Family Botanic Guide-1

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FAMILY BOTANIC GUIDE - FOX - P ar t 1 - Pa ge 1The Southwest School of Botanical Medicine http://www.swsbm.com
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P R E F A C E .

IN presenting this Work to the public, the author does so with thegreat est confidence, feeling assu red t ha t h is read ers will appr eciate h isendeavours to alleviate the sum of human misery. Many works havebeen written on medical science by men of scholastic education; butthese works are either too expensive, or written in language which thebulk of the people do not understand, and the remedies are of such anature that it is like putting a sword into the hand of a child. In thisWork technicalities have been avoided as far as practicable, and it iswritten in so plain a ma nn er th at all who run m ay read.

Not only is this a GUIDE of information for the curing of all thecurable diseases incidental to man, but it lays down the plan of

prevention, which is far better than cure. Nothing is recommended ontheory, but all from practical experience. The use of poisons is avoidedwhether as remedial agents or as stimulants. The use of the lancet isheld to be quite unnecessary; and the use of that formidableenemythe sheet-anchor, the Goliath of medicinethat all-potentremedial agent of the medical profession, Mercury, is altogetherrepudiated by the author. The means recommended are sanitaryassisting nature to overcome disease by giving those remedies whichact in ha rm ony with th e etern al laws of na tu re; th ese remedies are fromth e vegetable world, an d, when ta ken p roperly, will arouse t he dorma nt

energies of the body to fulfil their proper functions, and make life'swheel run smooth ly on:

Tha t m en m ay live in h ealth an d joyAnd all th eir var ied powers em ploy,

And die by weight of years ,

is the pra yer ofTHE AUTHOR.



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P RE FACE TO THE 23r d E DITION.

THE former editions of our GUIDE have done good service, and therapid sale of over 200,000 copies has induced us to revise, correct, andimprove. In this edition, considerable alterations have been made. TheInt roduction to th e form er editions ha s been incorporat ed in t he body ofthe work, with the addition of upwards of sixty new woodcuts of themost useful and important herbs used in the Botanic practice ofMedicine. In order to keep pace with the ever-increasing activity ofresearch in this branch of the science of Medical Botany, the whole ofthe work has undergone a careful revision; many clerical errors, anderr ors in point of deta il, ha ve been corr ected. The price is not an obsta cleto any person who is desirous of possess ing it. The addit ions an dimprovements introducedwhich are the result of seventy-five years'

su ccessful pra cticewill, we tr us t, ma ke the work a sa fe an d intelligibleguide to the Medical Botanic Practice, and thus become moreextensively used by all classes of the community; and with the additionof the woodcuts introduced, will add additional zest, and enhance thevalu e of the book.

A. RUSSELL FOX.

Sh effield, J un e, 1924.



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INTRODUCTION.

The poor In dian, whose unt ut ored mind

Sees God in clouds, an d hea rs h im in the wind.

IN publishing our little GUIDE, we do not profess to bring out anynew theory: our object is to give our quota in strengthening thebulwarks of MEDICAL BOTANY. Our little messenger is not only tobear the title of THE WORKING MAN'S MODEL FAMILY BOTANICGUIDE , but we feel confident it will be so in pr act ice. The p rice is suchthat every man will be enabled to become his own family physician.That great, good, and noble-minded man, Dr. BENJAMIN RUSH, afterbewailing the defects and disasters of medical science, consoled himself

with the animating prospect that the day would arrive when medicalkn owledge should ha ve att ained t ha t a pex of perfection t ha t it would beable to remove all diseases of man, and leave not for life a single outlet,a single door of retreat, but old age; for such is our confidence in thebenevolence of the Deity that He has placed on earth remedies for allthe maladies of man; and how distant that prospect may be it isimpossible to state; we feel certain that we have taken a step in theright direction to hasten on that desideratum. So conflicting are theopinions and practices of the medical profession, so arrayed are theyagainst each other, that one has compared their practice to an unroofed

temple, cra cked at th e sides, an d rotten a t t he foun dat ion.

We are indebted for the origin of medical science to Egypt, thatuniversal school of the ancient world. There knowledge of medicalscience was famous, even in the days of Moses, and her physicians arecelebrated in his history. The ailments and ablutions recorded in hisbooks, so congenial to the health of an eastern clime, enforced on theobservation of the Israelites, have been ascribed to his knowledge of theEgyptian science of medicine by those who have denied to him the highprer ogative of ha ving acted u nder th e inspira tion of th e Almight y.

The discovery of medicine first came from the Egyptians, and isgenera lly ascribed t o th e god Thoth or H erm es, who published six bookson physic, the first of which was on Medicine and Surgery. The name ofsculapius (the meaning of which in Greek is Merciful Healer) wasgiven him on account of his great skill in healing diseases. And this



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name he richly deserved. The healing art was first brought into use,says the Rev. J. Wesley, in a very natural and simple manner in theear liest age of th e world. Man kind, by various experimen ts or accidents,discovered that certain plants, roots, and barks possessed medicinalproperties. These were found sufficient to remove their diseases. The

Eu ropean as well as t he American , said to his neighbour : Are you s ick?Drink th e juice of this h erb a nd your sickn ess will be at an end. Hen ceit was, perh aps, th at th e an cients, not only in E gypt, Greece an d Rome,but even in bar bar ous na tions, u sua lly assign t o physic a divine origin.It will be impossible to go through the whole history of medicine in thespace allotted to us; but we shall give the reader a bird's eye view of itsprogress from t he ear ly ages down t o th e present time.

Kheiron or Charon, the learned sage, brought medicine from Egypt toGreece. sculapius, the scholar of Charon, flourished before the Trojanwar. The secrets of his art he communicated to his children, and theywere retained in his family until they burst forth with peculiarsplendour , and shone out to th e possession of th e world, in th e writingsand characters of the great Hippocrates, who was instructed at thetemple school of Kos, an island in the Myrtoan Sea. He is called Thefather of Medicine. It was he who caused tablets to be hung in thetemples describing the names of diseases and the mode of their cure.His noble mind soon rectified the defects in the system of his ancestors,and he found out and applied the remedy equal to its vast importance.As t he gra nd sum of all medical sk ill consist s in rea son an d experience,and these formed the accomplished and successful practitioner, he

silently effected a revolution which changed the face of medicine, andcau sed it t o ra nk with th e sublimest part of hu ma n science. Fr om wha tis related of him in h istory, ther e was but one sen timen t in h is soulth edisposit ion to do good.

Aulu s Corn elius Celsus wa s th e next; he was born in Rome. He followedin the same path as Hippocrates, and wrote eight books on medicalscience. He was held in estimation by the emperors of Rome, and diedmu ch beloved.

Clau dius Galen was born a t Pergam os. He was a most diligent an dlaborious st udent ; he closely followed his grea t leader, H ippocra tes , but,like all oth er grea t m en, he h ad t o pas s th rough th e fire of persecution:his sk ill ar oused t he jealousy of th e Roma n p hysicians , which m ade h issituation unpleasant; and he left Rome and went back to Pergamos. Hewas afterwards sent for by the Emperor to see his two sons, who were



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smitten with the plague, and he cured them. After this all hostilitiesaga inst him ceased . He died at a good old age, in th e year A.D. 201. Hisfam e was great : he wr ote m an y volumes on ph ilosophy and medicine.

A pleasing melancholy pervades the soul as we trace the memorials of

these devoted and magnanimous men, benefactors of the human race.They seem to redeem the very character of man from all the vileaspersions that have been cast upon it; they shine as splendid beaconson th e solitu de of time, to point out to th e tr aveller t he r oad to glory a ndth e ha ven of immorta lity an d peace.

After Celsus an d Ga len medical science was for some t ime st at iona ry. Inthe agitation and decline of the Roman empire learning was arrested inits progress; and when it fell, the arts and sciences perished in theshock. The few fragments that remained were concealed with thepriests, monks, and secular clergy; but a dreary and dark desolationspread over the universe of mind. The knowledge of a few simplesanswered all the wants of the people. The dressing of wounds wascommitted to the ladies; the cure of fractures and broken bones theknights took upon themselves: all was simple and soon despatched. Inth ose awful scenes of broil an d bat tle, when n oth ing was t o be hea rd orseen but the alarm of war, and garments rolled in blood, there was notim e t o die of disea se! No! it wa s on t he bloody field of mar tia l st rife th a tDeath reaped the harvest of his millions. All the finer feelings andcau ses of disease were absorbed a nd swallowed up in t he vort ex of war .

Thus, th rough t he long an d drear y night of a th ousa nd years, a morbidmelancholy and mortal death sat brooding like an incubus on thenations of Europe; but as Dr. Robinson has beautifully said Mancan not be enslaved for ever. At length Su perst ition broke her chains;Science aroused her giant form, and shook off the slumber of ages. Thespirit of ma n reboun ded from t he cra sh of its long depr ession, a nd tookits place on the sublime and awful elevation of freedom and range ofthought. Religious liberty, civil liberty, the diffusion of science, theequity of laws, an d th e am eliora tion of th e cond ition of th e miser able, allproclaim her bright and rapid progress to the uncreated splendour of

eterna l day.

