The Greeley tribune., 1909-02-24
LECTURE by DIR. PERSHlNG IN
CITY HALL SATURDAY
POWER OF IMAGINATION
A Review of the Practice Of Medicine
from 1000 Ii. ca Physicians
View Of Mind Treatment
Great Progress Of Med
ical Science.

"A
highest intelligence OF the city. heard
Dr. Pershing lecture on the "Foun-
dation of Medicine With Special Ref
erence to Mind Cure" Saturday
evening. The city hall was packed
tn the limit, although every avail
able foot OF space was utilized for ad-
ditional chairs. The doctor Is q mas
ter of his particular science and
clothes the result of his deep re-
search with a verbiage easily compre-
hensive to the laiety. 1t was an
elucidation OF the fallacy. or ludi-
erousness, of mind cure" or "ab-
sent treatment" that must have been
convincing. even to the preceptors
OF that cult.
The doctor admitted fact which
had been known for many generations
and is conceivable to the ordinary in
telligent person. that the influence
upon, or rather the training Of. a
mind affected with hysteria or other
functional disease IL an important
part in effecting q cure. These are
diseases Of the mind rather than Of
the body. There 10 no doubt that
the mind controls the body to GER
tain degree. A telegram conveying
bad news may occasion sickness. or
even death. But in q much greater
degree does the body control the
mind, and in fact. there is no mind
until long after the body has been
IN existence.
A child left to itself from infancy
would never develop q mind. As
science advances, man learns more
of his physical. intricate construc-
ton, and knows that 1t is only by
proper care OF his body that he
can develop greater mind.
He reviewed the foundation OF
medicine from a thousand years B. c.
and showed that even in the last
fifty years the science of surgery has
been revolutionized When a child
set up a sQuall. in the age Of prime
val man, the doctor would perform
some charm as a specific. A little
later he prescribed some other treat
ment, and few centuries back the
infant would be bled. as the red face
caused from its commissions was con-
elusive that 1t had too much blood
After this the child would probably
he quiet, as it was left no strength
to cry. Even at the present time the
mother or nurse would probably rush
for Mrs. Winslow's soothing syrup,
and IL the dose was large enough.
the child would probably go to sleep.
AS a last resort the doctor would be
called and after making a proper
diagnosis of the case he would re-
move the pin from the infants body
and all would be we'll. The doctor
was not advised as to how long. or
how much mind cure it would have
taken to remove that pin.
This illustration was to show the
necessity OF an absolute and true
diagnosis and with another fllustra-
tion he showed the Importance OF
n doctor being a man who keeps pace
with science, in order that he may
not fail in . correct diagnosis.
In eating fish woman had swai-
lowed a bone. On its passage down
ward, she, OF course, felt the pain,
began to gag, and finally reached
the stage of convulsions. The doctor
was called and made every effort to
reach the bone but was unsuccessfu!,
and as last resort cut open the
woman's neck to remove the obsruc-
tion. After all his labor he found
there was no bone in the woman's .
throat. and she had but imagined IT.
Her fear distorted her imagination.
and she actually believed she was IN
pain. With a correct diagnosis the
doctor would have pretended to pull
out the bone and the cure would
have been complete. That would
have been "mind cure" and 1t is a
very good remedy when there Is
nothing to cure.
The doctor told Of a cure he per-
formed which equalled any of the
miracles OF Lourds. or Cologne, where
thousands Of the faithful travel each
year to wash away their ailments
and incidentally their sins.
young man had been sent from
the east by his physician. presuma-
bly,. in the last stages OF consump-
tion. At the Denver clinic 1t was
ascertained that the boys lungs were
absolutely sound but he was suffer
INK from hysteria. He was turned
over to DR.. Pershing, who disabused
the patients mind of the imagina-
II tive CQnaiul ntinn mud in n mont IN