In May, 1833, the Society of Lausitz, in Silesia, wrote to the Director of the Leipsic Homoeopathic Society, Dr. Muller (therefore not to the Central Society), thus hinting that they considered the Leipsic Society, merely a local Society like the others, and not the centre of all the Societies, as the men of Leipsic considered it to be. In the letter a protest was raised against the introduction of allopathic methods in the hospital, against the infringement of the statutes, the retarding of homoeopathy, and the revolt against their accusations, and announcing the probability of his resignation as Director of the Society.
SUPPLEMENT 148
HARTMANN AS TEMPORARY MANAGER OF THE HOSPITAL.
Dr. C.F. Franz wrote to Hahnemann :
Leipsic, October 9th, 1833.
Dr. Muller yesterday resigned his office as manager. of the hospital. In this difficulty we were obliged to nominate Hartmann for the interim period, with a salary of 8 Rth. a week, to carry on until the election of Schweikert has been decided, otherwise we should have had to close the institution. Good! why am I sentenced to inactivity? Do make me again a useful being.
(The letter contains-like all previous ones-a detailed description of his long and painful illness, for which he asks advice of Hahnemann.)
SUPPLEMENT 149
INSTALLATION OF DR. SCHWEIKERT AS DIRECTOR OF THE LEIPSIC HOMOEOPATHIC HOSPITAL AND TEACHING CENTRE. ( Printed in the “Zeitschriff der Homoopathischen Heilkunst” by Schweikert, Vol. 7, page 297.)
Dr. Moritz Muller has resigned from the Directorship of the Homoeopathic Hospital; to him and also to Drs. Haubold and Franz Hartmann we would like to publicly express, herewith, our thanks for their ardous task of first initiating and managing this important Institution. I, Samuel Hahnemann, who am, during my lifetime, Supervisor and Counsellor for the advancement of homoeopathy in general, and in particular for our hospital, which is so indispensable for the public demonstration of its inappreciable worth, see with particular pleasure that Dr. Schweikert has decided to sacrifice many very favourable opportunities for the love of our science, and for the cause of humanity, and establish himself in Leipsic. From henceforth he intends to assume the management and leadership of this homoeopathic hospital and teaching centre. He has proved by his pen and his practice to be a true and excellent homoeopath.
In order to show publicly my marked approval, I have asked my friend and colleague, the homoeopathic physician, Dr. Gottfried Lehmann, to go to Leipsic, as my representative, in order to solemnly install, with my blessing, Dr Schweikert in this Institution, which he will henceforth manage as Director, physician, and teacher of practical homoeopathic therapy, in the cause of humanity. May God grant him health and strength.
At the same time I call upon all friends and admirers of homoeopathy, far and near, but especially on those have been saved and re-established and who owe their health, the greatest jewel of earthly existence, to our system of treatment, and also upon all true homoeopathic physicians, asking them most urgently to send a yearly contribution for the maintenance of this hospital and teaching centre, which holds such promises for the future, as it is not supported by the Sate. The administrator of the fund ( who is now Dr. C.G. Franz of Leipsic) will receive all contributions. May, in this way, the infinite advantages of true homoeopathy be laid before the eyes and ears of the world, and may our Institution through the good-will of private philanthropic support, steadily arise, grow and flourish. I, at the end of my career, can now only offer on the alter of human charity, a contribution of twenty Friedrichs d’or for the institution. SAMUEL HAHNEMANN. Cothen, October 31st, 1833.
This letter was posted up in the Conference Room of the Hospital.
HAHNEMANN’S LETTERS TO THE NEW DIRECTOR.
Dear friend and colleague,
I send my best wishes for the Institution, and for your management of the same, and think that I may remain assured, that you will not tolerate any assistant for the treatment of patients who does not follow our teachings, in a pure way, for the cure of diseases, so that we may acquire honour before the great world which is looking at us with critical eyes, impatiently watching, doubting and disbelieving.
27th November, 1833.
Dear friend and colleague,
Herewith an extract by me, for your paper, from documents which will now appear in extenso in the Archiv, concerning the newly established and favourable conditions for homoeopathy in Russia.
