The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:796] From: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / To: [ADDRESSEE UNKNOWN] / Regarding: Major Crawford (Crauford) (Patient) / 30 December 1767 / (Outgoing)
Reply with advice on regimen and prescriptions for Major Crauford, whose 'breast has been affected with some weakness from his infancy', in the form of a loose corrected draft in Cullen's own hand.
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 4 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
[Page 3]
[Page 4]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 796 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/2/65 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Outgoing |
| Date | 30 December 1767 |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Authorial original |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | Yes |
| Regimen | Yes |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Reply with advice on regimen and prescriptions for Major Crauford, whose 'breast has been affected with some weakness from his infancy', in the form of a loose corrected draft in Cullen's own hand. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | No |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:159] |
Case of Major Crauford [Crawford], who Cullen thinks has had a 'weak breast since infancy'. |
1 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:1] | Author | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:493] | Patient | Major Crawford (Crauford) |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | inferred |
Normalized Text
For Major Crawford
We↑I↑ suspect that the Majors breast has been affected with
some weakness from his infancy & though he has hitherto escaped the
consequences & is now past the time of life when they were to be
first apprehended yet we↑I↑ think it will still ↑be↑ prudent & perhaps ↑necessary for him↑ to
be on his guard against repeated & especially lasting attacks on his
breast.
How he may best manage in this respect we↑I↑ shall say
shortly as we ↑indeed↑ may for it turns upon two particulars only. The
one is guarding against Cold & the other ↑is↑ avoiding every thing that
may heat or inflame his blood.
The guarding against cold depends on on first upon warm
cloathing & especially on the use of a flannel shirt 2dly on keeping
to an uniform & equal cloathing at all seasons of the year ↑especially↑ in a
country↑climate↑ which has no steadiness & uniformity in itself. 3dly on
being frequently in the open air & in proper exercise. 4thly on
avoiding warm chambers & every other means of being heated &
[lastly?] on observing this that moisture has more effect & is to
be more carefully avoided than any degree of cold.
The second Article of the keeping the blood mild & cool
[Page 2]
requires a proper diet. It is not necessary that it should
be very low but very necessary that it should not be full. He
should not eat meat but once a day & never at supper. At dinner
he should prefer the lighter ↑meats↑ & even with these take a good deal
of vegetable food as pudding, Roots, Greens, &c. He must take
fish moderately & never of the heavier kinds as Salmon, Herring
& drest shell fish. He should avoid all kinds of salted meats
all heavy sauces & high seasoning. If his stomach digest
Milk it is very proper & he should take it once a day.
In the spring it may always be of service for him to take
Asses milk every morning for a month or two.
In drinking I need give no Rules to Major Crawford.
A few Glasses of Wine are very safe & if he keeps to a few
glasses there is no occasion for nicety in the choice of his wine.
Spirits in every shape he should avoid. Malt Liquors are not
so bad but it will be best to avoid these also. Coffee & Tea
he may take in moderate quantity.
This Regimen with frequent Exercise on horseback
will I hope secure the Majors health but as it is impossible
[Page 3]
to guard against every attack I think it proper to say a little
of their management when they happen.
When therefore any stuffing of the head, hoarseness or cough
comes on I think it will always be safest to take to the house
& to keep warm for a day or two which will often entirely re¬
move an ailment that might have arisen to ↑a↑ greater severity &
lasted for some weeks. At the same time I think that on every
occasion of such attacks The Major should lay aside the use
of meat & Wine entirely, which if done timeously will often
supersede bleeding & other remedies.
But if an attack of cold is either ↑at first↑ more severe or by
neglect has become so & especially if attended with pain of the
breast the cure cannot be trusted to any management without
bleeding which ought to be more or less according to circumstances.
After bleeding it will commonly ↑be↑ advisable ↑also↑ to take a gentle
vomit. These with the warmth & low diet abovementioned
will commonly be sufficient especially if the cough
continues bound it may sometimes be necessary to repeat the
[Page 4]
bleeding & vomiting & particularly to make use of the Pills
prescribed below. They are a Medicine that taken in a
large dose are apt to sicken the stomach & to go often by stool
which prevents their effecrs on the breast but if they are
taken by a little & often they will commonly be of great
service there. Begin therefore with one pill & take it several
times a day but as you find the stomach bears them you
may either increase the doses or the frequency of them.
