MEMOIR

OF

THOMAS C. JAMES, M. D.,

ONE OF THE

VICE PRESIDENTS OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OF PENNSYLVANIA.

BY JOB R. TYSON.

READ AT AN ANNUAL MEETING OF THE SOCIETY, ON THE 1ST OF FEBRUARY, 1836.

RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED AT A MEETING OF THE COU CIL, HELD JULY 15TH, 1835.

"Resolved, That the Council of the Historical Society of Pennsylv nia, learn, with the deepest regret, the death of their venerable Vice Pr sident, Dr. THOMAS C. JAMES, a gentleman whose urbanity, lit rary acquirements, and eminent talents, had gained him the esteem a friendship of his associates; and whose memory will long be cherished those who had the happiness of meeting him in this hall.

"Resolved, That Job R. Tyson, Esq., be requested to prepare a Bigraphical Memoir of Dr. James, which may illustrate his personal an literary character, to be printed in the next half-volume of this Society transactions.

"Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to the f mily of the deceased, with the assurance of the hearty condolence of th Council in this afflicting dispensation of Providence."

MEMOIR OF

THOMAS C. JAMES.

THOMAS C. JAMES was descended from a respectable English family. He was the youngest son of Abel James, an eminent merchant of Philadelphia, and was born, in this city, on the 31st day of August, 1766. His maternal grandfather was the pious and well-known Quaker writer, Thomas Chalkley. Born of Quaker parents, he received the early part of his literary training in the seminaries of Friends. His classical instructor was Robert Proud, the historian. Having finished those branches of learning which he could derive from the Quaker schools of the time, we may presume, from the solidity and extent of his attainments in after life, that he diligently prosecuted his studies in private, either unassisted, or with the aid of a tutor.

Upon terminating his literary preparation, which was comprehensive and exact, he commenced the study of medicine under the direction of the respected and eminent Dr. Adam Kuhn. His diploma, as Doctor of Medicine, was conferred by the University of Pennsylvania, in the year 1787.

It was not unusual in the early stage of professional life, for the young physician to seek, in the maritime service, the practical benefits of a surgeon. Dr. James proposed to himself ulterior and higher aims than the station itself. He sought

the pecuniary ability to complete his studies, as a physician, in Europe. Through the influence of his friends, and his own merits, he obtained the desired situation,, and embarked in the ship Sampson, bound to the Cape of Good Hope and Chipa, in the autumn of 1788. His character for medical skill, mildness of manner, and great placidity of temper, was established, during this voyage, in the opinion of his worthy mess

mates.

He kept a Journal of his voyage, which is replete with evidence of the activity of his mind, and the felicity of a style, then only in the process of formation. Many passages of moral reflection and playful allusion occur in this Journal. I quote the following as an example of the former: “Whilst I was writing the preceding sentence, an unfortunate being, tired of confinement on ship-board, and panting for enlargement, rashly leaped overboard, and while mounting on the distant billows, exulted with a mistaken joy. As it disappeared from sight, at the cabin window, I could not help feeling an emotion of pity at the idea of the suffering it must undergo, when deprived of food, till death, either in propria persona, or by his messenger, a shark, serves his capias upon him. A mind inclined to moralize might draw a parallel between this foolish creature, and many an unthinking mortal, who, tired of protecting care and authority, breaks through the bands of prudence, and launches on the wide ocean of life with nothing to direct his course but the winds and waves of irrational prejudices and boisterous passions.

"In stress of weather most, some sink outright

O'er them and o'er their names the billows close.
To-morrow knows not they were ever born."-YOUNG.

Be not alarmed, friend L―, the subject of this moralizing was not a man nor a boy, but

a goose!"

During a long passage at sea, the mind is thrown upon its own resources. Its fertility or barrenness, its vacancy or

fulness, can be easily detected. The monotony of the scene, grand as it frequently is, the absence of incident to awaken reflection, and the enervating sickness which is the certain concomitant of all, try at once the mind and the temper. Dr. James, refers to these distresses in the following happy manner: "Had I the mental powers of Sterne, I could fill up in sentiment the deficiency of transaction, but, to original geniuses only is it assigned to strike out hints, where there is no variety of object to exercise and expand the mind. The faculties become torpid, from the want of excitement from external circumstances. I recollect to have heard or read of a German philosopher, who, by shutting himself up in a room from which every ray of light was excluded, for the purpose of indulging in intense reflection, brought on a deep sleep, which terminated in death." This Journal contains the events of his absence; but as the Society have in view, rather an elucidation of the personal and literary character of their deceased Vice President, than an extended biography, I pass rapidly over this interesting period of his life. He made his travels auxiliary to improvement, especially in botany. At the Cape of Good Hope, he devoted himself to that study with great assiduity. He returned home in the year 1789.

The primary object of this unalluring voyage, was not forgotten. Dr. James went to Edinburgh in the autumn of 1790, then the great attraction of medical students. Under the tuition of the celebrated Hunter, Home, Baillie, Gregory, and others of scarcely inferior note, he laid the foundation of his subsequent repute as a physician. He availed himself of the opportunity of visiting London, and other parts of England, as well as different parts of Ireland. From the high estimation of his grandfather, Thomas Chalkley, and his own mental and personal qualities, he soon found easy admission into the good society of the places which he visited. He remained in Europe two years, which he spent, in the intervals