The son who isn't quite all here

Charles Henry Huls

Logan, Ohio

January 31, 1925

    Dear Folks:

    Just a few hospital notes from the son who isn't quite all here. I lost a tooth since I wrote to you last. An abscess had formed at the root of the gold crown in the lower jaw and I had an X-Ray taken and then the tooth was pulled. It certainly was arelief [sic] to get [rid, sic] that pain and get a nights rest.

    I didn't go to bed either Wednesday or Thursday nights and all I've had to eat since Thursday noon is tomato soup and milk toast. Went over to see Dr. Wingert again this morning and he gave me a dose of salts and some capsules and told me to go home and stay in bed today. Took the medicine at noon and was going to say that up until 5 there had been no action but it came just as I finished the sentence. Really I don't see where there will be much good done as I haven't exactly eater [sic] for over two days.

    Besides having the tooth raising cain I blistered the whole inside of my mouth with camphor and toothache drops and it just finished peeling this afternoon. And then I burned a blister on the outside of my chin with the electric light bulb. It's funny but the tooth hurst [sic] so much that I didn't feel it when I cooked the other parts. I hd [sic] to get a hot water bottle.

    Dr. Love, the dentist who pulled the tooth said it never should never have been crowned. He said the abscess had started over a year ago. Said it was getting dangerous and would have caused very serious trouble if it had been neglected any longer. The X-Ray showed the sac extending over to the roots of the adjoining teeth and when I saw the tooth I wondered how the sac ever came out the same hole.*

*typed on letterhead

Charley's last unmailed letter home ends here. 

It was found after his death.

(I thought there was another page but I cannot find it at this time.)

Charley's convulsions started about 8 p.m.

He was dead by 10:30 p.m.

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Just a few hospital notes

Charles Henry Huls

Logan, Ohio

January 31, 1925

Dear Folks:

    Just a few hospital notes from the son who isn't quite all here. I lost a tooth since I wrote to you last. An abscess had formed at the root of the gold crown in the lower jaw and I had an X-Ray taken and then the tooth was pulled. It certainly was arelief [sic] to get [rid sic] that pain and get a nights rest.

    I didn't go to bed either Wednesday or Thursday nights and all I've had to eat since Thursday noon is tomato soup and milk toast. Went over to see Dr. Wingert again this morning and he gave me a dose of salts and some capsules and told me to go home and stay in bed today. Took the medicine at noon and was going to say that up until 5 there had been no action but it came just as I finished the sentence. Really I don't see where there will be much good done as I haven't exactly eater [sic] for over two days.

    Besides having the tooth raising cain I blistered the whole inside of my mouth with camphor and toothache drops and it just finished peeling this afternoon. And then I burned a blister on the outside of my chin with the electric light bulb. It's funny but the tooth hurst [sic] so much that I didn't feel it when I cooked the other parts. I hd [sic] to get a hot water bottle.

    Dr. Love, the dentist who pulled the tooth said it never should never have been crowned. He said the abscess had started over a year ago. Said it was getting dangerous and would have caused very serious trouble if it had been neglected any longer. The X-Ray showed the sac extending over to the roots of the adjoining teeth and when I saw the tooth I wondered how the sac ever came out the same hole.*

Charley's last unmailed letter home ends here. It was found after his death. I thought there was another page but I cannot find it at this time.

Charley's convulsions started about 8 p.m. He was dead by 10:30 p.m.

*typed on letterhead

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Secundum artem

OSU College of Pharmacy

I was interested in this torn newspaper clipping* that was saved by someone in the family. I do not know which newspaper it came from, but I suspect the Lantern due to the font, capital "L", and content. I shall update this if I ever discover it. (Letters appearing in the parenthesis are my guesses to missing letters.)

THE SYST(EM IS W)RONG

To the Editor of The L(antern?)

    Sir: Being an (Ohio) State pharmacy graduate, I (am) deeply interested in the prese(nt sit)uation. I feel a great deal of sy(mpa)thy for Dean Dye, upon whose (shoul)ders the burden of this investigation rests. I know of him as (a) man great for accuracy, system and detail.

    Accidental or otherwise, as the case may be, the practice of any druggist reading a prescription for two drugs written as R. and W. means nothing. A prescription coming from a doctor should be written in medical terms so that any registered pharmacist could fill it. I do not know whether drugs are furnished free to students or not; if not, a prescription should be given written in medical terms so as to be filled by any registered pharmacist as the law requires; if not, the method of prescribing is wrong.

