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Quackery

Page history last edited by c.marshall.1@... 5 years ago

Introduction

 

Quackery is the dishonest marketing and selling of fraudulent services, or a claim to have special knowledge in some field, typically medicine. The term was brought into the English language through the clipping of “quacksalver”, from the Dutch “kwakzalver” which meant a “hawker of salve”, and which seems to have emerged in the English language as early as the Middle Ages, when a “quack” was synonymous to a shout, and ‘quacksalvers’ conducted their trade by shouting over the general noise in the market place. Thus the term “quack” was slowly brought into popular use, emerging in full force in English literature in the 17th and 18th centuries, and has developed the meaning of “a person who dishonestly claims to have medical or surgical skill, or who advertises false or fake remedies” (OED).

 

The Quack Doctor

(Image 1. The Quack Doctor)

 

The earliest mention of quackery in literature appears to be in the form of criticism. Until the Medical Act of 1858 there was little regulation of medical practitioners to the extent that quacks were able to market their ineffective remedies in newspapers and pamphlets, and prey on individuals ignorant or desperate enough to seek any help offered to them. This has since provided a plenitude of material for the intellectuals of the 18th century, who had the intention of bringing the fraudulent nature of these individuals into the public eye through satire or criticism.

 

In this way, quackery can be a huge resource for gaining insight into the workings of the 18th century, not only as a display on the developments and variety of medicine, and how patent medicines began to be developed, but also as a snapshot of how society was able to abuse each other. The quacks were able to prey on the ignorance and gullibility of the public, but artists, dramatists and other intellectuals were able to prey on quackery as a trade for their own success and profit, albeit with the intention of educating their readers.

 

The Quacksalver(Image 2. "A Consultation of Quacks")                                                                                                                                   (Image 3. "The Quacksalver") 



Contents

 

     Origins of Quackery

 

     Patent Medicines

 

     Quack Doctors

 

     Quackery in 18th Century Literture

 

     Quackery in Art and Theatre

 


 

 

 

Origins of Quackery

 

 

There has always been a market in Britain for selling unproven and ineffective cures to a to the general public, and the lack of medical regulation has allowed fraudulent cures to transpire for an endless amount of symptoms and ailments, ranging from stomach aches to baldness and old age. This has occurred not only on a local stage, with fraudulent practitioners peddling their wares in the market place with the help of theatrical performances as a means of substantiating their claims, but also on an international level with the production and marketing of ineffective treatments that could be distributed globally in the form of “patent medicines”. These cures, dubbed “snake oil” in the United States to symbolise their exotic but ineffective and often harmful ingredients, used familiar packaging that customers could recognise, and worked antagonistically against natural and locally produced remedies. The 17th and 18th centuries allowed for an enormous growth in the marketing and distribution of these medical products, as the size and interconnectedness of the British Empire, and the emergence of the United States of America provided produced a new power to importing and exporting goods, and thus the globalisation of products.  

 

 

 

 

(Image 4. A label from a snake oil bottle, claiming to cure deafness amongst all other aches and pains) 

 

 

 


 

 

Patent Medicines

 

                                                                                                                                                 

 

 (Image 5. A newspaper extract from The Examiner showing an advert for "Daffy's Elixir")

 

 

 

 

(Image 6. A list of "Genuine Patent Medicines". The final medicine in the bottom left is "Turlington's Balsam")

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are examples of a couple of the earliest quack remedies marketed as “patent medicines”, with the intention that the product would be accessible globally. At its most fundamental level, rather than relying on any restorative values or ingredients that might allow the brand to gain a reputation, these medicines sought to dominate the market place, preying on the public’s familiarity with them and their loyalty to a brand. This method seems to have been remarkably successful, the latter article dates as late as March 1829, and yet Turlington’s Balsam, amongst other remedies whose medicinal natures are unproven, is being marketed as a genuine patent medicine. This is testament to the ease with which the medical industry could be abused until any actual medical regulations were introduced. At their worst these products contained ingredients which would be lethal upon frequent consumption such as mercury and silver. Taking this into consideration, the fact that these were easily accessible “patent medicines” makes their ingredients even more alarming, since the intention was that the customer would buy the product habitually, especially when they were laced with addictive substances such as opium.

