Report of the trial, Cooper versus Wakley, for libel / from the notes of W.B. Gurney ; with remarks on the evidence, by Bransby B. Cooper.

  • Cooper, Bransby Blake, 1792-1853.
Date:
1829
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the trial, Cooper versus Wakley, for libel / from the notes of W.B. Gurney ; with remarks on the evidence, by Bransby B. Cooper. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    I am far from insinuating that I am of opinion that a public canvassing and polling for these situations, which I know sometimes takes place, because I have been canvassed upon them, is likely to obtain a person better qualified than a mere private election made by the managers of the hospital. I do not apprehend that has any connexion with this cause. However, as to the man- ner in which Mr. Cooper was elected, you have it from Mr. Harrison himself, that the committee of the hospital, thinking it expedient to establish a school of surgery or anatomy at the hospital, which they had not before, they thought it right to make an alteration in the situation of the officers. Sir Astley Cooper being at that time the surgeon of the hospital, it was proposed he should be made consulting surgeon, that Mr. Cooper should be appointed surgeon, and Mr. Callaway assistant. The plan proceeded not from Sir Astley, and so he tells you himself; it was the voluntary act of Mr. Harrison and the committee of governors of the hospital, acting according to their judgment from what they thought best for the interests of the hospital, to have a school there in addition to the opportunity of improvement and instruction afforded by seeing the operations performed. As to any insinuation that this was obtained by any intervention of Sir Astley Cooper, or his contrivance, that is negatived by Mr. Harrison, who is called to prove it, as well as by Sir Astley Cooper himself. Gentlemen, we come now to dispose of the question in the case, and I will strip the case, as the Defendant desires you to do, of all technicality, and come to the issue presented to you by two or three of these pleas, in which the Defendant takes upon him to affirm, and consequently ought to prove, that the Plaintiff performed the operation therein mentioned, and occupied a longer space of time than was necessary or proper, or than a skilful surgeon would have occupied in that behalf; and that the Plaintiff then and there per- formed the said operation in an unskilful and unsurgeon-like manner, and did then and there by such unskilfulness cause the said patient a much greater degree of pain and suffering than he would otherwise, and but for that cause have incurred ; and that it was, and is doubtful and questionable, whether or not the death of the said patient was caused by such unskilfulness as aforesaid, and whether, if due and proper skill had been used in the said operation, the life of the said patient would not have been saved. That is, was this opera- tion performed by Mr. Cooper in a proper and skilful manner, or in an un- skilful and improper manner ? the Defendant is to prove that it was ; and not- withstanding the form and manner in which the first publication is couched and sent into the world, upon which I have already made some observations, and although it appears that that first publication was delivered to the De- fendant by a person who had received, according to his own account, some reasons of dissatisfaction—I will not carry it higher—from Mr. Cooper, some reasons of dissatisfaction from him who will not say that he did not declare, that he would watch an opportunity, to have what might be considered a re- venge upon him ; but, although it comes from such a person, and is in such a form, yet, if the Defendant has in substance made out to your satisfaction that this operation was performed in an unskilful and unsurgeon-like manner, you ought to find for the Defendant, if otherwise, your verdict ought to be for the Plaintiff.