Objections are raised against talking to children or young persons about matters in any degree pertaining to the sexual organs or functions. Some of the more important of them are considered in the introduction to this work, and we need not repeat here.

The little one should be taught from earliest infancy to abstain from handling the genitals, being made to regard it as a very improper act. When the child becomes old enough to understand and reason, he may be further informed of the evil consequences; then, as he becomes older, the functions of the organs may be explained with sufficient fullness to satisfy his natural craving for knowledge.

If this course were pursued, how many might be saved from ruin! It is, of course, necessary that the parents shall themselves be acquainted with the true functions of the organs before they attempt to teach any one else, especially children. Many parents might receive benefit from being obliged to "study up;" for it is a lamentable fact, the ill effects of which are every day seen, that a great many people have spent a very large portion of their lives without ever ascertaining the true function of the reproductive organs, though living in matrimony for many years. Some of the consequences of this ignorance have been portrayed in previous pages.

"Oh! why did not some kind friend tell me of the harm I was doing myself?" has been the exclamation of many an unfortunate sufferer from this vice. A warning voice should be raised to save those who are ignorantly working their own destruction. Parents, teachers, ministers, all who have access to the youth, should sound the note of alarm in their ears, that if possible they may be saved from the terrible thralldom pictured by a writer in the following lines:—

"The waters have gone over me. But out of the black depths, could I be heard, I would cry to all those who have set a foot in the perilous flood. Could the youth look into my desolation, and be made to understand what a dreary thing it is when a man shall feel himself going down a precipice with open eyes and passive will—to see his destruction and have no power to stop it, and yet to feel it all the way emanating from himself; to perceive all goodness emptied out of him, and yet not be able to forget a time when it was otherwise; to bear about with him the spectacle of his own self-ruin; could he feel the body of death out of which I cry hourly with feebler and feebler outcry to be delivered."

CURATIVE TREATMENT OF THE EFFECTS OF SELF-ABUSE.

When the habit and its effects are of very short duration, a cure is very readily accomplished, especially in the cases of children and females, as in them the evils begun are not continued in the form of involuntary pollutions. In cases of longer standing in males, the task is more difficult, but still the prospect of recovery is very favorable, provided the cooperation of the patient can be secured; without this, little can be done. But in these cases the patient may as well be told at the outset that the task of undoing the evil work of years of sin is no easy matter. It can only be accomplished by determined effort, by steady perseverance in right doing, and in the application of necessary remedies. Those who have long practiced the vice, or long suffered severely from its effects, have received an injury which will inevitably be life-long to a greater or lesser extent in spite of all that can be done for them. Yet such need not despair, for they may receive inestimable benefit by the prevention of greater damage, which they are sure to suffer if the disease is allowed to go unchecked.

Cure of the Habit.—The preliminary step in treatment is always to cure the vice itself if it still exists. The methods adopted for this purpose must differ according to the age of the individual patient.

In children, especially those who have recently acquired the habit, it can be broken up by admonishing them of its sinfulness, and portraying in vivid colors its terrible results, if the child is old enough to comprehend such admonitions. In addition to faithful warnings, the attention of the child should be fully occupied by work, study, or pleasant recreation. He should not be left alone at any time, lest he yield to temptation. Work is an excellent remedy; work that will really make him very tired, so that when he goes to bed he will have no disposition to defile himself. It is best to place such a child under the care of a faithful person of older years, whose special duty it shall be to watch him night and day until the habit is thoroughly overcome.

In younger children, with whom moral considerations will have no particular weight, other devices may be used. Bandaging the parts has been practiced with success. Tying the hands is also successful in some cases; but this will not always succeed, for they will often contrive to continue the habit in other ways, as by working the limbs, or lying upon the abdomen. Covering the organs with a cage has been practiced with entire success. A remedy which is almost always successful in small boys is circumcision, especially when there is any degree of phimosis. The operation should be performed by a surgeon without administering an anaesthetic, as the brief pain attending the operation will have a salutary effect upon the mind, especially if it be connected with the idea of punishment, as it may well be in some cases. The soreness which continues for several weeks interrupts the practice, and if it had not previously become too firmly fixed, it may be forgotten and not resumed. If any attempt is made to watch the child, he should be so carefully surrounded by vigilance that he cannot possibly transgress without detection. If he is only partially watched, he soon learns to elude observation, and thus the effect is only to make him cunning in his vice.

In adults, or youths, a different plan must be pursued. In these cases, moral considerations, and the inevitable consequences to health of body and mind, are the chief influences by which a reform is to be effected, if at all. These considerations may be urged with all possible eloquence and earnestness, but should not be exaggerated. The truth is terrible enough. If there are any special influences which may be brought to bear upon a particular individual,—and there always will be something of this sort owing to peculiarities of temperament or circumstances,—these should be promptly employed and applied in such a manner as to secure for them their full bearing.

But after all, the most must be done by the individual himself. All that others can do for him is to surround him with favoring circumstances and arouse him to a proper sense of his real condition and danger. If this can be thoroughly accomplished, there is much reason to hope; but if the individual has become so lost to all sense of purity, all aspirations toward good and noble objects, that he cannot be made to feel the need of reformation, his case is hopeless.

How May a Person Help Himself?—The following suggestions will be found useful in fighting the battle with vice and habit:—

1. Begin by a resolution to reform, strengthened by the most solemn vows.

2. Resolve to reform now; not to-morrow or next week, but this very minute. Thousands have sunk to perdition while resolving to indulge "only this once."

3. Begin the work of reform by purging the mind. If a lewd thought enters the mind, dispel it at once. Cultivate a loathing for concupiscence. Never harbor such ideas for an instant, for they will surely lead to the overt act. If, perchance, the physical sin should not be committed, the thought itself is sin, and it leaves a physical as well as a moral scar almost as deep and hideous as that inflicted by the grosser crime.

4. As a help to purity of mind, whenever impure thoughts enter, immediately direct the mind upon the purest object with which you are acquainted. Flee from the special exciting cause, if there is one, and engage in some active labor or other exercise that will divert the mind into another channel.

5. Avoid solitude, for then it is that temptation comes, and you are most likely to fail. Avoid equally all other causes which may lead to the act.

6. Strictly comply with all the rules laid down for the cultivation of chastity and the maintenance of continence.

7. Above all, seek for grace and help from the Source of all spiritual strength in every time of temptation, relying upon the promise, "Seek, and ye shall find."

Hopeful Courage.—An individual who will earnestly set himself about the work of purifying his mind and redeeming his body, if he will conscientiously adopt, and perseveringly apply, the remedies pointed out, may be sure of success. There can be no possible chance for failure. Triumph is certain. Patience may be tried and faith tested, but unwavering trust in God and nature, and an executed determination to do all on his part, will bring to every such one certain recovery. There may be some scars left, a few traces of the injury wrought; but the deliverance will be none the less triumphant. Faith and perseverance will work wonders.

General Regimen and Treatment.—After long abuse of the sexual organs, and in many cases after a short course of sin, the whole system becomes deteriorated; digestion is impaired, the muscles are weakened, the circulation is unbalanced, the nerves are irritable, the brain—especially the back and lower portion of it—is congested, the skin is torpid, the bowels are inactive, the general health is deranged in almost every particular. All of these morbid conditions serve to keep up the very difficulty which has produced and is increasing them. Any curative effort, to be effective, then, must be directed to these as well as to local conditions; and it is pretty certainly established that local remedies or applications alone will rarely accomplish any appreciable good, at least of a permanent character.

Many of the observations on treatment are equally applicable to both sexes; but particular directions have been especially adapted to males, and chiefly with the cure of seminal emissions as the object in view. This remark will explain any seeming lack of completeness.

Mental and Moral Treatment.—The greatest impediment to recovery is usually found in the mind of the patient. His hopeless despair, melancholy, sullen apathy in many cases, want of energy, and fickleness of mind, thwart all attempts that are made for him. In other cases, the want of willpower, or neglect to exercise the will in controlling the thoughts, completely counteracts all that can be done for him. He must be made to understand this well, and then all possible means must be employed to attract his attention from himself, from brooding over his ills. Occupy him, interest him, or teach him to occupy and interest himself. The enthusiastic study of some one of the natural sciences is a most excellent auxiliary in effecting this.

The thing of first importance is that the patient should obtain command of his thoughts; by this means, he can do more for himself than all the doctors can do for him. "But I cannot control my thoughts," says the patient. A young man said to me, "O doctor, you don't know how I feel. I despise myself; I hate myself; I often feel inclined to kill myself. My mind is always full of abominable images; my thoughts run away with me and I cannot help myself." The tears ran down his face in streams as he told me of his slavery. He solemnly affirmed that he had never performed the act of self-pollution but once in his life: and yet for years he had been a constant sufferer from nocturnal emissions until his manhood was nearly lost, evidently the result of the mental onanism which he had practiced without imagining the possibility of harm.

But it is not true that control of the thoughts is impossible. Thoughts are the result of the action of the brain; and the action of the brain may be controlled as well as the movements of a voluntary muscle. It may be more difficult, especially when the resolution is weakened, as it is by this vice; but so long as there are left any remnants of will and reason, control is possible. To strengthen the will must be one of the objects of mental treatment, and exercise is the method by which it may be accomplished. The thing for a sufferer to say, is not, "I can't," but, "I can and I will control my thoughts." Suggestions which will aid in accomplishing this have already been given under the heading, "Cure of the Habit."

