REASONS humbly offered by the company exercifing the trade and mystery of UPHOLDERS, against part of the BILL, for the better viewing, fearching and examining drugs, medicines, &c. 1724. B Eing called upon by feveral retailers and difpenfers of drugs and medicines about town, to ufe our endeavours against the bill now depending, for viewing, &c. In regard of our common intereft, and in gratitude to the faid retailers and difpenfers of medicines, (which we have always found to be very effectual) we prefume to lay the following reafons before the publick, against the said bill. That the company of upholders are far from being averfe to the giving of drugs and medicines in general, provided they may be of fuch qualities as we require, and adminiftred by fuch perfons in whom our company juftly repofe the greateft confidence. And provided they tend to the encouragement of trade, and the confumption of the woolen manufacture of this kingdom. We beg leave to obferve, that there hath been no complaint from any of the Nobility, Gentry and citizens whom we have attended. Our practice, which confifts chiefly in outward applications, having been always fo effectual, that none of our patients have been obliged to undergo a fecond operation, excepting one Gentlewoman; who, after her first burial, having burdened her husband with a new brood of pofthumous children, her fecond funeral was by us performed without any further charges to the faid hufband of the deceas'd. And we humbly hope, that one fingle inftance of this kind(a misfortune owing merely merely to the avarice of a fexton in cutting off a ring) will not be imputed to any want of fkill, or care, in our company. We humbly conceive, that the power by this bill lodged in the cenfors of the college of Phyficians, to reftrain any of his Majesty's fubjects from difpenfing, and well difpofed perfons from taking what medicines they please, is a manifeft encroachment on the liberty and property of the fubjects. As the company exercifing the trade and mystery of upholders, have an indifputed right in and upon the bodies of all and every the fubjects of the kingdom; we conceive the paffing of this bill, though not abfolutely depriving them of their faid right, might keep them out of posellion by unreasonable delays, to the great detriment of our company and their numerous families. We hope it will be confidered, that there are multitudes of neceffitous heirs and penurious parents, perfons in pinching circumftances, with numerous families of children, wives that have lived long, many robust aged women with great jointures, elder brothers with bad understandings, fingle heirs of great eftates, whereby the collateral line are for ever excluded, reverfionary patents, and reverfionary promifes of preferments, leafes upon fingle lives, and playdebts upon joint lives, and that the perfons fo aggrieved have no hope of being speedily relieved any other way, than by the difpenfing of drugs and medicines in the manner they now are; burying alive being judged repugnant to the known laws of this kingdom. That there are many of the deceased, who by certain mechanical motions and powers are carried about town, who would have been put into our hands long before this time by any other wellordered government; by want of a due police in this particular, our company have been great fufferers. That frequent funerals contribute to preserve the Senealogies genealogies of families, and the honours conferred by the crown, (which are no where so well illustrated as on this folemn occafion); to maintain neceffitous clergy, to enable the clerks to appear in decent habits to officiate on Sundays, to feed the great retinue of Sober and melancholy men who appear at the said funerals and who must starve without conftant and regular employment. Moreover we defire it may be remembred, that by the paffing of this bill, the Nobility and Gentry will have their old coaches lie upon their hands, which are now employed by our company. And we further hope that frequent funerals will not be difcouraged (as is by this bill proposed), it being the only method left of carrying fome people to church. We are afraid that by the hardships of this bill, our company will be reduced to leave their bufinefs here, and practise at York and Bristol, where the free ufe of bad medicines will be ftill allowed. It is therefore hoped, that no fpecious pretence whatsoever will be thought fufficient to introduce an arbitrary and unlimited power for people to live (in defiance of art), as long as they can by the course of nature, to the prejudice of our company, and the decay of trade. That as our company are like to fuffer in fome measure by the power given to phyficians to diffect the bodies of malefactors, we humbly hope that the manufacture of cafes for skeletons will be referved folely to the coffinmakers. We likewife humbly prefume, that the interests of the several trades and profeffions which depend upon ours, may be regarded; fuch as that of the makers of hearfes, coaches, coffins, epitaphs, and bell-ropes, ftone-cutters, feather-men, and bell-ringers; and efpecially the manufacturers of crapes; and the makers of fnuff, who ufe great quantities of old coffins, and who confidered in the confumption of their drugs, employ by far the greatest number of hands of any manufacture of the kingdom. Annus Annus mirabilis: Or the wonderful effects of the approaching conjunction of the Planets Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn. By MART. SCRIBLERUS, Philomath. I In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas Suppofe every body is fufficiently apprized of, and duly prepared for the famous conjunction to be celebrated the 29th of this inftant December, 1722. foretold by all the fages of antiquity, under the name of the Annus mirabilis or the metamorphoftical conjunction; a word which denotes the mutual tranfformation of fexes, (the effect of that configuration of the celestial bodies) the human males being to be turned into females, and the human females into males. The Egyptians have represented this great transformation by feveral fignificant hieroglyphicks, particularly one very remarkable. There are carved upon an obelisk, a barber and a midwife, the barber delivers his razor to the midwife, and the her fadling cloaths to the barber. Accordingly Thales Milefius (who, like the rest of his countrymen, borrowed his learning from the Egyptians) after having computed the time of this famous conjunction, Then (fays he) fhall men and women mutually exchange the pangs of fhaving and child-bearing. Anaximander modeftly defcribes this metamorphofis in mathematical terms: Then (fays he) ball the negative quantity of the women be turned into pofitive, their into +; (i. e.) their minus into plus. 66 Plato not only speaks of this great change, but defcribes all the preparations towards it. "Long before "the bodily transformation (fays he) nature shall begin the most difficult part of her work, by changing "the ideas and inclinations of the two fexes; men shall "turn effeminate, and women manly; wives fhall do"mineer and husbands obey; ladies shall ride a horse"back, dress'd like cavaliers; Princes and nobles ap" pear in night-rails and petticoats; men fhall Squeak "upon theatres with female voices, and women corrupt irgins; men fhall knot and cut paper; and even the « northern people αρσένα κύπρὶν ὀρινῶν: a phrafe (which "for modefty's fake I forbear to tranflate) which denotes a vice too frequent amongst us". So far Plato. That the miniftry forefaw this great change, is plain from the Callico act; whereby it is now -become the occupation of the women all over England, to convert their ufelefs female habits into beds, window-curtains, chairs, and joint-stools; undressing themselves (as it were) before their transformation. The philofophy of this transformation will not feem furprifing to people, who fearch into the bottom of things. Madam Bourignon, a devout French lady, has fhewn us how man was at firft created male and female in one individual, having the faculty of propagation within himself: a circumstance neceffary to the ftate of innocence, wherein a man's happiness was not to depend upon the caprice of another. It was not till after he had made a faux pas, that he had his female mate. Many fuch transformations of individuals have been well attefted: particularly one by Montaigne, and another by the late Bishop of SalibuFrom all which it appears, that this system of ry. male |