EXPELLING THE D ISEASE-DEMON .

BUTLER 8: TANNER,

THE SELWOOD a '

rm c Worm s,

FROME, AND LONDON.

P REFA C E.

THE Hi story of Medic ine i s a term incognita to the general reader,and an all but untravelled region to the great majori ty of medical men .

On spec ial occas ions, such as Fi rst of October Addresses at the open ingof the Medical Schools , or the Oration s delivered before the variousMedical Soc ieties , certain periods of medical h i s tory are referred to,and a few of the great names of the founders of medical and surgicalscience are held up to the admi ration of the audience. From timeto time excellen t monographs on

‘ the subject appear in the Lancet andBr itish M edical journal . But with the except ion of these brill ian telectric flashes, the History of Medic ine is a dark con tinent to Engli shstudents who have not made long and tedious researches in our greatlibraries . For i t i s a remarkable fact that the Hi story of Medic ine hasbeen almost completely neglected by Engli sh writers . Thi s cannot bedue either to the wan t of importance or in terest of the subject . Nextto the h i story of religion ranks in in terest and value that of medic ine,and i t would no t be difficult to show that religion i tself cannot beunderstood in i ts developmen t and connect ions without reference to

medic ine . The priest and the physic ian are own brothers , and theHeal ing Art has always played an importan t part in the developmentof all the great c ivi l i sations . The modern sc i ence of An thropologyhas placed at the di sposal of t he h istorian of medic ine a great numberof facts which throw light on the medical theories of prim i t ive and

savage man . But mos t of these have hi therto remained uncollected,and are not eas ily accessible to the general reader.Although Engl ish writers have so strangely neglected th i s importan t

field of research,the German s have explored i t in the most exhaustive

manner. The great works of Sprengel, Haeser, Baas, and Puschmann,

amongst many others of the same class,sustain the claim that Germany

has created the Hi story of Medic ine, whilst the well-known but incom11

vi PREFACE.

plete treati se of Le Clerc shows what a great French writer could do tomake this term incogn ito in terest ing .

No t that Englishmen have en t irely neglected this branch of l i terature .

Dr. Freind, beginn ing with Galen’s period,wrote a History of Phy sic

to the Commencement of the Six teenth Century . Dr. Edward Meryon

commenced a History of M edicine, of wh ich Vol . I. on ly appeared

In spec ial departmen ts Drs . Adams,Greenh i ll

,Aikin

,Munk ,

Wise, Royle, and others have made importan t con tribut ion s to thel iterature of the subject ; but we have nothing to compare with th egreat German works whose authors we have ment ioned above . The

encyclopaedic work of Dr. Baas has been translated in to Engl ish byDr. Handerson of C leveland, Oh io .

Sprengel’s work i s translated in to French

,and Dr. Puschmann

’s

adm i rable volume on Medical Education has been given in Engl ish byMr. Evan Hare .

Non e of these important and interesting works,valuable as they

are to the professional man , are quite suitable for the general reader,who , i t seem s to the presen t writer, i s en t itled in these latter days tobe adm i tted with in the inner courts of the temple of Medical Hi story,and to be perm i tted to trace the progress of th e mystery of the Heal ingArt from i ts origin with the medic ine -man to i ts presen t abode in our

Medical Schools .With the except ion of an occasional note or brief reference in h i s

text-books of medic in e and surgery, the studen t of medicine has littleinducemen t to direct h i s atten t ion to the work of the great pioneers ofthe sc i ence he i s acquiring .

One consequence of th is defect in h is education i s man i fested in the

common habit of con s idering that all the best work of discoverers inthe Healing Art has been done in our own t imes . Hi story of medi

c ine exclaimed a hosp i tal surgeon a few mon ths s ince .

“ Why,there

was none t ill forty years ago Th i s habit of treating contemptuously the sc ient ific and ph ilosoph ical work of the past i s due toimperfec t acquaintance with, or absolute ignorance of

,the splendid

labours of the men of old t ime, and can on ly be remedi ed by devotingsome l ittle study to the records of travellers who have preceded us onthe same path we are too apt to th ink we have con structed for ourselves .Professor Billroth declared, “ that the great medical faculties should

make it a poin t of honour to take care that lectures on the history of

medicine are not m i ss ing in their curricula . And at several German

PREFACE. vii

un ivers it ies some steps in th i s direct ion have been taken . In England,

however— so far as I am aware— noth ing of the sort has been attempted,and a young man may attain the highest honours of h is profession withou t the ghost of an idea about the long and painful process throughwh ich i t has become possible for him to acquire h i s knowledge.

Says Dr. Nathan Davi s, 1 “A more thorough study of the h istory ofmedic ine, and in con sequence, a greater fam i l iari ty with the success ivesteps or stages in the development of i ts several branches, would enableus to see more clearly the real relat ions and value of any new fact

,

induct ion,or remedial agent that m ight be proposed . It would also

enable us to avoid a common error of regarding facts,proposit ion s, and

remedies presen ted under new names,as really new,

when they hadbeen well known and used long before, but in connect ion with othernames or theories .” He adds that, The on ly remedy for these popularand unj ust errors i s a frequen t recurrence to the standard authors of thepast generation

,or in other words, an honest and thorough study of

the h istory of medic ine as a necessary branch of medical education .

”

In these t imes,when no departmen t of sc i ence is h idden from the

un in it iated,espec ially when medical subjects and the works of medical

men are freely discussed in our great reviews and daily j ournals,no

apology seem s necessary for withdrawing the profess ional vei l andadm itt ing the laity beh ind the scenes of professional work .

Medic ine now has no mysteries to conceal from the true studen t ofnature and the sc i ent ific inquirer. Her methods and her princ iples areopen to all who care to know them the on ly passport she requ ires i sreverence

,her only desire to satisfy the yearn ing to know. In th i s ‘sp i ri t

and for these ends th i s work has been conceived and given to theworld .

“ The proper study of mankind is man .

”

EDWARD BERDOE.

TYNEMOUTH HOUSE,

VICTORIA PARK GATE,LONDON , Apr il 22nd, 1 893 .

1 P rovincial M edical [ou rnal, March , 1892 .

SPRENGEL GIVES THE FOLLOWING TABLE OF THE GREAT PERIODS IN

THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE

Expedition of the Argo 1 273- 1263 I. First traces of Greek

nants. Medicine .

Pe loponnesian War . II . Medicine ofHippocrates .Establ ishment o f the III. School of the Methodists .Christian Religion .

Emigration of the hordes 430-

530 IV. Decadence of the Science .

of Barbarians.V. The Crusades. 1096—1 230

VI . Reformation . 1 5 I 7—1 530

VII. Thirty Years War. 16 18—1 648

VIII. Reign o f Frederick the 1640—1 786 VIII.

Great.

Renouard 1 arranges the periods of the growth of the art of medicineas follows —I st. The Prim it ive or Instinct ive Peri od, lasting from

the earliest recorded treatmen t to the fall of Troy. and . The Sacredor Mystic Period

,lasting t ill t he di spers ion of the Pythagorean Soc iety,

500 B.C . 3 rd. The Philosoph ical Period , closing with the foundation

of the Alexandrian Library,B.C . 3 20 . 4th. The Anatom ical Period ,

which con t inued ti ll the death of Galen,A .D . z oo .

1 Histoire de M edicine depu is son Or igi ne, etc.

ILLUSTRAT IONS.

EXPELLING THE D ISEASE-DEMON Fron tispiece

THE MEDICINE-DANCE OF THENORTHAMERICAN IND IANSEXAMPLES OF ANCIENT SURGERYANCIENT SURGICAL INSTRUMENTSINTERIOR OF A D OCTOR’S HOUSE

V. Arabian m edicine at itshighest po int Of splendour.

Re establ ishment o f

Greek medicine and

anatomy.

D iscovery of the circu lat ion o f the blood and

reform o f Van Hel

mont .Hal ler.

C O N T EN T S.

BOOK'

L

THE MED ICINE OF PRIM ITI VE MAN .

CHAPTER

I. PRIM ITIVE MAN A SAVAGEThe Medicine and Surgery of the Lower Animals.—Po isons and

Animals .—Observat ion amongst Savages. -Man in the GlacialPeriod .

II. ANIM ISMWho discovered our Medicines P—Anthropo logy can assist us to

answer the Question .-The Priest and the Med icine -man original ly

one.—D isease the Work of Magic —Origin of our Ideas o f the Sou l

and Future Life .- D isease demons.

III. SAVAGE THEORIES OF D ISEASEDemon iacal .—Witchcraft . -OfTended D ead Persons.

IV. MAGIC AND SORCERY IN THE TREATMENT OF D ISEASEThese originated partly in the D esire to cover Ignorance .

Medicine -men .

— Suck ing out D iseases —O rigin of Exorcism .

Ingenu ity of the Priests. -Blow ing D isease away.- Beel z ebub cast

out by Beel z ebub.-Menders of Sou ls. Bringing up the Devil .”

—D iseases and Medicines —Fever Puppets.—Amu lets.—To tem ismand Med icine .

V. PR IM ITIVE MED ICINEBleeding.

—Scarification .—Use of Medicinal Herbs amongst the

Aborigines of Austral ia, South America, Africa, etc.

VI. PRIM ITIVE SURGERYArrest ofBleeding —The Indian as Surgeon . Stretchers, Splints ,

and F lint Instruments — O variotomy .—Brain Surgery .

- Massage.

—Trepann ing .—The Caesarean Operation .

— Inocu lation .

VII. UNIVERSALITY OF THE USE OF INTOXICANTSEgypt ian Beer and Brandy .

—Mex ican Pulque .

—Plant w orship .

Un ion w ith the Godhead by A lcoho l .—Soma .-The Cow rel igion .

—Cax iri . —Murwa Beer.—Bacchic Rites.—Spiritual Exaltation byWine.

VIII. CUSTOMS CONNECTED W ITH PREGNANCY AND CHILD-BEARINC .

The Couvade , its Prevalence in Savage and C ivil iz ed Lands.Pregnant Women excluded from Kitchens. —The Deities of the

Lying-in Chamber.

BOOK II.

THE MED ICINE OF THE ANCIENT CI VILIZA TI ONS.

EGYPTIAN MEDICINEAntiqu ity of Egyptian C iviliz ation .

—Surgical Bandaging.-Gods

and Goddesses o f M edicine.—Medical Speciall sts .

- Egyptiansclaim ed to have discovered the Healing Art —Medicine largelyTheurgic.

—Magic and Sorcery forbidden to the Laity.—The Em .

balmers .— Anatomy.

—Therapeutics. —Plants in use in AncientEgypt. Surgery and Chem istry. D isease-demons. MedicalPapyri .—Great Sk il l Of Egyptian Physicians.

X

CHAPTER

CONTENTS.

JEWISH MEDICINETheJews indebted to Egypt for theirLearn ing.

—The on ly AncientPeople who discarded Demono logy .

— Phey had no Magic o f theirown .

—Phylacteries.—C ircumcision .—San itary Laws.—D iseases in

the Bible .—The Essenes.—Surgery in the Talmud .

—A lexandrianPhilosophy —Jewish Services to Mediaeval Med icine —The Phoen icians .

THE MEDICINE OF CHALDIEA, BABYLONIA, AND ASSYR IAThe Ancient Religion o f Accadia ak in to Shaman ism .

—Demon

Theory of D isease in Chaldaean Medicine .—Chaldaean Magic.

Medical Ignorance of the Babylon ians.—Assyrian D isease -demons.- Charms . -Origin of the Sabbath.

THE MEDICINE OF THE HINDUSThe Aryans.—Hindu Ph ilosophy.

—The Vedas. - The Shastresof Charaka and Susru ta.

—Code ofMenu .—The Brahmans.—Med ical

Practitioners. Strabo on the Hindu Philosophers. Charms.

Buddhism and M edIcine.—] iwaka, Buddha’S Physician .

—ThePu lse .

—Know ledge o f Anatomy and Surgery In Ancient Times.Surgical Instruments. -D ecadence o f Hindu Medical Science.

Goddesses of D isease .

—Origin o fHospitals in India.

MEDICINE IN CHINA, TARTARY, AND JAPANOrigin of Chinese Cu lture —Shaman ism .

—D isease -demons.Tao ism—Med icine Gods.—Mediums. —Anatomy and Physio logy ofthe Chinese .

—Surgery.—No Hospitals in China.

- Chinese Medic ines .— F ilial Piety.

—Charms and Sacred Signs. —Med icine in

Thibet, Tartary , and Japan .

THE MEDICINE OF THE PARSEESZoroaster and the Zend-Avesta .

—The Heavenly Gift of the Healing Plants.—Ormuz d and Ahriman .

—Practice of the Healing Art

and its F ees.

BOOK III.

GREEK IVIEDI CINE.

THE MEDICINE OF THE GREEKS BEFORE THE TIME OF

HIPPOCRATES .

Apo llo , the God of Medicine .—Che iron .

—IEsculapIu s.-Artemis.

—D ionysus. Ammon . Hermes. Prometheus. Me lampus.Medicine of Homer.—Temp les o f [Esculapiu s .

—The Early IonicPhilosophers —Empedocles. —Schoo l of Crotona.

—The Pythago

reans . —Grecian Theory of D iseases —Schoo l of Cos.—The Asele

piads.—The Al iptae.

THE MEDICINE OF HIPPOCRATES AND HIS PERIODHippocrates first delivered Medic ine from the Thraldom o f

Superstition .— D issection Of the Human Body and R ise o f

Anatomy .—Hippocrates, Father of Medicine and Surgery.

—TheLaw .

—Plato .

POST-HIPPOCRATIC GREEK MEDICINE.—THE SCHOOLS OF

MED ICINEThe Dogmatic School . —Praxagoras of Co s.

—Aristotle .-The

Schoo l of A lexandria.—Theophrastus the Botan ist.—The great

Anatom ists, Erasistratus and Hierophilus, and the Schools theyfounded .

- The Empiric Schoo l .THE EARLIER ROMAN MEDICINE

D isease goddesses. Schoo l of the Methodists. Rufus andMarinus.— Pl iny .

—Celsus.

VIII.

LATER ROMAN MEDICINEThe Eclectic and Pneumatic Sects.—Galen .

—Neo -Platonism .

Oribasius and IEtius .

-Influence of Christianity and the Rise of

Hospitals.—Pau lus IEgineta.—Ancient Surgical Instruments.

AMULETS AND CHARMS IN MED ICINEUn iversality of the Amu let.—Scarabs.—Beads.—Savage Amu

lets.—Gnostic and Christian Amu lets. —Herbs and An imals as

Charms. Knots. Precious Stones . Signatures. Numbers.Sal iva. Talismans. Scripts. Characts . Sacred Names.Sto len Goods“ .

BOOK IV.

CELTIC, TEUTONI C, AND MED IE VAL MEDICINE.

MEDICINE OF THE DRUIDS,TEUTONS, ANGLO ~SAXONS, AND

WELSHOrigin o f the Dru id Religion —Dru id Med icine —The ir Magic.

Teuton ic M edicine —Gods of Healing.- Elves. -The Elements.

Anglo -Saxon Leechcraft. —The Leech-book .—Monastic Leech

doms . —Superstitions. - Welsh Med icine .—The Triads. —Welsh

D ru idism .—The Laws o f the Court Physicians —We lsh Medical

Max ims —Welsh Med ical and Surgical Practice and Fees.MOHAMMEDAN MEDICINE

Sources of Arabian Learn ing — Influence o f Greek and HinduLiterature .

—The Nestorians. -Baghdad and its Co lleges —TheMoors in Spain .

—The Mosque Schoo ls—Arabian Inventions and

Services to Literature —The great Arab Physicians. - Serapion ,Rhaz es, Ali Abbas, AvIcenna, A lbucasis, and Averroes.

RISE OF THE MONASTERIESA lchemy the Parent of Chemistry .

RISE OF THE UNIVERSITIESSchoo l of Montpel l ier.—D ivorce of Medicine from Surgery.

THE SCHOOL OF SALERNOThe Monks o f Monte Cassino .

—Clerical Influence at Salerno.

Charlemagne .—Arabian M edicine gradual ly supplanted the Graeco

Latin Science. Constantine the Carthagin ian .—Archimatthaeu s .

—Trotu1a .-Anatomy of the Pig.

—PharmacopoeiaS.—The Four

Masters - Roger and Ro lando .—The Emperor Frederick .

THE THIRTEENTH CENTURYThe Crusades.—Astro logy .

THE FOURTEENTH CENTURYRevival o f Human Anatomy.

— Famous Physicians o f the Century .

—Domestic M edicine in Chaucer.— F ellowship of the Barbersand Surgeons.—The Black D eath.

—The Dancing Mania —Pharmacy.

THE FIFTEENTH CENTURYFaith-heal ing.

—Charms and Astro logy in Med icine .—The Re

vival of Learn ing —The Human ists . —Cabalism and Theo logy.

The Study of Natural History.—The Sweating Sickness.—Taran

tism .—Quarantine .

—High Position o f Oxford Un iversity.

MEDICINE IN ANCIENT MEXICO AND PERU .

Ho spitals in Mex ico .—Anatomy and Human Sacrifices —Mid

w ives as Spiritual Mothers. —Circumcision .—Peru .

—D iscovery Of

Cinchona Bark .

CHAPTER

I.

II.

III.

IV.

VI.

VII.

11.

III.

CONTENTS.

BOOK V.

THE DAWN OF M ODERN SCIENTIFIC MEDICINE.

THE SIXTEENTH CENTURYThe Dawn of Modern Science.

—The Reformation of Medicine .

—Paracelsus.—The Sceptics.—The Protestantism of Scienc e .

—Influenz a.

—Legal Recogn ition of Medicine in England —TheBarber-Surgeons. —The Sweating Sickness —Origin o f the RoyalCo l lege of Physicians of London . Merry Andrew .

”—Origin o f

St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. —Caius. - LOW State o f M idw ifery.

The Great Continental Anatomists.—Vesalius.

—Servetus. -Paré .

Influence of the Reformation .—The Rosicrucians.—Touching for the

Evil.—Vivisection ofHuman Be ings . - Origin of Legal M edicine .

THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY .

Bacon and the Inductive Method .-Desca

.

rtes and PhysiolOgy.

Newton.

—Boyle and the Royal Society.—The F ounders o f the

Schoo ls of Medical Science .—Sydenham , the Engl ish Hippocrates.

—Harvey and the Rise o f Physio logy.

—The M icroscope in Medicine .

—Willis and the Reform o f Materia Med ica.

SKATOLOGICAL MED ICINE AND THE REFORM OF PHARMACOLOGY

Loathsome Medicines. —Sympathetical Cures. -Weapon Salve .

Superstitions .BATHS AND M INERAL WATERS

M iracu lous Springs .—The Poo l of Bethesda .

—Herb baths.WITCHCRAFT AND MEDICINE

ComparativeWitchcraft. —Laws against Sorcery .—Magic in Virgil

and Horace.—Demono logy .

-Images of Wax and C lay .—Trans

ference of D isease .—Witchcraft in the Koran —White Magic and

Black .—Coral and the Evil Eye . Overlooking ” People .

-Exorcism in the Catho l ic Church.

MEDICAL SUPERSTITIONSDeath and the Grave .

—Sorcerer’s O intment .—Teeth w- orms.D isease Transference .

—Doctrine o f Signatures.THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

The Sciences accessory to M edicine.- The Great Schoo ls of

o

Medi

cal Theory .-Boerhaave and his System .

—Stahl . — Hoffman .

Cu llen .- Brown . Ho sp itals. Bichat and the New Era o f

Anatomy .—Mesmer and Mesmerism .

—Surgery .—The Anatom ists

,

Physio logists, and Scientists o f the Period — Inoculation and

Vaccination .

BOOK VI.

THE AGE OF SCIENCE.

THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.—PHYS ICAL SCIENCE ALLIED

TO MEDICINEEx it theD isease demon .

—Med1calSystems again—Homoeopathy.

The Natural Sciences. Chemistry, Electricity, Physio logy ,

Anatomy, Medicine and Patho logy. Psychiatry . Surgery.

Ophthalmo logy.

MEDICAL REFORMSD iscovery of Anaesthetics —Medical Literature .

—Nursing Re

form .

—History o f the Treatment Of the Insane.

THE GERM THEORY OF D ISEASEThe D isease -demon reappears as a Germ .

- Phagocytes.—Pto ~

maines. -Lister’s Antiseptic Surgery.- San itary Science o rHygiene .

—Bacterio logists . —Faith Cures .—Experimental Physio logy and

the Latest System o fMed icine.

APPEND IX.

ON SOME OF THE MORE IMPORTANT M INERALS USED IN MEDICINE

BOOK I .

THE IIIED I CINE OF PRIM ITI VE

A POPULAR HISTORY OFMEDICINE.

CHAPTER I .

PR IMITIVE MAN A SAVAGE.

The Medicine and Surgery o f the Lower Animals —Po isons and An imals.—Observation amongst Savages. Man in the Glacial Period .

THERE i s abundant proof from natural h istory that the lower an imalssubmi t to medical and surgical treatmen t, and subjec t themselves intheir necess ities to appropriate treatmen t. Not only do they treat themselves when inj ured or i ll , but theyass is t each other. Dogs and catsuse various natural medic ines

,chiefly emetics and purgatives, in the

shape of grasses and other plants . The fibrous- rooted Wheat-grass,

Tr iticnm caninum,sometimes called dog’s-wheat, i s eaten med ic inally

by dogs . Probably other spec ies , such as Agrostis canina, brownbent-grass , are used in l ike manner . 1

Mr. George Jesse describes another kind of “ dog-grass,Cynoszcrus

cr istatzcs, as a natural m edic ine,both emetic and purgative, which i s

resorted to by the can ine species when suffering from indigestion and

other disorders of the stomach. Every druggist’s appren t ice knowshow remarkably fond cats are of valerian root ( Valeriana ofi cinalis) .Th is strong- smelling root acts on these an imals as an intoxicant, andthey roll over and over the plan t with the wildest delight when brough tinto contact with i t. Cats are extravagan tly fond of cat-m int (IVepetacatar ia) . It has a powerful odour, l ike that of

‘

pennyroyal . There isno evidence, however , that these plan ts have any medic inal propertiesfor wh ich they are used by cats

,they are merely enj oyed by themon

account of their perfume.Dr. W. Lauder Lindsay

,in h i s M ind in the Lower Animals, says that

the Indian mongoose, poisoned by the snake wh ich i t attacks, uses theantidote to be found in the [Mimosa octana

’raz.

2

Its value both as a cure and as a preventive is said to be well known

1 Pratt’s British Grasses , pp . 69 , 1 25 .

2 Vol . II. p . 384.

4 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

to i t. Whenever in i ts battl es with serpents i t receives a wound , i t atonce retreats , goes in search of the antidote

,and having found and

devoured i t, returns to the charge, and generally carries the day; seem ingnone the worse for its b ite.”1 Th is

,however

,i s probably a fable Of the

Hindus .“A toad, bit or stung by a spid er, repeatedly betook i tsel f to a plant

of Plantago major (the Greater Plantain), and ate a portion of its leaf,but d ied after repeated bites of the spider, when the plan t had beenexperimentally removed by man .

The medic inal uses of the hellebore were anciently bel ieved to havebeen discovered by the goat

“Vi rgi l reports of dittany, says More, in h i s Antidote to Athei sm,

that the W i ld goats eat i t when they are shot with darts .” The anci entssaid that the art of bleeding was firs t taught by the h ippopotamus , wh ichthrusts i tself against a sharp-pointed reed in the river banks

,when i t

thinks it needs phlebotomy.

If man had no t ye t learned the medicinal properties of salt, hecould discover them by th e greedy licking of i t by buffaloes, horses,and camels . On th e Mongol ian camels, says Prejevalsky,

“ sal t, inwhatever form

,acts as an aperien t, especially i f they have been long

without i t.” Rats will subm i t to the gnawing off of a leg when caugh tin a trap, so that they may escape capture (Jesse) . Livingstone says thatthe ch impanzee, soko, or other anthropoid apes will staunch bleedingwounds by mean s of their fingers

,or of leaves

,turf, or grass stuffed

in to them. An imals treat wounds by l icking —a very effectual i f ted iousmethod Of fomen tation or poult icing.

Cornel ius Agrippa, in h i s first book of Occul t Philosophy, says that wehave learned the use of many remedies from the an imals . The s ickmagpie puts a bay~ leaf into her nest and i s recovered. The l ion, i f h ebe feverish , is recovered by the eat ing of an ape. By eating , the herbdittany

,a wounded stag expels the dart ou t of its body. Cranes med i

c ine themselves with bulrushes,leopards with wolf

’s -bane , boars with i vy 3for between such plan ts and an imals there is an occult fri endship .

”3

Some in teresting observations relat ing to the surgical treatment ofwounds by birds were recently brought by M . Fatio before the PhysicalSociety of Geneva . He quotes the case of the sn ipe, which he has oftenObserved engaged in repairing damages . With its beak and feathers i tmakes a very creditable dressing, applying plasters to bleeding wounds ,and even securing a broken l imb by means Of a stout l igature. On one

occas ion he killed a snipe which had on the chest a large dressing com

1 M iss Gordon Cumming.

2 Science Goss ip.

3 Morley’s Life of Cornelius Agr ippa , vol . i . p. 129 .

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

6 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF IIIEDICINE.

natural decay, there i s no sc ientific evidence wh ich would j usti fy u sin asserting that thi s appl ies to savages in gen eral .

”

Dr. E. B . Tylor, in his fascinating work on Pr imitive Culture, says :1

The thesi s wh ich I venture to sustain,with in l im its

,i s simply th is

that the savage state in some measure represents an early condit ion ofmankind

,out of wh ich the higher culture has gradually been developed

or evolved by processes stil l in regular operation as Of o ld,the re

sult showing that,on the whole

, progress has far prevailed over relapse .

On th is proposition th e main tendency of human soc iety during its longterm of existence has been to pass from a savage to a c iv il ized state .

It i s mere matter of chronicle that modern c ivili zation i s a development of mediaeval C ivil ization

,wh ich again i s a developmen t from C ivil i

z ation of the order represen ted in Greece , Assyria, or Egypt . Thenthe higher culture being c learly traced back to what may be called them iddle culture

,the question which remains i s

,whether th i s m iddle

culture may be traced back to the lower culture, that i s, to savagery .

”

Providing we can find our savage pure and uncon tam inated, i t mattersl ittl e where we seek him north

,south

,east

,or west

,he will be practi

cally the same for our purpose .

Dr . Robertson says If we suppose two tribes, though placedin the most remote region s of the globe, to l ive in a Cl imate nearly ofthe same temperature, to be in the sam e state of society, and to resembleeach other in th e degree of their improvemen t, they must feel the samewan ts

,and exert the sam e endeavours to supply them . In

every part of the earth the progress of man has been nearly the same,and we can trace him in h i s career from the rude s impl ic ity of savagel ife, until he attains th e industry, the arts, and the elegance of pol ishedsoc iety.

”2

Writing Of th e primi t ive folk, the Eastern Inoits, El ie Reclus tells usthat

,

3 “ shut away from the rest of the world by their barriers of ice,the Esquimaux

,more than any other people, have remained outs ide

foreign influences, outside the c ivi l izat ion whose con tac t shatters and

transforms . They have been readily perceived by prehistoric sc ienceto ofi

'

er an intermediate type between man as he is and man as he wasin bygone ages . When first vis ited

,they were in the very m idst of the

s tone and bone epoch ,4 j ust as were the Guanches when they wered iscovered their iron and steel are recent

,almost con temporary impor

tations. The l ives of Europeans of the Glac ial period cannot havebeen very differen t from those led am ongst their snow-fields by theInoits of to-day.

”

1 Pr imit ive Cu lture, vo l. i . p . 32.

2 Hist . Amer ica,Book IV. chap . l l .

3 P r imit ive Folh, p. 10.

4 Nordensk iOld, Voy age of the Vega.

CHAPTER II.

ANIMISM .

Who discovered our Medicines —Anthropology can assist us to answer the Question .

The Priest and the Medicine-man originally one.

—D isease theWork ofMagic.

Origin of our Ideas of the Sou l and Future Life .—D isease -demons.

CARDINALNEWMAN ,in h i s sermon on TheWorld’s Benefactors

,asks

Who was the firs t cultivator of corn ? Who first tamed and domesti

cated th e an imals whose strength we use, and whom we make our food ?O r who first discovered the medic inal herbs , wh ich from th e earl ies tt imes have been our resource agains t d isease ? If i t was mortal man

who thus looked through the vegetable and animal worlds , and disc riminated between the useful and the worthless, h is name is unknownto the mi ll ions whom he has thus benefi ted .

It i s notorious that those who first suggest the most happy invent ionsand open a way to the secre t stores of nature those who weary themselves iu the search after truth ; s trike out momentous princ iples ofaction painfully force upon their contemporaries the adopt ion ofbenefic ial measures or

,again

,are the original cause of the ch ief events

in national h istory,—are commonly supplan ted, as regards celebrity and

reward,by in ferior men. Their works are not called after them ,

nor

the arts and systems wh ich they have g iven the world . Thei r schoolsare usurped by strangers, and their maxims of wisdom c irculate amongthe ch ildren of their peopl e, forming perhaps a nation’s charac ter,but not embalm ing in their own immortal ity the names of thei r originalauthors .”

The reflect ion i s an old one ; th e son of Sirach said,

“ And somethere be

,wh ich have no memorial ; who are peri shed, as though they

had never been and are become as though they had never been bornand thei r children after them . But these were merc i ful men, Whoserighteousness hath not been forgotten ”

(Ecclesiasticus xliv. 9 ,Cardinal Newman has framed h i s quest ion , so far as th e heal ing art i sconcerned, in a manner to which i t i s imposs ible to make a satisfactoryan swer. N0 one man first discovered the medic inal herbs probably thed i scovery of al l the virtues of a s ingle one of them was no t the work of anyindividual . No man “ looked through the vegetable and an imal worlds

8 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

and discrim inated between the useful and the worthless al l th i s hasbeen the work of ages , and i s the outcome of the experience of thousandsof investigators . The medical arts have played so importan t a part inthe developmen t of our c ivi l izat ion , that they constitute a branch o f studysecond to none in ut ili ty and interest to those who would know someth ingof the work of the world’s benefactors. Probably at no period in theworld’s h i s tory have medical men occupied a more honourable or amore prominen t posi tion than they do at the present t ime, and i t wouldalmost seem that the rewards wh ich an ignorant or ungrateful civil ization den i ed in the pas t to medical men are now being bestowed on

those who in these latter days have been so fortunate as to inheri t th etrad itions and the acquirements of a forgotten ancestry of truth-seekersand s tudents of the mysteries of nature . As the earl iest races of mankind passed by slow degrees from a state of savagery to the prim i tivec ivili zations

,we must seek for the beginn ings of the medical arts in the

representatives of the anc ien t barbarisms wh ich are to be found to-dayin the aborigines of Central Africa and the i slands of Australas ian seas .The int imate connection wh ich exists between the magic ian, the sorcerer, and the “ medic ine man of th e presen t day serves to illustratehow the priest, the magician, and the physic ian of the past were sofrequently combined in a s ingle individual

,and to explain how th e

mysteries of rel igion were so generally connec ted with those of medic ine.

Professor Tylor has explained how death and al l forms of diseasewere attributed to magic

,the essence of wh ich i s the bel ief in the

influence of the spiri ts of dead men. This bel ief i s termed An imism,

and Mr. Tylor says : “Animi sm characterizes tribes very low in the

scale of human i ty,and thence ascends, deeply modified in i ts trans

m is s ion , bu t from fi rst to last preserving an unbroken cont inuity, intothe m ids t of h igh culture . An im ism i s the groundwork of the philosophy of rel igion , from that of the savages up to that of c ivi l i zed men

but although i t may at first seem to afi ord but a meagre and baredefini t ion of a m in imum of rel igion, i t will be found pract ically suffi ci en t ;for where the roots are

,the branches will generally be produced . The

theory of an imi sm divides into two great dogmas , forming parts of oneconsi sten t doctr ine : first

,concern ing souls of individual creatures

,

capable of continued existence after death ; second , concern ing otherSpiri ts, upward to the rank of powerful deiti es . Spiritual beings areheld to affect or con trol the events of the material world, and man

’sl ife here and hereafter ; and i t being considered that they hold intercourse wi th men and receive pleasure or d ispleasure from human act ions ,the belief in th

‘eir existence leads naturally, sooner or later, to act ivereverence and propitiation .

”There i s no doubt that the belief in the

ANIM ISM . 9

soul and in the existence of the Spi ri ts of th e departed in anotherworld arose from dreams. When th e savage in h is sleep held converse

,

as i t seemed to him,with the actual forms of hi s departed relatives and

friends,the most natural thing imaginable would be the bel ief that these

persons ac tually existed in a spiri tual shape in some other world thanthe material one in wh ich he eit isted. Those who dreamed most frequently and most vividly

,and were able to describe their vis ions mos t

clearly, would naturally strive to interpret their mean ing, and wouldbecome, to their grosser and l ess poetical brethren, more importan t

personages, and be cons idered as in closer converse with the sp iritualworld than themselves . Thus , in process of t ime, the seer, the prophet,and the magician would be evolved .

How did primi t ive man come by h is ideas P When he saw the effec tsof a power, he could only make guesses at the cause ; he could on lyspeak Of it by some such terms as he would use concern ing a humanagent . He saw the effects Of fire, and person ified the cause. With theHindus Agn i was the giver of l igh t and warmth , and so of the l ife of

plants, Of an imals, and of men ; and so with thunder, l ightn ing, andstorm

, prim it ive man looked upon these phenomena as the confl ic ts o fbeings h igher and more powerful than h im sel f. Thus i t was that th eanci ent people of India formed their concept ions of the storm-gods

,th e

Maruts, i .e. th e Smashers . Amongst the Esthonians

,as Max M ii ller tell s

us,

1prayers were addressed to thunder and rain as late as the seven teen t h

century.

“ Dear Thunder, push elsewhere al l the th ick black clouds .Holy Thunder, guard our seed-field.

”

(This same thunder-god , Perhuna,says Max M ii ller, was the god Pargany a, who was invoked in India athousand years before Alexander’s expedi tion .) We say it rains , itthunders . Primi tive folk said the rain-god poured out h is buckets

,the

thunder-god was angry.

What did primi tive man th ink when he Observed the germ ination ofseeds the chick com ing out o f the egg ; the butterfly burs t ing from th eChrysal is the shadow wh ich everywhere accompan ies the man ; th eshadows Of the trees the leaves wh ich vibrate in the breeze when heheard the roaring of the wind ; the moan ing of the storm ,

and thestrange, mysterious echo wh ich , plainly as h e heard i t, ceased as heapproached the moun tain-s ide wh ich he conce ived to be i ts home ?He could but bel ieve that all nature was l iving, l ike h imsel f ; and that,as he could no t understand what he saw in the seed

,the egg, the

Chrysal i s,or the shadow, so al l nature was full of mystery, of a l ife that

he in vain would try to comprehend Many savages regard their ownshadows as one of thei r two souls,

— a soul which is always watching1 India

’

s Teaching , p . 1 92.

IO A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF IIIEDICINE.

the ir actions, and ready to bear w i tness agains t them. How should i tbe otherwise with them i’ The shadow i s a real ity to the savage, and SO

i s the echo . The sh ip wh ich visi ts h is shores,the watch and the com

pass , which he sees for the fi rst t ime, are al ive ; they move, they mustbe l iving !Mr. Tylor, in h i s chapter on An imi sm

,in h i s P r imitive Culture, says

(vol . i i . pp. 1 24,

As in normal conditions the man’s soul,inhabit ing h is body, i s h eld

to give i t l i fe,to th ink, speak , and act through i t, so an adaptation

o f the self- same principle explains abnormal conditions of body or

m ind, by considering the new symptoms as due to the operation of asecond soul- l ike being

,a strange spirit. The possessed man

,tossed

and shaken in fever, pained and wrenched as though some l ive creature

were tearing or twisting him with in, p in ing as though i t were devouring

his Vitals day by day,rationally finds a personal sp iri tual cause for his

sufferings . In h ideous dreams he may even sometimes see th e veryghos t or n ightmare-fiend that plagues him. Espec ially when themysterious , unseen power throws him helpless to the ground , j erks andwrithes him In convuls ions, makes him leap upon th e bystanders with agian t’s strength and a wild beast’s feroci ty

,impels him , with distorted

face and fran t ic gesture, and voice not h is own,nor seem ingly even

human,to pour forth w i ld incoheren t raving, or with thought and

eloquence beyond hi s sober faculties, . to command,to counsel , to fore

tell— such a one seems to those who watch him,and even to h im sel f, to

have become the mere instrumen t of a sp ir it wh ich has seized him oren tered in to him— a possess ing demon in whose personal i ty the patien tbel ieves so impl ic i tly that he Often imagines a personal name for i t,which i t can declare when i t speaks in its own voice and charac te rthrough h i s organs of speech at las t

,quitting the medium’s spen t and

j aded body, the intrud ing sp ir it departs as i t came. Thi s i s the savagetheory o f demon iacal possession and obsess ion , which has been forages , and st ill remains , the dominant theory of disease and insp i rationamong the lower races . It i s obviously based on an an im istic interpretation, most genuine and rat ional in i ts proper place in man

’s intel lectualh istory

,of the natural symptoms of the cases . The general doctr ine of

d isease- sp ir its and oracle—spi rits appears to have i ts earl ies t, broadest,and most cons i sten t posit ion within the l imits of savagery. When wehave gained a clear idea Of it in th is i ts original home, we shall be ableto trace i t along from grade to grade of c ivil i zation , breaking away

p iecemeal under the influence of new medical theories , yet somet imesexpanding in revival , and, at least, in l ingering survival holding its placein to the m idst of our modern l ife. The possession-theory i s not merely

ANIM ISM I I

known to us by th e statemen ts Of those who describe diseases in ao

cordance with i t . D i sease being accounted for by attacks of sp irits ,i t naturally follows that to get r id of these sp iri ts i s the proper means ofcure. Thus the practices of the exorc is t appear s ide by s ide with thedoctrine of possess ion, from i ts firs t appearance in savagery to i ts survivai in modern c iv il i zation ; and noth ing could display more vividlythe concept ion of a disease or a mental affl iction as caused by a personal sp iritual being than the proceedings of th e exorc i s t who talks toi t,coaxes or threatens i t, makes offerings to i t, ent ices or drives i t out

o f the patien t’s body

,and induces i t to take up i ts abode in some

o ther.”

CHAPTER III.

SAVAGE THEORIES OF D ISEASE.

D emoniacal .—\Vitchcraft.—Offended D ead Persons.

WE find amongst savages three ch ief theories Of disease that i t is causedby

I. The anger of an offended demon.

II. Witchcraft,or

I II. O ffended dead person s .

I. ANGER OF OFFENDED DEMONS .

D isease and death are set down to the influences of spiri ts in theAustral ian-Tasman ian district

,where demons are held to have the power

of creeping in to men’s bodies

,to eat up their l ivers, and sometimes to

work the wicked wil l of a sorcerer by infl ict ing blows with a club on theback of the victim’s n eck.

1 The Mantira, a low race of the MalayPen insula

,bel ieve in the theory o f disease- spirits in i ts extreme form

their spiri ts cause all sorts of ailments . The Hantu Kalumbahan ”

causes small-pox the “Hantu Kamang brings on inflammation and

swell ing of the hands and feet the blood wh ich flows from wounds i sdue to the Han tu-pari

,

” which fasten s on the wound and sucks . So

many diseases,so many Hantus . If a new malady were to appear

amongst the tribes,a new Hantu would be named as i ts cause.!2 When

small—pox breaks out amongst these people,‘ they place thorns and

brush in the paths to keep the demons away. The Khonds of Orissa tryto defend themselves against the goddess of small -pox, Jugah Pensu ,in the same way. Among the Dayaks of Borneo, to have been i ll i s tohave been sm itten by a sp irit ; invis ible spiri ts infl ict invis ible woundswith invis ibl e spears, or they enter bodies and make them mad.

D i sease- sp irits in the Indian Archipelago are conc il iated by presents

1 Tr . Eth. Soc. , vol . i ii. p . 23 5. Grey , Au stra lia , vol . ii . p . 337. Boniveh,

Tasman ian s , pp. 1 83 , 195 .

2 7 ou rn . Ind. Arc/12,0” vol . i . p . 307 .

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

14 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

enter into fruit-bearing trees. 1 It i s but another step to the bel ie f thatbeneficent medicinal plants are tenan ted by good sp i rits, and poisonous

plants by evil spirits. The Malays have a spec ial demon for each kindof disease one for small-pox, another for swellings, and so on .

2

The Dayaks of Borneo acknowledge a supreme God, although , aswe have said, they attribute all kinds of diseases and calami ties to themal igni ty of evi l spiri ts . Their system of medic ine consists in the ap

pl ication of appropriate charms or the offering of conc i l iatory sacrifices .

3

Yet they are an intel l igent and h ighly capable race, and their steel ihs truments far surpass European wares in strength and fineness of edge .

4

The Javanese, nominally Mahometans , are really bel ievers in the prim itive an im i sm of thei r ancestry. They

“

worsh ip numberless spirits al ltheir villages have patron saints, to whom i s attributed al l that happen sto the inhabitan ts, good or bad . M entik causes the rice disease Sawan

produces convuls ions in ch i ldren D engen causes gout and rheumatism .

5

The rel igion of Siam i s a corrupted Buddh ism ; spiri ts and demons

(nats or phees) are worsh ipped and propitiated . Some of these malignan t beings cause children to s icken and die . Tal ismans are workedinto the ornamentat ion of the houses to avert their evil influence .

6

The Rev. J . L. Wilson " says : “ D emon iacal possessions are com

mon , and the feats performed by those who are supposed to be undersuch influence are certainly not unlike those described in the New

Testament. Frant ic gestures, convulsions, foaming at the mouth , featsof supernatural strength , furious ravings, bodily lacerat ions , grinding ofteeth

,and other th ings of a s imi lar character, may be witnessed in most

of the cases .”

In Finni sh mythology, wh ich introduces us to ideas of extreme ant iquiry

,we find the disease-demon theory in all i ts force.

The Tietajat,“ the learned ,

”and the Nozjat, or sorcerers, claimed the

power to cure diseases by expel l ing the demons wh ich caused them,by

incan tations assi s ted by drugs ; these magic ians were the only physicians of the nation. The fl

'

etaja t and the Nozjat, however, were no tmagic ians of the sam e class : the former practised

“white magic

,

”or

“ sacred sc ience the latter pract ised “ black magic,

” or sorcery.

Evil spirits, poi sons, and mal ice were the ch i ef aids to prac tice inthe latter ; While Tietajat, by means of learn ing and the assi stance ofbenevolent supernatural beings, devote themselves to the welfare of the

people . The three highest dei t ies of Finn ish mythology, Ukko, Wii inii

1 Hunter, Ru ral Benga l , p. 2 10.

2 D r. E. B. Tylor, art. D emono logy , Ency . Brit.3 Ency . Br it , vol . iv. p . 58.

4 Ibid.

5vol. x iii. p . 607 .

6 Ibid., vol . xx i. p . 853 .

7 l/Vestern Africa, p . 2 17.

SA VAGE THEORIES OF D ISEASE. 1 5

mOinen ,and Ilmarinen , corresponded to three superior gods o f the

Accadian magic collect ion , Ana, Hea, and M ut-ge . Wéi inamOinen wasthe great spiri t of life, the master of favourable spells , conqueror o f evil ,and sovereign possessor Of sc ience . The sweat which dropped from hisbody was a balm for all d iseases . It was he alone who could conquerall the demons . Every disease was i tself a demon . The invas ion ofthe disorder was an actual possess ion . Finn i sh magic was ch ieflymedical, being used to cure diseases and

.wounds. 1 The Finns be

lieved diseases to be the daughters of Louhiatar,the demon of diseases .

Pleurisy,gout

,col ic , consumption , leprosy, and the p lague were al l dis

ti nct personages . By the help of conjurations,these m ight be buried

or cooked in a brazen vessel. When the pries t made h i s diagnos is hehad to be in a state of d ivine ecstasy

, and then by incantation , ass istedby drugs

,he proceeded to exorc ise the demon . The Finni sh incanta

t ions belonged to the same family as those of the Accadians . ProfessorLenormant translates from th e great Epopee of the Kalevala one o f

the incan tat ionsO malady, disappear into the heavens pain, rise up to the clouds

inflamed vapour, fly into the air, in order that th e wind may take theeaway, that the tempest may chas e thee to di stant regions , where nei thersun nor moon give thei r l igh t

,where the warm wind does no t inflame

the flesh .

O pain, moun t upon the winged steed of stone, and fly to the mountains

-

covered with iron. For he i s too robust to be devoured by disease,to be consumed by pains.

GO, 0 diseases , to where the vi rgin of pains has her hearth , wherethe daughter of Wé inamOinen cooks pains , —go to the h il l of pains .

“These are the white dogs,who formerly hurled torments, who

groaned in the ir sufferings.Another incan tation agains t the plague was di scovered by Ganander,

and i s given by LenormantO scourge, depart plague, take thy fl igh t , far from the bare flesh .

I will give thee a horse,wi th wh ich to escape, whose shoes shall

not sl ide on ice ; and so on .

The Jewish ceremony expelled the scapegoat to the desert ; theAccadian ban i shed the disease-demons to the desert of sand theFinn ish magic ian sen t h is disease-demons to Lapland .

The goddess Suonetar was the healer and renewer of fleshShe is beautiful

,the goddess of veins

,Suonetar, the beneficen t.

goddess ! She kn its th e veins wonderfully wi th her beautiful spindle ,her metal distaff, her i ron wheel .

1 Lenormant , Chala’can hfag ie and Sorcery , pp. 258

- 262 .

16 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Come to me, I invoke thy help ; come to me , I call thee. Bringin thy bosom a bundle of flesh

,a ball of veins to tie the extrem i ty o f

the veins .” 1

All di seases are attributed by the Th ibetans to the four elemen ts,

who are propi ti ated accordingly in cases of severe i llness . The windsare invoked in cases of affections of the breath ing ; fi re in fevers and

inflammations ; water in dropsy,and diseases whereby the fluids are

affected ; and the god o f earth when sol id organs are d iseased, as inl iver complaints, rheumatism,

etc. Propitiatory offerings are made tothe deities of these elements , but never sacr ifices .” 2

Hooker tells o f a case of apoplexy wh ich was treated by a Lama, who

perched a saddle on a stone, and burn ing incense before i t, scatteredrice to the winds , invoking the various mountain peaks in the n e ighbourhood.

In Hottentot mythology Gaunab i s a malevolen t ghost,who k ills

people who die what we cal l a natural ” death . Unburied men

change into th is sort of vampi re .

3

The demon iacal theory of at least one class Of disease is found inthe B ible

,although th e New Testamen t in one passage distingu ishes

between lunat ics and demon iacs. In Matthew iv. 24 we read that theybrought to Jesus “ those which were possessed with devi ls

,and those

which were lunatick .

” Epi lepsy i s evidently the disease described inMark ix. 1 7

—26,though the symptoms are attributed to possess ion by

a dumb Sp iri t.

II. WITCHCRAFT As A CAUSE OF D ISEASE.

Sorcerers and mag icians not only use evil words and cast evi l glanc esat the persons whom they wish to afflict, but they endeavour to obtain

possession of some articl e wh ich has belonged to the individual, or

someth ing connected more closely with h is personal ity, as parings o fthe nails or a few of his hairs, and through these he professes to beablé to Operate more effectually on the obj ect of his malice. It is to

th i s use of portions of the body that ignoran t persons, even at the

present day, insi st that nai l-parings , hai r-cuttings , and the l ike, shall beat once destroyed by fire. Such superstit ion s are found at work all

over the world . Mr. Black tells us 1 that the servants of the ch i efs of the

1 Kalevala , 1sth runa.

2 Sir Joseph Hooker, Himalay an 7ournals, Ed. 189 1 , p . 416.

3 Lang, Custom and My th, p . 208.

‘1 Folk Medicine, pp. 1 7 , 18.

SA VA GE THEORIES OF D ISEASE. 1 7

South Sea Islanders carefully collect and bury their masters’ sp ittle in

places where sorcerers are not l ikely to find i t. He says also i t i sbelieved in the West of Scotland that if a bird used any of the hair ofa person

’s head in building his nest,the individual would be subj ect to

headaches and become bald . Of course the bird i s held to be theembodimen t of an evil spiri t or witch . Images of persons to be

bewitched are sometimes made in wood or wax,in which has been

inserted some of the hair of the vict im of the enchantmen t ; the imageis then buried, and before long some malady attacks the part of thebewitched person corresponding to that in which the hair has been

placed in his effigy. D i sease-mak ing i s a profession in the island ofTanna in the New Hebrides ; the sorcerers collect the skins and shellsof the frui ts eaten by any one who i s to be pun ished, they are thenslowly burned

,and the Vict ims sicken . D i sease-demons are driven away

from patien ts in Alaska by the beating of drums. The s i ze of the drumand the force of the beating are directly proportioned to the gravity ofthe disease . A headache can be dispelled by the gentl e tapping of a toydrum ; concussion of the brain would requ ire that the big drum shouldbe thumped till i t broke ; i f that failed to expel the evi l spirit, therewould be noth ing left but to strangle the patien t.The wild natives of Austral ia are exceedingly supersti tious . Sorcery

enters in to every relation of l ife,and their great fear i s lest they should

be inj ured by the mysterious influence called hoy l -y a. The sorcerershave power to en ter the bodies of men and slowly con sume them thevictim feels the pain as the hoy l-y a enters him,

and i t does no t leave himt ill i t i s extracted by another sorcerer. While he is sleeping, he may beattacked and bewitched by having pointed at him a leg-bone of a kan

garoo, or the sorcerer may steal away his k idney- fat,Where the savage

believes that h i s power resides, or he may secretly slay h is vict im by ablow on the back of his neck . The magici an may dispose of h is vict imby procuring a lock of hi s hair and roasting it with fat as i t i s consumed,so does his Vict im p ine away and die.I/Vingo i s a superst it ion which some Austral ian tribes have, that with

a rope of fibre they can part ially choke a man, by putting i t round h isneck at n ight while h e is asleep, without waking him ; hi s enemy thenremoves h i s caul—fat from under h is short rib

,leaving no mark or wound.

When the vict im awake s h e feel s no pain or weakness, but sooner orlater he feels someth ing break in h i s ins ide l ike a string. He then goeshome and dies at once .

1

Dr Watson thus describes the typical medic ine-menThe Tla-guill-augh

,or man of supernatural gifts, i s supposed to be

1 E. Palmer, Notes on A ustral ian Tr ibes .

18 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

capable of throwing h is good or bad medicine, wi thout regard to distance, on whom he will, and to k ill or cure by magic at hi s pleasure.These medic ine-men are generally beyond the meridian of life ; grave,sedate

,and shy, with a certain air of cunn ing, but possessing some sk il l

in the use of herbs and roots, and in the managemen t of injuries and

external diseases. The peopl e at large stand in great awe of them,and

consul t them on every affair of importance.

” 1

Dr. 0 . L. MOller, Medical D irector-General of the Dan i sh army,describes a certain wise woman near LOgstOr, who used in her prescript ions for the s ick people who consulted her a charm of willow twigst ied together amongst other myst ic th ings, and whose therapeutics wereof a bloodthirs ty character

,as she would advise her patien ts to strik e

the first person they met after return ing home, unt il they drew blood,for that person would be the cause of the disease.2

The fact that ghosts and demons are everywhere believed to causediseases

,and that sorcery is pract ised more or less by most of the

races of man in connection with the causation or cure of disease, hasbeen used as a factor in the argument for the origin of prim i t ive man

from a single pair in accordance with the orthodox belief. Dr. Pickering, the ethnologist, says : “Superst it ions also appear to be subj ect tothe same laws of progression with commun icated knowledge

,and the

belief in ghosts,evil spirits , and sorcery, curren t among the ruder East

Indian tribes,in Madagascar

, and in a great part of Africa, seems toindicate that such ideas may have elsewhere preceded a regu lar formof mythology.

” 3

There has long been pract i sed in the West Indies a species of

witchcraft called Oheah or Ohi,'

supposed to have been introducedfrom Africa, and which i s in real ity an ingenious system of poison ing.

Mr. Bowrey, Governmen t chem is t in Jamaica, connects Obeah-poisoningwith a plan t wh ich grows abundant ly in Jamaica and other West Indianislands

,called the savannah flower

,

” or yellow-flowered n ightshade ”

(Urechites suherecta) .4

Mr. Bowrey concludes that there is some truth in the stories told ofth e poison ing by Obeah-men

,and that m inute doses, frequently adm in

istered, m igh t cause death without susp icion being aroused . The

Br itish Medical journal, June 1 8th,1 892 , has the following interesting

notes on Obeah (p . 1 296)It is diffi cult to obtain detai led information regarding Obeah prac

1 The M edical Profession in Ancient Times (New York,2 D enenarh, i ts Hyg iene and D emography , 189 1 , p . 57 .

3 The Races of Man , p . 292 .

4 Proc. Roy . Soc. ,xxvi i . 309, 1878 .

SA VAGE THEORIES OF D ISEASE. 19

t ices . They rest largely on the credence given to superst i tious practicesand vulgar quackery by the uneducated in every coun try

,but there

seems li ttle doubt that among them secre t poison ing is included . Ben

jamin Moseley (M edical Tracts, London, 1 800) states that Obi had itsorigin

,l ike many cus toms among the Africans

,from the anci en t Egyp

tians,Ohmean ing a demon or magic. Vi ll iers-Stuart (jamaica Revisited,

1 89 1 ) says that Obeah in the West African dialects s ign ifies serpent,and that the Obeah -men in Jamaica carry (but in greatest secrecy, forfear of the penal laws) a stick on wh ich i s carved a serpent, the emblembeing a rel ic of the serpen t worsh ip once un iversal among mankind ,and also that they sacrifice cocks at the ir rel igi ous ri tes. Moseley givesthe following account : ‘Obi, for the purposes of bewitch ing peopleor consuming them by l ingering illness, i s made of grave-dirt , hair,teeth of sharks and other an imals, blood, feathers,

’and so on . M ixtures

of these are p laced in various ways near the person to be bewitched .

‘The victims to th is nefar ious art in the West Indies among the negroesare numerous. No human ity of the master nor sk ill in medicine can

relieve the poor n egro labouring under the influence of Obi. He willsurely d ie

,and of a diseas e that answers no description in nosology.

This,when I first wen t to the colon ies

, perp lexed me . Laws have beenmade in the West Indies to pun ish the Obian pract ice with death, butthey have been impoten t and nugatory. Laws constructed in the WestIndies can never suppress the effect of ideas , the origin of wh ich is inthe centre of Africa.

’A negro Obi-man will adm in i ster a baleful dose

from poisonous herbs, and calculate its mortal effects to an hour,day

,

week,mon th

, or year .’The m iss ionaries Waddell (Twen ty -nine Years

in the West Indies and Central Afr ica, 1 863 ) and Blyth (Remin iscencesof M issionary Life, 1 85 1 ) confirm thi s accoun t . They are all agreedthat s imi lar pract ices prevail in West and Cen tral Africa

,and that

Jamaican Obeah-men use poison s . Mr. Bowrey informs me that hehas exam ined many Obeah charms

,and confirms Moseley’s accoun t of

them. He th inks, however, that among the negroes the knowledge of

poison s has been rapidly dying out, doctor’s medic ine and the much

advert ised paten t medic ines having largely replaced the drugs of thenative pract it ioners . The belief in Obeah i s still, however, almostun iversal among the black populat ion . According to Sir Spencer St .John (Hay ti , or the Bloch Republic, second edition, London, 1 889 )secret poison ing is a lucrative occupation in the n eighbouring island ofHayti

,certain of the people having an intimate knowledge of indi

genous poisonous plants and being expert poisoners .

20 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

II I. OFFENCE To THE DEAD As A CAUSE OF D ISEASE.

How comes it that all the races ofman of which we have any accurateinformation have some belief or other in sp iri ts good or bad

,and of

s ome other li fe than the actual one which th ey l ive in their wakinghours The theologian answers i t in h is own way, the an thropologi s tin his

,and perhaps a s impler one . With the rel igious aspect of the

question we are not here concerned, we have merely to consider thesc ien t ific points involved . When the most ignorant savage of the lowesttype falls asleep, he is as sure to dream as h i s more favoured c ivil i z edbrother. To h i s compan ions he appears as though he were dead , hei s motionless and apparen tly unconsc ious. He awakes and i s h imsel fagain . What has h i s spiri t or th inking part been doing wh ile h i s bodys lept ? The man has seen various th ings and places, has even com

versed with friend or foe in his slumbers, has engaged in fights,has

taken a j ourney, has had adven tures , and yet h is body has not stirred.

Naturally enough the explanation mos t satisfactory is, that h i s soul hast emporarily left h is body, and has met other souls in a s im ilar condition .

He has seen and conversed wi th h i s dead friends or relat ives,has been

c omforted by their presence or alarmed at the vis i tation . Here,then

,

we have the an thropologist’s “ theory of souls where l i fe

,m ind

,breath

,

shadow, reflex ion, dream, vis ion, come together and accoun t for bneanother in some such vague, confused way as satisfies the untaughtreason er.” 1

But the savage goes further than th i s he has seen h i s horse,his dog

,

his canoe, and h i s Spear in hi s dream , they too must have souls ; andthus he invests wi th a sp iritual essence every material obj ect by wh ichhe i s surrounded. And so we find funeral sacrifices and ceremon ies al lo ver the world wh ich test ify to th is un i versal bel ief of prim i tive man .

The ornamen ts and weapons which are found with the bones of chiefs ,the warrior’s horses slain at h i s burial place, the food and drink and

p i ece of money left wi th the dead , are intell igible on th is theory, and on

no other. The savage’s idea of a demon or evil Sp irit i s usually that ofa soul of amalevolent dead man . The man was h is enemy during life

,he

remains h is enemy after death or he owed some acknowledgment andreward to a sp irit who had helped him, he has neglected to pay hi s debt,and he has offended the sp irit in consequence. In cases of fain t ing

,

d elir ium from fever, hysteria, ep ilepsy, or insan i ty, th e savage sees th e

partial absence of the pat ient’s soul from h i s body

,or the work of a

t ormenting demon . D emon iacal possess ion and the ceremon ies ofexorc i sm are theories readi ly explainable by facts with which the an

1 Tylor’s Anthropology , p . 344.

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2 2 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

by a god, so they are treated with great respect ; idiots are consideredto be divinely inspired .

1 Many other races believe in the inspirationOf mentally feeble or insane persons. Amongst the Dacotas spiri tsO f an imals, trees , stones , or deceased persons are believed to enter the

patient and cause his disease. The medic ine-man rec i tes charms overhim

,and making a symbol ic represen tation of the intruding spi ri t in

bark , shoots i t ceremon ial ly ; he sucks over the seat of the pain to

draw the spiri t out,and fires guns at i t as i t escapes .

This i s j ust what happened in the West Indies in the t ime of Columbus .Friar Roman Paul tells of a native sorcerer who pretended to pull thedisease from the legs of h i s patien ts

,blowing i t away

,and telling it

to begone to the mountain or the sea. He would then pretend to extract by sucking some stone or bit of flesh, which he declared had been

put in to the patient to cause the disease by a dei ty in pun ishmen t for somereligious neglect .2 The Patagon ians bel ieved that s ickness was causedby spirits en tering the patient

’s body ; they cons idered that an evil demonheld possession of the s ick man’s body, and their doctors always carri eda drum which they struck at the bedside to frighten away the demonswhich caused the disorder .3 The Zulus and Basutos in Africa teach that

ghosts of dead person s are the causes of all diseases . Congo tr ibesbeli eve also that the souls of the dead cause di sease and death amongstmen .

The art of medic ine in these lands therefore is, for the most part,merely an affair of prop it iat ing some offended and disease-causingspirit. In several parts of Africa mentally deranged persons are worshipped. Madness and idiocy are explained by the phrase,

“ he has

fiends .” The Bodo and Dh imal people of North-east India ascribe al ldiseases to a deity who tormen ts the patient , and who must be appeasedby the sacrifice of a hog. With these people naturally the doctor is as ort of priest. AsMr. Tylor says, Where the world-wide doc trine ofd isease-demons has held sway, men

’s m inds,full of spells and cere

mon i es,have scarce had room for thought of drugs and regimen .

” 4

A forest tribe of the Malay Pen in sula, called the Original People,are said to have no rel igion, no idea of any Supreme Being, and no

priests ; yet their Puyung, who is a sort of general adviser to the tribe ,in structs them in sorcery and the doc trine Of ghosts and evi l spirits . In

s ickness they use the roots and leaves of trees as medic ines . Amongst

1 Ell is, Poly n . Res. vol . i . pp. 363 , 395 VOI..11. pp . 193 , 2 74 . Schoo lcraft, part

iv. p . 49 .

2 Roman Pau l , x ix . in L if e of Colon .

2 D’Orbigny , L

’Homme Ame‘r ica in , vol. 11. pp. 207, 23 1 (Caribs) .1 Primi t ive Cu lture, vol. ii . p. 1 3 1 .

SA VAGE THEORIES OF D ISEASE. 23

the Tarawan group of th e Coral Islands, Pickering says D ivinationor sorcery was also known, and the natives paid worship to the manesor spirits of their departed ancestors .

” 1 Probably on careful investigationwe should find that in these cases the doctrine of ghosts and theworship of spirits has some connect ion with the causation of disease.The Malagasy profess a rel igion which is chiefly feti shism. They

believe in the life of the spiri t, wh ich they call “ the essen tial part ofme,

” apart from the body and they believe that th is sp irit exists whenthe body dies. Such “ ghosts they consider can do harm in variousways

,espec ially by causing diseases con sequently they endeavour

,as

the chief mean s of cure, to appease the offended ghost. Witchcraftand beli ef in charms naturally flourish amongst these people .2

Mr. A. W. Howitt says that the Kfirnai of Gippsland, Austral ia,believe that a man’s spiri t ( Yamho) can leave the body during sleep, andhold converse with other disembodied spirits . Another tribe

,the Woi

worting,call th is sp irit Murfip, and they suppose i t leaves the body in a

s imilar manner, the exact moment of i ts departure being indicated bythe “ snoring ” of the sleeper. As a theory of the soul, Mr. Howi tt saysIt may be said of the aborigines I am now concerned with

,and pro

bably of all others, that their dreams are to them as much real i ties in one

sense,as are the actual events of their waking life. It may be said that

in th i s respect they fail to distinguish between the subj ect ive and objec

t ive impress ions of the brain,and regard both as real events.” 3

They believe that these ghosts l ive upon plants, that they can revis i ttheir Old haunts at wil l, and commun icate with the wizards or medicinemen on being summoned by them. A celebrated wizard amongst theWoi—worting caught the spirit of a dying man , and brought i t back underhis

’possum rug, and restored i t to the st ill breathing body j ust in timeto save h is l ife . The ghosts can kill game with spiri tual ly poisonedspears . Even the tomahawk has a spirit

,and thi s bel ief expla ins many

burial customs . One of the Woi-worting people told Mr. Howitt thatthey buri ed the weapon with the dead man

, so that he m igh t have ithandy.

”Other tribes bury with the corpse the amulets and charm s

used by the deceased during l ife,in case they may be required in the

spirit-world. The Woi-woriing bel ieve that their wizards could sendtheir deadly magical yarfik , or rock crystal

,against a person they desired

to kill,in the form of a small wh irlwind. They bel ieve that their

wizards “ go up at n ight to the sky, and obtain such information as

1 Races of Man , p. 6 1 .

2 D r. G. W. Parker, on “The People of Madagascar, jou rn . An throp . In st . ,

1 883, p . 478.

3 journ . Anthrop . Inst. , 1884, p . 187 .

24 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

they require in their profess ion . They can also bring away the magicalapparatus by wh ich some one of another tribe m ight be inj uring thehealth of a member of hi s own tribe. It i s highly probable that in theseAustralian bel iefs we have the counterparts of those wh ich were everywhere held by primi t ive man . Good sp irits are very l ittle worsh ippedby savages they are already well disposed, and need no invocation i ti s the bad ones who must be propit iated by an infin i te variety of ri tesand sacrifices . “ Thus

,

” as Professor Keane says,

“ has demonologyeverywhere preceded theology.

” 1

Mr. Edward Palmer,in Notes on Some Australian Tr ibes

,says that

the Gulf tribes bel ieve in sp irits wh ich l ive ins ide the bark of trees , andwh ich come out at n igh t to hold intercourse with the doctors , ormediums .” These spirits work evi l at t imes. The Kombinegherrytribe are much afraid Of an evil-working spiri t called Thar ragarry ,

butthey are protected by a good spiri t, Coomboorah. The Mycoolon peoplebel ieve in an invi s ible spear which enters the body, leaving no outwardsign of its en try. The vict im does not even know that he is hurt hegoes on hun ting, and returns home as usual ; in the n ight he becomesi ll, delirious, or mad, and dies in the morn ing. Thimmool i s a pointedleg-bone of a man

,wh ich

,being held over a blackfellow when asl eep ,

causes s ickness or death . The Marro is the pin ion-bone of a hawk, inwh ich hair of an enemy has been fixed with wax. To work a charm on

him a fire c ircl e is made round it . With th is charm they can maketheir enemy sick

,or

,by prolonging their magic

,kill him. When they

th ink they have done harm enough , they place the Marro in water,wh ich removes the charm.

2

Mr. H. H. Johnstone says that the tribes on the Lower Congo burywith any one of consequence bales of cloth, plates, beads, kn ives , andother th ings required to set the deceased up in the sp iri t- l i fe on whichhe has entered . The plates are broken, the beads are crushed, and thekn ives bent

,so as to kill them, that they too may die

,

”and go to the

spiri t- land with their owner. 3

This i s a valuable confirmat ion of the doctrine of an im i sm .

As Mr. Herbert Spencer says 4 It i s absurd to suppose that unciviliz ed man possesses at the outset the idea of ‘

naturalAt a great price has civil ized man purchased the power of giving anatural explanation to the phenomena by which he is surrounded . As

soc ieties grow, as the arts flourish, as painfully, l i ttle by l ittle, h is

1 A . H. Keane , On the Botocudos .

2jou rn . An throp . Inst.

, 1884, p . 293 .

3 Ibid. , p. 475 .

4 Pr inciples of Sociology , vol. i . p . 222 .

SA VA GE THEORIES OF D ISEASE. 25

experiences accumulate, so does man learn to correc t h i s earl ier im

pressions, and to construct the foundation s of sc ience. It i s thenatural , or i t would not be the un iversal, process for prim i tive man to

explain phenomena by the s implest methods, and these always leadhim to h is superstitions . It i s the only process open to him . The

activity which he sees all around him is controlled by the sp ir i ts of th edead, and by spiri ts more or less l ike those which an imate h i s fellowmen.

Clement of Alexandria says that all supers tit ion arises from theinveterate habit of mankind to make gods l ike themselves . The deitieshave like passions with their worsh ippers , and some say that plagues,and hailstorms, and tempests , and the l ike, are wont to take place, notalone in consequence of material disturbance

,but also through the

anger of demons and bad angels . These can only be appeased bysacrifice and incantat ions . Yet some of them are eas ily satisfied

,for

when animals failed, i t suffi ced for the magi at C leone to bleed their ownfingers.

” 1

The prophetess D iot ima, by the Athen ians offering sacrifice previousto the pestilence, effected a delay o f the plague for ten years .

”2

1 Clem . A lex. , M iscellan ies , book vi . 2 Ibid .

CHAPTER IV.

MAGIC AND SORCERY IN THE TREATMENT OF DISEASE.

These originated partly in the Desire to cover Ignorance.—Medicine -men .

—Suckingout D iseases —Origin of.Exorcism .

-Ingenu ity of the Priests —Blow ing D iseaseaway.

—Bee lz ebub cast out by Beelz ebub.—Menders of Sou ls. Bringing up the

Devil . —D iseases and Med icines.—Fever Puppets.—Amu lets.—Totem ism and

Medicine.

DR . ROBERTSON tells us that the ignoran t pretenders to medical skillamongst the North American Indians were compelled to cover theirignorance concern ing the structure of the human body, and the causesof its diseases

,by imputing the origin of the maladies wh ich they failed

to cure to supernatural influences of a baleful sort. They therefore

prescribed or performed a vari ety of mys terious rites, wh ich they gaveout to be of such efficacy as to remove the most dangerous and

inveterate malice. The credul i ty and love of the marvellous natural toun informed men favoured the deception

,and prepared them to be the

dupes of those impostors . Among savages, their first phys ic ians are akind of conj urers , or wi z ards, who boast that they know what is past,and can foretell what is to come . Thus

,superst it ion , in i ts earliest

form, flowed from the solic i tude of man to be del ivered from presen td i s tress, not from his dread of evils awai ting him in a future life

,and

was originally ingrafted on medic ine,not on religion . One of the first

and most intell igen t h i storians of America was struck with th i s alliancebetween the art of d ivination and that of phys ic among the people o f

Hi span i ola . But this was not pecul iar to them. The Alex is,th e

P iay as, the Autmoins, or whatever was the distinguish ing name of the

diviners and charmers in other parts of America, were all physic ian s oftheir respect ive tribes, in the same manner as the Buhitos of Hi span iola.

As their funct ion led them to apply to the human m ind when enfeebledby s ickness

,and as they found it

,in that season of dej ection

, prone tobe alarmed with imaginary fears, or assured with vain hopes, they eas i lyinduced i t to rely with impl ic i t confidence on the vi rtue of their spellsand the certainty of their predictions .

” 1

The aborigines of the Amazon have a kind of priests cal led Pages ,1 History of Amer ica, book iv. 7 .

TREA TMEN T BY MAGIC AND SORCERY. 2 7

l ike the medic ine-men of the North American Indian s . They attributeall diseases e ither to poison or to the charms of some

’

enemy. O f

course, diseases caused by magic can only be cured by magic,so these

powerful priest-physici ans cure their pati ents by strong blowing and

breathing upon them, accompan ied by the s inging of songs and byincan tations . They are bel i eved to have the power to kill enemi es, andto affl ict with various d iseases . As they are much believed in

,these

pagis are well paid for their services . They are acquainted with the

properties of many poisonous plants . One of their poisons most fre

quently used is terrible in i ts effects, causing the tongue and throat , aswell as the in testines

,to putrefy and rot away, leaving the sufferer to

l inger in tormen t for several days . 1

Amongst many savage tr ibes their med icine-men pretend to removediseases by sucking the affected part of the body. They have previously

placed bi ts of bone, stones, etc.

,in their mouths

,and they pretend they

have removed them from the pati ent, and exh ibi t them as proofs of theirsuccess. The Shaman , or wizard-pri est of the rel igion still exist ingamongst the peoples Of Northern Asia, who pretends to have deal ingswith good and evil spirits, i s the successor of the priests of Accadthus is the Babylon ian religion reduced to the level of the heathen i smo f Mongolia .

The aborigines of the Darling River, New South Wales , believe thatSickness i s caused by an enemy

,who uses certain charm s called the

Yountoo and rll olee. The Ybuntoo i s made from a piece of bone takenfrom the leg of a deceased friend . This i s wrapped up in a p iece of thed ried flesh from the body of another deceased friend . The package i st ied with some hair from the head of a th ird friend . When th i s charmis used agains t an enemy, i t i s taken to the camp where he sleeps, anda fter certain rites are performed it i s poin ted at the person to be inj ured .

The doctor of the tribe attributes disease to th i s sort of enchantmen t,

and pretends to suck out of h is patien t the p i ece Of bone which he declares has entered h i s body and caused the m i schief. The M olee is a

pi ece of wh ite quartz, which i s pointed at the vict im with somewhatsim ilar ceremon ies and con sequences . The possessors of these powerful charms take care to h ide them from view. When the doctor

,or

Mayheeha, sucks ou t the Youn too— bone ch ip—from his patien t, he mustt hrow i t away. The Molee must be cast into water.Mr. F. Bonney read a paper on

“ Some Customs Of the Aborigines Oft he R iver Darl ing,” before the Anthropological Soc i ety of Great Britain,May 8th, 1 883 , in which the process Of curing diseases i s described .

He says : “ On one occasi on, when I was camped in the Purnanga1 Wallace, Travels on the Amaz on , chap. xvu .

28 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

Ranges, I watched by the ligh t of a camp-fire a doc tor at work,sucking

the back of a woman who was suffer ing from pains in that partWh i l e she sat on a log a few yards d istant from the camp-fire

,he moved

about her, making certain passes with boughs wh ich he held, and thensucked for some t ime the place where pain was felt ; at last he tooksometh ing from h is mouth , and

, holding i t towards the firelight, declared i t to be a piece of bone. The Old women s i tting near loudlyexpressed their satisfac tion at h is succes s . I asked to be allowed to“

look at i t,and i t was given to me. I carelessly looked at i t, and then

pretended to throw it into the fire, but, keeping it between my fingers,

I placed it in my pocket, when I could do so unobserved and on the

following morn ing,when I exam ined it by dayl igh t

,i t proved to be a

small spl in ter of wood, and not bone. At the t ime the patient'

appeared

to be very much rel ieved by the treatmen t .” Another mode of treatment described by Mr. Bonney is that of sucking poison, supposed tohave been sen t into the patien t by an enemy, through a s tring. The

patient complained Of s ickness in the stomach ; the woman doctor

placed the patien t on her back on the ground,t i ed a string round the

m iddle of her naked body,leaving a loose end about eighteen inches

long. The doctress then began sucking the string, pass ing the loose :

end through her mouth, from t ime to t ime Spitt ing blood and sal iva int oa pot. She repeated thi s many t imes, un t i l th e patient professed to be

cured.

The people of Timor- laut, near the island of New Guinea, scar themselves on the arms and shoulders with red-hot stones

,in im i tation of

immense small-pox marks, in order to ward off that diseas e .

1

Among the Kaffirs diseases are all attributed to three causes— eitherto being enchanted by an enemy, to th e anger of certain beings whoseabode appears to be in the rivers, or to the power of evil sp ir its .2

“Among the Kalmucks,”says Lubbock , “ the cures are effected by

exorcis ing the evi l spiri t. Th i s i s the business of the so-called priests,’

who induce the evil Sp iri t to qui t the body of the patien t and en tersome other obj ect. If a ch i e f i s ill

,some other person i s induced to

take h i s name, and then , as is supposed, the evil sp irit passes into hisbody.

” 3

Pritchard tells us that “ the priests of the Negroes are also the

physic ian s, as were the priests of Apollo and IEscu lapius . The notionswhich the Negroes en tertain of the causes of diseases are very differentThe Watj e attribute them to evi l sp iri ts whom they call Dobbo. When

1jou rn . An throp . Inst . , 1 884, p . 10.

2 Forrest,jou rn . A n throp . Inst . , vol . iii. p . 3 19 .

3 Or igin of Civiliz at ion , p . 26 .

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30 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

people is called Angahoh, s igni fying the “Great or “ the Anc ient,

”

and he is guide,instructor

,wonder-worker

, physic ian, and priest. Heaccumulates in h imself all influences “ he i s publ ic counsellor

,j ustice

of the peace, arbitrator in publ ic and private affairs , arti st of all kinds ,poet, actor, buffoon .

”Supposed to be in contact and close com

munication with the superior beings of the world of spiri ts, and to

harbour in h is body many demons of various kinds, he is supposedto be invested with omn ipotence, he can chase away the diseasedemons

,and put even death i tself to fl ight . The angahoh defends his

people from the demons who take the form of cancers, rheumati sm,

paralys is, and skin diseases . He exorc ises the s ick man with stale urine ,like the Bochiman poison-doctors .1

The Cambodians exorc ise the small-pox demon with the urine of a

wh i te horse.

2

Th iers (D es Superstitions), quoted by Reclus, says that Slavonicrust ics asperse their cattle with herbs of St. John boiled in urine tokeep il l- luck away from them ; and that French peasant women usedto wash their hands in their own urine

,or in that of their husbands

and children ,to preven t evil enchan tmen ts doing them harm. Recl us

says When a diagnos is pu z zles an angahoh, he has recourse to a trulyingen ious proceeding. He fastens to the invalid’s head a string, theother end of wh ich i s attached to a stick ; th i s he raises, feels, balanceson h i s hand

,and turns in every direct ion . Various operations follow,

having for their obj ect the forc ible removal of the spider from the luckless wretch whose flesh i t devours . He will cleanse and s et to rightsas much as he is able—whence h is name ‘M ender of Souls .’ A

wicked witch,present though invis ible

,can undo the efforts of the

conj urer,and even commun icate to him the disease

,rendering him the

victim of h is devotion black magic can display more power than whitemagic . Then, seeing the case to be desperate

,the honest angahoh

summons,i f possible, one or more brethren, and the phys icians of

souls strive in concert to comfort the dying man with a solemn voicethey extol the fel ic i ties of Paradise

,chanting softly a farewell can t icle,

wh ich they accompany l ightly upon the drum .

” 3

The superstit ious natives of the Lower Congo have a singular custom ,

when anybody dies, of compell ing some vict im or other to drink a

poison made from the bark Of the Ery throphlceum guineensis. It

usually acts as a powerful emetic, and i s adm in istered in the hope thati t may

“ bring up” th e devil. Their medic ine-man i s called nganga ,

and he is taught a language quite different from the ordinary tongue,1 Th. Halm , Globu s , xviii . 2 Landas, Superstitions Annamites .

3 Pr imitive Fol/e, pp . 83 , 84.

TREA TMENT BY M AGIC AND SORCERY. 3 1

and th is is kept secret from females . N0 one, says Mr. H. H.

John ston (“On the Races of the Congo “has yet been able to exam ine

into their sacred tongue.” The use of Latin by c ivili zed doctors i s notunlike th is African custom .

The mountaineers of the Neilgherries endeavour to induce th e demonthey invoke to enter into the body of the “medium

,a dancer who

pretends to the intoxication of prophecy . If they can persuade thedemon of pestilence or typhoid fever to enter into the medium ,

i tbecomes poss ibl e to act upon and influence him .

2

The people of Tartary make a great puppet when fever i s prevalent,which they call the D emon of In term i tten t Fevers

,and which when

completed they set up in the tent Of the pat ients .Mr. Forbes

,in his account of the tribes of the island of Timor

,says

that the natives believe all diseases to be the resu lt of sorcery,and they

carry a variety of herbs and charms to avert i ts influence . He saysI had as a servan t an old man, who one morn ing complained of being

in a very discomposed and generally uncomfortable s tate, and of beingafraid he was going to die. He had seen

,he said

,the spirit of his

mother in the n ight, sh e had been present by him and had spoken withhim . He feared, therefore, that he was about to die . He begged of mesome tobacco and rice to offer to her, wh ich I gave him . He retired a

l i ttle way to a great stone in the ground,and laying on i t some betel

and pinang, with a small quant i ty Of chalk, along with a little tobaccoand rice, he repeated for some eight or ten m inutes an invocation wh ichI did not understand . The rice and the chalk he left on th e stone

,wh ich

were very shortly after devoured by my fowls the tobacco,betel

,and

p inang he took away again, to be util ised by h imself.” 3

When the medic ine-man of these tr ibes calls to see a patient, helooks very closely at him, to endeavour to perce ive the sorcerer who i smaking him ill . Then he return s to his home and makes up somemedicines , which the happy patien t has not however to swallow, but thedrugs having been packed by the doctor into a bundle with a smallstone

,are thrown away as far as poss ible from the s ick man the stone

finds out the sorcerer and returns to the doctor, who gives i t to hi s

patient and tells him i t wi ll cure him i f he will wear i t about his neck .

This affords another i llustrat ion of the un iversal bel ief of the value ofamulets in medic ine.

M edicine amongst certain tribes has a connect ion with the adorat ionof part icular Obj ects and an imals believed to be related to each

1jou rn . An throp . Inst . , 1884, p . 473 .

2 Prof. Mon ier Wil l iams, and Reclus , Primit ive Folh, p. 234.

3journ . Ant/crop . Inst. , 1 884, p . 427 .

3 2 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

separate stock or blood-kindred of human beings, and wh ich i s knownin anthropology as totemi sm . The Algonquin Indians use the name

,

Bear, Wolf, Tortoi se, Deer, or Rabbit to designate each of a number ofclans into which the race i s divided . The an imal i s considered as an

ancestor or protector of the'

tribe.

In cons idering the inst itut ions of “ totem i sm and “ medicine,we

must not forget that savage .

“ medicine ” has '

a function somewhat d ifferent from t hat of medic in e in our sense Of the wordf Some doubt i fthere be any real distinct ion between the totem and the medic ine .

1

Schoolcraft says that among the Sioux a clan con sists of individualswho use the same roots for medic ine, and they are in i t iated into theclan by a great medicine-dance. The Sioux and other tribes make abag out of the skin of the medicine (totem an imal

,wh ich acts as a

tal isman, and i s inheri ted by the son . Here We have an ins tance of the

reverence insp ired by an inheri ted medic ine . It i s a l ittle surprisingthat we have so few evidences of the worsh ip o f healing h erbs anddrugs.Demon-worsh ip i s the explanation of the mysteries of D ionysus

Zagreus and the Chthon ic and Bacch ic orgies . M . Reclus r says If

we knew nothing otherwise of these orgies, we could obtain a suffic ien tlycorrect idea of them by Visiting the Ghats, the Neilgherries, and theVindhyas.

” 2

1 Starcke , P r imitive Fami ly , p. 32 .2 P r imitive Polh, p . 234 .

CHAPTER V.

PRIMITIVE MED ICINE.

Bleeding.-Scarification.

—Use o f Medicinal Herbs amongst the Aborigines of Australia, South America, Africa, etc.

THEHeal ing Craft of many of the northern tribes of Austral ia i s thusdescribed by Mr. Palmer“Among the northern tribes many devices and charms are resorted

to in the cases of pai ns and Sickness. The doctors are men who, i t i ssupposed, possess great powers o f heal ing, some of wh ich they obtainfrom the spiri ts. They use s tones and crystals to put away sicknessfrom any one, and somet imes they bandage the afflicted part with stringtightly till no part o f the skin is vis ible. One common plan of alleviating pain is by bleed ing, supposing that the pain comes away withthe blood . For th i s m inute cuts are made through the skin with pieceso f broken fl in t

,or the edge of a broken mussel-shell, over the part

affected, and the blood i s wiped off with a stick . Somet imes the doctor t ies a str ing from the s ick place, say the chest, and rubs the end ofi t across h is gums , spitt ing into a kool iman of water

,and passing the

s tring through also ; he then points to the blood in the water as evidence of h is Skill in drawing i t from the sick person. Stones are suckedo ut with the mouth, and exh ib ited as having been taken from the body.

A good number Of plants are u sed in Sickness as drinks, and for external appl icat ion. A broken arm i s cured wi th spl ints made of barkand wound round tigh tly . Snake-bite is cured by scarifying and sucking the wound, and by then using a poul tice of box-bark

,bruised and

heated .

” 1

Mr. E. Palmer says that “ the Austral ian aborigines possessed a con .

s iderable knowledge of indigenous plants, and their acquaintance withnatural h istory was very accurate. They could only have obtained thisknowledge by close observation and generations of experience . Withthe extermination

“

of the blacks th is information has completely d iedout, and i t can only now be , obtained in far-distan t places l ike NorthQueensland, where the aborigines have not been killed off by contact

1[ou r/t . Anthrop . In st. , 1884, p . 299.

33

34 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF IIIEDICINE.

with c ivil i zation. They have much experience in the healing vi rtuesand properties of plants, as also o f the kinds best sui ted for poison ingfish.

” 1 Great sk ill i s exh ibi ted by their mode of preparing plants byfire and water and other processes, before using them as food ; i f partaken of in their natural s tate

,many of them would be very deleterious

,

i f no t actually poisonous. The D ioscorea sativa, or karro plant, has largetubers, which are first roasted

,then broken in water and strained or

squeezed through fine bags made o f fibre into long bark troughs, thenthe product i s washed in many waters

,the sed iment i s well st irred

wh ile the water i s poured in ; by this means the bi tter princ ipl e i s extracted

,and a yellow fecula l ike hom iny IS produced . Carey a australis

has a root which i s u sed to poison fi sh,though i ts frui t i s eaten un

cooked by the natives . Manna i s gathered from Eucalyptus terminalis.

Cymbidium caniculatum i s u sed for dysentery and other bowel d isorders ; The nuts of the Cy cas media are very poisonous unless pre

pared by fi re and water,and then they can be used as food . The seeds

of En tada scandens are only fi t for eating after baking and pounding,as i s the case with many other plants cleverly man ipul ated by theblacks . The leaves o f Ocimum sanctum are infused in water and

drunk for sickness . A wash i s made from the bruised bark o f thegutta-percha tree, Excacar ia parvtfl ora. The leaves of Loranthus

quandong, the m istletoe of the Acacia hemalophy lla, are infused in waterand drunk for fevers, ague, etc . i t is doubtful whether they - have anyvi rtue

,but m istletoe was once a very highly prized medic ine in Europe,

though now wholly obsolete. The leaves Of M elaleuca leucadendron

are used in infusion for headache,colds

, and general s ickness. The

melaleuca i s th e cajeput tree,and caj eput o il i s undoubtedly a valuable

medic in e . St ille says , “ It i s of marked util i ty in cases of nervousvomi t ing

,nervous dysphagia, dyspnoea, and hiccup .

” 2 Externally i t isvaluable in nervous headache and neuralgia .

The natives make great use medic inally of the various spec ies o f

eucalyp tus. The l eaves ofEucalyptus tetradonta are made in to a drinkfor fevers and Sickness with headache

, etc. The Eucalyptu s globu lus re

cently introduced into c ivil ized medic ine comes from Australia . P lec

tranthus congestus, P terocau lon glandu losus, Gnaphalium luteo-album

(several of th is species are used in European m edic ine in bronchit isand diarrhoea, and one of them i s called “ Life Helio

trop ium ovalifolium,and M oschosma polystachium,

are al l used in the

medical pract ice of these desp ised aborigines , and are probably qui teas valuable as the majority Of the herbs recommended in our old

herbals and pharmacopoeias .1[our/z . Au throp. Inst . 1884, p. 3 10.

2 National D ispensatory , p. 986.

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36 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

The eucalyptus or blue-gum tree grows on the h i ll s of Tasmania andin Victoria on the mainland of Austral ia i t was introduced into Europein 1 856, and has been very extens ively used as a remedy for intermi ttentfever

,influenza, and as a powerful dis infectan t.

As in all s im ilar cases ,” says St ille, “ the discovery of i ts v irtues wasaccidental . It is alleged that more than forty years ago the crew of aFrench man-of-war, having lost a number of men with ‘ pern iciousfever

,

’ put into Botany Bay,where the remain ing Sick were treated with

eucalyptus , and rap idly recovered . It i s also said that the vi rtues ofthe tree were wel l known to the aboriginal inhabitants .”

A good il lustrat ion of the ways in wh ich the properties of plantshave been discovered , and of the relation o f poisonous to harml essherbs

,may be found in the practice of the American Indians in the ir

u se of the maniac, a large shrub produc ing roots somewhat l ike parsn ips.They careful ly extract the j uice, wh ich is a deadly poison, and thengrate the dried roots to a fine powder, which they afterwards convertinto the cassava bread . How was th is treatmen t of the root d iscovered ? It was Simply due to the fac t that one spec ies of the shrubi s devoid of any poisonous property, and has only to be washed and

may then be eaten with impunity. No doubt th is non-

poisonous root

was the first wh ich was used for food ; then when the supply ran

short they were driven by necess ity to find out the way to use thea lmost iden t ical root of the poisonous variety, wh ich when divested of

i ts j uice is even better for food than the harml ess root. Probably th i swas only d iscovered after many experiments and fatal i ties. “Necess i ty,the mother of invent ion,

” in th is as in most other th ings,ul timately

d irected the nat ives to the right way of deal ing with th i s article of d ie t.The male fern i s a very anc ient remedy for tape oworm,

and to thepresen t day physic ians have found noth ing so successful for removingthi s paras i te. The plan t i s indigenous to Canada, M exico, SouthAmerica, India, Africa, and Europe. The negroes of South Americahave long used worm- seed (Chenopodium anthelminticum) as a vermi fugefor lumbricoid worms. The plant grows wild in the Un ited States , andhas been introduced into the Pharmacopoeia as a remedy espec iallyadapted for the expulsion of the round-worms of ch i ldren. Kousso

(Bray era anthelmintica) has been employed from t ime immemorial inAbyssin ia for the expuls ion of tape-worm. It has been introducedinto the British Pharmacopoeia.

Some tribes of the Upper Orinoco, Rio Negro, etc. ,have been

known to subsist for months on no other food than an edible earth,

a kind of clay containing oxide of iron, and wh ich i s of a reddish-brownc olour.

PRIM I TI VE MEDICINE. 3 7

M. Cortambert, at a meeting of the Geographical Soc iety in 1 862 ,

described thi s s ingular food , and said i t seemed to be rather a stay forthe stomach than a nourishment. Some wh i te people in Venezuelahave imi tated the earth-eaters, and do not despis e balls o f fat earth .

1

Savages require much larger doses of drugs than c ivil i zed people .

Mr. Bonney relates 2 that he usually gave the aborigines o f New SouthWales half a pint or more of castor o il for a dose. Another man tookthree drops of croton oil as an ordinary dose.Professor Bentl ey in 1 862 - 63 contributed ‘ to the Pharmaceu tical

journal a seri es of articles on New American Remedies wh ich havebeen introduced into medical practice in consequence of their reputat ion amongst th e Indians . Yellow-root (Xanthorrhiz a apiifolia) haslong been employed by the various tribes of North American Indian sas a tonic, and may be compared to quassia or calumba root. It i sincluded in the Uni ted States Pharmacopoeia. Its active princ ipl eseems to be berber ine.The blue Cohosh plant (Caulophy llum thalictroides) has for agesbeen used by the aborigines of North America as a valuable remedyfor female complaints . A tea of the root i s employed amongs t th eChippeway Indians on Lake Superior as an aid to parturiti on. The

earl iest colon ists Obtained their knowledge of the virtues of the bluecohosh from the natives, and i t has for many years been a favouritediuretic remedy in the States . Its common names are pappoose-root,squaw-root

,and blueberry-root. Its act ive principle i s called caulo

Twin- leaf (jefi rsonia diphy lla) i s a popular remedy in Oh io and

other North American States in rheumatism. It i s called rheumatism

root. In chemical composi t ion i t i s s im ilar to senega.Blood-root, or puccoon (Sangu inaria canadensis ), has been used for

centuries by North American Indians as a medic ine. I t has beenintroduced into the Uni ted States Pharmacopoeia. It i s an alterative,and i s useful in certain forms of dyspeps ia, bronch i tis, croup

,and

asthma. Its physiological act ion,however

,bears no relation to its

medic inal uses (Stille’

and .Ma isch). Its active princ iple is sanguin

arina.

Sarracenia purpurea, Indian cup, or s ide- saddle plan t, is a nat ive ofNorth America, and much used by the Ind ians in dyspepsia, s ick headache

, e tc.

The valuable bitter stomach ic and ton ic calumba-root comes to usfrom the forests Of Eastern Africa, between Ibo and the Zambesi . Its

1 Wh.jour . , vol . iv. , z ud sec ., p . 5 19 .

2l earn . An throp . Inst. 1884, p . 132.

38’

A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

African name i s kalamb'

; i t depends for . i ts therapeutic value on theberberine wh ich i t contains , and which i s found in several other plants.The natives of tropical Africa, the North American Ind ians

,and the

semi-barbarian tribes of Hindostan and China have al l been impressedwith the medic inal value of berberine. Before quinine was commonlyused in medic ine, th i s valuable drug was estimated most h ighly for i t svery s imi lar properties . There can be no doubt that it was introducedinto medic ine by savages .Jalap comes to us from Mexico . It was named from the c ity of

Xalapa.

C inchona bark was used by the savages o f Peru long before i t wasintroduced into European medic ine.Guaiacum, so valuable in chron ic rheumatism,

was introduced intoEuropean medicine from the West India Islands and the northerncoasts of South America.

The excellent and popular tonic, quass ia-wood, reaches us fromJamaica.Logwood, a valuable astringent, largely used in diarrhoea, is a native

Of Campeachy and other parts o f Central America, and grows in theWest India Islands and India.

Copaiba, an oleo-res in from the copaiva tree, comes from the WestIndies and tropical \ parts Of America , ch i efly from the valley Of - theAmaz on . It i s one o f our m ost valuable remedies in diseases of thegen ito-urinary organs .Turkey corn

,or Turkey pea (D icentra , Corydalis formosa) grows in

Canada and as far south as Kentucky. It has a reputation as a ton ic ,d iuretic and alterat ive medic ine, and i s used in sk in diseases, syph i l is,etc.

The negroes use the prickly ash, or tooth-ache shrub (Xanthoxy lum

frax ineum), as a blood purifier, espec ially in the spring. It has longbeen ofli cinal in the Un ited States Pharmacopoeia, and i s cons ideredh ighly serviceable in chron ic rheumati sm.

The shrubby trefoil (P/elea trifoliata) i s a North American shrub,much valued in dyspepsia, and as a stimulant in the typhoid state . Its

act ive princ ipl e i s berber ine.The above are merely a few examples taken at random of the valu

able med ic inal plan ts used by savages and primit ive peoples .Thus , as m igh t have been expected , the d iscovery of the Americas

led to the introduction ofmany new drugs into medical pract ice.Savages eat enormously.

Wrangel says each o f the Yakuts ate in a day s ix times as many fishas he could eat. Cochrane describes a five-year-old ch i ld of thi s race

PRIM I TI VE MED/CINE. 39

as devouring three candles , several pounds of sour frozen butter, and alarge p iece of yellow soap , and adds I have repeatedly seen a Yakut,o r a Yongohsi, devour forty pounds Ofmeat in a day.

” 1

Yet the savage is less powerful than the C ivil ized man. He i s nuable,

” says Spencer,“ to exert suddenly a s great an amoun t of force,

and he is unable to cont inue the expenditure of force for so long a“me.

1 Herbert Spencer’s Pr inciples of Sociology , vol . i . p . 50 .

CHAPTER VI.

P R IM IT IVE S U R GER Y .

Arr est ofBleeding—The Indian as Surgeon .—Stretchers, Spl ints , and Flint Instru

ments.—Ovariotomy.—Brain Surgery.

—Massage.- Trepanning.

—The CaesareanOperation .

—Inocu lation .

PRIM ITIVE man, from the earl i est ages,must have been a dil igent

s tudent of medicine i t has indeed been wisely said that the fi rs t man

was the firs t phys ic ian . That is tosay, he must have been at least ascareful to avo id noxious th ings and selec t good ones as the beasts,and, as in the lowest scal e, he must have been abl e in some degree toobserve, reflect, and compare one th ing wi th another, and so find out

what hurt and what healed him,he would at once begin to pract is e

the healing art, either that branch o f i t wh ich i s d irected towards maintaining the health or that of al leviat ing suffering. When h i s fellowmen were Sick and died, he would be led to wonder why they peri shedand when other men stricken in l ike manner recovered

,h e would

speculate as to the causes of their cure. It i s probabl e that at firs t l ittl eattention was paid to the loss Of blood when an artery was severed .

Soon,however

,i t would be remarked that under such conditions the

man would faint, and perhaps d ie. In process of t ime i t would beobserved that when the inj ured blood-Vessel was by any means , naturalor artificial, c losed, the man quickly recovered . Then some o ne wiserthan the other would bind a strip of fibre or a piece of the skin of abeast around the bleeding limb

, and the haemorrhage would cease,and

the operator would gain credit and reward. He would then, naturally,give h imself airs

,and pretend , in course of t ime, to some importance,

and so become a healer by profess ion . It would soon be noticed thatthose who, in the search for berries in the woods, ate of certain kinds ,more or less promptly d ied , and those who had abstained from theiruse survived . It would be understood that such berries must no t beeaten. Or again, a man suffering from some pain in h is stomach wouldeat of a particular plant that seemed good for food, and h i s pain wouldbe relieved : it m igh t be ages before primitive man would arrive at

the conclusion that there was some connection between the pain and

PRIM ITI VE SURGERY 41

i ts disappearance after eating of the plant in question but in process‘of time the two things would be assoc iated, and everybody woulduse the curative plant for the part icular pain.

It is natural to suppose that many such th ings would happen, andwe know as a fact that they have so happened in numberless instances .Probably empi rical medicine, in the most anc ien t t imes and amongst

the most savage tribes , had an armoury of weapons against pain and

s ickness no t greatly inferior to our own Materia Med ica. The originof the use of most of our valuable medic ines cannot be discovered .

As no man can say who i t was that fi rs t invented the use o f c lothesand houses agains t the inclemency of the weather, so also can no in

vestigation point out the origin ofmedic ine—mysterious as the sourcesof the Ni le. There has never been a t ime when i t was not .” 1

The origin of surgery is probably much Older than that of medic ine,i f by the term surgery we mean the application of herbs to wounds, e itheras bandages or on account o f thei r healing propert ies, and the use o fmed icinal bath s the l ike. Mr. Gladstone, in an address to a soci ety ofherbal ists , which was reported in the D aily IVews, a7 th March, 1 890 ,

said that an acc ident wh ich occurred to h imself, when cutting down atree , illustrated th e very beginn ing of the heal ing art. He cut h isfinger with the axe

,and found that he had no handkerch i e f with him

with wh ich to b ind up the wound , so he took a leaf of the tree nearestto him,

and fastened i t round h is inj ured finger. The bleed ing stoppedat once, and the wound, he declared, healed much more qu ickly and

favourably than prev ious inj uries treated in a more sc ient ific manner.There is no doubt whatever that th i s is a good exampl e o f theprim i t ive manner of treating cuts and other flesh wounds. The cooling properties of leaves would be recogn ised by the most primi t ivepeoples and as a cut or other w ound

,by the process of inflammat i on,

at once begins to burn and throb , a cool ing leaf would be the m ostnatural th ing to apply. Some leaves which possess s typt ic and resinous

properties would staunch bleeding very effectually, and the mere act ofbinding round the cut an application l ike a l eaf would serve to drawtogether the edges of the wound, and afford an antiseptic p laster o fthe most sc ien tific nature . It was, in fact, by j ust such means thatthe valuable styptic properties of the matico leaves were firs t d iscoveredby Europeans.

If,in the depths of the forest, an Indian breaks his leg or arm (said

Dr. Hingston in h i s address at the Bri ti sh Medical A ssoc iati onmeetingat Nottingham, splints of softest material are at once improvised .

Straigh t branches are cut,Of un i form length and th ickness . These are

1 Sydenham’s Works, vol . i . Preface to IlIedical Observations.

42 A POPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

l ined with down-l ike moss, or scrapings or shavings o f wood ; or with

fine twigs interlaid with leaves,if in summer ; or with the curled-up

leaves of the evergreen cedar or hemlock,i f in winter ; and the whole

i s surrounded w i th withes o f w illow or osier, or young birch . Occas ionally i t i s the soft but suffic iently unyielding bark of the poplar orthe bass-wood . Sometimes , when near the marshy margin o f our lakesor rivers, the wounded limb i s afforded support wi th wild hay or reedso f un iform length and th ickness.To carry a patient to h is wigwam, or to an encampment, a stretcher

is quickly made o f four young sapl ings , interwoven at their upper ends ,and on th i s elastic springy couch the inj ured man i s borne away byhis compan ions . When there are but two persons , and an acc iden thappens to one of them, two young trees of birch or beech or

'

h ickor yare used . Thei r t0ps are al lowed to remain to aid in dim in i sh ing th ej olt ing caused by the inequalit ies o f th e ground . No London carriagemaker ever constructed a spring which could better accomplish th e

purpose. A couple o f c rossbars preserve the sapl ings in posit ion, and

the bark of the elm or birch, cut into broad bands, and j oined to e i the rs ide

,forms an even bed . In th is way an inj ured man i s brough t by

his compan ion to a settlemen t, and often it has been found, on arrival,that the fractured bones are firmly un i ted

, and the l imb is whole again .

Th i s i s effected in less time than with the whites, for the reparative

power of these ch ildren of the forest i s remarkable . In thei r p len i tudeo f health , osseous matter i s poured ou t in large quant ity, and firm un ionis soon effected .

The reparative power of the aborigines, when inj ured, i s equalledby the wonderful s toicism wi th wh ich they bear inj uries, and infl ic tupon themselves severest torture. They are accustomed to cut intoabscesses wi th pointed fl in t they l igh t up a fire at a distance from th eaffected part (our counter-i rri tat ion) ; they amputate l imbs with thei rhunting-kn ives , checking the haemorrhage with heated stones, as sur

geons were accustomed to do in Europe in the time of Ambroise Paré’

;

and sometimes they amputate their own l imbs with more sang f roz'

a’

than many young surgeons wi ll d isplay when operating on others . The

s tumps of l imbs amputated in this primi ti ve manner are wel l formed ,for neatness i s the characteristic of al l the Indian ’s handiwork.

The aborigines are fami l iar with , and prac tis e extens ively, the use ofwarm fomentat ions . In every tribe their old women are c redited wi ththe possess ion of a knowledge of local bathing w ith hot water, and

o fmedicated decoct ions. The herbs they use are known to a privileged few, and enhance the cons ideration in wh ich their posses sors arehe ld.

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44 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

for a long time. They also employ kneading and frict ion under thenames of M it i and Fota. African travel lers inform us that the medic inemen use these processes for the rel ief of inj uries to the j o ints, fractures,and pain of the muscles . Our w ord shampooing is said to have beenderived from the Hindu term chamboning. Dr. N. B . Emerson, in1 8 70, gave an account of the lomi- lom i of the Sandwich Islanders . He

says that,

“when footsore and weary in every muscle,so that no posi

t ion affords rest,and sleep cannot be obtained

,these manipulations

rel ieve the st iffness and soothe to sleep, so that the unpleasant effectsof

“ excessive exerc ise are not fel t the next day,but an unwonted sup

pleness of j oint and muscl e comes instead .

” 1

.When we receive a blow or s trike our bodies agains t a hard sub

stance, we instinctively rub the affec ted part. Th i s i s one of thes implest and mos t effectual examples of natural surgery. When theemoll ien t properties of oil were discovered, rubb ing with o il, or inunct ion, was pract ised. The use of o il for th i s purpose in the Eas t isextremely anc ient. Amongst the Greeks there was a class of rubberswho anointed the bodies of the athletes . The o il was very thoroughlyrubbed in, so that the pores o f the skin were closed and the profusepersp i ration thereby prevented. After the contest the athlete was

subj ected to massage with o il, so as to restore the tone of the strainedmuscles . These aliptae came to be recogn i sed as a sort of med icaltrainers. A s im i lar c lass of slaves attended their masters in the Romanbaths, and they were also possessed of a certain kind of medical knowledge .

D i scuss ing the origin of the operation of trepanning, Sprengel saysthat “noth ing i s more in structive

, in the h i story of human knowledge ,than to go back to the origin, or the clumsy rough sketch of the d iscoveries to wh ich man was conduc ted by accident o r reflect ion, and tofollow the success ive improvements wh ich h i s methods and his ins truments undergo.

”2 The name of the inven tor of th is operation is lost inthe n igh t of t ime. Hippocrates gives us the firs t accoun t of trepanningin his treati se on Wounds of the Head. We know, however, that it wasperformed long before h i s t ime . Dr. Handerson, the translator o f

Baas’History of M edicine, says that human skulls of the neol ith ic periodhave been discovered wh ich bear evidences of trepann ing.

3

The operat ion of cutting for the stone, l ike many other of the mostd ifficult operat ions of surgery, was for a long time given over to

1.Marrage, by W. E. Green, (Prov. fil ed jomc

, May z ud, 1892, p .

2 Hirt. de la MJJ. , vol . vii. p . I .

3 See also Surgeon Fletcher’s report in the U.S. Googmp/n’

m l and Geological Sur

vey of Me Rocky .Mozm taz'

fz Region , vol. v. 1882.

PRIMITI VE SURGER Y. 45

ignorant persons who make a spec ial ity of i t. Sprengel attributes th isinj urious custom to the rid iculous pride of the properly instructeddoctors, who disdained to undertake operations wh ich could be suc

cessfully performed by laymen .

1

The Bafio tes, on the coast of South Guinea, pract is e cupping. Theymake inc is ions in the skin, and place horns over the wounds, and thensuck out the air, withdrawing the blood by these means .2

Felkin saw a case o f the Caesarean operat ion in Central Africa performed by a man . At one stroke an inc is ion was made through boththe abdom inal walls and the uterus the opening in the latter organ wasthen enlarged, the haemorrhage checked by the actual cautery, and thech ild removed . Wh ile an ass istant compressed the abdomen, the operator then removed the placenta. The bleeding from the abdom inal wallswas then checked. No sutures were placed in the walls of the uterus

,

but the abdom inal parietes were fastened together by seven figure-ofeigh t sutures

,formed with pol ished iron needles and threads of bark .

The wound was then dressed with a paste prepared from variou s roots ,the woman placed quietly upon her abdomen, in order to favour perfec tdrainage , and the task of th is African Spencer Wells was fin i shed. It

ap pears that the patient was firs t rendered half unconscious by bananawine. One hour after the operation the patient was doing well, and

her temperature never rose above 1 0 1°F.,

nor her pulse above 1 08 .

On the eleventh day the wound was completely healed, and the womanapparently as wel l as usual .

” 3

The South Sea Islanders perform trepann ing, and some Australiantribes perform ovario tomy

fi’

The m iss ionary d’Entrecolles was the first to inform the Westernworld of the method o f inoculation for the small-pox, which the Chinesehave followed for many cen turies . 5

In many countries,and from the earliest t imes , says Sprengel ,6 i t has

been customary to inoculate ch ildren with small-pox, because experiencehas shown that a disease thus provoked assumes a m i lder and morebenign form than the disease wh ich comes n aturally.

1 II isl . do la Mod , tome vn . p . 208.

2 Baas, Hist. fli ed , p. 70.

3 Ioia’.

4 Ibid. , p . 76.

5 Lettres édifiam‘

os of cu rieuses,tom. xxi. p. 5 . Hottentots and negroes in Céntral

Africa, according to Livingstone, have from remote t imes practised inocu lation in a

s imilar manner.6 Hist. do la Ill . , vol . vu . p . 34.

CHAPTER VI I.

UNIVERSALITY o r THE USE o r INTOX ICANTS .

Egyptian Beer and Brandy.—Mex ican Pu lque.

-Plant-worship.—Un ion w ith the

Godhead by Alcoho l .—Soma.—The Cow -religion .

—Cax iri .—Murwa Beer.Bacchic Rites. —Spiritual Exaltation by \Vine.

ONE o f th e strongest des ires of human nature i s the passion for somekind or another of alcohol ic stimulants .

i

Intoxicating l iquors are madeby savages in primeval forests, and travellers in al l parts of the worldhave found the natives conversan t wi th the art of preparing some sor to f st imulating liquor in the shape of beer, wine, or spiri t. The anc ientEgyptians had their beer and brandy, the Mexicans the ir aloe beer orpulque. Probably the art o f preparing fermen ted drinks was in eachnat ion discovered by acc iden t. Berries soaked in water, set as ideand forgotten, saccharine roots steeped in water and j u ices preservedfor future use, have probably taugh t primi t ive man everywhere tomanufacture stimulating beverages . The influence o f alcohol ic drinkson th e development o f the human m ind must have been very ,

great. If

primi tive man has learned so much from h is dreams,what has he not

learned from the exaltation produced by medic inal plants and alcohol icinfus ions ? If the savage conceives the leaves of a tree waving in th ebreeze to be influenced by a spiri t

,i t i s certain that a medic inal plan t

or a fermen ted l iquor would be bel ieved to be possessed by a beneficent or evi l princip le or being. A poison would be possessed by ademon

,a heal ing p lan t by a good spiri t, a stimulating l iquor by a god .

Plan t-worship would on these princ iples be found amongst the earl ies treligious practices of mankind

,and so we find i t

,although not to th e

extent we m ight have expected .

Some savage peoples worsh ip plants and make offerings to th espiri ts which dwell in certain trees. I t would seem that i t i s no t the

plan t or tree i tself wh ich i s thus venerated, but the ghost wh ich makesi t i ts dwell ing. In class ic t imes “ the ivy was sacred to O s iris and

Bacchus, the p ine to Nep tune, herb mercury to Hermes, black helleboreto Melampus, cen taury to Chiron, the laurel to Aloeus, the hyac inth toAj ax

,the squil l to Epimenes,

”etc .

1

1 Pettigrew’s Il/oa’ioo l Supersti lio/z , p . 24.

UNI VERSALITY OF THE USE OF IN TOXICANTS. 47

Herbert Spencer th inks that plan t-worsh ip arose from the connect ion between plan ts and the intoxicat ion which they produce. It i svery remarkable that almost all peoples of whom we have any knowledge produce from the maceration of various vegetable substancessome kind of intoxicating liquor, beer, wine, or sp iri t. As the exc itemen t produced by faint ing, fever, hysteria, o r insan i ty i s ascribedamongst savages and half-c ivili zed peoples to a possessing Sp iri t, so

also is any exaltation of the m ind, by whatever mean s produced, attributed to a s im ilar cause. Supernatural beings they cons ider may beswallowed in food or drink , espec ially the latter.1

Vambery speaks o f opium-eaters who in toxicated themselves withthe drug

,that they m ight be nearer the beings they loved so well .

The Mandingoes th ink that intoxication brings them into relat ion withthe godhead . A Papuan Islander hearing about the Christian Godsaid

,

“Then th i s God is certainly in your arrack, for I never feelhappier than when I have drunk plenty of i t.

” 9

Any one who reads the sacred books of the East for th e first t ime,

espec ial ly the Vedic hymns , w i ll be puzzled to say whether the Soma ,which i s referred to so often, i s a deity or someth ing to drink . If weturn up the word in th e index volume of the Eng/cloproa

’

ia Britannica,

we are aston i shed to find such an entry as th is : Soma , a drink, inBrahmin ical ri tual , iv. 205 ; as a deity, iv. 205 ; Vi i . The soma

,

speaking sc ient ifically, i s an intoxicating l iquor prepared from the j uiceof a kind of m ilk-weed , A sclepias ocia

’a, sometimes called the moon

plan t. In the R ig- Voila and th e Zoaa’Avesta (where it i s called

Haoma) i t appears as a m ighty god endowed wi th the mos t wonderfulexhilarating properties . Herbert Spencer, in the chapter of the Sociology en t itled Plant-Worsh ip,

” gives some of the express ions used inthe R ig Voa

’a concerning th i s fermented soma-j uice .

“ This [Soma] when drunk, st imulates my speech [or hymn] ; th iscalled forth the arden t thought . (R .V. vi. 47 ,

“ The ruddy Soma, generating hymns, wi th the powers of a poet .

(R .V. i x . 2 5 ,“ We have drunk the Soma, we have become immortal, we have

entered in to l ight,we have known th e gods, etc. (R .V. vi ii . 48,

The former [priests] having strewed the sacred grass,offered up a

hymn to thee, O Soma, for great strength and food.

”(R .V. 1x . 1 1 0

,

“ For through thee , O pure Soma, our wise forefathers of old per

formed their sacred . ri tes.

”

(R .V. ix. 96,

Soma—do thou enter into us , etc .

D r. Muir cal ls Soma “ the Indian D i onysus.

1 P r inciples of .Socioloo Herbert Spencer, vol. i . p. 374.

2 Ibid.

48 A POPULAR HISTORY OF .MEDICIJVE.

In Peru tobacco “ has been called the sacred herb.

Markham says, “The Peruvians sti l l look upon coca with feel ings ofsuperstit ious venerat ion . In th e time of the Incas i t was sacrificed tothe sun . In North M exico, Bancroft says that some of the natives“ have a great veneration for the h idden v irtues of poisonous plants,and bel ieve that if they crush or destroy one, some harm will happen tothem.

” “And at the present t ime,”says Mr. Spencer, “ in the Ph i

l ippine Islands, the ignatius bean, wh ich contains strychn ia and is usedas a medic ine, i s worn as an amule t and

,held capable of mirac les.”

The Babylonians seem to have held th e palm- tre e as sacred,doubtless

because fermen ted palm-juice makes an intoxicating drink .

The Palal , the supreme pon tiff of the cow-religion of the Todapeople of the Neilgherries, i s in i tiated with incantat ions, and the smearing of his body wi th the j uice of a sacred shrub called the t iide.

1

He also drinks some of the extrac t m ixed wi th water. He i s purified by soaking h imself with the j uice of th is plant , and in a week hasbecome a god he is the supreme being of the Todas. Th is transmutation i s suggest ive of the sacred soma.2

The aborigines of the Amazon make an intoxicating drink from wi ldfrui ts

,wh ich they use at their dances and fest ival s .3 The people on the

Rio Negro use a l iquor called x irac for the same purpose. The

Brazil ian Indians have thei r caxiri,

” wh ich is the same th ing ; i t is abeer made from mandiocca cakes . This mandiocca is chewed by theold women

,spat into a pan, and soaked in water t ill i t ferments. The

Margh i peopl e of North Africa have an intoxicating l iquor called“Komil,”made of Guinea-corn , wh ich Barth said tastes l ike bad beer,and i s very confusing to the brain.

4

The Apaches make an intoxicating l iquor from cactus j uice, or withboiled and fermen ted corn . Thei r drunkenness i s a preparation forreligious acts. 5

The Kolarians of Bengal beli eve that the flowers of the maowah

tree (Bassia latifolia) will cure almos t every kind of s ickness . No t aco t

,

” says Reclusf’ but distils a heady l iquor from the petals not aKhond man who does no t get royal ly drunk .

”

The people of the Nepal Himalayas make a beer from half-fermentedm i l le t

,wh ich they cal l Mnrwa it i s weak

,but very refresh ing. Hooker

says the m illet seed i s moistened , and fermgnts for two days i t i s then

put into a vessel of wicker work , l ined with india- rubber gum to make

1 IVoliosma simpl icifol ia , or M illington ia .

2 Reclus, Pr imi tiveFol/5, p . 222.

3 Wallace , Travels on til e Amaz on , chap . xvu .

4 Barth, Travols in Af r ica , Ed. 1890, p . 4 16.

5 Reclus, Pr imil ivo Folk, p. 1 36.

6 Ibid., p . 25 1 .

UNI VERSALI TY OF THE USE OF IN TOXICANTS. 49

i t water tight ; and boil ing water i s poured in i t wi th a ladle of gourd,

from a cauldron that stands all day over the fire . The fluid,when

fresh,tasted like negus .1

The fermented juice of the cocoa-nu t palm makes an intoxicatingtoddy

,of wh ich some birds in the forests round Bombay are as fond as

are the natives themselves .2

The natives ofTah it i made an intoxicating drink by chewing the freshroot of the ava

,a plan t of th e pepper tribe (P iper metfiy sz

‘icnrn) , longbefore Europeans taught them to fermen t the fruits of the country aboutthe year 1 796 . The chewed root was rinsed in water

,and by fermenta

t ion a drowsy form of in toxicating liquor was produced of which thenatives Were extremely fond . They now prefer gin and brandy. The

effects of ava or kava intoxication are said to be somewhat s im i lar tothose of opium . The Nukahivans drink kava as a remedy for phthi sis ;i t would seem to be of real value in bronchitis , as a chem ical exam ination of the root shows it to con tain an oleo-resin probably somewhatakin to balsam of Peru or tolu . It i s an ally of the mat ico, and in it snature and operat ion closely resembles cubeb and Copaiba, wh ich are

used to produce a constrict ion of the capi llary vessels .Cascarilla bark and other barks of the various spec i es of croton, of

the Bahama and West India Islands,have valuable s t imulan t proper

ties un iversally recogn ised in modern medicine . They are used in thetreatmen t of dyspepsia and as a m i ld ton ic .

The Carib races were fully conversant with the valuabl e propert ies ofthese drugs th e native priests or doctors used the dried plan ts fo r fum i

gations and in rel igious ceremon ies ; and cur iously enough at the presentday cascarilla bark i s one of the ingredien ts of incen se. An infusionof the leaves was used in ternally in Carib medic ine, and the dried barkwas m ixed with tobacco and smoked, as i s often done in c ivil ized lands.Anacreont ic poetry and Bacch ic r i tes were merely intellectual de

velopments of sent iments wh ich the savage feels and expresses in acoarse an imal way, j us t as the alderman

’s sense of gratification and per

feet conten tmen t after a c ivic banquet is not al together different in kindfrom that felt by a repl ete quadruped .

Alcoholic in toxication must have produced in primi ti ve man vis ion sfar surpassing those of his p leasantest dreams, and h i s brain must havebeen fi lled with images

,sometimes pleasan t, sometimes horrible, of a

more pronounced charac ter than those wh ich vis ited him in sleep .

At such times would come some of the vis i tan ts from the world ofimagination to the m ind of prim i tive man which have had the most

1 Hooker, Himalay anjou rnals , Ed. 189 1 , p. 204 .

2 Blavatsky,Caves andju ngles of Hindostan , p. I 3 .

50 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

important influence on his intellectual development . The drinkingcustoms of our working classes of the presen t day are in a greatdegree prompted by the longing which man in every condi tion has toescape for a wh i le from the squalid

,material surroundings of daily

li fe in to the ideal world of intellectual pleasures,however low these

may often be .

“A national love for strong drink,” says a competen t

authority,

1 “ i s a characterist ic of the nobler and more energetic populations of the world ; i t accompan i es public and private enterprise,constancy of purpose, l iberal ity of though t, and apt itude for war.

”

Tea, haschish, hops, alcohol, and tobacco st imulate in small doses andnarcotise in larger ; there have been cases known of tea intoxication .

2

The desire of escaping from self in to an ideal world,a world of

novelty and pleasures un imaginable, had much to do with the festivalsin Greece in honour of D ionysus ; i t was in some places con s idered acrime to remain sober at the D ionysia to be intoxicated on such occasions was to show one’s grati tude for the gift of wine.

1Quoted in the article on D runk enness in Ency . Br i t.

2 See Tnira’Annual Report of Mo M assac/zn sotts Boara

’of Hoaltlz .

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

52 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

m ake good cheer in the house at h i s expense. Nor i s th i s all ; forthrough the space of s ix whole months he eats neither birds nor fish ,fi rmly bel ieving that th is would inj ure the ch ild’s stomach , and that i twould participate in the natural faults of the an imals on wh ich i ts fatherhad fed ; for example, i f the father ate turtle, the child would be deafand have no brains l ike th is an imal

,i f he ate manati, the child would

have l ittle round eyes like th is creature , and so on with the rest. It

s eems that thi s very severe fasting is only for the first ch i ld, that for theo thers being sl ight .Among the Arawaks of Surinam a father must kil l no large game

for some t ime after his ch ild is born . When a wife has borne a child ,amongst the Abipones, the husband is put to bed and well wrapped upand kept as though he had had the ch i ld. Among the Land Dayakso f Borneo

,after the birth of h i s ch i ld the father i s kept in sec lusion

indoors for several days and dieted on rice and salt to prevent thec h ild’s stomach from swelling. All thi s i s due to a belief in a bodilyun ion between father and ch i ld ; different persons with these savagesare not necessarily separate beings.

Tylor says 1 that Venegas ment ions the couvade among the Indian so f Californ ia Zuccheli in West Africa ; Captain Van derHart in Bouro,in th e Eastern Arch ipelago ; and Marco PO10 in Eastern As ia in theth irteen th cen tury. In Europe even in modern t imes i t exi sted in then eighbourhood of the Pyrenees . Strabo said

,

2 that among the Iberianso f the North of Spain, the women, after the birth of a ch ild, tend thei rhusbands, putting them to bed instead of going themselves . Amongthe Basques

,says M ichel

,

“ in valleys whose population recalls in i t su sages the infancy of soc iety, the women ri se immediately after childbirth and attend to the duties of the household, while the husband goesto bed, taking the baby wi th him, and thus receives the neighbours’

c ompl iments .”

D iodorus Siculus mentions the same th ing of th eC orsicans (v. Hudibras says

,

3

For though Chineses go to bedAnd l ie in , in their ladies’ stead,And , for the pains they took before,Are nurs

’d and pamper

’d to do more .

On th is remarks Dr. Zachary Grey ‘1

The Ch inese men of qual i ty, when their wives are brought to bed ,are nursed and tended with as much care as women here

, and are suppl ied with the best strengthen ing and nourish ing diet in order to quali fythem for future services . This i s the custom of the Brazil ians, i f we

1 Early Hist. Mankind, p. 294.

2 i ii. 4, I 7 .

3 Pt. iii . , Canto i .4 Notes to his edition ofHndz

'

oras, 1 744, loc. ci t.

PREGNANCY AND CHILD -BEARING. 53

may believe Masseus, who observes, “ that women in travail are delivered without great difficulty, and presently go about the ir householdbusiness : the husband in her stead keepeth h i s bed, i s vis ited by h isneighbours, hath h is broths made him, and junkets sent to comfor thim.

”

“ Among the Iroquois, a mother who shrieks during her labour isforbidden to bear other ch ildren, and some of the South American In

dians killed the ch i ldren of the mothers who shrieked, from the bel ie fthat they will grow up to be cowards .” 1

The origin of the couvade is not to be traced to the father and

mother, says Starcke i t has to do simply with the well-being of the

ch i ld. The father’s powers of endurance,tested so severely as we

have seen, are bel ieved to be assured to the chi ld .

2

Max Muller traces the origin of the couvade to the derision of friendsof both sexes .Dobriz hoffen says of the Abipones z 3

“They comply with th is cus

tom with the greater care and readiness because they bel ieve that thefather’s rest and abstinence have an extraordinary effec t on the wellbeing of new-born infants, . and i s

,indeed

,absolutely necessary for

them. For they are quite convinced that any un seemly act on thefather’s part would inj uriously affect the ch i ld on account of the sympathetic t ie wh ich naturally subsists between them

,so that in the event of

the child’s death the women all blame the self- indulgence of the father,and find fault wi th th i s or that act.”

Badaga nurs ing-women physic themselves with ashes and p ieces o fsweet-flag (Acorns calamns) , an aromatic plan t, with the idea of communicating medic inal properti es to the mi lk . They also adm in isterto the baby assafoetida and a certain sacred confec t ion taken from theentrails of a bull and s im ilar to the bez oar stones so celebrated in themiddle ages.

‘1

The Badaga folk do no t perm i t a pregnan t woman to enter the roomwhere the provis ions are kept and the fireplace stands ; i t would befeared that her condit ion

,her supposed uncleanness

,m ight lessen the

virtues of the fire or dim in i sh the nutritious value of the food.

5

Pliny says,

“ there is no l im i t to the marvellous powers attributed tofemales .”6 At certain times

,according to him

,a woman can scare

away hailstorms, whirlwinds, and l ightn ings , by going about in scantycostume. If she walk round a field of wheat at such t imes, the cater

pillars, worms, beetles, and other vermin will fall from the ears of corn.

1 Starcke , I k e P r im itive Family , p. 52 .

2 Ibid .

2 Vol . 11. p. 275.

4 Reclus, Pr imit ive Folk , p. 202 .

5 Ibid. , p . 192 .

5 Natural History ,Book xxvi ii. , ch. 23 .

54 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

If she touch “ young vines,they are irremediably injured

,and both me

and ivy,plants possessed of h ighly medicinal virtues, will di e ins tantly

upon being touched by her.” Bees, he says, will forsake their h ives i f

she touches them,l inen boil ing in a cauldron will turn black

, and theedge of a raz or will become blunted . The bitumen that i s found in

Judaea will yield to nothing but this , and Tac i tus says the same th ing.

Marvellous to say, poisonous and inj urious as Pl iny and other writers,

and even popular belief at the presen t day, cons ider the catamen ialfluid to be

,a host of writers on medical and magical subj ects have

a ttributed certain remedial propert ies to i t . Pliny says i t i s useful,as a

topical appl ication, for gout, the bite of a mad dog (what has not beenrecommended for th is for tertian or quartan fevers and for ep i lepsy.

Reduced to ashes and m ixed with soot and wax, i t i s a cure for ulcersupon all kinds of beasts of burden ; m ixed in the same way with oil ofroses and appl ied to the forehead, i t cured the m igraine of Romanladies. Applied to the doorposts, i t neutralises all the spells of themagicians— a set of men which even the credulous Pl iny characterizesas the most lying in existence .

Both savages and class ical peoples had the same curious notionsabout the touch of catamen ial women. There may poss ibly be somefoundat ion in bacteriology to accoun t for them.

St. Augustine says 1 The woman in child-bed must have three godsto look to her after her del iverance, lest Sylvanus come in the n igh tand torment her : in sign ification whereof, three men must go about thehouse in the n ight

,and first strike the thresholds with an hatchet, then

with a pestle,and then sweep them with besoms, that by these signs of

worship they may keep Sylvanus out.”

Lying- in women in Germany in the seven teenth cen tury were s implycrammed wi th food about every two hours, and they seem to havetaken no harm from the pract ice.

1 D o on ,Lib. vi . 9.

BOOK I I .

OF THE AIVCIENT CI VILIZAZI ONS.

CHAPTER I.

EGYPTIAN MED i CiNE.

Antiquity of Egyptian Civilization.—Surgical Bandaging.

—Gods and Goddesses ofMedicine.

—Medical Specialists—Egyptians claimed to have discovered theHealingArt.

—Medicine large ly Theurgic.—Magic and Sorcery forbidden to the Laity .

- The Embalmers. —Anatomy.—Therapeutics .

—Plants in use in Ancient Egypt.-Surgery and Chemistry.

