



Produced by Charlene Taylor, Chuck Greif and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
file was produced from images generously made available
by The Internet Archive)













                                  THE

                         ROYAL ROAD TO HEALTH

                           OR THE SECRET OF

                         HEALTH WITHOUT DRUGS.

                                  BY

                        CHAS. A. TYRRELL, M. D.

                        Registered Number 2646

Proprietor of Tyrrell’s Hygienic Institute. Inventor of the “J. B. L. Cascade,”
  Professor of Hygiene. Ex-President of the Eclectic Medical Society
         of the City and County of New York. Originator of the
              Improved System of Physical Exercises, etc.

                  ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTIETH EDITION

             COMPLETELY REVISED, ENLARGED AND ILLUSTRATED

                             PUBLISHED BY

                        CHAS. A. TYRRELL, M. D.

                     134 W. 65TH STREET, NEW YORK

                                 1917

                   [Illustration: Chas A Tyrrell md]




                              TO MY WIFE

           WHOSE ENTHUSIASM, AND UNFLAGGING INTEREST IN ALL
              MATTERS PERTAINING TO HEALTH IS EXCELLED BY
              NONE, AND WHO HAS BEEN A FAITHFUL CO-WORKER
                     IN BUILDING UP THE SYSTEM OF
                     TREATING DISEASE BY HYGIENIC
                       METHODS HEREIN SET FORTH,

                             THIS BOOK IS

                       AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED.

                          COPYRIGHTED, 1907,

                                  BY

                       CHARLES A. TYRRELL, M.D.

                 [Illustration: THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS.

                      (_Viewed from the front._)]




                      DESCRIPTION OF THE DIAGRAM

                           ILLUSTRATING THE

                       DIGESTIVE ORGANS OF MAN.

1. Esophagus or Gullet.

2. Cardiac end of Stomach.

3. Pyloric end of Stomach.

4. Duodenum.

5, 6. Convolutions of Small Intestines.

7. Cæcum.

7* Vermiform appendage of Cæcum, called the _appendicula vermiformis_.

8. Ascending Colon.

9, 10. Transverse Colon.

11. Descending Colon.

12. Sigmoid Flexure, the last curve of the Colon before it
    terminates in the Rectum.

13. Rectum, the terminal part of the Colon.

14. Anus, posterior opening of the alimentary canal, through
    which the excrements are expelled.

15, 15. Lobes of the Liver, raised and turned back.

16. Hepatic Duct, which carries the bile from the liver to the Cystic
    and Common Bile Ducts.

17. Cystic Duct.

18. Gall Bladder.

19. Common Bile Duct.

20. Pancreas, the gland which secretes the pancreatic juice.

21. Pancreatic Duct, entering the Duodenum with the Common Bile Duct.

       *       *       *       *       *

The illustration here given of the Digestive Apparatus of man represents
the organs of food digestion, especially the alimentary canal and glands
connected therewith, and to the reader of this book, or to any student
of anatomy, it will be found of invaluable service as a reference.

The diagram gives a view of the digestive organs from the ventral or
front side, a proper study of which cannot fail to impress every
intelligent being with the reverential deduction of the Psalmist that we
are “_fearfully and wonderfully made_.”




PREFACE TO THE ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTIETH EDITION


In presenting to the public the one hundred and seventieth edition of
this work, it is a matter for profound gratification to be able to state
that the treatment described in its pages has steadily increased in
public favor since its introduction. Tens of thousands of grateful
people testify to its efficiency, not only as a remedial process, but
better still, as a preventive of disease. Truth must ever prevail, and
this treatment being based on natural law (which is unerring), must
achieve the desired result, which is the restoration and preservation of
health.

This edition has been completely revised and much of it re-written, and
while the essential principles remain unchanged, some slight departures
from previously expressed opinions may be noted; for in the years that
have elapsed since the first edition saw the light, some notable
advances have been made in rational therapeutics and dietetics, and no
one can afford to lag behind the car of Progress.

The arrangement of the book has been still farther altered, by adding
another part, making nine in all, each part being devoted to a special
phase of the general subject, thus simplifying it, and making its
principles easier of application. Quotations have been freely made from
articles written during the past three years by the author, in his
capacity as editor of “Health,” and several new formulas for the
treatment of important diseases have been added to those that have
appeared in previous editions.

While painfully conscious that the critically disposed may find
something to condemn in its pages, the work is sent forth with the
fervent hope, that despite any defects it may possess it may, in the
future, as in the past, prove the means of restoring to suffering
thousands the possession of their natural and rightful heritage--health.

THE AUTHOR.




CONTENTS.


PART I.

DRUGGING PROVED UNSCIENTIFIC.

.....PAGE

 Health is wealth. The truth about “Materia Medica.” Medical opinions
 on drugs--they do not cure disease. Opinions of British physicians.
 The most important medical discoveries made by laymen. There is no
 “law of cure,” only a condition. Drugs do not act on the system, but
 are acted upon.....13


 PART II.

 THE TRUE CAUSE OF DISEASE.

 Only one cause of disease. There is only one disease, but many
 modifications. Digestion and assimilation explained. Evil effects
 of the retention of waste. The horrors of fæcal impaction. How
 auto-infection is accomplished. The mysteries of the circulation.
 Disease shown to be the result of imperfect elimination.....37


 PART III.

 RATIONAL HYGIENIC TREATMENT.

 Nature cures, not the physician. The action of microbes. The
 cathartic habit. The true action of cathartics explained, and popular
 suppositions corrected. A correct solution of the difficulty.
 “Flushing the colon” an ancient practice. Dr. Turner’s post mortem
 experiences. Colon distortion illustrated. Objections to the ordinary
 appliances--danger in using the long, flexible catheter. Invention of
 the “J. B. L. Cascade,” and description of it.....50


 PART IV.

 HOW TO USE IT.

 The complete process of “flushing the colon” explained, step by step,
 so that even a child might understand it. Objections answered. Advice
 to users of the treatment.....71


 PART V.

 PRACTICAL HYGIENE.

 Longevity man’s natural heritage. The care of the body--absolute
 cleanliness rare. The function of water in the human organism. Hot
 water the natural scavenger. The bath. Description of the skin,
 and its function. Hints on bathing. The wet sheet pack. Importance
 of fresh air. Interchange of gases in the lungs. Ventilation.
 Prof. Willard Parker on impure air. The function of the heart. The
 therapeutic value of sunlight.....86


 PART VI.

 EXERCISE.

 Motion is life. Effect of exercise on the fluids of the body. How
 the tissues are nourished. Exercise for invalids. Complete system
 of breathing exercises for developing the lungs. Improved system
 of physical exercises, calling into play every muscle of the
 body--ensuring harmonious development. Special nerve exercise.
 How to stand and how to walk. All the above exercises plainly
 illustrated.....108


 PART VII.

 THE DIET QUESTION.

 The replacement of waste. Appetite and hunger. The evils of gluttony.
 Vegetarianism versus flesh eating. Diet, a question of latitude.
 The cause of old age. Cretinism. Danger of earthy matters in food
 substances. Fruits are ideal foods. The true value of bread.
 Classification of the ingredients of food substances. Table of
 proportions. Table of digestive values. Vegetarianism discussed. A
 mixed diet the most reasonable. How to eat. Liquids at meals. When to
 eat. The no-breakfast plan. The effects of alcohol, tea and coffee.
 Improper habits of eating. The influence of mind upon digestion. The
 advantages of regularity. Nature’s bookkeeping.....124


 PART VIII.

 TREATMENT OF DISEASE.

 Complete formulas of treatment (with dietary rules) for over fifty
 different diseases, including Consumption, Appendicitis, Locomotor
 Ataxia, Paralysis, Dyspepsia, Pneumonia, Diabetes Mellitus, Uterine
 troubles, etc. Also all the principal ailments of children.....158


 PART IX.

 SOME HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS.

 Disease is the result of the operation of natural law--don’t dread
 it. Don’t treat symptoms; treat the fundamental cause. Pain is
 Nature’s danger signal. Prevention is better than cure. The elements
 of prevention. Importance of a knowledge of physiology. The body, the
 vehicle of expression for the mind. The strenuous life. Tear worse
 than wear. The importance of reserve energy. The effect of the mind
 on the body. The human body as a bank. The importance of a daily
 balance. Cultivate cheerfulness. The habit of happiness. The folly
 of squandering health. Medicine and surgery compared. What children
 should be taught. The final word.....214


 MASSAGE, SHEET-PACKS, ETC.

 Instructions for massage. How to use the stomach bath by three
 different methods. How to improvise the Turkish Bath in your own home,
 without apparatus. How to use the wet-sheet pack. How to care for the
 “Cascade”.....209




THE ROYAL ROAD TO HEALTH.




PART I.

DRUGGING PROVED UNSCIENTIFIC.


It is one of the most profound mysteries of our civilization, and has
been one of the most perplexing and discouraging phenomena of human
existence, that, while the world at large has maintained an ever
increasing “medical profession,” whose members are popularly supposed to
be competent to deal with all the ills that flesh is heir to; still
there has always been a long list of what are termed “incurable
diseases.” But the immense strides made, in recent years, in every
branch of modern science, has led the thinking public to consider such a
condition of things as an outrageous libel on the God of Nature, and to
question whether there can be such a thing as an _incurable_ disease.

Health is such an inestimable blessing, that the individual who shall
devise means to preserve it, or to restore it, when lost, is deserving
of all the thanks and honors that a grateful community can bestow.
Unfortunately, there are very few who estimate life at its true value,
until they are confronted with the grim destroyer, Death. No one can
fully appreciate the priceless blessings of health, until they feel that
it has slipped from their grasp. The oft quoted phrase, “Health is
Wealth,” is truly a concrete expression of wisdom, for without the
former, the latter is well nigh an impossibility. But its interference
with the activities of life is one of the least evils of sickness, for
_perfect health_ is the very salt and spice of life; without it,
existence is “weary, stale, flat and unprofitable.”

But let none despair, for it is my purpose to show how those who enjoy
the blessing of robust health may preserve it indefinitely, and how
those who have lost it may regain it--with access of vigor, and once
more feel that life is _indeed_ worth living. In presenting a new system
of medication, it is necessary to attack the existing systems, and
hence, I am placed in a delicate position, for of all the problems ever
presented for the ingenuity of man to solve, undoubtedly the most
difficult is, how to present new facts so as not to offend old errors;
for individuals are very prone to regard arguments levelled against
their opinions as direct attacks upon their personality; and not a few
of them mistake their own deeply-rooted prejudices for established
certainties.

I shall endeavor to show that the practice of administering drugs to
cure disease is a fallacy, and in so doing, I am bound to incur the
condemnation of my brother practitioners, who prescribe drugs, and the
druggists who vend them.

It may safely be asserted that the drug system of treating disease
would be destroyed if it were to be critically examined; in fact, to
defend it is provocative of unmistakable damage to it. If it is once
subjected to the analysis of calm reason its defects become palpable to
the meanest understanding.

There are three principal schools of medicine, each with a distinctive
title, but they are all one in essential principles. They may differ in
unimportant details, but in the main premises they are a unit. They all
believe in the principle of “curing one disease by producing another.”
In other words, their practice is, to induce a drug disease to cure a
primary one, for this is exactly what is done when drugs are
administered, in pathological conditions as we shall prove later on by
testimony from authorities on medical practice.

The materia medica of the schools, to-day, includes upwards of two
thousand substances--the number increasing daily--and when viewed
dispassionately it presents what? A list of drugs, chemicals,
dye-stuffs, all subversive of organic structures. They are all
antagonistic to living matter: all produce disease when brought in
contact in any manner with the living domain--as a matter of fact, all
are poisons. Now, what logical standing can a system have, that employs,
as remedies for diseases, those things that produce disease in healthy
persons? No advocate of the drug system has ever advanced a reason that
would bear one moment’s scientific examination, why poisonous substances
should be administered to the sick, and no one will ever be able to give
a satisfactory explanation of the theory that underlies the practice,
for none exists. When once the public fully grasps the true import of
this glaring anomaly, the days of the drug system will be numbered.

Physicians of ability and long experience, who have devoted their lives
to the relief of suffering humanity, both in this and other countries,
have declared after close observation, that they were fully and
thoroughly convinced that medicines do not cure patients, that they do
not assist Nature’s process of cure, so much as they <DW44> it, and,
that they are more hurtful than remedial in all diseases. A still larger
number have reached the same conclusion with regard to certain
complaints, such as _scarlet fever_, _croup_, _pneumonia_, _cholera_,
_rheumatism_, _diphtheria_, _measles_, _small-pox_, _dysentery_, and
_typhoid-fever_, and that in every case where they have abandoned all
medicine, abjured all drugs and potions, their success has been
marvellously increased.

Professor B. F. Parker, of the New York Medical College, once said to a
medical class: “I have recently given no medicine in the treatment of
measles and scarlet fever, and I have had excellent success.”

Dr. Snow, Health Officer of Providence, R. I., reported for the
information of his professional brethren, through the Boston _Medical
and Surgical Journal_ that he had treated all the cases of small-pox,
which had prevailed endemically in that city, _without a particle of
medicine_, and that all of the cases--some of which were very grave
ones--recovered.

Dr. John Bell, Professor of Materia Medica in one of the Philadelphia
Colleges, and also in the Medical College of Baltimore, testified in a
work which he published (“Bell on Baths”), that he and others had
treated many cases of scarlet fever with bathing, and without medicines
of any kind, and without losing a patient.

Dr. Ames, of Montgomery, Alabama, some years since published in the New
Orleans _Medical and Surgical Journal_, his experience and observation
in the treatment of pneumonia. He had been led to notice for many years,
that patients who were treated with the ordinary remedies--bleeding,
mercury, and antimony--presented certain complications which always
aggravated the malady, and rendered the convalescence more lingering and
recovery less complete. Such patients were always liable to _collapses
and re-lapses_; to “run into typhoid”; to sink suddenly, and die very
unexpectedly.

He noticed particularly that patients who took calomel and antimony were
found, on _post-mortem_ examinations, to have serious and even fatal
inflammation of the stomach and small intestines, attended with great
prostration, delirium, and other symptoms of drug poisoning. These
“complications” were nothing more or less than drug diseases. And Dr.
Ames found, on changing his plan of treatment to milder and simpler
remedies, that he lost no patients.

The late Professor Wm. Tully, M.D., of Yale College, and of the Vermont
Academy of Medicine at Castleton, Vt., informed his medical class, that
on one occasion the typhoid pneumonia was so fatal in some places in the
valley of the Connecticut River, that the people became suspicious that
the physicians were doing more harm than good; and in their desperation
they actually combined against the doctors and refused to employ them at
all; “after which,” said Professor Tully, “no deaths occurred.” And I
might add, as an historical incident of some pertinency in this place,
that regular physicians were once banished from Rome, so fatal did their
practice seem, so far as the people could judge of it.

The great Magendie, of France, who long stood at the very head of
Physiology and Pathology in the French Academy--which, by the way, has
claimed to be, and perhaps is, the most learned body of men in the
world--performed this experiment. He divided the patients of one of the
large Paris hospitals into three classes. To one he prescribed the
common remedies of the books. To the second he administered only the
common simples of domestic practice. And to the third class he gave no
medicine at all. The result was, those who took less medicine did better
than those who took more, and those who took no medicine did the best of
all.

Magendie also divided his _typhoid fever_ patients into two classes, to
one of whom he prescribed the ordinary remedies, and to the other no
medicines at all, relying wholly on such nursing and such attention to
Hygiene as the vital instincts demanded and common sense suggested. Of
the patients who were treated the usual way, he lost the usual
proportion, about one-fourth. And of those who took no medicine, he lost
none. And what opinion has Magendie left on record of the popular
healing art? He said to his medical class, “Gentlemen, medicine is a
great humbug.”

In the face of such damaging testimony from prominent representatives
of the medical profession, it becomes exceedingly difficult to place any
reliance on the drug remedies prescribed by them.

The melancholy truth is, that drug medication has become an integral
part of our domestic economy. At no time in history has the consumption
of drugs even approximated the present rate. Enormous sums of money are
invested in manufacturing and distributing them, and the physicians of
the various schools, being educated to prescribe them, a mutual bond of
interest has grown up between doctor and druggist, which is not at all
surprising. The medical profession, as a whole is, and ever has been
eminently conservative, and this fact, in connection with its
traditional predilection for drugs causes its members to resolutely set
their faces against any remedial process that runs counter to the
theories they imbibed at college. They look askance at all such things
and regard them as dangerous experiments, and assert that their dignity
will not permit them to recognize any irregular practice, or any form of
quackery.

Dignity! When was dignity ever known to save a life? Most humanity
continue to suffer because the medical profession (blindly following in
the rut of custom) fail to see anything superior to the antiquated
system of treating disease by drugging, which many of its ablest members
condemn as unreliable?

It is with all schools of medicine as it is with each individual
practitioner of the healing art--the less faith they have in medicine,
the more they have in Hygiene; hence those who prescribe little or no
medicine, are invariably and necessarily more attentive to Hygiene,
which always was, and ever will be, all that there is really good,
useful, or curative in medication. Such physicians are more careful to
supply the vital organism with whatever of _air_, _light_,
_temperature_, _food_, _water_, _exercise_, or _rest_, etc., it needs in
its struggle for health, and to remove all vitiating influences--all
poisons, impurities, or disturbing influences of any kind. This is
hygienic medication, the natural and rational method of cure, and the
more closely it is examined, the more strongly it will commend itself to
reason.

It is a lamentable fact that the preservation of health is not taught in
the medical schools, neither is it explained in their books, and judging
from general practice not much regard is attached to it in their
prescriptions. But when the inevitable typhoid or malaria appears as an
inevitable consequence of neglected precautions, the physician can drug
without mercy, and, as we contend, on most illogical grounds.

Who imagines for one instant, that quinine is a poison? Who is not aware
that arsenic _is_ a deadly poison? And yet physicians and medical
journals calmly and gravely assert that arsenic is the better article of
the two, and recommend it as a substitute for quinine. Can any
intelligent person believe that a comparatively harmless tonic, and an
intense poison are perfect equivalents for each other?

It is stated on reliable authority, that during the civil war, hundreds
of sick soldiers implored the nurses to throw away their medicine. They
feared drugs worse than bullets, and not without reason.

It is a curious fact that young physicians prescribe more medicine than
the older ones.

Said the venerable Professor Alexander H. Stevens M.D., of the New York
College of Physicians and Surgeons: “Young practitioners are a most
hopeful class of community. They are sure of success. They start out in
life with twenty remedies for every disease; and after an experience of
thirty years or less they find twenty diseases for every remedy.” And
again: “The older physicians grow, the more skeptical they become of the
virtues of medicine, and the more they are disposed to trust to the
powers of Nature.”

The effect of drugging a person, is to lock up the actual causes of the
disease in the system; thus producing permanent and worse diseases. It
is in accordance with common sense that they should be expelled, not
retained. What is known as disease, is nothing more or less than the
struggle of Nature, to cast out impurities, and this remedial effort
should be regulated, and assisted, not obstructed by administering
drugs, which only complicate the situation, by producing more disease.

No man can fight two enemies better than one, and, to give drugs to a
system already struggling to regain its normal condition, is like tying
the hands of a man who is beset by enemies. The truth is, that the real
nature of disease is misapprehended by the popular schools of medicine,
and until broader views obtain a lodgment among them, it is useless to
hope for any alteration or improvement in the antiquated system of
drugging. “Who shall decide, when doctors disagree?” is an oft quoted
sentence, and, the following conflicting opinions from prominent
physicians show conclusively how little is actually known of the action
of drugs upon the human system, by those who administer them right and
left.

Says the “United States Dispensatory,” “Medicines are those articles
which make _sanative_ impressions on the body.” This may be important
_if_, true. But, _per contra_, says Professor Martin Paine, M.D., of the
New York University Medical School, in his “Institutes of Medicine”:
“Remedial agents are essentially _morbific_ in their operations.”

But again says Professor Paine: “Remedial agents operate in the same
manner as do the remote causes of disease.” This seems to be a very
distinct announcement that remedies are themselves causes of disease.
And yet again: “In the administration of medicines we cure one disease
by producing another.” This is both important _and_ true.

Professor Paine quotes approvingly the famous professional adage, in
good technical Latin,

    “_Ubi virus, ibi vitus_,”

which, being translated, means, “our strongest poisons are our best
remedies.”

Says Professor Alonzo Clark, M.D., of the New York College of Physicians
and Surgeons: “All of our curative agents are poisons, and as a
consequence, every dose diminishes the patient’s vitality.”

Says Professor Joseph M. Smith, M.D., of the same school: “All medicines
which enter the circulation _poison the blood_ in the same manner as do
the poisons that produce disease.”

Says Professor St. John, of the New York Medical College: “All medicines
are poisonous.”

Says Professor E. R. Peaslee, M.D., of the same school: “The
administration of powerful medicines is the most fruitful cause of
derangements of the digestion.”

Says Professor H. G. Cox, M.D., of the same school: “The fewer remedies
you employ in any disease, the better for your patients.”

Says Professor E. H. Davis, M.D., of the New York Medical College: “The
_modus operandi_ of medicines is still a very obscure subject. We know
that they operate, but exactly how they operate is entirely unknown.”

Says Professor J. W. Carson, M.D., of the New York University Medical
School: “We do not know whether our patients recover because we give
medicines, or because Nature cures them.”

Says Professor E. S. Carr, of the same school: “All drugs are more or
less adulterated; and as not more than one physician in a hundred has
sufficient knowledge in chemistry to detect impurities, the physician
seldom knows just how much of a remedy he is prescribing.”

The authors disagree in many things; but all concur in the fact that
medicines produce diseases; that their effects are wholly uncertain, and
that we know nothing whatever of their _modus operandi_.

But now comes in the testimony of the venerable Professor Joseph M.
Smith, M.D., who says: “Drugs do not cure diseases; disease is always
cured by the _vis medicatrix naturae_.”

And Professor Clark further complicates the problem before us by
declaring that, “Physicians have hurried thousands to their graves who
would have recovered if left to Nature.” And again: “In scarlet fever
you have nothing to do but to rely on the _vis medicatrix naturae_.”

Says Professor Gross: “Of the _essence_ of disease very little is known;
indeed, nothing at all.” And says Professor George B. Wood, M.D., of
Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia (“Wood’s Practice of Medicine”):
“Efforts have been made to reach the elements of disease; but not very
successfully; because we have not yet learned the essential nature of
the healthy actions, and cannot understand their derangements.”

On the other side of the Atlantic the claims of the existing medical
schools to popular favor, do not appear to rest upon any surer basis
than they do here, if we may judge from the following opinions expressed
by some of the most eminent authorities in the British Kingdom:

“The medical practice of our days is, at the best, a most _uncertain_
and unsatisfactory system; it has _neither philosophy nor common sense_
to commend it to confidence.”--DR. EVANS, Fellow of the Royal College,
London.

“There has been a great increase of medical men of late, _but_, upon my
life, _diseases have increased in proportion_.”--JOHN ABERNETHY, M.D.,
“The Good,” of London.

“Gentlemen, ninety-nine out of every hundred medical facts are _medical
lies_; and medical doctrines are, for the most part, _stark, staring
nonsense_.”--Prof. GREGORY, of Edinburgh, author of a work on “Theory
and Practice of Physic.”

“It cannot be denied that the present system of medicine is a _burning
shame_ to its professors, if indeed a series of vague and uncertain
incongruities deserves to be called by that name. How rarely do our
medicines do good! How often do they make our patients _really worse_! I
fearlessly assert, that in most cases the sufferer would be _safer
without a physician_ than with one. I have seen enough of the
_mal-practice_ of my professional brethren to warrant the strong
language I employ.”--Dr. RAMAGE, Fellow of the Royal College, London.

“The present practice of medicine is a _reproach_ to the name of
Science, while its professors give evidence of an _almost total
ignorance_ of the nature and proper treatment of disease. Nine times out
of ten, our miscalled remedies are _absolutely injurious_ to our
patients, suffering under diseases of whose real character and cause we
are most culpably ignorant.”--Prof. JAMEISON, of Edinburgh.

Assuredly the uncertain and most unsatisfactory art that we call medical
science, is _no science at all_, but a jumble of inconsistent opinions;
of conclusions hastily and often incorrectly drawn; of facts
misunderstood or perverted; of comparisons without analogy; of
hypotheses without reason, and theories not only useless, but
_dangerous_.”--_Dublin Medical Journal._

“Some patients get well with the aid of medicine; more without it; and
still more _in spite of it_.”--SIR JOHN FORBES, M.D., F.R.S.

“Thousands are annually _slaughtered_ in the quiet of the sick-room.
Governments should at once either banish medical men, and proscribe
their _blundering art_, or they should adopt some better means to
protect the lives of the people than at present prevail, when they look
far less after the practice of this _dangerous profession_, and the
_murders_ committed in it, than after the lowest trades.”--Dr. FRANK, an
eminent author and practitioner.

“Our actual information or knowledge of disease does not increase in
proportion to our experimental practice. Every dose of medicine given is
a _blind experiment upon the vitality_ of the patient.”--Dr. BOSTOCK,
author of “History of Medicine.”

“The science of medicine is a _barbarous jargon_, and the effects of our
medicines on the human system in the highest degree _uncertain_; except,
indeed, that they have _destroyed more lives_ than war, pestilence, and
famine combined.”--JOHN MASON GOOD, M.D., F.R.S., author of “Book of
Nature,” “A System of Nosology,” “Study of Medicine,” etc.

“I declare as my conscientious conviction, founded on long experience
and reflection, that if there were not a single _physician_, _surgeon_,
_man midwife_, _chemist_, _apothecary_, _druggist_, nor _drug_ on the
face of the earth, there would be _less sickness_ and _less mortality_
than now prevail.”--JAS. JOHNSON, M.D., F.R.S., Editor of the
_Medico-Chirurgical Review_.

So it comes to this, that during three thousand years remedies have been
accumulating until between two and three thousand drugs are recorded in
the archives of the medical profession, and yet we have the admission of
some of the highest authorities on the subject that the nature of
disease is still a mystery, that the “_modus operandi_” of drugs is
equally obscure, and that in consequence there is profound uncertainty
as to the relation of drugs to the diseases for which they are
prescribed.

Can one cause cure another? Can a poison expel a poison? Can the human
system throw off two burdens better than one? If such a proposition were
submitted to us in any other domain we would indignantly resent it as an
insult to our intelligence.

There can be no question but that the public are largely responsible for
the existing condition of things, for whatever they demand they can
obtain, in obedience to the inexorable law of supply and demand: which
accounts for the rapidly increasing interest in hygiene. An eminent
authority on therapeutics says:

“The medical profession holds a most false relation to society. Its
honors and emoluments are measured, not by the good, but by the evil it
does. The physician who keeps some member of the family of his rich
neighbor on a bed of sickness for months or years, may secure to himself
thereby both fame and fortune; while the other who would restore the
patient to health in a week or two, will be neither appreciated nor
understood. If a physician, in treating a simple fever, which if left to
itself or to Nature would terminate in health in two or three weeks,
drugs the patient into half a dozen chronic diseases, and nearly kills
himself half a dozen times, and prolongs his sufferings for months, he
will receive much money and many thanks for carrying him safely through
so many complications, relapses, and collapses. But if he cures in a
single week, and leaves him perfectly sound, the pay will be small, and
the thanks nowhere, because he has not been very sick!”

I know many of you will say, “_My_ physician is a very excellent man
and a good scholar--I have all confidence in him.” But what if his
system is false? Is your confidence in him or in his system? If in his
system, you are to be pitied. If in him, take his _good_ advice and
refuse his _bad_ medicine.

The Caucasian has not much to learn from the Mongolian, it is true, but
the public might safely imitate the Chinese in dealing with their
physicians. A Chinaman of rank pays his physician a retaining salary so
long as he remains in health, but, the instant he gets sick, the salary
ceases. Manifestly, it is a common-sense proceeding. The doctor has a
vital interest in preserving the health of his client, since sickness
entails a pecuniary loss; and best of all, the patient escapes having
his system drenched with drugs. There is no valid reason why there
should be any such thing as serious sickness; nor would there be if
Hygiene were taught, and practised, and the whole _materia medica_
consigned to oblivion. As Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “If all drugs
were thrown into the sea, it would be so much better for man, but so
much worse for the fishes.”

Now, the remedies of the Hygienic system, which I advocate, comprehend
everything except poisons. The drug system rejects almost everything but
poisons. My system rejects only poisons, and adopts everything else. I
welcome anything that possesses remedial value, provided it is in
accordance with the laws of Nature, and am equally ready to accept
suggestions from the laity, as from fellow practitioners. I am ready to
submit everything thus presented, to the test of experiment, and employ
it if found worthy.

In this regard I may, without vanity, lay claim to the possession of a
more progressive spirit than the members of the drug schools, for their
disinclination to adopt anything new in the treatment of disease has
passed into a proverb. It might naturally be supposed that any one who
should come forward with a discovery by which the suffering portion of
the human family would be benefited, would be welcomed with open arms by
the medical fraternity, or, that at least he would be allowed a hearing,
but unfortunately it is not so.

Even if the discoverer be one of themselves, they are apt to regard his
proposition with a certain amount of distrust, but if he happens to be a
layman they instantly stand upon their dignity--denounce all irregular
practice and raise the cry of quack.

In justice, however, it must be said that there are members of liberal,
broad-minded men in the medical profession who recognize the fact that
brains are not monopolized by physicians, and who are perfectly willing
to accord credit where it is due, as the following opinions will show.

Dr. A. O’Leary, Jefferson Medical College, of Philadelphia, says:

“The best things in the healing art have been done by those who never
had a diploma--the first Cæsarian section, lithotomy, the use of
cinchona, of ether as an anæsthetic, the treatment of the air passages
by inhalation, the water cure and medicated baths, electricity as a
healing agent, and magnetism, faith cure, mind cure, etc.”

Prof. Waterhouse, writing to the learned Dr. Mitchell, of New York,
says:

“I am, indeed, so disgusted with learned quackery that I take some
interest in honest, humane, and strong-minded empiricism; for it has
done more for our art, in all ages and all countries, than all the
universities since the time of Charlemagne.”

Professor Benj. Rush, of the greatest and oldest Allopathic College in
America, says:

“Remember how many of our most useful remedies have been discovered by
quacks. Do not therefore be afraid of conversing with them, and of
profiting by their ignorance and temerity. Medicine has its pharisees as
well as religion. But the spirit of this sect is as unfriendly to the
advancement of medicine as it is to Christian charity. In the pursuit of
medical knowledge let me advise you to converse with nurses and old
women. They will often suggest facts in the history and cure of disease
which have escaped the most sagacious observers of nature. By so doing,
we may discover laws of the animal economy which have no place in our
system of nosology, or in our theories of physic. The practice of physic
hath been more improved by the casual experiments of illiterate nations,
and the rash ones of vagabond quacks, than by all the once celebrated
professors of it, and the theoretic teachers in the several schools of
Europe, very few of whom have furnished us with one new medicine, or
have taught us better to use our old ones, or have in any one instance
at all, improved the art of curing disease.”

Dr. Adam Smith says:

“After denouncing Paracelsus as a quack, the regular medical profession
stole his ‘quack-silver’--mercury; after calling Jenner an imposter it
adopted his discovery of vaccination; after dubbing Harvey a humbug it
was forced to swallow his theory of the circulation of the blood.”

Professor J. Rodes Buchanan, Boston, says:

“Mozart, Hoffman, Ole Bull, and Blind Tom were born with a mastery of
music, as Zerah Colburn with a mastery of mathematics, as others are
born with a mastery of the mystery of life and disease, like Greatrakes,
Newton, Hutton, Sweet and Stephens, born doctors, and a score of similar
renown.”

Professor Charles W. Emerson, M.D., the well-known president of the
Monroe Conservatory of Oratory, of Boston, says:

“The progress in therapeutics has and still continues to come from the
unlearned. Common people give us our improvements and the school men
spend their time in giving Greek and Latin names to these improvements,
and building metaphysical theories around them.”

This is a heavy indictment against the medical profession, as a body,
but truth and justice compel me to state that most of the foregoing
statements were made some years ago, and that intolerance can no longer
be charged against them as it could, even in the last generation. Nor
can we close our eyes to the fact that thousands of high-minded
physicians are devoting their time and energies to the amelioration of
disease. Scarcely a month passes in which some convention of physicians
is not held to consider the best means of dealing with some particular
malady, and a large number of the attending physicians at those
conventions contribute their time and experience at considerable
financial loss to themselves.

In the ranks of the medical body there are able and honorable men who
would adorn any profession--men who have sacrificed health, wealth and
happiness in their devotion to the cause of suffering humanity--the
pages of history are full of instances of such heroism. But of what
avail is it to have the most perfect examples of humanity for
physicians, if the system they practice is an erroneous one? It is
impossible to secure good results with bad methods. We must have a sure
foundation, if we expect to raise an abiding structure. And that is why
I am in opposition to the existing method of treating disease. Not
because of any feeling against the physician individually, but for the
reason that I consider their system based upon error--upon a false
conception of the true nature of disease, and of the relation of drugs
to the human system.

There is a tradition in the orthodox medical schools, that all curative
processes are dependent _upon_, and act only in accordance _with_, an
established law--the “Law of Cure.”

But although all the schools are a unit in believing in the existence
and operation of such a law, no two of them agree upon a definition of
it. Their theories concerning this all-important law are as
diametrically opposite as the poles. For instance, the Allopaths define
it as “contraria contrariis curantur,” which is simply the law of
opposition. But the Homeopaths take a widely different view of the
matter, their definition of it being “similia similibus curantur,” which
is, practically, the law of agreement; while the Eclectics declare that
“sanative medication” is the law.

This diversity of opinion is not by any means unique, for the tendency
to disagreement among physicians is proverbial; but the unfortunate
layman who is the person most vitally interested in the matter, is at a
loss what to believe among this conflict of definitions, and naturally
asks, Who is right?

I answer, unequivocally, not one! They are all wrong. This so-called
“Law of Cure” is a purely imaginary affair; one of the many
misconceptions peculiar to the medical schools, originating in a false
conception of the true nature of disease. There is no such thing as a
law of cure! There is a condition of cure, and that is, obedience.
Nature has provided penalties for disobedience, and is inexorable in
exacting payment; but she does not provide remedies. If there is one
thing absolutely certain in nature, it is the unfaltering sequence of
cause and effect. Nature never stultifies herself. It is impossible to
imagine nature providing penalties for violation of her laws, and then
furnishing remedies to make those penalties negatory.

