Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-12-19
SIR HENRY HOLLAND.
Pleasant Anecdotes Of a Great and
Popular Physician.


Pleasant Anecdotes Of a Great An,
Popular Physician.
From the London Times.
Sir Walter Scott relates that
when some one was mentioned as :
"fine old man. to Swift, he exclaim
ed with violence that there was nc
such thing: eff the man you speal
of had either man or a body wortl
a farthing they would have worr
him out long ago." Voltaire
Goethe, Brougham, Lyndhurst, Pal
mertson, Moltke, Guizot, Thiers
may be cited in refutation Of this
theory, which, we presume, has no
thing to do with thews, and sinews
or stature. Most of Clarendon's
%'great" men were little men. But
if we wanted another example OF
faculties Of no common order, re-
naming unimpaired by mind or bo
dy till long past the grand climac
teric, we might name Sir Henry
Holland, who died at his home in
Brook street, on his seth birthday
Monday, the 9th inst, having at
tended the Bazaine trial at Versail
les on Friday, the oath, and dined
that same day at the British Embas.
sy in Paris, where he was espec.
tally remarked as "cheerful and
happy}and full of conversation
When the Able Sieyes was asked
what he had done during the reign
Of terror, he made answer, "J'ai
vecu," and it was no idle boast. MOI
was it a small thing for Sir Henry
Holland to be able to say that, da.
ting from the commencement of the
century, he had lived an intelligent
and omnipresent spectator through
~ OF the most exciting and eventful
years of the worlds history; that
he had seen the political and social
aspect of most civilized nations in
both hemisphcres transformed three
or four times over, including the
fall Of two empires, two monarchies,
and three or four republics, to say
nothing Of provisional governments
in France. He had crossed the At.
lantic sixteen or seventeen times
travelled over more than 2G, 900 miles
of the American continent; made
four expeditions to the East, three
tours in Russia, two in Iceland, sew.
eral in Sweden, Norway, Spain
Portugal, Italy,.and Greece, innum.
erable voyages to the Canary Isles
the West Indies, Madeira, ETC.; and
to use his own words, "other excur
sions which it would be useless to
enumcrate." He had associated in
every capital in Europe with ali that
is, or was, most eminent for rank,
birth, genius, wit, learning, and ac.
compiishment. He could call ever,
leading statesman Of the United
States, and every President, tor the
last half century his friend. In his
professional capacity, besides a
long list of royal and princely pa
tients, he had the honor and deep
responsibility of prescribing tor sil
Prime Ministers of England, be
sides Chanccllors of the Exchequer
Secretaries of State, Presidents OF
the Council, Chief Justices, and
Lord Chanccllors.
Vehement remonstrances were ad.
dressed to him on the first appear.
ance Of his "Recollections." He
was reminded that he could probab.
ly account in the simplest manner
for what has hitherto seemed unac.
countablc-whY one of his Premier.
patients wrote that impudent letter
which fell among his party like a
bomb-shell; why another made that
angry speech which precipitated
the downfall Of his government.
Was it, he was asked, simply be.
cause their "guide, philosopher and
DOCTOR" was not called in a little
sooner-because the blue pill or
colchichum was administered too
late? But Sir Henry dies and makes
no sign. There are only TWO or
three instances in which he has in
the slightest degree departed from
his provoking, although, we must
admit, highly creditablc, reserve.
He tells us that when he was in at.
tendance on Canning, at Chcswick,
in August, 1927, the dying states
man said to him: Il have struggled
against this long, but it has con.
quered at last" That Canning's
death was accelerated by political
worry and excitability is well
known. "Having occasion to call
on Lord Liverpool in the preceding
February, he Uord Liverpool) beg.
ged me to feel his pulse, the first
time | had ever done So" His Lord
ships state was such as to induce
an immediate appeal to his medical
advisers, and the very next morn
ing his political life was closed by
a paralytic stroke. "His pulse alone
had given me cause for alarm; but
there were one or two passages in
half an hours conversation so forci-
bly, expressing the harrassing anxi.
cites OF his position, that l could
hardly dissociate them from the
event which thus Instantly follow
ed" There is a striking reminis.
cence Of Lord PalmerstOn:
81 have seen him under q fit OF
gout, which would have sent other