Take the dried root of a Squill and grind it to a powder, add ten grains each of Balsam Solution and White Sugar. Mix together well and then adde, add four scruples each of Pontefract Licorice extract and Spanish Soap. Add Balsam Syrup to taste and let it be made; divide into pills, each with 5 grains. Label: Pectoral Pills, one to be taken several times a day.
Diplomatic Text
For Major Crawford
We↑I↑ suspect that the Majors breast has been affected with
some weakness from his infancy & tho he has hitherto escaped the
consequences & is now past the time of life when they were to be
first apprehended yet we↑I↑ think it will still ↑be↑ prudent & perhaps ↑necessary for him↑ to
be on his guard against repeated & especially lasting attacks on his
breast.
How he may best manage in this respect we↑I↑ shall say
shortly as we ↑indeed↑ may for it turns upon two particulars only. The
one is guarding against Cold & the other ↑is↑ avoiding every thing that
may heat or inflame his blood.
The guarding against cold depends on on first upon warm
cloathing & especially on the use of a flannel shirt 2dly on keeping
to an uniform & equal cloathing at all seasons of the year ↑especially↑ in a
country↑climate↑ which has no steadiness & uniformity in itself. 3dly on
being frequently in the open air & in proper exercise. 4thly on
avoiding warm chambers & every other means of being heated &
[lastly?] on observing this that moisture has more effect & is to
be more carefully avoided than any degree of cold.
The second Article of the keeping the blood mild & cool
[Page 2]
requires a proper diet. It is not necessary that it should
be very low but very necessary that it should not be full. He
should not eat meat but once a day & never at supper. At dinner
he should prefer the lighter ↑meats↑ & even with these take a good deal
of vegetable food as pudding, Roots, Greens, &c. He must take
fish moderately & never of the heavier kinds as Salmon, Herring
& drest shell fish. He should avoid all kinds of salted meats
all heavy sauces & high seasoning. If his stomach digest
Milk it is very proper & he should take it once a day.
In the spring it may always be of service for him to take
Asses milk every morning for a month or two.
In drinking I need give no Rules to Major Crawford.
A few Glasses of Wine are very safe & if he keeps to a few
glasses there is no occasion for nicety in the choice of his wine.
Spirits in every shape he should avoid. Malt Liquors are not
so bad but it will be best to avoid these also. Coffee & Tea
he may take in moderate quantity.
This Regimen with frequent Exercise on horseback
will I hope secure the Majors health but as it is impossible
[Page 3]
to guard against every attack I think it proper to say a little
of their management when they happen.
When therefore any stuffing of the head, hoarseness or cough
comes on I think it will always be safest to take to the house
& to keep warm for a day or two which will often entirely re¬
move an ailment that might have arisen to ↑a↑ greater severity &
lasted for some weeks. At the same time I think that on every
occasion of such attacks The Major should lay aside the use
of meat & Wine entirely, which if done timeously will often
supersede bleeding & other remedies.
But if an attack of cold is either ↑at first↑ more severe or by
neglect has become so & especially if attended with pain of the
breast the cure cannot be trusted to any management without
bleeding which ought to be more or less according to circumstances.
After bleeding it will commonly ↑be↑ advisable ↑also↑ to take a gentle
vomit. These with the warmth & low diet abovementioned
will commonly be sufficient especially if the cough
continues bound it may sometimes be necessary to repeat the
[Page 4]
bleeding & vomiting & particularly to make use of the Pills
prescribed below. They are a Medicine that taken in a
large dose are apt to sicken the stomach & to go often by stool
which prevents their effecrs on the breast but if they are
taken by a little & often they will commonly be of great
service there. Begin therefore with one pill & take it several
times a day but as you find the stomach bears them you
may either increase the doses or the frequency of them.
℞ Rad. Scill. Siccat. & pulv.
Balsam. Solutian
Sacchar. alb. @ gr. x
Terito simul probe & adde
Extract. Glycyrrhiz. Pontefract
Sapon. Hispan. @ ℈iv
Syr. Balsam. q.s. ut f. massa dividena in
pilulus sing: gr. v. Signa Pectoral Pills one to be taken
several times a day.
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