A lecture, containing plain descriptions of the situation of the large blood-vessels of the extremities; the instrument called tourniquet; .

London: Printed, by J.W. Galabin, For C. Dilly, in the Poultry. M.DCC.LXXXVI. (1786), Kl.8°, 7, (2), 9-31, (1) pp., 1 folded engraved plate, half cloth binding from the seventies; beside a stamp on page 31 a fine and clean copy. Rare, first public edition of "A Lecture, containing plain descriptions of the situation of the large blood-vessels of the extremities; the instrument called tourniquet; and the methods of making effectual pressure on the arteries in cases of dangerous effusions of blood from wounds, &c. Delivered to the scholars of the maritime school, at Chelsea; First printed for their Use; And now published for general Benefit: By William Blizard, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries; Surgeon of the London Hospital; and the Honourable Artillery-Company; And Lecturer in Anatomy and Surgery. - Prodesse quàm conspici." Fame in the fullest measure came to Sir William Blizard (1743-1835), he was Founder and First President of the Hunterian Society, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of London (later to become the Royal College of Surgeons of England), a Fellow of the Royal Society, President of the Anatomical Society, Fellow of the Royal Societies of Edinburgh and Gottingen, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, Surgeon to their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and in 1803 he was knighted. In spite of all these honours the tributes of his friends stress his qualities as a philanthropist, gentleman, and seeker of truth. "In a short review it is not possible to list all his skills as a surgeon. Sir William Mac-Cormac, in his Souvenir of the Royal College of Surgeons, described Blizard as one of those 'brilliant surgeons' who, with Astley Cooper, Clive, Home, and Lawrence, 'made England famous at the early part erf the nineteenth century as the centre of surgical teaching and surgical progress'. cf. Rita R Auden: A Hunterian pupil Sir William Blizard and The London Hospital. Ann R Coll Surg Engl. 1978 July; 60(4): 345-349. Medicine and the Navy: "Although not a surgeon himself, and to some extent priding himself on the fact, shrewd observations upon the subject of surgical preparation for enemy action afloat were made by Sir Gilbert Blane following the engagement between the British and French fleets near Martinique, on April 1, 1782. Serving in the Formidable, Blane (1749-1934) recorded the event as follows: "Having but little knowledge, and no practice in surgery, and as there was a full complement of medical officers on board, I requested the Admiral's leave to absent myself from the quarters assigned me, and to remain with him on the quarter deck during the action. It occurred to me also, that I might possibly be of some use in this spot in case of any severe injury threatening life from haemorrhage, and for this purpose I carried some tourniquets about me of a simple construction, but no such accident occurred on the quarter deck of the Formidable. Captain Bayne of the Alfred, killed in the action of the 9th April, was thought to have expired by a haemorrhage of the leg which took place while he was carried to the cockpit, so that the timely application of a tourniquet might have saved the life of that excellent officer. The tourniquets alluded to, consisted merely of a piece of leather, somewhat stiff but flexible, about the breadth of the hand and long enough to embrace the limb, with slits to admit a piece of broad tape; a piece of linen or calico rolled, so as to act as a compress to the artery, and a cylindrical piece of wood to twist the tape in the act of applying the instrument. Would it not be advisable at all times that some intelligent person, a warrant or petty officer, quartered on the quarter deck, should carry in his pocket some such instrument, particularly in large ships, on account of the distance of the cockpit? He need not be a medical officer; and the only instruction necessary would be to point out to him the situation of the .…