At first thought one is inclined to deny that there is any relation between the habitat of the plant, or he occurrence of a metal, and the diseases or symptom picture which can be treated with the material in question. For example, Cinchona would seem to indicate that speculation along this line would be fruitless, but it is Cinchona which shows such relationships rather in its classical use by the old school medicine.
Of course the palliative effects-which homoeopathists also use in connection with various materials-do not come into the question here, any more than we are concerned with the individual symptoms which are affected, perhaps, by a remedy which does not fit the whole case. No, here we are concerned only with those symptom complexes which form rounded out disease pictures, such as Cinchona shows in its use in alternating fever.
The forms of fever which can be cured with Cinchona occur principally in those regions to which Cinchona is native. Naturally these forms of fever also occur in other places, but principally they are endemic in those regions in which the climatic conditions are very similar to those of the natural habitat of cinchona,even though the Cinchona tree does not occur.
The more the ideal for the Cinchona tree, the less likely is the occurrence of such fever conditions as are to be treated with Cinchona. This fact does not, however,include the possibility of occurrence of such fevers in any plane in the world It is also possible that a temporary condition of climate may arise which would be like that of the habitat of he Cinchona tree,and which is favorable to the incidence of “Cinchona fever”.
This is also possible in districts where there are no cinchona trees. Cases of “Cinchona fever” which occur in completely different climates are probably without exception, imported,or recurrences of old conditions,which conditions themselves were most probably contracted under the fitting exterior conditions,for example , in the case of malaria.
We cannot here investigate thoroughly the question whether this train of thought is applicable to all symptom complexes of a remedy,for example,the chronic conditions of Cinchona and all homoeopathic remedies in general. (The word which I translate as chronic conditions I cannot find in any of my dictionaries-I translate it from context only,and I think it is probably correct. Translate it from context only,and I think it is can be increased almost at wish.
1.Cinchona conditions. Usually a sequel of cinchona fevers and their and their profuse weakening sweat and occasional diarrhoeas that is to say-a sequel of the considerable losses of bodily juices. As a result one would expect that such conditions would occur mostly in the habitat of the Cinchona tree, and in our climate more seldom. He one would expect that the number of Ferrum, Calcium and Natrum mur,. conditions would be in excess., This is indeed the cases in Vogtland (that part of Saxony which lies near the western border of Czechoslovakia) where the Cinchona conditions is extremely rare. According to the theory, the Cinchona symptoms could occur more frequently in the district around Leipzic.
2.Crotalus. It is hardly necessary to talk about the homoeopathicity in the case of yellow fever,the chief breeding places of this disease and the habitat of the snake.
3.Camphor. Chiefly know for it use in. the first state of cholera asiatica great exhaustion,ice-cold body and collapse) and through its use as injection by the old school men in such condition. (A beautiful example of homoeopathia involuntaria) The camphor tree grows in Persia, China,m Japan and various other regions of Asia in which cholera is endemic. It is a question for the statisticians to decide how far cases in this country which call for the use of camphor coincide with those seasons of the year which bring forth climatic conditions similar to those of the countries which form the natural habitat of the Camphor tree.
Cactus. The chief use, in diseases of he heart which occur in connection with the abuse of tobacco,m or which would follow this abuse,is in agreement with the central American genealogy of the remedy on the one hand,and of tobacco on the other. This would seem to be a beautiful confirmation of the theory of coincidence in the occurrence of disease and the similimum.
5.Cedron. the punctual recurrence of the neuralgia of this remedy,which is observed after the occurrence of malaria,also points to it habitat in alternating fever regions.
These are sufficiently examples for the present. It would certainly be no fruitless work for every Homoeopathic physician to go over the remedies most frequently used in the locality in which he practices,with an eye to the ancestry and original home of the pictures of disease which are treated with these remedies. (He means for course,to endeavor to establish a relationship between the remedies most used in a town and the diseases treated with his remedy.
For example, Bell, in Shelton, Conn. Where does the remedy occur in nature? Does the disease occurs mostly in that region, or in regions with a very similar climate)> It is possible that a broadly defined localization of the genius epidemicus might be made in this may., It is also imaginable that the endemic diseases of two places very close to one another, but with different climates,(with a mountain range between perhaps) would be found to differ widely (in the most frequently according would be found to differ widely (in the most frequently occurring diseases,in the remedies which are native to the different places).
I hope that this little essay may be an inspiration to investigation in this field.