We cannot forbear to add a word further respecting the worth of religion in aiding these sufferers. If there is any living creature who needs the help of true religion, of faith in God, in Christ, and in the efficacy of prayer, it is one of these. If there is any poor mortal who can not afford to be deprived of the aid of a sympathizing Saviour, it is one who has enervated his will, degraded his soul, and depraved his body by the vile habit of self-abuse. A compassionate Redeemer will succor even these defiled ones, if they truly "hunger and thirst" after purity, and if they set about the work of reforming themselves in good earnest, and with right motives.

Exercise.—Physical exercise is a most powerful aid to pure thoughts. When unchaste ideas intrude, engage at once in something which will demand energetic muscular exercise. Pursue the effort until fatigued, if necessary, making, all the while, a powerful mental effort to control the mind. Of course, evil thoughts will not be expelled by thinking of them, but by displacing them by pure thoughts. Exercise aids this greatly.

Exercise is also essential to balance the circulation, and thus relieve congestion of internal organs. Sedentary persons especially need systematic exercise. No single form of exercise is so excellent as walking. Four or five miles a day are none too many to secure a proper amount of muscular exercise. Gymnastics, the "health-lift," "Indian clubs," "dumb-bells," rowing, and other forms of exercise are all good; but none of them should be carried to excess. Ball-playing is likely to be made a source of injury by exciting, in vigorous competition, too violent and spasmodic action.

Daily exercise should be taken to the extent of fatigue. It is better that those who are still strong enough should have some regular employment which will secure exercise. Those who prefer may secure exercise and recreation in the pursuit of some study that involves necessary physical exertion; as, botany, geology, or entomology. The collection of natural-history specimens is one of the most pleasant diversions, and may be made very useful as well.

Pleasant companionship is essential to the best progress of these patients, especially in their walks, as much more exercise may be taken without an unpleasant sense of fatigue with a cheerful companion than when alone. Solitude should be avoided at all times as much as possible.

Diet.—So much has already been said upon the relation of diet to chastity and its influence upon the sexual organs that it is unnecessary to add many remarks here. Nothing could be more untrue than the statement made by some authors that the nature of the diet is of no consequence.

The science of physiology teaches that our very thoughts are born of what we eat. A man that lives on pork, fine-flour bread, rich pies and cakes, and condiments, drinks tea and coffee and uses tobacco, might as well try to fly as to be chaste in thought. He will accomplish wonders if he remains physically chaste; but to be mentally virtuous would be impossible for him without a miracle of grace.

One whose thoughts have been so long trained in the filthy ruts of vice that they run there automatically, and naturally gravitate downward—such a one must exercise especial care to secure the most simple, pure, and unstimulating diet.

The following precautions are necessary to be observed in relation to diet:—

1. Never overeat. If too much food is taken at one meal, fast the next meal to give the system a chance to recover itself and to serve as a barrier against future transgressions of the same kind. Gluttony is fatal to chastity; and overeating will be certain to cause emissions, with other evils, in one whose organs are weakened by abuse.

2. Eat but twice a day, or, if supper is eaten, let it be very light, and of the most simple food, as fruit, or fruit and bread. Nothing should be eaten within four or five hours of bed-time, and it is much better to eat nothing after three o'clock. The ancients ate but two meals a day; why should moderns eat three or four? If the stomach contains undigested food, the sleep will be disturbed, dreams will be more abundant, and emissions will be frequent. A most imperative rule of life should be, "Never go to bed with a loaded stomach." The violation of this rule is the great cause of horrid dreams and nightmare.

3. Discard all stimulating food. Under this head must be included, spices, pepper, ginger, mustard, cinnamon, cloves, essences, all condiments, salt, pickles, etc., together with animal food of all kinds, not excepting fish, fowl, oysters, eggs, and milk. It is hardly to be expected that all who have been accustomed to use these articles all their lives will discard them wholly at once, nor, perhaps, that many will ever discard them entirely; but it would be better for them to do so, nevertheless. The only ones which should be tolerated under any circumstances should be lean beef or mutton, salt in very moderate quantities, and a moderate use of milk. Use as little of these as possible—the less the better.

4. Stimulating drinks should be abstained from with still greater strictness. Wine, beer, tea, and coffee should be taken under no circumstances. The influence of coffee in stimulating the genital organs is notorious. Chocolate should be discarded also. It is recommended by some who suppose it to be harmless, being ignorant of the fact that it contains a poison practically identical with that of tea and coffee.

Hot drinks of all kinds should be avoided.

Tobacco, another stimulant, though not a drink, should be totally abandoned at once.

5. In place of such articles as have been condemned, eat fruits, grains, and vegetables. There is a rich variety of these kinds of food, and they are wholesome and unstimulating. Graham flour, oatmeal, and ripe fruit are the indispensables of a dietary for those who are suffering from sexual excesses.

Further remarks upon diet, with a few useful recipes for preparing healthful food, will be found in works devoted to the subject of diet.[54] The patient must carefully comply with all the rules of a healthy diet if he would be sure of recovery.

[Footnote 54: See "Healthful Cookery," Good Health Publishing Company, Battle Creek, Mich.]

Sleeping.—It is from accidents which happen during sleep that the great majority of sufferers complain; hence there is no little importance attaching to this subject. The following suggestions present in a very brief manner some of the more practical ideas connected with this part of the subject:—

1. From seven to nine hours' sleep are required by all persons. The rule should be, Retire early and sleep until rested; Early rising is not beneficial unless it has been preceded by abundant sleep.

2. Arise immediately upon waking in the morning if it is after four o'clock. A second nap is generally unrefreshing and is dangerous, for emissions most frequently occur at this time.

3. If insufficient sleep is taken at night, sleep a few minutes just before dinner. Half an hour's rest at this time is remarkably refreshing; and even fifteen minutes spent in sleep will be found very reviving. Do not sleep after dinner, as a pollution will be very likely to occur, and, as a rule, after-dinner naps are unrefreshing and productive of indigestion.

4. Never go to bed with the bowels or bladder loaded. The bladder should be emptied just before retiring. It is also a good plan to form the habit of rising once or twice during the night to urinate.

5. The position in sleeping is of some importance. Sleeping upon the back or upon the abdomen favors the occurrence of emissions; hence, it is preferable to sleep on one side. If supper has been taken, the right side is preferable, as that position will favor the passage of food from the stomach into the intestines in undergoing digestion.

Various devices are employed, sometimes with advantage, to prevent the patient from turning upon his back while asleep. The most simple is that recommended by Acton, and consists in tying a knot in the middle of a towel and then fastening the towel about the body in such a way that the knot will come upon the small of the back. The unpleasant sensations arising from pressure of the knot, if the sleeper turn upon his back, will often serve as a complete preventive. Others fasten a piece of wood upon the back for a similar purpose. Still others practice tying one hand to the bedpost. None of these remedies should be depended upon, but they may be tried in connection with other means of treatment.

6. Soft beds and pillows must be carefully avoided. Feather-beds should not be employed when possible to find a harder bed; the floor, with a single folded blanket beneath the sleeper, would be preferable. Soft pillows heat the head, as soft beds produce heat in other parts. A hair mattress, or a bed of corn husks, oat straw, or excelsior—covered with two or three blankets or a quilted cotton mattress—makes a very healthy and comfortable bed.

7. Too many covers should be avoided with equal care. The thinnest possible covering in summer, and the lightest consistent with comfort in winter, should be the rule. Sleeping too warm is a frequent exciting cause of nocturnal losses.

8. Thorough ventilation of the sleeping-room, both while occupied and during the day-time, must not be neglected. It should be located in a position to admit the sunshine during the morning hours. It is a good plan to keep in it a number of house plants, as they will help to purify the air, besides adding to its cheerfulness.

9. If wakeful at night, instead of lying in bed trying to go to sleep, get up at once, open the bed, air the sheets, remove the night clothing and walk about the room for a few minutes, rubbing the body briskly with the bare hand at the same time. A tepid sponge bath, followed by a vigorous rubbing kept up until really tired, will conduce to sleep in many cases. Sometimes a change of bed, or pulling the bed to pieces and arranging it again, is just the thing needed to bring sleep.

10. One of the most effectual panaceas for certain varieties of sleeplessness is going to bed at peace with all the world, and with a conscience void of offense toward God as well as man.

Dreams.—This is a subject of much interest to those suffering from nocturnal pollutions, for these occurrences are almost always connected with dreams of a lascivious nature.

In perfectly natural sleep, there are no dreams; consciousness is entirely suspended. In the ordinary stage of dreaming, there is a peculiar sort of consciousness, many of the faculties of the mind being more or less active while the power of volition is wholly dormant. Carpenter describes another stage of consciousness between that of ordinary dreaming and wakefulness, a condition "in which the dreamer has a consciousness that he is dreaming, being aware of the unreliability of the images which present themselves before his mind. He may even make a voluntary and successful effort to prolong them if agreeable, or to dissipate them if unpleasing; thus evincing a certain degree of that directing power, the entire want of which is characteristic of the true state of dreams."