—D isease-demons.—Medical Papyri .—Great Sk il l ofEgyptian Physicians.

So far as we are able to j udge from the records of th e past wh ich recentinvestigations have made fami l iar to us, the c ivil izat ion of Egypt i s themost anc ient of wh ich we have accurate knowledge . The contendingclaims of India to a h igher ant iquity for its c ivi l izat ion cannot here bediscussed, and for the purposes of th is work the oldest place in thec ivil i zation of the world must be ass igned to Egypt.It is highly probable that the first kingdom of Egypt existed eight

thousand years back . The h istory of Egypt as we have i t in hermonuments and records is far more trustworthy than the stories wh ichthe Ch inese and other anc ien t peoples tell of their past. Assyria, Baby‘

lon ia, and Chaldaea have h i stories reach ing back to the twil igh t of theages but for practical purposes we must conten t ourselves with tracingthe rise and progress of c ivil iz ation as we dec ipher it on the banks ofthe Ni le. So far as medic ine and chem istry are concern ed, we shal ldiscover abundant matter to interest us. We require no other proofthan the mummies in our museums to convince us that the Egypt iansfrom the period at wh ich thos e interesting obj ects date must havepossessed a very accurate knowledge of anatomy

,of pharmacy, and a

skil l in surgical bandaging very far surpass ing that possessed now-a

days by even the most skilful professors of the art . Dr. Granville saysThere is not a single form of bandage known to modern surgery, ofwh ich far better and c leverer examples are no t seen in the swathings ofthe Egypt ian mummi es . The strips of linen are found wi thout onesingle j oint, extending to 1 000 yards in length .

”It i s said that there

is not a fracture known to modern surgery wh ich could no t have beensuccessfully treated by the priest-phys ic ians of anci ent Egypt. The great

57

58 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

divin i t ies of Egypt were Is is and O s iris the former was the goddess ofprocreation and birth . As i t was she who decreed l i fe and death, anddec ided the fate of men, i t i s not surpris ing to find her the chief of thed ivin i ti es of the heal ing art ; she had proved her claims as the greatch ief of physic ian s by recalling to l ife her son Horus .The fEsculapius of the Egyptian s was Imhotep he was the god of the

sc i ences, and was the son of Ptah and Pakht . The gods of Egyp t wereworsh ipped in triads or trin ities , and many of the great temples weredevoted to th e worsh ip ofone or other o f these trin i ties, that ofMemph i scon s isted of Ptah , Pakht, and Imhotep . Thoth or Taunt was s im i larto Imhotep he was the god of l etters

,and

,as the deity of wisdom, he

aids Horus against Set, the representative of physical evil . By manywriters he is cons idered to be the Egyptian E sculapius . He has somee viden t relationsh ip to the Greek Hermes . “Thoth

,

” says Dr. Baas

(Hist. M ed. , p. i s supposed to have been the author of the ,oldest

Egyptian medical works,whose con ten ts were fi rst engraved upon pillars

o f stone . Subsequently collected in to the book Amkre or Encore (atitl e based upon the in i t ial words of th is book

,viz. Ha em re em

per em bru,

’i .e.

‘Here begin s the book of the preparation of drugsfor all parts of the human they formed a part of the so

c alled Hermetic Books,

’ from whose prescript ions no phys ician m ightdeviate, un less he was will ing to expose h imself to pun i shmen t in casethe patien t died . This pun ishmen t was threatened because the sub:

s tance of the medical,as well as the rel igious works of the Egyptians

and the sc ience of the priests un i ted in i tself medicine, theology, and

ph i losophy—was given,according to their view, by the gods themselves ,

and a disregard of thei r prescript ion s would be noth ing less than .

s acri lege.” The Hermetic books,says Clemen t of Alexandria, were

forty- two in number, of wh ich six “ of the pastophor”were medical .

The famous Book of tko D ead i s supposed by Bun sen to have beeno ne of the Hermetic books . The papyrus of Ebers, believed by thatEgyptologist to date from the year 1 500 B.C.

,i s cons idered to have

been of the number of the medical books of Hermes Trismegistus .’

The Papyrus Ebers i s preserved in Leips ic, and, though at presen t onlypart ially deciphered , abundantly shows the great advance already madea t so distan t a period as the fourth m illenn ium before the Christ ian erain the arts of medic ine and surgery.One of the authors ment ioned in the papyrus i s an oculist of Byblo s

in Phoen icia. Th is proves no t only that there were spec ial ists indiseases -of the eye at that period, but that neighbouring nations con

tributed of their store of sci en tific knowledge to enrich that of theEgypt ians.

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60 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

and such remedies were always efficac ious, even in cases wherephysic ians had failed to do any good .

The inscript ion informs us that Os iris had fil l ed the earth with hi sbenefact ions . The Egyptian priests bel ieved that Thoth was the inventor of the arts and sc iences in general, and the king O s iris and thequeen Is is invented those wh ich were necessary to l i fe. Isis thereforeinvented agriculture

,and Osir is i s credited with having invented

medic ine. Ap is, who is evidently the same person as O siri s , is said byClement of Alexandria to have discovered medicine before Io went toEgyptCyri l of Alexandria says that Apis was the first to inven t the art of

medic ine, or who exerc ised it with more success than his predecessors ,having been instructed by IEsculapius.

1

Plutarch says 2 that Apis and Os iris were, according to Egypt ian tra~ditions

, two names of one and the same person , and th i s i s confirmed byStrabo and Theodoret. O thers say that Serapis was a th ird name o fOsiris, though some cons ider that Serap i s was a name ofE sculapius.

Horus, the son of Is is and Os iri s , was the Egyptian sun -

god, and was

the same as the Apollo of the Greeks. He was born with his finger onhis mouth

,indicative of mystery and secrecy ; and so, probably, was

for th is reason connect ed with medic ine. In the myst ical works of

Hermes Trismegistus,he plays an important part . D iodorus attributes

to Horus the inven tion o f medicine. He says that Isis having foundin the water her son Horus

,who had been killed by the Titans, res tored

him to l ife and made him immortal. D iodorus adds that he was th esame god as Apollo, and that he learned the arts of medic ine and.

divination from h i s mother, in consequence of which instruct ion he had

been of great service to mankind by h is oracles and h i s remedies . It

is difficult to see how on thi s accoun t Horus can be cons idered as theinventor of medicine

,a title wh ich was surely due to h is mother.

In the j udgmen t scene in the Book of the D ead on the papyrus ofAni we have the god Thoth

,under the symbol of the cynocephalus ,

or dog-headed ape. Anubis exam ines the indicator of the Balance.

Before Anubis stands D est iny, beh ind him are Fortune and the Goddessof Birth. Above Destiny is a symbol of the cradle. The humanheaded bird i s the soul of the deceased . On the right of the scene,Thoth, the medic ine-god and scribe of the gods (with the head of

an ib is) , notes the result of the trial . Behind Thoth i s the monsterAmemit, the devourer, with th e head of a crocodile

,the m iddle parts

of a l ion,and the h ind-quarters of a hippopotamus. Thoth pronounces

j udgment : “The heart of Ani i s weighed, and hi s soul standeth in .

1 Le Clerc, Hist. do la M edicine. 2 Lib. de Iside et Osiride .

EGYP TIAN MED ICINE. 6 1

e vidence thereof ; his case i s straight upon the great Balance. The

gods reply, Righteous and j us t i s Osi ris, An i, the triumphant.” 1

Eusebius, Psellus, and others say that Hermes Trismegistus was a

p riest and ph ilosopher who lived a l ittle after the time of Moses . He

taught the Egyptians mathematics, theology, m edic ine, and geography .

O f the forty- two most useful books of Hermes s ix treated of medic ine,

a natomy, and the cure of disease .2

Pliny says 3 that the Egyptians claimed the honour of having inven tedt he art of curing diseases . Wilkinson poin ts out

‘1 that “ the study ofmedicine and surgery appears to have commenced at a very early

period in Egypt, s ince Athothes, the second king of the country,i s

s tated to have written upon the subj ect of anatomy, and the schools o fA lexandria 5 cont inued t ill a late period to enj oy the reputation and dis

play the ski ll they had inherited from their predecessors . Hermes wass aid to have written s ix books on med ic ine, the first of wh ich related toanatomy and the

,various recipes known to have been beneficial were

r ecorded , with their pecul iar cases, in the memoirs of physic, inscribed.among the laws

,which were depos ited in the princ ipal temple of th e

place, as at Memphis in that of Ptah, or Vulcan .

” We are told inG enesis 1. 2 that Joseph commanded h i s servants the phys icians toembalm h i s father : and the phys icians embalmed Israel .” It i s notprobable that the embalmers were regular prac tis ing phys ic ians . The

d i ssectors of the human body were not held in honour amongst theEgyptians

,and for san i tary reasons i t i s h ighly improbable that doctors

in attendance upon the s ick would have engaged in th is work but asthe art of embalm ing demanded cons iderable anatom ical knowledge

,

“ i t i s more l ikely that a c lass of men s imi lar to our dissect ing-rooma ssistan ts at the medical schools and hospital s were employed for th i s

purpose.The art of medic ine in anc i en t Egypt cons isted of two branches— th e

h igher, which was the theurgic part, and the lower, wh ich was the art ofthe physic ian proper. The theurgic class devoted themselves to magic,c oun teracting charm s by prayers, and to the interpretat ion of the dreamso f the sick who had sough t their aid in the temples . The inferior classwere practi t ioners who s imply used natural means in their profession ashealers. Amongst the Egyptian Platon i sts , theurgy was an imaginarys c i ence, which i s thus described by Murdock : “ i t was supposed to have

1 Ofi cial Gu ido Br it . M ics,Egyptian Antiqu ities, pp . 107

—8.

2 Clem . A lex . , Strorn . , l ib. vi . p. 196.

3vi i. 56.

4 A ncien t Egyp tian s, vol . 11. p . 358 .

5 Amm ianus Marcel linus, i . 16, says, for a doctor to recommend his skill,it was

s uffi cient to say that he had stud ied at A lexandria.

62 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

been revealed to men by the gods themselves in very anc ien t t imes , andto have been handed down by the priests [i t was] also the abil ity, bymeans of certain acts, words, and symbols, to move the gods to impartsecrets wh ich surpass the powers of reason to lay open the future .

”

The higher physic ians were pries t-magic ians, the lower class were priestswho were called PastOphori as Isi s and the priests were connected withthe heal ing art

,the Pastophori were high ly estemed for their medical

skill apart from magic . These official s were so called from the factthat they had to bear

,in the ceremon i es in the temples, the oraa r é s, or

sacred shawl, to raise i t at appropriate times, and so discover the god inthe adytum .

1

It was their duty to study the last s ix of the Hermetic books,as i t

was that of the higher grade to study th e firs t th irty- s ix.

Professor Ebers explained to D r. Puschmann 2 that the Pastophoriconst ituted a class of priests who held by no mean s so low a rank asis attributed to them in historical works . The doctors were bound tomaintain a spiritual Character, and allowed themselves therefore to rankwith the Pastophori, although the h igher priestly dign i t ies probablyremained open to them . On the other hand, the Pastophori were byno means l ikewise doctors, as many think, but had as a body quite otherfunct ion s , as their name indeed indicates. The relation of the Pastophorito the doctors was doubtless the same as that of the scholar to the

cleric in the Christ ian m iddle ages ; all scholars d id not belong to ,

the clergy, but at the same time all clergymen m ight be cons ideredscholars .The princ iple of authority was paramoun t in Egyptianmedic ine. So ,

long as the doctor faithfully followed the instruct ions of the anc ientexponen ts of his art, he could do as he l iked with his patient ; but if hestruck out a path for h imself, and his patien t unhappi ly died, he forfeitedhis own l ife . Diodorus Siculus leads us to suppose that the physic ian s.formed their d iagnosis according to the posit ion occupied by the patientin his bed . This is s ingularly l ike the method of diagnos ing diseases inuse amongst the anc ient Hindus . Medic ine in Egypt, after all, was onlyan art the absurd reverence for authority prevented any real progress .~Kept back by these fixed regulations, i ts freedom was restricted on ever!rs ide ; otherwise, with the unbounded facil i ty for making post-mortem.

exam ination s, Egyptian medic ine would have made immense advance.Concerning the spec ial ism which prevailed amongst Egyptian doctors ,

Herodotus says : “The art of medic ine is thus divided amongst themeach physic ian appl ies h im self to one disease on ly, and not more. All:

places abound in physic ians ; some physicians are for the eyes, others1 C lem. Alex . , Strom.

2 Hist. Med. Education , p . 24.

EGYP TIAN MED ICINE. 63

for the head, others for the teeth, others for the parts about the belly,and others for in ternal disorders .” 1

With reference to the teeth , i t i s interesting to observe that some ofthe dental work found in open ing mumm i es is equal to our own .

Sir J .Wilkinson says 2 that the embalmers were probably members

of the medical profession as well as of the c lass of priests . Pliny statesthat

,during th is process, certain exam inations took place, wh ich enabled

them to study the disease of which the patien t had died . They appearto have been made in compl iance with an order from the government ,3

as he says the kings of Egypt had the bodies opened after death toascertain the nature of their diseases

,by wh ich mean s alone the remedy

for phth isical complaints was discovered. Indeed,i t i s reasonable to

suppose that a people so advanced as were the Egyptian s in knowledge of all kinds, and whose medical art was so systematically arrangedthat they had regulated it by some of the very same laws followed by

the most en lightened and skilful nations of the presen t day, would no t

have omi tted so useful an inquiry,or have failed to avail themselves o f

the means wh ich the process adopted for embalming the body placedat their disposal . And noth ing can more clearly prove their advancement in the study of human diseases than the fact of their assigningto each h i s own pecul iar branch , under the different heads of ocul ists,dentis ts, those who cured diseases in the head , those who confinedthemselves to intest inal complaints

,and those who attended to secret

and internal maladies . They must have possessed an int imate knowledge of drugs, to have enabled them to selec t those of an ant is epticcharacter suitable for the preservation of the mumm ies . That their

practical knowledge of anatomy must have been considerable is provedby the skill with wh ich they removed the more perishable parts of thebody in the process of embalm ing. The embalmers , says Ebers , wereall enrol led in a guild wh ich existed down to Roman t imes , as is shownin various Greek papyri .In the wall-cases 30—3 3 in the upper floor of the second Egyptian

room of the British Museum,there is a set of Canopic j ars wh ich held

the intestines of the human body,which were always embalmed sepa

rately. They were placed near the bier and were four in number,each

one being dedicated to one of the four children of Horus, the gen i i o fthe dead. The stomach and large in testines were dedicated to Amset,the smaller intestines to Hapi , the lungs and heart to Tuamavtef, andthe l iver and gall-bladder to Kebhsenuf. Poor people had to be con

ten t with mere models of these vases . ‘1

1 Book 11 . 84.

2 Ancient Egyptians , vol. iii. p . 477 .

3 Plin . x ix . 5.

4 Ofi cial Gu ide, p. 1 1 1 .

64 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

The dissectors were the parasckistos, who cut open as much of thebody as the law permi tted with an Eth iopian s tone. As soon as one ofthem had made the requ is ite inci s ion he had to fly, pursued by those

presen t, who cursed him bitterly, and flung stones at him. It was con

s idered hateful to infl ict any wound on a human body ; and howevernecessary the act might be, the agent incurred the greates t odium.

The Egyptian doctors knew very li ttle of anatomy as a sci ence theywere

,however, acquainted with the fac t that the blood-vessels had their

origin from the heart, and that the blood was distributed to the bodyfrom that organ.

‘

There is an interest ing treatise on the heart in thePapyrus Ebers . In another medical papyrus we find the followinganatomical details concerning the blood-vessels

“The head of man has thi rty-two vessels ; they carry the breath toh i s heart ; they give inspirat ion to all his members . There are twovessels to the breasts they give warmth to the lungs—for healing them,

one must make a remedy of flour of fresh wheat, herb haka, and

sycamore tepat—make a decoct ion and let the patien t dr ink i t she willbe well. There are two vessels to the legs. If any one has a diseaseo f the legs, i f his arms are without strength, i t i s because the secretvessel of the leg has taken the malady, - a remedy must be made .

There are two vessels to the arms i f a man’s arm i s suffering,i f he has

pains in his fingers,say that th is is a case of shooting pains .

There are two vessels of the occ iput, two of the s inc iput, two of thein terior

,two of the eyelids, two of the nostri ls, and two of the left ear.

The breath of l ife enters by them. There are two vessels of th e rightear the breath en ters by them .

”

It i s uncertain whether by the term vessels the Egyptians unders tandthe arteries , the veins , the nerves, or some imaginary conduits . 1

The anc ient Egyptians were zealous studen ts of medicine ; yet, as Dr.

‘

Ebers tells us, they also though t that the efficacy of the treatment wasenhanced by magic formulae . The prescriptions in the

.

famous EbersPapyrus are accompan i ed by form s of exorc i sm to be used at the sametime ; “

and yet many portions of th is work,”says Ebers

,

“ give evid ence of the advanced knowledge of its authors .”2

Origen says 3 that the Egyptians believed there were th irty-Sidemons , or th irty-s ix gods of the air

, who shared amongst them thebody of man, wh ich is divided into as many parts. He adds that

i

the

Egyptian s knew the names of those demons, and bel ieved that if theyinvoked the proper demon of the affected part they would be cured .

Magic and sorcery were arts wh ich were forbidden to the laity.

1 Chabas, Me’

langes Egyptologi qnos, p . 64.

2 Ebers, Egypt, vol. 11. p. 62 .

3 Con tra Cels i an , lib. 8 .

EGYP TIAN MEDICINE.

Many magical rites and an im ist ic customs connected with theEgypt ianrel igion c losely resemble those which prevai l over the whole cont inentof Africa. The basis of the Egypt ian rel igion i s supposed by someauthorities to be of a purely Nigritian character ; on which has beensuperimposed certain elevated characteristics due to As iatic settlers andconquerors . The worship of the negroes proper i s s imply fetish ismcombined with tree and an imal worship and a strong bel ief in sorcery.

The great and peculiar feature of Egypt ian magic lay in the fact thati ts formulae were intended to as sim i late to the gods those who sought

protection from the evi ls of l ife. The incan tation was not in the natureof a prayer. As M . Lenormant says :1 “The virtue of the formulae lay notin an invocation of the divine power, but in the fact of a man’s proc laim ing h imself such or such a god and when

.

he, in pronounc ing the

incantat ion, called to h is aid any one of the various members of theEgyptian Pan theon, i t was as one of themselves that he had a righ t tothe assistance of h is compan ions .” In the Harri s Papyru s is a fragmen tof one of the magical tracts of the medicine-god Thoth, in which i s anincan tat ion for protection against crocodiles

Do not be against me 2 I am Amen .

I am Anhur, the good guardianI am the great master of the sword .

Do not erect thyself l I am Month.

Do not try to surprise me 1 I am Set .

D o no t raise thy two arms against me I am Sothis.Do no t seiz e me ! I am Sethu .

” 2

D i sease-demon s recogn i sed the power of the gods, and obeyed theircommands . An in scription on a monumen t of the time of Ramses XII .

tells how the Princess Bint-resh,s ister of Queen Noferu-ra

,was cured

in a serious illness by the image of the god Khonsu being sen t to herafter the “ learned expert ” Thut-emhib had failed to do her any good .

When th e god appeared at her bedside, she was cured on the spot ;the evil spiri t of the d isease acknowledged the superior power of

Khonsu,and came out of her after making an appropriate speech .

3

In the records of a trial about a harem conspiracy in the reign of

Ramses III., we learn that a house steward had used some improper

enchantmen ts . In some fragments of the Lee and Rollin Papyrus, .we

read : “ Then he gave him a writing from the rolls of the books o fRam ses III. , the great god, his lord. Then there came upon him ad ivine magic

,an enchan tmen t for men . He reached [thereby P] to the

s ide of the women’s house, and into that other great and deep place.

1 2 a n , pp . 96, 97.3 Brugsch , Egypt u nder fi re P/zaraolzs , vol. ii . p . 184.

66 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

He formed figures of wax,with the in tent ion of having them carried

in by the hand of the land- surveyor Adiroma, to al ienate the m ind ofone of the girls

,and to b ewi tch others . Now, however , he

was brought to trial on accoun t of them,and there was found in them

inci tation to all kinds of wickedness,and all kinds of villainy which

i t was h i s in ten tion to do . He had made some magicwritings to ward off i ll- luck he had made some gods of wax, and somehuman figures to paralyse the l imbs o f a man ; and he had put theseinto the hand of Bokakamon without the sun -god Ra having permittedthat he should accompli sh th is,

”etc .

1

The actual medicamen ts used in Egyptian medical practice werenot cons idered effectual without combination with magical remedies .The prescript ion m igh t con tain n i tre, or cedar chips

,or deer horn , or

i t m ight be an ointmen t or appl ication of some herbs ; but it wouldno t be efficac ious without some charm to deal with the Sp iri tual mischief of the case . In adm in istering an em etic , for example, i t wasnecessary to employ the following appeal to the evil spi r it o f thedisorder : Oh, demon, who art lodged in the stomach of M .

,son of

N. , thou whose father i s called Head-Sm i ter, whose name is Death,whose name is cursed for ever

, etc . It was not the natural remedywh ich called the supernatural to i ts aid ; but in cult ivated Egypt, th iscombination was due to the theurgic healer availing h imself of naturalremedies to assi s t h is magic . Sci ence was beginn ing to work for man’sbenefi t, but could not yet afford to discard sen timental aids which , bycalm ing the m ind of the sufferer

,assisted its beneficent work. The

differen t parts of the human body were confided to the protect ion of aSpecial divin i ty. A calendar of lucky and unlucky days was devised,by wh ich it could be ascertained what was proper to be medically done,or le ft undone

,at certain times . Barth

,in h i s Travels in Afr ica, in

the border region of th e desert,tells of a native doctor who followed

such a system . He used to treat h is patients according to the days ofthe week on which they came one day was a calomel day, another wasdevoted to magnesia

,and a third to tartar emetic and everybody requit

ing medic ine had to take that appropriate to the day.

The Egypt ians distinguished between black and wh i te magic. The

learned priests practised the curative acts of magic ; but it was held tobe a great crime to use black magic whereby to inj ure men or assistunlawful pass ions .Homer s ings the praises of the medic inal herbs of prolific Egypt,

where Paeon imparts to all the Pharian race h is healing arts 2 and in

1 Hist . Egypt , by Brugsch-c , vol . i i . p . 163—4.

2 Ody ssey ,iv . 229

—232.

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68 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

d iagnosis and therapeutics : “When thou findest any One with a hardness in his re-lzet (pit of the stomach) , and when after eating he feels a

pressure in his in testines, h i s s tomach (ket) i s swollen ,and he feel s bad

in walking,like one who suffers from heat in h i s back ; then observe

him when he l ies stretched out, and i f thou findest h i s in testines hot,and a hardness in h is re-ket

,say to thyself, th is i s a disease of the l iver .

Then prepare for thyself a remedy, according to the secrets of the

( botan ical ) sc ience, from the plan tpa-cke- test and datesi

mix them,and

give in water”(Ebers) . 1

The famous medical papyrus roll in the Museum of Berlin i s des cribed by M . Chabas in the chapter on The Medic ine of the Anci en tEgypt ian s,

” in his work en t i tled M élanges Egyptologignes . From thi s

papyrus we learn that plaisters, ointmen ts, lin imen ts , and frict ion wereemployed as external remedies . Many of the names of the herbs andmedicamen ts employed cannot be translated, but are m erely transcribed .

We find a number of recipes for tumours of the breast,for p imples,

for “ dissipating divinely parts inj ured by bruises,” for destroying the

bites of vermin, for cuts (common salt the ch ief ingredien t) , etc. The

prescription s seem very simpl e and brief.Magical invocation s were frequently employed in the treatmen t of

d i sease . Chabas th inks that one of the maladies so treated wasin testinal inflammation , with a feel ing of heaviness, and hardness, anda grip ing pain . He translates the diagnos is of such a malady : “His

belly i s heavy, th e mouth of h i s heart (os ventriculi ) i s s ick, his heart

(his stomach ) i s burn ing, his clothes are heavy upon him .

M any clothes do not warm him he is th irsty at n igh t the taste of h i sh eart i s perverted, like a man who has eaten sycamore figs ; his fleshis

’ deadened as a man who finds h imself s ick ; if h e goes to stool, h i sbowels refuse to act. Pronounce on his case that he has a n est ofinflammation in h is belly the taste of hi s heart i s sick

,i f he

raises h imself, he is as a man'

who is unable to walk .

”The text of the

papyrus gives the remedies to be used in such a case .

“Apply to himthe means of curing inflammation by warm th ; also the means of des troying the inflammation in the belly.

”The diagnosi s and treatmen t

here described apply very well to what we term periton i t is ; but Dr.

Baas suggests that gastric cancer may be indicated.

There i s a medical papyrus in the Berl in Museum,which was dis

c overed in the necropoli s of Memphis, and which i s described by

Brugsch 2 as containing a quant ity of rec ipes for the cure of many disc ases, including some of the nature of leprosy. There is also what the

1 Baas’Hist . M ed. (Eng. Trans ) , p. 19.

2 History on ypt, vol . i . p. 58.

EGYP TIAN MEDICINE. 69

great Egyptologists term“a s imple, child ish exposit ion of the construe

t ion and mechan ism of the body. The writing expl ained the numberand use of the numerous tubes.’ The origin of part of th is work istraced to the time of the fifth king of the table of Abydos

,though the

composit ion of the whole work is of the period ofRamses II. The textsays of the more anc ien t portion

“This is the beginn ing of the colleetion of recipes for curing leprosy . It was discovered in a very ancient

papyrus, enclosed in a wri ting-case, under the feet (of a statue) of th egod Anubis, in the town of Sochem, at the t ime of the reign of h is .majesty the defunct King Sapti . After h i s death

,i t was brought to the

maj esty of the defunct King Senta, on accoun t of i ts wonderful value .

And,behold

,the book was placed again at the feet

,and well secured

by the scribe of the temple , and the great physic ian, the wise Noferhotep .

And when th is happened to the book at the going down of the sun,he

con secrated a meat, and drink, and incense offering to Is is, the lady ;to Hor

,ofAthribi s ; and the god Khonsoo—Thut, of Amkhit .

Human brain s are prescribed for a disease of the eyes in the EbersPapyrus . Pharmacy must have made cons iderable progress at the t imeth is work was written , as i t contains two prescript ions for pills— one

made with honey for women, and one without i t for men .

Chabas says that a severe disc ipline reigned in the schools of theanc ien t Egypt ians; and that the eloquence of the master was frequentlysupplemented by the rod of h i s ass i stan ts . He gives in h i s translat ionsof papyri one of the exhortat ion s to a pup il. 1

Oh, scribe,2 give no t thys elf to idleness, or thou shalt be smartly

chastised abandon not thy heart to pleasure, or thou wil t let thy bookssl ip out o f thy hands ; pract ise conversat ion ; discuss with those whoare wiser than thyself ; do the works of an elevated man . Yes, whenthou shal t be advanced in years, thou wilt find this to be profitable.

A scribe, skilful in every kind of work, will become powerful. Neglectnot thy books do no t take a disl ike to them.

”

Sir J . Gardner Wi lkinson,in his M anners and Customs of tko Egyp t

ians, gives a li st of plants (from Pliny) which were known to theEgypt ians and used in medicine or the arts . Ladanum ( Cistu s ladan iferns) was introduced into Egypt by the Ptolemies . Myrobalanum

(Mor inga aptera produced a fru i t from which an ointmen t was made .

Cypros (Lawsonia sp inosa ot inerveis) was cooked in oil to make the

o in tmen t called cyprus the leaves were used to dye the hair .

1 M e’langes Egyptologigues , Paris , 1862 , p . 1 1 7 .

2 Priests and physicians were educated in high schoo ls, the highest degree inwhich was that of the “ scribes,” who w ere maintained at the cost of the king.

Ebers , Uarda , vol. i . p . 20.

70 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Elate (Abies P) , palma or spathe was of use in ointmen ts . O il of bitteralmonds . O l ives and figs were much esteemed . The castor-oil plant

(R icinus communis) . A medicinal oil was extracted from what was probably one of the nettle tribe (Ur tica pilu lifera) . Tea (Tr iticnnz z oa f),o lyra (Holcns sorg/zwn f), and tiphe (Tr iticnnz spelta) , were used indecoct ions opium was extracted from P apaver somniferunz .

Cn icus or atractyl is (Cartkamznn tinctor innz was a remedy againstthe poison of scorpions and other reptiles . Pliny says Homer attributes the glory of herbs to Egypt. He mention s many given to Helenby the wife of the Egyptian king

,particularly the Nepen thes, wh ich

caused obl ivion of sorrow.

”Opium was well known to the anc ients , as

well as various preparations of that drug. Sir J . Wilkinson th inks thatnepen the was perhaps the kar t or kaskeesk

,a preparation o f the Can

nai n'

s sativa or Indian hemp.

The Egyptians , says Ebers, thought that the kindly heal ing plantssprung up from the blood and tears of the gods . 1

Upon the ceilings and walls of the temples at Tentyra, Karnac,Luxor

,and other places, basso-rel ievos have been discovered repre

sen ting limbs that have been amputated with instrumen ts very sim i larto those wh ich are employed in such operation s in our own t ime .

Such in strumen ts are also found in the hieroglyphics, and Larrey says 2

that there are vestiges of other surgical operation s which have beendiscovered in Egyptian ru ins which abundantly prove that the art ofsurgery was practised with great skill in the l and of the Pharaohs .Mr. Fl inders Petrie, excavating at the Pyram id of Medum, says o f

the skeletons he discovered there “ The muti lat ion s and diseases thatcome to l ight are remarkable. One man had lost h is left leg below theknee another had his hand cut off and pu t in the tomb others s eemto have had bones exci sed

,and placed separately with the body. In

one case acute and chron ic inflammation and rheumatism of the backhad un i ted most of the vertebrae in to a sol id mass down the inner s ide.In another case there had been a rickety curvature of the spine. To

find so many peculiarit i es in only about fi fteen skeletons which I

collec ted is strange . These are all in the Royal College of Surgeon snow,

for study.

” 3

“Among the s ix hermetic books of medic ine men t ioned by Clementof Al exandria, was one devoted to surgical in strumen ts otherwise thevery badly set frac tures found in some of the mumm ies do l ittle honourto the Egyptian surgeons

”

(Ebers ) .

1 Lefebure has treated the subject in Le My t/ze Os ir ien .

3 See Cooper’s Su rgical D ict. , art. Surgery .

”

3 Ton Years’D iggi ng in Egypt, p . 146.

EGYP TIAN MEDICINE. 7 1

Flint instruments were always used for Open ing bodies, for c i rcumc ision and other surgical operat ion s . How far th is was dictated byrel igious respect for ant iquity, or by san i tary reasons, cannot be said ;probably, however, the reverence for the anc ien t fl int kn i fe had muchto do with i ts reten tion .

Our word chem i stry i s derived from the name of Egypt, Kkem orK/zomit

,the “ Black Land ,

”mean ing the rich

,dark soi l of the Ni le

valley. The god Khem ,also known as M in and Am

, was the same asthe Pan of the Greeks and Priapus of th e Romans . He pres idedover productiveness and the kindly fruits of the earth . In th i s sensehe was also the god of curative herbs and s imples, and so becameassoc iated in the popular m ind with th e arts of healing.

1 Thus weobtain the words chem i s t

,chem istry

,and alchemy. Plutarch says that

the Greek word xmtu'

a,for Egypt, was bestowed on the land on accoun t

of the black colour of its soi l .The Egyptians must have had considerable practical knowledge of

chem istry,or they could not have succeeded so well in the manufacture

of glass, in dyeing, and the use of mordants , etc. M etallurgy must havebeen understood

,as i s evidenced by their process of gold manufactures

represen ted in several of the royal tombs. They made gold wire, andexcelled in the art of gilding. Thei r methods of embalm ing also exbibi t some chemical knowledge. Dr. Pettigrew says,2 h is fri end Professor Reuvens

,of Leyden

,exam ined a papyrus which contained upwards

of one hundred chem ical and alchemical formulae.In the Ebers Papyru s there are several rec ipes for the preparation

of hair dye. The earl iest of all the recipes preserved to us i s a prescription for dyeing the hair.

” 3

Recipes for exterm inating verm in and noxious creatures are found inthe same work .

In anatomy,physiology

,surgery

,therapeutics

, and chem i s try it i sevident that Egypt was far in advance of any other nation of the same

period of wh ich we have authen tic accoun ts .The Persian kings were glad to employ the Egyptian physic ians,

whose skill gained them high renown in the anc i en t world. Dr.

Brugsch, in his accoun t of the Egyptians in the Pers ian service, givesa translat ion of the inscript ions of Uz a-hor-en-

pi-ris

,of the period of

the conquest of Egypt by Cambyses .“ O ye gods who are in Sai s !

Remember all the good that has been done by the presiden t of the

physic ians, Uz a-hor-em-

pi-ris . In all that ye are will ing to requite him

1 Pkaraolzs and Fel la/es , Amelia B. Edwards, p . 254.

2 Supersti tions of M edicine, etc. , p . 7 .

3 Uarda , Ebers.

72 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

for all h is benefi ts,establ ish for him a great name in th i s land for ever.

0 Os ir is ! thou eternal one The president of the phys ic ians , Uz a-horeu-pi-ris , throws h i s arms around thee, to guard thy image ; do for himall good according to what he has done

, (as) the protector of thy shrinefor ever.” 1 The las t words addressed to Os iri s refer to the form ofthe statue. The ch i ef physic ian of Sai s i s standing uprigh t, with hishands embrac ing a shrine which holds themummy of Os iris .Whether the anc ien t Greeks derived their knowledge of medic ine

from Egypt or from India has often been debated the evidence seemsto show that Greece was indebted to India rather than to Egypt in th i srespect.Mr. Flinders Petrie concludes that Europe had an indigenous

c ivi l ization, as independent of Egypt and Babylon ia as was the ih

digenous Aryan c ivi l iz ation of India ; that th i s c ivi l i zation has acquiredarts independently , j ust as much as India has, and that Europe hasgiven to the Eas t as much as i t has borrowed from there.

” 2

Amongst the Egyptian fellahs some curious Observances , says Mr.

Fl inders Petrie,are connected with accidental deaths. Fires of straw

are lighted, one month after the death , around the ground where the

body has lain ; and where blood has been shed, iron nai ls are driveninto the ground

,and a m ixture of lent i ls , salt, etc . ,

i s poured out .These look l ike offerings to appease spiri ts, and the fires seem as if todrive away evil influences . Funeral offerings are still placed in thetombs for the sustenance of the dead

,j us t as they were thousands of

years ago.

” 3

Modern Egyptians , l ike the anc i ent, wear written charms aga ins ts ickness and disease. Magical preparations of all sorts are frequentlyUsed as remedies in i llness

,and in even serious cases the patient i s

made to swallow p ieces of paper inscribed with texts from the Koran,and to try various s imi lar absurd means, before a physic ian i s appl i edto .

” 4

1 Brugsch, Hist. Egypt , vol . 11. p . 296.

2 Ton Yoars’D igging in Eg pt , p . 1 53.

3 Ibid. , p . 1 72 .

4 Ebers, Egypt, vol . 11. p . 6 1 .

CHAPTER II .

JEW ISH MEDICINE

t for their Le People who dis l

seases in the Bible .—The Essenes. -Surgery

—Jew ish Services to Mediaeval Medicine.—The Phoenicians.

THAT division of the Hebrew peoples wh ich afterwards developed in toIsrael

,left its home in the extreme south of Palestine some fi fteen cen

turies before the Christ ian era to occupy the pasture lands of Goshen,in the terri tory of the Pharaohs, where they cont inued to retain theirnomadic habi ts , their anc ient language and patriarchal in sti tut ions .In process of t ime, however, the Egyptian sovereigns began to dealseverely with their self-invited guests ; they were forced to labour onthe public works o f Goshen and though bitterly resenting th is attemptto destroy their ident ity and reduce them to mere slavery

,the proud

and noble race was powerless to res i st, and cont inued to labour on indespair un t i l a deliverer arose in Moses, who led them out of Egypt tothe land of Palest ine which they had originally left. Moses was a

pupi l of the Egyptian pr iests , versed in all their wisdom,and imbued

with the loftiest sentiments of the rel igion of Egyp t. We shal l expectto find in the medic ine of the Jews abundan t traces of their long res idence in the land of the Pharaohs . Our sources for the h istory of theheal ing art and the theory of disease wh ich obtained with the people ofIsrael are two— the Bible and the Talmud. Therein we shall see theinfluences

,both external and internal, which made Jewis h medic in e

what i t was ; and we shall be aston i shed, on comparing t he theory ofdisease with that of all the other nations and peop les of the earth, tofind that i t s tands by itself

,i s absolutely un ique in i ts loftiness of idea

,

i ts absolute freedom from the absurd and degrading superst i ti on s ofthe great and c ivil ized nations amongst which they dwelt or by wh ichthey were surrounded. When we reflect on the religions of Egypt,Assyria

,and Chaldaea, and compare their many gods with the one God

o f the Jews,their demonology

,sorcery

,and witchcraft with the pure

and elevated fai th of these . nomads of the Sinaitic Pen insula, and re

7 3

74 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

member that in all the earth at that time there was no other nationwhich had formulated such a pure theism,

no other peopl e whichhad broken away from the degrading and corrupting demonologywhich possessed the whole earth , we are compelled to recogn i se inGod’s anc ien t people the Jews the evidence of a teaching totallyunl ike anyth ing which had preceded i t . If the Bible

,the Talmud,

and the Koran are all three merely spec imens of anci en t l i terature,how comes i t that the Bible i s so infin i tely superior

,not only in i ts

noble monotheism,but in its remarkable freedom from so many of the

superst it ions wh ich,as we have seen

,were everywhere interm ixed with

the noblest religious systems and the most advanced c ivilizations ?Magic in the B ible i s everywhere passed by with contempt. Whatevermay be the prec ise date of the Psalms, they must have been writtenwhen all nat ion s were sunk in the grossest superst it ion , and had resortto magical prac tices on the slightest pretence ; yet there is a totalabsence of all supersti tion in the Psalms . Gran t ing that the Book ofEccl es iastes is a mere p iece of cyn ical ph ilosophy, i t contains no evidence of supersti tious belief. The more anc ient i s a l iterature, thegreater i s the certainty that i t wil l con tain some reference to superstitious usages yet how gloriously the oldest books of the Bible sh inein their freedom from contam ination with the demon-worsh ip and con

j uring arts of the nations surrounding the ch i ldren of Israel .As the author of the learned article on Medic ine in Sm i th’s D ic

tionary of tko Bikle says : “ But if we admi t Egypt ian learn ing as an

ingredient,we should also notice how far exalted above i t i s the stan

dard of the whole Jewish legislative fabric,in i ts exemption from the

blem i shes of sorcery and j uggl ing pretences . The priest, who had to

pronounce on the cure,used no mean s to advance it

,and the whole

regulat ion s prescribed exclude the notion of trafficking in popular superstition . We have no occult pract ices reserved in the hands of thesacred caste . It i s God alone who doeth great th ings— working by thewand of Moses or the brazen serpen t ; but th e very ment ion of such instruments i s such as to expel al l pretence of mysterious virtues in theth ings themselves .” It i s always God alon e who is the healer : I am

the Lord that healeth thee ” (Exod . xv. 26) Heal me, O Lord

,and I

shall be healed ” (Jer. xvi i. 1 4) For I will restore health un to thee,and I will heal thee of thy wounds

,saith th e Lord ” (Jer. xxx .

“ Who healeth all thy diseases ” (Ps. ci i i . 3 ) He healeth the brokenin heart, and bindeth up their wounds (Ps. cxlvi i . “ The Lordbindeth up the breach o f His people, and healeth the stroke of the irwound ” (Isa. xxx.

The priestly caste had no monopoly of the heal ing art i t m igh t be

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76 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Our Lady will l iberate him from purgatory on the firs t Saturday afterh i s arr ival there.

To the m ind of the Israel ite, says Mr. Tylor, “ death and pest i- c

lence took the personal form of the destroying angel who smote the

doomed .

” 1

God is plainly declared, in Exodus xv. 26,to send diseases upon

men as a pun ishmen t for the breach of His commandments,and th i s .

has been adduced to show that the Jews traced the ir maladies to theanger of . an offended D eity ; and thus i t has been argued that theiret iology of disease was no t h igher than that of th e other nations . Butth i s argumen t is unfair. The Mosaic law was to a great extent asan i tary code

,and even in the l igh t of modern sc i ence we are com

pelled to admire the wisdom of the laws wh ich have for so manycen turies made the Jews the healthiest and most macrob iot ic of peoples.The ri te of c ircumc is ion was no t peculiar to the Jews and j ust as

bapti sm was an in i t iatory rite borrowed from another rel igion, yet made :

dist inct ive of Christian i ty, so c ircumc i s ion has come to be cons idered a

peculiarly Jewish practice. It may have been with the Israeli tes a protes t against the phallus worsh ip wh ich i s of such remote ant iqui ty, andwh ich was the foundation of the myth of Os iris . Wunderbar 2 asser tsthat i t d istinctly contributed to increase the frui tfulness of the race andt o check inordinate desires in the individual . There are excellen tsurgical reasons for both these supposit ion s, in addition to wh ich wemay add that i t contributed to c lean l iness and prevented irri tation.

Wunderbar, moreover, seems to have establ ished h is statemen t thatafter c ircumc i s ion there is less probability of the absorpt ion of syphil i t ic virus

,and he has instanced the fact that such spec ific d is ease is

less frequen t with Jewish than with Christ ian populat ions .3“C ircumc is ion , says Pickering

,speaking of the Polynesian prac tice, .

was now exp lained and various other customs, which had previouslyappeared unaccoun table, were found to rest on phys ical causes, havingbeen extended abroad by the process of im itat ion .

” ‘1

The same writer states that the pract ice is“common to the anc ien t

inhabitants of the Thebaid, and also to the modern Abys s in ians and

their neighbours in the South .

5

Ewald 6 says that c ircumcis ion was practised by various Arabian .

tribes, in Africa, amongst Eth iop ic Christians and the negroes of th eCongo . It was also pract i sed on girls by Lydian , Arabian, and African .

1 Pr imit ive Cu ltu re, vol . i . p . 267 . 2 Samuel xx iv. 16 2 Kings x ix . 35 .

23 tes Heft

, p . 25 .

3 Ibid. , p . 2 7 .

4 Races of M an , p . 1 53.

5 Ibid. , p . 293 .

An t iqu ities of Israel , p. 90 .

jEWISH MEDICINE. 7 7

t ribes , as Philo and Strabo in form us . Ewald cons iders i t originated asan offering of one’s own flesh and blood in sacrifice to God, and may

have been cons idered as a substitute for the whole body of a humanbeing.

C i rcumcis ion i s practised amongst Austral ian savages on the MurrayR iver, as also another incredible ceremon ial, as Lubbock terms it.1

Castration i s h inted at in Matthew xix. 1 2 as an operation wellau nderstood.

In hot cl imates extra precautions for cleanliness have to be adoptedbeyond those wh ich would amply suffice in northern lands . CaptainBurton says ' 2

However much the bath may be used, the body-p i le and hair o f thea rm-

pi ts , etc. , if subm i tted to a m icroscope, will show more or les ss ordes adheren t. The axilla hair i s plucked, because if shaved the

.growing p ile causes i tch ing, and the dep ilatories are held to be delet erious.

Sometimes Syrian incense or fir-gum,imported from Sc io , i s melted

.and allowed to cool in the form of a pledget . This is passed over theface

,and all the down adhering to it i s pulled up by the roots . He

adds that many Anglo- Indians adopt the same precautions.Ewald, referring to th e laws concern ing women , says 3 “ The

monthly period of the woman brought wi th i t the second grade of un‘c leanness, which lasted the space of seven days, but without renderingnecessary the use of specially prepared water. Everyth ing on whicht he woman sat or lay during this t ime

,and every one who touched such

t hings or her, incurred the uncleanness o f the firs t grade .

”

We find the demon- theory of disease in force in th e time of Josephus..He says : 4

Now with in th i s place there grew a sort of rue, that deserves ourw onder on account of i ts largeness

,for i t was no way inferior to any fig

.tree whatsoever,ei ther in height or in th ickness ; and the report i s that

it had lasted ever s ince the t ime of Herod, and would probably havel asted much longer had it not been cut down by those Jews who took

p ossession of the place afterward but still in that valley wh ich eucom

p asses the c i ty ou the north s ide, there i s a certain place called Baaras,w hich produces a root of the same name with itself ; i ts colour is, l iket o that of flame, and towards even ing it sends ou t a certain ray likel ightn ing ; i t i s not easily taken by such as would do i t, but recedesfrom their hands ; nor will yield itself to be taken qu ietly, un ti l either

1 Finditur usque'

ad urethram 31 parte inferapen is. -Eyre , VOL 11° P 332°

2 A rabian N zgk ts , vo l . ii . p . 160 , note 33 A n tiqu i ties of Israel , p . 1 56.

4 Wars, V i l o 6, 3

7 8 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

05pm! y in/am t) ; i) 7 6 Zunnvov ail/1 a be poured upon i t ; nay, even then it iscertain death to those that touch i t

,unless any one take and hang the

root i tsel f down from h is hand,and so carry it away. It may also be

taken another way, without danger, which i s th is : they dig a trenchquite round about i t, t i ll the hidden part of the root be very small ; theythen t ie a dog to i t

,and when the dog tries hard to follow him that tied

him,this root i s eas ily plucked up, but the dog dies immediately, as i f

i t were instead of the man that would take the plant away ; nor afterth i s need any one be afraid o f taking i t into their hands . Ye t, after allth is pains in getting, i t i s only valuable on accoun t of one virtue it hath— that if i t be only brought to s ick persons, i t quickly drives away those :

called Demons, which are no other than the spir its of the wicked, thaten ter into men that are alive and kill them,

unless they can obtainsome help against them.

”

If we may con s ider Josephus as a fair type of the learned and .

l iberally educated men of h i s time,we are compelled to admi t that

the theory of diseas e held by the Hebrews of the period was not much ,i f at all, in advance of the rest of the world. It was undoubtedlylargely the demon iacal theory of s ickn ess . In the Antiquities of t/ze'

f ours 1 Josephus, in h i s descript ion of the sagacity and wisdom of

Solomon , says : God also enabled him to learn the skill that expel sdemons, which i s a sc ience useful and sanative to men . He composedsuch incantat ions also by which distempers are alleviated . And he left .

beh ind him the manner of using exorc i sms , by which they drive awaydemon s so that they never return ; and th is method of cure is of greatforce un to th is day for I have seen a certain man of my own coun try,whose nam e was Eleazar

,releas ing people that were demon iacal .

”

He goes on to describe the process of extracting the demon from the

s ick man through h is nostrils .So again , in tell ing the story of Saul

’s possession by the evil spiritfrom the Lord

,he says 2 The phys ician s could find no other remedy

bu t th is— that if any person could charm those passions by s ingingand playing upon the harp, they advised them to inquire for such a

one . He seems to imply that David cured Saul by an incantation ; andSpanheim,

commen ting upon the story, says that the Greeks had suchsingers of hymn s

,and that usually children or youths were picked ou t

for that service, and that they were called s ingers to the harp .

3

Whether David merely influenced Saul in the natural and touch ingway so beautifully described by Robert Brown ing in his poem‘

“Saul,

we must bear in m ind that an“ incantat ion was prec i sely of the

1 Book VIII. chap. ii i . 5.

2 Antiq. , Book VI. chap. viii . 2 .

3 Note to Whiston’s Josephus, loc. cit .

[EWISH MEDICINE .

character of the B ible story, and that the demon theory of Saul’smalady is plainly s tated .

1

Herzog 2 enumerates the following as the diseases of the BibleI . Fever and ague (Lev. xxvi. I 6) . 2 . Dy sentery (Acts xxvi ii . with

,

probably, prolapsus ani , as ia ehoram’s case (2 Chron . xxi . I 5 ,

3 . I rylammation of t/ze ey es, due to heat, n ight dews, sea breeze, flyingsand, inj uries , etc. (Lev. xix. I 4 D eut. xxvi i . 1 8 ; Matt. xii . 2 2 ,

4 . Congenital klindnoss (John ix. 5 . D isease of tko liver . 6 .

Ifypockondr ia. 7 . Hy steria . 8 . Rlzeumatism and gout (John v . 2,

9 . Consumption, a general term,including hect ic

,typhoid

,and other

fevers (Lev. xxvi . I 6 Deut. xxvi ii . 2 2,

1 0 . Pktkisis indicated by leanness (Isa. x. 1 1 . A tropky of muscles

,

“ witheredhand

,being due either to rheumat i sm

, plugging up of the main arteryof the limb

,or paralys is of the princ ipal nerve, etc. (Matt. xii . 1 0 ;

1 Kings xi i i . 4—6, 1 2 . Fevers in general (Matt. vi ii . 1 4,

I 3 . Pestilence (Deut. xxxi i . 1 4 . Oriental post, the so-calledbubonenpest, characterised by swellings in the groins, armpits, etc.

a very fatal disorder (Lev. xxvi. 2 5 ; Deut. xxvii i. 2 1,2 7 , 60,

1 5 . Boils (2 Kings xx. 7 , 1 6. Sunstroke (2 Kings iv. 1 9 ,

1 7 . Gonorrkeea (Lev. xv. 1 8 . M trorrkagi a, or uterine hemorrhage

(Lev. xv. 2 5 ; Luke vi i i. 43 , 1 9 . Sterili ty (Gen . xx. 1 8,

20. Asa’s foot disease, either oedema or gout (2 Chron . xvi . I 2 ) . 2 1 .

Elop/zantiasis (P) (Job i i . 2 2 . D ropsy (Luke xiv. 23 . Cancer

(2 Tim . i i . 24. Worms ; may have been phth iriasis ( l ice) (2 Macc .

ix. 5 2 5 . Leprosy . 26 . l ick and other skin diseases (Deut. xxvi i i .2 7 . Apop lexy ( 1 Sam . xxv. 3 7 , 2 8 . Letkargy (Gen . i i. 2 1 ;

1 Sam . xxvi . 2 9 . Paraly sis, palsy (Matt . iv. 24 ; Acts i i i . 2,

30 . Ep ilepsy , the so-called “possess ion of devils

”

(Matt. i v. 24,

3 1 . M elanc/zolia,madness (Deut . xxvi i i . 2 8, 3 2 . Nervous exkaus

tion ( 1 Tim. v. 33 . M iscarr iage (Exod . xxi . 34 .

“Boils

and blains,

” erysipelatous (Exod . ix. 3 5 . Gangrene and mortifica tion

(2 Tim . i i . 3 6 . Poisoning by ar rows (Job vi . Poison ing f romsnake-kite (Deut . xxxii . 3 7 . Scorp ions and cen tipedes (Rev. ix. 5 ,

3 8. Old age, as described in Eccles . xi i . I am incl ined to add tothis l ist Syp li ilis, which seems to me to be clearly indicated by severalverses in Proverbs xi i .

,in the warn ings against the strange

verses 2 2,23 , 26, and 2 7 .

The law forbade a Levite who was blind to act as a physician .

Anatomy and pathology were not understood,as i t was cons idered

pollution even to touch the dead .

The surgical instruments of the Bible are the sharp stone or fl int:11 Sam . xvi . 1 5. Religiou s Ency clope dia, vol . 11. p . 1454.

80 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

kn ives with wh ich C ircumc i s ion was performed, and the awl with whicha servan t’s ear was bored by his master (Exod . i v. 25 ; Josh. v . 2 ;

Exod . xxi . Roller bandages are referred to for fractures (Ezek . xxx .

Job used a scraper when he was sm i tten with boils (Job 11.

The materia medica of the Bible i s meagre. A poul tice of figs— a

favouri te remedy in anc ien t times— is ordered in 2 Kings xx . 7 .

Fish galls (Tobit xi . 4—1 3 ) and fasting sal iva are used (Mark vi i i. 2

The on ly regular prescript ion menti oned i s that in Exodus xxx .

23—2 5 .

M idwives were regularly employed to assi st Hebrew mothers .The bearing stool ” was employed .

There i s a very beautiful figurative descript ion of the disease of oldage or sen i le decay given by Solomon in the Book of Ecc lesias tes

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth , while theevi l days come no t

,nor the years draw n igh , when thou shalt say, I

have no pleasure in them ; while the sun,or the l ight, or the moon, or

the stars,be not darkened, nor the clouds return after th e rain in the

day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men

shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few,and

those that look out of the windows be darkened,and the doors shall be

shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low,and he

shall ri se up at the voice of the bird, and al l the daughters of musickshall be brought low ; also wkon they shall be afraid of tkat wkick ishigh

,and fears slzall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish ,

and the grasshopper shall b e a burden , and desire shall fail : becauseman goeth to h is long home, and the mourners go about the streetsor ever the s ilver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken

,or

the p itcher be broken at the foun tain , or the wheel broken at thec i stern . Then shall the dust return to the earth as i t was : and thespiri t shall return unto God who gave i t.”

Dr. M ead, in h i s treatise on the diseases of old age,

1 thus explainsthe curious figurative phrases . By the darken ing of the sun

,moon

,and

s tars,he says we are to understand the obscurat ion of the men tal faculties,

which i s so common in advanced l i fe . The c louds return ing after rainsymbol ise the cares and troubles which oppress the aged ; espec ially whenthe vigour o f the m ind is lessened

,so that they cannot cast them off.

From the m ind we pass to the body : the keepers of the house shalltremble,

”etc. That is to say, the l imbs which support th e body grow

feeble and relaxed, and are incapable of defending us against inj uries.The grinders are the molar teeth . The failing sight is compared to thedarkness which meets those who look out of the windows. By dimin

1 Medica Sacra, p. 40 et seq.

jEWISH MED ICINE. a:

ished appetite the mouth , wh ich is th e door of the body, i s less frequently opened than in youth . The sound of the grinding of the teethi s low,

because old people have, in th e absence o f them, to eat withtheir gums . The ris ing up at the voice of the b ird s ign ifies the shortand interrupted sleep of the aged . By the daughters of music we are tounderstand the ears , wh ich no longer adm in is ter to our pleasure inconveying harmon ious sounds . The sense of feel ing i s d imin ished , andthe aged are fearful of s tumbl ing in the way. The early flowers o fspring shall flourish in vain . The phrase , the grasshopper shall become a burden, according to Dr. M ead

,i s the modest Hebrew mode of

describing the effects of scrotal rupture . He says th e grasshopper ismade up ch iefly of belly, and when ful l of eggs bears some resemblanceto a scrotum smi tten by a rupture.

“ D esire shall be lost ” i s l ikeOvid’s T arpe senilis amor, and does not refer to appeti te for food. The

loosened s ilver cord i s the vertebral column the medul la oblongata i sof a si lver or wh itish colour. The golden bowl expresses the digni ty o fthe head, from which in old age come defluxions to th e nose, eyes, andmouth . Incontinence of urine i s a common trouble o f the aged

,wel l

expressed by the figure of the p itcher broken at the fountain and thewheel at th e c istern

,to those who knew noth ing o f the c irculat ion o f

the blood , fairly describes the fail ing heart, no longer capable of pro

pell ing the stream of l ife through the vessels .Referring

[ to the words ,“ The sun shall not smi t e thee by day

,nor

the moon by n ight ” (Psalm cxxi . Captain Bur ton says 1 that h ehas seen a hale and hearty Arab, after s i tting an hour in the moonl ight, look l ike a man fresh from a s ick-bed and he knew an Englishman in India whose face was temporarily paralysed by

’

sleep ing with i texposed to the moon .

The captivity at Babylon brough t the Jews into contact wi th a noblerand very h igh c ivil izat ion . In many ways there i s no doubt that Jewishthought was greatly developed and enlarged by assoc iation with thepeoples of Babylon ia and Assyria . What prec i se influences the Jewsbecame subj ect to in th i s capt ivi ty we have not the means to determinebut the fact that the Greek phys ic ian D emocedes vis ited the court o fDarius

, proves that Eastern lands had in some measure fallen under theinfluence of Greek though t, about the t ime of Ezra. The Book ofEccles iasticus i s supposed to belong to the period of

‘ the Ptolemies,

and in that work we find practit ioners of medic ine held in high esteem .

Honour a physic ian with the honour due unto him for the uses wh ichye may have of him ; for the L0 i d hath created him . The

skill of the physician shall l ift up h i s head ; and i n the sigh t of great1 A ra/n an N zg/zts , vol . 11. p . 4.

82 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF IMED ICINE.

men he shal l be in admiration. The Lord hath created medic ines out ofthe earth ; and he that i s wise wil l not abhor them . Thengive place to the physic ian, for the Lord hath created him ; let himno t go from thee

,for thou hast need of him.

” 1

A very interesting but mysterious sec t of the Jews was th e ESSENES

(B.C. Our knowledge o f th i s ancient communi ty i s ch iefly derivedfrom Josephus,2 who says that they studied the anc ien t writers principallywith regard to those things useful to the body and the soul, that theythus acquired knowledge of remedies for diseases

,and learned the

virtues of plan ts, stones, and m e tals. Another name for the Esseneswas the Therapeutis ts, or the Healers .3

They lived somewhat after th e fashion of monks, and had a novitiateof three years . Some of their princ iples and rules suggest a con

nect ion with Pythagorism and Zoroastrian ism. De Quincey finds inEssen i sm a sain tly scheme o f Ethics , a “ Christ ian i ty before Christ,and consequently without Christ.” ‘1 Recent scholarship , says ProfessorMasson

,wil l not accept h is conclus ions concerning this remarkable

s ecret soc iety.

5

The surgery of the Talmud includes a knowledge of dislocations o f

the thigh , contus ions of the head , perforation o f the lungs and othero rgans, inj uries of the spinal cord and trachea, and frac tu res of theribs . Polypus of the nose was cons idered to be a pun ishmen t for pasts ins. In sciatica the patien t i s advised to rub the hip s ixty t imes withm eat-broth . Bleeding was performed by mechan ics or barbers .The pathology of the Talmud ascribes d iseases to a const i tutional

vice, to evi l influences acting on the body from without, or to the effectof magic .

Jaundice i s recogn ised as aris ing from retent ion o f the bi le, dropsyfrom suppress ion of th e ,urine. The Tal inudists divided dropsy intoanasarca

,asc i tes

,and tympan i tes. Rupture and atrophy of th e k idneys

were held to be always fatal . Hydatids of th e l iver were more favourably cons idered. Suppurat ion of the spinal cord

,induration of the

1 Eccles iasticu s xxxvi ii. 1 , 3 , 4, 1 2 . From the many references to disease in this book ,

i t has been supposed by some commen tators that the author was a physician . The

w riter o f the article on Medicine, ” in Smit/i ’s D ict ionary of t il e Bi l/lo, remarks that“ if he was so , the power of m ind and w ide range of observation shown in this w ork

,

wou ld give a favourable impression o f the standard o f practitioners ; if he was not ,

the great general popularity o f the study and practice may be inferred from its thusbecoming a common topic of general advice o ffered by a non-

professional writer.”

2 Wars of t/zejews, Book II. chap. viii ; A n tiq. , xviii. 1 , 5 .

3 See L ightfoot on the Colossians.

4 Works , vo l. i . p . 10 .

5 Ibid. ,vol . vii . p . 7 .

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84 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

of the Rabbis became a shallow pedantry in the course of time, andtheir faith in the inspiration o f their scriptures ultimately degeneratedinto a Cabal ism ,

wh ich in i ts turn len t i tself to j ugglery and magicmongering

,and in fected the medicine of th e Roman world , j ust as the

heal ing art had emancipated i tsel f from supersti tion, theurgy, and

ph ilosophical soph istries .Kingsley has told us how th i s Jewish magic arose 1 “ If each word

[of the Scriptures] had a mysterious value, why no t each letter ? And

how could they set l imi ts to that mysterious value ? M igh t not thesewords

,even rearrangements of the letters of them, be useful in v

protect

ing them agains t the sorceries of th e heathen,in driving away these evi l

sp irits, or evoking those good spi ri ts who, though seldom ment ioned intheir early records

,had

,after their return from Babylon

,begun to form

an importan t part of their unseen world ?”

Jewish Cabal ism formed i tself in to a sys tem at Alexandria. It was

there,as Kingsley goes on to say

,that the Jews learn t to become th e

magic-mongers wh ich Claudius had to expel from Rome as pests torational and moral soci ety.

According to th e J ewish doctors , three angels preside over the art o fmedicine. Their names, according to Rabb i Elias , are Senoi , Sanseno i,and Sanmangelof.

2

In the M iddle Ages the Jews rendered the greates t services to theheal ing art, and had a large share in the sc ien tific work connected withthe Arab dom ination in Spain . The great names of MOSES MAIMoNIDEs

and IBN EZRA attest the dign i ty of Jewish intellectual l ife in the DarkAges . The Golden Age of the modern Jews, as M i lman 3 designatesi t,begins with the Cal iphs and ends with Maimon ides . The Hebrew

literature was eminently acceptable to the kindred taste of the Saracens,

and the sympathy between Arab and Jewish pract it ioners and studentsof medic ine was fraugh t wi th the great es t benefit to the healing art.The Golden Age of the Jews was , at i ts

" heigh t in the t ime of Charlemagne

,when kings could no t write thei r names . Thei r intelligence

and education fi tted th em to become the physic ians and the m in istersof nobles and monarchs . During the reign of Louis th e D ebonnairethe Jews were all-powerful at h is court. His confidential adviser wasthe Jewish physic ian Zedekiah, who was a pro found adept in magic.

In an age when monkish historians could relate wi th awe- struck sin

ceri ty,” as M ilman describes i t,4 th e tales of h i s swallowing a cartload o f

hay, horses and all , i t i s not difficult to understand that an acquaintancew i th the best knowledge of h is t ime would account for the estimation in

1 A lcxandr ia and leer Sclzools , p . 74.

2 Le Clerc , Hist. do la IlIc’d. , Pt. I. 2 , 4.

2 History of til ef ozvs , Book xx i ii . 4 Ibid.

jEWISH MEDICINE. 85

which a man of sc ience was held. Maimon ides l ived at the court ofthe Sultan of Egypt as the royal physic ian, in the h ighest est imation .

The Phoen icians were devoted to phall ic-worship. The instrumen to f procreative power was the ch ief symbol of their rel igion. Astartewas their great goddess . Baal-Zebub

,the Beelzebub of th e B ible, was

their god of medic ine,and the arb iter o f heal th and disease . The

Cabeiri, or Corybantes , considered by some authorit ies to be ident icalw ith the Ti tans

,by others with the sons of Noah

,were cons idered as

the discoverers of the propert ies of the medic inal herbs, and theteachers of the art o f heal ing to mortals. 1

1 G. S. Faber , T/i e Cai n'

r i , vol. i.

CHAPTER III.

THE MED ICINE OF CHALDIEA, BABYLONIA, AND ASSYRIA.

The Ancient Religion of Accadia akin to Shaman ism .—D emon Theory o f D isease in

Chaldaean Medicine —Chaldaean Magic.—Medical Ignorance o f the Babylonians.

—Assyrian D isease-Demons. - Charms. —Origin of the Sabbath.

CHALDIEA was probably only second to Egyp t in the ant iqu ity of i tsc ivil ization. The founders of the Babylon ian and Assyrian empireswere a Sem itic tribe, and were the fi rst people who worked in metals, andtheir knowledge of astronomy proves them to have been possessed o f

some amoun t of sc ient ific attainments . Their pract ice of medicine wasinextricably m ixed with conj urat ions of sp i rits, magic, and astrology.

The name now given to the prim i tive inhabitan ts of Babylon is

Accadian s. Sayce cons iders them to have been the earl iest c ivi l i zerso f Eastern As ia. From the Accadians

,he thinks the Assyrians

,Phoe

n icians,and Greeks derived their knowledge of ph ilosophy and the arts .

Their l ibrari es existed seven teen centuries B.C.

The anci en t rel igion of Accad was very sim i lar to the Shaman i sm

professed by Siberian and Samoyed tribes at th e presen t t ime . Therewas bel ieved to be a sp i ri t in every obj ect. Good or bad spirits swarmedin the world

,and there was scarcely anyth ing that could be done wh ich

m ight not risk demon iacal possession. These good and bad spiritswere controlled by priests and sorcerers . All diseases were causedby evi l spiri ts

,and the bulls and other creatures wh ich guarded the

entrance to houses were there to protect them from the ir power.The priests were magic ians. There were at one period of the developmen t of the Babylon ian mythology three hundred spiri ts of heavenand s ix hundred Sp i ri ts of earth ; the most dreadful of these latterwere the “ seven spirits ,

”who were born without father and mother, and

brought plague and evi l on the earth . Magic formulae for warding off

the attacks of demons were commonly used, and charms and tal isman swere extens ively employed . The phylacteries of the Jews weretal isman s

,and were of Accadian origin. The sorcerer bound his charm ,

“ knotted with seven knots,round the l imbs of th e s ick man, and this,

86

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88 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

fough t with and replaced the disease-demons , and the theologicalpriests who urged repentance for sin as the only means of the cure ofd isease.1

In the Accadian ph ilosophy there was in everyth ing a dual ism o f

Spirits. Innumerable hosts of them caused all the phenomena ofnature, from the movemen ts of the stars to the l ife and death , the healthand disease of every human being. This dual ism was as marked asthat of the rel igion of Zoroaster ; everywhere and in everyth ing thegood spi rits fought against the evi l ones , discord prevailed throughoutthe un iverse and on th is concept ion rested the whole theory of sacredmagic. Man’s only help against the attacks of bad spirits, and theplagues and diseases wh ich they brought upon him,

lay in the invocat ion o f good spirits by means of priests, sacred rites, tali smans , and

charms. These could put to fl igh t the demons by help ing the goodspirits in their constant warfare with them . Magic therefore becamea system elaborated with scient ific exactness

,and a vast pan theon of

gods became necessary. Hea was the great god of conjurational

magic ; he was th e supreme protector o f men and of nature in thewar between good and evil . When nei ther word

, nor rite, nor tali sman

,nor help of the other d ivin i ties of heaven availed to help man

kind , Hea was al l-powerful and th is was because, as Lenorman t says ,2

Hea was alone acquainted with the awful power of the supreme name.“ Before thi s name everyth ing bows in heaven and in earth arid inHades

,and i t alone can conquer the M askim (a spec ies of evil demon) ,

and stop their ravages. The gods themselves are enthralled by thisname, and render it obedience .

Images of demons were used by the Chaldaeans as talismans againstthe attacks

l

of demons . In a magical hymn to th e sun against sorceryand witchcraft

,and their influence on the worshipper, the sun i s re

m inded that the images of the bad spiri ts have been shut up in heapso f corn. The invocat ion concludes

May the great gods , who have created me,take my hand Thou

who curest my face,direct my hand, direc t i t, lord, l ight of the

un iverse, Sun .

” 3

In a hymn composed for the cure of some d isease, the priest, addressing the god , speaks of the invalid in the th i rd person

As for m e,the lord has sent me, the great lord, Hea , has sent me .

Thou , at thy com ing, cure the race of man, cause a ray of health to Shine upon

him, cure his disease .

1 See on this the chapter on The Rel igious Systems of theAccadian Magic Books,Lenormant, Ckalda an IlIag ic, chap. x i.

2 Lenormant , C/zalda’an Adagio, p. 42.

3 Ibi d. , p . 1 79 .

MEDICINE OF CHALD/EA,BABYLONIA

, AND ASSYRIA . 89

The man, son o f his god, is burdened with the load of his om issions and transgressions .

His feet and his hands suffer cr uel ly, he is painfully exhausted by the d isease .

3 1 the raising Of my hands, come at the call , eat his food , absorb his vict im ,

turn his weakness into strength .

” 1

In the “War of the Seven Wicked Spirits agains t the Moon, we

have an incantat ion wh ich was destined to cure the king of a diseasecaused by the wicked Sp irits .2

In the Chaldaean creed all diseases were the work of demons . Thiswhy Herodotus found no phys icians in Babylon and Assyria . There

was no science of medicine ; “ i t was s imply a branch of magic, andwas practised by incantations, exorc i sm, the use of phil ters and en

chanted drinks.” 3

Of course the priests made i t their bus iness to compound theirdrinks of such drugs as they had discovered to possess therapeuticvirtue. In anc ient times magic and medic ine were thus closely un ited .

It could not have been always faith alone wh ich cured the patient,but

faith plus a l ittle poppy j uice would work wonders in many cases . It

became therefore greatly to the interest of the priests and magicians tolearn the properties of herbs, and the value of the juices and extractsof plants . Out of evi l, therefore, mankind reaped th i s great and valuabl eknowledge . The two graves t and mos t fatal diseases with which theChaldaeans were acquainted , says M . Lenorman t

,

‘1 were the plague and

fever,the Nanztar and th e Idpa . Naturally they were represented as

two demons,the strongest and most formidable who affl ic t mankind .

An old fragmen t says z

The execrable Idpa acts upon the head of man ,The malevolen t Namtar upon th e l ife of man

,

The malevolent Utug upon the forehead ofman,The malevolent A lal upon the chest of man

,

The malevolen t Gigi/n upon the bowels of man ,The malevolen t Telal upon the hand of man .

5

The use of magic knots as a cure for di seases was firmly bel ieved inby the anc ient Chaldees . M . Lenormant 3 gives a translat ion o f one ofthe formulae supposed to have been used again st d iseases of the head.

Knot on the righ t and arrange flat in regular bands, on the left

a woman’s d iademdivide i t twice in seven l ittle bands

1 Lenormant, Cli aldcean .Mag ic, p . 18 1 . Ibid. , pp . 204—209 .

3 Ikid. , p . 35.

4 Ibid. , p . 36.

3 Idiot , p. 36 .

3 I é id., p. 41 .

90 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF IIIEDICINE .

gird the head of the inval id with i tgird the forehead of the inval id wi th i t ;gird the seat of l ife w i th i t ;gird h i s hands and h is feet ;seat him on h is bed ;pour on him enchan ted waters .Let the disease of h is head be carried away into the heavens l ike

a violent windmay the earth swallow i t up l ike pass ing waters

Sir Henry Rawlinson has discovered that there were three classes ofChaldaean doctors, exactly in accordance with the enumeration o f the

prophet Dan i el . These were th e K/zar tumim, or conj urors

,the Clark

aminz,or phys ic ian s

,and the Asap/rim,

or theosoph i sts (see Dan i el i i .2 v.

The Babylon ian doctrine of disease was that the host s of evi l spi ri tsin the ai r en tered man’s body

,and could only be expelled by the incan

tations of the exorc is t. These disease-demons were addressed as “ th enoxious neck spi ri t,

” “ the burn ing sp iri t of the entrai ls wh ich devoursthe man .

” Headache was caused by evil spiri ts wh ich were commandedby the charmer to fly away “ l ike grasshoppers into the sky.

1

Herodotus says of the Babylon ians “ The following custom seems tome the wisest of their insti tut ions . They have no physic ians, but when aman i s i ll

,they lay him in th e publ ic square, and the passers-by come up

to him,and i f they have ever had h i s d isease themselves

,or have known

any one who has suffered from i t,they give him advice

,recommending

him to do whatever they found good in thei r own case,or in the case

known to them ; and no one i s allowed to pass th e s ick man in si lencewi thout asking him what h i s ailment is .” 2

A Babylon ian exorci sm of disease-demons has been found in thefollowing term s the translation i s by Prof. Sayce.

3

“ On the s ick man,by mean s of sacrifice, may perfect health sh ine

l ike bronze ; may the sun-god give th i s man l ife ; may Merodach , th eeldest son of the deep

,give him s trength

, prosperi ty , and health may

the king of heaven preserve, may the king of earth pre serve .

”

A curse against a sorcerer declares that “ by wri tten spells he shal lnot be del ivered .

The elementary Spiri ts were supposed to be seven baleful windswh ich were cons idered general causes of disease. One of the formulae

1 See E. B. Tylor, art. Demono logy , Ency . Br it . Records of t/ze Past, vo ls . i . ,i ii . ; Birch’s trans. Book (f t/re D ead ; Lenorman t, Maspero , and others.

2 Herodotu s , Book I. 197 , tr. Rawl inson .

3 Records of tire Past, vol . i . p . 1 35.

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92 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDJCJNE.

dead for their superst it ious rites. Another class was the “ Casdim,

who were a sort of ph i losophers,who were exempt from al l employment

except the duty of studying phys ic, astrology, th e foretell ing o f futureevents, the interpretation of dreams by augury, etc .

1

The Assyrian s had different demons for different d iseases - someinj ured the head , others attacked th e hands and feet.2

The Assyrians bel ieved that seven evi l spi ri ts m igh t enter a man atthe same time and there i s a tablet wh ich tel ls of the protectionafforded by a god agains t such demons . When the deity stands at th es ick man’s bedside

,

“ those seven evi l spiri ts he shall root out,and

shall expel them from h is body, and those seven shall never return tothe s ick man again .

” 3

“ Sometimes images of the gods were brought into the sick- room,

and written texts from the holy books were put on the walls , and boundround the s ick man’s brains. Holy texts were spread ou t on each s ideof the threshold .

” 4

In Mr. George Smith’s History of A ssy rz'

afrom file M onumenls,there

i s a translation of an Assyrian tablet from Assur—ban i-pal’s l ibrary. The

tablet is on the charms to expel evi l curses and spells . It i s supposedin i t,

” says Mr. Smi th , “ that a man was under a curse,and Merodach ,

one of the gods,seeing him next to the god Hea, h is father, enquired

how to cure him . Hea, the god o f wisdom,in an swer related the

c eremon ies and incantat ions for effect ing h is recovery, and these arerecorded in the tablet for the benefi t of the fai thful in after times .

TRANSLATION o r TABLET.

r . The evi l curse l ike a demon fixes on a man2 . a raging voice over him i s fixed

3 . an evi l voice over him i s fixed

4. the evil curse i s a great calam i tythat man the evi l curse slaughters l ike a lambh i s god from over him departsh i s goddess s tands angry at h i s sidethe raging voice l ike a c loak covers him and bears him awayth e god Merodach saw him and

1 0 . to h i s father Hea into the house h e en tered and said1 1 . My father, the evi l curse like a demon fixes on a man

O

OO

Q

G

U“!

1 N ineve/z and z'

ls Palaces, Joseph Bonomi , p . 164.

2 Records of fl u Past , vol . i ii. p . 140 .

3 Assy r ian Talz'

smans and Ex orcisms , trans. by II . F. Talbot . Records of fl u

Past, vol . i ii . p . 143 .

Folk Medicine,'

p . 165.

MEDICINE OF CHALDE A , BABYLONIA ,AND ASSYRIA . 93

And a second time he spake to himTo cure that man I am not able, explain t o me how to do i t.Hea to his son Merodach answeredMy son ,

thou knowest not how, I wil l recount to thee how todo it,

Merodach , thou knowest not how,I will reveal to thee how to

do it,What I know, thou shalt know.

Go my son Merodach .

pure carry to himthat Spel l break, and that spel l remove .

From th e curse of h i s fatherfrom the curse o f h i s motherfrom the curse of hi s elder brotherfrom the curse of the incan tat ion wh ich the man does not knowthe spell in the words of the l ips of the god HeaLike a plan t breakl ike a fruit crushl ike a branch spl i t.For the spell the invocation of heaven may he repeat the invocat ion of earth may he repeat

Thus : Like unto t his plan t wh ich i s broken may be the spell.In the burn ing flames i t burnsin fragments i t shall not be collectedtogether or divided it shall no t be usedits fragments the earth Shal l not takeits seeds Shal l no t produce and the sun shall no t raise themfor th e festival of god and king i t shal l not be used

the evil invocation,the finger pointing, the marking, the curs ing,

the sinn ing,the evi l wh ich in my body, my l imbs and my teeth i s fixed,l ike th is pl ant may i t be broken and

in th i s day may the burn ing flames consume,

may i t drive out the spel l and I shal l be freeThus Like unto th is fruit which i s crushed may be the spell,in the burn ing flames i t burn sto its severed stalk i t shal l not returnfor the banquet of god and king i t shal l no t be used

the evil invocation,the finger point ing, the marking, the curs ing,

the s inn ing.

94 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

49 . the evi l wh ich in my body, my l imbs and my teeth i s fixed

50 . l ike th is fru i t may i t be crushed and

5 1 . in th is day may th e burn ing flames con sume,

5 2 . may i t drive ou t the spell and I shall be free

53 . Thus Like unto th is branch which i s spl i t may be the spell,54. in the burning flames i t burns

5 5 . i ts fibres to the trunk shal l no t return

56. to sat isfy a wish i t shall no t come

58 . the evi l invocation, the finger point ing, the marking, th e curs ing,the s inn ing.

5 9 . the evi l wh ich in my body, my l imbs and my teeth i s fixed60 . l ike this branch may i t b e spli t and6 1 . in this day may the burn ing flames consume6 2 . may i t drive out th e spell and I shall be free63 . Thus : Like un to th is wool which is torn may be the spell,64. in the burn ing flames i t burns65 . to the back of the Sheep i t Shall no t return66. for the cloth ing of god and king i t shall not be used

68 . the evi l invocation, the finger point ing, th e marking, the cursing,th e s inn ing.

69 . the evil wh ich in my body, my l imbs and my teeth i s fixed

70 . l ike th i s wool may i t be torn and

7 1 . in th i s day may the burn ing flames consume

7 2 . may i t drive out the Spel l and I shal l be free

7 3 . Thus : Like un to this flag which is torn may be the spell ,74. in the burn ing flames i t burns

7 5 . on to i ts mast i t shall no t return

76 . to satisfy a wish i t shal l not come

78 . the evi l invocation, th e finger point ing, the marking, the cursing,the s inn ing.

7 9. th e evi l wh ich in my body, my l imbs and my teeth i s fixed80 . l ike th is flag may i t be torn and

8 1 . in th i s day may the burn ing flames consume8 2 . may it drive out the spel l and I shall be free83 . Thus : Like unto th is thread which i s broken mayb e the spell,84. in the burn ing flames i t burns8 5 . th e weaver in to a c loak shall not weave it86. for the c loth ing of god and king i t shall not be used8 7 .

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CHAPTER IV.

THE MEDICINE OF THE HINDUS.

The Aryans —Hindu Philo sophy.—The Vedas —The Shastres of Charaka and

Susruta.—Code of M enu.

—The Brahmans —Med ical Practitioners.—Strabo on

the Hindu Phi losophers. Charms. Buddhism and Medicine .—w aka ,

Buddha’s Physician .—The Pulse —Know ledge o f Anatomy and Surgery in

Ancient Times —Surgical Instruments.—D ecadence o f Hindu Medical Science .

—Goddesses of D isease .—Origin o fHospitals in India.

THE Hindus are cons idered by Max Muller to be much older evenas regards their c ivi li zation than the Egypt ians . This belief i s basedon h i s s tudy of their language

,wh ich he says exis ted “ before there

was a s ingle Greek statue,a single Babylonian bull

,or a single Egyptian

sphinx.

”According to him

,the noble Indo-German ic or Aryan people,

from whom have descended th e Brahman,the Rajput, and the Engl ish

man,had their earli est home

,no t in Hindustan, but in Central As ia.

(Max M iiller’s theory is now superseded by anthropological researchesso far as the Europeans are concerned . ) Thi s splendid race drovebefore them into the moun tains or reduced to slavery th e D asy zcs,

the obscure aborigines , the non-Aryan primaeval peoples. The earl ies tAryan poets composed the Rzlg Veda at least three thousand , perhapseven four thousand years ago . The handsome Aryan fair-complexionedconquerors spoke with the utmos t contempt of

“ the noseless ” or“ flat-nosed ” Mongol ian aborigines, who , in the Vedic poem s, frombeing “ gross feeders on flesh

,

” “ lawless,

”non-sacrificing tribes, were

afterwards described as monsters ” and demons .” 1

It i s necessary,i f we wish to understand the principles of Hindu

medic ine, to glance at the ph ilosophy and rel igion of the Brahmans andBuddhists . The Aryan conquerors descending through the Himalayaswere a sober

,industrious

,courageous people, who l ived a pastoral l ife,

and knowing nothing of th e enervating attract ions of great c iti es , required no other medical treatment than s imple folk medic ine everywhere affords . Thei r earl iest l i terature i s found in the Vedic Hymns,

”

the “ Sacred Books of the Hindus,

” which were composed by thewisest and best of the men, who were warriors and husbandmen

,and

1 See Taylor, Or igin of MeAry ans, chap. i .96

THE MEDICINE OF THE HIND US. 97

the priests and phys ic ian s of their own households . They graduallyacquired priestly supremacy over a wider range. Thus arose theBrahmans

,the “ Offerers of Poten t Prayer .” The Rig- Veda refers to

physic ians, and speaks of the heal ing power of medicinal herbs ; and

the Atlzar '

zfa Veda contain s an invocation again st the fever-demon,so

that medical matters began very early to receive attention after theconquest of Indian by the Aryans .

“Hinduism,says Professor Mon i er William s, i s a

_

creed whichmay be expressed by the two words, spiri tual pan theism.

” 1 Of allbeliefs this i s the s implest. Noth ing really exists but the One Un iversalSpirit ; man

’s soul is ident ical with that Spi rit. Separate existenceapart from the Supreme i s mere il lusion ; consequently every man

’shighest aim should be to get rid for ever of doing, having, and being,and s tr ive to cons ider h imself a part of the One Spirit . Thi s in afew words is esoteric Hinduism. When we attempt to study the end

l ess ram ifications of the exoteric, or popular belief, the system ,so

far from being Simple,i s infin itely complicated . God may amuse

Himself by i llusory appearances . Light in the rainbow is one, but i tman ifests i tself variously. All material obj ec ts, and the gods , demons,good and evi l sp iri ts, men , and an imals are emanations from the OneUn iversal Sp irit ; though temporarily they exist apart from him

,they

will all ult imately be reabsorbed into their source . In the San skritlanguage

,which i s the repository of Veda, or

“ knowledge,

” we havethe vehicle of Hindu ph ilosophy. The systems of Hindu ph i losophywhich grew out of the th ird divis ion of the Vedas

, cal led theUpam

'

sfiads,are s ix

,and are given in Professor Mon i er Williams’ work

already referred to asr . The Nyaya, founded by Gotama2 . The Vais

’

eshika, by Kanada.

3 . The Sankhya,by Kapi la.

4 . The Yoga,by Pantanjali.

5 . The M imansa,by Jaimini.

6. The Vedan ta,by Badarayana or Vyasa.

We know neither the dates of these systems, nor which of thempreceded the other.Oriental scholars tell us that

, 500 years before Chri st, in India, China,Greece, and Pers ia men began to formulate philosoph ical systems ofrel igious belief

,and to elaborate sc ientific ideas of the world in which

they l ived . Williams cons iders the Vais’es/cika sys tem of ph i losophythe most in teresting of all the systems, from the parallels i t offers toEuropean philosoph ical ideas . This sys tem goes more correc tly than

1 Indian Wisdom , p . xxvi .

98 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

the others into the qual ities of all substances . It i s therefor e moresc ient ific

,as we should say. It i s most interest ing to discover how

nearly the doctrine of the atoms approaches our Western teach ing.

The following is Professor Will iams’ accoun t of these views“Fi rst

,then

,as to the format ion of the world

,th i s i s supposed to

be effected by the aggregation of Anus,or ‘Atoms .’ These are innu

merable and eternal, and are eternally aggregated , dis integrated , and

re- integrated by the power of Adrishta. According to the KanadasSutras

,an atom i s ‘ something existing, having no cause, eternal.

’

They are,moreover

,described as less than the least

,invis ible

,ln

tangible, indivis ible, imperceptible by the senses, and as having eachof th em a Vis'es/ca or eternal essence of its own . The combinat ionof these atoms is first into an aggregate of two, called D icy -anzcka .

Three of them ,again, are supposed to combin e in to a Trasa- renzc,

wh ich,l ike a mote in a sunbeam, has j ust magn i tude enough to be

percept ible.”1

In the Sankhya ph ilosoph’y we find someth ing very like Darwin ism .

There cannot be the product ion of something out of nothing ; thatwhich i s not cannot be developed in to that wh ich is. The produc tionof what does no t already exist (poten tial ly) i s imposs ible , like a hornon a man because there must of necessi ty be a material out of whicha product is developed ; and because everyth ing cannot occur everywhere at all t imes ; and because anything poss ible must be producedfrom someth ing competent to produce it . (Ap/iorisms, i . 78, 1 1 4

The Upa Vedas, or secondary Vedas, treat of various sc iences, oneof which , Ay nr Veda, i s the sc ience of l ife, or medic ine. By someth is i s cons idered to belong to the A t/zaroa-Veda ; by others to the

R ig Veda . By Ay ur Veda we are to understand someth ing derivedimmediately from the gods . The supplementary revelation known as .

Opa Vedas dates about 3 50 B.C.,and there we find Brahman ical

medic ine already developing.

3

“ Of all ancient nations,” says Elph instone

,the Egyptians are the

one whom the Hindus seem most to have resembled.

” 4

There i s good reason for believing that the anc i en t Greeks derivedmuch of their philosophy and religion from the Egyptians, who seemin their turn to have taken both in great measure from India. SaysElph instone : “ It is impossible no t to be struck with the ident ity ofthe topics discussed by the Hindu ph ilosophers with those wh ichengaged the attent ion of the same class in anc ien t Greece, and with

1 Indian l/Visdom, p . 84.2 Ibid. , p . 89 .

3 Asiatic Quarterly Review , Oct. , 1892, p . 287.

4 Hist. India , 4th cd. , p . 48

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100 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF .MED ICINE.

6 th,Agadatantra i s concerned with the admin i s tration of ant idotes .

7 th, Rasa’

y anatantra treats of the medic ines proper for restoring youth ,beauty

, and happiness ; i t embraced chem i stry or alchemy, and i tsin ten tion was to discover the un iversal medic in e. 8 th

,Vcijz

’

karana

tantra deals with the best means of increasing the human race : an

i llusory research, wh ich , l ike the search for the elixir of life, has evenin modern t imes occupi ed the attention of physic ians . The sacredAy ur Veda con tained a descript ion of the structure of the human bodyas learned from dissection, and a complete system of prevent ive and

curative medic ine.In the Shastres (Gharaka, Susru ta) , we learn that the Asliw ins

,or

o ffspring of the Sun (Surja), were the physic ians of the gods ; theywrote books on medic ine

,and wrought wonderful cures . When the

fi fth head of Brahma was cut off by Bayraba, i t was un i ted again bythe Aslzw ins, so skilled were they in surgery. They also cured thewounds which the gods rece ived in the battle with the giants . Theyhealed also the paralysed arm of Indra. When mankind becamewicked , and con sequen tly diseased, B/caradzoaja went to Indra inheaven to acquire a knowledge of medic ine, and the thousand-eyedgod taught him the healing art . With this knowledge the sage Blzaradw aja returned to earth , and taught the R isfiis the principles he hadacquired . So the sages learned to distinguish diseases and them edicines suitable for their cure ; they l ived to a very great age, writingbooks called by their own names. Clzaraé a became the instructoro f pract itioners upon earth, and his i s the most anc i ent and famouswork on Hindu medicine. Charaka

,w hom we may t erm the Hindu

Hippocrates, flourished at Benares, probably about B.C. 3 20. The

m ost celebrated and anc ien t collect ion of Hindu laws and preceptsi s that wh ich i s known as

“ the Code of Menu, or “ Institutes ofM enu . It i s probably the oldest and most sacred Sanskri t work afterthe Veda and i ts Sutras, and presents us w i th a fai thful picture of thecustoms and institutions of the Hindus .The Code of Menu lays it down that diseases are th e consequences

o f sinful acts in previous states of existence. Men of evil mannersreceive an alteration of form , some through evi l (deeds) comm i tted

(by them) in th i s l ife, some also through (acts) formerly comm itted . A

th ief of gold (rece ives ) the disease of bad nails a drinker of in toxicatingl iquor (the disease of) black teeth a slayer of a Brahman

,con sumption

he who violates the couch of the Guru , a skin disease ; a slanderer, afoul-smelling nose ; a false informer, a foul- smelling mouth a stealer of

grain, the loss of a limb, and one who m ixes (grain) a superfluity (ofl imbs) one who takes food, dyspepsia ; a thief of the voice, dumbness

THE MEDICINE OF THE HIND US. 10 1

a thief hes,leprosy a horse- thief, lameness a stealer of a lamp

would (in the next bi rth) become bl ind an extinguisher (of a lamp), oneeyed by (comm i tt ing) inj ury (one would get) a condit ion of diseaseby not (commi tting) inj ury, the condition of no t being diseased. Thus

,

according to the d ifference in their acts, (men who are) blamed by thegood are born dull

,dumb

,bl ind, and deformed in appearance. Regu

larly, then, penance should be pract ised for purification , s ince thosewhose s ins have no t ( thus ) been done away with are (re)born with

(these) disgraceful marks attached .

” 1

Physic ians are referred to several times in the Ordinances of M eme.

In Lect . iv. 1 79 we are advised that“ we should never have a dispute

with a physic ian .

” We are to avoid eating the “ food of a phys ic ian and

hunter,i f a cruel man

,

”etc. (Lect. iv. The food of a physic ian

i s pus (Ibid. In Lect . ix . 284,“ A fine (i s set) for all phy

sicians treat ing (a case) incorrectly in (the case of creatures) not

human (th i s is) the first, but in ( the case of) human beings the medium2

The Brahmans bel ieved there was a remedy for every disease , inconsequence of which they made a very careful examinat ion of the vege~

table kingdom,and so d iscovered a great number of medic ines . If a

medic ine were effi cac i ous in curing the patien t,they invariably supposed

i t was due to the sancti ty of the individual,and the divine pleasure

which endowed him with i t . It i s therefore exceedingly d ifficult toobtain information

,as i t is bel ieved that the medic ine would lose i ts

effect i f the secret of the cure were divulged to others . From theseselfish motives, the knowledge of the properties of many valuableremedies have been los t. Dr. Wise says

,according to the Brahmans

,

there are n ine secrets which should not be revealed to any one theseare the age of a person h i s wealth fami ly occurrences h is bad action s,or those which reflect shame or di shonour upon him h i s relation s withhis wife h i s prayers to h is tutelar gods h is charit ies and the virtuesof nostrums

,the ingredients of wh ich are known to him .

Yet priests , says Baas, from the Brahman caste, and the sub-castes ,the Vaisya and Vaidya, offic iated for a long time as teachers of medic ine

1 Ordinances of M enu,Trubner

'

s Oriental Series . Lect . x i . 48—54.

2 The first fine is the lowest, i . e. two hundred and fiftypanas . In the Atharvaveda

also physicians are spok en of in d isrespectfu l terms. Various are the desires o f

men ; the wagoner longs for wood, the doctor for d iseases. ” A Brahman by the code

of Menu was forbidden to fo l low the pro fession of a physician ,as it was classed

amongst those which were m ost impure .

!A t certain funeral ceremon ies the same

Code excluded 5 11011 persons as“physicians, atheists , thieves, Sp irit drinkers, m en

w ith diseased nails or teeth , dancers ,Elphins tone , His t . of I ndia , 4th edit ion

,p . 41 .

1“

Ord inances of M enn , iii . 1 50- 1 68.

102 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

and as physic ians . The Vaidyas , as the h igher of the two sub-castes,

included the physic ians proper ; while the Vaisyas, or lower caste,

furn i shed nurses. 1

When Buddhism passed in to modern Hinduism (750—1 000 A.D . )th e rules of caste became stricter, and the old fetters were reimposed,and the Brahmans returned to their anc ien t princ iples which forbadethem to con tam inate themselves with blood or morbid matter ; theywithdrew from all practice of medic ine, and left it en tirely to theVaidyas. After a t ime these also shrank from touching dead bodies .Then public hospitals were abolished when Buddhism fell. The

Mohammedan conquests which began about 1 000 A.D . introducedforeign pract itioners of physic, who derived their knowledge fromA rabic translations of San skri t medical class ics and monopolised the

patronage of the Mohammedan aristocracy.

2

The on ly remains of the Buddhist hospi tals now existing are thevarious in sti tution s for an imals, supported princ ipally by the Jains, asort of Protestan ts again st Brahman i sm .

3

The Mohammedan medical pract itioners were called “Hukeems,

who followed the princ iples of Arabian medic ine derived from Greeksources . As a rule these pract it ioners on ly attended on nobles and

chiefs . There is no evidence even that the Mohammedan invadersemployed medical men for their arm i e s .

‘1

Dr. Benj am in Heyne,in his Tracts on India , says, 5

“ The medical works of the Hindus are ne ither to be regarded asm iraculous product ion s of wisdom ,

nor as repos i tories of nonsense.Thei r practical princ iples, as far as I can j udge, are very simi lar to our

own and even their theories may be reconc i led with ours, if we makea l lowance for their ignorance of anatomy, and the imperfect ions oftheir physiological speculat ions .In surgery they attained to h igh profic iency

,and our modern

surgeon s have even been able to borrow from them the operation ofrhinoplas ty .

6

Concern ing the medic inal properties of m inerals (stones and metals) ,plan ts, an imal substances , and the chem ical analysi s and decomposit iono f these, we have also learned much that i s extremely valuable fromthe Hindus . Their M ater ia M edica i s so importan t, and has playedso large a part in Western medical sc ience, that we cannot afford todesp ise i t, though the Hindus have con tributed so li ttle to the studyo f natural sc ience. 7 Veterinary medic ine

,so far as the diseases of

1 Baas, Hist . M ed ., p . 4 1 .

2 Hunter’s Indian Empire, p . 109 .

3 A siatic Quarter ly Rea, Oct . 1892 , p . 290.

4 Ibid.

5 Tract vi . p . 1 25.

6 Weber, Hist. Ind . Lit. p. 270.

7 laid.

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104 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

chosen by Dhanwantari,who was the Hindu E sculapius, to abridge the

Ayur-Veda for the cure of diseases and the preservation of the health,so that i t migh t be more eas ily comm i tted to memory . Susruta

’

s bookis st ill preserved, and after Charaka’s i t i s the oldest book on medic inewh ich the Hindus possess . Surgery was cons idered by Susruta to be“ the firs t and best of th e medical sc iences ; les s l iable than any otherto the fallacies of conj ectural and inferential practice ; pure in i tself,perpetual in i ts appl icabil ity ; the worthy produce of heaven, and cer

tain source of fame .”

Wise says, 1 “ Dhanwantari asked h i s pup i ls, On what shall I firstlecture ? They answered

, On surgery ; because formerly there were no

diseases among the gods, and wounds were the first injuries whichrequired treatment. Besides

,the pract ice of surgery is more respected ,

as affording immediate rel i ef,and is connected with the pract ice of

medic ine ; although the latter has no connect ion with surgery.

”Th is

was agreed to and we find the explanation of the eight parts of AyurVeda, in s ix books of Susruta, as follows

I st. Surgery (Sti tra Sthana) , in wh ich i s cons idered the origin ofmedic ine the rules of teach ing

,the duty of pract i tioners, the select ion

and uses of in strumen ts and medic ines,the influence of the weather on

health, and the practice to be followed after surgical operations . Thenfollows the description of the diseases of the humours and surgicaldiseases the restorat ion of defective ears and noses and the removalof extraneous substances which have en tered the body ; the differentstages of inflammation

,wi th their treatmen t different forms of wounds

and ulcers,and the regimen of patients ,

labouring under surgicaldiseases the description o f good and bad diet ; of prognosis the kindof messengers to be employed by the sick and of diseases produced bythe deranged act i ons of the senses, and of incurable diseases . Thenfollows the preparat ions required for accompanying a rajah in war, theduty of practit ioners, the difference o f c l imates, the differen t c lassesof medic ines according to their sensible qual iti es, a descript ion of the

fluids, and of the differen t preparations, and articles of food . Thesesubj ects are treated of in th irty- s ix chapters .

2nd. Nosology (Nidana Sthana) . The descript ion and diagnosis ofdiseases produced by vitiated humous, or derangements of blood , bile,Wind

,and phlegm the symptoms and causes of rheumatic diseases, of

piles, of stone, fistula-ia-ano , leprosy, diabetes, gonorrhoea, and asc itesthe symptoms of unnatural presentat ions in m idwifery, large internalabscesses

,erysipelas

,scrofula

,hydrocele, venereal diseases, and diseases

of the mouth . These subj ects are cons idered in s ixteen chapters .1 Hindu Medicine, p . 8 .

THE MED ICINE OF THE HIND US. 10 ,

3rd. Anatomy (Sarira Sthana) , o r structure of the body. The description of the soul, and the elementary parts of the body ; of pubertyof conception ; of the growth of the differen t parts of the body ; ofbleeding of the treatment of pregnancy, and of infants. Th i s divi s ionhas ten chapters .

4th. Therapeutics (Chikitsa Sthana) , in which the exh ibit ion of

medic ines, the history of inflammations, the treatmen t of fractures ,rheumatic diseases , p iles, fistula-in-ano

,leprosy, diabetes , and dropsy are

given ; the manner of extract ing the ch i ld in unusual pos it ions, the

remedies for restoring health and strength,and for prolonging l ife the

means of prevent ing diseases the use o f clysters,and of errh ines , and

the use of the smoke of differen t substances . These are cons idered inforty chapters .

5 th. Toxicology (Kalpa Sthana). The means of dist inguishingpoisoned food

,and descriptions of differen t m ineral

,vegetable, and

an imal poisons , with their an tidotes , i s given under th is head . This .divis ion i s treated o f in eigh t chapters .6th. The supplementary sect ion, Locales (Uttara Sthana), includes.

various local diseases ; as those of the eye, nose, ears and head, withtheir treatment the symptoms and treatment of fever, and i ts varietiesdysentery

,consumption ; guinea ; diseases o f the heart ; jaundice

discharges of,blood

,and fain ting. This i s followed by th e treatment of

’

intoxicat ion,of cough

,h iccough

,asthma

,hoarseness of voice , worms,

stercoraceous vom i t ing,cholera

,dyspeps ia, and dysuria. It also treats

of madness,epi lepsy, apoplexy the differen t tas tes of substances, with

their effects ; the means of retain ing health , and the different opin ion s .

of practitioners regarding the humours. These subj ects are treatedin Sixty-si x chapters .According to Susruta a pup i l had to be in it iated into the Sc i ence of

Medicine. “A medical man should in i ti ate a pup i l who is e ither aBrahmana

, Kshatriya, or Vaishya, the members of whose body are

sound, of an am iable disposition ,active, well-conducted, m i ld , healthy,

vigorous , talen ted, courageous, of a reten t ive memory, good j udgmen tand rank, whose tooth-ends

,tongue

,and l ips are small, whose eyes , nose,

and mouth are straight,of a pleasan t m ind , talk, and behaviour, and

able to bear fatigue other such should not be in i tiated .

Many ceremon i es follow an altar i s to be erected having four anglesin some conspicuous direct ion , which is to be washed with infus ion ofcow-dung and spread with kii sa grass ; prec ious stones and rice are toscattered upon it, and a fire i s to be kindled with a number of

"

prec ious woods , an oblat ion of ghee is to be made,and the mystic

words Bhtir Bhuvah Svar and Om are to be said .

“After this hail

10 4

A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

!each divin ity (Brahma, Agn i, Dhanvantari, Prajapati , Asvins, and

Indra) and each Sage ( the Rish is) , and make the pupil do the same .

”

Sten z ler and others have thought i t poss ible that Susruta borrowedh i s system of medicin e largely from the Greeks, and they say that sofar as chronology is affec ted by it there would be noth ing surprisingin the c ircumstance. But Weber asserts 1 that no grounds whatevere xist for th is supposit ion on the contrary, there i s much to tell againstsuch an idea. None of the con temporaries of Susruta has a namewith a foreign sound

,and the cultivati on of medic ine i s assigned by

Susruta and other wri ters to the c ity of Benares . The weights and mea

sures to be employed by the physic i an are those of the eastern provinces,which n ever came in to c lose con tact wi th the Greeks, and i t was firstin these parts where medicine received i ts spec i al cultivation .

In the general treatmen t of d isease,the Hindus paid great attention

.to diet, so as to promote the j ust balance of the elemen ts and humours,as they cons idered that th e general ity of di seases are produced byderangemen ts in the humours . Many of their statements on dieteticsshow a keen observation . If managemen t of diet failed to cure thedisorder

,the patien t was directed to abstain from food altogether for a

t im e. Should th is also fail, recourse was had to ej ect ing the corruptedhumours by emetics , purgat ives, or bleeding. Even the healthy were

.advised to take an emetic once a fortn igh t, a purgative once a month ,and to be bled twice a year at the change o f the seasons . The Hindusobserved the crit ical days wh ich have long been recogn i sed by physie iau s everywhere. Pythagoras says the Egyptians observed them ,

and

Hippocrates employed the term KpaO'

l S when the humoral pathologywas in vogue. The Hindus though t that all dis eases d ivide naturallyin to two classes of the sthen ic and asthen ic types . In the one there wasexcess

,in the other defic i ency of exc i temen t. Health con sists in a

happy medium. All the As iatic nations hold this Opin ion . Theirremedies consequen tly were stimulating or cooling, as the type of themalady demanded . Pepper, bitters , and purgat ives were st imulan ts .Stomachics

,as clciraitd, paun m ixed wi th l ime, bathing and cold were

c ooling remedies.2

The sages of an tiquity have handed down to us the qual ities whichcon sti tute a good physic ian . He must be stric tly truthful

, and of thegreatest sobriety and decorum he must have no dealings with any womenbut his own wife ; he must be a man of sen se and benevolence, of ac haritable heart, and o f a calm temper, con stantly studying how to do.good . Such a man is a good physic ian i f, in addition to th is , he cons tantly endeavours to improve hi s m ind by the study of good books .

1 Hist . Ind. L it ., p . 268.

2 VVise’s Hindu M edicine, p . 2 13 .

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108 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

by their iniqu i ties they commun icated i t to the King of Cas i (Benares),whose descendants caused i t to be commi tted to writ ing .

” 1

Arrianus,in h is h i story of Alexander’s expedi tion to India, says that

speckled snakes of a wonderful s i ze and swiftness are found in thatcountry, and that “The Grec ian physic ian s found no remedy againstthe b ite of these snakes ; but the Indians cured those who happened tofall under that m isfortune ; for which reason , Nearchus tells us, Alexander having all the most skilful Indians about h is person , caused proc lamation to be made throughout the camp that whoever was bi t byone of these snakes, should forthwith repair to the royal pavil ion for

cure. These phys ic ians also cure other d iseases ; but as they have a

very temperate c l ime, the inhabi tan ts are not subj ec t to many. How

ever, i f any among them feel themselves much indisposed, they applythemselves to their sophi sts , who by wonderful , and even more thanhuman mean s

,cure whatever will adm i t of i t.” 2

Strabo speaks of the Hindu ph i losophers or sages, and the phys ici ans.

Of the Garmanes, the most honourable ,” he says , are the Hylobii,who l ive in the forests

,and subsist on leaves and wild fru its they are

clothed with garments made of the bark of trees,and abstain from com

merce wi th women and from wine. The kings hold commun icationwith them by messengers concern ing the causes of th ings

,and through

them worsh ip and suppl icate the D ivin i ty. Second in honour to _the

Hylobii are the physicians, for they apply ph i losophy to the study ofthe nature of man . They are of frugal habi ts , but do not l ive in the

fields, and subsis t upon rice and bread,which every one gives when

asked,and receive them hospi tably . They are able to cause persons to

have a numerous offspring, and to have either male or female children ,

by means of charms . They cure diseases by diet, rather than by medic inal remedies. Among the latter

,the mos t in repute are ointmen ts

and plasters. All others they suppose partake greatly of a noxiousnature 3 They had enchanters and diviners versed in the arts ofmagic

,who wen t about th e vil lages and towns begging .

Arrianus said of the Hindus that their women were deemed marriageable at seven years of age but the men

,not t i l l th ey arrive at the age

of forty.

‘1

Many charms,imprecations, and other superstit ious usages of anci en t

India are con tained in the Atharva-veda-Samhita. This body of literature dates

,according to Max M iiller, from 1 000 to 800 B.C. (the Mantra.

1 A inslie’s M ater ia Indica , vo l . 11 . p . 525 .

2 Arrian’s Indian History ,

vol . ii . p. 232 (ed .

3 Strabo , Geography , Book xv. c. 1 .

‘1 Indian History , vol . i i . p. 2 19 .

THE MEDICINE OF THE HIND US. 109

:period). 1 In th is Samhita a number of songs are addressed to i llnesses,

a nd the healing herbs appropriate for their cure . Sarpa-vidya ( serpentscience) possibly dealt with medical matters al so.

2

The oldest fragmen ts (very poor ones, i t must be confessed) of Hindumedical sc ience are to be found in these rel ics of Vedic t imes.In a work on Indian medic ine called the Kalpastanunz described by

Dr. Heyne, we read that the doctor’s apparatus of mortars, scales, etc .,

must be kept in a place in the wall that has been consecrated for that

purpose by religious ceremon i es. In the m iddle of the medicine roomthe mystic sign must be set up, with images of Brahma, Vi shnu , andSiva.

Many ceremon ies must be gone through in the preparation of medic ines the physician must attend to the boiling of some of them him

s elf,and the spot round the fireplace must be smeared with cow—dung

by a virgin,or by the mother of son s whose husband is al ive ; at the

same time, offerings must be made to the gods . Should any of thec eremon i es be omi tted , the patien t will repen t the neglect, for devils o fall descriptions will defil e the med ic ine and h inder its good effec t. Be

fore the patien t takes h i s potion, the god of physic is to be worsh ippedin the person of his deputy, the doctor, who naturally (and for the goodo f the patien t) i s to be well rewarded for his services.Buddhism

,says Max M ii ller, i s the frontier between anc i ent and

m odern l iterature in India. He gives 47 7 B.C. as the probable date o f

Buddha’s death,

‘1and describes the religion of that great sage as stand

i ng in the same relation to the anc ien t Brahman ism of the Veda asItalian to Latin

,or as Protestan ti sm to Catholici sm . It is a develop

m ent from Brahman i sm,yet i t i s not the religion of India

,though i t has

greatly influenced Hindu though t.“

Buddha’s religious syst em recogn i sed no supreme deity ; a Buddhistn ever really prays, he merely con templates .6

Man can himself become the only god Buddha’s system finds roomfor. God becomes man in Brahman i sm man becomes a god in Bud

1 Hi éber t Lectu res , 1878, p . 1 50 .

2 Weber, Sanskr it Literatu re, p . 265 .

3 Tracts on India, p . 1 39 .

4 Hikber t Lectu res, 1878, p . 1 34.

5 Monier Williams, Indian Wisdom, p . 56 .

5 Ibid. , p. 57 .

1 10 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

dhism. All existence is an evi l to the Buddhist “act i s to be got rid

of as effectually as possible, for action means existence. The great endof the system i s IVirodna, or non-existence . Of priests and clergy inour sense

,

” says Professor Wil l iams,

“ th e Buddhist religion has none.”

Though there i s no God, prayer i s pract is ed as a kind of charm againstdiseases for malignant demons

,as we m igh t have expec ted, are bel ieved

by Buddhists to cause these and other evils . These Buddh ist prayersare used like the Man tras of the Brahm ins as charms agains t evils of allkinds . The Buddhists have a demon of love, anger, evil, and death ,called Mara, th e opponent of Buddha . He can send forth legion s o fevi l demons l ike h imself. Some of the precepts of Buddha are fullyequal to those of the h ighest religions— Charity, Virtue, Patience ,Fortitude

,M editation

,and Knowledge. The spec ial characteristic of

Buddhi sm is the perfect ion of its tenderness and mercy towards al l

l iving creatures, even beasts of prey and noxious insects not being outs ide the c ircle of its sympathy. According to the Buddh ist’s bel ie f, allour acts ripen and go to form our Karma. The consequences of our

acts must inexorably be worked out. This i s Brahmin ical as well asBuddhist ic doctrine .

“ In the Saibda-kalpa-druma, under the head of

Karma-oipaka,” says Will iams

,will be found a long catalogue of the

various diseases with wh ich men are born,as the fruit of evil deeds

commi t ted in former states of existence,and a declaration as to the

number of births through wh ich each disease will be protracted, unless.

exp iations be performed in the presen t l ife.” 1

All our sufferings, our s icknesses, weaknesses, and moral depravityare s imply the consequences of our act ions in former bodies . Whenthe Jews asked our Lord

,Who did sin , th i s man (i .e. in a former l ife )

orhis parents, that he was born bl ind ?” 2 they evidently had in their

m inds the Hindu doctrine of previous existences . The princ iples of

the Brahm in ic rel igion do not appear to have embraced any care for orattent ion to the needs of sick people . Involved in philosoph ical speenlations, and the perfecting of the ir sys tem of caste, the founders of theBrahm in ic religion had no t ime to bestow on such mundane matters asdisease and i ts cure. It was no t unt i l the r ise of Buddh ism and the

pol it ical ascendency wh ich it acquired over Brahman ism ( from about2 50 B.C. to A .D . that publ ic hospital s were establ ished for man

and an imals in th e great c i t ies of the Buddh i s t princes .3 Buddhismhad a gospel for every living creature it taught the spiri tual equal i ty ofall men, whose good works , without the mediation of priests and Brah~

m ins, would save them from future pun ishment. M edicine, under the1 Indian Wisdom , p . 66.

2 John ix . 2 .

3 Asiatic Quarter ly Review, Oct . 1892 , p . 288 .

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1 1 2 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

and Sekra departed from his mouth . He knew that his pupi l had beentaught by divine wi sdom . Then Jiwaka j ourneyed to Sake

’

tu, where he

found a woman who had a violen t pain in her head,which for seven

years many learned physic ians had vain ly tried to cure . He offered tocure her

,but she said

,If all the learned doctors had failed to rel ieve

her,i t was useless to seek the aid of a l ittle chi ld .

”Jiwaka repl ied that

Sci ence is neither old nor young. I will not go away til l the headacheis en tirely cured .

” Then the woman said, My son, give me relief fora s ingle day it i s seven years s ince I was able to Sleep.

”So Jiwaka

poured a l ittle medic ine in to her nose, wh ich wen t in to her brain , andbehOld, all her headache was gone and the lady and her relation s eachgave the phys ic ian n i la—karshas

,with chariots, and other, and

o ther gi fts in abundance. After th is he cured the king of a fi stu la- in

ano , for wh ich he rece ived a royal reward . There was in Rajagaha arich nobleman who had a pain in hi s head li ke the cutt ing of a kn ife.Non e of his physic ians could cure him

,so Jiwaka took the noble

into a room,sat behind him

,and taking a very sharp instrumen t, Opened

h is Skull and sett ing as ide the three sutures, he seized the two wormswhich were gnawing hi s brain with a forceps

,and extracted them entire .

He then c losed up the wound in such a manner that not a single hairwas displaced . There was a nobleman in Benares who had twisted oneo f h is in testines into a knot, so that he was no t able to pass any solidfood . Crowds of physic ians came to see him ,

but none of them dareundertake his case but Jiwaka said at once he could cure him . He

bound his patien t to a pillar that he m ight not move, covered h i s face,and taking a Sharp instrumen t, without the noble

’s being aware of whatwas going on , ripped open the abdomen, took out his intestines, undidthe knot, and replaced them in a proper manner. He then rubbedointment on the place, pu t th e patien t to bed, fed him on rice-gruel, andin three days he was as well as ever. Of course he had an immensefee . After perform ing other wonderful cures

, Jiwaka adm in i st eredmedic in e to Budha in the perfume of a flower. The narrat ive must begiven in the words o f the MS. In th is way was the m edic ine given .

On a certain occasion when Budha was s ick , i t was thought that i f h ewere to take a l i ttle open ing m edic ine he would be better ; and accordingly Ananda wen t to Jiwaka to inform him that the teacher of theworld was indisposed . On rece iving th i s informat ion, Jiwaka, whothought that the time to wh ich he had so long looked forward hadarrived, went to the wihara, as Budha was at that time residing nearRajagaha. After making the proper inquiries , he discovered that therewere three causes of the disease ; and in order to remove them he prepared three lotus flowers, into each of wh ich he pu t a quan t ity of medi

THE MED/CTNE OF THE HIND US. 1 1 3

c ine. The flowers were given to Budha at three separate times , and bysmell ing at them hi s bowels were moved ten t imes by each flower. Bymeans of the fi rs t flower the fi rs t cause of d isease passed away, and bythe other two the second and th ird causes were removed .

”

This legend is ins truct ive in many ways . It shows us that 500 B.C.

there were colleges in wh ich medic ine was taugh t, and that by Spec ial

professors of the art, who received large fees from their pupi ls and keptthem under instruct ion for many years . We find that the profession of

medicine brought great honours and rewards to i ts adepts. We learnthat treph ining the skull for cerebral diseases was in use, and that theoperation of open ing the abdomen for bowel obstructions was understood . It reveals the importan t fac t that already the whole of nature hadbeen ransacked for remedies

,and that everyth ing was more or less use

ful to the physician. The great efficacy wh ich the anc ients attributedto perfumes i s exh ibited in the lotus story

,wh ich reminds us that when

Democri tus was aware that he was dying, he desi red to prolong h i s l ifebeyond the festival of Ceres, and accompl ished h i s wish by inhal ing thevapour of hot bread .

.Galen’s description of the pulse in disease is very suggestive of theanc ient Sanskri t treat ises on the pulse ; s o much i s th is the case, i t wouldseem, that e ither the Hindu physician must have copi ed from theRoman, or the Roman from the Indian . He speaks of the skarp-tailed

or nzy uri, fainting niy uri , recurrent niy uri , tke goat-leap or dorcadissans,

a term derived from the animal dorcas, wh ich, in j umping aloft, stopsin the air, and then unexpectedly takes another and a swifter Spring thanthe former. But i f after the diastole i t recur, and before acompletesystole take place, str ike the finger a second time such a pulse is calleda reveri erating one

, or dicrotos, from its beating twice. There is alsothe undulatory and vermicular pulse, the spasmodic and viaratory , theant-l ike or fi rnzica ns

,from its resemblance to the ant (formica) , on

account of i ts smallness and kind of motion ; there i s the li ectic, theserrated

, thefat and the lean kind .

Medical e tiquette amongst the Hindus was not overlooked.

“A phys ic ian who desires success in his practice, his own profit, a

good name, and finally a place in heaven, must pray daily for all l ivingcreatures, fi rst of the Brahmans and of the cow. The physician shouldwear his hair short

,keep his nails c lean 1

and cut c lose, and wear asweet-smell ing dress . He Should never leave the house without a caneor umbrella ; he should avoid espec ially any fam il iarity with women .

Let his speech be soft, clear

, pleasan t . Tiansactions in the houseShould not be bru ited abroad

.

”2

1 A doctrine re-discovered by our bacterio logists .

2 Haeser.

1 14 A POP ULAR HISTORy OF MEDICINE.

The dissect ion and examination of the dead subj ect is not practisedin India, i t i s contrary to the tenets of the Brahmans such knowledgeo f anatomy as the Hindus possess must therefore be l ittle else thanconj ecture, formed by the study of the bodies o f animals. Ainsl ie says 1

that the Raj ah of Tanj ore, in the year 1 8 26, was a learned and enl ightened prince, who was anxious to study the structure of the human body ,but was too rigid a Hindu to satisfy h i s curiosi ty at the expense of h is

princ iples, so he ordered a complete Skeleton made of ivory to be sen tto him from England . SirWilliam Jones states that in a fragment of theAy ur Veda he was surprised to find an accoun t of the internal s tructureo f the human frame.2

The anc ient Hindus must have possessed considerable knowledgeof surgery. In a commentary on Susruta made by Ubhatta, a Cashm irian, which may be as old, A inslie th inks, as the twelfth cen tury,manyvaluable surgical defin it ions are d istinctly detailed. According to thebest authorit ies

,says A insl ie, surgery was of e igh t kinds : clzed/zana,

cutting or exc is ion ; lekkana , or scarification and inoculation ; vya

dlzana, puncturing ; es/zy am, probing or sounding aliarya, extract ion of

sol id bodies ; visravana, extracting fluids (by leeches and bleeding) ;sevana, or sewing ; and O/i edana, divis ion or exci s ion.

3

Twelve species of leeches are enumerated in some of the Sanskritworks on surgery, s i x of which are poisonous and six useful medic inally.

‘1

D issection was practised in the most anc ient t imes but now there isthe greates t prejud ice against touch ing the dead body, and modernpractitioners o f Hindu medic ine, where they do no t follow the anc ien tauthors

,are in a worse condi tion than they were, on accoun t o f the

present ignorance of anatomy. All the sages are alleged to h avelearned their knowledge of medicine from the works of Charaka and

Susruta. Those who were taugh t by'

Charaka became physic iansthose who were followers of Susruta, surgeons . Charaka’s c lass ificationand plan of treating d iseases are considered superior to those of Susruta,but the latter is prized for h i s anatomy and surgery. Babhata com

piled a compendium of medic ine from th e works of these greatmasters of the art, and some three hundred years ago a compilat ionwas m ade from all the most celebrated works on medic ine ; this wasc alled Baé oprukasa. It is c lear and well arranged

,and explains the

d ifficulties and obscuritie s of the anc ien t Shastres . Th i s was compiledas a‘ text-book for pract itioners , and i s in h igh repute with them. Dr.

Wise explains the anc ient methods of dissec t ing the human body as

g iven in Hindu text-books.

1 AIa/eria I ndica, vol. 11. p. v11.2 Ibid.

3 Ibid. , p. viii.Oriental Magaz ine, March, 1823 .

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1 16 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF AIEDICIIVE.

The Swastikas are twenty- four in number ; they are metall ic , aboute igh teen inches long

,and fanc ifully shaped like the beaks of birds, etc .

They were a sort of p incers or forceps .The Sandans

’

as were a kind o f tongs for removing extraneous substances from the soft parts .The l ayantras Were s im ilar, and were used for bringing away

foreign bodies from the ears , nose , etc.

The Nadiyantras were tubular instruments, of wh ich there weretwenty sorts . They were s im i lar to our catheters

,syringes, e tc. The

Said/ads were rods and sounds, e tc. Of these there were twenty—eigh tkinds ; some were for removing nasal polypi , so common and so

troublesome in India . The Upay an tras were such dress ings as cloth,

twine,leather

, etc. The firs t, best, and mos t importan t of al l implem en ts i s declared to be the Hand. The M an

'

daldgra was a round

pointed lancet the Vridd/i ioatra a broad kn i fe ; the Ardd/zad/zcira’

s

are perhaps kn ives with one edge ; the Tr ikzirclzaka may be a sort o fcanular trochar

,with a guarded point. The Vrili imuk/za is a perfo

rating instrumen t. The Kutlza’

rika’ was probably a b istoury. The

Vadis‘a i s a hooked or curved instrument for extracting foreign subs tances

,and the D antas

’anku appears to be an instrumen t for drawing

teeth . The Ara’

and Karapatra are saws for cutt ing through bones .The Eskan’i i s a blun t straigh t instrumen t s ix or eight inches long- a

sort of probe,in fact. The Sziclzi i s a needle. Then the Hindu surgeon

had subst itutes such as rough leaves that draw blood, p ith of trees ,

skin,leeches , caustics , e tc . It is evident that the surgeon o f anc i en t

Indiawas not i neffi c iently armed .

The studen t of surgery had many cur ious contrivances for acquiringmanual dexterity. He practised the art of making inc is ions on waxspread out on a board ; on flowers

,bulbs

, and gourds . Skins or

bladders fi lled with pas te and m ire were used for the same purpose .

He pract ised scarification on the fresh h ides of an imals from wh ich thehai r has no t been removed puncturing, or lancing the vessels of deadan imal s ; extract ion on the cavities of the same

,or fruits with large

seeds ; sutures were made on sk in and leather,and ligatures and

bandages on well-made models of the human l imbs. Fourteen kindsof bandages are described by Vagbhatta. The cautery was appl i ed byhot seeds

,burn ing substances , or heated plates and probes . Frequently

th i s treatment was used for headaches and for l iver and spleen disorders

. It was chiefly employed, however, as wi th the Greeks, foraverting bleeding by searing the mouths of the divided vessels . The

early Hindus could extrac t stone from the bladder, and even the foetu sfrom th e uterus . They must have been bold operators , many of their

THE IlIEDICINE OF THE HIND US. 1 1 7

operations being actual ly hazardous . It i s a subj ec t deserving o f

inquiry how they los t the information and skill which they once

possessed in so h igh a degree. The books o f medic ine and surgeryto wh ich reference has been made are undoubtedly mos t anci en t, andi t must be remembered were cons idered as insp ired wri tings . Professor Wilson says We must infer that the existing sen timents o f

the Hindus are of modern date, growing out o f an altered state ofsoc iety, and unsupported by their oldest and most authent ic c ivi l andmoral, as well as med ical insti tutes .

”

Many surgical operations wh ich we cons ider triumphs o f our modern

practice were invented by the anc ien t Hindus . They were skilled inamputation, in l ithotomy (as we have seen) , in abdominal and uterineOperations they operated for hernia, fi stula, and p i les , set broken bones,and had spec ialists in rh inoplasty o r operat ions for res toring los t earsand noses . It was a common custom in India for a j ealous husbandto mutilate the nose o f h i s suspected wife, so that surgeons had oppor

tunities to pract is e th is branch of their art. The anc i ent Indiansurgeons invented an operation for neuralgia wh ich was very s im i lart o the modern divi s ion o f the fi fth nerve above the eyebrow. Veterinary science . was unders tood, and anc ien t treat ises exis t, says Hunter, 1

on the d iseases of elephan ts and horses .The bes t era o fHindu medic ine was from 2 50 B.C. to 7 50 A .D . Its

ch ief centres were found in such Buddhist monast ic un ivers i ties asthat , of Nalanda, near Gaya.

2 Hunter th inks i t probable that theancient Brahmans may have derived their anatomical knowledge fromthe dissect ion o f the sacrifices ; but there i s no doub t that the trueschools of Indian med ic ine were the great publ ic hospi tals wh ich wereestabl ished by Buddhis t princes l ike Asoka, famous for h i s rock edicts,B.C. 25 1

—249 . Amongs t the fourteen inj unctions inscribed by thi senl ightened sovereign

,the fi rs t was the proh ibi t ion of the slaughter of

animals for food or sacrifice, and th e second was th e provis ion of asystem of medical aid for men and animals and of plantations and wellson the roads ide .

3

Probably King Asoka’s were the first real hospi tals for generaldiseases anywhere es tablished

,as the institu trons connec ted with the

Greek temples were not exactly hospi tal s in our sense of the term ;

they were more l ike camps round a m ineral spring or spa. The

Buddh ist physic ians would have in these merc iful insti tu tions abundantopportun ity for the cont inuous study o f d isease.Whatever may have been the condition o f anc ien t Hindu anatomy

and surgery, in modern t imes both have now fallen to the lowest point.1 Indian Empi re, p. 108.

2 Ibid.

3 I é id. , p . 146.

1 18 A ' POP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

D islocated joints are replaced and fractured l imbs set by a class o f

men s im ilar to our bone-setters wh ich are found in all nat ions .Certain of the Mohammedan doctors -Hakeems—somet imes bleed and

couch for cataract in a clumsy manner. The v illage Kabiraj knowsbut a few sentences of Sanskri t texts , but he has “ a by no meanscontempt ible pharmacopoeia,

”says Hunter. The rest cons ists of spells

,

fasts,and quackery.

Physic ians Vitians or Vydias) being Sudras are not allowed to readthe sacred medical writings (Vedas) these are guarded with religiousawe by the Brahmins ; they are permi tted , however, access to certaincommentaries upon the profess ional sacred books.When we reflec t on the high position wh ich the sc ience and art of the

Hindus had attained in very anc ien t t imes, i t i s surpri sing that we haveapparently learned li ttle or nothing from them in connect ion with the

heal ing art. Max M illler bel ieves that there was an anc ient indigenousHindu astronomy and an ancien t indigenous Hindu geometry. Pro

bably the firs t attempt at solving the problem of the squaring of thec i rcl e was suggested, he th inks, by the problem in the Sfitras how tocons truc t a square altar that Should be of exactly the same magni tudeas a round altar. It i s scarcely conceivable that so patien t and shrewd a

people as the Hindus, a people at once so observan t and s o profoundlyspeculat ive, should not have kept pace wi th the other enl ightenednations of the world in the s tudy of medic ine and surgery. The vege

-

3

tation of India is so rich in medic inal herbs'

that i ts Ada ter ia M edica

could hardly be equalled in any other coun try so that both by in tellectand by location the Hindus should be amongst the foremost professorsof the art of medic ine. On the contrary, however, the West has everywhere to instruct the Eas t in the medical sci ences and the young Brahm ins who flock to

‘

the med ical schools and un ivers it ies of Europe findthat they have everyth ing to learn from us in th is d irect ion . Is th is an

evidence of arrested development, a retrogression in c ivil ization due toconservatism and a paralys is o f the power to keep pace with the world

’sadvance consequent on the influences of religion and custom ? Probably it is . All the medic ine of theHindus is empiric ism their systemsexclude anatomy and surgery, withou t wh ich , as Prof. H. H. Wilsonobserves

,

1 “ the whole system must be defect ive . We can

eas ily imagine that these were not l ikely to have been much cultivatedin Hindustan, and that local disadvantages and rel igious prej udicesm igh t have proved very serious impedimen ts to their acquirement .

”

As compared with other anc ien t nations,Egypt, Chaldaea, Greece,

and Rome, we are at cons iderable d isadvan tage in the attempt to dis1 [Medical and Su rg ical Sciences of tli e Hindu s .

