Physician could do.
It is not what I would attempt, without conversing w
himself, & because he may recieve from Dr Blagden
all the assistance to be got from Physic. But I shall
give a few hints, to be adapted by him more exactly
to the Colonel's constitution particular circumstances.
He can have recieved no durable benefit, but may
much harm from a Chearful glass. Former habits in¬
deed will not allow him to abstain from Wine alto¬
gether, & he should continue to take a few glasses every
day, & Madera is the fittest he can take.
Tho it be common to advise solid food & that almost
alone, & tho it seems also to agree with him yet people
generally go to an extreme in that way & I advise the
Colonel to keep his Stomach as light as possible, to take
the solid food very moderately, & to take of the lighter
kinds as much as his Stomach will bear.
His belly should be kept easy by as cool a medicine
as possible. I fear the Saline purgative might be tad cold,
but if neither Sulphur will answer nor Castor oil can be
employed, an Aloetic may be necessary: & aloes in sub¬
stance as less heating than in Tincture. I have found
a small proportion of Gamboge added to the Aloetic
pill of our Dispensatory, give a laxative that operated
easily in a small dose. I generally employ the Gamboge
in the proportion of a fourth to the Aloes. With respect
[Page 2]
to laxatives in such cases I find it useful to change
from time to time better the form & kind.
The most usefull part of regimen for Col. C. is freqt
gentle exercise on horseback or in a Carriage as the season
will admit.
It is possible he might be the better of a milder cli¬
mate than N. America, but this relief would be neither
considerable nor desirable & considering the inconvenience
& difficulty that any great change of climate would sub¬
ject him to, I would not advise it, unless his exper¬
ience of mischief from the winter now passed should
urge him to avoid another.
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