The Principles of Surgery Author:John Bell Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: ration be required, let it be done rapidly where there is no danger; but where there is any thing doubtful, let it be done slowly. If there be a tedious lingerin... more »g disease, the surgeon must be every thing to his patient; watchful, friendly, compassionate, cheerful— for the patient lives upon his good looks; it is when his surgeon becomes careless, or seems to forsake him, that he falls into despair. These are among the chief duties of every surgeon —his daily occupations. But the duties of a military surgeon are such, in the time of battle, that it is difficult to imagine how he has fortitude for such a scene. While others have things to do, daring and spirited, suited to the time, all his works require deliberation, judgment, and perfect composure ; he alone sits at a distance from the work of war, and all the hideous sights have their full effect upon his mind. And yet there are things still worse to bear than the natural, inevitable horrors and hardships of service,—slights, losses, disappointments, and unmerited neglect; by those, too, whom the surgeon has served, and who should be the natural guardians of his interests. DISCOURSE II. HISTORY OF THE DOCTRINE OF ADHESION. To pass at once from study to practice, from the mere reading of books to the most dangerous operations upon the living body, is an alarming step; it fills us with anxiety to think of it; and very seriously should we reflect upon the course of our studies; whereone wrong step leads us into labyrinths of difficulties, and our time, our strength, and our patience, may be wasted in an unavailing struggle; even our love for our profession may yield to obstacles which are unexpected and unnatural. Of all these difficulties I know of none so discouraging to the eager spirit of a young man as the too ea...« less