Chapter 16

Take one pint of good hard cider, that is entirely sound, put a table-spoonful of hot ashes into it, and stir it as soon as it settles; take a table-spoonful once every hour for a grown person, until relief is obtained.

Remedy for the Ear-ache.

Mix a few drops of French brandy with sweet oil and a drop of laudanum, and pour it in the ear a little warm.

Another valuable remedy is to take a few wood lice, and stew them in a little lard, (which should be very pure,) for three or four minutes; then strain it and pour some in the ear before it gets cool.

This gives almost immediate relief. The heart of a roasted onion put warm in the ear, and tie around the head a silk handkerchief, has given relief.

A Wash for Sore Ears.

Make a tea of the black or candle-alder, wet a soft rag with it, and lay it on; it should be applied three times a day, and occasionally wash it with castile soap and water. The patient should take a mild purgative. If the ears are very much inflamed, there should be a bread and milk poultice put on occasionally. Elder ointment is also beneficial.

Weak Eyes.

Make a strong decoction of chamomile flowers, by boiling them in new milk; with this bathe the eyes several times a day--continue it for several weeks; to bathe the eyes in cold water before going to rest, is also good. Pure rye whiskey is very good to bathe weak eyes. Persons that are afflicted with sore eyes, have often been benefitted by putting a small blister behind the ears, very high up on the hard part, so as to avoid the leaders. Infants should not be exposed to the light too soon; it sometimes weakens the sight and seriously injures the eyes. The pith of sassafras put in water, is good to bathe inflamed eyes; a decoction of young hyson tea is also used with benefit. Persons afflicted with weak eyes should avoid a strong light, and should not strain their eyes with reading or sewing at night. I have known small doses of "charcoal mixture," relieve the eyes when there was slight inflammation. Attention to diet is necessary. Fold a linen handkerchief, dip it in cold water, and bind it over the eyes at night on retiring, and you will experience relief. Pain in the eyeballs is also relieved, by gently rubbing the finger and thumb over the lids towards the nose. This was published some years since, and I have known it give relief and strengthen the eyes.

For Worms.

Equal parts of salt and sugar, taken while fasting, are good for worms; a tea-spoonful is sufficient for a child two years old; to take half a cup of chamomile, rue or wormwood tea, with a little sugar, two hours before breakfast, is also good. Give a dose of senna after they have been taking this three days. It is very important to bruise garlic and rue, to apply to the stomach; put it in a bag, and wet it with spirits every day. The garlic and rue is said to keep the worms out of the stomach. Wormseed oil, a few drops at a time, has given relief, but should be used cautiously. Old cheese grated and given to a child, has been known to afford relief: it is also beneficial when a child is seized with sudden illness from having eaten too many cherries.

For Tooth-ache.

Reduce two drachms of alum to a very fine powder, and mix with it seven drachms of nitrous spirits of ether; apply it to the tooth. Alum burnt on a hot shovel, and powdered, is sometimes good; also half a drop of the oil of cinnamon, on a piece of cotton or lint, where the tooth is hollow. Cayenne pepper on cotton, and moistened with spirits of camphor, has been known to afford relief. A poultice of hops applied to the cheek, or a piece of raw cotton with red pepper dusted on it, or a mustard plaster, will relieve a swelling which proceeds from tooth-ache.

Cure for Cholera Morbus.

Put a table-spoonful of hot ashes in half a pint of good hard cider, and give the patient three table-spoonsful of it at a time. This has given relief in half an hour.

Another cure is to take a soft cork and hum it thoroughly; when it ceases to blaze, powder the coal very fine on a plate. Mix a table-spoonful of this powder with a little milk or water, or any thing agreeable to the palate; repeat the dose till the disorder ceases, which it generally does after two or three doses. This has given relief to a person in the greatest agony with the bilious colic.

For Colic.

Drink strong ginger tea, while hot, and put hot bricks to the stomach and feet; if this does not give relief, take a dose of rhubarb or castor oil. Persons subject to the colic should keep a piece of ginger about them to chew after eating; wear flannel next the skin, and be careful to keep the feet dry: they should avoid strong coffee and tea, and eat nothing that disagrees with them. Dry toast without butter, and crackers, are good for persons that have the colic. For violent cases, take two table-spoonsful of brandy, and half a tea-spoonful of black pepper.