It is a lamentable fact that the medical profession, as a body,
entertain a totally erroneous conception of the true nature of disease,
and its legitimate function in the economy of nature. Instead of
recognizing it as a beneficent remedial process, which, if properly
aided, will work out the salvation of the patient, they antagonize it at
every turn, and endeavor to suppress the symptoms, which are its
legitimate expressions.

The whole thing is a huge misconception, the failure to understand the
true relation between living and dead substances. According to the
United States Dispensatory, medicines are those substances that make
sanative impressions on the body.

A false definition of a word leads to a false system of remedial
practice, based upon that definition. What is an impression? Is it the
action of a dead substance, which _cannot act_ upon a living substance
_that can_? Assuredly not! Is it not rather the recognition by the
living substance of the lifeless one? The whole theory of drug action is
easily explainable on this hypothesis. Drugs--inert substances--do not
_act_ upon the living organism, but are _acted upon_, with a view to
their expulsion from the living domain. If it were not so, if drugs
_really acted upon_ the various organs, then their action should be
equally as effective _after_ death as before. But no, nature resents the
introduction of foreign substances into the human economy, and exerts
all her powers to cast out the intruders.

Now, as all substances incapable of physiological use are foreign, such
as particles of worn out tissue, the waste products of digestion, etc.,
and their presence in the animal economy inimical to the general
welfare, the depurating organs are called into active play to expel the
offending substances; and the increased physiological activity, and (in
the case of actual lesion) the increased flow of blood to the parts, for
the purpose of repair, cause a rise in temperature, commonly known as
fever, which is one of the most frequent symptoms of what is generally
recognized as disease; thus establishing the fact, indisputably, that
disease is purely and simply a remedial process, either for purposes of
repair or purification.

The practice, therefore, of increasing the deposits in the physical
system by the introduction of drugs (foreign substances) is in direct
opposition to physiological law, and has no scientific foundation
whatever.

From the countless remedies of the pharmacopœia we can select
substances that if administered to a healthy person will produce almost
any known form of disease--thus: brandy, cayenne pepper and quinine,
will induce inflammatory fever; scammony and ipecac will cause cholera
morbus; nitre, calomel and opium, will provoke typhoid or typhus fever;
digitalis will cause Asiatic, or spasmodic cholera; cod liver oil and
sulphur promote scurvy, and all the cathartic family inevitably cause
diarrhœa, the disease in each case being nothing more than the effort
of Nature to get rid of these troublesome intruders.

Drugs do not, as their advocates claim, select their special organ with
a view of _acting upon it_, but are _acted upon_ by that particular
organ for the purpose of ridding the system of the drug.

It follows, therefore, as a perfectly legitimate and logical deduction,
that, if the system of administering drugs is founded upon a wrong
conception of their relation to the human organism, then any theoretical
“law of cure” predicated upon drug action must necessarily be equally
fallacious and untrustworthy.

As stated before, the simple fact is, that there is no _law_ of cure,
only a _condition_--and that condition--obedience, by which is meant a
course of treatment in harmony with Nature.

The older physicians grow the more they rely upon the _vis medicatrix
naturae_, which is, after all, the _only_ remedial force, and one
totally beyond their control. The physician can no more perform cures
than the farmer can make his crops grow. In each case, all that can be
done is to employ all the methods that cumulative wisdom can suggest to
make the conditions as favorable as possible, and leave the rest to
Mother Nature, who is not in the habit of making mistakes, and whose
unerring methods would cure ninety per cent. of all diseased conditions,
if her beneficent intentions were not frustrated by well meant, but
nevertheless pernicious, drug interference.




PART II.

THE TRUE CAUSE OF DISEASE.


At this point the reader will doubtless be tempted to exclaim: “Well,
you have demonstrated to your own satisfaction that the medical
profession entertains erroneous opinions as to the true nature of
disease, and also that drugs are absolutely useless--nay, injurious--in
such conditions: but is this all? Having destroyed our trust in drugs,
what have you to offer in their stead?” To which perfectly natural
query, I gladly reply, I have a system of treatment to propound, a
system that has triumphantly stood the test of years, a system that must
commend itself to every intelligent reader, because it is strictly in
accordance with natural law.

But before I proceed to explain it, I desire to announce my own theory
respecting disease--a theory essentially radical in its character, and
of which I am the originator, and that is:

    THERE IS ONLY ONE CAUSE FOR DISEASE.

This may sound strange, for the majority of people imagine that there
is a different and specific cause for every ailment, and physicians
generally do not combat the opinion. But as a matter of fact, there is
only one disease, although its manifestations are various, and there is
only one cause for it, and that is the retention of waste matters in the
system. These substances may be in the gaseous, liquid or solid form,
but they are foreign bodies, inimical to the welfare of the organism,
and their presence must result in derangement of bodily function.

The great need of the present day is adequate instruction in physiology
and hygiene, that humanity may not only know how to secure the
restoration of health, when lost, but by attention to physiological and
sanitary laws may retain good health indefinitely. The body is the
theatre of constant change. The processes of tearing down and building
up proceed without intermission during life. If construction exceeds
destruction, the result is health; but just as surely as destruction
exceeds repair, disease is the result. But during every moment of life
waste is being formed by the destruction of tissue, and this effete
material must be promptly removed if the individual would enjoy health.
Nature has provided adequate means for the removal of these substances
which are valueless to the economy, the retention of which obstructs and
irritates the complex mechanism of the system, the principal avenues for
its expulsion being the lungs, the skin and the intestinal canal. The
latter is infinitely more important than the others, since by it the
waste products of digestion are expelled. If it fails to promptly fulfil
its office, every vital function is interfered with; and in addition the
fluid portion of the semi-liquid waste is re-absorbed directly into the
circulation, redepositing in the very fountain of life, matter which the
system has thrown off as worthless. Should the system be exposed to a
chill, while in this condition, a congestion of the surface excretory
vessels takes place; and practically the whole work of elimination is
thrown upon the already hard-worked kidneys, frequently resulting in
uræmic poisoning and death.

The presence of a grain of sand in a watch will <DW44> its movements, if
not arrest them altogether. What, then, must be the result of an
accumulation of impurities in the physical system? The finely adjusted
balance that is capable of weighing the thousandth part of a grain, is
carefully protected under a glass cover, for even impalpable dust would
clog its movements. Reflect, then, upon the amount of friction that must
be perpetually going on in the human organism owing to the retention of
effete matter! And since not even the most cunning product of man’s
handiwork can compare with the intricate mechanism of the body, the
importance of eliminating the waste becomes manifest. Here, in a
nutshell, lies the secret of disease.

Let us now consider how the retention of waste affects the system--how
the deleterious effects are produced. There are three factors at work in
this process, mechanical, gaseous and absorptive, the last named being
infinitely the most pernicious. We will first consider the mechanical.

Nature has beautifully apportioned the space in the abdominal cavity,
each part of the viscera having ample room for the performance of its
special function, but any abnormal increase in size of any part of the
contents of the cavity must necessarily create disturbance. Now, when
the food leaves the stomach, where it has been churned into a pulpaceous
mass, it passes into the duodenum, or second stomach, where it receives
an augmentation of liquid material from the liver and pancreas;
consequently, when it reaches the small intestine, where absorption
takes place, it is in a well diluted condition. During its passage
through the small intestine, the nutrient portion of the ingesta is
abstracted from it by the villi (small hair-like processes) with which
the small intestine is thickly studded, so that at the end of its
journey of about twenty-two feet (if digestion is normal), all that is
of value to the organism has been appropriated--the remainder being
refuse. This waste product passes into the colon, or large intestine,
and should be promptly expelled. If prompt expulsion does not take
place, this is what happens: The fluid portion of this semi-liquid waste
is re-absorbed through the walls of the colon directly into the
circulation, a percentage of the solids being deposited on the walls of
the intestine. This process of accretion goes on from day to day, week
to week, month to month, until it not infrequently happens that the
colon becomes distended to several times its natural size. Instances are
on record, where these abnormal accumulations of fæcal matter in the
colon have been mistaken for enlargement of the liver, and even
pregnancy. A surgeon in London has a preparation of the colon measuring
some twenty inches in circumference, containing three gallons of fæcal
matter, and even larger accumulations have been reported. The foregoing
instances are, of course, exceptional ones, but it is safe to assert
that seventy per cent. of the colons of the human family (living under
civilized conditions) are impacted, and some of them terribly so. It is
impossible to estimate the amount of evil caused by an engorged colon
monopolizing two or three times its allotted space in the abdominal
cavity, crowding and hampering the other organs in their work.

But the effects of direct mechanical pressure are not the only ones. The
accumulations in the colon necessarily arrest the free passage of the
product of the small intestine, and that, in turn, causes undue
retention of food in the stomach, with consequent fermentation; while
the irritation, due to pressure on the nerve terminals by the
distension, and by the encrusted matter adhering to the intestinal wall,
is simply incalculable.

The effects of gaseous accumulations in the alimentary canal are not
thoroughly understood at present--that is--the pathological effects. The
more direct effects, as manifested in abdominal distension, and the
terrible distress that frequently follows eating, are unfortunately, but
too well known. The reader does not need to be told that during the
decomposition of organic substances, gases are evolved, and no matter
where the process goes on, the results are always the same. Owing to the
causes previously mentioned, the intestinal canal usually offers special
facilities for the production of gases, owing to the retention of
partially digested food, in a medium highly favorable to fermentation. A
moderate amount of sulphuretted hydrogen, and also carburetted hydrogen
is always present in the colon, normally, to preserve moderate
distention of the walls, while the gases usually found in the stomach
and small intestine, are oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen and carbonic acid.
What functional disturbances may arise from the presence of these
gaseous substances in excess in the system is, at present, largely a
matter of conjecture, but it _is_ known that a stream of carbonic acid
gas, or hydrogen continuously directed against a muscle will cause
paralysis of that structure. The expansive force of gases is too well
known to need comment, and the force with which they will at times
distend the abdominal wall points irresistibly to the conclusion that
such an amount of force exerted against vital organs cannot be otherwise
than productive of serious harm. It is not at all improbable that many
cases of hernia and uterine displacement may be due to this hitherto
unsuspected cause. That they penetrate the neighboring tissues is an
established fact, and it is quite conceivable that their action upon the
nervous system though the medium of the circulation may lie at the root
of many of the cases of neurasthenia that are now so prevalent.

But the auto-infection that results from the absorption of the liquid
waste into the blood supply is by far the most serious feature. The
blood is the life. From it the system obtains all the material for the
formation of fresh tissue, and it is a practical impossibility for good,
healthy structures to be built up from a tainted blood current. Why is
it that the vegetation on the banks of a stream, on which a
manufacturing town is located, is invariably stunted and withered?
Because the water that should nourish it is polluted by the refuse
poured into it, and no amount of deodorants or disinfectants will prove
of any avail to restore the devitalized vegetation, but will rather
aggravate the trouble. But cut off the source of pollution, and in an
incredibly short space of time the vegetation will take on a new lease
of life.

This liquid refuse in the colon is composed of substances for which the
system has no further use--it has rejected them; consequently they are
foreign bodies, and as such, are the equivalent of poisons. The colon,
in this condition, is a perfect hot-bed for the breeding of all kinds of
poisonous germs, and the action of cathartics aggravates the condition
by filling the pouched portions of the colon with a foul liquid which
facilitates the absorption of the ptomaines and leucomaines through the
mucous coat of the intestine. It is known now, that as much as
three-fourths of this foul putrid substance may be absorbed, carrying
into the system poisonous germs and excrementitious matter. Dr.
Murchison states, “that a circulation is constantly taking place between
the fluid contents of the bowel and the blood, the existence of which,
till within the last few years, was quite unknown, and which even now is
too little heeded.” And Dr. Parker says, “It is now known, that in
varying degrees there is a constant transit of fluid from the blood into
the alimentary canal, and as rapid absorption.” It is also stated on
reliable authority, “_that every portion of the blood may, and possibly
does, pass several times into the alimentary canal in twenty-four
hours_.” Prof. I. I. Metchnikoff recently stated in a lecture at Paris:
“Particularly injurious are the microbes of the large intestines.
Thence, they penetrate into the blood and impair it alike by their
presence and the products they yield--ptomaines, alkaloids, etc. The
auto intoxication of the organism and poisoning through microbes is an
established fact.”

Having shown that the average colon is a fertile breeding ground for
all kinds of poisonous germs, and that they are conveyed into the
circulation by the interchange of fluids in that organ, it may be
interesting to explain how these germs are conveyed to, and deposited in
the various organs of the body.

We have in our bodies a system of canals called arteries and veins,
having their head at the heart, which is the main pump that keeps the
blood in motion. The arterial circulation consists of those channels
which convey the blood--supposed pure blood--away from the heart to the
different parts of the body, loaded with the life-giving principle of
sustenance, invigoration and heat, while the veins or venous circulation
conveys to the heart and lungs the impure blood, loaded many times with
disease-breeding germs.

Now, in the blood, as it courses through our bodies, are myriads of
little vessels called corpuscles; these are what give the blood a red
color. There are also a smaller number of white corpuscles, that are
known as phagocytes, whose mission is to destroy micro-organisms that
are prejudicial to life. In order that you may know their use, I, for
convenience sake and to make my meaning better understood, will call
them little war vessels, loaded with soldiers, and the soldiers have in
their vessels a furnace whose fire never goes out. These vessels and
their little warriors are continually sailing through our bodies,
hunting for germs of disease, that they catch and throw into their
furnace and burn them up. Now, suppose we take a violent cold, thus
closing the pores of the skin, and that at the same time the colon is
engorged, two of the most important outlets for the filth and decayed
matter of our bodies are closed up--for the life of our bodies is one
continual process of building anew and tearing down; these two most
important sewers are now closed. These little vessels now have their
hands full, catching disease-bearing germs that nature cannot throw out
through the colon or pores of the skin--both being closed--and we call
this condition of things fever. The white corpuscle has but two dumping
places now, the lungs or kidneys. Suppose that in the colon is the
tubercular ulcer, breeding the bacillus of consumption, and they are
absorbed into the circulation. Ordinarily the white corpuscles would be
able to destroy them, but now they are so overworked that the tubercular
germ lands in the lung tissue alive and well, ready to commence his work
of destruction and death. The person developes a hacking cough, and
finally goes to the doctor, and he, if he knows his business, probably
finds tuberculosis well established. Typhoid fever has its nursery
solely in the colon, and gets possession of the citadel of life in the
same way as any other germ or contagious disease. What a terrible battle
there must be going on in us between our life-preservers and the germs
of disease.

Is it any wonder that people die of premature old age, of apoplexy,
paralysis, dropsy, consumption, and the thousand and one maladies that
scourge humanity? And is it not unreasonable to pour a few grains of
diluted drugs into the stomach to purify the blood--even granting for
the sake of argument that such a purpose could be accomplished by that
means--when occupying nearly one-half of the abdominal cavity is an
engorged intestine reeking with filth so foul that carrion is as the
odor of roses compared to it, and which is being steadily absorbed into
the circulation? If a man were to act as foolishly as that in his
business, his friends would quickly petition the courts to appoint a
guardian for him.

It may be asked, why has not this discovery been made before? In the
first place, the colon has had but scant attention paid to it in the
dissecting room, until of late years the appendicitis craze has awakened
some interest in it. Its importance was not realized-the circulatory and
nervous systems receiving the lion’s share of attention. In the second
place, in holding _post-mortems_ the organ was avoided, cut off, if in
the way, and thrown into the slop bucket. It was known to be always
full, but no one ever asked whether or not it was natural in its
fullness of fæcal matter, and as a result, probably the profession knows
the least about this important organ, of any in the human body. Strange,
is it not, that among the seven thousand physicians ground out and
polished in the mills of wisdom each year, that there was not one who
had originality enough to ask the question, Is it natural that this
scent bag of filth should always be so full of putrid matter that we
cannot abide one moment with it? And, inasmuch as it is so, is it not a
great detriment at least to our health to carry this mass of filth
around with us, from day to day, from week to week, and from year to
year-absorbing its poison back into the circulation? Strange that these
questions did not present themselves to some one of the enterprising
youths of our original young America.

The muscular fibres of the intestines are circular and longitudinal. In
the large intestine the longitudinal fibres are shorter than the tube
itself, which length permits the formation of loculi (cavities). These
become the seat of fæcal accumulations, only too often unnoticed by the
physician. It is undoubtedly a fact that the loculi of the colon contain
small fæcal accumulations extending over weeks, months, or even years.
Their presence produces symptoms varying all the way from a little
catarrhal irritation up to the most diverse, and in some instances
serious, reflex disturbances. When the loculi only are filled, the main
channel of the colon is undisturbed. The most common parts of the colon
to become enlarged are the sigmoid flexure and the cæcum (see diagram in
beginning of book), but accumulations may occur in any part of the
colon. The ascending colon is much more often filled in life than the
books would lead us to believe; indeed, it may be said that chronic
accumulations are oftener to be found in the ascending than in the
descending colon, which is also contrary to the assertions of the
authors. This is due partly to the fact that the contents of the colon
have to rise in opposition to gravity, and partly to the semi-paralyzed
condition of the muscular coat of the colon through inactivity. When the
accumulations are large, the increased weight of the colon tends to
displace it; and if in the transverse colon, that portion may be
depressed, even into the pelvis.

The mass may be so enormous as to press upon any organ located in the
abdomen, interfering with its functions; thus we may have pressure on
the liver that arrests the flow of bile; or, upon the urinary organs,
crippling their functions.

Of course, such excessive accumulations occur only exceptionally, and
it is not to these that attention is particularly drawn, because when
they are so excessive, any physician can detect them by palpation
(touch).

It is to the minor accumulations particularly, that I wish to draw
attention--the accumulations that we see in the majority of patients who
visit our offices. Such patients assure us that the bowels move daily,
but the color of their complexions, and the condition of their tongues,
are enough to assure us that they are the victims of costiveness.

Daily movements of the bowels are no sign that the colon is not
impacted; in fact, the worst cases of costiveness that we ever see are
those in which daily movements of the bowels occur. The diagnosis of
fæcal accumulations is facilitated by inquiring as to the color of the
daily discharges. A black or a very dark green color almost always
indicates that the fæces are ancient. Prompt discharge of food refuse is
indicated by more or less yellow color. It would be interesting to
inquire why fresh fæces are yellow and ancient fæces are dark.

Such patients have digestive fermentations to torment them, resulting in
flatulent distension which encroaches on the cavity of the chest, which
in excessive cases may cause short and rapid breathing, irregular heart
action, disturbed circulation in the brain, with vertigo and headache.
An over-distended cæcum, or sigmoid flexure, from pressure, may produce
dropsy, numbness or cramps in the right or left lower extremity.

The reports of the _post-mortem_ examination of the colons of hundreds
of subjects reveals a series of horrors more weird and ghastly than were
ever penned by Eugene Sue, or Emile Zola. The mind shrinks in dismay at
the appalling revelations, and shudders at the possibility of the “human
form divine” becoming such a peripatetic charnel house.

Is it any wonder that the average human system, being thus saturated
with impurities, should succumb to the first exciting cause? Is it not,
in fact, a greater marvel that the rate of mortality is not even higher
than at present?

My object in publishing this book is to point out the true cause of
disease, together with the means for its prevention and cure, and that,
too, by a simple and inexpensive method of hygienic treatment, which has
proved eminently successful in tens of thousands of cases, which is
perfectly harmless and natural in its action, and absolutely free from
even the suspicion of a drug.




PART III.

RATIONAL HYGIENIC TREATMENT.


Having striven to explain in an intelligible manner the true nature and
cause of disease, and to point out the inadequacy of the drug system of
treatment to combat pathological conditions successfully (not from any
lack of intention on the part of the drug practitioners: but from the
unreliability of their methods), I shall now proceed to lay before you
the system of treatment which it is proposed to substitute in its stead,
and I unhesitatingly affirm that it will be found so simple, so
inexpensive and so obviously based on common sense and true hygienic
principles, that the thoughtful reader cannot fail to give it his
unqualified endorsement, and will be lost in wonder that any one should
fail to adopt it, when made acquainted with its simplicity and its
marvellous results.

In an old comedy, which used to delight our forefathers, the hero,
Felix O’Callaghan, defines the practice of medicine as “the art of
amusing the patient while Nature performs the cure.” In that sentence,
the dramatist (unwittingly perhaps) embodied a great truth. Nature, and
Nature _only_, can effect a cure. Fresh air, sunlight, pure water, diet
and exercise are the great curative agents provided by Nature, and all
that the physician can do, no matter to what school he belongs, is to
remove as far as possible all existing impediments, and to see that the
hygienic conditions are made as favorable as possible. For the rest,
Nature, the marvellous builder, will, in her own mysterious way, build
up fresh tissue, and, slowly but surely, repair the ravages made by
disease. No one would dare to say that the farmer made the corn grow. He
does all that the science of agriculture tells him is needful to furnish
proper conditions for growth, but there he must stop--the rest must be
left to Nature. Then, since disease is a wasting of tissue, and recovery
a building up, it is a palpable absurdity to credit a physician with a
cure. All that he can do is to co-operate with Nature, by seeing that
none of her laws are violated, and insisting that nothing whatever shall
obstruct her beneficent functions.

Whether for the preservation of health, or the treatment of disease,
when present, the chief thing is to cleanse the colon. It is useless to
attempt to get rid of the effects while the cause is present.

If the principal drain in a dwelling becomes choked, what is the
consequence? The noxious and pestilent gases generated by the
accumulated filth having no outlet, are forced back into the building,
poisoning the atmosphere, and breeding contagion among the inhabitants.
Deodorizing and disinfecting will simply be a waste of time and
material, until the drain is cleared. The colon is the main drain of the
human body, and if it be necessary, for sanitary reasons, to keep the
house drains clean, how vitally important is it to keep the main outlet
of the physical system free from obstructions.

Or, to use another homely illustration, when your coal stove has been
run continuously for a long time, as a natural result it becomes clogged
with cinders and ashes, causing the fire to burn badly. You encourage it
with fresh fuel, rake it and shake it but without avail--the
accumulations of débris are too great. You remove a portion, but its
place is taken by more substance from above. At length you resort to the
measure you should have employed at first--you “dump the grate” and
start a fresh fire. The moral is obvious: dump the grate of the human
system--in other words, empty the colon.

It has been previously shown that an impacted colon is neither more nor
less than a prolific hot-bed for the wholesale breeding of disease
germs--microbes--those infinitesimal organisms which science has
demonstrated to be the cause of many phases of disease, or rather, the
toxins (poisons) they produce, cause disease. Of course, there are
harmless micro-organisms as well as hurtful ones; in fact, a large
proportion of them are beneficial rather than otherwise; but some of
them (notably the tubercle bacillus) are so intimately associated with
disease that it is next to impossible to doubt their responsibility.

The sphere of the microbe is absolutely without limit. He is equally at
ease in the air, the earth, and the water. He makes himself at home in
our beverages and our foods. Our mouths furnish desirable lurking places
for him, our hair, and finger-nails are favorite posts of vantage; while
he delights to disport himself in our blood. He is the active agent of
decay, and the prime cause of disease. He is the most selfish of
parasites. The world for a long time disregarded him, but now
acknowledges him as one of the mightiest of conquerers; for while other
devastators have slain thousands, millions have fallen beneath his
insidious attacks. He is a foe to be dreaded, for he is forever lying in
ambush for fresh victims.

Microbes breed in fermentation, consequently, every particle of
undigested food remaining in the stomach or intestines becomes an ideal
nursery for their propagation. It has been demonstrated that food that
has been subjected to the action of the gastric juice decomposes far
more rapidly than that which has not--hence, with imperfect digestion,
fermentation quickly takes place. If microbes are now introduced into
the system, either by contact with sick persons, inhaling impure air in
crowded public buildings, or breathing in the dust on ill-kept streets,
there is danger ahead; for if the recipient is not in a sound, physical
condition, the microbes (finding congenial lodgment), multiply with the
most marvellous rapidity, permeating every portion of the
tissue--causing, in fact, DECOMPOSITION WHILE STILL ALIVE.

Every particle of animal or vegetable matter, even if only a single
grain in weight, by exposure to the air, _putrefies_, breeds, and
attracts to itself thousands of microbes, and becomes a center of
infection. Thus, in a piece of street dirt containing organic matter, we
may find upon examination, the germs of typhoid fever, diphtheria,
scarlet fever, or consumption. When this piece of dirt is dried by the
sun and pulverized by horses’ hoofs and the wheels of vehicles, the
particles of dirt are caught up by the wind, and sent whirling through
the air, to be drawn into the lungs by those within reach. Of course,
every one who breathes in the microbes of some particular disease does
not catch it, or we should soon all be dead, but those who have not the
resisting power of sound bodies to kill these germs, before they have
time to set up their peculiar inflammation, are apt to realize the evil
effects, a week, a month, or even a year afterwards.

It is evident then that to _cure_ disease we must get rid of all
fermentation in the system, and thus prevent the further breeding of
microbes; and to _prevent_ disease we must get the system into such a
sound, healthy condition that disease germs cannot obtain a lodgment in
it.

Now, this can only be accomplished by thoroughly cleansing the colon,
and keeping it absolutely clean, thus preventing further contamination
of the blood current--the fountain of life.

The intelligent reader, recognizing the absolute correctness of the
foregoing proposition, will naturally ask, “Can such a thing be
accomplished, and how?” We beg to assure the reader, most emphatically,
that it can, but not by the means usually employed. It is perfectly
plain that the cleansing process cannot be effected by cathartics, for
at the best, they only afford temporary relief (witness the growth of
the cathartic habit), while on an impacted mass such as is commonly
present in the colon, the influence they can exert is practically _nil_.
The common experience of those afflicted with constipation is, that they
commence with a laxative, gradually increasing the quantity and
frequency of the dose until it fails to act at all. Then they resort to
a cathartic, with a similar experience, when it is exchanged for a more
powerful one, and then for another still more powerful, until at last,
it becomes impossible to move the bowels without a powerful dose.

That this is no overdrawn picture many of my readers will bear witness,
and my brother practitioners can amply corroborate the statement, for
they fully recognize the vital importance of removing the waste from the
system. The pity of it is that they still persist in employing such a
crude and ineffective method.

Do any of my readers know how a cathartic acts?

It is popularly supposed that the drug passes from the stomach into the
small intestines, rendering their contents more liquid; then passes into
the colon, producing the same effect upon its more solid contents, thus
causing an evacuation. Many people have no conception, whatever, of the
_modus operandi_ of a purgative drug, simply believing that it acts in a
certain mysterious manner, but the above described process is generally
believed to be the correct one by those who have thought upon the
matter, but lack physiological knowledge. It is a huge mistake.

Any purgative drug, whether aperient, laxative or cathartic, is
dissolved in the stomach by the action of the gastric juice--in fact,
goes through the same digestive process as the food that is eaten, that
is, it passes into the small intestines and is there absorbed into the
circulation. By its irritation of the nerves, the secretory and
excretory processes of the system are stimulated into abnormal action,
and an extra quantity of fluid is poured into the colon to dissolve the
accumulated mass; which is about as scientific a proceeding as pouring a
quart of water into a washbowl on the upper floor of a dwelling to clear
away an obstruction in the main drain of the building. And, again, as
previously stated, the action of laxatives and cathartics, especially
the variety known as hydrogo-cathartics (watery), fill the ano-rectal
cavity and the loculi, or folds of the colon, with a foul watery
solution that is a perpetual source of irritation to the sensitive
mucous surface, hastening and intensifying the process of auto-infection
by absorption, that is constantly going on.

And what about the enormous drain upon the vital forces? Who is not
familiar with the feeling of exhaustion when the reaction sets in after
the employment of such methods of relief? How can it be otherwise? These
stimulants to defecation are like the applications of the whip to the
jaded horse--they excite the system to make a supreme effort in the
required direction, but the reaction is disastrous in the extreme. With
the repeated demands upon the delicate nervous system incidental to
constant catharsis is it any wonder that we are so constantly confronted
with cases of nervous collapse? The wonder would be if it were
otherwise.

Nor are these the only objections to be urged against purgative
medication. Its effects upon the digestive functions is, in the highest
degree, destructive. It would be next to impossible to find an
individual addicted to the use of cathartics whose digestion was not,
practically, a wreck. It is true, that a large part of the digestive
disturbance in such cases is due to the obstructed condition of the
colon, and the consequent undue retention of food in the stomach, until
fermentation sets in; but no inconsiderable share of the trouble is due
to the action of the drugs, by repeated over-stimulation of the nervous
system, and perpetual irritation of the delicate absorbent vessels.

Viewed from whatever standpoint we may choose, the employment of drugs
to relieve an overcharged colon is both unsatisfactory and unscientific.

And yet there is a simple and effective method of dealing with this
trouble; of removing the accumulations, no matter how large they may be;
of thoroughly cleansing and purifying that important organ, the colon,
without the least demand upon the vital forces, and that is by


WASHING IT OUT.

In plain English, the preservation and restoration of health depends
entirely upon cleanliness, especially _internal cleanliness_, and to
attain that condition which we are told is next to godliness, there is
nothing equal to water--especially “hot water,” which is the great
scavenger of nature.

Strange, that such an obviously common-sense proceeding should not be
universal, is it not?

I do not claim to be the discoverer of this method of internal
purification, for it is in reality of ancient origin, as we have it on
good authority that it was practised by the ancient Egyptians, who, it
is believed, acquired their knowledge from observing a bird called the
Ibis, a species of Egyptian snipe. The food of this bird, gathered on
the banks of the Nile, was of a very constipating character, and it was
observed, by the earliest naturalists, to suck up the water of the river
and using its long bill for a syringe, inject it into its anus, thus
relieving itself. Pliny says this habit of the Ibis first suggested the
use of clysters to the ancient Egyptian doctors, known to be the first
medical practitioners of any nation, not excepting the Chinese. [See
Naturalis Historia, Lib. VIII., Dap. 41, Hague 1518.]

Another writer, viz., Christianus Langius, says, that this bird when
attacked with constipation at some distance from the river, and not able
to fly from weakness, would be seen to crawl to the water’s edge with
drooping wings and there take its rectal treatment, when in a few
minutes it would fly away in full vigor of regained strength.

Nor do I even claim to have rediscovered this system of treatment,
although it is a common practice in these days to revamp old theories
and discoveries, and try to foist them upon the public as entirely new
propositions. The credit for the resuscitation of this ancient remedial
practice belongs, without doubt, to Dr. A. Wilford Hall, of New York,
who practiced the treatment on himself for forty years before giving its
principles to the public, thereby fully proving its merits.

The following experience from the pen of Dr. H. T. Turner, of
Washington, affords incontestable proof of the allegation made, that the
colon is the seat of disease, and his testimony should be read with
extreme care. It is no fanciful, theoretical statement, but the ghastly
revelation of an appalling reality. While reading his statement, the
reader will do well to refer to the engraving, representing the
digestive apparatus, at the commencement of this book, as it will
greatly facilitate his comprehension of the matter.

“In 1880 I lost a patient with inflammation of the bowels, and
requested of the friends the privilege of holding a _post-mortem_
examination, as I was satisfied that there was some foreign substance in
or near the Ileo-cœcal valve, or in that apparently useless
appendage, the Appendicula Vermiformis. (See explanation of engraving.)

“The autopsy developed a quantity of grape seed and popcorn, filling
the lower enlarged pouch of the colon and the opening into the
Appendicula Vermiformis. This, from the mortified and blackened
condition of the colon alone, indicated that my diagnosis was correct. I
opened the colon throughout its entire length of five feet, and found it
filled with fæcal matter encrusted on its walls and into the folds of
the colon, in many places dry and hard as slate, and so completely
obstructing the passage of the bowels as to throw him into violent colic
(as his friends stated), sometimes as often as twice a month, for years,
and that powerful doses of physic was his only relief; that all the
doctors had agreed that it was bilious colic. I observed that this
crusted matter was evidently of long standing, the result of years of
accumulation, and although the remote cause, not the immediate cause of
his death. The sigmoid-flexure (see engraving), or bend in the colon on
the left side, was especially full, and distended to double its natural
size, filling the gut uniformly, with a small hole the size of one’s
little finger through the center, through which the recent fæcal matter
passed. In the lower part of the sigmoid-flexure, just before descending
to form the rectum, and in the left hand upper corner of the colon as it
turns toward the right, were pockets eaten out of the hardened fæcal
matter, in which were eggs of worms and quite a quantity of maggots,
which had eaten into the sensitive mucous membrane, causing serious
inflammation of the colon and its adjacent parts, and as recent
investigation has established as a fact, were the cause of his
hemorrhoids, or piles, which I learned were of years’ standing. The
whole length of the colon was in a state of chronic inflammation; still
this man considered himself well and healthy until the unfortunate
eating of the grape seed and popcorn, and had no trouble in getting his
life insured in one of the best companies in America.

“I have been thus explicit in this description, from the fact that
recent investigation has developed the fact that in the discovery
described above, I had found but a prototype of at least seven-tenths of
the human family in civilized life--the real cause of all diseases of
the human body, excepting the grape seed and popcorn. That I had found
the fountain of premature old age and death, for, as surprising as it
may seem, out of 284 cases of autopsies held of late on the colon (they
representing in their death nearly all the diseases known to our
climate), but twenty-eight colons were found to be free from hardened,
adhered matter, and in their normal healthy state, and that the 256 were
all more or less as described above, except, perhaps, the grape seeds
and popcorn. In many of them the colon was distended to double its
natural size throughout its whole length, with a small hole through the
center, and as far as could be learned, these last cases spoken of had
regular evacuations of the bowels each day. Many of the colons contained
large maggots from four to six inches long, and pockets of eggs and
maggots, while blood and pus were frequently present.”

The question is often asked, and naturally so, why this unnatural
accumulation is in the colon? The horse and ox promptly obey the call of
nature; they know no time or place, and are blessed with clean colons.
So are the natives of Africa. But the demands of civilized life insist
upon a time and place. Business, etiquette, opportunity, and a thousand
and one excuses stand continually in the way, and nature’s call is put
off to a more convenient season.

