The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1874-02-05

ask His Holiness, the Pope, {
create q new patron saint for hun
bugs. lllustrioGs trio Oh that al
other set lise you could Join the cor
cert and pour the strain anew VIII
can guess what the Goth century ma
produce Were ! to conjecture
should say, all things keeping pac
with medicine, the coming docto
properly mounted, booted and spur
red, shall ride round the world on
thunder bolt. His midnight bel
jineles and he awakes to answer tn
summons. He mounts his enchant
ed horse, tweaks hissear and alight
at the bedside of his patient on th'
banks of the Yangstekiang. Blu
enough of this by way of introduc
ton, this kind of make ready ant
present, and must stop to ask wha
l entirely forgot at the outset, that il
to excuse the loose .jolnteGness o
article. 1t is somewhat like the lin
ber.acks of the toy shops, rather
loose at the joints and uncommonly
nimble on the wire. Procrastlnatior
is not only the thief of the time, bu
Of medical essays also, and | find my
self laborer in the vineyard at the
eleventh hour.
The profession of medicine is full
OF interest to the philanthropist. Its
path lies among the suffering, the
aches and pains of an erring and suf
tering race. Ever since sentence
was pronoun led on Adam the neces
sity for the science of the physician
has been extant. No honorable pur.
suit in life is destitute Of its pleasures
and solicitudes, but those incidents
to the practice of medicine are in
many respects peculiar. Of these
peculiarities none arc so competent
20 discern and sensitive to feel as
the yoang practitioner. So strongly
are these forced upon his mind that
he is sometimes tempted to explain :
"In ways that are dark and tricks
that are vain the heathenish doctors
are peculiar.
The young man who has toiled
long and hard to prepare himself for
the labors and responsibilities Of the
profession, often finds himself month
after month, and sometlmes year at.
ter year with little or nothing to do.
Public confidence has not reached
him yet. The pasEers by rarely call
at his Office except TO enquire for the
residence of DR.. Blown ard or DIR.
Pufem. lie has the modification to
be trowned on his professional breth.
ren older than himself, who, having
weathereG the storm OF bitter dis
content now stand pretty fairly with
the multitude, and who, perhaps,
| jealous of his superior abilities, set
afoat among the people idle rumors
| calculated TO dishearten and drive
i'm away, or at least put at a dis
tance the time when he shall ente.
the field as an active rival. Or
worse, they damn him [ y faint praise,
'ue is 10 doubt an excellent Dung
man, and in time will make an ex-
cellent physician, but he IS very,
very young and must have many
years of practice before he can ex-
pest to share the practice with US
old soldiers"
The maxim that success in life al.
mays attends the diligent. if applied
to medicine, is not strictly true
There ale so many circumstances
which have an influence in shaking
public opinion on the merits ofthe
| physician, that success cannot always
be predicted even Of one whose edu.
cation, energy and skill are known
and recognized. There are hundreds
Of honest people in our goodlY little
city y ho believe q knowledge ot
medicine comes intuitively, like q
thought, hence they have a very Low
estimate OF education. Indeed
have observed that physicians them
selves sometimes encourage thi:
whim. Others seek to pass curren
by assuming thoughtful, careworr
and grave countenance, and by drop
ping words in solemn undertonel
which fall ike oracles on shallow
minds. OF such men | have heard
the expression. They are ripening
for Heaven"
Others by the opposite cource
putting on q roughness not natura
to them and affecting a perfect sang
ford, as much as to say this is a very
small matter indeed for person o
nv caliber. Others again by talk
ing upon all occasions of the number
of their patients and the severity O.
their cases, and of the marvellous
cures they have performed, always
taking care to ridiCule the mistake.
and errors of their neighbors. 9th
ers by overwhelming and confound
ing the perception of their hearers
by an unintelligibIe jargon. Thi.
has an admirable effect on those who
have higher regard for the nam,
of a thing than for the thing itself
They say of such man that he ha,
his wits about him and will do to b,
trusted.
A lady asks her doctor how Ions
she will be sick. He promptly re
"Madam, that depends entirelyor
the duration of the morbitic infu
ences, which IN their com bined oper
alton, have given rise to the severa
groups of morbid phenomena which
have been developed since YOU wer,
TAKEN" The good lady thanks hin
for so ready and satisfactory an an
swer, an is perfectly satisfied that b.
is the wisest man in his profession
This can only be equaled, think, b,
the following 4 couple of student
taking drive stopped at the door o
country tavern, and when a small
boy put IN an appearance, one O
them addressed him as follows an
lad will you have the goodness &
extrcate the quadruped from th
} vehicle, stabuiate, and donate him
bounteous supply OF sutrious aiiment
and when the great aurora of NOR
shall illuminate the oriental horizo
we will grant you pecuniary recon
pence of reward for your kind an
generous hospitality" The boy ra
into the house ealing out, "Father
] Father. There's a Dutehman at th
J door who wants to see you"
} But | am wandering. There
] another class who never fails whe
! occasion offers to iatter the yanit
of their patients, especially thos
who fancy themselves peculiarly ar
in decipheriug disease and applyin
annronriata remedies Prof NURSE