William Charles Wells
Encyclopedia
William Charles Wells MD
FRS FRSEd
(1757–1817), was a Scottish-American physician and printer. He lived a life of extraordinary variety, did some notable medical research, and made the first clear statement about natural selection
. He applied the idea to the origin of different skin colours in human races, and from the context it seems he thought it might be applied more widely. Charles Darwin
said: "[Wells] distinctly recognises the principle of natural selection, and this is the first recognition which has been indicated".
who had settled in South Carolina
in 1753. He is the brother of Helena Wells
. Wells was born in Charleston
, and sent to school in Dumfries
, Scotland
at the age of eleven. After he completed his preparatory school studies he attended the University of Edinburgh
.
Wells returned to Charleston in 1771 and became a medical apprentice under Dr. Alexander Garden
, a naturalist and physician, who himself was a pupil of Charles Alston
, Director of the Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh. In 1775, soon after the commencement of the American war, he left Charlestown suddenly, and went to London. He had been called upon to sign a paper the object of which was to unite the people in a resistance to the claims of the British Government. This he would not do. Between 1775 and 1778, Wells studied medicine and passed the preliminary exams at Edinburgh, but did not yet take his degree. In the autumn he returned to London, and attended a course of William Hunter
's lectures, took instructions in practical Anatomy, and became a surgeon's pupil at St Bartholomew's Hospital
.
In 1779 he went to Holland as a surgeon in a Scottish regiment. There he received ill treatment from his commanding officer, and resigned his commission. On the day on which he received his dismissal from the service, he challenged the officer to a duel
: the officer refused to respond. Wells then moved to Leiden, where he prepared his dissertation at the University of Leiden. This was the Inaugural Thesis, published at Edinburgh in 1780 when he took the degree of Doctor of Medicine
; the subject of his thesis was Cold (De frigore).
Early in 1781 he returned to Carolina to put his family's affairs in order. He was "at the same time an officer in a corps of volunteers; a printer, a bookseller, and a merchant, a trustee for some of his father's friends in England for the management of affairs of considerable importance in Carolina; and on one occasion exercised, at the instance of the Colonel Commandant of the militia, the office of Judge Advocate, in conducting a prosecution in a general court martial of militia officers." When the British withdrew from Charleston in December 1782, he traveled to St. Augustine, Florida
. There he published the East Florida Gazette, the first weekly newspaper printed in Florida. Other publications during the British period of Florida included the Address of the principal inhabitants of East Florida. He returned to England in 1784 to practice medicine.
In 1790 he was appointed one of the Physicians to the Finsbury Dispensary
, and remained so until 1798. In 1793 he was elected Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1798 he was elected Assistant Physician to St Thomas's Hospital; and in 1800 became one of the Physicians. From about 1800, his health was uncertain, and he led a more limited life which was nevertheless fairly productive in medical research.
Wells was elected to the Royal Society of Edinburgh
in 1814, and the same year the Royal Society of London awarded him the Rumford Medal
for his Essay on Dew. He died in 1817 after suffering symptoms of heart malfunction (auricular fibrillation).
and William Lawrence.
In 1813 a paper by Wells was read before the Royal Society
; it was published in 1818. This was Two Essays... with some observations on the causes of the differences of colour and form between the white and negro races of men. By the Late W.C. Wells…with a Memoir of his life, written by himself.
Wells was clearly interested in how different races might have arisen. After some preliminary remarks on the different races of man, and of the selection of domesticated animals, he observes that:
Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace
were not aware of this work when they published their theory in 1858, but later Darwin acknowledged:
Credit for the first appreciation of natural selection could therefore go to Wells rather than to Edward Blyth
or Patrick Matthew
. The triumph is limited to the extent of being applied only to skin colour, and not, as Darwin and Wallace did, to the whole range of life. A form of the idea had already been set out by an earlier Edinburgh author, James Hutton
, but in that case the effect was limited to improvement of varieties rather than the formation of new species.
Most of his writings on medical subjects are contained in the second and third volumes of the Transactions of a Society for the Promotion of Medical and Chirurgical Knowledge 1811-12:
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
FRS FRSEd
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity, operating on a wholly independent and non-party-political basis and providing public benefit throughout Scotland...
(1757–1817), was a Scottish-American physician and printer. He lived a life of extraordinary variety, did some notable medical research, and made the first clear statement about natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
. He applied the idea to the origin of different skin colours in human races, and from the context it seems he thought it might be applied more widely. Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
said: "[Wells] distinctly recognises the principle of natural selection, and this is the first recognition which has been indicated".