 

This reveals the greatest source of success for quack medicines. In the first instance, quacks could prey upon gullible and uneducated members of the general public by promising cures for the incurable, such as old age, cancer and baldness. Nonetheless, this would have appealed to a large section of society. Secondly, they were able to include ingredients in their nostrums such as mercury, which would have induced symptoms in the patient such as vomiting and heavy perspiration, symptoms which were considered beneficial to the patient in the 18th century. Finally, they were able to include addictive substances in their remedies, which would have had the dually beneficial results of inducing addiction in the patient, as well as creating a façade of being an effective remedy by alleviating some of the symptoms. Opium would have especially effective in this respect, but ingredients such as willow bark, containing an acid chemically similar to aspirin, would have also served this purpose. 

 

For more information on the dangers prevalent in the use of drugs such as opium, see laudanum.

 

The excerpt of a poem below, written by Jane Barker in 1688, provides a visceral account of the detrimental impact quackery has on the medical profession. In the poem, two of the narrator's loved ones lie sick and at the mercy of a "Dr. Paman", who she pleads is not influenced by quack medicines.

 

Ah happy Paman , mightily approv'd, 

Both by thy Patients , and the Poor belov'd. 

Hence let no Slander light upon the Fame 

Of thy great Art , much less upon thy Name : 

Nor to bad Druggs let Fate thy Worth expose, 

For best Receipts are baffl'd oft by those: 

Nor let no Quack intrude where thou do'st come, 

To crop thy Fame , or haste thy Patients doom; 

Base Quackery to Sickness the kind Nurse, 

The Patients ruine, and Physicians curse:

On my Mother and my Lady W---- who both lay sick at the same time under the Hands of Dr. Paman .

 

 

It may be of some interest to note that the article featuring Turlington’s Balsam is not actually an advertisement for the Balsam itself, but for an apothecary selling “genuine patent medicines”. The alleged restorative benefits of the products are themselves not listed, they are presumed to be known, and we can observe an example of an apothecary abusing the ignorance of the gullible public itself by marketing these cures. Once again, this displays the lack of medical regulation in Britain and explains the various bills put through parliament in the mid-18th century to force regulation upon apothecaries as well as doctors, who would otherwise have no motivation for selling legitimately beneficial products when they can profit from the fraudulent cures of the quack doctors.

 

(Image 7. A list of foodstuffs containing Ravelenta Arabica, sold by "Du Barry as a cure-all)

 

 

This article, although from a later period, displays a similar variant of thesequack medicines. Throughout the 19th century the product Revelenta Arabica was hailed for its restorative qualities, and as can be seen in the article, no paper is spared in an attempt to draw the reader’s eyes to the benefits of “Du Barry’s” Revelenta Arabica foodstuffs. Daffy’s Elixir is modest in its proclamation to cure “all complaints of the stomach” beside the paragraph of ailments Revelenta Arabica can cure in the patient. The great irony of these advertisements is that their ingredients are usually widely available in their natural form. Revelenta Arabica is itself only lentil flour, but with a marketing strategy as simple as a column in the newspaper, an individual is able to convince the public to purchase his product for many times its actual price.

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quack Doctors

 

 

 

1. James Graham (1745 – 1794)

 

(Image 8. James Graham, quack)

 

James Graham serves as an ideal example of 18th century quack physicians, since his practice encompasses a variety of nonsensical remedies that stirred outrage in the British population of the 18th century as much as they would today, although he abused the ignorance of the general public and the lack of medical regulation to attain his wealth and success. His medical training took place at the University of Edinburgh, which was a pioneer of medical research in the 18th century, but he titled himself “Dr. James Graham” despite having never obtained a degree.

 

Graham instigated his medical career by designing medicines containing “ethereal and balsamic medicines”, as well as prescribing “milk baths” and “dry friction” to his predominantly valetudinarian patients.

