§ 2. Diseases resulting from venereal excesses. PART II. RULES OF PRESERVATION AND TREATMENT RELATIVE TO VENEREAL EXCESSES. CHAPTER 1. MEANS OF PRESERVATION WITH REFERENCE TO VENEREAL EXCESSES. § 1. First indication. To prevent the desire of onanism. § 2. Second indication. To resist the desire of onanism. § 3. Third indication. To take away from those who wish to masturbate the power of doing so. CHAPTER 2. MODE OF REPAIRING THE INJURY ARISING FROM VENEREAL EXCESSES. OF ONANISM AND OTHER ABUSES. PART FIRST. EFFECTS OF EXCESS IN VENERY. Can the power possessed by man of indulging in the act of venery be abused? or, in other words, can any injury arise to the health or constitution, by indulgence in this act. It is sufficient to observe, that the affirmative has never been doubted by any author, that no medical man has ever been found at any time, or in any country, so deficient in intelligence as to doubt that venereal enjoyments were attended by venereal excess, and no one has ever disputed that masturbation or coition may be injurious. The act of venery, then, may be followed by bad effects. But is it so, and to what extent? This question is the only one which has been debated, the only one to be debated. Let then those, who think that venereal indulgences are followed only by the remembrance of them, know, that deceived by their desires, and perhaps by their necessities, they are rushing blindly toward a fatal precipice, which is to be sure at a greater or less distance from them, but which however exists, and to which those who do not take warning will arrive more quickly. It is generally thought that venereal excesses, particularly those of masturbation, contribute in a considerable proportion to the ills of suffering humanity. Some even consider this cause of disease, as one of the most fatal and active. “In my opinion,” says Réveillé-Parise, “neither the plague, nor war, nor small-pox, nor similar diseases, have produced results so disastrous to humanity as the pernicious habit of onanism: it is the destroying element of civilized societies, which is constantly in action, and gradually undermines the health of a nation.” (_Revue Medicale, April_, 1828, p. 93.) No one has disputed the dangers of this kind of excess. Many authors, however, have thought, that writers had exaggerated on this subject. Thus Montègre says that “the bad consequences (although they do exist) attending premature indulgences have _sometimes_ been exaggerated.” (_Dict. des sc. med._ vol. vi. p. 100.) Georget’s opinion is similar. According to him, (_Physiologie du système nerveux_ vol. i.) most authors and Tissot among others have much exaggerated the effects of masturbation.