Evening journal., 1898-01-13
81 HE MusT pIE HE MusT pIE.
The Ignorant Turk Leaves Result of
sickness to Fate.

clcknehd 10 Fulce
One of the most important features
Of American missionary effort in 1ur-
key is the work done by American ply
sicians in overcoming the superstition
and prejudices that are almost univer-
sal In the country regarding the cause
and treatment of disease.
The popular belief on the whole sub
ject may be summed up thus: The
cause of diseaseis Gods viii, the proper
treatment of disease is TO let it alone,
since meddling with it shows distrust
in Gods wise government.
Thus, il Turk has smallpox he goes
TO bed and waits to see whether he is to
die or live. And his family and friends
would think it unworthy of a good Mos
lem to shun the sick man or to set him
apart; If others are to take the disease,
well and good, it is so ordered.
There are thousands of villages in
Asia Minor where there is no one who
even makes pretense of thorough medi-
cal knowledge, the whole business of
healing the sick being left to the wom-
en-, with their herbs and balsams, and TO
fate.
A physician in Turkey finds working
against him not only this discouraging
conviction of the people that whatever
Is must be, but their oft-proved prefer
ence for talismans and superstitious
practices 10 any medicines he can give
them. How can one deal scientifically
with people who regard this as the
proper way to treat baby suffering
with anything, from Group to stomach
ache:
First get a hens egg, then make seven
round holes in the shell, and empty out
the contents through these holes. Then
dip the perforated egg she'll under
water, and lift it quickly over basin,
so that the water it holds will stream
into the basin. Repeat this operation
30 times, until the basin has received 40
shellsful of water streamed through the
seven holes. Finally wash the sick baby
I'm the basin thus filed, and there is
nothing more to be done.
And consider the following treatment
for boils, which is much In vogue among
adults: A man afflicted with Jobs COM
forters starts confidently down the
road, fiinging over his shoulder nuts or
raisins, and never looking behind him,
though the city burn down. His belief
is that whoever picks up one of the nuts
or raisins from the roadway will take
with it one of his boils.
The missionary doctors in Turkey
find another serious obstacle TO their
efforts against contagion in the method
of distributing the water to the various
houses that is in operation in many
cities and villages. The water supply
usually comes from a spring or stream
on high ground near the city, and this
water, when needed in one section or
another, is simply turned down this
street or that, its course being regulat-
ed by temporary dams, and for hours ii
will flow down a certain set of streets,
and is at the disposition of residents in
that vicinity. Some hasten to wash
their clothes In it, others fill earthen
| Jars with It, while those who have wells
direct part of It into their mouths
which are set on the pavement covered
with fiat stones.
Ignorant as the people of Turkey arr
regarding the nature and treatment Of
disease, and superstitious and foolisl
as they have been, they are, neverthe
less, learning after years Of practica
demonstration that there is no sucl
talisman against bodily ills as knowl
edge. and they are trusting themselves
and their children more and more to thu
American doctors and those of the ma
tives who are qualified to practice medi
cine. The only trouble is that there ar,
10000 people who need help for one ply
sician who is able to give it.-Bostol
Globe.