 

 

He soon began to attempt to cure his patients by placing them on magnetic thrones, or in baths with magnetic currents passing through them, which would become a recurring theme of his treatments, especially when he established his “temple of health” in 1779. Within the “temple”, Graham used what he labelled “earth bathing” as one of his nostrums, and distributed pamphlets describing features such as “electrical machines, thrones insulated on glass pillars, stained glass windows, statues, paintings, music, perfumes, gigantic footmen” as a means of attracting the attention of the general public.

 

The main feature, however, was called the “great Apollo apartment”, where he offered health advice, including the “secrets of a happy sex life”, while scantily clad models paraded as “goddesses of health”. Within this space, he inserted a 12-foot-long, 9-foot-wide “celestial bed”, placed on elaborate glass pillars with the inscription “be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth” which he claimed could temporarily alleviate sterility and impotence, although he charged £50 a night for its use (£4,300 in modern currency).

 

 As one might expect, Graham attracted much criticism for his remedies. In the words of Horace Walpole, “Graham’s was the most impudent puppet show of imposition I ever saw”, and Graham was satirised in plays such as The Genius of Nonsense written by George Colman for the Haymarket Theatre, in which the character “Emperor of the Quacks” was based on Graham. He was eventually arrested in Edinburgh due to the damages caused by his medical publications there.

 

Despite the obvious incredulity and ridicule with which we regard individuals such as James Graham in the modern era, it must be appreciated that in order to endorse his peculiarities Graham enjoyed success in his field. The individuals he treated appear to have showered him with accolades, and although these individuals can be categorised along with the uneducated public who invited scorn from the critics of his era who sought to bring the fraudulent nature of quacks to the public eye, there are still some elements of Graham’s theories that survive and whose importance are maintained today.

 

The most important of these is Graham’s advocacy for healthy eating. This only emerged as a key feature of his lectures after he was released from prison, when his beliefs in natural remedies induced him to give lectures while buried up to the head in mud. His doctrine of natural dieting and abstinence incurred his madness, and eventually he drank only cold water and rubbed his limbs with his “nervous ethereal balsam” and mud for nourishment. He died presumably from the complications that this involved, but the benefits this new style of diet brought to his patients produced a strong defence for natural remedies in the medical world.

 

 

2. Joshua Ward (1684-1761)

 

 

 

(Image 9. Joshua Ward, medical practitioner and inventor of medicines)

 

 

In contrast to James Graham, very little is known of Joshua Ward’s youth or his medical knowledge, although one certainty is that he worked as drysalter in London’s Thames Street, where he would have been able to gain some insight into the properties of drugs.

 

Ward eventually moved to France, where he invented Ward’s Pill and Ward’s Drop. These would become his signature medicines. Their composition varied greatly over the years, as is common with many quack remedies, but essentially the pills “contained antimony and a vegetable substance” (DNB), called dragon’s blood, “mixed with wine”, which would have produced the effect of heavy perspiration. The drops on the other hand alarmingly contained nitric acid, ammonium chloride, and mercury. As was common for many patients who endorsed these quack physicians, the resulting perspiration, vomiting and purging were thought to be beneficial. This is perhaps understandable in an era when cupping (the use of suction to encourage blood flow in a specific area of the body) and blistering were regular treatments.

 

One major proponent for Ward’s success was his endorsement by the royalty. Ward had observed that the cause of the king’s painful thumb was not gout but dislocation, and he cured it “with a violent wrench”. The ensuing royal favour allowed Ward a superior stage from which he could proclaim his fraudulent remedies. Like many quack doctors of the era, Ward used press advertisements to great effect in pronouncing his alleged abilities, asserting his remedies could cure gout, rheumatism, scurvy, palsy, syphilis, scrofula, and cancer.

 

Understandably, Ward’s success instigated harsh criticism from all sides, not least of all from reputable doctors. He was accused of “hiring ‘patients’ at half a crown a week”, instructing them on how to display symptoms of disease, and he allowed wealthy individuals to throng his waiting-rooms and consulting-rooms for 5 shillings a day. Much of this money, however, is said to have been included in his contributions to charity, “over £3000 a year”, and he brought more hostility upon himself by regularly throwing coins from his carriage as travelled throughout London. Part of his charitable investments was to convert three houses in St James’s Park into a hospital for the poor, which he subsidized by charging his wealthier patients.

