Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-11-29

is under fire. Sweeping indictments
have been made against it. News
papers, publishers of which nave nard-
ly awakened to the Importance of the
case, have been accused of being in
"criminaI alli;lEce' with medicine
| manufacturers for the purpose Of foist-
| ing on the public something that. it is
| claimed the public would be better off
without.
In word the medicine business is
| summed up by certain alleged REFORM
| ers as fraud" And the newspapers
are accused OF conduct involving moral
turpitude in connection with it.
So sweeping is Ills Indictment that in
| it are included iii of the remedies and
preparations which are manufactured
| i'm large lots, advertised direct to the
user to be taken without he prescrip-
ton of a physician. 1t Includes all Of
| the family remedies" some of which
| have been liz constant use for so years,
| and many of which have had years OF
success.
A patent" medicine is no different
| from d physicians medicinc.-it is 4
| physicians medicine, made on il large
scale. Into its composition enters the
| drugs used by physicians IN proportions
which medical science has taught t" De
| correct. One bottle of Il patent"
| preparation is exactly like every other
| bottle: only the best drugs are used.
and the methods OF composition are the
| best known to science.
Patent" medicines form a system of
medication that lacks nothing by COM
parisOn with other systems. and which
| has many features 20 especially COM
| mend it. The formula under which
| practically every patent medicine is
made is the favOr:te prescription of
some physician VINO used it with such
| success in his private practice that Ii
was deemed commercially cxpcdicnt to
| manufacture it on larC. scale.
| While there is great moral response
| biity involved, let us consider tn :
| medicine business first from Its COM
mercial standpoint and see if that alone
| will not show the utter untrlitnfuincss
| of the sweeping chargcs the unfairness
| Of the general arraignmrnt, :ha falilry
| of joint indictment of manufacturer
| and publisher on a charge of fraud"
| Perhaps it may even show the animus
| of the attacks.
Two things are necessary if one is to
start in the business If manufacturing
| medicines. The first is a formula, ana
| the second is sufficient capital
If l had a formula, and you had c,,i-
tai which L sous1- to interest. the first
| thing | would nave to show you would
be that the preparation to be Eanufac-
tured from my formula possessed
| merit; that it would do the thing | sai.i
1 Il Il
would keep men out Of business Of It
tempting to sci. something from an ex-
pensive and permanent. plant if the
| thing to be sell lacked merit.
A medicine manufactures lives or dies
| with the medicinal merit Of his rrerar-
| alton. Unless nc backs up his adver-
Using with something of merit he Will
never get back the moEey he spends III
| his initial campaign.
| The first sale Of an article bringing
but %, so or IS cents or 81 never means
profit 1t is only when an article ere
peats" that it becomes profitable, and
it never repeats unless it is meri-
torious. A large number of people.
comparatively, might be fooled once.
but the number that can be fooled
twice Oh the same thing is infinitesi-
NAL Commercially. it doesn't pay to
try to fool the people. The history of
the commercial world proves that.
Patent" medicines have repeated
for years. Many of the preparations
have been bought time after time by
families who wouldn't try to get along
| without some, at least. of the patent
medicines ready for instant use. Moth
ers are today administering to their
| children the remedies their mothers
used. and which they learned from
| their mothers.
Have the women of this country
the mothers and wives-been fooled and
defrauded for three generations?
Any one who says so knows mighty
little about mothers. They diagnose
the ills of the family. prescribe the
medicine, administer it and watch its
| effect.
If it was harmful or useless, would
they keep it in the house?
| The women of this country have in
heritcd a knowledge of many forms OF
sickness and an instinct that tells them
how to treat the ailments most found
in an ordinary family. And fully IS
per cent. of the mothers of the coun-
/
| medicines because they cure.
In the face of that fact all patent
| medicines are characterized as
frauds" and the newspaper publish
ers are declared to be in criminal al
| lance with the manufacturer. The
charge against medicines is resented by
medicine manufacturers. because they
know it to be false, and because they
understand the animus of it, The
charge against newspapers is no less
! serious. UncOntradicted, it might
have the effect of destroying public
confidence in the newspaper press.
Every bottle of a patent" medicine
sold is commendat ton or a con-
demnation of every other bottle of the
same preparation. 1t behoOves the
manufacturer to make the best that
can be made. Unless he does his
road leads to commercial failure.
1t is only merit that can succeed
and this is especially true when the
article which is to be judged is used
only in an emergency or crisis.