Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-03-13
Fort Madison One
Wet Spot in loua

| Fort Madison. March 13.-With
whisky on sale here, backed by the
sanction OF the United States govern
ment. Fort Madison is now the mecca
for the thirsty from miles around.
and enjoys the distinction of being
the one wet" spot in the whole state
! of Iowa.
y prescription. Of course. is nee
essary to obtain the coveted pint Of
red eye" every ten days from the
drug store, but they are not hard to
obtain and are going fast. The ply
siCians issuing them are busy men.
/ Never before was there so much
! sickness" in this neck of the woods.
/ More sick" people motor in or
come in on the trains daily to, see
! the magic" physicians OF Fort Madi-
/ son. than visit most ''cure-alr' re-
sorts in week. They generally go
| back home wobbly, but cured.
About 80 days ago the word was
passed around that a local physi-
| clan had received a book OF gov
eminent prescriptions and that a
drug concern had just unloaded from
an express car a barrel Of 10 proof
whisky. Then the stampede the
epidemic of sickness-began. Men,
women, white, Hack, Mexicans-all
nationalties we're seized with a pecu-
! liar s!ckness--a sickness that nothing
but whisky could cure. More cases
| OF sudden nervous prostration have
been treated in Fort Madison during
the past month than has been record
ed in the history Of the city-and the
rnalady is spreading.
5esieged With Patients.
Physicians who are known to have
( the necessary credentials to produce
( the real booze are besieged with pa
tents. Long lines of men and wo-
men form n front OF their offices al
most daily awaiting their turn FIRE.
quently the lineup continues until
| late in the evening. Handsomely
dressed white women take their place
! in the line with negro washerwom er.
coal beavers and Mexican laborers.
They wait patiently and move to-
ward their goal with the slowly pass
! ing throng until, it comes their turn
TO be summoned into the physicians
office where the prescription is Sc
cured.
| At the one drug store here where
! liquor is ObtainabIe the clerks are
! sometimes worked overtime filling
] prescriptions"
Each applicant for "aid" is care
fully questioned by the examining
physician.
Are you sick?" he asks.
| Invariably the patient" is awful
sick" From the looks Of some OF
them one. would imagine that they
had just finished a neck and neck
race with the undertaken, but tho
smile that broadens out On their
faces as they leave the physicians
office bespeaks that they are on their
way to the government booze dis
pensary."
At the drug store all that is nee
essary is to present the prescription,
sign your name in little book. crap
your bottle OF whisky and drink 1t
when once on the outside.
The druggist very carefully warns
the sick to put the bottle IN poke:
and leave it there unwrapped and
untouched until they get home. Then
the instructions on the prescriptions
take one to two tablespoonful every
three hours" must be observed, the
druggist tells him. ...-..
Few, If any, obey the mandate Of
t!:c druggists, Judging fror, the c!,-r :
Der of drug store bottles, labelled
pure whisky" which are daily fo/id
in the alleys and on some Of the
streets.
Only 100 prescriptions are allow
ed q physician at one time, and no
cannot secure others until the stubs
have been returned to headquarters
at Council Bluffs. However, ne Is
permitted to write emergency pre-
scriptions on blank paper.