Cough or Whooping Cough.—Take one ounce each colt foot, St. John’s wort, spikenard, elecampane root, and mullen leaves; let them boil half an hour slowly, then add half an ounce Indian physic, or American ipecacuanha, pulverized; stir often, and steep for four hours; then squeeze, strain, and add one pint of pure honey. Give as often as required, from a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful. It will loosen the phlegm and heal the lungs, is very sudorific, and good for all coughs or colds.
Injections.—Take weak thoroughwort tea, one pint milk, half pint molasses, and half a wine glass full oil—olive oil is generally used, but hen’s oil is equally as good; for a child, use less. This is excellent in fevers, inflammations, &c.
Asthma.—Ether, tincture of castor, and opium, equal parts; mix all together, and take a teaspoonful when the symptoms appear, as often as required.
Pleurisy.—Drink freely of wind root (otherwise called lung root or pleurisy root), and make a syrup of the following: take one ounce each wild cherry bark, white ash bark, poplar bark and red ozier bark, and half ounce each culver root, sassafras bark and mandrake root; put all in three quarts warm water, boil ten minutes, then steep three hours; strain, and bottle. Drink a wine glass full mornings, and half a teacupful at bed time.
Spitting Blood.—Take four ounces fresh comfrey root, the same quantity fresh burdock root, two ounces red willow bark, one ounce parsley, and two ounces yarrow tops; boil these ingredients in four quarts water and one quart new milk, to the consumption of three quarts; strain it, and take one gill of this decoction, well sweetened with loaf sugar, three times a day.
It is also beneficial in curing the fluor albus, or whites, in weakly females. The root of comfrey is good for all fluxes, and a bad smell in urine. Take four ounces comfrey, and one ounce tormentil root, boil them in two quarts and a half water, ten minutes; then strain, and add a gill of best brandy and half pound loaf sugar. A gill or a common teacup full may be taken by an adult, night and morning, or as often as necessary; a child may take a tablespoonful, as often as required.
Salt Rheum.—Take a large handful plain or white clover, red clover, and common plantain; put them in two quarts of urine and one quart of beef brine, for six hours—let them be only warm, not hot; then squeeze them well, strain and put up for use. Wash the parts affected night and day, with a clean linen rag; drink freely of fishes mouth, or what is called balmony, and take, twice a week, one teaspoonful of powdered mandrake root, at bed time.
Epileptic Fits, or Hysterical Affections.—Take ladies’ smock, dry the leaves, and keep them in a bottle; when wanted, take a teaspoonful of the leaves, and steep in a half teacup boiling water. Give, when required, as often as necessary.
After Pains in Child Birth.—To relieve them, take a tablespoonful of Epsom salts, and put it in half a pint hot water; take half of it, and in the course of two hours take the remainder, if the patient is very costive, if not, take less; then take a teaspoonful of devil’s bit (otherwise called blazing star root), in a little weak tanzy tea; if faint, put in it some gin or brandy. You can administer this dose every three hours, if required. It seldom fails of giving instant relief and is an excellent gargle for a sore mouth, sore throat, or scrofula.
Pregnant Ladies.—Take one quart of butternuts, when green and so soft that you can run a needle into them, one ounce ginger root, and three pints molasses; boil them at least half an hour, slowly. Take one three times a week, and drink frequently of slippery elm bark, steeped in water. If this is unpleasant, put in a few sumach berries, a little black birch bark, or a small quantity of tanzy, merely to give a flavor.