How many people are not presentable to themselves or friends, owing to
the putrid smell of their bodies, so that in polite society strong
colognes and other perfumes are used. Show me a woman who girts her
waist with corsets or any tight clothing, and I will warrant you that
the smell from her body will be sickening in the extreme. The special
reason for this is, that the lacing comes immediately where the
transverse colon crosses her body. Now, if the sigmoid-flexure becomes
loaded, because of its folding upon itself, how much more will the
transverse colon become clogged if unnaturally folded upon itself by
compression from each side folding it, as demonstrated in some
instances, almost double the whole length, into two extra elbows, where
it, if natural, is straight (see engraving on next page). Many reasons
have been given by physiologists and humanitarians, why it is injurious
for the lady to lace, but this reason outweighs them all. Wear the
clothing loose, clean out the colon and heal it up, and you will smell
sweet, and life will be a continual blessing; for if the main sewer of
the body is closed or clogged, nature has but three other outlets: the
capillaries or pores of the skin, the lungs in exhalation, or the
kidneys. If the colon is clogged, the penned-up acid permeations of the
stomach and duodenum will have to seek other outlets, which is indicated
by the putrid

[Illustration:

Normal colon. Arrows show course of fecal matter.

Abnormal colon contracted and bent into curves by pressure of corset.

Abnormal colon prolapsed. This condition may result from general low
vitality or from corset pressure.

a, caecum. b, ascending colon. c, hepatic flexure. d, transverse colon.
e, descending colon. f, f, f, sigmoid flexure. g, rectum. h, anus. i,
sphincter ani.]

smell of the body and a foul breath with finally dyspepsia, and what is
usually termed biliousness, torpid liver, etc.

The condition of the colon (the physiological sewer) in the average
adult having been demonstrated, does it need any argument to convince
the intelligent thinker that the most rational and practical manner of
dealing with this hot-bed of filth and breeding place of disease, is to
wash it out?

With me, it has passed beyond the theoretical stage, for I have in my
office fully 15,000 grateful letters from patients who have used this
process, under my direction, with the most astounding results; scarcely
a disease known to humanity, but has been relieved, and in ninety-five
per cent. of cases, cures effected; while tens of thousands of
gratifying messages have reached me from time to time; nor is the
testimony in its favor confined to the laity, for hundreds of physicians
(including some of the most prominent authorities) testify to the
wonderfully beneficial results achieved by its use.

We now come to the most important feature of the subject--the means for
putting it into practice, for it will readily be admitted that such an
admirable and common-sense method of treatment should have the most
perfect means procurable for its application, but until the present time
the available means have remained crude and undeveloped. This, however,
is scarcely to be wondered at. It is the history of all important
discoveries.

Those great natural forces, steam and electricity, although their value
was recognized, yet required the aid of inventive genius to develop
their possibilities; in fact, it has required three-fourths of a century
to bring the locomotive to its present state of perfection, while the
potentialities of electricity are as yet only surmised. This being so in
matters that offer a rich pecuniary harvest to the inventor, it is
little matter for surprise that improvement in a means of combating
disease should progress slowly. In the first place, it was a new
departure, unheralded to the world, and frowned upon by the members of
the orthodox medical schools; consequently there was no tempting bait of
a handsome profit to encourage the inventor, and until lately the
indifference to matters pertaining to health was proverbial.

When Dr. Hall commenced his famous experimentation upon himself, the
only appliance available for the purpose was the old-fashioned bulb
syringe, which is simply a flexible rubber tube with an egg-shaped
receptacle in the center. One end of the tube is inserted in the rectum,
while the other end is immersed in a vessel of water, the injection of
the fluid being accomplished by alternately compressing and relaxing the
bulbous portion. It is needless to say that the process of “flushing the
colon” copiously, _the only effectual way_, was a tedious, inconvenient
and imperfect matter with such a crude appliance. After the lapse of a
great number of years the “gravity” or “fountain” syringe was invented,
which consisted of a rubber bag with a long flexible tube attached to
its lower end. The bag was suspended from a nail or hook several feet
above the individual, the water being forced into the body by gravity,
the pressure being increased or diminished by raising or lowering the
bag. This was a distinct advance upon the bulb syringe, but it still
left a great deal to be desired. In the first place, they are both
exceedingly tedious, a serious objection in the case of weakly or
elderly people; secondly, both methods necessitate the uncovering of the
lower portion of the body, which is decidedly unpleasant; and, most
serious of all, it is impossible to prevent the admission of air into
the intestine, and that is a fruitful source of pain and discomfort. It
should, however, be borne in mind that both of these appliances were
devised for an entirely different class of operation (namely, vaginal
douching), and were only used for intestinal treatment because there was
nothing better at hand.

Another method, sometimes employed by progressive physicians, consists
in using, in connection with the fountain syringe, a tube from eighteen
to twenty-four inches in length, made of a firm but flexible variety of
rubber. This was introduced (its entire length) into the body, the
theory being that it was necessary to get behind the impacted mass and
force it out ahead of the water, which was theoretically correct, but in
practice found sadly wanting. In the first place, the opening in the eye
of the tube became clogged with the fæcal matter, and, secondly, with
the double tube employed for the return flow, the opening was too small
to allow of the passage of solid substances. The introduction of the
catheter is a process requiring considerable skill, and a perfect
acquaintance with the anatomy of the parts, so that personal use of it
is practically impossible, or, at least, attended with considerable
danger. An examination of the diagram of the digestive apparatus at the
beginning of the book will enable the reader to understand the
difficulties attending its introduction, since it has to pass the
sigmoid flexure (No. 12), and the splenic flexure--that angle of the
colon where the transverse portion turns to descend. With such a
tortuous road to travel, the risk of injury to the sensitive mucous
membrane is excessive--hence this instrument should never be used by the
patient upon himself.

The author, however, felt that there must be an easier and more
effective method of irrigating that important organ--the colon--and one
unattended with any risk, and determined, if possible, to devise some
better way. After much patient and tireless experimenting he invented
and perfected the “J. B. L. Cascade,” a mechanical appliance which
completely rids the process of all its objectionable features, and
enables young and old, weak and strong, to use the treatment without the
possibility of danger. It achieves the desired result far more
effectively than any other known apparatus, with the least possible
inconvenience to the patient, and yet so gently and easily that the
operation, so far from being distressing or disagreeable, becomes a
positive gratification.

The letters J. B. L. are the initials of the words Joy, Beauty, Life,
which aptly indicate its purpose and effects, for we confidently claim
that its use will infallibly confer these three great blessings, it
being the one safe and sanative method of regaining and preserving
health. Without health there is no joy in life, and perfect beauty
cannot possibly exist, while with health life becomes indeed worth
living.

One of the gravest objections to all the hitherto existing appliances
is the construction of the nozzle, or tube, that is inserted in the
body, and through which the water is conveyed. These are all (without
exception) made with an aperature in the end, or extreme tip, the
consequence being that a small jet of water is continuously directed
upon one spot in the delicate and sensitive mucous membrane. With water
at the necessary temperature this is a source of grave danger, and
likely to result in serious injury, by causing a separation of the
various layers of which the membrane is composed. When this separation
occurs little slits occur in the rectal lining, in which fæcal matter
lodges, ultimately forming what are known as pockets, causing, first,
irritation, then inflammation, and, finally, results in
“proctitis”--chronic inflammation of the intestinal canal. The best
authorities agree in condemning the direct jet, while rectal specialists
regard it as one of their chief aids to income.

With these facts in view, the construction of my “injection point,” or
entering tube, engaged the special attention, finally, with the result
that a most successful means of overcoming this dangerous objection has
been provided. Instead of the opening in the end, the tip is made
absolutely solid, so that the impact of the entering water is not felt
at all, while it is provided with six rows of perforations on the sides,
through which the water is evenly diffused over the walls of the rectum,
which is a most desirable thing in cases of hemorrhoids or rectal
inflammations. It is also so constructed that the natural constriction
of the sphincter muscles holds it firmly in position in the rectum, and
while affording the water free passage into the colon, it prevents the
escape of the fluid externally, thus rendering soiled garments
impossible.

But the simplicity of the operation is one of its chief advantages, for
the patient sits upon the appliance in ease and comfort while receiving
the cleansing stream, and by following the directions the time occupied
in the operation need not exceed fifteen minutes, or about one-fourth of
the time required by other methods--an unmistakably valuable saving of
time and strain to busy or weakly people. The faucet is considered by
experts as a most valuable feature, on account of the “dome” portion,
which accurately fits the natural arch formed by the limbs when the body
is in the seated position.

Many people are accustomed to use the bulb and fountain syringes in a
reclining position and some physicians recommend the patient to kneel in
the bath tub, with the body bent well forward: an irksome, disagreeable
position and quite unnecessary. The theory is, that the water will flow
into the body by gravitation, but they overlook the fact that the
ascending and descending portions of the colon, being parallel in the
body, the water, while flowing readily into the descending portions,
would have to flow uphill in the ascending portions and by the time it
reached there, the force would be exhausted. The weight of the body
furnishes greater force, which is proportioned to the size and bulk of
the patient, but is not perceptible to him, on account of the solid
construction of the tip of the “injection point,” while the steady,
uniform pressure exerted serves to distend the walls of the colon and
thus liberate adherent matter. By far the great majority of people,
however, use these crude appliances while seated over a vessel, which is
decidedly injurious. By reference to the diagram of the digestive organs
it will be seen that the “descending colon,” that portion which
terminates in the rectum, is larger than either of the other divisions
of that organ. In fact, its capacity (in the average adult) is about
three pints, equivalent to three pounds. Now this weight, in a flexible
organ like the colon, must cause a sagging down, exerting a serious
strain upon its attachments to the abdominal wall, and by its pressure
upon the sphincters will induce prolapse of the rectum. That is one
reason why so many people find it almost impossible to receive enough
water to make the treatment successful. When a physician, or trained
nurse, is administering a high enema, it is a common practice to hold a
folded towel against the rectum, to guard against this pressure and its
possible results. The “dome” portion of the faucet (previously referred
to) affords the desired support, automatically and effectually prevents
any prolapse; while the handle of the faucet, projecting forward,
between the limbs, may be manipulated with the greatest ease in
controlling the flow of water; and, being seated on a warm cushion, the
patient experiences a pleasant, soothing sensation, which completely
allays any nervousness.

Moreover, realizing the immense advantage to be obtained by attacking
the germs of disease in their chief breeding place, an antiseptic
preparation is introduced into the water used in this remedial process,
which completely and speedily destroys the germs of disease; but
although so potent in its action upon micro-organic life, it is
perfectly harmless, even though a hundred times the necessary quantity
should be forced into the intestinal canal. But it is not alone a germ
destroyer, for it possesses admirable tonic properties, which act upon
the muscular coat of the colon and speedily restores it to its normal
condition.

Defecation, or the expulsion of waste substance from the bowel is
accompanied by the contraction of the circular fibres of the said
muscular coat, but when constipation has existed for any length of time,
the accumulated matter adhering to the walls of the colon renders that
organ partially, if not wholly rigid, hence the difficulty of
evacuation; consequently, through disuse, the muscles become to a
certain extent atrophied, and require stimulation to resume their
natural function even after the colon has been cleansed. It is largely
owing to the use of this antiseptic “tonic” that the “Cascade Treatment”
has been so successful in cases of obstinate constipation, as by its use
the intestine speedily regains tone and power.

I unhesitatingly assert that if the colon be regularly cleansed and
disinfected by this means, any bacilli or bacteria that may have
obtained a lodgment in the system will be quickly destroyed and
expelled--it cannot be otherwise.

And once the germs of disease are destroyed and their chief breeding
place kept clean by this simple process, and the re-absorption of
poisonous liquid waste into the system thus prevented, Nature, the great
physician, will speedily assert itself and effect a restoration to
health.


                       NOTE.

     If the water is not readily expelled do not attempt to force it out
     by straining. Instead, flatten in the abdomen by forcibly
     contracting the abdominal muscles.




PART IV.

HOW TO USE IT.


Having endeavored to show the true nature of disease, the rational
method of treating it, and the superiority of the “Cascade” over all
previously existing methods for carrying the treatment into effect, it
may be well to explain the actual manner of using the “Cascade.”

In the first place, the reservoir should be thoroughly washed out with
slightly warm water, to get rid of the factory dust. At one time it was
the practice to cleanse them all thoroughly before fitting them, but
purchasers got the impression that they had been used by other persons,
so it was decided to abandon that practice and send them out with the
dust of the factory in them, in proof of their newness.

Having cleansed the reservoir, the faucet should be shut off and a
level teaspoonful of the antiseptic tonic dissolved in a little warm
water in a cup or glass and poured into the reservoir, which should then
be completely filled with water as hot as the hand can comfortably bear;
not to simply dip the fingers in and withdraw them, but so that you can
immerse the hand and allow it to remain without discomfort. If tested
with a thermometer the water should be from 100 to 105 degrees Fahr.,
but the hand is a safer guide, as it prevents any possible danger from a
thermometer out of order, or mistaking a figure in a poor light. If
tested by the hand you are absolutely safe, since water can be used
twenty degrees hotter internally than externally, but in its passage
from the body it would be painful to the external parts. Hot water is
the best solvent for impacted fæcal matter, and, on the other hand,
water below the temperature of the body is likely to cause pain. If the
hands are impervious to heat, an excellent plan is to test the water
with the tip of the elbow, which is a most sensitive part of the body.

It is necessary that the reservoir should be absolutely full to insure
the exclusion of air, as that is also likely to cause pain, and, in
addition, its presence is likely to prevent the proper reception of the
water, as, according to an established law in physics, two bodies cannot
occupy the same space at the same time. For this reason it is advisable
to solicit the bowels before taking the treatment, as, if even no fæcal
matter is expelled, pent-up gases are frequently liberated.

The reservoir having been filled as directed and the above directions
carefully observed, the “Cascade” should be laid down and the “injection
point” screwed in. It is then ready for use. Being all ready, the stick
of rectal soap should be dipped in water--to moisten it--inserted in the
rectum and withdrawn. This is simply to lubricate the passage and
facilitate the admission of the “injection point.” Then, standing in
front of the seat on which the “Cascade” is lying (as if preparing to
sit down), pass the left hand between the lower limbs and grasp the
handle of the faucet, to guide the “injection point” into the rectum,
and then carefully sit down upon the “Cascade.” When the “injection
point” has been completely introduced and you are comfortably seated,
relax the muscles and allow the whole weight of the body to rest freely
on the “Cascade,” and turn on the faucet, partially at first, then,
after a few seconds, turn it on fully and you will readily receive the
water.

The most convenient place to use the “Cascade” is in the bathroom,
placing it on the closet seat; or you will find the ordinary bedroom
“commode” a suitable article for the purpose, but if neither of these
are available, then any firm seat, such as a wooden-seated chair, will
do, but taking care to have a vessel at hand in which to discharge the
contents of the bowel.

As soon as the faucet is turned on and the water begins to flow into the
body, proceed to practise the following movements: Commencing in the
right groin, stroke firmly but gently, right across the pelvis, or lower
edge of the abdomen, to the left groin, then directly upward with the
hands to a point just above the umbilicus, or navel, then straight
across the body and down to the right groin. These movements are
directly over and along the course of the colon, and if they are made
gently but firmly, the water will be assisted on its course. A study of
the diagram of the digestive apparatus at the commencement of the book
will be of great assistance in enabling you to understand the reason for
and the method of these movements.

It sometimes happens that after a small quantity of water has been
injected there is a strong desire to expel it, which is sometimes due to
nervousness, induced by the novelty of the operation. If this be so,
shut off the faucet at once and resist the inclination, when, in a few
minutes, the desire will have passed away, then turn on the faucet
again. Be sure to allow the full weight of the body to rest on the
“Cascade,” and have no fear. It is the weight of the body itself that
furnishes the motive power and to ease up the pressure defeats the
object.

As soon as all the water has entered that you feel it possible to
receive, turn off the faucet, rise from the “Cascade,” sit over the
closet, or vessel, and allow the contents of the bowel to escape. At the
same time repeat the stroking movement previously described, but this
time reverse it, commencing in the right groin, up, across and down to
the left groin. These movements have a three-fold object: they assist
the water in its passage backward and forward, thus shortening the time
of the treatment; they force along the accumulated matter in the colon
with the current of water, and help to dislodge adherent matter from the
walls of the colon.

As we proceed on the assumption that the colon is more or less impacted
(which experience shows), we do not anticipate that more than two quarts
will be received at the first treatment, but as the accumulations are
removed by successive treatments, the capacity of the colon is
increased, so that at the end of the second week enough should be
received to completely fill the colon. The amount of water varies, of
course, with the bulk of the individual, but the capacity of the colon,
in the average well-grown adult, is about four quarts, but even in the
case of a person below the average size, it may safely be assumed that
three quarts of water are absolutely necessary for a successful
treatment.

The presence of from three to four quarts of water in the body will
naturally distend the abdomen and produce a little discomfort, but no
apprehension of any harmful result need be entertained. Rest assured of
this: it is absolutely impossible to rupture the colon, unless you were
to use a force pump, and even then, before the point of rupture could be
reached, the pain would be so intense that you would be compelled to
desist. Again, as we have pointed out, the colon is a wonderfully
elastic organ, and it would be an impossibility to distend it with water
to the same extent that it is frequently distended by fæcal
accumulations.

Whenever pain is present during the treatment it is usually due to one
of two things: either the water has not been sufficiently hot, or the
reservoir has not been completely filled, but, if in spite of these
precautions, pain should be present, it will be found advisable, after a
small quantity of water has been injected (say from a pint to a quart)
to shut off the faucet, rise from the “Cascade” and expel it; then, upon
returning to the “Cascade,” it will usually be found that the cleansing
of the lower portions of the bowel has removed the trouble. The same
method of procedure holds good when there is any difficulty in injecting
the water. In cases where pain is persistent, even although all
precautions are taken (although such are extremely rare), a decoction of
anise seed, made by steeping a tablespoonful of the seed in a pint of
boiling water, added to the water used for flushing (omitting the
antiseptic tonic), will act as an anodyne on the intestine, and
completely subdue the pain.

The frequency with which the treatment is used will depend upon the
nature of the trouble and the length of time it has existed. In the
great majority of cases it is recommended to be used as follows when
commencing the treatment: The first week use it every night; the second
week every alternate night; after that use it twice a week, or as
occasion seems to demand it. For the simple preservation of health,
twice a week will be found amply sufficient. After using the “Cascade”
it will be found extremely beneficial to inject from a half pint to a
pint of cool water and retain it. This will be found not only a valuable
rectal tonic, but an excellent diuretic as well, as it will pass off by
way of the kidneys, cleansing and purifying those organs.

The “Cascade” should not be used within three hours after eating a full
meal, as, if both the stomach and transverse colon are distended at the
same time they press upon each other, and the stomach, being the more
sensitive of the two, nausea is likely to be produced; but although
(with the above proviso) the treatment can be used with benefit at any
period during the twenty-four hours, yet, just before retiring at night
is by far the best time to take it, for several reasons. Firstly, it is
usually the most convenient time for the majority of people. Secondly,
it invariably induces a good night’s rest; for no sleeping potion can
equal its effects in that direction. Thirdly, night is Nature’s
repairing season, when she is busy making good the ravages of the
day--replacing the waste by building fresh tissue and by putting the
system into a cleanly condition and purifying the blood current; at that
season you are co-operating with Nature and may confidently expect, and
will undoubtedly secure, the best results.

After using the “Cascade” it is quite possible that there may not be a
movement of the bowels until late the following day. This must not be
considered as evidence of constipation, but simply a lack of matter to
discharge. In a perfectly natural condition of existence there should be
at least two movements of the bowels during the day, but it must be
remembered that the human system has acquired bad habits, and it will
require some time before perfect conditions are re-established. If,
however, from a half pint to a pint of hot water is sipped in the
morning, certainly not less than half an hour before breakfast, it will
stimulate the bowels to action, even though the “Cascade” had been used
the night before, while its cleansing effect upon the stomach will
assist the digestive functions in a marked degree.

       *       *       *       *       *

It may be accepted as a truism that success invariably excites envy,
therefore, it is but reasonable that the astounding results that have
attended this method of treatment should have aroused a certain amount
of antagonism. The hardy individual who dares to propose a new departure
in the method of treating disease must be prepared to hear his theories
ridiculed, his system denounced, and, possibly, his motives impugned.
Consequently, it is not surprising that the “Cascade Treatment” has some
objections urged against it.

The first objection I am confronted with is, “it is not natural.” I
willingly concede that point, and will add that neither is an obstructed
and engorged colon natural.

We are living (in a large measure) an artificial life. In his barbaric
state man obeyed the calls of nature without regard to time or place,
and it is safe to assert that under those conditions an obstructed colon
was an unknown quantity. But in deference to the demands of civilized
life we disregard Nature’s calls and defer the response until a
convenient opportunity presents itself, and for this violation of
natural law, a penalty is inflicted.

An obstructed colon, therefore, being itself unnatural, man is obviously
justified in using the brains that Nature has endowed him with to
cleanse it. An artificial limb is unnatural, but would the same
objection hold good that because a man has had the misfortune to suffer
amputation, he must, therefore, limp through life on crutches, rather
than use the mechanical substitute that man’s ingenuity has devised?

Common sense teaches us, and experience has amply confirmed the
teaching, that flushing is not only the easiest, but the most effectual
means of accomplishing this purpose; and it is unmistakably the most
harmless, inasmuch as we use Nature’s most simple and effective
cleansing agency in the process--pure water. Sickness is in itself
unnatural, and until the system can be restored to its natural condition
reason plainly shows us that we must co-operate with Nature and assist
in removing these impurities from the system, a task which our disregard
of her warnings has prevented her from accomplishing. Cathartics simply
excite the excretory processes, and stimulate Nature to a violent effort
to expel them, the unnatural exertion being followed by a feeling of
languor, for all purgative action is debilitating. Flushing, on the
contrary, acts directly on the accumulated matter in the colon (which
cathartics never do), and, instead of causing an unnatural excitation of
any of the natural processes, it induces a calm, restful feeling and a
sense of profound relief.

“It is a debilitating practice,” the objectors urge. Here, again, I join
issue. I am in a position to prove a decided negative.

I have the evidence of thousands of people to the contrary--people who
have tested the treatment, and, setting aside the weight of testimony,
even the most prejudiced mind must admit, that actual, _personal_
experience is more to be relied on than unsupported theory.

Dr. Forrest said that his patients who had used the treatment for
months, and even years, had steadily gained in strength and flesh all
the time.

Another favorite objection is that “it causes the intestines to become
weakened and dependent upon this unnatural method.” To this I reply that
it is a well-known fact that at least fifty per cent. of people in
civilized (?) communities are slaves to the purgative habit, the system
refusing to fulfil its functions without this unnatural excitation;
therefore, if dependence must be placed in something, we should
unhesitatingly give the preference to water, as against cathartics, but
the whole weight of evidence shows that the objection has no foundation
in fact.

On this subject Dr. Forrest said: “Flushing the colon does not cause a
weakening of the intestines. When this procedure is no longer necessary,
owing to restored health, the intestines have also been restored and
improved in tone and will carry on their functions unaided.”

Dr. Stevens, who has used the treatment upon himself and patients for
over twenty years, says that it in no wise interferes in his case with
the normal movement of the bowels. To test it in this respect he has
frequently discontinued its use for a week, with the result of a regular
movement, as soon as enough fæcal matter had accumulated to demand it.

He recommends flushing every two or three days as a preventive of
disease. For over twenty years he has practiced flushing upon himself as
a precaution, and, although now between seventy and eighty years old,
since beginning its use he has never known a day of sickness.

It is contended by some people, including a percentage of physicians
(who should know better), that the frequent use of this treatment will
so stretch the colon that it will remain permanently distended. This
argument is so totally opposed to physiological law, to say nothing of
experience and common sense, that it is almost laughable. The veriest
tyro in the matter of exercise knows that exercise develops a muscle;
that repeated flexion and extension of the arm, for instance, will
strengthen the muscles of that limb, not cause them to lose their
contractibility. All muscle fibres are alike in structure, except that
some are voluntary, others involuntary, but that difference is simply
due to the difference in the source of nerve supply. There is no reason
that can be shown why the muscles of the colon should lose their
elasticity through exercise in contra-distinction to all the other
muscles of the body, since they are not subjected to any extraordinary
strain, the extreme tension only lasting for a few seconds, while as
soon as the water commences to escape, relaxation follows, and, in
addition, heat acts as a stimulant. The objection does not even merit
serious consideration.

“It operates against peristalsis,” we are told. I deny it, for the
energy evinced by the intestine in expelling the water is proof of
increased peristaltic vigor, if it is proof of anything. And even if it
did suspend peristalsis for a few minutes, is it not a fact that other
natural functions can be suspended for a much longer period, only to be
resumed with unabated vigor?

Equally absurd, and destitute of foundation, in fact, is the objection
frequently advanced that the washing of the interior surface of the
colon is injurious; as it washes away the fluid that Nature secretes for
the purpose of lubrication.

Where, in the name of common sense, do they get their authority for such
a statement? Do they not know that such a contention is in direct
opposition to physiological law? Does bathing the external surface of
the body prevent the further excretion of perspiration; or bathing the
eyes destroy the functions of the Meibomian glands? Does the drinking of
water prevent any further discharge of saliva into the mouth, or of
gastric juice into the stomach? If the washing away of a secretion
destroyed the power of the secreting gland, human existence would be
brief indeed.

The truth is, that not one in ten thousand has any practical knowledge
of the subject. They may possess a smattering, and in the endeavor to
make it show to advantage, they draw upon their imagination to supply
the deficiency. On the other hand, I have been making this subject a
constant study for the past twenty years, having had experience in
thousands of cases, and, therefore, contend that my opinion is of more
value than that of the average man--whether physician or layman--and is
at least entitled to respectful consideration.

Whether the practice of the treatment is to be persisted in will, of
course, depend upon the nature and habits of the patient. If the
pernicious habits that caused the trouble are not abandoned, a constant
resort to the treatment will be necessary. If the patient is naturally
of a costive habit, and has thoroughly weakened his intestines by a
reckless and indiscriminate use of cathartics, it will require a long
persistence in reformed habits before the weakened bowels will have
gained sufficient strength to fulfil their functions normally.

It is advisable for elderly people to use it more or less continuously
throughout life, for with advancing years the bowels naturally become
less active, and this simple process offers a valuable means of
assistance to flagging nature at the cost of little, if any, exertion;
in fact, after a little experience no more will be thought of using the
“Cascade” than of taking a meal.

I would strictly impress on the minds of those who propose to give this
treatment a trial that, like every other undertaking in life,
thoroughness and persistence are absolutely indispensable to success. No
great end was ever yet achieved except by hard work, conscientiousness
and perseverance, and these three factors are in the highest degree
necessary to restore health to a system from which it has long been
estranged.

If a chronic, deep-seated disease can be cured in a year, by a home
process, so simple that a child can understand and practise it, the
individual so benefited should consider himself or herself most
fortunate; and few will deny that the end in view--restoration to
health--is a full and ample recompense for the thorough and persistent
effort necessary to attain it. If it were a question of large pecuniary
profit to the patient, it is scarcely necessary to say that every nerve
would be strained to its utmost tension to bring the coveted prize
within his grasp; yet here the reward is of infinitely greater value, a
prize compared with which riches are as dross in comparison with gold.
It is Health, without which the acquisition of Wealth, is well-nigh
impossible, and its possession as profitless to the possessor as Dead
Sea fruit.

I write thus strongly on this point because there is a large class of
people who dabble in every new system of treatment projected, and toy
with every medicinal device that is placed upon the market. They are the
class from whom the patent medicine vendor draws his enormous annual
profits. Like a bee in a garden of roses, they flit from one remedy to
another, but, unlike that energetic and acquisitive insect, _they_ do
not gather the golden reward they are in search of--health. It is the
purveyor of the nostrum that secures whatever there is of gold.

They seem to be utterly incapable of continuity of effort, and, unless
they can discern a marked improvement within a week after commencing a
fresh method of treatment, get discouraged and abandon it. To this class
of people I say, in the most emphatic manner, that if they propose to
give this great remedial process a trial and expect to derive benefit
from it, that the cure rests entirely in their own hands.

They must persevere. They must be thorough. They must not expect
miraculous results in a few days. Their diseased condition is the growth
of months, perhaps years, and it is the height of unreasoning folly to
expect to be cured in a few weeks. A merchant whose business has been
crippled and who starts in to rebuild it, will consider himself an
extremely fortunate man if, by watchful and untiring endeavor, he can
restore it to a sound and healthy condition in a few years. Growth is
necessarily slow--and this is especially the case with the human system.
Nature will not be hurried. But of one thing they may rest assured, and
that is that if they conscientiously and persistently practise this
simple hygienic treatment they will find Nature a responsive and willing
coadjutor.

“Heaven fights on the side of the strongest battalions,” is a military
aphorism, and Nature ranges herself on the side of the individual who
co-operates with her most faithfully, who, in the struggle for the
regaining of health, brings the greatest amount of determination and
perseverence to the encounter.

What these irresolute dabblers in “medical fads” need most of all is to
be inoculated with good, sound common sense, but until some method is
discovered for the accomplishment of that psychological feat, they will
continue to run hither and thither after every new remedy, dallying with
all, and deriving benefit from none.

Perseverance in the treatment will achieve results that seem little
short of miraculous to those accustomed to the “hit or miss” methods
that have so long been in use. And, best of all, the benefit attained
will be permanent, for the system being thoroughly cleansed, and kept
so, nothing but fresh, firm, healthy tissue is formed, so that after a
year’s conscientious treatment the person practising it will be
practically a new being.


IMPORTANT SUGGESTIONS.

In dealing with the subject of constipation, which is the most prevalent
of all disorders of the body, and is, in fact, the fundamental cause of
ninety per cent. of human ills: the importance of drinking freely of
water, from one to two hours after eating a meal, cannot be
over-estimated, and most essential of all is the glass of water, half an
hour before breakfast. If the digestion is faulty, the morning glass
should be hot and sipped slowly.

Dr. James C. Minor, in his clever book, “The Plan o’ the House o’ Man,
Sir,” makes an excellent suggestion which I heartily endorse, as
follows: “Never rise from rest without turning on the left side for a
few minutes (although an hour is better), to empty the contents of the
ascending colon to the transverse colon and thence to the descending
colon, which is on the left side of the body. Never lie on the left side
of the body while food, water or medicine is in the stomach.” If
attention be paid to these simple suggestions, much trouble may be
averted.




PART V.

PRACTICAL HYGIENE.


Of all the dangers by which we are menaced, none is so greatly to be
apprehended as ignorance. This is especially true with reference to
health. The majority of people fall easy victims to disease, simply
through ignorance of the fundamental principles that govern health. It
is because they do not rise superior to this ignorance concerning the
health of their bodies that they become the prey of the unscrupulous
charlatans who thrive upon the maladies of humanity, and the patent
medicine vendors whose specious advertisements beguile them of their
money. The humiliating part of it is that these same imposters (in a
large majority of cases) possess but little more knowledge of these
subjects than their dupes, but are absolutely devoid of conscientious
scruples. It behooves every intelligent individual to see that this
reproach is lifted from him. Knowledge is held to be a valuable
possession in every department of life; but in no instance will it yield
greater returns for the investment than in the field of hygiene--in
learning how to keep well.

It must not be imagined that because the treatment previously described
is such a wonderful curative and preventive of disease that nothing more
is necessary--that all other hygienic measures can be ignored. These
bodies of ours were given us for a nobler purpose than to be the sport
of our caprice or neglect. It is our duty to treat them as a divine
trust.

There is no reason why any human being should die before eighty at
least. With proper care the century mark should be reached in the
majority of cases. This may sound like an extravagant assertion, but it
is absolutely true. It all depends upon taking care of the human
machine. Ask an engineer how long a locomotive would last if drawn at
express speed every day, or if left standing idly on a siding! He will
tell you that overwork or disuse are fatal to mechanism, so far as its
capacity for lasting is concerned. Well, the most finished product of
man’s handiwork in machinery cannot begin to compare with that
wonderful, complex piece of mechanism--the human body; and if care will
prolong the life of the lifeless machine, the veriest dullard cannot
fail to perceive that the same rule applies with ten-fold force to the
human organism, which possesses within itself the power of
recuperation--a living machine, every atom of which is being daily
replaced as fast as the friction of life disintegrates it. If the
locomotive were capable of being reproduced in like manner--of having
the daily waste of substance replaced during rest by proper attention to
its needs--do you think its owners would ever allow it to wear or rust
out? Would they not bend every energy to prolong its existence
indefinitely? Most assuredly they would. And is the body, the earthly
habitation of the real man, of less importance to himself than the
creations of his own hands? Common sense says, “No!” But daily
experience shows us that the bulk of humanity are far less careful of
the earthly husk that shelters the divine _ego_ than of the machinery
that ministers to their wants. We repeat, there is no reason why man
should not live to be a hundred, or even more, if only proper care be
exercised. The hurry of modern life is fatal to the expectation of
longevity, so also is over-indulgence in the pleasures of the table,
which is one of the besetting sins of the present generation. If from
childhood the care of the human body was made the subject of constant
instruction, the second generation from now would see such a marked
change in the personnel of the race as would astound even the most
sanguine. What if a few less dollars were piled on each other? Which is
the more to be desired, a perfect, healthful physique, or a full purse?

To preserve the body in health is an easy matter, if the individual will
only bring the same thoughtful intelligence to bear on the subject that
he does on the ordinary affairs of life. The natural agencies for the
preservation of health are, as previously stated, Pure Water, Sunlight,
Fresh Air, Diet and Exercise. The first three are furnished “without
money and without price” by the all-wise mother, while the two last
simply require a slight exertion of will power, tempered with
intelligence.

Of the quintette of agencies mentioned above, water is one of the most
important. Water is the original source of all animal life. From it the
earliest species were evolved, and by the natural law of correlation, it
continues to be one of the most important factors in sustaining
existence. Water enters more largely into the composition of all organic
substance than the majority of people dream of, and this is notably true
of the human body. Few people realize that seventy per cent. of their
earthly tenement consists of the fluid in which they perform their
ablutions, yet such is the fact.

