Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-06-01
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1a1lu - Eagle
THE VILLAGE DOCTOR.
"REMINISCENCES OF THE TIME WHEN
EVERYBODY PRACTlcED MEDICINE.

In Former Days There Was Paucity
Of Illnesses "CaIomel and Jalap."
Sweating 1t Out - Patients Warned
Against Cold Water.
If one could disentangle himself from the
telegraph wires of today, get the Shrek Of
the locomotive out of his ears and then take
a backward leap into Old plantation times he
would be nightly amused. Among the OBJ
jects of interest would be the pantry of the
great house, where the housewife kept her
stores II he peered curiously about he
would see certain rather retired shelf on
which would be lunches Of herbs and roots,
also bottles of decoctions made thereof.
These were the household remedies, formula
copyrighted by tradition, proprietary to the
family In the country, where the doctors
bailiwick was Of extended area and where
drug stores were non-existent, everybody
was to a large extent his own doctor. As a
consequence he wanted to be everybody else's
doctor, while everybody else yearned to be
his.
PAUCITY OF AILMENTS.
Alasl Our repertoire of illnesses was linn
tied, Indeed, compared with today. There
was a paucity of available diseases. man
could not possibly have cerebro spinal men
nights; it was not to be had. II he had
pain in his chest no one soothed his anguish
by telling him he had pneumonia The word
peurisy was remorselessly flung at him.
Diphtheria was uncomfortable; putrid sore
threat filled that vacuum in the list. II
man was wheezy and had trouble with his
breathing the rugged word phthisic was
nailed to him; no one dreamed of bronchitis.
Brights disease had not been invented in our
region, and peoples hearts never troubled
them save when in love. Hence old time
people, when they came to die, had a con-
tracted list of ailments from which to choose,
and they died as they lived, plain and unro-
mantle.
When the amateur doctors Of the commu-
nifty desired assistance then the village doc
tor was called ill., and he confined himself to
two rened,es-calomel and Jalap-admInls-
tered by the shovelfuL There must have
been fail In the price Of these drugs when
the last of these doctors died Ii a man
sprained his ankle, was bitten by mad dog
or had sick headache he was told to take
calomel or jalap; if he refused and died, it
served him right. Ii he took them and died,
it was evidence that no human power could
save him. Castor oil and paregoric some
times appeared, but they were dwarfs COM
pared to calomel and jalap. The only rem
edies feared were the private remedies of the
people. The moment an old woman thought
she could make valuable medicine out of
some herb or herbs, she burned to administer
1t to some suffering neighbor.
The good Samaritan, Mrs. Perkins, often
walked miles TO urge the use of snake root
tea in the measles to bring the disease rapidly
TO the surface. An old negro, Aunt Kitty,
made a salye for sores that was very famous.
Its principal constituent was ducks fat, but
the fowl must be killed al a certain phase OF
the moon and the fat melted over fire
kindled with certain sorts of wood. AS this
salSe was said to work miraculous cures, it
may be loss to humanity that the astro-
nomical and botanical secrets of its manu-
facture were not perpetuated.
SWEATING OUT DISEASE.
There was a multiplicity OF remedies for
colds and they generally were based on
sweating out the disease. Boneset tea, tea of
wild cherry bark, onions stewed with sugar,
and vinegar and molaSses all had their warm
advocates, but highly esteemed remedy
was Thomsonian mixture bearing the rather
indefinite name of Composition" There
was nothing underlined about its taste or
effect, however. II was OF an ardent, i'm
pulsive nature. 1t burned the tongue when
first tasted, then il cherred the windpiDe ana
liver rs it went down, and finished by par
boiling the soIes of the feet Its forte was
causing sweating and it did its duty to the
letter II brought the cold out, and it
brought the original sin out, and the hearts
secrets out Nothing that could be moved
rested beneath the cuticule after a compost
ton seance.
One old idea of the doctors has greatly
changed-the objection to their patients
drinking water No matter how much the
Invalid craved it he was told that even q
moderate indulgence would be fa:al and the
attendants were solemnly warned to turn a
esaf ear TO his entreaties At the tender age
III ten years l aimed the first blow at the
snti-water regime, and it happened in this
manner: | was visiting on plantation and
the planters father, man of advanced
years, was at deaths door, owing TO a pro
tracted case of dysentery. Day by day the
old man drew nearer to the grave and the
family awaited the coming of the destroyer
with sad hearts The one desire of the dying
man was a draught of cold water from one Of
the sparkling springs which abounded on tho
farm. No traveller, sand blinded and thirst
stricken in the arid desert, could have cried
more piteously or more unaVailingly, for the
doctor had declared draught Of water fatal
TO the sick man, and had sternly commanded
the family to refuse his requests.
One morning was in his room, for he dearly
loved children, and he begged me to stealth
lly fetch him a pitcher OF water from the
spring. heSitated, for while no one had
me to give him water, l knew the
family refused il to him. Then the old man
asked mo to bring him his watch from off
the table. / did 50, and be told me should
laveit if | would bring him a pitcher of
water. The watch was of silver, as large as
small saucer, and l longed TO possess such
treasure. / brought the water. At times
try to think humanity made me bring it,
,ut then think of the watch and doubt.
The old man swallowed the pitchers con-
ents at a draught and died-ten Years after,
If old age, and have the watch yet. c.
P in Philadelphia Times
A Simple. Convenient Summer Retreat.