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1 20 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

If i t were the leg or hand, i t wou ld be different, but an eye is immaterial .” 1

“The small-pox goddess stands with two upl ifted crooked daggers,

threaten ing to strike on the righ t and left. Before her are a band of executors of her vengeance. Two of them wear red grinn ing masks, carryblack sh ields

,and brandish naked sc imi tars . Wh i te l ines, l ike rays , i ssue

from the bodies of the others,to indicate infect ion. On the r igh t there

is a group of men with spotted bodies, affl icted with the malady bel lsare hung at their c inctures

, and a few of them wave in thei r hands blackfeathers . They are preceded by music ians wi th drums

,who are sup

pl icating the pi ty of the furious deity. Beh ind the goddess, on the

right,there advances a bevy of smi ling young women ,

who are carryinggracefully on their heads baskets wi th thanksgiving-offerings

,in gratitude

for their lives and their beauty having been Spared . There is,bes ides ,

a li ttle boy with a bell at h i s girdle,who seems to be conveying some

thing from the right arm of the goddess. Th is act ion may possibly beemblematic of inoculat ion.

”2

Another small-po x deity of India described by Mr. Dubois,a miss ion

ary,

3 i s Mah-ry-Umma, who i s supposed to incarnate h ersel f in the

disease. The natives,when vaccination was firs t introduced, obj ected

to the pract ice for fear lest the goddess should be o ffended, as to prevent the small-pox would imply an obj ec tion to her becoming incarnateamongst them. The d ifficulty was overcome by the suggestion that thevaccination was a mi ld form of disease by wh ich the goddess had chosento visit her votaries

,so that she m ight be worsh ipped with equal respect .

“Even Siva is worshipped as a stone, espec ially that Siva who wil laffl ict a child with ep i lept ic fi ts

,and then

,speaking by i ts voice, will

announce that he is Parchanana,the Five-faced

,and i s pun ish ing the

ch i ld for insulting h i s image .

” ‘1

Surgeon-General Sir W . J. Moore,in an article on

“ The Origin and

Progress ofHospitals in India,

” 5 says that we may form a very goodOpinion of the condition of the whole of India in anc i ent t imes by t ecall ing what was the s tate of medical rel ief in most o f the native States

previous to the inst i tution o f medical rel ief and sani tation in Briti shd i stricts.

“ Recently,in the Native States

,there m igh t be witnessed disease

1 Br i t. M ed.jou rn . , June 25, 1892, p. 1 382 .

2 Moore , History of Ike Small -pox , p. 33, quoted in Pettigrew’s dIedical Supersti

tions , p. 8 1 .

3 Paris’s P/zarmacolog ia , p . 26.

Tylor, Pr imitive Cu lture, vol . 11. p . 1 50.

5 A siatic Quarterly Rev. , Oct. 1892 , p . 29 1 .

THE MEDICIJVE OF THE HIND US. 1 2 1

proceeding unchecked and uninterfered with,to a degree wh ich certainly

would not be allowed at presen t in c ivi li zed Europe. And espec iallywas this evident in surgical disease, as i llustrated by the following extract from an offi cial document 1

“ ‘ In former reports I have mentioned the extreme ignorance dis

played by nat ive hukeems or vaids of surgical principles . As arule, all surgical disease is e ither wrongly treated, or let alone unt i ltreatment i s unavailable by these uneducated practi tioners . Theirerrors of omiss ion and commiss ion are not so eas ily ascerta ined in theirmedical, as in their surgical, practice . But in the latter

,there i s a

glaring ignorance, no t only from th ings requis i te no t being attempted,but from th ings unnecessary being performed , lead ing to the seriousinj ury and often to the death of the pat ien t. Thus

,during my las t

tour,I saw at one village, an open scrofulous sore o f the neck with the

carotid artery i solated , and apparently on the poin t of giving way. At

another village I witnessed an advanced cancer rapidly killing a man .

In another place a woman had remained for days with a d islocated j aw ,

which was eas ily put in situ . O ther forms of dislocation and fractureneglected are almost dai ly s ights . At Bikaneer I amputated the leg ofa man who eight months before fell from a camel ; the bones of theleg protruding through the sk in of the heel

,and the foot being driven

half-way up the front of the leg, in wkic/i position it lead been permitted

to keal / At the same place a woman was rapidly s inking from theresults of extens ive s inus o f th e breast, following abscess, and whichonly required free inc i s ions for the restoration of health . I also saw

a man dying of strangulated hern ia, without the sl igh test idea of orattempt at rel ief on the part of the nat ive pract it ioners . And s o on ,

throughout almost the whole range of surgery,I have from t ime to t ime

witnessed the most lamentable results from the malpractices, or fromthe absence of practice on the part of the Native Doctors.

’

As mentioned in the above extract, the errors of omiss ion and com

m iss ion are not so eas ily ascertained in medical as in surgical cases.But the great maj ori ty of those str icken by disease, such as inflamma

t ions and fevers,derived as l ittle benefi t from medic ine as d id the

Romans when,according to Pliny, phys ic ians were banished from the

Imperial City during many years . ~For few indeed of the h igher , classand comparat ively better educated hukeems

’ or ‘vaids would

m ini ster to the poor who were unable to pay their fees ; and of the

1 Selections from the Records o f the Government of India. Foreign D epartment.NO. CV111. Rajputana D ispensary, Vaccination , Jail , and Sanitary Report for 1 87273 . By Surgeon -Major (now Surgeon-General Sir W. ) Moore, C . I.E.

,Honorary

Surgeon to the Viceroy of India.

1 22 A POPULAR HISTORY OF IlIED ICINE.

populations o f India the great maj ority are and always were poor.Steeped in cont inually augmen ting supers ti tion and ignorance

,i f the

poor rece ived medical aid at all, i t was from the hands of the equallyignorant and supersti t ious village Kabiraj

,

’ who, unl ike thei r morenoble Aryan predecessors, did not even ‘ draw physic from the fields , ’

although they may have used a charm,such as a peacock

’s feather tiedround the affected part ! If the poor got well , they got well ; and asmost diseases have a tendency to terminate in heal th, many did recover.If a fatal termination resulted , i t was attributed to nussecb or destiny

,

or the gods were blamed . Insane persons, i f harmless , were allowed toramble about the streets ; i f violen t, they were chained in the mostconven ien t place. The j ai ls of the Native States were also in an

unparalleled unsan itary . condit ion ,for no medical aid whatever was

provided as Coleridge said of Coldbath Fields, these j ails m ight havegiven His Satan ic Maj esty a h int for improving Hades . Fatal ism com

bined with ignorance,and a consequen t utter unbelief in any measures

o f san i tation , resulted in the absence of all measures of precaution duringepidem ics of con tagious disease. During the prevalence of small-pox,ch ildren m ight be seen by scores

,in every stage of the d isease, playing

or lying about the streets . During an ep idem ic of cholera, not one

precautionary measure was ever adopted—except by the wild Bheels ,who invariably moved

,leaving their villages for a t ime for the Open

j ungle thus forestalling the most approved method Of prevent ingcholera adopted for British t roops, viz. , marching away from the infectedarea.

No t only were there no hospi tals proper, or con tagious hosp i tals, orasylums for the insane, but ne ither were there any asylums for l epers .Regarding the latter

,difference of opin ion would appear to have exis ted

among sc i ent ific investigators,then as now,

as to whether leprosy is acontagious d isease or no t. Then as now

,in some parts of the country,

lepers were perm itted to l ive among the people ; in other local i ti es theywere thrust out from the towns or vil lages, generally forming a l ittlecolony on the adj oin ing plain. This expulsion of lepers from the townsand vi llages, then as now,

was not so much the resul t of fear of contagion

,as the Brahm inical dread of con tact with impurity. Then as now ,

these outcasts l ived m i serably in mud or grass huts,obtain ing food by

begging. When t ired o f l ife, or when being old or disabled the ir relat ives were tired of keeping them,

they often subm i tted to ‘sumajh

’or

burial al ive. But they more frequently threatened to perform sumajh

w i th the view of extracting alms from the charitable,who were induced

to bel ieve that the death of the leper would be credited to them,unless

they bough t off the sacrifice. or leper burial al ive, has

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1 24 A P OPULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

Brahm ins. In th i s manner,enormous sums have been disbursed and

are sti ll expended , espec ial ly in food for the desti tute. Th i s laudablechari ty of the Indians

,although often confined to their own caste peo

ple,and to occasions of family fes tival, i s one of the reasons why i t has

never been though t necessary to establ ish any system of poor-law rel iefin British India. Of late years native chari ty has been often directedtowards building and endowing medical insti tutions, and many Indiangentlemen have given most liberally for such purposes.”

CHAPTER V.

MED ICINE IN CHINA, TARTARY,AND JAPAN.

Origin o f Chinese Cu lture .—Shaman ism .

—D isease~D emons .—Tao ism.

—MedicineGods .

—Mediums.—Anatomy and Physio logy o f the Chinese .—Surgery .

—'

No

Hospitals in China.—Chinese Medicines .

— Fi l ial Piety.—Charms and Sacred

Signs —Medicine in Thibet, Tartary, and Japan.

CHIEF amongst the Mongolian peoples are the Chinese . Prof. Max

Milller argues that the Chinese , the Thibetans, the Japanese, Cot eaus,and the Ural-Al taic or Turan ian nations are in the matter of rel igionclosely related.

Chinese culture has recently been declared by Professor Terrien de laCouperie, Fraugo is Lenormant, and Sayce to be of Accadian origin.

Hieratic Accadian has been iden t ified wi th the firs t five hundredChinese characters, and i t i s bel ieved by Professor de la Couperie thatthe Chinese entered north-western China from Susiana, about thetwenty- th ird century before Christ. 1

In the Finno-Tartarian magical mythology, we have not only the l inkwh ich connects the religion of heathen Finland with that of AccadianChaldaea

, but we discover what i s of more importance in trac ingthe origin of the magic and medic ine of th e old c ivili zations of the worldfrom a primitive and coarse cosmogony, such as we have exam inedin so many savage peoples .As i t i s impossible to separate th e anc ient medical belief o f a people

from its rel igious conceptions,i f we admi t Prof. Max M illler

’

s theory, wemust also hold that i t embraces the medical not ions of these peoples .And so we find that one of the strik ing characteristics of the Mongol icreligions is an extens ive magic and sorcery—Shaman i sm. Pract icallythe gods and heroes of the poetry of these peoples are sorcerers, andtheir worshippers value above everyth ing their magical powers . Taoism,

a Ch inese rel igion of great an t iquity and respec t, involves an impl ic i tfaith in sorcery ; and the Ch inese and Mongol ians have degeneratedBuddhism into Shaman i sm.

1 See an article entitled “ A New Light on the Chinese, in IIarpcr’s Magaz ine ,

D ecember, 1 892 .

2 Prof. Teile , in art. Religions, Ency . Br it.

1 26 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

Confuc ian ism i s the ch ief rel igion of the Chinese. It i s s imply adevelopmen t of the worship of ancestors , wh ich was the aboriginalrel igion of the country. All the Chinqse are ancestor-worsh ippers , towhatever other native rel igion they may belong.

1

The pure Confuc ian i s a true Agnostic .

Al though Chinese c ivil ization i s wi thout doubt extremely anc ient, weare unable to study i t as we study that of Egypt or Chaldaea, on accountof the absence of monuments or a l i terature older than a few cen turiesbefore Christ, wh ich would give us a reliable h i story.

The Chinese attr ibute to Huang-ti (B.C. 2 63 7) a work on med ic ine,wh ich i s s t il l extant, entitled Nuy

-kin,wh ich is probably not older than

the Christian era . They also attribute to the Emperor Ch in-nung (B.C.

2699) a catalogue of medic inal herbs .

The demon theory of disease un iversally obtains throughout theChinese empire. All bodily and mental disorders Spring either from theair or Spi r its . They are sent by the gods as pun ishments for sins com

m itted in a previous state of exi stence . In a coun try where Buddhism i slargely bel ieved, it i s natural to suppose that there is l ittle sympathywith the suffering and affl icted. One m igh t offend the gods by gettingcured

, or delay the working out of the effects of the expiatory suffering.

Archdeacon Grey found a grievously affl icted monk in a monastery inthe White C loud mountains. He desired to take him to th e CantonMedical M issionary Hospi tal ; but the abbot took him as ide , and beggedhim no t to do so, as the sufferer had doubtless in a former state ofexi stence been guil ty of some he inous crime

,for which the gods were

then making him pay the well-meri ted penal ty .

3

Nevertheless, when s ick, the Chinese often have recourse to somedeity, who i s supposed to have caused the i llness . If the patien t d ies ,they do no t blame the god, but they withhold the thank-offering wh ichis customary in case of recovery. The death i s declared to be inaccordance with the “

reckon ing of Heaven .

”If the patient recovers,

the deity o f the disease gets the credit Prayers and ceremon ies aremade use of to induce the “ destroying demon to bani sh the banefulinfluences under h is con trol. Sudden i llness is frequently ascribed tothe evil influence of one of the seventy- two malignan t sp ir its or gods .In very urgent cases an “ arrow ” i s obtained from an idol in the temple.This “ arrow ” i s about two feet long

,and has a s ingle written word ,

Command,” upon i t. If the patien t recovers

,i t must be returned to

the temple with a present ; i f he'

dies, an offering of mock-money i s

1 Cummings, l/Vander ings in Cli ina, vol. 1. p . 188.

2 Baas, Hist. M ed .

3 “ Doctoring in China, National Review,May, 1889

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1 28 A P OPULAR IIISTORY OF IIIEDICINE.

Ling C/nci Na' i s the goddess of m idwi fery and chi ldren. If children

are sick,their parents employ Tanis t priests in some o f her temples to

perform a ceremony for the ir cure .

1

I ii/i Uong C/n2Sit i s the god of medicine. It i s said that he was adistinguished physic ian who was deified after h is death . He i s nowgenerally worsh ipped by dealers in drugs and by their assistants . On

the th ird day of the th ird month,they make a feas t in h i s honour

, and

burn candles and incense before h is image at his t emple. Practis ing

physic ians do no t usually take any part in these proceedings .2

The Ch inese have goddesses of smal l-pox and measles,wh ich are

extremely popular d ivin i ties. Should i t thunder after the pustules ofsmall-pox have appeared, a drum i s beaten, to prevent them breaking .

On the fourteenth day ceremon i es are performed before the goddess, toinduce her to cause the pustules to dry up.

3

Mediums are often employed to prescribe for the s ick. They behave

prec i sely as our spiritual ists do , and pretend that th e divin i ty invoked :

cast s h imself in to the medium for the time being, and dictates the medic ine wh ich the s ick person requires . ‘1

In the “ Texts of Taoism ” 5 we are informed that In the bodythere are seven prec ious organs, wh ich serve to enrich the state, to g iveres t to the people, and to make the vital force of th e system ful l tooverflowing. Hence we have the h eart

,the k idneys, the breath, the

blood, the brains, the semen, and the marrow. These are the seven

prec ious organs. They are not dispersed when the body returns ( to th edust) . Refined by the use of the Great Med ic ine

,the myriad spi rits all

ascend among the Immortals .Anatomy and phys iology have made no progress in Ch ina, because

there has never been any dissection of the body. The only books on

the subj ect in the Ch inese language are Jesu i t tran slation s o f Europeanworks . Briefly s tated , Ch inese ideas on the subj ect are as follows In

the human body there are s ix ch ief organs in wh ich “moisture is

located— the heart, l iver, two kidneys, spl een, and lungs . There are six

others in wh ich “ warmth ” abides— the small and large intestine , thegall bladder, the stomach , and the urinary apparatus . They reck on

365 bones in th e whole body, eight in the male and s ix in the femaleskull

,twelve ribs in men and fourteen in women . They term the bile

the seat of courage ; the spleen, the seat of reason ; the l iver, thegranary of the soul the stomach , the resting-

place of the m ind .

A famil iar drug in Chinese materia medica, wh ich i s sold in al l the

1 Dool ittle’s Social Lif e qf t/ze Ck inese, vol. i . p . 265.

2 Ibid. , vol . i . p. 275.

3 Ibid. , vol . 1. p . 1 54.

‘1 Ibi d. , vol . ii . p. 1 16.

5 Sacred Books of the East, vol . xi . p . 272 .

MEM O/NE IN CHINA , TARTA[aY,AND jAPAN . 1 39

drug- shops , i s the Kou-Kouo, or bean of St. Ignatius . The hornyvegetable i s used , after bruis ing and macerat ing, in cold water

,to wh ich

i t communicates a strong bitter taste. “Th is water,says M . Huc

,

1

“ taken inwardly, modifies the heat of the blood, and extinguishes internal inflammation . It i s an excellen t spec ific for all sorts of wounds andcontusions . The veterinary doctors also apply i t with greatsuccess to the internal d iseases of cattle and sheep. In the north o f

China we have often witnessed the salutary effects of the Kou-Kouo .

Th is bean i s the seed of Stry clcnos Ignatia, and th e plan t i s indigenousto the Philipp ine Islands. The ac tion and uses of ignatia are ident ical

,

says Sti lle, with those of nux vomica.

2

The medical profess ion i s a very crowded one in China,as i t i s per~

fectly free to any who choose to practis e i t . No diploma or certificateof any kind is necessary in order to pract is e medic ine in Ch ina. The

majority of the regular pract i tioners , i f such they can be called , are men

who have failed to pass thei r exam inations as l i terates. There i s one,and apparently only one, check on quackery . The Chinese have aspec ial place in their second hell wh ich i s reserved for ignoran t

physic ians who wil l pers is t in doctoring s ick folk. In the fourth hel lare found physicians who have used bad drugs, and in the seven th hel lare tortured those who have taken human bones from cemeteri es tomake into medic ines . In the very lowest hell are phys ic ian s who havem isused their art for criminal purposes . These evi l persons are ceas elessly gored by sows . 3

Naturally, the sci ences o f anatomy and physiology are ent irelyneglected by these sel f-con st i tuted nat ive doctors . All the learningthey require i s the abili ty to copy out prescript ions from a medical book.

Dr. Gould,a physic ian of long experience in China, tells us that the

native phys ician is depic ted inChinese primers as a person between theheathen priest and th e fortune- teller— h i s profess ion i s looked upon as

a combination of supersti t ion and legerdemain .

4

The court physic ians at Pekin are o f a much superior class, and are

compelled to pass exam inations before their appoin tmen t.Astrology

,charms

,amulets

,and characts enter largely into Ch inese

medical pract ice. The pri ests keep bundles of paper charms ready foremergenci es . They are supposed to know which of the differen tmethods of u s ing them are mos t appropriate to each case. Masks areused by children at certain t imes to ward o ff th e dei ty of small-pox.

1 Travels in Ta rtary ,vo l. i . chap. vi 1.

2 National D ispen satozy , p . 754.

3 Gordon Cumming’s Wanderings in Cli ina , vo l . i . p . 1 74.

1 Doctoring in China,” National Review,May, 1 889.

1 30 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

The masks are very ugly, as the deity is bel ieved only to affl ict prettychildren.

1

Isaac Voss ius,says Southey, commended the skil l of the Ch inese

phys ic ians in finding out by their touch , no t only that the body isd iseased (which , he said , was all that our practit ioners knew by it) , but

'

also from what cause or what part th e s ickness proceeds . To makeourselves masters of th is sk ill

,he would have us explore the nature of

men’s pulses, t il l they became as well known and as fam i liar to u s as aharp or lute i s to the players thereon i t not being enough for them toknow that there is someth ing am i ss wh ich spoils the tune, but they mus talso know what s tring i t i s wh ich causes that fault .” 2

Surgery has never made much progress in Ch ina the Chinese havetoo much respect for the dead to employ corpses for anatom ical pur

poses , and they have the greates t unwill ingness to draw blood or perform any kind o f Operation on th e l iving. Their ideas of the structureof the human frame are therefore purely fanci ful .

“ The distinctiveChinese surgical invention i s acupuncture, or the insertion of fine n eedlesof hardened silver or gold for an inch or more (with a twisting mot ion)into the seats of pain or inflammation .

” 3 Rheumat ism and gout arethus treated

,and 3 67 points are specified where needles may be ln

serted without inj ury to great vessels or vi tal organs .D en tistry and Ophthalm ic surgery are prac tised by spec ial ists .There are no hosp i tal s ; the Chinese cons ider i t would be a neglect of

the duty which they owe to their relatives to send them when s ick tos uch inst itu tions . Chinese doctors often receive a fixed salary so longa s their patien t remains in good health ; when he falls s ick

,the pay is

s topped till he gets well . The doctor must ask h i s pat ien t no quest ions, nor does the patien t volun teer any information about h is case .

Having fel t the sick man’s pul se, looked at h i s tongue, and otherwi seo bserved him, he i s supposed to have completed h i s d iagnosis, and mus t

prescr ibe accordingly. Some o f the Ch inese prescriptions are veryc ostly ; precious stones and j ewels are often powdered up with muskand made into p ills , which are cons idered spec ifics for small-pox and

fevers . Another remedy is Kine/nu,a bitter wine made of spiri t, aloes,

m yrrh , frankincen se, and saffron , wh ich i s said to be fa powerful ton ic.

The profession of medic ine is hereditary, receiving very few recruitsfrom outside ; hence its complete stagnation .

‘1

One of the industries of the Foo-Chow beggars i s the rearing of

1 Dool ittle’s Social Life of tke Ck inese, vo l . 11. p . 32 1 .2 Southey, Common P lace Book , ser. iv. p . 547.

3 Ency . Br it. , art. Surgery.

”

‘1 C/zambers’

[ou rnal, Dec. 29 , 1888, p . 83 1 .

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1 3: A P OPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

as much astoni shment amongst the foreign res idents in Ch ina as i thas in the West. M iss ionaries espec ial ly were charged and thecharges have been made frequently during the pas t th irty years—withbewitching women and ch ildren by means of drugs

,en t ic ing them to

some secret place, and there kill ing them for the purpose of taking outtheir hearts and eyes . Dr. Macgowan, a gentleman who has l ived formany years in China, has publ i shed a s tatemen t showing that from the

poin t of view of Chinese medic ine these accusat ion s are far from pre

posterons . It i s one of the medical superst itions of Ch ina that various

portions of the human frame and all its secret ions possess therapeutic

properties . He refers to a popular volum inous Materia M edica— th eonly authoritative work of the k ind in the Chinese language—whichgives th irty-seven anthropophagous remedies of native medic ine. Hu

man blood taken into the system from another i s bel ieved to strengtheni t and Dr. Macgowan ment ions the case of an English lady, now dead ,who devoted her fortune and l ife to the education of girls in N ingpo,who was supposed by the natives to extract the blood of her pupils forth i s purpose. Human muscles are supposed to be a good med icamen tin consumption ,

and cases are constantly recorded of ch i ldren who

mutilate themselves to adm ini s ter their flesh to s ick paren ts .Never, says Dr. Macgowan

,has fi l ial p iety exh ibited i ts zeal in th is

manner more than at the presen t t ime . Imperial decrees publ ished inthe Pekin Gaz ette, often authoris ing honorary portals to be erected inhonour ofmen , and part icularly women , for these flesh offerings, affordno

,indication of the extent to wh ich i t i s carried

,for only people o f

weal th and influence can obtain such a recogn i tion of the meri t of fi l ialdevotion. It i s very common among the comparatively lowly, butmore frequent among the l iterati . A l i terary graduate now in h is ownservice, finding the Operation of sn ipp ing a p i ece of integumen t fromh is arm too painful, seiz ed a hatchet and cut off a j oin t o f one of his

fingers,which he made into broth m ixed with medic ine and gave to

h is mother. It is essential in all such cases that the recip ient shouldbe kept in profound ignorance of the nature of the potion thu s pre

pared , and in no case i s the Operation to be performed for an inferior,as by a husband for a wife, or a paren t for a ch i ld . Th is bel ief in them edical virtues of part of the human body (of wh ich a large number ofinstances wh ich cannot be repeated here are given) has led to a

‘ demandfrom native pract itioners wh ich can sometimes only be suppl ied bymurder. O f this, too, examples are given from official records and

other publ ications, some of them of quite recent date.Dr. Macgowan reminds us that men capable of these atroc i ties have

been found in other c ivil ized lands. He says

MEDICINE IN CHINA ,

‘

TA IeTARY,AND [APAN . 133

It was in a model Occ iden tal c ity, not inaptly styled the ModernA thens,

’ that subj ects were procured for the dissect ing-room throughmurder, at about the same amount o f money as that paid in China forsets of eyes and hearts for medic ine. A remedy was found wh ich

promptly suppressed that excepti onal crime in the West. In Ch inamurder of th i s nature can also be prevented, but not speedily. Time i san indispensable factor in effecting the suppression of homic ide, wh ichi s the outcome of medical supers t ition. That supersti t ion is s tronglyintrenched in an offic ial work

,the most common book, after the

c lassics , in the empire. So long as the conc luding chapter i s retainedin the materia medica, i t w i l l be futile to undertake the abol i t ion of

murder for medical purposes ; and so l ong as these abhorren t crimes

prevail in Ch ina, so long w ill fomenters of r iots against foreigners aim

to make i t appear that the men and women from afar are addicted tothat form of murder

,and thus prec ious l ives will cont inue to be ex

posed to forfei ture.”

The most celebrated drug in Ch inese Materia Med ica is ginseng,the root of a spec ies of Panax ,

belonging to the natural orderAraliacece.

The most esteemed variety i s found in Corea ; an inferi or k ind comesfrom the Un i ted States, the Panax guinguq/olium,

and i s often substi

tuted for the real article. All the Chinese ginseng is Imperial property,and i s sold at i ts weigh t in gold . The peculiar shape of the root, l ikethe body of man—a peculiari ty wh ich i t shares wi th mandrake and

some other plants— led to its employmen t in cases where virile powerfails

,as in the aged and debil itated . Special k inds have been sold at

the enormous sum of 3 00 to 400 dollars the ounce. Europeans haveh itherto failed

,says the Ency clopcedia Bri tannica

,to discover any won

derful properties in the drug. It i s no doubt a remarkable instanceof the doctrine of s ignatures (an ) . In all cases of severe disease

,

debil ity, etc.

,the Chinese fly to this remedy, so that enormous quan

t itles are used. The Hon . H. N. says that the exportfrom New—Chang in Manchuria to the Ch inese ports of th is article forone year alone reached the value of It seems to be s implya m i ld ton ic

,very much l ike gent ian root. Some of the pharmac ies are

on a very large scale s ix hundred and fi fty various k inds of leaves arecommon ly kept for medic inal purposes .When a Chinese physic ian i s not able to procure the medic ines h e

needs,he wri tes the names of the drugs he desires to employ on a p i ece

o f paper, and makes the pat ient swallow i t ; the effect is Supposed to be

quite as good as that of the remedy i tself, and certainly in many casesi t would be infin i tely more pleasant to take This custom of swallowing charms i s seen again in the s ick- room

,some of th e charms wh ich

1 34 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

are s tuck round i t being occas ionally taken down,burned

,and m ixed

with water,which the patient has to drink. Gongs are beaten and fire

crackers let off to frighten away the demons which are supposed to betorment ing the s ick person .

“ The superst ition as ' to the powers of the evi l eye,says Denny

,

’

may almost be deemed fundamental to human i ty, as I have yet to readof a people amongst whom i t does not find some degree of credence .

”

In China a pregnant woman, or a man whose wife i s pregnant, i scalled “ four-eyed and ch ildren are guarded against be ing looked at

by ei ther,as i t would probably cause s ickness to attack them .

One of the commonest diagrams to be met with in China i s the

mys tic svastika, or “Thor’s Hammer It i s found on the

wrappers of medic ines,and is accepted as the accumulation of lucky

signs possessing ten thousand virtues .2

The physic ians ofThibet, says M . Huc,

3 assign to the human bodyfour hundred and forty diseases , neither more nor l ess . Lamas whopract is e medic ine have to learn by heart the books wh ich treat of thesediseases

,thei r symptoms, and the method of curing them. The books

are a mere hotch-potch of aphorisms and rec ipes. The Lama doctorshave less horror of blood than the Chinese, and pract i se bleeding and

cupping. They pay great attent ion to the exam ination o f a pat ien t’swater. A thoroughly competent Lama phys ic i an must be able todiagnose the disease and treat the patient without seeing him. It is

suffic ien t that he make a careful exam inat ion of the water. Th i s hedoes not by chem ical tests

,as in Western nations

,but by whipping it

up with a wooden knife and l isten ing to the noise made by the bubbles.A patient’s water i s mute or crackling according to his state of health .

Much of Ch inese and Tartar medic ine is mere supersti t ion . Yet,

”

says M . Huc very judic iously,

notwithstanding all th is quackery, therei s no doubt that they possess an infin i te number of very valuablerec ipes, th e result of long experience. It were perhaps rash to imaginethat medical sci ence has nothing to learn from the Tartar

,Thibetian,

and Chinese phys ic ians , on the pretext that they are not acquaintedwith the structure and mechan i sm of the human body. They may,n evertheless, be in possess ion of very importan t secrets, wh ich sc iencealone

,no doubt, i s capable of explain ing, but wh ich, very poss ibly,

sc ience itsel f may never d iscover. Without being sc i ent ific, a man

may very well l igh t upon extremely sc ien t ific results .” The fact thateverybody in China and Tartary can make gunpowder, wh ile probably

1 Folk Lore of Ck ina, p . 49 .

2 Ibid.

3 Travels in Tartary .

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1 36 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF IlIEDICINE.

better or d ies, according to the decree o f Hormoustha. But where the

patient i s rich , the possessor of large flocks,the proceedings are alto

gether differen t. Fi rst i t i s obvious that a devi l who presumes to visi ts o eminent a personage must be a poten t devil, one of the ch iefs ofthe lower world ; and i t would no t be decen t -for a great Tchutgourt o travel l ike a mere spri te ; the fam i ly, accordingly, are directed to

prepare for him a handsome su i t of c lothes, a pair of rich boots, a finehorse

,ready saddled and bridled, otherwise the devil will never th ink

o f going,physic or exorc ise him how you may. It i s even possible

,

indeed,that one horse will no t suffice ; for the demon , in very rich

cases,may turn out upon inquiry to be so h igh and mighty a prince

,

that he has with him a number of courtiers and attendants,all o f whom

have to be provided w i th horses.“Everyth ing being arranged, the ceremony commences. The Lama

and numerous co-phys ic ians called in from his own and other adjacen tmonasteries

,offer up prayers in the rich man

’s ten ts for a week or afortnight

,unt il they perceive that the devil i s gone, - that is to say

,unti l

they have exhausted al l the disposable tea and sheep . If the patien trecovers

,i t i s a c lear proof that the prayers have been efficaciously

rec i ted if he dies,i t i s a stil l greater proof of the efficac i ousness o f th e

prayers, for no t only i s the devi l gone, but the patien t has transmigratedto a state far better than that he has quitted .

The prayers rec i ted by the Lamas for the recovery of the s ick ares ometimes accompanied with very di smal and alarm ing rites . The aun to f Tokoura

,chief of an encampmen t in the Valley of D ark Waters

,

vis i ted by M . Hue,was seized one even ing with an interm i ttent fever.

I would invite th e attendance of the doctor Lama,

’ said Tokoura,but

i f he finds there i s a very big Tchutgour present, the expenses wi ll ru inme.

’ He waited for some days,but as h is aun t grew worse and worse

,

he at las t sent for a Lama ; h is ant icipat ions were confirmed . The

Lama pronounced that a demon of cons iderable rank was presen t,and

that no t ime must be los t in expelling him. Eigh t other Lamas wereforthwith called in

,who at once set abou t the construc t ion in dri ed

herbs of a great puppet, wh ich they ent itled the D emon o f In term i tten tFever

,and which

,when completed, they placed on i ts legs by means of

a stick,in th e patien t

’s tent.“ The ceremony began at eleven o’clock at n ight the Lamas ranged

themselves in a sem ic ircle round the upper portion of the’

tent withcymbals , sea- shells

,bells

,tambourines

,and other instrumen ts of the

noisy Tartar music. The remainder of the c irc le was completed by themembers o f the fam ily squatting on th e ground c lose to one another,the patien t kneel ing, or rather crouched on her heels, Oppos ite the

MEDICINE IN CHINA ,TARTAR Y, AND jAFAN . 1 37

Demon of Intermi ttent Fever. The Lama doctor in chief had before ’

him a large copper bas in fi lled with m illet, and some l i ttl e images madeo f paste . The dung- fuel threw am i d much smoke a fan tastic and

quivering light over the strange scene. Upon a given s ignal , the clericalorchestra executed an overture harsh enough to frigh ten Satan h imsel f,the lay congregation beating t ime with their hands to the charivar i o fc langing instrumen ts and ear—spl i tt ing voices. The diabol ical concertover

,the Grand Lama Opened the Book o f Exorc i sms , wh ich he rested

on his knees . As he chanted one o f the forms,he took from the basin

from t ime to t ime a handful of m i llet, which he threw eas t, west, north ,and south , according to the Rubric. The tones o f h i s voice as he

prayed were sometimes mournful and suppressed , sometimes vehemen tlyloud and energetic. All of a sudden he would qui t the regular cadenceo f prayer, and have an outburst of apparently indomi table rage, abusingthe herb puppet with fierce invect ives and furious gestures . The exorc ismterminated

,he gave a signal by stretch ing ou t h is arm s righ t and left

, and

the other Lamas struck up a tremendously noisy chorus in hurried , dashing tones . All the instrumen ts were set to work, and meant ime the laycongregation, having started up with one accord , ran out of the tentone after the other, and tearing round it l ike mad people, beat i t at thei rhardest with sticks

,yell ing all the wh ile at the p itch of th eir voices in a

manner to make ord inary hair stand on end. Having thrice performedthis demon iac round, they re-entered the tent as prec ipi tately as

.

theyhad quitted it

,and resumed their seats . Then

,all the others covering

their faces with the ir hands,the Grand Lama rose and set fi re to the

herb figure . As soon as the flames rose .he uttered a loud cry, whichwas repeated with interes t by the res t of the company. The lai tyimmediately arose

,seized th e burn ing figure

,carr ied i t in to the pla in ,

away from the tents,and there

,as i t consumed

,anathemat ized i t with

all sorts o f imprecations ; the Lamas, mean t ime, squatted in the tent,tranquilly chant ing thei r prayers in a grave, solemn tone. Upon thereturn of the fami ly from thei r valorous expedition, the praying wasexchanged for j oyous fel ic i tations . By

-and-by each person providedwith a lighted torch

,the whole party rushed Simultaneously from the

tent, and formed in to a.

process ion, the laymen firs t,then the patien t,

supported on either Side by a member of the fam ily,and lastly

,the

n ine Lamas, making n igh t h ideous with the ir music In th is stylethe pat ien t was conducted to another tent, pursuan t to the orders of theLama, who declared she must absen t herself from her own habi tat i onfor an entire month .

“After th is strange treatmen t the malady did not return . The pro

bability i s that the Lamas, having ascertained the precis e momen t at

1 38 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

which the fever-fi t would recur, met i t at the exact point Of t ime by th istremendous coun ter-exc itement and overcame i t.

“Though the maj ori ty of the Lamas seek to foster the ignorantcredul ity of the Tartars, in order to turn i t to the ir own profit, we havemet some of them who frankly avowed that dupl ic i ty and impostureplayed cons iderable part in al l their ceremon ies . The superior Of aLamasery said to us one day, ‘When a person i s i ll the rec itationof prayers i s proper, for Buddha is the master o f l ife and death ; i t ishe who rules the transm igration of beings . To take remedies i s alsofi tting

,for the great virtue Of medic inal herbs also comes to us from

Buddha. That the Evil One may possess a rich person i s credible ;but that in order to repel the Evil One, the way i s to give him dress ,and a horse, and what not

,th i s i s a fict ion inven ted by ignorant and

deceiving Lamas,who desire to accumulate wealth at the expense o f

thei r brothers .’

M . Huc describes a grand solemn ity he witnessed in Tartary, when aLama Bokte cut h imself Open, took out h i s entrails

, placed them beforehim, and then after return ing them,

c losed the wound wh i le the bloodflowed in every direct ion yet he was apparently as well as before theOperat ion, with th e exception of extreme prostration . Good Lamas, saysM . Huc

,abhor such diabol ical m iracles ; i t i s only those Of bad cha

racter who perform them. The good priest describes several o thersupernatural isms,

”as he calls them

,of a s imilar kind , wh ich are

frequently performed by the Lamas . He sets them all down to diabolical agency.

1

The Turan ian nations have their priests o f magic, says M . Maury,

2

who exerc ise great power over the people. He thinks th i s i s partly dueto the pains they take to look savage and imposing, but st ill more tothe over-exc i ted condition in wh ich they are kept by the r ites to whichthey have recourse ; they take stimulants and probably drugs to causehallucination s, convuls ions , and dreams, for they are th e dupes of theirown del irium.

“Amongst all nations, says Castré n,

“of whatever race

,disease is

always regarded as a possessi on , and as the work of a demon.

” 3

Says M . Maury The Baschkirs have their Shaitan-kuriaz i,who expel

devils,and undertake to treat th e invalids regarded as possessed by means

Of the admin i s trat ion of certain remedies . Th i s Shaitan, whose nam ehas been borrowed from the Satan of the Christ ians, s ince the Baschk irshave come into con tact wi th the Russ ians, i s held by the Kalmuks to bethe chief author of all our bod ily sufferings. If they wish to expel him,

1 Travels in Tartmjf , vol . i . chap . ix .

2 La M argie et Z’Astrologi e, p . 13 .

3 Var/gru nge) : fiber die Fz’

nm’

sclze 116/bi ologic, p . { 73 .

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140 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

medica has included amongst i ts several hundred remedies a largenumber Of those used by ourselves

,and these are not only vegetable

,

but animal and m ineral, in the latter c lass mercury being prominent.Surgery became a separate branch as long since as the seventh or eigh thcentury.

1

1 A’

atz'

onal D ruggz'

st.

CHAPTER VI.

THE MED ICINE OF THE PARSEES .

Zoroaster and the Zend-Averta .—ThcHeavenly Gift Of the Heal ing Plants.—Ormuz d

and Ahriman .- Practice O f the Heal ing Art and i ts F ees.

ZOROASTER, or more correctly Zarathustra,was the founder

,or at l eas t

the reformer Of the Magian religion,and one Of the greatest teachers

Of the East. The date of Zoroaster is involved in Obscurity, but al lclassical antiquity agrees that he was an h is torical person. Nei ther dowe know h is birthplace . D uncker gives 1000 B.C. as

.his period others

consider that he was possibly a contemporary of Moses . In the"

s d-Arjesia and th e records Of the Parsees he i s said to have l ived inthe reign ofVitagpa or Gushtap, whom most writers recogn ise as DariusHystaspis. Pliny notices works Of Zoroaster treat ing of Nature and

of precious stones . He i s credited wi th the invent ion Of magic and as

ancientmedic ine was closely connected wi th magic, we may, in th i s sense,consider himjas a physician. Aristotle and Eudoxus stated that he l ivedsix thousand years before Plato . It i s hopeless, however, to attempt tosettle a question so involved in obscurity. The most charac teris ticfeature Of Zoroaster’s teach ing i s the dualis tic concept ion Of the schemeof the un iverse, according to wh ich two powers— a good and an evilare for ever contending for the mastery— Ormuzd against Ahriman .

Ormuzd is Of the l igh t, and from th i s emanate the good sp iri ts whose

laws are executed by Iz eds, who are angels and archangels .Ahriman i s of the darkness

,and from th is emanate Daé vas

, powersby whom mankind are led to their destructi on— evil powers , false gods,devi ls . From these Daé vas proceed al l the evi l wh ich i s in the worldthey are agents Of that h igher evi l principle D ruj , or falsehood and deception, wh ich i s called Ahriman, the spirit enemy. These Daé vas sendto men, and are the causes of all d iseases, wh ich can only be cured bythe good spi rits . Man belongs either to Ormuzd or to Ahriman according to h is deeds . If he Offers sacrifice to Ormuzd and the gods, andhelps them by good thoughts

,good deeds

,and spreads l ife over th e

world and Opposes Ahriman by destroy ing evil, then he is a man o f

142 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Asha,who drives away fiends and diseases by spells . He who does

the contrary to th is i s a Dravant, —“ demon, a foe Of Asha. The

man Of Ormuzd wi ll have a seat near him in heaven .

1

According to the Zend-Avesm Thrita was the firs t phys ic ian who

drove back death and disease . O rmuzd (Ahura Mazda) brought himdown from heaven ten thousand healing p lants wh ich had grown aroundthe tree of eternal l ife, which i s the white Haoma ( the Indian Soma ),or ~Gaokerena, wh ich grows in the m iddle of the sea

,Vouru-kasha .

These are the ‘Haomas, says Darmesteter.

2

One i s th e yellow, or earthly Haoma, and i s the king of healing

plan ts ; the other, or white, i s that which , on the day Of resurrect ion,will make men immortal . Thrita was one of the first pries ts Of Haoma,the l i fe and health-giving plant, and thus he Obtained h i s skill inmedic ine . Darmesteter says that Thrita was originally th e same asThraé taona of the R ig Veda .

3

“ We see that Thraé taona fulfilled the same func tions as Thrita.

According to Hamza he was the inventor Of m edic ine. The Tavids

( formulas Of exorc ism) against Sickness are inscr ibed with his name ,and we find in the Avesta itself the Fravash i of Thraé taona invoked‘ agains t i tch , hot fever, humours, cold fever

,vavareshi ; against th e

plagues created by the serpent.’ We learn from th i s passage that di sease

was unders tood as coming from the serpen t in other words,that i t was

cons idered a sort Of poison ing,and this i s the reason why the killer of

the serpen t was invoked to ac t against i t. Thus Thrita Thraé taona hada double right to the t itl e of the first Of the healers

,both as a pri est of

Haoma and as the conqueror Of the serpent.O rmuzd (Ahura Maz da) said that Thrita asked for a source Of

remedies —he Obtained i t from Khshathia-Vaivya—to withstand the"

d i seases and infect ion wh ich Angra—Mainyu had c reated by h i s wi tchc raft . As Ahriman had created ten thousand diseases, so O rmuzd gavemankind the same number Of heal ing p lants. Th i s idea is firmly fixedin the m inds Of every one Of us to this day : for every diseas e therem ust of necess ity somewhere be a remedy

,and that usually with the

common people i s supposed to be a plant. The Soma is the king of th ehealing plants in India and that also came down from heaven .

“Wh i lstcom ing down from heaven the plants said, ‘He will never suffer any

wound the mortal whom we touch .

’ 4

Ormuzd , having given man the heal ing plants,said : “To thee , O

Sickness, I say, avaunt ! To thee, 0 Death,I say, avaunt TO thee,

1 Darmesteter, Za zd-Aw rta.

2 Zend-Aw rta Sacred Books of the East , vol . iv. p. 2 19.

3 Ibid. Rzg Veda, x . 97, I 7.

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144 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

and is to be cured by wash ings and spel ls . The most powerful therefore of all medical treatment i s magic. It was always more h ighlyesteemed by the faithful than treatment by drugs and the lancet. 1 Hairand nails, which having been cut Off have at once become the propertyOf Ahriman, may be withdrawn from h i s power by prayer, and by beingdeposited in the earth in consecrated c i rcles

,wh ich

,being drawn round

them,intrench them against the fiend ?

In the Zena-Avesta i t i s laid down that a woman who has been jus tdel ivered Of a child i s unclean . When del ivered Of a dead ch ild

,she

must drink gOmé z . Says Darmesteter : 3 “ SO utterly unclean is she,that she i s not even al lowed to drink water, unless she is in danger Ofdeath and even then , as the sacred elemen t has been defiled, she isl iable to the penal ty of a PerhOtanu . It appears from modern customsthat the treatment i s the same when the ch ild i s born al ive the reasonof wh ich i s that

,in any case

,during’ th e first three days after del ivery

she is in danger Of death . A great fi re i s l ighted to keep away thefiends

, who use then their utmost efforts to kill her and her ch i ld . She

is uncl ean only because the death -fiend i s in her.”

The Saddar 1 6 says “When there is a pregnan t woman in a house,one must take care that there be fi re con tinually in i t when the childi s brought forth

,one must burn a candle, or, better sti ll, a fi re

,for three

days and th ree n ights,to render the Devs and D rugs unable to harm

the ch i ld for there i s great danger during those three days and n ightsafter the birth Of the ch i ld .

”

A table Of physic ian’s fees is given in the Vendidad . The healer i s toattend a priest and get him wel l for h i s bless ing ; the master Of a housei s to pay the value Of a cheap Ox for the same service bu t the lord Of a

province i s to pay the value o f a chariot and four. The wife Of themaster of a house pays the value of a she-ass for her heal ing

,but the

wife Of the lord o f a province pays the value Of a she-camel .It declared that , If several healers Offered themselves together

,

O Spitama Zarathustra ! namely, one who heals with the kn i fe, one

who heals with herbs , and one who heals with the holy word (i .e. byspells) , i t i s th is one who wil l bes t drive away s ickness from the faithful .

1 Herod , i. 1 38.

2 Zeizd-Avesta. Translated by J . Darmesteter in Sacred Books of fire East, vo l. iv.

p . 1 87 . This throws a curious light on a custom wh ich has been Observed in Operat ion all over the world, o f tak ing care no t to throw about hair or nail-cuttings, lest thedevil should get ho ld Of them .

3 Zci zd-Aoesla, Introduct ion, v . xciii . § I3 .

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148 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF AIEDICINE.

In the Homeric poems IEsculapius i s not a d ivini ty, but merely a'

human being. Homer,however

, calls all those who practise the art ofheal ing descendants Of Paean ; h i s heal ing god is Apollo, and neverIEsculapius.

Legend tells that IEsculapius was the son of Apollo by Coron is, whowas k illed by Artem is for unfaithfulness, and her body was about to beburn t on the pyre, when Apollo snatched the boy ou t Of the flames andhanded him over to th e centaur Cheiron , who taugh t him how to cureall diseases. Pindar tell s the story Of h i s instruct ion in the art of

medicine :

The rescued ch ild he gave to shareMagnesian Centaur’s fostering careAnd learn o f him the soothing art

That wards from man diseases’ dart.O f those whom nature made to feel

Corrod ing u lcers gnaw their frame

O r stones far hurled , or glittering steel,All to the great physician came .

By summer’s heat or w inter’s co ldOppressed, of him they sought relief.

Each deadly pang his sk il l contro l led ,And found a balm for every grief.

On some the force o f charmed strains he tried,To some the medicated draught appl iedSome l imbs he p laced the amu lets around ,Some from the trunk he cu t, and made the patient souncl .” 1

It was bel ieved that h e was even able to restore the dead to l ife.According to one tradition

, IEsculapius was once shut up in the houseOf Glaucus , whom he was to cure, and wh i le he was absorbed in though tthere came a serpent, which twined round his staff, and which he k illed .

Then he saw another serpen t, wh ich came carrying in its mouth a herb,with which i t recalled to l ife the one that had been killed ; and the

physic ian henceforth made use Of the same herb to restore dead ment o l ife, the popular bel ief, even in these early t imes, evidently be i ngthat what would cure serpents would be equally efii cacious for men .

We may therefore cons ider the snake-en twined staff Of the heal inggod as the symbol Of the early faith in the efficacy of experimen ts on

animals , though in th is instance the experimen t was on a dead one.

[Esculapius was on ly too successful a pract itioner for when h e wasexerc is ing his art upon Glaucus , Zeus killed the phys ic ian with a flashOf l ightning, as he feared that men might gradual ly escape death altogether. O thers say the reason was that Pluto complained that by suchmedical treatment the number Of the dead was too much dim in ished .

1 VVheelwright’

s translation of P indar . T/z ird Py t/n'

arz Ode, 80- 95.

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES. 149

On the request of Apollo, Zeus placed IEsculapius amongst the stars .His wife was Epione (the soother) . Homer men t ions Podalirius and

Machaon as sons of IEsculapius, and the fol lowing are also said to havebeen his sons and daugh ters—Janiscus, Alexenor, Aratus, Hygeia, IEgle ,Iaso, and Panaceia. Most Of these, as Hygeia, the goddess o f heal th ,and Panaceia, the all-healing, i t wil l be seen , are merely personificationsOf the powers ascribed to their father. There is no doubt that facts arethe bas is of the Afi sculapian s tory. The divin i ty was worshipped all overGreece. His temples were for the most part buil t in mountainous andhealthy places, and as Often as possible in the neighbourhood o f a

medic inal spring in a sense they became the prototypes .Of our hospitalsand medical schools . Mult itudes Of s ick persons vis i ted them,

and

the priests found i t to the ir interes t to s tudy diseases and the ir remedies ; for though faith and rel igious fervour may do much for the s ick ,the art of the phys ic ian and the hand of the surgeon are adj uncts byno means to be despised even in a temple cl in ic. The chief of theIEsculapian temples was at Epidaurus there no one was perm itted to

die and no woman to give b irth to a ch i ld . The connect ion of theserpent wi th the divin i ty probably arose from the idea that serpen tsrepresent prudence and renovation

,and have the power of discover

ing the secret virtues Of heal ing plants .The idea Of the serpent twined round the rod Of E sculapius i s thatas s ickness comes from him, from him too mus t or may come thehealing.

”1 The knots on the staff are supposed to symbolize the manyknotty points wh ich arise in the prac tice o f physic .

M INERVA was the patroness of all the arts and trades at her fest ivalsshe was invoked by all who desi red to distinguish themselves in medic ine, as well as by the patients whom they failed to cure. As thegoddess of intelligence and invent iveness , she was the Greek patronessOf physic ians, and was the same deity as Pallas Athene, who bestowshealth and keeps Off s ickness .ARTEMIS, or D IANA, as the Romans called the Greek goddess, was a

deity who, inviolate and vigorous herself, granted health and s trength toothers . She was the s ister of Apollo, and though a dispenser o f li fecould, l ike her brother, send death and disease amongst men and animals .Sudden deaths, espec ially amongst women, were described as the effectOf her arrows . She was 6681. 01 67 54011 , who assuaged the sufferings o f

mortals . When IEneas was wounded,she healed him in the temple

Of Apollo .

2 Yet Artem is r avpmrého ; produced madii ess In the m indsOf men .

3

1 Sacred Bool es of tire East , vol. iv. p. 2 19 note.

2 V. 447 .

3 Sophoc. , Ajax .

1 50 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF IlIEDICINE.

She was the Cretan D ik tynna, and that goddess wore a wreath of

the magic plant di/efamuoa o r dicta/anus , called by us dittany (dictamrzusr zzoer

,or alous) i t grows in abundance on Mounts D ie/é and Ida in

(Zrete .

The Cretan goddess BRITOMARTIS was sometimes ident ified withArtemi s. She too was a goddess Of health as also Of birth, and was

supposed to dispense happiness to mortals .BACCHUS, or, as he was called by the Greeks , D IONYSUS, as the god of

wine , and an inspi red and an insp ir ing deity, who revealed the future byoracles

,cured diseases by discovering to sufferers in their dreams their

appropriate remedies. The prophet, the priest, and the physic ian are soOften blended in one in the early h istory Of c i vil i zat ion ,

that th e sameideas naturally c lustered round Bacchus as around Apollo, and other

great benefactors Of mankind . The giver of vines and wine was thedispenser of th e an imating, exalting, intoxicating powers Of nature. As

wine restores the flagging energi es of th e body and m ind,and seems

to have the power of calling back to l ife the departing spiri t, and inspiring the languish ing vital i ty Of man

,Bacchus would naturally enough be

a god Of medic ine . The in toxicating properties of wine would be con

nected with inspirat ion , and so Bacchus had a share in th e oracles OfD elph i and Amphicleia. He was invoked as a deb; tr on

-rip agains t raging

diseases.AMMON was an Eth iopian divin i ty whose worsh ip spread over Egypt,

and thence to Greece , and was described as the spiri t pervading theun iverse

,and as th e author of al l l ife in nature.

HERMES TR ISMEGISTUS Of the Greeks was iden tified in the time ofPlato with Thoth

,Thot, or Theut of the Egyptians . 1

The Egyptian THOTH was cons idered th e father Of all knowledge, andeveryth ing commi tted to wri ting was looked upon as h i s property ; hewas therefore the embodied Myo s, and so cpl; p e

’

yw‘

ros, or the superlat ively greatest . He was ident ified by the Greeks more or less com

pletely with their own HERMES,or MERCURY as he was known to the

Romans ; he was the messenger Of the gods ; as dreams are s ent byZeus

,i t was his Offi ce to convey them to men, and he had power to

gran t refresh ing Sleep or to deny the bless ing. As the gods revealedthe remedies for s ickness in dreams

,Hermes became a god O f

medic ine.Thoth , the ibis-headed , was the Egypt ian god o f letters , the dei ty O f

wisdom in general,who aided Horus in his confl ic t with Seth , and

recorded the j udgments of the dead before O s iris . Hermes xp i oqbépos ,

the averter Of d iseases,was worsh ipped in Boeotia. Hermes

,the Greek

1 Cicero , D e Nat. D eon , iii . 22 .

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1 52 A POPULAR HISTORY OF IlIED ICINE.

of Proetus by giving them hellebore (wh ich has been called Meiami

pod ium by botan ists) , and he received the eldest Of the princesses inmarriage . He cured the women Of Argos o f a severe distemper whichmade them insane

,and the king showed h is gratitude by giving him

part of h is k ingdom. He rece ived,divine honours after h i s death

,and

temples were raised to him.

THE MEDICINE OF HOMER.

As Homer i s supposed to have l ived about 850 B.C. , a study o f suchreferences as are to be found in the I liad and Ody ssey wh ich relate tomedicine and surgery will throw an importan t l igh t on the state Of thehealing art as i t was pract ised at that early period Of Greek h i story.

There i s l i ttle men ti on of disease in Homer. We read Of suddendeath

, pesti lence, and th e troubles of Old age, but there is hardly’

any

fixed morbid condi tion noticed .

Al though the poet exh ibits cons iderable acquaintance wi th medicallore

,and the human body in health and disease, he cou ld have had

li ttle or no acquaintance with anatomy, because amongst Greeks , asamongst Je ivs, i t was cons idered a profanation to d issect or mutilatethe human corpse.It was not t il l the r i se Of the Alexandrian school in the golden age

Of the Ptolem ies that th i s sentimen t was overcome. Still Homer mus thave known that i t was the custom of the Egypt ians to embalm theirdead, as he refers to the process in the Iliad,1 where Thetis poured intothe nostrils Of the corpse red nectar and ambrosia to preserve i t from

putrefact ion . Ambrosia i s referred to by Virgil as useful for healingwounds , and nectar was supposed to preserve flesh from decay.

Homer’s heroes seem to have been s ingularly healthy folk ; their onlydemand for the services Of the army surgeons arose from the acc iden tsOf war. MACHAON distingu ished h imself in surgery

,and PODALIRIUS is

reputed to have been th e fi rst phlebotomi st. Their services would bechiefly requi red for extract ing arrow-heads and spear-heads, checkinghaemorrhage by compress ion and stypt ic appl ications

, and laying sooth ;

ing ointments on wounded and bru ised surfaces . Beyond these m inorduties Of th e army surgeon

,we find l i ttl e record of the ir work. Men tion

is not‘

made Of amputations,of setting o f fractures

, or tying Of arteries .Wounds were probed by Machaon

, surgeon to Menelaus (BookWhatever may have been the surgical skil l Of Machaon, we have

proof that th e art of dieting the wounded was not at all unders tood inthe Homer ic days . The wine and cheese was not the kind of refresh ~

ment wh ich found favour in Plato’s t ime with the Greek physic ians .

1 Book XIX.

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES. 1 53

Plato,in the Repuolic (Book deal s wi th the question at some

length . He says that the draugh t o f Pramnian wine with barley mealand cheese was an inflammatory m ixture

,and a strange potion for a

man in the state OfEurypylus .But he excuses the sons of Ascl epius for their treatment

,explain ing

that their method was no t intended for coddling inval ids, but for suchas had no t t ime to be ill, and that the heal ing art was revealed forthe benefit o f those whose const itutions were naturally sound

, and

that doctors used to expel their disorders by drugs and the use Of theknife without interrupting their customary avocations

,decl in ing alto

gether to assi s t chron ic inval ids to protract a m i serable existence bya stud ied regimen.

Le Clerc says 1 that Plato i s wrong in th i s explanation Of the Homerictreatment, and that the true one i s that in those days the dietary of th esick was no t understood . Modern medicine will decl ine to acceptei ther theory. The fact is

,Homer’s physic ians were righ t. Good Old

wine was the best th ing poss ible to restore a man faint ing from th e lossof blood ; as for the cheese i t was grated fine, and therefore was a

peculiarly nutri tious food in a fairly digest ible condition. The barleywater at al l t imes was at leas t i rreproachable. Al though there i s l i ttl eevidence in the Homeric poems o f any medical treatment wh ich passesthe l imi ts Of surgery, th is is by no mean s conclus ive against the

possess ion of the h igher art by Podal irius . In an epic poem,as Le

Clerc points out, the subj ec t i s al together too exalted to adm i t o fmedical d iscourses on the treatmen t o f col ic and d iarrhoea .

Nei ther must we be surprised , that when the pesti lence appearedin the camp Of Agamemnon

,Podal irius and Machaon d id nothing to

avert i t. Such a disease was at that t ime cons idered beyond all humanskill, and as the direct vis i tat ion Of the gods . Homer cl early explain sthat the pesti lence was due to their anger Galen adduces evidenceto prove that IEsculapius d id really pract ise medic ine, by mus ic and

by gymnastics, or exerc ises on foot and horseback .

As Le Clerc says ,’2 th i s may have been patriot ic exaggeration on th e

part of Galen. To Podalir ius is attributed the invent ion Of the art ofbleeding. AS he returned from the Troj an war, he was driven by atempest on the shores o f Caria, where a shepherd, having learned thathe was a physic ian

,took him to the king, whose daugh ter was s ick . He

cured her by bleeding from both arms ; th e k ing gave her to him in

marriage,with a rich gran t of land. Th is i s the Oldes t exampl e wh ich

we have Of bleeding.

Podal irius had a sonHippolochus , Of whom the great Hippocrates was1 Hist. de la IlIe'dic ze, Pt. I . , liv. i . , ch . x iv.

1 54 A P OPULAR IIISTORY OF MEDICINE.

a descendant. Le Clerc devotes a chapter Of h i s IIislory of M edicine

t o reflections on the ant iqui ty O f the practice of venesection, and

speculates on the manner Of i ts d i scovery . He says, the fact thatHomer i s s ilen t on . th e subj ec t makes neither for nor against thetheory that i t was known in hi s time ; in such works as those of the

poet he was under no Obl igat ion to specify particularly the remediesemployed by the doc tors . He speaks, for example, of sooth ing medic ines and bitter roots withou t further defin i tion. I t would be as reasonable to agree that purgatio

’

n was unknown from Homer’s s ilence onthe matter.Homer knew someth ing of the parts of th e body where wounds are

most fatal . He says (Book IV. 1. “ The arrow fel l in no such

place as death could enter at, and (Book'

VIII .,1. where th e

arrow s truck the right shoulder ’twixt the neck and breast,

“ the woundwas wondrous ful l of death .

”

He knew much of drugs and medic inal plants : qfiafpjuaxov (pharmakon) in the I liad i s a rem edy, an unguent or appl ication , and i smentioned n ine t imes ; in the Ody ssey i t i s a drug or medicinal herb,and i s referred to twenty t imes . In Book XL,

Eurypylus , whenwounded

,i s treated with the “ wholesome on ion , a potion i s confected

with good Old wine of Pramn ius,with scra p ed goat’s-mi lk cheese and

fine flour m ixed wi th i t . Later on in the sam e book,we read Of the

bruised, bitter, pain-assuaging root being appl ied to a wound ; i t wassome strong astringent b itter p lan t, probably a spec iesof geran ium.

Then in the Ody ssey (Book IV. 200 ) occurs the reference to ne

pen the, a drug wh ich has puzzled commentators exceedingly ; some sayi t was poppy j uice, others hash ish ; we have also the magic moly, wh ichMercury gave to Ulysses against the charms Of C i rce . By some th is i sthought to have been the unpoetical garl ic, by others to be wild rue,such as josephus refers to . It was more probably the mandrake.There i s a very curi ous and important reference to sulphur, as a dis

infectan t fumigation in the Ody ssey (Book XXII. 48 1 )Bring su lphur straight, and fire (the m onarch cries) .She bears , and at the word obedient fl ies ,With fire and su lphur, cure Of nox ious fumes,He purged the wal ls and blood-

pol luted rooms.

Th i s i s prec isely what the san i tary authorit ies do with fever dens atthe presen t day.Homer several times refers to Machaon

And great Machaon to the ships conveyA w ise physician , sk illed our wounds to heal ,Is more than arm ies to the publ ic weal . ”

(I liad, XI.

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1 56 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF IlIEDICINE.

two arts. There seems,however, some confus ion of the two branches

in the l ines

A w ise physician , sk illed our woundsto heal ,Is more than arm ies to the publ ic weal .

If we suppose that the accoun t of venesect ion wh ich attributes itsdiscovery to Podalirius i s fabulous, th is would only serve to prove thean tiquity of the pract ice. Hippoc rates i s said to be the first medicalwriter who has spoken of bleeding,1 yet we must not suppose i t wasunknown before h is t ime. He advises blood -lett ing from the arm

,from

the temporal vessels, from the leg, etc. ,in some cases even to fainting.

He i s fam il iar with cupping and other methods of abstracting blood ;i t i s not probable, therefore, that the operat ion was a new one in his

day.

The discovery of the pract ice of purging as a remedy was attributedto Melampus . But we know that the Egyptians made use of purgativeand emetic medic ines. There were

‘

many purgatives in use in the t imeo f Hippocrates , as hellebore, elaterium,

colocynth , and scammony .

All these medic ines could no t have been discovered at once, as LeClerc poin ts out ; mankind, therefore, must have gradually acquiredtheir use. When persons were overloaded in the stomach and constipated

,noth ing was more natural than that they should seek rel ief by

removing the mechan ical causes o f their distress . Some one had takensome herb wh ich had caused him to vom i t o r to be purged, and hadexperienced the benefit o f the evacuation ; he told h i s friends , and

they perhaps had been aided by sim ilar means. Or again, some illnes shad been alleviated by the supervent ion Of diarrhoea

,and art was called

in to im i tate the beneficial effect of nature’s cure. In th i s way, says'

Le Clerc, bleeding may reasonably have been discovered : a severeheadache i s often rel ieved by bleed ing from the nose

,what more

natural than that the process of rel ief should be im i tated by Open ing avein ?Pliny, indeed , in his usual manner, introduces a fable to account for

the discovery of venesect ion . He says 2 that the hippopotamus havingbecome too fat and unwieldy through over-eating, bled h imself with asharp-

pointed reed , and when he had drawn suffic ient blood,closed the

wound with clay. Men have imitated the operat ion, says Pliny. Thi si s matched by the story o f the ibis wi th her long bill being the inventoro f the c lyster. Most of the medical beast s tories are probably on alevel with these.

1 Le C lerc, Hist. de la MM ,Pt. I bk . i . , ch. XVIII.

2 Lib. VIII. , cap . 26 .

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES. 1 5 7

Hygeia, the wife of E scalap ias, and her ch i ldren , bore names wh ichShow the same poetic fancy as that which consti tuted Apollo th e authorof medic ine. {Esczzlap z

'

us i s the air. Hygeia i s heal th Afgle i s brightness or splendour, because the air i s i llum ined and purified by the sun .

Iaso i s recovery, Panacea the un iversal medic ine, Roma i s s trength .

The anc ients everywhere bel ieved that the healing art was taugh t tomankind by the gods . The art of medic ine, says C icero, “ has beenconsecrated by the invent ion o f the immortal gods.” 1

HippOcrates2 attributed the art of medic ine to the Supreme Being.

As the Greeks bel ieved that the arts in general were invented by th egods

,i t was a natural bel ief that th e knowledge of medic ine should

have been taugh t by the heavenly powers. The mysteries of l ife, disease

,and death were pecul iarly the province of supernatural beings, and

man has ever attributed to such powers all those th ings wh ich he couldnot comprehend .

THE TEMPLES OF IESCULAPIUS.

The worsh ip of Asclepius or IEsculapius i s so c losely associated wi ththe practice of Greek medicine that i t i s imposs ible to understand theone without knowing someth ing of the o ther. Sick persons made pilgrimages to the temples of the god of healing, j ust as now they go toLourdes

,St. Win i fred’s Well , or other famous Chris tian . shrines for the

recovery of the ir health . After prayers to th e god, ablutions, and sacrifices

,the patient was put to sleep on th e skin of the animal offered at

the altar,or at the foot of the statue of th e d ivini ty, wh i le the pries ts

performed their sacred ri tes . In h i s sleep he would have pointed out

to him in a dream what he ough t to do for the recovery of h i s health .

Sometimes the appropriate medic ine would be suggested, but morecommonly rules of conduct and diet would sufli ce. When the cure took

place, wh ich very frequently happened by suggestion as in modernhypnoti sm,

and by the s timulus to the nervous system consequent uponthe j ourney

, and the hope exc i ted in the pat ien t, a record of the caseand the cure was carved on the temple walls. Thus were recorded thefirst h istories of cases

,and their s tudy afforded the most valuable treatises

on the heal ing art to the physic ian s who s tudied them. The pries ts offEsculapius were sometimes called Asclepiads, but they did not themselves act as physic ians

,nor were they the actual founders Of Greek

medicine . The true Asclep iads were healers and not priests . Anathe

mata (dvridq t a , anyth ing offered up) were offerings of models in gold ,s ilver, etc .

, of diseased legs, feet, etc .,or of deformed l imbs consecrated

1 G o , Tusc. D is .

, III . 1 .

2 II ippocr. , De Pr isca Medic.

1 58 A P OPULAR HISTORY OF .MEDICINE.

to the gods in the templ es by th e devotion of the patients who hadreceived benefit from the prayers to the deities who were worshippedtherein. The priests of the temples sold these again and again to freshpatients .

THE EARLY IONIC PHILOSOPHERS .

The various schools of Greek ph i losophy were intimately assoc i atedwith the study of medicine. They endeavoured to fathom the mysteryof l ife, and the relat ionship of the vis ible order of th ings to the unseenworld . The philosophers were therefore not only physicis ts , but meta

physic ians, and the unhappy sc ience of medic ine, a homeless wanderer,had to shelter herself now with the natural ph ilosophers and again withthe metaphysicians . Probably the ph i losophers never really practi sed

physic, but merely speculated about i t, as did Plato. A brief notice ofthe various philosophers of the Ion ic, Italian, Eleatic, and Material ist icschools who were more or less associated with the study of medic inemust suffice as an introduction to Greek medicine proper, wh ich had i tsorigin with Hippocrates.THALES OF MILETUS (about 609 the Ion ian ph i losopher

,intro

duced Egypt ian and As iat ic sc ience into Greece. He had probably inh i s travels in the land o f the Pharaohs devoted h imsel f to mathematical

pursuits, and i f not a sc ien t ific inquirer was a deep speculator on theorigin of th ings . He held that everyth ing arises from water

,and every

th ing ultimately again resolves i tself into water. Everyth ing,he said

,i s

full of gods the soul originates mot ion (the magnet has a soul, according to him), and s o the indwell ing power or soul of water produces thephenomena of the natural world . He must not, however, be understoodas teaching the doctrine of th e Soul of the Un iverse, or of a CreatingDeity. Thales was the first wri ter on physics and the founder of the

philosophy of Greece. Le Clerc connects him with medicine by hisconverse wi th th e priest-physic ians of Egypt, and that he had performedcertain exp iatory or puri fying ceremonies for the Lacedaemon ians wh ichcould only be done by such as were divines and physic ians.

1

PHERECYDES, the Syrian , a ph i losopher who l ived about the samet ime as Thales

,i s said by Galen to have written upon diet.

EPIMENEDES was a sort of Greek Rip Van Winkle, who purifiedAthens in the t ime of a plague by means of mysterious ri tes and sacrifices. He excelled as a fast ing man

, so that he was said to have beenexempt from the ordinary necessi ti es of nature, and could send out h i ssoul from h is body and recall i t l ike the Mahatmas. He was of the

1 Le Clerc, Hist . de la P t. I. , liv. c . iv.

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160 A POP ULAR IIISTORY OF MEDICINE.

the righ t, females in the left s ide of the uterus. D i seases are occasionedby the bile wh ich penetrates into the blood-vessels, the lungs , and the

pleura. He undertook the dissection of an imals, remarked the existence in the brain of the lateral ventr icles , and was the firs t to declarethat the bile i s the cause of acute s ickness . 1

D IOGENES OF APOLLONIA, the eminen t natural ph i losopher, l ived atAthens about 460 B.C. He was a pup i l of Anaximenes, and wrotea work ent itled On Nature

,in which he treated of physical sci ence

generally. Aristotle has preserved for u s some of the few fragmentswh ich remain. The most important i s the description of the originand distribution of the veins, and i s inserted in the th ird book of Aristo tle

’s IIistory of Animals. D iogenes La

'

é rtius gives an accoun t of the

ph i losoph ical teach ing of th e ph ilosopher :“He maintained that ai r

was the primal elemen t of all th ings ; that there was an infinite num

ber of worlds, and an infin i te void ; that air, densified and rarefied,

produced the different members of the un iverse ; that noth ing was

produced from noth ing,or was reduced to noth ing that th e earth was

round , supported in the m iddle, and had received its shape from thewh irling round of the warm vapours, and i ts concretion and hardeningfrom cold .

” 2

D iogenes recogn ised no distinct ion between m ind and matter,yet he

cons idered air possessed intellectual energy.

We find in th is ph ilosopher many indications that the vascular systemwas in some degree beginn ing to be understood.

3 Mr. Lewes and Mr.

Grote agree that D iogenes deserves a h igher place in the evolut ion of

ph ilosophy than either Hegel or Schwegler.EMPEDOCLES of Agrigen tum, born about 490 B.C. , now bears forward

the flam ing torch of medical science, and in h is hands i t burns morebrightly st ill . Aristotle mentions him among the Ion ian phys iologi sts,and ranks him with the atom istic ph ilosophers and Anaxagoras . Theseall sought to discover the basis of al l changes and to explain them.

According to Empedocles :“There are four ul timate kinds of things,

four primal d ivin i t ies, of wh ich are made all s tructures in the worldfire

,air

,water

,and earth . These four elements are eternally brought

into un ion, and eternally parted from each other, by two d ivine beingsor powers, love and hatred— an attract ive and a repuls ive force wh ichthe ordinary eye can sec working amongst men

,bu t which really p er

vade the whole world. According to the differen t proportions in wh ichthese four indestruc tible and unchangeable matters are combined with

1 Puschmann , Hist . IlIed. Education , p. 46.

2 See on this D r. Greenhil l’s remark s in Smi t/z ’s D iet. Creole and Roman Biograpby ,

loc. cit.3 Aristotle, Hist . An imal , i ii. 2 .

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES . 16 1

each other is the difference of th e organ ic structure produced ; e.g.

, fleshand blood are made of equal parts of all four elemen ts , whereas bonesare one-half fire

,one- fourth earth

,and one- fourth water. It i s in the

aggregation and segregation of elements thus ari smg that Empedocles ,l ike the atomi s ts

,finds the real process which corresponds to what i s

popularly termed growth , increase, or decrease. Nothing new comesor can come into being the on ly change that can occur is a change inthe juxtaposit ion of el emen t wi th elemen t .

” 1

He considered that men , an imals, and plants are demons pun i shedby ban i shment, bu t who , becom ing purified , may regain the home ofthe gods. It i s hardly necessary to say that he held the demon iacal

possession theory of disease, and treated all complain ts by meansappropriate to the theory. An ticipating the modern Opin ions of the bacteriologists, he ban i shed epidem ics by building great fires and drainingthe water from marshy lands . He understood someth ing of the causesof infect ious diseases , and in their treatmen t usurped the province ofthe gods who had sen t them.

2 He bel ieved the embryo was nourishedthrough the navel . We owe to him the terms amnion and clzor ion

the innermost and outer membranes with wh ich the foetus i s surroundedin the womb) . He bel ieved that death was caused by extinct i on of

heat,that expirat ion arose from the upward motion of the blood, and

inspiration from the reverse . He i s said to have raised a dead womanto l i fe.

3

Empedocles bel ieved in the doctrine of re- incarnation . I well remember

,he says

,

“ the time before I was Empedocles, that I once wasa boy

,then a girl

,a plan t, a gl i ttering fish

,a bird that cut th e air .” To

his disc iples he said : By my instruct ion s you shall learn medic inesthat are powerful to cure disease

,and re-an imate old age —you shall

recall the strength of the dead man,when he has already become the

vict im of Pluto.

” 4 Further speaking of himsel f, he says : I am reveredby both men and women

,who follow me by ten thousands, inquiring

the road to boundless wealth,seeking the gift of prophecy, and who

would learn the marvellous ski ll to cure all kinds of diseases.” 5

THE SCHOOL OF THE PYTHAGOREANS AT CROTONA .

Although in anc ien t Greece the art of medic ine, as we have alr eadyshown, was closely connected with the temples, i f no t actually wi threligion , i ts entanglement with philosophy was a scarcely less unfortu

nate connection , and i t was no t able to make any real progress t i ll1 Ency . Br i t ,

N in th Ed . , vol . iii . p . 1 78 .

2 Baas, .Hist . Med , p . 88 .

3 Ibid. , p . 89 .

4 Laert ius, c. 77, C. 59 .

5 Ibid . , c . 62 .

162 A POPULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

HIPPOCRATES l iberated i t from both priests and ph ilosophers . 582

years before Chris t PYTHAGORAS was born, the ideal hero or s aint whomwe fain tly discern through the mythical haze wh ich has always enveloped him. Philosopher, prophet , wonder-worker, and phys ic ian , hegathered into h is m ind as in to a focus the wisdom of the Brahmans, thePersian Magi

,the Egypt ians, the Phoen ic ians , the Chaldaeans, the Jews ,

the Arabians,and the D ruids of Gaul, amongst whom he had travelled

,

i f we may bel ieve what is reported of him . He may have vis itedEgypt, 1 at any rate , bes ides acquain ting h imself with the countries ofthe Mediterranean . His authentic history begins with h is em igrationto Cro tona, in South Italy, about the year 5 29 . There he founded akind of rel igious brotherhood or eth ical-reform soc iety, and “ appearedas the revealer of a mode of li fe calculated to raise his disc iples abovethe level of mankind

,and to recommend them to the favour Of the

gods .”2 Grote believes that the removal to Crotona was prompted bythe des ire to study medic ine in its famous school, probably combinedwith the notion of instruc t ing the pupi ls in his philosophy . He ren

dered great services to the healing art by ins isting on the necessi ty ofa thorough comprehension of the organs , structure, and functions ofthe body in their n ormal

,healthy condition ; this must be conceded

,

though hi s visionary philosophy did much to destroy the sc i ent ific valueof his med ical teaching .

The founder Of the healing art amongst the Greeks and Hellen icpeoples generally was Pythagoras . He was imbued with Easternmystic ism

,teaching that the ai r i s full of spi ritual beings, who send

dreams to men and cause to men and cattle disease and health . He

taught that these sp iri ts must be conc i l iated by lustration s and invocations . Pliny says 3 that he taugh t that hold ing dill (anetiznm) in thehand is good against ep ilepsy. The health of the body is to be maintained by diet and gymnast ics . It i s interest ing to find that thi s great

philosopher recommended mus ic to restore the harmony of th e sp ir its .Besides the magic virtues Of the dill, he held that many other plantspossessed them

,such as the cabbage (a food in great favour with the

Pythagoreans ), the squill,and an ise . He held that surgery was no t tobe prac tised, as i t i s unlawful, but salves and poultices were to be

perm itted. His disciples attributed the un ion between medicine andphilosophy to him.

The Pythagorean philosophy turns upon the idea of numbers and

the mathematical relations of th ings All th ings are number ;“number is the essence of everything. The world subsists by the

princ iple of ordered numbers . The spheres revolve harmon iously the1 B iodot . ,

i . 69 , 98.

2 Grote, vol . iv. p . 529 .

3 Book xx . 73.

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164 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

respect to the septenary number in diseases, and that of the odd and

even days,i s of Pythagorean origin.

1 The Pythagoreans had a greatrespect for the number four. The quaternary number was sacred to theEgypt ians they burned in the temples of Isi s a k ind of res inous gu ru,myrrh

,and other drugs,

”

in the preparation of which they had regard tothe number four. The Israel ites im i tated them in th i s respect (Exod.

xxx .

The sacred bean of Pythagoras was the obj ect of rel igious venerat ion in Egypt ; the priests were commanded not to look upon i t. It

i s thought to have been th e East Indian IVelnmbinm.

3

ZAMOLXIS, who was a god to the Getans, i s supposed by some tohave been a slave and disc iple of Pythagoras by others he is consideredan altogether mythical personage. He i s credited by those who believehim to have been a phys ic ian with having said that A man could no t

cure the eyes without curing the head,nor the head without all the

rest of the body,nor the body without the soul .” Plato said much the

same th ing when he remarked,

“ To cure a headache you must treatth e whole man .

”Zamolxis cured the soul

,no t by the enchan tmen ts of

magic , but by wise discourse and reasonable conversation. These discourses ,

” said Plato,

“produce wisdom in the soul, which having once

been acquired i t i s easy after that to procure health both for the headand all the res t of the body .

”

DEMOCEDES was a celebrated physic ian of Cro tona, in Magna Grec ia,who l ived in the s ixth cen tury B.C. He went to practise at E gina,where he received from the publ ic treasury a sum equal to about 344

a year for his services . The next year he wen t to Athen s at a salaryequal to £406, and the following year he wen t to the island of Samos .The tyran t Polycrates gave him the salary of two talents . He was

carried prisoner to Susa to the court of Darius, where he acquired a

great reputation and much wealth by curing the king’s foot and thebreast of the queen. It i s recorded that D arius ordered the surgeonswho had failed to cure him to be pu t to death , but Democedes interceded for and saved them. He ultimately escaped to Crotona, wherehe settled

,the Persians having in vain demanded his return .

4 He

wrote a work on medicine .

DEMOCRITUS,of Abdera

,was a contemporary of Socrates ; he was

born between 494 and 460 B.C.,and was one of the founders of the

7Atom ic ph ilosophy. He was profoundly versed in all the knowledgeOf h i s time . So arden t a studen t was he, that he once said that be preferred the discovery of a true cause to the possession of the kingdom of

l Lib. 3 , cap. 4.

2 Sprengel , Hist . p . 36.

2 Pratt , Flower ing Plan ts , vol. 1. p . 57 .

4 Herod ,111 I 37

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES. 165

Persia. The highest object of sc i en tific investigation he held to be

the discovery of causes. He wrote on medic ine, and devoted himsel fzealously to the study of anatomy and phys iology. Pliny says that hecomposed a special treati se on the structure o f the chameleon .

1 He

wrote on can ine rabies, and on the influence of music in the treatmentof disease . He i s , however, best known to sc ience on account of h iscosmical theory . All that exists i s vacuum and atoms . The atomsare the ultimate material of all th ings, even of sp i ri t. They are un

caused and eternal , invis ible, yet extended , heavy and impenetrable .

They are in constant mot ion,and have been so from all etern i ty . By

their motion the world and all i t con tains was produced . Soul and fireare of the same nature, of small , smooth , round atoms , and i t i s byinhaling and exhal ing these that l i fe i s maintained. The soul perisheswi th the body. He rej ec ted all theology and popular mythology.

Reason had noth ing to do with the creation of the world , and he said ,There i s nothing true ; and i f there is

,we do no t know i t.” “We

know nothing, no t even i f there i s anything to know.

” He died ingreat honour

,yet in poverty

,at an advanced age (some writers say at

1 09 years) . His knowledge of nature, and especial ly of medic ine, causedhim to be considered a sorcerer and a magic ian. There was a tradition that he depr ived himself of h i s s ight in order to be undis turbed inh is intellectual speculation s . He probably became bl ind by too c loseattent ion to study. Another s tory was that he was cons idered to beinsane, and Hippocrates was sent for to cure him.

The great ph i losophers of anc ien t Greece bel ieved that all the elements are modification s of one common substance

,called the primary

matter,which they demon strated to be devoid of all qual ity and form ,

but suscept ible of all quali t i es and forms . I t i s everyth ing in capac i ty,but nothing in actual ity. Matter i s eternal the elements are the firstmatter arranged into certain distingu ish ing forms . Some of the early

philosophers held that all the materials wh ich compose the un iverseexisted in a fluid form ; they understood by fire

,matter in a h ighly

refined state , and that i t is the element most in t imately connected withlife

,some even cons idering i t the very essence of the soul . Our souls

are fire,

” says Phornu tus .

“What we cal l heat i s immortal,

”says

one of the Hippocratic writers, “ and understands, sees, and hears allthings that are or will be .

”2

Bacon explains the anc ien t fable of Proteus as s ign i fying matter, asometh ing which , being below all forms and supporting them,

is yetdifferent from them all .

1 Hist. Nat. , x xviii . c. 29 .

2 D e Carn ibns .

166 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Sir Isaac Newton i s not widely differen t from Strabo when he saysthat al l bodies may be convertible into one another.Comment ing upon these op in ions of the Greek philosophers , D r.

Adams says,in h is introduc t ion to the works of Hippocrates 1 If

every step which we advance in the knowledge of the in timate structureof th ings leads us to contract the number of substances formerly held tobe s imple

, I would no t wonder i f i t should yet turn out that oxygen ,

carbon, hydrogen, and n i trogen are—l ike what the anc i en ts held theelements to be— all nothing else but different modifications of one everchanging matter.”

The theories of the Greek philosophers on th e elements are poeticallysummed up in Ovid

’s Metamorp/zoses

Nor those which elements we call abide ,Nor to this figure nor to that are ty’dFor this eternal world is said o f oldBut four pro lific principles to hold,Four different bodies two to heaven ascend,And other two down to the centre tend.

F ire first , w ith w ings expanded, mounts on high,Pure , vo id of weight, and dwel ls in upper skyThen air , because unclogged, in empty spaceF lies after fire , and claims the second placeBut weighty water, as her nature gu ides,Lies on the lap of earth and mother Earth subsides.A ll things are m ixed of these , which all contain ,

And into these are al l reso lved againEarth rarifies to dew expanding more ,The subtle dew in air begins to soarSpreads as she fl ies, and , weary of the name

,

Extenuates stil l , and changes into flame .

Thus having by degrees perfection won ,Restless, they soon untw ist the web they spun ,And fire begins to lose her radiant hue,M ixed w ith gross air, and air descends in dewAnd dew condensing, does her form forego;And sinks , a heavy lump of earth, below .

Thus are their figures never at a stand,But changed by Nature’s innovating hand.

” 2

GREEK THEORIES OF D ISEASE.

As the Greeks believed that all d iseases were the consequences of

the anger of the gods, i t was in their temples that cures were mostl ikely to take place. Faith was the sine and non in the patient, and

everything aboflt the temple and i ts ceremon i es was calculated to1 Vol. i . p . 1 5 1 .

2 Ovid’s M etamorph ,Dryden’s translation

,Book XV.

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168 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

etc., wh ich have become celebrated , give out that they belong to the

fam i ly of the inventor,and thus know the secrets of the preparation .

1

This professional c lass was quite d ist inc t from the priest s of theIEsculapian temples , though many wri ters have confused them. Probably the truth i s th is z—Certain students from reading the votive tabletsin the temples

, and exam in ing the persons who came to be cured , gavetheir attent ion to the art of medic ine, and establ ished themselves as

physicians in the neighbourhood of the temples for i t does no t appearthat th e priests themselves pretended to medical skil l. They were theinstruments of the divine revelation, the mediums of the heal ing powerof the god they suggested remedies

,but did no t attempt their appl ica

t ion or the treatment of cases . In process of t ime the pi lgrims to thetemples would require human aid to supplemen t the often disappoint ingdivine assistance

,and th is the Asclepiadae were appoin ted to supply.

Hypnotism was probably practised ; music, and such drugs as hem lockwere also employed which soothe the nervous system and rel ieve pain.

The Asclep iadae took careful notes of the symptoms and progress ofeach case, and were particular to Observe the effect o f the treatmen t

prescribed ; they became, in consequence,exceedingly skilful in prog

nosis . Galen says that l ittle attent ion was paid to dietetics by theAsclep iads but Strabo Speaks of the knowledge wh ich Hippocratesderived from th e documen ts in the Asclepion of Cos.

2 Exerc i se,

especially on horseback , was one of the measures used by the Ascle

piads for restoring th e health .

3

SCHOOLS OF THE ASCLEPIADES .

The three most famous schools of the Asclepiades were those ofRhodes

, COS, and Cnidos . There were also that of Cro tona, in LowerItaly

,established by Pythagoras

,and the school of Cyrene , in the

North of Africa. Famous templ es of IEsculap ius existed at Titanae,Epidaurus , Orope, Cyllene, Ti thorea, Tricca , Megalopol is , Pergamus ,Corin th , Smyrna , and at many other places .

‘1

A spiri t of healthy emulation exi sted in these d ifferen t schools , wh ichwas most advan tageous for the progress of medical sc i ence . The toneexist ing at th is early period amongst the different medical soc ieties atthese institut ion s i s shown in the famous oath wh ich the pupi l s of theAsclepiadae were compelled to subscribe on complet ing thei r course ofin struct ion in medic ine . It i s th e oldest written monumen t of theGreek art of healing.

5

1 The mu ltitude of Eau de Co logne mak ers call ing themse lves Farina is a

case in po int. 2 Adams , Hippocrates , vo l . i . p . 7 .

3 Galen , D e San i tate tu cna’

a .

“1 Meryon , Hist. M ed , p . 1 1 .

5 Baas, Hist . M ed , p . 9 1 .

BEFORE THE TIME OF HIPP OCRA TES. 169

THE OATH.

I swear by Apollo, the physic ian, and IEscu lapius , and Health , andPanacea

,

1and all the gods and goddesses, that, accord ing to my ab il i ty

and judgment, I w i l l keep th is oath and th is stipulation—to reckonhim who taught me th is art equally dear to me as my parents, to Sharemy substance with him, and rel ieve h is necess it ies i f required to lookupon his offspring in the same footing as my own brothers , and toteach them th i s art, i f they shall wish to learn i t, without fee or s tipu

lation and that by precept, lecture, and every other mode of ins truct ion ,

I wil l impart a knowledge of the art to my own sons, and those o f myteachers, and to disc iples bound by a stipulation and oath accordingto the law of medic ine

,bu t to none others . I will follow that system

of regimen wh ic h,according to my abil ity and j udgmen t, I cons ider for

the benefi t of my patient, and abstain from whatever i s deleterious andmischievous. I will give no deadly medic ine to any one i f asked , norsuggest any such counsel ; and in l ike manner I will not give to awoman a pessary to produce abort ion . With purity and wi th holinessI will pass my l ife and pract ise my art . I will no t cu t persons labouring under the stone , bu t wil l leave th is to be done by men who are

practitioners of thi s work .

2

“Into whatever houses I enter

,I will go in to them for the benefit

of the s ick,and will abstain from every volun tary act of m ischief and

corrupt ion ; and,further

,from the seduct i on of females or males

,of

freemen or slaves . Whatever,in connect ion with my profess ional

practice, or not in connect ion with it I see or hear, in the l ife of men,

which ought not to be spoken of abroad, I will not divulge, as reckon ingthat all such should be kept secret. While I con tinue to keep thisoath unviolated, may i t be granted to me to enj oy li fe and the pract iceof the art, respected by all men , in all t imes ! But should I trespassand violate th is oath

,may the reverse be my lot

Anc ient authorities differ as to the respect ive order in wh ich theschools of the Asclepiads Should be esteemed. Rhodes , Cos, and

Guidos continually d isputed for the pre- em inence, Cos and Gu idos

1 All -heal .2 D r. Puschmann

, in his History of M edical Edu cation , p . 42 , translates thispassage Castrat ion w il l I no t carry out even on those who suffer from stone , butleave this to those people who mak e a business o f it. ” The words in the Greek are

onr eaéw Oé on eM)” Merril l/r ag, and much controversy has been excited by them .

Some commentators of great authority think the passage forbids castration , as disgracefu l things are being spok en o f, such as giving po isons and procuring abortion . Cer

tainly there is no reason for supposing that the doctors of the period wou ld Object toperform o tom though i t is the fact that there was a class o f operators who werem o unscrent ific specialists in the practice .

1 70 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

acquiring great fame by their confl icting Opin i ons . According toGalen

,the first place must be conceded to Cos, as having produced the

greatest number of excellen t disc iples, amongst whom was Hippocrateshe ranks Cnidos next. Cos (B.C . 600 ) was the obj ect ive school, anddevoted its studies ch iefly to symptomatology. It asked, what can wesee of the patient

’s disorder ? of what does he complain ? what, in fact,are h i s symptoms ? Th i s i s practical medic ine , though not so much inaccordance with modern sc ient ific medic ine as the method of Cnidos,the subj ective school . There the aim was to make a correct d iagnosisto find out what was beh ind the symptoms, what caused the morbidappearances ; what it was that the sen sations of the patient indicated ;and i ts aim was no t to treat symptoms so much as to treat vigorouslythe disorder which caused them . Auscultat ion , or the art of scien tifically l isten ing to the sounds of the chest

,those of the lungs in breath ing,

and of the heart in beating,was to some exten t understood and prae

tised at Cnidos. The medical school of Crotona was in the h ighestrepute 500 B.C .

, probably on accoun t of i ts connecti on with the Pytha

gorean s. The school of Rhodes does not seem to have had a long li fe.That of Cyrene was famous on accoun t no t on ly of i ts medical

teaching, but from the fact that mathematics and philosophy were industriously pursued there. The teach ing in al l these schools must havebeen of a very h igh order ; for, though unfortunately l i ttle of i t hasdescended directly to us, we have suffic i ent evidence of its importancein such fragment s as are to be found incorporated with the works o fHippocrates, such as the Coan Prognostics and the Cnidian Sentences ;the former

,a m i scellaneous collect ion Of the Observations made by

the physic i an of Cos , and the latter,a work attributed to Euryphon ,

a celebrated physician of Cnidos (about the former half of the fifthcenturyExperimen t and Observation were ins isted upon in the study of

anatomy and physiology . Galen tells us in his second book, On

Anatomical M ans nlations : I do not blame the anc i en ts,who did no t

write books on anatom ical man ipulations ; though I praise Marinus ,who did . For i t was superfluous for them to compose such records forthemselves or others

,wh ile they were

,from their childhood, exerc ised by

their paren ts in dissecting, j ust as fam i l iarly as in writing and reading ;so that there was no more fear of their forgetting their anatomy than of

their forgetting their alphabet. But when grown men,as well as chi l

dren,were taugh t, th is thorough discipl ine fell off ; and, the art being

carried out of th e fam i ly of the Asclepiads, and decl in ing by repeatedtransm iss ion

,books became necessary for the student.”

The method Of the Asclep iadae was one of true induct ion much was

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CHAPTER II .

THE MEDICINE OF HIPPOCRATES AND HIS PERIOD .

Hippocrates first delivered Medicine from the Thraldom of Superstition .—D issection

o f the Human Body and Rise o f Anatomy.—Hippocrates, Father ofMedicine and

Surgery .—The Law .

—Plato .

HIPPOCRATES, the “Father of Medic ine, was born at Cos, 1 460 B.C.

On his father’s S ide he was believed to be descended from [Esculapius,and through h i s mother from Hercules . A member of the fam ily of theAsclepiadae, Of a descen t o f three hundred years , he had the advan

tage of studying medic ine under h is father, Heraclides,in the Asclepion

of Cos . Herodicu s of Selymbria taugh t him medical gymnastics,and D emocri tus of Abdera and Gorgias of Leontini were h is masters inl iterature and philosophy . He travelled widely

,and taught and prae

tised at Athen s,dying at an age variously stated as 85 , 90 , 1 04, and

1 09 . Fortunate in the opportun i ti es offered by h i s bi rth and pos ition ,

he was sti ll more fortunate in his time— the age of Pericles— in whichGreece reached its noblest development, and the arts and sc iencesachieved ;their greatest triumphs . It was the age of Socrates, Plato,Xenophon ,

Eurip ides, Sophocles, E schylus, P indar, Aris tophanes ,Herodotus, Thucyd ides, and Phidias . Philosophy, poetry , l i terature,and sculpture found in these great m inds the ir most perfec t exponent s.M edic ine, in the person of H was to find i ts first and mostdist inguished author-physic ian .

The Father of Medicine was therefore the worthy product of his re

markable age. The gen ius which culminated in the works of the goldenage of Greece could scarcely have left medicine without her Hippocrates the harmony otherwise would have been incomplete .The following genealogy of Hippocrates has been given by Tzetzes ,

but Mr. Grote says it i s wholly myth icalIEsculapius was the father of Podal irius , who was the father of Hip

polochus, who was the father of Sostratus, who was the fathe r Of

Cleomyttades, who was the father of Theodorus, who was the father of1 Cos gave birth to Pto lemy Philadelphus, the second of the Greek k ings of Egypt ,

to Ariston the philosopher, and to Apel les the painter.

HIPP OCRA TES AND HIS PERIOD . 1 73

Sostratus who was the father of Theodorus who was the fatherof Sostratus III. ,

who was the father of Nebrus, who was the father of

Gnosidicus, who was the father of Hippocrates I. , who was the fatherofHeraclides

,who was the father of Hippocrates I I. , otherwise called

the Great Hippocrates .Hippocrates was the first physician who del ivered medic ine from the

thraldom of superst i tion and the sophistri es of ph ilosophers , and gavan independent exi stence. It was imposs ible that our sc ience shomake progress so long as men bel ieved that d isease was caused byan angry demon or an offended divin i ty, and was only to be cured byexpelling the one or propi t iating the other. Hippocrates , with a discernment and a courage which was marvellous

,cons idering h i s time

,

declared that no disease whatever came from the gods,but was in

every instance traceable to a natural and intell igible cause . Before theAsclepiadae there was no medical sc ience ; before Hippocrates therewas no one mind with vis ion wide enough to take in all that had beendone before— to select the prec i ou s from the worthless and embody i tin a l iterature wh ich remains to the presen t t ime a model of concisenessand condensation

, and a pract ical text-book on all that concerns theart of heal ing as it was understood in his t ime . The m inuteness of h i sObj o n . a

' aw and

his simple, methodical , truthful , and luc id descri t ions of ever th ing

al hO Ehava sd t e—works -wmch-heh as i eft. Nor are h i s candour,

He confesse§_ b_is

and

heattended on lyW ,

the Others having peri shed in sp i teof the means he had proposed to save them . He was probably the

W W W ; h i s counsels were no t whisperedin the

_ secret meetings of sacerdotal assemblies . He was the firi t tdi_scl£) se the secrets of the art to the wgrld ; to s trip i t of the veil ofmystery with which coun tles s generations of magic ian s, thaumaturgists ,and priestly healers had shrouded it , and to s tand before h i s pupils t e

e

give oral instruction in anatomy and the other branches of his profel id 50,

Had he not been the Father of Medic ine, he would have been The

as one of the greatest of the phi losophers . He first recogn is ed t ion , bUt

Nature in the treatmen t of disease . Nature,he dec lared

,A“was

suffic ient for our heal ing. She knows of hersel f all that is necus, and so he called her “ the just .” He attributed to her ISt l earnedAxis/ants physicians are but her servants . The governingpelled to

Axis/onu s, nourishes, preserves, and increases all th ings.

1 74 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Galen states that the greater part of Aristotle’s phys iology was taken

from Hippocrates . It has been the custom to make l ight of h isanatom ical knowledge, and to say that in face of the difficulty, if notimpossibil ity, of procuring subjects for dissect ion , he could have had '

but l ittle exact knowledge of the human body but i t i s certain that bysome means or other he must have dissec ted i t. In proof of th is i t i sonly necessary to men tion h is treat ise On tire A r ticulations

,espec ially

that part of i t wh ich relates to the dislocation of the shoulderjoin t . Dr. Adams, in one of h i s valuable notes on the works of Hippocrates,

1 says “ The language o f our author in this place puts itbeyond all doubt that human dissect ion was prac tised in h is age.

”In

Ashurst’s International Ency clope dia of Surgery

2 h is descriptions of

all d islocations are declared to be wonderfully accuiate and the writeradds that i t i s the greatest error imaginable to suppose, with the com

mon conceit of our day, that all ingen i ous and useful improvements insurgery belong to the presen t age . In the treat ise on the Sacred D isease

(epi lepsy), his descript ion of the brain in man proves that he was ac

quainted with its dissec t ion .

In the treatise on the heart,again, the construct ion of that organ in

the human body 18 referred to. O ther allus ion s to the internal structureof the human frame in the Hippocrat ic treati ses serve to confirm our

Op in ion ; and i f i t be obj ected that some of these are probably not

genuine, they must at leas t be as old as h i s period , and i t was far morel ikely thath e should have written or insp i red them than that they shouldhave emanated from an inferior source . Those who argue to the contrary do so on the same grounds as the Greek commen tators

,who say

that the I liad and Ody ssey were no t written by Homer,but by some

other poet of the same name . Dr. Adams is confiden t,from h i s

fami l iarity with the works of Hippocrates , that , the knowledge of humananatomy exh ibited therein had i ts origin in actual dissect ion, and h eadds that I do no t at presen t recollec t a s ingle instance of m i s tak ecomm i tted by him in any Of hi s anatomical descript ions , i f we exceptthat with regard to the sutures of the head

,and even in that case I

have; endeavoured to show that the mean ing of the passage is very

cratespeal.” 2 There i s no doubt

,in fact

,that a great deal more human

The ion wen t on than the Greek doctors dared to acknowledge for

but Mr.

exc it ing popular prej udice . Less than a hundred years afte r th eHippocrates there was abundan t and open dissect ion of the

polochus,Ody in the schools of A lexandria, and i t i s incredible that the

C leomyttalnly received popular sanct ion at that particular time . Yet the

1 Cos gay1 VOL 11° P 569 '

2 Vo l. vi. p . 1 1 52 .

to Ariston t i 2 Works of Hippocrates , Syd. Soc. , vol . ii . p . 565 .

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A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

ascertain the properties of vegetable productions as articles of food.

Then they learned that the food which i s su itable in health i s unsuitable in sickness, and thus they appl ied themselves to the di scovery ofthe proper rules of diet in disease and i t was the accumulation of thefacts bearing on th i s subject which was the origin of the art of medicine .

“ The basi s of h i s system was a rati onal experience, and not a blindempi ric i sm so that the empirics in after ages had no good grounds forclaim ing him as belonging to their sect.” 1

He ass iduously appl ied h imself to t he study of the natural h istoryof diseases

,especial ly with the view to determ ine their tendenc ies to

death or recovery. In every case he asked himselfwhat would be the

probable end of the disorder if left to itself. EW ’ then , i s one ofthe chief charac teri stics of Hippocratic medic ine . He hated al

latan ism,and was free from all popular superstit ion . When we reflect

on the medic ine of the most h ighly c ivil i zed nations which we havecon s idered at length in the preceding pages , and remember how fullof absurdities, of magic, amulet lore, and other th ings calculated toimpose on the credul ity of the people, were their attempts at healing,we shall be incl ined to say, that the most wonderful th ing in thehi s tory of Hippocrates was hi s complete divorce from the evil trad it ions (12111

121125 11 ) Al though he forsook phi losophy as an ally of medic ine, hi s system was founded In the physical ph ilosophy of the elementswh ich the anc ien t Greeks propounded, and which we have attemptedO

'

explain . There was an all-pervad ing sp iri tual essence wh ich is everstriving to main tain al l th ings in their natural condition ever rect i fyingtheir derangements ; ever res toring them to the original and perfect

pattern . He called that spiri tual essence Nature . Nature i s the

physic ian of d iseases .” 2 Here, then, we have the enunc iation of the

doctrine of the Vis M edica tr ix Natura . In h i s attempts to aid Nature,th e physic ian must regulate hi s treatmen t

“ to do good, or at leas t, to

do no harm ” 3 yet he bled , cupped , and scarified. In Constipationhe prescribed laxative drugs, as mercury (no t the m ineral, of course,but M ercur ialisperenn is) , beet, and cabbage, also elaterium ,

scammony,

and other powerful cathart ics . He used white hellebore boldly, and

when narcotics were required had recourse to mandragora,henbane

,

and probably to poppy-juice .

He i s said to have been th e discoverer of the principles of derivationand revulsion in the treatmen t of diseases .‘

1 Adams , Hippocrates , vol . i . p . 18 .

2 Epidem . , vi . 3 Ibid. ,i .

4 D erivation is the draw ing of humours from one part of the body to another, as

from the eye by a bl ister on the neck revu lsion differs from this only by the force of

the m ed icine and the distance of the disorder from the part to which it is applied . He

HIPP OCRA TES AND HIS PERIOD . 1 77

Sydenham called Hippocrates“ the Romulus of medicine, whose

heaven was the empyrean of h i s art . He i t i s whom we can never duly

praise .

” He terms him “ that d ivine old man,

”and declares that h e

laid the immovable foundat ions of the whole superstructure o f medic inewhen he taught that our natures are the p/zy sicians of our diseases.

1

He was Father of Surgery as well as of medicine. Eight o f h i s seventeen genuine works are strictly surgical . By an ingen i ous arrangemen tof apparatus he was enabled to pract ise extens ion and counter-extens ion. He ins isted on the most exac t co-aptation of fractured bones ,declaring that i t was d isgraceful to allow a patient to recover with acrooked or shortened l imb . His spl in ts were probably qu i te as goodas ours

,and h is bandaging left noth ing to be desi red . When the ends

of the bones projedfé df in cases of compound fractures , they were careful ly resected . In fracture of the skull with depressed bone the trepanwas used, and in cases where blood or pus had accumulated they wereskilfully evacuated . He boldly and freely opened abscesses of the l iverand kidneys. The thoracic cavity was explored by percuss ion and

auscultation for detection o f fluids, and when they were discovered

paracentesis (tapping) was performed . Thi s was also done in casesof abdominal drops ies . The rectum was examined by an appropriatespeculum,

fi stula-ih -ano was treated by the l igature, and haemorrhoidswere operated Upon. Stiff leather shoes and an adm irable system ofbandaging were employed in cases o f tal ipes. The bladder was ex

plored by sounds for the detec tion of calcul i gangrenous and mangledl imbs were amputated the dead foetus was extracted from the mother.Venesect ion

,scarification, and cupping were all employed .

2

He resected bones at the joints . In the treatmen t of ulcers he usedsulphate Of copper, sulphate of z inc

,verdigris

,lead

,sulphur

,arsen ic

,

alum, etc. He came very near indeed to the ant i sept ic system in

surgery when he made use o f “ raw tar water (a crude sort of carbol icacid, in fact) in the treatment of wounds . Supposi tories were employed .

In Dr. Adams’L ife of I’

I zppocrates,3 he says “ In surgery h e was a

bold operator. He fearlessly,and as we would now th ink

,in some

cases unnecessarily, perforated the skull with the trepan and the tre

ph ine in inj uries o f the head . He opened the chest also in empyemaand hydrothorax . His extens ive practice, and no doubt h is great

treated fevers by preparations which increase the amount of fluid in the blood , as bywater, buttermilk , whey, etc. This was cal led the diluent system. At the same timehe used m ild aperien ts and sometimes venesection .

1 Nouowv (primes erpof. Epid , v i. 5 , l . t . ii i. p . 606.

2 See for all this surgical information Ashurst’

s International Ency clopcedia ofSu rgery, vol . vi.

3 Genu ine WorRs qfHippocrates , vol. i . pp. 20, 2 1 .

1 78 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF IlIEDICINE.

famil iarity w i th the acc idents occurring at the publ ic games of hiscoun try

,must have furn i shed him w ithample opportun i ties of becoming

acquainted with dislocations and fractures of all kinds ; and how wel lhe had profited by the opportun it ies wh ich he thus enj oyed , every pageof h is treati ses On Fractu res and On t/ze A rticulations abundan tly testifi es . In fact

,unt il with in a very recen t period , the modern plan of

treatmen t in such cases was no t at a ll to be compared with h is ski lfulmode of adj usting fractured bones

,and of securing them with waxed

bandages . In particular, h i s description of the acc iden ts wh ich occurat the elbow and hip-j oints will be allowed

,even at the presen t day

,to

d isp lay a most wonderful acquaintance wi th the subj ect . In the treatment of d islocations , when human strength was no t suffic i en t to restorethe displacemen t, he skilfully avai led h imself of all the mechan ical

powers which were then known. In his views with regard to the natureo f club- foot

,i t m ight have been affi rmed of him a few years ago that

h e was twen ty-four centuries in advance of h i s profess ion, when hestated that in th is case there is no dislocation

,but merely a decl ination

of the foot ; and that in infancy, by means o f methodical bandaging, acure may in most cases be effected without any surgical Operation. In

a word , unti l the days of Delpech and Stromeyer,no one entertained

ideas so sound and sc ient ific on the nature of th i s deform i ty as Hippoc rates.”

D r. Adams,recapi tulating the general results of the investigations as

to the genuineness of th e Hippocrat ic books, states that a cons iderable

portion of them are no t the work of Hippocrates h imsel f. The works ‘

almost un iversally admi tted to be genuine are : T/ze P rognostics, On

A irs, etc . , On Regimen in Acu te D iseases, seven of th e books ofAp/zor isms, Epidemics, I . and III. , On t/ze A rticu lations, On Fra ctures,

On t/ze Instruments of Reduction,Tli e Oat/z .

The following are almos t certainly genu ine : On Ancient M edicine,

On t/ze Surgery ,Tlze Law

, On Ulcers , On Fistula,On Ha nmrrlzoids,

On t/ze Sacred D isease.

1

THE LAW.

1 . Medic ine is of al l the arts the most noble ; but owing to theignorance of those who pract ise i t, and of those who, Incon siderately,form a j udgmen t of them , i t i s at presen t far behind all the other arts .Their m istake appears to me to ari se princ ipally from th is, that in thec i ties there i s no pun ishment connec ted with the prac tice of medic ine

(and wi th i t alone) except disgrace, and that does not hurt those who

1 Adams, Genu ine li’orl 's of Hippocrates, vol. i . pp. 1 29 , 130.

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1 80 A POPULAR HISTORY OF IlIEDICINE.

acrid, sal t, or ac id nature, and Observed that infants during the periodof denti t ion were l iable to fevers

,bowel troubles

,and convulsions

,espe

c ially i f there was cons tipation . He ment ions thrush as one of thed i seases o f den tition (D e D ent ). He recommends friction for con

tracting or relaxing the body according as i t i s appl ied in a hard or

soft manner. Very fully he discourses on the evi l effects O f plethora ,and recommends purging, emetics , warm baths , and bleeding

,for re

ducing the system (D e D ietol. , iii. 1 6 ci seq) . He constantly advisesgentl e purgatives as a means of keeping the body in health . Hisfavouri te laxat ive medicine was the herb mercury. The administrationof clysters i s recommended th i s treatment was evidently derived fromth e Egypt ians . What are called errh ines or sternutatories med ic ines which

,appl ied to the nose, exc ite sneezing— were described by

Hippocrates as medic ines wh ich purge th e head. Though be fully describes th e e ffec ts of baths , he speaks unfavourably of thermal Springsas being hard and heating. He insists that the d iet should be ful l inw in ter and spare in summer i . He disapproves of th ehabi t o f eating a full d inner (De Vet. fli ed ) . He condemns the use Ofnew bread . The nutri t ious properties of pulse in general are ins istedupon . He calls the flesh of fowls one of the l ightes t kinds of food

(D e Afi é ct , and says that eggs are nutri tious , and strengthen ing,but flatulen t. He remarks that the flesh of wild an imals i s more di

gestible than that of domesticated . He obj ects to goat’s flesh as havingall the bad qual i t ies of beef, which he calls a strong

,astringen t

, and

indigestible articl e of d iet. M i lk,he says, sometimes causes the forma

tion of stones in the bladder (D e E r . Aqu is ct Locis, D r. Franci sAdams says th is opin ion was adopted by all th e anc ient p hysic ians .Cheese he cons iders flatulent and indigest ibl e. Fi shes are light foodsea fi sh are l ighter and better for del icate persons than fresh-waterfi sh (D e Af eet

,Honey, when eaten w i th other food , i s nutritious ,

but i s inj urious when taken alone.Hippocrates opposed all hypothes i s in medic ine, and grounded his

opin ions on disease on actual observation. He ins isted that the essenceof fever i s heat m ixed up with noxious qual it ies . He was the greatmaster of prognostics . His work P rorr/zetica and Coacce

,says Dr. Franc is

Adams, “ con tains a rich treasure of observations wh ich cannot be toomuch explored by the studen t of medic ine. His prognostics arefounded upon the appearance of the face, eyes , tongue, the voice,hearing, the state of the hypochondriac region, the abdomen, thegeneral system, sleep, respi ration, and the excretions. We can do

l i ttle more , in this p lace, than express our h igh sen se of the value o fthe Hippocratic Treatises on P ragnostics, and recommend the study of

HIPP OCRA TES AND HIS PERIOD .

them to all members of the profession who would wish to learn thetrue inductive system of cultivating medic ine.” (T/ze Seven Booles ofPan/us Ai

‘

gineta, by Franci s Adams . ) The state of the coun tenancewh ich immediately precedes death is cal led by physici ans the FaciesE ppocratica , because Hippocrates described i t, call ing i t wpé orm ror

dra cpdoprj(Caac. P rcenot . , The nose i s sharp, the eyes hollow,

the temples sunk , the ears cold and contracted,and their lobes inverted

the skin about the forehead hard,tense , and dry the countenance pale ,

green ish , or dark. In fevers he was greatly attached to the importanceo f the cri tical davs. Galen adopted h i s l i st of cri tical days with l i ttl eal teration. Hippocrates does no t seem to have paid much attention tothe pulse, or i f he did be attached l ittle importance to i t ; even in describing epidem ical fevers h e neglects to men tion the characteris tics o fthe pulse . Galen

,however

,affirms that he was not altogether ignoran t

o f i t. He quite correctly described the charact erist ics of healthy stools ,and pointed out that they Should in colour be yellowish , if too yellowthere i s too much bile

,i f no t yel low at al l there was a stoppage of th e

passage of bile to the intestines . His indicat ions from th e s tate o f th eurine are no t less valuable. How wise are h is observations on th etreatment of febrile d i seases T0 be able to tell what had precededthem ; to know the presen t state and foretell the future ; to have twoObj ects in view, e i ther to do good or at leas t do no harm

”(Ep idem , i .

He i t was who formulated the rule al l physic ians have s ince followedthat a fluid d iet i s proper in al l feb

’

ril e affect ions . He advised coldsponging in ardent fevers— a method of treatmen t recently revived and

of great value (De Rat. Vict. He laid i t down that d iseases ingeneral may be said to ari se ei ther from the food we eat or the air webreathe. In cases o f fever he allowed h is patients to drink freely ofbarley-water and cold ac idulated drinks . In th i s he was much in ad

vance of the medical sci ence of the time. He has described cases of“ brain fever

,

”one of the few complaints wh ich novel ists perm i t their

heroes to suffer from. They appear to have been cases o f rem i tten tfever rather than true inflammation of the bra in . We may est imate thewonderful extent of the medical sc ience of Hippocrates by the fac t thathe vigorously opposed the popular belief of the peri od, that epilepsywas due to demon i acal influence. He expla ins that the lower an imalsare subj ec t to the same disorder

,and that in them i t i s often assoc iated

with water in the brain. There i s really no doubt that the morbus sacerof the anc ien ts and the cases of demon iacal possess ion of which we readwere cases of epilepsy (Hippoc. de JlIorl/o Sacra) . Concern ing apoplexyhe says that a sl igh t at tack is di fficult to cure, and

'

a severe one utterlyincurable . The cause of the attack he cons idered was turgidity o f the

1 82 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF [WED/CINE.

veins . We know i t to be often associated wi th cerebral haemorrhage orsanguineous apoplexy and sometimes wi th effusion o f serum = serous

apopl exy. Hippocrates therefore came very near the truth . He advisedbleed ing, wh ich i s s t il l recommended bu t is n o t often practised inEngland ; and he very j ustly said that the malady occurs mos t frequen tly between the age of forty and s ixty i i . In certainforms of ophthalmia he advises free purgation , bleeding, and th e use o fwine and th is accords with the best modern pract ice

,i f for venesect ion

,

we substi tute ves ication . His treatment o f nasal polypus by the ligature is not unl ike our own and nothing could be better than h i s pl anfor deal ing with quins ey and allied complain ts, viz .

,hot fomen tations

,

warm gargles and t inctures,with free purgat ion. He d isapproves of a

practice too often followed by surgeons tod ay, o f scarifying the tonsilswhen swollen and red . In cases o f inflammation of the lungs be ad

vised bleeding, purging, and cool ing drinks . Laennec

,the great French

physic ian , who invented the stethoscope, highly praises Hippocrates forh is knowledge of phth isis, and the diagnostic value o f h is tests o f thenature of the sputa in that disease . In cases of empyema, or the format ion and accumulation of pus in the chest

,he directs us to make an

i nc i s ion into the pleural cavity— an operation wh ich has been rev ived inmodern t imes under the name of paracentes is thorac is .He declares the loss of hair and the diarrhoea of phthis i s to be fatal

s igns, and h is descript ion of hydrothorax, or dropsy of the chest,has been h ighly praised by the

.

greatest authorities . He says tha t

phth is is i s most common between the ages of eighteen and th irty—s ix

(see 1574151505 . d’e M orbz

’

s,i i . 45 Coacw P l

'

wl l fl f.,ct alibi ) . For pleurisy

hi s treatmen t i s practically the same as that followed at the presen tday. He advised the admin istration of flour and m ilk in diarrhoea—an

exceedingly useful remedy— and treated the pains of col ic by warminj ect ions

,warm baths

,fomentations

,soporifics and purgatives, as the

case m ight require. He was wise enough to know that s tone o f th ebladder was a product o f a morbid condition of th e urine, and saidthat when i t had fairly formed noth ing but an operat ion for i ts removalwas of any value . He recognised the disease known as hydatids of thel iver

,and directed that abscesses o f that organ should be opened by

the cautery. His accoun t of the causes and treatmen t of dropsy isfairly accurate according to our presen t knowledge . He approved of

paracentes i s abdom ini s (tapping) in cases of asc ites,and describes the

operation . He recognised the incurab i l i ty o f true cancer. Many ofh i s treatises on the disorders of women prove that they were well understood ih his day, and on the whol e were properly treated. Difli cult

labour was managed no t so differen tly from our modern methods as

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184 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

he says that surgery can only be properly learned by attach ing one’ss elf to the army. Homer said,

The man o fmedicine can in worth with many warriors vie,

Who knows the weapons to excise , and soothing salves apply.

Hippocrates treats of fractures in h is books D e Pram/7 1'

s (D e Artz'

m lz'

s ;

D e Vu lnar . Capz'

t. Ofi a’

na M edici ) . He insists that no inj uries to thehead are to be cons idered as trifling ; even wounds o f the scalp mayprove dangerous if neglected . Fissures, contus ions, and fractures of thec ranium are m inutely explained and appropriate treatment suggested .

“

He describes the treph ine under the name o f ‘rptifl

'

avov, i .a. the tre

pan. He says that convuls ions are the frequent consequence of headinj uries , and that they occur on the oppos ite s ide o f the body to that inwh ich the brain inj ury is seated . One of the mos t valuable legac ies ofthe anc i ents is th is profoundly learned treatise of the Father o f Medicine

,

and i t proves to us how high a point the surgery of anc ient Greece hadreached . He noticed a certain movemen t of the brain during respiration

,a swel l ing up in expiration and a fal ling down during inspiration

and although several great authori ties of the past denied the accuracyof th is observation

,i t has s ince been shown to be perfectly correct.

(See P au lus E gz’

m ta,Dr. F. Adams’ edi t

,vol . i i . p . In cases o f

fracture of the lower jaw,our author directs that the teeth separated at

the broken part are to be fastened together and bound with gold wire .

So accurately does he describe this fracture that Paulus n ineta transcribes i t almost word for word from the D e Arum/us. His method o f

treating fracture of the clavicle i s adm irable ; in fracture of the ribshe observes that when the broken ends of

'

the bone are no t pushedinwards

,i t seldom happens that any unpleasan t symptoms supervene .

In fractures of the arm he m inutely and prec i sely indicates the correc t

principles on which they are to be treated, and ins ists strongly on then ecessity of having the arm and wris t carefully suspended in a broadsoft sl ing

,and that the hand be placed neither too h igh nor too low.

Hippocrates could learn very l ittle from our modern surgeons in th etreatment of such inj uries . In cases of broken th igh he has indicated allthe dangers and difficul t i es attending the management of th is acc ident ;his Spl ints and bandages are appl i ed much as we apply them at the

presen t t ime, and his suggestions for ensuring a well-un ited bone withoutdeform ity of the l imb are invaluable. In fractures o f the th igh and legbones he lays great stress on the attent ion necessary to the state of theheel. In those of the foot he warns agains t the danger of attempt ing towalk too soon. In compound fractures compresses of wine and oil areto be used

, and splints are not ' to be appl ied t il l the wound puts on a

HIPP OCRA TES AND HIS PERIOD. 1 85

healthy appearance. He i s fully aware of the p eculiarly dangerouscharacter of such inj uries, and h is observations read like extrac ts from amodern text-book of surgery.

“ No author,

” says Dr. Franc i s Adams,

the learned translator of the works of Paulus ZEgineta, has given socomplete a view of the acc idents to wh ich the elbow j oint i s subj ectas Hippocrates.

”

PLATO (B.C. 42 7—347 ) in i ts ph i losoph ical aspec t s tudied med ic ine,

no t with any idea of practi sing the art, but merely as a speculat ive contemplation. The human soul i s an emanat ion from the absolute intelligence. The world is composed of the four elements . Fire cons is ts of

pyramidal, earth of cubical , air of oc tagonal, and water of twenty- s idedatoms. Bes ides these i s th e aether . Everyth ing in the body has inview the spiri t . The heart i s the seat of the m ind, the lungs cool theheart

,the l iver serves the lower des ires and i s useful for d ivination.

The spleen i s the abode for the impuri ties of the b lood . The intestinesserve to detain the food, so that i t m ight no t be necessary to be con

s tantly taking nourishment. The inward pressure o f the air account sfor the breathing. The muscles and bones protect the marrow againstheat and cold. The marrow consi sts of triangles

,and the brain i s the

most perfec t form of marrow. When the soul i s separated from th emarrow, death occurs. Sigh t i s caused by the un ion of the l ight wh ichflows into and out of the eyes, hearing in the shock of air communicatedto the brain and the blood . Taste i s due to a solution o f sapid atomsby means of small vessels , wh ich vessels conduc t the dissolved atoms tothe heart and soul . Smel l i s very trans itory, no t being founded on any

external image . The uterus is a wild beast exc i ting inordinate des ires .D isease is caused by a d isturbance o f the quant i ty and qual ity of theyfluids. Inflammations are due to aberrat ions of the bi le. The variousfevers are due to the influence of the elements . Mental d is eases arethe results o f bodily maladies and bad education. D iseases fly awaybefore appropriate drugs . Physic ians must be the rulers of the s ick inorder to cure them

,but they mus t no t be money-makers . 1

In the c ablz'

c of P lato, Book III. ,we find that medical aid was

largely in request in Greece to rel ieve the indolent and voluptuous fromthe consequences of self- indulgence. I t was thought by Socrates d isgraceful to compel the c lever son s of Asclepius to attend to such diseasesas flatulence and catarrh i t seemed ridiculous to the ph ilosopher to payso much atten tion to regimen and diet as to drag on a m iserable existence as an invalid in the doctor’s hands . When a carpenter was i ll, heexpected his doctor to cure him with an emetic or a purge, thecautery or an operation i f he were ordered a long course o f diet

,he

1 Baas Hist . Med , Eng. Trans. , pp . I I I, 1 12 .

1 86 A POPULAR HISTORY OF AIEDICIA'

E.

would tel l h is doctor that he had no t ime to be i ll,and he would go about

h is bus iness regardless of consequences . fEsculapius, i t was maintained ,revealed the healing art for the benefi t of those whose consti tutionswere naturally sound he expelled their disorders by drugs and the useof the kni fe, without interfering with their usual avocations but whenhe found they were hopelessly incurable, he would no t attemp t to prolong a m iserable l ife by rules and diet, as such persons would be of nouse either to themselves or the state. Const i tutionally d iseased personsand the intemperate l ivers were to be left to be deal t wi th by Nature,so that they migh t die of their d iseases .

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great part of h i s l i fe as phys ic ian in the court of Archelaus,king of

Macedon ia .

1 His brother, D raco, was physic ian to Queen Roxana,

wife of Alexander the Great.We may say, therefore , that the Oldest, most famous, and worthy of

the anc ien t medical sects arose about 400 B.C. ,and retained its power

o ver the med ical profession t i ll the rise of the Emp irical sect in theA lexandrian school of ph ilosophy. We are indebted to Celsus for alucid and admi rable exposition of the doctrines professed by these twomedical parties .

2

The Dogmatists maintained that i t was no t enough for the physic ianto know the mere symptoms of h is patient

’s malady. It does not sufli ceto know the cz '

z'

a'

cnt causes of the d isorder,but he must acquaint h imsel f

with the causes . To acquire th is knowledge of the lzz'

a’a’

czz causes,

he mus t study the bidderspar ts, and th e natural act ions and funct ions ofthe body in health. He must know the princ iple s on which the humanmach inery is constructed before he can scientifically treat the acc identsand disturbances to wh ich i t i s l iable. It was no t

,therefore

,a mere

subj ec t of ph ilosophical interest to hold with some physic ians thatd i seases proceed from excess o r defic i ency of one or other of the fourelements , or with others , that the various humours or the resp irationwere at fault. It was not o f merely academ ic interes t to suppose thatthe abnormal flow o f the blood caused inflammations

,or that corpuscles

blocked Up the invisible passages. The doctor must do more thanspeculate on thes e th ings in h i s d iscuss ions. He must have a theoryupon them wh ich he could apply to the trea tmen t of h i s patients , andthe bes t phys ic ian would be the one who best knew how the diseaseoriginated . Experiments w i thout reason ing were valueless the ir chiefuse was to inform the experimenter whether he had reasoned justly orconjectured fortunately. When th e phys ician i s confron ted by a new

form of disease for wh ich no remedy has been discovered,he mus t

know i ts cause and origin, or his practice wi ll be mere guess-work.

Anybody can discover the evident causes— heat,cold

,over-eating.

These th ings the least instructed physic ian will probably know. It i sthe knowledge of h idden causes wh ich makes the superior man. He

who aspires to be instructed must know what we now cal l phys iologywhy we breathe, why we eat,

“what happens to the food which weswallow

,why the arteries pulsate

,why we sleep, e tc. The man who

cannot explain these phenomena is no t a competent doc tor. He mus thave frequently inspec ted dead bodies, and exam ined carefully theirinternal parts but they maintained that i t was much the better way to

1 Le Clerc, Hist . de la M idi , Pt. I. , bk . iv.2 Celsus, D c .Mcdic. , Praefat, in l ib. i .

P OST-HIPP OCRATIC GREEK MEDICINE. 1 89

o pen l iving persons, as Heroph i lus and Eras istratus did, so that theycould acquaint themselves in l i fe with the structures whose d isturbanceor disease causes the sufferings wh ich they were called upon to alleviate.

What is known as the Humoral Pathology ” formed the most essent ial

part of the system o f the Dogmatis ts.Humoral pathology explains all d iseases as caused by the m ixture o f

the four cardinal humours viz . , the blood , bile, mucus or phlegm,and

water. Hippocrates leaned towards i t, but i t was Plato who developedit. The s tomach i s the common source of al l these humours . Whendiseases develop, they attract these humours . The s ource of th e bilei s the l iver ; o f the mucus, the head ; of the water, the s pleen . Bilecauses al l acute diseas es

, mucus in the head causes catarrhs and

rheumatism, dropsy depends on the spleen .