This important physiological truth should be carefully laid to heart,
for it accentuates the vital necessity of imbibing a sufficient quantity
of fluid daily to preserve the proportion in the system requisite for
health. Water is the only known substance that possesses the power of
permeating every cell and fibre of the living organism, without creating
disturbance or irritation. Water is, in fact, an indispensable necessity
for physical existence--its excess or deficit creating abnormal
conditions; but the latter is the more common condition. Being
universally present in all the tissues of the body, water is the
principal agent in the elimination of waste material from the body,
according to Nature’s plan--hence, for the preservation of health, every
adult should drink from two to three quarts of water per day, certainly
not less than two quarts. One of the remedial factors in the copious use
of water in “flushing the colon” is that a liberal percentage of it is
absorbed through the walls of the colon, directly into the circulation,
thus increasing the amount in the tissues, and causing more fluid to
pass through the kidneys--cleansing them.

Hot water is, in reality, a “natural scavenger,” but its virtues are
only imperfectly known. As a therapeutic agent it is almost without a
peer, and yet it is so little used that it is practically a dead letter.
Chemists are burning the midnight oil in their laboratories searching
for new weapons with which to fight sepsis, while hot, boiled water,
which is one of the best antiseptics in existence, is almost ignored. It
may be asked why (if it is such an invaluable remedial agent) it is not
more extensively used and advocated? In the first place, its merits are
not generally known. In the second place, physicians who know of its
value hesitate to prescribe it, for the reason that the majority of
patients expect the doctor to prescribe drugs, and are disappointed if
he does not. There is a tendency on the part of the majority of people
to slight that which is near at hand and easily obtained, in favor of
those things which are designated by mysterious titles, or are difficult
of attainment. Man has been so long accustomed to regard with a species
of awe the hieroglyphics on orthodox prescriptions, that he finds it
difficult to dissociate from it the idea of talismanic power.

But to return to its uses. Hot water used as a stomach bath (see
description in the appendix at end of book) is a valuable auxiliary in
the preservation and restoration of health.

By its means the stomach is cleansed of mucous accumulations and
particles of undigested food, thus enabling it to perform its functions
satisfactorily. If, as is often the case (more especially with
dyspeptics) undigested food remains in the stomach, it ferments, causing
what is known as sour stomach, and is productive of many evils. If we
keep the ferment out of the stomach by occasionally washing it, and
prevent the generation of foul gases in the colon, by regularly flushing
it, the bile will effectually prevent any fermentation in the
intestines; and with the body in this cleanly condition, sickness is
well-nigh impossible. But there are external applications of water,
which are equally important for the preservation of health, and first
and foremost is the bath.

It is a matter of authentic history that the most highly enlightened and
prosperous people of the world have been celebrated for their devotion
to the bath as a means of securing health and vigor--as a means of
curing disease, and preventing it, by promoting the activity of the
skin. The excavations at Pompeii show the devotion of the people to
luxurious bathing. The Romans are famous to this day for the
magnificence of their lavatories and the universal use of them by the
rich and poor alike. In Russia the bath is general, from the Czar to the
poorest serf, and through all Finland, Lapland, Sweden and Norway, no
hut is so destitute as not to have its family bath. Equally general is
the custom in Turkey, Egypt and Persia, among all classes from the Pasha
down to the poorest camel driver. Pity it is that we cannot say as much
for the people of our own country.

Most people are familiar with the aphorism, “cleanliness is next to
godliness,” a statement that by implication relegates cleanliness to the
second place, but we would transpose this stated sequence of conditions,
and assign the premier position to cleanliness; for we contend that
purity of soul presupposes purity of body. It is true that we sometimes
find a “jewel in an Ethiop’s ear,” but it is the exception that proves
the rule.

But it is not from the moral standpoint that we wish to consider the
subject of physical cleanliness, but from the hygienic. How few people
there are who are _really_ physically clean! The outward semblance of
cleanliness too frequently poses as the real article. Even people who
pride themselves on their cleanliness are frequently guilty of the
unclean practice of sleeping in the underwear they have worn during the
day, and would feel aggrieved if their unclean habit was called by its
right name. Yet, what can be more repulsive to the truly cleanly
individual than the retention, next the body, of garments saturated with
the constant exhalations from the system? Those who think this a
trifling matter, should turn their underwear wrong side outward (after
removing it) when retiring for the night, and in the morning shake it
thoroughly, when they will receive an object lesson in the form of a
cloud of dried effete matter, consisting largely of particles of the
epidermis, removed by abrasion, through the friction of the clothing.
This, being visible, appeals to the sense of sight; but gives no
evidence of the gaseous and liquid refuse matter which was deposited in
the material, and has been allowed to evaporate by the removal of the
clothing. Thus we may see how many so-called cleanly people fall
hopelessly short of true cleanliness.

If the individual keeps the surface of the body clean, by frequent
ablutions, the evil is lessened; but how many people bathe the body
daily? As Hamlet says: “It is a custom more honored in the breach than
the observance.” Among the white races of the earth, the English are the
greatest devotees of the daily tub, to which custom their ruddy
complexions are largely due; but Japan is pre-eminently in the lead in
the matter of daily bathing, for it is doubtful if there could be found
in the land of the “little brown people” a single individual who does
not bathe the whole body daily, unless physically incapacitated.

The skin is such an important excretory organ that the importance of
keeping its innumerable infinitesimal outlets free from obstruction
cannot be overestimated. As the structure of the skin may not be
understood by the average reader, we will briefly describe this
wonderful depurating organ, that the paramount importance of its
functions may be properly appreciated.

The skin consists of two layers, the derma, or true skin, and the
epidermis, or cuticle. It is the principal seat of the sense of touch,
and on the surface of the upper layer are the sensitive papillæ, which
receive and respond to impressions; and within, or imbedded beneath it,
are organs with special functions, viz., the sweat glands, hair
follicles and sebaceous glands. Its value as a means of depuration is
incalculable, as by it, vast quantities of the aqueous and gaseous
refuse matter is conveyed from the body. By the aid of a four diameter
magnifying glass applied to the skin of the palm of the hand, the
curiously inclined will observe that it is divided into fine ridges,
which are punctured regularly with minute holes. These are the mouths of
the sweat glands, and generally known as the pores of the skin. Their
function is to bring moisture to the surface of the skin; which is
secreted from the blood, and chemical analysis reveals the fact that
this moisture is always more or less loaded with worn-out and effete
matter. It is estimated that there are 3,800 of these glands in each
square inch of skin, and that their total length, in an ordinary person,
if placed end to end, would be ten miles. Then there are the sebaceous,
or oil glands, which oil the skin and keep it flexible. Now, as the
processes of destruction and upbuilding are perpetually going on in the
body, and the skin being one of the principal avenues by which the
refuse is removed, the vital necessity of keeping this organ perfectly
clean becomes apparent at once; for this refuse matter, if retained in
the system, acts as a poison, and furnishes food for disease germs to
feed upon.

It has been demonstrated by experiment upon dogs from which the hair had
been shorn, that a coat of varnish applied to the body (thus effectually
closing the pores), will cause death in a very short while. No better
object lesson could be given of the imperative necessity of keeping the
skin perfectly clean, if you wish to enjoy good health.

It is an easy matter to keep all these miles of tubing in a perfectly
natural and active condition, by a strict observance of the fundamental
principle--cleanliness. Bathe the body daily, complete immersion, if
practicable; if this is not possible, then sponge the body thoroughly,
all over; but if both methods are rendered out of the question by
circumstances, then adopt the best substitute, namely, vigorous friction
with a coarse towel.

We know it will be urged that the majority of people have not the time
or convenience for this daily process; but when sickness overtakes them,
they have to find time to submit to medical treatment, and in this, as
in other matters of everyday life, the cleanly individual who is
thoroughly in earnest, will “find a way, or make it.”

As to the temperature of the bath, that must, to a great extent, depend
upon the conditions of life, and the pre-disposition and susceptibility
of the individual; but the cold bath should always be employed in
preference to the warm bath, when conditions permit. The cold bath is a
powerful stimulant to the sympathetic nervous system, and as that is the
great regulator of nutrition, the value of cold bathing to those
afflicted with digestive disturbances will be readily understood, since
all the digestive and assimilative processes are quickened by it. The
glands of the stomach secrete more hydrochloric acid on account of this
stimulus, and a better quality of gastric juice being thus formed, not
only is the digestion improved, but the system is better enabled to
resist microbic invasion. The cold bath also stimulates the vaso-motor
system, which regulates the circulation, by contracting and dilating the
vessels, and increases the activity of the capillaries, or small blood
vessels. It thus increases the resisting power of the skin, by enabling
it to reheat the surface after a chill, and this is the reason why
people who habitually use the cold bath are practically proof against
“colds.”

People employed in sedentary occupations are especially benefited by the
cold bath, but should employ a hot bath for three or four minutes
beforehand. It is also especially beneficial to women, as, being an
excellent nerve tonic, it successfully combats all forms of nervous
weakness, and is an admirable preventive of hysteria.

Children under seven years of age do not bear the application of cold
water very well, and it is advisable not to use the water at a lower
temperature than 70° Fahr., and to employ friction constantly while
administering it; but after that age the temperature may be gradually
lowered. In old age the neutral bath, from 75 to 85° Fahr. will be found
the best for general use, accompanied by friction.

The bath, to be thoroughly beneficial, should be taken at one of the
three following portions of the day, immediately upon rising, about ten
o’clock, or just before going to bed. The early morning bath is,
however, immeasurably the best, and if cold, will be found a wonderful
aid in promoting health and vigor, and being such a necessity,
especially in the preservation of health, and the constant practice of
it, strongly urged, we append the following useful suggestions for
guidance:

A full meal should not be taken in less than half an hour after bathing.
Nor should a bath be taken in less than an hour and a half after eating
a full meal.

You can bathe with impunity in cold water when the body is perspiring
freely, as long as the breathing is not disturbed, nor the body
exhausted by over-exertion.

Never bathe in cool or cold water when the body is cold. First restore
warmth by exercise.

Always wet the head before taking a plunge bath, and the chest also, if
the lungs are weak.

In cases of sickness, where it becomes necessary to assist Nature in
ridding the system of impurities through the medium of the sweat glands,
the “wet sheet pack” will be found invaluable. It is usually regarded by
those imperfectly acquainted with its action as simply the chief factor
in a sweating process, but it is more than that. Not only does it open
up the pores and soften the scales of the skin, but it “draws” the
morbid matter from the interior of the body, through the surface to the
pores. It is of immense value in all cases of fever, especially bilious
fever.

It should be borne in mind that “flushing the colon” should always
precede the use of the “pack.”

If any one doubts the purifying efficacy of this process he can have a
“demonstration strong” by the following experiment: Take any man in
apparently fair health, who is not accustomed to daily bathing, who
lives at a first-class hotel, takes a bottle of wine at dinner, a glass
of brandy and water occasionally, and smokes from three to six cigars
per day. Put him in a pack and let him soak one or two hours. On taking
him out the intolerable stench will convince all persons present that
his blood and secretions were exceedingly befouled and that a process of
depuration is going on rapidly.

Full directions for the use of the pack will be found at the end of this
work.

It will be necessary to take into consideration the vitality of the
patient and regulate the temperature of the sheet accordingly. The best
time to use it is about ten in the morning, or nine in the evening.

The Turkish bath (see last page) is another important factor in
treating disease, also the hot foot bath, for all disturbances of the
circulation, cramps, spasms and affections of the head and throat. Hot
fomentations, which draw the blood to the seat of pain, thereby raising
the local temperature and affording relief, and wet bandages for warming
and cooling purposes will likewise be found valuable aids.

Humanity at large has never estimated water at its true value, yet all
the gifts in Pandora’s fabled box could never equal that one inestimable
boon of the Creator to the human race. Apart from its practical value,
there is nothing in all the wide domain of Nature more beautiful, for in
all its myriad forms and conditions it appeals equally to the artistic
sense. In the restless ocean, now sleeping tranquilly in opaline beauty
beneath the summer sun, now rising in foam-crested mountainous waves
beneath the winter’s biting blast, its sublimity awes us. In the mighty
river, rolling majestically on its tortuous course, impatient to unite
itself with mother ocean, its resistless energy fascinates us. In the
gigantic iceberg, with its translucent sides of shimmering green, its
weird grandeur enthralls us. In the pearly dew drop, glittering on the
trembling leaf, or the hoar frost, sparkling like a wreath of diamonds
in the moon’s silvery rays: in the brawling mountain torrent, or the
gentle brook--meandering peacefully through verdant meadows, in the
mighty cataract or the feathery cascade, in the downy snowflake, or the
iridescent icicle--in each and all of its many witching forms it is
beautiful beyond compare. But its claims to our admiration rest not
alone upon its ever varying beauty. When consumed with thirst, what
beverage can equal a draught of pure, cold water? In sickness its value
is simply incalculable--especially in fevers; in fact, the famous lines
of Sir Walter Scott, in praise of woman, might be justly transposed in
favor of water to read thus:

    “When pain and sickness wring the brow,
     A health-restoring medium thou.”

And, if we admire it for its beauty and esteem it as a beverage, how
inconceivably should these feelings be intensified by the knowledge that
its remedial virtues are in nowise inferior to its other qualities!

The next in importance of the great health agencies is Fresh Air.
Perhaps we ought to class it as the most important, for although people
have been known to live for days without water, yet without air their
hours would be quickly numbered. Air is a vital necessity to the human
organism, and the fresher the better--it cannot be too fresh. The oxygen
gas in the air is the vitalizing element. The blood corpuscles when they
enter the lungs through the capillaries are charged with carbonic acid
gas (which is a deadly poison), but when brought into contact with the
oxygen, for which they have a wonderful affinity, they immediately
absorb it, after ejecting the carbonic acid gas. The oxygen is at once
carried to the heart, and by that marvelous pumping machine sent
bounding through the arteries to contribute to the animal heat of the
body.

When it is taken into account that the lungs of an average sized man
contain upwards of six hundred millions of minute air cells, the surface
area of which represents many thousands of square feet, the danger of
exposing such a vast area of delicate tissue to the action of vitiated
air can be readily estimated. No matter how nutritious the food may be
that is taken into the stomach, no matter how perfect the processes of
digestion and assimilation are, the blood cannot be vitalized without
fresh air.

It is estimated that the blood is pumped through the lungs at the rate
of eight hundred quarts per hour, and that during that period it rids
itself of about thirty quarts of carbonic acid gas, and absorbs about
the same amount of oxygen. Think for a moment of the madness of
obstructing this interchange of elements which is perpetually going on
and on which life depends!

It is more especially during the hours of sleep that fresh, pure air is
needed, for that is when Nature is busiest, repairing and building up,
and calls for larger supplies of oxygen to keep up the internal fires,
but her efforts at repairing waste are rendered futile if you diminish
the supply of the vitalizing element and compel her to use over again
the refuse material she has already cast off.

The late Prof. Willard Parker, in a lecture delivered before a class of
medical students, made a very forcible illustration of how the air of a
room was vitiated, in the following impressive words: “If, gentlemen,
instead of air you suppose this room filled with pure, clean water, and
that instead of air you were exhaling twenty times a minute a pint of
milk, you can see how soon the water, at first clear and sparkling,
would become hazy and finally opaque; the milk diffusing itself rapidly
through the water, you will thus be able, also, to appreciate how, at
each fresh inspiration you would be taking in a liquid that grew
momentarily more impure. Were we able to see the air as we see the
water, we would at once appreciate how thoroughly we are contaminating
it, and that unless there be some vent for the air thus vitiated, and
some opening large enough to admit a pure supply of this very valuable
material, we will be momentarily poisoning ourselves, as surely as if we
were taking sewage matter into our stomachs.” Don’t leave the matter of
a good supply of air to servants. See to it yourself and see that you
are not robbed of it. It would be better to trust your eating to an
attendant than your breathing. Do that yourself.

In spite of the amount of literature devoted to sanitary matters, it is
astonishing how little is understood of the principles of ventilation,
and its supreme importance to the general welfare. We do not, of course,
refer to ventilation in its broadest scientific sense, such as the
securing of an adequate air supply in large auditoriums, for it is a
melancholy fact that even our prominent architects not only display a
pitiably deficient grasp of that phase of the subject, but of the
simple, yet fundamental principles of the science, which every
intelligent adult should be familiar with. How many heads of families,
for instance, can intelligently ventilate a sleeping room? They will
open a window for a few minutes in the morning, without opening the door
also, to create a current, and think that is amply sufficient to
displace the accumulated carbon dioxide and other substances inimical to
health. No wonder so many people are tormented by bad dreams! In
sleeping apartments the bed should be in the center of the room--never
near a wall. A current of air should be maintained, but without a
draught upon the bed. It is better to open the window two inches at the
bottom, and the same distance at the top, than to have it open for a
foot either at the top or bottom only. If, through inclemency of the
weather, or other causes, the window can only be opened for a few
minutes, then by waving the door back and forth rapidly ten or a dozen
times, the displacement of the vitiated air will be infinitely more
rapid and thorough. Considering the length of time that is spent in the
sleeping apartment, the paramount importance of a constant supply of
fresh air is readily perceived. No matter how perfect digestion and
assimilation may be, if the blood is not thoroughly oxygenated, the best
of foods fail of their intended effect. Even the least fastidious would
object to drinking water that had been used for washing purposes by
others; yet it is quite as objectionable to breathe air that is charged
with the waste products of bodies that may even be diseased. It is
impossible to overestimate the importance of ventilation.

Better let in cold air and put on more bedclothes, as long as you do not
sleep in a draught.

Oxygen keeps up the animal heat of the body, and you can really keep
warmer in a room with plenty of fresh air than in a close room where the
air is vitiated.

But in the sick room fresh air is of paramount importance, not only for
the patient, but for the attendants, who are otherwise compelled to
inhale the poisonous exhalations from the diseased body.

Let no consideration blind you, either in sickness or in health, to the
imperative necessity of plenty of fresh air.

The next great natural agency, and one to which scant attention is paid,
compared with its hygienic importance, is Light, but more especially
Sunlight.

Light is essential to life. If by some monstrous cataclysm the sun was
suddenly extinguished, it is impossible to conceive the misery that
would follow. In the event of such a fearful calamity it would require
but a very short time to depopulate the earth. We repeat, light is a
necessity of existence, and it behooves us all to allow it free access
to our dwellings. What if it does bleach carpets and draperies! Its
beneficent effects are not to be measured by yards of wool and silk.
Love of light is as instinctive as the aversion to darkness. Plants
growing in a dark cellar, where but one struggling ray of light enters,
will instinctively grow in the direction of that ray. It is questionable
whether defective lighting is not productive of as much physical
deterioration in the crowded tenement districts as defective
ventilation--certainly it is only secondary in degree. Light is
necessary. Light is free to all, and why human beings endowed with
reason should attempt to exclude it from their dwellings is a thing that
passes comprehension. Give the light free access to your dwelling. “Let
there be light,” is as imperative now as when the fiat went forth at the
dawn of creation.

But Sunlight is the great health-giving agent. The sun is the great
source of life. Its rays stimulate the growth of every living organism,
and there is no doubt but they exert a chemical action upon living
tissue with which we are as yet but imperfectly acquainted. This fact
has been recognized of late years, hence our winter resorts are
liberally supplied with sun parlors, in which those in quest of health
may enjoy the rejuvenating effect of solar heat without exposing
themselves to the inclemency of wintry weather. This is a revival of an
old Roman custom, for the more opulent of that nation had sun baths on
the roofs of their dwellings. Sunshine is as necessary to robust,
vigorous health as either air or water. Then seize the full enjoyment of
it whenever opportunity offers! It is a stimulant and tonic that has no
superior. Go forth into the sunlight on every possible occasion! It is
one of Nature’s greatest therapeutic agents, and she bestows it
ungrudgingly, without money and without price. If you are wise you will
avail yourself of her bounty.

Do not be afraid to let the sunlight penetrate your dwellings,
especially the morning sun. Thrifty housewives are prone to regard the
actions of the sun’s rays on their carpets and draperies as disastrous
in the extreme, but its exclusion from their dwelling is far more
disastrous to the health of the inmates. There is, of course, a happy
medium in all things, and, therefore, it is not necessary to have the
sun’s rays streaming in through every door and window during the whole
day; but the entire dwelling should be (as far as possible) thrown open
to the vivifying beams of old Sol for a couple of hours in the morning,
which at the same time will thoroughly ventilate the building. There is
more virtue in sunlight than most people are aware of. Its bactericidal
effects are only just beginning to be understood; but if you desire a
healthful dwelling, let God’s bright sunshine freely and frequently
penetrate every corner of it.

It is astonishing how few people there are who properly estimate the
hygienic value of the sun’s rays. A valuable lesson on this point may be
learned by observing the lower animals, none of which ever neglect an
opportunity to bask in the sun. And the nearer man approaches to his
primitive condition the more he is inclined to follow the example of the
animals. It is a natural instinct which civilization has partially
destroyed in the human race.

The effect of sunshine is not merely thermal, to warm and raise the heat
of the body; its rays have chemical and electric functions. As a clever
physician lately explained, it is more than possible that sunshine
produces vibrations and changes of particles in the deeper tissues of
the body, as effective as those of electricity. Many know by experience
that the relief it affords to wearing pain, neuralgic and inflammatory,
is more effective and lasting than that of any application whatever.

Those who have faceache should prove it for themselves, sitting in a
sunny window where the warmth falls full on the cheek.

For nervous debility and insomnia the treatment of all others is rest in
sunshine. Draw the bed to the window and let the patient lie in the sun
for hours. There is no tonic like it--provided the good effects are not
neutralized by ill-feeling. To restore a withered arm, a palsied or
rheumatic limb, or to bring a case of nervous prostration up speedily, a
most efficient part of the treatment would be to expose the limb or the
person as many hours to direct sunlight as the day would afford. With
weak lungs let the sun fall on the chest for hours. If internal tumor or
ulceration is suspected, let the sun burn through the bear skin directly
on the point of disease for hours daily. There will be no doubt left in
the mind that there is a curative power in the chemical rays of the sun.

For the chilliness which causes blue hands and bad color, resort to the
sun; let it almost blister the skin, and the circulation will answer the
attraction.

It is a finer stimulous than wine, electricity or massage, and we are on
the verge of great therapeutic discoveries concerning it.

Some years ago a London surgeon, by using the sun’s rays (presumably
with a lens), removed a wine mark from a lady’s face, and destroyed a
malignant growth in the same way.

Says Dr. Thayer, of San Francisco:

“During a practice of more than a quarter of a century I have found no
caustic or cautery to compare with solar heat in its beneficial results.
Unlike other caustics, it can be applied with safety on the most
delicate tissues and the system receives this treatment kindly. The
irritation and inflammation following are surprisingly slight and of
short duration, the pain subsiding immediately on removal of the lens.
There is a curative power in the chemical rays of the sun yet
unexplained.”

Women especially need to make systematic trial of the sun’s healing and
rejuvenating rays. The woman who wants a cheek like a rose should pull
her sofa pillows into the window and let the sun blaze first on one
cheek and then on the other, and she will gain color warranted not to
wash off.

Thus it will be seen that the curative properties of sunlight are in
nowise overestimated, but in cases of sickness its beneficial action is
purely supplementary. The system must first be thoroughly cleansed by
“flushing the colon,” then, the ground work of improvement being laid,
Fresh Air and Sunlight will prove themselves worthy and efficient
colleagues in the task of restoring health.

Singly, each is of intrinsic value, but inadequate to cope with disease
single-handed (although they may mitigate it), but combined they form a
Trinity so powerful that disease can never successfully oppose them.

The other two factors in Nature’s great Health curriculum, namely,
Exercise and Diet, will be considered under separate headings.




PART VI.

EXERCISE.


Motion is life. The health of both body and mind depend upon it.
Inaction means stagnation, a condition fatal to health. Hence the
necessity of exercise. As before stated, disuse is as fatal to a piece
of machinery as excessive use; in fact, it is far more likely to rust
out than to wear out. Activity is essential to life and health and can
never be prejudicial, provided that moderation is observed and the
muscular system not strained or overworked.

There are thousands of miles of minute tubing in the human body--the
arterioles, veins, capillaries and lymphatic vessels. They ramify
through every portion of the body tissues, the first carrying the
vitalized blood for nourishment of the parts, the second returning the
impure blood, charged with the waste of the structures, the third being
the intermediate stage between the first and second, while the fourth
and last, the lymphatic vessels, collect the surplus nutrition and
return it to the circulation. In addition the lymphatics assist in the
conveyance of effete matter. Whenever disease germs are present in the
system, they first manifest themselves in the lymph, but this fluid
being densely populated with phagocytes (white blood corpuscles), the
micro-organisms are speedily destroyed, if the body is in a healthy,
vigorous condition.

In view of the vital character of the fluids, activity of motion is
indispensable for the best performance of their separate functions and
exercise supplies the desired stimulus. Whenever a muscle is contracted
the blood is wholly or partially expelled from it proportionately to the
force of the contraction, and in its escape it carries with it the waste
material; but as soon as the muscle is relaxed fresh blood from the
arterial supply re-enters the structure, bearing fresh nutrition.

By a wise provision of Nature, the amount of nutrition supplied is
always in excess of the waste products removed; that is, all things
being equal, so that the more exercise a part is subjected to the more
nutrition it receives. This explains the unusual development of certain
parts of the body which are called into excessive use in certain
occupations. But this unsymmetrical development is a thing to be
avoided, as it is usually productive of certain deformities, such as
stoop shoulders and certain peculiarities of gait, which are plainly
noticeable in men employed in certain avocations.

The reason for this is perfectly simple, and may be expressed in two
words--unequal nutrition--for the muscles that are unduly exercised
appropriate the nutriment that should be equally distributed, so that
the neglected muscles become weakened and stiff. Hence, any system of
exercises designated to develop the body should be so arranged as to
call into play every muscle in the individual, thus insuring harmonious
development in every direction.

Muscular activity stimulates all the functions of the body. It has a
most beneficial effect upon all the vital processes, digestion,
assimilation and nutrition. The digestive powers work more briskly to
prepare the needed nourishment, and the blood circulates more rapidly to
carry the material for repair to the parts that need it, so that by
moderate physical exercise, judiciously distributed, the whole body is
built up and strengthened, and the result is a suppleness of frame and a
clearness of head that makes life indeed worth living.

To the invalid it is, of course, idle to talk of active exercise, but
there are certain forms of passive exercise accessible to such people.
Massage, for instance, which, judiciously administered, will do for the
sick, in a modified degree, what active exercise does for the
comparatively well. It will stimulate the circulation in the deeper
tissues, and set the various fluids of the body moving in a beneficial
manner. There is also a mild form of active exercise which may be
practised by those who have the misfortune to be confined to bed, and
that is by tensing the muscles; such as clenching the hands and
contracting the toes, also by gentle contraction of the arms and legs
alternately.

But one of the most important factors in quickening and stimulating the
movement of the fluids is exercising the lungs, and that can be
accomplished with a fair measure of success even by the bed-ridden.
Every time the chest cavity is emptied by the expiration of the breath a
partial vacuum is created which exerts a tremendous suction power. It is
one of the principal forces concerned in the return of the venous blood
to the heart, but it also exerts a like effect upon the lymphatic
current, hence deep breathing is a valuable exercise for those unable to
take any other.

In commencing the development of the body by any system of physical
culture, the first and most important thing to do is to develop the
lungs. Good lungs and good digestion go together. Before food can be
assimilated it must undergo oxygenation, which is neither more nor less
than chemical combustion. For this oxygen is necessary, which, uniting
with the carbon of the food, results in oxidation, and as the amount of
oxygen inhaled depends upon the capacity of the lungs, it will readily
be seen how much depends upon those organs. We cannot inhale too much
oxygen, while we can take too much food; therefore, the greater the lung
capacity the better the digestion.

We referred to the suction power of the empty chest cavity and its
stimulating effect upon the fluids of the body. Now, the greater the
lung capacity the greater the chest expansion and the vacuum produced by
expiration; consequently the stimulating effect upon the fluids is
correspondingly augmented.

Test your lungs by inhaling a full breath--inflate them to their full
capacity--if it makes you dizzy you are in danger and should proceed at
once to strengthen them. The following simple exercises will speedily
result in improvement and are easy to practice:


HOW TO EXERCISE THE LUNGS.

1. When in the open air, walk erect, head up, chin drawn in, shoulders
thrown back, thoroughly inflate the lungs and retain the air for a
second or two, then expel it gently. Practice this several times a day,
and if your employment keeps you in, make time and go out.

[Illustration: FIG. 1.]

2. The first thing in the morning and the last thing at night, when you
have nothing on but your underclothing, stand with your back against the
wall and fill the lungs to their utmost capacity, then--retaining the
breath--gently tap the chest all over with the open hands. Do this
regularly every morning and night, gently at first, but gradually
increasing the length of time for holding the breath and the force of
the blows as the lungs grow stronger.

3. Stand upright, heels touching, toes turned out. Place the hands on
the hips as in Fig. 1, the fingers resting on the diaphragm, the thumbs
in the soft part of the back. Now, inflate the lungs and force the air
down into the lower back part of the lungs, forcing out the thumbs. Do
this half a dozen times at first, gradually increasing the number. Women
seldom use this part of the lungs--tight dresses and corsets prevent
them.

4. While in the same position, fill the upper part of the lungs full,
then force the air down into the lower part of the lungs and back again
by alternately contracting the upper and lower muscles of the chest. Do
this repeatedly, for, besides being a good lung developer, it is an
excellent exercise for the liver.

5. Stand erect, as in Fig. 2, the arms hanging close by the sides, then
slowly raise the arms until they are in the same position as Fig. 2, at
the same time gradually taking in a full breath until the lungs are
completely filled, then, after holding the breath for a few seconds,
gradually lower the arms, at the same time gradually expelling the
breath. After doing this a few times--while the lungs are full--raise
and lower the arms several times quickly.

6. Hold the arms straight out (see dotted lines in Fig. 2), then slowly
throw them back behind you as far as possible, at the same time taking a
full breath, then bring them slowly back to the front, as at first,
expelling the breath while doing so. Do this several times, then fully
inflate the lungs, and while holding the breath move the arms backward
and forward, in the same way, but quickly. It is important to inflate
and empty the lungs fully and completely during this exercise.


COMBINATION LUNG AND MUSCLE EXERCISES.

7. First rotate the right arm in a circle, as in dotted lines in Fig.
2, downward in front of you a few times, then reverse the movement.
Next, thrust the shoulder back as far as it will go and rotate the arm
in the same manner. Follow with the left arm in the same manner, then
both alternately, but at the same time relax the arms completely,
allowing them to become perfectly limp, at the same time filling and
emptying the lungs completely.

[Illustration: FIG. 2.]

[Illustration: FIG. 3.]

8. Lie flat on the floor, face downward, with the elbows bent and the
palms of the hands flat on the floor by the sides, body fully extended.
Then, keeping the body perfectly rigid, raise it up by the muscles of
the arms alone, until it only rests on the arms and toes, then lower the
body gradually until the chest touches the floor, at the same time
exercising the lungs to their fullest extent. This may be practiced on a
bed or couch to commence with, and should be taken slowly at first,
until it can be done half a dozen times without discomfort.

9. Stand as in Fig. 3, fill the lungs completely and force the air down
into the lower part of the lungs, as in Exercise 3. Then, keeping the
lower limbs perfectly stiff, with muscles tensed, bend the body forward
from the middle of the trunk (see dotted lines in Fig. 3, in front), and
while doing this empty the lungs quickly. Then straighten up again, at
the same time filling the lungs. This should be repeated from 6 to 12
times. Then repeat the operation, but bending backward instead of
forward, paying careful attention to the emptying and filling of the
lungs. Then, with the lungs full and breath retained, move the body
backward and forward quickly several times.

[Illustration: FIG. 4.]

10. Retaining the same position as in last exercise, move the upper
part of the body to the right a few times, then a few times to the left,
after each movement returning to the upright position. Then move in the
same manner from right to left, alternately. By referring to Fig. 4, you
will readily understand the nature of these movements, which not only
benefit the lungs, but impart grace and suppleness to the body.

11. Still retaining the attitude as shown in Fig. 4, press the arms and
elbows forward as far as possible, at the same time expelling the
breath; then press them backward as far as it is possible to force them,
at the same time inflating the lungs to their fullest extent.


ARM AND FINGER EXERCISES.

Completely relax the muscles of the fingers and hands, letting the hands
hang limply from the wrists, then shake them up and down and from side
to side, as if cracking a whip. Then rotate them from the wrists, as
shown in Fig. 5. These movements should all be made with great rapidity,
the hands being rendered as near lifeless as possible.

[Illustration: FIG. 5.]

Next, with the upper part of the arm held out at a right angle from the
body, and the forearm hanging downward, completely relax the muscles of
the elbow. Then shake and rotate the whole of the forearm in the same
manner as described for the hands.


SHOULDER AND ARM EXERCISES.

[Illustration: FIG. 6.]

[Illustration: FIG. 7.]

[Illustration: FIG. 8.]

Allow the arms to hang by the side, now press the shoulder as far back
as it will go, then as high as it will go, then forward as far as it
will go, and drop it again, then rotate it several times. Do the same
with the left, then both together. Strike out with the right hand,
tightly clenched, then the left, then both together. Repeat
horizontally, right and left, then straight up overhead, then down by
the sides.


EXERCISES FOR THE NECK.

14. If Figures 6, 7 and 8 are carefully studied, no explanation will be
needed. The principal thing to be observed is to keep the body perfectly
rigid and use the muscles of the neck only. It is a most valuable
exercise and should be carefully and faithfully practiced.


HIP AND LEG EXERCISES.

15. Assume the position indicated in Fig. 4, but keep all the muscles of
the body (with the exception of the muscles of the hips) perfectly
rigid. Now, without bending the knees, bend the body forward as far as
you can several times, then backward several times, then to each side
successively. Make the bending movements several times in each
direction, and be careful not to relax the muscles other than those of
the hips; and to conclude the exercise rotate the hips round and round.

[Illustration: FIG. 9.]

16. Relax the muscles of the right leg, keeping all the other muscles
firmly tensed. Then swing the leg from the hip joint, like a pendulum,
backward and forward, as shown in Fig. 9. Try to do this without
support,

[Illustration: FIG. 10.]

[Illustration: FIG. 11.]

[Illustration: FIG. 12.]

balanced on the one leg, as it materially assists in developing the
muscles. Then repeat with the left leg. Next, relax the muscles of the
leg from the knee downward, keeping the muscles of the thigh rigid, and
swing the leg backward and forward from the knee only (see dotted lines
in Fig. 10), and increase the number of movements each day, as the
muscles gain strength and you gain experience.

