Fergus County Democrat., 1915-04-29
WHEN ILLNESS WAS CHEAP.
Medicine Was Medicine in Good Of,
Days and Saved Doctors Bills.

"SOIVSuC was WSOvCJOS III 0OOO OIO
Days and Saved Doctors Bills.
Those nifty" little pink and white
pellets, less than half the size Of half
a split pea, are not the medicines you
and had to take" declared Bilkins,
addressing his remarks to Smithers
as they were coming out OF a soda
water resort, where they sold medi-
cines on the side.
mo, Stree! When we took medi-
cine it was medicine-you knew it by
it's fearful smell and abominable taste.
But as l remember it, Smithers, our
mothers were not so prone to call in
the doctor as people nowadays. OF
course, they had no handy telephones
then, and there were not doctors Of
ices on every corner, with two or
three more in the block to be sure
Of the neighborhood getting good
weight.
''If We cried out in the night by
reason of some sudden anguish,
jumping toothache, a grinding pain in
the center of our system, due to
some act of indiscretion in eating,
planning mill appeared to have been
set up in one ear, or we were 'whoop-
ing to beat the band, it was mother
who always turned out of bed to see
what was the matter, leaving father
to finish his sleep unless it was neces-
sary for him to 60 for the doctor, a
trip which was STAYED off until mother
had tried her 'simples,' as the house
hold remedies were designated, for it
was anywhere from three to six miles
70 the doctors house-we were coun-
try BOYS, then, Smithers.
"And some of the siEsples were not
SO simple after all. Do you remember
that composition tea we had to take?
That iunocent-looking powder, on
which boiling water was poured, the
sleeping of which made it a liquid
thousands of degrees hotter than the
middle of Tophet, and which we had
to down?
"Hs sthere were none of that in the
house and there was one more pain
than ought to be under it's roof,
! mother used to make sickening de-
coction of gum campEor, sugar and
,ot water, or she trotted out that de-
testable bottle of castor oil and forced
a dose Of it down our throats.
eff it was sore throat. it was a big
piece of salt pork rind, with the fatty
side in, that was tied about our throat.
If there was tightness of the chest,
suggesting an attack of inflammation
of the lungs mother rubbed lard over
8. wide piece of soft linen, sprinkled
this with snuff and plastered 1t on
our chest 1t bit some, too, Smithers.
but it did the business. If It was an
liberated tooth, mother roasted a
raisin, cut it open and 1ammed it on
! ON ko ~ a.
| hot iron to the gum, but it eased the
pain. Then mother went to bed and
| in the morning father took us over to
see the doctor. who pulled teeth as
we'll as administered physic.
Don't you remember, Smithers
how he used to put US in one Of the
office chairs, rest a bowl in our lap,
| then all of a sudden reach for the
tooth? There was no such thing as
laughing gas in those days. Father
paid quarter of dollar for the
we got our moneys worth.
"Of course, Smithers there were
times when mother told father that ha
thing in the morning. The doctor
| uoCu ~ OpCn q UAe ACnS1OI Ud6s IcoCIu
bling pack saddle, and from its
capacious pockets take out paper
packages of ground herbs Of various
kinds. With broad.bladed knife he
shoveled first from one packet and
then from another, until he had built
a little mountain of medicine. This
he stirred about. then patted flat, an6
cut 1t into geometrical squares. each
square to be dose. finally lifting
each portion to one of a dozen small
paper squares. which were fold
ed up with nicely. Then once al
hour we got all that was coming u
us when mother showed one of those
powders into our mouth. gave us {
drink Of water and told us to swallow
or there'd be a slipper performance
"The doctor would come around Il
look US over next day, say we were
getting along all right. and collect 81
cents from father-it might be al
much as 81 II he had driven ove1
during the night.-Providence Journal
/ BRANCH OFFICE IN DENVER.
WASHINGTON, April 27.-Estah
Hohmont ~ executive 0fficoo ~ III.