But，independentlyofanysuchgroundsofactiveresistance，thesubjectinvolvesinterestssodisproportionedtoitsintrinsicclaims，thatitisnomorethananactofhumanitytogiveitapublicexamination。Ifthenewdoctrineisnottruth，itisadangerous，adeadlyerror。Ifitisamereillusion，andacquiresthesamedegreeofinfluencethatwehaveoftenseenobtainedbyotherillusions，thereisnotoneofmyaudiencewhomaynothaveoccasiontodeplorethefatalcredulitywhichlistenedtoitspromises。
Ishallthereforeundertakeasoberexaminationofitsprinciples，itsfacts，andsomepointsofitshistory。ThelimitedtimeatmydisposalrequiresmetocondenseasmuchaspossiblewhatIhavetosay，butIshallendeavortobeplainanddirectinexpressingit。
Notonestatementshallbemadewhichcannotbesupportedbyunimpeachablereference：notonewordshallbeutteredwhichIamnotaswillingtoprintastospeak。Ihavenoquibblestoutter，andI
shallstooptoanswernone；but，withfullfaithinthesufficiencyofaplainstatementoffactsandreasons，Isubmitthesubjecttothediscernmentofmyaudience。
Thequestionmaybeaskedintheoutset，——Haveyousubmittedthedoctrinesyouareprofessingtoexaminetothetestoflong-repeatedandcarefulexperiment；haveyoutriedtoseewhethertheyweretrueornot？TothisIanswer，thatitisabundantlyevident，fromwhathasoftenhappened，thatitwouldbeofnomannerofuseformetoallegetheresultsofanyexperimentsImighthaveinstituted。Againandagainhavethemostexplicitstatementsbeenmadebythemostcompetentpersonsoftheutterfailureofalltheirtrials，andtherewerethesameabundantexplanationsofferedasusedtobefortheUnguentumArmariumaridtheMetallicTractors。Icouldbynopossibilityperformanyexperimentstheresultofwhichcouldnotbeeasilyexplainedawaysoastobeofnoconclusivesignificance。
Besides，asargumentsinfavorofHomoeopathyareconstantlyaddressedtothepublicinjournals，pamphlets，andevenlectures，byinexperienceddilettanti，thesamechannelmustbeopentoallitsopponents。
Itisnecessary，forthesakeofthosetowhomthewholesubjectmaybenew，togiveinthesmallestpossiblecompassthesubstanceoftheHomoeopathicDoctrine。SamuelHahnemann，itsfounder，isaGermanphysician，nowlivinginParis，“[Hahnemanndiedin1843。]attheageofeighty-sevenyears。In1796hepublishedthefirstpapercontaininghispeculiarnotions；in1805hisfirstworkonthesubject；in1810hissomewhatfamous“OrganonoftheHealingArt；“
thenextyearwhathecalledthe“PureMateriaMedica；“andin1828
hislastwork，the“TreatiseonChronicDiseases。“Hehasthereforebeenwritingatintervalsonhisfavoritesubjectfornearlyhalfacentury。
TheonegreatdoctrinewhichconstitutesthebasisofHomoeopathyasasystemisexpressedbytheLatinaphorism，“SIMILIASIBIILIBUSCURANTUR，“
orlikecureslike，thatis，diseasesarecuredbyagentscapableofproducingsymptomsresemblingthosefoundinthediseaseundertreatment。AdiseaseforHahnemannconsistsessentiallyinagroupofsymptoms。Thepropermedicineforanydiseaseistheonewhichiscapableofproducingasimilargroupofsymptomswhengiventoahealthyperson。
Itisofcoursenecessarytoknowwhatarethetrainsofsymptomsexcitedbydifferentsubstances，whenadministeredtopersonsinhealth，ifanysuchcanbeshowntoexist。Hahnemannandhisdisciplesgivecataloguesofthesymptomswhichtheyaffirmwereproduceduponthemselvesorothersbyalargenumberofdrugswhichtheysubmittedtoexperiment。
ThesecondgreatfactwhichHahnemannprofessestohaveestablishedistheefficacyofmedicinalsubstancesreducedtoawonderfuldegreeofminutenessordilution。ThefollowingaccountofhismodeofpreparinghismedicinesisfromhisworkonChronicDiseases，whichhasnot，Ibelieve，yetbeentranslatedintoEnglish。Agrainofthesubstance，ifitissolid，adropifitisliquid，istobeaddedtoaboutathirdpartofonehundredgrainsofsugarofmilkinanunglazedporcelaincapsulewhichhashadthepolishremovedfromthelowerpartofitscavitybyrubbingitwithwetsand；theyaretobemingledforaninstantwithaboneorhornspatula，andthenrubbedtogetherforsixminutes；thenthemassistobescrapedtogetherfromthemortarandpestle，whichistotakefourminutes；thentobeagainrubbedforsixminutes。Fourminutesarethentobedevotedtoscrapingthepowderintoaheap，andthesecondthirdofthehundredgrainsofsugarofmilktobeadded。Thentheyaretobestirredaninstantandrubbedsixminutes，——againtobescrapedtogetherfourminutesandforciblyrubbedsix；oncemorescrapedtogetherforfourminutes，whenthelastthirdofthehundredgrainsofsugarofmilkistobeaddedandmingledbystirringwiththespatula；sixminutesofforciblerubbing，fourofscrapingtogether，andsixmorepositivelythelastsixofrubbing，finishthispartoftheprocess。
