USA > Ohio > Women of Ohio; a record of their achievements in the history of the state, Volume IV > Part 15
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into the question of health and disease. On these facts there has been built a complete system of medical practice. Dr. Still met the same kind of treatment that has been the lot of all great pioneers and discoverers. His medical brethren, his neighbors, and even his relatives, turned against him. His practice fell away and he reached the point where his family lacked the necessities of life. His wife and children stood by him. He removed with his family to Kirksville, Missouri. After years of struggle, recognition came, and in 1892, the American School of Osteopathy was founded, the first of the splendid colleges now teach- ing osteopathy from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The first school build- ing of osteopathy is still in good condition, and is now known as the Kirksville College of Osteopathy and Surgery. At Kirksville also were established the first of many osteopathic hospitals, the first of numer- ous clinics, the first osteopathic association. There was a large building which accommodated more than seven hundred students, also a large hospital and nurses' home at the time of Dr. Still's death in 1917. Now there are three new large buildings in addition to the old one in Kirks- ville, also a new hospital, all of which is valued at one million dollars. When personal opposition to Dr. Still and his methods failed, legal ob- stacles were placed in the way, and so it became necessary to seek laws regulating the practice of osteopathy. The first of these was enacted in Vermont in 1896, and now every state has such laws. These few words constitute but the barest outline of the life and work of this great son of Virginia, at whose death at his home in Kirksville, Missouri, Decem- ber 12, 1917, he was hailed as a philosopher and physician who had achieved greatness through being a benefactor of the race."
In Jonesville, Virginia, homage was paid to a native son-Andrew T. Still-when on August 28, 1939, members of Dr. Still's family, chil- dren, grandchildren and great grandchildren; representatives of the State of Virginia; officials and members of the osteopathic profession gathered to unveil a memorial to Dr. Andrew T. Still. The memorial marks the nearby location of the log cabin that was Dr. Still's birth- place. This log cabin was obtained in 1926 from Mr. M. Brown Wygal by Dr. George Laughlin, president of the Kirksville College of Oste- opathy and Surgery, whose wife, Blanche Still Laughlin, is the daughter
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of Dr. Still. This cabin was torn down and moved to Kirksville, Missouri, rebuilt and dedicated on August 19, 1928, to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of Dr. Still's birth, August 6, 1828. The stream which runs under the Natural Bridge was Rev. Abraham Still's spring near Dr. Still's birthplace which is within a few yards of the Lee County Natural Bridge, under which flows a large stream and over which passes a State Highway, destined to be one of the historic parks of this commonwealth, to which area thousands will be drawn annually not only because of this magnificent miracle of stone, but also because within its borders is the birthplace of Dr. Andrew T. Still as well.
At the unveiling of the Historical Marker, Doctor Harry Semones, Chairman of Program Committee of the Marker Unveiling Program, writes that "the unveiling of the historical marker near the birthplace of Andrew Taylor Still, August 28, 1939, was more than an ordinary event to the osteopathic profession. The Virginia Conservation Com- mission authorized the making and erecting of markers to inform the traveling public where to find places of greatest interest when touring the state, which is rich in history from the landing of John Smith at Jamestown in 1607 to the period in which we now live. The Historical Department of the Conservation Commission is known from coast to coast for its wonderful work in gathering material for its more than thirteen hundred markers in every section of "The Old Dominion."
A statue of bronze of Doctor Still stands today in the Courthouse Square in Kirksville, Missouri. There is also the Laughlin Bowl, a vast outdoor amphitheater near the Kirksville College of Osteopathy and Surgery, built by Dr. George Laughlin in memory of Doctor Still.
In the Missouri exhibit at the Century of Progress in Chicago in 1933, among the list of notables of that state was the name of Dr. Andrew T. Still, Discoverer of the Principles of Osteopathy and the Founder of the First School of Osteopathy.
In Memory of Doctor Andrew T. Still, who to this day is spoken of affectionately by the early graduates as "The Old Doctor," a tree was planted in Washington, D. C., two years ago.
