Mrs. Hale's Receipts for the Million: Containing Four Thousand Five Hundred and Forty-five Receipts, Facts, Directions, etc. in the Useful, Ornamental, and Domestic Arts
John Stuart Mill · en
Avoid the necessity of a physician, if you can, by careful attention
to your diet. Eat what best agrees with your system, and resolutely
abstain from what hurts you, however well you may like it. A few
days' abstinence, and cold water for a beverage, with cold or warm
bathing, as the case may require, have driven off many an approaching
disease.
If you find yourself really ill, send for a good physician. Have
nothing to do with quacks; and do not tamper with quack medicines.
You do not know what they are; and what security have you that they
know what they are?
1348. _A few Remedies for Sickness._--The _ague_ may be rendered
milder by the timely use of an emetic, given one hour before the fit
is expected to return. For this purpose, one scruple of ipecacuanha
may be given in an ounce of water. After each return of vomiting,
give half a pint of tepid chamomile tea, which may be repeated three
or four times, but not oftener. When the disease has continued for
some days, and the force of the fever is weakened by emetics, give to
an adult the following preparation of bark:--
Take of Peruvian bark, in fine-powder, one ounce; port wine, one
quart; mix them, and let them stand together for twelve hours. Shake
the bottle, and give four large spoonsful immediately after the hot
stage of the disorder, repeating it every second hour till the whole
be taken; unless the coming on of the next ague-fit should require
its suspension.
1349. _Hysteric Affections._--So numerous and various are the
symptoms said to belong to this disease, that it becomes difficult
to mark its peculiar character. It is frequently described by the
patient, as a round body moving in the bowels, ascending to the
stomach, and from thence affecting the throat with a sense of
stricture, threatening suffocation. The patient also complains of
palpitation, a costive habit, cold feet and legs, &c. To counteract
the force of these attacks, the bowels should be kept open by the
following aperient mixture:--
Take of infusion of senna, one ounce and a half; tincture of senna,
tincture of cardamoms, of each half an ounce. Three large spoonsful
to be taken occasionally.
The feet and legs should be kept warm, the head cool; the diet should
consist chiefly of animal food of easy digestion, as beef or mutton;
avoiding vegetables and malt liquor, indeed everything that has a
tendency to generate flatulency. As a beverage, weak brandy and
water, toast and water, tea or coffee, whichever suits the palate of
the patient, may be freely used. Much depends on the cause--as that
varies, so must the treatment. _A dash of cold water on the face will
frequently put an end to the paroxysm._