PRIMITIVE MEDICINE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21540, 11 July 1933, Page 9

PRIMITIVE MEDICINE

RELIGION AND MAGIC OLD MAORI REMEDIES Medicine among savages was the subject of a lecture delivered by Mr. Kenneth Mackenzie in the University College Hall last evening under the auspices of the Auckland Institute. Much in modern life could be explained by the study of the beliefs and customs of primitive peoples, both ancient and extant, said the lecturer. In considering sickness, injury and death the savage failed to link up cause and effect, but jumped /to conclusions or, like many people to-day, he used the " post hoc, propter hoc" method of reasoning. In other words, he argued that if one event followed another •in time, the first event was the cause of the second. The scientific method of observing a largo number of cases, together with " controls," arid building up a hypothesis from the observations, was unknown to him. < Study had shown that there was an essential unity in folk-lore at all times and in all places, and that its underlying principles were always the same. Disease and death, like other misfortunes, were never regarded as occurring naturally, but were attributed to offended gods or spirits, or to witchcraft exercised by a human being. There was therefore a close association between medicino and religion and the functions of priest and physician were often performed by the same person. The priest would be called upon to find out what supernatural powers the patient had offended or who was bewitching him, and to take countermeasures. The force of suggestion was very great, and there were many authenticated cases of savages who had died from no ascertainable physical cause after convincing themselves that they had mortally offended tho unseen powers.

Primitive peoples made much use of medicino and surgery, but always in association with religion and magic. Their medicines wero chiefly herbs, and such poteut agents as quinine, cocaine and opium had been known from very early times. In New Zealand tutu was about tho only native plant of any potency, but the Maoris used many decoctions of leaves, bark and roots. War wounds and fractures naturally led to tho practice of surgery. Barks containing tannin, such as those of rata and tawa, wero used by tho Maoris to staunch wounds, and flax gum and tho flower of tootoe for dressings. Some other Polynesian peoples wero skilful in removing broken weapons from wounds. Tho trephining of skulls had been carried out even in prehistoric times, especially in Peru. Many recovered specimens had holes, around tho edges of which was a growth of bone, showing that tlu patient had survived tho operation, possibly for years. Mr. Maekenzio displayed a skull from New Britain containing a hole of this nature. The former missionary who gave it to him, ho said, had witnessed many such operations, mainly for the treatment of injuries in battle.