health began to fail, she diagnosed his case as the result of Mr. Arens' mesmeric influence, or, as she expressed it, "arsenical poison, mentally administered." To say that Mr. Eddy believed in malicious mesmerism more sincerely than did his wife would perhaps be incorrect; but his was the more passive nature, and he had less power of reaction and recuperation. He was convinced that he was being slowly poisoned, and daily treated himself against Mr. Arens and his alliterative chemical equivalent.
When Mr. Eddy continued to grow steadily worse, Mrs. Eddy became alarmed, and sent for a regular physician. She called Dr. Rufus K. Noyes, then of Lynn, a graduate of the Dartmouth Medical School, and who has now for many years been a physician in Boston. Dr. Noyes found Mr. Eddy's case very simple, and told Mrs. Eddy that her husband was suffering from a common and very well-defined disease of the heart, and that he might die at any moment. He came to see Mr. Eddy twice after this, gave him advice as to diet, hygiene, and rest, and suggested the usual tonics for the heart and general system.
Mr. Eddy's death occurred on the morning of Saturday, June 3d, some hours before daybreak, and almost immediately Mrs. Eddy telegraphed Dr. Noyes to come up from Lynn and perform an autopsy.[1] The autopsy was private, and was conducted at the widow's request. Dr. Noyes found that death had resulted from an organic disease of the heart, the aortic
- ↑ Only the year before, Mrs. Eddy had expressed herself strongly against post-mortem examinations: "A metaphysician never gives medicine, recommends or trusts in hygiene, or believes in the ocular or the post-mortem examination of patients." Science and Health (1881), Vol. I., p. 269.
"Many a hopeless case of disease is induced by a single post-mortem examination," Science and Health (1881), Vol. I., p. 163.
