"sperat infestis, metuit secundis,
alteram sortem bene preparatum pectus."
?
hor.
?
"whoe'er enjoys th' untroubled breast,
with virtue's tranquil wisdom blest,
with hope the gloomy hour can cheer,
and temper happiness with fear."
when we look abroad amongst mankind—nay, even in the contracted sphere of our own experience—it is interesting to observe the varied current of human life in different cases. in some, from the cradle to the grave, life has been beset with difficulties; it has been a continued struggle; the breath seems to have been first drawn, and finally yielded up, amidst the multifarious oppositions and agitations of adversity. in other instances, life seems like an easy, smoothly gliding stream, gently bearing man on to what had appeared to be the haven of his wishes; and the little voyage has been begun and completed without the appearance of a ripple. all varieties are, no doubt, the result of constantly operating laws. of these, many are probably inscrutable by us; many more, no doubt, escape our observation. the unforeseen nature of many events confers the character of mystery on any attempt at foresight; yet, when we take a careful retrospect of a life, it is curious to observe how naturally the secondary causes appear to have produced the results by which they were followed; but which, beforehand, no one had thought of predicting.
varied, however, as is the course of human life, few men have165 arrived at eminence without difficulty. we do not mean that ephemeral prominence of "position" which makes them marked in their day; but that which leaves the impression of their minds on the age in which they lived, or on the science or other pursuit which they had chosen—original minds, who have enlarged the boundaries of our knowledge. such men usually have the ample gifts of nature with which they are endowed, somewhat counterbalanced by the difficulty experienced in the successful application of them.
abernethy had not been altogether exempt from such difficulties. with a sensitive organization, he had had to make his own way; he had experienced the difficulties which attend the advocacy of opinions and principles which were opposed to, or at all events different from, those generally entertained. he had had to encounter that misconstruction, misrepresentation, ridicule, even malice—save the mark!—which are too frequently provoked by any attempts to tell people that there is something more correct than the notions which they have been accustomed to value. still, when we compare abernethy's course with that of many—we had almost said most—benefactors to science, he might be said to have been a fortunate man. if a man has power, and a "place to stand on"—and abernethy had both—truth will tell at last.
a retired spot, a room in an obscure street, near st. bartholomew's, had been by his unaided talents expanded into a theatre within the walls of the hospital. this was becoming again crowded; and, although it formed a satisfactory arena for the development and illustration of his principles, the increasing audiences were significant of the coming necessity of a still larger building; which was, in fact, a few years afterwards, constructed. he had indeed arrived, as we imagine, at a point which was comparatively smooth water, and which we are inclined to regard as the zenith of his career.
in the opening of his beautiful lectures at the college, abernethy, in one of his warm and earnest endeavours to animate his audience to regard benevolence, and the love of truth, as the impulses which could alone urge on, and sustain, industry in cultivating166 the "science" of our profession, had observed that, "unfortunately, a man might attain to a considerable share of public reputation without being a real student of his profession." there have been indeed too many examples of that, as also of those who, after years of labour, have failed to obtain a scanty living.
abernethy had been a real and laborious student in science, and he was now reaping an abundant and well-deserved fruition. few surgeons have arrived at a position so calculated to satisfy the most exacting ambition. although the full extent and bearing of his principles were by no means universally understood, yet the general importance of them was so, and in some measure appreciated. in a greater or less degree, they were answering the tests afforded by the bedside in all parts of the world.
ample, therefore, as might be the harvest he was reaping in a large practice, he was enjoying a still higher fruition in the kind of estimation in which he was held. he had a high reputation with the public; one still higher amongst men of science. his crowded waiting-room was a satisfactory evidence of the one, and the manner in which his name was received here, on the continent, and in america, a gratifying testimony of the other. he was regarded much more in the light of a man of enlarged mind—a medical philosopher—than merely as a distinguished surgeon.
from the very small beginnings left by mr. pott, he had raised the school of st. bartholomew's to an eminence never before attained by any school in this country. i think i may say that, in its peculiar character, it was at that time (1816) unrivalled.
sir astley cooper was in great force and in high repute at this time; and, combining as he did the schools of two large hospitals, had, i believe, even a larger class. both schools, no doubt, endeavoured to combine what is not, perhaps, very intelligibly conveyed by the terms practical and scientific; but the universal impression, assigned the latter as the distinguishing excellence of mr. abernethy, whilst the former was held to express more happily the characteristic of his eminent contemporary.