Everygrainofthispowdercontainsthehundredthofagrainofthemedicinalsubstancemingledwiththesugarofmilk。If，therefore，agrainofthepowderjustpreparedismingledwithanotherhundredgrainsofsugarofmilk，andtheprocessjustdescribedrepeated，weshallhaveapowderofwhicheverygraincontainsthehundredthofthehundredth，orthetenthousandthpartofagrainofthemedicinalsubstance。Repeatthesameprocesswiththesamequantityoffreshsugarofmilk，andeverygrainofyourpowderwillcontainthemillionthofagrainofthemedicinalsubstance。Whenthepowderisofthisstrength，itisreadytoemployinthefurthersolutionsanddilutionstobemadeuseofinpractice。
Agrainofthepowderistobetaken，ahundreddropsofalcoholaretobepouredonit，thevialistobeslowlyturnedforafewminutes，untilthepowderisdissolved，andtwoshakesaretobegiventoit。OnthispointIwillquoteHahnemann’sownwords。
“Alongexperienceandmultipliedobservationsuponthesickleadmewithinthelastfewyearstoprefergivingonlytwoshakestomedicinalliquids，whereasIformerlyusedtogiveten。“Theprocessofdilutioniscarriedoninthesamewayastheattenuationofthepowderwasdone；eachsuccessivedilutionwithalcoholreducingthemedicinetoahundredthpartofthequantityofthatwhichprecededit。Inthiswaythedilutionoftheoriginalmillionthofagrainofmedicinecontainedinthegrainofpowderoperatedoniscarriedsuccessivelytothebillionth，trillionth，quadrillionth，quintillionth，andveryoftenmuchhigherfractionaldivisions。A
doseofanyofthesemedicinesisaminutefractionofadrop，obtainedbymoisteningwiththemoneormorelittleglobulesofsugar，ofwhichHahnemannsaysittakesabouttwohundredtoweighagrain。
AsaninstanceofthestrengthofthemedicinesprescribedbyHahnemann，Iwillmentioncarbonateoflime。Hedoesnotemploycommonchalk，butprefersalittleportionofthefriablepartofanoystershell。Ofthissubstance，carriedtothesextillionthdegree，somuchasoneortwoglobulesofthesizementionedcanconveyisacommondose。Butforpersonsofverydelicatenervesitisproperthatthedilutionshouldbecarriedtothedecillionthdegree。Thatis，animportantmedicinaleffectistobeexpectedfromthetwohundredthorhundredthpartofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofthemillionthofagrainofoyster-shell。Thisisonlythetenthdegreeofpotency，butsomeofhisdisciplesprofesstohaveobtainedpalpableeffectsfrommuchhigherdilutions。“
ThethirdgreatdoctrineofHahnemannisthefollowing。SeveneighthsatleastofallchronicdiseasesareproducedbytheexistenceinthesystemofthatinfectiousdisorderknowninthelanguageofsciencebytheappellationofPSORA，buttothelessrefinedportionofthecommunitybythenameofITCH。InthewordsofHahnemann’s“Organon，““ThisPsoraisthesoletrueandfundamentalcausethatproducesalltheothercountlessformsofdisease，which，underthenamesofnervousdebility，hysteria，hypochondriasis，insanity，melancholy，idiocy，madness，epilepsy，andspasmsofallkinds，softeningofthebones，orrickets，scoliosisandcyphosis，caries，cancer，funguahaematodes，gout，——yellowjaundiceandcyanosis，dropsy，——
[“ThedegreesofDILUTIONmustnotbeconfoundedwiththoseofPOTENCY。Theirrelationsmaybeseenbythistable：
lstdilution，——Onehundredthofadroporgrain。
2d“Onetenthousandth。
3d“Onemillionth，markedI。
4th“Onehundredmillionth。
5th“Onetenthousandmillionth。
6th“Onemillionmillionth，oronebillionth，markedII。
7th“Onehundredbillionth。
8th“Onetenthousandbillionth。
9th“Onemillionbillionth，oronetrillionth，markedIII。
10th“Onehundredtrillionth。
11th“Onetenthousandtrillionth。
12th“Onemilliontrillionth，oronequadrillionth，markedIV。，——andsoonindefinitely。
ThelargefiguresdenotethedegreesofPOTENCY。]
gastralgia，epistaxis，haemoptysis，——asthmaandsuppurationofthelungs，——megrim，deafness，cataractandamaurosis，——paralysis，lossofsense，painsofeverykind，etc。，appearinourpathologyassomanypeculiar，distinct，andindependentdiseases。“