Can Dreams Be Controlled?—Facts prove that they can be, and to a remarkable extent. A large share of emissions occur in the state described by Dr. Carpenter, in which a certain amount of control by the will is possible. This is the usual condition of the mind during morning naps; and if a person resolutely determines to combat unchaste thoughts whenever they come to him, whether asleep or awake, he will find it possible to control himself not only during this semi-conscious state, but even during more profound sleep.

The following case, related by an eminent London surgeon,[55] illustrates what may be done by strong resolution; the patient was an Italian gentleman of very great respectability.

[Footnote 55: Acton.]

"He had been inconvenienced five years before with frequent emissions, which totally unnerved him. He determined resolutely that the very instant the image of a woman or any libidinous idea presented itself to his imagination, he would wake; and to insure his doing so, dwelt in his thoughts on his resolution for a long time before going to sleep. The remedy, applied by a vigorous will, had the most happy results. The idea, the remembrance of its being a danger, and the determination to wake, closely united the evening before, were never dissociated even in sleep, and he awoke in time; and this reiterated precaution, repeated during some evenings, absolutely cured the complaint."

Several other cases of the same kind have been recorded. Doubtless the plan would be found successful in many cases when coupled with a proper regimen.

A still greater control is exerted over the thoughts during sleep by their character during hours of wakefulness. By controlling the mind during entire consciousness, it will also be controlled during unconsciousness or semi-consciousness.

Dr. Acton makes the following very appropriate remarks on this subject:—

"Patients will tell you that they cannot control their dreams. This is not true. Those who have studied the connection between thoughts during waking hours and dreams during sleep know that they are closely connected. The character is the same sleeping or waking. It is not surprising that, if a man has allowed his thoughts during the day to rest upon libidinous subjects, he should find his mind at night full of lascivious dreams—the one is a consequence of the other, and the nocturnal pollution is a natural consequence, particularly when diurnal indulgence has produced an irritability of the generative organs. A will which in our waking hours we have not exercised in repressing sexual desires, will not, when we fall asleep, preserve us from carrying the sleeping echo of our waking thought farther than we dared to do in the day-time."

Bathing.—A daily bath is indispensable to health under almost all circumstances; for patients of this class, it is especially necessary. A general bath should be taken every morning immediately upon rising. General cold bathing is not good for any person, especially in the morning, though some may tolerate it remarkably well, being of exceptionally hardy constitutions; but the advice to try "cold bathing" often given to sufferers from seminal weakness, is very pernicious, for most of them have been reduced so low in vitality by their disease that they cannot endure such violent treatment.

Sun baths, electric baths, spray, plunge, and other forms of bath, are of greatest value to those suffering from the effects of indiscretions. These are described, with additional observations concerning temperature of baths, etc., etc., in works devoted to this subject.

Improvement of General Health.—Patients suffering from emissions and other forms of seminal weakness are almost always dyspeptic, and most of them present other constitutional affections which require careful and thorough treatment according to the particular indications of the case. The wise physician will not neglect these if he desires to cure his patient and make his recovery as complete as possible.

Prostitution as a Remedy.—Said a leading physician in New York to us when interrogated as to his special treatment of spermatorrhoea, "When a young man comes to me suffering from nocturnal emissions, I give him tonics and send him to a woman." That this is not an unusual method of treatment, even among regular physicians, is a fact as true as it is deplorable. There are hundreds of young men whose morals have been ruined by such advice. Having been educated to virtuous habits, at least so far as illicit intercourse is concerned, they resist all temptations in this direction, even though their inclinations are very strong; but when advised by a physician to commit fornication as a remedial measure, they yield their virtue, far too readily sometimes, and begin a life of sin from which they might have been prevented. There are good grounds for believing that many young men purposely seek advice from physicians whom they know are in the habit of prescribing this kind of remedy.

Few know how commonly this course is recommended, and not by quacks, but by members of the regular profession. A medical friend informed us that he knew a case in which a country physician advised a young man of continent habits to go to a neighboring large city and spend a year or so with prostitutes, which advice he followed. Of his subsequent history we know nothing; but it is most probable that, like most other young men who adopt this remedy, he soon contracted diseases which rendered his condition ten times worse than at first, without at all improving his former state. In pursuing this course, one form of emission is only substituted for another, at the best; but more than this, an involuntary result of disease is converted into a voluntary sin of the blackest character, a crime in which two participate, and which is not only an outrage upon nature, but against morality as well.

A final argument against this course is that it is not a remedy and does not effect a cure of the evil, as will be shown by the following medical testimonies:—

"The vexed question of connection is one which may be decided out of hand.... It has no power of curing bad spermatorrhoea; it may cause a diminution in the number of emissions, but this is only a delusion; the semen is still thrown off; the frame still continues to be exhausted; the genital organs and nervous system generally are still harassed by the incessant tax, and the patient is all the while laying the foundation of impotence."[56]

[Footnote 56: Milton.]

"In all solemn earnestness I protest against such false treatment. It is better for a youth to live a continent life." "There is a terrible significance in the wise man's words, 'None that go to her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.'"[57] This hazardous and immoral mode of treatment is the result of the common opinion that emissions are necessary and natural, which we have previously shown to be a falsity.

[Footnote 57: Acton.]

Marriage.—Another class of practitioners, with more apparent regard for morality, recommend matrimony as the sure panacea for all the ills of which the sufferers from self-abuse complain, with the possible exception of actual impotence. Against this course several objections may be urged; we offer the following:—

1. It is not a remedy, since, as in the case of illicit intercourse, "legalized prostitution" is only a substitution of one form of emissions for another, the ill effects of which do not differ appreciably.

2. If it were a remedy, it would not be a justifiable one, for its use would necessitate an abuse of the marriage relation, as elsewhere shown.

3. As another reason why the remedy would not be a proper, even if a good, one, it may well be asked, What right has a man to treat a wife as a vial of medicine? Well does Mr. Acton inquire, "What has the young girl, who is thus sacrificed to an egotistical calculation, done that she should be condemned to the existence that awaits her? Who has the right to regard her as a therapeutic agent, and to risk thus lightly her future prospects, her repose, and the happiness of the remainder of her life?"

In cases in which seminal emissions occur frequently, the most reliable writers upon this subject, Copland, Acton, Milton, and others, advise, with reference to marriage, "that the complaint should be removed before the married life is commenced." Independent of the considerations already presented, the individual affected in this manner and contemplating marriage should carefully consider the possible and probable effects upon offspring, the legitimate result of marriage; these have been already described, and need not be recapitulated.

Local Treatment.—While it is true that general treatment alone is occasionally successful in curing the diseases under consideration, and that local treatment alone is very rarely efficient, it is also true that in many cases skillful local treatment is required to supplement the general remedies employed. While there has been a tendency on the part of the profession generally to depend wholly upon general treatment, on the part of a less numerous body of specialists there has been an opposite tendency to depend wholly, or nearly so, upon local measures. Both extremes are evidently wrong.

The object of local treatment for the relief of emissions, especially, is to remove the local cause of irritation, which, as previously shown, is one of the most active exciting causes of seminal losses. To effect this, both internal and external applications are useful. We will now consider some of these agents.

Cool Sitz Bath.—The cool or cold sitz bath is one of the most efficacious of all remedies. It should be taken daily, and may often be repeated, with benefit, several times a day. Its effect is to relieve the local congestion, and thus allay the irritability of the affected parts. When but one bath is taken daily, it should be just before retiring at night. Full directions for this and other baths are given in works devoted to the subject of bathing.

Ascending Douche.—This is also a very useful means of allaying irritation, especially the reflex excitability which is often present in the muscles in the vicinity of the perineum and prostate gland, and when there is pain and fullness in these parts.

Abdominal Bandage.—This may be worn nights to very great advantage by most patients. It not only allays the irritability of the nerve centers which are closely connected with the genital apparatus, but serves to keep the bowels in a healthy condition. It should not be applied so continuously as to produce a very profuse eruption on the skin. If such a symptom should appear, discontinue the bandage for a time. When worn during the day-time, it should be changed once in three or four hours. It is generally best to wear it only nights.

Wet Compress.—This is an application to be made to the lower part of the spine for the purpose of allaying the excessive heat and irritation which often exist there. It may also be worn nights, as it in some degree prevents the danger arising from sleeping upon the back.

Hot and Cold Applications to the Spine.—These are powerful remedies under appropriate conditions. Hot applications relieve congestion of the genital organs and allay irritation. Cold applications are useful when a condition of debility and relaxation is present. Alternate applications of heat and cold are very valuable, when skillfully applied, as a means of allaying reflex excitability and promoting healthy action. These applications are especially useful in cases in which there is heat and pain in the lower portion of the back. Their effects are greatly enhanced by administering a foot or leg bath at the same time.

Local Fomentations.—When great local irritation exists, with considerable pain and spasmodic muscular action, the application of hot fomentations to the perineum will be found the most effectual means of giving relief. The hot douche and hot sitz bath are useful under the same circumstances.

