Quotes from Gavin Weightman

He who gives back at first repulse and without striking the second blow, despairs success, has never been, is not, and never will be, a hero in love, war or business. - Frederick Tudor

What was needed was a large-scale comparative study of different approaches to inoculation to discover which, in practical terms, was likely to be successful. But how to design such an experiment in the eighteenth century? There was only one answer: orphans.

It was already evident to the French and other Europeans that Britain was gaining an industrial lead in the first half of the eighteenth century.There was, for example, the newly acquired technique of smelting iron with purified coal or `coke' instead of charcoal, a fuel which was becoming prohibitively expensive. There were processes for the preparation of raw wool which were trade secrets and much sought after, as were some of the arcane skills of watchmakers.