whatever school, however, a london student might have selected as his alma mater, it was very common for those whose purse, time, or plans permitted it, to attend one or more courses167 of abernethy's lectures; and it was pleasing to recognize the graceful concession to mr. abernethy's peculiar excellence afforded by the attendance of some of sir astley's pupils, and his since distinguished relatives, at the lectures of abernethy.
as i have said, his practice was extensive, and of the most lucrative kind; that is, it consisted largely of consultations at home. still, he had patients to visit, and, as he was very remarkable for punctuality in all his appointments, was therefore not unfrequently obliged to leave home before he had seen the whole of those who had applied to him. the extent of his practice was the more remarkable, as there was a very general impression, however exaggerated it might be, that his manners were unkind and repulsive. his pupils were enthusiastically fond of him; and it was difficult to know which was the dominant feeling—their admiration of his talents, or their personal regard.
some of the most distinguished men had been of their number; and it would be gratifying to us to enumerate the very complimentary catalogue of able men who have been indebted for much of their eminence and success to the lessons of abernethy; but as, in doing so, we might possibly, in our ignorance, omit some names which ought to be recorded, we forego this pleasure, lest we should unintentionally appear to neglect any professional brother whom we ought to have remembered.
in 1812–13, the pupils had presented mr. abernethy with a piece of plate, "as a testimony of their respect and gratitude." the arrangement of the matter was confided chiefly to the present sir james eyre, mr. stowe of buckingham, and mr. george bullen. in a very interesting letter, with which i have been favoured by mr. stowe, amongst other matters hereafter to be mentioned, it is stated that the plate was delivered at abernethy's house on the 1st of april; and as he had no more entirely escaped such things than other medical men, he at first regarded it as a hoax. but when the contents were exposed, and he discovered the truth, he became much affected.
the regard of the pupils was always the thing nearest his heart. on meeting the class at the hospital, he essayed to express his feelings; but finding that he should only break down, he168 adopted the same course as he had employed on another memorable occasion, and wrote his acknowledgments, a copy of which was suspended against the wall of the theatre.
it is due to our worthy and kind-hearted contemporary, sir james eyre, to add that mr. stowe observes in his letter, that, of all others, sir james was the most zealous promoter of a movement so creditable to all parties. some years after this, another subscription was commenced by the pupils for a portrait of abernethy, which was painted by sir thomas lawrence, and engraved by bromley. it was after this engraving that mr. cook executed the portrait which forms the frontispiece of the present volume. sir thomas, and the engraver after him, have been most successful. he has caught one of mr. abernethy's most characteristic expressions. we see him as he often stood when addressing the anatomical class. we think it impossible to combine more of of him in one view. we fancy we see his acute penetration, his thoughtful expression, his archness and humour, and his benevolence, all most happily delineated, whilst the general position and manner is eminently faithful. in his surgical lectures, he was generally seated; and in the lithograph, he is represented in the position which he almost invariably assumed when he was enunciating the proposition which is placed beneath the engraving. it is the work of a young artist who was considered to evince great promise of future excellence; but who, we regret to say, died last year—mr. leighton.
in 1815, he had been appointed surgeon to the hospital, after twenty-eight years' tenure of the assistant surgeoncy; a subject that we merely mention now, as we shall be obliged to revert to it when we consider the subject of the "hospital system."
at the time to which we allude, lecturing had become so easy as to appear little more than amusement to him; yet there were (we speak of about 1816) no signs of neglect or forgetfulness. his own interest in the subject was sustained throughout; but as his unrivalled lecturing will be more fully described, we must not anticipate. few old pupils visited london without contriving to get to the hospital at lecture time. the drudgery of the early morning anatomical demonstration was taken off his169 hands by a gentleman who performed his task with credit to himself and with justice to his pupils.
abernethy, at this time, in addition to a successful school, a large and attached class, a solid and world-wide reputation, was receiving numerous proofs that his principles were recognized; that, however imperfectly adopted, they were gaining ground; and that if all his suggestions were not universally admitted, they were becoming axiomatic with some of the first surgeons, both in this and other countries.
we think it not improbable that it was somewhere about this period that it was proposed to confer on him the honour of a baronetcy. we had long been familiar with the fact; but not regarding it as very important, and having nothing in proof of it but the generally received impression, we omitted any reference to it in the first edition of these memoirs. finding, however, more interest attached to the circumstance than we expected, we have communicated with the family on the subject, and have ascertained that all the circumstances are fresh in their recollection, although they cannot recall the exact period at which they occurred.
