The Daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1845-1850, 1849-05-09
DOCTORS BILLS.

The folly OF dabbllng in medicine is very
pleasantly hit off in the following humorous
piece:
''About four years ago was happily married
to very prudent lady, and bling OF the same
disposition myself, we made very prudent cou-
pie. Sometime after our marriage, my wife told
me that doctors bills were very high, and that,
as we could not always expect to be free from
disease, she thought it best to purchase some doc
tors books, and thus, said she with SMILE eve
can steal their trade at once This | agreed to-
and made it my particular business to attend all
auctions OF books, in order to buy medical books
at the lowest rate. In hne, in less than twelve
months, had bought couple OF 'Dlspensatories'
'Buchan's Family Physician two or three treat
ises on the art of preserving health, by different
authors; seven treatises on the diseases of chill
dren, and divers others Of the greatest note. My
wife spent all the time she could spare from the
economy OF her household, in studying them, and
as soon as my store shut up in the evening,
| edlhed myself with few receipts from my
Dispensatory.
AS soon as spring arrived my dear wife in
formed me that she found it positively eDioned
by some of our writers, that we must swallow
large dose OF cream of tartar and birthstone, TO be
taken every evening for three weeks, in molas.
SEES; this the whole family complied with first
". Il
exon first; my wife, my brother Dick, who
lives with me; my son and my daughter, my ne.
gro boy, and the servant maid. This cure we all
went through to the entire satisfaction of nv wife
who had the pleasure to find her medicine had
the desired effect.
Soon after this, the contagion OF reading medi
cal books spread through all my family, and
scarce day passed but some OF them made use
OF some medicine or other. My poor brother
DICK, after he had permission TO read my books
had acquired detected countenance, the cause
OF which could not conceive, At last he broke
silence-sBrother,' said he (supposing that had
read more than himselt,) leel nv pulse, think
have too much blood, had not | better get bled,
you know that ii too much blood gets into the
nead' 1t produces apopexy the symptoms OF its
appearance, says Buchan, is remarkable red
ness In the lace, and you see that is exactly the
case with me- l could not but laugh at him. he
was indeed red in the face, but such redness az
indicated the very offspring OF health Our maid
from an education at a country school, had learn
cd 70 read she earnestly requested her mistress
to lend her doctor book to read on SUNDAY AFT.
ternooh. Ihls reasonable request was granted
out poor creature being not OF the fairest com.
plexion in the world, she in little while became
quite low spirited, and finding my wife and me
alone one evening, she came in, and yentured n
express herself thus: La mistress; | am con.
cerned' and afraid shall get the yellow iaund.
lers, as begin to look yellow in the face.' De.
cency prevented my smiling for awhile but when
she had LETT the room, conId not bat en;ov
laugh. My negro boy is always eating roasted
onions for cold, but as he cannot read he has
luckily escaped every other disorder. One niobt
as were ABOUT going to bed, my wife desired me
IN the most serious manner, that if she should
esef pe taken with locked jaw that l should