 

Ward’s behavior created a variety of critical responses. While he was commended for his attention to the poor with no expectation of reward, especially by Henry Fielding, he was attacked first indirectly, for example in the Gentleman’s Magazine, from 1734 onwards in criticisms of the public’s indiscriminate use of his medicines, before he was openly accused of “befriending undertakers, coffin makers, and sextons by poisoning the sick”. It seems, however, that much of this initial criticism was not unfounded, as it was soon discovered when he took the magazine to court for libel that his medical knowledge was in fact very limited.

 

As in the case of Graham, Joshua Ward presents a somewhat problematic figure of the quack doctor. While it is beyond dispute that the patent medicines he distributed were not founded on any medical benefits, his reputation as a quack doctor is negated by the attention he gave to the poor, and the success he had in curing a twelve-year-old Edward Gibbon from a life threatening illness. Ultimately, however, the legacy of his career is best displayed in the fact that his nostrums and remedies were posthumously virtually forgotten.

 

 

3. Robert James (bap. 1703, d.1706)

 


(Image 10. Robert James, physician and inventor of "James's Powder"

 

Robert James avoids classification as a quack, instead serving as an important example of the quintessential legitimate medical practitioner of the 18th Century. He is famous for having produced an effective pill to combat the symptoms of fever, and so serves as an informative contrast to the reputations individuals such as James Graham and Joshua Ward left behind.

)

In the first instance, James’s medical training is undeniable, as after studying medicine he became and extra-licentiate of the College of Physicians in 1728. He was able, on this basis, to settle in London and establish a fashionable and reputable practice, substantiated by his publication of A Medical Dictionary, with a History of Drugs in 1743. His publications encouraged his admittance as a full licentiate into the College of Physicians, and henceforth he committed the rest of his life to the development of his fever powder.

 

In a similar way to the era’s quack doctors, James appears to have relied on marketing through the press to push his remedies into the limelight. The effects were also comparable in this respect, insofar as they quickly became popular amongst wealthy society. The remedy was affordable, costing “2s. 6d. for a pair of doses”, and their contents of “phosphate of lime and oxide of antimony” meant they could be taken as “general pick-me-ups” as well as to combat the symptoms of fever.

 

However, just as has been seen with the quack doctors hitherto mentioned, James was not without criticism, and the powders were not without their dangers. The powders were lauded for their efficacy in alleviating the symptoms of fever when taken in moderation, but their abuse, such as by the admiral on board HMS Monarque in 1759 as a means of revitalising his crew, could lead to a heavy death toll. Additionally, when James took out a patent in 1747 for his powders, it was quickly discovered that the description of the contents and method of manufacture of the powder were inconsistent with its original quality, suggesting that the doses varied as time passed. Not unexpectedly, therefore, James’s reputation was damaged by the bold claims he was forced to make in order to establish his powder as a patent medicine. His marketing tactics had played upon the consumption of the powder as a cure-all, but this instigated negative publicity when individuals such as Oliver Goldsmith in 1774 died after using the powders.

 

A strong area of comparison between James and Joshua Ward is in their blatant exaggeration of the benefits of their cures. Joshua Ward had been exempted from a bill attempting to control apothecaries in 1748 after asserting that he had attended “no fewer than 2000 patients” over the course of 15 years. In the same way, James asserted in 1764 that “1.6 million doses had been sold since 1746”, when his partner, John Newbery, owned accounts showing that in 1768 to 1769 there had been sales of under 20,000 packages. Unlike Ward, however, a great advocate for his reputation was the fact that his powders continued to be sold after his death.

 


 

Quackery in 18th Century Literature

 

 

 One of the earliest extended criticisms of quackery can be found in a publication by Daniel Defoe in 1722. Titled “A Journal of the Plague Year”, the novel presents an account of the bubonic plague that struck London in 1655, and offers a scathing commentary on the behaviour of fraudulent medical practitioners of the time, amongst the details of events and death tolls which struck each neighbourhood. The publication was made under the initials H. F., which suggests that the majority of Defoe’s source material was actually taken from the diaries of his uncle Henry Foe, not least of all because Defoe was only 5 at the time of the plague.

