The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-09-01
SOME QUEER CHINESE
 MEDICINES AND DOCTORS
Diseases Diagnosed by Oriental Physicians Wonderful Compounds They Use-Many White Pat ients Patronze These Dope Dispensers
 the Pacific Slope-Many Remedies

and on the nose, which leaves red spots
 and even abraslons. Some internal ills
 are treated by burning the flower of the
 amaranthus over the afflicted part. Cau-
 teries and caustics are much used, also
 the puncturng needle. Heated iron nee
 dies are thrust into the skin where the pain seems to be most acute and this
 sets the patient to bowling unless he is
 very brave" To endure such punctur-
 ing without wincing is a test of courage
 with the Chinese Pellets of burning wax
 are attached to the end of nedeles 50
 as to keep up the red hot temperature.
 Different medicines are prescribed on
 different days for the same ailment. This
 Is due to the belief that the human
 system is not the same at all times.
 There are 90 or 60 kinds of heart dis ease 20 or 90 forms of consumption and perhaps 100 kinds of dyspepsia. These the
 doctor claims he can correctly diagnose
 without asking the patient a question Opium and ginseng form the basis of their materia medca, and they fall back upon these when the have exhausted every other remedy. Ginseng is used for chronic illness. The Los Angeles drug stores in Chinatown are mostly supplied from the ginseng farm recently estab- lished near Oxnard.
 In addition to his drugs the Chinese doctor resorts to the exercising of spirits to drive away diseases He Is supposed to possess this power, and that goes with the prescription and the bill. Chinese believe that all diseases are brought on
 through the agency of demons, or the
 ev4. spirit of their dead enemies. When the Chinaman has a pain the head, be- low the belt, elsewhere, he burns a paper charm in front of his house. If
 that does not cure, he prays to the god of health, and if that has no effect he runs for the doctor.
 The Chinese doctor has no knowledge of anatomy, and physiology. He never dissects the humai. body nor amputates limb The body must appear entire in the next life. The bones and other parts of the human body used in medicines are taken from the bodies of executed crim-
 inals Broken limbs are bandaged and
 poulticed; the rest is left to nature, which in most cases, Is wise. Nor does the Chi nese doctor understand the circulation of the blood. He makes no distinction be- tween venous and arterial blood He Is a specialist" believing that it is better to understand one thing thor oughly than to know little of every thing. Therefore he divides diseases | into two kinds-external and internal. | If he understands the inside" of | patient, he does not consider 1t unpro- | fessional for another doctor to be called 1 In if symptoms develop on the patients outside" Thus, it often happens that | two doctors are in attendance-one pouring medicine into the sick man, and | the other plastering, poulticing or | sticking red-hot needles into his out | side.
 | The learned doctor" who wears | red button on his silken cap as
 badge of his rank spends many years 1 in studying the nature of diseases, the properties of medicinal herbs. mineral and animal substances, and their effects
 upon the system. He also studies the probable influence of evil spirits and | the medicines most likely to counter act their influence or drive them out l of the patient.