Similar to Hostetter's Gentian Root, Ground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ½
ounce.
Farmer's Bitters Tansy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 1/4 ounce.
German Bitters German Chamomile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2 ounces.
Hop Bitters Hops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 4 ounces.
Stoughton Bitters Orange Peel, ground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . 6 ounces.
Corns They are not dangerous. I never knew them to
cause lock jaw or death, but yet they are equal to an aching tooth, and
torment their owners severely. They are caused usually by tight shoes
pressing on some part so as to check the capillary circulation and as soon
as that is checked the skin becomes calloused or hardened and presses on
the nerves, causing great pain. There are two kinds of corns, soft,
and hard. A soft corn is found between the toes; hard ones on the
outer surface. Can corns be cured? My answer is, yes, by all
means. The corn may be cured in a very short time. If the patient
will do as I tell him he soon can get well. Bathe the foot twice
a day in hot water, and after each bathing rub with Spanish Oil or King
of Pain. Wear a slipper or a loose shoe. Pare the callous to
the quick just so as not to cause bleeding, and, in a short time your corns
will be well. Tight boots will bring them back again.
Corn Poem People violate nature's laws,
Nature has the strictest way,
Never causing any sore,
If people who are suffering from corns will do as
I have told them on the precding page, they can most certainly cure themselves
and rid their feet of such miserable and tortuousome afflictions.
Antidote for Tobacco White Oak Bark, pulverized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4 ounces.
How to Quit Using Opium Commence with the same dose in solution, and every
time a dose is taken replace it with the same amount of water, and when
the solution gets to be so weak that its effects are not felt, commence
taking quinine in from three to five grain doses every four hours until
you have taken it four or five days. Whisky and wine may be used
lightly as the dose of the opiate grows smaller. The habit can be
broken in four weeks, and God knows it is a fearful habit to be chained
to, and no man would ever acquire it if he knew what a monster it is to
overcome. The habit of getting drunk is an angel by the side of it.
Powder for Sore Lips Chlorate of Potash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 1 ounce.
Thompson's Eye Water Sulphate of Copper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 10 grains.
Cough Syrup Tincture of Squill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . 2 ounces.
Boneset, Hops, and Hoarhound Candy Fluid Extract of Boneset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2 ounces.
Remedy for Burns Carbolic Acid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . 1 drachm.
Remedy for White Thrush There is a disease quite common to babies, called
White Thrush. It appears on the mucous lining of the mouth and tongue,
in the form of white patches, the same as sour milk would appear in the
mouth. This will, if neglected, go to the stomach and bowels and
cause a severe diarrhoea, and ultimately destroy the child.
Preparation for Cleaning Clothes. Take equal parts of water, sulphuric ether and aqua
ammonia. Shake well before using. This will remove any greasy
spot very readily.
The Great Kidney Remedy This prescription is worthy of everyone's notice
who is troubled with kidney troubles, weak back, and scanty secretion of
urine. Good for the horse and cow as well s man.
A Sure Cure for Sore Throat or Diphtheria The following is a method of treatment that I have
used in over a thousand cases, and I have never failed to produce a cure
in a single instance.
Baby Checking Powders This is a prescription that I obtained from an eminent
physician of forty years experience with babies and children, by the name
of Dr. Allen Woods, of Chilo, Clermont County, Ohio, who is a scholar and
a man that has seldom been equalled as a successful physician with children
and in the general practice. I have used these powders in over three
thousand cases with the best results. They have no equal in checking
diarrhoea or summer complaint in children.
How to Avoid the Effects of Poison when taken. Poison is something that counteracts vital force,
or perverts it to such an extent from its normal condition that either
death or great injury is the result. It is more often taken by mistake
than with criminal intent, and when taken either way, great alarm, fear,
fright and general consternation ensues, dear friends, mother, brother,
father, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin, husband or wife, or whoever they may
be, will, upon ascertaining the fact, wring their hands and cry unto the
Lord, "What shall we do to be saved." Whoever has witnessed such
a scene knows what I say to be a fact. Well now, I do not wish to
confuse you with many large words in telling you what you can't do, and
in telling you what a doctor that knows, can do, but I will tell you in
plain words that which you can do, and of the means or articles that are
in the immediate reach of every body. The great common antidotes
or remedies are simply raw eggs, melted lard, milk, magnesia, olive oil,
castor oil, linseed oil, followed quick with an active emetic of a mechanical
character, such as mustard, hot salt water, or ipecac, followed in three
minutes by running a feather down the throat, which is certain to cause
vomiting if life is not too far gone. I once was called to a man
who had been given too much morphine, and he was unconscious and knew nobody.
