Page:Merret - A short view of the frauds and abuses committed by apothecaries.pdf/49

 'Tis convenient to adjoin here the old way of educating young men into the practice of Physic, and surely the safer for the Patients health; and I could with 'twere restored to its former usage, which was this. The Senior Physician carried his Son, or such as he intended to succeed him in his practice, along with him when he visited his Patients, discovering, and discoursing with them the disease, cause, method of cure, and what remedies were fit to be applied to the present Case, and to try them what they would do in that or the like Case. And when his occasions would not permit him to visit himself, he then sent one of his Scholars to inform him of the condition of the sick person, and the effect of his Medicines and also when the said Scholars had leisure, they were employ'd to help to gather, prepare, and make, or oversee the compounding of Medicines. And such Scholars they call'd filii Artis, sons of Art. Some of the Professors in Foreign parts practice the most of this to this very day, with such Gentlemen as travel thither to study Physic, confirming their reading with experience.

By constantly practised Medicines he will find out a better method of Cure, and may hereby arrive at the true causes of diseases.

He will observe what Medicines by precipitation or other ways, alter, destroy, or weaken one another whereby of good ingredients singly used, a bad Composition may be made, and therefore fail in the success expected. Many more things might be here added, which a skillful observer, and versed in the way to make experiments (no easie matter) will daily find, and at present I do not so much as give hints of them, Rh