An Inquiry Concerning the Diseases and Functions of the Brain, the Spinal Cord, and the Nerves.

First edition; foxing and uneven tanning to contents; original green cloth blocked in blind, title to spine gilt, yellow endpapers, worm hole through the hinge and joint, two pieces of the spine laid back down, wear at the head and tail, corners worn, cloth rubbed and marked, a very good copy; 327pp. The rare first edition of the first American neurology book. Psychiatrist Amariah Brigham (1798-1849) was the first director of the Utica Psychiatric Center, a founding member of what would become the American Psychiatric Association, and editor of the organisation's journal, now titled the American Journal of Psychiatry. In this volume he 'discussed the structure and function of the brain, medulla, spinal cord, and cranial nerves. Although most of the clinical portions of the book deal with mental diseases, he did discuss inflammation of the brain, apoplexy, epilepsy, tinnitus, chorea, delirium tremens, and tic douloureux' (DeJong, History of American Neurology, p. 8).