For Bilious Colic and Indigestion.

Pour three quarts of boiling water on a quart of hickory ashes and a tea-cup of soot; let it stand a day, then filter it, and if the complaint is bad, take a wine-glassful before and after each meal. This has been very beneficial to persons with the above complaint.

Warner's Cordial for Gout in the Stomach.

Take one ounce of rhubarb, two drachms of senna, two of fennel seed, two of coriander seed, one of saffron, and one of liquorice; stone and cut half a pound of good raisins, and put all in a quart of good spirits; let it stand in a warm place for ten days, shaking it every day; then strain it off and add a pint more spirits to the same ingredients; when all the strength is extracted, strain it and mix the first and last together. Take from two to four spoonsful of this cordial in as much boiling water as will make it as hot as you can take it; if the pain is not removed in half an hour, repeat the dose, and if your stomach will not retain it, add ten drops of laudanum.

Dr. Warner remarks, "after twenty years' experience of this medicine in myself and others, it is impossible for me to speak of it in terms higher than it deserves. When the vital parts are affected, persons subject to the gout should never sleep without it in their chamber."

Cure for Tetter.

Take one tea-spoonful of powdered Spanish flies, put them in half a pint of French brandy; wash the part affected occasionally. This has been highly recommended to me, as a remedy for tetter on the hands, but I have never seen it tried.

For Cramp in the Stomach.

Dissolve a tea-spoonful of table salt, in a tea-cup of warm water; if this does not stop the vomiting and cramp, repeat the dose; this is very useful in stopping the operation of an emetic, when it has continued too long. Flannel cloths dipped in hot spirits, and sprinkled with cayenne pepper, and applied to the stomach, sometimes relieves the pain; a mustard plaster is also of use.

For Cramp.

A foot-board to the bedstead is of great service, when you are taken with the cramp in the night, and by placing the foot against it, will sometimes give relief. Another remedy is to tie a string round the limb, between the body and the pain, about as tight as a physician does to draw blood; wear a bandage filled with pounded brimstone round the limb, to prevent a return of it. Sometimes to hold a roll of brimstone in each hand will relieve the cramp, and persons subject to it should keep some by the bed-side to use in the night.

For Scalds and Burns.

When persons are badly scalded or burned, to put raw cotton on immediately, and wet it with spirits, is very good; other remedies are, linseed oil and lime water; starch and cream; scraped potatoes, molasses, and eggs beaten up and put on immediately. Almost any thing will relieve the pain, that excludes the air. Be careful not to break the skin, as it will be longer in healing.

If a foot is scalded, pour cold water over it and cut the stocking. You should be careful to use linen rags about a burn, as cotton rags cause irritation.

After the place begins to heal up, a salve may be applied, made of equal parts of Burgundy pitch, beeswax, sheep's tallow, and sweet oil, melted together over the fire; renew it twice a day, washing the place each time with milk and water, and a little castile soap. A wash of weak sugar of lead water, is also good for burns. A poultice of powdered elm bark mixed with water, and put on frequently, wetting the sore with thick cream, is also soothing; be careful that the limb does not contract, as there is great danger if the sinews are affected. If there should be fever, a mild cathartic should be given. "Comstock's Pain Extractor" sometimes gives great relief; you may also apply immediately, with benefit, a tea-spoonful of air-slaked lime and a table-spoonful of lard; sift the lime and rub them well together. For a burn by vitriol or any caustic substance, apply whites of eggs mixed with powdered chalk, putting it on with a feather. Linen rags dipped in cold water and changed every few minutes, I have known applied day and night to give relief to a bad burn on the foot; but avoid putting the foot in water, although it gives present relief, it is dangerous.

For Ague.

