500 
CORRESPONDENCE. 
country friends (in some cases eight) for the 
licence, although their sale for proprietary 
articles very far exceeds our own; and the 
second complaint has been the ambiguity 
which sometimes occurs as to stamping cer¬ 
tain medicines. 
It is to be hoped that the Council will 
make no other alterations than those to 
which I have referred; for what with the 
injury done to us by those unscrupulous 
cutting-men in our own ranks, and what 
with the threatened destruction of us by the 
“ Civil Service Co-operative Societies,” we 
cannot afford to have the sale of proprietary 
articles interfered with. 
It may be mentioned, with regard to patent 
medicines, that they are never likely to in¬ 
crease numerically; for, as one comes into 
life, an old one dies out. And then the cost 
of making known a remedy, however va¬ 
luable it may be, is such that years of anx¬ 
ious toil, with an outlay of some hundreds of 
pounds, is necessary just to make the public 
acquainted with its existence; and by which 
time the “would-be proprietor” finds his 
ardour cooled, and perhaps his means ex¬ 
hausted. Many can say with me, “ Hinc 
illae 1 aerymah’ And, further, there is an¬ 
other reason why there should be no altera¬ 
tion affecting the sale of patent medicines, 
and it is this, that whilst no person is com¬ 
pelled to use them, yet they are patronized 
by all classes, from the poorest peasant or 
artisan even to royalty. 
Hoping these practical remarks may prove 
useful, believe me, 
Yours faithfully, 
East Centkal. 
London, January 2ls£, 1870. 
Sir,—In their aim agreeing with those 
who are seeking to put an end to quackery, 
I cannot agree with them as to the means 
by which they propose to accomplish that 
object, viz. the abolition of the patent medi¬ 
cine stamp and licence. 
Their argument in support of the scheme 
is that if the government stamp be with¬ 
drawn from the nostrum, the confidence of 
the public in its efficacy will be withdrawn 
also. 
This argument is, I think, fallacious, since 
the faith of the public is not produced by 
the stamp, but is the offspring of the effron¬ 
tery of the quack and the simplicity of his 
victim. 
At the same time, I admit that it is much 
easier to criticize proposed remedies than to 
propose better; yet to my mind, rather than 
abolish the stamp, it seems better to increase 
it tenfold on all secret preparations, which, 
if possessing the qualities ascribed to them, 
would be cheap at the increased rate; and, if 
not, the higher the price the less the sale, 
and consequently a diminution of the evil. 
Or, let some public body be appointed, 
whose duties shall be to examine and register 
the formulas of proprietary medicines, which, 
if possessing at least some pretensions to 
alleviate or cure disease, may be sold at the 
present rate of stamp duty, sanctioned by 
Government,—not of necessity as beneficial, 
but at all events as not injurious; the for¬ 
mula, of course, to be regarded as secret. 
I do not put forward these ideas as dogmas 
to be acted on at once, but rather as sugges¬ 
tions admitting of expansion and improve¬ 
ment ; and, trusting that some effectual 
means of at least arresting the spread of the 
evil may be put into operation, 
I am, Sir, yours truly, 
Alpha. 
London, January 19 th, 1870. 
Sir,—As we are invited to express our 
opinions on the patent medicine controversy, 
allow me, as a country chemist, to say that 
any great alteration or interference with re¬ 
gard to their sale, would be very prejudicial 
to us who reside in the country. 
As a rule, we sell a goodly number, for 
they are generally well advertised in the 
local papers, and happen to suit very many,, 
especially of t he poorer classes, 
I do not, by stating this, wish to give any 
personal encouragement to proprietary, or, 
as some prefer to designate them, quack r 
medicines, although I put up several my¬ 
self ; yet, as in small towns there is so little- 
remunerative dispensing, we are compelled 
to defend any legitimate branch of our 
business. 
Again, the medicine stamp and licence- 
money is a very useful addition to the re¬ 
venue, which, although not amounting to? 
much, is very easily paid, and more easily 
collected. 
To confine the sale to chemists would 
perhaps be injudicious, inasmuch as many 
villages cannot support a member, therefore- 
it would entail inconvenience on the rustic- 
inhabitants ; although an anomaly here pre¬ 
sents itself, as it would be in contravention 
of the Act if non-registered persons were to 
sell poisons, many of the so-called patent 
medicines containing the scheduled articles 
in no small proportions. 
Again, it would be unfair to charge all 
wholesale dealers a large sum as licence, be¬ 
cause we who live in country towns, supply 
the neighbouring villagers with such articles 
as they require; yet which number would 
not nearly be sufficiently profitable to allow 
the payment of carriage from London by 
them, nor justify the investment in a heavy 
licence by us; therefore this would prove a- 
very awkward dilemma for some. The- 
Pharmacy Act has already much lessened 
our wholesale trade in poisons, and I must 
say, from experience, it has diminished very 
