Melville Fuller

“ The question was, indeed, reduced to a very narrow compass, for it was admitted that absinthe was the only article named in the cordials clause to which the government could claim that Boonekamp bitters bore substantial similarity, a concession based on the view that absinthe was the only 'bitters' specified in the clause.
Absinthe, according to the Century Dictionary, is 'the common name of a highly aromatic liqueur of an opaline-green color and bitter taste,' and is prepared by 'steeping in alcohol or strong spirit bitter herbs,' the chief of them being wormwood. ”

“ It appeared that the wormwood 'has a medicianl effect upon the human system as a tonic,' and that the article contains anisette, a cordial. On the other hand, Boonekamp bitters is a proprietary preparation, recommended to the public as such, and, as prepared according to a private formula, as a remedy for certain specific maladies. ”