Hogs bristles are 6[illegible] or 8[illegible] [illegible] at Bromingham. The Satchwell.
Note Basilicon is an exct. healing oyntmt. in any fleshy part 
of the body but it is dangerous applying it to or near a bone
because it will perish & destroy a bone. Dr Arden Elsmore.
Barrow grease adeps porcina
To scour Iron Rx the softest brick that is but ½ burnt dry it in an oven
or over the fire & upon a broad [stone] with a stone beat it to fine pouder
& rub yr. andirons etc. [illegible] dry (lor with oyl which is best) & they
will cook very bright if they stand near the fire & are kept dry. [illegible]
[bak?] of [illegible] There is more trouble than pleasure in it. Plus aloes quam
nollis habet juv. Calcanda somol via leti (or lesthi) hor. we must all tread the
path to our grave.
To make good ink mr gud. (it is not the best in for it will change yellowed)
Rx a gallon of rain watr 7 put into it [illegible] galls lbifs beaten small
[let] it stand near the fire or in the sun 8 or 10 days often stirring then 
[put] in allu & dyers indica each zfs green copperas & gum arabick 
[illegible] sonica bruised, a course sort of gum arabick which the shoe-makers use)
[illegible] lbi let it stand a week & it is fit for use. The said ingredients 
[reduc’d] to a less quantity. Rx rain water a pt galls zvi pr. 6 & allum?
[illegible] Note if you make ink of beer or ale & after some 
time is is grown thick & dry? it will not let down but
[illegible] it makes it flow readily & write fast E.A. Choose a kettle
[illegible] brass of a blue black color that has no solder’d place in it [illegible] looks like [illegible] or [illegible]
which you may discern on the inside or outside [illegible] pale [?inker] & [Bra???]
Dr Brooks in [Leaden] Hall street agt the East Indy House cures fits
[illegible] [finch]
These are good boyling herbs to eat viz. muckhill-spinnage (al.
wild spinnage) [illegible] thistle. mercury. garden-spinnage. red shanks.
hoptops. avens. carlock run young. parsly
The Haven of Health by Thomas Cogan chiefly made for the
comfort of students.
Mrs. Crick servt. to Mrs Bridges at Barton [illegible] in Northashire
makes a famous eye water that cures red rheumatic eyes Mrs Crick’s
mother keeps an alehouse at [Hoddingworth] in Leicr
Pills preserving health. p. 702 Salmons Dispensatory.
Mr. Wm Saunders at the Golden Ball in Newgate street (chymist)
London. Saunders’s art of physick & surgery pr. 48 is commended by Drs 


A settled or old cold or cough in a horse
Rx Heather fern (al fever fern) celandine, rosemary & sage each mi.
Boyl ‘em in a quart of ale till it comes to a pint then strain it & add
common treacle zii diapente zfs. Give it warm in a morning fasting
after he hath bin gallop’d till his hair turns, or after hunting.
Let him fast two hours or longer after it, once taking commonly 
cures, but if he is not perfectly cur’d repeat the dose 5 or 6 days 
after. Mr Stephen Alleyne steward to Mr Cook commonly gives his
hunting horse one dos. This was taught him by a tinker.
Ashby. (E)




1
Leg sore or swelled
Dr Cole of Bilsdon cured the Lady Halfords leg that was very much
swell’d (after several Drs & surgeons had try’d their skill in vain)
by putting on the leg a canvas stockin to be laced straight to the leg
to repell the humour & the same time that she laced it hard he order’d
her to take purge of syrup of buckthorn & jalop, to 
intermit some days & to repeat the hard lacing & purging till she
was perfectly well. The cause of this tumor he reckon’d the scurvy
A girl in Saxulby that was lame for 2 yrs or more so that she cou’d not
go but as she was carry’d & her legs began to wast was cured by 
bathing 4 or 5 times in ale wort as hot as she could endure it
Mary Austin of [Asserby] was lame of one leg for abt. 2 yrs so that her
thigh began to wast she found good by blistering pasters lay’d to
the pain’d hip for a little while; but they would not cure. Dr. G.
advis’d her to leave off malt drink & to drink the infusion of
buckbean & Roman wormwood in water & to take his pouder of
broom ashes etc. to thin her blood & to anount the pained place with
balsam of galbanu mixt with oyl of turpentine, this oyntmt increas’d 
her pain.
Sam Halford my servt. [illegible] the [illegible] going to turn a tree over
that lay on the ground with a bar of iron & T. L. Carpenter & A.S. with 
[illegible] one of their [levers] slipt [illegible] the tree as born up & the tree press’d
back on S.H.s bar which broke the great bone of his left leg a
little above his ancle the bystanders heard it crack like a stake 
if it had been a little higher it had been easier to set The bone
did not jut out of the skin but you might persive a white streak
go cross where the bone was parted His leg did not swell of
some hours after, he could stir his toes but could not stand
on that leg he was brought home in a chair. Jn Summerfield a
wheelwright & bone setter ([illegible] to learn his skill from 
the famous Mr Freeman having bones several times broken
& set by him) 4 hours after it was broken set it thus He cut
a piece of an old hat box made of past board (any past board or old
hat will do to splint it) into 4 splints abt 6 inches long & 
2 wide which after they were well beaten he mixt with as much
fine wheat flower till it was a little stiffer than batter then he took 


2
abt. a qr of a stick of nine penny flax ([Hards] would
not do) & lay it spred upon a warming pan of live coles
& poured the white of egg & wheat flower on’t to warm 
& stiffen a little this a bystander helt whilst the bone setter
felt with his finger & thumb on each side the broken place for 
a pretty while which touching pain’d S.H. then he lay’d one hand on 
his instep & another on his heel & pull’d the leg out that he might
place the bones right & opposite to each other then he lay’d one
hand to the bottom of his foot & thrust it upwards that the
bones might unites one man holding his leg up at the knee & 
another at the heel then he wrapt the flax & white of an egg & w.
flower quite round the broken place being about 9 inches broad
then he lay’d on the 4 splints of hot [illegible] at an equal distance
the broad splint being plac’d on the shin bone these splints
were bound abt with an old linnen cloth & that was bound on 
with 3 [fillets] sew’d together beginning at the middle of the
splints & binding upwards & back again a little below the
middle of the cloth it had most liberty downwards lastly the
fillet was sown in 3 or 4 places to prevent its slipping down 
then the same leg was lay’d on a pillow & bolster’d up with several
cloths to keep his leg steddy & a board was fixt with 2 
iron spikes at the end of the bed to the bed post against which 
he sat his foot having a woolen cloth between his foot & the
board. when the bones were thrust together S.H. cry’d out oh my 
poor leg, my poor leg, my poor leg! it pain’d him for 3 or 4 days
His leg swell’d up to his knee & it was anointed 2 or 3 times 
with oyl of roses which assuaged the swelling & gave it ease
after one week the pain was inconsiderable only he complain’d
of his back was tyred with lying. The not stirring the ldg out
of the place after it is set contributes very much to the well 
knitting of the bones, tho he was forc’d to use a urinal & bedpan
he seldom or never stir’d the leg out of its place all the time
It was very cold frosty weather the first week of his lameness which
kept his leg cool & mittigated the pain. The bone setter advis’d him
to eat bread & butter &milk & [frumenty] to keep his body cool
& open to avoid bread & cheese & all meat except veal or chicken


A fam’d elixir for the wind which repels it to admiration, whether
in the stomach or bowels all [illegible] or windy belches or hiccups
from indigestion etc. it removes upon the spot; & cures pains in 
the stomach, gripings in the guts, striches in the sides & the wind
colick to a miracle; being no pretended but real effectual medicine
fit for the yse of old & young. To be had only at Mr. Spoon’s
at the Golden Half Moon in Buckles street in Goodmans fields
near white chappel pr. at 6 [illegible] a bottle with directions. The post [illegible]
Octr 1705. Honorato fornello gent. no physician could hardly
be persuaded to publish his dissolution salt as being laborious
to be made It hath ben abt 9 months made publick. It is a remedy
for the stone & gravel which it totally roots out by dissolving [illegible]
in the kidnies & bladder & carries it away insensibly by urine invisible,
if made in a vial & suffer’d to settle being undeniable that
the stone is dissolv’d. He was cured by it himself, asl also divers [gents]
in London since next God’s blessing none shall have need to be cut 
for the stone whoever will prevent the setling of gravel take 
a dose in 8 or 14 days & continue so the body shall never smart 
for it. It keeps good many yrs you’ve larger [act] & directions with 
it being to be had of Mr Tho. Dowse Perfumer at the sign of 
the plough in Grace Church street London & no where else in all England
pr. 4s the half ounce which is 8 doses.
A pleasant powder for the heartburn being the most infallible [remedy]
for that distemper giving present ease in less than a minute pr. 1s a [illegible]
with directions. sold only by Mr [Best] at Will’s coffee house near the Royal
Exchange in [Cornhil]
Sister H. Ashby’s exct. powder for fits in children is of a [dove] colr
with a little cast of [illegible] it tasts [illegible] a little gritty The weight of the 3 doses 
is [17] gr. Directions for the taking it Rx this powder in 3 doses in some
black cherry water in a morning fasting. It is best to take it 3 mornings
before the full of the moon. Scrape single peony root green & put it
into the childs stockins to be worn till it is dry then remov it.
The anti-rheumatic tincture only prepared by George
Wilson, chymist, in well-yard, by St. Bartholomew’s hospital
in West Smithfield, London. It is put up in bottle, containing
above 2 ounces, at 2 [s] & 6 [s] the bottle. 15 s. the pint. 30 s the qt.



A short & infallible cure for the itch or any itching
humour or scorbutick breaking out whatsoever by a specifick
electuary, it cleanses & rectifies the blood & juices, accomplishes
a cure in 2 or 3 days without trouble or confinemt 
is sold only at Mrs Bradbury’s toy shot at the Golden
Ball in stocks market against the poultry at 3s a pot
with directions. This electuary is good for nothing. E.S. & Dr Brooks. [illegible] stones skin’d & dry’d in an over after
break & then pouder’d as much as will lie on a six pence in 
white wine, or ale, or beer are good for children passing a
[illegible] or ruptures, the stone, gravel or pain in the back caus’d by 
the stone, the kings evil [illegible] clark [gelder] cow pigs (al. horn flower all [illegible water
[water]) ½ a pint in a morning for 9 mornings together for a man or
woman beginning in May if it doth not purge take a larger 
dose It cured aunt Tr. Mayes maid of an ague [illegible] Jesuit’s pouder
would not [Richd] Ward of [illegible] by drinking it cured his sore leg of long standing It cures gout & rheumatism, pain in the stomach, consumption
Dr. Brooks says they that take it spring & fall need not any physitian.
Mrs Finch The dissolution salt of honorato fornello, gout,
[illegible] Gorman) which totally roots out the stone & gravel, by dissolving it
in the kidneys & bladder carrying it away insensibly by urine. It is
a chymical extraction. It is good to prevent the dropsie, scurvy, [stinking]
[illegible] remedy for women’s sickness It’s very friendly to nature
[illegible] the spirits It operates best in warm countries. who
ever takes it being much troubled, does well to purge in the spring & 
fall with [diata???] minsichti to clear the way The dose for a man is a
dram each second day or you may divide zfs into eight doses or you
may take as much as will like on a half-penny. The least quantity sold
½ an ounce which is 8 doses pr. 4 s & may be had of Mr Thomas
Dowse at the Sign of the Plow in Grace Church street, a perfumer
Volatile salt of tartar, he that knows the virtues & use of it is half
a Dr. It will dissolve bone, stone or iron or any thing Dr. Wm. Million of
[??ansty] 4 m. from Coventry in Warwickshire He inns at the White Horse in 
Hinkly every Monday is there by 12 o clock & on fairs earlyer He also
[shops] Coventry market every Friday.


3
After S.H had layen in bed a fortnight viz the 25th by virtue
of warm water his leg was unbound (if cream had been added
to the white of egg & flower it had been much easier to unbind
which a great many bonesetters use & some use only a white
salve or [corecloth] without w. of egg or w. flower) & a corecloth
made of oxycrociu, paracelsus & emp. [deminio] mit & spred thic
on allum’d leather abt 6 inches deep & so long as to encompass 
the leg in the broken pt. was lay’d on & 4 splints of past board
viz that case were serv’d on with a linnen cloth he did not stir out of his
chamber that day but only sat by the bedside or by the fire the next
day his leg swell’s up to his knee it was unbound still the swelling
continued at night it corecloth was taken quik away & old tallow was 
scrap’d from some candles 2 yrs old & melted in a ladle & pour’d 
upon cold water in a bason which was taken off as soon as it cover’d
the surface of the water & more pour’d on then the tallow was 
melted in the ladle & mixt with white lead scraped fine & spred
upon a linnen cloth & bound on the sore place with 4 splints & a 
cloth as afore & his foot was anointed & his knee where it was
swell’d this assuag’d the swelling in a nights time. Wm. Fletcher of [Sison]
had set an arm that was broken & apply’d [Bent’s] salve for a corecloth
which made the arm swell & rise into blisters which was cured with
tallow & white lead. Corecloths that agree with some flesh disagree with 
others, but the bonesetter pull’d off the tallow & white lead & apply’d 
his own corecloth of a dark colour which he said was very strengthening
& he order’d the knee [to] abt the ncle when they swell’d to be
anointd with cream & soot from the mouth of a coper this abated
the swelling for a little time but when he did not keep his
bed his knee swell’d & he was forc’d to lie in bed 2 or 3 days together
the corecloth & splints were kept on & it was a month before
he came below stairs then he went with 2 crutches abt 6 or 7
weeks after his leg was broken he took syrup of buckthorn
to purge him zi in a draught of cold ale 7 when he could go without
his crutches he oft complain’d of a pain his his heel
sp. of wine apply’d to a joynt that is raw causes lameness tho it strengthens
a joynt where the skin is whole Dr [illegible]



4
To knit & strengthen a crackt bone
Rx 2 pts salt & 1 pt butter & burn em i.e. boyl em together till
they cook black spred it on a cloth & bind it on the arm or leg etc.
as hot as you can endure it Dress it night & morning when it
begins to mend & grows strong once a day is enough This cured
Anne Farie’s arm when crackt & the [illegible] contracted she could stir her
arm & make may with it in a weeks time Anne Farie.
Anne Butterworth had a sore leg that look’d very red & full of blisters
Mrs Basset cured it with [illegible] made of ling dipt in basilicon & a green
oyntmt. (made of gill run by th ground & elder bark) mixt laying over
the pledgets emplastru dominio Mrs Basset.
Goody Simons had a sore leg that lookd red with a running sore it was 
caus’d by a bruise She bath’d it as hot as she could endure with new
milk which qualified it very much IT was draft with precipitate & basilicon
to cleanse it & anointed it with the green oyntmt in the former [illegible] & 
it was quickly well A.S. To scale & clean a bone foul’d by an
old sore infuse some camphir in spirit of wine & dab it on
the bone rot or it will [illegible] cold. Dr G. A.
A sore leg or any running sore old or new Rx [illegible] [nettles] [illegible]
em small & pound em with as much salt as [nettles] & lay em on a cloth
for 12 hours it will take out the venom then cross it with a plaster of
paracelsus till well It will cure it in a little time. It is an exct. thing
for any green wound or a wound made with rusty iron The soldiers take
it with with em in their nap sacks or [illegible] when they are to fight Francis [illegible]
It is good for any swelling [ibid] I know this nettle medicne try’d without any 
good success E.A. Elizth Halford & wife of Saml had a sore leg
caus’d by a bruise by falling up stairs the edge of a stair cut 
agt the skin of her leg abt 3 inches above her ancle Mrs.
Elizth Basset try’d with basilicon & gill-oyntmt. & empl. deminio
in vain to cure It had a running sore abt the breadth 
of a shilling on the ancle on the small of her leg It was very 
much swell’d & her thigh was swell’d she cur’d it thus in a fortnight
viz. she lay’d a garter abt 2 fingers broad encircling her
leg above the knee spread with emplast. deminio & another
garter below the knee spread with do as defensitives to prevent
the humers fro flowing down from her body she purg’d twice with
syrup of buckthorn zi for each dose intermitting 4 or 5 days. 


5
her leg was blister’d in several places & lookt very red
she spread a plaster on a linnen cloth of diaculum simplex (6 s
per roll) then she melted tallow or sheeps suet in a spoon & 
pour’d it hot into a porringer or pot of fair water (which takes
out the salt & makes it more cooling) then she drain’d away the
water & melted the tallow again in the spoon & pour’d it on the
diaculum plaster that was spread This she lay’d round her leg over 
the sore & diacumu the tallow on the sore with ling The tallow [supples] the diaculum they both together cool
refresh & strengthen the leg & take away the itching of the sore 
The leg was swaddled with a childs swaddle band or a roller from 
the ancle to the knee very straight in the day tie but a little
slack at night that she might sleep This prevented also the defluxion
of humers she walk’d very little in the day but sate still laying
the sore leg on a stool she draft it twice a day till it was almost
well. when it itches above the sore you may moisten the itching places
with a rag dipt in water in which yellow arsnic has been infus’d
You must boyl the water & pour it hot to the arsnick.
Goody Farie being 70 yrs old of [newtown] Linford had the jaundice
which was cured by taking a little [tot] twice a day of barbery bark boyl’d
in beer for 2 or 3 days but after [illegible] jaundice her legs swell’d so that she
was carry’d from bed & to bed she boyled red dock-roots in cream a qt.
of a pint to an [illegible] strain’d she anointed her legs morning & night for 7
or 14 days & they were quite well afterwards she took a purge viz. Dr
White’s water 2s. i.e. 2 spoonfuls in a morning & continued well. Good
Farie.
Janry 1724 Theopilus Halford E.A.’s servt had a callous
substance like a corn at the bottom of his foot under his little toe
this was cut till it bled & only a rag was apply’d he walked two
miles presently after; the next morn it was swell’d abt his toe
& very painful & in a few days time his pain shot up his leg & he
could not go on it. It was poultic’d a long while together & he seem’d
to be [illegible] if he walk’d on it the humer returned E.A. cut just thro this 
thick callous to make it bleed but it did but little good, when it was
heal’d with [Bonts] or Blackwell’s salve it would break out again. AT last
E.A. gave him 3 purges [illegible] made of crème of tartar zii & jalp zi in
fine pouder each purge pr 3 [illegible] in a little water gruel made over night he took it early 
in the morn kept his room with a fire Each purge gave him abt 6 stools
he intermitted sometimes 2 sometimes but 1 days between purge & 
purge they carry’d the humer off & his leg & foot was quickly well.


6
Leg sore & swell’d Jn [Kt] shepherd at [Blaby] had a leg swell’d &
so sore that he could scarce sleep a nights He thought it was a rheumatic
pain. he bathed it abt 6 times viz [illegible] morning with good [illegible] juice & it
was quite well. Jn Kt Jn smith of Blaby shoeing a horse was kick’d on
his knee by him. It caus’d a swelling & a lameness that he could scarce go
He bath’d it with [verjuice] 2 or 3 times it strenghtn’d his sinews & took away
the pain Jn Smith. Dip any sore as a sore leg etc. or wound in hot water & hold
it in the water a good while made as hot as you can abide it without scalding
(if you can’d do that conveniently then wash the sore or wound with a 
linnen rag dipt in hot water & bath it with it & [illegible] on the sore some time
then apply Robt Beby’s corecloth or salve made with white wine etc.
a London Surgeon says that holding a sore as a sore leg in hot water takes
out the venom or anguish or pain or festering or wrankling or venome & prepares
it for healing It is as good as a poultice & has less trouble & is sooner prepared
It will prevent many a leg from being cut off Cos. Richd Ashby.
In Halford shepherd at Little [illegible] abt 60 yrs old had a hard swelling like a hard
knob on the upper pt of the calf of his leg which pained him very much 
especially when he walked It was thus cured by E.A. & this [illegible] dissolved in 
a little time A corecloth was apply’d anointed over with oil olive in 10 [percent] nutmegs
to a salve then add this things added to Dr Allins corecloth by E.A. in his sixth
book p. 222 Susan Halford his wife abt this same age had a humour fell into
one of her legs which swell’d her leg very much which was thus cured by [Mrs Major] in a little
time it was anointed with [goosegrease] agt the fire & a cabbage loaf was laid over it 
& the humer was disposed & this swelling went away in 2 or 3 times dressing it once a day.
[Smallage] boiled in water & a linnen cloth dipt in it & apply’d several times to 
Jn [Laughton’s] wife’s leg that was swelled with wild fire cured it. Goody Laughton


7
Gravel or sharpness of urine
Turkey egg shells in powder eaten with sugar at any time.
Ex from 5 to 12 drops of oyl of turpentine drops upon a little
white sugar in a spoon Br G.A. If you take abt 12 drops it will give
you a stool or two loosening things are good & astringent are bad for
this distemper. It rages most in hot weather. I prefer this before any 
thing I’ve yet try’d E.A. spirit or oyl of turpentine is a powerful 
diuretick & stone breaker; it opens all obstructions of the loins & passages
of the seed & takes away pain & soreness processing of cold. It 
dissolves all gums better than sp. of wine. Salmon’s Disp.
Stone
Rx from 15 to 30 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught
of white wine. If you are in great pain take 30 drops In 
[Rostale] of [Ledgers] Ashby formerly servt. go Jacob Hall. This
gave Mr Ashby ease in a fit. Another Rx [sallet] oyl & juice
of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls in a spoonfull or a quarter of a pint of
white wine [combin’d] with sugar to make it palatable mix em & drink em when you feel pain. This
forced a stone resembling a little date stone, from Cos. Geo.
Wright it is much commended by St. Nathan Wright. It is
very forcing & dangerous where there is a very great stone 
yet can’t pass. Drink a pint or 2 of small ale abt an hour after it with w. wine. ST. N. Wright. I observed Febr. 1705 yet upon
drinking small ale in which dockroots & gill were boyl’d 
which made this ale very thick & muddy tho it purged me
2 or 3 times a day I was violently troubled with gravel 
& avoided a great quantity with pain several days till I 
left of drinking it tho I took oyl of turpentine & sp.
nitri dulcis famous diureticks to give me ease. from 
whence I concluded the thick liquors especially malt 
drinks abounding with a sediment generate grave & 
the stone & the clear & temperate cooling drinks are
healthful for those that have those distempers E.A.
For the colick & stone Rx nutmegs zfs liquorish pouder zi loaf
sugar lbfs pulverize & make em into pills with venice turpeneine zi Rx
three at a time 3 mornings together before the change of the moon
Roll the pills in liquorish pouder before you take them. Steep penyroyal
overnight in abt half a pint of water so that the water may cover it & strain 



8
it in the morning & toast a piece of brown bread to warm the
water & drink a draught after the pills. This freed Mr Jn Frank
Parson of Queniborough of the stone & colick ever since he took them.
Mr. Rd Pick Eating bread & butter once or twice a day freed E.A. from 
gravel Apr. 706 the weather being very hot, & avoiding cheese which make
the belly costive & at dinner or supper once a day eating victuals with
verjuice or for want there of vinegar. E.A. Another for gravel Rx some
new butter-milk boyl it & make a posset with small beer sweeten it with
hony & drink it & swallow alive abt 10 or 20 millipedes (the round ones
are best) after it you may eat a little fresh bread & butter before you 
drink yr buttermilk posset. Mow any thing with a scythe or exercise with 
a scythe as if you mow’d something, till you sweat. It will make you 
straddle that the gravel may the easier descend from the kidnies into the
bladder This gave E.A. ease may 706 For the stone & gravel Rx 20 or
30 or Dr Stringers drops in a glass of ale warm’d at any time you may 
buy em of Loughborough of Stringer the hatter his father pr. 2 s 6 s per
bottle Mr Cowper the bone setter of Leicr commands them to [exceed] most
other medicines but E.A. cou’d find but little benefit by them. E.A. Or
boyl new whey 3 pints take of the scum let it stand from the fire till a
scum arises again which take off & strain it thro a hair sieve from the sediment
at the bottom & wash the pan & put in the clarify’d whey to which
add agrimony, sage, dandelion, fumitory each mi boyl it till one pint
is wasted drink it in the morning fasting cold & exercise after it. you 
may prepare it overnight & take the quantity of a horse [bean] of turpentine
mixt with liquorish poudr & sugar. This is cooling & opening & carry’d
a good deal of gravel from E.A. June 706. For the stone Rx cassia
now drawn, anniseed [illegible] with oyl of sweet almonds mixt with gr. vi
of salt of tartar vitriolate make a bolus 
Gravel & stone Rx scio turpentine zi [illegible] 681 salm. dispens. for the pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible]
make them up into pills & take five of the pills every night for
a month together. Rx a large onion slice it & put it into a quarter
of a pint of ale. Let it infuse all night in the ale. In the
morning put a quarter of a pint of white wine to it. Rx it
fasting every morning for a month together at the same time
you take the pills at night. This cured a gentlewoman of
the gravel that so afflicted her that she could not go upright making
her void 2 quarts of gravel. Mrs. Basset. Scio turpentine 
is very dry & stiff you may put it into a bladder cut to hold it [illegible]
pocket will warm it & make it pliable to yr fingers moisten’d in
water to prevent it sticking & roll each pill in crabs eyes & make
em up just as you take them. I tis good to ride or walk or mow or 


9
to use some exercise after them. E.A. Another I eating
bread of [masline] ground on the grey stones in June 1707 was much afflicted with
gravel of which I thus cured myself I eat white bread or bread made 
of masline ground on the black stones which is free from grit. I eat
oat meal pudding wihtout butter left off drinking malt drink wine
& cyder & drank only scum’d milk & soft water boyl’d together
with a piece of household bread & rode a horse back once a day & 
I was quickly freed from the gravel. E.A. For the stone & gravel
Mrs P. Rx a thunderbolt (6 or 7 or more) Let it be burnt in
an oven 7 days with only one gorss faggot a day i.e. you must every 
day burn 1 gorss [kid] & let it lie all the time in the embers then 
beat it to a fine pouder & sift it fine. Give the value of two
case knives points full att a time in a glass of warm ale. Let the
patient drink a pint well warm’d after it (Beer & ale or
very small ale is best E.A.) 31 days cure any. Some are cured in
five days. you must take it every day This Mrs P. says is a certain
cure & that it will dissolve the stone but I have not try’d it
I look upon it as [ban??] She gave me [illegible] paper of pulvis [????ticus]
for the same distempers (E.A.) Mrs. P. for the stone cholic
& wind cholic Mrs Anne Windser midwife. Rx balm of gillead [illegible] zi venice
turpentine pr zifs a ½ pennyworth stone call’d [illegible] [illegible] of the vale (a
shining stone) in pouder pr. 1 s 1 pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible] hon or turky
egg shels do (dry yr eggshels aft the fire or in an oven & beat
em to pouder) Crowstone burnt in the fire till it is red hot
& then beaten to pouder Of all the pouders take equal pts If any
of the corwstone is yellow or ill colour’d scrape it off. Sometimes
there will be like glass in the middle of it do not beat that. mix
all those well together & with pouder of liquorish make it up into
six score pills abt the bigness of a little pea’s Rx 5 in the morning & 
5 abt it in the afternoon for abt a week of a fortnight together
at first taking, afterwards only for a day or two drinking
water warm’d with a brown bread toast rub’d with nutmeg drinking
plentifully a belly full. This brought from Mrs. Windser 60 stones
in a little time some as big as small peas or vetches some as little
as pinheads 12 stones in a day would often come away. She found
so much health by drinking water that she continued drinking it for 11
yrs & for ought I know as long as she liv’d. She sometimes drank wine
& wine & water where she had it gratis but she avoided all malt drink Mrs
Windser.


10
The German spaw water drunk abut ½ a pint or a pint once 
a day will commonly ease the cholic It will also cure the
scurvy & sweeten the blood if drunk for a long time ibid.
The [L?] keeper Wright that had been much afflicted with the stone found
most benefit by this medicine drink every morning some sage tea
(i.e. sage infus’d in hot water) mixt with milk & sweeten’d with hony.
For the cholic wear a forefoot of a hare in your pocket many [illegible]
For the wind in the stomach or cholic in man or beast.
Rx one of turpentine (that which is new & clear is best) 5 drops in a
glass of ale the next morning Rx [illegible] drops always an odd drop till you 
come to 17 you may take it at any time. walk or ride after it, it
purges by urine you may give a horse or cow a spoonful in ale 
Thos. Warner a farrier of Norborow. A man that is us’d to tobacco may 
smoke a pipe after it ibid For the stone & gravel eat some 
curds made of whey for a great many mornings in the summer
moisten’d with a little milk they are cooling & opening & drink a
draught of whey once or twice a day using exercise as riding
after it and avoiding wine & malt drink except a draught or 2 
of table beer at meals This freed me from gravel July 1708
To cause gravel to come away & to help the stone stamp radishes
fresh gather’d strain them into white wine & burnt or dry’d turpentine
pouder’d drink it 3 or 4 nights together Mrs M. Another Rx green parsly
mii beat it in a mortar & squeeze out the juice which sweeten with 
loaf sugar & Rx 2 spoonful at night & 2 at morning till you find eas
M.B. for the stone or gravel or stoppage of urine Rx an ordinary
wine glass full of white wine with as much common gunpouder [illegible] as
will lie on a shilling when you are pained or night & morning till you’ve
ease [illegible] the mountebank & [illegible] farmer the linnen [??nter] another
Rx the stones of a horse (when you geld him) the older the better cut off the
outward skin then slitt em in two & lay em on a clean tyle in an oven 
there let em stand till cold then beat em to pouder & take as much as
will lie on 2 shillings in a draught of beer in a morning fasting
for 3 mornings successively walking riding or using some exercise 
after it It is also good for any pain or strain in the back. Ambrose
the Gelder oyl of Benjamin is a powerful diuretick & specifick agt
the stone & gravel p. 300 Quincy’s Dispensatory.


11
For the stone or gravel.
Rx white wine posset drink pretty clear a pt. or 2 boyl in 
it bay berries bruis’d zi camomile flowers mi then sweeten
it with syrup of marshmallows strain it & dry saffron [illegible]
before the fire & crumble it in & drink a good draught
at a time. it never fails of giving ease & commonly fetches
away gravel or a stone. Mrs Finche’s mother finds grate benefit
by this Mrs Finch. Another Rx oyl of amber six penny
worth divide it into 2 pts. take one pt in new milk a qr.
of a pint, if these do not give ease take six penny worth
more. Henry Watkinson cow [leech] for a pain in his bladder
or gravel or stone Boyl agrimony mi in white wine a
pint with a (midling) onion drink 2 or 3 spoonfuls in a morning
fasting. or Rx the juice of burdock leaves in a spoonful in hony
ziiii Rx 2 or 3 knife points any time of the day when the
stomach is empty when you can’t get the juice dry & pound
the seeds of burdock zfs in virgin hony ziiii. Rx the quantity of
a walnut or dry the roots to pouder by grating or pounding
sift it Rx zi in hony ziiii the quantity of a walnut, take
it till you find ease This cures Stephen Hunt for ½ yr L. Hunt
another Rx venice turpentine make it into pills with liquorish pouder
take 4 pills as big a pea in a morning fasting & fast 3 or 4 hours after
it & take 4 more after the 1st sleep in the night It cures stone
& gravel They will keep a yr or longer good. Hop drink is a great enemy
to the stone & gravel. Ben Alsop of Huncot cures himself thus
& hop drink does not hurt him tho he drinks much of it Ben. Alsop.
for gravel & stone Rx white wine a glass, sp. of
turpentine 20 drops for a man, syrup of marsh-mallows zfs
take it morning & bedtime Mrs Basset another Rx mild ale
& stout (i.e. strong march beer or strong old ale) spring water
running towards the sun-rise Deep well water i.e. hard water
rain water each a pint half a lemmon & half a sevile orange


12
Squeez’d into it bottle it up (without any boyling) & drink
half a pint morning & night or when the fit or pain comes
sweeten’d to the palate with brown sugar This cured [Arslin] a 
flower man’s son of Leicr a pretty great boy who had not made
water of a week once taking it in 3 hours brought a 3 corner’d
stone & a smooth one & he made water the best pt of an hour
after em & was at ease a second drinking brought away abt a
thimble full of gravel. He was advis’d to drink it spring & fall
afterwards during his life Stephen Hunt & Wm March the boyd
uncle. Another Rx [??asper] (an herb) root & branch a peck 
wash it clean & chop it as small as you can strain thro a linnen
cloth & bottle it up & stop it close fro the air It will keep one 
yr If you use it presently i.e. as soon as it is fit for use
you must let it stand to settle 12 hours till it is clear. Rx
2 spoonfulls night & morning 2 in a glass of white wine
or for want there of strong ale till you find ease & make
urine clear from gravel Richard Wood Gardiner of [nun eaton]
in Warwickshire. It has freed several persons fro the pain of 
stone & gravel all their lives. Salmon commands balsam of lead R. W. with aniseeds to expel the stone & takes
away pain in [illegible].
Another a large dose of the decoction of [speedevel] (an herb) taken for some
time expell’d a stone fro the kidney of a woman that had been tormented with it
for 15 or 16 yrs vid. Salmons family dictionary.
Another for sharpness of urine, gravel & stone Rx common
mallows roots miii wash’d clean parsly seeds zi bruis’d boyl
em in a gallon of spring water till ¼ is wasted then mix it
with new milk & drink ½ a pint or more at a time as you’ve
occasion for the constant drink till well This taken once freed
for 35 yrs & perhaps all his life after James Leppington horse
rider for the gravel Rx melilot flowers & winter cherries each 
mi boyl em in a qt. of clear beer or white wine not a long
while. Give it at 4 times in the morning fasting. Stephn Hunt &
a traveller sit upon a stool or board seldom or never upon a soft seat.
It puts the blood in the buttocks into a new fermt. ibid. another aqua
comminuens calcula Horsby’s salmon disp. commends highly p. 455
Wind in the kidneys or heat of urine making but little water at a time & that with 
pain the belly being swell’d Rx the seeds of cummin, anise, caraways & [illegible] sach
zi juniper berries zifs gingr zfs make all into fine pouder & with syr. of anniseeds q.s.
morning noon & night this cured Stephen Hunt, Tho. [Farren]. 


13
The colick or gravel Rx senna ziiii guaiacu, roots
of elecampane dry’d, the seeds of annise, caraways, coriander
prepared & liqourish each zii raisins ston’d lbfs. Black
pepper tyme ginger grossly bruised each zii steep em all cold
in 3 qt of aqua vitae for 4 days strain it & when setled bottle
it up for use. The dose is fr 2 to 4 spoonful in the morning
fasting according to the strength & age of the patient It is the
best Rx yet known says Dr Thos. Russel. The stone & gravel
boyl oat meal in water 1st like water gruel then add some ale so that it may 
be 1 pt. ale & 2 pts gruel let it boyl again a little time then sweeten
it with sugar add a little butter drink plentifully another roasted
or boyl’d apples with water & sugar or apples & milk with 
sugar to the palate. Another veal broth made with veal & bacon
boyl’d a good while & let it be strong of the veal as head & 
neck. Drink plentifully This is exct. to drink after physick has
done working. EA. another drink cyder with abt 20 or 30 drops
of oyl of turpentine for want of cyder use w. wine or ale
& beer the 2 last are the worst for scarce any thing in some
people breeds the gravel more than malt drink perhaps the
hops may be one occasion of it. another drink plentifully 
of whey or posset drink riding or walking after it to prevent 
its chilling the stomach. another make tea with sage adding
abt ½ a lemmon peel & [meat] sweeten it with sugar This will
open the body & is an exct preparative taken the night
before physick E.A. another drink a moderate draught of
new milk whey or for want thereof milk & water warm’d or camomile
or sage boyl’d or infus’d in water & after any of em a
draught of beer or ale to prevent em chilling the stomach & use 
exercise as riding, walking erc. E.A. for the stone & gravel SR
Nathan Wright. Rx sallet oyl & juice of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls
or the juice of one lemmon (eat the meat with sugar) w. wine
4 or 5 spoonfuls sugar 1 spoonful or as much as will make it
palatable Take this never but when you are sensible of a fit approaching
or in affect or when you feel pain of gravel for want
of white wine you may use cyder drink ½ a pint of w. wine & 
½ a pint of water or a pint of small ale to wash the loins a little
after you’ve taken the oyl & lemmon & he always finds benefit by 



14
by this but the most by Mrs LIvesy’s colic drink that never
fails giving ease. This was taught him by a Dutch Dr for the stone
gravel, gripes, colic & a cold. Rx Parsly roots sliced mi stonecrop I sal 
prunella zfs boyl em in a pint of new milk Drink it in a morning
warm. It is a dose for 2 mornings. It often provokes a stool or
2. It brought a great quantity of gravel from Stephen Hunt.
Another Rx rosin of turpentine i.e. boyl horse turpentine lbi by itself
in a pot that will endure the fire (you must get a Dutch pot fro London or
Northampton etc.) the older it is the better & will require less boyling you
boyle it a great while then pour it gently into a [panchion] of cold water
laying aside the hat, wig, & neckcloth lest it flys into the face when it
is cold you must try if it will break like rosin or glass then it is rightly 
made, but if it will not break so you must boyle it again & again till it
will break then boyl some butter that is abt 1 or 2 days old is best because
sweetest in an iron ladle or pan or frying pan till it is black which is call’d
burnt butter & put some of the rosin or turp. to the burnt butter viz as
then take as much as will make 15 pills with loaf sugar in pouder take at
one dose any time, then Rx white wine 2 or 3 ounces or spoonfuls in a
glass & light a pipe of tobacco & wrap a doubled paper round the [bole]
& blow the smoke into the white wine till there will appear an oyl upon
it Drink it immediately after it This dose or this dose repeated will
bring stones & gravel from you in great quantity Dr. Richd Pool mountebank 
of Northampton. Another gather abt the beginning of May
sassifras root when it is in flower which is white & like a boll, the roots thse which
are of a brown colour are best but those roots which are white
are good you may pull or dig em pu, there are 3 or 4 clusters
or more abt the root scarce ½ so big as a small cherry stone dry
Rx a scruple of the pouder in a little galss of white wine smoked
with tobacco. ibid. for the colic. Rx marsh or common mallow roots
wash’d & slided mi boyle em in water a pint ½ till ½ is wasted then
put in a qr. of a pint of w. wine; when it is strained sweeten it & drink
it hot. Mrs Caulson of Leicr Pills for the stone or gravel. Rx cyprus
turpentine ziy wash it well in water rhubarb & aloes each [illegible] in pouder zi mix
& work em well together make em into pills [with] liquorish pouder Take 1 or 2 
at night going to bed & 2 or 3 in the morning. They are a good purge & good
for a pain in the back or loyns or any where also or for a pain at the
stomach. you may take em 2 or 3 days & omit one or 2 according as they
work ibid. A gentle purge for gravel Rx damask roses or for want of
them pale roses the leaves of six roses they will keep dry all winter
Infuse em in a qt of whey 3 or 4 times Drink it in 3 or 4 hours It cools &
brings away gravel & makes a man healthful Dr P. drinks it for a months in [illegible] [illegible]


15
Gripes
Drink a glassfull of cold water made very salt with common 
[salt] salt after it take warm water as much as will vomit you. This cured Grace Hollins, sister S.A.’s maid.
Another drink milk sweeten’d with hony hot ibid.
Another drink
single or double
anniseed water very
hot burnt with sugar.
King James [1st] straggling from hunting to his next ale house complained
to the old woman that kept the house (but knew him not) that
he was troubled with the gripes. She advised him to swallow a leaden 
bullet which he did & was presently cured. old Wm [Shaw] of Asserby.
another drink a draught of cold water made milk white with fine
wheat flower. This cured 2 or 3 of the colic it is good also for fits
of the mother.
In the gripes or colic avoid vomiting or take not above one vomit
to clear the stomach for if you vomit often yr stomach will be 
enclin’d to cast up every think it receives & call back the poysonous
tincture that causes the gripes from the bowels to the stomach & the stomach being
made naked & empty’d fills again with new wind Mr. Colemore
of Warwick being advis’d by 2 drs to vomit when he had the
colic said he would 1st consult his own wife that was much afflicted
with it & she dissuaded him from vomiting & he was quickly
well. E. A. being grip’d abt Mich 715 was cured by eating plenty of
salt with roast mutton & some large hazelnuts kernels after it [illegible] [illegible]
stone colic or gripes (almonds may do as [illegible]
Rx Parsly roots, fennel roots scrape em, camomile leaves
& scotch fir boyle em in white wine or mild ale, never drink
stale drink. Jn Rastall of Ledgers Ashby. For the gripes eat
[rue] with bread & butter or swallow a bullet with some goose
shot & drink some brandy after them & stand on yr head. ibid.
Gripes. August the 18th 1705 upon drinking coleorton waters that come
from an iron mineral (they will not bear sope) they filled me full
of wind insomuch that in abt a weeks time I was violently grip’d
I vomited with warm water & clear’d my stomach that was full of
flegm but still my gripes continued the next day & vomited with posset
drink but still the more I vomited the more I was inclin’d to vomit 
I took milk & hony & it rather increas’d my pains & rue alone did
me little or no good, at last I lessen’d my gripes & cured them by 
boyling parsly, rue, sage, mint, fennel & common mallows in all a
good handfull in 3 pints of water to a quart but as soon as the
water hath [illegible] a tincture of the herbs take out 5 or 6 spoonfuls 
& when they are cold mix as much oatmeal with them as will thicken 



16
the quart of water the herbs being taken out then boyl it to water
gruel drink this warm morning noon & night for yr constant
drink till you are well avoiding malt drinks, wine cyder brandys
& milk & milk meats & raw fruits Eating rue & bread butter in a morning & onions
& water with a little salt for sauce to yr meat. Rx venice treacle
a knife’s pointful at night going to be wearing a flannel wastcoat
at night & a breast-piece by day to keep you warm during yr illness
upon eating raw fruit & drinking stale ale my gripes return’d in a 
very short time & then they were so violent that whatever I eat or drank
this it was but water gruel & belch’d & vomited it up & I never was 
at eas but just after vomiting. vomits would do me no good. I was
full of wind as ever I could hold which cast up every thing that came into
my stomach. I took 7 spoonfuls of rhubarb, gentian anniseed water
infus’d together & a clyster abt 3 o clock in the afternoon. The purge
& the clyster wrought not above 3 or 4 little stooles & could not eas
me of the wind. mountaine-sage boyled in ale or beer cures Mrs Holbech
of the wind colick but it did me no kindness. It grows upon rocks & 
hills in the forest of Leicester & on Croft Hill in Leicr shire. I could 
sleep at any time but when my gripes pained me much. Note If you 
take a purge you must make it stronger than what is fit for you to take
at another time or it will not work when you are grip’d & vomits are
of little use to one that is grip’d. I prefer clysters before purges & vomits 
for they cured me Aug. 25th 1705 Mr. Tho. Franks the minister of [Luenniborough]
cures himself of his wind, fits of the stone, colick & gripes by 
this following clyster once twice or thrice administered at the 1st approach
of the pain in his bowels striving all he can to keep it from ascending
from his bowels to his stomach Rx camomile, mallows, (al. mauls) sach
mi shred or cut small anniseeds bruised a half pennyworth, boyl em in almost a
pint of posset drink strain it & put to it two spoonfull of sallet oyl & 
another till he removes the wind. These he prefers before the celebrated
medicines of any Dr he has heard of. The latter end of Septr 1705 
after many returns of the colic & gripes I conquer’d em thus I
took the decoction following with steel pills by Dr Cole’s prescription
Rx the best bright thick cortex grossly beaten zfs pr 9 s Infuse it gently 
in water a large quart boyl’d & pour’d upon it near the fire 24 hours
then strain it out add to a quart of the infusion gentian zi virgin snake
zii pr 2 s white hore-hound & buckbean each zfs coriander or caraway-seeds
zfs infuse ‘em gently near the fire for ½ an hour then strain of [such]
takes a quarter of a pint with 20 drops of tincture of steel dropt into 


17
it This decoction & tincture you must take in the morning fasting
after you’ve taken 5 of the following steel pills & at 1st
for abt a month you must also take the pills & decoction at
4 o clock in the afternoon. To make steel pills Rx steel prepared
with tarter zfs pr 3 s that which is green is best, make it into a mass with
extract of gentian pr. 6 s & gum tragicanth. pr. 1 s each zii dissolve the gum
in one spoonful of water all night make it into a mass & weigh
out one scruple for a dose or 5 little pills to be taken morning & 
evening. Steel is a mighty sweetner & strengthener of the blood it
changes the excremt black. Steel-pills & steel tincture must be taken
together or they will do no good. Rx the steel pills for a month or
6 weeks when you are ill Wm Well Rx em once a gr. for a month but use
em not too often because steel then lose its virtue. use a gentle
purge (viz sal mirabile glauberi zi pr. 6 s dissolved in water over night & 
drank in whey or posset drink or pillula cochiae majoris zi made
into 8 pills pr. 5 s Rx 3 over night & 5 in the morning following.
Rx Bitters often to settle & strengthen the stomach & to destroy the
superfluity of the acids in the stomach. avoid all things that are windy
& griping as milk, apples, wheat, things sweet, salt & sour & whey tho sometimes it doth good as diuretick
Eat things of an easy digestion. meat with gravy to raise the spirits
for dinner or cows or calf’s feet boyl’d. Let yr breakfasts & suppers 
be broth or water gruel or french barly broth. Dr Coles. I
believe these steel pills & decoction did me a great deal of good in
the colic but they would not perfect the cure. I found the most
good by sallet oyl without mixing any thing with it drinking a pint
or more to make the bowels slippery & to carry off the corroding humours
there Rx sal mirabile glauberi zi & repeat yr sallet oyl & 
continue yr gentle purges till you’ve master’d the [illegible] humours when
you are quite well you may eat a great many ripe mellow apples or
live a week upon apple pie They are laxative & will cool & make a 
great alteration in your body but you must use much exercise by
walking or turning a malt-mill or they will chill the stomach. They will
make you belch at first but it will wear off. E.A. Rx the quantity of 
a hazelnut of Markhams balls (such as you give horses made with sallet
oyl) when you are grip’d or for 2 or 3 mornings after you are grip’d
or have the colic. This did me good E.A. Parson Burneby was afflicted with
the colic & vomiting & having try’d Drs in vain was cured by smoking tobacco
very much.


18
For the colic or gripes. Rx hiera piera zi cochinile zfs beaten
put em into a quart of white aniseed water let it stand by the 
fire 24 hours, shake it sometimes. Dose for a man 6 spoonfuls
approved by Mr Robt. Onsby & Cos. Ezekiel Wrighte. If that does doth
not give ease in abt a hours time Rx 1 or 2 spoonfuls more. 6
spoonfuls taken after a qter of a pint of sallet oyl will purge &
carry off the cause of the gripes. E.A. Another Rx Treacle water & 
penny royal water each a quarter of a pint Drink abt 4 spoonfuls as
oft as you feel pain. Mrs Anne Hubbert. Another Rx a clove of garlic
at night going to bed with 4 spoonfuls of good brandy after
it repeat this morning & night & take 2 cloves or more at
a time if you are not well in a day or two This cur’d E.A. July
706. It will be more effectual if for 2 or 3 days or longer you infuse
Roman wormwood or buckbean in yr brandy with it You may keep
some ready infus’d by you & [the] longr it is kept the less bitter
the taste will be. E.A. Broth made with oat meal or without which
a chicken boyled & drunken hot did E.A. a great deal of good 
June 1707 being griped by drinking bottled [flying] cider. A man
was cured of gripes & the colic by swallowing ivy berries 2 or 3 
at a time carrying em in his pocket always & taking em often in 
a day till he remov’d his pain. They cured him after a fortnights griping 
having try’d a great many medicines in vain. Mary Gee. Another
Distill some strong water (al. rack) from ale grounds. fill a still with
stone horse dung & of that strong water add to it what is convenient
according to the quantity you will draw off. Keep the distill’d water
& drink a glassful when you are grip’d or have the colic. It hath no 
ill smell Mr. Benbrook of Lockington’s family use it very much. ibid.
Another. Rx some camomile & almost fill a pipkin with it almost cover
it with water & set it in an oven with bread strain out the liqr & with
suger 6 s per lb boyl it to a syrup drink 2 spoonful in a draught of
warm’d mild ale as soon as you perceive yr pain approaching & it will 
drive it away old Mr. [Oke?ver]. vide p. the 9th for the wind colick 
Rx dryed betony & pouder it & mix it with live hony & make pills of it
as big as a small hazle nut & take two of them at night when you go to
bad R.C. another Rx an equal quantity of mint water fennel water
& the [illegible] of Hungary’s water shake them together in a bottle & drink
it at night going to bed & in the morning 3 spoonfuls in an exct. cure
R.C. Mary Gee being violently grip’d was cured thus boyl some oatmeal


19
in water or good small beer that is not tart when
it hath boyl’d pretty well add ale to it let it boyl again
a little then sweeten it adding sugar & white bread note when
you bouyl yr oatmeal at 1st you may put in rosemary &
mint & balm or cloves & mace abt a qr. of an hour
after this boat some gunpouder abt 2 timble fulls 3 cloves
of garlic, mustard 2 to a spoonfuls cream of tartar
1 to a spoonfull burn a quartern of [best] brandy with
which the garlic bruis’d then take out the garlic & mix the
brandy (or for want of brandy Rx double anniseed water)
with the rest of the ingredients & adding oyl of
turpentine 6 or 7 drops drink it off hot 1 dose cured
M. Gee. compos’d by E.A. note Aug. 1708 I was violently grip’d
having the precedt night drank bottled ale & eaten a late & plentiful supper
I try’d most of my noted medicines in vain at last being mightily swell’d
full of wind I took camomile boyl’d in posset drink plentifully till I vomited
then I took chicken broth & I was at eas the next day & for many
days I eat water gruel made with common mallows shread small which I take 
for an extraordinary good medicine for the gripes & colic I’ve heard of a
man that could never be at ease without it E.A. For the gripes & colic boyl
common mallows 1 gallon in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 pints 
throw the scum away when there is any on it Drink a [porringer] full warm at 
any time when grip’d This cured Mrs Finches husband when the Drs could not It
make him fall asleep & gave him ease & cur’d him Mrs. Finch. Itry’d this medicine
in Augt 1708 & found no benefit by it I drank [Diap?ate[ & smithy wat
mixt cold without any cure or ease I believe mallows boyl’d in milk & water
are better than in [illegible] but best in water gruel E.A. Another. Boyl holly
bark & loaves in beer a pint or more & drink it warm this cured Sam. Smith.
An exct. medicine for the wind colick, the [illegible] or convulsion fits
Rx Coral, amber [?st] of each a little quantity by weight, pulverize them all 
& mix them & take of the pouder the quantity of an hazel nut & put it into
a spoonful of [illegible] or warm broth & take it fasting with 2 or 3 spoonfuls
of the same broth & take as much more if yiou find not ease in 2 
hours after Mrs M. for the colick Rx a pint of good brandy & half a
pint of sallet oyl mix em & drink it at once this cured a woman of
one fit prescrib’d by Dr Lane of Banbury strong liqr in violent pain
affects the head very little Mrs Newlove I cured my wife of a pain & 
wind in her stomach by giving her venice treacle inwardly & laying 
a great plaster of Dr Bents salve spred upon allum leather & afterwards 
rub’d over with oyl of turpentine & apply’d to the navel & 
stomach E.A. Dr Bigs rub’d on a plaster chymical oyl of wormwood or mint with good success



20
For the wind & stone colic & to sweeten the blood.
Rx Balsamu capivy gut 30 in beer or ale for a week
every morning It is diuretic make tea of elder flowers
& drink of it 2 or 3 times a day It cured a gentn of the
colic Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange.
For the wind & gripes Rx mithridate a little knife pointful dissolve
it (by stirring with a knife) in a [illegible] dish or half a pint of
strong ale drink it off often in a day E.A. for the wind colick
beat 2 or 3 acorns to pouder drink in ½ a pint of beer or ale
warmed. It will make you belch wind & give you ease w.p. another
Rx syrup of camomile 2 spoonfuls in abt ½ pint of warm ale Mr
[Okeover] another quench crowstone in a draught of ale [illegible] [illegible]
another Drink sage tea sweeten’d with sugar E.A.
Janry 1708 I cured my self of wind in the stomach & gripes thus having
taken chicken broth in vain viz mustardseed beaten 2 tea spoonful gunpouder
of a large porringerful stir em well together & burn the brandy then add to 
gunpouder & mustard at the bottom of the porringer this will give present ease
[cardius] posset drink to clear my stomach 3 qts & then eat 3 or 4 mackeroons
to strengthen & compose my stomach & so went to bed & found
myself very [illegible] Another Mrs Kenton being so grip’d that she hat fallen
down & lay on her bed & hath been cured several times by drinking brandy
burnt with a little sugar in it. Mrs K. you may add a little mint
in double distill’d anniseed water such is much cheapr than brandy & 
will do as well unless it be french brandy & you may infuse all the
other ingredients & yr medicine will not be so easily discover’d &
it will be always ready You must not give it to a breeding woman
for it will make her miscarry, but for curing gripes or wind colic
no medicine I believe can out do it, It was invented by E.A. another
Rx Cream of tartar 3 qts of an ounce in posset drink or gruel 
is a dose for a man or woman. Intermit 2 days & repeat the dose
This has cur’d inveterate colicks The [illegible] Mr Ed. Stokes Dr [Lowes]
Paste (alias pilula de aloe lota, or aloe rosata) taking 1 pill as big
as a small pea over night & 2 the next morning cures & colic & gripes 
beyond any medicine. It is sold at Mr Smalley’s in Leicr.


21
for the spleen colic or gripes
The latter and of Augt 710 I was violently grip’d & felt
a pain on my left side my garlic & brandy & oyle of turpentine
& would not cure me I took pil. ex duobus & a vomit
of Ipicacuana & found no ease at last glisters gave me
ease but Mr Francis Colsman stopt my vomiting the women
[illegible] Mrs. Smith said it was the spleen colic she advised
me to take a vomit first then to eat pt of a chicken boyl’d 
with capers & parsly for the sauce to eat capers every morning
to carry em abt with me to eat em for my constant
sauce or to eat em alone as you go up & down or with any
fresh meat to avoid salt & salt meats this I [illegible] [illegible] as much gentian
root as will lie on a shilling or rather more & infuse it
one night in a quarter of a pint of running water or spring water 
that will bear soup & drink the water off in the morning Drink this
every morning till you are well you may cut the gentian into
very small pieces This cured of the gripes Tho. Chapman states
eat juniper berries they are good for the gripes buy em of Mr Penford the
distiller ibid Another Grate as much rhubarb as will lie on a 
shilling with a rasp & drink it with abt two spoonfuls of good French 
brandy in the morning fasting It will gently purge & drink camomile posset
drink at night going to bed i.e. camomile flowers or camomile
boyl’d in all posset drink Dr Shukbrugh Ashby This cur’d
the [R?] Mr. Burnby & Mr. Cradock of Belgrave they gook 
the rhubarb morning & night Mr. Burnby advises to leave
off drinking malt drink & to drink white wine or white
wine & water till you are well Mrs. Wrighte commends
water gruel made with oat meal & rice ground & milk pottage
the first in the morn the last at night The Lady Beaumt commends
camomile posset drink & [elizer] [propriatatis] another 
Rx mustard seed whole a gr of a pint or ziiii infuse it in a
bottle of ale & drink abt ½ a qr of a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon it will gently purge you Mrs
Mary Rayson. Another avoid all strong waters Dry some horseradish
root in the chimney & cut a little bit & chew it & swallow it It
is an exct. thing for the scurvy too. Dr Ben Heyrick.


22
Wind colic or gripes
The Rc Mr Jn. Wightman’s wife being with child was thus cur’d
of the wind colic. Over night Rx 10 or 12 drops of the chymical
oyl of anniseeds in a glass of warm ale or sack The next
morning bleed in the arm then take one spoonful of sp. of
wine The 1st gives speedy ease the last things a perfect cure. Dr White for the wind & stone colick Rx Plane brandy, sweet
oyl, syrup of violets [illegible] 3 spoonfuls beat em well together & 
take it when the fit comes Dr Geo. Ashby. violets are good for a
pleurisy & pain in the side for wind int eh stomach & wind
colic Rx Sp. of sal armoniac 4 or 5 drps 
ikn a glass of ale every morning It is a cure for melancholy
& to clear the spirits Dr Leeds of Manchester & Mrs
M. another Mrs Elyth Adderly drinks [illegible] posset drink to prevent
the wind colic & cures it by drinking Virginian snake root in brandy
i.e. the infusion [illegible] A clyster for the wind colic or gripes Rx 
new milk a pint mallows & camomil each mi shred anniseeds
& sweet [illegible] each a large pugil or zii beaten to pouder boyl those &
strain it. Add to the liqr brown sugar one spoonful, & oul of
turpentine 3 or 4 drops. It purges the wind downwards. Mrs 
M. There is an ext confection made of white, black & long pepper
called species [diat???] [piperi??] good for a cold & windy stomach
which may be taken at any time with hony or without. Salmon says diatrion
piperton warms the stomach, expels wind & is powerful agt
the colic. The haven of health written of Thomas Cogan commends
it highly but says that instead of it you may take a few
corns of black pepper grosse beaten in a draught of ale fasting
or take a little of the pouder of any of the 3 sorts together with
meat for nothing is better for wind & flegm p. [207]. Colic. Rx
this following is Salmon’s syrup of [antimony] [illegible]
white wine zvi rose water zii cinnamon zifs pouder of [stibium]
zi Digest a night than decant & with white sugar zviii boyl
it to a syrup. In the most intolerable pain of the colic it
cures in a moment. Dose fro zfs to zi in chicken or veal
broth Wm Padmore for the wind colic or gripes Rx Some of 
Dr Lowers paste viz one pill over night & 2 in morning sold
by Mr [Roger] [Boo??ll] at the Black Boy agt St. Dunstan’s Church in [illegible]



23
To prevent taking cold.
Jn Rastale of Ledgers Ashby that goes into the water in the
winter time to catch fish chews some elecampane before &
after his going into the water & never takes cold upon it
For colds syrup of garlick is good in all colds & stoppages in 
the lungs or stomach or Rx a pint of canary, white sugar candy
ziiii Spanish juice of liquorish zi two ordinary heads of garlick
Let them infuse 6 hours then boyl it gently to a syrup & strain 
it & take 1 spoonfull night & morning. R.C. a cold or stuffing
in the head. moisten some hares wooll or lint in oyl of turpentine 
& stop yr nostrils therewith going to bed. E.A.
for a cold Rx anniseeds, carraway seeds pounded & sifted, elecampane
pouder liquorish pouder & flower of brimstone each 
zfs put it to treacle lbi Rx it morning & night & as often as
you please in this day W.P. for a cold or to stop a great
cough & cure a hoarseness drink a draught of cold water at
night going to bed & in bed when the rheum tickles you & in the
day time It is a speedy & safe cure J.L. For an old cough
drink abt ½ a pint of asses milk new milk’d warm from the ass
in the morning before you rise Mrs Adderly. for a violent cough 
Eat a cold roasted apple at night going to bed IF that does not
cure in 3 or 4 nights then eat one also in the morning fasting Anne Tasie.
A chincough in children Rx sugar dandy ziiii tie it fast in a hogs
bladder for a female, a sows bladder for a male, then tie it to a root
of a tree in running water 24 hours. Let the child take of it often
in a day in the morning fasting an hour after it & at night take
a pretty great quantity. This cured when the dis could not a traveller
& Anne [Tasie]. another Rx wine vinegar ½ a pint running water a pint
or 3 spoonfuls at a time night morning & noon This cured Goody Simon’s 
children. It is good for haust in beasts. Anne Simons.
Another Give the child loaf sugar moisten’d with sallet oyl & apply doses
just melted & spred upon London brown paper to its stomach It cures in 3 days, Good
Dawkins’s child
for a cold eat 2 cloves of garlick at night going to bed
taking care for a day or 2 after of not catching cold. old
Mr Ed Brooks that took great delight in fishing us’d nothing
else old Stephen Hunt


24
A cold or cough. Rx Treacle & ginger in pouder at night
going to bed Robt. Moor. another Rx Half a spoonful of common
treacle & abt 20 drops of sallet oyle at night, mixt well
taking care you do not catch cold the next day This is the best
medicine in the world says my auther augustine Low Potter of
Coleorton moor another Boyl some new milk put butter & pepper & bread
to’t & drink it hot night & morning This & riding cured E.A.’s cold in the
yr 713 when lozenges & other medicines would not. Mr. Whale of Norton
commends syrup of garlic. Salmon says compound balsam of sulphur is
a [????endent] medicine in all diseases of the lungs, it heals ulcers stops coughs
Dispensatory p. 390. An old cold cough & hoarseness & to make
you rear & expectorate & to clear the stomach of plegm 
Rx ale 3 pts pepper in fine pouder zfs boyl it till ½ dis wasted
then take it off the fire & when it is as cold as new milk beat 
the yolk & white of one or 2 new lay’d eggs & add that to’t
& warm it a little when you drink it, & drink a coffee dish
morning & night & oftener This cured David [Jarvase] of the
said distempers having a stoppage at his stomach You may 
make less at 1st to [illegible] how you like it you may add liquorish 
a little boyl’d in’t at 2st It is good for wind. David [Jervase]
It is good for a syrfeit & gripes It will keep a yr in a bottle
close stopt. It will cure an ague & the colick. ibid.
An obstinate cold & cough & hoarseness April 1714 E.A. had
a mighty hoarseness working in his waistcoat catching cold. It was succeeded
by a violent cold & cough when he had taken a great deal of
sweet & oyly medicines in vain he was thus cured. He put on a great
coat & rode out every day for 3 or 4 hours drinking a little burnt
brandy or aqua vitae with a little sugar at night & eating bread & 
butter in the morning E.A. another Robt. Glover my [illegible] having a
 violent cold so that when he cough’d it made the blood fly out of his nose
& out of his mouth, his bones aked & head aked, Some nights he could 
not sleep a wink & he sweat very much a nights was cured by taking
anniseed water a quartern pr. 5.9 treacle ziiii pr. 1 s hony ziiii pr. 5.9 
Let em simber in a pot cover’d by the fire & drink it hot as [illegible] at 
nights going to bed it is best but you may take a 
spoonful or 2 at any time when you cough. This cured many persons
thus afflicted Augt 714. One of the best R’s for a cold or cough
Rx white sugar candy in pouder & oyl of sweet almonds. Rx a little
night & morn or when you cough in a tea spoon. Rx Mr Ed. Stokes



25
Agues
Rx the bottom or thick pt of a glass bottle & heat it red hot in the
fire & quench it in a pint of strong ales just as the fit is coming
& drink it hot & go to bed it will make you sweat. This is a dose for 
a man You must have less for a woman or a child. once taking
cures you must use the glass but once sister Boothby. Another
Rx [aniseed] water a qtr of a pint & the juice of a whole lemon
squeez’d into it & drink it as soon as the fit is come & go
to bed or lie up on the bed & be cover’d warm once taking cures
The Rd Mr Richard Duke another Beat anniseeds cummin seeds to pouder
& mix it with venice turpentine & apply it [platter] wise 
to both wrists a little bigger than ½ a crown an [allum’d] [illegible] before the fit comes let it be on till it is
dry. Mrs Elizth [Basset] These plasters seldom fail, they prevent
a fermentation in the [illegible] & keep the spirits quiet you must apply
them where the pulse beats on the wrists & let them be [serv’d]
on the night before you expect the ague because it comes
often uncertainly therefore let the plaster take possession
before it. other plasters that never fail curing. Rx white copperas,
venice bole & venice turpentine each 1 I mix & 
spread it upon allum & leather to go quite round the wrists let 
em lie on 3 or 4 weeks Mrs Emerson & Mary Gee. Another Rx
Diascordium zfs & drink 3 spoonfuls of plague water or (for want of it)
of anniseed water, an hour before the fit comes going to bed & sweat. Mr
Red Duk. from Dr [L??er] you must take the diascordium an hour
& ½ before the fit is expected. zfs is a dose for a man, zii for a
child. It hath cured when Jesuits pouder could not. Francis Squire
An ague or cold in a womans breast so that the breast is swelld
& hard with it. Warm some of the best brandy (sp. of wine is better)
with a spoon & dab it on the breast with a linnen cloth 6 or 7 
times in a day & leaving always the cloth on the breast, this
cured Mrs [Littalford] in a weeks time [illegible] An ague Rx as much
whip cord as will come twice round the middle pr. 2nd tie
it very straight round the middle of the naked body next the
skin near the navel 2 or 3 hours before the fit comes when
the ague comes it makes the body swell. The whip cord prevents
its swelling & drives it away. This cured may colliers at 



26
Coleoverton & Cornelius Jones the bricklayers wife at
Leicr The thickest whipcord is easiest. You must wear it
till you’ve mist a second fit. C.J. To cure an ague when 
Jesuit’s pouder can’t. Rx the roots of elder miiii or more wash 
& dry em with a cloth scrape em tillyou come to thewood i.e.
till you’ve as much as a man can take up with one hand at once
boyl it in 3 pints of milk till one is consum’d Let a man when
he perceives the fit coming drink the [qt] strain’d blood warm This
is one dose if it does not cure repeat the dose. It is a 
gentle vomit. James Lappington horserider another Rx a cobweb 
roll it up till it is of the bigness of a horse bean, set it in the top of an
apple This cured Wm Biggs my servt. only taking it once. Wm Biggs.
another wear wormwood that is green in the stocking next to the bare
feet & shift it when dry by laying fresh in its place This cured
Frances Clark. another Run till the breast is gone a little before
you expect the fit This cured Jane Tasie of a third day ague when
a great many noted medicines were try’d in vain. Let a man run,
a little before the fit (the finger nails often look black before the
fit comes) till his breath is gone then let him fall a thrashing
till he sweats. This often repeated wears away an obstinate ague 
This cured Anne Tasie’s br. Jn. another Rx ½ a pint of white wine vinegar
set it at one end of a room & set ¼ of a pint of the best brandy
at the other end & walk fro one to the other taking a sup of
one & a sup of the other a little before the fit comes or when you 
feel it coming till you’ve drunk em both up. It will make you 
[illegible] mightily & clears the stomach Let 2 buckets or pots to vomit
in It cured at once Taking an ague of a qr of a yrs standing 
Witness Tho. Smith of Blaby. This cured my servt. Wm Biggs running
all the time he was drinking it in the [illegible] It made him vomit 2 or 3 
times. another Rx the white of 2 new laid eggs wheat flower & the
best soap beat it to a salve. spred it on flaxen rags & apply it to 
the feet lying in the stocking till the ague is gone then [illegible] they cured Tho.
Brooks of Blaby. You must have soap the quantity of a large nutmeg 
& mix it with the white of an egg after it is beaten & beat em 
both together then add wheat flower as much as will make it into a
salve Beat em all together & apply it immediately or it will not spred


27
another Roast a whole nutmeg agt the fire & put it
very hot to 4 or 5 spoonfuls of sack the nutmeg will break 
in pieces which eat & drink the sack after it & walk abt for
a pretty while Do this when you perceive the fit coming. It seldom
fails curing. Sister Boothby. another Spred 2 plasters on 
leather with frankincense very thick and apply em to the wrists after a fit
keep em on sometime after the ague is gon least it return again
This cured old Goody Gregory of Blaby apply’d to the stomach Mrs [Norolove].
an ague on a child moisten a pack hired string in oyl of
camphir & [illegible] about the childs neck let it wear it for a week
or longer if it does not chafe the skin. This will cure a sucking
child. A gypsie & Stephen Hunt. another Rx nine little onions
cut small into four qrs put em into a linnen bag & wear it next
the stomach being fixt to a fillet round the neck put it on abt an 
hour before this fit comes & chew 2 or 3 onions taking only a little
at a time in the mouth & swallowing only the juice & the spittle
This cured Elias Simpson one time & another time only chewing onions
(without hanging any abt his neck) cured him. Elias Simpson
another Quench a rusty horse shoe, heated red hot, in verjuice a qr of a
pint drink it hot & walk after it This cured Joyce Gimson’s mother & br
after many things try’d in vain. J. G. an ague. Infuse tobacco zfs 
in abt a pint of ale [illegible] 8 or 10 hours strain & drink it a little
before the fit It makes you vomit which clears the stomach
& effects the cure This seldom or never fail’d at [illegible]
Jn. [Cates] wife You may boyl em together when the fit is over give a tea spoon of bark
every 4th hour & on the [illegible] after it This cured Joyce [illegible]
another old Bosworth of Enderby a lusty 
man was blooded 16 ou. in the arm which cured him of an ague He had only 
a little grudging of a fit after it. another Mrs Gregory having taken the
Jesuits bark in pouder mixt with water & after that she had more bark infus’d 
in clarret & in w. wine but she found no cure till she was blooded
in the arm. A.G. when the lips break out it is a sign the ague is going
away.
Drinking whey or buttermilk or very cooling liqours or eating fruit in 3
or 4 weeks after the bark has driven an ague away will cause it to 
return. E.A. ague Rx the roots of henbane clean’d but not wash’d
cut em into short pieces & with a needle & thred make a necklace 
wear em abt the neck till they are dry (abt a week) & renew it abt
2 necklases commonly cure Drink night & morning garlic boyl’d 
in milk a porringer full till well. This cured David Jervase of an ague 
almost of 2 yrs standing taught him by a beggar woman


28
a b r a k a d a b r a
a b r a k a d a b r
a b r a k a d a b
a b r a k a d a
a b r a k a d
a b r a k a
a b r a k
a b r a
a b r
a b 
a 
This is a charm for an 
ague or intermitting fever
In Cornelius Agrippa his
natural & occult philosophy
To be ty’d abt the neck. Roll it
up abt a thred or pack thred etc.
sealing it with a piece of wafer in 
3 or 4 places that it may not be read
but torn when open’d Dr Million. This
cured E.A.’s wife July 717 when the bark
& vomiting would not.
an ague. Rx 3 or 4 spoonful of brandy pr. 2 d moisten a little white
bread toast therein eat it & drink the remainder of the brandy after it
a vomit for an ague Mr [Traps] Rx cardius mii or better pr. 1 d one
head of white lilly root as big as an egg white & pull it to pieces viz
into cloves. Boyl em in 6 qts of clear water to 5 or till the roots are
tender then strain & add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of sallet oyl to the water straind
or for want thereof fresh butter. Be sure to boyl enough water at 1st 
as not to want a feather thrust down the throat will make you vomit
Rx this vomit abt 3 or 4 o clock in the after-noon when the ague
fit is not on you Drink burnt clarret or white wine or ale [caudle]
Eat poch’d egg you may go to bed or sit up after it. The same night Rx 
Jesuits bark zi in fine pouder infuse it in a qt of clarret in the
morning shake the bottle & take an ordinary wine glass of it every 4 
hours viz abt ½ a gill when it is all taken fill the bottle again with a qt 
of more clarret let it infuse 12 hours & take that every 4 hours & you
need take it no longer you must not take the bark till the hot & cold
fit is over. an ague [Dr] got a great deal of mony by this Rx in Yorkshire
Mr Traps. another Rx Green savine pound it add currant & 
pound em & lastly add hony & pound em altogether spred it upon
2 pieces of leather & sew em to 2 rags and apply em to the wrists [illegible]
em when dry if this ague does not go away This cured a child of
3 yrs old Mrs Chester Jn Cater another mix conserve of red
roses with Jesuit’s bark spred it upon linnen fold 2 plasters then strew on a 
little of the Peruvian pouder apply em to the wrists This cured Mrs
Hubbard of Raresby & she seeing a maid of her acquaintance going
to London that had an ague took the plasters from her wrists 
& in haste apply’d em to the maids wrists & they cured her too Mrs H.
Dr Pool the mountebank his ague pouder Rx the green pouder of an
herb that grows in the Lady Robinson’s wood near Stamford It is called
It bears a large flower all of a cluster like a bunch of 




29
grapes It grows abt a foot high like emmeny having a
long narrow loaf & antimonium diaphoreticum in 
pouder as much as will lie on a great sugar (pr. 8 d per lb.)
The weight of one dose of the ague pouder for a man or woman is the
weight of a new sixpence & 10 grains. Rx Dr Pool’s pouder for an ague
viz the dose, in ale sweeten’d with treacle, a qr of a pint treated hot til
night going to bed, or in treacle alone as an electuary. The 1st makes you 
the least sick for the wind or stone-colic or gripes. Rx a qr or 4th pt of
the pouder in treacle & ale or treacle at any time. It is best when the
stomach is empty. The quantity of the pouder that will lie on a six pence
in a little loaf sugar given 3 mornings together will kill worms in children
for a third day ague Rx rape oyl a spoonful in D. R. loaf sugar
zii immediately before you take the ague pouder Dr. Pool.
another Rx green walnut tree bark mi dandelion roots no 6 boyl ‘em in 
stale ale a qt till it comes to a pint & ½ or less sweeten’d with sugar or treacle
but the last is apt to make you catch cold. Drink it warm a little before
the ague comes & keep warm Rx it 2 or 3 times. Drink water not
beer during the cure. Danl Pool.
Plasters for the ague Rx aethiops mineralis zi conserve of red roses zii
mix em & keep em in a pot for use plasterwise to be apply’d to the
writs. This was found out accidentally by E.A. [illegible] try’d oftener miss’d than
plaster for the ague. Peel an onion & cut it into two equal pts hollow
each pt. like the top of an eggshel mix gun pouder with venice treacle as
much as will fill the empty places & bind on one to each wrist there
to remain for a month. This cured Hannah Ashby the daughter of cos.
Jn Ashby abt 6 yrs old without making the wrists sore or offering any
injury to the skin. The onion must be so large as to hold abt the quantity
of an hazelnut. Cos. Hannah Ashby [illegible] It will cure when pounded together 
& spred on [illegible]& [illegible] to a [illegible] but it is apt to blister the wrists of them that [illegible] E.A.
an ague Rx Jesuits bark zfs in pouder salt of tartar zi boyl em in a qt
of water til it comes to a pint shake & divide it into four pts Rx one
pt. every third hour on the ague day or night after the sweating (or burning)
fit is over fast all the time & 3 hours after the last dose. Shake it
(unstrain’d) before you take it. a gentlewoman of Withcock in Leicestershire 
divulg’d this Rx aftershe had spent [illegible] in charity on the medicine being
tyred with the expence. Patricius [Bonner] Taylor of Frisby & Br. S.A.
another Rx camphir 1 [illegible] bring it home in a little glass bottle close cork’d then
put it into a rag & sow it to the shirt or shift opposite to the bosom. This 
cured Sam. [Exon] Carpenter
another Rx venice treacle zii pr. 2 [illegible] divide it into 3 pts wrap each pt (when 
you take it) up in cobweb Rx it 3 mornings successively fasting, fast 2 
hours after it. Mrs. Newlove.
another Rx his head of a brush in the shape of a pineapple that grows
on the top of a plant call’d venus’s basin in the middle of the head there 
is a little worm or grub Put it into a [illegible] stop it in [illegible] cork & hang it
between the breasts of a woman or on the bosom of a man This has cured
agues of a yr & half standing Goody Van of Little [illegible] stop when fails curing


30
an ague Rx Black pepper zi in pouder ale a pint drink
it warm as soon as you percive the fit approaching &
go to bed & sweat this has cured agues of a yr standing Sam.
Leaptrough.
an ague (every other day) Rx Jesuits bark zii pr: 6 [illegible] divided
into six papers Rx one every third hour in a little w. wine or clarret
because it doth not mix well in small beer. Fast an hour before
& after taking it drink nothing but soffet drink made of beer & ale
mist & that sparingly. Before you take the bark apply the following
plasters to the wrists or stomach Rx sope the quantity of a hazelnut
saffron a little, tobacco & curranths each a nip pound em in a mortar
& spred em on leather Let em lie on a fortnight They are apt to
fetch off the skin if they lie on long This cured sister Shukbrugh Ashby.
Emplastra oxycroceum cures an ague lay’d to the wrists, Mrs Caulton
The third day ague sometimes it cures the ague joyn’d with a fever
a distemper that reign’d in the yr 1721 Rx a magpie drops her as a chicken 
then chop & break her bones & boyl her with a crust or 2 of white
bread that is old in a galn of water till it is consum’d to 2 pts drink
it warm for the constant drink when that is gone boyl another magpie
as at 1st & drink it as before directed. This seldom fails. This makes
you refrain from malt drink & wine & so makes at alteration in the
whole mass of blood. (Dr. Salmon says the [illegible] of a magpye eaten helps
redness & pain of the eyes & dimness of sight, vertigo, epilepsies, melancholy 
& madness.) Mr James Allen high constable of Whetstone cures 
himself of an ague by binding his wrists & above the knees in the gartering
place & abt the middle with filleting or manchester gartering or
with any thing that will not hurt him very streight & as hard as he can
endure it as soon as he percives the fit approaching when the fit is over
take it off this never failed James Allan
another Rx snakeweed & venice treacle each zii boyl em in spring
water 2 qts till it comes to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish fill 4 times a
day out of a bottle shaking the bottle drink it warm every day
while it lasts. This cured Mrs Elizth Grene Dr Hartop.
another Rx 3 or 4 spoonfuls of [Daffy’s] elixir according as thou art strong or
weak or body over night or in the morn for a gentle purge. If it does not
work by stool the next day by 9 or 10 o clock when taken over night then take
another spoonful the next morn. Intermit a day & repeat the purge apply 
toe the stomach a little plaster of female or soft frankincense spred upon 
allum leather the bigness of a five shilling piece & strew upon it when spred & 
warm a little Jesuits bark in pouder If the brest is hairy you must shave it
first It sometimes draws blisters. Let it lie on as long as it will stick. If you
are violently sick & the ague comes later & later every day & the lips break
out in scabs It will go away. The plaster will make you sweat Bind the wrists
with a fillet very hard before the fit comes you must not loosen em [till] the fit is gone. This
cured Ann Tasie March 5th 721.
Plasters for an ague mix soap, chalk & soot apply em spred on allum leather
to the wrists IT seldom fails apply a little before the third fit Blaby miller & Goody



31
Simons. another That day that you expect the ague to come
in the morning fasting make water & whilst the urine is warm
make a little cake with some of it as much as will knead two
spoonfuls of wheat flower bake it on a brick at some distance
from the fire often turning it when you perceive the ague coming
a man must give it to a bitch, a woman to a dog to eat The dog
will quake & shake & be sick & vomit after he has vomited it up.
The ague leaves the dog This cured Sam. Snape of Glen parva. If it
doth not go away you must make a new cake as at first & give it
again It must be given 3 or 4 times till the ague goes
another Rx walnut tree bark fresh cut off from a grain or [bore] abt
2 [illegible] ½ long 2 [illegible] wide steep it in sharp verjuice 12 hours bind the
inside to both wrists on the pulse. It discolours the skin black This
cured many people in the yr 1721 at [Rasby] of agues Tho.
Fletcher black smith of Rasby
another Rx grains of paradise zii in fine pouder pr. 2 [illegible] brandy 2 [illegible] (or 4 spoonful)
This is a dose for a man or woman ½ the quantity for a child abt 12 yrs
of age. You must give it to a child at twice the same day The 1st time mix
a little beer with it in a spoon It is apt to [fuddle] a child. Let 2 women take the child one
by one arm the other by the other arm 7 walk it abt.This cured old [Exon]
& one of Goody Exon’s daughters Elizth Exon She must not go to bed. She
took it a little before the fit comes. Mrs Freer. If the ague returns you
must take it again.
another Rx the inner bark of mulberry
[tree] mii froth gotten boyl it in ale or strong beer a qt strain it
& drink a draught a little before the fit approaches & the [illegible]
during the fit by a little at a time, till you’ve drank it all. This
hat cured 17 agues successively without being baffled. Burgos of
Dunton & Goody Simons
another Let the patient (an hour 
before the expected time of the fit Rx 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir salutis,
being at that time [illegible] & 2 spoonfuls 6 hours after intermit a day
& take a spoonful at night & 1 at uprising in the morning Let the dose
be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if it agrees with the strength till
it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to exceed. This
cured Mr Marten’s daughter at Leicer another E.A. cured himself of an
ague at spring in the yr 1722 only by eating 3 or 4 sevil oranges, the
meat, kernels & some of the peel from morning to night & changing the
air leaving Blaby & lying one night at Leicer. They took off his fever & 
got him a stomach. E.A. another Rx a new lay’d egg Put the yolk unbroken
with the white into a gill of brandy & drink it off when the fit is on you
This cured a great many & Geo. Simons of Wigston Magna.
another Rx mountain wine a qt put it into a large bottle add to it 2 or 3 handfuls
or more of the inner bark of barbery tree. Let em infuse 48 hours then drink 3 
spoonfuls 1st in the morning & last at night. This cured Mr Jn Wilkins clockmaker of
Liecer having try’d a great many medicines in vain. J.A.
[illegible] Rx 2 or 3 spoonfulls of mustard seed in powder in a pint of 
new ale take it in bed a little before the fitt comes. It made Joseph 


32
Webdale the joyner swell as if he would burst at last
it made him vomit up a cake almost ready to chok’d him he
lay in bed after it. he had had it a month it was almost as 
thick as flower meat. This cured him he was at eas as soon as
the ague-cake was tost up. Joseph Webdale It is a churlish medicine
For an ague first purge the patient thoroly with a purge fit
for the humour, then take good store of plantain & ribwort & 
boyl ‘em in verjuice strain it & bottle it putting sweet salet oyl
on the top of it & so it will keep all the year give of this a good
draught before the fit comes or in the begining of the fit in 2 or 
3 times at the most it will help. Probalum, Mrs Hervet E.A.’s mother.
For a quartan ague or fever. Rx verjuice a galln & seeth
it in 4 or 5 good handfulls of ribwort & plaintain let ‘em 
boyl well together, then strain it & put sugar to it & 
drink off it before the fit comes, ibid
For a quartan ague Rx shell-snails mii bay-salt & mallows
each mi lay it to soles of the foot before the quartan 
fit comes ibid. For an ague
Make a toast of bread and soke it in the [parties] urine and 
give to a dog to eat and it will cure. Goody Smith.


33
For the scurvy & to sweeten the blood
& to correct an ill habit of body Dr Hartop.
to provoke the forms & to cure the green sickness
Rx Electuary of steel the quantity of a nutmeg & a qr of a pint
of bitter decoction after it
(or Rx steel pills v.p. 17) when you’ve left of taking yr steel then Rx dandelion
agrimony sage & [famitory] each mi boyl ‘em in 3 pints of clarify’d
whey to 2 pints drink a quart cold every morning. Prepare it 
over night. To clarifie your whey boyl it & scum it let it stand till
it is almost cool scum it again pour it from the sedemt strain it
thro a hair sieve & boyl it with the herbs when you’ve fresh buttermilk
you may clarifie it with buttermilk pour’d to yr whey run boyling.
Rx this whey all the spring as long as the herbs are to be gotten
green. This cur’d Mrs Theophila Grene that was troubled with a vomiting
had no stomach & her face full of spots with the scurvy Dr H.
Another a dist drink to cure the scurfy & a dry itching & clear
the light when the eyes are rheumatic & dim’d by the scurvy vid.
p. 77. another for the scurvy Mr. Yarwood commends tincture
of antimony. Dr. Coles commends salt of steel.
Mrs Hoppers diet drink to sweeten the blood 
Rx scabius agrimony each mi monks rhubarb the roots & red madder
roots each less [illegible] ziiii aniseeds zii liquorish zi wash & 
scrape the roots & slice them thin, wash the herbs & bruise them
put them all into a bag with a weight to sink them down in four
gallons of midling ale (3 gallons of good malt will make 5 gallons of
ale strong enough) at four days and you may drink of it & the
more you drink the better Mrs M.
A rare water for the scurvy & dropsie.
Rx the leaves of sea scurvy grass & cargen scurvy grass lbvi stamp
them & press out the juice to such add the juice of brookline & 
watercresses each lbifs The roots of broom lbiiii horse radish lbii
winterian bark lb fs 12 lemmons sliced thin with the meat & rind
nutmegs ziiiii Infuse all these 3 days in 8 pints of the best white
wine that you can get, then distill it in a limbeck Rx of this 3 spoonfuls
every morning & every evening as you find occasion. Mrs. S.
for the scurvy & to sweeten the blood. Rx the leaves of [tares] or
vetches before they begin to bear [tares] mii pound em take two 


34
two spoonfuls of the juice in a draught of warm ale 
night & morning for a week or fortnight. M. Burton.
for a dry itch & to sweeten the blood Dr Martin Hartop.
Rx Aeth. mineral zi pulv oc: cancr: coral: rubr: ana zii
misce bene & include. chartis no 20. Take every morning
one of these papers mixt with a little conserve of scurvy-grass 
& drink a draught of whey or milk & water after it, in which
a scruple (i.e. 20 gr. abt as much as will lie on a shilling) of sal-prunella
in pouder hath been dissolv’d: then ride out after it an hour 
or more 20 papers of the pouders pr. 2 s to 10 [illegible] T. Codman apothecary
Conserve of scurvy-grass zii 6 [illegible] sal prunella zi 3 [illegible] [nose] old
conserve of scurvy grass is best because it is the moistest & it is
only a vehicle outward oyntmts says Dr H. stop the pores & will not
cure
for a wet itch Rx the inward bark of elder mi boyl it is ½ a 
pint of cream or better strain it & put to it abt 3 tea spoonfuls
& let it just boyl again. Drink 3 mornings successively, before
you begin to anoint yrself, a teaspoonful of flower of 
brimstone in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of new milk anoint yrself 3 nights
successively agt a good fire then change yr shirt This cured Anne
Tasie that had it almost 3 yrs having soap & brimstones & tobacco
infus’d in ale which had cured a great many & many noted medicines
in vain. A. T.
Dr Ratcliffs letter to Dr Hartop abt E.A.’s dry itching that I perceive that friends
distemper is a [illegible] scurvy arising from scorbutic salts [illegible] in his blood ever
since the small pox time [then] [illegible] the [methods] you mention have been unsuccessful
as [fluxing], [bathes], aethiop. min: etc. I advise the following with contiunual exercise
for otherwise you will find ir very difficult if not impossible to remove ‘em 
I am [illegible] yrs to comd Rx sal mirab. glaub. zii pulv. ocul. cancer,. coral.
superbib. haustu seg: Rx coch. hort. mii hed. ter. mi fol. sals. boraban.
ana mi [ba??]. junip [illegible] aa lbfs lactis vac. q.s. distill org. [illegible] comg
s.a. lbiiii
For a cachexia or ill habit of body or scurvy, a pain in 
the stomach or wind colick
This cured Cos. Hartop’s lady when the Leicr Drs & bath waters could not
Take spring water & the best brandy of each half a pint. Peruvian
bark six drams, coriander seeds two drams; cardamoms & cubebs each 



35
one dram; salt of wormwood a scruple & half (if zfs)
[illegible] let them stand 2 days in a cold infusion shaking em often then strain it off
thro a flannel bag
& take five spoonfuls in a morning fasting & five at five 
o clock in the after-noon. If this is too strong put ½ a pint more
water to it. You may infuse the ingredients a second time 
a gentle purge for a pain in the stomach & colick & scurvy
Rx gum guaiacum one dram in [illegible] every morning for a
week before (you take the precedent medicine) takes more or 
less as there is occasion to purge; if it purges too much
omit a day. Rx it in cold water or cold beer not in any thing
that is hot because it will make the gum clog together Cos.
Elizbth H. had this Rx from a Dr at the bath. The price of the apothecary’s 
drugs at leicr is 3d 3s Mr Cotsman. In other Rxs I 
saw only one scruple of salt of wormwood & the gum guaiacum
to be taken in a spoonful of milk [illegible] to Mrs Brooks.
another to sweeten the blood being a gentle purge used almost
all the yr round by sergeant Lead Rx cowslips, primrose flowers
bottony, sage, eye bright each zi dryed; single peony roots dry’d ziii
rue mfs caraway seeds zi two nutmegs put those in a bag into
three gallons of all. [illegible] another which Dr G. Ashby drinks every morning’
to sweeten the blood & prevent the scurvy Half beer & half ale [warm’d]
together having boyl’d in the alewort buckbean fir or pine tops, sage,
gill, Roman wormwood, each dry mi for 7 or 8 gallons G.A.
another for a dry itching prescrib’d me by Dr Brooks in leaden
rum 69 [illegible]i cape mane & hora somni suberbibe coch. v. jul:
seq. Rx aqua foeniculi zviii paroniae ziii sacchari albi
ziii fiat julapium
Dr Bradly’s Rx for the scurvy Rx 6 gallons of strong ale wort
boyled with these ingredients viz china roots zvi juniper berries bruised
ziii to 4 or 5 gallons work it up without hops with yest when you [illegible] it hot
these following ingredients be hung in it in a bag & at 6 or 7 days and
drink it red sage miii ground ivy Tansy each mni the filings of iron 2 or 4 
ou. drink morning & night ½ a pint or more these herbs dry’d are as good
all winter. Mrs M.


