(already published).
David B. 2 years and 11 months.
First seen Nov. 19, 1931.
An 8-months’ Caesarean baby.
Mother had an evil discharge before the previous child was born.
When 7 months pregnant with this child, began to have great pain. Admitted to Guy’s for a week.
Then, at Cottage hospital “they tried to induce labour; and then did a Caesarean operation.”
She was ill after this for six months (septicaemia and peritonitis). Life despaired of for two months.
David is a nice, health-looking child, head rather large; fair, curly hair. Always healthy, and looks it… Only..
Now, at just 3 years old, “knows his father and mother.” but “never says two words together.”
Pathetic, vacant eyes.
“Only walked at 2 years.
“Very dirty. Incontinence of stool and urine at night.”
“Has to be watched, as everything goes into his mouth. The other day, ate a dog’s faeces.
“Has seen three different doctors-who all gave different diagnosis.
“At the Children’s Hospital she was told that he had water on the brain. The doctor said,`You can’t replace brains He will never be normal.'”
Lies on his “tummy,” knee-elbow position, and rocks himself.
Will do that for an hour; makes such a noise with his cot, and by banging his head against the wall, that he may have to sleep on the floor, for the sake of the neighbours-and his head.
At one year old, had bronchitis, and (?) encephalitis. “Never moved for a week.”
Vaccinated? “Yes It did not take, so was done a second time at 3 months.”
His mother’s vile discharge, she has it still, suggested Medorrhinum (the virus of gonorrhoea), or Hahnemann’s Thuja.
The knee-elbow position suggested Medorrhinum.
His other symptoms suggested Sulphur.
His vaccinations, together with the mother’s discharge, gave the casting vote for Thuja-just to start with and he got Thuja 1m, 10m, 50m, (the three doses given one each morning for 3 days).
Four weeks later (Dec. 14).
“WONDERFULLY BETTER
“A treat to have him now Wonderfully different.
“Talks -says several words straight off now.”
“Understands what you say: used only to look vacantly, as if to say,`What do you mean?’
“To-day said,`By-by, dada, bus ‘”
Tells me, “Dada gone office” and says his brother has “gone school.”
Notices things in the room. Points, and describes.
“Getting fatter. Sleeps better. Less rocking.”
“Had a birthday partly four days ago and was as normal as anyone ”
(Is investigating the fastening on his aunt’s bag. Can fasten it.)
“All the time, when out, says, `What’s that?- What’s that?’
“Now loves the water tap and can’t be kept out of mischief.”
Mother says,”The Great Ormond Street doctor said, `You cannot replace brains’-BUT YOU HAVE ” (And that was only two months before he came here.)
“Never affectionate before :-he is now ”
Another month, Jan, 22, 1932.
“He could only say a few single words, now says a lot, in sentences.”
“Couldn’t lie on his back-can now.’
(Plays about the room here and chatters.)
Very observant.
(Goes to his aunt’s bag, gets a pencil, and sticks it behind his ear.)
“There was a nun in the train to-day. He pointed, `Mummy- What’s that?'” And when she tried to stop him, he shook her, “Mummy-what’s that?” “Chattered all the way up. When the nun got out, said, `Man’s gone'”
(When his mother now calls him, to have his coat on, being busy, he says,”Just a minute, mummy”)
David is now a charming little child, full of animation and chatter. 2 months ago he was an idiot
Of course it was not a case of mental deficiency, as supposed:-merely a case of arrested development :-no longer arrested-thanks to THUJA
They have not taken the trouble to bring him a third time.
But, note how the homoeopathic remedy can turn a seemingly brainless idiot, in two months, into a charming, normal child.
But why go so high with Thuja-when others-Burnett for instance, have made such play with it in the lower potencies.
Well-one only works-consciously or unconsciously-within the range of one’s own experience.
And this was an early experience with Thuja-Dr.Nash, when in England, finding a sympathetic audience, used to come and sit by me when I was working in the Children’s clinic of Dr. Roberson Day.
A child came up with large flat warts on tongue, besides warts on the inside of cheeks and face. The tongue warts had been excised, and also cauterized (at another hospital)-in cain I had given Thuja 30, a couple of months earlier-with little, or no effect. Then the child had had whooping cough. Now it came again. Dr. Nash fished out his pocket case, and put some globules of Thuja Cm on the child’s tongue. Next time it was seen, the warts were practically gone: and a dose still later, of Thuja 10m (the highest I could get hold of), finished them. After that I have preferred to give Thuja high. Dr. Nash was very good to me. After he got back to America be sent me 144 of his Cm potencies; all proved as to their value by him. And they ARE valuable remedies
Dr. Clarke once quoted Herbert Spencer in regard to vaccination,-
“When once you interfere with the order of Nature there is no knowing where the results will end. Now if the substances composing the body have been so modified by vaccination as to leave them no longer liable to smallpox, is the modification otherwise inoperative?
“Will anyone dare to say that it produces no further effect than that of shielding us from a particular disease? You cannot change the constitution in relation to one invading agent and leave it unchanged in regard to all other invading agents.
“We have no means of measuring alterations in resisting power, but measles is a severer disease than it used to be, and as to influenza, sixty years ago, when at long intervals an epidemic occurred, it seized but few, was not severe, and left no serious sequelae; now it is permanently established, affects multitudes in extreme forms, and often leaves damaged constitutions. The disease is the same, but there is less ability to withstand it.”-Hom. World, Jan 1930.
Perhaps it is absurd to have tried to write such a paper-the subject being so far beyond one’s grasp. But as Browning puts it.
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for?”
To deal properly with such a matter would need far more knowledge-far more study-far more experience-far more time-than is possible with me.
And yet-if one waited always to be able to do a thing creditably-far less perfectly-one would have to wait For, is it possible to know anything, without knowing everything? And is it not better to advance ideas-if they come one’s way? to put forth, however feebly, what seem to be truths-tentatively-suggestively- in order that others, grasping the idea, may improve upon it?
Mach’s nach, aber mach’s besser, said Hahnemann, and Burnett after Hahnemann: which one might translate, “Follow on, but go one better.”
But what I do want to plead for is, a stronger grasp of our Hahnemannian heritage-in its fullness-and for the Old Pioneer’s glorious discontent with splendid results, such as no man had ever achieved before him, so long as there were obvious failures. My “incurable,” and yours, is only, after all, what you-and I- cannot cure.
