excessive perspiration, is loaded with urates and the so-called brick dust sediment is noticeable from the increased concentration. Herpes is a strong symptom and frequently seen. It comes three to four days after the onset of the disease and is noticeable on the lips, nose, cheeks or ears. Rarely it is seen on the buccal mucosa and on the limbs. This eruption is apt to come in successive crops. The nervous symptoms are rarely absent and mental dullness with headache aggravated by coughing are conspicuous symptoms. The chief points of interest are the rapid onset of the fever and the equally rapid fall at the crisis, after which the patient more or less quickly convalesces or succumbs. The fever may terminate by lysis and convalescence often be delayed. Some men look for the crisis on odd days of the disease, the fifth, seventh or ninth and in many cases this has been noticed. The pulse is accelerated from the start. In moderate cases 120 is often found, though 140-160 is seen, and dangerous and when continued is always a matter of anxiety. Delirium may develop in any case though alcoholic subjects have this symptom most pronounced. The diagnosis of pneumonia is made more surely by the objective symptoms. Quick, short respirations following a rigor; sudden rise in temperature, a hard fast pulse at first, then small and fast; on auscultation crepitant rales early, later bronchial murmur with moist rales, peculiar sputum, the facial herpes, the wavering alae nasi, jaundice, are strong guides to diagnosis. Subjectively look for stitching pain in chest, headache and thirst. A case unless too atypical ought to reveal itself. Maurice Fishberg of New York takes up the question of racial immunity of the Jews to tuberculosis. He considers that this immunity is not due to their habits of life and diet, as far as connected with the Jewisd ceremonial, nor to the inheritance of pure Jewish blood, but to a kind of immunity rising from the fact that town dwellers become less liable to tuberculosis after years and generations of residence in town, which he thinks has been the case. with the Jews for centuries. Examination of statistics from various countries shows that the Jew all over the world is less susceptible than other nations to tuberculosis, even when their conditions of life are the same with those around them. The Jews of New York are most of them garment workers, and thir ancestors have been garment workers and dwellers in towns for generations. The same sort of immunity is thus acquired as is acquired by nations to other infectious diseases.-Medical Record, December 26, 1908. , NEWMAN T. B. NOBLES, M. D., Editor. MISS R. E. TOMPKINS, Business Manager. 820 ROSE BUILDING. Published at 820 Rose Bldg., Cleveland, O. Price $1.00 per year Entered as second-class matter at the Post-office at Cleveland, O., under the Act of Congress, March 3d. 1879. CHANGE OF MANAGEMENT. With this issue of the REPORTER the present business manager and editor cease their connection with the journal. Dr. H. D. Bishop, who has been business manager since the REPORTER'S inception some twelve years ago, will be succeeded by Miss R. E. Tompkins, and Dr. W. H. Phillips who served four years as associate editor and the past year as editor-in-chief, will yield up his onerous duties to Dr. N. T. B. Nobles. The REPORTER will still continue to be published under the auspices of the Cleveland Homeopathic Medical College, and the personnel of the new management promises an even better journal in the future than has been put forth in the past. To all of those who have so kindly assisted us to make the journal a success by contributions from their pens and experiences or in other ways, we would return our heartfelt thanks. We bespeak for the new management the same loyal support from our friends that has been given us. William H. Phillips. THE LAW OF IMMUNITY AND HOMEOPATHY. Under this title, in the December issue of the HahnemannMonthly, Dr. W. H. Watters, of Boston, writes an article which is of interest not only to every homeopathic physician but to every member of the medical profession. He quotes from an address beforethe Boston Homeopathic Medical Society by Dr. Richard Cabot: "It has been perfectly just to charge our school in the past with the absence of any principle or law in therapeutics and to contrast the order and system of homeopathic treatment with the helterskelter omnium gatherum of merely empirical methods. But the contrast is no longer just. Homeopathy has a well-defined law which has been established (like all laws) empirically, and is constantly and properly being subjected to re-verification through careful experiments. We also have at last, after groping and long years of work, obtained a law of therapeutics, a principle of therapeutic effort, namely, the principle of immunity, natural and acquired and of the means by which it may be attained, augmented, protected." In reply Dr. Watters says: "And it will be my endeavor to show that in many respects, if not in all, the law of similars coincides with the law of immunity." Immunity may be defined as the power possessed by an organism to resist invasion. Investigation, while it has not yet shown us just exactly how this is accomplished, has shown us that the body cells do possess the power of self-defense and that this defense can be provoked under suitable conditions. This then, is the old school law of cure-the effort to provoke this defense and secure immunity. They make no claim that the drugs which they have used empirically in the past, have had any effect in producing this immunity, and with the adoption of the new law of cure they have largely abandoned them except in a few instances where they seem to have a specific effect. Their efforts at producing immunity have been entirely confined to the use of bacterial vaccines and animal antitoxines. It has been shown that the vaccines produce immunity by stimulating the body cells to the production of what has been termed by its discoverer, Wright, the specific opsonin. Any other substance which is capable of stimulating the production of this opsonin is just as truly a vaccine or a specific remedy, and the cure of a disease by any drug which is capable of stimulating the body cells to produce a specific antitoxin is just as truly an instance of cure according to the law of immunity as though a bacterial vaccine had been used. Dr. Watters gives the following results of experiments with drugs homeopathically indicated: "Dr. Wheeler, who has charge of the Research Laboratory of the British Homeopathic Society, worked in association with Dr. Wright and Capt. Douglas in the determination of his (Dr. Wheeler's) tuberculo-opsonic index, as influenced by the internal use of phosphorus. Dr. Wheeler found, after a number of determinations, that his index was always low, ranging from .6 to .8. On account of these low indices Wright advocated the use of tuberculin as a prophylactic measure. Wheeler, however, studying himself carefully, decided that the indicated remedy for him was phosphorus. Several