Health Without Physic; Or Cordials for the Youth, Manhood, and Old Age. Including Maxims, Moral and Facetious; For The Prevention of Disease, and The Attainment of A Long and Vigorous Life.

Health Without Physic; Or Cordials for the Youth, Manhood, and Old Age. Including Maxims, Moral and Facetious; For The Prevention of Disease, and The Attainment of A Long and Vigorous Life. 1830. London: Effingham Wilson.

12mo.(4" x 7") xxiv + 271 pp. Quarter black leather with small corners over marbled boards. Spine with six double gilt rule bands, gilt lettering to red leather to second compartment, blindstamp floral decoration to all others. Edgewear, corners lightly bumped and rubbed through to tips. Boards scuffed, rubbed. Armorial bookplate of Reviresco to front pastedown. Foxing to first two leaves, intermittent spotting throughout. One small, neat pencil notation of "This is nonsense" to a page margin of the chapter "Some Cursory Observations on Grog" (see pic).

First published in the early nineteenth century, Health Without Physic; or, Cordials for the Youth, Manhood, and Old Age is an anonymous popular medical and conduct guide written by “An Old Physician.” Rather than focusing on drugs and formal treatment, the book promotes health through moderation, habit, preventive care, practical observation, and moral discipline, with advice intended to carry the reader from youth through old age.

The text blends medical counsel with maxims, social commentary, humor, and reflections on everyday behavior. Its subjects include diet, drinking, exercise, sleep, aging, disease prevention, and the habits believed necessary for a long and vigorous life. As such, it offers an interesting window into early nineteenth-century ideas about preventive medicine and personal responsibility for health, before modern clinical medicine had taken its present form.

This 1830 London edition was published by Effingham Wilson and is bound in quarter black leather with small leather corners over marbled boards. The spine has six double gilt-rule bands, a red leather title label, and blind-stamped floral decoration. The volume bears the armorial bookplate of Reviresco to the front pastedown.

Of particular charm is a small contemporary pencil annotation beside the chapter “Some Cursory Observations on Grog”, where an earlier reader has written simply, “This is nonsense.” The binding shows rubbing, scuffing, and expected edgewear, with intermittent spotting internally and heavier foxing to the opening leaves. Overall, a characterful early medical self-help title combining practical health advice, longevity, temperance, humor, and period social attitudes.