Beacon Lights of History, Volume 14: The New Era: A Supplementary Volume, by Recent Writers, as Set Forth in the Preface and Table of ContentsLord, John
Philosophy
Beacon Lights of History, Volume 14: The New Era: A Supplementary Volume, by Recent Writers, as Set Forth in the Preface and Table of Contents
Lord, John
History
We have thus briefly traced some of the more important discoveries of
Michael Faraday. Many have necessarily been passed by, but what we have
given are more than sufficient to stamp him as a great philosopher and
investigator. Speaking of Faraday in this connection, Professor Tyndall
says: "Take him for all in all, I think it will be conceded that Michael
Faraday is the greatest experimental philosopher the world has ever
seen; and I will add the opinion that the progress of future research
will tend not to diminish or decrease, but to enhance and glorify, the
labors of this mighty investigator."
AUTHORITIES.
Experimental Researches in Electricity. By Michael Faraday. From the
Philosophical Transactions.
Abstracts of the Philosophical Transactions from 1800 to 1837.
Faraday's Experimental Researches in Electricity and Magnetism. 3 vols.
Life and Letters of Faraday. By Dr. Bence Jones.
Michael Faraday. By J.H. Gladstone.
Students' Text-Book of Electricity. By Henry M. Noad. Revised by W.H.
Preece.
Michael Faraday. By John Tyndall.
Pioneers of Electricity. By J. Munro.
Dynamo-Electric Machinery. By Silvanus P. Thompson.
A Dictionary of Electrical Words, Terms, and Phrases. By Edwin J.
Houston.
Electricity and Magnetism. By Edwin J. Houston.
Electricity One Hundred Years Ago and To-Day. By Edwin J. Houston.
Magnetism; Electro-Technical Series. By Edwin J. Houston and Arthur E.
Kennelly.
Electro-Dynamic Machinery. By Edwin J. Houston and A. E. Kennelly.
RUDOLF VIRCHOW.
1821-1902.
MEDICINE AND SURGERY.
BY FRANK P. FOSTER, M.D.
Stagnation was the state of medicine when the Nineteenth Century opened.
It was only three years before that Jenner had announced and
demonstrated the protective efficacy of vaccination against small-pox.
His teaching, in spite of the vehement cavillings of the "antis" of his
day, gained credence readily, and vaccination speedily became recognized
and was constantly resorted to, but hardly any attempt at perfecting the
practice was made until after more than fifty years had elapsed. His
discovery--or, rather, his proof of the truth of a rustic
tradition--fell like a pebble into the doldrums; the ripple soon
subsided, and nobody was encouraged to start another. At the present
time such an announcement would be promptly followed by investigations
leading up to such doctrines as that of the attenuation of viruses and
that of antitoxines. But the times were not ripe for anything of that
sort; medicine reposed on tradition, or at best gave itself only to such
plausibilities in the way of innovation as were cleverly advocated.
Physicians strove not to advance the healing art; as individuals, they
were content to rely on their manners, their tact, and their assumption
of wisdom. In short, the body medical was in a state of suspended
animation, possessed of a mere vegetative existence.
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