A Treatise of Buggs

Part 1

Nitts one day Old 3 days 1 week 2 weeks 3 weeks 4 weeks 5 weeks 6 weeks 7 weeks 8 weeks 9 weeks 10 weeks full grown Europeans full grown American

G. VanderGucht sculp. ]

A TREATISE OF BUGGS:

SHEWING

When and How they were first brought into England. How they are brought into and infect Houses.

Their Nature, several Foods, Times and Manner of Spawning and Propagating in this Climate.

Their great INCREASE accounted for, by Proof of the Numbers each Pair produce in a Season.

REASONS given why all Attempts hitherto made for their Destruction have proved ineffectual.

VULGAR ERRORS concerning them refuted.

That from September to March is the best Season for their total Destruction, demonstrated by Reason, and proved by Facts.

Concluding with

DIRECTIONS for such as have them not already, how to avoid them; and for those that have them, how to destroy them.

By JOHN SOUTHALL,

Maker of the Nonpareil Liquor for destroying Buggs and Nits, living at the Green Posts in the Green Walk near Faulcon-stairs, Southwark.

The SECOND EDITION.

LONDON: Printed for J. ROBERTS, near the Oxford-Arms in Warwick-Lane. M.DCC.XXX.

(Price One Shilling.)

Sir HANS SLOANE, Bart.

First Physician in Ordinary to His MAJESTY; President of the ROYAL SOCIETY, and also of the College of Physicians.

SIR,

Your ready Condescension to peruse the following Treatise, and to see the Experiments of my Liquor, both in regard to its bringing out, and destroying Buggs; as also that of its no ways staining Furniture; was to me the happy Presage of your Favour, and Approbation of my Performances.

The Satisfaction of having this Treatise and Experiments approv’d by You, the Best of Judges, was to me the greatest Honour I could wish for; but the additional one, confer’d by your introducing me to the Royal Society, and there having not only their unanimous Approbation, but yours and their Thanks for my Discoveries and Intent of publishing them, was beyond my Hopes, and a Pleasure so great, as to be past expressing; in regard that it dissipates all my Fears for its Success, and makes me justly hope it will meet with a candid Reception from, and be of general Benefit to the Publick.

As to your Goodness, I must ascribe the happy Prospect of its proving so, Gratitude obliges me in this manner to acknowledge it; and to be,

Sir, Your Much-Obliged, And Most Obedient Servant,

JOHN SOUTHALL.

THE PREFACE.

Being diffident of my own Performance, and desirous it should stand or fall by the Opinion of the Best of Judges, was the Motive that induced me to make my Application to that very Learned, truly Judicious and commendably Curious Person to whom it’s dedicated: At the same time determining, that if he approv’d of it, I would publish it; and if he disapprov’d, that I would burn it. But it happily meeting his Approbation, it now makes its Appearance in Print: Tho’ I must in Justice to him acknowledge, it could not have so done so soon, nor with such Embellishments, had he not only forwarded the Impression, but directed and order’d the Copper-plate. As it has not only his Approbation, but also, by his introducing it, the unanimous Concurrent Approbation of (those great Encouragers of things useful) the Royal Society; I hope it will not fail of meeting a kind Reception from the Inhabitants in and about this Metropolis; by whom, as such a Treatise, &c. was most wanted, for their Benefit and Ease it was at first chiefly design’d.

Tho’ with such Helps as it now has, I am not without Hopes that it may extend its Qualities to distant infected Places.

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I should think it a Duty Incumbent on me, and would wait on the Venerable Members of the aforesaid Society, present when my Manuscript was read, personally to return them my Thanks for the Honours conferr’d on me. But as the Names and Places of Abode of most are unknown to me, I humbly beg they will accept this Acknowledgement of them, by their

Obliged and Obedient Servant,

JOHN SOUTHALL.

A TREATISE OF BUGGS.

