Los Angeles herald., 1906-05-27
The Death Rate and "Patent" Medicine

the magazines seek; the physicians ma
turally desire to drive from the field
the system of home medication which
is the only competitor the medical
profession has, and by the elimination
of which the doctors incomes would
be greatly augmented, The campaign
has been one of exaggeration. The eX-
aggeration has been proven by careful
Independent investigation and the men
dacity is apparent
Those "MiIIion Dead Babies"
The campaign of exaggeration culmi-
mated a short time ago in a statement
made by DR.. Wiley, chemist of the
United States department of agrcul-
ture, that millions of babies have
been killed by concoctions known as
soothing syrups." Comparative statis-
tics for six months ending January 81,
1905, shows that a very great majority
of the cases of accidental poisoning
from the use or misuse of medicines,
drugs and poisons of all natures comes
from medicines prescribed by physi-
clans. About 90 per cent are due 20
carbolic acid, which leads all others
and which is not the subject of agi-
tation. Only 1 per cent are due to
patent medicines of all kinds and
character.
This fact has been demonstrated by
a Chicago statistician who has care
fully investigated every reported case
of accidental poisoning in the United
States, where there is any question as
to the name or character of the drug
which caused injury or death. AS this
information has been secured largely
from physicians there is no question
that "patent" medicines have not been
fully charged with everything that
could be charged against them. The
million babies" story is relegated to
the realm of fiction.
To the lay mind it is strange that,
with the presence of poison" in prac-
tically everything of food-if the state
chemists whose duties are largely po-
itical are to be belieVed-that there
is such an unusually high grade of pub
lie health that medical comment is eX-
cited, and that the vital statistics do
not show a rapidly increasing death
rate. Yet the death rate is growing
smaller with each decade, and with
each decade it is alleged that the use
of "adulterated" food and patent"
medicine is wonderfully increased.
Growth of Ten Years
The "adulteration" of food is prac-
tically the development of the last ten
years, and during that period more
patent" medicines have been sold
probably than were sold during any
previous twenty years. If deleterious,
they have had better chance to demon
strate the fact in the last ten years
than in any previous period of two or
three times that length. But, during
this time the death rate decreased, and
the death among children has de-
creased out of proportion to the gem
eral decrease.
The general death rate of the United
States for 1900 was 17.3 per 1000, a
reduction of 2.2 in ten years. In 1890
the death rate for children under five
years of age was 64,5 per 1000 and 1900
1t was 49.9 per 1000.
Lowell, Mass, is a typical American
mill town. In 1890, with a population
of $1,000. there were 1860 deaths In
1900. with a population of $4,000, there
were only 1850 deaths-110 less deaths,
with an increase of $4,000 in population.
In Newark, N. j., in 1890 there were
1858 deaths, The population was 16O,-
900. In 1900 the population was 206 900
and only 419S deaths; go fewer deaths
and an increase of $4,000 population.
Only 5000 More Deaths
During the same ten years the pop
ulation of Chicago increased nearly
100000, while the deaths of 1900 were
only 5000 more than in 1890. In New
York during the same period the pop
ulation increased nearly half a mil
lion and deaths increased only 1924
William A. King, chief of the division
of vital statistics of the United States
census office, as quoted by William E.
Curtis. says that the same proportion
Of decrease is shown In every city
where vital statistics are kept.
In Chicago In 1880 with population
of l,O99,S50 there were 1854 deaths
among children. In 1900. with popu-
lation OF l,6S9,575, there were only S2Ss