186 
AMERICAN AGE I CULT UR 1ST. 
vines to each other, and their being nourish¬ 
ed by the same soil, and often springing from 
the same hill. 
The maidens are supposed to be clothed 
with the leaves of the plants, each vjith the 
one over whose growth she presides, and all 
summer they are supposed to dwell among 
them. They have no separate names, but 
are called De-o-ha-ko, which signifies, “ Our 
life—our supporters.” 
Corn, they say was once of easy culture, 
yielded abundantly, and had a grain very 
rich with oil. But the Evil Spirit being en¬ 
vious of this great gift to the Red man, 
went forth into the fields and spread over it 
a universal blight. Since then it has been 
harder to cultivate, produces not so abund¬ 
antly, and has lost its original richness. 
When the rustling wind waves the corn- 
leaves with a moaning sound, the pious In¬ 
dian fancies that he hears the Spirit of Corn, 
in her compassion for the Red man, still be¬ 
moaning with unavailing regrets herblighted 
fruitfulness. • 
GIVE US FEMALE PHYSICIANS. 
The article below is from the N. Y. Daily 
Times of 20th inst., probably from the pen 
of Dr. Tuthill, a leading editor of that paper, 
and himself a skillful and successful practic- 
ing physician. If females can not study 
medicine thoroughly, then “ throw medicine 
to the dogs,” and give us the genial care of 
woman. We have attended a course of 
medical lectures ; and judging from our own 
observation, would much prefer to entrust 
our lives to a good-hearted old lady, (or young 
one as for that,) with her “ ’arbs” and sooth¬ 
ing watchful solicitude, than three-fourths of 
the youngsters who spend twice sixteen 
weeks, nominally as medical students, but 
really as wild, drinking, gambling b'hoys, and 
then go out and hang forth their signs with 
an M. D., and assume charge of the health and 
lives of others. We have a high regard for 
medical science, and would only entrust our¬ 
selves in the hands of the best educated 
physician within our reach; yet from what 
we know of the medical students in this city, 
and elsewhere, we think there are but very 
few educated physicians. We especially 
endorse what is said in regard to the impor¬ 
tance to woman of a knowledge of chem¬ 
istry. The Times editor says : 
There is a learned profession now in the 
hands of men which we are inclined to 
think women will shortly share with them, 
taking, indeed, the better half to themselves. 
We mean the medical profession. We have 
already seen young women going through 
the studies and getting the diplomas of that 
science ; and the founding of female medi¬ 
cal colleges is spoken of from time to time 
in the journals. In a late paper we have 
seen that, at Richmond, in Virginia, they are 
about building an expensive establishment of 
the kind. These things give evidence of 
what promises to be one of the best innova¬ 
tions of the age—one founded upon common 
sense and common feeling. 
Women are the fittest physicians for wo¬ 
men. Reason gives them, at one stroke, one 
half of creation to begin with; and then 
throws in, along with this grand division, all 
the little ones of the family of man. We 
assume that a woman can master all the 
science and mystery of the healing art as 
well as a man—though, probably, in the mat¬ 
ter of epic poetry, mathematics, statesman¬ 
ship, or military strategy, she may be obliged 
to admit an inferior capacity of mind. Medi¬ 
cine is not so very deep and difficult a thing. 
Care and common sense are, after all, the 
grand principles of successful practice in the 
management of the human constitution ; and 
these qualities belong as much to the women 
as to the men. We can fancy the strong 
satisfaction with which women would hail 
the quiet coming into their sick rooms of one 
of their own sex—a diplomaed and experi¬ 
enced woman ; the effect of her mere pres¬ 
ence in many cases would go half way to 
bring about the cure. We need not go into 
particulars in this argument; the truth of 
the statement will be generally admitted. In 
the case of children, too, the gentle and 
womanly care of a doctress would be the 
most efficacious and happy. We are con¬ 
vinced that the doctress, in managing her 
patients, would come better to the point and 
deal more directly and bluntly with the ail¬ 
ments of the young and the old of her own 
sex—or rather, let us say, the less young — 
than a man could do. She would be less 
complaisant and courtly, and more familiar 
in her treatment of them, and thus possess 
advantages which no medical practitioner of 
the other sex could hope to compete with. 
However we look at it, we must conclude 
that, for half the world, women would make 
better physicians than men. Nature seems 
to have decided that. And even for half the 
other half, we somtimes think the doctresses 
would be better than the doctors, in dealing 
with the griefs and evils of sick rooms. 
