The Great American Fraud: The Patent Medicine Evil — John Shaqi
The Great American Fraud: The Patent Medicine EvilAdams, Samuel Hopkins
Science
The Great American Fraud: The Patent Medicine Evil
Adams, Samuel Hopkins
Patent medicines; Quacks and quackery
One of the inclosures sent to me was a letter from a young physician on
the staff of the Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago, who was paid $25 to
make bacteriologic tests in pure cultures. He reported: "This is
to certify that the fluid Liquozone handed to me for bacteriologic
examination has shown bacteriologic and germicidal properties." At the
same time he {026}informed the Liquozone agent that the mixture would
be worthless medicinally. He writes me as follows: "I have never used or
indorsed Liquozone; furthermore, its action would be harmful when taken
internally. Can report a case of gastric ulcer due probably to its use."
Later in my investigations I came on this certificate again. It was
quoted, in a report on Liquozone, made by the head of a prominent
Chicago laboratory for a medical journal, and it was designated "Report
made by the Michael Reese Hospital," without comment or investigation.
This surprising garbling of the facts may have been due to carelessness,
or it may have some connection with the fact that the laboratory
investigation was about that time employed to do work for Mr. Douglas
Smith, Liquozone's president.
Another document is an enthusiastic "puff" of Liquozone, quoted as being
contributed by Dr. W. H. Myers in _The New York Journal of Health_.
There is not nor ever has been any such magazine as _The New York
Journal of Health_. Dr. W. H. Myers, or some person masquerading under
that name, got out a bogus "dummy" (for publication only, and not as
guarantee of good faith) at a small charge to the Liquozone people.
For convenience I list several letters quoted or sent to me, with the
result of investigations.
The Suffolk Hospital and Dispensary of Boston, through its president,
Albert C. Smith, writes: "Our test shows it (Liquozone) to possess great
remedial value." The letter I have found to be genuine. But the hospital
_medical_ authorities say that they know nothing of Liquozone and never
prescribe it. If President Smith is prescribing it he is liable to
arrest, as he is not an M.D.
A favoring letter from "Dr." Fred W. Porter of Tampa, Fla., is quoted.
The Liquozone recipients of the letter forgot to mention that "Dr."
Porter is not an M.D., but a veterinary surgeon, as is shown by his
letter head.
Dr. George E. Bliss of Maple Rapids, Mich., has used Liquozone for
cancer patients. Dr. Bliss writes me, under the flaming headline of his
"cancer cure," that his letter is genuine and "not solicitated."
Dr. A. A. Bell of Madison, Ga., is quoted as saying: "I found Liquozone
to invigorate digestion." He is _not_ quoted (although he wrote it)
as saying that his own personal experience with it had shown it to be
ineffective. I have seen the original letter, and the unfavorable part
of it was blue-penciled.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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