Preface

things handed down from the ancients original: "Antiquis tradita" would not be administered indiscriminately and wrongly (as is now the custom among medical quacks medical quacks original: "Medicaſtris"; a derogatory term for unlearned or fraudulent practitioners who lacked formal training.) in any state of disease or case of the sick person original: "Ægrotantis", but always at the right time and according to the most suitable intentions for healing. Furthermore, new and more effective medicines (whenever such are indicated for certain great and unusual afflictions) could be discovered both easily and safely, with no error by the physician or danger to the patient. Since it is clearly evident what kind of particles in the patient must be either altered or stirred into motion, and what kind are required in the agent In this context, the "agent" is the medicine acting upon the body. for that work, it will not be difficult to designate this aptly enough and to fit it properly to the other. But the matter is handled far differently, and with significant danger and abuse to the human body, by pseudo-chemists pseudo-chemists original: "Pſeudo-chymicis"; Willis distinguishes his own scientific chemistry from the boastful or mystical alchemists of his day.. These people, not content with remedies accepted and proven by use, boast that they are laboring in their furnaces for nothing less than the Great Elixir Great Elixir original: "magnum Elixir"; the legendary substance sought by alchemists to cure all diseases and extend life indefinitely., or some Panacea Panacea original: "Panaceam"; a universal remedy., or universal medicine original: "medicinam Univerſalem". While they meanwhile handle minerals original: "mineralia" unskillfully, expecting some uncertain outcome rather than designing anything with serious purpose; if by chance an unusual product should appear, with this new drug original: "pharmaco", (whose virtues are entirely unknown, and often