Article August 31, 1899 Issue

Why?

Justice

Buffalo Evening News

I was present last Thursday evening at the meeting of the Aldermanic committee, where a large assemblage of representative citizens of Buffalo were gathered to listen to a controversy between Christian Scientists and the doctors. As the press of the city stated the next day, at least three hundred Scientists were there, and a large number of the ablest physicians of Buffalo, as I understand. When one becomes a Christian Scientist, he or she becomes a healer, so there were three hundred metaphysical healers and a great many physical healers. Now the question I wish to ask, and which I hope will be satisfactorily answered, is, Where are the Scientists' dead?

The daily—yes, many times daily—funeral processions to Forest Lawn in this city testify to the inability of the esteemed practising physicians always to heal. And I recall many of these deaths as patients of Drs. Wende and Hopkins; and yet, with the exception of the death of the child at Fort Porter some months ago, where are the Christian Scientists' dead in Buffalo? A whole page of a New York illustrated paper was devoted to the picture of Harold Frederic, who was treated by a Scientist at his own request, and the picture of his healer, with an account of his death, and the whole world took it up. What if an attempt were made to put the pictures of those who die in one day and the pictures of their doctors, in a single community? They would fill the daily paper. Dr. Hopkins, in his remarks last Thursday night said, "I wish to say something, and say it strong. There are in this city—and some right here in this hall—from a thousand to fifteen hundred men who, before the close of this year, will be in hell. And the reason will be because they have not been properly guarded against contagious disease." Do the distinguished physicians of this city doom their patients to hell and acknowledge their inability to cure a case of contagion before it comes to them? Now, if Christian Scientists have cases of contagion, they must surely heal them, for where are their dead? And it seems to be an incentive to me for parents to employ them—particularly if their dear ones are doomed to hell if they die.

Now the Council adjourned the meeting without taking action, and why not let it remain unacted upon? The Christian Scientists of Buffalo are a large body of representative citizens, and why not let them worship according to the dictates of their own conscience in the beautiful churches they are erecting, and be respected as law-abiding, God-loving citizens and neighbors, as Rev. Dr. Gaviller testified they were? But when an individual case of the breaking of the municipal law occurs, prosecute that healer, and if he or she kill a patient,—hang them if the case justifies it, but don't let the doctors who are stirring up this strife and who live in glass houses throw any more stones. Justice.
Buffalo Evening News.

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