And, coming from particulars to generals, 
we would contend that every woman, Avheth- 
er she designs to become a medica or not, 
should have a knowledge of medicine and 
its effects on the human system, of simples, 
salves and other useful empiricals. She 
should also have a general idea of chemis¬ 
try. We do not know an accomplishment 
more suited to woman’s place in the world 
than chemistry—not even excepting the pi¬ 
ano-forte ; for a knowledge of chemical mix¬ 
tures is indispensable to those who would 
rightly understand the materia medica. Ev¬ 
ery mistress of a household or mother of a 
family should know something of these nu¬ 
merous and profitable facts that are to be 
gathered within the circle of that science ; 
and, in the case of poisons, should be chem¬ 
ist enough to know what substances act on 
others, neutralizing them, and how to send 
an antidote at once after the bane ; to send, 
for instance, down some beloved throat, soda 
and magnesia after acids, the whites of eggs, 
lime water or charcoal after arsenic, soap 
and water after corrosive sublimate, soda or 
lime after Prussic acid, milk and water after 
white vitriol, a solution of common salt after 
nitrate of silver, and so forth ; making, at 
the same time, prompt use of the mustard 
emetic in the majority of such cases, and 
applying, with judgment, hartshorn, brandy 
or other materials, such as would be at hand 
in most households. A knowledge of these 
things, and with it a knowledge of other 
domestic recipes and resources, would be 
among the best and most admirable acquire¬ 
ments of a woman in any station pf life ; 
and it may be confidently asserted, that if it 
were skilfully practiced, on occasion, ten 
thousand homes would be spared the agonies 
and lamentations that constantly come, and 
will come, to darken their doors and win¬ 
dows. Women would be armed for the 
most trying emergencies, and be able to save 
the lives of those dear to them, instead of 
screaming and wringing their hands, and 
feeling bitterly that “ ignorance is the curse 
of God.” And, in a general way, a knowl¬ 
edge of the laws of health would make every 
woman the protecting genius of her house¬ 
hold, and teach her how to treat her chil¬ 
dren in any sudden or ordinary case of sick¬ 
ness or accident. Especially as regards chil¬ 
dren, every mother should be a doctress. 
The ignorance of parents is fatal to almost 
half the children that come into the world; 
it is more deadly and deplorable than the 
vices of adult years—than “ battle, murder 
and sudden death.” It is a melancholy thing 
to see the physical preservation and training 
of young children in the hands of those to 
whom persons of judgment would not entrust 
the life of a kitten. Women now-a-days are 
for the most part unprepared by education to 
act their parts well in their most important 
sphere—that of home. Their grand-moth¬ 
ers and great-grand-mothers and so, still 
further back, were much more accomplished 
in everything that truly becomes a woman 
to know. They had a knowledge of a great 
many useful things—knew excellent recipes 
in cookery and chemistry, were learned in 
the virtues of herbs and decoctions; and, 
“ puddering with physic,” like Lord Verulam, 
were generally aware of the efficacies of do¬ 
mestic medicine. They were prepared for 
most accidents, and nothing—if we except 
gun-shot wounds or the burning of the house 
—could have the effect of putting them to a 
non plus. Their fair descendants, compared 
with such excellent examples of house-wife- 
ry and skill, are, so to speak, Know-Noth¬ 
ings—which we greatly grieve to say. 
We repeat—hoping there are many of our 
readers who will remember and improve the 
observations we thus hastily put before 
them—that a tolerable knowledge of medi¬ 
cine and an acquaintance with the nature of 
acids and alkalies, would be one of the most 
blessed accomplishments of the ladies—one 
of the richest dowries they could bring with 
them into the newly furnished houses of their 
husbands on the wedding-day ; and that the 
regular practice of physic by the sex would 
have the best effect on the health, morally 
as well as physically, of the larger half of 
society. This science and profession need 
not take woman out of her own sphere. It 
demands no unsexing, like that which would 
belong to Bloomerism and the ballot-box. 
It leaves to the sex all that ever made it 
charming—and would only add to the attrac¬ 
tions of Venus the grave wisdom of Pallas. 
Without making any violent strides over a 
barrier which must always remain, woman, 
in her own becoming way and attitude, may 
find in the theory and practice we speak of 
the best means of putting herself as near the 
level of the man as she can ever reach, and 
thus gratify the highest ambition she may be 
willing to entertain. As the physicians of 
more than a moiety of creation, and the in¬ 
telligent mentors) and preservers of their 
households and families, we have no doubt 
that, in the course of time, women will vin¬ 
dicate in a nobler way than they have yet 
done, their claim to be styled the better half 
of the world. 
Desperate Rencounter. —We learn that a 
remarkable fight occurred in Amsterdam, in 
this county, a few days since, between an 
eagle and an owl. The eagle seized upon 
the owl, but found his prey too weighty to 
be carried off, and in the scuffle, the owl 
fastened his claws in the eagle’s thigh, and 
held his enemy so tight as to make it impos¬ 
sible for him to escape. While in this con¬ 
dition, a gentleman passing .by, hearing the 
scuffle, approached and easily captured both 
the combatants. We learn that the owl was 
one of the largest of his species, and the 
eagle measured over six feet across the 
wings. [Valley (Va.) Whig. 
We may live without a brother, but not 
without a friend. 
