John Rutty
Encyclopedia
John Rutty was a Dublin Quaker
physician and naturalist born in Melksham
. He was the author of many texts including A methodical synopsis of the Mineral Waters of Ireland (1757) and An Essay towards the Natural History of the County of Dublin (1772). After his death his spiritual diary was published and the botanist William Henry Harvey
named the genus Acanthaceae
Ruttya
after him.
He lived simply and often gave his services to the poor. On 6 April 1775 John Wesley
records that he ‘visited that venerable man Dr. Rutty.’ Rutty then lived in rented rooms at the eastern corner of Boot Lane and Mary's Lane in Dublin. He died on 27 April 1775, and was buried in a Quaker burial-ground on St Stephen's Green.
to laugh.
His first medical book was ‘An Account of Experiments on Joanna Stephen's Medicine for the Stone,’ published in London in 1742. He published in Dublin in 1751 ‘A History of the Rise and Progress of the People called Quakers in Ireland, from 1653 to 1751,’ a continuation of a book originally written by Thomas Wight of Cork in 1700; a fourth edition was issued in 1811. In 1757 he published in London ‘A Methodical Synopsis of Mineral Waters,’ a quarto of 658 pages, which gives an account of the chief mineral springs of the British Isles and of Europe. He had thrown doubt on some statements of Charles Lucas
in his account of the spa of Lisdoonvarna, County Clare
, and Lucas issued a general attack on the book.
He published in Dublin, in 1762, a tract called ‘The Analysis of Milk,’ and in 1770 ‘The Weather and Seasons in Dublin for Forty Years,’ which mentions the prevalent diseases throughout that period. In 1772 he published ‘A Natural History of the County of Dublin’ in two volumes. His last work was published at Rotterdam
in 1775. It was a Latin treatise on drugs, entitled Materia Medica Antiqua et Nova. It had occupied him for forty years.
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
physician and naturalist born in Melksham
Melksham
Melksham is a medium-sized English town, lying on the River Avon. It lies in the county of Wiltshire.It is situated southeast of the city of Bath, south of Chippenham, west of Devizes and north of Warminster on the A350 national route. The 2001 UK census cited Melksham as having 20,000...
. He was the author of many texts including A methodical synopsis of the Mineral Waters of Ireland (1757) and An Essay towards the Natural History of the County of Dublin (1772). After his death his spiritual diary was published and the botanist William Henry Harvey
William Henry Harvey
William Henry Harvey was an Irish botanist who specialised in algae.- Biography :William Henry Harvey was born at Summerville near Limerick, Ireland, in 1811, the youngest of 11 children. His father Joseph Massey Harvey, was a Quaker and prominent merchant...
named the genus Acanthaceae
Acanthaceae
The family Acanthaceae is a taxon of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing almost 250 genera and about 2500 species....
Ruttya
Ruttya
Ruttya is a genus of plants in the family Acanthaceae. It includes the following species:*Ruttya bernieri Benoist*Ruttya fragrans Benoist*Ruttya fruticosa Lindau*Ruttya ovata Harv.*Ruttya speciosa Engl....
after him.
Life
He was born of Quaker parents, on 25 December 1698, and after medical education at the University of Leyden, where he graduated M.D. in 1723 and read a thesis ‘De Diarrhœa,’ settled in Dublin as a physician in 1724. There he practised throughout his life.He lived simply and often gave his services to the poor. On 6 April 1775 John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
records that he ‘visited that venerable man Dr. Rutty.’ Rutty then lived in rented rooms at the eastern corner of Boot Lane and Mary's Lane in Dublin. He died on 27 April 1775, and was buried in a Quaker burial-ground on St Stephen's Green.
Works
In 1753 he began to keep a spiritual diary and continued it till December 1774, leaving directions in his will for its publication. The chief ill-doings of which he accuses himself are too great a love for the studies of the materia medica and meteorology, irritability, and excessive enjoyment of food. He deplored these excesses in language which caused Samuel JohnsonSamuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
to laugh.
His first medical book was ‘An Account of Experiments on Joanna Stephen's Medicine for the Stone,’ published in London in 1742. He published in Dublin in 1751 ‘A History of the Rise and Progress of the People called Quakers in Ireland, from 1653 to 1751,’ a continuation of a book originally written by Thomas Wight of Cork in 1700; a fourth edition was issued in 1811. In 1757 he published in London ‘A Methodical Synopsis of Mineral Waters,’ a quarto of 658 pages, which gives an account of the chief mineral springs of the British Isles and of Europe. He had thrown doubt on some statements of Charles Lucas
Charles Lucas (politician)
Charles Lucas was an Irish apothecary, physician and politician. He sat as Member of Parliament for Dublin City and was known as the "Irish Wilkes" because of his radical views.-Early life:...
in his account of the spa of Lisdoonvarna, County Clare
County Clare
-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
, and Lucas issued a general attack on the book.
He published in Dublin, in 1762, a tract called ‘The Analysis of Milk,’ and in 1770 ‘The Weather and Seasons in Dublin for Forty Years,’ which mentions the prevalent diseases throughout that period. In 1772 he published ‘A Natural History of the County of Dublin’ in two volumes. His last work was published at Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
in 1775. It was a Latin treatise on drugs, entitled Materia Medica Antiqua et Nova. It had occupied him for forty years.