The kind of flies bothers the fly-paper little, but at some future date the wrong kind of members might bother the Association much. If a man realizes that he is in the wrong pew and resigns his respect is maintained and the membership is saved the unpleasantness of asking him to go. A person bent on ruining the organization and refusing to resign could cause the members much unpleasant trouble.
To more than briefly hint at the treasures uncovered in this exhaustive survey of the records of the London Homoeopathic Hospital, would require more time than is at our disposal in these introductory remarks. It might be well to call attention to a few points brought out in these papers, in view of the preliminary report about to be submitted to the Massachusetts Homoeopathic Medical Society.
Anyone who had met Clarke but a few times, even only once, must have been impressed with the feeling of an exceptional human being, a forceful personality, a man apart. He was literally a man apart, as he took his work and his mission so seriously that he gave himself very little time to mix with others. Perhaps, also, there were very few with whom he felt in harmony.
One of the joys of practising medicine, according to the teaching of Hahnemann, is being able to correct the mental state of our patients, to help relieve the fear, anxiety, sadness, fits of anger or impatience from which they suffer. So many people come to years of maturity with lack of self-control, or with some bad mental habit that has persisted from childhood.
When walking he feels anxious, as if some one were pursuing him. Seems to have two wills, one commanding what the other forbids. Two different influences seem to be exerted upon him at the same time, one to do murder and the other to do good. In one ear a devil prompts him to murder, in the other ear an angel prompts him to acts of benevolence.
A curious thing about these four cases is that in both instances the two cases showed the same symptoms at practically the same time, although not having any relationship to the other in the matter of location in the city, nor even being in the same social circles.
There is no doubt that the serum treatment of pneumonia can offer similar results, particularly when administered early. With the reduction in cost of the preparation of the specific sera, it is likely that the serum treatment of pneumonia will become a routine in orthodox hands.
During the past winter months the Connecticut Homoeopathic Medical Society has been having a series of lectures and round table discussions. Pure Hahnemannian philosophy, proper case taking with symptoms evaluation, and an analysis of repertory study were thoroughly presented by Dr. H.A. Roberts, and practical application made to cases from several of the doctors private practices.
In the different forms of structural or organic disease, some of which have no direct counterpart as yet in the pathogenesis of our remedies, we are compelled to look for the great characteristic, constitutional symptoms, the most prominent and peculiar features of the case, even apart, if necessary, from functional derangements and from structural disorganization.
The following peculiar symptom was present in a very serious chronic case given up by allopathic physicians: Every time she urinates she jumps from a sharp pain as if a sharp instrument had been stuck under the great toe nail. After careful search through many repertories this symptom was found in Allens Symptom- Register. This strange symptom proved to be the key that unlocked the remedy. Sulphur was the remedy and under its administration the patient improved greatly.
X-rays were taken in 27 or about 25 percent of cases. Five autopsies were performed confirming diagnoses. According to the histories most cases had a duration of disease at entry of a week or more and the second group in numbers entered after three to five days duration. The average length of hospital stay was fifteen days.
Homoeopaths could give their homoeopathic medicines by injections but to what purpose? In the first place, the method of administration is an unnatural way of putting anything into the body. In the second place the medicine will act just as quickly by mouth. The rapidity with which the medicine acts is in direct ratio as to how well it is indicated.
Pneumonia affecting the lower lobe of the right lung, a lobar pneumonia. Sensation as if he could not get air enough into the chest; feeling of exhaustion and weakness in the chest, where constriction impedes respiration, with dry, tickling cough; hepatization of lower lobes; nosebleed. Emphysema following pneumonia; cannot lie down at night, fears to suffocate; loose cough at night and day but no expectoration; cold feeling in chest.
In common with most homoeopathic physicians, I have seen a few almost unbelievable cancer cures from the internal use of our remedies. Almost any remedy has occasionally cured, when it was in fact solely prescribed upon some special or prominent indication but happened also to have the general symptoms which corresponded to the life history of the patient, hence corresponding accurately and in its entirety to the disease picture.