Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-30
olD-TIME QUACKERIEs
INSTANCES I'm WHICH ADvAN-
TAGE WAS TAKEN OF cREDuLITY.
Tie Eighteenth Century Golden Age
for Working on Fears and Feel
ings Of the Ignorant Sick.
Fem the London Standard.

July 30, 1112 who sets up for curing cata-
racts upon the credit of having lost an eye
in the emperor's service. His patients
come in upon this, and he shows the muster
roll which confirms that he was in his i'm
perial majesty's troops: and he puts out
their eyes with great success The eight
zenith century was golden age of quack-
cry; but, naming no names, we may be al
lowed 20 hint that the race is not extinct.
The same article tells us that little bill
let's were thrust into the hands of all who
passed by IN the street; now they are more
often thrust into our letter boxes. Time
has changed little; there is still the vaunt-
ed cure-aIl. which makes it appear foolish
to suffer from any disease whatever: there
is still the creduljty that, often deceived.
is willing to believe and hope again. But
there was more superstition in the credui-
ity of two centuries since; persons then be-
lfeyed in the magic power of chiid's caul,
or the superhuman abilities of seventh
son. In the Evening Post of August G.
TIT, we find an advertisement of DIR. Ben
| jamin Thornhill, seventh son of the seventh
son. who met patients daily at his lodg-
ings, in West Smithfield," having cured 1.550
people of the kings evil, and several hundred
that have been blind, lame. deaf and dis
eased. God Almighty having been pleased
to bestow upon him such TALENT he
thought it wrong to hide the gift under
bushel: but eff not durable he will not take
any one in hand, if he might have foO0 Tor
a reward The last sentence proves that
DR.. Thornhill was really a clever man. An
other Quack of the day was William Reao,
an illiterate doctor who was lucky enough
to do something for Queen Anne's eyes and
received from her a knighthood IN return,
well as the appointment OF court oculist.
In his own advertisement tand ms own
spelling) he protested that for thirty-fVe
years he had been successfully COUGHING
cataracts. taking off all sorts of wens. cur
ing wry necks and hare-lips without Diem
ish, though never so deformed.' When he
died Lady Read carried on the business.
Another successful adventurer was Roger
Grant, first cobbler, then tinker, then
Baptist preacher, and finally oculist to
Queen Anne. whose eyes were always weak
but perhaps not weaker than her mlnd
A popular quatrain recorded the fortune Oh
these two men:
Her majesty sure was in surprise,
Or else very short-sighted,
When a tinker was sworn to look after her eyes,
And the mountebank Read was knighted'
Friar's Balsams.
DR., Ward, who had the honor to be men
toned by Pope was originally footman,
who picked up some medical prescriptions
possibly really useful. from French monks,
the result being his ''Friar's Balsams. tie
was summoned to court to set the kings
sprained thumb and did it, receiving the
public thanks of the house of commons.
Men of this kind, and even the unknown
vendors of quack connections, contriveo 10
make large fortunes. The physic usuany
cost next 10 nothing, and was sold at hlgh
nrices We read of one such Vender, Wno'
in Hammersmith. offered to give shiiilnss
to every person who was HammeTSnith
born; but to the numerous appiiSan.s nc
produced a package of physlc whch re as
serted that he was selling elsewhere Lor Is
Cd: here he would sell it for the oda SIX
pence Nearly every applicant purcnaseu,
and we can have little doubt that the man
Iar nroflt at the lOWeico
price We can imagine how great the proht
must have been on pills that were MOI SIN
ply stated to be worth. but actuaiiy Cos'. q
guinea a box like DR.. BelloSte piiis ~.
rbeumatism But perhaps one OF the most
surprising rewards ever reaped ny snee.
ouackery was that gained by MRS Joaiiha
stephens. She declared that she Hau e.
come possessed of an infai1lble recipe ~,
the cure of stone, which she wouio reTe ~
to the public on receiving the sum OF 1o: :p'e;
a quarter of the amount was supsSrloeu
and lodged with banker, but the iaoy l l
ai,oS nn The whole sum. In the year 1l59
an act of parliament was passed anu tLe
sum voted from the treasury 10 pay ~.
Stephens for the remedy that Mas " p, ,oS
ca beneficial to the public. rms renaeos s
consisted first of a compound OF puihee
eegshells and snails; second Gecoc..9li "
herhs. soap and honey; third, pills maui VI
burned snails. carrot anu oui 49, - on5
h;ns and haWS, etc, mingled with sodp a"o
honey
Temple of Esculapius.
Graham who belonged to the later
wears of the eighteenth century mus
oraa;ted with pre-eminent slpendor IN
e,,,.oterv He took house in the Royal
Aaelnbi Terrace, which he ornamented
,oroeors,y and inscribed with the words
..ra,,n,rm Aesculapio Sacrum," and here
be deiivered nightly lectures. instructihg
nersons how they could IVe IN neaitn anu ~
beauty for 100 years; the admission zee "
.
,-o,,,p woman personating Hebe, added her
discourse to his, and probably drew more
among the disreputable parts OF ms auui
ence: and it has been asserted tnat tliiS
nos none other than the woman VINO AFTER
ward became Lady Hamilton, notorious LOT
her connection with Nelson. This Is Ger
tainly not proved. Graham was marvellous
ly successful. both in LONDON ana L Ioner
his rates of admission until at last the zee
reached only l shilling.
For success in this department, as on the
variety stage, constant change is necessary
snd soon Dr. Graham had launched into
system of earth bathing. Pract1clng WHAT
he preached he exhibited himself daily, TO-
sether with a lady named the GoddesS OF
Health buried up to their chinS IN earth,
and deriving, as the doctor progressed. the
greatest benefits from contact with mother
soil Perhaps London became tired of him
at last: it is certain that he migrated to
Edinburgh meeting with equal success, and
diving there before he had passed middle
age Scenic effect and environment play an
important part in the medical quackery OF
that day; their value is not entirely I'M
known at this moment. Also, in manner
not vet extinct, cures were wrought In
public gratuitously. and for profit the
operator relied on cases that came TO MIN
priyately Such doctor was DR.. Bossy, ap-
parently a Frenchman. A decorated stage
was erected, on which the patients APP
peared. and the doctor. before beginning his
cure, would harangue the public. Mesmer-
ism, then in it's infancy, was sometimes
practiced thus publicly, and some of the
medicos such as the celebrated Katterfelto,
added eonjuring to their curative skill.
Vendors of medicine, indeed were openly
classed with mountebanks and often were
one and the same. In 1889 there appeared an
Alsatian named LoutherbOurg, who. with
his wife, professed to be dvinely endowed
with power that could cure all maladies by
sympathy. They charged no fees. but the
price for admission to their house was very
high and it is said that sometimes there
were several thousands outside the door
awaiting admittance. We are graveiy as
sured that many cures were wrought, and
in all such cases 1t is certain that faith
will work wonders. Sometimes the concoc-
lions that were sold at enormous prices gilt
and decorated with every device of oratory
and Illusion. may really have contained