Eureka!

Stout talk addressed to men of greatness, indeed.

Eureka! Charles McCabe
From his collection, “The Good Man’s Weakness”, 1974

“How come a doctor gets so smart? I am referring to Dr. Charles Berry, who is chief physician to our noble astronauts. He has uttered one of those staggering simplicities which tend to confirm the view there is still some sanity abroad. He was talking about the general practice of medicine, a subject which has produced some fairly profound nonsense. The doctor’s words, exactly.

“”Take some aspirin and some Scotch. And if that doesn’t work, take more aspirin and more Scotch and go to bed. This is a formula for all ailments.”

“Those are the words of a man who knows what he is talking about. There is absolutely no nonsense here. No therapeutic smiles. No tender loving care. No injunctions to stop doing what you like to do. Just the stuff, on target.

“I remember hearing a distinguished physician say that it was only about 40 years ago that doctors began to be be sure that their administrations were doing more good than harm to the patients. How far into the area of benignity the profession has moved in recent years, ask your favorite sawbones. I’ll stick with Dr. Berry.

“For years it has been my claim that Scotch was a lot better for you than aspirin; but it took the good space doctor to make that further deduction which distinguishes mere information from inspiration. We’ve all seen apples falling, but it took a cat named Newton…Scotch and aspirin! The simplicity is thrilling. Mix one great analgesic with another great analgesic, and add the most marvelous pain killer of all, sleep. Bob’s your uncle.

“Too little is heard these days about the affirmative effects of booze and boozing. Everything you have heard against the sauce is regrettably true. The Bard, who is known to have taken a dram from time to time, hit it on the head in Othello:

“”Oh God, that men should put an enemy in their mouths to steal away their brains! That we should with joy, pleasance, revel, and applause transform ourselves into beasts!”

“Yes, we are not at our loveliest after the fourth martini, and the lies about women, and the general bigmouthing. Even the career drinkers, those dogged souls who carry on a lifelong combat with their livers, are not necessarily at their best when tanked.

“What applies to the gents goes approximately double for the ladies, especially in the martini league. To the average female temperment, gin and french is like the priming of dynamite. This is a mystery which has been explored by many talented tipplers, both male and female. It remains just that.

“On the credit side, there is the old French proverb that there are more old drunkards than old doctors. The number of guys who have been polishing off a fifth or so for 50 years or so is more than the righteous care to admit. There is some credibility to the view that booze acts as a sort of pickling agent to the human frame, with preserving effect.

“Spirits are especially good for the spirit. When you grow slightly nauseous from the heaving of the passions, there is nothing to equal a double for starting the healing process. Over the years I’ve found the sauce mightily useful for combatting two rather nasty ailments: Falling in love, and falling out of love. Both are made easier by firm applications of the grape.

“In Dr. Berry’s sage utterance I do not find any hint of that dread medical word: Moderation. Like, booze is lovely provided you don’t get drunk. That course is about as satisfactory as making love on a bicycle. If I read the doctor correctly, he advocates getting blind drunk if the pain is great enough, and sleeping it off. And if you hurt when you wake up, more of the same. This is stout talk addressed to men of greatness.”