Progress and Achievements of the Colored People / Containing the Story of the Wonderful Advancement of the Colored Americans—the Most Marvelous in the History of Nations—Their Past Accomplishments, Together With Their Present-day Opportunities and a Glimpse Into the Future for Further Developments—the Dawn of a Triumphant Era. A Handbook for Self-improvement Which Leads to Greater Success

Here are some short and simple rules for quick action in the event of accidents:

For Dust in the Eyes, avoid rubbing, and dash water into them. Remove cinders, etc., with the rounded end of a lead pencil or a small camel’s hair brush dipped in water.

Remove Insects from the Ear by tepid water; never put a hard instrument into the ear.

If an Artery Is Cut compress above the wound; if a vein is cut compress below.

If Choked get upon all fours and cough.

For Light Burns dip the part in cold water; if the skin is destroyed cover with varnish.

Smother a Fire with carpets, etc.; water will often spread burning oil and increase the danger.

Before Passing through Smoke take a full breath and then stoop low; but if carbonic acid gas is suspected then walk erect.

Suck Poisoned Wounds unless your mouth is sore. Enlarge the wound, or better, cut out the part without delay. Hold the wounded part as long as can be borne to a hot coal or end of a cigar.

The treatment of poisons in general consists of the use of substances which, by combining chemically with an injurious dose, will neutralize, as acids with alkalies and vice versa; by solvents, which take up the poison, as olive oil with carbolic acid; and by emetics which produce vomiting and dislodge the poison. The stomach pump is also used, if available, to empty the stomach, and for some poisons electricity is used.

If the exact poison is unknown it is best to follow a general plan of treatment. We want an emetic, an antidote and a cathartic. For the first a draught of warm water and tickling the throat with a finger or a feather will generally succeed. For an antidote that will neutralize the great majority of poisons give a mixture of equal parts of calcined magnesia, pulverized charcoal and sesquioxide of iron, mixed thoroughly. Castor oil is the best cathartic for general use in poisoning.

Here are a few special instructions for the treatment of the more common cases of poisoning:

For carbolic acid give olive oil or castor oil or glycerine.

For ammonia give frequently a tablespoonful of vinegar or lemon juice, and follow this with a cathartic of castor oil.

For alcohol empty the stomach by emetics, warm salt water, repeated at short intervals, being the best. If the head is hot, dash cool water upon it. Keep up motion and rubbing and slapping to increase the circulation.

For arsenic, fly poison or paris green, take milk, gruel water with starch dissolved in it, oil and lime water. Be sure and empty the stomach by vomiting. It may require three or four repetitions of an emetic to dislodge the sticky paste from the walls of the stomach. Oil and barley gruel or mucilage water should be given to protect the stomach.

For chloroform and ether, artificial breathing must be stimulated. Lower the head of the patient and elevate the legs. Place ammonia at the nose to be inhaled, and slap the surface of the chest smartly with the fringe of a towel dipped in ice water.

For sulphate of copper or blue vitriol, give an emetic of warm water or mustard and warm water. Do not give vinegar or acids. After vomiting give milk or white of egg and oil.

For mercury poisoning by corrosive sublimate or calomel, give promptly the white of eggs mixed in water or milk. Empty the stomach by vomiting and then give quantities of egg and water or milk or even flour and water.

For opium, morphine, laudanum, paregoric or soothing syrup poisoning cleanse the stomach thoroughly by vomiting, and then give strong coffee. The patient must be kept in constant motion. At the same time he must be frequently aroused by smart blows with the palm of the hand, or switching, and whipping the body with a wet towel. When all else fails artificial respiration should be kept up for a long time.

For phosphorus, heads of matches, etc., use a mixture of hydrated magnesia and cold water in repeated draughts, and produce free vomiting. The emetic is mustard, flour and water. Do not use oil, as it tends to dissolve the phosphorus.

For strychnine, rat poison and the like give an emetic, and after this operates administer draughts of strong coffee. Control the convulsions by inhaling chloroform, a teaspoonful poured upon a napkin and placed near the nostrils. Between paroxysms give chloral dissolved in water. The patient should be allowed to go to sleep if so inclined and under any circumstances kept perfectly quiet, for any shock brings convulsions.

For venomous snake bites tie a bandage tightly above the point of the bite, leave the wound to bleed, and draw from it what poison may remain by sucking, unless you have a sore mouth. Cauterize the wound with caustics, a hot iron or a hot coal. Give alcoholic liquors and strong coffee freely. Dress the wound with equal parts of oil and ammonia.

For poisonous mushrooms give a brisk emetic, then epsom salts and then large and stimulating injections to move the bowels, followed by ether and alcoholic stimulants. The poison of mushrooms is very similar to that of venomous snake bites.

RATTLESNAKE BITES CURED BY SWEET OIL

Few people know that sweet oil, the common olive oil of commerce, the salad oil used on our tables, is a specific for rattlesnake bites. Use both internally and externally. Give the patient a teaspoonful of oil every hour while nausea lasts. Dip pieces of cotton two inches square in the oil and lay the saturated cloth over the wound. In twenty minutes or less bubbles and froth will begin to appear on the surface of the cloth. Remove the square, burn it, and replace it with a fresh square until all the swelling has subsided. Where rattlesnakes abound every household should keep a six or eight ounce vial of the best oil ready for emergencies. Avoid rancid or adulterated oil. No whiskey or other stimulant is needed, and in a majority of cases the patient is much better off without any other so-called relief than that afforded by the oil.

