Home remedies

[seanachai]

I just had to chime in here...

I have consulted my copy of Culpeppers Complete Herbal, the original version having been dated 5 September 1653 and have decided to charm you all with a few of his most interesting recipes.

Bees being burnt to ashes, and a lye made with the ashes, trimly decks a bald head being washed with it.

Snails with shells on their backs, being first washed from the dirt, then the shells broken and they boiled in spring water, but not scummed at all, for the scum will sink of itself, and the water drank for ordinary drink is a most admirable remedy for consumption; being burised and applied to the place they help the gout, draw thorns out of the flesh and held to the nose help the bleeding thereof.

And who can forget: The liver of an hedgehog being dried and beaten into powder and drank in wine, strengthens the reins exceedingly and helps with the dropsy, convulsions and the falling sickness, together with all fluxes of the bowels.

With these remedies being medical marvels, linseed oil and turpentine doesnt sound half bad. I do believe, however, I would most certainly have to pass on the animal dung.
Seanachai

[MsReese]

well, there is the modern day botox, which goes to show that women still do incredibly odd things in the name of beauty

[8thvacav]

Home Remedies

Soup for an Invalid

Cut in small pieces one pound of beef or mutton or part of both, boil it gently in two quarts of water; take off the scum and when reduced to a pint, strain it. Season with a little salt and take a teacupful at a time.

[The simplicity of this recipe makes it a nice addition to the Living History campsite.]

Godey’s-March,1861
Drinks for the Sick

From The Young Housekeeper’s Friend, 1846
Apple Tea:
Roast sour apples and pour boiling water upon them. Drink it when cold.

A Very Refreshing Draught in a Fever:
Put a few sprigs of sage, balm and sorrel into a jug, having first washed and dried them. Take off the yellow part of the rind of a small lemon; remove the white, slice the lemon and put it into the jug with part of the peel; pour in three pints of boiling water, sweeten it and stop it close.


[Balm has long been cultivated in gardens. The stems and leaves, formerly used in medicine as a gentle stimulant and tonic, are still occasionally used as such. Sorrel is a perennial herb with erect stems about 12 in high with arrow-shaped leaves, which are cultivated for use as a salad green and as a potherb.]
Another Drink [untitled]:
Boil an ounce and a half of tamarinds, three ounces of currants, and two of stoned raisins, in three pints of water until near one third is wasted; then strain it.

Another Drink [also untitled]:
Put a teacup of cranberries in a cup of water, and mash them. In the mean time, boil two quarts of water with one large spoonful of Indian or oatmeal, and a piece of lemon peel; add the cranberries and some loaf sugar, but take care to leave a strong flavor of the fruit. Put in a gill of sherry wine, or less if required, and boil it half an hour more. Then strain it. [I think the addition of wine is the key to this drink's success.]

[ole]

I suppose apple jack or hard cider would not be a home remedy for some, but ... whatever ails you ...

Anyone know how to make apple jack? Midwestern drought left my favorite apple tree laden with tangy fruit too small to bother peeling -- especially with crampy knuckles. Jack would be a nice way to make something of a crop.

Ole

[sockknitter]

Dunno if somebody's already posted this for your information, but here it is:

http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/...moonshine.html

Search down for APPLE JACK. The site seems to be full of careful instructions for distilling that and other liquids.

[ole]

Thanks, sockknitter.

I'm afraid there's too much equipment to purchase that I couldn't hide from my wife. Guess I'll have to let the garden have the apples.
Ole

[lrd89]

Has anybody ever heard of cloves for a toothache? I recently had the pleasure (ha-ha) and yes, it does help some.
Roger

[blue_zouave]

Yes indeedy, oil of cloves for a toothache is a sovereign remedy. Our ER staff recommends it as a topical treatment. And when your dentist does a root canal, the stuff he puts in there to kill the tooth off is Eugenol... fancy name for oil of cloves.

Ouch, made my teeth hurt...

Zou

[rbenne]

Oil of cloves does work well, but I use it slightly differently. I have an ongoing problem with dental infections (sorry to share that)

Take a handfull of cloves, about 15 to 20 and put in a coffee cup, pour boiling water over the cloves and let steep, When it cools rinse with it, like mouthwash. Not only helps the pain but kills the infection as well, works when pennicilin does not (for me at least) do this twice a day (the cup is good for about 4 days worth) especially on the onset of the problem.

It is also easier to deal with then straight clove oil.

It's good to be engaged to a Shawnee herbalist

[lrd89]

Thanks Blue Zuave and Rbenne! That is really good info to know, especially that eugonol is what the doctor uses anyway.