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"Survey return from Dugald MacKichan"
Daviot, Inverness.
1850.
RCP/COL/4/8/54
Dugald MacKichan was a church minister to Daviot parish.
Daviot was a united parish with Dunlichity in the historic County of Inverness. The population in 1841 was 643. The main industries were agriculture, livestock and animal husbandry. There was also carding and wool manufacture in the parish.
[[Addressee]]
The Rev.
Dug. MacKichan
Daviot
Inverness
[[Survey]]
QUERIES
1. How many Medical Men practice within the Parish of Daviot & Dunlichity (United)?
None
2. The Names and Addresses of these.
None.
3. Has the number increased or diminished of late years?
Neither.
4. Have any left the Parish since you became connected with it? If so, for what reasons?
None.
5. Is there any complaint among the people of inadequacy in the supply of Medical aid?
There are no complaints as to Inadequacy, but there are great complaints as to the heavy expence of fetching Medical men from Inverness.
6. Do you know of any cases of protracted suffering, or of injury by Accident, such as might have been alleviated had proper advice been at hand?
I do not know many such cases, [manuscript damaged]1 case occurred a few weeks ago.
7. To what extent is the deficiency of qualified Practitioners made up by the efforts of other parties?
The deficiency is made up chiefly by qualified Practitioners from Inverness. There are besides a few men who can draw blood2, and almost everybody can give advice as to a dose of salts, castor oil3 or some other nostrum.4
8. Does your experience enable you to suggest any measure – of general applicability – such as would be likely to relieve to some extent the evils (if they exist) of deficiency in the supply of Medical aid?
The most obvious would be a State Medical Establishment; but of the results of such an Establishment I have no experience. I would therefore suggest nothing.
9. What Heritors5 are resident, either generally or occasionally, in your Parish?
None.
[[Additional Text]]
Dugald MacKichan
Manse of Daviot 18th November 18506
The United Parish of Daviot & Dunlichity extends for 25 miles parallel and 6 miles south of the line of the Caledonian Canal with the eastern part distant from Inverness only 6 miles.7
Explanatory notes:
1. Damage to survey has rendered word(s) unreadable.
2. Bleeding, or bloodletting, is the withdrawal of blood from a patient to prevent or cure illness and disease. This was a common medical practice in the 1800s, dating back to antiquity, and was often carried out by unlicensed healers as well as qualified physicians.
3. Castor oil was used to treat a range of complaints but most commonly to treat constipation as it works as a laxative.
4. From the word “dose” the rest of the text is inserted above the previous line of text.
5. A heritor was a landowner, under Scots Law, whose holdings were sizeable enough for them to be liable for the payment of public burdens such as Poor Law rates, road and bridge assessments and the church minister’s stipend.
6. Corner of document is folded obscuring part of the year date: 1850.
7. This text is written vertically along the entire length of the document in the left hand margin.
Remote & Rural Remedies