Figures 11 and 12 illustrate some excellent leg exercises, which bring
into play certain muscles which usually receive but little exercise, and
may be practiced with great advantage.


ANKLE AND FOOT EXERCISE.

17. Stand upright, holding yourself firmly and stiffly, then raise
yourself up and down on your toes.


WHOLE BODY EXERCISE.

1. Raise the arms above the head, alongside the ears, then bring them
down with a steady sweep, without bending the knees, until the fingers
touch the floor. Be sure to relax the muscles of the neck and allow the
head to hang.

2. Place the hands upon the breast and drop the head backward, a little
to one side, then bend the body backward as far as possible.

3. Curve the right arm above the head, toward the left shoulder, and
allow the weight of the body to rest on the left leg, the right foot
being carried slightly outward. Allow the body to hang down as far as
possible on the left side, without straining too much. Then reverse the
movement. (See Fig. 13.)

[Illustration: FIG. 13.]


STRETCHING

Is quite a luxury, but few people know how to do it.

[Illustration: FIG. 14.]

Stand in the position indicated in Fig. 14. Then raise yourself on the
tips of your toes and try your best to touch the ceiling. You will
appreciate this exercise as a relaxation.


THE ART OF STANDING PROPERLY

Is only imperfectly understood by the majority of people, and yet it is
the key to a graceful carriage, an accomplishment that most people
desire to possess, especially ladies. Figures 15 and 16 will serve to
illustrate what is necessary to acquire this art and to emphasize the
difference between the correct and the incorrect methods.

[Illustration: FIG. 15.]

[Illustration: FIG. 16.]

[Illustration: FIG. 17.]


THE ART OF GRACEFUL WALKING

Is the natural sequence of correct attitude in standing and may be
readily acquired by attention to the illustrations and instruction given
here. Stand against the wall, as shown in Fig. 17, with the heels,
limbs, hips, shoulders and head all touching and draw the chin inward to
the chest. When in this position you will find it uncomfortable, mainly
because it is incorrect. Gently free yourself from the wall by swaying
the body forward, from the ankles only, keeping the heels touching. You
will then be in the correct position, and should walk off, carefully
maintaining it. This exercise, if constantly practiced, will give you an
easy and graceful carriage that will be the envy of your less fortunate
acquaintances.

In the foregoing list of exercises we have carefully omitted all those
requiring apparatus of any kind, selecting only such as can be practiced
in the privacy of your own room, without assistance from an instructor
or paraphernalia of any kind. Dumb bells, Indian clubs, etc., are
valuable after a certain degree of muscular improvement has been
attained, but when that point is reached we should advise the individual
to join a gymnasium and practice further development under a competent
instructor.

All the exercises given have been proved of great value in building up
the system, and are designed as aids to the preservation of health and
the upbuilding of weakly people--not to develop trained athletes. These
exercises bring into play a number of muscles that are not called into
general use, and thus promote harmonious development of the whole body.




PART VII.

THE DIET QUESTION.


As we have already stated, the human system is in a state of constant
change. Disintegration of tissue is taking place during every moment of
existence, and the preservation of health depends upon the prompt
elimination of the waste material. But the destruction of tissue, due to
the daily friction of life, must be made good, and this replacement of
substance is effected by the food we eat. It becomes a matter of vital
importance, therefore, to every individual to consider the question of
eating from the rational standpoint. Owing to the increased prosperity
of recent years and the luxurious mode of living rendered possible by
it, people have been betrayed into many reprehensible gastronomic
practices. In the olden days, when man toiled hard for existence, food
was produced within his own immediate radius and luxuries were unknown;
but now, with rapid ocean transportation, the ends of the earth are
ransacked and laid under tribute to furnish delicacies to tempt the
palate. The ease with which food may now be procured and the almost
illimitable variety offered to man for his selection has tempted him
into indulgences that have been productive of much evil. Although over
indulgence in eating is a very ancient offense, yet, as before stated,
the multiplicity of foods has given an impetus to this injurious habit,
in combination with the cunningly devised methods of preparation which
the modern cook has evolved.

It is a grave mistake to suppose that it is necessary to eat a large
quantity of food to become healthy and strong. The system only needs
sufficient nourishment to repair the waste that has taken place.
Besides, the digestive fluids are not secreted in an indefinite
quantity, but in proportion to the immediate need. Hence, food taken in
excess of requirements, being only partially digested, acts as a foreign
substance; i. e., a poison, and in addition unduly taxes the system to
dispose of the unnecessary waste.

Hunger is the natural expression of the needs of the system for
nutrition. Appetite is the index as to the quantity of food that should
be taken to replace the loss by waste. It should never be overruled.
Appetite is a wise provision of Nature. Gluttony is a degrading habit.
Yet numbers of people attempt to justify the gratification of their
gluttonous proclivities by the statement that they are “blessed with a
good appetite,” while the truth of the matter is, they are cursed with
an inordinate lust for food. If people were more temperate in the
pleasures of the table, the purveyors of remedies for dyspepsia would
find their incomes considerably lessened. Satisfy your hunger, by all
means, but do not pander to the vice of gluttony.

Instead of “eating to live,” a large proportion of people simply “live
to eat.” But sooner or later Nature exacts the penalty for violation of
one of her cardinal laws, which is “temperance.” An outraged stomach
will not always remain quiescent, and when the reaction comes, the
offender realizes that “they who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind.”

But people may, and do, continually do violence to that long suffering
organ, the stomach, without being gluttons--we refer to the habit, so
universally practiced in this country, of bolting the food without
properly masticating it. So long as this iniquitous practice is
persisted in, and the equally hurtful one of swallowing large quantities
of liquids with the meals, and so long as sufficient time is not given
the food to digest, just so long will you suffer from a disordered
stomach. Speaking generally, Americans are a nation of dyspeptics,
because they are perpetually in a hurry. The acquisition of wealth, in
moderation, is a commendable pursuit, but it is the height of folly to
sacrifice the priceless jewel of health to acquire it. But it is a fact,
nevertheless, that the average American considers eating an unprofitable
interference with business, without stopping to weigh the advantages of
sound health against the almighty dollar.

This habit must be abandoned by those who are addicted to it, before
they can expect to regain health or preserve it. Strange, is it not,
that a race, proverbial for having an eye to the main chance, should
fail to recognize the financial wisdom of husbanding their health, a
factor so important in successful business enterprises! They might, with
advantage, copy the example of John Bull in the matter of eating.

The average Englishman regards his meals as a solemn responsibility,
and tarries long at the table. The consequence is that with them
dyspepsia is the exception and not, as with Americans, the rule.

What to eat, when to eat and how to eat are questions more nearly
involving the health and happiness of humanity than is generally
recognized.


WHAT TO EAT.

From the days of Pythagoras down to the present time it has been a moot
question whether a vegetable or meat diet was best for man. Each side
can present equally strong arguments; each can point to exceptional
instances of physical development under the different methods; each can
point to ill results that follow rigid adherence to one method or the
other, so that the natural inference would be that a happy mean between
the two extremes presents the only rational solution of the question.

Even the most rabid partisan of the meat diet will readily admit that
the flesh of animals is not indispensable to existence; while, on the
other hand, the fact that the Indians in this country would subsist for
months (without apparent discomfort) solely upon a diet of “pemmican”
(dried buffalo flesh) affords ample proof that a meat diet is not
without its advantages.

Diet is largely a matter of latitude. The whale blubber diet of the
Esquimaux would be impossible at the equator, while the fruit and pulse
diet of the tropics would prove totally inadequate to support life at
the North Pole. Nature always prompts the individual to select the
articles of food best adapted to his bodily needs, according to the
climatic conditions; hence, when a man endeavors to live on the same
dietary in the tropics that he has been accustomed to in the temperate
zone, digestive disturbances are sure to follow.

It is one thing to sit at home theorizing about dietetics and settling
all the food problems (on paper) to one’s entire satisfaction; but it is
quite a different matter to practically test the effects of different
dietary tables under varying climatic conditions. The writer does not
claim to be an expert dietician, but there are few spots on the
habitable globe that he has not visited; scarcely an edible article that
he has not partaken of; scarcely a known species of human being that he
has not eaten with, except the Patagonians and the Esquimaux; so that he
is not entirely without experience, and it may be just possible that
practical experience thus gained may be as valuable as statistics
compiled in an office from data collected from different sources.

We often have the Eastern peoples (notably the Japanese and Hindoos)
quoted as examples of physical health and endurance, and the adoption of
a vegetarian diet urged on those grounds; but these extremists seem to
lose sight of the fact that these peoples are the descendants of
vegetarians for centuries past; that they have inherited the tastes of
their progenitors, and have evolved their present physical condition
through a long period of development along those lines. To say nothing
of the impracticability of suddenly converting a nation to the
principles of vegetarianism, radical changes abruptly undertaken are
always productive of ill effects.

It will help us to a proper understanding of the food question to
consider right here what causes old age, or, rather, the physical signs
of bodily infirmity that almost invariably accompany it. We are all
familiar with the wrinkled body surface, the shrunken limbs and the
stiffness of joints that particularly affect the aged, and are so
accustomed to regard these outward manifestations of infirmity as
inevitable, that few stop to inquire whether it is natural that this
should be so. Undoubtedly, these are natural effects, being the result
of the operation of natural law, but if mankind lived more in harmony
with Nature, these symptoms should not manifest themselves before the
age of ninety or a hundred, if even then.

What is termed old age is simply ossification (solidification of the
tissues), and this is due to the constant deposition in the system of
earthy substances. The result of these deposits being retained in the
system is: that there is an excess of mineral matter in the bone tissue,
which renders it brittle, and accounts for the susceptibility to
fracture in advanced life; it causes a change in the structure of all
the blood vessels, great and small, thickening their walls and thus
reducing their calibre and also rendering them brittle. With diminished
capacity the blood vessels fail to convey the requisite nutrition to the
tissues, and a general lowering of the vitality follows. The capillaries
no longer supply the skin with its needed pabulum, hence it loses its
elasticity and color--grows yellow and forms in furrows. The circulation
being sluggish, the deposition of these earthy substances in the
neighborhood of the various joints and the muscular structures is
facilitated, and we have the stiffness of joints and muscular pains that
usually accompany age. The supply of blood to the brain and nerve
substance is curtailed in the same manner, and for lack of sustenance
these structures commence to decay, which accounts for diminished mental
activity and sensory impressions. As the process continues there may be
almost complete obliteration of the capillaries, while the larger
vessels may become so thickened that their capacity is sometimes reduced
three-fifths. Then comes death.

Then, since old age is due to the cause just described, it follows, as a
perfectly logical deduction, that if we can prevent the introduction of
these substances into the system, or even check them, then the duration
of life and preservation of function should be proportionately
prolonged.

What are these substances and whence are they obtained? They consist of
carbonate and phosphate of lime, principally, with small quantities of
the sulphates of lime and magnesia, and a small percentage of other
earthy matters. These substances are taken into the system in the food
we eat and the water we drink, and it has been estimated that enough
lime salts are taken into the system during an average lifetime to form
a statue the size of the individual. Of course, the greater part is
eliminated by the natural processes, but enough is retained to make
ossification a formidable fact. Of the disastrous effects of a
preponderance of these mineral salts in the system we have a notable
example in the <DW35>s, a people in the Swiss Alps, who are the victims
of premature ossification, their bodies being stunted, rarely attaining
a greater height than four feet, and exhibiting all the signs of old age
at thirty years; in fact, they seldom live longer than that. In this
case the cause is directly traceable to the excess of calcium salts in
the drinking water, for although heredity plays an important part in
this matter, yet children from other parts, if brought into the region
at an early age, soon manifest the symptoms and speedily become <DW35>s
in fact.

Most people are familiar with what is known among housewives as the
formation of “fur” in the common tea kettle. This is nothing more nor
less than the precipitation of the lime salts by evaporation. Four and
five pounds’ weight of this substance has been known to collect in this
manner in a single vessel in twelve months. Many people are under the
mistaken impression that boiling the water removes the lime. Not so. The
precipitation only relates to that proportion of the water that has been
evaporated; the remainder (in all probability) possesses a slightly
higher percentage of solids than it originally did. So great is the
proportion of mineral substance taken into the system in drinking water
that it is safe to assert that, if after maturity was reached only
distilled or other absolutely pure water was partaken of, life would be
prolonged fully ten years. Up to the mature age it would be inadvisable,
as the salts are necessary for bone formation. Good filtered rain water,
or melted snow, are entirely free from mineral deposits, but if they
have stood for any length of time it is advisable to boil them before
using, to destroy any organic matter.

But it is not in water alone that these pernicious earthy matters are
found. All food substances contain them to a greater or lesser extent.
The order in which foods stand in the matter of freedom from earthy
impurities is as follows: Fruits, fish, animal flesh (including eggs),
vegetables, cereals; so that the advocates of a strictly vegetable diet
find themselves confronted by the formidable fact that their mainstay is
that class of foods that contain the largest proportion of those
substances that hasten ossification. Ample proof is at hand that a
strictly vegetable diet results in what is known as atheroma (chalky
deposit), an affection of the arteries. Dr. Winckler, an enthusiastic
food reformer, who wrote extensively on the subject under the nom de
plume of Dr. Alanus, and practised a strict vegetarian diet for some
years, was compelled to abandon it, on account of the above disease
manifesting itself. Numerous similar cases were observed by Raymond, in
a monastery of vegetarian friars, and among the poorer Hindoos, who live
almost exclusively on rice, this trouble is of frequent occurrence.

The reason of this is obvious. Vegetable food is richer in mineral
salts than animal food, and consequently, more are introduced into the
blood. There are exceptions, for instance, fruits, which are an ideal
food, for several excellent reasons. To commence with, they contain less
earthy matter than any other known organic substance; they contain
upward of 70 per cent, of the purest kind of distilled water--distilled
in Nature’s laboratory; and distilled water is an admirable solvent, and
is ready for immediate absorption into the blood, and, lastly, the
starch of the fruit has, by the sun’s action, been converted into
glucose, and is practically ready for assimilation. In point of
nutritive value, fruits may be classed in order as follows: Dates, figs,
bananas, prunes, apples, grapes.

Bread has long been known as the “staff of life,” and although it forms
the main dietary staple for large numbers of people, that does not in
any way prove its eligibility as an article of food. We have seen that
cereals contain a very large proportion of inorganic matter (the mineral
salts), and wheat is as richly endowed in this respect as any of its
fellows. Wheat is rich in heat producing qualities, which is due to the
quantity of starch it contains. Now, this starch must be converted into
glucose before the system can appropriate it, and as exhaustive
experiments have shown that not more than four per cent. of the starch
is converted by the ptyalin in the saliva, the principal work of dealing
with the starch devolves upon the duodenum, or second stomach, the
fluids of the main stomach having no action upon it.

Now, this extra and unnecessary work falling upon the duodenum entails
a delay in the process of digestion, and a corresponding delay in
assimilation, so a habit of intestinal inactivity is induced, and the
seeds of constipation are sown, because the starchy foods, being slow in
giving up their nutritive elements, the refuse is proportionately
backward in being eliminated. Fruits, on the contrary, although equally
rich in heat producing qualities, yet on account of the previous natural
transmutation of starch into glucose, are in a condition for immediate
appropriation by the system, and consequently absorption of nutrition
and elimination of waste are equally prompt. This partially explains the
aperient action of fruits, although there is a chemical reason also. For
the reasons above stated, lightly baked bread should never be eaten; it
should be toasted thoroughly brown first, by which the first step in the
conversion of the starch is accomplished.

Regarding the relative digestibility of white and brown (whole wheat)
bread there is considerable diversity of opinion, but in a series of
experiments described by Dr. John B. Coppock, in the “Herald of Health,”
England, it was shown that in equal portions of 100 ounces, ¼ ounce
more of the white bread was digested, than of the brown; but the
proportion of proteids (muscle and tissue forming constituents)
digested, was as follows: white bread, 85½ ounces; brown bread,
88¾ ounces, or 3¼ ounces more nutrition obtained from the brown
bread than from the white. In any event, we are forced to the conclusion
that as an article of food, bread has hitherto had a value placed upon
it to which it was not legitimately entitled.

Nature has designed albumen as the staple of nutrition for man, and
primarily, vegetable albumen; hence fruits form as nearly as possible a
perfect food, containing, as they do, this important constituent in
addition to the advantages previously mentioned.

Nuts are an excellent article of diet, as they contain a large
percentage of proteid (muscle-forming) substance, and fats--both in a
state of almost absolute purity, but are somewhat deficient in starch.
To those who feel that they really cannot do without meat, nuts
certainly offer the best substitute. There are preparations of nuts on
the markets now, called nut-meats, but our advice would be, to eat all
nuts without preparation, only being careful to masticate them
thoroughly. The peanut is the first in rank for nutritive value, next
comes the chestnut, and third, the walnut.

Our objection to nut-meats applies to all forms of concentrated foods,
that is, that they do not give the digestive functions the proper amount
of exercise. They do not afford sufficient opportunity for mastication,
hence the food is not properly insalivated. And, again, in normal
conditions, Nature demands a certain amount of bulk, that the digestive
organs may have something to contract upon. It is the nature of the
muscular structures to grow if exercised, and there is no reason to
doubt that the stomach and intestinal muscles respond to this stimulus.
Bulk is especially necessary in the intestinal canal, to supply a
certain amount of irritative stimulation, for the purpose of exciting
peristalsis. That is one reason why whole wheat bread is preferable to
white, on account of the bran, which not only supplies the bulk, but
favors elimination by its irritative action.

Before proceeding any further we would call attention to the following
table, showing the nutritive ingredients in food substances, and their
several functions. The ingredients are classified in four divisions: 1,
Proteids; 2, Fats; 3, Starches, or carbo-hydrates; 4, Mineral matters.
This is the main classification; but to enable it to be better
understood, we subdivide it as follows:

           { a. Albuminoids: e. g. albumen (white of
           {      egg); casein (curd) of milk; myosin,
           {      the basis of muscle (lean meat); gluten
           {      of wheat, etc.
           { b. Gelatinoids: e. g. collagen of tendons; ossein
           {      of bones, which yield gelatin or glue.
  Protein. {      (Meats and fish contain very small quantities
           {      of so-called “extractives.” They
           {      include kreatin and allied compounds,
           {      and are the chief ingredients of beef-tea
           {      and meat extract. They contain nitrogen,
           {      and hence are commonly classed
           {      with protein.)

  Fats.    { e.g. fat of meat; fat (butter) of milk; olive
           {      oil; oil of corn, wheat, etc.

  Carbohydrates.  e.g. sugar, starch, cellulose (woody fibre).

  Mineral Matters.   { e.g. calcium phosphate or phosphate of lime;
                     {      sodium chloride (common salt).

In this classification, water is not taken into account, for the reason
that it is not a true nutrient, although of vital importance to the
body. Now, let us consider what ultimately becomes of these
substances--how Nature utilizes them in the physical economy. Protein is
used to build up the solid tissues of the body, the muscles and tendons.
It is also a source of nutrition for brain and nerve substance, and
partially serves as fuel. Fats simply form fatty tissue and serve as
fuel to maintain the heat of the body, by combustion or oxidation.
Carbo-hydrates mainly serve as fuel, owing to the large percentage of
carbon they contain, which readily unites with the oxygen. The mineral
matters, which are also largely obtained from water, are employed in the
formation of bone, and are also utilized in the blood and in other ways.

Thus we see that each constituent of the food substance fulfills a
specific purpose, and the secret of a correct and nutritious diet lies
in the selection of such foods as will furnish the proper proportion of
each constituent to serve the purpose for which it is designed. Any
deviation from this rule must of necessity result in digestive
disturbance, more or less, and although one or two digressions from the
path of correct alimentation may not result in anything worse than a
slight inconvenience, yet persistence in dietetic errors will inevitably
terminate in physical demoralization.

Authorities differ as to the actual proportion the nutritive ingredients
should bear to each other in the daily ration; but after comparing the
statements advanced by different food experts, we think the following
figures will represent a fair average of the various tables. The reader
will see that 100 parts of carbo-hydrates is taken as the basis of
calculation, the figures opposite the other ingredients representing the
proportion they should bear to the basic figure.

  Carbo-hydrates (carbonaceous material, starch, sugar,
  etc.), fat, and heat formers.                           100 parts

  Proteids (nitrogenous material), muscle, tissue and
  brain formers.                                           40   “

  Fats (animal fats, butter, etc.), fuel formers.          32   “

  Mineral salts.                                            6   “

  Water .                                                 670   “

With the above table in mind, it will be easy to select foods that will
furnish, when combined, the proper proportion of each ingredient--that
is--approximately, and to assist in the selection, we subjoin a
condensed list of the more important articles of food, showing the
percentage of each ingredient, as proved by analysis. We would call
attention to the fact that animal foods may slightly differ in the ratio
of the ingredients, owing to the food upon which the animal has been
raised, and its physical condition; and, owing to peculiarities of soil,
vegetable foods may differ in like manner, but for practical purposes it
will be found sufficiently correct.


IN 100 PARTS.

            Proteids.  Starches.  Fats.  Salts.

  Lean Beef      20.2    0.0     3.6    2.0
  Fat            16.9    0.0    20.0    3.1
  Mutton         17.1    0.0     5.7    1.3
  Veal           18.8    0.0     4.4    0.5
  Pork           14.5    0.0    37.3    0.8
  Poultry        21.0    0.0     3.8    1.2
  Smoked Ham     24.0    0.0    36.5   10.1
  Mackerel       23.5    0.0     6.7    1.0
  Cod            27.0    0.0     0.3   22.0
  White of Egg   20.4    0.0     0.0    1.6
  Yolk of Egg    16.0    0.0    30.7    1.3
  Cow’s Milk      4.2    4.5     3.7    0.7
  Cheese         28.0    1.0    23.0    7.0
  Butter          2.0    1.0    85.0    1.0
  Cabbage         5.0    7.8     0.5    1.2
  Asparagus       1.9    2.7     0.2    0.5
  Mushrooms       2.5    4.7     0.2    0.7
  Potato          2.2   21.8     0.2    1.0
  Sweet Potato    1.0   25.2     0.2    2.7
  Celery          1.5    0.8     0.4    0.8
  French Beans   23.7   55.6     2.2    3.7
  Lima Beans     21.9   60.0     1.9    2.9
  Green Peas      6.3   12.0     0.5    0.8
  Lentils        24.8   54.7     1.8    2.4
  Wheat Flour    11.6   71.0     1.3    1.6
  Barley Flour   10.5   66.7     2.4    2.6
  Oatmeal        12.8   65.6     5.6    3.6
  Lentil Flour   25.4   57.3     1.8    2.6
  Arrowroot       0.8   83.5     0.0    0.3
  Chestnut       14.6   60.0     2.4    3.3
  Sweet Almond   23.5    7.8    53.0    3.0
  Peanut         28.3    1.8    46.2    3.3
  Walnut         15.8   13.0    57.4    2.0
  Apple           0.4    7.2     0.0    0.5
  Cherry          0.7   10.2     0.0    0.7
  Grape           0.6   14.2     0.0    0.5
  Banana      4.9        19.2      0.6     1.1
  Dates       6.6        54.0      0.2     1.6
  Figs        6.1        60.5      0.9     2.3
  Honey       0.8        74.6      0.9     0.2


TABLE A.

Showing the relative digestibility of various foods.

  ---------------------------+-------------------------
                             |      Protein
                             +-----------+-------------
                             |Digestible.|Undigestible.
                             |           |
  ---------------------------+-----------+-------------
                             |    %      |     %
  Beef, round                |  23.0     |    0.0
  Beef, sirloin              |  20.0     |    0.0
  Pork, very fat             |   3.0     |    0.0
  Haddock                    |  17.1     |    0.0
  Mackerel                   |  18.8     |    0.0
  Hens’ eggs                 |  13.4     |    0.0
  Cow’s milk                 |   3.4     |    0.0
  Cheese, whole milk         |  27.1     |    0.0
  Butter                     |   1.0     |    ...
  Oleomargarine              |   0.4     |    ...
  Sugar                      |   0.3     |    ...
  Wheat } very fine          |   7.6     |    1.3
   flour} medium             |   9.5     |    2.1
        } coarse whole wheat |   8.2     |    2.7
  Wheat bread average        |   7.7     |    1.2
  Black bread                |   4.5     |    1.6
  Peas                       |  19.7     |    3.2
  Corn (maize) meal          |   7.9     |    1.2
  Rice                       |   6.2     |    1.2
  Potatoes                   |   1.5     |    0.5
  Turnips                    |   0.7     |    0.3
  ---------------------------+-----------+-------------


  --------------------------+-------------------------
                            |        Fats
                            +-----------+-------------
                            |Digestible.|Undigestible.
                            |           |
  --------------------------+-----------+-------------
                            |    %      |     %
  Beef, round               |   8.1     |    0.9
  Beef, sirloin             |  17.1     |    1.9
  Pork, very fat            |  74.5     |    6.0
  Haddock                   |   0.3     |    ...
  Mackerel                  |   7.4     |    0.8
  Hens’ eggs                |   9.4     |    2.4
  Cow’s milk                |   3.6     |    0.1
  Cheese, whole milk        |  34.6     |    0.9
  Butter                    |  85.8     |    1.7
  Oleomargarine             |  83.9     |    3.3
  Sugar                     |   ...     |    ...
  Wheat } very fine         |   1.0     |    ...
   flour} medium            |   0.8     |    ...
        } coarse whole wheat|   1.8     |    ...
  Wheat bread average       |   1.9     |    ...
  Black bread               |   1.8     |    ...
  Peas                      |   ...     |    ...
  Corn (maize) meal         |   3.8     |    ...
  Rice                      |   0.4     |    ...
  Potatoes                  |   0.2     |    ...
  Turnips                   |   0.2     |    ...
  --------------------------+-----------+-------------


  --------------------------+-------------------------+---------+-------
                            |     Carbohydrates       |         |
                            +-----------+-------------+---------+-------
                            |Digestible.|Undigestible.| Mineral | Water.
                            |           |             | Matters.|
  --------------------------+-----------+-------------+---------+-------
                            |    %      |     %       |    %    |   %
  Beef, round               |   0.0     |    0.0      |   1.3   | 66.7
  Beef, sirloin             |   0.0     |    0.0      |   1.0   | 60.0
  Pork, very fat            |   ...     |    ...      |   6.5   | 10.0
  Haddock                   |   0.0     |    0.0      |   1.2   | 81.4
  Mackerel                  |   0.0     |    0.0      |   1.4   | 71.6
  Hens’ eggs                |   0.7     |    0.0      |   1.0   | 73.1
  Cow’s milk                |   4.8     |    0.0      |   0.7   | 87.4
  Cheese, whole milk        |   2.3     |    0.0      |   3.9   | 31.2
  Butter                    |   0.5     |    ...      |   2.0   |  9.0
  Oleomargarine             |   0.0     |    ...      |   2.1   | 10.3
  Sugar                     |  96.7     |    0.0      |   0.8   |  2.2
  Wheat } very fine         |  74.4     |    0.8      |   0.3   | 14.6
   flour} medium            |  70.4     |    1.8      |   0.4   | 15.0
        } coarse whole wheat|  66.4     |    5.3      |   1.2   | 14.4
  Wheat bread average       |  54.9     |    0.6      |   1.0   | 32.7
  Black bread               |  43.3     |    5.3      |   1.5   | 43.8
  Peas                      |  55.7     |    2.1      |   2.5   | 15.0
  Corn (maize) meal         |  68.7     |    2.3      |   1.6   | 14.5
  Rice                      |  78.7     |    0.7      |   0.4   | 12.4
  Potatoes                  |  19.7     |    1.6      |   1.0   | 75.5
  Turnips                   |   5.6     |    1.3      |   0.7   | 91.2
  --------------------------+-----------+-------------+---------+-------

Since the elements are seldom, if ever, found in the proper proportion
in any food substances, it becomes necessary to exercise judgment in
selecting them, so that something like a well-balanced diet may be
obtained; so as a further aid to enable the reader to make his selection
judiciously, we would call attention to Table A on page 139 and Table B
below. Table A shows the proportion of various foods that is ordinarily
digested, while Table B points out the time required for different
articles of food to digest.


TABLE B.

LENGTH OF TIME REQUIRED FOR DIGESTION OF DIFFERENT ARTICLES OF FOOD.

                             Hours.
  Apples, raw                 2:00
  Barley, boiled              2:00
  Beef, roasted               3:00
  Beefsteak, broiled          3:00
  Beef, boiled                4:00
  Beets, boiled               3:45
  Brains, animal, boiled      1:45
  Bread, corn, baked          3:15
  Bread, wheat, baked         3:30
  Butter, melted              3:30
  Cabbage, raw                2:30
  Cabbage, with vinegar       2:00
  Cabbage, boiled             4:30
  Cake, corn, baked           3:00
  Cake, sponge, baked         2:30
  Catfish, fried              3:30
  Cheese, old strong          3:30
  Chicken, fricasseed         2:45
  Corn and beans, boiled      3:45
  Custard, baked              2:45
  Duck, roasted               4:00
  Dumpling, apple, boiled     3:00
  Eggs, hard boiled           3:30
  Eggs, soft boiled           3:00
  Eggs, fried                 3:30
  Eggs, roasted               2:15
  Eggs, raw                   2:00
  Fowls, boiled               4:00
  Fowls, roasted              4:00
  Goose, roasted              2:30
  Lamb, boiled                2:30
  Milk, boiled                2:00
  Milk, raw                   2:15
  Mutton, roasted             3:15
  Mutton, broiled             3:00
  Mutton, boiled              3:00
  Oysters, raw                2:55
  Oysters, roasted            3:15
  Oysters, stewed             3:30
  Pig, roasted                2:30
  Pigs’ feet, soused          1:00
  Pork, roasted               5:15
  Pork, salted and fried      4:15
  Potatoes, Irish, boiled     3:30
  Potatoes, Irish, roasted    2:30
  Rice, boiled                1:00
  Salmon, salted              4:00
  Soup, barley, boiled        1:30
  Soup, bean                  3:30
  Soup, chicken               3:00
  Soup, mutton                3:30
  Soup, oyster                3:30
  Tapioca, boiled             2:00
  Tripe, soused               1:00
  Trout, salmon, boiled       1:30
  Trout, salmon, fried        1:30
  Turkey, roast               2:30
  Turkey, boiled              2:30
  Turnips, boiled             3:30
  Veal, broiled               4:00
  Veal, fried                 4:30
  Vegetables and meat, hashed 2:30
  Venison steak               1:35

We have seen that certain elements are necessary in our food for the
proper replenishment of the waste that is perpetually going on, and that
they must be combined in proper proportions, so that no one part of the
body shall be over-nourished at the expense of the others--no organ
overtaxed, but that all may be harmoniously developed.

Opinions may, and do, differ as to the source from which this
sustenance for the body should be obtained--whether from the animal or
vegetable kingdoms, or both, and while admitting that vegetarianism and
flesh-eating both have their advantages and disadvantages, our own
conscientious conviction is, that the true solution of the question is
to be found in the happy medium--that a mixed diet is the best for
mankind under existing conditions.

The main argument of our vegetarian friends against the practice of
flesh-eating is the humanitarian one. We are familiar with all the
objections urged--the brutalizing effect upon the human mind of so much
ruthless blood-shed--of the sacredness of life, and of man’s presumption
in daring to deprive a living creature of existence; but with all due
respect to the sensibilities of these worthy people, we are inclined to
think that the argument is scarcely tenable. We do not wish to be
understood as defending the cruelties that are said to be practised in
the abattoirs; but the taking of life is inseparable from existence. It
is simply a question of degree. There is a sect in India, the members of
which are so scrupulous regarding the sanctity of life that they
carefully brush every step of the path in front of them, lest they
should inadvertently step upon any creeping thing. In this, they lift
the burden of responsibility from themselves for any wanton injury; but
the microscope has shown us that there is a countless world of
infinitesimal life all around us, and that it is practically impossible
to draw a breath, or drink a mouthful of water, without destroying some
living thing. If we accept the teaching of the Scriptures, that not a
sparrow falls to the ground without the knowledge of the Creator, then
we must conclude that the life of the ant is of as much importance in
His eyes as that of the ox or sheep. We repeat, we are not posing as
advocates of indiscriminate and wanton slaughter, but on utilitarian
grounds, we consider the use of the flesh of animals, as a food,
justifiable.

If we needed any scriptural authority for the practice, we could point
to the Hebrews, who (according to Holy Writ) received through Moses not
only permission to use meat as an article of diet, but instructions for
the killing of the selected animals, together with injunctions to avoid
the flesh of certain kinds; and they may be cited as a striking example
of the value of a mixed diet.

Here we have one of the most ancient races of the earth--a race that has
endured the most terrible persecutions that ever befell a people, yet
have survived it all, and are to-day a robust and unusually prolific
race; while intellectually and morally they are surpassed by none. They
are a greater power in the world than any other race, by reason of their
skill in finance and natural business instincts. There is no question
but that the sanitary system of living established by Moses has been the
principle factor in perpetuating this hardy race; and a mixed diet was
and is an integral part of that system. It may also be confidently
claimed that the teachings of the Bible, along these lines, have been in
a large degree responsible for the position occupied by the Christian
nations in the world to-day.

However, we have no desire to impose our views upon our readers, and
having given expression to our sentiments, we return to the main
question.

Having disposed of the question, “what to eat,” we will consider
another matter, almost equally important, and that is:


HOW TO EAT.

The one fundamental principle underlying this question is thorough
mastication, and we cannot too strongly impress upon our readers the
necessity for its proper observance. We have already stated that
digestion commences in the mouth--that by the action of the saliva, the
starchy matter in food is converted into glucose. It is therefore
necessary that the saliva should be brought into intimate contact with
every part of the bolus; and for that purpose thorough mastication is
absolutely necessary. In addition, the separation of the food into small
fragments, by the teeth, assists stomach digestion, by permitting the
gastric juice freer access to the food. It is stated that Mr. Gladstone
formed the habit of thorough mastication by making it a rule to count
thirty-two while masticating each mouthful. Mastication need not be slow
to be thorough, although there is an impression to that effect, for, as
a matter of fact, quick and vigorous chewing excites the salivary glands
to more energetic action.

