UNCHASTITY 359 



yet they endure it, often willingly, thinking it but just 

 punishment for their sins, and perhaps hoping to ex- 

 piate them by this cruel penance. By these procedures, 

 the emissions are sometimes temporarily checked; but 

 the patient is not cured, nevertheless, and the malady 

 soon returns. 



The emplo^^Ilent of rings, pessaries, and numerous 

 other mechanical devices for preventing emissions, is 

 entirely futile. No dependence can be placed upon 

 them. Some of these contrivances are very ingenious, 

 but they are all worthless, and time and money spent 

 upon them are thrown away. 



Quacks. —The victims of self -abuse fall an easy 

 prey to the hordes of harpies, fiends in human shape, 

 who are ready at every turn to make capital out of their 

 misfortunes. From no class of persons do quacks and 

 charlatans derive so rich a harvest as from these err- 

 ing ones. It is not uncommon to find a man suffering 

 from seminal weakness who has paid to sundry parties 

 hundreds of dollars for "specifics" which they adver- 

 tised as ' ' sure cures. ' ' We have seen and treated scores 

 of these patients, but never yet met a single case that 

 had received permanent benefit from patent medicines. 



The newspapers are full of the advertisements of 

 these heartless villains. They advertise under the 

 gTiise of "clergymen," charitable institutions, "cured 

 invalids," and similar pretenses. Usually they offer 

 for sale some pill or mixture which will be a sure cure, 

 in proof of which they cite the testimonials of numerous 

 individuals who never lived, or, at least, never saw 

 either them or their filthy compounds ; or they promise 

 to send free a recipe which will be a certain cure. Here 

 is a specimen recipe which was sent by a "reverend" 

 gentleman, who claims to be a returned missionary 



