The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1934-05-12
RECKLESS INDULGENCE IN PAIN
KILLERS

As long as one individual or cor
poration owns a patent on anything
the owner has a monopoly and can
exact a high price for the product.
But after the patent expires anybody
can make and sell the product, and
the price then falls. from competition.
Some people who believe in fairies
take a dose or two Of aspirin when
ever they feel at all out Of sorts, tired.
worried, restless, In pain, or whenever
they have general malaise and believe
they are coming down with some ill
ness. These people seem to regard the
pain killer as kind Of panacea for
human ills.
Personally l like good shot OF
aspirin myself once in a decade or
SO. But before have the courage
to INCEST 1t I've got to be feeling
pretty darn awful-not just anxious
or worried but in real misery. Then
I thank the modern science that
brought a beneficient analgesic into
the world. II there is any medicine
that will relieve the aches Of an acute
feverish illness more promptly and
more safely than aspirin does, have
rot heard OF it.
At the same time I'd much prefer
to put up with the mild discomfort Of
an ache or pain or distress Of any
kind that does not actually disable,
than to dope myself with aspirin or
any other pain-killer and try to|
keep going"
Here is where so many people make
a serious mistake, and In some in
stances 1t proves fatal mistake. It
is a serious mistake in any case to
attempt to kill the ache or pain or
other unpleasant symptoms OF malaise
that commonly announce the onset
Of cri by dosing with any such drug
and trying to flight it off" You idiot,
that isn't fighting: that's surrender
ing and handing over your weapons.
II you mean really to put up q fight
against the on-coming or threaten
ing" illness, be it grip" FLU" pneu-
monia, coryza or heaven only knows
what, you'll lay aside all minor con-
siderations and give yourself break
by hopping straight into bed to see 1t
through.
Acetanilid is another coaltar
derivative. an older and cheaper one
than aspirin. that is the sense.dead-
ening ingredient in dozens Of nos
trums sold to the public as "cold"
cures headache and neuralgia cures,
rheumatism cures, cures for fatigue,
the blues or what have you. There
are many records Of death from
poisoning by these harmless" nos
trums, either from overdose or from
chronic habitual indulgence. Both
aspirin and acetanailid have their i'd
disct.
One popular nostrum containing q
full dose Of acetanilid in every spoon
full is unfortunately sold at soda
fountains and freely INDUCED In by
people who believe In fairies. for
everything from bilious feeling to
brain-fag.
A middle aged business man who
should have known better but was
such an insufferable wiseacre that no
one could tell him anything. was In
the habit Of indulging In this soda
fountain dope quite regularly. He was
an addict. He craved more and more
Of the acetanilide to benumb the dis
agreeable feelings left after the last
dose had worn away. Finally no took
one extra large dose on retiring. and
three or four hours later his family
found him dead, deeply cyanose
(black and blue). as are most VIC
Tins Of acetanilid poisoning.