SLOANE (Sir Hans, baronet), an eminent physician and naturalist, founder of the British Museum, was of Scottish extraction, and born at Killileath in the north of Ireland in 1660. The earliest bent of his genius was to the study of nature, and this was encouraged by a proper education. He chose physic for his profession; and to attain a perfect knowledge of its several branches repaired to London, where he attended all the public lectures of anatomy and medicine, learned chemistry, and studied botany in Chelsea garden. His turn to natural history introduced him to the acquaintance of Mr Boyle and Mr Ray, which he carefully cultivated by communicating to them all his curious or useful observations. After spending four years in London, he went to Paris, where he attended the
hospitals, and heard the lectures of M. Tournefort, Du Verney, and other eminent masters. He then went to Montpellier; and having spent a year there in collecting plants, travelled through Languedoc with the same view, and in 1684 returned to London, when he presented to Mr Ray a great variety of plants and seeds, which the latter has described, with proper acknowledgments, in his Historia Plantarum. About this time he became acquainted with Dr Sydenham, who took him into his house, and recommended to him in the warmest manner to practise. Soon after, he was chosen a fellow of the Royal Society and of the college of physicians. But his desire to make new discoveries in natural history, induced him to make a voyage to Jamaica, in quality of physician to Christopher duke of Albemarle governor of that island; and though he staid there but 15 months, he brought from thence such a variety of plants, as greatly surprised Mr Ray, who did not think there had been so many to be found in both the Indies.
Dr Sloane now applied himself closely to his profession; and on the first vacancy was chosen physician to Christ's-hospital: but he applied the money he received from his appointment to the relief of those who were the greatest objects of compassion in the hospital, being unwilling to enrich himself by the gains he made of giving health to the poor. In 1693 he was chosen secretary to the Royal Society; and immediately revived the publication of the Philosophical Transactions, which had been omitted for some time, and continued to be the editor of them till 1712. As in his earliest days he had been fond of natural knowledge, he enriched his cabinet with every thing that was curious in art or nature; but this received a great augmentation by a bequest of William Courten, Esq; who had employed all his time and the greatest part of his fortune in collecting curiosities. The sense which the public entertained of this learned physician's merit evidently appears by the following honours conferred upon him. He was created a baronet by king Geo. I. chosen a foreign member of the royal academy at Paris, president of the college of physicians, and, on the death of Sir Isaac Newton, president of the Royal Society. He was the first in England who introduced the use of the bark into general practice, not only in fevers, but in a variety of other distempers, particularly in nervous disorders, in mortifications, and in violent hæmorrhagies. His receipt for diseases in the eyes is well known, and warranted by success. Having faithfully discharged the respective duties of the places which he filled, he retired in 1740, at 80 years of age, to Chelsea, to enjoy in a peaceful tranquillity the remains of a well-spent life. He here continued to receive the visits of people of distinction, and of all learned foreigners; and admittance was never refused to the poor who came to consult him in case of sickness. It is remarkable, that at 16 years of age he had been seized with a spitting of blood, which confined him to his chamber for three years, and that he was always subject to it; yet, by his sobriety, temperance, and moderation, with the occasional use of the bark, he protracted his life to a great length, without even feeling the infirmities of old age; and, after a short illness of three days, died in 1752, in his 91st year.
He was a liberal benefactor to the poor, and a governor
Smalkald. vernal of almost every hospital about London, to each of which he gave considerable benefactions. He zealously promoted every proposal that had for its object the public good. He laid the plan of a dispensatory, where the poor might be furnished with proper medicines at prime cost; which, by the assistance of the college of physicians, was afterwards carried into execution. He gave the apothecaries company the entire freehold of their botanical garden at Chelsea, in the centre of which is a statue of him in marble, admirably well executed by Mr Rybrack. In 1732 he exerted himself in promoting the establishment of the colony in Georgia; in 1739, of the foundling-hospital, and formed the plan for bringing up the children. His noble cabinet of curiosities he bequeathed to the public, on condition that the sum of 20,000l. not half the original cost, should be paid to his family; and also his library, consisting of above 50,000 volumes, 347 of which were illustrated with cuts coloured from nature, and 3566 manuscripts. He wrote the Natural History of Jamaica, in 2 vols folio.