EDITORIAL NOTES AND COMMENTS


A religious fanatic of fifty-eight years, and of course unmarried, who resorts to fervid praying upon slight provocation, complained that she was losing her temper without cause and that she would then curse people roundly, much to their astonishment. For our edification she gave us a few choice samples of her expletive vocabulary, which we would designate as most artistic and suggestive of the waterfront along South Street.


Verifications.-A youth of nineteen summers and as many winters recently developed an impetigo on his otherwise calm and placid face. Unsightly pustules with yellowish crusting, showed themselves upon the chin, under it, on the cheeks and near the nose. Mezereum 45m F., one dose, was given, but the eruption went merrily on. One week later one dose of Dulcamara mm F. was given, with immediate improvement; within another week the eruption had gone, leaving nothing but the underlying redness of the skin, visible. The interesting point is, that one dose of the millionth potency turned the trick. Suggestion, sleight-of- hand, or what will you?.

A woman of fifty winters and no doubt as many summers, developed, after radium treatment for Keloid, an intense itching of the skin, followed later by a dermatitis of the hands and feet, with copious scaling of the skin. Radium brom. 30th, four times a day for three days, stopped the itching. Later, one dose of Mezereum 45m F. cleared up the skin quickly.

A religious fanatic of fifty-eight years, and of course unmarried, who resorts to fervid praying upon slight provocation, complained that she was losing her temper without cause and that she would then curse people roundly, much to their astonishment. For our edification she gave us a few choice samples of her expletive vocabulary, which we would designate as most artistic and suggestive of the waterfront along South Street.

Her gentle bringing up seemed quite incompatible with such sporadic outbreaks of vulgar speech, so we gave her one dose of Anacardium cm F., which put an end to her blasphemous, emotional outbreaks. Anacardium is the Marking-nut tree, which grows in the West Indies. If we invoke the doctrine of signatures, the selection of this remedy is apt., for the patient has all the characteristics of what we Americanos understand by the term “nut”.

A married woman in the fifties came to us with a history of chronic arthritis of the rheumatic variety. We dread these cases. for reasons obvious to all prescribers, and felt that here was another case in which we were likely to fail. The usual symptoms presented themselves; the modalities were time-honored, but one stood out most prominently-general aggravation from high winds.

At this we jumped as a catfish does for a juicy worm, and gave one dose of Rhododendron 10 m, Skinner. Improvement has been amazing, much to the delight of both patient and prescriber. The rhododendron grows in mountainous regions, the Poconos, for example, where winds are certainly high, so here again we have our indication and a broad hint for the remedy.

In a recent case of scarlet-fever in a strong, vigorous young man of nearly thirty, Belladonna and Ailanthus had been given by another prescriber. When we saw the case in consultation, temperature and pulse were practically normal, the rash had disappeared, but the patient was extremely loquacious, very restless and sleepless, imagined that he saw people who were not present, in the room, felt that he was oppressed in his head from the light of a nearby window, knew that he was not right in his head, was apprehensive and suspicious of his food and medicine. Careful examination failed to disclose any meningeal involvement and the urine was found to be free from albumin. Hyoscyamus 200th in repeated doses, cleared up all these nervous manifestations within forty-eight hours and convalescence was uneventful thereafter.

We do not wish to imply that prescribing by ourselves is always so happily successful in its results; alas, the professional path is strewn with many failures; the verifications as detailed above, illustrate, however, certain facts, of value to the painstaking prescriber.

In another chronic case, one of exophthalmic goitre in woman approaching her climacterium, Iodin and Natrum mur. have proved curative; we have several times referred to these two remedies as having great value in Basedows disease; no homoeopathic prescriber should fail to study these antipsorics in the treatment of his Basedowic patients. However, as this womans menstruation was becoming more irregular and hot flashes were manifesting themselves most uncomfortably, Lachesis was resorted to, but without result.

Trembling, weakness and sweat following the flashes, were now elicited as characteristics and one dose of Sulphuric acid cm F. was accordingly given. A real transformation of this womans condition has taken place; she has now been on this dose for over four weeks and repetition seems as yet unnecessary. It is all very marvelous and startling, this hitting the right remedy, but deduced difficult so often, that a success now and then makes us feel like a boy with a new toy. The honor, though, belongs to dear old Father Hahnemann, the credit is altogether his.

