[Poem: Abilene Texas...] Page: 2 of 2
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for family use, it will be found that they recommend so
many articles of medicine in such nice proportions, that
a man must have all the articles usually kept in a drug
store, and the skill of an apothecary, to know how to mix
them properly. In this book, the choice is given between
articles on sale by the druggist, and those prepared by
the author."'
Large families often attempted to keep supplies on
hand, but sometimes had to go to the nearest neighbor,
probably ten miles away, to borrow castor oil, one of the
biggest sellers. One of the few home remedies was an
excellent liniment made from turpentine, vinegar, and
mutton suet, and, using ash lye for the base and rinds
of bacon for the fat, they made a soap which well filled
their purpose. They had more hardships to think of than
cosmetic skin and did not think of needing filtered sun-
shine.
Some of the plants upon which much value was placed
are: Emetic Herb of Lobelia Inflata, and its three ways
of preparation; cayenne or Capsicum; Bayberry or Candle
Berry; the root of White Pond Lily ; hemlock ; the Inner
Bark; Leaves and Berries of Sumach; Witch Hazel
Leaves, Red Raspberry Leaves; Squaw Weed (Indian
name Cocah) ; Poplar Bark; Barberry Bark; Bitter Root
or Wandering Milk Weed; Peach Meats ; Cherry Stones ;
Gum Myrrh; Spirits of Turpentine; Gum Camphor;
Nerve Power-American Valeriano or Ladies' Slippers,
sometimes called Umbil or male and female Nervine.
Not much advertising was done, for it was thought un-
ethical to do so. The little advertising the druggist did was
usually printed on cards, and on the cards was carefully
engraved, "Prescriptions carefully compounded by com-
petent pharmacists, using the best drugs and chemicals."
But one rather skeptical Englishwoman, Mrs. Houstonn,
after yachting in the New World, wrote an article, dated
1844, in which she said that, "Some of them (the Texas
doctors) may be clever and well educated, but the medicine
in general, I believe to be bad, in spite of their frequent
announcement as cargo, and the words, drugs and chemi-
cals, appended to so many of the stores."
Years later, in the poorly-settled West where there
were few drug stores, we find cowboys who believed so
strongly in their remedies that they used them over and
over again. Superstitution had not disappeared, and the
psychological effect probably made them feel some bet-
ter when such cures as the following were used: "Salts
or cauterizing with a hot iron for snake bites; the wearing
of a necklace of rattlers prevented smallpox; axle grease
was used for skunk bites; for dropsy, one beef gall to a
quart of whiskey to be shaken and drunk three times a
day; a tea of cockroaches was recommended for lockjaw;
all diseases were warded off by assafetida and buckeye
worn around the neck."'
Dr. J. C. Massie, in his Eclectic Southern Practice of
Medicine, a credit to the author as it was the first book of
its kind published in Texas, contained many valuable
remedies, two of which are very unusual, used in the treat-
ment of the tape worm: "Mare's milk is asserted to have
been used with great advantage by Germans." "Hufeland
associated a decoction of garlic in milk with castor oil and
tin filings."
Among the treatments for rattle snake bites, the follow-
AND DRUG PRICE REVIEW, OCTOBER, 1936ing are found: "Cut a handful of the Spanish Dagger and
jab these into the animal where he is swelled the most."
"Stand him in mud and rub with kerosene oil." "Blister
with turpentine." "Apply soda and vinegar." "Apply
warm fowl, rabbit."2
Cranberries were considered an efficacious remedy for
erysipelas, as is indicated in the Texas Ranger on Novem-
ber 28, 1855. On October 16, 1852, standing in a sugar
house during the rolling season, which is the harvest when
the canes are cut, the juice extracted and coverted into
sugar, inhaling the vapor and drinking occasionally a glass
of hot cane juice is a treatment interesting to invalids for
curing bronchial, dyspeptic, and consumptive complaints.
Dr. Hall, in 1858, advises, in the San Antonio Herald,
living out of doors, pure air, and nutrition.
To cure a cold, first, eat nothing ; second, go to bed,
cover up in a warm room: third, drink as much cold water
as you can, or as you want, or as much herb tea as you
can ; and in three cases out of four you will be well in 35
hours, confidently advised the Dallas Herald in Decem-
ber, 1868.
Perchloride of iron in removing the parasitical growths
by expectorating supposedly cured the croup. Lemon juice
was the cure for diphtheria. Although asparagus cured
rheumatism and gout, the Jerusalem artichoke also had a
similar effect. Skunk meat was recommended for pul-
monary complaints, but most people sensed disadvantages
in obtaining this remedy.
The, store of J. J. Schott in Galveston, established in
1847, is accredited with the honor of being the oldest
drug store known in Texas. Fifty years from the time
it was opened, 1,196,971 prescriptions had been filled.
Schott's store was the main source of medical supplies for
the island during the epochal yellow fever epidemic of
1870. In 1873, because of such an increased business, the
store was moved to a new building. An all-night service
was begun in 1882, and the doors of the building were
never closed until the entire Schott personnel went on an
oyster roast January 17, 1913, at the end of the filling of
the one millionth prescription. The store was continually
in the Schott family until 1933, when it was purchased
by A. C. Farb. The store was destroyed by fire in 1934.
In the little city of Columbus is located the second old-
est pharmacy in Texas, opened in 1844 by Dr. John Logue.
Though now owned by O. A. Zuinwalt, it contains a few
old-time pharmacy instruments, among which are a large
iron mortar of 1840, two stock bottles, an old mill, and
several old presses.
In 1873, still in the days when the druggist had inade-
quate equipment and was forced to work 12 to 15 hours
a day and disturbed many times during the few hours
he slept, in the days when sarsaparilla sodas were the
most popular drinks dispensed over the soda fountain,
we find in Denison, Texas, W. J. Furman starting his
drug store which in 35 years' time "he had changed from
ordering hair brushes by the carload to operating a mod-
ern beauty parlor over the show windows; while the store
(Look on Page 106)
1F .C. Wilkes, M.D., A Manual of Practice of the Diseases of
Texas, Second Edition, Chapell Hill, Texas, 1867.
'August J. Watzlavick, pioneer druggist.
2Frost Woodhull, Remedios, San Antonio, Texas. being a paper
prepared for the Texas Folk-lore Society, April, 1929.
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Cousins, Walt. [Poem: Abilene Texas...], poem, October 1936; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1091689/m1/2/: accessed June 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Hardin-Simmons University Library.