The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-01-21
the shrine Of the spine.

A new sect Of religion or school Of reli.
gious philosophy-it is not easy to tell
which-has arisen In Boston, the yeritable
hub Of the universe OF isms. The cleo,
who enjoy the new light address them,
selves 10 the cure OF dig.ass rather than
the cure Of souls, but they profess that God
aud He alone Is in the cure. They lay 1t
down as a tenet Of their faith that "God Is
onnipresent and omnipoteut. Where God
Is there can be no evil. lines, is u form
OF evil, and illness is therefore hoabsence
Of God" The unphilosophic mind will al
once perceive that God can be absent from
anywhere since he Is present everywhere;
aad the unlettered who have seen ian limo.
cant babe suffering from disease will be
quite ready TO believe that the little one
suffers because the God Of goodness and
love and mercy Is not with her! F!J.
Disease Ia cured by an importing Of
Doity. Tho "mind-healer" Is one who has
more Deity than he needs for bis own
uses, and II he wants more he can get it
Out OF bis own vessel he ia willing to pour
into the vessel that is impaired by disease
- much Of his superabundance Of balm as
the cass may require-this at the panic
price OF one dollar an hour. The trick
it should be said, the treatment-is go easy
tlat child could do It after one lesson,
TIE "healpr"-who by this time appeara
also to be something Of "striker"-per'
mits the patient to be seated. Then the
cheap and facile physician pulls up his
chair and they touch backs-the dos-a.do'
fl ,ure Of The dance OF delusion. In the
blasphemous creed Of these philosophic re.
ligionists the surplus Of Deity passes out Of
one spine into the other and so 6nds ita
way through the organism. n y
Cure after this fashion is not, as might
might be supposed, IN instantaneous pro.
cess. The Aumber of applications varies
with circumstances. A well.to.do lady,
who, strangely enough, is described as
neither unintelligent nor irreligious," paid
800 for as many hours. 1t may be that the
"healer found her in a,tieuso morti,, or posi-.
bly, be gave her extra attention because Of
her social status. :. fE7
The most surprising part OF the whole
revolving business, and that indeed which
makes it most worthy Of remark, is thai
among the worshippers at the shrine OF
the backbone are people who ought to
know great deal better. The Boston
Alrsrtiser, which contains a long account
OF the movement, says that among the
adherents to the mind-cure are people Of
influence and prominence, and some Of
whose names are as familiar as household
words" But it is already established that
people Of influence and prominence can
b, fools, and that other people Of
much less inauen,s can oyer-mas.er
and influence these and turn penny out
OF them. considerable sums Of money
arc gathered" gays the Advertiser, and dis.
c:ples are instant in geason and out OIL
season" spreading the new gospel in Bos.
ton. One lady is so full Of it that blow
which LETT q black.and-blue mark upon her
"did not really hit her at al" che said, "for
her real being was with God.", .,..n ~ : A
1t is thought by these persons, as it is
held by other fanatics, altogether reyerent
to be on terms Of easy familiarity with
Deity, and shockingly ireyerent for
another, who adds respect to alteration, to
suggest that it eavors Of indeceucy to
speak OF or approach Almighty G ID as a
Jolly good fellow. -43S, J, i; E,e.,, q.