In some cases, alternate hot and cold applications are more effectual in allaying local irritation than hot fomentations alone.

Local Cold Bathing.—The genital organs should be daily bathed in cold water just before retiring. Simply dashing water upon the parts for two or three minutes is insufficient; more prolonged bathing is necessary. A short application of cold occasions a strong and sudden reaction which increases local congestion; hence, the bath should be continued until the sedative effect is fully produced, which will require at least fifteen minutes. The water must be cold; about 60 degrees is the best temperature. Ice should be used to cool the water in warm weather. It should be applied thoroughly, being squeezed from a sponge upon the lower part of the abdomen and allowed to run down.

Enemata.—The use of the enema is an important means of aiding recovery, but it has been much abused, and must be employed with caution. When the bowels are very costive, relieve them before retiring by a copious injection of tepid water. The "fountain syringe" is the best instrument to employ.

Useful as is the syringe when needed, nothing could be much worse than becoming dependent upon it. The bowels must be made to act for themselves without such artificial assistance, by the use of proper food, especially graham flour and oatmeal, and the avoidance of hot drinks, milk, sugar, and other clogging and constipating articles; by wearing the abdominal bandage; by thorough kneading and percussion of the abdomen several times daily for five minutes at a time; by taking one or two glasses of cold water half an hour before breakfast every morning; and by plenty of muscular exercise daily. The enema should be used occasionally, however, rather than allow the bowels to continue costive, and to avoid severe straining at stool.

A small, cold enema taken just before retiring, and retained, will often do much to allay local irritation.

Electricity.—Probably no single agent will accomplish more than this remedy when skillfully applied. It needs to be carefully used, and cannot be trusted in the hands of those not acquainted with the physical properties of the remedy and scientific methods of applying it.

Internal Applications.—Complete and rapid success greatly depends upon skillful internal treatment, in a large number of cases. We are aware that there is considerable prejudice, in certain quarters, against internal treatment; but having had the opportunity of observing the effects of careful treatment applied in this way, and having put to the test of practical experience this method, we feel justified in recommending that which is approved on both theoretical and practical grounds; for it is rational to suppose that proper treatment applied directly to the seat of disease must be at least equally efficacious with methods less direct.

As heretofore explained, in the more severe cases the urethra is found in a very irritable condition. It is hyper-sensitive, especially in that portion just in front of the bladder, where the ejaculatory ducts open into it. We have also seen how this condition is one of the chief exciting causes of emissions. The remedies described for allaying this irritation are all excellent and indispensable; but there is another method of great value. This consists in the passage of a suitable instrument, a sound or bougie of proper size, two or three times a week. By the aid of this means, the abnormal irritation will often diminish with magical rapidity. The passage of the instrument of course needs to be done with great delicacy, so as to avoid increasing the irritation; hence it should not be attempted by a novice. Lack of skill in catheterism is doubtless the reason why some have seemed to produce injury rather than benefit by this method of treatment, they not recognizing the fact asserted by Prof. Gross in his treatise on surgery, that skillful catheterism is one of the most delicate operations in surgery.

Use of Electricity.—The use of electricity in connection with that of the sound adds greatly to its utility. By means of the metallic instrument, also, electricity may be applied directly to the point of greatest irritation; and its soothing effect is sometimes really wonderful, as the following case will show:—

The patient, a man of unusual physical development, was suffering from nocturnal emissions and diminished sexual power, the result of early indiscretions and marital excesses. One of his most unpleasant symptoms was severe pain in the portion of the urethra near the openings of the ejaculatory ducts. After he had been suffering more than usual for a few days, we applied the faradaic electric current in the manner indicated above, for about fifteen minutes. At the end of that time the pain was entirely removed, though considerable suffering had been caused by the passage of the instrument, so sensitive was the congested membrane. The pain did not return again for two or three weeks, though treatment was necessarily suspended on account of absence.

In another case, that of a young man, a student, at the beginning of treatment emissions occurred nightly, and sometimes as many as four in a single night, according to his statement, which we had no reason to doubt. Under the influence of these local applications, combined with other measures of treatment and a measurably correct regimen, the number of emissions was in a few weeks reduced to one in two or three weeks.

Numerous other cases nearly as remarkable might be detailed if it were necessary to do so. In quite a considerable number of cases in which we have employed this plan of treatment, the results have been uniformly excellent. A very slight increase of irritation sometimes occurs at first, but this quickly subsides.

The galvanic as well as the faradaic current is to be used under proper circumstances. The application of electricity to the nerve centers by means of central galvanization, and also general and local external faradization, are necessary methods to be employed in electrical treatment.

Circumcision.—In cases of phimosis, in which irritation is produced by retained secretions, division of the prepuce, or circumcision, is the proper remedy. These cases are not infrequent, but the exciting cause of much of the difficulty is often overlooked. The same remedy is often useful in cases of long prepuce.

When the glans penis is unusually tender and sensitive, this condition will usually be removed by the daily washing with soap and water necessary for cleanliness. If this does not suffice, or if there are slight excoriations caused by acrid secretions, apply, in addition, a weak solution of tannin in glycerine once a day.

Impotence.—Loss of sexual power arising from any form of sexual excess, should be treated on the same general plan laid down for the treatment of emissions and other weaknesses. Cold to the spine, and short, but frequent, local cold applications, are among the most useful remedies; but, probably, electricity, discreetly used, is by far the most valuable of all remedies. It should be applied both internally and externally.

The use of cantharides and other aphrodisiac remedies to stimulate the sexual organs is a most pernicious practice. The inevitable result is still greater weakness. They should never be used under any circumstances whatever. On the contrary, everything of a stimulating character must be carefully avoided, even in diet.

Varicocele.—Patients suffering from this difficulty should wear a proper suspensory bag, as the continued pressure of the distended veins upon the testes, if unsupported, will ultimately cause degenerative changes and atrophy. A surgical operation, consisting of the removal of a portion of the skin of the scrotum, is proper if the patient desires an operation; no other operation is advisable.

The wearing of a suspensory bag is also advisable for those whose testicles are unusually pendulous.

Drugs, Rings, etc.—If drugs, per se, will cure invalids of any class, they are certainly worthless in this class of patients. The whole materia medica affords no root, herb, extract, or compound that alone will cure a person suffering from emissions. Thousands of unfortunates have been ruined by long-continued drugging. One physician will purge and salivate the patient. Another will dose him with phosphorus, quinine, or ergot. Another feeds him with iron. Another plies him with lupuline, camphor, and digitaline. Still another narcotizes him with opium, belladonna, and chloral. Purgatives and diuretics are given by another, and some will be found ready to empty the whole pharmacopoeia into the poor sufferer's stomach if he can be got to open his mouth wide enough.

The way that some of these poor fellows are blistered, and burned, and cauterized, and tortured in sundry other ways, is almost too horrible to think of; yet they endure it, often willingly, thinking it but just punishment for their sins, and perhaps hoping to expiate them by this cruel penance. By these procedures, the emissions are sometimes temporarily checked, but the patient is not cured, nevertheless, and the malady soon returns.

The employment of rings, pessaries, and numerous other mechanical devices for preventing emissions, is entirely futile. No dependence can be placed upon them. Some of these contrivances are very ingenious, but they are all worthless, and time and money spent upon them are thrown away.

Quacks.—The victims of self-abuse fall an easy prey to the hordes of harpies, fiends in human shape, who are ready at every turn to make capital out of their misfortunes. From no other class of persons do quacks and charlatans derive so rich a harvest as from these erring ones. It is not uncommon to find a man suffering from seminal weakness who has paid to sundry parties hundreds of dollars for "specifics" which they advertised as "sure cures." We have seen and treated scores of these patients, but never yet met a single case that had received benefit from patent medicines.

The newspapers are full of the advertisements of these heartless villains. They advertise under the guise of "clergymen," charitable institutions, "cured invalids," and similar pretenses. Usually they offer for sale some pill or mixture which will be a sure cure, in proof of which they cite the testimonials of numerous individuals who never lived, or, at least, never saw either them or their filthy compounds; or, they promise to send free a recipe which will be a certain cure. Here is a specimen recipe which was sent by a "reverend" gentleman who claims to be a returned missionary from South America so intent on doing good that he charges nothing for his invaluable information:—

Extract of Corrossa apimis, " " Selarmo umbelifera, Powdered Alkermes latifolia, Extract of Carsadoc herbalis.

This remarkable recipe is warranted to cure all the evils arising from self-abuse, with no attention to diet and no inconvenience of any kind, to prevent consumption and insanity, and to cure venereal diseases. It is also declared to be a perfectly "safe" remedy for all female difficulties, which means that it will aid nefarious purposes.

Along with the recipe comes the suggestion that the druggist may not be able to furnish all the ingredients in a perfectly pure state, and so, for the accommodation of suffering humanity, this noble philanthropist has taken infinite pains to secure them direct from South America, and has them put up in neat little packages which he will send, post-paid, for the trifle of $3.50, just one cent less than actual cost. Then he tells what purports to be the history of his own nastiness, with a generous spicing of pious cant, and closes with a benediction on all who have fallen into the same slough, and especially those who will send for his fabulous foreign weeds to help them out.

