Amador ledger., 1908-02-21

The land of patent medicines seems
to be Japan-not the United States
The remarkable report of British
Consul W. NJ. Boyds shows that the
industry had its origin III the town of
Ioyama, on the west coast, and that
Prince Seiho Mazda, born in 16i9
is specially honored as its chief
patron. While DaymIo of the pro-
vince, his making of medicines for
the poor attracted such attention that
in 1852 Bandai Jokan, a physician of
Katakami, brought supply of Han
Gon-Tan ("medicine that calls lack
the dead to Iife"). This was dis
tributed from door to door, to be
paid for when convenient, and from
that time has been a popular remedy.
The industry took root and flourish
ed. Medicines we're distributed in
the last century by thousands of
agents, who made collections once a
year, taking back unused supplies. In
1904 there were 3l02 licensed patent
medicine manufacturers, authorized
to make 9735 different preparations,
aud their total annual product was
nearly $6,000,000. The medicines
none being in liquid form-are usual
~ given suggestive names, like
"brain healing pills" and "heal
everything powders. Toyama has
special guild for loaning capital,
dealers club of 5000 members,
patent medicine school. and patent
medicine magazine.
The electric rat-killer of A. f.. Won
Biederheim, claimed to have been
doing effective work in a factory at
Trieste, is designed for lowering into
drains or other infested places, and
consists OF a shallow tray with bot
tom lined with closely spaced metal
points alternately connected to the
positive and negative terminals OF
high-tension electric circuit. The
animals are promptly electrocuted as
they step on the points in attempting
to reach the bait. The apparatus
destroys only rats and similar vermin,
and it Is affirmed that there is no
risk to cats and other domestic
ANIMALS. 10 restore to natural
plumpness and appearance the
shrunken features. of mummies of the
Peruvians and cliff jewellers, and even
of the ancient iPharaohs themselves,
seems to be now possible. Noticing
the swelling in potash solution of
embryos previously shrunken in
alcohol, Prof. ii. IL. Wilder, the
zooIogist of Northampton, Mass, was
led to experiment with mummihed
human corpses, and has obtained
really remarkable and surprising re-
suits by soaking the dried tissue in
solution of one.third of one per cent
of caustic potash for II to 4S hours,
and then immersing in water for a
certain time. Care is necessary, as
too long soaking in either liquid
tends to disintegration. In a Peru
Wan mummy, the natural consistency
of the tissues and even to some eX
tent the color of the skin we're
brought out very strIkjngly, and
heads Of infant cliff dwellers, that
had been dried in the sun without
EN- balming substance, we're so chang
ed that unrecognizable parts of the
face became as distinct as in life.
| Eczema was even made evident on
the hairy skin of one child.
In fixing atmospheric nitrogen by
forming nitric acid, the electric spark
method proved too difficult and cost
| ly, and it was the impI owed process
of Birkeland and Eyde. using a
Flaming disc, " that first became Ii
commercial success. An improved
flaming disc method is now claimed
| by /. Moscicki and others, Of Fri
| buurg, Switzerland. Two conGentric
ring electrodes are used, and the arc
! passes across the space between these
Ia radial direction, and is so de-
Elected by a magnet that the dis
charges travel around the rings in a
rapidly moving 2igzag, showing as a
iumIous circle between the two ring
electrodes. The nitrogen and oxygen
Of the air are united by these dis
charges more efficiently and eco
nomically, it is claimed, than by any
other method.
A shield, consisting of a sheet Of
silver foil covered with ceilulose, has