Life, 1903-12-17 · page 19 of 22
Life — December 17, 1903 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily an **advertising page** rather than a satirical cartoon page. It contains testimonial-based product ads typical of early 20th-century magazines. The dominant advertisement is for **Buffalo Lithia Water**, a mineral water treatment claiming to cure Bright's Disease, gout, rheumatism, and kidney ailments. It features endorsements from prominent medical figures (professors, a former NYC Health Officer)—a marketing strategy that lent false scientific credibility to patent medicines. This reflects the **pre-FDA regulation era** when such unsubstantiated health claims were legal. Other ads include railroad travel (Wabash Line), Williams Shaving Stick, "The Lightning Conductor" (an automobile romance novel), Surburg's Arcadia tobacco mixture, and President Suspenders. **For modern readers:** These ads reveal how companies exploited medical authority and lack of consumer protection to market dubious "cures" to the public. The prominent doctor testimonials were common advertising tactics that wouldn't pass today's regulatory standards.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
BUFFALO LITHIA WATER “The Most Effective of the Natural Medicinal Waters” and “Strikingly Superior to Lithia Tablets” in Bright’s Disease, Calculi, Gout, Rheumatism, etc. Dr. 1. N. Love, New York City, former Professor of Clinical Medicine and Diseases of Children, College of Phystcians and Surgeons, and in Marion Sims College of Medicine, St. Louis, Vice-President of American Medical Association, ete., nan article in Medical Alirror, says: ** While being the most effective of the natural mineral waters, it is strikingly superior to emergency solutions of lithia tablets and pure water, even where the said solution is an exceedingly strong one."” E. H. Pratt, A.M., M.D., LL.D., Professor of Orificial Surgery to the Chicago’ Homeopathic Aledical College, and Altending Surgeon to Cook County fospital, says: ‘For a very valuable ther- many years | have found BUEFALO LITHIA WATER speutic resource. It has proved especially efficacious in Rheumatism, Gout, and Affections of the Kidney and Bladder generally, including Bright’s Disease.” Dr. William Doughty, /ormer Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta: rT} is the only reliable treatment known to BUEFALO LITHIA WATER ine for the permancut relict of gravel and the antecedent conditions that determine it.”” Dr. Cyrus Edson, recently Health Officer of New York City: “T have with great benefit in Bright’ prescribed BUEFALO LITHIA WATER discase of the Kidneys." BUEFALO LITHIA WATER 32 {¢" “> Grocers and Druggists gen Testimonials which defy all imputation or question sent to any address. PROPRIETOR BUFFALO LITHIA SPRINGS, VIRGINIA. ‘The Taletide Sensoa adds to the ever-increasing fow cf travel over THE WABASH LINE ecrween ST. LOUIS, AND CHICAGO, KANSAS CITY, OMAHA, DES MOINES, TOLEDO, DETROIT, NIAGARA FALLS, BUFFALO, NEW YORK, BOSTON, LOS ANGELES, SAN FRANCISCO, MINNEAPOLIS ANO ST. PAUL. CHICAGO AND PEORIA, GALVESTON, LOS ANGELES, TOLEDO, DETROIT, NIAGARA FALLS, BUFFALO, NEW YORK, BOSTON AND MONTREAL. KANSAS CITY AND DETROIT, NIAGARA FALLS AND BUFFALO. ST. PAUL AND LOS ANGELES. ‘The Wahash Line has its own rails direct to the World's Falr Grounds fn St. Louis” All Watash through trains paw through the beaatiful Forest fark aod stop at World. air Station inorder toro eames an opportunity to view from the trains the World's Fair Buildings Cc. S. CRANE, GENERAL PASSENGER AND TICKET AGENT, ST. LOUIS, MO. ‘SHAVING WILLIAMS ‘stick Commends itself to travelers by land or sea, on account of its convenience, compactness, luxury and economy. sie of at dr THE J. B. WILLIAMS CO. The Lightning Conductor AN AUTOMOBILE LOVE STORY. $1.50 +Sneh delightful people and such deilght/ul scenes." —Vation. HENRY HOLT & CO. 29 W. 23rd St., New York SURBRUG’S Arcadia MIXTURE. “When he Jimmy was at school Moggridge smoked a ,cane-chair, and he has since | jsaid that nary |noticeable as the change from from cane to ordi- mixtures was not so mixtures to the JM. Barrie. | ordinary | Arcadia.” PRESIDENT SUSPENDER Now packed in handsome individual boxes for Christmas. 50c. and SI. Any shop or by mail. C.A. EDGARTON MFG, CO., Box 273, Shirley, Mass, comicbooks.com