PHILOSOPHY, THE GUIDE OF MENTAL LIFE 271 



discovery that the kan'ad or mosquito was a bad insect, biting a man 

 and making his blood boil with fever. Chief Kitandu of the Iramba 

 tribe knew four centuries ago, for his minstrels sang to the twang of 

 the lusembi, a primitive calabash guitar, 'Ni aza kusengila pana nu 

 imbu; nu imbu mbii masaka kasenkilal' (Do not build huts where 

 mosquitoes live; for mosquitoes are evil, and make your blood hotl) 

 And that song, with others full of savage wisdom, is to be heard to 

 this day in the kraals of Tanganyika." 



In 1927 Dr. J. Wagner-Jauregg received the Nobel prize in medicine 

 for his discovery that malarial infection may be used to produce high 

 fever, with which certain nervous consequences of syphilis may in 

 many cases be successfully combatted. 



Only a dozen years ago 8 the mistaken notion was advanced that the 

 biochemical aspects of scientific medicine began in 1894 "when the 

 use of thyroid gland in the treatment of myxodema was discovered." 

 Professor Edward H. Hume, then at the College of Medicine at 

 Changsha (Yale-in-China) stated: 9 "Organotherapy is described as 

 early as the 6th century A.D., when sheep's thyroids were used for 

 cretinism. The practice is familiar to housewives throughout the 

 land." 



The use of "ashes of sponges" as a remedy for goiter was common 

 from the latter part of the 13th century, and was probably based on 

 earlier folk lore. The disease was, of course, known in ancient times 

 and is mentioned by Pliny. In 1812 Courtois discovered iodine, and 

 seven years later Dr. Coindret, a well known physician of Geneva, 

 walked into Le Royer's pharmacy there and asked the chemist J. B. A. 

 Dumas (then only 19 years of age) to determine for him whether 

 sponge, especially burned sponge, contains iodine. When Dumas 

 reported that he found iodine, "Dr. Coindret no longer hesitated to 

 consider iodine as a specific against goiter." 10 In 1833 Bouissingault 

 suggested the addition of iodine to cooking salt, since he observed in 

 South America that goiter was prevalent where iodine was lacking. 

 Today iodized salt is widely used; but an excess of iodine must be 

 avoided, as this, too, can cause trouble. 



Through all the non-essential beliefs and rituals of early reli- 

 gions, there runs the basic attempt of the introspective mind and 

 developing soul to reconcile the hard facts of experience with hu- 

 man life and love. Care for the dead is one of the lines of cleavage 

 between men and brutes, and with it came thoughts of a hereafter. 

 The embalmers of Egypt were of the priestly clan, which included 

 the scientists also. Moses, educated in Egypt, outdid his teachers, 

 who had followed him as far as bringing up frogs upon the land 

 of Egypt; for it is stated in Exodus VIII, 18: "And the magicians 