A young man sees the advertisement of a book which will be sent free, postage paid, if he will only send his address. The title of the book being of some such character as "Manhood Regained," or "Nervous Debility," he imagines it may suit his case, and sends his name. Return mail brings the book, which is a wretched jargon of confused terms and appalling descriptions of the effects of self-abuse, with the most shameful exaggerations of the significance of the most trivial symptoms. The ignorant youth reads what he supposes to be a description of his own case, and is frightened nearly to death. He is most happily relieved, however, to find that the generous publishers of the book have a remedy which is just adapted to his case, but which is so precious that it cannot be afforded at less than $50.00 for a sufficient quantity to effect a cure. He willingly parts with his hard-earned dollars, and gets, in return, some filthy mixture that did not cost a shilling.

Another trap set is called an "Anatomical Museum." The anatomical part of the exhibition consists chiefly of models and figures calculated to excite the passions to the highest pitch. At stated intervals the proprietor, who is always a "doctor," and by preference a German, delivers lectures on the effects of masturbation, in which he resorts to every device to excite the fears and exaggerate the symptoms of his hearers, who are mostly young men and boys. Thus he prepares his victim, and when he once gets him within his clutches, he does not let him go until he has robbed him of his last dollar.

We might present almost any number of illustrations of the ways in which these human sharks pursue their villainy. If there were a dungeon deep, dark, and dismal enough for the punishment of such rascals, we should feel strongly inclined to petition to have them incarcerated in it. They defy all laws, civil as well as moral, but are cunning enough to keep outside of prison bars; and thus they wax rich by robbery, and thrive by deceit. A terrible recompense awaits them at the final settlement, though they escape so easily now.

Closing Advice.—We cannot finish this chapter without a few closing words of advice to those who are suffering in any way from the results of sexual transgression. We are especially anxious to call attention to a few points of practical and vital interest to all who are suffering in the manner indicated.

1. Give the matter prompt attention. Do not delay to adopt curative measures under the delusive idea that the difficulty will disappear of itself. Thousands have procrastinated in this way until their constitutions have been so hopelessly undermined as to make treatment of little value. The intrinsic tendency of this disease is to continue to increase. It progresses only in one direction. It never "gets well of itself," as some have imagined that it may do. Something must be done to effect a cure; and the longer treatment is delayed, the more difficult the case will become.

2. Set about the work of getting well with a fixed determination to persevere, and never to give over the struggle until success is attained, no matter how difficult may be the obstacles to be surmounted. Such an effort will rarely be unsuccessful. One of the greatest impediments to recovery from diseases of this class is the vacillating dispositions of nearly all patients suffering from disorders of this character. Make up your mind what course of treatment to pursue, then adhere to it rigidly until it has received a thorough trial. Do not despair if no very marked results are seen in a week, a month, or even a longer period. The best remedies are among those which operate the most slowly.

3. Avoid watching for symptoms. Ills are greatly exaggerated by dwelling upon them. One can easily imagine himself getting worse when he is really getting better. Indeed, one can make himself sick by dwelling upon insignificant symptoms. Fix upon a course to pursue for recovery, firmly resolve to comply with every requirement necessary to insure success, and then let the mind be entirely at rest respecting the result.

4. Never consult a quack. The newspapers abound with lying advertisements of remedies for diseases of this character. Do not waste time and money in corresponding with the ignorant, unprincipled charlatans who make such false pretensions. Do not consult traveling doctors. Physicians of real merit have plenty of business at home. They are not obliged to go abroad in order to secure practice. Persons who resort to this course are, without exception, pretentious quacks. Consult only some well-known and reliable physician in whom you have confidence. If your physician treats the matter lightly, and advises marriage as a means of cure, you will not judge him harshly if you decide that although he may be thoroughly competent to treat other diseases, he is ignorant of the nature and proper treatment of this. It is an unfortunate fact that there are many physicians who are not thoroughly acquainted with the nature of spermatorrhoea and the proper mode of treating the disease; hence the importance of making a judicious selection in choosing a medical adviser. If possible, employ one whom you know to have treated successfully numerous similar cases, and give him your entire confidence. It is far better to consult your family physician than to trust yourself in the hands of some one whom you do not know, and especially one who makes great pretensions to knowledge.

5. Do not despair of ever recovering from the effects of past transgression, and plunge into greater depths of sin. Persevering, skillful treatment will cure almost every case. Even the worst cases can be greatly benefited if the earnest co-operation of the patient can be secured. This is indispensable, and the patient should be so instructed at the outset of a course of treatment.

6. Every sufferer from sexual disease must make up his mind to live, during the remainder of his life, as closely in accord with the laws of life and health as circumstances under his control will allow him to do. One who pursues this course, with a genuine regard for principle and a love for right, may confidently expect to receive the reward of obedience for his faithfulness. We would recommend such to obtain and study the best works upon hygiene, put in practice every new truth as soon as learned, and become missionaries of the saving truths of hygiene to others who are suffering from the same cause as themselves, or who may be in danger of falling into the same evil.



A CHAPTER FOR BOYS.

Boys, this chapter is for you. It is written and printed purposely for you. If you do not read another word in the book, read these few pages if you are old enough to do so. Read each line carefully and thoughtfully. You may not find anything to make you laugh—possibly you may: but you will be certain to find something of almost inestimable value to you in every line.

Who are Boys?—Boys are scarce now-a-days. In the days of Methuselah, male human beings were still boys when nearly a century old; twenty-five years ago boys were still such until well out of their "teens"; now the interval between infancy and the age at which the boy becomes a young man is so brief that boyhood is almost a thing of the past. The happy period of care-free, joyous innocence which formerly intervened between childhood and early manhood is now almost unobservable. Boys grow old too fast. They learn to imitate the vices and the manners of their seniors before they reach their teens, and are impatient to be counted as men, no matter how great may be their deficiencies, their unfitness for the important duties and responsibilities of life. The consequence of this inordinate haste and impatience to be old, is premature decay. Unfortunately the general tendency of the young members of the rising generation is to copy the vices of their elders, rather than the virtues of true manliness. A strong evidence of this fact, if there were no other, is the unnaturally old-looking faces which so many of our boys present. At the present time the average boy of twelve knows more of vice and sin than the youth of twenty of the past generation.

It is not so much for these human mushrooms, which may be not inaptly compared to toadstools which grow up in a single night and almost as speedily decay, that we write, but for the old-fashioned boys, the few such there may be, those who have not yet learned to love sin, those whose minds are still pure and uncontaminated. Those who have already begun a course of vice and wickedness we have little hope of reforming; but we are anxious to offer a few words of counsel and warning which may possibly help to save as brands plucked from a blazing fire, those whose moral sense is yet alive, who have quick and tender consciences, who aspire to be truly noble and good.

What are Boys for?—This question was answered with exact truthfulness by a little boy, who, when contemptuously accosted by a man with the remark, "What are you good for?" replied, "Men are made of such as we." Boys are the beginnings of men. They sustain the same relation to men that the buds do to full-blown flowers. They are still more like the small green apples which first appear when the blossoms drop from the branches, compared with the ripe, luscious fruit which in autumn bends the heavy-laden boughs almost to breaking. Often, like the young apples, boys are green; but this is only natural, and should be considered no disgrace to the boys. If they grow up naturally they will ripen with age, like the fruit, developing at each successive stage of life additional attractions and excellent qualities.

Boys the Hope of the World.—A nation's most valuable property is its boys. A nation which has poor, weakly, vicious boys will have still weaker, more vicious and untrustworthy men. A country with noble, virtuous, vigorous boys, is equally sure of having noble, pious, brave, and energetic men. Whatever debases, contaminates, or in any way injures the boys of a country, saps and undermines the very foundation of the nation's strength and greatness. Save the boys from vice and crime, give them good training, physically, mentally, and morally, and the prosperity of the nation is assured.

Man the Masterpiece.—When a skillful artist perfects a work of art, a painting, a drawing, a statue, or some other work requiring great talent and exceeding all his other efforts, it is called his masterpiece. So man is the noblest work of God, the masterpiece of the Almighty. Numerous anecdotes are told of the sagacity of dogs, horses, elephants and other animals, of their intelligence and ingenious devices in overcoming obstacles, avoiding difficulties, etc. Our admiration and wonder are often excited by the scarcely less than human wisdom shown by these lowly brothers of the human race. We call them noble animals; but they are only noble brutes, at best. Compared with man, even in his most humble form, as seen in the wild savage that hunts and devours his prey like a wild beast, a lion or a tiger, they are immeasurably inferior. And in his highest development, man civilized, cultivated, Christianized, learned, generous, pious, certainly stands at the head of all created things.

