rises to speak. He could hold a convention all by himself, and have it a live affair. But he is too genial and social for that—too fond of his fellow-man.

"There were lots of other good fellows there, and lots who were not. I missed Helmuth, Dowling, Winslow, and Clapp, and Lilienthal, and a host of others, too.

"The mineral-water man was conspicuous by his absence. We were spared the necessity of listening to the tale of the virtues of the latest-discovered Sanihygeiopathic Pocahontas Spring, the waters of which will cure all diseases that the doctors fail to phase. I saw no table of ingredients, that nobody ever reads,―showing that it contains 0.00123 per cent of chloride of sodium, and 0.001234 ditto of lime; with a slight trace of this, and a small trace of that, and a big trace of advertising. No; we were spared that affliction."

"Did you discover any cranks," I asked. "Cranks! Young man, what did I tell you? No medical convention is complete without one. He was there. And he made himself heard. And it's a mercy the weather was so hot and Ferguson staid at home. It would have made Ferguson sick.” "You seem to be a dead-shot on cranks, Doctor; what do you mean by a crank!"

"A crank is a man who spends one-half his life trying to prove something he can't understand, and the other half trying to understand something that he can't prove."

"O, I see. Did you do any talking yourself, after I left?"

"I made but one speech during the meeting-I called for ice-water once, but I had a series of resolutions in my pocket which I intended to present. I prepared them here at home and took them along with me, but when I got there and found that they were having such a quiet, peaceful time, I put them into my hippocket and brought them back again. Here they are; listen while I read:

"WHEREAS: Homoeopathy gets the credit of a lot of truck which in no wise belongs to it; and

"WHEREAS: This is the work of a lot of cranks calling themselves Hahnemaniacs; and

"WHEREAS: Their pharmacopoeia consists of scabs, and pus, and puppy-milk and moonshine and ptomaines and lice and ‘sich'; and

"WHEREAS: They pretend with their infernal machines to infuse medicinal power into the m m m m m of all the measly trash in creation; and

"RESOLVED: That we, the members of the American Institute of Homœopathy in Convention assembled, hereby declare that we none of us believe in the 'potencies' higher than Hahnemann habitually used; and be it further

"RESOLVED: That we acknowledge no fellowship with so-called doctors who profess to treat disease with psorinum, syphilinum and lac caninum; and be it further

"RESOLVED: That we would trust these cranks to doctor a sick cat-if it wasn't our cat.

"There!" said the Doctor, as he drew a long breath. "I had that in my pocket all the time, and it helped me to sit still while that Ha!-ha!-ha!-ne-maniac (excuse my laughter) talked of treating his patients with potentized pus.

"The assurance of those fellows is only equalled by their dense ignorance of pure homœopathy. They are equally ignorant of pathology. They don't know the difference between a 'crick in the back' and 'dropsy of the spine.'

*

"Some people might think that the abuses of which I complain are too ancient to warrant the use of so much powder-that I am threshing old straw. Well, a person holding that opinion, if he was a good talker, would have stood some chance of convincing me if he had called last night, but this morning his effort would be vain! Let me show you what the mail brought less than an hour ago.

"Do you see this? It is a trade-list sent out by what used to be the leading homœopathic publishing and supply house. Now see the latest novelty that they offer to the profession.

"CULEX MOSCA! Common mosquito! All 'potentized' and done up ready to be added to the crank pharmacopoeia, to aid them in battling against discase!

"The scheme bears analysis first-rate. Somebody by the name of Wm. Jefferson G. takes ten common mosquitoes, or, as he tells us, 'more properly termed Culex Mosca.'

I always thought that Mosquito was a perfectly proper name for a mosquito, but I'll yield that point, just for the sake of harmony. He put the little sinners into a vial of alcohol, laid it away for two weeks, took it out again, shook it violently, diluted the decoction to the 30th (!), from which the following provings (!) were made.'

"In the next paragraph he says 'It should be a grand remedy for intermittent fever (judging from the swampy homes of the insects).'

