"Iodoform 1 teaspoonful.
Vaselin 1 ounce."
Before applying the above salve it is very necessary to cleanse the
affected parts with a solution made of one teaspoonful of salt to a pint
of water. If the iodoform is offensive to some people, you may use the
vaselin alone, although the iodoform is known to be one of the best
healing remedies that can be obtained.
2. Cuts, Turpentine Good in Small Quantities for.--"For cuts and any open
wound pour turpentine in and put a piece of absorbent cotton on and soak
well with the liniment, tie up, and leave it so until dry, then pour on
some more." Care should be taken in using turpentine, not to put too much
on the wound, as it may cause proud flesh in some people; a little of it
is very healing and effective.
3. Cuts, Tincture of Myrrh for Fresh.--"Use freely of the tincture of
myrrh by saturating a cloth and applying to the parts affected." This
tincture of myrrh may be purchased at, any drug store, and is a very
effectual remedy for fresh wounds of any description. It is slightly
contracting, and has great healing qualities.
MOTHERS' REMEDIES. 1. Bleeding, Unusual Way to Stop.--"If fresh, sprinkle
full of black pepper. It will not smart, and is soon healed. If not fresh,
clean with a weak solution saleratus and cover while wet with pepper. This
has been tried many times in our home and has never failed."
2. Bleeding, Cobwebs to Stop.--"Make a pad of cobwebs and apply to cut. I
have never found anything to equal this remedy." This simple remedy has
been known to save many lives, and can always be obtained. As most
housekeepers know; cobwebs are easily found in every home, and perhaps
after reading this remedy they will not seem such a pest as heretofore, if
we stop to think that at some future date our baby's life might be saved
by using them.
3. Bleeding, Powdered Alum and Hot Water Stops.--"A heaping teaspoonful of
powdered alum, placed in a teacup of water will stop the flow of blood in
ordinary wounds, where no large artery has been cut. This will be found
very beneficial for children, when their finger has been cut and bleeding
badly." Alum is something that should always be kept in the home, using it
in a case of emergency when there is no time to run to the drug store.
4. Bleeding, Salt and Flour Successful Remedy for.--"Equal parts of fine
salt and flour placed on cut. I have seen this tried and it proved
successful." The salt will stop the bleeding by its astringent action and
mixed with flour forms a coating over the cut.
5. Bleeding, Boracic Acid Excellent for.--"Bind up in boracic acid
powder." The boracic acid is very healing and a good antiseptic, which is
one of the important things to be attended to in a bad cut or wound.
[ACCIDENTS AND POISONS 395]
6.--Bleeding, Tobacco Will Stop.--"Bind in tobacco." Very few people know
that the nicotine in tobacco is very healing, and by applying it to a cut,
not only stops the flow of blood, but heals.
THINGS IN THE EAR; Buttons, Beads, etc.--The bent hairpin is good to use
for removing these objects, unless it is too far in. Sometimes the object
can be washed out with a stream of water. This will kill and destroy
insects. A small stream from a pitcher will do, if there is no fountain
syringe handy. Water should not be used for corn, peas or beans, for if
they are not removed the water will cause them to swell up and enlarge. A
competent person should then be called, but no injury will be done for a
few hours.
GAS from wells, cisterns, mines, illuminating gas and coal gas.
Treatment.--Fresh pure air. Open all windows in the house and remove
patient from a house filled with coal gas. Artificial respiration: Inject
salt enemas; teaspoonful of salt to one pint of warm water.
FITS. (Convulsions).--Loosen all clothing. Put something hard between the
teeth to keep the patient from biting his tongue. Allow plenty of sleep
afterward.
IN-GROWING TOE-NAILS. Causes.--Pressure from improperly fitting shoes, or
a wrong way of cutting the nails. The flesh along the nails becomes
inflamed. Toe-nails should be cut straight across, and not trimmed too
closely at the corners.
Treatment.--Wear broad-toed shoes with low heels. The high heels push the
toes against the shoe and besides are unhealthy and dangerous in walking.
Hot poultices will relieve the inflammation and pain. Soak the toe in hot
water and push the flesh back from the nail. Cotton under the edge and
corner of the nail helps to keep it away. Dust a boric acid powder, mixed
with an equal quantity of starch flour, on the parts. Mennen's borated
talcum powder is good.
MOTHER'S REMEDY. 1. In-growing Toe-Nail, Popular Remedy for.--"Shave a
little common laundry soap and mix with a little cream and pulverized
sugar, work to the consistency of salve and apply to the affected part
night and morning. It will take off the proud flesh in about ten days and
then heal. This is a good salve for bed-sores or cuts, that, have dirt in
them, and will also draw out a splinter. To prevent in-growing toe-nails,
scrape the center of the nail very thin and cut a V in the top. This will
allow the nail to bend and the corners will have a chance to grow up and
out. Avoid short shoes and stockings." Anyone suffering from this dreaded
thing will be willing to try anything that will give relief. The above
treatment is always at hand, and has been known to cure in severe cases.