After the revival of learning, the works of the ancients were held ingreat repute. Sennertus and Reverius collected with the greatestdiligence the opinions and writings of the ancients, especially ofHippocra tes, Celsus, a nd Galen.



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In the early part of the sixteenth century, the far-famed Paracelsusadvanced his chemical system to the world. It was he who firstintr oduced quicksilver or mer cur y as a medicine. He bur nt th e work s ofth e great Galen, and at th e same time he stat ed tha t he possessed more

knowledge in his little finger than Galen had in his whole body. Heprofessed to have found out the elixir of life, that would prolong mortalexisten ce t o any per iod, but he d ied at th e age of fort y-eight .

Such, then , is t he m an to whom we a re indebted for t he int roduction ofthe mineral practice, which has continued up to the present day,entailing misery on the human race to an amount beyond allcomputation.

In the middle of the seventeenth century, the circulation of the bloodwas discovered by Dr. Harvey; and this knowledge, together with thatof the discovery of the receptacle of the chyle and of the thoracic duct,caused a great revolution to take place in the system of naturalphilosophy. Lord Bacon proposed to the world his new mode ofreasoning by an induction of facts. This new mode of philosophizingsoon made a visible change in the science of medicine. A disposition toobserve facts a nd ma ke experiment s began t o prevail in t he schools an dto fix th e at ten tion of keen a nd a ccur at e inquirers.

The great Sydenha m, th e first of th e modern s, was th e fat her of medicalscience in it s presen t m ode of modern fashion. His pa th ology was s imple

and comprehensive; the oppressed and exhausted state of the systemcomprised his r a tiona le of disease and mode of cur e. The simplicity of itsviews seems to have laid the foundation of the theories of Rush andBrown.

To add to the science of medicine, said Sydenham, two facts must bekept in view:1st, To give a full and complete description or history ofthe disease; and 2nd, To discover a fixed and perfect remedy or mode ofcur e. And to th ose great objects did Dr. Sydenha m dedicat e t he labour sof his long and useful life, preferring their great importance to fruitless

and unprofitable speculations on the principles of life. The new systemintroduced by Stahl, Hoffman, and Boerhve was intended to supply arem edy; but , alas, it was equa lly deficient a s it wa s n ew, an d inst ead ofremoving the disorder it only operated to its augmentation, andinflamed t he woun d it was designed t o hea l.



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Dr. Brown, who stu died un der Cullen, sta tes t ha t h e had to forget a ll hehad learned in order to start his medical life again. Upon facts andobservations he constructed his theory. Why was it that when he livedwell he was exempt from the gout? and when dieting himself he wasattacked in a manner both formidable and unrelenting? The solution of

these questions opened his eyes, and led him forward to an inquirymore compr ehensive.

What was the effects of food and fluids, the aliments with which wesupport life? They produce st ren gth .

By thus reasoning he perceived that his disease was occasioned by adeficiency of blood, and not by redundancy of that fluid; that debilitywas the cause of his disorder, and the remedy must be sought in asusta ining an d stimulating diet.

Dr. Rush agrees with Dr. Brown t ha t life is a forced stat e an d t he effectof stimuli. He divides these, as Brown does, into external and internal;but for the matter of the principle of life itself he adds sensibility toBrown's excitability. He will not admit with Brown that debility is adisease, but only a pr edisposing cau se of disease.

Disease consist s in a morbid excitemen t, a nd th e cur e of disease consist sin restoring the equal diffusion of blood over the whole body. Air, saysDr. Rush, by exciting respiration, gave the first impulse to life. Whenma n was form ed. God brea th ed into him th e brea th of life, inflat ing his

lungs, and thus exciting in him the whole phenomena of animal,intellectual, and spiritual life. And hence life is the effect of stimuliacting on t he organ ized body.

While these opinions are producing convulsions in the whole medicalschool. Dr. Thomson, the founder of the American botanic practice, aman who was educated in the school of adversity, but, led by theunerring hand of Providence, brought out of chaos the science ofmedicine, and placed it on a simple but firm foun dat ion, ta king th e lawsof nature for his guide, for his principle of life, and the field of nature

for its cure. All bodies, says Thomson, are composed of fourelementsearth, air, fire and water. Earth and water constitute thesolids, air and fire the fluids of the body. The healthy state consists inthe proper balance and distribution of these four elements, and diseasein th eir disarr angement.



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All disease is caused by obstruction: the mode of cure is to remove it bydiffusing heat over the system, for heat is life, the absence of heatdeath. All disease is the effect of one general cause, and thereforerequires a general remedy. Whatever supports the internal heat anddirects t he det erm ining powers t o th e sur face, will expel the disease a nd

save the patient.

This is our theory of the cause of disease, and its soundness has beenverified by long p ra ctice, of the su ccessful r esu lts of which we leave t hepeople to judge. We believe the botanic system is yet destined torevolutionize the whole medical world, and to this end we give ourlabour . The bota nic system will yet gain th e ascendan cy, an d sh ine withgreat er br illian cy th an it did in t he da ys of Hippocra tes or Ga len. It willcome out of the fire of persecut ion like gold seven tim es pur ified.

These opinions coincide with those of Dr. COFFIN, the founder of thebotanic system in England. The name of Dr. Coffin will long becherished by the people of this country for his extensive labours in thecau se of medical bota ny. He ha s cau sed ma ny a t ear to be dried up, an dma ny a sorr owing h ear t to leap for joy.

We sha ll now proceed to give a sh ort description of Dr. Thomson's t heoryand also a brief sketch of his life, which we think will not beun inter esting to our readers, and n ot without pr ofit to th em.

"Let u s, th en, be up an d doing,

With a h eart for a ny fat e;St ill achieving, still pu rsuing,

Learn to labour an d to wait."

DR. THOMSON'S THE ORY.

Clear ly to un derst an d t he laws of life an d m otion, t he r adical pr inciplesof animalisation is of infinite moment. Without some adequate viewsand conception of these, the nature of disease cannot be correctlyun derst ood, neither can we ha ve knowledge to prescribe a ra tiona l, safe,

sure, and certain remedy for the removal of disease when found in thehuma n system.

Through many long and tedious seasons, he remarks, these subjectsrevolved in my mind before I could form what I consider a correctopinion. I witnessed m an y distr esses in t he family of ma n; my hea rt was



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pierced with many sorrows, until my mind was established in thosesimple tr ut hs t ha t ha ve laid th e foun dat ion of my pra ctice th at ha s beenso successful in subsequen t year s.

Persecution raged against meall the presses in the country were

closed against mepriests, doctors, lawyers, and legislators werecombined against meex post facto laws were put inoperationprosecutions commenced false witnesses arosebigotry,prejudice and superstition, like Salem witchcraft, waved their magicwand, but all in vaintruth has prevailed. The darkness of the ancientphilosophers is passing away, and these simple truths, which are thegenuine philosophy of life, an d t he fru its of th e labour s of my life, beginto prosper beyond my form er expecta tions.

Among those physicians called regular I have found many whoappeared to be as ignorant of the laws of life and motion and how thefunctional powers of life are kept in operation, as though theythemselves had never possessed an animal body, nor yet correctlyunderstood a philosophical reason for the cause of life and motion in allth at lives an d moves.

Fire an d air a re properly the fluids th at pervade and fill an d actua te th eliving animal; their operation is life the elementary principles of lifewhich keep the animal machine in motion. Where heat is extinct theanimal is dead. Heat and air combined are so modified in the livingmoving animal as to constitute a living state, and justify the assertion

that cold and inaction is a state of death, or rather death itself, and aspecific degree of heat and motion so combined and modified is theessent ial pr inciple of life in th e living an imalyea, ra th er life itself.

Waiving all the minutiae of chemical divisions and sub-divisions insimplifying elementary combinations that constitute bodies dead orl iving, the four great original elements of air, earth, fire, and watercont ain an d compr ise all the more simple element s of which th ey may berespectively composed.

A specific association, due proportion, mixture, or combination of thesefour great elements, in an organic animal body, constitutes the livingstate, and prolongs life; an improper disproportion, combination, andmodification destroys life.

To illustrate the nature and cause of respiration or breathing of theFAMILY BOTANIC GUIDE - FOX - P ar t 1 - Pa ge 10

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living a nima l, we will refer t o th e opera tion of fire and wat er. Pu t a panof cold water on th e fire, in a few minu tes examine it by immer sing yourhand therein, you will perceive the first warmth of the water is on thetop or upper surface; the coldest water is at the bottom of the pan,nea rest to th e fire. The rea son is, as soon as it becomes wa rm it becomes

rarefied and lighter, and rises; just in proportion as it grows warm itbecomes active, until it is all in a fluttering, fluctuating, boiling state,and wastes by steam, sweat, or breath, perspiring or respiring, until itwill evaporat e. This shows th at hea t r ar efies an d lightens water .

