THERAPEUTIC SCEPTICISM. 35 r 



have been believed to have been of use, by many 

 successive generations of practitioners. 



Of all forms of scepticism, therapeutic scepticism 

 is the most extraordinary, seeing that many of the 

 questions upon which doubt is cast are matters of 

 every day experience, and some of them can even be 

 determined by a very simple experiment being made 

 upon the organism of the sceptic himself. As a fact, 

 however, sceptical philosophy is invariably supported 

 by dogmatic teaching of a very decided character, 

 promulgated by authority that cannot err. It is this 

 that enforces conviction and wins disciples. 



But surely no one who has studied the phenomena 

 of the body in health and disease will permit himself 

 to be misled either by those who, professing to be able 

 to cure, seem to be proud of their ignorance concerning 

 the nature of morbid changes, or by those melancholy 

 therapeutic nihilists who profess to base their scep- 

 ticism upon the inferences arrived at by philosophical 

 speculators who demand acquiescing reverence on the 

 ground that they have devoted themselves to pure 

 science, and have .condescended to leave the pursuit 

 of practice to less highly trained intellects. 

 . It is really impossible to discuss the treatment of 

 fever or any other form of disease, as it ought to be 

 discussed, without considering the bearing of many 

 facts which might appear at first sight to be of scien- 

 tific interest only. It is, therefore, very important that 

 all students should be well educated in science, so that 



