Toyourrequestofmyopinionofthemannerinwhichanewspapershouldbeconducted，soastobemostuseful，Ishouldanswer，`byrestrainingittotruefacts&soundprinciplesonly。’
YetIfearsuchapaperwouldfindfewsubscribers。Itisamelancholytruth，thatasuppressionofthepresscouldnotmorecompleatlydeprivethenationofit’sbenefits，thanisdonebyit’sabandonedprostitutiontofalsehood。Nothingcannowbebelievedwhichisseeninanewspaper。Truthitselfbecomessuspiciousbybeingputintothatpollutedvehicle。Therealextentofthisstateofmisinformationisknownonlytothosewhoareinsituationstoconfrontfactswithintheirknolegewiththeliesoftheday。I
reallylookwithcommiserationoverthegreatbodyofmyfellowcitizens，who，readingnewspapers，live&dieinthebelief，thattheyhaveknownsomethingofwhathasbeenpassingintheworldintheirtime；whereastheaccountstheyhavereadinnewspapersarejustastrueahistoryofanyotherperiodoftheworldasofthepresent，exceptthattherealnamesofthedayareaffixedtotheirfables。Generalfactsmayindeedbecollectedfromthem，suchasthatEuropeisnowatwar，thatBonapartehasbeenasuccessfulwarrior，thathehassubjectedagreatportionofEuropetohiswill，&c。，&c。；butnodetailscanbereliedon。Iwilladd，thatthemanwhoneverlooksintoanewspaperisbetterinformedthanhewhoreadsthem；inasmuchashewhoknowsnothingisnearertotruththanhewhosemindisfilledwithfalsehoods&errors。Hewhoreadsnothingwillstilllearnthegreatfacts，andthedetailsareallfalse。
Perhapsaneditormightbeginareformationinsomesuchwayasthis。Dividehispaperinto4chapters，headingthe1st，Truths。
2d，Probabilities。3d，Possibilities。4th，Lies。Thefirstchapterwouldbeveryshort，asitwouldcontainlittlemorethanauthenticpapers，andinformationfromsuchsources，astheeditorwouldbewillingtoriskhisownreputationfortheirtruth。The2dwouldcontainwhat，fromamatureconsiderationofallcircumstances，hisjudgmentshouldconcludetobeprobablytrue。This，however，shouldrathercontaintoolittlethantoomuch。The3d&4thshouldbeprofessedlyforthosereaderswhowouldratherhaveliesfortheirmoneythantheblankpapertheywouldoccupy。
Suchaneditortoo，wouldhavetosethisfaceagainstthedemoralisingpracticeoffeedingthepublicmindhabituallyonslander，&thedepravityoftastewhichthisnauseousalimentinduces。Defamationisbecominganecessaryoflife；insomuch，thatadishofteainthemorningoreveningcannotbedigestedwithoutthisstimulant。Eventhosewhodonotbelievetheseabominations，stillreadthemwithcomplaisancetotheirauditors，andinsteadoftheabhorrence&indignationwhichshouldfillavirtuousmind，betrayasecretpleasureinthepossibilitythatsomemaybelievethem，thotheydonotthemselves。Itseemstoescapethem，thatitisnothewhoprints，buthewhopaysforprintingaslander，whoisit’srealauthor。
Thesethoughtsonthesubjectsofyourletterarehazardedatyourrequest。Repeatedinstancesofthepublicationofwhathasnotbeenintendedforthepubliceye，andthemalignitywithwhichpoliticalenemiestortureeverysentencefrommeintomeaningsimaginedbytheirownwickednessonly，justifymyexpressingasolicitude，thatthishastycommunicationmayinnowisebepermittedtofindit’swayintothepublicpapers。Notfearingthesepoliticalbull-dogs，Iyetavoidputtingmyselfinthewayofbeingbaitedbythem，anddonotwishtovolunteerawaythatportionoftranquillity，whichafirmexecutionofmydutieswillpermitmetoenjoy。
Itenderyoumysalutations，andbestwishesforyoursuccess。
ASUBPOENAFORTHEPRESIDENT
_ToGeorgeHay_
_Washington，June20，1807_
