The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:412] From: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / To: [ADDRESSEE UNKNOWN] / Regarding: Mr William Stewart (Patient) / 24 October 1768 / (Outgoing)
Reply 'For Mr Stewart'
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 3 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
[Page 3]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 412 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/1/2/33 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Outgoing |
| Date | 24 October 1768 |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Scribal copy ( includes Casebook Entry) |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | Yes |
| Regimen | No |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Reply 'For Mr Stewart' |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | No |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:227] |
Case of Mr Stewart at Elgin who Cullen considers 'gouty'. |
3 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:1] | Author | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:1163] | Patient | Mr William Stewart |
| [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 | Cullen's House / Mint Close | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | certain |
| Destination of Letter | Elgin | East Highlands | Scotland | Europe | inferred |
Normalized Text
For Mr Stewart
Mr Stewarts ailment seems to consist entirely in a
weakness of his stomach which as Constitutional is not to be
entirely mended but it may in some degree & by a proper
attention his trouble from it may be commonly prevented
To strengthen his stomach I have ordered him some
pills of which he may take three for a dose & such a
dose three times a day that is a little before every meal.
This he is to do for eight days together but no longer & he
may take such a Course three or four times in a year
at such times as he finds his stomach much disordered. Before
he enters upon such a Course he should always cleanse
his stomach with a vomit or two --
Nothing will contribute more to keep his stomach easy
than the keeping his belly regular & tho he has not been
remarkably liable to Costiveness I suspect that his belly is
often too slow & is likely to become Costive & I would have
him provided with a proper Laxative. For that purpose I have
ordered some Pills of which he may take two or three at bedtime
They are designed to be Gently opening & if they Purge much the
dose is to be diminished.
If he shall at any time be attacked with such pain of
his stomach as he has had lately let him take a tea spoonfull
or two of the stomachic Tincture ordered below. The best
way of taking the Dose is on a small Lump of sugar & washing
it down with a little brandy & water. If upon one dose
[Page 2]
the pain does not become easier he may repeat it in an hour or
less after the first but he must not take more than three doses
in one day When he finds occasion to take the medicine he
must observe that it has some tendency to make him Costive
& he must therefore take the Laxative pills on these evenings
that he has to take the tincture.
These are the remedies for Mr Stewart but he must still
more depend upon a Regimen.
He must abstain entirely from all fermented liquors whether
Wine, or malt liquor for tho he may sometimes seem to bear them
they have always a tendency to disturb his stomach. If he takes
any strong drink it must be spirits & water but it should never
be to any excess. He must particularly abstain from tea & Coffee.
In Diet he may take a part of any plain meat but must take
very sparingly of any salted meat & abstain from fish altogether
He must also take very little Cheese & seldom Eggs. Butter
if he digests it easily he may take with more freedom and the
same thing is to be said of Milk. He {illeg}
He must avoid all kind of Greens Roots & therefore all kinds
of Scotch broth The only root that is safe for him is
Potatoes, but he should not take them often or in large
quantities at once. The should be full ripe & rather
roasted than boiled. Wheatbread or anything made of it
is very proper for him & he may likewise take rice in a↑n↑y
shape but Barley & Oatmeal either in bread or otherwise
are not so safe. Mustard & Pepper with any of his food,
[Page 3]
and especially the first are very proper for him --
He should take never to ride with a full stomach &
always to avoid great fatigue
He must be carefull to avoid Cold & Wet & especially
in his feet & legs.
Edinburgh 24. October
1768
Take one ounce of extract of [soft?] Peruvian bark, half an ounce of extract of Gentian, one and a half drachms of green vitriol and a sufficient quantity of syrup of balsam, and make a pill mass divided into single pills of five grains. Let it be [kept in an open bottle?]. Label: Stomachic Pills.
Take two drachms of aloes, and one drachm each of myrhh and gentian. With a sufficient quantity of simple syrup make a mass and divide into single pills of five grains each. [Keep in a bottle?] labelled laxative pills, two for a dose at bed time.
