252 THEORY OF DISEASE. 



It is hardly necessary to mention, that in the body, 

 the tension of vapor cannot, any more than an electri- 

 cal current, be considered the cause of the production 

 of force. 



From the theory of disease developed in the preced- 

 ing pages, it follows obviously, that a diseased condition 

 once established, in any part of the body, cannot be 

 made to disappear by the chemical action of a remedy. 

 A limit may be put by a remedy to an abnormal process 

 of transformation ; that process may be accelerated or 

 retarded ; but this alone does not restore the normal 

 (healthy) condition. 



The art of the physician consists in the knowledge of 

 the means which enable him to exercise an influence on 

 the duration of the disease ; and in the removal of all 

 disturbing causes, the action of which strengthens or 

 increases that of the actual cause of disease. 



It is only by a just application of its principles that 

 any theory can produce really beneficial results. The 

 very same method of cure may restore health in one 

 individual, which, if applied to another, rnay prove fatal 

 in its effects. Thus, in certain inflammatory diseases, 

 and in highly muscular subjects, the antiphlogistic 

 treatment has a very high value ; while in other cases 

 blood-letting produces unfavorable results. The vivify- 

 ing agency of the blood must ever continue to be the 

 most important condition in the restoration of a dis- 

 turbed equilibrium, which result is always dependent on 

 the saving of time ; and the blood must, therefore, be 