Relief is accelerated if some one with mouth and lips free from sores and cracks will suck the poison from the bite before applying the patches of oil-saturated cloth. A few drops of oil taken in the mouth before beginning will insure exemption from any disagreeable results.

RATTLESNAKE BITES—A FAVORITE REMEDY

A favorite remedy for a sufferer from rattlesnake bite, which proves very effective, is as follows: Iodide of potassium four grains, corrosive sublimate two grains, bromide five drachms. Ten drops of this compound taken in one or two tablespoonfuls of brandy or whisky make a dose, to be repeated at intervals if necessary.

POISON IVY, OAK AND SUMAC-REMEDIES

It is unfortunate that some of the most attractive plants that grow in woods, ivy, oak and sumac, for instance, are poisonous in their effects. They act differently, however, on different people, for some seem not to be susceptible under any circumstances, while others are poisoned by simple contact with clothing that has touched the noxious plant. The remedies likewise do not in every case affect people with the same degree of success.

Various remedies are used in case of poisoning from ivy. The affected parts may be bathed with water in which hemlock twigs or oak leaves have been steeped. Fresh lime water and wet salt are likewise recommended. Spirits of niter will help to heal the parts when bathed freely with it. Another suggestion is to bathe the poisoned part thoroughly with clear hot water, and when dry paint the place freely three or four times a day with a feather dipped in strong tincture of lobelia. A similar application of fluid extract of gelsemium sempervirens (yellow jessamine) is likewise very effective.

BEE AND WASP STINGS—HOW TO SOOTHE THEM

A beekeeper advises those who are around bees should have a small bottle of tincture of myrrh. As soon as one is stung apply a little of the tincture to the sting, when the pain and swelling cease. It will also serve well for bites of spiders and poisonous reptiles. If an onion be scraped and the juicy part applied to the sting of wasps or bees the pain will be relieved quickly. Ammonia applied to a bite from a poisonous snake, or any poisonous animal, or sting of an insect, will give immediate relief and will go far toward completely curing the injury. It is one of the most convenient caustics to apply to the bite of a mad dog.

BORAX FOR INSECT BITES

Dissolve one ounce of borax in one pint of water and anoint the bites of insects with the solution. This is good for the irritation of mosquito bites and even for prickly heat and like summer irritations. For the stings of bees or wasps the solution should be twice as strong.

Another Simple Remedy.—For bee or wasp stings bathe the part affected with a teaspoonful of salt and soda each in a little warm water. Apply the remedy at once after being stung. If this be used just after one is stung there will be no swelling. If one is off in the field and is stung take a common hog weed and rub the part vigorously therewith. It will stop the pain and prevent swelling.

HOW TO TREAT A SPRAIN

In treating a sprain wring a folded flannel out of boiling water by laying it in a thick towel and twisting the ends in opposite directions; shake it to cool it a little, lay it on the painful part and cover it with a piece of dry flannel. Change of fomentations until six have been applied, being careful not to have them so hot as to burn the skin. Bandage the part if possible, and in six or eight hours repeat the application. As soon as it can be borne, rub well with extract of witch hazel.

HOW TO TAKE SORENESS FROM A CUT MADE BY GLASS

If one should sustain a wound by stepping on a piece of glass, as children frequently do, soreness and much pain may be avoided by smoking the wound with slow-burning old yarn or woolen rags.

NAIL WOUNDS IN THE FOOT—HOW TO RELIEVE THE PAIN

To relieve from the suffering produced by running a nail in the foot of a horse or a man, take peach leaves, bruise them, apply to the wound, and confine with a bandage. They give relief almost immediately and help to heal the wound. Renew the application twice a day if necessary, but one application goes far to destroy the pain.

A simple remedy recommended for lockjaw is ordinary turpentine. Warm a small quantity of the liquid and pour it on the wound, no matter where the wound is, and relief will follow immediately. Nothing better can be applied to a severe cut or bruise than cold turpentine, which is very prompt in its action.

BRUISES, SPLINTERS, CUTS AND BURNS—SIMPLE REMEDIES

The Best Treatment for a Bruise is to apply soft cloths wet with hot water, and if the contusion is very painful a little laudanum may be added to the water.

To Extract a Splinter from a child’s hand, fill a wide-mouthed bottle half full of very hot water and place its mouth under the injured spot. If a little pressure is used the steam in a few moments will extract the splinter.

Before Bandaging a Cut wash it thoroughly with some antiseptic solution. When it is perfectly clean bring the edges together and hold in place with warm strips of adhesive plastering. Leave a place between them for the escape of blood, and apply a dressing of absorbent gauze. When the wound is entirely healed the plaster may be easily removed by moistening at first with alcohol.

The Stinging Pain of a Superficial Burn may be instantly allayed by painting with flexible collodion, white of egg, or mucilage. If the skin is broken apply a dressing of boracic acid ointment or vaseline.

BURNS AND THEIR TREATMENT

Common cooking soda, as found in every kitchen, is a convenient remedy for burns and scalds. Moisten the injured part and then sprinkle with dry soda so as to cover it entirely and loosely wrap it with a wet linen cloth.

