Unusual Sterling pipe or tube?

[RustyRelicHunter]

I found this mystery item in a jewelry box I bought at a local estate auction. It had some kind of white powder in the top half but the powder fell out when I opened the tube. The powder might have been some type of gum substance which dried up over the many years of storage.

The top is marked Sterling.

Can anybody tell me what this item is called and what it was used for?

The lower half inserts into the top half and the entire unit is 2.5 inches long when closed. The diameter is very small (less than a drinking straw).

Thanks!

Rusty

 

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[ArfieBoy]

Nitro pill dispenser. ?

That's what I thought of, too! Yes... I carry some, too!

 

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[bradyboy]

pipe tamper?

 

[Huntster54]

I don't think it was a thermometer as no way to fit the glass in the long end of the inside tube. I'm thinking a snuff holder pen from the turn of the century, opium use maybe? Or police, conductor or snooty fox hunting whistle.
Way to test the whistle is to blow through the end after cleaning it out. If it makes noise, it's a whistle. Otherwise, I think it's an aristocratic substance holder. Obviously it clips to a pocket or purse.
I believe over a hundred years ago people use nitrate powder for heart problems.

Looks like all one needs to do is open it a little to dump out the material.

 

[ThisOREthat]

Magnetic?

 

[RustyRelicHunter]

It is not magnetic and I believe it is for small tablets/pills (probably nitro).

 

[Underwonder]

Looks like it could have held lead replacement pieces for a mechanical pencil but that’s pretty fancy for that and would be on the more modern side. Good piece to ponder!