36
A diet drink to sweeten the blood
Rx hysop coltsfoot scabius ground ivy maiden hair, each mi
jujubes figs & dates each [illegible] so raysins ston’d ziiii french barly
zi lignu vitae zfs boyl these in 3 qts of spring water to 2 qts sweeten
it with syrup of maiden hair or with any syrup or sugar or drink it without
in the morning & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed Mrs M.
The itch Rx the roots of sharp pointed dock boyled in vinegar
till they are soft then pulped brimstone wash’d in 
juice of limons each zifs hogs grease often wash’d in scabious
water lbfs oyl of rodium [illegible] zfs white precipitate zfs
make them into an oyntmt in a mortar according to art.
[illegible] without [his] [dock] at Mr [Colsman]
It cures the itch in a short time by anointing & likewise
all other breakings out & deformities of skin, Wm Padmore
To sweeten the blood & to cure a dry itching Rx juice
of brooklime & watercresses each a pint Let em settle abt
12 hours then pour off the clear & mix it with the juice of 2 
sour oranges Bottle it up & drink 5 spoonfuls morning & 
at 4 in the afternoon & at night going to bed refraining
fro salt & sour Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange Dr. Harrington’s
servt. For a dry or inward itching Rx rue ziii
scurvy grass zvi flower of brimstone zfs English rubarb zviii
put all these into 2 gallons of strong ale & boyl em till
it comes to 2 gallon. Bleed one in the arm or foot or any
pt at the full of the moon then drink every morning & 
night going to bed 6 spoonfuls till it be all gone. Purge after
it. Take it every spring till well & longer if you will This cured Rd Mr
Sam. Smally Rd Wood Gardiner at [noneaton] in Warwick-shire. make
the herbs & root (if green) half dry by being placed [near] the fire
to correct their wateryness & put the scurvy grass in when you’ve almost
boyl’d it enough to prevent its vertue fro evaporating E.A.
For the scurvy oft proved & exct. Rx of the biggest leaves of
scurvy-grass n. 12. raisins of the sun ston’d n. 20 shavings of
horse radish roots zifs. Put em in a qt bottle of beer or ale,
after 2 days drink of it for ordinary drink. you may make 
as many bottles as you please, drinking it for a long time. Dr
James Cookes marrow of physick p. 609. an electuary for the scurvy 


37
Rx conser. cochlear zij conserv. berber zi pul. ocul. cancr.
zifs misc. dos. afs at night & morning. ibid.
For a dry itching & to sweeten the blood v. p. 221.
For a dry itching drink in the morning in bed a porringer 
of butter’d ale (or ) having 2 or 3 stone 
bottles fill’d with boyling hot water well cork’d & cover’d with
towels or napkins heated hot agt the fire to keep the bottles
from burning the flesh where they touch, lay on each side
you a bottle or more Thus lie for 3 or 4 hours or longer
& sleep if you can. when you’ve layen till you are tyred
& wou’d rise let a clean warm dry shirt be ready for to
put on. when you are up drink a draught of warm broth,
or ale. Repeat this as oft as you’ve occasion taking
care you do not catch cold after it This surpasses all the
prescriptions of London & country drs E.A. The itch
dress with [?agedenic] water made with m sublimate & lime
water Mr Chiselden. The scurvy a dry itching or leprosie & 
to sweeten the blood. Rx decoctum ulmi a qt in [illegible] Dispensatory. Rx. aethiops
mineralis zij conserve of roses ziiii mix em take the quantity of a 
chestnut on a knife’s point every day for a month drinking a draught of the
decoction of elms bark aforesaid after it at meals drink a little beer as
much as is sufficient to wash down the victuals Dr Smith [illegible] in Coventry
commends this as an extraordinary Rx for the scurvy. A dry itching is cured
also by sweating thrice in a bagnio ibic. This E.A. try’d in vain. another Rx
salt of steel in pouder abt as much as will lie on a silver 2 [illegible] in ½ a glass of
distill’d elder water in a morning fasting for a month, fasting abt an hour
after it. you may encrease the dose as it agrees with you. Do not beat it to pouder 
till you use it. Dr Hely took as much at once as would like on 6 [illegible] when the
month is expir’d Rx after it a brown bolus a purge that is gentle to cleanse 
his blood on a knife’s point pr 6 [illegible] Rx it spring & fall. Keep the salt o f
steel always dry near the fire or it will dissolve to water It will not cure
a wet itch. Dr H says it cured 12 persons troubled with a dry itching prescrib’d
by him. The Rx is in Dr Salmon’s [polygraphice] of painting with the bolus says Dr
T. Hely [Dr] [illegible] avoid [illegible] salt things ibid. E. A. put [illegible] steel zii to eder water a qt 
Drink a little glass more or less as it will agree with you after you’ve eatan a 
mouthful of bread It prevents & corrects this coldness & windiness of the
water. The bolus to sweeten the blood scammony 15 gr. mercurius dulcis [illegible] i 
lenitive electuary zifs pr 6 [illegible] mi [cook] It is too strong a purge for an
ordinary man. E.A. It is an exct. purge ibid.


38
For the itch Rx flower of brimstone zfs & put it
into half a pint of white wine vinegar shake em well together
in a bottle & anoint the places infected & it will certainly
cure says W.P. for a dry itch or any scorbutick outbreak
or itching Rx allum 2.9 Green copperas 2.9 or ziiii
boyl em in a quart of old smitthy water till it is consumed
to a pint when cold bottle it up close & dab it on with a 
rag once a day cold This cured a gentmn of a dry itching
that spring & fall was attended with an out break & scabs that the
Drs could not cure. He gave the poor womn [illegible] for the cure
& Rx. Poor womn of Hinkly & Jo. Warner [farrier] Sour things
as vinegar or stale beer small or strong cause an itching or
[pricking] in the blood inwardly taken [illegible]
for any itching in the blood eat rue chopt small with bread
& butter for 14 or 21 mornings or till it is quite gon Tho. [frees] farrier.
for the itch Rx fresh butter lbi black pepper in fine pouder zi one nutmeg
pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in pouder ginger beaten pr. one farthing cloves & mace pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in 
pouder tyme, savory & sweet marjoram one handful stript & shred small. flower
of brimstone zifs mix & take the quantity of a walnut made into 3 pills
for 3 mornings together & fast one hour & half after them then anoint 
your self 3 mornings with the like ingredients & be sure to ware the shifts
2 or 3 weeks. W. P. Decr 19th 717 Sunday four apprentices to a weaver
in Spittle fields London died under the operation fo some gamboges
which they were advised to by an emperick, for the cure of the itch,
Stamford mercury. The itch in man, womn or child Rx quicksilver 2 [illegible]
flower of brimston zi black pepper in pouder zfs pr. 2 [illegible] cloves 16
in pouder 1 [illegible] ginger in pouder zi hogs lard or hogs grease as much 
as will make it into an oyntmt working em well together with a
knife on a trencher or a bit of board. anoint on the joynt’s viz
armholes & bend of the elbows, wrists, hams, etc. & between the
fingers every night going to bed It will cure in a week Dr Tho.
Holy the [illegible] says there is no better medicine for the itch. you must
shift the cloths when quite well even the gloves viz in abt 8 or 10
days. This cured Wm Headly of Cosby when he had the itch for 3 yrs
having try’d a great many medicines in vain formerly before the
tax upon spice This medicine cost but 6 [illegible] viz mercury 2 [illegible] brimston
cloves ginger pepper each 1 [illegible] this will not cure a dry itching where
there is no breaking out That dry itching is caused by the scurvy.
Dr. Gory the mountebank’s bitter pills for the scurvy cured Wm Headly
for 3 yrs of a dry itching It is worst in a [frost] he took the pills but once W.H.



39
The itch Rx red sage, celandrine, bay leaves, long dock
roots each the like quantity boy em well in butter lbfs & 
when it is boyled put in flower of brimstone zfs a little ginger
& a little chalk to let it boyle up then take it off & anoint the
joynts & down the back to both sides but not before 3 or 4 
times infallibly cures Mrs Caulson of Leicer
for the scurvy Infus in 2 qts of good white wine [sena] zi cleanly 
pickt saffron zi rhubarb zii cinnamon grossly pounded zii
cream of tartar finely pounded zii for 3 days often shaking the
bottle which must be close stops then strain & bottle it. Rx 4 or 5 spoonfuls
in the morning for a fortnight fasting 2 hours after it. ibid.
The itch or any out-break Rx cream ½ pint the juice of butter dock
(i.e. red dock) roots ½ pint boyl em together abt ½ an hour then mix with 
the oyntmt live or black brimstone zii burnt allum in fine pouder zfs
The black brimstone has a strong smell Mrs Caulson. another
Rx mercurius sublimatus ziii bruis’d water 3 pints. Put in the mercury
when the water is hot & boyl it till it is dissolv’d which will be in half
a qr of an hour. Let it stand till it is cool, the pour off the clear into
a pot thro a cloth to strain it. If afterwards any scum swims 
on the top take it off with a feather let it stand abt an hour, decant
the clear pt thro a [tun] dish into a bottle which keep for use observing
that it is rank poyson inwardly taken. use it cold or warm, moisten 
with a rag dipt in’t all the joynts, especially down the back bone. Do
it every other night 4 times dressing cures the worst itch that is, twice
commonly cures. Dr Richd Pool mountebank sells many bottles
another Rx Black pepper zfs pounded to pouder any butter ziiii boyl
em well together when it is lukewarm pound brimstone zi to pouder
& add to it stirring it to an oyntmt anoint only the hams, insteps 
the bend of the elbows & stomach agt the fire 2 nights together cold
shift the sheets & shirtt abt a week after It makes all the scabs fall 
off & heals em. It never fails at twice dressing says Good Ludlam.
To cure the itch. Rx fresh butter lbfs & new hens dung as much as 
will make the butter when melted as thick as a thin pudding let em
boyl pretty well then strain it from the dung & put in a sprig
of rosemary & abt an ounce of ginger finely beaten & [sear] [illegible]
boyle it well again then add brimstone sifted abt 2 ou. stir it till it
is cold then keep it for the use when you use it melt it & rub it
on the usual places of the body agt the fire Mrs Frances Bickerton 
Rx brimstone & hony abt 3 tea spoonfuls every morning for a long
time It has cured an obstinate outbreak or leprosy when the Drs coud not
a ratcatcher & Mrs Caulton another for an outbreak Rx fresh butter without
salt lbfs ale half a pint boyle it to a thick oyntmt anoint it on cold twice a
day at 1st it cured an outbreak abt the neck of a 2 yr old child Mrs [illegible]



40
An oyntmt for scabs v. DR Salmon’s doron modicum p.
736. He says it cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate
esteem it as a jewel  v. infra.
A salve for scabs or any breaking out. Rx sheeps dung dry’d pouder’d
& sifted fine mix it with cream or fresh butter anoint the place
It [illegible] off all scabs. Mrs Caulton.
The leprosie or any outbreak Rx sweetbrier bark & barberry
bark, the middle bark strip it downwards when you get it off.
Reddock root, scraped, wip’d & sliced. Gill run by the ground each mij
rue mi bear-foot mfs. Boyl it in four gallons of small ale wort 
till it comes to three. when cold put in brandy a qr of a pint, a 
spoonful of ginger & one egg beaten. Put it into a can or barrel,
when it has done working take half a pint morning fasting & four
o clock in the afternoon. If it purges too much take less.
The oyntmt Rx hogs lard lbfs best tobacco pouder’d fine zfs simber 
it over the fire. Pound house [illegible] & mouse-ear each mi strain it
& put in the juice. Let it simber up them take it off. Drink the
drink a week to drive out the noxious humers Then anoint with 
the oyntmt every night Mrs Caulton & a traveller
Jn Holt of Great Ashby was thus cured of an obstinate breaking
out in several pts of his face. Having taken glauber sal mirabile
3 times in vain at last he was cured by this poltis in abt 
a fortnight. Rx new milk, white bread, the yolk of an egg a little
saffron & a little oyntmt of camomile to supple the other ingredients
It must lie on night & day bound with a cloth renew’d every 
night as hot as he could abide it being boyled first J. Holt
Boyle [fenugreek] seeds or linseed, this decoction helps scabby heads
Culpeper’s Dispensatory.
Unguentum ad scabiem, an oyntmt for scabs Rx sulphur vive, litharge of
[gold] each zij venice soap, mercurius dulcis each afs prepared niter zfs.
unguentum album camphoratum zi oyl of rhodium gut viii to perfume
it. mix for an oyntmt It cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate.
esteem it as a jewel. Salmon’s Doron.
A special medicine for scabs itch or worms (in a sore)
Gather the water that drops out of the vine when their cut & 
keep it in a vial & wash the sore therewith & it shall mend [illegible]
For the scab & [s?arff] & heat that runeth in the head a scald head
Rx Tar & hony & [cal?ifie] em i.e. boyl’d & scum’d then add deer’s
servet & boyl all together anoint the sore with it till it be whole
Mrs Hervet E.A’s mother. Dr [Cheshire] says a chronic [illegible]
with immoderate itching & large excoriations has been cur’d 
by drinking & bottling in a mineral water in the park of Sr
Nathaniel Curzon at [???stone] when all other remedies have failed
He says he had done great cures with ‘em at a great distance from the spring with 
in 3 weeks from Darby


41
Burnings & Scaldings
Rx Juice of onion 1 pt cream 4 pts mix em cold. It will take away
the pain Mrs Basset. After you’d drest it 2 or 3 times to remove
the pain then anoint it with this following oyntmt & it will 
heal it in a little time. Boyle gill run by the ground & the inner
bark of elder in hogs lard ibid. Mrs Brook’s salve for a burn
Rx white pitch (or resin pouder’d) with bees wax & sallet oyl melt
em to a salve. Mrs M. Another fry some [illegible] bacon in a
frying pan whilst there is any moisture in’t then pour the liquor
being very black into cold water & therewith anoint the sore
cold There is not many medicines can outdo this. [illegible] another
Beat some sallet oyl or [illegible] foot oyl & water together
(with quantity of each you please) with a spoon or knife 
in a pot then scum off a little of the oyl that swims on the 
water & dip a linnen rag in’t & apply it fresh dipt thrice 
a day at first to cook it It will cure any burn or scald
Mrs Elizth Halford a cooling ungt for burns & scalds & all sorts 
of inflammations Rx house leek, plaintain, nightshade & ribwort each
mij violet leaves, strawberry leaves, [illegible], [illegible], adderstongue, purslane
& lettuce each mi bruise these with mutton suet & hogs lard each lbij
in a mortar, then boil it softly ½ an hour, strain it & add of bees wax, linseed
oyl, each lbi sugar of lead zij stir it till it be cold & keep it for
use J.T. another Rx may butter lbi new cow dung sallet oyl a pint
white lead two ounces Boyl em & strain em thro a cloth & put em into a pot tying
a paper over it This must be made in may when the butter & dung receives
the most vertue fro the herbs anoint it on the sore with a feather
& anoint a fine Holland rag or cloth & lay over it dress it twice a
day at 1st It gives ease in an hour & fetches out the fire in 4 
hours & heals without breaking if the [illegible] is only swell’d & not broken. It
will keep 20 yrs good A French Dr. & Mrs Finch. another Robert
hall the glasier when he burns himself with lead he applys soap
& salt & an onion pounded together & bound on with a rag 
to take out the fire but if the blister breaks he heals it with
basilicon R.H. another Rx spirit of wine (or French brandy) & 
linseed oyl each a pint or ½ a pint Shake em together & anoint
therewith dip a linnen rag therein & bind it on if you can. It 
will cure any burn even a burn with gun pouder Dr Arden [Elsmore]
surgeon & Mr Cook apothecary. Shake it before you use it. It [illegible] [illegible]


42
A salve for a burn. Rx mutton suet melted lbij house leek
& gill each mij shred, boyle em over a slow fire
For a burn anoint the sore place with train oyl & hold it agt
the fire to drive it in It takes away the pain immediately then
rub it with tallow melted at a fire or candle E.A.
another anoint with sallet oyl in which a hot iron has been [illegible] then let it rest a little time & beat the
white of an egg & so up to the sore places with a strong feather This cured a
little whelp that fell into a pot of scalding porridge in one nights time
E.A. Good Blackhorn’s salve p. 362 has cured a burn when several
noted medicines have been try’d in vain So has Mrs Holden’s lead
salve ibid. A salve for a scald or burn. Rx sallet oyl a pint
lapis calaminaris in fine pouder 1 [illegible] Bees was lijs deers suet 
1 ou (or sheeps suet) boyl em altogether a qr of an hour then put it
into a pot set the pot in cold water & stir it till it is cold when you use
it spred it then on a cloth S.S. another Rx common white paint made of
white lead & linseed oyl. Cover the sore & when it is dry lay on fresh
S.S. Janry 722 Tho. Kings daughter Ann was scalded on her instep
& ancle with hot water these make a very large blister E.A. clipt the
blister so that abundance of water came from it He drest it with linseed
oyl & sp. v. then apply’d unguentum albu camphoratum sometimes mixt
with [weapon] salve made of bacon grease made of fry’d bacon pourd 
into water This last is good to cure the itching of a sore or wound Sometimes
he drest it with sope & chalk [but he] thought chalk or w. lead in
the ung. albu foul’d the sore then he mixt weapon salve with a little mercury
sublimate workt together on a [trencher] which wrought off the chalk & 
w. lead & cleared the sore then he apply’d basilicon mixt with a little 
oyl of vitriol & sp. v. It began to heal but the girl had a kick on the
ancle done accidentally by her sister passing by her which caused the
foot to swell so that none of the precedent things wou’d cure it
E.A. Healed it thus He bathed it with the drying water made of 
mercury sublimate & lime & healed it with linimantu arcaei & 
basilicon mixt v.p. 340. You may try basilicon mixt with turpentine
the mercury water allay’d the itching of the sore. E.A. The last
plaster used was bees wax & fresh butter without salt equal wright which 
healed it & made a perfect cure E.A. Dr Salmon commends unguentu
populneum oyntmt of poplar buds for burnings & scaldings.
an oyntmt for a scaled or burn Mrs Caulton Rx Gill burdock
poplar loaves hous leek, stonecrop, elder leaves, hemlock, the inner
bark of elm each mi boyl em in hogs lard or hogs grease.
Febry 723 E.A. cured [illegible] ficer’s left leg scalded a long way down
the skin with hot ale. It had been scalded 9 or 10 days before he came
to E.A. then it look’d black & was very painful, he cou’d scarce walk
with a stick or sleep. It was cured thus. Bath it with mercury sublimate
dissolv’d in lime water strain it thro a cap paper bottle it when you
use it pour off the clear into a little pot that will abide the fire with
a fine rag in it dab it on the sore as hot as you can abide the hand
in it. [illegible] this rubbing the sore makes & keeps it clean. Then anoint all round 



43
above & below & every side with oyl of turpentine & 
goose grease or turky grease mixt. This prepares every pt 
& all the humers for healing. Then mix basilicon & tincture
of myrrh & spred it on a long cloth a little longer & broader
than the sore let a roller of linnen be sew’d round the leg to 
keep the plaster tight from slipping & from the stocking which must
be large & too wide, to draw on & off with ease. Let the leg be
drest thus once a day for a week. you may mix horse turpentine
or venice turp. a little with basilicon adding camphorated sp. of
wine or tincture of myrrh 3 or 4 drops or more to the basilicon
every plaster stirring em well before you spred it to incorporate 
scrape off the old salve & spred it with new every dressing Let the
same old plaster last all the time when the sore has done running (the
sore ran very little & was very [illegible]) scrape off the old salve & 
melt fresh butter free from salt 2 pts. & bees wax 1 pt. melt & 
spred this on the old salve cloth to heal it three days after dress
it viz. rub it with lime & mercury water hot that the calous & dead 
skin may come off & the sore appear clean & red. continue this water
& this wax salve till it is quite well & sound & not tender dressing’
it once a week. Eat oatmeal pudding or mallow porridge or drink
treacle & ale or treacle posset at night so as to have one stool or
motion in every 24 hours. This method cured the leg in ten days. E.A.
Dr Radcliff’s pharmacopoeia commends sp. v. camphorated & tincture of myrrh
p.e. another Rx balsam of sulphur zij ointmt of marshmallows 2 ou. mix in burns
of the 2nd degree ibid. Rx unguentu [diasthaae] 1 ou. linseed oil zij for taking off scabs
in burns ibid
Burning with gunpowder. Rx. Fresh butter and the
white of eggs p.e. beat ‘em well together till you bring them
to an ointmt. and anoint the places therewith. It will take out
the fire and heal it immediately.






46



47
Wounds made by a fork tine 49.
Richd Ward of Blaby in the yr 720 being in a pitch hole
of a barn had a fork tine thrust into his leg, it was quickly
cured by a plaster of resin & tallow melted together Another
Richd Hamer a labourer of Blaby being on a corn[mor?] had
a fork tine thrust into his foot The wound was anointed with 
goose grease & oyl of turpentine mixt, agt the fire & one plaster
of vents salve applyd to it cured it E.A. flos unguentoru is
an ext plaster E.A.
Captn Brubenol’s wound drink which will heal any outward or inward
wound, ulcer, fistula. It eateth forth splinters of wood out of
the flesh & scales foul putrified bones which are wasted by any foul sore 
of any long continuance but it must not be taken by any woman
with child for it will play the midwife. In April gather buds of oak
hawthorn & bramble or brier In May & June these herbs following 
dry em in a close room without air or dust. Keep em daily with [turning]
till they be very dry, then put em up into a paper bag & keep em 
in a chamber all the yr. The herbs are bugle comfry daisy roots &
leaves dandelion, agrimony, hony suckles which grow nearest the ground 
are best, mug wort, mint, plantain, ribwort, sanicle, scabies, wild
angelica, wood-betony, white bottles, wormwood Rx of every one
of these herbs a little which in all may make 3 good handfuls. Put an
equal proportion of each sort of herbs in a paper bag by themselves
then for the making of the drink take all the herbs of one bag
you must hold three good handfuls lay them in steep all night in a pot of spring water qt next morn
put a qt of white wine to it & boyl it till almost ½ the liquor is consum’d
then strain the liquor from the herbs & put to it as much hony as will sweeten
it well (a pint) then let it boyl a little & scum it set it by in an
earthen vessel to cool Put it into a glass bottle or stone jug set it in
the sun. Drink the last at night going to bed & the first in the morning
in bed & at 4 in the afternoon 3 spoonfuls. After the drink 
is made it will be more efficacious by putting into every 	t of drink
bezoar stone 2 gr. & unicorns horn 2 gr & some of the filings of rhinoceros
horn if you can get em when you put in these cordials put
in less hony & sugar candy zi in pouder instead of [illegible] other Rx’s leave
out these cordials. The plaster to be used in these cases is made
of red lead 3 qrs of a pound in fine pouder sallet oyl a pint boyled to
a salve on a gentle fire S.S.


48



49
Wounds made by a fork tine or sword
point or any prick of iron to cure.
A man in Nottinghamshire us’d to cure wounds by sympathy
thus & people came to him from 20 miles round abt him
viz Rx a piece of [reez’d] bacon & hold it between a pair
of tongues heated red hot & let it drop into a pot, with this
anoint the iron that made the wound & let the wound be
kept warm till it is well & close from the air Br. G.A. Betty
Coates (mother of H’s maid) cut her self with a rusty hatchet & apply’d 
a plaister to’t she was advis’d to scour the rust off the
hatchet & the wound wou’d heal much faster which she did & 
the heal’d to a miracle with speed Br. S. A. a cook-maid at Quenby 
cut the end of her finger almost of quite thro the nail
so that it hung only by the skin of the fleshy pt of her finger 
Br. G. A. advis’d that the finger end might be sewed to the
finger & a piece of gold beaters skin wrap’d round it to 
keep out the air & it heal’d without anymore ado only by 
the balsamick vertue that is in the blood & the maid cou’d 
afterwards [sere] with that end of her finger Br. G.A. note when
you use tincture of myrrh heat a silver spoon or any other spoon 
that would endure the fire upon a live coal & put a drop or 2 of the
tincture into it & dip a little ling into it & apply it warm to a 
green wound & it will heal it at twice Dressing it will also heal
the old ulcer on the leg mixt with basilicon & apply’d very hot when all
salves & plasters can’t make a cure over the lint lay a plaster of
diaculum to keep the tinctur’d lint to the sore Dress it once a day 
Mr Masson of Little Wigson a surgeon
A balsam exct in all wounds of what that sort soever, bruises
pains, aches, stitches & sprains R. C. Rx yellow rosin & 
pins rosin each ziiii linseed oyl ½ a pint Greek pitch zi
virgins wax zii gum elemni & ammoniacum each zfs oyl of
hypericon & roses amphaline & of turpentine each zifs
myrrh & mastick in pouder each zvi Boyl them together for half
an hour then strain it into a pot R. C.



50
A most exct. plaster for all pains in the limbs,
sciatica & cold gout; it draws out thorns or
splinters gotten into the flesh, under the nails
cures whitloes & ancoms etc.
Rx Rosin of the pine tree lbfs gum galbanum & ammoniacum,
each zi cyprus turpentine ziii myrrh & mastick each
zifs deers suet zii saffron in pouder zfs boyl all to the thickness
of a plaster to spred on leather R. C. Black pitch apply’d
plasterwise will draw a splinter from under the nail very quickly. E. A.
Madam Spark’s wound drink
Rx Southern wood, worm wood, bugless mugwort, wood botony, sanicle,
venice plantane, dandelion, ribwort, white bottles, agrimony, comphry,
wild angelico mint, scabious, strawberry leaves cinquefoil,
violet leaves, daisy roots, hony suckles, hawthorn buds, take 
of each a physick handful & a pettle of white wine & a gallon of 
running water, boyl all these together till half be consum’d then strain 
all the liquor from the herbs & put to it a quart of the best hony & 
boyle it a while then put it when cold into a glass or stone bottle close
stopt & keep it for yr use. Drink 3 spoonfuls every morning fasting 
& the same dose last at night till the cure is done. If it be for 
an old ulcer in any pt of the body apply a plaster or serecloth
for the purpose Mrs S. To cure sore legs vic. p. [illegible]
for a cut or green wound anoint it with oyl of turpentine & bind
some hares wool on’t let it ly on till well or bind hares wool dipt 
in the blood or lay a plaster [deminio] & let it keep on a week or longer
If you let the air come to a green wound it will corrupt then you must
dress it morning & night & make a great deal to do with it before it will
be well but if you apply an innocent thing to’t at first as soon as
it is done to keep out the air The blood will heal it alone E.A. Another
Rx Turpentine ziii bees wax & may butter each [illegible] ou. melt em to a salve. Mrs. Brooks &
Aunt [illegible] does great cure with it
when a wound or sore is grown foul or abounds with proud flesh
wash it twice a day with white wine vinegar apply’d with a rag as 
hot as you can endure it then dress the wound or sore with basilicon & tar spred
on lint and empl. deminio for a defensative on that to keep it on
w. wine vinegar will cleanse a foul wound or sore when precipitate
will not Mrs Hill of Thurcaston Salmon says Barbadoes tar is digestive,
balsamick, anodyne & [defensive] maturative & vulnerary It is a most exct. thing
in curing all manner of wounds & bruises It assuages tumors & sores pains
salv. disp. for a cut beat black rosin to pouder throw it on & bind it up W. P.



51
for wounds & ulcers or sores in the head or
any pt of the body for any cut deep or shallow
Mrs Johnson a school Mrs only spreads a little liniment
of arseus (called linimt of gum elomy or oyntmt of elemi
linimentu e gummi elemi) pr 4 [illegible] per ounce on a little lint & 
use it as a tent where there is a deep wound or only lays it on
an ordinary wound spread on lint & just air’d or warm’d agt the
fire before it is apply’d & then covers it with empl de minio or
bonds salve as a defensative she uses this as a family salve for 
all sores with good success. To stop the bleeding of a [illegible] wound or
the gangrene Mrs Johnson uses the linimt scalding hot ones & 
no more afterwards she uses it only just warm’d 
Balsamum adversus maculam will heal without a [illegible] p. 729 Salmons [doron]
To make weapon salve. Heat a pr of tongues red hot
& hold a piece of reez’d bacon with em lit it drop into a
pot pound some chalk & put to it, dress the weapon or some
twigs dipt in the blood & keep em from dust. Wm Padmore.
a cut or green wound or a burn or scald Rx turpentine ziii
bees wax & may butter each ziiii melt em to a salve melt some 
of this salve & add a little verdigrease in fine pouder stir em together 
& dress with it sometimes to keep a wound clean & free from proud
flesh. You must make a tent of it for a deep wound It is good for 
a wound on the head or any pt of the body or for an old sore & for a sore back of a horse Aunt
[Majes] mother did great cures with it Mrs M.
Warm a linnen cloth very hot & draw it backward & forwards on the sore when almost will 
or nearly heal & it will prevent a scar Dr Pool.
The surgeons say that if you would cure a wound without a
scar you must heal it gradually & take time. Mrs M. Some
say lucutellus balsam will heal without a scar. Scrape the sore
with the back or edge of a pen knife to make it bleed & heal in evry pt alike [illegible]
Mr James Allen of Whetstone cures a wound (as a kick) thus
1st he mixes sope & salt & binds that on for 24 hours
to take out the anguish & venom & prevent a gangrene
then he dresses it with burnt butter & salt till it is well.
J. A. To cure any sore old or new Rx oak bark & boyl it in
spring water to bath the sore with which you must do 5 or 6 times
a day & anoint it with flower of brimstone well mixt. W. Padmore 



52
Proud flesh. strew on it a little red precipitate
or burnt allum which last will dry up a sore or humor or any
out break in the face sooner than precipitate. mercurius sublimatus
corrosivus in fine pouder a very very little will clear a 
sore, eat off the fungus & hard white tough corruption commonly 
at once dressing when the other tow viz praecipitate & allum will 
not. If you add too much it will make the sore swell. [illegible] you 
may disguise it with a little Roman vitriol in pouder Fr. Coltman 
apothecary. Always mix a little precipitate with the salve It will keep a 
sore clean & prevent proud flesh E. A.
To eat away proud flesh to take out the venom of a sore old
or new that is angry or inflam’d or much swell’d & to heal it
in a little time & to give ease in a minute. Rx a shell-snail
brak the shell & bind the snail shell & all upon the sore for 12
hours then add a fresh one every 12 hours till well Mrs Finch.
another mix loaf sugar & burnt allum [illegible] pouder & strow upon proud
flesh or angry fiery heats or outbreaks [illegible] heal em [when] [illegible] [illegible]
surgeon. Oyl of vitriol will eat off proud flesh Mr Jn.
Wilkins clockman of Leicer had a running sore on his leg
for 2 yrs which the surgeons could not cure It was dry’d 
up at last & heal’d by dropping fro a [illegible] one drop 
of oyl of vitriol once a week & applying a plaster of
diaculu upon it abt 3 drops cured it in 3 weeks J. W.
Oyl of vitriol cures an ulceration in the mouth, throat,
uvula or other pts (only by touching the ulcer with the oyl)
for which there is scarce a better medicine, as well to enlarge
the orifice, remove a callous, as to correct & prepare it to
a good healing by touching it with lint dipt therein on the
end of a probe. p. 379 Salmons Dispens.
for a cut or new wound, beat borax to pouder as fine as can
be & fill the orifice of the wound therewith & lay any sticking
plaster over it (as pitch if you’ve nothing else) to keep the
air out & to keep it warme. If it doth not pain you. you
may keep it on a week or till well. once dressing commonly
cures. If it pains you, dress it once in 24 hours. IT will cure an
old sore and proud flesh. This never fail’d James Davis of Croft
Salmon says it cleanses ulcers & hinders proud flesh.


53
The leaves of garden valerian bruis’d are good for slight wounds upon
which account it is called cut finger [illegible] herbal
To make Mr. George Bent a baker of Leicer
his family salve He died abut the yr 1709. It is good for
any green wound, or old sore, nail bruis’d or knockt off
any bruise, or strain, pain, or ach. Sore leg making a tent
with lint dipt in’t melted when there is an hole. The [cramp.]
Rx bees wax zii rosin zii white pitch zii black pitch zii frankincense
& horse turpentine each ziiii melt all these together except
the turpentine which you must not put in till it is
taken off the fire then stir it & pour it into a bowl of
cold water. when it is cold work it well with the hands
& make it into rolls. Henry Smith & Br. Tho. Majer
A salve for a wound or cut or old sore or bruise or pain
in any pot of the body as a corecloth, a bile, a thorn, a sore
throat or [illegible] of the [illegible] swell’d
Rx Burgundy pitch the clearest & softest free from black veins
or specks the quantity of a small walnut, work it near a fire
with the finger & dip it oft in sevil oyl till it will spred with 
the thumb like butter warm the knife a little after you’ve
lay’d it on a linnen cloth or allum’d leather If you let it fry
on a hot knife it diminishes its vertue. It must be thick almost
as wax for a thorn or corn now cut. It will cure a whitlow.
for a wound that is bruis’d Boyl a flaxen rag in new
milk squeese it a little & bind it or wrap it gently abt the wound
as hot as you can endure it let it lie abt 12 hours (use the
[mild] also only once) then lay on the plaster a little warm’d dress
it but once in 24 hours unless there is corruption. You
may use sallet oyl instead of sevil oyl or any oyl of
olives It will keep in a pot cover’d a yr. It will dissolve
or break a swelling cure it Stephen Hunt.
Sam. Exon’s salve for any wound, sore or bile or cut
Rx bees was 3 pts white pitch 1 pt a little hony & as much
may butter without salt as will bring it to the consistence of a salve
It sticks pretty well. This was taught him by Sam Smith. It cured
an outbreak in a girl being apply’d plaster [illegible] in several pts of
her face & body. S. E.



54
Tho. Hall of Armsby leaping over a hedge his belly
fell upon the handle of a hay fork & ran up his short ribs
a great way which was cured in 3 weeks by Mr. Arden Elsmore
[illegible] He made a ly. of green ash ashes boyl’d in water so that he
had 2 pts of ly. He let it settle & kept it every time it was
dropt to syringe it in as hot as he could abide his finger in’t without
scalding it then he belted his salve of a green colour in 
a little ladle till it was scalding hot & dipt his tent in’t & apply’d
it so hot to the wound that he roar’d out every time it was dropt
A salve for a green wound. Rx the best bees was 2 [illegible] yellow
rosin 1 [illegible] The best soap the quantity of an hen egg. Turpentine 2 [illegible]
boyl all together then strain it into fair water when it is cold take it 
out & work it with the hands till all the knots are out & clear
then make it into a roll. It will draw & heal a new or old sore
or cut but it is best for a new sore. scrape some lint & 
melt the salve dip the lint in it & apply it to the sore covering it
with a plaster of the same salve to keep out the air. Dress it morning
& night at 1st, afterwards once a day when the orifice is almost 
healed up. Jn Gilson butcher of Kerby bellows Dr Salmon says
vitriolated spirit of wine (i.e. sp. of vitriol & sp. v. p. e.) or S. V. & sp. of
salt ana. cures all curable wounds at once dressing Salmon’s Disp.
A large ulcer that possessed almost the whole leg & reached almost
to the bone was cured in a scorbutical person only with brooklime
boyl’d in beer & apply’d twice a day p. 26. [Pecney’s] herbal
To cure any sore or wound there is no salve better than basilicon
to make a tent with lint If the matter is thick it is laudable pus but
if it runs then matter mix praecipitate with basilicon or linimentu 
arsaei with basilicon & it will thicken it Mr. Francis Coltman
Dr Elsmore mixt abt to pts Hungary water to 1 pt oyl of turpentine
It was shak’d in a bottle close stopt & mixt with basilicon which 
he dropt Jn. Smith’s hand shot by gunpouder then gun breaking They keep 
down proud flesh. This was not us’d at 1st, using the other medicines.
You can’t dress a green or new wound too seldom nor an old
sore too often Dr Pool [illegible] surgeon. Mr Jn Cooper bonesetter
his salve or corecloth from broken bones or limbs new set or
weak to strengthen or pull of pain to cure em Rx oxycroceum zi
pr 4 [illegible] wt pitch zfs 1 [illegible] sheep suet render’d zij 1 [illegible] made by Mr Sanford
by conjecture Dr Pool the mountebank commends [flos] unguenterum 
as the best of salves for wounds or sores.


55
To cure the itch of wounds, or sores
Unguentum nutritu is cooling drying & anodyne, good agt
inflammations: takes away the itch of wounds cures scabs.
[Tetter] Salmon’s Disp. Goody Simon had a sore leg that itch’d she
scratch’d it & made it look red & claw’d the skin off having try’d
tar & mutton suet one time & [attu] curd another to pacifie the
itching, in vain at last she apply’d a plaster of diacutu cum
gummis & it alay’d the itching & dry’d up & skin’d & heal’d the
sore Anne Simons another Rx the fine soot over a copper or oven
sift it thro a lawn sive mix it with hogs lard (free fro salt & 
pepper) to an oyntmt. Spred it on a silk or flaxen rag It cools
& is good to skin a sore & cure its itching E. A. Unguentum album
cures the itching of a wound in its healing. Salmons Dispensatory
To cure a sore or wound. Mrs Brooks of Croft having tore
her finger sadly [illegible] with a tenter hook Mr Roberts the barber of Leicer
cured it quickly by washing it with Hungary water every time it
was drest viz once a day with lint dipt in’t & bound to’t gently
by a plaster of deminio or diacutu to keep the air fro it Mr
B. another Tho. King of Blaby with a reaping hook having
cut a great gash in his leg cured it by working it only with 
urine 3 or 4 times in a day new made & binding a cloth
dipt in the same to’t T. K. another Put some new or old
human urine into a pot (with a little salt or with out but it is
more drying & healing with it, it prevents a gangrene in
a new wound) then heat an iron red hot & quench it there
in then syringe it very hot unto the sore or wound then
Rx rosin & bees wax each zij black pitch ziiii melt [illegible]
then add horse turpentine ziiii tar a pint al. zviii deers
suet zi melt em This is Jn Smiths salve of Blaby
exct. for any sore or wound or sore leg melt this salve
in a ladle & dip flax [hards] therein & apply it pretty 
hot ready to scald the sore especially at 1st after it has
been syring’d as above directed with hot urine. Dress it
at 1st once a day when it runs Thick corruption once in 
2 or 3 days. If there is any hollow place fill it with the
salve & hards or flax mixt & daub’d with the salve Hemp
hards [poyson] a wound or sore E. A. Verjuice will cure the itching of an
eye or sore Sister [illegible]


56
To scale a bone when a bone looks black it is foul
& when a bone looks white & is rough These 2 want
scaling & will not heal till they are seal’d The cure Put some
quick lime into a pot cover it 3 inches with boyling hot
water let em incorporate 24 or rather 48 hours if you’ve
time then with a syringe draw off abt ½ a little pot full & heat
it in a pan or with an iron that is red hot by quenching it there
in Let the iron have a knob at the end bigger than a large
walnut. Syring the sore with this hot water once a day It
cleans & drys it & seales the bone it self tho it will require
a pretty deal of time to do it make a pledget of flax hards
or flax drawn to a point at one end & being thick & broad
at the head moisten this with basilicon melted at the fgire
or by the warmth of the finger Thrust the point into the sore
to the head then clap some dry flax hardy thereon or you may
moisten em in lime water. If proud flesh arises mix basilicon 
3 pts agyptiacu 1 pt & dress the pledget Remember always 1st 
to syringe it with lime water hot. This cured E. A’s mare brought
mixt with agyptiacu did any good only at 1st they did but they
would not heal this wound the more was bruis’d on her 
side by carrying a side of pork so that it broke & you might
see her bare rib there being no flesh but only her skin
to joyn together It prov’d very difficult It was cur’d at last
(after it had been drest abt 3 months) with several good salves)
with the lime water & m. syring’d warm & lint dipt into the
said water & apply’d to the sore & kept on with white of egg 
& wheat flower & apply’d to the sore spred on leather This
made the sore look very white & run good corruption when 
it was pretty dry & clean It was syring’d as before & pouder
of lime & hony burnt was strew’d on’t to dry it up upon 
which lint dipt in lime water etc. warm was placed on’t & upon 
a plaster of white of egg & wheat flower which was continued
on till it dropt off being it was not sore & did not run. This lime 
water & mercury sublimate is called aqua phagedenica vid. Salmon’s
Disp. another to scale a bone. Syring into the sore oyl of briganu
or oyl of briganu & oyl of turpentine the 1st is best W. P. or oyl
of turpentine it will stop a humer fro [descending] to a sore. W. P. 



57
Dr Colsbatch’s pouder for green wounds & 
old ulcers Rx R. vitriol zi pouder’d very fine
infuse it in a qt of spring water over a gentle fire till
the water is all evaporated then reduce it to fine pouder again
& mix with it as much fine bole as will make it of
a flesh colour (or rather a pale pink) with this dress the
green wounds dissolving a little in water. If you’ve fistulas
to dress put it into some fresh urine & syring em with it
Mr Wm Dilks
Tho. Higgins green oyntmt for sores & wounds Rx hogs
lard zi turpentine zi bees wax zfs melt em then add verdigris
zfs stir well till cold Br. G. A. To scale a bone Put some
mercurius sublimatus corrosivus into a little viol as much 
as will cover the bottom either in pouder or in lumps & put
oyl of turpentine zi to it Let em infuse 24 hours or
longer. If it is a deep hole syringe some into the sore but
if it is not deep then only drop a drop or 2 into or on the
sore You may cover it with a rag moisten’d in the oyl dress it
once in 1 or 2 days This cured E. A.’s more mentione’d P. 56 to be
cured [there] whereas it broke out again & the [illegible] mercury 
water would not cure it. Mr Coltman the apothecary says
camphorated sp. of wine will not scale a bone when the
oyl of turp. is all us’d You may put in more to the same
sublimate no [illegible] will touch a sore for one day drest 
with it I believe there is nothing more healing This has
heal’d a sore when Bents salve allum’d curd, lime water
& sublimate would not W. P. another apply tincture of myrrh 
Mr Gibbards surgeon & bone setter of Coventry another oyl of camphir 
or spirit of camphir both are good to stop a gangrene to cleanse & 
seal rotten bones. p. 136, 137 Salmon on Bates’s Dispensatory another
scrape the bone that is black or foul & strew on it lapis calaminaris 
in fine pouder morning & evening & in 3 or 4 days it will
[scale] clean & easily scrape off Mrs French another Rx Tincture 
of myrrh & tincture of euphorbium p. e. [illegible] make em thus together
Rx myrrh zi euphorbiu zfs (both gums) spirit of wine that will fire gun 
pouder ½ a pint (qt sp that will not fire spoils the tinctures) Put em in a 
qt bottle at 1st cork’d up & ty’d down with a leather Set it in an oven after 
bread with the oven mouth open at 1st or if you can hold the arm in it at full length 
then you may shut up the oven lay sand abt an inch thick for the bottle to [illegible] shake
it after it has been in 2 hours the next day pour all into a [illegible] bottle. [illegible]



58
To eat away proud flesh mix burnt allum & 
bole in pouder & strew upon it aunt D. Boothby.
another To destroy proud flesh or a fungus  & to heal a sore or wound Rx 14 or 16 drops of new
oyl of vitriol (viz that which looks clear & is not turn’d black) put to it
spirit of wind (that will fire gunpouder) zi as much oyl of [illegible] as will make it
so tast on the tongue that you can’t drink it If there is a great fungus make
it sharper Put it into a bottle the 3 [illegible] pt full lest you break it for they will 
permit & heat at 1st set it in the hot sun for 2 or 3 days or longer in sum & it will
[illegible] [illegible] dip lint in it & rub a little over the plast made of w. lead etc. [illegible] Dr Million
To take off an escar or fungus or spungy substance that adheres to a
wound or some like [pith] wax often bred by mercury sublimate, or mercury
sublimate & Roman vitriol mixt or other corrosives, or by exposing the
wound or sore to the cold weather as going with it naked & uncover’d especially 
in frosty weather strew upon the ulcer rosin of scammony & it will clean
it to the bottom tho the bones be foul p. 259 [illegible] family [dictio??]
The cure abt a sore has been poyson’d apply allum curd (i.e. milk & allum
boyl’t to a curd) as hot as ever you can endure it washing it 1st with a rag
dipt in it very hot by dabbing it often then bind on the hot curd 12 hours
It will contract the spungy substance & if you think it will not cure it
you may dissolve & loosen the fungus by applying [stimulant] & [cold] The inward bark
of elder pounded in a mortar & afterwards pounded with sope to a salve
& boyl’d [with] cream apply it 2 times a day warm at 1st If any bone appears black after the fungus 
is eradicated you must scrape it with a pen knife then dress it with tincture
of myrrh (that is best which is made with Hungary water) & basilicon these last
cured Jn. Halfords fungus on his face caus’d by a bruise of a fall & cold 
Tho. Hely [illegible] mercury sublimate the o mixt with oyl of turpentine
[illegible] is too great a corrosive for human flesh. Precipitate is a great
deal safer to eat of proud flesh Tho. Holy [illegible] mercury subl. & most
poysons are apt to foul bones when they touch em ibid Burnt allum is
safer than praecipitate especially near the head or a bone ibid
Tar & fir turpentine p.e. mixt doth digest & ripen far beyond
basilicon p. 96 Gideon Harvey M.D. his family physician Jn. Halfords
wound on his face was cured applying allu posset curd twice very hot
& letting it lie on 3 or 4 days at a dime after the fungus was eaton
off then it was incarnated & heal’d by mixing basilicon with
tincture of myrrh in the palm of the hand with a knife & applying
it with ling cover’d with it & allum & leather spred with Bents 
salve for a defensative to keep it on It was a very obstinate
sore E. A. To take off a fungus. Touch it with R. vitriol then mix precipitat
& burnt allu It will make it corrupt & eat it off, as soon as it turns ot 
corruption m ix em with turpentine or basilicon & turpentine mixt Mr.
Wm. Wilks surgeon another Rx [illegible] or white lead cover it with wine
vinegar a pan then boyl it till it is dry then add sallet oyl to it & boyl it so
a salve [illegible] 2 heal most sores Dr Million or mix white lead with [keen] [alegar]
in an iron ladle [illegible] st over the fire stirring it oft with a stick when it is dry moisten
it again with [alegar] then dry it in the [ladle] again add sallet oyl & boyl it to a salve 


59
To dry up a running humer or an old sore &
to take away pain fro a sore & to cure a whitloe.
Rx [herrif] one good handful salt one oderate handful
running water a pint boyl the herb & water & put in the
salt when it comes from the fire Let the herb remain in it.
It is commonly called Bath it on cold
once a day xtian ponton & a traveller. This cured a 
whitloe on her thumb of 3 yrs standing after a bone
was taken out. Diapalms odorata (an emplaster) applied
for a constancy to an old running sore or ulcer in the legs is
a most exct. medicine & has perform’d a cure when most other things
have been used in vain [illegible] Disp. the lady Curzon’s oyntmt
Rx fresh butter lbfs bees wax zij shred small, horse turpentine
2 [illegible] verdigrise 1 [illegible] poudered zii rosin pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle
fire till it comes to an oyntmt or a soft salve It will be soft as
butter you may use it to the greatest sores both in tents & plasters.
you need not use burnt allum It will fetch out dead flesh in 
lumps. Id cured a leg that was to be cut off the net day & a hand
brought out a piece of rotten flesh & healed the hand. Dress with 
it twice a day at 1st It is good for kings evil sores Lady Curzon.
& sister Boothby. E. A. in the yr 718 cured Tho. Tafte’s leg bitten by 
a dog & after the sores were healed up pimples & itching humers & 
outbreaks appear’d in many pts of the leg near & remote fro the 
places where the sores had been which were cured in a little time only
by washing em with smithy water (i.e. cold trough water) cold once or
twice a day It took away the itching & dry’d up the humers Tho. Tafte
Bath running sores on the legs with human urine heated hot
with a linnen cloth dipt in it every night agt the fire This cured
Jn. Halford’s legs that were troubled with a [lye] water Ann Tasie
To dress sores boyl Roman vitriol zi in ½ a gallon of any fair water
& to disguise it add a little styptick water to change the colour apply 
the water to the sore if swell’d as warm as you can bear it & hold the
hand or foot in it for seven hours together stand in it or dab it with
hot cloths 20 times a day. It cures swellings you may use it cold if
in haste Dr Pool the mountebank doth great cures with this water which have
been given over by other surgeons but it oft requires patience & long
time to perfect the cure He uses excanceration water for healing & fistulas
He uses only a brown salve like deminio He generally rubs off proud
flesh sometimes he consumes it with burnt allum it but seldom D. I.
Strew upon an ulcer rosin of scammony & it will cleanse it to the bottom,
tho the bone be foul vid [kides] in Salmons family dispensatory 


60
Rheumatism
Rx 3 balls of the dung of a stone horse new dropt, steep it
2 or 3 hours in as much new milk as will cover them then strain
it thro a cloth & add abt as much more new milk as will make
it half a pint boyl it and as the skum arises take it off &
drink it warm at night going to bed for a fortnight will make you sweat
& is good taken after any fal or inward bruise. Robt Hall
the glasier of Leicer had a rheumatism caus’d as Dr Benskin told
him by leaving off smoking tobacco the Dr purg’d him a long 
time for it when he was come to his crutches & cured him but he
found great benefit by the horse dung medicine some take it
boyl’d in hale & some sweeten it with treacle but Robt Hall took 
only in milk. another Mrs P. Rx the tops of green wheat before
it hath shot an ear & distill it in a gallon of right brandy in 
a cold still give a quarter of a pint once in 24 hours with 2 
spoonfuls of syrup of clove July flowers. rub the distemper’d
pt with the flower of oyntmt i.e. Mrs. Packers yellow oyntmt
work it in against the fire once a day till the pains cease Mrs P,.
for a rheumatism with a fever al. a reumatick fever 
Rx sassaphras chips & liquorish root each zfs china pr 1 [illegible] & 
srasaparilla pr I [illegible] each zifs shavings of hartshorn 2 [illegible] & ivory 2 [illegible]
orange & lemon peel each zij best sena zij mis em with 
those herbs viz ground dwarf elder ground ivy red sage,
horehound scurvy grass, st. johns wort, buck bean (al. water
trefoil) sanicle, agrimony, fumitory, hartstongue, brooklime,
watercresses, liverwort, fether [fern], each mi. [red]
boyl all the ingredients with four gallons & a half of water
to 4 gallons strain it & put the liquour to the malt & mash
it as you do for beer or ale & put into the wort yest & 
let it work abt 10 hours then run it into a tun can & after 
2 days drink as much as you can for the constant drink. It will
keep in hot weather not above 9 or 20 days This diet drink
prescrib’d by Dr Thomas Perkins of Creyton 2 m. from 
Brixworth in Northamptonshire It cured Richd Walton E.A.’s
[illegible] at Do of a swell’d leg & a rheumatic fever when Dr
Keel & Dr Ashby’s pouder could do no good He lost his leg 
[illegible] [illegible] that [illegible] [illegible] of sickness He began to drink it [illegible]


61
Tuesday before whitsunday & continued it till December
following viz in the yr 1714 & he drank it in 
the spring 715. It purges gently without griping or
making you sick or uneasie tho it may happen to work
29 times successively. Dr Perkins & R S Walton. This cured
R. W. when most more concluded in a dead man.
To take away a sciatica pain; or rheumatic pain from the 
arms, or legs, or shoulder & to ease the gout or any pain
in the limbs Rx oyl a spike & oyl of exeter p.e. anoint
it on agt the fire once a day till the pain ceases. If for a 
rheumatic pain, after you’ve anointed the grieved pts 2 
or 3 days bleed in the arm & boyl mountains, flax the 
thickness of a mans thumb in a qt of ale, or beer & ale
till it comes to a pint. It may give you 2 or 3 stools. Drink 
posset drink or water gruel with it or whey. This has cured
when Br G.A’s rheumatic pouder would not. David Lane of
[Wiston] another the rd Mr. North of Braunston in Rutland his
purge for Ed Bennet (servt. to Br. Boothby) his lameness in his knee
of several yrs standing & pains often all over his body Rx sal
cathartic zi cum crem. tart. zfs He was order’d to take it twice
intermitting seven days betwixt each purge. This is one purge. To 
take buckbean & roman wormwood each mi (the 1st is the most 
material, it will do without the last) & put em in a pitcher & pour
2 pts of warm water to it & cover it & let it infuse one night or
longer & to drink a coffee dish of it every morning fasting but if
that was offensive or disagreeable to mix it with all his beer or
other drink that he commonly drank & to drink no liquid without a 
mixture of it. To make an issue on the lame leg above the knee
& to dry up that below the knee which he then had. Ed. Bennet.
any rheumatick or inward pain in the thigh, back etc. put old rusty
iron lbi or better into a pipkin with ale 3 pts which put into an oven as
soon as you’ve drawn the bread or [illegible] & sit up the oven again & let it 
stand 5 hours. Drink every morn a qr of a pint or ½ a pint warm while it
lasts. Let it stand all the time with the iron in it. It will be of a very 
green colour near the bottom This cured French Gregory Rd Mr Stokes
This will cure a dropsie & swell’d legs ibid Dr Bostocks cordial will
often cure a rheumatism when Br. Geo Ashby’s pouder would not E. A. 


62
A rheumatism Rx mountain flax half a qr of an ounce
ale a pint boyl it on a slow fire to ½ a pint strain it thro
a fine cloth & drink it at night or in the morning fasting 
you may drink either gruel or posset drink when it works. Mrs
Caulton A dist drink for a rheumatism, scurvy, dropsie
(or a rheumatism scorbutical or dropsical) & to sweeten the blood 
Rx nettle seeds a galn gill a galn tansy a pt mustard seed lbfs.
Bruise the seeds & tie em in a bag. Put all these in 4 or 5 galns
of ale. Let it be 3 days old before you drink it. Drin ½ pint 
warm in the morning, & as much at 4 o clock in the afternoon.
Mrs. Caulton. A rheumatism by a soldier Rs Raysins of the sun
lbi stoned & bruis’d figs slit lbi hartshorn shavings pr 2 d liquorish
2 d angelica, foals foot rosemary, balm, spearmint, rock 
rue, maiden hair wood [??tony] wood sorrel, liverwort, gill each
mif boyl all together in [illegible] qts of spring water till ½ is consum’d 
then strain & sweeten it with what you please a traveller & Br S. A.
another anoint the pt pained with oyl of tobacco 2 or 3 several
times E.A. another Rx oyl of easter & oyl of lavender 
p.e. anoint the pained part with it without [heating] only in the
winter hold a warming pan with coles or embers near it anoint
[illegible] & repeat the oyls. Drink cold water from a spring where
the sun shines upon’t or well water that is hard water half a 
pint in a morning for a wash for a man abt 60 or a woman
a young man may drink more David Lane
another for rheumatic paines Rx hearts tongue mviii wood betony
mifs put em in 4 gallons of beer brewed of 2 pecks of malt & 
boyl the liquor with the ingredients in it till it comes to 3 gallons
Let it stand & work 5 days Then drink a pint night & morning till all 
is spent. Put oyl of turpentine 3 drops into each pint. Let a woman
take but 3 qters of a pint night & morning S. S.
a medicine for the rheumatism Rx ale 2 gallons six hundred of
bugloss (it is bugus in the original Rx) al ox tongue) sage mi
rue mi you must bruise the bugus & the herbs together & tie em up in
a cloth & put em in the vessel & let stand five days before you [draw]
it. [illegible] with bugus is. S. S.
another Rx syrup of buckthorn zifs for a woman zij for a man put 2 
nutmegs & 10 cloves bruised steep em in a pint of white wine or ale
the 1st is best 48 hours shaking it 3 or 4 times a day Then pour off one
third of the clear wine & mix it with the dose mifs 2 days & repeat the
purge the third day & so take 3 purges. The remaining [illegible] nutmeg & cloves
will serve for other use afterwards. They connect the griping of the syrup
This cured [springthorp] baker of Leicer tho 1st purge gave ease, the second
made him lay aside his crutches & the third made a perfect cure. Dr. Brooks
& Mrs Finch.


63
a rheumatism any inward pain or stitches, a cold
a pain in the side or back or stomach.
Rx 6 or 7 balls of a stone horse’s new dung reeking hot tie
it up in muslane & put it into a qt of posset drink made
of ale & beer & strained Then let it infuse 2 or 3 hoursor
all day drink a qt of a pint at a time at any time by night
or by day warm. If you take it at night it will cause you to 
sweat. You may drink a qt or 2 in a day. This taken, one time & 
dwarf elder tea a tea cupfull another cured a violent rheumatism
in a man of Oxfordshire confin’d to his bed He was kept fro
meat with water : gruel. He was kept from ale if he ever drank it
his pains returned. He often eat milk porridge. Sometimes it was
3 or 4 weeks before he was well. Mrs. Ann Lathwel. It is more nauseous 
made with [illegible] bd of [illegible]
a rheumatism Rx water trefoyl & archangel make tea very bitter
Drink a draught morning & 4 o clock afternoon. an oyntmt
clarifie beef brine a pint over the fire while it is hot put it
into a stone bottle, add oyl of bays zfs & oyl of turpentine 1 d
anoint where the swelling & pain is, every night till well Mrs
Caulton. Rheumatic pains Drink w. wine & water or only water
that has stood in a mug 6, 8, or 12 hours or longer drink it almost constantly
whey is good with exercise juice of lemon with water is good,
so is lemon tea Rx cinnabar of antimony snake root in pouder
with hony & w. sugar candy in pouder make an electurary  Rx the
quantity of a nutmeg in the morning fasting or less or mor according
as it purges This & drinking water cured E. A. of violent pains
in his back DR Salmon says cinnabar of antimony is a very much
prized remedy in the French disease. It forces sweat cure [illegible] falling
sickness, apoplexie, convulsions. It sweetens the blood & all the
juices being taken for 7 or 8 weeks together morning & evening fro
zfs to [illegible] ii or zi in some convenient vehicle or syrup. Dr Quincy says
it is a powerful alterative in all chronick diseases. Dr Jn. Cheshire
in his treatise on the rheumatism says that it displays its tyranny in 
fixed & sometimes in vagrant aches There is one medicine for it that is
second to none as an alterative after necessary evacuation in the whole
system of physical preparations, that is cinnab. antimon. a medicine of
sterling worth known efficacy & seldom fails of success, if administered
with judgmt verbum sapionti [safest]
for the gout or rheumatism Rx flower of brimston zv native
cinnabar zi gum guaicu, pickled ginger each zij conserve of
Roman wormwood zifs syrup of clove gilliflowers as much as
will make it into an electuary you may add snake root in 
pouder zii a little sugar candy poudered If the stomach is squeamish & 
[illegible] with taking medicines the cinnabar
Mr Boyle infused cinnabar of antimony in rhenish wine & attributes 



64
to it marvellous virutes in contumacious surgical cases
Fullers dispensatory p. 1 Rheumatic pains. Fry briony root 
rasped or grated in grease free from salt. apply it as hot as you 
can abide it. Tho. Juice. A rheumatism Rx ivory shavings
zii boyld in 3 pints of ale till one pint is consumed, strain & drink 
a qr of a pint every morning fasting as much in the evening for 
a pretty long time together. Mrs Frances Winstanly Dr. Quincy
says rasura eboris is much of the same nature with rasura C.C.
shavings of hartshorn. Some think water is as good as ale.
An oyster drink for a rheumatism. Rx oyster shels ½ a peck burn
em as you do lime, then pour water 4 galns scalding hot upon em,
let em stand 24 hours. Pour off the clear & warm the liquor & infuse
therein sassafras 6 ounces liquorish 4 ou. mace zii. Let em infuse
24 hours more; then stain the liquor & vessel it up for use. Dose a 
pint morning and evening.
For the rheumatism or gout. a farmer at upper Brails in Oxfordshire
6 m from Sheepy Norton sells a pouder that cures it for some
time. His directions. Boyl one paper of the pouder pr. 2 s 6 d per 
paper with stone crop mi lavender cotton mi in a at of new milk
till half is boyled away then strain it & put in saffron 3 d keep 
it stirring till cold then put in treacle 4 ou. & crab verjuice a 
pint. Drink it a 4 mornings & 4 evenings fasting before & 
after one hour. The pouder weighs zi [bating] 1 copper farthing
It is made as E.A. conjectures of stone crop (i.e. wall pepper 
[illegible] & elecampane It is very biting to the tongue. It is not
bitter perhaps there may be aristolochea in it. (some think a little
ginger & pepper) Rx it in the morning when you rise & at 4 in the
afternoon of the same day cold. It generally binds but some
times it loosens the body. Gilbert Hollowell horse courser at 
the [Boll] in Little Ashby often took it with benefit
For rheumatic pains or pains in the back, side or shoulder etc. This cured
Geo Florence Fidler when he had a violent pain in the small of his back & side
& could not go without crutches. He was blooded in the foot on the side on 
which he felt the greatest pain & his foot was put into warm water to make it
bleed more freely he bled about 14 ou. Then rx mustard seed bruis’d in a mortar zfs 
steep it all night in all a pint (strong ale is best) In the morning strain it
[hire] a linnen cloth or strain & drink it in the morning for one day & fast 2 
hours after it using exercise as walking or riding if the weather will permit
or go up stairs & down stairs 2 or 4 hours It will bring away a great
deal of gravel if you are troubled with gravel which is often the cause of the
pain of the back Rx it 3 mornings together Half a pint of ale is a dose for  
a little man or woman & if you’ve some left at the bottom of the mug in which 
it is steept it will pour off the [clearer] G. Florence had fresh mustard seed every 
time but it will serve pretty well twice or for 2 doses of all except when you 
are very much afflicted. after you’ve taken one dose anoint the plows most
pained with oil of spike agt the fire twice or thrice a day. but if you are not
much afflicted the mustard ale will cure without bleeding or the oil keep a flannel to it.
[illegible] was [illegible] from [illegible] to [easter] It gives [illegible] G. Florence. 




65
A Pain in the Stomach
Rx Spirit of lavender a little tea spoonful (or 20 drops)
drop’d on a little white sugar when your stomach pains you.
Lady Robinson, this is very good especially when the pain in the 
stomach is caus’d by obstructions of the courses. Pr. George
(that marry’d Qn Anne of England) was cur’d of a pain in the
stomach by drinking a glass of verjuice for a great many
mornings together & walking after it. M. Gee. For a pain 
in the stomach & on one side like a pleurisy caus’d by drinking
small beer when hot. Rx waters of fennel, saxifrage & 
parsly ana zifs sp. of juniper zi tincture of laudanum [illegible] ii
oyl of caraways zfs ens veneria [illegible] i sp. carminativus zi salt
of wormwood zfs syrup of anniseeds zifs mix for a julap
dose is one spoonful morning & noon & 3 spoonfuls at
night going to bed. Thos. Farran the weaver prescribed this to 
Mary Gee Aug. 1707. Farran’s medicine did not good. She found the
greatest benefit by sassafras wood in chips infus’d in water drinking every 
morning & night abt a coffee dishfull. For a pain or wind or 
any sickness at the stomach. Boyl gentian zi & the peel of one sevil 
orange in 5 pints of water til wasted to 3 pings Drink in the morning
fasting & at 4 in the afternoon ½ a coffee dish full MRs Finch or you may 
infuse gentian zi & the peel of a sevil orange rue water balm water rosewater 
fennel water each a qr of a pint Double anniseed water & pint drink a 
spoonful or more till you’ve remov’d the pain. [illegible] For vapours or
wind in the stomach or pain in the stomach Rx tincture of castor 25 drops (a dose for
a woman) in a glass of cold water or beer & apply to the
navel a plaster of galbanum strain’d broader than both the
palmes of your hands. This cured Jeffry Daffern’s wife after a ‘
great many noted medicines had been baffled. Mrs. Elizth Basset.
Another for wind in the stomach. mix elecampane in pouder
with live hony & take a knifes pointfull. It is also good for a
cough & consumption. Butter & honey with bread eaten in a 
morning fasting is very healthful a London Dr eat em daily.
Mrs. [Kenton]. Elecampane & hony is good for a pain in the stomach.
ibid For a pain in the stomach especially if caus’d by worms
& to kill worms in man woman & child Rx mercurius dulcis gr
& jalop let the apothecary direct so much as to purge six times



66
you must keep very warm or it will flux This brought
a great many worms from Goody [Cater] being abt 70 yrs old
Lady Moor Robt Walton’s Br. in law was cured of a pain in his stomach
by drinking all his own urine warm when he had try’d [illegible] things in vain.
For the wind colick or wind in the stomach or gripes
Rx ginger carraway seeds anniseeds each a halfpenny worth
in pouder juniper berries beaten to pouder 1 d aloe succotrina
in pouder 2 d tar as much as will make it into a paste which 
roll up with liquorish pouder in to pills Rx 2 pills at night & 2 
at morning for 3 nights & 3 mornings successively or when
ever you are grip’d begin with 2 pills unless you are grip’d 
but a little then stay till night before you take them go on with
the pills tho you’ve ease till you’ve taken 12 pills a Spanish Dr cur’d [Kg] C. 2 with 
these pills Mary Burton a traveller was cured with these pills for
a great many yrs at once taking They purge gently
unguentum norvinu (an oyntmt for the nerves) expels wind & helps
the cholic p. 762 Salm. Dispensatory. Womens pain in the stomach caus’d
by obstructions. Drink cow piss ½ a pint 3 mornings successively
this cured Mrs Finch or boyle a little saffron in a draught of
posset drink. ibid.
Emplastru stomachicu Rx styracis opt. tacamah: odorifer. ana ziiii
succini cariophyl: n: moschat. mastich: & aloes succotrini a zi cinnamon:
zfs stryacis liquid: q.s.f. empl. J.T. for the stomach
& head Rx castoru & angelica each ziii in pouder with hony  
make an electuary The dose is zfs or [illegible] ii mixt with 4 or 6 ou.
of white wine. Then add stibium finely pouder’d 3 grains let em
stand in a glass bottle 4 or 5 hours shake the mixture & drink it
up. Provide a fat hen boyl her in water with a crust of bread 
only. let the patient drink of the broth as oft as he vomits. Or Rx
a good quantity of ale posset drink (it corroborates the stomach)
& if you do not vomit add to it a little hony. This washes away 
all filth & slime in the stomach which generates all distempers in the
ventricles. This above prescrib’d is in all surfeits an admirable medicine
at night you must take an hypnotic after all catharticks to secure the
exploded spirits ex. gr. Rx aqu. cinnamom: hordeat. zifs aqu. cinnamom:
fort. zfs laud. liquid gutt. 20. syr de macon. zii m. [cape] hora somni
post cathartici operationem. J. T. A bag to comfort the stomach 
Rx mastic red rose leaves, a nutmeg grated or in pouder mace, dry mint mix 
em all in a dish upon a chafing dish of coles Put em hot into a bag & 
hang it abt the neck against the stomach S.S. 


67
This pill is admirable in all distempers of the stomach.
It suffers nothing to putrify in it, it expells all uncleanness & 
cleanes the same, it causeth mirth, strengthens the heart & 
head & cleans the [reins] & womb. Rx white or brown amber
& mastich each zii aloes zv. agani zifs true aristolochia 
zfs. Beat em small & with syrup of worm wood make a mass
for pills from each dram make 6 or 7 of which take 2 or 3 
going to bed. This pill is nulli secunda. J. T.
The distill’d water of camomile flowers is an exct. remedy to 
assuage pain in the stomach dose ziii warm or for want of 
it a decoction of camomile flowers. J. T.
Some people are troubled abt 3 hours before dinner with disorder
in their stomachs as with pain, wind, crudities etc. Rx [illegible]
stomachic every time in a dish of coffee does the cure. J. T.
The tincture of the bark of sassafras wood extracted in 
sp of wine given at the time or repeated several times a day to 
[illegible] spoonfuls dispels wind in the stomach almost in a minute & 
[illegible] of ground ivy drawn with sp. of wine has the same vertue. J. T.
oyl of mint is wonderfully effectual in all stomachic
diseases. J. T. To assuage pain & distress & offending matter Rx
chimical oyl of bees wax, oyl of lilies, [camo???] & sweet almonds
each zi fresh butter & hens grease each zifs to be used outwardly
J. T. Dr. Bradlys tea for wind in the stomach. Rx Red sage
3 pts rosemary flowers 1 pt. bawn 2 pts 5 cloves add a little
of the kind of an orange (if you please) Mrs M. To dispell
the wind downwards out of the stomach or bowels. Rx
the 17 black pepper corns whole alone or in a spoonful
of beer any time of the day you may take it 2 or 3 
days successively till you find the wind wrought off. Stephen
Hunt of Whetstone cures himself by this Rx. Dr Tho.
Farran. Dr. [illegible] [Elizer] that works by sweat will cure the
wind colick or wind in the bowels pr. 6 d at Mr. Martins in 
Leicer. Boyl some cloves of garlick in milk strain & drink it
fasting it dryeth up a [rheum] or moisture in the stomach. Dr Cogan.


68
To procure an appetite, to help digestion, to strengthen
a weak & cure a sick stomach, vapours, melancholy, wind
the biting of a mad dog, quartan agues, fevers especially 
pestilential, the plague, worms in children; to stop [larks], bloody
flux & the [terms], vomiting, & inflammation of the mouth &
throat it hold therein; to provoke sweat & expell all manner
of poysonous & inflections diseases fro the heart. To prevent miscarriage.
Rx Virginian snake-week 15 grains for a man in pouder infuse
it in ½ a pint of cold water 12 hours shake em & drink both
pouder & water cold till you are well pr. 1 s 6 d per ounce at Leicer. The
Rx Mr. Edward Lovell
For wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes Dr Wilson
of Grantham his pacific drops. Rx liquid laudanu zi
oyl of juniper zii (per 1 s 2 d) The dose is fro xv. xx. to 
xxv drops in any vehicle. Begin with 5 drops first &
increase em gradually Take em in ale or beer & [ride]
after em they are diuretic & bring away gravel [illegible]
If they do not cure the wind you  must take an electuary
of [zedony] Mr Wm Cook apothecary These are the ingredients
in the said electuary viz [zadoary] rhubarb salt of
wormwood [illegible] ginger oyl of nutmeg syrup of cloves 
Rx the quantity of a nutmeg of the said electuary roll’d in sugar morning
& night after the morning dose drink gentian tea after the 
night dose drink 15 or 20 [pacific] drops in beer This I try’d in vain.
Bates in his dispensatory commends The electuary of pepper for
the colic & gripes. Unguentu eboloru i.e. oyntmt of danewort or 
dwarf elder is ext in dropsies tumors for if with it the belly & other pts
be anointed it resolves the wind & removes the tumor. [Tis] ext. in 
joynt pains & gout Rx succ rad. ebul. zii [co?] in ol. cham. zviii ad
consump. succ. & cum cor q.s.f. unguent. when you anoint these with
mix it with a little vinegar or wine. p. 293. Cooks [marrow] of chirurgery 
for gripes with a looseness there is scarce any thing better than rice
milk eaten warm E.A. Wind in the stomach swallow 17 pepper
corns for 2 or 3 mornings together & at night going to bed take a spoonful
or 2 of brandy burnt with rosemary & sweeten’d with sugar
keep it in a bottle close stopt The 1st drives the wind out & the 
second prevents its return this cured Stephen Hunts wife when the 
Drs could not S. Hunt.


69
To procure an appetite & to correct
wind in the stomach
Rx wormwood mii shred or cut it, or pound it in a mortar
boyl it in two qts of water till one is consumed then
bottle it close put a little of it (to the palate) in some ale
or beer giving it a shake or stir. It is a gratefull & 
agreeable. Bitter you may try gentian juniper sprigs
or berries, gill, tansies, broom, sage, buckbean, carduus,
centuary, Roman wormwood. Rosemary good for the
head & sight. orange peel, balm, camomile sprigs or
flowers wormseed faenugreek fumetory, rue, cloves, nutmeg
elecampane, sassafras, savory, dale chips or shavings,
feverfern does all a bitter herb can do, says Pochey. white
horehound strengthens the stomach & cures an ill habit of
body. ibid. wormwood in ale or beer breeds a red rich face
but not in water says Dr Hartop. Virginian snakewood mint
carduus seeds A pouder for wind exct. Rx seeds of 
burdock zij aniseeds & liquorish each zi make of all a fine
pouder & mix em with white sugar candy. The dose is zi p. 612 
Cook’s marrow of physick. another smoke a pipe of tobacco
& after you’ve taken 2 or 3 whifts, swallow the spittle
2 or 3 times in one pipe once or twice a day. It is best in a
morning fasting. Stephen Hunt. another burnt a cork that h as
stopt a wine vessel for some yrs to ashes Rx  a knifes pointful in ½
pint of warm ale night & morning Stephen Hunt
For gripes & wind or convulsion fits oft caus’d by wind. Rx 
strong ale one qt hony or treacle lbfs boyl em & when
cold all syrup of damask roses (i.e. syrup of roses solutive)
zi stir em to mix then keep it close stopt in a bottle Rx one
spoonful alone when grip’d or ill or at any time after eating
or mix it with posset drink ½ pint or syllabub drink (viz milking
fro the cow to a little vinegar & sugar) W. Balby another cut dry 
wormwood mi infuse it in a bottle of ale close stopt & 
drink one spoonful of this wormwood ale in the beer at 


70
at any time when you find wind at the stomach or
you are not well. To the precedt Rx you may add 
viz boyl in the ale rosemary & sage strain it then add a 
little saffron with the hony & boyl it a little again before
it is qutie cold add syrup of roses zij They purge gently 
& clear the urine being good for th stone & gravel
the urine when settled in the pot is like rags you may hang
it on a stick. Thus was Jn [Tralby] of Wigson his urine being
abt 21 yrs old & having convulsions fits. Tho. [Heifferd]
of Counterthorp is the author of these 2 last Rxs which were
communicated to E. A. by Wm Tralby [illegible] E.A. made the
addition of rosemary sage & saffron. This upon tryal was good
for nothing. Pain in the stomach caus’d by wind lying heavy like
a wright Rx agrimony (which hath not a hollow stalk) centaury 
each as much as a nosegay gentian root zij wormwood ½ as 
much as of the agrimony picking out the dead leaves boy em
in strong beer or ale in a pint let it stand afterwards all night 
then bottle it close being strain’d & drink at 4 mornings fasting
it clears the stomach & strengthens it & takes away the wind &
pain when the pain is below the stomach after you’ve taken the
said drink Rx ½ a spoonful of mustard seed once a day at any 
time before meals for 2 or 3 days with a little drink in a spoon.
take it whole this cured Mr Thos. Simpkin & Wm Marches wife.
Stephen Hunt Wind in the stomach chew a few sweet
fennel seeds Mr. Baxter another eat some white [pears] after you 
have carry’d em in the pocket or when they are dry or old they will cure
the heartburn caused by wind E. A. Dr Quincy commends tinctura sacra
as a great preserver of the tone of the stomach & to maintain a good digestion,
good for hard drinkers Dispensatory p. 393. To procure a appetite 
to expell wind & prevent & cure the gripes for the grips & wind & to 
amend the tone of the stomach eat salt plentifully with every thing you 
eat strew salt 2 or 3 times on all mutton beef or veal roasting To get a
stomach eat oatmeal pudding with salt & butter & a little vinegar or
verjuice & a little brown sugar or make a posset of milk porridge thus
make some milk porridge put a spoonful of vinegar or [illegible] stir it till it
curdles or turns then add a little brown sugar turn a porringer at a time 
thus & walk or exercise after it E. A. For pain or wind in the stomach 
& to get an appetite Infuse hiera picra zi in a pint of white wine [for]
2or 3 days Pour off one pr 1 s spoonful of the clear & drink it fasting
Joseph Spence farmer on Rx 9 black pepper corns in ½ a spoonful of
sallet oyl whole Rx [em] fasting a week or longer Dr [?atly] & Br. Boothby.


71
A person hurt by a fall
Blood in the arm Take lucatellus balsom inwardly a knifespoint fully presently
after the fall & at night going to bed for [illegible] or 3 nights & 
in the morning fasting for 2 or 3 mornings. If an eye is swell’d
to abate the swelling beat a lump of [roch] allum in an earthen
porringer with the white of 2 eggs moisten some flax in it & 
apply it to the swelling with a linnen cloth one in 2 hours
or as it drys moisten the flax again & again To take away the
blackness & [blueness] of a bruise bath it with spirit of wine
& apply a flannel to it. These things cured Mrs Margaret Wilson 
having a fall from her horse Apr. 1707. A man of Whetstone
being [kickt] on the face was cured with only bathing often with
new milk very hot it took away the blackness another to take
away blackness & [blueness] caus’d by a wound anoint it with
butter cold & chafe it in well may butter is best. Michael Simons
had a kick of a horse on his thigh so that to lay for dead & he
was cured without bleeding only by chafing it presently with
butter Anne Simons. for a bruise or strain apply white of an 
egg & wheat flower plasterwise nothing better Wm Pinch of Aylston
The last Rx Elizth Halford try’d having strain’d her wrist so
that her hand swell’d but it pain’d it & made it swell
more She cured it by boyling soap & brandy & binding
it on spread on cloth EH. A strain in the back Rx 14 
or 17 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught of warm 
ale 3 mornings successively This cured one that could not go
Mrs Finch. A bruise or strain old or new. anoint the place with oyl
of mallows new drawn It will take away the pain & swelling then
[illegible] & dress [suet] p.e. apply it plasterwise till well the
plaster strengthens. If for an old bruise add oyl of [illegible]
to the oyl of swallows & oyl of roses and 1 d the next day apply a 
plaster of paracelsus. Francis Kenton. for any inward bruise
after a fall & drink a glass of cold water. The Rd Mr. Lovell.
Joshua Goodrich was thrown down fro his horse when he gallop’d
& he lay upon his leg which so pain’d him that he could 
not stand on’t he rode home but his leg was not broken,
it look’d black & yellow & he was very lame for 6 weeks 
having a corecloth on’t he was thus cured Rx deers suet 


72
Deers suet 2 pts good brandy 1 pt melt em
together & rub it on warm agt the fire with the hand
morning & evening at 1st then once a day till well. he 
found ease at the first dressing Mr Winstanly prescrib’d
it. Jos. Goodrich. A strain or bruise Rx some linnen
cloth a little bigger than the place you intend to cover, lay
upon that brown paper of the same extent, & upon the 
paper place flax or soft [hards] then having a pr of
tongues heated red hot hold a piece of black pitch in one
hand & melt it agt the tongues so that it may melt & 
cover the hards when you’ve made a surface of pitch
besmear it all over with the white of an egg beaten
lastly sprinkle it all over with salt & apply it cold. It
is very painful for abt 2 days but it’s an exct. medicine
for a strain or a crackt bone Aunt Majer did great good
with it you must let it lie on till it drops off. Mrs M. an inward
bruise by a fall. Drink a quart or 2 of cold water & 
bleed in the arm James Lappington & Anne Tapie. a strain 
boyl brooklime in humane urine (the older the better) with salt
bind it on as hot as you can endure it This cured 2 of Mr Allen
Gregory’s son of a strain in their knees that they could scarce 
go Stephen Hunt. A strain, bruise or old pain or to strong
then a weak limb that sometimes is free fro pain. Rx some
crab verjuice (the older the better) boyl em being made thick
with salt then apply em as hot as you can endure with a red
cloth or flannel bound to it repeat it once in 12 or 24 
hours. This has made the lame to walk, old Tho. [Freer] anoth
Beat some white of an egg & mix verjuice therewith bind it
to the place pain’d with some flax or flax hards dipt there in
& bound on with a linnen cloth repeat it night & morn. This 
cured Mr Simon Barwel that had strain’d his leg abt the ancle
by a fall when Mr. Goodyear & another famous London surgeon
had try’d several medicines in vain one affirming
that one bone the other that 2 bones were out when never a 
bone was dislocated being only a strain & a swelling Mr
S. Barwel. Another Mrs Elizth Basset of Blaby stumbled at a [cus???] 
& fell down & bruis’d her leg a little above her ancle so that it swell’d
mightily & look’d black She thought at 1st her leg was broken 



73
or some bone dislocated which 2 last things were not
true Mr. Wilks the surgeon apply’d linnen dipt in white of
eggs beaten & mixt with vinegar & water to cool & strengthen it
The next dressing [illegible] used camphorated spirits of wine The third
time he apply’d Barbados tar. A cataplasm of the root of Solomon’s
[illegible] is good to take away black & blue marks arising
from contusions [Millers] Herbal vid. p. 75.
A poultis for a swelling or bruise or strain by Tho. Hely. Rx new
milk a pint or for want thereof scum’d milk, oatmeal mi
boyl it till it is as thick as flower meat then add sheeps suet
chopt small zij & let it boyl a little time to melt Then 
take [houseleek] & mallows each a qr of a handful chopt
small put em in & let it boyl 3 or 4 wallops. Apply it
thin & warm as you can endure it at night with a linnen
cloth & a flannel over that or for want of it a double
linnen cloth. you must put in a little handful of oatmeal.
use it twice a day at 1st sitting or lying still. If
you walk abt use it only at night. The same poultis will
serve 2 or 3 times, adding only a little fresh suet & a little
milk to keep the kettle fro burning. If it breaks heal it with 
healing salves If it is only broken a little this poultis will
heal it, being not shifted above once in 2 or 3 days. avoid
salt things & strong drink a qt of small beer is enough
for a man to drink in a day. This poultis is anodyne cooling
& supplying & strengthening oyl of turpentine is often
too hot. A poultis for a swelling, bruise or strain
by Peter King mountebank. Rx flax seed zij in pouder boyl
it in a qt of water till it grows tender or is consum’d then
add hogslard zij & after that is melted wheat flower as much
as will make it into a poultis apply it warm & renew it
every 12 hours at 1st till the pain is abated then once in 24 hours
is disperses & sometimes breaks it. March 715 In Halford driving
plow fell down & a horse trampled on his leg abt 
the ankle which was very much swell’d so that he could not go
but with great pain. there was a little hole like the head of a
nail e.a. apply colebatches pouder dissolv’d in urine & 
a linnen cloth dipt therein: a day or 2 after E. A. apply’d
white of egg beaten & mixt with verjuice then oyl of turpentine


74)
& goose grease. Bents salve & Barrets 
salve. diaculu cum gummis [att] these did little or no
good. at last we used the last poultis which took away the
pain after that had been apply’d 3 or 4 times We heated old
human urine & dipt a linnen cloth therein & apply’d
very warm This was repeated along time at one dressing 
after the urine was dry’d It was anointed with 
unguentu [dialthaea] agt the fire. This took away the pain 
& stiffness a plaster of Jn. Smiths salve was apply’d to 
the place bruis’d by the nail but it never [illegible] corruption
It was poultis’d every night & drest with hot urine & after it
anointed with ungt dialthaea every morning This strengthen’d 
his leg & abated the swelling & made a perfect cure.
The free labourers at Blaby standing upon the shafts & driving
the horses made a sudden turn which threw him down & the wagon
fore wheels ran over him & the hinder wheels drag’d him on it
was empty when he came home fro coles he was blooded & a sheep
skin new taken off was apply’d warm to his side where there was 
a swelling as big as hi fist the wheel went over his middle he
was blooded the skin lay on one night it stank the next morn 
& he took flower of brimstone almost a spoonful in a porringer of new milk from the cow 2 or 3 times 
intermitting a day or 2 He found great ease by taking it. [illegible] a strain 
or swelling boyl a qt. of strong ale to a pint then put in hogs
lard ziiii let it boyl a little again then apply it as hot as
you can endure it. Traveller. To break any swelling white
or red as whitloe i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb felon or ancome i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb. Rx mallow leaves. elder & chickwood all together mi
wash’d & chopt small, put it to a little thick cream, white bread crums 
deers suet zi for want of it sheeps suet, hony a little spoonful boyl
em to a poultis. apply it as hot as you can bear it, with a linnen rag.
Renew it once in 12 hours, especially while it runs. It will both break
& heal [mudden] wheelwright of Rotherby. A poultis to take away 
pain from a swelling or [illegible] or raw sore ore burn Rx new milk mutton
suet chopt & the skins taken out (or for want of it tallow or deers suet)
oatmeal ground & hous leek wash’d & chopt small stir the oatmeal & milk 
cold then boyl em & add the suet & housleek stir em & let em boyl apply it
as flat as you can endure it Mrs Freer of Blaby.