Another convenient remedy for the same kind of injury, if you have a mucilage bottle at hand, is to brush or pour a coating of the mucilage over the entire injured part. The chief cause for pain from burns and scalds is their exposure to the air, and the mucilage coating will keep the air from coming in contact with the inflamed tissue.

The following is the recommendation of an eminent physician for treating burns from gunpowder:

“In Burns from Gunpowder, where the powder has been deeply imbedded in the skin, a large poultice made of common molasses and wheat flour, applied over the burnt surface, is the very best thing that can be used, as it seems to draw the powder to the surface, and keeps the parts so soft that the formation of scars does not occur. It should be removed twice a day, and the part washed with a shaving brush and warm water before applying the fresh poultice. The poultice should be made sufficiently soft to admit of its being readily spread on a piece of cotton. In cases in which the skin and muscles have been completely filled with the burnt powder we have seen the parts heal perfectly without leaving the slightest mark to indicate the position or nature of the injury.”

COLD WATER FOR ORDINARY RECENT BURNS

The best treatment for ordinary recent burns at first is cold water, which soothes and deadens the suffering. The burnt part should, therefore, be placed in cold water, or thin cloths dipped in the cool liquid should be applied and frequently renewed. In a short time, however, the cold water fails to relieve and then rags dipped in carron oil (a mixture of equal parts of linseed oil and lime water, well shaken before using) should be substituted for the water. When the treatment with carron oil begins, however, care should be taken to keep the rag moist with it until the burn heals. This is the main point in the treatment, so the authorities say. The cloth must not be removed or changed.

To relieve a scald on the interior of the mouth from taking hot liquids, gargle with a solution of borax, and then hold in the mouth a mucilage of slippery elm, swallowing it slowly if the throat also has been scalded. The slippery elm may be mixed with olive oil.

HOW TO BRING THE APPARENTLY DROWNED TO LIFE

The bringing to life of those who are apparently drowned is something that should be understood by every person, for such emergencies may rise at any time or place when no professional relief is at hand. There are astonishing instances of revival after a considerable time has passed, and it is worth while to persist in the effort most energetically and constantly for a long time before hope is given up. The following rules for saving the life of those who are apparently drowned are made up from various sources, official and otherwise, and may be accepted as thoroughly reliable.

Whatever method is adopted to produce artificial breathing, the patient should be stripped to the waist and the clothing should be loosened below the waist, so that there shall be no restraint on the movement of the chest and body. Lose no time in beginning. Remove the froth and mucus from the mouth and nostrils and the mud, too, if any has been drawn in. Hold the body for a few seconds with the head sloping downward, so that the water may run out of the lungs and windpipe.

The tip of the tongue must hue drawn forward and out of the mouth, as otherwise it will fall back into the throat and impede breathing. This is an important matter, for if it is not done successfully all that would otherwise be gained by artificial breathing may not be accomplished. If you are not alone the matter becomes simpler. Let a bystander grasp the tongue with a dry handkerchief to prevent it slipping from the fingers, or he may cover his fingers with sand for the same purpose. If you are alone with the patient draw the tongue well out and tie it against the lower teeth in this manner: Lay the center of a dry strip of cloth on the tongue, which is drawn out over the teeth, and cross it under the chin. Carry the ends around the neck and tie them at the sides of the neck, which will keep the tongue from slipping back. You are now ready to begin the actual restoration of life.

If the ground is sloping turn the patient upon the face, the head down hill; step astride the hips, your face toward the head, lock your fingers together under the abdomen, raise the body as high as you can without lifting the forehead from the ground, give the body a smart jerk to remove the accumulating mucus from the throat and water from the windpipe; hold the body suspended long enough to slowly count five; then repeat the jerks two or three times.

The patient being still upon the ground, face down, and maintaining all the while your position astride the body, grasp the points of the shoulders by the clothing, or, if the body be naked, thrust your fingers into the armpits, clasping your thumbs under the points of the shoulders, and raise the chest as high as you can without lifting the head quite off the ground and hold it long enough to slowly count three.

Replace the patient slowly upon the ground, with the forehead upon the bent arm, the neck straightened out, and the mouth and nose free. Place your elbows against your knees and your hands upon the sides of his chest over the lower ribs, and press downward and inward with increasing force long enough to slowly count two. Then suddenly let go, grasp the shoulders as before, and raise the chest; then press upon the ribs, etc. These alternate movements should be repeated ten to fifteen times a minute for an hour at least, unless breathing is restored sooner. Use the same regularity as in natural breathing.

After breathing has commenced and not before, unless there is a house very close, get the patient where covering may be obtained, to restore the animal heat. Wrap in warm blankets, apply bottles of hot water, hot bricks, etc., to aid in the restoration of heat. Warm the head nearly as fast as the body, lest convulsions come on. Rubbing the body with warm cloths or the hand and gently slapping the fleshy parts may assist to restore warmth and the breathing also.

When the patient can swallow give hot coffee, tea or milk. Give spirits sparingly, lest they produce depression. Place the patient in a warm bed, give him plenty of fresh air and keep him quiet.

