PROGRESS IN HOMOEOPATHY


There is no improved homoeopathy except improved fraud. Boenninghausen was right when he said” “Ever more gloriously will Homoeopathy unfold its banner; ever more brightly will it beam in the firmament of science; ever more full of curative virtues she will show her wonderful powers if she is not decked with false finger or disfigured with borrowed attire or ornaments”.


We have had the opportunity of attending and displaying our ignorance before every grade of homoeopathic medical society from a local homoeopathic club to a quinquennial international homoeopathic congress, and in each and every one of these societies homoeopathy has been approached from the same erroneous angle, i.e., each one has treated homoeopathy as a finished product and has condemned it on that basis. No one seems to have been able to let it percolate through his brain that homoeopathy is founded on a fixed, stable law. All think and act as if this law could be abridged to suit their individual tastes; that the law can be abridged to suit their individual brain and thus make finished products directly and easily from crude adulterated material without putting it through the process of refinement.

Dr. Philip Rice says: “It is a low of life that nothing remains fixed; that it either moves forward or retrogrades.” This may be true of some things but not of natural law. Based on this law the indications for Aconite remain FIXED and can neither progress nor retrograde. The same is true of homoeopathy. Homoeopathy has not lost ground in itself, but its sphere of influence, through the misrepresentation of its lukewarm supporters, has become badly contracted. Ground has not been lost in, but for homoeopathy, and that by refusing to practice it, not because it in itself has proved inefficient, but because those who have elected to practice and represent it are themselves inefficient. This latter is hard to say, but it happens to be the gospel truth.

Of late years, medically, no school has progressed, excepting in a circle. The progress (?) of the Old School is today dealing more “damnation” around the land than ever before in history of medicine. Of course, its adherents to not like to either believe or hear this, but again it is the gospel truth. Their greatest “progress” consists of frantic efforts to palm off Isopathy as Homoeopathy, than which a more fatal error cannot be conceived-an error which hahnemann steadfastly refused to make.

There is one error among homoeopaths that could be corrected and made to work for real progress, and that is the collating and combining the real, valuable material in all the materia medicas into one, thus bringing the badly scattered material to a single focus. This would aid materially and make our work much easier, but it would neither change or modify in any way the principle or the law.

Because we fail with homoeopathy, due to either its incompleted state our o our lack of ability to master it, is no good reason why it should be cast aside, and the less resistive and less efficient route be pursued. Progress in homoeopathy comes from but two sources: first, the continued INTELLIGENT proving of new remedies on the healthy or nearly healthy individual, and the more thorough proving of the partially proved remedies we now have; and secondly, in practicing pure homoeopathy that we may verify those provings in order to be able to sift the gold from the dross.

When Hahnemann failed to cure every ailment with his first few drugs he did not rush into print and tell of the limitations of homoeopathy; say homoeopathy was a failure, a back number; was out of date; was a disgrace to medicine, etc. Hahnemann, instead, proved more drugs, learned how to take a case and find the similimum and thus homoeopathy progressed. He did not rush into a field of isopathy and try to do the impossible. He had too much sense for that and left isopathy to the ignorant and to the indolent.

He therefore put HOMOEOPATHY on the map. What have his critics and detractors done for the public? All that “progressive” medicine has done to date has been to fill more untimely graves than ever before, make spectacular funerals more popular, turn the medical man into a mere feeder for the surgeon. If that is medical progress may God have mercy on our souls and save us from more of the same kind.

Now let us eschew “medical progress” and “get down to brass tacks.” Why is homoeopathy where it is today? Dont you really think if foolish to waste all your valuable time trying to convince a modern medica coterie which has made up its mind that it will not be convinced? Have you ever yet seen the time when the Old School forgot itself so far as to neglect the public to convince YOU that its methods were superior to yours? Did Hahnemann, Boenninghausen, Hering and others spend their whole time and efforts in trying to convince the allopaths of their superior method?

Not that any one knows of. Yet in spite of all this homoeopathy spread, gained favor, was sought, etc. Why? Because these men “knew their stuff,” “could deliver the goods,” etc. Hahnemann, Boenninghausen, et al., appealed to the court of last resort- THE PEOPLE- and SUCCEEDED. The Old School took the cue and are playing up the people to the “queens taste,” something we “weak-kneed sister” have not the courage to do. (Please forgive the slang, but it is the only thing in which I can express it).

“In God We Trust.” Why? Because God is TRUE. The people distrust us because we are Not true. We shout homoeopathy and then try to thrust something else down their throats. Dont let us get the impression, like the allopaths, that all the people are fools, for they are not. Once they get a taste of real homoeopathy they are not slow to know the difference.

The way things are heading now it is self-evident that most homoeopaths (?) are NOT acquainted with homoeopathy. It is up to them to get acquainted with it before the Old School forces them to it. To put homoeopathy where it belongs requires that its practitioners get acquainted with it (for it seems to be a stranger to them now), to practice it; to take the case direct to the public and ignore the allopaths; to continue the unfolding of homoeopathy by intelligent provings and thereby enlarge its sphere of influence, and to collect all its materia medica into one work. In this way and in this way only will homoeopathy survive an untimely burial alive.

There is a greater demand for HOMOEOPATHY today than ever before in the history of medicine. Remember I said-HOMOEOPATHY. There is no improved homoeopathy except improved fraud. Boenninghausen was right when he said” “Ever more gloriously will Homoeopathy unfold its banner; ever more brightly will it beam in the firmament of science; ever more full of curative virtues she will show her wonderful powers if she is not decked with false finger or disfigured with borrowed attire or ornaments”.

Perhaps if we had more education ourself it might have blinded us to the monumental amount of ignorance embraced in the medical profession. It amazes us to think what a vast amount of impossible and ignorant concoctions these wonderfully intelligent leaders of homoeopathy (?) can swallow and seemingly relish. It makes us wonder if there is such a thing as intelligence, or if it is only another one of those “facts” that as intelligence, or if it is only another one of those “Facts” that are “facts” only by common consent. Hatred, Ignorance, Intolerance, Jealousy, Narrow-mindedness, Obstinacy and Prejudice, the outstanding and ruling features of Modern Medicine, surely do not smack of either intelligence or progression.

Sincerely and fraternally yours,.

DR. A. PULFORD.

Alfred Pulford
Alfred Pulford, M.D., M.H.S., F.A.C.T.S. 1863-1948 – American Homeopath and author who carried out provings of new remedies. Author of Key to the Homeopathic Materia Medica, Repertoroy of the Symptoms of Rheumatism, Sciatica etc., Homeopathic Materia Medica of Graphic Drug Pictures.