^""'NoCiSi*""'}  Patent  Medicines.  563 
Tooth  wash, — A  tincture  is  made  from  chips  of  cedar  wood,  such 
as  is  used  for  the  finer  qualities  of  lead  pencils,  by  treating  1  part  of  it 
with  5  parts  of  brandy.  In  250  gm.  of  this  tincture  dissolve  oil  of 
peppermint  2  gm,  oil  of  anise  1  gm.  A.  Vomacka  states  that  this 
resembles  Pierre's  Eau  dentifrice. — Bundschaii,  June  20,  1883. 
PATENT  MEDICINES. 
By  William  L.  Turner,  Philadelphia. 
To  read  pharmaceutical  publications,  and  the  proceedings  of  some  of 
the  bodies  which  represent  pharmacists,  one  would  suppose  that  the 
subject  of  Patent  Medicines  was  the  paramount  interest  now  engaging 
attention  in  this  community.  Indeed  such  would  seem  to  be  the  case, 
if  one  might  judge,  as  we  do  in  cereals,  by  market  reports  and  quota- 
tions, with  this  remarkable  difference — breadstuff  is  to  some  extent 
regulated  in  its  quotations  by  the  ordinary  law  of  demand  and  supply, 
while  patent  medicine  quotations  seem  to  be  regulated  by  a  desire  to 
increase  the  demand  regardless  of  the  supply  which  would  appear  to 
be,  and  probably  is,  inexhaustible. 
The  well-known  fact,  that  almost  fabulous  wealth  has  been  accumu- 
lated in  this  field  of  enterprise,  and  even  in  some,  yea  many,  cases, 
upon  a  single  preparation,  would  appear  to  indicate  that  the  percentage 
of  profit  on  this  class  of  preparations  has  been  to  the  manufacturer 
and  proprietor  enormously  large,  which,  instead  of  producing  upon  the 
public  mind  abundant  and  conclusive  evidence  of  their  comparative 
worthlessness,  has  rather  tended  to  increase  the  credulity  of  the 
deceived,  as  well  as  the  wealth  of  the  deceiver.  The  amount  sold,  and 
the  expenditure  of  money  in  effecting  its  sale,  is  heralded  as  an  indica- 
tion of  merit  by  those  who  push  them,  as  though  they  were  the  disin- 
terested parties,  who  expended  their  time  and  substance  for  the  allevi- 
ation of  the  ills  of  life,  and  the  exclusive  benefit  of  their  fellows. 
Now,  one  might  naturally  inquire,  what  interest  have  pharmacists 
in  this  traffic,  that  so  much  should  be  said  about  it  ?  And  this  brings 
me  to  the  point  of  inquiry,  what  is  the  plain  and  positive  duty  of 
pharmacists  in  dealing  with  this  question,  and  to  what  extent  are  they 
responsible  for  the  building  up  and  sustaining  of  this  wretched  traffic? 
That  a  pharmacist  should  deal  in  nostrums  of  this  character  is  not 
because  they  constitute  an  essential  part  of  his  calling,  but  in  response 
to  a  general  demand.    They  have  been  designated  medicines,  and, 