Drinking at meals should be avoided as much as possible, and whenever
any digestive trouble is present, not only should no liquids accompany
the meal, but nothing in the form of fluids should be partaken of within
half an hour preceding or following a meal. The philosophy of this is
apparent, when we reflect that all digestive disturbances are
accompanied by imperfect secretion of the gastric juices, and to dilute
them with an excess of fluid is to weaken its power of action on the
food. It is as if a man, when attempting to dissolve a piece of metal in
a powerful acid, should deliberately add water to the acid, and thereby
arrest, wholly or in part, the process of decomposition. It is plain,
therefore, that although the practice of drinking at meals may help the
food to pass more easily down the æsophagus, yet it must inevitably
<DW44> digestion when it reaches the stomach.

But the most pernicious practice of all is that of drinking ice water at
meals, since, in addition to the ill effects described above, it
temporarily paralyzes the stomach--driving the blood away from that
organ when it is needed most of all. A fact which should not be lost
sight of is, that no physical operation, however slight, can be
accomplished without the expenditure of force (nervous energy), even
though it be only the winking of an eye-lid; and the labor entailed upon
the system, of raising the temperature of the stomach to normal figures,
after deluging it with ice water, involves a ruinous waste of vital
force, in addition to the other reasons urged against it. It cannot be
doubted that this essentially American habit is responsible for a large
proportion of the dyspepsia that sits like an incubus upon the nation.
Every substance taken into the stomach, whether fluid or solid, should
be about the same temperature as the body, to be in harmony with natural
principles.

All condiments promote indigestion. They over-stimulate the stomach,
exciting the secreting glands to abnormal action, and irritating the
sensitive mucous surface. In addition, they overheat the blood, excite
the nervous system, inflame the passions, and are largely responsible
for many of the excesses into which men plunge under this unnatural
stimulation.


WHEN TO EAT

Is a question that has excited a great deal of discussion of late years.
The publication of Dr. Dewey’s book, extolling the no-breakfast plan,
caused the subject to be debated, with considerable fervor for a time,
but the matter remains practically where it was. It is impossible to lay
down a hard and fast rule that shall govern all cases, a fact that most
theorists seem to lose sight of--hence the collapse of so many promising
and alluring schemes. For people in health, we strongly advise the three
meals a day system, which experience has shown to be successful. They
should be moderate in quantity, and should be eaten as follows: The
first, from half an hour to an hour after rising (having previously
bathed and exercised); the second, not less than four hours afterwards;
the third, not less than five hours later.

This gives the stomach time to rid itself of one meal before the next is
introduced, otherwise the undigested food remaining in the stomach
prevents that organ from acting properly on the fresh food. It is for
this reason that it is unwise to eat between meals, as, when the stomach
is occupied by articles of food in various stages of digestion,
undigested portions will pass out with the digested food; not only
entailing a serious loss of energy and nutrition, but irritating the
intestinal canal and creating unnecessary waste to be eliminated.

The above rules, as stated, apply to people in ordinarily good health.
In wasting disease it may be necessary to supply nutrition even as often
as every half hour; and in all serious digestive troubles it is wiser to
eat six times a day than three, the meals to be light, nutritious in
quality, and small in quantity, so as not to impose too great a burden
at one time on the weakened digestive apparatus.

We will now consider the action of several substances, in common use,
that are inimical to health, and that have an especially demoralizing
effect upon digestion.

The first of these is alcohol, which only serves as fuel, but does not
form tissue. Its best friends in the medical profession no longer claim
anything for it but a stimulating effect. Its action on the digestive
organs (especially the stomach) is disastrous in the extreme. It
destroys the appetite, although it temporarily sustains vigor by
unnatural excitation.

Without going so far as to say that a man is lost to all sense of
decency because he takes an occasional drink, we will say that it is in
nowise necessary to the system--that the habit, indulged in to excess,
is the most fatal that can be contracted, and that inasmuch as the
majority of people have not sufficient will-power to curb their
appetites, the wisest plan is to avoid the use of alcoholic beverages
altogether.

The man who is addicted to the excessive use of alcoholic stimulants is
over-taxing the vital organs of his body in the most outrageous manner,
and although Nature incessantly enters protest against being overworked,
he either ignorantly fails to recognize the warnings, or wantonly
disregards them. Let us for a few moments consider the work which the
heart is called upon to do, and the amount of extra labor imposed upon
it by the unwise use of alcohol. The average life of a man is
thirty-eight years, and, in a healthy man, the number of heart-beats per
minute is seventy, or during an average life, 76,536,740,000. Now, the
use of alcohol in anything like an excessive quantity increases the
action of the heart ten beats per minute, making 600 extra beats per
hour, 14,400 per day, 482,000 per month, 9,784,000 per year, 195,568,000
in twenty years, and 372,793,000 in a lifetime of thirty-eight years.
Or, supposing a man should live fifty years, the number of pulsations of
the heart during that period, at the normal rate, would be 917,239,680.
Now, if ten extra beats be added to this, for, say the last twenty-five
years, we find that the heart is called upon to make 91,840,000 extra
beats. Think of that enormous amount of additional work imposed upon a
delicate, complex piece of mechanism like the human heart!

But that is not the worst of it. The heart should rest and sleep when we
do. During sleep, the character of the beats is different from what it
is during our waking hours--the beats are made singly and deliberately,
with a pause between, for the heart is taking its necessary rest, to fit
it for its functions on the morrow; but, if we take alcohol into the
system before retiring, then the heart works harder during sleep than a
healthy man’s when he is awake.

Is it any wonder that we hear of so many cases of heart failure? Is it
strange that the average duration of human life is steadily and surely
growing shorter? Three-score and ten was the average number of years for
man to sojourn here, it is now thirty-eight, and will inevitably become
still less if man persists in wilfully violating the laws that govern
his being.

Tea and coffee are substances which neither form tissue nor serve as
fuel, and may be banished from the table with decided advantage. Few
people realize that the difference between the drinking of alcohol and
tea is simply a question of degree. It is true that the consequences of
excessive tea drinking are not as severe as those from over-indulgence
in ardent spirits, but the pernicious effects of the constant drinking
of strong infusions of tea justify us in calling the practice a serious
menace to health. Tea leaves contain from 2 to 4 per cent. of caffeine,
or theine, which is an alkaloid, and always found in combination with
tannin. They also contain a volatile oil, which is the source of the
aroma, and in addition possess a sedative quality. Tannin is a powerful
astringent, and hence is strongly provocative of constipation. Its
action upon the mucous surface of the stomach is highly detrimental to
that organ, as it arrests the excretion of the gastric juice by its
contractile effect upon the glands. Its constant use will almost
invariably result in digestive disturbances, and will certainly
aggravate such troubles, if previously existing. It is true that a cup
of hot tea is a refreshing beverage, but not more so than a cup of hot
milk--in fact, it is the heat that imparts the sense of comfort
experienced on drinking it. Children should never be allowed to drink
either tea or coffee, as the seeds of a baneful habit may be sown, for
in tea, as in dram drinking, it is a habit easily acquired.

The above remarks apply in a less degree to the frequent use of coffee.
The constant use of these substances produce the following
results--first, increase of circulation, rise in pulse, a desire to
frequently pass urine, and an exhilaration resembling intoxication. Tea
tasters, as is well known, are subject to headache and giddiness, and
prone to attacks of paralysis. The votaries of the tea and coffee cup by
far outnumber those of Bacchus, so that granting that the drinking of
these beverages is a little less severe in its constitutional effects,
yet the greater prevalence of the habit renders them equal to alcohol in
their destructive effects.


GENERAL SUGGESTIONS.

One of the causes that conduce to digestive disturbances is that of
solitary eating. Owing to the strenuousness of modern city life, many
people, of both sexes, are compelled to practice the most rigid economy,
which, in a large proportion of cases, involves what is known as “light
housekeeping,” or preparing a part, if not all of their meals over a gas
jet in their room. In the case of the male housekeeper, this generally
means that when he seats himself to eat he places his book or paper in
front of him, to beguile the time; the consequence being that he not
only calls the blood away from the stomach, where it is needed, but,
engrossed in his reading, he masticates imperfectly, or suddenly coming
to himself, he finds that he has been so intent on his reading that his
food has become cold, whereupon he devours it in haste. Women are not
such great sinners in this respect as men; but are equally culpable in
another direction. It is a pretty well-known fact that a woman would
just as soon not eat at all as to eat alone, and as a result frequently
deprives herself of the necessary amount of nutrition. In fact, she
impairs her digestion by not giving it sufficient work to do, while the
man ruins his by spasmodically overtaxing it. For the above reasons, the
boarding house (much as it leaves to be desired) is preferable as an
abiding place for hundreds of men and women who are too busy by day and
too tired at night to pay proper attention to the physical needs of the
system. Companionship at meals is a most desirable thing, especially if
it is congenial, and light, cheerful conversation, with a little
hilarity intermingled, is an excellent aid to digestion.

This is, no doubt, due to mental influence. The whole of the alimentary
process is under the control of the nervous system, which has its seat
in the brain, consequently, a cheerful mental attitude favors digestion.
It is well known that a fit of anger may temporarily stop digestion. The
mind exerts such a vast influence over every function that it is
impossible to set bounds to it. We are the creatures of habit. We eat so
many times a day, from sheer force of habit. We habituate ourselves to
partake of articles of food against which, at first, the senses rebel,
by the same force; but it is left wholly to man’s reasoning powers
whether his habits shall be cultivated according to the needs of the
system. If they are, perfect nutrition will be established; if they are
not, he is worse off than the animal who knows only to follow the
instincts of the original habits of the species. A man can exercise his
will power to partake of a diet which his taste had not been able to
appreciate, yet no will power can ever provide good nutrition out of a
diet against which taste constantly rebels. Consciousness of the
digestive organs is an offense to them. The more a man is conscious of
his stomach, the less will be its capacity for performing good service;
therefore, a dyspeptic should never attempt to follow a course of
experimental dietetics with himself, for if he watches his stomach after
his carefully selected meal, to see how it will serve him, he will
always find abnormal symptoms. It is never wise to expect anything but
good results from anything which has been allowed to pass beyond the
palate, for that is Nature’s infallible safeguard, its province being to
reject every objectionable thing.

We would again remind the reader that one of the most important offices
of the lungs is to promote the movement of the blood and lymph currents
throughout the body. Active respiration assists all forms of lymph
absorption, but gives special aid to the absorption of food substances
from the stomach and intestines, because these particular lymph vessels
are situated so close to the chest cavity that they are more directly
under the influence of the suction action of the chest.

A few minutes spent in vigorous deep breathing exercise after each meal
is one of the best means of remedying the sense of heaviness and weight
of which so many complain after eating.

Thus we see that deep breathing, by favoring absorption, promotes the
nourishment of the body--will assist in building tissue, in fact. Oxygen
is a vital necessity for the body, and it is necessary to absorb a large
quantity for the actual needs of the system, while all absorbed over the
quantity means added nutrition. Now, deep, or diaphragmatic breathing,
infallibly increases the lung capacity, so that the possibility for
absorption of oxygen is increased, and health and strength promoted.
Deep breathing is as necessary for the proper absorption and
assimilation of nutrition as the selection of a well-balanced diet. It
has saved thousands of lives, and is a factor in promoting health that
cannot be disregarded.

“Order is Heaven’s first law,” and nowhere is this law better
exemplified than in the human body. Order, or regularity, is an
essential for success in human affairs--moral, mental, or physical; but
especially in the latter. The successful conduct of large business
organizations is only possible by regularity in the performance of every
detail of duty.

If this be so when only physical results are involved, how much more so
is it where vital interests are at stake? The human body is a
wonderfully complex piece of mechanism, and if left to itself or rather
to natural guidance, its manifold functions are performed with unfailing
regularity; and regularity in function means health--irregularity,
disease.

Mark the rhythmic regularity of respiration, or of the heart’s
contractions! Long continued regularity begets habit, which is a form of
automatism; hence the necessity of regularity in action along fixed
lines, and in consonance with physiological law, that good habits only
may be formed.

Good habits are absolutely essential to health, which is equivalent to
saying that regularity in living is an imperative necessity to that end.
Regularity in rising and retiring; regularity in eating and drinking;
regularity in exercise, all are equally important.

Not only does this regularity of conduct conduce to the attainment and
maintenance of perfect health, but it enables the individual to
accomplish more within the limits of the day, partly by economizing
time, and partly by the added vigor due to improved health.

First, regularity in the hours of rising and retiring, namely,
regulating the minimum period to be devoted to sleep. There is much
conflict of opinion as to the amount of sleep necessary for the average
adult. We have in mind an old saying which runs as follows: “Six hours’
sleep for a man, seven for a woman, and eight for a fool.” This is
somewhat arbitrary, and, moreover, is not in harmony with physiological
law. In the first place, no hard and fast rule can be laid down that
will cover all cases. Apart from the difference of sex, there are
temperamental conditions which vary with every case. We are decidedly of
the opinion that eight hours’ sleep is necessary for the adult
individual. It has been affirmed by some authorities that the more the
individual sleeps the longer he will live, which is a perfectly rational
claim, in view of the fact that night is Nature’s repair time, when she
is busy at work replacing the ravages committed by wear and tear during
the day. It is a well-known fact that nearly all growth takes place
during sleep.

Again, it is a fact not generally known that the heart receives no
nourishment during the period of contraction, owing to the pressure upon
the arteries which supply it with nutriment. It is only during the
infinitesimal pause between the contractions that these arteries can
carry blood to the heart tissue; hence during sleep the heart-beats
differ from those of our waking hours, being fewer in number, and with a
more decided pause between. Now, the heart being to the body what the
mainspring is to a watch, the necessity of affording it ample time for
recuperation becomes apparent.

Having stated that eight hours’ sleep is the minimum amount for the
individual, the question of regularity presents itself, and this should
be understood to refer especially to the time of rising, which, unless
the individual is in ill health, should be at 6 A.M. This not only
proves invaluable in economizing time, but paves the way for regularity
in eating, which we will now consider.

There is much diversity of opinion as to the number of meals that
should be eaten during the day, and recently the practice of eating only
two meals a day has largely obtained. This, although preferable to the
practice of eating four and five meals a day, or of indiscriminate
lunching between meals, is yet (we consider) running into the other
extreme. Unless an exceedingly hearty breakfast is eaten, the tax upon
the vitality before the next meal hour arrives is too severe. Our rule,
which we commend to our readers, is as follows: Rise at six, then take
your bath, either plunge or sponge bath, followed by ten to fifteen
minutes of moderate exercise. This, we will say, occupies until seven;
then eat a light meal of juicy fruit, such as oranges, grapes or
berries, followed by the perusal of the morning newspaper, or, if you
are a student, devote an hour to study. At eight o’clock take your
proper breakfast, which should consist of some preparation of wheat
(with milk or fruit juice), followed by toast, boiled or poached eggs,
and a glass of milk. Take a light lunch at 1 P.M., and a moderately good
dinner at 7 P.M.

If regularity in the hours for meals be strictly observed, and the
quantity and character of the meals carefully considered, the system
will rapidly acquire the habit of expecting sustenance at those hours,
and regularity, like virtue, will be its own reward.

Next comes the question of exercise. Too little attention is paid to
this matter, more especially by those engaged in sedentary occupations;
yet it is in the highest degree important that the balance between the
mental and physical energies should be maintained. To preserve this
balance while the mind is active and the body untaxed, artificial
exercise must be practiced, for physical strength cannot be promoted
without some kind of bodily exercise. Unused muscles soon become flabby,
as athletes and their trainers well know. The best time for taking
exercise is, as stated above, just after the morning bath, and it is
astonishing what results can be obtained from fifteen minutes of
intelligently directed exercise each morning. Here, again, regularity
will work wonders. It may be a week or two before you will notice any
marked improvement in the muscular condition, but you will be amply
repaid by the glow of health which pervades the system as the result of
stimulated circulation.

Last, but by no means least, comes the matter of solicitation of the
bowels. In this case regularity in solicitation will invariably produce
regularity in movement. The bowels should be solicited every morning,
soon after rising, and every night just before retiring. We only wish
that we could impress every one of our readers with the importance of
this practice, and of the immense benefit of regularity in the pursuance
of it. Just as the stomach acquires the habit of expecting food when
regularly supplied to it at stated intervals, even so will the bowels
respond to solicitation if regularity be persisted in.

Nature is inexorably opposed to caprice. She executes all her processes
in an orderly manner, and if not interfered with, with the greatest
regularity, and if man will only co-operate with her by strict
regularity in the important duties previously mentioned, the result will
be a surprise to him in the form of renewed health and vigor. He will
have an unclouded mind, and be ready to face the trials of everyday
existence with a courage that nothing can daunt.

But Nature demands an accurate accounting. Man thinks but little of the
drafts he is continually making upon his vitality, but sooner or later
the account will be presented, and payment exacted in full. There is no
such thing as vicarious payment. The debtor must pay in person, and it
therefore behooves every man to watch the debit side of his life’s
ledger, and make a daily balance of his account with Nature.




PART VIII.

TREATMENT OF DISEASE.


HEART DISEASE.

There are numerous affections of the heart, divided into two
classes--organic and functional, the former being the more serious; but
it is safe to say that seventy-five per cent. of cases belong in the
latter class. The most common, and at the same time most serious, of the
organic troubles, are pericarditis (inflammation of the heart-envelope),
and valvular insufficiency (imperfect closure of the valves). The
functional disturbances are (almost without exception) due to digestive
difficulties. In the first class, if the case is well advanced and the
patient past the meridian of life, recovery is improbable, although life
may be considerably prolonged. The second class of cases can be cured,
with reasonable certainty, by removing the cause.


TREATMENT.

In pericarditis--the symptoms of which are fever and sharp pain under
left nipple, radiating to the armpit, use the “Cascade” daily while the
condition is acute; the wet sheet should also be employed daily, the
temperature varying with the degree of fever. It is usually the sequel
of rheumatism. In valvular insufficiency, which is caused by deposits
upon the valves of the heart, the symptoms of which are principally
difficulty of respiration, not much pain, but a feeling of uneasiness in
the heart region, and a peculiar sound termed “the murmer,” to be
detected by the stethoscope, the use of the “Cascade” will sometimes
effect wonders. It arrests all further deposition of impurities in the
blood, thus preventing any further accumulation on the valves, while the
increased liquidity and purity of the blood enables it to re-absorb the
existing deposits and thus restore normal action. Functional
difficulties, as stated, chiefly result from digestive troubles, due to
fermentation of food in the stomach and the consequent formation of gas,
which frequently collects in large quantities, and by actual pressure
impedes the heart’s action. The chief symptoms are shortness of breath,
palpitation, and great irregularity of the heart’s action; sometimes the
heart appears to miss a beat altogether. In such cases, a faithful
observance of the formula of treatment for dyspepsia (see index) will
accomplish surprising results.


ANÆMIA.

This is a disease of the blood, characterized by a deficiency of
albumen and red corpuscles. It is a disease that more frequently affects
women than men; the very young and the very old are most subject to it,
and especially, if of a nervous, irritable or hysterical disposition.
Among the exciting causes are defective hygiene, poor diet, want of, or
excessive exercise, grief, or other strong emotions. The symptoms are
great pallor, muscular weakness, frequent pulse, dizziness,
breathlessness on slight exertion and fainting. There is another form of
this trouble, known as Essential Anæmia, or Progressive Pernicious
Anæmia, which almost invariably terminates in death; while in the first
form, or simple anæmia, there is no reason whatever for a fatal result,
if treated judiciously.


TREATMENT.

The condition of the blood must be improved, and as the blood is only
formed from the food that is eaten, the importance of getting the
digestive function into good working order is apparent. Also to supply
those elements to the system that the condition of the blood shows to be
necessary, all of which can be furnished in properly selected articles
of food. The body must be cleansed internally, by means of the
“Cascade,” using it as frequently as the condition of the patient will
permit, without unduly taxing the system. The skin should be kept active
by frequent warm or tepid baths, followed by gentle friction with a soft
towel. A half pint of hot water should be slowly sipped soon after
rising, and no nourishment partaken of for at least half an hour. Gentle
exercise should be employed, to promote circulation; or if too weak,
substitute massage. Eggs and milk should be freely partaken of. The eggs
are preferable raw, beaten in milk, if not, then lightly boiled or
poached. Milk should only be taken in quantities of from two to four
ounces at a time. Some good preparation of whole wheat should be
partaken of once daily for the benefit of the phosphates contained in
it, but iron is the element most needed, and this is to be obtained in
the following articles: first and foremost, spinach, then beets,
tomatoes, dark skinned grapes and ditto plums. Lastly, and most
important, is the practice of deep breathing to thoroughly oxygenate the
blood.


BLOOD POISONING.

This may arise from various causes, such as the infection of a wound,
contact with some irritating vegetable substance like the poison ivy, or
by inhaling noxious gases, or handling certain metals, such as copper
and lead; but the most common cause is the re-absorption into the blood,
through the intestinal walls, of the waste products of the system; in
fact, it may be confidently asserted that ninety-nine per cent. of such
cases are due to this cause. When it is considered that a virulent
poison introduced in the rectum has been known to cause death in a
rabbit within two minutes, the absorptive character of the walls of the
colon may be faintly estimated. True, the toxic substances generated in
the body are not so rapid in their action, but they are none the less
deadly. It is to this that all skin diseases, together with rheumatism,
gout, neuralgia and a host of other troubles, are undoubtedly due.


TREATMENT.

Clean out the human cesspool by frequent use of the “Cascade,” thus
preventing any further deposition of these impure substances in the
blood, and keep it clean by more or less constant use. In acute cases,
take frequent Turkish baths, to help elimination by way of the skin, and
keep that organ active by frequent warm baths and vigorous friction with
a moderately coarse towel. Let the diet be plain and moderate, never
eating to excess, and drink freely of water, to keep the blood liquid,
and practice the habit of breathing deeply, to oxygenate the blood.


CONSUMPTION.

Of all diseases, consumption is the most widespread and destructive to
human life. Over 3,000,000 people die annually from this disease. It is
not only an acquired disease, but surely preventable, and in its early
stages, curable. In the majority of cases it commences just beneath the
collar bone, because here is the part of the lung that is least used,
the reserve portion, not much used in ordinary breathing. In most of the
avocations of life the shoulders are drawn forward, thus cramping the
lungs, and weakening them, then the consumption bacillus finds lodgment.
A person with healthy lungs might inhale millions of tubercle bacilli
daily with impunity, hence the inference is plain--to prevent
consumption, distend the lungs fully, by deep breathing, hundreds of
times daily.


TREATMENT.

The first thing to be done (if it is in your power) is to go to some
quiet country place where you can be sure of the three following
essentials--a dry location, pure air, and a plentiful supply of fresh,
rich milk. There is an almost universal consensus of opinion now that
the open air treatment is of the greatest benefit; therefore, live as
much as possible out of doors and sleep with the doors and windows of
your room wide open. Never mind, if you have to pile on bed clothing to
keep warm--the prime essential is unlimited fresh air. You will soon get
used to it, and you are playing for a big stake--health. If it is
impossible to go to the country, then carry out this treatment as
closely as possible at your home. It is absolutely necessary to improve
the nutrition of the body, that is, to stimulate the digestion and
absorbent functions of the stomach and intestines, therefore dispense
with all so-called cough medicines. The drugs used to stop a cough are
invariably sedatives. Now, no sedative or nauseant is known that does
not lock up the natural secretions, and thus lessen the digestive
powers. Flushing the colon with the “Cascade” is the first step to
improve nutrition. This unlocks the secretions and prepares the stomach
for food.

Next, flush the stomach. Then give the stomach food that the organs can
digest and assimilate.

For this purpose nothing equals good, rich, fresh milk. Live on milk
exclusively for a month at least, taking a tumbler full every half
hour--the object being to supply the body with food easily digested,
quickly absorbed, and highly nourishing; yet at the same time, in small
quantities, that will not overtax the stomach. You will quickly gain in
weight, and after a month or two you may commence on solid foods partly,
choosing such articles as the Salisbury steak (see treatment for
obesity), pure cod-liver oil, sweet cream, eggs, toasted whole wheat
bread, etc. Ten drops of beechwood creosote morning and night, on a
fifty cent respirator, is all the drug treatment necessary, or useful.
An external bath for those able to walk about, and a “sponge off” for
those confined to bed, must not be neglected. The skin exudes more
matter and is more likely to become clogged in disease than in health.
Practise deep breathing assiduously. Improved nutrition is your
salvation, and that must come through exercise, diet and fresh air.
Spend all the time possible in the open air and in the sun’s rays
whenever practicable, and pay special attention to the use of the
“Cascade.” Remember, the cure is in your own hands--depends upon your
own courage and perseverance.


CATARRH.

This is a disease resulting from cold. It is the exception rather than
the rule, to meet with individuals in our Northern climate who are not
afflicted with it in some form or other. It is easier to prevent than
cure. Strong, well developed lungs, a clean colon and skin, and catarrh,
are seldom found together in the same body. Perfect lung development and
a clean colon will alone effect a permanent cure. Keep the feet warm and
dry, never go into a hot room and sit or lie, but sleep in a cool, dry
atmosphere. The disease takes two different forms, nasal and throat.
Nasal catarrh is first caused by inflammation of the membrane of the
nasal cavities and air passages, which is followed by ulceration, when
Nature, in order to protect this delicate tissue and preserve the
olfactory nerves, throws a tough membrane over the ulcerated condition.
At this stage it is designated chronic catarrh.


TREATMENT.

Use the “Cascade” regularly every day, with water as hot as can be
borne, and guard scrupulously against taking cold. The membrane must
next be removed, and for this purpose we most unhesitatingly recommend
the J. B. L. Catarrh Remedy.

Half a lifetime of careful research has been devoted to perfecting this
admirable preparation, which to-day stands first as an effective agent
in removing this membraneous obstruction. It is composed of several
kinds of oils, and gently but effectually removes the membrane that
Nature has built over the inflamed parts, while its emollient character
soothes and allays the inflammation. These oils are not absorbed into
the system, but act only locally.

The method of application is as follows: A small quantity is placed in a
glass douche (especially manufactured for the purpose) and inhaled,
allowing the fluid to pass up the nostrils and into the throat, using
the nostrils alternately.

There is no case of catarrh so obstinate but will readily yield to this
treatment. But as a preventive of all this keep the colon clean and pay
attention to lung development.


ERYSIPELAS.

This disease arises from impure blood. A peculiar poison is generated,
which declares itself in the form of a red, puffy swelling, closely
resembling a blister, and very much like it to the touch. If the finger
is pressed upon the inflamed part, it will leave a white spot there for
an instant. It most usually attacks the face and head. In the majority
of cases it arises from an obstructed colon, a fermentation being
generated there from the long retained fæcal matter, consequently a
positive and sure cure is to thoroughly cleanse that organ. As a local
application take loppered sour milk and apply it to the inflamed parts,
or, if not this, the next best thing is hop yeast mixed with charcoal to
the thickness desired. The lactic acid in sour milk is a direct antidote
to the poison of erysipelas.


DYSPEPSIA.

This disease does not come by chance. Infection or contagion can never
be held responsible for it. It is the penalty which Nature inflicts upon
you for violating physiological laws. Do not be deluded by extravagantly
worded advertisements into the belief that any nostrum has been or ever
will be invented that can possibly effect an immediate cure. You must
entirely abandon the habits that induced it. You must masticate your
food thoroughly--allowing the saliva to mix with it, not bolt it, and
then wash it down with copious draughts of tea, coffee or water. This
superabundance of fluid only serves to distend the stomach and impede
digestion. A change of diet is necessary, but not so essential as a
change in the habit of eating. Dyspepsia is more or less catarrh of the
stomach. Its lining becomes coated with a slimy mucus that arrests the
action of the glands, coats the food and prevents the gastric juice from
acting upon it.


TREATMENT.

For the first week, use the “Cascade” every night, the second week, each
alternate night; thereafter, as occasion seems to demand. Drink a glass
of hot water, not less than half an hour before each meal, especially
before breakfast. The breakfast should commence with a liberal amount of
good, ripe fruit, preferably oranges or grape fruit. This may be
followed by a small quantity of some good preparation of whole-wheat:
possibly, a lightly boiled or poached egg and a slice of crisp, dry
toast, or whole-wheat bread. Drink nothing with the food, but take a
glass of hot milk half an hour later. Good, lean beef or mutton, broiled
or baked, is easily digested, and may be eaten moderately at midday. If
faint between meals, take a glass of hot milk, with a raw egg beaten in
it. If the stomach is very sensitive, it is better to eat five or six
meals a day, of a few ounces, than to overtax the stomach. Masticate
every mouthful of food thoroughly, and practice deep breathing
assiduously, it is an important aid to digestion. This method of
treatment, if faithfully persisted in, will cure the worst case of
dyspepsia, with all its attendant misery.


RHEUMATISM.

Both chronic and acute rheumatism are diseases of the blood, due to an
excess of uric acid. The presence of this acid is due to excessive and
imperfect action of the liver. Imperfect nutrition and deficient
excretion are the primary causes, and the result is that the blood
becomes loaded with poisonous matter. The trouble manifests itself in
the joints, toes, ankles, knees or hands, but the seat of the disease is
elsewhere.


TREATMENT.

The first thing to be done is to promote the conversion of acid by
oxidation and increased activity of the liver. The best way to
accomplish this is by the daily use of the “Cascade,” first with hot
water, then with cool water, doubling the antiseptic tonic. Do this
twice a day for a week, then once a day for a month. Take a Turkish bath
daily for a time to restore the functions of the skin. Rub the disabled
joints with hot, oily applications, followed by massage and pressure
movements. The diet should consist largely of green vegetables, mutton
and whole wheat bread, or toast, eggs, milk and fruit. Avoid pastry and
starchy food, such as potatoes, beans and white bread. A cup of hot
water, not less than half an hour before breakfast, should not be
omitted.

This treatment will speedily cure the worst cases.


TYPHOID FEVER.

The chief seat of this terribly prevalent disease is in the stomach and
intestines, particularly the colon. It is a foul, bacterial disease, and
originates in filth. The germs may be taken into the system in impure
water or milk, inhaling the gases from defective drains or by eating
food which has absorbed such gases. Once in the system, the bacteria
must have decayed matter to feed upon, therefore it is impossible for a
person who is clean both inside and out to take typhoid fever, there
being no facilities for the germs to breed and multiply. A peculiar
secretion from the colon, mixed with the fæcal matter of long standing,
induces a fermentation that generates a putrid smelling gas. This
fermenting gas is the home of the bacillus, and from it millions of
germs are multiplied and pass into the circulation. In this fermentation
a peculiar worm is bred, which is the cause of ulceration in the bowels
of typhoid patients.


TREATMENT.

To give physic in a typhoid fever case is a grave mistake. Instead of
assisting Nature, it more probably hastens the death of the patient.
Knowing the cause of the disease, common sense tells us that the first
thing to do is to check the multiplication of the germs by removing the
putrid matter in which they breed. When the symptoms first appear give
the patient a warm water emetic. Drink until the stomach throws it back.
Do not be afraid to drink. If the stomach is obstinate, use the index
finger to excite vomiting. This washes out the contents of the stomach,
which will be found fermenting and full of bacteria. Then give him a
large cup of hot water--very hot--with a little salt in it. Let the
patient rest for an hour or so after vomiting, then use the “Cascade”
with water just as hot as the hand will bear, so it will not scald. Let
him retain the water from ten to fifteen minutes if he can. Next, the
patient must be sweated, to open up the pores of the skin, and for this
nothing equals the wet sheet pack. Roll the patient in a sheet wrung out
of cold water, on top of this a couple of blankets and a comfortable. At
his feet place hot bricks in flannel, on his head a towel, wrung out of
cold water. Give him plenty of fresh air. When he has perspired freely
take him out of the pack, wash him with warm water, and soap, rub him
down, give him a drink of cold water and put him to bed. Repeat the
injections daily, using tepid water. In cases of extreme weakness the
treatment must be modified. Let the patient have all the cold water he
wants to drink and give him plenty of fresh air. Use flushings daily,
also the external bath, remembering in the latter to use cold water when
the fever is high, and he will speedily be restored to health. Let him
eat nothing until Nature calls for it. The best test of hunger is a
piece of stale dry Graham bread.


BILIOUS FEVER.

This disease generally makes its appearance with one or more chills,
sickness of the stomach and more or less fever. The tongue has an
ill-looking yellow coat and food is unacceptable. The cause of all this,
to an intelligent mind, is perfectly clear. The colon is clogged and the
acids in the stomach and the duodenum, together with an abundance of
secretions from the liver, have no outlet. In this condition a slight
cold will close up the already overworked pores of the skin and turn the
tide of corruption into the stomach, lungs and kidneys, and bilious
fever is the result, for, Nature being unable to get rid of the filth by
the ordinary methods, resorts to her last expedient, of burning it up.


TREATMENT.

The remedy is obviously simple. Use the “Cascade” and open the pores.
Wash the stomach, take two or three hot injections daily, and a hot
sheet pack. This treatment, with baths and rubbing, will cure an
ordinary case of bilious fever in about three days. Avoid all drugs.
Nature will call for food when it needs it.


LA GRIPPE.

This is the modern name for influenza. It resembles an ordinary cold in
its symptoms, but is far more violent in its effects. Acute pains in the
head and kidneys are symptoms that are usually present. If neglected, it
may develop into pneumonia, or consumption. It is both epidemic and
contagious, and thousands of victims were left in its trail when it
swept over the United States and Europe during the winters of 1890, 1891
and 1892.


TREATMENT.

Possibly you are not aware that this disease is almost invariably
accompanied by constipation, but it is a fact, nevertheless,
consequently, the internal bath is the first remedial process to be
resorted to. Make them hot and copious, and use them daily, for three
days at least. Next, relieve the internal congestion by opening the
pores of the skin. To do this, use the Turkish bath (see end of book),
take it at night, drink a glass of hot lemonade, and go to bed. Tuck
yourself up warm. Doubtless it will make you sweat, but you need that.
In the morning take a bath and a good rub down. Drink a cup of hot water
half an hour before breakfast, and let that meal consist of plain food,
soft-boiled eggs, oatmeal, Graham bread and fruit--oranges, if
procurable. Two days of this treatment will put La Grippe to flight, but
the better plan is to prevent it by keeping the colon cleansed.


DYSENTERY.