Take half an ounce of coarsely powdered race ginger, infused in three gills of boiling water; when cool, strain and sweeten it; and for a dose give a heaped tea-spoonful of Peruvian bark, in a wine-glassful of the ginger tea, every two hours during the absence of the fever. To one ounce of best Peruvian bark, add two ounces of cloves powdered, and a half an ounce of cream of tartar; mix them well, and give two tea-spoonsful at a time every two hours: when clear of fever, begin at four in the morning, and give it until twelve at noon. Wormwood seed, a heaped tea-spoonful in a cup of water, as a dose, is also good. A third recipe is to take two ounces of best Lima bark, twelve heaped tea-spoonsful of magnesia, to be well mixed together, and divided into twelve doses. Take four doses on each well day, at intervals of four hours each, this has cured a number who had suffered with ague a long time.

Chilblains.

Put as much alum in hot water as will make it very strong, put the feet in when it is as hot as can be borne, and keep them in till it is cold, warm it over, and soak them every evening till they are entirely cured, by beginning in time, it need only be applied two or three times.

When blisters are formed, take one ounce of camphor, one of sheep's tallow, and one of sweet oil, stew them together gently till it becomes an ointment, and rub the feet with it.

Take an ounce of glue, and melt it in a pint of hot water over the fire, stir it until the glue is dissolved, pour it out and dip the part that is affected in this dilution until the uneasiness or burning is allayed, which is mostly in a few minutes.

Lockjaw.

If lock-jaw is apprehended from a scratch or wound, bathe the injured part frequently with weak ley, or warm pearl ash water, make a poultice by boiling bitter herbs in weak ley, and thicken it with corn-meal; put a little grease in just as you put it on. Bacon skin and the rind of fresh pork bound tightly on, are said to be good.

Falls.

If a child receives a fall, examine every part, and rub your hand on its back to tell if any part is injured. There are instances of persons being cripples for life, from receiving a hurt, that was not known of at the time. To rub with camphor and sweet oil, and bathe the child in warm water, is soothing.

For the Bite of a Spider.

Moisten a slice of wheat bread with sugar of lead, or pearl-ash water; bind it on, and keep wetting it as it becomes dry. If the place swells very much, take a table-spoonful of sweet oil every hour, till it is relieved. To drink water with salaeratus dissolved in it has been useful.

For the Sting of a Bee.

Rub the place with hartshorn or salaeratus water, immediately after it is stung, to prevent it from swelling; bruised peach leaves bound on, are also good, and laudanum, where it is very painful. If it swells very much, apply a poultice of onions and cream, or ley and bitter herbs.

For Bruises.

The oil of St. Johnswort applied on lint, is an excellent remedy for bruises, and if used immediately will prevent the blood from settling on the place; when children get their fingers or toes mashed, this is very good, and soon gives relief; salt butter is also very good. The leaves of the Jamestown weed, mashed with cream, are good for a stone-bruise.

For Felons.

Make a poultice of quick lime slaked in soft soap, and bind it on the finger; renew it every half hour. The leaves of Jamestown weed, bruised with cream or lard, are also good. Also, roast coarse salt in a piece of wet brown paper, or a cabbage leaf, about twenty minutes; when cool, pound it and mix it with resin soap; bind it on the felon; it is said to be a certain cure. The white of egg, with unslaked lime, has been known to give immediate relief.

For a Sprained Limb.

Strong vinegar and salt, put on brown paper, will soon cure a slight sprain, if applied frequently. If very painful, a bath should be made of bitter herbs, bran and vinegar, put on as hot as you can bear it. Great care should be taken not to use the limb too soon after it has been sprained. Some sprains of several months' standing have been greatly relieved by taking several electric shocks a day. St. Johnswort oil is good to rub on a sprained limb.

For a Sprained Ancle.

Of chalk, soft soap, salt, and brandy, take a spoonful each, and add the white of an egg; beat the mixture, and spread it on raw cotton, and apply it at once, when it will generally afford relief; and after repeatedly changing, it may be left off in twenty-four hours. The ancle is often weak when recovering, and benefit is derived from pouring cold water on it from a pitcher held high above you. Tallow and salt, mixed and spread on a piece of muslin, are good for a sprain.

Cuts or Wounds, &c.

