tion；　the　first…fruit　of　the　Restoration　of　Science；　was　given　to　the　world。
  And　is　it　to　be　looked　at　as　a　mere　accidental　coincidence；　that　while　Napoleon　was　modernizing　the　political　world；　Bichat　was　revolutionizing　the　science　of　life　and　the　art　that　is　based　upon　it；　that　while　the　young　general　was　scaling　the　Alps；　the　young　surgeon　was　climbing　the　steeper　summits　of　unexplored　nature；　that　the　same　year　read　the　announcement　of　those　admirable　〃Researches　on　Life　and　Death；〃　and　the　bulletins　of　the　battle　of　Marengo？
  If　we　come　to　our　own　country；　who　can　fail　to　recognize　that　Benjamin　Rush；　the　most　conspicuous　of　American　physicians；　was　the　intellectual　offspring　of　the　movement　which　produced　the　Revolution？　〃The　same　hand；〃　says　one　of　his　biographers；〃　which　subscribed　the　declaration　of　the　political　independence　of　these　States；　accomplished　their　emancipation　from　medical　systems　formed　in　foreign　countries；　and　wholly　unsuitable　to　the　state　of　diseases　in　America。〃
  Following　this　general　course　of　remark；　I　propose　to　indicate　in　a　few　words　the　direction　of　the　main　intellectual　current　of　the　time；　and　to　point　out　more　particularly　some　of　the　eddies　which　tend　to　keep　the　science　and　art　of　medicine　from　moving　with　it；　or　even　to　carry　them　backwards。
  The　two　dominant　words　of　our　time　are　law　and　average；　both　pointing　to　the　uniformity　of　the　order　of　being　in　which　we　live。　　Statistics　have　tabulated　everything；population；　growth；　wealth；　crime；　disease。　　We　have　shaded　maps　showing　the　geographical　distribution　of　larceny　and　suicide。　　Analysis　and　classification　have　been　at　work　upon　all　tangible　and　visible　objects。　　The　Positive　Philosophy　of　Comte　has　only　given　expression　to　the　observing　and　computing　mind　of　the　nineteenth　century。
  In　the　mean　time；　the　great　stronghold　of　intellectual　conservatism；　traditional　belief；　has　been　assailed　by　facts　which　would　have　been　indicted　as　blasphemy　but　a　few　generations　ago。　　Those　new　tables　of　the　law；　placed　in　the　hands　of　the　geologist　by　the　same　living　God　who　spoke　from　Sinai　to　the　Israelites　of　old；　have　remodelled　the　beliefs　of　half　the　civilized　world。　　The　solemn　scepticism　of　science　has　replaced　the　sneering　doubts　of　witty　philosophers。　　The　more　positive　knowledge　we　gain；　the　more　we　incline　to　question　all　that　has　been　received　without　absolute　proof。
  As　a　matter　of　course；　this　movement　has　its　partial　reactions。　　The　province　of　faith　is　claimed　as　a　port　free　of　entry　to　unsupported　individual　convictions。　　The　tendency　to　question　is　met　by　the　unanalyzing　instinct　of　reverence。　　The　old　church　calls　back　its　frightened　truants。　　Some　who　have　lost　their　hereditary　religious　belief　find　a　resource　in　the　revelations　of　Spiritualism。　　By　a　parallel　movement；　some　of　those　who　have　become　medical　infidels　pass　over　to　the　mystic　band　of　believers　in　the　fancied　miracles　of　Homoeopathy。
  Under　these　influences　transmitted　to；　or　at　least　shared　by；　the　medical　profession；　the　old　question　between　〃Nature；〃　so　called；　and　〃Art；〃　or　professional　tradition；　has　reappeared　with　new　interest。　I　say　the　old　question；　for　Hippocrates　stated　the　case　on　the　side　of　〃Nature〃　more　than　two　thousand　years　ago。　　Miss　Florence　Nightingale；and　if　I　name　her　next　to　the　august　Father　of　the　Healing　Art；　its　noblest　daughter　well　deserves　that　place　of　honor；　Miss　Florence　Nightingale　begins　her　late　volume　with　a　paraphrase　of　his　statement。　　But　from　a　very　early　time　to　this　there　has　always　been　a　strong　party　against　〃Nature。〃　　Themison　called　the　practice　of　Hippocrates　〃a　meditation　upon　death。〃　　Dr。　Rush　says：　〃It　is　impossible　to　calculate　the　mischief　which　Hippocrates；　has　done；　by　first　marking　Nature　with　his　name　and　afterwards　letting　her　loose　upon　sick　people。　　Millions　have　perished　by　her　hands　in　all　ages　and　countries。〃　　Sir　John　Forbes；　whose　defence　of　〃Nature〃　in　disease　you　all　know；　and　to　the　testimonial　in　whose　honor　four　of　your　Presidents　have　contributed；　has　been　recently　greeted；　on　retiring　from　the　profession；　with　a　wish　that　his　retirement　had　been　twenty　years　sooner；　and　the　opinion　that　no　man　had　done　so　much　to　destroy　the　confidence　of　the　public　in　the　medical　profession。
  In　this　Society　we　have　had　the　Hippocratic　and　the　Themisonic　side　fairly　represented。　　The　treatise　of　one　of　your　early　Presidents　on　the　Mercurial　Treatment　is　familiar　to　my　older　listeners。　　Others　who　have　held　the　same　office　have　been　noted　for　the　boldness　of　their　practice；　and　even　for　partiality　to　the　use　of　complex　medication。
