Thin paper advertisement for Dr. Humphreys' Specific No. 24; front: printed in black ink, tells right of a horse for Humphreys' Veterinary Specifics facsimiles (circular); left of a lady and a lion, for Humphreys' Specifics, and right of a horse, for Humphreys' Veterinary Specifics; blurbs below e…
Thin paper advertisement for Dr. Humphreys' Specific No. 24; front: printed in black ink, tells right of a horse for Humphreys' Veterinary Specifics facsimiles (circular); left of a lady and a lion, for Humphreys' Specifics, and right of a horse, for Humphreys' Veterinary Specifics; blurbs below each, but have been cut off.
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Purchased by Dr. M. Chiong for his patent medicine collection, before July 13, 1995.
Company already big in 1861, so may have been started in early 1850's or 1840's; the ad says "For 60 years", so could be around this time; still around in 1918
Material
paper: black
Inscriptions
Front: "No. 24 Directions for No. 24 // DR. HUMPHREYS' SPECIFIC // FOR // General Debility; Physical and Nervous Weakness; the Results of Depletion, long-continued Illness, or // Exhausting Drains upon the System; excessive Physical or Mental Application // GENERAL DEBILITY, or Physical Weakness, is usually the result of disease or sickness, or of some // drain upon the system beyond its power of recuperation...."; and so on
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0010
0010-G Chiong Trade Cards Binder C
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Dimension Notes
Length: 15.8 cm. x Width: 8.3 cm.
Condition Remarks
Some age/sun discolouration; large piece of top left corner missing, small piece of top right missing; four "staple" holes along left edge and two in the upper middle of the page; two tears along the right edge, one along the left and one on the top; a number of creases and wrinkles all over
Copy Type
Original
Reference Types
Book
Other
Reference Comments
"The Toadstool Millionaires" by James Harvey Young, p. 107; "Nostrums and Quackery", Vol. II, p.595; "The Snake-Oil Syndrome" by A. Walker Bingham, pp. 13-14, 66, insert # 5, 61
Research Facts
No. 24 is Tonic Tablets for General Debility; in 1861, Congress proposed tax on patent medicines; from NYC, four leading manufacturers, led by F. Humphreys (Frederick H.) went to Washington to protest, but in vain -- 4% tax on all proprietary medicines still around in 1881, but repealed in 1883; Humphreys' Pile Ointment Witch Hazel Oil (compound) analyzed to be basically a camphor ointment on a lard base; falsely advertised so fined $25.00 on April 29, 1918