1
“Alas! alas! pain, pain, ever forever!”
So groaned upon his rock that Titan good
Who by his brave and loving hardihood
Was to weak man of priceless boons the giver,
Which e’en the supreme tyrant could not sever
From us, once given; we own him in our food
And in our blazing hearth’s beatitude;
Yet still his cry was “Pain, ever forever!”
Shall we a later, harder doom rehearse?
One came whose art men’s dread of are repressed:
Mangled and writhing limb he lulled to rest,
And stingless left the old Semitic curse;
Him, too, for these blest gifts did Zeus amerce?
He, too, had vultures tearing at his breast.
2
Hush, Pagan plaints! our Titan is unbound;
The cruel beak and talons scared away;
As once upon his mother’s lap he lay
So rests his head august on holy ground;
Spells stronger than his own his pangs have found;
He hears no clamour of polemic fray,
Nor reeks he what unthankful men may say;
Nothing can vex him in that peace profound.
In a peaceful corner of the St. Andrew Chapel in Westminster Abbey, alongside memorials of Sir Humphry Davy and a few other scientists of note, stands a speaking image in marble—perhaps the most expressive representation that exists—of this wonderful man,
“To whose genius and benevolence
The world owes the blessings derived
From the use of chloroform for
The relief of suffering.
Laus Deo.”
Mr. Jonathan Hutchinson, when writing to the medical journals in support of the proposal to secure Simpson’s burial in Westminster Abbey, foretold that his reputation would ripen with years, that jealousies would be forgotten, and antagonism would be buried. Twenty-seven years have elapsed since then, and few remain with whom he came in conflict; those who do remain exchanged, along with others of his opponents, friendly words of reconciliation in the end, and took the hand which he held out from his deathbed. As a man, Simpson had his faults; but they were exaggerated in his lifetime by some, just as his capabilities and achievements were magnified by 220 those who worshipped him as inspired. He was full of sympathy for mankind, benevolent and honest to a fault, and forbearing to his enemies. He rushed eagerly into the combat and oftentimes wounded sorely, and perhaps unnecessarily. His genius was essentially a reforming genius, and impelled him to fight for his ends, for genius is always the “master of man.” We can forgive him if sometimes it caused him to fight too vigorously, where the heart of a man of mere talent might have failed and lost. His social charms were excelled only by his marvellous energy, his prodigious memory, and his keenness of insight; but he was regrettably inattentive to the details of ordinary everyday life and practice.
He approached the study of medicine when the darkness of the Middle Ages was still upon it, and was one of the first to point out that although many diseases appeared incurable, they were nevertheless preventable. Although no brilliant operator himself, he so transformed the surgical theatre by his revelation of the power of chloroform, and by his powerful advocacy of the use of anæsthetics, that pain was shut out and vast scientific possibilities opened up; many of which have been brilliantly realised by subsequent workers. He devoted himself specially to the despised obstetric art, fighting for what he recognised as the most lowly and neglected branch of his profession, ranging his powerful forces on the side of the weak, and left it the most nearly perfect of medical sciences.
He was enthusiastic in his belief in progress, and in the power of steady, honest work to effect great ends. With the exception of the time of that temporary burst into revivalism in 1861, his motto throughout life might very well have been laborare est orare. He was no believer in speculations, but curiously enough kept for recreation only the subject of archæology, in which he entered into many intricate speculative studies. In his professional work he avoided speculation, and never adopted a theory which was not built upon firm fact.
If we are asked for what we are most to honour Simpson, we answer, not so much for the discoveries he made, not for the instruments he invented, not for his exposure of numerous evils, not for the introduction of reforms, not for any particular contribution to science, literature, or archæology; but rather for the inspiring life of the man looked at both in outline and in detail. He was guided by high ideals, and a joyous unhesitating belief that all good things were possible—that right must prevail. He was stimulated by a genius which, as has been pointed out, gave him the energy to fight for his ends with herculean strength. The fact that chloroform was by his efforts alone accepted as the anæsthetic, and ether, which from the first was generally thought to be safer in ordinary hands, was deliberately put on one side practically all over the world, testified to his forcible and convincing method, and to his power of 222 making others see as he saw. As a man of science alone, as a philanthropist alone, as a worker alone, as a reformer alone, he was great. But although to the popular mind he is known chiefly because of his introduction of chloroform, medical history will record him as greater because of his reforming genius, and will point to the fight for anæsthesia, and his crusade against hospitalism as the best of all that he accomplished or initiated. And he who, while making allowances for the weaknesses of human nature which were Simpson’s, studies the life which was brought all too soon to a close, will recognise the great spirit which breathed through all his life.
THE END.
The following is a list of Sir James Simpson’s contributions to Archæology. His professional writings, in the form of contributions to the medical journals, or of papers read to various societies or meetings, number close upon two hundred.
1. “Antiquarian Notices of Leprosy and Leper Hospitals in Scotland and England.” (Three papers read before the Medico-Chirurgical Society, March 3, 1841.) Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal, October, 1841, and January and April, 1842.
2. “Notice of Roman Practitioner’s Medicine Stamp found near Tranent.” Royal Society of Edinburgh; Dec. 16, 1850.