The su bject ma y fur th er be illust ra ted by r eference to th e effect of heaton the atmospheric air. You build your house in the openatmospherethe house is filled with air withinthe air within is acoun ter balan ce or r esistan ce to the weight or power of th e sur roundingair without; the balance within and without is equal in coldness andinaction, resembling a state of death. To produce action, motion, orbreath, build a fire in the house, and, the doors and windows beingclosed in the usual manner, in a few minutes every door and windowbegins to hum and sound the march of air. The air within becomesrarefied and lighter than the air without; the air without presses in atevery crevice to rest ore or form an equilibrium with th e air with in; thehotter an d str onger t he fire, th e str onger will be the curr ent of breat h orforce of breathing airas the heat diminishes, the noise and breathingcur ren t of a ir will decline in force of operat ion, a nd th e noise an d m otionwill cease when t he fire becomes extinct, an d th e equilibrium is rest ored.

The effects of heat rarefying and lightening the water and air, andoccasioning a breat hing m otion, resem ble and illust ra te in some degreethe breathing, sweating, and functional motion of the animal machine.The const ituen t or component par ts of men's bodies give organ ic sha peand size, and form, and functional structure of organisation to thema chin e. The p eculiar mixtu re, composition, proport ion, or m odificat ionof th ese element s const itut e its a ptitu de or a dapt at ion t o th e an imalizinginfluence of fire, lightening air and exciting breathing motion;conn ected with th is origina l or p rima ry action, a ll evincing t ha t hea t isan essential principle of life, and that cold, or an extinction of heat, is

death.

A still-born child was resuscitated by placing the placenta, or after-birt h, on live embers , still conn ected with th e child by th e um bilical cordor navel string, and as the after-birth began to heat and had gainedwar mt h sufficient t o begin t o fill an d dilat e th e na vel cord with war mt h



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an d moistu re, it wa s str ipped towar ds th e body of th e child, an d th roughthis medium a sufficient degree of warmth was conveyed to the body,the lungs expanded and life was restored. This may serve in somemea sure t o illust ra te a nd confirm our ideas of life an d motion.

In everything that breathes the breathing is from the same generalcause. The principle of life and motion is radically the same in allan imated bodies. Without heat th ere is no breat hing; but when h eat iscontinually evolved in a confined room excepting at one avenue, as inth e lun gs, th ere must be breat hing, or, what is the sam e, an inhaling ofcold air, an d an exhaling of a ga seous vapour from t hem .

Every animated body has its proportion of caloric or heating principlesuited to its size, adapted to its nature, proportioned to that degree ofliving power requisite to keep up the operation of all the animalfun ctions essent ial to th e perpet ua ting of th e peculiar specific form an dmode of being in su ch a n a nima l.

The heat of animal fire, or that degree and condition of it thatconstitutes the living state of animalized existence is maintained andcont inued by a su itable supply of appr opriat e fuel, or m at erials th at ar enaturally adapted to that end or use; these are food and medicines.These harmonize with each other in their salutary effect or naturalinfluen ce on a nim al bodies.

Food and medicine originate from the same munificent Hand, grow in

the same field, and are adapted to the same end or design, viz., tosupply fuel to the fire of life to susta in an d nourish th e an imal ma chine,by warming, dilating, filling the vascular system, maintaining theaction and supplying the wasting powers of the living state. Medicineremoves disease, not only by removing obstructions, but by restoringan d repairing the wast e and decay of na tu re.

On t hese su pplies our life depends, viz., th e cont inua nce of th at sta te ofwarmth and action which constitutes the living state. When food ismasticated and taken into the stomach, the process of digestion

commences. By the warmth and action of the organs of digestion andthe gastric juices, the food is decomposed or consumed like fuelconsuming in a fire. The breath and respirable vapour are the smokearising from this fire. The foecal matter are as the ashes or earthlysubst an ce rema ining after t he consu mpt ion of fuel.



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To un dersta nd t he cau se and n at ur e of life an d death , or of warm th an dmotion, of cold and inaction, it is necessary to advert to generalprinciples and analogies of nature. There is one general cause of thenatural sensations of hunger, and one general method to relieve thatwant an d sat isfy and r elieve th at sensat ion.

In perfect accordance with this, there is but one immediate cause ofdisease. However var ied the r emote cau se ma y be, th e immediat e cau seof the sensation of disease is uniformly and invariably the same,differing only in degree and incidental diversity of symptoms;occasioned by local injuries, organic lesion, or functional derangement,dependent on th ese, or wha tever might pr edispose to a diseased st at e.

As there is one general cause of the sensation of hunger, to be relievedby one general method, viz., by food, and this food may consist ofsun dry ar ticles ada pted to the sam e genera l end, so th ere is one genera lor immediat e cau se of the sen sa tion of disease, to be relieved or r emovedupon one general principle, though a variety of articles may be used.But as a few simple articles of diet are better suited to maintain ahealthy state of body than an epicurean variety, so disease is morereadily and certainly removed by a few simple remedies that are bestadapt ed to the hum an constitut ion.

That medicine that will most readily and safely open obstructions,promote perspiration, and restore a salutary operation of the digestivepowers, by exciting and maintaining a due degree of heat and action

through the system, is best suited to every state or form of disease andmu st be un iversa lly applicable to a diseased sta te of th e hum an system.

Thus I have given as a summary view of the outlines of my conceptionsof the construction and elementary composition and constitution of thehuman body in a living state, whether healthy or diseased. The poweror faculty of breathing is a capacity or condition to be acted on witheffect, rather than any inherent power or faculty of acting. Heat,rarefying and lightening air and water, excites perspiration andrespiration; the vapour of breathing and sweat are produced and

thrown off.

By heating water in the stomach we lighten the air in and expand thelungsthe weight of the cool, condensed, and weightier external airpresses out the light and rarefied air; these circumstances of the livingstate of the animal body occasion the alternate contractions and



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dilations of the lungs that constitute the action of breathingindispensa ble to the living sta te.

By heat ing water in th e stoma ch a nd air in th e lun gs we put th e steamengine into operation. The operation of the animal machine strongly

resembles the mechanical operations of the steam engine. Some of thefun dam ent al pr inciples of action ar e t he sam e. In inspira tion, cool, freshair is inhaled; in respiration, the rarefied lightened air and vapour areexhaled out of or from the steam pipe. By this action, by which steam isexpanded, the whole machinery of the living animal is kept inoperationthe great fountain pump of the heart is kept in play andpum ps th e blood th rough th e lun gs and ar ter ies to th e extr emities, deepin the flesh and near the bone, which is returned in the veins. Thewarmth and action, commencing at the fountain, are propagatedth rough t he system to the r emotest extremities.

So long as t he fire keeps up t ha t st at e an d degree of warm th essential toth e living sta te of th e an ima l body or, to spea k figur at ively, so long a sthe fire is kept good in the boiler to keep the engine at workso longth e pum p will go.

Our regular meals supply regular fuel to keep up animal heat, as theregular tea sing an d ten ding a fire with coal will keep it bu rn ing. Drinksupplies the boiler with water, which creates the steam : condensedwater is discha rged through its n at ur al cha nn el.

On these principles of the philosophy of life we may expect 'o. regularwell-formed machine to continue its operation until worn out or brokenby the indiscretion an d bad ma na gement of th e engineers.

If the machine be entrusted to the management of an ignorant,incompeten t en gineer, who ha s n o corr ect conception of th e pr inciples oflife and motion, and is negligent in the discharge of his duty, yoursteamboat, if I may so spea k, will begin t o fail in its speed for la ck of fuelto keep up t he fire and wa ter t o supply th e steam ; or t he engineer m ayconclude th at cholera affects th e ma chin e an d will cas t ice int o th e boiler

to keep it down, or tap the boiler as a preventive or remedy, and drawoff the hot waterhis boat begins to sink rapidly down stream. This isoften done by th e lancet.

If you would k eep your st eam boat 's steam breath motions going on, keepup a supply of water in the boiler, and a supply of fuel to keep it



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sufficiently warm; raise the steam, and the action of life will proceedregularly.

Concerning the doctrine of vital principle diffused through the wholeorgan ic str uctur e of th e an imal ma chine, we would just observe th at th is

subject h as em ployed th e minds and pen s of ma ny ta lented writer s, whoha ve cast but little valuable light upon th e int ricat e them e.

When we ar e ask ed what const itut es a living fibre, we might as well askwhat constitutes any other property of living matter. What constitutesth at in wh ich t he life of a lea f or s tem of a living tr ee cons ists ? Wha t canwe reason but from what we know? Every living thing has somethingpeculiar to th e na tu re of life with wh ich it is endowed in t he living sta te,whether vegeta ble or an imal; but a living an imal ha s h eat an d motion.Without this animal heat and motion, the animal dies. Without a dueproportion of heat, inward and outward, or outward and inward, thereis no an imal motion no an imal life.

