A systeme of anatomy, treating of the body of man, beasts, birds, fish, insects, and plants illustrated with many schemes, consisting of variety of elegant figures, drawn from the life, and engraven in seventy four folio copper-plates. And after every part of man's body hath been anatomically described, its diseases, cases, and cures are concisely exhibited. The first volume containing the parts of the lowest apartiments of the body of man and other animals, etc. / by Samuel Collins ...

CHAP. I. The Parts of Generation in Man.

THe first Principle of Mankind, * 1.1 having preva∣ricated the Primitive Law (constituted in Pa∣radise) was condemned by Gods Justice and Mercy to Death, as a Curse and a Blessing, at once to shorten his unhappy Days below, and put him into a capacity of not disserving his Maker above; and to exchange a misera∣ble Temporal, for a happy Eternal state of Glory.

The first Agent hath made a Compensation for one Mans Death, in restitution of ano∣thers Life, by way of Propagation.

Mans happiness consisteth in a double Similitude: As to the first, * 1.2 The Supream Being hath naturally implanted in him an appetite to be like his Maker: And as to the second, hath given him desires to beget somewhat like himself. In order to accomplish the first, the Infinite God, hath impar∣ted to him out of his great Wisdom and Mercy, natural Instruments and Abilities; and to that end, hath imprinted in the Table of his Heart, excel∣lent Sanctions to promote the Triade of his Duty, speaking Piety to God, Justice to his Neighbour, and Sobriety towards his own Person, as most con∣ducive to his Happiness.

From the first Appetite of Man, to resemble his Maker in likeness, * 1.3 and from Love the natural Instrument of his desires of Happiness, do descend all the first Obligations of Religion, in which some are primarily implanted in Man by Nature, and others proceed by way of Superinduction, and posi∣tive Commands.

The second Appetite of Man (founded in the first Principles of Nature) is given him as Productive of somewhat like himself, * 1.4 to perpetuate his Race, and as aemulous of Eternity, to preserve himself in another by way of Ge∣neration: Whereupon the Omnipotent God, out of his generous Love to Mankind, hath Crowned the happy union of Man and Woman, in their first estate of Matrimony, with the blessing of Encrease and Multiply.

And in reference to Man's natural Appetite, * 1.5 to beget somewhat like him∣self, the great Heavenly Mind, hath hollowed these Second desires with a peculiar Sanction, and out of an act of high loving kindness to Him, hath created a Woman as an Instrument of Propagation, as an associate of his Troubles, as a dear Companion of more pleasant Converse, and as a meet help to assist him in all good and friendly Offices, in a discreet Conduct of his Domestick Affairs during the whole course of his Life.

And the First Man had his new Bride created out of him; * 1.6 and his Wife being a part of himself, did naturally oblige him by all ways possible to Caress her with a most entire Affection, and to endear her with the greatest Love and Compleasance imaginable: And though the Origen of Man∣kind, had no choice to gratifie his curious Phancy, yet the Prime Agent made his Spouse so amiable, * 1.7 that he could not refuse her, as Beautiful in the Li∣neaments of her Face, adorned with Roses and Lillies, and her Body so well shaped, as composed of variety of parts, answering each other in due pro∣portions; so that her handsome Body was a fair Cabbinet, to entertain the more excellent Jewel of her Soul, * 1.8 originally graced with natural endow∣ments of great Knowledg, Vertue, Honour, and good Humeur, which were high Obligations laid upon the First Man, to confer his most affecti∣onate esteems on his choice Spouse, as a Mistress of great perfections of Body and Mind, to court and engage him to his own Advantage, by an intimate Converse and Fruition, to propagate himself to perpetuate his Memory and Nature, in the Character of his own Image.

Whereupon the First Man was obliged to Espouse a Woman in great Love, * 1.9 as Created on purpose to be instrument of his Delight and Happi∣ness, as well as the propagation of others; which gave an advantage to Posterity, who had a Freedom as soon as the World was Peopled, to make a choice of some select Person out of many Beavies of Women, to be the Mistress of his Affections, to whom he may make kind Addresses, as court∣ing her with pleasant Looks, chearful Smiles, soft Language, and endearing Gestures, as so many expresses of his Amours, thereby to render him Ma∣ster of his Design, in making a conquest upon his Coy Mistress, in order to the fruition of those Sweets, which are hallowed by the Institution of Marriage; and though stolen Waters seem to be sweet, yet they are De∣secrated, as forbidden Fruit, and speak a Curse to him, that doth not enjoy, but after a manner deflowre a Woman in irregular Converse, without Gods License and Order: And the Offender paieth often dear for his stolen Sweets, which end in rottenness of Bones, and horrid Pains, the earnest of future endless Torments.

