Doctors, vaccination, and utilitarianism.

  • Constable, H. Strickland (Henry Strickland), 1821-1909.
Date:
1873
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Doctors, vaccination, and utilitarianism. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.

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    called safeguard against epidemics. Therefore, in about thirty or so years, we may expect the new system of Vaccination to be tested. Although only indirectly connected with the agree.0 subject, I must mention one other point where unanimity seems to reign in the profession. 1 do so, because it always gives me so much pleasure to witness harmony and agreement. It seems then that all doctors agree in thinking that the govern- ment ought to appoint more medical inspectors to see that Vaccination is effectually carried out in large towns ; and also that their salaries ought to be larger than they are. What is the theory of Vaccination put into plain words ? It is this, as I understand it. That in the beginning God created the world and Theory of , , , . . i Vaccination he thought it was very good ; and so it might have in plain been but for one unhappy oversight. He had made no provision against small-pox. At length, after many ages, the Creator's error was rectified by a country apothecary of the name of Jenner, who found out that, by taking some half putrid * matter from a diseased cow and inoculating men with it, the consequences of the unhappy mistake made at the creation might be completely escaped for all future time, unless, indeed, like many other races of animals, cows became extinct, in which case, of * According to the best authorities, lymph from an ulcer is Tissue that has undergone retrograde metamorphosis or become partially decomposed.