I was, in 1856, in the College de France in the laboratory of M. Berthelot. There came M. Mitscherlich the famous chemist of Berlin, the discoverer of Isomorphism. Suddenly the following conversation began between the visitor and the visited:
M. Mitscherlich: I have tried to repeat your experiment of the synthesis of alcohol. I have not been able to make the Carbonised hydrogen by Carbonic acid.
M. Berthelot: How have you operated?
M. Mitscherlich: I have put in a phial Sulphuric acid and Hydrocarbonised gas, and there was not absorption.
M. Berthelot: You have not added some mercury and you have not given some jerkings.
M. Mitscherlich: No.
M. Berthelot: You have neglected an essential condition. In order to absorb 30 litres of bicarbonised hydrogen in 90 grams o Sulphuric acid in the presence of some kgs of Mercury, it is necessary to give 53,000 jerkings. This is what you have neglected.
And M. Berthelot has shown to M. Mitscherlich the reality of the fact.
These 53,000 jerkings, divide the molecules of Mercury and make them distant from each other. Then the molecules are divided in their turns and make more distant amongst them the molecules of bicarbonated hydrogen and of Sulphuric acid, thus reducing the last two matters in a kind or radiant state, helping the Sulphuric acid to absorb the bicarbonated hydrogen. In this case the Mercury plays the same part as that of the sugar of milk used by the Homoeopathic pharmacists to operate the trituration of medicines and the more and more separation of molecules constituting them, which brings them to a radiant state and develops their curative power. Now it becomes evident, M. Berthelot and all the chemists following his example, unconsciously take recourse to this process of successions used since more that a century ago by Hahnemann and his disciples, a process which was ridiculed however, is indispensable even for the chemists!
This long discussion, which I have just done on the dynamisation of medicines, seems to be beyond out subject of the treatment of drunkenness. However, this was necessary in order to motive and to explain the use of dilutions generally and specially in high dynamisations in somatic or psychic morbid conditions and specially in Alcoholism which is becoming more and more a curse a families and of modern societies. Thus to remedy this, it is necessary to experiment the curative means that I propose, because one does not yet found any other useful means.
X. I am very far from prescribing exclusively high dilutions in may practice, because this would be an error, dangerous to the patients. In fact in many cases, 3,6,12, 30th dilutions are to be preferred and even sometimes the medicine in massive doses. But in many other cases the very high dilutions are more effective because they have more powerful and durable, specially deep action.
VII
To the doctors who would, in ordinary treatment of different disease, add, as I have done, the treatment of alcoholism and other vices, I advice to apply to this psychic treatment, not only in their clients who come to their chambers, but also in the consultants of a free dispensary, established exclusively to this end. These consultants will come back at an interval of every three weeks in the dispensary to report to the doctor, the effect of the medicine.
In a dispensary, this psychic treatment has 5 advantages which do not exist in the house of the patients.
II. The first advantage is, in fact, that the doctor will have more occasions of numerous cure of alcoholism which having benefited the patients, benefit the alcoholics and the science. In fact, I cure five times more the alcoholics of my dispensary than those treated in their houses and those who pay. Here is the reason: every third week they come regularly to give me information on the first cases which I can follow up and treat with scientific precision, which increases the chances of success to the drunkards of my paying patients for whom I am consulted in my chamber, who do not come regularly every three weeks to give the results. This sometimes, is for diminishing the cost of treatment and because my clients think themselves as much reasoner as they are educated, instead of following faithfully the experimental method like those of my clients of my dispensary under the direction of a specialist in this matter. But these rich clients, among whom some are very rich, believe that their experience is superior to that of the doctor and so, begin, stop and recommence, then stop anew the treatment of drunkards of their families, who having thus become medicated in fits and starts, were less rapidly, less often, and less completely cured and many times die prematurely as a consequence of alcoholism, or of debauchery, their habitual company. It is not then amongst the rich patients that one can collect some beautiful cases of cure which may be profitable to science, after having benefited others.
III. While curing the alcoholism, the dispensary has a second advantage that of preventing alcoholism to cause unhappiness and misery in the families, to which the drunkards will bring their earnings, which was consumed formerly for alcoholic drinks.
IV. When such dispensaries will be numerous, their 3rd advantage will consist in the contribution to the diminution of criminality, which is so highly increased by alcoholism, as is shown to us by the statistics of crime published by a Gazette de Cologne, the report of Dr. Marembat to the Academy of Medicine and the Statistics of Dr. Lunier.
V. By its fourth advantage, this dispensary contributes to the popularisation, the most wide and the most glaring of the treatment of alcoholism and of other passions. In fact, while the members of the families of paying clients. manifesting their gratitude for the services rendered, will say to their friends that such and persons of their family have been cured o alcoholism or o any other vices, the clients of this dispensary will be really interested to make known similar cure, not only to their relatives, to their friends, but also to persons with whom they will speak accidentally for the first time. Their talks which have the impression of gratitude, astonishment, sometimes enthusiasm, will be repeated by those who listen to them and will be repeated indefinitely by each of the persons who hear them. Thus there will be an incessant propaganda renewed by the success of the treatment of alcoholism.
VI. There is also a fifth advantage of the free dispensary. The clients by their qualities of character and mind, are more disposed to accept a new truth and a progress. The paying clients are not like them although they are much more intelligent and educated than the former. Thus, they will speak for the truths in general. In fact writes a missionary (1888) of Madura (Hindoostan), “Here as everywhere and always, it is the poors who first learn the truth.”
VIII
In 1867, I was profited by a chance occasion, to advertise for the subscription for the foundation of Homoeopathic Hospital in Leipzig, the first town where Hahnemann taught his therapeutic reform. Thanks to that advertisement, 300,000 France were collected.
The success of may initiative gave me the ground on the same year to find in France some subscriptions of a million Frances for the foundation of a Homoeopathic Hospital at Lyon.
If I could have to-day disposed of these capitals, that I collected or collected by others, I would have used it no more for the building of hospitals where one can only save the lives of some isolated individuals, but to the foundation of dispensaries meant for the treatment of vices, specially alcoholism, which is the most widely spread: dispensaries by the help of which one could have preserved the lives of groups of individuals -families, races, nations. The reader might have been convinced reading even here the chapters relating the one, the most dangerous effects a alcoholism, the other, the fortunate results of the treatment of that vice.
It is after having seen these results, which at an age (61) when the practitioner already desires for retirement, I have founded, in 1886, a dispensary free for the treatment of passions: dispensary where I have given, I repeat, more then 2,000 consultations of which about 2/3 to alcoholics. And this for convincing the doctors to cure alcoholism that I have published here the treatment which seemed to me the most useful.
Gallavardin set up a homeopathic Dispensary for the cure of alcoholics, often working in conjunction with priests, and he wrote several books on this subject.
Jean Pierre Gallavardin wrote Psychism and Homeopathy, The Homoeopathic Treatment of Alcoholism, How to Cure Alcoholism the Non-toxic Homoeopathic Way, Repertory of Psychic Medicines with Materia Medica, Plastic Medicine, and articles for The British Journal of Homeopathy, On Phosphoric Paralysis, and he collated the statistics on pneumonia and other cases for the United States Journal of Homeopathy, and he contributed widely to homeopathic publications.