"The Lengthening Shadow of Dr. Andrew T. Still," in memoir, compiled by Arthur Grant Hildreth, D.O., president of Still-Hildreth
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Sanatorium, Macon, Missouri (for treatment of nervous and mental diseases), was published in 1938.
Dr. Hildreth is past president of the American Osteopathic Associa- tion, 1899 and 1910, was a member of the House of Representatives, Missouri State Legislature, 1900-1904, and member of the Senate, Mis- souri State Legislature, 1924-1932.
Wallace M. Pearson, A.B., B.Sc., D.O., professor of osteopathic principles and comparative therapeutics, Kirksville College of Oste- opathy and Surgery, in the Forum of Osteopathy, October, 1936, writes: "Osteopathy is a system of medicine which in its theory places chief emphasis upon the structural integrity and natural immunity of the body, and in practice upon the adjustment of structural irregularities and the normalization of functional activities through manipulation."
In the December, 1939, issue of the Kirksville Journal of Osteopathy, the oldest publication of osteopathy, the above author says:
"Osteopathy is really applied science. It is up to the Osteopathic School of Practice to bring to light the scientific truths that will enable the profession to continue to apply treatment in the light of modern science."
Again we quote from Dr. Pearson in the January, 1940, issue of the Kirksville Journal of Osteopathy:
"An osteopathically important truth is that many visceral reflexes caused by stimuli which arise in the sympathetically innervated struc- tures will be expressed in the skeletal structures. Many of these reflexes are palpable as deep muscle contraction.
"The important reflexes produced by stimuli from tissue supplied by the craniobulbar and sacral outflow (para-sympathetic) will be ex- pressed largely in other internal viscera rather than in the skeletal structures.
"It is also an interesting fact that osteopathic physicians who have placed their best effort upon training themselves to find osteopathic lesion pathology have proved themselves to be most unusual in detecting obscure visceral disease, and have often been rated as outstanding in surgical diagnosis. The etiology of osteopathy, the lesion, is as diag- nostic as therapeutic.
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"Osteopathy was never intended to be a limited system of practice, but it was designed by its founder to be an improved system of practice.
"A study of visceral neurology, and scrutiny of modern science, brings to light evidence overwhelming, why this therapeutic science advances against almost overwhelming opposition, and becomes stronger as science unravels the mysteries of physiology."
Many osteopathic physicians and surgeons, both men and women, served at the front and in camps during the World War. Among them is Doctor Jane Craven, formerly of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, now of Paris, France, who served as assistant to a French surgeon at the front during the World War and was the first American woman to receive the croix de guerre. Many others have served and are serving in Federal and State Legislatures, and others hold important positions in health, civic and educational organizations, etc., etc. Aside from the original college there are now five other colleges recognized by the American Osteopathic Association, in Philadelphia, Chicago, Des Moines, Kansas City and Los Angeles, each with its own fine hospital and clinics, and many private hospitals, institutions for the care of nervous and mental patients; public and private clinics, and sanataria in various localities. Research work has been carried on for some time, particularly in Los Angeles, California; Akron, Ohio; Paris, France; Edinburgh University, as well as elsewhere. Dr. Charlotte Weaver, of Akron, Ohio, has dis- covered the lesionability of the articulations in the base of the skull, and has definitely presented to the profession its relationship to the retarded mentalities, the birth paralyses, and to several of the insan- ities heretofore believed to be incurable, resulting in restoring many cases to normalcy, and improving others considered hopeless because of too extensive deterioration of brain tissue. Other osteopathic physicians and research workers have shown the direct relationship of spinal lesions to ill health, etcetera.
There are more than ten thousand osteopathic physicians and sur- geons in active practice throughout the world: the United States, Can- ada, Columbia and Argentine Republic, South America, Costa Rica Republic, Central America, Burmuda, England, Scotland, Irish Free State, Northern Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Egypt, the United
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Provinces, India, France, Holland, Sweden, Norway. Of these many are women, a number of whom are located in Ohio.
