Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-14

gist who understood prescribing could get
much better position and make a better sal
airy than one who did not. In advertising
for a man we would frequently call for one
capable Of prescribing.
We used to vaccinate occasionally but
there was not so much of it done then. We
used the human virus always, and when we
had a good, healthy patient we would ask
them to come back when the came to a
head. so that we could get few points, or
we would take the whole scab. Then we
would mix 1t up with a little water
glass plate with a knife-we didn't think
anything about germs at that time-tell peo-
pie we had virus from healthy person, and
vaccinate perhaps dozen people.
Munifcfent Prices.
There is no doubt, though, that a good
many diseases were disseminated in this
way. and there are many people today who
date ailments Of their own and the deaths
Of their children to vaccination, and I'M
dcubtedly with reason. People don't really
understand that only cow virus Is used
now. If they did l think there would be
less opposition to vaccination, though, for
my part, I don't why tuberculosis
should not be disseminated in that way.
I'VE used to use great many leeches.
We would use from fifty to 100 in month,
and in blood-letting often take one Or two
quarts of blood from a person. don't THINK
IL did any harm to a full-blooded person.
People ate coarser foods In those days,
more pork and oatmeal If a man got into
a row and had a black eye, the first thing
he would do would be to go to the drug
gist and have two or three leeches put on
to take away the blood Or leeches were
put on for headache, or for the earache
or toothache. woman would come In
with terrible headache, sit down in a
chair in the store and have two or three
leeches put on each temple, and she would
be relieved in a short time. Or they would
be put behind the ear for the earache, or
on the gums for a toothache.
mo, women didn't mind 1t. 1t was like
having tooth pulled-anything was better
than the pain, and they would have their
minds made up to it before they would
come. 1t took me six hours to put leecnes
on a woman's gum once. She was woman
belonging to a wealthy family IN the ne1gn,
borhood She had liberated tooth and
sent for me to bring the leeches. Ine gums
were swollen and sore. the patient woulo
not allow them to be lanced, and 1t was
hard for the leeches to get to work. t1nal-
" they were started. and I wanted to go
home 1 had not had my supper. But the
woman would not hear OF my leaving ne,
with those leeches in her mouth. and had
to wait 1t was - o'clock when L left the
house that night. There was no restau-
rant around here in those days, not even
bakehouse. There was one man VINO nag
opened an oyster house in connection with
saloon. He had twelve oysters left. and
let me have six of those. but went to bed
pretty hungry.
Glow much did i get TOT tndt! Weii' {
charged 12 cents apiece for the leeches, ana
there were two Of them, and l asked %
cents for applying them-49 cents: Doctors
were glad to get so cents visit at that
| time. and 7 have had doctor. VINO aiter-
ward BECAME famous and would not take
less than so for an office call, thank me
for sending him patient from whom ne
received 81.
.r,eeches are still used in country places
| where they are taken from the ponds.
though we always used the Swedish
,eeches, In many of the poorer neighbor-
hoods. particularly where there are good
MANY brawls, they still use the leeches Tor
"Fror regular blood letting an incision was
| made in q vein in the arm and as mucn
Hood was let as seemed necessary TO re-
| iieve the patient. That was regular
| snr,n0 and fall medicine that many people
TOOK as they took their sulphur ana mo-
iasses. 1 don't know why 1t should nave
been INJURIOUS as remedy. Depressing
medicines are now given to lessen the &C,
| tion Of the heart In case OF fever, ana
doRt know that there Is any more harm IN
| the one than In the other.
"As for the sulphur and molasses, tnere
might be less danger from contagious ais