Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-03-13
"Hi9h POtencies and D.E.stions.n
70 the Editor of the Globe.

To the Editor of the Globe.
The young man who wrote under the
above caption in yesterdays GLOBE, tells
an interested public that he withholds his
name because of his native modesty, modes
ty that happen to know is 80 extreme that
it makes him copy in real life of Dickens
humble Uriah Heep. This modesty was
signally shown at the meeting at the Metro
politan, where he undertook to teach men
who have practiced homeopathy many more
years than he is of age, correct Homeopathic
practice. He is just commencing his fifth
or sixth year of practice, and, of course,
knows more than he will twenty years hence.
You at once see his fitness as an instructor
and corrector of gentlemen who have grown
gray in the application of homeopathy to
the relief of human ills.
1t does not require professional knowledge
to appreciate the merits of the issue. Com
mon sense is here, as everywhere, the true
criterion. If anything violently outrages
common sense, we may safely decide it is not
true or reliable.
In the light of this safe guide let us ex-
anime this potency" question. The Hahn
nemannian potencies are made substantially
thus Take one drop of medicine and 100
of water or other neutral solvent it,
This is the first potency or dilution; take
one drop of the first and 100 of water-shake
and you have made the second poten " !;
one drop of the second and 100 of water
shake and the third is made; take one
drop of the third and 100 of water-shake
and it is the fourth potency, and 80 on sd
infnitum ct ad nauseaum. The thirtieth
potency (of which more anon in correction
with the neuralgia case), this representing an
original drop of medicine divided by 100
thirty times. The first potency contains
the 1-10Oth of drop of medicine the
second the lie, 000th; the third the H.
600, OO0th the fourth the 1-1OO, 600, 0OOth !;
the fifth the 10000, OOO, OOOth the tenth
the lilo, OOO, OOO. OOO, OOO, OOO, OO0th. Now as
1 am getting tired of mathematics of this
hight, and as have made heavy draft on
the GLOBES supply of ciphers, will just ask
you to try to imagine and will not attempt to
write the fractional part of that original poor
little drop of medicine that We started with
that would be in the thirtieth potency. Now,
rest your Imagination a moment, and try it
on the two hundredth potency, then the one
thousandth, then the one hundredth thou
sandth, then the millionth, and 20 need
not stop here, for DR.. Herring, of Philadel-
phia, recently reported two cases of diphthe-
ria cured by single doze each of nux vomica
and lac cadmium in the twenty millionth
potency. The young man, during the dis
cussiop, spoke reverently of DR.. Herring, ss
the chief source of his medical inspiration.
Now,this is not homeopathy, though loud
~ 80 called. 1t is an excrescence- parasite,
fastened upon abused homeopathy. It is not
homeopathy; it is not medicine; it is not
philosophy; it is not science: it is not reason;
it is insanity, the logical outcome of fanati-
cism.
Homeopathy has no more ardent defender
than myself, but the pseudo-homeopathy;
the homeopathy run to seed ;the high-potency
homeopathy of your anonymous correspond
emit, am an unfaltering opponent of.
In the case of neuralgia, morphine was
not injected hypodermically, but atropia
(belladonna) was; one hundred and
twentieth of q grain when
the patient was in extreme agony promptly
relieved, and in five minues he was asleep.
He was much better the next day, but had
paroxysms of pain with intervals
of ease, doing just as neuralgia has q
Thousand times before and will thousand
times again, doctor or no doctor. In the
absence of the attending physician, who
could not be found, the patient had severe
temporary aggravation of the pain-much as
after large fire of a Pickering blaze springs
up that speedily burns itself out, and the ex-
ponent of high potencies was sent for. He