Dr. Andrew T. Still stressed osteopathy as a broad field for the services of women and the need of humanity for women physicians and surgeons. He constantly urged women to take up this work in colleges.
An honorary member of the Osteopathic Women's National Associ- ation, Dr. Louise Burns, an osteopathic research worker from Los An- geles, with world-wide reputation, in an address on "True Osteopathy a Science," said "True osteopathy carries on in vigor in the scientific spirit, observing results, gathering and classifying facts in honesty and in truth, selecting and discarding and building, each in his own place and with freedom of intelligence and effort and interpretation. To de- nounce, to argue bitterly, to entrench vanity and pride-these are deathly. To select one's activities, to share knowledge, to be free alike from the domination of others and the necessity for domineering others- this is essential to truth, to scientific endeavor, to the growth of true osteopathy."
A nationally known Ohio member, Dr. Josephine L. Peirce of Lima, in "Improving Our Heritage," says that "Organized womanhood with its potential power has made a marvelous growth during the past fifty years. Our pioneer women fought for standards and established cri- teria while our geographic frontiers were being developed. Today our west expansion is complete. We must settle down and build for the future, not by moving west as was done in the past, but by improving our heritage."
From an address given at the National Conference of the National Woman's Party by Dr. Lena Madesin Phillips, president, International Business and Professional Women's Clubs, "In the matter of equal rights for women, the National Woman's Party represents the moving force. The right of women to work, like the right of suffrage, touches the guarantee of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness embodied in the Declaration of Independence and marks the dividing line between freedom and slavery."
Eleanor Roosevelt stresses the right of everyone to work.
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Extracts from the article on "Woman's Worth to Osteopathy" by Margaret H. Jones, noted osteopathic surgeon and obstetrician on the staff of the Kansas City College of Osteopathy and Surgery: "The prejudices which the history of medicine and custom has inflicted upon women are unfair and untenable. That women can qualify for gradua- tion from medical schools and for practice, either general or special, there is no longer any doubt. She has proved to be adaptable, versatile, and capable. She has successfully participated in the commercial, in- dustrial, political, social, economic, literary and artistic endeavors and activities of this complex civilization. Osteopathy, more than other professions, has recognized this fact and has encouraged women to enter its field. Having been a member of the faculty of an osteopathic college for several years and being extremely interested in the careers which our graduates make for themselves, I have observed that the women in the field have given an account of themselves comparable in every phase of professional life with that attained by the men." "Osteopathy offers woman something distinctly desirable which utilizes her inherent qualities and compensates her with a useful career. Woman's inborn sympathy suits her to the duties of a physician; her native endurance frequently wins great odds in the sick-room; her inalienable persistence lends a weighty influence in the conflict with disease and death. Women doctors of osteopathy have made contributions to the profession's growth and prestige which could never be accomplished without them. Espe- cially is this true through club and organization activities. Associations such as our national sororities make friendly contacts and enjoy recipro- cations which are both pleasant and valuable. The prime organization of this nature is the Osteopathic Women's National Association which rightly deserves the support of every woman and the consideration of every man in our ranks. Woman's place in osteopathy is wherever she can serve the profession of her choice and thus minister to humanity; her worth to the profession is directly proportionate to the loyalty and dignity which distinguish her in the performance of her duties."
The Board of Trustees of the American Osteopathic Association, at its eighteenth convention in Philadelphia, August 3-7, 1914, created the Women's Bureau of Public Health; this bureau served for six years.