Take two ounces of elixir of {illeg}, and two ounces of liquor of laudanum. Mix and label: Stomachic Tincture, a teaspoonfull or two for a dose.
Diplomatic Text
For Mr Stewart
Mr Stewarts ailment seems to consist entirely in a
weakness of his stomach which as Constitutional is not to be
entirely mended but it may in some degree & by a proper
attention his trouble from it may be commonly prevented
To strengthen his stomach I have ordered him some
pills of which he may take three for a dose & such a
dose three times a day that is a little before every meal.
This he is to do for eight days together but no longer & he
may take such a Course three or four times in a year
at such times as he finds his stomach much disordered. Before
he enters upon such a Course he should always cleanse
his stomach with a vomit or two --
Nothing will contribute more to keep his stomach easy
than the keeping his belly regular & tho he has not been
remarkably liable to Costiveness I suspect that his belly is
often too slow & is likely to become Costive & I would have
him provided with a proper Laxative. For that purpose I have
ordered some Pills of which he may take two or three at bedtime
They are designed to be Gently opening & if they Purge much the
dose is to be diminished.
If he shall at any time be attacked with such pain of
his stomach as he has had lately let him take a tea spoonfull
or two of the stomachic Tincture ordered below. The best
way of taking the Dose is on a small Lump of sugar & washing
it down with a little brandy & water. If upon one dose
[Page 2]
the pain does not become easier he may repeat it in an hour or
less after the first but he must not take more than three doses
in one day When he finds occasion to take the medicine he
must observe that it has some tendency to make him Costive
& he must therefore take the Laxative pills on these evenings
that he has to take the tincture.
These are the remedies for Mr Stewart but he must still
more depend upon a Regimen.
He must abstain entirely from all fermented liquors whether
Wine, or malt liquor for tho he may sometimes seem to bear them
they have always a tendency to disturb his stomach. If he takes
any strong drink it must be spirits & water but it should never
be to any excess. He must particularly abstain from tea & Coffee.
In Diet he may take a part of any plain meat but must take
very sparingly of any salted meat & abstain from fish altogether
He must also take very little Cheese & seldom Eggs. Butter
if he digests it easily he may take with more freedom and the
same thing is to be said of Milk. He {illeg}
He must avoid all kind of Greens Roots & therefore all kinds
of Scotch broth The only root that is safe for him is
Potatoes, but he should not take them often or in large
quantities at once. The should be full ripe & rather
roasted than boiled. Wheatbread or anything made of it
is very proper for him & he may likewise take rice in a↑n↑y
shape but Barley & Oatmeal either in bread or otherwise
are not so safe. Mustard & Pepper with any of his food,
[Page 3]
and especially the first are very proper for him --
He should take never to ride with a full stomach &
always to avoid great fatigue
He must be carefull to avoid Cold & Wet & especially
in his feet & legs.
Edinr. 24. October
1768
℞ Extract. Cort. Peruvian moll. ℥j
~ Gentian ℥ſs
Sal - Mart ʒiſs
Syr Balsam. q. s. ut f. massa dividenda
in pil sing gr v. Mittaintur in phiala [patuli?]
& signa Stomachic Pills
℞ Aloes. Socotorin ʒij
Myrrh
Extract. Gentian @ ʒj
Syr commun q. s. ut f. massa dividenda
in pil sing. gr. v. Mittantur [videmar?] phiula
signa Laxative Pills two for a dose at bed time
℞ Elix. [P. silis?] ℥ij
Laudan. liqr ʒij
ℳ signa stomachic Tincture a tea
spoonfull or two for a dose.
XML
XML file not yet available.
Feedback
Send us specfic feeback about this document [DOC ID:412]
Please note that the Cullen Project team have now disbanded but your comments will be logged in our system and we will look at them one day...
