Dr Max Ephraim Melle: Trials and Tribulations

Dr M.E. Melle: Trials and Tribulations

My grandfather Max Louis Ephraim was born 1870 in Hamburg, Germany. 

He made his living as a merchant travelling as far as South America. In 1906 he arrived in New York City as a 'engineer' in transit to Winnipeg. Apparently detecting that there wasn't much need for either merchants nor engineers he switched to something more fashionable. By the end of 1907 he was working as Dr. Max Ephraim Melle in Montreal.

Business was good and by 1923 he was a naturalized Canadian citizen and he even sponsored a local beauty contest contestant.

In November 1923 he advertised in the Ottawa Citizen newspaper.
He always appreciated big first class hotels.

But then things started to get awkward…
From the Montreal Gazette on December 23, 1923:

CORN TREATMENT HAS COURT ECHO

Woman Sufferer Charges Independent Chiropodist With False Pretenses
“ROOTS” WERE EXHIBITED
Expert Witness Claims Exhibits Never Came From Corns—Partner of Accused Explained Method

Whether or not corns have roots or have only a hard and irritating surface caused by tight footwear is a question which Judge Monet has to make more thorough inquiries into, following a case heard before the Enquete Court yesterday afternoon. Max Ephraim Melle, an independent chiropodist, accused of false pretences. by failing to rid Mrs. Henriette Roy of six corns, after she had paid $12 for the treatment. and had, she swore, been assured that “the roots were out.” and that she was cured.

Mrs. Roy testified that she saw a the accused on December 11 and that an operation was performed. Two thin and sharp objects, somewhat similar to small vermicelli before this is boiled, were exhibited, and were, according to what Mrs. Roy had been told, roots of two of the larger and more painful of her corns.

“My corns hurt just so much now,” said the complainant, with an apologetic laugh. “Dr. Melle told me that I would never suffer again from corns. He gave me two of the roots which he extracted; here they are.”

The thorn-like objects were examined by the court and the lawyers, and Adolph Gardner, counsel for the defence, cross-examined. “You did not expect.” he asked, “that you would be rid of your corns in one treatment?”

“He told me that I would not suffer any more.” replied Mrs. Roy. “Dr. Melle said that I could come back; but he never offered to treat me free of charge.” 

NO ROOTS IN CORN.
Arthur D. Bergeron, surgeon chiropodist and secretary of the Association of Chiropodists, 530 St. Catherine Street West, was questioned by Leopold Houle, for the prosecution. He stated that he has practised for six or seven years, and thought that he was competent in his branch of learning.

“There are no roots in corns,” he declared emphatically: “I am positive of that. Theses two exhibits,” he added, pointing to the objects claimed to have tortured the toes of Mrs. Roy, “could never have come from corns.”
Cross-examined by Mr. Gardner, Dr. Bergeron said that he received his diploma as a chiropodist at Chicago in 1917.
'What causes the formation of a corn?” asked the lawyer.
“Then a person walking about barefooted would never have corns?”
“Oh, yes, you can have corns on your hands,” replied the witness.
“Did you know that a newly-born child may have corns?”
“That is possible.” admitted the chiropodist.
“I suppose that would be a case of heredity Judge Monet, amid laughter.

“What is this? asked Mr. Gardner, holding up more of the alleged roots.

“It looks like a fishbone to me,” replied the witness.

“Did you ever see corns on the feet of people who never wear boots or shoes?” asked the lawyer. “I never had occasion to,” was the reply.

Bergeron went: on to say that the Association of Chiropodists does not recognize Dr. Melle “I don't believe he is a doctor,” he declared. 

KEPT PATIENT AMUSED.
Joseph A. Goulet, who stated that he been in partnership with the accused for about a year, declared that Dr. Melle was no more a chiropodist than he was himself. He gave a demonstration of how patients are treated by the accused, keeping court and spectators in constant hilarity by the most unusual antics. The accused, he declared, never allowed the patients to watch the operations closely, and kept up a steady stream of talk “to keep the patient amused.” The operation, he declared, consists in having a “root” concealed in the hand while a layer of adhesive ointment is rubbed on the corn. After some rubbing and squeezing, slight incision would be made and̶— here the witness illustrated—the “root” would be pulled out with a pair of tweezers and dangled in front of the client’s eyes.
Dr. Melle,” said the witness, with evident signs of irony. “is the only one in the world who works this way.
“Does the client feel the operation?"
“Oh, yes. He has to make them hurt a bit, you know.”
For such operations, the accused charged $3 per corn, said the witness, and his income was from $1,500 to $3,000 per month.
“He puts on this brown ointment,” explained Goulet. “He makes that himself: but in case the patient should become inquisitive he always has boxes containing real ointment on the table.”

