The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-11-29
CURES ..INouRABLE,, RoY.
From the Philadelphia RECORD

From the Philadelphia Record.
EIkhart, Ind. Nov. ga mothers
devotion, supplemented by earnest
prayer, has accomplished in this city
what all the learning of some of the
most noted specialists of the country
had failed to do. and a child. given up
as incurabIe and apparently doomed
to sink into imbecility is now we'll
and strong mentally and physically.
The woman who has performed this
remarkable cure is Mrs. Marion Fos-
ter Washburn, the wife of a promi-
nent Ellxhart physician, a member of
the State Federation of Women's
Clubs and once the corresponding Sec
rotary and afterwards president of
that organization. The child, whom
she has restored to mental and physi-
cal strength, is her 6-year-old son.
Mrs Washburn is not a Christian
Scientist, though she is a firm be-
lever in the efficacy of prayer. But in
the case of her son she prayed not for
his cure so much as for a way by
which he could be treated successful
~ When Chicago specialists, who
examined the child, said that he was
past medical aid and would degener-
ate into imbecility, she did not lose
heart. She said she believed there was
way to reach his trouble and she
prayed to be directed to this way. Her
husbands library, one of the most
complete in Elkhart, was resorted to
every day, but all works on the SUBJ
ject ended with the same verdict as
that of the specialists.
The child fell down stairs several
years ago and had received an injury
to the skull at the base of the brain.
An operation, it was asserted, would
be certain death, and life promised
nothing but suffering and gradual de-
generacy of mind and body.
AS a result of the fall the child be-
came paralyzed on the left side and
could walk but few steps without
falling. One eye rolled in under the
nose, his tongue and throat became SO
involved that he could hardly be I'M
derstood when he tried to talk and he
could eat very little food. The doctors
decided that the pneumogastric nerve
was being pressed upon by some clot
or tumor in the brain, for the child
coughed terribly, often raising a great
quantity of blood. His breathing was
so difficult, owing to spasmodic con-
fractions of the throat, that it could
be heard all over the house. The brain
centerS became more and more in
volved and the parents had to look
forward to ultimate feeble naindedness
before relief would come in death.
1t was at this point that Mrs. Wash
burn determined to try suggestion as
means of cure. She spent one en-
tire day explaining to the little fellow
what she proposed to do and was
much gratified to find that he at least
apprehended enough to be of some as
sistance to her. That night she sat
by his bed and tried to regulate his
breathing by putting her mouth close
to his ear and gently uttering her
commands. There was less restless
ness. when she was talking to him and
after awhile his breathing became less
lahored and he slept peacefully. Night
after night she sat by his bed and
talked to him while he slept. Now
you feel BETTER" she would say. Nov
my little boy is resting easy" "No,
no, don't breathe that way; breathe
this way" and she would suit her
actions to her words and the child
would go off into tranquil slumber.
For the first two weeks there was
some, but not marked, improvement.
The child slept better and was appar-
emily gaining strength, but it seemed
slow indeed to the anxious mother.
Then came a period of great effort,
evidently of the boys own powers and
his physical condition began. to i'm
prove. He. could walk further with
out falling and his affected eye be-
gan to return to its normal position.
His utterances were more distinct. The
mother did not relax her vigils. Every
night found her by his bedside. The
least movement which indicated suf-
fering was met with some encourag-
ing expression and normal slumber at
once resulted from the effort. Stead
lily the child gained, and now he no
longer coughs, his throat is clear,
breathing natural. eyes straight and
his mental grasp as strong as any child
of his age.
Several theories have been advanced
to account for the wonderful cure of |
the lad. but the most plausible seems
to be that the mother has impaired to
of the strength of her own and thus
assisted nature to reach that normal
condition which has been attained.
Though the child slept while she treat
ed him. he is assumed to have been
separated in a degree from his afflic-
ton by .the words of his mother, and
as this separation became longer and
longer as he came more and more I'M
der her influence, nature was thus aid
ed in bringing about that result for
which she was no doubt striving from
the moment of his injury; his restora-
ton by brain absorption of the clot
which pressed upon the nerve centers
and produced the paralysis.
Mrs. Washburn herself has no the
DRY to advance. my boy is restored
to health" she say, land / am oh! so
thankful and so happy"