Nevertheless, the wretches continued to practise their deceptions, but less openly for a time, and they are made mention of throughout the sacred writings, until "the closing of the canon." But the Scriptures are almost totally silent on surgery, and the remedies resorted to by those pretending to the science--as also by physicians and priests--were such as to lead us to believe that their _materia medica_ was very limited. Under the head of Ridiculous Prescriptions, we shall mention these remedies:-- The earliest record we find of surgical operations in the Old Testament is in Judges xix. 29,--a "capital operation," we may judge, for the account informs us that the patient, a woman, "was divided into twelve pieces." Turning to the profane writers for information, we plunge into an abyss of uncertainty, with this exception; that the practice of medicine--it could not be called a science--was still in the hands of the priesthood, and partook largely of the fabulous notions of the age, being connected almost entirely with idolatries and humbuggeries. The cunning priests caused the rabble, from first to last, to believe that all disease was inflicted, not from the violation of the laws of nature, but by some angry and outraged divinity, whose wrath must be appeased by bribes (_paid to the priests_), by incantations, and absurd ceremonies, or else the afflicted victim must die a painful death, and forever after suffer a more horrible eternity. The priests' receiving the pay reminds us of the following little anecdote. A very pious man, recently congratulating a convalescing patient upon his recovery, asked his friend who had been his physician. "Dr. Blank brought me safely through," was his reply. "No, no," said the friend, "God brought you out of this affliction, and healed you,--not the doctor." "Well," replied the man, "may be he did; but I am sure that the doctor will charge me for it."