D IOCLES CARYSTIUS, a famous Greek phys ic ian , said by Pliny l tohave been next in age and fame to Hippocrates h imself, l ived in thefourth cen tury B.C. He wrote several treatises on medic ine, of wh ich thetitles and some fragmen ts are preserved by Galen, Caelius Aurel ianus,Oribasius, and others . His l etter to King Antigonus, enti tled “An

Epistle on Preserving Health,

” i s inserted at the 'end o f the fi rs t book ofPaulus Afgineta, and was probably addressed to Antigonus Gonatus,king of Macedon ia

,who died B.C. 2 39 . Th i s treat ise i s so valuable a

summary of the medical teach ing o f the time that i t will be useful toinsert i t in th i s place. “Since of all kings you are the most skilled inthe arts, and have l ived very long, and are skilled in all ph i losophy, andhave attained the highest rank in mathematics , I, suppos ing that th escience which treats of all th ings that relate to health i s a branch ofph i losophy becoming a king and befitt ing to you, have written you th i saccount o f the origin of diseases

,of the symptoms wh ich precede them,

and of the modes by which they may be alleviated . For nei ther does astorm gather in the heavens but i t i s preceded by certain s igns whichseamen and men of much skil l attend to, nor does any disease attackthe human frame withot tt having some precursory symptom. If

,then

,

you will only be persuaded by what we say regarding them, you mayattain a correc t acquain tance with these th ings. We divide the humanbody into four parts : th e head, th e chest, th e belly, and the bladder.When a disease i s about to fix in the head, i t i s usual ly announcedbeforehand by vertigo, pain in the head, heaviness in the eyebrows,norse tn the ears, and throbbing of th e templ es the eyes water in themorning, attended with dimness o f s ight the sense of smel l i s lost, andthe gums become swelled . When any such symptoms occur, the headought to be purged

,no t indeed wi th any strong medicine, but, taking

1 Hist. Nat. , xxvi . 6 .

1 90 A P OP ULAR IIISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

the tops of hyssop and sweet marj oram, pound them and boil them in a

pot, wi th hal f a hemina o f must or rob ; rinse the mouth with th i s in them orn ing before eat ing

,and evacuate the humours by gargl ing. There

i s no gentler remedy than th i s for affect ions of the head. Mustard inwarm

,hon ied water also answers the purpose very well . Take a

mouthful O f th is in the morning before eating, gargle and evacuate thehumours . The head also should be warmed by covering i t in such amanner as that the phlegm may be readily d ischarged . Those whon eglect these symptom s are apt to be seized with the following diso rders inflammations o f the eyes

,catarac ts , pain of the ears as i f from

a fracture, strumous affections of the neck, sphacelus o f the brain,catarrh

,quinsy, runn ing ulcers called achores

,caries

,enlargemen t of the

nvula, defluxion of the hairs, ulceration o f the head , pain in the teeth .

When some di sease i s about to fal l upon the chest, i t i s usuallyannounced by some of the following symptoms : There are profusesweats over the whole body, and particularly about th e chest, the tongueis rough

,expectorat ion saltish

,bi tter

,or bil ious , pains suddenly sei zing

the s ides or shoulder-blades,frequent yawn ing

,watch fulness , oppressed

respirat ion , th irs t after sleep, despondency of m ind,coldness of th e

breast and arms,trembl ing of the hands . These symptoms may be

rel ieved in the fol lowing manner : Procure vom i ting after a moderatemeal without medic ine. Vom i ting also when the s tomach i s emptywil l answer well ; to produce which fi rs t swallow some smal l radishes ,c resses , rocket, mustard and purslain, and then by drinking warm water

procure vomi ting. Upon those who neglect these symptoms thefollowing diseases are apt to supervene : p leuri sy, peripneumony,melancholy, acute fevers, frenzy, lethargy, ardent fever attended withh iccough . When any disease is about to attack the bowels, some of thefollowing symptoms announce i ts approach : In t he first place, the bellyi s griped and disordered

,the food and drink seem bi tter, heaviness of

the knees, inability to bend the loins , pains over th e whole bodyunexpectedly occurring, numbness of the l egs , sl igh t fever. When any

o f these occur, i t wil l be proper to loosen the belly by a suitable dietwithout medicine. There are many articles Of thi s descript ion whichone may use with safety, such as beets boiled in honeyed water, boiledgarlic, mallows, dock , the herb mercury, hon i ed cakes ; for all thesethings are laxative o f the bowels. O r

,i f any of these symptom s

increas e, m ix bastard saffron with all these decoctions, for thereby theywi l l be rendered sweeter and less dangerous . The smooth cabbageboiled in a large quan t ity of water is also benefic ial . Th is decoct ion,with honey and sal t

,may be drunk to the amount of about four

heminae,or the water of ch ick-

peas and tares boiled may be drunk in

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192 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICIJVE.

sour th ings,drink as much as i s agreeabl e of a weak wine

,use - fat

th ings , and labour s trenuously. To the winter solstice are forty-fivedaysfi

’

PRAXAGORAS of Cos, who l ived in the fourth century B.C. , shortly afterD i ocles , was a famous phys ician of th e Dogmatic sect, who especi allyexcelled in anatomy and physiology. He placed the seat of al l diseasesin the humours of the body

,and was one of the ch i ef supporters of

what i s known as th e “ Immoral pathology.

”Sprengel ? and others

state that he was the firs t who pointed ou t the distinct ion betweenthe arteries and the veins ; but M . Li ttré den i es th is

,and seems to prove

that the differences were known to Aristotle, Hippocrates, and otherwriters . 3 His knowledge o f anatomy must have been very cons iderable

,

and h i s surgery was certainly bold so that he even ventured,in cases of

intussusception of the bowel, to Open the abdomen in order to replacethe intestine. In hern ia he pract ised the taxi s ,4 i.e. replaced the bowelby the hand and he amputated the uvula in affections of that organ .

He had many pupils, amongst others Heroph i lus, Philotimus, and Pl istonicus .

ARISTOTLE, the founder of comparative anatomy and the father Of

the science of natural h istory, was the son of Nichomachus, phys ic ianto Ainyntas king of Macedon ia . He was born at Stageira, B.C.

3 34. His fath er was a sci en tific man of the race of the Asclepiads ,and i t was the tas te for such pursui ts and the inheri ted ben t o f m indwh ich early incl ined the son to the investigation o f nature. He wen tto Athens

,where he became the disc iple of Plato, and remained in his

soc iety for twenty years. In his forty- second year he was summonedby Philip of Macedon to undertake the tu i t ion o f Alexander the Great,who was then fifteen years old. Of h i s ph ilosoph ical works i t i s not

here necessary to speak i t i s h is sc ient ific labours,wh ich had so impor

tant an influence on medical education , wh ich ch iefly concern us . He

wrote Researclzes aoout An imals , On Sleep and Waking, On Longevity

ana’

Slzortli zrea'ness

, On Resp iration ,On Parts of Animals

, On Locomo

tion of Animals, On Generation of An imals . Aristotle inspired Alex

ander with a pass ion for the study of natural h istory, and h i s royal

pupil gave him abundant means and Opportun i ty to collect materialsfor a h istory Of an imals. The science of comparative anatomy, so

importan t in relat ion to that of medic ine, was thus established . He

1 On the question of the authenticity Of this epistle see Dr. Adams’ commentaryin his Pau lus /Egineta , vol . i . p . 186.

2 Hist . de la M id" vol. i . pp . 422-

3 .

3 G u t/res d’Hippocr . , vo l. i . p . 202

, etc.

4 Cael . Aurel . , D c .Morb. Acu t. , iii . I 7 .

P OST-HIPPOCRA TI C GREEK MEDICINE. 193

pointed out the differences wh ich exis t between the s tructure of men

and monkeys ; described the organs of the elephan t, and the stomach .

o f the ruminan t an imals . The anatomy o f birds and the developmen t oftheir eggs during incubation were accurately described by him he dissected reptiles, and studied the habits o f fishes . He investigated theaction of the muscles, regarded the heart as the origin of the bloodvessels

,named the aorta and the ventricles

,described the nerves wh ich

he thought originated in the heart, but he confused the nerves with thel igamen ts and tendons . The heart he cons idered as the centre ofmovement and feel ing 1 and nourishmen t

,hold ing that i t contains the

natural fire, and i s th e birthplace o f the pass ions and the seat of thesoul ; the brain he though t was merely a mass of water and earth , andd id not recogni s e i t as nervous matter. The d iaphragm he cons ideredhad no other office than to separate the abdomen from the thorax and

protec t the seat of the soul ( the heart) from the impure influences o f

the digestive organs . Superfoetat ion (or the conception of a secondembryo during the gestation of the first) he held to be poss ible, and hefirst poin ted out the punctum saliens.

THEOPHRASTUS,whose real name was Tyrtamus, was born at Eresa

in the i sland of Lesbos , 3 7 1 B.C.,fourteen years after Aristotle . He

was the originator of th e sc ience of plan ts he first learned the detailsO f their structure

,the uses of their organs

,the laws of thei r reproduc

t ion,— in a word , the physiology of the vegetable world . When Aristotleretired to Chalc i s

,he chose Theophras tus , t o whom he gave that name,

signi fying a man o f_

d ivine speech ,” as h i s successor at the Lyceum .

Thi s distinguished ph ilosopher devoted h imself al ike to the exact ands peculative sc iences . The greater part of h i s works have perishedwhat i s preserved to us cons is ts of treatises on the h is tory of thevegetable kingdom

,of stones

,and some fragments of works on physics ,

medicine, and some mofal works . His .History of P lants enumeratesabout five hundred differen t kinds

,many of which are now diffi cult to

ident ify. He made sOme attempts at a vague kind of class ification, andhas chapters on aquatic

,kitchen

, parasi te, succulen t, Oleaginous, andc ereal plants . He carefully explains th e principles of the reproducti ono f vegetables, and the fecundation of the female flowers by the polleno f the male . He recogni ses hermaphrodite and uni sexual flowers

,and

points out how the fecundation o f the latter i s effected by the wind,insects, and by the water in the case of aquatic plants. He knew thatd ouble flowers were sterile. He devotes a chapter to the d iseases ofthe vegetable kingdom he almost recognised the characteristics whichd istinguish the monocotyledonous from the dicotyledonous plants . In a

1 Le Clerc, Hist . de la Ill e’a’. Meryon, Hist . fil ed , p . 35.

194 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF [MED/CINE.

word, he laid the foundations on which our modern botanis ts haveerected thei r sc i ence.

1

THE SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA.

In the year 33 1 says Kingsley,

one o f the greatest intellects whose influence the world has ever fel t, saw,

with h i s eagleglance, the unrivalled advan tages of the spot wh ich i s now Alexandria ;and conceived the m ighty proj ect of making it the poin t of un ion o f

two,or rather Of three worlds . In a new c i ty, named after h imself,

Europe, As ia, and Africa were to meet and to hold commun ion.

”

When Greece lost her intellec tual supremacy with her national inde

pendence, the centre of l iterature, ph ilosophy, and sc ience was sh i ftedto th is un ique position . With al l the treasures of Egypt ian wisdomaround her, with al l the stores o f Eastern though t on the one hand and

those of Europe on the other, Alexandria became in her schools therallying -

po in t o f the world’

s though t and ac t ivi ty. If we turn to an

atlas of anci ent geography, we shall be s truck w i th the unrivalled faci l it i es possessed by th is c i ty for gathering to itself the treasures

,intel

lectual and material,o f the conquered world of Alexander the Great .

From the Danube,Greece

,Phoen icia

,Palest ine

,Pers ia

, As ia M inor,India, Italy, and the Celtic tribes, there came embassies to Egypt toseek the protect ion and al l iance o f Alexander Of Macedon

,and each

must have contr ibuted someth ing to th e greatness of the c ity wh ich hehad founded . Just as every traveller in after years who passed throughthe place was compelled to leave a copy

‘ of any work wh ich he hadbrought with him

,to the Alexandrian l ibrary

,so from the first founda

4tion of the town was every vis i tor a donor of some idea to i ts s tores o f

thoughtA t the dismemberrnent of Alexander’s vast empi re, after h i s death ,

the Egypt ian portion fell to the share of Ptolemy Soter. It was th i ssovereign who founded the famous Alexandrian Library a great patronof th e arts and sc i ences, he placed th is insti tution under the directionof Ari s totle . He also establi shed the Schools of A lexandria, and

encouraged the dissection of the human body.

CHRYSIPPUS, the Cn idian, who l ived in the fourth century B.C .,was

the father of the Chrys ippus who was phys ic ian to Ptolemy Soter, andhe was tutor to Erasistratus . Pliny says that he reversed the practiceof preceding phys ic ians in the most extraordinary manner. He wouldno t permi t bleeding, because the blood contains the soul ; did not prae

1 Etudes Biograpniqnes par Pau l -Anto ine, Cap . p . 26. The Treatise on Stones by

Theophrastus is one O f the first works we possess on the study ofminerals.2 A lexandr ia and lzcr Sc/i ools, p . 6.

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1 96 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

venous sinuses,and torcular Heroph i l i. He believed the fourth ven

triel e to be the seat of th e soul . He discovered th e chyl iferous and

lact iferous vessels. He described accurately the l iver and Fallopiantubes

,the epididym i s and the duodenum,

to wh ich he gave its name,and

also the os hyoides,the uvea

,the vitreous humour, th e retina, and the

c il iary processes . He called th e pulmonary artery the vena arteriosa,and the pulmonary vein the arteria venosa. He dist ingui shed in resp iration a systole, a diastole, and a period of res t. He founded the doctrine of the pulse, i ts rhythm,

the bounding pulse and i ts varietie saccording to age. The pulse i s commun icated by the heart to thewalls of the arteries . He distinguished between arteri es and veins, andadm i tted that th e arteri es con tain blood. He taugh t that diseases arecaused by a corruption of the humours . Paralys is i s due to a lack o f

n erve influence . He laid great stres s upon d iet, bled frequently, and

pract ised ligation of th e l imbs to arrest bleeding. He was the first toadmin ister cooking salt as a medic ine. A good botan i s t

,he preferred

vegetable remedies , which he termed the Hands of the gods .” He

possessed cons iderable acquain tance with obstetric operat ions , 1 and

wrote a text-book of m idwifery.

2

ERAS ISTRATUS, of Iuli s in the island of Cos, a pup il of CHRYSIPPUSwas one of the most famous physic ians and anatom i sts of the Alexand rian school. Plutarch says that when he was phys ic ian to King Selencus, he discovered that the young prince An t iochus had fallen in lovewith his step-mo ther Straton ice by finding no phys ical cause for th ei llness from wh ich he was suffering, and that h i s heart palp i tated , het rembled , blushed , and perspi red when the lady en tered the room . Bypadro it managemen t h e induced the king to confer on the prince theobj ec t of the young man’s passion .

‘

imilia similibus curantur . So

successful was the treatmen t that the physic ian received a fee of t o o

talents,which supposing the Att ic s tandard to be meant would amount

t o perhaps the largest medical fee on record .

3 He l ived forsome time in Alexandria, and gave up medical practice in his old age,

that he m igh t devote h i s whole t ime to the study of anatomy.Dr. Baas , in his account of the Anatomy, Physiology, and Medic ine

of Erasistratus, says that he divided the nerves into those of sensat ionand those of motion . The brain substance is the origin of the motorand the brain membranes that of the sensory nerves .4 Like Heroph ilus,

1 Baas, Hist . of M at , pp. 1 2 1—1 23 .

2 Buschmann , Hist. Il/Ied . Edna , p . 76.

3 Plutarch’s Life of D emetr iu s.

4 He modified his Opinions on the nerves by carefu l dissections, and greatly improvedhis physio logy .

P OST-HIPP OCRA TIC GREEK MEDICINE. 197

he confounded the nerves and l igaments. He described accurately th estructure

,convolutions , and ven tr icles of th e brain . He though t that

the convolutions, espec ially those o f the cerebellum,are the seat o f

thought,and located mental diseases in the brain. He knew the lymph

and chyle vessels, and the chordae tendineae of the heart. He assumedthe anastomoses of the arteri es and veins. The pneuma in the heart i svital spiri ts, in th e brain i s an imal spirits . D igestion i s due to the frict ion of the walls of the stomach. He thought that the bi l e i s useless

,

as i s the spleen and other viscera. He shows some acquaintance with

pathological anatomy, as he describes induration of the l iver in dropsy.

His idea Of the cause of disease i s pl ethora and aberrat ion of th ehumours . Inflammation i s due to the detent ion of the blood in thesmall vessels by the pneuma driven from the heart into the arteries ;fever occurs when the pneuma i s crowded back to the heart by thevenous blood , and blood gets into the large arteries . D ropsy always

proceeds from the l iver. He discarded bleeding and purgation recom

mended baths,eneme ta, emet ics , frict ion, and cupping. He was

,th inks

Dr. Baas, a forerunner of Hahnemann in the doctrine of small doses, ashe prescribed three drops of wine in bilious diarrhoea. He opened th eabdomen to apply remedies directly to the affected part, and inventeda kind of catheter. 1

Erasistratus was the first to describe a speci es of hunger, to wh ich hegave th e name Boulimia— a

-desire for food wh ich cannot be satisfied .

In his account o f the complain t h e ment ions the Scyth ians , who , whenobliged to fast

,t ie bandages round their abdomen s tigh tly

,and th is

stays their hunger.2

The anc ien t apologists for the human vivisections of Heroph i lus andErasistratus used to say that these anatom i sts were thus “ enabled to

behold,during l ife

,those parts which nature had concealed , and to con

template their s i tuation , colour, figure, s ize, order, hardness or softness,roughness or smoothness

, etc. They‘ added that i t i s no t poss ible, whena person has any internal i llness, to know what is the cause Of i t, unlessone i s exactly acquainted with the si tuation of all the viscera ; nor canone heal any part without understanding its nature : that when the intestines protrude through a wound, a person who does no t know what istheir colour when in a healthy state cannot d istinguish the sound fromthe diseased parts, nor therefore apply proper remedies ; while, on thecontrary, he who i s acquainted with the natural state of the d iseasedparts will undertake the cure with confidence and certainty ; and that,in short, i t is not to be called an act of cruelty, as some persons suppose

I Baas, Hist . pp. 12 1—123.

2 Le Clerc, Hist. de la M e'

ct. , Pt. I I. c. i ii .

198 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDI CINE.

it,to seek for the remedies of an immense number Of innocent persons

in the sufferings o f a few cr iminals.

” 1

AMMONIUS OF ALEXANDRIA, surnamed e uoromus , probably l ivedin the reign of Ptolemy Ph iladelphus (B.C. 2 83 He i s celebratedas having been the first surgeon who though t of c rush ing a stone withinthe bladder when too large for extraction entire for th is reason he wascalled Ateordptos. Celsus describes h i s method .

2

Of the Herophil ists we may ment ion DEMETRIUS OF APAMIEA (B.C.

who named and described diabetes , and was distinguished as an

obstetric ian .

MANTIAS,who , B.C. 250 , firs t col lected the preparations of medic ines

into a spec ial book .

DEMOSTHENES PHILALETHES, who , under Nero , was the most celebrated ocul ist o f his time, wrote a work on diseases of the eye

,which

was the standard authority unti l about A.D . 1 000 . The work hasperished, but IEtius and Paulus E gineta have preserved some fragmentsof i t. He wrote also on the pulse.HEGETON was a surgeon of Alexandria who was men t ioned by Galen

as having l ived there as a contemporary o f several physicians who wereknown to have resided in that c i ty at the end o f the second or th e beginning of the firs t cen tury B.C . He was a follower o f Heroph ilus, andwrote a book on the causes of diseases enti tled Hepi. Aim

'

Iw,wh ich has

perished.

Of the school of Erasistratus we may mention XENOPHON OF Cos ,

who wrote a work on th e names of the parts o f the human body, and on

botany and the diseases of women. NICIAS OF M ILETUS,a friend o f

ghe poet Theocri tu s ; PHILOXENOS, who , according to Celsus, wroteseveral valuable books on surgery ; and MARTIALIS th e Anatomi s t

, who

vi s i ted Rome about A.D . 1 65 . Hei

knew Galen ,and wrote works on

'

anatomy wh ich were in great r‘epute long after h i s death .

The followers ofHeroph i lus and Eras i stratus , though they foundedschools

,did no t greatly influence the art of medic ine

,nor d id they con

tribute much to i ts advancemen t beyond the point in wh ich i t was le ftby their great masters. They fell into fruitless speculations instead of

pursu ing thei r sc ience by accumulating facts ; in the words of Pliny,i t

was eas ier “ to s it and l i sten quietly in the schools,than to be up and

1 D r. W. A. Greenhill , art. Dogmatici, Smith’s D iet. Class . An t. Briefly,this

was as much as to say that a man cou ld not be an educated doctor who had no t praet ised , or at least seen , human vivisection . As these have no t been performed since thefifteenth century, when , as we shal l learn , they were practised by Italian anatomists

,

it fo l lows, according to the argument, that the A lexandrian physicians were bettereducated than our own

2 D e fli ed , vii . 26. See also Smith’s D ict. An t , p . 220.

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z oo A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF [WED/CINE.

the same as experience, or someth ing different ? If the same,i t must

be n eedless ; i f di fferent, i t must be m i sch ievous .“ But what remains is also cruel

,to cut Open the abdomen and

praecordia of l iving men, and make that art,which presides over the

health of mankind,the instrument

,not only of infl ict ing death, but of

doing i t in the mos t horrid manner ; espec ially i f i t be consideredthat some of those th ings wh ich are sough t after with so much barbarity cannot be known at all

,and others may be known without any

cruel ty : for that the colour, smoothness, softness, hardness, and suchl ike , are not the same in a wounded body as they were in a sound one

and further,because these quali ti es

,even in bod ies that have suffered

no external violence,are often changed by fear

,grief

,hunger

,indiges

tion, fatigue, and a thousand other incons iderable d isorders, wh ichmakes i t much more probable that the internal parts, which are farmore tender

,and never exposed to the l igh t i tself, are changed by th e

severes t wounds and mangl ing. And that noth ing can be morerid iculous than to imagine anyth ing to be the same in a dying man,

nay,

one already dead, as i t i s in a l iving person for that the abdomen mayindeed be Opened wh i le a man breathes

,but as soon as the kn ife has

reached the praecordia, and the transverse septum i s cut, wh ich by a kindo fmembrane divides the upper from the lower parts (and by the Greeksi s cal led th e diaphragm) , the man immediately expires ; and then the

praecordia, and all the viscera, never come to the view of the butchering physic ian t il l the man i s dead ; and they must necessarily appearas such of a dead person, and no t as they were while he l ived ; andthus the phys ic ian gains only th e opportun i ty of murdering a man

.cruelly

,and no t of observing what are the appearances of the viscera

in a l iving person . If,however, there can be anything wh ich can be

observed in a pe rson which yet breathes, chance often throws i t in the‘

way of such as pract ise the healing art for that sometimes a gladiatoron the stage, a soldier in the field, or a traveller beset by robbers , i s sowounded that some internal part, different in differen t people, may be

exposed to v iew ; and thus a pruden t physic ian finds their s ituation,

pos ition , order, figure, and the other particulars he wan ts to know ,no t

by perpetrat ing murder, but by attempt ing to give health and learns bycompass ion that wh ich others had discovered by horrid cruelty. Tha tfor these reasons i t i s no t necessary to lacerate even dead bodies ;which

,though not cruel, yet may be shocking to the sight ; s ince mos t

th ings are different in dead bodies ; and even the dress ing of woundsshows all that can be discovered in the l iving (Futvoye

’s Translation) . l

PHILINUS OF Cos, the reputed founder of the school, was a pupil of1 Celsus, Of M edicine.

P OST-HIPPOCRA TIC GREEK MED ICINE. 20 1

Herophilus, and l ived in the th ird century B.C. He declared that al lthe anatomy h is vivisect ing master had taugh t him had not helped himin the least in the cure o f h is patients . He has been compared withHahnemann .

SERAPION OF ALEXANDRIA was also of the th ird century B.C. He

must no t be confounded with the Arabian physic ian of th i s name.He wrote against Hippocrates . He d iscarded all hypotheses . He

was the firs t to prescribe sulphur in chron ic sk in diseases and he usedsome s ingular and d i sgusting remedies in h i s treatmen t. One of thesewas crocodiles’ dung, which in consequence became scarce and costly.

GLAUCIAS, who invented the “Empiric Tripod ,” ZEUXIS and HERA

CLIDES of Tarentum,l ived about th is period . The latter wrote com

mentaries on Hippocrates, and used opium to procure sleep. He

ment ions strangulated hiéi

rn ia in one of h is treati ses .Many commentaries were written about th i s t ime on Hippocrates ;

and the art o f pharmacy, espec ially the preparat ion of poisons, wasmuch s tudied in the second cen tury B.C. Botan ic gardens were established, and men began to experimen t with antidotes for poisons .“Mithridaticum

,

” so called after M ITHRIDATES THE GREAT OF PONTUS ,was a famous ant idote which was used even to recen t t imes . NICAN

DER OF COLOPHON wrote poems on poisons, and ant idotes, leeches ,and emetics for the first t ime appeared in poetry, and the symptoms Ofopium and lead-

poison ing were not beneath the atten t ion of the muse .

ATTALUS III. , king of Pergamos, was in constant fear of being po isoned,says Plutarch , 1 amused h imsel f with p lanting poisonous herbs, not onlyhenbane and hellebore

,but heml ock, acon ite, and dorycnium. He

cultivated these in the royal gardens, gathered them at th e proper;seasons, and s tudied their properties and th e qual i ties of their j u icesand frui ts .Cleopatra is said by Baas 2 to have wri tten a work on th e di seases of

parturien t and lying-in women , etc . She paid special attent ion, itwould seem, to maladies of a spec ific character.Le Clerc gives a l is t o f the women who have exerc i sed the profess ion

of medic ine in anc ien t t imes .3

CLEOPATRA treated the diseases of women. ARTEM ISIA, Queen ofCaria

, Isrs, CYBELE, LATONA

,D IANA, PALLAs , ANGITA

,MEDEA,

C IRCE, POLYDAMNA, AGAMEDA, HELEN, (ENONE, HIPPO, OCRvOE,

EPIONE, ERIOPIs, HYGEIA, ZEGLE, PANACEA, JAso, ROME, and AcEso

are the ladies o f c lass ic story who had more or less acquaintance withmedic ine for good or evi l purposes . That women, subj ec t to many

1 Life of D emetr ius .

2 Hist . p . 1 29 .

3 Hist. de la P t. II bk . ii i. , ch. x i ii.

202 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

d isorders for wh ich in any state of soc iety their natural modesty wouldmake i t difli cult for them to consul t men

,should become profic ien t in

the treatmen t o f complaints wh ich are pecul iar to their sex, i s the mostnatural th ing in the world, and i t i s probable that very much of our

knowledge of the treatment of these cases may be due to femin inewisdom. An anc ient law of th e Athen ians forbade women and slavesto exerc is e the art of medicine, so that even m idwifery, wh ich theyc onsidered a branch of i t

,could only be practised by men . Some

Athenian ladies preferred to die rather than be attended by men intheir confinements. Women acted as accoucheuses in Egypt, Greece ,and Rome

, and some of them in classic t imes wrote books on medic ine .

IEtius gives some fragments in h i s works from a doctress namedASPAS IA.

Al though the Greek physicians did not know anyth ing of the c irculat ion of the blood as we understand i t, they were not wholly ignorantof the phenomena Of the vascular system .

The arteries were so called by the ancients because they thought theycontained air

,as they were always found empty after death . Hippo

c rates and h i s contemporaries called the trachea an artery. Some ofthe anc i en t anatomists

,however

,knew that they contain blood , and

they knew that when an artery is d ivided i t i s more dangerous andentails a longer recovery than the d ivis ion of a vein. They knew alsoo f the pulsation in the arteries which does not exis t in the veins , andthey were fully aware o f the importance of thi s fac t in i ts relationto diagnosi s and treatment.

The anc ien ts chiefly regarded the odd days , and called themcrit ical as i f on these a j udgment was to be formed con

Cern ing the patient. These days were the thi rd, fifth , seven th , n inth ,eleventh , fourteenth , and twenty-first ; so that the greates t influencewas attributed to the seventh , next to the fourteenth , and then to thetwen ty-first. And therefore

,with regard to the nourishmen t of th e

s ick, they waited for the fi ts of the odd days then afterwards they gavefood

,expect ing the approach ing fits to be eas ier ; insomuch that Hippo

c rates, if the fever had ceased on any other day, used to be apprehen

s ive of a relapse .

” 1

These cri tical days were bel ieved by Hippocrates and most of theo ther anc ien t physic ians to be influenced by the moon .

Greek medic ine was divided in to five parts, and to th is day thesedivis ions are stil l maintained. They were ( I ) Physiology and Anatomycons idered together ; (2 ) E t iology, or the doctrine of the causes ofdisease ; (3 ) Pathology ; (4) Hygiene, or the art of preserving the

Celsus, Of IVc icine, chap. iv. Futvoye’

s Trans.

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204 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF .MEDICINE.

The anci ent physicians seemed to have had no idea of the necess ityfor Observing any order in their interpretat ion of diseases ; even in them iddle ages , says Sprengel , 1 they merely followed the posi tion of theparts of the body

,

“ passing from the head to th e chest,from the thorax

to the abdomen,and from the belly to the extrem i t ies .”

In that branch of modern medical science'

which treats‘

of the classification of diseases

,and which is termed Nosology, a systematic arrange

ment i s followed , and the prom inen t symptoms are taken as the basisof that c lass ificat ion.

GREEK MED ICAL LITERATURE.

The following i s Dr. Greenh ill’s probably complete l ist of the anc ien ttreati ses on Therapeu t ics now extant .2

Hippocrates : Seven Books (see p . 1 78 of th is work ) . Aretaeus ,Hepi. ®epa 7reia s

i

Ofe'

wV Ka i. Xpoviwv Haeibv,D e Cur d/ione Acutor um ct

D iuturnorum M oroornm 1n four books . Galen,Te

’

xm’

Ia Ars

Id. ®€pa7revru<17 M6908“ ,M et/ioa

'us M ea

'

ena’i : Id. T6. 117169

FAa tiw /a O epan-evn xai

,Ao

’

Glauconem a’e M ea

'

ena’

i IlIetlzoa'

o ; Id. Hepi.

77d D e Vencesectione aa’versus Eras istratum

Id. Hepi (PAejBo-r opt t

’

a s 7rpOsi

EpacrLO'

r-

par eiovs“roil s 15V

i

Pa'

Ijm], D e Venwscctionc

aa’

versus Erasistrateos Roma D egentes ; Id . II epl.(bAeBor op t

'

ae (Depa

n ev'

rtKOv Btflk t’

ov,D e Curancl i Ratione per Vena’sectionem Id. Hepi.

i

Avn m rao e'

ws, Et nv’

a g, Ka ii

n apaifews, Ka iKar axaoyt ov, D eHiru

cl in iaus,Revu lsione, Cucuroitula, Incisione, et Scar zfi cationc. Alexander

Aphrodisiensis, Hepi. I v ei-(Iw

,D e Peor ians . Great part o f the Evvaywya l

Iarpma t’

, Collecta Ill ea'icinalia

,of Oribas ius , and also of his

v

Sy nops is ao’Eustat/zinm

,treat Of th i s subj ec t. Palladius, Hepi I v en

’

Iw

EtiVTO/t os Etivo i/ns, D e Peor ians Concisa Sy nopsis. Aé tius, BiBAi’

a’

Iarpu<61’

Exxa t’

8exa,L ibr i M edici

'

nales Sedecim. Alexander Trallianus, ErBAr’

a

’

Iarpu<& Avoxa r’

SeKa,L ibr i a

’

e R e M edica D noa’

ecim. Paulus E gineta,’

Evn -ro7n

'

js’

Iarpu<ijs BiBAt’

a”Em -

a,

'

Compena'

ii M edici Libri Septem, ofwh ich great part relates to th i s subj ect. Theophanes Nonnus, Em s

-om)

r ijs’

Ia~rprm

'

js’

A7raim79 Te’

xvns, Cor/menn’ium TotiasArtls Medicice. Synesius,

Hepi. I v e-r t

'

im,D e Peor ians . joannes Actuarius, M et/ladies M ea

’

ena’i .

Demetrius Pepagomenus, Hepi. IIod pa s, D e Poa’agra. Celsus, D e

M ea’icina

,in eigh t books . Caelius Aurel ianus , Celerum Passionum,

Libri i i i . Id . To rn’

aram Passionnm,Libri v. Serenus Samonicus, D e

M edicine: P rwcep ta Saluoerr ima ,a poem on the art of Healing .

Theodorus Priscianus,Rerum M edicarum

,Libri iv.

1 Hi st . de la M e'

a’n vo l . vi . p . 28 .

2 Sm ith’s D ict. An t .,art .

“ Therapeutica.

EXAM PLES OF ANCIENT SURGERY.

Fig. I .

Representation of the mode of reducing dis location of the thigh outwards, as given by M . Littré .

Fig. 2 .

Representat ion of the ancient modeo

o f performing succuss ion, as given by Vidus Vidius in theVenet ian edi t i on of Galen'

s works (Cl . vi . . p.

{Face! . 204 .

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206 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

of the heal ing art from some savage nation. Fever and stench wereworsh ipped as the goddesses Febris and M eph i ti s Fesson ia helped theweary, says St. Augustine, 1 and “ sweet Cloacina was invoked whenthe drains were out of order.2

The i tch patients invoked the goddess Scabies and the plague-strickenthe goddess Angeron ia women sough t the aid of Fluonia and Uterina,and Ossipaga was goddess of the navel and bones Of ch i ldren. Therewere many goddesses of m idwi fery ; Carna pres ided over the abdominalviscera

,and sacrifices of beans and bacon were offered to her. St.

Augustine pours his sat ire and contempt on th e women’s goddessesin the eleventh chapter of the book from wh ich we have quoted . The

Romans were cosmopoli tan in the way of divinit ies ; Is is and Serapiswere imported from Egyp t, the Cabiri from the Phoenicians, and theworsh ip of IEsculap ius was commenced by the Romans , B.C.

Certain facts in the h istory of the Romans prove that there was a

profess ion o fmedic ine in Rome even in very early times. Plutarch , inh is L ife of Cato t/ze Censor , speaks of a Roman ambassador who wassen t to the king Of Bithynia, and who had h i s skul l trepanned. By theLex Aquil ia a doctor who neglected a s lave after an operation was

respons ible i f he died in consequence, and in the Twelve Tables o f

Numa mention i s made o f dental Operations .A college of IEsculapius and of Health was establi shed in Rome 1 54

B.C. An inscript ion has been di scovered in the excavations of thePalatine wh ich has preserved the memorial of i ts foundation .

‘1 The

medical profess ion o f ancient Rome was quite free, and such in

struction as its fol lowers cons idered i t necessary to acquire could beObtained how and where th ey chose. There was no uni form system o f

education the training was private in early t imes , and was imparted bysuch physic ians as cared to take pupi ls for a certain spec ified honorarium. It was no t t i ll later t imes that the Archiatri in their colleges ,wh ich were somewhat on the model of the mediaeval guilds, took pup ilsfor instruction in medic ine and surgery. Pure medical schools d id no t

exist amongst the Romans . 5 Pl iny complained 6 “ that peopl e bel ievedin any one who gave h imsel f out for a doctor

,even i f the falsehood

directly entailed the greatest danger.” “Un fortunately there i s no lawwh ich punishes doctors for ignorance

,and no one takes revenge on a

doctor if, through his fault , some one dies . It i s perm i tted him by ourdanger to learn for the future

,at our death to make experiments , and,

1 D e Civ. D ei . , l ib. iv . cap . xx i. 2 Ibid., cap. xx i ii .3 Baas, Hist. M ed , p . 1 3 1 .

4 Puschmann, Hist. ofMed. Edna , p . 86.

5 M id , p . 97 . Baas , Hist. l lfi 'd , p. 1 52 .

6 Hist . Nat. , xx ix . 8.

THE EARLIER ROl lIAN MED ICINE. 207

without having to fear pun i shment, to set at naugh t the l ife of a humanbeing .

”

Cato hated phys ic ians, partly because they were mostly Greeks , and,partly because he was h imsel f an outrageousquack , who thought himself equal to a whole College of phys ic ians . Plutarch tells us 1 that hehad heard of the answer which Hippocrate s gave the king of Pers ia,when he sent for him and o ffered him a reward o f many talents “ I willnever make use of my art in favour Of barbarians who are enemies ofthe Greeks .” He affected to believe that all Greek phys ic ians took asimi lar oath , and therefore advised h is son to have noth ing to do withthem. But there i s no doubt h is Obj ecti on t o the faculty arose fromthe fact that he had “ himself written a l i ttl e treat ise in which he had se t

down h is m ethod of cure . Cato’s guide to domestic medicine wasgood enough for the Roman people ; what did they want with Greek

physicians ? His system of diet,according to Plutarch , was peculiar

for sick persons he did not approve of fast ing, he permitted his patientsto eat ducks

,geese

,pigeons , hares , e tc .

,because they are a l igh t die t

su itable for s ick people. P lutarch adds , that he was not in h is own

household a very successful pract it ioner, as he lost h i s wife and son .

Pliny 2 tells us al l about Cato’s book o f recipes , wh ich the Romanfather of a fam ily consulted when any of h i s fam i ly or domestic animalswere ill . The fami ly doctor of those days was the father or the masterof the household

,and no doubt Cato was a very generous , i f no t a very

skilful pract iti oner. Seneca sums up th e healing art of th e t ime thusMedic ina quondam paucarum fui t sc ient ia herbarum quibus s istereturfluens .sanguis

,vulnera coiren t.

” 3

Cato attempted to cure dislocations by magic songs (carm ina) : Huat ,hanat

,i sta

,pista s ista damniato damnaustra,

” or nonsense s imply .

What h i s success in the treatmen t of l uxations on thi s princ ipl e we are

not informed . The practice of medic ine and surgery before the t ime ofCaesar was not an honourabl e one in Rome. Th is may poss ibly havearisen from .the fact that the only professors of the art were Greeks, whofor the most part left the ir coun try for thei r coun try

’s good andwen t toRome merely to make money, honestly if possible— perhaps— but at al levents to make i t . Rome Offered greater

,

facil i ti es for doing th is ththeir native land

,and the process was doubtless very s im i lar to that with

wh ich our own colon ies and the Un ited States of America have m the

past been only too fam il iar. ‘1

During the severe epidem ics wh ich often raged in anc ient Rome theoracles were con sulted as to the means to be adopted to be rid o f

1 Life of Cato t/ze Censor .

2 Hist . Nat . , xxix. cap. 8 .

3 Ep ist . 93 .

‘1 See Baas, Hist. q ed.

, and D r. Habershon’

s note on this subject , p . 1 33 .

208 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF l lIEDICINE.

them prayers were Offered up to the Greek gods of heal ing as . .wel l asthose of the state. But Greece had done more for the art of heal ingby her physicians than her gods could do

,and in process of t ime the

Romans found this out,and the nat ive doctors were compelled to yield

before the advance of Greek sc ience. The works of the Greek phys icians and surgeons, who had done so much for med ical knowledge andadvancemen t

,gradually made their way amongst the Romans . These

paved the way for Hellenic influence, in spi te of the disreputable behaviour Of some of the professors of the art o f med ic ine, on whom theRomans with good excuse looked as quacks and foreigners whose onlyobj ect was gain. We read of the erect ion at Rome of a temple inhonour o f Apollo the healer, 46 7 B.C. ,

and of the bu ilding of a temple toE sculapius of Epidaurus, 46o B.C. Ten years later the Roman s buil ta temple to the goddess Salus when the pest ilence raged in their c i ty.

Lucina was firs t worsh ipped there 400 B.C. In 399 B.C. the firs t lectisternium

,a fest ival of Greek origin

,was held in Rome by order of the

Sybilline books i t was held on exceptional occasions,the present being

a t ime o f fresh publ ic distress on account of a pest ilence which wasraging. The images of the gods were laid on a couch a table spreadwith a meal was placed before them,

and solemn prayers and sacrificeswere offered . A th ird lectistern ium was held at Rome 362 B.C. Thath e m igh t Obtain a cessat ion of the pest ilence then raging in Rome, L.

Manl ius Imperiorus fixed a nail in the temple of Jupi ter, B.C. 3 60 .

Thi s holding of lectisternes and driving nails in the temple walls became the recogn is ed method of dealing wi th such scourges

,and pain

fully exh ibits the powerlessness of mankind to deal w ith di sease bytheurgic means . Sc ience alone can combat disease

,the bed and board

offered to the gods who cannot use them are now bestowed on heal thofficers who can ; we no longer drive nails in temple walls to rem inddeities that we are in trouble , but we send memorials to our colleges of

phys ic ians demanding suggestions for escaping a vi s itation of cholera ;i t i s no t suffic ient to fix “ a nail in a sure place,

” i t must be fixed in theright one. In the year 29 1 B.C. , on the occasion of a pest ilence in Rome,ten ambassadors were sent to Ep idaurus to seek aid from the templ e ofIEsculapius. The god was sent to the affl icted c i ty under the figure ofa serpent . He comes to our town s now under the figure of a cask ofcarbol ic ac id .

ARCHAGATHUS was the firs t person who regularly practised medic inein Rome . He was a Peloponnesian who settled in the c i ty B.C. 2 1 9 , and

was welcomed with great respec t by the au thorit ies, who purchased asurgery or shOp for him at the publ ic expense, and gave him the Jus

Quiritium.

”

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2 10 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF .MED ICINE.

remedies for the bite o f a mad dog by means of cruel ty . For th is hed irects crawfish to be caught at a t ime when the sun and moon were ina particular posit ion, and to be baked al ive. A worthy combination

,i t

will be perceived , of superstition, astrology, and purposeless cruelty.

Al though anybody m ight practise medic ine in Rome without let orh indrance , the Lex Cornel ia ordered

‘ the arres t of the docto r i f the

patien t d ied through h is negligence (88There was a publ ic san i tary service and other Government employ

ments which demanded properly instruc ted doctors in anc i en t Rome ,a nd the pract ice o f special ism in the treatment of disease was carried toe ven greater lengths than at present. Martial satirises th i s . 1

In the time of Strabo and in that of Trajan there were publ ic medicaloffi cers in Gaul

,As ia M inor

,and in Latium. In Rome there were

d istric t medical offi cers for every part of the c i ty. They were perm i ttedto engage in private pract ice, but were compelled to attend the poorgratuitously. Their salary, according

‘

to Puschmann,

2 was paid ch i eflyin articles of natural prOduce.

The arc/n'

atr i populares were the district phys ic ians . The court

physic ians were called arc/i iatri palatini . The arcniatr i municzjoales

were mun icipal phys ic ian s . Their gu ild was the COLLEGIUM ARCHIATRORUM ,

wh ich in constitution was no t unl ike our Royal College o f

Physic ians.D ifferen t soc i eties employed doctors the theatres, gladiators , and the

c ircus retained surgeons .The art of ophthalm ic surgery fi rs t became a separate branch o f

the medical profess ion in the c i ty of A lexandria. Celsus s tates thatPHILOXENUs, who l ived two hundred and seventy y ears before Chris t,was th e most celebrated of the Alexandrian oculists . 3

Ocul ists were a numerous but ignoran t c lass of practit ioners inanc i en t Rome ; their treatment was almost always by salves , eacheye-doctor having h i s own spec ial ty. Nearly two hundred seals withthe proprietors

’names have been discovered wh ich have been attached

to the pots contain ing the ointments. Galen speaks con temptuouslyof the science of the eye-doctors of his t ime. Martial satirises them.

“ Now you are a gladiator who once were an Ophthalmi st ; you didas a doctor what you do as a gladiator.

”In another epigram he says ,

“ The blear-eyed Hylas .

wou ld have paid you Sixpence , O Quintus ;one eye i s gone, he will s till pay threepence make haste and takei t, brief is your chance

,when he i s bl ind he will pay you noth ing.

”

Under Nero, DEMOSTHENES PHILALETHES, th e famous doctor of

1 Epigrams,X . 56.

2 Hist . M ed. Edna , p . 13 1 .

3 Cels. , lib. vi i. p. 337 , ed . Targ . Sprengel, Ii ist . de la MAL, tom . vu . p. 38.

THE EARLIER ROMAN MEDICINE. 2 1 1

Marseilles, was a celebrated oculis t, whose work on eye diseases wasthe chief authori ty on the subj ect unti l about A .D . 1 000. Paulus

n ineta, in h i s treatise on Ophthalmology, recommends crocodile’sdung in opac i ty of th e cornea, and bed-bugs’ and frogs’ blood in

t richiasis yet with all th i s absurd ity he dis tinguished between cataractand amaurosi s .The ophthalmological l i terature of the Greeks and Romans has for

the most part perished . Puschmann says that th is branch o f surgerymust have been able to show remarkable results. “Not only trichias is

,

hypopyon, leucoma, lachrymal fis tula, and other affect ions of the external parts of the eye were subj ected to operat ive treatmen t, but evencataract itself.”1

Although the surgeons of the t ime were ignoran t o f th e true natureo f some of th e diseases wh ich th ey treated

,they could cure them.

Cataract was treated by couch ing,

’ or depressing the diseased lens bymeans of a needle, in order to extract ir.2

A patien t would sometimes require a consultat ion,when several

doctors would meet and discuss his case,wi th much difference of

Opinion more or l ess v iolently expressed. Regardless of the sufferingso f the patient

,they wrangled over h i s symptoms

,and behaved as i f they

were engaged in a pugil istic encounter, each man far more anxious toe xh ib i t h i s parts and display his dialect ical skil l than to alleviate thesufferings of the unfortunate cl ient . Pliny

,Galen, and Theodorus

Priscianus have left reali stic descripti ons of these medical encounters .With respect to the profess ional income o f the early Roman phy

s icians,Pliny says 3 that Albutius

,Arruntius

,Calpetanus, Cass ius , and

Rubrius gained sesterces per annum,equal to 2s. 6d.

t hat Quin tus Stet t in ius made i t a favour that he was con ten t to rece ivefrom the emperor 5 oo,ooo sesterces per annum ,

or 5s.,as he

m ight have made sesterces,or ro s .

,by his private

pract ice. He and h i s brother,also an Imperial physic ian , left between

them at their death the sum of th irty m i ll ions o f sesterces,or

n otwithstanding the large sums they had spen t on beautify ing Naples . 4

Galen’s fee for curing the wife of the consul Boethus, after a long illness ,was about equal to £400 of our money.

Manl ius Cornutus, according to Pliny, paid his doc tor a sum amounting to for curing him o f a skin disease ; and th e doctors Crinasand Alcon

,according to the same authority

,were immensely rich men .

But these were al l exceptional cases,and there is no reason to suppose

1 Hist. of fi l ed . Edna , p. Galen, x . 987. Fl in. , IVat. Hist. , xx ix . 8.

3 Nat . Hist .

,xxix . 5 .

4 Smi th’s D ict. A n t. , p . 6 1 1 .

2 1 2 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF IlIEDICINE .

that Roman doc tors made on the average more than suffi cient to keepthem decently.

1

SCHOOL OF THE METHODISTS .

ASCLEP IADES,of Prusa

,in Bithynia

,was a physic ian of great cele

brity and influence, who flourished at Rome in the beginn ing of the firstcentury B.C . He passed h i s earl ier years at Alexandria, then went toAthens

,where he studied rhetoric and medicine. He is said to have

travelled much . He ultimately settled at Rome as a rhetorician . Hewas the friend of C icero. Being unsuccessfu l as a teacher of rhetoric

,

he devoted h imself to medicine . He was a man of great natural ability,

but he was quite ignoran t o f anatomy and physiology ; so he decried th elabours of those who studied these sciences

,and violently attacked

Hippocrates . His conduct was that of an early Paracelsus . He hadmany pupi ls, and the school they founded was afterwards called that o fthe M ethodists . His system was original , though it owed somewhat tothe Epicu’rean ph i losophy. He conceived the idea that d isease arosein th e atoms and corpuscles composing the body, by a want o f harmonyin thei r motion. Harmony was health ; d i scord , disease. Natural lyhis treatment was as pleasant as that of the most fashi onable modernphysic ian. He paid great attention to diet, passive mot ions, frictidnsafter the method now called massage, and the use of cold sponging.

He ent irely rej ected the humoral pathology Of Hippocrates , and totallyden i ed h i s doctrine of crises , declared that the phys ic ian alone cures,nature merely supply ing the opportuni ti es. His famous motto wasthat the physic ian should cure “ tuto

,celeriter, ac jucunde .

”In the

beginn ing of fevers h e refused his patien ts perm iss ion even to rinse themouth . He originated the method Of cycl ical cures by adopt ing certainmethods of treatmen t at defini te periods. He fi rst appl ied the term“ phreni t i s in the sense of mental d i s turbance . In drugs he was asceptic

,but he allowed a l iberal use o f wine. He was said to have

experimented in physiology, though he knew noth ing o f i t. Tertul l ianridicules him thus : “Asclepiades may investigate goats, wh ich bleatwithout a heart

,and drive away fl i es

,wh ich fly without a head.

”

Asclepiades must have been a great deal more than a charlatan, formany of h i s fundamen tal ideas have persi s ted even to the presen t t ime.He was the first to distinguish diseases into acute and chronic.

2 Acutediseases he supposed to depend “ upon a constrict ion of the pores , oran obstruction of them by a superfluity of atoms ; the chron ic upon a

relaxation of the pores,or a defic iency of the atoms .” Asclepiades was

1 Puschmann’s Il/ed. Edna , p . 1 26 .

2 C zel. Aurel. , Dc M ord. Cli ron . ,i ii. 8 .

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2 14 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF l lIEDIC/NE.

found a medical system without flying a particular flag. Themison’

s

“ flag was the “ s tatus s trictus,” or “ laxus of th e pores that i s to say,

disease i s either a condi tion o f increased or d iminished tens ion . He

was the first who described rheumatism,and probably the first European

phys ician who used leeches .1

He i s said to have been attacked wi th hydrophobia, and to haverecovered. Juvenal satirised him (probably) in the l ines

How many patients Them ison dispatchedIn one short autum n

2

Them ison’s princ iples d iffered from those of h i s master in many

respects , and besides rect ifying h i s errors he introduced a greater precision into h i s system .

3

He chose a m iddle way between the doctrines of the Dogmatists andEmpirics. Writing Of th e M ethodists, Celsus says : " They assert thatthe knowledge of no cause whatever bears the least relation to themethod of cure ; and that i t i s suffi c i ent to observe some general symptoms Of distempers and that there are three kinds o f diseases

,one bound ,

another loose,and the th ird a m ixture o f these .

”4 Sometimes theexcretions of th e sick are too small, sometimes too large ; one particularexcret ion may be in excess, another defic ien t the observation of theseth ings constitutes the art o f medic ine, wh ich they defined as a certainway of proceeding, which the Greeks called M et/sod. They deducedindications of treatmen t from analogies in symptom s , and made a boldc lassification of diseases ; accurate as a rule in their d iagnosis, theywere usually successful and rational in their therapeutics . They

.en

t irely ignored any cons ideration of the remote causes of d iseases the ir1 only Obj ect was to cure their patients wi thou t speculating as to th ereasons why they had become s ick . They repudiated the Vis medic

'

atrix

theory.

EUDEMUS (B.C. 1 5) was a disc iple of Themison. Caelius Aurel ianussays of him that in his practice he used to order c lysters of cold waterfor patients suffering from the i l iac passion . I t i s probable that he wasthe friend and physic ian of Livilla, and the man who poisoned herhusband Drusus . Tac i tu s speaks of him, say ing that he made a greatparade of many secret remedies , with a view to extol hi s own abilitiesas a doctor. I t i s poss ible, however, that th is may no t have been the

same Eudemus as the d isc iple of Themi son th e Methodis t, as therewere several other physicians of that name . Our Eudemus made many

1 Cael . Aurel . , D e Ill oré . Cli ron . , i . l . p . 286.

2 Sat. , x . 22 1 .

3 Galen , I ntrod. , c. l . , tom . x iv. , pp. 663, 684 . Ed. Kiihn .

‘1 D e Media , l ib. i . , Precf.

THE EARLIER ROMAN MEDICINE. 2 1 5

Observations on hydrophobia, and remarked how rarely any suffererrecovered who was attacked by i t. He was put to death by orderof Tiberius .MEGES, of Sidon (B.C . was a famous surgeon

,and a follower o f

Themison . He invented instruments u sed in cutting for the stone. He

made Observations on tumours of th e breast and forward dislocationsof the knee. He was regarded by Celsus as the mos t skilful of thosewho exerc i sed the art of surgery.

VECTIUS VALLENS (circ. A .D . 3 7 ) was a pupi l of Apule ius Celsus , andwas well known for h is connection wi th Messalina

,the wife of C laudius .

He belonged to Themison’s sect, and i s introduced by Pliny in fact asthe author of an improvemen t upon i t. It was the pract ice of al l theadheren ts of the Methodis t school o f medic ine to pretend that by thechanges they had introduced into the system they had originated anew one.

1

SCRIBONIUS LARGUS (A.D. 45 ) is said to have been phys ician to

Claudius , and to have accompan ied him to Bri tain. He wrote severalmedical works in Latin. He was the firs t .to prescribe th e electric i ty o fthe electric ray in cases of headache .

2

A. CORNELIUS CELSUS , who flourished between B.C . 5 0 and A .D . 7 ,

was a celebrated patric ian Roman writer on medic ine, and an encyclo

predic compiler of a very h igh order. It i s d isputed whether he was orwas not a physic ian in actual practice probably he was not. He

pract ised certainly, but on h is friends and servan ts, and no t professionally. The medical practice of the period was for the most part in thehands of the Greeks . We owe l i ttl e to the Roman s that was original orimportant in connect ion with the heal ing art

,yet in Celsus we have an‘

elegant and accompl ished h istorian of the medial art as i t was practisedr

in anc1ent Rome he wrote not so much for doctors as for the instruct ion of the world at large. His works were no t studied by medicalmen

,at any rate, as anything more than mere l iterature. No medical

wri ter of the old -world quotes Celsus. Pliny merely refers to him as anauthor. Very probably he merely comp i led h i s treat ises , of wh ich themost celebrated is h i s D e M edicina

,in the introduct ion s to th e 4th and

8 th books of which there is evidence of his considerabl e knowledge ofanatomy. He seems to have understood the anatomy o f the chest andthe Situation o f the greater viscera espec ially well, though of course inth is respec t fall ing far short of our presen t knowledge of the sc ience,and not in every case fully up to that of the Greeks . His knowledge ofsurgery was cons iderable, espec ially that of the pelvic organs of the

1 Le Clerc, Hist . M id , Part II. , l iv . iv. , see . i ., ch. 1 .

2 Baas, Hist. of Med , p . 143 .

2 16 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

female . In osteology, or the science of the bones, he excelled . He

accurately describes the bones of the skull , their sutures, and the teeth .

His descript ions of the vertebrae and ribs, the bones of the pelvis and

the upper and lower extremi ti es, are accurate and careful . He understood the articulations

,and i s careful to emphasize the fact that carti lag e

i s always found in the ir format ion. He must have been acquainted withthe perforated plate of the ethmoid bone, as he speaks o f the manym inute holes in the recess of the nasal cavities

,and i t i s even inferred by

Portal that he knew the semic i rcular canals . 1

The 7th and 8 th books of the D e re M ediciné relate ent irely tosurgery ; th i s i s of course Greek , wh ich in i ts turn was probably of

Egyptian and Indian origin. He describes operat ions such as we nowcall “ plastic, for restoring lost or defect ive portions of the nose , l ips ,and ears . These are constantly claimed as triumphs of modern surgery,and have been asserted to have been successful as the resul t of information derived from experimen ts on l iving animals. His descript ion ofl ithotomy i s that wh ich was anc iently practised in Alexandria, and was

doubtless derived from India. Treph in ing the skul l i s described, andth is again i s proved no t to have been invented in modern t imes, as somehave thought . Even subcutaneous urethrotomy was a practice followedin the t ime of Celsus. We have also the fi rst detai led description of

th e amputat ion o f an extremi ty. Many ophthalm ic operations aredescribed according to the methods followed by the eye spec ial ists of

Alexandria.

2

In his eight books on medicine the firs t four deal with internalcomplaints, such as usual ly yi eld to careful d ieting. The fi fth and s ixthare concerned w i th external d isorders

,and contain many prescriptions

for their treatmen t. The seven th and eighth,as we have seen, are

exclus ively surgical . Celsus followed princ ipally Hippocrates and

Asclepiades as h i s authorities . He trans fers many passages from th eFather o f Medicine word for word. His favourite author was Ase le

piades, and i t i s for that reason that he i s held to be of the Methodicalschool of medic ine. He was no bel iever in the mysterious numbersof the Pythagorean, and was evidently quite free from slavish devotion,even to h is great authorities in medic ine.He recommends that dislocations should be reduced before inflamma

t ion sets in. When fractures fail t o uni te, he recommends extens ionand rubbing together of the ends of the bone . He goes so far as toadvise cutting down to the bone, and l ett ing the fracture and woundheal together. He cautions agains t the use of purgatives in strangu

1 Prof. \V. Turner, art. “ Anatomy , Ency . Br it.2 D r . C11. Creighton, art. Surgery, Ency . Br it.

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2 18 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

hand Should be fi rm and steady,and never Shake ; he should be able

to use h is left hand w i th as much dexterity as h is r ight ; h i s sigh t shouldbe acute and cl ear ; h i s m ind intrep id and piti less

,so that when he i s

engaged in doing anything to a patient, he may not hurry,nor cut less

than he ought, but fin ish the operat ion j ust as i f the cries of the patientmade no impress ion upon him .

1

Celsus said ,2 “ It i s both cruel and superfluous to dissect the bodieso f the l iving

,but to dis sec t those of the dead is necessary for learners

,

for they ought to know the position and order,wh ich dead bodies show

better than a l iving and wounded man . But even the other th ings,

which can only be Observed in the l iving,practice i tsel f wil l Show in

the cures of the wounded, a l i ttle more Slowly, but somewhat moretenderly.

”

He wrote on h i story, ph ilosophy, oratory, and j urisprudence, and this

in the most admi rable style.THESSALUS of Tralles (A.D . 60) was the talented son of a weaver, whobecame a “

natural doctor. He was an utterly ignorant, braggingcharlatan, with great natural abil ity. Had Paracelsus received no

education , he might have pract ised medicine as a second Thessalus ofTralles . He scorned sc i ence as much as Paracelsus loved i t, but l ikehim he abused in th e most v iolent manner al l th e phys ic ians of an

t iquity. He cal led them all bunglers,and h imself the Conqueror o f

Physician s ” He declared to Nero that h i s predecessorshad con tributed noth ing to the progress of the sc i ence. He flatteredth e great and wealthy

,and vaunted h i s abi l i ty to teach anybody the

heal ing art in Six mon ths . He surrounded h imself with a great c rowdof disc ip les— rope—makers , cooks, butchers, weavers, tanners , artisans ofal l sorts. All these he permi tted to pract is e on his patien ts , and to

kill them with impun i ty. Since h i s t ime,says Sprengel, the Roman

physic ians gave up th e custom of vi s iting their patien ts when accom

panied by their pup i ls . 3 He used colch icum in the treatment of gout.PHILUMENUS (about A .D . 80) was a famous writer on obstetrics, and

described the appropriate treatmen t for th e various kinds of diarrhoea.

ANDROMACHUS THE ELDER (A.D . 60) of Crete was the inventor ofa farnous cure-all called T/zer iaca . It was compounded of some sixtydrugs . He was physic ian to Nero, and h is two work s 7repi. o

-vvdea e

’

ws

gbapjaoixwv were greatly prai sed by Galen.

SORANUS OF EPHESUS,the son o f Menandrus, was educated at

A lexandria . He pract ised at Rome in the reigns of Traj an and

Hadrian . He was one of the mos t eminen t physic ians of the Methodi

1 A . C. Cels i IVIea’. Pros/I, ad lib. 7 .

2 D e re fi l ed ,l ib. 1 .

3.Hist . de la IlIe

'

d. , vo l . 11. p. 50 .

THE EARLIER ROMAN M EDICINE. 2 19

cal school, and was men t ioned with praise by Tertullian and St. August ine . He wrote the only complete treatise on th e d i seases o f womenwhich antiqui ty has given to us . We find from th i s work that avaluable ins trument u sed in gynaecology, and thought by man y to be ofmodern invent ion— th e speculum—was men tioned by Soranus as usedby him . Amongst the articles u sed by surgeons which have beenrecovered from the ruins of Pompei i , these instruments have been discovered , Showing that they were in regular use in anc ien t t imes . He

seems to have had a complete knowledge o f human anatomy, for h edescribes the uterus in such a manner as to Show that h i s knowledgewas acquired by dissect ing the human body, and no t merely from thatof an imals . He explained the changes induced by pregnancy , and spokeof the sympathy exist ing between the uterus and the breasts , wh ich i sso important for the physic ian t o know. He must have had a greaterknowledge of the scourge of leprosy than h is con temporaries.Soranus

,in h i s work on gynaecology, advises that m idwives Should

be temperate, trustworthy, no t avaric i ous , supersti t ious, or l iabl e to b einduced to procure abortion for the sake of gain . They were to .

be

instructed in dietetics , materia medica, and m inor surgical man ipulations . Soranus did not th ink i t was requis ite for them to know muchabout the anatomy of the pelvic organs, but they were to be able toundertake the operat ion of turn ing in faul ty presentations . Only whenall attempts to del iver a l iving child had failed was embryotomy to be

performed . juvenal and other wri ters intimate that these accompl ishedaccoucheuses often developed into regular doctresses . In difficul tcases they cal led in the ass istance of phys ic ians or surgeons .JULIAN (A .D . 1 40 ) was the pup i l o f Apollinides of Cyprus . He was at

Alexandria when Galen studied there . He wrote an in troduct ion to

the study o f medic ine, and opposed the princ iples o f Hippocrates .Like the greater number o f the Methodists he was ill-read

,and Galen

blamed him for having neglected the humoral pathology.

1

CIELIUS AURELIANUS was a celebrated Latin physic ian , who i s sup

posed to have l ived in Rome about the firs t or second century. Veryl ittle i s known about him

,but th e fact that h e belonged to the M etho

dical school, and showed great Skil l in the art of diagnosis .He wrote treatises on acute and Chronic diseases

,and a d ialogue on

the sc ience Of medic ine . Next to Cel sus, he i s cons idered the greatestwriter of h i s school . His works are based ent i rely on the Greek ofSoranus .He was a popular writer, as i s proved by the fact that in the s ixth

century h i s works were text-books on medic ine in the Benedictine1 Sprengel , IIist . M id , vol . ii . p . 3 7 .

220 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF IWED ICINE.

monasteries . ’

He has wel l described gout and hydrophobia, and,

according to Baas, was th e inven tor of condensed m ilk Evenauscultation i s h inted at in h i s works

,and he recommends the air of

p ine forests in chest diseases . His suggestions for the treatment ofn ervous and insane pat ients were far in advance o f h i s age, as he d isapproves of restraint. 1

GREEK AND ROMAN PHARMACY.

It i s very diffi cult to dec ide wi th certainty what the anc ients ac tuallyintended by the names they gave the ir medic ines . Exact as Hippoc rates and Galen usual ly are in their terminology, we are Often at a l ossto know precisely what was the nature of the remedies they employed .

A lum, for example, as we unders tand i t, IS a very different th ing fromthe alum of the anci ents . What the Greeks and Romans called alumen

and a rvnmpt'

a, says Beckmann, was vitriol , or rather a kind of vitriol ic

earth . They were very defic i en t in the knowledge of sal ine substances.Hemlock, wh ich i s called also Conium,

Ku’

wetov,or Cicu ta, was probably

not the poison employed at Athen ian executions . Pliny says that theword Cicu ta did no t indicate any particular spec ies o f plan t, but wasused for vegetable poisons in general. Dr. Mead 2 considers that th eAthen ian poison was a combination of deadly drugs ; i t ki lled without

pain, and probably op ium was combined with the hemlock .

3 Helleborewas of two kinds

,whi te and black, or Veratrum album and Helleborus

n iger respect ively. Galen says we are always to unders tand veratrumwhen the word ‘

EAAe’

Bopos i s u sed alone . Wh ite hellebore was usedby the Greeks

,says in the treatmen t of chron ic diseases , es

.pecially melancholy,insan i ty

,dropsy, sk in d iseases, gout, tetanus,

hydrophobia, tic doloureux, etc. It was m ixed with other drugs tomoderate the violence of i ts act ion. It fell into d isuse, and i s now

hardly ever employed internally. I t i s an exceedingly dangerous drug,and was doubtless used on the “ kill o r cure pr inc iple . Black hellebore was given as a purgat ive . Healthy peopl e took the white varietyto clear and sharpen the ir faculties . It fell into d isuse about the fi fthcentury after Christ . A very celebrated med ic ine in popular use evenin modern t imes was Tli er iaca . Galen says that the term was properlyappl ied to such m edicines as would cure the b ite of wild beasts (dqpiwv) ,as those wh ich were an tidotes to other poisons (rots wereproperly called dlt eft dp/t axa .

5

1 Baas, Grand. der Ges. der Ilfed. , p . 144.

2 Moe/con ical Accoun t of Poisons .

3 Theophrastus, Hist . P lan t . , ix . 1 7.

‘1 National D ispensatory , p . 15 1525 Conf. Gal . Comment. in Hippocr q lib. vi D e IlIoro. Vu lgar . ,

v i ., 5 , tom .

xvu . p . i i. p. 337.

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2 22 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

He gave black hel lebore as a purgative to th e daughters of Proetuswhen they were affl icted wi th melancholy. Preparation s of the poppywere known to have a narcotic influence, and the u ses o f prussic ac idin the form o f cherry laurel water— stramon ium ,

and lettuce-Op ium werewell unders tood . Squil l was employed as a d iuretic in dropsy by theEgyptians .

The fo llowing l ist from the article on Pharmaceutica in Sm ith’s D ictionary ofGreek and Roman An tiqu i ties contains probably the titles o f all the ancient treatiseso n drugs that are extant 1 . IIepl Tapudxwu, D e Remedi is Purgan tion s ; 2 . IIepl

D e Veratr i Usu (these two works are found among the co l lection thatgoes under the name o f Hippocrates, but are bo th spurious) ; 3 . D ioscorides, IIepZ"

Thus’

Iarptm’

js, D e IlIater ia Medica , in five books (one o f the mo st vahiahle and cele ~

brated medical treatises of antiqu ity ) 4. id. II epl Etivropfa'

rwv, 7 6 m l Evvfiérwv,(bapndxwv, D e Faci le Paraoilious , tam Simplicilins quam Composit is , M edicamentis ,

in two books ( perhaps spurious) ; 5. Marce llus Sideta, Tam ra n epl’

Ix915wv, D e

Remediis ex Piscious ; 6. Galen , IIepl Kpdaews Kai Aux/claw s 1 63V <bapudxwv,

D e Simpl icium M edicamentornm Tcmperamentis et Facu ltatibus, in eleven books 7.

id. EIIepl Zvvdéaews (bapudxwv 7 6311 Kara Tén ovs, D e Compositione Medicame n/orn /n

s ecnndnm Locos, in ten book s ; 8 . id . IIepl 2 vv0éaews (Papuan -w 1 13V Kara I‘évn, D e

Composit ione Ill edicamm tom m secuna’um Genera , in seven books ; 9 . id. IIepl 7 73g 7 13V

Kada tpéurwu wapndxwv Avudnews, De Pn rgan tinm M edicamen torum Facu ltate (per

haps spurious) 10. Oribasius, Ew an/royal’

Ia-rpurat, Collecta M edicinalia , consistingoriginally of seventy books, o f which we possess now only abou t one third ; 1 1 . id .

Edn épta‘

ra , Enpor ista ad Ennapinm, or D efacile Parabil ibn s , in four books, of whichthe second contains an alphabetical list o f drugs 1 2 . id. Edit or/u s, Sy nopsis ad Eusta

t lz ium , an abridgment of his larger work in n ine books, o f which the second, third,and fourth are upo n the subj ect o f external and internal remedies ; 1 3 . PauluszEgineta,

’

E1rtr ow'

)s Tammi]; BtBMa"

En ra , Compendi i M’dici Lior i Septem , O f which

the last treats o f med icines ; 14. Joannes Actuarius , D e M edicamen tornm Compo

s itione 1 5 . N ico laus Myrepsus, Antidotar inm 16. Cato , ‘

D e Re Rustica 1 7 .

Celsus , D e Medicina L ibr i Octo, o f which the fi fth treats of d ifferent sorts o f m edic ines ; 18. Twelve books of Pl iny’s , Histor ia Natu ra lis (from the twentieth to the

thirty-second) , are devoted to Materia Medica 1 9 . Scribon ius Largus , Compo

s itiones Ill edicamen tornm 20 . Apuleius Barbarus, Herlzar inm, sen de Ill edicamin iéu s

Heroarum 2 1 . Sextus Placitus Papyriensis , D e M edicament is ex An imalions 22 .

Marcel lus Emp iricus, D e I’Vedicamen tis Empir icis , P/zy sicis, ac Rational ibus .

Al though the Greeks and Romans knew l i ttle of chem is try as weunderstand th e term , they must have possessed cons iderable skil l inthe art of secre t poison ing, e i ther with in ten t to kill or to Obtainundue influence over certain persons .Poisonous drugs were used as ph iltres or love -pot ion s , and we know

from Demosthenes 1 that drugs were admin is tered in Athens to influencemen to make wills in a desired manner. Women were most addictedt o the crime of poison ing amongst the Greeks. They were called

¢appaxi8es and dapaaxevrpt’

a t. By the Romans the crime of poisoningwas called Veneficium and here again , as in other t imes and places,

1 C. Step/i . , 1 133.

THE EARLIER ROMAN MEDICINE. 223

i t was most usually pract ised by women . It len t i tself to the weaknessof the gentler sex

,who could no t avenge their inj uries by arms, and

there i s l ittle doubt that many women were as unj ustly suspec ted of

poison ing as we know they were of witchcraft in an ignorant age when

pestilence and obscure diseases fi lled the m inds o f the peopl e with fearand suspic ion. Thucydides tells us 1 the Athenian s in the t ime of thegreat pestilence bel ieved that their well s had been poisoned by theirenemies. When the c i ty of Rome was vis i ted by a pesti lence in theyear 3 3 1 B.C.

,a slave girl informed the curule aediles that the Roman

matrons had caused the deaths of many of th e leading men of the Stateby poison ing them. On th i s information about twenty matrons , someo f whom,

as Cornel ia and Sergia, belonged to patrician fam i l ies, weredetected in the act of preparing poisonous compounds over a fire.They .protested that they were innocen t concoct ions ; the magistrates compelling them to drink these in th e Forum

,they suffered

the death they had prepared for others. Locusta was a celebratedfemale poisoner under the Roman emperors . She poisoned Claudiusat the command of Agrippina, and Bri tannicus at that of Nero

,

who even provided her with pupils to be instructed in her deadlyart. Tac i tus tells the story,2 Sueton ius says ,3 that the poison sheadminis tered to Britann icus being too slow in i ts act ion

,Nero forced

her by blows and threats to make a stronger draugh t in h i s presence,which killed the vict im immediately. She was executed under theemperor Galba.Clement o f Alexandria refers to the Susinian ointmen t in use in hi s

t ime,wh ich was made from l i l ies , and was “ warm ing, aperien t , draw

ing, moisten ing, abstergent, ant ibilious , and emoll ient,

” a truly marvellons unguen t indeed if i t possessed only hal f o f these virtues . He

tells of another o intment called the Myrsinian, which was made frommyrtle berries

,and was “ a styptic, s topping effusions from the body

and that from roses i s refrigerating.

” 4

RUFUS OF EPHESUS , the anatomi st , has left us in h i s works in teres ting details concern ing the state o f anatomical sc ience at Alexandriabefore the time of Galen . In one of h i s works he says

, The anc ien tscalled the arteries of the neck caro

'

t ids,because they bel ieved that

,

when pressed hard, the animal became sleepy and lost i ts voice ; butin our age i t has been discovered that this acc ident does no t pro

1 Pelopon essian lVar, 11. 48.

2 An nal . , x ii i . c . 1 5, I 6 .

3 Nero, 33.

4 Inc Instru ctor,Book II .

224 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF .MED ICINE.

ceed from press ing upon thes e arteries,but upon the nerves contiguous

to them .

” He i s said to have pract ised the twisting of arteries forarresting haemorrhage, a method un i versally followed at the presentday. It i s curious that though the l igature and th i s valuable methodof tors ion were both known to the ancien ts

,they fel l into abeyance in

favour of the actual cautery.

SENECA, the ph i losopher (A.D . 3- 6 had a very h igh Opinion of the

healing art. Perhaps no one has said truer and kinder th ings of doctorsthan thi s ph i losopher.

“ People pay the doctor for h is trouble ; forhis kindness they stil l remain in h i s debt.” Thinkest thou that thouowest the doctor and the teacher noth ing more than h i s fee P We thinkthat great reverence and love are due to both . We have received fromthem priceless benefits : from th e doctor

,health and l i fe from th e

teacher, the noble culture of the soul . Both are our friends,and de

serve our most s incere thanks, no t so much by thei r merchantable art,as by their frank good will.” 1

APOLLONIUS of Tyana, the Pythagorean ph ilosopher, was born fouryears before Christ . His reputation as a m i racl e-worker and healer wasused by the enem ies of the Christ ian faith in anc i en t t imes to bringhim forward as a rival to the Author o f our Rel igion ? The attemp t tomake him appear a pagan Christ has s ince been revived .

3 He adoptedthe Pythagorean philosophy at the age of s ixteen . He renounced animalfood and wine, u sed only l inen garments and sandals made of bark

,

suffered h i s hair to grow,and betook h imsel f to the temple of fEsculapius,

who appears to have regarded him with pecul iar favour . He observedthe s ilence of five years , wh ich was one of the methods of ini tiat ion intothe esoteric doctrines of the Pythagoreans . He travelled in India

,and

l earned the valuable theurgic secrets‘

of the Brahmans in the c i ties o fAs ia M inor he had some interviews with the Magi vis ited the templesand oracles of Greece, where he sometimes exerc i sed h is skill in heal ing ;then he wen t to Rome, where he was brough t before Nero on the chargeof magical practices, wh ich was not sustained . In h i s seven ty- th i rdyear he attracted the notice of Vespasian . Afterwards he travelled inEth iopia. Return ing to Rome, he was imprisoned by Domi tian, and hadhis hair cut short, because he had foretold the pestilence at Ephesus .He died at the age o f an hundred years . It i s t o be remarked that h enever put forward any m i raculous pretens ions h imself ; he seems merelyto have been a learned ph ilosopher who had travelled widely and ac

quired vast information from distant sources. The h istory manufac

1 Seneca, D e Benefi a , vi. 15 , 16, 1 7 .

2 John Henry Newman’s Law: of Apol/on ins Tyana ns.

3 By Lord Herbert and Mr. Blount.

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226 P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

guished in al l branches of medic ine, but was versed in rhetoric, logic ,and poetry.THEON OF ALEXANDRIA of very uncertain period, probably in the

fourth century after Christ, wrote a celebrated book on Man,in which

he treated of diseases in a systematic order, and also of pharmacy.

CHAPTER V.

LATER ROMAN MED ICINE.

The Eclectic and Pneumatic Sects .—Galen .

—Neo -P latonism.—Oribasius and IEtius.

-Influence of Christian ity and the Rise ofHospitals .—Paulus IEgineta.

—AncientSurgical Instruments.

THE SECT OF THE PNEUMATISTS.

ATHENzEUs OF CILICIA about A.D . 69 founded at Rome the SECTor THE PNEUMATISTS

,at the time when the Methodists enj oyed thei r

greatest reputation.

They admitted an act ive principle of an immaterial nature, towh ich they gave the name of w eft/t a, spiri t. Th is principle caused thehealth or the diseases of the body

,and the sect was named from it .

Athenaeus was a Stoic, who had adopted the doc trines of the Peri

patetics. In addition to the pneuma, he developed the theory of theelements

,and in them recogn ised the posit ive qual ities of the an imal

frame. The un ion of heat and moisture is necessary for the preservation of health. Heat and dryness cause acute diseases

,cold and

moisture produce phlegmatic disorders, cold and dryness give rise tomelancholy. At death, all things dry up and become cold .

1

Great services to pathology were rendered by the Pneumatic s ect .Several new diseases were discovered by them ; but they over refinedtheir doctrines

,espec ially that of fevers and the pulse ; they though t th is

alternate contract ion and dilatation of the arteries was the operationof the pneuma, or sp irit pass ing from the heart . D iastole or dilatation

pushes forward the sp irit, the systole or contraction draws i t back .

2

THE SECT or THE ECLECTICS

Derived their name from the fac t that they selected from each of theother sects the op inions that seemed most probable. They seem tohave agreed very nearly

,i f they were not actually ident ical with the

sect known as the EPISYNTHETICS. They endeavoured to j oin thetenets of the Methodici to those of the Empiric and Dogmatic sects,and to reconci l e their d ifferences . 3

1 Galen , D c Temperamen tis.2 Smith’s D ict. Greek and Roman An t . , art . Pneumatici. See also Sprenge l

and Le Clerc .

3 Sm ith’s D ict . An t. , art. Eclectici .”

228 A P OPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

Amongst the most famous o f the school were AGATHINUS OF SPARTA

( rst cent . who founded the Epi synthetic sec t, though Galen refersto him as among the Pneumat ic i. He was a pupil of Athenaeus, andthe tutor of Arch igenes . None of h is writings are extan t. THEO

DORUS was a physic ian mentioned by Pliny.

1

ARCHIGENES OF APAMIEA,who pract ised in Rome (A.D . 98

was exceedingly famous. He i s mentioned several t imes by Juvenal,2

and was the most celebrated of the sect. He wrote on the pulse, andattempted the classificat ion of fevers. Very few fragments of h is worksremain. He was the first to treat dysentery with Op ium .

ARETtEUS OF CAPPADOCIA ( rst cen t. A .D .) was a celebrated Greek

phys ician who wrote on diseases,detail ing their symptoms with

great accuracy and displaying great skill in diagnosis . He was veryli ttle biased by any peculiar Opin ions , and his observations on diseasesand their treatment have stood the l ight of our modern medical sc iencebetter than those of many of the anc ien t authorit ies. He was ao

quainted wi th the fact that inj uri es to the brain cause paralys is on theopposi te s ide ; and h is class ificat ion Of men tal di seases is as good asour own . His knowledge of anatomy was con siderable , and in h i s

physiology he shows how much more th e anc ients knew of th is branchof sc ience than is generally supposed . He was acquain ted with theoperation of tracheotomy

, and remarked i ts partial success . 3

He cons idered el ephan t iasi s to be contagious, and gives th is cautionThat i t is not less dangerous to converse and l ive with person saffected with th is dis temper, than with those infected with the plaguebecause the con tagion i s commun icated by the inspired air.

” 4

HERODOTUS (there were several of the name) was a physic ian ofrepute in Rome (about A.D . He was a pupi l of Athenaeus orAgath inus, and wrote several medical books wh ich are quoted by Galenand Oribasius . He fi rst recommended pomegranate root as a remedyfor tapeworm

,and described several infect ious diseases . 5

HELIODORUS (about A .D . 1 00) was a famous surgeon, and wrote on

amputations and inj uries of the head. His operation for scrotal hern iai s described by Haeser as a brilliant example of the surgical ski ll of theEmpire . He treated stricture o f the urethra by internal sec tion .

CASSIUS FELIX l ived in the first century after Chri st, and was the

author of a curious set of eighty-four medical quest i ons and thei ranswers. He was also called CASSIUS IATROSOPHISTA.

1 Nat. Hist , xx . 40 ; xx iv . 1 20 .

2vi . 236 ; xi ii. 98 xiv. 252 .

3 See Baas, Hist. M ed , p. 167 .

4 D e Cansis D iu turnor um Moroorum, etc. , lib. n . cap. x iii.5 Baas , Hist. M ed , p . 167.

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230 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

standing the discovery of the c irculation of the blood and other greatadvances in science. Galen collected and co-ordinated all the medicalknowledge wh ich previous phys ic ians and anatom ists had acquired .

He was no mere collector of, or compiler of other men’s works but be

enriched previous acquiremen ts by hi s Own observation, and was in

every way a man greatly in advance of h is t ime. “A great and profound spiri t,

”says Daretnberg,

“he'

was ph i losopher as well as physic ian ,realising the aspirat ion of Hippocrates when he said that the physicianwho should be also a ph i l osopher must be the equal of the gods . A

dialect ician l ike Aristotle, a psychologist l ike Plato, who glorified h i swork by h i s gen ius for interpreting nature and l ife, his pos it ion as ph iloSopher would have been bes ide those men, if h i s devotion to medic inehad not called him to another Sphere of in tellectual act ivity.

”Neverthe

l ess, Galen did in fact occupy an exalted position in the h i story ofph i losophy, not on ly in the West, but amongst the Arabians . His encyclopaedic knowledge, his spiri t of observation, and h i s influence on thet hought of the m iddle ages, compel a comparison with Aristotle. It

was thus that the vast body of medical material collected by the varioussects and schools was analysed by the penetrat ing gen ius of Galen

,

whose ph i losoph ical and sc ien t ific m ind was able to extract the goodand permanen t from the worth less and ephemeral material

,which en

cumbered the l iterature of the heal ing art. He fel l under the dominat ion of none of the schools, though in one sens e he may be said to haveleaned towards the Dogmatists, “ for h is method was to reduce all hi sknowledge

,as acquired by the observation of facts, to general theo

retical principles .” 1 He endeavoured to draw the studen t of medicine

back to Hippocrates, of whom he was an adm irer and expounder . Thelabours of Galen had the effect of destroying the vital i ty of the old medical sects they became merged in h i s system,

and left off wranglingamongst themselves to im i tate the new master who had arisen . A

crowd of new writers found in the works of Galen abundant material fortheir industry.

Partly in consequence of th i s j ealousy, and partly from the fact thatin A.D. 1 67 a pest ilence broke out in Rome, h e left the c i ty privately,and returned to his nat ive coun try.

Galen,as a profound anatom i st and physiologi st, recogn ised final

causes,a purpose in al l part s of the bodies wh ich he dissected ; and i t i s,

as Whewell points out,2 imposs ible for a really great anatomist to doo ther than recogn ise these. He cannot doubt that the nerves run

along the l imbs, in order that they may convey the impulses of the will1 Bostock , Hist. of M ed.

1‘Hist . Indu ct . Sciences , vo l. ii i. p . 389 .

LA TER ROMAN MED ICINE . 23 1

to the muscles : he cannot doubt that the muscles are at tached to thebones

,in order that they move and support them .

The developmen t of this convict ion , that there is a purpose in the

parts of an imals of a function to wh ich every organ i s subservient, greatlycontributed to the progress of physiology i t compelled men to work tillthey had discovered what the purpose is . Galen declared that it i seasy to say with some impoten t pretenders that Nature has worked tono purpose. He has an enthus iastic scorn of the folly of atheism .

1

“Try,” he says

,

“ i f you can imagine a shoe made wi th half the skil lwhich appears in the skin of the foot . Somebody had expressed a

desire for some structure of the human body over that wh ich Naturehas provided .

“ See,” he exclaims

,what brutishness there i s in th i s

wish . But if I were to spend more words on such cattle, reasonablemen

'

might blame me for desecrat ing my work , wh ich I regard as a religious hymn in honour of the Creator . True piety does not cons is t inimmolating hecatombs, or in bearing a thousand del ic ious perfumes inHis honour, but in recogn i s ing and loudly proclaim ing His wisdom,

almighty power, love and goodness . The Father of un iversal naturehas proved His goodness in wisely providing for the happiness of allHis creatures, in giving to each that wh ich i s most really useful forthem. Let us celebrateHim then by our hymns and chan ts He hasshown His infin i te wisdom in choosing the best means for contrivingHis beneficent ends He has given proof ofHis omnipotence in creating everything perfectly con formable to i ts dest ination .

Anatomy must have reached a h igh standard before Galen’s time,as

we learn from h is correct ion s of the m i stakes and defects Of h i s predecessors. He remarks that some anatom i sts have made one muscle intotwo

,from it s having two heads that they have overlooked some of the

muscles in the face of an ape in consequence of no t sk inn ing thean imal with their own hands . Thi s shows that the anatom i sts beforeGalen’s t ime had a tolerably complete knowledge of the sc ience. ButGalen greatly advanced i t. He observes that the skeleton may be com

pared to the pole of a ten t or th e walls of a house . His knowledge ofthe action of the muscles was anatom ically and mechan ically correc t.His discoveries and descripti ons even of the very m inute parts of themuscular system are h ighly pr ai sed by modern anatom i sts .2

He knew the necessity of the nerve supply to the muscl e,and that

the brain originated the consequen t motion of a muscle so suppl ied, and

proved the fact experimentally by cutting through some of the n erves and

1 D e Usu , Part iii . 10.

2 Whewell , Hi st . Induct. Sciences, vol . iii . p . 386 . Sprengel , n . p . 1 50 .

232 A P OPULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

so paralysing the part .1 Where the origin of the nerve is,there

,he said

,it

i s admi tted by all physicians and ph ilosophers i s the seat of the soul.Th i s, he adds, i s in the brain and not in the heart. The principles ofvoluntary motion were well understood, therefore, by Galen, and hemust have possessed “

c lear mechanical views of what the tens ions ofcollection s of s trings could do, and an exact practical acquaintancewith the muscular cordage wh ich exists in the an imal frame — ia short

,

in th i s as in other instances of real advance in sci ence,there must have

been clear ideas and real facts,un i ty of thought and extent of obser

vation,brought in to con tact.” 2

He observed that although a l igature on the inguinal or axillaryartery causes the pulse to cease in the leg or in the arm ,

the operat ion i snot permanently inj urious, and that even the carotid arter ies may be t iedwith impuni ty. He corrects the error of those who, in tying the carotids ,omi tted to separate the contiguous nerves

,and then wrongly concluded

that the consequen t loss of voice was due to compression of the arteries .

Galen was the first and greatest authority on the pulse, i f no t oursole authori ty for al l subsequen t writers s imply transferred h i s teach ingon th i s subj ect bodily to their own works . 3

Briefly it was as follows “ The pulse cons ists of four parts, of adiastole and a systole

,with two intervals Of rest

, one after the diastolebefore the systole

,the other after the systole before the diastole.” 4

His therapeutics were based on these two principles 1 . Thatd isease is something con trary to nature, and i s to be overcome by thatwh ich i s contrary to the disease i tsel f ; and 2 . That nature i s to be

preserved by that wh ich has relat ion with nature.” 5

The affect ion contrary to nature must be overcome, and the s trengthof the body has to be preserved . But wh i le the cause of the diseasecontinues to operate

,we must endeavour to remove it we are not to treat

symptoms merely,for they will disappear when their cause is removed ,

and we must cons ider the con stitut ion and condition of the patient before we proceed to treat him .

Such as are essentially of a good const itution are such in whosebodies heat

,coldness, dryness, and moisture are equally tempered the

instruments of the body are composed in every part of due bign ess,number, place, and formation .

” 6 He gives in succeeding chapters the1 De M otn M u se.

2 Whewell , IIist. Induct . Sciences, vol . ii i. p. 388.

3 See for a fu ll account of Galen’s doctrine of the pu lse, Dr. Adams’ Commen tary on

Pau lu s E gineta, vol . ii . p. 1 2 .

4 D e D ilgnase. Pu ls . ,iii. 3 , vo l. viii . p. 902.

5 Dr. Greenhil l in Smith’s D iet . Greek and Roman Biog .

Galen’s A rt of Pig/sic.

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232 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

the greatest and most voluminous authors that have ever l ived .

1 Hisstyle is elegan t

,but he i s given to prol ixity

,and he abounds in quotations

from the Greek writers .PHILIP OF CIESAREA was a contemporary of Galen about the m iddl e

of the second century after Christ. He belonged to the sect of theEmpiric i

,and defended their doctrines. It is probable that he wrote

on marasmus,on materia medica

,and on catalepsy but as there were

other physic ians of the same name, there is much uncertainty as to theiriden ti ty.

After the death of Galen came the Goth ic invasions over thec ivil ized world

,and all but extinguished the learning o f the times .

Medic ine lingered still . in Rome, Constantinopl e, and Alexandria, but

individuals rather than schools and sects kept i t al ive ; i t struggled toexist amidst the grossest ignorance, supersti t ion, and magical practices,t il l i t was re- invigorated by the Saracen s .Saints COSMAS and DAM IAN (circ. 303 ) were brothers who studied the

sc i ences in Syria, and became eminen t for their skill in the pract ice ofmedicine. As they were Chri stians, and eager to spread the faith wh ichthey professed

,they never took any fees, and thus came to be called by

the Greeks Anargyri (without fees) . The two brothers suffered martyrdom under the D iocletian persecution ,

and have ever s ince been famousas workers of m irac les of healing and patrons of medical sci ence. Theirrel ics were everywhere honoured, and a church built in Rome by St .Gregory the Great preserves them to th is day.Dr. Meryon points out 2 that Gregory the Great enunc iated one great

doctrine of homoeopathy; “Mos medicinae est ut aliquando sim i l ias im i libus

,aliquando contraria contrairiis curet. Nam seepe cal ida calidis,

frigida frigidis, seepe autem frigida calidis,cal ida frigidis sanare con

suevit.

ALEXANDER OF TRALLEs, though one of the most em inen t anc ien t

physic ians, bel ieved in charms and amulets . Here are a few spec imens. For a quotidian ague, “Gather an ol ive leaf before sunrise,write on it with common ink xa

, pe t, a,and hang i t round the neck

(xii . 7, p . for the gout, “Write on a th in plate of gold, duringthe wan ing Of the moon, y d , Oped, “6p, (Drip, 7 6 155, fla ir , xwu

’

m”

(xi . 1. p.

He exorc i sed the gout thus : I adj ure thee by the greatname 2aBau30,

” that is, Tim “in”, and a li ttle further on :“ I

ure thee by the holy names ’

Ia<b, Eafiac

‘

od,

’

A8wva l,’

E)tw2, that is

a; u‘wxmugs ajag, 3

1 Cardan , De Sné ti l .2Hist. of M ed. , vol . i . p . 1 1 5 .

3 Sm ith’s D iet . Greek and Roman Biog .,vo l . i . p. 1 26.

LA TER ROMAN MED ICINE. 23 5

NeOplaton ism had its influence on medicine . Plotinus (A.D . 205—2

i ts great father,said

,when dying

,I am str iving to bring the God which

is in us into harmony with the God wh ich is in the Un iverse . The

early Christians began to tel l the world that the God Wi th in the soul ofman and the God wh ich i s in ‘ the Un iverse are one and the same being,of absolute righteousness, power and l ove . Plotinus preached a gospelto the philosoph ic world ; the first Christians preached theirs to everycreature. Neoplatonism taugh t the world that spir i t was mean t to rulematter i t was not enough that the early Christ ian exh ibi ted to mankindman transformed as the result of his in t imate relat ionship to the D ivine,the philosoph ic world demanded wonders , something above nature, asa proof of the D ivine character of the revelati on ; then, as Kingsleyexplains, 1 we begin to enter

“ the fairy land of ecs tasy, clairvoyance ,insens ibil i ty to pain , cures produced by the effect of what we now callmesmeri sm . They are all there

,these modern puzzles

,in those old

books of the long bygone seekers for wisdom.

”Thus mankind, for ever

wandering in a c ircle, began by these ecstasies and cures to retrace itssteps towards the anc ient priestcraft . These wonders were nothing tothe Egyptian , Babylon ian, and Jewish sorcerers they had traded inthem for ages.ANTYLLUS (circ. 3o o A.D . ) i s ment ioned by Oribasius, and is said byHaser to have been one of the greatest of the world’s surgeons ; foraneurism he tied the artery above and below the sac, and evacuated itscontents ; for catarac t, and for the cure of stammering, he inventedappropriate treatmen t and he employed someth ing very much l iketenotomy for contractures. He i s the earl iest wri ter whose direc tions areextant for perform ing the operation of tracheotomy. He must havebeen a man of great talent and originali ty . He pract ised the removalof glandular swell ings of the neck and l igatured vessels before dividingthem

,giving direct ions for avoiding the carotid artery and the jugular

vein. It i s a striking proof of the h igh state wh ich surgery had reachedat th is period that bones were resected with freedom the long bones ,the lower jaw

,and the upper jaw were deal t with in a manner generally

considered to be brillian t examples of modern surgery.

ORIBASIUS (A.D . 3 26-

40 3 ) was born at Pergamos . By commandof the Emperor Julian the Apostate he made a summary from theworks of all preceding physic ians who had written upon the Heal ingArt . Having made a collect ion of some seventy medical treatises,he reduced them into one

,adding thereto the results of hi s own obser

vations and experience. He also wrote for his friend Eunapius twobooks on diseases and their remedies

,besides treat ises on anatomy and

1 A lexandria and ti er Scliools , p . 1 13 .

236 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

an epi tome Of the works of Galen.

1 He was called the Ape of Galen ,

and Freind says the ti tle was no t undeserved. He wrote in Greek,and

though a mere comp i ler was capable Of better things . His pharmacywas that of D ioscorides. He did some original work , as he was thefirst to ‘

write a descript ion of the drum of the ear and the sal ivary glands .In h is works also

,we find the first descript ion of the wonderful disease

cal led lycanthropy, a form of melancholia, or insanity ,2 in wh ich theaffected persons bel ieve themselves to be transformed into wolves, leaving their homes at n igh t, im i tating the behaviour of those animals

,

and wandering amongst the tombs . His great work he entitled CollectaM edicinalia. When Julian died

, Oribasius fell into disgrace, and wasban ished. He bore his m i sfortunes with great fort itude

,and so gained

the esteem and love of the barbarians amongst whom he l ived thath e was almost adored as a god . He was ultimately restored to h i s .

property and honour.JACOBUS PSYCHRISTUS l ived in the t ime of Leo I. Thrax (A.D. 45 7

was a very famous physic ian of Constant inople, who was calledthe Saviour

,

”on accoun t of h is successful pract ice.

ADAMANTIUSOF ALEXANDRIA,an Iatrosophist , was a Jewish physic ian ,

who was expel led, with h i s co-rel igion ists,from Alexandria

, A.D . 4 1 5 . Heembraced Christian i ty at Constant inople. He wrote on physiognomy.IatrOSOphista was the anc i en t t itle of one who both taught and

pract ised medic ine.Archiater (ch ief physic ian) was a medical t itl e under the Roman

Emp ire, mean ing“ the chief of the physicians, and not physician to

the prince,” as some have explained .

3

MELETIUS (4th cent . aChristian monk, wrote on phys iology andanatomy.

NEMESIUS, Bishop of Em issa (near the end of the fourth cen tury) ,wrote a treatise on the lVature of M an

,wh ich is remarkable for a proof

that the good Churchman came very near to two discoveries which weremade long after h is time . He says that the object of the bile is to helpdigest ion, to purify the blood , and impart heat to the body. Freind

says ‘1 that in th is we have the foundat ion of that which Sylvius de la Boewith so much van i ty boasted he had invented h imself. He adds that“ i f this theory be of any use in physic, Nemesius has a very good t itleto the di scovery.

”

The Bishop described the c irculation of the blood in very plain termscons idering the state of physiology at that time .

“ The motion of the pulse takes i ts u se from the heart, and chiefly1 Fre ind, Histor ia M edicina , p . 383 .

1 Ibid., p . 380 .

3 Smith’s D iet. Ant .1 Hist . Med.

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238 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

Clzn lctianity , draws an awful picture of the corruption of the old worldat the moment when i t was confronted by Christ ian i ty. The paren thad absolute power over the person of h i s ch ild, and could destroy itsl ife at its pleasure. Unfortunate ch i ldren were exposed on the roadside or left to perish in the waters of the Tiber. The slave was themerechattel of hi s master, and Roman women treated thei r servan ts with theutmost barbarity. Juvenal has painted for us in terrible colours thevices and shameless conduct of the women

,and the selfish luxury and

degrading pleasures of the men ; the nameless crime,wh ich was the

disgrace ofGreek and Roman civil ization,was looked upon as merely a

quest ion of taste ; and St. Paul, in the first chapter of the Epistle tothe Romans

,has recorded for all t ime what was the h ighest the most

perfect c ivili zation Pagan i sm has ever produced was able to effectfor the moral condit ion of the people. To the Roman and Greekworld

,saturated with the most perfect ph i losophy the world has ever

known, and adorned by the art wh ich has ever since been the despair ofi ts im i tators, there presented itself the Cathol ic Church, and before thesun’s embrace sublime

Night w istHer work done, and betook herself in m istTo marsh and ho l low, there to bide her timeBl indly in acqu iescence .

” 1

The enem ies of Christ ian i ty have affected to lament the effects produced by the religion of Jesus on the art and sc ience of the paganworld i t has been said that the early Christ ians became so indifferen tto the welfare of their bodies that they no longer sought medical aidwhen s ick, but either resigned themselves to death or sough t remediesin prayers . It Is qu ite possible that, at the soul

’s awaken ing at the firstrevelation of the infin i te importance of the Sp iritual l ife, men did somewhat neglect the ailments of the flesh and forget them in the effort torealize the th ings of the spiri t. It i s perfectly true that the naturalsc iences were not l ikely to make much progress in such a condit ion ofthings . But i f Christians were careless of their own health , i t i s no t lesscertain that they were intensely sol ic itous for that of their poor and

friendless neighbours. The peculiar consti tut ion of the Roman Emp ire,which was but a mil i tary tyranny, greatly contr ibuted to its fall

,and

the collapse would have come earl ier had i t not been for Christian i ty.

The Empi re had very li ttle cohesion the Church had a cohes ive force,such as the world had never experienced before, and th e Church availedherself of all the faci l it ies which the Empire possessed of keep ing up,

from centre to c ircumference, the c i rculation of the spirit of solidarity1 Brown ing’s Parley ings , p . 44.

LA TER ROMAN MEDICINE. 239

which has ever an imated the Cathol ic body. Of course there was l ittlereason to expect the Church to be very favourably disposed towards the

philosophies of old Greece and Rome ; they had done l itt le for themoral and social welfare of the people, and the Church had a bettersystem

.

than .these could exh ibi t : but when St. August ine appeared,there was found a nzodns vivendi between the nobles t Platon i sm and the

purest and lofties t Christian theology . He pointed the way towards aChris tian sc ience, and Europe ultimately real i zed i t.

Q

It was found inthe Schoolmen. Modern sc ience is the legitimate child of Scholasti

cism,though i t i s unsparing in i ts abuse of i ts parent.

The slave to the anc i ent Roman was simply a beas t who was able tospeak. When such beasts became unprofi table, because through s ickness or old age they could no longer work, they were frequently turnedout to perish. Cato advi sed the agriculturists to sell their Old and s ickslaves when no longer able to work, j ust as he recommended them todispose of worn-out and diseased cattle and worth less implemen ts ofhusbandry.

1

The Emperor Claudius caused slaves who were thus cruelly treatedto be proclaimed freemen . It was the merc iful and charitable conductof the early Christians towards slaves , of whom

‘ such vast numbershelped to peopl e the Roman Empire, that caused the doctrines of theGospel to spread so rapidly throughout the Roman world . The slavefound in the Gospel of Chri st the first system of rel igion and ph i losophywh ich took any account of the poor, th e helpl ess, and the slave therich and cultured saw in the teach ings of the Church of Chri s t the onlysystem which embraced mankind as a whole. Juvenal 2 has indicatedfor us the value of a slave’s l ife in these times .

Go , crucify that slave. For what Offence ?Who the accuser ? Where the evidence ?For when the life ofman is in debate,NO t ime can be too long, no care too great.Hear all , weigh all w ith caution ,

I advise .

Thou sn ive ller is a slave a man ? she cries .

He’s innocent l be’t so ’tis my command,

My w il l let that, sir, for a reason stand.

”

Al though there is evidence that hospitals for the reception and

treatm en t of s ick and destitute persons were establi shed in India invery early times,3 and though we know that these were attached to

1 Cato , D e re Rnstiea, c. 2 . Sat . vi.3 Prescott says, Conquest of M ex ico, chap. that among the Az tecs, Hospitals

were established in the principal cities for the cure of the sick , and the permanentrefuge of the d isabled so ldier and the surgeons were placed over them, who wereso far better than those in Europe,’ says an old chron icler, that they did no t pro

tract the cure , in order to increase the pay.

’

240 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED I CINE.

some of the temples of anc ien t Greece, and the Romans had con

valescent ins titu tions for s ick slaves and soldiers, i t cannot be doubtedthat we owe to Christian i ty the hospital as i t exi sts amongst us at thepresen t day.

Christian ity taugh t the world not only that God is the Father ofmankind, the pagan world already knew Him as Zeus pater, but thatas His ch i ldren we are the brethren and s is ters of each other. The

Church in Rome, in the th i rd cen tury, says Eusebius, 1 supportedwidows and impoten t persons, about a thousand and fifty souls whowere all rel ieved through the grace and goodness of Almighty God .

”

St. Basil the Grea t (A .D . 3 79) founded at Caesarea a vast hospital, wh ichNaz ianz en calls a new c i ty, and was named after him Basiliades. The

same author though t “ i t m ight deservedly be reckon‘ed among the

m iracles of the world, so numerous were the poor and s ick that cameth ither

,and so adm irable was the care and order with wh ich they were

served .

” 2 In th i s institut ion St. Gregory Of Naz ianz us said, “ diseasebecame a school Of wisdom,

and m isery was changed into happiness .”

Chastel relates that (A.D . 3 75 ) Edessa possessed a hospital wi th 300beds

,and there were many sim i lar institutions in the East . St. Jerome

says that the widow Fabiola founded the fi rst Chri st ian infirmary inRome

,at the end of the fourth century. St. Paula, a Roman widow,

in

whose vein s ran the blood Of the Sc ipios, the Gracchi , and PaulusE m i l ia, and of Agamemnon, was born in 347 A.D .

, and was one of themany noble Christian women who devoted thei r wealth and their l ivesto the poor

,the suffering, and the helpless, in the early days of Christ i

an ity. She distributed immense alms, and built a hosp i tal on the roadto Jerusalem,

and also a monastery for St. Jerome and h is monks,whom

she maintained, bes ides three monasteries for women ; 3 she carried thes ick to their beds in her arms, and with her own hands washed the irwounds, as St. Jerome tells us. In Italy

,Gaul, and Spain , many

asylums for sick and poor persons were buil t and maintained. Nor

were their benefits confined to Chri st ians for Jews, slaves, and freemenwere welcomed to these temples of charity. It is imposs ible in thel im i ts of th is work to trace fully the progress of the hospi tal movemen tenough has been said to prove, as Baas, the Agnos tic h i storian ofmedic ine, adm i ts,4 that “Hospital s proper, in our sense of the term,

did not originate ti ll Christ ian times .

When the plague raged at Alexandria,Eusebius tells us, 5 “Many of

1 Ecclesiastical IIistory , lib. vi . ch. x l ii .2 Butler’s Lines of t/re Sain ts . St. Basi l the Great .3 Ibid. ,

loc. cit. 4p . 1 53.

5 Ecel . Hist , lib. v11. c. x x i .

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242 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

MOSCHION D IORTHORTEs (about th e 6th cent . ) was a spec ial ist ind i seases of women . He wrote a manual for m idwives based on thework ofSoranus. His description of the uterus i s Sim ilar to the treatiseo f that phys ic ian . He refutes the Opinion of the anci ents on the si tuation of male infants on the right

,and of females on the left . He has

well indicated the s igns of imm inent abortion . He made a greatnumber of observation s on the phys ical education o f ch ildren whichmust have been of great importance to h i s t ime. He j ustly explainedthe reason for the cessation of the catamenia after severe diseases thesystem cannot afford the waste. He ant ic ipated the modern discoverythat steri l ity i s a d isease common to women and men. He

‘ adhered tothe principles of the Methodical school, and the doctrines of str ictunzand lax u zn .

1

PAULUS AflorNETA,one of the most famous of the Greek writers on

medic ine , was born in the i sland of E gina, probably in the latter halfo f the seven th cen tury after Christ. He was an Iatrosophist, and

a Periodeutes, or one who travelled about in the exercise of h i s profession . He wrote several books on medic ine, of wh ich one has comed own to us

,called D e re M edica L ibri Set tenz , or

“Synops is o f

M edicine in seven books . Dr. Adams,in h is translation of th i s famous

u ork for the Sydenham Society, gives us th e original introduct ion to thet reatises of th i s phys ic ian, who informs us that

In the first book you will find everyth ing that relates to hygiene ,and to the preservation from

,and correction o f, dis tempers peculiar to

the various ages,seasons, temperamen ts , and so forth ; also the powers

and use of the differen t articles of food,as is set forth in the chapter of

c ontents . In the second is explained the whole doctrine of fevers, anaccoun t of certain matters relating to them being prem i sed, such as

excremen ti tious discharges,crit ical days

,and other appearances , and

concluding with certain symptom s wh ich are the concomi tants of fevers .The th ird book relates to top ical affections, beginn ing from the crowno f the head, and descending down to the nails of the feet. The fourthbook treats of those complain ts wh ich are external and exposed tovi ew

,and are no t l im ited to one part of the body, but affect various

parts . Al so, of intestinal worms and dracuncul i . The fifth treats of

the wounds and bites of venomous an imals ; also of th e d i stempercalled hydrophobia, and of persons bi tten by dogs which are mad, andby those wh ich are not mad ; and also of persons bi tten by men .

Afterwards i t treats of deleterious substances , and of the preservat ivesfrom them. In the s ixth book i s contained everything relating tos urgery, both what relates to the fleshy parts , such as the extraction of

1 Sprengel, Hist. de la Ill e’

dq p. 56.

LA TER ROMAN MED ICINE. 243

weapons, and to the bones, which comprehends fractures and dislocat ions . In the seven th i s con tained an accoun t of the properties o f al lmedic ines , firs t of the s imple, then of the compound, particularly o fthose wh ich I have men t ioned in the preceding six books, and moree specially the greater, and as i t were, celebrated preparation s for I didno t th ink i t proper to treat of al l these articles prom iscuously, lest i tshould occas ion confusion

,but so that any person looking for one or

more of the distinguished preparat ions m igh t eas ily find i t. Towardsthe end are certain th ings connected with the composition o fmedic ines

,

and of those articles wh ich may be subst ituted for one another,the

whole concluding with an account of weights and measures .”

The most valuable and interesting part of th i s work i s the s ixth book .

The whole treat ise i s chiefly a compilation from the great physic ianswho preceded Paulus, but the s ixth book con tains some original matter.Th is great Byzan tine phys ic ian must have possessed cons iderable skil l

in surgery. His famous treatis e on m idwifery i s now lost i t procuredfor him amongst the Arabs the title of the Obstetrician,

”and ent itles

him to be called the first of the teachers of the accoucheur’s art Celebrated equally in the Arabian and Western schools, he exerc ised an

e normous influence in the development of the medical arts . Throughout the M iddle Ages hemaintained h i s great popularity, and h i s surgicalteaching was the bas is of that of Abulcas is , wh ich afforded to Europein the M iddle Ages her best surgical knowledge. He was the firs twri ter who took notice of the cathartic properties of rhubarb .

1

After the t ime o f Paulus of IEgina the art of surgery slept for fivehundred years ; im i tators of the ancient masters and compilers of theirworks alone remained to prove that i t was still al ive, but no progresswas made. The religious orders employed the bes t methods theyknew for the rel ie f of phys ical suffering, but naturally it was no t theirwork to perfect the healing art. In the M iddle Ages, when so much ofthe medical and surgical practice was In the hands of the monks , part icularly of the Benedictine order, many abuses crept in and at last the

practice of surgery by the clergy was forbidden in 1 1 63 by the Counc i lo fTours.The offi ce of royal physic ian in the Frankish court in the s ixth cen

tury was not unattended with r isk . When Austrigildis, wife of KingGuntram, died of the pesti lence in the year 580 , she expressed in herlast moments a p ious des ire that her doctors , Nicolaus and Donatus

,

should be put to death for no t having saved her ; and her husband ,feel ing it incumbent upon him to carry out her wishes, had them dulyexecuted .

2

1 Ency . Br it. , vol . i . p. 18 1 .

2 Puschmann’s Hist . til ed. Edna , p . 189.

244 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

ANCIENT SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS .

Brambilla , surgeon to Franc is II. o f Austria, said that surgical instrum en ts were invented by Tubal Cain, because the Bible says h e was “ thein structor of every artificer in bras s and i ron.

”

The saw i s a tool of great antiqu ity. Pliny attributes i ts invent ion toDaedalus, or to h is nephew Perdix, who was also called Talos he wassupposed to have im itated i t from the jaw of a serpent, with wh ich hehad been able to cut a p iece of wood . The inven tion of forceps wasattributed to Vulcan and the Cyclopes . When used for extract ing teeth

,

the Greeks cal led them 680v~rciypa for extract ing arrow-heads and otherweapons from the wounded in battle, the part icular form employed wascalled dpdtogijpa .

In the collecti on of domestic objects d iscovered by M . Petri e in theEgypt ian ruins of Kahun, fl in t saws c lose upon years old may

be seen.

1

Pincers and tweez ers are made by the natives of Timor—lau t from thebamboo ; they are used for pull ing out the hair from the face . The

natives of the Darl ing R iver, New South Wales , use fine bone needlesfor boring through the septum of the nose .

The book on Wounds of tlce [dead i s admi tted by the bes t cri tics tobe a genuine work ofHippocrates . We find in that treat ise that h e usedthe trepan , as he speaks of a o

-

jatp v rpiii ravoy , a small trepan . Theremust also have been a larger one , a wplwv, or saw ,

wh ich had a n epiodos ,or circular motion, and which was probably the treph ine, and a r pt

’

wv

xapaK‘

rds, or jagged saw,which i s held to be the trepan ; and he gives

instruct ions to the operator to withdraw the instrumen t frequently andcool both i t and the bone with cold water

,and to exerc i s e all v igilance

not to wound the living membrane .

Spl ints were used by the Greeks for fractured l imbs they were calledvdpfimca s. Cutt ing for the stone i s Spoken of in the ”Opxos, which i sattributed to Hippocrates . Celsus describes l i thotri ty

,or crush ing the

stone by the instrument invented by Ammonios the Atfior o'p os, i .e.

l i thotomi s t.Asclepiades practi sed tracheotomy. Many surgical instruments have

been discovered in Herculaneum and Pompei i. There is a speculumvaginae with two branches and a travel l ing yoke for them driven by ascrew, and a speculum ani open ing by pressure on the handles there i sa forceps of curious construct ion for removing p i eces of bone from thesurface of the brain in cases of fracture of the skull. Mr. Cockaynesays 3

1 P/zaraolz s, Fella/t s , etc. , Amel iaB. Edwards, p . 243.

2 Preface to Sax on Leeclzdoms, vol . i . p . xxi. 1 Ibid., vol . i . p. xx ii i .

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246 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

There are cupp ing vessels of a somewhat spherical shape, from wh ichair was exhausted by burn ing a l i ttl e tow. A fleam for bleeding horsesj ust l ike that used at the present time, a ben t lever of steel for raisingthe bones of the head in cases of depressed fracture. Professor Vulpesgives figures of eigh t steel or i ron kn ives used for various surgical purposes

,and o f a small plate to be used as an actual cautery.

ANCIENT SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS.

7 10

Fig. 1 . The Saw used by Ca nters . Fi 2 . A Small Saw . Fig. 3 . The Modiolus , or AncientTrephine . Fig . 4. he Terebra, repan, called Abapt iston . Fig. 5 . The Augur u sed byCarpenters . Fig . 6. The Terebra, or Trepan , which is turned round by a thon

gbound t ight abou t its

middle. Fig . 7 . The Augu r, or Trepan , which is turned round by a bow . ig . 8 . A Terebra , orTrepan ,

which is tu rned round by a thong on a cross-beam. Fig. 9 . A Terebra , or Trepan ,which

has a ball in its upper end, by which it is tu rned round. Fig. 1 0 . A Terebra, or Trepan , which is

turned round by a cross piece of wood , or handle , on its upper end. ( From Adams’Hippocr a tes , vol. i. )[Face15. 246.

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248 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Charms, amulets, characts, tal ismans , and the l ike, are found amongstall peoples and in al l t imes. They uni te in one bond of superst itiousbrotherhood the savage and the ph i losopher, the Sumatrans and theEgyptians

,the Malay and the Jew,

the Cathol ic and the Protestant.The charm differs from the amulet merely in the fact that i t need not

be suspended . There is scarcely a disease,

” says Pettigrew,

“ forwhich a charm has no t been given .

” 1 And i t i s well to note thattheir greatest effect i s always produced on disorders of the nervous system

,in wh ich the imagination plays so importan t a part. Charms are

also used to avert diseases and other evils so that the man, suffici ently”

k protected as he supposes by these obj ec ts, not only will escape plagueand pestilence

,but will be invulnerable to bullet and sword . The

Sumatrans practi se m edic ine chiefly by charms when called in to prescribe

,they generally ask for “ someth ing on account

,

” under the pretextof purchas ing the appropriate charm .

2

The hoofOf the elk i s used by the Indian s and Norwegians and othernorthern nations as a cure for epilepsy. The patient must apply i t tohis heart

,hold it in his left hand, and rub his ear with i t. 3

“Medic ine amongst primi tive folk i s a synonym for fetich anyth ingwonderful

,mysterious, or unaccountable, i s called “ medic ine ” by the

North American Indians . The medic ine-bag i s a mysterybag, a charm.

In fet iches primit ive man recogni ses someth ing which has a power ofa sort he cannot understand straightway therefore i t becomes to hima rel igious obj ect . “Why are any herbs or roots magical ?

” asks Mr.

Lang and he correctly answers the question, no t by any far- fetched ex

planations, but by the observat ion that herbs really do possess medic inal

properties (some of them indeed of extreme potency ) , and the ignorantinvariably confound medicine with magic.

‘1 On this theory i t i s, of

course, no t necessary to swallow the medic ine or apply i t as we applylotion s and l in iments i t i s enough to carry i t about as an amulet orcharm

,for i t is the life of the th ing wh ich i s efficacious, the spirit, which

res ides in the outward form, which possesses the vi rtue, not the materialobject i tself. Of course, i t may be necessary to take the charm in tern ally but then i t i s no t the physiological action which i s looked for,but the magical . Dapper, in his D escr iption of Africa (p. tells ofsavages who wear roots round thei r n ecks as amulets when they sleepout ; they chew the roots, and spi t th e j uice round the camp to keep off

the wild beasts . At other t imes they burn the roots , and blow the smokeabout for the same purpose. The Korannas carry roots as charmsagainst bullets and wild an imals. If successful in war, and obtaining

1 M edical Superstitions, p . 56.

2 Marsden ,Hist . Sumatra , p . 189 .

3 Pettigrew , M edical Superstition s , p. 6 1 .

‘1 Cu stom and Illy t/t , p . 148 .

AM'

ULETS AND CHARM S IN IWED ICINE. 249

much booty, they say, We thank thee, our grandfather’s root, thatthou hast given us cattle to eat .”

The Bongoes and Niam-Niams have s imi lar customs .1~

General Forlong, referring to the serpen t Buddh i sm of Kambodia,says

,that Feti sh worship was the fi rs t worsh ip, and to a great exten t

i s still th e real faith of the great mass o f the ignoran t,espec ially about

these parts .” 51 Probably one-quarter of the world yet deifies

,or at

least reverences,sticks and stones, ram -horns and charms .” 3

The Abyss inians are sunk in the grossest superst ition thei r med ical

practice is , to a large extent, based on the use of amulets and charm s .Even leprosy and syph i l i s are treated by these means, and eye diseasesby spi tting in the affected organ s .

‘1

Fetiches are c laws, fangs, roots , or stones, wh ich the African s bel ieve to be inhabited by spi ri ts , and so powerful for good or evil . The

word is derived from the Portuguesejeitigo, a charm or amulet .The Tibetans wear amulets upon their necks and arms ; they conta in

nail-parings , teeth , or other rel iques of some sainted Lama, with musk ,written prayers

,and other charms . 5

I Barth, travell ing in Africa, found an English letter wh ich had no t

reached i ts destination,used as a charm by a native .

6

Leaving prim i tive folk and savage peoples, and turn ing to the greatc ivil ized nations of the past

,we find the Egyptians, the Chaldaeans ,

Assyrians,and Babylon ians not les s addic ted to the use of amulets,

charms,tal ismans

,and ph i l ters than their un tutored progen itors (assum

ing with the an thropologists that the savage of to-day represents the

primi tive people who mus t have preceded the founders of c ivil i zation) .The Magi

,according to Pliny ,7 prescribed the herb feverfew,

the Py ret/zrunz partlien ium,

to be pulled from the ~

ground with the left hand ,that the fevered patient

’s name must be spoken forth , and that the herborist must no t look behind him. He tells us also that the Magi andthe Pythagoreans ordered the pseudo-anc/zusa to be gathered with theleft hand

,while the plucker uttered th e name of the person to be cured ,

and that i t should be tied on him for the tert ian fever. 8

Of the aglaop/zotis, by wh ich some commen tators unders tand the peony

(Pa onia ofi cinalis ) , and others the Moly of Homer, Pliny says , “ bymeans of th is plant, the Magi can summon the deities into thei r presence when they please.

”Concern ing the ac/zmmenis, he says the root

1 Cu stom and p . 1 50.

2 R ivers os fe, J . G . R. Forlong.

3 An t/z ropolog iealjou rnal , vol. xu . p . 572 .

4 Baas, Hist . fi l ed , p . 68.

5 Hook er, Himalay anjou r n . , Ed . 1 89 1 , p . 14 1 .

6 Travels in A fr ica , Ed . 1890, p . 488.

7 Plin. ,xx i . 104.

8 Plin. ,XX II. 24.

250 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

of i t, according to the Magian bel ief as expressed by Democritus, whentaken in wine

,torments the guilty to such a degree during the n ight

,

by the various forms of avenging deities, as to extort from them aconfession of their crimes . He tells , amongst other marvels , of theadamantis, a plan t found in Armenia, which , when, presented to a l ion,wil l make the beast fal l upon i ts back and drop i ts j aws . The Magisaid i f any one swallowed the heart of a mole palpitating and fresh , hewould a t once become an expert diviner. An owl’s heart placed on awoman’s left breast whi le she i s asleep will make her tel l all her secrets .For quartan fevers they recommended a kind of beetle taken up,

withthe left hand to be worn as an amulet . 1 The use of scarabs or beetlesmade of steati te

,lapis- lazul i, cornel ian, etc. ,

as amulets,dates from the

most anc i ent periods of Egypt ian h i s tory. In the fourth Egypt ianroom of the British Museum there are specimens of scarabs, with thenames of kings and queen s dating D.C. 4400

—250 . The Obj ects are

no t in all cases as old as the dates o f the sovereigns whose names theybear. “ The beetle was an emblem of the god Khepera, the selfcreated

,and the origin and source from whence sprang gods and men .

Ra,the Sun-

god, who rose again daily, was, according to an Egyptianmyth , a form of Khepera ; and the burial of scarabs with mummiesprobably had reference to the resurrect ion of the dead .

” 2

Some large scarabs which were fastened on the breasts of mum

m ies had inscript ion s from the 3oth chapter of the Book of t/ze D ead.

The deceased person -

prays :“Let there be no obstruction to me in

evidence ; let there be no obstacl e on the part of the Powers le t therebe no repulse in the presence of the Guardian of the Scale. O theramulets cons is t of papyrus sceptres , buckles of Isis, hearts, fingers, e tc . ,

in gold and prec ious stones . They are laid between the bandages o fmumm ies to guard the dead from evil.Professor Lenormant explains the magical incan tations wh ich were

used in connect ion with these talismans ; they had to be pronouncedover the beetle of hard stone

,which i s to be overlaid with gold and to

take th e place o f the individual’s heart. Make a phylactery of i tanointed wi th o il, and say magically over this obj ec t,

‘My heart ismy mother my heart i s in my trans formations.

’” 3

The anc ien t Egyptians were buried wi th their amulets as a protectionagainst the evi l powers of the other world . Mr. Fl inders Petrie, exca

y ating at the Pyramid of Hawara, discovered on the body of Horutaa great number of these charms. He says : “Bit by bi t the layersof p itch and cloth were loosened, and row after row of magn ificen t

1 Plin . , xxx. 30.

2 Ofi cial Gu ide, Br it. Ill useunt Galler ies , 1892, pp. 1 22—3.

11 From Ri tual of t/ze D ead. Lenormant, C/tala'

a'

an Ill agic, p. 90.

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2 52 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

the amulet. He recommends bits of old sailcloth from a sh ipwreckedvessel to be tied to the righ t arm and worn for seven weeks as a protection agains t ep ilepsy. He advises the heart of a lark to be fastenedto the left th igh as a remedy for col ic for a quartan ague

,th e patient

mus t carry about some hairs from a goat’s chin . He adm i ts that hehas no faith in such th ings , but merely orders them as placebos forr ich and fastid ious patients who could not be persuaded to adop t amore rational treatment .1

D r. Baas tells us that a regular pagan amulet was found in 1 749

on the breast of the prince bishop Anselm Franz of Wii rz burg, coun to f Ingolstadt, after h is death .

” 2

GNOSTIC AND CHRISTIAN AmuLETs.

Gnostic ism i s respons ible for the introduct ion of many wonder-working amulets and charm s. Thi s system of ph ilosophy was a fantasticalcombination of Orientali sm, Greek ph i losophy, and Christ ian i ty. The

teach ing was that all natures were emanations of the Dei ty, or Q ions.

On some of the gnostic amulets the word tlIy t/zras was inscribed , onothers Serap is , Iao, Sataot/i , Adonai , etc.

Notwith standing the fact that the spiri t o f Christ ian i ty in i ts earlydays was strenuously opposed to all magical and

’

superstitious prac tices,the nations i t subdued to the faith of Chris t were so wedded to theiranc i en t practices that they could no t be ent irely d ivorced

“

from them,

and thus in the case of amulets and charms i t was necessary to subs titute Christian words and emblems in place of the heathen words and

symbols previously in use.Anglo-Saxon charms and amulets were used by the monks of Glaston

bury Abbey, who treated disease . In the “ Leech book ” 3 we find aholy amulet agains t every evi l rune lay,

‘1and one full of elvish tricks ,

writ for tfie be witc/zed man, thi s writing in Greek letters Alfa, Omega ,IESVM

,BERONIKH. Again

,another dust and drink against a rune lay

take a bramble apple,

5and lup ins, and pulegium

,pound them

,then

s ift them,put them in a pouch , lay them under th e altar

,s ing n ine

masses over them,put the dust into mi lk

,drip thrice some holy water

upon them,adm inister tlz is to drink at three hours. If a mare 6

or bag ride a man,take lupins

,and garl ic

,and betony

,and frankincense,

b ind them on a fawn sk in , let a man have the worts on him,and l et him

go into h is house.”For typhus fever the patient i s to drink o f a decoc

1 Sm ith’s D ict. Greek and Roman An t ., art. Therapeu tica. See alsoAmu le ts, ” p . 45.

2 Hist. rifl ed , p . 772 .

3 Vol . II. p . 1 39 .

‘1 Heathen charm .

5 A blackberry .

6 Nightmare was cons idered to be the work o f an evil spirit.

AM ULETS AND CHARM S IN AIEDICINE. 253.

t ion of herbs over wh ich many masses have been sung, then say th enames of the four gospellers and a ’

charm and a prayer. Again, a

man i s to wri te in s i lence a charm,and s ilently put the words in his

left breast and take care no t to go indoors with the wri t ing upon him,

th e words being EMMANUEL, VERONICA.

M r. Cockayne, the editor of Saxon Leechdoms, has poin ted ou t thatthe greatest sc ient ific men of antiquity

,even those who set themselves

against the prevail ing medical supersti tions of the ir t imes , and did theirutmost to es tabl ish observation and experimen t in opposition to speculation and Old wives’ fables

,were by no means l iberated from a bel ief

in magic and incan tations . Chrysippus bel ieved in amulets for quartanfevers .1 Serapion

,one of th e ch iefs ‘ of th e Emp iric school , prescr ibed

crocodile’s dung and turtle’s blood in epilepsy . Soranos wil l not use

incantations in the cure of di seases,yet he test ifies that they were so

employed . Pliny has an amulet for almost every disorder. He tellsof a chi ef man in Spain who was cured of a disease by hanging purslane root round h i s neck ; he teaches that an amulet of th e seed of

tribulus cures varicose veins ; that the longes t tooth o f a black dogcures quartan fevers or you may carry a wasp in your l eft hand or halfa: dozen other equally absurd things for th e same purpose . A holly

planted in the courtyard of a house keeps off witchcrafts an herb

p icked from the head of a statue and t ied with a red thread will cureheadache, and so on .

2

Josephus tells a tale wh ich was probably the foundation of what wasafterwards told about the mandrake. Xenocrates had a fancy foradvis ing peopl e to eat human brains, flesh or l iver, or to swallow forvarious complaints the ground bones of parts of the human frame .

Alexander of Tralles says that even Galen did homage to incan tat ions .2

He gives his words Some th ink that incantations are l ike old wives’

tales ; as I d id for a long wh i le. But at las t I was convinced thatthere is virtu e in them by plain proofs before my eyes. For I hadtrial of their beneficial operations in the case of those scorp ion-stung,nor less in the case of bones stuck fast in the throat, immediately, by an

incan tation thrown up . And many of them are excellent, severally,and they reach their mark .

”Yet Galen i s angry with Pamphilos for

“ h is babbl ing incantat ions,wh ich were “

not merely useless, not

merely unprofess ional, but al l false : no good even to l ittl e boys , no t.to say s tudents of medic ine.” 4

1 Plin . , xxx . 30.

2 See the twenty-second and twenty-fourth books of P l iny’s Natural IIistozy .

3 Lib. ix . cap . 4, p. 538 , Ed. 1 556.

4 Gale ndc Facu lt . Simpi . , lib. vi . p . 792, Ed. Kuhn .

2 54 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

Alexander of Tralles frequen tly prescribes amulets and the l ike. Mr.

Cockayne cal ls them periapts . “ Thus for col ic,he guarantees by h is

own experience, and the approval of almost all the best doctors , dung of awolf, w i th bits of bone in i t i f poss ible, shut up in a pipe, and worn duringthe paroxysm

,on the righ t arm , or thigh , or h ip, taking care i t touches

neither the earth nor a bath . A lark eaten i s good. The Thrac ians

p ick out its heart, wh i le alive, and make a periapt, wearing it on the leftthigh . A part of the caecum of a p ig prepared with myrrh , and put ina wolf’s or dog’s skin, i s a good th ing to wear. A ring with Herculesstrangling a l ion on the M edian stone 1 is good to wear .

