Quaker Bitters benefitted many, including collectors

Ever hear of the medical terms "catarrh," "scrofulous humor," "dyspepsia," "bilious attacks," "torpidity of the system," "ague" and that all-encompassing ailment, "summer complaints"? These illnesses and more could be cured in the 19th century by Dr. Flint's Quaker Bitters. Take just a swig of the liquid in the bottle, and you felt better. It even said on the label, "Try this and thou shalt be benefited."

Henry S. and Ezra H. Flint were part of Flint & Co., a furniture and housewares store in Providence, R.I., in 1864. The Flints had three stores by 1867. Harvey Flint, a cashier, left the stores in 1872 and started making Quaker Bitters. His two sons and other Flint relatives, including Henry S., joined Flint & Co. Henry became a physician in 1876, took over making and selling Old Dr. Warren's Quaker Bitters, then renamed the "medication" Dr. H.S. Flint & Co. Quaker Bitters. It was a popular product sold by druggists until 1881, when the company closed.

Harvey died in 1882, and Henry turned from medicine to the family trade. He bought Providence Furniture Co. and merged it with Flint & Co. It became the largest furniture business in Rhode Island until the 1930s.

Quaker Bitters bottles, trade cards and other advertisements are very collectible today. Those who want bitters bottles and those who are interested in anything Quaker search for the items. Recently a labeled bottle sold for $3,450.

Q: We had to move our mother into a nursing home and are in the midst of cleaning out her house. We thought everything in the house was junk, but we asked a local auctioneer to come and take a look at what he might want to sell. Turns out a lot of the costume jewelry, pottery, cut glass and even furniture in her house is much better than we'd ever imagined. The auctioneer is ready to take an old washstand marked "Doe & Charmois, East Cambridge, Mass." He says it's Eastlake style. How old is the washstand?

A: Doe & Charmois is listed in the 1870 Boston city directory. The company was founded by James M. Doe and Victor Charmois.

Eastlake-style furniture has square angles, but its decorations are elaborate. Pieces have incised lines, lots of shallow carving, turned spindles and contrasting woods. The lines and carvings are often rubbed with gold highlights. The style was popular in the United States from about 1870 to 1900.

You'll learn your antique washstand's value when it is auctioned. We're guessing that it will sell for more than $200.

Q: What is my figural "MacBeth" clock worth? It's cast bronze, 15 inches high and 15 inches wide. The round clock sits on the left side of the base, and a sculpture of William Shakespeare holding a quill pen and writing his play "MacBeth" is on the other.

A: Your clock was made in the early 1900s by the Ansonia Clock Co. of Ansonia, Conn. Ansonia made several similar figural clocks with different finishes. Ansonia Clock Co. was in business from 1850 until the Depression forced it to close in 1929.

Ansonia clocks are well-made and collectible. We have seen your model sell for $250 to $400, depending on condition.

Ralph and Terry Kovel's column is syndicated by King Features. Write to: Kovels, (Las Vegas Review-Journal), King Features Syndicate, 888 Seventh Ave., New York, NY 10019.