Page 3 - Pharmacy History 32 July 2007

Hudsons...the great antiseptic remedy
Radley West
H udson’s Eumenthol Jujubes were invented by George
Inglis Hudson, a successful chemist, dentist and colonial
entrepreneur who practised in Brisbane Street Ipswich, Queensland, around a century ago.
Hudson’s Eumenthol Jujubes were marketed as the great antiseptic for influenza bronchitis, asthma and the prevention of consumption. They advertised in the newspapers as ‘containing no cocaine or other poisonous drugs’ and were sold only in tins.
George Hudson had started his early education in Hobart Town but with the loss of three siblings due to childhood diseases, his widowed mother moved the family to Sydney, and a warmer climate. Here George studied chemistry and dentistry and in 1884 he obtained a Pharmacy Board diploma by examination and practised pharmacy for several years. After his marriage
in 1889 he moved to Queensland
and established himself in a shop and residence in the main street of Ipswich. Hudson had suffered from a severe upper respiratory complaint in his youth and he knew at first hand the nauseating side-effects of creosote tablets or capsules. Creosote was
the oral antiseptic favoured by such contemporary authorities such as the Brompton Hospital for Consumptives in, London, (to whom we also owe the formula for Brompton’s Cocktail and Brompton’s Mixture). Creosote was also used effectively by the Japanese military during their Manchurian campaigns as an expectorant and inhalant.
To alleviate his own symptoms, Hudson prescribed for himself a mixture of oil from eucalyptus leaves, water and pure gum Arabic.
It was a recipe which pleased the
palate and soothed the throat. The
first pastilles in 1891 were shared with family and friends. By 1897, Hudson had begun to realise the commercial potential of his discovery. He registered
George Inglis Hudson c1902
the primary ingredient Eumenthol
as a trademark in New South Wales
on November 12, 1897 and in Queensland the following year. After refinements standardising manufacture and packaging, Hudson’s Eumenthol jujubes were launched on to the market in 1899. The first references to the product in The Chemist and Druggist Inter-colonial Journal observed ‘that
the enterprising Hudson had sent the editors a sample’ – Hudson had good business acumen and his jujubes sold in every state in Australia, New Zealand and the British Commonwealth.
By 1906 he had outgrown his Ipswich premises and he returned to Sydney and a larger factory. For Hudson, the status afforded by new found wealth and reputation demanded vigilance to maintain it and he had to warn
the public of imitations on several occasions.
Hudson returned to school again
to obtain a diploma in Organic Chemistry, and this enabled him
to diversify his range of products, including Hudson’s Eumenthol
Tooth Powder. During WWI, he began manufacturing pure Cineol, a distillation product from eucalyptus, and this was exported all over the world.
He died in 1936, a very wealthy man. He bequeathed a lot of his fortune
to the University of Sydney which
honoured its benefactor with a series of Inglis Hudson scholarships in Organic Chemistry.
The Hudson empire no longer exists in Australia, but a comprehensive range of Hudson’s products continue to be manufactured and marketed
in Asia by a company – Hudson Malaysia. These products include Hudson’s Classic Jujubes in a red tin. The formula for this product contains eucalyptus oil, clove oil, menthol, cinnamon bark oil and capsicum tincture – Tiger balm for the tonsils?
In addition there are also Jujubes in a green tin labelled ‘Herbal’ and in a Yellow tin labelled ‘Honey * Lemon’. Unfortunately however the original Hudson’s Eumenthol Jujubes are no longer available.
Who can forget those elongated, red, sugar-coated, very hot, head clearing jubes?
... very neatly put up in a decorated tin box with some talking phrases round the margin.’
Reference
Fig 7.1 A Friend in the Outback.
Photo of GI Hudson , courtesy of Mrs L McCloy, Sydney.
volume 3 ■ no 33 ■ NOVEMBER 2007
Pharmacy History Australia ■ 3