Table Of ContentTHE PEOPLE'S
COMMON SENSE
MEDICAL ADVISER
IN PLAIN ENGLISH:
OR,
MEDICINE SIMPLIFIED.
BY
R.V. PIERCE, M.D.
TO
MY PATIENTS,
WHO HAVE SOLICITED MY PROFESSIONAL SERVICES,
FROM THEIR HOMES
IN EVERY STATE, CITY, TOWN, AND ALMOST EVERY HAMLET,
WITHIN THE AMERICAN UNION;
ALSO TO THOSE DWELLING IN EUROPE, MEXICO, SOUTH AMERICA,
THE EAST AND WEST INDIES, AND OTHER
FOREIGN LANDS,
I RESPECTFULLY DEDICATE
THIS WORK.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE TO THE PRESENT EDITION
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
PART I
CHAPTER I. BIOLOGY
CHAPTER II. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE BONES.
CHAPTER III. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE MUSCLES.
CHAPTER IV. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS.
CHAPTER V. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. ABSORPTION.
CHAPTER VI. PHYSICAL AND VITAL PROPERTIES OF THE BLOOD.
CHAPTER VII. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. CIRCULATORY ORGANS.
CHAPTER VIII. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE ORGANS OF RESPIRATION.
CHAPTER IX. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE SKIN.
CHAPTER X. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. SECRETION.
CHAPTER XI. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. EXCRETION.
CHAPTER XII. PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY. THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.
CHAPTER XIII. THE SPECIAL SENSES. SIGHT.
CHAPTER XIV. CEREBRAL PHYSIOLOGY.
CHAPTER XV. THE HUMAN TEMPERAMENTS.
CHAPTER XVI. MARRIAGE. LOVE.
CHAPTER XVII. REPRODUCTION.
PART II. HYGIENE.
CHAPTER I. HYGIENE DEFINED.—PURE AIR.
CHAPTER II. FOOD. BEVERAGES. ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS. CLOTHING.
CHAPTER III. PHYSICAL EXERCISE. MENTAL CULTURE. SLEEP. CLEANLINESS.
CHAPTER IV. HYGIENE OF THE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS.
CHAPTER V. PRACTICAL SUMMARY OF HYGIENE.
PART III. RATIONAL MEDICINE.
CHAPTER I. THE PROGRESS OF MEDICINE.
CHAPTER II. REMEDIES FOR DISEASE.
CHAPTER III. BATHS AND MOTION AS REMEDIAL AGENTS.
CHAPTER IV. HYGIENIC TREATMENT OF THE SICK.
PART IV. DISEASES AND THEIR REMEDIAL TREATMENT.
FOOTNOTES
PREFACE TO THE PRESENT EDITION
The popular favor with which former editions of this work have been received has required the
production of such a vast number of copies, that the original electrotype plates from which it has
heretofore been printed, have been completely worn out.
The book has been re-produced in London, England, where six editions have already been
necessary to supply the demand for it.
In order to continue its publication to meet the demand which is still active in this country, it has
been necessary, inasmuch as the original electrotype plates have become worn and useless, to re-
set the work throughout. This has afforded the Author an opportunity to carefully revise the book
and re-write many portions, that it may embody the latest discoveries and improvements in
medicine and surgery. In performing this labor he has been greatly assisted by contributions and
valuable aid kindly supplied by his staff of associate specialists in medicine and surgery who
constitute the Faculty of the Invalids' Hotel and Surgical Institute.
That part of the book treating of Diseases and Their Remedies will be found to be thoroughly
reliable; the prescriptions recommended therein having all received the sanction and
endorsement of medical gentlemen of rare professional attainments and mature experience.
THE AUTHOR.
BUFFALO, N.Y., January, 1895.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
Every family needs a COMMON SENSE MEDICAL ADVISER. The frequent inquiries from
his numerous patients throughout the land, suggested to the Author the importance and popular
demand for a reliable work of this kind. Consequently, he has been induced to prepare and
publish an extensive dissertation on Physiology, Hygiene, Temperaments, Diseases and
Domestic Remedies. It is for the interest and welfare of every person, not only to understand the
means for the preservation of health, but also to know what remedies should be employed for the
alleviation of the common ailments of life.