(75
a kick or bruise or swelling. Rx the leaves of rue
& mallow pound em with some reez’d bacon spred it on a linnen
cloth & hold agt the fire a little to warm it Bind it on renew it
night & morn at 1st then once a day This cured Jn Hind when his
leg was bruised by a stone & swell’d so the next day that he could not
go Dr Brown surgeon of Mountsorrel & Jn H.
An in ward strain, or bruise caused by a fall etc.
Rx balsamu capivi 20 or 30 drops in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of
milk old or new in the morning till you’ve taken 12 d old
Tho. Juice of Dunton. It is very good taken in ale caudle
Ec. Underwood falling out of a pear tree Augt 723 found
great benefit by Balsamu capivi. He was blooded & had 
a clyster a day or 2 after he took oyl of turp. in ale & had
some thing give him of poppies to make him sleep. He drank
his own water pint with a spoonful of spirits night & morning
Jn Smith of Blaby showing an unlucky horse he kick’d him on the
knee It made it swell & was so sore & stiff that he could scarce go. He
was cured by bathing it 3 or 4 times with good verjuice Jn Smith.
Tho. Hollowell of Little Ashby was kick’d by a horse on his foot so
that it look’d black & blue It was cured by rubbing it twice with brandy
cold Tho. Hollowell.
Osmund royal al. water fern is esteem’d by some as very 
powerful in dispersing bruis’d blood & taking away the blackness
that arises therefrom quincy.
For an inward bruis’d or strain in man or beast
Rx the best madder zii for a man ziii for a beast; warm it hot [illegible] to boil
(but do not let it boil) In ale half a pint for man, in a qt for a beast
when it is moderately [illegible] give it warm. it is good for the pain in the
bark or any inward pain. Let a maid that hath the green [illegible]
hold her head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [illegible]
[illegible] Dyer at [illegible]
IN april 1739 E.A. had a violent pain in the middle of his back caus’d
perhaps by cold but no corecloth nor camphorated sp. of wine would
take it away at last he took abt 3 pints of sifted oats which were 
put in a frying pan dry  by them selves & cover’d with a pewter dish & 
hung upon [an iron] called by the cooks the housewife or lazy back it hung 
a pretty distance from the fire
Salmon’s Dispensatory says the poplar ointmt cures the pain & heat of
the back. For a decay of the marrow in the back
Rx new milk a pint 20 shell snails one comfrey root sliced & a little isinglass,
boil em all well together, then strain it. Take half of it at
night & the other half in the morning following. It must be repeated
for a fortnight. An ointmt for the same Rx sp. of wine a pint & oil of
amber an ounce, mix em & warm em & rub the backbone night & morning
during the time of taking the above said remedy Mrs Ann Benson & Mrs Hartshorn




(77
For eyes inflam’d that abound with humours
that look red & are sore
apply a blistering plaster to the lower pt of the neck between
the shoulders then dissolve as much Roman vitriol in 
spring water as will give it a pale [blew] tincture to which add 
a little loaf sugar to correct the sharpness of the vitriol drop it
2 or 3 times a day but especially at night going to bed with a [illegible]
moistening only the lower eye lid on the inside when you perceive
it makes the eyes stiff omit dressing for a day or two adding a 
little more water & more sugar E.A. note If you blister for the
eyes when they are not rheumatic & full of humours you will
sink them so will an issue. This cur’d E.A. May th 20th 1707 when
plaster of burgundy pitch & red lead & white copperas water
& other drying waters would do no good.*
Another Rx running water 2 spoonfuls best French brandy [illegible]
wash the eyes there with on the inside & outside the eyelids. Dr. 
[Lowe] & Mr. Tho. Matthews. * not in a weeks time or less my 
eyes grew very rheumatic & sore as before & itch’d very much
for which reason I was bleeded 12 z in the arm which did my eyes
a little good but not very much het in a fortnight or less the
following eye water & diet drink cur’d them. An eye water
Rx waters of fennel white roses & plantane each zfx.
white copperas & saccharum saturni each gr. vi. camphir [illegible]fx
dissolve them near the fire & strain the water & moisten them
3 times a day especially in the morning but not at night
going to bed for then it will make the eyes sore. pr. of
bottle & ingredients 2 d Tho. Farren a weaver. a diet drink
for the scurvy & weak eyes & to strengthen the sight & to 
dry the eyes. Rx water crosses brooklime, scurvy grass,
[fumitory], sorrel, liverwort agrimony each a good handful,
sena zfs. roots of horseradish zii boyl all in six quarts of
good ale wort till they are soft for want of ale wort 
you may boyl em in stale beer which is good against the
scurvy strain out the ingredients when cold & work it
up with yest & let it in a cold place & drink half a pint
or a quarter of a pint every morning & into every dose
you drink drop 16 or 20 drops of the spirit of sulphur.


78)
you may buy ziii of sp. of sulphur at 2 d ½ per dram.
If once taking doth not cure repeat the dose It will cure
also a dry itching & purifie the blood ibid. In a month or
6 weeks time after taking the precedent diet drink my eyes grew
very rheumatic & bloodshot & eye waters would do no good & my 
eyes itch’d violently tho I had bleeded 12 z in the arm a little before
I apply’d a vast great leech to my temple almost one inch 
from the corner of my right eye nearly the hair of my head above the
eye where commonly plasters are lay’d to the temples It sucks
very much & made a great orifice & bled almost all night I setting
the leech on abt 5 o clock in the afternoon in June 1707 When
I lay’d a little salt on’t it spew’d up blood almost as black as ink 
I found the itching of my eyes to cease the next day & the rheum 
to abate I dropt em with tho. Farren’s eye water to strengthen the
sight as I us’d to do before my eyes were very well in 2 or 3 days 
but not I apply’d a plaster to each wrist made of common mallows
celandine, bole & hony stampt abt 4 hours before I us’d 
the leech which alone will often cure a [illegible] or bloodshot eye. I 
remov’d the plaster lay’d on [leather] once in 24 hours for 3 days
which is very cooling. I conclude that the leech did my eyes most good 
letting out the thick black blood so that there was not a right
circulation of the blood & spirits. Bleeding in the arm or behind
the eyars seldom is of much advantage to the eyes some commend
bleeding in the foot for the eyes. Ithing eyes to cure.
wash the outside of the eyelids & the inside of the eyes with 
verjuice for 4 or 4 days It is good too when they are bloodshot [illegible]
It will cure the itching of a [illegible] too Sister Boothby. Rheumatic eyes Rx lapis calaminaris in fine pouder
& plantane water shake the bottle when you dress em which must be 
at the morning fasting & 4 in the afternoon. Mrs Coltman.
Rheumatic & bloodshot eyes Boyl soft water & skum’d milk p.e. with 
a piece of household bread drink it for the constant drink avoiding 
malt drink, wine & cyder wash the eyes often in a day with common
brandy or [illegible] of Hungary’s water which both heal & dry the eyes.
[illegible] smoak the [illegible] tobacco [illegible] especially night & morning These cured 2
A. June 1707.) This following medicine surpasses all the former 
It strengthens the sight cures any pain attending the eye as eyes gum’d 
up in a morning & the congeal’d gum feels like grit or dust in the eye It 
helps a blear eye or any red rheumatic eye drying up the rheum in man 
or horse Rx oyntmt of tobacco that is green melt a little against the fire & with 
a feather or the [illegible] anoint the eyelid that some may enter [illegible] once in 2 days. 


(79
How to dress a sore eye with eye water.
you must dress it in the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in 
the afternoon when the stomach is emptyest is the best time Dr.
Clay. Plantane water is the best liquor for an eye water
better than rosewater etc. for a rheumatic weak eye ibid
when you dress the eye pull down the lower eyelid so that you 
may see the inside of it then take a soft feather as pidgeons or partridge’s
etc. make it naked only just at the point leave a little
feather which moisten in the eye water & touch only the inside
of the lower eyelid note the eye is a tender thing & you 
should not so much as touch it with a feather it will offend it
E.A. Sore red eyes caus’d by hard drinking. Drop some tallow
from a lighted candle in to water & anoint it upon your
eye lids so that some may go into the eyes at night 2 or 3 
times dressing will cure. Wm Bonsher of Wigson a poultis for 
a sore eye to take away the pain Rx a small quantity of red
rose leaves & wet em in plantain water & scald em over a fire
till they are very soft apply em as hot as you can endure it at
night going to bed the next morning take it off & wash the eye with
milk & water warm’d Sister Boothby. Sore & red eyes caus’d by 
the small pox. Rx some hen dung the whitest & newest from the 
henroost & dry it in an oven lay’d on a white paper after bread 
is new drawn then beat it to pouder with a knife on the paper & 
blow a little with a goose quil into the eye holden open once
a day either night or morning. use it for a wash then intermit
a day or 2 Repeat it till the eyes are well. you must gather none
but white dung This cured Jn Gees eyes. It made em smart & 
water when first drest & his eyes would at first grow sore upon 
catching cold. Mary Gee. Another Rx a little bit of old or 
new calico burn it over a pewter dish blow off the ashes then pour
a little breast milk (i.e. womans milk) cold to it & moisten the
end of a clean feather dipt therein & put it into the eye once a 
day, making fresh liquor every time it is drest by burning another piece 
of calico & pouring milk to it. ibid. To dry eyes that water much 
& to strengthen the sight, spread upon a piece of velvet cut round 
a little bigger than a shilling emplastrum deminia & apply to each
temple [illegible] plaster. The velvet keeps the eye war. It is better 
thus apply’d then between the shoulders or to the crown of the 
head. Hannah Licoryse Some rheumatic eyes are much mended by 
applying empl. de mucilaginibus to the temples. not you must
not let these plasters lie on above 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 days at a time 


80)
Things bad for the eyes
Mr. May the famous oculist near Oxford reckons those
things enemies to the eyes viz pease, cabbage hot bread
pepper salt stale beer & things sour & butter wind. much 
drink
note when you apply plasters to the temples as soon as you 
find they incommode or molest the eyes you must take them
off. They dry & repel & are best for rheumatic eyes sometimes
you must not wear em above 1 day at a time intermitting 3 
or 4 or more for the oftener you use them the less benefit you
will find by em & the seldomer the more. E.A.


(81
for blindness or a blear eye or any 
weak, sore eye or bloodshot eye
Rx the shells of snails that grown on their backs nine good hand fuls burn
them well 5 hours in wood embers then beat them with white
sugar candy zii sift it fine & blow a little in a quill into
the eye. Thrust 2 or 3 goose quils one within another & fill
the least end of the quils abt ½ a barly corns length that
must put in more or less according as you have a film
[illegible] or any [illegible] corruption or cataract white or black or
anything that obstructs the sight to work off or remove
Blow into the eye some pouder once in 3 days whether 
it be the eye of a man or horse It will not eat off a [har?]
in a horses eye. It strengthens the sight where the eye
balls are loaded with any corruption or rheum It is a great
dryer because of the allum that is in the sugar candy when
the eyes are bloodshot or look red Rx small beer let it
stand till it is dead then heat a little hot & wash the eyes a qr 
of an hour after the pouder Some eyes are cured in a week 
some in a qr of a yr by the pouder Mrs P. If the beer or pouder
make the eyes ake do not used them The pouder will make 
them smart. The beer for some eyes repels the humours too
forcibly
another Rx loaf sugar 2 pts Roman vitriol 1 pt beat to fine
pouder & blow it into the eye You may if you will mix it
with the white that comes from hen dung dry’d in an over or
in the sun E.A. It is as good or better than the former pouder
of Mrs P. you may add sometimes a little pulvis nephriticus
it will corrode the more hen dung makes it less sharp & 
mollifies it. some say loaf sugar is better than sugar candy, having
more allum in it. E.A. Salmon in his dispensty p. [199] says that
the gall of a corn or ox mixt with breast milk makes an excellent collyris
agt the [har?] or [Pearl] in the eye. fresh butter put into the eyes 
[illegible] them p. 200 ibid for a rheum or pain in the eyes Rx [Barly]
& boyl it in water & lay it poultiswise upon the eyelids at night
going to bed If it be for a hot rheum apply it cold If it be for 
a cold rheum apply it hot for some nights till you find ease.  Sister
Boothby. Plantane water is a great dryer & prefer’d before common 


82)
Water by Aunt Boothby. A water for sore eyes. R.C.
Rx plantane water ½ a pint, white sugar candy zi white
vitriol zi sugar of lead zi Boyl them a little & strain the
water for use. R. C. Another Rx fennel mi white sugar
candy a qr of a pound white vitriol (al white copperas) zi 
boyl these in 2 quarts of spring water till it come to one;
if you put in the juice of celandine it will take away any
[pearl] in the eye. This water cured a boy in Lichfield that
had been blind 3 yrs R. C. This water took a film off the
Kenny’s horses eye at Whetstone.
A purge for the head, which cures the head-ach & take away rheum
from the eyes & is good in all pains whatsoever.
Rx syrup of buckthorn zi magistery of scammony in pouder 10 grains, 
black cherry water zii aqua mirabilis zi mix them & take it fasting
drinking warm gruel as it works. This is a ull dose for a strong
man or woman. R. C. another Rx Daisy roots & the herbs that belong
to them gotten always fresh (that is in the winter) infuse abt
as many as will cover the bottom of a large pewter porringer in as
much rain water as will cover them all night let them infuse cold the
next day pour off the clear & strain it thro a thick cloth let it
settle & pour off the clear again to which add loaf sugar the quantity 
of a little nutmeg & abt ½ so much lapis haematites or a little 
mor or instead thereof venice bole Mrs Emerton cured all eyes
even a blind beggar with this but she used (as Mary Gee that made up 
the water for hen conjectur’d) bole. This is the Lady Clarks famous
Rx the [illegible] at Watford in Northampton the lapis haematites is
good for a blear eye. Salmon’s disp. you must drop some of the water
into the eye at night keep it in a bottle close stopt & shake it before 
you use it. Some shepherds eyes Rx houseleek & penny-wort 
pound & mix em with the white of an egg & a small quantity of
vinegar & plasterwise lay it to the forehead then make a plaster of
bole with a little white of an egg & vinegar & lay it to the temples.
Mrs M. Another white wine alone will cure a rheum in the eye
Dress it 2 or 3 times in a day at first, after sometime but once in 
a day Mrs Clay of Leicer. To strengthen the sight when decay’d smoke
rosemary coltsfoot & [illegible] [.e. This has cured several Mrs. Finch.
Headach snuff up a lilte white [pepper] in fine pouder. [Withabed] [Morer]
of Cosby.



(83
for an eye much swell’d & rheumatic of 
Jeremiah Brandreth Taylor of Quarron 
cur’d by Sr Wm Reed oculist
apply 6 papers of pouder to the nose 1 every night
to be snufft up call’d the pallick pouder It will make
the nose run & heat it as if it was on fire It will
provoke spittle viz ½ a pint or more at night It will
work a full hour In the morning Rx 10 papers of 
pouder 1 ta a time till you’ve taken them all in sage
tea sweeten’d with sugar. Rx these the same time that you 
take the 6 papers of pouder They were of the colour 
of [cap] paper & wrought only by stool. once in six
days Rx purging pill 4 doses viz 5 pills in the pap of 
an apple for one dose intermitting 6 days & omitting 
the pouder when you take the pills. Rx the pills when the weather
is warm & open & keep warm that day & do not stir out 
when you’ve taken the above said pouders Rx 20 papers 
of pouder consisting of a light brown colour mixt with 
filings like filings of gold. Rx 1 paper every morning
in milk pottage or water gruel fasting 1 hour after IT 
makes the urine smell very strong & works only by urine
Every morning & night wash the eyes with an eye water
dropt on a fine Holland rag or a spunge Dab it on the
eye lids leaning the head back that it may soak thro the
eye lids You need not put any into the eye it will 
not molest the eye if any gets into it you may smoak
tobacco if it will make you spit it will do you good, but
if it doth not it will do the eyes harm. apply blistering 
plasters about 3 inches long & 2 inches broad to each wrist 
a little above the pulse It will weaken the eyes so lay it 
on or below the pulse apply fresh blistering plasters once 
in 20 days [illegible] four times or longer spread em on [allu]
leather. If you heat the knife hot when you spread the blisters 



84)
it will make the blisters sorer apply em with [illegible]
lot whilst they will run. you will find the greatest ease
& benefit by blisters. Rx A diet drink to sweeten the
blood Rx hartstongue liverwort dwarf elder each 2 
large handfuls sassafras shavings lbfs guajacu zii liquorish
sliced 7 ounces Boil them all in six gallons of midling
alewort till a gallon is wasted & work it up as other drink
at 5 days old You may drink it for the constant drink. Rx 5 
drops of the elizir in a draught of it in the morning fasting
an hour after it (It is not Daffy’s elizir but is made of some 
strong water & is sweet.) Be sure to abstain from all salt dyet 
& sharp & sour liquor Let this be repeated for the constant drink
till the middle of May & also at the fall of the leaf Frances
Surgeon of Derby advis’d two [issues] to be made on the back to dry 
up rheums in the eye Rx diaculu simpl. lbi [Pius] Burg zii m. f. emplastru
pro fontinali.
Sr Wm Reads prescriptions to Wm Shetton of Willoughby who first
lost his sight by a cold & was a yr under Allibone who lay’d 
plasters to his temples (which dry’d too much the optic nerves)
& made an issue on the sutures of his head
Sr Wm Read’s restorative cephalick spirits to be used as followeth,
only prepared & sold by himself
Drop 6 or 8 drops in the palm of the hand, rub the hands together
& snuff the steam up the nose at night going to bed & 
morning when you rise; at the same time chafe the temples with 
the like quantity. abstain from all windy dist & refrain going
to bed upon a full stomach.
Drop a drop of the red water into the corner of the eye next the
nose every night when you are in bed & drop a drop of the white
water every morning an hour before you rise.
Begin with the papers of pouders as this directs Rx one of them 


(85
every morning fasting in a dish of sage tea sweeten’d
with sugar & hold the eyes over the steam as you drink it & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon Rx another dose. Be punctual in 
the directions so long as all the things last make use of 
the golden tincture as the printed note directs wrapt about it
There is also a printed direction about the cepahlic restorative
pouder There is also directions about the 2 bottles of opthhalmick
water [40] papers of restorative pouder at 6 d each 1 [illegible] – s – d
1 bottle of golden tincture 7 & 6 d Two bottles of ophthalmick
water 5 s total 1 [illegible] 12 s 6 d
moisten the end of a feather so that it may lick up a little
for rheumatic eyes [illegible] Portugal snuff put it in to the eyes
a little before you go to bed intermitting a night or 2 This
cured a man so that he could read without spectacles when 80 
yrs old Sister Boothby. It doth purge & make the eyes water 7 
smart very much but it is most exct. medicine to strengthen the 
sight E.A. Mrs Finch blows Portugal snuff into the eye with a 
quill another to cure a [pearl] or film or wound on the eye. Roll a qr
of a sheet of the best white writing paper round so that it
will stand on one and after it is dry’d at the fire [illegible] light the
upper end at a candle & let the other end on a clean dry 
plate (silver or pewter) & hold it up with a [key] that it may 
not fall down on the plat but may burn so that the smoke
may come out at the bottom of the paper & leave an oyl
on the plate If it doth not leave an oyl the first time you 
must burn paper again & again till there is oyl enough to 
moisten a feather this is oyl of paper at the end of a wing
of a hen you will find a soft sharp pointed feather (especially
before they moulter) moisten this feather in some of 
this oyl & a little before you go to bed let some body hold
with [illegible] fingers & thumb both the eye lids open clap this 
feather just upon the sight of the eye then press [illegible] both eye lids



86)
together & turn the feather round in the eye that oyl may 
come off, then shut the eye for a little while it will pain it
violently for a little time & make it water you must use it
thus every night for a week or fortnight It will strengthen the
sight, dry up a rheum, cure a wound or pain or small pox in the
eye, an old wound or sore Mrs Finch of London. Another for
weak sore eyes smoke colts foot & bottony they have cur’d some 
or let a man when his mouth is full of smoke from a tobacco pipe
blow it into the eye, the eyelids being thrust open with a finger
& thumb or wash the eyes with milk & water ibid (tobacco smoke 
is too hot for most eyes E.A.) an approved medicine for sore
weak eyes. Rx camphir zii The best brandy ½ a pint. shake em 
well together for 3 or 4 days before you use them then wash the
temples & eyelids taking great care that none of it go into 
the eye Mrs. S. for to take away a pearl in the eye & to 
clear the sight Rx the best aloes beaten to pouder (with a drop of
sallet oyl in the mortar) 1 d spring water ¼ of a pint. let it simber
away in a large penny glass viol plac’d at a distance from the fire
till ½ is washed dress it with a feather night & morning till well Mrs 
Clay of Leicer For sore eyes a humor or diffusion of
rheum or a pearl Rx red wine ½ a pint as much white wine vinegar or
burdeaux vinegar if it can be had mix them together in a bottle
[illegible] Rx [lead] beat it as thin as a shilling cut it four square
only longest [one] way making 4 holes at every corner one & 
sew to each corner a piece of paper let the lead be made full 
of holes as small as if made with a pin & take a small piece of
scarlet cut in the same shape as the lead but without any 
holes at the corners or any pt of it sew [tapes] to it as you did
to the lead, let the scarlet be dipt in the above named liquor
every 2 hours & apply’d to the nape of the neck by tying the
scarlet abt the head to fasten it & the lead upon it This hath
taken a pearl away Mrs M. for sore eyes Rx red rose leaves 
[smallage] maiden hair hous leek, ivy, succony, red flannel, [illegible]
celandine each zii wash them & steep them a day & a night in ordinary 
salt then a day & a night in white wine & it will be most
sect. for the eyes It hath recover’d sight lost for the space of [illegible]
yrs you may put into’t the juice of woodbine leaves if you please
Mrs M.


(83
For sore eyes Rx lapis [tulia] prepar’d in fine pouder
zfs white wine half a pint infuse them over a gentle fire
four hours then put it into a strong glass bottle in a shellet 
with straw & water let it stand 4 hours longer morning & 
evening anoint the eye & if need be morning & evening
drop a drop or two into the eye also Mrs M.
To take off a film or pearl & to clear an eye
Blow a little Portugal snuff into the eye & several times in 
a day stroke a little hony with a feather into the eye This cured
a won of Banbury when the Drs could not Mrs Newlove.
Another to take off a pearl beat a little allum to fine pouder
& sift it then beat some loaf sugar (double refin’d is best) & 
sift it & take two pts sugar & one pt allum mix em & blow
a little into the eye with a [illegible] intermit two days & blow a little more
once dressing cured Mrs Jinny [Ings] eye of a pearl. Mrs J. J. 
The said Mrs [Ings] eyes were very sore & cured b y setting a leech 
to a vein behind each ear twice intermitting some days & bleeding
in the arm once & washing the outside of her eyelashes
with cold water her eyes were sore for 9 weeks so that she  could 
scarce see. There’s a famous oculist in Warwickshire that cures
a great many sore eyes by commanding his patients once a 
day to dip only their face in cold water in a large bowl
or basin Mrs [Ing].
For a hot rheum in an eye Rx a garden snail with the shell on 
& with the round knob of the shell make a little hole & prick with
a needle thro the knob keeping in the [head] of the snail It will 
give 5 or 6 drops of [blew] water in a [illegible] or spoon if the
water is red or yellow you must throw it away as not good
dip the ginger in the blew water & apply it to the eye that some
may go in & it will cool & cure the eye M.B. wood betony
smoked with tobacco preserves the sight Wm Finch. For a rheum
in the eye Rx frankincense & put the quantity of a 
small nut on some coles of fire not too brick & 
blowing for them it will burn & flame, it should
smoke you must hold some fine [illegible] or flax over 
it to smoke it then apply it to the hollow pt of the 
nape of the neck (you need not shave it) now smoke 
the same [illegible] thus night & morning till the rheum is dry’d


88)
dry’d up. If you hold your head over the smoke 
it will bring a rheum into your eyes. This cures
a rheum after the small pox Mrs Finch.
For a blood shot eye Rx house leek stamp it & squeeze 
the juice out which boyle in an eggshel then strain it thro 
a fine cloth then put a little into a spoon & lay your
head backward & pour it in it will take away blood
shot & cool the eye Mrs. Finch. Things that dry up a 
rheum in the eyes. Rubbing the crown of your head & 
temples with your own [illegible] or salt a little dissolved in 
water & put into the eye & rub’d on the temples (It 
is a most exct. dryer) or oyl of spike rub’d on the
temples or emplastru do mucilaginibus or de minio, mastick
or burgundy pitch apply’d to the temples or wrists, or 
bistering plasters to the wrists or behind the ears or on the
back are great & good dryers but nose plasters are not
to be us’d long to the temple they are such great dryers
E.A. smoking tobacco or sneezing by looking agt the sun or by 
snuff will dry up rheum in the eyes but when the eyes are dry they do 
em an injury by making em too dry & stiff.
Oyl of turpentine is good for any pain in the eye & to strengthen
the sight & to dry up a rheum in man or horse apply’d to the 
temples or eyelids, it will not hurt if it gets into the eye Jn.
Clark [Gelder] To set off a pear or film on the eye 
& to clear it. Rx the [illegible] of blood red roses dry em & 
beat em to pouder blow a little into the eyes intermit 2 
days & repeat it till it is cured Gordy Simon. To stop a 
rheum & to strengthen the sight Aung Boothby constantly wears plaster
on her temples of linimentu [arsei] To preserve the sight when 
you write or read Let the back be agt the wall in which the window 
is you are to write by & let the window be on the right hand
& turn a little to the light body so that the shade of your body
hand may be on the paper you are writing on which prevents it 
from dazling & striking the eye. E. A. when the eyes are dry anoint
the crown of your head with sallet oyl. E.A. To dry up a rheum in
the eyes break the top of an egg & pour out the yolk & white put a little
white copperas as big as a horse bean with spring water boyl em in the [illegible] [illegible]


(89
Falling sickness or convulsion fits
Rx 3 spoonfuls of white wine vinegar an ordinary thimble
full of gunpouder loaf sugar beaten zfs This is one 
dose to be repeated 3 days before the change & full of
the moon. Mrs. Palmer of Islington cured several with this
medicine uxor mea. another Rx Two goose quils almost full of 
quick silver pr. r d was em up & sew em in a little piece of old 
rag abt your neck so that they may hang upon the pit of the 
stomach wear em for several yrs [?enserving] the quick silver 
when it is almost wasted Aunt Boothby another Rx 2 spoonfuls
of juice of [illegible] in a little new milk for [illegible] mornings
together fasting ibid. for fits of the mother apply galbanum 
prepar’d (a plaster) to the navel. ibid. for convulsion 
fits or the falling sickness approved. Rx the gall of a young black
dog for a man & of a ditch for a woman & mingle the whole gall in 
a spoonful of [zinc] [flower] water (tilia floru aqua) take it in the morning
fasting & fast 4 hours after & so 3 mornings together. It must be
taken 2 days before the full of the moon & the day of the full
& after for 7 days together. Rx the quantity of an hazelnut of methridate 
in a little of the [zinc] flower water every morning fasting & so
continue it monthly for the space of a whole yr Mrs M. another Rx
a [illegible] mold for a won a the mold for a man tie it close in an 
earthen pot alive & bake it in an oven with bread till it is so 
dry as to beat to pouder take as much of the pouder as will like on
a ½ crown in ½ a pint of white wine or ale till all is taken MRs
Abigail Finch. another Rx some of the skull of a man hang’d
up in gibbets (David Jervase cut some of [Lorsby;s] skull with 
a chizel by moon shine when the hair & flesh was quite wasted 
or a man hang’d The skull of the fore head next the brains is
best dry it to pouder after bread in an oven pound it to fine 
pouder Rx as much as will lie on a silver three pence in abt a 
spoonful or more of white wine vinegar in a morning fasting
for 3 or 4 mornings successively. This cured Joseph Ezard shoemaker
of Lutterworth David Jervase’s apprentice he us’d to lie
as if he was dead after a fit & always fell down if he did 
not lie down D. Gerfase had this Rx fro Dr Carter a traveller 


90)
for convulsion fits [L?] Cullen Rx sea horse
pizzle 5 gr in a paper for a woman 3 gr. for a child (you
may buy a pretty deal for 6 d at London) dragon water
a pint mithridate the quantity of two large horse beans
shake em together (Let em infuse if you can 12 hours or more
before you use em) Rx a paper of the pouder in a spoonful of 
this water 2 mornings before the full of the moon & 2 mornings 
after & so before & after The last qr new moon & 
first qr & at any time when you perceive a trembling or
any symptoms of an approaching fit This has cured several
women & children near Marston Aunt Boothby us’d it with great success. [Ld] Cullen & Sister Boothby
oyl of camphir is a noble specific in the [epilepsie] in old
or young but chiefly agt that kind which proceeds fro disaffections
of the mesentery & womb Dose fro gut 2 to 3. p. 138 Salmon
on Bales’s Dispens. Convulsion fits in children Give a drop or 2 
of oil of camphir in a little sugar to a child once a day till it is 2 months old They are
often caused by wind & make the child look black in the face. Aunt
Boothby & Jane Warner al. [Tosie] another oyl of amber made with 
[tiles] beaten to pouder ertc. is a specifick agt fits of the mother & falling
sickness, so is also ambred spirit of wine p. 475 Salmon’s disp.
forfits Rx hips of sweet bryer when full ripe, dry
em in a oven just warm not too hot by no means but put
in several times, keep em dry; & when they are to be used beat
em in a mortar & sift em very fine. Give as much of this
pouder as will lie on a six pence in a spoonful of black
cherry water & give a little black cherry water after it
Repeat this dose 3 mornings successively. To a little of
this when ever you perceive a fit approaching. It may be given
both morning & afternoon. This has cured adult persons as
well as children. Lady Curzon of Kettlesey near Derby.
an ext. Rx for convulsion fits Rx foxgloves [illegible] Mi polypodium
leaves of the oak mi spring water one qt boyl the herbs till it comes
to a pint, strain it & sweeten it with brown sugar candy to the taste.
Give the child 2, 3, or 4 childs spoonfuls when the fit comes & 3 or 4 
times a day you may give as much as it will take. several have 
taken it & have had no more fits Mrs Caulton. A grain of
ambergrise 1 gr given in a spoonful of sack to a new born child 
being the 1st thing it takes prevents all sorts of fits. Grind the 



(91
ambergirse fine & give it cold Mrs Caulton
volatile salt of hartshorn & fixed salt of hartshorn cure
fits of all sorts viz fits of the mother apoplexies, convulsions,
epilepsies, [illegible] salm Dispensatory fits that come by a fright 
Buy a silver ring with mony that is given You gratis & wear it upon 
any finger you must constantly wear it If you pull it off or let it
fall to the ground the fits will return. Goody Exon’s daughter of
Blaby had fits at the sight of old [illegible] that had hang’d himself. She lay
once in a fit from Monday till Friday. Her mother [beg’d] 3 s 2 d [illegible] she 
bought 2 silver rings pr of one was 20 d the other 18 d she [woar] both on
one hand thing a ribbon abt each ring because they were too big. She never
had a fit after she woar the rings Robert Foreman of [illegible] had 
a maid that was cured of fits by wearing a silver ring bought with 
[elemazunary] mony pr 2 d.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Rx southern wood in May, pound & strain it, to a qt of the juice put
abt a pounder & half of sugar pr. 6 d or 7 d per lb boyl it in a syrup Rx
a spoonful night & morning, a child may take a less quantity. Give it 
to a child 2 or 3 times a day. In the winter boyl the [illegible] dry in 
water & make it to a syrup with sugar Mrs. Elizth Caulton
To prevent fits in children. Give one grain of ambergrise in 
a spoonful of sack & water the first thing You give a new born child
prevents all sorts of fits You must grind it five & mix it cold Mrs
Caulton a midwife a lady had [illegible] her children dead of fits till she
tried this Rx afterwards she had 4 that lived ibid.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Chop of the end of a black cats tayl to make it bleed Give 
3 drops of the blood in plague water or beer or ale or water
presently after the fit. This cured a girl of [11] yrs of age that
us’d to fall down in her fits once taking it Mrs Ann Lathwell
another Rx spirit of amber gut iii in a spoonful or 2 of cold
water every morning after a clove of garlic till well. You 
may take the sp. & water at any time when you perceive a fit approaching
This with an elemazunary silver ring worn sometimes
on one finger & sometimes on another because it would
eat into the flesh worn long in one place cured Rachel Halford
that would fall down in her fits she was about 17 yrs of
age when her fits were on her she had a pain in her legs. She
was E. A.’s servt in the yr 723
Histerick fits Mrs Perkins a widow of Marston in Buckington 
Parish abt 4 m. fro Coventry, Warwickshire Rx 20 drops of tincture
of hiera picra in abt a spoonful of warm ale & 2 spoonfuls after it


92)
& walk a qr of an hour after it then she may eat her
breakfast repeat the same at 4 in the afternoon she must
eat her dinner at one continue taking as long as 1 ou. lasts
Rx of these herbs dry 6 doses infus’d in water so as to 
drink 2 [tea] dishes in the morning fasting 3 days before & 3 days after 
the change of the moon after the tincture is taken & Rx 4 more 
doses of herbs made into tea with water 4 or 5 days before or
after new moon
This was directed for Mary Exon abt 16 or 17 yrs of age. Her
illness lies in left side. she extends her legs & screaks out
[wind??es] to her stomach so then she is silent she beats with her
hand her side where her pain lyes.
Mrs Green of Wykin near Coventry has a perfect cure for
fits that seldom fail. The Ld Colins medicine.
Peony seeds help fits of the mother & other such like infirmities
of the womb stop the [terms] & help convulsions [culp?p??]
tincture of amber is good in hysteric fits dose from 15 drops to 30 in 
wine or water oil of amber rectified mixd with sugar then with wine
& given from 3 drops to six is admirable in hysterick distempers Salmon’s
family Dictionary
To prevent & cure convulsion fits in children
Goody Ludlam of Blaby every morning gives her child rue tea
sweeten’d with a little sugar & as oft as it is in a fit [till] it is ten weeks
old. her children till she try’d this [illegible] [illegible] Ludlam
Mr. Ray praises hartstongue given in pouder or a conserve 
of [the] green leaves of the heart, millers herbal
Quincy says pulvis epilepticus pouder agt the falling
sickness is efficacious & to be depended on in childrens 
convulsions & grown persons Rx valerian & piony roots
each 1 ou seeds of rue, myrrh, castor, white amber, each zfs 
native cinnabar 2 ou.
Fits in men, women or children Mrs Orton of [Reasby]
Rx a human [illegible] from a grave man anatomiz’d or hang’d Dry it & beat it to fine pouder & [illegible] 
it a man or woman must take as much of this pouder as will lie
on a shilling in water or beer for a month together in the morning 
fasting & at four o clock in the afternoon This cured MR Barwell’s 
man of Marston Northamptonshire & who also lived with Mr. Orton. He went
apprentice to a dyer at London but was forc’d to leave his trade by 
reason of his fits. He learnt this cure from a traveller & return’d agn
to London. A skull from a grave will not do
Balm, molissa is good for the falling sickness [?eckeys] herbal
Dr Strother on Dr Radcliffs pharmacopoeia says after 2 or 3 doses of an 
infusion of senna & rhubarb, at proper distances I have given mixtures of 
rue & penny royal, balm & mint water [paeony] compound some few drops of
sp. of hartshorn, sweeten’d wth syrup of white poppies successfully p. 252.



(93
Rx The root in pouder before the stalk springs of garden = 
valerian, half a spoonful taken once or twice in wine, water or milk
relieves those that are seiz’d with the falling sickness some say it is more
effectual in this case than the roots of male peony pecheys herbal
Rx the candied roots of Solomon’s seal for the falling sickness ibid.
southern wood cures hysteric fits & the jaundice ibid
several girls abt 16, 17, or 18 yrs old or more as Rachel Halford, Ann
Hovy of Blaby have been cured of fits thus Rx a clove of garlic
swallow it whole, if you can, or you may chew it if you can’t.
take one clove 3 mornings together fasting. Sister Boothby. p 91.
Apply this plaster to the stomach on alum leather in the shape
of an heart the sharp point upwards Rx horse turpentine ½ ou.
ply this to his stomach when you take the garlic it makes it more
powerful E.A. when it is on the stomach lay cap paper to the
back of the plaster to keep it from daubing the linnen ibid.
Dr. Salmon’s Doron commends spirit of hartshorn as ext agt all
sorts of fits, the suffocation of the womb, apoplexies, convulsions, palsies
vertigos & epilepsies does a gut 15 ad 30 in a convenient vehicle. This same
book says Jaber’s epileptic spirit of vitriol dose to [illegible] i in a morning 
fasting for a month at least, in [peony] water or in tincture of peony
flowers purging the body twice in the same month with salt of vitriol 
By this means an absolute cure of the falling sickness will be completed
p. 420 Doron.
convulsion fits. In young women abt 15, 16 or 20 yrs of age or
[lett] the girl [her] [beg] as much money as will buy 2 silver rings of any charitable
[illegible] sons Edwd Underwoods daughter Anne of Blaby 19 or 20 yrs of age gave 4 s 10 d 
to [Mr] [illegible] gold-smith in Leicester for 2 silver rings which she did ware
for the most pt on the midle finger on her right hand It freed her from
her fits imediately with some 4 or 5 times a day & as often in the night
beating herself with her hands on the breast & [took] away her senses & 
made her so weak that she cou’d do no work & wou’d have brought her 
into a consumption if it had continued some time longer
Saml Exon carpender of Blaby had 2 daughters cured of fitts by 
waring each of ‘em 2 silver-rings bought with the money they beg’d of
their neighbors Some gave 1 d some 2 d in copper money & some 6 d 
in silver one daughter wore ‘em 3 yrs together without ever leaving
‘em off & it is now 6 yrs since she left ‘em off & has continued very
well & freed from fits. The rings in time will wear thing by working
them they beg more money & exchange ‘em for new ones They must be 
woren always upon one hand at a time either upon the right or left 
hand & upon any finger but mostly upon the midle finger



94)
convulsion fitts
A travelling clergiman advisd Ann Underwood aforesd haveing fitts to drink
a little tea-dish of lin-seed oyl every other morning till well but it was so
nauseous that she cou’d not take it
Conserve of white briony-roots taken twice a day to the quantity of a 
nutmeg for a long time cures the falling sickness and [illegible] fitts a [illegible] of
root put into the pot the fire [illegible] out of does the same The compound
water of briony is most in use. [Po??ey’s] Herbal
Convulsion fitts in children give [illegible] of [illegible] in a bottle
sugar this cur’d one of Mrs Browns sons a little child that
look’d black in the face Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer
For the falling sickness Rx the powder of hartshorn & drink 
it in wine it helpeth the falling sickness So doth a raven’s
egg drink with the juice of wild rue & the juice of misletoe
Mrs Hewet E.A.’s mother
For convulsion fits or the falling-sickness. Let a 
dog lick up their vomit if they vomit in the fit, if he 
will not lick it up pour to it melted butter or grease but
it is better if he will eat it alone without any thing. Grease 
the mouth of the patient in a fit, let the dock lick the 
froth or spittle of the patient or near his breath, the dog
will dye & the patient will be well. If it be a woman let
a dog lick if a man let a bitch lick. If the dog licks the
vomit it’s a certain cure, the dog will have many 
fits & live a pretty while but dye at last in a fit says
Wm Nyat of Adderston. Mrs Crompton’s Rx to
cure convulsions or hysteric fits Rx the bigness of an egg of shining
woodsoot & as much assafoetida infus’d nine days by the fire
side & shook up frequently in a qt of the best spirit of wine.
This you may give in water or wine & water; for convulsions fro
5 to 100 drops according to the age & strength of the patient.
Tis also very good for gripes in children mix’d with syrup of 
violets & oil of sweet (or bitter) almonds. Drop 60 or 100 
drops into a qr of a pint of this mixture & give a spoonful
at a time from the wood of Costock & Cos. Margt Muxloe
mother of time at wild [or field] time is gave for convulsions & for gripes 
outwardly apply’d it cures headach & giddiness Pechey


(95
for the cramp or crick in the neck.
Rx an old hinge of a coffen & make rings of it wear
it constantly on your finger It cures the cramp & gout & 
crick in the neck Mrs P’s yellow oyntmt will also cure apply’d
cold. this oyntmt cured Mr Fletcher Mr P.
for the cramp Rx an eel skin dry it & rub it soft with wheat
bran with the hands then split it down the middle & sew pt of
it round the leg in the gartering place the inside next the skin
wear it day & night This cured old Wm Wright & many poor people
at Rotherby. another make a ring for any finger of mony that
is given at the sacramt exchanging other mony for it & it will certainly 
cure the cramp wearing it on one of the fingers Dr Million 
The priests in Lanchashire etc. make what money is given on Good Friday
at the sacramt into rings which rings they give away to the
poor which cure the cramp Mr [Traps] a Roman Catholic. another shift
the shoes morning & night always & cross the legs. E.A.
another Rx oil of St. Johns wort & spirit of lavender each zi mix em
very well & with the mixture rub the pt affected p. 42 Dr. Lowes Rx 
Mr. Coltmn apothecary mixes oyl of amber oyl of spike & sp. of lavender
to be rub’d on, but these mixtures are apt to remove the pain fro
the calf of the leg to the huckbone which is a worse place. E. A. 
another Rx oyl of camomile & fanugreek & anoint the place where
the cramp is & it helpeth p. 123. The accomplish’d lady’s delight.
another for the cramp. Rx St. Jns wort in pouder as much as will lie on a 
shilling in w. wine or ale. Rub the joynts with oyl of St. Johns wort,
It is better the oyl of turpentine Dr Pool, the mountebank
another Rub the hams & calves of the legs with their own water night
& morning constantly & it will cure & prevent it. E.A. another Rub
the pained part with oyl of tobacco (not oyntmt of tobacco) E.A.
oyl of euphorbium cures cramps, numbness, stiffness Salmon’s Disp.
a cramp is the contraction of the sinews of any one limb. The
cure. chafe it with vinegar & common oyl then wrap it all over with 
woollen cloaths Sr Wm Hope’s perfect [farrer] another unguentum
ad spasmum nervoru, an oyntmt agt cramps & convulsions p.
767 Salmon’s Disp. another Rx a sprig of Rosemary to bed with you or
Rx the bone in a hance of venison near the pope’s eye call’d the gentleman’s 
bone wear it abt you Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Turn the
soles of the shoes going to bed topsie turvie for a month This cured Mrs Abigail
Finch. Another E. A. freed himself from the cramp by every night
& morning standing upright & pressing the calf of each leg agt the
shin of the other I suppose it puts the spirits & blood into a fresh motion 



96)
Camomile apply’d hot in a bag is ext agt cramps Dr Quincy
For the cramp. Set your shoes with the soles upwards
at night going to bed, when the cramp pains you 
get out of bed and turn your shoes. OR wear an eelskin
for garters near your bare skin above the knees 
Wm Wyat. To cure the cramp or contraction of the sinews 
rub the member contracted with oil olive & [illegible] vinegar p.a.
& bind a double flannel abt it. The Gentlemans Jockey.
another Rx strong ale a qt black soap lbi boil em till they look like
tar with some brandy & anoint the place grieved from the Experienced
farrier


(97
How to flux.
First purge the body with 2 bolus’s from the apothecaries
as the apothecary shall direct intermitting 2 days
Then kill some quick silver by mixing it will with oyl of 
bays & rub the navel & between the shoulder with the same
Rx milk pottage or water gruel all the time warm’d for 
your drink & you may eat any fresh meat you can
you must be nine days in a flux & you must not stir out
till after 3 weeks. The teeth will [fasten] again of themselves
or you may rub them off with cream of tartar, a fortnight
after your flux purg with pilula cochiae twice intermitting
one week two scruples at a time. Mrs. P. use not the
above said method without some Drs advice because medling with 
mercury is medling with an edgetool. E.A.
mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in fine pouder mixt with hony
or treacle is an exct. purge. If it doth not purge it
fluxes & if you catch cold after it viz that day it has
purged it will raise a salivation the tongue will swell
& the teeth will be loose you must then in a day or 
2 take a paragorick purge viz a gentle purge to ease 
pain. E.A. If the gums swell or are sore by taking mercurius
dulcis you must purge it off by [flos] sulphuris Mr. Cook apothecary
Rx some milk scum’d milk will do boil it & add as much flower of brimstone
as when stir’d abt will make it a little yellow & treacle 1 spoonful
Take this in the morning & it will give you 3 or 4 stools If that does
not make the gums well repeat it omitting one day. If you take mercurius
dulcis to purge grind it on a marble 7 gr 	½ is a dose for an ordinary 
man, with flower or brimstone for a long time & at last with treacle
put it to the further pt of the tongue & lett it touch the gums as little
as you can & work the mouth after if with beer If you chew it, it will
make the gums very sore. when the gums are sore with mercury chew
liquorice If that does not cure Rx this drying diet drink Rx sarsaparilla
& guaiacum each zij sassafras zfs hartshorn & ivory shavings 
each zii boil these in a galn of water to 2 qts Drink a pint a day
repeat it till well Mr. Francis Coltman apoethcary pr. [113d]


98)


(99
To make cider Jn. Arrowsmith of Tewksbury in 
Gloucestershire
Let the apples lie in heaps to sweat till they are mellow. Pick out
the rotten & lay em by themselves. You must make spirits of the
rotten & the sedimts of the cider you must but chalk into the
sedimt Grind the apples & squeeze the liquor from the hulls as soon 
as you can that they may not change or grow sour with the same care 
& expedition as you get the alewort from the grains. Tun up the liquor
immediately into the hogshead or lesser vessel you must not stop the 
vessel you may begin to make cyder after michaelmass & continue
making till xtmass work up the [illegible] & the woodcocks & your 
musses (musta) & the moyls & the sweet pippins & London pippins
a choice eating apple the 1st ripe fruit 1st. never gather but shake
down the apples upon the grass & house em immediately Take care 
to shake em down dry & house em dry. Gather only what are for
house use & to eat & to keep long. 2 or 3 days after they are hous’d
turn em over with the hand. Pick out the blew & rotten & lay em in a
cistern for spirits. A blew mould will give the cider an ill taste you 
must not break the kernels for they will give the cider an ill taste
Let the cyder purge & when it is in a [frot] you must not wrack it off.
Let it be in the vessel 2 or 3 months till it has done purging at the
bunghole. In frosty clear weather that is calm wrack it off (not in rainy
or windy weather) pour out the lees for the still or stillers. wash the 
vessel with cold water & pour it out then put in the cider again into the
same vessel or in to a spare vessel The cider men begin with a spare vessel
boyl apple hulls (call’d [comb]) in water & scald all the vessels old or new 
with it twice before you put the cider into em. cider will not do well
after malt drink, but malt drink will do after cider Let the cider after
it is wrackt into the new vessel stand with the bung stopt to keep out
the air but not very close. you must have a little hole with a nail 
[parer] near the bung which you must open in rough weather & lest you 
forget leave it open or it will force & break the h oops of a new or old
vessel unless iron hoop’d. you must have never an hole on the top of the 
vessel cell’ the purge hole because the vessel will not then hold so much 
by 2 or 3 gallns especially if it be an hogshead. always fill the vessel 
full 2 or 3 days after you’ve wrackt it off put in a pint of old 
[?eans] 1 yr old to a hogshead They refine & give it a colour & make 
it flower If it is inclin’d to change Put treacle abt ½ a pint to a 
hogshead whip it with a whisk in a pail or tub with some pt of the cider
& tun it again. Let it stand 5 or 6 days to settle then bottle it off as
soon as you can. Bottle it always in calm clear weather Try the vessel
with a plug at the end of the vessel as soon as it is fine bottle it it 
will keep in bottles a yr or 2 set the bottles sideways in a bin in straw 
or without a bin straw lying betwixt every row of bottles to keep em
from freezing. when you bottle ale put a spoonful of small beer into each
bottle to ripen it winter or summer after cyder is wrackt it looks for  


100)


(101


102)


(103
Pills generally purging all humours as flegm choler
melancholy from all pts of the body, thereby curing
many diseases.
Rx Pilula cochiae majores, pil. aloephanginae & extract of rudius
each one scruple, chymical oyl of nutmegs 1 drop, make them
into 6 pills & take 3 at night going to bed & 3 the next morning
R. C. mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in very fine pouder mixt
with a little hony or tracle is an exct. purge for a man or 
woman v ic. p. 97.


104


105
Emplastrum de minio Rx sevil oil such
as the combers use one quart red lead lbi in fine
powder boil ‘em together till it begins to be brown. White
wine vinegar that that’s sharp, or good alegar ziiiiii,
when that is boil’d a little add bees wax sliced zij and
rosin in powder zi. then let ‘em just simmer then pour
it into cold water and make it up into rolls, your hands
being oiled or anointed with fresh butter. It dries and
heals wonderfully, discusses tumours and coagulated 
humours; it mollifies, expells, and is anodyne; It is
so [illegible] a thing agt all manner of pains, bruises and old
aches the weakness of the back and sinew’s, sprains 
of the joints gouts, old sciatica’s and other inveterate
pains coming of cold that it has scarcely and equal;
esteem it as a jewel.


106)
Artery prickt or wounded.
There is no better think than to apply balsam de chili, or
panicea balsamina upon lint, & lay over it a diapalma
plaster. It commonly cures at one dressing. Salmon.


(107



108)
To take away the pain of any swelling & to cure it
without breaking
p. 72
Rx juice of housleek 2 pts & fresh butter 1 pt mix them together & 
anoint the swelling till well, Mrs M. or shred wormwood (green is best)
small & apply it hot, being fry’d in fresh butter, like a poultis renew it
once in 2 or 3 days. ibid another Rx camomile, wormwood, southernwood
& lavender cotton each mi pounded boyle em in a [illegible] pt of
cream to an oyl strain it warm it in a spoon or agt the fire
rub it on night & morning till you are well Goody [Homes] of
Wigson magna did great cures of aches & swelling with this green
oyntmt. Jn Gamble carpenter his wife was cured of a great swelling 
on her knee as big as a mans fist with it without breaking
The Duke of [Leeds] had a violent swelling & inflammation 
that descended fro his shoulder to his back the Drs & surgeons 
thought it impossible to be cured without cutting an old poor
woman cur’d & took away the pain in a very little time 
only by applying 3 or 4 times a poultis of turnips made
with mutton suet viz. the turnips were pared & boyled in 
water & then mixt with the suet & apply’d warm The Rd
Mr Ed. Lovel. a child abt a yr. old at Leicer had a swelling
that look’d white (which is reckon’d the worst of swellings) abt the 
bigness of a womans fist, it was cured thus by a soldier viz 
he boyled some parsnips (scrap’d) in water to a mash & apply’d
as hot as you can endure it to your cheek or the back of your hand
& it was repeated every 3 hours day & night for 40 hours
& it dissolved without breaking MRs Abigail Finch.
To make oyl of trefoil. Buy some seeds of sweet trefoil (called the
balsam tree) of the seedmen at London & sew em in a [fat] soil in a garden
in April, when it is in the blossom cut it & keep the flowers by themselves
now gotten & dry put em in a glass unchopt with sallet oyl as much
as will cover the herbs set em in the sun for a fort night to incorporate
strain out the oyl & keep it for use. The oyntmt of trevoil is made of
the herb chopt green, dry, & new (gotten or) cut mix it with goose grease 
Set it in an earthen pot in a cool place viz in a cellar or [dary] for a week 
or 10 days to incorporate then boyl it & strain out the herbs & put 
this oyntmt into an earthen pot & when it is quite cold cut a hole from the
surface to the bottom at which drain out the water clean then after a 
batch of bread or any things bak’d set it in the oven till it is entirely
molted so cover it with a paper or board & keep it for use It is good for all
swellings or pains The oyl is esteem’d better than the oyntmt but Mrs. Adderly 
uses only the oyntmt being cheapest. Sister Mayer


(109
To cure a swelling caus’d by a kick or for a bruise
Rx wormwood leaves mi ale ½ a pint boyl em till it is thick
like glew apply it on as hot as you can endure it every 
night bind on the leaves too It gives present ease (when oyl of
turpentine will not) & will heal where only the skin is rub’d
off. James Leppington. unguentu nutritu is cooling drying & 
anodyne, good agt inflamations burnings & scaldings, takes 
away the itch of wounds, cures scabs & [tetters]. Salmons Disp.
To dispense or break a swelling Rx goose grease 10 pts oyl of
turpentine (or oyl of spike) 1 pt E.A. To make oyl of
[fish] for any new swelling Rx the whites of 2 eggs, salt one
spoonful beat em well together then beat with it an equal quantity 
of hony for 2 hours anoint the swelling & a piece of limbers
London brown paper & apply it If the paper stick too fast when you 
would take it off moisten it with warm water. It will keep 7 yrs 
you may make ½ this quantity & keep it in a bottle close stopt
It is good for a swelling caus’d by cold or for an eye swell’d 
up taking care that you put none into the eye Rd Mr Ed. Stokes
oyntmt of roses will discuss a swelling: ibid The swelling of
the cheek caus’d by the toothach is cured by anointing it with sallet 
oyl E.A. A poultis to break & heal any swelling white or red
p. 79. another Rx a penny loaf, slice it, then sooth it in running
water with red rose leaves till they be thick like a poultis then add a
little deers suet apply it as hot to the grieved place as you can endure 
it. Pater [meus]. another for a for a foot strained or wrenched
Rx a little oatmeal & milk & [smallage] mi chopt with a little sheep
suet & boyl em & make a poultis of em & spread it upon a clean
cloth apply it as hot as you can endure it when you go to bed.
I have try’d this to be a singular good medicine says Geo. Ashby
Pater [meus]. Emplastrum podagricum is a useful application in all
tumours attended with sharp pain Quince’s Dispensatory.
A swelling in the stomach or belly in a fever or any rupture or hard
swelling any where. a child & a gentleman that had belly & stomach 
swell’d so that little or no passage & thought to be dying were both recover’d
by this following. Rx St. Jns wort wormwood [scordium] (al. water germander)
camomile flowers [melilot] flowers mallows each mi marshmallow roots
2 ounces linseed zfs juniper berries aniseeds each zi Boyl or infuse em in 
2 galns of water till it comes to one then put in aqua vitae a qt ferment it with 
hot flannels 2 or 3 hours together keeping it as hot as you can bear it DR
Harlap for Mr Johnson of Leicer Mrs Caulton


110)
an oyntmt for any swelling or St. Anthonies fire
[Tetter] or ringworm scale head or any pain or ach
Rx comfry leaves miij may butter lbijfs unsalted aqua
vitae 2 d or the 5th pt of a qt. (pr 20 d per qt) Put the leaves 
unpounded [unsh??d] with the rest of the ingredients in a pipken set em
in an oven with a batch of bread, strain it when it comes out
work it in agt the fire. A woman of Caucot 4 m from Cambridge
doth great cures with it pr 4 d per ounce Tho. Juice
Sam. Exon carpenter ran the point of his knife into his wrist
which made a great wound that bled very much perhaps some of
the sinews were cut working in his shirt when it was almost
well in Febr 4 the cold fell into it which caus’d a violent swelling
in his hand having try’d a great many things nothing
was so effectual to the abating the swelling as salt & water 
bath’d on blood warm agt the fire it out did human urine.
J. Exon E. A. had a [foal] swell’d on each side of its [shop] & on each
buttock. Poplar oyntmt [ripen’d] the swelling so that it was soft & cut with
a pen knife & there came out a great deal of thick corruption which
flow out like blood from a vein Then a slice of bacon dipt in pouder
of pepper was put into each orifice by Tho. Tafte his blacksmith
& the foal did well We thought it was the strangles in its breech
To kill a tetter or ringworm or any kind of [illegible]
Rx sallet oyl & salt [?empar’d] together & anoint the [illegible] [illegible]
& you shall find a cure. Lady Wright
Rub a tetter with Roman vitriol dissolv’d in [illegible] [illegible] 3 or 4 
times a day or rub it with verjuice Mrs Brown of Leicer
Rub a tetter with the fasting spittle of a man that smokes tobacco in a morning
dry it in agt a fire [Joyce] Gimson E. A.’s servt.
moisten a tetter often with white copperas dissolved in spring water. Sister Boothby 


(111



112)



(113
An exct. medicine for the mother or vapours
Rx a gallon of strong alewort, of balm & vervain & pellitory
of the wall each mi anniseeds bruis’d & liquorish ziiii of each
& some wheat bruis’d. Boyle all these till 3 pts be consum’d then strain it
& drink a draught thereof lukewarm morning & evening Mrs M.
another A fit of the mother is vapours in the highest degree.
The mother a diease of women vulvae strangulatic, hysterica
passio. Rx polypody (al oak fern) zi aniseeds & liquorish sliced
each zij raisons of the sun ston’d ziiii epithymum (i.e. dodder of
thyme) zfs sena zifs hysop, penny royal each mi 2 or 3 roots 
of the red dock, leaves of betony, succory mij fennel mi boyl
all the herbs in 3 qts of water till half is consumed then strain it
& put the liquor into a pipkin then add the polypodium raisons, liquorish 
anniseeds Let em boyl half an hour then put in the epithymum
& white wine a pint at the least then add the sena Let it boyl
still on the fire & let it stand on the embers till night then Rx 6 
in the morning 12 or 13 spoonfuls. S. S.
To cleans the mother or womb.
Rx mother wort, mugwort, calamint, each mij savoury, marygolds
fennel, parsley, each a quarter of mi w. wine & running water 
each a quart boyl ‘em alltogether untill half the liquor be wasted
away then strain it, & drink thereof first & last, sweeten’d with 
a little sugar Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother


114)



(115




(117
Hard Drinking or to excess.
Dr Quincy in his Dispensatory commends tincture sacra as a
preserver of the tone of the stomach & a good digestion p. 393.
Sergeant Mundy that was a hard drinker us’d every morning
to drink a pint of cold caudle viz The yolks of 2 eggs 
beaten & mixt with water a pint & sweeten’d with loaf sugar
pounded & mull’d by pouring it out of one mug into another
till the froth rises & stands above the top of the mug. Ann Tasie.
Some people add w. wine & nutmeg to the caudle. ibid.




(119
Madam Sparks’s cordial water
Rx a peck of cowslips the flowers only, one quarte of rosemary
flowers the finest, good nutmegs zi beat & steep ‘em 
in a gallon of good sack 2 or 3 days & then draw it off in a 
still. Mrs S. 
A cordial water for the stomach.
Rx Cinnamon water & damask rose water each half a pint double
refin’d loaf sugar lbfs beaten small & put into a jelly bag
upon which pour the water or let it run abt 20 times through then bottle
it in a glass & put into it abt 20 leaves of leaf gold or as much
as you shall think fit & shake it well together herewith it were good
to mix a quantity of borrage water & water of rosemary flowers 
as much as you shall think fit Mrs Frances Beckerton & Mrs Caulston
A cordial. stone raysins of the sun [less] currants ziiii dates
6 lightly pounded & sliced boyl em in water till they are tender
then pour out the water & strain em very hard Then put liquorish 
pouder 1 d to em aniseed pouder 1 d mace & cloves in pouder each 1 d
saffron 2 d cinnamon 1 d nutmegs 2 d allin pouder sugar in pouder
the same weight as all the pouder Boyl all these a good while together
& with more sugar make it into rolls or cakes. S. S.
A cordial water made by King Charles Rx the best [illegible] brandy
1 galln D. refin’d sugar lbij put to it sp. of saffron zifs [illegible]
ziiii oyl of cloves zi steep em all together 24 hours in a silver or
earthen vessel well glaz’d with in stir em together a little with a silver 
spoon first tie a London brown paper over the top of the earthen
vessel but it is best with a close cover when it has stood 24 hours
stir it a little bottle it & stop the bottles close with corks Tie leather
over em The longer you keep this water the better it will be Be sure to 
stir it always one way when you stir it & let it not near the fire a 
closet which has no fire near it will do best. S. S.



120)
A Diet Drink for Drospie or Tymphany.
Rx Lignum vitae zij sarsaparilla zi sassafras zvi boyl em
in 6 qts of spring water till abt ½ is wasted then strain out the
woods & add to the water 3 qts of strong ale just boy them together
work it up with yest & tun it up & put in a large handful of
green broom a large quantity of ash – ashes tyed up in a cloth
hang em in your drink after 4 days you may drink of it in 
the morning & at 4 o clock in the afternoon. You may add
a good quantity of [millenader] wood lice & a large handful of ale [hoof]
Mrs M. Another Boyl briony roots in conduit water or in ‘
white wine & water drink it, It cures the dropsie Mrs M. Another
Rx guajacum (i.e. lignu vitae) ziiij sassafras & sarsaparilla each zi green
broom mi boyl em in 6 ful qts of spring water till one ½ is wasted
drink ½ a pint in the morning & as much as 3 o clock in the afternoon.
You may add [daucus] seed & bay berries each zfs dry’d sage
mi. It is a perfect cure Mrs M. another Rx mustard seed two spoonfuls
bruis’d in a mortar but not pulveriz’d, infuse it in one
pint of white wine take 2 spoonfuls of the clear mixt in 
all the drink a man or woman drinks viz 2 spoonfuls to be 
mixt with a pint of drink. use it in your constant drink without 
straining or separating the sedemt. This is exct. for aged
people It creates a good digestion & cures swell’d legs. Dr
Anthony Brooks & Mrs Finch. another Drink rue & wormwood
dry & infus’d in strong ale every morning a draught
this cured Mrs Auger of Leicer Elizth Winter another Garlic has
often cured dropsies almost to a miracle. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
another Some have bin cured of tymphanies & dropsical swellings
abt the belly by drinking coffee. Mr Brooks. another Rx Hips
when there red (before they are rotn) & peel em lay the peels in a pot till
they rot then put to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot keep it till
Lady Day near the fire It will be extremely sharp. Drink 3 spoonfuls
of vinegar of hips with a little sugar 3 or 4 times a day It will provoke
urine extremely Dr Pool. A dropsy or sweaty feet. Boyl dwarf
elder (al. danewort) in spring or well water & drink it for 
the constant drink till well or make tea of it. sweaty feet
are often caus’d by a dropsical humour flowing from the
body. Elderly people are most subject to the dropsy. It is
a great purge of watry humours & is very diuretick in [latine]
[ebulus] David [Fane] & Salmn


(121
a diet drink that cureth the dropsy jaundice all itches
green sickness & purifieth the blood.
Rx the roots of monk’s rhubarb & red madder scurvy grass
each lbfs sena ziiii aniseeds & liquorish each zij scabius, agrimony
& maidenhair each mi slice the roots bruise the seeds & 
liquorish. Break the herbs with the hand & put em all to four galns
of ale to steep 3 or 4 days drink for 3 weeks. S. S.
another diet drink to sweeten the blood. Rx sarsaparilla 4 ou.
sassafras 4 ou. China root 4 ou. hartshorn shavings 2 ou. guaiacum
2 ou. raysons of the sun ston’d lbfs liquorish sliced 2 d crude antimony
in [illegible] pouder ½ ou. put all these in to spring water 2 gallons in a new 
pipkin with a cover & boyl it till it comes to 6 qts strain it & put it
into bottles. Drink ½ a pint in the morning fasting & ½ a pint at 4 
in the afternoon. You must put the antimony in a rag tied up & let 
it hang in the liquor whilst boyled & then take it out S.S.
another Rx Red dock root lbi fir lbi broom lbi slice
& chop & hang it in a net in 3 gallons of midling ale S.S.
A wet itch that has taken the blood & been of long standing. Rx
tobacco stalks mi or 4 ou. chop it that it may go into a pan add new 
human urine (because old stinks most) a qt. allum 1 ou. boyl it till a
4th pt. is consumed. strain it & dab it on cold or warm agt a fire
night & morning. 3 or 4 times dressing cured when a great many 
medicines had been try’d in vain & Dr Brooks said he had rather cure the 
pox. This cured Mrs Abigail Finch
Dropsy & swell’d in the body with stiffness in the legs.
Put mustard seed 2 eggshel full to small beer a pint Drink it
constantly when the beer is drank off put more beer to the [illegible]
This cured old Richd Cley shoe maker of Whetstone
A tymphany or when the belly is swell’d like a woman with child
prescrib’d by Mrs Isabella Smith of [Queniboro] It cured Mrs Ann
[illegible] that swell’d abt 3 yrs & she was abt 20 yrs of age.
Rx nine spoonfuls of broom ashes, three of bean stalk ashes & three
of wormwood ashes, three of mustard seed whole, dwarf elder, scrap’d
horse radish & sliced large onions each mi Put all these things into a large
jug mingled well together then pour upon em two qts of boyling spring water
2 qts of white wine to two of brandy. Do not heat the wine nor brandy. Let 
it stand close stopt as near the fire as the jug will bear 3 days & 2 nights, stirring
it up very often with a [illegible] of broom, then let it settle & pour th e
clear off into glass bottles close stopt for use. Dose, in the morning at
four in the afternoon, & at going to bed, the third pt of a pint on an empty 
stomach fasting two hours after it. Mr Wm [Frese] junior
A diet drink to sweeten the blood, a good diuretick & good in cutaneous
eruptions or dry itching by Dr Geo. [Charelden] of Leicer
Rx Guaiacum sassafras each 2 ou. roots of shap pointed docks & roots of [illegible] 
i.e. dropwort, the roots of cynoglossum i.e. hounds tongue each 1 ounce


122)
Geranium Robertianum (ie herb Robert) agrimony each miij
seeds of wild daucus, coriander seeds, each half an ounce, raphanus
sylvestri (i.e. horse radish) 2 ou. sena mundata (pickt clean) zijfs 
millipedes rectify’d i.e. cleans’d with w. wine one pint. Let these be tun’d
up in a canvass or muslans rag in four galns of small ale without hops
After it has been tun’d 3 days drink half a pint morning & ½ a pint at 4 in 
the afternoon, but when the mornings draught gives you a stool or two then
omit it in the afternoon. Rx it dayly till it is all gone it will not keep long
being apt to change. If you find benefit repeat it as you think good
To heal the itch. Boyl sorrel in water & wash the sores
Traveller another wash your hands in frogs spawn water 
& were it itches. ibid. For the itch Rx elecampane roots
wash’d & scraped clean boyl ‘em in running water till they be very
tender then strain ‘em thro’ a course cloth & after they have been boyl’d
in a good quantity of may butter with the same liquor & roots
or other butter without salt then spread some of this upon a 
linnen cloth 4 fingers broad & so wear it about your waste 
& renew it every 3 or 4 days & this will kill it in any place of 
the body, but if the hands being broken or scaby anoint
‘em with this oyntment, or dress a pair of gloves with it
& so wear em upon your hands. If you put some vinegar 
to the roots while they are boyling it will be the better
Mrs HEwet E.A.’s mother
For a young dropsy & for one that has advanced some time
cured by Dr Geo. Cheselden’s prescription as it follows [illegible] Mr Geo.
Basset that keeps an inn at the sign of the feather in Leicer being
abt 40 yrs of age & very fat lusty man, had lost his stomach & 
had both legs very much swell’d Rx summitatum centaurij
minoris pugillum unum, racias gentianae incitae zfs seminis sinapi
ceaturi zij foliorum senae alexandrinae zfs salis tartari zi cineren
genistotum, limaturae calibis ana zifs infundantur simul in vini [albi]
libris tribus frigide; colaturae capiat ziii bis in die viz. mane & hora
tertia post meridiem. He rode out on horse back & drank carduus tea every 
morning for a week & his stomach return’d & he continued well & his
legs ceased to swell G.B.
For the itch Rx [illegible] and flower of brimstone mix’t 3 
tea spoonfulls [9] mornings together to send the humour
out, then dress with sope and flower of brimstone well mixt
together, then when cur’d boil Jamaica pepper zi [ma?]
cinamon and nutmeg and cloves in a pint of water
and mas therewith two or three  times. Thomas Back



(123
For the Itch
Take hogs lard and some quicksilver and [fill] it with the 
lard and mix with it hellebore root and dress therewith the
joints and smell to it. Peter [Netes].


124)


(125
The Kings Evil chaeras. adis. f. scrophula f.
struma.
It is often caus’d byu a bruise or surfeit & is often hereditary
MRs Clay the ironmongers mother of Leicer cures
it by a plaster of tar & by gentle purging with syrup of buckthorn at the end
& after the cure she never fails unless the bone is perish’d
where the evil is Mrs Clay. another [illegible] stones skin’d
& dry’d & pouder’d & taken in white wine, ale, or beer as
much as will lie on a six pence for a week then intermit a
week & take it on till you find benefit. Jn Clark, gelder
another Barly meal boyld with tar, wax oyl & boys urine is
effectual agt the Kings Evil. Salmons Disp. another Rx a qt of 
milk boyl it then take it off the fire & put into it hony
2 spoonfuls when it is dissolv’d set it on the fire & let it
boyl again. Rx ½ a pint of this the 1st think in the morning
& at 10 & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed. use
this as long as you find occasion purge twice a week with 
caryocostinum half an ounce for abt 3 weeks till all the
humours are spent. (Lady Curzon & sister B) Dress the evil sores
with this oyntmt Rx fresh butter lbfi bees wax zij shred small or slic’d
thin horse turpentine 2 d verdigrise pouderd 1 d or zii rosin
pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle fire till it comes to an oyntmt
or soft salves It will be soft as butter you may use it to the
greatest sores both in tents & plasters you need not use burnt allu
It will fetch out dead flesh in lumps (vid p. 59) ibic emplastrum
mammilare is commended in Quinces Dispensatory for the Evil.
another Drink a good draught of cow piss for 3 mornings together
leave off 3 mornings than drink it for six mornings
successively omit 6 mornings & drink it 9 mornings omit 9 
mornings & continue drinking 9 mornings to keep to 9 mornings
till well It cured a [illegible] woman of the evil when she had 9 holes
in one leg. She drank ½ a pint at a time spring & fall when the
surgeons cured the Evil sores they broke out again but cow piss
made a perfect cure. she liv’d at London but went [to] Edmonton
lead sevil oyl & bees wax will cure the Evill
This drink was prescrib’d by a learned physician for a lady afflicted
with the Kings Evil Rx mullein, St Jns wort, agrimony & beteny each
miij shavings of [fir] mvi. Boyl ‘em in ale 6 gallns The drink of it constantly 
Pecheys Herbal.



126)
figwort plaster for the Evil or Kings Evil
Rx the leaves of figwort, hounds tongue & fox glove cut small
each mij oil olive a pint ½ mix boyle the herbs till they are crisp strain
out by pressing & put in the like quantity of fresh herbs which repeat
the third time & till the oyl is very green, then add sheeps suet lbi turpentine
6 ou. bees wax 4 ou rosin 2 ou. fr. verdigrise 1 ou. mix & 
make a plaster, spred it upon leather or new linnen cloth often renewing
it. It assuages the swellings, disperses the humors, not only 
of the Evil but of any other knots, kernels, bunches or wens. Salmons
Family Dictionary & Pecheys Herbal.
Elizth Plat the wife of Wm Plat (a poor man) can cure
the Evil with cole trough water & lays an oak leafe to the
sore she also cures sore eyes & takes off pearls from the eye
she lives at Thurmaston & is sister to Wm Simpkin at the
cannon in Leicer
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory commends emplastru
mammilare for the Evil & says there is nothing equal 
to it vid.
A diet drink for the Kings Evil. Pecheys Herbal.
Rx guaiacum chips cut into small pieces 8 ou. sarsaparilla 6 ou. bark
of walnut tree, roots of figwort & saxifrage each 2 ou. herb Robt
miij raisins of the sun stoned & live millipedes each libi make a bag
for 4 galns of new beer.
The Kings Eviul was thus cured on [nic] Waltons wife when a girl
who had seven sores on the side of her neck & 5 before on her
neck Her husband liv’d at Rotherby in Leicershire she was 
cured by Abraham Wild, gardiner at Kirby bellows to Mr De
la Fountain & St. John [Meers] a Roman Catholic
Rx vervain (verbena) mij bruis’d a little, boil it in white wine
2 qts Rx ½ a pint in the morning before you rise, fasting & so every
morning as long as it lasts. Rx spring water & the [illegible] scum’d
milk p.e. or a pint of each, in this steep vervain mi bruised or unbruised
all night or longer the longer be better then take out a
leaf & lay it to the sore after you’ve bath’d it with the milk & water 
[bin] or sew a cloth on it to make it stick on. You may sometimes apply
a dry leaf use that most that keeps on best. Bath it twice a day with
a fine rag dipt in the milk & water cold. Rx the root of vervain you 
must not scrape or wash it. hang it to the pit of the stomach ty’d
with a long black silk or black ribbon round the neck. the root will
waste away then you must take a new root. you must take great care
not to lose the roots that have been used at the stomach wear em in 
the pocket or keep them in a box or cupboard. you must wear the roots
a yr or longer abut the neck till the sores are wasted or quite dryu’d up
when you have taken the w. wine then take mild ale a qt & steep vervain
mi bruised & Rx ½ a pint in the morning fasting before you rise from 
bed when that ale is gone take more till you are quite well. after you 
are quite well & the sores are dry’d up Rx all the vervain in [illegible] once a fortnight
or 3 weeks for a yr or longer especially at spring & fall Rx
it every day for a week & with the blood itches take it at any 
time to prevent an outbreak. vervain will not cure if you have 



(127
used any salve or plaster. If a woman hath the Evil let her
stroke her sores with the right hand of a man newly dead. If a man
hath the Evil let him [stroke] his sores with the right hand of a dead woman
This stroking with a dead hand caused Nic. Walton’s wife’s sores to cease
running & sooner to mend. uxor Nicolai Walton Ann Walton, she had the
Evil when 7 yrs old & was cured as above mention’d.
Mrs. Bullivant of Coston abt 4 m. beyond Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire
cures the Kings Evil she has reced 100 l for a cure Br S.A.
Bates’s Dispensatory commends unguentum digitalis ointmt of fox
gloves for the Evil. Rx may butter lbiij fresh fox gloves beaten
as much as you can well put into it, insolate for 30 days, then
boil & press out strongly. anoint the places affected with the Kings
Evil therewith morning & evening till you find the affect to cease
for this purpose it has no equal. It dissolves kernels in the neck
or else where & takes away all sorts of scrophulous tumours whatsoever
Salmon says you should purge once a week too with pilulae panchymagoga.
In the Kings Evil the decoction of the leaves
& in winter the roots of the small wild daisy given inwardly 
& a cataplasm of the leaves apply’d outwardly are esteemed
by some as exterordinary remedies. Millers Herbal
Perriwinkle (in latin vinca per vinca) is a famous vulnerary The leaves
of this herb just upon paper that will easily receive moisture & sewed to 
it with fine flas betwixt perfum’d with frankincense cured a scrophulous
tumour in a short time which continued obstinate under the use of
other remedies for the space of a whole year: Pechey’s Herbal.
Can Coats A butcher of Leicer had a daughter that had two 
running sores of the Kings Evil viz one in her arm & 
another in her thigh Sr Geo. [Braum?] had the advice of
the college of physicians at London for her She went to em
it cost Dan 10 l all the charge during her stay there & she 
came to Leicer uncured & Dan afterwards cured her
himself in half a years time only by smoking tobacco
in a morning fasting & spitting & his daughter rubbed
the spittle that came from his mouth on the sores 
with a feather dipt in it agt the fire it was dry’d in 
& it dry’d up the humour & it continued well as long 
as she lived. Dan Coats [rue-leav’d] whitcorn grass or rue whit corn
grass infus’d in small beer & drank for some days cures the Kings Evil without
any sensible evacuations Pechey’s Herbal. Mr Boyle commends the
herb very much for the cure of the Evil & Sr Jn Colebatch in his essay upon 
acids & alkali makes mention of a poor girl at Worcester afflicted with 
scrophulous ulcers that receiv’d great benefit from rue leav’d whitcorn-grass 
[illegible] Herbal. Kings Evil emplastrum ad strumas. Rx black
pitch that is free from dross stone. Pitch is best Bees wax
cut in thin slices hard frankinsence bruis’d each of
these zi camphire zii or abt 3 d and sevil oil 2 spoonfuls
or zifs melt these all but the camphire beat the camphire
with oil and crumble it in as soon as it is taken from the 


and stir it in gradually as soon as it comes from  the fire till it is cold or disolve it in good spt of
wine, and so mix’t with the salve as soon as it comes
off from the fire. it is apply’d to a sore or a sore leg 
melt some of it and dip lint in it and lay a simple
diacuton plaster over it as broad as man’s hand & 
continue it on a long time together
For a toe nail that is cut too short and is painful
dip a bit of lint into the salve and apply it with a 
plaster of the same emplastrum ad strumas tried over
it.







130)


(131
To make in that will not change yellow or 
grow mouldy.
Rx Gum arabick (the clearest) zi steep it 24 hours in a 
pint of any clear water, when the gum is dissolv’d put into
it a sheeps gall, ivory black beaten & sifted 4 d or as much 
as will make it as black as you desire it you may buy it
ready ground at pouder’d with is best. after 24 hours from
the meeting of all the ingredients you may write with it.
stir it always before you use it. Ivory black is the best
black that is in the world. If your ink writes thick put into it
some gum water The frost will not hurt it for as soon as 
this ink is thrown & stirr’d together it is as good as at first.
It writes with a good gloss. Try first ivory black 2 d 
make a little gum water. The sheeps gall gives it a good gloss & 
incorporates the ingredients Mrs Mary Lee a Traveller that [illegible]
to Japan. You may mix ivory black with green copperas & 
turky galls etc. & it will make good ink & much improve it.
E. A.
To make red ink
Rx some red carmine pr. 3d vermillion 2 d mix em with gum
arabick water cold & stir em together & you may write with
it after it hath been mixt one hour as well as if it had been
mixt 7 yrs Red carmine is dear & shop keepers seldom will sell
any under eighteen pennyworth at a time Mrs Mary Lee.
Another Rx small Brazil zi white lead & allum each zij bum 
arabick [illegible] viii urine one pint. shake ‘em often together or mix
vermillion with gum arabick water. The young man’s companion
p. 19s


132) To make black ink. Rx Green copperas & 
gum arabick each zij nut galls zvi spring water
or snow dissolv’d 2 qts Bruise the galls & put them into
the water with the gum & copperas unpounded. Let em infuse
10 or 12 days stir it tiwce a day during that time. Place
the pot in some warm place with in doors. In the summer set
the ink in a [cellar] & at the approach of winter put into
the ink aqua vitae 2 d & place it in some warm place 
during the whole winter. Alexander Hepburn of Burbage.
To make good black ink Mr Tartrey Rx rain water 
a qt. The best nut galls lbfs broken into pieces but not
small. Put em into a glass bottle with a large mouth
then add gum arabick ziiij which must not be int oo small
pieces stir these once or twice a day for a month & 
put in a little of the bark of pomegranate & at the
end of the month add Roman vitriol zi in small pieces
as you take out put in as much rain water & it will 
last many yrs stirring it sometimes Mr Tartrey
To make black ink a pint. Rx blew galls zij break em
in a mortar, gum arabick zi verdigrise zi pomegranate rind
zij The best [indico] the quantity of a little tea, the best alewort
a pint ½ green copperas as one dram Let em stand [sim?ering]
4 hours over a gentle fire or longer The longer it is a making
the better The hot sun is better than a fire. The water that stands in 
the root of an oak lately fell’d is better than ale or white
wine. Take the roots of broad logs & the water that is
in em is very good to boyl in the ink. It sets it extraordinary
& makes it very black. To prevent the ink from 
changing yellow add a spoonful of w. wine or rather aqua
vitae. Stir it while it is making. strain it abt 2 weeks after
it is made. when it is too thick add vinegar to it. you must
put in the verdigrise & gum when it is cold Wm Smith a
Travelling ink-seller, taught by a London book-seller.
To make red ink a pint Rx the best Brazil ground zij
pr. 2.9 allum the quantity of a nutmeg, best ale a pint mild
is better than stale gum arabic zfs pr. 29 dragons blood the
best drops the quantity of ½ a nutmeg bruise it. when the other
ingredients are cold strain em then put in the dragons blood


(133
you must only let the other ingredients simper. If
you boyl em a long time you spoyl it you must let em
simper in a tin or earthen pot, brass or copper spoyls the
colour ibid. To make red ink. Geo. Hill a London dyer 
Rx [archil], ground Brazil, red wood each zij boyl em in wine
vinegar & rain water each a pint. strain it thro a cloth when almost
cold. [archil] is 6 d per lb a weed that is kept close in a bottle
To make black ink, which is good for to write with or to dress 
an hat with Geo. Hill. London dyer & dyer at Hoby. Rx the blew [illegible]
galls beaten into small pieces zfs green copperas zij sum mach
(al sumac) logwood, Roman vitriol in pouder French verdigrise 
in pouder each zi wine vinegar, rain water each a pint. You may 
beat the verdigrise in a mortar with a little water Boyl em a qr
of an hour. strain it thro a linnen cloth when it is almost cold.
Dissolve a little gum arabic in wine vinegar and add to it when you 
design it only for ink you must leave it out when you dress a hat
when you dress a hat with it, it must be boyling hot you must dip 
the brims in it & where the gum & grease appears & brush it with
a hard brush to make it clean placing a wooden crown under the
head To dye hair or a periwig that is weather beaten of a brown
or saddish colour Rx ground fustick zij summach zi madder the
best ziij boyl em in rain water 3 pints a qr of an hour strain it,
& when it is so cold that you can abide the finger in it put the hair
into it & let it remain in it 2 hours (or 12 hours the better) then take
it out & heat the liquor again with green copperas zij when it is moderately 
cool then put in the hair for two minutes till you see it is of
a colour dark enough. If it is not sad enough, heat the liquor again
& add more copperas & put in the hair as before directed. Geo.
Hill dyer To dye a dogs tayl that is white of a blew colour or
the tayl or mane of a white horse or the feathers of a white hen
or cock. Rx Jamaica indico zij (Lahoor is better but the other will do)
Best wood zij Flemmish pot ashes zij best madder zfs creech 
lime or the finest lime that is fallen & like wheat flower zfs heat em
in rain water 2 qts It must not boyl when it is so warm that you can 
endure the finger in it. Hold the dogs tayl in it & squeeze it in the
hand & you will see it turn blew in 3 minutes It will last till he casts
his hair or the hen her feathers This will dye an ivory haft of a knife or 


134)
or a cows horn, or bristles that are white. Geo. Hill dyer
To make black ink much commended & us’d by Dr Jn Million
of Ansley. Rx turky galls ziiij English vitriol (al green copperas) zi 
alum zfs the strongest stalest beer 3 pints. Let all the 3 1st ingredients
be pounded severally & infus’d apart in a sufficient quantity
of the beer for 7 days. Dissolve gum arabick zi in a sufficient
quantity also of the beer; then strain all distinct & the gum likewise
& mix all the ingredients together & keep em close stops for use. J. M.
To make Japan or shining ink. Br Jn Levermore buys ink of 
men that sell it at his door some of it he puts into his standish & 
when it is thick & too dry he adds [aleager] (ale vinegar) & when that
has stood some time to incorporate it will shine upon paper in the
writing most charmingly J. L. If you add a drop or 2 of single anniseed
water to the ink in the inkhorn or inkglass & let it stand a day
to incorporate it will shine like Japan ink but if it shines too much as
not to dry them mix aniseed water (the weakest sort is best) with fair water 
but do not use it in 12 hours after E.A. To make black ink Rx blew
galls bruis’d zi chipt logwood (not ground) zij boyl these 2 things in 
a qt of clear water (soft water is best) to a pint then take it off the fire & 
add Roman vitriol zij pearl lashes zi (you may buy it of Mr Ludlam at
Leicer) Green copperas zi these last ingredients must not be boyled let 
em infuse one week (you need not any gum arabick) then strain keep 
it in a clean bottle close stops from dust you need not shake it after
it is strain’d. when the ingredients are together stir em with a stick once
a day. you need not set it in the sun or near the fire. It will not turn
yellow. you may make ½ pint more of the same ingredients before you 
thrown em away Mr Stubbs dyer of Coventry. In rainy & frosty
weather you must set the ink near the air of the fire or carry 
the inkhorn in the pocket & dry the paper too or it will not
write but sink into the paper unless you pounce it Mr Ward
book seller of Leicer keeps his ink constantly by the fire in the
chimney E. A. 
To make black ink
Rx Green copperas 3 ounces, galls bruised small 4 ou. bum
arabick white & clear 3 ou. Put them to 3 pints of rain water
in a jug or any earthen vessel. Stir it with a stick 2 or 3 times a 
day for 3 weeks or a month then bottle it, & add a spoonful of
salt & another of grandy. You may set the jug by the fire
once or twice a week till it is warm whist you are stirring
it Mr Halford farmer cutler when it is too thick mix white
wine 3 pts sack 1 pt let it incorporate 12 hours or longer E. A.
or when it is too thick add more rain water ibid.
another Rx Rain water 2 qts galls beaten 5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum
arabic 3 ou. sugar candy 2 ou. Stir em together twice or thrice a day for
a fortnight by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.


