The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1881-06-29
No. 2}.

Now, as any doctor Will tell you.
there are drugs which: in certain
cases, do women great deal Of
good, and in others act on them
like slow poisons. The very
strength which makes them val
liable, makes them dangerous. i
am an old man now, and | recol-
lect easily the women Of forty
years ago. | tell yon they were
stronger and healthi@: in every
way than those | see now. Why
was it? The women of to-day DO
the same kind of work, although
not as much as their grandmothers
and mothers did they eat the
same kind of food ; they live IN
the same climate. | see constant
ly in the newspapers articles Ia
meRting the physical degeneracy
of the American women but |
have never seen. except in medi-
cal journals, any reference to what
| believe is the causc,-patent
medicines. Any druggist will tell
YOU that be sells six bottles to
women where he sells one to men.
Now, what are the drugs these
women are putting into them
selves in such quantities ? What
is the effect Of them upon the mo,
theirs Of the American race? The
question is q serious one. gu
know how the temperance move
ment is sweeping over the coun-
try You have read the articles
and heard the speeches which
prove that liquor is poison
which is running the men. | am
thorough believer in temper
ance, and l think the movement a
good one. But | have thought
sol etimes that an 'Arti-Patent
Medicine Ass ociation' would do as
much good to the race. If the
men are poisoning themselves
with rum, what are the women
doing with drugs? Physicians
will say that the child Of a drunk
en- man inberits d tendency or de
sire for drink. What sort Of a
constitution do you suppose the
child of a man who drinks, and a
woman who has dosed herself on
,..o strength Of the medical know
ledge contained in the patent med.
icine advertisement, until she has
no stamina left, starts out in the
world With?
Yes, there is remedy for this,
and it is a very simple one. Let
the druggist know what there is
in the medicine they sell. The
druggists Of this country can be
safely trusted with the care OF
their tellow-citizens: they are &C.
countable 10 the law for what
they sell, provided they know
what it is. Some Of the States
have public or official analysts.
It's a pity that all have not got
them; but that's neither here nor
there. Let some State with such
an official pass a law requiring
any man who wishes to manufac
ture a patent medicine within its
borders to deposit with the public
analyst the formula of its compo
sition, and oblige that official to
analyze the medicine once a year,
purchasing the same in open mar
ket. If the sample does not come
up 10 the formula, let the Attorney
General prosecute the case. The
penalty may be merely nominal,
for the public, on hearing of the
prosecution, would punish the
manufacturer sufficiently by re-
foslng to buy what be had to SELL
In the case | alluded to, W here it
was proved that a medicine was
being dishonesty manufactured,
the demand for it ceased in six
months, and what was good
property became worthless. Then
let the analyst furnish a copy OF
the formula to any druggist upon
application. There would be no
danger to the owner of the med
icine, because the United States
patent and copyright laws are
quite sufficient to protect him IN
the ownership Of MS property.
Nor would the makers OF honest
medicines be injured: on the con-
trary, their trade would be in
creased. But such law would
come down pretty heavily upon
the men who think and act as II
having TO pay an advertising bill
constitutes diploma to prescribe
and q license to dispense drugs,