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The sentiment which had been growing among the women of the osteopathic profession for years for an Osteopathic Women's National Association was crystallized into action June 27, 1920, in Chicago dur- ing the Sunday afternoon conference of the Women's Bureau of Public Health, preceding the twenty-fourth annual convention of the American Osteopathic Association. With the established precedent of all groups which have nation-wide definite aims and policies being nationally or- ganized with a desire not only to maintain the splendid work started, but to advance its program and to cooperate with other organizations in this public program for the welfare of women and children, the only course which seemed clear in order to secure effective machinery to promote these objects was to effect a national association. Discussion followed upon the advantages to the women for broader service to humanity, for larger opportunities in advancing the program, and for recognition and representation among organized womanhood through affiliation or federation with other national organizations. These and many other points were presented and thoroughly discussed. At the close of the discussion a motion was unanimously carried in favor of organizing an Osteopathic Women's National Association. The follow- ing day, during the business session of the Section meeting, the consti- tution was adopted and the officers elected. It was the desire of the executive committee that, under the new organization, all of the machin- ery of the past Women's Bureau of Public Health be retained and strengthened; its chairmen selected to carry on the work of organization in their respective states. Each state to have its own State Osteopathic Women's National Association, convening as in the past, during the State Osteopathic Convention, selecting its own president and other officers, just as in the past, it elected its chairman.
Dr. Helen M. Dunning, of New York City, says "I feel how this women's organization is fitting into the whole picture with a plan whose educational value to the profession no other group can take on."
Dr. Mary L. Heist, an outstanding Canadian member, writes on Vocational Guidance, "There is a growing demand for women physicians of all schools and particularly for osteopathic women physicians and surgeons. Women are especially fitted to become physicians to women.
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How often has a woman doctor been told 'I knew you would understand.' We know that all women are not thus endowed. But we do know that there are many splendid women who are only waiting to be told of the opportunities offered them in the profession of osteopathy." An again in an article on ethics, published in an early issue of the Bulletin of the Osteopathic Women's National Association: "I trust that all often read over the osteopathic code of ethics. It is beautifully written. The authors have made all very much indebted to them. If the entire pro- fession worked together living up to the rules of the game as outlined in the code nothing could stop it, no one could overcome it." "A physician should be well grounded in the principles upon which the science of healing is based. He should, therefore, pre-eminently among men, be a student of nature and her laws. Entering the profession and thereby becoming entitled to full professional fellowship incurs an obligation to uphold its dignity and honor, to exalt its standing, and to extend the bounds of its usefulness." "Every physician should identify himself with the professional organizations, contributing to their support with his money, his time, and his talents. There is no profession from the members of which greater purity of character and a higher standard of moral excellence are required; and to attain such excellence is a duty every physician owes to the profession and to the public. It is incum- bent on physicians to be temperate in all things. A steady hand, an accurate eye, and an unclouded mind are essential to the welfare and even the lives of human beings. Theodore Roosevelt once said: 'Every man owes something to the profession of which he forms a part.' Physi- cians should study, present papers, attend conventions, and take part in the activities of the profession, joining with their fellows in promoting the welfare of all. The friendships of life, in the profession and outside of it, can be based only upon integrity and honorable dealing. Unethical practices will spoil these fine relationships."
Members have held vice presidencies and secretaryships in the American Osteopathy Association, and from time to time have served on its board of trustees; at present there are two on the board. They appear on the program of the annual conventions of the American Osteopathic Association and are among the chairmen of the various
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convention sections. They are among the members of the house of delegates of the American Osteopathic Association. Members have been presidents and secretaries and on boards of trustees, etc., of different divisional societies (this refers to state and provincial organizations) of the American Osteopathic Association-Ohio being one of them- as well as those of District Societies of Osteopathic Physicians and Sur- geons. They have been and are on the staffs of osteopathic colleges, hospitals and public clinics. Have also served as presidents of various state and local federation clubs, women's clubs, as Soroptomist, Zonta, Business and Professional Women's Clubs, College Clubs, the Associa- tion of University Women, church women's groups, surgeons, obstetri- cians, specialists in all the departments of medicine, home makers, mothers. The full recognition of osteopathy in New Mexico was effected by a woman doctor, Dr. Caroline C. McCune, of Santa Fe. A member has served with distinction in the Nebraska State Legislature-Dr. Claire E. Owens, of Exeter, Nebraska.
Three of the important achievements of the Osteopathic Women's National Association are:
I-The Osteopathic Women's Auxiliary.