A bit of a child’s navel , shut up in someth ing of gold or s ilver withsal t

,i s a periapt wh ich will make the patien t at ease ent irely. Have the

sett ing of an i ron ring octagonal, and engrave upon i t, ‘Flee,Flee

,Ho ,

Ho,Bile, the lark was search ing on the head of the ring have an N 2

engraved th is i s potent,and he th inks it must be strange no t to com

municate so powerful an an t idote, but begs i t may be reserved fromcarnal folk

,and told only to such as can keep secrets and are trusty.

For th e gout he recommends a certain cloth— e’

x Tau Karamlviwv alsoth e s inews o f a vulture’s leg and toes t ied on

,m inding that the righ t

goes to the right,the left to the left also the astragal i of a hare, leav

ing the poor creature alive also the skin of a seal for soles also a lineo fHomer

,r e

‘

rprjxet O’c’

tyoprj, int-O83 (Tr ovaxt

'

gero yaia, on gold- leaf, when themoon i s in Libra ; also a natural magnet found when the moon i s inLeo . Write on gold- leaf

,in the wane of the moon, me i

,threu, mor

,

for, teux, z a, z on, the, lou, chri , ge, z e, on, as the sun i s consol idatedin these names

,and is renewed every day ; so consolidate this plaster

as i t was before,now,

now,quick

,quick

,for

,behold

,I pronounce the

great name,in wh ich are consol idated th ings in repose, iaz, az uf, znou, .

threux, bain , chook consol idate th is plaster as i t was at fi rst, now,now

,

q uick , quick .

’ 3

“Then bits were to be chopped o ff a chameleon, and the creature l ivingwas to be wrapped up in a clean l inen rag, and buried towards the sunr ise, wh i le the chopped bits were to be worn in tubes ; al l to be donewhen the moon was in the wane. Then again for gout

,some henbane,

when the moon is in Aquar ius or Pisces, before sunset, must be dug upwith the thumb and th ird finger of the left hand , and must be said, Id eclare

,I declare

,holy wort

,to thee ; I invite thee tom orrow to the

hous e of Fi leas,to stop the rheum of the feet of M . or N.,

and say I

1 A Gnostic device. See Montfaucon , plates IS9, 16 1 : 1632 This also is Gnostic.

2 Mr. Cockayne considers this to be probably Gnostic some of the words are puren onsense.

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256 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

t ion, the obnoxious ceremon i es would certainly be practised in secret .I t was th erefore wiser for the Church to comprom ise the matter

,to wink

at innocent superst i tions, and endeavour to subst itute a rel igious ideasuch as the sign of the cross would imply

,for the mean ingless

,i f not

idolatrous , ceremon ies o f a pagan religion. Let us never forget that theChurch del ivered the nat ion s from “ the tyranny and terror of thepoisoner and the wizard .

”

HERBS,ANIMALS

,ETC.

,As AMULETS .

Burton,in h is Anatomy of M elancltoly , men t ions several “ amulets

and th ings to be borne about ” as remed ies for head-melancholy,such

as hypericon, or St. John’

s wort, gathered on a Friday in the hour ofJupiter

,

“ borne or hung about the neck, i t m igh tily helps th is affection ,

and drives away all fan tast ical Spirits .”

A sheep or kid’s skin whom a

wolf worried must no t be worn about a man,because i t i s apt to cause

palpi tation of the heart,“not for any fear, but a secret virtue wh ich

amulets have .

“ Peony doth cure epilepsy,prec ious stones most

d iseases ; a wolf’s dung borne with one helps the col ic ; a spider an

ague,etc. Being in the coun try,

” he says,

“ in the vacat ion t ime, notmany years s ince, at Lindley, in Leicestersh ire, my father

’

s home, Ifirs t Observed th is amulet of a spider in a nut- shell lapped in s i lk , etc. ,

so appl ied for an ague by my mother ; whom,al though I knew to have

excellent sk i l l in ch iru rgery, sore eyes, aches, etc. ,

and such experi

mental medic ines , as all the country where She dwelt can witness, tohave done many famous and - good cures upon diverse poor folks thatwere otherwise destitute o f help ; yet among all other experiments ,this

,methought, was most absurd and ridiculous I could see no warran t

for it—Qu id aranea cum febre ? For what ant ipathy P - til l at l engthrambl ing amongst authors (as I often do) , I found th i s very medicine inD ioscorides, approved by Matthiolus, repeated by Alderovandus, cap . do

aranea,lit . de insectis, and began to have a better op in ion of i t, and to

give more credit to amulets, when I saw i t in some parties answer toexperience .

” 1

The common fumitory (Fumaria capreolata) i s said to derive i tsname fromfumus, smoke, because the smoke of th i s plan t was said bythe anc ien t exorc ists to have the power of expell ing evi l sp ir its .

” 2

The elder had many singular virtues attr ibuted to i t i f a boy werebeaten with an elder s t ick , i t h indered his growth ; but an elder on

wh ich the sun had n ever sh ined was an amule t against erys ipelas . 3

1 Anatomy of M elaneli oly , Part 2 , sec. 5 .

2 Rev. C. A . John’s Flowers of t/ze Field.

2 Brand’s Observations, vol. ii . p . 67 .

AM ULETS AND CHARMS IN MEDICINE.

KNOTs As CHARM S .

Marcellus , a medical writer, quoted by Mr. Cockayne in hi s prefaceto Sax on Leecbdoms, vol . i . p . xxix. ,

gives an example of knots as charms .As soon as a man gets pain in h is eyes, t i e in unwrought flax as manyknots as there are letters in h is name, pronounc ing them as you go, andti e i t round his neck .

”

PRECIOUS STONES As CHARMS .

The origin of the supers titious bel ief in the magic power of prec iousstones has always been traced to Chaldaea~ Pliny 1 refers to a book on

the subj ect wh ich was written by Lachalios, of Babylon , and dedicatedto M ithr idates .The Eagle stone (zEtitcs) i s a natural concret ion, a variety of argilla

ceous oxide of iron, often hollow with in, with a loose kernel in t hecentre, found sometimes in an eagle

’s nest . Thi s was a famous amulet,bringing love between a man and h is wife and i f t ied to the l eft armor side of a pregnan t woman i t ensured that she should not be deliveredbefore her t ime. Women in labour were supposed to be qu icklydelivered i f they were girded with the skin which a snake casts off.2

The Bezoar stone had a great reputat ion in melancholic affect ions .Manardus says it removes sadness and makes him merry that useth it. 3

Of the s tone wh ich h ight agate . It i s said that i t hath eight virtues .

One i s when there is thunder, i t doth not scathe the man who hath th isstone with him . Another virtue is

,on whatsoever house it i s

,therein

a fiend may not be. The third virtue is,that no venom may scathe

the man who hath the stone with him. The fourth virtue is , that theman , who hath on him secretly the loathly fiend

,if h e taketh in l iquid

any portion of the Shavings of this s tone, then soon i s exhibi tedman ifestly in him, that which before lay secre tly h id. The fi fth virtueis, he who is affl icted with any disease , i f he taketh the s tone in l iqu id ,i t i s soon well with him. The s ixth virtue is

,that sorcery hurteth no t

the man who has the s tone with him . The seventh virtue i s, that h ewho taketh the s tone in drink

,will have so much the smoother body.

The eighth virtue of the stone is,that no b i te of any kind of snake may

scathe him who tasteth the stone in l iqu id .

” 4

SIGNATURES .

Colours have always had a medical s ign ificance, from their connectionw ith the doctrine of “ s ignatures .” White was cool ing ; red was hot . .

Red flowers were given in disorders o f the blood ; yel low in bile dis1 Hist. Nat . , xxxvu . 10 .

2 Brand’s Observat ion s, etc. , vol . 11 . p. 63 .

3 Burton’s Anatomy , p . 454. Sax on Leeeb Book , II. ch. lxvi .

258 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

turbance. The bed-hangings in small -pox and scarlet- fever cases werecommonly of a red colour the unhappy patien t

’s room was hung aboutwith red drapery. He had to drink infus ion s o f red berries

,such as

mulberri es . Avicenna said that as red bodies move the blood everyth ing of a red colour i s good for blood disorders .

NUMBERS .

Magic numbers as charms were in use in Anglo-Saxon medic ine .

If any th ing to cause annoyance get into a man’s eye

,with five fingers

of the same s ide as the eye, run the eye over and fumble at i t, sayingthree times

,tetunc resonco, bregan gresso,

’and sp it thrice . For the

same,shut the vexed eye and say thrice

,

‘ in mon deromarcos axatison ,’

and sp i t thrice ; th is remedy i s ‘m irificum .

’For the same, shut the

other eye, touch gen tly the vexed eye with the ring finger and thumb ,and say thrice,

‘ I buss the gorgon’s mouth .

’This charm repeated

thrice n ine times will draw a bon e stuck in a man’s throat. For hordeolum

,wh ich i s a sore place in the eyel id of the shape of a barley

corn,take n ine grains of barley and with each poke the sore, wi th

every one saying the magic words,Kvpta. Kvpt a. Kacra apta crov qSBt then

throw away the n ine,and do the same with seven ; throw away the

seven,and do the same with five

, and so with three and one. For thesame take n ine grains o f barley and poke the sore, and at every pokesay

, (pefiye, cfieiiye KpterjO'

e St einer, flee,fl ee, bar ley titer! cbasetlc.

’For the

same, touch the sore with the medic inal or ring finger, and say thrice,

vigaria gasaria.

’To shorten the matter

,blood may be s tanched by the

words,

sicycuma, cucuma, ucuma, cuma, uma, ma, a .

’Also by Stup id

on a moun tain wen t, stupid, stup id was by socnon soch on O'

OKO'

OKap.

O'

vKtjua ; by 41 a fil e 111 1; we do; l/Ja (be . For toothache say, ‘Argidam

margidam sturgidam also, spi t in a frog’s mouth , and request him to

make off with the toothache . For a troublesome uvula catch a spider,say sui table words

,and make a phylactery of i t . For a quinsy lay

hold of the throat with the thumb and the ring and m iddle fingers ,cocking up the other two, and tel l i t to be gone .

”

Nine i s th e number consecrated by Buddhism,three i s sacred among

Brahmin ical and Chris tian people . Pythagoras held that the un i t ormonad is the princ iple and the end of all . One i s a good princ iple .

Two , or the dyad, i s the origin of con trasts and separation , and i s an

evil principle. Three , or the triad , i s the image of the attributes of God .

Four, or the tetrad , i s the most perfect of numbers and the root of allth ings . It i s holy by nature. Five, or the pentad , i s everything it s topsthe power of poisons, and is redoubted by evil sp irits . Six i s a fortunatenumber. Seven i s powerful for good or evil, and i s a sacred number.

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260 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF .MEDICINE.

Fi shermen and costermongers often spit on the first money they take,for good luck.

1

TALISMANS.

Tal ismans, says Fosbrooke,2 are of five c lasses . 1 . The Astronomica l,

with celestial s ign s and in telligible characters . 2 . The M agical, withextraordinary figures, superst i tious word s, and names of unknownangels . 3 . The .Mix ed, of celestial s igns and barbarous words , but no tsuperst it ions, or with names of angels. 4. The Sigi lla P lanetarum

,

composed of Hebrew numeral let ters, used by astrologers and fortunetellers . 5 . H

'

ebrezv Names and Clearacters. These were formed according to the cabal ist ic art. Pettigrew gives a Hebrew talisman, 3 which run sthus : It overflowed—he did cast darts— Shaddai i s all sufficient— h i shand i s strong, and i s the preserver of my l i fe in all its variation s .

SCR IPTS .

Sir John Lubbock says that The use o f writing as a medic ine prevails largely in Africa, where th e priests or wizards write a prayer on a

p iece of board, wash i t off, and make the patien t drink i t. Caillie

met with a man who had a great reputat i on for sancti ty, and who madeh is l iving by writing prayers on a board , wash ing them off

,and then

sell ing the water, which was sprinkled over various obj ects and

supposed to protec t them .

” ‘1

Mungo Park relates sim ilar facts . 55

Sir A. Lyall says that a s im i lar prac t ice ex i sts in India , where, however

,the native pract it ioner may somet imes be seen m ixing croton o il

in the ink with which he wri tes h i s charms . “ In Africa,

” saysLubbock, “ the prayers written as med ic ine or as amulets are generallytaken from th e Koran .

”It i s adm i tted that they are no protection

against firearms ; but this does not the least weaken faith in them,

because, as gun s were no t invented in Mahomet’s t ime,he naturally

provided no specific against them .

3

Among the Kirgh i z Atkinson says that the Mullas sell such amuletsat the rate of a sheep for each scrap of written paper,7 and s im i larcharms are in great request among the Turkoman s 8 and in Afghani s tan .

9

1 Brand’s P opu lar An tiqu ities , vol . i ii . p . 1 39 .

2 Ency lopcedia of An tiqu i ties , vol . i . p . 336.

3 M edical Super stitions , p . 45 .

4 Lubbock , Or ig in of Civil i z ation , 5th Ed. , p. 23 .

5 Park’s Travels , vol . i . p. 357 .

3 Astley’s Voy ages , vol . II. p . 35 .

7 Siberia , p. 3 10.

3 Vambery’

s Travel s in Cen tral A sia, p. 50.

9 Masson’s Travels in Beloc/z istan , etc. ,vol . i . pp . 74, 90 , 3 1 2 , vol . ii . pp. 1 2 7 ,

AM I/LETs AND CHARM S IN MEDICINE. 26 1

The very curious accoun t of the trial of j ealousy in Numbers vi .1 1—3 1 may be studied in th is connect ion as showing the extremean t iquity of the wri ting charm . In the case of the woman suspectedof having comm itted adultery “ the pries t shall bring her n ear

,and set

her before the Lord and the priest shall take holy water in an earthenvessel and of th e dus t that i s in the floor of the tabernacl e the priestshall take, and pu t i t into the water : and the pries t shall set thewoman before the Lord

,and uncover the woman’s head

,and put the

offering of memorial in her hands,which i s th e j ealousy offering and

the priest shall have in hi s hand the bitter water that causet‘h thecurse : and the priest shall ~ charge her by an oath

,and say unto the

woman,If no man have lain with thee

, and i f thou hast not gone asideto uncleanness with another inst ead of thy husband , be thou free fromthis bitter water that causeth the curse : but if thou has t gone aside toanother instead of thy husband

, and i f thou be defiled, and some man

have lain with thee beside th ine husband then the priest shall chargethe woman with an oath of cursing

, and the p ries t shal l say unto thewoman

,The Lord make thee a curse and an oath among thy people,

when the Lord doth make thy thigh to rot,and thy b el ly to swel l and

this water that causeth the curse shall go in to thy bowels,to make thy

belly to swell,and thy thigh to rot : and the woman shal l say

,Amen ,

amen. And the priest shal l wr ite these curses in a book,and he shall

blot them out with the bitter water and he shall cause the woman todrink the bitter water that causeth the curse and the water that causeththe curse shall enter in to her, and become b itter. Then the priest shal ltake the j ealousy offering out of the woman ’s hand

, and shal l wave th eoffering before the Lord

, and offer i t upon th e altar : and the pries tshall take an handful of the offering

,even the memorial thereof, and

burn i t upon the altar, and afterward shall cause the woman to drinkthe water. And when he hath made her to dr ink the water, then i tshall come to pass, that, i f she be defi led, and have done trespassagainst her husband

,that the water that causet h the c urse Shall enter

into her,and become bitter

,and her belly shall swel l, and her th igh shall

rot : and the woman shall be a curse among her people . And i f thewoman be not defiled, but be clean then she shall be free

,and shal l

conceive seed. This i s the law of j ealous i es , when a wife goeth ( asideto another instead of her husband

, and i s defiled or when the sp iri t of

jealousy cometh upon him,and he be j ealou s over h is wife, and shal l

set the woman before the Lord,and the priest shal l execute upon her

all this law. Then sh all the man be guiltless from ini qu ity,and thi s

woman shall bear her in iqui ty .

”

This is qu ite evidently taken from the customs of African tribes.

262 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

As the Egyptians gave the Jews their knowledge of the medical arts,and as th i s knowledge was doubtless largely interm ingled wi th Africanideas, i t i s easy to see how the ordeal of the bi tter curse-water foundits way into the Mosaic ri tual.Of scripts as amulets we find that anyth ing written in a character

wh ich nobody could read was worn as an amulet against disease ordanger. Thus the Anglo-Saxon MS. , known as the Vercell i MS. ,

by

some mean s found its way to a place near M i lan, where no one coulddec ipher i t . When that discovery was made, the next step was to cut upi ts prec ious pages for amulets, and so many Of i ts leaves have peri shed.

After the death Of Pascal,the ph i losopher, a writ ing was found

sewn into h is doublet. Th is was a “profession of faith

” wh ich hewore as a sort of amulet or charm, and his servants believed that healways had i t sti tched into a new garmen t when he discarded the oldone.

1

“Mais cc qu i mon tre que ce n’est par un s imple engagemen t tel

qu’on en peut prendre avec soi-meme, c’es t la forme é trange que Pascal

lu i a donné e. Pour quiconque a vu les é crits de ce genre de la partd’halluciné s

,le prem ier coup d

’

oai l montre que l’é crit de Pascal appartient acette caté gorie. D

’

ailleurs,il porte l’é nonciation man ifeste d’une

vis ion en ces termes : ‘ Depuis environ dix heures et dem i e du soirj usque environ m inui t et dem i , feu .

’Ainsi

,ce j our- la, le lundi 2 3

Novembre,

1 654, pendan t environ deux heures , Pascal eut la vis iond’un feu qu’i l prit pour une apparition sumaturelle, et sa conviction futsi forte qu’elle le dé term ina a en trer plus avan t qu

’i l n’

avait fait

jusqu’alors dans les voies de la dé votion et du rigorisme j ansén i ste.”2

CHARACTS .

Of the spec i es of charm s known as characts we have may examplesin the practice of Anglo-Saxon physician s . In the preface to theHerbarium of Apu leius, used at Glastonbury, Mr. Cockayne, the editor,gives the following from Marcellus

, 3 80 A.D . ,to avoid inflamed eyes

Write on a clean sheet of ovfiam ,and hang this round the patien t

’sneck, with a thread from the loom . In a state of puri ty and chastitywrite on

'

a clean sheet of paper gbvpcpapav, and hang i t round the man’s

neck ; i t wi ll stop the approach of inflammation. The following wills top inflammation com ing on

,written on a clean sheet of paper : povBos,

pvovetpas pneAt os ws'

Kavr etpopa'

Ka t n a l/r es na k or et ; i t must be hung tothe neck by a thread ; and i f both the patient and operator are in astate of chast ity

,i t will stop inveterate inflammation . Again, write on a

1 Tbe TIiougbts of Blaise Pascal, Bel l’s Ed . 1890, p . 2 .

2 L’Amu lette de Pascal . M e

’

decine et M e’

decins . Par E. Littre. Paris, 187 2.

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264 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

Brande,in his Popu lar Antiquities, gives the following charm from a

manuscript of the date of 1 475° 1

Here ys a charme for wyked Wych . In nom ine Patri s,et Fi l ii

,et

Spi ritus Sancti . Amen . Per Virtutem Domin i s int Medic ina m ei pia

Crux E et passio Christ i E. Vulnera quinque D om in i s in t Medicinamei E. Vi rgo Maria m ihi succurre, et defende ab omn i maligno De

mon io,et ab omn i maligno Spi ritu . Amen . E a E g E l E a E

Tetragrammaton . E Alpha, E 00, E primogenitus, E vi ta, vi ta . ESap ienc ia, EVirtus

, E Jesus Naz arenu s rex judeorum , E hli Dom ini,

m iserere mei. Amen. E Marcus E Matheus E Lucas E Johannesm ih i succurrite et defendite. Amen. E Omnipotens sempiterne Deus,hunc N. famulum tuum hoc breve Scriptum super se portantem prosperesalve t dormiendo , vigilando , potando , et prec ipue sompniando ab omn iMaligno D emon i o

, eciam ab omn i mal igno sp iritu E.

”

One of the most famous charms of th is kind is the “Solomon’s Seal .”

Amongst the Cabalists an amulet,with the names Senoi, Sanseno i,

Semongeloph,” upon i t, was fastened round the neck of the new-born

child .

2

The first Psalm,when wr itten on doeskin

,was supposed to help the

birth of ch ildren but the wri ter of such Psalm amulets,as soon as he

had written one l ine,had to plunge in to a bath .

“ Moreover,” says

Mr. Morley, “ that the charm m ight be the work of a pure man , beforeevery new l ine of his manuscript i t was thought necessary that h e shouldrepeat the plunge .

”3

1 Vo l. i ii . p . 29 .

2 Morley’s Life of Cornel iu s Ag i ippa , vo l . i. p . 80 .

3 Ibid. , p . 8 1 .

AM ULETS AND CHARM S IN MED ICINE. 26 5

SACRED NAMES As CHARM S .

Some of the Jews accoun ted for the m iracles of healing wrought by ourSaviour by declaring that He had learned the M irific Word , the true

pronunc iation of the name Jehovah ; this word st irs all the angels and

rules all creatures . They said that He had gained adm i ss ion to theHoly of Hol ies

,where He learned the sacred mystery, wrote i t

' on atablet, cu t open His thigh , and having pu t the tablet in the wound ,c losed the flesh by uttering the mystic Name. The names of angelsand evil sp irit s were also held to be poten t by the Cabal ists . The

name of a bad angel, Schabriri, was used when written down as a charm

to cure ophthalm ia.

STOLEN PROPERTY AS A CHARM .

In Mr. Andrew Lang’s delightful Custom and My tk he says that heonce met at dinnerga lady who carried a stolen potato about with heras a cure for rheumatism. The potato must be stolen

,or the charm

would not work .

A small p iece of beef, i f stolen from a butcher,i s supposed by some

persons to charm away warts.

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CHAPTER I.

MEDICINE OF THE DRUIDS,TEUTONS

,ANGLO-SAXONS

,AND WELSH.

O rigin of the Druid Religion —D ru id Med icine—TheirMagic .—Teuton ic Medicine .

—Gods of Heal ing.—Elves. -The Elements. —Anglo -Saxon Leechcraft.—The

Leech-book .—Monastic Leechdoms . Superstitions . Welsh Medicine . The

Triads. —Welsh D ru idism .—The Laws of the Court Physicians —Welsh Medical

Max ims.—Welsh Medical and Surgical Practice and F ees.

MED ICINE OF THE DRUIDs .

THE learned men of the Gelto -Britann ic region s were called D ruids .They were the j udges, legislators, priests, and physicians , and corresponded to the Magi of the anc ien t Pers ian s and Chaldaeans of Syria .

The etymology of the name i s uncertain . The old derivation froman oak, i s cons idered fanciful, and that from the Irish draai , dru idka magic ian, an augur, i s by some authorities preferred . It i s probablet hat they derived their knowledge from assoc iation with Greek colon i stsof Marseilles

,as such writing as they used was in Greek characters , and

t hey taught the doctrine o f the immortali ty of the soul and a ph i losophywhich D iodorus Siculu s says was s im ilar to that of the teach ing ofPythagoras . Clemen t of Alexandria compared their religion to Shamanism. Whatever it was

,i t did no t differ probably very widely from

o ther system s which pretended to put i ts priests in direc t communica

t ion with gods and demon s. Its priests, says Sprengel, were simplyimpostors who pretended to exclusive knowledge of medicine

'

and others ciences . Their women pract ised sorcery and divination, but by theirmedical sk il l were able to afford great assistance to the wounded in war.

Plants were collected and magical propert ies ascribed to them. Lying.in women sought the aid of these D ruidesses, who seem to have beenwise women , somewhat after the character of gyps ies. Mela says thesewomen were called Senae. They pretended to cure the most incurabled iseases and to raise tempests by their incan tations . 1 The Druids commun icated their knowledge to in it iates on ly, and they celebrated theiranystic rites under groves of oaks . Whatever grew on that tree wasc onsidered a d ivine gift thei r h ighest veneration was reserved for

1 Henry’s His t. of Great Br itain ,vol . i . p. 147 .

269

270 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

the m i stletoe, wh ich they called All-Heal, and wh ich they cons idereda panacea for all diseases . Three other plants, called Selago, a kindof club-moss, or perhaps hedge-hyssop, Samu lus, the brookweed orwin ter cress, and Vervain, were held to be sacred plants . The mistletoe must be gathered fasting, the gatherer must not look backwardwhile doing it, and he must take i t with his left hand . The branchesand herbs were immersed in water

,and the infusion then became

possessed of the property of preserving the drinkers from disease.

When the Selago and Vervain were gathered,a white garment was

worn, sacrifices of bread and wine were offered,and the gatherer

,

having covered his hand with the skirt of h is robe,cut up the herbs

with a book made of a metal more prec ious than iron, placed i t in aclean cloth , and preserved i t as a charm against m i sfortunes and

acc iden ts . 1

Strutt says “Faint is the l igh t thrown upon the methods pursued bythe D ruids in preparing their medic ines . Some few h ints, i t i s true, wemeet with

,of their extracting the j uice of herbs

,their bruising and steep

ing them in water,in fusing them in wine

,boiling them and making

fumes from them ,and the l ike i t also appears that they were not igno

ran t of making salves and oin tmen ts from vegetables .”2

In Britain the magical j uggles,ceremon ies

,and ri tes were carri ed to a

greater excess than in any other Celtic nation . They made a greatmystery of their learn ing

,thei r sem inaries were held in groves and

forests and the caverns o f the earth .

3 Strutt th inks that their alphabetwas derived from the Greek merchan ts, who came frequently to thei sland. Pliny says that the anc ien t Britons were much addicted to thearts of divination .

4 D iodorus Sicu lus describes one of their methods .They take a man who i s to be sacrificed and kill him with one strokeof a sword above the diaphragm and by observing the posture in whichhe falls

,h i s d ifferent convuls ions, and the direct ion in wh ich the blood

flows from h i s body, they form their predict ions, according to certainrules which have been left them by their ancestors .” 5

Strutt says 3 “ The people were the more particularly inc lined tomake appl icat ion to them for relief

,because they thought that all

internal diseases proceeded from the anger of the gods, and thereforenone could be so proper to make in tercession for them as the pries t ofthose very deities from whom their affl ict ions came ; for th i s cause also

1 Meryon , Hist . M ed , pp . 1 1 3 , 1 14 ; Strutt’s Ck ron icles of England , vol. i . p.

279 .

2 Clzron icles of England, vol . 1. p . 2 79 .

3 Ibid , p . 28 1 .

4 Plin . ,Hist. Nat. , lib. xxx . 0. i . 5 D iod . Sicul . , lib. v . cap . 35.

3 Tbe Ckron icles of England, vol . i . pp . 278, 279.

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

m edic ine among the Germans and Celts . Medic ine was deemed a profession unworthy of men

,and i t i s no t t il l the twelfth century that phy

sicians are spoken of. Probably old women or D ruidesses in ancienttimes were the on ly doctors of these peopl es . Puschmann says that theNorwegians had a number of highly paid doctors in the tenth century

,

and that already a medical tax existed .

1

In the t ime of the Vik ings .wounds were well attended to,amputations

performed, and wooden l egs were not uncommon . Ment ion,

” saysPuschmann,

“ i s also made of the operat ion called gastroraphy (or sewing up a wound of the belly or some of i ts conten ts) ; 2 l ithotomy was

performed successfully.

Wodan i s the all-pervading creat ive and formative power who givesshape and beauty, wealth , prosperity, and all h ighest bless ings to men.

3

Eir was the goddess of physic ian s ; Odin was a doctor ; Brunh i ldawas a doctoress .The anc i ent German nation s offered to the gods sacrifices of human

food,wh ich they believed they enj oyed. These sacrifices were offered

as thanksgivings or to appease their anger. When a fam ine or a pestilence appeared amongst the people, they concluded that the gods wereangry

,and they proceeded to prop i t iate them with gifts.

‘1

An imal and espec ially human sacrifices had the most binding and

aton ing power. 5

The Teuton ic elves are good-natured, helpful beings . They fetchgoodwives

,m idwives, to assi st she-dwarfs in labour, and have much

knowledge of occul t heal ing virtues in plan t s and stones .6 But elvessometimes do m ischief to men . Their touch and the ir breath may brings ickness or death on man and beast . Lamed cattle are said in Norwayto be bewitched by them ,

and the ir avenging hand makes men s i lly orhalf-witted .

7

Teuton ic peoples have always had great faith in the normal influenceo f pure water .The Germans believed in the magical properties of water hallowed at

m idn ight of the day of baptism. Such water they called keila zvac. Theybel ieved it to have a wonderful power of healing diseases and wounds,and of never spoiling.

8 The sal t wh ich is added to holy water in thechurch will accoun t for i ts keeping properties . But i t i s in medicinal

springs, such as are called Heilbrunn , Heilborn

,Heiligenbrunnen, that

1 Hist. Med. Education , p . 187 .

2 Ibid. , p. 186.

3 Grimm’s Teu ton ic Mytlzology , translated by Stal lybrass, vol . i . p . 133.

‘1 Ibid . , vol . i. p . 42 .

5 See Tennyson’s poem , I ke Vi ctim.5 Grimm .

8 Grimm , Teu ton ic My tkology , vol . ii. p. 586.

ANGLO-SAXON MEDICINE. 2 73

Teuton ic faith has always exhibited the stronges t devotion . Sacrifices, says Grimm,

were offered at such springs . When the Wetterau

people begin a new jug of chalybeate water, they always Spill a fewdrops first on the ground. Grimm thinks th is was originally a l ibat ion to the foun tain sprite. 1 The Christians replaced water-spri tes bysaints .Fire was regularly worshipped , and there are many superstit ion s still

existing which poin t to th is phase of Teuton ic religion.

“The Esthon

ians throw gifts into fire,as well as into water. To pac i fy the flame

they sacrifice a fowl to i t.”2 Sulphur has always had an evil reputation .

Murrain amongst cattle could on ly be got rid of by a Needfire. On theday appoin ted for ban ishing the pest, there mus t in no house be any

flame left on the hearth , but a new fire must be kindled by friction afterthe manner of savages . 3

Teuton ic children born with a caul about their head are bel ieved tobe lucky children . The membrane is carefully treasured

,and sometimes

worn round the babe as an amulet. The Icelanders imagine that th echild’s guardian sp iri t res ides in i t m idwi ves are careful no t to inj ure it,but bury it under the threshold . If any one throws i t away, he deprivesthe child of its guardian spiri t.

“1

AnGLo-SAXON MEDICINE.

It i s difficult to discover what was the state of learn ing exist ingamongst the anc ien t Saxon s before their conversion to Christian i ty.

We know that soon after th i s even t schools were established in Kent,

with such good results that Sigebert (A .D . 63 5 ) establ ished seminaries onthe same plan in his own domin ions . After th i s

,as Bede informs us

,

there flourished a great number of learned men.

3

Theodore,Archbishop of Can terbury, came over into Bri tain A.D . 669 ,

and did much to improve the learning of the country. He was accom

panied by many professors of sc ience, one of whom, the monk Adrian,instructed a great number of studen ts in the sc iences, espec ially teach ingthe art of medic ine and establ ish ing rules for preserving the health .

6

Aldhelm,who according to Bede was a man of great erudi tion and was

“wonderfully well acquainted with books,” very greatly con tributed to the

spread of education .

The state of medic ine in England in Anglo-Saxon times is said by

1 Grimm’s Teu ton ic tidy tlzology , p . 588.

2 Ibid. , p . 602 .

3 Ibid. , p . 604 .

‘1 Ibid . , vol. ii. p. 874.

3 Eccl . Hist , lib. iii. cap. 18.

3 Strutt’

s C/z ron icles of England, vo l . i . p . 345 .

274 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Strutt 1 to have been very degraded . Medic ine cons isted chiefly of

nostrums which had been handed down from one age to another, and

their adm in istration was usually accompan ied wi th whims ical ri tes and

ceremon ies, to which the success was often in a great measure attributed .

The most ignoran t persons prac tised the profess ion , and particularly oldwomen

, who were supposed to be themost expert and were in high reputeamongst the Anglo-Saxons. After the establ ishment of Christian ity thec lergy succeeded to th e business carried on by the ai t must be adm itted that the su erstitious elemen t in their treatmen t ofdisease was not less prominent than in that of their venerable predecessors. Bede says 2 that Theodore

,Archbishop of Canterbury, taught

that It i s very dangerous to let blood on the fourth day of the moon,because both the l ight of the moon and the tides are upon the increase.

”

Before any medic ine could be adm in i s tered,fortunate and unfortunate

times , the changes of the moon and appearance of the planets, had to becons idered.

Many medic inal books were amongst those wh ich [Elfred the Greatcaused to be tran slated in to the Saxon tongue. Some of them were embellished with illustrations of herbs

,etc.

,so that about the tenth cen tury

some knowledge o f medic ine was diffused,and Strutt th inks there

may have been persons whose on ly profess ion was medic ine and surgery,besides the eccles iast ics who practi sed these arts, before the close of theSaxon governmen t. 3

The Anglo-Saxons , even after their convers ion to Christiani ty, retaineduch of the superst i tion of their ancestors ; they placed faith in astrology,

and had some acquain tance with astronomy,which they obtained from

the Romans, from whom they learned most of the arts and sci ences .They had a good knowledge of botany

,and their MS. were embelli shed

with excellen t drawings of the herbs and plants .‘1

Theodore brought with him a large collec t ion of books , and set upschools in Ken t, where many students were instructed in the sc i encesand the knowledge and appl ication of medic ine and the rules for the

preservation of the heal th .

53

The Rev. O swald Cockayne has given us,in his translation of the

Saxon Leeclz Book, a very curious and interest ing c itation from Hel ias,

Patriarch of Jerusalem,who wrote to King IElfred in an swer to his

request to be furn i shed with some good rec ipes from the Holy Land

1 C/z ron icles of England, vol. I I. p. 248 .

2 Bede , Eccles . His t , lib. v . cap. 3 .

3 Ck ron ieles of England, vo l . ii . p . 248.

‘1 Strutt’

s Horda A ngel Cy n nan , vol . i . p . 70.

5 Strutt, TIze Ckron icles of England , vol . i . p . 344. Bede, Eccl . Hist ,111 1 8

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276 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

in themselves,and such as a res iden t in Syria would naturally recom

mend to others .” This very singular and instruct ive fact concern ingKing [Elfred Is one of the most interesting th ings in Mr. Cockayne’saluable work .

As to the age of the MS.,the translator sets i t down about A .D . 900 .

The sources of the information he ascribes to Oxa, Dun,and Hel ias

there is a m ixture of the Hibern ian and Scandinavian elemen ts also .

Some o f the prescript ion s are traceable to Latin wri ters, and largeextracts are made from the Greek physic ian s. Paulus IEgineta i s respons ible for the long passage on hiccupings (or Hicket, as the Leeclz Book

calls the malady) , as chapter xvi i i . i s almost iden t ical with Paulus n in,

lib. i i . sec t . 5 7 . Mr. Cockayn e thinks that the number of passages theSaxon drew from the Greek would make perh aps one- fourth of the firsttwo books . Whether they came direc t from the Greek manuscripts orat second hand as quotati on s , It IS no t possible to say. Quoting M .

Brechillet Jourdain ,1 Mr. Cockayne says that i t i s shown that the wisemen of the M iddle Ages long before the invent ion of printing possessedLatin translations of Aristotle ; there is every probabili ty, therefore, thatthey would be fam il iar wi th th e works o f the Greek phys ic ians. Someof them could translate Greek . If an Italian or Frenchman couldacquire Greek and turn i t into Latin, a Saxon m ight do as much . Bedeand his disciples could certainly have done so . Bede says that Tobias

,

Bishop of Rochester, was as fam i l iar with the Greek and Latin languagesas with his own .

“ It appears, therefore,”

concludes Mr. Cockayne ,that the leeches of the Angles and Saxons had the means, by persona lindustry or by the aid of others, of arriving at a competen t knowledgeo f the con ten ts of the works of the Greek medical wri ters . Here

,in

th is volume,the results are vis ible. They keep, for the most part, to

the diagnos is and the theory they go back in the prescript ions to theeasier remedies for whether in Galen or others

,there was a chapter on

the efnrdpto‘

ra , the parabilia,’ the resources of country practi tioners ,

and of course, even now, expens ive medic ines are no t prescribed for

poor patients .” 2

In the very valuable Saxon Leechdoms 3 we have an excellent accounto f the state of medic ine as practi sed in England before the NormanConquest . The Leeclz Book (Laece Boc) 4 is a treatise on medicinewhich probably belonged to the abbey of Glastonbury. The manu

1 Recherches critiqu es sur l’

fige et origine des traductions Latines d’Aristo te . Paris ,18 19 .

2 Sax on Leeebdoms , vo l . Preface, p . xxix .

3 Leeckdoms,Wor tcunn ing , and Starcraft of Ear ly England, vo l. II. Edited by

Rev. 0 . Cockayne. (Ro lls Series . )4 MS. Reg . , 1 2 . D . xvii.

ANGLO-SAXON MEDICINE. 2 77

script, th inks Mr. Cockayne, belonged to one Bald,a monk . The

book,says the editor

,i s learned in a li terary sense, but no t in a profes

sioual,for i t does no t really advance man’s knowledge of disease or of

cures . He may have been a physician , he was certain ly a lover ofbooks— “

nulla m ih i tam cara est opt ima gaza quam cari l ibri .” The

work seems to imply that there was a school of medic ine among theSaxons . In the first book , p . 1 20

,we read that “ Oxa taught us this

leechdom in the second book, p . 293 , we are told concern ing a leech

dom for lung d isease that “ Dun taught it ” ; again w e find “ someteach us. So far as book learn ing was concerned, there was certainly asort of medical teaching. It was perhaps merely taken from th e Greekby means of a Latin translation of Trallianus, Paulus of IEgina, and

Philagrios. As examples of reasonable treatment take that for hare- lip(or hair- l ip as in the text) Pound mastic very small

,add the wh i te of

an egg,and m ingle as thou dost verm i li on

,cut with a kn i fe the fals e

edges of the lip, sew fas t with s ilk, then smear without and with in withthe salve

,ere the s ilk rot . If i t draw together

,arrange it with the hand ,

anoin t again soon .

” 1

Against pedicul i quicksi lver and old butter are to be m ingled togetherin a mortar

,and the resulting salve to be appl ied to the body. This i s

preci sely the mercurial oin tmen t of modern pharmacy used for the same

purpose.Religion

,magic

,and medic ine were oddly m ixed up by our Saxon

forefathers . Thus th e Leeclz Book tells us2 for the “ dry ” disease we

should “ delve about sour ompre ( i. e. sorrel dock), s ing thrice the Paternoster

,j erk it up, then while thou sayest sed l ibera no s a malo , take five

sl ices of i t and seven peppercorns , bray them togeth er, and wh i le thoube working i t

,s ing twelve t imes the psalm M i serere me i

,D eus, and

Gloria in excels i s deo, and the Pater noster ; then pour the stuff all over

w ith wine,when day and n ight divide

,then drink the dose and wrap

thyself up warm . Here is an exorcism for fever. A man shall write th isupon the sacramen tal paten , and wash i t off into th e drink with holywater

,and s ing over i t . In the beginn ing, e tc . (John i . I ) .

Then wash the writing with holy water off the dish in to the drink , thens ing the Credo, and the Paternoster, and th i s lay, Beati immaculati, th e

psalm with the twelve prayer psalm s, I adj ure you, etc. And

let each of the two 3 then sip thrice of the water so prepared .

” 1 The

dem on theory of disease was sti ll in force even at Glastonbury we findthe follow ing exorc ism 5 For a fiend s ick man , when a devi l possesses

1 Leeck Book, I . x iii. p . 57 .

2 Sax on Leeckdoms , vol . 11. p . 1 1 7 .

3 The doctor and the patient. 4 Saxon Leeckdoms, vol . ii . p . 1 37 .

5 Ibid. , vol . i i . pp. 1 37—8.

278 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

the man or controls him from within with disease a spew drink, lupin,bishopwort, henbane, cropleek pound these together

,add ale for a

l iqu id, let stand for a n ight, add fifty libcorns (or catfiar fz’

o grains) , and

holy water. A drink for a fiend sick man,to be drunk out of church

bell.”1

Githrife,cynoglossum

,yarrow, lupin, betony, attorlothe, cassock

,

flower de luce,fennel

,church l ichen, l ichen , of Christ

’s mark or crosse,

lovage ; work up the drink off clear ale,s ing seven masses over the

worts, add garlic and holy water, and drip the drink into every drinkwh ich he will subsequently drink

,and let him s ing the psalm

,Be at i

immaculati,and Exurgat, and Salvum me fac, Deus ,2 and then let him

drink the drink out of a church bell,and le t the mass priest after the

drink sing th is over him Dom ine, sancte pater Omnipo tens.

” 3 Again,

For the phrenzied bishopwort, lup in, bonewort, everfern,4 githrife ,elecampane ; when day and n ight divide

,then s ing thou in the church

l itan ies, that is , the names of the hallows or saints,and the Pater

noster ; with the song go thou, that thou mayest be near the wortsand go thrice about them

,and when thou takest them go again to

church with the same song, and s ing twelve masses over them,

and overall the drinks which belong to the dis ease, in honour of the twelveapostles.

”5

The Lea f: Book has a salve against nocturnal gobl in vis i tors , aremedy “ against a woman’s chatter

,

” which i s to go to bed, havingeaten only a root of radish ; that day the chatter cannot harmt hee.” 6 Red n iolin ,

a p l an t wh ich grows by runn ing water, i f put underthe bolster

,will preven t the devi l from scathing a man Wi th in or without .

There is “ a l ithe drink against a devil and dementedness ,”and a cure

for a man who i s overlooked .

”

If the man’s face is turned toward the doctor when he en ters the'

s ick room ,

“ then he may l ive ; i f hi s face be turned from thee, havethou nothing to do with him .

”In case a man be lunatic, take of a

mere- swine or porpoise, work i t into a whip, swinge the man therewithsoon he will be well. Amen .

” 7

A salve against temptation of the devil con tains many herbs, must haven ine masses said over i t

,and must be set under the altar for a while ;

then i t i s very good for every temptation of the fiend, and for a man fullof elfin tricks

,and for typhus fever.8

1 Church bel ls were anciently used more to frighten the fiends away than for

cal ling together the worshippers. 2 Psalms cx ix. ,lxvi ii . , and l x ix .

3 A formu la of Benediction .

4 Bob/podium vu lgare.

5 Sax on Leecfza’oms , vo l . ii . pp . 1 38

-

9 .

6 Leocfi Book,III . vo l . 11. p . 343 .

7 Sax on Leer/adorns , vol. ii. p. 335 .

8 Ibid. , p. 335 .

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A POPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

were almost wholly thrown back on the lancet wherewith to let blood ,and the s imples from the field and garden .

” 1

For a very old headache one must “ seek0

in the maw of youngswallows for some l i ttle s tones

,and m ind that they touch neither earth ,

nor water, nor other stones ; look out three of them , put them on theman he will soon be well . They are good for head ache and for eyewark, and for the fiend’s temptat ions , and for the n igh t mare, and forknot, and for fasc ination, and for evi l enchan tments by song.

” 2

As a spec imen of a regular Anglo-Saxon prescript ion, take the following, as given in the MS. Cott. Vi tell ius ; c . 3

For th e foot- adle (the gout),“ Take the herb datulus, or titulosa,

wh ich we cal l greater crauleac— tuberose i s is. Take the heads of i t anddry them very much

,and take thereof a pennyweigh t and a half, and

the pear tree and Roman bark, and cumm in, and a fourth part of laurelberries, and of the other herbs half a pennyweight of each , and s ix peppercorns, and grind all to dust, and put two egg- shells full of wine. Thisi s true leechcraft . Give i t the man t ill he be well .”

Venesect ion was in use,but i t must have often done more harm than

good, as i ts use was regulated, not so much by the necessi ties of thecase as by the season and courses of the moon . Bede gives a long listof times when bleeding was forbidden . In the Cotton ian l ibrary thereis a Saxon MS.

,wh ich tells us that the second, th ird, fifth , s ixth , n in th,

eleven th , fifteen th , seventeen th , and twent ieth days of the month are badfor bleeding.

MEDICINE OF THE WELSH.

The Welsh claim that medic ine was practised as one of “ the n inerural arts

,

”by the anc i en t Cymry, before they became possessed of

c i ties and a sovereign ty,that i s

,before the time of Prydain ab ZEdd

Mawr,that i s to say, about a thousand years before the Christian era .

3

As in other nations of an tiqui ty,th e pract ice of medicine was in the

hands of the priests, th e GWYDDONIAID ,ormen of knowledge : they were

the depos itaries of such wisdom as existed in the land, and they praetised almost ent irely by mean s of herbs . The sc ience of plan ts was oneof the three sc iences

,the others being theology and astronomy.

‘1

In the following Triad (one of the poetical histori es of the Welshbards) we learn that, The three p i llars of knowledge, with wh ich theGwyddoniaid were acquainted, and wh ich they bore in memory fromthe beginn ing : the first was a knowledge of D ivine th ings, and of suchmatters as appertain to the worship of God and the homage due to

1 Sax on Leecfia'oms

,vol . i . Preface, pp . xxvi . , xxvu .

2 Leoclz Book , iii . p . 307.

3 [Pb/71 . A rch , i i i . p . 1 29 .

4 M oddygon My da’fai , Preface , p . ix .

MEDICINE OF THE IVELSII . 28 1

goodness ; the second, a knowledge of the course of the stars , theirnames and kinds, and the order of times the th ird

,a knowledge of the

names and use of the herbs of the field , and of their appl ication in praetice

,in medic in e, and in rel igious worship. These were preserved in

the memorials of vocal song, and in the memorials of t imes , before therewere bards of degree and chai r.” 1

The Welsh do not appear to have had any gods ofmedic ine or to have

pretended to derive their knowledge of the heal ing art from any divin i ties .In the reign ofPrydian the Gwyddoniaid were divided in to three orders ,Bards

,Druids, and Ovates . The Ovates occup i ed themselves especi ally

with the natural sc iences . In the Laws of Dyvnwal Mo elmud,“medi

cine, commerce, and navigation were termed “ the three c ivi l arts .” 2

This legislator l ived about the year 430 B.C. ,at wh ich early period

i t would seem that the art of medic ine was encouraged and protectedby the State .

3

As Hippocrates l ived 4o o B.C.,i t has been thought possible that the

British Ovates may have learned someth ing of h is teaching from thePhoceans , who traded between Marseilles and Bri tain . Later we have

proof that the physicians of Myddvai held the Father o f M edic ine ingreat esteem.

It i s customary amongst the Engl ish to ridicule the pretens ions o f theWelsh to the high antiqui ty of their knowledge of the arts and sc i ences ,but class ical writers bear witness to the wisdom and l earning of theDru ids . Strabo speaks of their knowledge of physiology. C icero wasacquainted with one of the Gall ic Dru ids , who was cal led D ivitiacus thez’Eduan

,and c laimed to have a thorough knowledge of the laws of

nature . Pl iny men tions the plan ts used as medic ines by the D ruids ,such as th e m i stletoe

,called Ol/ z

'

ao/z,omnz

’

a sanan tem,or All heal ,

”

the selago (Lyoopoa’

z’

am selago, or Upright Fir Moss), and the Samolusor marshwort (Samolus oalerana

’z’

,or Water Pimpernel) .4

One of the M edical Tr iads in the Llanover MS. i s that by Talies ini t runs thus

There are three intractable substan tial organs : the l iver, the kidney, and th e heart .

“ There are three intractable membranes the dura mater, the peritoneum

, and the urinary bladder.“There are three tedious complain ts : disease of th e knee j oin t,

disease of the substance of a rib,and phthysis for when purulent mat

ter has formed in one of these,i t i s no t known when i t will get well .”

1 Llanover MS.

2 Ancien t Laws and In stitu tions of l/Vales, vo l . i i . p . 5 1 5.

3 M eddygon My da’

fa z'

, p . x i . 4 Ibid. , p . x i i i .

282 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Howel Dda (or the good) in the year 930 A.D.compi led the following laws of the Court Physic ian

Of the medic iner of the household, h is offi ce , h i s privilege, and hisduty

,th is treats .

1 . The twelfth i s the mediciner of the household .

2 . He i s to have h is land free : his horse in attendance : and hisl inen cloth ing from the queen

,and h i s woollen cloth ing from the king.

3 . His seat in the hal l with in the palace is at the base of the p i llarto wh ich the screen i s attached, near wh ich the king sits .

4 . His lodging i s with the chief of the household .

5 . His protect ion i s , from th e time the king shall command him tovisi t a wounded or s ick person, whether the person be in the palace orout of it

,unti l he quit him

,to convey away an offender.

6. He i s to adm in ister medic ine gratuitously to all with in the palace,and to the chief of the household and he is to have noth ing from themexcept their bloody c lothes , unless it be for one o f the three dangerouswounds

,as ment ioned before these are a strok e on the head unto the

brain a stroke in the body unto the bowels ; and the breaking of one

of the four l imbs ; for every one of these three dangerous wounds themedic iner i s to have n ine score pence and hi s food, or one pound without his food, and also the bloody c lothes .

7 . The medic iner is to have,when he shall apply a ten t, twen ty

four pence .8 . For an appl ication of red ointment, twelve pence.

9 . For an appl ication of herbs to a swell ing, four legal pence .

1 0 . For lett ing blood, fourpence.1 1 . His food daily i s worth one penny half-penny.

1 2 . His l ight every n igh t i s worth one legal penny .

1 3 . The worth of a medical man i s one penny.

1 4. The medic iner is to take an indemn ification from the kindredof the wounded person, in case h e die from the remedy he may use,and i f he do no t take i t, le t him answer for the deed.

1 5 . He i s to accompany the arm ies.1 6. He i s never to leave the palace, but w i th the king

’s perm iss ion .

1 7 . His saraad is s ix kine, and s ix score of si lver, to be augmented .

1 8 . His worth is s ix score and s ix kine,to be augmented .

”

Elsewhere we meet with the following particularsOf the three conspicuous scars th is i sThere are three con sp icuous scars one upon the face another upon

the foot ; and another upon the hand ; th irty pence upon the foot ;three- score pence upon the hand six-score pence on the face. Everyunexposed scar, fourpence. The cran ium, fourpence.

” 1

1 Ancien t Laws and In stitu te: of Wales, vol . i . p . 4 1 etc.

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284 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

The three qual i t i es of water : i t wil l produce no s ickness,no debt

,

and no widowhood .

To eat eggs without salt will bring on s ickness .It i s no insult to deprive an old man of h is supper.An eel in a pie, lampreys in sal t.An ague or fever at the fall of the leaf i s always of long continuance

,

or else i s fatal .A kid a mon th old— a lamb three mon ths .Dry feet, moist tongue .

A salmon and a sermon in Lent.Supper will kill more than were ever cured by the physicians of

Myddvai.

A l ight dinner,a less supper, sound sleep, long l ife .

Do not wish for m i lk after fi sh .

T0 sleep much i s the health of youth, the s ickness of old age.Long health in youth will shorten l i fe.It i s more wholesome to smell warm bread than to eat i t .A short sickness for the body, and short frost for the earth , wil l heal

e i ther of them long will destroy .

Wh i ls t the urine i s clear,let the physician beg.

Better i s appeti te than gluttony .

Enough of bread,l it tle of drink.

The bread of yesterday, the meat of to-day, and the wine of last yearw il l produce health .

Quench thy th irst where the washerwoman goes for water.Three men that are long-l ived the ploughman of dry land, a moun

tain dairyman,and a fi sherman of the sea .

The three feasts of health m i lk,bread

,and salt .

The three medicines of the physic ians of Myddvai water, honey, andlabour.Moderate exerc ise i s health .

Three moderations will produce long life in food , labour, and meditation.

Whoso breaks not h i s fast in May, let him consider h imself wi th thedead .

He who sees fennel and gathers i t no t, is no t a man, but a devil .If thou desirest to d ie

,eat cabbage in August.

Whatever quant i ty thou eatest,drink thrice .

God will send food to washed hands .Drink water l ike an ox, and wine like a king.

One egg is economy, two is gent il ity, three is greediness , and thefourth i s wastefulness.

MEDICAL MAXIMS. 285

If persons knew how good a hen i s in January, none would be left onthe roost.The cheese of sheep, the m i lk of goats, and the butter of cows are

the best.The three victuals of health honey, butter, and m i lk .

The three vic tuals of s ickness flesh meat,ale

,and vinegar.

Take not thy coat off before Ascen s ion day .

If thou wilt become unwell,wash thy head and go to sleep.

In pottage without herbs there is neither goodness nor nourishmen t.If thou wilt die

,eat roast mutton and sleep soon after it .

If thou wilt eat a bad th ing,eat roast hare .

Mustard after food .

He who cleans h i s teeth wi th the poin t of h is kn i fe may soon cleanthem with the haft.A dry cough i s the trumpet of death .

One of the laws of Howel Dda perm i tted divorce for so trifl ing acause as an un savoury or di sagreeable breath .

1

Poppies bru ised in wine were used to induce sleep. Fo r agues thetreatmen t was to write in three apples on three separate days an invocation to the Trin i ty ; “

on the th i rd day he will recover.” Saffron wasused for many complain ts i t i s a drug stil l largely used by the poor,who have unbounded faith in i t

,but i t is almost inert. If a person lost

hi s reason,he was ordered to take primrose j u ice, and he will indeed

recover.” There were regular tables of lucky and un lucky days forbleeding. Fennel j uice was supposed to act as a sort of ant i- fat , andthe roots of thistles were given as a purgative. If a snake should craw linto a man’s mouth

,the patien t was to take camom i le powder in wine .

An irri table man was to drink celery j uice “ i t wil l produce j oy.

”As

we m ight have expected, the leek was supposed to have many virtueswives who des ired ch i ldren were told to eat leeks. Leek j uice and

woman’s m i lk was good for whoop ing cough . The j u ice was also usedfor deafness

,heart-burn

,headache

,and boils . Mus tard purifies the

brain, i s an an t idote to the bite of an adder, i s good for colic, loss ofhair

, palsy, and many other th ings . To ascertain the fate of a s ick

person , bruise violets and apply them to the eyebrows if he sleep, hewil l l ive , but if not he will d ie .

Radishes were supposed to preven t hydrophobia. That i s!

thegreatest remedy

,to remove a bon e from the brain (to trephin e) with

safety.

”D i ttany was the ant idote for pain . Mouse-dung was used as a

remedy for sp i tting of blood , and a plas ter of cow-dung for gout. An

eye-water was made from rotten apples . The berries of m istletoe were1 Leges Wallica, l . 4 . Henry’s Hist . of Eng . , vol. i . p. 320

286 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

made into a confec tion as a remedy for epi lepsy . Let.

the s ick personeat a good mouthful (they gave large doses in those days) thereof,fasting morn ing

,noon

,and n ight. It i s proven.

”Sage was supposed ,

to strengthen the nerves (nerves in those days ! Nettles,goose-grass

,

blessed- thistle,and

,

rosemary were favourite remedie s. Then we havenumerous curious charms and “ medical feats di scovered through thegrace ofGod.

” Here i s one Take a frog alive from the water, extracth i s tongue (frogs have long been subj ect to Vivisect ion) , and put himagain in the water. Lay th is same tongue upon the heart of sleepi ngman

,and he will confess h is deeds in h i s sleep . A charm for th e

toothache runs thus “Saint Mary sat on a stone,the stone being near

her hermi tage,when th e Holy Ghost came to her

,she being sad . Why

art thou sad, mother o f my Lord, and what pain tormenteth thee ? My

teeth are painful , a worm called megrim has penetrated them,and I have

masticated and swallowed i t. I adjure thee, daffin O negrbina, by the

Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost, the Vi rgin Mary, and God,the munificent phys ic ian, that thou dost not perm i t any disease, dolour,or molestat ion to affect th i s servant of God here present, ei ther in tooth ,eye

,head,

.

or in the whole of her teeth together. So be i t. Amen .

”

All the herbs and plants (so far as was possible) wh ich were used inthe doctor’s pract ice were directed to be grown by him in h i s gardenand orchard, so that they m igh t be at hand when required .

In the table of weights and measures used by the anc ien t Welsh

physic ians, we learn that twen ty grains of wheat make one scruple, four

podfuls make one spoonful, four spoonfuls make one eggshellful, foureggshellfuls make one cupful . The physic ian also for his guidancehad the following curious table —F0ur grain s of wheat = one pea, four

peas = one acorn , four acorns = one pigeon’s egg,four p igeon

’s eggs = one

hen’s egg, four hen’s eggs = one goose’s egg

,four goose’s eggs

= one

swan’s egg.

“For treat ing a stroke on the head unto the brain,a stroke in the

body unto the bowels, and the breaking of one of the four l imbs, thewounded person was to receive three pounds from the one who

wounded him ; and that person had also to pay for the medical treatmen t of the sufferer a pound without food, or n ine-score pence withh i s food, and the bloody clothes.” 1

The physmians of Myddvai recogn ised five kinds of fevers viz .

, laten t,interm i tten t, ephemeral, inflammatory, and typhus . The doctor’s “ threemaster d ifficulties were a wounded lung

,a wounded mammary gland,

and a wounded knee j oint . “There are three bones which will neverun ite when broken —a tooth , the knee pan , and the os fron tis .

”

1 Ancient Laws , etc. of Wales , v . i . p . 3 1 3 .

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288 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF IMED ICINE.

authors by translating them into Syriac, whence they were in turn translated in to Arabic . Justin ian I. (A .D . 5 29) ban i shed the Platon ists ofAthens , when Chosroes I. , surnamed Nushirwan

,or “ the generous

m ind,

”one o f the greates t monarchs of Persia, hospitably received them

at h is court . He caused the best Greek,Latin, and Indian works to be

translated in to Persian , and valued Graeco -Roman medical sc i ence sohighly that he offered a suspens ion of host i l it ies for the single physic ianTribunus .

The East in a great measure owed i ts acquaintance with the richtreasures of Greek l iterature to the heresy of Nestorius. Nestorius wasa Syrian by birth , and became b ishop o f Constant inople. Havingden ied that the Virgin Mary ough t to be called “Mother of God

,

” hewas summoned to appear before the Counc i l of Ephesus (A.D . and

was deposed . Nestorian commun it ies were formed, and the heret icalopini on s rapidly spread, patron ized as they were for poli tical purposesby the Persian kings . The Mahometan conquests in the seventhcentury by overthrowing the supremacy of orthodoxy, afforded great encouragemen t to the Nestorians , as by denying that Mary was the motherof God

,as the Catholics maintained , the Nestorians in call ing her

the mother of Chris t m ore nearly approached the M ahometan concep

t ion of a pure monotheism . Barsumas, or Barsaumas, bishop of Ni s ib is

(43 5—485 was one of the most em inen t leaders of the new heresy.

He succeeded in gain ing many adheren ts in Pers ia. Maanes,bishop of

Ardaschiv, was h is princ ipal coadj utor he was th e means of propagat

ing the Nestorian doctrines in Egypt, Syria, Arab ia, India, Tartary,and even Ch ina .

THE CALIPHS .

In the time of Mohammed h imself (569 the Arabian s had

physic ians who had been educated in the Greek schools of medicinel iving amongst them . Pococke ment ions a Greek physician namedTheodunus, who was in the service of Hajaj Ibn Ytisuf in th e seventhcentury. He wrote a sort of med ical compendium for the use of hisson . Hajaj seems also to have employed another Greek doctor namedTheodocus, who had numerous pupils . 1

The House of Omm iyah encouraged the cult ivat ion of the sc iences .The Caliph Moawiyah, who res ided at Damascus, founded schools ,l ibraries

,and observatories there, and invited the learned o f al l nations ,

espec ially Greeks, to settle there, and teach his peop l e their arts and

sc iences .2

1 Pocock e , Hist. Dy n ast , p . 1 28 ; Freind, His t. M ed , Lat . Ed. , p. 472 .

2 Puschmann , Hist . q ed. Edna , p . 1 56.

M OHAMMEDAN MEDICINE. 289

‘

In the seven th cen tury,Alexandria under the rule of Islam was in

possession of many medical schools in which the principles of Galenwere taugh t. 1

Alkinani, an Arabian Christian, who afterwards was converted toIslamism,

was chiefly instrumen tal in introducing medical teaching in toAntioch and Harran from Alexandria.

2

The Caliph Almansor had studied astronomy. Almamon , the seven thof the Abbassides, collected from Armen ia

, Syria , and Egypt all thevolumes of Grec ian sc i ence he could obtain ; they were translatedinto Arabic , and his subj ects were earnestly exhorted to study them .

“Hewas not ignorant, says Abulpharagius,“ that they are the elec t

of God, His bes t and most useful servan ts,whose l ives are devoted

to the improvemen t of the ir rational faculties . Succeeding princesof the l ine of Abbas

,and their r ivals the Fatim i tes of Africa and the

Ommiades of Spain, says Gibbon, were the patrons of the learned,“and

their emulati on diffused the taste and the rewards of sc i ence fromSamarcand and Bochara to Fez and Cordova .

” 3

It was Almamon who caused the works of the fathers of Indianmedical science to be translated first in to Persian and then in to Arabicthus it was that the Saracens became fam il iar with the medical wisdomof Susru ta and Charaka in the eighth cen tury of our era.

4

Gharaka is frequently men tioned in the Latin translation s of

Avicenna (Ibn Sina) , Rhazes (Al Ras i) , and Serapion (Ibn Serabi) .5

Chaldee works at th i s t ime were also translated in to Persian . In thefirst centuries of th e Hij ra the Cal iphs of Baghdad caused a cons iderablenumber of works upon Hindu medic ine to be translated into Pers ian .

6

At the time of Mohammed there existed a famous school of medic ineat Senaa in Southern Arabia

,the principal of which , Hari t Ben

Kaldah, had learned h is profess ion in India.

7

When the son of Mesuach, a young Nestorian Christ ian , first enteredBaghdad, i t i s said 8 that he appeared to have discovered a new world .

He appl ied himself to the study of medic ine, ph ilosophy, and

astronomy. He became a “ treasure of learn ing,”and was chosen to

attend Prince Almamon, the son of Haroun -al-Rasch id, who, when hebecame Caliph in 8 1 3 , Invited learned men of all rel igion s and of allnations to h is court

, collected from them the names of al l the greatauthors and the t i tles o f their books which had been published in

1 L. Leclerc , Hist. de la M e’

a’. Arabe

,i . p . 38 .

2 Freind, Hist. Meafi, p . 473 , Ed . 1 733 .

3 D ecl ine and Fa ll , etc . , ch. 111.

Weber, Hist . Ina’. L it . p . 266 .

5 Royle , An tiqu ity of Hindu M edicine.

6 Weber, p . 266.

7 Puschmann , p . 160 .

9 Leo Afric., D e vir is I llu st . ap. A rab. Bio.

290 A P OPULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

Greek, Syriac, and Persian ,and then sen t to all parts of th e world to

purchase them .

The Arabs studied Aris totle ; and when Western Europe had longbeen sunk in in tellectual darkness and had forgotten him

,the Saracens

taught him to the Christians of the West. “He was read at Samarcand and at Li sbon, says Freeman, when no one knew h is name atOxford or Edinburgh .

” 1 In his own tongue at Constant inople and

Thessalonica he had never been forgotten . Such learn ing and sc ienceas the Saracens did no t receive from India, such as the Arabic numerals

,

came to them from the West . They developed and improved much ,but they probably inven ted noth ing. Freeman says 2 that after carefulinvestigation he observed three th ings firs t

,that whatever the

Arabs learned was from tran slation s of Greek works ; secondly, thatthey made use of only an infin ites imal portion of Greek literature ;thi rdly, that many of the ir most famous l iterary men were not Mahome

tans at all , but Jews or Christians . 3 Greek poetry, h istory, and philoSophy had l ittle charm for them . Gibbon says there i s no record of anArabian translation of any Greek poet, orator , or h istor ian .

4

Learned Nestorian s,Jacobites

,and Jews in Persia and Syria occupied

themselves with translation s from Greek authors,and contributed

greatly to the ex tension of Western culture in Eastern lands. 5 To theworld at large Mahomet was but an impostor ; to the Arab of the seventhcentury he was a true prophet and the greates t of benefactors .When the Persian king reproached the Arabs with their poverty and

their savage condit ion,the reply of the Saracen envoy contains a

grand summary of the immediate results of Mahomet’s teach ing.

6

“Whatever thou hast said,

” repl ied Sheikh Maghareh,“ respect ing

the former condition of the Arabs i s true. Thei r food was greenl izards ; they buried their infan t daughters al ive ; nay, some of themfeasted on dead carcases and drank blood ; while others slew theirrelations

,and thought themselves great and val ian t, when by such an

act they became possessed of more property ; they were clothed withhair garmen ts ; knew not good from evi l ; and made no distinctionbetween that which i s lawful and that which is unlawful . Such was ourstate . But God

,in His mercy, has sent us by a holy proph et a sacred

volume,which teaches us the true faith .

” 7

GEORGE BACKTISCHWAH, or BOCHT JESU, was a Greek physic ian, adescendan t of the persecuted Christians of the Greek emp ire, whoembracing the heresy of Nestorius had been compelled to fly for safety

1 Tke Saracens , p . 1 9 1 .

2 Ibia’.

3 Ibid. , pp. 1 9 1 , 192 .

4 D ecline and Fall , etc . , ch. 111. 5 Puschmann , Hist . M ed. Educ , p. 1 58.

6 Freeman’s Saracens , P. 54.

7 Kingsley’s Alex andr ia , p . 148 .

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292 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

t ill i t reached the zen ith of its glory in the eleventh . The mosqueswere then the un ivers i ties, and besides that of Baghdad, Bassora, Cufa,Samarcand , Ispahan , Damascus, Bokhara, Fi ruzabad, and Khurdistan ,

no t om i tt ing the schools of the Fat im i tes in Alexandria, were centresof Eastern sc ience and art, and the equally famous un iversi ties ofCordova, Sevil le, Toledo, Almeria, Murc ia, Granada, and Valenc ia

,

sustained in Europe the dign i ty of the Arabian learn ing. When theconquest of Africa was complete, Spain was invaded, and about theyear 7 1 3 was reduced to a Moslem province. Cordova became no t

less dist inguished for learn ing than Baghdad, and many wri ters weregiven to the world from the adj acen t town s of Malaga

, Almeria, andMurc ia . Gibbon says that above seven ty public l ibraries were openedin the c i ti es of Andalusia.In the words of Professor N icholl, The Sem it ic race is essen tially

un sci en tific, and adverse to the presentation of ph i losophical or moraltruth in a sc ien t ific form . The Indo—European gen ius, on the con trary ,tends irresist ibly towards in tellectual system, or sc ience.” This will atonce be perceived when we exam ine the Vedas , the works of any Greekauthor

,or those of Teuton ic speculat ive writers , and then turn to any

Sem i tic books . We instantly perceive that in the latter we have nothingbut belief or intui tion ,

with more or less of the doctrine of Revelationor In sp iration . In the works of Aryan origin , on the con trary, we areat the opposite pole we have speculation , inquiry, an insatiable desireto solve the mystery of th ings— the analytical sp iri t which asks areason for every phenomenon in the un iverse . In the Sem i tic racesth is resolves i tself into e ither a living faith and a pure li fe correspondingthereto

, or into a reckless fanatic ism founded on fatalism . In the Aryanraces we have the most daring intel lec tual ac tivity, or the driest dogmatism .

1

It was in Spain that the Semi t ic and Aryan intellects met and happi lyblended . Spain remembered the advan tages of Roman influences longafter they were withdrawn . The Goths , who spread themselves overthe Pen insula, preserved the remains of the c ivi lizat ion which the Roman shad left ; and the Jews, afterwards to be treated with such cruel andbase ingratitude by the nation wh ich they had so greatly benefited , advanced the cause of education by their numerous schools and learnedwriters .2

On thi s stage, then, we find the Semi tic and the Indo-German ic racestransferring to each other the characteris tics with which they were mosthappi ly endowed by nature.The mosque schools of the Arabian s were conducted on the model of

1 Imp. D iet . Biog . , art .“ Averrhoé s.

”

l 2 Puschmann , p . 162 .

M OHAMMEDAN MED ICINE. 293

the Alexandrian schools . The old Egypt ian and Jew i sh colleges wereto some exten t the prototypes of these, and some writers th ink thatour own un iversities were suggested by those of the Saracens . How

great and famous some of these must have been,may be learned from

the fac t that, as we have stated, no less than six thousand professorsand studen ts were collected together at Baghdad at one t ime . Therewere lecture rooms, laboratori es, hosp i tals, and residences for teachersand students, besides the great halls wh ich must have been required forthe vast l ibraries which the Caliphs collected . It was in Spain perhapsthat Saracen ic learn ing shone most brill iantly . In the early part of theeighth century was founded the noble un ivers ity of Cordova, the c itywhich , under Arabian rule, was called the “ Cen tre of Religion , theMother of Philosophers, the Light of Andalusia .

”It contained 300

mosques, houses , and inhabitan ts,bes ides forty

hosp i tals . 1

Abou—Ryan-el-Byrouny (died 94 1 ) travelled forty years studyingmineralogy

,and h i s treat ise on p rec ious stones, says Sismondi ,2 i s a rich

collect ion of facts . Aben-al-Bei’

thar of Malaga travelled over all themountains and plain s of Europe in search of plants, a nd rendered mostimportan t services to botany. He wandered over th e sands of Africaand the remotest coun tri es of As ia, exam in ing and collect ing an imals

,

fossi ls,and vegetables, and publ ished his observations in three volumes ,

which contained more sc ience than any natural is t had previouslyrecorded .

3

In one sense the Arabians were the inventors of chem is try, and neverwas th e sc ienceappl ied to the arts of l ife more benefic ially than by theSaracens in Spain .

Mahomet was skilled in the knowledge of medic ine, and certain ofhis aphorisms are extant concern ing the heal ing art . Gibbon says 1 thatthe temperance and exerc i se h is followers preached, deprived the doctors of the greater part of their pract ice. The on ly medic ine recom

mended by the Koran i s honey (see Surah xvi .“ From i ts (the

bee’s) belly cometh forth a fluid of varying hues,which yieldeth medi

c ine to man .

”There is evidence of a bel ief in magic in the Koran as

a charm against evil,and of incan tat ions capable of produc ing ill con

sequences to those against whom they were directed . The 1 1 3 th

chapter of the Koran was written when Mohammed believed that, bythe witchcraft of wicked persons, he had been affl icted with rheumatism.

Mohammedan peoples use as amulets to avert evi l from them selves orsessions

,a small Koran encased in ‘s ilk or leather, or some of the

Baas, II ist. Meet , p. 220.

2 Li teratu re of Eu rope, vol . i. p. 66.

3 Ibia’.

4 D ecline and Fall , etc. , chap. l ii.

294 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

names of God, or of the prophets or saints, or the Mohammedan creedengraven on stone or silver .

Da‘wah, or the system of incan tation used by Mohammedans, isemployed to cause the cure

, or the s ickness and death of a person .

The Mohammedans have an elaborate system of exorc i sm,which i s

fully explained by Mr. Thomas Patrick Hughes .1

Uroscopy, or the art of judging diseases by inspect ion of the urine,was a great feature of Arabian as of Greek medical practice . It was

,

however, with the former usually conducted with jugglery and charlatanism

, and there was seldom anything sc i en tific about i t.As the religion of the Moslems forbade dissect ion

,the sc i ences of

anatomy and physiology and the art of surgery remained as they wereborrowed from the Greek writers .The Arabian faculty always stipulated for their fees beforehand ;

they disapproved of gratuitous treatmen t,because

,as they declared

,

’

no one gets even thanks for i t 1There must have been female doctors

,who

, in the East, had abundantopportun i t ies for pract ice , as men were no t perm i tted by the customs ofthe t imes to exam ine women . These female obstetric ians performedthe gravest operations

,such as embryotomy and l ithotomy.2

Hosp i tals were established at Damascus for lepers, the poor, thebl ind, and the sick , under the rule of the Caliph Walid .

Paper is an Arab ic inven t ion . True,i t has been made from s ilk from

the remotest ages in China, but by the Arabs it was fi rst made atSamarcand

,A.D . 649 and cotton paper, such as we use now,

was madeat M ecca, A .D . 706. The art was soon afterwards in troduced by theArabs in to Spain, where it was brought to the highest perfect ion .

3

Gunpowder was known to the Arabs a hundred years before Euro

peans m ent ion it.‘1 The compass was used by them nearly two cen

turies before the Italians and French used i t . The number of Arabicinven tion s wh ich we unsuspect ingly enj oy, without being aware of theirorigin

,is prodigious . Could we bring to light the l i terary treasures of

the Escurial, we should know something of the industrious host ofArabian s who have done so much for the learn ing of th e Western world ,and whose names and deeds have received from us no recogn i t ion .

Their h istorical, geographical , and sc ien t ific dict ionaries and h istories

would alone en ti tle them to the gratitude of an age wh ich would knowhow to apprec iate them .

Sismondi says that “ Medic ine and philosophy had even a greaternumber of h istorians than the other sciences ; and all these different

1 D ictionary of Islam ,art .

“Da‘wah.

2 Baas, History of Medicine, p . 224.

3 Sismondi , Li teratu re of Eu rope, vol . i . p . 68.

‘1 a re.

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296 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MED ICINE.

place book , i t has a value in that i t has preserved for us many fragmentsfrom the works of anc ien t physic ian s wh ich we should not otherwisehave possessed . Another important work of Rhazes i s th e Keaton-l

M anszir i,or Liber ad A lmansorem

,so called from being dedicated to

Mansur, prince of Chorasan. It was intended to instruct the physic ian

in everything which it was necessary for him to know. It i s chiefly acompilation, but was a popular text-book in the fifteen th and s ixteenthcenturies . Rhazes taught the external use of arsen ic

,mercurial oint

m ents , and sulphate of copper, and the in ternal use of brandy, n itre,borax

,coral

,and gems.

ALI BEN EL ABBAs (Ali Abbas), who l ived in the latter part of thetenth cen tury

,was a Persian phys ic ian, who wrote a medical text book,

ent i tled the Roy al Book . Up to the t ime of Avicenna, this was thestandard authority on medic ine amongst the Arabs

,and was several

t imes translated into Latin . In the theory of medic ine and partly ini ts pract ice he followed the Greeks , but im itated the use of the excellentmateria m edica of the Arabs . He wrote also on ophthalmology and

obstetrics .AVICENNA, or EBN SINA,

was called “ the Prince of Physic ians, and

was the greatest philosopher produced by the Arabs in the East . He

was born in the province of Bokhara, in 980 A.D . It i s related that atthe age of s ixteen he had learned all the sc ience of a physic ian . Havingcured Prince Nouh of a serious malady, he became a court favourite .

After travelling for a while he composed h is great work, the Canon ofMedicine, by which his name was made famous both in As ia and Europefor several centuries . In the m idst of the troubles of an adven turousli fe

,he wrote a hundred gigant ic books

,the greatest of which was the

ISHAK BEN SOLEIMAN (830—940 ) wrote on dietetics,and i s said to

have been the first to introduce senna.

SERAPION THE YOUNGER (about His work,D e Simplicikus

Medicamentis, was published in Latin at M ilan in 1 473 .

MESUE the younger (about 1 0 1 5 ) was a pup i l of Avicenna, and

physic ian to the court at Cairo. He rendered great services to pharmacy by teach ing the method of preparing extracts from medicinal

plants .ALBUCASIS was a skilful Arab phys ic ian , who wrote a work on surgery,

en ti tled A l Tassri/Zwhich con tains much ingenious matter on the ap

pliances of practical surgery. He died at Cordova about 1 1 06. His

work treats of the appl ication of the actual cautery, so much employedby the Arabs, of l igation of arteries in con t inuity

,of the danger of

amputating above the knee or elbow, of sti tching the bowel with threads

29 7

scraped from the intest inal coat, Operation s for hare- lip and catarac t,

and fis tula by cutting, l igature and cautery. He advised th e use ofsilver catheters as now employed, in place of the copper ones used previously. He recommended anatomy as a valuable aid to surgery.

1

AVENZOAR , one of the most famous of Arabian physic ians , was bornnear Seville in the latter part of the twelfth century. He was instructedin medic ine by h i s father, whose fam ily had long been connected withthe healing art. He was the rational improver of Arabian medic ine bythe rej ect ion of useless theories , and asserted for medicine a placeamong the advanc ing sc iences of observation . He made it a constant

pract ice to analyse the medic ines he used, so that he m igh t acquain th imself with their exact composi tion . He was loaded with favours bythe prince of Morocco, and died at the age of n inety-two in A .D . 1 262 .

EBN ALBAITHAR (died about 1 1 9 7) was a Moorish Span iard , renownedfor h is medical and botan ical science. He traversed many region s of thewest of Africa and As ia to en large h i s botan ical knowledge. He passedsome years at the court of Saladin, and wrote on the Virtues of P lants,and on poisons, metals, and an imals .AVERROES, or EBN ROSCH, was born at Cordova in 1 1 26. He learned

theology, philosophy, and medic ine from the great teachers of hi s time .

He was the greatest Arabian inquirer in the West , as Avicenna was in .

the East . He exerc i sed the greatest influence both in h is own and suc

ceeding ages. He has been called “ the Mohammedan Sp inoza,” having

been a religious freethinker. The s tudy of Ar istotle awakened in him aspecies of pan theism . He was more a philosopher than a physician ,bu t as he had made importan t observation s in medic ine, he deserves a

place amongst the heroes of the healing art. He was bitterly persecutedamongst h is co - religion ists for treating the Koran as a merely humanwork. He taught that the small-pox never attacks the same personmore than once . In pract ice he held very rational vi ews of the act ion ofremedies

,and taught that the work of the doctor was chiefly to apply

general princ iples to individual cases . He wrote commen taries on

Ari stotle so famous as to have gained him the name of “ the Commemtator .” He expounded the Repuolic of Plato. He was a most volum inous writer

,and was con sidered by his contemporaries and by our

schoolmen as a prodigy of sc i ence.2

There i s a very in teresting account of the Indian physic ian s at thecourt of Baghdad in a translation made from a MS. in the R ich collec

tion in the Briti sh Museum.

3 The hi story is from the work o f Ibn Abu

1 Baas, Hist . M ed., p . 2 3 1 .

2 Berington ,Lit . Hist . M iddle Ages, p . 428 .

3jou rnal of tke Roy al Asiat ic Society , vol . vi. pp . 105

- 1 1 9 .

J

298 A (”Eek/EAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Usaibiah, who l ived at the beginn ing of the th irteenth cen tury of our

era.

Kankab the Indian was a great philosopher as well as a phys ic ianhe investigated the properties of medic ines

“and the composition of the

heavenly bodies ” (l) .Sanjahal, another learned Indian, wrote on medic ine and astrology.

From the sc ience of the stars he appl ied himself to the symptoms ofd i seases , on which he wrote a book in ten chapters . He gave thesymptom s of four hundred and four diseases. He also wrote on Tke

Imagination of D iseases. Shanak wrote on poisons and the veterinaryart. Jawdar was a ph i losopher and a physic ian who wrote a book on

nativit ies . Maukab the Indian was learned in the art of medic ine,

and “ gentle in hi s method of treatmen t .” He l ived in the days ofHaroun-al-Rasch id .

Salih , son o f Bolah the Indian,was well skilled in treatmen t

,and

had power and influence in the promotion of science.”

Kankab the Indian,says Prof. H. Wilson , was very celebrated in the

history of Arabian astronomy. He says that it i s certain that the astronomy and med ic ine of the Hindus were cultivated anteriorly to thoseof the Greeks

,by the Arabs of the eighth century.

“ It i s clear thatthe Charaka

,the Susru ta

,the treatises called Nidan on diagnosis

,and

others on poisons, diseases of women, and therapeut ics, all fam i liar toHindu sc ience

,were translated and studied by the Arabs in the days

of Haroun and Mansur,either from the originals

,or translations made

at a still earl ier period into the language of Pers ia .

” 1

We may conven i en tly ment ion here the famous Jew of Spain,Rabbi M oses ben Maimon

,or Maimon ides (died a native of

Cordova, who was profoundly learned in mathematics , medic ine, andother arts . He retired to Egypt, where he wrote books on medic ine ,which were much read . He advised his patien ts never to sleep in thedaytime

,and at n igh t only on the s ide. He recommended them not

to retire to rest t il l three to four hours after supper.2

Medical etiquette was rather strict . Operat ion s performed by thehand

,such as venesec tion

,cauterizat ion

,and inc is ion of arteri es, are

no t becom ing a physic ian of respectabil ity and cons iderat ion. Theyare suitable for the physician

’s assistan ts only. Thes e servants of the

physician should also do other operation s, such as inc is ion of theeyel ids

,removing the veins in the white of the eye, and the removal

of cataract . For an honourable physic ian nothing further is becom ingthan to impart to the pat ient advice with reference to food and medi

1jou rnal of t/ze Roy al As iatic Society , vol . vi . p . I 19.

2 Baas , Hist. Med. , p. 233 .

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CHAPTER III.

RISE OF THE MONASTERIES .

Alchemy the parent of Chem istry .

LEARNING in Europe was greatly advanced by the foundation of thefamous monastery of Mon te Cass ino, by ST. BENEDICT, near Naples, inthe year 5 29 . The religious houses of thi s order, of which MonteCass ino was the paren t, were the means of sheltering in those troubloust imes the men who devoted themselves to l i terature and secular learn ing,as well as to the severities of the rel igious l ife. In these peaceful abodesmen learned how to make the desert blossom as the rose, agricultureand other c ivil izing occupat ion s were s tudied and successfully pract ised ,and from the sixth cen tury to the n in th such medical knowledge asexi sted in Europe chiefly emanated from these abodes of p iety, industry,and temperance . M i ss ionaries i ssued from them to convert and c ivi lizethe nat ion s and wherever the monks went, they acted as the healers o fth e sick

,as well as the spi ritual advisers of the s inner. Everywhere they

cultivated medic inal plan ts , whose propert ies they learned to understand ; by interchange of thought and comparison of op in ions everymonastery, with i ts constan t going and com ing of the brethren

,became

an exchange of knowledge : the sc ience of Spain was carried to Italy,that of Italy to France and England, wh ich in their turn contributedto the general stock of informat ion such i tems of knowledge as they

possessed .

“ If sc ience,” says Schlegel, 1 “ was then of a very limi tedrange

,i t was s ti ll quite proportioned to the exigencies and in tellectual

cultivation of the age for mankind cannot transcend all the degrees ofc ivili zat ion by a s ingle bound, but must mount slowly and in successioni ts various grades .”

ALCUIN (73 5 the great reviver of learn ing in the eighth cen

tury,was an ecc les iast ic who instructed Charlemagne and his fam i ly in

rhetoric,logic

,mathematics, and divini ty. France,

” says a greatwriter

,

“ is indebted to Alcuin for all the poli te learn ing it boasted inthat and the following ages . The un iversi t ies of Paris, Tours, Fulden ,Soi ssons , and many others , owe to him their origin and increase.” By

1 Pk ilosop/zy of History , p. 342 .

RISE OF THE M ONASTERIES. 30 1

the benefits he obtained from Charlemagn e for the Chri stian schoolswhich he founded, education began to revive in Europe, and by th eEmperor

’s command schools were establ ished in every convent andcathedral throughout his vast empi re, wherein not c lerics alone

,but the

sons of the nobility who were dest ined for a secular l ife, could receive thehighest education at that time attainable . The monasteries becamea kind of fortress in which c ivil izat ion sheltered i ts elf under the bannerof some sain t ; the culture of h igh intell igence was preserved there ,and philosophic truth was reborn there of rel igious truth . Poli t icaltruth

,or l iberty

,found an exponen t and a defender in the monk

,who

searched in to everyth ing, said everything, and feared nothing. Withoutthe inviolabi li ty and the leisure of the Clois ter

,the books and the

languages of th e anc ient world would never have been transm i tted tous

, _

and the chain which connects the past with the present would havebeen snapped . Astronomy, arithmetic, geometry, c ivi l law, phys ic and

medic ine, the profane authors , grammar, and the belles lettres, all thea rts , had a succession of professors uninterrupted from the first dayso f Clovis down to the age when the un iversi ties

,themselves religious

foundations,brought sc ience forth from the monasteries . To establ ish

this fact i t i s enough to name Alcuin,Anghilbert, Eginhard, Treghan ,

Loup de Terrieres, Eric d’

Auxerre,Hincmar

, Odo of Clugny, Cherbert ,Abbou

,Fulbert .” 1

THE ORIGIN OF CHEM ISTRY .

The great importance of the sc ience of chemistry in its connect ionw i th that of medic ine

,compels some allus ion to i ts origin. Without

q uestion alchemy was the forerunner of chem i stry. Begi nning in thesearch for the means of transmuting base metals into gold, i t ult imatelye ndowed us with a far more prec ious knowledge— the art of preparingmany of our most valuable medic ines .The first authent ic accoun t of alchemy is an edic t ofD iocletian abou t

A.D . 300, in which a dil igen t search is ordered to be made in Egypt‘ for all the anc i ent books which treated of the art of making gold and

s ilver,that they m ight be destroyed . This shows that the pursu it must

have been ofgreat an tiquity. Fable credits Solomon , Pythagoras, and

Hermes amongst i ts adepts . We find nothing more about i t t ill its

revival by the Arabian s some five or six hundred years later.2

The word A lc/zemy i s m en t ioned for the first t ime by the Byzan t ines .The art of transmuting metals under the name of Cli emia , i s first spokeno f by Suidas

,who wrote in the ten th cen tury. The Byzan t ines began

1 Chateaubriand,A naly se de l

’Histoi re de France, Seconde Race.

2 Goodw in, Lit/es of tlze Necromancers , pp . 29 , 30 .

A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

to make chem ical experimen ts about the seven th century ; al l the booksthey quote were attributed to Hermes . What is known as the Hermeticphilosophy was synonymous with alchemy, but the books were really thework of the monks of th e period .

1

The earl iest works on alchemy wh ich we possess are those of Geberof Seville

,who l ived probably about the eigh th or ninth century. His

works were en ti tled Of tke Searck of Perfection, Of t/ze Sum of Perfection,Of tke Invention of Verity . He divided metals into the more or less

perfect, gold the most perfect, s ilver th e next,etc . His aim was to

convert inferior metals into gold ; that which should turn base metalsinto gold would be also a un iversal medicine

,would cure or preven t

d iseases, prolong l ife, and make the body beauti ful and strong. The

philosopher’s stone would embrace in i tself all perfect ions . Alchemy

led to chem i stry ; i t i s even declared by some to have been the motherof chem i s try. Some have thought that without the hope of makinggold and other prec ious th ings, men would never have been insp iredto investigate the secrets of nature and sustained in the arduous andoften dangerous work of the chemi st . But this i s to take far too lowa vi ew of the sci en tific m ind in all ages. The search for truth

,the

passion for investigating and interrogating nature has happ i ly neverwholly depended upon mercenary mot ives , andmen have devoted theirl ives as ardently to sc ien t ific researches

,by which they could never

have hoped to gain a s ingle penny, as did those alchem is ts of old, whobent over their cruc ibles in the vain search for the perfect magistery.

2

Gibbon says,3 “ The sc i ence of chemistry owes i ts origin and improvement to the industry of the Saracens . They first inven ted and namedthe alembic for the purposes of distillation, analysed the substances ofthe three kingdoms of nature

,tried the distinction and affi n i ties of

alkalis and ac ids , and converted the poisonous m inerals into soft andsalutary medic ines .” Gibbon somewhat exaggerates . Analysi s andaffini ty were discovered at a much later period . It was Europeans inthe sixteen th and seventeen th cen turies who advanced chem ical sciencetowards i ts presen t h igh pos it ion .

NONNUS ( ro th century) wrote a compendium of the whole art ofmedicine,

” in 290 chapters . It i s a mere compi lation ,and the author

is on ly worthy of remembrance in medical h istory as the earliest Greekmedical writer who mention s distilled rose-water

,an article originally

derived from the Arabian s .1 Cap, Etudes Biograplz igu es, Ser. ii .

'

p . 326.

2 See Whewe ll’s Hist. Induct . Sciences, vol. i . p. 305.

3 D ecline and Fall .

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304 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

o f Salisbury, writing in the year 1 1 60 , says that those who desired tostudy medic ine had to go either to Salerno or Mon tpell ier. But

,says

Laurie, 1 physicians of em inence are recorded as having taugh t at Parisafter this date

,and the subj ec t was formally lectured upon not later

than 1 200 . Degrees or l icences in physic were gran ted in 1 2 3 1 .

The Un ivers ity of Napl es was founded in 1 2 24, by the EmperorFrederick II . Originally all the faculties were represented, but in 1 23 1

2

medicine was forbidden, as by Imperial decree i t could on ly be taughtat Salerno .

The Un ivers ity of Prague was founded in 1 348 by Charles IV. ofBohem ia

,as a complete un ivers i ty from the outset .

SCH00L o r MONTPELLIER .

The origin of the medical school of Mon tpelli er i s obscure. Probably i t originated in the ten th century

,and there i s l i ttle doubt that the

Jews of Spain were concerned in i ts foundation . The Arabs found firmfriends in the Jewish peopl e of Spain, their monotheism proving a bondof un ion which en sured the sympathy of each , and the school of Mon t

pellier became the rallying-poin t of Arabian and Jewi sh learn ing.

Europe has rendered'

too l i ttle grat itude for the in tellectual blessingsbestowed on her by the Hebrews . A nation of Eastern origin, andhaving very extens ive relations withEastern commerce, the Israel i tes actedas the medium for

'

transmitting the intellectual and material wealth ofEastern coun tries to Western peoples. We owe to them much of ouracquain tance with Saracen ic medic ine and pharmacy. They translatedfor us Arabic books

, and they introduced to Western markets the precious drugs of far-distant Eastern lands . The school of medic ine ofMontpell ier first became famous in the beginn ing of the twelfth cen tury.

Averroism prevailed , and a practical empirical sp ir it dist inguished theschool from the dogmatic and scholastic teaching of other un ivers ities .It has been attempted to Show that a Jewish doctor from Narbonnefirst taught medic ine at Montpell ier. When Benj am in of Tudela wentto the un ivers i ty in 1 1 60

,he says that he found many Jews amongst

the inhabitants . Adalbert, Bishop of Mayence, wen t to Mon tpell ierin I 1 3 7 to learn medic ine from the doctors, “ that he m ight understandthe deeply h idden mean ing of th ings.” In 1 1 53 the Archbishop ofLyons wen t there for treatment

,and John of Sali sbury said that medi

c ine was to be acquired either at Salerno or Mon tpelli er. Men calledthe school the “ Foun tain of Medical Wisdom

,

”and i t soon rose to

great importance on account of i ts unl im i ted freedom in teaching.

2

1 Rise and Constitu tion of Un iversities , p . 1 57 .

2 Puschmann’

s II ist. M ed. Edu c. p. 2 14 .

RISE OF THE UNI VERSI TIES. 39 5

Cafdinal Conrad made a law that no one should act as a teacher ofmedic ine in the un ivers ity who had not been exam ined in i t and receiveda licence to teach . In 1 2 30 i t was ordered that no one should practi semedic ine un ti l h e had been exam ined

,and that to the satisfact ion of

two masters in medical sci ence chosen as examiners by the bishop . To

engage in pract ice without the certificate of the exam iners and the bishopwas to incur the sentence of excommun ication .

1 Surgeons,however

,

were not compelled to undergo exam ination . Medic ine flouri shed atMon tpellier with great independence i t was not merged with the otherfaculties, and i t was no t subj ected to clerical influences .

2 Even Loui sXIV. was obliged to withdraw a decree ordering the un ion of th e medical with the other faculti es . 3

Every studen t was compelled ( 1 308) to attend med ical lectures forat least five years

,and to pract ise medic ine for eight mon ths, before

being allowed to graduate. In 1 3 50 the degree of Magister had to betaken in addition .

‘1

The most brill iant period in the h istory of the medical school ofMontpell ier was that of the th irt eenth and fourteen th cen turies. Its

fame was sounded throughout the world . From al l parts inval ids wentto Mon tpell ier to seek i ts famous physic ians . King John of Bohem ia,and the Bishop of Hereford, were of the number.

D IVORCE OF MED ICINE FROM SURGERY.

Surgery became separated from medicine in Alexandria, but it wasnot unt il the m iddle of the twelfth cen tury that the ecc les iastics wererestrained from undertaking any bloody operations . The un iversiti esrejected surgery under the pretext,

“ecclesia abkorret a sangu ine ( the

church abhors the shedding of blood). It i s therefore to th is epoch , asMr. Cooper. says, 5 that we must refer the true separation of medic inefrom surgery the latter was ent irely abandoned to the ignoran t laity.

At the Counc i l of Tours, A .D . 1 1 63 , the pract ice o f surgery was denounced as unfi t for the hands of pr iests and men of l i terature, theconsequence being that th e surgeon became l ittl e better than a sort of

professional servant to the physic ian , the latter no t on ly having the sole

privilege of prescribing in ternal medic ines, but even that of j udging and

direc ting when surgical operation s should be performed . Then thesubordinate surgeon was only called upon to execute with hi s kn ife, or

1 Puschmann’s Hist. M ed . Educ. , p . 2 16 .

2 Ibid. , p . 2 1 7.

3 Ibid. See also D ubouchet ,“ D ocum ents pour servir a l

’hi sto ire de l

’

un iversité

d e medicine de Montpel lier, in the Gaz . kebd. des sciences med. de M on tpel lier , 1887 ,No . 4.

‘1 Ibid. , p . 2 1 8 .

5 Su rgical D ict. , art. Surgery .

306 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

his hand , duties which the more exalted phys ic ian did no t choose toundertake and

,in fac t, he vis ited the patien t, did what was requ ired t o

be done,and took hi s leave of the case, altogether under the orders of

h is master. 1

JOHN OF SALISBURY, one of the most learned men of the twelfth century , gives an account of the state of medic ine in that peri od, which i svery suggestive. “The professors of the theory of medic ine are verycommun icative ; they will tel l you all they know,

and, perhaps , out of

their great kindness a l ittle more . From them you may learn the natureof all th ings

,the causes of s ickness and of heal th , how to ban i sh the

one and how to preserve the other ; for they can do both at pleasure .

They will describe to you m inutely the origin,the beginn ing

,the

progress, and the cure of all d iseases . In a word, when I hear themharangue, I am charmed I th ink them not inferior to Mercury orIEsculapius , and almost persuade myself that they can raise the dead .

There i s on ly one th ing that makes me hes itate. Their theories are asd irectly Opposi te to one another as l ight and darkness . When I reflecton th i s, I am a li ttle staggered . Two con tradictory proposit ions cannotboth be true. But what shal l I say of the pract ical phys icians ? I

must say noth ing am i ss of them . It pleaseth God , for the puni shmentof my s ins, to suffer me to fall too frequen tly in to their hands . Theymust be soothed

,and no t exasperated . That I may not be treated

roughly in my next illness,I dare hardly al low myself to think in s ecret

what others speak aloud .

”

In another work,however

,the writer del ivers h imself with greater

freedom . Speaking of newly-fledged medicos,he says : “They soon

return from college,full of fl imsy theories

,to pract i se what they have

learned” Galen and Hippocrates are cont inually in their mouths. Theyspeak aphorisms on every subj ect, and make their hearers s tare at theirlong, unknown, and h igh-sounding words. The good peop le bel ievethat they can do anyth ing, because they pretend to all th ings . Theyhave only two maxims which they n ever violate never m ind the poor,never refuse money from the richROBERT OF GLOUCESTER 2 does not write very highly of the sk ill in

surgery possessed by the Anglo-Normans . Speaking of the Duke ofAustria

,who took King R ichard the Fi rst prisoner, h is verses import that

when he fell off from hi s horse and sorely bruised h is foot,h is physic

ians declared that if i t was not immediately sm i tten off,he would die ; but

none would undertake the performance of the operation t ill the Duketook a sharp axe, and bid the Chamberlain strike it off, and he smote

1 Cooper’s Su rgi cal D ictionary , art. Surgery.

.

2 In vit. Ric. pr i . , p. 490.

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CHAPTER V.

THE SCHOOL OF SALERNO .

The Monk s of Monte Cassino —Clerical Influence at Salerno .—Charlemagne .

Arabian M edicine gradually supplanted the Graeco -Latin Science .— Constantine

the Carthagin ian .—Archimatthaeu s .

—Tro tula.-Anatomy of the Pig — Pharmaco

poeias .—The Four Masters . - Roger and Ro lando —The Emperor Frederick .

THE connect ing l ink between the anc ient and the modern medic inewas the School of Salerno . It i s true that Hippocrates and Galen inArabian costume re-entered Europe after a long absence in the East,when the Moors occup ied a great part of Spain ; but great as was thisSaracen ic influence on medical sc ience, it was no t to be compared withthe powerful and permanent influence secured by the nat ive growth ofmedical sc ience which sprung up on Ital ian soil .The origin of th is celebrated mediaeval insti tution i s involved in

obscurity ; i t has been general ly understood to have sprung from t he

monastery of Mon te Cassino, founded by St. Benedict in the sixthcen tury. St. Benedict probably possessed some medical knowledge,and i t i s certain that many of h is order did . The Benedict ines hadhouses in La Cava and Salerno . The legends of the wonderful cureswrought by St. Benedict would naturally attract crowds of sufi

'

erers tothe doors of the learned and charitable monks . There would con

s equen tly be abundan t opportun i t ies for the study o f diseases and theirremedies and though there was probably l ittle enough of what coulds trictly be called sc i entific m edical prac tice

,th ere was doubtless as

much effort to cure or m itigate suffering as was cons i sten t wi th the ruleo f a learned religious order . Some wri ters th ink that the famousschool of Salerno existed as early as the seven th century, that Greekthought and traditions l ingered there long after they had ceased to ex istIn other parts of Italy and they argue that as i t was, as is nowc learlyshown

,a purely secular institution ,

i t was independen t in origin and

con stitution of any monastic connect ion . O thers maintain that i t wasfounded by the Arabs bu t

,as Daremberg points ou t, 1 the first invasion s

of the Saracens in Sic ily and Italy, dating from the m iddle of the n inth1 L

’Eco/e de Salerne.

THE SCHOOL OF SALERNO . 39 9

century, had for their obj ec ts s imply p i llage and slaughter and there isnothing whatever to Show in the whole course of their devastations theslightest desire to found l iterary or sci en tific institut ions . The Saracen snever sojourned at Salerno, and before the end of the eleventh centurythere is no trace of Arabian medic ine in the works written by the greatteachers of Salerno. It i s as unnecessary as i t IS unj ust to seek any

other origin for the Salern ian school than that of the Benedict ines ofMonte Cassino .

1 Bede, Cuthbert, Auperth, and Paul were brought upat that monastery, and we know that medic ine was always cultivatedto a certain exten t in those anc i ent abodes of learn ing and rel igion .

As Balmez says concern ing Mon te Cass ino,2 “ the sons of the mosti llustrious fam il i es of the emp ire are seen to come from all parts to thatmonas tery some with the intention of remain ing there for ever

,others

to receive a good education, and some to carry back to the world arecollection of the serious insp iration s which the holy founder hadreceived at Subiaco. It seems

,therefore, that the origin of the medical

school of Salerno was somewhat on th i s wise : a lay spirit of sc ience wasdeveloped, and many youngmen having no aptitude for the monasticl ife

,but desirous to devote

l

themselves entirely to the healing art as an

honourable and lucrat ive profess ion,doubtless desired to form them

selves in to a soc i ety or school for th is end ; they would receive en

couragemen t from -the ir more l iberal and en l ightened monastic t eachersto settle in a beaut iful and healthy resort of invalids such as Salernohad long been cons idered , and to pursue their medical studies underthe supervi s ion of the men mos t competen t to instruc t them . Dr.

Buschmann , quoting from S. de Renzi ,3 stateS'

that in documen ts of theyears 848 and 85 5 , JOSEPH and JOSHUA are named as doctors pract isingthere . The Lombard REGENIFRID l ived there in the year 900 ; he was

physic ian to Prince WAIMAR of Salerno . Fifty years later the doctorPETRUS was raised to the bishopric of Salerno . Many doctors of th i stime were c lerics

,but there were also many who were Jews .4 Th is

anci ent people, hated and persecuted in every other relat ion of l ife, were

popular as phys ic ians in the M iddle Ages . The books studied and

expounded were Hippocrates and Galen, which were translated intoLatin before A .D .

Its cosmopolitan sen t imen ts probably gave rise to the story that istold in an anc ien t Salernian chron icle

,rediscovered by S. de Renz i , to

1 Laurie, Rise, etc. of Un ivers ities , p . 1 1 2 .

2 Eu ropean Civi li z ation , p . 2 1 6 .

3 Stor ia doeum . delta scuola med. di Salerno, p . 1 57 , et seq.

‘1 S. de Renz i , Collectio Sa lern itana , iii . 325.

5 Laurie’s Rise, etc.,of U nivers ities , p . 1 1 2 .

3 10 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

the effect that the school was founded by four doctors ; namely,the

J ewish Rabbi ELINUS, the Greek PONTUS, the Saracen ADALA, and anative of Salerno

,who each lectured in h is native tongue .

1

It i s said that Charlemagne in 80 2 A.D . greatly encouraged thisSalerno school by ordering Greek works of medicine to be translatedfrom the Arabic in to Latin . Salernum ,

in consequence of the medicaland public instruct ions given by the monks in the neighbouringmonastery, became known as a civitas Av'zppocratz

'

ca .

2

BERTHARIUS,abbot from 856, was a very learned man ; and i t is

stated that there are st ill in existence two manuscripts of h i s wh ichcon tain a collect ion of hygien ic and medic inal rules and prescript ions .

3

ALPHANUS (SECUNDUS) (flourished about a distinguishedmonastic philosopher and theologian ,

wrote a treatise on Tke Union oftire Soul and Body , and another on me Four Humours . He carried withhim , when he removed to Florence

,many manuscripts and a great

quan t ity of medic ines . During the eleventh cen tury Salerno rose togreat importance, no t only from i ts s i tuat ion as a port from which theCrusaders departed to the wars, but from the daily widening influence ofits medical school .PETROCELLUS wrote on the practice of medic ine about 1 03 5 he wast he author of the Compendium of M edicine. GARIOPONTUS (died before1 056) wrote a work en titled Passionar ius Galen i . These are the two

most anc ien t works of this school w h ich have reached our times, saysDaremberg. The medicine of Salerno before th e year 1 050 was acombination of methodism in i ts doctrines and of Galen isms in i ts

prescriptions.‘1 We find

,says Baas

,

5 in Gariopontus the first intimationof the inhalation of narcotic vapours in medic ine, while the anc i en tscould only produce anaesthes ia by compression and the internal useof such drugs as mandragora and belladonna. Herodotus says 6 thatt he Scyth ians used the vapour of hemp seed to in toxicate themselvesb y inhaling it, but th is was no t for medic inal purposes.DES IDERIUS was abbot of Salerno , and afterwards became Pope Victor

III . in 1 0 85 . He i s said to have been medicina peritissimus.

7

About th is t ime flourished CONSTANTINE, the Carthagin ian Christian ,whose fame was European, and who finally placed Salerno in the frontas a great and spec ial ized public school of medic ine. He travelled farin

'

the East, and i s said to have learned mathematics , necromancy, andthe sc iences in Babylon . He vis i ted India and Egypt, and when hereturned to Carthage he was the most learned man of h is time in all

1 See Puschmann’s IIist . M ed. , p . 199.

2 Ibid .

3 Ibid ., p. 1 13.

‘1 Bat emberg, L’Ecole de Salerne.

5 Hist . M ed ., p . 262 .

6 IV. 75.7 Laurie , R ise, etc. ,

of Un ivers ities , p . 1 1 3 .

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3 12 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICIIVE.

charlatan ism . Archimatthaeus very m inutely instructs the doctor howto comport h imself when called to visi t a patient .1

He should place h imsel f under the protect ion of God and under th ecare of the angel who accompan ied Tobias . On the way to the

patien t’s home he should take care to learn from the messenger sent for

him the state o f the patien t, so that he may be, on reaching the beds ide

,well posted in al l that concern s the case ; then i f, after he has

exam ined the urine and the state of the pulse, he is no t able to makean accurate diagnosis, he will at least be able, thanks to h is previousinformation

,to impress the pat ien t with the conviction that he com

pletely understands his case,and so will gain hi s confidence. The

author cons iders i t very important that the s ick person, before thearrival of the phys ician , should send for a priest to hear h is confess ion,or at least prom ise to do so ; for i f th e doc tor were to see reason tosuggest th is h imself

,i t would give the patien t cause to suppose that his

case was hopeless.“Upon en tering the house of his patient , the

phys ician Should salute all with a grave and modest air,not exhibit ing

any eagerness, but seating h imself to take breath he should praisethe beauty of the s ituation 2 the good arrangemen ts of the house

,the

generosity of the family by this means he wins the good op in ion of thehousehold, and gives the Sick person time to recover h imself a l ittle .

”

After the most careful direct ions as to the exam ination of the patien t ,the author takes the doctor from the house with as much artfulness as hehas brought him h ither. He is to promise the patien t a good recovery,but privately to the friends he is to explain that the i llness i s a veryserious one

“ i f he recovers, your reputat ion i s increased if hesuccumbs

, people will no t fail to remember that you foresaw the fatalterm ination of the disease.” If he is asked to dine

,

“ as is the custom,

”

he i s to show himself neither indiscreet no r over-n ice . If the table i sdelicate

,he is not to become absorbed in i ts pleasures, but to leave the

table every now and then to see how th e pat ien t progresses , so as toShow that h e has not been forgotten while the doctor was feasting. He

i s honestly to demand his fee, and then go in peace, his heart conten tand hi s purse full. In the P ractice of the same author

,we have

,says

Daremberg, a true Clinic, the firs t work of the kind s ince the Ep idemicsof Hippocrates ; i t exhibits a skilful practi t ioner, a good observer, and abold therapeutist. The doctrines and methods are those of Hippo

1 Anomy nz i Saler nitan i de adoenta medici ad cegr otum . Ed. A . G. E. Th.

Henschel , Vratist . , 1850. D e Ren z i , Collect . Saleru ., 11 . 74

—8 1 , v . 333—349 .

Puschmann ,Hist . M ed . , p . 203 . D aremberg, L

’Ecole de Sa lerne, p . 148 .

2 The who le coast between Salerno and Amalfi and the surrounding parts aresome of the love liest places in Italy.

THE SCHOOL OF SALERNO . 3 13

crates and Galen , but no t of the Arabs . It i s also in teresting as proving that at th i s period the distinct i on was establ ished between the tru e

physic ians and the common physic ian s, or the spec ial ists and th egeneral practi t ioners or phys ician—apothecaries .A remarkable and in teresting feature in the hi story of the school o f

Salerno i s the fact that some of i ts most famous professors of medic in ewere ladies. About the year 1 059, TROTULA, a female physic ian , wrote awell-known book on the diseases of women

,and their treatment before ,

during, and after labour . She discusses all branches of pathology, evenof the male sexual organs . 1 It was supposed that She was the wife ofJohn Platearius the elder, and that she belonged to the noble fam i ly ofRoger. Her person and name were at one t ime cons idered legend and

myth,but M . Ren z i

’s investigation s have proved her to be suffic i en tly

historical . Tro tu la l ived at Salerno,as i s Shown by the Compendium

Salernitanum,and she practised in that c i ty, as is c lear from her work

on the diseases of women . Her name occurs variously as Trotula,

Trotta, and Trocta.

2

ABELLA wrote a treati se D e Natu ra Sem in is Human i ; she was acolleague of Tro tula’s . COSTANZA CALENDA was t he daughter of the

principal of the m edical school , and was distinguished both for herbeauty and her talents sh e left no writ ings . MERCUR IADIS and

REBECCA GUARNA were doctresses of the fifteen th cen tury. Theywrote chiefly on m idwifery and diseases o f women .

3

COPHO, in the early part of the twelfth cen tury,was an anatom is t

,

and probably a Jew ; he wrote the Anatomy of Ike P ig. Students wereinstructed in dissec tions by operating on dead an imals when , as in thosedays

,human bodies were not access ible . The pig was killed by severing

the vessels of th e neck, and was then hung up by the h ind legs, andwhen the blood had escaped the body was used for teaching purposesit was no t d issected in the modern sense at all

,the exam ination con

sist ing merely in observation of the great cavities and the vi tal organ s,

according to the suggestions of Galen and the o ld anatomi sts . ‘1

NICHOLAS PRIEPOSITUS,about 1 1 40, was the presiden t of the school ,

and wrote a famous book called the An tidotar iumA—a Pharmacopoeia aswe should call it . Th is book of rec ipes was comp i led from the works ofthe Arabian doc tors Mesues

,Avicenna

,Actuarius

,Nicolaus Myrepsu s,

as well as from Galen . It i s in teresting as giving the forms which thecompounders of the prescriptions were sworn on th eir oath to observe

1 Puschmann,Hist. M ed. Edu cation

, p . 20 1

2 Daremberg, L’Ecole de Sa lern e.

3 See D r. Haeser’

s Lek rbu c/z der Gesc/z ickte der M edicin, p . 290 .

4 Puschmann , Hist . M ed. Edu cat ion , p . 203.

3 14 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF M ED ICINE.

they prom ised to make up all their potions, syrups, etc.,

secundum

pradictam formant ,”and they further promi sed that their drugs should

be fresh and sufficien t. It shows also that there was a habit of writinga prescript ion when a patient was vis ited th is

,i t s eems

,was a custom

which originated with the Arabian physic ians . 1

Nicholas was also the author,says Dr. Baas,2 of a work called

Qu idpro Quo,” wh ich was a l is t of drugs which were equivalent to

o ther drugs, and m ight be used as substitutes for each other in case ofe i ther runn ing short. D r. Baas says our expression Quid pro Quo

”

o riginated from th is .The writings of Bartholomaeus and of Copho the Younger (between

1 1 00 and says Daremberg, are of great in teres t in th e history ofmedic ine they show how great was the freedom of spiri t wh ich existeda t Salerno at this t ime . Copho described certain diseases wh ich werenot referred to in the works of other writers of Salerno ; for example,ulceration of the palate and trachea

,polypi, scrofulous tumours of the

t hroat, condylomata, etc . Bartholomaeus and C0pho also held certainoriginal ideas as to the Class ification of fevers . Copho dist inguishedbetween medic in e for the rich and for the poor : the rich are del icate,a nd must be cured agreeably the poor wish only to be cured at as li ttlec ost as poss ible. Thus the nobles must be purged with finely powderedrhubarb

,the poor, wi th a decoction of mirobalanum ,

sweetened or not.Naturally the more preci ous drugs would be used for the wealthy, and

probably the poor, who could not afford the compl icated and terriblec onfect ion s of mediaeval pharmacy, m ight have congratulated themselveso n being treated with a few s imples instead of the prec ious messeswh ich the wealthy had to swallow.

JOHANNES PLATEARIUS deserves notice as having been the inventoro f the term “ Cataracta,

”in place of the anc ien t Egyptian

“ ascen t ”

and the Greek “ hypochosis, in class ical Latin “suffusio humorum

(Hirsch ) . 3

MATTHIEUS PLATEARIUS was the son o f th e above ; he composed aP ractica Brevis and other books on medic ine ; i t i s not certain atwhat prec i s e date they flouri shed .

IEGID IUS CORBOLENSIS, canon of Paris, phys ic ian to Philip

Augustus, king of France ( 1 1 65 wrote a poem on the decl ine ofSalerno as a medical school ; he describes th e doctors as caring nothingfor books which were not full of rec ipes , and the professors as merely‘beardless boys .

1 Meryon ,History of Medicine

, p . 162 . See also Beckmann’

s Hist . of Inventions ,a rt. Apo thecaries .

2 Baas, Hist . M ed. , p . 263 .

3 No te in Baas’Hist . M ed., p . 263 .

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3 16 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

It has been tran slated in to English by Thomas Paynell in 1 530 , byJohn Harrington in 1 607 , and by Alexander Croke in 1 830 .

The poem i s a composi te work, and i ts form was doubtless adoptedfor fac il ity of commi tt ing to memory an importan t text-book of healthrules .ROGER, or RUGGIERO , known as Roger of Parma Or of Palermo, l ived

about 1 2 1 0,was a studen t, and for a long time a professor in Salerno .

He was a celebrated surgeon , who pract i sed trepann ing of the sternumand stitching of the intest ine . He was the first to describe a case ofhern ia pulmon is, to use the term seton, and to prescribe the internaluse of sea- sponge for the removal of bronchocele. 1 He knew how toarres t haemorrhage by stypt ics, sutures, and l igatures .He was the earliest spec ial writer on surgery in Italy.

2 His later editorROLANDO exh ibits an acquain tance with surgery, which shows that,although the art had no t been previously wri tten upon in Italy, i t wasvery well understood at Salerno . De Renzi says that some of theoperations described are treph in ing, the removal of polypi from thenose

,resect ion of th e lower jaw,

the operat ion for hern ia and l i thotomy.

Mal ignan t tumours of the rectum and uterus are referred to .

3

Salerno was the firs t school in Europe in which regular diplomas in /

Emedic ine were gran ted to students who had been duly instructed and had

passed an exam ination in accordance with the requiremen ts of the legalauthorities . The great patron of Salerno, Frederick II.

,in the year 1 240

confirmed the law of King Roger, passed in the year 1 1 3 7 , or as some'

say in 1 1 40 , with reference to l icences to pract ise medic ine. That anc ien tenactmen t was that

,

“Whoever from th is time forth des ires to pract i semed ic ine must presen t h imself before our ofli cials and j udges

,and be

subj ect t o their decis ion . Any one audac i ous enough to neglect thisshall be pun i shed by imprisonmen t and confiscation of goods. Thisdecree has for its’ obj ect the protection of the subj ec ts of our kingdomfrom the dangers aris ing from the ignorance of pract it ioners .

” ‘1

Frederick’s law was “ Since i t i s possible for a man to understandmedical sc i ence

,on ly i f he has previously learn t something of logic,

we ordain that no one shall be perm i tted to s tudy medic ine un til hehas given h is atten t ion to logic for three years . After these three yearshe may, if he wishes, proceed to the study of medic ine. In th i s s tudy

1 Iodine was not known at this time ; and the virtue of the sponge , if any, was

doubtless due to the iodine it contained .

2 Baas , Hist . Med. p . 299 .

5 Puschmann, Hist. M ed . Educ, p . 206. De Renz i , Collect. Salern it . , 11. 445, 5 13 ,

628, 650, etc .

4 Hist . diplom . Fr id. II . imperat . Paris, 1854. T. iv. , pars. 1 , p. 149 , tit. 44,quoted in Puschmann

’s II ist . M ed. Edu cat ion , p. 207 .

THE SCHOOL OF SALERNO. 3 1 7

he must spend five years,during which period h e mus t also acquire a

knowledge of surgery, for th is forms a part of medic ine. After this,bu t

not before, perm i ss ion may be given him to pract ise, provided that he

passes.

the exam ination prescribed by the authori t ies and at the sametime produces a cert ificate Showing that he has studied for the periodrequired by the law.

”The teachers must , during th is period of five

years,expound in their lectures the genu ine wri t ings of Hippocrates and

Galen on the theory and prac t ice of medic ine .

” “ But even when the

prescribed five years of medical s tudy are passed , the doctor should no t

forthwith practise on h is own accoun t, bu t, for a ful l year more heshould habitually consul t an older experienced pract itioner In theexerc ise of his profess ion .

We decree that in future no one i s to assume the ti tle of doctor,to

proceed to pract ise or to take medical charge, un less h e has previouslybeen found competen t in the j udgmen t of teachers at a public meetingin Salerno

,has moreover by the testimony in writing of h is teachers

and of our ofli cials approved himself before us or our represen tat ives inrespect of h is worth iness and sc i ent ific maturity, and in pursuance ofthis course has received th e state- l icence to pract ise. Whoever trans

gresses th i s law, and ven tures to practi se without a l icence, i s subj ec tto pun i shment by confiscat ion of property and Impr i sonmen t for ayear.” No surgeon shal l be allowed to pract ise unt i l he has submitted certificates in writing of the teachers of the faculty of medic ine

,

that he has spen t at least one year in the study of that part of medicalscience which gives skill in the pract ice of surgery, that in the collegeshe has diligen tly and espec ially studied the anatomy of the humanbody

,and i s also thoroughly experienced in the way in which operat ion s

are successfully performed and heal ing is brought about afterwards .” 1

For cen turies after thi s barbers in other coun tries prac ti sed surgerywithout let or h indrance .

The doctor was bound to give advice to th e poor grat is, and to informagainst apothecaries who did no t make -up his prescript ion s in accordance with the law. The doctor’s fee in th e daytime with in the townwas half a gold tarenus outs ide the c i ty he could demand from three tofour tareni

,exclusive of his travelling expen ses .2 D octors were no t

permitted to keep drug-shops . Apothecaries were obliged to compoundthe medic ines in conform i ty with the doctor’s prescription s, and the

price they charged was regulated by law. In spectors of drug- shopswere appoin ted to vis i t and report. The pun ishment of death was

1 Hist . dip lom . Fr id. op. cit. p . 235 , lib. 3 , tit. 46, etc. quo ted in Puschmann’s

His t . M ed. Educ., p . 208.

2 A go ld tarenus we ighed twenty grains.

3 18 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

imposed on the offic ials who neglected their duties . 1 These laws haveserved as the pattern for ! succeeding enactmen t s for the regulation ofmedical education and practice .

In 1 2 5 2 King Conrad created the school of Salerno a un ivers i ty,but

King Manfred in 1 2 58 by h is restorat ion of Naples Un ivers ity leftSalerno on ly its med ical . school .On the 29th of November, 1 8 1 1

,a decree of the French Government

put an end to the oldest school of medic ine in Europe .

Daremberg concludes h i s adm i rable treatise on the school of Salernowith a pathetic account of a vis i t which he made to that c i ty in 1 849

he tells how he wandered through i ts streets,once so act ive with the

movements of the students and professors of the medical sc iences , andhe laments that no t a single remembrance of its illustrious mas tersremain s to rem ind the vis i tor of i ts anc ien t glories. Not a stone o f theedifices

,not an echo of its tradi tions

,not even a manuscript in any

l ibrary remains to rem ind us of the learned and venerable men and

women who d id so much for medic ine in those dark ages . A few yearsback I vis i ted Salerno myself, and I found no t even a decent hotel inwhich to remain a n ight or two . I res ted at the best hostelry I couldfind

,and after dinner proposed to the friend who accompan i ed me, that

on the following day we should vis i t Paestum and see i ts noble ruinedtemples . As we chatted and turned over the pages of the vis i tors

’book,

we came across a long and doleful accoun t o f an Englishman who somefew years previously had vis i ted Paestum from Salerno

,and was captured

by brigands he was detained their prisoner for many weeks, and onlyat last l iberated

,after threats of mutilat ion , by the payment of a heavy

ransom . We did no t go to Paestum we left Salerno early the followmgmorn ing and wen t to Amalfi . The hotel was gloomy and crumbling intodecay

,the room s were al l empty, the landlord was suggest ive of the host

in some of the old stories of our boyish days. Thus has Salerno fallen .

Most travellers now make La Cava their headquarters, and do not stayat Salerno at all .

1 Puschmann’

s Hist. Med. Educ., p . 2 10 .

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3 29 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

Certainly i t was one of the modes most anc i en tly and un iversally

practised for d iscovering the most important th ings relat ing to the l ivesand fortunes of those who bel ieved in i t . It was flattering to men tobel ieve that the heavenly bodi es are in terested in their welfare

, and

the even ts of l ife were awai ted with resignation and composure bythose who bel ieved they were regulated by the stars in their coursesthey appl i ed themselves therefore to diagrams and calculations to learnthe s implest and most obvious details of their l ives .M . Li ttré

,member of the In sti tute and the Academy of Medic ine

at Paris,in his Fragment de M e

’

decine R étrospective,1 describes seven

“ m i racles ” wh ich took place in France at the end of the thirteenthcen tury at the tomb of St. Louis . He states the simple facts as writtenin the chron icles of the period . He does no t dispute them, does no trid icule nor ignore them

,but endeavours to give a pathological interpre

tation of them . He not ices in the firs t place that at the momen t ofc ure the patient felt a sharp pain— the part affected seemed to bes tretched or touched , and sometimes a sort of cracking sensati on in

the bone was experienced, then movements became poss ible, althoughthe lengthen ing of the l imb and the poss ibil i ty of moving i t freely wereno t experi enced immediately ; the cure was not so sudden

,a period of

weakness,long or short

,always followed the m iracle

,and the part only

gradually regained its use. The cracking of the bon e is j ust what thes urgeon finds when he moves a j oin t wh ich has become fixed by disusewithout breaking down these adhes ions , he can do noth ing to restore thearticulation . In cases of rheumatic paralys is a sim i lar s tate of th ingsi s observed. O f course in the accoun ts of the heal ing at the tomb ofSt. Lou is we expect to find errors and exaggeration s due to the preoccupat ion and ignorance o f those who wrote the reports, but we atonce recogn i se the cracking and the pain as genu ine pathologicaldetai l s we should no t expect a natural cure without these symptoms .To what shal l we attribute them ? M . Li ttr é gives the explanation inthe words of M . le docteur Onimus

, publ ished in La Pk ilosop/ziepos itives ur la Vibration nerveuse.

2 The ascending action or vibration ex

presses the influence of the phys ical on the moral ; the descendingaction or vibrat ion expresses the influence of the moral on the physical .In these cases it i s the descending act ion wh ich we have to con sider.Thi s action i s exerted on the muscular portion of the affected part ;i t con tracts energetically ; i t breaks down the pathological adhesion s i fthey exist i t restores the bones violen tly to their place thi s done, the

patien t i s in a condition to use the l imb, but no t without passing througha period of debil ity wh ich requires t ime for recovery. It i s a violen t

1 M e’

decin e et M e’

decins, p . 1 25.

2 Tom. iii . p . 9 .

THE THIRTEEN TH CEN TUR Y. 32 1

extension produced by muscular con tractions . Surgery has frequentlyto break down such adhesions and destroy false anchyloses . Here theforce is no t exerted by a strange hand, bu t by an influence wh ich isexerted on the muscles themselves

,and th is in a far more beneficent

manner than surgery can afford . What i s th e exci t ing cause of thesee nergetic contractions ? That wh ich we find in all m i racles of th is sort—a strong persuas ion , a complete confidence. Under a profoundemotion born of these sent iments, the patient , feel ing that the cure wasin the extension of the part, had a bel ief which he could understand .

Of course such faith i s not poss ible in every case . On one s ide theremust be the men tal condition which can receive in i ts fulness theemotion born of persuasion and confidence

, and on the other that thelesions must be suscept ible of cure. To a certain degree there arelesions which escape all thi s sort of treatment. Herbert Spencer

poin ts out 1 that muscular power fails with flagging emotions or des ireswhich lapse into indifference

, and conversely,

that intense feeling or

passion confers a great increase in muscular force . It i s brain and

feel ing generated by the m ind wh ich give strength to the person whothinks strongly .

ALBERTUS MAGNUS ( 1 1 93 one of th e greatest of the schoolmen , combined with his rel igious speculations so great a knowledge of

physical sc ience and mechan ics that h e was reputed as a sorcerer . Heconstructed automata

,some of wh ich could speak wrote on anatomy,

physiology, botany, chem istry, astronomy , magnetism,accl imatiz ati on of

plants and an imals, e tc . He digested , in terp reted, and systematized thewhole of the writings of Ari stotle in accordance with the teaching of theChurch . He was called

,not only “Albert the Great, but the Un iversal

doctor.” To h is labours and those of THOMAS AQUINAS may be ex

plained the reverence for ARISTOTLE en tertained by the c lergy of theRoman and Angl ican churches even to the present day.

THOMAS AQUINAS ( 1 2 2 5 arc was the great Dom in ican theologian who wrote the Summa Tkeologioe. In his famous work he inc id entally dealt wi th medical and physiological quest ion s . The sourceof all motion i s the heart. The soul i s created anew in each concep

t ion . Moisture,heat

,and aether alone are n ecessary for the generation

o f an individual ; the lower an imals originate even from putrefyingmatter. He wrote commentaries on the works of Aristotle, and derivedmany of hi s sc ien t ific ideas from th is great master. The biology of St.Thomas , as may be imagined, i s exceedingly feeble , yet i t too oftenforms the only knowledge of the subj ect wh ich con t inental c lergymen

possess .1 P r incip les of Sociology , vol . i . p . 53 .

322 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

RAYMOND LULLI ( 1 2 3 5—1 3 1 5 ) was a man of great intellect, who sought

the secrets of transmutation of metals and the ph ilosopher’s stone.

He was a bold th inker, an astrologer, and a phys ician of great

'

repute.

Naturally he was accused of magic . His acquain tance with theArabians directed his m ind to the study of chem i stry. He wrote on

medical subj ects,the t itles of his best known works being D e P u lsibus

et Urin is,D e M edicina Tkeorica et P r actica

,D e Agu is et Oleis.

ROGER BACON ( 1 2 1 4 By theologians he was bel ieved to bein l eague with the devil

,because of h is belief in astrology and h is

sc ien tific attainmen ts . It i s probable that h is reputed invent ion ofcertain optical instruments was really due to h is acquain tance withArabic, as the Arabians were fam i l iar with the camera

,burn ing glass

,

and m icroscope, which have been attributed to him. Neither is i tthe fact that he inven ted gunpowder, as is usually supposed . Baconwrote volum inously on theology, philosophy, and sc ience . Al though hebel ieved in astrology and the philOSpher

’s stone

,he had a true sc i entific

idea of the value of experimen t, which forc ibly rem inds us of th e Franci sBacon wh ich future ages would reveal .

