out to us on this point had I space to devote to it. It is not only concerned in legitimate and scientific practice of the healing art, of whatever mode of treatment, but extends to empirical practice, as the chief agent for any good effect it may occasionally produce. There are many kinds of it, but I will not name them. The imagination becomes the chief medium of cure in such practice; and truly astonishing have been the successful results in certain and special cases. But I must let this brief allusion suffice, because of my limited space. You know that in writing these letters for publication I keep ever before my mind, in order to avoid it, "mega biblion mega kakon" -a great book a great evil.

You must understand that the confidence of the patient in the knowledge and skill of his physician, becomes a point of vital import in the treatment of disease, and especially of certain ones which more deeply implicate the nervous systems. I need not again assure you that the vis medicatrix naturæ, or organic vitality, is greatly influenced by it. Medical writers on therapeutics have very properly taken special notice of it, knowing so well its importance.

It is a matter of history in the military exploits of Napoleon Bonaparte, that the justly celebrated Baron Larry, his chief military surgeon, became an almost indispensable person to accompany him; so unbounded was the confidence of the whole army in that great surgeon's skill and energy of character, and so successful was his practice. Indeed, I can readily suppose how great would be the mental influence of the Baron Larry on the minds of the susceptible and sentimental soldiers of Napoleon.

I now, even, look back with pleasing recollection on the time of my attendance at the military hospital near Paris, when Baron Larry was there, the surgeon in chief. His skill and experience were of the highest order. His real kindness of heart and his paternal bearing towards the sick or wounded soldiers were remarkable. His personal appearance, too, was prepossessing, with his long dark locks flowing over his shoulders, and every feature of his benign countenance bespeaking

his affectionate desire to benefit his patients. He was all and care for their welfare.

energy

No wonder, when the army embarked for foreign service, that the soldiers contended for the privilege of carrying Larry shoulder-height to the boat; and that, amid the acclamations of thousands of warriors, they shouted aloud that they now cared not for swords, and bullets, and cannon balls, for they had got Larry to attend on them! When in active service in the camp he was beloved by the whole hosts of France. Napoleon valued him most highly, and always gave a ready ear to his instructions or complaints touching the rations of the soldiers, and other matters connected with the duties of the commissary. Baron Larry was mentally and physically endowed for the position he occupied, and was of incalculable value to Napoleon Bonaparte.

LETTER X.

NOSTALGIA AND SLAVERY-MESMERISM AND CASE OF W. JONES-VARIOUS SYSTEMS OF TREATMENT-DESERVED PRE-EMINENCE OF THE GREAT WATER CURE-ALLOPATHIC REMEDIES EFFECTIVE BUT INJURIOUS-HOMEOPATHY SUPERIOR-MESMERISM-KINESIPATHY-HUN

GER

CURE-GRAPE CURE OXYGEN GAS GOVERNMENT PATENT QUACKERY-CONCLUSION..

MY DEAR SIR,

ILLUSTRATING our doctrine of mental influences on the vital force, or curative power, it is well known how much more liable to suffer from disease is an army defeated and retreating than is one marching in victory. How correctly concatenated are the three giant evils which the madness of men brings on them-war, pestilence, and famine! Also in civil life, we know how unfavourable becomes adversity of any kind to those who are exposed to infection, or are suffering under disThe history of malignant cholera tells abundantly of this.

ease..

The marked influence of mental causes, and especially of the predisposing power of fear, has been often experienced in our country. These causes depress the organic vitality, and thus they incapacitate it for its office of protecting or rescuing the body from the disease.

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The disease, if it can be truly so called, technically termed nostalgia, and defined a vehement desire for return to home and country," furnishes abundant evidence of the influence of mental causes on the organic vitality. This is seen amongst those of the wronged race of Africa, who have been torn from home with all its charms of the silver-toned names of father, mother, sister, brother, wife, and children; torn from all these by the civilized white man! This nostalgia affords a striking illustration of our subject of the mental causes of disease and death. Thousands, and tens of thousands, of those oppressed Africans become the easy victims of disease induced by the depression of vital power.