Warmt h an d a ction do not const itute an imal life in u norgan ised m at ter.They do not constitute animal life without an organised animalstr uctur e, to which hea t gives the impu lse applied to an d conn ected withthe animal structure. Caloric, or the principle of heat rarefying andlightening air, excites action; which circumstance of being constitutesan imalizat ion or th e living st at e.

Fire an d steam a re necessar y to propel a steam-boat ;

but, notwithstanding the capacity or adaptation of the mechanicalstructure to be propelled, the boat will not go until the fire is kindledan d steam ra ised to put it in motion.

The animal body is the machine so constructed, so modified, endowedwith such capacity of lifecall it vital principle, or what youpleasethat heat rarefying and lightening air, stimulating andexpanding th e lungs, puts th e ma chinery in motion, an d pum ps th e tideof life through all its crimson channels. This combination of

circum sta nces const itut es t he living st at e of the living an imal; for wherethese circumstances do not exist, there is no animal lifethe animalform is dead.

Suppose a m an , in all th e vigour of life, falls into th e wat er a nd sinks, ina few minutes h e is ta ken out appar ently dead; th e warmt h a nd motions



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of life, if not ext inct, ar e a t a low ebb. As soon as you can kindle up th edecayed spark, and restore inward heat by medicine, friction, or anyappropriate means, if the capacity for the action of life is not utterlyextinct, an en ergy is given to th e system, th e air in h is lungs, becomingwarm, rarefies and expands, and heaves them into actionthe

machinery begins to movethe wheels of life no longer wallow in backwaterthe proper state and proportion of heat, inward and outward, isrecoveredna tu re r ises to its wont ed str ength an d vigour .

All that is requisite in such a case is to supply fuel to raise the latentspark of the fire of life. The same holds good in a collapsed state ofdisease, wheth er it a ppears in a cholera form or what ever sh ape it m aywear. The vascular system loses its wonted tonethe whole system issinkingthe power of life is unable to distend and expand thelungsthe heart and arteries no longer propel their contents bymaintaining the requisite action. The spark of life is becomingextinctthe water that should breathe, exhale, and perspire away,becomes condensed, and extinguishes the sparks of living fire. Thecoolness and weight of the external air are too much for the smalldegree of heat remaining in the lungs, heart, &c.; the power of life, orrather the power or capacity to live, to keep the powers of animal life inth eir war m a nd m oving or living sta te, becomes m easu ra bly extinct. Forlack of heat the air in the lungs is not rarefied and lightened so as togive th e necessa ry a ction, &c.

In this case shield the sufferer from surrounding cold air by wrapping

him in a blanket, placing him warm in bed, and gradually raising asteam around him. Administer gradually, frequently, and perseveringlyth e war ming m edicines, an d give injectionswhich all a cqua inted withmy system will readily understand proceed until you can gain asufficient degree of inward heat to expand freely, to rouse the sinking,fainting, I might say, drowning patient, to a proper degree of warmthand action. When you have pursued a proper course, he will sweatfreely; and when he craves for food, give him enough to keep up thesteam. The pump of life will begin to work freely, and the patient torejoice in t he war mt h a nd a ction a rising from th e resu scitat ed powers of

depar ting life.

Much has been said about drawing the breath; but the fact is youcannot keep the breath air out so long as there is a due degree ornatural proportion of heat in the lungs; neither can you prevent themotion of the pump-like action of your heart. But when the heart



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decays, or a state of living warmth declines, the lungs begin to labourlike a wheel wading slowly in back water. The pump has not power toroll the blood along the arterial canals the pulse falterstheextremities grow coldthe blood that maintained the warmth by itsactive circulat ion recedes from t he extremities. There is not h eat enough

at the fountain or boiler to keep up the steam and continue the livingaction; blood settles in the veins, not being supplied and propelled bythe pulsation in the arteriesthe fire becomes extinctthe pump nolonger plays at the fountain; the man dies * * * for want of breathforwant of capacity to breatheor because the inward heat is reducedbelow the living point. The proper and natural proportion andmodificat ion of th e inwar d an d out war d hea t, as t hey exist in t he livingan ima l, become der an ged, dest royed, and life is extinct. The disea se is ascont agious as th ough t he m an ha d been * * * han ged or drowned.

The regular faculty are requested to inquire whether the depletingantiphlogistic practice that has been popular and notoriously mortal inits results has not been the cause of producing much disease, and manyof the most fatal results that have attended on what has been calledscarlet fever, yellow fever, cold plague, and now cholera.

In conclusion I would remark that the cause of vegetable and animallife are the same, viz., one common principle produces similar effects;nutritive life in animals and vegetables bear a striking resemblance toeach othervegetables, like animals, are constituted or formed of thefour great cardinal elements. All vegetable life is under the control,

influence, and operation of similar principles as that of an animal.Without earth, water, fire, and air, nothing like vegetation could exist.The winter season is a st at e of deat h t o vegeta tion; just in proport ion t othe loss of heat is that peculiar modification of elementary combinationthereof that constitutes the living state of a vegetable. This is a degreeof deat h, or a degree of th e su spension of an imal life. In m an y insta ncesth e suspens ion is tota l.

In cold coun tr ies, after th e wint er h as passed awa y, an d spring retu rn s,suspended vegeta tion a nd su spended anima tion a re a gain r estored; th e

torpid reptile again inhales the breath of life. Heat in this case is notonly an agent of restoration to life and vigour, but is so adapted to thecondition of the being on which its influence is exerted, as to constitutea living principle. So, on the other hand, cold is not only anapproximation to death, but that degree of cold which is inconsistentwith an d cont ra ry to th e living sta te, is deat h its elf.



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Heat does not act alone and independent of its fraternal elements, butin harmony and accordance with the whole family; but without theirelder brother there is no life in the material universe. The elementswould rest in everlasting silence and inactivity if destitute of this

genera tive pr inciple of life and motion.

Abstract the element of fire from the other elements, stillness andsilence would be universalthe life of all that breathes and moveswould be swallowed up in the stillness of eternal death. Earth and seawould be an d rem ain a solid, unm oving, an d imm ovable mass : th e fluidair would be consolidated to the flinty hardness of the diamond on itsna tive rock; crea tion would be a blank ; an dher e I pause !

A BRIE F SKETCH OF TH E LIF E OF DR. SAMUEL THOMSON.

After things, events are most interesting to our minds; there is nothingon earth so great as man, and no events more interesting than thehistories of great men .

The standard of true greatness is the joint amount of good done anddifficulty overcome.

While governed by this rule, and looking over the histories ofphysicians, whet her of an cient or m odern times, we find n one t ha t claimour at ten tion before Sa mu el Thomson.

It seems that his father was one of those hardy and enterprisingpioneers who, infatuated with the love of improving the borders of thewilderness, have so much distinguished Americans.

He r emoved from Massa chu sett s with h is youn g fam ily int o th e newestsettlements of New Hampshire, and there, about one year afterwards,in the town of Albany, County of Cheshire, and State of NewHampshire, on the 9th of February, 1769, Samuel Thomson was born.It would seem, accord ing to th e comm on view, he h ad t o cont end a gains t

almost every possible disadvantage to a life of science. His parentspoorin t he wildern ess th ree miles from th e nea rest sett lement calledat four to the occupation of the farmspending his youth in clearingthe forest and subduing the earthattending school but one month. Atnineteen, with his father, plunging again into the wilderness on OnionRiver, Vermontyet, through all these privations to intellect, we



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discover the gleaming of a transcendant genius, which at length brokefort h a nd sh one a bove the light s of science in th e western hem isphere.

That specific talent for medical botany which beamed with unwaningsplendour at threescore and ten peeped out with a precocious light at

th e ear ly age of four . It was th en, when one day in t he fields in pu rsu itof the cows, that he discovered and made an experiment upon thesensible quantities of the far-famed lobeliaan experiment which heoften repeated upon his companions, until his natural impulse foroperating upon living bodies led him to discover it was a most powerfulmeans of rem oving disease. At th e age of eight , he says, " I ha d at th attime a very good knowledge of the principal roots and herbs to be foundin th at part of th e coun tr y, with th eir n am es and medical uses; an d th eneighbours were in the habit of getting me to go with them to showthem such roots and herbs as the doctors ordered to be made use of insyru ps, &c.; an d, by th e way of sport , they used to call me doctor." Itwas fortunate for Thomson's enquiring mind that in early life he waspr ivileged with th e society of one of th ose n oble an d ben evolent women ,so often despised, a doctoress in roots and herbs, to whom the familywas much attached, there being no other physician within ten miles.This was Mrs. Benton, who, with a bosom flowing with the "milk ofhuman kindness," used to take little Thomson with her into the fieldsand woods and teach him the names of plants and their medical uses.Let her na me go down t o poster ity embalmed with honour , rememberedas the one who sowed the seeds of medical observation in the mostcongenial soil, from which has sprung the noble system which extends

its branches especially and most invitingly to the female. Let everymember of the sex imitate her example. Females are naturallyphysicians. May all mothers educate their sons in the wisdom ofpreserving health, and their daughters in the angelic art of relievingth e a fflicted .