  On　the　side　of　〃Nature〃　we　have　had；　first　of　all；　that　remarkable　discourse　on　Self…Limited　Diseases；　＇On　Self…Limited　Diseases。　　A　Discourse　delivered　before　the　Massachusetts　Medical　Society；　at　their　Annual　Meeting；　May　27；　1835。　　By　Jacob　Bigelow；　M。　D。＇　which　has　given　the　key…note　to　the　prevailing　medical　tendency　of　this　neighborhood；　at　least；　for　the　quarter　of　a　century　since　it　was　delivered。　　Nor　have　we　forgotten　the　address　delivered　at　Springfield　twenty　years　later；　＇Search　out　the　Secrets；　of　Nature。　By　Augustus　A。　　Gould；　M。　　D。　　Read　at　the　Annual　Meeting；　June　27；　1855。＇　full　of　good　sense　and　useful　suggestions；　to　one　of　which　suggestions　we　owe　the　learned；　impartial；　judicious；　well…written　Prize　Essay　of　Dr。　Worthington　Hooker。　＇Rational　Therapeutics。　　A　Prize　Essay。　　By　Worthington　Hooker；　M。　　D。；　of　New　Haven。　　Boston。　1857。＇　We　should　not　omit　from　the　list　the　important　address　of　another　of　our　colleagues；　＇On　the　Treatment　of　Compound　and　Complicated　Fractures。　By　William　J。　　Walker；　M。　　D。　　Read　at　the　Annual　Meeting；　May　29；　1845。＇　showing　by　numerous　cases　the　power　of　Nature　in　healing　compound　fractures　to　be　much　greater　than　is　frequently　supposed；affording；　indeed；　more　striking　illustrations　than　can　be　obtained　from　the　history　of　visceral　disease；　of　the　supreme　wisdom；　forethought；　and　adaptive　dexterity　of　that　divine　Architect；　as　shown　in　repairing　the　shattered　columns　which　support　the　living　temple　of　the　body。
  We　who　are　on　the　side　of　〃Nature〃　please　ourselves　with　the　idea　that　we　are　in　the　great　current　in　which　the　true　intelligence　of　the　time　is　moving。　　We　believe　that　some　who　oppose；　or　fear；　or　denounce　our　movement　are　themselves　caught　in　various　eddies　that　set　back　against　the　truth。　　And　we　do　most　earnestly　desire　and　most　actively　strive；　that　Medicine；　which；　it　is　painful　to　remember；　has　been　spoken　of　as　〃the　withered　branch　of　science〃　at　a　meeting　of　the　British　Association；　shall　be　at　length　brought　fully　to　share；　if　not　to　lead；　the　great　wave　of　knowledge　which　rolls　with　the　tides　that　circle　the　globe。
  If　there　is　any　State　or　city　which　might　claim　to　be　the　American　headquarters　of　the　nature…trusting　heresy；　provided　it　be　one；　that　State　is　Massachusetts；　and　that　city　is　its　capital。　　The　effect　which　these　doctrines　have　upon　the　confidence　reposed　in　the　profession　is　a　matter　of　opinion。　　For　myself；　I　do　not　believe　this　confidence　can　be　impaired　by　any　investigations　which　tend　to　limit　the　application　of　troublesome；　painful；　uncertain；　or　dangerous　remedies。　　Nay；　I　will　venture　to　say　this；　that　if　every　specific　were　to　fail　utterly；　if　the　cinchona　trees　all　died　out；　and　the　arsenic　mines　were　exhausted；　and　the　sulphur　regions　were　burned　up；　if　every　drug　from　the　vegetable；　animal；　and　mineral　kingdom　were　to　disappear　from　the　market；　a　body　of　enlightened　men；　organized　as　a　distinct　profession；　would　be　required　just　as　much　as　now；　and　respected　and　trusted　as　now；　whose　province　should　be　to　guard　against　the　causes　of　disease；　to　eliminate　them　if　possible　when　still　present；　to　order　all　the　conditions　of　the　patient　so　as　to　favor　the　efforts　of　the　system　to　right　itself；　and　to　give　those　predictions　of　the　course　of　disease　which　only　experience　can　warrant；　and　which　in　so　many　cases　relieve　the　exaggerated　fears　of　sufferers　and　their　friends；　or　warn　them　in　season　of　impending　danger。　　Great　as　the　loss　would　be　if　certain　active　remedies　could　no　longer　be　obtained；　it　would　leave　the　medical　profession　the　most　essential　part　of　it's　duties；　and　all；　and　more　than　all；　its　present　share　of　honors；　for　it　would　be　the　death…blow　to　charlatanism；　which　depends　for　its　success　almost　entirely　on　drugs；　or　at　least　on　a　nomenclature　that　suggests　them。
  There　is　no　offence；　then；　or　danger　in　expressing　the　opinion；　that；　after　all　which　has　been　said；　the　community　is　still　overdosed：　The　best　proof　of　it　is；　that　no　families　take　so　little　medicine　as　those　of　doctors；　except　those　of　apothecaries；　and　that　old　practitioners　are　more　sparing　of　active　medicines　than　younger　ones。〃　＇Dr。　James　Jackson　has　kindly　permitted　me　to　make　the　following　extract　from　a　letter　just　received　by　him　from　Sir　James　Clark；　and　dated　May　26；　1860：　　〃As　a　physician　advances　in　age；　he　generally；　I　think；　places　less　confidence　in　the　ordinary　medical　treatment　than　he　did；　not　only　during　his　early；　but　even　his　middle　period　of　life。〃＇　　The　conclusion　from　these　facts　is　one　which　the　least　promising　of　Dr。　Howe's　pupils　in　the　mental　department　could　hardly　help　drawi