FEW REMARKS ON 
HiEM ATOKINET Y. 
SAME. A. CARTWRIGHT, M. D. 
(REPRINTED FROM THE N. 0. MED. AND SURG. JOUR.) 
What is hiematokinety 1 It is a newly discovered principle in Medi- 
cine. It covers a practical field of vast extent and but partially ex- 
plored. The North first announced its existence as a theory. The 
South was the first to prove it by direct experiment and actual demon- 
stration. The discovery is wholly American. As yet it is very little 
known. Hmmatokinety consists not only in the discovery of those laws 
or principles which give life and motion to the blood, but in subjecting 
those laws to human control. It represents both the life giving princi- 
ple and the blood moving power. It has proved its existence by raising 
the dead. Witness the dead alligator it called to life, as reported by 
me in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal of Jan. last, and proved 
by the testimony of three respectable eye witnesses of this city. Wit- 
ness the child I brought to file, reported in the same paper—and wit- 
ness its effects upon an alligator dead and cut to pieces, in restoring ani- 
mation and sensation to the pieces, as certified by ten physicians of 
New Orleans, and published in Boston on the 7th of the present month 
of July. Yet hßematokinity is not received without opposition. A 
powerful combination of the most learned and talented physicians of 
the South have lately attempted to put it down and to scoff it from the 
earth. They went out to war against it, certain of a sure and easy 
victory. Dr. Albert W. Ely, a most able writer, a scathing critic and 
profound logician, brought to bear against it the strong artillery of his 
most powerful logic. Dr. Bennet Dowler, the alligator king, known to 
the world for his experiments and valuable contributions to science, 
brought all his influence and the subjects of his Saux-ian dominions 
against it. Prof. Riddell of the Louisiana University, in the chemical 
laboratory, like Saul in the camp of Israel, a head and shoulders above 
other men, was to lead up chemistry and micrography against it, after 
the logician and the alligator king had made their grand charge. They 
chose their own ground and made the issue themselves, contending, that 
the alligators, (thought to have been restored to life by hsematokinety) 
were not dead, but only playing possum, as it is called, and that the. 
child brought to life was in a swoon, and all would have come to life of 
their own accord if let alone. On this ground I met the issue. I pro- 2 
cured an alligator of large size, fierce and vigorous from the battle 
ground below this city, and then summoned a jury of divines, professors 
and doctors together. The trachea of the animal was tied intheir pre- 
sence, and soon the animal seemed to die, and was to die if haematokin- 
ety were true, but only to flay possum, if that doctrine had no exist- 
ence. I then gave the divines, professors and physicians full liberty to 
do what they pleased with the crocodile, and to use any and every 
means they could think of, to bring it to life, if they could. The re- 
nowned knight, Dr. Dowler, was especially addressed and la grande 
Dragonne playing possum, was particularly pointed out to him, and he 
was invited to bring it to life, and to take his own time for it. He tore, 
burnt, cut, pinched, pulled and pricked the skin, nerves and flesh of the 
animal, but to no purpose. He stood by it until he and all the rest of 
the physicians, professors and divines were fully convinced that it was 
dead sure enough. Now, as he had seen an alligator in exactly the 
same situation brought to life by hsematokinety, he surrendered the 
ground he had assumed and confessed that on that issue he and all his 
followers were hors de combat. Although some copies of his paper, 
(setting forth in the title page that tying the trachea would not kill an 
alligator) had been printed and was going through the press, he stopped 
the press to have that heading struck off. So sure of victory were his 
supporters, that they proclaimed a victory in the last number of the 
New Orleans Medical and Surgical Journal) before a victory had 
been won. in the bulletin of victory hsematokinety is represented as 
a ruin piteous to behold !—“a wreck !”—“ an idle vision of the brain!” 
Soon after this announcement, Dr. Ely and his forces fell into captivity. 
Dr. Ely had a son who fell sick and died, a day or two after his grand 
demonstration against hmmatokinety appeared in print. It was a pretty 
little boy about six months old. There it Jay without breath or pulse. 
