When an examination is made of the small beliefs which the generality of people hold, it is astonishing to discover how any of them are fallacious. Dr. August A. Thomen has been investigating the matter, and as a result has published a book entitled "Doctors Don't Believe It, in which he shows that no fewer than one hundred and eighty-five commonly held beliefs are ill-founded, or have no basis in fact. It will come as a surprise to many, for example, that it is not true that oysters ahd whisky taken together are harmful to the stomach. The answer to this revelation seems to be "Well, that may be so. We know it, But does the stomach?" There have been cases where that member has manifestly rebelled, and while the mixture may not hurt it, the stomach in many cases emphatically disapproves of it. Or agajh the same authority devotes an essay to showing that the belief, that flowers in one's bedroom at night are harmful, is wrong. Patients in hospitals reading this will undoubtedly find tause for sly amusement this evening when they see the bouquets sent by sympathetic friends carefully put out in the corridor for the night. If this revelation were ever taken at its face value the old ritual, honoured by generations of nurses, will disappear and each evening there will be a horrid blank at the time when the ceremony was performed of old. Nor need husbands ever again be afraid of annoyed wives slipping a little ground glass into the coffee with murderous intent, for the world is how assured that it @éinnot cause death, Hor can it be used as a *poisón" unknown to the victim. Most people will take the doctor's word for it. though it would seem that a distinct disservice is being done to angry wives. They will now be deprived of all the excitement of thinking they are murdering their spouses; without running the risk of success. It may, indeed, send some of them off to fresh woods and pastures now in search of something which really will be more effective: that is, of course, if they are indeed bent upon destruction.
The sceptic on being assured, as he is now, that pressing the upper lip, or placing a key or a piece of ice at the back of the heck will stop a nose bleed will indignantly refuse to accept the new doctrine, for he will probably be able to produce the testimony of his own experience to show that nose bleeding has generally stopped after the application of such remedies and rarely before, because if it has ceased for some other reason such agents would certainly not be applied. On the subject of hair Dr. Thomen says it is not true that it will turn grey quite suddenly from fear, or fright, causing the mind to reflect upon what David said in his wrath about all men and applying it to that host of prevaricators who have alleged that such a thing has happened to them. This hair turning story will henceforth have to be discarded, though undoubtedly some women will insist that hair does become very pale in a short space of time, even if it is done by the skilful hands of the hairdresser. Fear, or fright, or even grief will definitely have to be discarded as agents for cosmetic change, but the good old peroxide will still be available. The world may know from henceforward that it is not more dangerous to prick, oneself with a pin than with a needle. That does not mean that this constitutes a new Magna Carta permitting mankind to go round pricking itself with either, for it will still remain a fact that it is no safer to perform that feat with the one or the other. And in any event this pricking is likely to become quite a silly habit. Dr. Thomen deals solely with medical- fallacies and shows there are sufficient of them to keep mankind in a perpetual state of misinformation. But what about the farmer and his, Many Superstitions? Is it really better to plant in the light than in the dark of the moon? Does one method conduce to root formation and the other to leaf? Some scoff at the belief, but there are probably millions of agricultitists in this day and age who do keep a watchful eye on the stages of the moon when deciding on planting, as their fathers have done before them.
The person who, on spilling salt, throws some over his left shoulder to avert bad luck is undoubtedly superstitious, and foolhardy, for, if he does it with the intention of Hitting Old Nick in the eye he is subihg the grave risk Of offending that! gentleman with possibly dire results. The fact that that unpleasant personage cannot be in nere than one place at a time has probably saved generations of salt-throwers from the unpleasant consequences of their temerity, but without doubt generations to come will adhere to the strange practice. Fortunately these little beliefs do no real Warm. There are still large numbers of educated, level-headed persons who will carefully avoid passing under a ladder, still millions who scrupulously take the sign against the evil eye in the hope of averting Misfortune. The superior person will smile Upon them with indulgent scorn, though he will in all probability refuse to sit thirteen at a table. There again, were this belief discarded, one of the perilous joys of dining out would be denied humanity. What can add greater zest to à dinner than the realization of the presence of thirteen, the speculation as to who will die during the year ahd the devout hope that it will be the Dêre noire sitting at the other side of the table? It is to be hoped that there will be no more attempts to interfere with the little beliefs of people. They add a slight fearsomeness to the joy of life, and to dissipate them in the cold light of science will be to deprive the human rabbit of the sole remaining chance of getting the most out of living adventurously. The times seem to call. for the organization of a Society for the Suppression of Myth-Busters, for there are amongst us still some who delight in passing under ladders,—büt always with the fingers crossed!
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.