HEALTH 303 



in the sick-room in the morning have to be gone through 

 as patiently and cheerfully as is possible. But he or she 

 can afterwards sink exhausted on the sofa or bed, and 

 can indeed say with the pride that belongs to each one of 

 us in our tiny sphere, ' I, too, have not been idle I, too, 

 have done my best for those who are dear to me.' But 

 it is weary work, and for the very weak they can only 

 feel how very much happier it would be to be left alone 

 and lie still and unbothered, instead of feeling more tired 

 than after a hard day's hunting. 



For those who wish to learn, or those who are going 

 abroad or to live in out-of-the-way places, and for those 

 who do not care to have a doctor always in their 

 house, I will name a few books written for the public by 

 medical men and women of distinction and of great 

 experience, and who are in no sense of the word quacks. 

 The great difference, so far as I can see, between the 

 books of medical men and those of so-called quacks, is 

 that the latter have absolute faith in their remedies, and 

 use almost the identical old miraculous words, ' Wash 

 and be clean ' and this really often answers while the 

 books written by doctors employ a much more cautious 

 language. To an immense number of human beings the 

 narrow and forcible phraseology has great attractions, and 

 goes a long way in affecting the nerves and mind, which 

 are undoubted and powerful factors in all cures. Where 

 disease is advanced and real, is it not admitted by all 

 systems that alleviation, not cure, is all that is possible ? 

 The simulation of disease is often merely the result of 

 shattered or over- stimulated nerves. I fancy the medical 

 books come near the truth when they suggest that an 

 immense number of remedies and different treatments 

 may all do good under different circumstances. In my 

 opinion the cause of a vast amount of the bad health of 

 the present day is owing to the number of drugs that 



