Friedrich Hoffmann

Constant study then began to tell on his health, and in 1682, leaving his already numerous pupils, he opened a practice in Minden at the request of a relative who held a high position in that town.

After practising at Minden for two years, Hoffmann made a journey to Holland and England, where he formed the acquaintance of many illustrious chemists and physicians.

With the exception of four years (1708–1712), which he passed at Berlin in the capacity of royal physician, Hoffmann spent the rest of his life at Halle in instruction, practice and study, interrupted now and again by visits to different courts of Germany, where his services procured him honours and rewards.

At the instigation of Robert Boyle, he turned to the analysis and uses of mineral waters and became a pioneer and chief promoter of their study, gave prescriptions for their use, taught how they could be imitated artificially, and analyzed many German springs.

[3] Georg Ernst Stahl opposed the general employment of mineral waters recommended by Hoffmann, though he did not question their utility in certain cases.