Article November 6, 1909 Issue

My attention has just been called to a London despatch...

Alfred Farlow—Philadelphia, Pa.

Public Ledger

My attention has just been called to a London despatch which contains the following statement concerning a coroner's decision: "The verdict carried a rider to the effect that Christian Science treatment in serious cases was to be deprecated, and that the taking of money in fees by Christian Scientists was decidedly unchristian conduct."

This despatch does not contain sufficient information to give us any knowledge of its merits, but when we take into consideration the fact that persons set apart for the purpose, in all parts of the world, are allowed a fee for the very thing which Christian Scientists are doing in possibly a differing method, we are led to wonder to what class the persons belong who consider an item of this character of sufficient importance to justify cabling it from London. If Christian Science is a benefit to the sick, and this fact is conceded even by its enemies, why should not the Christian Scientist be entitled to a fee, as are the practitioners of any other school of therapeutics or religion? When we remember that thousands of "serious" cases have been healed by Christian Science treatment, a considerable percentage of which had not been cured by other methods, we are constrained to believe that the criticism of the coroner's jury is due either to ignorance of Christian Science, or to the fact that in this instance they made use of their opportunity to express an unwarranted opinion.

When we take into consideration that thousands of "serious" cases are permitted to go from bad to worse, even unto death, every day under the sort of treatment which the coroner's jury in question would be obliged to fall back upon in case they discarded Christian Science, and when we remember that a large percentage of cases which had failed to recover through medical treatment have been saved through Christian Science, whatever failures Christian Science practice may have had, we find no ground whatever to justify the declaration in question.

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