This is a disease of the colon. The retention of fæcal matter in the
folds of the colon inflames the parts until they become dry, then the
soft evacuations dry on the sensitive mucous membrane. These secretions
produce a peculiar acid, which in its turn breeds worms, and these, in
the early stages of their existence, eat into the foreign matter and
even into the mucous membrane itself, causing what is known as
dysentery.


TREATMENT.

In either the acute or chronic cases, the patient must be treated lying
down, with the hips elevated above the shoulders. For this purpose our
Fountain attachment is necessary with the “Cascade.” This will relieve
the pain and congestion in the lower part of the colon. In acute cases
do not let the patient sit up a moment. Use a bed pan always. Flush the
colon with hot water, letting it flow gently, and add a little salt to
the water. After the discharge, follow with an injection of two ounces
of vaseline oil, which should be retained as long as possible. This is
an emollient, and will soothe and heal the ulcerations.

During the past seven years we have been instrumental in curing cases
of dysentery contracted during the Civil War, and solely by the
foregoing treatment.


DIARRHŒA.

Is simply Nature’s method of getting rid of undigested substances in the
alimentary tract. After a time the irritation excites the glands to
abnormal action to wash out the offending substances, resulting from
excessive fermentation. If not relieved, ulceration sets in, and worms
breed in the intestines--then we have what is known as chronic
diarrhœa.

The treatment in both varieties is the same. Use the “Cascade” until the
colon is thoroughly emptied and cleansed. Take a warm bath before
retiring, and follow it with a brisk rub down. Be careful in your
diet--the better plan being to fast for a day or two, until the worst
symptoms are past.


DISEASES OF THE NERVES.

Most people imagine that nervousness is the result of too much nerve
force, but the opposite is the case. The trouble is a too sensitive
battery and inadequate nerve force. The batteries, or nerve centres, are
too easily discharged. It is nervous irritability, therefore, that we
have to deal with.

The causes are manifold, the restless American nature, the stimulating
climate, neglect of physical training, giving too little time and
attention to eating and sleeping, concentrating too much attention on
money getting and business to the neglect of recreation and repose. One
of the gravest causes is a constipated colon, which promotes
indigestion, and through it, lack of nutrition, thus cutting off the
supply of nerve food. The habit of tea and coffee drinking, and the use
of tobacco, are also fruitful causes of this distressing affliction.


TREATMENT.

You must apply a brake to that restless motor within you that is driving
you too fast. You must step out of the busy stream of life for awhile,
let it rush past you and take things easy. Flush the colon
regularly--remove that great source of nervous irritation, for we have
yet to hear of a nervous person that was not constipated.

If you suffer from nervousness, you are dyspeptic, your whole course of
life tends to render you so. Follow the treatment, especially the diet,
given under the head of “Dyspepsia.” Practice deep breathing, for lung
development, for strong lung power is never associated with nervousness.
Take plenty of exercise in the open air, but not to excess.

Be moderate in all things, except sleep, you cannot sleep too much.
Cultivate the sleeping habit, and don’t give up until you can sleep ten
hours a day.


THE MATTER OF FOOD

is important, for, as before stated, nervous people eat and sleep too
little. Fatty foods, or those that are easily converted into fat, are
what is necessary. Olive oil is one of the best nerve foods in
existence. Take a teaspoonful at a time, and gradually increase the
quantity until you can take a tablespoonful at each meal. If you really
can’t take olive oil, the best substitute is sweet cream. Celery is also
good, and lettuce.

Cultivate slow and measured movements, avoid undue activity, take life
easy and be moderate in all things.

To sum up. Flush the colon, sleep long, eat slowly, and plenty of oily
or fat food, exercise freely, but in moderation, develop the lungs by
breathing exercises, and take life easy.

This line of treatment, faithfully carried out, will cure the very worst
cases in time.


HEADACHE.

There are many causes for this distressing complaint. Generally the
cause is to be found in the stomach. Something that has no right there
is in that organ, and irritating the pneumogastric nerve that connects
the stomach with the brain. It is a common symptom of dyspepsia.

An engorged colon is one of the most common causes, on the same
principle that it causes paralysis and apoplexy. Stimulants invariably
promote headache.

To prevent the attacks, live regularly, avoid late hours and excessive
brain work, shun alcoholic beverages and tea and coffee, avoid sweets
and pastries, and anything fried in fat. Eat good, plain food, including
fruit (especially oranges), but never eat late at night. Develop the
lungs. Never let a day pass without gently exercising all the muscles.
Massage the abdomen each night before retiring. Keep the colon clean by
the use of the “Cascade,” and bathe at least three times a week.

To relieve an attack, flush the colon thoroughly. Take a hot foot-bath,
and while taking it, take a cup of hot lemonade--without sugar--so hot
that you have to sip it.


DROPSY.

In this disease the outlet to the intestinal canal has become clogged.
The kidneys wear out trying to evacuate the bowels through their
delicate tubular network and the capillaries have become helpless
through misuse in trying to do the work of others. So the tissues and
muscles of the extremities are loaded with this cast off material, and
we call it bloat. This is dropsy.


TREATMENT.

Use the “Cascade” at least twice a week, making the flushings thorough
and complete. In addition, I would earnestly recommend a daily
application of the Turkish bath, to open up the pores of the skin and
induce perspiration. If the patient is too weak to take the Turkish
bath, the hot wet-sheet pack, the same as prescribed for Scarlet Fever,
will accomplish the same purpose. The Turkish bath, however, is by far
the best, for the system is loaded with too much water, for which the
profuse perspiration induced by this dry sweating process affords marked
relief.

With reference to diet, it is wise to eat as little as possible, and let
that be of dry toast, thoroughly masticated. It is important that no tea
or coffee should be taken.


APPENDICITIS.

This complaint was formerly known as inflammation of the bowels, and
may be caused by injury. It was generally believed to be due to the
presence of foreign substances, such as grape seeds, etc., in the
vermiform appendix, but this idea is exploded. It is an inflamed
condition of the appendix, but the inflammation may have extended from
the colon or from the peritoneum. The most frequent cause is the cæcum
(the lower pouch of the colon) getting filled with hardened fæcal
matter, in which case the ileo cæcal valve is obstructed, and the
natural passages of the bowels stopped. With a clean colon appendicitis
is practically an impossibility.

The accepted medical practice is to remove the appendix by operation,
regardless of conditions; but the mortality in such cases is high.
Others put the patient to sleep with tincture of opium, or veratrum
viride, and let Nature right herself, if possible. If Nature can
maintain herself against the doctor and his drugs from seven to nine
days, the patient may get round, but not well.


TREATMENT.

Use the “Cascade” promptly on the first sign of an attack, injecting
all the water possible (at a temperature of not less than 102 Fahr.), so
as to reach the cæcum, where the trouble is located. If the attack is an
acute one, use the “Cascade” every third hour until relieved. If the
obstruction (which is usually present) does not give way, inject a pint
of hot water and a pint of castor oil mixed; but before injecting it
(with a bulb syringe) raise the patient’s hips several inches higher
than his head; then turn the patient on his right side, and stroke the
reverse way of the colon, applying a firm but gentle kneading movement
in the region of the appendix. This injection should be retained at
least half an hour--longer if necessary. If this does not break loose
the obstruction, resume the use of the “Cascade.” Hot fomentations over
the appendicular region are valuable. Give no medicine, it can do no
good, but may do infinite mischief. After the bowel has been emptied let
the patient have absolute rest, and if there is much pain and
inflammation present, apply cracked ice, in a rubber bag, over the
affected part. The diet should be absolutely liquid until all danger has
passed. This is of the highest importance.


DISEASES OF THE LIVER.

Liver complaints are always closely related to other diseases of the
digestive organs. The colon being clogged, the intestines are rendered
sluggish, which in turn acts upon the duodenum, or second stomach, and
prevents the food from properly passing out--then fermentation takes
place. Bile is poured out on the accumulated food again and again, for
the presence of anything in the duodenum is a demand for the secretion
of bile. As a result too much bile is mixed with the food to be
absorbed--the blood becomes tainted with biliary secretions--showing
itself in a yellow skin, dizziness of the head, dull, sleepy condition
and lack of ambition. This overtaxing of the organ results in what is
known as acute congestion, the symptoms of which are tenderness to touch
and a feeling of painful tension on right side just above the edge of
the ribs, slight jaundice, furred tongue, loss of appetite and scanty
high  urine.


TREATMENT.

Open the colon by the use of the “Cascade,” when the intestines and
duodenum will be in turn relieved, then open up the pores of the skin
with baths and allow Nature to expel the waste from the system in that
manner. The wet sheet pack will be found specially valuable for that
purpose.

An unnatural appetite often accompanies bilious attacks, but it should
be resisted. Eat sparingly of bread and milk, slightly salted, for two
or three days, then take more solid food, but do not eat meat more than
once a day for a week or two. Any exercises that call the muscles of the
stomach into play are beneficial and should be practiced daily,
especially horseback riding and rowing. Exercise by bending forward,
trying to touch the toes without bending the knees; at the same time
taking a deep breath--you then have the liver as in a vise, thus
inducing active circulation.

The “Bear” walk, or walking about the room on all fours without bending
the knees, is one of the best exercises for a torpid liver that can be
imagined, but it should be practised in private, or your friends may
question your sanity.


DISEASES OF THE SKIN.

These diseases usually have their origin in constipation, therefore the
first thing to be done is to relieve this condition of the colon by
daily use of the “Cascade.” Bathe the body daily in tepid water, being
careful not to use soap that will irritate the skin.

Never use common soap nor any of the highly perfumed varieties. A pure
soap will float in the water. An occasional wet pack sheet is of great
value. Attend carefully to the diet and avoid all foods fried in fat,
especially buckwheat cakes and food of that description.


DISEASE OF THE KIDNEYS.

This is caused by irritation of the kidneys, brought about by those
organs being forced to do work which does not properly belong to them.

Congestion is the first step towards chronic or acute inflammation. The
second stage is a breaking down or degeneration of the kidney cells. If
degeneration has passed a certain point, there is no hope.


TREATMENT.

The only possible cure is to remove the cause. The colon, intestines,
stomach and skin must be got into good working order, so that they will
do their own work and relieve the poor scapegoat--the kidneys--of unjust
burdens. The colon should be constantly and copiously flushed with the
“Cascade,” and warm baths frequently taken. The Turkish bath is
valuable, especially the home bath described in this book, as the
patient’s head, being free, the hot air is not drawn into the lungs.

Every night after flushing the colon inject a pint of warm water and go
to bed. It will pass off through the kidneys, cleansing them. If there
is acute pain, repeat the injection every two hours until relieved. Hot
fomentations applied to the back, over the region of the kidneys, will
relieve the pain, and gentle massage in the same locality will be found
beneficial.

Avoid sweets, pastries, starchy foods, like potatoes, alcohol, tobacco,
tea, coffee and overfat foods. The diet recommended for dyspepsia is
good. Skim milk, buttermilk and whey should be used freely, as they
exercise a very beneficial influence on the kidneys. A wet compress worn
over night will help draw out the poisonous waste matters.


ASIATIC CHOLERA.

This disease is caused by the presence of a microbe, known as the “comma
bacillus,” which manufactures a virulent poison, called a ptomaine.
Although the germs are taken into the system through the medium of the
mouth and stomach, they only multiply in the bowels, which is proved by
the fact that the vomit from a cholera patient contains none, while the
discharges from the bowels abound with them. If the system is in perfect
condition the germs are destroyed by the gastric juice in the stomach as
soon as inhaled. If the stomach is out of order the bacilli escape into
the intestines, where the fluids are alkaline (in which they thrive) and
cholera is the result. The symptoms are, first a slight diarrhœa,
almost painless, then tremors, vertigo and nausea. Gripping pains and
repressed circulation follow, then copious purging of the intestines,
followed by discharges of a thin watery fluid, lividity of the lips,
cold breath and an unquenchable thirst.


TREATMENT.

First flush the colon thoroughly with warm water every few hours. Next
induce perspiration by means of the Turkish bath, but if the case has
set in violently, and vomiting and cramps appear, use the “Cascade”
promptly, and get the patient into bed as quickly as possible. Then take
two heavy sheets, dip them in water as hot as can be borne, fold them
and lay them over the chest and abdomen and cover up with blankets,
tucking them in closely at the sides. Put a jug of hot water to the
feet. In about ten minutes redip the sheets quickly and reapply. In
fifteen or twenty minutes the perspiration will appear and the cramps
will vanish.

Take nothing into the stomach during the duration of the disease except
moderate sips of cold water or pieces of ice, to quench the burning
thirst.

Use simple strengthening food (milk is best) until health is restored.
All water should be boiled before using.


CHOLERA MORBUS.

The symptoms are similar to those of Asiatic cholera, but not so
violent. The treatment is the same in principle. If there is a feeling
of nausea take a warm water emetic.


PERITONITIS

Is an inflammation of the membrane covering the bowels, and is
frequently caused by concussion or injury; sometimes it extends from
adjacent organs, but in many instances it is caused by the breeding of
worms in the hardened fæcal accumulations in the colon.

No matter what the cause may be, flush the colon vigorously with
injections as hot as can be borne, and place bags of hops, steeped in
hot vinegar, on the outside. This will soon reduce the inflammation and
effect a cure.


PNEUMONIA.

Sometimes called Lung Fever, is an acute inflammation of the lungs,
usually caused by a cold, and commencing with a chill and feverish
symptoms. At first there is a dry cough and what is known as the brick
dust sputum, and in the advanced stages a peculiar dark tint in the
cheeks, known as the mahogany flush. The breathing becomes very hurried,
rising as high as forty respirations per minute. It is an exceedingly
rapid and frequently fatal form of disease.


TREATMENT.

Promptitude in dealing with the case is of the highest importance. If
the colon had been kept clean and the lungs developed by exercise it
could not have attacked you; therefore the first thing to be done is to
use the “Cascade.” Then the circulation must be equalized by drawing the
blood to the skin and extremities--away from the congested lungs. A hot
foot-bath will draw the blood to the extremities and a Turkish bath (see
end of book) will do the same to the skin. If too weak to endure the
Turkish bath, substitute a hot bath. Put the patient to bed immediately
and apply a hot compress over the lungs, wrung out of hot brine,
changing it as often as it gets cool. Give little, if any, food during
the continuance of the disease; if any is given it should be light and
nutritious. The above treatment, if employed in time, will save any
case.


BRONCHITIS.

This is an acute inflammation of the bronchial tubes, or air passages,
and the treatment is almost identical with that for pneumonia; only
applying the hot compress to the throat or chest, according to which
part exhibits the most soreness. If the throat is very sore use the
following gargle: Bichromate of potash (pulverized), one drachm;
tincture capsicum, half ounce; pure water, two tablespoonfuls. Shake
until dissolved. Add one teaspoonful of this mixture to three-fourths of
a tumbler of water and gargle the throat every hour until relieved--then
every two hours until well.


ASTHMA.

A most distressing complaint, and hitherto imperfectly understood. It
has been attributed to innumerable causes, but our contention is that it
is due to an engorged transverse colon, which, interfering with the free
action of the diaphragm, withdraws that amount of impetus from the
lungs, so that they fail to respond to nerve stimulation. Through
inaction, the diaphragm becomes practically a fixed instead of a movable
partition. This contention is borne out by the fact that in numerous
cases where the colon was emptied, the trouble disappeared and no
trouble was experienced so long as the colon was kept clean. In all
cases of asthma the last meal should be a light one, if taken at all; in
fact, it would be well to follow the dietary rules for dyspepsia, and in
addition omit the evening meal.


UTERINE DISPLACEMENT.

This prevalent complaint among the women of America is due, in ninety
per cent. of the cases, to constipation, and that is mainly attributable
to tight lacing. In the majority of our countrywomen the sigmoid flexure
(see diagram beginning of work) is distended to nearly double its
natural size, pressing upon the womb, which necessarily displaces it,
but in addition the colon, through impaction, frequently becomes highly
inflamed and communicates the inflammation to the womb, making it heavy
and relaxed.

The ascending and descending colon lie immediately behind the ovaries,
and if (as is often the case) it becomes distended to double its size,
it stretches the broad ligaments and ovarian connections, frequently
breaking them away from their peritoneal attachments or carrying the
peritoneum downward with them.

The Fallopian tubes, which penetrate and are attached to the peritoneal
sack, together with the uterine broad ligaments, are designed to hold
the womb in place, but if the womb and ovaries are crowded down into the
pelvic cavity and the womb doubled upon itself, dysmenorrhea or painful
menstruation, or amenorrhea, with convulsions, is the result. Perhaps
there may even be a complete stoppage, so that Nature menstruates
vicariously and casts it off through the lungs or bowels.


TREATMENT.

Empty the colon and keep it clean by regular use of the “Cascade,” and
wear your clothing as loose as your husband’s or brother’s, and the womb
will go back into its place, and all the bad symptoms disappear. It may
be, though, that the tendons and ligaments have become partially
paralyzed through the uterus having been so long out of place.

After emptying the colon, if there is pain in the back, with a bearing
down sensation, sit in half a tub of hot water for fifteen or twenty
minutes once every other day. Throw yourself on your back with the hips
raised as high as possible, then rub up from the pelvic bone. This will
reduce the displacement of the sigmoid flexure, besides giving relief.
Should the womb not go back into place, call in a physician to replace
it.

Painful menstruation and leucorrhea, which are caused by displacement of
the womb, inflammation and hypertrophy, or hardening of the womb,
enlarged and sensitive ovaries, can all be speedily cured by flushing
the colon.


ANTEVERSION,

Which affects nine out of every ten women, is the womb falling forward
on the bladder (causing frequent desire to urinate) and downward, which,
with the falling of the sigmoid flexure, produces obstruction of the
bowels and great straining at stool.


RETROVERSION

Is a falling down, with the body of the womb thrown backward.
Frequently it is doubled upon itself, when it becomes hardened and
inflamed, and adhesion often takes place. Doctors frequently call this
spinal disease, but it is the displaced organs pressing on the great
sympathetic nerve, which produces partial paralysis of the lower limbs
and loss of memory, sometimes causing insanity. In retroversion, after
emptying the colon, assume the following position: Kneel on the bed, or
sofa, with the body thrown forward until the chest also touches. Retain
this position as long as possible, and repeat it frequently during the
day. Sleep with the foot of the bed raised eight inches. These positions
all facilitate the return of the womb to its normal position.

Eat nutritious, easily digested food, and avoid all stimulants.


COMMON COLDS

Are very disagreeable things, and, though not dangerous in themselves,
yet are frequently the cause of serious complications and the
forerunners of consumption, pneumonia and catarrh. Colds are commonly
due to sudden changes of temperature, and are caused by the sudden
closing of the pores of the skin, thus preventing the escape of those
waste matters of the body which Nature has designed should be expelled
in that direction. The blood is thus driven inward, causing congestion.
If the system is in a sound, healthy condition, with respiration good
and the colon clean, it should be next to impossible to take cold. If,
however, there is a weak spot in the body, be sure the cold will find
it, when, if not promptly dealt with, serious results may ensue.


TREATMENT.

Constipation is the invariable primary cause of a cold, hence the first
thing to do is to flush the colon. Use the “Cascade” daily for at least
three days. Do not eat any supper the first night. The next thing to be
done is to take the Turkish bath (see end of book). It should be taken
at night, after which drink a glass of hot lemonade and go to bed,
covering the body thoroughly. No doubt you will perspire profusely, but
that is what you need. In the morning take a good bath and rub down,
following the directions given for bathing, drink a cup of hot water an
hour before breakfast and let that meal be light, such as Graham bread,
boiled eggs, oatmeal and oranges. You are then ready to attend to your
daily business, and if you take another flushing at night, the next
morning your cold will be only a memory.


CONSTIPATION.

This condition of the system has been so frequently referred to already
that further comment upon it may be deemed unnecessary. Its causes are
varied, insufficient exercise in the open air, hastily eaten and
imperfectly masticated food, also many articles of food tend to induce
the evil of habitual constipation.

Whatever you may do, avoid everything in the form of drugs, for they
are injurious in the highest degree. The continual excitation of the
excretory processes by the use of cathartics is a most pernicious
practice and should be shunned. A constant indulgence in the “purgative
habit” often renders the coating of the stomach so sensitive that even
the presence of food in that organ irritates it and is frequently
hurried out half digested.

The “Cascade” should be used each alternate day, for at least two weeks,
then, twice a week, until improvement is assured. Drink a tumblerful of
hot water, not less than half an hour before breakfast and eat freely of
fruit at that meal. Also partake liberally of good, green vegetables at
other meals. Eating whole-wheat bread is of decided assistance, and make
it a rule to drink from two to three pints of water each day.


PILES OR HEMORRHOIDS.

This is a disease of the rectum and muscles of the anus, and is the
direct result of constipation. The accumulation of hardened fæcal matter
distends the sigmoid flexure, causing inflammation, until from its own
weight it falls down, producing prolapse of the bowels. Frequently
ulceration follows and the bowel is pressed out, tumors forming on the
protruding portion.

Bleeding piles are caused by congestion of the rectal blood vessels.
The constant nerve irritation causes muscular contraction, consequently
circulation is interfered with, producing a condition of engorgement.
Owing to lack of nutrition the structures become brittle and quantities
of the varicosed capillaries unite to form pile tumors. The methods of
treatment usually employed are, injecting astringents into the tumors to
dry them up; to ligate the tumors, that they may die or drop off, or to
amputate the portion of the rectum in which the tumors form (known as
the radical operation), none of which prevent a return of the trouble.
The only rational plan is to remove the cause.


TREATMENT.

First empty the colon, using the “Cascade,” thus removing the cause,
then the inflammation will subside and the protruding bowel go back into
its place. Tumors will soon absorb if they are put back where they
protrude. Sitting in a tub of hot water will cause the bowel to go back
immediately. Hot water is Nature’s astringent and never fails. The
following salve has been found of great value in facilitating recovery:
Two heaped tablespoonfuls of vaseline or cosmoline, willow charcoal, one
teaspoonful; canadies pinus canadensis, twenty-five drops. Mix well and
apply up the rectum with the fingers as far as possible. But the most
effective aid to a cure is to follow the use of the “Cascade” by
inserting in the rectum a small piece of ice, about the size of the tip
of the little finger (previously immersed in water to render it smooth),
which will be found a most admirable rectal tonic, driving the blood
away from the congested parts, and producing a bracing effect on the
structures. In bad cases it may be used with good effect several times
during the day, and will be found equally beneficial in cases of
prolapse of the rectum. The ice is to be retained in the rectum.


PARALYSIS OR PALSY.

These two terms signify one and the same disease; that is, a condition
of the system in which the power of voluntary motion is lost. It is the
outward manifestation of a deep-seated disease that can usually be
traced to an obstructed colon and consequent disordered circulation. The
same causes promote apoplexy. A blood vessel is ruptured in the brain,
causing a clot to form, which presses upon the nerves that convey the
will of the mind to the muscles, thus stopping their action. It is not,
as is usually supposed, an affection of the muscles, but of the nerves
that control the muscular movements. Sometimes one entire side of the
body becomes affected and completely deprived of voluntary motion.
Congestion of the brain is a preliminary of paralysis, and congestions
of the brain are invariably due to an enlarged transverse colon.

One form of paralysis affects only certain parts of the body, such as
the lower limbs, or the reproductive organs, and is caused by pressure
upon some large nerve communicating with the paralyzed portion. This is
doubtless due to the pressure of an enlarged ascending or descending
colon upon some of the lumbar plexus nerves, or their branches. This,
however, refers to what may be termed local paralysis, or paralysis of
certain parts.

Paralysis of an entire side of the body is due to pressure on the brain,
and this is caused by defective circulation, induced by an unnaturally
distended colon. While in this condition some severe physical exertion
or mental strain increases the pressure beyond the power of resistance
and a rupture is the result--when the patient falls, wherever he may
happen to be.


TREATMENT.

Prevention of paralysis is very easy, for with a clean colon it is an
impossibility, and the remedy is too plainly indicated to need pointing
out. You have but to remove the cause--the accumulation in the colon.
Massage is a most valuable part of the treatment. To prevent the muscles
from stiffening, and to retain the suppleness of the affected parts,
frequent rubbings are necessary, and the mind should be stimulated to
resume its control over the refractory muscles. During an attack it is
necessary to pay particular attention to diet--easily digested,
nonconstipating food only. You may have to revert to a spoon diet for
awhile--and, as the liability to a second attack is great during the
period of recovery, special attention must be given to diet to guard
against it.

When power begins to return to the affected parts, a system of graduated
exercises should be arranged, gradually increasing in force with the
return of strength and normal control. These exercises will gradually
educate the mind and restore its harmonious working with the body.


EPILEPSY, OR FALLING SICKNESS,

Is distinguished from apoplexy, or paralysis, by the convulsive action
and foaming at the mouth. One prime cause of this most distressing
complaint is the action of worms in the colon. In a number of cases
treated by us, knots of worms were expelled, and the exciting cause
being removed, complete recovery followed. The preventive treatment is
simple. Use the “Cascade” and our antiseptic tonic until the worms are
entirely expelled. During a fit loosen the clothing at the throat and
place something in the mouth, a cork, for instance, to prevent the
patient from biting his tongue. Some fine salt thrust into the mouth
will shorten the duration of the fit.

Another prolific cause is masturbation, in which case nothing but the
abandonment of the habit and a cleanly life, both physically and
morally, will effect a cure.


GONORRHEA.

This is a contagious disease, and its victims usually become the prey of
unprincipled charlatans, who drive the disease inward by suppressing the
symptoms. It affects the male much more seriously than the female. It
commences with a slight uneasy sensation at the mouth of the urethra,
between the second and seventh day after exposure to infection. The
natural discharge of mucus is increased, and is more viscid, followed by
acute inflammation. The discharge becomes thick and greenish and
urination is painful. Swelling of the glands in the groin is common,
called a bubo. Orchitis or swelling of the testicle is also a frequent
accompaniment. Under the best of treatment it will require from four to
six weeks to effect a cure, but if neglected it may mean months.


TREATMENT.

Use the “Cascade” every night for the first two weeks, then twice a
week for at least two months, to get the poison out of the system, and
keep the parts scrupulously clean by bathing them two or three times a
day. Carefully avoid everything in the form of a stimulant, especially
alcoholic drinks, also tobacco, and let the diet be largely vegetable.
Use the following injection twice every day after urinating. 
fluid hydrastis, two drachms; fluid extract canadies pinus canadensis,
two drachms; bromo chlorellum, half a drachm; water, six ounces. Shake
well and inject twice a day until a marked improvement can be noticed,
then once a day, and, finally, every other day.


HERNIA OR RUPTURE

Is the escape of some portion of the viscera through an abnormal opening
and takes its particular name from the locality in which the protrusion
occurs, although the inguinal is the most common form. The dynamic force
of foul gases engendered in the system is a prolific, though generally
unsuspected cause; but the mechanical pressure exerted by an overloaded
colon in the limited space of the abdominal cavity is responsible for
seventy-five per cent. of all cases. The treatment is obvious--use the
“Cascade” faithfully, and, the cause being removed, reduction is easy,
and if the colon be kept clean, a properly adjusted truss will soon
completely cure it.


INEBRIETY

Is responsible for many of the ills of the present generation, in the
form of transmitted constitutional weakness, not to mention the
functional derangements and organic destruction, of which it is a potent
and direct cause.

There are two grave reasons why alcohol should not be taken into the
system, or, if at all, in very minute quantities and at distant
intervals. The first is the moral reason, because it undermines and
destroys the finer part of man. It has the peculiar effect upon the
brain of stimulating the baser qualities and blunting the finer ones.
The second is the physical reason, see “The Diet Question.” When
alcoholism becomes a fixed habit, it must be treated as a disease, for
it is one in reality. In many cases the large intestinal or tapeworm is
at the root of the trouble. Now, worms cannot exist in a perfectly clean
body, with every function working properly. Few, if any, animals can
resist the solvent power of the gastric juice if it is secreted in
normal quantity, and in full health and vigor, consequently, to cleanse
the body of all superabundant filth and restore it to a sound working
condition, will prevent their growth. But if they _are_ present and
developed (as they sometimes are) to an enormous size, the vital forces
are unable to dislodge them, unaided, and recourse must be had to a
“vermifuge” diet. This may be found in two articles--the crusts of good,
sweet wheat-meal bread and good, ripe uncooked apples. It is important
that the food be hard, so that it be well masticated and that it be
eaten slowly, so that the stomach is not overloaded.


TREATMENT.

First get the alcohol out of the system by flushing the colon daily.
This will help you to stop drinking (which is so much easier advised
than accomplished), then proceed to sweat it out by a daily Turkish bath
(see end of book) or a Turkish bath one day and a wet sheet pack the
next.

Second, sip a cupful of hot water not less than half an hour before
each meal and use the wheat bread crusts and apple diet mentioned before
for one week certain, two weeks is better (if possible). Then use the
“Cascade” thoroughly, to expel the worm; and for a month at least follow
the diet laid down for dyspepsia, when the alcoholized blood in your
veins will have been replaced with good, rich blood, and your cure
practically effected.


OBESITY.

The condition of the body, to which nosologists have applied this term,
is that of general engorgement, or, over-fullness, and is the result of
excessive eating, or imperfect depuration, or both. Over-eating and
inactivity are the chief producing causes. It is the especial
prerogative of children to be fat, but when too great an accumulation
comes, with advancing years, it brings discomforts, disadvantages, and
oftentimes fatal diseases, among which are Apoplexy, Fatty Liver,
Diabetes, Bright’s Disease and Fatty Heart. The _sanguine_ or _entonic_
variety is distinguished by florid skin, full strong pulse, turgid
veins, with firm and vigorous muscular fibres, and the _serous_ or
_atonic_, is denoted by a full, but frequent and feeble pulse, smooth
and soft skin, plump but inexpressive figure, and general languor or
debility of the vital functions.


TREATMENT.

Use the “Cascade” regularly, and take as much exercise as is possible
without fatigue. A brisk three mile walk daily will work wonders in
reducing weight, especially if you perspire freely. Drink a pint of hot
water an hour before each meal and half an hour before retiring, to wash
the sour ferments and bile from the stomach before eating and sleeping.
Live principally on roast or broiled meat, fish, poultry or game, boiled
rice, green vegetables, and brown bread. When people are unable to take
the necessary amount of exercise, the dieting process, known as the
“Salisbury system,” is very effective. This consists of the lean part of
good beef, from which every particle of fat and sinew is removed, then
chopped to a pulp, made into small cakes and _broiled_--then eaten hot.
The reduction of adipose tissue demands a certain amount of
self-sacrifice, but the above method, if faithfully followed, never
fails to effect the purpose.


LOST MANHOOD

Is the term now generally employed to describe impotence, or physical
inability to perform the sexual function. It is frequently due to
conjugal excesses, but the principal cause is the baneful widespread
practice of masturbation, or self-pollution. It manifests itself in what
is known as Spermatorrhea, or involuntary emissions of the seminal
fluid, and if allowed to continue unchecked, speedily depletes the
vitality of the sufferer, and renders him a physical wreck. Do not be
deceived by the lying advertisements of unprincipled charlatans, that
any drug can help you. The treatment must be hygienic and thorough, and
may necessitate a change in your whole mode of life.


TREATMENT.

Firstly, the colon must be kept clean, as the fæcal accumulations there
irritate the sensitive nerves. So it is advisable to use the “Cascade”
every night for two weeks at least, then every second night. Secondly,
practice the breathing and bodily movements described under the head of
Exercise, and take all the exercise you can in the open air, as these
things are important factors in strengthening the nervous system and
hastening a cure. Thirdly, special attention must be paid to diet. If
you can practice strict vegetarianism for a time, so much the better,
choosing those articles most easily digested. Only plain roast or boiled
beef should be eaten (if any meat be taken at all), shun all hot
condiments, also tea, coffee, tobacco and alcohol--especially the
latter, for nothing can help you while you use these articles. Fourthly,
after flushing, take a cold bath every night, or, if this is
impracticable, bathe the genital organs, and the spine (up to the base
of the brain) in cold water, and rub down vigorously with a crash towel.
Fifthly, resolutely form cleanly habits of mind, as well as body; take
up a course of good reading to occupy the mind, and divert it into
healthy channels, and shun all reading of a sensational nature. Sixthly,
avoid thinking impure and lascivious thoughts, and do not allow your
mind to dwell upon your condition, but cultivate self-control. The above
treatment has cured hundreds of bad cases, and will cure you, if
steadily persevered in, but a strict abstinence from sexual indulgence,
and an absolute abandonment of the pernicious vice, is an indispensable
condition.

Frequently quite aged men write us, complaining of their sexual
disability--to all such, we say that the restoration of lost power after
fifty years of age is in the highest degree improbable, and after the
grand climacteric (63) is passed--it is practically impossible.


DIABETES OR DIABETES MELLITUS

Is a peculiar and troublesome disease, characterized by an excessive
discharge of urine, which is heavily charged with grape sugar, which is
the saccharine principle of grapes and honey, hence the term mellitus.
This substance is manufactured in excess by the body, and eliminated by
the kidneys. The discharge of urine is abnormally large, sometimes
reaching as high as several gallons daily. Owing to the presence of
sugar in the blood and the secretions, nutrition is affected, and other
disturbances manifest themselves in the system. It is a disease, which,
if not taken in time, usually proves fatal, and it therefore behooves
the individual to keep the body in thorough order, and to carefully
watch any abnormality in the urine.


TREATMENT.

The “Cascade” should be used regularly, also the wet sheet pack, to
promote the action of the skin, for that organ usually exhibits a marked
dryness; and its temperature should be varied to suit that of the body.
If fairly vigorous, the morning cold bath should be used, for its tonic
qualities, or, if weak, then the tepid bath, followed, in either case,
by a brisk rubbing, to promote circulation. Diet is most important. All
sweets and starchy foods, which are converted into sugar by digestion,
should be shunned, while whole wheat bread, lean beef, mutton and fish,
together with salads made from herbs, should be eaten. Acid fruits, such
as oranges and lemons, are beneficial. Soft boiled eggs and milk (in
moderation) may be taken. All food should be eaten slowly and a little
at a time. The only drink should be pure water, and that never at meal
times; but a cup of hot water half an hour before meals will be found of
service. Tea, coffee, cream, and especially alcoholic drinks, must be
absolutely avoided.


