This is a sceptical age， but although our faith in many of the things in which our forefathers fervently believed has weakened， our confidence in the curative properties of the bottle of medicine remains the same a theirs. This modern faith in medicines is proved the fact that the annual drug bill of the Health Services is mounting to astronomical figures and shows no signs at present of ceasing to rise. The majority of the patients attending the medical out-patients departments of our hospitals feel that they have not received adequate treatment unless they are able to carry home with them some tangible remedy in the shape of a bottle of medicine， a box of pills， or a small jar of ointment， and the doctor in charge of the department is only too ready to provide them with these requirements. There is no quicker method of disposing of patients then by giving them what they are asking for， and since most medical men in the Health Services are overworked and have little time for offering time-consuming and little-appreciated advice on such subjects as diet， right living， and the need for abandoning bad habits etc.， the bottle， the box， and the jar are almost always granted them.

    Nor is it only the ignorant and ill-educated person who was such faith in the bottle of medicine. It is recounted of Thomas Carlyle that when him in his pocket what remained of a bottle of medicine formerly prescribed for an indisposition of Mrs. Carlyle's. Carlyle was entirely ignorant of what the bottle in his pocket contained， of the nature of the illness from which his friend was suffering， and of what had previously been wrong with his wife， but a medicine that had worked so well in one form of illness would surely be of equal benefit in another， and comforted by the thought of the help he was bringing to his friend， he hastened to Henry Taylor's house. History does not relate whether his friend accepted his medical help， but in all probability he did. The great advantage of taking medicine is that it makes no demands on the taker beyond that of putting up for a moment with a disgusting taste， and that is what all patients demand of their doctors —— to be cured at no inconvenience to themselves.

    sceptical adj. 懷疑的

    forefathers n.  祖先

    fervently adv. 熱情地

    curative adj. 治病的

    astronomical adj. 天文學的

    tangible adj.實實在在的

    remedy n.   藥物

    ointment n.  藥膏

    prescribe v.  開藥方

    indisposition n.  小病

    inconvenience n.  令人討厭的

    inconvenience n.  不便

    這是一個懷疑一切的時代，可是雖然我們對我們祖先篤信的許多事物已不太相信，我們對瓶裝藥品療效的信心仍與祖輩一樣堅定。衛生部門的處度藥費上升到了天文數字，并且目前尚無停止上升的跡象，這個事實證實了現代人對藥物的依賴。在醫院門診部看病的大多數人覺得，如果不能帶回一些看得見、摸得著的藥物，如一瓶藥水，一盒藥丸、一小瓶藥膏回家的話，就沒算得到了充分的治療。負責門診的醫生也非常樂意為前來看病的人提供他們想要得到的藥物，病人要什么就給什么，沒有比這樣處理病人更快的方法了。因為衛生部門的大多數醫生超負荷工作，所以沒有多少時間提出一些既費時而又不受人歡迎的忠告，如注意飲食、生活有規律，需要克服壞習慣等等，結果就是把瓶藥、盒藥、罐藥開給看病的人而完事大吉。

    并不只是那些無知和沒受過良好教育的人才迷信藥瓶子。據說托馬斯�？ㄈR爾有過這么一件事：他聽說朋友亨利。泰勒病了，就立刻跑去看他，衣袋里裝上了他妻子不舒服時吃剩下的一瓶藥�？ㄈR爾不知道藥瓶子里裝的是什么藥，不知道他的朋友得的是什么病，也不知道妻子以前得的是什么病，只知道一種藥對一種病有好處，肯定對另一種病也會有好處。想到能對朋友有所幫助，他感到很欣慰，于是急急忙忙來到了亨利。泰勒的家里，他的朋友是否接受了他的藥物治療，歷史沒有記載，但很可能接受了。服藥的最大優點是：除了暫時忍受一下令人作嘔的味道外，對服藥人別無其他要求。這也正是病人對醫生的要求 —— 病要治好，但不要太麻煩。