The Patent-Medicine Evil
By L. A. S.
THE patent-medicine business is, of course, greatly fostered by the use of testimonials. These testimonials sound very convincing, but their genuineness will not bear investigation. As an example of the utterly fraudulent character of much of this sort of evidence, we quote a statement from a press dispatch which appeared only a few days ago, as follows:— “NEW YORK, January 19.—Examination into the affairs of the ‘Force of Life Company,’ which it is alleged advertised a medicine that had power to bring the dead to life, was begun to-day before United States Commissioner Ridgeway. . . . The first witness was John S. Cooper, a lawyer, who accompanied two post-office inspectors to Dr. Hadley’s office on January 6. He said that he had seen an alleged testimonial there from a woman from California who wrote that she had been cured by the company’s preparation ‘after she had been made ready for the grave.’” The proprietors of this wonderful remedy are now settling accounts with the federal government. Mention was made last week of the easy manner in which patent-medicine testimonials were obtained. On this subject of testimonials we quote further from Collier’s:— “The ignorant drug taker, returning to health from some disease which he has overcome by the natural resistant powers of his body, dips his pen in gratitude, and writes his testimonial. The man who dies in spite of the patent medicine—or perhaps because of it—doesn’t bear witness to what it did for him. We see recorded only the favorable results; the unfavorable lie silent. How could it be otherwise when the only avenues of publicity are controlled by the heavy advertisers? So, while many of the printed testimonials are genuine enough, they represent not the average evidence, but the most glowing opinions which the nostrum vender can obtain, and generally they are the expression of a low order of intelligence. Read in this light, they are unconvincing enough. But the innocent public regards them as the type, not the exception. ‘If that cured Mrs. Smith, of Oshkosh, it may cure me,’ says the woman whose symptoms, real or imagined, are so feelingly described under the picture. Lend ear to expert testimony from a certain prominent cure-all:— “‘They see my advertising. They read the testimonials. They are convinced. They have faith in Peruna. It gives them a ‘gentle stimulant, and so they get well.’” “There it is in a nutshell—the faith cure. Not the stimulant, but the faith inspired by the advertisement and encouraged by the stimulant, does the work—or seems to do it. If the public drugger can convince his patron that she is well, she is well—for his purposes. In the case of such diseases as naturally tend to cure themselves, no greater harm is done than the parting of a fool and his money. With rheumatism, sciatica, and that ilk, it means added pangs; with consumption, Bright’s disease, and other serious disorders, perhaps needless death. No onus of homicide is borne by the nostrum seller; probably the patient would have died anyway; there is no proof that the patent bottle was in any way responsible. Even if there were—and rare cases do occur where the responsibility can be brought home—there is no warning to others, because the newspapers are too considerate of their advertisers to publish such injurious items.” A scheme devised by a leading patent-medicine proprietor which has great potency in maintaining the criminal newspaper alliance with this business, is that of inserting in the contract made with the newspapers, a clause, known as the “red clause,” which provides that the contract shall be void in case any state legislation is enacted hostile to the interests of the business; as, for example, legislation requiring the ingredients of patent medicines to be printed on the labels on the bottles. The effect of this clause in the contract is to make the newspapers fight all such legislation for fear they will lose their profitable advertising business. We quote further from Collier’s:— “To what length daily journalism will go at the instance of the business office was shown in the great advertising campaign of Paine’s Celery Compound, some years ago. The nostrum’s agent called at the office of a prominent Chicago newspaper and spread before its advertising manager a full-page advertisement, with blank spaces in the center. “‘We want some good, strong testimonials to fill out with,’ he said. “‘You can get all of those you want, can’t you?’ asked the newspaper manager. “‘Can you?’ returned the other. ‘Show me four or five strong ones from local politicians and you get the ad.’ “‘That day reporters were assigned to secure testimonials with photographs, which subsequently appeared in the full-page advertisement as promised. As for the men who permitted the use of their names for this purpose, several of them afterward admitted that they had never tasted the ‘Compound,’ but that they were willing to sign the testimonials for the joy of appearing in print as ‘prominent citizens.’ Another Chicago newspaper compelled its political editor to tout for fake indorsements of a nostrum. A man with an inside knowledge of the patent-medicine business made some investigations into this phase of the matter, and he declares that such procurement of testimonials became so established as to have the force of a system, only two of the Chicago papers being free from it. To-day, he adds, a similar ‘deal’ could be made with half a dozen of that city’s dailies. It is disheartening to note that in the case of one important and high-class daily, the Pittsburg Gazette, a trial rejection of all patent-medicine advertising received absolutely no support or encouragement from the public; so the paper reverted to its old policy.”