'Listen to that! and the man who got off that brilliant idea is not an inmate of an asylum! By the same token I presume that pediculus capitis ought to be good for headache, mephitis putorius for a bad breath, and water-cresses for the dropsy.

"Prover No. 5 reports: Third day after stopping-Stye, left upper lid.' How remarkable! This occurred sometime during the course of the year 1881. The third day after stopping the use of the 30th of mosquito tea,the fellow had a stye! I think that I had a stye in 1881, but if I had been taking the 30th of mosquito, it would never have occurred to me to hold that responsible for it.

But that shows how little I know about mosquitoes. Several of the 'provers' complained of bruised soreness in the thighs. But very singularly No. 5, who beat the other fellows' records in everything else, wasn't suffering any rheumatic pains about that time.

"This same prover of the 'grand remedy' had a very funny time trying to sneeze. Here is the record:

"Second day-Ineffectual urging to sneeze.'

6

666 Second day-One violent sneeze.' "Sixth day-Intense desire to sneeze.' "How sad! Here was a man who was on the anxious seat of sternutation more or less for six days, and only managed to get off one violent sneeze.' I would like to have seen his countenance during the sixth day, when he had that intense desire to sneeze, and accomplished nothing,' as we say when a cathartic fails to operate. You know what a curious expression sits astride a man's nose when he wants to sneeze, and can't? If this 'prover' had only known enough to use a feather, or look at the sun, or something of that sort, the world might now be in ignorance of the sublime virtues of that 'grand remedy' 'more properly termed' culex mosca.

"Such a brilliant achievement in scientific medicine as this 'proving' involves,

ANOTHER DOCTOR TALKS ABOUT CRANKS.

Editor of THE MEDICAL ERA:

It is not often that we find in medical journals such spicy, cutting articles as those signed by "Selah." It is to be hoped that the "Doctor's Talks" will be continued until all the "cranks" have been cauterized, and the shams of false Homœopathists have been exposed. I have in my mind one illustration which I fear "Selah" will not excoriate. It is singular and lamentable that a brilliant surgeon or physician will become so cranky on one particular subject

as not only to injure his usefulness, but also injure the physical well-being of his patients. The one instance I refer to is, that in a late surgical work the writer has got the following maggot in his head, namely: that very serious reflex disturbances may arise from certain little pouches or excrescences in the rectum. The fact of this I do not dispute, but I do object to the unwarrantable extent to which this theory is carried. To illustrate-I will narrate three cases out of many, in which this theory was used in a most ridiculous

manner.

1. A lady in her first confinement was delivered with forceps. The head was large, and in order to save the perineum, considerable force was exerted and the symphysis pubis was strained. The woman had severe aching, and pains as of dislocation, at that point for several months. A surgeon was called in and was incidentally asked if he could do anything for it. Without investigating closely, he declared that in the rectum would be found the origin of the trouble, and insisted upon making this new operation of excising or slitting up the supposed abnormal growths. Fortunately the lady objected, and the pain wore off in time.

-2. A woman had chronic endometris of the fundus uteri, with pain in that region, over the pubes, and in the sacral region, with a brown, fust-colored discharge from the uterus. Failing to arrest the pain or discharge, the sufferings were declared to proceed from growths in the rectum, which were dilated and then "slit up" certain pouches which he said existed. Great local suffering ensued which lasted weeks, with no benefit to the uterine pains and discharge. Afterwards, the case passed into the hands of another physician, and was cured by three applications of comp. tinc. iodine, made by means of Buttle's uterine syringe.

3. A young girl aged 12 had chorea, which was slowly improving under arsenicum and cimicifuga. But some officious friends persuaded the parents that the progress was not fast enough, and induced them to consult a surgeon. Without examining the girl, or getting any history of the case, he asserted that the choreic movements must be caused by rectal irritation, and wanted a day appointed to "operate" on them.

