I have repeatedly magnetized subjects by any little metallic article presenting it to them, after having imbued it with the "Fluid." I have also performed the same experiment by passing to them a similar article not imbued with my Fluid and it produced the same results.
I took two combs belonging to two ladies present and magnetized one of them, that is, went through all the ceremony of magnetizing it and the other I only took and passed back to the lady without any operation upon it, and both ladies were thrown into the magnetic sleep by these combs. The lady who received the comb not magnetized was ignorant of that fact and on the contrary believed it magnetized.
Perkin's metallic points are celebrated among mesmerizers and were considered sacred proofs of the fluid Theory. Yet after they had their run, some cunning wag[1] introduced wooden points so neatly counterfeiting the metallic in their appearance that they would effect the same results upon a patient as the genuine points. Phineas Parkhurst Quimby ~ “BOOKLET IV”
Elisha Perkins (1741 –1799) was a United States physician who created his own therapy, Perkins Patent Tractors.
Around 1795–96 Perkins invented his "Tractors", for which he took out a 14-year patent. The tractors consisted of two 3-inch metal rods with a point at the end. Although they were made of steel and brass, Perkins claimed that they were made of unusual metal alloys. Perkins used his rods to cure inflammation, rheumatism and pain in the head and the face. He applied the points on the aching body part and passed them over the part for about 20 minutes. Perkins claimed they could "draw off the noxious electrical fluid that lay at the root of suffering".
[1] John Haygarth (1740 1827) was an important 18th-century British physician who discovered new ways to prevent the spread of fever among patients and reduce the mortality rate of smallpox.
In 1799, Haygarth investigated the efficacy of medical instruments called "Perkins tractors". These were metal pointers which were supposedly able to 'draw out' disease. They were sold at the extremely high price of five guineas, and Haygarth set out to show that the high cost was unnecessary. He did this by comparing the results from dummy wooden tractors with a set of allegedly "active" metal tractors, and published his findings in a book “On the Imagination as a Cause & as a Cure of Disorders of the Body.”.
The wooden pointers were just as useful as the expensive metal ones, showing "to a degree which has never been suspected, what powerful influence upon diseases is produced by mere imagination". While the word placebo [2] had been used since 1772, this is the first real demonstration of the placebo effect.
[2] The word 'placebo', Latin for "I will please", dates back to a Latin translation of the Bible by Jerome.[3] It was first used in a medicinal context in the 18th century. In 1785 it was defined as a "commonplace method or medicine" and in 1811 it was defined as "any medicine adapted more to please than to benefit the patient", sometimes with a derogatory implication but not with the implication of no effect.
[3] St. Jerome (c. 347 –420) (formerly Saint Hierom) was an Illyrian Catholic priest and apologist. He is best known for his translation of the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate), and his list of writings is extensive.
I took two combs belonging to two ladies present and magnetized one of them, that is, went through all the ceremony of magnetizing it and the other I only took and passed back to the lady without any operation upon it, and both ladies were thrown into the magnetic sleep by these combs. The lady who received the comb not magnetized was ignorant of that fact and on the contrary believed it magnetized.
Perkin's metallic points are celebrated among mesmerizers and were considered sacred proofs of the fluid Theory. Yet after they had their run, some cunning wag[1] introduced wooden points so neatly counterfeiting the metallic in their appearance that they would effect the same results upon a patient as the genuine points. Phineas Parkhurst Quimby ~ “BOOKLET IV”
Elisha Perkins (1741 –1799) was a United States physician who created his own therapy, Perkins Patent Tractors.Around 1795–96 Perkins invented his "Tractors", for which he took out a 14-year patent. The tractors consisted of two 3-inch metal rods with a point at the end. Although they were made of steel and brass, Perkins claimed that they were made of unusual metal alloys. Perkins used his rods to cure inflammation, rheumatism and pain in the head and the face. He applied the points on the aching body part and passed them over the part for about 20 minutes. Perkins claimed they could "draw off the noxious electrical fluid that lay at the root of suffering".
[1] John Haygarth (1740 1827) was an important 18th-century British physician who discovered new ways to prevent the spread of fever among patients and reduce the mortality rate of smallpox.
In 1799, Haygarth investigated the efficacy of medical instruments called "Perkins tractors". These were metal pointers which were supposedly able to 'draw out' disease. They were sold at the extremely high price of five guineas, and Haygarth set out to show that the high cost was unnecessary. He did this by comparing the results from dummy wooden tractors with a set of allegedly "active" metal tractors, and published his findings in a book “On the Imagination as a Cause & as a Cure of Disorders of the Body.”.The wooden pointers were just as useful as the expensive metal ones, showing "to a degree which has never been suspected, what powerful influence upon diseases is produced by mere imagination". While the word placebo [2] had been used since 1772, this is the first real demonstration of the placebo effect.
[2] The word 'placebo', Latin for "I will please", dates back to a Latin translation of the Bible by Jerome.[3] It was first used in a medicinal context in the 18th century. In 1785 it was defined as a "commonplace method or medicine" and in 1811 it was defined as "any medicine adapted more to please than to benefit the patient", sometimes with a derogatory implication but not with the implication of no effect.
[3] St. Jerome (c. 347 –420) (formerly Saint Hierom) was an Illyrian Catholic priest and apologist. He is best known for his translation of the Bible into Latin (the Vulgate), and his list of writings is extensive.
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