They had tried every thing to restore him to a conscious state, and different
emetics to vomit him, but his vital forces were so completely suspended
that his stomach would not absorb. I immediately got a feather from
the wing of a chicken and rammed it down his throat. He immediately
vomited a gorge of mucus and the contents in general of his stomach.
We then slapped his face with towels dipped in cold water, and in two hours
he knew every body about him, and could talk sensibly about his business
affairs.
In writing this work I feel it my duty to say something
about the horse, an animal, beyond all question or doubt, a helpmate of
man in his many avocations of life. The horse is shamefully abused,
and without cause in many instances, and he who mistreats a horse or any
dumb animal without cause or provocation, is inhuman, and should be chastised
to teach him the fact that a horse cannot reason, and a man can, and that
cruelty is the offspring of a mean person. When a man is riding a
horse he should always remember that a horse has to walk and carry him
too. A man that will mistreat his horse will also mistreat his wife
and children. The wild Indians have an instinctive kindness for their
horses and their dogs. Men should remember that a horse has an appetite,
and a body made of flesh and bone, nerves and blood, and can feel as well
as man, and needs shelter and care.
I need not tell how the bot-worm gets in a horse's
stomach, for every one knows, but I will give you a sure cure if given
in time. As soon as a horse's stomach becomes deranged, and the gastric
juice not in its normal or natural condition, the worm at once fastens
its horns in the walls of the stomach and commences to eat its way out,
and in bad cases, upon opening the horse's stomach, you will find the worms
in regimental rows stuck as fast to the walls of the stomach as a fish
hook in flesh. Now there is common sense in all things. I will
now tell you how to overcome the deadly worm. Take a quart of sweet
milk and a pint of molasses, and two ounces of laudanum. Mix together
and give it blood warm. The worms will let go and drink the sweet
drink, and the laudanum will make them all dead drunk in one-half hour.
Then give six ounces of aloes dissolved in half gallon of warm water, and
while the worms are all drunk they will be carried off through the bowels,
and the horse will get well.
Liniment for Curbs, Ringbones, Sprains, Strains, and Swellings Alcohol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . 4 ounces.
The Way to be Governed in Giving a Horse Medicine The average weight of a horse is 1200 pounds; the
average weight of a man is 145 pounds. Give a horse medicine in this
manner. If it takes so much to act as a medicine on a man, and a
horse weighing so much more, it will take so much more to affect him.
As follows: If it takes 4 ounces of whisky to make a man drunk that
weighs one hundred pounds, it will take 12 times 4, which is 48 ounces,
to make a horse the same way. This is the rule by which man should
be governed in giving a horse medicine. There are exceptions to all
rules. A horse should never be given medicine through the nose, for
his windpipe is not sheltered like that of man. It can be given by
getting his head up and pouring it down his throat. How would you
like to take medicine through your nose into your stomach? Remember
a horse has feeling. When a horse is poisoned, and you don't know
what with, give him a dozen raw eggs, with a quart of sweet milk, four
ounces of magnesia, and a pint of melted lard, all mixed together.
This will answer the demands of nearly every case. In all cases of
general inflammation keep the horse in a place where the air is 80 degrees
Fahrenheit. Give him water and wheat bran with a due portion of salt,
and don't drug him. Under this treatment he has a good chance to
get well, whereas, if you drug him, he will, ninety times out of a hundred,
die. For all sprains, bruises and curbs, use the liniment that I
have told you of before for such troubles. The secret of a doctor's
success in treating human sufferers is in his giving something that will
do no harm if it fails to do good. Good feed, good care, a warm stable
kept clean, a good curry comb well used, and plenty of pure water, is the
best doctor a horse ever had. When a horse is bothered with his kidneys,
in order to get them restored, the horse should be given salt and denied
water till he becomes very thirsty, then put from three to four ounces
of nitre into two gallons of water, close his nostrils with your thumb
and fingers and he will drink it all before he will taste the nitre, and
in one hour he will be relieved. I have seen this done in a number
of cases, with the best of results.
