The morning call., 1892-02-14
KELLEY TREATMENT.
What Was Learned From a Num-
Der of Medical Men.

The recent sudden death in this city of a
| young man who had subjected himself some
| time since to the Kelley treatment was the
subject of extensive comment in medical
circles, and the bichloride of gold treatment
came in for considerable denunciatiOn. Ii
| conversation yesterday with a number of
representatives Of the MEDICAL profession a
! representative of The CALL fOuud not one
who was willing to recognize the Kelley
treatment as anything but Quackery pure
and simple.
Unprolessonal opinion was freely eX-
pressed that the young mans recent subjec-
ton to the bichlOride treatment at Dwight
| H., was the cause OF his death, but the
| skilled physicians knew better. AT the same
| time there appeared to be an almost uuani-
nous conviction that if the remedy is strong
enough to do good it is strong enough to do
harm, and that there is a special objection
| to giving nauseating medicines in disguise
| to persons already weakened by alcoholism
| or other excuses
One physician said "Of course the pro-
fession does not recognize the bichl0ride
| treatment in any way. TO begin with, all
| the salts OF gold are poison Gus, and their
| use is open to the same objection as the
| bichloride of mercury or corrosive subli-
ate. l have heard it stated on good
| authority that the Kelley fluid contains no
| gold at all. but is simply solution OF
| strychnia with little cinchOnia, q nerve
tonic in fact. But strychnia is not at all
| the sort of drug to play tricks with, and
think the profession is right in opposing
these advertising methods, which SAVIOR as
strongly of quackery and are conducted
with such apparent recklessness.
- have been informed also that the spe-
cial brand of whisky which is given TO
inebriates at the Kelley institutions. and
which they can drink al will, nauseates at
once. If 50 it may well be that tartar
emetic, ipeGacuanha or lobela or some
similar nervous depressant is used. A
drinker Of long standing Is not the man TO
be treated in that way. He has no nerve
force to lose; quite the other way. Judg-
| ment will have to be suspended TIL we get
more facts. Vaccination had to survive
prejudice, but it superseded incubation and
practically wiped out epidemic smallpox.
"If q remedy can be found for alcoholism
we'll and good, but we are not going about it
the right way. The PaSteur treatment for
bites from supposed rabd dogs, and the
Koch lymph cure for consumption, have not
really stood the test of trial, though in both
cases the profession took up the matter
willingly. But the Kelley business is
something charlatanic at the very outset
1t processes to DO what no drug can d0-giye
a man the self-control, which - the sole
condition OF permanent cure. AS TO the
restoration of diseased organs to healthy
| should not suppose any sane person would
| claim IL to be possible"
what is the bichloride of gold, anyhow ?"
was the question propOunded by The CALL
reporter to q druggist of thirty years eXpe-
Renee The druggist shook his head,
searched his books, aud answered that he
| did not see how there could be bichloride
| of gold, anyway. For" said he. gold is
| triad; it combines with three atoms, never
with two. There is er-chlorde OF gold,
| known from the days of the alchemists as
| the product obtained by dissolving the
metal in a mixture Of nitric ard muriatic
acids Then there is a double salt, a CHER
| ide Of gold and sodium, which is sometimes
used in medicine. But the salts of gold are
rarely prescribed by reputable Dractition-
ers. Introduced in 1910 there was a certain
use for a time Of the ter-chloride of gold, a
weak solution, rs a remedy for skin diseases
and yenereal affections. But it was found
| that the same results could be obtained by
the use of less dangerous drugs, and the
| gold fever died out"
| Another druggist said II remember