218 life's beginning on the earth 



of some more practical results of our science. So it is sug- 

 gested that those who still have time and interest follow us 

 to a discussion of the mode of action of drugs. This prob- 

 lem was the object of countless inadequate explanations in 

 past centuries when practically nothing was known about 

 the nature of life processes. Voltaire, the well known 

 satirist of the 18th century, appropriately defined thera- 

 peutics as "the pouring of drugs, of which we know noth- 

 ing, into a patient of whom we know less." In those times 

 an incredible hodge-podge of messes such as worms, horse- 

 dung, human urine, and the flesh and excrements of other 

 animals constituted some of the customary remedies. Such 

 loathsome medicinal ingredients have been discarded long 

 ago, but many of the herbs used as drugs several thousand 

 years ago are still in use at present; among them are squills 

 in heart trouble; castor oil against constipation; and pome- 

 granate against worms. These remedies and others were 

 mentioned in an Egyptian papyrus 1500 years B.C. 



Along with such time-honored remedies the modern 

 doctor prescribes drugs which have only recently been dis- 

 covered; important among these are insulin, a potent rem- 

 edy for diabetes; and prontosil, the remedy for infections 

 discovered in 1935. 



Trial and error is still the best method of finding new 

 drugs; a century ago or earlier no other method was known 

 at all. Only quite recently have we learned to predict 

 possible medicinal actions on the basis of our knowledge of 

 the working mechanism of the body. Now we realize that 

 an exploration of the source of origin of life on our earth 

 and a search for the foundation of our existence is no idle 

 pass-time ! 



A diseased person suffering agonizing pains or afflicted 

 with a severe ailment wants immediate help. If medical 

 science cannot give it he turns eagerly to anyone who prom- 

 ises relief, possibly to a quack or to one of the numerous 