Miscellaneous Recipies for Horses For Heaves. Give a teaspoonful of pulverized lobelia, same of
saltpeter, licorice and skunk cabbage. Mix them altogether and divide
into three powders, and give one two or three times a day in the feed until
cured.
Horse Liniment Oil of Spike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 2 ounces.
A Good Cheap Liniment Alcohol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . 2 ounces.
For Saddle and Harness Galls Keep the saddle and harness off, and grease the sore
placs with mutton tallow, and when you put the saddle and harness on again
have them padded so that they will not make the horse sore.
This is a certain cure. Do as I tell you and
I will guarantee a positive or permanent cure. Put the horse in a
clean, dry stable, and keep the floor clean and dry. Feed him on
oats, for oats are not heating to the blood, and for rough food give him
fodder or rye straw. Wash his feet well, morning and night, with
rain water and good common soft soap. After the feet are thoroughly
cleansed, take four ounces of lard and half an ounce of blue vitrol, or
blue stone pulverized fine, and mix it well with the lard, and apply.
I will give any man the price of his horse that this will not cure.
This is a positive cure, a certain cure, and is alone worth one dollar
to any man who has horses afflicted in this way. After they are cured,
if they have to go into the mud, you can prevent a return by painting the
parts with white paint, made of linseed oil and white lead.
If you would have healthy horses, with pure blood
and slick hair, every time you feed them give them a pinch of equal parts
of pulverized sulphur, wood ashes and salt, equal to the size of a common
marble mixed with their feed. This is cheap and simple, and will
keep your horses healthy. The Indians keep their horses in good condition
with ashes and eggs.
Never Bleed a Horse God never made more blood than was actually needed in the veins and arteries of a horse. When disease is in existence all the vital force they have is needed, and blood gives vital force, and when it is taken away weakens the system for nothing. Eye Water for Horses Sugar of Lead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 1 drachm.
Healing Oil for Unhealthy Ulcers. Tannic Acid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . 1 drachm.
How to Cure Distemper Keep your horse well sheltered in a good dry stable,
feed on light food, such as oats and rye straw, and take tar and feathers
and burn them on a spade or shovel, and let the horse thoroughly inhale
the smoke three or four times a day, and your horse will soon be well.
Shoeing Horses It is important that every man that owns horses should
be sure that his blacksmith is a good one and understands the anatomy of
a horse's hoof. Many a good horse is made lame, his hoof cramped
and contorted, twisted, or crooked out of shape, by ignorance on the part
of the blacksmith. A bad nail is often used that will splint and
prick the quick, and the horse then is lamed. When the shoe don't
fit corns are produced, and the horse limps and suffers on account of the
improper knowledge on the part of the blacksmith. I have seen many
a horse's hoof ruined by setting the shoe wrong, and by paring the hoof
too much. Every man that owns a fine horse or horses, owes them a
duty. When a horse gets to be twenty years old, and cannot work,
he should be well cared for for the good he has done. He has earned
his living by the sweat of his brow, and justly deserves rest in his old
days, and he who fails to see that he has rest and plenty to eat, commits
an inhuman act and needs chastizing. I, in writing this work, have
aimed to give you a few important facts unclouded with many words.
I have written it in plain language, so that every one that can read can
get the substance and profit by it. This was not written for scientific
medical men to learn from, or for them to criticize, yet a man never becomes
so wise but what he can still learn from a child. This work is a
work composed of plain, simple, yet efficient facts, and facts that will
profit all who will try them where they are needed and indicated.
I have said nothing that will be dangerous for the common farmer or laboring
man to handle in the way of medicine. I have aimed to put you on
your guard in reference to the taking of medicines, and the diseases for
which they are given, recommended and taken. It is the natural tendency
of the majority of diseases to get well within themselves, and medicine
never cured anything, but simply assists Nature in ridding herself of the
block that is in her way; consequently they who use harmless medicines
will prove successful doctors, and do good and never kill any. Doctors
used to do much harm by heroic treatment, but have of late learned better,
and realize the fact that it is better to be on the safe side.
This is something that is unknown to many white people.
It is a medical process that by all Indians is called a Pow Wow.