Another method which is perhaps simpler than the first and equally effective is as follows:

The water and mucus are supposed to have been removed from the mouth, and the tongue secured by the means above described. The patient is to be placed on his back, with a roll made of a coat or a shawl under the shoulders. The nurse should kneel at the head and grasp the elbows of the patient and draw them upward until the hands are carried above the head and kept in this position until one, two, three can be slowly counted. This movement elevates the ribs, expands the chest and creates a vacuum in the lungs into which the air rushes, or, in other words, the movement produces inspiration. The elbows are then slowly carried downward, placed by the sides and pressed inward against the chest, thereby diminishing the size of the latter and producing expiration. These movements should be repeated about fifteen times during each minute for at least two hours, provided the signs of animation present themselves.

WHEN ONE FALLS INTO THE WATER

If a person who cannot swim falls into deep water, it is still possible in many instances for him to save his own life if he can keep his wits about him. Remember that one always rises to the surface at once after falling into deep water, and that the person must not raise his arms or hands above the water unless there is something to take hold of, for the weight thus raised will sink the head below the point of safety. Motions of the hands under water, however, will do no harm, for in quiet water, with the head thrown back a little, the face will float above the surface unless heavy boots and clothing drag the person down. The slow motion of the legs as if walking upstairs, keeping as nearly perpendicular as possible, will help to keep one afloat until aid comes.

WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF SUFFOCATION

Suffocation from any cause may be treated in some details the same as apparent drowning.

For suffocation from hanging, remove all the clothing from the upper part of the body and proceed to restore breathing in the way directed under the subject of drowning. Of course if the neck is broken there is no hope in this.

For suffocation from gas and poisonous vapors, get the person into the open air, relieve the lungs of the gas and restore natural breathing in the same way as directed in case of drowning. Throw cold water upon the face and breast and hold strong vinegar to the nostrils of the patient. If oxygen can be obtained promptly, it should be forced into the lungs.

HOW TO REVIVE A FAINTING PERSON

In a case of fainting lay the patient on his back with his head slightly lower than his feet. Be sure that the room is fully ventilated with fresh air, and rub gently the palms of the hands, the wrists, the arms and the forehead. Sprinkle a little cold water upon the face and hold to the nose a napkin upon which spirits of camphor, ether, ammonia or vinegar has been sprinkled.

SUNSTROKE AND HOW TO TREAT IT

In case of sunstroke get the patient into the coolest place you can, loosen the clothes about his neck and waist, lay him down with his head a little raised, and cool him off as promptly as possible. Cloths wrung out in cold water, applied to the head, wrists and soles of the feet, are the simplest applications. In severe cases of extreme prostration from sunstroke, the patient should be immersed in cold water, and even in an ice pack to get prompt results. After a little recovery is visible careful nursing is the next important thing. Sunstroke is commonly a summer disease, but the same conditions may come from overwork in extremely hot rooms. It begins with pain in the head, or dizziness, quickly followed by a loss of consciousness and complete prostration. The head is often burning hot, the face dark and swollen, the breathing labored, and the extremities are cold. If the latter detail is observed, mustard or turpentine should be applied to the calves of the legs and the soles of the feet, after which the hands should be chafed with flannels or with the palms of the hands. In case of genuine sunstroke lose no time in calling the doctor.

FREEZING AND HOW TO TREAT A CASE

In cases of severe freezing, when a person is apparently frozen to death, great caution is needed. Keep the body in a cold place, handle it carefully, and rub it with cold water or snow for fifteen or twenty minutes. When the surface is red, wipe it perfectly dry and rub with bare warm hands. The person should be then wrapped in a blanket and breathing restored if possible as already directed. It may be necessary to continue the treatment energetically for several hours. A little lukewarm water, or wine, or ginger tea is recommended for the patient to swallow as soon as possible.

THE EYES AND HOW TO CARE FOR THEM

Here are some simple and sound rules for care of the eyes, as formulated by a recognized authority on the subject. Avoid reading and study by poor lights. Light should come from the side of the reader, and not from the back nor from the front. Do not read or study while suffering great bodily fatigue or during recovery from illness. Do not read while lying down. Do not use the eyes too long at a time for anything that requires close application, but give them occasional periods of rest. Reading and study should be done systematically. During study avoid the stooping position, or whatever tends to produce congestion of the blood in the head and face. Read with the book on a level with the eyes, or nearly so, instead of in your lap. Select well printed books. Correct imperfection in sight with proper glasses, not selected carelessly by yourself or bought from an irresponsible wandering peddler, but properly fitted by an educated optician. Avoid bad hygienic conditions and the use of alcohol and tobacco. Take sufficient exercise in the open air. Let physical culture keep pace with mental development, for imperfection in eyesight is most usually observed in those who are lacking in physical development.

STYES AND THEIR TREATMENT

A stye is a small boil which projects from the edge of the eyelid, and is sometimes much inflamed and very painful. A poultice of linseed meal or bread and milk will soothe it and soften it. When the stye forms a head showing matter, pierce it with a clean, sharp needle and then apply some mild, soothing ointment.

TO TAKE THE COLOR FROM A BLACK EYE

A black eye is usually caused by a blow and may be a very disfiguring object. If inflamed and painful wash the eye often with very warm water, in which is dissolved a little carbonate of soda. A repeated application of cloths wrung out of very hot water gives relief. A poultice of slippery elm bark mixed with milk and put on warm is also good. To remove the discoloration of the eye bind on a poultice made of the root of “Solomon’s seal.” It is often found sufficient to apply the scraped root at bedtime to the closed eye and the blackness will disappear by morning.

