SUMMARY (Ridvan Askin, edited by Deborah Madsen):

Although the title suggests that this is a book specifically devoted to the water-cure treatment of consumption, the Introduction begins with a general defense of veganism because a predominantly vegan diet forms part of Shew's treatment of consumption. He presents two arguments: first, he notes “that the manual labor of the world is done mainly on the strength gained from vegetable food” (iii). Secondly, he makes the anatomical and physiological argument in favor of veganism – that human teeth and digestive organs are simply not made for the consumption of flesh. Animal food “over-stimulates the powers of life, and tends preternaturally to wear out the energies of the living body, and thus to shorten man's days” (iv). The book then focuses on the specifics of consumption and its treatment with the water-cure.