Allergy Miseries.

Sneezing, sniffling, weeping, itching, gasping. In 1946 an estimated 10-15 percent of the population, some 13-20 million, suffered a vast gallery of allergic symptoms. In the Minnesota winters a strapping young man bundled himself so thoroughly against his allergy to the cold that his wife had to lead him down the street. Even the exposure of the skin around his eyes to the cold swelled him up as though he had been stung by dozens of wasps. Some sufferers dreaded spring, with its tree-pollen-induced sneezing and itchy eyes, while others dreaded the ragweed season in late summer. Allergies were a source of misery to millions.

Histamine.

Until the discovery of a new treatment, allergy sufferers had to avoid cats, eggs, feathers, pollen—whatever caused their reaction—or take frequent desensitizing injections. More convenient relief came in 1946 with the discovery of something new—histamine—the...