December 4 1909 — Herriman illustrates a news story about a fellow who went to the dentist to have teeth extracted, then came down with a horrible cough. After a year or so of being treated for a number of diagnosed diseases with no relief, and racking up some serious doctor bills in the process,  he one day has a most severe coughing fit and actually expels a tooth. The mysterious cough immediately abates. Apparently the dentist couldn’t quite hold on to the extracted molar, it went down his windpipe, and quite possibly lodged in or near a lung.

The victim is now in court asking for $10,000 in damages, while the dentist claims that the tooth must have originated through some other means — he swears he didn’t let one of his charges go down the patient’s throat.