Now these cases might probably be multiplied many times. Do they not illustrate

a crankiness as bad as Swan's sol. c. m., or Greggs' Materia Medica map? Homœopathists do not get into these cranky grooves any oftener than allopaths. There is one of the latter in this city whose abuse of quinine and iodide of potash is making mental and physical imbeciles of hundreds. The only way to cure such cranks, is by the knife and caustic wielded by such writers as "Selah."

Xantippe, M.D.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE ILLINOIS

HOMEOPATHIC MEDICAL

ASSOCIATION.

The thirtieth annual session of the Illinois Homœopathic Medical Association was held at Peoria, May 19 and 20, 1885.

FIRST DAY'S SESSION.

The Association was called to order by the president, Dr. R. N. Tooker of Chicago, at 10 o'clock A.M.

Prayer was offered by Rev. Dr. Thome of Fremont, Ill. President appointed as auditing committee, Drs. S. P. Hedges, F. R. Hayes and C. A. Weirick.

The Committee on President's Address was appointed as follows: Drs. W. Danforth, C. A. Wilcox and L. C. Grosvenor.

Dr. J. W. Coyner, chairman of the committee of arrangements, reported that the President's address would be delivered in the Congregational church; that the pastor, Rev. Dr. Howe, would deliver the address of welcome, and that the reception to the resident and visiting physicians would be held at his residence the evening of the 19th.

The reading of papers was announced in order.

Bureau of Obstetrics.-L. C. Grosvenor, M.D., Chicago, chairman, read a paper from E. M. Hale, M.D., Chicago, "On retention of Liquor Amnii as a complication of labor."

Curtis M. Beebe, M.D., Chicago, reported upon the "Tincture of Red Raspberry Leaf as a remedy for abortion."

L. C. Grosvenor, M.D., Chicago, read a paper; subject," Forceps in breech presentations."

A. A. Whipple, M.D., Quincy, read a paper; subject, "Puerperal Eclampsia."

The Bureau of Obstetrics was discussed by Drs. Hotchkiss, Grosvenor, Beebe, Hedges, Keener, E. H. Pratt, L. Pratt and Bascom.

?*

Bureau of Ophthalmology and Otology.-J. H. Buffum, M.D., Chicago, chairman, read a paper; subject, "Suppurative Inflammation of Middle Ear."

The Association then took a recess until 2 o'clock P. M.

By special request Dr. J. H. Buffum continues his discussion of the treatment of suppurative inflammation of the middle

ear.

Bureau of Diseases of Women.-S. P. Hedges, M.D., Chicago, chairman. Isabella S. Hotchkiss, M.D., Chicago, read a paper; subject, "Flexions of the Uterus."

W. Danforth, M.D., Milwaukee, read a paper; subject, "Intra-Uterine Medication."

S. P. Hedges, M.D., Chicago, read a paper; subject, "Observations on results in dilatation of cervix uteri with gradual steel dilators."

Bureau of Clinical Medicine.-H. M. Bascom, M.D., Ottawa, read a paper; subject, "Masturbation."

The Association then adjourned until 9 o'clock A. M., the following day.

In the evening the members of the Association and their friends convened at the Congregational church, where the address of welcome was given by Rev. Dr. Howe of Peoria. The President's Address-subject, "Homœopathy and its relation to the Germ Theory," followed, and was as full of encouragement to Homœopathy as the address of welcome was full of welcome to the visiting physicians. The reception at Dr. J. W. Coyner's residence was exceedingly enjoyable.

SECOND DAY'S SESSION.

The Association was called to order by

President Dr. R. N. Tooker.

Mrs. Hibben, representing a committee from the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, begged the Association to use its influence in favor of the following bill to be presented to the next legislature:

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the people of Illinois represented in the general assembly: That provision shall be made by the proper legal school authorities for instructing, from proper text-books, all pupils in all schools of Illinois supported by public money, or under state control, in physiology and hygiene with special reference to the effects of alcoholic drinks and narcotics upon the human system, and that after January 1, 1886, any school neglecting or refusing to give such instructions shall forfeit its proportion of the State School Fund.

