|
Page 68
PHYSICIANS
CHAPTER XVI
SOME YEARS ago a country newspaper had the following
item: "............ died without the assistance of a doctor, and the
matter should be looked into." Many pioneers died without the
"assistance" of a doctor.
The late Dr. J. P. Hoyt, who lived in Curwensville,
Pennsylvania, stated that his practice took him as far north as St.
Marys, now in Elk County. Of course his road was through the forests
and little more than a bridle path. One physician traveling through
this northern route came to the Bennetts Branch when it had a very
high flood. Fearing that his saddle bags, with his medicines and
what instruments he had, would become wet when he forded the stream,
he hung the saddle bags on the limb of a tree and went on to see his
patient. On his return the saddle bags had disappeared. A rather
prominent citizen had confiscated the outfit, but got a remorse of
conscience after consulting a Justice of the Peace, and learning
that he might get into prison for the theft, returned the saddle
bags.
Brady Township had no physician until 1846. Prior to
that time, and for many years after, each family had its own "materia
medica," and each garden had a corner for raising sage, thyme,
wormwood, tansy and other medicinal plants. Pennyroyal grew wild
along the roads and in the fence corners, and boneset was a wild
herb. Pipsisewa was gathered in the woods, and "blood root" was
likewise found in the forests.
When any member of the family became ill, the mother
did the doctoring. If it were a cold, they got pennyroyal tea or
sage. If they could not eat, they received either wormwood or
boneset tea. Hop tea, made from hops grown on hop vines raised on
the farm, was also a remedy. "Tansy bitters," made by soaking green
tansy leaves in whisky, was used in the spring for a tonic. In fact,
whisky was a common remedy and used quite generally.
Measles was considered a child's disease and was rather
looked upon as being a necessity, and no effort was made to
quarantine against them. The common remedy was a good dose of
whisky. If that did not "bring out" the measles, and the child
became very sick ,"sheep saffron tea" was given. Severe colds might
develop and the child would get croup. One of the remedies for this
was goose oil and urine, about equal parts. However, this was the
final remedy and was not adminstered until hope for the patient was
exhausted. Poultices were made from poke root, which was considered
quite a remedy. Frozen feet were treated by wrapping the feet with
sauer kraut on going to bed at night. Frozen feet was very prevalent
in the early days, and this remedy was quite effective.
|
