Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-23

It was an honest physician-a physician in
regular practice, and a frank, sincere kind
of q man, who, during q visit TO DR.. Cope
land recently, made use of remark which
was something like this:
"Doctor, you will pardon me if 1 say that
there is only one criticism that 1 can pass
uponyour way of doing business. There is
only one thing that / cannot understand.
As take it, you make clear and distinct
claims; you state that you cure certain dis
eases. Now, cannot understand how Won
can do this. To tell you the honest truth, !
donot feel sure that can cure anything"
The speaker in this case was entirely hon.
est. He was well-educated physician, in
fact was a classmate of DR.. Copeland years
ago, and has devoted many years OF his life
to general practice, and stands eminently
well in the community in which he practices.
In spite of his assertion OF his own lack OF
confidence in himself he is successful as a
practitioner. He was entirely honest in the
remark above quoted, and he was just as
honest when q few minutes later during the
conversation he said:
doctor, the fact about it is that a man
cannot be general practitioner any longer.
Developments in medicine and surgery in
the last ten years have come upon us so
thick and fast that man cannot cover the
Held: he cannot keep up with all that isnew
and useful and wonderful and effective in
relieving suffering. lie has got to be a spe-
cialist, IN order to know what he is doing,
and to be effective in his own work, he has
got to confine himselfto certain special lines
of practice"
There had our friend hit the truth,
hit it squarely and fairly, and in that re-
mark had our friend explained his first re-
mark, and his lack of confidence in him.
self
The man whose work must cover the
whole range of disease to which the flesh is
heir, and the whole compass of the theory
and practice of medicine to-day can well say
that he does not feel as If he could cure any,
thing.
The man who confines his work to certain
special lines of practice to which he devotes
his time and his efforts, his training and his
intelligence for all his life,
Has a Right to Say,
Speaking from his experience, speaking
from his knowledge of diseases, and speak
ing from the results to which he can point
with pardonable pride:
81 can cure these diseases; I know whereof
1 speak; have given my life to the treat
ment of these diseases: 1 understand them;
1 know how to cure them: let che results of
my work speak for themselves in this COM
mCnity."
This is the position OF thoroughly trained,
experienced and successful specialists.
There is no deception; there is no boasting;
there is no untruthfulness about it. When
DIR. Copeland and his associates say:
"We cure catarrh and kindred troubles;
we do cure it every day, and we have been
curing it for years in our practice" they are
saying what they know is true; what the
testimony of hundreds OF reputable citizeuS
in the community in which they practice
say is true.
They do cure the trouble in their special
ties, and the reason that they are able to
cure them and are able to speak with such
confidence is that they devote their lives to
them, and by ssudy, practiceand experience,
understand how to be successful in them.