The frequency of accidents of all kinds, injuries sustained by machinery, contusions, drowning,
poisoning, fainting, etc., and also of sudden attacks of painful diseases, such as headache,
affections of the heart and nerves, inflammation of the eye, ear and other organs, renders it
necessary that non-professionals should possess sufficient knowledge to enable them to employ
the proper means for speedy relief. To impart this important information is the aim of the author.
Moreover, this volume treats of Human Temperaments, not only of their influence upon mental
characteristics and bodily susceptibilities, but also of their vital and non-vital combinations,
which transmit to the offspring either health, hardihood, and longevity, or feebleness, disease,
and death. It clearly points out those temperaments which are compatible with each other and
harmoniously blend, and also those which, when united in marriage, result in barrenness, or
produce in the offspring imbecility, deformity, and idiocy. These matters are freely discussed
from original investigations and clinical observations, thus rendering the work a true and
scientific guide to marriage.
While instruction is imparted for the care of the body, those diseases (alas how prevalent!) are
investigated which are sure to follow as a consequence of certain abuses, usually committed
through ignorance. That these ills do exist is evident from the fact that the Author is consulted by
multitudes of unfortunate young men and women, who are desirous of procuring relief from the
weaknesses and derangements incurred by having unwittingly violated physiological laws.
Although some of these subjects may seem out of place in a work designed for every member of
the family, yet they are presented in a style which cannot offend the most fastidious, and with a
studied avoidance of all language that can possibly displease the chaste, or disturb the delicate
susceptibilities of persons of either sex.
This book should not be excluded from the young, for it is eminently adapted to their wants, and
imparts information without which millions will suffer untold misery. It is a false modesty which
debars the youth of our land from obtaining such information.
As its title indicates, the Author aims to make this book a useful and practical Medical Adviser.
He proposes to express himself in plain and simple language, and, so far as possible, to avoid the
employment of technical words, so that all his readers may readily comprehend the work, and
profit by its perusal. Written as it is amid the many cares attendant upon a practice embracing the
treatment of thousands of cases annually, and therefore containing the fruits of a rich and varied
experience, some excuse exists for any literary imperfections which the critical reader may
observe.
THE AUTHOR.
BUFFALO, N.Y., July, 1875.
INTRODUCTORY WORDS.
Health and disease are physical conditions upon which pleasure and pain, success and failure,
depend. Every individual gain increases public gain. Upon the health of its people is based the
prosperity of a nation; by it every value is increased, every joy enhanced. Life is incomplete
without the enjoyment of healthy organs and faculties, for these give rise to the delightful
sensations of existence. Health is essential to the accomplishment of every purpose; while
sickness thwarts the best intentions and loftiest aims. We are continually deciding upon those
conditions which are either the source of joy and happiness or which occasion pain and disease.
Prudence requires that we should meet the foes and obviate the dangers which threaten us, by
turning all our philosophy, science, and art, into practical common sense.
The profession of medicine is no sinecure; its labors are constant, its toils unremitting, its cares
unceasing. The physician is expected to meet the grim monster, "break the jaws of death, and
pluck the spoil out of his teeth." His ear is ever attentive to entreaty, and within his faithful
breast are concealed the disclosures of the suffering. Success may elate him, as conquest flushes
the victor. Honors are lavished upon the brave soldiers who, in the struggle with the foe, have
covered themselves with glory, and returned victorious from the field of battle; but how much
more brilliant is the achievement of those who overwhelm disease, that common enemy of
mankind, whose victims are numbered by millions! Is it meritorious in the physician to modestly
veil his discoveries, regardless of their importance? If he have light, why hide it from the world?
Truth should be made as universal and health-giving as sunlight. We say, give light to all who
are in darkness, and a remedy to the afflicted everywhere.
