76o POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



met I stated plainly my object — to investigate how they had been 

 " healed." I stated that my findings would be published, but that 

 no names would be printed. The cases were to be numbered. I 

 stated that I did not wish to examine nervous manifestations of a 

 hysterical sort or purely functional disorders. I wished to see 

 cases of disease in which the structure of the organs was likely to 

 be or to have been involved, such as Bright's disease or cancer. 

 Having, to begin with, explained this fully, I took the subject's 

 history and ascertained whenever possible the name of any physi- 

 cian who may have treated the patient before he or she went 

 " into Christian Science." Almost all these physicians who live in 

 New York I visited; to the others residing in New York and to 

 those living out of town I wrote, the form of the letter being gen- 

 erally as follows: 



" Deae Doctor: I am investigating Christian Science from the 

 physician's view-point, and am examining a number of people, in 

 the hope of presenting some twenty histories. These histories 

 would, I think, be valuable only in so far as they are scientifi- 

 cally accurate. Therefore, whenever possible, I request a med- 

 ical account from any physician who may formerly have been in 



attendance. I have now under observation the case of Mr. X , 



who believes himself to have been cured ' in Christian Science.' 

 I would thank you very kindly if you would send me whatever 

 medical information you can concerning this case, with records of 

 examinations if possible. The cases will be numbered, not named." 



In each case, having set down the subject's statements and the 

 physician's statement, I recorded my own observations of the sub- 

 ject's condition. 



I examined in succession and without exception the case of every 

 willing Christian Scientist up to the number of twenty.* All these 

 cases were of their own choosing; no doubt, then, they would be 

 considered to be among their " good " cases. Their " failures " I 

 had no opportunity to examine. There were many others who 

 refused to testify, no doubt justifiably. Others refused for rea- 

 sons not easily comprehended, considering the fact that these 

 people hold weekly " experience meetings," in which they " re- 

 joice to testify to the power of Christian Science." It is difficult 

 to see, therefore, why such cases should not invite scientific in- 

 vestigation. 



I could find in all these twenty cases no " cure " that would 



* These medical histories are a part of my serial paper in the New York Medical News 

 of January 28, 1899, et aeq. 