Oh, Sir, how are we to refrain from sorrow and shame for human nature, when we reflect on this accursed man-traffic! What ought to be our feelings of indignation on thinking of the sighs, and tears, and tortures, and death, caused by man to his fellow-man in this horrid affair of slavery! But I must not pursue the subject. It is, indeed, fraught with dreadful things. Let us pass it with a groan for the cruel cupidity of civilized man, and with earnest prayerful sympathy for his suffering victims-his fellow-men, the African negroes!

From what I have now laid before you on the nature and causes of disease, you must perceive that any means of treatment, to be really remedial or curative, must tend directly or indirectly to restore the organic nervous energy or curative force, or to favour its action, or to preserve its vigour : that such will enable it to resist the influence of morbific agents, and to rescue the body from their effects in disease.

Dr A. T. Thompson, Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics in the University of London, states in his Elements"That every medicine operating on the living solid exerts its influence either directly or indirectly upon the nervous system can scarcely be denied. ** It is not essential," says he, we

should be able to demonstrate in what manner this communication with the distant parts of the body is effected by the nerves. It is enough for us to know that those substances, which are comprehended under the term vital agents, produce their effects by influencing the nervous energy-that power inherent in the brain, the medulla spinalis, and the nervous system generally, by which not only all the vital actions are maintained, but through which also we are willing, moving, and conscious beings."

We see that the brain and nerves are readily affected by mental influences, and by the application of medicines. As stated by Dr Thompson, we do not know in what manner this communication with the distant parts of the body is effected by the nerves: neither do we know why certain medicines and mental feelings should affect certain organs instead of others. We know the fact by experience.

As stated by Mr Neilson in his work on mesmerism, “another mode of stimulating the brain force to sufficient action, and regulating its flow on the nervous system, is found in the mesmeric process. And whilst there is much here also of which we are quite ignorant, although that the mesmeric process should possess such power is not so contrary to a priori reasoning as that drugs should-it is enough that we have experience of the fact, although we cannot assign the reason."

Again. "If doctors cannot understand how the health-force or motive power of a man's brain is communicated to his own nervous system, so as to regulate the working of his organic functions, it is utterly absurd in them to condemn mesmerism merely because they cannot understand how the health-force of a man's brain is communicated to the nervous system of another. In either case the fact does not depend on their comprehension. The question at issue is not about them at all, but about the mesmeric process. Does it convey such a curative force? Experience, the sole interpreter of such truths, has fully proved that it does."

You may be sure, dear Sir, that the fact of mesmeric curative power is indelibly impressed on my mind by my experience in the remarkable case of amputation of the leg whilst the patient was

under the mesmeric sleep, and which I described to you at length in one of my former and unpublished letters on mesmerism in connection with water treatment. You remember that, decisive as was the case, in proving the great value of mesmerism as an anesthetic power, that is, to prevent all feeling of pain, unexpectedly it became still more satisfactory to my mind, in also demonstrating its great curative power.

You remember, that on our examination of the stump of the amputated leg two days after the operation, we discovered, to my sore disappointment, that it was in a very unhealthy state, and that no healing process whatever had taken place, because of the low state of vital force in the constitution of William Jones, on whom I had operated. As I stated before to you, I had previously and fortunately discovered that I possessed an extraordinary mesmeric influence over him; even more than did the very powerful man who mesmerised him for the amputation. Knowing this, I immediately commenced to exercise my power in great earnestness of mind. I kept Jones much under my mesmeric influence, and was particulary careful to mesmerise the unhealthy stump, by making passes on it frequently during the day. In a few hours it positively assumed a healthy appearance; and in a day or two more its perfect adhesion had taken place. It was rapidly healed, and the life of Jones was rescued from impending death: for, no doubt, he would have soon died; and nothing that I know of, besides mesmerism, could have saved him.

Now, apart from my other experience and knowledge of cases cured or benefited by mesmerism, this one case alone has set my mind at rest respecting its curative power-its great efficacy as a remedy. You may readily suppose that after this my experience of the fact, my confidence will never be affected by all the unreasonable outcry of its opponents.

I must not forget to state, that in exercising the powerful mesmeric influence which I possessed over Jones, I frequently had him in the clairvoyant state, and exhibited different manifestations to persons wishful to see them. I could bring any individual cerebral organ into immediate action by placing my