When I was in company in the west with Professor Shultz, at Fort Bridger,
I had the pleasure of falling in with a band of Ute Indians that were going
to have an Indian Pow Wow. The Professor was very anxious to see
a pow wow, and proposed to me to go. I consented, but upon getting
there we ascertained the fact that the chief objected to white men being
present unless they would pay him a good price, in order that it might
be a good evidence that they were witnessing the pow wow in good faith,
and were not there to make fun or act as scoffers. So the Professor
gave the chief some blankets and a fine pony, which was by the chief considered
a complimentary act of high honor, and he gave us both a permit to attend
the pow wow. We went with great curiosity and anxiety to see the
act performed and learn the theory. The warriors were all in order.
There was a fine dry brush piled over a space of ground about ten feet
square and set on fire and let burn down to coal and ashes. But before
I proceed farther I will say that an Indian pow wow is the way Indians
treat bad colds and lung troubles. Well, when the brush had burned
down the coals were all scraped away, and small logs rolled over the hot
steaming ground; but before they were rolled on the hot ground the ashes
were sprinkled with water. As soon as the logs were rolled on the
ground a blanket was spread over them, and a young warrior was brought
out who was sick from a heavy cold, and laid on the blanket and logs and
covered up. Then the Indian songs were sung, and they all danced
around the warrior, while the steam from the hot ashes was causing him
to have a big sweat. After one hour they took and wrapped him in
a dry blanket and quietly put him in comfortable quarters, and the next
morning the Indian patient had no symptoms of cold or tendency to pneumonia.
I will close by saying to you, use your own judgment,
uninfluenced by any prejudice that may have previously existed in your
minds. Give my advice a trial if you need it, and judge me and what
I say by the effects. I give you my word and hoor most solemnly,
that all I have told you is safe for the most delicate person to try, without
the slightest danger of producing any effect detrimental, either temporary
or permanent. A wise person will glean knowledge from whatever source
it may arise. The compass of the Indian is the moss on the north
side of the tree, which is knowledge from a natural sourace gleaned by
the wild untutored savage. I will close by saying, good education
is the only reliable means of lasting reforms, and that will teach people
to think for themselves, and that simple medical facts have been hidden
in the past by technical words, but to-day are told in common English.
J. I. LIGHTHALL.
Classification of Medicines, and Different Theories I shall give you, in this essay, the names of each
school of medicine, and define briefly the names of the different classifications
of medicine.
Antipathy This is a school of medicine that believes in treating
diseases by giving medicine or using means that produce effects of a character
that are directly opposed to the symptoms of the disease itself.
They, therefore, are termed believers in what is expressed by the Latin
term, "Contraria contrariis opponenda." To illustrate the idea to
your minds clearly, I will say this: They claim that the first effect of
opium is to constipate the bowels, or make the bowels costive, and that
the second effect is diarrhoea, which I know is a fact by actual experience,
and by trying it on my own body. If any doctor doubts it let him
try it at the peril of his life.
Homeopathy This school was founded by Dr. Hahnemann upon the theory expressed in Latin, "Similia similibus curantur," or, in English words, medicines that will produce effects like the disease in existence should be used for the cure of it. To illustrate the idea clearly I will say this: Take and turn an old dogday sore on the boy's leg that will not heal, with lunar caustic, and immediately a healthy action will set in and the sore will heal. I will say this as a substitute for the Latin term given above: The hair of the dog is good for the bite.
Their method is based on the fact that their medicine
will cure in a phenomenal manner, which is, I think, very near the truth.
A dose of calomel will do so and so. We have an idea how it does
it, or a theory fixed in our own minds, but the fact is, we are not positively
certain how it does it, or what is the modus operandi. If we have
an aching tooth and apply a mustard poultice on the cheek, the pain will
soon stop. Now is this Homoeopathy or Allopathy? Does it cure
it by producing an effect on the nerves causing greater pain than the toothache,
or does it call the excess of circulation of blood away to the surface
that is going on in the nerve of the tooth, by attracting nervous attention,
or is it simply an excess of nervous attention to the pain on the outside
from the mustard plaster over the pain produced by the tooth? Now,
who knows certain what the modus operandi is? An epileptic fit can
be warded off by slapping the patient in the face, or by throwing cold
water in the face when it first begins to come on. Often have I seen
men, when they have been drinking hard, the next morning try to take a
drink of whiskey, and upon swallowing it become sick, but by pinching their
ears and chewing lemon or cloves, or slapping themselves in the face, would
manage, by so doing, to keep it down.
