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   <titleStmt><title>What the Africans of Boston Knew about Inoculation</title><author>Cotton Mather and Zabdiel Boylston, Some Account of What Is Said of Inoculating or Transplanting the Small Pox (Boston, 1721)</author><editor>Hearth Interactive</editor></titleStmt>
   <publicationStmt><publisher>Hearth Library</publisher><ptr target="https://hearthinteractive.com/library/sources/oial-p27"/></publicationStmt>
   <sourceDesc><bibl>Some Account of What Is Said of Inoculating or Transplanting the Small Pox. By the Learned Dr. Emanuel Timonius, and Jacobus Pylarinus. With Some Remarks Thereon. To Which Are Added, A Few Quaeries in Answer to the Scruples of Many about the Lawfulness of This Method. Published by Dr. Zabdiel Boylston (Boston: sold by S. Gerrish, 1721), p. [ii] (the unnumbered page before p. 1) and pp. 7, 9, 11, 21. Copy: U.S. National Library of Medicine (title page supplied in photocopy from the Massachusetts Historical Society copy), Internet Archive item 2562061R.nlm.nih.gov. Digital text: that item’s OCR text, extracted by code, read against the page images, and collated with the Evans-TCP transcription (N01860, CC0) where the OCR is poor or the left margin is lost. Long s is printed as s.</bibl></sourceDesc>
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  <listPerson><person xml:id="x-person_emanuel-timonius"><persName>Emanuel Timonius</persName><note>A doctor working in the Ottoman Empire whose account of inoculation at Constantinople the Royal Society of London printed in 1714.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_jacobus-pylarinus"><persName>Jacobus Pylarinus</persName><note>A doctor working in the Ottoman Empire, who learned inoculation from a Greek woman and whose account the Royal Society printed in 1716.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_william-douglass"><persName>William Douglass</persName><note>The Boston doctor who led the opposition to inoculation in 1721.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_cotton-mather"><persName>Cotton Mather</persName><note>Minister of the Second Church in Boston, who urged Boston's doctors in June 1721 to try inoculation, citing Africans in the town who had been inoculated.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_god"><persName>God</persName><note>The one God worshiped by Jews, Christians and Muslims. Many writers in the library saw his hand in epidemics, cures, voyages and the fortunes of colonies.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_hippocrates"><persName>Hippocrates</persName><note>With Galen, one of the most famous doctors of the ancient Greek world, to whom the medicine of the humors was traced.</note></person><person xml:id="x-person_galen"><persName>Galen</persName><note>With Hippocrates, one of the most famous doctors of the ancient Greek and Roman world, whose teaching medieval medicine followed.</note></person></listPerson>

  <listPlace><place xml:id="x-place_africa"><placeName>Africa</placeName><location><geo>5 20</geo></location></place></listPlace>
  <list type="ideas-and-dates"><item xml:id="x-idea_smallpox">smallpox <note>An infectious disease that begins with fever and leaves pitted scars. It was unknown in the Americas until Europeans arrived, and it struck Mexico and Michoacán in 1520; most historians identify the Japanese epidemic of 735–737 as smallpox too.</note></item><item xml:id="x-idea_doctors">doctors and healers <note>Doctors, surgeons and other healers: what the writers say they could and could not do.</note></item><item xml:id="x-idea_inoculation">inoculation <note>Giving a healthy person smallpox on purpose, from the scabs or matter of a mild case, so that the illness would be mild and never come again. Chinese, Ottoman and African practitioners knew it before it was tried in Boston and London in the 1720s.</note></item></list>
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   <ab xml:id="x-1" n="1">THE Publick having been lately entertained with a very dark and partial Account of this New Method of receiving the <term ref="#x-idea_smallpox">Small Pox</term>; and this Account being given as is pretended, from the very Letters of <persName ref="#x-person_emanuel-timonius">Dr. Timonius</persName> and <persName ref="#x-person_jacobus-pylarinus">Pylarinus</persName>; it is thought reasonable and fitting to lay before the Publick this following Abstract of what those Learned Gentlemen have said of this Practice. But because <persName ref="#x-person_william-douglass">the Gentleman who only hath these Letters</persName> by him, refuses now to lend them; the Account here following is chiefly taken from a known Letter written by <persName ref="#x-person_cotton-mather">a Learned Gentleman of Boston</persName> to the Worthy <term ref="#x-idea_doctors">Physicians</term> of the Town.</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-2" n="2">The Air of the Chamber must be kept very Temperate. The Greek Operatrix, prick't more places, and less fleshy ones than <persName ref="#x-person_jacobus-pylarinus">Pylarinus</persName> approved of; with an oblique stroke pricking the Places, with an Iron, or Golden Needle dropping, and thrusting the Pus into the Wound; and so binding all with Fillets. Her way was thus to prick the Forehead, the Chin, both Cheeks, both Wrists, both Insteps. This was doubtless overdoing. Pylarinus affirms that some have done the Business, with no more than One little Inscision in the Arm, and it has done very well. [So it has been with such Africans, as have shown us the Marks of their <term ref="#x-idea_inoculation">Inoculation</term>.]</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-3" n="3">II. There is at this Time a considerable Number of Africans in this Town, who can have no Conspiracy or Combination to cheat us. No body has instructed them to tell their Story. The more plainly, brokenly, and blunderingly, and like Ideots, they tell their Story, it will be with reasonable Men, but the much more credible. For that these all agree in one Story; &quot;That abundance of poor Negro's die of the <term ref="#x-idea_smallpox">Small Pox</term>, till they learn this Way; that People take the Juice of the Small Pox, and Cut the Skin, and put in a drop; then by'nd by a little Sick, then few Small Pox; and no body dye of it: no body have Small Pox any more.