The weekly north Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1857-1867, 1859-10-19
For the Times. LII
Medical JOttings..No: rvy

some, prescription they have selected from
the Dispensatory, or old Recipe Book.
A mans medicinal knowledge may safely
be calculated upon by computing it in Al,
inverse ratio. to the number Of cases he
cites to prove his skill--medical facts must
be taken at great discount, so long as
fckle-mindcd maids and timid parents re.
sort II medicine for every imagined III that
soon leaves them, whether they employ TO-
mcntations or physic, Hydropath Or
Thompsonian fire. 1t has frequently becr,
shown that diseases have been cheated.
fooled away by the mere form Of medical
treatment and wouldn't many good dame
fairly storm did she but know how innocent
medicine was Of her last cure, especially,
if she was treated Homeopathically. Med
ical facts, though they appear to pass cur.
rent in market, possess little true value, un:
less they are endorsed by men Of learning
experience and skill, apd where we heaf 4
man say that any medicine is a sure cure
for certain diseases, we may say Of truth,
that man is dishonest Charlata, or one
Of very limited observation, for medicines
in and of themselves do dot perform cures,
Health is the natural state of man, and
sickness is the result generally, Of our folly
or Of accident, and whenever nature be-
comes thwarted, and the avenues of health
become obstructed, we may with medicines
remove the barriers to health, and nature
true to herself, Immediately pursues her
wonted way, and harmony at once prevails
among our. various members. Nature alone
is so often successful in her efforts to re-
store health, even after the Doctor has de-
cided the case fatal-that it sometimes be.
comes question when the physician at
tempts to offer assistance if he does not re-
tard, rather than ail in the healing Of our
bodies. How often do we see persons given
up to die, or linger out miserable exist
ance, when skillful men have been unsuc-
ccssful, and yet they recover under the
hands Of some ignorant ouAcK, or under no
treatment at all. These circumstances
startle the public mind and lead it to en-
quire: Is medicine benefit to mankind3
and does not the Doctor often rob good old
dame Nature of much of the credit due her
when both are fortunate enough to restore
us to health? We believe that when we
take into account all the malpractice result
ing from ignorance, since medicine existed,
that it has yet to prove itself in the aggre-
gate a blessing to mankind; and we know
that when person recoyers from severe
sickness, the doctor is apt to receive all the
credit for performing a cure, and natural
causes are left out Of the account. s..~ r.
The employment Of medicine in many
cases, will prove curse, so long as its ad-
ministration is entrusted to ignorance. We
do not expect musical instrument to be
kept in tune except by an expert musician,
and who else but the most skillful and cx-.
perienccd should take charge of our bodies,
the most wonderful and complex of all in,
struments, with its thousand delicate cords
upon whose exact vibrations depend all our
health and comfort All knowledge of
medicine, that is worth anything to man.
kind; must be based upon that only correct
chart, the physician can claim. Anatomy,
that upholds its sister science, physiology,
and demonstrates those immovable laws Of
health whose penalties when violated, are
both sure and terrible. Those nations that
have made the greatest progress in medi-
cine and surgery, are those that have en-
couragcd the study of, Anatomy, and where
this has not been tolerated, either in ancient
or modern times, we find very few men who
have acquired fame by their skill in Surge.
~, or their success in the healing art. How
medicine flourished in very ancient times,
we have no correct means of Knowing
Adam and Eve were the first practitioners
we read Of, they being the first accouchers
and surgeons, and from all accounts of the
manner in which the earth was ccplenished,
We have every reason to believe their prac-
tice was very reputable, ssa zs:sr "a. -e4
After our first parents were driven FROM
Paradise into the world of pain and suffer-
ing, it is likely they treasured up a knowf-
edge Of the healing properties Of the laws Of
plants, and perhaps became dexterous in
many little manipulations, and so COM
menced one of the most important Of the
sciences we cherish. There can be no doubt
that the ancient Egyptians cultivated the
arts and sciences to high degree, and We
presume many excellent physicians -four
ished in their midst. They certainly sho'd
have been good anatomists, for in the pro-
cess Of enbalming, they must have exam-
ined minutely the various organs of the
body, but the Priests appear to have con-
trollcd the practice Of medicine, and even
with the cheapest Of all medicines, incanta-
tons, we presume, had tolerable success
Among the ancient Greeks, Chiron ap-
pears as the first physician, who has left
his name on the records. Esculapius was
about the first to make medicine an exclu-
sive study, and his practice consisted most
ly in obtaining the confidence Of his pa
tients, by much ceremony, restricting them
in diet, making them perform frequent alb
lutions, and giving very little wine. The
sons of Esculapius, became very noted SUR
gcons in the Greek Army, and in that war
like age, they found constant employment.
In this early age, few remedies were used
that were not applied externally.
Esculapius was soon deified as q God,
and temples erected in his honor, where the