Brunionian Theory There is a theory called the Brunionian theory advocated
first by a man named John Brown, M. D., who argued that all medicines acted
on the human organization as stimuli or stimulants. But his theory
never gained any note in the estimation of the medical world.
The Chrono-Thermal Theory Is simply a theory containing a few facts and many
imaginative theories that are futile and worthless. I claim that
there can be much knowledge gleaned, of importance and benefit to man in
his practice, from this theory. Man can learn an important lesson
from the ant and the bee; -- the lesson of industry and providing for a
rainy day. So can a thinking man learn from all that is around him.
Hydropathy or Water Cure This, so far as it goes, is a very excellent remedy.
It is a complete antidote for dirtiness, when properly applied. I
pronounce it a complete specific, in combination with good soap, for filthy,
dirty hands, faces, and bodies. The effect, so far as it goes, results
in cleanliness, which the Bible tells us is the next thing to Godliness.
Man can live longer without food than he can without water. Every
one knows that this fact is established beyond question or doubt by actual
experiment. Water is one of the finest remedies we have in the treatment
of all diseases, most especially diseases of a febrile character; but common
sense teaches us that it is not a cure-all and the only remedy and the
best one for the cure of disease, free from the aid of other remedies.
Electicism -- The Free Thinker of Medicine The right to choose the best from all of the one
idea theories of medicine; liberty uncircumscribed by the teachings of
fanatics; freedom to judge for yourself that which is best of all; that
you can learn of the many ideas of medical men of the world. Love
for all, hatred toward none; freedom of thought; the right to counsel with
all, ungoverned by a mean disgraceful code of ethics. Liberty to
exercise good common sense, and use that which is best calculated to do
good in the case in which it is indicated. This is the true definition
of Electicism. They are the most prosperous class of doctors on the
face of the world, because they believe in personal liberty as well as
general liberty, and that which is right, and hate smart fanatics.
Quackopaths There is a class of doctors that are drawn from all
the schools of medicine that profess to be that which they are not.
They may possess diplomas, but they got them upon examination day, by some
student, that had studied hard and well and was naturally sharp, helping
them and cheating the professors. They never merited a diploma.
They spent their time in bar rooms and at billiard tables when they should
have been burning midnight oil over Gray's Anatomy, or Huxley and Dalton's
Physiology, in order that they might not butcher poor suffering humanity,
and have more knowledge of the human system, and know better how to prescribe
medicine to those who need it, and therefore this being a fact, every one
should be on their guard. It is not the man that has the diploma
that is always the good doctor. I know several men that have no diplomas,
that are naturally inclined in that direction, that have good success,
and are men that study the human organization and the effects of medicine
on it, and try to improve their moments, in order that they may properly
fit themselves for usefulness, and to benefit humanity. From the
fact that so many force themselves through college, a diploma does not
always signify that they are fit to prescribe or issue medicine.
It is the man that makes medicine a study, and studies it constantly and
diligently, thinking for himself, reasoning from cause to effect, using
common sense in all things, and when he or they give medicine, are sure
they are right, and give it so it won't do any harm if it does no good.
There are more quacks that have diplomas than there are quacks that have
not. I once knew a doctor that thought himself wise, and boasted
over twenty-five yars experience, and when I asked him about golden seal
and black cohosh, he laughed at me, and said he had never stooped so low;
that they were simply granny remedies. God pity such men.
Emetics Emetics are medicines that will cause vomiting.
I will name a few that are domestic and within the reach of every one;
mustard, warm salt water, boneset tea, and lobelia tea.
Cathartics Cathartics are remedies that cause the bowels to
act more than what is natural by increasing their wormlike motion.
I will name a few that are safe to use by persons that do not profess to
understand medicine: castor oil, epsom and crab orchard salts, senna and
rhubarb.
Diaphoretics Diaphoretics are agents that act on the skin and
produce sweating. I will now name a few mild ones that may be used
without fear. Hot store tea, hot brandy punch, pennyroyal tea, catnip
tea, steaming under a blanket, and the wet-sheet pack. These are
all safe and sure.
Diuretics Diuretics are those remedies that act on the kidneys.
I will name a few very common and very excellent ones. Watermelon,
watermelon seed tea, the tea of parsley root, and sweet spirits of nitre.
