Cadogan, William

A Dissertation on the Gout, and all chronic diseases, jointly considered : as proceeding from the same causes, what those causes are and a rational and natural method of cure proposed ... [One line of Latin quotation], by William Cadogan, Fellow of the College of Physicians.

Philadelphia: Printed and sold by R. Aitken at his Book-Store, nearly opposite the London-Coffee-House, in Front Street, [circa 1772].

Octavo, dis-bound from larger work (18 x 11.5 cm.) iv, 39, [1] pages. Publisher's advertisement to final page. Second edition; originally issued together with – but now separated from – Buchan, William, Domestic medicine; or, The family physician... Cadogan's Dissertation on the Gout has separate paging and a special title page with imprint. Aitken used this imprint from 1770 until 1773. The text is typographically identical with the Philadelphia 1771 edition printed by John Dunlap for Aitken (and crediting Dunlap). "William Cadogan (1711-1797) was one of the first to publicly blame the occurrence of gout upon its victims' immoderate habits, identifying the causes of the disease as 'Indolence, Intemperance and Vexation.' He rejected the traditional drastic treatments for gout, which included bleeding, purging and dosing with antimony, in favor of temperance, a moderate diet and regular exercise. These sensible recommendations did much to dispel the fashionable aura surrounding the disease and promoted a more rational and systematic approach to its alleviation. A Dissertation on the Gout was a sensation upon publication, going through eight editions in one year, but it was also severely criticized and lampooned by those unwilling to accept its tenets; Dr. Johnson, himself a sufferer, called it 'a good book in general. . . but a foolish one as to particulars.'" (Copeman, A Short History of the Gout and the Rheumatic Diseases). "By challenging conventional wisdom in arguing that gout was bad for the constitution, and was not a hereditary disease, Cadogan was perceived to be challenging the hereditary principle not only in medicine but also in politics, and in doing so aroused the hostility of conservatives" (ODNB). Age-toning throughout; tide line to first few leaves. Lacks wrapper. [OCLC locates just two copies (Rutgers, Ashland Theological Seminary); Austin, R.B. Early American Medical Imprints 376; Garrison-Morton.com 4498. Norman 384 (the first edition)].

Price: $300.00