DEARSIR，——Mr。LatrobenowcomesonasawitnessagainstBurr。Hispresencehereiswithgreatinconveniencedispensedwith，as150workmenrequirehisconstantdirectionsonvariouspublicworksofpressingimportance。Ihopeyouwillpermithimtocomeawayassoonaspossible。Howfarhistestimonywillbeimportantastotheprisoner，Iknownot；butIamdesirousthatthosemeetingsofYrujowithBurrandhisprincipalaccomplices，shouldcomefullyout，andjudicially，astheywillestablishthejustcomplaintswehaveagainsthisnation。
IdidnotseetilllastnighttheopinionoftheJudgeonthe_subpoenaducestecum_againstthePresident。Consideringthequestionthereas_coramnonjudice_，Ididnotreadhisargumentwithmuchattention。YetIsawreadilyenough，that，asisusualwhereanopinionistobesupported，rightorwrong，hedwellsmuchonsmallerobjections，andpassesoverthosewhicharesolid。Layingdownthepositiongenerally，thatallpersonsoweobediencetosubpoenas，headmitsnoexceptionunlessitcanbeproducedinhislawbooks。ButiftheConstitutionenjoinsonaparticularofficertobealwaysengagedinaparticularsetofdutiesimposedonhim，doesnotthissupersedethegenerallaw，subjectinghimtominordutiesinconsistentwiththese?TheConstitutionenjoinshisconstantagencyintheconcernsof6。millionsofpeople。Isthelawparamounttothis，whichcallsonhimonbehalfofasingleone?LetusapplytheJudge’sowndoctrinetothecaseofhimself&hisbrethren。ThesheriffofHenricosummonshimfromthebench，toquellariotsomewhereinhiscounty。Thefederaljudgeis，bythegenerallaw，apartofthe_posse_oftheStatesheriff。WouldtheJudgeabandonmajordutiestoperformlesserones?Again；thecourtofOrleansorMainecommands，bysubpoenas，theattendanceofallthejudgesoftheSupremeCourt。Wouldtheyabandontheirpostsasjudges，andtheinterestsofmillionscommittedtothem，toservethepurposesofasingleindividual?TheleadingprincipleofourConstitutionistheindependenceoftheLegislature，executiveandjudiciaryofeachother，andnonearemorejealousofthisthanthejudiciary。Butwouldtheexecutivebeindependentofthejudiciary，ifheweresubjecttothe_commands_ofthelatter，&toimprisonmentfordisobedience；iftheseveralcourtscouldbandyhimfrompillartopost，keephimconstantlytrudgingfromnorthtosouth&easttowest，andwithdrawhimentirelyfromhisconstitutionalduties?TheintentionoftheConstitution，thateachbranchshouldbeindependentoftheothers，isfurthermanifestedbythemeansithasfurnishedtoeach，toprotectitselffromenterprisesofforceattemptedonthembytheothers，andtononehasitgivenmoreeffectualordiversifiedmeansthantotheexecutive。Again；becauseministerscangointoacourtinLondonaswitnesses，withoutinterruptiontotheirexecutiveduties，itisinferredthattheywouldgotoacourt1000。or1500。
milesoff，andthatoursaretobedraggedfromMainetoOrleansbyeverycriminalwhowillswearthattheirtestimony`maybeofusetohim。’TheJudgesays，`_itisapparent_thatthePresident’sdutiesaschiefmagistratedonotdemandhiswholetime，&arenotunremitting。’Ifhealludestoourannualretirementfromtheseatofgovernment，duringthesicklyseason，heshouldbetoldthatsucharrangementsaremadeforcarryingonthepublicbusiness，atandbetweentheseveralstationswetake，thatitgoesonasunremittinglythere，asifwewereattheseatofgovernment。IpassmorehoursinpublicbusinessatMonticellothanIdohere，everyday；anditismuchmorelaborious，becauseallmustbedoneinwriting。Ourstationsbeingknown，allcommunicationscometothemregularly，astofixedpoints。Itwouldbeverydifferentwerewealwaysontheroad，orplacedinthenoisy&crowdedtavernswherecourtsareheld。Mr。Rodneyisexpectedhereeveryhour，havingbeenkeptawaybyasickchild。
Isaluteyouwithfriendshipandrespect。”UNLEARNEDVIEWSOFMEDICINE”
_ToDr。CasparWistar_
_Washington，June21，1807_
DEARSIR，——Ihaveagrandson，thesonofMr。Randolph，nowabout15yearsofage，inwhoseeducationItakealivelyinterest。
