Articella (The Little Art of Medicine)

In this excellent book are these works. First is the book of Johannitius, which is called in Greek isagoge introduction: which we Latin speakers call introductions. It is placed at the beginning because it contains the essentials of medicine: and it is innate to us to proceed from these things to particulars, since universals are greater and known first by our intellect, as the Prince of the Peripatetics Aristotle and his commentator Averroes testify in the prologue to the Physics Physics/Natural Hearing. Second in the book is the short work on pulses by Philaretus, containing in brief words what Galen noted in the seventeen books on the subject of pulses. Third is the book of Theophilus on urines, collecting the sayings of Hippocrates and Galen, and not excluding those of Avicenna on urines, which were scattered here and there. Fourth are the aphorisms of Hippocrates, collected in order and pertaining to the theoretical and practical parts, so that they might be better committed to memory: because order serves memory and intelligence, as is stated regarding memory and reminiscence. Fifth are the same aphorisms with the commentaries of Galen according to the translation of the monk Constantine, which is new: which almost all expositors, both ancient and recent, follow, such as Thaddeus, Albert of Zaccaria of Bologna, and Jacob of Montecalvo, Abistto Fer of Honestis, and others. Sixth is the book of Prognostics of the same, divided into three parts. And there, both translations of the text are placed: the new one and the old one. The commentary, however, was translated only once by Gerard of Cremona, although some say the commentary was also translated twice. In that commentary, on the commentary of the regimen of acute diseases, many sayings of the master are frequently placed, who commented on other works of Hippocrates and Galen. And do not wonder that the text of the first book of the old Prognostics is the same as that text which is repeated in the sixth chapter where it is said: "It seems to me that it is better to use foresight." For Galen, in the prologue which lasts until that text, "You must be diligent concerning acute illnesses," makes a double explanation: one short for those who grasp the mind and intellect of Hippocrates, the other prior, long, and greater for the curious. Nor should one wonder if some texts are found alone in such a way that the translation is not repeated there: for often those texts are a repetition of the text above, as is done in the epidemic, as the Alexandrian commentator does regarding the first text of the 40th of the second book of Regimen and the 37th of the same; and in the second chapter of the third book of Prognostics, in which third book the intention of Hippocrates is to teach us to prognosticate on acute illness, primarily regarding the crisis and critical days. The fifth and ninth texts of the same third book are also a repetition. Many times, however, they are placed alone because they are clear and known, as in the 14th of the second book of Acute Regimen and the 41st of the second book of Prognostics. Nor did I want to pass over in silence the statement I found while correcting the aforementioned Galen and Avicenna. For Galen, in the commentary on Prognostics, 12, at the beginning of the commentary: "It is necessary that the counting of days in this illness be from the first day in which the woman gives birth, and not from the day in which the fever afflicted her." Avicenna, however, in the second part of the fourth, in the second tract on critical days and their hours, in the first chapter, says: "And if a woman gives birth and fever happens to her, then if it is not counted from the fever and only from the birth, that is an error." To which some doctors reply that the fever following childbirth is twofold: one follows directly, and one by accident, for instance from error such as poor regimen; and Avicenna understands it as this one, that it would be an error to begin counting the critical days from the hour of birth. And what Galen says, "It is necessary that..." is sensible; thus it must be done from the hour in which the fever was perceived, but in truth, although it is sometimes perceived insensibly and hides, and although the hour is the hour of birth. For Galen wants it to begin then; but after the vehemence of the pains and other accidents, the beginning of the fever is hidden. Others say that the hour from which the counting should be taken is the hour of the fever and not the hour of birth, the reason for which is that the beginning of the calculation of the critical day must be taken from the hour of the beginning of the illness, as Galen testifies in the second book of the differences of fevers, chapter seven. But the beginning of the essence of the illness is when the fever begins, therefore it should not be counted from the beginning of the birth. To Galen, it must be said that he understood it regarding the fever following the birth directly and which is in the birth itself: and it is almost the same as the previous response. And therefore Avicenna said: "Then fever happens to her," which he claims four days after the day of birth. But a certain reason could be brought forward for Galen, for from that hour in which movement is made in the matter, the calculation of the critical day must be made; but in the hour of birth, movement is made in the matter; therefore it is answered that the major premise is false, for then the critical day would have to be calculated from the beginning of neutrality, which is false, as is clear in itself. But although the matters are not present, for we shall speak otherwise of these statements that are found between Galen and Avicenna, since we have already given the beginning to this matter. In the seventh place is the book of the regimen of acute diseases containing four parts, of which three were already printed in previous years, but the fourth was not because of its difficulty. It has a single translation, in which fourth part, if some Greek words are found written in our Latin letters incorrectly, which perhaps might move a laugh in someone learned in Greek letters, one should not murmur at it, for the interpretations of those words are faithful and most true. In which no discrepancy of the codices was found, which I had with me to amend, although they were often written in different ways, now in the commentary, now in the text. For where the essence of the thing is known, one should not care about the names. For Galen wished to be able to discern and teach without names, whence he rails against many in the 22nd commentary of the second part of the Aphorisms, saying thus: "But nevertheless I want to oppose the opinions of well-known doctors who always chatter only about names, thinking they are speaking about the things whose names they are." And in the third of the Tegni Art near the end, he says: "And it is possible that the causes are not named at all." Thus do many of the sophists among them who neglect speculation in the discovery of the diversity of the sum of things and end their life in names. And Aristotle: "There was little concern for names," says Averroes. Therefore, let Latin interpretations suffice for you, since the Latin language should not be held to be of lower dignity and excellence than the Greek language itself, with Cicero saying in the first of the Tusculan Disputations Tusculan questions: "But it has always been my judgment that our ancestors had everything more wisely by themselves than the Greeks, or made better those things received from them," although Priscian and many others think the opposite. In the eighth place is the book of the Epidemics of Hippocrates with the commentary of John the Alexandrian, an excellent and beautiful work divided into eight parts, in which do not wonder if not all texts are marked: for when Hippocrates speaks in a continuous sermon, I did not think the canons should be marked, but only when he transfers himself to another material. And often in the previous commentary he declares the text below, therefore note well in this, and he repeats many words of the text in the commentary again and again. In the ninth place is a small book of Hippocrates which is titled On the Nature of the Fetus or On the Nature of the Embryo. In the tenth place is the book of Galen which is called Tegni Art and Ars Parva Small Art and Microtegni Small Art, translated by Gerard of Cremona, a most famous man who translated 75 works from the Arabic language into our Latin, both in dialectic and philosophy and in mathematical disciplines, and in medicine 21, all of which to recount in his praise, if this place were suitable for this matter. After this is placed the book of Gentilis of Fuligno on the division and order and number of the books which Galen edited, where some allegations are brought which Gentilis had kept silent about. In the twelfth place is the book on the Law of Hippocrates and the little book which is called his Oath.

First is the book of Johannitius, which is called Isagoge Introduction in Greek.
Second is the little book on pulses by Philaretus.
Third is the little book of Theophilus on urines.
Fourth are the aphorisms of Hippocrates collected in order.
Fifth are the same aphorisms with the commentary of Galen.
Sixth is the book of Prognostics of the same, divided into three parts.
Seventh is the book of the regimen of acute diseases containing four parts.
Eighth is the book of the Epidemics of Hippocrates with commentary, containing eight parts.
Ninth is the little book of Hippocrates which is titled On the Nature of the Fetus.
Tenth is the book of Galen which is called Tegni Art or the Small Art.
Eleventh is the little book of Gentilis of Fuligno on the division, etc.
Twelfth is the little book on the law of Hippocrates and the little book which is called the Oath.