RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1973
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8910rj06r
TRANSACTIONS OF THE

CHINA MEDICO-CHIRURGICAL SOCIETY, 1845-6

H. A. RYDINGS*

The connection between the China Medico-Chirurgical Society and the original China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society has been related elsewhere in the Journal (1). Until recently, however, it was not possible to learn much in Hong Kong about this predecessor to our own Society.

Now the University of Hong Kong Library has obtained a Xerox copy of the Transactions of the China Medico-Chirurgical Society, from the original volume in the Library of the Royal Society of Medicine, one of only two copies recorded in the British Isles (2). This Xerox copy will be kept in the University's Hong Kong Collection. The volume runs to 80 pages, slightly smaller than those of this Journal, and the title page, here reproduced, gives the names of the officers and committee. Two names appear as Secretary because the first, Dr. B. Hobson, had to return to Europe for family reasons during his term of office (3).

Not a great deal has come to light about most of these leaders of the medical profession in the early days of the Colony, though it has been possible to find out what each of them was doing in Hong Kong. Dr. Tucker, the first President, was Surgeon on H.M. Hospital Ship Minden, which arrived in Hong Kong on 7th June, 1843 from Chusan. He died on board the Minden on 10th Sept. 1845, whilst still holding the office of President, in which he was succeeded by Dr. Dill. Francis Dill was Hong Kong's second Colonial Surgeon, appointed to succeed Dr. A. Anderson in 1844 on a date so far unknown, but probably between 7th May and 25th June. He may also possibly be identified with the "Mr. Dill, surgeon of the 'Atlas'" mentioned in a letter of Dr. Robert Morrison dated March 19th, 1822 from Canton (4).

The Society's first Secretary, Dr. Benjamin Hobson, was in charge of the Medical Missionary Society's Hospital, first in Macao,

* Mr. Rydings is Librarian of the University of Hong Kong and has been Councillor and Hon. Librarian of the Hong Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society since 1965.
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1973
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8910rj06r
26

PARSONS, Usher.

H. A. RYDINGS

Directions for making anatomical preparations. Philadelphia, 1831.

"Directions for anatomical preparations."

PORTAL, Antoine, Baron.

Cours d'anatomie médicale. 5v. Paris, 1803. "Cours d'anatomie médicale."

RENNIE, James.

Alphabet of medical botany. Edinburgh, 1834. "Alphabet of medical botany."

WARE, James.

Chirurgical observations relative to the eye. 2v. London, 1798. "Ware on the eye."

PERIODICALS

Agricultural and Horticultural Society of India. Proceedings (and journal) 2v.

American journal of science. 6v.

Asiatic Society of Bengal. Journal.

Braithwaite's retrospect of practical medicine and surgery, v.12, 1845.

British and foreign review, Jan. to April 1845.

Calcutta journal of natural history.

Calcutta Medical Society. Transactions. 2v.

Dublin journal of medical science. 5v.

Dublin medical press, Jan.-Oct. 1845.

Edinburgh medical and surgical journal. 6v.

Guy's Hospital reports. 2v.

Indian journal of medical (and physical) science, no. 3-6 (and) seven issues for 1845.

Lancet, 1825-30, 1836-39, April 1844, Jan. 1845-14 Feb. 1846.

*List of apothecaries. 6 yrs. between 1815 and 1837.

*List of London surgeons, 1837.

unidentified.
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1975
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/j0995146d
290

Editor's Footnotes

DONALD C. BOWIE

1. Dr. Bowie's own career and achievements, before and after the historic events of which he writes, will be of interest to readers of this Journal. They are as follows:

M.B. 1918. University of Glasgow.

F.R.C.S. Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh 1929.

Honorary F.R.C.G.P. (Royal College of General Practitioners) 1969.

Sir Arthur Keith Medallist, Royal College of Surgeons, England, 1969.

Main Appointments, Army.

Commissioned R.A.M.C. 1918.

Served in U.K., France, Germany, Turkey.

Seconded to Egyptian Army 1923-25.

Shanghai Defence Force 1927.

Territorial Adjutant, 54th East Anglian Division T.A. 1928-30,

Surgical Specialist, British Troops in Egypt 1930-35.

Surgical Specialist, Queen Alexandra Military Hospital, London 1936-39,

Surgical Specialist, British Troops in China, Hong Kong, 1939.

Prisoner of War, 1941-45.

Reader in Military Surgery, Royal Army Medical College, London 1946-48. Consulting Surgeon, Middle East Land Forces 1948-50.

