, 1889-09-12
LOST ELIxIRs or LIFE.
Some OF the Funny Medical Crazes of
the Past--The Credulous Public.
fErom The phlladclphI9 press,l

| SOmB OF Vhc tfWstS Va
the Past--The Credulous Public.
rIlrom the Phladclpha Press.l
| The eagerness with which the public
seizes upon amy alleged elixir Of perpct-
ual youth which Is invented shows how
willing the public is to bc fooled. No
one has accused DR.. Brown -Sequard OF
quackery, but many medical quacks
/ have been liouized and laudcd for their
supposed discoveries.
idrv wears ago ',Dr." st. John Long
attained great popularity 10y inyenting
an elixir which lie professed would cure
everything, but which had habit Of
killing every who perseVered III ITS
use. Long was an artist, ana his front
name was st. John. But finding busi-
ness dull he discarded pencil and crayoh
| and took ny with scalpel and elixir, dis
| carding his plebeian given name ut the
| same time. Thousands crowded upon
| him in his London homo, sufferers
| crossed Europe to go under his treat
mcnt, and he was at least as well known
| in 1880 as Pasteur is to-day. He was
thrice tried for manslaughter and twice
convicted, but that did not ailect
| his popularity, and he amassed quite
IL large fortune DR.. james Graham,
of Edinburgh, Il near relative of Macau-.
| lay, also prepared an alleged elixir of
/ life, nd part of his treatment was TO
| initiate the dusting of hens by making
| his patients hathe in dry earth: lie es-
| tabhsho.i "tcmple of health" and the
/ streets leading to IL were blocked for
/ hours ut n time by hungcrcrs and thirst
| crs after health and longevity. Among
/ his patients were the duchess of Devon
| shire, Lady Spencer Lady Claremont
/ and hundreds OF European poeresses
| The humbuggery of the elixir was only
exposed by the doctors early death.
| The st, Louis Globo.Democrat recalls
nfa ~ ltpr Xf ltn Et int
of the century. In 1876 General Pleas
anton published work fully explaining
his theory as to The inlallibility of blue
glass for inYigorating and retaining or
restoring health. In subsequent edi-
tion he added list of testimonials from
grateful patients who prolcssed to have
derived immense benefit from the treat
ment, and also the full text of the speci-
Fiications for his patients. His book was
entitled 'I}lue Ray of the Sunlight and
of the Blue Color of the Sky in Develop
ing Animal and Vegetable Life, in Ar
resting Disease and in Restoring Health
in Acute and Chronic Diseases of Hu-
man and Domestic Animals" The
general adorned the tron,ispieCc with n
y rather unfortunate qrotatiOn: IF
this theory be true it upsets all other
theories The converse seems 10 have
been very satisfactorily established. a
full record of the generals military OK
pericncc Is also given, apparently as
somewhat of guarantee OF good faith
Life Is not long enough for a perusal
of all the elaborate arguments in sup
port of the theory There is an old story
about an absent-minded man who was
reading book. A wag amused himself
every day by putting back the book
marker, and after awhile asked his
friend how he liked the book. The reply
was that it was good, but the author
seemed to have habit of repeating him
self.
The authors first experiments were on
grape vines In his greenhouse he sub
stituted blue for white glass in every
eighth row, and succeeded <n producing
grapes so fine that all others were rem
dered Insignificant beside them. In 1863
he treated some hogs to 4 similar dose,
and some little pigs grew and thriyed so
well that royal road to fortune in
hog raising seemed to have been found.
Next he tried the effect of blue glass on
an Alderney bull calf, which grew six
inches almost as by miracle and be-
came a yeritable Saul among the little
calves on the estate. From hogs and
cattle the descent to poultry was short
ted with just the right proportion OF
blue glass. The result was rs ioreor-
dained. The young thickcns Were ready
for the hroiler almost Us soon as they
had emerged from the shell, and those
that escaped the usual and proper spring
chicken route to oblivion grew into
splendidly developed and plumaged
: birds.
1t needed not implicit belief in Dar.
.winianism TO induce the general to APP
ply his experiments to men and women.
Architects would be required to so ar
range Buildings as to insure the intro
duction of the eliXir-like rays so that the
owners and occupiers might enjoy the
marvellous advantages, and mankind
will then not only be able to live fast
but can live long and also live WELL"
Judged by the fact that the blue glass
craze, general ms il was during the years
: 1876 and part of 1877, died out quietly
? and has long since been decently inferred
some of the testimonials q,
4, to its efficacy form very funny
! reading, They show thatif all the writer,
Went what they wrote General Pleasan
ton anventcd on elixir to cure not only
, cveiy ailment, but to supercede surgery
and obstetrics. In fact it must hay,
{ been omnipotent. A man with varicosS
Z veins was able TO throw away his sill
c stockings after slecpingin n room q few
! nights with blue glass in the windows
I Typhoid patients, after n day or two
' arose like giants, refreshed and dismisseC
l / their physicians. n bald-headed lady
:, was delighted TO discover IN embyrC
7 crop of hair after seven days treatment
. while another grateful recipient enlarged
: on the marvellous effects of blue glass OF
i his ancient male. This once gay an,
festive qliadruped had been deaf for tel
years, its limbs were stiff, and it was ii
Il very bad way but after blue glass wa
inserted in the stable window Jacl
a braced up, could hear the word "cats
g if only whispered, could kick his owne
4 across the yard, and generally act like
5 vivacious 3-ycar.old.
4 Excitement ran high and the carr
: travelled north, south, east and west
: The widest stories of cures were circu
: lated Men heard of objects OF publ
a sympathy getting cured almost withou
: money and without price and entirel
l without trouble, for never was there $
; passive treatment recommended, no
: one less hampered with directions as /
! what should and should not be eater
! and what habits or vices must be abar
! doned. The demand for blue glass wa
= such as the most ardent enthusias
y never anticipated. II gradually an
\ finally dawned upon the crcdulous pui
!. lie that they had made themselves r,
u diculous, blue glass became drug o
!, the market, and people who We're sick c
: who wanted to grow young again locke
Q elsewhere for remedies and clixirs.