'A voyage from England to India, in the year 1754, and an historical narrative of the operations of the squadron and army in India, under the command of Vice-Admiral Watson and Colonel Clive, in the years 1755, 1756, 1757 ... Also a journey from Persia to England by an unusual route. With an appendix, containing an account of the diseases prevalent in Admiral Watson's squadron, etc.' [‎53] (82/562)

[ 53 I
to melt down, as will enable him to go through with the work. The Btrier
However Teems to be an exception to all the other mechanics here; i mean
with relpeft to the condition of his tools and (having tackle. He doth not
po about in this country, as in England, with a large pewter balon under one
arm a wi"--box under the other, a water veffel in his right hand, and a
powder-bag in his left. The ihaver and powderer here are two diftind trades.
The former, for his extraordinary apparatus, is worth remarking: when he
enters your houfe, if you did not know him before, it is impoffible for you to
s-uefs at his profeffion. The implements he ufes, fuch as 8 or 10 razors,
an hone, an oil-bottle, two leather-ftraps, a little looking glafs two or three
towels, his beetel-nut, bectel-leaf, chunam-box, foap and little brafs-bafon,
are all contained in the girdle that is round his middle. His manner ot
operation is ftill more extraordinary, for he beats up a lather y our
head, not in the balbn, which is no bigger than a large tea-cup •, and lhaves
you eafier than ever 1 experienced from.any of the profeffion in England.
(Upon the whole, though the Indian mechanics are by no means deficient^
in the handicraft arts, yet their talents feem to be only of a fecond rate kind.).
In many refpefts they certainly do not come up to the dexterity of Euro-',
pean artifts, particularly in thofe works where great accuracy is required.
They likewife labour under a poverty of genius which makes them dull at
invention, but at the fame time itmuft be acknowledged, that they aremoft!
admirable copyifts, and indeed their principal excellency Teems to lie thac^
way.)
The fkill of their phyfical people is very mean. Mr. Thomas- and I once
employed one of the black dodors to procure us a lift of fuch medicines as they
ufed in their pradice. Inftead of this, he brought with him a number of leaves,
plants, barks, roots of trees, i3c. which, he told us, they generally made ufe of
in decodions; and that their common method of practice was, it one root,
leaf, or herb failed, to put in others of different forts. In tcveis, he added,,
they ufed pepper, and fuch-like inflammatory fubftances. We enquired whether
they had any written accounts of their method of practice; he told us they
had, and brought us a large book, made up of a number of leaves of the
Palmita tree, fuch as they keep their accounts upon, part of which we after
wards got tranflated by a black Conucopola or cleik. It was v^ntten in the
hio-h Eajiern ftile, and began with giving great praifes to the Almighty for
the wonderful formation of man : it then went on with obferving that this
formed man was divided into two or three hundred thoufand parts; ten
thoufand of which were made up of veins ; ten thoufand of nerves •, feven-
teen thoufand of blood; a certain number of bones, choler, lymph, &c. ■
&c. &c. And all this was laid down without form or order, either of hif-
tory, difeafe or treatment. We found this to be all the written account they
have of phyfic •, which they never ftudy, but, like the other calls, the fon of
a doftor is a dodor alfo, and fo he will continue to be from generation to
generation,.