The Osteopathic Women's National Association some years ago, thinking to bring into use for the growth of the profession the potential abilities of the vast army of lay women-wives and kinswomen of os- teopathic physicians, and women friends of osteopathy whose worth was already beginning to be recognized and appreciated by the profes- sion at large with its increasing need of them as a large part of its back- ground-organized the Osteopathic Women's Auxiliary with groups all through the nation and in London, England. Several of these are in Ohio. Many of these auxiliaries are affiliates of the Osteopathic Wom- en's National Association with a representative from each who is en- titled to vote. The auxiliaries render valuable service to the osteopathic profession in educational, civic and legislative matters. They supply needs of hospitals, sanitaria and clinics in new equipment, furnishing private rooms in hospitals, as well as supplies such as bandages, gowns, binders, tray covers; they mend linen and sew, provide layettes for charity babies, etc., etc., raise money by charity balls, card parties, pic-
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nics, etc., one group inspiring another group. It is expected that the auxiliaries will serve the profession in many other ways. One of the distinctive things to be undertaken as a permanent activity will be the observance of what will be known as Founders Day to be observed annually on the first Saturday in October.
II-A-The editor of the Forum of Osteopathy, published monthly by the American Osteopathic Association, reserves space to broadcast to the profession at large highlights of the interests and activities of the Osteopathic Women's National Association and the Osteopathic Women's Auxiliaries affiliates.
B-Bulletin of Osteopathic Women's National Association, pub- lished quarterly; first issue December, 1935. Dr. Anna Mary Mills, a psychiatrist in Chicago, writes, "For years the officers of the organi- zation felt the great need of a bulletin to keep its members informed of the objectives of the Osteopathic Women's National Association, and to let them know the effectual ways these objectives were carried out; it is impossible to build an organization and to develop and maintain an interest in it unless its members are kept in touch with one another and with its functioning. The periodical serves not alone to keep the members informed, but also to increase and strengthen the personal quality of the association by including in its pages material of particular rather than that of general value which because of its nature would not justify inclusion in a publication by an association confined to its own members. This material relates chiefly to the organization and consists of news, items, plans, organization activities, and articles on profes- sional subjects written by the members. Since the Osteopathic Women's National Association is affiliated with other national and international club groups, there are also included from time to time matters of interest pertaining to them and to activities of women everywhere."
III-The Osteopathic Women's National Association at its business meeting in July, 1935, during the thirty-eighth convention of the Ameri- can Osteopathic Association in Cleveland, endorsed a proposed amend- ment to the Constitution of the United States (the Lucretia Mott Amend- ment). Article I-Men and women shall have equal rights throughout the United States and every place subject to its jurisdiction. Article 2-
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Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legisla- tion. It endorsed also the Equal Rights Treaty, Article I-The contract- ing states agree that upon the ratification of this treaty men and women shall have equal rights throughout the territory subject to their respec- tive jurisdiction.
In an editorial in the "Buckeye Osteopathic Physician," the official publication of the Ohio State Society of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons, December, 1933, issue, Dr. Albert C. Johnson, now chief sur- geon in the Detroit Osteopathic Hospital, writes: "But, what of the world's women ? H. G. Wells says of them, 'When they exercise political power . .. legislators have found themselves obliged to take a greater interest in social questions; when they serve on governing bodies . . . their work is admittedly of weight. ... In politics ... they seem dis- posed to make things cleaner and to throw their weight in favor of open and decent conduct. Is woman the leaven that is destined to change the character of civilization? Is she not bringing her unselfish and there- for spiritual influence to bear at a million different vantage points? A recital of the unnumbered activities of today's women against the enemies of what is moral in society would be a revelation to their some- what envious male malcontents.'
"In browsing through records of the Osteopathic Women's National Association we found the following, 'The object of this association, the Osteopathic Women's National Association, shall be to protect the wel- fare of women and children, to cooperate with other women's organiza- tions; to stimulate other women's state and local organizations; to en- courage women students for our osteopathic colleges, to secure combined activity and to stress our public relations.' The record of the Osteopathic Women's National Association for the past few years is one of achieve- ment that has extended osteopathic women's influence into the vital organs of a sick world."
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