Histimehasnothithertobeenemployedtothegreatestadvantage，afrequentchangeoftutorshavingpreventedthesteadypursuitofanyoneplan。Whetherhepossessesthatlivelyimagination，usuallycalledgenius，Ihavenothadopportunitiesofknowing。ButIthinkhehasanobservingmind&soundjudgment。Heisassiduous，orderly，&ofthemostamiabletemper&dispositions。Ashewillbeateaseinpointofproperty，hiseducationisnotdirectedtoanyparticularpossession，butwillembracethosescienceswhichgivetoretiredlifeusefulness，ornamentoramusement。Iamnotafriendtoplacinggrowingmeninpopulouscities，becausetheyacquiretherehabits&
partialitieswhichdonotcontributetothehappinessoftheirafterlife。Butthereareparticularbranchesofscience，whicharenotsoadvantageouslytaughtanywhereelseintheU。S。asinPhiladelphia。
ThegardenattheWoodlandsforBotany，Mr。Peale’sMuseumforNaturalHistory，yourMedicalschoolforAnatomy，andtheableprofessorsinallofthem，giveadvantagesnottobefoundelsewhere。
Wepropose，therefore，tosendhimtoPhiladelphiatoattendtheschoolsofBotany，NaturalHistory，Anatomy，&perhapsSurgery；butnotofMedicine。AndwhynotofMedicine，youwillask?Beingledtothesubject，Iwillavailmyselfoftheoccasiontoexpressmyopinionsonthatscience，andtheextentofmymedicalcreed。But，tofinishfirstwithrespecttomygrandson，IwillstatethefavorI
askofyou，whichistheobjectofthisletter。
Havingbeenborn&broughtupinamountainous&healthycountry，weshouldbeunwillingheshouldgotoPhiladelphiauntiltheautumnaldiseasescease。Itisimportantthereforeforustoknow，atwhatperiodafterthat，thecoursesoflecturesinNaturalhistory，Botany，Chemistry，Anatomy&Surgerybeginandend，andwhatdaysorhourstheyoccupy?Theobjectofthisisthatwemaybeablesotomarshalhispursuitsastobringtheiraccomplishmentwithintheshortestspacepracticable。IshallwritetoDoctorBartonforinformationastothecoursesofnaturalhistory&botanybutnothavingasufficientacquaintancewithprofessorsofchemistry&
surgery，ifyoucanaddtheinformationrespectingtheirschooltothatofyourown，Ishallbemuchobligedtoyou。Whattooaretheusualtermsofboarding?Whatthecompensationstoprofessors?Andcanyougivemeaconjecturalestimateofothernecessaryexpenses?
Inthesewedonotproposetoindulgehimbeyondwhatisnecessary，decent，&usual，becauseallbeyondthatleadstodissipation&
idleness，towhich，atpresent，hehasnopropensities。IthinkMr。
Pealehasnotbeeninthehabitofreceivingaboarder。Hishouse&
familywould，ofthemselves，beaschoolofvirtue&instruction；&
hoursofleisuretherewouldbeasimprovingasbusyoneselsewhere。
ButIsaythisonlyonthepossibilityofsodesirablealocationforhim，andnotwiththewishthatthethoughtshouldbecomeknowntoMr。Peale，unlesssomeformerprecedentshouldjustifyit’ssuggestiontohim。Iamlayingaheavytaxonyourbusytime，butI
thinkyourgoodnesswillpardonitinconsiderationofit’sbearingonmyhappiness。
Thissubjectdismissed，Imaynowtakeupthatwhichitledto，andfurthertaxyourpatiencewithunlearnedviewsofmedicine；
which，asinmostcases，are，perhaps，themoreconfidentinproportionastheyarelessenlightened。
Weknow，fromwhatwesee&feel，thattheanimalbodyinit’sorgansandfunctionsissubjecttoderangement，inducingpain，&
tendingtoit’sdestruction。Inthisdisorderedstate，weobservenatureprovidingforthere-establishmentoforder，byexcitingsomesalutaryevacuationofthemorbificmatter，orbysomeotheroperationwhichescapesourimperfectsensesandresearches。Shebringsonacrisis，bystools，vomiting，sweat，urine，expectoration，bleeding，&c。，which，forthemostpart，endsintherestorationofhealthyaction。Experiencehastaughtus，also，thattherearecertainsubstances，bywhich，appliedtothelivingbody，internallyorexternally，wecanatwillproducethesesameevacuations，andthusdo，inashorttime，whatnaturewoulddobutslowly，anddoeffectually，whatperhapsshewouldnothavestrengthtoaccomplish。
