Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-02-29
What the Dear Public Buys When
1t Invests in a Dollar
Bottle,
OLD REMEDIES ARE EXPOSED.
Some Alarming Returns Received
From State Chemist Harms 10
Regard to Drugs.

The Utah State Board OF Health Is
hot on the trail of the patent medicine
manufacturers, and proposes to expose
frauds in that line, with the hope oil
largely diminishing their sale, II not
driving them altogether out of the mar
kets OF this state. Secy. Beatty for the
board, buys bottles of alleged medicine
from the shelves OF various drug stores
in this city. and sends them to state
Chemist Harms for analysis. Several
reports of the chemist TO the state
board have been printed, In each case
adverse to the medicine analy2eu'
This morning, he received several more
articles from Chemist Harms labora-
tory, with returns more or less sensa'
tional ,
one alleged remedy, widely adverts-
ed "Hyomel," liquid preparation lor
catarrhal troubles, was found TO DO
crude oil Of eucalyptus diluted IN OIL
Of vaseline The oil or eucalyptus IL
one OK the ingredients frequently em-
ployed IN making antiseptlc soluuons'
and DR.. Beatty says II has no curative
pfopertles whatever 1t does tempor-
arlly cool and to that extent relieve the
lnnamed membranes, but that Is all
The bottle procured by Secy. Beatty
contained one-thlrd Of an ounce, and
according 10 quotations given him by
the jubbers such bottle costs not to
exceed one cent, The retail price print
ed on the label was one dollar. Tho
doctor was temporarily deprived OF
breath on realizing the nerve that en-
gineered out such n profit as that.
Kauffmans Sulphur BltterB was an
other remedy" for about 80 different
ailments OF n patients insldes. on the
label was printed mo Alcohol but the
state chemist discovered 20 4-l0 per
cent Of alcohol In the pint bottle which
sold for one dollar. Moreover there
was not even q trace Of sulphur, and
the alleged restorative had no cura-
tive properties that could be discovered,
swamp Root" was third remedy"
for all the ills the flesh Is heir to-
particularly In the line OF renal trou-
bles, This patent medicine II adver-
tzed 10 cure Brlght'g disease, and blad-
der complications The chemist found
0.6 per cent OF alcohol In the pint bot
tie with large percentage OF sugar
and juniper berry.
'Paine's Celery Compound' was q
fourth, dollar per pint remedy" for
a wide and varied assortment Of Ills,
great, medium and small. The analy-
sis showed 20,o per cent OF alcohol as
much ns VIII DO found In wine, and
also the presence OF largo amount Of
fusIl OIL Or. Beatty said this made II
worse than straight whisky.
But the chef d'ouoyrc OF the collec-
ton was Birney's catarrhal powders.
In this precious stun, Chemist Harms
found nearly per cent OF cocaine, with
30 per cent Of sugar preparations and
inert substances TO hold the deadly
drug. The preparation ls sold IN small
Walls, each containing ~ grains Of
cocaine. DR. Beatty said that this Is
absolutely sure 70 cause the cocaine
habit II persisted In, II Is sold by the
gross, and already has many Victims,
The doctor said also that In the rear OF
a certen house IN this city had been
discovered q bushcl Of these Walls emp
~; and called attention to tho fact
that II was crime 10 sell any prepare