 

With what blind, absurd, and ridiculous Stuff, these Oracles of the Devil pleas'd and satisfy'd the People, I really know not; but certain it is, that innumerable Attendants crouded about their Doors every Day; and if but a grave Fellow in a Velvet Jacket, a Band, and a black Cloak, which was the Habit those Quack Conjurers generally went in, was but seen in the Streets, the People would follow them, in Crowds and ask them Questions, as they went along.

I need not mention, what a horrid Delusion this was, or what it tended to; but there was no Remedy for it, till the Plague it self put an End to it all; and I suppose, clear'd the Town of most of those Calculators themselves. One Mischief was, that if the poor People ask'd these mock Astrologers, whether there would be a Plague, or no? they all agreed in the general to answer, Yes, for that kept up their Trade; and had the People not been kept in a Fright about that, the Wizards would presently have been rendred useless

 

p.36 On the other Hand, it is incredible, and scarce to be imagin'd, how the Posts of Houses, and Corners of Streets were plaster'd over with Doctors Bills, and Papers of ignorant Fellows; quacking and tampering in Physick, and inviting the People to come to them for Remedies; which was generally set off, with such flourishes as these, ( viz. ) INFALLIBLE preventive Pills against the Plague. NEVER-FAILING Preservatives against the Infection. SOVERAIGN Cordials against the Corruption of the Air. EXACT Regulations for the Conduct of the Body, in Case of an Infection: Antipestilential Pills. 

 

Defoe, Daniel, 1661?-1731 :  :  A Journal of the Plague Year (1722)

 

The novel offers us an early account of the parity of attitudes towards quackery in both the 17th and 18th Centuries in Britain, and while allowances for embellishment by Defoe must be made throughout the novel, the constant existence of the criticism of quackery is undeniable. The contemporary attitude towards quackery was hostile, and Defoe drew upon this to establish quacks as an antagonistic feature of his novel.

 

As might be expected, pandemics of sickness and plague would have been hugely beneficial to any individuals looking to profit from medical fraud. Quacks were able to draw upon the desperation of the public by marketing cures that would allegedly heal any number of symptoms, but were in reality completely ineffective. There was very little risk factor in this market, which made it all the more attractive. If an individual survived the plague having taken their nostrum, it would surely attract more customers. If they died, the cause could not be placed on the lethality of their ingredients, nor would the victims be able to spread any slanderous comments about the remedy.

 

In his work, Defoe captures the essence of the pestilence these quacks caused in a suffering society. Due to the complete lack of regulation, these quack doctors are able to plaster over the walls of the city with pamphlets displaying their cures, and there is no limit to the number of symptoms they can claim it is able to remedy. The majority of the general public is uneducated as to the ineffectiveness of quack medicines, or is so desperate as to disregard common sense in the search for a cure. This is mental attitude would certainly attract quack doctors. Instead of medical regulation, the only way to rid society of these individuals is, as the narrator sardonically remarks, when the plague clears the town of them along with the citizens.

 


 

Quackery in Art and Theatre

 

1. Art

 

(Image 11. William Hogarth's "The Company of Undertakers")

 

Arguably the best depiction of 18th century attitudes to quackery in art can be seen in some of the engravings and paintings of William Hogarth. This first engraving, entitled “The Company of Undertakers” (1736), offers a satirical view and commentary on the medical profession. The picture captures a group of medical practitioners within a coat of arms, beneath which are pair of crossbones and the ominous motto “Et plurima mortis imago” (And many an image of death).

 

The three doctors dominating the upper portion of the coat of arms are based on actual physicians. The central doctor, whom Hogarth refers to as “One Compleat Doctor”, is dressed in a clown outfit, and is based on the well-known bone-setter Sarah Mapp. To her left and right are Joshua Ward and John Taylor, respectively. Taylor was a well-known oculist, but was rumoured to have only one eye, an irony which is clearly not lost on Hogarth.