Experimen tal sc i ence,” he said

,

“ has three great prerogatives overall other sc iences ( 1 ) i t verifies their conclus ions by direct experiments

(2 ) i t discovers truths which they could never reach (3 ) i t investigatesthe secrets of natu re

,and open s to us a knowledge of past and future.

” 1

As an instance o f hi s method, Bacon gives an investigation in to the

phenomena of the rainbow, which i s doubtless a very remarkable example of inductive research .

Roger Bacon proved himsel f far in advance of h is time by his

insi stence of the supremacy of experimen t . So differen t was his men talattitude in thi s regard from the temper of h is t ime that Whewell findsi t d iffi cult to conceive how such a character could then exist.2 He

learned much from Arabian writers,but certainly no t from them did he

learn to emanc ipate h imself from the bondage to Ari stotle wh ich everywhere enslaved them. D oubtless he learned from Aris totle h imself tocall no man m aster in sc i ence, for the Stagyrite declared that all knowledge must come from observation, and that sc ience must be collectedfrom facts by induct ion .

3 Probably the truth about Aristotle i s thatBacon’s obj ecti ons were directed agains t the Latin translations of theGreek philosopher, which were very bad ones . Of both Avicenna and

Averroes he speaks respectfully, and i t i s doubted whether any passages

1 En cy . Br it,art. Bacon , Roger .

2 History of Inductive Sciences, vol. i . p . 341 .

3 Ibid ., p . 342 .

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324 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

M iddle Ages, and there is abundan t evidence of the fact that womenwere commonly agen ts in i t. 1

In Edward the Third’s reign th e ladies of the household were bothnurses and doctors . Regular practi t ioners were few

,and the m i stress

of the house and her maidens were compelled to do the best they couldin their absence. Medic inal herbs were cultivated in every garden, andwere ei ther dried or made in to decoct ions and kept ready for use.M any of these fair practit ioners were reputed to be very skilful inmedical practice. Chaucer, in the f ‘Nonne-Prestes Tale,

” has left afaithful p icture of the domest ic medic ine of the period in the characterof Dame Pertelot.

1 Aubrey , Hist. England, vol. 1. p . 682 .

CHAPTER VII.

THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY.

Revival ofHuman Anatomy—Famous Physicians of the Century.—D omestic Medi

cine in Chaucer.—Fel lowship of the Barbers and Surgeons. -The Black D eath .

—The Dancing Mania.— Pharmacy .

REVIVAL OF HUMAN ANATOMY.

BRIGHTER days dawned for medical sc ience after the c lose of thethirteenth century

,up to which era the Saracen ic learn ing prevailed .

While human dissect ion s were impossibl e, the sc iences of anatomy and

philosophy had made no advance beyond‘ the poin t at wh ich they were

left by Galen, and as he dissected only an imals they were necessari lyleft in a very imperfect state. It i s no t known prec i sely when humandissection was revived ; probably the school of Salerno, under the influence of Frederick II. ,

has a right to the honour. In 1 308, however,we find the senate of Ven ice decreeing that a body should be dissectedannually

,

1and i t i s known that such dissect ion s took place at Bologna

in 1 300 . We have,however, noth ing very defin i te on the subject t ill

a few years later. Italy gave birth to the firs t great anatomist ofEurope .

The father of modern anatomy was MONDINO,who taught in

Bologna about the year 1 3 1 5 . Under h i s cult ivation “ the science firstbegan to rise from the ashes in wh ich it had been buried .

”2 Hisdemon strat ions of the different parts of the human body at once attractedthe notice of the m edical profess ion ofEurope to the school of Bologna.

He died in 1 3 2 5 . Though he had a penetrating faculty of observation ,

he was not altogether original , as he copi ed Galen and the Arabians .He divided the body into three cavities : th e upper, contain ing thean imal members the lower

,the natural members and the m iddle

,the

spiritual members . His anatomy of the heart i s wonderfully accurate,

and he came very near to the discovery of the c i rculation of the blood .

3

He described seven pairs of n erves at the base of the brain,and was

eviden tly acquain ted with the anatomy of that organ .

1 Baas, Hist . fil ed.

2 Ency . Bri t. , art. Anatomy .

325

A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

He i s said to have had the assistance of a young lady, ALASSANDRA

GILIANI, as prosector. Anatom ical demonstrations in those days were

,

at th e best, very imperfect. The demonstrator did no t actually himselfdissec t ; th is was done by a barber- surgeon with a razor, the lecturermerely standing by and pointing out the objects of in teres t to thestudents wi th h is staff. Nor did the process occupy much t ime ; fourlessons served to explain the mysteries of the human frame : the firstwas on the abdomen

,the second on the organs of the chest

,the third

on the brain,and the fourth on the extrem it ies . 1 The bodies were

buried , or placed in runn ing or boil ing water, to soften the t issues andfaci l itate thei r exam ination . D issections fi rst took place at Prague in1 348, Mon tpell ier after 1 3 76, Strasburg, 1 5 1 7 . In Italy

,sometimes, a

condemned crim inal was first stabbed in prison by the executioner, andthen conveyed at once to the dissecting room

,for the use of th e doctors .

The most famous physic ian s of th is period werePETRUS APONo, or PIETRo OF ABANO ( 1 250 a famous phy

sician,who l ived at Abano near Padua

,and who had studied medicine

and other sc i ences at Padua and Paris . He travelled in Greece andother parts, acquired a knowledge of the Greek language, and was adevoted student of the works of Averroes . He endeavoured to mediatebetween the Arabian and the Greek phys ic ians in their con troversieson medic ine

,and wrote with that view h i s work

,ent i tled the Con

cil iator difk’rentiarum pk ilosopkorum et precipue medicorum. He knewenough of physiology to be aware that the brain i s the source of then erves

,and the heart that of all the blood-vessels . He m eddled with

astrology,and was accused of pract ising magic, of possess ing the philo

sopher’s stone. He was found guilty on h i s second trial by the Inqui

s i tiou ; but as he died before th e tri al was completed, he was merelyburned in efligy.

JACOB DE DONDIS ( 1 298—1 3 59) was a physic ian, who was a professorat Padua

,and was famous as the author of an herbal with plates con

taining descript ions of Simple medic ines .ARNOLD OF VILLA NOVA ( 1 23 5 physic ian , alchem i st, and

astrologer,did much to advance chem ical sc ience, and whose work

,

the Breviar i um P ractica,i s no t a mere comp ilation . He advised his

pupi ls, when they failed to find ou t what was the matter with their

patients, to declare that there was“ som e obstruct ion of the l iver,” —a

pract ice much in vogue even in the presen t day. He was the first toadmin i ster brandy

,which he called the el ixir of l i fe (Baas) . He dis

covered the art o f preparing disti lled spirits (Thomson) .Collections of med ical cases first began to be preserved in an in

1 Puschmann,Hist. IlIed. Educ. , p . 246.

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328 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

DOMESTIC MEDIC INE IN CHAUCER’S TIME.

CHAUCER ( 1 340 in the Nonnes P reestes Tale, tells us how inhi s t ime people took care of their heal th by atten tion to diet and how

,

when folk were s ick,and doc tors no t handy, nor medic ines to be had at

the Chem ist’s c lose by, the wise women were able, not only to prescribeski lful ly

,but to supply th e requis ite medic ines from their own store or

garden .

A poure w idewe, somde l stoupen in age,

Was whilom dwe lling in a narwe co tage

Beside a grove, stonding in a dale .

Hire diete was accordant to hire cote .

Repletion ne made hire never sikeAttempre diete was al l hire physikeAnd exercise, bertes suffisance .

The goute let hire nothing for to dance,No apoplex ie shente no t hire hed ,NO w in n e drank e she, neyther white ne red.

Now , s ire , ’ quod she, whan we flee fro the hemes ,For C oddes love, as tak e som laxatifUp peril o fmy sou le , of my l if,I consei l you the best, I wol not lie .

That both o f coler, of melanco l ieYe purge you and fo r ye shu l not tarie ,Though in this toun be non apotecarie ,

I shal myself two herbes techen you ,That shal be for your hele, for your prowAnd in our yerde , the herbes shal I finde ,The which ban o f hir propretee by k indeTo purgen you benethe , ek e above .

Sire , fo rgcte no t this for Goddes loveYe ben ful colerike of complex ionWare that the Sonne in his ascentionNe find you no t replete of humours ho teAnd if it do , I dare wel lay a grote ,That ye shu l ban a fever tertiane ,Or e l les an agu e , that may be your bane .

A day or two ye shal han digestivesO f wormes, or ye take your laxatives,O f laureo le

,centauric, fumetere ,

O r elles of el lebor, that groweth there ,Of catapuce , or of gaitre-beries ,Or herbe ive grow ing in our yerd, that m ery isPick e hem right as they grow ,

and e tc hem in.

Chaucer has indicated forus, in his Prologue to the Canterburywho were the great medical authors studied by Eng l ish physicians ofthe period.

THE FOURTEENTH CENTUR Y. 329

Besides z’Esculapius, whose works certainly could not have reachedthe “ Doctour of Physicke,

” he read D ioscorides,the famous writer

on Materia Medica (A.D. 40 Rufus (of Ephesus , about A.D .

Old Hippocras = Hippocrates . Hali z Ali Abbas (died Gall ienGalen. Serapion there were two, the elder and the younger.

Ras is = Rhaz es (A .D . 850 Avicen = Avicenna (diedAverrio is = Averroé s (died Damascene Janus Damascenus,

alias Mesue the elder (780 Constan t in : Constantinus Africanus

( 1 0 1 8 Bernard = Bernardus Provinc ial is (about Gatisden

= John of Gaddesden (about Gilbertin = Gilbert o f England

(about“

1 290 )“ His study was but l ittl e on the Bible, says th e poet, who also

intimates that as gold in physic i s a cordial , he was partial to fees .

FELLOWSHIP OF BARBERS AND SURGEONS.

On the 1 0th of September, 1 348 , says An thony 1 Wood,1 appearedbefore Mr. John Northwode, D .D . , Chancellor of

‘the Un iversity ofOxford

,John Bradey

,Barber

,R ichard Fell, Barber Surgeon , Thomas

Billye, Waferer, and with them the whole Company and Fellowsh ip ofBarbers with in the prec incts of Oxford , and in tending thenceforward tojoin and bind themselves in am i ty and love, brough t wi th them certainord inations and statutes drawn up in writings for the weal of the Craft o fBarbers, desiring the said Chancellor that he would peruse and correc tthem ,

and when he had so done,to pu t the Un ivers i ty seal to them .

Thus the Barbers of Oxford were formed in to a Corporation, one oftheir ordination s being that no man nor servan t of th e Craft of Barbersor Surgery should reveal any infi rmity or secret d isease they have

,to

their custom ers or patien ts . Of wh ich , i f any one should be foundguilty, then he was to pay 2 os . ,

whereof 6s. 8d. was to go to Our Lady’sbox, 6s. Set. to the Chancellor, or in h i s absence

,to th e Comm i ssary,

and 6s. 8d. to the Proc tors .” The Barbers,Surgeon s, Waferers

,and

makers of Singing bread were al l of the same fellowship. They all continued in one soc iety t il l the year 1 500 , when the Cappers or Kn i ttersof Caps, somet imes called Capper—Hurrers, were un i ted to them .

2 In

1 55 1 the Barbers and Waferers laid as ide their charter and took one in

the name of the C i ty but Wood says they l ived without any ordination ,statutes

,or charter t i ll 1 675 , when they received a charter from the

Un iversi ty.

3

THE BLACK DEATH.

A great pestilence desolated As ia, Europe, and Africa in the fourteen th cen tury, wh ich was known as T/ze Black D eatk . Its origin was1 Hist. of Un iv. of Oxford, vol . i . p . 444.

2 Ibid. , p . 446.

5 Ibid. , p . 447 .

330 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

o rien tal, and i t was d istinguished by boils and tumours‘

of the glands,

accompan i ed by black spots . Many patients became stupefied and fellin to a deep sleep ; they became speechl ess, their tongues were black,and their thirst unquenchable. Thei r sufferings were so terrible thatmany in despair commi tted suic ide. Those who waited upon the s ickc augh t the disease

,and in Constant inople many houses were bereft of

thei r las t inhabitan t. Guy de Chauliac, the physician (born aboutbravely defied the plague when i t raged in Avignon for s ix or eightweeks, although the form which i t there assumed was distinguished bythe pesti lential breath of the patien ts who expectorated blood, so thatthe near vic in i ty of the persons who were s ick was certain death . The

courageous de Chauliac,when al l h is colleagues had fled the c i ty

,boldly

and constan tly assisted the sufferers . He saw the plague twice inAvignon— in 1 348 , and twelve years later. Boccacio, who was in Florencewhen i t raged in that c i ty

,has described it in the D ecameron . No

medic ine brought reli ef ; no t only men, but an imals sickened with it andrap idly expi red . Boccac io himself saw two hogs

,on th e rags of a person

who had died of the plague, fal l dead , after staggering a li ttl e as i f theyhad been poisoned . Multi tudes of other animal s fell vict im s to theepidem ic in the same way . In France many young and strong personsd ied as soon as they were struck

,as if by lightn ing. The plague spread

o ver England with terrible rapidity. It first broke out in the county ofDorset advanc ing to Devon sh ire and Somersetsh ire, i t reached Bristol,Gloucester, Oxford, and London . The annals of con temporaries recordthe awful fact that throughout the land on ly a tenth of the populat ionremained alive . The contagion spread from England to Norway.

Poland and Russia suffered later in a s im i lar manner,although the

d i sease did no t always man ifest i tself in the same form in every case .

On ly two medical descript ions of the disease have come down to usone by GUY DECHAULIAC

,the other by RAYMOND CHALIN DE VINARIo .

Chauliac not ices the fatal cough ing of blood ; Vinario in addition describes fluxes of blood from the bowels, and bleeding at the nose.What were th e causes which produced so dreadful a plague, i t i s imposs ible to discover with certain ty.

Dr. Hecker,to whose work on the subj ec t 1 I am indebted for

the informat ion concern ing i t, says that m ighty revolution s in theorgan i sm of the earth

,of which we have credible information

,had pre

ceded i t . From China to the Atlan tic the foundations of the earthwere shaken

,throughout As ia and Europe the atmosphere was in com

motion,and endangered

,by its baneful influence

, both vegetable and

an imal l ife .

1 Ep idemics of tbc M iddle Ages , p . 1 3 .

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332 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

power to infl ict diseases, and that these ought to be named after them,

although many there are who,in their theology, lay great stress on th is

supposition , ascribing them rather to God than to nature, wh ich i s butidle talk. We disl ike such nonsen s ical gossip

,as i s not supported by

symptoms,but only by faith

,a th ing wh ich i s not human

,whereon the

gods themselves set no value.”

PHARMACY.

The drug dealers of the M iddle Ages had l ittl e or no relat ion sh ip toour apothecaries and pharmac i s tsThe word apotkeca mean t a store or warehouse, and i ts proprietor was

the apotkecar ius. From the word apotkeca the Ital ians derive their botte’

ga ,

and the French their bou tique, a shop. The th i rteen th and fourteenthcen tury apothecary, therefore, was altogether a differen t person fromour own . It i s probable that the Arabian physici ans about the t ime ofAven z oar

,in the eleven th cen tury

,began to abandon to druggists the

business of compounding their prescripti ons ; the custom would thenhave spread to Spain , Sic ily, and South Italy, where the Saracen

possess ion s lay. Th is explains how so many Arabic terms becameintroduced into chem ical nomenclature

,such as alembic. Person s who

prepared preserves, etc . ,were called confi ctionari i, and they made up

m edic ines, and those who kept medic ine shops were called stationar ii .

The physici ans at Salerno had the inspect ion of the stationes.

Beckmann finds no proof that phys ic ian s at that time sen t their prescriptions to the stationes to be dispensed . He says “ It appearsrather that the confizctz

'

onar i i prepared medic ines from a general set of

prescript ions legally authorized, and that the phys ician s selected fromthese medic ines kept ready for use, such as they though t most properto be adm in i s tered to their patients .

” 1

1 History of Inventions, loc. cit.

CHAPTER VIII .

THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

Faith Heal ing—Charms and Astro logy in Medicine —The Revival of Learn ing.

The Human ists.—Cabalism and Theo logy —The Study of Natural History .

The Sweating Sickness.—Tarantism .—Quarantine .

—High Position of Ox fordUniversity.

FAITH-HEALING.

MEDICINE in mediaeval Christian h istory is s imply the h istory of

miracles of healing wrough t by sain ts or by their rel ics . Bede’s Ecclesi

astical History , for example, i s full of saintly cures and marvels o fheal ing. The s tudy of medical sci ence under such c i rcumstances couldhave had but l i ttle encouragemen t . Doctors were but of secondaryimportance where holy rel ics and saintly personages were everywhere

presen t to cure.In the Catholic Church there are spec ial saints who are invoked fo r

almost every sort of d isease.St. Agatha

,against sore breast.

St. Agnan and St. Tignan, agains t scald head .

St. Anthony, agains t inflammations .

St. Apollon ia, against toothache.St. Avertin

,against lunacy.

St. Benedict,against the s tone

,and also for poison s .

St. Blaise, against the quinsey, bones st icking in the throat, etc.

St. Christopher and St . Mark,against sudden death .

St. Clara, agains t sore eyes .St . Erasmus , against th e col ic.

St. Eutrope,against dropsy.

St . Genow and St. Maur,agains t the gout .

St. Germanus, against children’s diseases .

St . Giles and St. Hyac in th, again s t steri l i ty .

St. Hubert, against hydrophobia.

St. Job and St. Fiage , against syph il i s .St. John, agains t epilepsy and poison.

St. Lawrence, agains t diseases of the back and shoulders .33

334 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

St. Liberius , agains t the stone and fistula.

St. Maine, against the scab.

St. Margaret and St. Edine, agains t danger in ch ild-bed .

St. Martin, against the itch .

St. Marus, against palsy and convuls ions .St . O til ia and St. Jul iana, against sore eyes and the headache .

St. Pernel, against the ague .

St. Petron i lla, St. Apollon ia, and St. Lucy, against the toothache.and St. Genevieve, agains t fevers .

St. Phaire, again st haemorrhoids .St. Quintam ,

against coughs .St. Rochus and St. Sebastian, agains t the plague .

St . Romanus, against demon iacal possess ion .

St. Ruflin , against madness.

St . Sigi smund , again st fevers and agues .St. Valen t in , again st epilepsy.

St. Ven i se , against chloros is .St. Vi tus , again st madness and poisons .St. Wallia and Wallery, against the stone .St. Wolfgang, again st lameness .Pettigrew 1 gives the above l ist, but probably i t m ight be cons iderably

extended.

AND ASTROLOGY.

A curious littl was discovered amongst the MSS. atLoseley, wh ich con tained a Latin grammar, a Treatise on As trology

,

various medical rec ipes and precautions , with forms for making wills .It had probably been a monk

’s manual . The writ ing was the characterof the fifteenth cen tury. Some of the med ical rec ipes and astrological

precaution s are said to be taken from“Master Galien (Galen) , leche,

”

thus For all manner of fevers . Take i i i drops of a woman’s mylke

yt norseth a knave ch ilde, and do it in a hennes egge that ys sedentere

(or s i tting) , and le t bym suppe i t up when the evyl takes bym.

—For ky m

tkat may not slepe. Take and wryte yese wordes into leves of letherIsmael Ismael adj uro te per Angelum M ichaelum u t soporetur homoiste and lay th i s under h i s bed, so yt he wot no t yerof, and use it allway lytell

,and lytell , as he have nede yerto.

”Under the head,

“Here begy netk y e wax ingge of y e mone, and declaretk in dy vers tymes

to let blode, wk icke be gode. In the furste begynynge of the mone i t is

profetable to yche man to be letten blode ; ye ix of the mone, neytherbe (by) nyght me by day, i t i s not good .

” 2

1 Hist. Med. Superstit , PP: 37: 382 Loseley MSS. , p. 263 .

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

THE REVIVAL OF LEARN ING .

POPE NICHOLAS V. ( 1 389—1 45 5) was a man of great intel lectual sympathies . He was no t devoted to any one branch of learning

,but was

a well- informed dillettan te,wandering at will wherever h i s fancy led

him.

”IEneas Sylvius said of him From hi s youth he has been

in i tiated in to al l l iberal arts ; he i s acquain ted with all ph i losophers,h istorians

, poets , cosmographers , and theologian s ; and i s no strangerto c ivi l and canon law

,or even to medic ine.” He was the patron

of scholars, and was equally devoted to eccles iastical and profan el iterature. Al though he was the son of a physician , i t i s not true thathe was ever one h imself

,as has been stated .

1 It i s pleasan t, however,to reflect that th i s pope, whose name i s most in timately associated withthe revival of learn ing, probably imbibed much of the scientific lore ofh i s time wh ich hi s father’s profess ion would encourage

,and that taste

for learn ing and that l iberal spi rit wh ich has always been associatedwith the medical profes si on. The Human i st s— as those who devotedthemselves to the Human i ties, such as philology, rhetoric, poetry, andthe s tudy of the anc ien t classes , were called— found a friendly receptionat the papal court.NICHOLAS OF GUSA was the reform ing Cardinal Bi shop of Brixen

( 1 40 1 Giordano Bruno called him “ the divine Cusanus .” In

physical sc ience he was greatly in advance of h is age , and be un i tedmoral worth with intel lectual gifts of the h ighes t order.POPE PIUS better known in l iterature as [Eneas Sylvius, pope

from 1 458 to 1 464, was also a great friend to the Human i sts , a man o f

great in tellectual power. He stands forth in his tory as “ the figure inwhom the mediaeval and the modern sp iri t are most dist inctly seen tomeet and blend ,

” ere the age of science begins to strangle the age ofsupersti tion . Professor Creigh ton says that Pius II. i s the firs t wri ter“ who con sc iously appl ied a sc ientific concepti on of history to theexplanation and arrangemen t of pass ing even ts .

” 2

LEONARDO DA VINCI ( 1452“ the Faus t of the Renaissance,

excel led no t only as an artist , bu t in all kinds of experimental investi

gation . He was an anatomist,botan i s t

, physiologi st, and chemist.Had he appl ied himself wholly to sci ence, he would have been foremostin that branch to which he devoted h is wonderful energies . He wasone of the greatest and earl iest of natural ph i losophers . He has beendeclared to have been “ the founder of the s tudy of the anatomy ands tructural class ification of plants , the founder, or at least the ch ie f

1 Pastor, History of tke Popes , vol . II. p. 23 .

2 History of tlze Papacy , e tc. , vol. 11.

THE FIFTEENTH CENTUR Y. 337

reviver,of the sc i ence of hydraul ics—[the d iscoverer of] the molecular

composition of water, the motion of waves, and even the undulatorytheory of l igh t and heat . He discovered the constructi on of the eyeand the opt ical laws of vis ion ,

and inven ted the camera obscura . He

investigated the compos ition of explosives and the appl ication of steam

power.” 1

MATTHEW DE GRAD IBUS, of Fiuli,near M ilan , in 1 480 composed

treatises on the anatomy of the human body. He first described theovaries of the female correctly.

GABRIEL DEZERBIS (about of Verona, an em inen t but verboseanatom is t, dissected the human subject, and recogn i sed the olfactorynerves . He men t ioned the obl ique and c ircular muscular fibres of th estomach .

ALEXANDER ACHILLIN'

I ( 1 463 of Bologna, the pupil o f

Mondino, i s known in the h i story of anatomy as the fi rs t who describedthe two bones of the ear (tympanal bones), the malleus and incus . In

1 503 he showed that the tarsus (or ankle and instep bones) were sevenin number

,so painfully and slowly was such a s imple th ing in human

anatomy settled in those times . He was more accurately acquaintedwi th the in test ines than any of h i s predecessors .CORNELIUS AGRIPPA ( 1 486—1 536) was born at Cologne, and was a

profound student of what i s known as “ Occult Ph ilosophy,” a strange

j umble of astrology,alchemy

,cabal ism

,theology

,and the teaching of

the so -called “Hermetic Books .” Thi s sort of thing has of late yearsagain become fashionable under the revived name of Theosophy.

He seems to have been suffic iently harmless ; but as he knew muchmore of physical sci ence than was cons idered consi sten t wi th goodchurchmansh ip in those times , he was persecuted by the monk Catilinet,and was forced to fly from place to place.JOHANN REUCHLIN ( 1 45 5—1 5 2 2 ) was the first great German humani st . His services to learn ing were chiefly in connection with the restorat ion of Hebrew and Greek letters in Germany. He worshipped truthas his god , was in terested in philosophy, especial ly in that of theCabala, in wh ich he sough t a theosophy which should reconc il e sc iencewith rel igion . His sentiments brought him in to confl ict with the Inquis it iou , but by appeal to Rome, after a long and tedious process, thetrial was quashed ; the consequence being that the lovers of learn ingand progress banded themselves together again st the opponen ts of l earning, and assured the progress of the principles of the Renaissance inGermany. Reuchlin was the author of a celebrated work, en t itledD e Verbo M ir ifi co.

1 Ency . Br it , art . Leonardo .

338 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

THE SWEATING SICKNESS.

The disease known as the sweating sickness firs t made its appearancein England in 1 485 , after the battle of Bosworth . It followed in therear of Henry’s v ictorious army

,and spread in a few weeks from Wales

to the metropol is . It i s described by Hecker 1 as being “ a violentinflammatory fever

,which

,after a short rigor

, prostrated th e powers aswith a blow ; and am idst painful oppression at the stomach , headache,and lethargic stupor, suffused the whole body with a fetid perspira

t ion .

Holinshed 2 describes i t thus : “Suddenlie a deadlie burn ing sweatso assailed their bodies and distempered their blood with a most arden theat

,that scarce one amongst an kundred that s ickened did escape with

l ife ; for all in maner as soone as the sweat took them,or with in a short

time after, yeelded the ghost. Two lord mayors and s ix aldermen diedwithin one week . Many who wen t to bed at n ight perfectly wel l weredead on the following morn ing the Victim s

,for the most part, were

the robust and vigorous . One attack gave no securi ty against asecond many were seized even a th ird time .

”The whole of England

was vis ited by th is plague by the end of the year. When i t reachedOxford, professors and students fled in al l direct ions, and the Un iversitywas entirely deserted for Six weeks . Medicine afforded l ittle or no rel ief.Even Thomas Linacre

,the founder of the Royal College of Physic ians

in 1 5 1 8, does not in his writings say a word about the disease. As thedoctors failed to help the people, their common sense had to suffice themin their need . They dec ided to take no violen t m edic ine, but to applymoderate heat take l ittle food and drink, and quietly wait for twentyfour hours— the cris is of the di sorder. “ Those who were attackedduring the day , in order to avoid any chill

,immediately went to bed

'

intheir clothes and those who s ickened by n ight did no t ri se from theirbeds in the morn ing ; while all carefully avoided exposing to the aireven a hand or foot .” 5

The five years preceding the outbreak of this ep idemic had beenunusually wet

,and inundations had been frequent . It i s probable

that th is was one of the causes which con tributed to the unhealthycondition of the atmosphere. The disease partook of th e characterof rheumatic fever

,with great disorder of the nervous system .

‘1 In

addi tion to the profuse and inj urious persp iration , oppressed resp iration ,extreme anxiety

,nausea

,and vom i t ing, indicating that the funct ions of

the eighth pair of nerves were disturb ed, were th e general symptoms of

1 Hist. Ep idem ics , p. 1 8 1 .

2 Clzron icles, vol . iii . p . 482 .

5 Hecker’s Ep idemics , p. 186.

4 Ibid.

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340 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

Toulouse , mathematics but Oxford as a true well of wisdom doth goebeyond them in all these. The bright beams of its wisdom spread overthe whole world.

”

The practice of medic ine became daily more honourable .

Hol inshed says, 1 in his descriptioh of the people in the Commonwealtkof England, that Who soeur studieth the lawes of the realme

,who so

abideth in the vniuersitie giu ing his mind to h is booke, or, professeth

physicke and the liberall sc i ences — and can liue without manuel llabour, and thereto is able and will

,

beare the port, charge and countenance of a gentleman, he shal l for mon i e haue a cote and armesbestowed vpon him by heralds — and reputed for

' a gentlema‘

n euer

after.”

Medic ine was a flourishing study at Cambridge, especially at MertonCollege, In the fourteenth, fifteen th , and s ixteen th centuries .2

The\

origin of syphili s in EuiOpe has been the subj ec t'

of much'

l earned discussion . It appeared with such violence and'

frequencyin the year 1 490 in France, Italy, and Spain, that the scourge wascons idered to have only then been in troduced into Europe fromAmerica .

“ Its enormous prevalence In modern t imes,says Dr. Creighton

,

3

“ dates,without doubt

,fromthe European l ibert in ism of th e latter

part of th e fifteen th cen tury . It i s pretty certain that syph i l i shad existed in Europe from anc ien t t imes . What appeared with somuch virulence and such wide distribution in 1 490 was s imply a re

developmen t of the malady on a scale h itherto unknown.

1 Ck ron icles of England, etc. ,vol . 1. p . 273 .

2 Mullinger’s Un iv. Cambr idge, . p . 1 68 .

5 Art . Patho logy, ” Ency . Br i t. , xviii . p. 404.

CHAPTER IX .

MED ICINE IN ANCIENT MEXICO AND PERU .

Hospitals in Mex ico —Anatomy and Human Sacrifices —M idwive s as SpiritualMothers —Circumcision .

—Peru .—D iscovery of Cinchona Bark.

LITTLE or noth ing i s known of the anc ien t h i story of Mexico and

Peru . M exico,anc i en tly called Anahuac, was probably conquered by

the Aztecs,who founded the c i ty of Mexico about 1 3 2 5 . It was dis

covered in 1 5 1 7 . Peru was long governed by the Incas, sai d to be descended from Manco Capac , who ruled in the eleventh century. It wasexplored and conquered by Pizarro, 1 5 24

- 1 5 3 3 .

For the purposes of th is work the history of these coun tri es dates fromthe t ime of their discovery

,as the Span iards in their bl ind fanatic i sm

destroyed most of their l iterature. Don Juan de Zumarraga was one

of the darkeners of human intell igence ; he dil igen tly collected all theMexican manuscripts

,espec ially from Te z cuco , the l iterary cap i tal of

the Mexican empire, and burned them in one great bonfire in themarket-place of Tlatelolco .

1

Las Casas says that there were public hosp itals in the cit ies of M exico ,Tlascala, and Cholula, expressly endowed for the rel ief of the sick .

As surgeons attended the Mexican arm i es,It IS evident that they had

attained some skill in medic ine and surgery. They used the temaz calli,

or vapour-bath , pract i sed bleeding, and knew the medic inal propertiesof many herbs . They professed to have learned this wisdom from theirancestors

,the Tultecas

,whose knowledge of chem istry they l ikewise

extolled . As human sacrifices were of daily occurrence in the c i ty ofMexico, they must have acqu ired some knowledge of anatomy, whichwould ass ist them in the pract ice o f surgery .

2

M idwives were treated by the anc i en t M exican s with great deference .

They were termed “ sp iritual mothers,”and were believed to be under

the immediate inspiration of the god Tezcatl ipoca. Aglio says thatthe treatment of lying-in women was very s im i lar to that among theJews . 3

1 Vick ers’M arty rdoms of Li teratu re, p . 169 .

2 Aglio’

s A n tiqu ities of M ex ico, vo l . viii . p . 234.

5 Ibid. , vol . vi . p . 526.

342 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

The ancien t Mexicans pract ised c ircumc i sion,and . venerated the

Tequepatl, or fl in t kn i fe,with which the r ite was performed .

1

Among the many vegetable products Wt h America introduced toEurope were maize, potatoes, chocolate, tobacco, ipecacuanha, and

Peruvian bark,from which we obtain quin ine. The discovery of th is

valuable medic ine was due to the Jesuit m i ss ionaries . The secondwife of the Viceroy

,the Count of Chinchon, accompan ied him to Peru .

In 1 62 8 she was attacked by a tertian fever. Her physic ian was

unable to cure her. At about the same time an Indian of Uritusinga,

n ear Loxa,in the government of Quito

,had given some fever-curing

bark to a Jesu it m i s sionary. He sen t some of it to Torres Vasquez,

who was rector of the Jesui t College at Lima and confessor to theviceroy . Torres Vasquez cured the vice-queen by admin i ster ing dosesof the bark . The remedy was long known as Coun tess’s Barkand Jesuit’s Bark

,and Linnaeus gave the name Clzinckona [after the

Viceroy Ch inchon] to the genus of plan ts which produces i t .Various spec ies of th is prec ious tree are found throughout theeastern cordillera of the Andes for a distance of m i les . We oweguaiacum

,sarsaparilla, sassafras, logwood , j alap, seneka, serpen taria,

and many other valuable drugs to the same part of the world .

Frez ier, in his voyage to the South Sea and along the coasts of Chil iand Peru in the years 1 7 1 2 , 1 7 1 3 , and 1 7 1 4, says concern ing LimaThere is an herb called Carapullo, wh ich grows l ike a tuft of grass ,

and yields an ear,the decotion of wh ich makes such as drink it

delirious for some days . The Indians make use of i t to discover thenatural disposit ion of their ch ildren . All the time when i t has itsoperat ion, they place by them the tools of all such trades as theymay follow—as by a maiden, a spindle, wool, sc i ssors, cloth , kitchenfurn i ture

,etc . ; and by a youth , accoutremen ts for a horse, awl s ,

hammers,etc . and that tool they take most fancy to in their deli rium ,

i s a certain indication of the trade they are fi ttest for, as I was assuredby a French surgeon, who was an eye-witness to th is veri ty.

”

1 Agl io’s Antiqu ities of M ex ico, vol. vi . p. 272 .

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CHAPTER I.

THE S IXTEENTH CENTURY.

Dawn o f Modern Science .—~The Reformation of Medicine.

—Paracelsus —Thefl ? “ M M “ ,

Sceptics.—The Pro testantisi'rTT

OfT

Smence .—Influenz a.

—Legal Recogn ition o f

Medicine in England —The Barber-Surgeons.—The Sweating Sickness —Originof the Royal Co l lege of Physicians of London .

“ Merry Andrew .—Origin o f

St . Bartho lomew’s Hosp ital . —The

.Great

v N

Continental Anatom ists. —Vesal ius.—Sew etus .—

,Bag i.—Tnfluence of the Refor

mation .

l The I Rosicrucians .—Touching for the Evil .—Vivisection o f Human

Be ings —QLigmof Legal Medicine .

fl fl —M ‘

THE discovery of America in 1 492 fi tly typifies the sti l l grander mentalworld about to disclose its wonders to the newly l iberated m inds ofsc ien t ific investigators . The revolt agains t authority in religion was

paralleled by a sci entific Protestan tism the m ind of man,long held in

bondage to absurd and groundless fanc ies,s truggled to set i tself free,

to invest igate , to tes t and explore on i ts accoun t, instead of acceptingfor gran ted doctrines elaborated in the ph ilosopher

’s brains .The revolt of m edic ine against the authority of Galen may be com

pared to the revol t against Ari s totle in philosophy . The authority ofthe Arabian schools was overthrown

,the princ iples of Hippocrates

were in the ascendant . The era of the Renaissance was not more anera of Protestant ism than an age of Sceptic ism. Faith had becomecreduli ty

,and credul ity had sunk into imbec il ity. The power of the

prin t ing press, the spread of human ism,th e beg inn ing of sc ient ific

inquiry, the discovery of the splendid treasure of class ic l iterature, longburied beneath th e dust of dark and barbarous ages, the widen ing ofthe mental horizon as the world doubled itself before the prows of thedi scoverers’ vessels— all these factors brough t about the new bi rth ofSc ience . It was the golden age of the medical sc iences . Anatomyand surgery awoke

,from their long slumber

,and Europe en tered upon

a period of sc ient ific investigation such as the world had never knownbefore. M edic in e form ed an alliance with what are called i ts

'

accessorysc iences ; chemi stry l iberated from slavery to the alchem i st, botanyset free from the delus ions of the doctrine of “ s ignatures ,” pharmacyelevated into a branch of m edical sc i ence from the kitchen and the

345

3 46 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

c onfectioner’s s tore -room, len t the ir aid, in conj unct ion with thehydraul ics and pneumatics of the natural philosopher, to advance i t.A ll these things mean t revolt agains t the o ld order

,Protestan tism

against the outworn creeds of Greek and Arabian dogmatists . Theym ean t more than this. Ere the ground could be cleared for the new

p alace of physical science which the glorious s ixteen th cen tury was.to rear, scep tic i sm must

,

lend its withering and desolating aid ; foulundergrowths must be destroyed ; evil germs, bred of the stagnan tmarshes of the dark ages

,must peri sh under the wholesome, i f ruthless ,

disinfectan ts of reason and unbel ief. There was a stern need of thi s .The demon theory of disease had lasted from primeval ages up to th isdawn of the s ixteen th cen tury. From glacial times, through savageages and religion s

,and often in beauti fully poetic fai ths, the disease

demon held its own . Even in the hallowed and renovating pages of the

gospels the disease-demon stalks unchallenged save by the thaumatur

g is t. Now he i s to be ban ished from th e m ind of c ivi l ized man forever ; and to reach th i s goal atheism was needed . The s ixteen th cen

tury,so far as medic ine and physical sc ience are concerned

,Opens with

the Cabalist Theosophis ts , Trithemius, Cornel ius Agrippa, Cardan ,and their followers . Giordano Bruno, the aggress ive atheist and martyrof scl ence, Montaigne, the philosoph ic sceptic , Charron , the opponentof all rel igion

,and Rabelais, the witty scoffer at the gross corruptions of

orthodoxy,helped to clear the ground for the work of the sc ientists .

Meanwhile Paracelsus, from hi s chair at Basel Un iversity,having made

an au to—da—fe of anc ien t and dogmatic m edicine, lays the foundations tone of the medic ine of the modern era.An army of savants begins to work for sc ience as well as l i terature .

Linacre has in troduced Italian Human i sm to the doctors of EnglandCaius bus ies h imself with the Greek and Latin texts of the greatwriters on medic ine ; Gesner, the German Pliny, and Aldrovandi promote the study of natural h is tory. Everywhere men are busy with thebeginn ings of elec trici ty, chemis try, m ineralogy, botany, and the oth ersc iences which are to be the handmaiden s of m edic ine. One clearvoice i s h eard from Basel . It i s that of Paracelsus, exhum ing physicalsc ience : “ You Italy

,you Dalmat ia

,you Sarmatia, Athens, Greece,

Arabia,

and Israel,follow me. Come out of the n ight of the

m indThe teacher of Paracelsus, who exerc i sed the greatest influence upon

h is -men tal development, was the celebrated TRITHEM IUS, the abbot ofthe Spanheim Benedict ines (about who was so famous a studentof chem i s try and the occult ph ilosophy that scholars and m ighty nobleswen t on p i lgrimages and princes sen t ambassadors , to his monastery to

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

pract ice is what forms a phys ic ian . For al l reading is a footstool to

pract ice, and a mere feather broom . He who meditates discoverssometh ing.

”And so he held converse with the common folk

,and

talked and drank with boors, shepherds, Jews, gyps ies , and tramps,gain ing odd scraps of knowledge wherever h e could. He had no

books . His only volume was Nature, whom he interrogated at firsthand . He would rather learn medic ine and surgery from an oldcountry nurse than from an un ivers i ty lecturer. If there was one

th ing wh ich he detested more than another,i t was the princ ipl e of

authority. He ben t h i s head to no man .

In the year 1 5 2 5 Paracelsus went to Basel , where he was fortunate incuring Froben

,the great prin ter, by his laudanum,

when he had the

gout. Froben was the friend of Erasmus, fwho was associated with

(Ecolampadius, and soon after, upon the recommendation o f (Ecolam

padius, he was appoin ted by the c i ty magnates a professor of physics,medic ine, and surgery

,with a considerable salary ; at the same time

they made him c ity physic ian , to the duties of which ofli ce he requestedmight be added inspector of drug shops . This examination made thedruggists hi s bitterest enem i es

,as he detected their fraudulent prac t ices

they combined to set the other doctors of the c i ty again st him ,and as

these were exceedingly j ealous .of his skill and success , poor Paracelsusfound h imself in a hornet’s nest . We find him a professor at BaselUn iversi ty in 1 5 26. He has become famous as a physic ian , the medic ines wh ich he has discovered hehas successful ly used in h i s pract icehe was now in the eyes of hi s patien ts at leas t,

The wondrous Paracelsus, l ife’s dispenser ,Fate’s comm issary, ido l of the schoo ls and courts .

He began his lectures at Basel by l igh ting some sulphur in a chafingdish

,and burn ing the books of his great predecessors in the medical

art, Avicenna, Galen , and others, saying Sic vos ardebitis in

gehennz’

i .

” He boasted that h e had read no books for ten years,though he protested that h is shoe-buckles were more learned than theauthors whose works he had burned.

It must have been a wonderful spectacl e when th is new teacher tookhis place before h i s pupi ls . The benches occupied h i therto by a dozenor two of students were crowded wi th an eager audience anxious for thenew learn ing. Li terature had been exhumed many years before, and

now i t was the turn of Sc i ence Leaving the morbid seclus ion of theCloisters

,men had given up dream ing for inquiry, and baseless vis ion s

for the acquisit ion of facts . This was the childhood of our sc i ence, andi ts days were ‘

bright with the poetry of youth . It i s a sight to arouse

THE SIXTEEN TH CEN TUR Y.

o ur enthusiasm to see in the early dawn of our modern sc i ence th i s man

s tanding up alone to pit himself agains t the whole sc ient ific authority ofhi s day . He rises from the cruc ibles and fires where hi s predecessorshad been vainly seeking for gold and s ilver

,ever and again pretending

to have found them,and always going empty-handed to a deluded

world.

'

Henceforth , he says, hi s alchemy shall serve a nobler purposethan gold seeking ; i t shall aid in the heal ing o f disease. He castsas ide the sacred books of medic ine wh ich have been handed downt he ages by h is predecessors destroying them

,he declares , with an

earnestness which is less t inged by arrogance than by convict ion , thatt hese men had been blind guides

,that he alone has the c lue of the

m aze, and he forsakes al l to follow Truth, though she lead him to death .

In hi s generous impulse to serve mankind he has spoken harshly of hi sO pponen ts . They would no t have helped him ,

any way. He was.above them ; they could no t understand him

,so they hated him

,and he

s corned them. As too often happens to such heroes , he forgot thel ove of h is neighbour in hi s love for mankind .

Paracelsus found h i s pup ils holding fast by the teach ings of thes choo l of Salerno, and there seems no ground for supposing that theheal ing art had made the sl ightest progress in Europe from the foundat ion of that school in 1 1 50 , except perhaps in pharmacy. On the daythat Paracelsus stood up before h is audience at Basel Un iversi ty, hec ried, Away with IEtius

, Oribas ius, Galen, Rhasis, Serap ion, Avicenna,Averroes, and the other blocks l ” He had diplomas sent him fromG ermany, France, and Italy, and a letter from Erasmus .In 1 5 2 8 we find him at Colmar, in Alsatia . He has been driven by

priests and doctors from Basel .side of some r ich cleric who was ill .

h i s services gratuitously) , he sued the priest ; but the j udge refused to interfere, andParacelsus used strong language to him

,and had to fly to escape

pun ishmen t. We must no t be too hard upon th e canon. PMt reated with profound respect in those days, and gl eat patient s l iked to ée cured with del iberati on and some ceremon ial .

m Were passed in a cell inthe hospital of Salzburg

, in the year 1 54 1 , wheri he died at the age offorty-eigh t

,W e. Recen t investigations in contemporary records have proved that h e had been attacked by the servants ofc ertain physic ians who were his j ealous enemi es, and that in con sequenceo f a fal l he sustained a fracture of the skull, which proved fatal in afew days .

A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Within a period of t ime covering fifteen years he had written some1 06 treatises on medicine

,alchemy

,natural h istory and philosophy,

magic,and other subj ects . He desp i sed Un ivers i ty learn ing.

“The

book of Nature,

” he declared,

“ was that wh ich the physician shouldread

,and to do so he must walk over i ts leaves .” His l ibrary con

s isted of a Bible,St. Jerome on the Gospels, a volume on medic ine

,

and seven manuscripts . His epi taph tells but a part of hi s honours .Here l ies Phil ippus Paracelsus, the famous doctor of medicine, who,by h i s wonderful art, cured bad wounds, lepra, gout , dropsy, and otherincurable diseases , and to hi s own honour d ivided h i s possessionsamong the poor .

”

but feebly expresses what medic ine owes to him . He discovered thew In place of the elaborateconcoct ion s and fi lthy messes wh o were given as medic ines in h ist ime, he taught doctors to give tinctures and quin tessences of drugs .He inven ted laudanum,

and ant ic ipated our discovery of transfusion ofblood. He opposed the barbarous method of reduc ing dislocationsand dealing with fractures

,introduced the use of mercury in the treat

W nd came verya near to theEISCOVCHCSW e:

th e name of Darwin i sm . He taugh t that chem i s try was to be em

ploy'

é d,_

i ib-

tT

ifi—rri ék

”

i

"

ng—g

'

old , but for the preparation of medic ines ; andhe in troduced in to pract ice m ineral remedies, including m ineral baths,i ron , sulphur, antimony, arsen ic, gold, tin

,lead

, etc .

’

Amongst thevegetable rem edies employed by him was arn ica.

Paracelsus used chem ical princ iples, says Sprengel, for the explanation of particular diseases . Mos t or all d iseases, according to him,

arise from the effervescence of salts,from the combustion of sulphur, or

from the coagulation of mercury.

” 1

His aetiology attributed diseases to five causes 1 . The Ens astrale

(a certain power of the stars) ; th is means no more than foul air. 2 .

The Ens veneni (power of poison), aris ing from errors of assim ilationand digestion . 3 . The Bus naturale (power of nature or of the body)diatheses. 4 . Bus sp irituale (power of the spirit) the disorders whicharise from perverted ideas . 5 . Bu s D ei (power of God) the inj uriesor causes of d isease predetermined by God .

2

When Paracelsus came upon th e scen e of medical history, alchemyhad j ust begun to lose its credit. The true studen ts of sc ience haddiscovered its deceptions and had abandoned i t to the quacks . It has

often happen ed, and happens sti ll, that certain pretended sc iences, whencast aside as worthless, are taken from their h iding-places and made to

1 Whewel l, Hi st . of Scien tzfi c Ideas , vol . II. p . 1 77 .

2 Baas, Hist. M ed. , p . 386.

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3 52 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE .

sc i en t ific sp ir i t by h is m inute and cri tical observation upon the curiousfacts connected with human nature .

FRANCO IS RABELAIS (c. 1 490—1 553 ) en tered the facul ty of medic ine

a t Montpell ier.EUR ICUS CORDUS ( 1 486 who studied medic ine at Erfurt

,is

famous for the following adm irable ep igram

Three faces w ears the doctor when first sought ,An ange l’s—and a God

’s, the cure half wrought

But, when that cure complete, he seeks his fee,The Devil looks then less terrible than he .

”

His son,VALERIUS CORDUS ( 1 5 1 5 was the discoverer Of

sulphuric ether.ANTONIO BENIVIENI (c. a phys ic ian of Florence, was the

m orn ing star of a new era for surgery, when he ins isted that the corn

p ilations of the anc i ents and Arabians ought to be given up for theobservation of nature.

1 Thus, before the t im e of Ambroise Paré

( 1 509 the way for the recept ion of the true modern surgery was

prepared in Italy by the efforts of those who strove to induce educatedand talented men to devote their attent ion to th i s branch of the heal ingart .

INFLUENZA.

A violen t and extens ive catarrhal fever prevailed in France and

Europe generally in 1 5 1 0. Hecker cons iders there i s evi dence that i thad i ts origin in the remotes t “parts of the East.2 His description ofth is influenza is as follows : “ The catarrhal symptoms, wh ich, on theappearance of disorders of th i s k ind, usually form the ir commencemen t,seem to have been quite thrown into the background by those of v iolen trheumat ism and inflammation . The pat ient was firs t s eized withgiddiness and severe headache then came on a shooting pain throughthe shoulders and extending to the thighs . The loins, too, were affectedwith in tolerably painful dartings, during which an inflammatory fevers et in with delirium and violent excitement. In some the parotidglands became inflamed

,and even the digestive organs part ic ipated

in the deep- rooted malady ; for those affected had, together with con

stan t oppress ion at the stomach, a great loath ing for all an imal food ,and a disl ike even of wine . Among the poor as well as the rich manydied

,and some quite suddenly, of th is s trange disease, in the treatmen t

o f which the physic ians shortened l ife not a littl e by their purgativetreatmen t and phlebotomy, seeking an excuse for their ignorance in

1 D e abditis rerum cansis, F lorent. , 1 507.

2 Epidemics , p. 2 18 .

THE SIXTEENTH CENTUR Y.

the influence of the con stellations,and alleging that astral diseases were

beyond the reach of human art .”

LEGAL RECOGN ITION OF MEDICAL PRACTITIONEW M

The first Act of Parl iamen t dealing with the medical profession inEngland was passed in the year 1 5 1 1 , and i s enti tled AN ACT FOR

THE APPO INTING OF PHYS ICIANS AND SURGEONS,

” the preamble ofwhich run s as follows

Forasmuch as the sc ience and cunn ing of Physick and Surgery (tothe perfect knowledge of which be requis i te both great learn ing and

ripe experience) is daily with in th is realm exerc i sed by a great multitudeof ignoran t person s, of whom the greater part have no manner ofinsight in the same, nor in any other kind of learn ing some also canread no letters on the book

,so far forth that common artificers, as

sm iths, weavers, and women , boldly and accustomably take upon themgreat cures

,and things of great difficulty

,in the which they partly use

sorcery and witchcraft, partly apply such medic ines un to the disease as

be very noxious,and nothing meet therefore, to the high displeasure of

God,great infamy to the faculty

,and the grievous hurt, damage, and

destruction of many of the king’s l iege people most espec ially of themthat cannot discern the uncunn ing from the cunn ing. Be it therefore

(to the surety and comfort of all manner of people) by the authori tyof th i s presen t Parl iamen t enacted —That no person within the c i tyof London

,nor within seven m iles of the same, take upon him to

exerc ise and occupy as a Physic ian or Surgeon except he be firstexam ined , approved, and admi tted by the Bishop of London, or by

the Dean of St. Paul’s,for the time being

,call ing to him 01 them four

Doctors of Physic,and for Surgeons, other expert persons in that

faculty ; and for the first exam ination such as they Shall th ink con

venient,and afterwards alway four of them that have been so ap

proved .

1

“That no person out of the said c i ty and prec inc t of seven m i les of

the same,except he have been (as is aforesaid) approved in the same,

take upon him to exerc ise and occupy as a Physic ian or Surgeon , in any

diocese within th i s realm but if he be first exam ined and approved bythe Bishop of the same diocese, or, he being out of the diocese, by hisvicar-general either of them cal l ing to them such expert persons in thesaid faculties

,as their d iscretion shal l th ink conven i en t. 2

13 Henry VIII. , 0. 9 .

2 D r. Goodal l’s History of tbc College of Pky s icians .

A A

A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

THE BARBER-SURGEONS .

The occupation of shaving and trimm ing beards was anci ently considered a profession, and was un i ted to that of surgery. In the reignof Louis XIV. of France the hairdressers were formally separatedfrom the Barber-Surgeons, who were incorporated as a distinct medicalbody.

A London Company of Barbers was formed in 1 308, and the firstyear of th e reign of Edward IV. ( 1 462) the barbers were incorporatedby a charter wh ich was confirmed by many succeeding monarchs . In

1 540 the Company of Barbers, and those who prac t ised purely asSurgeon s, were un i ted as “ th e commonalty of Barbers and Surgeonsof London .

”It was enacted (3 2 Hen . VIII. ) that

' “No personusing any shaving or barbery in London shal l occupy any surgery,lett ing of blood

,or other matter

,except only drawing of teeth .

”The

Surgeon s’ corporation in London two years later peti ti oned Parl iamentto be exempted from bearing arm s and serving on jurIes, so that theym ight be free to attend to their prac tice .

1 Their petit ion was granted,and all medical men are in the enj oyment of these privileges at the

present t ime .

An Act of Parliamen t was passed in 1 540 allowing the Un itedCompan ies of Barbers and Surgeons to have yearly four bodies ofcrim inals for purposes of dissection. Thi s i s supposed to have beenthe first legislative enactmen t passed in any country for promoting thestudy of anatomy.

2

Surgery in England in the reign of HenryVIII. was in a deplorablecondition . Thomas Gale thu s describes the surgeon s of the time

“ I remember when I was in the wars at Montreuil,in the time of

that most famous prince, Henry VIII.,there was a great rabblement

there that took upon them to be surgeon s . Some were sow—gelders,and some horse-gelders , with t inkers and cobblers. Thi s noble sec td id such great cures that they got themselves a perpetual name ; forl ike as Thessalus’ sect were called Thessalonians

,so was th is noble

rabblement, for their notorious cures,called dog- leeches ; for in two

dressings they did commonly make their cures whole and sound forever

,so that they felt neither heat nor cold

,nor no manner of pain

after. But when the Duke of Norfolk, who was then general, under

stood how the people did die, and that of small wounds , he sent for me

and certain other surgeons,commanding us to make search how these

men came to their death, whether it were by the grievousness of their

1 Aubrey , Hist . Eng . , vol. ii . p . 535.

2 Ibid.

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3 59 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

don,m inding onely their owne lucres

,and nothing the profi t or ease of

th e diseased or patient, have sued, troubled , and vexed divers honest

persons, as well m en as women,whom God hath endueed with the

knowledge of the nature,kind and Operation of certain herbs, roots

and waters,and the using and m ini ster ing of them , to such as have been

pained with custumable diseases , as women’s breasts'

being sore, a pinand the web in the eye , uncomes of the hands

,scaldings

,burn ings

,sore

mouths,the stone

,stranguary, saucelin, and morphew, and such other

l ike diseases. And yet the said person s have no t taken any

thing for their pains or cunn ing. In con s iderat ion whereof,

and for the ease,comfort

,succour

,help, rel ief, and health of the

King’s poor subj ects, inhab i tants of th i s h i s realm,now pained or

d i seased, or that hereafter shall be pained or diseased, Be it or'

dained,

e tc ., that at all t ime from henceforth i t shall be lawful to every person

being the King’s subj ect,having knowledge and experience of the

nature of herbs, roots and waters, etc. ,to us e and m in i ster according

to their cunning,experience, and knowledge the aforesaid

statute or any other Act n otwithstanding.

THE SWEATING SICKNESS.

In 1 5 1 7 England was vis i ted by a third attack of the Sweating Sickness . Public bus iness was suspended

,the King moved his court from

place to place, and a pan ic seized the people . Erasmus,wri ting to

Wo lsey’s physic ian ,

says : I am frequently aston i shed and gri eved toth ink how i t i s that England has been now for so many years troubledby a continual pestilence, espec ially by a deadly sweat, wh ich appearsin a great measure to be peculiar to your coun try. I have read how ac i ty was once del ivered from a plague by a change in the houses, madeat the suggest ion of a philosopher.

‘

I am incl ined to th ink that this alsomust be the del iverance for England.

” He proceeds to suggest thatbetter ventilation i s necessary for dwell ings ; he remarks that the glasswindows admi t light

,but no t air that such air as does enter comes in

as draughts,through holes and corners full of pestilen t ial emanat ions .

The floors laid with clay and covered with rushes,the bottom layer of

wh ich was unchanged somet imes for twen ty years, harboured expector

a tions,vom i t ings, filth , and all sorts of abominations .

He advises that the use of rushes Should be given up, that the roomsshould be so built as to be exposed to the l igh t and fre sh air on two orthree Sides

,and that the windows be so con structed as to be easily

Opened or c losed. He declares that at one t ime, i f he ever en tered aroom wh ich had not been occupied for some months, he was sure to

THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY. 357

take a fever. He suggests that the people Should eat less, espec ially ofsalt meats, and that proper offi cers be appointed to keep the streetsand suburbs in better order. Erasmus was thus our first san itaryreformer.Aubrey gives 1 a selection of the favourite prescript ions in use at thi s

period agains t the Sweating SicknessTake endive, sowthistle, marygold, m

’oney and n ightshade, threehandfuls of all, and seethe them In conduit water

,from a quart to a pint,

then strain i t into a fair vessel,then delay i t with a li ttle sugar to put

away the tartness, and then drink it when the sweat taketh you , and

keep you warm; and by the grace of God ye shall be whole.“ Take half an handful of rew

,called herbe grace

,an handful

marygold, half an handful featherfew,a handful sorrel

,a handful burn et,

and half a handful dragons,the top in summer, the root in win ter wash

them in runn ing water,and put them in an earthen pot with a pottle of

runn ing water, and let them s eethe soberly to n igh the half be con sumed ,and then draw aback the pot to i t be almost cold , and then s train i tinto a fairg lass and keep it close, and use thereof morn and even , andwhen n eed is often er and i f i t be bitter

,delay it wi th sugar candy

and i f i t be taken afore the pimples break forth,there i s no doubt but

with the grace of Jesu it shall amend any man,woman or child .

”

“Another very true medic ine —For to say every’

day at seven partsof your body, seven paternosters

,and seven Ave Marias, with one

Credo at the last . Ye shal begyn at the ryght syde, under the ryght

ere, saying the ‘

paternoster qu i es in ccelis,sanctzfi cetur nomen tuum,

’

with a cross made there with your thumb,and so say the paternoster

full complete, and one Ave Maria, and then under the left ere, and thenunder the left armhole

, and then under the left the [thigh P] hole, andthen the last at th e heart

,with one paternoster, Ave Maria, with one

Credo and th ese thus said daily, with the grace of God is there nomanner drede bym .

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYS ICIANS OF LONDON ESTABLISHED.

The Royal College of Physic ians of London was founded by HenryVIII. for the repression of irregular and un learned medical practice.The Letters Patent consti tuting the College were dated 2 3rd Sep

tember, 1 5 1 8 . The king was moved to this by the example of s im ilarinsti tutions in I taly and elsewhere

,by the sol ic itations of Thomas

Linacre,one of his own physic ian s, and by the advice and recom

mendation of Cardinal Wolsey. Six phys ic ians are named in the

1 Hist. Eng. , vol . II. p. 296.

358 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

Letters Patent as c onstituting the College, viz. , John Chambre , ThomasLinacre, and Ferdinand de Victoria, the king

’s physic ians and NicholasHalsewell

, John Franc i s, and Robert Yaxlery, phys ic ians ,“and al l men

of the sam e faculty,of and in London , and with in seven m i les thereof,

are incorp orated as one body and perpetual commun i ty or college .

” 1

DR. CHAMBRE was a priest before he became a physic ian . He waseducated at Oxford

,s tudied at Padua

,where he graduated in physic.

DR . THOMAS LINACRE was a distinguished scholar and phys ic ian,who was born A.D . 1 460. In 1 484 he was elected a fellow of AllSouls’, Oxford ; t he next year he wen t t o Bologna

,where he studied

under Pulitian he then wen t to Florence, where he became acquaintedwith Lorenzo the Great from Florence, he went to Rome, and thenceto Ven ice and Padua

,wh ich at that time was the most celebrated school

of physic in the world, and took the degree of Doctor of Medic ine withthe highest applause. Linacre founded ( 1 5 24) two Physic Lectures atOxford and one at Cambridge

,but they were no t performed till d ivers

years after Linacre’s death,on accoun t of the troubles concern ing re

ligion .

” 2

DR . ANDREW BORDE, Carthusian monk , physic ian, wit and buffoon ,

l ived in the reign of Henry VIII. He took h i s physic ian’s degree at

Montpellier in 1 53 2 , and afterwards became one of the court physic ianson h is return t o England. He was a learned

,gen ial

,and sensibl e

doctor, but po ssessed a rambling head and an incon stan t m ind,” as

An thony 2 Wood says . He wrote voluminously. His ch i ef works ,the Breviary of H

'

ealtk,Tbc D ietary of Healtlz, and Tke Book of tke

Introduction to Know ledge, have been edited by Dr. F. J . Furnivall, and

published for t he Early English Text Society in a volume which i s oneo f the most en tertain ing works on medic ine ever written . Borde earnedh is ti tle of “ M erry Andrew (a name which has become a householdword) from attending fairs and revels, and conducting himself with thebuffoonery wh ich ill became so learned a man . Do ubtle ss

,however, it

endeared him to h is cou ntrymen of th e period . His medical works arefull of prescript ions for various complain ts, and many of them areexceedingly valuable and fully equal to the best treatmen t followednow.

THOMAS VICARY was probably born between 1 490 and 1 500 , was no ta trained surgeon

,but a meane pract iser

” at Maidstone. In 1 5 25 hewas j un ior of the three Wardens of th e Barbers’ or Barber-Surgeons’

Company in London . In 1 5 28 he was Upper or First Warden of the

1 Munk,Roll of tke Roy al College of P/zy sicians of London , p . 1 .

2 Wood,Hist . Ox ford, vol. ii . p . 862 .

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360 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

knigh ted by Henry,and i s immortal ised in Shakspeare

’s play of Henry

GEORGE OWEN ,M .D . (died was physic ian to Henry VIII.

,

Edward VI.,and Queen Mary. It has been said that Edward VI. was

brought into the world by Dr. Owen, who performed the Caesarianoperation on his mother.JOHN CAIUS , M .D . ( 1 5 1 0 en tered Gonville Hall

, Cambridge,1 5 29 . He at first studied

'

divin ity, but in 1 5 39 went to Padua to studymedic ine under Mon tanus . Whils t at Padua

, Caius lodged in thesame house with the anatom i st Vesal ius

,devoting no less atten t ion

to anatomy than h i s compan i on . He t ook the degree of doctor ofmedic ine at Padua. He was publ ic professor of Greek in that Uni

versi ty in 1 543 he vis ited all the great l ibraries of Italy, collectingMSS.

,with the view of giving correct editions of the works of Galen

and Celsus . In 1 55 2 he was residing in London, and publ ished an

accoun t of the Sweat ing Sickness which prevailed in 1 55 1 . He was

physician to Edward VI. ,Mary

,and Eli zabeth . Dr. Caius en larged

and augmen ted the resources of the college at Cambridge , at which hehad been educated ; and he rendered em inen t service to the Collegeof Physic ians by defending its rights against the i llegal practices Of thesurgeons

,who in terfered with the proper functions o f the phys ic ians .

His munificent foundation at Cambridge is a c laim on th e grati tude ofthe Engl ish nation

,and ensures him a h igh place for ever in _ the

annals of our un ivers ities. The vis i tor to Cambridge will not fail toremember that i t was he who bui lt the three s ingular gates at h iscollege

,inscribed to Hum i l i ty, t o Virtue and Wisdom

,and to Honour.

But he has another lasting claim to respect on the grounds that he firstin troduced the study of pract ical anatomy in to th is country, and was

the first publ icly to teach i t, which he did in the hall of the BarberSurgeons

,shortly after h is return from Italy. Dr. Caius was a profound

class ical scholar, and left numerous works on the Greek and Latinmedical authors . As a natural ist

,l ingui st

,cri t ic

,and an tiquary, he was

no less distingu i shed than as a phys ic ian.

EDWARD WOTTON,M .D . (died seems to have been the firs t

Engl ish physician who appl ied h imself spec ially to the study of naturalhi story. He made h im self famous by h is work on th is subj ect, enti tledD e D zfi izrenti is An imaliam.

DR. GEYNES (died 1 563 ) was c i ted before the College of Physic iansfor impugn ing the authority of Galen ; he recanted and humblyacknowledged h is heresy, and was duly pardoned. The c ircumstanceis a curious i l lustrat ion of the sentimen ts of the times . 1

1 Munk’s Roll of tlze Roy al College, etc. p. 62 .

THE SIXTEENTH CEN TUR Y. 36 s

SIMON LUDFORD was originally a friar who became an apothecary inLondon

,who was admi tted by the University of Oxford to the bacca

laureate in medic ine,although totally ignoran t and incompeten t. The

College reproved the Un ivers ity, and he was compelled to undergo acourse of study, when he was ultimately admi t ted doctor of medicine inOxford, and Fellow of the College of Phys icians in 1 563 .

WILLIAM GILBERT,M .D . (born engaged in experimen ts

relative to the magnet,ach ieving results wh ich Galileo declared to be

great to a degree wh ich m igh t be envied ,”and wh ich induced Galileo

to turn h i s m ind to magneti sm .

1

THOMAS PENNY,M .D . (pract ised in London

,1 5 70 Gerard

styles him a second D ioscorides,for h i s s ingular knowledge of plants .

He was also one of the fi rst Englishmen who studied in sects .PETER TURNER

,M .D . (died was phys ic ian to St. Bartholomew

’s

Hospi tal, and one of th e greates t botan i s ts of hi s age .

THOMAS MUFFET,M .D .

, the learned friend of dist inguished

phys ic ian s and natural ists,was esteemed in h i s day the famous orna

men t of th e body of physic ians (diedBERENGER OF CARPI (died 1 5 2 7) flourished at Bologna He

was a zealous anatom is t,and declared that he had “ dissec ted more

than one hundred human bodies .” He was the first who recogn i sedthe larger proport ional s ize of the male chest than th e female, and the

converse concern ing the pelvis . He discovered th e two arytenoidcarti lages in the larynx, first accurately described the thymus , and gavea

,

good description of the brain and the internal ear,in which he

noticed the malleus and incus. He rect ified some of the m is takes ofMondino

,but was

,l ike all other anatom ists before Harvey

,deeply per

plexed about the heart and the c irculation . He investigated the

struc ture of the valves of the heart.

The art of m idwifery, up to the m iddle of the sixteen th cen tury,

was in the lowest possible condit ion . In 1 5 2 1 , a doctor named Yeiteswas condemned to the flames in Hamburg

,for engaging in th e busiriess ‘

of m idwifery. In the year 1 500 , the wife of one JACOB NUFER,of

Thurgau,a Swi ss sow-gelder

,being in peri l of her life in pregnancy,

though th irteen m idwives and several surgeons had attempted to

del iver her in the ordinary way, i t occurred to her husband to ask

perm i ss ion of the authorit ies, and the help of God, to del iver her as

he would a sow.

” He was completely successful, and thus performedthe first Caesarian operation on the l iving patient, who l ived to bear

1 Times, May 20, 1876, p. 6 . Hallam , Literary History , etc . , vol . 11. p. 233 .

362 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

s everal other children in the natural way, and died at the age ofs even ty- seven. Another sow-gelder performed the operation of ovario tomy on his own daughter, in the s ixteenth cen tury .

FRANQOIS ROUSSET (about physic ian to the Duke of Savoy,Wm m upon the Caesarian Operation . The improvemen tin print ing and engraving caused the works of the Greek , Roman , andArabian writers to be more widely known , and manuals were publi shedfor the instruction of m idwives . The first book of th is kind was byEUCHARIUS ROSLEIN

,at Worms

,called the Rose Garden for M idw ives

VESALIUs ( 1 543 ) rendered great services to the obstetricart by hi s anatom ical teaching ; and when Rousset published h i s treatise,the operation became popular, and was constantly performed on thel iving subj ec t, sometimes even when i t was no t absolutely necessary .

PINEAU, a surgeon of Paris , in 1 589 , first suggested divis ion of thepubes to fac i l itate d ifficult labour.

In the year 1 5 3 5 (2 7 Henry Wood says 1 that at Oxforddivers scholars , upon a fores ight of the ru in of the c lergy

,had and

did now betake th emselves to physick, who as yet raw and inexpertwould adven ture to pract ise, to the utter undoing of many. The saidvi si tors ordered

,therefore

,that none should pract ise or exerc i se that

faculty unless he had been exam ined by the phys ick professor conc ern ing h is knowledge there in . Which order

,being of great momen t,

was the year fol lowing confirmed by the king,and power by him

gran ted to th e professor and successors to exam ine those that were to

practise according to the Vi s i tor’s O rder.

PIERRE FRANCO (e. 1 560 ) was a Swiss or French surgeon , and afamous l i thotom i st, who performed the h igh operat ion for the first t imein 1 560, with success

,on a ch i ld aged two years . Recogn i sing the

dangers of th is m ethod, he in troduced a new method in the operationknown as perineal l ithotomy

,which was called the lateral method .

He preceded Paré in improvemen ts in dealing with strangulatedhern ia by the Operation known as hern iotomy . He was one

b

g f the

first to re- in troduce in to m idwifery practice the operation knownas

“ turn ing,

”iif

'

difficult labour.

"

The operat ion was a fam i l iar one

amongst the Hindus, and had been known to the later Graeco Roman

school,but had fallen into disuse un til Paré , Franco, . and Guillemeau

d evoted themselves to the improvemen t of th is n eglected branch of thehealing art with great success.ANDREW LIBAVIUS ( 1 546 physic ian at Coburg, i s said by

Hist. Oxford, vol . II. p . 62 .

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364 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

but merely on i ts own authority. Dr. A Foes used the term pharmaCOpoeia first as a distinc t t i tle for h i s work publ i shed at Basle, inCosTANz o VAROLIUS of Bologna ( 1 545 one of the greatest

of the Ital ian anatom ists,described the Opt ic nerves and many importan t

poin ts in the anatomy of the brain .

VOLCHER COITER, of Gron ingen ( 1 5 34 was a pupi l of Fallopiusand Eustach ius

,who was d is tinguished for h is important researches on

the cartilages,bones

,nerves

,and the anatomy of the foetal skeleton.

FABRICIUS, of Acquapenden te ( 1 53 7 a pupi l of Fallopius, anda distinguished anatom i st

,made importan t researches on the structure

of an imals in general . His famous d iscovery of the valves of theveins and his investigations concern ing their use led Harvey to makethe discovery o f the c irculation of the blood .

CASSERIUS ( 1 56 1—1 6 1 6) investigated the anatomy of the vocal organs,discovered the muscles of the ossicles of

'

the ear,and practi sed broncho

tomy, which he had learned from Fabricius . He was professor atPadua

,and a teacher of Harvey.

SPIGEL ( 1 5 78—1 62 5 ) made researches on the l iver, a lobulus of wh ichbears hi s name .

OLAUS WORM ( 1 588—1 654) first described the small bones of theskull, now called Worm ian bones .It was no t t i l l th e sixteen th cen tury that France con tributed her quota

to the l i st o f great anatom i sts . Noth ing shows more c learly the diificulty with which learn ing was spread in the t imes of wh ich we writethan the fact that the works o f the early Ital ian anatomis ts were alto

gether unknown in France unt i l a hundred years after they werewritten .

JACQUES DUBOIS 1 478—1 55 5 ) taught anatomy at Paris , and was professor of surgery to the Royal College. He was an irrat ional admirerof Galen . The carcases of dogs and other an imals were the material sfrom which he taugh t i t does not appear that i t was poss ible to obtainhuman subj ec ts for dissect ion without robbing the cemeteries .CHARLES ETIENNE ( 1 503—64) was the first to detect valves in the

orifices of the hepatic veins . He knew nothing of the researches ofAchillin i concern ing the brain

,although they were made sixty years

before ; yet h is investigations of the structure of the nervous systemwere most importan t, and h is demon stration of the existence of a canalrunn ing through th e whole length of the sp inal cord, wh ich had not

previously been suspected , ent i tles him to a h igh place in the h istory ofanatomy.

1 Eney . Brit.

THE SIXTEENTH CEN TUR Y. 365

A new era in the history of anatomy was inaugurated by the appearance of ANDREW VESALIUs ( 1 5 14 a Flem ing, who pursued thes tudy with the greates t ass iduity at Ven ice, and demonstrated i t atPadua before he was twen ty- two. He remained there seven years, thenw ent to Bologna and thence to Pisa. He i s known as the first authorof a systematic and comprehen s ive view of human anatomy . He

recogn ised the necessi ty of divest ing the sc i ence of th e current m isrepresentations of ignorance and fancy .

Vesalius espec ially contributed to our knowledge of th e c i rculatoryo rgans i t was he who, by h i s s tudy of the structure of th e heart and themechan i sm of i ts valves

,stimulated h i s pupi ls and fellow-students to

pursue a course of research wh ich ended at last in Harvey’s immortal

d iscovery . Besides these researches on the vascular system,he first

accurately described the sphenoid bone and the sternum . He describedthe omentum

,the pylorus

,the mediastinum and pleura, and gave th e

fullest descript ion of the brain which , up to that time, had appeared .

Splendid as were h i s researches, and valuable as were his wri tings , i t was

perhaps by the way in which he stimulated inquiry in others that h erendered the greatest services to anatom ical sc i ence .Dr. Molony

,writing in the Br itish M edical journal, December 3 1 ,

1 89 2 , says“ I recen tly secured possession of h i s works, entitled

A ndrea Vesalz z Inuictissimi Caroli V. Imperator is M edici Opera Omn ia.

It i s a curious work in two immense folio volumes,written in fairly good

Latin. It has several plates represen ting the surgical instruments o f the

period, dissect ions , and, i t must be added, quadrupeds of all sort s t iedu p eviden tly awaiting vivisection .

“ The preface consists of a lengthy and apprec iative l ife of Vesalius ,from wh ich . i t seems that he was born in 1 5 14, at Brussels, where h isfather was court phys ic ian . As a boy he seems to have shown a tastefor comparat ive anatomy,

‘

puer animalium penetralia nudare atquev iscera inspicere soleret .

’ His anatomical studies were at all t imes

pursued under difficult ies . He obtained the bodies of criminals bybribing the judges

,corpora nactus eorum

,in cubicula vexit, suosque

i n usus per tres et ultra septimanas asservavit . Horre tne legenti an imus ?O j uveni li s ardor, repagula eluctatur ferrea ! Tal i opus erat ingen io,a rtibus bis

,at nobile conderet opus.

’ He does no t seem to have beenmarried

,i f we may j udge from the following extract Aetate vero ih

t egra,uxore, liberis, rei fam i l iari s omn i cura l iber, totum se immersit in

a natomicis.

’

“Vesal ius was an enthusiast ic surgeon, and apparen tly looked downu pon the physicians of the period :

‘

Jocatus medicos reliquos syrup is

p raescribendis un ice occupari.’ His success aroused the jealousy of h is

366 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

con temporaries . Among others he came in to coll is ion with Sylvius ofParis

,Eustachius of Rome

,and Fallopius of Padua. Ment ion i s also

made of ‘Joanni s Caj i Medic i celebris Bri tann i . ’ It would be interesting ~to ascertain who th is was. [No doubt i t was Caius ]

The end of Vesal ius was tragic enough .

‘Hispanum curabat nobilem

petiit ab am ici s defuncti corpus aperire u t mortis scrutaretur causam.

Quo concesso,visum cor in aperto jam pectore adhuc palpitans.

’The

pun i shmen t ordered for th i s was a p i lgrimage to Jerusalem . On his

return voyage he was wrecked on the island of Zacinthus.

‘Inops,

in loco soli tario,omnique carens subs idio miserabiliter vitam finivit

1 564v

VESALIUS, says Portal, “ appears to me one of the greatest men

who ever exis ted . Let the astronomers vaunt their Copern icus , thenatural phi losophers their Gal ileo and Torricell i

,the mathematicians

their Pascal, the geographers thei r Columbus, I shall always placeVesal ius above all their heroes . The first study for man i s man.

Vesal ius has th is noble obj ect in view, and has adm irably attained i the has made on himself and his fellows such discoveries as Columbuscould only make by travelling to the extrem i ty of theworld. The discoveries of Vesal ius are of direct importance to man by acquiringfresh knowledge of his own structure, man seems to enlarge h i s existence whi le discoveries in geography or astronomy affect him but in a

very indirect manner .”5

The zeal of Vesal ius and h is fellow-studen ts of anatomy often ledthem to weird adven tures . Hallam says 1 “ they prowled by n ight incharnel-houses, they dug up the dead from the graves, they cl imbed thegibbet

, in fear and s i lence, to steal the mouldering carcase of the murderer ; the risk of ignom in ious puni shment, and the secret s tings of

supersti tious remorse, exalting no doubt the delight of these useful butnot very enviable pursuits .

” Vesal ius,as has been said above

,was .

once absurdly accused of dissect ing a Span i sh gentleman before he wasdead . He on ly escaped the pun i shment of death by undertaking a

pi lgrimage to Jerusalem, during wh ich he was shipwrecked, and diedof fam ine in one of the Greek i slands .2

GABRIEL FALLOPIUS ( 1 5 23—1 562 ) was a prom inen t pup i l of Vesaliuswho studied the anastomoses (the blending together) of the blood-vessels .His researches in the anatomy of the bones and the internal ear greatlyadvanced anatom ical knowledge. He discovered the tubes connectedwith the womb

, called after him the Fallopian tubes .”Fallop ius is .

described as a savan t d istinguished by his sense of j ust ice, h is modes ty1 Literatu re of Eu rope, chap . ix . sect . 2 , I 3 .

2 Portal, Tiraoosck i, ix . 34.

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368 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

structures,causing i t to adhere to the an terior part of the remains of the

nose . Tagliacozzi,himsel f

,to replace the los t substance employed the

skin of the upper part of the arm ,as BRANCA did previously. Patients

flocked to him from al l parts of Europe. The world was,as usual

,

ungrate ful ; the great surgeon was considered to have presumptuouslyin terfered with the authori ty of Providence. Noses and l ips wh ich theD ivin i ty had destroyed as a pun i shment for the s in s of men had beenrestored by th i s daring man . After h is death some nuns h eard voicesin their conven t crying for several weeks : “Tagliacozzi is damnedBy the direct ion of the clergy of Bologna his corpse was taken from the

grave and re—interred in unconsecrated ground .

1 We are no t in a positionto sn eer at th is

,for the preachers of th e n ineteen th century said someth ing

very s imi lar of the use of chloroform in m idwifery only a few years ago.

In 1 742 the Faculty of Paris declared Tagliaco z z i’

s operation impossible ;but the Engl ish journals

,in 1 794, discovered that such a method of

surgical procedure had been In use In India from anc ien t times,and then

theSc ientific world tried the experimen t and succeeded perfectly.

AMBROISEPARE,

“ the father of French surgery ” ( 1 509 availedhimself Of the opportun i ti es offered him in m il i tary surgery during thecampaign of Franc i s I. in Piedmon t. It was the prac t ice of the timeto treat gunshot wounds with hot oil— a treatmen t wh ich Paré revolutioniz ed by using merely a s impl e bandage .

In 1 545 he attended the lectures of Sylvius at Paris, and became

prosector to that great anatom i st. His book onAnatomy was publ i shedfive years later. By his employmen t of the l igature for large arteries,he was able so completely to con trol haemorrhage that he was able to

practise amputation on a larger scale than had before been attempted.

Paré i s cons idered as the firs t who regularly employed the ligature afteramputation . He dec lares in h is Apologie that the invent ion was due tothe anc i en ts

,and he explains thei r use of it, although he ascribes to

inspi ration of the Deity his own first adoption of th e practice .

The PHILOSOPHER RAMUS in 1 56 2 urged Charles IX . of France toes tabl ish schools for c l in ical teach ing, such as already ex isted at Padua.

ROBERT FLUDD,M .D . ,

or in the Latin s tyle he affected,ROBERTUS

DE FLUCTIBUS, was born in 1 5 74 he was an ardent supporter of theRos icrucian philosophy . He had a strong lean ing towards chem i stry,but had l ittle faith in orthodox medic ine . His m edical ideas consi stedof a mysterious m ixture of divin i ty, chem is try, natural philosophy, andmetaphysics .In 1 5 73 Harrison, in his unpubl ished Ckronologie, remarks that

1 Puschmann’

s Hist . M ed. Edu cation , p . 305 .

THE SIXTEEN TH CENTUR Y. 369

“ these daies the taking in of the smoke of the Indian herb calledtabaco, by an instrumen t l ike a l ittle ladell, i s gretly taken up and

used in England against rewmes .

”

It was no t t i l l 1 5 76 that c roup was well understood. Laennec th inksi t was quite unknown to the Greek and Arab ian physic ians but Forbessays that i t was known to Hippocrates and Aretaeus , al though i ts

pathology was no t understood . Ballonius was the fi rst who accuratelydescribed the false membrane

,wh ich i s a characteri st ic of the d isease .

1

A t the Reformation in England under Eli zabeth,some of the Cathol ic

priests who refused to conform to the new rel igion sough t in other professions the means of l iving. In a curious old book

,T of all Trades,

or t/ze P laine Pa t/zway to P refermen t, by Thomas Powel l (printedthere i s a s tory which no doubt was founded in fact. “ And heere Iremember me of an old tale following, viz .

,At the beginn ing of the

happy raigne of our late good Queene Elziz aliet/z,divers Commi ss ioners

of great place, being authorized to enquire of, and to displace, all suchof th e Clergie as would not conforme to the reformed C/zurc/z, one

amongst others Was Conuented before them,who be ing asked whether

he would subscribe or no,den ied i t

, and so consequently was adiudgedto lose his benefice and to be deprived h is function ; wherevpon, in hisimpatience, he said,

‘That i f they (meaning the Comm i ss ioners) heldthis course i t would cost many a man’s l i fe .

’ For wh ich the Comm issioners called him backe againe, and charged him that h e had spoketreasonable and seditious words

,tending to the raysing o f a rebell ion or

some tumult in the Land for wh ich he should rece ive the reward of aTraytor. And being asked whether hee spake those words or no, heacknowledged i t

,and tooke vpon him the Iustification thereof ;

‘ fo r,said he , ‘ yee have taken from me my liu ing and profess ion of theM inistrie ; Schollership i s all my portion, and I have no other meanesnow l eft for my main tenance but to turn P/zisition and before I shalbeabsolute Master of that M isterie (God he knowes ) how many mensl ives i t wil l cost . For few P/z isitzons vse to try experiments vpon theirowne bodies . ’

“With vs , i t i s a Profession can maintaine but a few. And d iuers of

those more indebted to Opin i on than learn ing, and ( for the most part)better qualified in discours ing their travailes than in discern ing thei r

patients malladies. For i t i s growne to be a very huswiues trade, wherefortune prevailes more than skill.

”

A wri ter in Hood’s Every -D ay Book,on the date February 2 5 ,

says that the monks knew of more than three hundred specie s of

medicinal plant s wh ich were used in general for medic ines by the1 Laennec, D iseases of Me Cr

'

zest, etc. , p 1 12 .

370 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

rel igious orders before the Reformation. The Protestants, the moreeffic iently to root out Popery, changed the Cathol ic names of many ofthes e. Thus the virgin

’s l ower of the monastic physic ian was changed

into fl ammula jot/is the liedge Izy ssop into gratiola St . jokn’s wor t

became kyperieum ; fl eur de St. Lou is was called iris ; palma Ckr isti

became r icinus ; Our M aster wor t was christened imperatona sweet oay

they called laurus ; Our Lady’

s smock was changed into cardamine ;

Solomon’

s seal into con tra/[ar ia Our Lady’

s Izair into tr ic'liomanes balm

into nze/issa marjoram into or igami /n li eraTri nity into viola tricolorknee Izoly in to rascus ; rosemary into rosmar inus marygold into calen

du la and a hundred others . But the o ld Cathol ic names cl ing to the

plants of the cottage garden, and Star cy‘ Betkle/iem has not quite given

place to ornit/zogalum Star of jerusalem to goat’

s beard nor Lent l ily

The gull ibil i ty of mankind has never been exh ibited in a clearer l igh tthan J OHANN VALENTIN ANDREIE ( 1 586—1 654) succeeded in showingin h i s elaborate j oke of the SOCIETY OF THE ROSY-CROSS . In 1 6 1 4

a famous but ent irely fabulous secret soc iety set the scholars of

Europe discuss ing the pretensions of the Rosicruc ians, who were saidto have der ived their origin from one CHRISTIAN ROSENKREUZ

,two

hundred years previously. Th i s ph ilosopher, i tWas said , had made a

p ilgrimage to the East, to learn i ts h idden wisdom,of wh ich the art of

making gold was a portion. The character of the soc iety was Chris t ian,but anti Cathol ic, and i ts ostens ible objects were the study of ph i losophyand the gratu itous heal ing of the s ick . I ts device was a cross

,with

four red roses. Andreae was a learned man,but j ocular withal for no

sooner had the publ ic eagerly swallowed h i s story, than he confessedthe whole was pure invent ion, and that he had originated the idea withthe view of ridicul ing the alchem ists and Theosoph i sts

,whose opin ions

were dom inating European soc i ety. The publ ic,however

,l iked th e

idea so wel l that i t developed and flourished, and a soc iety was establ ished called Fraternitas Rosee Crucis. The most celebrated followerso f the Ros icrucians were Valent ine Wiegel , Jacob Boehm,

Egidius Gutman

,M ichael Mayer, O swald Cro llius, and Robert Fludd.

1

De Quincey has traced the connecti on between the Rosicruc ians andFreemasons. “Rosicruc iani sm,

” he says,

“ i t is true,i s not Free

masonry, but the latter borrowed i ts form from the first.”2

Scrofula was anc iently treated in a superstit ious manner by thesovereigns of England and France by imposit ion of hands. Th i s ceremony is said to have been firs t performed by Edward the Confessor

1 Meryon , Hist . M ed. , vol. i. p. 467.3 Works ,

‘vol. x iii . p. 394.

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A P OP ULAR IIISTORY OF l lIED ICINE.

withoou t oother medsin (saue only by handling and prayerz ) only doocure it .”

Sir John Fortescue,in

'

his de fence o f the House o f Lancaster againstthat of York

,argued that th e crown could no t descend to a female be

cause the Queen i s not qual ified by the form of anoint ing her to curethe d isease called the king’s evil . On th is account, and more espec iallyafter the excommun ication of El izabeth by the Pope in 1 5 70, i t musthave been eminen tly comfort ing to al l concerned to find that thepower to cure disease by the royal touch had not been affected by thechange of rel igion or any other cause. The practice was at its heightin the reign o f Charl es II.

1

Lord Braybrooke says,

2 In the fi rs t four years after his restorationhe ‘ touched ’

nearly people .” We find that Dr. Johnson was

touched by Queen Anne .

“The Ofli ce for the Heal ing ” cont inued tobe printed in the Book o f Common Prayer after the accession Of theHouse of Hanover.The custom evidently arose from the fact that Edward the Confessor

was a sain t as wel l as a king . Will iam of Malmesbury gives the originof the royal touch in . h i s account of the m iracl es of Edward : “ A

young woman had married a husband o f her own age, but having no

issue by the un ion , the humours collecting abundantly about her neck ,she had con tracted a sore disorder, the glands swell ing in a dreadfulmanner. Admon ished in a dream to have the part a ffec ted washed bythe king

,she entered the palace, and the king h imself fulfilled thi s

labour of love,by rubbing the woman

’s neck with h is fingers d ipped inwater. Joyous h ealth followed h i s heal ing hand the lurid skin Opened ,so that worm s flowed out with the purulen t matter, and th e tumoursubs ided . But as the orifice o f the ulcers was large and uns igh tly, hecommanded her to be supported at the royal expen se ti ll she should be

perfectly cured . However,before a week was exp i red, a fair new skin

returned,and hid the scars so completely

,that noth ing of the original

wound could be discovered and with in a year becom ing the mother oftwins

,she increased the admi rati on of Edward’s holiness . Those who

knew him more int imately, affi rm that he often cured thi s complaintin Normandy ; whence appears how false is their notion, who in ourt imes assert, that th e cure of th is disease does no t proceed from

personal sancti ty, but from heredi tary virtue in the royal l ine.” 3

Many other m i racles of healing were attributed to St. Edward .

Jeremy Collier 4 maintains that the scrofula m iracle is heredi tary upon

1 Evelyn’s D iary ,vol . II. p . ISI .

2 Notes to Pepy s’D iary , vol. i . p. 90.

3 Wi lliam of M alnzesbmy’s C/z ron icle, Book II. chap. I3 .

1 Ecclesiastical History if Great Br i tain ,'

vol . i . p . 225 .

THE SIXTEENTH CEN TUR Y. 373

all h is successors . The curious fact, however, i s that the hereditaryrigh t of succession was repeatedly interrupted , yet the power remained .

In connect ion with th is royal touch ing, pieces of gold were given by thesovereigns to be worn by the patients as amulets . They were called“ touch ing pieces ,” and though not absolutely requis i te for the cure,some persons declared that the disease returned i f they los t the coins .We can only accoun t for the great effi cacy wh ich in some cases seemedto have attended the royal t reatment

,by the confidence and exalted

expectation awakened in the sufferers by the ceremony, which acted asa tonic to the system

,and roused the patien ts’ imagination to con tribute

to their own cure. 1

Chips and handkerchiefs d ipped in the blood of King Charles I. are

said to have been efficac i ous in curing s ick persons in hundreds of cases.The Coll ege of Physic ians of Edinburgh was created by the k ing’s

letters patent in 1 58 1 , one year after the foundation of EdinburghUni vers ity by J ames VI.

In the reign of El i zabeth,when phys ician s rode on horseback, they

were seated sideways ; many of them carried mu ffs,t o keep their fingers

warm when they had to feel thei r patient’s pulse . Twice a year every

body was bled— a system wh ich must have caused many disorders .Fi fteen centuries after the age of CELSUS, with the revival of learn ing

and sc i ence came the revival o f human vivisect ion. VESALIUS , asabove ment ioned , i s known to have vivisected men and in the Stor iaUniversale o f CESARE‘

CANTU there i s an account o f the DUKE OF

FLORENCE giving a man for v ivisect ion to FALLOP IUS . Th is inciden thas been disputed ; but the following series o f cases , extracted by Professor ANDREOZZ I from the Criminal Arch ives ofFlorence, and publishedby him in h i s book Leggi Penali degli antic/i i e Cines i, are beyond quest ion . COSMO DE MEDICI seems to have taken the anatom ists o f Pisaunder h i s spec ial favour, and to have sen t them the m iserable convictsfrom the prisons at h is option. The following examples are a selectionfrom the cases extracted by Signor ANDREoz z r from th e Arckiz 'io

1 . January 1 5th, 1 545 .— SANTA D I MAR IOTTO TARCHI D I MUGELLO ,

wi fe of BASTIANO LUCCHESE, was condemned to be beheaded for infantic ide . Under the sen tence is wri tten, D icta Santa, de men teExcell'111Ducis, fui t m issa Pisis , de ea per doctores fieret notom ia .

’

[Nonotice to be found of any execution of the woman, such as would haveappeared had she been put to death before she was sent to Pisa .]

2 . D ecember 1 4th, 1 547.—GIULIO MANCIN I SANESEwas condemned

1 See for a complete history o f the royal gift o f heal ing Pettigrew’s Ill edicalSuperstitions, p . I 1 7.

3 74 A P OP ULAR IIISTOR Y OF l lIED ICINE.

for robbery and other offences . Sent to Pisa to be anatomised .

‘Du

catur Pisis,pro faciendo de eo notom ia .

’

“3 . In the record of prisoners sent away, dated September I st, 1 55 1 ,

occurs th i s entry Letter to the Comm i ss ioner o f Castrocaro, thatMADDALENA

,who is imprisoned for kill ing her son, should be sen t here,

i f she be likely to recover, as i t pleases S. E. that she should be reservedfor anatomy. O f this noth ing is to be said, but she i s to be kept inhopes . If she is no t l ikely to recover, the executioner i s to be sent fort o decap i tate her.

’The end of the horrible extract i s,— ‘Went to Pisa

,

to be made an anatomy.

’

4. D ecember 1 2 th, 1 5 5 2—A man named ZUCCHERIA, accused of

p iracy, was reserved from hanging, with his comrade, and sent to Pisa,‘

per la n otom ia .

’

“5 . December 2 2nd

,1 5 5 2 .

—A certain ULIVO DI PAOLO was con

demned by the Counc i l of Eigh t to be hanged for poison ing h is wife .Sentence changed— to be sent for anatomy. Was sent to Pisa on

January 1 3 th .

“ 6 . November 1 4th , 1 5 53 .—MARCUERITA

,wi fe of BIAJIO D’ANTI

NORO,condemned to be beheaded for infantic ide December

2 0 th,

‘ she was released from the fetters and consigned to a fam i l iar,who t ook her to Pisa to the Commis sario, w lzo gave ker , as usual , to tireanatomist

,to make anatomy of ker ; wh ich was done che la consegni

,

secondo il sol ito , al notomista, per farne notomia, come fu fatto“Several other cases . from 1 554 to 1 5 70 , are recorded, with equally

unm istakabl e exact i tude . In one instance the condemned man’s dest iny was m itigated , and after having been ordered to be sen t to Pisa forthe Commissario to cons ign to the anatomist, when he should ask forhim

,and at h i s pleasure ,

’ he was merc i fully sen tenced to be hanged atonce at Vico, by direction o f Sua Excellenz a I llustriss ima. ’ Two '

unfortunate th ieves, PAOLI D I G IOVANNI and VESTRINO D’

AGNOLO, weresen t together by the Counc i l o f Eight to be anatomised ; the D ukehaving written to say ‘ that they wanted in Pisa a subj ect forAfter the date 1 5 70 no more cases occur in the Arch ives.

Franc i s I. invi ted the Ital ian anatomi s t VIDUS '

VIDIUS to his royalcollege at Paris .Several new medic ines were introduced about th is period.Lemon juice was firs t spoken of as a remedy for scurvy in 1 564. Its

use was d i scovered by some Dutch sailors whose sh ip was laden withl emons and oranges from Spain .

1

The virtues of sassafras as a medicine ‘ for scurvy were discovered ,accord ing to Cartier, in 1 536, on a voyage to explore the coast o f

1 Meryon, IIist . til ed ,vol . i . p . 423 .

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THE SIXTEEN TH CENTURY. 3 75 .

Newfoundland and the St. Lawrence. The nat ives advised the sailorsafl

‘

l icted with the malady to use the wood of the tree ameda,wh ich was

though t to have been sassafras . 1

Sarsaparilla was fi rst brough t to Europe by the Spaniards, in themiddle of the s ixteenth century, from Peru and Brazil .Guaiacum was introduced in to Europe in 1 509 , and in 1 5 1 9 i ts use

became common.

Holinshed complained 2 that estimation and credit given t o com

pound medic ines made with foreign drugs in his t ime was one greatcause of the prevail ing ignorance of the virtues and uses of “ our owns imples , wh ich h e he ld to be fully as useful as the “ salsa parilla ,mochoacan, so much in request. “We tread those herbs underour feet

,whose forces , i f we knew and could apply them to our neces

s it ies , we would honour and have in reverence —Alas !what have weto do wi th such Arabian and Grec ian s tuff as i s daily brought fromthose parts wh ich l ie in another cl ime P—The bodies o f such as dwellthere are o f another const itution than ours are here at home. Certes,they grow not for us, but for th e Arabians and Grecians .— Among theIndians

,who have the most present cures for every d isease of their own

nation, there i s small regard of compound medic ines, and less of foreigndrugs, because they nei ther know them nor can use them, but workwonders even with their own s imples.

”

CARLO RUINI,of Bologna, publ ished in 1 598 a work on the anatomy

of the horse, in wh ich Ercolan i has found evidence that he, to some

extent, ant icipated Harvey’s d iscovery .

3

NICHOLAS HOUEI. ( 1 5 20—1 585 ) was born at Paris , 1 5 20 . He was a'

famous‘

and l earned pharmacien, who devo ted'

the fortune wh ich heacquired by his industry and skil l to philan thropic and sci entific pur

poses. He founded a great orphanage in Paris, and the School ofPharmacy of that c i ty owes its origin to him. He wrote a Treatise on

fire P lague, and one on th e T/zer iacnm of M it/zr idates, both publ ished ih'

1 5 73 . It i s to h i s enl ightened and charitable suggestion that d ispensaries arose in Paris. His “ Garden o f Simples

” insp i red the creat ionof thejardin des P lantcs fi

Even at the close of the s ixteen th century careful and sober men , as

Mr. Henry Morley says,

5 bel ieved in the m iraculous propert ies ’of plan tsand animals and parts of animals . When th e century commenced, thel earned and unlearned al ike bel ieved in the influences of the stars andthe interferences of demons with diseases, and in the mysteries of magic .

‘

1 Hak luyt’s Voy ages, vol . i ii. p. 280 .

1 D escr iption of England, chap. x ix .

3 See Gamgee, ThirdHistorical Fragment, ” in Lancet, 1876.

4 Cap. Etudes Biograpk igues, sec. i . pp. 84- 89.

5 Cor nel ius Agr ippa, vol . i . p . 62.

3 76 A POPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

The reason why students o f such sc i ences as existed were pun ished andpersecuted was the dread wh ich men had that the k nowledge of theoccul t powers of nature would afford the learner undue and mysteriouspower over them.

LEGAL MEDICINE.

That most importan t branch of medical sc ience known as MedicalJurisprudence, or Forens ic M edic ine

,first took its rise in Germany,

and, later, was recogn ised as a necessary branch o f study in England.

Briefly th is sc i ence may be described as “ that branch of State medic inewh ich treats of the appl ication of medical knowledge to the purposesof the law.

”It embraces al l questions affect ing the c ivi l or soc ial

r igh ts of individuals, and of inj uries to the person. Al though we find

traces of the firs t princ iples of th is sci ence in anc ient t imes , espec iallyin connect ion with legitimacy, feigned d iseases, etc. ,

i t i s by no meanscertain that even in Rome the law required any medical inspection of

dead bodies. The sc ience dates only from the s ixteenth century . The

Bishop of Bamberg, in 1 50 7, in troduced a penal code requiring theproduction of

“

medical evidence in certain cases. In 1 53 2 , Charles V.

induced the D ie t of Ratison to adopt a code in which magistrates wereordered to cal l med ical evidence in cases of personal inj uries, infant ic ide, pretended pregnancy, s imulated diseases , and poisoning. The

actual birth of forensic medic ine,however

,did no t take place unti l the

publ ication, in Germany, in 1 553 , of the Constitutio Cr iminalis Carolina ,1

The'

diffi culties wh ich the infan t sci ence had to contend against may beest imated from the fact that a few years later a phys ician named Weiker,who declared that witches and demon iacs were s imply persons affl ictedw i th hypochondriasis and hysteria

,and Should no t be puni shed, was with

d ifficulty saved from the stake by h i s patron,William

,D uke of Cleves .

AMBROSE PAREwrote on monsters,s imulated diseases

,and the art

‘

of drawing up medico- legal reports .In 1 62 1—3 5 Paulo Zacchia, of Rome

, publ i shed a work ent itled

Quazstiones Al edico-Legales, wh ich inaugurated a new era in the h is tory ofForens ic M edic ine. He exhibited immense research in th is c lass icalwork

,the materia l s for which he collected from 460 authors. Con

s idering that chemis try and physiology were then so imperfectly understood

,such a work i s a proof of the learn ing and sagac i ty of the author.

In 1 663 the Dan i sh physic ian Bartholin proposed the hydrostatic tes tfor the determination of l ive-birth , the method used to day in exam in ingthe lungs of an infan t to discover whether the ch i ld was born al ive ornot

,by observing whether they float or s ink in water.

1 Ency . Br i t. , vo l . xv. p . 782.

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3 78 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

The publ ication o f Bacon’s Novum Organon in 1 620 resul ted in theformation of a soc iety of learned men, who met together in Londonin 1 645 to discuss ph ilosoph ical subj ects and the results of the ir variousexperiments in sc ience. They are described as “ inquis i tive,” a termwh ich ap t ly illustrates the temper of the t imes . Taking noth ing upontrust, these men inquired for themselves, and l eft thei r books to makeexperiment, as Bacon had urged students of nature to do. About 1 648—9DRS. WILKINS

,WALLIS, and others removed to Oxford , and with SETH

WARD,the HON. ROBERT BOYLE, PETTY, and other men of d ivin ity and

physic,often met in the rooms of DR. WILKINS at Wadham College, and

so formed the Ph i losoph ical Soc i ety of Oxford , wh ich existed only t il l1 690 . About 1 658 the members were d ispersed, the maj ority comingto London and attending lectures at Gresham College. Thus, in the

m idst of c ivi l war,thoughtful and inquiring m inds found a. refuge from

the quarrels of pol i tic ians and the babel of contending part ies in the

pursui t of knowledge and th e advancement of research . The RoyalSoc iety was organ ized in 1 660

, and on 2 2nd April,1 662 , Charles II.

constituted i t a body pol it ic and corporate. The P lzilosop/t ical Trans

actions began 6th March, 1 664—5 . In 1 668 Newton invented his

reflect ing telescope,and on z 8 th April

,1 686, presented to th e Society

the MS. of h i s P r inczpia, wh ich the counci l ordered to be printed .

RENE DESCARTES ( 1 596 the ph i losopher,appl ied himself to

the study of phys ics in al l i ts branches, but espec ially to phys iology.He said that sc ience may be compared to a tree metaphys ics i s theroot, physics i s the trunk , and the three ch ief branches are mechan ic s,medic ine

,and moralS

,—the three appl ications of our knowledge to the

ou tward world,to the human body

,and to the conduct of life.1 He

s tudied chem i stry and anatomy, di ssecting the heads of animals inorder to explain imaginat ion and memory, wh ich h e believed to be

physical processes .2 In 1 629 he asks M ersenne to take care of h imself,ti ll I find out i f there is any means of gett ing a medical theory based

O II infall ible demonstration,which i s what I am now inquiring.

”3 '

D escartes embraced the doctr ine of the c irculation of the blood as

discovered by Harvey, and he did much to populari se i t, fall ing in as

i t did with h is mechanical theory of l ife. He though t the nerves weretubular vessels wh ich conduct the an imal spiri ts to the muscles, and intheir turn convey the impress ions of the organs to the brain. He

'

cons idered man and the an imals were mach ines . “T he an imals ac t

naturally and by springs,l ike a watch .

”4 “ The greatest o f all theprej udices we have retained from our infancy i s that of bel ieving that

1 (Euvres, iii . 24.2 Ibid. , vi. 234.

1am, vi . 89.

1 Ibid. , ix . 426.

THE SEVENTEENTH CENTUR Y.

the beasts th ink .

” 1 Naturally such a monstrous theory d id much to

encourage vivisect ion,a practice common with D escartes .2 “The

recluses o f Port Royal, says Dr. Wallace, 3 “ seized it eagerly, discussed

automatism,dissected l iving an imals in order to show to a morbid

curi os ity the c irculat ion of the blood , were careless o f the cries oftortured dogs

, and finally embalmed the doctrine in a syllogism o f theirlogic : no matter th inks ; every soul of beast i s matter, t herefore no

soul of beast th inks . He held that the seat o f the m ind of man was

in that structure o f the brain called by anatomis ts the pineal gland .

”

MALEBRANCHE ( I 63 8 - I 7 1 5 ) was a discipl e of D escartes, who though th i s system served to explain the mystery of l ife and thought. In his

famous Rec/zerc/zc de la Ver i te h e ant ic ipated later discoveries in

phys iology, e.g. , Hartley’s principl e of the interdependence of vibrat ions

in th e nervous system and our conscious states .‘ BLAISE PASCAL ( 1 623 as a natural philosopher, renderedgreat services to sc ience. The account of h is experiments , written in1 662 , on the equil ibrium of fluids , ent itles him to be cons idered one ofthe founders of hydrodynamics . His experiments on the pressure of

the air and h is invent ion for measuring it greatly ass isted to advance thework begun by Galileo and Torricell i. No t only in the great workdone, but in those wh ich were undertaken in consequence of h i s inspiration, we recogni se ia Pascal one of the mos t brill ian t sc i ent is ts o f abrill iant age .

HOBBES ( 1 588 the famous author o f the Leviatkan, en

deavoured to base al l that he could upon mathematical princ iples .Ph i losophy, he sa id

,is concerned with the perfec t knowledge of truth

in all matters whatsoever. If the moral ph i losophers had done formankind what the geometricians had effected, men would have enj oyedan immortal peace .

BENEDICT DE SPINOZA ( 1 63 2 the ph i losopher, had some

medical training. His sp iri t has had a large share in moulding the

philOSOphic though t of the n ineteenth cen tury . Novalis saw in . him

not an atheist, but a God- intoxicated mauL” His ph ilosophy indeed

was a pure pantheism the foundation of his system i s the doctrine of

one infin i te substance . All fin i te th ings are modes of th is substance.SIR ISAAC NEWTON ( 1 642 the greatest of natural ph i l osophers ,

in the years 1 685 and 1 686—years for ever to be remembered in the .

h i s tory of sc ience—composed almost the whol e of his famous work, thePr inczpia.

ROBERT BOYLE ( 1 626 one of the great nature ph i losophers o f,

1 (Euvres, x. 204.

9 Mid , iv. 452 and 454.

3 Ency . Br i t. , art. Descartes.

380 A POPULAR HISTOR Y OF {MEDICINE

the seven teenth century, and one of the founders of the Royal Soci ety,publi shed h i s firs t book at Oxford , in 1 660 , ent i tled New Experiments,P liy sico-M cc/i anical

,touc/zing tke Spr ing of A ir , and i ts Ef ed s. He was

at one t ime deeply interested in alchemy. He was the first greatinvestigator who carri ed out the suggestions ofBacon’s Nova/n Organon.

He was a patient researcher and observer of facts.PIERRE BAYLE ( 1 647 the author of the celebrated Histor ical

and Critical D ictionary ,was a sceptic

,of a pecul iar turn of mind . He

knew so much concern ing every s ide of every subj ec t wh ich he hadcons idered, that he came to the conclus ion that certainty was unattain

able.VAN HELMONT ( 1 5 78—1 644) was one of the most celebrated followers

of Paracelsus. He learned astronomy, astrology, and philosophy atRouvain

, then studied magic under the Jesuits, and afterwards learnedlaw

, botany, and medic ine bu t he became d isgusted with the pretens ions of the latter sc ience when i t failed to cure him o f the i tch. Hebecame a mystic

,and attached h imsel f to the principles of Tauler and

Thomas aKempis . Then he practi sed medic ine as an act of charity,

t ill , fal l ing in wi th the works of Paracelsus, he devoted ten years tothei r study. He married

,and devoted h imsel f to medic ine and chemi s

try , investigating th e composit ion o f the water o f m ineral springs . Few

men have ever formed a nobler conception o f the true physic ian thanVan Helmon t , or more earnestly endeavoured to l ive up to i t. No t

withstanding h i s myst ici sm, science owes much to th i s ph ilosopher, forhe was an acute ch emi st. We owe to him the fi rs t appl ication of theterm gas,

” in the sense in wh ich i t i s used at present. He discoveredthat gas i s disengaged when heat i s appl ied to various bodies, and whenac ids act upon metals and their carbonates . He d iscovered carbon icac id . He bel ieved in the existence of an Archeus in man and an imals

,

wh ich is somewhat l ike the soul of man after the Fal l i t res ides in thes tomach as c reative thought , in the spleen as appeti te. This Archeusis a ferment, and i s the generat ive princ ipl e and basis of l ife. D iseasei s due to the Fall of Man. The Archeus influus causes general d iseases ;the Arche i ins iti , local diseases dropsy, for example, i s due to an oh

s truction of the passage of the kidney secretion by the enraged Archeus .Van Helmon t gave wine in fevers, abhorred bleeding, and advocatedthe use of s imple chem ical medic ines .FRANCIS DE LA BOB (SYLVIUS) , ( 1 6 1 4 4 67 2) was a phys ic ian who

founded the Medico Chemical Sect amongst doctors. Health and

d i sease he held to be due to the relations o f the fluids of the body andthei r neutral i ty, diseases being caused by the ir ac id i ty or alkal ini ty.

THOMAS COULSTON, M .D . (died was a distingu ished London

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382 A POPULAR HISTORY OF .MEDICINE.

that he rendered good serv ice to med ic ine by h i s “ expectant treatment of small-pox, by h is invent ion of h i s laudanum ( the first form of at incture of Opium such as we have it) , and fo r h i s advocacy of the useo f Peruvian bark in agues . Yet h i s profess ional brethren were incl inedto look upon him as a sectary, and cons iderable opposi t ion was manifested towards him. Arbuthnot, in 1 7 2 7, styled him “ AZmulus Hippo—

I £erhaave referred to him as Angl iae lumen,arti s Phoebum

,

veramfi

Hippocratici vi r i speciem .

” He did the best he could to cureh i s patients wi thout mystery and resort to the traditional and oftenrid iculous dogmas of the medical craft. Many good stories are extantwh ich i llustrate th i s fac t. .He was once called to prescribe for a gen tleman who had been subj ected to the lowering treatment so much invogue in those days . He found him piti ful ly depressed. Sydenhamconceived that th is was occasioned partly by his long illness , partly bythe previous evacuat ions

,and partly by emptiness . I therefore ordered

him a roast ch icken and a pint o f canary.

” When Blackmore first engaged in the study of med icine , he asked Dr. Sydenham what authorshe should read

,and was told to study D on Quixote, wh ich

,

” he said ,i s a very good book ; I read i t s til l.

” He used to say that there werecases in h i s practice where

“ I have consul ted my patients’ safety and

my own reputat ion mos t effectually by doing noth ing at all .”

Sydenham,having long attended a rich man for an i llness wh ich had

arisen and was kept going chiefly by h i s own indolence and luxurioushabits

,at las t told him that he could do no more for him

,but that there

l ived at Inverness a certain phys ic ian, named Robinson, who woulddoubtless be able to cure him. Provided with a letter of in troductionand a complete h i story of the “

case ,” the inval id set out on the long

j ourney to Inverness . Arrived at h i s destination, ful l of hope and eagerexpectation of a cure, he inquired diligently for Dr. Robinson

,only to

learn that there was no such doctor there, neither had there been in thememory of the oldest inhabi tant. The gentleman returned to Londonful l o f indignation agains t Sydenham, whom he violen tly rated for sending him so far on a fool

’s errand. But,” exclaimed Sydenham

,

“you

are in much better heal th !” “Yes, repl ied the patien t, “ I am now

well enough,but no thanks to you.

”No,

” answered Sydenham “ it

was Dr. Robinson who cured you . I wished to send you a j ourneywith some obj ec t and in terest in v iew In gomg, you had Dr. Robinsonand his wonderful cures in contemplation ; and in return ing, you wereequally engaged in thinking of scolding me.

”

The C ivi lWar,wh ich violently upset the speculations and research at

Oxford , when ,as An tony Wood says , the Universi ty was “ empty as to

scholars, but pretty well replenished with Parliamentary soldiers,”

THE SEVENTEENTII CENTUR Y. 383

afforded j ust that st imulus to though t and that upheaval of dogma andprejud ice which were em inently favourable to the advance of medicals ci ence. Men had learned to treat old doctrines w i th l i ttle respect fortheir mere antiquity authori ty was di scredi ted , i t was subj ec ted to tes t,observation and crit ic i sm men no longer believed those doctrinesabout God and His counsels wh ich the Fathers and the Church taugh tthem about religion, much l ess were they incl ined to bow to Aristotleand Galen when they dictated to them on medicine. Anc i en tly, whenbitten by a mad dog, i t was enough for them to believe with th e fathersof medicine that i t was suffi c ient for the patien t to hold some herb dittanyin the left hand

,wh i le he scratched h i s back wi th the other to ensure

his future safety. Men took to thinking for themselves the spiri t of investigation was aroused men’s m inds

,in every condition of soc iety, in

every town and village, were aroused to activi ty. There probably neverwas a t ime when there was more act ivi ty of though t in Oxford than atthis period . The stimulus of coll is ion evoked many sparks of gen ius

,

and the C ivi l War produced at our Un ivers it ies wholesome disturbance ,no t destruct ion of any good th ings . Sydenham,

there fore,was d istinctly

the product of h i s age . He does no t seem to have been a very learnedman; nei ther, on the other hand, was be wholly untaugh t. There are notmany evidences in h i s works of very wide reading o f medical l iterature,though he was a s incere admirer of Hippocrates , evidently from a soundacquaintance with h is works . Sydenham’s fi rst medical work was published in 1 666. It consi sted of accounts of cont inued fevers , symptomso f the same

,of intermi ttent fevers and smal l-pox, and was enti tled M e

t/zodus Curandi Beores, P ropriis observationious superstructa . In i t theauthor maintains that a fever i s Nature’s engine which she brings intothe field to remove her enemy

, or her handmaid, either for evacuatingthe impurities o f the blood, or for reduc ing it into a n ew state.

Secondly, that the true and genuine cure of this s ickness cons ists insuch a tempering of the commotion of the blood, that i t may neithere xceed nor be too languid .

” 1

It was about th is period that Peruvian bark was first introduced intoEuropean med ic ine. Perhaps no other drug has ever been so widelyand deservedly used as th is American remedy for fevers, agues, anddebil i ty. The earl iest authenticated account of the use of C inchonabark in medic ine is found in 1 63 8 , when the Countess of Cinchon, th ew ife of the Governor of Peru , was cured of fever by its adminis tration .

The Jesui t m iss ionaries are said to have sent accounts of its virtues toEurope

,in consequence of one of their brethren having been cured of

fever by taking i t at the suggestion of a .South American Indian .

1 Pk ilosop/z ical Transactions, May 7 th,. 1666.

384 A P OPULAR.

HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

The Un ivers ity of Montpell ier, at the t ime of our great C ivi l War, wasmuch derided by the Paris Faculty for its laxity in grant ing degrees inmedic ine. The enem ies of Montpell ier said that a three-mon ths

’ res i~

dence, and the keeping of an act and opponency, sufficed to make aman a Bachelor of M edic ine. The professors were accused of neglecting their lectures and sel ling the ir degrees but

,worse than all

,i t was

al leged that blood-lett ing and pui ging had fallen into d isuse, and thatthe Mon tpellier treatment was

“ more expectan t than heroic, and moretonic than evacuant.” 1 Friendly h istorians , on the other hand , say thatat th i s period the medicinal uses of calomel and antimony were bettertaught there than elsewhere that museums, l ibraries, and good c l inicalteach ing flourished, so as to afford the s tudent excellent means of

acquiring a sound knowledge of h i s profession .

2

WILLIAM HARVEY,M .D . ,

the famous discoverer o f the c irculation ofthe blood

,and the greatest phys iologist the world has ever seen, was

born at Folkestone,

1 5 78 . He entered Caius College, Cambridge,1 593 . Having taken h is degree

,he travelled through France and

Germany,and then vis i ted Padua

,th e most celebrated school of medi

c ine of that t ime . Fabric ius ab Aquapendente was then professor ofanatomy

,M inadous professor of medic ine, and Casserius professor o f

surgery. In 1 6 1 5 Harvey was appointed Lumleian lecturer, and hecommenced h i s course of lec tures in the following year—the year o fShakespeare’s death .

In th i s course he is supposed to have expounded h is vi ews on thec irculat ion of the blood

,which rendered h is name immortal . His cele

brated work, Exercitatio Anatomica de M otu Cordis et Sanguinis, was

publ ished in 1 628 ; bu t he says in that work that for more than n ineyears he had confirmed and i l lustrated h is opin ion in h i s lectures , .by

arguments wh ich were founded on ocular demonstration. He was ap

pointed physic ian extraord inary to James I. in 1 6 1 8 . He was in attendance on King Charles I. at the battle of Edgeh ill . The king hadbeen an enl ightened patron o fHarvey’s researches, and had placed theroyal deer parks at Hampton Court and Windsor at h i s d isposal . In

1 65 1 Harvey’s Ex ercitationes de Generatione was publ ished.

ARISTOTLE knew but l ittle of the vessels of the body, yet he tracedthe origin o f all the veins to the heart, and he seems to have beenaware of the dist inc t ion between veins and arteries . “Every artery,

”

he says,

“ i s accompan i ed by a vein ; the former are fi lled only withbreath or air.” 3

Aris totle though t that the windpipe conveys air into the heart. Al

1 D r. Latham’s Life q y den/cam.

2 Ibid .

3 D e Spir itu , v. 1078. There is some doubt as to the genuineness of this work .

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386 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

know the c irculat ion of the blood as a whole ; he knew no more of it,

in fact, than he gathered from Galen and Servetus . 1

Even Harvey,splendid as was the work he did , could no t entirely

demon strate th e complete c irculation of the blood . He was not ablet o discover the cap illary vessels by wh ich the blood passes from thearteries to the veins . This , th e only m i ss ing point, was reservedfor MALPIGHI to discover. In 1 66 1 thi s celebrated anatom ist saw inthe lungs of a frog

,by the aid of the newly inven ted m icroscope, the

blood passing from one set of vessels to the other.Harvey began hi s investigation s by dissect ing a great number o f

l iving an imals . He exam ined in th is way dogs, pigs, serpents, frogs ,

and fi shes . He did no t disdain to learn even from slugs,oysters ,

lobsters,and insects , and the chick i tself while sti ll in the shell . He

o bserved and experimen ted upon the ventricles, the auricles, thearteries

,and the veins . He learned prec isely the obj ec t of the valves

o f the veins— to favour the flow of the blood towards the heart and i twas to th is latter observation

,and not the vivisect ion , that he attributed

his splendid discovery.

“ I remember,

” says Boyle,

“ that when I asked our famous Harveywhat were the th ings that induced him to th ink of a c irculation of theblood

,he answered me

,that when he took notice that the valves in

th e veins of so many parts of the body were so p laced , that they gavea free passage to the blood towards the heart, but Opposed the passageo f the venal blood the con trary way

,he was inc i ted to imagine that so

providen t a cause as Nature had not placed so many valves withoutdesign ; and no design seemed more probable than that the bloodshould be sen t th rough the arteries

,and return through the vein s

,whose

valves d id no t oppose its cause that way.

” What clear views of themotion s and pressure of a flu id c irculating in ram i fying tubes musthave been held by Harvey to enable him to deduce his discovery froma con templation of the simple valves It was observation , experience ,which led him to this . “ In every sc i ence

,

” he says,

2 “ be i t what i twill

,a diligent Observation i s requis i te, and sense i tself must be fre

quently consulted . We must no t rely upon other men’s experience, buto ur own , without which

'

no man i s a proper disc iple of any part ofnatural knowledge .

”

Dr . J . H. Bridges, of the Local Government Board, del ivered theHarveian oration on October 20 th

,1 892 , at the Royal College of

Physician s . Dr. Bridges said : In his d iscovery Wi ll iam Harveyemployed every method of biological research

,direct observation ,

1 Ency . Br it. , art . Harvey .

2 Generation of A n imals .

THE SEVENTEEN TH CENTUR Y. 387

experimen t, above all the great Aristotelian m ethod of comparison towh ich he h imself attributes h i s success . His manuscript notes Showhow freely he used i t. They show that he had dissected no less thaneighty Spec i es of an imals. It i s sometimes said that experimen tat ionon l iving animals was the princ ipal process o f discovery. This I bel ieve to be an exaggerated View

,though Such experimen ts were effective

in convinc ing others of the discovery when made. It n eed no t be saidthat no eth ical problem connected with th is matter was recogn i sed inHarvey’s t ime. The first to recogn i se such a probl em was that greatand successful experimenter, deep th inker

,and humane man

,Sir

Charles Bell. What were the effec ts of Harvey’s discovery ? It wasassuredly the most momentous even t in medical h istory since the t imeof Galen . It was th e first attempt to show that the processes of thehuman body followed or accompan i ed each other by laws as certainand prec is e as those wh ich Kepler and Gal ileo were reveal ing in thesolar . system or on the earth’s surface . Henceforth i t became cl ear thatal l laws of force and energy that operated in the inorgan ic world wereappl icable to the human body.

”

The case for Harvey’s originality i s well pu t by the author of thearticle on Harvey in the D ictionary of National Biograpky .

“ The

modern controversy as to whether the discovery was taken from som e

previous author is suffi c i ently refuted by the op in ion of the opponen tsof his views in hi s own t ime, who agreed in denounc ing the doc tine asnew ; by the laborious method of gradual demonstration obvious inh is book and lec tures ; and lastly

,by the Complete absence of luc id

demonstration of the act ion of the heart and course of the blood inCaesalpinus, Servetus , and all others who have been suggested as possible originals of the di scovery. It remain s to th is day the greatest ofthe discoveri es of physiology, and i ts whole honour belongs to Harvey.

”

“That there i s one blood stream ,common to both arteries and

veins,that the blood poured in to the right auricle passes in to the

right ven tricle , that i t i s from there forced by the contraction of theventr icu lar wall s along the pulmonary artery through the lungs and

pulmonary vein s to the left auric le, that i t then passes in to the leftventric le to be distr ibuted through the ao rta to every part of the an imalbody ; and that the heart i s the great propeller of th is perpetualmotion

,as in a c ircle. This i s the great truth Of th e motion of the

heart and blood,common ly called the c irculation , and must for ever

remain the glorious legacy of William Harvey to rational physiologyand m edic in e in every land .

” 1

1 Harvey, On tke Circu lation: Dr. Bow ie ’s edit .

388 A POP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

Harvey explains how he was led to h is great discovery : “WhenI firs t gave my m ind to vivisecti ons as a mean s of discovering themotion s and uses of the heart, and sough t to d iscover these from actualinspection , and no t from the writings of others, I found the task sotruly arduous

,so ful l of difficulties

,that I was almost tempted to th ink

wi th Frascatorius, that the motion of the heart was only to be comprehended by God . For I could n either rightly perceive at fi rst when thesystole and when the diastol e took place, nor when and where d ilatation and contraction occurred, by reason of the rapid i ty o f the motion,which in many an imals is accompl ished in the twinkl ing of an eye

,

com ing and going like a flash of lightn ing ; so that the sys tole presented i tself to me now from th is point, now from that ; the diastolethe sam e and then everyth ing was reversed , the motion s occurring , asi t seemed , variously and confusedly together. My m ind was thereforegreatly unsettled

,nor did I know what I should myself conclude

, nor

what bel ieve from others . I was no t surprised that Andreas Lauren t iusshould have wri tten that the motion of the heart was as perplexing asthe flux and reflux of Euripus had appeared to Ari stotle . At length

,

and by using greater dil igence and invest igation,making frequen t

inspect ion of many and various an imals , and collating numerousobservation s

,I thought that I had attained to the truth

,that I should

extricate myself and escape from th is labyrinth , and that I had discovered what I so much desired , both the mot ion and th e use of theheart and arteri es .” 1

JOHN LOCKE ( 1 63 2 The great ph i losopher was a thoroughlyeducated physic ian engaged in the practice of medic ine. He was thefriend of Sydenham,

whose principles he defended and whose worksare doubtless permeated with the thoughts of th e author o f the famoustreat ise on the Human Understanding. In a letter of Locke’s to W.

Molyneux he says “You cannot imagine how far a l ittle observationcarefully made by a man no t tied up to the four humours [Galen], orsal

,sulphur, and mercury [Paracelsus], or to ac id and alkali [Sylvius

and Wi l l is], wh ich has of late prevailed, will carry a man in the curingof diseases

,though very stubborn and dangerous ; and that with very

li ttle and common th ings, and almost no medic ine at all .” Lockedeclared that we have no innate ideas, but that all our knowledge i sderived from experience . The acquirement of knowledge is due to theinvestigation of things by the bodily senses .Surgery about th is period began to flourish in England . R ICHARD

1 Harvey, On tlze Circu lation of tne Blood. Bohn’s edit .

,revised by D r. Bow ie ,

1 889 .

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390 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

The inven tion of the M ICROSCOPE in 1 6 2 1 was of the utmos timportance to the study of m inute anatomy and physiology.

PIERRE D ION IS (died a famous French surgeon,publ ished a

work on the anatomy of man,which was translated in to Chinese at the

emperor’s request. He also wrote on rtckets in relation to the pelvis ,

and advanced the study o f den t istry . He explained the c i rculation ,

and wrote a monograph on catalepsy.

THOMAS BARTHOLIN ( 1 6 1 9 professor of anatomy at Copenhagen

,made importan t investigat ion s on the lacteals and lymphatic

vessels .CASPAR ASSELLIUS ( 1 58 1—1 626) discovered the chyli ferous vessels in

the dog ; FABRICE DE PEIRESC ( 1 580 dissect ing a criminal twohours after execution

,discovered them in man ; VAN HORNE ( 1 6 2 1

in 1 65 2 , firs t demonstrated th e vessels in man. (It has, however, been claimed that George Jolyffe discovered the lymphatics in1 650 4JEAN PECQUET ( 1 6 2 2 a French physic ian, publ ished , in 1 65 1 ,

h is New Anatomical Exper imen ts, in which he made known his d iscoveryof the receptac le of the chyle

,t i ll then unknown, and described the

vessel which conveys the chyle to the subcl avian vein .

OLAUS RUDBECK ( 1 630 a Swedish surgeon ,shares with

Jo lyffe the honour of the d iscovery of the term ination of the lymphaticvessels . He demon strated them in the presence of Queen Christina,and traced them to the thorac ic duct, and the latter to the subclavianvein .

GERARD BLAES (died 1 66 2) made numerous discoveries in connect ionwith the glands .ANTONY NUCK ( 1 650—1 692 ) firs t inj ected the lymphatics with quick

silver,rec tified various errors in the work o f his predecessors

,and by

his own researches did much to complete the anatomy o f the glands .PAUL SARP I ( 1 55 2 of Ven ice , was a monk of whom La

Courayer said, “Qu’i l é tai t Catholique en gros e t quelque fois Protestant

en dé tail .” He was the friend of Galileo,and, though he did no t invent

the telescope, was the first who made an accurate map of the moon .

