The following chapters were contributions to Health--a monthly magazine published in New York City. Certain peculiarities of form and considerable repetition of statement--both of which the reader cannot fail to notice--are owing to the fact that about two-thirds of the chapters were written under the caption "Auto-genetic Poisons in the Intestinal Canal and their Auto-infection." In revising these contributions for book form I have given to each chapter a caption of its leading thought; but I am convinced that repetition of some of the matters treated, especially if the repetition be in a somewhat different connection, is not such a very bad thing. I have used my blue pencil sparingly, and as a consequence the consecutive reader will find that constipation, diarrhea, biliousness, indigestion, auto-infection and proctitis are treated in nearly all the chapters--but with varying applications. Therefore anyone suffering from one of these complaints would better read the whole book instead of only the chapter with the corresponding title.
These pages were written for intelligent laymen by a specialist, during a busy, assiduous practice. I take such radical ground, however, going to the very root of the matter, thatthe general practitioner will do well to give my thesis his careful consideration; he should at least glance at the following Introduction for the gist of my claim.