TO REMOVE BITS OF DIRT FROM THE EYE

To remove dirt or foreign particles from the eye take a hog’s bristle and double it so as to form a loop. Lift the eyelid and gently insert the loop under it. Now close the lid down upon the bristle, which may be withdrawn gently and the dirt should come with it.

Another Process.—Take hold of the upper eyelid with the forefinger and thumb of each hand, draw it gently forward and down over the lower lid, and hold it in this position for about a minute. When at the end of this time you allow the eyelid to resume its place, a flood of tears will wash out the foreign substance, which will be found near the lower eyelid.

If lime gets into the eyes, a few drops of vinegar and water will dissolve and remove it.

Olive oil will relieve the pain caused by any hot fluid that may reach the eye.

A particle of iron or steel may be extracted from the eye by holding near it a powerful magnet.

When Something Gets into Your Eye.—An easy method of removing bits of foreign bodies from the eye is to place a grain of flaxseed under the lower lid and close the lids. The seed becomes quickly surrounded by a thick adherent mucilage which entraps the foreign body and soon carries it out from the angle of the eye.

QUICK RELIEF FOR EARACHE

To relieve earache take a small piece of cotton batting, depress it in the center with the finger and fill up the cavity with ground black pepper. Gather it into a ball and tie it with thread. Dip the pepper ball into sweet oil and insert it in the ear, then putting cotton over the ear and using a bandage or cap to keep it in place. This application will give immediate relief and can do no injury.

Another Remedy.—Take a common tobacco pipe, put a wad of cotton into the bowl and drop a few drops of chloroform into it. Cover this with another wad of cotton, place the pipe stem to the suffering ear and blow into the bowl. The chloroform vapor will in many cases cause the pain to cease almost immediately.

To destroy insects which fly or crawl into the ear, pour a spoonful of warm olive oil into the ear and keep it there for some hours by means of a wad of cotton batting and a bandage. Afterward it may be washed out with warm water and a small syringe.

TOOTHACHE—A QUICK RELIEF

One of the best mixtures to relieve acute pain and toothache is made as follows: Laudanum, one drachm; gum camphor, four drachms; oil of cloves, one-half drachm; oil of lavender, one drachm; alcohol, one ounce; sulphuric ether, six drachms, and chloroform, five drachms. Apply with lint, or for toothache rub on the gums and upon the face against the tooth.

DISAGREEABLE BREATH—HOW TO CURE

Of course if the trouble comes from the teeth by decay, it is a case for the dentist, and if because the teeth are not properly and frequently cleaned, the remedy is a toothbrush and a good tooth powder.

Bad breath, however, is frequently the result of low vitality or torpidity of the excretory organs, either the skin, bowels, kidneys, liver or lungs. Should one of these, the bowels, for instance, become affected, the others have more work to do. The lungs then have to throw off some of this waste matter, and the result is bad breath. If from one of these causes, or from the stomach, or from catarrh in the nose, a doctor should be called to treat the difficulty intelligently.

For temporary cleansing of the breath, however, the following recommendations are good. A teaspoonful of listerine to half a glass of water makes a wholesome and refreshing gargle and mouth wash. No harm is done if some of it be swallowed. A teaspoonful of powdered charcoal is a good dose to take. A teaspoonful of chlorine water in half a glass of water makes another good mouth wash.

Of course the teeth should be brushed twice a day at all times, and the listerine is the best of lotions for that use, particularly when used alternately with powdered chalk to whiten the teeth. Do not use a brush that is too stiff, and never brush so hard that you make the gums bleed.

TO STOP NOSEBLEED

A correspondent in the Scientific American declares that the best remedy for nosebleed is in the vigorous motion of the jaws, as if in the act of chewing. A child may be given a wad of paper or a piece of gum and instructed to chew steadily and hard. It is the motion of the jaws that stops the flow of blood.

HICCOUGHS—A SIMPLE CURE

A safe and convenient remedy for hiccoughs is to moisten a teaspoonful of granulated sugar with a few drops of vinegar. The dose is easy to take and the effect is almost immediate.

FELONS OR WHITLOWS AND THEIR TREATMENT

A felon, or whitlow, although not very large, may become not only very painful but dangerous if neglected. The milder ones may be treated with hot water, cloths and poultices, and if matter forms may be relieved by a lancet. There are others, however, which, if neglected, gradually affect the bone of the finger where they form, and these need the attention of a surgeon as soon as they begin to be very troublesome.

As soon as the finger begins to swell wrap the part affected with cloth soaked thoroughly with tincture of lobelia. This rarely fails to cure. Another simple remedy is to stir one-half teaspoonful of water into one ounce of Venice turpentine until the mixture appears like granulated honey. Coat the finger with it and bandage. The pain should vanish in a few hours. A poultice of linseed and slippery elm will help to draw the felon to a head, and when a small white spot in the center of the swelling indicates the formation of matter it should be carefully opened with the point of a large needle. A poultice of powdered hops will help to relieve the pain.