Where，then，wehaveseenadisease，characterizedbyspecificsignsorphenomena，andrelievedbyacertainnaturalevacuationorprocess，wheneverthatdiseaserecursunderthesameappearances，wemayreasonablycountonproducingasolutionofit，bytheuseofsuchsubstancesaswehavefoundproducethesameevacuationormovement。Thus，fulnessofthestomachwecanrelievebyemetics；
diseasesofthebowels，bypurgatives；inflammatorycases，bybleeding；intermittents，bythePeruvianbark；syphilis，bymercury：
watchfulness，byopium；&c。Sofar，Ibowtotheutilityofmedicine。Itgoestothewell-definedformsofdisease，&happily，tothosethemostfrequent。Butthedisordersoftheanimalbody，&
thesymptomsindicatingthem，areasvariousastheelementsofwhichthebodyiscomposed。Thecombinations，too，ofthesesymptomsaresoinfinitelydiversified，thatmanyassociationsofthemappeartoorarelytoestablishadefinitedisease；andtoanunknowndisease，therecannotbeaknownremedy。Herethen，thejudicious，themoral，thehumanephysicianshouldstop。Havingbeensooftenawitnesstothesalutaryeffortswhichnaturemakestore-establishthedisorderedfunctions，heshouldrathertrusttotheiraction，thanhazardtheinterruptionofthat，andagreaterderangementofthesystem，byconjecturalexperimentsonamachinesocomplicated&sounknownasthehumanbody，&asubjectsosacredashumanlife。Or，iftheappearanceofdoingsomethingbenecessarytokeepalivethehope&spiritsofthepatient，itshouldbeofthemostinnocentcharacter。OneofthemostsuccessfulphysiciansIhaveeverknown，hasassuredme，thatheusedmorebreadpills，dropsofcoloredwater，&powdersofhickoryashes，thanofallothermedicinesputtogether。Itwascertainlyapiousfraud。Buttheadventurousphysiciangoeson，&substitutespresumptionforknolege。Fromthescantyfieldofwhatisknown，helaunchesintotheboundlessregionofwhatisunknown。Heestablishesforhisguidesomefancifultheoryofcorpuscularattraction，ofchemicalagency，ofmechanicalpowers，ofstimuli，ofirritabilityaccumulatedorexhausted，ofdepletionbythelancet&repletionbymercury，orsomeotheringeniousdream，whichletshimintoallnature’ssecretsatshorthand。Ontheprinciplewhichhethusassumes，heformshistableofnosology，arrayshisdiseasesintofamilies，andextendshiscurativetreatment，byanalogy，toallthecaseshehasthusarbitrarilymarshalledtogether。IhavelivedmyselftoseethedisciplesofHoffman，Boerhaave，Stalh，Cullen，Brown，succeedoneanotherliketheshiftingfiguresofamagiclantern，&theirfancies，likethedressesoftheannualdoll-babiesfromParis，becoming，fromtheirnovelty，thevogueoftheday，andyieldingtothenextnoveltytheirephemeralfavor。Thepatient，treatedonthefashionabletheory，sometimesgetswellinspiteofthemedicine。Themedicinethereforerestoredhim，&theyoungdoctorreceivesnewcouragetoproceedinhisboldexperimentsonthelivesofhisfellowcreatures。Ibelievewemaysafelyaffirm，thattheinexperienced&presumptuousbandofmedicaltyrosletlooseupontheworld，destroysmoreofhumanlifeinoneyear，thanalltheRobinhoods，Cartouches，&Macheathsdoinacentury。ItisinthispartofmedicinethatIwishtoseeareform，anabandonmentofhypothesisforsoberfacts，thefirstdegreeofvaluesetonclinicalobservation，andthelowestonvisionarytheories。Iwouldwishtheyoungpractitioner，especially，tohavedeeplyimpressedonhismind，thereallimitsofhisart，&thatwhenthestateofhispatientgetsbeyondthese，hisofficeistobeawatchful，butquietspectatoroftheoperationsofnature，givingthemfairplaybyawell-regulatedregimen，&byalltheaidtheycanderivefromtheexcitementofgoodspirits&hopeinthepatient。I
havenodoubt，thatsomediseasesnotyetunderstoodmayintimebetransferredtothetableofthoseknown。But，wereIaphysician，I