[396 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]
FALLS.--If one has had a severe fall and is wholly or partially conscious,
move as little as possible, in case of broken bones. Remain in a
comfortable position until proper aid can be given. If unconscious
stimulation may be necessary.
FIRE in Clothing.--Keep quiet, and away from a draught. Wrap anything
handy around him and roll him. Leave only the head and face uncovered.
Keep mouth closed.
CHOKING. (Foreign bodies in the larynx).--Produce vomiting. Give an
emetic, warm water, melted lard, vaselin or one teaspoonful of mustard in
one-half glass of warm water and drink. Tickle the throat with your finger
or a feather. For a child, sometimes by taking hold of the feet with the
head down and give a few slight jerks frequently expels the foreign body.
Slap patient's back. The last resort is an operation,--tracheotomy.
MOTHERS' REMEDIES. 1. Choking, Fish Bone to Stop.--"A fish bone stuck in
the throat can often be dislodged by swallowing a raw egg or raw oyster."
2. Choking, Simple Remedy to Stop.--"Hold both hands high above the head.
If necessary tap gently between the shoulders."
3. Choking, Pennyroyal Tea and Lard Relieves.--"Pennyroyal tea and hog's
lard; drink hot." The pennyroyal may be purchased at any drug store for
ten cents. Make a tea of this, then add the hog's lard. As we all know,
that this will produce vomiting and relax the tissues so that any foreign
matter will come out.
4. Choking, Grease and Meat Common Remedy for.--"Warm lard, or any kind of
grease, and give the patient. Have seen it used with success." The warm
grease will usually cause vomiting, and in that way remove the foreign
matter.
In the Gullet.--An emetic is good to give if the body cannot be reached
with the hand. Doctors use forceps or another instrument called a probang.
Pennies will go down into the stomach and pass out through the bowels and
usually cause no trouble. Fish bones can generally be reached with the
finger or crochet hook. This is also good for foreign bodies in the nose,
such as beans.
THINGS IN THE NOSE. Corn, Peas, Beans, Buttons, etc.--Children frequently
get such things in their nose and also ears. They should be removed soon
and then there will be no harm done. They have been known to remain for
years, and they have been the cause of catarrh. A small curved hair-pin
makes a good instrument to use and is always handy. Also a crochet hook,
though not so good, for it will not bend as well as the hair-pin. The
mother should sit facing a window or open door. The child should be placed
on its back with its head resting between the mother's limbs and an
assistant holds the child's hands. Its legs will be hanging down. The
light now shines into the nostril and the bent hair-pin can be slipped
over the foreign body and easily hooked out. The head must be held quiet
by the mother. The mother can do this herself, with one hand holding the
head quiet and with the other can introduce the hair-pin and remove the
object. But the position of the child must be reversed with the head
between her knees and the light shining in the nose; or place the child on
a bench or cradle or buggy, head on a pillow, and to the light. Hold the
head and legs quiet; by kneeling by the child's side, you can easily see
the object and remove it. If they are too far back, they can be pushed
over into the throat, but parents should never attempt to remove an object
in the nose they cannot see. Sometimes causing sneezing with a feather or
pepper will expel the object.
[ACCIDENTS AND POISONS 397]
TREATMENT OF THE DROWNED, SUFFOCATED OR ELECTRICALLY SHOCKED. Accidents,
etc.--The one action of first importance in the treatment of the drowned,
the suffocated or the electrically shocked is to restore breathing. This
must be done by expelling from the lungs the poison or water which has
caused the trouble, and by establishing artificial respiration. Avoid
delay. One moment may lose or save a life.
Schaefer Method of Effecting Artificial Respiration In Case of
Drowning.--After an investigation and comparison of the different methods
of artificial respiration, Schaefer suggests one which is by far the
simplest and easiest and at the same time one of the most effective and
least injurious to the patient. In describing it he says: "It consists in
laying the subject in the prone posture, preferably on the ground, with a
thick folded garment underneath the chest and epigastrium, (region above
the stomach). The operator puts himself athwart or at the side of the
subject, facing his head (see plate) and places his hands on each side
over the lower part of the back (lowest ribs). He then slowly throws the
weight of his body forward to bear upon his own arms and this presses upon
the thorax of the subject and forces air out of the lungs. This being
effected, he gradually relaxes the pressure by bringing his own body up
again to a more erect position, but without moving his hands." These
movements should be repeated regularly at a rate of twelve to fifteen
times per minute, until normal respiration begins or until hope of its
restoration is abandoned. Some claim there is no hope of restoring
respiration after half an hour of artificial respiration. Others claim
there is a chance of saving the patient even then, and say that artificial
respiration should be kept up for two or three hours.