It i s no t true that he ant ic ipated Harvey in h i s d iscovery of the circu

lation,though he was a great physiologist, and discovered th e contrac t

ility of the iri s .NATHANAEL HIGHMORE ( 1 6 1 3—1 68 5 ) was a phys ic ian and anatom is t

who is chiefly remembered for h is descript ion of the cavity in thesuperior maxillary bone which bears h is name. I t had, however, been

previously described by Cassprius. He demonstrated the differencebetween the lacteals and the mesen teric veins.

THE SEVEN TEEN TH CENTUR Y. 39 1

GEORGE WIRSUNG (died 1 643 ) was a prosec tor to Vesal ius . He

discovered the excretory duct of the pancreas .SIR CHRISTOPHER WREN ( 1 63 2—1 72 3 ) was the first to sugges t th e

inj ect ion of medic ines in to the veins .THORBERN

,a Dan i sh peasan t, about th is time inven ted an ins trumen t

for amputating the elongated uvula .

JAN SWAMMERDAM ( 1 63 7—1 686) was the fi rst to prove that the queenbee was a female .

THOMAS M ILLINGTON (circ. 1676) poin ted out the sexual organsof plants .FELIX VICQ D

’s R ( 1 748—1 7 94) was one of the zoologists whose re

searches exerc i sed an important influence on the progress of anatomy .

He investigated the origin of the brain and nerves, and the comparative

anatomy of the vocal organs .SIR THOMAS BROWNE

,M .D .

,of Norwich ( 1 605 the author o f

the immortal Rel igio Il/Iedici,studied medic ine at Mon tpell ier, Padua,

and Leyden . He was a man who, in his own words , cou ld not do not/t ing .

Though he wrote a famous work on Vu lgar Errors,he could not r ise

superior to the commonest one of h i s t ime— th e belief in witchcraft.THOMAS W ILLIS

,M .D . ( 1 62 1 was celebrated for h is researches

in the anatomy and pathology of the brain . Unfortunately he neglectedobservation for theoris ing.

Dr. Freind said of Wil lis that he was the firs t inventor of the nervoussystem . Willis taugh t that the cerebrum i s the seat of the intellectualfaculties, and the source from wh ich spr ing the voluntary motions . He

cons igned the involun tary motions to the cerebellum ; these go on in a

regular manner,without our knowledge and independen tly of our will .

He supposed that the nerves of voluntary motions arise chiefly fromthe cerebrum,

and those of the involun tary motions from the cerebellumor its appendages . 1

Willis deserves to be gratefully remembered in medical history as thegreat reformer of pharmacology. Having been led to cons ider how i ti s that medic ines act on the various organ s of the body, he reflected thatthere was usually very li ttle relation ship between the means of cure andthe physiological and pathological processes to be influenced . Medic ines were given at random. M ineral poisons, such as antimont ere

recklessly prescribed , to the destruct ion , no t of the disease only, buttoo frequently of the patient also.

“ So heedlessly, says Willis, “ arethese executioners in the h abi t of sporting with the human body, whi le

1 Thomson’s Life of Cu llen , vo l. i . p . 206. Will is , Anatomy of tke Brain ,

chaps.XV.

_ XVii o

392 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

th ey are led to prepare and adm in i ster these dangerou s medic ines , no tby any del iberation , nor by the guidance of any method, bu t by merehazard and bl ind impulse.

” 1

The obj ect of Willi s was to establ ish a direct and reasonable relationsh ip between th e phys iological and morbid condition s of the body onthe one hand, and the indications for cure and the therapeutic meansby which these were to be brought about on th e other.2 It was a greattask

,and Will is did no t wholly succeed but h is method was the righ t

one,however grievously he failed to carry i t in to pract ice, for he pre

scribed blood,the human skull, salt Of vipers, water of snails and

earthworms,m i ll ipeds , and other th ings which he ough t to have known

could have no effect on any disease. 3 We must no t be too severelycri tical

,for Will is was the firs t to attempt the reformati on of th is

'

degraded state of Materia Medica.

The state of Materia M edica (or the drugs and chem icals used bythe physic ian) during the end of th e seven teen th and the earl ier part ofthe eigh teen th cen tury

,was remarkable, says Dr. Thomson,‘ for four

C i rcum stances.First

,there was a great number of remedies strongly recommended

for the cure of diseases but many of them were inert and useless,and

thus the prac tit ioner was perplexed and confused .

Secondly ,the popular confidence in all these medic ines was i rrational

and extrem e.Tkirdly , i t was the custom to combine in one prescription a great

number of ingredien ts . The Pharmacopoeias of the period con tainformulae which embraced in some instances from twen ty-four up to as

many as fifty- two ingredients . Sydenham i s the first who exh ibi ts any

t endency to greater s impl ic i ty in hi s prescriptions .Lastly, there was no rational or logical connect ion between the

d i sease to be cured and th e remedy with wh ich i t was treated .

Empi ric i sm and supersti tion to a serious extent dom inated m edic ine,and retarded its progress .Yet

,even during the seven teen th cen tury, original th inkers and men

of gen i us connected with one or other of the un iversi ties,s truck out a

path for themselves wh ich led to brighter things .‘ Fi rs t was Harvey ,

then came Wharton ,Glisson

,Will i s , Lower, Mayow, Grew, Charleton ,

Coll ins, Sydenham ,Morton

,Bennet

,and R idley all these men were

s tudents of anatomy and arden t invest igators in th e field of physiology.

I t i s true that i t was long before the labours of these p ioneers of scien

1 Pkarmaceu tike Rationa l is, London , 1675 . Praefatio .

2 Thomson’s L ife of Cu llen , vol. ii . p . 546.

3 Ibid ., p . 547.

4 Li/is of Cu llen , vol . ii . p . 536.

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CHAPTER , III.

SKATOLOGICAL MEDICINE AND THE REFORM OF PHARMACOLOGY.

Loathsome Medicines.—Sympathetical Cures. —Weapon-Salve .—Superstitions.

NOTWITHSTAND ING all the splendid sc ient ific work o f the period , theabsurdes t superstitions about amulets and charms s til l held their ground.

Sir John Harr ington , in h i s Sckoole of Salerne, prin ted in 1 624, saysAlwaies in your hands use eyther Corall or yellow Amber

,or a

chalcedonium, or a sweet Pommander,or some l ike prec ious stone to

be worne in a ring upon the l i ttle finger of the left hand ; have in yourrings eyther a Smaragd, a Saphire, or a D racon ites, wh ich you shallbeare for an ornamen t for in stones

,as also in heathes

,there is great

efficacie and vertue,but they are not altogether perce ived by us ; hold

sometime in your mouth eyther a Hyac inth , or a Crystall, or a Granat,or pure Gold, or Si lver, or els e sometimes pure Sugar-candy. For

Ar istotle doth affi rme,and so doth Albertus Magnus , that a Smaragd

worne about the necke,is good agains t the Fall ing-sicknes for surely

the virtue of an hearbe i s great, but much more the vertue o f a prec iousstone, wh ich is very l ikely that they are endued with occult and hiddenvertues .”

MATERIA MEDICA.

Amongs t those who,after Willis

,laboured to reform pharmacology

may be men t ionedJOHN ZWELFER

,a learned physic ian o f Vienna, who publi shed in 1 65 1

a greatly improved Pharmacopoeia, which rej ec ted many useless and

improper medic ines .DANIEL LUDWIG in 1 6 7 1 publi shed a dissertat ion on useless and

unsatisfactory drugs . He den i ed the virtues of earthworms, toads,and the l ike.MOSES CHARAS ( 1 6 1 8—1 698) was a pharmac is t of Paris, who founded

the h istorical es tabl ishmen t known as the Viplres d’or of that c i ty .

Seventeen th-century pharmacy owed much to this man, who was

’ “one

of the last of the Arabian polypharmacists,one of the las t of the

adepts of expiring alchemy, and the immediate precursor of the epoch

SKA TOLOGICAL MED ICINE. 395

of Lemery .

”1 He studied pharmacy at Mon tpell ier. He was acquaintedwith natural h istory.

N0 history of medic ine would be complete without reference to theimmens e number of loathsome and fi lthy substances which from the

remotes t t imes, even up to the presen t, have been used as medic ines .This subj ect has been treated in a very complete form by CaptainBourke in h is work on Skatologi cal R i tes of all Nations, an importan tsection of which is devoted to “Skatological Medic ine.

” 2 The theoryunderlying the use o f disgusting remedies seems to be this Nearly allmedic ines wh ich have any effi cacy are unpleasan t to take ; a bitterinfusion of ton ic leaves or roots i s no t usually agreeable ; many goodmedic ines are very nasty

,but their effi cacy is un iversally acknowledged .

Ignorant persons argue that the nastiness is th e Sign of the effi cacy ; thatthe more disgus ting the potion or p i l l, the more good i t will do . Evenat the presen t day pauper and hospital pat ien ts of the lower classeshave no fai th in medic ines wh ich are no t dark in colour and rich insedimen t ; elegan t pharmacy would soon destroy the best East-End

practice. The mos t repulsive sedimen t in a m ixture is readily swallowed

,and i s usually cons idered h ighly “

nourish ing.

”Now from nasty

herbal medic ines to fi l thy an imal excretions i s but a short s tep. Plinygives hundreds of instances of skatological remedies in h is Natural

Iilistory ,and the anc ien t writers frequen tly prescribe them. They con

si st of such things as the dung and urine of various an imals , not excepting those of man, of the catamen ial and loch ial d ischarges, of the sweatof athletes, of the paras i tes of human and an imal bodies

,of ear wax ,

human blood,e tc .

XENOCRATES OF APHRODIS IAS (about A.D . 70 ) introduced d isgust ingfi lth as med ic ines ; e.g.

,ear wax

,catamen ial fluid , human flesh

, bats’

blood, e tc .

” 3

“ASCLEPIADES PHARMAC ION (about A .D . 1 00 ) recommended evenanimal excremen t as a med ic ine .

”4

QUINTUS SERENUS SAMON ICUS (di ed A .D . 2 1 1 ) prescribed mousedtmg in poultices ; goats

’ urine internally for stone in the bladder ;earth and dung from a wagon rut for col ic

,externally.

5

MARCELLUS EMPIRICUS, phys ic ian to Theodosius (345 pre

scribed natural p ills of rabbi t’s dung. Dr. Baas declares that th isremedy is in use on the Rhine at the presen t day, as a cure for con

sumpt ion .

6

1 Cap. Etudes Biograp lz iqu es , Ser. i . p . 1 20 .

2 See Br itt'

s/z M edica ljou rnal , June I I,1 892 , p. 1 263 .

3 Baas’Hist. M ed. , p . 1 59.

4 Ibid.

5 Ibid. , p . 18 1 .

6 Ibid . , p. 1 87 .

A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Culpeper, in hi s translation of the Pharmacopoeia ridiculesthe remedies enumerated in that work. Thus the College of Physic iansemploy

“ the fat,grease

,or suet of a duck

,goose

,eel

,bore, heron,

thymallos (‘if you know wkere to get it,

’ says Culpeper) , dog, capon ,

bever,w i ld cat

,stork

,hedgehog

,hen

,man

,lyon

,hare

,ki te

,or j ack

( if tkey kave any fat, I am persuaded’tis wortk twelve pence tlze gra in ) ,

wolf,mouse of the moun tain s (if y ou can co tek tkem), pardal, hog, ser

pent, badger, bear, fox, vulture (if y ou can co teli tkem) , album graecum ,

east and west benz oar, s ton e taken ou t a man’s bladder,viper

’s flesh,

the brain of hares and sparrows, the rennet of a lamb, kid , hare, and ac alf and a horse too (quot/c tke colledg) [tkey s/zould kave pu t tke rennet

of an ass to make medicinefor their addle krains], the excremen t of a

goose, o f a dog, of a goat, of p idgeons, of a stone horse, of swallows , ofmen, of women , of m ice, of peacocks,

”etc . , etc.

There was, says Southey, 1 a water of man’s blood wh ich in Queen

Eli zabeth’s day was a new inven ti on , “whereof some princes had very

great estimation , and used i t for to remain thereby in their force, and,as they though t , to l ive long.

”They chose a strong young man of

twenty-five, dieted him for a month on the best meats, wines and sp ices ,and at the mon th’s end they bled him in both arms as much as hecould “ tolerate and abide.” They added a handful of salt to six

pounds of this blood , and dist illed i t seven t imes , pouring water uponthe res iduum a fter every d i stillation . An ounce of this was to be takenthree or four t imes a year. As the l i fe was thought to be in the blood,i t was believed i t could thus be transferred .

Dr. O . MOller says that in D enmark, even now in some few places ,human excrements are no t en t irely obsolete as epispastic appl icat ionsin inflammation of the breast .2

Dr. Baas says 3 that urine i s taken in the Rhine provinces infevers instead of quin ine. This was recommended by the surgicalwriter Schm id t in 1 649 . In th e seven teen th century the old pharmac i es of Germany con tained, amongst other disgusting remedies, frogspawn water, mole

’s blood , oil of spiders, snake’s tongue

,mouse dung,

spirits of human brain, urine of a new-born child , etc .

‘1 The dung ofs creech-owls was prescribed for melancholy, as also was the dung ofd oves and calves boi led in wine, ox-dung, etc. Dog

-dung and fleasboiled with sage was a medicine for gout, and death- sweat was u sed asa cure for warts . 5

Mould from the churchyard is used in some parts o f Ireland and in

1 Tke D octor , p . 39 .

2 D enmark, Hygi ene and D emograpky , p . 57 .

Hist. M ed ., p . 5 1 7 .

4 Ibid. , p. 545.

5 Ibid. , p . 547 .

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

It was communicated to the king’s physic ian , D r. Mayerne , and

long every country barber knew of i t. Sir Kenelm D igby disco n the matter before an assembly of nobles and learned men at Mont

pellier in France, and endeavoured to explain the act ion of h i s powderby all sorts of conj ectures, as emanation of l ight, th e act ion of impingingrays, etc . He tried to prove that the Sp iri t which emanated from thevitriol became incorporated with the blood

,and there met the exhala

tion of hot Spi rits from the inflamed part .Infinitely simpler, however, was the process of cure. Nature

,left to

herself,did the whole of the work . It seemed

,as D r. Pettigrew says

,

that i t had hitherto been th e practice of surgeon s to place every oh

s tacle in the way of the un i on of severed parts of the body. What withointmen ts and various more or l ess fi lthy appl ications, the edges of thewound were kept apart, and so the heal ing process was retarded .

O f a kindred character to the “ powder of sympathy was theweapon salve of the period . Instead of anoint ing the wound, thekni fe

,axe

,or other in strumen t wh ich caused i t was smeared with oint

men t and the weapon was then carefully wrapped up and pu t away.Dryden refers to th is same weapon salve

”in th e “Tempest,

”Act V.

se . 1 . D r. Pettigrew says that the pract ice was at one t ime verygeneral . 1

The princ ipl e underlying the doctrine of sympathet ic powders wasexplained by Sir Kenelm thus :

“ In t ime of common con tagion theyuse to carry about them the powder of a toad, and sometimes a l ivingtoad or Spider shut up in a box ; or else they carry arsen ic, or someother venomous substance

,wh ich draws unto i t the con tagious air,

which otherwise would infect the party ; and the same powder of toaddraws un to i t the poison of a pesti lent ial cold . The scurf or farcy i s avenomous and con tagious humour within the body of a horse hang atoad about th e neck of th e horse in a li ttl e bag, and he wil l be curedinfall ibly the toad

,which i s the stronger poison, drawing

'

to i t thevenom which was with in the horse.” 2

The same author says that persons of i l l breath can be cured by holding th ei r mouths open at a cesspool , the greater stink having the powerto draw away the less .3

In the reign o f Charles II. a gen tleman named Valen tine Greatrakes,Of a good fam i ly and education , “ felt an impulse that the gi ft of curingthe king’s evil was bestowed upon him .

” He publ ished an accoun t o fh is cures of th is and other diseases

,ague

,epi lepsy, and palsy, and some

1 M edical Superst itions , p. 16 1 .

2 Sir K. D igby , Powder of Sympatlzy , p . 97 .

3 Ibid., p. 76 .

S‘

KA TOLOGICAL MED ICINE. 399

o ther compla ints more or less connected with the nervous system,in a

l etter to the Hon . Robert Boyle . He seem s to have performed hi scures

,which were by some person s cons idered m iraculous, by a kind of

massage,or “ by the Stroak ing of

‘ the Hands . The cures were simplyo f an exc ited imagination.

1

1 Pettigrew’s M edical Superstitions, p. 1 55 .

CHAPTER IV.

BATHS AND M INERAL WATERS .

M iraculous Springs —The Poo l of Bethesda.-Herb-baths .

ESPECIALLY in Germany m ineral waters ach ieved great popularity inthe treatmen t of diseases in the seventeen th century.

In anc ien t t imes , according to Pliny, Paulus IEgineta, and others ,m ineral waters were recogni sed as possessing curative effects, and thetemples of heal th were frequen tly erec ted in con t iguity to these powerful aids to treatmen t . Savages are everywhere ful ly aware of the valueof such medic inal waters

,and avail them selves of their benefits . Ho t

springs , wherever they occur, are highly esteem ed by the natives .Humboldt states that on Christian i ty being in troduced into Iceland

,the

natives refused to be bapt ized in any but the waters of the geysers . 1

Hooker tells us that in the hot springs of Yeun tong, which burst fromthe bank of the Lachen ,

in the Himalayas,the natives remain three

days at a t ime,bathing in the sal ine and sl ightly sulphuretted waters .

N0 better treatmen t for certain form s of sk in diseases could be followed .

2

Such a course of treatmen t i s carried out now at the baths of Leuk,in

Swit zerland,amongs t other places . There the patien ts take their meals

and play cards , chess,draughts

,etc.

,while up to their necks in the

warm medic inal waters . Hooker tells us,again

,of the use of ho t baths

amongst the Sikkim Bho teeas. The bath cons is ts of a hollowedprostrate tree trunk

,the water of which i s heated by throwing in hot

stones with bamboo tongs . They can rai se the temperature tothe patien t submi tting to th is at in tervals for several days, never leavingtil l wholly exhausted .

3

D r. Mead ‘1 th inks that the Pool o f Bethesda , spoken of in the Gospelof St. John , chap. v.

,was a medic inal bath , whose virtues principally

resided in the mud which settl ed at the bottom . It was necessary ,therefore

,that th e pool should be

“ troubled,that is to say, stirred up ,

so that the person bath ing therein m ight derive benefit from the

1 P ers . Narr . , iv. 195.

2 Himalay anjou rnals, ed . 189 1 , p. 37 1 .

3 Ibid. , p . 2 14.

‘1 M edica Sacra , p . 62 .

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402 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Here is an anc i en t prescript ion for a medic inal bath

THE MAKYNG OF A BATHE MED ICINABLE.

1

Ho ly hokke and yardehok peritory2and the broun fenelle , 3

Wal le wort herbe John 5 Sentory6rybbewort

7 and cammamelle ,

Hey hove 8 heyriff 9 herbe benet 1° brese wort 1 1 and smal l ache , 1 1Brok e lempk 13 Scabiose 14 Bilgres wi ld flax is good for acheWethy leves, grene otes boyld in fere fulle soft,Cast them hote in to a vesselle and sett your soverayn alloft ,

And su ffire that hete a while as hoot as he may a-bideSe that p lace be couered w el le over and close on every sideAnd what dissese ye be vexed w ith, grevaunce ou ther peyn,This medicyne shalle make yow hoo le surely , as men seyu .

” 15

George Herbert,in h i s P r iest to t/ze Temp le, enumerates the duties

o f the parson’s wife

,and extols the virtues of these homely remedies .

“ For salves,hi s wife seeks no t the c i ty, but prefers her gardens and

fields before all out-landish gum s and surely hyssop , valerian ,mercury,

adder’s tongue,mel ilot

,and St. John’s wort, made in to a salve, and

elder,comphrey, and smallage, made in to a poultice, have don e great

and rare cures .

1 John Russe l l’s Boke of IVur tu re, 99 1—1000 .

2 Pe l l itory o f the w all, which abounds in n itrate of potass.

3 Probably Peu cedanum qfii cinale.

4 Danewort. 5 St . John’s wort.6 Centaury.

7 P lan tain .

3 Gleckoma kederacea .

9 Gal ium Aparine, presc'ribed in Leecli doms , v . 2 , p. 345 , for a salve against

the elfin race and nocturnal [goblin] visitors , and for the woman w ith whom the

devi l hath carnal comm erce .

1° Avens. 1 1 Bru ise wort , p impernel , or perhaps for Hembriswort , daisy.

1 2 Smallage, or w ild-water parsley.

13 Brookl ime .

14 Scabious.15 John Russe l l’s Boke of Nu rtu re, Harl . MS. 40 1 1 , Fol . 1 7 1 . The notes are

from D r. Furnivall’s edition .

CHAPTER V.

WITCHCRAFT AND MEDICINE.

Comparative Witchcraft. -Laws against Sorcery —Magic in Virgil and Horace .

Demono logy .—Images ofWax and Clay .

—Transference of D isease.—Witchcraft

in the Koran.

—White Magic and Black .—Coral and the Evi l Eye . Overlook

ing People .—Exorcism in the Catho lic Church .

COMPARATIVE WITCHCRAFT.

WITCHES and impostors, said Bacon , “ have always held a competi t ion with phys ic ian s.

”The Hi story of M edicine

,th erefore

,demands

som e notice of the strange delusions wh ich have exerted the mostterrible influence over the m inds of men in all ages and in all s tages ofc ivil ization . Noth ing in the history of the human spec ies is older thanth e bel ief in magic, and i t will be found that the prac tices of the savagein th i s connec tion have the ir analogies amongst ourselves at the p resen tday. Gipsy craft, fortune tell ing, dream interpretation, sp iritual ism,

the m iracles of the theosoph ists , may al l be traced in the custom s and

pract ices of savage tribes . They are survivals which will no t be got ridof probably for centuries to com e . Education, so far from del iveringus from the bondage

,has curious ly enough in many cases served but to

rivet the chains more firmly. In the chapters on the demon theory ofdisease

,much l igh t has been thrown on the origin of our bel ief in the

influence of sp irits good and bad. Trials in England connec ted withwitchcraft were most numerous in the seven teen th cen tury. The mostin teresting is that of the Suffolk wi tches, when Sir Matthew Hale was thej udge and Sir Thomas Browne the medical expert witness. Th i s excellen tand learned physician testified that certain children

,said to have been

bewitched, suffered from fi ts,heightened to great excess by the subtlety

of the devil co—operat ing with th e witches . The report alleges thatafter conviction of the accused the ch ildren immediately recovered.

While condemn ing the cruelty and severi ty of the laws against witchcraft

,and reflect ing on the inj ustice and ignorance with which they were

en forced , we must remember that in many cases sorcerers and otherdabblers in black magic have added to their supposed supernaturalmethods the very real and serious arts o f the poisoner, and th e no t less

403

404 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

real, though purely men tal influences of terror and alarm. To knowthat an evi l-m inded person was compass ing one

’s death or was busiedin bringing about

,by d iabol ical influences

,some dreadful s ickness or

other inj ury to one’s person,was

,quite suffic ient, in ignorant and super

stitious t imes , to effect all the evil wh ich i t was in the m ind of themagic ian or witch to induce. But probably there never was a regularprofess ional sorcerer who did no t use the actual weapons o f poison, ordeleterious drugs o f some kind or other

,to assist h is evil in ten tions .

In the case of the trial of the Countess of Somerset, in 1 6 1 6,a charge

of witchcraft was j oined with the charge of poison ing Sir ThomasOverbury.

1 Witchcraft and murder were combined in the Master ofOrkney’s case . The last case ever brought before the “ ChambreArden te in France resulted in the condemnation

,in 1 680

,of a woman

named Voi s in , for sorcery and poison ing, in connec tion with theMarqui se de Brinvilliers. But even apart from con siderat ion s of

material inj ury, the mental impressions are often fatal enough ; thus ,in the Pac ific Islands

,to quote but one instance, magical arts have

been proved effective through the pat ient’s own imagination . When

he knows or fanc ies that he has been bewitched , he will fall i ll, and hewill ac tually d ie un less h e can be persuaded that he has been cured .

Thus,wherever sorcery i s pract ised with the bel ief of i t s vict ims , some

system of exorc i sm or some protect ive magical art becomes, no t on lynecessary

,but actually effec tive— a men tal d isease being met by a

mental remedy to match it .” 2 Hearne,when travell ing in North

America, was en treated by an Indian to give him a charm again s t anenemy (savages and prim i t ive folk are great bel ievers in whi te men as

magic ian s) . Hearne compl ied , and for fun, drew on a sheet of papersome c ircl es

,s igns , and words . The Indian took care to let h is vic tim

know that he had “medic ine ” against him,and the poor wretch fel l

s ick immediately, and shortly afterwards died . Cockayne quotes fromWier an accoun t of a woman who wore an amulet to cure bad eyes,which were made worse by her constantly flowing tears . Some one whohated sorceries induced her to open and exam ine the charm. Whenunfolded

,the paper showed nothing but these words May the devi l

scratch th ine eyes out, and in the holes .” As soon as the womansaw how she had been dece ived , she los t faith , took to cry ing again ,

and her eyes became as bad as ever. 3

1 S tate Tr ials , 95 1 .

2 Dr. E. B. Tylor, art. “Magic, Ency . Brit . See El l is , Polynesian Researckes ;

Turner, N ineteen Years in Poly nesia ; Po lack , M anners and Cu stoms of New

Zealanders Waltz,vo ls . v . ,

vi. all works mentioned by D r . Tylor.1 Saxon Leeckdoms, vol . i . Pref. , xxx ii .

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406 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

t ime taking care no t to glance behind her. 1 Horace also describes theconcoct ion of a charm in a perfectly orthodox style whose fam i lyh istory i s intell igible enough to the studen t o f comparative sorcery .

There is nothing in the c lassic witchcraft which does no t exis t to dayin the islands of savage peoples , and the methods of medic ine-m en in

prim i t ive forests .

IMAGES OF WAX,ETC.

,IN SORCERY.

A very widespread and anc i en t method of compassing a person’s

death by witchcraft i s that of making a figure in wax, or other plast icmaterial , to represen t th e vict im of the incan tation. The obj ect seemsto be the concen trat ion of will-power to effect the wishes of the userof the charm. There i s an innate bel ief that words are creat ivesymbols it may be derived from th e percept ion of the power of man

to effect that which he desires earnestly to effect, so that “ whenevera good or evil wish ,

” as Dr. Tylor says,

“ i s uttered in words , i tbecomes a bless ing or curse.” Thi s idea lie s at the root of what i scalled “ Christian sc ience healing

, i .e. heal ing by good wishes . In

i ts evi l form we have an anc i ent exampl e in Ovid’s sorceress :2

King James,in hi s D wmonology , says that The devil teacheth how

to make p ic tures ofwax or clay, that by roasting thereof the person s thatthey bear the name of may be con tinually melted or dried away bycont inual s ickness .”

So the Governor-General of a Ch inese province recen tly issued a

proclamation, whereby i t was declared unlawful to bring about thedeath of others by incan tat ions. You are forb idden,

” said GovernorWang

,

“ i f you have a grudge against any one, to pract i se the magiccalled Striking the Bull’s Head ,

’that is to say, writing a man’s nam e

and age on a scrap of paper, and laying i t before th e bull-headed idol ,and then buying an i ron stamp and p ierc ing small holes in th is paper,and finally throwing i t at the man on the sly

,with the in ten t ion o f

compass ing hi s death .

”3

“So recen tly ,” says the authoress of Wander ings in Ck ina, as

December, 1 883 , a case was

”

tried at the Inverness pol ice court, inwhich the cause of offence was the discovery of a c lay image with p insstuck through i t in order to compass the death of a neighbour, a dis

1 Goodw in , L ives of tlze Necromancers , pp . 1 27—1 32.

2 Heroid . , vi. 9 1 .

Simulacraque cerea fingit,Et m iserum tenu is in jecur urget acus .

11 Gordon Cumm ing’s Wander ings in Ck ina ,

vo l . i. p . 336 .

WITCHCRAFT AND MED ICINE. 407

covery which resulted in an assault. Many s imi lar cases have beendiscovered both in England and Scotland .

” 1

“The demon-priests of Ceylon ,” says Gomme

, make use of imagesof wax or wood, which represen t the person to be inj ured. They drivenails in to the poin ts which represen t the heart, the head , e tc . ,

markthe name of the intended vict im on i t, and bury it where he i s l ikelyto pass over i t.

” Plato alludes to the same practice as obtain ingamongst the Greeks of h is period.

3

There are very s im i lar Scotch pract ices.It was anc i en tly bel ieved that diseases could be transferred from

one person to another. Says Take the parings of the toenails and finger-nails of a s ick person and m ix them up with wax , the

party saying that he is seeking a remedy for a tertian, quartan ,or

quotidian fever,as the case may be then stick th is wax

,before sunrise ,

upon the door of another person . Such i s the prescription they givefor these diseases .”

Gomme says 5 that St. Tegla’s well,about half-way between Wrex

ham and Ruth in, i s resorted to for the cure of ep ilepsy. The pa

t ien t offers a cock,or i f a woman

,a hen . The bird i s carried in

a basket,firs t round the well , and then round the church . The

patien t enters the church,creeps under the altar, and remains there

till morn ingf Having made an offering, he leaves the cock and de

parts . If the bird dies,i t i s supposed that the disease has been trans

ferred to i t,and the man or woman consequently cured .

The use of wax figures in enchantments is, as we have shown, veryanc ien t, and i t has las ted up to the presen t t ime . Simoetha in Theocritus says : “As I melt th is wax by the help of the goddess, so may

Myndian Delphi s be presently wasted by love.” 6 And Horace refers

to i tLanea et effigies evat, altera cerea .

(Lib . i . , Sat .

Paracelsus advises the pat ien t affl icted with St. Vi tus’ dance to makean image of himself in wax or res in

,and by an effort of m ind to con

centrate all hi s blasphem ies and s ins in i t, “ wi thout the intervent ionof any other person ,

to se t h is whole m ind and thoughts concern ingthese oaths on the image.

” Having done th is, he was to destroy th eimage by fire .

7

1 Vol . i . p . 336. See also I n tke Hebri des , pp . 263—265. C . F . Gordon

Cumm ing.

2 Etknology in Folklore, p . 5 1 .

3 Plato , Laws , l ib. x i .‘1 Nat. Hi st . , Book xxv iii . ch. 24.

5 Etknology in Folklore, p . 87 .

6 Idyl i i . 7 Heck er’s Epidemics , p . 102

408 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

Pliny says 1 that abrotonum (wh ich was probably southernwood ) ,i f put beneath the p i llow, wil l act as an aphrodis iac, and that iti s of the very greatest efficacy agains t all those charm s and spells bywhich impotence is produced . As an an taphrodisiac he recommendsthe tamarisk

, m i xed in a drink or in food with the urine of an o x.

2

Amongst the Tam i ls of Ceylon there is a ceremony performed withthe skull of a child

,with the design of producing the death of the person

against whom the incantation i s d irected. Cabal istic figures are drawnupon the skul l after i t has been duly prepared . The name of th e

person to be destroyed by the charm i s also writ ten on the skull .Then a paste i s composed with h is sal iva, some of h is hair, and a l it tl eearth on which he has imprinted h i s footsteps, and th i s i s spread upona plate, and taken with the skull to the cemetery of the place, wherefor forty n ights the evil spiri ts are invoked to destroy the denouncedperson . The natives bel ieve that as the paste dries on the plate, thevict im of the charm will waste and die .

3

“ Both Greeks and savages,” says Mr . A. Lang

,

4 “ have worsh ippedthe ghosts of the dead . Both Greeks and savages ass ign to their godsthe m iraculous powers of transformation and magic

,wh ich savages also

attribute to the ir conj urors or shamans . The mantle ( i f he had aman tle) of the medic ine-man has fallen on the god but Zeus

, or Indra,was no t once a real medic ine-man.

”

In the Kalevala the hero of the poem wounds h imself with an '

axe .

The wound can on ly be healed by one who knows the mystic words thathold the secret of the birth of iron . Iron i s the bane of warl ike men

when the wizard curses the iron as a l iving th ing, the hero i s healed .

5

KNOTS .

Just in Martyr says that the Jews used magic t i es 01 knots in the i rexorc isms . The Babylon ians d id the same. When the god Mardukwri tes to soothe the last moments of a dying man

,Hea says , “ Take a

woman’s l inen kerchief,bind it round thy righ t hand loose i t from the

left hand, knot i t wi th seven knots do so twice.” 6

The r 1 3 th chapter of the Koran was written by Mohammed when hewas suffering from an i llness of a rheumatic character, and he believedthat i t was caused by some evil person who had bewitched him. The

chapter.

runs thus“ Say, I fly for refuge unto the Lord of the daybreak, that he may

d eliver me from the m isch i ef of those th ings wh ich he hath created ;1 Book xx i . 92 .

2 Book xx iv. 42 .

3 Sir James Emerson Tennent’s Cey lon , vol . ii . p . 545 .

1 Cu stom and My tlt , p . 200 .

5 Ibid. , p . 169 .

6 Records of tire Past , vol. ii i. p. 141 .

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4 10 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF .MEDICINE.

Blaise Pascal,when an infan t a year old , was supposed to have been

bewi tched by an old woman, who ult imately con fessed that She had infact so influenced h i s heal th .

BLACK MAGIC.

The following revelation ” of the proceedings of sorcerers i s fromthe Aly steries of M agi c by Waite, 1 and was taken by him from the worksof Eliphas Levi .2

“ They procure ei ther some of the hair or garments of the personwhom they wish to curse ; then they choose an an imal which they cons ider the symbol of that person by mean s of the hair or garments ; they

place th is an imal in magnetic rapport with the individual they give ithis name

,then they slay it with one blow of the magic kn ife, Open its

breast,tear out the heart

,which they envelop whil e still palpi tating in

the magnetised obj ec t, and for three days they hourly pi erce th is heartwith nails

,red-hot pin s

,or long thorn s

, pronounc ing maledict ion s at the‘

same time on the nam e of the bewi tched person. They are then con

vinced (and often rightly) that the victim of their infamous manoeuvresexperiences as many tormen ts as if he had h imsel f been probed to theheart with every one of the poin ts. He begin s to waste away, and atth e end of a certain t ime dies of an unknown complain t.

”Another

proceeding i s to take a large toad, baptism i s adm in istered to i t, andi t i s given the name and surname of the person whom i t i s des ired to

curse ; i t i s made to swallow a consecrated host whereon the formulae,

of execration have been pronounced then i t i s enveloped in themagneti sed obj ects

,bound with the hair of th e vic tim, on which the

operator has previously spat, and the whole i s buried either beneaththe threshold of the bewitched person

’s door or in a place which hei s bound to pass daily.

”

The most importan t part of the body of a person to be bewi tched isa tooth

,but the hair or blood will answer fairly well .

THE EVIL EYE.

The use of red coral for warding o ff the evi l eye i s at leas t as old

as the times of the anc i en t Romans ; they used coral necklaces fortheir babies as we do now,

but no t for ornamen t so much as for protection from supernatural danger. In Italy

,espec ially in the parts

round Naples, red coral charms in the shape of a partly closed hand,Or p i eces of coral the shape o f a t iny carrot, are worn for the purposeof protect ing the wearer from being bewi tched by the mat occ/zio.

1 London , 1886, p . 1 67.

2 D ogme et R i tu el de la Hau te M ag ic.

6 My steries of Mag ic, Wa ite, pp. 167 ,

’

I 68 .

WI TCHCRAFT AND MED ICINE. 4 1 1

The last-named charm i s eviden tly phall ic.

The beli ef in witchcraft which s till exists no t only amongst the ignorant and degraded , but also amongs t cultivated and intell igent persons ,has recen tly been i llustrated by two cases reported in the press , whichit may be well to quote in th i s connect ion .

EXTRAORDINARY SUPERSTITION .

An inquest was held yesterday at Lufton,a village near Yeovil, on

the body of Mary Jane Saunders, aged twen ty-two, who died under

peculiar c ircumstances. The evidence of the sis ter of the deceasedshowed the latter took to her bed last October . A doctor attendedher, and in November she went into Yeovi l hospi tal. Deceased hadnot had her reason for the last Six weeks . Her father and mothercalled in a herbalist

,who remained one day and n ight. Her mother

though t her daughter was suffering from a ‘ bad wish,

’and that it was

in consequence of that she was ill . Her mother had heard that theherbal ist had cured two people at Montacute of bad wishes,

’and that

was why they wen t to him. The herbalis t made some herb tea fordeceased to get rid of the bad wish .

’ Her father and mother thoughtthe deceased had been ‘ overlooked .

’The father told the coroner he

was ‘ overlooked ’ when he was a baby,and had a spell on him ,

and

some one did him good . The herbalis t who vis ited deceased said bethoroughly bel ieved one person could put a spell on another. It was

in the B ible,but i t was a pity i t should be so . The mother of deceased

said they thought some one had cas t a ‘ bad wish ’ over the deceased ,tried to get i t taken away. They paid l 1 s . for the . herbalis t’sto remove the ‘ bad wish .

’D r. Walters said deceased died

inflammation and soften ing of the brain , and a verdic t in accordancewith that Op in i on was returned .

” 1

l e D aily R tegrapk of November z rst, 1 892 , has the following

TRIAL FOR WITCHCRAFT.

BERLIN,Nov. 20 .

—The Court of Eichstaett in Bavaria has jus tgiven j udgmen t in the act ion for slander ari sing out of the extraordinarycase of exorc i sm which occurred som e months ago in Bavaria, when a

certain Father Aurel ian exorci sed a boy named Zilk in h is parish, whowas said to be possessed of a devil.

Father Aurel ian declared that the evi l spi rit entered the boy’s body

through the witchcraft of a Protestan t woman named Herz, and the

latter accordingly insti tuted proceedings again st him for slander. The

ceremony of exorci sm was performed in presence of a Capuch in friar.1 D aily Cli ron icle, June 1 1 th, 1892 .

4 1 2 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF M ED ICINE.

named Wolf, and other persons, and Father Aurel ian, in the report

which he drew up of the case, declared that the devi l only quitted the.boy after long resis tance.

‘

Friar Wolf, who was one of a long l is t o f witnesses called for thed efence, confirmed the correctness of the defendan t’s report as to thec ircumstances under which the exorc ism had been performed.

Father Pruner, the Provost of the Cathedral, who was called to givee vidence as to the theological aspects of the matter, test ified that, according to the teach ing of the Church, the poss ibil ity of demon iac possess ion was indisputable and he gave an accoun t of the doctrine concerning demon s and evil spir its . He declared that Father Aurel ian hadrecogn i sed the s ign s of possess ion as taught by the Schools, and hada c ted as he ought to have done under the c ircumstances . After pointing ou t that even the C ivi l Law recogn ised the poss ibil i ty of covenantsbetween mankind and the devil, he wen t on to affirm that the Churchc ould compel th e devi l to speak the truth . Thi s was to support thel ine of defence set up by Father Aurel ian that before qui tting the bodyof the boy the devi l h imself, speaking through the possessed, had iaformed him that Frau Herz had bewitched the boy by means of somefrui t wh ich she had given him .

“ Prior Schneider, who was summoned as an expert in demonolalso explained h is v iews on the Spi ri t world.

“Herr Straub, the Publ ic Prosecutor, said the quest ion beforeC ourt was not whether Father Aurel ian had transgressede xorc is ing the boy, but whether he h ad slandered the plaihe maintained , the defendan t had done, and he demanded damages tothe exten t of fi fty marks

,asking th is smal l sum because i t was

c ontended that Frau Herz had suffered any material loss throughal legations made again st her .

“Frau Herz, in evidence, den i ed having bewitched the boy, andc lared that the frui t had no t been given to Zilk by her, but bys ervan t. Her own children had also partaken of the frui ts uffering any i l l effects . Ever s ince the slander spread byAurel ian

,however

,she had been called ‘A witch by the

n eighbourhood, and her ch ildren had been called Witch-chi ldrenby their comrades in school .

“Ul timately the Court gave j udgmen t in accordance with the PublicProsecutor’s demand, finding that Father Aurel ian had uttered theslander

,and imposing upon him a fine of fifty marks with costs, or five

d ays’ imprisonmen t .”

How l i ttle power any cult ivat ion of the m ind, except that which isurely sc i ent ific, has against th is degrading superst ition

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4 14 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF M EDICINE.

Recipe—Su im,acorum vu lgare, pentaplzy llon , vesper tillionis sangu inem

solanum somn iferum et oleum,the whole to be well boiled and stirred to

th e cons istence of an ointmen t. 1

Bits of the rope and chips from the gal lows after the hanging of_

a

c riminal have long had a reputation in England as cures for headacheand ague . The touch of a dead man’s hand at the place of executionwas formerly cons idered very efficac ious for some complain ts .Dyer says that between Suffolk and Norfolk a favourite remedy for

hooping-cough i s to put the head of the suffering child into a holemade in a meadow for a few m inutes . It must b e done in the even ing

,

with on ly the father and mother to witness it.2

A kn ife that has killed a man i s an amulet worn agains t disease inCh ina. A p iece of skin taken with a black-handled kn ife from a malec orpse which has been buried n ine days i s an Irish love charm .

3

People in North Hampshire sometimes wear a tooth taken from acorpse , kept in a l ittle bag, and hung round the neck

,as a remedy for

tooth-ache . Bones from churchyards have from old t imes been usedas charm s again s t d isease . Coffin water i s con s idered good for warts,and the water with which a corpse has been washed has been recen tlygiven t o a man in Glasgow as a remedy for fits.

4

TEETH WoRM s .

A very curious remedy for tooth-ache is founded on the idea thatthe disease i s caused by a worm

,and that henbane seed roasted will

extrac t the worm. Tke Englis/zman’s D octor or tbc Sckoot of

an Engl ish translation of a book published in 1 607 , has a few l ines 0this superstit ion wh ich run s thus

If in your teeth you hap to be tormented ,By meane some l ittle wormes there in do breed,Which pain ( if heed be tane) may be prevented,Be keeping cleane your teeth, when as you feede

Burne Francomsence (a gum not evil sented) ,Pu t Henbane unto this, and Q uyon seed,

And w ith a tunne l to the tooth that’s ho l low ,

Convey the smoke thereof,and ease shall fo l low .

Every druggist even at the presen t day sells henbane seed for thesame purpose ; i t i s used by sprinkling it on hot C inders . The heatcauses th e seed to sprout, and an appearance s imi lar to a maggot i s

produced, wh ich is ignorantly supposed by the purchaser of the drugto have dropped from the tooth to which the smoke i s appl ied. Very

1 My ster ies of Magic, p . 1 57 .

2 Dyer , Englisk Folklore, p . 1 54.

3 Denny’s Folklore of Ck ina, p . 5 1 [r isk Popu lar andMedical Superst itions , p. 3 .

4 Folk M edicine, p . 99 .

6 Notes and Qu er i es , 5th S. , vo l . Vi. p . 97 .

MED ICAL SUPERSTI TI ONS. 4 1 5

s trangely th i s bel ie f that tooth-ache i s caused by a worm is found allo ver the world .

1

That den tal caries i s ac tually caused by an organ i sm (the Leptotk rixbuccal is), which is found in teeth slim e, and the threads of wh ich

p enetrate the t issu e of the teeth after the enamel has been eaten awayby ac ids generated by the fermentat ion of the food, i s not of cours ek nown to peasan ts and ignoran t person s they seem ,

however,to have

in th i s instance an t ic ipated a discovery in bacteriology.

D ISEASE TRANSFERENCE.

When prim i tive folk found that d iseases could be commun icatedfrom one person to another, that contagi ous and infectious complaintsspread through a di strict with terribl e rapidi ty and fatal effects

,they

began to argue that i t must be possible to tran sfer diseases to otherc reatures than man . And so we find stomach -ache transferred fromthe patient to a puppy or a duck .

2 Hoop ing-cough is tran sm i tted todogs by hairs of the patien t given between Sl ices of bread-and-butter.Ague and scarlet- fever are transmi tted to the ass on wh ich the sufferers its tooth-ache i s passed on to a frog by spitting in i ts mouth . Event rees are cons idered able to rel i eve patien ts of ague. Mr. Tylor saysIn Thuringia i t i s con s idered that a string of rowan berries, a rag, or

any small artic le touched by a sick person, and then hung on a bushbeside some forest path, imparts the malady to any person who may

touch th is article in passing, and frees the Sick man from the disease .This gives great probabil ity to Captain Burton

’s suggest ion,that the

rags,locks of hair

,and what not hung on trees near sacred places , by

the supersti tious, from M exico to India, and Eth iop ia to Ireland, aredeposi ted there as actual receptacles for transference of disease .

” 3

Innumerable transference supersti tion s are met with concern ing warts ,and these have doubtless arisen from the very remarkable manner inwh ich th ey sometimes d isappear. In some cases what are taken to bewarts by those not skil led in skin diseases are merely a papulareruption of a fugitive kind , wh ich sudden ly appears on the back of thehands and as sudden ly van i shes . As real warts, however, often aris efrom con sti tutional causes, they will naturally disappear with improvedgeneral health and th is fact has been the fruitful paren t of a host ofsupersti t ions .Mr. Black gives several of these . He says Lancash ire wise men

tell u s for warts to rub them with a c inder, and th i s t ied up in paper, anddropped where four roads meet where the roads cross), will tran sfer

1 Folk M edicine, p . 33 .

1 Pliny .

3 Pr im itive Cu ltu re, vol . II. p . 13 7 .

4 16 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

the warts to whoever opens the parcel . Another mode of transferr ingwarts i s to touch each wart with a pebble, and place the pebbles in abag, wh ich should be lost on the way to church whoever finds the baggets the warts .” 1

A common Warwickshire custom i s to rub the warts with a blacksnail, st ick the snai l on a thorn bush, and then , say the folk, as th e snai ldies s o will the wart disappear.

ANTIDOTES .

Another old medical supersti ti on i s that every natural poison carrieswith in i tself i ts own antidote. Galen

,Pliny

, and D i oscorides say thatthe poison of Spani sh fly exists in the body, and the head and wingscon tain the ant idote. A hair of the dog that b it you

,

” i s the anc i en tway of s tating a belief that the hairs of a rabid dog are the truespec ific for hydrophob ia. The fat of the viper was long regarded as theremedy for i ts b ite. In black- letter books on D emonology we learnthat “ three scrupl es of the ashes of the witch , when sh e has been welland carefully burn t at a stake

,i s a sure cathol icon again s t al l the evil

effects of witchcraft .” 2

THE D OCTRINE OF SIGNATURES .

By noth ing have the annals of m edic ine been more disgraced thanby the absurd and preposterous Doc tr ine of Signatures . D r. Paris, inhis Pkarmacologia , describes i t as the bel ief that “ every natural substance which posses ses any medic inal v irtues, indicates, by an obviousand well-marked external character, the disease for which i t i s a remedyor the obj ec t for wh ich i t should be employed .

”Thus the plant which

i s common in our woods, called “Lungwort” (P ulmonar ia ofi cinalis) , wasanc ien tly considered good for chest complaints , because its leaves beara fanc ied resemblance to the surface o f the lungs. The root of the“ mandrake,” from i ts supposed resemblance to the human form,

was avery anc ien t medic ine for barrenness, and was so esteemed by Rachel

(Genes is xxx.

Pliny,D ioscorides, and other writers attribute peculiar virtues to the

m ineral Lap is or eagle- stone , because t h e nodule with in thestone rattles when i t i s shaken.

“ fi tites lapis agitatus sonitum edit ,

velut ex altero lapideprcegnans.

”The yel low drug turmer ic was held to

be a cure for j aundice because i t i s yellow. Popp i e s have their capsulesshaped somewhat l ike a skull, therefore they were cons idered appropriateto rel i eve diseases of the head . Eupkrasia , our eye-brigh t , was afamous appl ication for eye diseases, because i ts flowers are somewhat

1 Folk M edicin e, p . 41 .

2 Paris’s Pkarmacolog ia , p . 5 1 .

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CHAPTER VII .

THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.

The Sciences accessory to Medicine .—The great Schoo ls of Medical Theory .

Boerhaave and his System .—Stahl .—Hoffman .

—Cu l len .—Brown .

—Hospitals.Bichat and the NewEra ofAnatomy.

—Mesmer and Mesmerism.—Surgery.

—TheAnatomists

,Physio logists, and Scientists of the Period.

— Inoculation and

Vacc ination .

THEmedical hi s tory of the eigh teen th cen tury affords but a meagre result ,notwithstanding the brill ian t talents and indefatigable industry of thefamous men who devoted their energies to the healing art . Thei r greataim was to create systems of medicin e which should be ph i losophicaland complete.It i s not only in what is stric tly the art of heal ing that the mem

bers of the medical profession have ever been amongst the greatestbenefactors of the world

,but in what are known as the accessory sc i ences

many of the most dist ingu i shed,enl ightened

,and self-sacrificing o f the

heroes of sc i ence have been affil iated to the profess ion of medic ine .

Not only the heroes,bu t the martyrs of medic ine, crowd the sc i entific

calendar. The seventeenth and eighteenth cen turies were ferti le in theefforts to apply the results of d iscoveri es in the phys ical sc iences to therel ief of human suffering. If these efforts were but partially successful ,so far as medic ine— cons idered apart from surgery—was concerned , i twas not in consequence of less industry in that departmen t, but becausespeculation and theoris ing about the causes of disease monopol ised the

atten t ion which,i f devoted to observation of fac ts, would have been

fertile in resul t. Schools, Systems, and Sec ts were th e ch ief product of

the medical activi ty of the eighteen th cen tury. Al though no t perhapsof much direc t benefit to medic ine

,indirectly the study of the sc i ences

accessory to it must have been of con s iderable benefi t as an educat ionalfactor in the train ing of the in tellec t of phys ic ians .

THE GREAT SCHOOLS OF MED ICAL THEORY.

Whewell,in h is History of Scientifi c Ideas,

1 c lassifies the success iveb iological hypotheses under the heads : ( 1 ) THE MYSTICAL SCHOOL ;

1 Vo l. i i. pp. 1 75, et seq.

418

THE EIGHTEEN TH CENTUR Y. 4 19

2) THE IATRO—CHEM ICAL SCHOOL 3 ) THE IATRo -MATHEMATICAL

SCHOOL ; (4) THEVITAL-FLUID SCHOOL (5 ) THE PSYCHICAL SCHOOL.

THE MYSTICAL SCHOOL found its most distinguished represen tative inParacelsus i t derived its doctrine of the M acrocosm and the IlIicrocosmfrom the Neoplatonists, and was largely imbued with alchemy and

magic, the doctrines o f the Cabala and the fanc i ful interpretat ions ofthe Bible. Later Paracels is ts, Rosicruc ians, and other speculators of thesame character, such as Sir Kenelm D igby

,brought the Mystical School

of Medic ine down to the seven teenth century. Our modern Theosophists are striving to restore much of the mystical teaching of Paracelsusand his followers . Again we meet th e astral bodies

,

” the elemen tary sp iri ts ,

” the cabal istic in terpretat ion s of the Bible, and theastrological absurd ities of a pre- scientific period .

THE IATRO-CHEM ICAL SCHOOL really arose from PARACELSUS,who

amongst many absurdi ti es held much importan t truth . SPRENGEL indicates LIBAVIUS o f Saxony as the person who firs t cult ivated chem is tryapart from theosophy, and he names ANGELUS SALA as hi s successor.LEMERY, in the m iddle of the seven teen th century

,began to reform phar

maceutical chemi stry. After PARACELSUS chemi stry became an indis

pensable study to every physician . Our word tartar,the scale which

forms on the teeth , i s of Paracels ian origin. He taught that the basis ofall diseases was a thicken ing of the j uices and the formation of earthymatter

,which he called Tartarus

,because i t burn s l ike the fire of hell .

After PARACELSUS we have VAN HELMONT, a true chem ical d iscovererwho sought in chem i stry a theory o f disease of which his doctrine offermentat ion in the body holds an importan t place . Next we haveSYLVIUS, with h is doctrine of the opposit ion of ac id and alkali . D igestionhe considered a process of fermen tati on or effervescence of the ac id ofthe sal iva and pancreatic j uice with the alkal i of the gall . When ei therthe ac id or the alkal i predom inated, disease was supposed to follow.

The human body was regarded as a laboratory, the stomach as a sort oftest tube . BOYLE made obj ect ion s to th e doctrines of th is school

, and

HERMAN CONRING taught that the proper place of chem i stry was no t in

physiology and patho logy, but in pharmacy.

VIRIDET of Geneva endeavoured to prove that the fluids of the bodyare either ac id or alkal in e by experimen t . RAIMOND VIEUSSENS declaredthat he had discovered an ac id in the blood and a fermen t in thestomach . HECQUET Opposed him,

and said that d igestion was no t a process of fermen tation, but of tri turation . PITCAIRN in England

,BOHN and

HOFFMAN in Germany, and BOERHAAVE in Holland opposed the iatrochem i sts

,and proved by observation that digestion i s no t fermen tation,

and that the ac id and alkal i theories of disease supported by SYLVIUS were

420 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

false. By the influence and authori ty of these eminent physic ians,the

reign of the chem ical school of physiology was overturned. The greatfault of the iatro-chem i sts was their neglect of the effect of the sol ids ofth e an imal body ; they assimi lated the work of the phys ic ian, as Whewellsays

,to that of th e vintner or th e brewer.

THE IATRo -MATHEMATICAL or MECHANICAL SCHOOL attacked , defeated

,and superseded the iatro- chem i sts . According to th i s sect

,the

human body i s a m ere machine. Whewell explain s that the M echan icalPhysiologist s came into existence in con sequence of the spl endid resultsobtained by the school s of Galil eo and Newton. It was not so much theexposure of the weaknesses of th e chem ical physiology as the effects produced upon the world by the explanation of so many of the phenomenaof the external un iverse by the men who had revolution ized astronomy bytheir discoveries ; i t was naturally hoped that that wh ich served to explainthe great world of matter m ight also eluc idate the l it tle world of man .

Whewell d ivides the school in to two parts— the Ital ian and the Cartes ioNewton ian secti The Italian calculated and analysed the properti es 01the an imal body wh ich are undoubtedly purely mechan ical , the CartesioNewton ian s wen t much further than th i s and introduced many baselesshypotheses . The Ital ians occupi ed them selves with such calculation s asthe force of muscles and th e hydraul ics of the an imal fluid . BORELLIwas the first great invest igator on these l ines his work D e M otu Anima

l ium (Rome, treats of the forces and act ion of th e bones andmuscles . JOHN and DAN IEL BERNOUELLI and HENRY PEMBERTON

pursued the same lin e of research: The prmciples Of hydrostaticswere brought to bear on the quest ions of the blood pressure and thebreath . KEILL endeavoured to est imate the veloc i ty of th e blood .

The other school occupied itself with the corpuscu lar hypothesis in

physiology . The organs were cons idered as a spec i es of s ieves . BothNEWTON and DESCARTES sought to explain physiology on a theory ofround part icles passing through cylindrical tubes , pyram idal onesthrough pores o f a triangular shape, cubical through square open ings .The diameter and curves of the differen t vessels formed subj ects ofcalculation s, and BELLIN I, DONZELLINI, and GUGLIELM INI in Italy,PERRAULT and DODART in France

, COLE, REILL, and JURIN in

England,devoted themselves to the ir s tudy.

1

The investigation o f the s i ze and shape of the particles of the fluids,and the diameter and form of the invi s ible vessels

,formed a large part

of the physiology of the beginn ing of the eighteenth cen tury. CHEYNEthough t that fevers of the acute sort arise from glandular obstruct ion ;

1 Whewell , Hist . of Scien tific Ideas, vol . II. p . 184.

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422 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

FIELD and WHYTT in England incl ined to Stahl’s vi ews . BOISSIER DE

SAUVAGES defended them in France . HOFFMAN and afterwards HALLERopposed them,

the latter inven ting the theory of Irri tabil ity.

BOERHAAVE ( 1 668—1 7 professor of medic ine at Leyden, was a manof varied and profound erudition

,conversan t wi th the teach ing of the

anc ient ph ilosophers and the Greek and Arabian physic ians he was inaddition fully conversan t with al l the discoveries connected with the healing art down to his own t ime . Beyond this he was a natural philosopher,chem ist

,botan ist

,and anatom i st

, and an indefatigable experimen tali st.In teaching medic ine he s impl ified its study as much as poss ible by re

jecting the absurd and useless speculation s wh ich encumbered i t, and

putting in their place the facts which he bel ieved h i s own experienceand observation had enabled him to ascertain. He publi shed hissystem o f med icine in two volumes, one ent itled the Instruct ions orTheory and the other the Aphorism s or Pract ice ofMedic ine .

“Theseshort treatises

,

”says Dr. Thomson, 1 which gave to medic in e a more.

systematic form than i t had previously exh ibited, are remarkable forbrevity

, perspicuity, and elegance of style, for great condensat ion of

i deas,and for the number of important facts wh ich they con tain relative

to the healthy and diseased states of the human economy.

”The gen ius

of Boerhaave raised the medical school of Leyden to the highest dist inct ion. Princes in all coun tries sen t him pup i ls Peter the Greattook lesson s in medic in e from him

,and so great was h is reputation —that

when a Chinese mandarin direc ted a letter to him,To the i llustrious

Boerhaave, physic ian in Europe,

” i t was duly del ivered . He held thestudy of M ind to form an importan t part of phys iology. He taughtthat the change produced upon the extrem i ty of the sen tien t n erve mustbe tran sm i tted by the nerve to the brain before sensat ion can be produced. He cons idered the n erves to be hollow undulatory canals. Healso held that each of the senses has its distinct seat in the commonsensory or brain . His lectures on the men tal faculties are full of variedand curious in formation . Cons idering the human body as a combinat ion of various mach ines arranged in one harmoniou s w hole, he endeavoured to explain i ts phenomena in health and disease on theprinc iples of natural philosophy and chem istry to the almost en tireexclusion of vi tal forces

,wh ich , however, he did not rej ec t . He den i ed

that all medical phenomena are to be explained upon mechan ical principles. He lamented that “ phys iological subj ects are usually handledeither by mathematic ians unskilful in anatomy

,or by anatomi sts who are

not versed in mathemat ics.

”Yet his system of physiology embraced

1 Life of D r . Cu llen , vol . 1. p. 102 .

THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 423

but a poor conception of the mystery of l i fe . He says , Let anatomyfaithfully describe the parts and struc ture of the body let the mechani

cian apply h i s part icular sc ience to th e sol ids let hydrostat ic s explainthe laws of fluids in general

,and hydraul ics their act ion s

,as they move

through given canals and lastly,let the chem is t add to all thes e what

ever hi s art, when fairly and carefully appl ied, has been able to discover ; and then, i f I am no t m is taken

,we shall have a complete

accoun t of medical physiology.

”

It i s to BOERHAAVE that we owe the peculiar chem ical idea of affin i ty,

that mutual v irtue by which one chem ical substance loves,un i tes with

,

and holds the other (amat, unit, retinet ) . He called i t love . We arehere

I

to imagin e, not mechan ical action , no t violen t impulse, no t an t i

pathy, but love, at l eas t i f love be the desire of un i ting .

”It i s to

BOERHAAVE, therefore, we are indebted for a View of chem ical affi ni tywhich enables us to comprehend all chem ical changes . 1

The idea of affin i ty as marriage naturally leads to analys is as d ivorce .

Thus affin i ty, imperfectly unders tood before the t ime o f Boerhaave,made analys is poss ible . One of th e first to express th is convict ion wasDR. MAYOW

,who published h is Medico -Physical Tracts in 1 674. He

shows how an ac id and an alkal i lose their propert ies by combination, anew substance being formed not at all resembl ing either o f th e ingredients . He explains that, although these salts thus m ixed appear tobe destroyed

,i t i s s ti ll possible for them to be separated from each

other,with their power st ill en ti re .

”2

GEORGE ERNEST STAHL ( 1 660—1 7 chem i st,was professor of

medic ine at Halle ( 1 694) and phys ic ian to the King of Pruss iaHe opposed material ism,

and substi tuted “ an im i sm, expla in ing thesymptoms of disease as efforts o f the soul to get rid of morbid in

fluenceS. Stahl’s an ima ” corresponds to Sydenham’

s“nature ” in a

measure,and has some relation sh ip to the Archeus of Paracelsus and

Van Helmon t. STAHL was the author of the “ phlogi ston theory inchem is try, which in i ts t ime has had importan t influence on medic ine .Phlogiston was a substance which he supposed to exist in al l combustible matters

,and the escape of thi s principle from any compound

was held to accoun t for the phenomenon of fire . According to STAHL,d iseases ari se from the direct act ion of noxious powers upon the bodyand from the reaction of the system i tself endeavouring to oppose

"

and

counteract the effec ts of the noxious powers, and so preserve and repairi tself.3 He did no t consider diseases, therefore, pern ic ious in them

1 Whewe l l’s Hi story of Scien tifi c Ideas , vol . 11. pp . 16, 1 7.2 Cap. xiv. p . 233.

6 Thomson’s Life Qf Cu llen , vol . i. pp . 1 77 , 1 78 .

424 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

selves, though he adm i tted that they m ight become so from m is takesmade by the soul in the choice

,or proportion of the motions exc i ted

to remove them,or the t ime when these efforts are made . Death

,

according to th i s theory,i s due to the indolence of the soul, leading i t

to desist from its v ital motions,and refusing to con t inue longer the

struggle agains t the derangements of the body.

1 Here we have the“ expectant treatment ” so much in vogue with many medical men .

Trusting to the con stan t atten t ion and wisdom of nature,” they ad

m in istered inert medic ines as placebos, wh ile they left to nature thecure of the disease. But they n eglected the use of invaluable remed iessuch as op ium and Peruvian bark, for wh ich error i t must be adm ittedthey atoned by discoun tenanc ing bleeding

,vom i t ing, e tc.

2 Stahl’sremedies were chiefly o f the c lass known as An tiphlogist ic, or antefebrile .

DE SAUVAGES ( 1 706 the French phys ic i st, was a disc iple ofStahl, and adopted h is theory of soul as the cause of the mechan icalac t ion of the body. He invented a system of class ifying diseases underthe title o f Nosologia M etlzodica

,founded on the princ iples of natural

h is tory.

FRIEDRICH HOFFMAN ( 1 660—1 742 ) was a fellow-s tuden t wi th Stahlat Jena. He was the author of a system of medic ine in some respectsoriginal . He distinguished in the human economy three princ ipalagents : Nature

,or the O rgan ic Body ; the Sent ien t SOpl ; and the

Rational Soul ; corresponding to the c lass ification of the Scripture ofbody

,soul , and Spi ri t—a class ification which originated doubtless in

Indian ph i losophy . Hoffman did not adm i t with Stahl that the organ icfunctions of the human body depen d on the agency of an intell igen tsoul or any immaterial agen t whatsoever, but are m erely mechan ical andchem ical properties of the elements which compose our bodies . The

funct ions mos t essen tial to l i fe h e cons idered to be the c irculatory,

secretory, and excretory motion s, and thes e seemed to him to dependupon the dilating and contrac ting powers of the muscular fibres of thevascular system. These powers then he held to be the cause of theorgan ic functions wh ich depend on the an imal spiri ts

,an e thereal fluid

con tained in the nerves and the blood .

3

Hoffman firSt made known the virtues of the Seidl itz waters he alsoinvented a nostrum which was popular for a long time

,and called

Hoffman’s Anodyn e Liquor.”

1 Thomson’s Life of Cu llen , vo l . i . pp. 1 77, 1 78.

2 Cu llen ’

s Works, vol. i . pp. 405 , 406.

3 Thomson’s Life of D r . Cu llen , vol . i. p . 185 .

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426 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

work on the bones , certain canals of wh ich were called after himHavers ian canal s.JAMES DOUGLAS

,M .D . ( 1 675 was an excellent anatomi st, who

was one of the firs t to demonstrate from anatomy that the high operationfor s tone m ight be safely performed. He was a ski lful accoucheur, anaccompl i shed botan i s t, and a man of letters . Pope m ent ions him in

the D unciad, and in a note describes him as a physic ian of greatlearning and no l ess taste. He wrote several works

,the most famous

of which i s My ograpk iae Comparatce Specimen or a comparative descr iption of all tke muscles in a man and in a quadruped added is an

account of tke muscles pecu liar to a woman . London,1 70 7 .

WILLIAM CULLEN,M .D . ( 1 7 1 0 was the firs t professor in

Great Britain to del iver hi s lectures in th e Engl ish language. 1 He was

appointed lecturer on chem i stry at Glasgow Un i vers i ty in 1 746, and

in 1 7 5 1 was chosen regius professor o f medic ine. In 1 7 56 he became

professor of chem i st ry in th e Un ivers ity of Edinburgh ; in 1 760 hewas made lecturer on materia medica. Dr. Cullen earned greatdistinct ion as a lecturer on medicine ; he Opposed the teach ing ofBoerhaave and the princ iples of the humoral pathology, founding h is ownteaching on that of Hoffman. His sys tem was to a great extent basedon the new phys iological doctrine of irritabil i ty as taugh t by Haller.He attached great importance to nervous act ion in the induct ion of

disease,con s idering even gout as a neuros is .

His First Lines of ti n P ractice of Pky sicwas long exceedingly popular,but his fame as a medical writer rests on h i s Nosology ,

or Classification

of D iseases . In al l h is labours D r. Cullen aimed at th e prac ticalrather than the theoretical . My business i s no t,

” he remarks,2 somuch to expl ain how thi s and that happens, as to exam ine what i s trulymatter of fact.” “ My anxiety i s no t so much to find out lzow i thappens as to find ou t wnat happen s .” Cullen invented no ingen i oushypothes is, rather he new-modelled the whole pract ice of medic ine ;he defined and arranged d iseases with an unrivalled accuracy

,and

reduced their treatment to a s impl ic i ty formerly unknown .

” 6

JAMES GREGORY, M .D . ( 1 7 58 exerc ised the greates t influenceon the progress of medic ine in England. As the successor of Cullen,and as the author of the famous Conspectus M edicines T/zeoreticce, thename of Gregory, borne by many ornaments of Brit ish sc ience, becamest ill more distinguished.

SIR GILBERT BLANE, M .D . (born rendered important medicalservices to the State by h is researches on the diseases incident to sea

1 Baas, Hist . M ed. , p. 750 .

2 Works, vol . i. p . 442 .

8 Thomson’s L if e of Cu llen, vol . II. p. 134.

THE EIGHTEENTH CEN TUR Y. 427

men . He ban ished scurvy from the fleet by his arrangemen ts for

provis ion ing ships on foreign stations, particularly by making lemon

j uice a regular ingredient of diet.SIRWILLIAM WATSON

,M .D . ( 1 7 1 5 was a devoted botan i st

and studen t of electric ity. His elec trical researches raised him to a

position of European fame. He was the first in England who succeededin ign i ting Spi ri t of wine by electric i ty ; he was the first to note thedifferen t colour of the spark

,as drawn from d ifferen t bodies ; and hi s

researches in the power and accumulation of electric i ty,th e nature of

its conductors, etc.,qual ified him to take part in the experiments carried

out in 1 747 and 1 748 , by wh ich the electric curren t was extended tofour iniles in order to prove the veloc i ty of i ts transmi ssion .

” 1 The

doctor’s house in Aldersgate Street was long the resort of the mos tdistinguished men of sci ence in Europe . He was no t less th e ben ignand generous friend to the poor and suffering, than th e arden t invest igator of the secrets of Nature. His work Exper iments and Observa

tions on Electr icity i s qui te a remarkable producti on cons idering the agein wh ich i t was publ ishedROBERT WILLAN

,M .D . ( 1 75 7 was the founder of the science

of skin diseases in England . His atten t ion was directed in 1 7 84 tothe elementary forms of erupt ion , and on th is basi s he erec ted h is mag

num opus, The D escription and Treatment of Cutaneous D iseases

JOHN BROWN ( 1 73 5 was a systematizer of medic ine , whose

populari ty was even continental . He endeavoured to explain theprocesses of l i fe and disease and the principles of cure upon one

s imple idea, the property of “ exc itabil ity.

”The “ exc iting powers

”

are the external forces,and the funct ion s o f the body are st imulan ts , so

that “ the whole phenomena of l i fe, health as well as disease, con si s tin stimulus and nothing else.” D i seases be divided as sthen ic, attendedwith preternatural exc i temen t, and asthenic, characterized by debi l i ty.

Ninety-seven per cent. of all diseases , he declared , require a stimu lat

ing treatmen t.”One good result of th i s theory was that i t in troduced

a mi lder treatment of disease than the bleeding and purging doc tors ofhi s t ime advocated. The theory was called the Brunon ian, and re

ceived greater atten tion in Italy than in England.

JOHN MORGAN,M .D . ( 1 7 3 6 was born in Philadelph ia. He

wrote an essay on his graduation at Edinburgh wherein “ hemaintained that pus is a secretion from the vessels, and in th is viewanticipated John Hunter.” 2

1 Munk’s Roll qf the R . Coll . Phy s.

2 Ibid. ,vol . i i . p . 262 . He publ ished in 1 765, A Discourse on the Instituti on of

Medical Schools in Amer ica .

428 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

ROBERT JAMES,M.D . ( 1 703 was the inventor of

brated fever-powder which bears his name.FRANCIS DEVALINGEN, M .D . ( 1 7 2 5—1 was a Swiss who practised

in London . He was the first to sugges t the employmen t of chlorideof arsen ic in pract ice. His preparation was admitted into the LondonPharmacopoeia .

ERASMUS DARWIN ( 1 70 1 a phys ici an of Lichfield, was a true

poet of sc ience. His fame rests on the Botan ic Garden , in wh ichhe describes the Loves of the P lants according to the Linnaean system.

His most importan t sc ien tific work is h is Zoonomia, a pathologicalwork, and a treatise on generation

,in wh ich he an tic ipated the views

of Lamarck. He asks : “Would it be too bold to imagine that inthe great length of time s ince the earth began to exist, perhapsm ill ions of ages before the commencemen t of the h istory of mankind,would it be too bold to imagine that all warm-blooded an imals havearisen from one l iving filament

,which the Great Firs t Cause endued

with an imali ty,with the power of acquiring new parts, attended with

n ew propens i ties, directed by irri tations, sensations

,vol itions, (and

assoc iations, and thus possess ing the facul ty of continuing to improveby i ts own inherent activi ty

,and of del ivering down these improve

ments by generat ion to i ts posterity, world without end !” He

believed that plants possess sensation and vol ition .

EDWARD SPRY, M .D . (l ived in 1 7 At the fire of Eddystonel ighthouse an old man was injured by the fall of a quan t ity of moltenlead upon him . Dying of h is inj uries in twelve days , he was exam ined byDr. Spry, who stated that he found in the s tomach a lump Of lead threeand three-quarter inches long by one and a half in breadth . As no

surgeon would bel ieve this s tory,Dr. Spry performed a number of ex

periments upon an imals by pouring molten lead down their throats ,with the result that at the Royal Soc iety

,D r. Huxham,

in h is letterto Sir Will iam Watson, “ testified to his own bel ief in Mr. Spry

’

s

verac i ty .

” 1

JOHN COAKLEY LETTSOM,M .D . ( 1 744 was a learned and

am iable philan thropi s t, who publ ished several importan t medical andsc ien t ific works . His Reflections on the Treatment and Cu re of Fevers

and The Natural History of the Tea Tree appeared in 1 7 7 2 . Hewrote the following l ines

1 Phi losophical Transactions , vo l . x lix . p . 477, and Munk’s Roll of the R . Coll .

Phy s. , vo l . i i. p. 282 . This was one of the cases in which experimen ts on the loweran imals have been o f service to mank ind. Mr. Spry

’s character for veracity seems to

have been t e-establ ished by them.

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430 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

tresses of al l men in all countries. Not the l east of h i s services werethose he rendered to the cause of san itary science and public health.

THEOPHILE DE BORDEU ( 1 7 2 2—1 776) was a professor of anatomy andm idwi fery at Mon tpellier. By h i s great work

,Recherches sur te Pou ls

,

he so enraged h i s.

profess ional brethren (who , l ike the Jews, alwaysei ther maim or kill the prophets sen t unto them) , that he was attacked inhis personal character with disgraceful maligni ty for several years. He

rendered very great services to the progres s of medical sc ience. Hisphys iology was far in advance of h is age , and many men have foundin h is researches on the functions of the glands a m ine of wealth for theestabl i shmen t of their own reputat ion .

M . F. X . DE B ICHAT ( 1 7 7 1—1 802) was a celebrated French anatom i s tand physiologist, whose great work , Ano tomie Générale, was the foundat ion of the reform of French medic ine at the intellectual awaken ingafter the great revolution . Pathology

,the sc ience of disease, would

have been imposs ibl e without such researches as those of Bichat. He

firs t took a “commanding view

,

”n o t merely of the organs of the body,

but of the t issues of which they are built up. He resolved the complexin to i ts elements

,and investigated the structure o f each . He completed

the overthrow of the iatro-mathematical school, regarding the propertiesof the l iving ti ssues as vital action s . He class ified the funct ions asorganic and animal

,and greatly aided in systematis ing the phenomena

of l ife .

MESMERISM.

FREDERICK ANTON MESMER ( 1 73 3—1 8 1 5) studied medic ine atVienna.He embraced astrology

,and bel ieved in the influence of the stars on

l iving beings. He came to think that cures m ight be effected bystroking with magnets afterwards be discarded the magn ets , and con

vinced h im self that h e could influence others by stroking them with hi shands alone. In 1 7 78 Paris was greatly exc i ted over the m i raculouscures o f m esmerism . The medical faculty denounced him as acharlatan, though a Governmen t Comm i ss ion in i ts report adm i ttedmany of the facts

,while trac ing them to physiological causes . The

Marquis de Puysegur revolution ised the art of mesmerism by produc ingall the phenomena without th e mummeries and violen t means resortedto by Mesmer . Dr. John Elliotson in England in 1 830 successfully

pract ised the art.In 1 845 BARON VON REICHENBACH declared he had discovered a

new force which he called ody l , and in 1 850 his Researches on Magnetism

were tran slated in to Engl ish by Dr. Gregory, professor of chemis try inthe Un iversity of Edinburgh .

THE EIGHTEENTH CEN TURY. 43 1

G. VAN SWIETEN ( 1 700—1 7 7 2) was a pupil of Boerhaave, and famousin the history of medic ine as the founder of the Old Vienna School.He brought about the cl in ical teach ing for which that school has s incebeen so famous . Following the instructions of Paracelsus, he introducedinto h i s pract ice the use of mercuric perchloride internally in thetreatment of syph i l is . His commen taries on Boerhaave were con

sidered to be more valuable than the text itself.DE HAEN ( 1 704 of the Hague

,stud ied under Boerhaave

,

and having been recommended by Van Swieten, was invi ted to Vienna

as pres ident of the cl in ical school in the hospital of that c i ty. Observation

,aud the s implest treatment in disease, espec ially in fevers, made up

the chief part of h is medical system. Purgatives and emetics and

powerful medic ines he would use only on the most urgent necess ity .

Hygiene, both for the patient and the state,he con s idered of the

highest importance in medical education . C l in ical thermometry re

ceived great attent ion from D e Haen , who demonstrated that in what isconsidered by the patien t the cold stage of fevers there is really anotable increase in the temperature .

JAMES YONGE ( 1 646 physic ian and wrote an im

portan t treatise on th e use of turpent ine as a means of arrestinghaemorrhage, enti tled Currus Triumphalis de Terebintho. He describedthe flap operation in amputations, and was acquain ted with the princ ipl eof the tourn iquet for the arrest of bleeding during operation s.JOHN ADDENBROOKE, M .D . , died 1 7 1 9, leaving by h is will four

thousand pounds to found a hospi tal at Cambridge, which now bearshi s name .

JAMES DRAKE, M .D . ( 1 667 wrote a work,once deservedly

popular, En ti tled Anthropologia Nova or,a .New Sy stem of Anatomy .

JOHN ARBUTHNOT,M .D . ( 1 658—1 7 3 physic ian to Queen Anne, was

a man of extens ive learn ing and of great sc ientific abil ities , characterizedby Thackeray as

“one of th e wisest, wittiest, most accompl ished,

gen tlest of mankind .

”

DAN IEL TURNER,M .D . ( 1 66 7 achieved a certain fame as

the inven tor of an excellen t oin tment, st ill known as Turner’s Cerate,”

composed o f oil,wax

,and calam ine .

R ICHARD MEAD,M .D . ( 1 6 73 was the author of the M echanical

Account of P oisons, a work wh ich at once established h is reputation .

He was elected a Fellow o f the Royal Soc iety in 1 703 . On theaccession of George II. he was appointed physic ian- in-ordinary to theKing. He was the friend of Radcl iffe, and l ike him a generous promoter of sc ience and learn ing and of unbounded chari ty to those -in

m isery. It was M ead who persuaded Guy to bequeath his fortune to

43 2 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

found the nobl e hospital wh ich bears h i s name. M ead was aphys ician

,and i t i s said by M iss Strickland that h is prompt

occasioned the peaceable proclamation of George I. M ead’sthe di seases of the B ible

,ent itled M edica Sacra

, i s a cur

in teresting treatise . Excellen t phys ic ian as he was, h e recommended

pepper and l ichen as a spec ific agains t the bite of a mad dog .

JOHN FREIND,M .D . ( 1 675 a learned and accompl i shed

physic ian , is famous as the author of an elaborate work,The History

of Physick from the Time of Galen to the Beginning of the Six teenth

Century . He laid the plan of th is importan t work whilst a prisoner inthe Tower

,to wh ich he was comm i tted on suspicion of part ic ipation in

the so-called Bishop’s plot .

” He was liberated after about threemon th s’ confinemen t by the firmness o f Dr. Mead, who refused to

prescribe for Sir Robert Walpole til l h e consented to adm i t him to bail.1

During hi s imprisonmen t Fre ind wrote a Lat in letter On certain Kinds

W m of Mead’

g t ime cat e towards the discoveryof thew germ theoory of infectious disorders maywbeSeen Is q tof the leprosy:2 InTHIS

-“

treatise he says i t has been foundby experi

meiits that in the plague and other mal ignant erupt ive fevers the infection once received in to articles of c loth ing remains in them for along time

,and thence passes into human bodies , and

“ l ik n

pro_ _duces the d iseasej eculiar to them .

” With reference to the reten tionm w “

of the infect ion by dry walls,he I thouught i t robable tha ey’

g m "t DVD -wH“ ‘m “J e w -20 m "

may, by a kind Of fermentatidn, produce these hollplvg grgen tshfi o rreddishs trokes,

”etc .

SURGEONS .

DOMINIQUE ANEL ( 1 679—1 7 3 0 ) was the famous French surgeon whoinven ted the operation for aneuri sm

,which Hunter afterwards modified

and called by h is own name .

He successfully treated lachrymal fistula, and inven ted several surgicalinstrumen ts which are named after him .

J . L. PETIT ( 1 674—1 750 ) in 1 7 1 8 inven ted the screw tourn iquet forcompressing bleeding arteries . He was one of the most famoussurgeon s in the brigh tes t period of the art in France

,and was besides

an excellen t ophthalmologist .LE CAT ( 1 700—1 768) was the famous l ithotomi s t, and opponent of

th e doctrines ofHaller.LE D RAN ( 1 685—1 7 70) performed the first di sarticulation of the thigh .

IMORAND ( 1 697—1 7 73 ) performed disarticulat ion of th e upper arm.

1 The Gold-headed Cane.

2 Medica Sacra ( 1 75 pp. 2 1 , 22 .

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434 A POPULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

surgery in England . Samuel Cooper says of him 1 that he was in hist ime the - best prac tical surgeon, the best lecturer, the best writer onsurgery

,the best Operator of wh ich the metropol is could boast.

JOHN HUNTER ( 1 7 28—1 793 ) was a physiologist and surgeon com

bined, unrivalled in the annals of medic ine . He raised surgery, wh ichbefore h i s time was l i ttle more than a mechan ical art

,to the rank of a

sc i en tific profess ion . As a pathologist and comparat ive anatom ist, herendered th e greatest services to medic ine and surgery. He dissected

500 differen t spec ies of an imals. One of the most brill iant surgicald iscoveries of the cen tury was Hunter’s operat ion for the cure of

popl iteal aneuri sm ,by tying the femoral artery above the tumour and

without in terfering with it . He improved the treatmen t of ruptureof the tendo achill is, and invented a method of curing lachrymalfi stula, and of curing hydrocele radically by inj ection .

He was the first to describe phlebit i s ( inflammation of the veins) ,and he made the discovery that the wh i te blood corpuscles are anteceden t to the red . He investigated the subj ect of inflammat ion ,

theresults of which he publ ished in h i s Treatise on the Blood, Infl ammationand Gun- shot Wounds. O ther works of Hunter’s are h i s Treatise on theNatural History of theHuman Teeth

,A Treatise on the Venereal D isease,

and Observations on Certain Points of the Animal Economy .

“His

greatest monumen t is the splendid museum wh ich he formed by his soleefforts, wh ich he made too when labouring under every disadvan tage ofdefici en t education and l im i ted m eans.” His brother- in- law

, Sir

Everard Home, prepared the catalogue of the museum and thenburned Hun ter’s manuscripts, probably that he m ight conceal the plagiari sms of wh ich he had been guilty in writing his book on ComparativeAnatomy . The Governmen t purchased Hunter

’s museum from his

widow for upon condition that twenty-four lectures should bedelivered every year to members of the college

,and that the museum

should be open to the public.

CHARLES WHITE, a Manchester surgeon (circ. was the first tointroduce what i s known as conservative surgery . He first resected 2

the humerus, and taught the reduct ion of shoulder dislocations with th eheel in the arm-

pit.

The German surgeons in the seventeen th century held simply theposit ion of barbers they began l ife by cutting hair, shaving, cupp ingand bleeding, and then rose to be dressers of wounds and ulcers, and totreat fractures and dislocations . 3 In 1 7 1 3 , Berlin acquired i ts firs t

1 Su rgical D ictionary , art . Surgery.

2 Resection is the removal of the articular extrem ity of a bone , or the ends of the

bones in a false art iculation .

3 Puschmann , Hist. M ed. Educat ion , p . 422 .

THE EIGHTEEN TH CENTUR Y. 435

anatomical theatre for th e instruction of m i l itary doctors and medicosurgeons .” D resden and Hanover began to improve the education ofclever barbers about the m iddle of the eighteen th century. The M i l itary Medical School of Vienna was opened in 1 78 1 . Barbers and

bathmen in the eighteen th cen tury were trained into district medicalofficers and surgeons by a course of instructi on lasting from two to three

years . In Holland students were pr ivileged to assis t in Operations atthe hosp i tals . The first surgical cl in ic in Germany was established atWiirzburg, in 1 769 . The Vienna surgical cl in ic arose in 1 7 74. The

greatest teacher of surgery in Germany,A. G . Richter, gave cl in ical

instruc tion at GOttingen , in 1 7 8 1 .

1

G. M . THILENIUS in 1 784 performed the first divis ion of the tendoachillis for the cure of club—foot .JUSTUS ARNEMAN ( 1 763—1 80 7 ) was a surgical professor at Gottin

gen ,who wrote a system of surgery and advanced the study of diseases

of the ear.CAMPER ( 1 7 2 2 a Dutch surgeon o f a mechan ical turn of m ind

,

made improvemen ts in trusses . LEGUIN, a Frenchman ,was the first to

employ steel springs in trusses TIPHARIE in 1 76 1 introducedthe double truss .2

OBSTETRICIANS .

JOHANN PALFYN ( 1 649 a celebrated obstetric physic ian ,in

1 7 2 1 inven ted, or rather re- in troduced,a species of forceps in difficult

labour.HUGH CHAMBERLEN,

M .D . ( 1 664 was the most famous man

m idwife of h is day. His name is for ever assoc iated with the inven tionof the obstetric forceps— a noble instrumen t, wh ich has saved more li vesthan any mechan ical inven t ion ever assoc iated with th e healing art .A monumen t was erected to h is memory in Westm inster Abbey, witha long Latin ep i taph by Bishop Atterbury.

WILLIAM SMELLIE ( 1 680 a dist inguished Engli sh obstetric

physician , improved the m idwifery forceps and suggested and performedvarious operations in obstetric pract ice .

WILLIAM BROMFIELD ( 1 7 1 2—1 79 2 ) founded the Lock Hospi tal, London . He inven ted a tenaculum (a fine sharp hook by which the mouthsof bleeding arteries are drawn out) . He was a celebrated operator, andwrote a work on surgery.

The Medical College of Ph i ladelph ia was the first inst i tut ion estab1 Hist. Med. Edu cat ion , p . 427 .

2 Baas, Hist. Med. , p . 677 .

436 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

l ished in North America to give medical instruct ion . It was organizedin May, 1 765 , by Drs. Shippen and Morgan. The Un ivers ity ofPennsylvan ia developed its medical departmen t from this humble beginn ing .

ANATOM ISTs, PHYSIOLOGISTS, BOTANISTS, ETC.

ALEXANDER MoNRo ( 1 697—1 76 7) was a very em inen t surgeon and

anatom ist of Edinburgh, whose Medical School owes more to him probably than to any other individual . He wrote on the Anatomy of the

Bones,and an Essay on Comparative Anatomy .

FRANK NICHOLLS , M .D ( 1 699 was a famous anatomis t and

physiologist at Oxford . He was the inven tor of corroded anatom ical preparations , and one of the first to study and teach the m inuteanatomy of tissues, in other words

,general

,as distinguished from

regional and descript ive anatomy.

” 1 He was one of the firs t tod escribe correctly the mode of the product ion of aneuri sm

, and hed i stinc tly recogn i sed the existence and funct ion of the vaso-motorn erves .2

BROWNE LANGRISH,M .D ., was elec ted a Fellow of the Royal Soc iety

in 1 734. He was the author of several medical treati ses, one of wh ich

was en ti tled Phy sical Experiments upon Brutes to discover a M ethod ofd issolving Stone in the Bladder hy Injections ; towhich is added a course ofExper iments w ith the Lau ro Cerasus ; on Fumes of Su lphur , etc . _ 8vo .

Lond .,1 746. His researches on the act ion of cherry laurel water are

s aid to have suggested the use of pruss ic ac id in medic ine .

3

JOHN FOTHERGILL,M .D . ( 1 7 1 2 was a distinguished botan ist,

who collected a great number of rare plan ts from all parts of the world.

WILLIAM CRUIKSHANK ( 1 745—1 800 ) was an anatom i st who disc overed urea.

STEPHEN HALES ( 1 6 7 7 an experimen tal physiologist and

pathologist, produced dropsy by inj ect ing water into the veins of

an imals,and investigated by experimen ts on an imals the relative

movements of the blood .

ANTONIO VALSALVA ( 1 666 a great Italian anatomis t, heldthe professor’s chair at Bologna and wrote a valuable treatise upon

.

theear and i ts anatomy.

GIOVANNI SANTORINI ( 1 68 1—1 73 7) was a Venetian anatomi s t whoseinvestigations in th e anatomy of the larynx, nose, face, etc. , haveimmortal ised his name in connection with several structures of those

parts .1 Munk’s Roll of the Roy al Coll . Phy s . , vol . II. p . 1 2 5 .

2 Ibid.

3 I bid. , p . 1 30.

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438 A POP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

tures we call ovu la Nabo thi. H. MEIBOM ( 1 638—1 700) discovered theglands of the eyel ids named after him.

WALTER CHARLTON ,M .D . ( 1 6 1 9 anatom ist , a volum inous

writer, was to some extent a follower of Van Helmont.THOMAS FULLER, M .D .

.(died publi shed several pharmacopoeiasand an accoun t o f erupt ive fevers, with several other works.

NEHEM IAH GREW,M .D . (born about wrote The Anatomy of

Plants,w ith an Idea of a Philosophical If istory of Plants, which

Sprengel calls opus absolu tum et immortale. Hallam says, 1 “no man ,

perhaps, who created a sc i ence has carried i t further than Grew ; fewdiscoveries of great importance have been made in the mere anatomyof plan ts since his time . His great discovery was the sexual sys tem of

plan ts“ that the sexual system is un i versal in the vegetable kingdom,

and that the dust of the an therae i s endowed with an impregnating

power .” 2

He was the first to obtain sulphate of magnes ia from the Epsomwaters

,and to investigate its properties. His treatise on Epsom sal ts

was published in 1 697 .

WILLIAM BRIGGS,M .D . (died was famous for h i s “ ski ll in

difficult cases of the eye.”

EDWARD TYSON,M .D . (died wrote on anatomy ; he was the

Carus of Garth’s D ispensary , and the discoverer of “ Tyson’s Glands .”

WILLIAM P ITCAIRN, M .D . ( 1 7 1 1 was an accompl i shed!botan i st . He l ived in the Upper Street, Islington, where

,

he had abotan ical garden five acres in exten t

,s tocked with the scarcest and mos t

valuable plants. He in troduced into St. Bartholomew’s Hospi tal a muchfreer use of opium in the treatment of disease

,and espec ially of fevers,

than had h itherto been customary,and that with the greates t benefi t

to the patien ts .PETER SHAW,

M .D. ( 1 694 greatly fac i l i tated the study of

chemi stry in England by his translations of the chem ical works of

Stahl and Boerhaave, as well as by h i s own works . He edited the

works of Bacon and Boyle, and published a number of books on

medicine and chem i stry .

WILLIAM HUNTER,M .D . ( 1 7 1 8 was an earnes t and devoted

anatom is t and obstetric ian. He’

was a pupi l of Cullen, and was sosuccessful a practit ioner that he expended upon his houseand anatomical collect ion, etc. The Hun terian Museum of theUn iversity of Glasgow was formed from th is collect ion . The famous

John Hunter was h is younger brother .1 Literatu re of Eu rope, vol. iv . p . 354.

2 Munk’s Roll of the R . Col l. Phy s . , vol. II. p . 408.

THE EIGHTEENTH CENTUR Y. 439

THOMAS D IMSDALE, M .D. ( 1 7 1 1 a celebrated promoter ofinoculation for small-pox, acquired a great reputat ion and immensewealth by the process . Catherine II. of Russia paid him enormoussums for successful inoculations, and gave him a barony.WILLIAM HEBERDEN, M .D . ( 1 7 1 0 lec tured on Materia

Medica at Cambridge. Dr . Munk 1 gives an interes ting extractfrom one of Heberden’s lectures on M ithridatum and Theriaca

,the

famous class ic medic ines ; he proves that the only poison s known tothe anc ien ts were hem lock, monk’s-hood, and those of venomous beasts ,and that they had no antidotes for these. He says that the firstaccoun ts of powerful poisons concealed in seals or r ings

, poisonousvapours in gloves and letters, etc.

,are idle invent ions of ignoran t and

superstit ious persons .BUFFON ( 1 70 7—1 788) was the celebrated French natural ist to whomwe owe our first clear and practical connection of the distributi on ofan imals with the geography of the globe .

”

GEORGE ARMSTRONG in 1 769 opened the first children’s hospi tal inEurope 3 he was the phys ic ian who first devoted spec ial attention to thediseases of children . Armstrong was a London man

,and died 1 78 1 .

JOH. E. GREDRING ( 1 7 1 8—1 775 ) was a German phys ic ian who wasthe first to investigate “ th e seat

,cause

,and diagnosis of insan i ty.

”2

JAMES CURRIE ( 1 7 56—1 805) advocated the cold-water treatmen t oftyphus fever pat ients, and thus in troduced a method of treatmen t wh ichin one form or another i s used at the presen t t ime for reduc ing th etemperature of the body in such cases . Currie determ ined the tem

perature by the thermometer.LADY WORTLEY MONTAGU ( 1 690—1 762 ) i s famous in the annals of

medic ine for her courageous adopti on of the Turkish practice of inoculation for small-pox in the case of her own son . By her z ealousadvocacy she was instrumental in causing the pract ice to be in troducedin to England in 1 7 2 1 . Dr. Keith having subj ected h i s son to theoperat ion , experiments were conducted upon crim inals by Maitland,and these having been successful, the Prince - of Wales and the royal

princesses were inocul ated by M ead . On behalf of the Almighty,whose province was supposed to be trespassed upon by these and

s im ilar proceedings,'

the p ractice was violen tly opposed by the c lergyand others .EDWARD JENNER ( 1 749—1 8 2 3 ) introduced the practice of vacc ination

as a preven t ive of small-pox. He commenced his investigation s concern ing cow-

pox about the year 1 7 76 . The pract ice of inoculation1 Roll of the R. Coll . of Phy s. , vol . II. p . 160 .

2 Baas, Hist . Med. , p . 7 1 3 .

440 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

with the Virus of small-pox , which had been introduced in to Englandthrough the suggestion of Lady Wortley Montagu

,indirectly led

Jenner to h is grand discovery . His atten t ion was exc i ted by findingthat certain person s to whom he attempted to commun icate small-poxby inoculat ion were no t suscept ible to the disease ; on pursu ing hisinquiries he found that these persons had undergone cow-pox— a

complaint common among the dairy- servan ts and farmers in Gloucestersh ire

, and that these peopl e were aware that cow-pox in some waywas a prevent ive against the small-pox. Local medical m en had longbeen acquainted with th is idea, bu t had paid no atten t ion to i t

,

cons idering it merely a popular and groundless belief. Jenner’s gen ius,

however,led him to divine the truth of the matter and turn i t to

prac tical advan tage. The disease which affects the udder of the cowwas found to be inoculable in the human subject, and could be propagated from one person to another, rendering those who had passedthrough the complain t secure from an attack of small-pox . Havingconfided the fact of th i s d iscovery to some medical friends

,i t was

taken up in 1 796 by Mr. C l ive, of St. Thomas’s Hosp ital, who intro

duced vacc inat ion in to London . Vacc ination was adopted in thearmy and navy

,and Jenner was honoured by profess ional d istinct ions

and a parl iamen tary gran t o f He was made a Fellow of theRoyal Soc iety, and h i s fame and the benefits of his discovery wererap idly extended to con tinen tal nations .

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CHAPTER I.

THE NINTEENTH CENTURY .-PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MED ICINE.

Ex it the D isease -D emon .—Medical Systems again.

—Homoeopathy .—The Natural

Sciences. —Chem istry, Electricity , Physio logy , Anatomy, Medicine and Patho logy .

- Psychiatry . Surgery.- Ophthalmo logy.

WITH the dawn of modern sc ience was sounded the death-knell ofthe disease-demon and i t s twin brother “ Vi s i tation .

” When th eFrench Revolution

,having at firs t in toxicated men

,had had t ime to

effect i ts really beneficen t aims, th e age of modern sc ience was fairlyinaugurated

,and daily conferred some fresh bless ing on the race. The

beginn ing of the n ineteen th century saw the steam engin e rapidly approaching perfect ion . In 1 80 1 took place the fi rst experimen t withsteam navigation on the Thames . In 1 8 1 4 s team was first appl ied to

print ing in the Times offi ce. In 1 8 2 9 locomotive s team-carr iages wereemployed on railways at Liverpool . In the early years of the centurythe electric telegraph was being developed. Machinery began to takethe place of hand labour in numberless branches of trade and industry .

Nobler than these material blessings,however

,was the awaken ing of

the Engl ish people to a new and higher humani ty. It seemed thatas Sc ience began to shower her gifts on our nation

,i t yearned to

become the almoner of mankind,and in i ts turn to bless the world with

the prec ious gifts of freedom,education , improved san i tation, and the

means of developing the dorman t h igher powers of the spec i es . The

slave trade of England was abolished by Parliamen t in 1 80 7. In 1 834

the English governmen t began to make annual grants in aid ofeducat ion . San i tary comm i ss ion s were appoin ted in 1 838 and 1 844,

which were of incalculable benefi t,not on ly to our own national

health,but in suggest ing to other coun tries the means of improving

the health and combating the ravages of preven table d iseases. In

the early years of the century Dr. Birkbeck founded Mechan ics’

Inst itution s,thus commenc ing the era of enl ightenmen t for the

working classes, wh ich has resulted in rais ing the mental conditiono f our labouring and lower m iddle classes to a higher level than

443

444 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

that of any other nation of the old world. Everywhere schools sprungup, books and newspapers were mult ipl ied, un ti l everybody who couldread had mental provender provided at a merely nom inal rate .

In relation to the h istory of medic ine,the sc ience of the century

has perhaps on the whole done greater service to the heal ing art bythat wh ich i t has taugh t doctors to leave undone than by what it hastaught them to do . It has arrested the murderous lancet of the bloodletter ; it has s tayed the hand of the purger, who merely bled in anothermanner ; i t has rescued the unhappy vict ims of mental disorders fromtheir dungeons

,their beds of straw, and the cruel lash of the ir keepers ;

i t has l iberated the invalid from the tyranny of the medic ine-mongeri t i s no longer poss ible to force down any patient

’

s throat such a massof fi lthy concoct ions as the following items of m edic ine enumerated inan apothecary

’s b ill for attending one Mr. Dalby,of Ludgate Hill, which

in five days amounted to £ 1 7 2s. rod.

The i tems for one day (August 1 2) are

An emu lsionA mucilageJel ly o fhawthornPlaster to dress blisterA clysterAn ivory pipeA cord ial bo lusThe same againA cordial draughtThe same again

This is quoted in the Historical Shetch of the Progress of Pharmacy inGreat Br ita in,

1p. 1 7 , not as an i solated case

,but as an i llustration of

the practice of apothecaries when attending patien ts of the h igherc lasses .Homoeopathy did much to remedy th i s state of affairs

,

'

and bydeluding peop le in to bel ieving that the bi ll ion th of a grain of a certaindrug skilful ly man ipulated was more effectual than the bolus and

decoct ion of the medicine-monger, tended gradually to destroy the

popular faith in the dos ing system .

The studen t of m edical h istory i s often rem inded forc ibly of

Tennyson’s l ines

Our little systems have the ir dayThey have their day, and cease to be .

As he reflects on the many schools, sects, and systems which have

1 Publ ished by the Pharmaceutical Society, 1 880.

Another bo lusAnother draught.A glass of cord ial Sp iritsBlister to the arm

The same to the wristsTwo bo luses againTwo draughts againAnother emu lsionAnother pearl ju lep

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446 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

He admin is tered enormous doses of powerful drugs, such as wouldbe cons idered nothing less than s imply poisonous now . Baas says hegave 1 to 4 grammes of gamboge for d iarrhoea

,and 60 to 90 grammes

of saltpetre a day 1— doses which would be large for a horse.The wonder is that anybody survived the treatmen t.Homo pathy, faith-healing

, pecul iar-people treatment, anyth ing, however heterodox, i s better than th is l icensed system of murder

,wh ich

actually rece ived the adhesion of famous professors at Italian un iversi ti es ,where th e art of m edic ine was supposed to be taugh t s ixty years ago .

JOHANN A. ROESCHLAUB ( 1 768 a h ighly cultivated German

physic ian , was the founder of a medical system on the “Theory o fExci temen t.” Li fe depends upon i rr i tability which belongs to thenatural disposi tion . To be healthy, the body must be in a s tate ofmoderate i rri tation and moderate exc i tabil i ty. D isease d isturbs thehappy m edium upwards as hypersthen ia, or downwards as asthen iain other words

,by induc ing too much strength or actual debil i ty.

JOHANN_

STIEGLITZ ( 1 767—1 840 ) was an em inen t physic ian who

Opposed th e theory of exc itemen t, saying, “ There is no such th ing asone only saving system.

” He was the founder of Etiological diagnosi s

(or d iagnosis dependen t on a knowledge of the causes of d isease) .C . W. VON HUFELAND ( 1 76 2 professor at Jena, and after

wards in Berl in,opposed the theory of exc itemen t. He used to say,

Successful treatment requires on ly one- th ird sc ience and two- th ird ssavoir fa ire, and, To him who fails to make a rel igion of the heal ingart, i t i s the most cheerless, wearisome, and thankless art upon earthindeed, in him i t must become the greates t frivolity and a sin.

”

F. J . W. BROUSSAIS ( 1 7 7 2 a physic ian of the Vital is t school ,was a devoted follower of Bichat

,who made i t h is chief aim to find an

anatom ical bas is for all d iseases . He i s particularly known for histheory that all fevers arise from irri tat ion or inflammation of the in testinal canal . His long-exploded theory led to an enormous m i suse o f

bleeding. He christened h i s sys tem Physiological Medic ine,” which

by direc ting atten tion to the morbid changes in the organs, led to the

ri se of the pathological school of Corvisart, Laé nnec, and Bayle. The

system s of Brown and Broussais must have destroyed, says Dr. De No é

Walker,more human beings than the whole revolut ionary wars from

1 793 to 1 8 1 5 .

SAMUEL C . F. HAHNEMANN ( 1 75 5 the founder of Homoeo

pathy, was born at M eissen , near D resden . He s tudied medic ine at

Le ips ic, and afterwards at Vi enna,graduat ing at Erlangen in 1 7 79 .

In hi s first medical treat ise he takes a desponden t View of medical1 II i st. M ed. , p . 868 .

PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MED ICINE. 447

practice in general, and of his own in particular, as he is candid enoughto own that most of his pati ents would have done better had they beenlet alone .

In a letter to Hufeland upon the necessi ty of a regenerat ion in

medic ine he declares that after eight years’ pract ice he had solearned the delus ive nature of the ordinary methods of treatmen t as tobe compelled to rel inqu ish pract ice . He devoted much atten t ion to

the sc i ence of chem is try .

Berzel ius said of him,That man would have been a great chem i st

had he not been a great quack.

” He translated Cullen’s M ater ia

M edica in 1 790 , and the necessary study of medicinal agents wh ich th isinvolved set him th inking of a new theory o f disease and cure whichshould replace that wh ich he had found so unsatisfactory ; he came tothe conclus ion

,as the result of h is researches, that “ medic ines mus t

only have the power of curing diseases s imi lar to those wh ich they produce in the healthy body, and only man ifest such morbid action s as

they are capable of curing in diseases .” 1

He thus proceeded to lay down the homoeopathic law that the powerof medic ines to alter the health mus t be proved on the healthy body .

He endeavoured to discover a rule by which the effec t of remediesm ight be ascertained , and which should supersede the old method of

working in the dark .

Cons idering the endless powers wh ich medic ines possess , and feelingsure that the Creator in tended them - to have some purpose, and that tol ighten the affl ictidns of the race, he felt that there must be a betterway of employing them than that which he cons idered had so grievouslyfailed in the past. He was therefore henceforth the enemy of all em

piricism . An tipathy, or the method by which con traries are cured bycontraries

,so that the diseased part i s acted upon by someth ing that

opposes it , he cons idered a fatal error in medical practice . Con trarymedic ine he held could at best be palliat ive and temporary, no t

curative . He designated as A llopathy the method by which i t isattempted to remove natural di sease from one part by exc i ting artific ia ldisease in another

,or the pr inc ipl e of counter irri tat ion .

The sc i ences of anatomy and physiology are qui te superfluous to thehomoeopathist the remedies being merely addressed to symptoms, th eknowledge of their causes can have little or no concern to those whofollow Hahnemann

’s doctrines . The appl ication of a remedy for facial

neuralgia, as Dr. Mapo ther poin ts out ,2 has been appli ed over the m otornerve of the face

,the inventor being ignoran t that it has no connect ion

with sens ibi l i ty.

1 Letter to Hufeland.

2 Medical Profess ion , p . 93 .

448 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Hahnemann taught that all chron ic maladies proceed from the itch .

Amongst other remedies for th e itch,or psora, the swallowing of

lice or a decoct ion of them was seriously recommended, because theseparasi tes t ickle the skin

,and on the l ike-cures-l ike principle, would be

benefic ial for itch 1

THE NATURAL SCIENCES .

The Natural Sci ences in the clo s ing years of the eighteen th centurybegan to render the most importan t services to the art ofmedic ine, andfrom that time onwards i t has marked i ts progress step by step with theadvances of botany

,chem i stry

, and physics . Linnaeus inven ted asystem of the class ification of plants wh ich Adan son , Jussieu , De Can

dolle,and others d id much to improve ; the anatomy and physiology,

and even the pathology of plants were closely studied, with results ofthe greates t value to sc ient ific medic ine. Buffon exci ted the in teresto f men of sc i ence by h is declaration that there is no essent ial differencebetween an imal s and plants, and that all organ ic l ife follows the same

plan . He explained the geograph ical distribution of the an imal k ingdom. Hunter

,Blumenbach , St. Hi laire, Cuvier, and others advanced

the sc i ences of comparative anatomy and physiology, and Lamarckdivided bony an imals in to vertehrata and invertebrata. Cuvier, byfounding the doctrine of types, explained the general plan on whichan imals are modell ed. Pander and Baer rendered the greatest servicesto the study of developmen t— the fo rmer by his researches on the development of the ch ick , the latter by hi s observation s on the c leavage inthe ovum . To Hunter, Kielmeyer, and Owen in a later period we owethe most important discovery— that the h igher an imals

,even man him

self,in the embryo pass through the stages of developmen t of the lower

an imals .

CHEM ISTS .

JOSEPH PRIESTLY discovered oxygen in 1 7 7 2 , and thus in troduced anew chem ical era. LAVOISIER

,however

,was the first to observe the

vast importance of the discovery, and CAVENDISH establi shed h istheori es by h is researches on the composit ion of the air, water, andacids. It is to Lavois i er’s discoveries in relat ion to oxygen that physiology is indebted for the knowledge of the influence of that elementon respirati on and the blood. Doctors looked upon i t as the “ air oflife

,

”and in i ts excess or defic i ency saw the causes of certain diseases.

FOURCROY appl ied h imself to the study of medical chem istry.

BERTHOLLET discovered the composition of ammon ia, and the bleach1 M edical P rofess ion , p . 93 .

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450 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE .

Boyle repeated the experimen ts of GILBERT, but seems to have madeno discoveries . OTTO GUER ICKE, of Magdeburg, next d iscovered thatthere is electric force of repulsion as wel l as of at tract ion . HAWKSBEE

,

in h i s Phy sico-M echan ical Exper imen ts, 1 709, observed th e effects ofattrac t ion and repulsion on threads hanging loosely. DUFAY

,in 1 73 3 ,

1 734, and 1 73 7 , observed that electric bodies attract all those that are no ts o

,and repel them as soon as they are become el ectric by the Vicin i ty

or con tact of the electr ic body. In 1 7 29, GREY discovered the pro

perties of conductors .

FRANKLIN distinguished between pos it ive and negative electric ity in1 74 7 , and demon strated the iden t ity of the electr ic spark and l ightningin 1 7 5 2 . GALVANI in 1 79 1 laid the foundation of the Galvan ic Battery .

VOLTA discovered the “Voltaic pi l e” in 1 800 . Henceforward year by

year the sc i ence progressed by leaps and bounds . The use of themagnet in medic ine was known to Aetius, who l ived A .D . 500 . He says“We are assured that those who are troubled wi th the gout in theirhands or their feet

,or wi th convuls ions, find rel ief when they hold a

magnet in their hand .

” Beckmann says 1 th is i s the oldest accoun t ofth i s virtue of the magnet . The more anc i ent wri ters refer only to itsinternal uses . Lessing ascribes the external use of the magnet as a curefor tooth

-

ache and other disorders to Paracelsus . Marcellu s in the '

fifteen th cen tury assures us that the magnet cures tooth-ache,as also

does Leonard Cam il lus in th e s ixteen th cen tury. Wecker about thesame period says i t cures headache . Porta ( 1 59 1 ) confirms th is, andKircher ( 1 643 ) states that i t was worn about the neck to preven t convulsions and nervous disorders. Magnetic toothpicks and ear-p ickerswere extolled as cures for disorders of the teeth, ears ; and eyes aboutthe end of the seven teenth cen tury.

2

ANTHROPOLOGY.

JOH. F. BLUMENBAcH ( 1 7 5 2 professor in Gott ingen , was thefounder of An thropology . He collected a great museum o f skulls

,and

was famous as a comparative anatom is t. He wrote on physiology,anatomy

,and natural h i story.

PHILOSOPHERS .

VON SCHELLING ( 1 7 75—1 854) taught that“ God is the indifference of

the ideal and real , soul and body, and the identity of subj ect ivity andobject ivi ty. In a word, the All.

” He held that health i s the harmony of reproduct ion ,

irri tabi l ity, and sens ibil i ty disease, the alteration1 His tory of Inven tion s, vol . i . p . 72 .

2 Ibid ., p . 74.

PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MED ICINE. 45 1

of dimens ions of th e organ i sm, by which i t ceases to be a pure, untroubled reflex of the All.G . W. F. HEGEL ( 1 7 70—1 83 1 ) was the ph ilosopher whose supreme

principle was absolute reason , and to whom in a great measure i s duewhat i s known as Modern Materiali sm . He was opposed by R . H.

LOTZE ( 1 8 1 7 a medical philosopher of Gott ingen , the author o fthe M ihrohosmus and works on pathology, physiology, and psychology.

He laid i t down that the sign ificance of the phenomena of l ife and mindwould only unfold itself when by an exhausted survey o f the en tire l ifeo f man

, individually, socially, and historically, we gain the necessarydata for explain ing the m icrocosm by the macrocosm of the un i verse .

The world of facts and the laws of nature are on ly to be understood bythe idea of a personal dei ty.

CHARLES DARWIN ( 1 809 grandson ofErasmus Darwin,startled

and shocked the whole Christian world by his theory that man has possibly descended at a highly remote period from

“ a group of marinean imals resembling the larvae of exist ing Asc id ian s .” He traced ourancestry through the fish

,amphibian, marsup ial , and ape spec ies ; a

theory which,despi te the original opposit ion i t exc ited, i s now generally

accepted . He i s best known in connec tion with medical sc ience by hisfamous work

,On the Or igin of Species hy means of Natural Selection

,

1 859, his D escent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, 1 8 7 1 , and

The Expression of the Emotions in M an and Anima ls,1 87 2 . At firs t

hi s theory of the Descen t of Man was held to teach that

A very tal l pig w ith a very long nosePuts forth a proboscis qu ite down to his toes,And then by the name o f an elephant goes .

”

D arwin recogn ised no t merely a God bu t a Creator.

ANATOMISTS AND B IOLOGISTS .

SIR RICHARD OWEN,M .D . ,

etc. ( 1 804 the celebratedcomparative anatomi s t and palaeontologist, made i t possible for us tosee what the extinct monsters were when he enabled us to construc tsci en t ifically the models of the m egatherium, ples iosaurus, and otheran imals of remote ages . It has been well said of him that “ the mostcharac teris tic o f h i s faculties was a powerful sci en t ific imaginat ion .

Fragmen ts of bone which might be mean ingless to les s alert observersenabled him to divine the structure and to presen t the images of wholegroups of extinct an imal forms .

”

At the suggest ion of Dr. Abernethy (whose pupi l he had been) he

4 52 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

was invited in 1 8 2 8 to prepare the catalogue of the Hunterian collec

t ion in the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons,of which Mr.

C l ift (whom he even tually succeeded and whose daugh ter he married)was con servator . This great work largely occupied some of the best

years of Owen’s l ife

,the three quarto volumes on the Fossil Vertebrates

and Cephalopods of the collection no t appearing ti l l 1 85 5 . M eanwhilehe had given to the world h is Odontography , hi s Lectures on ComparativeAnatomy and Phy siology (wh ich won a continental reputat ion) , and his

famous work on the Archetype andHomologies of the Vertehrate Skeleton .

In 1 849 he issued an importan t m emoir On Parthenogenesis.

In 1 856 Owen was appointed Superin tenden t of the Department ofNatural History in the Briti sh Museum,

which,through his un tiring

e xert ion s, was at last to be suitably housed at South Kens ington . In

1 86 1 he published hi s manual of Paleontology ; from 1 865 to 1 87 7 asuccess ion of works on British Foss il Reptiles and the Foss i l Rept i les ofSouth Africa.F. G. HENLE ( 1 809—1 88 5 ) so early as 1 840 advocated the germ

theory of disease. It was first suggested,however

,by Latour’s dis

covery of the yeast plant in 1 836 .

ST . GEORGE M IVART, M .D .,F.R .S. (born the dist inguished

anatomi s t and zoologist, i s to a certain exten t the Opponen t of Darwin,as he den ies that the doctrine of Evolution i s appl icable to the humanintellec t. He i s th e author of many works on anatomy

,biology

,and

zoology .

THOMAS HUXLEY, M .D . (born 1 8 2 the famous physiologistand comparative anatom i s t and biologist

,i s a well-known writer on

natural sc ience, and th e most prom inent o f the sc ient ific Opponents ofrevealed religion .

DR . ALFRED RUSSEL WALLACE (born the em inen t natural ist,publ ished h i s Contribu tions to the Theory of

‘

Natural Selection in 1 870 ,

and in3

1 8 78 , in h is volume Tropical Nature,s til l further con tributes to

our knowledge of sexual select ion , e tc .

ERNST HAECKEL (born a celebrated German natural ist andwri ter on sc i ence, i s the ch ief supporter in Germany of Darwin

’s theories .It may be remembered in th i s connection that these were an t ic ipatedto some exten t by Lamarck ( 1 744—1 8 29) and Goethe ( 1 749HERBERT SPENCER (born 1 8 20 ) has devoted h i s l ife mainly to the

working out of h i s “System of Syn thet ic Philosophy,” which proposed

“ to carry out in i ts application to all orders of phenomena the generallaw of evolution .

”

GEORGE J . ROMANES, F.R .S. (born an arden t member of theDarwin ian school, i s a dist inguished physiologist and biologist .

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454 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

SIR ROBERT CHRISTISON ( 1 797—1 882 ) discovered the effects and

properties of Calabar bean , and was the most famous of all Englishinvestigators of poison s and poison ing.

JOHN CHEYNE ( 1 7 77 in conj unct ion with WILLIAM STOKES

( 1 804 a great cl in ical teacher and author o f works on diseasesof the chest and heart

,discovered th e form of breath ing in certain

disordered cond itions wh ich is called Cheyne-Stokes’ respiration .

”

ROBERT J . GRAVES ( 1 797 a great observer and cl inicalteacher, gave h i s name to a disease .

SIR WILLIAM JENNER,M .D . was the first to establish

beyond dispute the difference between typhus and typhoid fevers .JOHN HUGHES BENNETT, M .D . ( 1 8 1 2—1 87 was the first to intro

duce the use of cod- l iver oil in con sumption into English practiceHe c laimed also to have di scovered leucocythem i a before

Virchow.

ALFRED SWAYNE TAYLOR , M .D . ( 1 806 was the founder'

o f

forens ic medic ine in England,and h is great work on Medical Juris

prudence (publ i shed 1 83 6) has long been the s tandard authority inmedico- legal cases .THOMAS HODGKIN ( 1 797—1 866) discovered the disease which goes

by his name .

CHARLEs MURCHISON,M .D . ( 1 830 i s celebrated for hi s re

searches in epidem ic diseases .SIR THOMAS WATSON ( 1 792—1 88 2 ) was the .

author of the everpopular lectures, The P ractice of Phy s ic, a work Whose graces of styleand elegance of phraseology en ti tle i t to be cons idered a medical c lassic.

MATTHEW BAILLIE ( 1 7 6 1 - 1 8 23 ) was a famous pathologist. He

devoted spec ial atten tion to the pathology of the brain, heart, lungs,s tomach

,and intestin es . It was he who firs t described the grey m il iary

tubercle of consumpt ion . In all h is profound researches he neverfailed to remember their pract ical end in the cure of disease.JOHN ABERCROMBIE ( 1 780—1 844) i s celebrated for his researches

on diseases o f the brain and Sp inal cord .

RICHARD BRIGHT ( 1 789—1 8 the reform er of renal pathology, wasthe discoverer of the disease which bears h is name .THOMAS ADDISON ( 1 793—1 860) discovered the disease of the supra

renal bodies wh ich i s called after him .

KARL V. ROKITANSKY ( 1 804 one of the most famous of thefounders of the New Vienna School, was so indefatigable a pathologistthat he i s said to have celebrated h is th irty- thousandth post-mortem in1 866 . His great work

,TheHandheoh of Pathological Anatomy ,

was

publ ish ed in 1 84 1 .

PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MED ICINE. 455

JOSEPH SKODA ( 1 805 a physic ian of the New Vienna School,improved phys ical diagnosis by h is appl ication of the laws of sound .

He rendered percussion more perfect by correctly explain ing theimport of the various sounds heard on striking the chest. He threwgreat light upon our knowledge of the phenomena of heart diseases .HEBRA ( 1 8 1 6- 1 880) created a revolution in the science of skin

diseases by bas ing i t upon pathological anatomy .

WUNDERLICH ( 1 8 1 5—1 8 7 7) introduced the use of the cl in icalthermometer as an importan t aid to diagnosi s, and claimed that“pathology is the physiology of s ick men .

RUDOLPH VIRCHOW (born the construc tor of the cellular

pathology, i s a celebrated German pathologist and an thropologist. On

the basis of the cellular theory,which teaches that the cells l ive

their own independent l ife,have their own act ive properties, prol ifera

t ions and degenerations,Virchow built up his cellular pathology in to

a comprehen s ive system ,attaching greater importance to . th e cell

changes than to an altered condition of th e c irculat ion or quali ty ofthe blood , as was previously held to accoun t for pathological changes.

The theory explains many fac ts which were previously obscure, but isnot wholly satisfactory . Virchow’s system led to the foundatton of

pathological h istology.

SIR ANDREW CLARK, M .D . ,Pres iden t o f the College of

Physic ians,London (born i s a physic ian dist inguished alike for

his profound sc ient ific knowledge and his adm i rable skill in i tsappl ication to the reli ef and cure of di sease. As a phys iologist,anatom ist, and pathologist, espec ially in connection w i th the organs ofresp iration, the kidneys, and digest ive funct ions, Sir Andrew C larkoccup ies the foremost place in Engl ish medical practice of the time .

He has written extens ively on diseases of the chest,i s one of the

most brillian t c l in ical lecturers of the day, and for many years hasbeen a chief attract ion in the teaching power of the London Hospi tal .SIR EDWARD H. SIEVEKING, M .D .

, etc. (born was with Dr.

H. Jones j oin t-author of the well-known M anual of Pathological Ana

tomy

SAMUEL WILKs,M .D . ,

etc . (born i s an em inent

pathologi st and n eurologist . He published h is excellen t Lectures on

Pathological Anatomy in

1 A few only of the more prominent physicians, surgeons, and scientists are

mentioned here ; to do more w ou ld interfere w ith the plan of this work .

456 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

BRAIN AND NERVE SPECIALISTS .

PHILIPPE PINEL ( 1 745 a French physic ian, published atranslation of Cullen’s Nosology ( 1 785 ) in the language of h i s country .

His claim to our gratitude rests on the fact that he was among thefirs t to introduce the humane treatmen t of the insane . With h is ownhands he, when physic ian to the Bicé tre and Salpé triere, removed thebonds of insane patients who had been chained to the wall for years .SIR CHARLES BELL ( 1 7 74- 1 842 ) made the greatest d iscoveries in

phys iology since those of Harvey. We owe to him the knowledge thatin the nervous trunks are spec ial sensory fi laments whose office is toconvey impress ions from the periphery to the sensorium ,

and spec ialmotor fi lamen ts wh ich convey motor impress ions from the brain orother nerve centre to the muscles . Thi s great d iscovery of the funct i ons of the nerves

,concern ing wh ich there previously existed much

confus ion amongst physiologists, was publ ished in 1 80 7, and en t itlesEngland to claim that in Bell and Harvey she has given to sc ience thetwo most d istingu ished physiologists of th e world .

FRANZ J . GALL ( 1 75 7—1 8 28) was a skilful Vi ennese anatom ist, who ,by his researches upon the anatomy of the brain, came to the conclus ion that the talen ts and disposit ions of men may be inferred withexactitude from the external appearance of the skull, and thus founded

phrenology.

CASPAR SPURZHEIM ( 1 7 76—1 8 an anatomi st,was a pupi l of Gall,

and assi sted in the developmen t of phrenology .

JEAN M . CHARCOT (born 1 8 2 5) is a Par is physic ian greatly distin

gu ished by his importan t invest igations in diseases of the nervoussystem

,upon which he has written many works .

PIERRE FLOURENS ( 1 794 a dist ingui shed French physiologist ,sought to assign their spec ial func tions to the brain, corpora quadrigem ina

,and lesser brain by experimen ts . In 1 847 he directed the

attent ion of the Academy of Sc iences to the anaesthetic effect ofchloroform upon ,

animals. Chloric ether in the sam e year was usedat St. Bartholomew’s Hospital as an anaesthet ic in operation s by Dr.

Fum ell.

ARMAND TROUSSEAU ( 1 80 1—1 866) was an eloquen t and popularc lin ical lecturer on medic ine . He introduced tracheotomy in croup,and largely con tributed to our knowledge of laryngeal phth is is, etc .

CLAUDE BERNARD ( 1 8 1 3 the celebrated experimental physiologist and pathologist, made numerous researches on the digestionof fat by the pancreatic j uice , the formation of sugar in the l iver,and the artificial product ion of diabetes by puncturing the fourth

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458 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

brain surgery,i s well known for h i s researches in cerebral physiology

and pathology, and has acquired great celebri ty throughout the Engl ishspeak ing world for h is investigat ions connected with the locali sation ofthe function s of the brain .

PAUL BROCA ( 1 8 24 the surgeon and anatom i st,discovered

that the faculty of speech l ies in the th ird left fron tal convolution of thebrain

,wh ich in h is honour i s cal led Broca’s convolution .

JULES BECLARD ( 1 8 1 8—1 88 7 ) was a distinguished French physiologist.HENRY C . BASTIAN, M .D .

,F.R.S. (b. is a pathological anatom ist

and cerebral phys iologist . His Brain as an Organ of M ind, 1 880,is

one of h i s bes t known works,and h i s articles in Quain

’s D ictionary of

M edicine, on D iseases of the Sp inal Cord and Nervous System generally, are equally valuable con tr ibut ions to th is departmen t of medicalsc ience .

JOHN HUGHLINGS JACKSON,M .D .

,although dist ing ui shed as

an ophthalmologist,i s more famous for his researches and discoveries

in connec tion with th e nervous system and the localisation of cerebralfunc t ion s .DR. JULIUS ALTHAUS has made many valuable contributions to our

knowledge of the nervous system .

VICTOR A. H. HORSLEY,

etc ., pathologist and brain surgeon ,

i s the author of many papers on the funct ions of the brain and sp inalcord

, and has made important con tribut ions to our knowledge of - thefunc t ion s of the thyroid gland , h itherto l ittle understood, by which thetreatmen t of myxoedema will

,i t i s hoped, be greatly improved

SURGEONS .

The founding of museums of anatomy and surgical pathology by theHUNTERS, DUPUYTREN , CLOQUET, BLUMENBACH, BARCLAY, and a greatnumber of other anatom i sts and surgeons, has greatly assisted to advancethe prac t ical surgery of th is cen tury. Some of the more importantimprovem en ts in the art as pract ised at the presen t time are the following , which are given in the article on Surgery in the Ency clopcedia

Br itann ica —The th in thread ligature for arteries , introduced by JONES,of J ersey ( 1 80 5) th e revival of the twis ting of arteries to arrest bleeding by AMUSSAT ( 1 8 2 9) the pract ice of drainage in large wounds andafter Operat ion s by CHASSAIGNAC asp irat ion or the applicationof the princ iple of the air-pump for removing pus and fluid fromtumours

,etc.

,by PELLETAN and others ; the p laster-of-Pari s bandage

and other s im i lar immovable appl ications for frac tures , e tc . (an oldEastern pract ice recommended in Europe about 1 8 1 4 by the Englishcon sul at Bassorah) the re-breaking of badly set fractures ; galvano

PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MED ICINE. 459

caustics and é craseurs ; the general introduct ion of resect ion of j oint s

(FERGUSSON,SYME

,and others) tenotomy by BELPECH and STROMEYER

Operation for squin t by D IEFFENBACH successfull igature of great arteries by ABERNETHY and ASTLEY COOPER ( 1 806)crushing of stone in the bladder by GRUITHU ISEN of Mun ichand CIVIALE of Paris cure of ovarian dropsy by the removalo f the cyst

,discovery of the Ophthalmoscope, and great improvemen ts

in ophthalm ic surgery by VON GRAFE and others ; appl ication of th elaryngoscope in operat ion s on the larynx by CZERMAK ( 1 860) and

others, together with additions to th e resources of aural surgery andden t istry.

In the treatment of fractures Engl ish surgery was inferior to that o fcon tinental pract ice, espec ially French , in the early part of the presentc en tury. M . Roux in 1 8 1 4 pointed out our shortcom ings in th i srespect, con trasting Engl ish with French methods much to our disadvan tage .

1

SIR WM . BLIZZARD ( 1 743—1 83 5 ) was the firs t surgeon who tied thesuperior thyroid artery for goitre . He founded in conjunction withMaclaurin the medical school o f the London Hosp i tal .BENJAM IN BELL ( 1 763 of Edinburgh

,was the elder brother

of Sir Charles Bell . He was professor of anatomy, surgery, and

obstetrics,a man of letters and a famous operator. He publi shed a

Sy stem of the Anatomy of the Human Body and The P r inciples of

JOHN ABERNETHY ( 1 764 the celebrated surgeon and lectureron anatomy, became the founder of the distingu ished school of surgeryand anatomy at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital

,London .

SIR ASTLEY COOPER ( 1 7 68—1 84 1 ) was the first surgeon to t ie theabdom inal aorta.

SIR BENJAM IN BRODIE ( 1 783—1 862 ) was an anatom i s t and phys iologist, as well as a dist inguish ed surgeon .

