Athothis : a satire on modern medicine / by Thomas C. Minor.

heart; for the poor woman will not long survive the loss of her little one." " 'T is an easy matter to abuse the profession," quoth Paulus Androcydes, sneeringly. "Ah ! my wonderful, talented, gifted, and intellectual Egyptian friend, tell me truly, what was the cause of sickness in this child ? Know, that these skillful surgeons have only performed a simple operation, by means of which they hoped to save life." "And yet have driven it out of its primal abode! " answered Athothis. " You ask for the original cause of the disease, and I answer, poisonous air and water!" And as he spoke the Egyptian'%. .spiritual finger pointed directly at a stationary washstahd in the corner of the room. " I can readily believe that such may be the case," re- marked Paulus Androcydes, " since sewer gas contains poisonous germs. Yet, this hotel is provided with the best sanitary plumbing. No better evidence of modern mechanical skill can be found than in the plumbing noticeable here. It is simply perfect. The luxury and convenience of our house-drainage system can never be appreciated by one of the first dynasty." "We had no plumbers in Egypt," responded Athothis, with dignity ; " for we knew full well that filth was the prime factor in the causation of disease, and had no need for the services of mechanics who convert house interiors into sewers. 'T is possible, in this respect, that we lacked the rare wisdom displayed by the present age. Now, as filth is the chief agent in creating sickness, it follows that the more cleanly a population, the less its mortality rate. The experience of centuries has shown that man is a most uncleanly animal. So from the dawn