El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-09-02
Horrible Details Of the Murder Of Hundreds
ecoatinued From Previous Page,

TO STATE THAT IN A GREAT NUM-
Der OF INSTANCES HE RECEIVED
REPLIES PROVING THE WRITERS
ABSOLUTELY ON THE SQUARE.
GONE, HOWEVER, FROM A FOX
MER COLLEGE PROFESS0R-A VEN
ERABLE GENTLEMAN-TOOK EX-
CEPTION TO THE PROPOSITION
FOR so PERCENT COMMISSION, AND
DECLARED ONE-THIRD OUT TO
BE ABOUT RIGHT ANOTHER NO
TED COLLEGE MAN OFFERED TO
MEET ALL PROSPECTIVE PATIENTS
AT THE TRAIN WITH HIS CAR
RAGE. AND STILL ANOTHER-AN
OFFICER IN A LEARNED SOCIETY
OFFERED TO BREAK UP HIS vACA-
TON AND COME A LONG DISTANCE
TO CAPTURE TWO CASES ON A go
PERCENT BASIS.
ZONE OF THE MEN WHO REPLIED
AFTER THIS FASHION, WHO KNEW
OF MY ACTIVITIES AGAINST THE
FEE MET ME ON THE
STREET NOT LONG AFTERWARDS
AND SLAPPED ME ON THE BACK,
SAYING: WELL, I'M GLAD SOME
BODY HAS AT LAST ATTACKED
THAT AWFUL COMMISSION BUSI-
NESS IT so HAPPENED I HAD IN
MY POCKET A LETTER FROM HIM
TO MY COUNTRY FRIEND WHICH
EXPRESSED HIS WILLINGNESS TO
Do ANY OLD JOB AT ANY OLD
TIME At ANY OLD COMMISSION.
BUT SMILED AND SAID MOTH
ING"
There is a disposition in the Atlantic
states to hold up hand of holy horror
at secret fee-spItting as piece OF
moral depravity peculiar to the West
and Middle West. This may not be
hypocrisy, but it is at least blindness.
So eminent an authority as DR.. Robert
Able, chief surgeon of st. Luke's Hos
pital and visiting surgeon at half
dozen other big hospitals in New York.
said to me:
81 don't know how bad It is in the
East, but it certainly exists. / know of
surgeons, men of the greatest ability
and highest standing, who are wonder
ing why certain physicians no longer
send cases to them. And / know of
other surgeons, much less worthy and
able, who are operating ON cases for
which they are by no means as fit"
Another class Of specialists who have
been coming in for big fees lately are
the gynecologists. and they too have
felt the splitting pressure. / went
to one of the most noted of them, DIR.
Clement Cleveland, gynecologist and
surgeon in the world-famed Woman's
Hospital OF New York.
Whatever the practice in the West"
he said, ''it is certainly a widespread
and corrupting influence here. It has
not affected me personally, but see it
on all sides and the future appears to
be filled with many dangers. 1t is being
brought about by the fierce competi-
ton for livelihood"
There Dr. Cleveland placed his finger
on the spot where it hurts.
Secret feesplitting would never have
been anything more than a minor all
ment, if it had not been for our neg
lect of the physician 1t came into the
profession from the outside and our at
titude has given it a chance to grow.
The manufacturers of trJsses and other
bodily appliances were originally to
blame. To promote their business they
have pursued a policy of always mail
1AiSS q CAcCh W CAC pulsfCt1u WIZ S<5li4S
thefq a case. This is made out for
certain percentage of what the patient
is charged and, of course. is tackled on
to what the patient pays. The patient
is eheafed and the business is under
handed, \but the truss manufacturers are
not concerned with such matters. They
are after Sbusiness and they have found
that it pays TO send out these checks.
They brings greatly increased business
Several medical men have told me that
they have returned these checks time
after time with insulting letters, but
they have come Rnext time just the same
In St. Luke's Hospital, in New York,
house surgeon is retaining such check
as evidence against the Pomeroy Truss
company, but he might as well save
himself the troublet The country is
flooded with similar Nchecks every day,
and far outnumbering them are the
checks for commissio1l sent by drug
stores.
Now the constant receiving and cash