Forthelastthreecenturies，ifthesameauthoritymaybetrusted，undertheinfluenceofthemorerefinedpersonalhabitswhichhaveprevailed，andtheapplicationofvariousexternalremedieswhichrepeltheaffectionfromtheskin；Psorahasrevealeditselfinthesenumerousformsofinternaldisease，insteadofappearing，asinformerperiods，undertheaspectofanexternalmalady。
ThesearethethreecardinaldoctrinesofHahnemann，aslaiddowninthosestandardworksofHomoeopathy，the“Organon“andthe“TreatiseonChronicDiseases。“
Severalotherprinciplesmaybeadded，uponallofwhichheinsistswithgreatforce，andwhichareverygenerallyreceivedbyhisdisciples。
1。Verylittlepowerisallowedtothecurativeeffortsofnature。
Hahnemanngoessofarastosaythatnoonehaseverseenthesimpleeffortsofnatureeffectthedurablerecoveryofapatientfromachronicdisease。Ingeneral，theHomoeopathistcallseveryrecoverywhichhappensunderhistreatmentacure。
2。Everymedicinalsubstancemustbeadministeredinastateofthemostperfectpurity，anduncombinedwithanyother。Theunionofseveralremediesinasingleprescriptiondestroysitsutility，and，accordingtothe“Organon，“frequentlyaddsanewdisease。
3。Alargenumberofsubstancescommonlythoughttobeinertdevelopgreatmedicinalpowerswhenpreparedinthemanneralreadydescribed；
andagreatproportionofthemareascertainedtohavespecificantidotesincasetheirexcessiveeffectsrequiretobeneutralized。
4。Diseasesshouldberecognized，asfaraspossible，notbyanyofthecommonnamesimposeduponthem，asfeverorepilepsy，butasindividualcollectionsofsymptoms，eachofwhichdiffersfromeveryothercollection。
5。Thesymptomsofanycomplaintmustbedescribedwiththemostminuteexactness，andsofaraspossibleinthepatient’sownwords。
Toillustratethekindofcircumstancesthepatientisexpectedtorecord，Iwillmentiononeortwofromthe313thpageofthe“TreatiseonChronicDiseases，“——beingthefirstoneatwhichI
openedaccidentally。
“Afterdinner，dispositiontosleep；thepatientwinks。“
“Afterdinner，prostrationandfeelingofweaknessninedaysaftertakingtheremedy。“
Thisremedywasthatsameoyster-shellwhichistobeprescribed“fractionsofthesextillionthordecillionthdegree。AccordingtoHahnemann，theactionofasingledoseofthesizementioneddoesnotfullydisplayitselfinsomecasesuntiltwenty-fouroreventhirtydaysafteritistaken，andinsuchinstanceshasnotexhausteditsgoodeffectsuntiltowardsthefortiethorfiftiethday，——beforewhichtimeitwouldbeabsurdandinjurioustoadministeranewremedy。
SomuchforthedoctrinesofHahnemann，whichhavebeenstatedwithoutcomment，orexaggerationofanyoftheirfeatures，verymuchasanyadherentofhisopinionsmighthavestatedthem，ifobligedtocompressthemintosonarrowaspace。
DoesHahnemannhimselfrepresentHomoeopathyasitnowexists？Hecertainlyoughttobeitsbestrepresentative，afterhavingcreatedit，anddevotedhislifetoitforhalfacentury。Heisspokenofasthegreatphysicianofthetime，inmost，ifnotallHomoeopathicworks。Ifheisnotauthorityonthesubjectofhisowndoctrines，whois？SofarasIamaware，notonetangiblediscoveryintheso-calledsciencehaseverbeenascribedtoanyotherobserver；atleast，nogeneralprincipleorlaw，ofconsequenceenoughtoclaimanyprominenceinHomoeopathicworks，haseverbeenpretendedtohaveoriginatedwithanyofhisillustriousdisciples。HeisoneoftheonlytwoHomoeopathicwriterswithwhom，asIshallmention，theParispublisherwillhaveanythingtodouponhisownaccount。TheotherisJahr，whoseManualislittlemorethanacatalogueofsymptomsandremedies。IfanypersonschoosetorejectHahnemannasnotinthemainrepresentingHomoeopathy，iftheystrikeathisauthority，iftheywinkoutofsighthisdeliberateandformallyannouncedresults，itisanactofsuicidalrashness；foruponhissagacityandpowersofobservation，andexperience，asembodiedinhisworks，andespeciallyinhisMateriaMedica，reposethefoundationsofHomoeopathyasapracticalsystem。
SofarasIcanlearnfromtheconflictingstatementsmadeuponthesubject，thefollowingisthepresentconditionofbelief。
1。AllofanynoteagreethatthelawSimiliasimilibusistheonlyfundamentalprincipleinmedicine。OfcourseifanymandoesnotagreetothisthenameHomoeopathistcannolongerbeappliedtohimwithpropriety。
2。Thebeliefinandemploymentoftheinfinitesimaldosesisgeneral，andinsomeplacesuniversal，amongtheadvocatesofHomoeopathy；butadistinctmovementhasbeenmadeinGermanytogetridofanyrestrictiontotheuseofthesedoses，andtoemploymedicineswiththesamelicenseasotherpractitioners。