detrminations of the indices averaging .6, he began the use of phosphorus 3x, taking one or two doses each day. After a week the index was found to be .88, and after 17 days it was exactly 1. The use of the drug was then stopped for four weeks, at the end of which time the index had fallen to .36. Occasional doses of phosphorus during the following month brought it once more to .99. The figures were all recorded by Dr. Wright without any knowledge of what the patient was taking or when it was being taken. Some time subsequent to this experiment the index was found to be .75. One dose of phosphorus 3x per diem carried the index in four days to 1.4; in eight days to 1.5. Phosphorus then being suspended the index three 1 days later fell to .7. He made a number of other experiments similar to these, the most interesting of which was one showing the effect of a single dose of phosphorus 3x. Following two determinations of the index which were respectively .98 and .97, he took one dose of phosphorus 3x. Two hours later the index was .97, the next day 1.7; the following day 1.1 and the third day .8. By this means he demonstrated the decided but temporary action of a single dose of this medicine. Work was also performed to demonstrate, if possible, the effect of higher dilutions. This resulted in a very slight fall in the index, followed by a very slight rise. In the interpretation of these results Wheeler is safely conservative. He states: "There seems to me good reason to believe that in my case the administration of phosphorus does affect the tuberculo-opsonic index. It would be a far cry from this statement to announce that the drug always affects the index of every one in this way." "Dr. E. A. Neatby, also of the London Homeopathic Hospital, has recorded some of his investigations. His tuberculo-opsonic index after a number of determinations averaging .9, he took as a drug one-twentieth of a grain of phosphorus at ten in the morning. At two that afternoon the index was .76. At ten o'clock the next morning it was 1.25 and on the following morning 1.59. Here was demonstrated the typical negative phase or aggravation followed by the much more decided positive phase or stage of amelioration. In order to test the specificity of the drug to tuberculosis he at the same time took his opsonic index to staphylococcus, the result being that practically no variation was noted." "Dr. Claude Burrett, of Ann Arbor, has written upon the action of echinacea upon the staphylococcus index, where he has been able to demonstrate a decided benefit to the prover following the use of that drug, as indicated by the rise in the index." "We have in the laboratories of the Boston University performed a number of experiments along this and similar lines, all of which thus far have justified our conclusions to correspond with the results above mentioned. Differing slightly from the object in view in connection with the testing of phosphorus and echinacea, we determined to investigate the action of hepar in material doses in its muchvaunted value as a promoter of suppuration. The indices of the provers were taken repeatedly under identical conditions, by which it was demonstrated that all were practically identical. The index to staphylococcus of one person was 1.2. Following this determination one dose of hepar 1x was given. Twenty-four hours later the index fell to 1, on the second day rising again, when it reached 1.1. A second person whose index was .96 took four doses of hepar 6x at half-hour intervals. The following day the index was .64, the next day .77. On account of unforeseen occurrences the indices of these two individuals for subsequent days could not be determined. If any conclusion may be drawn from this very fragmentary test it would be that in these two particular instances, at least, hepar in single strong doses and in a number of comparatively small ones, is capable of materially decreasing the resistance to staphylococcus infection. It seems possible to exclue any personal equation in these determinations, as each examination was made in duplicate by thesame person under identical circumstances and in entire ignorance at any time of what side was being examined. In all, a total of fiftythousand bacteria were counted, and not until the series was complete were the results brought together for comparison. When they were thus united, however, it was found that both sets of slides were practically identical. Other series are now being made, and it had been the hope of the speaker to present them at this meeting. On account however, of circumstances beyond his control they are not at present available." A "One further study and one perhaps more instructive than the preceeding, may be cited. It is directed from a somewhat different quarter toward the same goal. A patient, Miss S-, came to the Massachusetts Homeopathic Hospital early in May, suffering from chronic diarrhea of some years' standing, due to no demonstrablecause. Tuberculosis and tumor were apparently positively eliminated. Her index to tuberculosis and to staphylococcus was 1.02 and" .98 respectively. Her index to colon bacillus was .45. It seemed possible, therefore, that if her colon index could be brought to normal she might receive benefit therefrom. On account of her history of having shown marked improvement formerly from the use of sodium. sulphate in homeopathic preparation, and as this seemed to be the perfectly homeopathic remedy for her case, we decided to try this. and to watch the variation, if any, in the index. She was under observation in the hospital for nearly a month, but with all other conditions identical to those present subsequent to the beginning of the treatment. Upon June 16th she was given hypodermaticallysodium sulphate 200x and upon the 22d this dose was repeated. June 6th index was found to have risen from .45 to .7. June 28th it was .88. On this day a third dose of the same medicine was given. Upon July 1st the index was .96 and upon July 4th 1.6. At this time one dose of sodium sulphate 30x was given in water and so repeated at intervals of a few days thereafter. The index upon July 12th was 1.3, July 24th .6; July 29th .9. Here again one cannot draw conclusions from a single case, but in this particular instance it would seem that the drug given in the strength indicated hypodermatically exerted a more potent effect upon the index than when it was given in another strength by mouth. During the entire timethere was a steady improvement in the clinical symptoms until the patient went home early in August with practically normal in-testinal functions, and feeling in excellent general health.” Truly do these experiments point the way as stated by Dr. Watters, that the law of similars is the law of immunity. The homeopathic profession owes much to men like Watters, Wheeler, Neatbyand Burrett, who are saving us from a fate predicted by our own Dr. Spencer that "some day we shall awaken to find the law of similars: proven, but not by us, but by other men who are doing the work that we should do." |