3. “Ancient Roman Medical Stamps.” Edinburgh Journal of Medical Science, Jan., March, April, 1851.
4. “Was the Roman Army provided with any Medical Officers?” Edinburgh, 1851, private circulation.
5. “Notes on some Ancient Greek Medical Vases for containing Lykion; and on the modern use of the same in India.” Edinburgh, 1856.
6. “Notice of the appearance of Syphilis in Scotland in the last years of the fifteenth century.” 1860.
7. “Note on a Pictish Inscription in the Churchyard of St. Vigeans.” Royal Society, April 6, 1863.
8. “Notes on some Scottish Magical Charm-Stones or Curing Stones.” Proceedings of Antiquarian Society of Scotland, vol iv., 1868.
9. “An Account of two Barrows at Spottiswoode, Berwickshire, opened by the Lady John Scott.” Proceedings of Antiquarian Society of Scotland, vol iv., 1868.
10. “Did John de Vigo describe Acupressure in the Sixteenth Century?” British Medical Journal, Aug. 24, 1867; Medical Times and Gazette, 1867, vol. ii., p. 187.
11. “Account of some Ancient Sculptures on the Walls of Caves in Fife.” 1867.
12. “Notices of some Ancient Sculptures on the Walls of Caves.” Proceedings of the Royal Society; Edinburgh, 1867.
13. “Cup-cuttings and Ring-cuttings on the Calder Stones, near Liverpool.” 1866. Transactions of the Historical Society of Lancashire and Cheshire.
14. “Archæology—its past and its future work.” Annual Address to the Society of Antiquarians of Scotland, January 28, 1861.
15. “The Cat Stane, Edinburghshire.” Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries, Scotland, 1861.
16. “Archaic Sculpturings of Cups, Circles, &c., upon Stones and Rocks in Scotland, England, and other countries.” 1867.
17. “Is the Pyramid at Gizeh a Meteorological Monument?” Proceedings of the Royal Society; Edinburgh, 1868.
18. “Pyramidal Structures in Egypt and elsewhere.” Proceedings of the Royal Society; Edinburgh, 1868.
19. “Cell at Inchcolm.”
The above list is founded on that given by Professor Gusscrow in his “Zur Erinnerung an Sir James Y. Simpson.” Berlin, 1871.
On post mortem examination the following observations on Sir James Simpson’s head were made:—
| Skull | —circumference round by occipital protuberance and below frontal eminences, 22½ inches. |
| —from ear to ear, 13 inches. | |
| —from occipital protuberance to point between superciliary ridges, 13 inches. | |
| Brain | —weight of entire brain (cerebrum and cerebellum) was 54 ounces; the cerebellum, pons, and medulla oblongata weighed 5¼ ounces. |
The convolutions of the cerebrum were remarkable for their number, depth, and intricate foldings. This was noticed more particularly in the anterior lobes and the islands of Reil.
Extract from British Medical Journal, May 14, 1870.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M |
| N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |
Academy of Sciences (France), 194
Acupressure, 173
Adam Street, Simpson’s lodgings in, 20, 30
Addresses, Graduation, 74-77, 200
Alcohol as an anæsthetic, 93
Alison, Professor, 56, 59, 73, 148
America, United States of, and anæsthesia, 83, 96, 199
opposition to:
(1) medical, 113
(2) moral, 120
(3) religious, 123.
Discovery of, 88
results of, 130
Antiquarians, Scots Society of, 8, 71, 156
Appendix, 223
Archæological works, Simpson’s, 223
Argyle, Duke of, 217
Arts, curriculum of, 14, 19, 20
Aytoun, 27
Baden, Princess Marie of, 69
Ballingall, Professor, 60
Baronetcy, Simpson’s, 190
Bennet, 42
Bigelow, Dr., of Boston, 198, 214
Blantyre, Lord, 80
Boerhaave, 134
Braid, Dr., 95
British Medical Association, 188
British Medical Journal, 176, 177, 188, 225
Bruce, Robert, 72
Brunton, Dr. Lauder, 148
Burke and Hare, 23
Bursary won by Simpson, 20
Carstares, William, 192
Catstane, the, of Kirkliston, 8, 155
Cheselden, 122
Cheyne, Mr. Watson, 184
Chirurgeons, incorporation of, 58
Chloric ether, 99
discovery of, 105
composition described by Dumas, 106
Flouren’s experiments, 106
discovery of properties, 106
used in obstetrics, 108
Simpson’s opinion of, 111
administration, teaching of, 130
Christison, Professor, 56, 59, 84, 148, 188, 195
Clark, Sir James, 129
Clover, 130
College of Physicians, Edinburgh, 53, 58, 189
