Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-09-25
Ethics of Advertising


Of comment concerning the unkind things that
folk with myosls and myasthenia Of tho mind have
said about them This shall be a sincere attempt 10
fsh the remarks and the comments out In all re-
form movements. something or somebody has to De-
the goat Before you can get a crowd TO ABANDON
reason and blindly follow the leaders you must unu
. man o n thing 20 kick around and throw bricks at
To lead a crowd Il is not necessary TO posHesH an M
toect or be logican All that is needed is an OBJECT
and plenty OF noise One day the ponce are tho 80
the next day, Wall street; then food manutaeturets
judges politicians trusts bankers, and today the An
CORA is patent medicines No attempt AZ soIhnina
ton Is made by the Mad Mullahs hot on the tIan
OF ephemeral fame They condemn an entire INDUSTRY
simply because there In Il few scalawagS lheso
soaiawags are held up specimens OF the contents
Of the entire package and war dances are e1eeu'eu
around the wretches as the fasots arc nsh'eu'
Let II he admitted that folk get SICK and that most
OF them would get well " they behaved tnemseiVts
br.stbod deeply OF fresh air. took bit OF exercise
forgave or forgot their enemies and Kept away I0l
doctors and medicines OF any kind The taxing oi
medicine however has a certain psyohological erect
and some drugs possess the property OF ehAnslns
conditions In the human body. The practiee OF heo
cine at best, simply game OF guess-wor oocause
the action OF drugs varies TO remarkaole oesres
upon different individuals The reason there are so
very many doctors and very many fnedlches 10
because the dear people demand a variety so they
can change from to another when results are
unsatisfactory, which is frequently the case -.
l am told that in America there are some SoO0
patent medicines and possibly per cent are down
right fakes and frauds, The other W per cent Aro
made from formulas probably written originally by
regular physicians. although am unaple 10 ueh
YOU what a regular physician is. Now It seems
20 mo that II a man makes good remedy, u Il
hardly criminal to let the public know about It, ana
the best way let the public know u by adVertms'
II n man advertises remedy that IL not gooo II IL
only question of time until he VIII rhd no S"is LUZ "
Il happens that men who advertise very often get
rich while who don't advertise very ol'en 81
broke The doctors (who don't advertise II they nave
10 nav for III became Jealous of the business estao'
lished by advertisers OF patent medicines ana i'r
quite while have been trying to get monopoy Oh
the medicine industry through the enactment Oh law"
That "a 10 say, IL they make II Illegal for any
body but an organization doctor TO treat people VINO
are aiing they will be able to sell their Foros
and buy Packards .
Now IL doctors cured the people they treat, would
be UP In front shouting my head Off for them' oW
the graveyards scattered over the counrysos
are mute testimony to their impotency Inc posses
sion OF n sheepskin Is not proof of SKILL ana DOC
tors frequent duty 10 TO fill out death certificates
What is the logic OF the reformers VINO demand that
none may sell medicine except graduates Of med!-
cal coiege7 why, It is analogous to insisting that
no one shall write books but college graduates no
one shall touch religion but ordained preachers
no shall into business but graduates or COM
mercial institution; shall publish paper eX'
cept graduates of school Of journalism; no one
shall bake pie except those who follow the recipes
in 1.-THE Homely Ladies' Journal
You might think from all this indscrminste bay
ing Of the pack that promoters OF patent meoicnNs
were co-laborers with Gyp the Blood. Daso FranS
and Lefty Louis. while the members OF the pack were
schoolmRtes OF Lttle Rollo. Sunday School susis
Snless SAINT but the facts seem TO be that there
ia the same percentage of decent folk who sell pre-
pared remedies at reasonable prices there are de-
cent reformers who reform at big prices. There arS
very many proprietary remedies that standard
as any prescription that any present day physician
can write, and in millions OF homes you will find
these remedies In every day use with satisfactory
results. And these remedies are largely bought and
used by people who cannot afford TO n doe
tor at 81 or So per SUM every time little some.
thing il needed TO Danish pain or soothe tired brow
NaNg.
flee taken from their slim stores and paid doctors for
services which conferred no benefit whatever.
Patent medicine advertising, no matter how worthy
the remedies or how immaculate the copy, Is not
accepted by few newspapers. Yet these same news
papers do not hesitate to print announcements OF
things that make medicine necessary They thei
columns to all forms of condiments preserves
pickles pastries and various vctuas that derange the
digestive tract clog up the Erie and invite the
peripatetc pmpe TO the chase cheek of Blanche and
Mabel They advertise corsets that choke the dla.
phragm ana shoes that create corns both OF
and soft kingdoms. They give to mInce meat
that puts the ache in stomach but deny space
man who promotes remedy TO take the ache
II It is ethical to advertise shoes that make
why-I ask from the HEARTS, it unethical to advet.
tise remedy7 II pickles and preserves
pastry send the piInple TO the OF Nelly why not
let man making pimpie eradicator tell Nelly how
Danish the vexatious thing7 II your various vic
tuaIs give Jim the eczema do you think il more ee-
waiting to society to let him stand scratching
OF the court house public library, tell him I'm
your paper the particulars apout some simple oint-
ment that will send the eczema where It FROM
Why should IL be improper 90 inform a bilious man,
with coated tongue and bad breath where can get
bolus action In his eliminating appar-
atus and thus brighten up tho heavens for him auo
for us?
II Is Just easy for a publisher 60 discriminate
between the good and bad in advertised remedies ~
between the good and bad In department stores gro
stores shoe stores and deli atessen stores No
branch OF trade s immune from mountebanks aud
crooks. and II is simply matter Of judging values
by the exercise OF common 20 up the whole
situation No advertising Ia Objectionable II 1t cen.
veys Information Of value TO the whole people, and Il
is surely desirable TO know what do when YOU are
not feeling well. Tho doctor has his place and so
have patent medicines and the world will take a big
step backward II IL ever gives the sheepskn power 10
prevail over ordinary horse Why the news-
papers should espouse the OF the doctor who
hates advertising like BILLY Sunday hates hell ana
seorn the reputable patent medicine man. who has
done more for advertising than any other force
known renllv I am lnnhln 10 anr