The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-01-17
Daily Both pDuaG1@

L
ed independent of practice, like a judge,
nv salaries paid by the State, suit DR..
| Lewis? Surely this would tend to make
the medical profession of higher grade,
| if # did tend to cut down surgical opera
tion fees.
| On the negligence side of the question,
| if should unouestionably be crime for
pnysician and surgeon, after properly per-
| forming an operation, to negligently fail
| to remove bandages or instruments from
the incision or cavity, thereby endanger
ing the life, certainly entailing suffering
and expense on the helpless, yet blissful-
| ly ignorant, patient. Such examples of
| incompetency and carelessness are too
| FREQUENT to attract serious attention.
| Yes. I fully agree with DR.. Lewis when
+ he saws that the greatest danger to the
public health is the incompetent physi-
clan. / utterly disagree with his spirit
of Judgment, which would condemn every
member of his noble profession and
science, because some were incompetent
some were charlatan. Because he knows
nothing about any method but his own,
he refers to my method as absolutely
criminal. and tried to make it so, and to
me as a quack Let him quack, l do not
care and certainly have no disposition to
| offend or be discourteous to MIN, for he
honestly believes it, mores the pity. DR..
Lewis considers at some length the ne
cessity of every practitioner of medical or
non-medical methods, being required to
pass examination in pathology and to de-
monstrate his ability to accurately dag.
nose disease No sane man would ques-
ton the justice of such requirement.
Every person who processes to cure dis
ease, or to alleviate pain. should be re-
quired to pass examination in all branches
| that relate to his system of practice. But
the medical law recently declared uncoL-
stitutional went farther than this, and
required every practitioner OF the heal
! ing art, medical or non-medical, Except
the Christian Scientists and others who
professed to cure by prayer), to pass ex-
animation in branches, a knowledge of
which is absolutely unnecessary for the
safe and successful practice OF drugless
methods l have been informed that
when the veterinary physicians were max
| ing an effort to require examination for
! the purpose of treating animals, many of
| them of great value, as a protection to
the public and the raising of the standard
of the profession, DR.. Lewis stood silent
| ly by and saw it slaughtered for three
Legislatures. If this is true, was 1t be-
cause it did not contain a provision that
they should be examined before his Board
of Examiners? I cannot believe 1T. And
yet, in view of his present position, why
he did not have such provision placed
in there as condition of its passage, l
cannot comprehend
While every person who treats the sick
snould be required to pass very strict ex-
| amnations in all branches relating to his
method of practice, such examination
should be conducted by a Board composed
of men who are competent in that method
| themselves. The ordinary medical doctor
is no better qualified to properly estimate
| the ability of an Osteopathist, Hyropathst
or even Masseur, than the ordinary Osteo-
path is to estimate the ability of an
| Allopath The various methods named
are entirely different, and technical
knowledge is required for the successful
practice of one which is entirely foreign
| to the Others. In my own system Of
| healing, no drugs are used. Neither do
perform surgical operations. / am earn
estly and conscientiously opposed to the
use of strong chemicals for the cure of
disease. This opposition is not due to lg-
norance of drug methods. l have made
careful study of the theories and meth
ods of both the Allopathic and Homeo-
pathic schools. To require me to stand
an examination before a board composed
exclusively of drug doctors, and who pre-
sumably are as strenuOusly opposed to my
methods as l am to theirs, would be as
unjust, as to require them to have to sub
nit to my approval before they could be
permitted to practice 1t would be no
more unjust than to require a young
theologian of the Baptist faith to pass
an examination before board Of Epis-
copaIans even with fair DR.. Lewis as
chairman, before the candidate could en-
ter upon his ministerial career. l want
the general public to know that l am an
advocate of the strictest legislation in all
II alters pertaining to the welfare of the
afflicted I hope that the next Legsla-
ture will enact law recognizing lnd re-
guIating all methods of treatment, letting
the eternal law Of the Survival Of tic
attest destroy the unworthy. Dr. Lewis
is not $, liberal. He opens the doors
wide tn faith curists, and severely CEN
surcs the Supreme Court for ~etring its
seal of olsapproval upon the uGholy anC
TT christian discrimination
Since the Supreme Court declared the
medical law illegal, I have received let
ters from several of the best constitution
al lawyers in the United States, to whom
had submitted copies of the law and
all the facts in the case made out against
me by the prosecuting physicians WHO
also had it enacted. These lawyers, with
out exception pronounced the opinion
handed down by Chief Justice Clark, one
Of the very best in the history of melical
legislation They tell me that the people
of North Carolina are to be congratulated
upon the wisdom of their Supreme Court.
The only adverse criticism comes from
the prosecuting physicians, who seem to
think along with all medical wisdom
comes also technical legal lore Their
very intolerance of even a, difference Of
opinion from expert judges of law, de-
monstrates how little mercy would have
been shown in their selfconstituted pow
er of passing upon the qualifications OF
those of their own profession, practicing
a method they tried to outlaw. In his
dissenting opinion on that of the Supreme
Court. Judge Lewis mentions the fact
that the Supreme Court of Alabama de-
l,oa tsdruolass healing, to he "medi-