We, as a people, are becoming idle, living in luxury and ease, and in the gratification of artificial
wants. Some indulge in the use of food rendered unwholesome by bad cookery, and think more
of gratifying a morbid appetite than of supplying the body with proper nourishment. Others
devote unnecessary attention to the display of dress and a genteel figure, yielding themselves
completely to the sway of fashion. Such intemperance in diet and dress manifests itself in the
general appearance of the unfortunate transgressor, and exposes his folly to the world, with little
less precision than certain vices signify their presence by a tobacco-tainted breath, beer-bloated
body, rum-emblazoned nose, and kindred manifestations. They coddle themselves instead of
practicing self-denial, and appear to think that the chief end of life is gratification, rather than
useful endeavor.
I purpose to express myself candidly and earnestly on all topics relating to health, and appeal to
the common sense of the reader for justification. Although it is my aim to simplify the work, and
render it a practical common-sense guide to the farmer, mechanic, mariner, and day-laborer, yet
I trust that it may not prove less acceptable to the scholar, in its discussion of the problems of
Life. Not only does the method adopted in this volume of treating of the Functions of the Brain
and Nervous System present many new suggestions, in its application to hygiene, the
management of disease, generation and the development and improvement of man, but the
conclusions correspond with the results of the latest investigations of the world's most
distinguished savants. My object is to inculcate the facts of science rather than the theories of
philosophy.
Unto us are committed important health trusts, which we hold, not merely in our own behalf, but
for the benefit of others. If we discharge the obligations of our trusteeship, we shall enjoy
present strength, usefulness, and length of days; but if we fail in their performance, then
inefficiency, incapacity, and sickness, will follow, the sequel of which is pain and death. Let us,
then, prove worthy of this generous commission, that we may enjoy the sweetest of all pleasures,
the delicious fruitage of honest toil and faithful obedience.
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PART I.
PHYSIOLOGY.
CHAPTER I.
BIOLOGY.
In this chapter we propose to consider Life in its primitive manifestations. Biology is the science
of living bodies, or the science of life. Every organ of a living body has a function to perform,
and Physiology treats of these functions.
Function means the peculiar action of some particular organ or part. There can be no vital action
without change, and no change without organs. Every living thing has a structure, and Anatomy
treats of the structures of organized bodies. Several chapters of this work are devoted to
Physiological Anatomy, which treats of the human organism and its functions.
The beginning of life is called generation; its perpetuation, reproduction. By the former
function, individual life is insured; by the latter, it is maintained. Since nutrition sustains life, it
has been pertinently termed perpetual reproduction.
Latent Life is contained in a small globule, a mere atom of matter, in the sperm-cell. This
element is something which, under certain conditions, develops into a living organism. The
entire realm of nature teems with these interesting phenomena, thus manifesting that admirable
adjustment of internal to external relations, which claims our profound attention. We are simply
humble scholars, waiting on the threshold of nature's glorious sanctuary, to receive the
interpretation of her divine mysteries.
Some have conjectured that chemical and physical forces account for all the phenomena of life,
and that organization is not the result of vital forces. Physical science cannot inform us what the
beginning was, or how vitality is the result of chemical forces; nor can it tell us what
transmutations will occur at the end of organized existence. This mysterious life-principle eludes
the grasp of the profoundest scientists, and its presence in the world will ever continue to be an
astonishing and indubitable testimony of Divine Power.
The physical act of generation is accomplished by the union of two cells; and as this conjugation
is known to be so generally indispensable to the organization of life, we may fairly infer that it is
a universal necessity. Investigations with the microscope have destroyed the hypothesis of
"spontaneous generation." These show us that even the minutest living forms are derived from a
parent organization.