 

Twelve more doctors reside in the lower half of the engraving. The majority appear to be sniffing the heads of their canes, which in the 18th century would have contained disinfectant, while the bottom three are absorbed by the contents of a urinal, displaying a mixture of sour and unintelligent expressions for added humour.

 

(Image 12. The third engraving from the collection "A Harlot's Progress)

(Image 13. The fifth engraving from the collection "A Harlot's Progress")

 

Hogarth rose to fame initially for the series of anecdotal engravings he produced which satirised society. The first set of these, called “A Harlot’s Progress” (1732), brilliantly encapsulate this humour, while including a commentary on the role of quacks. The first example of this is subtle, but in his 3rd engraving, which was actually the first engraving of the set that he completed, shows two remedies for syphilis on the left side of the drawing above posters of Macheath from The Beggar’s Opera and Henry Sacheverell. More than anything these serve as a premonition for the fate that will eventually befall the Harlot, and these remedies can be assumed to be quack medicines, since the harlot, Moll Hackabout, will eventually die at the age of 23 to syphilis.

 

The second image, Hogarth’s 5th engraving of the series, presents a more explicit satire of quacks. Two doctors feature in the engraving. On the left, with a black wig, is Dr. Richard Rock. Dr. Jean Misaubin, with the white hair, is on the right. As Moll slowly and inevitably succumbs to her syphilis, the two are preoccupied with an argument over which remedy, “bleeding” or “cupping” should be used to cure her. However, Moll’s funeral in the ensuing engraving suggests that neither were successful. Furthemore, there is an intentional contrast between the caricatured physique of the German doctor Richard Rock and the French doctor Jean Misaubin. The latter was often ridiculed by the British public for his foreign manner, and his arrogance and method of practice led to his being caricatured as a quack.

 

2. Theatre

 

"My grandfather was a wonderful man."

A doctor I am ob wonderful skill,

I can bleed, I can purge, I can cure, I can kill:

I can cut a man's leg off---his arm or his head.

I can kill off de living, and raise up de dead.

 

The Quack Doctor, by John W. Smith (1874)

 

---Why---what--- [175]  Doctor, do you think, I have brought over the plague to you?---

 

 

Dr. MORAL.

The plague, Sir---something full as bad!---or rather worse---a looseness of morals---that spreads as fast and ruins more---But enough---as I now take myself to be perfect master of the case---we'll think of what course is to be taken for the cure!---

[pausing]

---Well, Sir Amorous ---I believe, I have it!---I am apprehensive of some dangerous consequences from This Dress of yours---I am confident it has produced all this disorder!---There are some old Cases I have read, that confirm me in this opinion.--- You must know, Sir, that only the putting on a particular sort of a shirt , drove the great Hercules out of his senses---so that in one of his frantic fits, (intending no more, I suppose, than to be making a flaming Figure in his dress) he ran into the fire and burnt himself to death.---But, in the parts where you have been travelling, there's no doubt but you

have often heard of the famous Italian poisoned Gloves .---Believe me, Sir, there are some sorts of dresses very prejudicial to the constitution---and therefore out of great tenderness I must advise you to leave off that.---Pray, let me look at it!---

[turning about his French peruke]

---what [200]  do you call it, Sir--- that you have got upon your head here !---and I'll send you my barber to make you another covering---which you need not fear any danger from.---And as---to all this idle lace !--- fringe !---and foppery !---pray, Sir, let me prevail upon you to lay it all aside---and put on an honest--- plain English Dress ---you'll soon find your head the better for it.---Indeed, Sir, Change of Habits is the very best course of alteratives I can possibly prescribe to you.--- 

 

The Moral Quack, by Phanuel Bacon (1757)

 

 

 

These two plays were produced over a century apart, but it is a straightforward process to spot the similarities in their subject matter. Obviously they are both about quacks, but even more striking, perhaps, is their identical satirical attitude to quackery as an issue. The first play arguably examines quackery in a more objective light. It is short, being only one scene and one act, and a presents itself as a farce. It portrays a quack doctor who takes great pride in his ability to cure illnesses by dismembering his patients, before he is lynched in the play’s conclusion. It would seem by this logic that the play offers a retrospectively educated opinion on quackery during an era when medical regulation was slowly being enforced, and the existence of quack doctors and any individuals that endorsed was becoming absurd.