At the age of sixteen Thomson's medical knowledge had attracted somu ch a tt ent ion t ha t h is paren ts t alked of sending him to live with a rootdoctor. Although he was naturally industrious, yet the pent-up fires ofgenius filled him with an indefinable am bition, an d ma de him ill at ease

in h is occupat ion. "I took a grea t d islike," says he, "to work ing on a far m,and never could be reconciled to it." When the prospect of becoming aphysician had given an object to his vague and smothered ambition, hewas filled with delight, but only to be disappointed; for soon after hisparents said he had not learning enough, besides they could not sparehim. This, in his own language, made him very un ha ppy, an d depressed



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his mind with a feeling which they only who have experienced it canremember, but never tell.

By industry the family had acquired a small property, and at the age oftwent y-two we find Th omson with a far m an d family of his own.

Thomson had been all the while collecting his favourite knowledge, andhis h ouse wa s well supplied with vegetable medicines, alth ough he h adno design of becoming a physician. But it so happened that some of hisfamily were five times given up as incurable, and he by his simplemeans each time succeeded in restoring them. In one instance thephysician had left his little daughter to die of scarlet fever. Thomsonthen took the case into his own hands, and, as if acting by intuition, hetook the child upon his lap, covered her and himself with a blanket,while he directed his wife to make a steam of vinegar beneath them,and he kept up the internal heat with warming drinks. In this way hesoon relieved the little sufferer, and, continuing the treatment about aweek, cur ed her .

Such was the commencement of steaming in the Thomsonian practice;likewise it was in his own family that he tasted the nature of lobelia,established the use of stimulants as a triumphant means of curingfever, and of astringents in removing the canker or aphthae from thealimenta ry can al, and dem onst ra ted t he ent ire inut ility of poisons.

These inst an ces of su ccess in his own fam ily soon began to be noticed by

his neighbours, and those who could get no relief from the physiciansappea led to him. This called his att ent ion so much from his far m t ha t h eresolved to give it u p and adopt medicine a s a profession.

The first two patients that he was called to attend, of which he hasgiven us a history, present a complete picture of his ensuing life.Successful in curing, yet treated with contempt, paid with ingratitudeand perplexed with the ignorance of his patients respecting theconditions on which health is to be obtained, nothing was able todiscour age him. It seems t ha t obstru ctions in his way only ena bled him

to ascend upon a higher r oad to glory.

At th is sta ge of life, he says, "After I h ad determ ined to ma ke a businessof med ica l pra ctice, I foun d it n ecessa ry t o fix upon some syst em or planfor my future government in the treatment of disease." This hiscapacious mind furnished him at once, and he struck out a system



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which the experience of well over one hundred years has only served toconfirm.

Like the immortal Linnaeus, who invented a system of botany thatshould govern all future discoveries within that kingdom, he says, " I

deemed it necessary, not only as my own guide, but that whateverdiscoveries I m ight ma ke in m y pra ctice might be so ada pted t o my planth at my whole system might be easily taught to oth ers, and preservedfor th e ben efit of the world."

In th e langua ge of his ent erprising son Cyru s, "We must ha ve no theorythat cannot be carried out." This theory applies to all diseases withoutexception.

When Thomson arose Cullen's authority was at the head of medicalscience. How great the difference between these two physicians!Thomson's theory always corroborated and never contradicted hispractice. Not so with Cullen's. He held that all fevers were preceded bydebility, yet bled t o cur e th em! Thomson held th at th ey were caused bydeficiency of hea t, of vital force, and increa sed t his power t o cur e them .

It is testified that " Cullen was feeble and hesitating at the bedside ofth e sick." Thomson says of him self, " I am convinced th at I possess a giftin hea ling becau se of th e extr aordina ry su ccess I h ave met with."

Look at his theory, and who will deny that it corresponds with nature?

"I foun d," says he, " th a t a ll anim al bodies were form ed of four elements .The earth and water constitute the solid; and air and fire, or heat, areth e cau se of life an d motion; th at cold, or lessen ing th e power of hea t, isth e cau se of all disease; th at to restore heat to its n at ur al sta te was t heonly way that health could be produced, and that, after restoring thenatural heat, by clearing the system of all obstructions and causing anatural perspiration, the stomach would digest the food taken into it,an d heat or n at ur e be ena bled to hold her supr emacy."

When we consider that repeated bleeding, expectoration, and other

evacuations thin the blood and prepare the way for their continuance,producing lassitude, debility, and death; and that all this is ended by adiminution of solids and an increase of the fluids in proportionor, inthe more analytic words of our author, a diminution of the earth andincrea se of th e wat er how can we blam e him for sa ying th at a st at e ofperfect hea lth ar ises from a due ba lance of th e four elemen ts? But if it is



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by any mea ns des tr oyed, th e body is more or less dest royed.

When we consider a lifeless body, and find that the earth, and water,an d air a re th ere, but th at th e heat is gone, how can we blame him forsaying th at , to our agency at least, hea t is life an d cold is deat h?

With this theory and a new and unheard-of system of medicine,Thomson wen t fort h in th e pra ctice of hea ling aga inst th e world. In t heyear 1805 we find him in practice in his native and neighbouringtowns, when a fearful epidemic prevailed, supposed to be the yellowfever. The regulars lost about one half of their patients, and he lostnone.

After th is he cont inu ed his practice in th e various chr onic diseases of th ecountry. Consumption, bleeding at the lungs, fevers, dysentery,dropsies, cancers, fits, &c., seemed to yield before his skill as by a newan d m agic power.

In 1806 we find h im ent ering th e city of New York , with th e tr ue sp iritof Hippocrates, to investigate the nature of the yellow fever; and hefoun d it t o yield before h is rem edies like a ny other disease.

On returning again to his home, he found his character defamed by theslanders of a neighbouring physician. Attempting a defence, he wasfoiled by intr igue an d per jury; and, woun ded in h is feelings, he resolvedto give up his ungrateful neighbours to their fashionable doctor, upon

which he tells the following serious story :

" A curse seemed to follow them and his practice, for the spotted feverbroke out in this place soon after, and the doctor took charge of thosewho had sided with him against me, and if he had been a butcher andused t he kn ife th ere could not ha ve been more destru ction a mong them .Two men who swore falsely in his favour, and by whose means he gothis cause, were amongst his first victims; and of the whole that heattended, about nine-tenths died. He lost sixty patients in the town ofAlstead in a short t ime.

"I attended the funeral of a young manone of his patientswho hadbeen sick but twenty-four hours, and but twelve under the operation ofhis medicine. He was as black as a blackberry, and swelled so tha t it wasdifficult to screw down the lid of the coffin. When I went into the roomwhere the coffin was, the doctor followed me, and gave directions to



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have the coffin secured, so as to prevent the corpse from being seen. Heth en began t o insult m e, to att ra ct t he a tt ent ion of th e people.

"He said to me, 'I understand you have a patent to cure such disordersas that,' pointing to the corpse. I said 'No,' and intimated at the same

time wha t I t hought of him. He put on a n a ir of import an ce, an d said tome, Wha t can you kn ow about medicine? You ha ve no learnin g; youcannot parse a sentence in grammar.' I told him that I did not knowthat grammar was made use of in medicine; but if a portion of it is somu ch like the ap plicat ion of ra tsba ne a s appea rs in t ha t corpse, I shouldnever wish t o kn ow th e use of it. This u nexpected a pplicat ion of wha t hesaid displeased the medical gentleman very much, and finding' thatmany of the people present had the same opinion that I had, irritatedhim so much that he threatened to horsewhip me; but I told him hemight do as he pleased, providing he did not poison me with hisgrammar."

Those only who have experienced the sorrows common to originalgenius can imagine what were the feelings of Thomson as he turnedaway from the ridicule and base ingratitude of the people of his nativetown, among whom he had practised five years without losing a singlepatient, to seek for occupation amid the cool indifference of unenvyingstrangers.

After collecting a supply of medicines on Plumb Island, at the mouth ofthe Merrimack River, we next find him attending the wife of a Mr.

Osgood, at Salisbury, Mass., who was given over to die of a lung feverby Dr. French. Thomson performed a cure in about twenty-four hours,which gained him much credit with the people, and laid a lastingenmity between him a nd Dr. Fr ench.

At this time also we find him making his first pupil practitioner, Mr.Ha le, an intelligent m an , a chem ist and dispenser of miner al medicines.But he renounced them, and soon found himself usefully employed inThomson's pra ctice; th is might well be cons idered a s a hopeful pr esagingof th e tr ibut e th at science was to pay to his system in after years .

