“There is little doubt that the results have not paid for the efforts expended. There is no doubt that the whole enterprise will amount to nothing more than a splash in the water if the work is not extended, just as a preliminary skirmish must remain without effect unless followed up by the main army. The main army in this case is the German medical profession. However gratifying the progressive attitude of some individuals and, in fact, of some associations, such as that of Wurtemburg, may be, the fact remains that the profession [in Germany] is not advancing but rather tends to retrograde. The support which the executive committee of the Aerztevereinsbund at first accorded to the efforts of the council was later limited. All further progress depends on the developments of the near future. Will sufficient power be given to the German medical profession after settlement with the insurance societies to permit them to follow the example of their American colleagues?
“It should be made perfectly clear,” Heubner insists, “that we are concerned with questions of importance for the standing and influence of the medical profession among the people, and, consequently, for the conditions of its future existence. But even now the consequences of the prevailing indifference to the traffic in nostrums are making themselves felt. The prevalence of self-medication, which was lately recognized by a Berlin court as the normal for ‘slight’ affections and which has already been made an argument against the extension of the compulsory prescription law, is merely a result of the great evil based on the loss of control by the medical profession of the remedies it employs. Only centralized and energetic measures on the part of the organized profession can secure a reformation of the intolerable conditions that prevail in the field of modern industry in medicine and foodstuffs. The American Medical Association and the German Arzneimittelkommission have shown that a little sacrifice and energy can secure a condition in which the medical profession becomes a powerful factor, able to dictate in the field of the trade in medicine instead of letting itself be dictated to.”—(From The Journal A. M. A., April 18, 1914.)
GRAND PRIX AND GOLD MEDALS FOR SALE
Max Kaiser Offers to Procure “Awards of Merit” at Various International Exhibitions—Price, Four Hundred Dollars
There was a time when the manufacturer who could point to the “Grand Prix” or the “Gold Medal” his product had been awarded at some exhibition was considered to have a valuable advertising asset. Possibly there was a time when medals and prizes were awarded with an eye single to the excellencies of the goods and bore no relation to the amount of money paid by exhibitors to the organizers of the exhibition. Possibly there are, even today, occasional awards made on a basis of pure merit, but they are probably few and far between. The matter which follows throws an interesting light on this subject. Within the past two months manufacturers have received a letter on the stationery of the “International Exhibition, Paris, 1914.” The letter came from the “Commissioner-General” of the exhibition, one Max Kaiser, 24 Holborn, London, E. C. Here it is:
“Dear Sirs:—I beg to draw your attention to the great INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION of Alimentation, Pure Food, Hygiene, Beverages, Drugs and allied trades, which will be held at Paris in March, 1914, inviting you to partake with your manufacture at this INTERNATIONAL EXHIBIT. I beg to point out that the aim of this Exhibition is to introduce Foreign Manufactured Goods, Proprietary Articles, Patents, etc., to the French and Foreign Markets, and to open up or extend new channels for such goods.
“A Commercial Office at the Exhibition Building, under the Commissioner General’s own supervision, with a well-trained staff, will do everything required in the interest of Exhibitors, such as effect sales by circularizing, or inviting prominent buyers to call at your particular stall to judge for themselves the merits of your Exhibit, and in this way bring the American Manufacturers in direct touch with the Foreign Markets and the Buying Public.
“This Commercial Office will also negotiate with the Representatives on your behalf: at the same time undertaking to arrange your Exhibit, supply all necessary fittings, decoration, the display, maintenance, repacking and returning of the Exhibit, and also to represent you before the Public and Jury in such a manner as to make certain that your Exhibit shall be awarded first honors (GRAND PRIZE OR GOLD MEDAL).
“You will understand that such an award obtained at this INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION means an everlasting advertisement as an official acknowledgment and convincing proof to the Superior Quality of your goods, and will certainly put you in front of your competitors on the home market, and naturally increase your sales considerably.