Mr. Berdoe, in his Catechism of Vivisection (1903), gives this
evidence at considerable length. _The treatment_, he says, _is
simplicity itself. It is merely the use of the vapour bath, which
causes a free action of the skin to be set up, this draws the blood to
the surface of the body, and so relieves the congestion of the
internal organs._ Let us consider this sentence. (1.) Suppose that
X---- were bitten by a mad dog, say on March 1st, and on March 8th he
took a course of Buisson Baths, for safety's sake. There would be no
congestion, at that period, of his internal organs; what would be the
good of drawing the blood to the surface of his body? Mr. Pirkis says
that there would be poison in his veins; it would be a very subtle
poison. How can Mr. Pirkis tell that it is all in his veins and none
of it elsewhere? Again, X---- would be feeling perfectly well. How
would a vapour-bath get this poison out of his veins? It could not do
it by relieving the congestion of his internal organs, for they would
not be congested. How would it do it? And how would Mr. Pirkis know
when it had done it? (2.) Suppose that X---- were bitten by a mad dog,
and, in due time, were seized by hydrophobia. Has Mr. Pirkis ever seen
a case of that disease--ever seen a case of hydrophobia? Are they
going to tie X---- down, or steam him under chloroform, or what? And
how many baths would he want? But there are cases; there is evidence;
a "mass of cures in Asia." Let us look at them; and let us divide them
into cases of prevention and cases of cure. Let us take, first, the
cases of cure.
There are five of these. Five, and no more. One is Dr. Buisson; cured
by one bath, while he was trying to commit suicide; nothing said about
the dog. One is a case at Kischineff, near Odessa, 18 years ago; no
evidence is given that the dog was rabid. One is a case at Arlington,
New Jersey, 18 years ago; no evidence is given that the dog was rabid.
One is the case of Pauline Kiehl; no date; no reference to say where
the case is published; no account of her symptoms. And one is a case
at the Jaffna Hospital, Ceylon; no date; and nothing said about the
dog. Of these five cases, three were a boy, a lad, and a little girl;
but their ages are not given. Five cases in 20 years; they hail from
all parts of the world, France, Russia, the United States, Ceylon, and
France again; three of them happened 18 years ago, or more. And, we
may be certain, not one of them is genuine. Spurious hydrophobia, the
simulation of the disease out of sheer terror of it, as in Dr.
Buisson's case, is well known.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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