(135
To prevent ink from sinking into paper
Rx some pounce i.e. gum sandrick in fine pouder
having a little hole in the lid or top of a box that screws on which
the writing masters have on purpose & stop with the hard piece
of a quill at the feather end pr. 1 d strew it on in 3 or 4 places 
then rub it on very hard (or it doth little or no good) with a fine
linnen rag or dimity or piece of clean cap paper Then you may 
rug the same rag or cap paper on a little w. lead or chalk made
into fine pouder with a clean knife on a clean trencher & rub it over
where the pounce had been rub’d It makes the paper look white
preserves the writing. If the ink shines & does not dry readily
you may rub some chalk or w. lead with a rag on cap paper
& apply it to the writing & give it time to dry up the ink then you 
may rub or brush it off.  This is a good way when you prick tunes
in musick. you may try wheat flower pounce alone is best to 
make paper bear ink. E. A.
To make ink Mr. Geo Garnet attorny of North Allerton in 
Yorkshire Rx galls 3 oz gum arabick 2 oz green copperas
1 oz loaf sugar 1 oz indica 1 oz rain water 3 pints. Price of 
the ingredients 5 d or 6 d set it near the fire for 3 or 4 days
so as it may simber & wast abt a pint & shake it daily 3 or 4 
times whilst it stand by the fire. when you ingross you must
have no cotton in the ink glass that thickens the ink. Ink without
cotton flows readily from the pen. G.G. when you take the ink out
of the vessel it is kept in stir it with a stick a little & let the stick be
made with a point so that you may put a drop into the cradle of the
pen holden flat or level then let it from thence drop in to the
inkglass or inkhorn by this means the ink always taken from 
a little distance of the bottom it writes blacker than when taken fro
the top or surface E.A. Red ink Mr [Blunt] a dyer in Darby shire
Boil raspings of Brasil: wood one penny worth in spring water
half a pint untill the water is red which may be the [spate] of a quarter of an
hour then add [illegible] meal in fine pouder two pennyworth Let it
boil a little more then put thereto a little allum & strain it for use Some
use vinegar instead of water Mr Blunt likes water best
Black in Rx galls 4 ou. broken to pieces but not to pouder green
copperas 1 ou. pouder’d gum arabick rose-indico & allum each half
ou. all pouder’d Put all these together to a quart of rain-water
or other soft water in a glass or earthen bottle clos’d stopt & kept 



136)
blood warm for ten days shaking the bottle three or four times a 
day when you use it pour off [illegible] the top & let the ingredients
remain in the bottle that the ink may feed thereon & when you have
used part thereof you may add more water to the ingredients which
still remain good If in sumer it [illegible] to mould add salt
In winter to keep it from freezing add brandy, for after the frost
has taken it it is good for nothing Mr Blunt a dyer E. A. had ink
in a pitcher which was frozen very hard in the yr 1730 he put
some fresh ingredients to it & set it in the sun all sumer following & 
stir’d it often & it was excellent ink.
To make blue ink Geo: [Dill] of [Doby]
Rx wood zii Jamaica indico i.e. dyers indico in powder zii (indico la
hoar is best but dearest) steep it in hot water a qr of an hour then
pound it well then pour off the liquid till all is disolv’d. Steep your
[illegible] 2 hours in a pint of rain water warm not very hot it
must not boyl then strain it through a cloth & put it to the
blue liquor in which you may dissolve a little gum arabick
for two or 3 days shaking the bottle every day setting it 
in the sun or near a fire
To make ink rd in Jn Orton’s way, from Mr Barwells
Rt This [illegible] does Mr Barwells Rt
Rx gum arabic lbfs green copperas lbvs, best galls lbi
bruis’d, infus’d em in w: wine vinegar a qt pr 6 d at the [taverns]
till the gum & copperas is disolv’d, put ‘em in a jug & stir ‘em 
with a stick, twice a day for a week, the put in rain v
abt 2 qts or more till it is of a due consistence for writing 
which you must try if it is too thick, add more rain v but put in
too little water at first. after it is made stir it once a
week constantly, when you use it pour off the clear without
stiring best when you have lately added rain water to thin
it, then stir it before you pour any out keep all the ingredients
in always This will keep good 2 years & more. keep the jug
[cover’d] always with a paper ty’d over it to keep out the dust.
In the hot weather set it for a month or 2 in the sun in freezing
weather set it near the fire. Mr Orton always stirs his ink
twice a day after it is made as long as it lasts. after he has put in
rain water to thin it he doth not use it in 2 or 3 days or more.


(137
To make black ink Mr Blunt dyer at Burrows
ash mill in Darby shire
Rx river [water] a a French indico zfs. 2 d (price 3 d per lb) green
copperas zfs 2 [illegible] allum zfs blue galls of the bigger sort [illegible] 6 or 7.
bruis’d em the clearest gum arabick zii pr 2 g put em in a qt glass
bottle & set it near the fire & shake it every day for 8 or 9 days. It
writes pale at first then turns blue & at last black, it will n ot
turn yellow. If it writes too pale put in a little more copperas If it [illegible]
at the top put in a little salt & it will keep it down. 7 great galls
are zi from an [illegible] man.
To take spotts of ink out of cloth. Rx white starch
& rain water lay it on hot or mix it cold, & lay it in the hot
sun to dry Mr Wilkins Taylor of Leicer
To make very good ink mater mea. Rx the best alewort 2 qts
gum arabick 3 ou. green copperas 4 ou. turky galls 5 ou. beaten
small sugar candy 2 ou. stir them all together once or twice a
day for 7 or 8 days. It must not be very strong alewort, that will make
it write too thick but that for midling ale is best.
To make in the best Rx Mr. Geo Brice bookseller of Leicer His ink
barrel holds ten gallons. He takes rain water [illegible] new or old to which
he puts galls (from Turky) bruis’d in a mortar 7 to pr the darkest
heavy set & soundest, & stirs it every morning for a month then 
he puts in gum arabick (the coursest sort 9 d or 10 d per lb which is of
a box colour pounded in a mortar just only to break it that it may 
sooner dissolve) 5 lb stirring it still every morning for a
month longer. then add new green copperas eight pounds a [illegible]
stir it abt twice a week. It will mould if it is not stir’d once every day.
The ingredients are not strain’d from the liquor but after you 
have made ink twice upon the same ingredients adding new
every time that you make ink you must let the ingredients a [illegible]
that comes from them into the cask agn to make more ink. you must
never put water to the old ingredients, after they’ve been used twice with 
fresh ingredients. It is stirred with a thick broomstaff cut even at
the bottom or end of it when it happens to mould (which is for want 
of stirring) skim it off & throw it away. The ingredients continued 
on twice make the ink the stronger. The vessel hath 5 [hoops]
of wood but iron hoops are better It has a wooden cover but seldom
stands cover’d It stands under a pair of stairs in the summer & 
near the fire in winter


138)
Hands sore with washing in lye.
wash em for a long time in cold water after you’ve 
done washing in lye al. [illegible] & it will take out the
venome of the lye Goody Simon. when you’ve done washing 
wash em with new milk warm from the cow [illegible] or warm’d agt the
fire a little will do, & when you go to bed anoint with adders tongue
oyntmt & lie in an old pair of gloves to keep the sheets clean & fro
hurting the sore hands. Mary Chester To harden the hands the night
before you wash quench and old horse shoe or pr of tongues or any 
iron heated red hot in urine & wash the hands therein & let it dry 
in agt the fire ibid. another for sore or chapt hands. wash the
sore hands & arms in urine & let it dry in agt the fire then spit on
the sore places & drop some tallow on em from a candle & rub it
on agt the fire & lie in a pr of old gloves & they will be well the
next day Goody Foxon. [Gorze] cut betwixt michaelmass & xtmass
& burnt to ashes when new cut will make so sharp a lye that it will 
fetch the skin off & make the hands swell, after they’ve been cut a 
month they are not so sharp in their ashes To qualifie their sharpness
burn egg shells in their ashes or embers or add to the lye. Dead
small beer Anne Tasie another To cure chop in human hands
add mercury sublimate zij to lime water a qt you may make
it stronger for chops in horses heels Mr Jn Penford apothceary.
when you’ve done washing the sope or lye before the hands
are dry take a nip of salt & rub the hands with it let it
dry on & remain on all night This will harden the hands
& prevent chops. Goody [Kt] a washerwoman
Boil burnt alum in water so that it may taste strong of the alum
bath it hot on an obstinate chop & bind a linnen rag, moisten’d
in the same, to the sore Mr [Sachvil] Coy.


(139
To prevent the biting of gnats
Infuse Turky galls (ie. Aleppo galls) in water & wash your
face, it will discolour your skin. This they use in the Indies.
Wm Farmer a packer Another wash your hands & face at night
going to bed with your own urine To cure the swellings
caus’d by their biting wash em with wine vinegar Cos Jn Ashby


140)
A pouder for the toothach. v. 237.
Rx pouder of alibine root (ie. white helebore) snuff
up the quantity of a pins head into each nostril If you 
take too much it will make your nose bleed. sometimes it
is taken 8 or 10 times in a day Taken as snuff it cures
also the headach. M.B. face swell’d with the toothach or cold 
anoint it with oyl of roses at a convenient distance from 
the fire Mrs. [illegible] Halford. Diachlysma ad dolores dentium i.e. 
a mouth water for the toothach. It eases the pain in a moment 
vic. p. [722]. Salmons Dispensatory. The toothach. pound 
3 or 4 cloves of garlic put it into a linnen rag or squeeze 
2 or 3 drops into the contrary ear, lying on one side. W. P.
another mix white pepper in fine pouder with vinegar hold it
to the aching tooth it will give ease & conquer the pain being
often us’d. withabed [merer] of Cosby. another Lay a
plaster of burgundy pitch between both shoulders as broad as the
palm of a mans hand then mix black pepper in pouder with soap
& spred it upon allum’d feather & apply it to the root of the
contrary ear let it lie on till it drops off This is infallible says
Mrs Elizth Halford Cheek swell’d with the toothach anoint it, with
sallet oyl. This cured Jane Tasie. Sarah Halford’s cheek was violently
swell’d with [illegible] she was cured by applying a poultace made of oatmeal & milk & 
hogs lard six nights successively S.H.
The toothach. Dry an old linnen rag agt the fire. roll it up
into a little roll light one end at some flame or at the fire
& hold it in the mouth a little way taking care not to burn
the tongue as oft as it extinguishes you must light & hold it in the
mouth. The heat drives away the pain. Goody Simons.
another. mix a little white [illegible] in very fine pouder with the quantity
of 2 little pea’s of black pitch mix em very well together
by working em soundly if in the winter agt the fire, if in 
the summer the heat of the fingers is sufficient apply one of 
em made into the shape of a pea to the orifice of the aching
hollow tooth 3 or 4 hours or longer provided the pain doth
not cease, if the pain doth not abate then you must apply the
other quantity. You must take care not to swallow the spittle
while it is in the mouth lest you poison the self, if you’ve
occasion to eat you must take it out during the eating or
drinking then apply it again. This will only cure an hollow
tooth. This cured Joyce Gimson, my servant who was very 
little troubled with it afterwards.
If the gum & cheek is swell’d very much hold the strongest brandy 


(141
you can get in the mouth often repeating it till the gum
breaks then rub it with a clean rag & wash it oft with verjuice till
quite well This cured Mrs Abigail at Rotherby E.A. The toothach Rx
myrrh zi best aloes zi saffron 1 d sp. v. ½ a qr. of a pint Put these into a
viol glass & gently beat it till it dissolves then rub the gums with it often W.P.
Tooth rotten & hollow to cure its aking sometimes, never to ach again
drop a drop or 2 of oyl of origanum on a little lint & thrust it into the 
hollow tooth & it is a certain & safe cure W. P To cure the toothach
 Rx a bit of green copperas as big as a bean or a little nut, hold it
to the gum of the aking tooth taking care not to swallow any 
of the spittle but let it run out of the mouth if you use this oft
it will harden the gums & by drawing away the [precant] humours
prevent the toothach white copperas taken inwardly is poyson Mr
R. Baxter schoolmaster you may beat it to pouder & tie it up in a thin
rag when you would disguise it E. A. but green copperas [illegible] white [illegible] fetch the teeth out another Aug 719 E.A. was violently
troubled with the toothach the further great tooth on the nether [illegible]
aching the gum being very sore camphorated Hungary water & bleeding 
& toasted bread etc. would do but little good at last E. A. [illegible] his own
urine (being then accustom’d to drink milk morning & night) in his mouth
2 or 3 times a day but especially night & morn & it gave him ease & 
made a perfect cure in 3 or 4 days E. A. another Ann Tasie E. A. servant
being frequently troubled with the toothach having rotten teeth E.A. 
caus’d the aching gum to be prickt till it bled with a quill & the quill & 
blood that hung on it was immediately into ratsbane or mercury sublimate
in pouder & being cut short it was wrapt up in a paper & then 
a linne rag was sown round it & she constantly wore it in her pocket
& it freed her from the pain & ach for 2 yrs as she told E.A. & perhaps
all her life after she wore the tooth of a dead man in her pocket before
in vain Ann Tasie another wear the forefoot of a mole in 
the pocket constantly [sam.] Pauly borcklayer Toothach caus’d by a 
hollow tooth. Dip a little lint in (ordinary) oyl of vitriol & with a pin put
it into the hollow ooth It burns the nerves os that it seldom returns
Jn Pat a traveller a face swell’d with the toothach as cold
spred conserve of roses spred it on a cloth & bind it on the swelling
& it will cure in a nights time. Mrs Abigail Finch The toothach
dissolve sal armoniac in spring or well water Hold it to the aching
gum without swallowing the spittle Mrs Finch.
a faced swell’d or an inflammation or strain.
Rx camphorated spirits of wine & oyntmt of Peru, mix & warme
it in a spoon. chafe it in agt the fire 2 or 3 times in a day Mrs
Coulton. To cure the toothach & the scurvy int eh gums & 
to eat away the rotten part of teeth & so breed flesh again. Rx sp
of vitriol 15 or 20 drops or 2 d hony of roses zi pr [illegible] tie a rag to 
a stick & rub it on night & morn till the gums bleed. Tho Juice



142)
To cure the toothach
Mrs Ann Lathwell when she was big with child was
violently afflicted with the toothach having try’d a
great many medicines in vain & blister’d behind the
ear without relief was at last cured by putting a great
deal of salt into her mouth on the aching side she fell asleep
& was freed from the toothach for 7 yrs after A.L.
another Put tobacco to the aching gum. ibid.
another Put to half an ounce of hony of roses i.e. syrup of
roses abt 6 or 7 drops of oyl of vitriol or as much as will 
give it an acid taste rub the gums with it It will prevent
their aching if usd for a good time together once a day. It
will kill worms in the teeth. Mr. Rich Wightman.
Camomile is used with good success aft the toothach apply’d hot
in a bag to the cheek It is [ext.] agt cramps. Dr Quincy.
If you’ve a hollow tooth that aches make a pill of opiu
camphir & oyl of mace Put it into the hollow place of the 
tooth. It giveth immediate ease to the tooth & jaw. Mr Orme.
A swelling in Mrs Halfords cheek caus’d by the toothach, when
poultising & a great many oyntmts were try’d in vain, was
cured by hot verjuice done on 2 or 3 times a day.
Mrs Elizth Gee sister Boothby’s maid had an hollow tooth which 
ached & swell’d her cheek & was very painful for 2 or 3 days E. A.
cured her thus He moisten’d a little cotton with Hungary water acidulated
with oyl of vitriol & apply’d it to the aching gum & hollow tooth
at night & apply’d a plaster of Bents salve spread on leather & 
first out to go round ½ the root of the ear, to that pt of the head which
the ear covers. This cured Rachel Halford E.A.s servant having an hollow
tooth that pain’d her (when smoaking tobacco would not cure) having
Aunt Boothby’s corecloth or salve made of sevil oyl red lead & 
bees wax (without rosin) lay’d plasterwise behind the ear. you may 
try emplastru adhaesivum or diaculum cum gumi Elizth Mason’s
black salve will cure the toothach lay’d behind the ear on the same
side with the aching tooth. E. A.
Mr Ralph Wells attorny of Leicer cured himself of the
toothach & freed himself from it for many yrs & perhaps all
his life by chewing tobacco twice a week. R. W.
Pecheys herbal commends oyl of guaiacum as good for the toothach.
swelling caus’d by the toothach etc. in the cheek or neck etc. Rx a piece 
of scarlet or red cloth perhaps any cloth may do fry it in butter
& apply it as hot as you can abide it This cured Mary Taylor E. A.’s
servant of a swelling in his cheek that was not caus’d by the toothach in 
a [illegible] M.T. To give certain ears in the toothach from a collodion 
of Rxs in physic & surgery Rx French [illegible] mithridate & a few
drops of vinegar, beat em to a paste & lay a plaster of it to the 



(143
cheek bone or behind the ear; It will raise a blister, but
rarely fails to cure
To make the tooth white & to preserve the gums from the scurvy
Rx camphorated sp. v. what quantity you please acidulate it with
oil of vitriol so that you can endure it in your mouth (if you put in too
much oil it will eat your gums) when it is too sharp add more sp. v.
rub the teeth & gums 2 or 3 times in a day found out by E.D.
Toothach. Apply the harb boil’d or water or the juice
apply’d to the gums viz arsmart that hath black spots
on it Mrs Dorothy Pickern.
Toothach. Rx urine 2 spoonful and boil it in a ladle and
add pounded or grated ginger and thicken it therewith till
it is a poultis and lay it upon a linnen cloth two fingers
broad and apply under your chin from ear to ear Mr
Tho: Franks 


144)
A Rib broken.
If you happen to break a rib or ribs by any accident you 
must swaddle the self about the broken rib very strait with 
a childs swaddle-band or the like thing that will go 3 or 4  
times round the body. The breath naturally thrusts the rib
outwards & the bandage keeps the body in a narrow compass
so that the breath has less way to extend the rib. Art cannot
make any inward application to rejoyn the rib. You must spred
this plaster following upon sheeps leather & apply it before you 
use the bandage It is good for a bruise or strain & to take away
pain. Rx frankincense (hard of soft) burgundy pitch (the soft
sort) p.e. melt em in a ladle or spoon with as much oyl of turpentine
as will bring it to the consistence of a salve It is a 
good corecloth This cured Sam. Exon’s broken rib Apr. 721 
Jn Headly bricklayer of Corby, his mother broke one of her ribs by a fall she
apply’d Aunt Boothby’s corecloth spread upon sheeps leather. It is made of red
lead sevil oil rosin & bees wax vid. the [Rx]


(145
To fasten teeth mobiles dentes stabilise seltirmare
mix a little vinegar with hony cold & rub the gums often. It 
is good for em when they are bruised by a fall or blos Mrs
Basset Another suck [illegible] [illegible] thro the teeth & rub the
bums with the finger & sometimes rub the teeth with salt E.A.
A decoction to fasten loose teeth & recover decay’d
gums. Rx ½ a glass full of vinegar as much water of
[loatiscus] (i.e. mastic tree) rosemary, myrrh, mastick, boll
the moyster that stilleth out of dragons blood, roch alum
burnt each zi cinnamon zfs spring water three glassfuls
mix & let em boyl with a small fire adding to it
hony lbfs taking away the scum of it Then put to it benjamin 
a little when it has boyled a qr of an hour Rx it from
the fire keep it in a clean vial when cold & wash the
teeth often as well before meat as after & hold it awhile
in the mouth. It is very good for the head & maketh a
sweet breath. This Rx is of great excellence. S. S. [queeze]
what is the moisture of dragons blood
perhaps only dragons blood. To fasten teeth even after
they are loose by salivation. Mix Hungary water with common spring
water hold it oft in the mouth it is good after a tooth is drawn to 
heal the sore gum Mrs Ann Lathwell. another scrape some
horse radish root put it in to small beer after it has stood a little while hold
some in the mouth often ibid.
To fasten teeth & preserve the gums & to prevent & cure the toothach.
Rx the clearest pt of aqua camphorata in the mouth often apply 
it with lint to the aking tooth. There are not many things superior
to this Rx E.A.
To fasten loose teeth & kill the scurvy in the gums
Tx sage leaves & bramble (al brier) leaves each mi alum a qr of an 
ounce mastidi do boil all of em in spring water a qt strain it. Then add
claret half a pint & sweeten it with hony to the taste as soon as it is
strain’d, that the heat may dissolve the hony. This cured Mr Jn Wells of
Wandon (near Woburn) in Buckinghamshire when his teeth were very loose
& his gums eaten away with the scurvy. Mrs Margt. Muxlo.
A gargarism to cure sore mouths Rx bramble tops, leaves of columbine,
cyprus & sage each mi boyl em in water 2 qts wherein 
2 ou. make a gargarism, wherewith wash the mouth often in a day Pechey’s
Herbal. for the scurvy of the gums & teeth & to cleanse & fatten em
mornings & mix the common sp of salt with clarified hony of roses and
rub the teeth & gums. [illegible]



146)
gums scorbutic & sore. Beat borax to pouder
mix it with hony & apply it with rag to the sores 
Do it on 2 or 3 times a day. This cured Tho. Exon a boy when 
his tongue was almost eaten off Traveller & Goody Exon
another Rx southern wood chopt small bole burnt alum & hony boil
em together over a cole. Mr Coy.
x another Mrs Margt Mucloe says borax beaten to pouder & mixt with loaf
sugar in pouder because rougher than white pouder sugar is better but the last will 
do very well It is better than hony. It has cured cankers in children’s
mouths often It cured E.A.’s gums in the yr 729 better than [illegible] & oil of baye
birthwort (aristolochia) doth beautiful cleans & fasten the teeth if
they be often rub’d with the pouder thereof R.D.
another Rx agyptiacum made with verdigrease hony vinegar raw
or burnt allum according to Markham’s masterpiece E. A. [illegible] a 
little aqua camphorata [illegible] sp. v. camphorated sometimes you may 
add oil of vitriol, drop add these last liquids just as you are
more effectual than raw You m ay it sometimes try.
Mr Painter a sea surgeon Rx tinct. myrr zfs [illegible] rosai zi m.
This following is good to cure cankers & sore gums & toothach when other remedies
have failed found out by E.A. Rx verjuice abt 3 or 4 ou. a little fine
bole armonck a little raw & burnt alum & borax & myrrh all in pouder
camphor less quantity than of the rest & R. vitriol a little hony as
much as will allay its nauseousness you may add a little tincture of
myrrh & camphorated sp. of wine
Teeth to fasten & whiten Rub them with [illegible] grass [illegible]
& salt Mrs Brown of Leicer another Rx the best fine boll & burnt 
alum p.e. in fine pouder & moisten a [illegible] [flaxen] with water or the spittle & rub 
[illegible] sore mouth or gums in man or child the teeth 2 or 3 times a day Mr Coy
mix [illegible]: verdigrise in fine powder with hogs lard or fresh butter
spred it on a rag tye an other rag over it then sew it under the 
childs chin or [illegible] & ware it till well.
To fasten teeth 7 cure em of the scurvy Mrs Catherine Ossen.
Rx hony 4 ou. myrrh in pouder zii (2 d roch allum & bole each
zfs rub the teeth & gums with it & the finger often or dip a
rag in it & lay it to the tooth.
For the scurvy in the gums. Burn juniper wood to ashes
& rub the gums with em. Traveller. Toothach boyl tobacco
with some camomile flowers in water & hold a spoonfull
warm in your mouth for 2 hours then spit it out & the 
pain will abate ibid. spirit of sweet nitre a few drops 
mixt with a little spirit of wine or water stops gangrenes taken
away rotten or proud flesh & warts, heals cankers & sores in 
the mouth, legs & other parts, Salmon’s Dispensary. Dragons’ blood 
is very drying & binding It fastens loose teeth & stops the bleeding of
the gums & helps to cure the scurvy in them. Millers Herbal. To fasten teeth Rx [sal]
[illegible]
& mastick p.a. poudered apply a little of it often to teeth which are loose [illegible]
Tho. [illegible] apothecary


(147
The green sickness
Quench the fire [proker] al pur (an iron that stirs up the fire)
in a draught of small beer or ale every morning till well
this cured on that look’d like death Dr Brooks of London
& Mrs Finch. another for the green sickness or for one
that is very weak & inclining to a consumption that looks
pale or for a girl that has injur’d her constitution by 
eating freestone or coles or dry grits. Quench the iron
proker heated red hot in abt ½  pint of ale in which is 
scraped abt 2 spoonfuls of castle soap stir it abt till it
is thick like caudle. This cured Cathering Wilkins the clockmakers
daughter having had very ill health & look’d poor & sickly
for a long time before It mended her constitution & complexion
she offer’d 5 d for this Rx to a Lancashire woman that
cured her but she would not divulge it. You must take it
for nine morning successively Mrs M. another Put abt ½
a pint of smal ale or beer & ale to old rusty iron
zi or zij let it infuse 12 hours drink abt a coffee dishful 
in the morning fasting till well This in a months time 
commonly drives away paleness from the lips & cheeks & 
leaves a lively red in its room. The same iron serves all
the time approv’d by Ruth Winter & Mrs Mary Mayer my 
mother. If you think it too nauseous you may take a 
raysin of the sun or a little sugar after it, but it is better
without m. m. Another steep currans lbfs steel pouder
4 d fro the apothecaries in white wine a qt shake it 
& take 1 spoonful of all the 3 ingredients every morning
(while it lasts) fasting & drinking abt a coffee
dish full of wormwood ale after it immediately, then
walk or stir for abt ½ an hour. This cured my mother 
Mrs Mary Mayer another Rx as much flower of brimstone as
will lie on a shilling in a little treacle every morning for
9 mornings successively It will be abt a spoonful when mixt 



148)
walk or run after it. This cured Ruth Winter &
brought a fresh colour into her cheeks when the former
medicines fail’d. Mrs Finch another Rx gentian, water
trefoil, centaury, scabius sothern wood, rue, penny royal
& wormwood each mi all dry put em
in a bag in 2 qts of strong ale when that is drank add 2 qts
more to the same ingredients drink every morning
abt a qr of a pint & do at 4 o clock in the afternoon
it must infuse 2 days before you begin to drink. you must
walk after it when you begin to mend drink only in the
morning. This cured Ruth Winter a second time. Old Elizth 
Winter another Rx pilule hiera picra with agarick zfs (al 4 drams)
to which add saffron in pouder zi. Divide it into 12 pts or pills & 
take one every morning fasting &Y fast 1 hour after it using
brisk exercise to sweat a little after it for 1 or 2 hours without
observing any rules of diet or confinemt. If this dose
doth not cure repeat half the dose. This has cured hundreds 
Br S.A. another Rx steel pouder 1 d elecampane 1 d
liquorish pouder half a penny worth boll half a penny worth 
flower of brimstone ½ a pennyworth Bayberries ½ a penny 
worth treacle lbfs The six 1st ingredients must be in fine
pouder Rx the quantity of nutmeg on a knifes point fasting
in the morning successively as long as it lasts walk after it
if you are able. this cured a maid that had it 6 or 7 yrs when
confin’d to her bed & not able to go a high lone This never fail’d
Stephen Hunt. another Rx half a spoonful of filings
of steel from the smith in treacle ziiij Take it at two doses
equally divided for morning & night This cured Francis
Clark abt 30 yrs of age that could scarce go a high lone & had
been out of order for a long time Fr. Clark.
Mrs Powels Rx for the green sickness Rx tincture of steel
ziij tincture of saffron zi tincture of coral zij mix them well
together Rx 20 or 30 drops of this in a glass of w. wine night
& morning 2 or 3 days before & after the new & full of the
moon to open obstructions & cure the green sickness Mrs Caulton.
The green sickness Rx fine steel pouder 2 d flower of brimstone
2 d treacle 2 d mix em well Rx the quantity of 2 nutmegs 
every morning fasting till noon or 2 hours you must use exercise
when you take it salt of steel is better than steel pouder you 
may put in 3 d worth. Purge before you begin & after every dose 


(149
you may drink a glass of white wine when you take it
you may purge with cream of tartar or glaubers salt
or Daffy’s elixir Mrs Caulton. Green sickness Rx salt of
steel pr 6 d divide it into six pts Pound one pt every morning
fine [illegible] some pap of an apple or marmalet or any sweet meat
spred & put the salt in the inside round it up like a pill with another
clean knife Give it the maid in the morning fasting for 6 mornings
fast & use exercise after it It is nauseous if not wrapt up
clean. This was used by the daughter of Sister Boothby with success.
A maid was cured of melancholy & the green sickness by the use of this
medicine following. Rx of the conserve of balm 1 ou conserve of [buglass]
& [borage] flowers each zfs confection of [athermes] zi make an 
electuary with the syrup of the 5 opening roots; Rx the quantity of a nutmeg 
morning & evening for a month, being 1st purg’d once or twice. Pecheys
Herbal.
Let a maid that hath the green sickness hold her
head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [cure] her Geo. Hill
Dyer at Hoby
Another steep stub nails in w. wine drink a glass
every morning till well Mrs Brown of Leicer
Green sickness Rx feather few mi boyl’d in ale 1 qt to a pint
take ½ a qr of a pint first & last morning & night for 7
days then intermit 3 or 4 days & take it again it is bitter
as gall put a lump of sugar in the mouth after it take 
steel powder in white or loaf sugar in the middle of
the day all the time or take feather few in pouder with 
sugar widow liquorish another For the green
sickness 7 opening of the stomach Rx w. wine 22 ats 6 branches 
of rosemary, the inner bark of hawthorn, a good mi sugar
ziv boyl em in a stone-jug stopped set it in a kettle of water 
till the 3d part be boyl’d away strain in it & drink a draught of it
every morning till you are cured. Mrs. [Hewet] E. A.’s mother
For the green sickness Rx aethiops mineralis zi in fine
powder and hony one ounce and mix them and take [illegible]
Ten spoonful at night going to bed to be continued
till well This cured Mr [Phyg???] daughter at Leicester
Directed by a London [do?ser]



150
to cure the green sickness, Take a spoonfull of
soot from the mouth of an oven or copper in a qt of a pt of
ale 9 mornings together this has cured m any Jane
Smith.








154)



(155
Vapours or hysteric fits.
Vapours are caus’d by great grief (as the loss of a
child or relation of friend) Trouble of fright, long
sickness & weakness & poverty of the blood. They 
attend marry’d women & maids & men too. They can’t
sleep, & yawn often & fancy that they shall die or
go distracted The cure Rx assafoetida a good large pill
as big as a great pea or 3 little ones in butter or the
pap of an apple or without any thing if you can swallow
them It will give you one gentle stooll Rx 3 nights
successively. They attend lying in women mostly for hysteric
fits Rx a pill of assafoetida in a little juice of rue Mrs 
Finch. Vapours sometimes cause sore eyes both which I have known
cured by bleeding in both the jugular veins at once Tho.
Holy. another Rx oyl of camphir 3 or 4 drops in a glass
of wine. Drink it & let the nostrils, temples & wrists at the
beating of the arteries be anointed with the oyl. They 
will defend you from the plague & cure vapours they
penetrate in a moment p. 133 Salmon on Bates.
another Rx 3 drops of spirit of amber in a spoonful of milk
cold at any time when you perceive the fits coming This prevented 
& cured vapours in Thos. Juice’s wife Aunt Boothby & Tho. Juice 
Dr Mead uses cassummuniar as a stomachick, as well as an hystrick
It seems to be a kind of zedoary & is of a bitterish aromatick taste.
quincy. Rectify’d oil of amber mixt with sugar than with wine from 3 to 6 
drops is admirable in hysterical distepmers. Salmon’s Family Dictionary
I have used this composition that follows, with excellent success, in women’s obstructions;
& it is , undoubtedly much better in hysterical diseases, than the [illegible]
compound water of the London Dispensatory. Take of dried briony roots,
beaten to a gross powder, two ounces of the leaves of rue & dried mugwort, each
half a pound; sabino dried, three quarters of an handful; of feather few [illegible]
& penny-royal, dried each half a handful; of the fresh yellow pill of one
orange; of mirrh half an ounce of castor two drams, of the best [nauts] brandy
one quart; put them into a glass, & let them infuse six days in warm washes; then
steam the liquor off & keep it in a glass-bottle; well stopped. The dose is half a 
spoonful to be taken in three ounces of penny-royal water, sweetned with sugar,
morning and evening.



156)
A speedy safe & effectual cure for vapours in women
from [Grubstreet] Journal. My wife after here second 
lying in, was suddenly seized with a lowness of spirits giddiness
in her head, & a defective memory; & I could hear nothing
from morning to night but a repetition of her miseries.
I tried the effect of medicines, but to no purpose. At last she was
ordered by a friend who personated a physician, never to drink
any thing stronger than small-beer; never to go abroad but to 
church; & to be sure to work some hours every day. By this
means she is recover’d & is now as well as any woman in 
the parish.











(157



158



(159
medicines for the eyes given me by the Rd
Mr Isaac Taylor second schoolmaster
at Bosworth in Leicershire
Rx herb chelidon maj. absinth. virid. heder. terrestris an.
mfs stercoris albi gallina pulv. zifs albi ovi optime con
quassati q.s. m. auxilio est suffisionibus & sugillationibus oculoru 
a contusione ortis.
Rx Pomorum dulc. putrid. zi micae panis in lacte coctae
mucilag. sem. psyllij aqu. papav. extract. an zi unguent. tutia
ziij croc [illegible] fs camph. gr. 5. ol. absint. chym. gut. 2as m.
in oculorum inflamattione dolorifica.
Colyrium album. Rx camph gr. 12 [trich] albi rhaph zij aq.
ros. alb. aq: euphr an. ziiij infunde & cola. oculorum inflammationis
rubori, & dolori modetur usurpetar exteriae 
collendo & guttatim instillando singulis matutinis idq ad plusculos
dies. Colyrium armoniacum. Rx calcis limo=pidae zij sac.
saaturni [illegible] fs sal. armon. crudi gr. 6 m. ad acres humorum
fluxiones sistendas; ad rubores & dolores tollendos.
Colyrium saturninu. Rx sac: saturni gr. 8. aquae rosar. alb.
zi. m. maximi refrigerat. colyrium de succis. Rx vitriol
alb. gr. 8. succi cheledon. maj: succ. fanicu. an zfs mel.
zi [illegible] & despuma. praeclaire detergit nebulas sollit; dolere 
aerem, sed cita cessurum excitat. gutta una pro vice instillanda
sufficiat. Diu potest asservari. colyrium vitriolicum. Rx
vitriol. alb. gr. 4. aqua sperm. ranar zi m. refrigerate, siccat,
detergit efficax est ad ophthalmiam, [essiphora] ulcera.
emplastru de majorana Rx pic. burgund. zfs. pul. majoran. zfs
euphorb. gr 5. m. ad catarrhum, dentalgiam, uvula inflammationem,
ophthalmia & cephalagiam. applicatur nucha ve pone
aures. unguentum ophthalmicum. Rx ung. [illegible] zfs boli, lap.
cataminaris an. [illegible] i camph. [illegible] fs ol. rosaru q. s. m. emplastra ophth.
Rx farinae hordei zij croc. zij aq. rosar. & vitelli ove q.s. f. empl. oculo
placide superponendum.


160)
Emplastra ophthalmica
Rx farina hordei zij thur. & olibani an. zfs f empl. pro 
oculis. alisa. Rx medulla panis alb. zi made fiat in aq.
rosarum quibus adde pomorum dulcium zij lact. muliebr.
q. s. f. empl. pro oculis.
Emplastrum [repellens] pro oculis
Rx empl. diapal. zi ol. myrt. zfs acoti zfs. pulv. bol. opt.
zi sang. dracon [illegible] i lap. hamatit zfs. m. coque ad consumtionem
aceti f. empl. addenda ol. myrtillor q.v.
Pulvis ophthalmicus bat.
Rx sumitat. euphrag. ziij sem. faenicul. com zij sem. rut.
zfs mac zij sacch. opth zvi f. pulvis s.a. coch. sum.
ter in die
Frontale fulleri
Rx pulv. mastiches thuris an zij creta, farina fabar. an.
zfs alb. ovi conquass. ol. ros. an zvi. aceti q. s. m. in emplastri
formam. aadhibetur in affectibus oculoru rheumaticis,
idq3 tum praeservationis, tum curationis ergo.
aqua ophthalmica botiana.
Fit [illegible] aqua [e] gum. guiac. (quae fit
nobile colyrium
Rx pomphlogigos zij super lamina ferri novies secandescant
toties qz sesquilibra vini malvatici extinguantur deinde in 
pollinem lavigentur cum ol. mac. misceantur. [cribrab?] tragiciantur,
posthac vitro exceptae ac dicto vino affuso macerentur
sole donae flavescant do instar auri oculis auriliatur inflammatis,
maculas, unguem sigillatione, cicatricos, albugines,
pustulas plagas be abigit.
Pro oculis siccitate laborantibus.
Rx rutae pugil. I fanicu. fusci mi. floru rosimar. botanicae, euphrag.
an. mi mel. q. s. f. elect. a cuspide [cult??] deglutiondum



(161
Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain & blew chamadrys (i.e. Germander)
each ziiij smallage parsly seeds, penny royal, hysop, saxifrage,
juniper berries each zi [stavesaire] seeds zij beat em
small, with hony or sugar make a confection to be used morning & 
evening & you shall see wonders.
Diet drinks
Rx quick lime libj put it into spring water a gallon, let it
stand all night the next morn pour off the clear & strain it
thro a fine cloth then put it into a pot & add to it hartshorn
& ivory shavings, sassafras & red saunders each zi fennel seeds
& gromil (al gromwel) seeds each zfs liquorish bruis’d, juniper 
berries bruis’d each zfs boyl all these in the lime water
till one quart is wasted & at latter and put in 300 mellipedes
(al. sows) let it boyl a little then strain it & put it into bottles.
Drink of it twice a day viz in the morning & at 4 in the 
afternoon.
Rx srasaparil. ziij Chinae, lign. [lentife]. an zi ras. CC. ebor.
an. zfs summit, foenic. euphrag. an mi. fol. rorismar. Beton.
an. pug. ij sem foenicul. coriand & baccar juniperi an. zfs.
glyciriz zifs. infund. in aqua fontan. lb 20 per horas sex loco
calido coquatur ad 3tie partis consumtionem, ad finem decoct.
adde millepodu no. 200 coletur pro usu.
Rx mucigines sem. psyllij & cidonioru extract. in aqua plantaginis
vel rosar. cujus [q?] zij lac. muliebr. zi. trachisc. alb. rhasis [illegible] o m.
Rx Trochise alb. rhasis, sacchar.  saturni, sacchar. Landi alb. an.
[illegible] i vitriol. rom. gr. iij aq. plantag. zvi. m. addi possunt coral.
rub croci vel aloes pro re nata.
For sore eyes, gangrenes, fistulas, ulcers of all sorts,
pearls films, webs, blood-shot eyes, blear eyes etc.
This is mostly used by Mr Taylor being a pale blew al.
of a pearl colour. Rx smiths water 1 qt lime unguento
ziiij let em stand 14 hours stirring em often. Cast off the
water gently from the lime put it into a brass or 


162)
or copper vessel adding sal armoniac ziij Let it
stand till it has acquired a true blew tincture then add
camphir zfs.
Pulvis cibarius in omnibus oculorum morbis
utendus.
Rx summitatu thymi vel rosimarini, euphraginis an.
ziij. sem faeniculi, cinamom. mac. an. zi m. f. pulvis.
adde salis purissimi (vel potius salis gemmae) zviii This
is to be used with all food. It admirably sharpens & preserves
the sight & prevails against suffusions of the
eyes, darkness, hurts of the memory etc.
A pouder for the eyes
Rx dulcify’d vitriol zfs prepar’d [paty] 15 gr sugar candy [illegible] i
make a fine pouder
Cerevisia oxydorica a drink to quicken the sight
Rx rue,s age, vervain, eye bright each mi live [sows] 400,
sweet fennel seeds zi raisins ston’d lbfs rosemary flowers
fresh gather’d mi spiknard ziij yellow of lemon & orange 
flowers each zi. Put em all into a bag for 4 gallons of
new ale. It is to be taken for ordinary drink for dimness
of sight. when you drink it put into each draught 20 drops 
of sp. of sal armoniac. Let the use of it be continued for
3 or 4 whole months or longer for a lesser time will do but
little good. outwardly let the eyes be bath’d with qn. of Hungary
water or wash the eyes themselves 3 or 4 times a day with 
a proper water mixt with an equal quantity of sp. of wine, or 
with this colyrium following Rx white wine lbi camphir
zi rosemary [tops] & eyebright each half a pugil; put em into 
a clean basin of brass or pewter then heat 5 or 6 stones of lapis calaminaris red
hot & twice quench em in the wine etc. If you quench em 6 or 
7 times as Mr Taylors Rx directs they will drink up all the wine
It is admirable for rheum, water, heat, cold, film, fistula,
pearl blindness, dimness etc. This water is much commended
by Mr Taylor. I found it dry’d my eyes very much but I happen’d
to quench a bit of brick in’t instead of lap. calam. by a mistake.



(163
Pilulae de lawne seu pilula ex duobus
Rx colocynth pulveriz. zifs scam [p?p.] ij pilul. coch.
majoris & aggregativae an. zifs ol. cariophil. chym. zifs
m. f. pil. catholic.
Rx hujus pil. cathol. zifs cochiae majoris & aggregativae an. ziij
m. f. pil. cephalica. Dosis a gr. 15 ad [illegible] i vel gr. 25.
[illegible] The first pills are compos’d of pilulae ex duobus They 
must be always given before you undertake to cure sore
eyes It is an exct. head pill & good for the scurvy (& to sweeten
the blood) dropsy, gout, & French pox vid. Salmon’s Disp
They are a universal purge to be used where ever purging 
is necessary. Take em spring & fall to keep you in health.
The second pills are more exct. for the head.
Pilulae. Rx massae pilularu de hiera cum agarico [illegible] fs pil.
luis [illegible] i diagridij gr. ij syr. staechados & euphragiae q. s.
f. p. no. 6. Rx pil. ex duobus a [illegible] i ad zfs. calameli
[illegible] i m. f. p. no quatuor. alias Rx pil. e duobus a
gr. 15 ad [illegible] I vel zfs. alias. Rx scamon. select. pulp.
colocinth. subt. pulv. an. zi f pil. cum l. q. syr. straechados
dos a [illegible] i ad zfs vel [illegible] zij mane.
Pro vulneribus ocuorum
Rx myrrhae, sarcocol. dissolut. in lacte mulebr. an. [illegible] fs
tutiae pp. [illegible] i mellis rosaru paru, cum modica quantitate
album. ov. & aq. rosar. f. linimentu. alisa. sanguis columbae 
ex ala extract. adhuc calens instilletur. vel medulla
panis torefacta & fina rubra infecta applicetur.
Dip a linnen cloth in the warm blood of a pidgeon 
& apply it to the eye & if you instill a drop into it, 
it will not be amiss. If the eye is black & blew by 
an external accident. Chew cummin seeds, fennel seeds
or cloves & the breathing on the eye is exct. or a fomentation
of wine in which hysop has been boyled is very 
successful. or bath the eye with Hungary water. If dust
or any thing hurtfull is got into the eye it is clear’d by blowing 


164)
or sparting in rosewater.
If the eyelids are glew’d together separate em with 
butter, beer or cream by wiping em gently.
The seeds of clary put into the eyes take away motes.
Boyl a bunch of hysop in water or red wine & apply it
to the eye is very good for a bruise on the eye & blooding
immediately is good for a bruise.
A spot in the eye. Rx rosewater q.f. put into it so
much sal armoniac as will make it a little smite the 
tongue, keep it 2 or 3 days in a copper vessel till it has
acquired a true blew tincture Pone aures sanguisugae.
Fontanellae scapulares. emplastru suppedale de pice alba
adversus humorus [defusion??] fumus nicotiana cum 
succino & sem. anisi vel coriandri pulverisati cum mediocri
quant. botanicae ad visus praeservationem. Rx sal.
gem zij in aqua flor. rorismarin. zi dissolut. & recte
philtrat. De catarrho. post strenue per plures dies
expurgatu cerebru, Rx ficunum ping. fermenti aeris an.
lbfs sem. viticis & nasturtij contus an. zi. sem. sinap.
contus. zij empl. de mucilagin. ziiij malaxentur & incorporentur
addendo ol. lauri q.s. formetur emplastru [illegible]
super alutam quod toti capiti impernatur & quotidie marie
renovetur. Hoc omniu capitis humorem eliciet quod [neq?]
cantharides occipitio admatae, [neq?] ulcus sincipiti & commisuorae
cauterio inductum, [neq?] secta in fronte vena affecerit
Rx cortic. pistach. sicciss. zifx. part. lignos. nuc
pineae, cortic. guaiac. ligni junip. vel cedr. lign. aloes vel
sassafr. lign. rhodij cortic. wintera. nuc morschat. cinamom.
an. zifs tabac. a ziiij ad 5, 6, 7 zi. m.
Colyrium
Rx gum tragacanth. zij mucilagi. sem psyllij ziij aq. [rosar??]
& plantaginis an q. s. f. colyrium madido [q?] linteo externe
occludantur oculi.


(165
Electuraria
[illegible] Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain, blew chamedrys,
each ziiij smallage, parsly seeds, penny-royal, hysop,
saxifrage, juniper berries each zi seeds of slaves
acere zij. Beat em small with hony or sugar, make a
confection to be taken morning & evening miranda
videbis.
Another for weakness & dimness of sight Rx fennel seeds
libfs mountain withy lbfs germander zfs celandrine roots
zv aniseeds, smallage, parsly an. zifs pennyroyal, hysop,
flowers of borage & rosemary, juniper berries,
saxifrage an. zifs leaves of betony, rue, eyebright
each mj with clarified honey make an electuary. Dose
zfs mane. Pulvis sternutatorius Rx marjora.
Rorismar. beton. flor. lit. conval. an ziij n. mosc. zij
sal. armoniac. volat. [illegible] i m. f. pulvis. sub t.
masticatoria
Rx mastich. ziij pureth. staphisag. an zij. rad. angel. zfs.
cubeb nuc. m. an zi euphorb. [illegible] fs cera q.s. f. [illegible] ex qua
fiant masticatoria. pulvis cibarius Rx sum. euphrag.
ziij sem. taenicu. cinnam. mac. an zi f. pulvis adde sal
alb. zviii. m. sumatur cum omni cibo.
Dr Atwood Rx ras. guiac sassapt an. zij. cort. interni
jugland. zi coque in cerevis. neu. mediocris cong. 6 ad
4. dein suspend. sequent. Rx herb. marjoran. beton.
euphras. geran. rob. an miiij rad. paeon. majoris lbfs.
raphan. sulv. angelica an zij sumitat. rutae, flor. staecad.
rorismar. an. mij cardamom. bac. junip. an zijfs. m.
praep. sac. S. A. 


166)
Eye-water of salt armoniac cures most distemper
of the eyes, as the pin & web, pearl, film & dimness
of sight, ulcers of the eyes, cancers & burns p. 363 Salmons
Disp. Eye water of crocus metaloru p. 320 ibid.
Eye water of succory cures all diseases of the eyes as pin & web,
mists, suffusion (suffusio i.e. a pin or web in the eye) pearls, inflammations,
redness, bloodshot etc. p. 120 ibid. aqua ophthalmica Salmonis
cures all manner of eyes that are sore fore which it is to be esteemed as
a jewel p. (720) 271 ibid. Balsamu mirabile curat omnes oculorum 
morbor, tertio quoque die guttam i. instillando p. 5. Fullers Disp.
A poultace for the eyes when inflam’d red & swell’d to cool’
& give ease & cure Rx white bread a slice put it into new
milk boyl’d with rose leaves or rose cake & bind it to the
eyes with a linnen cloth lying on your back in bed. [illegible]
another Toast white bread crusts & boyl em in new milk
& apply it with a cloth as hot as you can endure it lying
on your back. This cure done of Cosby. Tho. Hely.


(167



168)



(169
for sore rheumatick eyes
Rx white copperas the quantity of a hazelnut, loaf
sugar & white sugar candy each twice as much spring
water a pint set em in a window where the sun shines
hot to dissolve & incorporate em Wm Coltman the
farrier commends this above all ocular medicines. It
cured his eye that had been long sore by a spark of fire
at first falling into’t [illegible] Lay tacamahac, a gum to 
the temples it will repel defluxions upon the eyes & 
strengthen the sight Mrs M. Mrs Hurst in the forest having
very sore red eyes catching cold at her lying in was thus
cur’d in a little time by E.A. she wash’d her eyes with the copperas
water according to the 1st rt of this page dipping a sparrows
or starlings or any small birds feather therein then she had a 
drying plaster made of the white of one egg & hony verdigrise
& burnt allum each as much as will lie on a [gr?at] in fine
pouder [illegible] bole as much as will discolour it pretty red & wheat
flower as much as will bring it to the consistency of a 
plaster spread it upon allum’d leather let it be sew’d on with 
a cloth for 3 or 4 days. apply to each temple emplastru
de minio & when you take off the 1st wrist plaster apply empl.
de minio to the wrist. One wrist at a time is enough to plaster
E. A. To strengthen the sight & dry up a rheum. Rx [putty] in 
fine pouder 1 d eye bright water & white rose water each 1 d 
double refin’d sugar in fine pouder abt the quantity of a small 
wallnut. shake em & let em stand a little after shaking then
put in a feather & draw it along the eyelashes morning & 
night. Do not put any into the eye with the feather by opening the eyes but only [illegible]
works in between the eyelashes. James Leppington of the
root of elecampane is made a kind of wine which sharpeneth 
the light p. 73. The Haven of Health. Ginger strengthens the
brain & clears the sight Salmons Family Dictionary. For rheums & inflammations
of the eyes. Blister the calves of the legs 1st one calf
then the other & make an issue in one leg Dr H. White of Ashby.


170)
for red sore eyes Rx camphir & borax each zi white
sugar candy zv white vitriol [illegible] i pouder them fine & mingle by
degrees with half a pint of sweet fennel water Jn Pocheys Disp.
for a rheum or redness in the eyes & to take off a pearl strengthen & 
clear the sight. Rx red rose water plantane water each zij
white wine zi [tutty] prepar’d zi white sugar candy zij
best aloes [illegible] ij (i.e. 2 scruples) shake em together & wash the
eyes oft with it. Mrs. Elizth Adderly told E.A. this as a great
secret & to be kept as a jewel. Mrs A. This is an exct. Rx which
you may find in Hartman’s Family Physician p. 73
For the inflammation of the eyes vid Dr Sydenham in 
Practice of Physick lib. 2. cap. 2 when bleeding & purging
how often soever repeated, are still found to be unprofitable,
in this case a resting draught of an ounce of 
syrup of poppies given every night compleats the 
cure with out the help of any other medicines. some
times vomiting will cure inflam’d eyes sometimes washing
the eyes with only common brandy unmixt will stop
the flux of rheum & cure em ibid. pilula lucis majores 
[illegible] quickening the eye sight the greater vid. p. 691 Salmon’s Dispensatory
Mr Grant the London oculist gives pills made of
camphir to be taken daily for a long time to remove humours
from the head offending the optic nerves, which purge little or
not at all. They cured Mr Jo. Simpkin of Little Glen.
Salmon’s family pills clear the sight vid p. 702 Salmon’s Disp
Pilula camphorata or camphir pills viz Rx liquorish pouder sugar & camphir
each two scruples pulverize em & with Venice turpentine make em into pills vid.
Fullers Dispensatory.
To heal the sight of the eye when wounded & lost. moisten a little feather
in oyl of paper & put it under the lower eyelid Mrs Finch.
when the sight or eye is too dry eat keen mustard with apple sauce or
any thing else till the eyes weep. E. A.
An exct eye water communicated to Mr James Cooke surgeon 
of Warwick by Dr Willis. Rx camph. zi incis. [illegible] pon. in
vas. claus. cum succ. limon. stent simul per noct. mane pon omn.
in phlegm. vitriol lbfs in vitr. bene claus. pro usu. when ‘tis
us’d, strain it out, put some in a spoon & warm it dip the finger or
a linnen cloth in it & with it wet the eye, eyelid & temples a pretty 


(171
while night & morning. ‘Tis also good in burns.
p. 616. Cooks Marrow of Chirurgery. An ext pultis for
any contusion abt the eye oft prov’d. Rx the white of an
egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue, stript &
beaten like a conserve; mix em together & apply it on
flax. ibid. The distill’d water of meadow sweet flowers al. qn of the meadow
(culmaria, regina prati, barba capri) helps burning & itching
of the eyes & clears the sight. Salmons Disp. for rheumatic red
eyes dissolve some allum in spring water to that it may taste
pretty strong of the allu & tart moisten a clean rag therein
& squeeze it so that no water may drain from it into the eye
& lay it on the eye all night & lie down in the day 2 or 3  
times till the cloth is dry. An aleman in Shoreditch & Mrs Finch
a gallant pultis for any contusion abt the eye, oft proved.
Rx the white of an egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue,
stript & beaten like a conserve; mix em & apply it on flax.
p. 610. Cook’s Marrow of Physick. The best smoke to clear
the eyes Rx lignum aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber
each zi cut betony zfs rosemary flower or rosemaryu
itself a qr of an ounce & as much tobacco as R. flowers
mix em. Rx it in a pipe when you go to bed or as often
as you please. This is exct to cure coughs, rheums & 
to free the head from any pains Sister H. Ashby brought this
Rx fro the Bath H. A. Hungary water outwardly inwardly taken is
good agt palsies, cramps, convulsions, the falling sickness
vertigo or megrim, lethargy & headach & dimness of sight,
cloudiness of eyes & even blindness itself, where it
proceeds from an inward cause, nor do I believe there is
any better specific in the world agt weakness of the sight
hurts of the optick nerves & palsies, than this water is, but
it ought to be taken every day abt a spoonful at a time
in a glass or pure ale or wine or some other convenient
vehicle, as black cherry water aqua lactis etc. for a qr of
a yr together or more, yea half a yr if need requires p. 16.
Salmon’s Observations on Bates’s Dispensatory.


172)
A pearl in a mans eye. Rx bole, burnt allum,
live hony & sweet hemlock (al. keck or celary) stamp
the hemlock & mix the other ingredients therewith & bind it
to the contrary wrist. Let it lie on 24 hours then remove it till’
the pearl is gs Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713one. Twice or thrice renewing cures. Mrs Leddy
Gilson. Eye sore with a fistula. apply bay salt in a [row]
of flax to the soles of the feet to be worn night & day. Let
conserve of red roses be lay’d to the outside of the eye moisten’d
with plantane water Let the eye be wash’d with clear water made of
green hazel nuts distill’d when you can thrust a pin thro em wear 
bay salt for 3 weeks changing it once a week for fresh. Cos. Elizth 
[Bale] try’d this without a perfect cure. E. Bale. Eilzth White
of Enderby had sad red swell’s sore eyes with a pearl the
small pox made ‘em sore for a yr before she was cured
with this Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713. Rx camphir,
R. vitriol burnt, white copperas, loaf sugar juice of lemmon
& water boyl em & set em in an oven in a glass bottle
when you bake They will [mother] tho they are boyl’d therefore 
try baking. They are best fresh made moisten the eyelids with 
the middle finger thrice twice or or once a day till the eyes mend
It cools & refreshes em. Disguise em with a very little alkanet
or red sanders E. A. stir this water every day will prevent moulding 
another set a leach to the broad pt of one of the nostrils within 
or without, intermit 6 or 7 days & set another leach to 
the other nostril. This bleeding draws a humour from the eyes
as well as most medicines, if not better E. A.
another The distill’d water of white roses is exct
in ophthalmia’s, to cool the eye, comfort & clear the sight.
Salmon’s Dispensatory. Rheumatick eyes. mix bole & 
the white of an egg & bind it to both the wrists spred on 
allum’d leather Renew it once in 24 hours. W. P. another [illegible]
Grey of Enderby had vapours which made her eyes very sore sometimes
they were so dizzy that she was ready to fall down. She was
cured by Tho. Hely bleeding in both jugular veins at once.
The veins are on each side of the neck not under or near the throat
a fillet was ty’d round her neck to make the veins rise, pretty straight.
then a little linnen rag was dipt in cold water & bound to each orifice
with a fillet at night it was taken away & a diaculu plast. apply’d 


(173
she was the next day purg’d with pills made of the best
aloes no 3 as big as a small white pea. Her eyes continued
very well after this except when she caught cold they would
water E. A. 
Anne Baker wbt 60 yrs old widow of Balson in Leicershire having very 
red rheumatic sore eyes of abt a month or 2 standing
was blistering on the wrists, leaching at the temples, & a great many eye water 
viz Mrs Fountains that cured sister B. 
& E. A.’s that cured Elizth White & ophtalmick plasters would 
do not good was at least cured thus. Rx hony the clearest
one drop white sugar candy in very fine pouder a little mix
& put it in with a feather new mixt twice a day. This was 
taught her by a poor woman of Balson. It clear’d & strengthen’d
her eyes. It smarts pretty much at 1st dressing She took 
this purge prescrib’d by Tho. Hely farrier, once a week. Rx
sena zfs. manna zi boyl the sena in abt ½ a pint of water 
with raysins of the sun no 20 stoned when it is abt ½ wasted 
add the manna then strain it the manna being dissolv’d & drink
it in the morning fasting. make oatmeal caudle thus & 
drink it as it purges Boyl water & oat meal then add ale & 
rosemary let it boyl, take it off & sweeten it with sugar 
Pilulae [sureae] Purge & cleanse the head & brain, quicken the
senses, clear the eye sight Salmons Disp. pilula de aloe lota or
aloe rosata. Purge both brain, stomach, bowels & eyes of
putrified humours & strengthens em. Culpepers disp. another
purge for rheumatic eyes. Rx of Dr Lowers paste sold at Mr
Smalley’s in Leicer.


174)
Tincture of olibarnum dropt into the eyes mixt
with a 3rd pt of rose water stops rheums, strengthens
em & takes away clouds & bloodshot. Take poppy water 
ziiij syrup of red poppies zfs tincture of olibanu zifs 
mix for a dose to be taken inwardly agt catarrhs & 
violent fluxes of rheum from the head upon the eyes,
teeth, brest, lungs etc. Salmon in Pharmacopoeia Bateana.
p. 310. Richd Hovy of Blaby having lost his stomach & having 
a dizziness in his head his eyes grow so dim that he could
scarce see E. A. order’d him a vomit of carduus posset drink 
which clear’d his stomach & retriev’d his sight E. A. Mrs Davenport
of Wigson Magna cured a woman of cloudy dark blood
shot eyes by only blowing several times a little liquorish 
pouder from a quill into the eyes Wm [Toalby].
Samuel Leapthrough a stockiner of Blaby had rheumatick red sore
eyes which was thus cured in abt a weeks time. Rx water from a 
spring call’d St Austin’s well (near Mr Watt’s’ house between his
house & Leicer on the left hand near the brook as you go fro
Leicer to Mr Watts’s new house) a qr of a pint, allum the quantity
of a pea (either in pouder or whole) or as much as when dissolv’d
will give the water a weak or little taste of the allum hony abt
as much more as the allum or as much as will scarce give it 
any taste of the hony mix em all cold, but when you use em
which may be 3 or 4 times in a day pour a little into a spoon
(a silver spoon is best but a pewter one will do very well) & 
hold it to the fire to warm it dip a linnen rag in it & apply 
it to the eye lids, being shut, as hot as you can abide it
you may put some into the eye if you will or dress the eye lid
with your finger moisten’d therein cold & it will do good. E. A.
another for rheumatick red sore eyes & to take off gum & to 
strengthen the sight. Boiyl fennel a good handful in a zt of
spring water till it is wasted to a pint. moisten a rag or the finger 
therewith cold & rub it on the eye lids & temples &let some go in
to the eye the oftener you do it the better W. P. says this is the best
eye water he ever try’d W. P. Juice of celandine strain’d thru
a cloth & a drop dropt into the eye every night eat off a [kell]
from the Bradsworth’s eye at the swan in Lecier T. A. another
to eat of a pearl or kell beat crow stone to fine pouder & sift it
blow a little thro a quill or mixt with hony it do. Wm Simon of Wigson



(175
Dimness of sight. The Lady Curzon & sister
Boothby Rx millepedes abt 60 a few raisins of the
sun slit & ston’d, a few red sage leaves Put em into
a tea pot & pour abt a pint of scalding hot spring
water upon em. Let it infuse a qr of an hour before
you take it & drink a coffee dishfull 2 or 3 times a
day To make very good smoke to preserve the
eyes & good agt The apoplexy Mrs Winstanley & 
Sister Boothby. This cured one that had weak eyes to that
he could read a small print at 80 without spectacles.
Rx wood aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber each zij
betony leaves & rosemary flowers each zi Tobacco
zifs (they that are us’d to take tobacco may put in ziij)
beat & slit the drugs very small & cut the rosemary flowers
& betony leaves very small mix em all together Take
a pipe as often as you please It will make you spit
cold flegm from the stomach. Rheumatic sore eyes
moisten the eyelids with the finger wetted with spittle when
you smoke tobacco, Mrs Elizth Halford To take the pain 
away from an eye Rx liquor laudanu, conserve of red roses
& pomatum mix & anoint the outside of the eyelids Mrs
Fountain This [illegible] & sister Boothby. Elizth Felton of Enderby took
off a pearl from her eye by droping live hony 3 or 4 times
in a day into it. a wter for the eyes second to none Rx waters
of fennel & eye bright, each a pint, common salt zvi
prepar’d tutty, white vitriol each zfs let them boil a little
& reserve for use p. 139 The saurus chirurgia by Paul Barbette & Raymundus Mindorus
a Dutchman. a pouder to eat off a pearl Rx dulcified vitriol
zfs prepar’d tutty 15 gr. sugar candy a scruple make it into
a fine pouder & blow a little fro a quill into the eye once a day
ibid. an anodine cataplasm Rx camomile & melilot flowers
each a pugil, rotten apples zij fenugreek seed zi crums of
brown [illegible] bread ziij 2 yolks of eggs, saffron zfs boil em in 
cows milk to the consistence of a poultice another which I’ve oft
found exct in the greatest pain r4x gum tragacanth zij [mussilage]
of the seeds of [???wort] ziiij resoewater & planate water each 


176)
is much as [sufficeth] make it into a collyrium of
an indifferent consistence. let it be instill’d by drops
into the eyes & linnen cloaths wet in it outwardly apply’d
ibid medicines good for the eyes Roots of valerian,
Solomons seal, [or??ie], vervain; herbs, betony, celandine
the great, eye bright, fennel, fumitory, plantan;
flowers of roses, violets; aniseeds, quince seeds, linseeds
pippins boil’d or rotten; camphire, mussilage of linseed 
tragacanth; fresh veal; white of eggs; all sorts of milk 
especially womans; tutty, white & green vitriol; saccharu
saturni; glass of antimony; white troches of rhasis, fresh 
cheese not salted; ung. saturni ibid.
To strengthen the sight. Savid Lane the rasor grinder of
Wistons Spreds a plaster de minio on allum’d leather the
breadth of a man’s hand & lays it on the nape of his
neck a little above his moulders which so strengthens his eyes
that being near 60 he can see to make grind & set rasers & lancets
etc. without spectacles. D. L. another to comfort the eyes Rx sp. v.
3 pts liquid laudanu 1 pt moisten the lids E A.
another Beat the white of an egg & moisten the 
outside of the eye lids therewith it cools & takes away 
an inflamation & strengthens & refreshes the
eye E. A. To take the pain from a sore eye. moisten
conserve of red roses with white or red rose water
& when you are in bed at night cover the eye being shut
with it & bind a cloth on it wipe it off in the morning with
a cloth Repeat it night after night till the pai ceases.
Sister Ekins. a man of Leicer with only blew bottle water 
cured very sore eyes. You may buy it at the apothecaries.
Goody Simons. Dr Pechy says the flowers & the distill’d water
are good for the inflammation of the eyes & the [blearedness] 
of them.
Smoke for the eyes. Take betony colts foot, rosemary
flowers, lavender tops, and sage p. a. cut
small and add thereto tobacco 3 pts to one pt of
the flower Richd Smith esqr of Enderby


(177
To clear an eye Dissolve a little sugar candy 
(white I believe is best but try brown too) in rose water
It will clear an eye sometimes but not always mother
Hewet. mix rose water with white copperas water it
allays its sharpness Sister Ekins & sometimes add a little
while sugar candy or brown to discolour it E. A.
Jonathan Ison wheelwright of [Ansty] had a sore eye with a
great pearl on’t He could not open it & when open’d it lookd
red & inflamd June 1715. IT was thus cured. IT was dresst with 
Mrs Adderly’s eye water to take away the pain. Emplastru de 
minio was apply’d to his back. He washed the eye lid with water
fro St. Austin’s well at Leicer in which hony & allu was dissolv’d
It mended but slowly. Padmore’s charge with cantharides was 
apply’d to his cheek which made it [illegible] well as soon as it swell’d & his
cheek pain’d him very much it [illegible] was remov’d to behind the ear on 
the same side which made a very sore place, drew the humour fro
the eye & did more good than any thing try’d before empl. de
minio was apply’d to heal it. Then cuttle bone in fine pouder 1 
grain was blown into the eye fro a quill 3 or 4 drops intermitted & 
1 gr. more was blow which took off the pearl & cured the eye
copperas water did little or no good but w. copperas water & rose 
water mixt gave Ese. So did sp. v. 3 pts & liquid laudanu 1 pt 
apply’d to the eye lids with the finger liquid laudanu pomatum
& conserve of red roses was bound to his eye at 1st a nights
which gave it ease. He drank whey & roses i.e. infus’d or boyl’d
in the whey which coold & gently purg’d E. A.
Francis Gregory’s sore eyes were cured by white copperas
water & red or white rose water p. e. apply’d to the eyelids by 
the finger E. A.


178)
Mr Tyrvingham Stephens’s eye water
of Leicer
Rx Rhenish wine a pint or for want thereof the best
white wine, put it into an earthen pot Rx a piece of 
lapis calaminaris as big as large walnut, heat it
red hot in a clear red cole fire (smoke will spoil it)
& quench it nine times, covering the pot with a 
plate or board to keep the steam in every time after
it is quench’d. Let it stand till it is quite cold. If you
have quench’d it 9 times over night let it stand till
next morning then filtrate it thro a new white
flannel bag made with a point like a tongue The
flannel wash’d & dry’d will serve a long tie.
one stone will serve twice i. e. to be quench’d twice
nine times or for 2 pints when it is filtrated bottle it
& keep it close stopt It is the keenest & sharpest at 
1st when new made. How to use it. you must
shake the bottle first always before you use it
you must keep a little in a little viol always for
present use moisten the finger with it viz apply 
the end of the fourth finger to the mouth of the 
viol & shake it then stroke that finger agt both eye 
lids shut but so that a little may go in at the corner
of the eye or dip a sparrow or a little birds
feather taken from the wing into the water then 
pull down the lower eyelid & put the end of 
the feather under it Dress it night & morning
a little before bedtime is reckon’d the best time
Mrs Jane Stephens al floxon.
A pearl in the eye Rx gill & pearlwort pound em with bole in 
pouder & hony. Pound the herbs every night fresh for 3 nights
successively to the wrist on the contrary side This cured Elizth Tafte a woman of Armsby.


(179
Eyes too dry. Drink tea made with hot water
put to sage, tyme, rosemary or any one of em with
abt ½ a lemmon cut into slices with the peel E. A. 
Eyes sored & red & to dry up a rheum. Rx gill & ivy leaves
woodbine leaves each mi. white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in pouder
spring water a qt boyl em all together till it is consum’d to a
pint. strain it & pour a little into the ball of the hand cold & 
with a clean finger moisten the eyelashes letting a little go into the
eye just when you are going into bed. Dress it every night till the
eyes are well. This cured a mai that had sore eyes 7 yrs after the 
measels that water’d & ran down her cheeks almost constantly & 
had try’d a great many things in vain to cure em Jn Grovecock’s
wife of Cosby. It makes the eyes smart ibid. you may add white
sugar candy zij E.A. This will cure a thick red eye Mrs French.
To eat off a kell or pearl or to dry up a rheum in the eye
of child, man or beast or to cure a trample on the heel 
or a crack in the thrush. Rx the best roch allum the biggest
lumps are best Burn it in a clean fire shovel or iron ladle
till all the moisture is quite dry’d up when it is cold pound it in
a mortar & sift it thro a lawn sive keep it always dry near
the fire in a chimney because moisture weakens its vertue & 
drying quality or you may carry a little in a paper or box always
in the pocket. Take a small quantity abt as much as will lie
on a silver half penny or penny & lay it upon a pen knife point
drop it into the eye it is better then blowing (for that makes a great [illegible]
flie away & be lost & is a greater surprize & uneasiness to the patient
the pouder beating agt the eye) you must drop it abt an hour before
the child goes to bed & tie his hands behind him ½ n hour
as soon as it is dropt in let man or woman lay the ball of their
hand upon the eyelid & hold it on for ½ an hour. Begin with a smal
quantity & augmt a little gradually in the dressings. Dress it once
a day. Put in the same quantity into a horses eye at 1st & a little more
the next time you dress it when you dress the horses feet for a crack in
the [illegible] or [illegible] you must keep it dry till well Jn Noon of 


180)
of Thus Raston his son’s eye was cured by this pouder
when he had like to have lost [both] his eyes by the small pox Jn
Noon. Burnt allu bound on an anbury or a sheeps
foot or drest once a week will cure it. Xtopher Robinson
shepherd. Burnt allum will cure a sore chopt nipple
at one dressing Let a woman suck the breast at night
then shew it on the nipple It will cause a great pain but it
is a present cure. Mother Majer mix burnt allu in pouder
with sope & a little bole it will kill a canker’d or scab’d
nose in a lamb by being anointed on it once or twice
a day till it is ready to drop off then anoint it with sallet
oyl to heal it Tho. Hely farrier The roots of common fennel
boyled in wine & applied to the eye cured a suffusion i.e. [illegible] or w:[c]
in a monk in the space of 9 days.
Mrs French the warm doctress her eye water for a rheum
in the eye Rx white or damask rose water zij lapis calaminaris
in very fine pouder as much as will lie on a six pence
Shake the bottle when you use it & shake it on the eye lids shut
with a feather Rowland Marlo butcher of Leicer his wife
had sore, red rheumatic eyes after a great many things try’d in 
vain was cured by shaving the nape of her neck & applying
four leeches. another Rx the milt of a sheep new kill’d apply 
it hot betwixt the shoulders with only its natural heat & let
it lie on 24 hours then apply a fresh one if you can get it till
you’ve apply’d 5 milts successively If you can’t get abov e one or
2 milts you must heat em in water & apply em hot you must
bind it on with a cloth & fillet. The milt is apt to stink especially 
in hot weather Ben Garland of Leicer The milts will draw
a [bister] ibid. Dr Russels eye water Rx fennel water or white rose
water 5 pts salt of vitriol, saccharu saturni each ziifs dissolve & digest
therein camphir zv fine aloes choice opiu each ziij let it settle then
decant the clear & filter Joyn these 2 liquors together & add regulus of
antimony or crocus metalloru in very fine pouder zv shake all well
together 3 or 4 times a day for 10 or 12 days then lit it settle & keep 
it quiet on the faces for use This eye water is inferior to no water
yet known in the world W. P.
To make an eye-salve Rx may butter ziiij free from salt white
wax zi melt em together then add white rose water 1 d & stir it
till it is almost cold then put in camphir [illegible] ij grey tutty pouder 
made fine zfs pound the camphir & work em all together well.
anoint the eyes at night or when you please Mrs Coulton.


(181
a very good w. copperas eye water to take off all the rheums fro
his eyes Rx bay salt zij white copperas or w. vitriol zi. Put
[illegible] in 3 pints of spring water Boyl it till it wasts to a qt or
less scuming it all the while, then put it in a pot & let it stand 2 
days. Then decant the clear & put it into a bottle & wash the eyes
therewith night & morning or at any time. Mrs Caulton. sore eyes
or specks in the eye. Rx the white of one egg & as much hony,
clarifie the hony but not in brass, when it is cold put them together
& beat em an hour, then set it on one side & drain the
oyl to one side when you go to bed drop in a drop into tye
& lay the curd betwixt a rag & bind it on the year. Mrs. Caulton.
To make Dr Pool the mountebank his eye water Rx white vitriol
(alias w. copperas) the quantity of a nutmeg & spring or well water
½ a pint mix it cold D.P. Mr Wm Ing of Knighton’s eye water 
to dry up a rheum in man or horse Rx Roman vitriol [illegible] iiij white
copperas zij virgins hony zifs i.e. each one half pennyworth boyl
em all together in a pint of spring water
An eye salve Mrs. Cox of Hoby Rx may butter ziiij fresh
white wax zi melt em together Put thereto one pennyworth
of either white or red rose water & stir it till it be almost
cold then add camphir [illegible] ij pounded & grey tutty zfs work em 
well together afterwards boyl it very well
A rheum in the eye Rx lapis calaminaris in pouder & pouder of white
tutty when mixt as much as will lie on a silver 3 d put it to w. rosewater
1 d shake the bottle when you use it viz moisten a rag & rug the eyelids
Cos. Elizth Freeman another when Goody Simons has a rheum in her
eyes especially in the spring In the beginning of March she gathers elder
buds nettles mallows brooklime watercresses water parsnips & [livers]
chops em & makes water gruel & lets em boyl a litle time, if they boyl 
long they will turn black she eats em morn & night for 3 weeks.
another Rx white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in a lump, heat a pair
of tongs red hot & nip it betwixt em & let it run into a pint
of rain water then quench an heater (such as they use in ironing
cloaths) once or an old horse shoe 2 or 3 times when cold add a
good spoonful or a spoonful & ½ or 2 spoonfuls of wine vinegar moisten the
eye lids & over the middle of the forehead or rather all along 
the edge of the [illegible] & temples & eyebrows with it 2 or 3 
times a day Mrs [illegible] Mrs Caulton you shou’d strain it If any gets into 
the eye it will do no harm but only make it smart let it dry in 
Mr Thompson’s Rx for a pearl in the eye Rx small hemlock mi 
beat it small add to’t as much bole in fine pouder as will lie on a
shilling & ½ a spoonfull of live hony & a little salt beat them well together
spred some of it upon a piece of sheeps leather of the bigness of half
a crown, a good thickness. Lay this to the contrary wrist, where the pulse


182)
beats bind it on with a cloth fast & shift it once
every day for nine days you must not wet the wrists
all the time Mr Bickerton & Mrs Caulton.
The Lady Honywoods ext water for dimness of sight
Curing any skimmy substance or film over the eyes & 
dispersing rheum. Rx a new laid egg make a little hole
at the top take out all they yolk & white fill it with eyebright
water Put into it tutia 12 gr. & white copperas 6 gr. stir them 
well together & set the egg on a slow dull firer let it boyl softly
when you perceive a little of it consumed take it off the fire
strain it thro a lawn put it into a little glass for the use
Twice a day let a little be dropt into the eye you must lie on the
back a qr of an hour after ibid.
Mr. Dumon’s ext for the eyes weak sighted with rheum or
any other infirmity Rx 9 daysie roots leaves & all 9 sows 
(al. millepedes) stamp these together strain em into half a pint
of small beer which drink in [illegible] several potions one in the 
morn 2 hours before you rise The 2 d an hour after dinner 
the 3rd when you go to bed at every one of these times lie an
hour on that side the disorder is & an hour on the other side, thus 
do for 3 days together then cease for nine days & begin again
for 3 days then cease for nine days & begin again for 3 ays & 
cease the course as you shall see cause use this method twice in 
the spring & once in the fall. ibid.
another for the eyes. Put to a pint of celandrine water a pint
& half of bean shells water wash the eyes with it dayly. ibid.
Mrs Tampings Rx for sore eyes.
Rx lapis calaminaris 2 ou. in fine pouder pit it into
a half pint bottle & fill it almost full of the best white
wine, add 3 spoonfuls of damask rose water keep the
bottle close stopt & before you use it shake the bottle
ibid.
Mr [Tonstal’s] Rx for weak eyes. a pouder
Rx the pouder of the dry’d herb call’d eye bright a aquantity, ½ 
as much sugar as the weight of the rest mix them together
Rx a small spoonful of this every morning in a glass of
w. wine or ale fasting after it a while. ibid
A blood shot eye Mrs Wilcocks Put a little saffron into spring
water till it gives it a yellowish tincture moisten the eye therewith
This cured Br. G. A. sore eyes a plaster Rx the strongest hemlocks 
bay salt & the white of an egg to the thicket grounds of human
urine out of the chamber pots (try that which is kept 3 or 4  or 7 
days if the smell will not offend you) stamp all these together 
Lay it to each wrist every morning fresh. Then Rx the white of a
new lay’d egg (beat it to [dye] that is soundly) & bole work em together
like a salve spred it upon leather & apply it to each temple Let
em stick on till they fall off Drop into the eye one drop of the
water & hold the hand a while upon the eye after the drop
of water is dropt into it Mr Dodes & E. A.’s mother


(183
To make ink
Rx Blew galls lbfs bruise & boil em in vinegar
3 qts or stale beer abt q/2 an hour; strain & let the
mixture stand to infuse abt 12 hours then cant off
the clear & by putting to any quantity of it a litle
aqua fortis (as you’ve occasion to use it) kill’d with 
the filings of steel or iron you may make it as black
as you please in a moment Hoc est atramentum
typographica. The curiosity of this Rx depends upon 
the right killing of the aqua fortis. There are several
sorts of A. F. you must take six pennyworth of A.F.
of the 3rd degree in strength (tho I presume you may 
use the strongest the country shops afford) which you may examine
put it into a glass vial. Put some water into a basin, put 
the vial with the A.F. into the basin of water. You must
take care that the glass is not fill’d with A.F. & that the water in 
the basin surmount the A.F. in the glass half an inch. the
bottle must be sufficiently capacious & stand in the basin
uncork’d The water must not run into the bottle
for then it will kill the a.f. too soon. Thus is must stand
where nothing can stir or move it, for the least motion 
makes it fire & it will burn any thing within the reach of
it. as soon as you’ve put the vial with the a.f. into the basin
of water you must critically every hour take up a little of
the filings of steel or iron betwixt your finger & thumb & gently
shake it into the vial; this will make it steam & smoke as if it
boyl’d but when you can’t discern it to steam nor smoke you may be
assured it is kill’d & you may take the vial out of the basin of water
But if when you stir it by taking it out of the basin you find it bubbles
or smokes cast into it a little water or put it into the basin again’
shaking into it a few filings as before; provided you find the filings
have not too much choakt it i.e. made it too thick. note the A.F.
must stand 2 days at least & then the longer it is kept it strikes the
deeper tincture. note At night going to bed you must be sure to 
shake in the same quantity of filings as you did hourly in the day
time. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor


184)
To make black ink Mr Robt Painter [E?risoman]
Rx blue galls ziii gums sonora zii green copperas zi beat al
small in a mortar & difuse in a qt of water int eh sun or warm
place two days tis the best ink that ever he used & the cheapest
much preferable to what he now uses.


(185
Atramenti compositio.
Rx pulv. gum arab. zij [groutely] corevisiae cong. 1 stent
per horas 24 sape agitando, deinde adde gallar. probe trit. ziv
simul stent per horas 24 tunc disolv. Ol virid. lbfs & subinde
agita per sephimanam postea adde sacch. albifs. zij in vini alb.
lbfs. solut. N.B. simmis spissu sit atramentu addas aq.
pluvial. q. s. a duo palmes & doctore Clay. another which will 
not change yellow. Rx half a pint (viz 6 ounces ½) of the blewest
soundest & heaviest (Turky) galls break em in pieces, put em into
an earthen pot with a quart of beer neither too strong nor
small (or ½ beer & ½ ale) let it stand 3 days then strain it fro 
the galls afterwards let it settle & pour off the clear & put 
the sedimt into several drinking glasses & pour off the clear
pt as oft as it clears, to which add Roman vitriol 2 ounces (in lumps 
they will dissolve & gum arabick zi green copperas a qr of an 
ounce or better Let em infuse one or 2 days then set em in a pitcher over
a gentle fire till they begin to boyl. note Roman vitriol & galls
& beer or water will not write black but a kind of a yellow
but a little green copperas added produces a lively black 2) there
being but little copperas in’t prevents it fro changing yellow
3) the deduction of the sedemt prevents it in a great measure
fro writing thick 4) you must avoid a flame & keep that
from the pitcher or pot to prevent its breaking. Brian  Simpson
an [excisemn] & E.A. 5) This ink writes pale it 1st but in a little
time grows blacker & blacker To make ink. the best way.
Put gum araback lgfs to white wine vinegar one qt for 2 or 3 
days till the gum is dissolv’d. Infuse green copperas lbfs in 
3 qts of soft water till the copperas is dissolv’d; bruise the best
galls lbi then add all the said ingredients together in a jug.
Keep em stirring for half an hour, which do for 2 or 3 days
successively till the ink is black. Mr Simon Barwell, attorney.
when it is too thick add a little vinegar to’t or water you must
use none but rain water stir the ingredients 3 or 4 times a day for a
week is enough. Pour off the clear [without] stirring Br S. Barwell.
Another Rx Griffy dam: water five pints It is a mineral water near
Coleorten in Leicershire viz a calibeate water that will turn black 


186)
by the infusion of galls. note any [span] water that
will change black with galls (viz the German span water in Europe)
is to be prefer’d before all other liquids in the composition of
ink It makes it more beautiful & black & more durable less
apt to change yellow than any other liquor Put 5 pints of
span water into an earthen pitcher that is well glaz’d, gum 
arabick ziij stir it with a stick once a day or twice; when the
gum is dissolv’d add Turky galls the blewest & heavest zvi
Roman vitriol zij green copperas a qr of one ounce & [illegible]
allum a qr of an ounce gum sandriac zij pulveriz’d stir it
once a day for a week then set the pitcher over a fire where
there is no flame (which will be apt to crack it) & let all the
ingredients cymber a pretty while till it is ready to boyl
then let it stand a little to cool then strain it thro a linnen
strainer into another clean pitcher having a board with a hole
in the middle thro which put a stick & stir it once a day as
long as it lasts, keeping it from the frost for that spoils it.
Boyling it preserves it from moulding, but if it does mould
& is never stir’d it will write black but the other way, viz to 
boyl & stir is best. whether the frost will spoil ink made of 
 span water I have not experimented. This is the very best Rx
for writing ink in this book E. A. & Mr Jn Wilkins Less green
or ale than when it is span water that is dead 2) Put Roman vitriol zij or
better into the said ingredients & dead span water & they will not change black
with a qr of an ounce of green copperas nor with ½ an ounce 
but with zi they will the ink will be good for nothing E. A. note you must use the calybeate water
presently after they come from their springs. German span water as soon as
you open a flask They will not keep good long after the flask has been once
open’d tho you cork & seal em down immediately. you may try their vertue by 
putting a piece of gall to a little & if the water changes black it is fit to
make ink of otherwise if it does not change black it is not so good as rain or common
water E. A Br Barwels original Rx which was given
him to make ink p. 185. was copperas 4 ounces but 
that did not make so good ink [illegible] copperas 8 ounces.


(187
To make the best ink. Buy a sixpenny paper (viz zij) of 
Holmans ink pouder at any book sellers & add to it a pint of
clear cyder or old verjuice or now verjuice that is clear (either of
these are better than rain water as Holman directs in his [illegible]) This pouder
decayeth not by keeping & is refin’d from that poysonous nature that
causes ink to turn yellow If any writings of this ink lie soaking in 
water a month together it will not alter but remain as long as the
paper or parchmt endures. it is sold by the maker Charles Holman in 
 Red Lyon street agt the White Hart Inn in Southwark, he having his majesty’s
patent under the great seal of England for making the same. The
Rd Mr Jn Laurence of Yelvertoft in Northshire commends cyder or
verjuice before rain water or stale beer. Holmans ink never grows mouldy
To make good black ink Mr Amos Taylor of Stamford
Rx rain water two gallons galls bruis’d lbifs green copperas
12 ounces best gum arabick bruis’d 12 ou. Roman vitriol & 
roch (or clear) allum each zifs white sugar candy in pouder 4 
ounces. Let it infuse in the sun 20 days stir it often then
strain it thro a cloth & put it into a bottle when too thick add
a little rain water or vinegar stirring it a day or 2 before you 
use it To make a less quantity Rx rain water 2 qts galls 6 ounces
pr. 6 d g. copperas 3 ou. pr. [19] gum arabic 3 ou. pr 3 d R. vitriol 
qr ½ of an ounce pr 1 2 ½ allum do pr [19] w. sugar candy 1 ou. pr 2 d 
Total pr [illegible] 1 d stir it well with a stick in a pitcher & it will write well
in 2 days time when you’ve no warm sun set it in an oven 
after bread. To make ink. Rx rain water 2 pts galls beaten
5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum arabick 3 ou. sugar candy 2 
ou. stir them together twice or thrice a day for a fortnight
by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.
To make a very good shining ink far exceeding the common
Rx Blew galls ligs gum arabic three ounces copperas one
ou ½ pomgranate rind & log wood each one ounce Bring 
the ingredients into a gross pouder & infuse them a month in a
qt of stale beer Mr Tho. Hewet of Dunton & Mr Wright an
[exciseman] another Rx the blewest nut galls 3 d
gum arabick 1 d best loaf sugar 29 The whitest copperas
1 d
To clarifie quills according to art. Boyl 2 or 300 quills 
in half a pint of linseed oyl 3 minutes If you intend em 
to be of a yellow colour you must put in English pink 1 d 
ibid. when you make ink dissolve the gum by its self in a little [illegible]
your galls when it is made lay a flannel over your pot & pour your ink thro it to
[clense] all the filth out of it [illegible] [illegible] schoolmaster


188)
To make black ink [illegible] Booth
Rx w: wine 1 at galls ziiij green copperas zii gum=arabick zi
bruise the galls every one into 4 or 5 pieces put em into the wind
& let em stand 3 or 4 days stiring em often then put in your
copperas & your gum being well dissolv’d in a little w: wine keep 
it with stirring 3 or 4 days’ more than it is fit for use.
when the ink is too thick put white wine vinegar to it. It is much
better than any water. Valerius Stephens writing aster at Blaby.
when you make ink dissolve the copperas in water & you will see
a scum on the surface of the water which you must scum off & 
it will improve the ink by throwing it away. You may boil em
together when you are in hast. ibid.


(189
A person bewitch’d or under an ill tongue.
Rx amara dulcis the root miiij boyl it in water 2 qts to a qt
in a bell metal pot, having a cover paste the steam in, over a slow
fire of charcoal or embers for 3 days when cold open it & strain it
Drink 6 spoonfuls 3 times a day. it will cure one drawn on hoops
or one under an ill tongue as country folks call it The mountebank
calls it the wind gout. you may make it into a syrup with syrup of 
roses or buckthorn to keep for a purge & for a blind Dr Pool.