Life
Wells was the second son of Robert and Mary Wells. Wells' parents were both ScotsScottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
who had settled in South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
in 1753. He is the brother of Helena Wells
Helena Wells
Helena Wells, later Whitford was an American-English novelist and writer at the end of the eighteenth century.-Biography:Helena Wells was born in South Carolina between 1758 and 1765, the daughter of the printer and bookseller Robert and Mary Wells, who had emigrated from Scotland in 1753...
. Wells was born in Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, and sent to school in Dumfries
Dumfries
Dumfries is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth. Dumfries was the county town of the former county of Dumfriesshire. Dumfries is nicknamed Queen of the South...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
at the age of eleven. After he completed his preparatory school studies he attended the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
.
Wells returned to Charleston in 1771 and became a medical apprentice under Dr. Alexander Garden
Alexander Garden (naturalist)
Dr Alexander Garden is most famous as a botanist whose name lives on in the gardenia flower, though he was also a physician and zoologist...
, a naturalist and physician, who himself was a pupil of Charles Alston
Charles Alston (botanist)
Charles Alston was a Scottish botanist.Alston was born in Hamilton. In 1715 he went to Leyden to study under the Dutch physician Hermann Boerhaave. On his return to Scotland he became lecturer in materia medica and botany at Edinburgh and also superintendent of the botanical gardens...
, Director of the Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh. In 1775, soon after the commencement of the American war, he left Charlestown suddenly, and went to London. He had been called upon to sign a paper the object of which was to unite the people in a resistance to the claims of the British Government. This he would not do. Between 1775 and 1778, Wells studied medicine and passed the preliminary exams at Edinburgh, but did not yet take his degree. In the autumn he returned to London, and attended a course of William Hunter
William Hunter (anatomist)
William Hunter FRS was a Scottish anatomist and physician. He was a leading teacher of anatomy, and the outstanding obstetrician of his day...
's lectures, took instructions in practical Anatomy, and became a surgeon's pupil at St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital, also known as Barts, is a hospital in Smithfield in the City of London, England.-Early history:It was founded in 1123 by Raherus or Rahere , a favourite courtier of King Henry I...
.
In 1779 he went to Holland as a surgeon in a Scottish regiment. There he received ill treatment from his commanding officer, and resigned his commission. On the day on which he received his dismissal from the service, he challenged the officer to a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
: the officer refused to respond. Wells then moved to Leiden, where he prepared his dissertation at the University of Leiden. This was the Inaugural Thesis, published at Edinburgh in 1780 when he took the degree of Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
; the subject of his thesis was Cold (De frigore).
Early in 1781 he returned to Carolina to put his family's affairs in order. He was "at the same time an officer in a corps of volunteers; a printer, a bookseller, and a merchant, a trustee for some of his father's friends in England for the management of affairs of considerable importance in Carolina; and on one occasion exercised, at the instance of the Colonel Commandant of the militia, the office of Judge Advocate, in conducting a prosecution in a general court martial of militia officers." When the British withdrew from Charleston in December 1782, he traveled to St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the northeast section of Florida and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer and admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United...
. There he published the East Florida Gazette, the first weekly newspaper printed in Florida. Other publications during the British period of Florida included the Address of the principal inhabitants of East Florida. He returned to England in 1784 to practice medicine.
In 1790 he was appointed one of the Physicians to the Finsbury Dispensary
Finsbury Dispensary
The Finsbury Dispensary was a charitable dispensary dispensing medical treatment to the poor in Finsbury, London. It was founded in 1780 by a quaker, one George Friend. It operated from various premises during its existence in the 19th century, notably, between 1819 and 1838 it occupied a large,...
, and remained so until 1798. In 1793 he was elected Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1798 he was elected Assistant Physician to St Thomas's Hospital; and in 1800 became one of the Physicians. From about 1800, his health was uncertain, and he led a more limited life which was nevertheless fairly productive in medical research.
Wells was elected to the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity, operating on a wholly independent and non-party-political basis and providing public benefit throughout Scotland...
in 1814, and the same year the Royal Society of London awarded him the Rumford Medal
Rumford Medal
The Rumford Medal is awarded by the Royal Society every alternating year for "an outstandingly important recent discovery in the field of thermal or optical properties of matter made by a scientist working in Europe". First awarded in 1800, it was created after a 1796 donation of $5000 by the...
for his Essay on Dew. He died in 1817 after suffering symptoms of heart malfunction (auricular fibrillation).
Wells' idea
Wells was the elder of three British medical men who formulated evolutionary ideas in the period 1813–1819. He was, arguably, the most successful in this endeavour; the others were James Cowles PrichardJames Cowles Prichard
James Cowles Prichard MD FRS was an English physician and ethnologist. His influential Researches into the physical history of mankind touched upon the subject of evolution...
and William Lawrence.
