John Ray to Hans Sloane – August 16, 1693
Item info
Date: August 16, 1693 Author: John Ray Recipient: Hans SloaneLibrary: British Library, London Manuscript: Sloane MS 4036 Folio: f. 155
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Language
English
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Library
British Library, London
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Categories
Medical, Scholarship
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Subjects
Birds, Fish, Jamaica, Ornithology, Post, Publishing
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Date (as written)
August 16, 1693
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Standardised date
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Origin (as written)
Black Notley
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Others mentioned
Francis Willughby
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Patients mentioned
John Ray
Original Page
Transcription
Ray was glad to read Sloane’s account of Jamaican birds, which he would reference in his Synopses. His book is ‘ready for the press’. He does not believe his work will be of use to those familiar with ‘Mr Willughbyes Ornithology & Ichthyology’. This letter was supposed to have been arrived earlier, but the postman failed to deliver it. Ray was a theologian and naturalist who collected and catalogued his botanical findings in the much lauded Historia plantarum (1686, 1688) (Scott Mandelbrote, Ray , John (16271705), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Oct 2005 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/23203, accessed 18 June 2013]).
Patient Details
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Patient info
Name: N/A John Ray
Gender:
Age:66-67 years of age. -
Description
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Diagnosis
Painful ulcers on the patient's legs and in his stomach.
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Treatment
Previous Treatment:
Ray took sassafras and 'shavings of Hartshorn' during the summer.
Ongoing Treatment:Ray is taking mercury, Calomelanos (in 10 gram doses) and moderate purges. Plasters are being applied to his legs.
Response:The mercury and other treatments are proving unsuccessful. Ray claims they do little but give him sweats and keep him from sleeping. The combination of plasters with the mercury only serves to aggravate the pain.
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More information
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Medical problem reference
Injuries (includes wounds, sores, bruises), Sleep, Ulcerous legs, Skin ailments, Age, Pain, Stomach