Part 37 (1/2)

Take an infusion of hardhack, strain, and add a table-spoonful of finely-pulverized charcoal to every three quarts of fluid.

_Another._

An infusion of witch hazel.

_Another._

Powdered bayberry bark, 1 table-spoonful.

Boiling water, 3 quarts.

When cool, it is fit for use.

_Use._--Astringent injections are used in all cases where it is desired to contract the living fibre, as in scouring, dysentery, scouring rot, diarrhoea, b.l.o.o.d.y flux, falling of the womb, fundament, &c.

_Nouris.h.i.+ng Clyster._

Nouris.h.i.+ng clysters are composed of thin gruel made from flour, &c.

_Injection for Worms._

Make an infusion of pomegranate, (rind of the fruit,) and inject every night for a few days. This will rid the animal of worms that infest the r.e.c.t.u.m; but if the animal is infested with the long, round worm, (_teres_,) then half a pint of the above infusion must be given for a few mornings, before feeding.

_Another for Worms._

Powdered lobelia, 1 ounce.

Wood ashes, a handful.

Boiling water, 3 quarts.

When cool, it is fit for use.

FOOTNOTES:

[24] Messrs. Parker & White, in Boston, have shown us an excellent machine used for the purpose of cutting cornstalks. Every farmer should have one in his possession.

[25] A large portion of the cayenne found in the stores is adulterated with logwood, and is positively injurious, as it would thus prove astringent.

[26] Their active properties may be extracted by infusion.

INFUSIONS.

These are made by steeping herbs, roots, and other medicinal substances in boiling water. No particular rules can be laid down as to the quant.i.ty of each article required: it will, however, serve as some sort of a guide, to inform the reader that we generally use from one to two ounces of the aromatic herbs and roots to every quart of fluid. A bitter infusion, such as wormwood or camomile, requires less of the herb. All kinds of infusions can be rendered palatable by the addition of a small quant.i.ty of honey or mola.s.ses. As a general rule, the human palate is a good criterion; for if an infusion be too strong or unpalatable for man, it is unfit for cattle or sheep. We do not depend so much on the strength of our agents: the great secret is to select the one best adapted to the case in view. If it be an agent that is capable of acting in concert with nature, then the weaker it is, the better. In short, nature requires but slight a.s.sistance under all ordinary circ.u.mstances, unless the animal is evidently suffering from debility; then our efforts must act in concert with the living powers. We must select the most nutritious food--that which can be easily converted into blood, bones, and muscles. If, on the other hand, we gave an abundance of provender, and it lacked the const.i.tuents necessary for the purposes in view, or was of such an indigestible nature that its nutritive properties could not be extracted by the gastric fluids, this would be just as bad as giving improper medicines, both in reference to its quant.i.ty and quality.

An infusion of either of the following articles is valuable in colic, both flatulent and spasmodic, in all cla.s.ses of animals: caraways, peppermint, spearmint, fennel-seed, angelica, bergamot, snakeroot, aniseed, ginseng, &c.

ANTISPASMODICS.