SIMPLE CURE FOR WARTS

Oil of cinnamon dropped on warts three or four times a day will cause their disappearance, however hard, large, or dense they may be. The application gives no pain and causes no suppuration.

CORNS AND CORN CURES

Corns are always the result of continued pressure, such as wearing shoes too small or not properly fitted to the foot. At first they are merely thickenings of the outer skin, but in time they come to be connected with the true skin beneath, and even with the muscles. There are almost as many corn cures advertised and recommended as there are corns, and sometimes they all fail, but here are a few of the most approved:

Soak the corn for half an hour in a solution of soda, and after paring it as closely as possible without pain apply a plaster of the following ingredients: Purified ammonia, two ounces; yellow wax, two ounces, and acetate of copper, six drachms. Melt the first two together and after removing them from the fire add the copper acetate just before they grow cold. Spread this ointment on a piece of soft leather or on linen and bind it in place. If this application is kept on the corn faithfully for two weeks there should be a certain cure.

The soft corn occurs between the toes and from the same causes, but in consequence of the moisture which reaches it, it remains permanently soft. It may be healed by first cutting away the thick skin from the surface, then touching it with a drop of Friar’s balsam and keeping a piece of fresh cotton for a cushion between the toes.

Tincture of arnica or turpentine will serve a similar purpose.

A small piece of lemon bandaged over a corn will help to relieve the pain and enable it to be treated to good advantage.

Corn plasters made of felt, with a hole punched through the center, will cushion the troublesome visitor so that it may be treated with the proper remedies and the pain be relieved at the same time.

BOILS AND CARBUNCLES—HOW TO TREAT THEM

Boils prove that an impurity exists in the blood, and the general health should be improved by means of careful diet and regular habits. The bowels must be kept open and regular, and the food should be simple, easily digested, and not heating.

Poultice the boil from the beginning with bread and linseed meal mixed with a little glycerine or sweet oil. When fully to a head and ripened the boil should be opened and the pus drained out. Then dress the wound with some soothing ointment spread on soft linen.

Carbuncles are apt to be much more serious than ordinary boils, and are very weakening to the system, in which they show a weakness already to exist. They should be carefully poulticed and treated as above, but the best advice is to call a good doctor and draw on his knowledge of treatment at once.

THE PROPER WAY TO MAKE A MUSTARD PLASTER

The making of a mustard plaster may seem a very simple thing, yet there are few households in which it is properly done. Care and attention must be given the work in order to have the results satisfactory.

A plaster should never be applied cold to a patient, the shock being too great. It should either be mixed with warm water or well heated after mixing. Strong ground mustard should be used, a little flour added, and the whole stirred to a smooth, thick paste with warm borax water, which soothes and prevents too great irritation. Some nurses add a teaspoonful of molasses or mix the mustard with the white of an egg. When prepared spread a piece of old linen on a warm plate, cover with the mixture, lay a second cloth over and apply at once. If allowed to remain on until the skin is burned or blistered, bathe gently with a little borax water, dry, and rub with vaseline.

DANGER IN DAMP SHEETS

Among the dangers which beset travelers in strange hotels and elsewhere is the really great peril of sleeping in damp sheets. It is hard enough to secure the proper airing of linen and clothes at home. Unless each article is unfolded and its position changed until all the moisture has been driven out of it, it is really not fully dried. As a matter of fact heavy articles, such as sheets, are scarcely ever thoroughly dry, and when delicate persons, perhaps fatigued by a journey, seek rest in a bed made of them, they risk rheumatism and other mischief. In case of doubt it is better to remove the sheets from the bed and sleep in the blankets until assured that the linen is thoroughly dry.

TAR AND TURPENTINE FOR DIPHTHERIA

The vapors of tar and turpentine are of great value in the treatment of diphtheria. The process is simple. Pour equal parts of turpentine and tar into a tin pan or cup and set fire to the mixture. A dense resinous smoke arises which clouds the air of the room. The patient immediately experiences relief. The choking and rattle in the throat stop, the patient falls into a slumber, and seems to inhale the smoke with pleasure. The vapors dissolve the fibrous membrane which chokes up the throat in croup and diphtheria, and it is coughed up readily. A remedy so convenient and so easily given should be in every household for prompt use when necessary.

Turpentine also is a convenient remedy for croup. Saturate a piece of flannel with it and place the flannel on the throat and chest. In a very severe case three or four drops in a lump of sugar may be taken internally.

By careful treatment, pitting in smallpox may be generally prevented. One successful method is to dissolve India rubber in chloroform and then paint the skin, where exposed, with this solution, by means of a soft camel’s-hair brush. When the chloroform has evaporated, which it very soon does, a thin film of India rubber is left over the face. This relieves itching and irritation, and permits the patient to be more comfortable in addition to preventing the pitting. Another suggestion is to keep the whole body, face and all, covered with calamine, or native carbonate of zinc, which must be purified and pulverized for the purpose. It may be shaken onto the body from a common pepper box. To assist in relieving the inflammation sprinkle an ounce of powdered camphor between the under sheet and the pad on which it rests, scattering powder the whole length of the bed, and freely where the back and shoulders are lying. This gives great relief to the sufferer.

