Lewis Gompertz
Encyclopedia
Lewis Gompertz was an inventor and a founding member of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
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(SPCA) which later became the RSPCA
. http://www.vegetarianfriends.net/issue25.html He acted as the Society's second Honorary Secretary prior to resigning in 1833 for reasons that may have been connected to his radical views, to his Judaism or to all-too-familiar organisational power struggles. He went on to found the Animals' Friend Society.
Gompertz was (as at 1824) almost a vegan, 120 years before the word was coined, was an anti-vivisectionist and he refused to ride in horse-drawn carriages. He was also a champion of the poor and of women.
He is the author of books including 'Moral Inquiries: on the situation of man and of brutes' (1824) and 'Fragments in Defence of Animals' (1852).
Inspired by his desire to minimize animal suffering, several of his 40 or so devices were aimed at this end; the inventions included a hand-crank drive in 1821, which he applied to the bicycle design of Baron von Drais, and the expanding chuck, still in use today.
He is listed in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/101010934/
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit animal welfare organization originally founded in England in 1824 to pass laws protecting carriage horses from abuse. SPCA groups are now found in many nations, where they campaign for animal welfare, assist in cruelty to animals...
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His Life
In 1824, Gompertz became a founding member of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsSociety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit animal welfare organization originally founded in England in 1824 to pass laws protecting carriage horses from abuse. SPCA groups are now found in many nations, where they campaign for animal welfare, assist in cruelty to animals...
(SPCA) which later became the RSPCA
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a charity in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. In 2009 the RSPCA investigated 141,280 cruelty complaints and collected and rescued 135,293 animals...
. http://www.vegetarianfriends.net/issue25.html He acted as the Society's second Honorary Secretary prior to resigning in 1833 for reasons that may have been connected to his radical views, to his Judaism or to all-too-familiar organisational power struggles. He went on to found the Animals' Friend Society.
Gompertz was (as at 1824) almost a vegan, 120 years before the word was coined, was an anti-vivisectionist and he refused to ride in horse-drawn carriages. He was also a champion of the poor and of women.
He is the author of books including 'Moral Inquiries: on the situation of man and of brutes' (1824) and 'Fragments in Defence of Animals' (1852).
Inspired by his desire to minimize animal suffering, several of his 40 or so devices were aimed at this end; the inventions included a hand-crank drive in 1821, which he applied to the bicycle design of Baron von Drais, and the expanding chuck, still in use today.
He is listed in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/101010934/