Page:Lives of British Physicians.djvu/63

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I HARVEY. '47 ithere he was destined to remain some time. He related to a friend, that, on the day of the battle of jEdgehill, he had the charge of the Prince (after- I wards Charles II.) and of the Duke of York; while the fight was going on, he withdrew with the young princes under a hedge, and took out of his pocket a book, which he began to read. He had not pursued his studies long, before a cannon- ball grazed on the ground near him, which made him remove his station. The following adventure, also, had come under his notice : Sir Adrian Scrope I was dangerously wounded, and left for dead amongst the slain, which happened to be the saving of his life. It was cold, clear weather, and a frost came on during the night (the battle of Edgehill was fought on the 23d of October), which staunched the bleeding of the wounded man ; about midnight, some hours after his hurt, he awaked, and was fain I to draw a dead body upon him for the sake of warmth. At Oxford, Harvey had abundant leisure to pur- |l sue his favourite studies ; though under the dis- i advantage of having lost many most valuable I notes of experiments, which he had previously I made. At the beginning of the rebellion, his lodgings at Whitehall had been plundered ; and his papers, containing his curious observations upon the dissection of frogs, toads, and a number of other animals, disappeared. This was a loss which he never ceased to lament, saying, that for love or money, he could never retrieve or ob- tain them." He was incorporated Doctor of Phy- sic on the 7th December, 1642 ; and in 1645 was made, by the king's mandate, Warden of Merton