 

The second play, on the other hand, seems much more involved in quackery as a realistic issue. While it is true that the drama is an obvious satire, the excerpt above serving as an example of the play’s ludicrous characterisation, it is nonetheless clearly based on a reality with which its contemporary audience would have been able to empathise. Throughout the material there is a common theme: a gullible and uneducated public provide easy victims for dishonest medical practices. In this play, the ineffectiveness of quack remedies is presented through the contradictory advice offered by the doctor and his focus on a lack of ‘Englishness’ as a source of the illness. Further, this gullible public is not limited to the lower classes, as the patient here hails from the upper class, and is reminiscent of the royalty which endorsed many of the practices of quack doctors. It contains many of the instructive features of criticism that can be found on quacks in journals and periodicals of the time, attempting to warn the public of the inherently fraudulent and self-serving characters of quack doctors.

 

 

 

Bibliography

 

Primary Sources

 

 

Barker, Jane. "On my Mother and my Lady W---- who both lay sick at the same time under the Hands of Dr. Paman." from Poetical Recreations: Consisting of Original Poems, Songs, Odes etc; With several New Translations. In Two Parts: Part I. Occasionally written by Mrs. Jane Barker. Part II. By Several Gentlemen of the Universities, and Others; London; Benjamin Cradle (1688).http://0-gateway.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/openurl?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2003&xri:pqil:res_ver=0.2&res_id=xr  i:lion&rft_id=xri:lion:ft:po:Z200269071:2

 

     - a poem that demonstrated some of the dangers of quackery through the fears the narrator believed it would have on her loved ones

 

 

Corley, T. A. B. "James, Robert (bap. 1703, d. 1776), physician and inventor of James's fever powder." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  September 23, 2004. Oxford University Press,. Date of access 25 Mar. 2019, <http://0-www.oxforddnb.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-14618>

 

     - A thorough starting point for information on the physician Robert James and his powder

 

Corley, T. A. B. "Ward, Joshua (1684/5–1761), medical practitioner and inventor of medicines." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  September 23, 2004. Oxford University Press,. Date of access 25 Mar. 2019, <http://0-www.oxforddnb.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-28697>

 

     - A thorough starting point for information on Joshua Ward, inventor of medicines

 

Defoe, Daniel. A Journal of the Plague Year: Being Observations or Memorials, Of the most Remarkable Occurrences, As well Publick as Private, Which happened in London During the last Great Visitation in 1665. Written by a Citizen who continued all the while in London. Never made publick before. (1722) p.33-38; http://0-gateway.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/openurl?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2003&xri:pqil:res_ver=0.2&res_id=xr  i:lion&rft_id=xri:lion:ft:pr:Z000001071:0

 

     - a publication by Defoe that offered useful criticisms of the behaviour of quacks during a time of crisis in London.

 

 

Disdain, Charles. "QUACK! QUACK! QUACK!"  from Mirth and Metre consisting of Poems, Serious, Humorous, and Satirical; Songs, Sonnets, Ballads & Bagatelles.; London (1807)http://0-gateway.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/openurl?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2003&xri:pqil:res_ver=0.2&res_id=xr  i:lion&rft_id=xri:lion:ft:po:Z200338469:2

 

     - a song satirising quack doctors, thus offering insight into how attitudes had developed towards them in art

 

Jackson, William. Cautions and advice to the public, respecting some abuses in medicine, through the malpractices of quacks or pretenders to the medical and chirurgical arts. 1787.

 

     - This was a particularly useful work for obtaining a contemporary view on the maleficence of quackery from the viewpoint of a learned medical professional

 

"James Graham, quack." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. . Oxford University Press,. Date of access 25 Mar. 2019,<http://0www.oxforddnb.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-9000083>

 

     - an audiobook from the dictionary of national biography which gave me a thorough starting point for research on the sexologist and quack James Graham

 

OED. "quackery, n.1." OED Online, Oxford University Press, March 2019, www.oed.com/view/Entry/155631. Accessed 25 March 2019.

