Take of—Sulphate of Zinc, one scruple;
Simple Syrup, one drachm.
Distilled Water, seven drachms;
To make a Draught.
Smack his buttocks and his back, walk him, or lead him, or carry him about in the fresh air, shake him by the shoulders, pat his hair, tickle his nostrils, shout and holler in his ears, plunge him into a warm bath and then into a cold bath alternately. Well sponge his head and face with cold water, dash cold water on his head, face, and neck, and do not, on any account, until the effects of the opiate are gone off, allow him to go to sleep, if you do, he will never wake again! While doing all those things, of course, you ought to lose no time in sending for a medical man.
300. Have you any observation to make on parent's allowing the Deadly Nightshade (Atropa Belladonna) to grow in their gardens?
I wish to caution you not on any account to allow the Belladonna—the Deadly Nightshade—to grow in your garden. The whole plant—root, leaves, and berries—is poisonous and the berries, being attractive to the eye, are very alluring to children.
301. What is the treatment of poisoning by Belladonna?
Instantly send for a medical man, but, in the mean time, give an emetic-a mustard emetic—mix two teaspoonfuls of flour of mustard in half a tea-cupful of warm water, and force it down the child's throat then drench him with warm water, and tickle the upper part of his swallow either with a feather or with the finger, to make him sick as the grand remedy is an emetic to bring up the offending cause. If the emetic has not acted sufficiently, the medical man when he arrives may deem it necessary to use the stomach pump, but remember not a moment must be lost, for moments are precious in a case of belladonna poisoning, in giving a mustard emetic, and repeating it again and again until the enemy be dislodged. Dash cold water upon his head and face; the best way of doing which is by means of a large sponge, holding his head and his face over a wash-hand basin, half filled with cold water, and filling the sponge from the basin, and squeezing it over his head and face, allowing the water to continuously stream over them for an hour or two, or until the effects of the poison have passed away. This sponging of the head and face is very useful in poisoning by opium, as well as in poisoning by belladonna; indeed, the treatment of poisoning by the one is very similar to the treatment of poisoning by the other. I, therefore, for the further treatment of poisoning by belladonna, beg to refer you to a previous Conversation, on the treatment of poisoning by opium.
302. Should a child put either a pea or a bead, or any other foreign substance, up the nose, what ought to be done?
Do not attempt to extract it yourself, or you might push it further in, but send instantly for a surgeon, who will readily remove it, either with a pair of forceps, or by means of a bent probe, or with a director. If it be a pea, and it be allowed for any length of time to remain in, it will swell, and will thus become difficult to extract, and may produce great irritation and inflammation. A child ought not to be allowed to play with peas or with beads (unless the beads are on a string), as he is apt, for amusement, to push them up his nose.
303. If a child have put either a pea, a bean, a bead, a cherry-stone, or any other smooth substance, into his ear, what ought to be done to remove it?