Boys, do you love what is noble, what is pure, what is grand, what is good? You may each, if you will, become such yourselves. Let us consider for a moment

How a Noble Character is Ruined.—A noble character is formed by the development of the good qualities of an individual. A bad character is formed by the development of bad traits, or evil propensities. In other words, sin is the cause of the demoralization of character, the debasing of the mind, the loss of nobility of which we see so much around us in the world. Sin is the transgression of some law. There are two kinds of sins: those which are transgressions of the moral law, and those which are transgressions of physical laws. Both classes of sins are followed by penalties. If a person violates the laws of health, he is just as certain to suffer as though he tells a falsehood, steals, murders, or commits any other crime. Perfect obedience to all of nature's laws, including of course all moral laws, is necessary to perfect health and perfect nobleness of character. The nature of these laws and the results of transgression will be understood after we have taken a hasty glance at

The Marvelous Human Machine which we call the body. All the inventions and devices ever constructed by the human hand or conceived by the human mind, no matter how delicate, how intricate and complicated, are simple, childish toys compared with that most marvelously wrought mechanism, the human body. Let us proceed to take this wonderful machine in pieces and study its various parts and the manner in which they are put together.

The Two Objects of Human Existence.—The objects of this wonderfully formed mechanism are two: 1. The maintenance of an individual life; 2. The production of similar individuals which shall also have the power of maintaining individual lives. The same may be said of every plant that grows, and every animal. Each tree, plant, and shrub has some useful service to perform while it lives, in addition to the production of seed from which other plants may grow. For example, the object of the majestic oak which towers high and broadly spreads its leafy branches is not to produce acorns merely, but to give place for birds to build their nests, to present an inviting shade for cattle, and to afford protection in a variety of ways to numerous living creatures which need such aid. The same may be said of all vegetable growths, each particular plant having its peculiar purposes to fulfill, and all together acting as purifiers of the air for the benefit of man and lower animals.

The principle is equally true as applied to lower animals, as is evidenced by the numerous ways in which domestic animals are utilized. Indeed, it seems that the prime purpose of life, not only with all lowly living creatures, as plants and animals, but with man as well, is to live and act as individuals. But the important function of reproduction, or producing other similar individuals, though incidental, is necessary to the perpetuation of the race or species.

In order that an individual human being may live and develop, it is necessary that he should eat, drink, digest, and assimilate, and that he should be able to move about, to perceive,—that is, to hear, see, feel, smell, taste, determine weight and distinguish temperature,—to think, and to express ideas in language. In order to keep his vital machinery in order, it is necessary that the body should also be able to repair injuries which may occur in consequence of wear or accident, and to remove out of the way wornout material which would otherwise obstruct the working of the delicate machinery of which his body is constructed. Each of these functions requires special organs and apparatuses to carry on the work; and these we will now briefly consider:—

The Nutritive Apparatus.—This consists of organs for the purpose of taking in food or nourishment, digesting it, and distributing it throughout the body wherever it is needed. These are chiefly the mouth and teeth for receiving and chewing the food, the stomach and intestines for digesting and absorbing it, and the heart and blood-vessels for distributing it to the body.

The Moving Apparatus.—For the purpose of producing motion, we have the muscles and the bones, by which the food is received, masticated, and swallowed, the blood circulated, the body moved about from place to place, and speech, expression, respiration, and many other important functions performed.

The Thinking and Feeling Apparatus.—The brain and nerves afford the means of thinking and feeling, also giving rise to all the activities of the body by the production of nerve force. To aid the brain and nerves, we have special organs provided, termed the organs of special sense; as the eye for sight, the ear for hearing, the nose for the detection of odors, the tongue for tasting, the skin and the mucous membrane for the sense of touch.

The Purifying Apparatus.—Waste matter accumulates in the body so rapidly that it is necessary to have abundant and efficient means to remove the same, and prevent death by obstruction. This work is performed by the lungs, liver, kidneys, skin, and mucous membrane.

Each organ and tissue possesses the power to repair itself. Animal heat, which is also necessary to life, is not produced by any special set of organs, but results incidentally from the various other processes named.

The Reproductive Apparatus.—As there is a stomach to digest, a brain to think, a pair of lungs to breathe, etc., so there are special organs for reproducing the species or producing new individuals. These organs have been carefully described in the preceding portion of this volume, so that we do not need to repeat the description here. Unlike all the other organs of the body, they are intended for use only after full development or manhood has been attained; consequently, they are only partially developed in childhood, becoming perfected as the person becomes older, especially after about the age of fourteen to eighteen, when puberty occurs. The lungs, the stomach, the muscles, and other organs must be used constantly from the earliest period of infancy, hence they are developed sufficiently for efficient use at birth. The fact that the sexual or reproductive organs are only fully developed later on in life, is sufficient evidence that they are intended for use only when the body has become fully mature and well developed.

How a Noble Character and a Sound Body Must Be Formed.—By obeying all the laws which relate to the healthy action of the body and the mind, a noble character and a healthy body may be formed. Any deviation from right will be sure to be followed by suffering. A boy who carefully heeds the advice of good and wise parents, who avoids bad company, who never indulges in bad habits of any sort, who cultivates purity, honesty, and manliness, is certain to grow up into a noble, lovely youth, and to become an intelligent, respected, virtuous man.

The Down-Hill Road.—In every large city, and in small ones too, even in little villages, we can scarcely step upon the street without being pained at meeting little boys who have perhaps scarcely learned to speak distinctly, but whose faces show very plainly that they have already taken several steps down the steep hillside of vice. All degrees of wickedness are pictured on the faces of a large proportion of the boys we meet upon the streets, loitering about the corners, loafing in hotels, groceries, and about bar-room doors. Everywhere we meet small faces upon which sin and vice are as clearly written as though the words were actually spelled out. Lying, swearing, smoking, petty stealing, and brazen impudence are among the vices which contaminate thousands and thousands of the boys who are by-and-by to become the men of this country, to constitute its legislators, its educators, its supporters, and its protectors. Is it possible that such boys can become good, useful, noble, trustworthy men? Scarcely. If the seeds of noxious weeds can be made to produce useful plants or beautiful flowers, or if a barren, worthless shrub can be made to bear luscious fruit, then may we expect to see these vicious boys grow up into virtuous, useful men.

But the vices mentioned are not the worst, the traces of which we see stamped upon the faces of hundreds of boys, some of whom, too, would scorn to commit any one of the sins named. There is another vice, still more terrible, more blighting in its effects, a vice which defiles, diseases, and destroys the body, enervates, degrades, and finally dethrones the mind, debases and ruins the soul. It is to this vice that we wish especially to call attention. It is known as

Self-Abuse.—Secret vice, masturbation, and self-pollution are other names applied to this same awful sin against nature and against God. We shall not explain here the exact nature of the sin, as very few boys are so ignorant or so innocent as to be unacquainted with it. To this sin and its awful consequences we now wish to call the attention of all who may read these lines.

A Dreadful Sin.—The sin of self-pollution is one of the vilest, the basest, and the most degrading that a human being can commit. It is worse than beastly. Those who commit it place themselves far below the meanest brute that breathes. The most loathsome reptile, rolling in the slush and slime of its stagnant pool, would not bemean itself thus. It is true that monkeys sometimes have the habit, but only when they have been taught it by vile men or boys. A boy who is thus guilty ought to be ashamed to look into the eyes of an honest dog. Such a boy naturally shuns the company of those who are pure and innocent. He cannot look with assurance into his mother's face. It is difficult for any one to catch his eye, even for a few seconds. He feels his guilt and acts it out, thus making it known to every one. Let such a boy think how he must appear in the eyes of the Almighty. Let him only think of the angels, pure, innocent, and holy, who are eye-witnesses of his shameful practices. Is not the thought appalling? Would he dare commit such a sin in the presence of his father, his mother, or his sisters? No, indeed. How, then, will he dare to defile himself in the presence of Him from whose all-seeing eye nothing is hid?

The Bible utters the most solemn warnings against sexual sins. The inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire and brimstone for such transgressions. Onan was struck dead in the act of committing a vileness of this sort. For similar vices the wicked inhabitants of Palestine were destroyed, and their lands given to the Hebrews. For a single violation of the seventh commandment, one of the most notable Bible characters, David, suffered to the day of his death. Those who imagine that this sin is not a transgression of the seventh commandment may be assured that this most heinous, revolting, and unnatural vice is in every respect more pernicious, more debasing, and more immoral than what is generally considered as violation of the commandment which says, "Thou shalt not commit adultery," and is itself a most flagrant violation of the same commandment.

Those who imagine that they "have a right to do as they please with themselves," so long as no one else is immediately affected, must learn that we are not our own masters; we belong to our Creator, and are accountable to God not only for the manner in which we treat our fellow-men, but for how we treat ourselves, for the manner in which we use the bodies which he has given us. The man who commits suicide, who takes his own life, is a murderer as much as he who kills a fellow-man. So, also, he who pollutes himself in the manner we are considering, violates the seventh commandment, although the crime is in both cases committed against himself. Think of this, ye youth who defile yourselves in secret and seek to escape the punishment of sin. In Heaven a faithful record of your vile commandment-breaking is kept, and you must meet it by-and-by. You are fixing your fate for eternity; and each daily act in some degree determines what it shall be. Are you a victim of this fascinating vice, stop, repent, reform, before you are forever ruined, a mental, moral, and physical wreck.