190)


(191
for all sorts of aches & pains 108  211  61
in whatsoever part in old or young; the pt affected 1st 
being anointed with it, warm’d by the fire, work’d in 
by a warm hand & after that chaf’d in with an hot fire
shovel or flat iron. Rx oyl of roses, oyl of worms
(or oyl of camomile if the nerves are most affected) & 
unguentum dialthaea each 1 d Mr Isaac Taylor
unguent alb camphorat. is an exct. cooler in all inflammations.
unguentu dialthaea is an admirable emollient & 
anodyne I. T. A bath for pains or aches. Rx
wormwood, St. Johns-wort, scordiu, camomil flowers
melilot flowers centaury, Roman wormwood each  mi 
long & round aristolochia each zi boyl em in a sufficient 
quantity of water a qr of an hour, remove it fro 
the fire & add brandy a pint. In racking & inveterate
pains you’l find it to be admirable I. T. another
mix oyl of turpentine with goosegrease & anoint therewith 
then lay on Bents salve. If these failput scalding hot water
into 2 or 3 earthen or stone bottles eating butter’d ale
with treacle or drink whey laying on a great many blankets
to make yiu sweat out the [peccant] humours E. A.
Inward aches & pains in the bowels & back caus’d
by catching cold or by lying in damp sheets
Rx mercurius dulcis in fine pouder 20 gr. in the pap of
an apple It makes the ordure black. Take care of 
catching cold with it lest it flux you This cured James
Davis, Smith of Croft. mercurius dulcis if it does not
purge, fluxes viz a great quantity purges, a small one 
fluxes.
Mary Chester of Blaby was cur’d of an inward pain
on her side, a pleuritick pain, by taking garlick boyl’d in 
milk in great quantity & for a long time It cured her when 
she was a mere skelliton. Take it every night.


192)
An inward bruise. Bleed twice in the arm 1st in 
one arm then in the other intermitting 4 or 5 days.
after bleeding in the morning, at night Rx salt of hartshorn
gr. zv. pr. 3 d Venice treacle zi pr. 1 d lucatellus balsam
zi pr. 2 d drink after em rosemary posset drink one large
porringer in bed to sweat Mr Wilks, surgeon.
A sciatica pain or a pain in the hip or back
caused by cold etc. Good for the stone & wind colic
Rx sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls pr. 2 d mace 4 d shred it & 
take 1 spoonful of oyl with its proportion of mace in 
the morning fasting abt noon & at night presently after
supper when you are in bed Rx oyl of turpentine 20 drops
in a 1/2 spoonful of sugar sweetening the mouth with sugar after
it & lie as long as you can on the back viz ½ an hour or 
an hour after it. Boyl the strongest ale a qt with as 
many oats as a man can hold in his hand till almost ½ is 
wasted then strain & boyl it again to the consistence of a 
salve keeping it stirring spred it upon allum’d leather 6
inches broad 9 I long prick’t with a penknife point Lay it
lengthways over the small of the back or where the chief
pain is lay it on as hot as you can abide it when you are
in bed. eat nothing but fennel & parsly shred, the [illegible]
with bread & butter for a week tho you are pretty well sooner
& take the sweet oyl & mace & oyl of turpentine & 
sugar for a week as you did the 1st day. This cured Jonathan 
Simons woolwinder & glover of Wigson Magna when he was
so pained in the small of his back that he could not go nor
dress himself. This made him so well that he went with a
stick & reap’d the next day J. Simons & Tho Heifford of
[Conaltesthorp]. another for a sciatica, rheumatic or any pain
in the limbs v p. 61. Wm Frees of Blaby having a pain 
in his stomach which sometimes remov’d to his back & side
he sweat & was ready to faint away was cured by Tho.
Ferren of Leicer viz Rx water of tyme parsly & of camomile
flowers each zifs sp. of juniper zifs oyl of caraways
zfs tincture of laudanu [illegible] ij Hungary water zij syrup of anniseeds
& poppies each zi mix for a julap. Dose is one spoonfull 


(193
or 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 at night going to bed shake
the bottle when you use it. Rx pilulae ex duobus zfs or [illegible] ij for
one dose. T. Farren wracking pains causing the belly etc. to [swell]
& a pain in the back the cause being stoppage of urine Rx
oyster shels sifted thro a lawn sive in fine pouder one spoonful
at a little at a time in a coffee dish of warm ale or beef
or posset drink till you’ve taken the spoonful Mrs Newlove
Bridget Dawkins Pain in the back caus’d by stooping etc.
or in ay pt of the body anoint with unguentu ari, i.ei. Priest
Fintle al. cuckoo pints oyntmt made with the juice of the
herb & hogs lard free from salt. E. A. another anoint with
oyl of tar pr. 6 d per ou. at the drugsters or chymists at
London. Heat it in with a hot iron It is good for any 
strain new or old. Mr Arden Elsmere surgeon.
Isaac Jackson baker of Wigston Magna was often griped
& had a violent pain in his back & bowels round his girdle
but some in his [???bone] He had all the things in the
shop of [illegible] Orme apothecary in Leicer that he thought requisite 
given [illegible] in vain He was very thirsty & had no stomach
so his [illegible] Mr [illegible] the minister advis’d him to drink spring
or well water one qt cold & as soon as he cou’d every morning 
for six weeks together tasting & to walk or use exercise that wou’d
keep him [warm] for an hour after it [illegible] wou’d chill his stomach 
& kill him In Augt & Septer 719 he took his qt jug & 
walk’d to the spring a little below the town near the place
made for horses to drink at from whence i.e. fro which spring
flows their [illegible] It has a brackish iron taste, but the stones
near it are not of a yellow colour. It felt very cold the
[illegible] morning but [illegible] very agreeable afterwards He found
[illegible] that very day & his stomach began to revive at the end of
6 weeks all his [illegible] were vanish’d & he was perfectly well & 
his thirst extinguished & felt no inconvenience only it made
his feet very tender once or twice he felt a little inconsiderable 
pain in making water which he thought might be the effect
of graves or some smaller stone passing away with it Isaac 
Jackson
Mr Langhornes poultis for an old ach
Rx Tannic parsly feather fern & rosemary tops simber them in 
a pint of strong ale a good while then take a little wheat 
bran & a little oat meal a little [illegible] of muttn the fat boyl
em very thick then add a little wine vinegar [pater meus]



194)
Sciatica pain or hops pained.
Xtian Ponton of Blaby had such violent pain in her
hips that she cou’d scarce go, she rub’d em with camphorated spirt of wine
which gave her immediate ease & drove away the pain. She keeps
it always by her & buys 1 d a t a time. Xtian P. another Aunt
Dorothy Boothby’s cerecloth made of oyl, red lead etc. will
disperse almost any pain from any pt. of the body It will
dissolve cancerous nodes in a sore breast & disperse jelly
that is gotten into the cup or joynt of a joynt that has been 
lately broken or out.
Mrs Frances Bickerton’s green oyntmt Rx the tender leaves
of young bays & rue each lbij wormwood lbij sage lbi
]gather them in a dry day & in the heat of the day & in the
month of June. Shred em very small then mince sheeps suet
very fine lbiij pound them altogether in a stone mortar till they 
are incorporated into one substance as it were then put it
into a pot like a cream pot adding to it best oyl olive 3 pints
mix it well together with your hands Then stop it close & set it
in some cold place ten days then put it into a brass pan & 
let it boyl four hours very gently If you see it bubble
apace abate the fire To know when it is boyled enough you must
drop a drop or 2 into a sauce If it looks grass green
then take it off If not boyle it longer but always have a care of
burning it the way to prevent it is to stir it continually & take
up some of the [illegible] & feel if they begin to be dry take it away
then strain it into a bason when you’ve strain’d it put to it four
ounces of oyl of spike Then put it into gally pots & cover them
close with leather This oyntmt will least seven yrs & be better
than if it was new. It is good agt all kind of aches, swellings,
carbuncles, cramps & such like in man & beast. Mrs Caulton.
A cerecloth for a swelling or ach in the joynts.
Rx virgins waz sij frankincense & olibanum & pine rosin each
zi stone pitch ziiij oyl of mace, oyl of lillies & oyl of roses
each zi melt em all together in a clean pan when they are melted
take ‘em off the fire & pout in mace, saffron in fine pouder each
zi stirring it tilt it be well incorporated. Then dip in fine old
clothes. when you use it warm a piece of the cerecloth & apply 
it to the pained place Pater Meus.
An ext. balm for an ach, bruise, sprain, or wound.
Rx pure sallet oyl a pint, put it into a gally glass with these
flowers viz red rose leaves miij bugle flowers mij centaury
flowers mi celandine flowers mi St. Jns wort flower 
miij to infuse in the sun all summer & harvest Then you must
add half so much turpentine as oyl when the season waxeth 
cold put the glass into water moderately warm It will strain the 


(195
better from the flowers keep it for your use.
A cerecloth for issues. Rx Bees wax zvi Venice turpentine
ziij vermillion zfs red lead zvi orris roots in fine pouder zi
the best musk 3 gr. rosewater four spoonfuls sallet oyl as much
first melt the wax then add the turpentine then the R. lead then the
orris pouder then the rosewater wherein the musk has been steep’d a 
quarter of an hour then the vermillion & oyl Let it not boyl when
you’ve put in the oyle & stir’d em together dip in the cloaths oyl a
knife & smooth the cerecloths as they cool. S. S.
A cerecloth for any pain especially what is caused by cold.
Rx oxycroceu 2 d Venice turpentine 2 d white pitch 2 d 
boyle em together spred it on allum leather This cures Tho.
Allen Pumpmaker of Frolesworth when he goes into a well & 
catches cold in his limbs. F. A.
A pain in the hip or neck. amount the pained place with Bore’s
al Brawn’s grease. This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt.
E. A. was cured of a violent pain in his shoulder by lying ina stone
trough fill’d with so much water that the water could just cover his face & whole
body this he did in the morning early for abt a fortnight in May 729.
Mr Reve a Northamptonshire farmer not far from Rushden
had a pain in his hop which made him very lame He was cured by having 
an issue made in his leg below the knee on the same side & 
Mrs Palmers salve made of soap & rue pounded together was apply’d
to his hip V. E. A.’s green book of Rxs p. 295.
For a sciatica Rx stags-horn saw it so as it may go into
a pot then boyl all or part of it in fair water, when it is cold
& thick like jelly anoint the place with it warm probatum, {m”]
Hewet E. A.’s mother
For an old or new pain in the knee or in any part 
Bath it twice a day with ale-grounds hot with a red
flannel cloth dipt in it wrap another cloth about it
to keep it warm for a day or 3, or put your knee into
the muck of a paunch of a beef new kill’d as hot as can be
or which is a cleanlier way. Lay the bowels i. e. the guts & 
paunch unbroken of a beef or sheep new kill’d upon the knee Wm Wyat
of Adderston. a man that had a pain in h is knee & was lame & had been
under the care of several drs & surgeons to no purpose was at last cured by 
slicing 7, 8 or 9 onions into a pint of ale of which he drank abt ½ a pint in the ay
at several times & ½ pint at night & was cured in a little time Tho. Smith of Blaby


196)
For a sciatica pain. Foment it with burn’t brandy
against the fire and chafe it well with your hand or
beat some flax seed (abt zi) and boil it in a pint of water
a quarter of an hour and strain it and bath the pain’d place
well with it warm. John Berbeck servt to an officer
in the army at Darby.
Sciatica. Rx Oil of turpentine zi, boars grease zfs
and deer’s marrow or for want of it Deers sewet zfs melt 
them together and anoint the place well therewith before the
fire. John Goodwin groom to the Lord Gray, in the room of
boars grease [illegible] the marrow of a hog zfs.
Sciatica Rx Oil of turpentine and oil Exeter p.a. 
and chafe it in well upon the pain’d place then lay
on this plaster. Diaculon zfs and oxycroceum zii
and oil of origanum 10 drops melt ‘em together and
make a plaster and lay it upon the place pain’d. The
landlord at the green man at Darby.
E. A. in the month of January 1729 (when there was a hard frost that lasted 
7 or 8 weeks or longer) was troubled with a scyatica pain in his right
huchbene for which he was dry cupped & wet cupped & same time after a
surgeon with an air pump drew away six ounces of blood from the
pained place of his huchbene. none of those things did him any service
or gave him ease Mr Ross schoolmr stockiner of Leicer his cerecloth made as
[melilot [illegible] [illegible] & camphir be gave ease Out to found most benefit by anointing ]
[once] or twice a day with oil of turpentine This cerecloth is good for scytica pains 
found out by E. A. found some camphor very fine as much as will make the melilot
smell very strong of it melt a roll of melilot salve then take it from the fire & stir in
gradually the camphor in fine powder & stir ‘em well together & pour em into a black pot or stir
like [illegible] you may make it into a roll agn you may buy melilot salve at 2 d per ounce on a [illegible]
of pr 6 d camphor at [illegible] [? d] per ounce at the apothecaries Spread some of this camphor’d melilot 
on hoops [illegible] [illegible] with a feather or the finger end moistend with oil of turpentine once a week you 
may moisten the same [illegible] the oil [illegible] if this cured [Mrs Ward] [illegible] who had a pain in her
side belly before & after child bearing which pain had caused the flesh to be very hard This cerecloth
dissolv’d it try it on a corn E. A. [illegible] huchbene in vain it would not cure his suyatica 
the [illegible] end
IN march 1740 the sciatica pain return’d and the former
remedies prov’d inefectual E. A. found the most benefit by a remedy
in Pharmacopoeia Pauperum which is as followeth. A cataptersim
for the hop gout Rx mustard seed zii white pepper
and ginger each zij mix em together in fine pouder and
keep it in a glass close stop’t and just at the time of using it
make it into a poultis with a sufficient quantity of oxymel 
of squills the leather that you spread it upon must be spread
round its edges with Bents salve or some sticking salves it
draws the humour of the hip. The salve is to keep it on.


(197
To kill rats
Pulverize black hellebore & mix it with fat or tallow.
Rub an apple over a trap it will take away their scent
W. C. another Rx costards or codlings or any juicy apples
whole & unpair’d 2 pts onions whole & unpeel’d 1 pt in 
all i.e. of both together a pint. Put em in an earthen pot & 
ty a brown paper over it & set it in the mouth of the oven.
after the bread is placed & bake it when it is bak’d peel off
the skin of the apples & throw away their cores & peel off
the outward skin of the onions & mix only the pap of both apples 
& onions together with ratsbane zfs in very fine pouder 
[illegible] & set it on a pewter plate (or earthen dish) where the rats resort
viz on a chamber floor etc. Sam. Pauly bricklayer of
Wigston Magna try’d this with good success they eat it all clean up
as if the had lick’d the plate & he made some more & set 
it again but it remain’d untouch’d He found no dead rats 
 but it drove em away & clear’d his ground of em for a 
great many yrs after Sam. Pauly E. A. try’d Sam Pauly’s Rx
Augt 729 with 8 little codlings & 5 midling onions with water
abt ½ a pint to keep the pot from burning.
Another Rx fresh butter mix it with ratsbane a small quantity
in fine pouder Set some on bits of chips or broken rots & 
lay one great lump on a piece of board or on the outside
a coffer or strike turn’d upwards. This was done with
good success by James Allen of Wetston They eat it greedily It drove the rats
quite away for many yrs & he never say any sick or 
dead till he pull’d down pt of his house then he found
a great many of their bones behind the pargine & in 
holes James Allen another Mrs Meadows of Wigston 
Magna had an aunt that boyl’d pippins she peel’d & cored em 
& set the pap mixt only with sugar where the rats frequented
& they eat it up for 3 nights at last she mixt ratsbane in 
fine pouder with it without sugar & a little time after among some 
thorns & in other places they found 3 strikes of rats dead you may 
use codlins instead of pippins Sam. Pauly Bricklayer
another to poyson rats & nice in spite of their cunning. Rats lick their
feet like cats. mix white arsnick beaten very, very fine in a glass mortar 
the apothecaries never sift it zi with hogs lard ziij spred it thin on a 
board where they come or on the side trees. They will lick their feet & 
it will kill em. Try’d by Mr Jn Jenford apothecary.



198)
To kill rats.
Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats or [fulmeres] etc.
then pare an apple & tie or stick it on thro an iron fixt to
the bridge then drop some hony on the apple & set it on the
side tree or wall plate of a barn or where the rats frequent
& you may catch by the tayl or leg Dianah Smith.
another Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats etc. cover
the bridge with a paste made of wheat flower & milk set on
the side tree or on shelves where they haunt a square trap 
is best. Wm Hollins of Rotherby has caught so many with it by 
the leg or tayl that they’ve forsaken the house. W. H.
another Rx a large fall trap that opens at both ends with 2 
doors lay wheat on the bridge Mr. Seal of Narborow caught 
3 rats at one time so Mr Seal. another mix malt-smithu grease,
& sweet ale wort with ratsbane & daub the side trees or places where they haunt 
They will lick their feet & die Tho Clarks wife of Blaby
another Tie a piece of bacon to the bridge of a great fall
trap Lay some bran at the end of the trap & a little in the
trap to entice em in & you may catch a great many ibid.
another Lay a board that will tipe down at once corner when a
rat or mouse stands on’t over a malt cistern & lay some oats
on the middle of the board the cistern being empty & the [illegible]
made to turn on 2 axle pins The rats can’t get out again & you
may catch em alive so, 2 or 3 of a night Wm Glover of Fleckney
another Look at the ridge trees on the top of the thatch’d 
barns or outhouses & where you see the thatch woarn bright
& the cob webs rub’d off which is commonly near one of the ends
Get a ladder & a long fork & turn the tines so that you may thrust
en under the ridge tree prick em in oft & you will see the rats if
there are any creep out & come down & run along the side 
Trees plant a man ready on the top of a ladder leaning agt.
each side arm’d with a beesom (3 men in all upon ladder) to
knock the rats down have in readiness a sharp dog or 2 below on
the barn floor & more companions with broos to catch or 
knock em on the head stop all the holes in the floors or walls
with straw be that none may escape or if any do they will never
return to the house again. when you’ve kill’d any rats cut off the
skin from the fore heads of some of the biggest & oldest & tie a
string abt their middle or necks nail em up that that they may hang high
& they will deter others from approaching or residing with you. you
may throw some rats amongst any loose wood etc. where you think 
they harbour If the barns are slated you may perceive by the cobwebs
bring warn away or by the smoothness of the wood where they
harbour under the ridge tree or laces you must often try with a long
pitching fork under the ridg trees to disturb em especially when the barns 



(199
To kill rats.
are quite or but half empty when the barns are ful try the malt house & 
outhouses. This method in the yr 1719 cleared E A. of rats when
traps of a great many sorts & sizes ratcatchers with poyson & 
baits & snaires & steel-traps cou’d not clear the house tho a great
many were catch’d A good cat that will kill rats as well as mice 
is a valuable jewel to a husband man E. A. 
Tho. Satchwell a ratcatcher of Bedworth in Warwick:shire
4 m from Coventry mixes white armony or a little
white mercury sublimate in fine pouder sifted thro a lawn
sive (as much as will lie on a silver two pence will kill 2 or 3 
rats you  must not put in too great a quantity for then they 
will not eat it) with brown sugar which is better than white for
a moist bate. white is best mixt with pouder for mice & 
pippins scrap’d fine Let this be lay’d on the side tree in three
traps. 2 traps must be placed near the couples especially They
will lik their feet which will kill em Lay mercury sublim. mixt with
loaf sugar & oat meal for mice There is no way to destroy poyson
but by burning it. nothing kills rats like poysonous baits
well made or sooner clears an house of em. If rats do not
take baits in 2 or 3 days after they are lay’d they will never
take em Good apples viz pippins especially at the spring when 
apples are scarce will tempt rats as good as any thing to 
eat poyson. There is no killing rats without poyson Tho. Satchwell
who learnt of Jn Baxter a pudler. In the beginning of
Augt 1720 E. A. sent a letter directed to Tho. Satchwell ratcatcher of Bedworth near
Coventry. He keeps Coventry market but not constantly. He came when 
E. A.’s barns were empty & told him that no apples or pears will do for a bait
for rats but what are mellow, neither codlins nor sweetins till they are
mellow. apples being out of date he brought to Blaby in leather [illegible]
the skins or pearings & make the pap yellow with yellow arsnic in fine
pouder he put in some white arsnic in fine pouder but not above a 4th 
pt nux vomica a little grated fine & mixt with brown sugar so that E. A. cou’d
not discern the nux vomica but he told him there was some in the sugar the
sugar cook’d dirtyer than usual which made S. A.  think that there might be some in 
it. HE made it strong of the poyson because he conjectures more rats are 
kill’d by licking their feet when they run on it than by eating the bait
He lays it thick that it may not dry away quickly. In barns & out houses
he lays it only on the side trees, near the couples, in the middle & on each 
end of the side trees where there is no dust affirming where there is dust
there are no rats He can tell whether rats resort to the side trees by feeling 
on the side trees. Their feet scurry away the dust. He uses no [illegible]
the scent of the apples [illegible] is sufficient [illegible] to draw the rats.


200)
He uses only one little flat trencher & one knife which 
he brings along with him, he keeps his poyson in papers
in a great leathern pouch. T. S. He affirms that rats will seldom
or never take baits out of oyster shells, or pieces of pots. Tho
Satchwell. E. A. found in some wheat straw one great
rat shrunken up & had great live maggots in [illegible] abt a fortnight
after he lay’d [illegible] T. S. you may trie if treacle daub’d
on the side trees near the coller posts or gable ends of a 
barn or stable or malt house will not fright rats away
if you perceive they eat it you mix poyson therewith E. A.
another to kill rats Rx some [illegible] brandy & moisten some white
bread toasts therewith over night Brandy will kill rats & cats.
says my author. Carter Ratcatcher He thinks that the antimonial
paste is made with brandy which some ratcatchers use. ibid.
another Widow Whitworth alewoman at Gelders Hall
kill’d & drove away all the rats by boyling malt 1 pt in water
2 qts & nux vomica 2 d (  ) rasp’d or pounded Lay it on
flat trenches or boards on side trees or where the rats haunt
It is best to lay when there is no corn in the barn. It will kill 
only creatures born blind or dark says my author Wm Cole
son of sheepshead slater sed caveat emptor
another Set live hony i.e. clear hony in pieces of broken pots
or panchions with ratsbane that it may not run abt on side trees or [walplates]
or on shelves or where the rats resort This method killed 14 
set earthen platters with water in em & the rats will drink 
till they die & lie down swell’d by the water Ann Brooks alewoman
of Blaby
another Rx some sweet alewort of the first running mix
some wheat flower with it till it is abt as thick as oat meal pudding
or flower meat add to it ratsbane zi in very fine
pouder mix 2 d mix em well lay abt the quantity of a wallnut in a place 
or on the walplates & side trees them selves without pots etc. If the
rats set their feet on’t It will kill them because they will
lick themselves clean This method kill’d abundance without any 
harm Mr Thornton junior of Blaby The alewort makes it set
& dry hard on in a little time If y ou put on chips or pots
or shels of oysters they will not eat it. mix a little grease or fresh butter
with the alewort to prevent its drying E. A.
To kill rats or mice. Rx some chesnuts of which rats are great loves above most
things roast em & scrape em fine almost to pouder which mix with [illegible] wheat
flower & a little fine ratsbane mix em strew some ratsbane on the edges
Geo Florence [fidler]
another Rasp some nux vomica (al. crow figs) to fine pouder for it is
not be pounded in ordinary mortar & mix it with oatmeal dry Mr
Orme his apothecary has known this kill a great many rats Mr Orme



(201
The Clark of Barwel Aleman & Ann Tasie’s
way of brewing ale
Hard clear water is best for brewing especially for old
ale but it is the longest in clearing, get the water in over
night & brew the next morning. Rain or soft water makes
thick, sick ale. Grind the malt round i.e. just break it but
not small & use it in a day or 2 or it will not make so much
ale because it loses its spirits with keeping long. Boyl the
water before you mash. Let it stand on the mash two hours 
then draw off a bowl full or more till it runs clear & pour
em on the top again & let it stand half an hour more on the
mash after it is clear. Rub the hops very well betwixt your 
hands to part em handful by handful and agt the in side of the bub 
then put em into the tub when you let go boyl the hops in 
the liquor an hour & half then cool it & set it a working put
hops lbv to malt 13 strike north clay hops are the best
keep it 2 days working. Put most of the wort into the working 
vat the 1st day If you put it together too hot it will make
the ale thick & it will never be very clear. when it tasts well 
of the hop & there is a sedimt in the dish, or bowl or hand
then tun it Let it stand in the vessel till it has done purging
& do not stop it up of a week or it will purge agn & never 
be clear if you stop the purge hole too soon it will not be clear.
Stop the bunghole as soon as you have tun’d but you must 
not clay it up till you fill it up. Fill the vessel as full as you 
can keep it ½ a yr or a yr before you broach it. Bottle the
winter ale abt Michaelmass. fill the bottles & let the mouth lie 
down one night to moisten the corks then set em upright this prevents
whites. In winter wrap every bottle in hay putting hay betwixt 
every bottle It keeps it warm & safe from frost & ripens it but use
only a little hay to make the bottles stand upright in the summer
because much hay will make em fly. Let the corks be good & dry 
Lay em near the fire one night to dry em, before you use em. Set
the bottles in a wooden bin winter & summer to save room. Let the
malt be ½ yr old for ale that is to be kept long. Beans in the malt
do but little good. They make the ale high colour’d. always draw with 
a cock. Let the window of the ale cellar stand high that the light may 
descend like a pair of stairs. Set a board or boards against the light of the
window on the inside to keep out the heat of the sun in summer & the
cold in winter Choose velvet corks & pick em one by one tho you 
give 2 d a gross Beat em in with a little wooden mallet. Rack off the bottle’d 
ale with a [illegible] crane having a little pipe fixt a little distance from the 
bottom of it to suck with the mouth or to draw by to set the ale a running
[let] one and touch the bottom of the bottle on the inside Let the bing


202)
Let the bin be a yd high 2 f ½ broad 1 yd 2 f ½ long with 3 
partitions all of boards in this set the bottles one upon another
with their mouths upright upon a little hay at the bottom of each
bottle for it to rest on. Tho. Clark sells his ale at 6 d per bottle. it
is high colour’d & has a treacle taste. He says it seldom or never
makes any man sick. Tho. Clark.
Ann Tasie E. A.’s servant. her way of brewing. when malt is long
ground it is apt to [illegible] and the water will not go thro it. Let
the water stand on the mash 3 hours, more vertue comes out of it 
the last hour then in the other 2 hours, draw off a little tub ful till it
runs clear, then lade it with a bowl again upon the malt. you cannot
make strong ale for [keeping] of less than 16 strikes to a hogshead
unless malt be extraordinary good. [Green hops make bitter & unpleasant
drink, brown hops make the most pleasant & best tasted
ale. Green hops kept long turn white at last Mr Jn Smally of
Leicer. Hops when they are kept 2 yrs lose ½ their vertue & strength 
they will keep one yr goo after the 1st yr you must add to their
weight an allowance for a defect of their vertue E.A.] Put in hops
2 d to six strike or ½ an hogshead i.e. 4 d to an hogshead (you must put
in hops 7 d to keep one yr in the hogshead & one yr in the bottles
called old beer Mr Ed. Stokes.) keep the [ale] besides that day you brew
it on two days & a piece a working. you must tun it on the third day
after brewing. when it is clear in the working tub tun it. Putting in 
[wort] just before you tun is apt to make all that will gripe especially 
if it be drunk now & it is less diuretick. In a cold winter put in to
the work vat the work boyling hot from the fire but if you put it in
only scalding hot (a degree below boyling) it will scald the barm 
& make it settle to the bottom which makes the drink have a bitterish
dead taste. when the barm is scalded take some of the drink that
is fallen in the vat & boyle it & put it into the vat boyling hot as soon
as you can & work it abt with a dish soundly till the froth rises then
cover it up warm & it will work on again. If you’ve more wort add to 
it & keep it working till you tin it It will always have an unpleasant
bitter taste. Let the bottles be wash’d a month before you use em in the
winter & a fortnight in the summer neither dry em by the fire nor
in the sun for those drying are apt to breed whites but dry em in a 
cellar or in a room on a bottle crotch turn’d with their mouths downwards
& you will have no whites. Those bottles are least apt to produce
whites or be murky that are not wash’d in the winter but stand with
the sedimt of the bottles unstopt In March wash the bottles with short & 
cold water tho you’ve a little more trouble. a little mallet with lead
quite thro the middle of it drives the corks in best. Ann Tasie


(203



204)



(205
The yellow jaundice Dr Morton
Dry saffron 1 d rub it to pouder with the fingers take
it with a little sugar or with beer or posset drink
over night in the morning bruise or shred a little
handful of the leaves of artichoaks that grow on the
stalks near the roots put em into ½ a pint of ale & 
let em infuse ½ an hour then drink it fasting. It is a 
great bitter & sometimes purges. Rx the saffron & artichoak
be 3 nights & 3 mornings Mrs M.
The Black Jaundice Rx Ivory shavings zviii boyl’d in new
milk 2 pts till it comes to [illegible] strain it drink ½ a pint fasting Then boyl ground
ivy leaves mij in 2 qts of ale till it comes to one Put in red
sanders zij after the other ingredients are boyl’d then strain
it & drink ½ a pint fasting Wm Padmore.
A Decoction of rosemary in water taken before exercise 
cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine does the
same. Pecheys Herbal. another A seaman that was a hard
drinker was cured of the jaundice by eating every day 
one sevil orange peel & all, sliced & salted & some days 2 
or 3 sevil oranges with salt & drank on [still] during the 
cure Mr Jn Cochrane Lieutent another Rx hempseed
mi bruise it then boyl it in a pint of new milk till ½ is consumed
strain out the hempseed & drink the milk warm in 
the morning fasting for a week together or longer if occasion
requires. Mr. Daly farrier of Higham ferriers & Sister Ekins
another Rx 3 nights going to bed as much rhubarb in pouder
as will lie on a shilling in a spoonfull of w. wine Rx a spoonful
or 2 after it, intermit 3 nights, if it has not effected
a cure repeat it. Lady Curzon. another Rx 3 nights going to 
bed a good draught of ale with saffron 2 d infus’d in it for
a man, 1 d for a child. You may infuse it 6 hours or more in
a little ale & add fresh ale to it when you drink it. you must
throw the first water you make in a morning new made,
into the fire for 3 mornings successively ibid.
A perfect medicine for the yellow & black jaundice
& the colic in the stomach Rx a peck of snails in their 



206)
shels wash em in a great bowl of beer then make
the hearth very clean & pour upon it half a peck of
charcole & set it on fire. when they are kindled with a shovel
make a great hole in the midst of them. Before you put them
into the fire drain the drink from them then pour in the
snails shels & all & scatter the live coles among them & 
so let them roast as long as you hear them make any noise
then take them out & with a knife & course cloth pick & wipe
from them all their green froth very clean then in a stone mortar
bruise them them shells & all. Take a qt of earth worms
slit & scour em with salt very well twice over then roast them
]& put em in a stone mortar & beat them to pieces, then you 
must make the pot very clean upon which you set the limbeck or
still & lay angelico mi in the bottom of the pot & celandine 
mi & lay it upon that. Put in rosemary flowers 2 qts at the
least also bearsfoot dockroots the bark of barbery wood,
sorrel & betony each mij rue mfs fenugreek turmeric each
zi well beaten Then lay the snails & worms upon the top of 
all the herbs & pour in four gallons of the strongest ale
then cover the pot & let it stand all night at least [illegible]
you mean to put the fire under it In the morning you must
put cloves ziij beaten to pouder & of saffron beaten to 
pouder the weight of nine pence & of very good hartshorn
grated or filed to pouder before it be weigh’d zvi you must
stir it after you have put in the hartshorn for fear it
shou’d go to the bottom then set it upon the limbeck & 
stop it fast with a piece of rye dough & so receive the water
in pints as you do any other water you  may receive 6 pints
or more The first is the strongest & must be kept by itself 
& so by degrees the smallest may be made better by some 
of the strongest when it is used. Mrs Frances [Bickersee] & Mrs
Caulton. The yellow or black jaundice. Rx some of the 
sticks or branches new gotten from a barbary tree slip off the
black rind then take the yellow rink (or back) that is next the wood 
& scrape it into a dish. Then scrape some yellow butter dock roots
& slice them thin Rx mi of the slic’d roots & turmeric sliced pr. 3 d 
Put em all into a stone jug & [illegible] 3 of small beer & hang saffron 
1 d in a bag in’t so stop it close for 24 hours Then drink a good
draught every morning & fast till dinner & at 4 of the clock in 
the afternoon drink again. S. S.
The yellow jaundice Rx turmerick 1 d saffron 2 d sugar zifs as much pouder of eg shells
as will lie on 1 s Put all those together in apint of w. wine Rx ¼ of it 
in a morning fasting for 4 mornings together It is an extraordinary 
good Rx & seldom fails curing S. S.
The decoction of rosemary leaves in water (or made like tea) 
& taken before exercise cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine 



(207
does the same Pecheys Herbal. This is entred p. 205
celandine put to the bare feet in your shoes will cure
the jaundice. manuscript book
This is ext in the jaundice Pechey’s Herbal Rx syrup of white horehound
zij oil of tartar per deliquium [illegible] i mix take often of it one
spoonful at a time The tops of white horehound infus’d in white
swine & drunk 3 mornings, is good to provoke the courses & to expel
the secundine & to strengthen the stomach & to cure an ill habit
of body ibid if continued for some time Dr Salmon says horehound opens
obstructions of both liver & spleen, cleanseth the breast & lungs causing
expectoration & by that means takes away old coughs, asthma’s, shortness
of breath, pains of the sides, spitting of the blood, physicks, inflammations
& ulcers of the lungs, it provokes the [?erms] & expels the birth
after birth & helps their watering Mr Wm Hunt a gravier of Braunston
in Leicershire has drank horehound tea with some drops of sal volatile [olecrum]
20 yrs together sweeten’d with sugar every morning.
Quincy says sal volatile olecrum for its preferable fragrancy has almost
excluded the use of spirit of hartshorn & the plain spirit of
sal armoniae It is a most noble cephalic & cordial either to smell
or to take inwardly Its dose is from 10 drops to 100 or upwards in 
wine or water or beer. Some ladies take a tea spoonful in 
water A sal
volatile made with [marium] syriacum according to Quincy’s dispensatory
is wonderful penetrating & serviceable to the head & diluted to a convenient
strength is one of the best sternulatories that can be invented
inwardly used it is of great efficacy in all nervous cases but is apt to 
be adulterated. Parkinson says horehound is good for such as by long
sickness, or a thin rheum falling upon their lungs are wasted & inclin’d
to a consumption the green herb taken with honey & for the [pursie] & short-winded
& promotes spitting taken with the dry’d root of [illegible] It is given
to women that have sore & long travels but it hurteth the bladder & the 
reins It is given to them that have taken poison or are stung or bitten by 
venomous serpents or beasts The leaves used with honey purge foul ulcers 
stay running or creeping sores It helpeth the pains of the sides, the juice with
roses drop’d into the ears easeth their pains A decoction of the herb is good for
those that have itches & running tetters or outbreaks used with vinegar. The green
leaves bruised boil’d with old hogs lard into an ointmt [healeth] the bitings
of dogs the swellings of womens breasts & the pains of pricking thorns The 
decoction of [illegible] in water is a singular help for the whites in women 
if they sit over it while it is warm. the same healeth scabs moist or dry if 
they are bathed therewith the herb stamped & put into new milk & set in a 
place pester’d with fliers will soon destroy em all. syrup of horehound in 
the shops are good for old coughs & old men & others that are asthmatic or
shortwinded to help em to spit & avoid flegm For the jaundice Make
a cake with the party’s urine and put it in the fire iron and
make a fire upon it and burn it and drink some turmerick
in a little warm ale Goody Smith







210)
Speech lost.
Dr Richd Langham gave my grandfather Mr Euseby
Shukbrugh Jan. 17th 1627. The imbecility of the voice is
by the indisposition & weakness of the instrumts of the
voice caused by a defluxion of rheum upon the arteries 
wear a cap a night especially if not day & night cut the
hair short & take the linctus or [lohoc] now & then chew reasins
of the sun (almost continually) spitting away the
stones and cause garlic or onions to be boyl’d in fair
water & salt & a very little wine vinegar make a sauce thereof
with sweet butter sugar & pepper to eat with all the meats the
oftener the better mater med. for streightness of wind.
Rx red sage mii liquorish bruis’d 1 d three parsly roots the
pith taken out one fennel root the pith taken out elecampane
root ziiij maiden hair in pouder 2 spoonfuls, aristolochia one
spoonful liverwort mij Boyl all these in 2 qts of stale ale until
 a pint be boyled away, strain it. Put into the liquor treacle of
jean 3 d aqua vitae 3 d live hony a spoonful brown sugar
candy ziiij one nutmeg finely beaten as much beaten cinnamon
as will lie on a shilling Let it stand & cool awhile then
put in the whites of 2 new layd eggs beaten Rx thereof lukewarm
morning & evening first & last the quantity of 4 or 5 spoonfuls
ibid. Lavender flowers in loss of speech do wonders on e
was cured by drinking a spoonful at a time of an infusion 
of them in sp. of wine The celebrated palsy drops are the 
compound sp. of lavender which are a most noble cephalic & 
cordial medicine but in loss of speech it is much better drpt
upon sugar & gradually dissolved in the mouth than swallow’d
at once Quincy’s Dispensatory. Loss of speech. Eat hot hony
at night going to bed for a pretty time Intermit some nights & repeat
This cured Mrs Ayres at London Mrs Finch. another Pellitory of
Spain the root, scrap’d & hold in the mouth helps the toothach
by drawing [illegible] the cold watery rheum it also helps the
palsy of the tongue & the loss of voice Millers Herbal.
another aqua mirabilis is said to preserve from the apoplexy & 
restore speech lost. Dose a ziij ad zi in rosemary water or rosemary
tea Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The distill’d oyl of peony seed drank in canary or sherrygut 10
or 12 helps the loss of speech. Salmon’s Disp.
An apoplectic (one troubled with an apoplexy) who had lost his speech
was [illegible] [illegible] agn by the use of spirit of castor & sp. of mother
of tyme p. 192 Salmon’s Praxis Medica.
One who had lost his speech was restor’d to it agn by chewing
tobacco. Cos. Waring Ashby Mrs. Ellen Stokes the window of the Rd Mr Ed
Stokes Parson of Blaby had lost her speech for several yrs at last she
happen’d to catch an ague to cure which she took 5 ou. of the Jesuits bark at several
times as is usual to drive it away & it recover’d her speech [illegible] Stokes 


(211
numbness in any lib or joynt
or sinew shrunk
Rx oyl of amber pr. 1 d ½ oyl of almonds pr. 29 mix & 
chafe em in agt the fire Ben. Alsop. another Boyl
4 calfs feet in water with a little oatmeal to a jelly 
when cold. Rub it on as hot as you can endure it from morn 
to night as oft as it drys in ibid. Another Rx tincture
of castor 14 or 15 drops for a man or woman in ale
as oft as they drink at or between meals It will restore
lost speech & cure a [dead] palsie when half the limbs are
taken away Dr Antony Brooks & Mrs Finch. Liquid amber
comforts & warms limbs afflicted by cold diseases & is exct 
in palsies & numbness Salmons Disp. Anne Tasie my servt
had one arm dead so that she could not lift it to her head
the next day she pounded [illegible] nettles & salt together & 
with her handkerchief bound it on her arm 24 hours & it gave
heat, strength & life to her arm & quite cured it. A. T.
A stiffness in the joynts especially after any bone had been 
broken. anoint with oyl of worms It gave Mrs. Freer of
Blaby the use of her arm after it was broken. Mrs Freer
a weakness, coldness, numbness, bruises, old aches, lameness
& straining of the joynts. Rx oyl of spike & oyl of
[exeter] p.e. anoint it on agt a fire David Lane. another
anoint with oyntmt of marshmallows This cured Wm Gimson
that was lame in his knee by falling ona  stump
Henry Gimson bonesetter of Widmarpool. another Rx a qt
of strong ale boyl it to a pint then add hogslard ziiij boyl
it again & apply it warm as you can endure it. This cured
a soldier when his hand was swell’d to black & blew & almost
inensible having running sore in the arm
caus’d by a bullet that was shot thro it. solder James
Edwards that carry’d the Stamford Mercury’s abt Leicershire etc.
had a pain & lameness in his ancle so that sometimes he could
not go some thought it a rheumatism, after having try’d a great
many things in vain was thus cured Rx oyl of spike 


212)
Oyl of Turpentine p.e. or each zfs anoint at
night a little before bedtime & work it in with an
hot iron or hot fire shovel near the fire The next night
do the same again. Try this on an old pain or a [foundred]
horses feet & legs J. Edwards. Oyl of worms & oyl of swallows
mixt p.e. cured a boy that was lame & had one leg shorter than the other
Sister Mary at Shakbrugh Ashby. Mrs Cook’s sister of Blaby had
a lame hand that no oyntmt poultis or plaster could make
well was cured by drinking 2 spoonfuls of juyce of elder
in half a pint of beer & ale nine mornings together 
another that cured Joseph Warner’s sister of lameness Rx oyl of
elder oyl of spike, oyl of lillies, oyl of roses, oyl of junip 
oyl of St. Jns wort, oyl of swallows, oyhl of turpentine
oyl of camomile p. e. anoint therewith fingers numb’d & inflexible
Rx laurel & bay leaves chop & boyl em in [go??] grease Dr Pool
mountebank Salmon’s disp. p. 475. says he recovered a child that
had lost the use of all its limbs only by anointing with oyl of amber
ade with pounder of [tiles] etc. a military officer had a daughter abt
6 or 7 yrs old that had a leg contract so that she could not go
she had been lame abt 3 or 4 months she was cured by being
dipt over head & ears in a tub of cold water 9 mornings successively
& sweating in bed after each dipping & her leg [illegible]
[illegible] & was as long as the other Mr Jn Cochrane. one woman took
her by the head another by the feet she always cry’d bitterly. ibid.
Wither’d limbs or weak joynts anoint with oyntmt of rue, Salmon’s
Disp. A strain mix white of an egg beaten with brandy
with wheat flower spred it upon leather & apply it Let it lie
on a good while David Jervase. another Dip a linnen cloth 
in hot urine apply it agt the fire as hot as you can endure
it then dry it & [illegible] spred Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth upon leather & 
lay it to the griev’d place If it will not stick bind it on with 
a linnen rag sew’d abt it It is made of red lead & oyl E. A.
oyl of St. Jns wort is better than oyl of turpentine for a contracted
or strain’d sinew or nerve or any strain abt. a joynt
or numbness you must rub it often on & keep the part that is lame
or disordered warm by wearing an oyl’d linnen rag & silk over 
it constantly till well. Dr Pool a hand or wrist strain’d by 
reaping corn or mowing with a scythe even when a great knob
arises on the outside the wrist Rx some keen nettles & pound em
soft as pap with salt, bind it on the strain or swelling 12 hours or
longer renew it if the pain doth not begin to cease in 12 hours but
if it doth then anoint it with oyl of St. Jns wort (the newer the oyl
the better) till well. Charles Simons.


(213
a strain. Rx comfry root wash it clean & dry it with
a cloth then scrape or pound it. lay it on a rag & bind it on
shift it once in 24 hours or boyl the roots in spring water 
& apply em hot. It will strengthen & knit a bone new set or
weak or crackt If you apply it to a bone before it is right
set it hurts it so that it will be always out It is good for a 
bone that is apt to be out of joynt This last way cured Mrs 
Caulton. A bathing for lameness Rx sage, rosemary feather fern each
mi wormwood mi boyl all these in a qt of brandy bath the part affected
with cotton dipt therein & let it lie on. Do it once or twice a day for a 
fortnight together Then afterwards fry wormwood in hogs lard & apply 
it to the pt that is troubled every night for a fortnight together S. S. another
Rx small pounded frankincense mix it well with with 3 ou. of the best aqua 
vitae & anoint the joynt or limb pained S. S.
A numbness in a finger or joynt. Rx oyntmt of marshmallows
pr. 29 w. vinegar 10 drops rosewater 14 drops oyl of
turpentine 20 drops Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Sp. of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine oyl of wax or oyl of camomile
allays pains of the gout rheumatism [illegible] nodes, & cures contracted & 
wither’d members. Salmon’s Dispensatory. ale boyl’d to a salve 
helps pains of the sinews & joynts & heals sores old or new Salmon
on Barly.
To cure lame joynts. Culpepers last legacy.
aqua composita mixed with a little oyl of roses helps lame joynts
but let ‘em be well rub’d before with warm cloths & then anointed
another ibid The like effect hath hartshorn boyl’d to jelly in sack 
Jn [Hewet’s] ancle was had upon by a stone colt which bent his foot double
old Mr Ed. Muxlo advised him to stand in a horse trough in cold water a
qr of an hour which he did & was well without doing any thing nore at it
J. H. E.A.’s servt. another Elizth Dawkins formerly had a bruise on
her shin which made her very lame but the skin was not broken she was
cured by Mrs Basset by bathing it night & morning with a linnen cloth
dipt in vinegar & water cold rather the [illegible] vinegar & the cloth bound to the
bruise well with the same liquor she was well in a little time E.D; E.A.’s servt
A wither’d or contracted arm or any limb. Mary Raven doctress at
[D??ford] in Leicershire Rx oil of swallows & oil of worms & oil of camomile
each 1 d flax seed 1 d calfs tongue an herb 1 d at the apothecaries 
Boil the calfs tongue & flax seed in water a qt to a pint or less strain it
Then add the oil stir it well before you use it. Bath it on war 2 or 3 
times a day. This cured a contracted arm. Goody [Ho???and]. [wake] robin
is the same as calfs foot us’d in poltices for the gout Parkins has no calfs 
tongue.
Kate Bingly of Blaby a poor woman that [illegible] collection a widow hat the use
of one side almost taken away being a stroke of a palsy she had a violent
pain in her hip & knee & had lost the use of one hand Mr Tho. Ward surgeon
of [Sison] prescribed this [illegible] for her which did her good & she repeated it 
Rx sp. v. i. ou. sp. of lavender ziij tincture of castor oil ziij pr: 10 d Mr Cook Apothecary


214)
Cos: Geo: Boothby put his knee out by jumping from 
behind a coach when a boy Jn? Gibbords of Coventry set it & 
the sinews of his hair shrunk [illegible] he was [illegible] only
on his toe to the ground. when he began to go [illegible] [illegible]
he could not set his heel to the ground he ordered him to take
oyl of swallows & oyl of worms p. e. to shake ‘em together & to
chafe it in well agt the fire 2 or 3 times a day & in a little time
his sinews extended to a duo length. Sister Boothby
The anodyne balsam an outward application
made of castile soap, camphire, saffron and spt. of
wine digested in a sand heat. It procures sweat and
ease in the most racking extremities of pain by discharging
the [peccans] matter that occasiond it.
Chambers’s Dictionary.
Rheumatick pains. [Antihe?ticum] poterii is very
good against rheumatick pains or chronical distempers
or consumptions after convenient purgations Dr [Benskin]


(215
To make pearch bite
Rx juice of red nettles & five leav’d grass p.e put it
into a deep wide mouth’d bottle that the hook may go
down dip the worm in when you fish Let the worms be
scour’d in moss & fennel in a wollen bag Keep em 3 or 
4 days to scour & toughen em by giving fresh moss & 
fennel every 3 or 4 days, hanging em in a cellar or cool
place & pouring 6 spoonfuls of water that has stood all
day in the sun or pond water. The water washes & refresheth
em & will drain away fro em gradually. Stephen
Hunt. To cath eels Put calfs blood cak’d in a 
piche & put egg shels made small by crumbling
em with the hand & mix em with the blood the
last will draw roach & pike you must lay the
mouth downwards (i.e. the tail to the stream for 
they shoot upwards) under a hollow bank or root 
of a tree out of the stream. ibid.
To make pearch, carp, pench or almost any fish except
pike, bite at a worm, Dip the worm (when you are
going to thro in) in chymical oyl of fennel or chymical
oyl of anniseeds, the 1st is best & any of the fish that smell
it, will bite. you must keep the worms in moss clean wash’d
wash it clean twice a week & squeeze out the wet with your
hands & set em in a pot cover’d in a celler & they will
keep a long time. You must fish at 3 or 4 o clock in a 
morning for carp. Mr Styles of Banbury.
another Rx Ground malt & mix it with cow dung & throw
it in cakes or balls a night or 2 before you angle & 
it will draw fish to the places where you throw it.
Stephen Hunt. To invite perch to a place chop [illegible]
worms & throw em in ibid To make carp come to 
a certain place & how to catch em. Rx wheat flower
juniper berries in pouder (the oldest will the most easily 
pulverize) make em into little balls abt as big as a pea with 
ale wort or ale that is not bitter Bait a place with these 


216)
there for 2 or 3 nights & you may angle with 
success except where they spawn which is twice a 
yr viz in & . Clean a corner of a 
pond of the weeds & bait a place thus 3 or 4 times
then draw a net suddenly over & let it fall into
the water & beat the other side of the pool from the net
where you baited & the carp will strike into’t. Stephen
Hunt in the night at Elmsthorp pool with another man
caught 40 large carp at one draught ibid To make
perch bite Rx a bit of a dew worm that is but a little longer than
the hook place the great end of the worm downward. you 
may break a worm into several pts to be us’d often. This
will catch when a small worm will not. It is good to put some
warm water to wheat or rye bran so as to moisten it that you 
may throw it in by lumps, or grains or ground malt to draw
em together. A soldier & traveller To fox fish Rx [ox] almond al.
nux vomica beat or grate it small wheat flower red lead
make em into a paste with aqua vitae. Then roll em into little
pills like pea’s & throw em into the water roach & chub will
take em it will for em so that you may take em with a net at
the end of a pole. This paste put into some apples or crabs
& thrown under a crab tree or into a thicket where there is a 
crab tree where deer resort They will intoxicate the buck or
doe that eat any of em so that you may break his or her neck
or cut their throats deer are mighty lovers of apples or crabs
ibid. To make almost any sort of fish to bite that
are caught by angling Rx oyl of polypody of the oak
Venice turpentine & live hony p.e. in a thumb bottle 
dip the worm therein & you will catch plenty of fish
even of carp that are difficult to take a soldier & Dr
T. Hely. This E. A. has oft try’d without any success judging it
charmless another abt 9 or 10 o clock at night or later if
you will take a candle & lanthern after rain & look in any fallow
field or ground where the grass is bare or in any garden or
orchard you may gather plenty of dew worms put em in a 
pot with moss or fennel The next morning pinch off their red
heads abt the middle & throw em into the pond or river
where you intend to angle you may throw in ½ a pint 
into one place bait 2 or 3 places in a pond that is pretty large
for 2 days more & night together & fish with the tayl of the
dew worms or any time when you are to angle throw in some
dew worms nipt or cut to pieces tho it is not above 2 or 3 worms
& come an hour after & you will have good sport. fish will bit
better at the tayl of a worm than at the head & tho they will sooner 


(217
bite at a small hook than at a large one & sooner at
a hook [?afted] to a fern hair than a great many yet if you put
2 pretty great hooks to a strong line & tafte the fish will bite
very well May 21st 720 It being a very west time & the water in 
the river muddy E.A. angled in his pond in the piece the wind easterly
& high at 3 o clock in the morn & cou’d not make the fish bite
at last he went round the pond & found a little open place surrounded
with woods where he had but just space for his 2 hooks
to descend & the place was under the wind He caught abt 20 perch
abt 8 o clock (in the morn) in a very little time & many of them
2 at a time E. A.
To make a paste for cap, roch or dace
Rx tallow of a loyn of mutton or limb the skin taken off & new
or old cheese a little white bred Beat em in a [illegible] with a little
good aqua vitae or brandy or aniseed [illegible] beaten with a little white of
egg 1st beaten by itself make it into a stiff paste with a little hony
you may colour it with vermillion or red lead It will do without
colouring & you without white of egg It will keep abt a week 
Ec. Cholmondly a ratcatcher of Staffordshire another rub the [illegible]
with oyl of worms. Perch will bite in muddy water & before a thunder
shower ibid. E. A. try’d the last paste of Cholmondlys & oyl of
worms & the worm dipt in old tar without any success May 
720
when you fish for perch bait the hook with a red worm neither very
big nor very little, dipt in treacle for carp bait with a little
scarlet bright worm bred in bears dung. They are very fond of
it [illegible] a porter in hand ally over agt great turn style in 
Holburn London understands angling very well & can catch carp’
to admiration. at London they that sell worms keep in in a greasie
dish clout. It will make em red, bright & thrive Br. S. A.
Lay a trammel a day or 2 before or after the change of the
moon in a warm dark night & trammel will catch carp but a 
dragnet will not. Put into a [thief] net nosegays i.e. flower white
& red. They draw the fish together they come to admire em. Keep 
the worms in mass often shifted Wm Pinch.
A paste for carp or roch or dace mix wheat flower
with white of an egg & bole in fine pouder make a
longish bate. Bate a place with grains & an hour after
throw a castnet for carp let it lie qr. of an before
you draw it up & they will come out of the mud
Traveller & Tho. Bingly all oyls done to an hook or worm
are insignificant to make any sort of fish bite. Carp will bit in 
a pond that has a gravel or sandy bottom but they will not bite in 


218)
in a marle pit The Rd Mr Andrew Glen of Hatham.
If you stock a pond with perch where there is marle those you 
put in first shall grow to be very large but afterwards they 
will breed & multiply so very fast that the pond will be over stockt
& they will starve & pine one another & never thrive or grow to be
large fish It is like over stocking a ground or close or keeping
your cattle poorly they will not grow but degenerate into runts.
If you can draw the pond often you m ay think the fish so as to 
make increase in [illegible] as well as multiply in number ibid
To take pike or perch or chub with a minnum (or as some call it a pink)
To catch a minnum Rx a very little hook with a tafte of 3 or 4 
hairs cover the hook with a small red worm not much longer than
the hook you must have no float nor cork nor quill but a shot
or 2 abt 2 or 3 inches from the hook the line must be short or
you must tie it up you will see or feel the pink take the worm
but you must stand as much out of sight as you can they bite best
when the wind curdles the water a little. As fast as you catch the pinks
you must put em into a tin watering pot with water in it & often
change the water in summer to keep em alive when you’ve caught abt
6 or 10 then Rx a strong line fasten to it a tafte of 3 or 4 hairs
that if you meet with a large pick the tafte may break to preserve
your line to the tafte you must fix a piece of Indian weed abt 5 
inches long tie em together with a white silk was’d with black shoe
makes wax put betwixt a piece of calves leather or glove leather 
the wax must be made pretty stiff. If the Indian weed is longer the pink
cannot play well with it you must fix two duck shots to the Indian 
weed & you must have a little cork & quil for a float lay 
the pink near the bottom you must have a pretty strong carp 
or perch hook & putt the end of the hook & its beard just under
the fin of the back of the pink that part of the fin nearest the tayl
the hook must go cross the fishes back under the fin taking
but little hold The beard & hook appearing on the outside of the
fish & seeming to take but little hold of the pink. ibid.
A bit for fish (esca. illecabra) Rx a little camphir, aqua vitae
& oul olive bray em together till they come to a soft oyntmt
then put em into a little gally pot or box or glass bottle & anoint
the bait. Geo. Ashby Pater Meus
A paste for carp used by Richd Wheat Ld Stamford’s fisherman
at Grooby Pool Rx wheat flower juniper berries dry’d &
beaten to pouder Red lead in fine pouder p. e. the redder the better
make it into a stiff paste with anniseed water Let the bait be as
big as a white pea made over to cover the point of the hook 
Sam. Exon. Pound the berries in a mortar They may do better than 
in pouder or dry’d E. A.
An infallible way to watch eels Stephen Hunt. Lay at the head
of the pit 6 or 8 baits abt the asunder, fixt to a [troling]
line or whip-cord it [illegible] ly as far as you think the 


(219
ground bard & free from weeds. stake it down. your stake
for the night must be a stick as thick as a man’s thumb
the top must be taper like [breath] with a sharp point you
must bore a hole at the end of a thick staff so that it may 
go easily on & off [illegible] a [?irk] for the line a little below the
tapered part of the breath you must after you have laid
your baite ty’d the line to the stake
put the staff on [illegible] breath & hold it in with the upper
part of the line ty’d to the stake then thrust it into the
ground under water then no body can see it or find it out
without a drag. your bait must be a [menow] you must
tut it open with a penknife & take out the gutts then fill
it full of blood that is cold and congeald & sew it in 
taft a gag abt 1 inch ¾ long on with [horse] hair to a horse 
hair [plat] consisting of 30 hairs this must be fixt to a 
parkthred about half a yd long which must be tyd to 
the mane line. your gag must be of the largest knitting
wire broad & flatt at one end. sharp & taper at the other
you must in tafting observe to [illegible] the hair from the 
middle of the gag towards the broad end within a straws
breadth of the broad end cutting off some of the haire 
as you lap & approach to the end. You must bend the
sharp end a little off from the line you must thrust
the broad end in at the [bent] hole & out at the mouth
till you can thrust the sharp end under the tayl
so that it may appear a little on the back of the fish
& the broad end must lye just out of the mouth 
when you sew up the fish you must leave a hole
to put the gag in at (viz) at the bent hole S. Ld: of
Whetstand
Chymical oyl of any seeds put amongst moss that the
worms are kept in & the hook dip’d in it with the worm
[Francis] [illegible] of Wigston says it is the best of charmes
to make fish bite.
June 23d 1692 The Dalby miller of Brooksby in
Leicer shire caught a carp 25 ½ inches  long from head  


220)
to tail & 14 ¾ inches in the cirumference of
the thickest part in a pych in a flood in the river
Reak It weigh’d 6 ½ good [wtt]
an easy way to catch fish in a pond when the water is frozen hard
make a hole in the ice in what part you think best & put into it ground
malt mi or mij or sweet grains & the fish will come to the hand presently
Mr. Ed. Clark of Stony Stanton.
An ear: wig is an ext bait for roch ibid. another for roach or dore Rx wheat
flower temper’d with saffron [illegible] strong ale & a little sugar & bait your 
hook there with & they will bit apace ibid.
another to [fox] fish Rx the crums of new white bread & [coculus] indy
berries & henbane seeds each zi in fine pouder temper it with good aqua
vitae & make thereof a paste which divide into small pieces a little bigger than 
wheat corns & throw whole handfuls thereof into a still place of the
river where there is plenty of roach & dore & they will swim on the surface
of the water bring intoxicated after eating the baits, which you may then
catch with a little not at the end of a pole ibid.


(221
A consumption p. 137.
A consumptive cough or surfeit.
Rx white wine 3 spoonfuls, the yok of a new lay’d egg,
as much flower of brimstone as will lie on a shilling & the
same quantity of white sugar candy in pouder Rx 2 knife’s
pointfull in the morning one a night as long as it lasts, then 
intermit 3 days & take the following Rx If they do you good repeat em
Rx 3 or 4 heads of garlick, peel & brake em boyl em in a 
pint of spring water till they be dry, then infuse em in a 
pint more of spring water till they be almost dry & boyl it
a little in a qt of white wine vinegar with loaf sugar lbi Rx
3 spoonfuls in the morning & one at night These 2 Rxs cured
a taylor of Evington.
for a consumption cough & to sweeten and cool the blood an itching humour
Rx shel snails 1 qt scour em clean with salt & wash em 
with water then pound em in a bowl with a wooden pestle
gill pickt & wash’d mij viz as much as you can grip
with one hand at twice, Lay the gill at the bottom of
a cold still (i.e. a rose still) & the snails on the gill
pour a gallon of new milk upon em washing the 
bowl with some of the same milk & adding it to the
still. still it off, it commonly affords 2 qts of snail 
water drink abt a coffee dishful or 10 spoonfuls in 
the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in the afternoon
Begin with 5 spoonfuls till it agrees with the stomach drink
it till you are well sweeten’d with sugar This cured Mary Barnet of Barwel
of a violent cough & hereditary consumption
Mrs Adderly & Sister Elizth Mayer when the still is thro
hot keep it with frequent stirring with a spoon or ladle,
This would not cure E. A.’s itching
or it will burn to E. M. another In Spain They cure
consumptions by drinking goats milk & brandy. Tho.
Clark [soulder] an electuary for the [ptisick] (shortness of
breath) & a cough caus’d by hard drinking Rx liquorish
pouder zfs anniseeds zfs caraway seeds zi pounded & 
sifted mastick zi pouder’d conserve of red roses zfs hony ziiij
mix them well on a trencher or slate Rx a knife point full 


222)
at any time when you cough. Wm Harris [slater] of 
Leicer abt the latter end of April 715 E. A. had
a violent cold & cough he took sweet & oyly things 
in vain but at last was cured thus Rx Mr Fr.
Coltmans balsamic electuary which is thus made
Rx lucatellus balsam zij 8 d conserve of red roses
zi 6 d syrupus capillaru zi 3 d Rx the quantity of
a nutmeg 3 or 4 times a day This made me expectorate
& I eat in the night & oft when I cough’d sugar’d almonds
& raysins of the sun The cough hung on me
so long that I thought it would turn to a i
E. A. A cold or cough in man or child or beast.
Rx liquorish sliced zij sage leaves mifz fennel root
slit ziiij currans lbfs stew em over the fire in a qt of
water till ti comes to a pint strain & put it to a qt of
ale for man or beast Let the strain’d liquor be boyling hot
when you put the ale to’t & give it fasting the horse may 
drink 2 hours after you may give it 3 mornings together
It will cure a sucking child of a cold, cough or wind
Rx ½ the ingredients for a child with a pint of white wine
instead of ale. Let the child take a spoonful at a time 3 
mornings successively a man may take ½ a pint or a qr of
a pint 3 mornings together Ld Tho. Barrons of Newsted
Park in Nottingham shire & Fr. Collins of Ayleston, Collins’s
mother did great cures among children with this Rx
A tickling cough or a consumption of which it is
oft a forerunner Rx electuarium corcatu pr 1 d per ounce
a knife pointful at night going to bed or at any time
when you cough drinking often gill or sage tea Mr Wm
Cook apothecary A dry or old cough Rx pippins pare & 
slice em abt ½ a tea pot full, raysins of the sun stoned & liquorish
sliced so as to make it taste a little sweet & tart. Drink a tea pot
full or 2 night & morning or as often as you will. This did Mr. 
Simon Barwel of Leicer more good than any thing.  The countess of
Stamford. You  must drink it without sugar ibid.
A cold cough or consumption Rx one or 2 turnips, pare & slice
em very thin Lay 3 or 4 slices then a flooring of sugar of any sort
as you like it, the finer the pleasanter the courser the more opening
make it over night & it will be ready to be taken the next morning
If you set it one night in the cellar the sugar will sooner all dissolve
you may strew sugar upon every slice if you like it very sweet Rx [illegible]


(223
Rx a tea spoonful at a time as oft as you cough by day or
by night. It will not keep good above 3 or 4 days then renew it. It
is pleasanter than syrup of turnips. Dr Benskin. This cured Mrs Winstanly
of a violent cough at her lying in, & Mrs [Lewin] etc. sister E.B.
a cold or cough. Bring a looseness upon the self by drinking or 
eating buttermilk, or malt pudding bak’d viz made of ½ malt flower & 
½ wheat flower Jn Cater Shepherd. Keep yourself warm ibid. A cold
or a violent running at the nose Rx Portugal snuff at the
nose at night going to bed Ann Tasie. another Drink syrup 
of verjuice It is good also for a sore throat ibid. another
Rx balsamick syrup a little at a time & often It will
raise flegm &make you expectorate Mr Stokes. A cough
Rx elecampane the best sort (or that which is new) flower of brimstone
p. e. hony as much as will bring it to the consistence
of a lambative Mr. James Allen of Whetstone commends
this to the skies. An hacking old cough tending to a 
consumption. Rx flaxseed (al linseed) & balm make tea drink
it as oft as you will sweeten’d with sugar Dr Mane & Sister
Ekins. nothing is better for a cold & cough than liquorish
juice i.e. Spanish juice Mr Cook apothecary. another good 
also for a sore throat Rx vinegar or verjuice a pint sugar
candy ziiij liquorish sliced ziiij boyl em & drink a little
coffee dish night & morning. This medicine was seldom baffled
by a cough or sore throat in the beginning of the yr
719 Aunt Maier Pills for a consumption or surfeit.  Rx of
the pouder of anniseeds, liquorish, elecampane each zi white
sugar candy, conserve of roses each zij lucatellus balsam 
&the best hony each one spoonful. Tar half a spoonful
make em up into pills & take 4 or 4 going to bed & abt the
same number The next morning an hour or 2 before you rise
you need not confine your self to the house nor to any particular
diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Coulton. A violent 
cough & weakness Rx lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d Conserve of
roses pr 2 d mix & take a knife’s pointful night & morning
This cured Tho. Tafte when he was ready to die with coughing
& cou’d scarce draw his legs after him. Tho. Tafte. Salmon
in his Dispensatory p. 587. commends his pectoral infusion to 
the skies. Cold or cough Rxl linseed oyl cold drawn zij diacordium zij



224)
Diacodium is syrup of meconium or poppies
Rx only one spoonful in the morn & one at night
going to bed fast after it an hour Rx it no oftener because
it thickens then the blood too much & dulls the stomach
& spirits Mr Penford apothecary says it is the best
medicine yet found out. This cured E. A. may 719. but not
quite the cure Rx lucatellus balsam & conserve of roses each 
2 d a knifes pointfull night & morn Spanish juice or liquorish as
oft as you cough at last compleat the cure with a [dranken] dose of ale
till you spew & a day or 2 before you drink hard eat 3 or 4 
cloves of garlic abt bedtime S. A. another This cured a 
whole family at Ayleston of a violent cough Rx a little hare’s
wool clip it small with a pr of sissers Dry nettle seeds pound or
rub it to pouder mix em with a little hony. Take a little knifes
pointful often when you cough & night & morn Ch. Chester
A cold or consumption Rx unset hysop & gill each mi a little time & 
rosemary, & penny-royal Bouyl or infuse em in ale or
good beer 3 pints till it is wasted ½ pint or more then add treacle lbfs
& sugar candy ziiij when it is melted take it off the fire when it is cold
squeeze the herbs well out & add oyl of anniseeds 2 d Put it into a 
bottle. shake it when you pour it out. Drink night & morn a draught
hot Mrs Caulton. The purging bitters good for colds or a 
stoppage at the stomach Rx camomile flowers gentian, centaury, each 1 d
sena zi boyl em in 3 pints of water till it wasts to a qt 
Rx ½ pint warm every morning or more as you wou’d have it
work, fasting after it.  If you wou’d not have it pourge leave
out the sena. Mrs Caulton for any cough or chincough, asthma
or short breath or stoppage of the lungs. Rx water a qt garlic 6 
or 8 cloves,  a little unset hysop, infuse em till it comes to a 
pint, then put in a gill of w. wine & hony ziiij let it boyl up
when cold take a good spoonful when going to bed but not at any 
other time except you keep warm. you may boyl it up with good
sugar lbfs (if you do not like hony) & put it in the w. wine when it
is enough & let it just boyl in Mrs Caulton A consumption Rx
The juice of betony 2 spoonfuls in half a pint of milk every 
morning Mrs Caulton. It is best in new milk  warm from the cow,
but in winter you m ay boyl betony in milk. E. A.
Pills for a surfeit or consumption Rx of the pouder of aniseeds,
liquorish, elecampane each zi w. sugar candy, conserve of roses 
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful & hony as much. Tar
½ a spoonful mix & make em put into pills Rx 3 or 4 going to bed
& abt the same number an hour or 2 before you rise in the morning
Mrs Caulton. Dr  Willis says cup-moss is infallible in the chincough
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory


(225
a cold & cough Rx a little black pepper in pouder
in a spoon abt a little silver thimble full Put a little
warm beer or ale to it & swallow it at night going to bed
drinking after it to wash it down, some of the same drink 
repeat it nights together This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt
another Rx one or 2 apples scoop out the [stent] & core then
put in sugar & candy pounded smallish, close up the hole with
the stalk & apple adjoyning to to it, & roast em eat em at night
abt bed time. This cured Mrs Stokes when the Drs & apothecary
could not Mrs Stokes drank liquorish tea at the same
time Mr. Stokes Decer 713 when Mr [Cook] the apothecary could not
cure E. A.’s wife’s cold that was so violent that it was like the chin 
cough she did cough till she vomited & had an ague on her at
the same time after one ounce of bark tane at 12 times every 3rd 
hour she found the greatest benefit by drinking gentian brandy
which is sold at [Penford’s] the strong water [illegible] in Leicer pr 3 d 4 d per qt
3 or 4 times a day or night or as oft as the cough & sometimes 
mixing it with syrup of mulberries raysins of the sun ston’d & 
slit & fill’d with rue chop’d small She eat now & then one several 
times in a day She took the carduus vomit with lilly roots & oyl vid
Mr [illegible] Rx for an ague 2d feeling a great oppressions and sourness
[at her] stomach & [shortness] of breath & want of appetite
the next morning after her vomit she took fasting the quantity of
a nutmeg of Dr Hartops chalibeate electuary made thus Rx conserve
of roses zij filings of iron or steel zfs syrup of clove-
gilliflowers as much as will make into an electuary drinking 5 or 
6 spoonfuls of bitter decoction cold after it make a large [qt] viz Rx water
3 pints gential root 1 d sliced carduus 29 boyl to a qt strain. Rx
the electuary & bitter decoction after it every morning while 
they last fasting 2 hours after em. E. A. A tickling cough Rx the
best sallet oyl ½ a spoonful at night going to bed drinking 3 or 
4 drops of gentian brandy immediately after it This cured M. A.
at one dose E. A. a violent cough Rx 6 or 7 cloves of garlick 
slice or shred em boyl em in a pint of strong ale sweeten it with 
treacle ziiij pr. 1 d drink it all at night going to bed adding cloaths
to provoke sweat This cured Geo. Brooks. Blooding in a vein on the
top of the foot (any vein there) will cure an old cough It draws from the
lungs Dr Pool. A cold or cough Taking many sweet or oyly
things often regard their departure by furring clogging & dulling 
the stomach & vessels abt the lungs Nover 1720 E. A. quickly cured himself 
of both thus he took milk boyl’d & sweeten’d with hony adding
a little w. bread 3 morning successively in the day he rode or walk’d
abroad keeping his head warm at night he ty’d a blew handkercher abt his 




226)
Throat. The 4th day he grated a little [illegible] rhubard to 
which he put abt a spoonful of cheery brandy & drank it
fasting which carry’d off the dregs of his cold & left him well. E. A.
 a cough & consumption & pain at the stomach & weakness
faintness sickness & loss of appetite shortness of breath in Sam. Exon’s wife of
Blaby of ½ a yrs standing was cured by drinking buttermilk
boyl’d as hot as she cou’d with pepper morn & night or as 
oft as she cou’d get it. Goody Exon.
a cough. Rx garlick peel’d, boyl it in two water then bruise it
& put it in vinegar add sugar & juice of lemmon as much as will
boyl it to a syrup. Take a little of it when you go to bed. Pater G. A.
a consumption Rx milk a pint, water 3 pints boyl it till half
be consumed. Drink it 3 times a day ibid.
a cough with a soreness at the stomach very violent. Rx conserve
of rosemary flowers conserve of red roses, lucatellus balsam & 
syrup of diacodium each zij mix & Rx a tea spoonful at night going
to bed & in the night [illegible] when you cough you may add a few
drops of sp. of sulphur if you’ve no dislike to’t It cured without 
Cos. Freeman another for a cough & shortness of breath Rx 
hony 2 or 3 spoonfuls clarifie it i.e. boyl & scum it & Rx a [illegible]
spoonful or 2 at night going to bed as hot as you can This cured
Sister Shuhbrugh Ashby. ibid a cough Rx virgins hony abt 3 spoonfuls
boyl & scum it then slice a fresh lemmon peel & 
all & cut each slice into four qrs or small pieces put em
into a pat & pour the boyl’d hony to em allow em a small
time to incorporate then eat a qr moisten’d with hony
& the juice as oft as you cough boyl’d hony alone will
make you expectorate & clear the stomach of flegm but
it wou’d not stop E. A.’s cough till mixt & assisted with juice
of lemmon March 18th 720 Leave off malt drink & tobacco
as enemies & promoters of the cough. Drink w. wine or
veal broth or thin milk pottage or water cold or warm in 
their stead This E. A. found out you may make a syrup & 
disguise it. To cure a cough in a child or young people
It is dangerous stopping an old cough in old people.
Rx ale (or beer & ale) ½ a pint boyl it then mix a good thimble
full of fine starch with a little cold beer. Put it in let it
boyl up, sweeten it with penny days (penny dice) give it warm 
going to bed Rx it 3 or 4 nights omit & repeat from Nottingha
Mrs Caulton A consumption of the lungs & a cough whereby
the lungs are much affected. Rx 10 shell snails break the shells
a little yet without bruising or killing the snails then wash em
in fair water with some salt in’t Dose in change of water twice 
or thrice without salt then bruise from a little & put all into a
quart of new milk & boyl it to a pint then strain & drink it ibid.


(227
Pills for a cold. Rx pouder of anniseeds liquorish,
elecampane each zi white sugar candy conserve of [roses]
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful as much of the
best hony add to these half a spoonful of tar: make these up
into into pills with liquorish pouder Rx 3 or 4 going to bed & abt
the same number the next morning an hour or [2] before you
rise you need neither confine yourself to the house nor any
particular diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Fr. Bickerton
Mr Fishers lozenges for a cough. Rx flower of brimstone,
zi elecampane zfs liquorish zi in pouder while sugar candy zi
in pouder mix these in conserve of roses & make them into lozenges
ibid.
a consumption Rx conserve of red roses zij
mithridate zi mix em together to an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg 
every morning fasting & 3 or 4 times a day, drinking a little
double aniseed water (single may do better) If you are able to walk
after it. This cured Wm Burstall when the Drs reckon’d him incurable
Mrs Page & Mr Amos Taylor. A consumption beat a quantity 
of white snails in a mortar; then strain em thro a cloth of linnen
or a sive. To a qt. of the liquor put sugar candy lbi & liquorish stick 
sliced thin 3 [illegible] boyl em all together till the liquor comes to a pint or
thereabts when it is cool take a spoonful morning, noon, & night or
[illegible] if need require S. S. For a cough caus’d from a thin rheum 
a cold stomach & a moist brain Rx elecampane roots 4 ou marshmallow
roots 12 ou. quinces 16 ou (if it be at a time when quinces
are not to be gotten then take marmolet or quiddany of quinces) & 
boyl them in fair water with the roots untill they be soft to break then 
beat am all together in a mortar & pass em thro a sive or strainer & 
for every pound of the mixture add hony lbij then boyl them together 
but do not overboyl them & take it from the fire & for every pound 
of the matter add saffron & liquorice each [illegible]i cinnamon zi flower of
sulphur zi Incorporate them well together then it is made but it
ought to be aromatiz’d with musk & rosewater This marvelous electuary
for the cough must be taken in the morn fasting & when you go
to bed. The dose is half a spoonful & more. marshmallows mollifie
wonderfully. Elecampane helpeth digestion & strengtheneth the
stomach quinces are warm & cordial saffron dryeth & digesteth
evil humours cinnamon fortifyeth the stomach Liquorice mollifieth
& digesteth the matter marmolet or quiddany must not be
boyled but only beaten with the roots after they are boyled. This
cured a man 36 yrs old who had the cough 40 yrs S. S.
an obstinate cough Rx Venice treacle or mithridate the quantity
of a hazel nut going to bed drinking ½ pint of warm posset
drink after it to promote a breathing sweat Jn Penford apothecary 


228)
Syrup of sugar candy made with sp. of wine is of
singular use agt violent coughs & colds Salmon’s
Dispensatory p. 172. a violent cough & cold Rx a qr. of a pint
of water sweeten it with a spoonful of hony stir it well together
drink that quantity night & morning cold Mrs Abigail
Finch. A chin cough Rx treacle ziiij water a qt boyl it till the 
treacle is melted which be in a very little time Give it cold for the 
constant drink. ibid
Consumption & surfeit. Rx turnips a galn to mustard seed
a pint pounded Put em into a pipkin bake it with bread strain
the juice out drink a qr of a pint night & morning. This cured one
of a consumption when the Drs had given him over as incurable
old Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Consumption & asthma. Rx a leg of pork abt 9 lb & 
boyl it in water 9 qts when it boyls scum it clean, then put
in a small handfull of grits pounded & hartshorn shavings
2d boyl it till it is wasted to 3 qts or leas abt ½ an hour
before you think it boyl’d enough put in Jamaica pepper 
half an ounce in pouder To know when it is enough Rx a little in a 
porringer Set it by to cool if it turns to a jelly it is enough 
when cold take off the fat Rx abt ½ pint in the morning fasting 
& ½ pint at night going to bed Rx it as hot as you can 
drank it. You must strain it every time you drink it. Mrs. 
Richd Wightman
An asthma & shortness of breath & consumption.
Rx tincture of gum ammoniacum 2 ou. pr. 1[illegible] oxymel of squills
zfs pr. 5 d Rx ½ a spoonful with balsamic syrup or any syrup you 
may add a little sallet oyl to help expectoration. Mr Smith apothecary 
an asthma & cough. Rx syrup of sulphur made according to 
Quincy’s Dispensatory. Dose from zfs to zi.
Balsam of sulphur is good for coughs, colds, asthma’s, wheezings,
hoarseness & phthisicks (i.e. consumptions) or ulcers of the
lungs. Salmon.
an asthma & consumption Tho. Carick a stockiner of Blaby
had an asthma which brought him to a consumption so that he cou’d
not work at his trade had lost his stomach & was [illegible] afflicted
with [illegible] [illegible] he had smoked tobacco & swallow’d his spittle
but found no benefit at last he was advised to buy some leaf
tobacco (by a labourer) at 1 d per ou. which he did & chew’d it & it brought 
his stomach agn corrected the wind there & made a perfect cure in a
little time to a miracle. He put loaf tobacco in the morning as soon
as he rose into his mouth for a cud He spat away his spittle at 1st putting in 
& afterwards swallow’d it. He seldom had more than 2 cuds in a day & 
sometimes he slept with one in his cheek allnight This he did but rarely [illegible]


(229
Dr Ben. Allen in [illegible] of [illegible] chalybeat & purging waters of
England says he has often seen consumptions of 21 to 49 cured by the
dexterous application of chalybeats, chalbeat waters chiefly when their
Drs had try’d in vain to effect a cure.
For a phthisick & stoppage in the breast & to open the pipes
Rx parsley roots, [illegible] roots, succory roots, & seeth ‘em in white
wine & juniper berries, strain it when it is boyl’d & put
pellitory of Spain to it & drink of it morning & evening & it
will help Mrs. Hewet E A.’s mother
To stop a cough & to drive wind down into farts
Rx a little tea spoonful of diascordium an electuary
at night going to bed Mrs M Boothby
This Rx & following cured Mr Richard Potter stockin maker of Nottingham when he
had a cough of 15 or 16t yrs standing from a surfeit
Rx honey ziiij flower of brimstone zi white rosin in fine pouder zfs sallet
oil two large spoonfuls melt the honey by the fire to make it mix with the
other ingredients cold Take the quantity of a large nutmeg night & morning
rather more at night This dose cured Mr. Potter upon taking cold half the quantity
cures him Richard Potter
Take flower of brimstone elecampane and
liquorish both in powder mix them with 
treacle & take a tea spoonfull as often as 
you cough & 2 or 3 times a day & night
& morning penelope traveling madd
woman



230)
To make an issue
mark the place with a pen & ink a little where you 
intend to make an incision with the lancet there thrust
in the lancet & give it a rip up you thrust it in but
a little way to cut thro the skin then apply a pepper
corn dipt in vinegar with a sixpence over it the sixpence
must be sew’d in a bit of cloth or rag & that must be
serv’d to a fillet to prevent its slipping & bound abt 
the arm for 24 hours then take out the pepper corn & 
put an issue pea into its place which has a silk thro the 
middle to extract it by you must thrust into the
ground or molds 3 pea’s for 24 hours to mollifie em
so that a needle may readily penetrate em then dress 
it with white peas & issue cloth on the pea. James Leppington.
You may use a pea made of the pith of 
elder cut in the shape of a pea next the pepper corn It
draws more & makes it run more. ibid
To make an issue without an incision.
but a little orifice in a piece of writing paper that is abt
the bigness of a half crown cover the orifice with 
blistering plaster after it is apply’d to the place you 
allot for the issue the paper sets bounds to the blister.
In 12 hours a blister will be rais’d without & bind on
a pepper corn as above mention’d. Uxor M.A.
Take up the skin and run a lancet a little way 
thro it then apply a pepper corn
 


(231
The whites in women [albae mulierum fluxienes,
fluor albus 293
Rx nutmegs zi prick them full of holes steep em in brest 
milk of a boy & a little red rose water cover them close 
& let em stand 24 hours then bake the nutmegs in a penny 
or 2 penny loaf when they are bak’d beat em to pouder & take
a little pouder of coral & a little white sanders & a little
pouder of white mastick as much as will lie on a farthing
& mingle the [servth] conserve of red roses zi Take as much as 
a nutmeg at night going to bed & next the heart in the morn
Mater Mea.
For the whites. Rx candied roots of Solomon’s seal. It is an 
ext. remedy. Tis also counted good for the falling sickness Pechey.
a conserve of the flowers of white arch-angel is much commended in 
the whites. But the cure of them by the following method is much safer & 
sure. Bleed once & purge thrice with [illegible] ij of pill coch. major: Then Rx Venice
treacle zifs conserve of the yellow pearl of oranges 1 ou. Diascordium 1/2 ou.
candy [illegible] ginger & nutmegs each ziij compound pouder of crabs eyes zifs
outward bark of the pomegranate, root of Spanish angelica, red
coral prepar’d, prochisiae do perra lamnia each zi bole [illegible] ij gum-arabick
zfs with a sufficient quantity of dry’d roses make an electuary. Rx the
quantity of a large nutmeg in the morning, at 5 in the afternoon & at bedtime;
drinking upon it 6 spoonfuls of the following infusion. Rx of
the roots elecampane masterwort, angelica & gentian each zfz; leaves
of Roman wormwood, of white archangel, & the lesser [illegible] & calamint
each mi juniper berries 1 ou. cut em small & infuse em in five
pints of canary; Let em stand in infusion & strain it only as you use it
Pecheys Herbal p. 8. [illegible] says [olibanum] [male] frankincense cures the whites
in women & the gornorrhoea in men taken from one dram to two in jelly of
isinglass.
For the whites from Lady Wright
Rx Cyprus turpentine zfs 2 nutmegs abt 6 d of white
amber beaten very small then work them well together & every
morning take 3 or 4 pills of it
Another by Do Rx nutmegs 1 ou. prick them full of holes & 
steep them in breast milk of a boy & a little red rose water & cover
them close & let them stand 24 hours, then bake the nutmegs in a 
penny or 2 penny loaf & when they are baked beat them to powder
& take a little powder of coral & a little while sanders & as much 
white mastick in powder as will ly upon a farthing & mix 
therewith conserve of red roses 1 ou. & take as much as a nutmeg
at night going to bed & next your heart in the mornings 
[illegible] royal al. Waterfern is most in esteem for restraining the
whites in women & strengthening the womb the roots of
it are only used. Quincy


232)
To remove a callous from a sore 52.
Strew on the callous praecipitate in fine pouder when
the sore begins to heal it will eat it off Dr Million or 
mix sp. of wine (that will fire gunpouder undry’d) zi with
new oyl of vitriol get. 14 moisten therewith It prevents & 
destroys a little callous. Ibid. Aegyptiacum used scalding hot takes away
the callous from fistulas p. 749. Salmon’s Disp. 
To remove a callous or [brawny] substance from the ball of the great toe
heat some water as hot as you can abide the foot in it & hold the foot in it
till  it is almost cold then you may easily cut or peel off the horney
substance, it will come agn but you must take it off the same way agn & agn
till you can find out a better remedy. Try a plaister of white pitch after it
is come off. Cos. Richd Ashby.


