The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1870-04-21
Treatment Of a Cold.

a cold NAV he cut short its usual
course IT ten days or two weeks is often
abbreviated by the accidental intcrven-
ton of some other form of disease. For
example, large boil may form; this at
tracts disease from the lungs, and the cold
is no longer heard of; the same result fol-
lows an attack of diarrhWa, bilious, or
otherwise i'll this case the cold is said to
"run off through the bowels" If these
conditions are artiticially excited, if the
bowels are made loose by medicines cal
culated to act upon them, the progress of
the cold is shortened, provided i'll all cases
that these things occur within thirty six
hours after the cold is taken; if fairly
seated, it will lake its course.
Most persons can tell in few hours or
even minutes, when they have taken cold :;
when the slightest chill runs down the
back, a cold has been taken; SneeZing in
dicates that a cold has been taken, SO does
running from the nose, not always, but
often; if Il person would 90 TO bed, wrap
up warm, drink hot teas abundantly, and
not eat any thing but the crust of bread,
which is light, yet nutritious, and not
tempting, the cold would be cut short in
twenty-ioui ho-TG but nobody will fol-
low such direction, as there is always
vague impression that it may pass away
without giving special trouble, which in
deed is the case in many instances in the
experience of each Individual; still the
safer plan would be to act as if the cold
might be very bad one, as much d;scom-
fort, actual sickness, and life itself would
be often saved thereby
The reason why there are so many
things advised for curing colds, and with
such wCening confidence, is simply
this: when Il cold is taken, the first thing
thought of it is to "t1ke something for
it; if one thing fails, then another is tried,
until perhaps "a dozen different things
have been experimental upon; mean
while the cold has about run its course
and is curing itself, and the remedy which
happened To be in use at the time gets
the credit of the cure, ard the g'atified in
dividual " swears by that remedy To the
latest hour OF life, never failing to recon-
mend 1T with fanatical enthusiasm and
confidence to every man, woman, and
child who happens TO cough in his
presence.
Whe,i person takes n cold the natural
remedy would seem To be to take warm,
thas is get warm and keep warm for every
second OF time, keep comfortably warm,
even II it req hires the thermometer To be
kept at "A hundred degrees, and main
tam tins temperature and remain in a well
warmed and ventilated room untilrcstorcd
to usual health.
Feed IA cold, and starve a fever" is the
prOvcrb but it is most falacious. From
the moment a cold is fairly settled every
atom of food taken lays the foundation for
more cou h and for the longer continuance
OF the cold. All know that a cold does
not begin To get well until the cough be
gins To loosen" that is until yellow matter
is brought up from the lungs, as boil
never begins TO get well until yellow
matter is discharged from it; this yellow
matter IN both cases is made from the
blood, the blood is made out of the food
eaten, so the more food we eat while we
have cold, the more we make; and
the more material. for yellow matter,
the moro of such matter is made, and
the more coughing does it require to
bring il all away; until that is done, no
enc gets well of a cold.
Cough is curative both of consumption
and of bad cold, because it is the cough,
melted by nature, which helps in both
cases to clear the lungs of yellow matter
in them, and it is just as impossible for
them to get well until all this yellow mat
ter is poured out of it, And yet the uni
yersal practice in consumption, us well as
in bad colds, is To want To be taking some
thing to "cure the cough" And what
ever Is swallowed and has the effect to
lessen the cough, is lauded To the skies
with gratitude, as great remedy in the
height of the enthusiasm, very pro
nounced certificate is given this is pub
lisled IN the papers, and spread before mil
lions oi readers in month but the death
OF the certi6er within the month, follows
not after the falseEood. A truer practice is
to promote the cough, to loosen the
phlegm, SO as to make the cough more
frequent and necessary, TO raise il out of