Sedatives Sedatives calm and quiet irritation and inflammation,
and should only be prescribed by a physician.
Narcotics Narcotics are medicines that numb nervous feeling,
and thereby relieve pain, such as tobacco, opium, morphine, ether, and
chloroform. These are to be given only by a doctor who well understands
their force and power on the nervous system.
Stimulants Stimulants are remedies that increase temporarily
the general vital forces of the body. Whisky, beer, wine, ale, porter,
rum, and gin, are some of our finest remedies, and serve good purpose when
used right.
Anaesthetics These are medicines that completly suspend nervous
sensation without producing death. Chloroform is the most powerful
known.
Tonics Tonics are medicines that increase the general vital
forces permanently. Iron is the best and most powerful, but should
be used with care for it will injure if not taken right.
Alteratives Alteratives are medicines that change in an insensible
and unknown way a morbid condition of the system, such as a scrofulous
system. They get well by taking alteratives, but they cannot tell
just how or when they got well. Stillingia, burdock, sarsaparilla,
and iodide of potassium, are some of the best alteratives we have.
Revulsives Revulsives are remedies that attract nervous attention
and circulation from a diseased part of the body. Mustard plaster
and Spanish flies are revulsives.
Astringents Astringents are very important remedies. Astringent
means to pucker, to contract, to draw up; therefore, astringents are tissue
contractors, and when given in diarrhoea they check it by checking the
excretions of the bowels, by puckering the pores, and by acting as a rub
lock on the worm-like motion of the bowels. Oak bark ooze, tea made
from the red raspberry leaf, common brier root, flax seed tea, are very
good astringents.
Expectorants Expectorants are medicines that stimulate mucus secretions
from the windpipe and bronchial tubes, or tubes that lead to the lungs.
Squill, lobelia, hoarhound and tar, are good and safe ones.
Antiseptics An antiseptic is a medicine that keeps a wound pure
and prevents it from mortifying. Salicylic acid and carbolic acid
are good ones.
Emmenagogues This is a remedy that promotes and increases the
monthly flow of woman from the womb. Tansy, pennyroyal, rattleroot
and blue flag, are good ones.
Parturients These are medicines that increase the power of the
muscles of the womb to contract when a woman is being delivered of a child,
and should only be given by a good doctor that knows when they are indicated.
Abortives are medicines that will produce confinement
before the right time, and should only be given in extreme cases by a good
physician.
Antispasmodics These are agents that stop fits or spasms.
They should only be handled by doctors, as they are particular remedies.
Refrigerants These are remedies that cool the blood and lessen
fever and general heated morbid conditions of the body. Cream of
tartar, tartaric acid and epsom salts are refrigerants. Lemon juice
is a very fine one, and harmless.
Sialogogues These are spit producers, that is, medicines or articles
of any kind that when taken in the mouth, produce a free flow of saliva
or spit. Candy is a good one for children.
Antacids Antacids are agents that naturalize or counteract
vinegar or acids of any kind. Common baking soda is a certain antacid.
Emollients These are simply poultices used to soften the skin
and inflamed and hardened surfaces. Bread and milk is one of the
best in use, but there are many others just as good. They fill a
very important place in the field of medicine.
Antilithics Antilithics are medicines that dissolve gravel or
stone in the bladder, and should only be handled by doctors.
Anthelmintics These medicines are simply worm killers. Santonin,
pink and senna are good ones.
Errhines or Stenutatories These are agents that produce sneezing when taken
in the nose. Scotch Snuff is a very good one.
Demulcents These remedies act as soothers to inflamed surfaces.
White of an egg, comfrey root, and slippery elm are classical demulcents.
Diluents Diluents are diluters or thinners of the blood.
When a man works hard in the harvest field he sweats profusely and freely,
his blood then gets thicker, and he becomes very thirsty, and replaces
the loss by quenching his thirst with water, which is soaked up by the
stomach into the blood and fills the place of the sweat that is lost, so
you may well know that water is the finest diluent in the world.
Antidotes These are remedies that counteract the effects of
poisons on the human system, and every one should have the knowledge of
a few that are in their immediate reach, such as I have spoken of in this
work. Powerful antidotes and powerful medicines should only be used
by physicians, so I have not mentioned them, but simply those that are
safe, harmless, and in the house of every one.
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