Morning journal and courier., 1884-05-21
Doctors in Conference.

Twentieth Annual Meeting of the Com.
 necticut Homeopathic Society at the
 Elliott House.
 The meeting of the Connecticut Homoeo- pathic society at the Elliott House yesterday it being the twentieth annual, was attended
 by over thirty of the members of the socie-
 ty. The president of the society, B. H.
 Cheney, presided over the deliberations of
 from the New York Medical society, was
 present. New Haven was Represented by
 Drs Cheney, Anderson, Dorman, Walker,
 vishno and Adams. The report of the sec
 retary showed that two members-Dr. l..
 H. Norton of Bridgeport and Dr. J. D.
 Johnson of Hartford-hsd died during the
 year. The treasurer reported $46 in the
 treasury. Six new members-Drs. B. 0.
 Gidman of Falls Village, A. F. Fife of Wal
 lingfor6, l.. Louise Brigham of Hartford,
 Edwin 0. M. Hall of New London, O. R.
 Kelsey of Waterbury and W. E. Reed of
 Ansonia-were voted in. The resignations
 of Drs. Williams of Cheshire and George l.. Foote were received.
 The meeting was entertained by Hon. W. O. Robinson, of this city, in a paper on Medical Experts" He said that the true functions of an expert in court cases were those of an assistant to the judge. He should have accurate and thorough knowledge in order to advise the court and jury as to mat ters about which they had no special knowl- edge. In many trials, however, the expert was simply an instrument to bolster up some special theory, and lent himself to this task 1 for pay, instead of being impelled by high and conscientious regard for duty. The 1A kI,o +n hnu uU the value of the ideal expert, and wherein many who figured as experts fell short of the true standard. At the conclu- l sion of the address vote of thanks was ex-
 tended to the speaker. Dr. Sanford or Bridgeport, Dr. Wilson of Merlden and Judge Robinson participated in the discussion on the paper.
 pr. Wilson, of Meriden, read paper on ''Diphtheria.' He advancedthe idea that many cases of diphthetia resulted from the use of kerosene oil. Infection had been ! brought from as far away as Georgia by toys and from Florida in clothing.
 In the discussion which followed 1t ap- | peared that in the year when the disease ap- peared in Philadelphia it was near where kerosene oil was stored.
 I A delegate spoke of the effect of treatment \ with nitrate of silver at the outset of the I study of the disease
 Another delegate said it would be difficult \ to ma Q6aGl rom any GAuSo HAcEo A0AOSOA1 f was not more or less in use.
 Dr. P. P. Wells, of Brooklyn, said that \ diphtheria must be treated just the same as \ any other disease, according to the elements | presented. It was foolish to believe in any | one drug. With regard to the capanite lately | brought into use, it might answer for eleven ' cases and be worth nothing for the twelfth. ! He believed in analysing every case and glV- \ ing that remedy which each individual case ' required. When there is a weak action ot ' the heart, the patient should never be allow | ed to sit up. He is liable to die suddenly. Or. c. s. Hoag said that in diphtheretic \ throats any medicine which would change \ the nutrid accumulation in the throat would | be good to cure.
 Dr. Wilson claimed that in all cases of epi- denies homeopathic treatment had been | most successful.
 Dr. Wells read an interesting paper on ''Materia Medica." A vote of thanks was extended to him. The paper was generally discussed
 After dinner the society formed bureau \ of materia medica, with Dr. Hooker as chair man, he to name the other members of the ' bureau. Officers for the ensuing year were \ chosen as follows:
 President, A II. Allen, M. D., New Lon | don; vice president B. E. Case, M. D.i ' Hartford; secretary and treasurer, B. B. Hooker, M. D., Hartford; librarian, G. H. ' W1ISOu, M Os AoL4OOAS SOAsOAo1 O' \ Walker, M. D., New Haven; c. B. Adams, M. D., New Haven; E. H. Linnell, M. D., \ Norwich; E. P. Gregory, M. D., Waterbury; | 0. s. Hoag, M. D., Waterbury. Dr. Stone declined to act on the board | of censors and Dr. Walker was substituted. The retiring president, Dr. Cheney of this \ city, delivered an able address upon the pres ' ent state of medical science, in which he ' spoke of the tendency to greater hberality \ in the profession. He urged the importance \ of attention to facts as observed in nature, rather than to theory. Homeopathy rested \ upon the observation of nature, and upon ' the results obtained at the bedside of the \ SICK. He exhorted his hearers not to torsaKe ' positive and well-tried methods for a treat ment based upon hypothesis. He also spoke of the great advances made of late in pre- ventive medicine and sanitary science by re-
 cent discoveries. The physician, amid all the cares and trials of his daily life, should find constant help in the thought that he
 may, if he will, be ''the minister and inter-
 preter of nature"
 Dr. Rockwell read an interesting paper on fat.
 Dr. Hoag, of Bridgeport, presented a com m1nication from the American Institution of Homeopathy with reference to the legisls- tion now pending in Congress in regard to admitting graduates of homeopathic colleges to examination for medical officers of the army and navy The subject was discussed at some length, the senseof the society being that as homeopathic medical colleges stood upon the same legal footing as others, their gradu- ates should have equal privileges.
 Adjourned at o'clock to meet in Hartford on the second Tuesday in October.