Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1875-10-15
Correspondence.
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.

THE END OF A QUACK-BUsINEss-
TY TO CHILDREN-THE FAsHIoNs-
POLITICS.
NEW YORK, Oct. u, 1875.
Who in all these United States has not
heard of II. T. Helmbold, the Manufac-
turer and vender of Buchu? Two-thirds
of the people have paid money for his med
icines, and whether they received any bene
fit therefrom or not, they may be benefited
by reading somewhat of his history. Last
Thursday DIR" Helmbold was, for the
fourth time, incarcerated in lunatic
asylum, where he will probably stay the
remainder of his life.
Henry T. Helmbold commenced life as a
druggists clerk in Philadelphia, progress
ing, by the help Of a brother, to the pro-
prietorship ola small drug store. He con-
ceived the idea ofputting up Buchu in the
form since so well known, twenty years
ago, and after various ups and downs-he
failed three times-succeeded in establish
luS ~ do d ot1Huaiu pdtCut uiCutOihO, anu
received from its sale an income of hun
dreds of thousands of dollars per annum.
But the doctor could not stand prosperity.
The more his goods sold the more extrava-
gan: he became. He commenced lite of
the widest excess in point of expenditures
ever known in this city. He had one six.
in-hanG team, the six horses costing him
not less than $4,000. The drag to which
they were driven was the most expensive
and elegant ever imported to America.
Then be had score or more of otner
horses for every purpose that borse-hesh
is used. OF course he was compelled tc
have large and elegant stables, and al
army of people to care for and manage bis
equine interests. His principle coachmer
was paid a salary of $1,000 per annum,
with rooms and subsistence added. The
doctor was not badly off for places to live.
He had house in New York, a mansion
at Long Branch, and the most expensive
apartments in the most expensive hotels il
the country sheltered him at times. HI
seemed TO have an itch for throwing away
money. 1t was nothing for him to take
his six-hoIse drag, With lis coachmen anc
outriders, with full retinue Of servants
to Baltimore or Boston, engage the mos
sumptuous apartments and astonish th'
natives by display such as they haC
never seen before. The little fellow woulC
get into that immense drag all alone, witt
a cOachman six feet six on the box, ant
two footmen of the same proportions on
behind, all dressed in white livery, and
would be driven ia solitary grandeur al
over the city, bowling at every manifesta
ton, as pleased as a child with new toy
The mock eulogies of interested newspa
pers he took for honest tributes, and th,
hattery of hungry sycophants he swallowed
as sweet morsels.
He believed himself to be really grea
man, and nothing could be too gross fol
him to believe of himself, consequently h'
was surrounded with mob of para site.
who traded hattery for money. These
fellows absolutely got the little man to &C
tually believe tha. he could be President
and he spent a great deal of money to briu!
himself before the people.
And while all his vanity and insanity
he was in many respects shrewd business
man. He was the boldest advertiser tha
ever lived, and so far as his Legitimate
business was concerned, it was well anC
shrewdly done. He had the trick of start
ling the public into buying his medicines
and he was the closest and shrewdest man
in the business in dealing with newspaper.
He never threw away any money in hi!
business. Could he have managed outside
as well as inside, he would have beer
worth S5,000.00 to-day. 1t was nothing
uncommon for him to contract 500, 900 tC
100000 for advertising at single stroke
He made contracts to the amount of Sl75
900 for advertising his "Catawba Pills
before single box had been put up.
But wine. gambling, horses, pumps and
parasites did their work at last, and three
years ago Henry Helm5old slipped away
to Europe pauper. a dozen great for.
tunes had slipped through his fingers, and
be was compelled to live on the continent
on the charity of a brother. His magnifi
cent stores in n ew York and Philadelphia
his horses, his carriages, everything went
under the hammer. leaving nothing but
what would not sell. His friends" all
left him of course, and when he returned a
few months ago he was as crazy as loon.
His wife was compelled to send him to al
asylum where he will probably die. Yale,
Helmbold. The only use he ever was to
the world that endured him was 10 point q
moral. There wasn't enough of him to
adorn tale.
BUSINESS
continues fairly good, though not brisk.
There have been some heavy movements
of dry goods of forced nature, and some
thing is dong in other goods. but it is far
from satisfactory. One of the largest tea
houses in the city told me that the month
of Septem Der was the worst month they
had had since they had been in trade, and
that October promised nothing better.