The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-10-02
Claim THAT Little Is Being Done
to Avert the Dark
IN i4 Ho,,t. u, a
SCIENCES MIGHTY PROB Lem
Medical Men Powcrless iii the.
Presence Of a Virulcht
Bacterial Visitation.

Is Elncomphiably tho greatest. 1t Ought,
accordingly, TO loom largest IN his mind.
1n comparison with tho chance OF vim
ming directive control over this evil every
other thing ought TO be counted S. as
loss. This cutting off Of q day from
the Atlantic passage, the superscssionJ
OF submarine cables by wireless tcleEra-
ply, the acccleratlon OF trains and motor
cars and objects Of tllls order OF impor-
lance occupy tho attention Of man. All
these ought to be to civilized man, In
comparison with any advance in the
Of disease, as the small dust
OF the balances as altogether vanity.
\ If tho belief Is nurturcd thnt the ned
lcal art of to-day can ef6eotunlly inter-
vcne In tho course Of disease, this ought
to bo dismissed as Illusion. Putting out
OF consideration the ease Of one or two
ineffective diseases which can to somo
extent, be controlled by remedies placed
In our hands By chance, and, further
the case Of dlphtherln.-a If disease for
which an effective remedy has been fur
flished by medical research-it may be
affirmed with confidence Of tho medical
art, as at present prnctlced, that 1T can
do practically nothing to avert death
from q virulcnt bacterial invasion or to
bring about q cure. 8N 53t
Recognizes His Helplessness.
Tho thoughtful and conscientious ply
slclan has absolutely no illusions on this
subject. Confronted with al acute bnc-
tcrlal invasion, he docs not conceal from
himself or from others that he is QUITE
in the dnrk, and that he cunnot foresee
49, IA ar,, l,o K ipp,, ~ ho rnrHfctS
which Is IN progress In tho organism.
That conflict will eliminate, as the case
may be, IN tho recovery or death of.thea
patient. Fully cognzant Of tho limits
Of his knowledge, conscious also of4thei
risks Of ignorant intervention the
thoughtful physician dsmlsses froln$fis
mind all idea OF active Intervention be-
tween the organism and tho INVADING
germs Of disease. 5bhs lIe contents himself
with laying aside he drugs, which he
feels a to be useless " and with looking
after tho feeding Of his patient. L
II A "brainy'' American physician told ME
tho other day that it was the opinion Of
4 his profession In his country, 4 with re-,
spect to that Christian Science, which IS
1.-THE negutlon Of the medical art, thatsif
only the Christian Scientist had n little
4 science, or the physician Il little Chris
y tinnlty,.lt would hardly matter In serious
illness Which OF the twol5wus called III,
provided that the patient had very good
nurse. 1t Is many q true word that is
spoken in Jest.
Mystery Of the Kidneys.
# re we turn from bac terial infections to
diseases produced by disorders OF the
chemical machinery of the body wc ore
again confronted by the impotence of the
medical art. 1t cannot honestly be said
that we have any real knowledge Of the
morbid chemical processes which are ass
ISOLATED with govt, diabetes, or 4 Bright $
disease. sfs
If tho conclusion Is thus forced upon
us that the medical art Of to-day cannot
cope cffcctually with disease, let us turn
and consider how fur the problem Of dis
ease can be solved by the resources OF
sanitation meaning thereby all those
measures OF disnfecton. isolation and
conscrvancy, which arc adopted for killing
off tho germs OF disease outside the or.
ganlsm. or. as the case may bo for
holding these off from contact with the
healthy. n s4
The modern world prldcs itself on all
these measures That pride furnishes an
object for consideration.
Conscrvancy must be credited with hay
Ing llghtencd tho burden of disease IN
the respect that 1t has. in the towns
whore 1t Is applied diminished tho Incl
dence Of typhoid fever, 1t has further
practically erndcated dysentcry. 1t Is
| doubtful whether much moro can be
claimed for It, The claim of disnfcction
ana Isolation to have diminished the
| spread OF Infectious disease is much less
clearly established. 1t would seem, tnat
not very much has been achieved by
these measures. And 1t Is well to bear
| In mind In this connection that measures
OF isolation, dislnfocton, and evacuation,
severe beyond any measures that would
be endured by any European population
have not, in the cnso of India, prevented
the dissemination Of plague all over thhl
| continent. 1t il also to be Dornelin mlno
that the programme of Isolation ana DIS
infection Is impraeticablc IN the case OF
such widely diffused disease as tuber'
| culoss.
No Time to Acquire knowledge.
Above nil, wo must keep always before
us that the sanitnrnn OF to-day goes
about his work witt, scales OF ignorance
over his eyes, III short, the Idea TINT the
| world will by sanitation. be p'rged from
| tho germs OF diseases Is dream. Thai
| dream of preventive medicine must moi
hold us back from seriously attacking the
| study OF tho processes OF disease In thu
| human organism,
| rs there, then, In our midst any agency
engaged upon the study OF tho problem.
OF disease? 1t will. perhaps, suggest It,
self to the man In the street that tn
whole medical profession IL Just sncn ~
agency. and that our hspItals are insti
/: ultions in which the study OF tho prob
lens OF disease Is actively carried on
This is far from being the case.
Consider tho life, Of tho busy genera
practitioner. lie has to so from house Il
house, from sick bed TO sick bed, OK
I plotting IN the diagnosis of disease tn
knowledge which he has acquired In HI
hospital career and such personal cxpe
Renee as he has since accumulated. iii
diagnosis made, no applies to each cas-
the accepted method Of treatment an
passes OH. Iio has neither time. no
training. nor opportunity for research
ana no one would wish him to dcsist fro
the useful work which Hes ready to al
hand TO undertake the research,
? The same conditions. or essentially IN
same conditions present themselves
> our lospituls II IL not Within the poWe