isease and a symptom being
something that the average man does not even yet know.
And the curious part is that on these points all physicians, among
themselves, are fully agreed. What I say here being merely truism,
triteness and commonplace.
Last week, in talking with an eminent surgeon in Buffalo, he said, "I
have performed over a thousand operations of laparotomy, and my records
show that in every instance, excepting in cases of accident, the
individual was given to what you call the 'Beecham Habit.'"
The people you see waiting in the lobbies of doctors' offices are, in a
vast majority of cases, suffering thru poisoning caused by an excess of
food. Coupled with this goes the bad results of imperfect breathing,
irregular sleep, lack of exercise, and improper use of stimulants, or
holding the thought of fear, jealousy and hate. All of these things, or
any one of them, will, in very many persons, cause fever, chills, cold
feet, congestion and faulty elimination.
To administer drugs to a man suffering from malnutrition caused by a
desire to "get even," and a lack of fresh air, is simply to compound
his troubles, shuffle his maladies, and get him ripe for the ether-cone
and scalpel.
Nature is forever trying to keep people well, and most so-called
"disease," which word means merely lack of ease, is self-limiting, and
tends to cure itself. If you have appetite, do not eat too much. If you
have no appetite, do not eat at all. Be moderate in the use of all
things, save fresh air and sunshine.
The one theme of _Ecclesiastes_ is moderation. Buddha wrote it down that
the greatest word in any language is Equanimity. William Morris said
that the finest blessing of life was systematic, useful work. Saint Paul
declared that the greatest thing in the world was love. Moderation,
Equanimity, Work and Love--you need no other physician.
In so stating I lay down a proposition agreed to by all physicians;
which was expressed by Hippocrates, the father of medicine, and then
repeated in better phrase by Epictetus, the slave, to his pupil, the
great Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, and which has been known to every
thinking man and woman since: Moderation, Equanimity, Work and Love!
The Ex. Question
Words sometimes become tainted and fall into bad repute, and are
discarded. Until the day of Elizabeth Fry, on the official records in
England appeared the word "mad-house." Then it was wiped out and the
word "asylum" substi
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