4 THE NEW ZEALAND FAMILY HERB DOCTOR. 
regular doctor and his drugs; while we cannot (even apart 
from our training as herbalist) endorse many of the doctors. 
methods and medicines, so-called, yet we cannot deny that 
they as a body are honestly endeavouring to do their best for 
the benefit of suffering humanity. The cause of bitterness 
against them found in some of the herbal books arose from the 
fact that the old-school doctors, filled with professional pride, not 
only looked down on all irregulars, especially herbalists, but 
persecuted them with great severity. But happily for us, the 
age of narrow bigotry is passing away. It is our happiness 
to know many of the regular school who are just men and 
true, so broad in their liberality that they would not prevent 
people choosing their medical attendant from any school or 
system. As it says in Scripture ‘A humble spirit is of 
ereat price in the sight of God,” so is it in that of good men; 
it will prevent its possessor losing much useful information, 
for it ig an acknowledged fact that very many of the valuable 
remedies which have blessed humanity have come from the 
non-professional, which the proud M.D. would not receive for a. 
time, as they did not come to him backed by scholastic authority. 
As an illustration of this unreasonable folly we may mentiona 
case that occurred in connection with ourselves. A Mrs. 
had very badly ulcerated breasts; one of them had three 
deep sores, the other two, from which a constant discharge of 
humour was issuing. Her relations called in three medical 
men, who simply advised the routine treatment of linseed 
poulticing. ® A female friend called to see her, and advised 
her to send to our shop for a quarter of a pound of slippery elm 
powder, telling her how to prepare it by mixing it with milk 
into a paste and laying it on the sores. After it was put on 
she fell asleep and slept for twelve hours—(she had not slept 
for three nights and days before). When it was changed it 
showed a marked improvement. Ten more poultices of this 
valuable medicine effected the cure. Here is the point: Two 
of the doctors (regulars) seeing the cemarkable cure, would 
not humble themselves to take note of an old woman’s 
remedy but to the credit of éme third (a homcopath), he 
