River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-04-17
"PIzun and Ki-Nine."

She wasn't after hair dye, cosmetics
scented soap, or any of those gimcracks
but when the druggist had finished put
ting upa prescription to cure long
faced boy of a hacking cough, she turned
from the stove and asked:
"Do you keep drugs and medicines
and pizuns and soon9'
so, yes, we keep all such things"
"And ki-nineln
"Yes, we have quinine."
swell, I called to see about gittin'
some pizun and some ki-nine, but dun
no. So many folks have been slaugh-
tered by druggists mistakes that I'm
eanemost afraid to even ask for camfur
gum, though | suppose / can smell cam
fur gum father off than any other woman
in Michigan. Have YOU ever killed any
body by putin up morphine for bakin'
powder9"
"Never"
"Been in the business long2"
Only twenty-one years"
"Well, you orter know gum 'Rabic
from sweet oil by this time, but some
men are awful keerless. I've ha
brother pizuned by wrong medicine, and
I'm little shaky. Where is your XII
nine2n
This is it." he replied, as he took
down the jar
She wet her finger, pushed it into the
Jar, and then rubbed it on her tongue.
''Tastes like it, but / dunno. Sure
that amt morphene2"
eyes, very sure
"Sure your clerk washed the jar out
clean afore be put the ki-nine inl"
40, washed it myself"
"If this shouldn't be ki-nine, you'd
have the law put to you the worst kind.
We've got money in the bank, and we'd
never settle for no ten thousand dollars"
81 know it to be quinine."
"Well, then, gimme fifteen cents wsrth,
and | want down weight, too. If I'm
treated well, I'm a great hand to trade at
one place; but the minnit see any
stinginess or cheatin', yoke of oxen
couldn't pull me into that store again"
He weighed out the drug, labeled it
with great care, and then'she said:
"Now want ten cents worth of pizun
to kill rats.
"What kind?'
"Why, the pizun, OF course. Pizun
is pizun the world over. Don't seem as
you were used to handling EN-"
'Do you want arsenic2"
"Certainly; but you want to be pow
erful keerfull I'm woman of SO, and
I've nussed the sick ever since I was a
girl, but | never handle piZun without q
chill creepin' up my back. Where is
it?"
He handed down the jar; and she smelt
of the stopper, shook her head, turned
the jar around, and whispered:
THAT looks a powerful sight like
cream a. tarter"
30, no-that's arsenic, and no mis-
.ake."
"Well, I've got to take the chances, l
spose. III take ten cents worth
down weight. Any one who will be
stingy sellin' pizun will be stingy in
other things, and do hate "a stingy per-
son. My first husband was powerful
stlngy, and he was struck by Lightning"
When the poison had been weighed
and labelled, she carefully took up the
package and said:
"Now ,then,write on this that it is to be
kept in the old china teapot, on the third
shelf in the pantry, and it's for rats. Then
write on this ki-nine that Is to be kept in
the old coffee-pot in the cupboard, and
it's for chills."
The druggist followed orders, and the
old lady put the "pizin'' in her pocket
and the "k1-nine" in her reticule, and
went out saying, st may be all right,
but dunno. If my old man is took off
instead of the rats, III begin lawsuit
next day after the funeral "-Detroit
Free Press.