Dowler and all the doctors, who saw it, pronounced it dead, and left the 
house. She of Troy, Mrs. Emma Willard, “FiliaNata Jovis” of the new 
world,who first made the discovery of the hmmatokinetic power,appeared 
unto Ely “ in a vision of the brain,” promising, if he would, like a true 
American, declare independence of the old tyrannical dogmas of non 
progressive Europe, in regard to vitality and the motive powers of the 
blood, and put in practical operation the beautiful, plain and simple 
go-ahead philosophy of progressive America, his child should be raised 
from the dead and restored to him alive and well! He choked, trembled, 
shook, as if agitated with some violent emotion, and then like Samuel 
Adams of the Revolution, who raised his arm and abjured all allegiance 
to the dogmas, which chain the mind to the footstool of bigotry and 
folly in Royal ermine, he immediately set to work to awaken in his dead 
son the haematokinetic power, or that power which gives life and mo- 
tion to the blood. Wonderful to tell, and no less true than wonderful, 
his child came to life ! But he lost faith and desisted from the work too 
soon. His child died again. Again “ the vision of the brain ” reap- 
peared and said, “ Persevere !” He persevered, and again the child 
came to life. He relaxed his efforts and again it died. He now not 
only re-awakened the hsematokinetic power and restored life a third 
time, but he persevered in the use of all those means calculated to 
keep it in activity, until Death was baffled of his prey and left the 3 
house. Dr, Ely’s child is now alive and well. Although not an A. M. 
a M.D., or a L.L.D., young William Francis Ely has made a stronger 
argument in favor of the truth of the American discovery than the 
scathing and able argument which appeared against it in the last num- 
ber of the New Orleans Medical and Surgical Journal over the signa- 
ture of Albert W. Ely, M. D. “When Greek meets Greek then comes 
the tug of war”—Ely Junior against Ely Senior. What is singular, 
young Ely made his debut, holding in his tiny hands the flaming 
sword of Truth to cut America loose from the rotten-borough medical 
dogmatism of non progressive Europe, precisely 76 years alter our 
worthy forefathers cut this country loose from the rotten-borough po- 
litical dogmatism of that self-same region. 
Prof. Riddell, commander of the reserved forces, has not yet come 
in from the battle field, being still in the woods. He had an immense 
amount of new and valuable materiel with him—the work of his own 
hands, or rather discoveries made by his wonderful microscope. These 
have all fallen into the hands of the haematokinetists, and are in pro- 
cess of being converted into unanswerable proofs of the new doctrine 
of life and the motive powers of the blood. They would be worth no- 
thing to the able professor if he had them back again, as they cannot 
be explained on the old theory now so popular in the schools. If he 
could explain them, they would attract no attention from the school 
men, who look upon America as a Na/areth, out of which no good 
can come. 
What is huematokinety ? Let Dowler, let. Ely, and particularly let 
Ely’s child tell. What is hsematokinety? It is a new discovery made 
in America, promising, if followed up, to effect great things—even “to 
make the old younger ; men more vigorous ; children healthier, and 
women prettier.” What is hsematokinely ? It is that new doctrine, 
which lays hold of every truth and puts it in motion, bidding it do its 
best to carry Medicine forward and make it a progressive science. It 
has already unchained truths which medical dogmatism have kept in 
prison for centuries. 
What is haematokinety ? It is what the celebrated Marshal Hall of 
London is bending the knee to in his new theory of apoplexy, as pub- 
lished in the last number of the London Lancet of this present month 
of July. Hall’s new theory goes to show that all the old dogmas in 
regard to the cause and seat of Apoplexy are fallacious. We outside 
barbarians have had Hall’s discoveries, (now going through the Lon- 
don press,) through the New Orleans press fully two years ago. But 
instead of adopting Hall’s practice of cutting into the trachea to let in 
air to cure Apoplexy, we cut no throats, as the inside non progressives 
of London are now doing, but disembarrass the air passages of the 
phlegm, which excludes the ingress of air by the use of apophlegma- 
tics. A simple, safe and expeditious method of cure. If Dr. Marshal 
Hall and his inside non progressives want to know how this is done, 
they will have to read an old number of the New Orleans Medical and 
Surgical Journal, where a lengthy and full account of the process will 
be found, and where Dr. Hall will find his theory with a better practice 
affixed to it than the throat-cutting one he has adopted. 
114 Canal sired, New Orleans, July 29th, 1852.