[398 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]
TO RESUSCITATE THE DROWNED.--First: Lose no time in recovering the body
from the water. Always try to restore life; for while ten minutes under
the water is usually the limit, still persons have been resuscitated after
being under water for thirty or forty minutes. Do not lose time by taking
the body to a place of shelter--operate immediately.
[Illustration: The Schaefer Position to be Adopted for Effecting
Artificial Respiration in Case of Drowning.]
[ACCIDENTS AND POISONS 399]
Second: Quickly lay the person prone, face downward with stomach resting
on a barrel or roll of clothing, so the head will be lower than rest of
the body and the water will run out from the throat and lungs. Wipe dry
mouth and nostrils. Wrap the corner of a handkerchief about the forefinger
and clear the mouth of all mucus and slimy substance back as far as the
top of the throat. Rip open the clothing on chest and back and keep the
face exposed to the air. Separate the jaws and keep them apart with a
cork, stone, or knot in a handkerchief.
Third: Remove the roll of clothing from underneath the stomach of the
patient. Kneel by the side of or across the patient. Place your hands over
the lowest ribs. Lean forward and put your weight straight over the lowest
ribs. Exert this pressure for three seconds. To count three seconds, say:
"One thousand and one, one thousand and two; one thousand and three,"
Fourth: Do not remove the hands from the ribs; but release the pressure
from the ribs for two seconds, by squatting backward. To count two
seconds, say: "One thousand and one, one thousand and two,"
Fifth: Again exert pressure straight over the lowest ribs for three
seconds. Alternate thus (three seconds pressure and two seconds release),
about twelve times a minute, until breathing is restored. This method of
resuscitation at once expels water and produces the identical results of
normal breathing.
Sixth: If another person is at hand to assist, let him do everything
possible to keep the body warm, by sheltering it from the wind, rubbing
hands and soles of feet, making hot applications. Warm the head nearly as
fast as the other parts of the body to avoid congestion. Camphor or
ammonia may be applied to nostrils to excite breathing.
Seventh: Do not give up too soon. Any time within two hours you may be on
the point of reviving the patient without there being any sign of it. Send
for a physician as soon as possible after the accident. Prevent friends
from crowding around the patient and excluding fresh air.
AFTER-TREATMENT.--After breathing is restored, remove the patient to a
warm bed where there is free circulation of fresh air. Administer in small
doses stimulants (hot coffee, ginger tea, hot sling) being careful not to
let the patient choke or strangle. There is danger that the patient may
suffer congestion of the lungs and have great difficulty in breathing.
When this occurs, a large mustard plaster should be placed over the lungs.
HOW TO KEEP FROM DROWNING.--To keep from drowning it is advisable, but not
necessary, to know how to swim. The human body in the water weighs little
more than a pound; so that one finger placed upon a piece of board, an oar
or a paddle, will easily keep the head above water, and the feet and the
other hand can be used to propel the body toward the shore. It is all
important for the person in the water to breathe and keep a cool head, and
the mouth closed.
[400 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]
HOW TO FIND DROWNED PERSONS.--Make a board raft, ten or twelve feet
square. Cut a round hole in the center, eight or ten inches in diameter.
Lie down on the raft with the face over the hole, covering the head with a
coat or shawl, to exclude the light. By this contrivance the rays of the
light are concentrated directly under the raft, and objects of any size
can be seen a considerable distance below the surface. Tow the raft over
the place where the drowned person is supposed to be. If the body has just
gone under and no raft can be provided at once, dive or drag the bottom
with line and hooks. The important object is to rescue the body at the
earliest possible moment. If the body is not rescued, it will rise to the
surface within a week or ten days.
Three hundred lives are lost in Michigan every year from drowning. If by
studying and learning how to carry out the directions in this article, you
can be a life saver at some critical moment, the few moments spent in
careful reading will be well repaid. Master the directions so that you
will be able to do everything possible in case of accident.
ELECTRIC SHOCK, ETC.--In suffocation by smoke or any poisonous gas, as
also by hanging if the neck is not broken, and in suspended breathing from
effects of chloroform, hydrate of chloral, or electric shock, remove all
obstructions to breathing, instantly loosen or cut apart all neck and
waist bands, taking special pains to keep the head very low, and placing
the body face downward, to prevent closure of the windpipe by the tongue
falling back. Then proceed to induce artificial respiration the same as in
drowning, described above.
BATHING IN SEWAGE POLLUTED WATERS IS DANGEROUS.--Cases have been reported
where typhoid fever has been contracted by bathing in streams below cities
and villages. Probably this occurred through accidentally or carelessly
taking the infected water into the mouth. No person should bathe in an
ordinary stream just below any city or village, or other source of sewage
or privy drainage, or in any harbor or lake near the entrance into it of a
sewer or the drainage of a privy.