If you have an opportunity to help Dr. Hermann Hartlaub of Leipsic, and also to give him some remunerative part in the Dispensary, you will oblige me very much, as he has shown himself a staunch and diligent young physician, who is devoted to the true science, and who only lacks a pleasant manner to make him a capable homoeopath, and that he will soon acquired in fashionable Leipsic.
Otherwise I wish you once again God’s blessing on the management of our Institution, and good health.
To not fail to follow my example, in your private practice, to take a fee from your patients every time. You can do it now you are just settling. Accipe dum dolet! You will thank me some day for it. Money gives courage. Your devoted, SAM. HAHNEMANN. P.S. Please insert in your paper, first the essay written in feminine hand writing ( originating from Hermann), and then my extract from the documents. Postmark, Cothen, 14th December, 1833.
Very esteemed Doctor,
From time to time I have heard of the progress you have made in homoeopathy, and of the good results obtained, and I have been glad of your honest endeavour to accept the truth without prejudice, wherever you found it, even when you had to sacrifice a whole world of teachings which have been practised for many years by the old school. I know only too well how much self- denial is required, after first studying medical science at three Universities, and then practising it-and after having been instructed in numerous maxims, and practising them for some years-to forsake the old ideas, and so to speak, annihilate the whole collection of conceptions which have been acquired by study, in order to make room for the establishment of truth in an atmosphere which it has been so hard to clear; without this it would be impossible to give genuine help to our suffering fellow-brethren.
I say that I can thoroughly realise how you must have struggled, and what efforts you must have made to be able to become a perfect homoeopath at your age. Apart from hard work great integrity is required as well as love for mankind and self- denial, which I am glad to find in you.
You set others a rare example, and I ( who never dissimulate) consider it my duty to express to you my conviction. The feeling of a wonderful consciousness will be your reward.
The book you have sent me as the beginning of an elaboration for an easier way to find the symptoms of the medicines which have so far been proved, has my whole approval, and I encourage you, without considering the work of others (who for the same purpose have followed a different path), to continue faithfully in your own way, and not to be deterred by apparent competition. Duo cum faciunt idem non est idem. ( When two do the same, it is not the same-R.H.) I think that your work will excel. Intelligence requires something systematic; you put your subject systematically-but the alphabetical tabulation is also a necessity, and will make it easy for reference as no other method can. Hold fast to it, if I may advise you. As regards your questions I have not stated everywhere as I should have done, that for preparing the tinctures, 100 drops of the best spirits of wine about 80*, should be added be five grammes of powder, Please consider this for all cases of that kind-as a weight twenty times larger would yield quite a different result ( which would not carry out my wishes ).
With regard to beer that will not interfere with the action of our fine homoeopathic doses of medicine, I prefer the white beer, brewed from wheat and malt which is neither kiln-dried nor roasted, when it is, as is usually the case, prepared without the addition of intoxicating herbs. If it is entirely prepared without any addition like the so-called wheat beer of Arnstadt in Thuringen, it is indeed to be preferred, but it cannot be kept for long without producing strong wine fermentation with much froth, and eventually forming vinegar. A middle path has been taken by the brewer Gose at Goslar and at Anhalt ( at Sondersleben, Glaubig and Wenndorf). He takes for brewing purposes wheat- air-malt, but adds small decoction of hops, which is scarcely perceived by the palate. This beer keeps better, and our body gradually becomes so accustomed to the small quantity of hops which it contains, that it ultimately makes no difference to the action of our homoeopathic remedies. ( The Kirchberg and other similar white beers have an additional intoxicating substance which is harmful.) Even the use of brown beer, although I could not recommend it myself, when it only contains hops and no other bitter herb or intoxicating substance, and the hops are present only in a small quantity, may be allowed for want of a better kind, especially if the patient is already accustomed to it, as this would makes it almost neutral.
Richard Haehl was also an editor and publisher of the homeopathic journal Allgemcine, and other homeopathic publications.
Haehl was responsible for saving many of the valuable artifacts of Samuel Hahnemann and retrieving the 6th edition of the Organon and publishing it in 1921.
Richard Haehl was the author of - Life and Work of Samuel Hahnemann