Generation. So long as the vital principle remains in the sperm-cell, it lies dormant. That part of
the cell which contains this principle is called the spermatozoön, which consists of a flattened
body, having a long appendage tapering to the finest point. If it be remembered that a line is the
one-twelfth part of an inch in length, some idea may be formed of the extreme minuteness of the
body of a human spermatozoön, when we state that it is from 1/800 to 1/600 part of a line, and
the filiform tail 1/50 of a line, in length. This life-atom, which can be discerned only with a
powerful magnifying glass, is perfectly transparent, and moves about by executing a vibratile
motion with its long appendage. Within this speck of matter are hidden the multifarious forces
which, under certain favorable conditions, result in organization. Magnify this infinitesimal atom
a thousand times, and no congeries of formative powers is perceived wherewith to work out the
wonders of its existence. Yet it contains the principle, which is the contribution on the part of the
male toward the generation of a new being.
The ovum or germ-cell, is the special contribution on the part of the female for the production of
another being. The human ovum, though larger than the spermatozoön, is also extremely small,
measuring not more than from 1/20 to 1/10 of a line, or from 1/240 to 1/120 of an inch, in
diameter.
Fig. 1. A. Human Spermatozoön magnified about 3,800 diameters. B. Vertical and lateral views of spermatozoa of man. C,
D, E, F. Development of spermatozoa within the vesicles of evolution. G. Cell of the sponge resembling a spermatozoön.
H. Vesicles of evolution from the seminal fluid of the dog in the parent cell I. Single vesicles of different sizes. J. Human
spermatozoön forming in its cell. K. Rupture of the cell and escape of the spermatozoön.
The sperm and the germ-cells contain the primary elements of all organic structures, and both
possess the special qualities and conditions by which they may evolve organic beings. Every cell
is composed of minute grains, within which vital action takes place. The interior of a cell
consists of growing matter; the exterior, of matter which has assumed its form and is less active.
When the vital principle is communicated to it, the cell undergoes a rapid transformation. While
this alteration takes place within the cell, deteriorating changes occur in the cell-wall. Although
vital operations build up these structures, yet the animal and nervous functions are continually
disintegrating, or wasting, them.
Throughout the animal kingdom, germ-cells present the same external aspect when carefully
examined with the microscope. No difference can be observed between the cells of the flowers
of the oak and those of the apple, but the cells of the one always produce oak trees, while those
of the other always produce apple trees. The same is true of the germs of animals, there being
not the slightest apparent difference. We are unable to perceive how one cell should give origin
to a dog, while another exactly like it becomes a man. For aught we know, the ultimate atoms of
these cells are identical in physical character; at least we have no means of detecting any
difference.
Species. The term species is generally used merely as a convenient name to designate certain
assemblages of individuals having various striking points of resemblance. Scientific writers, as a
rule, no longer hold that what are usually called species are constantly unvarying and
unchangeable quantities. Recent researches point to the conclusion that all species vary more or
less, and, in some instances, that the variation is so great that the limits of general specific
distinctness are sometimes exceeded.
Our space will not permit us to do more than merely indicate the two great fundamental ideas
upon which the leading theories of the time respecting the origin of species are based. These are
usually termed the doctrine of Special Creation and the doctrine of Evolution. According to the
doctrine of Special Creation, it is thought that species are practically immutable productions,
each species having a specific centre where it was originally created, and from which it spread
over a certain area until its further progress was obstructed by unfavorable conditions. The
advocates of the doctrine of Evolution hold, on the contrary, that species are not permanent and
immutable, but that they are subject to modification, and that "the existing forms of life are
descendants by true generation of pre-existing forms."[1] Most naturalists are now inclined to
admit the general truth of the theory of evolution, but they differ widely respecting the mode in
which it occurred.
THE PROCESS OF GENERATION.
The vital principle, represented in the sperm-cell by a spermatozoön, must be imparted to a
germ-cell in order to effect impregnation. After touching each other, separate them immediately,
and observe the result. If, with the aid of a powerful lens, we directly examine the spermatozoön,
it will be perceived that, for a short time, it preserves its dimensions and retains all its material
aspects. But it does not long withstand the siege of decay, and, having fulfilled its destiny, loses
its organic characteristics, and begins to shrink.
