The heavy succussion, of which his mighty arms were capable shook the framework of his house, on the second floor of which he did his work. The constant armwork he practised seemed to divert his vitality from other parts of his body; he become dropsical, melancholic, partly in consequence of the death, by scarlet fever, of a girl he was about to marry and he ended his life by his own hand.
I am minded to try to find out the secret of Fincke’s method, by experimentation. It will make him terribly angry, but I cannot help it.
As for the scurrilous article, suggested by Lippe, and published in the Allgemeine Homoeopatische Zeitung, over Hofrath’s name, Hering at first chose to ignore it then to treat it with a certain amount of ridicule. He came to his conclusion one day after returning from his round of visits. He proceeded to finish his article on a meeting of the American Institute, held at Boston, to which he appended some remarks in a humourous vein, relative to the libellous criticism. Shoving abominable things into men’s shoes at the midnight hour, became a household word, and a part of Dr. Hering’s collection of silly phrases. It was his opinion that to make a thing ridiculous is the nearest way to killing it. The laugh must not be loud and uproarious at once, but begin with a chuckle, under the diaphragm, gradually growing to a sidesplitting guffaw.
In this wise he purposed to answer his slanderers, in their own palaver. He had no patience with empty phrases such as had been coined by some of his opponents, in Germany.
Pennsylvania German Hospitality. The Tramp and the Flies.
The Pennsylvania German people have always been noted for their hospitality. This subjected them to frequent visits from loafers and beggars. A young fellow once started out from Philadelphia to beg his way to Pittsburgh. Finding begging a rather unprofitable business he began to meditate and finally hit upon the following plan: when stopping at a farmhouse he asked the farmer’s wife, Do you have any trouble with flies, on your table, at meal time?’ Oh yes’ she said, we are badly bothered with them.’ Then: Do any of the flies ever fall into the butter?’ Oh yes’ said the farmer’s wife, it is there that they are most annoying.’ The young man said: I can tell you how to prevent flies from falling into the butter.’ All right, then come in and take supper with us, we are ready to sit down as soon as my husband and the boys come in from washing at the water trough.
The young man did not refuse, but sat down with the family and ate like a woodchopper. By and by the flies began to settle upon the butter. Now, said the farmer’s wife, is the time to try your skill.’ The young magician took two crusts of rye bread, fastened them together in the form of a cross which he planted upright into the centre of the butter. Not a fly touched the butter. The farmer and his family were astonished and extremely delighted with the result of the experiment. They asked the tramp to stay the night with them prepared him a good lodging, a breakfast in the morning, and gave him a lift in their wagon to the next farm, where he sold his secret for a dollar. It is a well known fact that flies avoid settling where their feet are apt to be caught, as long as there is a drier perch to light upon.
College journal Editorship. Martin. Hering threatens to resign. Is dissatisfied with Martin. On July 10, 1869, Dr. Hering wrote a letter to Martin in which he declared his intention to withdraw from the editorship of the college journal. The August number was to be the last one to bear his name upon its cover. This letter Dr. Hering handed to me, for perusal, at the same time declaring that he would have nothing more to do with Martin; that he was careless, arrogant, his work full of mistakes, unpardonably negligent, and that he could no longer continue to co-operate with him. That he would undertake to publish extra volumes of his Materia medica, independently of the journal, in which parts of his work had appeared as an appendix.
Hering had promise of liberal contribution which would materially assist the project. I begged the doctor to reconsider. Asked him not to send the letter; but to speak to Martin, and keep on good terms, without quarrelling. That if he wished to withdraw he could do so amicably. I pictured to him the probable results of his with-drawal. Would it not injure the College? He thought not. He was bound to give up; he could no longer work with Martin. He could not stand for such gross negligence, carelessness and ignorance.
When Raue made his usual morning visit, before he went up to the study, I told him about the letter. He too, thought it should not be sent; that Hering should not give up his part of the work on the Journal. The letter was not sent.