In 1813 a paper by Wells was read before the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
; it was published in 1818. This was Two Essays... with some observations on the causes of the differences of colour and form between the white and negro races of men. By the Late W.C. Wells…with a Memoir of his life, written by himself.
Wells was clearly interested in how different races might have arisen. After some preliminary remarks on the different races of man, and of the selection of domesticated animals, he observes that:
- "[What was done for animals artificially] seems to be done with equal efficiency, though more slowly, by nature, in the formation of varieties of mankind, fitted for the country which they inhabit. Of the accidental varieties of man, which would occur among the first scattered inhabitants, some one would be better fitted than the others to bear the diseases of the country. This race would multiply while the others would decrease, and as the darkest would be the best fitted for the [African] climate, at length [they would] become the most prevalent, if not the only race."
Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace
Alfred Russel Wallace
Alfred Russel Wallace, OM, FRS was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist and biologist...
were not aware of this work when they published their theory in 1858, but later Darwin acknowledged:
- "In this paper he [Wells] distinctly recognizes the principle of natural selection, and this is the first recognition which has been indicated; but he applies it only to man, and to certain characters alone. After remarking that negroes and mulattoes enjoy an immunity from certain tropical diseases, he observes, firstly, that all animals tend to vary in some degree, and, secondly, that agriculturalists improve their domesticated animals by selection; and then he adds, but what is done in this latter case by art, seems to be done with equal efficacy, though more slowly, in the formation of varieties of mankind, fitted for the country which they inhabit."
Credit for the first appreciation of natural selection could therefore go to Wells rather than to Edward Blyth
Edward Blyth
Edward Blyth was an English zoologist and pharmacist. He was one of the founders of zoology in India....
or Patrick Matthew
Patrick Matthew
Patrick Matthew was a Scottish landowner and fruit farmer. He published the principle of natural selection as a mechanism of evolution over a quarter-century earlier than Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace...
. The triumph is limited to the extent of being applied only to skin colour, and not, as Darwin and Wallace did, to the whole range of life. A form of the idea had already been set out by an earlier Edinburgh author, James Hutton
James Hutton
James Hutton was a Scottish physician, geologist, naturalist, chemical manufacturer and experimental agriculturalist. He is considered the father of modern geology...
, but in that case the effect was limited to improvement of varieties rather than the formation of new species.
Publications
- Wells W.C. 1814. An essay on dew. Taylor & Hessay, London. [The basis of his Rumford MedalRumford MedalThe Rumford Medal is awarded by the Royal Society every alternating year for "an outstandingly important recent discovery in the field of thermal or optical properties of matter made by a scientist working in Europe". First awarded in 1800, it was created after a 1796 donation of $5000 by the...
]
- Wells W.C. 1818. Two essays: upon a single vision with two eyes, the other on dew. Constable, London. This contains an appendix entitled An account of a female of the white race of mankind, part of whose skin resembles that of a negro, with some observations on the cause of the differences in colour and form between the white and negro races of man. [It is this last part which contains the idea of natural selection. The book, which concludes with a memoir of his life, written by himself, contains the material which he had designated for publication before his death; apparently there was other material destroyed on his instructions]. - Electronic copy
Most of his writings on medical subjects are contained in the second and third volumes of the Transactions of a Society for the Promotion of Medical and Chirurgical Knowledge 1811-12:
- Observations on Erysipelas.
- An instance of an entire want of hair in the human body.
- Observations on the dropsy which succeeds Scarlet Fever.
- A case of Tetanus, with observations on the disease.
- A case of aneurism of the Aorta, communicating with the Pulmonary artery.
- A case of considerable enlargement of the Cœcum and Colon.
- A case of extensive Gangrene of the cellular nembrane between the muscles and skin of the neck and chest.
- On rheumatism of the heart.
- On the presence of the red matter and serum of the blood in the urine of dropsy, which has not originated in Scarlet Fever.
- Observations on Pulmonary Consumption and intermittent fever, chiefly as diseases opposed to each other; with an attempt to arrange several other diseases, according to the alliance or opposition which exists between them, and one or other of the two former.
Other sources
All sources depend ultimately on Wells' own account of his life.- William MunkWilliam MunkWilliam Munk was an English physician, now remembered for his work as a medical historian and "Munk's Roll", a biographical reference work on the Royal College of Physicians.-Life:...
's Roll of the Royal College of Physicians - Dictionary of National BiographyDictionary of National BiographyThe Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
- James R. R. William Charles Wells. British Journal of Ophthalmology, November 1928.