SEC. 2. No certificate shall be granted to any person to teach in the public schools of Illinois after the first of January, 1886, who has not passed a satisfactory examination in physiology and hygiene, with special reference to the effect of alcoholic drinks, stimulants and narcotics upon the human system.

The Association unanimously voted to endorse the bill and recommend its passage.

The committee to whom was referred the President's address submitted the following report:

We most heartily endorse the address both as to style and substance; a most able and impartial resume of the Germ Theory, more especially as to its relation to the creed and practice of our school. We would recommend its careful perusal by the profession in general, and recommend its publication in our current literature. W. Danforth, chairman; L. C. Grosvenor, C. A. Wilcox.

The treasurer reports the names of delinquent members. After some discussion the following motion was carried: That those physicians who were delinquent in their dues, when the rule was adopted providing for an initiation fee of $3.00 only, be allowed to become members on payment of $3.00

That such physicians and those who have never paid their initiation fee be notified by the treasurer and if they do not respond in one year, that their names be stricken from the rolls.

Bureau of Clinical Medicine.-Dr. L. Pratt read a paper from Joseph Sidney Mitchell, M.D., Chicago; subject, "Catarrhal Pneumonia." H. N. Keener, M.D., Princeton, read a paper; subject, "Nettleroot as a remedy for Asthma."

S. Bishop, M.D., Bloomington, presented and discussed an apparatus for elevating the patient from the bed.

S. Bishop, M.D., Bloomington, read a paper upon Insanity; subject, "Why he did

it."

Bureau of Neurology, Psychology and Electrology.-O. H. Crandall of Quincy made a verbal report of his own case.

Bureau of Surgery.-E. H. Pratt, M.D., Chicago, read a paper; subject, "Rectal Pockets and Fringes." G. A. Hall, M.D., Chicago read a paper; subject, "Angiomata."

The Association then took a recess until 2 P.M., when a general discussion took place upon the pronunciation of medical

terms.

Bureau of Sanitary Science and Hygiene.-C. B. Kinyon read a paper; subject, "The Germ Theory of Disease."

Bureau of Diseases of Children.-J. M. Coyner, M.D., chairman, of Peoria, read a paper; subject, "A Vascular Growth Appearing in a Child Three Months of Age."

Paper by T. C. Duncan, M.D., Chicago; subject, "Some Causes of Sleeplessness in Children."

Bureau of Necrology and Statistics.-L. C. Grosvenor, M.D., Chicago, chairman, made a verbal report, eulogising Nicholas Francis Cooke, M.D., of Chicago, who was an expresident of the Association. Dr. Chase of Earle, Dr. Howard of Clinton, Dr. Kleckner of Davis, and Dr. James Beach of Chicago were also mentioned among those who had passed away.

The election of officers was then declared in order. The following officers were elected for the ensuing year:

President, H. M. Bascom, M.D., Ottawa; First Vice-president, J. W. Hawkes, M.D., Chicago; Second Vice-president, Isabella S. Hotchkiss, M.D., Chicago; Third Vice-president, C. B, Kinyon, M.D., Rock Island; Secretary, Curtis M. Beebe, M.D., Chicago; Treasurer, A. A. Whipple, M.D., Quincy; Board of Censors, L. Pratt, M.D., Wheaton; J. W. Coyner, M.D., Peoria, C. A. Weirick, M.D., Marseilles; G. A. Hall, M.D., Chicago; J. S. Mitchell, M.D., Chicago.

Dr. Jas. E. Gross was appointed a special committee on Transportation.

A. A. Whipple then submitted the Treasurer's report, which was accepted.

The following motion was made and carried: That a vote of thanks be extended to the Board of Supervisors for the use of the Court House; to the City Press, and to Drs. J. W. Coyner, W. S. Shotwell, B. Shotwell, D. A. Cheever, S. E. Adams and M. C. McGranhahan for their kindness and courtesy during the session.

