Quackery and opposition to sex workers

It was not until the discovery of penicillin in 1943 that a working cure for syphilis was found. Until then, various methods were available to get rid of venereal diseases. Not all of them were equally medically sound.

Quacks

Many treatments were performed by quacks who offered their services in newspaper advertisements, often placed by drugstores. The one that was mentioned most often in the newspapers of Amsterdam was a remedy by the name of Salsepareille-Cambrésy. This remedy was said to clear the blood of germs. Often these substances were touted as miracle drugs that would help against many diseases. In this case, Salsepareille-Cambrésy was said to cure toothache, rheumatism, chest disease, syphilis, and constipation. The remedy was made in Liege by a pharmacist named Cambrésy. His preparation included smilax, sassafras, alcohol and iodine potassium. In the Monthly Journal Against Quackery the remedy was called dangerous and quackery.

Salsepareille-Cambrésy was not the only remedy used in the battle against venereal diseases. For centuries mercury was a common but painful treatment, either as an ointment or as an injection. Still, mercury was relatively inexpensive and therefore widely used, but as medicine progressed, the negative effects that mercury had on the human body became more and more apparent. A longer treatment period was therefore often more harmful than the venereal disease itself. By the end of the nineteenth century, a replacement for mercury was highly sought after. Although the regulation of STDs had begun, a drug had not yet been developed.

Anti-sex work

The second half of the nineteenth century slowly brought more opposition to the sex work. Noises, swearing, use of porches to call customers in were becoming annoying to the ruling elite and middle-classIn 1879, the Dutch Association Against Prostitution (Nederlandsche Vereniging tegen de Prostitutie) was founded, which used STDs as a spearhead to end prostitution. Several congresses were organized where the abolition of brothels was the main issue. The organization was successful, as a ban on brothels was introduced in 1897 and later a ban on procuring in 1902.

Because of the laws and regulations passed by the municipal and national authorities, prostitution was forced to go underground. This also hampered the fight against STDs.