(233
To stop the bleeding of any wound
Rx Roman vitriol the quantity of a horse bean, pound it
small & take a little of the wounded persons blood & mix
em together then take the reezest bacon you can get & hold it
over the fire till it sulphurs (i.e. till it changes blew like
inflam’d or burning brimstone) then let it drop into
em mixing em well together This will stop without dressing 
the weapon Bacon a thin slice abt 3 inches long
& 3 broad. some dress the weapon then you must clean it
from rust & dirt & rub it with the aforesaid medicine & bind
a linnen cloth that is clean about it to keep the dust from it 
then let the edge of the weapon pointing to the window
for a week. If you set the back to the window or with
the point downwards or if you let the weapon fall down
it will pain the party wounded. A French man & Wm
Tilly of Cropston. another Scrape a cows horn & apply 
the scrapings or shavings to the wound etc. old Van of Stanton.
Immoderate bleeding at the nose. Bleed in the arm
by way of revulsion Rx some old dry’d mud well pouder’d
(from a [mad wall]) mix it with some of the blood that 
flows from the nose & put it up into the nostrils & 
you will soon find the effect of it. Monsieur D’Ube’s
Poor Man’s Physician. This said pouder & blood reduced 
to the consistency of a glew or paste & apply’d to a
wound stupendiously stops its blood ibid To stop the
bleeding of a wound or any cut or vein or bleeding at
the nose Rx Some of the blood in a brass ladle & hold
it over a fire till the blood is dry’d to pouder & the blood 
abt the wound or nose will immediately thicken & cease to 
flow or drop. If you try it to stop bleeding at the nose
then put the blood so dry’d to pouder on written paper & 
fold it up & let the patient wear it & keep it warm in 
his bosom or pocket for a day or 2 after or longer lest the bleeding
should return. you must take the blood while it is warm. This
stopt a horse blooded in the plate vein immediately & it seem’d quite 


234)
healed up. you must rub the dry’d blood from the nose to
pouder Mr Jn. Day of Shamford in Leicershire & Tho. Tafte
another To stop bleeding at the nose even in the small pox
when Jn Cater of Blaby was a child & had the small pox he 
bled at the nose as if he would bleed to death. Dr. Boss a surgeon 
advis’d her mother to catch some of the blood in an egg shel & set
it so near the fire that it might dry to pouder & then with her finger
thrust some of that pouder up each nostril which she did & it stopt the
bleeding & saved his life Jn Cater Charles Simons of Blaby dy’d
for want of this remedy having the small pox the blood came out
at his fundamt. Bleeding to excess (in the arm 40 ounces) will 
breed a dropsie or a jaundice The cure for the dropsie is to put old
or new iron lbi in ale 2 qts set it in an oven 5 hours after bread
is drawn or pyes Rd Mr Ed. Stokes. To stop the bleeding at the
nose in man or sucking child. Tie a thred wounded several 
times abt the end of the little finger of the child or man
or Rx 2 pledgets of flax made fit for each nostril, dip 
em in vinegar to make em moist then strew or roll em [illegible]
Roman vitriol made into fine pouder & thrust it up each
nostril. Tho. Hely Dr & farrier To stop bleeding at the nose in 
the small pox Set one leech under the ear on the vein in the hollow pt
of the neck adjoyning to the jaw or near it on that side the nostril bleeds
mostly If that will  not stop it bleed in the arm zij if this does not
answer Let the patient rise from bed give sack whey cold as much as
Take Jesuits bark zi at 8 times or pts divided in water
he or she will drink This cured Mrs Anna Mona Stokes without the bark Octr 3. 717 by Dr
Ed. Cheseldens advice. The bark [illegible] the blood To stop bleeding at the nose even in the
small pox or any bleeding of a wound etc. Rx R. vitriol, white 
copperas, Venice bole p.e. all in very fine pouder mix em with 
wine vinegar or sharp aleager or good verjuice the older the 
better dip a rag therein & thrust it up each nostril or the
bleeding nostril or apply it with lint or hairs wool to a 
bleeding wound Dr Tho. Hely farrier To stop any inward bleeding
as of piles or a wound or spitting blood. Drink the juice of milfoil
(i.e. yarrow) or the pouder of burnt garlick. Br. S.A.’s Rx 
To stop bleeding in any pt of the body, of a wound, of a 
wen cut off etc. Rx oyl of sulphur ½ a spoonfull to 3 
or 4 spoonfulls of the styptick water made by Dr Pool the
mountebank mix em cold in a glass & apply it cold to
a wound with a rag, but to kill a cancer cut off the top of
the cancer & as much of it as you can then touch it with a 
feather dipt in the oyl of sulphur alone, & pull out the strings
with a pair of nippers. It will heal of it self. It causes great 



(235
pain for a little time. you may eat mustard & pepper
sometime after it has been drest when it is in the gums or
tongue. Dr Richd Pool & Daniel Pool, his son.
To stop bleeding at the nose. apply oyl of sulphur 3 or 4
drops mixt with Dr Pool’s styptick water a spoonful in cotton
or lint or a linnen rag snuff it up the nose as much as you 
can. one dressing cures. Put some up the bleeding nostril ibid
To make Dr Pool’s styptick water that will cure a cow staling
blood etc. Rx allum ziij water 2 qts red brasil wood ground zi 1 d white
vitriol al w. copperas ziij boyl altogether strain it. It will stop
bleeding inward or outward. Give a cow abt ziij in new milk
½ a pint or a pint only once, adding oyl of sulphur 6 drops 
The mountebanks use no oyl of sulphur but upon an extra ordinary
case or when they will warrant a cow oyl of sulphur a 
large spoonful to a pint of spring water will cure a cow staling 
blood without the styptick water & is easily carry’d in the pocket
or bags & disguis’d perhaps with alkanet etc. oyl of sulphur apply’d
to the tongue is very sharp & will almost make a man made but
it is over in an instant. It is us’d alone to cancers, wens, ruptures
when cut, or any wound to clean it & to stop the bleeding & 
it is very healing. The oyl of sulphur mixt with the styptick water
is call’d the excanceration water by Dr Pool. Dr Pool can’t cure a 
rupture in a man or woman without cutting. D. P. sometimes Dr
Pool toth not colour it but it looks like clear water then he calls it
aqua excancerate which he says you may use to a cancer
in the eye by dipping the end of a quill in it & thrusting it into the 
hole of the cancer. It stops the bleeding of a wound, drys up any humours.
It is good for a fistula or ulcer, a great dryer, Dip a feather in 
it & touch the sore you must touch a sore with it but once a week It is
good for any wound or sore, any running sore. To clean a foul bone 
good for a sharp humour & sore eyes, made weaker. It cures a bloody [urinc]
taken inwardly It is a searching thing. It will not eat the cork of 
a bottle. Dr. P. 
Bleeding at the nose to stop. Dry a toad beat her to pouder & snuff
a little of the pouder up the nose Jn Put a traveller
To stop bleeding in the small pox or vomiting blood at any other time.
Rx opium zi mixt with antimoniu diaphoreticu zi make it into pills 
for one dose for a man or woman. They cause sleep when you wake Rx [illegible]
styptick water 2 spoon ful’s or any mountebanks styptick water Dr Pool.
Speedwell al. [fluellen] at Paul’s betony Veronica will cure a 
cancer in the nose. It brings the scabs in children. Herbal
nose swell’d & scabby anoint with white lead & train oyl E. A.
for scabs & scalded heads Pechey highly comends garden cresses & lard.
To stanch bleeding at the nose Rx a linnen cloth dip it in frogs 


236)
frogs slubber (or spawn) let it dry in the sun. Do
so again 12 or 16 times till it be well incorporated
into it keep it by you & if you exceed in bleeding take
a piece of it & unravell it & put it into the nose or lay it
to a wound. Mrs Fr. Bickerton & Mrs Caulton. To stop the
bleeding of an artery or any other bleeding Rx male frankincense
(olibanum) (the hard sort) & aloes p.e. beaten to pouder
Beat the white of an egg up to a froth & dip some hare’s wool
in it then dip it in the pouder & bind it on. S. S.
To stop the bleeding at the nose Drink abt 3 spoonfuls of the mountebanks
styptick water This cured Ann Tasie It will not do when it has
lost its red colour & is old. another Dip a little fine rage in Dr Collbatche’s 
pouder dissolved in cold water & thrust it up the nostrils Mrs Stokes 
another. Set a leech to the jugular vein (in the neck) This stopt Ann
Tasie’s bellding at the nose abt ½ an hour then it bled again. Uxor Mea
another apply new hog dung to th temples & the outside & end of the nose 
another Dip a linnen rag in a bason of cold water often, & for a 
long time together & give a squeeze & spred it on the outside of the 
whole nose letting hang down a little over the end of the nose & lie on 
untill the rag feels warm then dip it again & sit by the fire. Have
often fresh cold water This cured Ann Tasie April 1722 Wm Colebatche’s 
pouder & a leech (to the neck & most of the above mention’d
remedies (& the styptick water drank) all in vain. Ann Tasie.
[illegible] [illegible] is frequently us’d to stop bleeding of a wound 
v. Pechey’s Dispensatory p. 207.
This is commended for bleeding at the nose Rx of the clarified
juices of stinging nettles & plantain each 6 ou. aqua lactis
[alexiteria] 4 ou. cinnamon water hardeated 3 ou. w. sugar q.s.
mingle & make a julep Rx 4 ounces morn & evening daily for
3 days Pechey’s disp. p. 139.
The leaves & flowers with the unripe fruit of brambles that
bear black berries infus’d in water with a little hony & drank
stay s the bloody flux or any inward bleeding or outward
bleeding being fomented with it. Mrs Caulton
To stop bleeding at the nose or any where else
Rx 2 new pewter dishes or plates that never have been used
place em one upon another Put nothing in em set em on 
boyling hot water wet some lint well in the oyl that
sweats out of them & put it up the nose or lay it where
it bleeds & it will stop the bleeding with Gods blessing
says Mrs Caulton Nose sore & scabby Jaques
Servt. at Quenby had a nose mightily swell’d & scabby for
many yrs together It was cured by dissolving Roman vitriol
in verjuice & dabing it on cold twice & once a day till well
& afterwards spring & fall. Jaques To stop bleeding at the nose
let the blood drop into a fire shovel heated red hot dry the blood & rub it
to pouder stop the nostrils with it, Sister Boothbys




(237
To make a perpetual blister to draw a rheum from 
sore eyes
You must buy at the apothecaries an oyntmt call’d the perpetual
blister you must apply it at night going to bed spred upon a
flaxen rag not very fine a little bigger than a crown piece Do
not spred it quite to the edge of the cloth but leave a little margin Cover this
plaster with a sticking plaster made of bees wax & dicaculu a third pt of an
inch broader than the cloth spred it upon [illegible] writing paper let em both be round when the blistering
plaster has layn on 12 hours you will find that a small blister is drawn,
from which take the skin gently off with a pair of sissers or bodkin then dress
it night & morning for 2 days with a little melilot plaster afterwards
Dress it with the sticking plaster when you find it begins to abate much
in the running use the blistering oyntmt viz a little as big as a 
large pins head rubbed upon the middle of the sticking plaster 7 so repeat
it as often as you find it begins to dry pu. If at any time it is
hot & burning dress it only with melilot plaster till you find it easy,
then go on again with the sticking plaster & oyntmt as above directed 
Mrs Ellen Stokes. E. A. prefers empl. de minio before melilot.
Crows foot bounded the herbs & bound on the place you
would blister raises a painful & strong blister 
another Rx the ashes of the inward bark of green ash burnt on 
live coles to ashes mix it with vinegar & apply it behind
the ears. It will raise an easy blister & cure the toothach.
Goody Fellows of Enderby. Oyl of (white) 
lillies anointed round a blister stops it from spreding 
any further & the humour from flaying as it runs down.
Sister Boothby. To raise a blister in any pt of the body or
on the finger or any joynt. Moisten the pt you assign to blister
with keen aleager or sharp wine vinegar & moisten your blistering
plaster with keen aleager or vinegar & work it in with your
knife point then apply it & keep the pt warm with a flannel layd
or ty’d over the blistering [plaster] let it lie on 24 hours or not so long
when it pains you much or the blister is broken. If you apply a
blistering plaster ready spred from the apothecary that has layn
long & is dry it will rarely blister unless you moisten 1st the plaster
with sharp vinegar By moistening a plastic with vinegar & working
it over with the knife You may raise a blister 2 or 3 times with the same
old plaster & you may raise a blister on the joynt of a finger which is
very difficult to do. If a bile happens vid. bile


238)
when a blister causes the strangury Mrs Margt Muxloe.
make tea of common mallows & sweeten it with hony or take sweet
almonds blanch’d no 12. Boil fr. barly till it is soft, you need not 
fling away the 1st water pour off the clear liquor then beat the almonds
very fine with D. R. Loaf sugar or w. sugar candy a small quantity
then mix em with the clear liquor & drink plentifully of it, the same 
barly will make a 2nd dose. It is called an emulsion. vic. Quincy’s
Edulcerating Emulsion.
Richard Smith Esquire of Enderby had a violent rheum in his eyes
which was cured at London by a perpetual blister lay’d below the
great bone on his neck a little above the shoulder bones It was
oval spred on alum leather 3 Is long 2 Is broad It raisd a blister
at 1st then he drest it with cabbage leaves for 2 or 3 days then with
melilot salve when it ceased to run he had an ointmt from the apothecary
that was mix’d with fr. flies in fine pouder he apply’d a little of 
that & heap’d it blistering & running a qr. of a yr. R. S.
To prevent a blistering plaster from causing the strangury or any pain
in making water. mix camphor in pouder with the blistering salve Dr
Wright surgeon & man midwife & physician at Darby.
when a blistering plaster is taken off apply a cabbage leaf or
melilot salve for 2 days then melt bees wax & tallow p. e.
& apply it spread on linnen [it] cools inflammations & takes away the 
soreness & cures quots, wheals, whelks, & pimples Dr Geo Cheselden prescribes
another for do apply white of egg wheat flour [illegible] [illegible]
Jane Smith of Blaby
For the [illegible] Rx half a pint of new milk and
sweeten it with lbfs of coarse sugar and drink it do
thus two or 3 times this cured a shepherd of Nighton
when above 60 years old. John Halford d Glen
Another drink or draught of whey in a morning or
posset drink at dinner eat gritt’d meat with onion & 
water and salt ect.



(239
A broken shin
Rx the marrow of beef fresh butter & bees wax melt
em to a salve This cured the Ld Stamford when the London
surgeon could not. This was his house keeper salve good
for any sore. Rd Mr Ed. Stokes Dr Salmon commends tar for a
broken [illegible] & to cure sore difficult to heal Family Dictionary
A bed post at a sale of house hold good was unluckily throne
agt Ann Brays legs It broke both her shins they were swell’d
as big as an egg & look’d black & blood, a little lint was
dipt in vinegar & water warmed & lay’d on the rare places & a rag
was dipt in verjuice & layd over the lint & so bound on This 
was done twice a day by Mr. Joseph Wilks the surgeon’s order
& continued till it made scabs She liv’d with Mr Norton
minister of Blaby Mr Jn Woodhouse yet did great cures in 
surgery always wash’d a sore 1st with cold verjuice to clean & 
prepare it for healing before he apply’d his salves etc. Br S. A.
Tho. [Scabior] [illegible] on Ann Brays legs were cured by the inner bark of
elder & gill run by the ground boyl’d in hogs grease or hogs lard to an
ointmt made by Mrs Norton verjuice or for want of it vinegar & 
water would not cure Mrs Sarah Lathwell’s shin was broken agt
a [illegible] It was thus cured at best by E. A. Rub the [illegible] with 
old oil of Turpentine now may do then wipe it with a clean rag or
cap paper then anoint it [illegible] oil of turpentine & spred some of Bents
salve & rub that with oil of turpentine, the next day rub the same
plaster (after the sore is wiped clean & the plaster clean’d) with [vulnerary]
water made of oil of vitriol& Hungary water or for 
want of Hungary water use camphorated sp. of wine but Hungary
water is best & so apply it when it ceases to run corruption
this ran very little anoint the same plaster with old oil of turpentine
grown thick with keeping. This takes away the [illegible] & 
heals.
Sr. Philip Paris’s plaster (which use in the green book made of red
& white lead soap & oil) is good to heal a broken shin
another Rx tar & hony p,. e. sp. v. a little to cover em boil em to incorporate.
It is anodyne, drying, & healing E. A.
another Robt Finly a boy & serv’t to E. A. coming up brick stairs in 
E. A.’s dary fel down the edge of a brick cut his stockin & broke his
shin almost 2 inches long in January 1729 It swell’d in a little time as
big as a pullet’s egg E. A. at that instant rub’d it with tincture of myrrh
then made some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon setting it
upon a live coal & rub’d on the sore with fingers a pretty while the 
boy sitting near the fire crying then he spred a plaster (made of only 
red lead & sallet oil, boyl’d to a salve) on a rag & apply’d it warm’d
& sew’d a cloth over it & the cloth came off in 2 weeks & the plaster in 
3 or 4 It was quite healed & well with only that one dressing It presently 
took away the pain. Mr Young says in his book of turpentine
that oil of turpentine heated verry hot but not to scald will cure a
green wound at once dressing (covering it with a plaster of red lead or
diaculum or the like) another wash it with rum it is better than S. V.
then cover it with red lead plaster or empl. de minio rum is ext for a bruise 
[Mrs Padmore]


240)
Breech gaul’d with riding
Dissolve some roch allum in water wet a linnen cloth
therein & at night going to bed apply it It will cure by 
morning. Mrs Finch another Dissolve a little of Colebatches
pouder in water & once or twice moisten the sore place E. A.
another apply a diaculu plaster Mr. Winstanly
To prevent gauling. moisten the breech night & 
morning for a long time especially before a journey
with your own water it will harden it. E. A. another Rx verjuice
(the older the better) moisten the breech & inside of the thigh, that
touches your saddle & is apt to gaul, therewith the night & morning
before & every night after riding If you find this does not answer
the expectation add some salt to em so as to make em taste
saltish E. S. verjuice will stain linnen another Line your breeches with a fine
thick flannel such as shirts are made & ty up
your shirt when you ride Dr Million another Rx a
piece of [water] [illegible] which the fire [illegible] undrest & dry, [sew] at to the
your neck from gauling with neckcloth. E. A. to prevent or cure gall’d place
emplastru de minia is better than diaculum apply’d before or after
the place is sore. E. A. a galled horse equus defricata cute.
To prevent galling by riding Rx some melted glew to it
thinly on the breech inside of the thighs then clap on each 
buttock & the inside of each thigh a fine piece of Holland Mr 
Orme apothecary To cure galling caus’d by riding
mix some fullers earth with water apply it to the galled sore
lay’d on a rag at night. Mr. Orme
To prevent galling when you ride a journy two or 3 nights
before you intend to travel Rub the breech & the inside
of the thighs with vinegar 3 pts that is very keen & sallet oyl shak’d
together oft in a viol. E. A. To cure galling scrape some
fullers-earth into a pot or plate moisten it with Hungary
water or spirit of wine spread it upon London brown paper
& apply it. It will prevent galling rub’d on a cloth sew’d 
to the breeches Mr. Amos Taylor.
To cure & prevent galling when you ride or the neck chafed. Boyl
Add [illegible] in sallet oyl or the [combear] dye that is sweet & anoint [illegible] EF


(241
Lapis calaminaris sprinkled in pouder upon [gal’d] places in 
children dries & heals em suddenly. Salmon
Heat some vinegar & sope together & stir it with a stick & wash the gall’d
places [Mascal] says it will cure [illegible] gall’d with a halter bath’d on 
twice a day. Mascal of Cattel. It will dry & heal it in 2 or 3 days, ibid
To prevent galling when you ride Rx a knot & a
cross of elder tree the cross must have 4 equal 
lengths, wear it in your pocket, or take 2 bits of
fresh elder wear [1)] in one pocket & the other in the
other when you ride. Wm Wyat.
Another Sew a hares skin in your breeches
with the fur next your breech. ibid.
To cure a gall’d breech. Drop the tallow of a candle
into your own urine & rub it on at night going
to bed. some say the tallow cures without the urine
another Rub on marl or marly clay free from 
gravel or sand. Wm Wyat.
Pulvis desiccativus a drying powder in Salmons Doron
Rx Pomgranate flowers red roses, red sanders each
ziij camphor zfs mix them and make all into a fine
powder. [?drysapany] excorcation or galling immediately
and most speedily takes away the inflammation and pain 
It cures childrens britches when galld
Galling in children Rx Fullers earth in powder and
shew it upon the place. Fullers earth dissolved in the
yolk of an egg and anoint therewith wash with warm 
water large dispensatory



242)
To stop a looseness in children
Rx the dripping of a roasted shoulder or breast of mutton
the last is best. Give a child of ½ a yr or a yr old three of a 
child’s spoonful fresh dropt It must be roasted without salt
It commonly stops at twice taking You may give it twice in 
a day Mrs Finch.
A child sick in the 1st month of its age & to prevent inward
convulsions & fits. Rx sack, sallet-oyl, plantane water
each 2 spoonfuls warm’d with a little double refin’d sugar
Give it as a clyster. In children that are older enlarge the
dose. It has cured when several noted Drs could not nurse at
Whitehall & Mrs Finch. Clysters generally leave the body
costive & stop a lask. ibid
For a man or woman wash a gallon of the leaves of mallows 
& boyl em in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 taking
of the scum before you drink it strain it & when cold enough drink a pint
at a time 2 or 3 times in a day especially at night going to bed
This has cured & eased pains of the bowels when Drs could not.
Mrs Finch. another boyl rice 3 spoonfuls in 3 qts of water till 
it comes to 3 pints with a good piece of cinnamon. You may add one 
glass of clarret & sweeten it with double refin’d sugar & give it a boyl drink 
this for your constant drink till the looseness stops. ibid E. A. has often
try’d the last with good success. note mallows are opening but they 
are healing & ease pain. E. A. Another Rx Bones burnt in the fire & 
pouder’d & sifted fine mix some cinnamon pouder with it. Rx as much 
as will lie on a good knife’s point just before your breakfast & as
much with your supper Mrs Caulton. To stop a looseness or [the]
bloody flux. Rx as much grated rhubarb as will lie on a six 
pence & dry it before the fire add to it a little plantane water
& drink it Pater Meus.
To bind & stop a looseness. Rx 
bean flower & make a cake with cold water Bake it & 
split it in two Rx a little raspberry wine or clarret & 
heat it & dip the cake into it bind half of it to the navel
when that is cold heat the other half & bind that so apply first one
then another interchangeably ibid another make a little 
cake with the white of one egg beaten & mixt with wheat flower bake it
on a brick near the fire or in an oven then eat it. This cured Jn [Cater]
A looseness Rx The white decoction viz Rx Burnt hartshorn
1 ounce beat it fine. boyl it in spring water 2 qts till it comes to 
one Put in some cinamon sweeten it with loaf sugar Drink
it as much as you can for your constant drink. Drink no other
drink. It infallibly cures says Mrs Caulton
Emplastrum & [crusta] [ponis] Crust of bread plaster spred [illegible] & lay’d to the 


(243
stomach or bowels is good to stop vomiting or diarrhoeas Quincy


244)



(245



246)



(247
To harden an ingraver.
Rx a thick piece of lead viz ½ a pound or a pound piece 
or heavier & make a little hole or impression on the 
lead by thrusting the point of the ingraver cool into the
lead then heat the ingraver red hot (It must be but just red 
hot) & immediately thrust it into the little hole in the lead
which cools it & hardens it. You must not serve the ingravers 
so but only when they are soft. James Davis White Smith of
Croft.
To case harden iron, as the bit of a key (al. the face)
viz that part that turns the bolt & is apt to war & 
cover the key or keys all but the bit that you would 
harden with clay, then Rx horse hooves half burnt so that
you may beat em to pouder If it is overburnt it is good 
for nothing viz Hold the hoof to live or flaming coles
with a pr of tongues till it rises in blisters then rasp em
off then burn & rasp em off again & again till the whole hoof
is rasp’d away. You need not beat it to pouder Rx pouder
of hoof 2 pts salt 1 part. Humane urine (the older the
better) as much as will bring it to the consistence of an 
hasty pudding then put this into a woollen cloth, wrap
yup the keys in it & put it into an iron laddle or iron
pan but because it will spoil or eat thro an iron ladle etc.
at twice using & will melt brass, the best way is to lay it
on an old iron-clout that comes from an axle tree stopping
the holes with nails or stubs, or an old plow-share
or cart bush. It must be hollow, because the less flame
comes to it, the harder there heat it red hot, & as soon as it
is red hot immediately quench it in cold water that is
not greasie; then scour the keys or iron with free stone 
or sand & a stick. James Davis White Smith of Croft.
It will last 20 yrs hard ibid
To harden a piece of iron Rub some barm (al yest) all over the 
iron especially on the upper side then cover the upper side thick
with salt lay’d upon the barm & so cover it with live coals & 
make it red hot & it will be so hard a steel [illegible] will not touch it. Tho.
Taft blacksmith


248)
Iron or steel to brighten. Scrape off the rust and rub
it with [tootchwood]


(249
To kill stomach worms.
Steep species hierae pierae in a pint of sack 3 days shaking
it every day strain out five spoonfuls & drink it in the morning
as long as it lasts S. S.
To kill worms Rx bayberries in pouder as much as will lie on 
a shilling for a child of 2, 3, 4 or 5 yrs of age mixt with treacle 
three mornings together a man or woman may take as much 
as will lie on a half crown 3 mornings successively. It will
bring prodigious quantities of worms away & create a fresh 
lively colour in the face & lips. It scarce has its equal. A woman
at London got a great deal of mony by selling it for worm pouder
Mrs Finch. The essential oyl of savine is frequently 
us’d to kill worms in outward applications to the belly Dr
Quincy’s Dispensatory.
To kill worms. Gather dew worms in the night & put em in a 
linnen bag. You must have 5 or 7 or 9. Bind it upon the navel
with a cloth; if they are alive in the morning, the child
hath no worms; If the child hath worms, they will [stink] & 
be like a salve & this will make em void worms that [illegible] Mrs Elizth
Brown of Leicer
Persons that are afflicted with worms have commonly a stinking breath 
troublesome sleep, frightful & terrible dreams, gnashing of the [illegible], an
itching & often picking of the nose, convulsion vits, a violent headach,
all which disorders are instantly eradicated by Dr Richard Roch’s worm
plaster sold by Dr Roch at the hand & face in water: Lane Black [Fryars]
London.
For the worm Mr Clark says it is an ext medicine
Rx 2 or 3 little onions or one great one sliced steep em in water
½ pint all night the next morning drink the water fasting & fast an
hour after it. Probatum est.
For the worms. Rx rhubarb zi [wormf???] ziiij
burnt hartshorn coriander seeds, rue drys with the
flowers on Mr Palmes. All sour things are goo to 
kill worms hence it is that juice of lemon is ordinarily 
given agt em and in ordinary drink a little sp. of vitriol
to sharpen doth wonders zij of hiera picra more or less 
by it’s bitterness kills and expells worms.
Tincture sacra is ext to kill worms and for a pain in the
stomach and wind in the stomach and [Chexials] tinctura
sacra wont keep long except you add Geneva or brandy to 
the wine. Bates and Quincey. Salmon upon Bates say there
is few better purges in the world



250)



(251
To draw pidgeons to a dove coat
Rx some rushes & boyl em in water with assafoetida or
boyl assafoetida in water in a large pan & as soon as
it is taken off the fire put some rushes into it let em infuse
12 hours put some of these rushes into some of 
the holes in the dove coat & lay the rest on the table & 
they will carry em to their holes & make their nests with 
em taking great delight in their scent & stink. This
is such a powerful [illegible] & monopolizer of pidgeons that
it ought not to be practiz’d says my author (without 
having experimented it himself) Mr Geo. Potchin of Wigson 
This must be practiz’d in [benting] time a little before they 
begin to breed G.P. In benting times or a little before
must people take all their young pidgeons out of the coat
& kill em or break their eggs because the old pidgeons
wanting meat will pine their young ones then but Mr
Geo. Potchin from May Day till midsummer or Wm Hay is
mow’d in the fields giveth his pidgeons on a brick table
in his dove coat every day ½ a strike of good sweet oats,
Poland oats are best for em, by which feeding he preserves his 
pidgeons alive which otherwise will frequently die in bending
time, & hath young pidgeons to sell when they are scarce & 
dear viz at 20 d or 13 d per dozen. when grass is mown, they will 
shift for themselves living upon raz grass seeds & other seeds.
G. [?]
Pigeons affect salt much, therefore be not unprovided of a
shallow pot with sandy gravel in it mixt with cummin seeds
bruised & unbruised & with salt & set it in the dove house upon
a plank or table so that they may come at it. Mr Clark of stony 
Stanton. The better to make pigeons to stay & continue in 
the place you provide for them is to secure a pair or 2 or 
more in the dove house or chamber until they have bred & have 
young ones abt a week old you must feed em with beans soked in 
water & water set in a shallow vessel for em to drink out of thanks 
old ones will not forsake their young but be willing to stay with
em ibid
To draw pigeons to a dove coat. Boil a peck of barly
in a good quantity of water when it has boil’d a qr of an hour add
3 qts of salt or more and let it boil ½ an hour longer then pour
away the water and set it in the dove coat whilst it cools when 
it is cold pour the water upon the table in the coat thro a 



252)
sive to save the barly and let it run where it will
on the ground then sweep the ledges by the holes clean and
scatter the barly up and down and strew some on the table
for the pidgeons to eat offal barly that is full of seeds is as
good as the best, you may take with sparrow [illegible] an old
pigeon or two clip one wing of each pigeon that they may 
not fly away and hold some assafoetida to the fire and
when it is ready to melt rub it under the wing of one or more
pigeon Pigeons love the smell of assafoetida. you must
set water in 2 earthen pots or platters for pigeons with the
cut wing to drink at you must anoint with a feather
dipt in oil of spike the edge of the platters that when 
other pigeons smell thereof (which they will do by touching
the edge of the platter with their breast when they drink) 
they may invite and tempt others to the coat you may do
this to the coat. You may do this in pairing time or when they
breed there being but a few pigeons in the coat. But it is
best to do it in benting time and it is necessary then 
to boil a gallon of barly with a qt of salt once in a 
month’s time to draw pigeons. Tho. [illegible]
To stock or encrease a dove coat To make a
salt cat Rx cumminseeds ziiij boil it in water a
quart or more the more the better sand a qt mix all these
together made in the shape of a sugar loaf and set an dry it
in a oven after a batch of bread or a panchion or dish when 
it is dry and cold anoint it over with a fether dipt in oil
of spike 2 d The pigeons smell of this and it draws other
pigeons to the coat Thos. Satchwell. Use it every spring


(253
Vander Hide’s true & faithfull experimts being a
catalogue of those medicamts he sold off his stages during the
time of his 18 yrs travelling in England, Scotland & Ireland
& foreign kingdoms, to the great benefit of poor indigent
people. nihil [absq?] deo.
1) How to make my brown balsom of Paracelsus for cuts
& green wounds, bruises, contusions of aches.
Rx sallet or linseed oyl ½ a pint, yellow rosin lbfs bees
was ziij barrel pitch zi melt all these together then add
fresh butter zij Rx it off the fire & stir to it liquid storax 
zi oyl of amber zi oyl of mace zfs then put the mixture 
into a pot & this is the true balsam that was made by Dr Tousan 
2) How to make the green oyntmt for burns or
scalds. Rx sallet oyl ziiij fresh butter lbfs rosin ziiij plantane
leaves mi houseleek mi cabbage leaves mi boyl all
these together ½ a qr of an hour, then strain it thro a linnen
cloth & put the into a skillet again & put to it bees wax 
zij cut into small pieces & having verdigrise zij dissolv’d in
sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls, put it in the composition. After the
bees wax is melted you must let the composition be cool before 
you add the verdigrise, lest the oyntmt be not green but
brown & this is the true oyntmt that I sell.
3) How to make the vermi-victor or worm-vanquishing pouder 
which if it be thus prepared is the only remedy in the world.
Rx horehound, red sage, tormentile, coriander seed, burnt hartshorn,
salt of wormwood, salt of scurvy-grass & coraline
each zfs finely pulverised; mix all these together Give as much
as will lie on a sixpence to a child & twice the quantity to a 
man or woman; let em take it in a morning fasting & fast
an hour after it.
4) How to make the brown plaster
Rx burgundy pitch rosin, gum amoniack, gum elemy & bees
wax, mastick & sanguis draconis each zij sallet=oyl 2 or 3 spoonfuls
& barrel pitch zi. Put these into a skillet upon the fire melt
em together & stir em well when you see em all melted dip in a
linnen cloth or good cap paper so long & so broad as you wou’d
have the plaster to be This is the true plaster that I use  for any weakness
or pain in the back, to sciatica gout, or pain in any pt of the 


254)
the body or for ruptures or broken bellies.
5) How to make the cephalick purge for the brain,
or pouder for the head. Rx rosemary, sage betony 
angelica-root, juniper berries, curcuma root, Virginia tobacco,
benjamins white hellebore, elecampane & amber, each
grains 20. Beat em all to fine pouder This is the pouder I sell
you for all great pains in the head, with many other distempers 
by snuffing the quantity of a barly corn up the nose at
night going to bed.
6) How to make a familiar & mighty cathartick,
diuretick, purging pill.
Rx rosin of jalop, rosin of scamony, extract of turbeth,
extract of agarick, extract of rhubarb, the cordial pouder
of deahurden, mercurius dulcis, each zi Dry em all very
fine to pouder Rx coloquint zviii beaten to fine pouder & diagridium
zij mix them all together & make them up into a body
with gum tragacant dissolv’d in spirit of wine; when you are
making it up int o a mass mix it with a dram of oyl of
cloves; & when you’ve brought the mass to a hard substance
you may make it into pills. If you wou’d have em coverd 
over with sugar send em to a sugar bakers but I will assure 
you they are as good without If I shou’d nominate every 
particular person that hath found benefit by this pill, a whole 
quire of paper would not contain it. It has done good to most
distempers incident to the body of men or women Let children
from a yer of age to 3 take one from 8 to 16 let em take 2, 
give three to men or women let them take em before supper
eat a light supper after em; they will work abt 10 or 12 hours
after at the same time you may work or play, go abt in the heat
of summer or cold of winter
7) How to make my oleum benedictum for convulsion
fits, falling sickness, stone or gravel or any unsavery
breath, small pox, measles, cough or consumption.
Rx oyul of turpentine zfs or ziiij oyl of amber, oyl of juniper
berries, oyl of anniseeds, oyl of nutmegs, & oyl of mandrake
each zi Jews pitch or mummy let that dissolve in the
oyl of turp. 1st mention’d then mix em all together & let the party
grieved with any of the said distempers take as many drops as they are 
yrs of age in a glass of white wine (or white mountain) morning 
& evening. It is also an infallible remedy for those that are troubled
with agues, by taking half a spoonful in a good large glass
of mull’d sack an hour before the fit comes, & sweat upon it two
hours in bed. You must add oyl of cinnamon zfs to the ingredients which 
was omitted by mistake.



(255
8) How to make a pouder for sore eyes
Rx Tartar vitriol, salt of saturn, each 6 gr. oris pouder 18
gr. white allum 6 gr. [cathanilla] (i.e. cochireel) 10 gr. lapis calaminaris,
sacharu saturni x each 4 gr Beat all these together & 
put em into a pint of running water (x each 4 grains)
9) How to make this antidote pouder call’d the true orvietan
of Rome a cordial.
Rx angelica root, serpentine root, contrayerva root, galangal
root, dietamnus root, aristolochia root, gentian root, orris
root, meum root (i.e. spignel) casamus root (  ) zedaary
root, acorus root, agarick, ginger root, each zi peraterium ziiij
trochisk, flesh of vipers red roses, dictamnus dittany leaves marubiu horehound
leaves, saffron, each 40 gr. seeds of annis, parsly, fennel, caraway
cummin, basie seed, cisilias seed, cubeb, cardamum each 30 gr.
cloves, cinnamon, Gaskins pouder nutmeg, white pepper, coriander
each 40 gr. lemnian earth, storax, calamint, juniper berries, elecampane
each zi curcuma root (i.e. turmerick) ziij sagapeny
opoponax each zi Beat all these to fine pouder & mix it with 
pure hony & it makes the true Roman orvietan.
10) my antiscorbutick diet drink (my last farewel) being 
the usefullest thing in this age for the scurvy, dropsie or
jaundice, being used every spring & fall.
Rx hartstongue brooklime, scabious, red dock roots, parsly 
roots, dwarf elder, tops of broom that is green, white briony
roots, each 6 ounces with 4 ounces of liquorice, sassafras, 
sarsaparilla, rhubarb & the 4 greater cooling seeds, Rx casia
in the cane lbfs, China ziiij let these be all sliced & bruised 
together by the apothecary & boyled in 5 gallons of fine
midling ale, untill one galn be wasted, when it is 4 days old let
the patient drink a pint or as much as their stomach can bear
every morning & at 3 o clock in the afternoon every spring
& fall.
Whilst some do scrible, others stories tell,
The true physicians known by doing well
Experiential docet.






258)


(259
To drive crows from a ground or field
Dig around hole in the ground like a fulmere hole, abt
as big as a man may thrust in his hand leaving some
molds on the outside then dress some feathers of a crow
with assafoetida, flower of brimstone, train oyl, gunpouder 
soot etc. any thing that stinks & dip some of the crows feathers
therein & stick em viz 2 or 3 feathers at the mouth of
the hole & put some feathers of the body into the hole
as if a fulmere had drawn a crow into the hole & this
will fright crows away better than a turf dug up or any thing
abt 3 crows will dress a whole corn field Mr Geo. Potchin 
of Wigson. This E. A. try’d in vain the weather being rainy 
in the yr 713. another Rx grease & soot & the oldest tallow
& most stinking you can get, each lifs gunpouder ziiij
the juice of burdock leaves a spoonful or less may do
Put em all in a pot or pan & warm em & dress the feathers
of a crow when melted & stick em put & down upon the ground 
by 3 in a place or 6 in a place, and dress bunches of feathers
6 in a bunch & ty em to sticks one dressing will last till 
corn is above ground unless a great deal of rain falls then
dress again. This will also keep sparrows from a corn house
or corn in a field or [illegible] The juice of one dock leaf may 
serve but more is better Ed. Manton of Little Brighton 
Northonshire & Francis Car of [Brixwith]
another To drive away crows or any other birds from ground
or hovel in spit of rain. Page of Brixwith Rx assafoetida zi
hard tallow lbij boyl em together & let em stand to cool (you 
must boyl em but a little time) then add verdigrise zi in fine pouder
together then draw the feathers thro it. Fr. Car. of do. This E. A. try’d
in vain. To kill crows or sparrows or to drive em away from 
a place Rasp or rather file with a large rough file nux vomica
the finer it is the better It will not pound. Boyl some barly 
as soft as wheat for frumety when it is cold put the pouder of 
nux vomica in a linnen cloth then add some boyl’d barly & roll
it abt let it dry then strew it in several places after the plow 


260)
& it will kill crows or pidgeons or sparrows or
anything that eats if for it is a strong poyson. To kill
a fox or foxes. Cut off the skin of a young lamb where
the foxes resort & cut several slashes on it & strew 
nux vomica in pouder on em & it will kill all the foxes as that
eat of it. You may catch crows after they’ve eaten the
poyson’d barly tie em up alive by the heels two by two 
to sticks & the crows will take an hatred to the place
or hovel for a long time Dr. Pool.
To drive crows from a hovel. Rx assafoetida 1 d (  ) bacon grease
the quantity of large hazelnut put em in a little black [illegible] set it
on live Coles till the devils dung is dissolv’d then add a little
gun pouder beaten or unbeaten & set the pot having a little bit
broken off to let out the scent under the top of the thatch of
the gable end of a pease or corn hovel covering the pot with 
a piece fo tyle or slate with an hole in’t or a piece of lead or
wood to tie it to as to guard it from rain & wet The crows will
smell it & will not endure to light or settle on the h ovel & 
once dressing will guard it for a qr of a yr old Jn Braumont of
Great Glen.
To drive crows from a hovel or corn or a close new sowed
with corn Jn [Tate] ratcatcher of Loughborow
Shoot six or more crows or kites take their skins off them
Take assafoetida 6 d Gunpouder zij in fine pouder brimstone
in pouder or flower of brimstone zij hemlock (al. 
[illegible]) abt 4 ou. of the tops of the [kechs] Pound em to pouder 
when dry, & pound all together with stinking butter or soft grease
of any sort Rub the oyntmt on the inside & outside of
the skins. Tie em upon sticks & set em in the wind & the 
crows will not abide the scent of em The grease will keep 
the scent in for a month stock the hovels with em to the
windward. it will n to fright pidgeons away. It will h old
good in spite of rain or snow but after rain you must
dry em in the air of a barn or bring em in when it rains & 
set em out when dry. E. A. thinks train oil better than grease
To keep crows from corn or a hovel. Shoot a crow
& stick her bill in the ground & spread her wings with 
stick or lay a stone on em her belly lying on the ground.
Wm March



(261



262)
The stone
Mrs Caulton of Leicer takes every morning
brown sugar candy in pouder mixt with butter the
quantity of a small nutmeg fasting & fasts 2 hours 
after (she eats no breakfast) It made her void 15 or 
16 small stones in a day & freed her for 2 or 3 yrs
& perhaps all her life. she never had a fit of the stone
since nor any pain & once she lay 2 months & was 
given up for dead formerly with a fit she is now
sometimes troubled with gravel but it is very litle
& seldom. she never misses a day in a yr taking
it. Mrs Caulton. another Rx mallows & devils bit each mi
& a leaf or 2 of scabins boyl em in a pt of smal ale posset drink
S. S. the stone or weakness in the back Rx crabs eyes, sal prunellae 
& liquorice each zi in pouder Rx as much Venice turpentine
as will make it roll into pills. Rx 2 or 3 every morning for a 
good while together S. S. To bring away gravel, to prevent
the stone & to cure a violent pain in the back. Put ale a
pint into a pan let it just boyl pour it to common treacle lbfs 
pr 1 d ½ so with 2 pots or mugs pour it backwards & forwards 3 or 4 
times till the treacle is dissolv’d then drink it as hot as you can
& go to bed to sweat or you may ride after it any where in
warm weather or walk in cold within doors. This brought a great
quantity of gravel from Sam. Exon carpenter & cured him of a 
great pain in his back & freed him from both for many yrs & for
ought I know for all his life Sam. Exon.
For the stone & gravel Rx horse stones when colts are gelt which 
it commonly in the latter end of March, in April or the beginning of 
May the yearling colts are gelt dry em in an oven after bread
beat em to powder
For the gravel take as much of the pouder as will lie on a shilling
only at night in common mallow to parsley root tea each mi
will make for 2 or 3 nights. Drink half a pint or more at a time
for abt three weeks or longer if it is for the stone then take as
much as will lie on a half crown & once a wash take one ounce
of epsom salt in whey or posset drink when you take the pouder 
for the gravel or when you take only as much as will lie on a 
shilling then you need not take the salts. The pouder is bitter & 
hot & the salts cool & prevent an inflammation. MR Richard Porter
stockin maker in Chesterfield Lane near the brick church in Nottingham 
was violently afflicted with the stone This pouder & tea & salts dissolve
& carry it off He was cured & continued well & free from pain 
It was half a year after he had taken it when he gave E. A. this acct 
It brought away as much gravel as would fill an ordinary woman’s 
thimble almost every time yet he made water. He made water 
in a white bason 



(263



264)



(265
Tetter or ring worm herpes impetigo.
vinegar of lead will kill tetters [illegible]
Dissolve some Roman vitriol in water moisten the sore
& hold it agt the fire to drive it in or you may moisten
the sore with spittle & often rub it with R. vitriol & 
let the fire dry it. This cured one of Sister Bs daughters.
another unguentu nutritu cured a ringworm on a womans
thumb & took away the itching at Leicer. vid. Salmon’s Family 
Dictionary. Rx fair water at qt white vitriol, roch 
allum each zi mix & dissolve & with this water wash the tetter
2, 3, or 4 times a day for a qr of an hour at a time, as hot
as can be endured In 10 days time it will perfectly cure it
tho it has been of 20 yrs standing ibid of Rx tobacco oyntmt
ziiij turpenthu minerale zi mix & apply it plasterwise ibid
The shingles [Herpes.] Blood in the arm Rx Dock roots that are yellow scrape
& slice em boyl some vinegar pour it on boyling hot & let
it infuse like tea being cover’d by the fire for an hour
or 2 then you may remove it & moisten the spots the next
day there with morning & night drink manna zi dissolv’d in German 
span water half a flask for a man or woman a gentle purge
or infuse zij in a whole flask & take half & intermit 3 
or 4 days & take the other half. after you’ve us’d the vinegar
& docks 2 or 3 days to kill the spots anoint with unguentu album
& lay a plaster thereon made of Agyptian ung. [populreu]
ung. nutritu ung. martiatu dress once a day abstain from
malt drink. Drink white wine & water or whey. Shingles are
little red spots very sore appearing commonly abt the waste
Mother Majers appear’d abt her breast under her arm & on 
the shoulder June 714 & was cured as above mention’d by 
Dr Chiselden. Joseph Large had the shingles & it was 2 
months before he was well ibid. The roots of the sharp 
pointed dock boyl’d in vinegar cure & take off the itch & scabs
(the place being wash’d by the decoction) & the breakings out of 
the skin Salmon


267)
The shingles & tetter or ringbone are almost
all the same The shingles in young people commonly 
encompass the waste in old people they appear
sometimes in the shoulder breast, tongue or eye. Dr
Chiselden. Goody Exon was cured of the shingles by 
anointing em twice a day with the hot blood of a
pidgeon now blooded abt pidgeons cured her. another
a plaster of keen mustard & spred upon paper & lay’d on
is an infallible cure Sister Boothby Some kill the
shingles with cats blood winter darker another Rx a little
old Hay & burn it & hold a hatchet over the smoke till it
doth sweat then rub the shingles with it every night till they 
are gone. Mr Corbet apothecary & W. P. another Pound rue
& mint & rub the juice on the shingles twice a day till well. This 
cured Ch. Chesters daughter Mrs Basset. For the shingles or 
a tetter Rx tar (the best) 4 or 5 good spoonfuls the thickest
cream the same quantity boyl these together till it comes to 
an oyl then anoint with it 2 or 3 times a day which will cure it.
Try this for a mallender E. A. Mrs Caulton. The shingles If
they be just come out the best Fr. brandy rub’d on em will kill
em, but if they be very bad Rx the suet of a loyn of mutton,
render it in silver or any thing but brass. strain it & with 2 bits 
of soft rag putting one in whilst you use the other dab it well on 
as hot as you can bear it for some time & do it 2 or 3 times a day.
It will kill them if never so bad says Mrs Caulton. Jn Groococks wife
of Cosby kill’d & cured a tetter only by washing it with the mountebanks
styptick water twice or thrice a day It being red water such 
as is commonly given to cow that stales blood J. G. The tetter sp.
salis communis will kill a tetter it is apt to cause an inflammation 
therefore abt a qr of an hour after it is apply’d anoint it with train
or sallet oyl Try it on a mallender Mr Cook apothecary oyl of
eggs takes away tetters, ringworms, morpherv & scabs. Salmon’s Disp
Dr Pool commends oleum myrrhae per deliquium mallender Rx B.
pepper in pouder mixt with goose or hogs grease Jn Mot of Rush’d [illegible]
Try whether Jamaica pepper will not do.
a Rx for the shingles or St 
Antonies fire. Rx house leek boyl it in cream
with some juice of five leav’d grass (or ST. Foil) a little plantane Let it
boyl till it comes to an oyntmt. S. S.
another for the same. spred tar on leather & lay it all over the pt
grieved. S. S. another apply allum posset card warm. Goody Simons
Drink flower of Brimston in milk to drive out the shingles ibid
Elizth Gimson was cured of an obstinate Ringworm in her arm with fasting
spittle 1st moisten’d then rub mud all on’t as oft as it itched E. G. or Rx mud
wall in pouder in a pot in the morning spit to it mix & bind it on with a linnen
cloth ibid.


(268
The falling down of the womb
or the bearing down of the mother
Rx white wine half a pint heat it very hot then put to 
it syrup of marsh mallows one ounce Drink it as hot as you can
going to bed once taking comonly cures if not repeat
the dose Mrs Anne Windsor midwife & Mother Majer 
If you can’t hold the water take cinnamon zfs in pouder boyl’d
in a pint of aq. vitae take 3 spoonfuls at night going to 
bed. Aunt Boothby.
The bearing down of the womb. spred a plaster of Mrs Caulton’s
red lead salve al. Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth or Bent’s
salve or diaculum cum gummis abt 8 i long & 5 i broad
cut oval & drawn to a point at each end. Boyl the third pt
of an ou. of isinglass in a pint & ½ of new milk tillit is wasted
almost to a pint eat ½ a pint night & morning till well If it is
too thick add more milk when you warm it a second or third time
Mrs Caulton.
For any pain in the womb caused either by child bearing or
coition attended with pain after making of water & an incontinence
of urine The lips of the matrix being sore & swell’d. Both
the outside & inside with Hungary water & a fine rag as far
at you can conveniently thrust it in 2 or 3 times a day especially 
night & morning or with lime water in which mercury sublimate 
has been dissolv’d according to Mr Boyls Rx adding a small quantity
more of the mercury than the Rx mentions. E. A.
The leaves & bark of lentiscus i.e. the mastick tree help 
the exiture of the womb & fundament Salmons Dispensatory
Salmon’s Dispensatory has a plaster called emplastrum
[metropoptotien] I e a plaster for the falling out of the womb
A decoction made of the leaves & [flowers] of acacia (it
grows in Egypt) & the juice dissolved in it is ext for the falling
of the womb & fundament Pechey’s Herbal acacia Salmon’s Dispensatory 
calls it the Egyptian thorn. the juice of the unripe seed is
put into treacle It is of a cooling, drying binding & glutinating
quality. Quincy says


269)



(270
Rx Pine tops miiij boyl em well in six galns of ale wort then 
tun it into a vessel & when it is purging put in a bag into which pout
dock roots dried ziiij sage, scurvy grass, gill & betony each mi
The peels of four sevil oranges cut when they have been tun’d
a week you must bottle the ale & a week after that it will be ready
to drink. Sr Walter Littleton & Pater Meus G. A.


271)
The gout.
April 714 Mrs Howet my mother having the 
gout in both her feet kept it out of her stomach thus
& the pain & swelling went away without any thing apply’d
to em. Rx as mjuch Gascoin’s pouder as will lie on a six 
pence in a little water or any cordial water at night it is an 
alkali & eat oat meal pudding or poch’d eggs which are alkalis
to destroy the acid of the stomach which is the cause of the gout
when in excess, Venice treacle is good Dr [Horreman] & Br G. A. my 
mother drank posset drink made of ale & milk for her general
drink to keep the gout of her stomach taking sometimes
a little Fr. brandy sometimes a glass of white wine
Mr Jn Wilkins clock-maker of Leicer having the gout in ‘
his stomach & vomiting up every thing that he took being
vert weak & confin’d to his bed was thus cured by Dr
Hartop. Rx clarret one spoonful warm’d at a time then 
2 spoonfuls then a glass with a clove of garlic after it
is 12 hours he drank a bottle which the gout out of his
stomach into his hands which recover’d him. J. A.
Eat no breakfast if you would be free from the
gout (& but little or rather no supper) This long evacuation
of the stomach makes a compleat concoction, prevents
the unnatural heat & fermt of the blood which appears oft 
in the hands sometimes in the foot which creates a dulness 
& lethargy & the gout E. A. another Th Rd Mr Smith of
Shamford in Leicershire freed himself of the gout in the
foot by anointing it with oyl of turpentine.
Another Dr Salmon commends by his own experience emplaster 
of hemlock with ammoniacum for pains of the spleen & of the
gout. Disp. p. 777. another anoint the pt pained by the gout or
rheumatism or by any obstruction with oyl of tobacco (not the oyntmt)
2 or 3 times intermitting 6 or 7 hours. Mr Penford apothecary.
another Eat prunes, sometimes hony & bread & butter E. A.
another anoint with unguentu [comitissed] acidulated with oyl 
of vitriol & cover the pt affected with flannel to make it
sweat The hands or feet must wear flannel muffs at night
after they are anointed This Dr Jackson’s oyntmt found out
b y E. A. another sp of sal armoniac mixt with equal quantity of camphorated
sp. of wine & lay’d in a pledget to the gout, often renoving it, gives
case to a miracle Salmon’s Disp.



(272
The gout in the stomach vid p. 296
The gout or any uncommon burning in the hands or feet or
any pt of the body. Boyl some oat meal with water as for
water gruel with some raysins of the sun ston’d & slit, or eat
raysins & salt E. A.
Mr Simon Stokes attorny at law of Melton Mowbray had the
gout 1st in one foot the 2nd fit It came into his stomach the 3rd 
time it came it seised his head when Dr Hartop told him the gout commonly 
attack’d the weakest pt He was a hard drinker The Dr said never
any man died of the gout till he was past 45 yrs old. He had an
issue made on the inside his leg before the knee & it freed him fro
the gout for four yrs together & he thought it wou’d never return S. S.
It did return after wards He thought it came by drinking small
ale. He freed himself fro it thus In the morn he drank a porringer of water gruel
with only salt in it & a spoonful of [illegible] [illegible] after it was made [illegible] fasted till 3 or 4
MR Wm Welles of Thrussington freed himself of the gout by
smoking tobacco
The powers at the 3 tuns in Adderston inkeeper when he has the gout
in the bunnion of his great toe, he anoints it with oyl of turp.
the he has a brick ready heated red hot in the fire which he quenches
in water till it has done hissing then he puts it into a thick flannel
bag made like a purse & draws it up close with a string & being in 
bed applys it as hot as he can endure it & let it lie to it all night
which causes the pain to sweat out then he drinks ½ a pint of clarret 
or warm ale to keep it out of the stomach This he repeats 3 or 4 nights
till the pain is quite gone Mr Amos Taylor
another Sr Charles Duncomb King James 2ds banker us’d to fry camomile
in fresh butter or hogs lard & apply it to the gouty toe.
ibid. A reservative agt the gout a pint of milk being taken 
in over night & in the morning all the cream scum’d off very clean,
till it comes to near half a pint & put away & as much flowers of
of brimstone as will lie on a half crown being first mixt in a spoonful
or 2 of it after it is a little warm’d & then well mixt with the remainder
& drank, fasting an hour after is an ext preservative agt the gout & 
a purifier of the blood It must be taken several mornings together S. S.
Mr Simon Stokes above mention’d drank water gruel in a morning 
with only salt in it, mixt with one spoonfull of milk after it was 
made when he travell’d to a friends house there he drank chocolate
in a morning instead of water gruel & fasted always 
till 3, 4, 5 or 6 o clock at night. This fasting so long emptied & 
cleared his stomach & whetted it so that he eat anything very
heartily at night & drank wine or stale drink or ale or any 
liquor he fancied, plentifully & was freed from the gout 5 yrs successively
& for ought I ever heard all h is life after Mr. Simon Stokes.


273)
The gout. Mr Orme
To prevent the stone & gout. Drink scum’d milk boyl’d
& mixt with green tea water p.e. sweeten’d with hony every 
morning all the yr round. Tea 1 ou. will serve eight mornings.
Rx tea zi make a pint & put in a spoonfull of hony
This Mr. Orme the apothecary drinks constantly every morning
so as to have one stool every day if it works more
he takes less hony or omits a day. He had his gout & gravel
This method freed him from both those distempers. He says
he has cured several poor people of consumptions by advising
em to drink milk pottage sweeten’d with hony morn & 
night to avoid malt drink. If every body knew the 
virtue of hony it would be 1 d per lb. He eats & drinks nothing
till dinner after his honey’d tea Mr. Tho. Orme drinks
½ pint of milk & ½ pint of tea water every morning. Hony 
is less griping taken thus than after it has been formented
ibid. [illegible] gum ammoniacu in Salmon’s Family Dictionary there
is a plaster of Mr New the surgeon that he says cures the gout in 
any pt of the body
The roots of [illegible] comfrey beaten small fresh taken, spred upon
leather & lay’d upon any place troubled with the gout doth
presently give ease of the pains. Parkinson’s Herbal.
For the gout. Boil a pottle of strong ale till it is very thick like
slime beat saffron ziij to fine pouder & the yolk of two eggs & oil of
roses one spoonful mix all these well together & spred some of it on 
a linnen rag doubled & apply it to the place grieved. Mrs. Howet E. A.’s mother
April 1739 a pain & stifness seized E. A. right hand & fingers like the gout.
he held his hand in hot water almost ready to scald & the pain & stifness vanished
presenter after
Mr Orme that is troubled with the gout once in 5 years
says that purging with rhubarb or any other drug will 
not drive the gout away but only gives ease during the 
working of the purges the gout afterwards returns with 
greater violence. He commended outward unction viz Rx
camphorated spirit of wine, spt of sal amoniae and
alicant sope mixt together let it stand to warm a little
against the fires before it is used. This E.A. try’d several
times at the latter end of March without finding any 
eases or benefit when he had the hip gout
He found the most relief rubing a coarse handkercher & 
a flesh brush by night and by day from his hip down
to his ankles Mr Orme says what cures a rheumatism none
cure the gout.


(274
Chilblaines or kibes.
IF they are only swell’s wash em with uuman urine the older
the better as hot as you can abide it every night beginning
at 1st with a moderate degree of heat & increase gradually
to a greater cover it with diaculu simplex a plaster If
it is swell’d & has holes in it repeat the said medicine only 
after the swelling is abated Bath it only with warm allum posset
drink & apply the curd warm to’t If there is much proud flesh
strew burnt allum on the curd Let it be drest but once with the 
curd in 2 days. It draws it white when it is dry’d & heal’d Bath it with old
urine hot to harden it you may sometimes add a little salt
to the urine a great cure was done thus by Ann Tasie
another If only swell’s a plater made of rosin & tallow will 
cure it but if swell’d & broken & rare with an hole or holes & 
full of pain. apply this poltis to take away the anguish. Rx
new milk & oatmeal stir em together cold to make oatmeal pudding
not very thick let em boyl then add mutton suet skin’d or tallow or
deers suet (you make keep mutton suet rendered for this use) & hous
leek wash’d & chopt small boyl to the consistence of thick oatmeal
pudding bind it on with a cloth as hot as you can endure it Let it
rest 12 hours or longer Heal it with rosin & tallow or diaculum.
a great cure was done thus by Mrs Frear. You may strew burnt
allum sometimes on the diaculum. Ann Tasie. vid. Kibes in Dr Salmons
Family Dictionary. Kibes swell’d Rx allum & white copperas
each one ounce in pouder infuse in water a pint. Bath it on warm agt
the fire Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Boyl a knuckle of veal in water
to make it very tender bath it with 2 rags as one grows cold the other
may heat agt the fire as hot as you can endure it. This takes away the
pain, if the kibes happen to have a kick or bruise It hath cured swell’d
& blister’d legs used 3 or 4 times Mrs Ann Lathwell.
Raw kibes Bath em with camphorated water a rag dipt in it as
hot as you can endure it Then apply a plaster of Aunt Boothby’s
cerecloth made of red lead oyl & bees wax called the red lead salve
Dress it once a day. This has cured a great many Sister Boothby.
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory says unguentum [rubricum] [illegible] siccativu
[illegible] is so much us’d for kibes which children are very subject to
in frosty weather that it is often asked for by the common people
by the name of kibe oyntmt. fir it cools & cicatrizes em very
soon.
To cure the itching of kibed toes or feet. moisten em with brine of
beef or pork & hold em agt the fire to work in, at night. E. A.’s men
servts use this with benefit. another with a lancet make em bleed in
several places or whip em with a holly branch This cures Mr Coy




275)
For kibed [heels] raw
warm some milk by quenching a hot iron in it once 
then bath the sore with the then strew on oister shell powder
to keep the proud flesh down then apply a plaster of
[diaculum] to keep the [stockin] from it & to dry & keep it warm
Dress it once a day. Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer.
For kibed heels or chilblanes broken or whole The paps
of roasted apples are most excellent Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother.
To prevent kibes or chilblaines. Burn oat straw 1st dry’d to ashes
steep em all night in cold water the next day boil the water & 
ashes together & bath the hands or feet in it 3 or 4 times for
3 or 4 days Mr Jn Needham E. A.’s servt
Kibes raw dress em with sallet oil & white lead Joyce Gimson E. A.
servt. The castle soap plaster al Sir Philip Paris’s plaster Wm Mather’s
Young Man’s Companion 3rd edition says will cure chilblains & kibes.
Mather’s same book says p.90 one plaster of burgundy commonly cures
kibes, if you do not bruise the place with your shoes or the lead plaster
al. empl. de minio. Or a dry oak leaf when it is almost well
Kibes heels swell’d and raw. Rx [Fuzballs] the pouder and bind it
to the sore with a linnen rage renew it once a day it will ease the
pain if raw apply the inside skin of the fuzball shift that once
a day washing it in cow piss to allay the itching Mr Laughton.
Kibed heels raw Aunt Boothby Rx the white of an egg & lay 
it on some sheeps wool that is pretty fine & apply it to the kibe.
Renew it once in 24 hours & it will cure it, says Jane smith of
Blaby. To cure the itching of a kibe’d heel or toe that
is not broken. Boil some raw allum in the water as much
as will give a strong tincture of the allum dip a
rag in it and [dap] it with as hot as you can abide
it several times one after another John Hewet
Another moisten some salt with your spittle
and rub the itching part with it a rag being moisten’d
with it then hold it as near the fire as you can endure
it three or 4 times one after another. Joyce Gimson



(276
Immoderate or superfluous evacuation
of the monthly terms.
I can assure you, by my own experience that a cataplasm
made of two whites of eggs with a little bolus,
apply’d to the region of the kidneys has frequently & 
immediately stop the immoderate flux of the menstru
al blood. If the said flux proceeds from a sharp quality’
of the blood, which by its long continuance has dry’d up 
all the moisture of the body. Rx a porringer of fresh cows
milk (which thickening the blood, does by degrees restore the
moisture) every morning for a whole month without
intermission extinguishing a red hot steel in it every 
time you use it. Monsieur D’ube’s Poor Man’s Physician.
another Rx the best rubarb rasp’d or grated as much as will lie
on a shilling or more if the flooding is violent, in a spoonful
or 2 d cherry brandy, aniseed water or common brandy. This cured
Ann T. E. A. for immoderate fluxes of the courses The pouder the
distill’d water the syrup & the conserve of red poppies are in use.
Pecheys Herbal.
This is ext for an immoderate flux of the courses.
Rx plantain water 2 ou. rubarb pouder’d [illegible] ij yellow myrobalans 
pouder’d [illegible] i syrup of dry’d roses zfs mix & give
it in the morning; 2 hours after let some broth be taken
ibid







279)
French pox, morbus gallicus.
Balm of Gilead, balsamu gileadense, balsamu e mecha
Let me discover one secret not yet vulgarly known. This
balm of Gilead has the greatest force of all vegetable productions
in curing the French pox. a word to the wise is enough
It exceeds guaiacu, sassaphras, China etc. Dr Salmon’s Disp.
Pechey’s Herbal says guaiacum i.e. lignum sanctum or packwood
in curing the French pox.



(280
Breast hard & swell’d
Ruth Winter a maid abt 16 yrs old was cured of a hard
swell’d breast thus. Rx white wine a qt in which infuse
stub nails lbi 12 hours or longer Drink ½ a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon one qt commonly gives 
ease & 2 qts cure it. Walk after it Rx Winter keep it in
a bottle close stopt. ibid Mrs Sprigs of [Shearsby] had a hard
swell’d breast not broken when Dr [Hatton] of Harborow had had 40 lb
of her to no purpose Wm Bent farrier cured it only by anointing it with 
linseed oyl cold once a day it dispersed the humour & made it well. W. B.
A cancer or sore breast with knots in it
Rx a piece of new flannel that is soft & warm, & has never been wet 
dip it in a blew wad fat nine times every day or as you’ve opportunity
& wear it all over the breast, shifting it once a month. You 
may dip as much as will serve 2 or 3 times It has cured great knots in
the breasts supposed to be cancers & done cancers good Mrs Caulton.
A breast swell’d or broken
apply Bents salve, often approved by Mrs Elizth Halford.
A poultis for a swelling or a sore breast. Dr Arden Elsmere.
Rx a white lilly root, [smallage] a small handful mallows & chickweed 
each a large handful shred em small together put em in a pint 
of new milk or better with as much oatmeal as will thicken it Boyl
it pretty well then put in hogs lard or sheeps suet 3 ou. the 1st is
best. Boyl it thick & spred it on a cloth. Lay it on as hot as you 
can abide it. shift it twice a day. It will disperse the swelling or
brake it to heal it. Lay Mrs Caulton’s black salve on it when it is broken 
& the poultis on the top of it. If there is a hole in it tent it with basilicon.
Mrs Caulton. It is not good to tent a sore breast it often causes
shooting pains in the breast all the life after Sister Boothby
A milk sore breast swell’d or broken Dr Smith of Findon.
Rx linseed 6 ou. boyl it un bruis’d in a qt of new milk till it is
very thick If you would have it draw more add white bread 
crums a spoonful spred it upon a linnen cloth near an inch
thick to cover all over the breast before you lay it on do it  
all over with a feather dipt in sallet oyl apply it twice a day
as hot as you can abide it to the cheeks It takes away the pain, 
disperses or breaks & heals it. It is good for all hard swellings.
after the breast is well apply a plaster of diaculum over it & 
wear it till it comes off. You need not tent the breast when broken
Dr Arden Elsmere said this was the best of poultices. Sister Boothby
you may eat this poultis if you will. E. A.



281)
A poultis for a swelling and to take away 
pain
Rx green mint and onions each alike quantity
and pound them together and add to them the
same quantity of hony and [illegible] them all together
and apply it cold. Mrs Chamberlane midwife of
Great Glen
To make a poultis Mrs Willcocks of Ouson
Rx new milk and red serge rue, smallage chop
em small and boil ‘em in the milk and then thicken
it up with oatmeal and when it is taken from the fire
add hogs lard and apply it once a day. This was to 
cure Mary Exon of a sore leg when she had been under
Mr [Horse] Pools hands a long time and had one issue
in each arm and one in each leg.
To take away pain out of any sore. Rx red 
dock roots and scrape off the outward bark and 
slice it and pound it or scrape it and take mi of
it and boil it in a quart of scum’d milk till ½ is 
wasted then tickens it up with barly flower
Dress the sore with basilicon and lay this poultis 
upon this plaster 7 it will draw out the humour
Mrs Witcocks of Ouson


(282
To harden the feet that you may endure
travelling & walking without pain.
walk till you are warm then pull off the shoes & stockins
& stand barefoot in the running stream of a brook
for abt ½ a qt of an hour or walk abt in the stream then
put on the shoes but not the stockins for the feet
must touch no woollen thing that night or you may 
put on linnen or thred socks & then the stockins & shoes 
let this be done a little before night got to bed immediately
after you come from the after & keep in 
bed all night without touching any woollen thing with 
the feet. once trying cured Robt Garner a jobber of
Brinkly in Warwickshire when his feet was gall’d & the 
skin off that he could scarce go his feet continued hard
& well for 7 yrs after & perhaps all his life R. G. He walk’d
home in his shoes, without catching any cold ibid.
another to harden feet & cure em when sore or raw with
sweat & heat in the summer as in June & July. Rx sp. of wine
& put so many drops of oyl of vitriol to it that you can 
touch it with the tongue without corroding moisten
the sore & raw places with this liquor night & morning
& moisten a linnen rage in it & apply it dry or wet E.A.
To cure sweaty feet p. 120 Rx bees wax zi (ordinary or common) butter
ziiij red vitriol from the chymists i.e. calcanthum rubefactu
in fine pouder zij Let the bees wax be sliced then boyl it with
the butter & Rx it off the fire & put in the calcanthum pr. 1 d per
ounce spred it upon linnen cloth or rag, the thinner the cloth the
better as muslane, calico, or holland. It must cover the top of the
toes & the bottom & sole of the feet. Take it off as a night wear 
these socks daily all the hot months a pr will last a qr or ½ a yr 
&keep the feet sweet. It draws off the humour & cures swell’d
legs & prevents em from swelling. It will cure a corn Dr Pool 
for a corn approved Rx oysters open them cut out the white pith that groweth to
the inside of the shells. Dry it & pouder it when you cut the corn
pick out as much of the root as you can & put into the hole as
much of this pouder as you can & you may add a very small quantity
of mercury sublimate in very fine pouder mixt well with a little hogs
lard & bind a cloth on it & it will eat away the corn clean by the
roots use not above the quantity of a pins head of sublimate especially 
the 1st time you try it. The Rx says you may use it without grease [Pater Meus]


283)
a corn. cut a hole in a piece of fine woollen
cloth of the bigness of the corn sew several of
them together with woolstead or yarn one above another 
that they may be [easie] to the & make room for the corn to
grow up in It will shute up til lit has spent itself & can 
grow no higher then you may easily pull it up by the
root with your finger & thumb & it will trouble you no more
you may sew it to a linnen cloth & bind it on a hole made
in a piece of hat that will do very well some say better Dr Geo.
Ashby. This method cured his corns another Touch a corn 
after it is cut thin with oyl of vitriol or aqua fortis a [illegible]
being dipt in it It will burn it out Let it take place a little
time then apply Paracelsus plaster or basilicon., Mr Page surgeon 
Mr Penford apothecary his plaster for corns. Rx suet zi rosin
in pouder or small lumps zi wax sliced zij verdigrease in fine
pouder zfs This is in imitation of Mrs Wilcox’s plaster but not
the same. another plaster for corns Rx barm (al. yest) 
that is grown stiff on the tub side & dry’d salt work em together 
on a trencher till the salt is made fine & apply it spred on
leather or a linnen rag Pater Meus another spred black pitch 
on allum leather stone pitch i.e. the hardest clearest pitch free
from dross is best E.A. try’d this without success It gave east at
1st but at last it made it sore. The juice of spurge which looks
white like milk will eat of wharts & corns & the callous a
brawny substance on the ball of the great toe by frequent 
application, if the crust that hardens upon them be pair’d off between
whiles. Dr Quincy & Cos. Jn Ekins. Ointmt of [dialtha] is good
warts. If you rub em with ol. vitrioli or ol. sulphuris it will
certainly destroy em The cure for corns is in paring em off & 
applying red soft wax. Or Rx picis navalis zi empl. diachyl. magn
ziij gum. galban. dissolut in aceta zfs salis ammoniaci [illegible] i misce
or Rx aluminis, vitrioli ungarici adripigment ana port. equal. pulveriz.
& misceantur cum aceto. all which are proper both in the soft or 
hard corns several chirurgical treatises by Richd Wiseman sergeant
chirurgeon 2d edition pr. 12 d. another to dissolve corns or 
nodes quinces emplastru de ranis vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum will waste
by degrees ([ease] & [illegible]) corns on the feet, warts & all such like
crustations. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
2) To cure a corn B. S.A. Rx a little [illegible] yest mix it with salt made fine on
the back of a trencher with a knife or pounded as much salt as yest It is 
best in a very dry time or the salt will be apt to turn the yest to a water
or liquid substance spred it like a plaster or on London brown paper 
& tie it to the corn after it is cut close but not to bleed. apply a new
plaster or spred it fresh on the same leather every day for 3 or 4 days. then
cover it with ink once or twice & the corn will come out rotten by the
roots If this doth not fetch it out burn a little white copperas and beat it to
pouder use it with the yest. E. A. Try burnt salt E.A.


(284
wind in the stomach or bowels (or to cause you to 
fart Rx 9 black pepper corns in a little sallet oyl whole in a spoon in morning fasting)
Rx carduus water ziiij treacle water zfs bezor jovialis
zfs camphir [illegible] is syr. of sulphur zfs tincture of 
laudanu [illegible] vi syr. of woodsorrel with poppies each zi mix
for a julap dose is 1 spoonful for 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 
at night going to bed shake the bottle when you take any or.
1s 8d Dr Tho. Ferran This cured Stephen Hunt junior having an
ague & grip’d. wind attended with gripes, belchings
vomiting & looseness in old Richd Exon carpenter
was quickly cured by taking this medicine following
in abt ½ a pint of ale or small beer It is good for
a blood flux Rx one nutmeg grate
& mix it with as much wheat flower finely sifted as 
the white of an egg will moisten (you must not
put the yolk in) abt the stiffness of dough. Bake 
it so dry as to grate but give no more at once
than what will lie on a six pence Mrs Mary Hall a Jersey combers 
wife in Southgate street Leicer.  This cured her father & 
old Richd Exon. The wind colic with gripes & vomiting 
Dr Bradley It will not cure wet gripes Rx hiera picra 
zfs double anniseed water a pint cochineal [illegible] ij a little beaten
mix them & keep it in a bottle close stopt always ready 
prepar’d & when you use it mix the following ingredients with 
pt of it viz to 3 ounces or spoonfuls of this liquor add salt
of wormwood zfs pr 1 2 ½ liquid laudanu gtt xxx pr. 2 d 
for 1 dose. One dose commonly cures. If it is vomited up
it must be repeated.  Price of the ingredients in the bottle 
is 1 s 3 d you must shake the bottle for 2 or 3 days at 1st 
but when you use it pour off only the clear Dr Bradley & Mr
Cook apothecary. The wind colic or dry gripes Rx liquid laudanu
& elixer proprictatis each from  12 to 16 drops in a glass 
of ale at night going to bed. Wm Vice of Blaby that was often
tormented with inward pains & apt to be costive found great
benefit by this medicine Rd Mr Stokes.


285)
Gripes or wind colic Rx brandy (French brandy is best)
3 spoonfuls burn it then take ½ a spoonful in a spoon make
it thickish with salt a little brandy swimming on the top stir em
with a knife or tea spoon & take it when cool enough Rx a 2 d spoonful
after the same manner as the first then take a 3 d spoonful with 
only burnt brandy Joseph Warner of Harborough [illegible] may 
colour brandy or double aniseed water with alkanet or bole & 
add salt to it. Salt added to grains prevent their griping horses or
cows & brine given to horses when grip’d is reckon’d a good medicine
& cures sometimes. E. A. another Rx new lay’d egg shels dry’d & 
beaten to fine pouder as much as will lie on a shilling mixt thickish
with beer in a spoon at 2 or 3 times an hour after you may drink
water gruel with a little salt in it Wm Laurence Smith. for wind
Rx juice of rue in a little sugar once a day It is good for convulsions
fits in children, they are oft caused by wind Jane Tasie
May 1717 E. A. was cured of gripes & wind colic with a violent
pain in her left side by taking Dr Bostock’s cordial 1 spoonful
over night & 2 in the morning a gentle purge & Dr Bradly’s
mixture p. 284 2 or 3 hours after that the next day after the
purge he drank a qt of new milk-whey warm & rode 2 or 3 
miles after it which clear’d his bowels & made him quite well.
when sucking children or those rear’d by the hand are troubled
with wind give one or 2 & afterwards more whole mustard
seeds in their pap or what they eat It will make em break 
wind Sister Boothby. a pouder for wind. Rx burdock seed zij aniseeds
liquorish each zi in fine pouder mixt with w. sugar candy The dose is zi
w.p. when E. A. had the wind colic June 718 & vomiting he 
did not find that taking vomits did him any good strong water 
made him worse He found that gooseberries train thro a hair
sive & mixt with milk & damask rose water & sugar stay’d
longest in his stomach & he did seldom vomit it up Taking
one slice of lemon & sugar going to bed & one slice in the
night walking much in the air Bostock’s cordial & Dr Bradly’s 
mixture & other purges that us’d to relieve him would
do not good except this following which at present I judge to 
be the very best purge or medicine & most pleasant yet found out for the wind 
colic or gripes or wind in the stomach or bowels [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] Rx rhubarb
sliced zi pr. 2 s 6 d best sena zij pr 1 s aniseeds bruised six
drams pr single aniseed water 3 pints pr 1 s Rx 2 spoonfuls
every other morning or every morning while it lasts
drinking water gruel one or 2 hours after it. It purges the
most at the 1st dose Bates’s Disp. 4th edition & Mr Penford


(286
apothecary in Leicer The aniseeds & aniseed 
water correct the griping of the sena & single aniseed
water is more cooling & pleasant than double aniseed water
ibid This is taken out of Salmon’s annotations on Bates’s Dispensatory
on elixer salutis but it is much contracted You may 
take it every morning at 1st then every other morn & when you
find yourself perfectly recover’d & well You may omit taking
it when it has infus’d 9 or 10 days you may strain the liquid 
from the drugs & keep it by itself close stopt. If you are
subject to wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes. Eat bread & 
butter every morning It opens the body & causes you to fart & vent
wind backwards E. A. a very good remedy for the colic in the
stomach or bowels which has cured them that have had it 2 or 3 
yrs It keeps good, close stopt, 2 or 3 yrs Rx double distill’d aniseed
water a pint cochineal zi pouder’d hiera picra ziij Let em
stand 24 hours in a bottle close stopt. Then Rx 3 spoonfuls every
morning or at night or when ill If it doth not give you a stool or
2 Rx 4 spoonfuls This cured Mrs Gee when the Drs cou’d not having
had it 3 or 4 yrs Some say the single aniseed water is best Mrs
Caulton. [illegible] is the same as Mr Oneby’s Rx another for the
gripes eat oatmeal pudding adding to it Jamaica pepper 
in pouder after it is made & stir em together It must taste
strong of the pepper Eat it night & morning till well E. A.
The colick of either sort by a solder Rx pomegranate shell
2 d gentian 2 d avens mi dry’d all together & beaten to pouder
Rx as much as will lie on a shilling in 2 glasses of white
wine or [juniper] water If it is the stone colick add 4 
drops of the juice of the sharpest onions in every glass
Br S.A. for the cure of all inward pains vid p. 193.
for the gripes or wind or stone colic eat the fat of mutton or
beef the quantity of ½ an egg or more cut 3 or 4 or more little
onions in pieces as big as you can swallow at once rub salt 
on em so that you may eat a pretty deal of salt with every bit 
& eat old cheese without bread lastly drink strong ale abt
a pint after em. This cured E. A. Janry 719. June 720 E. A. had the
wind in his stomach which forc’d him to vomit up every thing he eat or drank
a vomit of ipecacuanah nor Daffy’s elixer would do no good He found
a little benefit by Dr Bradlys mixture for the colic then he try’d Dr
Alibone’s Rx for wind in the stomach viz balm, hysop, sage each mi liquorish
sliced zij boyl e min water 2 qts till one is wasted Drink it instead 



287)
of beer or use it instead of hops brew’d with beer
gripes & wind or rheumatism in the stomach or bowels
Rx The mountebanks styptick water 2 spoonfuls by it self
then walk ½ an hour Then Rx Virginian snake weed root afs 6 d the
root of contrayerva zij pr 6 d Best brandy a pint you may colour
or disguise it with syrup of violets when you give it but it must
not be put into the bottle It doth but little good only it is cooling.
allow 24 hours or longer for the ingredients to incorporate
then take 5 spoonfuls syrup of cloves colours any liquor yellow
syrup of wouldwell or dyers weed makes a fine green. This
Rx helps to stop vomiting. Dr Pool. another milk from a cows bag
to stale beer Ear the card & drink the whey without sugar in the
morning It gets an appetite cleanses the midriff, cures gripes
heals the lungs & stops a consumption ibid Another Rx ants eggs
dry em in a paper & beat em to pouder mix afs of it with brown 
sugar & give it in thicken’d milk. the bigger the eggs the better give
it mixt with carrot to disguise it the carrot dry’d to pouder It swells
the belly at 1st but in a little time it makes you fart & cures belching
& drives the wind downwards. ibid for wind or water in the
stomach Rx antimonium diaphoreticu zi in a glass of strong
claret or good canary every other day. ibid A small white wine
will rather cause than cure the gripes. E. A. Dr Harton’s prescription
Rx pul: rad. serp. virg: zvi cassummuniar zifs (a sort of zedoary)
coq. in q.s. aq. font. ad lbi colat [illegible] (strain) solv. theriac. androm.
zfi fiat apozema June 16th 720. Rx 6 spoonfuls at night going
to bed at 6 at midnight if awake & as much in the morning & 
afterwards 3 spoonfuls every 4th or 5 hours & drink it as hot as
you can Wm Cooke pr. 4d for gripes ro wind causing a pain 
in the stomach or a pain in a rupture Rx the stalks of bitter 
sweet (amara dulcis) as much as you can hold betwixt 2 hands
bruise or twist em in pieces or as much as will make it taste
bitter Boyl it in 3 qts of water to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish morn
fasting & at night going to bed or when you feel pain Jn Summerfield 
of Whetston. another for gripes or wind Rx burdock seed
pound & drink it in ale or smoke it with a little tobacco or without
Goddy Gilbert another Rx mint water 1 or 2 spoonfuls at
a time with sugar ibid or Rx mint water anniseed water syrup of
cloves a good cordial Goody Simons. another eat millipedes 10 or 20 
at a time every day till the gripes are gone ibid another drink new
milk warm from  a cow morn & night & eat bread & butter avoiding
meat & cheese till the stomach is well. This did E. A. the most good when
he vomited & was grip’d & his stomach full of wind & pain for 4 or 
6 weeks in June & July 720. Wind in the stomach or bowels Rx 9 or more
black (or white) pepper corns in a spoonful of sallet oyl [illegible] [Boothby]


(288
for the wind colic or dry gripes or pain in the 
stomach Rx gr of paradise in pouder as much as will ly on a ½ crown in new ale or
beer a half pint from the vat 3 times a day. Take it for a month intermitting a day or two Dr P.
another for Do
Rasp as much of the best rhubarb as will lie on a shilling or
rather mor for a man of bulk or for one that is apt to be costive
Put it to a spoonful & half, or 2 spoonfuls of common brandy
or malt spirits pr 10 d or 12d d per qt Rx it in a morn fasting, fasting
2 hours after it & eat & drink as you use to do at the other times without
observing an rules. Rx the night before camomile flowers 
infus’d in n ear a pint of posset drink & continue ti every night till
the gripes are gone off which is commonly in 3 or 4 nights. Drink the
rhubarb & brandy every morn for abt a fortnight This cured Br S.
A. for 7 yrs or longer without taking it during the y7 yrs on ly at 1st 
pouder of rhubarb in a little milk & drink milk from the cow or warm
after it or in single aniseed water or juniper water only as much as
will wash it down sometimes an hour before dinner or 2 hours or
a little quantity of the pouder in any vehicle at night at or before
bedtime
Rhubarb is an exct medicine, gentle & without danger wherein many 
vertues are compris’d It cleanseth & fortifieth the stomach & liver 
all maladies that proceed from stoppages, as the jaundice, dropsie, swelling 
of the spleen & long fevers. It is good agt spitting of blood & 
stops it. It may be moderately taken at all convenient times without
danger. The chewing of it purges choler & phlegm. It is ext boyled & 
taken in posset drink, before the cold fit of an ague comes, & is extol’d
by all ingenious physitians for the cure of fluxes of the belly
of all kinds, which it does easily, surely & with out any evil symptom 
succeeding it, & therefore is accounted as the most ext of roots that
was ever brought into this nation from any foreign ports. Salmon’s
Family Dictionary. Pontick rhubarb is hot in the 1st dry in the
3rd degree purging & astringent expelling choler, flegm & melancholy
from the stomach & bowels. It opens obstructions of both liver
& spleen, & therefore is of force in curing  the rickets, melancholy
[sabs] itch, jaundice & green sickness. Give of the pouder from zi to
zifs in infusion to zfs. It may be given to women with child, & in 
all fluxes as in dysentaria’s (i.e. bloody fluxes) lyenteria’s (ie a kind
of looseness, where things eaten are voided undigested) & diarrhoea’s
(a gentle flux of the belly or looseness) It is of singular use
because it leaves an astringent or binding quality behind it. The pouder
made into a bole with cassia & turpentine cools & cleanses the [illegible] & 
helps the gonorrhoea Salmon’s Dispensatory. The pouder untoasted leaves
the body open but rhubarb toasted easily beats to pouder & being dry’d by the 


289)
by the fire etc. leaves the body costive E. A. radix R rabarbari
rhubarb. that which comes from the Levant is now accounted
best. It is of a bright yellowish colour, & of a nutmeg
grain if it be good, tho a great deal of the best pieces will be decay’d; 
& therefore when brought into use ought to be rejected
There is some comes fro China & other pts of the E. Indies, but not so 
much esteem’d It is of a darker colour, more fetid in smell & is not
easily pouder’d; tho it is more purgative especially in infusion than 
the other but has not so much of its astringent quality which is so efficacious
in looseness & blood fluxes. That which is accounted the
finest of all is very little pourgative but most astringent &
therefore best in all sort of fluxes. Extreme drying destroys its 
purgative vertue, wherefore it is frequently order’d to be toasted
to make it less purgative & more astringing. It is infus’d from zi to ziij
for a dose; & given in pouder from 10 gr to two scuples It greatly strengthens
the stomach & bowels & is an ext medicine agt cholera & other 
distemper’d contents of the intestinal & mesenterial glands It is accounted
by some to be so great a purger of the liver as to have deserv’d the 
name of cor hepatic or heart of the liver The kidnies do not lie too 
remote for its influence which it discovers in the colour of the urine & is
very good in the obstructions of the [reins] & the ureters. But in the jaundice
it almost passes for infallible Paracelsus [illegible] to a tincture fro 
it which only operated by [illegible] & purg’d away gravel. It is good agt worms
in children. so that its repetition to them can hardly be too frequent IT is 
good in syrup & in tinctures alto none of em are so good as the 
root pouder & given in substance Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory
Carry rhubarb in the pocket in the winter or lay it in a cupboard
near the fire that it may be dry or it will not grate to pouder & mix 
this pouder as much as will lie on 6 d or 1 s begin with little at 1st &
put it to two or 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir the best sort begin
with a little if you wou’d have it purge gently till you find the
strength of the constitution you give it to This is a most ext 
medicine for wind or colic or gripes or any headach or pain [illegible]
It is much better than when mixt with brandy alone E. A.
The gripes & wind eat salt with every thing you eat If salt will 
not cure then take abt 1 spoonful 1/12 of Daffy’s elixir with a little salt 
in’t abt a quarter or ½ an hour after drink new milk from the cow or 
for want of it warm’d milk & the next morn new milk with some salt
It will purge & cure E. A. 
Wind in the stomach or dry gripes Dr Tho. Buckworth (the mad Dr
that cured Mr Wats of Raresby when craz’d or disorder’d in his head.)
Rx [illegible], common fennel seeds, cummin seeds, caraway seeds,
parsly seeds each zfs long pepper zij pounded & sifted thro a fine
hair sive add to the pouder as much hony or treacle on a liquorish
stick or without at any time It is good for a cold or doth gently open 
the body coriander seeds are bad for the head or Rx oyl of turpentine
40 or 50 drops prepar’d with tartar (not salt of tartar) by the 
chymists distill’d you may but it at London drop em into warm ale
abt ½ a pint it turns it white It is good for the colic in the stomach 
or wind or gravel Dr B. another Eat old rich cheese 3 or 4 yrs old
after the meals E. A. Try sage cheese another Rx cloves whole & [daucus]
seed make tea with water sweeten it when you drink It comforts the bowels Dr Bradly



(290
To joyn a broken glass or vessel of
china or earth
Rx a little red lead a knifes pointful boyl it with linseed oyl a qt so that when it
is boyl’d it may appear like mum or of a brown colour
mix a little of this with white lead very well by working it
on a marble or smooth slate with a muller or a knife
You must be sure to incorporate em very fine then 
anoint the edges of the glass or vessel where you 
would joyn em If you can you may press or bind
em hard together & so let em remain untouch’d in
a chamber on a table or shelf for a qr of a yr (or
rather longer than less time) then you may thrown the joyn’d
glass agt the ground & it will break in any pt sooner
than where it is cemented. The Rd Mr Jn Lawrence rector
of Yolverloft in Northshire. It will endure hot or
cold liquor if the vessel will abide it. ibid.
To join a broken panchion or pot together not to hold scalding
water Rx turpentine and rosin p.a. buck finely sifted
boil ‘em and heat the sides of the pot and daub on and crush
‘em together. Rd Mr Samuel Frances.
To stop a crack in a bowl or barrel. Rx tar and fine
hards and thrust ‘em in with the edge of a knife and they 
will harden.


