Got a frog in you throat? "Medieval physicians believed that the secretions of a frog could cure a cough if they were coated on the throat of the patient."
"Although the rubber band was invented and patented in the 19th century, it was mostly used in factories and warehouses. This changed thanks to William Spencer of Alliance, Ohio. In 1923, Spencer noticed the pages of the Akron Beacon Journal, his local newspaper, were constantly being blown across his and his neighbors' lawns. As an employee of the Pennsylvania Railroad, he knew where to acquire spare rubber pieces and discarded inner tubes – The Goodyear Rubber Company also located in Akron.
He cut these pieces into circular strips and began to wrap the newspapers with these bands. They worked so well that the Akron Beacon Journal bought Spencer's rubbers bands to do the deed themselves. He then proceeded to sell his rubber bands to office supply, paper goods, and twine stores across the region, all the while continuing to work at Pennsylvania Railroad (for more than a decade more) while he built his business up."