ABRAHAM CoLLEs, M .D . ( 1 7 73 was an em inen t Dubl insurgeon

,the author of a work on Surgical Anatomy , who has given

his name to the fracture of the radiu s at the wrist.JOHN BURNS

,M .D . ( 1 7 75 was a teacher of surgery and

m idwifery at Glasgow . His world-wide reputat ion was gain ed forhim by his P r incip les of M idw ifery .

JAMES WARDROP ( 1 78 2—1 869) was the author of a well-known

treat ise on the pathology of the human eye .

BENJAM IN TRAVERS ( 1 7 83—1 858) was celebrated for h i s theory ofCon st i tut ional Irr itat ion .

1 Voy agefait d Londres en 1 8 14 . See also Cooper’s Su rgi cal D ict . , art . Fractures .

460 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

LISTON ( 1 794—1 847) was famous for h is resections o f the elbowand other j oin ts .SIR WM . LAURENCE ( 1 783 - 1 867) was one of the greatest c l inical

teachers the Bri ti sh school o f surgery has produced.

GEORGE GUTHRIE ( 1 785—1 856) accompan ied Wellington in his

campaigns, and was in h i s t ime the great Engl ish authori ty on m i l itarysurgery.

JAMES SYME ( 1 799—1 8 70 ) was a dist inguished teacher of cl in icalsurgery. He improved the operation of exarticulation at the kneej oin t, and recommended the operation for amputating at the anklewhich goes by h is name.SIR JAMES PAGET, F.R .S. (born the distinguished surgeon

,i s

the author of the Pathological Catalogue of the M useum of the College

of Su rgeons, Lectures on Su rgical Pathology ,etc .

JOHN ERIC ERICHSEN,F.R .S. (born i s the author of The

Science and Ar t of Surgery, which has no t only gone through n ine largeeditions in this coun try

,but has passed through many edit ions in

Am erica,and has been translated into German

, Span ish , Ital ian ,and

Chinese (partly) . Probably no treatise on Engli sh surgery has exerc isedso much influence on the progress of th i s branch of the heal ing art asMr. Erichsen’s noble work .

JONATHAN HUTCHINSON,F.R .S. (born one of the most dis

tingu ished surgeons of the Victorian age, i s famous throughout theempire as a cl in ical teacher

,espec ially in connect ion with spec ific and

skin diseases .SIR HENRY THOMPSON (born the distinguished surgeon and

pathologist,is famous for h is researches in the pathology of th e urethra

and prostate gland, and for h is cl in ical teaching in l i thotomy and l ithotrity. He has taken an ac t ive part in the cremat ion propaganda.

SIR W. J . ERASMUS WILSON ( 1 809—1 884) was the famous spec ial is tin skin diseases

,whose mun ificen t benefact ions to the Royal College '

of Surgeons have enormously extended the resources of i ts museumand l ibrary.

GYNIECOLOGISTS.

SIR T. SPENCER WELLS, M .D . (born the celebrated ovario to

m ist,and MR . LAWSON TA IT, well described by Dr. Baas as “ the

magical operator and desp is er of an t iseptics, in abdom inal diseases ,espec ially those of women, are without rivals in the world as benefactors to human i ty by the ir l i fe-saving discoveri es .

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462 A P OPULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

Surgery. He inven ted the probe by which he detected the bullet inthe wound of Garibaldi .

GERMAN SURGEONS .

Plastic operations were revived by C . F. VON GRAEFE,of Warsaw

( 1 78 7 BELPECH,D IEFFENBACH, B . LANGENBECK, and others .

After severe burns there is frequently great loss of skin ; i t was foundthat this could be repaired by the transplan tat ion of very m inute port ion s of skin from heal thy surfaces ; periosteum and bones were alsosuccessfully transplan ted .

VON KERN ( 1 769 the great Viennese surgeon,emphatic

ally ins isted that surgery could no t be divorced from med ic ine . Headopted the very Opposi te treatmen t of wounds to that followed now

by Li ster instead of excluding the air for fear of the germs con tainedin i t

,he insisted that operat ive wounds should be freely exposed to the

atmosphere. He appl ied the s imp lest dress ings of wet l in t.F. SCHUH ( 1 804—1 865 ) greatly advanced sc ien t ific surgery by advo~

cating the use of the m ic roscope In pathological anatomy.

VON WALTHER ( 1 78 2—1 849) was a great and scrupulously carefulsurgical operator, who, l ike Kern , declared that surgery and medic ineare indivis ible .

VON CHELIUS ( 1 794 a famous teacher of cl in ical surgery atHeidelberg, was a well-known writer on surgery.

CONRAD J . M . LANGENBECK ( 1 7 76—1 85 1 ) and BERNHARD LANGENBECK ( 1 8 1 0—1 88 7) greatly con tributed to found m i l itary surgery inGermany .

G. F. L. STROMEYER ( 1 804 a famous m ili tary surgeon of

Germany,obtained great success in that departmen t of Operative

surgery known as subcutaneous divis ion of tendons for the relief andcure of deform i ties such as c lub foot .FRIEDRICH ESMARCH (born 1 8 2 3 ) i s famous for h is invention of the

method of bloodless amputat ions of l imbs by the use of the bandageof india-rubber wh ich goes by h i s name .

AMERICAN SURGEONS .

VALENTINE MOTT ( 1 785 the celebrated New York surgeon ,

i s said to have tied more arteries for th e rel ief or cure of surgicaldiseases than any other surgeon .

SAMUEL GROSS ( 1 805 a great American teacher of surgery,was the author of the well-known Sy stem of Su rgery .

PHYSICAL SCIENCE ALLIED TO MEDICINE. 463

OPHTHALM IC SURGEONS .

J . A . H. REIMARUS ( 1 7 2 9 of Hamburg,

fi rst employedbelladonna in Ophthalm ic surgery.

JOSEPH BARTH ( 1 745 of Malta,founded an Ophthalm ic

hospi tal , and firs t lec tured on eye diseases and their treatmen t.JUNG-STILLING ( 1 740—1 8 1 7) was a celebrated coucher of cataracts .DR . THOMAS YOUNG ( 1 7 7 3—1 8 29) rendered great services to opt ical

sc ience,and was the firs t to describe ast igmatism

,or the wan t of sym

metry in the an terior refracting surfaces of the eyeball— a disorder ofVis ion wh ich has con s iderable influence in causing headache.

J . A . SCHMIDT ( 1 759—1 809) fi rst described syphili t ic i ri ti s he calledeye disease with great j ust ice “ the elegan t d im in i sh ing m irror of diseases of the body.

C . HIMLY ( 1 7 7 2—1 83 7) used mydriatics (dilators o f the pupil , suchas hyoscyamus and bel ladonna) in operat ions on the eye . Atropineafterwards superseded these.G. J . BEER ( 1 763—1 82 a professor of Vienna, founded the famous

t each ing of the Vi enna school of ophthalmology, and greatly improvedthe practice of the art and the in strumen ts employed in i t .H. L. HELMHOLTZ (born 1 8 2 1 ) inven ted that powerful aid to th e

Ophthalm ic surgeon— the oph thalmoscope— in 1 8 5 1 . It i s said thatthe observation of the redden ing of the pupi l in a drown ing cat firs tsuggested the invent ion to Mery in 1 704. Helmholtz’s invent ion madesc i entific ophthalmology poss ible . This branch of surgery may be saidto date from th i s great d iscovery.

HERMANN SNELLEN (born an ocul ist of Utrecht, in troducedtes t types for ascertain ing the dist inctness of Visi on .

R . BRUDENELL CARTER, the em inen t ophthalmologis t, i s a wellknown and graceful writer on medical and sc i en tific subj ec t s .

CHAPTER II.

MEDICAL REFORM S .

D iscovery of Anaesthetics —Medical Literature —Nursing Reform .—History o f the

Treatment o f the Insane .

CONSERVATIVE SURGERY .

WHAT i s known as conservative surgery i s the distinguish ing featureof the art as prac t ised at the present day . Whatever Lord Tennysonmay have had in h i s m ind in h is l ines on the children’s hosp i tal, theh ighest surgical pract ice now i s to save diseased and inj ured parts asmuch as poss ible, in stead of removing them . An t isept ic surgery andthe discovery of anaesthetics have alon e made th i s possible.

D ISCOVERY o r ANIESTHETICS.

The Chinese have a drug named M ago,by wh ich t hey have been

able,so they main tain

,to destroy pain for thousands of years past .

The vapour of hemp seed and the drug mandragora have for ages beenemployed for anaesthet ic purposes previous to surgical Operat ions . In

Homer’s t ime the properties of op ium were well understood, and othernarcotic drugs were used for the same purpose. Patien ts were alsosometimes stupefied by s trong drink, and among some savage tribesbanana wine was cop i ously adm in i stered so as to intoxicate the patient .It

‘

was not, however, un t il the discovery of the true anaesthesia produced by sulphuric ether and chloroform that grave surgical operat ionscould be performed without caus ing pain to the pat ien t. Ni trous ox idegas

,discovered by Priestley in 1 7 76, was recommended as an anaes

thet ic by Davy in 1 800, and its use was begun in America by Wells,the den t ist, in 1 844. The discovery that by inhal ing ether the patien ti s rendered uncon sc i ous of pain i s due to Dr. C . T. Jackson

,of Boston,

U.S. Mr. T. M orton , of th e same c i ty, first in troduced it in to surgical

practice in 1 846. Chloroform was discovered by Souberain in 1 83 1 ,

and independen tly by Li ebig in 1 83 2 . Dumas determ ined i ts compos ition in 1 834. JACOB BELL in London

,and Dr. SIMPSON in Edin

burgh, first appl ied chloroform experimen tally . The late Professor

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466 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

full anaesthetic power when pushed. Thus was i t satis factori ly provedthat chloroform was something much better than ether . Dr. Simpsoncontinued to pursue h is experimen ts upon himsel f until he had perfectedthe method he had so happi ly d iscovered .

A curious inc iden t connected wi th anaesthesia i s mentioned by Dr.

Paris in his well-known work Pharmacologia .

1 He relates an anecdotewhich he heard from th e poet Coleridge, which i l lustrates the curativeinfluence of th e imagination .

“As soon as the powers of n i trous oxide were discovered , D r.

Beddoes at once concluded that i t must necessari ly be a spec ific_ for

paralysis a patien t was selected for the trial , and the managem en t of i twas intrusted to Sir Humphry Davy. Previous to the adm in i strationof the gas, he in serted a small pocket thermometer under the tongue ofthe patien t, as he was accustomed to do upon such occasion s, to ascer

tain the degree of an imal temperature, with a vi ew to future comparison.

The paralytic man, wholly ignoran t of the nature of the process to

wh ich he was to subm i t, but deeply impressed , from the represen tation

of Dr. Beddoes,with the certain ty of its success

,no sooner felt the

thermometer under h is tongue than he concluded the ta lisman was infull operation

,and in a burst of en thus iasm declared that he already

experienced the effec t of i ts ben ign influence throughou t h is wholebody. The Opportun i ty was too tempting to be lost ; Davy cast anintell igen t glance at Coleridge

,and desired hi s patien t to renew his visi t

on the following day, when the same ceremony was performed , and

repeated every succeeding day for a fortn igh t, the patien t graduallyimproving during that period, when he was d ism i ssed as cured , no otherappl ication having been used .

”

MEDICAL LITERATURE.

The greatest hi storians of medic ine are the Germans . Espec iallyvaluable are the works ofKURT P . J. SPRENGEL ( 1 766 1 83 of Pomeran ia, professor of

medic ine at Halle. He was a great botan i st,but h is immortal work

on the History of Medicine ecl ipsed all h i s other labours for medicalsci ence .

HEINRICH HAESER ( 1 8 1 1 the author of the learned Lehrbuchder Geschichte der hIedicin und der Ep idemischen K

'

ranhhei ten , which isone of the most popular works of th i s class .DR . JOH. HERMANN BAAS

,who i s the author of th e valuable and en

cyclopaedic Gr undr iss der Geschichte der M edicin,excellently translated

in to English by D r. H. E. Handerson,of Cleveland, Oh io

1p . 28.

MEDICAL REFORM S. 467

DR . THEO . PUSCHMANN’S History of M edical Education has recen tly

been translated into Engl i sh by Mr. E. H. HareAmongst those of our own coun trymen who have rendered great

services to medical l iterature areSIR CHARLES HASTINGS ( 1 794 th e founder of the Bri tish

Medical Assoc iat ion .

SIR CHARLES SCUDAMORE ( 1 7 79 one of the greatest authori tieson gout, who popularised Hydro- therapeutics by h is wri tings .SIR JOHN FORBES ( 1 78 7 founder of th e Sydenham Soci ety.

SIR R ICHARD QUAIN,M .D .

,editor of the D ictionary of Medicine

which bears h i s name.MR . ERNEST HART (born editor (s ince 1 866) of the Br itish

M edicaljournal, wh ich , by hi s great l i terary abi l i ty and sc i entific knowledge, has become the ch ief agen t in the advancement of the Bri ti shMedical Assoc iat ion to i ts presen t proud position amongs t the sc i en tificsoc iet ies of th e emp ire. Mr. Hart has rendered great publ ic servicesin improving the condition of the s ick poor in workhouses, and thec reat ion of the metropol i tan asylum s . M r. Hart’s labours in con

nection with many quest ions of soc ial and san i tary progress have been

pre-eminen tly crowned wi th success .

NURSING REFORM .

When the n ineteen th cen tury had run half i ts course,FLORENCE

NIGHTINGALE (born 1 8 20 ) was providential ly raised up to reform theworking of hospi tal s, schools , and reformatory institution s

,after th e

m ismanagemen t of our m i l i tary hospital s in the Crimea had led toterr ibl e suffer ing amongst our wounded soldiers . Her noble devotionand self- sacrifice amongs t the troops earned her the blessing of thenation

,and her name wi l l for ever be gratefully rem embered in all

question s connected with hosp i tal reform and the improvemen t ofnurs ing .

MRS. WARDROPER (died the exterm inator of Mrs. Gamp and

her s i sterhood,made her mark in the Crimean War, and put her finger

on some of the most flagran t abuses of the nursing system o f the day.

She was th e first superin tenden t o f the Nightingale School of Nursing,and the orig inal trainer o f techn ically educated nurses for hosp i tals andinfirmaries .

THE TREATMENT OF INSANITY.

It is customary to divide th e treatment of the insan e into three

periods— the barbaric, humane , and remedial . We must not, however,suppose that in anc i en t t imes the treatmen t was everywhere barbaric ,

468 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

and that on ly in recen t t imes has i t become humane and remedial ;nothing could be further from th e truth . The treatmen t of person smental ly affl icted in anc ien t Egypt and in Greece was no t only humane ,but was probably remedial. In the temples of Saturn in Egypt, and inth e Asclepia of Greece , wh ich were resorted to by lunatics, Dr. J . B .

Tuke th inks 1 the treatm en t was identical in princ iple with that of thepresen t day. He praises the sound principl es on which Hippocratesand Galen treated insane pati ents, and there i s no doubt that i t wasdirected towards a cure. With these except ions li ttle i s known as tothe treatmen t of th e insane before the adven t of Christ ian i ty. The

earl i es t recorded case of the adm in istrat ion of medic ine to an insane

patient i s that in which M elampus was the physic ian, and the neglectof the worship of Bacchus the cause of the malady. As Mr. Burdettwell remarks

,

2n owadays the worship of Bacchus i s responsible for much

of the insan i ty which exists . From several accoun ts in the Greek

poets we may assume that insan ity prevai led in c lass ic t imes in theforms with wh ich we are now fam i l iar. Hippocrates adopted a peculiartreatmen t in cases of suic idal man ia . Give th e patien t a draughtmade from the root o f mandrake, in a smaller dose than will induceman ia.

” He remarks that although the general rule of treatmen t be“con traria contrariis curan tur

,

” th e opposite rul e also holds good insom e cases , nam ely, “ s im i l ia s im i l ibus curantur.

”It i s eviden t there

fore that in some degree the Father of M edic ine was in accord Wi thHomoeopathy.

3

Whatever may have been the practice of the anc i ents, i t i s certainthat in the M iddle Ages the treatmen t of lunatics

,up to the m iddle of

the last cen tury,was Simply d isgraceful . Li ttle or no effort was made

to cure or even to take proper care o f th e men tally affl icted . Somefew were lodged in monastic houses

,many in the common jails . In

1 53 7 a house in Bishopsgate Street cam e in to th e possess ion of theCorporat ion of London , and was used to confine fi fty lunatics . Thi swas the first Bethlehem Hospi tal ; i t was removed in 1 67 5 to Moorfields,

and in 1 8 1 4 th e presen t hospi tal was built in St . George’s Fields . St.

Luke’s was in stituted in Many lunat ics were executed as

criminals or witches . It was not ti l l the efforts of Pine], Tuke, andConolly were directed to the proper care and treatmen t o f the insanethat the barbarous period of European pract ice in regard to lunacy washappily ended .

1 Ency . Br i t. , art.“ Insan ity .

2 Hospitals and A sy lums of the Wor ld.

2 Adams’Hippocrates , vo l. i . p. 77 .

4 Ency . Br it . , art. Insanity.

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

diagnosis before attempt ing to treat d isease. D r. Baas says 1 thatlunatic asylums were established first at Feltre in Italy. The n ext werethose of Seville, established in 1 409 ; Padua, 1 4 1 0 ; Saragossa, 1 425Toledo

,1 483 ; Fez , 1 492 .

Burton,in his Anatomy of M elancholy ,

thus describes Lycanthropy,wh ich Avicenna calls cucuhuth

,others lupinam insaniam

,or wolf

madness, when men run howling about graves and fields in the n ight,

and will no t be persuaded but that they are wolves or some such beasts .Ae

'

tius (l ib. 6 , cap . 1 1 ) and Pau lus (lib. 3 , cap. 1 6) call i t a k ind of

melancholy ; but I should rather refer it to madness, as most do . Somemake a doubt o f i t, whether there be any such disease. D ona t. ah

Altomar i (cap. 9 , Art. Med. ) sai th , that he saw two of them in his time.Wierus (De Praestiv. D emonum

,l . 3 , cap . 2 1 ) tell s a story of such a

one at Padua, 1 54 1 , that would not bel ieve to the con trary bu t that hewas a wolf. He hath another instance of a Span iard who thoughth im self a bear. Forestus (Observar. l ib . 1 0

,de Morbis Cerebri , c . 1 5)

confirms as much by many examples‘

one among the rest, of which hewas an eye-witness

,at Alcmaer

,in Holland . A poor husbandman that

stil l hun ted about graves,and kept in churchyards

,of a pale, black,

ugly, and fearful look . Such bel ike,or l ittl e better

,were King Proetus’

daughters (Iz'

zppocrates, lib. de insan ifi) , that thought themselves kine and

Nebuchadnez z ar, in Dan i el, as some interpreters hold, was on ly troubledwith this kind of madness . Thi s disease

, perhaps , gave occas ion to thatbold assertion of Pl iny (lib. 8 , cap . 2 2 , hom ines interdum lupos fieri ;

et con tra) , some men were turned in to wolves in his time,andfrom wolves

to men again : and to that fable of Pausan ias, of a man that was ten

years a wolf,and afterwards turned to h is former shape ; to Ovid

’s

(Met. l ib . 1 ) tal e of Lycaon ,e tc. He that is desirous to hear of this

disease,or more examples, let him read Austin in h is e ighteenth book

,

de Civi tate D ei,cap. etc .

,etc .

1 Hist . M ed. , p . 347 .

CHAPTER III.

THE GERM THEORY OF D ISEASE.

The D isease-Demon reappears as a Germ .- Phagocytes .

-Ptomaines.—Lister’s Antiseptic Surgery .

—Sanitary Science or Hygiene .—Bacterio logists .—Faith Cures.

Experimental Physio logy and the Latest System of Medicine .

L N after the discoverywof the m icroscope, men . .began . to se ek for theg u m “ “ fi n-m

causesmoLdiseases In the infini tely l itt et e .l KIRCHER ( 1 59 8o n“ u. “ W N W

a Jesuit priest of Fulda, seems to have been gi fted with the“ m m vn ‘ w—n a—m m l .c n

aBIhfy t our greatest modern sci en tific discover i es . HeA—x.’ A I “ ~

aritICIpated Darwin’s d ictum that l i fe 15 maintained by struggle and

coun ter- struggle . He described hypnotism in certain an imals,and

detec ted , as he thought, m i cro organ ism s with the m icroscope , then inits Ififafi cy, In the blood and pus of patients suffering with theplagueand other InT ctious

”

disease s, which “worms,”as he termed the corpuscles ,

lie-“

Considered to be the cause of th e disease. His instrumen t hadenabled himto discover that all decomposing substances swarmed withW rms

w

of l ife . His theory,however

,gained l ittle credence at the

t ime .

1 Next ANTONY VAN'

LEEUWENHOEK,

“ the father of m icroscopy,”

w v

In 1675 in'

a'

series of letters to the RoyalSOciety, In which he described m inute organ i sms in waters, vegetabl einfusi on s, sal iva, and in scrapings from the teeth , and he was able todifferen t i ate these speci al form s of l ife. Some of h is descript ions areso graphic that m icroscop i sts can almost recogn i s e these forms asbacteria with which we are now fam i l iar. Physic ians sti ll des ignatingthese as “ worms began to attribute to their influenCeIn 1 70 1 NICHOLAS ANDRY wrote on th i s subj ect a treat ise en t itled

D e laN

Gehefiztti on des eTS'

dIInS le Corps de l’Homme. The germ theory

of putrefaction and fermentation originated wi th Andry he main tainedL -m fi a u l en

that air,water

,Vinegar, ferment ing wine, o ld beer, and Sour m i lk Con

tained m yriadsp figennsv he s detected thSSe in- thel-blo od and phstu les

of small- pox,and bel ieved that they could be found in other malad ies.

Q M , "

His views met with general acceptance , and curIously enough i t was

1 Cru ikshank , Bacter iology , p . 2 .

47 :

472 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

bel ieved— and has s ince been verified by our own observation— thatmercurial preparation s were fatal to such disease germs . 1 LANCISI in

“

1 7 1 8 attributed the unhealthy effects ofinconceivabl e

'

worms met with ’

the“m icrobe ” has been rece ived with to-day. Linnaeus o ut of all this

chaos thought order m ight poss ibly be evolved ; he bel ieved that th eactual contagion of certain eruptive diseases niight be discovered inthese small l iving beings .MARQ IS

M

ANTQNIUS £14233 3 912 in 1 762 discussed the relation of arigrnalcules to p u trefactiom and disease In his works .2

Notwithstanding all these clear indication s,wh ich

,i f followed up,

woiIld have been'

fertile In resu lti the“

gel-m theory

'

of disease fe'

llm ost

BITCH -

Oblivion OTTO MULLER in 1 7 86 began a more systematic studyof the l i fe h istory of various m ic ro organ isms

, and thus advanced thesc ience of m inute forms of l ife. The question arose

,How do these

5 9 m y w . M ‘ n “

forms origi nate ? D r. Needham was the fi rs t to suggest the theory of“ Q M ‘ 9 1“ M

their spon taneous generatIon . Bonnet, of Geneva, disputed thM s

of D r. Needham’s experimentszn

and‘

SM KIASI‘

CI”

~ ex~

periment the correctness of Bo nnet’s crit ic ism .

FRAN CIS SCHULZE In 1 836, by a carefully devised experimen t, s truckanother blowat Needham’s theory of spontaneous generation. In 1 83 7

SCHWANN convinced h imself that the cause of decomposi t ion mustexist in the air. SCHROEDER and VAN DUSCH in 1 854 prOVed thatfi ltrat ion of the air through cotton wool was effec tual in excludinggerms . Then HOFFMAN in 1 860

, and CHEVREUIL and PASTEURworking independen tly in 1 86 1

,showed that a sterile solut ion could be

kep t_

sterile i f the n eck o f th e vessel were ben t in the form of an.

S,

"

sothat th e m icro-organ i sms In the air entering the neck of the flask , wouldbe depos ited by gravitation in the curve .

But the advocates of the theory of spon taneous generation wereno t yet sati sfied . They objected that by the boi l ing of the in fus ions ,e tc . , under exam ination they lost the abil i ty to become decomposed ;but i t was Shown that the admi ssion of unfiltered ai r s et up decompos it ion . PASTEUR

,BURDON SANDERSON ,

and LISTER next showed thatblood, urine, and m ilk would not decompose if p roper precautionswere taken to avoid contam ination . In 1 8 7 2 CHARLTON BASTIANendeavoured to rehabil itate the spon taneous generation theory, butTYNDALL effectually disposed of h is content ion s . It i s settled thatbacteria, or m icrobes, as these germs are now called, when once de

1 Woodhead , Bacter ia and their P roducts , p . 52 .

2 Opera M edico-Phy sica, Tractatio de Con tagio, le Lu e Bovina,de Var iolis de

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474 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MED ICINE.

fever. When fungi were fou nd to be the cause of favus, herpes tonsurans ,and pityriaSis vers icolor, the theory received a St il l

"

ig'

ré ater impetus .

SWA INE, BRITTAN,and BUDD found m icro- organi sms i ii c

“ "

O"

nnection

Wi th”

Cholera III 1 85 7

“

PASTEUR demon strated that lactic“

, acetic and

butyric fermehtat ions were produced by m icroDAVAINEcame to the con

feVer IS caused by an organ i

plying In Its blood,and so changing i ts nature

,after the manner of a

fermentation process . PASTEUR n ext took up the investigation of Silk

worm disease,and was u ltimately able to

diseasewas d tic to m icroorgan i sms, andROBERT KOCHin 18 77 deScribed the

m.. o w

an thrax of splen ic”

fever . PASTEUR alsoSame subj ec t

,and confirmed th e observations of Koch . PAUL BERT

,

on the other hand,argued that the bac i ll i were of no importance.

Ult imately he was convinced of h is error by Pasteur,i t was however

,un i-W WW " “A M f~ rl w~ m w

sayS PROFESSOR CR’U IKSHANK

,

2 “princ ipal ly the researches of Koch

.u n ut-M

which placed the doc trine of con tagium vivum on a sc ientific basis .Koch elevated the theory of contagium Vi vum to a demonstratewestablished fact.The whole matter i s beset with fallac ies. Because certain bacteria

have been discovered in the blood of an imals suffering from a part iculard isease

,i t must no t be rashly concluded that these bacteria are always

its cause, they may be in some cases only i ts e ffec ts . At the presenft ime the nature of the con tagion in many diseases

,such as hydro

phobia, variola, vacc in ia, scarlet fever, and measles, has no t beendiscovered . The Comma-bac i l lus i s assoc iated wi th cholera in somemysterious manner

,yet experimen ters have swallowed myriads of

comma-bac ill i,and have rema ined never the worse . Although Pasteur’s

prophylac t ic treatmen t agains t hydrophobia i s based upon the theorythat a m icro-organ i sm i s the cause of the disease, Pasteur has neveryet d iscovered the bacterium of hydrophobia, yet there would seemt o be one . DR . SIMS WOODHEAD! says : 3 “ It i s a mos t remarkablefac t that although no m icro-organ ism s can be found in the virus , fi ltrat ion through the Pasteur fi lter keeps back the effec tive part of thevirus

,wh i ls t heating to 1 00

°C . destroys th e ac tivi ty of the virus .”

The disease-demon has now reappeared in the form of a germ .

1 Schwann ( 18 10—1882) d iscovered the influence of the lower fungi in causingfermentation and putrefaction ,

so that he may be cal led the father of the germ theo ryo f d isease .

2 M anual of Bacter iology , p . 16 .

2 Bacter ia and thei r Products , p . 328 .

THE GERM THEOR Y OF D ISEASE. 47 5

THE PHAGOCYTE THEORY.

Some th irty- s ix diseases , many of wh ich are amongst the most terriblewhich affl ic t men and an imals, are attributed by bacteriologists tom icro-organi sms . 1 I t i s suffic ien tly alarm ing to reflect that enem ieswhich can only be detec ted by a spec ial ist armed wi th a powerful m icroscope are everywhere around us , waiting to attack us in a favourable spot,and slay us without hope of escape .

Ye t the germ- theoris ts have no t left us ent irely without hope . One

of Pasteur’s most dist inguished pupi ls, M . METSCHN IKOFF,offers us

salvation through faith in his phagocytes . The whi te blood corpusclesare for ever on the watch for the incurs ions of disease germs . Thesethey instan tly arres t and imprison by taking them into thei r own

substance, d igesting and converting them to their own uses . Wheneverthere is an extra demand for th e services of these admirable blood

pol ice, a large number are attracted to th e poin t where the burglariousand murderous enemy has en trenched h imself ; and i f the system i s in a

position to maintain a suffici en t force of these guardians of health , theenemy is rapidly digested, and the effete products are expelled by theregular physiological channels .I t has been found that men and an imals may be insusceptible to an

in fec t ive d isease by natural immun i ty. Not all person s subj ected toexposure to epidemic diseases con trac t them . Ordinary sheep readilysuccumb to an thrax

,but Algerian sheep res ist any bu t large doses of

the virus ? Acquired immun i ty is that by which one attack, say ofm easles or of smal l-pox, protects against a second . Accl imatizat ion alsoaffords immun i ty . Pasteur

,in his researches on fowl cholera, noticed

that in non-fatal cases the disease did no t recur. This set him towork out a theory of attenuated inoculat ions which should afford protection by giving the disease in a m i ld form in cultivation s of the m icroorgan ism. Pasteur next endeavoured to protect an imals agains tan thrax by inoculating them with a m itigated virus . His results werecri t ic ised and his researches Opposed by Koch , who came to the conclusion that the process d id no t adm i t of prac tical appl ication ,

chieflybecause the immun i ty would only las t a year, and o n accoun t of thedanger of dissem inating a vaccine of the necessary strength .

3 The

theory of protective inoculation in hydrophobia has been much di scussed . Pasteur’s explanation does no t en t irely satisfy some experts .Dr. Sims Woodhead gives the following I am incl ined to th ink that

1 See Appendix E, Bacter iology , p. 414.

2 Cru ikshank , Bacter iology , p. 192.

3 Ibid . , p . 196 .

A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

the explanation advanced by Wood and myself,that the treatment con

s i s ts essen t ially in causing the t issues to acquire a tolerance before th em icrobe has had time to develop, i s more in accordance wi th the facts .The t issue cells are ac ted upon by increasingly active virus , each stepof wh ich accl imatizes the cells for the next stronger virus

,unti l at

length,when the virus formed by the m icro-organi sm s introduced at the

t ime of the bi te comes to exert i ts act ion,the t i ssues have been so far

altered or acc l imati zed that they can con t inue their work undisturbed ini ts presence ; and treating the m icro-organ i sms themselves as foreignbodies

,destroy them. When the cells are suddenly attacked by a

strong dose of the poison of th is vi rus , they are s o paralysed that them icro-organ i sms can con tinue to carry on their poison—manufacturing

process wi thout let or h indrance ; but when the cells are gradually,

though rap idly, accustomed to the p resence o f the poison by the exhibition of constan tly increas ing doses

,they can carry on their scavenging

work even in i ts presence, and the m icro-organ i sms are destroyed,

poss ibly even before they can exert their full poison-manufacturing

powers .” 1

PTOMAINES .

The germ theory has thrown great l ight upon the subj ect of certainmysterious organ ic poison ing processes , wh ich long puzzled analystsand physic ian s . D is eased meat

,fi sh

,cheese

,and other articles of food

frequen tly cause symptoms of poison ing in those who have partaken ofthem . The analyst failed to detect the prec ise agen t wh ich caused them ischief

,and i t was no t t il l the bacteriologists investigated the subj ect

that i t was satisfactorily explained . In 1 8 1 4, BURROWS described a

poisonous substance in decaying fi sh . In 1 8 20,KERNER described

a poisonous alkaloid which he discovered in sausages . In 1 8 56,

PANUM isolated a poison from s ome decomposing an imal matter .ZUELZA and SONNENSCHEIN from the same substance obtained a poisonwhich c losely resembled atrop ine in i ts phys iological act ion . SELM I

between 1 8 7 1 and 1 880 described substances wh ich he cal led cadaveric alkaloid s or ptomaines . Pasteur and others, working in the samedirecti on

,have greatly advanced our knowledge of these deadly agents .

Bacteria are now known to have the power to build up deadly subs tances as th ey grow in dead or l iving an imal t issues

,j ust as plant s

bui ld up poison s in thei r own t issues ; these substances exert a deadlyinfluence on the nerve centres, and hence a cheese bac i l lus may be asdangerous to human l ife as a dose of acon i te .

1 Woodhead,Bacter ia , etc.

, p . 327.

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A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF MEDICINE.

HYGIENE.

Mr. PARKES, in the in troduc ti on to h is Manual of Practical M giene,

defines hygiene in i ts largest sen se to sign ify “ rules for perfect cultureof m ind and body.

”The two are no t to be dissociated . Every mental

and moral ac tion influences the body the physicial conditions equallyre-act upon the m ind . He adm i rably says : “Fo r a perfect systemof hygiene we must combine the knowledge of the phys ic ian, theschoolmaster, and the pri est, and must train the body

,the intel lect

,

and the moral soul in a perfect and balanced order. Then,i f our

knowledge were exact, and our means of appl ication adequate , weshould see the human being in h is perfect beauty, as Providence,perhaps , in tended him to be ; in the harmon i ous proportion and

complete balance of al l parts in which he came out of h i s Maker’shands , in whose divine image , we are told , he was in the beginn ingmade .

” M r. Parkes asks i f such a system i s poss ible ? He repl iesthat we can even now l i terally choose between health and disease.

There are certain heredi tary condition s wh ich we may no t be able toavoid , and men may h inder our acqu is it ion of the boon but as a raceman holds hi s own destiny in hi s hands

,and can choose the good and

rej ect th e evil . Exit the disease-demon ! Fevers and other ep idemicdiseases are no longer attributed to the anger of th e Supreme Being ;they may be preven ted . If we u se the words scourge, plague, vi s itat ion,and th e l ike, i t i s merely because we recogn is e that Nature can takeoffence at our violat ion of her laws

, and vis it us with the penalty.One of the most importan t even ts of our time was the establ ishment

of the Registrar-General’s offi ce in 1 83 8 . To DR . WILLIAM FARR weowe a nation’s grat itude for the admi rable manner in wh ich he perform edthe duties of hi s office. The Governmen t Inquiry into the Health ofTowns and of the Country generally

,undertaken by EDWIN CHADWICK,

SOUTHWOOD SM ITH,NEIL ARNOTT

, SUTHERLAND, GUY, TOYNBEE, and

others, was of immense importance to the national health . The medicaloffi cer to the Privy Counc il

,SIMON

,carried on th e work thus ably

commenced with the greatest vigour and the con sequence of th e im

portant departure was that medical officers of heal th were appointed tothe differen t towns and parish es .Various publ ic health acts have followed from t ime to time

,and i t

has been found , in the words of Mr. Parkes,that “ nothing is so costly

in all ways as disease, and that noth ing i s s o remunerat ive as th e outlaywh ich augments health , and in doing so

,augments the amount and

value of the work done.”

It i s a reproach frequently brough t against medic ine that i t makes

THE GERM THEOR Y OF D ISEASE. 479

l ittle advance. Som e have even said that in some respects we are nobetter off than i f we l ived in the days of Hippocrates . However th i smay be, we may be justly proud of the splendid work wh ich hygienicmedic ine has performed , and we have every reason to look hopefullyforward to the benefi ts th is branch of medical sc i ence will confer uponus in the n ear future. Hygiene i s the outcome of physiology. Un ti lwe knew the laws of l ife , i t was imposs ible that hygiene should have asc i ent ific basis ; and henceforth physiology and hygiene will go hand inhand !

JOHN SIMON,C .B.

,F.R .S. (born the em inen t physiologis t,

pathologist, and surgeon , became the first appointed officer of healthto the C i ty of London . He was for some time medical adviser to thePrivy Counc il . He rendered the greates t services to the heal th of thenation by his reports and offici al papers on san i tary matters .EDMUND A. PARKES ( 1 8 1 9—1 8 76) was the great san itary reformer

whose name is gratefully en shrined in the “ Parkes Museum of Hygiene,

” insti tuted in 1 8 76 , of Un iversi ty College, London .

LUDWIG ] P. SEMMELWEIS ( 1 8 1 8“ the Father of Antiseptic

M idwifery, was professor in Pesth , and has earned the grati tude of h is

profession and of the whole world by demonstrating that puerperalfever was due to inoculat ion ,

that the poison which caused i t was intro

duced by organ ic matter below the nails and epidermi s of the studen tsand doctors who had been engaged in anatom ical or pathological work

and had no t taken suffic ien t pains to dis infect and purify their hands .

He recommended careful washing with chlorine water before eachexam inat ion ; the consequence of which was, that the mortal i ty amonglying- in women fell in two mon th s from twelve to three per cen t. He

anticipated the methods of Li ster, and died in a lunatic asylum , galled

bythe attacks which hi s doctrines experienced .

2 Sir Andrew C larksaid : 3 “ There are few such parallels in the h istory of sci ence, in regardto his tremendous moral hero ism ; in spi te of every conceivable diffi

culty, in pos it ion s of m i srepresen tat ion , in sp i te of persecution , he

con tinued his labours , un t i l crowned w i th a full clearing up of th edifficult ies . As to h is martyrdom ,

there is no t such a h istory. The

persecution to wh ich he was exposed in the later years of h is stay in

Vienna, hi s being hounded out of Vienna and settl ing in Budapest,'

and

h i spremature end in loss of reason ,

form indeed a sad story, and one

of the highest examples that can be presen ted .

”

1 Park es’Hygiene, Introduction .

2 Baas , Hist . p . 1083 .

3 Lan cet , Oct . 29th , 1892 , p . 10 1 3 .

480 A P OP ULAR HISTORY OF MEDICINE.

BACTER IOLOGISTS AND OTHER SCIENTISTS .

BENJAMIN W. RICHARDSON,M .D . , e tc. (born In

1 865 he made importan t researches on the nature of the poisons ofcon tagious diseases and discovered sep tine . In 1 866 he discovered theuse of the ether spray for locally abolish ing pain in surgical operations .He introduced bichloride of methylene as an anaesthetic

,and dis

covered the influence Of n i tri te of amyl over tetanus,angina pec tori s ,

etc . He invented the letnal c/zamoer for k ill ing an imals without pain ,and has made many most impor tan t researches on the acti on of alcoholon man . In 1 8 75 he gave a sketch of a

“ Model Ci ty of Health ,” t o

be called Hygeia,which awakened much . int eres t and discuss ion .

JOHN BURDON SAND ERSON, M .D . (born Professor of PhysioIogy at Oxford , made investigat ions respecting the cattle plague,1 865

—66. In 1 883 he sat on the Royal Comm i ss ion on Hosp itals forinfect ious diseases

,and has made elaborate researches on an imal and

plan t electrici ty,and on the nature of contagion.

ROBERT KOCH Qborn the em inent bacteriologist, the discoverer of th e “

comma bac i llus,and the tubercl e bac i llus, i s Pro

fessor of the In st itute of Hygiene in Berlin .

JOHN TYNDALL , (born i s one of the foremost of th esc ien tific explorers of the century. Besides his researches in relationto magnetism

,radian t heat

,heat as a mode of mo t ion, l ight, e tc .

, Professor Tyndall has rendered very importan t services to medic ine by hi sstudies on T/ze Floating M atter of the A ir in Relation to Pu tr zfi cation

and I nfection, 1 88 1 .

LOUIS PASTEUR (born 1 8 2 a) , chem i st , i s celebrated for h is researchesrelative to the polari zat ion of l ight, and for h i s invest igations on fermentation

,the preservation of wines

,and the propagation . of zymotic

diseases in s i lkworms and domestic an imal s. Pas teur’s most importan t,work for medic ine was the demonstrat ion , of th e existence o f thegerm s which cause putrefact ion .

The M in i ster of Publ ic In struct ion,address ing M . Past eur on the

occas ion of h i s s event i eth birthday,summed up what i s known as

Pas teurism in the following words “ Henceforward the formula i sdefin i tive and complete . Your disc iples give i t in two words— fermen tsand virus are l iving beings ; vacc ine is an attenuated virus , the basis ofmedic ine i s the artific ial attenuation of vi rus , and thus the m icrobictreatmen t i s founded .

”

Pasteur’s later work has been chiefly in connect ion with the attemptto d iscover a prophylactic for hydrophobia.

LIONEL S. BEALE, F.R.S. (born physiologi st and pathological

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482 A P OP ULAR HISTOR Y OF M ED ICINE .

Professor Charcot,while declaring that th e faith- cure i s ent irely of a

sc ient ific order, ins is ts that i ts domain i s l imi ted “ to produce its effectsi t.must be appl ied to those cases which demand for the ir cure no intervention beyond the power which the m ind has over the body .

” Thati s to say

,faith will cure paralys is and other di sorders of motion and

s ensat ion dependen t on idea, bu t does not avai l to restore a lost organor an amputated limb.

Professor Charcot bel ieves als o that the faith-cure may cause ulcersand tumours to disappear, i f such lesions be of the same nature as the

paralysis cured by the same meansi In all th is there is no m iracle .

The d i seases are all o f hyster ical origin, according to this em inentauthority

,and being purely dynam ic, and no t organ ic, the m ind has

power to influence and cure them . The m ind of the inval id becomes

possessed of the overpowering idea that a cure is to be efi'

ected, and i ti s so .

M . Li ttré has explained for us how th is happens . 1 The m ind , wh ichi s most eminen tly receptive of suggestion , will be the most l ikely to beInfluent ial in curing the body in which i t i s enshrined

,by the powerful

force o f auto- suggestion .

2

In expressing this opin ion , no question need arise of the efficacy of

prayer or of the intervention of the D ivine power. The aim of the

physic ian i s to understand the medical s ide of the subj ect,and sc ience

i s dai ly becom ing more capable of offering an explanation of such

phenomena from a purely med ical poin t of view. A curious instance offaith -cure was recen tly given in a Cathol ic magazine.The M ont/z for June

,1 89 2 , publ ished an accoun t, by the late Earl

of D enbigh,of a cure worked by a m ember of a fam ily named Cancell i

on Lady Denbigh in 1 850 . She was suffering severely from rheumatismand the Pope (Pius IX. ) men tioned to the Earl that near Foligno therewas a fam i ly of peasants who were credited with a m iraculous power ofcuring rheumatic disorders . Lord D enbigh succeeded in getting on e

of the fami ly,an old man

,to come

,and learned from him the legend of

the cure. The beli ef was that in the reign of Nero, the Apostles Peterand Paul took refuge in th e but of an old coupl e named Cancelli , nearFol igno

,and as a proof Of grati tude, gave to the male descendants of

the fam i ly l iving near the spot the power of curing rheumatic disordersto the end of time . Lord Denbigh described how the old man madea solemn invocation

,using the s ign of the cross

,and

,in fact, Lady

D enbigh did recover at once. In a few days the pains returned , bu tshe made an act of resignation

,and they then left her, and never

returned with any acuteness .1 See p . 320 of this work .

2 Charcot,T/ze Fa i t li Cu re.

THE GERM THEOR Y OF D ISEASE. 483

EXPERIMENTAL PHYS IOLOGY.

The question o f vivisect ion,or experimen tal physiology, pathology,

and pharmacology, has become a burn ing one in England and Americaof recen t years . In a h i story of medic ine so prom inen t a question can

no t be en t irely ignored , although it would be ou t of place to discuss i there at length . It has been claimed that almost all our real knowledgeOf the healing art, and the most importan t s teps of medical progres s ,have been gained by experimen ts upon l iving an imals . On the otherhand , i t has been maintained by practical physic ians and surgeon s thatthe method in quest ion i s no t less m i slead ing than cruel ; that “ theonly correc t path i s that of thoughtful experience .

” 1 On behalf of theadvocates of the experimen tal method, PROFESSOR MICHAEL FOSTERshall state the case that of the other s ide shall be given in the wordsof SIR ANDREW CLARK, “ th e prince of physic ians, and one of thenoblest of men

, under whom i t was my happiness and privilege tos tudy medic ine in th e wards of the London Hosp i tal .PROFESSOR M ICHAEL FOSTER says “ It would no t be a hard task to

give chapter and verse for the assertion that the experimental methodhas

,especially in these later t imes, suppl i ed the chi ef means of progress

in physiology ; but i t would be a long task , and we may con ten t ourselves with call ing atten tion to what is in many respec ts a typical case .

We referred a Short t ime back to the phenomena of‘ inhibi t ion .

’It i s

not too much to say that the discovery of the inhib itory function of certain nerves marks one of the most importan t steps in the progress of

physiology during the past half- cen tury. The mere attainment of thefact that the stimulat ion of a n erve m igh t s top action instead of inducing act ion con stituted in i ts el f almost a revolution ; and the valu e ofthat fact in helping us on the one hand to unravel the tangled puzzlesof physiological act ion and reacti on

,and on th e other hand to push our

inquiries into the st il l more difficult problems of molecular changes, has

proved immense. One cannot at the presen t t ime take up a physiological memoi r covering any large exten t of ground without findingsome use made of inh ibi tory processes for th e purpose of explain ing

physiological phenomena . Now,however skilfully we may read older

statemen ts between the l ines,no scien tific— that i s, no exac t—know

ledge of inh ibition was possessed by any physiologist, un til Weber, by adirec t experimen t on a l iving an imal, discovered the inh ibitory influenceof the pneumogastric nerve over the beating of the heart. It was

,of

course, previously known that under certain c i rcumstances the beatingof th e heart m igh t be stopped ; but all ideas as to how the stoppage

1 Baas,Hist . .M ed . , p . 1 100 .

A P OP ULAR 1115 TOR Y OF MED ICINE.

was, or m igh t be, brought about, were vague and uncertain beforeWeber made h is experiment. That experimen t gave the c lue to an

exact knowledge,and i t i s d ifficult, i f no t imposs ible, to see how the

c lue could have been gained otherwise than by experiment otherexperiments have enabled us to follow up the c lue, so that i t may withj ustice be said that all that part o f the recen t progress of physiologywh ich i s due to the in troduct ion of a knowledge of inhibitory processes i s the direc t resul t of the experim ental method . But the storyof our knowledge of inh ibit ion i s only one of the innumerable in stancesof the value of this method . In almost every departmen t of phys iology,an experimen t, or a series of experim ents, has proved a turn ing-point a twhich vague

,nebulous fanc i es were exchanged for c lear, dec ided know

ledge,01 a starting-poin t for the introduc ti on of wholly new and startl ing

ideas.“And we may venture to repeat, that no t on ly mus t the experimen

tal method be continued, but the progress of phys iology will ch iefly

depend on the increased appl ication of that method . The‘

moreinvolved and abstruse the problems become, the more n ecessary does i talso become that the inquirer should be abl e to choose h is own con

ditions for the observations he des ires to make. Happi ly, th e experi

mental method i tself brings with i t in the course of i ts own developmentthe power o f removing the only val id obj ec tion to physiological experimen ts

,viz . , that in

'

certain cases they involve pain and suffering. For

in nearly all experimen ts pain and suffering are disturbing elements .These disturbing elements the presen t imperfec t methods are often un

able to overcome ; but their removal will become a more and more

press ing necess i ty in the in terests of the experiments themselves, as thescience becomes more exact and exacting

,and will also become a more

and more easy task as the progress of th e sc ience makes the invest igator more and more master of the organ i sm . In the physiology of thefuture , pain and suffer ing will be adm i ssible in an experiment only when

pain and suffering are them selves the obj ec t o f inquiry . And such an

inquiry will of n ecess i ty take a subject ive rather than an object iveform.

” 1

Let the Pres ident of the Royal College of Physic ians give h is viewsof the util ity of vivisection from the point of view of a pract ical

physic ianSIR ANDREW CLARK before the Cl in ical Soc i ety of London

(Br itt'

s/t Medical journal, Feb. 3 , 1 883 ) said : “ For whatever purposethey may be employed ; however carefully they may be designed and

executed ; however successful may be the precautions taken to exclude1 Ency . Brit . , art.

“ Physiology , vol . x ix . p. 23 .

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APPEND IX .

ON SOME OF THE M ORE IMPORTANT M INERALS USED IN

MED ICINE.

(Compiled chiefly from Royle’s Ill ater ia M edica . )

CARBONATE OF SODA is the neter of the Hebrews. It was known to the earlyHindus , and is by them called Sajji noon (i . e. Sajji or Soda Salt) it is the Sagimen

vitri of Geber. The Natron lak es of Egypt were known to the ancients, and it wasearly employed in glass -mak ing, etc. (Royle). On the shores o f the Indian Ocean ,the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean , p lan ts of the order C/zenopodea are burned to

form the ash cal led Baril la, and from this ash soda is obtained. Carbonate o f sodawas also formerly prepared on the coasts of Scotland, Ire land, Wales, and Normandy,by bu rn ing algae o r sea-weeds, and the ash so obtained was cal led kelp . There is nodoubt that the process is extremely ancient

,and the discovery of the properties of

these ashes acciden tal .CHLORIDE OF SOD IUM , o r common salt , is so un iversal ly distributed that it musthave been known and used in food from the earl iest ages.BORAX is thought to have been the Chrysoco l la of Pl iny . It is the Solzaga of the

Hindus (Sanscrit, Tincana ) , and is called Booruk by the Arabs. It is abundant onthe shores o f some of the lak es in Thibet , and was brought into India across the Hima

layas (Royle ) .SULPHATE OF SODA ,

o r Glauber’s Salt , is found on the so il in India and othercoun tries

,and ex ists in the ashes of many plants, in m ineral springs , and in sea-water.

L IME was known to the Egyptians and Hindus.MAGNESIA seems to have been known to the alchem ists. Its name occurs in Geber

and o ther writers of the period . The CARBONATE OF MAGNESIA was probably firstused as a med icine by the Count de Palma at Rome . Hoflmann introduced it intothe list of Materia Medica.

EI’SOM SALTS (SULPHATE OF MAGNESIA ) was first d iscovered by D r. Grew in

1675 in a spring at Epsom . It is found in many countries .ALUM is mentioned in P l iny , xxxv. chap . 1 5 , and probably is referred to by D ios

cor ides (v. chap . Slz ib was the generic term of a lum o f various kinds in Arabwritings . Egyptians and Hindus must have known of its properties from the earl iestages o f their civiliz ation . It was introduced into Europe from Syria by the Genoese .

GREEN VITR IOL or SULPHATE OF IRON was known to the ancients. It is men

t ioned , says D r. Royle, in the Amera Cos/ca o f the Hindu s (II ind. Med.

, p . and

it is used by them as by the Romans in the time of Pl iny in making ink .

ZINC seems to have been -first made known as a me tal in Europe by Paracelsus .The Hindus have imported it from China from remo te t imes. The Ox ide o f Zincwas ancien tly called tu tty , probably from the Tam i l Tu tanagum . In the East, saysRoyle , SULPHATE OF ZINC is cal led sufi a

’tu tia, or white tutia, the Su lphates o f

Iron and Copper being cal led green and blu e tu tz’

a (Hindu M ed. , p . Ioo ).486

APPEND IX. 487

CO PPER was one of the metals most anciently known . It was employed in medicme by the Hindus and Arabs in the form of the Sulphate or Blue -stone . VERD IGR IS, the D IACETATE OF CO PPER , must have been k nown wherever copper vesselsw ere used . It was employed by the Greeks as a medicine, by the Arabs, and probably also by the Egyptians.LEAD was equally we l l known o f old the carbonate of the metal was one of the

most anciently known of the m etallic salts. The M iddle Ages introduced the acetateo f lead commonly known as SUGAR OF

‘

LEAD. EXTRACT OF LEAD,o r EXTRACT

OF SATURN , o r Gou lard’s Ex tract, have been known since the time o f B. Valentine .

BISMUTH was first mentioned by Agrico la in 1 520 .

SULPHUR was employed in med icine by the Greek s, Hindus, and Arabs. Geberknew of i ts solubil ity in an alkal ine so lution , and A lbertus Magnus taught the methodo f procuring Su lphuret of Po tassium by fus ion .

PHOSPHORUS was discovered in 1669, when it was found in the Phosphate of Soda

and Ammon ia o f Urine by Brandt, an alchem ist ofHamburgh . Knuck el in Germanyand Boyle in England had also the credit of discovering it (Royle , M at . fli ed ) .NITR IC ACID was known to Geber, and probably also to the Hindus (Royle ,

M at . fl i ed )IOD INE was obtained by M . Courto is in 18 1 2 in the residual liquor of the process

for obtaining soda from sea-weed .

IOD IDE OF POTASSIUM was first employed in medicine by Co indetBROM INE was d iscovered in 1 826 by M . Balard

,in bittern

,the uncrystallisable

residue o f sea-water . Brom ide of Po tassium was first introduced into the LondonPharmacopoeia in 1836.

SAL AMMONIAC was known to Geber. Avicenna and Serapion ment ion i t by thename Nosnadu r . Persian writers give Arnzeena as its Greek synonym . The Sanskritname is Nu osadu r . In Egypt it is made from camel’s dung. It must have beenknown to the Romans

,as Pliny says that one of the kinds of N i trum gives ou t a

strong smel l when m ixed w ith qu ick l ime (Royle , M at .

CARBONATE OF POTASH is obtained by the burning o f vegetables. It must therefore have been known to prim itive nations. D ioscorides describes it by the nam e

r e¢pa KAmuar u/ns, or Cin is sar z nen torunz , ashes o f vine twigs ( ‘cineris l ix ivium ,

’P liny ,

xxxvii i . chap. The Arabs are usually supposed to have been the first to make

known this alkal i (al-kal i ) bu t the Hindus , in works from which the Arabs copied ,made use o f the ashes of plants (Royle , M at .

TIN was the Bedel o f Moses . It was used by the Egyptians , who probably procured it from India . The Greeks and Romans obtained it from the Phoen icians.ANTIMONY was probably d iscovered by the A lchemists. The sulphuret of the

metal , however, is the e n nui and st ibium o f the ancients. In Asia i t has been usedfrom t ime immemorial for painting the eyebrows and eye l ids. Several o f the Su lphurets of Antimony have long been used in medicine. The Tartarate (TARTAR EMETIC )is supposed to have been discovered by Mynsicht (Thesaurus, e tc. , Hamburgh ,MERCU RY o r QU ICKSILVER was known to the ancients. It was probably first prescribed internal ly by the Hindus. The Romans and Arabs used it external ly. Pl inysays that mercury is po isonous, un less , indeed, it is to be admin istered in the form o f

an unction on the be lly, when it w ill stay bloody fluxes .” The Arabs appear to havere-introduced it into the European practice (Royle) . The red ox ide was known to

Geber. CALOMEL is the subchloride o f m ercury . It occurs native in Carn io la and

in Spain . The Hindus from very early times prepared it artificial ly and prescribedit internally . It was introduced into European practice in 1608 . BICHLO RIDEOF MERCU RY , or CORROSIVE SUBI IMATE,

is the ru st apoor of the Hindus, to whom ,

says Royle , it has long been k nown . It was known also by the Chinese , and was

488 A PPENDIX.

prepared by Geber in the eighth century. The AMMON IO -CHLOR IDE o f mercury ,orWHITE PREC IPITATE, was discovered by Raymond Lu lly in the thirteenth century.

CINNABAR or VERM ILION , the RED SULPHU RET OF MERCU RY, was known to theGreeks, and was one o f the p igments employed by the Egyptians. It has been usedby the Chinese and Hindus in medicine from very early times. The o intment ofm ercury k il led with o il or fat was used by the Saracens for k il ling lice , just as it isused at the present time for the same purpose .

Preparations o f ARSEN IC have long been used in medicine. D ioscorides appliesthe name Arsen ikon (apaew xov) to the yel low Sulphuret of Arsen ic.

The Arabs cal l it z u rn eekli , which is supposed by Sprengel to be a corruption of

Arsen ikon . They were fam il iar w ith the white ox ide which they called sum -ai -fb r ,mousepoison or rat

’s -bane. The Hindus are wel l acquainted with the form of arsen ic

known as orpiment , which they cal l lzu rtal realgar, which is their man'

Zn'

l and whitearsenic, which they name sanclzy a . Royle thinks it was first prescribed internally bythe Hindus , who used it for leprosy and interm ittent fevers. It is a remedy o f greatvalue in many k inds of sk in diseases, and is of great use in agues and in al l periodicdisorders, for which it is on ly inferior to qu in ine .

SILVER is supposed to have first been emp loyed in medicine by the Arabs. GOLDwas employed by the Greeks and Arabs in m ed icine, bu t it is not known which werethe first to so use it. The Hindus used it long before the alchemists investigated itsproperties.

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Amussat, 458.

Anaesthesia, how anciently produced,3 10.

Anaesthetics, 449 , 464

—466, 480.

Anathemata , 1 57 .

Anatomy , 105 , 1 75 , 23 1 . 326, 336. 364,365 , 38 1 . 390, 39 1 , 436

of ancient Egypt i ans, 64.

at A lexandria, 195 .

in England , 46 1 .

at Ox ford , 38 1 .

in Rom e , 209, 2 1 5.

at Salerno , 3 1 3 .

w e l l understood byHippocrates , 1 74.

human, its revival in Europe, 325 ,

comparative , 375 .

and physio logy have made no pro

gress in China , 1 28.

Anaxagoras (born about 499 B. 1 59 .

Anax imander (born 6 1 0 1 59 .

Anaximenes, 1 59 .

Ancestor-worship in connection w ithd isease , 2 2 , 23 .

Ancien t M edicine, treatise by Hippocrates , 1 75 .

Andreae, J . V. ( 1 586 3 70.

Andromachus, 22 1 .

Andry , N. (c . 47 1 .

Anel ( 1 74 1 433 .

Anel, D . ( 1679 432 .

Aneurism,2 35, 389 , 432 , 434.

A ngat’

oé s , priest-physicians of the Ino its ,30.

Angelic presidents of med icine, 84 .

Anger of gods as the cause o f d isease ,270 .

o f demons a cause of disease , 1 2 , 86.

Angl icanus, Gilbertus , 337 .

Anglo -Saxon med icine , 273 .

An imals and tox icology, 4, 35.

experiments on ,2 1 6 , 2 1 7 , 378, 379,

436

their m edicine and surgery, 3 .

An imism, 7 , 8 , 24.

Anthropo logy, 450 .

Antidotes, 4 16.

for po isons, experiments w ith , 20 1 .

An tidotar ium , 3 1 3 , 363 .

Anti -fat , 285.

Antil les Indians, their exorcism of

d iseases , 29 .

Antimony, 487Antioqu ia, Ind ians of, po isoners of wel ls,

35Antisept ic surgery, 47 7 .

treatment , 1 77 .

Anton ius Musa , 2 1 3 .

An tyllus (c. 300 A . 2 35 .

Anubis, Egyptian god , 60.

Apaches consider drunk enness a rel igiousdu ty , 48.

Apis, Egyptian god , 59, 60 .

Apol lo the healer, 147 , 169 .

Apo llon i tts o f Tyana, 224.

Apoplexy, Hippocrates on , 182 .

exorcised by rice, 16.

Apo thecaries, laws relating to , 3 1 7.

Aquinas, Thomas ( 1 225 32 1 .

Arabian med icine , 288, 29 1 , 3 1 1 .

Aranz i, J . C . (1 530 367 .

Arawaks of Surinam ,their birth customs ,

50 .

A rbu thnot, J . ( 1658 45 1 .

Archagathus (B.C . first regularpract itioner in Rome , 208.

Archeu s, 380.

Archiatri, the , 206, 2 10 ,2 36.

Archigenes of Apamoea (circ. A. D . 98

228 .

Archimatthaeus . 3 1 1 .

Are taeus o f Cappadocia ( Ist 228.

Aristotle (born B. C . 192 , 384, 42 1 .

Armstrong, G. , 439 .

Arneman , J . ( 1 763 435 .

Arn ica , 350 .

Arno ld o f Vi lla Nova (1 235 326.

Arnot, N . , 478 .

Arrack , “the Christian deity,” 47 .

Arrows as warran ts to disease -spiritsin China, 1 2 7 .

Arrow -

po ison of Indians , 35 .

Arsenic, 488.

Artem is, goddess of health , 149.

Arteries, ligation o f, 2 1 7 , 232 , 245, 368 .

twisting o f bleeding, 368 .

Aryans, the , 96 .

Asclepiades of Pru sa ( I st cent. 2 12 .

schoo ls of the, 168, 1 70 .

Asclepiadists, 2 1 3 .

Asclepiads, the , 1 57 , 168.

A snw z’

n s , physicians o f the Hindu gods,100 .

Asoka establ ished hospitals in India,1 1 7 .

royal patron o f medicine , 1 1 1 .

Assellius, C . ( 1 58 1 390 .

Assyrians , their medicine , 86, 92 .

Asthma ,remedies for, 37 .

Astigmatism , 463 .

Astri ngents, 43.

Astro logy in medicine, 1 29 , 1 39 , 3 19 ,

Astruc, J . ( 1684 429 .

Athenaeus of C ilicia (c. A .D . 227 .

Athen s , plague o f, 2 5 .

A thletes rubbed w ith o il , 44.

Atom ic philosophy, 164.

theory,1 59 , 449

Atoms , doctrine o f the , 98 .

Auenbrugger, L . ( 1 722 453 .

Auscultat ion , 1 70, 1 77 , 453 .

Au stral ia, abo rigines o f,their super

stitions , 1 7 , 2 1 , 23.

Austral ian tribes, their medical practice ,33 °

INDEX.

Austral ian -Tasmanian d istrict , 1 2.

Au tmoins,d iviners o f North America ,

26.

Automatism , 379 .

Ava, drink made from , 49 .

Avenz oar ( 1 2 th 297 .

Averroes (bo rn A .D . 297 .

Avicenna (bo rn A .D . 296 .

Ay u r Veda , the , Hindu med ical classic98 , 99 , 102 .

A z tecs, hospitals o f the , 239 .

Baas , J . 466.

Babhata on Hindu medicine , 1 14.

Babylon , captivity ofJews in , 8 1 .Babylon ian rel igion, 27 .

Babylonians, their medicine , 86.

Bacchic orgies, 32, 1 50.

Bacchus, 1 50 .

Back tischwah, 290, 29 1 .

Bacon , Francis ( 1 56 1 377 .

Bacon,Roger ( 12 14 322 .

Bacteria, 472 , 473 .

Bacterio logists , 480 .

Bacterio logy anticipated by Empedocles,1 6 1 .

Badaga folk , their treatment o f pregnantwomen, 52 .

their insurance against disease , 29.

Baer, 48 1 .

Bafio tes of South Guinea, the ir surgery,4

Baghdads, medical schoo ls o f, 29 1 .

Bai ll ie , M . ( 1 76 1 454.

Baillou , G . ( 1 536 363 .

Bandages, waxed , 1 78 .

Bandaging of mumm ies, 57 .

Banish i ng d isease-demons, 1 5, 86.

Bann ister, John , 363 .

Barbers and surgery , 3 1 7 , 434, 435 .

and surgeons, their fe l lowship, 329 ,354

Barth, J . ( 1 745 463 .

Bartho l in , T . ( 16 19 376, 390.

Bartho lomaeus , 3 14.

Bartho lomew’s Hospital , London , 359 .

Hospital m edical schoo l , 459 .

Baschk irs expel devils o f disease , 1 38.

Bassi, 473 .

Bastian , H. C . (b. 458 , 472 .

Basu tos , their theory o f d iseases , 22 .

Baths, 400 .

Bayle , G . L. ( 1 774 453 .

Bayle , P. ( 1647 380.

Beale , L. S. (b . 480 .

Beans sacred to Pythagoreans , 164.

Beclard , J . ( 18 18 458 .

Beelz ebub, god of med icine , 85.

cast ou t by Bee lz ebub ,29 .

Beer of the Himalayas , 48 .

Beer, G . J . ( 1663 463 .

49 1

Beetle , an emblem,250 .

Behaviour of doctors, 3 1 2 .

Be ll , B. ( 1 763 459 .

Belladonna eaten by birds and herbivora,4~

Bell in i , 420.

Bells , church , medicine drunk out of,278.

Benares, a seat of Buddhist medicine ,1 1 1 .

Benedict,St . , 300, 308.

Ben ivien i , A . (c. 352 .

Bennett, J . H. ( 1 8 1 2 454.

Bentley, Prof. , on new American t e

m edies, 37 .

Berberine , 37 , 38 .

Berenger o f Carpi (d ied 36 1 .

Bernard, C . ( 18 1 3 456.

Bernard the Provincial , 3 1 5 .

Bernouelli, J . and D .

, 420.

Bert, P‘ ( 1833 457 9 474°

Bertharius (about 3 10 .

Bertho l let , 448.

Bertrandi ( 1 723 433.

Berz el ius ( 1 779 449 .

Bethesda, poo l of, 400.

Bez oar stone , 257 .

Bible and demon iacal theory of epilepsy,16 , 79 .

diseases o f, 79 , 432.

its superiority to other sacred books ,74

Bichat, M . F. X. de ( 1 77 1 429 ,

446

Bile as the cause o f sickness first sug

gested , 1 60 .

Bint -resh, the princess, cured by the

god Khonsu , 65 .

Bird-surgery , 3 .

Birds as evil spirits, 1 7.

fond o f toddy, 49 .

Birth customs of the Caribs , 5 1 .

Arawaks , 52 .

Land Dyaks, 52 .

Abipones , 52.

Basques , 52 .

Corsicans , 52 .

Chinese, 52 .

Iroquo is, 53 .

Badaga fo lk , 53 .

Romans , 54.

Bismu th , 487 .

Black death , the , 329 .

magic, 66 , 4 10.

Blackmore, R . ( 1 650 425 .

Blaes , .G . (d ied 390.

Blane , G. (b. 426 .

Bleeding, 82 , 1 34, 1 56, 2 1 7 , 274, 280 ,

285 .

practised by savages, 33 .

arrest of, by savages, 40 , 42 .

Bl i z z ard , W. ( 1 743 459 .

Blood-bread in consumption , 1 3 1 .

Blood as food for inval ids , 35 , 396 .

circu lation o f the , 385 , 389 .

in med icine , 396.

pressure, 420 .

purifiers used by negroes, 38.

Bloodless amputations invented by Chrysippus, 195.

Blue cohosh p lant , 37 .

Blumenbach, J . F. ( 1 752 450.

Bodo fo lk of India,the ir disease -demons,

22 .

Boerhaave (1668 422 , 423 , 426.

Bonnet, 472 .

Book of t/ze D ead, 58, 60 .

Bora initiations of Australia, 43 .

Borax , 486.

Borde , Andrew (c. 358.

Borden , T. de ( 1 722 430 .

Borel l i , G. A . ( 1608Borneo , b irth customs in , 52 .

Botan ic gardens establ ished , 20 1Botany

.

397, 336, 35 1 , 363. 426. 427 ,

4°

Boulim ia)

, a species of hunger , 197 .

Bowls for medicine , 95 .

Box -bark pou ltices, 33 .

Boyer, A . ( 1 757 461 .

Boyle, Robert ( 1626 378, 379,38 1 , 419

Brahmanism , 1 10 .

Brahmans forbidden by Menu to becomedoctors

,10 1 .

their know ledge of medicine, 10 1 .

Braid , J., 457 .

Brain , anatomy o f, 365, 39 1 .d iseases

,228 .

surgery , 1 12 , 1 77 , 206 , 456 .

o f the Society Islanders, 43 .

Branca, 368.

Brandy in medicine, 326.

Briggs, W. (died 438 .

Bright , R. ( 1 789 454.

Br i tisli Medicaljou rnal, 467 .

Britomartis, 1 50.

Brittan, 474 .

Broca, P . ( 1824 458.

Brodie , B. ( 1 783 459 .

Bromfield, W. ( 1 7 1 7 435.

Brom ine , 487 .

Bronchitis, remedies for, 34, 37, 49 .

Bronchocele , 3 16.

Bronchotomy, 364.

invented by Asclepiades, 2 1 3.

Broth o f human flesh,a Chinese remedy

,

1 3 1 .

Broussais, F. J . W. ( 1 772 446.

Brown , J . ( 1 735 427 .

Browne, Sir Thomas ( 1605 39 1

Brown -Sequard (b. 456.

Browning’s Poem , Sau l , 78 .

Bruner , J . C . ( 1653 437 .

Brunhilda, a doctress, 272 .

Bruno , Giordano ( 1 548 346, 35 1 .

Brunonian theory , 427 .

Buckn i ll, J . C . (b. 457.

Budd, 474.

Buddhism ,102

,109.

had a gospe l for all creatures, 1 10.

Bufi'

on ( 1 707 439 , 448.

Buni tos o fHispan io la, 26.

Bulleyn , Wi l liam (died 363 .

Burial customs o f Lower Congo , 24.

o f d isease -demons, 1 5 , 1 39 .

Burk ing, 46 1 .

Burma, disease-demons o f, 2 1 .

Burns , I ( 1 775 459Burrows, 476 .

Butts, Will iam (died 359 .

Byz antine medicine, 243 .

Cabal ism , 84, 337 .

Cabbage , 162 .

actus ju ice an intox icant, 48 .

aesalpinus , A . ( 1 5 19 35 1 , 385.

Caesarean operation in Central A frica, 45 .

in Europe , 36 1 , 362 .

Caius, John ( 1 5 10 360.

Cajepu t tree , 34.

Calculi , 1 77 .

Calenda, 3 1 3 .

Caliphs , the ir services to science, 288 .

Gal lisen ( 1 740 433 .

Calumba root, 37 .

Cambodians, their exorcism of smallpox , 30.

Cambridge Un iversity, 340.

Camom i le, 285 .

Camper ( 1 722 435.

Cancer, 1 82 , 183 .

Canopic jars of Egypt, 63.

Capillary vessels, d iscovery of, 386,Carbon ic acid, 380.

Cardan ( 1 50 1 35 1 .

Carib races , their use of cascarilla, 49.

arm ina (magic songs) , 207.arpenter, W. B.

, 48 1 .

Carter, R . B. , 463.

Cascarilla, its introduction into medicine ,49

Casa’inz and M ecasplz im , 9 1 , 92 .

Cases, co l lections of interesting, 327 .

Cassava bread, 36.

Casserius ( 1 56 1 364.

Cassius Fel ix ( I st 228.

Casso rius , 390 .

Castor o il , i ts action on savages, 37.

Castration , 77 , 169.

Cat , Le ( 1 700 432 .

Catalepsy , 390.

Catamen ial women possessed by demons ,143 .

superst itions concern ing, 54, 78.

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494 INDEX.

Copaiba, 38.

Copho ( 1 2 th 3 1 3 , 3 14.

Copland, Robert (c. 359 .

Copper, 487 .

Coral as a charm , 410 .

islanders, sorcery o f, 23 .

Cordova famous for learning, 292 , 293 .

Cordus , E. ( 1486 352 .

Co rdus, V° ( 1 5 1 5' 1 544)a 352 , 363Corpuscles of the blind discovered, 389 .

Corsicans and the couvade, 52 .

Corumba w iz ards , 29.

Corvisart, J . N. ( 1 755Corybantes , the , 85.

Cos , schoo l of, 1 70 , 1 72 .

Cosmas and Dam ian , SS. , 234, 323 .

Cosmo de Med ici, 373 .

Couching for cataract, 2 1 1 .

Council of Tours (A . D . 1 1 63 ) degradedsurgery, 305.

Couvade , the , described, 50 .

Cow -dung as a remedy, 285.

-rel igIon of the Toda tribe , 48 .

Cowper, W. ( 1666 437 .

Cramp -rings , 37 1 .

Critical days , 106 , 202 .

CIocodile’s dung used in m edicine , 201

2 1 1 .

incantation against, 65 .

Croome , W. (d . 393 .

Croon ian lectures, 393 .

Crotona,schoo l of, 1 6 1 .

Croup , remedies for, 3 7 , 363 , 369.

Cru ik shank , W. ( 1 745 436.

Crystals, healing by , 33 .

Ctesias o f Cn idus, 1 7 1 .

Cu llen , W. ( 1 7 10 426 .

Cu lpeper (c. 396 .

Cupping 45, 1 56 246 .

Currie , J. ( 1 756 439.

Cuvier, 42 1 .Cyclam en

,2 5 1 .

Cyon , E. (b. 457Cyrene , schoo l of, 1 70.

Cz ermak , 459 .

D .

Dacotas , their theories of disease -demons,22 .

D aévas, the cau ses o f d isease amongst

Parsees, 143 .

Dalton ( 1 776 449.

Dancing man ia , 3 3 1 , 339 .

Danish w i tchcraft , 18 .

Darling river, m ed icine on the , 2 7 , 35.

Darw in,Charles ( 1809 45 1 .

Darw in , Erasmus ( 1 70 1 428 .

Darw in ism in Hindu philosophy, 98 .

D asy u s , 96.

Davaine , 473 .

David exorcised Sau l by incantations, 78 .

Da Vinci,Leonardo ( 1452 336.

Davy ( 1 788 449. 464D ead , the geni i o f, in Egypt , 63 .

o ffence to the , as cau se of disease, 20,2 1 .

D eath, superstition s connected w ith , 4 13 .

fiends, 144 .

Decussation o f optic nerves discovered,209 .

D e Dondis, Jacob ( 1 298 326.

Deities o f Chinese medicine and surgery,1 28.

D emetrius o f Apamoea (B. C . 198.

D emocedes (6th cent. B . C. 8 1 , 164.

Democritus o f Abdera (5th cent .

164.

Demon iacal possession in WesternAfrica, 14.

D emon iacs and lunatics, I6 .

Demono logy precedes theo logy, 24.

D emon -theory of disease in China, 126,

Demons of disease , 10, 66 , 77 , 78, 86,88 , 89 , 90. 99. 1 36, 143 , 16 1 . 327 .

Demonstrations of anatomy , 326, 390 .

Demosthenes Philalethes (c. A .D . the

ocu list, 198, 2 1 1 .

D engen , the gout demon , 14 .

D ental operat ions, 206, 2 1 7 , 390.

D en tistry,299 , 390.

of ancient Egyptians , 63.

Derivation and revu ls ion, 1 76

Desau lt,P. J ( 1 744

D escartes ( 1 596 77 420.

D esiderius (0:1

D eve lopment from egg, 377.

understood by Py thagoras , 163 .

D evi l brought up by eme tics, 30 .

Dhanwantari, the Hindu E sculapius ,104.

Dhimal people of India, their theories o f

d isease, 22 .

D iabetes first named and described , 198.

D iagnosis, 228 .

Egyptian ,68.

D iana, goddess of health , 149 .

D iarrhoea, remed ies for, 34.

D ictionary,med ical , 327 .

D ie tetics , 1 76, 180, 18 1 .

D ieting the s ick in Homer,1 53.

D igby , Sir Kene lm , 397 .

D igestion , 4 19 .

D ik tynna, 1 50 .

D i ll,162 .

D imsdale , J . ( 1 7 1 1 439 .

D iocles Carys t ius , 1 89 .

D iogenes o f Apo llon ia (460 160.

D ion is , P . (d ied 390 .

D ionysu s , 1 50 , 1 5 1 .

festivals of, 50, 1 50 .

mysteries o f, 32 , 1 50.

D ioscorides,his materia m edica, 225.

INDEX.

D io tima, the Athenian prophetess, 24 .

D iscovery o f causes , 1 65.

D isease , a punishment fo r sin , 76, 87 ,88, 89 .

-demons , 29 , 30, 86, 99 .

o f Egypt . 64, 65dispel led by drumm ing, 1 7 .

goddesses o f the Romans, 206 .

-mak ing in the New Hebrides, 1 7 .

personification o f, 10 .

-Spiri ts, 10 , 86 , 89 , 90, 1 29 ,theory of, in Bible , 74.

theories o f the Greeks , 166.

-w inds , 90.

D iseases as personages, I 5, 1 39 .

blown away,29 .

caused by o ffended dead , 20, 1 39.

ghosts, 18 , 3 1 , 1 39 .

the consequences o f sin in previousstates o f ex istence

,1 00.

of the Bible, 79 .

treated by magic, 26, 2 7 , 86, 90, 35 1 .

D isgusting remedIes,1 3 1 , 20 1 , 2 1 1 , 394

397D islocat ions wel l treated by Hippocrates,

1 74.

D issection , 2 1 8, 2 19 , 325 , 326, 379, 390.

o f the human body , 326, 36 1 .

practised in time of Hippocrates ,1 74.

in India, 1 14, 1 15 , 1 1 7 .

D ittany eaten by wounded goats, 3 , 1 50.

D iuretic medicines, 38.

D ivinatio n and physic, 26, 269 .

by teraphim , 75.

D obbo , evi l spirits o f theWatj e, 28 .

D octor, t itle o f, 307 .

Dodart, 420.

D ogmatic schoo l , the, 187 .

Dog-rose, why so called , 225 .

Dogs, their use o f natural medicines , 3 .

D omest ic medicine ofm iddle ages, 324.

D on z el lin i , 420.

D ouglas, J . ( 1675 426.

Drak e , J . ( 1667 43 1 .

D ran ,Le ( 1 685 432 .

Dreams, the origin o f bel ief in the sou land future l ife , 9 .

Druggists o f ancient Rome , 22 1 .

D ru ids,m edicine o f the

,269 .

Drum of the ear first described,236.

Drums, u se o f, in scaring disease -demons,I 7 .

Drunk enness as a re ligious duty, 48 .

D ual ism in Accadian philo sophy, 88.

D ubo is , Jacques ( 1478 364.

D uchenne , G . B. , 457 .

D umas ( 1800 449 , 464 .

D uncan,M . , 465 .

D ung in m edicine, 396.

D usch,Van , 472 .

D yaks o f Borneo , 1 2 , 1 3 , 14 .

Dyon is ia, the , drunk enness at, 50.

Dysentery, remedies fo r, 34, 1 3 1 .

Dyspepsia, remedies for, 37 , 38.

495

Eagle stone , 2 57 .

Ear, anatomy o f, 36 1 , 367 .

bones o f, 337 .

d iseases, 2 1 7 .

Earth, ed ible , 36 , 37 .

Eastern Ino its , 6.

Ebers papyrus, 58, 64, 67 , 69 , 7 1 .

Ebn A lbtathar (died abou t 297.

Ecclesiasticus probably written by a

physician , 82.

Eclectics, sect of the , 227.

Ed inburgh Co llege o f Physicians, 373 .

Med ical Schoo l , 425 , 436 .

Education o f physicians , 103 , 105 , 1 78 ,1 79. 305. 3 1 7 , 426.

Edward the Confessor, St. , 372 .

Egypt, its great antiqu ity, 57 .

Egyptian medicine , 57 , 67 , 68 .

Ehrenberg, 473 .

Eir, goddess o f phys icians, 272 .

Elder, the , 256.

Electricity, 427 , 449.

first u sed in medicine,2 1 5 .

Electro -therapeutics, 457.Elementary bodies , 83.

Elements as causes o f d isease , 16, 90.

in O vid’s m etamorphoses, 166 .

Elephan tiasis , 2 28.

first described , 2 1 3 .

Elix ir of l ife, 100 , 396.

Ellio tson , J. , 430.

Embalmers o f Egypt, 6 1 , 63 .

Embryo tomy, 294.

Emetics, 43 , 83 , 1 56.

Empedocles (born about 490 physio logist and philosopher, 160 .

Emp irics , schoo l of the , 199 .

Empiric tripod, the, 199 , 20 1 .

Empyema , how treated by Hippocrates ,1 82 .

Enchanters , 9 1 , 108 .

Enemas used by Mongo ls , 1 35 .

Engineering and physio logy, 42 1 .

Epidaurus, temple of [Escu lapiu s at, 149 .

Epidem ics, theory o f, 29 .

o fm iddle ages , 329-

332 .

Epilepsy , 234.

and demon iacal possession , 18 1 .

in the New Testamen t, 1 6.

Epim enedes , 1 58.

Epione (the Soo ther) , 149 .

Episynthetics , sect o f the , 22 7 .

Epsom sal ts, 438.

Eras istratus oq lis (about B.C . 3401 96.

Erasmu s, 357 .

Erichsen , J . E. (b. 460.

496 INDEX.

Erysipelas, 183.

Esmarch,F. (b. 462.

Esmun,Phoen ician god , 1 5 1 .

Esqu imaux,an intermed iate type between

past and present , 6 .

Essenes , Jew ish sect of, 82 .

Esthon ians , 9 .

Ether, 352 .

as an anaesthetic, 464.

Ethics, medical , 169 .

Etienne, Charles ( 1 503 364.

Etiology, 446.

Etiquette o f physicians , 106, 1 07, 169 ,

Etruscans, their science, 205 .

Eucalyptus, a popu lar remedy of Aus

tral ian tribes, 34, 36.

Eudemus (B.C. 2 14.

Euphorbius, 2 1 3 .

Euryphon of Cn idos , 1 70 .

Eustachian tube, 367 .

Eustachius , 367 .

Evil eye, 16 , 4 10, 4 1 1 .

Exam inations instituted at Montpel l ier,

Excitabi l ity, doctrine of, 427 .

Excitemen t , theory of, 446.

Exorcising d isease -demons, 1 5, 86, 87,

Exorcisms, 10 , 13 , 20, 2 1 , 64, 72 , 86, 90 ,1 35 , 1 36, 1 39 , 142 , 327. 4 1 1 .

4 1 2 .

Expectant treatment, 382 , 424.

Experim ental medicine , 369 .

Physio logy. 2 1 2, 378. 379, 436. 456,

-

485 .

Experiments, surgical, how practised byHindus, 1 1 6 .

the ir prerogat ives, 322 .

Extension , surgical , 1 77 .

Eye, construction o f the , 337 .

diseases treated in Egypt w ithhuman brains , 69 .

doctors satirised by Martial , 2 10.

F.

Fabricius ( 1 557 364, 385.

Facies Hippocrat ica , 18 1 .

Faith heal ing , its rationale, 320, 333 ,

Fal lopian tubes , 366.

Fallop ius, Gabrie l ( 1 523 366 .

Faraday, M . ( 1 79 1 449.

Farr, W., 478 .

Faye: Le , 433 ‘

Fees , 2 1 1 , 323 .

of ChInese doctors, 1 30 .

the largest on record , 196.

ofWe lsh court physicians, 282 .

surgeons, 286.

o f Parsee doctors, 144.

F emales, the ir marvellous influence , 53 .

F ennel , 285 .

Fermentation , 47 1 , 473 , 474.

F ermented l iquors , how d iscovered , 46 .

Fern (male ) , remedy for tapeworm , 36.

F errier, D . (b . 457 .

Fe tish worship , 249 .

Fetishism o f the Malagasy, 23.

Fever and stench goddesses, 206 .

-demons, 3 1 , 87 : 97: 1 36 , 1 37 °

-

puppets, 3 1 .

spirit , the, 87 , 89 , 1 36.

Fevers , treatment o f, 383 .

and ague , remedies for, 34, 43 , 1 36 ,m . 18 1 . 342 .

Feverfew (the herb) , 249 .

F iends as the cause of insan ity, 22 .

Fiend -sickness, 2 78 .

F inal causes be l ieved in by Galen , 230 .

Finn ish mytho logy, 14.

theories o f d isease, I 5.

Finno -Tartarian magic, 1 25.

F ire , 165.

-worship , 273 .

F ish capturing by po isons, 35.

Fistu la treated by the l igature , 1 77 , 297.F lap operation ,

2 29 , 389 .

F l int instruments in surgery , 33, 43, 70.

F logging as a remedy, 1 39 , 278.

Flourens, P. ( 1 794 456.

F ludd,Robert (b . 368.

Foetus , anatomy of, 364, 367 , 425.

Fomentations, 42.

Food remains in sorcery, 1 7 .

Forbes, J . ( 1 787 467 .

Forceps, 244, 245.

in obstetric surgery, 435.

Forensic m edicine , 3 76, 454.

Foster, M ., 483 , 484.

Fo thergill , J . ( 1 7 1 2 436.

Fourcroy, 448 .

Four doctors, the, 3 14.

masters, the , 3 14.

Fractures, ancient treatment of, 1 78, 184,2 16 .

France , anatomy in , 364.

Franco , Pierre (c. 362 .

Frank , J . P. , 429 .

Frank l in , 450 .

Frascatorius ( 1483 363 , 388 .

Frederic his services to medical education , 3 16, 3 1 7.

Freemasonry , 370.

Freind , J . ( 1675 432.

Fun-Hi , the de ity ofChinese doctors, 12 7.Fu l ler, T. (d . 438.

Fum itory and exorcism ,2 56 .

Funeral ceremon ies , physicians not to bepresen t at , 10 1 .

o fferings o f the Egyptian fe llahs, 72 .

superst itions , 29 , 72 .

Furn ival l , D r., on the medicine of the

Tudor reigns, 359 .

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498

Henbane eaten by sheep, cows, and pigs ,4 .

Henle, F. G . (1809 452 , 473 .

Heracleitus of Ephesus (born about 5561 59 .

Herbal ists, 359 , 369.

Herb baths , 401 .

Hermes, god of medicine, 1 50 .

Hermes Trismegistus, 58, 60, 1 50 .

Hermetic books , the , 58, 6 1 , 1 5 1 , 337 .

Hernia, 1 92 , 228, 3 16.

Hern iotomy , 362 .

Herodicus, 1 7 1 , 1 72 , 477 .

Herodotus on Egyptian medicine, 62 .

found no doctors in Babylon and

Assyria, 89 , 90.

(Roman physician ) , 228.

Herophilus of Chalcedon (about B.C.

335 195.

HesIod, 1 55.

Highmore , N . ( 16 1 3 390.

Hildegard , St. , famous physic ian , 307 .

Himly , C . ( 1 772 463 .

Hindu ism as a creed , 97.

Hindus , antiqu ity of, 96 .

Hip -jo int disease , 183 .

Hippocrates (b . 460 B . 1 72 .

first described trepann ing, 44.

works of, 1 78.

Hippopo tamus fabled to have discoveredthe art of bleeding, 1 56 .

Hispan io la’

, divination and physic in , 26.

Histories of Medicine , 432 , 466, 467 .

Hobbes ( 1 588 379.

Hodgk in , T. ( 1 797 454.

Hoffmann , F. ( 166Q 42 1 , 422 ,

424, 47 2

Ho ly water,2 72 .

in Babylon ian sorcery , 87 .

wells, 2 72 , 401 .

Home, Sir E., 434.

Homer, medicine of. 1 52 .

on Egyptian medicines, 66.

Homoeopathy, 234, 446-

448 .

Honain (9th 295 .

Hoop ing-cough, 285 .

Horne, Van ( 162 1 39 1 .

Horsley , V. , 458.

Horus, Egyptian d ivinity, 58 , 60 .

Hospitals, their origin, 239 , 240, 241 ,

in India, 1 20 .

and medical schoo ls of ancientHindus, 1 1 7 .

at Damascus,294.

Hottentots, disease-demon of the , 16.

practise inocu lations, 45.

Houel , N . ( 1 520 375.

Howard , John ( 1 726 429 .

Howel l , Dda (A. D . his medicallaws , 282 .

Huang- ti

,an ancient Chinese writer on

med icine, 126.

Hudibras on the couvade , 52 .

Hufeland, C. W. von ( 1 762 446.

Huk eems , native doctors of India, 1 2 1 ,

123.

Human flesh in Chinese med icine, 1 32 .

sacrifices and anatomy,2 7 1 .

commuted in circumcision , 77 .

Human ism, 337.

Humbo ldt, 449 .

Humoral patho logy, 189 , 426.

Hunter, J . ( 1 728 433 .

Hunter, W. ( 1 7 1 8 438.

Husbands,treatment of, by Carib w ives ,

50.

Hutchinson , J . (b. 460 .

Huxley , Thomas (b. 182 452 .

Hydatids of liver understood by Hippocrates , 1 82 .

Hydrocephalus, trephin ing for, 1 83 .

Hydrodynam ics, 379.

Hydrogen , 350.

Hydrophobia, remedies for, 83 .

superstitions , remedy for, 2 10.

Hydrostatic test ,” 376.

Hydro -therapeutics, 467 .

Hygeia, goddess of health , 149.

Hygiene, 478Hymns to cure d isease, 88 .

Hypnotism , 457 .

Iatro -chemical schoo l , 4 1 9 .

-mathematical schoo l , 4 19 , 420 .

Iatrosophists , 236 .

Iberians, their birth customs, 52 .

Ibis believed to have invented clysters, 67 .

Ibn Ez ra, 84.

Iccus o f Tarentum , 1 7 1 .

Ideas , the origin o f, 9 .

Idiots divinely inspired, 22.

Ignorant doctors of China have a specialhell , 1 29 .

I Huang Tof l if ting, the god of Chinese

surgery, 1 27.

Iliac passion ,the , how treated , 2 14.

Images of demons as tal ismans, 88.

of gods used to ward off diseasedemons, 95 .

wax,etc. ,

their use in sorcery, 1 7, 66,405 , 406

Imhotep, the Egyptian IEsculapius , 58 .

Immortal ity of the sou l taught by Pythagoras, 163.

Immunity, 457 .

Incantations against d iseases, 1 5 , 87 ,

Income of Greek phys icians, 203.

of Roman physicians, 2 1 1 , 2 1 2 .

Incubatory sleep, 167 .

Indian Archipelago , d isease spirits o f, 1 2 .

medicine and the Mahometans, 298.

INDEX. 499

Indian tribes, their med icine and sur Ju l ian (A . D . 2 19 .

gery, 4 1 , 42 . Jung-Still ing ( 1 740 463 .

Indra taught mank i nd the healing art , 100 . Jurin, 420.

Inductive method in science , 322 , 377 .

Inferior laryngeal nerve d iscovered, 209.

Influenz a, 352 .

Inhibitory nerves, 457 .

Inj ection o f drugs into veins, 39 1 .

Inoculation for small-pox , 42 5 , 439, 440 .

practised by Chinese and other nat ions from the earliest times, 45.

Ino its, their magicians , 29 .

Insane persons worshipped as d ivine, 22 .

Insan ity considered as divine, 2 1 .

diagnosis of, 439 .

treatment of, 363 , 456, 467—470.

Insects, immortal ity of, 2 1 .

Inspection o f drug-shops, 3 1 7 .

Instruments, surgical , 244, 433o fHindu Stirgery , 1 15 , 1 16

Intox icants,universal , 46 .

Intox ication and the godhead , 47 .

rationale of, 49 , 50.

Inunction used by ancient Greeks , 44.

Iodide of o tassium , 487.

Iodine , 4 7 .

Ion icus of Sardis,225 .

Ipecacuanha, 342 .

Iris, contractility of the, 390.

Iritis, 463 .

Iron ,its first u se in med icine , 15 1 , 22 1 ,486.

Iroquo is, child-bearing amongst the , 52 .

Irrigation of wounds , 237 .

Irritabi lity, doctrine o f, 422 , 426.

Ishak Ben So le iman (830 296 .

Isis and Osiris, 58, 59 , 60 .

Italy, anatomy in , 365 , 366 .

Itch -

goddess, 206.

-m ite, 429 .

J .

Jackson , J . H. , 458 .

Jacobus Psychristus, 236.

Jacques, Frere (c. 393 .

Jains, the, 102 .

Jalap, 38.

James, R. ( 1 703 428 .

Japanese med icine, 1 39 .

Javanese be lievers in an imism, 14 .

Jaw ,fracture o f, 1 84.

Jenner, E. ( 1 749 439 .

Jenner, Wil liam (b . 454.

Jew ish physicians at Salerno , 309 , 3 10.

rel igion , its comparative purity, 73 .

Jews,the medicine of the, 73 .

the magic-mongers of Rome, 84.

their go lden age,”84.

Jiwaka, Buddha’s physician , 1 1 1 .

John of Salisbury on doctors , 306.

Jones, 458 .

Joyliffe, George (died 38 1 .

K.

Kabeiri gods, 75 , 85 , 1 5 1 .

Kaffirs, theories o f disease amongst, 28 .

Kalevala of the Finns, 1 5.

the, 408.

Kalmucks, their exorcism of disease, 28 .

Karens of Burmah trace diseases to therainbow

, 1 3 .

Karma, 1 10.

Kava intox ication, 49 .

Keill, 420 .

Keith , 465 .

Kern , Von ( 1 769 462 .

Kerner, 476 .

Khonds of Orissa and the small-pox ,1 2 , 1 3 .

all get royally drunk, 48.

Kidney, the, 389 .

fat of a bew itched man , 1 7.

King’s evil , 37 1 .

Kircher, A . ( 1 598 47 1 .

Kirghis cure disease by sorcery, 1 39 .

Knots (magic) as cures for disease, 89.

as charms, 2 57 .

in magic, 408, 409.

Knox , 46 1 .

Koch, R. (b . 474, 480.

Ko larian s of Bengal , their cure fordiseases

, 48.

Kombinegherry tribe of Austral ia, 24.

If'

ozn il, an intox icating drink, 48 .

Koran , 293 .

Kousso, remedy for tape-worm , 36.

Lacteals, the , 390.

Laennec, R . T. H. ( 1 78 1 453 .

Lama doctors, 1 34, 1 35 .

Lamarck , 428, 452 .

Lancets , 245 .

Lancisi (c. 472 .

Langenbeck , 462 .

Langrish, B. , 436.

Larry, J . D . (1 766 46 1 .

Latum, 473 .

Laudanum , 348, 382 .

Lavo isier, 448.

Law , the, of Hippocrates, 1 78, 1 79 .

Lawrence , W. ( 1 783 460 .

Lead, 487 .

Learn ing, the revival of, 330.

Lectisternes at Rome, 208 .

Lectures on medicine, 305 , 426 .

Leec/z Book , 276 .

Leeches first used in Europe, 2 14.

in Sanskrit works on surgery , 1 14.

Leek ju ice , 285 .

500 .LAUDIEX:

Leeuwenhoeck ( 1632 389, 47 1 .

Legal medicine , 376, 454.

recogn ition ofdoctors in England, 353 .

Lemery , 4 19 .

Lemon juice in scurvy, 374.

Lenormant, Professor, on disease-demons,1 5, 1 39

Leonidas ofAlexandrIa,229 .

Lemosy, 183 , 2 19, 249, 432 .

Egyptian , cures fo r, 69 .

treated w ith human blood , 1 3 1 .

Lettsom, J . C . ( 1 744 428 .

Levasseur (c. 367 .

Lex Cornelia pun ished negl igent doctors ,2 10.

Libavius, A . ( 1 546 362 , 419 .

Libraries, public, o f Moors in Spain ,292 .

Lick ing as a fomentation , 3 .

Liebig, J . ( 1 803 449 .

Life , indestructibil ity o f, 2 1 .

Ligature of arteries, 224, 232 , 235, 237 ,296 , 368 .

Light and heat, undu latory theory o f,

337Ltme, 486.

Linacre, Thomas (b. 346, 358.

Linnaeus, 472 .

Lisfranc , J . ( 1 790 46 1 .

Lister, 472

Lister’s anti septic surgery, 477 .

Liston (1 794 460.

Litany to fever, 87 .

to disease-demons , 9 1 .

Literature, Greek med ical , 204.

Lithotomy , 169, 2 1 5 , 2 16, 237 , 2 72 , 294,3 16 , 393 , 426, 432 , 433

Lithotrity, 459 .

fi rst practised , 198 , 244.

Littre, M . , on m iracles o f heal ing, 320 .

Liver , 364.

eaten by demons,1 2 .

Lock Hospital , 435 .

Locke, John ( 1632 388 .

Logwood , 38, 342 .

London Hospital medical schoo l , 459 .

Lo tz e , R . H. ( 18 1 7 45 1 .

Lou/z iatar , the F inn ish disease -demon , 1 5 .

Lou is ( 1 723 433 .

Lou is ( 1 787 453 .

Lower, R . ( 163 1Lubbock

,Sir John

,on savages, 5.

on the surgery of the Society Islanders , 43 .

Lucius , 237 .

Luck y and un lucky days in m edicine, 66 .

Ludford, Simon (c. 360 .

Ludw ig , D . (c . 394.

Lu l li , Raymond ( 1 235 322 .

Lunatics and demoniacs, 16.

treated by flog°

ng, 278 .

Lu z,

”nucleus 0 the resurrection of the

body, 83 .

Lycanthropy, 236, 470 .

Lycus (anatomist) , 209 .

Lymphatics, the , 38 1 , 390.

M .

Machaon , son of IEsculapius, 149 , 1 52 ,1 53 , 1 541 1 55 '

aclaurIn , 459 .

Madagascar, theories of disease in , 1 3 .

Magendie , F. ( 1 782 48 1 .

Magical y ar zi é , 23 .

Magic in the treatment of diseases, 26 ,27 , 65 , 86, 14 1 , 144, 27 1 ,

327. 35 1 . 375. 376. 405Chaldaean ,

87 , 88.

Egyptian , 64, 65 , 66.

of the F inns medicinal , 1 5 .

in the Talmud , 83 .

Magnesia, 486 .

Magnus of A lexandria, 225.

Maharncourt , Pe ter de, 323 .

Mahomet’s sk il l in medicine , 293 .

aimonides (died 84, 298 .

alagasy and the future l ife , 23 .

alays have a special demon for eachdisease , 14.

sorcery of, 22 .

Malebranche ( 1638 379 .

Malgaigne , J. ( 1806 46 1 .

Malp ighi , M . ( 1628 386 , 389 .

Mandingoes, their idea of intox ication ,

47Mandiocca, fermentation of, 48 .

Mandrak e , 1 33 .

Man ioc plant , 36 .

Manna, 34.

Manners and tone of good physicians,3 1 2 .

Manteas (B. C. 2 50) first made a book o f

recipes, 198.

Mantira people , their theory of d isease ,1 2 .

Mantras, 1 10.

Ma'

ra,a demon ,

1 10.

Marasmus, 234.

Marcel lus, Empiricus , 237 , 395 .

Marghi people , their intox icating drink ,48.

Marinus (Roman anatom ist) , 209 , 225 .

Alarm ,a charm ,

24.

Martial is (A . D . 198.

M aru ts or Smashers, 9 .

Masks to frighten smal l-pox deity, 1 29 .

Massage, 1 67 , 2 1 2 , 399 .

practised by savages, 43 , 44 .

Mata, smal l-pox goddess of India, 1 19 ,1 20.

Material ism , 45 1 .

Materia Medica, 2 20, 222 , 225, 232 , 307,

3 1 5, 323 , 39 1 , 392 , 394~

of Egyptians, 69 .

of India, 1 18

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502

Mystical school , 4 19 .

Mystic sign in Hindu medicine, 109 .

Myxoedema, 458 .

Naboth, M . ( 1675 437 .

Naegeli, 473 .

Nail -parings, superstitions concerning,16. 143. 407

Namtar and Idpa , 89.

Nasal po lypus, a punishment for sin , 82 .

Nasty physic first disguised by St. Hildegard , 307 .

Natural explanations the resu lt of science ,24.

history, 225, 35 1 , 36 1 .

studied by Aristotle , 192 .

Philosophy , 336) 377 1 3781 379sc1ences , 448.

Nature the physician of d iseases, 1 76.

Neatness of Indian surgery , 42 .

Necromancers, 335.

and tombs, 4 1 3 .

Needfire, 273 .

Needham , W. (died 425.

Negro priest-physicians, 28.

religion is fetishism , 65 .

egroes, their theories o f disease, 28 .

c laton , A . ( 1807 461 .

emesius (4th 236.

Neoplatonism , its influence on medicine ,235.

Nepenthe , 70, 1 54.

Nerves, 2 3 1 , 2 32 , 325 , 364, 3 78 , 389 ,39 1 , 436

of sensation and motion recogmsed,196 , 224.

Nervous disorders,220

,236, 39 1 .

system , structure of, 364, 367, 379 .

Nestorians,288, 290, 29 1 .

Neuralgia, remedies for, 34.

Newman , Cardinal, on the world’s benefactors, 7 .

Newton , Isaac ( 1642 378, 379 ,

420 .

New Zealand, theories of disease in , 1 3 .

Nganga , a medicine man of the Congo ,

30 .

N icho las of Gusa ( 1401 336.

N icho las Praepositus (c. 3 13 .

N icholas V. ( 1 389 Po e, 336 .

Nicho lls, F. ( 1699 43Nightingale , F lorence (b . 467 .

Nigritian character of Egyptian religion ,

65 .

N ine secrets o f the Brahmans, 10 1 .

Nineveh, excavations at , 9 1 .

N irvana , 1 1 1 .

Nitrous ox ide gas , 449 , 464, 466 .

Noijat , sorcerers o f Fin land , 14 .

Nonnus ( l o th 302 .

No Restraint ” system , 457 .

Noso logy, 104, 204.

Nair/u rn Organon ,the , 37 7 , 378, 380 .

Nuck , A . ( 1650 390.

Nukahivans, their use of kava, 49 .

Numa Pompil ius, 205.

Numbers, magic in , 258 , 259.

the phi losophy of, 162—164.

Pythagorean doctrine of, 162 , 163 ,2 16 .

Nursing reform, 467 .

Nux Vom ica, 1 29.

Oath of the Asclepiades, 169 .

Ob, an ancient Egyptian demon ,19 .

Obeah w itchcraft of West Indies , 1 8,19.

Obi-men , 19.

Obsession , 10.

Obstetricians , 435, 479 .

Obstetrics, 2 18 , 242 , 243, 294, 296, 3 1 3,36 1 . 362 , 429. 435

Occu lt philosophy, 337 , 347, 368.

Ocu l ists in Rome , 2 10, 2 1 7 .

Odd and even days in diseases, 164.

days, the, 202 .

Odin a doctor, 2 72 .

Odyl , 430 .

(Eons, 2 52 .

Offences against dead a cause of disease ,1 2 , 20 , 1 39.

O intment for sorcerers, 4 13Old age described in Ecclesrastes, 80.

women , experiments on , 35.

O lfactory nerves discovered, 337 .

Operations invented by ancient Hindus,1 1 7 .

Ophthalm ic surgery, 2 10 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 7 , 296,

464.

Ophthalmo logy, 463 .

Ophthalmoscope , 463 .

Opium-eaters , 47 .

Opium known to the ancients, 70, 1 54.

used to procure sleep, 20 1 .

Optic nerves, 364.

decussation of,209 .

Oracle-spirits , 10.

O rfila ( 1 787 449 .

O rgi es of D ionysus, 32 , 1 50 .

Oribasius (A .D . 326 235 .

Original Peop le of Malay Peninsu la ,

22 .

O rmu z d,141 , 142, 143 .

Orphic mysteries, 163 .

Osteo logy, 2 16 .

Ouy cou ,a Carib l iquor, 5 1 .

Ovariotomy of savages , 43 , 45.

of civi l iz ed people , 36 1 , 460 .

Owen , George (d ied 1 5 359 .

Richard ( 1804 45 1 .

Oxford Un iversity, 339 , 382 , 383 .

INDEX.

Pacchion i , A. ( 1665 437 .

Paeon the healer, 66 , 147 .

priests o f the Amaz on , 26 .

Paget, J . (b. 460.

Pakht, Egyptian god , 58.

the supreme pontiff of the cow

religion , 48.

Palfyn , J . ( 11649 435 .

Pallas Athene , goddess o f health, 149 .

Palletta ( 1 747 433 .

Palmer, M r. E. , on the medicine ofAustralian tribes, 33.

Pancreas , duct of the, 39 1 .

Pander, 48 1 .

Panthe ism , 97 .

Panum, 476.

Paper invented by the Arabs , 294.

Papuan Islanders and arrack , 47 .

Papyrus of Ebers, 58 , 64, 67 , 69 , 7 1 .

Harris, 65 .

Lee and Roll in , 65 .

Berlin , 68.

Parabo lan i, an order of clerical nurses forsick , 24 1 .

Parace lsus ( 1493 33 1 , 346, 347,380 , 4 19

Paracentesis in ascites , 1 77 , 182.

Parasc/Iistes, Egyptian d issectors, 64.

Parasites of sk in diseases, 457 .

Paré , Ambro ise ( 1 509 368- 376.

Parker, 478, 479 .

Parsees, m edicine of, 141 .

Parturition , medicines in , 37 .

Pascal ( 1623 379 , 4 10 .

Pasteur, L . (b. 472 , 474, 477 ,

480 .

Pastopnor i , 62 .

Patagon ian w iz ards, 2 1 , 22.

Patho logy. 227. 3 1 3 , 437 .

amongst Egyptians, 63 .

of faith-healing, 320 .

Patho logical schoo l o f medicine , 446 .

Patron saints of the Javanese , 14.

Paulus [Egine ta (c. 7 th 2 1 1 , 242 .

Pecquet, J . ( 1622 390 .

Peiresc, F. de ( 1 580 390 .

Pelle t ier, 449 .

Pelops (anatom ist) , 209 .

Pemberton , H. , 420 .

Penance as a remedy for d isease, 10 1 .

Penny, Thomas (c. 36 1 .

Percussion of thorax , 1 77 , 453 .

Percy ( 1754 433 .

Periapts, 2 54, 255 .

Periodeutes, the, 242 .

Perkuna, the thunder-god , 9 .

Perrau lt, 420.

Persians employed Egyptian physicians,7 1 .

Peru , 341 , 383 .

Petit, J . L. ( 1674 432 .

Petrocellus (about 3 10 .

Petro leum ,275 .

Petrus Apono ( 1250 326.

Peyer, J . C . ( 1653 437 .

Phagocyte theory, 475 .

Phallic worship, 76, 85.

Pharmacopoeias, 3 1 3 , 363 , 364 , 392 , 394.

Pharmacy , 2 20 , 236, 2 37 , 296 , 299 , 3 1 5 ,332 , 359 , 375 , 39 1 , 392 , 4 19

and medtcme separated, 3 1 5, 3 1 7 .

elegant , 307.

in ancient Egypt, 69.

in China, 1 33 .

ofHindus, 1 1 5.

Pherecydes (c. 609 1 58.

Philinus of Cos (B. C . 199 , 200 .

Philip o f Caesarea,234.

Philonides , 2 13 .

Philosophy , modern , 377 .

of the Greeks, 1 58 .

of the Hindus, 97 , 98.

Philosophical Society of Ox ford , 378 .

transactions,the, 378.

Philoxenos (about B. C . 1 98.

Philoxenus the ocu list , 2 10.

Philtres, 2 22 , 41 3 .

Philumenus (c . A .D . 2 18 .

Phlebitis, 434.

Phlogiston , 423 .

Phoen icia, ocu l ists o f, 58.

Phoenicians devoted to phal lic worship,85.

Phosphorus , 487 .

Phreno logy , 456 .

Phthisis, Hippocrates on, 1 82 .

Phylacteries of the Jews were amu lets,75, 86.

Physical science, 160 , 322 .

Physic-

god represented by doctor, 109.

Physicians always original ly w iz ards, 26,86.

and surgeons of prim itive man , 40 .

behaviour, 103 , 3 1 2 .

Co l lege of, 357 .

Physics , 3 51 .

Physio logical m edicine , 446.

Physio logy, 2 1 2 , 228 , 336 , 367 , 38 1 , 384,390, 420, 436 °

P iay as , d iviners of North America, 26.

Pig, anatomy Of the , 3 13 .

Pigeons’ dung in pregnancy , 1 3 1 .

Pills o f precious ston es, 130:in Egyptian pharmacy , 69 .

Pincers, 244 , 245 .

Pine], P . ( 1 745 456.

Pitard , Jean ( 12 28 323.

Pitcairn , A . (1652 4 19 , 425 .

Pitcairn , W. ( 1 7 1 1 438 .

Pius see [Eneas Sylvius .Plain cooking, 1 5.

Plants, the food of ghosts, 23 .

the homes of the departed , 14 , 46 .

medicinal , w el l understood by Aus

tralian tribes, 33 .

Plant-worship, 32 , 46, 142 , 269, 270.

504

Plastic operations , 2 16, 462 .

Platearius , Johannes, 3 14.

Platearius, Matthaeus, 3 14.

Plato (B.C . 427 1 85.

Platter, Fel ix ( 1 536 363 .

Plenciz , M . A . (c . 472 .

Pl iny the elder (A.D . 23 his naturalhistory

, 225 .

Plotinus (A.D . 205 235 .

Pneumatists , sect o f the , 227 .

Podal irius, son of IEscu lapius, 149 , 1 52 ,I 53 :

,

1 55'

POISons,acti on of

, 43 1 .

and po ison ing , 439.

of a spiritual k ind , 23 .

science of, 449 , 454.

Po ison ing, art of, 323 , 324, 404, 439 .

by Obeah-men, 1 9 .

secret, 222 , 223 .

Po isonous plants the homes of demons ,14, 46.

used as food when bo i led, 34.

Po lyn esian d isease spirits , 1 2 .

Po lypus Of nose , 1 82 , 3 16.

Pom egranate, 23 7.Possession , dem on iacal , 10, 20

,

1 38, 143 , 403Potash

, 487 .

Potassium, 487 .

Pott , P. ( 1 7 1 3 433 .

Pou ltices, u se of,by savages, 33 .

Powder of sympathy,” 397 .

Prairie Indians trace all d iseases to on e

demon , 1 3 .

Praxagoras of Cos (4th cent. 192 .

Precious stones as charms, 75 .

Pre-ex istence believed by Empedocles,16 1 .

Pregnancy, cerem onies in, 144.

changes induced by, 2 19 .

Prescript ions o f Egyptian physicians, 66,67 .

Preventive med icine, 100 .

Priest and med icine-man formerly one,

8,86 .

Priest-magicians of Egypt, 62 .

physicians, 2 7 , 30, 86, 2 70, 2 7 1 .

Priests of the Jews, no monopoly o f

medicine , 75 .

Priestley, J. , 448 , 464.

Prim itive man as seen in Australianaborigines, 24.

Primrose, James, 389.

Pr incipia , 3 79 .

Probe, the , 245.

Prognosis , 107 .

in Hippo cratic teaching, 1 76 .

Prometheus, 1 5 1 .

Prophetical in tox ication , 3 1 .

Prop itiation of d isease -demons, 16, 1 36 .

of gods for cure of diseases, 2 70.

Protestantism in science, 346 .

Proteus signifies matter, 165 .

INDEX.

Quain , R., 467 .

Quarantine , 339 .

Quassia-wood , 38 .

Quid pro quo ,” origin of the expression ,

3 14.

Quin ine , 342. 449Qu intus (Roman anatomIst) , 209 , 225 .

Prussic acid, 222, 436 .

Psychical schoo l , 4 19, 42 1 .

Ptah, Egyptian god , 58.

Pto lemy Soter patron of the arts and

sciences, 194.

Ptomaines, 476.

Publ ic san itary service of Rome , 2 10 .

Pu lque, 46.

Pu lse, doctrine of the , 196.

the , in Hindu medic ine , 1 1 5.

Galen’s description o f, 1 1 3, 232 .

Purgatives, 43 , 1 56, 3 14.

Purging d iscovered by Melampus, 1 56.

Purk inje, 48 1 .

Pu schmann,T. , 467 .

Putrefaction , 47 1 , 472.

Puyung o f the Malay forest tribes, 22 .

Pythagoras (born 582 162 .

learned his doctrine from Orientalphilosophers, 99 .

Pythagorean schoo l at Crotona, 16 1 .

Rabbits do not vomit w ith ipecacuanha ,

4 .

Rabelais,Frangois (0. 1490

—1 5 352 .

Radcl iffe , John ( 1650 425.

Rad ishes to prevent hydrophobia, 285 .

Rain, prayers to , 9 .

Rainy season and the gods, 29 .

Ramus (c . 368.

Rasori, G. ( 1 762 445 .

Rats ampu tate the ir own legs, 3 .

Recipe books, 3 1 3 , 323 .

Recurrent nerves, when d iscovered , 209 .

Reflex action , 457 .

Reform of med icine , 345, 39 1Reformation ,

its effect on medIcine, 369 .

Reichenbach, Von , 430 .

Re imarus, J . A . H. ( 1 729 463 .

Re - incarnation believed by Empedocles,16 1 .

Remak , R . ( 1 8 1 5 457.

Remedies used by an imals , 3 .

Repen tance as a cure of disease , 88.

Resection o fjaw , 3 16.

o f jo ints, 460, 46 1 .

Reuchl in , Johann ( 1455 337 .

Revi val of learn ing, 337 .

Rhaz es (9th 295 , 296.

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506

Senna introduced , 296.

Separation of m edicine from surgery , 305 .

Septenary theory, 164.

Septine, 480Serap ion of Alexandria (B.C. 199,

20 1 .

Serap ion the elder, 295.

the younger (about 296.

Serapis, Egyptian god, 59 , 60 .

Serpentaria, 342 .

Serpent on the rod of IEsculapius , 149 .

the cause o f diseases , 142 .

Servetus ( 1 5 1 1 367, 385 .

Set, representative of physical evilamongst Egyptians, 58.

Setons, 237, 3 16.

Sex o f bees, 39 1 .

Sexual organs o f plants, 39 1 .

Shadows on sou ls, 9.

S/i ai tan, the cause of d isease , 1 38 .

Shamans o f Northern Asia, 2 7 , 86, 1 25 ,139 .

Shampoo ing, 44 .

Sharp , S. ( 1 700 433S/zastres, 100 .

Siam , its religion and theory of disease,14.

Siberians, 86.

Sickness, remedies for, 34, 37 .

Siebo ld ( 1 736 433 .

Sievek ing, E. H. (b. 455 .

Signatures, doctrine of, 1 33 , 257 , 4 16,4 1 7 .

Silk-worm d isease, 473 , 474.

Silver, 488.

Simi lia s imilibus theory , 234.

Simon , 478, 479 .

Simpson , J . Y. , 465 .

Sioux Indian medicine , 32 .

Siva affi ictsHindu children w ith epilepsy ,1 20 .

Skatological medicine , 394- 397 .

Skeleton made by a Rabbi , 83 .

of ivory, 1 14.

Skin d iseases , 455 .

Skoda, J . ( 1 805 455 .

Slaves in Roman world , 239.

Slavon ic rustics exorcise spirits withurine , 30.

Sleep ing and dreams, 20, 22 .

Sloane, Hans ( 1660 425 .

Smal l-pox , 295, 297, 432 .

in Timor-laut , 28 .

caused by demons, 1 2 , 1 29 .

exorcised by urine , 30 .

goddess, 12 , 1 3 , 1 19 , 1 20 , 128, 1 29 .

Smellie , W. ( 1608 435.

Smith, S., 478.

Snake -bite, treatment of, by savages, 33 .

remedies for, 108.

w ine, 1 3 1 .

Snel len , H. , 463 .

Sn ipe , the , as a surgeon, 3 .

Society Islanders and d isease -demons,their skill in surgery, 43 .

Socrates on inval idism , 185.

Soda, 486.

Sodium , 486.

Softening of the brain , 456 .

So lomon composed incantations to curediseases, 78 .

Soma as a drink and a deity , 47 .

Sonnenschein , 476.

Soranus of Ephesus, 2 18.

Sorcery in Accadia, 86.

in Australia, 12 .

a cover for ignorance, 26.

laws against, 405 .

Sou l , immortal ity o f, 8 .

o rigin of, 339 .

the seat of, 196, 2 32 , 379 .

Sou ls as shadows, 9 .

theory of, 20- 23 .

Spal lanz ani , 472 .

Spears sp iritually po isoned , 2 3 .

Specialism o f Egyptian medicine , 63 .

Specu lum , the , 1 77.

anciently used , 2 19 , 244.

Speech , facu lty of, its seat, 458 .

Spe l ls, 90 , 237 .0

Spencer, Herbert (b. 452 .

on plant-worship, 47 .

Spermato z oa discovered , 389 .

Spiders as amu lets, 256 .

as disease-demons, 30.

Spigel ( 1 578 364.

Spino z a ( 1632 379 .

Spirits, bel ief in , un iversal , 20 , 1 39 .

of material objects, 24.

of weapons, 23 .

their influence in heal ing, 33 .

d istil led, invented, 326 .

Spiritual spears , 23 .

Spleen , the, 389 .

removed by the Rabbis, 83 .

Splen ic fever, 474.

Splints , 244.

u se of, in the surgery of savages, 33 ,4 1 .

Spontaneous generation theory, 472 .

473Sprenge l , Kurt ( 1 766 466 .

Springs, med icinal, 272 .

Spry , E., 428 .

Spurzheim , C . ( 1 776 456 .

Squ il l as a d iuretic , 2 22 .

Stah l ( 1660 42 1 , 423 .

Stammering, treatment of, 235 .

Stark, W. ( 1 742 429 .

State med ical serv ice in Rome, 2 10 .

Steam power, 337 .

Sterility, 242 .

Sternum trepanned, 3 16 .

Stethoscope , invention of, 453 .

Stiegl itz ( 1 767 446 .

Sto len property as a charm, 265.

INDEX .

Stone , cutting for the, 44, 45 , 393 .

Stones as charms, 257 , 394.

healing by , 33 .

Storm gods o f Ind ia, 9 .

Str ictu s ct lax us , 2 14.

Stromeyer, G. F. L. ( 1804 462 .

Strumous glands, 229 , 235 .

Styptics, d iscover of, 4 1 .

Subordination o surgery to medicine,305 .

Suck ing d iseases out of patients, 2 2 , 27 ,28, 33 .

Sulphur, 2 73 , 487 .

as a d isinfectant in the Odyssey ,1 54.

first used for skin d iseases, 20 1 .

Suonetar, the healer, 1 5.

Supernatural invoked when naturalmeans fail, 26.

Superstition , absence o f, from the Psalms

ofDavid, 74 .

origin of, 24.

originally engrafted on medicine , 26 ,403 , 405

Supersti tions, medical , 327 .

their universal ity, 18 .

in Chinese medicine , 132.

Suppositories, 1 77.Surgeons to be propitiated , 103 .

Surgery, 228, 235 .

French, 368, 433.

a scientific profession , 434.

savage , 40, 4 1 .

of the Brahmans , 103 .

of the Hindus,1 14 , 1 1 7 , 1 18 .

ofEgyptians, 70o lder than medicme , 4 1 , 104.

subordinated to medicine , 305 .

Surgical instruments of the Bible , 79 .

Susruta, 103 , 289 .

Sutherland, 478 .

Su tras, comm entaries on the Vedas, Ioo .

Sutton , Thomas (d . 456.

Swast ika , the mystic, 1 34.

Swaine, 474.

Swammerdam , J . ( 1637 39 1 .

Sweating Sickness, 338 , 356, 357 , 360.

Swieten , Van ( 1 700 430, 437 .

Sydenham Society, 467 .

Sydenham , Thomas ( 1624 38 1 ,

38

Sylvanus ,3a demon of the lying-in cham

ber, 54.

Sylvaticus, 327 .

Sylvius (De la Boe) ( 16 14 380 .

Syme. I ( 1 799 460.

Sympathetical cures, 397.

Sympathetic nerve, 389 .

Syphilis, 340 .

less frequent amongst Jews than Christians, 76.

Systems o f modern med icine , 445.

Tablets on which were reco rded cures intemples, 167 .

Tagliaco z z i , G. ( 1 546 367 , 368.

Tahiti people , their fermented liquor, 49aTait, Lawson , 460.

Taliacotian operation, 367.

Tal ismans, 29 , 32 , 86 , 247 , 260.

Talmud, surgery o f, 82 .

patho logy of, 82 .

Talmudists, medicine of the , 82 .

Tam ils of Ceylon , sorcery o f the , 408 .

Tapeworm , treatment for, 228, 237 .

Tapping for dropsy, 245 .

Tarantism, 339 .

Tarawan fo lk , sorcery o f, 22 .

Tarsus, bones of, 337.Tartars, the ir theory of fevers, 3 1 .

Tar water, 1 77 .

Tasman ians think diseases caused bydevils, 1 3 , 2 1 .

Tanut , Egyptian god same as Thoth, an ,

58.

Taylor, A . S. ( 1806 454 .

Tc/zu tgou

gs, Tartar d isease-demons, 1 35,

1 3Tea intox ication, 50.

Teeth-worms, 414, 41 5.

Telescopes , 389.

Temples of IEsculapius, 149 ,”

1 57 , 168.

Terap/zim of Laban , 75 .

Teutons, medicine of the, 272 .

Thales ofM iletus (circ. 609 1 58.

Tfiarragarry , evil spirits of Australians,24.

Them ison of Laodicea (B.C. 2 1 3,2 14.

Theon of Alexandria, 226.

Theophrastus (born 3 7 1 the originator of the science of plants, 193.

Theories of d isease, 1 2 , 86, 270.

Theosophy, 337 .

Theosophists of Chaldaea, 90.

Therapeutics, 392 .

Galen on ,232.

Therapeutists, or Healers, 82 .

Theriaca (a famous cure all ) , 220,

22 1 .

Thermometry , cl in ical , 439 , 455 .

Thessalu s of Tralles (A.D . 2 18 .

Theurgic heal ing, 66.

Theurgy ofEgypt, 6 1 , 66 .

Thibet, physicians o f, 1 34.

Thibetans, their theory of disease ,16,

249 .

Thilen ius, G . M . , 435 .

Tlz immool , a magical w eapon , 24.

Thompson ,H. (b . 460 .

Thorbern , 39 1 .

Thor’s hammer, 134.

Thoth , Egyptian god of letters and medicine , 58 , 60 , 65, 1 50.

508

Thrax (A.D . 457 236.

Thrita, the first physICIan ofZoroastrians,142 .

Thunder, prayer to , 9 .

Thymus gland, 36 1 .

Thyro id gland , functions of, 458.

Tzetajat, the learned men of F in land , 14.

Timor-laut, fish po ison ing in , 35 .

prophylactic against smal l -pox In ,

28.

Timor tribes, their theories of d isease ,3 1 .

Titans, d iscoverers o f medicinal herbs ,8

Tla -

gu i li-aug/z , a m edicine man ,1 7.

Toad and the p lantain , 3 .

Tobacco , 369 .

the sacred herb of Peru , 48.

Toddy of the cocoa-nu t palm , 49 .

Tomahawk , the spirit of, 23 .

Toothache , charm for, 286 .

Toothache shrub, ” 38.

Totem ism , 32 .

Touching for the evil , 37 1 , 372 .

Touching p ieces,” 373 .

Tourn iquet, the, 43 1 , 432 .

Toynbee, 478 .

Tox ico logy, 105, 449 , 454 .

Tracheotomy, 2 13 , 228, 235 , 244 .

Transference of d isease, 4 14.

Transfusion o f blood, 350.

Travers,B. ( 1 783 459 .

Trepan , the , 244, 3 16.

“

Trepann ing the sku ll , 44, 45, 206, 285.

Trephine, the , 244 .

Trephining the sku ll , 1 1 3 , 184, 2 16.

Triacle,

”275 .

Triads, the Welsh, 280,28 1 .

Tribal magic, 24.

Trithem ius (c. 346 , 347 .

Troja ( 1 747 433Trotula (about 3 1 3 .

Trousseau , A . ( 1 80 1 456 .

Tubercu losis, 429 , 453 , 454.

Tude p lant, a sacred shrub, 48 .

Tumours,malignant, 3 16.

.Turan ian priests o f magic, 1 38 .

Turk ish bath, 43 .

Turner, D . ( 1667 43 1 .

Turpentine in haemorrhage , 43 1 .

Tylor, D r. E. B., on an im ism , 8, 10 .

on prim itive man,6.

Tyndall, J . (b . 472 , 480 .

Typhus fever , 363.

T yson , E. (d . 438 .

U.

Unburied men as vampires, 16.

Uncleanness of women , 143 , 144.

Un iversal med i cme,the , 100.

Un iversities, rise o f the, 300, 303 .

Upan ishads, the , 97 .

Urea, 436 .

Urethra, operations on, by savages,7 7°

Urethrotomy, 2 16, 228Urine, use of, in medicme , 67 , 396.

its use in exorcism, 30, 78.

Uroscopy, 294, 323 .

Uterus, d issection of the , 2 1 9 .

Uvu la, amputat ion of, 39 1 .

Vaccination , 439 .

Valingen , F. de ( 1 725 428.

Valsalva, A. ( 1666 436.

Valves of the heart, 36 1 .

of the ve ins, 364, 386 .

Vambery on opium -eating, 47 .

Vampires, 16 .

Vapour baths in dropsy introduced byChrysippus, 195 .

Varicose veins, 183 .

Varo lius,C . ( 1 545 364.

Vascu lar system understood by D iogenesof Apo llon ia, 160.

Vaso -motor nerves, 436, 457 .

Vaz imbas infl ict diseases in Madagascar,1 3 .

Vectius Val lens (circ. A .D . 2 14.

Vedas, the, 98, 99 .

Vedic hymns, 47, 97 .

Ve ins, anatomy o f, 160.

Velpeau , A. ( 1 795 46 1 .

Vervain , 270.

Vesal ius,6

Andrew ( 1 5 14 365,

36

Veterinary medicine of Hindus , 102 ,

1 1 7 .

of the Mongo ls, 1 35 .

Vicary, Thomas (c. 358.

Vicq d’Az yr, F. ( 1 748 39 1 .

Vidus Vidius, 374 .

Vienna schoo l , 43 1 , 454, 455 .

Vieussens, R. (c. 389, 4 19.

Vinario , 330 .

Virchow ,R . (b 455 .

Virgi l , sorcery m , 405 .

Viridet , 4 19 .

Vision , d iscovery of the laws of, 337 .

Vis M edicatrix Natu re ,1 76 .

Vital-flu id school , 4 19, 42 1 .

Vivisection of animals, 379 , 483 , 485.

in magic, 25 1 , 254, 2 79, 286.

of human beings , 195, 197 , 200, 2 18,373 , 374

Vocal organs, anatomy of, 364, 39 1 .

Vo lta, 450 .

Vom iting the devil , 30.

Votive tablets in Greek temples, 1 57 ,

1 68.

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