295)



(292
a clyster
Rx mallows, camomile, elder buds, mercury leaves, violet
leaves, strawberry leaves. Seeth all in posset ale. Take a pint 
of the liquor add to it sallet oyl 2 spoonfuls & as much sweet 
butter & hony make it a clyster Give it in the morning. Mater 
Mea another good for the colic or gripes or stone.
Rx mallows, violet leaves strawberry leaves endive, succory
each mi add to these a calfs foot or sheeps head. put em into
a sufficient quantity of water & boyl em well. Then take of the
decoction one pint Put therein two good spoonfuls of brown 
sugar & 3 spoonfuls of sallet oyl. strain it thro a cloth after 
the sugar is dissolv’d Then exhibite it as a clyster a little better
than blood warm. Try whether you can endure the bladder at
the cheek when it is fill’d before you give lest you give it too hot
ibid. another Rx mallows, strawberry leaves, mercury, violet
leaves, succory leaves, borrage, [?ugless] each half a qr of a
handful aniseeds fennel seeds each a qr of an ounce Boyl these
well with a chicken & take the broth of it or else boyl em in posset 
ale. Take half a pint or better of it at a time & put to it
2 spoonful of sallet oyl & one spoonful of sweet butter
salt half a spoonful use this for a clyster ibid
Dr Atkins clyster for the colic & stone
Rx mallows camomile, beets, wormwood, violet leaves each 
mi aniseeds & fennel seeds each a good spoonful bayberries
no 6. Boyl all in rain water from a pint & half to a pint
strain it add to it 2 spoonfuls of hony as much salt as will
lie on a siz pence & 2 ounces of course sugar ibid.


293)
The whites
Rx Candied roots of Solomons seal It is an ext remedy
Pecheys Herbal. Ising-glass is of a very glutinous quality
& good in all disorders which arise from too thin & sharp a state of the
fluids. Tis reckon’d very helpful in female weakness & particularly
the whites, as also in all defluxions & haemorrages Quincy. rosin
pills pills of turpentine pills with dragons blood, pills of porra Japonica 
emplastrum [barsals] vid Quincy’d Dispensatory. altho’ the roots of
tormentil is most noted for its strengthening & binding qualities yet it
is ranked also among the [alexi] pharmicks & is in great esteem in malignant
flowers attended with any flux of the bowels or the womb.
Schroder says there is not a better vegetable grown for all such [intentions]
it agrees well with the white drink & much increases its efficacy
in checking a looseness in the measles, small pox or fevers. Quincy
another Rx Rue whitlow grass (an herb) half a handful fry it with 
wheat flower & an egg. Take [it] in the morning fasting, for 2 days This 
cures the whites Pechey’s Herbal


(294
The biting of a mad dog Mr George [Gatacre]
Rx Rus zvi peel’d garlic & London treacle each ziiij or mithridate or Venice treacle
scrap’d tin being shav’d or scrap’d of the outside of a
[illegible] pewter or tin sheet of lattin or tin 4 ounces spoonfuls good strong ale 2/3 qts
pluck the herb from the stalk & shred it & beat the garlic
then mix all & put it in a pot fast cover’d then set that 
pot or vessel in a pot of fair water to boyl on a gentle
fire 3 or 4 hours & of the strain’d liquor give 4 or 6 or 7 
spoonfuls as the patient, or beast or dog can well receive
it. Give it morning or afternoon warm or cold
9 days together. This has cured men, women horses, cattle, 
& dogs. It is commonly call’d the D. of Buckingham’s
Rx. It never fail’d. Br G. A.
The  biting of a mad dog by Dr Troutbeck.
Rx leaves of rue pick’d from the stalks 6 ou. bruised, garlic
peel’d & bruised, best treacle or mithridate, scapings of tin or
pewter each 4 ou. Boyl all these over a gentle fire in 2 qts of 
strong ale till one pint be consumed then strain it from the
dregs & keep it in a bottle close stopt.
Give of this 9 spoonfuls to a man or woman  warm 7 mornings
together fasting: 6 to a beast cold, 3  to a sheep, 6 to a dog
This by gods blessing will not fail, provided it be given with 
in 9 days after the biting. apply some of the dregs or strainings
to the bitten place. This Rx cost Mrs Frances Bickerton’s father
17th of the DR The roots of aristolochia are ext agt all [poison] & 
agt the bitings & stingings of venomous beasts, if it be taken in wine, or layd
upon the wounds or bitings. Dodoen’s Herbal.
an infallible cure for the bite of a mad dog from the Evening
Post.
Rx Rue 6 ou. eleand. pickd & bruis’d red sage mi garlic 4 ou. peeld & bruis’d
Venic treacle 4 ou. filed pewter or scrap’d tin 4 ou. Boil these
in 2 qts of the best ale in a pan cover’d close, over a gentle fire, for
the space of one hour, then strain the ingredients from the liquor. Give
8 or 9 spoonfuls of it warm to a man or woman 3 mornings
fasting, & cold to any beast fasting. 8 or 9 spoonfuls are sufficient
for the strongest, a less quantity to those younger or of a weaker
constitution, as you may judge of their strength. Ten or 12 spoonfuls 
for a horse or bullock. Three, 4, or 5 for a sheep, hog or dog. This
must be given with in 9 days after the bite. It never fails in man
or beast. If you can conveniently bind some of the ingredients on
the wound. Cos. Richd Ashby. Some Rxs say muscadine or [illegible] is better
than ale for a man


295)
For the biting of a mad dog
Rx 2 handfuls of rue 2 spoonfuls of scraped
block tin boyl in 4 quarts of strong ale till
half be wasted then strain 3 penniworth of London
treacle into it and give the party bit 6 spoonfuls
in a morning fasting
A plaster for a bit of a mad dog
Take plantain beat in a mortar with bole armoni
dragons blood, barley meal and whites of eggs
lay it plasterwise on the sore let it ly on 14 hours.
Sometimes it will cure [cornes]
Mr Allen Gregory’s dog of Little Glen that was made
bit Tho: Coleman Joyner of Leicer in the arm & the dog
was [hang’d] the liver was fry’d & he eat it but he dy’d raving
mad afterwards. Eliz Brown of Leicer
Dr Mead for the bit of a mad dog
Rx lichen [cinereus] [terrestris] i.e. ground liverwort zi pouder’d
black pepper in pouder zfs mix em & give ziij every morning
for 3 mornings together in half a pint of cows milk. after this
has been done, let the patient go into a cold spring or river dipping
all over for one minute 3 or 4 times a week for 5 or 6 weeks. from
the Rd Mr Wm Babington & Cos. Shukbrugh Ashby. Perhaps dipping
in a tub of cold water if it be in the winter; may do first dip the
arms head & shoulders then go into it with the legs & breech for a minute
E. A.
Some Rxs for man bitten by a mad dog direct garlic bruis’d
6 cloves, scraped or fil’d pewter the weight of an ordinary pewter
spoon. Common treacle lbfs boyl ‘em all in a quart of strong
ale or strong beer till half is wasted then strain it & take
3 spoonfuls first & last while it lasts. If there is a wound
bind the ingredts strain’d out to the wound, let ‘em ly on 
a day or 2 if you can abide ‘em, when you can abide ‘em no
longer take ‘em off & wash the wound with milk or water
warm, & heat it with any salve. Wm Wyat of Adderston
for the biting of Adders. Dr Danvers anoint the place stinged with the 
juice that comes from shell snails prickt with a pin & bind on a snail unprickt
& drink the juice of plaintain. It is good for the biting of any 
venomous creature.



(296
Belching or wind in the stomach
Decer 1720 E. A. was much troubled with wind in his stomach
which by the pressure of his hand on the outside of his stomach
wou’d come out at h is mouth & vent itself by belching This afflicted
him (after he had cured his wind in the bowels by taking Davvy’s
elixir & grated rhubarb) he had no appetite to food & malt drink 
fill’d him with wind Dr Hartop call’d it the gout in the stomach 
The cure infuse in aniseed water double distill’d snakeweed root, contrayerva
& cinnamon Rx a little of it morn & night abt ½ a spoonful or 
a spoonful, less or more, as it agrees with you. fast 24 hours from
supper to supper without eating or drinking any thing between that
one meal in 24 hours except a little of the said infusion to support 
the spirits & the eating of what apples you will after you’ve warmed
em a little time by carrying em in the pocket when you eat Eat
plenty of mustard with meat drink at night beer & ale warm’d
with red hot iron & mixt which quantity agrees with you use exercise in
the open air walking riding running with fasting in 3 or 4 days 
the stomach will be sharpen’d & return You may take hippocacuana
zfs in fine pouder drinking it abt 3 hours after dinner with a galn
of warm water for a vomit or more Take this vomit before the
infusion drink red mountain wine after the infusion has been try’d
2 or 3 days to strengthen the stomach. Do not drink till the meal
is ended Let the ordinary drink be beer & ale warm’d with 
an hot iron E. A. Go to bed at 1st after exercise that you may 
sleep & fast a good while. Leave off tobacco till the tone of the stomach
is rectify’d & made fit for a right digestion. Eat no bread
with the meat when the stomach is out of order Eat a little bit of
cinnamon or drink a little of the infusion. E. A. To cure belching the
stomach & bowels troubled with wind gripes or colic or to strengthen
the stomach & prevent em. Eat salt with almost every thing 
you eat as milk pottage, butter milk, meat, bread or bread & cheese 
bread & butter verjuice or vinegar with meat & with bacon & eggs
This method by squeezing sevil oranges in the drink will cure when 
the apothecaries drugs will not E.A. Let the bread be masline (middling
fat) 1st with barlys peck. Let the drink be generally good small
beer or beer & ale mixt avoid very strong ale as breeding gout
& stone, if you’d be healthfull E.A.
For the wind colic Rx bay berries in powder zfs cummin
seed zfs in powder in beer and ale and milk or broth this
quantity makes 10 dozes take it morn and night Tho: [Finch]


297)



(298
mouth or gums sore
Roast an egg very hard, take only the yolk mix it
with loaf sugar in pouder & salt to a salve, with which rub
your gums & places that are sore Mrs Mary Grene.
another Rx sp. of wind 1 d as much liquid laudanu as
will make it of a brown color Take a drop or 2 in the
mouth & hold the tongue to the sore places 2 or 3 times
in a day. E. A. another Beat sal prunel to fine pouder 
& rub a canker’d or sore mouth there with pretty often & 
it will cure it. The Rd Mr Chambers. Hold your own urine
often especially night & morning in the mouth & force it thro 
your teeth backwards & forwards It will cure the gums when sore
& often the toothach when 100 medicines have been try’d in vain.
E. A. 
a water for a sore mouth Rx ground
ivy (gill) woodbine leaves, red sage, columbine, rue, cinquefoyl
(i.e 5 leav’d grass.) ribwort or lesser plantane (quinquenervia)
& violet leaves each an equal quantity. put em into water a quart
boyl it to a pint Then strain & add thereto 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the
best vinegar six cloves a little roch allum, as much English hony
as will sweeten it. set it on the fire again. Let them boyl together
3 or 4 Pater noster whiles. Mrs Fr. Bickerton
another Rx Borax & loaf sugar of both in fine pouder
sifted an equal quantity mixt in fresh butter that never had
salt in it. Rx a fine clean rag tyed upon a [illegible] Rub the sore
places soundly therewith Take plantane water sweeten it with hony
of roses & wash the mouth immediately with it cold. ibid.
To cure a canker in the nose, mouth, throat or any defluction
of rheum in any pt of the head or face.
Rx ouyl of days one pennyworth mix it with as much pouder of
bole as will make it of a thickness to spred on London brown
paper of the bigness of half the palm of a great hand Lay
upon the opening of the head (viz the sutures) cutting off the
hair close or shaving it off first (p. 235.) ibid
Cankers in young childrens mouths.
Rx hot hogs dung new fallen put to it oyl of spike mix em well together
apply this in blew paper to the chin & forehead of the
child Mrs Frances Bickerton.



299)
Cankers or sore mouth in man or horse
Rx goosegrease rub it on the forehead, under the chin
& jaws you may disguise it with bole ibid.
another Boyl hony or treacle with 5 or 6 sage leaves & a good
piece of burnt allum in pouder Rub the sores with it. Mrs Finch.
The canker in the mouth
Pound yarrow & strain it mix the juice with live hony & burnt
allum Dress it as oft as there is occasion Mrs Caulton.
another Rx a bit of green copperas wrap it up in a wet paper 
put it in the fire (wood embers are best) till it is red hot Let it cool
pound it fine mix it with goose grease Cut the hair off the crown of
the head Lay it on. Mrs Caulton.
another good for frosts or sore mouths in children or men
Heat a large pr of tongs red hot lay a piece of alum between
the bit of the tongs abt the bigness of a hazelnut set abt 
a little spoonful of hony in a coffee dish then pinch the allum
as hard as you can & let the moisture drop into the hony stir when 
together & rub the gums 2 or 3 times a day therewith This never
failed Sister Margaret Boothby. Keep the remaining dry burnt
alum for any other use.
Aqua camphorata is good to heal sore gums & fasten & preserve the
tooth. E. A.
another Burn a piece of white bread as black as coal, then pound it
in a mortar to pouder rub the sore gums with it dry. This never fail’d Wm
Headly



(300



301)



(302
for a wen.
Rx the foot & loosen some dust on a mud floor
new swept & spit some fasting spittle on the dust
& work em together like mortar & apply it & let 
it dry on. Renew it every morning till the wen comes
out or is wasted or broken so that a core comes out
then heal it with any plaster This cured a wen as big
as a pea on Sister Boothby’s upper eyelid. It came out
& was well without doing any thing at it more. A
blister arose & when prickt there came out a thing
like a pearl Sister Boothby. another Rx black soap
& unquench’d lime p.e. mix em well together spread em upon sheeps
leather apply it to the wen or any hard node or swelling & it will 
consume away by degrees. p: 17 Dr [Lowes] Rx [ceipts] etc.
Mud wall & fasting spittle temper’d together cured a knob upon a childs
eye at Newtown Linford that many people believ’d it would have in time
turn’d to a wen. The child was kin to Joyce Gimson E.A.’s servt It wasted away


303)



(304
Foot-racing.
Put a wheat or oat straw in your mouth when you run. Daily
exercise at running strengthens your legs, & back & improves
your breath Rx Hips before they are rotten & peel em
when they are thoro red. Lay the peels in a pot til they rot, then put
to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot Keep it till Lady Day, It will
be extremely sharp. mix one tea spoonful of this vinegar with a little
butter eat it & you will never want breath when you run Take it when
you eat It prevents heartburn & stitches which often are the cause of
losing a race & procures a good appetite Dr Richd Pool mountebank.
The racers in Stafford-shire eat chiefly roast mutton
they step out as if they were paceing when they walk, & when 
they run up hill they take great steps & pull up more slowly.
Wm Wyat.


305)



(306
The headach
Salmon says he has perfectly cured diseases of the 
head & old headachs of near 20 yrs standing with 
pilulae lunares, The lunar or silver pills p. 281. Salmons
Dispensatory. Decr [725] E.A.’s head aked very violently & 
was cured by eating only butter’d wheat with a little salt 
in’t without sugar or spice or drinking after it that day.
E.A. M.A.’s head had aked 2 or 3 days caused by wind which was
caused by eating fat chine which would not digest She 
was cured by burning 4 or 5 spoonfuls of double aniseed
water with sugar & eating a dry toast of brown 
bread after it to strengthen the stomach & walking 
often up & down a room when coffee & water gruel had
bin try’d in vain Febr. 4 715. E. A. another Mr Jn Edwin
of Baggrave was troubled with a violent headach Mr Coltman
the apothecary with a lancet blooded him in the vein that
goes up abt the middle of his forehead, this bleeding with a
lancet was repeated sometime afterwards once again & 
it made a perfect cure. Mr Coltman says that leeches can
not effect the cure but you may try or shave the head
& you may set leeches thereon. E. A. another Rx Portugal snuff 
at the nose going to bed or any time keeping in the house. Anne
Tasie. In the yr 718 E. A. had a violent pain on the top or crown
of his head especially when every he cough’d or sneez’d. He aply’d Bents
salve, Hungary water etc. in vain; at last Dr T. H. order’d him to shave
the sore place & to apply an emplaster of W. Ditch spred on leather 
which cured him in abt a month E. A. The headach or any stuffing or 
pain in the head. Rx white helebore root in pouder as snuff at night a little
before bed time that you may not take cold. This cured Mrs Hewet 
of Stretton & a maid there of, that had a pain in her head which she thought 
incurable but it made here nose bleed. Sister M.A. another moisten
the end of the little finger with oyl of cloves & thrust it up one or both
nostrils Try one 1st. It will make you sneeze your nose run & sometimes
cause a stool. It revives the spirits E. A. Another oyntmt of
alabaster is a specific for all sorts of headachs anointed on the forehead
temples, nostrils, pulses, soles of the feet & testicles. Salmon’s Disp.
a violent headach. Rx the herb called vervain & hang it abt your neck
Mrs Caulton


307)
The course flower of rie put into a cloth & apply’d
to the head cures inveterate headaches & so apply’d is
good for mad people Pechey’s Herbal.
E.A.’s wife (formerly Mrs Mary Majer) having been troubled with 
an inveterate headach for a long succession of yrs Drs & family
medicines having been try’d in vain was at last cured by applying
leeches two to the little finger & betwixt the little finger
& fourth finger any where they wou’d suck & a third leach to 
the middle finger near the joynt of the hand They caused
the blood to flow plentifully She intermitted a week or so
days having an itching [illegible] there like a tetter or scurvy
she repeated the leaches & bleed again abt the said places then for
a week every night to kill the itch she apply’d hot linnen rags dipt 
in old human urine made as hot as she cou’d endure it & so cur’d
her headach & itching [illegible] which last formerly had troubled her
for many summers Mary Ashby. Headach Rx sp. nitri dulcis 20 
or 30 drops in beer (cold) If it is so violent as to cause a fever
then take 50 or 60 drops in beef a coffee dish full or more
Mr. Geo. Pochin of Wigston Magna. A pain in the head Rx
plantain pound it with the urine of the diseased. make a plaster
& bind it upon the temples Pater Meus G.A. another shave the top
of the head & lay 2 blistering plasters one after another 
upon the [sutors] spred upon allum leather the breadth of a 
mans hand each neither of em draw’d any blister Then apply 
a cabbage leaf. This cured Tho. Allen of [????esworth] pump maker that 
was almost [illegible] with it Tho. Allen.
The juice of the leaves & flowers of cowslips mixt with an equal quantity 
of red cows milk cured an inveterate headach, when other medicines
wou’d do no good. Pechey’s Dispensatory. You may try cowslip tea. E. A. 
Culpeper says vervain made into an oyntmt is a soveraign remedy
for old headaches as also frenzies. It clears the skin & causes 
a lovely colour. Vervain (varbena) is reckon’d a specific for pains of the
head from what causes soever they proceed. Pechey. The distill’d water is apply’d 
outwardly to the head & four ounces are taken inwardly with few drops
of sp. of salt. Forestus says he knew two who were cured of the headach, only
by hanging the green herb abt their necks when many other medicines were
used to no purpose ibid.
For the headach snuff up a little pellitory of Spain in fine
powder dry’d easeth the headach. Traveller
unguentum diaphompholigos smeared upon the temples
causes res & eases the headach. Salmons Disp.
Headach and sore eyes. spread a plaster of burgundy
pitch abt the bigness of an half crown upon a piece of 
leather and shave the hair of the mile of your head and
apply and in a little time you will find ease when you are
well. you may take it off probatum.



(308
The Headach
E. A. when 76 yrs old had a pain in his head so that he could
not lean upon his head & neck to turn himself in bed nor strain
when exonerating in the privy, nor stoops down low with his
head but he felt a violent pain in his head which he thought was
caused by sleeping frequently after dinner He cured himself
by tying a garter or a fillet or Manchester [bending] [illegible] once abt
his head before he slept in the day time, & every night it was
tyed fast round his night cap going a little above his neck 
round his forehead which kept the vapours from ascending
when bleeding in the jugular vein & in the forehead would
not cure. He was very seldom troubled with any pain
in his head till he was so old & used to sleep after dinner
Headach Rx bay salt cummin seeds fennel seeds p.a
pouder them by themselves then make them up with red
rose vinegar to a plaster spread it on sheeps leather apply 
it to the slope of the neck and renew it when it is dry
Mrs Dorothy Pickern.


309)



(310
The Rickets in children.
An oyntmt Rx red sage, mugwort, crosswort, comfry root
or leaves, rue, balm, clary, each mij Pound em with may butter
free from salt lbij or bores grease lbij work it over every third
day for nine days together or make it into 2 balls & work em over
then melt (but not boyl) & strain it thro a cloth or sive. Let it stand
a fortnight then refine it by melting & straining it again & it will 
keep a long time. anoint the child all over every night for a month
by the fire especially the back & joints. Let it wear the same
shirt a month Bury it under ground when you have done You may 
wear an old shirt when you begin to anoint. Richd Kirk of
Kt thorp near Loughborough, a farrier & Jn Put a traveller


311)



(312
A Rupture.
Rx aniseed & sweet fennel seed each in pouder zfs. juniper berries zi
roots of comfry dry, mouse ear each zi starch zi mix & take zij when
you go to bed in a draught of new milk. Ex emplastru ad herniam 
zi empl. ½ bole zfs oyl of myrtles or for want of it oyl of unripe
olives q.s. f. emplastru molle. applicatur ad partem Dr Smith Senior
of Coventry. Tho. Poyner of Blocksage, near Walsal a markt
town in Stafford shire 4 m. beyond Bromingham 18 m. from 
Coventry 6 or 10 m. from Adderston a famous steel truss maker as
any in England pr. 15 d per truss. Wm Proud a Quaker in 
Spon street in Coventry makes steel trusses at 3 s 6 d per
truss. Cranes bill al. doves-foot (Geranium) an herb, dry’d
twice a day dissolves congeal’d blood, glutinates & stops blood,
heals ulcers in the lungs. The pouder of it taken zi at a time in 
red wine 1st & last for 30 or 40 days together cures ruptures
more especially if it be mixt with the pouder of brown or grey red snails.
you may find em in cellars
The eggshel is more effectual. Salmon’s Dispensatory. Cover
the boulster of the truss with long wool pull’d soft or carded & 
it will prevent its chafing especially in hot weather E.A. The
root of rest-harrow (al. cammock) anonidis radix in pouder or 
the essence often taken is good to consume the fleshy rupture called
hernia carnosa & the blind piles Salmon’s Dispensatory.
an oyntmt for a rupture Rx cochineal pr 1 d i.e. zijfs boyl it in
a pint of the strongest & stalest ale the staler the better & let it
gently simmer till it is turn’d to an oyntmt anoint it warm on the 
swelling agt the fire laying the child on its back & putting up
the rupture. you need not used a truss. It knits & contracts the swelling
alone without any help besides what it receives from hartshorn.
It will cure them of a dozen yrs old unless they are born Bursten
Give this strengthening drink boyl hartshorn shavings zfs in a 
qt of new milk till it is thick Let the child drink it constantly & 
anoint every night by the fire till the child is well. a midwife of
Burton 2 m from Kettering in North shire cures a great many children by this Rx Jn
Put a traveller when you are to travel a journey shave or clip off
all the hair abt the rupture & apply empl. de minio spread broad
on leather It is better than diaculum It prevents & cures chafing & 
galling E. A. seasonable coition gives ease to men having a rupture 



313)
A rupture Rx the yolks of 12 eggs & fry em alone
in a frying pan till they are black the miles They must
first be roasted in hot wood embers till the yolks are blew &
very hard. They must be roasted for half an hour & fry’d for
half an hour anoint the oyl (which you must keep for use) in the
morning daily make a plaster of turpentine & diaculum cum gumi
melted together & wear a truss Rx syrup of knotgrass. Drink ale
avoid beer that is very small & going up stairs & riding on a hard
trotting horse. Ly pretty much upon a couch in the day time Rx
juniper berries no 12 or sp of juniper 3 or 4 drops in ale. It is
good to correct wind which often causes a rupture. Rx em for a week or 
longer avoid eating fat meat or fruit or any thing that is windy when 
a rupture comes by a fall it is hard to cure Sister Shukbrugh. you 
may buy oyl of eggs at the apothecaries.
Dr Ed. Green the mountebank his red salve to cure a rupture or corns
Rx bees wax six drams, rosin 2 drams turpentine 1 dram red lead in 
fine pouder half a dram melt em in to a little round cakes or rolls
spred it upon allum leather for a rupture He sells a cake abt as
big as a crown piece but thicker for 6 d This salve cured Jn
[Cater’s] son George of Blaby of a rupture when a great many noted
medicines had been try’d in vain. He was abt 4 or 5 yrs old.
Mr Penford & E. A. It cured for a little time but wou’d not make a perfect
cure
a medicine for a rupture Rx the seeds of parsly, gromwell,
& burdock each zi & cummin seed zi beat all these to fine
pouder Give as much as will lie on a shilling in any liquid
& wear a truss. S. S. 
Doringtons diet drink for a rupture caus’d
by wind. Boyl these things in strong ale (beer & ale E. A.) anniseed
cummin seed caraway seed liquorish pouder coriander seed sweet
fennel seed long pepper & grains of paradiec with a few springs of
old man (al ladslove al southern wood) when these are boyled to the
tast sweeten it with treacle. Let it boyl up strain it out & give it
to the child to drink at any time. You need not fear a [lark], but
if it shou’d happen leave it off 2 days & keep warm. S. A.
a plaster for a rupture or the falling of the womb. Rx Pitch of Spain 2 ou. aloes
succotine red wax henbane each 2 ou. pitch of [shippers], mastick,
incense, galbanu, oppoponax (moline opoponax) gum [srespin]
(al. sagapen) each 4 ou. S. S.
Rupture when the swelling chafes wash it with hot butter milk
& moisten a little fullers earth with water spred it on a 
brown paper or linnen cloth. Drink 20 or 30 drops of balsamu
capivi in a qr of a pint of beer & ale night or morn
Keep the body open Mr Orme apothecary
James Flude of Croft had a great swelling like a rupture in
the privy pts being abt 60 yrs of age. It swell’d & broke & ran 
vastly He was like to have died, but was cured byu making a 
poultice of rose cakes boyled in ale & apply’d as hot as he 
could bear it with a little hogs lard twice a day. It is an ext poultis
for the Kings Evil Sister Boothby.


(314
There is no cure for a rupture without a truss & constant
keeping up. Let the child’s head be always layd low. It must
not eat nor suck too much at a time to fill the rutpure apply
a poultis agt the fire made of oatmeal that is small some children
are cured by rolling with a swathe made of new holland, [illegible]
truss is best. Give a pouder of flag roots & knotgrass apply the
rupture plaster to the broken place. Eat comfry & eggs fry’d
sometimes comfry in gruel. It must be kept dry by drawing 
in fresh rags betwixt the truss & swelling. Some are broken at the
groin & navel too, Put it up at the groin & it will swell at the
navel. Sister Ekins.
Yarrow al milfoil is good for ruptures. Pechey & Millers Herbals.
The starting of the navel has been cured in many children with a
cataplasm made with wine & the herb sanicle & bound close on, comfry
bruis’d being applied to the small of the back at the same time
Pecheys Herbal
Rupture in children cured by a Quaker woman in Nottingham
Rx prepar’d coral in pouder as much as will lie on a silver [groat] twice a
a week & no oftener for a child 3 yrs old in the morning fasting in 
milk or milk pottage, or beer. Continue it for ½ a yr or longer
till the child is well applying emplastru ad herman to the swelling.
Let the child drink mallow leaves & roots boyl’d in water & 
strain’d, for its constant drink except in the mornings when it
drinks milk. It quenches thirst. This cured Mr Tho. Charlton’s
son Tho. of a rupture. Coral is a brown white Cos. Margt Maxlo.
The bark of [elms] boil’d in ale wort & apply’d is good for ruptures
& to consolidate wounds Miller. The water in the bladders on the
leaves of Elms (clears the skin being wash’d with it) helps [burstenness] in 
children clothes being wet in the water & apply’d, but a truss must be kept
on also. Pechey’s Herbal.
A plaster for a rupture by E. A. Rx empl. ad herniam some patch grease from
the currier melt em together to the consistence of a salve Rx it from the fire & 
with a spoon add sp. of wine in which a good deal of camphor has been dissolv’d
& stir it abt till it is cold then spred it upon leather This did no good.
Electuarium ad Hernias An electuary agt ruptures quincy Rx pulp of
comfrey root zfs conserve of red roses zi pouder of blood stone finely
[levigated] zij dragons blood zi sugar of lead & balsam of Peru each zfs 
oul of cinnamon gut vi syrup of coral q.s. so make all into a smoth electuary.
This is a great strengthen & therefore may so draw up & harden the
solids as to reduce ruptures & very much prevent em.
Emplastrum ad herniam Quincy Rx of the glue made with snake skins
boil’d in a lixivium of tartar 4 ou. blood stone sugar of lead burnt tin
each ziij ammoniacum dissolv’d in vinegar 3 ou. [illegible] prodigiously consume


315)
it in all kinds of ruptures but the hydrocele (ie hernia agnosa)
& he says it is an infallible remedy observing a proper dist, which
must be strengthening, restringent, & not breeding flatulences; & it must
be constantly wore with [the] bandage Quincy says mastick plaster
strengthens the reins & sprain’d & luxated parts Try it.
Dr Fullers pouder in an hernia
Rx Solomon’s seal & comfrey roots anniseeds each zi make a pouder
It doth good by expelling wind, easing pains & consolidating the parts
Let a small child take 15 gr. thrice a day Let grown persons Rx zfs or
[illegible] ij with a draught of decoction of yarrow or Dr Fuller’s styptic decoction
Dr Fuller says a cataplasm of baked turnips is
ext for a tumour of the scrotum.
E. A. had a violent fever October 729 (a very sickly time) which caused a tumour
near the scrotum, emplastru ad herniam & several other things with a good
truss were try’d in vain at last he dipt a linnen rag in camphorated
S.V. made very strong of the camphir & apply’d it with a truss & 
ty’d a fillet to the wast band of his breeches & ty’d it abt his neck
to keep em up & it took away all pain & made the tumour abate If 
once a day moistening the rag is the S.V. [illegible] give ease You must [do] it twice a day
found out by E.A. but it would not make a perfect cure
Dr Fullers electuary in a rupture
Rx conserve of St Jns wort flowers 1 ou. pulp of comfry root (baked
in an oven with sugar lain upon loin) zfs The stone haematites (reduced
with S.V. on a marble to an alcohol) zij dragons blood in drops zi.
Sugar of saturn, balsam of Peru each zfs oil of anniseed, of sweet 
fennel seed each 2 drops syrup of cora 1 ou. or q.s. The dose is 2 or 3 drams
Dr Fullers astringent foment for a rupture etc.
Rx oak bark 2 ou. pomegranate peel zfs balaustines, red roses dry’d each
mi boil in [illegible] 2 qts to 1 qt strain & add rough red wine ½ pint so there
may also be added alum zij or zfs It corrugates the [relax’d] [fibres]
strengthens their tone shuts up the external pores & straitens the
internal passages hinders the afflux of humours & repels them It is good
in the beginning of inflamations & in oedematous tumours vomiting,
diarrhoea, immoderate flux of the menses or haemorrhoids, falling out
of the womb or intestines & in ruptures, after the putting back of the
guts ibid
Dr Fullers plaster of balaustines. This elegant salve he says mightily 
corroborates & comforts the head, stomach abdomen & uterus It is good
for a rupture Rx galbanum strain’s zifs pouder’d mastick ziij 1 [ounce]
turpentine zfs hard pitch [illegible] ij work em together in a warm mortar adding
oil of mace 15 gr. pouder’d balaustines 45 gr. Bring all to a plaster artificially
Pomet says common spirit of salt that which is right & good is much used
in hernias apoplexies scurvy of the teeth & gum Dose is from 10 
to 20 or 30 drops in ale or beer & ale or in water
The decoction of the leaves & root of common mouse-ear (auricula muris) drunken 
doth cure & heal all wounds both inward & outward & also ruptures. R. D. & Pechey
says it stops fluxes, is vulnerary & cures childrens ruptures.
The round birthwort (aristolochia) is profitable for all such as are hurt or bursten
inwardly if it be given em to drink with water. R.D.


(316
To kill rats or mice
Rx crow figs at nux vomica (nuces vomica) Hold one at a time 
in a hand vice grate it with a rasp or a tin grater, but the other
is best abt 3 or 4 grated are enough to dress 2 or 3 barns or more
mix it with sugar of six pence per lb with a knife Then Rx good sack
[illegible] brandy & sheep water made of tobacco stalks or dust ratsbane 
& allum & water & salt It must have no brine in’t each a qr of a 
pint The sheep water makes em very thirsty aqua fortis 2 d malmsey 
wine ½ a pint pr 8 d Put the aq. fortis in to the bottle (made of glass
that will hold a qt) with a little sweet ale wort before it is mixt with 
hops Rats hate bitter things & love whatever tastes sweet Rx yellow
arsnic zii pr. 4 d white arsnic al. ratsbane zi pr. 2 d mercury sublimate
zfs pr. 4 d stibium pr. 3 d w. sugar candy zfs pounded with 
the w. arsnic Let all be pouder’d fine Put abt half of the
poysons & pouder to the liquids in the bottle & the rest mix with sugar
6 d per lb & liquor out of the bottle & the finest wheat flower till it 
is as thick as batter for pankakes or thicker that it will not run If it
runs you must add more flower spred it 8 or 9 inches in length
on the side piece & his breadth of the side piece on each side each 
barn & on the wall plates where the corn is below the wall plate
The more sorts & variety of poysons the better They deceive & kill
with more certainty The variety of scents tempts em to taste of it
as a novelty If they run upon it they naturally lick their feet
which kills em They drink & swell & die. They frequent the side trees
more than the wall plates. The Tatham of Enderby & a ratcatcher 
of Newport [Pagriel].
To kill mice mix crow figs grated to pouder with butter & hard
cheese scrap’d & put into a box with a hole at each end for
mice to in & out at so that no dog may get to the poyson,. ibid
Wm [Ellis] ratcatcher of [Scauby] where [illegible] Maltrop justice of
the peace lives 1 m ½ from [Brig] a market town in Lincoln shire
[illegible] [illegible] bate Rx the best baking apples that are of a pleasant pure
taste such as are the best for apple tarts pare & core em Put no sugar
to em weight abt lbfs in a pot after it comes hot out of the oven or
you may stew em in a sauce pan as you do for goose sauce
putting 3 or 4 spoonfuls of water to em (sugar doth harm in poyson
it offends the rats) Rx [roseacre] al [illegible] etc. yellow arnick 
ziiij in fine pouder stir it with a flat stick lay the quantity of a
pea or a horse bean on the wall plates or side [illegible] or spred it
where the runs look black They lick their feet & tayle both which
wipe off the dust & make the wood look black spred the medicine
abt 3 inches broad & abt 2 f long in a place that they cannot jump


317)
jump over it. You must not lay it where there is dust
there they do not come. where the cobwebs are broken
there they come. Rub it abt the holes on the inside on the thatch
If they lick their feet or tayls they die. Sometimes mix it with
mallow pair that is dead rotten Wm Ellis.
To kill rats. make a toast of wheaten bread, dip it in ale
strew it on white fine sugar Let em eat that. The next night
after they have eaten it make anew toast, dip it in ale strew
it on white ratsbane in fine pouder & upon that w. sugar. Take
away what they feed on to keep em hungry. This was lay’d in 
a chamber where their run was. Jn Randle of East Farnham in 
Northampton-shire kill’d 30 rats that he found dead the next day.
He was not troubled for 6 yrs after Yod may divide the toast
into 2 or 3 pts. The toasts were lay’d in March. White arsnick
has the least scent Wm Rost of Blaby.
The root of white helebore in pouder mixt with oat meal or sugar or apples
will kill rats Jn Dawson farrier of Leicer
A malster of Bitterswet drove rats quite away form his malt
house by burning brimstone & assafoetida Jn Mason E. A.’s t’nt.
To kill rats or mice or cats or dogs or hogs or any creature that eats it
Tho. Fardel gardiner of leicer
Rx currans pound or chop em fresh bane that has no salt in it [illegible] oatmeal
sifted with the fine flower brown sugar ratsbane[illegible] pouder mix & work it with a knife like paste, then
lay it in clean oyster shels or on a clean [illegible] board a little in a place where 
the rats haunt or come often. Lay 10 or 20 pieces or separate pts not all in 
one place. He bought ratsbane 2 d & kill’d 200 rats in one house at Harborow
Leicershire. Lay it where cats cannot come for they will eat it.
He lay’d it in 20 pts
another for Do. Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel Rx fresh butter that
has no salt in it mix it with the fine flower of oatmeal sifted mix white
arsnic with it in fine pouder. They will take white sooner than yellow arsnic
another Toast some new milk cheese or fat cream cheese a little to make it
smell a little piece abt the length from the middle joint of the middle finger
to the end crumble it like bread crumbs with white arsnic 2.9 or a [cake]
This kills all rats & mice take care to lay it where no hogs, dogs
cats or children come. You may put it into mice holes. Tho. Goode gardinr
another Roast some apples & mix the pap with some white arsenic & Rx
away all the chees if they be in a cheese chamber & lay it upon a board
one apple is enough for to kill one or 2 rats. The rats eat most of the
pap of an apple & ratsbane made very fine the 1st night lay’d by Ann
Queniborow of [A?ston] Liecershire
another mix [illegible] ratsbane with white sugar perhaps it may be a good
way to pound em in a mortar together Put in but a small quantity
of ratsbane to a good quantity of sugar Lay it in oyster
shels in malt houses of granaries This kill’d so many rats at
Rushden that they stank intolerably when dead. Cos. Tho. Ekins
or Jn [Dahm??] lay ½ ratsbane ½ oat meal on [illegible] [illegible] broken [illegible] ratsbane 1 d
in [illegible] or the [illegible] where the rats come on [illegible] pieces in [illegible] [illegible]
mix w. arsenic with loaf sugar Dr [Banker] 


(318
To set a rasor [a rasor or razor
novacula, culter tonsorius
Rub the stone clean with a cloth then pour a little 
oyl on’t not too much, if in the winter hold it on the 
hone agt the fire to dissolve then move the rasor lay’d
level & lightly on the hone turning it sometimes on
one side & sometimes on the other not observing to harm
or wear each side equally alike till towards the last
that you are preparing to give it a fine round edge which
is the best & most durable edge. The way to get a round
edge is this after you’ve whet the rasor as at 1st draw the 
edge cross the middle of the tumb & you’l feel it
rake agt the nail & move unsteadily which signifies
that the edge has nicks in’t or is threded than you must
whet it again as at st carelessly moving the rasor so that the
edge may move 1st & towards the body moving it round
till the edge lay’d lightly on the middle of the thumb nail
draws smooth without any rub. If it draws rough you must 
set it again & again till it draws smooth when it draws smooth
on the nail then you then you must give it a round edge You
must lean a little more upon the edge then on the back the
back not touching the hone turning it exactly on each side
alternately & draw the back 1st as you do when you set it
on a leather or strop then look with a pr of spectacles on 
each side of the edge of the rasor & you will discover
whether there is any thred on the edge if there is you must
set it again as you did last time for a round edge. At Sheffield
the Prentices when they are almost out of their time 
set rasors & use spectacles to discover the goodness of the 
rasors edge. when you use a strop or leather or hand you must
bear a little or most on the edge which makes the edge round 
& durable & takes off all threds. a hard hand is best It must
be clean & dry & free from oyl & grease. a hard hand is
better than leather If you rub it on the leather or strop, rub
it on the hand last viz the edge on the edge & fleshy pt
of the hand between the little finger & wrist. Let a bad rasor
lie by & be eaton with rust & it will improve it. Rust eats the 


319)
Soft & bad pt of the steel out rasor ginder a
traveller
How to set a rasor James Davis white smith of Croft
Let the back & heel of the rasor move 1st on the hone
laying the rasor flat & lean gently at the beginning & ‘
end of the movemt & heaviest in the middle of the 
movemt either on hone or leather or strop & sometimes
slide the point of the rasor up the stone 1st to the handle of
the rasor & so let the point move 1st back again, keeping the
rasor always flat This cross motion takes & keeps off the
thred well. The last movemt giveth the finest edge. You 
may move the edge 1st at last to finish the edge on the
hone if you will. move the edge of the rasor upon the
hone always 1st & at last move it cross ways i.e. letting
the heel & sometimes move 1st backwards & forwards 3 or 
4 times together Sometimes move the point 1st back wards
& forwards 3 or 4 times together Let the back of the
rasor always touch the hone 1st i.e. before the edge
touches it. you may move the back of the rasor 1st 
at 1st but you must finish the edge with the edge moving
1st on the hone. you must lean gently on the 
stone or leather when you are abt finishing the edge 
To finish an edge make short strokes or movemts at
last either on hone or leather
Oyl a strop or piece of calf’s leather so as to make it
drunk with oyl & oyl it as oft as you use it or grease
it 1st with soft grease at last with oyl. warm the leather
& work the grease in agt the fire till it will drink up
no more & the leather feels very limber & pliable The
older the leather the better a piece of leather like a boot 
garter is better than a strop fixt on wood. warm the leather
when you use it in cold weather Let the back & heel of the 
rasor move first on the leather st fro the left then back
again from the right hand to the left turning the side of
the rasor at the end of each movemt when you’ve done so 3 or 
4 times or often as you think convenient then move the
point & back of the rasor 1st from the left to the right & 
back again 3 or 4 times. move it sometimes with the point 



(320
1st sometimes with the heel 1st but conclude &
finish the edge with the point always 1st The 
leather gives a fine edge then the hone & must be
used after it always. when a rasor wants grinding
(i.e. when the edge will not bend lay’d side ways & prest on the 
thumbnail) tho you set it on the best hones & oyl’d leather
it will not have a good sharp edge to cut well ibid
Thomas Sheth the barber moves the rasor carelessly at
1st in a round motion with the edge first always turning it
lying on its back or the back touching the hone upon 
the turn after a little time he turns each side alternately
the edge moving always 1st but when he thinks he
has set it enough he moves the back 1st for a turn or
2 to take off the thred the back as well as edge always
touching the hone exactly alike except upon the
turn. But no hone will give a fine edge without a rub
or 2 upon an oyl’d leather or hand then you must hold
the back from the leather letting only the edge gently 
touch it alternately This takes off the thred & gives it
a fine smooth edge He commends a piece of buff
rub’d with the leather of the wash ball as the best leather
Richard Chapman barber at Leicer moves the edge of the
rasor always 1st (affirming that drawing the back 1st will not
set it or give it a good edge) he lays the rasor exactly flat
upon the hone so that the edge & back always touch the hone
& he leans equally upon both & equally on both sies he 
moves two strokes on each side before he turns the rasor & 
he says you may shave with a rasor set on an hone without rubbing
on a leather or hand but he generally rubs it on a strop
or buff belt He always scrapes the strop or leather with the
back of the rasor before he sets the edge on it to take off its
glaze or foulness whether it is caus’d by oyl or the leather
of the wash [ball] he makes his wash balls all of sope To set a
rasor on a strop or leather after you’ve scrap’d it clean with the
back keep the edge always to the leather never letting the back


321)
touch the leather & move the back always 1st
or you will cut the leather or strop This takes the
thred from the edge you may hold the middle of the
blade of the rasor in the hand while you 1st it on a
leather sometimes after grinding a rasor doth not come to 
a good edge till it has been on the hone 5 or 6 times Draw the 
rasor edge gently cross the thumbnail breadthwise to take
off the thred.
Burstal lutler & rasor grinder of Leicer that was apprentice
at Burmingham. Lay the rasor flat upon the hone
& move the edge forwards in a kind of a semicircle to 
each side the 1swt stroke for the point the 2nd for the heel
turn the rasor & repeat the same 2 strokes nimbly on the other side
the edge always moving 1st you must not lean at all upon the
rasor its own weight must set it & each side must be turn’d
equally alike that a true wail may go on both side the edge of
the rasor (tho E. A. has seen a good edge tho the wayl has bin bigger
on one side than the other) Burstal applys only the edge 
of the rasor to a strop or leather the back never touching it
he generally only rubs in on his leather apron a stroke or 2 to 
take off the thred. He can see a thred so he seldom draws it cross
his thumbnail. a soft hone is best because quickest but a 
hard hone gives the finest edge
E. A.’s little burnt hone with an hole at the end sets the finest
edge on a rasor of all his hones a London strop the glaze & 
dirt 1st scrap’d off with the back of the rasor gives the finest edge 
of all E. A.’s strops or leathers August 1st 718
when a rasor has a thick dull edge & has not been grun of a long
time. Put some paper abt the little end to h old it streight & steddy
then hold the rasor near the end of the handle without griping it 
hard & move it 10 times on one side (the edge moving forwards) & 
10 times on the other laying it very flat Repeat this 2 or 3 times
then move it 5 times, 4 times, thrice, twice, & once of a side then bear
it on the edge lightly, turning it every time & make it take up some
oyl all along the edge Try it on the hand when it cuts well then apply it
to the strop or leather & draw it gently on the strop bearing a little on
the edge one stroke on a side alternately July 719 E. A. You must bear 


(322
most on the edge of a penknife both on the hone & strop
E. A. To set a rasor move it on the hone with the edge first on 
both sides for a pretty while then draw the back forwards on both
sides alternately letting the edge touch the hone (strop or hand) as 
gently & lightly as ever you can move it thus a good time together
& it will lose its dull edge & put on a very fine smooth cutting
edge which will make it shave with pleasure. Lay the rasor flat to 
touch the hone or strop or hand both back & edge at once but bear
the edge gently let it touch as if it touched not. This is the mystery
of setting a rasor or penknife to carry em lightly (slowly or nimbly)
taking care that the edge touches always. whet the point of the rasor
most because it is most used. September 719. E. A. It is a material article
in setting a rasor to let the back of the rasor touch the hone or strop
first Br. S. A. To whet a rasor on the hand Lay it flat & lean gently 
at the beginning and end of each movemt & lean hard in the middle E.A.
To set a rasor on a strop or leather Lay it flat & draw that end of
the rasor that is next the handle always first turn it & let the back
move 1st always & lean very hard on the rasor on both sides or
turns or movemts with an equal hard pressure of the edge constantly 
agt the strop or leather E. A. This is the reason some men can
shave so long without setting a rasor on a hone ibid.
Sometimes this method will set a dull rasor well on a hone Let the
edge move 1st towards the body & lean lightly & let the edge return
1st back again leaning pretty hard. E. A.
To set a rasor the best way lay the rasor always flat upon the hone
with a gentle even pressure on both sides [illegible] upon the strop but on leather
or fleshy pt of the hand that will yield let only the edge of the rasor touch em the
back being always holden up pretty remote from em & move the rasor always from end to end Tho. Tafte & E. A.
lean hard on the hand or loose leather because they will [play] ibid.
another Rx a pretty long hone let one end rest on a table holding
the other obliquely & exalted with the hand then move the edge of
the rasor (lay’d flat) from the bottom of the hone to the top so that the
edge of the rasor may smooth & carry the oyl along with it apparently
to be seen on the edge Then on the edge of a table place the middle
of the hone & exalt the end of the hone remotest from the hand that
holds the hone & let the edge on the other side of the rasor move back
again ascending so that the edge may take oyl from the hone the rasor
being lay’d exactly flat The mutual elevation of the ends of 
the hone keeps the edge of the rasor always & truly to the hone E. A.
To set a rasor [half??] farmer rasor maker at Leicer Rx Three hones 
the first that you set the rasor on must be very soft & wear the
rasor pretty much the second must be somewhat harder than the 1st 
& the third must be the hardest of all to give the finest edge


323)
You must lean the hardest on the first hone
keeping the rasor always flat so that the back
& the edge may always touch & with an equal pressure
This you must do on all the hones only you must
lean lighter on the second hone than on the first & lightest
of all on the last fine hone that must have only the
weight of the rasor & then you need never use a strop
or leather You must make the rasor’s edge always
move first & turn it on the back that the other side
may return back again with the edge first The cutlers 
& rasor setters use only sevil oyl. always have plenty 
of oyl when you set a rasor on the hones or you can’t
set the rasor well. Let the hones lie on a tine square 
pan with a little edge & a little kind of a box in the
middle to receive the oyl cover’d with tin that has many 
holes in’t for the oyl to run thro. with this oyl the cutlers
oyl their shoes. when you let the rasor on the first 
hone after you’ve whet it a pretty while draw the edge
of the rasor gently agt the edge of the thumbnail whet it again
& do so a second time but no oftener on the 1st hone This takes off the
threds & prepares it for a fine edge Mr Halford farmer draws the
edge of the rasor down the edge of the left thumb during the
setting twice on the 2 first hones sometimes oftener seldom on 
the last hone It doth not dull the edge of the rasor It discovers
nicks & removes threds from the edge The smooth & pleasant running
of the edge of the rasor on the edge of the tumb declares
the goodness of the rasors edge The smoother it runs the better it
will cut. No barber or cutler can set a rasor with only one hone
to give it so sharp & durable an edge as he that sets it on three
hones of different degrees of hardness or softness.
when you are to set a dullish rasor move it 20 times on one side
all together & 20 times on the other all together on the hone
beginning at the point of the rasor whetting only an inch from
the point 1st then whet an inch further & so an inch till all the
rasor is whetted inch by inch 20 times on a side then whet it
10 times inch by inch on a side Lastly turn the rasor alternately 
& draw it the whole length from heel to point leaning gently 
on it move it so gentlhy that hyou may be sure to keep the rasor always 
flat the edge & back to touch exactly alike with the same
weight & pressure.
Rub a little oyl on the inside the edge of the hand after you’ve
set the rasor on the 3 hones drawing the back first on one side
then o n the other an inch at a time from the point laying the rasor
flat till you’ve whetted it inch by inch on both sides This gives the 


(324
rasor a sweet, fine strong pleasing edge much superior to any 
edge the hone can give E. A.
when you are to set a rasor after it is new ground lay it flat
& lean very lightly on the hone & lightly on the hand for
then the edge is thin when it h as been us’d a pretty while lean
a little harder on the rasor when the hone or hand Thomas
Tafte. To make any rasor or penknife cut with a fine edge
If the rasor is very dull let it be ground. If it does not want
grinding then lay it flat on the hone & move it the length
of the hone 1st on one side then on the other turning the rasor 
always on the back This whets both sides equally alike Then
begin at the point of the rasor & move only abt a barly corn’s
length downwards gradually till you come to the handle turning
it on the back alternately, the edge moving always 1st when you
have whetted down to the handle (which must hold the rasor fast with 
a piece of paper or rag) whet back again from the handle to 
the point turning on the back every barly corns length, leaning
lightly. Then whet it on the hand & finger moving the back always 
1st & leaning most on the edge a broad side at one movemt or stroke 
Lastly begin at the point & whet down gradually little by little
keeping the edge to the fleshy pt of the hand & turning the rasor
nimbly on both sides till you come to the handle & so whet it from
the handle to the point gradually back again letting only the edge touch
the hand gently all the time. when you’ve done thus then draw 
the edge on both sides gently agt the soft swelling flesh that
is on the back of the hand betwixt the thumb & forefinger when
squeez’d close together This gives the finest edge that a rasor is capable
of & brings the edge of a penknife to perfection E. A. You may 
get a smith or carpenter to whet the rasor on a hard hand & afterwards
you may whet it on your own soft hand or on a female
hand E. A.
Jn Hacket cutler of Melton Mowbray his way of setting a rasor
Put plenty of sallet oyl on the hone new oyl is better than old fasten the
small end of the rasor with a piece of paper to make it steddy then lay it
flat upon the hone & with a steddy hand without shaking or tattering
draw the rasor back that it may move 1st several times in a round 
motion from one end of the hone to the other almost leaning
very hard on a hone that is sharp & wears away the rasor pretty much
viz on a soft hone then turn the other side & move the back forward
several times in a round motion. Do thus again & again alternately
till it comes to an edge which you may know by trying it agt the skin of
your hand at the ball of hour forefinger Then hold the rasor almost perpendicular
a little on one side & scrape the edge of the handle
to the point agt the nail of the 2nd finger or thumb of the left hand 


325)
one way to thred or turn the edge all along one way
(moving the back always 1st threds the edge & moving
the edge 1st on the hone takes the thred & brings a fine edge
on) after you’ve thred the edge move the rasor lay’d flat
on the hone always 1st in a circular motion abt 6 storkes on
one side then lay it exactly flat again & move the edge on
the other side 1st abt 6 strokes in a circular motion & so alternately
till it is sharp Then upon the fine hard hone move the
edge 1st 3 or 4 strokes on a side Lastly sweeten & round the edge
on the fleshy pt of your left hand below your little finger turning
the edge mostly to the h and one stroke on one side & another on 
the other side vice versa leaning lightly on the hand. Lay the 
narrowest pt of the rasor next the handle flat upon the hone
draw the edge first towards your body the length of the hone
exalting the hand all the way gradually to the point of the rasor
Do the same thing back again the edge moving first from the handle
draw it along the hone to the point raising the rasor all the way & 
move it upon the very point sometimes on both sides This keeps the
edge of the rasor always to the hone & gives it the sweetest & most
durable edge Move the rasor so on the edge of the soft hand the back always
moving first & draw it from the heel to the point & exalting
the hand to make the heel of the rasor rise up gradually to the very point
you may try if the back of the rasor always moved first on the hone
does not finish an edge as well as the edge moving always first 
Thus finish a penknife by drawing it from the handle to the point
& make the stampt or markt end advance gradually to the point as
you draw it on the hone or hand or strop.
Let the rasor be never so well set when you trim if you do not gripe it
hard so as to hold it steddy it will quickly lose its edge
& not trim half so fast nor so close A loose way of holding it
makes it slide over the hair without cutting E.A.
To set a rasor (the best way) Lay it flat upon a hard fine hone
& move it backwards & forwards without turning taking care
to keep the edge to the hone (as well as the back) whetting only one
pt of the edge at a time Then turn the other side laying it flat
& move it forwards & backwards without turning 4 or 5 times together
at 1st leaning hardest at 1st at last turn it every movemt
on the back the edge moving 1st up & down leaning then very 
lightly E. A. Lay the hone flat upon a table laying a paper or rag 
under it to keep it steady. E. A. Jn Kendal a traveller his way to set a 
rasor Put a little oyl on the hone made very clean. Lay the rasor flat leaning
not very hard move the edge always first in a circular motion from 
one end of the hone to the other for a good while together Then remember
this for a rule that you always turn the rasor from the back as often as hyou 
turn it That preserves the edge very much which a little touch awry disturbs 
& dulls Then whet it as much on the other side after the same manner At last
turn it every movement the edge going first Rub it a little gently on your wrist
or hand. Hold a human hair between your left thumb and finger If the rasor will
cut it off a qr of an inch from the end of your thumb on any pt of the edge then the
edge is good. You may over hone a rasor i.e. make the edge too thin Thus whet a
penknife lay it flat move the edge first circularly Turn on the back whet a lancet circularly


(326
A finger prickt with a nail or pin
anoint it with oyl of turpentine or with oyl of 
turp. & goose grease & hold it agt the fire ready 
to burn it. Repeat this thrice in 24 hours. EA. another
almost scaled it in hot water after that squeeze out the
blood & apply Bents salve to’t or de minio. This will cure
a whitloe also. Anne Tasie.


327)



(328
Toe-nail eating into the flesh.
Cut the nail short on that side it eats into the flesh & 
moisten a little lint with tincture of myrrh & thrust
it betwixt the nail & flesh E. A. or cut off the offending
pt of the nail & dead flesh & moisten it with oyl of origanu 
with lint or without E.A. or mix Haines’s salve for a corn
or Dr Pool’s black salve with a little lint E. A. If these dry
too much put tallow to the sore to supple it. ibid. or put hony to 
a little lint and apply it E.A.




(330
nodes, knobs or hard swellings to dissolve.
anoint with oyl of origanum morning & evening, it will take
a splint away, but not presently or prick thro the skin with a 
needle fixt in a stick, in several places then rub oyl of peter
allover it & heat it with a hot fire shovel, do thus 4 or 5 days
together p. 264. The experienc’d farrier


331)



(332
Diabetes
Rx Balm of Gilead 5 or 6 drops in D.R.L. sugar night & morning
This cured a gentlewoman known to Mrs Lathwell.
The water at Bristol is ext to drink
The water in which quick lime has been slacked poured off when it
is clear & drank is an ext sweetener of the blood & is accounted
one of the best remedies in a diabetes Dr Quincy.
swelling in the cod or scrotum. Anoint with ointment of
marshmallows Thomas Mortimore of Narboro


333)
To set a penknife on a hone or to whet it
on a rag or other whetstone
Rx the penknife & hold the back towards you or the
edge upon the hone & whet the left i.e. the markt side
most, letting the edge & back lie flat & both touch the
hone or rag & now & then draw only the edge on the
right or contrary side on the hone to take off the thred 
not suffering the [illegible] at any time to touch the hone & on that
side this gives a round & durable edge Mr Jonathan Buckerfield
writing master & Cos. Tho. Boothby.
To give an ordinary knife as a butchers knife etc. a
fine edge to take off a sheep skin or to cut a feather
whet it upon a thrashold free from nails or a board
with ashes or smith scales This gives it a finer edge than 
a rag or any whetstone but a steel will give it a fine
edge but it is difficult to understand how to whet on
Jn Cater shepherd To whet a knife on a steel. move the
back always 1st taking care to turn the edge so that the edge may 
always touch on both sies 1st on one side then on the other & the
thicker & duller the edge the harder you must lean on it when the edge
is extraordinary thick whet it on a stare or thashold or board to 
thin it. Steel gives a fine edge. Some butchers can’t learn to whet
a knife on a steel some steels cost 3 s 6 d & some but 1 s 2 d Richd Brew
in Butcher
To whet a pen knife Halford farmers way who serv’d his
apprenticeship to a rasor make at London
Bear the back of the knife always from the hone that only the
edge may touch beginning with the point lay’d on the right side & 
push it forwards & backwards [illegible] length till you’ve whetted from the point down 
to the handle as if the knife was to creep down the hone then you must turn
the other side of the knife & move gradually backwards & forwards i.e. whet
it in a straight line to & fro with a short stroke from the handle to the point
again & so from the point to the handle & vice versa till you’ve made
the edge sharp. this short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
the edge sharp. This short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
sides touch the hone. when you’ve done thus then draw the edge after the
same way on the fleshy pt or edge of the hand whetting from the point
to the handle & from the handle to the point on the contrary side Lastly 
draw the edge gently on both sides agt the soft flesh that is on the back
side the hand betwixt the finger & thumb they being both prest together 
this gives the finest edge that is both to rasor & penknife. E.A.


(334
To fix a knife blade in a handle
Beat some brick to fine pouder on a stone or on another
brick with a hammer & bruise some rosin (black or yellow) to
a course pouder then put the pouders mixt (take most brick dust)
& fill the hollow of the handle then heat the tang of the blade
& twist it in to the bottom, as far as it can go Let it rest till
the next day then you may use it. Wm Davis white smith


335)



(336
Things that loosen the body when too costive
Eat one China orange whole viz peel, meat & seed It opens
& cools & is good to carry off gravel perhaps continued for
a week together they may help cure the scurvy E. A. oatmeal 
pudding posset drink especially with mallow leaves boyl’d in
it. new milk whey new made & warm Ride after It is
a great cleanser of the body after a purge or the bark
it carrys away gravel. Comfrey root dry’d & beaten to pouder
take night & morning Mr Traps. Lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d or
ziij mixt with conserve of (red) roses pr. 2 d or zvi Rx a knife’s
pointful night & morning It will gently open the body & is good
for a cough & consumption & a weak or decaying body.  This
cured Tho. Tafte a smith that cou’d scarce go a hightone. To keep
the body soluble. Rx common treacle a [hapworth] abt a spoonfuls
posset drink made of beer & ale as much as you can 
drink at a draught. Pater Meus. A gentle purge Rx sena zfs
rhubarb in pouder as much as will lie on a shilling, raisins of
the sun stoned no 40 fennel seeds & aniseeds bruis’d each
a spoonful, a stick of liquorish sliced, a rase of ginger slicd
abt 6 or 7 cloves. Boyl ale a qt. & scum it then put all
these things into it let em infuse all night Rx it at twice or
thrice ibid a violent cough. Mrs Catharine [Narolove] Rx Raysins
of the sun stoned zij brown sugar candy zi conserve of red roses
zfs spirit of vitriol gut. 12. Tincture of sulphur gut. 6 Beat all these
together into an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg night & morning & 
oftener if you have occasion Another scoop an hole in an apple 
(pretty large) to get out most of the core ift it with brown sugar 
candy & roast it stopping it with some of the same apple that the
scoop brought out, then mix it with clarret like apple & milk.
This cured Mrs Anna Maris Stokes after blooding Dr Cheselden.
A gentle purge Rx flower of brimstone abt ½ a spoonful put
it in a gally pot & just cover it with oyl of turpentine so let it
stand 24 hours or longer you may pour off the oyl if any will
run off for any other use Put the brimstone into a porringer
of new milk from the cow or boyl em together & drink it in
the morning fasting It will give you one stool or 2 E. A. It will
purge with only the oyl of turpentine E. A.
another which it reckon’d the best of purges & the best of medicines.
Hiera picra simplex. Rx cinnamon, mace assarabacca spikenard
mastick saffron each zvi alloes succotrine 12 ou ½ Beat em into fine 


337)
pouder & keep it for your use in a dry place.
Rx 1 ou. ½ of this pouder & put it into a pint of double
(single E.A) anniseed water Put it into a bottle & stop it close
& set it in the sun 10 days shaking it every day when you 
use it Pour off abt 1 ou. of the clear & take it going to bed or
after it S.S. Dr Salman says in affects of the stomach, mesentery, 
liver, womb, head & joynts it is exct if made into 
an electuary with clarified honey lbiv ziij. Dose a zij to iij in 
worm wood, rhenish wine with syrup of mugwort compound
& cure the green sickness. Dr Quincy says its bitterness hinders it
from being taken in the form of a bole & its quantity is too 
much for pills for 1 taking Its use now is only to make the 
tinctura sacra. E. A. thinks the tinctura sacra is best made
without Venice treacle or mithridate only with good w. wine
decanting off only the clear. To open the body Rx milk boyl 
it, add bread household or white cut smallish add ale a little, when
it is in the porringer stir it & eat it. you may take water in which 
maligo raysins have been steept 8 or 10 days without stalks
in stead of ale. E. A.
An ext purge to cleanse the bowels of slime & corruption
Rx Daffy’s elixir (made with single aniseed water) over night one 
spoonful the next morning take 2 spoonfuls mixt with sena zij
pr 3 d in very fine pouder sifted & abt a spoonful or 2 of common
treacle Repeat this intermitting a week betwixt purge & purge
thrice a dose for a man you may take less the 1st time This was found
out by E. A. Rx manna zfs fresh oyl if sweet almonds a sufficient 
quantity dissolve it add rosewater ten drops mix it Let children 
lick of this often to loosen their bellies when there is occasion Pecheys Herbal.
Manna is used to loosen the body 2 or 3 ou. of it being dissolv’d in 
broth or whey Tis a very gentle purge & may be safely given to old
men children & women with child A proper purge for children Rx manna
zifs dissolve it in black cherry water ziifs add to it f the purging syrup
of apple zi spirit of sulphur 3 drops. Half of it may be taken at a time
ibid If a purge doth not work in [3] hours after it is taken and to make it work
gently without griping. Boil some new milk with a sliced onion in it then Rx out
the onion & add the yolk of an egg & w. bread a little when it is off the fire, sweeten
it with treacle you may put in a little nutmeg E.A. via p. 338.
Mr Wm Freer of Blaby September 1730 had a looseness & after that a violent
costiveness with gripes which lasted a week purges that were strong would move 
him nor comon glyster at last Jn Smith of Do. made a suppository of alum 
& oil’d it & thrust it up his [illegible] then set his breech over a close in which 
was a good deal of hot water This gave him a little stool It was repeated
but produced no effect Mr Cook apothecary sent him a very long glyster 
[pipe] & a glyster made of milk oatmeal turpentine mixt with yolk of an
egg oil of turpentine a good quantity which gave him several stools which
smelt very strong of turpentine & he mended quickly


(338
To prevent a purge from griping
Quincy says oil of camomile is chiefly used to correct purges 
& it is sometimes given as a carminative in boles a drop or
2 at a dose * it does often suddenly remove those flatus’s which 
occasion stitches & pains of the side
Dr Fuller’s dispensatory says If powder’d crabs eyes be given
in water gruel during the operation of a purge ‘twill prevent 
griping p. 455. Dissolve a little flakey manna in beer ale or water
& mix it with your purge & it will prevent its griping E. A.


339)



(340
To dry up a sore, especially near a joynt
to prevent the joynt-water
Rx oyl of myrrh )not per deliquium) 3 d per dram or for want thereof tincture
of myrrh (but the oyl is 10 times better) & oyl of turpentine
p.e. mix em in the palm of your hand with haris fire or for want
thereof with lint or cotton & apply it to the sore or wound once 
dressing commonly cures Dr Pool mountebank.
How to dress & cure any sore.
Rx bees wax [4] ounces, (a groats worth) of turpentine horse turp. 3 ou. neatsfoot
oyl & hony of the 3 last a like quantity, but somewhat more 
of the wax than of any of the other things scrape the wax & set em
all on the fire Let em boyl a pretty while then pour em thro a 
course cloth into some clean vessel & put some water
to’t so you may keep it as long as you will
To make allum water Rx allum zij hony ziij sage leaves mij
boyl em in water 3 pints till one is wasted & the water is green
wash the sore well with this water warm after you’ve wash’d it
cast into the sore a good deal of loaf sugar Dress it morning
& evening & by the grace of God it will cure any sore that is
Geo. Ashby (Pater Meus) Mr Penford the apothecary syas sugar does
but little good it is not us’d by the surgeons pouder sugar pr. 8 d
per lb is best he says Venice turpentine is best for a sore but loaf
sugar double refin’d is best to keep down proud flesh because of the allum & lime E.A.
Mrs Davenport of Wigston Magna cured sore legs with this 
Rx following when many surgeons cou’d not.
Rx white vitriol frankincense, bean flower each 2 ounces bole
4 ou. in pouder Boyl em in spring water 3 quarts till a pint is consumed
dress the sore with the water as warm as new milk.
A rare water for a sore Rx camphir zij white copperas zij
beat em in a mortar together then boyl em together in an earthen
pot Let it stand till it be cold close stopt then take it out & 
beat it again with bole zi Then boyl spring water a qt. Put the
above named pouders into it stirring it till it be cold then bottle it
& keep it close stopt for your use. Pater Meus.
To dry up an obstinate sore in the leg Put quick lime lbs into an 
earthen pan or pot Pour upon it rain or river water 3 qts stir it together
when it is slack’d let it settle & decant all the clear water from 
the sedimt & if it is not perfectly clear filtrate it thro cup paper
To a pint of this water put abt [illegible] ij of corrosive sublimate more
or less according as you can bear it when you use it dip a linnen cloth 
2 or 3 times doubled in the water first shaking the bottle & apply it
to the pt affected as often as it grows dry. Dress the sore with this salve


341)
Salve, viz Rx linimt arcai zi basilicon zij mixt S.S.
Mrs Newlove of Blaby had a sore on her leg that the surgeons
could not cure till she took the Jesuits bark then it healed presently 
MRs Newlove
Clem. Brooks labourer of Blaby healed an old sore on his leg with only 
bees wax & butter p. e. boyled together when a great many healing salves 
were bafled & could not make a cure. C. B.
The itching of a sore or [illegible] wound dress it with the mercury lime water
p. 340. or with weapon salve i.e. bacon fry’d & the fat poured into 
water to extract the salt. E. A.
Dr Salmon says tar both drys & heals It draws worms out of the flesh.
It cures a broken skin It cures sores not easie to heal. Family Dictionary.
Widow Tasie of Newtown Linford had a running sore on her leg
with 4 holes in it 1) on the middle of the calf 2) on the skin etc. she
could not rest night nor day Jo. Warner (having marry’d her daughter)
the smith of Narborow, cured it thus. He made allu posset of new milk,
he wash’d it with the whey as hot as she cou’d endure it at night & lay’d
the posset curd on a cloth & that was apply’d to each sore as hot as
she coud abide it The next morning it was drest with unguentum [popul??]
warm’d & tents made of lint dipt in it & at noon with ung. popularum
That it was draft every night with allu posset & every day with the oyntmt 
at first twice a day because it run very much when the sores were dry he drest
em at last with only the oyntmt once a day in was cured in abt 6 weeks
& continues new very well She was then abt 75 yrs old. Jane Tasie.
He apply’d the oyntmt in the morn & again abt noon. ibid
To dry up a sore on the leg. Rx Solomons seal, the leaves, mij 
pound it & take the juice, grease or hogs lard free from salt,
the quantity of four walnuts, bees wax the quantity of 
two little nutmegs. Slice the wax & boyl em a pretty while to 
incorporate. This cured a travellers leg of a sore that had try’d
a great many Drs & surgeons in vain. Clem. Brooks & old
Ann Brooks another Drink cow piss, it has cured
a very sore leg. Drink it in May a good draught ½ a pint 
(or a pint if you can) 9 mornings together omit 9 days & 
drink it again. This cured a sore leg of a person that had spent
[illegible] among surgeons in vain. Sister Boothby. It hath cured 
the Kings Evil when these have been nine holes in one leg
when the surgeons cured the Evil It broke out again but
cow piss made a perfect cure Mrs Lathwell.
Br Geo. Ashby of Quenby had such a great swelling in his legs that 
the flesh did hang over his shoes He was cured by eating one clove
of garlic every morning fasting for a pretty while together G. A.



(342
To draw out a thorn. apply a plaster of turpentine
or Bents salve but these are mighty drawers & 
will not agree with all flesh sometimes they make the legs
swell & uneasie being strong drawers but this happens but
seldom but when it does or to take away the pain of a 
prick of a thorn mix oyl of turpentine & goose grease & 
anoint therewith then apply a plaster of diacutu simplex 
or the last may do alone. vid. The book of the cures
of horses by E. A. Jn Wood of Odeby had a great swelling on 
his hand caus’d by the prick of a thorn having tried many things in 
vain it was cured at last by oyntmt of marshmallows. Dr Hely
commends sope & the June bark of green elder mix together cold & 
apply’d plasterwise to a swelling caus’d by Do Mrs Basset commonly 
sp of wine for Do all these failed The king when the prick of a thorn 
caus’d a great swelling & numbness that he coul’d not bend his finger
It was cured at last by being cut open by a surgeon a plaster of Paracelsus T.K. Dr Salmon
commends emplastru stiticum a plaster agt puncutres, but says Paracelsus
plaster is better Dr Page of Lutterworth cut open T. kings finger to let out the 
congeal’d corruption It was healed with aqua aluminosa warme & cover’d with Paracelsus
savin mixt with hony will cleanse old foul ulcers & is effectual
in curing any running sores Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory.
A boy had a thorn in his thumb which he cou’d not extract. It was swel’d
as big as 3 mens thumbs. Currans & sallet oyl were pounded together in 
a morter to a salve & apply’d & it drew out a great core with the thorn
along with it. He liv’d in Warwickshire 6 m from Banbury Mrs Newlove
for a pricking with a thorn. Markham’s Rx
Stamp groundsel, soothe it with sweet milk till it be thick, then temper it with 
black sope & lay it to the sore.
Let ale be boyled to a salve or rather ale wort boyl’d to a salve then add turpentine
& a little oyl of turpentine & boyl em again This seldom fails drawing
out a thorn with a needle open the orifice abt the thorn I have known
when this has been apply’d 24 hours an emplaster of Bents salve has extracted
the thorn from a finger and so that it was easily pull’d out with a finger 
& thumb. E. A. 
for a pricking of a thorn
Rx violet leaves mi stamp em add wheat bran one handful & bears grease
al Browns grease as much as will make it a poltis when boyl’d apply it as
hot as you can endure it. The accomplisht ladys delight in Physick & Chirurgery.
To draw out a thorn or the like. Culpeper’s Last Legacy p. 222.
a little piece of the tongue of a fox (moisten’d & made soft with vinegar
if it be too dry) applied to the place, draws out a thorn or any thing else
that is gotten deep into the flesh another ibid. Snails with shells or without
beaten with rennet & applied plasterwise will draw out any thorn
or any thing else that is gotten never so deep into the flesh. ibid



343)
To pull out a thorn, splinter, or shiver.
If it may be seen pull it out with a pair of nippers or pick it out with a needle. But if
there be such a swelling that it can’t be seen then Rx wormwood. Pellitory
of the wall, bearsfoot, hogs grease & hony boil em & apply em
as a poltis or plaster, very hot. It is an ext remedy for any swelling
also. So is wine lees, wheat flour & cummin seed bruised & boyl’d together
& when it is at a head lance it. The epistomy of this art of this can dry
To draw out a thorn
Rx a little black soup & chew some nut kernels to mix with the soap & lay it
on the place grieved repeat it till the thorn comes out & you find [ease]. p. 62.
a collection of Rxs in Physick & Surgery.
Some lay gum ammoniack al. ammoniacum in a suppurative & that
it will of itself draw out thorns or splinters Quincy
another Rx Black soap & Venice turpentine perhaps horse turpentine may 
do p.e. mix & work em together near the fire to make em incorporate
Henry Watkinson cow [illegible] of Leicer
Geo. Brooks of Blaby had a thorn struck into one of the sinews or guides
of his finger on the back of his hand It was swell’d very much & pain’d
him mightily having been in a long time Jn Smith the blacksmith there
cured him thus He let him blood on the contrary arm to cool his body & 
to prevent humours flowing to the sore then he cut off the head of the
swelling but could not see the thorn he dry’d up the blood which was but little & rub’d on it
some tincture of myrrh having made a hollow placed with this [lancet] & put some into the place where the thorn was
then he put a little dry [illegible] verdigrise in fine pouder & cover’d it with emplastru
de minio It put him to violent pain The tincture of myrrh which he pourde into the 
hollow place made the verdigrise take more effectually & corrected in some degree its 
corrosive quality It lay on abt 2 days ½ He was resolv’d it should lie on till it
cored the thorn out which it did at last with a great piece of flesh & the thorn sticking
at the end of it then he healed it with his green salve leaving out rosin & tar
& putting in hony & camphorate sp. of wine & a little tincture of myrrh which last
was only used once or twice J. Smith G. B’s hand was poultis’d often before Jn Smith undertook
Jn Knight E. A’s shepherd had a thorn pretty long struck into the fleshy pt of his
thumb Mr Coy cut the skin upon & with a needle pickt out the thorn then he heated
some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon & poured a drop or 2 into the sore
place as hot as he could abide it & wrapt a linnen rag abt it & it was well without
doing any thing more at it at one dressing.
Galbanum doth mollifie & soften & draweth forth thorns, splinters or shivers & cold humours
& is good to be lay’d on all cold tumours & swellings, & it is mixt with all ointmts oils
& plasters that have power or virtue to warm, to digest, to dissolve, to ripen & break [impos???]
& to draw out thorns & splinters R.D.
Birthwort (aristolochia) draweth forth splinters of broken bones, shafts & 
darts, thorns if it be lay’d to the place with pitch or rosin. [illegible] & R. D.
Elizth Hurst E. A’s servt. Apr. 1730 had a thorn struck into her ancle as
she was burning em at a wood fire E. A. could not perceive with a needle that
the thorn remain’d in the ancle but it was a violent pain to her he drest
it with oil of turpentine made very hot & apply’d empl. adhesivum which 
sticks & draws that gave her ease for the present but after an hour or 2 the 
pain return’d, she thought the plaster drew too much It was taken off & drest
with tincture of myrrh & the Italian plaster (a sort of diaculum) that gives cure to a
corn was rub’d with tinct of myrrh & apply’d in vain She went lame at night the ancle
was [rub’d] with oil of turpentine a long time & [illegible] moisten’d in the same [was] lay’d on’t It cured it



(344
To catch moles.
Take a live mole (he or she) sew up the arsehole or anus
with a strong brown thread & put her into the run in the
ground again & she will firk & hunt all the molse out of
the ground which you may easily kill Carter mole catcher & rat
catcher


345)



(346
To provoke sweat.
Rx strong ale a qt or better one nutmeg grated common treacle
lbfs boyl em & drink it al thrice in 3 hours very warm
in bed laying a good many cloaths on you at night or you
may sweat in the morning. You must keep warm one day
after sweating lest you catch cold This try’d but once cured 
Jn Smith of Blaby of a great cold & pain in his thigh.
Jn Smith & Rd Mr Stokes. another Rx a two arm’d cane-chair
& fix a flat pewter or tin callander under the bottom of
it then put into a mortar Fr. brandy a qt having a good fire
in the chimny strip your self stark naked & cover your body & 
head in a blanket [ayred] sit over this brandy set on fire under
the chair & have cloaths to rub you with having brandy or 
cordial waters ready to take when you faint away you may drink
rosemary or sage posset drink made with ale during the sweating
This cured Mr Johnson (the father of Jn Ashby’s wife) of sore
eyes & blindness having been dark for 3 months caused by 
a cold taken by lying in a ground room at Roterdam
where the water came into his bed English Dr & Mrs Ashby.
Carduus is used commonly in posset drink to promote sweating,
& by taking a large quantity the stomach is cleansed by vomiting [illegible]
contrayerva called drakena radix from Sr Francis Drake, is an ext remedy 
agt all poyson except sublimate. It expels worms & cures agues.
This is a sweating medicine & expels malignity. Rx of the pouder of the
roots of contrayerva, Virginian snakeweed, & butter-bur each zi of
cochineal & saffron each zfs mix em & make a pouder The dose is zfs in 
sage posset drink or treacle water or any other convenient vehicle. Pechey’s Herbal
To promote a sweat.
Rx sp. of sal armoniac per se gut 28 or 30 in a glass of any wine,
not in ale. It is better than antimonium diaphoreticum Mr Banker
another Rx antimonium diaphoreticum gr. 4 or 5 mixt with Venice
treacle zi or zifs pr. 1 d at night going to bed cover’d with a weight 
of cloaths with out drinking any thing. The next morning eat
& drink what you will. ibid. Quincy says diaphoretic antimony, may be
given from zfs to zfs at a dose & may be repeated 2 or 3 times in a day
for several days together without hurt. It must be kept close from the air
or it will be emetick. It is given [with] alexiphas [micks] in malignant fevers & 
in the small pox & measles & also in scorbutic & venereal diseases to sweeten 
& cleanse the blood. Febry 1729. My Sister Boothby by having a fever with 
a rash had this compound cordial draught with [gasromis] powder p’scrib’d
her by Dr Cheselden to promote a sweat pr 1 s 6 d Mr Orme appothecary


347)
Rx milk-water treacle water each zifs [illegible] powder [illegible] fs sp:
of lavender 15 drops, syrup of balsam ziii mix & make it into a draught
to promote a sweat.
To cause a man to sweat Let a man take surfeit [illegible]
made with poppies & distill’d from aniseed [illegible] with liquorish [illegible] 3 or 4 
spoonfulls being drank at night with 2 thirds of an ounce of
Venice treacle or methridate going to bed or in bed covering him
self warm. Sister Boothby. A gentlewoman that lived to four [illegible]
every night going to bed drank a spoon full or 2 of 
surfeit water made of poppies for a great many yrs together Sister
Boothby
Dr Cheshire says opium & its preparations in any 
form promotes the operations of sudorificks, rarefies
the blood, allays pains & makes remedies less offensive
to weak & decay’d stomachs: Tho’ I would not be understood 
always to encourage the administration of this
sovereign article to all patients indifferently since I
know that even one drop of laud. liq. given to some
persons shall bring on convulsions & violently 
affect the nervs that periodical histerick disorders 
shall be excited for many days. And under the miserable
circumstances nothing is of more expeditious & 
certain relief than blisters & cupping with scarification 
with a glass of mint=water with 30 drops of 
tincture castor, russ & xv spt. salis. volat. [oleof.] at
proper intervals. If the pains are so very sharp as to 
prevent sleep at night 20 drops of Sydenham’s liquid
laudanum may be taken in a glass of sack or [palm???].
If 20 drops should not be sufficient to procure
rest an advance may be made to 25 or 30 drops at
discretion. But one great inconveniency, which attends
the repeated use of opiates is a loss of appetite;
a misfortune which should if possable be guarded agt
To provoke a sweat to cure a pain in the bones or cold or cough Rx syrup
of saffron 3 d treacle water 3 d when you begin to sweat drink sage
tea white wine possett drink or sack whey. Mr Simon Stokes of [Hinckly]
from Sr Hans [Slone].






(350
a preparation of steel
Rx white wine a qt filings of steel zij (Fuller says 
those of iron are much better) cinnamon zi Rd Mr
Ed Stokes. The dose is 3 spoonfuls when 1st prepar’d
when old take a less quantity in beer, ale or posset
drink ibid


351)



(352
Deafness or ear pained.
Pound the leaves of gill squeeze out the juice then take the most
reezed bacon you can get, toast it agt the fire let it drop
into the juice so that you must have a little more juice than
fat then heat & stir em well together At night going to bed, lie
on the contrary ear & having melted the medicine let 2 or 3 
drops be dropt into the pain’d or deaf ear putting a little black
wool new pull’d from a sheeps belly & moisten’d a little with the
oyntmt be cram’d into the ear, wear it 2 or 3 days repeat it
twice if the ear is not cured It will fetch out ear-was & 
blood This cured Mrs Mason by a Dr at Stamford pr. 2 [guins]
This cured also Nicholas Tasie of Sheepshead N.T. another oyl of
fennel seed dropt in to the ears helps deafness. Salmon’s disp
The almonds of the ears swell’d Rx saffron 2 d lay it on the
hearth to dry & rub it to pouder mix [well] it with as much crown sope
as the quantity of 2 hasel-nuts with a knife, lay it from the root of
the ear to the throat spred on a bit of allum’d leather Mrs Caulton
Rulandus’s balsam of sulphur eases pains in the ears if dropt
into them. Salmon’s Disp. Deafness Rx Black wool from a live
sheeps belly or cod heat a drop or 2 of brandy in a spoon & dip 
the wool in it & put it into the deaf ear as the wool drys moisten it
again once or twice a day & wear it 2 or 3 weeks or longer till well
This cured Jn Coter shepherd after a great many medicines had been 
try’d in vain. Ann Tasie. Cold brandy will disorder the head & oyl
of bitter almonds tho good when heated, used cold often make the
hearing worse. E. A
A pain or noise in the ear Rx a little wool or an old linnen rag
moisten it with oyl of turpentine, you may tie a thred to it to pull
it out by. Thrust it into the year at night going to bed. you may 
take it out when well. Take care of catching cold after it. This cured
Mrs Catherine Newlove & Ann Tasie.
Spirit of castor mixt with oyl of amber & oyl of ben of each
a like quantity helps deafness & thick hearing Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The almonds of the ears swell’d Lay melilot plaster on 
the crown of the head shaved it helps to draw em drink Jews ears
boild in milk very hot stroke them up with your hands Mrs
Eliz Brown of Leicer Ear pain’d Dip some black wool now pul’d from the
sheep in a little aq vita or brandy warm’d in a spoon put it into the ear at night
when you are in bed & ly on the contrary ear Mrs Brown of Leicer


353)
Mr Jn Simson’s wife going crazd swallowd a brass thimble the
open end downwards it stuck in her throat Mr Wilks [surgeon] got it out
with an instrumt but she dy’d the next day Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer


(354
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh
Augt 718 E. A. had a corn cut out with a lancet by a mountebank
which taken up by the roots & cured by one plaster but he cut another
corn on the outside that toe which is next the little toe & half
the corn was left behind when the remainder was drawn out by 
a slave there bred a fungus E. A. try’d sope & the inner rind of 
elder another time mercury sublimate mix with unguentu dialthaea
which tho it lay on but 3 or 4 hours corroded the sore * made it look
black & caused a great pain to ease which E. A. ty’d on fat bacon & 
sometimes ung. dialthaea but it was made easie by Dr Bowles’s
family salve but the fungus was not remov’d (precipitate & 
honey did good) till a feather cut sharp at the point was moisten’d with
clear oyl of vitriol (not that which was black) & streak’d on the fungus & 
a plaster of family salve lay’d on’t which was done twice or thrice
once a day which clear’d the fungus & heal’d it It was touch’d with vitriol 
stone till it look’d blew which caus’d a great pain but wou’d not stir
or diminish the fungus sp. v. & oyl of vitriol wou’d move the fungus
E. A. Scald it with basilicon clip or cut it Mr Cook apothecary mix praecipitate
& burnt allum p.e. with basilicon dress it morn & night E. A
If you once miss dressing till it is clearly eradicated it will grow
foul & encrease again E. A. another bath it with allum posset whey 
very warm with a rag & lay the curd on a cloth & strew on the curd
burnt allum & apply it warm Let it lie on 24 hours. It will keep 
down any proud flesh or strew on diaculum burnt allu Tho. Freer
blacksmith of Desford & Ann Tasie.
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh or to core
out a quitter bone or a great crak in a horses heel
or [illegible] out a core
Rx horse turpentine put it in a pot set it near the fire 
to melt then add some fr. verdigrise in fine pouder
mix ‘em till they are of a fine green colour. Let it lie
on 24 hours or 30 till it cores out clear If you apply 
it to a horse for a crack bind it on with flax [hards]
& beggars [inkle] after it has lay on one night you 
may work the horse at plow when the core is come out
wash it with verjuice Tho. Tafte blacksmith & farrier
another To bring out a core or thick gummy, glewy white corruption
that sticks fast to a sore that often happens to the thumbs or
ends of the fingers & often near their guides that contract 
em They are a sort of sitfasts
Rx flax hards at the end of a [scourer] or probe twisted round it & turn
it round the callous substance it will lick off corruption better than dry
lint or cotton then put some fresh verdigrise in fine pouder a little 


355)
at a time into clean writing paper that is ript in the middle so
that you may shake as much over the core or fungus as will lightly
& thinly cover it Then lay some dry lint upon it & ty a clean rag
over that so let it rest 48 hours or longer till the core or fungus will 
come out clear tho it pains you all the time very much that you can’t sleep 
a nights It is most painful at 1st mixing it with any ointmt or salve destroys its
detersive & loosening virtue Jn Smith black smith & farrier of Blaby
Detersive medicines, medicamenta detersive detersonia such as cleanse the body or a
sore from viscous humours. They are us’d in ulcers that have any fungus, callosity
or any luxuriant flesh in em, which is an impedimt to their cure & when this is taken
away the common balsamicks, digestives, sarcoticks & cicatrizes are to be us’d.
Dr Radcliff’s detersives. agyptiacum ung. apostolorum aq. phagedenica (ex
aq. calc. cum mercur: sublimate mist. Rx crude alum, verdigrease each zij
boil em in 18 ou. of wine make a decoction. Rx white vitriol 2 out. alum, verdigrease
each zij strong vinegar 3 ou. calcine em make a pouder make it up with
unguentum agyptiacum into an ointmt Rx burnt alum zi basilicon q.s. make an
ointmt Rx red precipitate zfs compound ointmt of basilicon q.s. make an ointmt
vid Pharmacopoeia Radcliffiana p. 380.
Precipitate in pouder & dropt on a core or fungus dry & then cover’d with
dry lint will loosen & cleanse it, it is much better & more powerful than burnt
alum. Mr Peter Cheselden surgeon & Mr Coltman apothecary & surgeon for a slight
core or fungus you may mix it with basilicon.
Peak of Keam in Leicershire a famous farrier used nothing but oil 
of origanum to dislodge a fungus or root out a core Dr Cheselden  sometimes
he mixt [illegible] aq. fortis or oil of vitriol with it oil of origanum [qualified] [illegible] [illegible]
Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel says pour basilicon boiling hot on a 
fungur or sitfast & it will core it out if it does not loosen it in 4 or 5 
days you must repeat it It must be us’d thus only to horse flesh, it will be 
too severe for humane flesh to endure
Euphorbium is very useful in surgery in cleansing very foul ulcers & 
exfoliating of carious bones Quincy Rx euphorbium zfs in pouder boil
it in 3 ou. of oil of turpentine then take it off & add [20] drops of oil of
vitriol boil it agn till it is a deep brown colour. Pour off the clear & keep
it close stopt moisten the fungus with it & heat in with a hot iron Try 
this whether it will loosen & cleanse E. A.
Dr Salmon’s pouder for ulcers & to remove a fungus
Rx scammony in pouder 4 ou. aloes in pouder 2 ou. coloquintida in pouder 1 ou.
mix em. It is a powerful thing for the curing of ulcers It diminishes their heat,
drys up their superfluous humidities, quels their cancerous malignity & eases
their pain. It cleanses even contumacious ulcers, as also wounds, removes a fungus
as also dead flesh from them & disposes them to a speedy healing [Ars] Chirurgica
p. 320.
To take off a fungus Rx. basilicon the quantity of a hazelnut oil of turpentine
abt ½ a tea spoonful melt em in a spoon & apply it as hot as
the patient can endure it, if the fungus does not loosen, strew on some 
burn alum in pouder then apply basilicon & oil of turp. Joyce Gimson they
cured Jn Hewets shin hurt by iron [geers] on horseback an unlucky marl carrying
him among a team of horses


(356
Goody Mason of Leir gets off a fungus with her red lead salve done
on as hot as the patient can endure it (but not to scald) & apply’d for a 
long time if that does not do she strews on it burnt alum in pouder dry 
then covers it with her r. lead salve but if burnt alum is not strong enough
then she beats raw alum to pouder & strew’d that on that causes a great pain few
man can endure it above 6 hours, dry burnt alum is painful but not so bad
as the raw alum. You may try raw alum mixt with basilicon & oil of turpentine. 
This red salve mixt with butter that has no salt in it in time will loosen a fungus
keep down all proud flesh from breeding in a sore.
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh burn oyster shels in a 
very hot fire the hotter the better as in a fire of charcoal, sea coal or a 
smith’s fire burn em twice makes em he stronger then beat em to pouder & 
strew a little dry on a fungus or proud flesh & it will eat it away without pain 
It is stronger than lime. It is very probable Goody Blackhorn of Armsby uses
this who is famous for curing sores. Robt Watherig farrier of Burbache.
for a wound or old sore. Br S. A. heat oil of turp. till it begins to smoke
then Rx it from the fire or it will take fire put it into an orifice of a wound or
sore almost scalding hot. It loosens cak’d corruption or a fungus it reaches
to the bottom & cleans a sore
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh or a sitfast
(Goody Ann Blackhorn of Arnsby) without pain.
Rx some oyster shells new are best, scrape & wash em very clean then
steep em in aqua vitae 24 hours or longer then lay em upon wood embers
till they are red hot or very well burnt then take em out of the 
fire & when cold scrape off the outside & pound the remainder to 
pouder which keep in a glass close stopt when you’ve occasion strew a 
little on the sore or fungus or proud flesh & it will clean the sore without 
paining the patient. This & Goody Blackhorn’s salve cured Sam.
Exon’s finger when cut with an axe to the bone & was foul in a little time. She said
dressing the finger end where it was cut with only sp. of wine camphorated
or with spirits would make the finger end drop off.
Richd Brewin butcher of Blaby cut one of his middle fingers to the
bone with a hook carrying it in his hands behind him in harvest time
in the yr 1730 It bled most violently It was stopt by letting the blood 
drop upon r. vitriol in pouder in a pot which stopt the bleeding immediately
& it was cured with E. A.’s red lead salve melted with a little may butter
that never had salt in it hot oil of turpentine would not stop the bleeding 
It never ran any corruption or but very little & 3 plasters cured it
tho the guide of the finger was cut he sometimes put his h and into 
the warm bowels of a sheep new kill’d cured by E. A.


