A new guide to health; or, botanic family physician. Containing a complete system of practice, upon a plan enitrely new; with a description of the vegetables made use of ... to cure disease. To which is added a description of several cases ... attended by the author ... / [Samuel Thomson].

  • Thomson, Samuel, 1769-1843
Date:
1849
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A new guide to health; or, botanic family physician. Containing a complete system of practice, upon a plan enitrely new; with a description of the vegetables made use of ... to cure disease. To which is added a description of several cases ... attended by the author ... / [Samuel Thomson]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    •enemy is either conquered or driven out, forts and breast-works are still necessary that they may be in readiness in time of war. Many useful lessons may be learned from the Apocryphal part of the Bible, where we find some which, I think, are as use¬ ful as any other parts. Bor this purpose I would refer the reader to the thirteenth chapter of Judith. In this chapter may be found the result of silencing the guard and sentinels, whereby, through the deceit and influence of one woman, the destruction of a whole army of about 16,000 soldiers was effected. No other possible means could have sub¬ dued them. See the account. Let us inquire, in the first place, what are the sentinels, both external and internal, which nature has placed to guard the body from injury ? And how are these sentinels displayed? We will suppose the danger is first perceived by a certain sound or some trifling noise. This of course is first perceived by the ear which says, “ Eyes look !” The call is instantly obeyed, and if there appears to be danger, and flight is thought to be the best mode of escape, the whole body is summoned, and says, “ Legs carry me off as fast as you can.” These orders are obeyed as regularly as though a general gave the command. The senses of seeing, hearing, tasting and smelling, are the sentinels, which, with the nerves and muscles, constitute the whole army, either for defence or retreat, and they are subject to the com¬ mand of each other. The sentinels of the internal structure, or those which are to judge of what is to be swallowed, begin with the eye, and if it be pleasant to the eye, it passes to the nose, the next sentinel; if the pass be right, that is, if the flavour be agreeable, it goes to the taste, where, if nothing disagreeable is perceived, it is car¬ ried from the tongue to the swallow. Here are two roads, the one to convey the food to the stomach, the other to convey the air to the lungs ; the business of the sentinel here is to prevent either from taking the wrong road; for should either, and espe¬ cially the food, take the wrong road, it is thrown back with a great explosion. When the food is received into the stomach it undergoes a general inspection. If anything treasonous, that is, uncongenial to health, is found in it, an uneasiness is almost the immediate consequence, perhaps pain and sickness, and it is often sent back without consulting any of the guards or sen¬ tinels for its general orders. And if the general gives orders for any to pass or repass without being hailed by the sentinels, such orders must be obeyed. And if the general loses his head, and thereby his whole army is defeated, it is no fault of the guards and sentinels, as in the case of Judith and Holofernes. Nature has placed all the guards and sentinels in the body, which are necessary for its safety and protection ; and the mind is so constituted, that it is capable of judging of all the signals which these sentinels give ; but the devil, which is only another name for imposture and fraud, that is learned ignorance, false¬ hood and art, are always at variance with simple and natural principles—the same as honesty and dishonesty are opposed to