Cooley, Mr., 97
Cooper, Bransby, 123
Crest, Simpson’s, 192
Davy, Sir Humphry, 95, 96, 219
Dawson, Dr., 69
Disruption, the, 85
Doctor of Medicine, degree of, 38
Dumas, 106
Dunbar, Professor, 18
Duncan, Dr. Matthews, 105
Du Potet, 94
Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal, 52, 72
Education, Simpson on, 199
Encyclopædia Britannica, 198
Erskine House, Simpson’s visit to, 80
Esdaile, Dr., 95
Evangelical work, Simpson’s, 209
Faraday, 96
Fohman, Professor, 45
Forbes, Edward, 41
Foreign tour, Simpson’s, 43-46
Free Church, 85
Freedom of Edinburgh city, 197
Funeral, Simpson’s, 216
Gairdner, Dr., 37
Girdwood, Dr., 37
Gladstone, Mr., 215
Goodsir, Professor, 42
Graduation addresses, 74-77, 200
Grant, Sir Alexander, 195
Grindlay, Miss Jessie, 46, 55, 57
Gusserow, Professor, 113, 170, 225
Gynæcological Society of Boston, 199
Gynæcology, 86
Hahnemann, 147
Hamilton, Duchess of, 69
Hamilton, Professor James, 32, 40, 56, 59, 69, 163, 169
Hamilton, Sir William, 27
Health, Simpson’s, 210
Henderson, Professor, 148
Home, Professor James, 59
Hospitalism, 177-184
Hospitality, Simpson’s, 81-83
Hotels, the Edinburgh, and Simpson, 163
Houghton, Lord, 213
Hutchinson, Mr. Jonathan, 219
Lancet, the, 95, 169, 191, 218
Laughing-gas, vide nitrous oxide
Laycock, Professor, 186
Leighton, Archbishop, 193
Leprosy and leper-houses, 70
Lippi, 45
Lister, Lord, 176, 179, 184, 188
Liston, Professor, 26, 31, 91, 95, 104, 151
Lizars, John, 26
London, Simpson’s journeys to, 80, 187, 213
Long, Dr., of Athens, U.S.A., 96
Lycium, the, of the Muses, 154
MacArthur, Mr., 20, 21, 22, 26, 39
Macintosh, Dr., 55
Maclagan, Sir Douglas, 43
Maclaren, Mr. Duncan, 61
Maga, the university, 41
Mandrake, 93
Master of Arts, the degree of, 19
Medical faculty, the, 57, 59, 60, 187
Medical Reform Act, the, 187
Medical student, the Edinburgh, 33
Medical Times and Gazette, the, 184
Medicine, condition of, at Simpson’s birth, 1-3
Medico-Chirurgical Society, the Edinburgh, 189
Meigs, Professor, 117
Midwifery, 3, 32, 39, 40, 53, 86, 104
Midwifery Chair, 55-65, 188, 215
Midwifery class, Simpson’s, 67
Miller, Professor, 106, 109, 186
Moncrieff, Lord, 27
Monro (Primus), 57
Monro (Secundus), 56
Montgomery, Dr., 140
Monthyon Prize, the, 190
Napier, Lord, of Magdala, 197
Nepenthe, 93
Nitrous oxide gas, 97
North, Christopher, 18
Nunn, Mr., 123
Paré, Ambroise, 90
Petroleum, 84
Physician-Accoucheur to the Queen, Simpson appointed, 86
Pillans, Professor, 18
Post mortem, 225
Practitioner, the, 184
Principalship, the, of Edinburgh University, 192
“Prometheus,” 218
“Puck,” 138
Reform, medical, 187
Reform, university, 187
Regents, the, of Edinburgh University, 192
Reid, Professor John, 18, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, 39, 41, 42, 55, 207
Religious views, Simpson’s, 203
Rinderpest, epidemic of, 185
Rollock, the Regent, 192
Roman army, the, 156
Royal Medical Society, 41, 52, 53
Royal Physical Society, 41
Scots Observer, the, 82
Senatus Academicus, the, of Edinburgh University, 29, 186, 194.
Simpson, Alexander, 10, 37, 40, 61, 205, 215
Simpson, David, 5
Simpson, David (secundus), 37
Simpson, David (tertius), 191, 210
Simpson, Mary, 10
Simpson, Miss E. B., 138, 202, 214
Simpson, Professor A. R., 51, 86, 164, 219
Smallpox, 184
Snow, Dr., 130
Snowball riot, the, 42
Sound, the, 168
Squabbles, Simpson’s, 78
Stafford House, Simpson’s visit to, 80
St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, 151
Stevenson, R. L., 80
Storer, Dr., 217
Student, the Edinburgh medical, 33
Surgery at Simpson’s birth, 3
before anæsthesia, 88-91
after anæsthesia, 131
Sutherland, the Duchess of, 80, 86
Syme, Professor, 26, 31, 60, 61, 73, 114, 175, 130, 140, 148, 151, 186
Thesis, Simpson’s, for M.D. degree, 39
Thomson, Professor, 39, 60, 72
Town council of Edinburgh, the, 28, 58, 60, 63, 65, 73, 188, 192
Traill, Professor, 60
Waldie, Mr., 105
Wallace, Professor, 18
Warren, Dr. J. Collins, 102
Warriston cemetery, 216
Weavers, the, of Bathgate, 8, 9
Wesley, John, 71
Williams, Dr., of York, 213
Wilson, George, 42
Wilson, Professor John, 18, 27
Women, medical, 188
Wound-healing, 176
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