 

Smith, John W. The Quack Doctor. A Negro Farce. In One Act and One Scene by John W. Smith, played first at the St. Louis Amphitheatre, March, 1851 presented to C. White, esq, May 1855. With the Stage Business, Cast of Characters, Relative Positions, &c. [in, Darkey Plays, a Collection of Ethiopian Dramas, Farces, Interludes, Burlesque Operas, Eccentricities, Extravaganzas, Comicalities, Whimsicalities, Etc., Etc., as Played by the Principal "Burnt Cork" Performers All Over the Union. Part Three]; Happy Hours Company; New York (1874). 
     - a play written in the second half of the 19th century in the United States, but which offered an excellent means of comparing how satirical attitudes towards quackery had evolved over the course of the century

 

Unknown. "A modest DEFEMCE of QUACKS and QUACKERY." by "A Quack Advocate".The weekly magazine, or, Edinburgh amusement, 1768-1779; Edinburgh Vol. 42,  (Nov 18, 1778): 174-175.

 

     - a short article which was useful in expressing some of the far-fetched ailments certain quacks claimed they could cure

 

 

Unknown. The London magazine, or, Gentleman's monthly intelligencer, Volume 33; C. Ackers (1764)

 

     - this volume of the magazine contains criticism on the presence of quackery in London, that was useful in gaining an overview of attitudes towards it

 

 

 

 

Secondary Sources

 

Bivins, Roberta. "Histories of Heterodoxy" in The Oxford Handbook of the History of Medicine  

 

- this chapter allowed me to appreciate quackery in the context of alternative medicine. 

 

D. Collins, S. J. (Ed.), The Cambridge History of Magic and Witchcraft in the West: From Antiquity to the Present (pp. 665-770). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (2015)

 

- this work explained the benefits of medical regulation in eradicating quacks, especially in Britain after 1858, and shed some light on the ease with which quacks had been able to market their nostrums when no regulation existed

 

 

 

Images

 

1. Nast, Thomas. "Birds of a Feather" (1879), Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; San Francisco, California, USA

https://0-library-artstor-org.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/#/asset/AMICO_SAN_FRANCISCO_103849522

 

2. Rowlandson, Thomas. "A Consultation of Quacks" (18th-19th century),  Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; San Francisco, California, USA

https://0-library-artstor-org.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/#/asset/AMICO_SAN_FRANCISCO_103854666

 

3. Flameng, Léopold, 1831-1911., French, Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, 1606-1669, After.. The Quacksalver. 1841-1911. 

https://0-library-artstor-org.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/#/asset/AMICO_CLARK_103904246

 

4. "snake oil label" photo taken from https://truewestmagazine.com/snake-oil/

 

5."Advertisement." Examiner, no. 1104, 1829, pp. 207. ProQuest,

http://0-search.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/docview/8640030?accountid=14888.

 

6."Advertisement." Examiner, no. 1862, 1843, pp. 639. ProQuest,

http://0-search.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/docview/8373680?accountid=14888.

 

7."Advertisement." Examiner, no. 3570, 1876, pp. 752. ProQuest,

http://0-search.proquest.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/docview/8979619?accountid=14888.

 

8. Kay, John.Dr James Graham Going Along the North Bridge in a High Wind. (1785)

https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/use-this-image.php?mkey=mw81914

 

9. Faber junior, John (after E. Loving). Joshua Ward (1684/55–1761).

http://0-www.oxforddnb.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-1009216?rskey=J2seFR&result=2

 

10. Walker, William. Robert James. (1774).

http://0-www.oxforddnb.com.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-1011845.

 

11.Etching and engraving (8 5/8" x 7"). 1736.London: Mus., British.

https://0-library-artstor-org.pugwash.lib.warwick.ac.uk/#/asset/AWSS35953_35953_31702832

 

12. Hogarth, William. A Harlot's Progress, Plate 3 / A Harlot's Progress. (1732)

https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1423157&partId=1&images=true

 

13. Hogarth, William. A Harlot's Progress, Plate 5/ A Harlot's Progress. (1732)

https://www.nationalgalleries.org/art-and-artists/24381/harlots-progress-plate-5

 

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