The Healing Waters of Bath

"The Pump Room," from Thomas Rowlandson's The Comforts of Bath (1798, image credit: Wikipedia)

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While some, like Catherine, came to Bath to shop, dance, and perhaps meet some members of the opposite sex, others came to recover their health. The waters of Bath were thought to cure a variety of illnesses, and there were a large number of doctors in Bath eager to promote various cures and treatments to the city's rich and sometimes hypochondriacal visitors. Not everyone was convinced, however. See below for more:

Mary Chandler, A Description of Bath (1734).
Tobias Smollett, Humphry Clinker (1771). Maybe those waters aren't so healthy after all...
Thomas Rowlandson, "The Consultation, or Last Hope," originally part of his series The Comforts of Bath
- What do you think are the motives of the many physicians examining the patient? Try zooming in on the image -- interesting details are tucked away in various parts of the room.