    As stated above, R. and W. meant nothing to the druggist, as aspirin is a white powder not red (the color red is artificial), the practice of which should be discouraged by doctor and druggist. Had this prescription been filled by a regular registered pharmacist, as the state law requires, it would be an easy matter to trace the mistake if such was the case.

    A Loyal Ohio State Pharmacist

    Mt. Vernon, Ohio.

*Please always identify newspaper clippings with the name and date.

** According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the definition for "Secundum artem" is "according to the practice: in accordance with the standard procedure of a profession or trade." 

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Twenty cents

Let me begin by saying that Grandpa Fred always thought Louis Fish was innocent. I do not know if Grandpa knew him or met him, but he felt sorry for Fish and how he was raked through the coals.

Louis Fish

As you might recall, Louis Fish was a freshman College of Pharmacy student and David Puskin's best friend. They had been newsboys together in Canton. At Puskin's request, Fish stopped by the dispensary on the afternoon of Friday, Jan. 30, 1925. His request for a few R&Ws was refused, either because the 20 cent prescription was not his or because he did not have Puskin's prescription with him.

He later admitted to entering through a back door at the shift change and grabbing a few of the White quinine capsules from the jar and gave them to Puskin.

Puskin took at least one of the capsules on Sunday, Feb. 1, 1925 and was dead 20 minutes later. 

Fish was devastated but didn't realize his culpability until later. In a panic, he went home to Canton. One newspaper said he went to the home of his sister, Mrs. Edward Weintraub, because they were orphans. Other newspapers said he went to the home of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. David Fish.  When the newspaper reporters found him there, Fish returned to Columbus.

"I'll do no talking here," Fish said to newspapermen. "I am going back to Columbus Sunday morning and anything I have to say will be told to the prosecutor there. I can explain all my movements.

"I came to my home here to spend the week-end, bringing a friend with me. That is all I have to say."

And the newspapers of the time had a field day with his name. Some referred to him as Louis Bass, trying to give hime some anonymity. The Columbus Dispatch Magazine referred to him as "Lewis Trout" in its Nov. 5, 1961 edition. Several reported that he was "grilled."

Fish was the only person ever arrested, but he was released the next day.

I was pleased to see Louis passed his examinations for pharmacy in the Wednesday, July 18, 1928 edition of The Cincinnati Enquirer. He returned to the Canton area where he worked as a pharmacist, married, and later died and buried.

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Reds and whites

The favorite common cold medicine at Ohio State University was the inexpensive and popular R&Ws: three Red capsules containing five grains aspirin and three White capsules containing two grains of quinine. Patients were instructed to alternate every two hours starting with the Red.

A grain is a unit of measurement of mass equal to exactly 64.79891 milligrams. It is basically based upon the mass of a single ideal seed, or grain, of a cereal.

For example, the dosage of a standard 325 mg tablet of aspirin is sometimes described as 5 grains. In that example the grain is approximated to 65 milligrams, although the grain can also be approximated to 60 milligrams, depending on the medication and manufacturer.

While authorities are in agreement that less than 1 grain may be a fatal dose for an adult, the usual fatal dose is 60–100 mg strychnine and is fatal after a period of one to two hours, although lethal doses vary depending on the individual. 

I was interested to find this description by a medical student who in 1896 described the experience of taking strychnine in a letter to The Lancet, a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal:

"Three years ago I was reading for an examination, and feeling 'run down.' I took 10 minims of strychnia solution (B.P.) with the same quantity of dilute phosphoric acid well diluted twice a day. On the second day of taking it, towards the evening, I felt a tightness in the 'facial muscles' and a peculiar metallic taste in the mouth. There was great uneasiness and restlessness, and I felt a desire to walk about and do something rather than sit still and read. I lay on the bed and the calf muscles began to stiffen and jerk. My toes drew up under my feet, and as I moved or turned my head flashes of light kept darting across my eyes. I then knew something serious was developing, so I crawled off the bed and scrambled to a case in my room and got out (fortunately) the bromide of potassium and the chloral. I had no confidence or courage to weigh them, so I guessed the quantity-about 30 gr. [30 grains, about 2 grams] bromide of potassium and 10 gr. chloral-put them in a tumbler with some water, and drank it off. My whole body was in a cold sweat, with anginous attacks in the precordial region, and a feeling of 'going off.' I did not call for medical aid, as I thought that the symptoms were declining. I felt better, but my lower limbs were as cold as ice, and the calf muscles kept tense and were jerking. There was no opisthotonos, only a slight stiffness at the back of the neck. Half an hour later, as I could judge, I took the same quantity of bromide, potassium and chloral– and a little time after I lost consciousness and fell into a 'profound sleep,' awaking in the morning with no unpleasant symptoms, no headache, but a desire 'to be on the move' and a slight feeling of stiffness in the jaw. These worked off during the day."

