The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-10-30
EMERGENCY REMEDIES.
Facts Showing That Every Trade
Has Its Special Physic.
Many strange and simple Cures Not
Practiced Among Physicians
4 Fish and Eel skins
for Hhcunatism.

Every man TO his trade. \ man is
either a fool or a physician at forty.
Here are two ancient adagcs which sug-
gest a combination. Every trade has
its special physic. This is true. In
conversation the other day with Re
cordcr reporter a New York surgeon re-
marked that few things gave more pain,
attended with so much danger, as some
particles of lime dust in the eye.
gentleman standing by quietly re-
marked: And yet such an accident Is
of daily occurrence, is attended hardly
with any danger, and is most easily
treated How sop came 4 chorus of
voices.
Gwen. I viii tell You. l was brought
up TO the trade of piaSterer-a ceiling
plasterer You may not know that the
final layer upon q good ceiling IS almost
pure lime. The plastcrer stands upon
platform and lays on the paste. IL
falls upon him in every direction, and,
especially if he is a new hand, often n
spatter falls right into his eye. When
he gets accustomed 10 the work the eye
lid seems to get used TO it, too, and
seems to close automatically IN Set-de-
fense. Directly such an accident occurs
u fellow-workman takes mouthful OF
water from the nearest pail-and there
is always a pail OF water handy-opens
the eve as wide as possible and squIrts
with all his force the contents OF his
mouth against the cycbaH. This imme-
diately cools the lime and also drives II
out of the eve. Simple remedy, isn't it,
and eminently practical But you see
a mans eye would bc burned out long
.l, . a..
tors
Immediately other gentlemen had
sometime to tell One was wine
merchant. My ccllarmcn have fun
ny way of stopping bleeding. They
think nothing Of a cut finger or hand,
or even 4 large wound. They run to
the nearest spirit Cask, or claret If spir-
its are not handy, and let few drops
fall on the wound. 1t acts as an immc-
diate styptic. Then q big dusty old cob
web is taken from the nearest bottle or
corner of a bin, and clapped on tight
over the cut or abrasion. Cobwebs are
splendid healing agents.
sailors" said another, ARE never at
a loss under such circumstances: their
favorite styptic at sea is a bit of unrav-
eled tarrcd rope. On land they will
take the quid of tobacco from their
check or thc lining of their cap, and the
effect is astonishing. But | nave seen
man wild drunk after such 4 quid had
been tied over the wound. Gsupposc the
nicotine gets into the blood and acts as
an intoXicant.'
Carpenters" said another gentle
man. If they cut themselves, pick up
handful of fine shavinrs and clap them
on to the wound. and joiucrs smear a
dab of glue; but one Of the quaintCst
things | ever saw used was by an old
farmer up in Chester county. Hc got
his hand badly torn by bit Of old wire
fence, and hc blcd considerably. With
out a thought he stopped down and dug
up q handful Of soil, spat on it, and
worked il quickly into a paste, and laid
1t on the wound and bound it mp with
his ncclscrchief. In an astonishingly
short time he was at work again as if
nothing had happened"
"Can anyone tell me the therapeutic
al value of fasting spittlc2' asked
quiet man. Il know that old wives, as
the saying Is, take great stock in it for
warts, bir,hmarks, cJrnS, bruises, and
even small cuts. Indeed, old nurses
seem to believe that their saliva in the
morning before taking food is pana-
ceg lor every kind of skin complaint.
But did you ever hear OF an old beaver
or silk hat being used ~ "a stvptic? You
will find it a capital one, and for burns
and scllds, il placed over the wound in
sufficient quantity 20 keep out the air,
it win draw out the heat rapidly, as
any hat manufacture viii vouch."
1--WE arc getting a little OF the track, -
said one, when we talk of fasting
spittle; deep sea fishermen and fish
monEers generally hold that nothing is
better than a piece of fish skin. Eel
al-ins are commonly used 20 cure rheu-
matism. and are considered infalIibIc
by some. \ negro minstrel once told
NE that nothing stopped bleeding and
assisted natures healing work so well
rs burned cork. Thus every trade and
profession ha its own emergency rem
edies, as the doctor called them Just
uow, and doubtless the list might be ex-
tended 20 every trade known"