Next we find him introducing the practice in Jericho, Vermont. In thefollowing autumn a mortal disease afflicted this town in the form ofdysentery. Out of twenty-two patients the physicians had lost twenty.The people were alarmed, and, holding a consultation, concluded tosend for Thomson, who was t hen at home in New Ha mpsh ire.



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He soon ar rived, an d, conferring with th e select men who had char ge ofthe sick, was furnished with two assistants, and in the course of threedays commenced practice upon thirty patients, all of whom recoveredexcepting t wo, who were dying when h e first saw t hem .

What a t riumph an t victory was her e! Taking the n am e of th e town as ahint, one cannot help associating it with the spying out and eventualtr iumph of J oshu a a t J ericho of old.

After th is he pra ctised with h is usu al success in severa l places, an d th enret ur ned t o Salisbur y; an d alth ough h e was often called to intr oduce thepractice at other places, yet he made this place a sort of home, andpra ctised with such su ccess am ong th e incur able patient s of th e regularsth at th ey becam e alarm ed, an d, Dr. Fr ench ta king the lead, resolved todestr oy him.

After attempting to decoy Thomson to his house, and failing, he nextpublicly swore that he would blow out his brains if he came into hisneighbourhood; at the same time saying he was a murderer and hecould prove it. To defend his character, Thomson caused an action to bebrought against this tiger-like doctor for his threats, which resulted inhis being boun d over to keep t he pea ce;

and another for defamation, in which perjury and the influence of thedoctors pr evailed aga inst Thomson.

The counsel for French inquired of the judge if Thomson was not liableto arrest, to which he answered in the affirmative. This paved the waymore completely for the malice of Dr. French, who afterwards procuredan indictm ent for wilful mu rder against Thomson.

Soon after the above-mentioned trial he had the misfortune to lose apat ient un der t he following circum sta nces :He wa s called t o att end ayoung man, Mr. Lovett, who was in a fever, with very unfavourablesymptoms. Thomson improved him so much that in two days he went

out, exposed himself, and was taken much worse. Thomson was againcalled, but found the patient past cure, and then two regulars werecalled, who attended about twelve hours, when he died. For thisThomson was arrested as a murderer, put in irons, carried toNewburyport jail, confined in a dungeon, cold, filthy, and filled withvermin, without a fire, in the month of November, and without the



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prospect of a t rial for nea rly a year.

Thomson had established the fame of his practice in the cities ofPortsmouth, Newburyport, Salem, and the adjoining villages, so thatma ny powerful friends r ush ed to his rescue; but am ong th ose th ere was

none more distinguished than the grateful and indefatigable JudgeRice, whom he had cured of a dangerous fever. This gentlemanprocur ed a special session of th e cour t, an d assisted Th omson in h is tr ial,by which he was honourably acquitted, after having been about onemonth in prison.

In a subsequent prosecution of Dr. French for abuse and slander whilehe was a prisoner, the defendant went about and took depositionswherever Thomson had lost a patient, but found only eight, Lovettincluded. These he brought forward in the trial as charges of murder,and although Thomson proved that they were incurable when he firstsaw them, or given up by the doctors to die, yet the court decidedagainst him, and F rench was permitted to call him a mur derer.

Such is the value, of Courts to an enterprising genius when he mustwage his way against t he int erests of a popular pr ofession, an d such th egra tit ude of th e world t o one of its grea test benefactors.

In these troubles Thomson lost in five years as many thousand dollars,but noth ing could discour age his onwar d way.

Passing over, as we do, many of the minor events of his history, wehave next to notice the conduct of one of his first agents. He hadestablished an office and a flourishing practice in Eastport, into whichhe put a youn g man whom he ha d ra ised from poverty an d sickn ess. Hewas to have half the profits; but, not content with this, he usurped thewhole, and also offered the knowledge of his system to all who wouldbuy of him .

At th e sam e time th ere was a petition sent to the legislat ur e to preventqua ckery, in wh ich Th omson was n am ed.

These difficulties a t length induced him to go to Washingt on an d obta ina pa ten t for his discoveries, which he a ccomplished in 1813.

This added a new stimulus to his enterprise, and under the patent thesale of rights began to spread the knowledge of his system throughout



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the United States. An instance of their utility, with another astonishingtr iumph of the p ra ctice, occur red in 1816. Thomson wen t to Cape Cod tocollect medicines, and found the people dying for want of them. Thespotted fever, or cold plague, as it was called, had broken out, and wasvery mort al. The sm all village of Ea sth am lost fort y-six in th ree m ont hs.

Thomson cured a number, sold the right to two men, and offered theright of the whole town for the price of twenty, but it was not accepted,as the fever was declining. He then returned home, but was soon afterrecalled with the greatest haste, for the disease had broken out withredoubled violence.

He soon found enough to buy the twenty rights, gave them instructionsin pu blic lectu res, an d, with th e people to ass ist, Thomson and t he firsttwo right -holders a tt ended t hirt y-four cases, a nd lost but one, while theregular s lost eleven out of twelve. These facts ar e att ested by th eminist ers, th e select m en, just ices of th e peace, and postmast ers.

But it was simply done : ignorant people could understand it, and theregular s h ave u niform ly despised it th ere a re a few noble exceptions.Thomson in t ur n, with th e design of preser ving his system in its pu rity,ha d forbidden h is agents to sell his rights a nd books t o regular s or t heirstudents.

Thu s, from a two-fold necessity, the system ha d t o go int o the h an ds ofcomparatively ignorant men. Many of these in the course of time andexperience became distinguished physicians, and, forming into societies

in the various states, established fixed rules for the education ofstudents. These in turn have contributed to advance the standardmedical kn owledge among th em, an d now we have a profession with a sgreat and varied att ainment s as the regulars.

It is now a very common saying, made to our better class ofpractitioners" Your system, I believe, is a very good one, but it hasbeen injured by everyone going into it who did not understand thehu ma n system." They condem n th e ignoran ce of our ear ly pra ctitioner s:let them carry out their principles. Not one-seventh of our physicians

have so extensive a knowledge of anatomy, chemistry, &c., as theregular s. Say to th ese two th ousa nd pra ctitioner s, " Stop your laboursan d go to college." Wha t would be th e consequen ce? Thousa nds mus t diewhile they ar e gett ing an addition t o th e kn owledge not worth so mu chas a penn y to a dollar compa red t o wha t t hey already kn ow.



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But the knowledge of this system must eventually become publicproperty, and thus the basis of a most exalted medical science; nothanks, however, to those who would keep the practice in their ownhands.

Already more t ha n one h un dred regular m edical men ha ve embra ced it.About a dozen periodicals are published in its support. It numbers twocollegesone in Ohio and one in Georgia. According to the estimate ofDr. Waterhouse, Thomson lived to see three millions of his owncountrymen bless the day that he was born. He lived, too, to see hissystem carried into the old hemisphere, and in gold medals receive thecomplimen ts of the kings of Eu rope.

He who shall attempt to rob him of his hard-earned honours mustsubmit his own name to be " scathed with lightenings of publicindigna tion " by th e people of comin g ages.

What if it should appear th at th e vapour bath ha d been u sed before inth e rem ote pa rt s of Eu rope? What if it sh ould be proved th at lobelia ha dbeen previously used by certain Indian tribes? What if cayenne hadbeen mentioned in some medical works? If Thomson learned theseth ings by his own experience, ar e th e discoveries an y less h is? Echo onlyanswers.

To have been no more than the discoverer of the emetic virtues oflobelia sh ould h ave distinguished h is na me :

To have only laid the basis of the system for others to complete shouldhave made him great :

Or, completing it, to have left it to others to demonstrate and makepopular should ha ve ma de him imm ort al:

But to have discovered the elements of a materia medica, to haveformed them into a system, governed it by a theory, holding all in hisown hands with a strength and perseverance common only to a giant

intellect, and br inging it t o bear with overwhelming su ccess against th eworld of perverted and perverting regulars, has placed the name ofThomson on one of the loftiest and most unapproachable pinnacles offame.

OPINIONS OF THE LEARNED.Dr. Waterhouse, for twenty yearsFAMILY BOTANIC GUIDE - FOX - P ar t 1 - Pa ge 27



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professor of the theory and practice of medicine in the University ofCambridge, Mass., regarded in Europe as a philosopher, and a memberof many distinguished societies, in a letter to Dr. Samuel Thomson,writes thus:" I remain firm in the opinion that. you were thediscoverer of the remarkable medicinal virtues of the Lobelia Inflata;

that you were the originator of the compound process, very extensivelykn own un der th e title of th e Thomsonian pr actice or system ; I mean th euniting the vapour bath with the cleansing of the whole alimentarycanal.

" I value it on this account. It effects in three or four days what regularphysicians used to occupy as m any w eeks to accom plish . Your discoveryis highly valuable, an d on t his a ccoun t it was t ha t I spoke so freely andstrongly in commendation of the new practice and was not ashamed toha il you a s a REF ORMER."