When cuts bleed very much, tie a handkerchief tight above the wound, or place a finger on it until you can get a physician: in the country, persons should be supplied with a surgical needle and adhesive plaster, and have lint scraped and linen rags in a convenient place. Balsam apple put in a bottle when fresh, and whiskey poured on it, is an excellent application for fresh cute or bruises. For the stick of a needle or pin, try to make it bleed, and hold the finger in strong vinegar and salt, as hot as you can bear it, this will prevent a gathering. A mashed finger should be held in hot water a few minutes. No. 6 is a most valuable remedy for cuts or wounds; bind a linen rag over the cut, and pour on the No. 6.

For Tetter, Warts, &c.

Dig up the pocoon root that grows in the woods, wash and slice it, and put it in a bottle with strong vinegar; bathe the parts with it several times a day. Celandine root is also good, used in the same way, and either of them will remove warts and ringworms.

Poisons, Accidents, &c.

These are valuable remedies, and should hold a place in the memory of every one, if possible.

Mix a spoonful of powdered mustard in a tumbler of warm water, and drink it immediately; it acts as an emetic, and has proved effectual where an ounce of poison had been taken into the stomach. Where the skin is poisoned, use a wash of smartweed steeped in water, or mix soot and cream, and apply it frequently; bruised Jamestown weed and cream is also good. If you have been exposed to poisonous plants, wash your face and hands immediately in salt and vinegar, or salt and water. When "corrosive sublimate," has been swallowed, the whites of two eggs taken immediately will neutralize the poison, and change the effect to that of a dose of calomel.

Persons struck by lightning should be laid on the ground, and pour water over them till life is restored. When "oil of vitriol" or "aqua fortis" have been swallowed in large quantities, sweet oil should he taken, (as much as can be retained on the stomach.) For "oxalic acid," give magnesia or chalk and water.

For "tartar emetic," give Peruvian bark and water, (or a strong decoction of green tea, if you have not the bark.) For "saltpetre," give an emetic of mustard seed with water, and afterwards elm bark mucilage, and small doses of laudanum. This is also good in cases where arsenic has been swallowed.

When a child has swallowed a cent, pin or needle, give it the white of egg immediately; this forms a coating round the metal, and prevents injury in most cases; then give moderate doses of medicine, such as castor oil or salts.

When a fish bone has been swallowed, take the white of an egg, which will help to carry it down the throat; also cut a hard crust of bread.

Insects taken into the stomach, may generally be destroyed by taking a small quantity of vinegar and salt. When insects get into the ears, use a little salad oil, or melted lard.

Tar Ointment for the "Milk Crust."

Take a quarter of a pound of lard, and the same of sheep's tallow, three table-spoonsful of tar, an even spoonful of sulphur, an ounce of white turpentine, a lump of beeswax the size of a hickory-nut, the same quantity of powdered resin and scraped chalk, a tea-cupful of the inside bark of elder, a little celandine, southern wood, and English mallows; bruise the herbs, and put them on to boil, with the lard and tallow, and a little water to keep it from burning; when all the strength is out, strain them, and put the grease back in the pot, with the tar, and add the other ingredients a little at a time, and stir till all is melted; then strain it in a jar, and keep it covered for use.

Tar ointment is good for ringworms in the head, which some children have, and has cured children where the head and face was covered with what is called the "milk crust."

Before it is applied, the place should be washed with milk and water, and a gentle purgative should be administered occasionally. Rhubarb tea is good for this purpose.

If it is wanted in the winter, when you cannot get all the herbs green, dried ones will do; and when made, it will keep good several years.

If there is much hair on the head of a child, it should be cut off before this is put on.

It is very dangerous to give infants that are affected with the milk crust, calomel, or any strong medicine. They should he carried out in the air occasionally, and not kept all the time in a warm nursery; sometimes a change of food is attended with a good result.

There have been instances of infants dying very suddenly, where powerful medicines had been administered.

Hop Ointment.

Take a table-spoonful of the yellow dust of hops, and put it in three spoonsful of melted lard, and mix it well; put it away in a cup for use. This has proved beneficial in cases of swelling of the breast; when cold has been taken, it will sometimes backen gatherings; bathe the place with a warm hand several times a day, and keep flannel over it. Young mothers should keep this ready, as it is much better than preparations of camphor, which are injurious.

Precipitate Ointment, &c.