July 12, 1869 Anecdote. Adventure Among the Indians in South America. Victoria regia. On an expedition in the tropics we travelled up a river to hunt a certain mysterious animal which the natives said inhabited a house of stone, built by the Great Spirit. That the monster devoured people, but only if they were sleeping in hammocks. My party consisted on myself and a band of negroes who served me. I unfortunately had given orders to one of them to dig up for me the skeleton of an Arrowackian Indian. He unfortunately dug up the remains of an old grandmother, belonging to one of the tribes of Caribs, who were of a mixture with negroes.
The act was discovered by the Indians. I had to fly for my life as quickly as possible. They placed the blame upon me, not the negroes, who were not considered to be human beings, therefore it was I who must die. I took to the boat. The pursuit began at once. I gathered my firearms about me. The negroes were cowardly and refused to row. I threatened that I would shoot them. They insisted that I must sit up on top of the cabin of the boat, in my white suit, trousers vest and straw hat, a mark for the enraged Indians who ran along the banks of the stream shooting at me with their arrows. Otherwise the cowardly blacks were going to drop their oars, and hide below. It was dark and I was the only object visible in the gloom. I kept on discharging my double-barrelled rifle, two shots in succession, fast as the blacks below could reload. Double shooting scares the wild men; they cannot understand how a gun can go off twice at the same moment. As the river widened we grew momentarily safer. We landed exhausted and laid ourselves down to sleep. I slept like a rat for seven hours.
Among the Indians I had a Madi, a blood brother with whom I had exchanged blood, he drinking mine, I his. If he were alive today he would give his life for me. Directly after the episode related I met with this friend on one of the plantations. The natives here were somewhat under restraint from the government. But they thirsted for my blood and would have killed me. I had to mount a cask, at the foot of which sat my friend. I made a speech to the natives. I said: My friends, how can you believe the words of negro, who you say is not a human being, and not believe me who am your friend. I am speaking to you as a friend. will you still believe the negro? A creature without a sour. You would not believe a monkey. Believe me’.
One of the natives stepped forwards and said: We will believe you, but you must give us whiskey to drink’ My blood friend said: They will kill both of us if you give them the firewater I spoke to my blacks and told them to get into the boat to leave the place at a moment’s notice gave them a small quantity of whiskey to taste and hurried to the boat which, by hard rowing, soon brought us to the nearest town where I was safe.
If it had been fortune to follow the stream further, on which we were travelling, I would have discovered the Victoria Regia, which in that case, would have gone to Dresden instead of to England. Fate willed it other wise.
Children. Every seventh day children will learn something new. Menstruation. Indian Squaws. Every healthy woman menstruated either at full, or at new moon. Indian squaws do not tell when their periods are due, not mention them in conversation. Their husbands do. Negroes are less reserved on the subject.
A Big Fish Story. The Ray. When I was in Suriname the negroes, and others, spoke of a huge fish, big as a house that could swallow anything that came in its way, but could never be caught. I asked the Indians to make me a strong rope of palmetto and attach thereto a triple hook of iron.
Together with a number of blacks and some white fishermen, we went out to the sea. We planted a windlass on shore and tied to that powerful rope. For bait I fastened a chicken to the hook and tossed it into the sea. It had scarcely touched the water when we had a strike. I ordered the negroes to pull slowly, very slowly, until the heavy object came nearer.
All at once I beheld, in the water, close to the shore a monstrous thing, the size of a barn door. I ordered the negroes to get into a boat, with an axe, and strike the gigantic object a blow on the head. The blow landed but the quary shot out into the sea quick as lightning, taking all of the heavy rope with it, windlass and fixtures. The boat upset with the blacks who were pulled under water: some of them were entangled in the rope. I stood on the shore anxiously waiting for one after another of them to come to the surface and swim ashore.
In 1878 and 1879 he published 2 editions of his book, Sunstroke and Its Homeopathic Treatment.
Upon Hering's death in 1880 Knerr became responsible for the completion of the 10-volume Guiding Symptoms.
Dr. Knerr wrote 2-volume Repertory to the Guiding Symptoms,