Whereupon I humbly conceive, * 1.10 it is our Happiness, as well as our Duty, to conform to Gods holy Commands, in the regular satisfaction of our Sensual Appetite, as designed to an excellent end of Propagation; of which our Maker hath instituted Woman an Instrument as a Wife, and not as a Mistress, as having bounded our unreasonable desires, * 1.11 to prevent the inconvenience of impure Mixtures, which often degenerate into a Venenate Nature, and propagate Diseases in stead of Children, by Poysoning the guilty parts, the

immediate instrument of Prevarication; and afterward the other more no∣ble parts, and the Select Liquors; which make Offenders examples of Gods Justice, by marking their Noses and Faces, those elegant parts that tempted to Folly. Wherefore supposing, which is very false, That there is no Judg to sentence, nor Heaven to reward, or Hell to punish; yet our interest of Health, and quiet repose of Mind, * 1.12 would oblige us to the observance of Gods Commands, which are salutary Precepts, if they were Consigned to no other end, but the preservation of our Bodies, in making our Members instruments of our own Happiness, as well as of Gods Service and Glory.

Whence our uncomly parts as Debauched, are branded with Shame and Dishonour, and have abundant comliness, as being hallowed by Christs Sanction of Matrimony, * 1.13 and being improved according to their Makers first design in their Creation, may be made excellent and honourable in the Propagation of Mankind, and in the increase of the Kingdom of Heaven, as replenished with Sons and Daughters of the Morning; which are so ma∣ny Stars of different Magnitudes, bespangling the Empyrean Heaven, the Throne of God, and the Seat of the Blessed.

Thus begging pardon for my Digression, which I hope, is not altogether Impertinent, by reason I have given you my good advice as a Physician, out of love to preserve your Health, that you may not destroy your selves, while you Propagate others; wherefore, as you value your selves, your Maker, and your Happiness, in this World and that to come, abstain inor∣dinate Embraces, and by dedicating your selves by Prayer and Divine Me∣ditation to the Service of God, you may make your Bodies Members of Christ, and Temples of the Holy Ghost, and render those meaner parts of the Body, I am now Discoursing of, happy Instruments of great good.

And now I cannot but admire and adore the infinite Wisdom of the Su∣pream Agent, who hath ordained such choice parts of Generation, * 1.14 which are Constituted in great variety and excellent Order, as subservient to each other: The preparing Vessels subservient to the Testicles, the Testicles to the Parastates, the deferent Vessels to the Seminal Vesicles and Prostates, as so many Repositories of Natures great Elixir, productive of Mankind. Whereupon I will follow Natures Method, by treading in her steps; and begin with the Preparing Vessels, which present themselves, when the Du∣plicature of the Peritonaeum is opened.

The Spermatick Arteries and Veins, are two of each in number: * 1.15 The Arteries are propagated according to the common course of Nature, not exactly out of the Right Side, but rather out of the Anterior Region of the Descendent Trunk of the great Artery † 1.16, and the right Branch relating to the Spermatick Artery climbing over the Vena Cava, doth bend its course toward the Spermatick Vein, lodged in the same side; and the left Branch of the preparing Artery tendeth to the Vein, seated in the Left Side.

Learned De Graaf, giveth an account of a Body Dissected at Delph in Holland, who according to an extraordinary course of Nature, saw the right Branch of the Spermatick Artery, ascend as far as the Emulgent Vein of the Left Side, and with it associated it self, and then bent its course downward, and was conjoyned with the other Artery belonging to the Left Side, and did tend downward with the preparing Vein; and when the said unusual Sper∣matick Arteries did unite, which was but a small space after their rise, they did take their progress through the region of the Loins, over the Flexors of the Thighs, and climbing on each side over the Ureters, did transmit di∣vers small Branches to the Peritonaeum.