Take one ounce of Venice turpentine, half an ounce of powdered precipitate, half a pound of lard, and two table-spoonsful of cold water; mix the turpentine and precipitate together with a knife; then add the lard and water, a little at a time, till it is well mixed; then put it in little boxes. This is useful to dry up a breaking out on the face or hands; care should be taken while using it, not to take cold.

Camphor dissolved in alcohol, or any white spirits, is very good to use on pimples on the face.

Blister Ointment.

Sometimes after a blister has been drawn with cabbage leaves, it becomes very sore and inflamed; a salve may be made of the leaves of evergreen, (a plant which grows in gardens with a thick leaf;) pound the leaves, and stew them in cream or sweet lard; spread it on a fine linen rag, and apply it to the blister after it has been washed with milk and water.

Another salve for blisters is to bruise the leaves of the English mallows with a little southern wood; stew them in sweet lard until they are crisp, and strain it; apply it three times a day. This is good to heal a burn.

Lily Ointment.

Gather the flowers of the sweet white lily, while they are fresh, and stew them in sweet lard. This is good for a swelling, or sore.

Elder Ointment for Burns, &c.

After peeling off the outside bark of the elder, scraps off the green bark that is under, and stew it in lard till it is crisp; then strain it in a jar, and put it away to heal a blister or burn, or an old sore.

St. Johnswort Ointment, and its Uses.

Gather the yellow flowers of St. Johnswort while in full bloom; put them in a wide-mouthed bottle, and fill it with equal quantities of lard and sweet oil; tie a skin over it, and hang it in the sun for a month; then strain it, put it back in the bottle, and cork it up. This is one of the most effectual remedies for bruises, or for a mashed foot or hand. It should always be kept where there is a family of children.

Ointment for Mortification.

Take the berries, leaves and bark of the black alder, and bruise them well in a mortar; stew them in lard for an hour, stirring all the time; then strain it, and add a small piece of beeswax.

A poultice can be made for mortification, of the berries, leaves and bark of black alder, boiled in sweet cream, and thickened with wheat bread.

Another good poultice may be made of the inmost bark of sassafras root, pounded and boiled in weak ley, and thickened with corn meal. The patient should drink tea made of the roots of sassafras and burdock.

Bread and Milk, and Flaxseed Poultices.

Boil half a pint of sweet milk, and thicken it with crumbs of bread; let it boil till soft. This is the mildest poultice that can be made.

A tea-cup of flaxseed boiled till soft, requires no addition to make a good poultice.

Hop Poultice, and its Uses.

Boil a handful of hops in a pint of water till very soft; when thicken it with corn meal. This is very good for a sore throat, tooth-ache, or swelled face.

Onion Poultice.

Slice the onions and boil them in water till very soft; then mash and boil them with milk and some crumbs of bread. This will draw a bile or gathering to a head very soon.

Lily Root Poultice.

Pound the roots of the sweet white lily, and put them on to boil in rich milk; when soft, thicken it with crumbs of bread. This is a most valuable poultice for a gathering, and has given relief in many instances where the suffering was great.

Cream Poultice.

Put to boil a tea-cup of cream; mix two spoonsful of flour in milk, and stir in when it boils.

Ley Poultice.

Tie a spoonful of ashes in a rag, and boil it in a pint of water for fifteen minutes, with some catnip or life-everlasting; when the herbs are soft, take out the ashes, and thicken it with corn meal; spread some grease over as you apply it.

Adhesive Plaster.

Take three pounds of resin, one-quarter of a pound of beeswax, one-quarter of a pound of mutton tallow, melt together in an iron pan; then pour out about one-third into a bucket of water, turn up the edges until you can take hold with the hands and pull it as you would shoemakers' wax: grease papers and put the plaster on them for use; you may then pour out the rest and treat it in the same way.

A Valuable Salve for Burns and other Sores.

Take of high mallows, heal-all, night shade, and elder bark, a large handful, and about half the quantity of Jamestown weed; boil them for several hours; strain off the liquid, and add to it one pound of beeswax, one pound of mutton tallow, one pound of resin, half a pound of lard; boil them slowly for about two hours, and let it cool on the liquid. This salve will do to apply immediately to a burn or scald, or after other remedies have been used; it is also good to heal old sores or gatherings.

Deshler's Salve for Gatherings or Sores.