Self-Murderers.—Of all the vices to which human beings are addicted, no other so rapidly undermines the constitution and so certainly makes a complete wreck of an individual as this, especially when the habit is begun at an early age. It wastes the most precious part of the blood, uses up the vital forces, and finally leaves the poor victim a most utterly ruined and loathsome object. If a boy should be deprived of both hands and feet and should lose his eyesight, he would still be infinitely better off than the boy who for years gives himself up to the gratification of lust in secret vice. For such a boy to become a strong, vigorous man is just as impossible as it would be to make a mammoth tree out of a currant bush. Such a man will necessarily be short-lived. He will always suffer from the effects of his folly, even though he shall marry. If he has children—he may become incapable—they will be quite certain to be puny, weak, scrofulous, consumptive, rickety, nervous, depraved in body and mind, or otherwise deprived of the happiness which grows out of the possession of "a sound mind in a sound body."

Let us notice a little more closely the terrible effects resulting from this most unnatural and abominable vice.

What Makes Boys Dwarfs.—How many times have we seen boys who were born with good constitutions, with force and stamina sufficient to develop them into large, vigorous men, become puny dwarfs. At the time when they ought to begin to grow and develop more rapidly than ever before, their growth is checked and they cease to develop. They are, in fact, stunted, dwarfed, like a plant which has a canker-worm eating away at its roots. Indeed, there is a veritable canker-worm sapping their vitality, undermining their constitutions, and destroying their prospects for time and for eternity. Anxious friends may attribute the unhappy change to overwork, overstudy, or some similar cause; but from a somewhat extended observation we are thoroughly convinced that the very vice which we are considering is the viper which blights the prospects and poisons the existence of many of these promising boys.

A boy who gives himself up to the practice of secret vice at an early age, say as early as seven to ten years of age, is certain to make himself a wreck. Instead of having a healthy, vigorous body, with strong muscles and a hardy constitution, he will be weak, scrawny, sickly, always complaining, never well, and will never know anything about that joyous exuberance of life and animal spirits which the young antelope feels as it bounds over the plain, or the vigorous young colt as it frisks about its pasture, and which every youth ought to feel.

Scrawny, Hollow-Eyed Boys.—Boys ought to be fresh and vigorous as little lambs. They ought to be plump, rosy, bright-eyed, and sprightly. A boy who is pale, scrawny, hollow-eyed, dull, listless, has something the matter with him. Self-abuse makes thousands of just such boys every year; and it is just such boys that make vicious, shiftless, haggard, unhappy men. This horrible vice steals away the health and vitality which are needed to develop the body and the mind; and the lad that ought to make his mark in the world, that ought to become a distinguished statesman, orator, clergyman, physician, or author, becomes little more than a living animal, a mere shadow of what he ought to have been.

Old Boys.—Often have we felt sad when we have heard fond mothers speaking in glowing terms of the old ways of their sons, and rather glorying that they looked so much older than they were. In nine cases out of ten these old-looking boys owe their appearance to this vile habit; for it is exceedingly common, and its dreadful effects in shriveling and dwarfing and destroying the human form are too plainly perceptible, when present, to be mistaken. Oh! this dreadful curse! Why will so many of our bright, innocent boys pollute themselves with it!

What Makes Idiots.—Reader, have you ever seen an idiot? If you have, the hideous picture will never be dissipated from your memory. The vacant stare, the drooping, drooling mouth, the unsteady gait, the sensual look, the emptiness of mind,—all these you will well remember. Did you ever stop to think how idiots are made? It is by this very vice that the ranks of these poor daft mortals are being recruited every day. Every visitor to an insane asylum sees scores of them; ruined in mind and body, only the semblance of a human being, bereft of sense, lower than a beast in many respects, a human being hopelessly lost to himself and to the world!—oh, most terrible thought!—yet once pure, intelligent, active, perhaps the hope of a fond mother, the pride of a doting father, and possibly possessed of natural ability to become greatly distinguished in some of the many noble and useful walks of life; now sunk below the brute through the degrading, destroying influence of a lustful gratification.

Boys, are you guilty of this terrible sin? have you even once in this way yielded to the tempter's voice? Stop, consider, think of the awful results, repent, confess to God, reform. Another step in that direction and you may be lost, soul and body. You cannot dally with the tempter. You must escape now or never. Don't delay.

Young Dyspeptics.—If we leave out of the consideration the effects of bad food and worse cookery, there is in our estimation no other cause so active in occasioning the early breaking down of the digestive organs of our American boys. A boy of ten or twelve years of age ought to have a stomach capable of digesting anything not absolutely indigestible; but there are to-day thousands and thousands of boys of that age whose stomachs are so impaired as to be incapable of digesting any but the most simple food. The digestion being ruined, the teeth soon follow suit. Hardly one boy in a dozen has perfectly sound teeth. With a bad stomach and bad teeth, a foundation for disease is laid which is sure to result in early decay of the whole body.

In this awful vice do we find a cause, too, for the thousands of cases of consumption in young men. At the very time when they ought to be in their prime, they break down in health and become helpless invalids for life, or speedily sink into an early grave.

Upon their tombstones might justly be graven, "Here lies a self-murderer." Providence is not to blame; nor is climate, weather, overwork, overstudy, or any other even seemingly plausible cause, to be blamed. Their own sins have sunk them in mental, moral, and physical perdition. Such a victim literally dies by his own hand, a veritable suicide. Appalling thought! It is a grand thing to die for one's principles, a martyr to his love of right and truth. One may die blameless who is the victim of some dire contagious malady which he could not avoid; even the poor, downcast misanthrope whose hopes are blighted and whose sorrows multiplied, may possibly be in some degree excused for wishing to end his misery with his life; but the wretched being who sheds his life-blood by the disgusting maneuvers of self-pollution—what can be said to extenuate his guilt? His is a double crime. Let him pass from the memory of his fellow-men. He will perish, overwhelmed with his own vileness. Let him die, and return to the dust from which he sprang.

The Race Ruined by Boys.—The human race is growing steadily weaker year by year. The boys of to-day would be no match in physical strength for the sturdy youths of a century ago who are now their grandparents. An immense amount of skillful training enables now and then one to accomplish some wonderful feat of walking, rowing, or swimming, but we hear very little of remarkable feats of labor accomplished by our modern boys. Even the country boys of to-day cannot endure the hard work which their fathers accomplished at the same age; and we doubt not that this growing physical weakness is one of the reasons why so large a share of the boys whose fathers are farmers, and who have been reared on farms, are unwilling to follow the occupation of their fathers for a livelihood. They are too weakly to do the work required by an agricultural life, even by the aid of the numerous labor-saving inventions of the age.

What is it that is undermining the health of the race and sapping the constitutions of our American men? No doubt much may be attributed to the unnatural refinements of civilization in several directions; but there can be no doubt that vice is the most active cause of all. Secret sin and its kindred vices yearly ruin more constitutions than hard work, severe study, hunger, cold, privation, and disease combined.

Boys, the destiny of the race is in your hands. You can do more than all the doctors, all the scientists and most eminent political men in the world, to secure the prosperity and future greatness of the nation, by taking care of yourselves, by being pure, noble, true to yourselves and to the demands of high moral principle.

Cases Illustrating the Effects of Self-Abuse.—The land is full of poor human wrecks who have dashed in pieces their hopes for this world, and too often for the next also, against this hideous rock which lies hidden in the pathway of every young man who starts out upon life's stormy voyage. Gladly would we draw the veil and cover them with all their dreadful deformities with the mantle of charity from the gaze of their fellow-beings; but their number is so great that this could scarcely be done, and the lesson to be learned from their sad fate is such a grave one, and so needful for the good of the generation of young men who are just encountering the same dangers, that we cannot resist the promptings of duty to present a few examples of the effects of vice in men and boys that have fallen under our own observation. We have seen hundreds of cases of this sort; have treated many scores of persons for the effects of the terrible crime which we are seeking to sound a warning against, and the number of cases we might describe would fill a volume; but we will select only a very few.

Two Young Wrecks.—Charles and Oscar B—— were the sons of a farmer in a Western State, aged respectively ten and twelve years. They possessed well-formed heads, and once had beautiful faces, and were as bright and sprightly as any little boys of their age to be found anywhere. Their father was proud of them, and their fond mother took great pleasure in building bright prospects for her darling sons when they should attain maturity and become competent to fill useful and honorable positions in the world. Living in a rapidly-growing Western community, they had every prospect of growing up to honorable usefulness, a comfort to their parents, a blessing to the world, and capable of enjoying life in the highest degree.

But suddenly certain manifestations appeared which gave rise to grave apprehensions on the part of the parents. It was observed that the elder of the little boys no longer played about with that nimbleness which he had formerly shown, but seemed slow and stiff in his movements. Sometimes, indeed, he would stagger a little when he walked. Soon, also, his speech became affected in some degree; he mumbled his words and could not speak distinctly. In spite of all that could be done, the disease continued, increasing slowly in all its symptoms from week to week. Soon the hands, also, became affected, so that the little boy could not feed himself. The mind now began to fail. The bright eyes became vacant and expressionless. Instead of the merry light which used to shine in them, there was a blank, idiotic stare.

Imagine the grief and anguish of the poor mother! No one but a mother who has been called to pass through a similar trial could know how to sympathize with such a one. Her darling son she saw daily becoming a prey to a strange, incurable malady, with no power even to stay the progress of the terrible disease.