MEDICAL USES OF WHITE OF EGG

It may not be generally known that there is nothing more soothing for either a burn or a scald than the white of an egg. It is contact with the air which makes a burn so painful, and the egg acts as a varnish, and excludes the air completely, and also prevents inflammation. An egg beaten up lightly, with or without a little sugar, is a good remedy in cases of dysentery and diarrhea; it tends by its emollient qualities to lessen the inflammation, and by forming a transient coating for the stomach and intestines gives those organs a chance to rest until nature shall have assumed her healthful sway over the diseased body. Two, or at the most three, eggs a day would be all that would be required in ordinary cases, and since the egg is not only medicine but food, the lighter the diet otherwise and the quieter the patient is kept the more rapid will be the recovery.

Lemons have a very wide variety of uses. For all people, either in sickness or in health, lemonade is a safe drink. It corrects biliousness. It is a specific or positive cure for many kinds of worm and skin diseases. Lemon juice is the best remedy known to prevent and cure scurvy. If the gums are rubbed daily with lemon juice it will keep them in health. The hands and the nails are also kept clean, white and soft by the daily use of lemon instead of soap. It also removes freckles and prevents chilblains. Lemon used in intermittent fever is mixed with strong, hot black tea, or coffee without sugar. Neuralgia may be relieved by rubbing the part affected with a lemon. It is valuable also for curing warts, and it will destroy dandruff on the head by rubbing the roots of the hair with it.

PAINTED WALLS BEST FOR SICK ROOMS

The walls of the room used for sickly members of a family should be painted so they can be easily washed. The painted wall is the only clean wall. A papered wall is an abomination where there is sickness, and a plastered wall can be made safe only by frequent whitewashing. But the painted wall may be washed with disinfectants when necessary, and when painted some dainty shade it is never a trial to sick eyes.

VALUE OF PLANTS IN THE SICK ROOM

It was once thought that it was injurious to the sick to have plants growing in the room, and science never did a kinder thing than when it proved the contrary to be true.

TO AVOID CONTAGION IN THE SICKROOM

If it is necessary to enter a sick room, particularly where there is fever, these simple rules should be observed to avoid contagion. Never enter fasting. At least take a few crackers or some such simple food before going in. Do not stand between the patient and the door where the current of air would naturally strike you. Avoid sitting on or touching the bed clothes as much as possible, and do not inhale the patient’s breath. The hands should always be washed in clean water before leaving the room, in order not to carry infection by them to other people or things you may need to touch. After visiting a fever patient change the clothes if possible. As soon as a fever is over and the patient is convalescent, the dress which has been used by the nurse should be fumigated in the same manner as the bedding, as already explained.

LIME AND CHARCOAL AS DISINFECTANTS

Housekeepers are gradually being educated up to a more practical knowledge of the laws of sanitation, and are coming to understand that cleanliness consists in something more than scrubbing the floors and washing the windows. Hence the following hint: A barrel each of lime and charcoal in the cellar will tend to keep that part of the house dry and sweet. A bowl of lime in a damp closet will dry and sweeten it. A dish of charcoal in a closet or refrigerator will do much toward making these places sweet. The power of charcoal to absorb odors is much greater directly after it has been burned than when it has been exposed to the air for a length of time. Charcoal may be purified and used again by heating it to a red heat. The lime must be kept in a place where there is no danger of its getting wet, and not exposed to the air.

CHLORIDE OF LIME AS A DISINFECTANT

Chloride of lime is a great purifier and disinfectant. One pound of it mixed with three gallons of water makes a solution which may be used for many purposes. To purify rooms, sprinkle it on the floor and even on the bed linen. Infected clothes should be dipped in it and wrung out just before they are washed. The lime without water may be sprinkled about slaughter houses, sinks, water closets and wherever there are offensive odors, and in a few days the smell will pass away. The odor of decaying vegetables or of dead animals is soon dispersed by the lime.

HOW TO PURIFY FOUL WATER

Two ounces of permanganate of potash thrown into a cistern will purify foul water sufficiently to make it drinkable. This is the disinfectant known as “Condy’s solution.” It is used in destroying the odors in the hold of vessels, and for many other disinfectant uses.

A WORD CONCERNING GOOD DIGESTION

In a recent novel one of the characters—a woman, of course—is made to speak the following interesting sentiments about husbands: “The very best of them don’t properly know the difference between their souls and their stomachs, and they fancy they are wrestling with their doubts, when really it is their dinners that are wrestling with them. Now, take Mr. Bateson hisself; a kinder husband or better Methodist never drew breath, yet so sure as he touches a bit of pork he begins to worry hisself about the doctrine of election till there’s no living with him. And then he’ll sit in the front parlor and engage in prayer for hours at a time till I say to him, ‘Bateson,’ says I, ‘I’d be ashamed to go troubling the Lord with such a prayer when a pinch of carbonate o’ soda would set things straight again.’”

A PRACTICAL SPRING REMEDY

It is nourishing and helps to clear out the system, to give sulphur and molasses every night for nine days some time during the spring. Sulphur and cream of tartar may be given instead. This may be made into little pills, using a little molasses to form a paste, and each pill being rolled in sugar.

CASTOR OIL—MAKING IT EASY TO TAKE

Castor oil may be taken with ease if its taste be disguised. One way is to put a tablespoonful of orange juice in a glass, pour the castor oil into the center of the juice, where it will stay without mixing, and then squeeze a few drops of lemon juice upon the top of the oil, rubbing some of the same juice on the edge of the glass. The person who drinks the dose without delay will find the nauseous flavor completely covered.

