Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1888 edition. Excerpt: ... james bell pettigrew, M.D., ll.D., F.R.S., F.R.C.P. james bell pettigrew, Laureate of the Institute of France, Professor of Medicine and Anatomy, and Dean of the Medical Faculty in the University of St. Andrew's, is a native of Monkland, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He is related on his father's side to the late well-known Dr. Thomas J. Pettigrew, F.R.C.S., author of " Bibliotheca Sussexiana," " Encyclopaedia Egyptiaca," "Medical Portrait Gallery," etc.; and on his mother's side (Mary Bell) to the famous Henry Bell, the designer and builder of the original Comet steamship, and the accredited parent of steamnavigation in Europe. Professor Pettigrew's boyhood was characterized by great physical vigour, and an unusual flow of animal spirits, and he entered enthusiastically into all kinds of field and other sports, particularly those requiring agility, courage, and endurance. But, while devoted to every form of pastime, he was not averse to serious pursuits, and read and experimented largely, and to good purpose, at a very early age. The books which delighted him most were works on travel and natural history, and these he devoured with all the eagerness of an enthusiastic and earnest nature. His experiments were chiefly of a mechanical kind. He constructed models of windmills, waterwheels, tilt hammers, rolling mills, and engines, and in this way educated, unconsciously, both his head and his hands. In his case, "the child was father to the man," as regards a love of nature, a love of books, and a love of experimentation. Throughout his whole career he has been an experimenter. Avoiding the beaten track, from an innate love of discovery, he has worked in the unexplored realms of science, and there he has written his name in enduring characters....