Again, in a letter to Dr. Thomson, jun r., he writes t hu s :" Ha d not t hetheory and practice of your father been founded in Truth and N ature, i tcould not have maintained its reputation thus far, but would long sincehave been swept into nonentity; yet amidst opposition, and evenpersecution, Dr. Samuel Thomson has had the solid satisfaction ofknowing tha t Time has increased his reputation an d impar ted firmnessto a pra ctice hith ert o un hea rd of am ongst us. I pronoun ce him aPUBLIC BENEFACTOR."

Thomas Hearsy, for forty years a regular practitioner and a surgeon in

the United States Army during the last war, elected surgeon-extraordinary to the Petersburg Volunteers and Major Stodard'sArtillery, one of the founders of the Western Medical Society ofPennsylvania, and lastly a distinguished Thomsonian author andeditor, in a lett er to Dr. Thomson, writes t hu s :

" My practice has been extensivemy experience and opportunity forobservat ion h as seldom been exceeded;

but I venture to pledge myself upon all I hold sacred in the profession,

that, in my estimation, the discoveries of your honoured father have adecided preference, and stand unrivalled by all that bears the stamp of

AN CIEN T or MODER N skill."



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MATE R IA ME DIC A.

STIMULANTS.

PURE healthy stimulants are those substances which act in harmonywith the laws of nature, and, while they stimulate, do not affect thebrain to injure it, nor increase the pulsation beyond its naturalstandard. When taken they have a pungent taste, and, whenswallowed, impar t t o th e stomach a genial sensa tion of war mt h, which,un der favour able circumst an ces, produce per spirat ion.

The stimulants thus described will carry the requisite proportion ofblood to every part, or, in other words, restore an equal balance in thecirculation, and hence they may be employed safely and efficiently in

fever, inflammation, and in every state of congestion. They exert ahealthy a ction in th e system, without irritat ing the pa rt s t hey come incontact with, arousing the dormant energy of the nervous systemwithout der an ging th e an imal economy.

Food is a su fficient st imulan t in a hea lthy system , keeping th e wheels oflife in motion; but when from cau ses over wh ich we h ave n o cont rol, th efood fails to impr ess th e stomach in a hea lthy ma nn er, it is n ecessar y toresort to a stimulating medicine. Stimulants are indispensable in thetr eat men t of disease. Combe st at es th at five out of every eight poun ds ofsubst an ce taken int o th e system pass out of it again by th e skin, leavingonly th ree pound s t o pas s off by the bowels, lun gs, and k idneys; th us wesee a t once when t he skin is inactive, or t he circula tion feeble, th e bloodwill be cha rged with impurities; an d u nless stimulant s a re a dministeredto keep u p a determ ina tion of blood t o th e su rface of th e body, to let outth e impurit ies, disease is sur e to creep in ; or if th e blood r ecedes from t hesurface, leaving the skin pale, cold, and contracted, as in cholera,stimu lant s ar e necessar y to bring th e blood to the su rface, or dea th willbe the result. In contending for the use of stimulants we do notrecommend the use of acrid or narcotic poisonous stimulants, or thesuccess of our practice would be no better than that of the allopathic

physicians.

Opium is a stimulant, but it is a narcotic also; and not only does itstu pefy th e bra in, but in lar ge doses occas ions convulsions an d deat h.

Tartar emetic is one of the poisonous stimulants used largely by theFAMILY BOTANIC GUIDE - FOX - P ar t 1 - Pa ge 29



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medical profession; it produces a morbid condition of the stomach, andnot u nfrequent ly gives rise t o inflamm at ion.

Phosphorus is a dangerous stimulant, and produces a variety ofdan gerous symptoms.

Alcohol holds a conspicuous place amongst narcotic stimulants. Inhealth its effects are giddiness, confusion of thought, delirium, vertigo,stu pidity, heada che, sickness an d vomiting.

Dr. Christain relates the case of a young man in Paris who died fromdrinking brandy in a large quantity for several days in succession; andon examination after death his stomach was found to be in a state ofmortificat ion a nd th e whole of th e sma ll int estines were in th e incipientsta te of inflamm at ion.

If su ch effect s a re pr oduced in h ealt hy ind ividu als by the u se of alcohol,it is the height of madness to recommend it as a medicine in case ofsickness; it may rouse the energies of an exhausted system for themoment, bu t will soon be followed by drowsiness, stu por an d dea th .

C AYE N N E C a p s i cu m M in i m u m .

S tim ulan t, cath artic, rubefacient.

Capsicum is the botanical name of a large genus or family of plantswhich grow in various countries, as Africa, SouthAmerica, and the East and West Indies. We use onlythe African bird pepper, as it retains its heat longerin the system than any other, and is the beststimulant known. It has a pungent taste, whichcontinues for a considerable length of time; whentaken into the stomach it produces a pleasantsensation of warmth, which soon diffuses itselfthroughout the whole system, equalising the

circulat ion. H ence it is so useful in inflamm at ion an dall diseases which depend upon a morbid increase ofblood in any particular part of the body. According toanalysis, cayenne consists of albumen, pectin (apeculiar gum), starch, carbonate of lime, sesquioxideof iron, phosphate of potass, alum, magnesia, and a



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reddish kind of oil. In apoplexy we have found it beneficial to put thefeet in hot water and mustard, and at the same time give half ateaspoonful of cayenne pepper in a little water. This treatment hascaused a reaction, taken the pressure of the blood from the brain, andby this means saved the patient. Some may ask, " Will it not produce

an inflam ma tory action?" We sa y decidedly not, for th ere is noth ingthat will take away inflammation so soon. We have used it in everystage of inflammation, and never without beneficial results. Mr. Brice,the well-known traveller, lays it down as a positive rule of health thatth e warm est dishes the n at ives delight in ar e th e most wholesome th atstrangers can use in the putrid climates of lower Arabia, Abyssinia,Syria, and Egypt. Marsden, in his history of Sumatra, remarks thatcayenne pepper is one of the ingredients of the dishes of the natives.The natives of the tropical climates make free use of cayenne, and donot find it injur ious. Dr. Wat kins, who visited t he West Indies, says t henegroes of those islands steep the pod? of the cayenne in hot water,adding suga r and t he juice of sour ora nges, an d drink t he t ea when sickor attacked with fever. It is very amusing to see the medical menprohibiting t he u se of cayenn e in inflam ma tory diseases a s per nicious, ifnot fatal, and yet we find them recommending it in their standardwork s for th e same diseases. Dr. That cher , in his Dispensa tory, says :"There can be but litt le doubt t ha t cayenn e furn ishes us with t he pur eststimulant that can be introduced in the stomach." Dr. Wright remarksth at cayenne ha s been given for pu tr id sore t hr oat s in t he West Indieswith the most signal benefit. Paris, in his Pharmacologia, says' that thesurgeons of the French Army have been in the habit of giving cayenne

to the soldiers who were exhausted by fatigue. Dr. Fuller, in his prizeessay on t he t rea tm ent of scar let fever, says :

"Powdered cayenne made into pills with crumbs of bread, and givenfour times a day, thr ee or four each time, is a most valuable stimu lant inth e last st age of th e disease, an d is a lso good in all cases of debility, fromwha tever cau se it ma y ar ise." Cayenn e given in h alf-tea spoonful doses,mixed with tr eacle an d slippery elm, at night, is a valuable remedy for acough . Bleeding of th e lun gs is easily checked by th e use of cayenn e an dthe vapour bath. By this means circulation is promoted in every part of

the body, and consequently the pressure upon the lungs is diminished,thus affording an opportunity for a coagulum to form around theruptured vessel. In advocating the use of cayenne, we do not wish it tobe un derst ood t ha t it will cur e everyth ing, nor do we recomm end it to betaken regularly, whether a stimulant is required or not. Medicinesought to be taken only in sickness. If persons take cold a dose of



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cayenn e tea will genera lly remove it, and by this m ean s prevent a largeam oun t of disease. It is an invaluable remedy in t he botan ic pra ctice.

LOBELIA (Her b a n d Seed )Lobel i a In f la t a .

Emetic, stimulant, expectorant, diaphoretic, antispasmodic, andsom etim es cath artic.

