The object for which Weirick states we should fight is “to secure official endorsement of it (homoeopathy) by the regular school.” Weirick says that all the concessions made and favors granted by the old school are “individual and quasi recognition.” He wants general and actual recognition, such as would have homoeopathy “taught and utilized by every medical college in the world and its status firmly fixed”.
I want to ask every reader of this article to answer the following questions, viz.: Is the attainment of Dr. Weiricks objective a hard or easy task? Is his objective a great way off or “just around the corner,” as Dr. MAcAdams banquet address would have us believe? Let me give my reasons for thinking it is still a great way off and that much hard, skillful, conscientious work must be done by those of us who are “pledged to continued the fight”.
I have lived and practiced homoeopathy in Des Moines over forty- four years. I have had access to all the members of the old school frequently. I have had access to all the hospitals of the city, one of which was founded by homoeopaths and sold out by them to allopaths. In these hospitals I have worked side by side with not only old school members but also eclectics, osteopaths and with not only old school members but also eclectics, osteopaths and chiropractics. It has been my privilege to see and know what the allopaths and eclectics have prescribed. Since reading the two articles I am discussing I have asked several old school physicians, and also several nurses who have worked under both allopathic and homoeopathic physicians, if, as the result, “Our men have been welcomed everywhere, in Army and Navy, etc.”; if the homoeopathic remedy is used homoeopathically in the old school,. hospitals, in Army and Navy, by allopathic physicians? The result?
Not one has answered in the affirmative. Some of the physicians have answered frankly and said, “In my office work in the home of my private patients, I use your remedies, but I never send a prescription to the druggist for them or order them for patients at the hospitals.” In answer to my question what homoeopathic remedy do you use most frequently, those referred to above reply, “Mostly Luyties and Boericke & Tafel. Combination tablets for constipation, pneumonia, and nervous prostration.” One of the old school men with whom I have consulted most because we have different members of the same families on our individual lists would say to this patients, “Dr. Royal has confidence in his remedies.
He does not know as much of diagnosis as I do but knows more about therapeutics.” “Now, Dr. Royal, go ahead.” But he never knew or cared to know anything about Lyc. 30 m., Carbo veg. 1 m. or Cactus 1x. In fact in one desperate case of his to which he had called me and for which Carbo veg. was indicated he so far forgot himself when I took out my vial to make up some powders, that he blustered out, “Oh, hell! White Charcoal!”.
I would like the experience of my readers in another respect. How many of you since “the barriers between the schools are giving way” and you have become members of old school medical societies, have held offices in said societies, or read papers before the members explaining the principles and practices of homoeopathy? If the latter, what was the reception of your paper by the old school members?.
The Linn County Homoeopathic Society was the first county society of Iowa to go bodily into an old school society. Ten years later I asked a prominent homoeopath of Waterloo the above questions. I shall never forget his expression and the tone of his voice as he answered, “None, never”.
Again. What about recognition of homoeopathy in the journals and books of the old school? Do my readers find the pages filled with directions for the use of homoeopathic remedies and with the results obtained from their use? There come to my office five journals of the old school; one German, one French, and three american. I scan them fairly closely, but do not find much on homoeopathy. What was the comment of old school journals on Biers article?.
I also have a fairly good opportunity for inspecting the new or recent books of that school. Does homoeopathy have a fair and full recognition and presentation in the recent publications of the old school? Two such books which I have read within the past month are Wm. A, Whites last edition of “Outlines of Psychiatry” and “Curschmanns Clinical Neurology,” by Strecker and Meyers.
I failed to find a single reference to a homoeopathic prescription for the treatment of any of the diseases considered in either book. On page 365 of the latter I do find the following for the treatment of Menieres syndrome. “Quinine sulphate 0.1, 0.2 or 0.3 Gm. three times daily in increasing doses.” Also careful dosage, damage to the acoustic nerve need not be feared.” And, finally, “bromides, iodides, pilocarpine, arsenic, hydrotherapy, even lumbar puncture have been recommended”.
Wm Boericke in the index to the eighth edition to his Materia Medica does not mention one of these remedies for Menieres disease. Under chininum sulph, he gives the following under ear: “Violent ringing, buzzing and roaring in the ears, with deafness.” In my Text Book of Homoeopathic theory and Practice of Medicine I put chininum sulph. at the head of the list, but instead of giving the largest dose possible that will not “damage the acoustic nerve,” I use the smallest does that will cure the patient. I have recently had a most brilliant result with B. & T.s 30th of that remedy.
I want to make the point here and that it is not the remedy but the reason for and manner of administering the remedy that makes its use homoeopathic or allopathic.
It want to make the point here and that it is not the remedy but the reason for and manner of administering the remedy that makes its use homoeopathic or allopathic.
It might not be out of place to ascertain whether this failure to recommend homoeopathic therapeutic treatment could be due to the fact that the allopathic therapeutics is better. Do they have more confidence in their drug therapy than we do in ours? Have they a large number of remedies which they have used for a long period of years, in which they have confidence and recommend because they know they will produce the desired results? Let us take a few sentences, at random, from the two books just mentioned: “There is no pharmaceutical treatment for this disease -paranoia.” Outlines of Psychiatry, page 122. Also in same volume:.
For Arteriosclerosis, page 230, we read: “treatment-for the insomnia-alcohol in the form of a small dose of whisky and water at night is excellent, but should be give with great care and it administration carefully guarded, as these patients are especially susceptible to it and often develop periods of confusion from very small doses”.
From Clinical Neuralgia, page 46, we quote: “treatment: None of the forms of Friedreichs ataxia is responsive to treatment, and care of the patient is largely symptomatic.” For cerebral haemorrhage, page 185: “After all the treatment can only be protective, and it is quite important to treat the haemorrhage before it occurs. Medication should be used, though it is doubtful how much medicine in itself may accomplish. The iodide of potash is usually administered, and sometimes the nitrites.
A mixture may be of R. Potassium bicarbonate 1.8 Gm., Potassium nitrate 1.2 Gm., and Sodium nitrite 0.03 Gm. Such a powder is given in a glass of water every morning before breakfast. The never remedies for hypertension need not be discussed here. Recently, studies have been made which indicate that extract of liver MAY be useful. However, at the present time the chief weapons of the physician are reduction in physical and mental work, and sensible dietary restrictions”.
On the treatment of epidemic encephalitis, page 171, we read: “A glance at the great number and diversity of therapeutic agents which have been used in the treatment of encephalitis epidemica bears testimony to the indifferent results which have been obtained.” For cerebrospinal fever the author says (page 123): “fortunately treatment is now able to be specific. The results following lumbar puncture and injection of the anti meningococcic serum of Flexner have been very brilliant. It is customary to use urotropin, but it is doubtful if it accomplishes very much”.
On page 120 we read: “tuberculosis meningitis is a fatal disease and treatment is powerless to avert death”.
I will quote just one more passage for the purpose of giving them credit for their attempts, their groping in the dark, for something “safe,” “sane” and “sure” in therapeutics; also to show that always they go as near the edge of the precipice as possible. “More recently some variety of iodides has been administered with seemingly good results. However, in the use of iodides and iodine preparations, chiefly Lugols solution (Liquor Iodi Comp. U.S. P.), in doses from three to five minims three times a day upwards to as much as 15 minims t.i.d., caution is required. Used indiscriminately in adenoma of the thyroid they may set up iodine hyperthyroidism-a grave form.
