The Early History of Medicine in Philadelphia.
"they magnified the number of those who died of the disease in the common way."
In 1750, the subjects of smallpox and inoculation still excited much attention in our community, and Dr. Adam Thompson published a tract "On the Preparation of the Body for the Smallpox," in which it was asserted that inoculation "was so unsuccessful in Philadelphia, that many were disposed to abandon it." This work of twenty-four quarto pages I have been unable to obtain. It is spoken of as having merit, "being written in a modest and plain style, the arguments made use of as highly plausible, and the author as actuated with a generous desire to communicate salutary advice in the management of a distemper which has proved fatal to multitudes." In it a cooling regimen is recommended, and upon the suggestion of Boerhaave, he states, "that he was led to prepare his patients for the infection by a composition of mercury and antimony, and that he had employed it for twelve years with great success." The production was severely attacked, among others by Dr. Kearsley, who, in the following year, put forth "Remarks on a Discourse on Preparing for the Smallpox," which led to a rejoinder from the well-known Dr. Alexander Hamilton, of
(106)