The French administer castor oil to children in a novel way. They pour the oil into a pan over the fire, break an egg into it and “scramble” them together. When it is cooked they add a little salt or sugar or some jelly, and the sick child eats it agreeably without discovering the disguise.

Castor oil may be beaten with the white of an egg until they are thoroughly mixed and not difficult to take.

CREAM OF TARTAR A MILD CATHARTIC

Cream of tartar is a good laxative. Take a teaspoonful mixed with a little sugar in a cup of warm water at night. If it does not have the desired effect, repeat the dose in the morning. It will often work off colds and other maladies in their incipient stage.

BOILED MILK FOR BOWEL DISEASES

Boiled milk, taken while still hot, is one of the best of foods in almost all bowel complaints, and is very successful as a remedy. In India, where the climate produces many such ailments, it is in constant use for such purposes. A physician in practice there says that a pint every four hours will check the most violent diarrhea, stomach ache, incipient cholera or dysentery. It is soothing and healing to the whole digestive tract. No patient will need other food during bowel troubles, so that the same simple preparation serves at once for medicine and nourishment.

WHEN TO EAT FRUIT AND WHY

If people ate more fruit they would take less medicine and have much better health. There is an old saying that fruit is gold in the morning and lead at night. As a matter of fact, it may be gold at both times, but it should be eaten on an empty stomach, and not as a dessert, when the appetite is satisfied and the digestion is already sufficiently taxed. Fruit taken in the morning before the fast of the night has been broken is very refreshing, and it serves as a stimulus to the digestive organs. A ripe apple or an orange may be taken at this time with good effect. Fruit to be really valuable as an article of diet should be ripe, sound and in every way of good quality, and if possible it should be eaten raw. Instead of eating a plate of ham and eggs and bacon for breakfast, most people would do far better if they took some grapes, pears or apples—fresh fruit as long as it is to be had, and after that they can fall back on stewed prunes, figs, etc. If only fruit of some sort formed an important item in their breakfast women would generally feel brighter and stronger, and would have far better complexions than is the rule at present.

FOR FEVER OR SORE THROAT PATIENTS

Put some ice in a towel and crush it until it is as fine as snow and of an even fineness. Then squeeze on it the juice of an orange or lemon, and sprinkle over it a little sugar. It is a very pleasant food for persons suffering with sore throat.

WAKEFULNESS CURED BY LEMON JUICE

The wakefulness that comes from drinking too strong tea or coffee can be conquered, says a household informant, by swallowing a dash of fresh lemon juice from a quartered lemon, placed in readiness on the bedside table, and taken at the time you discover that sleep will not come.

FRUIT AS AN ANTIDOTE FOR INTEMPERANCE

A writer in a European temperance journal calls attention to the value of fruit as an antidote to the craving for liquor. He says: “In Germany, a nation greatly in advance of other countries in matters relative to hygiene, alcoholic disease has been successfully coped with by dieting and natural curative agencies. I have said that the use of fresh fruit is an antidote for drink craving, and this is true.

“The explanation is simple. Fruit may be called nature’s medicine. Every apple, every orange, every plum and every grape is a bottle of medicine. An orange is three parts water—distilled in nature’s laboratory—but this water is rich in peculiar fruit acids medicinally balanced, which are specially cooling to the thirst of the drunkard and soothing to the diseased state of his stomach. An apple or an orange, eaten when the desire for ‘a glass’ arises, would generally take it away, and every victory would make less strong each recurring temptation.

“The function of fresh fruit and succulent vegetables is not so much to provide solid nourishment as to supply the needful acids of the blood. Once get the blood pure and every time its pure nutrient stream bathes the several tissues of the body it will bring away some impurity and leave behind an atom of healthy tissue, until, in time, the drunkard shall stand up purified—in his right mind.”

HOME REMEDY FOR CONSUMPTION

Dr. B. J. Kendall, of Saratoga Springs, New York, urges the use of milk strippings in curing consumption. He says that milk strippings taken in large quantities immediately after milking, before the animal heat has departed, are the most potent remedy known for building up a poor, debilitated person who is suffering with consumption. “This was only a theory of mine years ago,” he says, “but now I know it to be a fact, for I have demonstrated it to be so. I wish to say it emphatically. If you want to get well drink a quart of strippings. I do not mean any milk from any cow, however poor milk she may give, nor do I mean to take it in a haphazard sort of a way, cold or warmed up or just as it may best suit your convenience; but take it regularly, at the proper time, and in the proper manner, and have all your diet and habits regulated by proper hygienic laws.”

STAMMERING CURED AT HOME

It is said that stammering can be cured by this plan: Go into a room alone with a book and read aloud to yourself for two hours, keeping your teeth tightly shut together. Do this every two or three days, or once a week if very tiresome, always taking care to read slowly and distinctly, moving the lips, but not the teeth. Then when conversing with others try to speak as slowly as possible, keeping your mind made up not to stammer. Undoubtedly your teeth and jaws will ache while you are doing it, but the result will be good enough to pay for the discomfort.

Sixty-four pages are here added to the folios to include full-page illustrations not before numbered, making a total of 490 pages.