The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1879-07-24
ag41tsreIla,rrrms.
oUININE.
The PhlladeIphln McnOpOIists-rCOst Of hanuisc
ture-Its C6npnmption.

nlace ouinine or The tea llal QcCasioned
a great deal og she qEngs'sIs
and chemists pi te| " s.ale y .Ee Y. sa-
ternoou the 1I'l' 19Fs fs,|''.
had recoyefaa Ne '1Ala aAFq q
Its Finance slaA ms
been rsferE hsu gAssa 'iefA
consiassabl Il l2eIlss|ol Qqtes
who has bse1 parl cI|Al IN t1is
movement waa iuaha taenipg " his
home. q arn alassd ~ to days news"
said he eone of the things thathas been
fought fCr during the past twelve years
has come to pass. The blood tax on
ouinine Is at last removed" y ''
Mr.. Moore says that quinine has long
been In the hands Of two large monopo'
lists In Philadelphia. These two are the
houses of Powers & Weightman and no
sengsrten & Co. Both are manufactur'
ing chemists, and, immense as the trade
in uuinine is in the United States, there
is but little in the market that is not the
product of one or the other of these Phil.
adelphia factories. These establishments
have brought their owners fabulous
wealth. 1t is said that Powers q Weight
man possess fortue of $4,000 600, while
RoseDgarten & Co. are worth at least
$l0OOOOOO. "Of course" added Mr..
Moore, "these are only the popular gues
ses, but at all events the firms in ques-
ton are very wealthy, and they enjoy an
exclusive monopoly. In the first place,
they get bark from which quinine is
made free of duty. 1t is torn from the
cinchona tree that grows in Peru, Boli-
via, New Grenada and the coast of the
Caribbean Sea. A little comes by the
Way of London from the British planta'
tioas in India and Java. This pays a
discriminating duty of 10 per cent, under
the old navigation laws, framed when
the States were very young, Tor the pur'
pose of encouraging the direct trade with
China and the East. These laws make
goods dutiable that come by way of Lon
don, but free when brought in American
vessels direct from the Orient. Not
more than $4,000 was gained last year
by the importation of foreign quinine.
But this is in excess of the regular rev.
enue from that source, and was brought
about by the yellow fever epidemic in
the Southern States. The Philadelphia
monopolists did not supply enough to
meet the suddenly increased demand.
Quinine became scarce, and little was
imported. There are many people In the
South who are 80 used to Pelletier's qui-
nine, from France, and have such conf.
denCe in its quality that they would
rather pay the extra price that is caused
by the tax upon it than use that OF any
other make. On that account there is
always little imported" As matter
of Justice, Mr.. Moore thinks it should be
stated that the product of the Philadel-
phia monopolists ia of the most excellent
quality.
The present price of quinine in London
is lis Cd per ounce, and it can be laid
down in New York, free of duty, for $3
per ounce. The price of the American
auinine is So 40, but the foreign article
becomes worth 20 cents more, or $3.50
when the import duty is laid upon it.
The 20 cents in favor of the monopolists'
uuinine is what has kept the foreign ar
ticle away, and those who use the drug
are obliged to pay the extra 40 cents to
the Philadelphians.
The people of the United States con.
sumo every year from 100000 to 1,200,-
OOO ounces of quinine, which affords the
Philadelphia firms q clear profit over
manufacturers prices of $500,0OO a year.
This is taken from the poor, the sick,
and the managers of the hospitals. For
years. whoever has taken quinine pill
has paid the Philadelphia firm cent,
This Philadelphia monopoly was o bnox-
ious seven or eight years ago, but it was
maintained by the efforts Of the million
aires themselves. In 1856, Pelletier, the
French chemist, sent two sons to this
country to begin the manufacture OF his
famous quinine. The young men bought
land up town in the neighborhood of
New York, and built a factory. They
did not attempt to undermine the other
manufacturers but the monopcists cut
down the market price, and the French
men lest money. The land the French
men had bought deprecated in value,
and they saw it would be best for them
to sell out and return home. After this
the war broke out, and quinine was sub
iect to a tax of As per cent The duty at
present is 20 per cent.
Mr.. Moore has always regarded the
tax on quinine as an ungenerous tax. 1t
protected no great industry employing
thousands. It benefited only few mil.
lionaires, and it was drawn from the
pockets of the most needy and poor in
the land, and from the charity hospitals.
Mr.. Moore says that he has no doubt that
the drug will be cheaper in the future,
on accoult of the competition that will
arise. 1t will be as cheap here as in Eu-
rope, except for the slight expense Of i'm
porting it, and the charity hospitals OF
the country will save no less than $780,
900 or 500, 900 a year by the reform. 1t
is not thought that the removal of the
tax will interfere with the Philadelphia
producers except in 30 far as it reduces
the profits they have enjoyed,
At the drug house of W. H. Schiefelin |
& Co., in Williams street, member Of
the irm said yesterday that he thought |
itunfair to critieise the course ofthe Phil |
adelphia manufacturers. Powers q |
Weightman, he said, had done nothing
that could not have been done by Others
who invested the same capital and pros
ecutsd their business with the same en-.
ergy. Powers & Weightman began bust
ness in l8l5A-the firm being established
4 Al l. NJ H.
sor. Before that time the quinine used
in this country nearly all came from
France. The Philadelphia firm went
into It's manufacture with large capital
and foresight of the immense value Of
the trade. Quinine was originally ex.
tracted from the bark of the cinchona
tree by a process that consumed great
deal of alcohol, but chemist devised q
means OF extracting 1t more economical
ly and in q better condition by what has