The Midwest pioneer, his ills, cures, & doctors - University Library ...

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hydropathy. Although hydropathy did not attack the West
with such virulence as it hit in the East, nevertheless, it
became prevalent in scattered localities. In England in the
early 1700's had appeared a book on Psycbrolousia, or the
History of Cold Bathing, both Ancient and Modern; in
Silesia in 1738 J. S. Hahn published The Healing Virtues
of Cold Water. It was a Silesian peasant, Vincent Priesnitz,
who, having cured his broken ribs by cold water treatment,
about 1829 originated the modern hydropathic, or watercure
system, which in the 1840's spread to England and the
United States. Hydropathy was known in America much
earlier, however, as is witnessed by the publication at
Philadelphia in 1723 of the American edition of John
Smith's The Curiosities of Common Water, followed two
years later by The Curiosities of Common Water: or the
Advantages thereof in Preventing Cholera.
Hydropathy was popularized in the United States
largely through the efforts of Dr. Joel Shew, who in his
establishment in New York City developed a distinctive
technique for treatment. Water, he found, was an
extremely versatile and potent substance. It could be given
as treatment orally for hiccups, toothache, skin eruptions,
palpitation of the heart, and fatigue. Swallowing ice lumps
was excellent in cases of gastric haemorrhage. His patients
were cautioned against drinking water unthinkingly, lest
dangerous results occur. The use of this liquid as an enema
was highly recommended.
Water functioned best as a healing agent when it was
administered gradually through the skin, by the process
known as "transudation." Although there were different
ways of effecting such a treatment, the use of the wet sheet
was the generally approved technique. A sheet of cotton
or linen, dipped in cold water, was spread on several thick
woolen blankets. An attendant first wound the sheet
around the patient, then the blankets, and secured all with
large pins and tapes. Over the whole was thrown a fat
feather bed. The patient remained in his cocoon from
twenty-five minutes to several hours, depending upon the