his first announcement of the fact to his family was at table, by his jocosely saying: "lady abernethy, will you allow me to assist you to—?" &c. having had his joke, he then formally announced to them the fact, together with the reasons which had induced him to decline the proffered honour—namely, that he did not consider his fortune sufficient, after having made what he regarded as only a necessary provision for his family.
it is probable that his motives were of a mixed character. we do not believe that he attached much value to this kind of distinction, and that, had he availed himself of the offer, it would have been rather from a kind of deference to the recognition it afforded of the claims, and thus indirectly promoting the cultivation of science, than for any other reason. it was not but that he held rank and station in the respect which is justly due to them; but that he regarded titles as no very certain tests of scientific distinction. enthusiastic in his admiration of intellectual, still more of moral excellence, he had something scarcely170 less than coldness in regard to the value of mere titles; whilst he beheld, with something like repulsion, the flattery to which their possessors were so often exposed.
there are men who have so individualized themselves that they seem to obscure their identity by any new title. john hunter was scarcely known by any less simple appellation. we hardly now say "mr." hunter without feeling that we may be misunderstood. it begins to have a sound like "mr." milton or "mr." shakspeare; abernethy and john abernethy are fast becoming the only recognized designations of our philosophical surgeon, for even the modest prefix of mr. is fast going into disuse. be this as it may, it is certain he declined the honour; and to us it is equally so that he felt at least indifferent to it; for although the good sense and good feeling implied in the reasons alleged were characteristic, yet, had they constituted the only motive, he might, with his abundant opportunities, have removed that objection in a very reasonable time, without difficulty.
it is perhaps significant of the measured interest with which mr. abernethy regarded the acquisition of a baronetcy, that the family could not recollect the period at which it was offered. this information, however, i obtained from sir benjamin brodie, who has kindly allowed me to record the fact in the following reply to my inquiry on the subject.
"14, saville row,
"november 16, 1854.
"my dear sir,
"my answer to your inquiry may be given in a very few words. i perfectly well remember the having been informed by the late sir john becket that he had been commissioned by lord liverpool to offer mr. abernethy, on the part of the crown, the honor of being created a baronet, which, however, mr. abernethy declined.
"i am, dear sir,????
"yours faithfully,?
"b. c. brodie.
"g. macilwain, esq."
171
he told me once of an interview he had with lord castlereagh, which may, perhaps, be not out of place here. when sir t. lawrence was painting the portrait, and abernethy went to give him a sitting, abernethy was shown into a room where another visitor, a stranger to him, was also waiting. the stranger, looking at a portrait of the duke of york, observed, "very well painted, and very like." "very well painted," abernethy replied. the other rejoined: "a good picture, and an excellent likeness." "a very good picture," said abernethy. "and an excellent likeness," again rejoined his companion. "why, the fact is," said abernethy, "sir thomas has lived so much amongst the great, that he has learnt to flatter them most abominably." on being shown in to sir thomas, sir thomas said: "i find you have been talking to lord castlereagh."
he had not, we think, as yet sustained the loss of any member of his family, nor hardly experienced any of those ordinary crosses from which few men's lives are free, and which, sooner or later, seldom fail to strew our paths with enough to convince us that perfect peace cannot be auspiciously sought in the conduct of human affairs. he was soon, however, to receive an impression of a painful nature, and from a quarter whence, whatever might have been his experience, he certainly little expected it. long accustomed to be listened to by admiring and assenting audiences, whether in the theatre of the hospital, or in those clusters of pupils which never failed to crowd around him whenever he had anything to say; he was now to have some of his opinions disputed, his mode of advocating them impugned, his views of "life," made the subject of ridicule, and even his fair dealing in argument called in question. all this, too, by no stranger; no person known only to him as one of the public, but by one who had been his pupil, whose talents he had helped to mature and develop, whose progress and prospects in life he had fostered and improved, and to whom, as was affirmed by the one, and attested by the other, he had been a constant friend.
that this controversy was the source of much suffering to abernethy, we are compelled to believe; and it is altogether to us so disagreeable, and difficult a subject, that we should have172 preferred confining ourselves to a bare mention of it, and a reference to the works wherein the details might be found; it is, however, too important an episode in the life of abernethy to be so passed over; it suggests many interesting reflections; it exhibits abernethy in a new phase, illustrates, under very trying circumstances, the
"virtus repuls? nescia
intaminatis fulget honoribus,"
and brings out in stronger relief than any other transaction of his life the best and most distinctive traits of his character (benevolence and christian feeling), under temptations which have too frequently disturbed the one, and destroyed the other.
