Now, regarding some of the systems and theories of this age. The systems of the past have been more or less long-lived,--as, for instance, those of Dogmatism and of Galen,--while as we come closer to the present they become more ephemeral. Those of the early part of the present century took root in the soil of the eighteenth,--for instance, the so-called _theory of excitement_ of Roeschlaub (1768-1835), which endeavored to mold into one the Brunonian errors and the fancies of Schelling. According to it, life depends upon irritability, but is inherent in the organism as an independent feature; so it recognizes both irritability and solidism, while Brown considered the former alone, adding, as an after-thought, a chemical or qualitative potency (oxygen), in order to account for alterations of quality. Roeschlaub inclined first toward natural philosophy, then, owing to an inherent theological and polemical bias (he was originally intended for the church), to mysticism and theosophy; finally, with a courage almost unexampled, he upset all his former teachings by admitting he was mistaken. To him was opposed Hufeland, who wrote on the _Lengthening of Life_, was noted for a warm and benevolent heart, and possessed no small penetration, as is evidenced by his aphorism, "Successful treatment requires one-third science and two-thirds '_savoir faire_.'" _Stimolo_ and _contrastimolo_ were titles applied to a theory advanced by Rasori (1762-1837), of Milan, that combined Methodism with Brunonism; by Baas it is characterized{241} as a "genuine blot upon the human heart beyond any other of the various systems." Long centuries of experience and the conclusions of great and venerable minds may go for naught, as Rasori abundantly demonstrated. The theories of Brown were then taught as his own to his classes in Pavia, showing he was not above plagiarism; his _stimolo_ corresponded to the sthenic diathesis devised by Brown, while his system consisted of an endeavor to make a diagnosis by watching the effects of drugs. Bleeding was held to be the best measure; if it did the patient good, the sthenic diathesis was assumed; if it made him worse, the asthenic was certain. He gave enormous doses of powerful drugs--sixty grains of gamboge, and from two to three ounces of saltpeter in a single day. Is it strange that homoeopathy or any other heterodox system sprang up in the midst of such measures? It is an old saying that there is no folly which will not secure a following; and, strange to say, Rasori had a numerous and an eminent one.