PART 1.
WHEN a man comes forward with a proposition not generally received by his fellows in his own walk of life, it behoves him to proceed inductively and independently. If he does this he is proceeding scientifically, and trained minds, not being overladen with prejudice, soon know where they are in dealing with his proposition. Experience proves that a proposition may be demonstrably true, and that it may yet meet with only a very limited acceptance; especially is this the case with new truths, and truths that involve unpleasant consequences. And when a person has once committed himself, once taken sides, he is very apt to go on thenceforth for ever -for his ever-from the standpoint of a parti pris.
Most medical men are pretty well agreed that Diseases of the Veins are not amenable to drug treatment in any important degree. I refer more especially to general varicosis, haemorrhoids, varicocele, and varicose veins. There affections are therefore relegated to the domain of the surgeon; and, no doubt, the surgery of the veins -particularly of haemorrhoids-is now nearly perfect, being nearly bloodless and painless. That is very beautiful, and a matter of sincere congratulation for us all. It being pretty well perfect, the question may not unreasonably be raised… Is surgery, then, the ONLY crutch to rely upon; has medicine nothing to say to the behoof of healing affections of the veins? May not venous subjects fairly say to the physicians-What have you all been doing the past two thousand years; have you not, with all your learning, vivisections and mortisections, poisonings and drug-provings, and your never-ending ransacking of all creation for new remedies; have you not here withall been able to hit upon some gentle innocuous means of bringing back a few dilated veins to their normal calibre?
And would they be so very far wrong, if, individually, they were to continue in some such a strain as this… What use is it to me with my baggy veins, that you dub them with big names and learnedly talk about haemorrhoids with hypertrophy of surrounding connective hypertrophy of surrounding connective tissue varicocele, varicose veins, varicosis, and all that if I am merely an objective of study for you, and my miseries only so many classes and miseries only so many classes and sub-classes in your nosological natural history;and, having duly and scientifically classified my peccant parts you bow me out with a placebo, and show me thereafter the way to the amphitheatre?
But then this is not a thinking age for the many; only a few, in the present hurry and flurry, and race after riches can find time to go after “a more excellent way.”
Oddly enough the art of healing pure and simple, is not in great repute nowadays; indeed it is almost a reproach to fling one’s self body and soul into the business of healing and herein try to do better than one’s father did. Nay, it is even dangerous for a man of good repute to strike out a new path in therapeutics, and try to cure what the solid phalanx of and ancient trades union has ever held to be incurable; if he do he will infallibly be looked at askance and no one will thank him, while many will seek to deride and vilify him. The reason of this lies largely in the history of medicine and of mankind; bad ware has been so often brought forward as good that no one brought forward as good no one may be much blamed for looking with some suspicion on all new notions.
Now, I am coming forward with the thesis that atonic dilated veins may, in many instances be made to shrink to their original size by the proper use of medicines administered internally and aided by certain auxiliaries, – in other words varicosis haemorrhoids, varicocele and varices are amenable to drug- treatment, and therefore surgery, in this department of diseases of the veins is to be superseded by medicines. Surgeons will no doubt object to being thus ousted, and will probably not fail to vent their wrath upon me Good my ireful brethren you have done that before in another subject, “Curability of Cataract with Medicines.” and yet truth is gaining thereby, and a certain step in advance has been made.
Of course you will perceive that neither there, nor here am I originating anything I have merely been sitting at the feet of Hahnemann, and have come out to do battle for this great truth.
In the sincere hope that some truth-loving and truth-seeking brother may read this, and be desirous of seeking the path I have wondered I will give it step by step just as I have come. It is an honourable path wherein walk many good men and true who are striving to make the physician’s business one of healing the sick, cito, tuto, et jucunde; the path is not easy to travel, neither is it always daylight therein but it has just one safe and sure hand-railing running along it from end to end that is the LAW OF SIMILARS. There are other guides but they do not go all the way; they are only here and there, so we will, in the following pages, just hold on to LIKE CURES LIKE. We are the more constrained to do so as we know no other safe guide in therapeutics
The surgical treatment of diseases of the veins may be reduced to three fundamental parts, viz – Local astringents pressure, by way of support; an the so-called radical operations with the knife or its equivalent.
GENERAL VARICOSIS eludes the surgeon entirely for surgery must necessarily be only local. But when we have to deal with such local manifestations of varicosis or venosity, the scholastic physician forthwith hands over the case to the surgeon for operation or for surgical appliances. Thus with HAEMORRHOIDS: The physician gives his aperients, with perhaps a local astringent, and gradually the states of things gets worse, and then the patient learns that there is nothing for it but a surgical operation. What a terrible prospect even in these days of perfect anaesthetic and antiseptic surgery! Apart from the ultimate effects of shock a thing no one seems to take cognizance of cutting off the pulse cannot, as a rule reasonably be called curing. And this shock to the whole economy arising from an operation for piles, tells its tale for many a year afterwards – indeed, the sufferer often never recovers from it entirely. If we follow Hahnemann’s method of historical case-taking we see strange things, as to the really primitive causes of diseases. In my own practical experience I trace cases of diabetes and cataract to the surgical traumatism inflicted in operating for piles. But more of this anon.
Again with VARICOCELE: This is held to be entirely within the surgeon’s domain. I well remember the first case I ever saw was in one of the clinics in the Vienna General Hospital. It was an exquisite case, and the subject an individual of about 25 suffering really from general varicosis, but this condition was most pronounced in the spermatic veins from evident causes. Our genial and much-be-loved teacher said to us…
“There is nothing for it, gentlemen, but the radical cure” I inquired what the “radical cure” was, and learned, of course, that it meant a surgical operation. That is still the orthodox teaching but it is as false as it is cruel and as shallow as it is false. A merely surgical cure is no real cure at all, and in its very nature cannot be radical better than nothing no doubt and often nearly as good as a cure, but still not a healing in its true sense.
Finally with VARICOSE VEINS: The scholastic physician has here nothing whatever to say, beyond recommending his own favourite elastic stocking maker. The surgeon comes into treat any haemorrhage that may eventually occur from a ruptured vein, or to treat the varicose ulcers and bad legs. All mere patch-work and cobbling if nothing more be done.
But if we are to relegate the simple surgical treatment of vein diseases to the lumber-room, what is to take its place? The answer is… Scientific medicinal treatment, and in therapeutics that means specific constitutional (homoeopathic) treatment; for science in therapeutics and homoeopathy are synonymous terms.
The first time I became aware of the fact that veins could be specifically affected with medicines at all, was in reading a book by Dr. Richard Hughes, entitled “A Manual of Pharmacodynamics,” that was a new revelation to me in so many ways. It has been called “Homoeopathic Milk for Allopathic Babes;” it would be a good thing for the world if the allopaths would but partake freely of this precious milk. However, there is one condition absolutely necessary to its digestibility, viz., the allopathic babe must have a clean tongue, and a stomach that calls loudly for healthy therapeutic food, or it will disagree with him. For, if his tongue be coated with crass prejudice, and his stomach gorged with medical conventionalism and scholasticism, he will be unable to take it up or assimilate it. And if he cannot bear the milk, how is he to partake of the more solid food of the Organon. Well, the special article I refer to is that on Acidum fluoricum, which to me, then, was an altogether new and unheard of remedy. The part that so impressed me runs thus :-
Burnett was one of the first to speak about vaccination triggering illness. This was discussed in his book, Vaccinosis, published in 1884. He introduced the remedy Bacillinum. He authored twenty books, including the much loved "Fifty Reason for Being a Homeopath." He was the editor of The Homoeopathic World.