Lobelia Inflata is one of the most valuable herbs used in the botanicpractice. Much has been written as to whether this herb be a poison ornot. Pr actical experience which is far bett er t ha n th eoryha s pr ovedthat it is as harmless as milk, and instead of being a poison it is anantidote to poison. The analysis of its chemical constituents shew it to

contain an alkaloid lobelina and an acid lobelicacid, resin, wax, and gum; the seeds contain inaddition about 30 per cent. of fixed oil. We haveattended cases where poison has been given inmistake, and lobelia has had the desired effect ofdischarging the contents of the stomach. Medicalmen are often deluded by giving heed to mereopinions instead of noticing facts; but men whohave divested themselves of that which has beenta ught th em in th e medical schools ha vediscovered truth from error. Dr. Butler, who wroteabout lobelia in 1810, says: "It has been mymisfortune to be an asthmatic for about ten years,

and I have made trial of a variety of the usualremedies with very little benefit. The last time Ihad an attack it was the severest I ever

experienced; it continued for eight weeks. My breathing was so difficultthat I took a table-spoonful of the acid tincture of lobelia, and in aboutthree or four minutes my breathing was as free as ever it was. I tookanother in ten minutes, after which I took a third, which I felt throughevery pa rt of my body, even to th e ends of my t oes; an d since tha t time Ihave enjoyed as good health as before the first attack." We haveprescribed the acid tincture of lobelia inflata for whooping cough with

str iking success. There is no oth er m edicine t ha t so effectu ally frees t heair-passages of the lungs of their viscid secretions. As an emetic, we aresatisfied that it is as kind and destitute of all hazard as ipecacuanha,th ough it is more efficient ; an d we cons ider it one of the best rem edies inthe whole materia medica; and are confident the old women's storiesin the books (meaning the medical school books) to the contrary



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notwithstandingthat lobelia is a valuable, a safe, and a sufficientlygentle article of medicine; and we think the time will come when it willbe mu ch bett er a ppr eciat ed. Litt le, however, of its va lue, can be specifiedwith in t he compass of a s ingle sheet of paper. We not only give it t o ourpat ients, but ta ke it our selves when ever we h ave occas ion for a n em etic.

We can assure the public that. it can be used without apprehension ofdan ger; we ha ve given it to infan ts a few month s old. It t ends to removeobstr uctions from every par t of th e system, and is felt even to th e endsof the toes; it not only cleanses the stomach, but exercises a beneficialinfluen ce over every pa rt of the body; it is very diffusable, however, an drequires to be used with cayenne or some other permanent stimulant.The effects of lobelia ma y be compared to a fire m ade of shavings, whichwill soon go out unless other fuel be added; cayenne, therefore, may besaid t o keep alive th e blaze which th e lobelia h as kindled. We can beartestimony th at it is ha rmless when given in a proper ma nn er; we neversaw any evil effects, and our experience should be worth somethingwhen we say that we have sold in our practice upwards of one hundredpounds weight per year for seventy years past, which, according to thenotions of some m edical m en, would h ave been su fficient to poison one-half of the population of England. There is no other medicine that ishalf so effective as lobelia in removing the tough, hard, and ropyphlegm from ast hm at ic an d consu mpt ive persons. It is an ind ispensablemedicine in fevers, bilious, and long-standing chronic complaints. Wehave used it for deafness with good results. (See Index, " Deafness tocur e.") It is also useful in poultices to ass ist su ppur at ion. Ther e ar e somewriters who state that it will cure hydrophobia, if taken inwardly and

applied exter na lly as well. The medical qu alities of this invalua ble herbare so multifarious that a large treatise might well be written on itscurative powers. Suffice it, however, to say that it is a general correctorof the whole system, innocent in its nature, and moving with thegeneral spirits. In healthy systems it will be silent and harmless. It isfully as well calculated to remove the cause of disease as food is toremove hunger; and it clears away all obstructions in the circulation,not regar dless of th e na tu re of th e disease.

B L O OD R O O T S a n g u i n a r i a Ca n a d e n s is .

Em etic, sedative, febrifuge, stim ulan t, resolvent, an d expectorant.

The root of a smooth herbaceous perennial plant, with white scentlessflowers growing profusely in the United States of America. Used indyspepsia, jaundice, liver, lung, and kidney affections; in small doses it



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stimu lates t he digestive organ s, and increases th e actionof the heart and arteries, acting as a stimulant andtonic; in larger doses it acts;is a sedative, reducing thepulse, and causing nausea and sweating, it increasesexpectorat ion, and stimu lates th e action of the liver. It is

a successful remedy in bronchitis, laryngitis, whoopingcough, and other affections of the respiratory organs.Also good in dyspepsia as a stimulant tonic, and as analternative in jaundice and rheumatism. As an externalapplication it has been found beneficial in ulcerationsand other offensive discharges, and when formed into

ointm ent ha s proved useful in eczema , herpes, an d oth er diseases of th eskin. It possesses escha rotic as well as ant iseptic properties, and is th usused to remove nasa l polypus; applied to the sur face of foul and in dolentulcers, it clean ses th em a nd disposes th em t o heal.

BRYONYBr yon ia Dio ica .

The fresh root of Bryonia Dioica, gathered before thetime of flowering. Used in rheumatic, arthritic, andcat ar rh al inflamm at ion, also in headache of a distr essingcharacter, hot and dusky, pain burning, stitching ortea ring, an d aggrava ted by motion. Pr epar at ion : FluidExtract. Dose : One to five drops, in a little cold water,two or t hr ee times each da y.

BLACK BRYO N YTa m u s Co m m u n i s .

This r oot is used to rem ove discolour at ion cau sed by bru ises on an y par tof the body, and soon cures black eyes. It is good also for pain in theface. Scrape a little of the root, and lay it on the part affected. It is alsoefficacious when taken internally, two or three times a day, inquantities about the size of a hazel nut, scraped small, for dropsy orgravel.

P R I C K L Y AS H Xa n t h o x y lu m A m e r i c a n u m .

S tim ulan t, tonic, alterative, an d astrin gent .

The Prickly Ash is a small tree, 10 or 12 feet in height, with alternatebran ches a nd st rong prickles; th e leaves ar e alterna te a nd pinna te. Thebark an d berries ar e th e par ts used in medicine. It warm s an d



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invigorates the stomach, is useful for coldhands and feet when the coldness isdependent upon a

sluggish circulation, it is an excellent

remedy in paralysis owing much of itscurative influence to its stimulating andalter at ive properties. The bark chewed willrelieve toothache. It may be taken ininfusion, but a tincture of the bark and

berr ies is th e better prepa ra tion. (See Tinctu re P rickly Ash.)

VIRGINIA SNAKE ROOTAr is to loch ia . Ser pe n ta r i a .

Stimulant, diaphoretic, tonic, and diuretic.

Pa rt used : th e root. Medically it is u sed in t yphoid, typhu s,scarlatina, chronic bronchitis, and pneumonia; it promoteselimination, sustains the flagging powers, assistsexpectoration and relieves pain in the back and kidneys.Pr epar at ions : Tinctu re, Compound Tinctur e, Fluid Extr act.Dose :

ten to thirty drops. The powdered root half a teaspoonfulwith half a teacupful of boiling water three times a day.Clear only to be ta ken.

GINGER Zin giber Offic ina l i s .

S tim ulan t, rubefacient, and diaph oretic.

This well-known root is indigenous to both the Eastand West Indies, and China; but the best quality isimport ed from J am aica. Ginger an alysed is foun d tocontain volatile oil, gum, starch, and soft pungentresin. Ginger has a pungent and aromatic taste. It is

used as an antispasmodic, a stomachic, and acar min at ive, an d is u seful in flatu lency, colic, debility,and laxity of the stomach; it is also a very goodsubstitut e for cayenn e. When ma de int o tea a nd dr an kwar m on going t o bed, it will relieve a su dden or s lightcold. Ginger sh ould n ever be boiled, as t ha t impairs its



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str ength . A pleasan t dr ink can be m ade in t he following man ner :Bestginger, bruised, two ounces; one pint of boiling water; let it stand in awarm place a sufficient length of time for the strength of the ginger tobe extr acted; th en s tr ain, a nd add one pound of loaf sugar dissolved bygentle heat; bottle when cold. This is a stomachic, cordial, and

carminative. A dessertspoonful taken five or six times a day, in a littlehot water, will relieve the stomach of wind, and prove useful for theabove en um era ted affections.

C L O VE S E u g e n i a C a r y o p h y lla t a .

Arom atic and stim ulant.

Cloves are the dried buds or unexpanded flowers of a beautifulevergreen tree called the Eugenia Caryophyllata which grows in theEast Indies and other tropical climates. Medical Properties and Uses :Cloves are a stimulant and aromatic astringent, and useful to allayna usea a nd vomit ing, to relieve flat ulen t colic, to improve digestion, as ahealthy st oma chic, and as an ast ringent , also valua ble as an ingredientin compoun ds for th e cur e of diar rh oea and dysen ter y. A litt le powderedcloves is often combined with other medicines to prevent them fromgriping or producing sickness at the stomach. Dose of the powder fromten to twenty grains, to be taken in a little hot water several times aday.

DIAP HOR ETICS AND SUDORIF ICSare medicines which, taken internally, increase the discharge by theskin. When this effect is produced in a great degree, so that sweat iscollected in drops on the surface of the skin, the medicines or meansemployed are designated sudorifics, between which and diaphoreticsthere is no difference, the operation being the same. Sudorifics anddiaphoretics m ay

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