Here is a letter from Siméon Korsakow to Hahnemann, written Oct. 17./29. 1832, received probably Nov. :11

Korsakoff

..Nov. 11, Korsakoff

Monsieur!

Penetrated by the flattering expressions you were so kind to address to me, I‘ve redoubled the efforts to merit them, at least as far as that depended of me. This guided me to a discovery which will also perhaps facilitate the use of Homoeopathy. I hasten to hand you some issues of a booklet which I have printed on that matter, as well as a small model of the rectilinear [? in French: ‚rectilique‘ or ‚rectiligne‘] homeoscope which can,however, - although only roughly made here in the country where I live - make it easier than a description to appraise the advantages of such a procedure.
I would count myself lucky, if the tool I indicate would get your acknowledgement.

I think I still have to tell you some effects of human blood, which I found very energetic for the diseases of the blood system. Now first the way how I prepared it.
I pricked myself into one finger with a needle and impregnated with this blood one globule [the german word ‚Streukugelchen‘ was used here in the French text; the translator] which I put into a vial containing about 1000 similar simple globules, and I succussed that vial for half a minute. Following the system of signs I adopted for this way of preparation, I labelled it Sanguis m. (minima). Then  from this vial one globule was put ino another vial containing 1000 globules, which produced a Sanguis m.1. (minima prima), and with these latter ones I obtained effects definitely curative in several cases of plethora, as well as in other bad  .....[word not readable; the translator], which stemmed from too frequent or badly managed bloodlettings, in metrorrhagias etc. Doctor Hermann to whom I conveyed this preparation of degree, Sanguis m.2, also used it successfully. This observation could lead to carrying out more research  with other parts of our organism where perhaps very effectful remedies may be hidden. This is the reason which led me to submit these rather curious facts to you.

With the deepest respect,

Monsieur,

St. Petersbourg,          your zealous admirer,

October 17/29, 1832     Siméon Karsakof

Transcription and translation from the French original by Gaby Rottler,  2000

(Source: The original letter is kept in  the ‚Homöopathie Archiv, Nr. A 621‘ in the Institute for the history of medicine of the Robert Bosch Foundation‘, Stuttgart. Printed as a picture in "Frühzeit der Homöopathie", R. Wittern, Hippokrates Verlag, 1984.)

Printing of the letter with friendly permission of the ‚Institute for the history of medicine of the Robert Bosch Foundation‘, Stuttgart.

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To the French original text

A commentary:

In this letter we find several interesting news:
First of all the Homoeoscope - what was it?
According to R.Wittern, it was probably a set of tables which should alleviate the search for the remedy. Korsakow obviously suggested his Homoeoscope to the Russian Academy of Sciences, but it was refused for being unpractical.

More detailed information about the Homeoscope in an article by Alexander Kotok:
 http://www.homeorizon.com/mainpagegeneral.asp?t=Ezine13.htm

The idea of the special preparation of his own blood, a clearly isopathic method, was later on taken up by Gross, 1834. Alfons Noack talked about his ‘Observations concerning Isopathy’ in 1837. At the same time, between the years 1832 and 1837 Johann Lux and Constantin Hering also started to use isopathic remedies.

Interesting is his method of preparation, of producing the 1st. degree: merely by adding 1000 simple globules to 1 glob., impregnated with a drop of blood, and shaking it for half a minute. No trituration, no dilution. And then he continued plussing (as this method is called today), a way of preparation about which he already wrote to Hahnemann in a letter in June 7/19, 1831. Now, for producing the 2nd degree, he only added another 1000 glob. to 1 glob of the 1st degree, and shook. According to his convictions the globules were thus potentized to a higher degree - a belief Hahnemann did not share. Korsakow had already written in 1829, that to avoid such a further dynamization of dry globules it was necessary to moisten them with 1 or 2 drops, so they lumped together at the bottom of the vial and thus a continuous movement and friction was excluded.
In spite of their different opinions about the effect of friction and movement of dry globules in a vial, Korsakow was highly respected by Hahnemann and von Boenninghausen.

The Korsakowian method of producing higher potencies of dilutions by using only one vial instead of many single vials, can well be considered as one of the milestones in the history of homoeopathy, notwithstanding the fact, that Constantine Hering, while staying in Surinam, also used such a method for preparing potencies.

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