History of the Comstock Patent Medicine Business and Dr. Morses Indian Root Pills | Page 4

is
said he is out of the city.
These two young men have for some months been trading sometimes
under the name of "Comstock & Brother", and sometimes as "Judson &
Co." at No. 9 John Street.
The same episode was also mentioned in the _Express_, the
_Commercial Advertiser_, and the Tribune. In fact, a spirited debate in
the "affair of the letters" was carried on in the pages of the press for a
week. The brothers defended themselves in the following notice printed
in the Morning Express for May 31:
OBTAINING LETTERS
Painful as it is, we are again compelled to appear before the public in
defense of our character as citizens and business men. The two letters
referred to by L.S. Comstock (one of which contained One Dollar only)
_were both directed "Comstock & Co." which letters we claim; and we
repeat what we have before said, and what we shall prove that no letter
or letters from any source directed to L.S. Comstock or Lucius S.
Comstock have been taken or obtained by either of us or any one in our
employ_.
The public can judge whether a sense of "duty to the Post Office
Department and the community", induced our brother to make this
charge against us (which if proved would consign us to the Penitentiary)
and under the pretence of searching for letters, which perhaps never
existed; to send Police Officers to invade not only our store, but our
dwelling house, where not even the presence of our aged Mother could
protect from intrusion. These are the means by which he has put
himself
[Footnote 3: Receipts for these registrations were signed by the
prominent librarian, Charles Coffin Jewett, later to be superintendent of
the Boston Public Library for many years.]
[Illustration: FIGURE 2.--Wrapper for Oldridge's Balm of Columbia,
Comstock & Co., druggists.]
in possession of the _names of our customers; of our correspondence_;
and our private and business papers.

J.C. & GEO. WELLS COMSTOCK, firm of Comstock & Brother, No.
9 John Street
Lucius, for his part, never deigned to recognize his opponents as
brothers but merely described them as "two young men who claim
relationship to me."
It was the position of J. Carlton and George that as they, equally with
Lucius, were heirs of the dissolved firm of Comstock & Co. Brothers,
they had as much right as Lucius to receive and open letters so
addressed. Moreover, since the predecessor firm of Comstock & Co.
had never been dissolved, J. Carlton also shared in any rights, claims,
or property of this firm. In a more personal vein, the brothers also
asserted in their brief that Lucius "is not on speaking terms with his
aged mother nor any one of his brothers or sisters, Nephews or Nieces,
or even of his Uncles or Aunts, embracing quite a large circle all of
whom have been estranged from him, either by personal difficulties
with him, or his improper conduct towards his brothers." Lucius, in turn,
had copies of his charges against his brothers, together with aspersions
against their character and their medicines, printed as circulars and
widely distributed to all present or former customers in the United
States and Canada.
Meanwhile the civil litigation respecting the division of the assets of
the old partnership, broken down into a welter of complaints and
countercomplaints, dragged on until 1852. No document reporting the
precise terms of the final settlement was discovered, although the affair
was obviously compromised on some basis, as the surviving records do
speak of a division of the stock in New York City and at St. Louis. The
original premises at 57 John Street were left in the possession of Lucius.
In this extensive litigation, J. Carlton and George were represented by
the law firm of Allen, Hudson & Campbell, whose bill for $2,132 they
refused to pay in full, so that they were, in turn, sued by the Allen firm.
Some of the lengthy evidence presented in this collection suit
enlightened further the previous contest with Lucius. He was described
as an extremely difficult person: "at one time the parties came to
blows--and G.W. gave the Dr. a black eye." The action by the law firm
to recover its fee was finally compromised by the payment of $1,200 in
January 1854.
The settlement of the affairs of Comstock & Co. Brothers failed to

bring peace between Lucius and the others. The rival successor firms
continued to bicker over sales territory and carried the battle out into
the countryside, each contending for the loyalty of former customers.
Letters and circulars attacking their opponents were widely distributed
by both parties. As late as December 1855, more than four years after
the event, Lucius was still complaining, in a series of printed circulars,
about the "robbery" of his