During the session the following physicians were elected members of the Association: Mrs. Frances B. Phillips, M.D., Bloomington; C. A. Weirick, M.D., Marseilles; C. A. Wilcox, M.D., Amboy; W. A. Smith, M.D., Wenona; Howard Crutcher, M.D., Chicago; A. H. Hatton, M.D., Peru; F. K. Hill, M.D., Rockford; W. W. Wilson, M.D., Paris; Albert Smith, M.D., Quincy; O. C. Snyder, M.D., Chicago; R. K. Langson, M.D., Chicago; O. H. Crandall, M.D., Quincy; P. S. Replogle, M.D., Champaign. The appointment of Bureaus for the next. session were as follows:

Bureau of Medical Legislation, Jurisprudence and Education-Dr. J. R. Kippax, chairman; G. W. Foote, M.D., Galesburg; A. W. Burnside, M.D., Chicago; J. A. Vincent, M.D., Springfield; J. S. Mitchell, M.D., Chicago; J. A. Bell, M.D., Naperville; M. B. Campbell, M.D., Joliet.

Bureau of Obstetrics-Dr. S. Leavitt, Chicago, chairman; L. C. Grosvenor, M.D., Chicago; M. J. Chase, M.D., Galesburg; R. N. Foster, M.D., Chicago; E. M. Hale, M.D., Chicago; F. L. Bartlett, M.D., Aurora; W. S. Shotwell, M.D., Peoria; A. A. Whipple, M.D., Quincy; S. Leavitt, M.D., Chicago; A. M. Parker, M.D., Chicago; Julia Holmes Smith, M.D., Chicago; B. P. Marsh, M.D., Bloomington; Helen M. Hannah, M.D., Chicago.

Bureau of Ophthalmology and OtologyF. H. Foster, M.D., chairman, Chicago; J. H. Buffum, M.D., Chicago; C. H. Vilas, M.D., Chicago.

Bureau of Materia Medica-W. J. Hawkes, M.D., Chicago, chairman; M. M. Dowler, M.D., Beardstown; T. M. Watson, M.D., Griggsville; A. W. Woodward, M.D., Chicago; T. Backmeister, M.D., Toulon; W. H. Hall, M.D., Chicago; W. H. Burt, M.D., Chicago; E. M. Hale, M.D., Chicago; F. W. Gordon, M.D., Sterling; A. L. Van Patton, M.D., Mt. Carroll; M. C. Bragdon, M.D., Evanston.

Bureau of Pathology, Physiology and Histology-T. J. Merryman, chairman; E. S. Bailey, M.D., Chicago; W. F. Knoll, M.D., Chicago; C. B. Pillsbury, M.D., Atkinson; J. P. Mills, M.D., Chicago; S. E. Trott, M.D., Wilmington; T. J. Merryman, M.D., Champaign; M. Ayers, M.D., Rushville; L. G. Bedell, M.D., Chicago; W. A. Smith, M.D., Wenona.

Bureau of Diseases of Women-John W. Streeter, M.D., Chicago, chairman; S. P. Hedges, M.D., Chicago; J. C. Burbank, M.D., Freeport; L. Ludlam, M.D., Chicago; M. C. Sturtevant, M.D., Morris; W. Danforth, M.D., Milwaukee; J. B. Vivian, M.D., Galesburg; R. F. Baker, M.D., Davenport; L. Pratt, M.D., Wheaton; Isabella S. Hotchkiss, M.D., Chicago; Mary E. Farnam, M.D., Chicago; Jane W. Miller, M.D., Moline; Frances B. Phillips, Bloomington; Henry Sherry, M.D., Chicago.

Bureau of Clinical Medicine-C. A. Williams, M.D., Chicago, chairman; H. M. Bascom, M.D., Ottawa; J. S. Mitchell, M.D., Chicago; R. P. Wales, M.D., Lanark; E. M. McAffee, M.D., Clinton; W. D. McAffee, M.D., Rockford; W. A. Smith, M.D.,~