In October 1852 the Scientific American quoted a letter to The Lancet that stated that camphor is an antidote to strychnine. Strychnine was prescribed in doses of the 1/16 of a grain, to be given three times a day for a man with acute rheumatism.

By mistake the druggist divided the grain into six parts (with sugar) instead of 16 powders. The first dose produced severe twitchings, and the second dose threw him into violent convulsions. The doctor was called again who at once prescribed 20 grains of camphor in six ounces of almond mixture, to be taken every two hours. The first dose completely quieted the convulsions and there was no need of a second.

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Star of David

David I. Puskin

Sunday, February 1, 1925, dawned. Without social media, most of the people on campus were still unaware of Charley's death the night before.

David Isaac Puskin of Canton, Ohio awoke early. He, too, had a cold and took an R&W his friend Louis Fish of Canton had kindly procured for him from the OSU dispensary before he went to shave. I'm sure it was a leisurely morning for David. The oldest child of Jewish immigrants from Russia, he had no need to rush for church services.

Not much is known about David at this time. He was shown in both the 1910 and 1920 federal censuses with his parents, Louis and Maimie Pushkin (spellings vary: Puskin, Pusken, Pushkin), and younger siblings: Abraham, Ethel, and Harry. He was apparently a football star in Canton, but not at OSU where he was currently a junior.

I'm still not sure if David was in a boarding house or another fraternity (newspaper sources differ) but another person in the house heard strange sounds emanating from the bathroom. When they went to investigate, David was found thrashing on the floor. His death was quicker but not any more merciful. David was 21.

David's death was initially attributed to meningitis, also known as the dreaded and contagious spotted fever.

I don't know if there was an autopsy or not, but David's death certificate states meningitis as the cause of death -- but with "accidental strychnine poisoning" as a contributor.

Those were the early theories: Charley died from tetanus and David died from meningitis. The campus was in a frenzy by Monday, but the students weren't safe yet.

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*Deceased January 31, 1925

The OSU dispensary in the early 1900s.

The last week of January 1925 was not starting well for Charley Huls. It was his second to last quarter* at The Ohio State University where he was scheduled to graduate in June with a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce and Journalism. He was the epitome of the Big Man on Campus at OSU.

According to the 1925 Makio yearbook, Charley was a member of Phi Gamma Delta, Sphinx, Bucket and Dipper, Sigma Delta Chi, Pi Delta Epsilon, Boost Ohio, editor of the 1924 Makio yearbook (Grandpa was editor of the 1926 Makio), News Editor of the Lantern newspaper, business manager of the Phoenix, Makio board, Junior Prom committee, band, and Senior Invitation Committee.

It also states, "*Deceased January 31, 1925".

By Friday, Charley couldn't stand it anymore and went to went to the college of dentistry and had the troublesome tooth pulled. On Saturday he went to Dr. H. Shindle Wingert at the student health center for a prescription of "R&Ws" -- red and white capsules available at the student dispensary that were filled with aspirin (red) and quinine (white) -- the house cold medicine, so to speak. Students were supposed to alternate red or white capsules every few hours.

An unmailed letter Charley wrote home the day of his death was found afterwards. In it he complained to his mother, Anna Rebecca Troxel Huls, that he had been holding a light bulb against his jaw for the heat. He said the heat helped. He also mentioned his cold and his plans to take medicine before dinner because he had a date.

(Charley was allegedly engaged to Margaret Speaks, daughter of Rep. John C. Speaks of Ohio, and the future Voice of Firestone.)

According to Grandpa and newspaper accounts, Charley told Grandpa he could borrow their car if he'd drop Charley off somewhere for his date. They were heading to the car after eating their dinners when Charley collapsed. Their Phi Gamma Delta fraternity brothers carried Charley up to the room they shared where it quickly became apparent that something was seriously wrong. A doctor and the stricken man's parents were summoned.

Charley was going into horrible spasms. The fraternity brothers gathered in the hallway began to wonder if Charley had lockjaw.

Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a bacterial infection characterized by muscle spasms that begin in the jaw and progress throughout the body. Some spasms can break bones. About ten percent of cases prove fatal. The first tetanus vaccine was first produced in 1924, but that didn't help Charley.

Things were looking grim for Charley and Grandpa was feeling sick himself. He went into their bathroom and took out one of the "R&W" pills. Before he could take it, the doctor called for him to return.

Grandpa placed the white capsule on the marble windowsill where it sat until he returned to OSU after the funeral.

That decision saved his life.

*OSU did not switch to the semester system until 2012.

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