Evening star., 1901-05-04
COUNTRY DOCTOR CURES
pOILTICE PLANTS AND WHEN TO
USE THEM WITH SUCCESS.
When Insect Stings, Green Wounds
or Whatever Hurt is Angry
and Inflamed.
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
The trend of practice Is largely away
from pouItices-more's the pity to my
mind the old doctor said. Il tell you,
there's often heap of virtue in a poul-
tice- My friends, the wise women had al
most as many sorts as there are days in
the year For instance, the okra poultice.
for green wounds, insect stings, spider
bites-whatever hurt. indeed, was angry
and infiamed. 1t was made preferably
from the young pods. beaten in a clean
cloth to sort of yiscid jelly. But dried
pods would answer. If they had not got
tough before drying. They were not hard
to come by; nearly every housekeeper III
the middle south slices and dries her sur
plus Okra to save for winter use. The
slices had. of course. to be soaked. Fail
ing them, as IN spring or early summer
tender leaves and young tips could be
beaten up. Tpread thin on old linen and
bound upon the wound. After an hour it
was removed and a fresh poultice applied.
Somehow, the okra pulp has a knack of
drawing hard-drdwing to itself all the
poisonous substances in feverish or fester-
ing flesh Twenty-four hours of such pouI-
ticing sufticed to subdue the most obstinate
inflammation. Afterward 1t was only a
matter of care and cleanliness.
This for fresh hurts or new, virulent
sores. Chronic or sluggish ulcers and lin
gering sweIlings demanded the willow
pOUltice. To make 1t the inner bark of the
willow-sasix alba-was boiled till it
formed a strong ooze. and the ooze thick
ened to mush with equal parts of corn
meal and pounded faxseed. Flaxseed
meal did not answer well; 1t had lost
most OF it's oil. These poultices We're
changed twice a day, and at each change
the sore was washed with the willow ooze
as hot as It could be borne. Within my
knowledge such treatment has cured turnid
and schirrous conditions that appeared al
it, Ill
Still, here. as elsewhere. allowance had TO
be made for pathological idiOSyncrasy Oc-
CaSionally there was a patient whose flesh
infiamed so under the first application the
pOultice could not be taken off too soon
THAT was apt to indicate a case for
either slippery elm alone or slippery elm
combined with fiaxseed. Slippery elm bark
In fine strings was macerated in cold water
for twelve hours. and the thick, clear rnu-
Cilage sCraped from 1t at the end of that
time and applied on a linen cloth. 1t was
sovereign for any sort of injury to the head
or eyes When faxseed came in they were
likewise stepped and mixed with a very liz
Tie very f1ne cornmeal. A fiaxseed poultice
pure and simple was made from poundaS
seed, cooked very quickly by sprinkIine in
boiling water Properly made. the result
was soft, leathery mush. infinitely sooth-
ing, ing ana healing: Something's the fiaxseed
poultice was coated lightly before applying
with unsalted lamb fat specially rendered
and kept for such uses
,.,I oung beets pounded to a poultice and
Iaia upon Jagged wounds as from rustv
nan or ragged splinter, were accounted q
sPecnc against lOckjaw. They We're also
inlshly good for fresh cuts and deep burns
DO were carrot pOultices, both raw and
cooked The raw were best for fresh cuts
ana acute Inflammation. For use on old
sores the carrots were boiled tender pound
81 .Hl anu aIplled very hot. After a day or two
the pou4tlces were left off, and the sore
heaIeu with scraped carrot ointment that
~, carrots scraped fine and mixed with
sweet cream. fresh butter and beeswax
tightly covered P0'o'
But the main reliance with big. angry
wounds or sores was the elder pouItfoa 80
the elder flower lotion WHY / do not
KNOW. but the elder-sambucus canadensts-
Is natures most potent antiseptic. In ad-
dltion, 1t heals. soothes and cleanses To
make the pouIticeS. white potatoes were
boiled soft, peeled and mashed then rnIxed
Whne not, with their own bulk of sifted
corn meal Next the mixture was stewed
slowly TO a thick mash in strong ooze
made by boiling elder bark, branches and
leaves, for half day. very little salt
was stirred through the mush Ii was
spread half an inch thick, and changed as
soon as II hardened the least bit At the
changing the sore surface was bathed plen-
tiruIiy with elder flower lotion This was
made by sleeping fresh elder flowers in rain
water lor SIX hours. then straining them
OUT and adding fresh flowers. After half
dozen patches Of bloom had been thus
infused the liquid was strained set over
nre. brought to boil. SKINNED, and, when
cooi mixed with one-fifth it's own bulk of
WhlsRy-barely enough indeed to keep IL
from souring. 1t was a fine complexion To-
tion: good to take off sunburn and prevent
ireckles, as well as to preserve the fine
texture OF the skin. No germ of any sort
could live under it. Betwixt the poiIItices
and the lotion 1t did not take long to bring
diseased tissues back to health.
Suspicious and willy conductor-'Do Won
mean to say that child Is not over fiye?"
He's just four
T fhonobt