&quot;</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-4" n="4">Here we have a clear Evidence, that in <placeName ref="#x-place_africa">Africa</placeName>, where the Poor Creatures dye of the Small Pox in the common way like Rotten Sheep, a Merciful <persName ref="#x-person_god">GOD</persName> has taught them a wonderful Preservative.</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-5" n="5">It is a Common Practice, and is is attended with Success. I have as full Evidence of this, as I have that there are Lions in <placeName ref="#x-place_africa">Africa</placeName>. And I don't know why 'tis more unlawful to learn of Africans, how to help against the Poison of the Small Pox, than it is to learn of our Indians, how to help against the Poison of a Rattle-Snake.</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-6" n="6">VI. I have made <term ref="#x-idea_inoculation">my Experiments</term> with all the Disadvantages that can be imagined, on Old and Young, on Strong and Weak, on Male and Female, on White and Black, and in the worst Season of the Year; and on greater Numbers, than I judge proper (considering the unaccountable Rage of unadvised People,) to mention; But more than twice Seven, I can assure you; and it has succeeded well in all, even beyond Expectation.</ab>
   <ab xml:id="x-7" n="7">X. It is Cavilled (for to say, Objected, would be too easy a word for such Impertinence) that this New Way comes to us from the Heathen, and we Christians must not Learn the Way of the Heathen. I Enquire, whether our <persName ref="#x-person_hippocrates">Hippocrates</persName> were not an Heathen? And whether our <persName ref="#x-person_galen">Galen</persName> were not an Heathen? And whether we have not our Mithradate from the Heathen? And whether the first Inventer of our Treacle were not Nero's Physician? And whether we have not learnt some of our very Good Medicines from our Indians? But this New Way has been used by many Thousands of Christians; And it is from Christians we have the Communications of this New Way which we most rely upon. But are there none who pass for Courant-Christians that are worse than Infidels? And, Gentlemen-Smoakers, I pray, whom did you learn to Smoke of?</ab>
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   <ab n="1" corresp="#x-1">The public having been lately entertained with a very dark and partial account of this new method of receiving the smallpox; and this account being given as is pretended from the very letters of Dr. Timonius and Pylarinus; it is thought reasonable and fitting to lay before the public this following abstract of what those learned gentlemen have said of this practice. But because the gentleman who only hath these letters by him refuses now to lend them; the account here following is chiefly taken from a known letter written by a learned gentleman of Boston to the worthy physicians of the town.</ab>
   <ab n="2" corresp="#x-2">The air of the chamber must be kept very temperate. The Greek operatrix pricked more places, and less fleshy ones than Pylarinus approved of; with an oblique stroke pricking the places, with an iron or golden needle, dropping and thrusting the pus into the wound; and so binding all with fillets. Her way was thus to prick the forehead, the chin, both cheeks, both wrists, both insteps. This was doubtless overdoing. Pylarinus affirms that some have done the business with no more than one little incision in the arm, and it has done very well. [So it has been with such Africans as have shown us the marks of their inoculation.]</ab>
   <ab n="3" corresp="#x-3">II. There is at this time a considerable number of Africans in this town who can have no conspiracy or combination to cheat us. Nobody has instructed them to tell their story. The more plainly, brokenly, and blunderingly, and like idiots, they tell their story, it will be with reasonable men, but the much more credible. For that these all agree in one story: “That abundance of poor Negroes die of the smallpox, till they learn this way; that people take the juice of the smallpox, and cut the skin, and put in a drop; then by’nd by a little sick, then few smallpox; and nobody die of it: nobody have smallpox any more.”</ab>
   <ab n="4" corresp="#x-4">Here we have a clear evidence that in Africa, where the poor creatures die of the smallpox in the common way like rotten sheep, a merciful God has taught them a wonderful preservative.</ab>
   <ab n="5" corresp="#x-5">It is a common practice, and is attended with success. I have as full evidence of this as I have that there are lions in Africa. And I don’t know why ’tis more unlawful to learn of Africans how to help against the poison of the smallpox than it is to learn of our Indians how to help against the poison of a rattlesnake.</ab>
   <ab n="6" corresp="#x-6">VI. I have made my experiments with all the disadvantages that can be imagined, on old and young, on strong and weak, on male and female, on white and black, and in the worst season of the year; and on greater numbers than I judge proper (considering the unaccountable rage of unadvised people) to mention, but more than twice seven, I can assure you; and it has succeeded well in all, even beyond expectation.</ab>
   <ab n="7" corresp="#x-7">X. It is cavilled (for to say “objected” would be too easy a word for such impertinence) that this new way comes to us from the heathen, and we Christians must not learn the way of the heathen. I inquire whether our Hippocrates were not a heathen? And whether our Galen were not a heathen? And whether we have not our mithridate from the heathen? And whether the first inventor of our treacle were not Nero’s physician? And whether we have not learned some of our very good medicines from our Indians? But this new way has been used by many thousands of Christians, and it is from Christians we have the communications of this new way which we most rely upon. But are there none who pass for Courant-Christians that are worse than infidels? And, gentlemen smokers, I pray, whom did you learn to smoke of?</ab>
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