Retired 1950. (voluntarily)

Civil.

Regional Postgraduate Dean, British Postgraduate Medical Federation, University of London in North West, South West Metropolitan and Wessex Hospital Regions, 1950-70.

Now Retired.

Dr. Bowie was awarded the O.B.E. (Military) in 1946.

2. Dr. Bowie's account of Japanese attitudes and behaviour can usefully be set beside the comments of Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke and Dr. Li Shu-fan, the eminent Hong Kong surgeon, who both experienced them at first hand. Sir Selwyn writes (pp. 71-72 of his autobiography referred to at p. 178 above):

Nobody can deny that man's potential for cruelty was exhibited on an appalling scale by the Japanese in the stress of war. It was predictable in the circumstances that I should suffer my share of ill-treatment at their hands, and this is what presently came about. Yet the feature of their character that stood out from that whole experience was in fact their unpredictability. They would be acquiescent, even humane, when least expected, vicious with sudden fury after a phase almost of apathy. They could respect, sometimes, a principled stand or an unflinching argument, and yet visit a meaningless rage upon the helpless. To attempt to understand them was the plain duty of anyone seeking to protect a community that was at their mercy, and the first lesson to be learned was that surrender violated their military code, making a prisoner a non-person. But this too was a generalization, and as such to be guarded against as one guarded against racial prejudice. For men are not cast in one mould, even by war, even by a code or an ideology.

Dr. Li's account of Hong Kong under Japanese rule is given in chapters 6-9 of his autobiography, Hong Kong Surgeon (London, Victor Gollancz, 1964) in which his comments at pp. 159-160 are relevant here.
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1984
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/5h73wh572
reviewed the condition of Hong Kong Island in 1841 in order to show that it was a long-settled place with thriving coastal ports. Then, Dr. Kerrie MacPherson, Lecturer in History at the University of Hong Kong, who has researched into the medical history of the international settlements in Shanghai, addressed us on 12th March about prostitution there, under the title “Caveat Emptor: an Attempt at the Control of Venereal Disease in Nineteenth Century Shanghai". Finally, on 19 April Dr. Julian Pas, Associate Professor at the University of Saskatchewan and a frequent contributor to our Journal, gave an illustrated slide lecture on “Religion in China Today" based on his observations during a four-month visit to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengtu.

There were three local tour visits during the year. On 21 July 1984, Revd Carl Smith took us to the Tao Feng Shan Ecumenical Centre. This occupies the very attractive Chinese monastic premises built on a hill above Sha Tin for the Christian Mission to Buddhists in the 1930s, and besides touring these buildings, members were able to visit the grave of Revd Carl Reichelt, its founder.

Two other visits were organized by myself. On 8 December, 33 members took part in a memorable visit to Maryknoll Fathers' House, Stanley, where one of our founder members, Father Michael McKeirnan M.M., spoke to us in his own inimitable way on his experiences during the brief defence of Hong Kong in December 1941, when he had been in the house as a language student. His talk will be published in the Journal. On this visit, members also walked part of the road constructed by the incoming British in the 1840s, and benefited from Mr. Ian Diamond's work on Lieutenant (later Major-General) T.B. Collinson, R.E. who surveyed and made military sketches of Hong Kong Island at that time.

On 9 March, there was another well-attended visit to Stanley; this time to the four temples of the area, the two villages of Tai Tam and Wong Ma Kok, and the Kaifong Association's premises where we had tea. The latter are of particular interest, being undoubtedly the oldest occupied local management office on Hong Kong Island, having been repaired in 1847 according to the inscription above the doorway. On this visit, Mr. Clive Oxley, Dep-
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1990
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/d79206299
196

45

In order to achieve these aims, he translated from English a reader for younger students which at times was a conscious attempt to impress Chinese readers with the greatness of Western culture. In addition, in the mid-1850s he took over the editing of a monthly journal, written in Chinese for the propagation of news and cultural information from a Western perspective. This kind of approach, so common among many Western missionaries of various sorts, from the early Jesuits to the educators and medical doctors of the 20th century, Legge consciously rejected in 1856. In that year he decided as editor of the monthly journal that the enterprise was not helpful, so he not only stepped down as editor, but also stopped its publication. Furthermore, never again did he translate an educational reader of the sort mentioned above for Chinese students. In doing so, he was returning to the original educational ideals first expressed in his personal journal of 1847.

