Devils, Drugs and Doctors: The Story of the Science of Healing from Medicine Man to Doctor

by Howard Wilcox Haggard

The story of the science of healing from medicine man to doctor. Part 1, the conquest of death at birth contains chapters childbirth and civilization; Sairey Gamps and the Midmen; compassion of Peter Chamberlen; a gentlemen with clean hands may carry the disease. Part 2 is the story of anesthesia, in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and Part 3, progress of surgery, contains making an anatomy and the greatest surgeon. Part 4 passing of plague and pestilence, the Black Death; pestilence and personal liberty; pestilence and moralists; medical thread in the moral snarl. The healing art, Part 5, the halt, lame and blind; white and black magic; drug on the market;turning point; toward a better conclusion. The final Part 6 discusses medicine through the ages, civilization and medicine. More than 148 illustrations and plates.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

405 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1910

About the author

1891-1959

Reviews

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Going through boxes in the basement I came upon one containing essays written in high school and before. Previous GoodReads reviews have been written in reference to records maintained of books finished since the end of the sophomore year of college, so finding this trove was a delight, many of my earliest readings having been forgotten.

I read Devils, Drugs and Doctors for Jim Gottreich's sophomore World History course at Maine Township High School South, referring to it in the term paper entitled "Mediaeval Sanitation and Witchcraft". That was likely the longest academic paper I'd ever written to that date, although it was intentionally funny, funny enough that Jim shared it with my homeroom complex counselor.

[Kenneth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a history of doctors & medicine from ancient times up to 1929 when it was first published. The author was an M.D. and a professor of physiology at Yale University from the 1920's until the 1950's or so, when he retired. He died in 1959. Reading this book makes one realize how lucky we are to be living in the modern era rather than in a time when there was no preventative medicine, no anesthesia for surgery, no understanding of the need for basic cleanliness to ward off disease and prevent infections, etc. Especially true for women, who often died in childbirth or afterwards succumbed to puerperal fever. The best that can be said for those bad old days is that they did the best they could with what they had. And when we consider the advances made since 1929 - the discovery of penicillin and the other wonder drugs, polio vaccine, advances in surgical procedures, etc., nobody in their right mind would want to go back to those times (which is not to say we live in ideal world medically today - just that it's still a vast improvement overall on what used to be).

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe this should get 4 stars...it's a little hard to rate. I have a 1929 edition I found in an old house my family and I lived in for a while. (the house was in good shape, it wasn't haunted or anything lol).

This is an interesting book, not least because of the advances that have been made since the book was written. If you can run down a copy you might find it, well, interesting.

By the way...this says it's a much later edition. the one I have (of course) doesn't have an ISBN....so I just left the edition that came up.

[Lynette Gaines · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s hard to believe that I found this book in my Jr high school library back in the mid 1960’s. The title was intriguing, and I had to find something interesting for our oral book report in English class.
I love to read, but no one liked standing in front of the class to tell about one. To make up for being a nervous teenager about to have a nervous breakdown, I kept my audience entertained by talking about some of the outrageous medical procedures from ancient days up to 1929 when the book was published.
I clearly remember telling them about the common practice of binding pregnant women to wooden stakes to be bounced up and down like a pogo stick to help quicken childbirth. Now I plan to buy it and read it again. I’m guessing you won’t find this book in a school library anymore, but I won a candy bar for giving the best report. Great illustrations, too.

[Gerardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great recount of how medicine has evolve from ancient times until 1900's. I really liked reading about what in that time were the great advancements in medicine and how today we're miles ahead of that, but at the same time we still have a lot to learn.

[Dina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on medical developments from Greeks to present time. Medicine had made pretty big steps from bleeding patients to death and administering useless drugs to actually serving some useful and healing purpose. Read, first weep and then consider yourself lucky to live in 21st century.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty interesting history of medicine.