Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/122

102 "When called to a patient commend yourself to God and to the angel who guided Tobias. On the way learn as much as possible from the messenger, so that if you can discover nothing from the patient's pulse, you may still astonish him and gain his confidence by your knowledge of the case. On arrival, ask the friends whether the patient has confessed, for if you bid him do so after the examination it will frighten him. Then sit down, take a drink, and praise the beauty of the country or extol the liberality of the family. Next, proceed to feel his pulse. Do not be in a hurry to give an opinion, for his friends will be more grateful for your judgment if they have to wait for it. Tell the patient you will by God's help cure him, but inform his friends that the case is a serious one." "Suppose you know nothing," suggests a writer of this period, "say there is an obstruction of the liver. Perhaps the patient will reply: 'Nay, Master, it is my head or my legs that trouble me.' Repeat that it comes from the liver and especially use the word 'obstruction,' for patients do not understand it, which is important."

"When you go to a patient, always try and do