Page:The White House Cook Book.djvu/561

 FOR THE SICK. 519

ACID DRINKS.

1. PEEL thirty large Malaga grapes, and pour half a pint of boil- ing water upon them ; cover them closely and let them steep until the water is. cold.

2. Pour half a pint of boiling water upon one tablespoonful of cur- rant jelly, and stir until the jelly is dissolved.

3. Cranberries and barberries may be used in the same waj r to make very refreshing acid drinks for persons recovering from fevers.

DRAUGHTS FOR THE FEET.

TAKE a large leaf from the horse-radish plant, and cut out the hard fibres that run through the leaf ; place it on a hot shovel for a moment to soften it, fold it, and fasten it closely in the hollow of the foot by a cloth bandage.

Burdock leaves, cabbage leaves, and mullein leaves, are used in the same manner, to alleviate pain and promote perspiration.

Garlics are also made for draughts by pounding them, placing them on a hot tin plate for a moment to sweat them, and binding them closely to the hollow of the foot by a cloth bandage.

Draughts of onions, for infants, are made by roasting onions in hot ashes, and, when they are quite soft, peeling off the outside, mashing them, and applying them on a cloth as usual.

POULTICES.

A Bread and Milk Poultice. 'Put a tablespoonful of the crumbs of stale bread into a gill of milk, and give the whole one boil up. Or, take stale bread crumbs, pour over them boiling water and boil till soft, stirring well ; take from the fire and gradually stir in a little glycerine or sweet oil, so as to render the poultice pliable when applied.

A Hop Poultice. Boil one handful of dried hops in half a pint of water, until the half pint is reduced to a gill, then stir into it enough Indian meal to thicken it.

A Mustard Poultice. Into one gill of boiling water stir one table- spoonful of Indian meal ; spread the paste thus made upon a cloth and spread over the paste one teaspoonful of mustard flour. If you wish a mild poultice, use a teaspoonful of mustard as it is prepared for the table, instead of the mustard flour,

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