Cross-examined, the witness said that he first met the accused in 1921, when he went to have his corns removed. The operation apparently did not meet with permanent success; but nevertheless he thought that the method was excellent and that the work was “pretty easy.” They agreed to go Into partnership, Goulet investing $2,000 in the venture. The main thing, he said, was to watch the patient and keep up the conversation. “I also treated the clients.” said the witness.
“You knew that the operations were not honest; still you were willing to-do this?" asked Mr. Gardner. The witness admitted this; but he had not been sure when he invested his money. He worked in order to have his investments returned. His weekly salary was $100.
“Dr. Melle told me that we could easily make from $50,000 to $100,000 a year,” said the ‘witness. Later he had opened up an office for himself in Toronto, but under the name “Dr. Melle,” because, he said, “everybody knows Dr. Melle.”
“I never took out any roots in Toronto,” said Goulet. “I worked like a real chiropodist there. I can’t remember anybody ever being cured.”

Mr. Leopold Houle insisted upon producing a sheet of paper, which he declared, showed conclusively that Dr. Melle had especial aptitude for judicious publicity, advertising himself discreetly in connection with a beauty contest.

Judgment was reserved until December 27. 

There were a few delays. One was until January 4, 1924 when he was “committed for trial” which was then put over until the month of May.

 

 

In July 1924 he appeared before Chief Judge Decarie “charged with fraudulently obtaining food, lodging and other accommodation at the Windsor Hotel in the amount of $1,289.85. The case was remanded until July 16 for preliminary trial, bail being fixed at $500. A true bill was found against Dr. Melle at the beginning of the last term of the Court of King’s Bench for false pretenses. He is before the higher criminal courts for having failed to cure a particularly obnoxious corn from the little toe of a woman, after guaranteeing, it is claimed, to make it vanish forever”.

(I couldn’t discover the resolution of this particular suit so I guess that my grandfather settled his outstanding bill).

 

Finally on August 30, 2024 great news! Dr. M.E. Melle was acquitted! 

The charges were discharged, the Crown declaring that there was no proof to offer. Max Bernfeld appeared for the defense.”

  

Back in Business (What could go possible go wrong?)
The first of these adverts was April 1925 in Winnipeg.

 

The next one was May 1925 in the Vancouver Sun.

 

 

 

The next year Dr. Melle travelled all the way to Victoria BC to remove a few corns. That did not go so well! These next two are both from the Vancouver Sun in 1926.

 

Newspaper reports from April 9, 1926.

 

    

This seems like a repeat of the Montreal charges except this time the corns had cores instead of roots. A pathologist testified concerning the corn cores that “To the best of my knowledge it is not human substance". It was neither crystalline nor amorphous, he added, going into technicalities. Uric acid was always in either of these forms. Its structure proved it was not made up of uric acid.

Mr Harrison was the prosecutor and Frank Higgins K.C. appeared for Dr. E.M. Melle. 
“Mr Harrison interposed at this juncture and stated that the case had simply become one which would either prove that Dr. Melle was a colossal fraud or else that he had struck upon an amazing cure for corns. It was the task of the prosecution to prove the truth of the first suggestion, he said.

Mr Higgins went on to invite all doctors of Victoria to a attend a demonstration, at which Dr. Melle would show how he extracted the ‘cores’ from the corns. Mr Harrison said he would be agreeable to such a proposal if he were allowed to be present. Mr. Higgins said he did not wish his client to be treated as a criminal, and that he would not consent to Mr. Harrison and the police officers being present at the demonstrations.

Dr Moore, said that if he believed a man to be a qualified medical practitioner he would certainly agree to watch him perform an operation of the sort Dr. Melle suggested. Under the circumstances, however, he did not wish to watch any such proceedings, he asserted.

Thus the medical establishment closed ranks. Once they had pre-judged a man as a fraud, quack and crook then they won't even allow him the courtesy of demonstrating a medical procedure that defied medical science! 

By 20^th of that same month of 1926, the Victoria police had issued a warrant for the arrest of “Dr. E. M. Melle”. My grandfather -- not being a crook -- returned for trial (and a chance to “permanently” remove a few a more corns).

 

In reports of a remand at the end of the April, it was written that “Dr. Melle, according to the police, is continuing his business as a corn expert here. His treatment of corns has gained for him a considerable reputation. Police believe that there are a great number of persons who will vouch for the ability of Dr. Melle. He has given many relief it is claimed”.

Final Vindication!
Finally the court system in British Columbia realized there was insufficient evidence and withdrew all charges.
From the Vancouver Sun on May 20, 1926:

Victoria Corn Doctor Will Not Be Tried
Victoria, May 20.—Dr. Melle, who was charged in the city Police Court recently for quackery in connection with his corn cure processes and committed for trial, will not be tried, it was announced at the attorney-general’s department. After examining the evidence the attorney general has decided that it is insufficient to justify him continuing the prosecution, it was said. Accordingly, no indictment was presented against the corn doctor, when the spring assizes got under way here.

 

At that point my grandfather celebrated with a bit of sojourning. This report was in the Vancouver Sun on October 9, 1926.

 

 

By March 13, 1930 Dr Max Melle was spending most of his time direct marketing medical ointments -- and air fresheners -- that he manufactured in his Vancouver back yard.

I never met my grandfather and had been given to believe that he was some kind of quack or fraud. But as I found in this past week's research, while he was prosecuted twice, the evidence was so weak that the charges were dropped both times.

I still wonder why such interesting stories were kept hidden as family secrets from his children and grandchildren. 

Written by Gregory Melle in April 2021.

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