State Library of NSW
[Page 198]
194. Some account of New Zealand
am inclind to think that their knowledge of Physick is but small from the state of their surgery which more than once came under my inspection of this art they seemd totaly ignorant, I saw several who were wounded by our shot without the smallest application upon their wounds one in particular who had a musquet ball shot through the fleshy part of his arm he came out of his house & shewd himself to us making a little use of the wounded arm the wound which was then of several days standing was totaly void of inflammation seemd well digested in short appeard to me to be in so good a state that had any application been made use of I should not have faild to enquire carefully what it had Been which had had so good an Effect
A farther proof and not a small weak one of the sound health that these people enjoy may be taken from the number of old people we saw hardly a canoe came off to us that did not bring one or more & every town had several whoom if we may judge by gray hairs & worn out teeth were of a very advancd age of these few or none were decrepid indeed the greatest number of them seemd in vivacity and chearfullness to equal the young indeed to be inferior
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