"Leeching," or "bleeding" was a far more common medical practice than TB 
treatment. The tube fragments, as described, are more in the diameter 
range expected for "leeching tubes" than medical vials or ampules. For a 
photo of an intact example, see:

http://phisick.com/item/leech-tube-antique-glass/




On 2/4/2013 12:56 PM, Nancy S. Dickinson wrote:
> I am only guessing, but perhaps the thin glass tubes, less  than 3 inches
> long, may have to do with some sort of therapy for tuberculosis.
> N
>   
>   
> In a message dated 2/2/2013 4:23:54 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
> [log in to unmask] writes:
>
> I  thought about light bulbs, but it seems unlikely to me that worker
> housing in  a mining town in the mountains would have been wired for electricity
> so early.  The place was abandoned in the 1890s.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On  Feb 2, 2013, at 2:13 PM, sent <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>>   although your date is earlier I would check electronic tubes for radios
> etc....
>> lightbulbs also possible
>> also insulator
>> have  fun
>>
>> Conrad
>>
>> -----Original Message----- From:  Doug Ross
>> Sent: Saturday, February 02, 2013 1:28 PM
>> To:  [log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Re: clear glass tubes
>>
>> Could  they be from the inside of a light bulb?
>>
>> Doug
>>   
>> On 2013-02-02, at 10:19, Sarah Sportman  <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>>>   Hello,
>>>
>>> I'm trying to identify a few artifacts we  recovered from back yard
> contexts in a 19th century mining town in the  Adirondacks.  We found six
> fragments of thin, clear glass tubes. They are  a little smaller in diameter than
> a modern drinking straw and round in  cross-section.  All are broken and
> each fragment is less than 3 inches  long.  The fragments came from the yards
> of three different domestic  sites, including a tenement house, a double
> house, and the superintendent's  house. The sites were occupied from the mid
> 1870s to the mid 1890s.  Any  help in identifying them would be greatly
> appreciated!
>>>   
>>> thanks,
>>> Sarah