RICHARD C. RAMER Special List 161 MEDICINE

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richard c. ramer
26. BERCHTOLD, Leopold, Graf von. Ensaio sobre a extensão dos limites
da beneficencia a respeito, assim dos homens, como dos mesmos animaes, pelo
Conde Leopoldo Berchtold, Cavalleiro da Ordem Militar de Sant Estevão de
Toscana, para se destribuir gratuitamente a bem da humanidade. Lisbon:
Na Regia Officina Typografica, 1793. 8°, contemporary speckled sheep
(small wormholes at joints and spine; some wear to corners, head and
foot of spine), flat spine richly gilt with crimson leather lettering piece,
gilt letter, covers with double-ruled gilt borders, single gilt rule to edges
of covers (worn), marbled endleaves, all text block edges gilt. Woodcut
royal arms of Portugal on title page. Tables in text. Typographical headand
tailpieces. Internally fine to very fine. Overall a very good copy.
Penciled note at foot of verso of final page stating that the book was
acquired at auction nº 212, lot 340 of A.[rnaldo] H.[enriques] d’Oliv.
[eira] in October of 1958. xvi, 309 pp., (1 blank l.). $400.00
First and Only Edition in Portuguese of the author’s Versuch die Gränzen der
Wohlthätigkeit gegen Menschen und Thiere zu erweitern. Berchtold (1759-1809) spent some
time in Portugal and appears to have translated the work himself, having incorporated
observations made during his stay in Portugal into the present edition. In the preface,
he apologizes for the imperfection of his Portuguese.
The book contains several introductory chapters on the history and philosophy
of philanthropy, including charity among the Turks, Arabs, Persians and Indians. The
author mentions specific Portuguese philanthropic establishments, and discusses the
alleviation of afflictions caused by a wide variety of diseases. There is a chapter on the
improvement of the condition of black slaves, concluding with a section on manumission.
Another chapter is devoted to prison reform. Two chapters deal with the affects of eating
contaminated meats and foods prepared using poisonous plants; various remedies are
mentioned. The final chapter deals with animal welfare.
j Gonçalves Rodrigues, A tradução em Portugal, I, 219. Innocêncio XIII, 291. Imprensa
Nacional p. 159 (without collation), but no copy in the library of the Imprensa Nacional.
Lisbon, Faculdade de Medicina, Catálogo da colecção portuguesa I, 46. Pires de Lima,
Catalogo da Bibliotheca da Escola Medico-Cirurgica do Porto 451. OCLC: 12082504. Porbase
locates a single copy, in the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal. COPAC locates a copy in
the British Library. Not located in the Wellcome Library online catalogue. WorldCat
locates copies at the New York Public Library, Boston Athenaeum, National Library of
Medicine, Library of Congress, and University of Kansas. Not located in Hollis, which
cites a Portuguese translation of another work by this author at the Countway Medicine
Rare Books Collection. Not located in Orbis.
27. [BERCHTOLD, Leopold, Graf von]. [motto:] Nisi utile est quod facimus,
stulta est gloria. [text begins:] A Academia Real das Sciencias enviou o seu Socio
o Ill. e Exc. Luiz Pinto de Sousa, Secretario de Estado dos Negocios Estrangeiros,
hum Opusculo intitulado Discrizione del nuovo rimedio curativo …. (Lisbon:
Academia Real das Sciencias de Lisboa [?] / Impressão Regia [?], 1797).