But there was still greater grief in store for her. Within a year or two the younger son began to show symptoms of the same character, and in spite of all that was done, rapidly sank into the same helpless state as his brother. As a last resort, the mother took her boys and came a long journey to place her sons under our care. At that time they were both nearly helpless. Neither could walk but a few steps. They reeled and staggered about like drunken men, falling down upon each other and going through the most agonizing contortions in their attempts to work their way from one chair to another and thus about the room. Their heads were no longer erect, but drooped like wilted flowers. On their faces was a blank, imbecile expression, with a few traces of former intelligence still left. The mouth was open, from the drooping of the lower jaw, and the saliva constantly dribbled upon the clothing. Altogether, it was a spectacle which one does not care to meet every day; the impression made was too harrowing to be pleasant even from its interest from a scientific point of view.

We at once set to work to discover the cause of this dreadful condition, saying to ourselves that such an awful punishment should certainly be the result of some gross violation of nature's laws somewhere. The most careful scrutiny of the history of the parents of the unfortunate lads gave us no clue to anything of an hereditary character, both parents having come of good families, and having been always of sober, temperate habits. The father had used neither liquor nor tobacco in any form. The mother could give no light on the matter, and we were obliged to rest for the time being upon the conviction which fastened itself upon us that the cases before us were most marked illustrations of the results of self-abuse begun at a very early age. The mother thought it impossible that our suspicions could be correct, saying that she had watched her sons with jealous care from earliest infancy and had seen no indications of any error of the sort. But we had not long to wait for confirmation of our view of the case, as they were soon caught in the act, to which it was found that they were greatly addicted, and the mystery was wholly solved.

Every possible remedy was used to check the terrible disease which was preying upon the unfortunate boys, but in vain. At times the symptoms would be somewhat mitigated, and the most sanguine hopes of the fond, watching mother would be excited, but in vain. The improvement always proved to be but temporary, and the poor sufferers would speedily relapse into the same dreadful condition again, and gradually grew worse. At last, the poor mother was obliged to give up all hope, in utter despair watching the daily advances of the awful malady which inch by inch destroyed the life, the humanity, the very mind and soul of her once promising sons. Sadly she took them back to her Western home, there to see them suffer, perhaps for years before death should kindly release them, the terrible penalty of sin committed almost before they had arrived at years of responsibility.

How these mere infants learned the vice we were never able to determine. We have no doubt that opportunities sufficient were presented them, as the parents seemed to have very little appreciation of danger from this source. Had greater vigilance been exercised, we doubt not that the discovery of the vice at the beginning would have resulted in the salvation of these two beautiful boys, who were sacrificed upon the altar of concupiscence. Two or three years after we first saw the cases, we heard from them, and though still alive, their condition was almost too horrible for description. Three or four similar cases have come to our knowledge.

Boys, are you guilty? Think of the fearful fate of these boys, once as joyous and healthy as you. When you are tempted to sin, think of the fearful picture of the effects of sin which they present. Have you ever once dared to commit this awful sin? Stop, never dare to do the thing again. Take a solemn vow before God to be pure. Your fate may be as sad, your punishment as terrible. No one can tell what the results may be. Absolute purity is the only safe course.

A Prodigal Youth.—A. M., son of a gentleman of wealth in Ohio, early acquired the evil practice which has ruined so many bright lads. He was naturally an intelligent and prepossessing lad, and his father gave him as good an education as he could be induced to acquire, affording him most excellent opportunities for study and improvement. But the vile habit which had been acquired at an early age speedily began its blighting influence. It destroyed his taste for study and culture. His mind dwelt upon low and vile subjects. He grew restless of home restraint and surroundings, and finally left the parental roof. Wandering from city to city he grew rapidly worse, sinking into deeper depths of vice, until finally he became a base, besotted, wretched creature. Broken down in health by his sins, he could no longer enjoy even the worst sensual pleasures, and with no taste for or capability of appreciating anything higher he was most wretched indeed. The poor fellow now fell into the hands of quacks. His kind father sent him money in answer to his pitiful appeals for help, and he went anxiously from one to another of the wretched villains who promise relief to such sufferers but only rob them of their money and leave them worse than before.

At last, in total despair of everything else, the poor fellow came to us. He seemed quite broken-hearted and penitent for his sins, and really appeared to want to lead a better life if he could only be made well again. We faithfully pointed out to him the dreadful wickedness of his course, and the fact that a cure could only be effected by the most implicit obedience to all of nature's laws during his whole future life. Indeed, we were obliged to inform him of the sad fact that he could never be as well as before, that he must always suffer in consequence of his dreadful course of transgression. We gave him a most earnest exhortation to begin the work of reform where alone it could be effectual, by reforming his heart, and the tears which coursed down his sin-scarred cheeks seemed to indicate true penitence and a real desire to return to the paths of purity and peace.

Earnestly we labored for this young man, for months, employing every means in our power to lift him from the slough of sin and vice upon the solid pathway of virtue and purity again. Gradually the hard lines on his face seemed to lessen in intensity. The traces of vice and crime seemed to be fading out by degrees. We began to entertain hopes of his ultimate recovery. But alas! in an evil moment, through the influence of bad companions, he fell, and for some time we lost sight of him. A long time afterward we caught a glimpse of his bloated, sin-stained face, just as he was turning to skulk away to avoid recognition. Where this poor human wreck is now leading his miserable existence we cannot say, but have no doubt he is haunting the dens of iniquity and sin in the cities, seeking to find a little momentary pleasure in the gratification of his appetites and passions. A hopeless wreck, with the lines of vice and crime drawn all over his tell-tale countenance, he dares not go home, for he fears to meet the reproachful glance of his doting mother, and the scornful looks of his brothers and sisters. We never saw a more thoroughly unhappy creature. He is fully conscious of his condition; he sees himself to be a wreck, in mind, in body, and knows that he is doomed to suffer still more in consequence of his vices. He has no hope for this world or the next. His mother gave him earnest, pious instructions, which he has never forgotten, though he has long tried to smother them. He now looks forward with terror to the fate which he well knows awaits all evil-doers, and shudders at the thought, but seems powerless to enter the only avenue which affords a chance of escape. He is so tormented with the pains and diseased conditions which he has brought upon himself by vice that he often looks to self-destruction as a grateful means of escape; but then comes the awful foreboding of future punishment, and his hand is stayed. Ashamed to meet his friends, afraid to meet his Maker, he wanders about, an exile, an outcast, a hopeless wreck.

Young man, youth, have you taken the first step on this evil road? If so, take warning by the fate of this young man. At once "cease to do evil and learn to do well," before, like him, you lose the power to do right, before your will is paralyzed by sin so that when you desire to do right, to reform, your will and power to execute your good determinations will fail to support your effort.

Barely Escaped.—L. R. of H——, a young man of about twenty-five years of age, presented himself for treatment, a few years ago, for the consequence of self-abuse. Having been taught the habit by evil companions when just emerging into manhood, he had indulged his passions without restraint for several years, not knowing the evil consequences until he began to suffer the effects of sin. Then, being warned by his own experience and by the fortunate thoughtfulness of an intelligent friend who surmised his condition and told him faithfully of the terrible results of the vile habit, he made a manly effort to reform and claimed to have wholly broken the habit. To his great grief he found, however, that the years in which he had devoted himself to sin had wrought sad havoc in his system. In many ways his health was greatly deranged and his once powerful constitution was broken down. The sexual organs themselves were greatly diseased, so much so that a serious and painful surgical operation was necessary. With shame and mortification he looked upon his past life and saw what a hideous work of evil he had wrought. His vileness stood out before him in a vivid light, and he felt ashamed to meet the gaze of his fellows.

After performing the necessary surgical operation upon this poor unfortunate, we dealt faithfully with him, pointing out to him the way by which he might with proper effort in some degree redeem himself by a life-long struggle against every form of impurity. He felt, and rightly, that the task was a most severe one. He well knew that the stamp of sin was on his countenance, and in his mind. Thoughts long allowed to run upon vile subjects, forming filthy pictures in the imagination, are not easily brought back to the channel of purity and virtue. The mind that has learned to love to riot in impure dreams, does not readily acquire a love for the opposite. But he determined to make a brave and earnest effort, and we have every reason to believe that he has, in a measure at least, succeeded. But, if so, he has made a narrow escape. A few more years of sin, and his rescue would have been impossible; both mind and body would have been sunk so deep in the mire of concupiscence that none but Almighty power could have saved him from utter destruction. Thousands of boys and young men are to-day standing on the slippery brink of that awful precipice from which but very few are snatched away. Soon they will plunge headlong over into the abyss of debasement and corruption from whence they will never escape. Oh that we had the power to reach each one of these unfortunate youth before it is too late, and to utter in their ears such warnings, to portray before them such pictures of the sure results of a course of sin, that they might be turned back to the paths of chastity and virtue before they have become such mental, moral, and physical wrecks as we every day encounter in the walks of life. But not one in a thousand can be reached when they have gone so far in sin. When they have ventured once, they can rarely be checked in their downward course until great harm has been wrought which it will require the work of years to undo. The young man we have referred to made indeed a narrow escape, but no one can safely run such a risk. Even he must suffer all his life the consequences of a few years of sin.