The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-05-22
WHATToBAceO W1EI:Do.

WHATTOBACcO WIIIDO.
Gan. Clingman Gives Some Interesting
information as to the Curative Proper
IS ties OF Tobacco and Cites Some Remarka-
BILE Cases.
Health and Home.
Believing that such knowledge of the
advantages wet tobacco as poaltice
as have acquired, if it should become
general will Be Instrumental in saving
annually many. thonsandssof livessin. the
United States, Fhave' decided that it is
my duty to make statement on the
( subject.
70 do this properly will require some
space, as mere condensed propositions or
statements will. not usually make as much
Impression or be as we'll remembered as
things set forth in the form OF nara
tive Of facts. L ought at the outset to
state that ! never. chewed, smoked or
snuffed tobacco believe, however, that
it has on several occasions saved my lie,
and in other respects been of essential
service to me and many of my friends.
The first instance / can remember OF
Its usage as q remedy for infammatlonss
was seeing Tom Kelly, when | was boy,
.sphrt its Juice from his mouth into the
eye Of his horse very red from lnf1am-
nation. He. stated that he was curing
it la that way. Ialso early in life knew
Of its being applied to those who had
been stung BY wasps, bees, &c. When
in college q studenEtold me that he. had
cured chronic inflammation by putting
/ o wet tobacco leaf on the part.
In march, 1S47, on the day after l had
announced myself sas "a candidate for
z Congress, while carelessly riding a wild
horse, the animal sprang against the fence
and knocked me of, 80 that / lit on the
ground with 80 much violence as to
/ ,sprain my ankI Is very severely. AsI had
some miles Ito ride into Henderson, n.
5sC., befors any remedy could be applied,
4 the ankle had swollen to double its size
{ and very painful. DR.. Whitehead direc.
tied a poultice to be applied. After
stenddring sesem pain fprs some hours, l
thought Of using tobacco. ! sent Tor
some leaves, had them wet and wrapped
around the.ankle, and placed the poul.
tice oYer them to keep them moist.
4 Within an hour the pain ceased, and l
slept. through the pighty The, next
: morning loh Examining lke ankle, instead
of its being swollen it appeared rather
sless than its natural size; the skin had
wrinkled appearance and was very white.
The membrane between the; bones Whlch
had received the sshock, showever, !, was.
very tender, so that I was obliged to use
crutches. During my canvass, which
lasted -four months, twice while travel
ing had it hurt BY accidents, and each
ZINE subdued the pain and swelling by
she use Of tobacco. During theswar, by
sthe falling ofsa gaiteping horse, l was p
thrown over his head and sprained the
name ankle badly, and used tobacco with
S}the like effect.
35iS Nv next application of it was to
8 severe punshot wound, on the 18th of
August. 1864, near Petersburg, Va. a
bullet ranged through my leg from near
the ankle, go as to come out on the opPo-
site side. lust below the knee, cutting the
muscles and nerves and making long
I, and very painful wound. Lost 80 much
blood that I was carried from the held IN
an insensibie condition. was 30 feeble
that the surgeons expressed great 5sppxe.
tensions that I might not be able TO
survive the fever which they expected
would come on in a few days. About
that time several of my friends had died
of the secondary fever which followed
sthair wonnis. In few days my left leg
began to swell and throb with heat.
TIE surgeons said must keep it wrapped
in vet cloths. I told them that | would
keen;duWn the inflammation with >tobac:
cog They at once:asserted that such an
application would be ruinous. After
tlieeS left i sent my servant Tor some
tijbacco, enyeloped the leg in it, and kept
iiswet with the Cloths over it. The pain
iif:an hour or two diminished, the heat
aGd throbbing ceased and / rested more
quietly than / had been doing. On the
iiaxt day, when the surgeons called to
see me, on looking at the wound they
expressed much surprise and said, You
nay keep on the tobacco. =" / remember
that Gen. Robert E. Lee called to see me
that day, and after looking at me said,
aOh, General, you are not going to die,
your eve is too bright" The tobacco
being a powerful nerve tonic, it always
excites my intellectual faculties.
Although several months passed before
I could walk without crutches, yet / had
no fever and little pain from the iniam-
3 nation. I am satisfied :hat if tobacco
we're properly applied, no external
wound would ever become sufficiently
inAamed to cause modification.
s.. In the.year 1867, in the City of New
: York, as I was riding in an omnibus,
while looking out of an open window,
received heavy blow on my right eye
: from; the whip of the driver, who had
aimed the blow at the head of horse
which seemed about to interfere with
him. he missed the horses head and
the full force of the end of the whip fell
directly OH the centre of my open eye.
The pain was excessive, and the sight
was entirely taken away-absolute black.
ness seemed before it. Passengers in the
stage said to nee, "You had better get out
AID seek relief-for you don't know how
that eye looks" I soon reached my ho-
tel, and on getting into it sent one ser
want for piece of tobacco and another
for two physicians with whom | was
acquainted. The tobacco came first, and
lust as I had placed it on and secured it
With proper bandages the doctors came
in. told them what had happened and
that / had just put on the tobacco. They
said tobacco wonld be ruinous:s AS soon
Al. T got; of the bandage and they saw
the eye, their countenances seemed to
fall; (for I could see them with my LETT
eye, Of course.) They said, "lt will be
very difficult to save that eye." lreplled
that if it could be saved, the tobacco
poultice would do it. They reiterated
their objections; but told them | should
try.it,, and asked them to come back in
the morning. After they had left l
restored tobacco and kept it we'll wet by