The Savannah morning news., 1901-09-22

wooden legs who maintained that his
corns gave him incessant trouble until
he applied corn plasters to the end
of his "timber-toes" may, after all, not
be so farfetched as at first sight ap-
pears, for Imagination goes long way
in many case of physical Ill as we'll
as in the cure.
But what can be said of man who,
receiving a hurt from a weapon, poul-
tees the weapon and leaves his wound
to cure itself? Stupidity can scarcely
go futher, and yet in the seventeenth
century the sympathetic powder" was
in great demand as sure cure for In
jury received from a weapon. Inc
method of treatment was very simple.
The wound had TO be closed up and
left to itself, while the weapon which
inflicted the hurt was copiously poui-
ticed with the powder until the wound
ed person recovered. For many years
the cure held the field against all
corners, until some careless apothecary
bound up the wound of an injured
man, but forgot to poultice the weapon,
with the result, astounding at the
time, that the man recovered just as
rapidly as he would have done had
the sword blade been properly swathed
in bandages and doctored with the
powder. The romance of the cure was
hopelessly shattered by such an UNI
expected termination of the foolish
apothecary's treatment. and the fame
OF the sympathetic powder" faded IN
to oblivion. But as in modern days
there seems to be a recrudesence of
faith in the curing nostrums of bygone
days, a mention of the prescription OF
this powder may not be out OF place.
To prepare it, one is told: Take Ro-
man vitriol six or eight ounces, beat
il very small in a mortar, sift II
through a fine sieve when the sun
enters Leo; keep it in the heat of the
sun by day and dry by night, and
marvellous cures may be done by II.
more modern method of extran-
eous application of prescriptions is
that afforded by many seeker after
outdoor relief. Here is the prescrtp-
ton; rub il on his chest" said dis
pensary doctor to a woman whose child
was suffering from a chest affection,
and a week later the woman returned
with a complaint that the treatment
had done no good, though she had
"well nigh rubbed the skin off and
worn the bit of paper to rags" Another
patient came back cured and smiling,
and told the doctor she would wear
the medicine in future as a preventive,
so we'll had it acted as cure-and she
SQONEu MIN the pifSIllDllOn III
throat lotion he had given her tied
round her neck in a handkerchief. This
is parallel to the old-fashioned notion
that the fourth book of the Had was
a. certain cure for ague II applied to
the head of the sick man, the under
laying idea of the cure apparently be-
ing that language OF such warmth and
grandeur as Homer wrote was enough
to cure a chill even when, as lifeless
Print, it was placed near the brain OF
man Surely a graceful tribute to
genius. though poor as physic for
sick man: as poor, indeed, as the
potatoes and horse chestnuts which
are carried by many sufferers from
rheumatism. not only in outlaying
country districts, but in the very heart
of busy latterday towns and cities.
But IL is in the matter OF curing
whooping cough that superstition still
holds its own. Many are the unfortun-
ate spiders that annually are pinned up
i'm paper sugar bags over the MANTLE
piece OF nursery and sitting rooms. AS
the spider dies so will the cough pass
away, the recognized version of the
superstition asserts. and many will
add the pleasing information that UNI
less a spider is secluded in such man.
ner at the outbreak Of the disease. the
little patient will certainly suffer until
May whether the first whoop is sound
ed in April or June. A blue bottle with
a pin through IL is sometimes substi-
tuted for the spider. and may also do
duty as a sacrifice for the removal of
warts-but In curing warts there are
enough superstitions practices to I'LL a
book.
Confidence, extreme explicit conf
dence. Is the first essential on the part
of the patient who submits himself TO
the tender mercies OF the faith healer.
whether the healing is performed by
means of a spider. by amounting. or
merely by the paying over of money
for so intangible q method Of treat
ment as the mental exercise OF the
modern Christian Scientists This may,
perhaps, account for the significant
fact that Investigators OF the special
cures alleged TO have been affected by
curemongers usually find 70 per cent
Of the persons cured 10 have died al
most as soon as the cures were COM