LOCOMOTOR ATAXIA

Results from what is known as sclerosis, a hardening of the gray matter
in the motor centres of the spinal cord. Its special symptom is the
peculiar high-stepping gait, the power of locomotion not being properly
under the control of the will, and when the eyes are closed, it seems
impossible for the afflicted person to walk forward without falling.
Like other diseases of its class, it is primarily due to innutrition,
the result of imperfect elimination, and has hitherto defied regular
medical treatment. If a cure is to be effected, it is by regular use of
the “Cascade,” perfect rest, strict attention to diet, and judicious
massage; but if the case is well advanced, it is doubtful whether
restoration to health can be affected.


NURSING MOTHERS.

Under the above heading, we class the following troublesome complaints:
Inflammation of the Breast, Milk Fever, Sore Nipples, Puerperal Swelled
Leg, and Puerperal Fever, or Peritonitis, all of which complaints are
practically unknown, under intelligent hygienic treatment.

We would point out that a simple hygienic mode of life (including
careful diet and the regular practice of the “Cascade Treatment” during
pregnancy), will not only have the effect of making the labor easy, and
the recovery rapid, but will almost preclude the possibility of any of
the above complaints manifesting themselves.

During pregnancy the “Cascade Treatment” should be regularly used twice
a week, by which means the absorption of the poisonous waste matters of
the system into the circulation is completely avoided, and the future
health of the infant assured. The body should be bathed daily, or, if
impracticable, then a brisk rubbing from head to foot, with a towel, and
exercise--more or less--taken every day. The diet should consist largely
of vegetables and fruit, especially after the fourth month, avoiding
farinaceous foods as much as possible, such as wheat, peas, beans,
barley, and especially fine wheaten flour. These foods contain the bony
constituents, and their avoidance tends to deossify the systems of both
mother and child, and make childbirth what Nature intended it to be, a
comparatively painless proceeding.

Careful attention to the foregoing hygienic mode of life, during
pregnancy, will effectually prevent the appearance of those distressing
complaints (before mentioned), peculiar to Nursing Mothers.


INFLAMMATION OF THE BREAST

Would never occur, if the “Cascade” had been regularly used, and the
treatment for it, when present, is to use the “Cascade” thoroughly, and
apply cool wet clothes, well covered with dry ones, to the breasts. If
there is a surplus of milk, draw it off with the breast pump, or the
more convenient method--the mouth.


SORE NIPPLES

Do not require anything but a little cream or olive oil applied to them,
with occasional applications of cold, wet cloths when they are hot and
painful, and occasional fomentations when they are cracked and sore--but
do not fail to “flush the colon.”


MILK FEVER

Is principally due to over-heated, or ill-ventilated rooms, and should
be treated by at once flushing the colon, and if the patient is not too
weak, use the wet sheet pack (see end of book), otherwise tepid
ablutions should be frequently used.


PUERPERAL SWELLED LEG

Should be treated as an acute inflammation. The colon should be
thoroughly flushed, the wet sheet pack or tepid bath used frequently,
and cold wet compresses applied to the afflicted limb. The patient may
drink cold water freely, and the diet should consist mainly of Indian or
wheat-meal gruel.


FISTULA.

There are two distinctly recognized forms of fistula, the complete and
the incomplete: the latter, having only one opening, either external or
internal; if the opening is internal, it is termed, “blind fistula.” The
complete fistula has two openings, usually, one external and one
internal, but in some cases, both openings are external. Fistula is
almost invariably the sequel to a neglected abscess, therefore, any form
of gathering in the buttocks, should be promptly attended to. Fistula
may result from an injury; but the large majority of cases are due to a
congested or diseased condition of the sigmoid flexure and rectum.


TREATMENT.

It need scarcely be said, that scrupulous care and cleanliness are
indispensable factors in promoting recovery, therefore, the colon must
be kept absolutely clean, by the use of the “Cascade” and the parts
thoroughly bathed with warm water, at least, once daily, and the pipe of
the fistula should be thoroughly cleaned three times a day, with the
following solution: To half a cupful of warm water, add twenty-five
drops of fluid hydrastis and one teaspoonful of finely pulverized
_willow_ charcoal. This should be mixed thoroughly and injected into the
opening of the fistula, the whole of it, with a small piston syringe. If
the opening is not external, then, double the quantity should be
injected into the rectum. This practice should be persisted in until the
discharge ceases. In _some_ cases, operations are absolutely necessary.
All stimulants should be avoided and all highly seasoned foods.


DISEASES OF CHILDREN.

The following simple methods of treating the ailments of childhood will
be found remarkably efficacious, easy of application, and may be used
with confidence.


CROUP.

This disease often runs in families, and is most frequently caused by
sudden alterations of temperature. The symptoms are usually a harsh
cough, hoarseness, sore throat, and slight fever. A croupy child needs
watching. To prevent it, keep the colon clean.

The treatment cannot be too prompt. Use the “Cascade” quickly, and place
the child immediately in a hot bath, and rub the lower limbs thoroughly.
Wring a cloth out of cold water, and place it on the throat and chest,
covering it with a thick flannel to exclude the air. Change the cloth as
often as it gets dry.


SCARLET FEVER.

This is a bacillus disease. The colon being clogged, Nature is trying
to cast out the impurities by way of the pores of the skin, and when
these become congested we have fever. First flush the colon, then use
the hot sheet pack (see end of book), if the fever is not very high, or
if the child has chills. If the fever is high, use the cold sheet pack.
With this treatment the rash will soon come out, and the child be easy.
If fever appears again, give another injection and a sponge bath. Feed
the body with water outside, and give it all it wants to drink. Give no
food until Nature calls for it, then a raw egg beaten in milk. When the
appetite comes back, give soft-boiled rice, or oatmeal with milk. Keep a
cool head, and this treatment will save your child.


CHOLERA INFANTUM

Is a disease that can be readily cured by flushing the colon--adding a
little antiseptic tonic to the water. It is purely a disease of the
alimentary canal, consequently, cleansing that passage affords relief. A
tepid bath, covering the legs and abdomen, is of wonderful benefit when
fever is present. Be very particular with the diet. A raw egg, well
beaten, in boiled milk is very nourishing.


DIPHTHERIA

Is a terribly fatal complaint, the result of a poison or germ produced
in the body during the illness. The symptoms being difficult to
identify, all cases of sore throat, if accompanied by fever, loss of
strength, and white spots on the tonsils, should be regarded as
diphtheretic.

Give full hot water flushings twice or four times every twenty-four
hours. If the throat is of a grayish color, add a teaspoonful of borax
to every quart of water. If it is of a dark red color, add a teaspoonful
of acetic acid to every quart of water. If the child cannot retain it,
place it in a hot hip bath, and then it will. After the discharge,
induce perspiration with the hot sheet pack (if chilly), if not, in the
cold pack, and apply a cold compress to the throat. Give the child all
the cold, pure water it wants.

To treat the throat locally, take equal parts of fine salt, borax and
common soda, pulverize, mix well, and by means of a quill blow well down
the throat, using one quarter or half a teaspoonful.


SMALL-POX

Is a very contagious eruptive fever, caused by a bacillus germ peculiar
to the disease. It commences with chills and fever, with aching of the
limbs, in from nine to twelve days after exposure.

After forty-eight hours the eruption usually appears. When rightly
treated, it is not a dangerous disease.

In the case of a young person or child, the treatment is the same as for
scarlet fever. Let the patient have all the water it wants in frequent
drinks--a little cold water at a time.

After the eruption appears, no further treatment is necessary, except a
daily flushing of the colon and a daily sponge bath in tepid water. If
there is pain in the head, apply a cold compress. There is no appetite
during the progress of the disease, but when the stomach demands food,
great care should be exercised. Milk may be given safely. When strength
returns, toasted Graham bread, mush, boiled or broiled chicken may be
given.


TO PREVENT POCKMARKS.

The marking is caused by exposure to dry air and light, therefore paint
the hands and face with a mixture of glycerine and charcoal--the
glycerine keeps the skin soft, and the charcoal shuts out the light. It
should be washed off every morning, and re-applied. Under no
circumstances must the patient be allowed to scratch off the pocks.


MEASLES

Is an eruptive disease peculiar to children, slightly contagious, but
not dangerous. It may commence with a slight chill, or not. The fever is
usually attended with a slight cold, swollen watery eyes, and sneezing.

The first thing to be done is to bring out the rash, which is quickly
done, by flushing the colon, followed by a wet sheet pack, as in scarlet
fever. When the eruption is out, nothing is needed but to keep the colon
clean, and wash down daily with tepid water. In all eruptive diseases
guard against taking cold--for a cold closes the pores of the skin,
shutting up Nature’s vent through which she is expelling the disease
germs.


WORMS IN THE INTESTINES.

This exceedingly prevalent and troublesome complaint may be quickly and
effectually relieved by colon injections, coupled with the J. B. L.
antiseptic tonic. It should be retained until the preparation has time
to destroy or loosen the hold of the worms. Its action may be greatly
accelerated by rubbing and churning the bowels.


INFANTILE CONVULSIONS OR FITS.

These spasms sometimes indicate the approach of one of the eruptive
fevers, but usually the cause is the irritation of teething, or worms in
the intestines. Although the appearance of a child under such conditions
is painful, yet the danger is much less than appears.

Get the little sufferer into a hot bath as quickly as possible, and draw
the blood to the skin, which will afford relief. Next, direct your
attention to the bowels. If, as is exceedingly likely, worms are the
cause, treat as for worms.


GALL STONES

Are the result of arrested secretion of bile, usually through congestion
of the liver. Then the substances that form bile accumulate and solidify
in granules. Hundreds of these continually pass off through the bowels
unnoticed; but prolonged congestion causes them to cohere and form
larger masses, that, in passing through the bile duct, cause intense
pain, which is sometimes mistaken for appendicitis.


TREATMENT.

It is only in passing, that their presence becomes known, when all that
can be done is, to favor their passage by copious fomentations of hot
water and diligent use of the “Cascade.” Sometimes it is impossible for
the stone to pass, when it has to be removed surgically. The regular use
of the “Cascade” will prevent their formation. At the first symptoms of
pain in the region of the liver, follow the directions for treatment of
that organ, especially the exercises, and drink freely of olive oil.




MASSAGE, SHEET-PACKS, ETC.


MASSAGE.

Which is the application of motion and pressure to the body, is a most
important factor in preserving or restoring health. It affords a sick
person all the benefit to be obtained from exercise without the physical
effort, which he is unable to exert. The sweat glands, capillaries, and
lymph channels, which constitute thousands of miles of tubing, in the
body of a grown person, are, by carefully and systematically applied
massage, stimulated to action. The currents in these vessels are a
necessity of life. When they are obstructed, weakness is the result;
when they cease, decay and death ensue.

When we rub our hands or feet, we say the friction warms them; in
reality it is the inner vessels which are stimulated, and bring more
warm blood to the parts. If this process is extended over the whole
available surface of the body, the most beneficial results will follow.

There are three recognized methods of application.

First--Rubbing, to stimulate the skin to action.

Second--Rolling, and pinching gently, also a kneading movement, used
principally to stimulate the stomach, bowels, and muscular tissues.

Third--Percussion, or tapping with the ends of the fingers, softly--most
efficacious in stimulating the action of the lungs.

Rub the surface first with a little palm oil, or vaseline. Use the
tapping movement for the chest and back, the rubbing movement for the
stomach and bowels, and the pinching or kneading movement for the limbs.
In dyspepsia and constipation, great benefit is derived from massage
treatment of the stomach and colon--starting the movements in the right
groin, where the colon commences, and following its course to its rectal
extremity, (consult diagram). For rheumatism, sprains, etc., commence
with hot oily applications.

Most people find massage treatment to have a gentle, soothing effect.
Nearly all find their appetite increased.


THE STOMACH BATH.

The first method is simplicity itself, and consists in drinking from
half to a pint of hot water, as hot as can be drank with comfort, in the
morning after rising, or half an hour before breakfast. It loosens up
the mucus in the stomach, and in half an hour it will have passed out.

The second consists in drinking tepid water until nauseated, then the
stomach will throw it back, with its contents. This thoroughly empties
and cleanses the stomach. From a pint to a quart is usually sufficient,
although two quarts will do no harm. If the stomach does not reject it
readily, thrust the forefinger down the throat to the end of the
glottis.

The third method is by the stomach tube.


THE TURKISH BATH.

Provide a wooden bottomed chair, and having stripped the patient of all
clothing, except a pair of woolen drawers to protect his legs from the
heat, let him sit on it, with his feet ankle deep in a hot foot bath,
just as hot as he can bear. Wrap him about first with a blanket, tucking
it close around the neck, but letting it hang loose over the chair and
vessel containing the foot bath, but so arranged as to exclude the air
from his person. Over the blanket wrap one or two heavy comfortables,
the object being to prevent the escape of the heat and exclude the
outside air from the body. Raising one side of the comfortables and
blanket, place under the chair an old tea-cup half full of alcohol. Set
it on fire and again close the opening. Give him a drink of cold water,
and if the head feels oppressed, apply a wet towel wrung from cold
water. Add more hot water to the foot bath once or twice, keeping it as
hot as he can bear it during the continuance of the bath. Keep him in
the bath until the alcohol is all burned out. Then wash him down with
soap and tepid water, sponge off with cool water, rubbing the flesh and
working the muscles vigorously the meanwhile. Then dry off by patting
the skin with the towel (not rubbing it), leaving a little moisture on
it; dress quickly and let him lie down for an hour or put him to bed.

It should not be taken either immediately before or after a meal. There
are excellent bath cabinets to be obtained, but in their absence the
above will be found excellent.


THE WET SHEET-PACK.

Spread over the bed or cot two or more heavy comfortables, over these a
pair of blankets, then, if for a person of strong vitality, wring a
sheet out of cold water just dry enough not to drip, and spread it over
the blanket; lay the patient stripped of all clothing on the sheet with
his arms by his sides, tuck the sheet around him, then the blankets and
comfortables, leaving his head out but tucking it close around the neck
and over his feet--making a mummy of him, so to say. If the head is hot
or aches, apply a towel wrung from cold water and renew it as often as
it gets warm. To the feet apply a jug of hot water. Let him lie in the
pack from twenty to forty minutes, or even longer if he is comfortable.
He will soon get warm and sweat freely. This is the end desired. If he
goes to sleep, as is often the case, don’t be in a hurry to wake him up.
He will take no harm so long as he keeps warm. See that there is plenty
of fresh air in the room. When he has been in the pack a sufficient
length of time close the windows, then take him out and wash him down
thoroughly with soap and soft, tepid water, then sponge off with cooler
water, rubbing him down vigorously and working the flesh the meanwhile.
If not too weak he should assist in this operation. Then dry off by
patting the skin with the towel (not rubbing it), leaving a little
moisture on the skin. Then, if in the day time, and the weather is not
too cold, a little exercise in the open air will be beneficial. If he is
too weak to exercise put him to bed again.

Before and during the pack let him have all the cold water he wants to
drink, in small quantities at a time. If the patient has but little
vitality, wring the sheet out of tepid water instead of cold water.

The hot sheet-pack is used in the same manner, the only difference being
that the sheet is wrung out of water as hot as can be borne.


CARE OF THE “CASCADE.”

What is worth having is worth taking care of; and the “Cascade” is so
likely to be called into emergency service, that it should be always in
order--hence the following suggestions:

After using it, hang it up by the eyelet, until it ceases to drip; then
put in the stopper. The small amount of moisture left in will help to
keep it flexible. It should be kept hanging, if possible, as folds in
the rubber predispose it to crack. It should be kept in an even
temperature, neither too hot nor too cold.

Never pour boiling, or very hot water into it--it is not designed to
withstand such a degree of heat, and do not let grease, in any form,
come in contact with it, as grease decomposes rubber.




PART NINE.

SOME HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS.


If there is one thing in particular that I desire to impress upon my
readers, it is, _don’t dread disease_. It is a beneficial agent, for it
is Nature’s method of re-adjusting matters in the human economy. There
are only two conditions, health and dis-ease. Mark the etymology of the
word! Whenever there is any departure from the normal, it is bound to
manifest itself in the organ or structure most in need of repair; but as
disease is a tearing down, and its cure a process of building up, it
does not need the wisdom of Solomon to recognize the fact that all
assistance toward recovery must come from within. Disease is just as
natural a condition as health; both are the result of the operation of
natural law. Disease, being Nature’s method of cure, any attempt to
suppress it must of necessity invite disaster.

This is one of the chief reasons why I am opposed to drug medication,
because its sole aim seems to be the suppression of symptoms. Pain, the
chief symptom, is not disease, but simply the messenger bringing warning
of the disease to the brain. To silence this messenger, yet leave the
disease unchecked, is folly. It would be just as reasonable, if the
house were on fire, to cut the cord of the alarm bell, and to conclude
because you could no longer hear the bell that the danger was past.
Disease, therefore, being beneficial, should be welcomed as a friend,
and every assistance given to Nature to assist her in restoring normal
conditions.

Prevention is better than cure, you will all agree, and the great
elements of prevention are, knowledge of self, cleanliness, physical,
mental and moral; hygiene and sanitation. I contend that physiology is
the most important subject that can engage the attention of the
individual. Nothing is so essential as a knowledge of the functioning of
the body in which he dwells, for it is the vehicle through which the
real self is to find expression; through which he is to achieve success
or failure, according to the condition of its mechanism.

No engineer can obtain from the machine under his control the highest
results, unless every part of the mechanism is in perfect working order.
How much more important, then, that the human organism should be in
perfect adjustment, since through it the mentality is to find its
highest expression? Without a knowledge of its construction and its
working principles, how is the individual to raise the human machine to
the highest plane of excellence and maintain it there? No one is allowed
to run an engine without first passing an examination, which
necessitates a certain amount of study and knowledge of the laws of
mechanics; yet men undertake to run that complex machine, the human
body, in utter ignorance of physiological law! Is it any wonder that
there are so many breakdowns? What I contend for is the study of the
fundamental facts concerning the ordinary functions of the body: of
diet, dress and exercise in their relation to health, and the relative
effects of good and bad air upon the system. It is of infinitely more
consequence to understand the basic principles of digestion and the
proper combination of foods, or to understand thoroughly the baneful
effects of sleeping in a badly ventilated room, than to be the greatest
living expert in conic sections. Practical physiology is the crying need
of the times, especially for our children, if we expect them to be well
developed--mentally, morally and physically.

With such an equipment of knowledge the individual is prepared to
withstand the wear and tear of life, and I may remark here that it is
the _tear_ more than the _wear_ that figures in physical breakdown. All
human beings are not endowed alike with nervous force; it is largely a
matter of heredity, but what we have may be cultivated and developed.
Failure to do so renders the individual liable to nervous breakdown, or
neurasthenia, as it is popularly termed, a widespread disease,
especially in America, where the strain of life is greater than
elsewhere. Competition, a desire to go beyond one’s fellows in
achievement, working beyond the strength, together with lack of care of
the physical system, all conspire to keep constant the undue excitement
of the nerves that ends in exhaustion. Children born of nervous parents,
with weak nervous systems, should be fortified against the risks of
inheritance by hygienic measures, during their developmental period,
strengthening in every way their physical and mental endowments. Even
those well developed in this respect should husband his or her
resources--always keeping a reserve fund by avoiding undue fatigue,
spending plenty of time in sleep, taking care of the body, and arranging
for intervals of rest that shall include change of scene and
environment.

Remember that mind and thought have their effect on the bodily health,
no less than material and physical conditions; and that although a
healthy body needs a sane mind, it is none the less true that a sane
mind needs a healthy body; therefore maintain perfect equilibrium
between the two. It may surprise you to hear your body compared to a
bank; but the analogy is perfect, as I shall proceed to show. No living
organism is precisely the same for sixty consecutive minutes. There are
perpetually losses from within and gains from without; losses in the
form of broken down tissue, gains in the form of food or air, which is
the most essential form of food. So, in a bank, there is a constant
interchange of deposits and withdrawals. No bank could exist if the
depositors insisted upon their money being hoarded up there. It is the
money, and not the bank, that is the fixed consideration, money being
the medium of exchange. In the human system, food is the medium, and for
the same reason that a bank cannot exist by hoarding up money, it is
impossible for a living organism to exist by simply storing up food.
There must be a continual interchange, otherwise the human bank cannot
pay dividends in the form of health and energy.

And even as some banks, that appear solid and substantial from the
outside, may be on the verge of ruin, owing to the lack of supervision
over income and expenditure; so many an apparently robust body may be on
the verge of physical collapse, owing to the mistaken belief that the
body is simply a depository for food. Energy may be stored up in the
system for future use, that being the dividend resulting from judicious
interchange; but to force the system to receive more food than it can
use and assimilate, is to invite disaster and pave the way to physical
bankruptcy. A knowledge of banking is valuable in any walk of life, and
I feel that the most valuable advice I can give my readers is to study
Nature’s bookkeeping, as manifested in the human bank, and to see that
the balance is strictly drawn between income and expenditure. The world
will yet see the day when it will be considered a disgrace to be sick;
but in the meantime, humanity suffers for lack of that important
knowledge--knowledge of self.

Above all, cultivate the habit of happiness. Whatever else you may
neglect, do not neglect that, for the happy habit is the greatest
treasure that any individual can possess. Happiness depends largely upon
physical conditions. With poor health, perfect happiness rarely exists;
therefore it is your duty to be healthy, and the possession of health is
in the majority of cases a matter of personal endeavor. But although the
physical is important in health, yet the physical is dominated by the
mental, and if you resolve to be happy, you can succeed. Commence this
day, by saying to yourself, I _am_ happy; I _will_ be happy. Start out
with the resolve that you will at least do some one thing to-day that
will bring happiness to another, in the form of some simple service.
Even if no such opportunity presents itself (although opportunities are
never lacking), you can at least bestow cordial and cheerful greetings
on those with whom you come in contact.

No surer road to personal happiness can be found than endeavoring to
make others happy. If you find it difficult to be cheerful, there is
more need to look to your surroundings. Read none but cheerful books;
cultivate cheerful acquaintances. You will be amply repaid for your
endeavors to cultivate the habit of happiness. From the standpoint of
health, it is a profitable proceeding, for joy quickens the circulation.
You can get the happiness habit if you wish to, and it is your duty to
yourself and those around you to do so. If the clouds are lowering, do
not give way to depression. Rouse yourself. Look for the rift in the
clouds, disclosing the little patch of blue, and hope for the triumph of
fair weather over foul. Even if you do not attain the degree of
happiness you anticipated, you will find yourself improved, mentally,
morally and physically. Get the habit, remembering that “a happy and
contented mind is a continual feast.”

And now, in conclusion, I would ask the reader to carefully consider
the facts herein set forth relating to disease and its treatment, to
weigh the testimony AGAINST the old system, and FOR the new, and let
sober reason decide which of the two is the more rational. Bring the
same dispassionate judgment to bear on this question that you would on a
matter involving your financial welfare. It will amply repay you to do
so, for the matter at stake is a weighty one. The preservation of health
is a DUTY that each member of the human family owes to self and friends.

Without health, existence is as torpid and lifeless as vegetation
without the sun. And yet it is frequently thrown away in thoughtless
negligence, or in foolish experiments on our own strength. We let it
perish without remembering its value, or waste it to show how much we
have to spare. It is sometimes given up to levity and chance, and
sometimes sold for the applause of jollity and looseness. Some there
are, who inherit weak constitutions, and fall an easy prey to sickness;
while others, who are neither thoughtless or naturally weak, invite
disease through simple ignorance of the laws that govern their being.
Owing to these manifold causes sickness is rife, and the medical
profession has come to be regarded as an exceedingly lucrative one.

This would not be a matter so much to be deplored, if so-called “medical
science” had kept pace with the other sciences; but the lamentable truth
is that the practice of medicine (so far as healing value is concerned)
has not advanced one jot since the days of Esculapius. Surgery has made
wonderful strides, but medicine has stood still. True, they have
increased the number of remedies, aye, a hundredfold, but the only
result has been to complicate the system, without improving it.

What people need is fewer doctors, and more instruction in the art of
preserving health.

Hygiene should form a part of our school curriculum. Children should be
taught the mysteries of their own bodies, then the future generation
would have little need of medical men-they would know what to _do_ to
regain their health, when assailed by sickness, instead of feeing a
professional man to order them what to _take_.

My purpose in this work has been to show the people that they can, if
they will, be their own physicians, and that in doing so, their chances
of recovery are immeasurably greater--that the preservation of their
health is in their own hands. The administering of drugs in sickness is
illogical in its reasoning, unsound in its theory, and pernicious in its
practice. Thoroughly cleansing the system by flushing the colon is a
simple, common sense method of treatment, easy of application,
thoroughly hygienic in theory, and, beyond all question, immensely
beneficial in practice.

Thousands of grateful people can testify to its efficiency, frequently
in cases where the “faculty” had abandoned all hope, and why? Because it
assists Nature instead of thwarting it. The principal drawback under
which the system has labored hitherto, has been the lack of perfect
apparatus for the introduction of the cleansing stream, but I now have
the satisfaction of introducing to the public a means for that purpose
that leaves nothing to be desired. The J. B. L. Cascade is the most
satisfactory and effective appliance for flushing the intestinal canal
that has yet been invented.

It is the outcome of years of patient toil and thought, but the
thoroughly satisfactory results obtained by it, and the enthusiastic
encomiums lavished upon it by its beneficiaries are regarded by the
inventor as an ample and commensurate reward (not wholly undeserved) for
the mental labor involved in its successful evolution.

Its simplicity is such that it can be manipulated by any intelligent
child, and its price, by comparison with its remedial virtues, is
insignificant. With this perfected apparatus, and the J. B. L.
antiseptic tonic, any parent can constitute himself the physician of his
family, and by following the directions for the treatment of the various
diseases described in this work, can successfully combat them--and all
at a trifling cost. But more than that, he can, by periodical use of it,
so improve the physical condition of himself and family, that they will
forget what sickness is, and rejoice in that exhilaration of spirit that
only comes with perfect health.

My system of treatment is _true_ in philosophy, in _harmony_ with
Nature, and thoroughly rational in practice.




INDEX TO TREATMENT OF DISEASE.


PAGE

Anæmia, 159

Anteversion, 186

Appendicitis, 176

Asiatic Cholera, 181

Asthma, 184


Bilious Fever, 170

Blood Poisoning, 161

Bronchitis, 184


Catarrh, 164

Cholera Infantum, 204

Cholera Morbus, 182

Common Colds, 187

Constipation, 188

Consumption, 102

Croup, 204


Diabetes, or Diabetes Mellitus, 199

Diarrhœa, 173

Diphtheria, 205

Diseases of the Kidneys, 180

Diseases of the Liver, 178

Diseases of the Nerves, 173

Diseases of the Skin, 179

Dropsy, 176

Dysentery, 172

Dyspepsia, 100


Epilepsy, or Falling Sickness, 192

Erysipelas, 165


Fistula, 203


Gonorrhea, 193

Gall Stones, 208


Headache, 175

Heart Disease, 158

Hernia, or Rupture, 194


Inebriety, 194

Infantile, Convulsions, or Fits, 207

Inflammation of the Breast, 201


La Grippe, 171

Locomotor Ataxia, 200

Lost Manhood, 197


Measles, 207

Milk Fever, 202


Nursing Mothers, 200


Obesity, 196


Paralysis, or Palsy, 190

Peritonitis, 182

Piles, or Hemorrhoids, 189

Pneumonia, 183

Puerperal Swelled Leg, 202


Retroversion, 186

Rheumatism, 167


Scarlet Fever, 204

Small-pox, 206

Sore Nipples, 202


Typhoid Fever, 168


Uterine Displacement, 185


Worms in the Intestines, 207

       *       *       *       *       *

                             IF YOU SUFFER
                   FROM ROUGH, SCALY OR CRACKED SKIN
                    If You Value a Good Complexion

                       Dr. Tyrrell’s Health Soap
                   Effectually Disposes of Troubles
               IT IS REFRESHING, PURIFYING, INVIGORATING


Among the necessities of life there is one to which few people pay the
attention they ought, and that is Soap. Yet it is undoubtedly a most
important matter, for the skin is a very delicate and sensitive organ,
and the constant application of impure or inferior Soaps injures its
texture, and gives rise to numerous cutaneous troubles. Most people are
content, so long as it appeals to the eye and the sense of smell,
without stopping to consider that perfumes may be employed to hide
defects.

Dr. Tyrrell has given this matter long and profound consideration and
now offers to the public a SOAP that leaves nothing to be desired. It is
not only absolutely free from any deleterious substance, but is a
perfect antiseptic and medicine soap. Its use thoroughly cleanses and
invigorates the skin, keeps it soft, flexible and healthy, and
effectually prevents rough, cracked and scaly conditions. It is
invaluable for TAN, FRECKLES, SUNBURN, Etc., and is a perfect hygienic
safeguard against cutaneous disorders. It is a positive pleasure to use
it for the toilet or bath, as it leaves such a grateful, refreshing
after-effect.

As a SHAVING SOAP it is unequalled, absolutely preventing those
disagreeable results that frequently follow the use of impure soap.

                           25 Cents Per Cake

                        MANUFACTURED SOLELY BY

                       CHARLES A. TYRRELL, M. D.
                             Proprietor of
                     TYRRELL’S HYGIENIC INSTITUTE
                  134 West 65th Street, New York City




                     The J. B. L. Antiseptic Tonic


should always be used when introducing water into the intestines. The
use of this preparation renders the water completely sterile, unless it
be notoriously impure. Such water should never be used. But the
Antiseptic Tonic possesses another important property which is most
valuable in cases of Constipation. For it acts as an admirable tonic on
the muscular coat of the colon, strengthening it and restoring it to
normal. For these reasons it is invaluable. Owing to the importance of
using the tonic I have arranged to make it as inexpensive as possible,
and am prepared to furnish it (to users of the Cascade only) in one
pound air-proof cans at the price of $1.00, by mail twenty cents extra.
You can buy it at your druggist and save mail charges.

CHARLES A. TYRRELL, M. D.,
134 West 65th Street,
New York City.




You’re Not Healthy Unless You’re Clean Inside


And the one way to real internal cleanliness--by which you are protected
against ninety per cent, of all human ailments--is through =proper=
internal bathing, with plain warm water.

There is nothing unusual about this treatment--no drugs, no
dieting--nothing but the correct application of Nature’s own cleanser.
But only since the invention of the “J. B. L. Cascade” has a means for
=proper= internal bathing existed.

Only one treatment is known for actually =cleansing= the colon without the
aid of elaborate surgical apparatus. This is The Internal Bath by means
of the “J. B. L. Cascade.”

Prof. Metchnikoff, Europe’s leading authority on intestinal conditions,
is quoted as saying that, if the colon and its poisonous contents were
removal, people would live in good health to twice the present average
of human life.

Dr. A. Wilford Hall, Ph.D., LL.D., and W. E. Forest, B.D., M.D., two
world-famous authorities on internal bathing, are among the thousands of
physicians who have given their hearty and active endorsement and
support to the “J. B. L. Cascade” treatment.

Fully half a million men and women and children now use this real boon
to humanity--most of them =in accordance with their doctor’s orders=.


LET DR. TYRRELL ADVISE YOU

     Dr. Tyrrell is always very glad of an opportunity to consult freely
     with any one who writes him-and =at no expense or obligation
     whatever=. Describe your case to him and he gives you his promise
     that you will learn facts about yourself which you will realize are
     of =vital importance=. You will also receive his book, “The What, The
     Why, The Way,” which is a most interesting treatise on internal
     bathing. =Consultation with Dr. Tyrrell involves no obligation.=

CHARLES A. TYRRELL, M. D.,
134 West 65th Street, New York.




Sufferers From Catarrh There Is Glorious News For You


No matter how much you may suffer from that most distressing and
inconvenient complaint, a speedy and effective release from your
sufferings is now offered to you


The J. B. L. Catarrh Balsam

Is one of those sterling preparations whose healing effects are quickly
realized on the first trial. It is intended to be used in connection
with the flushing treatment, and the two used in conjunction.


SELDOM FAILS TO EFFECT RELIEF

Catarrh is first caused by inflammation of the membrane of the nasal
cavities and air passages, which is followed by ulceration, when nature,
in order to shelter this delicate tissue, and protect the olfactory
nerves, throws a tough membrane over the ulcerated condition.

Flushing the Colon lays the foundation for recovery, but the membrane
must be removed, and for that purpose the J. B. L. Catarrh Remedy is
without an equal.

It is composed of several kinds of oils, and gently, but effectually
removes the membrane that nature has built over the inflamed parts,
while its emollient character soothes and allays the inflammation. These
drugs are not absorbed into the system, but act only locally.


THE MOST OBSTINATE CASE WILL READILY YIELD TO THIS TREATMENT

The price is One Dollar per bottle, which, in view of its marvellous
efficiency, is a veritable gift, and with each bottle we furnish an
inhaler specially manufactured for the purpose. Two bottles will usually
effect relief--though one has been frequently known to do so in mild
cases--but in the event of any one taking six bottles without being
benefited we will forfeit

ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS,

now deposited in the Lincoln Trust Co. of New York, if they can honestly
make oath that they have faithfully used the remedy according to the
directions and have received no benefit from it.

You cannot afford to neglect this opportunity of ridding yourself of
this most distressing complaint, which, if neglected, too often leads to
Consumption.


DELAYS ARE DANGEROUS

CHARLES A. TYRRELL, M. D., PROPRIETOR OF
TYRRELL’S HYGIENIC INSTITUTE
134 WEST 65TH STREET, NEW YORK

Typographical errors corrected by the etext transcriber:

their disincilination to adopt=> their disinclination to adopt {pg 29}

Prof. I. I. Metchinkoff=> Prof. I. I. Metchnikoff {pg 43}

to what school be belongs=> to what school he belongs {pg 51}

an unmistakaby valuable=> an unmistakably valuable {pg 68}

are frequntly guilty=> are frequently guilty {pg 92}

to his pirmitive condition=> to his primitive condition {pg 104}

populated with phagocyctes (white blood corpuscles)=> populated with
phagocytes (white blood corpuscles) {pg 108}

an expert dietetician=> an expert dietician {pg 128}

We habituate ouselves=> We habituate ourselves {pg 151}

Too little attenion=> Too little attention {pg 156}

Griping pains=> Gripping pains {pg 181}

the bony constitutents=> the bony constituents {pg 201}

most effiacious in stimulating=> most efficacious in stimulating {pg
210}








End of Project Gutenberg's The Royal Road to Health, by Chas. A. Tyrrell, M.D.

*** 