Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-02-20
The Rise of the Cocaine Evil.
the Editor Of The Evening Star:

To the Editor of The Evening Star:
Until 1888 the dope fiends confined them
selves chiefly. to, opium. morphine and
choral or preparations containing these.
1t was easy to trace, in these days, the
reasons "why for for the contraction Of
these habits. Suffering or insomnia pro-
duced the ma jority of. the cases, and gen
orally the victims were people in advanced
ages In 1885 I saw, the first cocaine fiend.
He used 1t to cure the morphine habit. and
fell a victim to cocaine. Four years later
he became maniac, and died in 1891 or
1892 in the insane asylum. Many others
have Travelled the same path since then II
they did not kill themselves before from
the use of cocaine. With the decline In the
price of cocaine which on It's introduction
in this country cost wholesale As cents
per grain, and even sold at 81 per grain
for a short time, there Sprang up numer-
GUS catarrh remedies tonics, etc.. which
depended on their merit solely on cocaine,
either direct or some preparation of the
coca leaf Much suffering was relieved even
though probably no real cures were effected.
But neither cocaine nor any preparation
Of the coca leaf should ever have been al
lowed to come out In the form of any adj
yertised patent or proprietary remedy Tor
the indiscriminate use OF the public. The
danger of it was not recognized In those
days TONES and wines of coca were sold
openly at the soda fountains in drug stores
and other places to any that applied for
them. Catarrh preparations containing 1t
leaped to the front, and 1t was apparent
that the greatest effect of the drug was
produced in direct application to the mucus
membrane Of the nose. Free samples of
catarrh powders containing cocaine were
thrown around the streets and into houses
here in Washington. Many used these Sc
ductive samples, were pleased with the eff
fects thereof, even though they had no
real need of them and became customers
for them without understanding why. The
np6 o10 nf
wretches began to pander the drug to the
lowest classes of humanity. Mixed up in
various ways it was sold under the name
of locke" powder. Each victim spread the
tfdings of it's wonderful effect to others.
and induced them to start it. Anybody that
had the price could buy 1t.
I know that today there are in Wash
ington, D. c., some men who. under the
name OF druggist, will sell to any man,
woman or child, with the price. all the
cocaine they wish, and that no law exists
that can prevent them from so doing.
1 know that mothers have appealed to
the police department to restrain certain
druggists from selling cocaine to their
children.
+ have seen five colored boys none over
sixteen years of age stop and deputize one
of themselves to enter a drug store for
10 cents worth Of the drug. / waited on
him and he did not get It,. He showed me
envelopes from different stores where he
had purchased It ON previous occasions.
I see by The Star of February 16 where a
vender by paying a license of 5000 per
year can sell cocaine from house to house
In this city legally. -
Where are the people. where Is Con-
press. that such conditions are allowed
to exist in the capital city of the United
States? ~ bCB 4
I believe Masoical the sentiments of every
legitimate pha1mEcist in this city and else
where .WhenI Il say that something should
be done, anti fsoon. Ito restrain that class
of individuals who. under the name, Of a
professional man---wnl cater to the appe-
| lite and debauchsFy OF a cocaine fiend.
IA FRIED T. HAFELFINGER
Commissioner ohs1Pharmacy. District of
Columbia. 10 free