St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1861-01-24

cleansed. Then as it healed We had gar
giles Of sage and alum to harden the now
soft flesh. &c., : 1#>
In the course Of years we learned tc
count the spots by the sense of feeling
quite as accurately as any physician could
do by.sight, SO that when the doctor came
we could tell him just how many spots
there were, and just what sizo. So for
twenty-five years We have not permitted
any physician to examine, until this
attack, when we wished to judge of the
correctness Of our opinion that this new
disease is Identical with our lifetime
scourge. We are satisfied that it is so,
and the experience of twenty-five years
teaches us that it is very easily managed
If properly managed.
We are not strong enough to write
much yet; but assure our readers that
there is no serious cause for alarm if they
will only obey few simple directions
which will not conflict with the prescrip-
tlons OF any intelligent physician. First,
and most important. From the first ap-
pearance Of the disease, do notlet the pa
tient leave his room for an instant, no
matter how much he wants to run about.
Keep the atmosphere Of that room warm
and damp. Keep up hot fire, with a
slight opening in window or door t. sup
ply pure air and draw the odor of the
sick room up the chimney and through
the stove-pipe. Keep water constantly
boiling in the room to moisten the air.
Do not let the patient take one drop of
anything cold until the cure is complete.
A cold wet cloth to the outside is little
better than murder. It should be care
fully covered with dry flannel, and fire.
quently rubbed with stimulating emollient
liniaments. Equal parts of melted lard,
spirits OF canphor and spirits of turpen-
tine shaken we'll together in bottle, and
applied warm, is perhaps the best inia-
mcnt; but Kerosene, or coal oil, is nearly,
if not quite as good. For the inside of
the throat, drop few drops of spirits of
camphor on brown sugar, hold it in the
mouth until it disolves and runs down
around the tonsils, when the patient
should gargle with it and throw it out !;
then take another, a second bit, and eat
it. This once in two or three hours as
the case is. bad, and between times gargle
with wash of two parts strong sage tea
and one part vinegar we'll sweetened with
brown sugar, gargle three OF. four times in
succession, then swallow spoonful to be
sure that all the affected parts of the throat
are reached. Let the patient drink freely
of fruit acids, sparkling cider if you can
get it, or cranberry juice diluted with wa
ter and sweetened to the taste. Lemon
ade and the juice of cooked apples, tama-
rind water or anything Of that nature
This is to counter act the tendency to de-
cay or putrescenc Q; and if given in sufic-
lent quantities, viz, what the patient Will
crave. will destroy all fetid smell of breath
and saliva discharges, so tn at there will be
no contagion in the room. Good beer,
porter or pale ale is good for both gargle
and drink, and should be used unless the
symptoms are inaammatory.
But any and every drink must be made
nearly if not quite blood heat.
Physicians now are giving tincture of
iron which appears to us great mistake
provided any considerable portion of men,
brane is already formed in the throat, for
this form of iron being astringent, must
tend to convert this membrane into leath-
er-to thicken and harden the false H.
ming. Neither do we like the application
Of strong caustic acid, for this shrivels or
burns the membrane until it is violently
separated from the flesh beneath, which is
left in the condition of sore from which
"scab" has been forcibly removed. Ma
ture will form another. IF the case have
been neglected until any considerable
amount of membrane is formed, and its
progress is not arrested in one hour after
the commencement of the treatment we
describe, let the patient, if old enough
wrap piece of soft rag around the top Of
the finger, dip this into spirits of turpeu-
tine, and carefully and thoroughly touch
all the inside Of the throat i. e., put it
down his throat as far as possible, and in
sert it in every crevice. 1t may be nee
essary to do this twice without stopping,