Comparison.- For those who are interested in statistics the following information will have importance. The Christian Science Journal for October, 1926, published in Boston, and the official organ of The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., lists approximately 347 Christian Science practitioners in New York (Manhattan and Bronx). In the same boroughs we find 388 nominal homoeopaths. To those who know, these facts are significant and admit of illuminating interpretation as well as of interesting speculation.

America, as our Teutonic friends are fond of saying, is the land of unbounded possibilities, and right here is a choice specimen for consideration.

Calcium Chloride in Therapeutics.-“Pinerua relates that for twelve years he has been using calcium chloride with good results. In a case of acute pulmonary lesions in man of fifty with hemoptysis and pains in the kidneys, with tubercle bacilli in sputum and urine-the whole clinical picture developing in six months after an attack of influenza-the condition improved remarkably under calcium chloride. The fever disappeared in less than three weeks, and by the thirty-fourth injection the cure seemed to be complete, except that an intercurrent otitis has impaired the hearing during the year since. In a case of extensive and extremely painful tuberculous peritonitis in a boy, aged twelve, a daily injection of 2 gm. of calcium chloride in 10 cc. of water was given by the vein to a total of forty injections, when the boy was discharged completely cured. In some of the numerous cases treated with the calcium chloride there was a reaction to the first injection amounting almost to actual shock, but it was transient in all.” – J.A.M.A.

Yes, Calcium is of great value in tuberculous or psoric constitutions; Hahnemann pointed out this fact in his Chronic Diseases. Calcarea carbonica or ostrearum is the preparations have been used; of these, Calcarea muriatica or calcium chloride is one. Calcarea phosphorica is perhaps second in importance of all the calcium salts, ranking next to Calcarea ostrearum; the difference between these two remedies, are well known to all prescribers. We could not well get along without Calcarea, in homoeopathic practice, especially where children are concerned.

The Cardiac.-How well we remember him, many years ago, before we had entered upon our medical studies, full of hope and confidence. He was portly, even then, with red, jovial face, thick lips and reddened nose; his hair already thin, was of reddish hue and plastered neatly down upon his ample dome. Hail fellow, well met, he was; fond of good living and of vintage wines and straight American “red likker.”

He dined, not always wisely, but too well, and as one of the boys, always found agreeable companionship. We see him yet, as he nonchalantly sauntered down the street, hat slightly cocked to one side, but we seem to recall, that close proximity revealed a certain laboriousness of breathing, which we put down to his excessive embonpoint.

And now, many years later, more than we care to tell, we see him again; in fact, rather frequently does he come to us, the same red face and still redder nose, rather more shiny than in the good old days, the eyes are bleary, the hair is now white, except that the dome is bare and no longer plastered over as of yore. The embonpoint is still much in evidence, surmounted by a gaudy geographic vest, with heavy gold watch chain illuminating the insistent rotundity.

But the breathing is now really short, there is no mistake about it; one can hear it plainly, especially when any extra effort is and uncomfortable, so that he must get up from bed, especially during the very small, early morning hours. He no longer dines well, but rather more wisely, especially as his kidneys give evidence of a chronic inflammation; the blood-pressure rises to uncomfortable heights and the pulse is tricky. We think of arteriosclerosis, especially of the coronary arteries, since now and again severe heart pain comes on and still further frightens an already nervous old man of seventy-two.

Cold is badly borne and apt to make him cough, explosive paroxysms increase the redness of his face and warn of serious crises, which may be impending.

Allan D. Sutherland
Dr. Sutherland graduated from the Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia and was editor of the Homeopathic Recorder and the Journal of the American Institute of Homeopathy.
Allan D. Sutherland was born in Northfield, Vermont in 1897, delivered by the local homeopathic physician. The son of a Canadian Episcopalian minister, his father had arrived there to lead the local parish five years earlier and met his mother, who was the daughter of the president of the University of Norwich. Four years after Allan’s birth, ministerial work lead the family first to North Carolina and then to Connecticut a few years afterward.
Starting in 1920, Sutherland began his premedical studies and a year later, he began his medical education at Hahnemann Medical School in Philadelphia.
Sutherland graduated in 1925 and went on to intern at both Children’s Homeopathic Hospital and St. Luke’s Homeopathic Hospital. He then was appointed the chief resident at Children’s. With the conclusion of his residency and 2 years of clinical experience under his belt, Sutherland opened his own practice in Philadelphia while retaining a position at Children’s in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department.
In 1928, Sutherland decided to set up practice in Brattleboro.