New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-28

a well known show. was arrested one day in
New-York charged with stealing a pair OF
trousers belonging 20 a negro. She told the
court that she had committed the crime in or
der to get little money TO buy some cocaine.
She had been brought TO that level. she said.
through the taking Of remedy the contents OF
which she did not know. She had lost her posi-
ton and was willing 10 do anything in order TO
get cocaine
III.
Alcoholism" said the doctor.
There must be some mistake" said the min
ister's son. My father Is a clergyman. he
never drank drop OF liquor IN bis life"
IT am certain that he IL suffering from alco-
hollsm," replied the physician. What has he
been taking?'
-" said the soEs naming a much ad-
vertised medicine which analysis has shown to
contain a considerable percentage OF alcohol
TT would be far cheaper" said Mr.. Andrews.
"for persons who sick to go TO a physician
than TO buy these nOstrums- Here is an illus
tration. A certain man found himself suffering
from an ailment which a couple OF visits to a
physician would probably have cured. He did
not visit a doctor. but began buying certain
medicine. He bought one bottle after another
without getting better. In fact he got worse
After spending $40 for the nostrum he finally
went 10 a specialist and found that it would
cost him 500 to be cured. Another man was
a victim OF the morphine habit. He bought a
morphine cure and it made him crazy. There
morphine IN It.
These secret remedies are made cheaply. A
widely known firm Of manufacturing chemists
told me that secret medicine requiring adver-
Using to sell it and intended to be sold for 81
would provide no profit II it cost more than 9
cents a bottle to manufacture. A certain laxa-
tive pill costs 10 cents a thousand to make It
is sold at 80 cents hundred. Prescriptions
sent out by some firms are VIGOROUSLY useless.
One firm is in the habit Of sending bottle OF
dope the first time This makes the patient
feel good and a second bottle IS ordered This
time It is medicine. Some Of these firms have
a number of prescriptions made up to flt dir
ferent combinations Of symptoms. person
writes. enumerating a number OF symptoms
which he has. The person who has charge OF
the prescriptions marks a number on the letter.
and the form letter and the prescription which
correspond to that number are sent In one
instance a firm sent medicines for child and
its mother The medicines were misdireCted
the child's medicine being ordered for the
mother and vice versa, with unpleasant results
to both. A certain dispenser Of a we'll known
medicine known to contain a large percentage
Of alcohol invites persons 10 send symptoms. I
sent the symptoms Of alcoholism and received
reply to take this nostrum."
A prominent officer of one Of the medical So
cieties contributed other Illustrations Of the dan
gers of taking unknown medicines. He told OF a
widely advertised cure for the morphine habit.
1T consisted said he. "of twenty-fOur bottles.
each containing about two ounces OF a fluid. A
patient Of mine who had been suffering from the
habit had heard of the alleged cures performed
by it, and concluded 20 try some He
bought box and found that he was 10 take the
first bottle on the first day and follow this
successive days with the other bottles. He
brought it to me and I had the set analysed. All
of the bottles contained very large quantities Of
morphine. Another patient, a woman. was sent
to the psycopathic ward at Bellevue suffering
from deIirium tremens brought on by the use OF
a certain we'll known nostrum.
Many persons fritter away time and money
by using advertised remedies for headache. or
rheumatism. or insomnia. They see the nOstrums
advertised as sure cures and go 10 the drug
store to get them. These persons are being in
iured because their ailments are not properly