The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-01-03
SUPERSTN|ONS
Of MANKIND
80 .80@OC~ ~OO@N1H~<
Why So-Called Miraculous Cures
Have So Often Proved Efficacious.

Have So Often Proved Eficacious.
Baltimore American: AT the November
meeting of the Folklore society in the
rooms of the Quadriga club last night
there was an interesting discussion of the
question, How can the current super
stitions of Maryland and Virginia best be
collected?" The principal paper of the
evening was by DR.. Charles c. Bombaugh
on Medical Superstitions.'' At the out
set he showed how the present is linked
with the past by the survival of many
superstitions inherited from the middle
ages, and of others traceable to a remote
antiquity. He gave a variety of illus
trations to show that they have not been
confined to the ignorant classes, but that
they have frequently Influenced and gov
erned the actions of men of education
Though this is not so noticeable in the
present age. it was largely in evidence
among learned men up to a comparative
~ recent period. Three of the greatest
of the English philosophers-Francis
Bacon. John Locke and Isaac Newton
have left behind abundant proof of their
belief in secret and occult arts. The
master mind of all-Lord Bacon, in his
sylvia Sylvarum '.dilates at length
upon the value of the sympathetic ONT
ments of his day, which were applied,
not to the wound occasioned by
weapon, but to the weapon itself. Sir
Walter Scott gives a vivid picture of this
in the case of the wounded Deloraine In
the Lay of the Last Minstrel. Robert
Boyle the inventor of the air pump ap,
piled powdered moss from human skull
to arrest bleeding of the nose, not as
snuff, but to his wrists.
After reviewing fads and caprices, from
barefoot walks in the dewy grass or the
early morning to the metallic tractors,
and tracing TO superstitious practices IN
olden time some of the habits OF the
medical men at the present day. the
speaker passed on to the love DhilterS
Of men ana
naidens to cause sympathetic fondness.
On the other hand. he quoted from Piato
and Virgil to show the reverse erect OF
nostrums which were used 70 We.n
lovers from their attachments by eXcit-
ing antipathy and disgust. He then dis
cussed at length the amulet and It's as
troloeical expression. the taliSman. O1
the great variety of forms in which TINS
charm has been presented from the early
history of Egypt and Persia down TO the
present time. the three-pronged red coriti
appears to have the most tenaclty. IN
recounting the favorite mascotS OF our
time. the prominence of the rabbits ieit
hind foot in the recent political campaign
was noted. That the amulet sun ap-
meals 10 credulity in this community was
shown in the trial of Prof" Jules in the
criminal court. :.
The absurd doctrine of signatures IS
traced to the Chaldeans. The royal touch
for kings evil. scrOfula, had a lease OF
life from Edward the Confessor TO queen
Anne and then descended to the ignoble
hands of the seventh SOIL VI d StNC1AtLt
son. In the folk-medicine of Cornwall
and Hampshire the healing power OF
seventh sonship is still believed in AS
trology came in for large snare OF tne
Speakers notice. Burton, in his "Anato-
my of Melancholy" indorses the opinion
of Paracelsus. that "a physician without
knowledge of stars can neither under,
stand the cause or cure OF any disease
But astrology with all the prestige OF
formidable history behind ii. was nor
strong enough TO withstand the satlrlcaI
filings of Dean Swift, in his "Blckerstah
brief review of the grotesque and
offensive constituents of the old mateila
medica showed that they outriValed the
ingredients of the witches caldron III
Macbeth Among the amusing instances
given was that of the gypsy woman as
described by CerVantes, VINO undertook
to cure dog bites on the smtha S Sim tba1
bit you" The speaker then passed on 70
the curious superstitions OF the Fehhsy =
vania Dutch, quoting from Mrs GlDpoli )
book on the customs. belle1s ana uidIeGes
| of our German neighbOrs in pennsylvania
Many of their medical customs are pc
culiaI- TO themselves, but others sucn as
the DoW-woW brought from the Pala-
innate. find their analogy elsewhere Inc
| poyr-NoU has been III use among the
! North American aboriglnes ana 'ne
Esquimaux from time lmmemorlai;;
! After quoting some of the proverbs ana
\ aDhorisns from Rays COLLECTION OT-
! Bombaugh concluded with the following
| remarks: And now the eVer-recurrlhS
question What is all this worth! natur-
aiIv arises Hallam in his History of the
! Middle-A ges' says: 1t must rot be sup
posed that these absurdities were pro-
duced as well as nouriShed. by ignorance
I In most cases they were the work OF de-
! Iiherate imDosture. From either point
of view il may be asked, Have not tnou-
sands of sufferers been relieved OF their
distress through these con1ura,t.io9ns Gnu
this mighty magic. these puerilities that
| suDercede the employment or reason :
| History answers affirmatlVely, ana AT
TIE same time, raises the ven tnat we
NAV see the reason why AND therein
we find collateral agencies at work; we
see the stone of rejection become the
! head of the corner. ,
I'VE note that while the sympatheIic
! ointment was applied to the weapon the
| edges of incised wounds were carefully
cleansed, and SO held in apposltlon Dy
| adhesive straps or bandages as 10 ufllte
by what surgeons call first intention. IN
! the treatment of lacerated and punctured
wounds we note the same attention 10
! cleanliness. The old women VINO charmed
! for burns and scalds used the formuia'
There came three angels out of the east;
One brought fire. another brought 1rost-
| Out fire; in frost.
In the name of the Father and Son and
Holy Ghost
after flowing their breath three times
across the burns. this invocation was sup
plemented by freely amounting the burned
Il
oil Thus in what were hardly consld-
! cred contributory or auxiliary agencies,
re find the real and direct forces that
were at work. Moreover. we have MS
to-ic evidence that the sick were often
placed under the care of kind and intel
ligent nurses. and profited by their ,Ju-
dicious ministrations. We can under
stand the domination of strong natures
over those that are weak, in variety
of diseases notably in abnormal condl-
tons of functional disturbances OF the
nervous system. When it comes to
chronic diseases and deformities. the
problem is not so easy of solution 1t Is
hest 10 leave the efficacy of belief in the
miraculous power of relics of martyrs
and bones of saints, and of merciful an
swer to prayers and intercessions, where
it belongs.
| relicuaries as Lourdes and Beaupre
furnish too many evidences of restorative
| agencies to leave room for question.
Within the entrance of the pilgrimage
Church of ST Anne, "A miles from quebec,
are two large heaps of abandoned crutcn-
Is walking-sticks, trusses braces, band
p eses and supporters left behind because
no longer needed. In these and similar
cases. the strength of religious faith, the
influence of Imagination, the controlling
power of mind over body, the evolution
of the material from the immaterlal, tne
outward and visible sign of inexDlicable
interior illumination. the mysteries Oh
the spiritual hypnotiSm, which science
has not vet eXplained-call these contra
6ictions of ordinary experience, these
manifestations of the unknown anu tile
coniecturaI what you will-they are pal
nable. demonstrable, operative in the
closing years of century whose progress
in enlightenment has been marked WITH
giant strides in every avenue or sclentlHc
revelation ana achievement