The Spermatick Vessels, * 1.17 are vulgarly thought not to pierce the Rim of the Belly, as in Dogs, wherein is left a void space between the Vessels and Pe∣ritonaeum: But in Man, the Vessels are conveyed between the two Mem∣branes of the Rim of the Belly, * 1.18 as between two safe fine Walls, to con∣serve and guard them from the assaults of the neighbouring parts, which compressing the Arteries, might hinder the due Current of the Vital Liquor, toward the Testicles. So that these Vessels are safely conveyed within the Coats of the Peritonaeum, whose upper Membrane doth so finely close the passage, that the Intestines cannot fall into the Scrotum; and this Membrane is overmuch dilated in Ruptures, wherein the Caul, or Intestines, or both to∣gether, doth quit their natural station and repose, and slide through the en∣larged passage relating to the process of the Peritonaeum, into the troublesome Cavity of the Scrotum, wherein they are straightly confined as in a close Pri∣on, thereby rendring the Body uneasie.

If the Process of the Rim of the Belly, * 1.19 did gape as much in Humane Bo∣dies as in Bruits (wherein it conveyeth the Spermatick Vessels) Man having an erect posture of his Body in Progressive Motion, the Caul and Intestines being pressed downward by their own weight, would thrust themselves into the aperture of the Process, relating to the Rim of the Belly, and by conse∣quence, * 1.20 force themselves into the Cavity of the Scrotum.

But the inconvenience of the empty space, left after the perforation of the Process belonging to the Peritonaeum, made by the Spermatick Vessels in Dogs and Bruits, is prevented; by reason their Progressive Motion is per∣formed in a prone position of the Body, whereupon the Caul and Intestines are easily contained in the Cavity of the Abdomen, as in a proper place, with∣out any tendency downward toward the Hole, bored by the Transmission of the preparing Vessels; and thereupon Bruits are not liable to any Hier∣nia, by the falling down of the Caul or Guts, into the Serotum.

The Spermatick Arteries, * 1.21 when they have quitted the Cavity of the low∣est Apartiment, they here and there do dispense many Minute Branches (into the adjoyning parts) which are so small, that they can scarce be dis∣cerned, unless they be rendred turgid by Inflation, effected by a Blow-Pipe: And the Trunk, out of which these fine Vessels do sprout, doth not make so many Maeanders in Men, as in Bruits, but is carried in more straight course to the Testicles.

And it seemeth very strange, * 1.22 how the great streams of Ancient and Mo∣dern Anatomists, should run so far from the Channel of Truth, as to de∣scribe the preparing Arteries, to make turnings and windings in the form of fruitful Tendrels of Vines, shooting in many Divarications: Whereupon the preparing Vesicles obtained the appellative of Vasa Pampiniformia, and Py∣ramidalia; whereas in truth, the Spermatick Vessels in Men, make their de∣scent in a straight position toward the Testicles, without many Gyres, and Circumvolutions, as many will have it, who are more versed in the Disse∣ction of Bruits then Men.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The cause or Death.
• * 1.2

  Mans happi∣ness founded in a double likeness.
• * 1.3

  The first Ap∣petite of Man to be like his Maker.
• * 1.4

  The second Appe••i••e to be••et some∣what like him∣self.
• * 1.5

  The end of the making Wo∣man.
• * 1.6

  The manner of producing Woman.
• * 1.7

  The first Wo∣man full of Beauty.
• * 1.8

  The perfecti∣ons of Eve.
• * 1.9

  The first Man had no choice in Marriage.
• * 1.10

  Our happiness in conforming our desires to Gods will.
• * 1.11

  The sad con∣sequents of impure mix∣tures.
• * 1.12

  Health and quiet of Mind, a kind of Heaven.
• * 1.13

  Marriage is of Divine Insti∣tution.
• * 1.14

  The parts of Generation, constituted in great variety and excellent, Order.
• * 1.15

  The Sperma∣tick Arteries.
• † 1.16

  T. 11. n n n n.
• * 1.17

  The passage of the Sper∣matick Arte∣ries in Dogs.
• * 1.18

  The passage of them in Men, is diffe∣rent from Dogs.
• * 1.19

  The process ••f the Rim of the Belly, is closer in Man then Bruits.
• * 1.20

  The space of the Rim of the Belly in Bruits is not incon∣venient, by reason of their prone position of body in Progressive Motion.
• * 1.21

  The Sperma∣tick Arteries are divided into small Branches, af∣ter they have left the Ab∣domen.
• * 1.22

  The Sperma∣tick Arteries in Man are carried in ma∣ny Gyres, as the Antients imagined.