As Buggs have been known to be in England above sixty Years, and every Season increasing so upon us, as to become terrible to almost every Inhabitant in and about this Metropolis, it were greatly to be wished that some more learned Person than my self, studious for the Good of Human Kind, and the Improvement of natural Knowledge, would have oblig’d the Town with some Treatise, Discourse or Lecture on that nauseous venomous Insect.

But as none such have attempted it, and I have ever since my return from America made their destruction my Profession, and was at first much baffled in my Attempts for want, (as I then believ’d, and have since found) of truly knowing the Nature of those intolerable Vermin: I determined by all means possible to try if I could discover and find out as much of their Nature, Feeding and Breeding, as might be conducive to my being better able to destroy them.

And tho’ in attempting it I must own I had a View at private Gain, as well as the publick Good; yet I hope my Design will appear laudable, and the Event answer both Ends.

The late Learned and truly Valuable Dr. Woodward, to whom I first communicated my Intent, not only approv’d the Design, but also the Methods which, I told him, I design’d to pursue, to attain the desired Effects: and at the same time was so good to give me some useful Hints and Instructions, the better to accomplish an Affair, which he said ’twas his Opinion would be a general Good.

Not to make this Acknowledgement of his kind Assistance, would be Ingratitude to my dear deceas’d Friend.

As I had his Approbation at the beginning, had he but liv’d till now, I doubt not but the Discoveries I have made would have appear’d so considerable and useful, as might have entitled me to his farther Friendship and Assistance, in methodizing this Treatise for Publication.

But depriv’d of him, my first and greatest Encourager, I have ventur’d to let it appear in the best Dress my Capacity will admit. Should the Stile and my Manner of handling the Subject to be treated of, appear uncouth and displease, I hope the Usefulness of it to the Publick will make some amends for that Defect.

In treating on these Insects, some part of the Discourse may perhaps at first View appear surprizing, if not incredible to the Readers: But by giving them an account how I attain’d my Knowledge, and by often reiterated Experiments prov’d them to be certain Facts, they will soon alter their Opinion; and the whole, I hope, will not only be acceptable, diverting and instructive to the Readers, but also of universal Benefit to the Inhabitants in and about London and Westminster.

This Treatise being on a Subject as much wanted as any whatever, and the Pains and Trouble I have taken to arrive at my Knowledge herein, having been uncommon; it may be expected by the Curious, that I should give some of the Reasons that first induced me to undertake a Discovery so very difficult to appearance.

It may not therefore be unnecessary to acquaint such, that in the Year 1726, my Affairs requiring my going to the West-Indies, I had not been long there arrived, before, (the Climate not agreeing with my Constitution) I fell sick, had a Complication of the Country Distempers, lost the Use of my Limbs, and was given over by the best Physicians at Kingstown in Jamaica.

But, contrary to their Expectation, recovering a little, they advis’d me to stay no longer in a Country, so prejudicial and dangerous to me, than till I could get Shipping for England; and in the mean time desired that as often as I was able, I would ride out for the Benefit of the Air; which as soon as I had Strength enough, I did.

In one of my Journeys meeting with an uncommon Negro, the Hair or (rather) Wooll on his Head, Beard, and Breast being as white as Snow, I stopt my Horse to look on him; and he coming, as their way is, to beg a little Tobacco, I gave it, and enquir’d if he had been always so white-hair’d. He answer’d, no; but Age had made him so.

Observing that he moved briskly, had no Wrinkles, and all his Teeth, I told him I could not believe him to be very old, at the same time desiring to know his Age. His Answer was, he knew not himself; but this he knew, that he was one of the first Slaves brought into that Island, after the English had taken it in Oliver Cromwell’s time, and was then a great Boy.

By this account I judged, and might reasonably suppose him upwards of ninety Years of Age.

Whilst we were in discourse, he perceiving me often rub and scratch, where my Face and Eyes were much swelled with Bugg-Bites, asked if Chintses, (so Buggs are by Negroes and some others there called) had bit me? On my answering, yes; he said, he wonder’d white Men should let them bite; they should do something to kill them, as he did.

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