The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-07-03
POTENCY OF HERBS.
Traditions Regarding Their Proper
ties I'm Treatment of Diseases.

Baring-Gould has contributed to the Sun
gay Magazlne curious F paper entitled
that. in spite of the revolution which has
taken place in the materia medica Of the
British pharmacopeia in modern times in
favor Of mineral medicines and other more
powerful drugs. village wise men, and
women still ''cull simples here and there,
and even continue to inspire neighbors with
faith in their power of healing by divers
superstitious practices. Nor is the country
peoples condolences in the village herbist,
in Mr.. Gould's opinion. altogether mis-
practitioners were, he believes, endowed
with very considerable and wholesome ex-
traditions regarding the properties of GER
tain herbs in the treatment of certain
maladies which were sometimes far from
to this day many of our field and wood
plants derive their names from the popular
belief in their virtues as specifics for GER
tain complaints.
Mr.. Gould gives a remarkable account of
one of the last remaining wise women"
who has long been known to him. Judging
from certain indications, she belongs to the
West country. Her recipe for sprain Will
hardly, we fear, receive respectful consid.
Grafton. 1t is as follows: Two ounces OIL
of turpentine, two ditto suillowes. two ditto
earthworms. two ditto nerve, two ditto opo-
dillidock, two ditto Spanish fieas: Mr..
Gould op5Ie sh that ths s e ae
the valuable part of this remarkable pre-,
scription. "Suillowes'' is supposed to stand
for SQu1llS, which Is not Oi ihuCL use ao al
OF the potency of "earthworms' it is
more difficult to judge, but Mr. Gould as
sures us that ii is precisely this decoction
of wriggling worms which impresses the
west country rustic into the conviction
that the remedy must be something very
wonderful ard the oil of nerves strikes
him as reasonable. His nerves are suffer
ing; therefore he must decoct the nerves
Of bullocks to supply what he lacks. The
rationale Of the thing seems not unlike
that of the ..oil of crowbars" which Mr..
Punch's hairdresser was getting rainer
weak" When Mr.. Gould's children had the
treated Mrs. Gould to let her doctor them:
She brought little silk bags to be tied
around the sufferers necks, each contain
ing some hair cut from the cross on DON
keys back. This she had learned to be-
lieve. was sovereign against whooping
cough.
For remedies of this class Mr.. Gould has
no apology TO offer; nor has he anything
Ito say for the Charms and caba1istic
formula which still in some favor in
the country-some samples which he cites
certainly do not say much for enlighten-
they are terrible bad" are. in the belief
Of some, only to be cured by wearing
silver ring manufactured from coins which
have come out of seven parishes. Gold, IL
appears, is not efficacious. Mr.. Gould
knows a parish in which the parish clerk
cure of children with fits. This is what he
does. or did: He takes the little sufferer
Up to the church tower. holds IL out at each
Of the angle pinnaces and pronounces GER
tain words. What the words are Mr.. Gould
has not learned. Profitable trade secrets
are apt to be jealousy guarded. but he
knows that for these mysterious practices
the parish clerk receives an honorarium.