Caduceus as a symbol of medicine worth noting that hospital stewards were not physicians; they played a supporting role preparing drugs for surgeons, supervising nurses and cooks, maintaining accounting and medical records, and in emergencies sometimes performed minor surgery or provided prescriptions. Later, in 1871, the Surgeon General designated the caduceus as the seal of the Marine Hospital Service (destined to become the U.S. Public Health Service in 1912). Gershen states that the change was for aesthetic reasons, whereas Friedlander states the caduceus was adopted by the Marine Hospital Service "because of its relationship with merchant seamen and the maritime industry". The caduceus was formally adopted
Beast with two backs "Gargantua and Pantagruel" into English, which was published posthumously around 1693. "Othello" was written . Beast with two backs Making the beast with two backs is a euphemistic metaphor for two persons engaged in sexual intercourse. It refers to the situation in which a couple—in the missionary position, woman on top, on their sides, kneeling, or standing—cling to each other as if a single creature, with their backs to the outside. In English, the expression dates back to at least William Shakespeare's "Othello" (Act 1, Scene 1, ll. 126-127): The earliest known occurrence of the phrase is in Rabelais's "Gargantua