22189.  Misbranding of Rn-Co Aspirin.    U. S. v. 837 Tins of Rn-Co Aspirin. 
Default   decree   of   condemnation   and   destruction.     (F.   &   D.   no.
30672.    Sample no. 34250-A.)
This case involved a shipment of aspirin tablets, the labels of which bore 
unwarranted curative and therapeutic claims. It was also claimed for the 
•article that it would not depress the heart, whereas aspirin is a heart de- 
pressant.
On July 28, 1933, the United States attorney for the Eastern District of 
Arkansas, acting upon a report by the Secretary of Agriculture, filed in the 
¦district court a libel praying seizure and condemnation of 837 tins of Ru-Co 
-Aspirin at Little Rock, Ark., alleging that the article had been shipped in 
Interstate commerce on or about April 5, 1933, by the Clyde Collins Chemical 
•Co., from Memphis, Tenn., and charging misbranding in violation of the Food 
¦and Drugs Act as amended.
Analysis of a sample of the article by this Department showed that the 
tablets contained 4.8 grains of acetylsalicylic acid each.
It was alleged in the libel that the article was misbranded in that the 
statement appearing on the label, "Will not depress the heart", was false 
and misleading, since aspirin does depress the heart. Misbranding was alleged 
for the further reason that the following statements regarding the curative 
or therapeutic effects of the article were false and fraudulent:  " Use for
* *    *   Toothache,  Sore Throat   *    *    *   etc.    As an aid in the relief of
* *   *   Rheumatism   *   *   *   Toothache, Earache."
On April 16, 1934, no claimant having appeared for the property, judgment 
of condemnation was entered and it was ordered by the court that the product 
be destroyed by the United States marshal.
M. L. WILSON, Acting Secretary of Agriculture.