Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-02-14
THE FAITH CURE.
Opinions of Physicians Regarding the
Art OF Healing by Prayer.
From tAs Jhfcago Neaps.

NFN"e ono ffttSttRV 4'HAos
The faith-healer's art has attracted
such widespread attention Of late that
some people have peen to the pains of for
mulating a creed or theory which ex-
presses the main principles involved in
that peculiar practice. Beginning with
the dictum that sickness ID the result OF
SIN, and asserting that bodily health and
soul health are to be retained In the same
way--oy falth-they construct a scheme
Of physical redemption which is the exact
counterpart of the reoogni ed ortbodoX
scheme OF physical REDEEM ption, as ample
provision, IL Is said. is made for bodily
healing in the atOnemsnt as for the re-
compton Of the soul. Ii Is even held by
Pastor Stockmayer, Of the German school,
that sufficiently strong faith, but faith
OF which human nature is not yet oapa-
BILE, would be able to release mortals
from death. This Is an extreme doc
trine. however, and has but few sup
porters.
The medical fraternity Is not disposed
IN put much trust in the genuineness OF
The alleged cures by iaitb. Many physi-
clans deride the whole thing as ridicu-
lous; others regard it g. a species Of wild
delusion or a sort of fanaticisn, and still
category with spirituahsm, magnetism,
mesmerism, and hypnotism, which seem
TO move in cycles. AS TO the medical
phase OF the faith cure, physicians do not
hesitate to assert that there is no case on
record Of cure being accomplished by
that method when there was any physi-
cal obstacle in the way. Furthermore,
they claim that all the cures that have
been effected are due to the purely profess
sional processes used.
That trait in human nature" said a
well-knOWn allopatnist yesterday (which
makes such belief possible makes other
things which are looked upon as estab-
lIshed institutions as possible and as pop
ular-f0r example, homeopathy. The
raison de'etre is to be found in a morbid
condition OF the human mind-wIthout
that there could be no such thing. A per-
son TO be a believer in the faith cure or in
genuine homeopathy is lacking in mental
soundness. The mental impress ions fire.
quently resorted to by physlcians are per-
Iectly analogous TO the faith cure add ac-
cOmplish the same results. ] remem her
very good instance in my professional
experience to illustrate this. Or. n. r..
Clarke, who wrote Sex in Education,
was the attendant, especially upon the
aristOcratic CLASSES ~ BOstOn--in fact, he
used TO say Ihat HE patients lived beh nd
damask curtains anu on velvet carpets
IL happened that the daughter OF very
wealthy family, who had been disHppaiat-
ed in not being elects valedicturian OF ner
class at gradIa ion, came nome ill and
exhausted from Over-study She took to
her bed and declared that she couldn't
leave 1t. Among other physicians Dr
Clarke was consulted by the parents. tie
examined the patient and found that she
was suffering from no physical disease,
and yet he could not persuade her that
she was able 10 get up and be dressed.
The parents v ere very anxious that sOToe-
thing should be done. The doctor ex.
planned that II some emergency could be
created to compel Jnis girl to exercise her
V0litiOn, by winch act train of healthy
mental operations would be set again in
motion, he believed That would constitute
her cure. The father readily consented
aud the following plan was carried out
with favorable results: DR.. Clarke had a
very intelligent cOlOred boy in his Office
who had the power Of mimlcry to an un-
usual degree. One day the PATIENTS faith
er, IN accordance with the arrangement,
pretended TO read from the morning paper
an account of the arrival of celebrated
Indian physician in New York--the sew
enth son OF seventh sOn-wh0 performed
wonderful cures by the simple laying on
OF hands. The daughter wondered if this
great healer might not cure her. Her
father consented TO call him, and one daV
the doctor was brought to t re house. At
ter great ceremony and many prayers
spoken In an unknown tongue, be com
manded the invalid TO rise, which she
did.
"A few days afterward DIR. Clarke call
ed to congratulate her on her recovery.
"'1Ou have great confidence in DR..
SanRredO | supDOse p he said.
" 'Why shouldn't IP she replied; he
cured me wheR the great DR.. Clarke
failed
the Indian doctor was DR.. Clarke's
cOlored officeboy.
"But 10 return to the question. Most
of these alleged cures are effected In cases
of affection Of the muscles. simple mus
cular contraction without any change in
tissue is no obstacle in the way of the
voluntary relaxation Of such muscles.
Religious ecstacy is often enough to open
the valve, let out the vital force, and start
the machinery again. Women are more
susceptible TO IL than men.
Another prominent physician said that
he had seen several cases OF sO-called
ialth cure. but he believed that the cures
were effected by methods commonly
used.
81 don't believe that pure faith will cure
4
b lieve that all those sO.called diseases
are fancied ailments. lsuppOse there are
very few people even OF sound mind who
are not capable of being deluded, but
when any body believes in thing - con-
trary 10 well-established facts Of expert
ence IL Is evidence Of mental weakness
that 10, TO say the least, they are what
might be called eccentric.
"No cure can be effected when there is
real physical obstacle In the way: for ex-
ample, rheumatism, pulmonary cOnsump-
tion. or any other serious organic disease.
The subjects OF cure by faith demonstrate
simply mental weakness equal TO that of
those who practice IL. All these patients
are weak in their nervous organizations.
The greater susceptibility and weakness
OF nervous systems make women more
likely 10 barber the delusion than
men. The whole thing, in fact, is
simply a delusion, and that's all there is
Of &C."
DANGERS FROM GOATS MILK.