Gustavus Hume (1730 – 7 February 1812) was the president of the

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

(RCSI) in the first part of 1795. He specialised in the diseases of children. He was one of the surgeons who examined the body of the journalist William Jackson after he died from poisoning in a Dublin court in 1795 while awaiting sentencing for high treason.

Early life and family

Gustavus Hume was born in 1730 to a family of Scottish origin, some of whom settled in Ireland in the seventeenth century. His father was Robert, and his grandfather was Thomas Hume, of

Humewood Humewood Castle is a Gothic-fantasy mansion built in 1870 in 427 acres of parkland at Kiltegan, County Wicklow in the Republic of Ireland. The mansion was originally built as a private residence of the Hume family. It is currently owned by Ameri ...

, County Wicklow, who was an ancestor of the Irish Conservative politician William Wentworth Fitzwilliam Hume-Dick. One of Hume's sons was the physician Thomas Hume (c. 1769–1850) and his great grandson was Lieutenant Colonel Sir Gustavus Hume (1826–1891) who served in the British Army during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

Career

DUBLIN(1837) p049 THE COLLEGE OF SURGEONS

It is not known to which physician Hume was apprenticed. In 1758, he was living in Longford Street, Dublin, when he was appointed surgeon to the

Mercer's Hospital Mercer's Hospital ( ga, Ospidéal Mercer) was a hospital in Dublin, Ireland. It was converted into a clinical centre and medical library for the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in 1991.diseases of children. He liked to prescribe

oatmeal porridge Oatmeal is a preparation of oats that have been de-husked, steamed, and flattened, or a coarse flour of hulled oat grains (groats) that have either been milled (ground) or steel-cut. Ground oats are also called white oats. Steel-cut oats are ...

and as a result received the nickname "Stirabout Gusty" which was referred to in

William Norcott Lieutenant General Sir William Sherbrooke Ramsey Norcott (12 December 1804 – 23 January 1886) of the Rifle Brigade was a British Army officer who fought during the Crimean War, was an Aide-de-Camp to Queen Victoria and became Lieutenant ...

's ''The Metropolis'' as follows: :"H-me, twice as ancient as the College Charter, :Scours Death with Stir-a-bout from ev'ry quarter." Hume was an early member of the Board of Examiners for Surgeons to County Infirmaries. He did not join the Dublin Society of Surgeons, but was one of the censors named in the first charter of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland. In 1791, he and Clement Archer jointly became State Surgeon in succession to John Neill. Together with Dr Adrien, Hume examined the body of the journalist William Jackson in the dock of the King's Bench, Christ Church, on May Day 1795, after Jackson died from poisoning while awaiting sentencing for high treason. Hume was president of the RCSI only from January to 4 May 1795, resigning on that date for reasons that are unknown but which Cameron writes probably related to the case of the former member of the society, Frederick Drury, who was expelled for giving false testimony in court. Drury sued for reinstatement and failed but significant legal costs were incurred which the society tried to recover from Drury. Vice President Clement Archer was elected in Hume's place. Hume's medical writings were on the subjects of the diseases of children, angina pectoris, cowpox, and

gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intensit ...

Building

Hume built a number of houses. In 1770, he built number 5 Ely Row (previously Hume Row).McCready, C.T. (1892
''Dublin Street Names, Dated and Explained''.
Dublin: Hodges, Figgis, & Co. p. 52. He built a mansion in

Merrion Square Merrion Square () is a Georgian garden square on the southside of Dublin city centre. History The square was laid out in 1752 by the estate of Viscount FitzWilliam and was largely complete by the beginning of the 19th century. The demand for ...

, east, which was later divided into two large houses, in one of which Sir John Banks, physician to Queen Victoria, lived. He built a home for himself at 63

Dawson Street Dawson Street (; ) is a street on the southern side of central Dublin, running from St Stephen's Green to the walls of Trinity College Dublin. It is the site of the residence of the Lord Mayor of Dublin, the Mansion House. Location Dawson Stre ...

in which he died. In 1775, John Gilborne wrote of Hume: :"Gustavus Hume in Surgery excels, :Yet Pride of Merit ne'er his Bosom swells; :He adds to Dublin every Year a Street, :Where Citizens converse and friendly meet."

Death

Hume died on 7 February 1812. Cameron, Sir Charles A. (1886
''History of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and of the Irish Schools of Medicine &c''
Dublin: Fannin & Co. pp. 323–25.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hume, Gustavus Presidents of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Irish surgeons Irish people of Scottish descent 1732 births 1812 deaths Gustavus Physicians of the Mercer's Hospital Irish health officials