What motivated Legge to return after 1856 to his original ideals after his experiments between 1852 and 1856 with a more didactic educational philosophy? Several factors seem to have been involved. One was a disenchantment with the government's militarism and the ugly stories tied to the commercial opium trade in which English capitalists were implicated. Although Legge remained a faithful British citizen, he was not unwilling to criticize policies which stood in opposition to ethical duty and moral integrity among his own countrymen. He was a faithful citizen, but not a blind patriot.

Another factor may well have been the growing apprehension among the missionary communities about the Taiping Rebellion and its distortion of Christian faith. Some had originally hailed it as a judgement of God on the Qing dynasty, with leaders who were favourable to the representatives of Christian religion. This hope was dashed when a German missionary in contact with Taiping leaders published an account of their doctrines, displaying them as an eclectic cult which adopted some teachings of Christianity, but distorted them by combining them with other religious teachings and the visionary messages of Hong Xiuquan.47 Legge could not distance himself from this issue, because his closest Chinese friend during this period was Hong Rengan, later to become the Shield King of the Taipings (太平天國) once he arrived in their capital of Tianjing (天京) (formerly and now Nanjing). The issue was constantly in the widower's mind not only because he felt close to Rengan, but also...

4K
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1993
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/66833t302
CONTRIBUTORS

Karina Lam Wai-Ling, M.A., is the Marketing Communications Manager SE Asia for Philips Semiconductors. The article is an edited version of her master's dissertation.

Janet George, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer at the Department of Social Work and Social Policy, University of Sydney. She has researched deeply into various aspects of Hong Kong's early maternity services.

Keith Stevens, B.A., served with the British Army and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office before his retirement in 1991. He has an abiding interest in Chinese deities and temples and has written numerous articles for the Journal.

Gerald Choa, M.D., was a former Director of Medical & Health Services of the Hong Kong Government and Pro-Vice Chancellor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He has written extensively about early Hong Kong medical figures and services.

Patrick Hase, B.A., Ph.D., is a council member of the Royal Asiatic Society (Hong Kong Branch) and a former editor of the Journal. He has written extensively on early life in the New Territories.

Mary Pang, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the Department of Business and Management at the City University of Hong Kong.

Dan Waters, M.Phil., Ph.D., is a retired Assistant Director of Education of the Hong Kong Government and a council member of the Royal Asiatic Society (Hong Kong Branch). He has written extensively on the history and culture of Hong Kong.

Geoffrey Roper, is a retired Assistant Commissioner of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force. He chairs the Activities Committee of the Royal Asiatic Society (Hong Kong Branch).

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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1994
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/zk522640g
85

If one feels sick and then one's thoughts are totally absorbed by something more important, one's sickness vanishes Auto-suggestion can play an important role. If one walks under a ladder and one expects it to bring bad luck, it will bring bad luck The ladder is quite harmless, but the bad luck comes because one expects it

In research undertaken in the United States, the conclusion was that American Chinese (but not Whites) die significantly younger if they have a disease coupled with a birth year which Chinese astrology and medicine consider ill-fated. The more strongly a person is attached to Chinese traditions the earlier he or she dies (Phillips, 1993: 1142). The research, written up in the British Medical Journal, demonstrated that, in the same way that a link between emotion and cancer has long been suspected, positive psychosocial intervention helps to increase one's chances of survival. To put it crudely, if you want to be sick you will be sick. Much is in the mind. In other words, in the long run thoughts can kill.

Although Chinese medicine and Chinese astrology are both complex, to give a simple example, a person's fate is influenced by his or her year of birth. Thus, according to Chinese belief, a person born in a certain year is also associated with an organ of the body or symptom So, a person born in a 'Fire Year' (1967 for example) would be specially susceptible to lumps, nodules and tumours. This means that, when a person contracts a disease which is associated with their birth year, they are more likely to feel helpless, hopeless or sore. This is especially so with American Chinese females (as opposed to males) who are less exposed to western influences outside the home

Some Chinese naturally argue that the fact such people die earlier only goes to prove that Chinese belief is correct. If this is so why is it then that the same findings do not emerge for white Americans? The conclusions of the research team were that the earlier deaths with many American Chinese were due, at least partly, to psychosomatic processes.

Returning to the flat in the case study in a similar fashion a crooked wall, which gave out 'latent energy' behind the head of the bed, was 'straightened' (concealed) by erecting a false wall. It now provides a 'better back-up'. It is also believed that it is not good to sleep with a mirror at the foot of a bed as, on waking, it can cause a fright and subsequent nervous disorder,

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