357)


(358
The bleeding piles.
Rx sp. of sulphur 6 or 8 drops in a little sugar every night
when you go to bed till well. Mrs Caulton 2 or 3 times taking
cures ibid
To cure all sorts of piles, if they be never so bad.
Rx houseleek mi skin the leaves, then put them in a pint of
claret. Let em infuse an hour or more by the fire being covered
close. You must beat the houseleek well in a bole
or marble mortar before you put it to the clarret when it hath
infused put it in a close-stool or pot very hot & sit close over
it keeping in all the steam, 2 or 3 times a day till well. Take care
to keep yourself warm that you do not get cold after it. This cures
for ever says Mrs Caulton. The piles Rx the root or leaf or crocus i.e.
the bigger sort of [crowflower] mi pound it in may butter & make
it into a ball Let it stand a fortnight. work it inside outside once in 
2 days then melt & strain & keep it for use. It takes off the pain & swelling 
anointing every night Jn Put a traveller from Rowel. It will blister [illegible] another a gentm
that had been long troubled with piles suppos’d to be caus’d by the
costiveness of his body was advis’d by his Dr to smoke betony 
& swallow his spittle & to lessen the nauseousness he us’d to
put an innocent lozenge in to his mouth which dissolving
there carry’d the spittle into his stomach which open’d
& cool’d his body & cured his piles Rd Mr Ed. Stokes.
another Bath the fundamt evening & morning with linseed 
oul for the piles. Pater Meus. another Rx Box mi boyl it in a pint of 
milk & drink it in the morning You may continue drinking it as long
as you please. S. S. April 1722 E. A. had the piles, he thought
they were caused by drinking cold water when he had a great cold or by 
violently coughing or by eating plenty of sweet things in order to 
cure his cough. E. A. It might be caus’d by riding much.
Mrs Dorothy Boothby of [Retters] Marston her pile oyntmt
Rx mullen, sage, plantane, grounsel each mi boyle em in fresh butter lbi
a pretty while, then strain & stir it till cool. Sister Boothby.
In April 1722 E. A. having the piles found benefit by oyl of turp.
& goose grease when sp. v made too strong of oyl of vitriol would do
no good but oyl of turp. & crab verjuice with a little tincture
of myrrh made without aloes did more good. Such tincture of 
myrrh alone did much good This oyntmt did most good of
all E. A.’s medicines. Rx sope horse turpentine, hony, train oyl, tincture
of myrrh & as much Jamaica pepper in fine pouder as will bring 


359)
is to the consistence of an oyntmt after it has
been made 3 or 4 weeks beat it with a knife or flat
stick in the pot if you have room or on a trancher or marble
or slate & the sope will readily dissolve & be indiscernable
first dip your middle finger in oyl of turp. & verjuice with 
which moisten the outside of the piles & the inside of the anus. stay 
a little time for that to operate then dip the said finger in the brown
oyntmt & moisten the piles & anus within & 2 or 3 times a day without drinking
milk, in which flower of brimstone has been boyled, once or twice
a day. This oyntmt was found out for the piles by E. A. & 
made a cure when oyntmt of mullein sold by the apothecaries Venice
treacle & grease ol. succini, liquid laudanu unguentu populeum 
sal armoniac prescrib’d by Mr Clowes apothecary woud do no
service.
Anthony Daffy’s elixir salutis has cured the piles when given over
a incurable says Daffy’s printed paper Let the first dose be one
spoonful over night & another at uprising in the morning & so let
the dose be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if your strength will
permit till it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to 
exceed, use exercise after it Rx a mess of broth or something warm
an hour after the morning dose. Leave off taking if you find any 
inconvenience
To prevent the pile. anoint sometimes especially when you are to ride with 
mullen oyntmt E. A.
The gravel or piles or when both come together Rx sperma ceti 
sal prunel each zi flower of brimstone zifs pound em together & 
mix em well together Divide it into 9 parts Rx 1 night & morning Mrs
Caulton. A salve for the piles Rx May butter unsalted
clarifie it in the sun taking form it the milk. Rx some of it some 
virgins was boyl em then put in a little lump of sugar double refin’d
dissolv’d in rose water when it is cold put it into a pot you may keep
it as long as hyou please Mrs Caulton & Alice Hollins.
To cure bleeding piles or any inward bleeding
Rx often nettle tea. Dry keen nettles in the summer & keep em for use
in the winter Cos Tho. Ekins.
Dry piles. Rx fullers earth put gold water to it as you do to get out a
spot of grease & apply it often lay’d on a rag or cap paper Mrs Ann Lathwell. mix a little flower of
brimstone with syrup of violets in a spoon almost to fill it eat that in the morning ibid
fotus haemorrhoidalis a fermentation for the hemorroids or piles
Rx hounds tongue plantain, yarrow, elder leaves each miv. pomagranate
peels zi boil in water & rough red wine each 3 pints to 4 In the straind
liquor dissolve alum zfs sugar of lead zij. This not only checks the immoderate
flux of the hemorrhoidal veins, but also an immoderate flux
of the menses. but the following is most serviceable in the dry piles 
Rx onions, linseed each 4 ou. henbane, night shade yarrow, houseleek 
each mij boil in cong. 1 of water to lbiv & in the strain’d liquor dissolve of
the best opiu zij. where there is much heat & pain, if the part is bath’d with 


(360
this pretty warm. it will soon give ease & so supple & relax
the parts, as to breath out a great deal of ill humours by transpiration
& leave them soft & easie. Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory from Fuller.
Linimentum Haemorrhoidale a liniment agt the piles Rx oil of roses
2 ou. empl. de minio zi white eax zfs when they are melted together stir
in [aetiops] mineralis zij opium & saffron each zi & make into a smooth linimt
according to art. Linimentum another Rx unguentum populneum 
zi sugar of lead zi opium [illegible] i oil of amber & anisated balsam of 
sulphur each gut x. ibid.
Cataplasma haemorrhoidale a poltice for the piles. Rx yolks of eggs
boild hard no iv oil of amber [illegilbe] ij linseed oil q.s. This is to cool the pills
when inflam’d & angry. ibid.
Oleum cremoris oil of cream. Rx the inner green bark of elder
fresh gather’d miij the best cream lbij. Boil em well together till the cream
turns to an oil & bol over agn with fresh bark This is taken out of Bates’s Dispensatory.
It is recommended as the best of remedies agt the piles, burnings or
erysipelas or St Anthonies fire & all hot inflamatory tumours, which it both
cools & breathes by transpiration at the same time. ibid.
Have a care of curring the piles a wound there is very hard to 
cure & it often is the cause of a fistula in ano Mr [Holled] Smith surgeon
A glyster with mullein for inward piles Dr Fuller
Rx mullein & elder flowers each mfs herbs hemlock, henbane each mi
boil in Smiths forge water to 12 ou. to the strain’d add the yolk of one egg.
Linseed oyl 2 ou. oil of amber zfs. Balsam of sulphur zij mix. It discusses
the swellings of the internal hemorroids, effectually allays their pains
heals the little ulcers & hinders a further afflux of blood & ill humours.
A vapour for pain of the haemorrhoids. ibid
Rx [mullein]henbane each miiij boil in water 4 to 3 qts Let the vapour 
be reced hot thro a perforated chair or close stool case.
Haemorrhoidal unguent ibid
Rx populeon ointmt zi oil of amber zij mix Dr Fuller
another used inst Thomas’s hospital Mr Holled Smith 
Rx balsamum sulphuris cum oleo olivarum (which you may find in the
London Dispensatory) saccharum saturni ungt sambucinum m. pr. 8 d
p. e. mixt Mr Cook apothecary says it is remedium optimu
but I am of another opinion
Goody Simons of Blaby says there is not a better remedy for the piles than
oyntment of mullein made with May butter in May without salt. The
apothecaries make it with lard or grease which is not half so good It is better than 


361)
Pilewort oyntmt. It will cure piles quickly if apply’d as
soon as they show themselves If they have gotten an head & are
large then you must allow 2 or 3 weeks but it always gives ease
as soon as apply’d It will cure [illegible] kibed, swell’d or raw Ann Simons outwardly used 
in fomentations or fumigations mullein (verbascu) is reckon’d a
specific agt the pains & swelling of the piles Millers Herbal.
Dr Salmon in Doren Medicum says ceratum refrigerans, his cooling
cerecloth which see p. 753 is approved in easing the pain & allaying the
heat of the piles
Dr George Cheselden of Leicer his Rx for inward piles.
Rx decocted pectoralis depurati lbij gum. ammoniac. zi misce.
cap. coch vi mane & hora somni tepide. This cured Barnshaw
of Leicer when most men thought he would have died incurabl. E. A.
The pouder of the dried root of figwort apply’d to the piles dries em up
Pecheys Herbal. oyl of nutmegs by [expression] is good for the piles. Salmon
An approved medicine for the piles Rx water a pint, boyl
therein some camomile flowers & melilot flowers wormwood & St Jns
wort each a good mi when it is half boil’d away strain it, & add a qt of
a pint of aqua vitae make it very hot & dip a double cloth in it & apply 
it hot & hot, wrung out dry. Pater Meus. G: A:
Unguentum diapomphotigos anointed on the reins of the
back stops the piles Salmons Disp:
For the piles or hemorrhoides Rx mussel shells & burn ‘em in the fire 
take the white of em & powder it & mix it with a little hony & lay it
upon a linnen cloth & so lay it upon the sore place E. A.’s moth.?
For the piles Rx oyster-shells wash ‘em clean & dry ‘em
very well & beat ‘em to fine powder & sift ‘em & apply em to the
sore your finger being first moistened with water then sprinkle
the powder upon it & thrust it up the fundament & strew some 
upon a rag & bind it plasterwise to the sore, Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother
pellitory of the wall is good agt burns, St. Antony’s fire with goats suet or for want
of it deers suet & a little sallet oil make an ointmt it is prevalent agt the gout
& piles. Salmon. Pomet says the fumes of olibanum i.e. [illegible] frankincense taken 
up the fundamt cures the piles. 



(364
Another for a pearl, & to strengthen the sight,
Rx Roman vitriol as much as an ordinary cherry-stone put it
into a spoonfull of clear spring water let it ly in it half a qr of
hour then drop one drop into the eye. ibid.
For a pearl or whip or the watering of a horses eye.
Rx The white of an egg & salt a large spoonful or as
much as will lick up the white mix ‘em very well then clear
your fire-shovel from dirt & dust & bake it before the fire 
in to a cake by often turning it to keep it from burning when
it is quite dry rub a little into powder on a trencher or mortar, 
then take as much as will lye on a silver 2 d & put it
into a quill & blow it into a horses eye every other day
blow it in thrice ibid.
For a blear eye or a watering red eye in a man.
Rx white-rose water 1 d lapis calaminaris in fine powder
half penny worth then moisten your eye-brows & eye-lids with
your middle finger 2 or 3 times a day & a night., it will cure
the itching too, you must carry it always about you. If this
will not do make an issue in the arm & use the water. An issue 
in the arm is better than in the leg because the humours flow too 
much to the leg. ibid.
For a wet or dry itch or itching of the nose or without an outbreak
Take the best camphor [illegible] ij vinegar of roses zfs rose water zvi
mix them rub any part where it itches, or upon the nose and dip a
rag in it and let it lie upon the nose all night. From the Latin Fuller
call’d by the title epitheme fontale rosaceum for the head ach
Dr Wm Woodhouse



365)
Ulcer in the bladder
Sympathetick pouder cured a gentm of an ulcer in the 
bladder by mixing it with the matter he voided in his urine. Mrs
Caulton


(366
an oyntmt to cure chopt lips or an chop or scab
or flushing
Rx Diapompholigos ( grey oyntmt) zfs pomatum zfs camphir 1 d
Sperma cet 1 d melt the camphir & sp. ceti till they are
all wasted in the pomatum then add the diapompholigos stir them together
till cold. Mrs Caulton. Chops in the hands fingers lips or
nose & for a cows bag chopt or swell’d. anoint with dogs grease
or oyntmt of marshmallows, or with both mixt. The 1st is bet. Jn
Put a traveller It is good for womens nipples when chopt. ibid.
another anoint with rape oyl pr. 8 d per qt it is good for any bruise
or swelling E. A. an obstinate chop between the thumb & forefinger
boil burnt alum in pouder in water apply it hot with a rag & 
bind the rag on moisten’d with it make it taste of the alum. Mr Coy
Lip chopt Rub it often with raw alum moisten’d with your spittle or
with water to kill the canker or moisten it with your own urine & sometimes with tallow
dropt from a candle into urine E. A.



367)



(368
To dissolve nodes.
mix mercurius sublimatus with w. wine vinegar & sope & you may
apply it to a joynt It may lie on 2 or 3 hours as soon as you take it
off apply conserve or roses to extract the poyson or venom or
you may mix sope & a little green ash bark ashes & mercury subl. in fine
pouder without vinegar vinegar makes it smart. Dr Pool the mountebank 
wash a node with white copperas dissolved in water every night
going to bed for 4 or 5 nights Let it dry on. It will kill a worm
in the face David Lane Emplastru de ranis cum mercurio in Dr
Quincys Dispensatory is an admirable plaster to resolve & discuss
hard tumours & nodes scrophulous or venereal or from any other cause
It is of a blue colour Mr Page apothecary at Lutterworth sells it
at 1 d per ounce. It often eases arthritick pains ibid. & cures corns.
To heal & dissolve rare hard nodes that happen sometimes about the
groin & scrotu. Burn some fresh butter in a spoon or ladle
till it is black pour it into an earthen pot, add to it sp. of 
wine & some drops of oyl of vitriol & some oyl of St
Jns wort Let ‘em near the fire to dissolve & incorporate 
rub it on the nodes 2 or 3 times in a day It will take away 
their itching kill & dry em up. E. A. another Rx some
keen vinegar infuse it in some red cock roots wash’d scapd’ clean
& sliced & cut some white bear foot al helebore in thin
pieces or slices & add to it after they’ve steep’d one night
a day moisten the raw hard nodes 3 or 4 times in 12 hours
& dip a linnen rag & bind it to em It will abate their itching
being good for the itch & shingles & will kill & waste em E. A. 
Spirit of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine, oyl of was & oyl of 
camomile allays pains of the gout, discusses nodes & cures contracted
& wither’d members Salmon’s Dispensatory. Quincys emplastru de ranis
dissolves wonderfully & discusses hard tumors & nodes scrophulous or
venereal or corns vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory. oleum ammoniaci & emplastru
ammoniaci (gummi) so mollfies that it will dissolve hard strong
knobs on the joynts of the fingers & toes etc. Salmon
oyl of nutmegs by expression softens hardness Salmon’s Disp.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum, admirably warms
softens & discusses all indurations & harden’d tumors, such as are [illegible]
scriphulous or venereal. It will ease & waste by degrees cause warts 


369)
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum e cicuta cum ammoniaco. Hemlock plaster with ammoniacu
is a very powerful discussive, dissolves nodes & knotty swellings in what part soever.
Quincy.
A large onion fill’d with Venice turpentine & roasted softens hard
swellings laid plasterwise, & also opens them. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
E. A. had a hard swelling in his skin near his groin caus’d by a 
bruise by riding on horse back It grew bigger & bigger till it was as
big as a horse bean It had a little black speck in the middle He got
it away by healing the best white wine vinegar very hot & diping a
flannel in it & applying it as hot as he could endure it & not to 
scald twice a day morning & evening & sometimes he apply’d it cold
he kept the flannel on all night & sometimes all day for 4 or 5 days
then he found it felt soft & he squeesed it betwixt his finger & thumb 
& out at the top there came thick white stuff resembling the pap of an 
apple or congeal’d corruption squeesing it so once or twice a day 
it empty’d the bag of the node which was something like a ganglion
& made it level with the rest of the skin most of the white stuff squeesed 
out at the first pinching.
Emplastrum diachylon cum gummi (diachylon with the gums) 
softens & suppurates tumors, for which it is in much esteem among 
the surgeons, & for which purpose they spread it very thick because it
gives more warmth to the part apply’d to. It is a great strengthener when 
apply’d to sprain’d sinews or any pt (except where there is a defluxion of 
humors) as frequently to the small of the back. The whole sale dealers
are apt to leave out many of the gums Quincy. It will ripen a bile 
& make it fit for lancing E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling Rub on it oil of origanum made strong with 
aqua fortis Dr Cheselden read it in some book. It will dissolve a blood
spavin E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling on the breath of children which comes before
they are a month old Mrs Wards son Richard at Blaby had such a 
swelling on his breasts almost as big as an egg it is caus’d by the milk
which he had in his breasts Boys are aptest to have it. It was 
cured in a week by a plaster of diaculum simplex Mrs Ward
sometimes the swelling on the breasts of young children in their
1st month is no bigger than a large button & very hard which is
cured by rubbing it with brandy as oft as the child is drest viz
once in 24 hours. Cos. Mary Orton of Reasby.
To dissolve a hard swelling on a woman’s breast caus’d by milk & to take away
the pain Lay a green burdock [leaf] to it & when it is dry apply a fresh leaf. This cured
MRs Blunts breast & dissolved the node there in 2 days, bred after her lying in 
child bed. Cos. Margt Muxloe.




Br. G. Ashby’s directions for the taking his pouder for
a rheumatism. Rx a sixth pt of the largest paper of pouder
in a glass of small ale six mornings together fasting 2 hours
after it Rx the least paper of pouder the 2 first days at 4 in the
afternoon as you took the other in the morning when all these
powders are taken Let the pt grieved be anointed with the oyntmt chafing
it well in agt the fire Infuse buckbean & Roman wormwood in 
cold spring water & drink of that 3 or 4 times a day a coffee dish
full at a time. You must neither bleed nor purge if you expect
benefit etc. Febry 3, 713. [ral.] water Trefoil.


a specific pouder for all sorts of intermitting fevers prepar’d
by (Louis the 14th) king of France his order It cures by being
taken thrice at most all sorts of intermitting fevers without
return, of which he has caused innumerable experimts
to be made for above a yr under the inspection of M.
Fagon his chief physician; his majty has ordered that a sufficient
quantity should be prepar’d to be distributed to the
public; & to the end that every body may be able to purchase
the price is fixed at 10 sols each dose which is pretty near
the cost of preparing it. In each packet are 3 doses severally 
wrap’d in paper for 30 sols, with printed directions 
how to use it. every packet has the kings arms stampt on
it, for preventing counterfeits. This pouder is incorruptible
never losing its virtue. The general office for distributing it
is settled at Paris. The Monthly Mercury for November 713.


Geo Ashby E A’s father was high sheriff of Leicershire in the
year 1667.
one aged abt 30, that could not come forth of his chamber
nor stand, was cured by this simple remedy. Rx rad. armorac. ziij
coq. ex syr. lact. colat. lbij dentur usus. Seven days after being
cured he came & gave thanks. Another who had abundance of 
cold spots in his arms & feet, the spots were very broad & 
near to pustles, was perfectly cured in a few week cum spir.
sal. armon. therewith observing an exact dist p. 558. Cook’s 
Marrow of Physick.
Stephen Adcock of Rasby was cured of a rupture being 20 or 
21 yrs old by taking a green pizzle of a bull dry’d in an oven
in beer for month 3 or 4 times a day with some of the pouder
in it. Stephen Hunt. Some are cured by cutting & taking one
stone out. ibid. you must put 1 spoonful & boyl it in almost a
pint of new milk Take the dose thrice a day as long as it
lasts drinking nothing else while one pizzle lasts unless very 
thirsty then you may drink a draught of beer to quench the
thirst Lay the pizzle upon wet brown paper in an oven with 
bread twice baking commonly dries it enough. Stephen Hunt
Tho. Geo labourer formerly shoemaker of Welford in Northashire was cured of
red sore eyes by holding your finger to the bottle & draw it along
your eyelids 2 or 3 times a day. The bottle must have new
burnt stone in pouder a thimbleful & a half pennyworth of
white rose water It must infuse a week before you use it
you may have it of Mr. Ilyff an apothecary in Lutterworth 
Leicershire
When turning alternately a rasor on each side on the hone or strap
would not give it a good edge, by drawing it twice together on 
each side on [illegible] It has contracted a very good fine edge. E. A.


pr 3 s w.
Mrs P. i.e. Mrs Marianny Packer the travelling doctress
R.C. i.e. Richard Cromwel’s legacy to his country of physical
& chyrurgical receipts He was some time a souldier & chyrurgion
in the late D. of  Monmouth’s army & since of their present 
majesties. He was executed at Leichfield for murder July 23 
1691. The titule of the book is the Happy Sinner pr. 1 d
Mrs M. i.e. Aunt Frances Majors Rts
Mrs S. i.e. Mada Sparks’s Receipts a great doctress in Pater Noster Row
that kept her coach & 6 horse given me by Aunt [Majer]
M. B. i.e. Mary Burton a traveller, the mother of Edmund Horton [illegible]
shows the postures.
I. T. i.e. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor of Bosworth.
S. S. Mr Sherard [Sergent’s] Receipts of Milton.
R.D. Rembert (i.e. Robt) Dodoens History of Plants or Herbal he was physitian to the [emperor]
Birdlime & Venice turpentine is a very good cerecloth the
clock makes when they send clocks beyond sea do it on the
outside the cracks of the box to defend it agt moisture Mr
Jn Wilkins of Leicer
Common iron filings zi to conserve of roses zi iron filings
prepar’d with sulphur zij to conserve of roses zi steel filings
are good for nothing Rx iron filings beat em in a mortar & 
sift em thro a law sive then put em in a crucible with 
brimstone in pouder after it is fired & burnt out beat it again
to pouder & you’ve the best iron pouder sold for steel pouder
Mr Penford apothecary.
mercurius dulcis if it doth not purge fluxes, 20 gr 
purges a man, a much less dose fluxes fr. Coltman apothecary
Health is the very salt of life that seasons & give a relish
to all the other enjoymts of it Rd Mr Richd Duke.






Hogs bristles are 6[illegible] or 8[illegible] [illegible] at Bromingham. The Satchwell.
Note Basilicon is an exct. healing oyntmt. in any fleshy part 
of the body but it is dangerous applying it to or near a bone
because it will perish & destroy a bone. Dr Arden Elsmore.
Barrow grease adeps porcina
To scour Iron Rx the softest brick that is but ½ burnt dry it in an oven
or over the fire & upon a broad [stone] with a stone beat it to fine pouder
& rub yr. andirons etc. [illegible] dry (lor with oyl which is best) & they
will cook very bright if they stand near the fire & are kept dry. [illegible]
[bak?] of [illegible] There is more trouble than pleasure in it. Plus aloes quam
nollis habet juv. Calcanda somol via leti (or lesthi) hor. we must all tread the
path to our grave.
To make good ink mr gud. (it is not the best in for it will change yellowed)
Rx a gallon of rain watr 7 put into it [illegible] galls lbifs beaten small
[let] it stand near the fire or in the sun 8 or 10 days often stirring then 
[put] in allu & dyers indica each zfs green copperas & gum arabick 
[illegible] sonica bruised, a course sort of gum arabick which the shoe-makers use)
[illegible] lbi let it stand a week & it is fit for use. The said ingredients 
[reduc’d] to a less quantity. Rx rain water a pt galls zvi pr. 6 & allum?
[illegible] Note if you make ink of beer or ale & after some 
time is is grown thick & dry? it will not let down but
[illegible] it makes it flow readily & write fast E.A. Choose a kettle
[illegible] brass of a blue black color that has no solder’d place in it [illegible] looks like [illegible] or [illegible]
which you may discern on the inside or outside [illegible] pale [?inker] & [Bra???]
Dr Brooks in [Leaden] Hall street agt the East Indy House cures fits
[illegible] [finch]
These are good boyling herbs to eat viz. muckhill-spinnage (al.
wild spinnage) [illegible] thistle. mercury. garden-spinnage. red shanks.
hoptops. avens. carlock run young. parsly
The Haven of Health by Thomas Cogan chiefly made for the
comfort of students.
Mrs. Crick servt. to Mrs Bridges at Barton [illegible] in Northashire
makes a famous eye water that cures red rheumatic eyes Mrs Crick’s
mother keeps an alehouse at [Hoddingworth] in Leicr
Pills preserving health. p. 702 Salmons Dispensatory.
Mr. Wm Saunders at the Golden Ball in Newgate street (chymist)
London. Saunders’s art of physick & surgery pr. 48 is commended by Drs 


A settled or old cold or cough in a horse
Rx Heather fern (al fever fern) celandine, rosemary & sage each mi.
Boyl ‘em in a quart of ale till it comes to a pint then strain it & add
common treacle zii diapente zfs. Give it warm in a morning fasting
after he hath bin gallop’d till his hair turns, or after hunting.
Let him fast two hours or longer after it, once taking commonly 
cures, but if he is not perfectly cur’d repeat the dose 5 or 6 days 
after. Mr Stephen Alleyne steward to Mr Cook commonly gives his
hunting horse one dos. This was taught him by a tinker.
Ashby. (E)




1
Leg sore or swelled
Dr Cole of Bilsdon cured the Lady Halfords leg that was very much
swell’d (after several Drs & surgeons had try’d their skill in vain)
by putting on the leg a canvas stockin to be laced straight to the leg
to repell the humour & the same time that she laced it hard he order’d
her to take purge of syrup of buckthorn & jalop, to 
intermit some days & to repeat the hard lacing & purging till she
was perfectly well. The cause of this tumor he reckon’d the scurvy
A girl in Saxulby that was lame for 2 yrs or more so that she cou’d not
go but as she was carry’d & her legs began to wast was cured by 
bathing 4 or 5 times in ale wort as hot as she could endure it
Mary Austin of [Asserby] was lame of one leg for abt. 2 yrs so that her
thigh began to wast she found good by blistering pasters lay’d to
the pain’d hip for a little while; but they would not cure. Dr. G.
advis’d her to leave off malt drink & to drink the infusion of
buckbean & Roman wormwood in water & to take his pouder of
broom ashes etc. to thin her blood & to anount the pained place with
balsam of galbanu mixt with oyl of turpentine, this oyntmt increas’d 
her pain.
Sam Halford my servt. [illegible] the [illegible] going to turn a tree over
that lay on the ground with a bar of iron & T. L. Carpenter & A.S. with 
[illegible] one of their [levers] slipt [illegible] the tree as born up & the tree press’d
back on S.H.s bar which broke the great bone of his left leg a
little above his ancle the bystanders heard it crack like a stake 
if it had been a little higher it had been easier to set The bone
did not jut out of the skin but you might persive a white streak
go cross where the bone was parted His leg did not swell of
some hours after, he could stir his toes but could not stand
on that leg he was brought home in a chair. Jn Summerfield a
wheelwright & bone setter ([illegible] to learn his skill from 
the famous Mr Freeman having bones several times broken
& set by him) 4 hours after it was broken set it thus He cut
a piece of an old hat box made of past board (any past board or old
hat will do to splint it) into 4 splints abt 6 inches long & 
2 wide which after they were well beaten he mixt with as much
fine wheat flower till it was a little stiffer than batter then he took 


2
abt. a qr of a stick of nine penny flax ([Hards] would
not do) & lay it spred upon a warming pan of live coles
& poured the white of egg & wheat flower on’t to warm 
& stiffen a little this a bystander helt whilst the bone setter
felt with his finger & thumb on each side the broken place for 
a pretty while which touching pain’d S.H. then he lay’d one hand on 
his instep & another on his heel & pull’d the leg out that he might
place the bones right & opposite to each other then he lay’d one
hand to the bottom of his foot & thrust it upwards that the
bones might unites one man holding his leg up at the knee & 
another at the heel then he wrapt the flax & white of an egg & w.
flower quite round the broken place being about 9 inches broad
then he lay’d on the 4 splints of hot [illegible] at an equal distance
the broad splint being plac’d on the shin bone these splints
were bound abt with an old linnen cloth & that was bound on 
with 3 [fillets] sew’d together beginning at the middle of the
splints & binding upwards & back again a little below the
middle of the cloth it had most liberty downwards lastly the
fillet was sown in 3 or 4 places to prevent its slipping down 
then the same leg was lay’d on a pillow & bolster’d up with several
cloths to keep his leg steddy & a board was fixt with 2 
iron spikes at the end of the bed to the bed post against which 
he sat his foot having a woolen cloth between his foot & the
board. when the bones were thrust together S.H. cry’d out oh my 
poor leg, my poor leg, my poor leg! it pain’d him for 3 or 4 days
His leg swell’d up to his knee & it was anointed 2 or 3 times 
with oyl of roses which assuaged the swelling & gave it ease
after one week the pain was inconsiderable only he complain’d
of his back was tyred with lying. The not stirring the ldg out
of the place after it is set contributes very much to the well 
knitting of the bones, tho he was forc’d to use a urinal & bedpan
he seldom or never stir’d the leg out of its place all the time
It was very cold frosty weather the first week of his lameness which
kept his leg cool & mittigated the pain. The bone setter advis’d him
to eat bread & butter &milk & [frumenty] to keep his body cool
& open to avoid bread & cheese & all meat except veal or chicken


A fam’d elixir for the wind which repels it to admiration, whether
in the stomach or bowels all [illegible] or windy belches or hiccups
from indigestion etc. it removes upon the spot; & cures pains in 
the stomach, gripings in the guts, striches in the sides & the wind
colick to a miracle; being no pretended but real effectual medicine
fit for the yse of old & young. To be had only at Mr. Spoon’s
at the Golden Half Moon in Buckles street in Goodmans fields
near white chappel pr. at 6 [illegible] a bottle with directions. The post [illegible]
Octr 1705. Honorato fornello gent. no physician could hardly
be persuaded to publish his dissolution salt as being laborious
to be made It hath ben abt 9 months made publick. It is a remedy
for the stone & gravel which it totally roots out by dissolving [illegible]
in the kidnies & bladder & carries it away insensibly by urine invisible,
if made in a vial & suffer’d to settle being undeniable that
the stone is dissolv’d. He was cured by it himself, asl also divers [gents]
in London since next God’s blessing none shall have need to be cut 
for the stone whoever will prevent the setling of gravel take 
a dose in 8 or 14 days & continue so the body shall never smart 
for it. It keeps good many yrs you’ve larger [act] & directions with 
it being to be had of Mr Tho. Dowse Perfumer at the sign of 
the plough in Grace Church street London & no where else in all England
pr. 4s the half ounce which is 8 doses.
A pleasant powder for the heartburn being the most infallible [remedy]
for that distemper giving present ease in less than a minute pr. 1s a [illegible]
with directions. sold only by Mr [Best] at Will’s coffee house near the Royal
Exchange in [Cornhil]
Sister H. Ashby’s exct. powder for fits in children is of a [dove] colr
with a little cast of [illegible] it tasts [illegible] a little gritty The weight of the 3 doses 
is [17] gr. Directions for the taking it Rx this powder in 3 doses in some
black cherry water in a morning fasting. It is best to take it 3 mornings
before the full of the moon. Scrape single peony root green & put it
into the childs stockins to be worn till it is dry then remov it.
The anti-rheumatic tincture only prepared by George
Wilson, chymist, in well-yard, by St. Bartholomew’s hospital
in West Smithfield, London. It is put up in bottle, containing
above 2 ounces, at 2 [s] & 6 [s] the bottle. 15 s. the pint. 30 s the qt.



A short & infallible cure for the itch or any itching
humour or scorbutick breaking out whatsoever by a specifick
electuary, it cleanses & rectifies the blood & juices, accomplishes
a cure in 2 or 3 days without trouble or confinemt 
is sold only at Mrs Bradbury’s toy shot at the Golden
Ball in stocks market against the poultry at 3s a pot
with directions. This electuary is good for nothing. E.S. & Dr Brooks. [illegible] stones skin’d & dry’d in an over after
break & then pouder’d as much as will lie on a six pence in 
white wine, or ale, or beer are good for children passing a
[illegible] or ruptures, the stone, gravel or pain in the back caus’d by 
the stone, the kings evil [illegible] clark [gelder] cow pigs (al. horn flower all [illegible water
[water]) ½ a pint in a morning for 9 mornings together for a man or
woman beginning in May if it doth not purge take a larger 
dose It cured aunt Tr. Mayes maid of an ague [illegible] Jesuit’s pouder
would not [Richd] Ward of [illegible] by drinking it cured his sore leg of long standing It cures gout & rheumatism, pain in the stomach, consumption
Dr. Brooks says they that take it spring & fall need not any physitian.
Mrs Finch The dissolution salt of honorato fornello, gout,
[illegible] Gorman) which totally roots out the stone & gravel, by dissolving it
in the kidneys & bladder carrying it away insensibly by urine. It is
a chymical extraction. It is good to prevent the dropsie, scurvy, [stinking]
[illegible] remedy for women’s sickness It’s very friendly to nature
[illegible] the spirits It operates best in warm countries. who
ever takes it being much troubled, does well to purge in the spring & 
fall with [diata???] minsichti to clear the way The dose for a man is a
dram each second day or you may divide zfs into eight doses or you
may take as much as will like on a half-penny. The least quantity sold
½ an ounce which is 8 doses pr. 4 s & may be had of Mr Thomas
Dowse at the Sign of the Plow in Grace Church street, a perfumer
Volatile salt of tartar, he that knows the virtues & use of it is half
a Dr. It will dissolve bone, stone or iron or any thing Dr. Wm. Million of
[??ansty] 4 m. from Coventry in Warwickshire He inns at the White Horse in 
Hinkly every Monday is there by 12 o clock & on fairs earlyer He also
[shops] Coventry market every Friday.


3
After S.H had layen in bed a fortnight viz the 25th by virtue
of warm water his leg was unbound (if cream had been added
to the white of egg & flower it had been much easier to unbind
which a great many bonesetters use & some use only a white
salve or [corecloth] without w. of egg or w. flower) & a corecloth
made of oxycrociu, paracelsus & emp. [deminio] mit & spred thic
on allum’d leather abt 6 inches deep & so long as to encompass 
the leg in the broken pt. was lay’d on & 4 splints of past board
viz that case were serv’d on with a linnen cloth he did not stir out of his
chamber that day but only sat by the bedside or by the fire the next
day his leg swell’s up to his knee it was unbound still the swelling
continued at night it corecloth was taken quik away & old tallow was 
scrap’d from some candles 2 yrs old & melted in a ladle & pour’d 
upon cold water in a bason which was taken off as soon as it cover’d
the surface of the water & more pour’d on then the tallow was 
melted in the ladle & mixt with white lead scraped fine & spred
upon a linnen cloth & bound on the sore place with 4 splints & a 
cloth as afore & his foot was anointed & his knee where it was
swell’d this assuag’d the swelling in a nights time. Wm. Fletcher of [Sison]
had set an arm that was broken & apply’d [Bent’s] salve for a corecloth
which made the arm swell & rise into blisters which was cured with
tallow & white lead. Corecloths that agree with some flesh disagree with 
others, but the bonesetter pull’d off the tallow & white lead & apply’d 
his own corecloth of a dark colour which he said was very strengthening
& he order’d the knee [to] abt the ncle when they swell’d to be
anointd with cream & soot from the mouth of a coper this abated
the swelling for a little time but when he did not keep his
bed his knee swell’d & he was forc’d to lie in bed 2 or 3 days together
the corecloth & splints were kept on & it was a month before
he came below stairs then he went with 2 crutches abt 6 or 7
weeks after his leg was broken he took syrup of buckthorn
to purge him zi in a draught of cold ale 7 when he could go without
his crutches he oft complain’d of a pain his his heel
sp. of wine apply’d to a joynt that is raw causes lameness tho it strengthens
a joynt where the skin is whole Dr [illegible]



4
To knit & strengthen a crackt bone
Rx 2 pts salt & 1 pt butter & burn em i.e. boyl em together till
they cook black spred it on a cloth & bind it on the arm or leg etc.
as hot as you can endure it Dress it night & morning when it
begins to mend & grows strong once a day is enough This cured
Anne Farie’s arm when crackt & the [illegible] contracted she could stir her
arm & make may with it in a weeks time Anne Farie.
Anne Butterworth had a sore leg that look’d very red & full of blisters
Mrs Basset cured it with [illegible] made of ling dipt in basilicon & a green
oyntmt. (made of gill run by th ground & elder bark) mixt laying over
the pledgets emplastru dominio Mrs Basset.
Goody Simons had a sore leg that lookd red with a running sore it was 
caus’d by a bruise She bath’d it as hot as she could endure with new
milk which qualified it very much IT was draft with precipitate & basilicon
to cleanse it & anointed it with the green oyntmt in the former [illegible] & 
it was quickly well A.S. To scale & clean a bone foul’d by an
old sore infuse some camphir in spirit of wine & dab it on
the bone rot or it will [illegible] cold. Dr G. A.
A sore leg or any running sore old or new Rx [illegible] [nettles] [illegible]
em small & pound em with as much salt as [nettles] & lay em on a cloth
for 12 hours it will take out the venom then cross it with a plaster of
paracelsus till well It will cure it in a little time. It is an exct. thing
for any green wound or a wound made with rusty iron The soldiers take
it with with em in their nap sacks or [illegible] when they are to fight Francis [illegible]
It is good for any swelling [ibid] I know this nettle medicne try’d without any 
good success E.A. Elizth Halford & wife of Saml had a sore leg
caus’d by a bruise by falling up stairs the edge of a stair cut 
agt the skin of her leg abt 3 inches above her ancle Mrs.
Elizth Basset try’d with basilicon & gill-oyntmt. & empl. deminio
in vain to cure It had a running sore abt the breadth 
of a shilling on the ancle on the small of her leg It was very 
much swell’d & her thigh was swell’d she cur’d it thus in a fortnight
viz. she lay’d a garter abt 2 fingers broad encircling her
leg above the knee spread with emplast. deminio & another
garter below the knee spread with do as defensitives to prevent
the humers fro flowing down from her body she purg’d twice with
syrup of buckthorn zi for each dose intermitting 4 or 5 days. 


5
her leg was blister’d in several places & lookt very red
she spread a plaster on a linnen cloth of diaculum simplex (6 s
per roll) then she melted tallow or sheeps suet in a spoon & 
pour’d it hot into a porringer or pot of fair water (which takes
out the salt & makes it more cooling) then she drain’d away the
water & melted the tallow again in the spoon & pour’d it on the
diaculum plaster that was spread This she lay’d round her leg over 
the sore & diacumu the tallow on the sore with ling The tallow [supples] the diaculum they both together cool
refresh & strengthen the leg & take away the itching of the sore 
The leg was swaddled with a childs swaddle band or a roller from 
the ancle to the knee very straight in the day tie but a little
slack at night that she might sleep This prevented also the defluxion
of humers she walk’d very little in the day but sate still laying
the sore leg on a stool she draft it twice a day till it was almost
well. when it itches above the sore you may moisten the itching places
with a rag dipt in water in which yellow arsnic has been infus’d
You must boyl the water & pour it hot to the arsnick.
Goody Farie being 70 yrs old of [newtown] Linford had the jaundice
which was cured by taking a little [tot] twice a day of barbery bark boyl’d
in beer for 2 or 3 days but after [illegible] jaundice her legs swell’d so that she
was carry’d from bed & to bed she boyled red dock-roots in cream a qt.
of a pint to an [illegible] strain’d she anointed her legs morning & night for 7
or 14 days & they were quite well afterwards she took a purge viz. Dr
White’s water 2s. i.e. 2 spoonfuls in a morning & continued well. Good
Farie.
Janry 1724 Theopilus Halford E.A.’s servt had a callous
substance like a corn at the bottom of his foot under his little toe
this was cut till it bled & only a rag was apply’d he walked two
miles presently after; the next morn it was swell’d abt his toe
& very painful & in a few days time his pain shot up his leg & he
could not go on it. It was poultic’d a long while together & he seem’d
to be [illegible] if he walk’d on it the humer returned E.A. cut just thro this 
thick callous to make it bleed but it did but little good, when it was
heal’d with [Bonts] or Blackwell’s salve it would break out again. AT last
E.A. gave him 3 purges [illegible] made of crème of tartar zii & jalp zi in
fine pouder each purge pr 3 [illegible] in a little water gruel made over night he took it early 
in the morn kept his room with a fire Each purge gave him abt 6 stools
he intermitted sometimes 2 sometimes but 1 days between purge & 
purge they carry’d the humer off & his leg & foot was quickly well.


6
Leg sore & swell’d Jn [Kt] shepherd at [Blaby] had a leg swell’d &
so sore that he could scarce sleep a nights He thought it was a rheumatic
pain. he bathed it abt 6 times viz [illegible] morning with good [illegible] juice & it
was quite well. Jn Kt Jn smith of Blaby shoeing a horse was kick’d on
his knee by him. It caus’d a swelling & a lameness that he could scarce go
He bath’d it with [verjuice] 2 or 3 times it strenghtn’d his sinews & took away
the pain Jn Smith. Dip any sore as a sore leg etc. or wound in hot water & hold
it in the water a good while made as hot as you can abide it without scalding
(if you can’d do that conveniently then wash the sore or wound with a 
linnen rag dipt in hot water & bath it with it & [illegible] on the sore some time
then apply Robt Beby’s corecloth or salve made with white wine etc.
a London Surgeon says that holding a sore as a sore leg in hot water takes
out the venom or anguish or pain or festering or wrankling or venome & prepares
it for healing It is as good as a poultice & has less trouble & is sooner prepared
It will prevent many a leg from being cut off Cos. Richd Ashby.
In Halford shepherd at Little [illegible] abt 60 yrs old had a hard swelling like a hard
knob on the upper pt of the calf of his leg which pained him very much 
especially when he walked It was thus cured by E.A. & this [illegible] dissolved in 
a little time A corecloth was apply’d anointed over with oil olive in 10 [percent] nutmegs
to a salve then add this things added to Dr Allins corecloth by E.A. in his sixth
book p. 222 Susan Halford his wife abt this same age had a humour fell into
one of her legs which swell’d her leg very much which was thus cured by [Mrs Major] in a little
time it was anointed with [goosegrease] agt the fire & a cabbage loaf was laid over it 
& the humer was disposed & this swelling went away in 2 or 3 times dressing it once a day.
[Smallage] boiled in water & a linnen cloth dipt in it & apply’d several times to 
Jn [Laughton’s] wife’s leg that was swelled with wild fire cured it. Goody Laughton


7
Gravel or sharpness of urine
Turkey egg shells in powder eaten with sugar at any time.
Ex from 5 to 12 drops of oyl of turpentine drops upon a little
white sugar in a spoon Br G.A. If you take abt 12 drops it will give
you a stool or two loosening things are good & astringent are bad for
this distemper. It rages most in hot weather. I prefer this before any 
thing I’ve yet try’d E.A. spirit or oyl of turpentine is a powerful 
diuretick & stone breaker; it opens all obstructions of the loins & passages
of the seed & takes away pain & soreness processing of cold. It 
dissolves all gums better than sp. of wine. Salmon’s Disp.
Stone
Rx from 15 to 30 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught
of white wine. If you are in great pain take 30 drops In 
[Rostale] of [Ledgers] Ashby formerly servt. go Jacob Hall. This
gave Mr Ashby ease in a fit. Another Rx [sallet] oyl & juice
of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls in a spoonfull or a quarter of a pint of
white wine [combin’d] with sugar to make it palatable mix em & drink em when you feel pain. This
forced a stone resembling a little date stone, from Cos. Geo.
Wright it is much commended by St. Nathan Wright. It is
very forcing & dangerous where there is a very great stone 
yet can’t pass. Drink a pint or 2 of small ale abt an hour after it with w. wine. ST. N. Wright. I observed Febr. 1705 yet upon
drinking small ale in which dockroots & gill were boyl’d 
which made this ale very thick & muddy tho it purged me
2 or 3 times a day I was violently troubled with gravel 
& avoided a great quantity with pain several days till I 
left of drinking it tho I took oyl of turpentine & sp.
nitri dulcis famous diureticks to give me ease. from 
whence I concluded the thick liquors especially malt 
drinks abounding with a sediment generate grave & 
the stone & the clear & temperate cooling drinks are
healthful for those that have those distempers E.A.
For the colick & stone Rx nutmegs zfs liquorish pouder zi loaf
sugar lbfs pulverize & make em into pills with venice turpeneine zi Rx
three at a time 3 mornings together before the change of the moon
Roll the pills in liquorish pouder before you take them. Steep penyroyal
overnight in abt half a pint of water so that the water may cover it & strain 



8
it in the morning & toast a piece of brown bread to warm the
water & drink a draught after the pills. This freed Mr Jn Frank
Parson of Queniborough of the stone & colick ever since he took them.
Mr. Rd Pick Eating bread & butter once or twice a day freed E.A. from 
gravel Apr. 706 the weather being very hot, & avoiding cheese which make
the belly costive & at dinner or supper once a day eating victuals with
verjuice or for want there of vinegar. E.A. Another for gravel Rx some
new butter-milk boyl it & make a posset with small beer sweeten it with
hony & drink it & swallow alive abt 10 or 20 millipedes (the round ones
are best) after it you may eat a little fresh bread & butter before you 
drink yr buttermilk posset. Mow any thing with a scythe or exercise with 
a scythe as if you mow’d something, till you sweat. It will make you 
straddle that the gravel may the easier descend from the kidnies into the
bladder This gave E.A. ease may 706 For the stone & gravel Rx 20 or
30 or Dr Stringers drops in a glass of ale warm’d at any time you may 
buy em of Loughborough of Stringer the hatter his father pr. 2 s 6 s per
bottle Mr Cowper the bone setter of Leicr commands them to [exceed] most
other medicines but E.A. cou’d find but little benefit by them. E.A. Or
boyl new whey 3 pints take of the scum let it stand from the fire till a
scum arises again which take off & strain it thro a hair sieve from the sediment
at the bottom & wash the pan & put in the clarify’d whey to which
add agrimony, sage, dandelion, fumitory each mi boyl it till one pint
is wasted drink it in the morning fasting cold & exercise after it. you 
may prepare it overnight & take the quantity of a horse [bean] of turpentine
mixt with liquorish poudr & sugar. This is cooling & opening & carry’d
a good deal of gravel from E.A. June 706. For the stone Rx cassia
now drawn, anniseed [illegible] with oyl of sweet almonds mixt with gr. vi
of salt of tartar vitriolate make a bolus 
Gravel & stone Rx scio turpentine zi [illegible] 681 salm. dispens. for the pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible]
make them up into pills & take five of the pills every night for
a month together. Rx a large onion slice it & put it into a quarter
of a pint of ale. Let it infuse all night in the ale. In the
morning put a quarter of a pint of white wine to it. Rx it
fasting every morning for a month together at the same time
you take the pills at night. This cured a gentlewoman of
the gravel that so afflicted her that she could not go upright making
her void 2 quarts of gravel. Mrs. Basset. Scio turpentine 
is very dry & stiff you may put it into a bladder cut to hold it [illegible]
pocket will warm it & make it pliable to yr fingers moisten’d in
water to prevent it sticking & roll each pill in crabs eyes & make
em up just as you take them. I tis good to ride or walk or mow or 


9
to use some exercise after them. E.A. Another I eating
bread of [masline] ground on the grey stones in June 1707 was much afflicted with
gravel of which I thus cured myself I eat white bread or bread made 
of masline ground on the black stones which is free from grit. I eat
oat meal pudding wihtout butter left off drinking malt drink wine
& cyder & drank only scum’d milk & soft water boyl’d together
with a piece of household bread & rode a horse back once a day & 
I was quickly freed from the gravel. E.A. For the stone & gravel
Mrs P. Rx a thunderbolt (6 or 7 or more) Let it be burnt in
an oven 7 days with only one gorss faggot a day i.e. you must every 
day burn 1 gorss [kid] & let it lie all the time in the embers then 
beat it to a fine pouder & sift it fine. Give the value of two
case knives points full att a time in a glass of warm ale. Let the
patient drink a pint well warm’d after it (Beer & ale or
very small ale is best E.A.) 31 days cure any. Some are cured in
five days. you must take it every day This Mrs P. says is a certain
cure & that it will dissolve the stone but I have not try’d it
I look upon it as [ban??] She gave me [illegible] paper of pulvis [????ticus]
for the same distempers (E.A.) Mrs. P. for the stone cholic
& wind cholic Mrs Anne Windser midwife. Rx balm of gillead [illegible] zi venice
turpentine pr zifs a ½ pennyworth stone call’d [illegible] [illegible] of the vale (a
shining stone) in pouder pr. 1 s 1 pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible] hon or turky
egg shels do (dry yr eggshels aft the fire or in an oven & beat
em to pouder) Crowstone burnt in the fire till it is red hot
& then beaten to pouder Of all the pouders take equal pts If any
of the corwstone is yellow or ill colour’d scrape it off. Sometimes
there will be like glass in the middle of it do not beat that. mix
all those well together & with pouder of liquorish make it up into
six score pills abt the bigness of a little pea’s Rx 5 in the morning & 
5 abt it in the afternoon for abt a week of a fortnight together
at first taking, afterwards only for a day or two drinking
water warm’d with a brown bread toast rub’d with nutmeg drinking
plentifully a belly full. This brought from Mrs. Windser 60 stones
in a little time some as big as small peas or vetches some as little
as pinheads 12 stones in a day would often come away. She found
so much health by drinking water that she continued drinking it for 11
yrs & for ought I know as long as she liv’d. She sometimes drank wine
& wine & water where she had it gratis but she avoided all malt drink Mrs
Windser.


10
The German spaw water drunk abut ½ a pint or a pint once 
a day will commonly ease the cholic It will also cure the
scurvy & sweeten the blood if drunk for a long time ibid.
The [L?] keeper Wright that had been much afflicted with the stone found
most benefit by this medicine drink every morning some sage tea
(i.e. sage infus’d in hot water) mixt with milk & sweeten’d with hony.
For the cholic wear a forefoot of a hare in your pocket many [illegible]
For the wind in the stomach or cholic in man or beast.
Rx one of turpentine (that which is new & clear is best) 5 drops in a
glass of ale the next morning Rx [illegible] drops always an odd drop till you 
come to 17 you may take it at any time. walk or ride after it, it
purges by urine you may give a horse or cow a spoonful in ale 
Thos. Warner a farrier of Norborow. A man that is us’d to tobacco may 
smoke a pipe after it ibid For the stone & gravel eat some 
curds made of whey for a great many mornings in the summer
moisten’d with a little milk they are cooling & opening & drink a
draught of whey once or twice a day using exercise as riding
after it and avoiding wine & malt drink except a draught or 2 
of table beer at meals This freed me from gravel July 1708
To cause gravel to come away & to help the stone stamp radishes
fresh gather’d strain them into white wine & burnt or dry’d turpentine
pouder’d drink it 3 or 4 nights together Mrs M. Another Rx green parsly
mii beat it in a mortar & squeeze out the juice which sweeten with 
loaf sugar & Rx 2 spoonful at night & 2 at morning till you find eas
M.B. for the stone or gravel or stoppage of urine Rx an ordinary
wine glass full of white wine with as much common gunpouder [illegible] as
will lie on a shilling when you are pained or night & morning till you’ve
ease [illegible] the mountebank & [illegible] farmer the linnen [??nter] another
Rx the stones of a horse (when you geld him) the older the better cut off the
outward skin then slitt em in two & lay em on a clean tyle in an oven 
there let em stand till cold then beat em to pouder & take as much as
will lie on 2 shillings in a draught of beer in a morning fasting
for 3 mornings successively walking riding or using some exercise 
after it It is also good for any pain or strain in the back. Ambrose
the Gelder oyl of Benjamin is a powerful diuretick & specifick agt
the stone & gravel p. 300 Quincy’s Dispensatory.


11
For the stone or gravel.
Rx white wine posset drink pretty clear a pt. or 2 boyl in 
it bay berries bruis’d zi camomile flowers mi then sweeten
it with syrup of marshmallows strain it & dry saffron [illegible]
before the fire & crumble it in & drink a good draught
at a time. it never fails of giving ease & commonly fetches
away gravel or a stone. Mrs Finche’s mother finds grate benefit
by this Mrs Finch. Another Rx oyl of amber six penny
worth divide it into 2 pts. take one pt in new milk a qr.
of a pint, if these do not give ease take six penny worth
more. Henry Watkinson cow [leech] for a pain in his bladder
or gravel or stone Boyl agrimony mi in white wine a
pint with a (midling) onion drink 2 or 3 spoonfuls in a morning
fasting. or Rx the juice of burdock leaves in a spoonful in hony
ziiii Rx 2 or 3 knife points any time of the day when the
stomach is empty when you can’t get the juice dry & pound
the seeds of burdock zfs in virgin hony ziiii. Rx the quantity of
a walnut or dry the roots to pouder by grating or pounding
sift it Rx zi in hony ziiii the quantity of a walnut, take
it till you find ease This cures Stephen Hunt for ½ yr L. Hunt
another Rx venice turpentine make it into pills with liquorish pouder
take 4 pills as big a pea in a morning fasting & fast 3 or 4 hours after
it & take 4 more after the 1st sleep in the night It cures stone
& gravel They will keep a yr or longer good. Hop drink is a great enemy
to the stone & gravel. Ben Alsop of Huncot cures himself thus
& hop drink does not hurt him tho he drinks much of it Ben. Alsop.
for gravel & stone Rx white wine a glass, sp. of
turpentine 20 drops for a man, syrup of marsh-mallows zfs
take it morning & bedtime Mrs Basset another Rx mild ale
& stout (i.e. strong march beer or strong old ale) spring water
running towards the sun-rise Deep well water i.e. hard water
rain water each a pint half a lemmon & half a sevile orange


12
Squeez’d into it bottle it up (without any boyling) & drink
half a pint morning & night or when the fit or pain comes
sweeten’d to the palate with brown sugar This cured [Arslin] a 
flower man’s son of Leicr a pretty great boy who had not made
water of a week once taking it in 3 hours brought a 3 corner’d
stone & a smooth one & he made water the best pt of an hour
after em & was at ease a second drinking brought away abt a
thimble full of gravel. He was advis’d to drink it spring & fall
afterwards during his life Stephen Hunt & Wm March the boyd
uncle. Another Rx [??asper] (an herb) root & branch a peck 
wash it clean & chop it as small as you can strain thro a linnen
cloth & bottle it up & stop it close fro the air It will keep one 
yr If you use it presently i.e. as soon as it is fit for use
you must let it stand to settle 12 hours till it is clear. Rx
2 spoonfulls night & morning 2 in a glass of white wine
or for want there of strong ale till you find ease & make
urine clear from gravel Richard Wood Gardiner of [nun eaton]
in Warwickshire. It has freed several persons fro the pain of 
stone & gravel all their lives. Salmon commands balsam of lead R. W. with aniseeds to expel the stone & takes
away pain in [illegible].
Another a large dose of the decoction of [speedevel] (an herb) taken for some
time expell’d a stone fro the kidney of a woman that had been tormented with it
for 15 or 16 yrs vid. Salmons family dictionary.
Another for sharpness of urine, gravel & stone Rx common
mallows roots miii wash’d clean parsly seeds zi bruis’d boyl
em in a gallon of spring water till ¼ is wasted then mix it
with new milk & drink ½ a pint or more at a time as you’ve
occasion for the constant drink till well This taken once freed
for 35 yrs & perhaps all his life after James Leppington horse
rider for the gravel Rx melilot flowers & winter cherries each 
mi boyl em in a qt. of clear beer or white wine not a long
while. Give it at 4 times in the morning fasting. Stephn Hunt &
a traveller sit upon a stool or board seldom or never upon a soft seat.
It puts the blood in the buttocks into a new fermt. ibid. another aqua
comminuens calcula Horsby’s salmon disp. commends highly p. 455
Wind in the kidneys or heat of urine making but little water at a time & that with 
pain the belly being swell’d Rx the seeds of cummin, anise, caraways & [illegible] sach
zi juniper berries zifs gingr zfs make all into fine pouder & with syr. of anniseeds q.s.
morning noon & night this cured Stephen Hunt, Tho. [Farren]. 


13
The colick or gravel Rx senna ziiii guaiacu, roots
of elecampane dry’d, the seeds of annise, caraways, coriander
prepared & liqourish each zii raisins ston’d lbfs. Black
pepper tyme ginger grossly bruised each zii steep em all cold
in 3 qt of aqua vitae for 4 days strain it & when setled bottle
it up for use. The dose is fr 2 to 4 spoonful in the morning
fasting according to the strength & age of the patient It is the
best Rx yet known says Dr Thos. Russel. The stone & gravel
boyl oat meal in water 1st like water gruel then add some ale so that it may 
be 1 pt. ale & 2 pts gruel let it boyl again a little time then sweeten
it with sugar add a little butter drink plentifully another roasted
or boyl’d apples with water & sugar or apples & milk with 
sugar to the palate. Another veal broth made with veal & bacon
boyl’d a good while & let it be strong of the veal as head & 
neck. Drink plentifully This is exct. to drink after physick has
done working. EA. another drink cyder with abt 20 or 30 drops
of oyl of turpentine for want of cyder use w. wine or ale
& beer the 2 last are the worst for scarce any thing in some
people breeds the gravel more than malt drink perhaps the
hops may be one occasion of it. another drink plentifully 
of whey or posset drink riding or walking after it to prevent 
its chilling the stomach. another make tea with sage adding
abt ½ a lemmon peel & [meat] sweeten it with sugar This will
open the body & is an exct preparative taken the night
before physick E.A. another drink a moderate draught of
new milk whey or for want thereof milk & water warm’d or camomile
or sage boyl’d or infus’d in water & after any of em a
draught of beer or ale to prevent em chilling the stomach & use 
exercise as riding, walking erc. E.A. for the stone & gravel SR
Nathan Wright. Rx sallet oyl & juice of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls
or the juice of one lemmon (eat the meat with sugar) w. wine
4 or 5 spoonfuls sugar 1 spoonful or as much as will make it
palatable Take this never but when you are sensible of a fit approaching
or in affect or when you feel pain of gravel for want
of white wine you may use cyder drink ½ a pint of w. wine & 
½ a pint of water or a pint of small ale to wash the loins a little
after you’ve taken the oyl & lemmon & he always finds benefit by 



14
by this but the most by Mrs LIvesy’s colic drink that never
fails giving ease. This was taught him by a Dutch Dr for the stone
gravel, gripes, colic & a cold. Rx Parsly roots sliced mi stonecrop I sal 
prunella zfs boyl em in a pint of new milk Drink it in a morning
warm. It is a dose for 2 mornings. It often provokes a stool or
2. It brought a great quantity of gravel from Stephen Hunt.
Another Rx rosin of turpentine i.e. boyl horse turpentine lbi by itself
in a pot that will endure the fire (you must get a Dutch pot fro London or
Northampton etc.) the older it is the better & will require less boyling you
boyle it a great while then pour it gently into a [panchion] of cold water
laying aside the hat, wig, & neckcloth lest it flys into the face when it
is cold you must try if it will break like rosin or glass then it is rightly 
made, but if it will not break so you must boyle it again & again till it
will break then boyl some butter that is abt 1 or 2 days old is best because
sweetest in an iron ladle or pan or frying pan till it is black which is call’d
burnt butter & put some of the rosin or turp. to the burnt butter viz as
then take as much as will make 15 pills with loaf sugar in pouder take at
one dose any time, then Rx white wine 2 or 3 ounces or spoonfuls in a
glass & light a pipe of tobacco & wrap a doubled paper round the [bole]
& blow the smoke into the white wine till there will appear an oyl upon
it Drink it immediately after it This dose or this dose repeated will
bring stones & gravel from you in great quantity Dr. Richd Pool mountebank 
of Northampton. Another gather abt the beginning of May
sassifras root when it is in flower which is white & like a boll, the roots thse which
are of a brown colour are best but those roots which are white
are good you may pull or dig em pu, there are 3 or 4 clusters
or more abt the root scarce ½ so big as a small cherry stone dry
Rx a scruple of the pouder in a little galss of white wine smoked
with tobacco. ibid. for the colic. Rx marsh or common mallow roots
wash’d & slided mi boyle em in water a pint ½ till ½ is wasted then
put in a qr. of a pint of w. wine; when it is strained sweeten it & drink
it hot. Mrs Caulson of Leicr Pills for the stone or gravel. Rx cyprus
turpentine ziy wash it well in water rhubarb & aloes each [illegible] in pouder zi mix
& work em well together make em into pills [with] liquorish pouder Take 1 or 2 
at night going to bed & 2 or 3 in the morning. They are a good purge & good
for a pain in the back or loyns or any where also or for a pain at the
stomach. you may take em 2 or 3 days & omit one or 2 according as they
work ibid. A gentle purge for gravel Rx damask roses or for want of
them pale roses the leaves of six roses they will keep dry all winter
Infuse em in a qt of whey 3 or 4 times Drink it in 3 or 4 hours It cools &
brings away gravel & makes a man healthful Dr P. drinks it for a months in [illegible] [illegible]


15
Gripes
Drink a glassfull of cold water made very salt with common 
[salt] salt after it take warm water as much as will vomit you. This cured Grace Hollins, sister S.A.’s maid.
Another drink milk sweeten’d with hony hot ibid.
Another drink
single or double
anniseed water very
hot burnt with sugar.
King James [1st] straggling from hunting to his next ale house complained
to the old woman that kept the house (but knew him not) that
he was troubled with the gripes. She advised him to swallow a leaden 
bullet which he did & was presently cured. old Wm [Shaw] of Asserby.
another drink a draught of cold water made milk white with fine
wheat flower. This cured 2 or 3 of the colic it is good also for fits
of the mother.
In the gripes or colic avoid vomiting or take not above one vomit
to clear the stomach for if you vomit often yr stomach will be 
enclin’d to cast up every think it receives & call back the poysonous
tincture that causes the gripes from the bowels to the stomach & the stomach being
made naked & empty’d fills again with new wind Mr. Colemore
of Warwick being advis’d by 2 drs to vomit when he had the
colic said he would 1st consult his own wife that was much afflicted
with it & she dissuaded him from vomiting & he was quickly
well. E. A. being grip’d abt Mich 715 was cured by eating plenty of
salt with roast mutton & some large hazelnuts kernels after it [illegible] [illegible]
stone colic or gripes (almonds may do as [illegible]
Rx Parsly roots, fennel roots scrape em, camomile leaves
& scotch fir boyle em in white wine or mild ale, never drink
stale drink. Jn Rastall of Ledgers Ashby. For the gripes eat
[rue] with bread & butter or swallow a bullet with some goose
shot & drink some brandy after them & stand on yr head. ibid.
Gripes. August the 18th 1705 upon drinking coleorton waters that come
from an iron mineral (they will not bear sope) they filled me full
of wind insomuch that in abt a weeks time I was violently grip’d
I vomited with warm water & clear’d my stomach that was full of
flegm but still my gripes continued the next day & vomited with posset
drink but still the more I vomited the more I was inclin’d to vomit 
I took milk & hony & it rather increas’d my pains & rue alone did
me little or no good, at last I lessen’d my gripes & cured them by 
boyling parsly, rue, sage, mint, fennel & common mallows in all a
good handfull in 3 pints of water to a quart but as soon as the
water hath [illegible] a tincture of the herbs take out 5 or 6 spoonfuls 
& when they are cold mix as much oatmeal with them as will thicken 



16
the quart of water the herbs being taken out then boyl it to water
gruel drink this warm morning noon & night for yr constant
drink till you are well avoiding malt drinks, wine cyder brandys
& milk & milk meats & raw fruits Eating rue & bread butter in a morning & onions
& water with a little salt for sauce to yr meat. Rx venice treacle
a knife’s pointful at night going to be wearing a flannel wastcoat
at night & a breast-piece by day to keep you warm during yr illness
upon eating raw fruit & drinking stale ale my gripes return’d in a 
very short time & then they were so violent that whatever I eat or drank
this it was but water gruel & belch’d & vomited it up & I never was 
at eas but just after vomiting. vomits would do me no good. I was
full of wind as ever I could hold which cast up every thing that came into
my stomach. I took 7 spoonfuls of rhubarb, gentian anniseed water
infus’d together & a clyster abt 3 o clock in the afternoon. The purge
& the clyster wrought not above 3 or 4 little stooles & could not eas
me of the wind. mountaine-sage boyled in ale or beer cures Mrs Holbech
of the wind colick but it did me no kindness. It grows upon rocks & 
hills in the forest of Leicester & on Croft Hill in Leicr shire. I could 
sleep at any time but when my gripes pained me much. Note If you 
take a purge you must make it stronger than what is fit for you to take
at another time or it will not work when you are grip’d & vomits are
of little use to one that is grip’d. I prefer clysters before purges & vomits 
for they cured me Aug. 25th 1705 Mr. Tho. Franks the minister of [Luenniborough]
cures himself of his wind, fits of the stone, colick & gripes by 
this following clyster once twice or thrice administered at the 1st approach
of the pain in his bowels striving all he can to keep it from ascending
from his bowels to his stomach Rx camomile, mallows, (al. mauls) sach
mi shred or cut small anniseeds bruised a half pennyworth, boyl em in almost a
pint of posset drink strain it & put to it two spoonfull of sallet oyl & 
another till he removes the wind. These he prefers before the celebrated
medicines of any Dr he has heard of. The latter end of Septr 1705 
after many returns of the colic & gripes I conquer’d em thus I
took the decoction following with steel pills by Dr Cole’s prescription
Rx the best bright thick cortex grossly beaten zfs pr 9 s Infuse it gently 
in water a large quart boyl’d & pour’d upon it near the fire 24 hours
then strain it out add to a quart of the infusion gentian zi virgin snake
zii pr 2 s white hore-hound & buckbean each zfs coriander or caraway-seeds
zfs infuse ‘em gently near the fire for ½ an hour then strain of [such]
takes a quarter of a pint with 20 drops of tincture of steel dropt into 


17
it This decoction & tincture you must take in the morning fasting
after you’ve taken 5 of the following steel pills & at 1st
for abt a month you must also take the pills & decoction at
4 o clock in the afternoon. To make steel pills Rx steel prepared
with tarter zfs pr 3 s that which is green is best, make it into a mass with
extract of gentian pr. 6 s & gum tragicanth. pr. 1 s each zii dissolve the gum
in one spoonful of water all night make it into a mass & weigh
out one scruple for a dose or 5 little pills to be taken morning & 
evening. Steel is a mighty sweetner & strengthener of the blood it
changes the excremt black. Steel-pills & steel tincture must be taken
together or they will do no good. Rx the steel pills for a month or
6 weeks when you are ill Wm Well Rx em once a gr. for a month but use
em not too often because steel then lose its virtue. use a gentle
purge (viz sal mirabile glauberi zi pr. 6 s dissolved in water over night & 
drank in whey or posset drink or pillula cochiae majoris zi made
into 8 pills pr. 5 s Rx 3 over night & 5 in the morning following.
Rx Bitters often to settle & strengthen the stomach & to destroy the
superfluity of the acids in the stomach. avoid all things that are windy
& griping as milk, apples, wheat, things sweet, salt & sour & whey tho sometimes it doth good as diuretick
Eat things of an easy digestion. meat with gravy to raise the spirits
for dinner or cows or calf’s feet boyl’d. Let yr breakfasts & suppers 
be broth or water gruel or french barly broth. Dr Coles. I
believe these steel pills & decoction did me a great deal of good in
the colic but they would not perfect the cure. I found the most
good by sallet oyl without mixing any thing with it drinking a pint
or more to make the bowels slippery & to carry off the corroding humours
there Rx sal mirabile glauberi zi & repeat yr sallet oyl & 
continue yr gentle purges till you’ve master’d the [illegible] humours when
you are quite well you may eat a great many ripe mellow apples or
live a week upon apple pie They are laxative & will cool & make a 
great alteration in your body but you must use much exercise by
walking or turning a malt-mill or they will chill the stomach. They will
make you belch at first but it will wear off. E.A. Rx the quantity of 
a hazelnut of Markhams balls (such as you give horses made with sallet
oyl) when you are grip’d or for 2 or 3 mornings after you are grip’d
or have the colic. This did me good E.A. Parson Burneby was afflicted with
the colic & vomiting & having try’d Drs in vain was cured by smoking tobacco
very much.


18
For the colic or gripes. Rx hiera piera zi cochinile zfs beaten
put em into a quart of white aniseed water let it stand by the 
fire 24 hours, shake it sometimes. Dose for a man 6 spoonfuls
approved by Mr Robt. Onsby & Cos. Ezekiel Wrighte. If that does doth
not give ease in abt a hours time Rx 1 or 2 spoonfuls more. 6
spoonfuls taken after a qter of a pint of sallet oyl will purge &
carry off the cause of the gripes. E.A. Another Rx Treacle water & 
penny royal water each a quarter of a pint Drink abt 4 spoonfuls as
oft as you feel pain. Mrs Anne Hubbert. Another Rx a clove of garlic
at night going to bed with 4 spoonfuls of good brandy after
it repeat this morning & night & take 2 cloves or more at
a time if you are not well in a day or two This cur’d E.A. July
706. It will be more effectual if for 2 or 3 days or longer you infuse
Roman wormwood or buckbean in yr brandy with it You may keep
some ready infus’d by you & [the] longr it is kept the less bitter
the taste will be. E.A. Broth made with oat meal or without which
a chicken boyled & drunken hot did E.A. a great deal of good 
June 1707 being griped by drinking bottled [flying] cider. A man
was cured of gripes & the colic by swallowing ivy berries 2 or 3 
at a time carrying em in his pocket always & taking em often in 
a day till he remov’d his pain. They cured him after a fortnights griping 
having try’d a great many medicines in vain. Mary Gee. Another
Distill some strong water (al. rack) from ale grounds. fill a still with
stone horse dung & of that strong water add to it what is convenient
according to the quantity you will draw off. Keep the distill’d water
& drink a glassful when you are grip’d or have the colic. It hath no 
ill smell Mr. Benbrook of Lockington’s family use it very much. ibid.
Another. Rx some camomile & almost fill a pipkin with it almost cover
it with water & set it in an oven with bread strain out the liqr & with
suger 6 s per lb boyl it to a syrup drink 2 spoonful in a draught of
warm’d mild ale as soon as you perceive yr pain approaching & it will 
drive it away old Mr. [Oke?ver]. vide p. the 9th for the wind colick 
Rx dryed betony & pouder it & mix it with live hony & make pills of it
as big as a small hazle nut & take two of them at night when you go to
bad R.C. another Rx an equal quantity of mint water fennel water
& the [illegible] of Hungary’s water shake them together in a bottle & drink
it at night going to bed & in the morning 3 spoonfuls in an exct. cure
R.C. Mary Gee being violently grip’d was cured thus boyl some oatmeal


19
in water or good small beer that is not tart when
it hath boyl’d pretty well add ale to it let it boyl again
a little then sweeten it adding sugar & white bread note when
you bouyl yr oatmeal at 1st you may put in rosemary &
mint & balm or cloves & mace abt a qr. of an hour
after this boat some gunpouder abt 2 timble fulls 3 cloves
of garlic, mustard 2 to a spoonfuls cream of tartar
1 to a spoonfull burn a quartern of [best] brandy with
which the garlic bruis’d then take out the garlic & mix the
brandy (or for want of brandy Rx double anniseed water)
with the rest of the ingredients & adding oyl of
turpentine 6 or 7 drops drink it off hot 1 dose cured
M. Gee. compos’d by E.A. note Aug. 1708 I was violently grip’d
having the precedt night drank bottled ale & eaten a late & plentiful supper
I try’d most of my noted medicines in vain at last being mightily swell’d
full of wind I took camomile boyl’d in posset drink plentifully till I vomited
then I took chicken broth & I was at eas the next day & for many
days I eat water gruel made with common mallows shread small which I take 
for an extraordinary good medicine for the gripes & colic I’ve heard of a
man that could never be at ease without it E.A. For the gripes & colic boyl
common mallows 1 gallon in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 pints 
throw the scum away when there is any on it Drink a [porringer] full warm at 
any time when grip’d This cured Mrs Finches husband when the Drs could not It
make him fall asleep & gave him ease & cur’d him Mrs. Finch. Itry’d this medicine
in Augt 1708 & found no benefit by it I drank [Diap?ate[ & smithy wat
mixt cold without any cure or ease I believe mallows boyl’d in milk & water
are better than in [illegible] but best in water gruel E.A. Another. Boyl holly
bark & loaves in beer a pint or more & drink it warm this cured Sam. Smith.
An exct. medicine for the wind colick, the [illegible] or convulsion fits
Rx Coral, amber [?st] of each a little quantity by weight, pulverize them all 
& mix them & take of the pouder the quantity of an hazel nut & put it into
a spoonful of [illegible] or warm broth & take it fasting with 2 or 3 spoonfuls
of the same broth & take as much more if yiou find not ease in 2 
hours after Mrs M. for the colick Rx a pint of good brandy & half a
pint of sallet oyl mix em & drink it at once this cured a woman of
one fit prescrib’d by Dr Lane of Banbury strong liqr in violent pain
affects the head very little Mrs Newlove I cured my wife of a pain & 
wind in her stomach by giving her venice treacle inwardly & laying 
a great plaster of Dr Bents salve spred upon allum leather & afterwards 
rub’d over with oyl of turpentine & apply’d to the navel & 
stomach E.A. Dr Bigs rub’d on a plaster chymical oyl of wormwood or mint with good success



20
For the wind & stone colic & to sweeten the blood.
Rx Balsamu capivy gut 30 in beer or ale for a week
every morning It is diuretic make tea of elder flowers
& drink of it 2 or 3 times a day It cured a gentn of the
colic Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange.
For the wind & gripes Rx mithridate a little knife pointful dissolve
it (by stirring with a knife) in a [illegible] dish or half a pint of
strong ale drink it off often in a day E.A. for the wind colick
beat 2 or 3 acorns to pouder drink in ½ a pint of beer or ale
warmed. It will make you belch wind & give you ease w.p. another
Rx syrup of camomile 2 spoonfuls in abt ½ pint of warm ale Mr
[Okeover] another quench crowstone in a draught of ale [illegible] [illegible]
another Drink sage tea sweeten’d with sugar E.A.
Janry 1708 I cured my self of wind in the stomach & gripes thus having
taken chicken broth in vain viz mustardseed beaten 2 tea spoonful gunpouder
of a large porringerful stir em well together & burn the brandy then add to 
gunpouder & mustard at the bottom of the porringer this will give present ease
[cardius] posset drink to clear my stomach 3 qts & then eat 3 or 4 mackeroons
to strengthen & compose my stomach & so went to bed & found
myself very [illegible] Another Mrs Kenton being so grip’d that she hat fallen
down & lay on her bed & hath been cured several times by drinking brandy
burnt with a little sugar in it. Mrs K. you may add a little mint
in double distill’d anniseed water such is much cheapr than brandy & 
will do as well unless it be french brandy & you may infuse all the
other ingredients & yr medicine will not be so easily discover’d &
it will be always ready You must not give it to a breeding woman
for it will make her miscarry, but for curing gripes or wind colic
no medicine I believe can out do it, It was invented by E.A. another
Rx Cream of tartar 3 qts of an ounce in posset drink or gruel 
is a dose for a man or woman. Intermit 2 days & repeat the dose
This has cur’d inveterate colicks The [illegible] Mr Ed. Stokes Dr [Lowes]
Paste (alias pilula de aloe lota, or aloe rosata) taking 1 pill as big
as a small pea over night & 2 the next morning cures & colic & gripes 
beyond any medicine. It is sold at Mr Smalley’s in Leicr.


21
for the spleen colic or gripes
The latter and of Augt 710 I was violently grip’d & felt
a pain on my left side my garlic & brandy & oyle of turpentine
& would not cure me I took pil. ex duobus & a vomit
of Ipicacuana & found no ease at last glisters gave me
ease but Mr Francis Colsman stopt my vomiting the women
[illegible] Mrs. Smith said it was the spleen colic she advised
me to take a vomit first then to eat pt of a chicken boyl’d 
with capers & parsly for the sauce to eat capers every morning
to carry em abt with me to eat em for my constant
sauce or to eat em alone as you go up & down or with any
fresh meat to avoid salt & salt meats this I [illegible] [illegible] as much gentian
root as will lie on a shilling or rather more & infuse it
one night in a quarter of a pint of running water or spring water 
that will bear soup & drink the water off in the morning Drink this
every morning till you are well you may cut the gentian into
very small pieces This cured of the gripes Tho. Chapman states
eat juniper berries they are good for the gripes buy em of Mr Penford the
distiller ibid Another Grate as much rhubarb as will lie on a 
shilling with a rasp & drink it with abt two spoonfuls of good French 
brandy in the morning fasting It will gently purge & drink camomile posset
drink at night going to bed i.e. camomile flowers or camomile
boyl’d in all posset drink Dr Shukbrugh Ashby This cur’d
the [R?] Mr. Burnby & Mr. Cradock of Belgrave they gook 
the rhubarb morning & night Mr. Burnby advises to leave
off drinking malt drink & to drink white wine or white
wine & water till you are well Mrs. Wrighte commends
water gruel made with oat meal & rice ground & milk pottage
the first in the morn the last at night The Lady Beaumt commends
camomile posset drink & [elizer] [propriatatis] another 
Rx mustard seed whole a gr of a pint or ziiii infuse it in a
bottle of ale & drink abt ½ a qr of a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon it will gently purge you Mrs
Mary Rayson. Another avoid all strong waters Dry some horseradish
root in the chimney & cut a little bit & chew it & swallow it It
is an exct. thing for the scurvy too. Dr Ben Heyrick.


22
Wind colic or gripes
The Rc Mr Jn. Wightman’s wife being with child was thus cur’d
of the wind colic. Over night Rx 10 or 12 drops of the chymical
oyl of anniseeds in a glass of warm ale or sack The next
morning bleed in the arm then take one spoonful of sp. of
wine The 1st gives speedy ease the last things a perfect cure. Dr White for the wind & stone colick Rx Plane brandy, sweet
oyl, syrup of violets [illegible] 3 spoonfuls beat em well together & 
take it when the fit comes Dr Geo. Ashby. violets are good for a
pleurisy & pain in the side for wind int eh stomach & wind
colic Rx Sp. of sal armoniac 4 or 5 drps 
ikn a glass of ale every morning It is a cure for melancholy
& to clear the spirits Dr Leeds of Manchester & Mrs
M. another Mrs Elyth Adderly drinks [illegible] posset drink to prevent
the wind colic & cures it by drinking Virginian snake root in brandy
i.e. the infusion [illegible] A clyster for the wind colic or gripes Rx 
new milk a pint mallows & camomil each mi shred anniseeds
& sweet [illegible] each a large pugil or zii beaten to pouder boyl those &
strain it. Add to the liqr brown sugar one spoonful, & oul of
turpentine 3 or 4 drops. It purges the wind downwards. Mrs 
M. There is an ext confection made of white, black & long pepper
called species [diat???] [piperi??] good for a cold & windy stomach
which may be taken at any time with hony or without. Salmon says diatrion
piperton warms the stomach, expels wind & is powerful agt
the colic. The haven of health written of Thomas Cogan commends
it highly but says that instead of it you may take a few
corns of black pepper grosse beaten in a draught of ale fasting
or take a little of the pouder of any of the 3 sorts together with
meat for nothing is better for wind & flegm p. [207]. Colic. Rx
this following is Salmon’s syrup of [antimony] [illegible]
white wine zvi rose water zii cinnamon zifs pouder of [stibium]
zi Digest a night than decant & with white sugar zviii boyl
it to a syrup. In the most intolerable pain of the colic it
cures in a moment. Dose fro zfs to zi in chicken or veal
broth Wm Padmore for the wind colic or gripes Rx Some of 
Dr Lowers paste viz one pill over night & 2 in morning sold
by Mr [Roger] [Boo??ll] at the Black Boy agt St. Dunstan’s Church in [illegible]



23
To prevent taking cold.
Jn Rastale of Ledgers Ashby that goes into the water in the
winter time to catch fish chews some elecampane before &
after his going into the water & never takes cold upon it
For colds syrup of garlick is good in all colds & stoppages in 
the lungs or stomach or Rx a pint of canary, white sugar candy
ziiii Spanish juice of liquorish zi two ordinary heads of garlick
Let them infuse 6 hours then boyl it gently to a syrup & strain 
it & take 1 spoonfull night & morning. R.C. a cold or stuffing
in the head. moisten some hares wooll or lint in oyl of turpentine 
& stop yr nostrils therewith going to bed. E.A.
for a cold Rx anniseeds, carraway seeds pounded & sifted, elecampane
pouder liquorish pouder & flower of brimstone each 
zfs put it to treacle lbi Rx it morning & night & as often as
you please in this day W.P. for a cold or to stop a great
cough & cure a hoarseness drink a draught of cold water at
night going to bed & in bed when the rheum tickles you & in the
day time It is a speedy & safe cure J.L. For an old cough
drink abt ½ a pint of asses milk new milk’d warm from the ass
in the morning before you rise Mrs Adderly. for a violent cough 
Eat a cold roasted apple at night going to bed IF that does not
cure in 3 or 4 nights then eat one also in the morning fasting Anne Tasie.
A chincough in children Rx sugar dandy ziiii tie it fast in a hogs
bladder for a female, a sows bladder for a male, then tie it to a root
of a tree in running water 24 hours. Let the child take of it often
in a day in the morning fasting an hour after it & at night take
a pretty great quantity. This cured when the dis could not a traveller
& Anne [Tasie]. another Rx wine vinegar ½ a pint running water a pint
or 3 spoonfuls at a time night morning & noon This cured Goody Simon’s 
children. It is good for haust in beasts. Anne Simons.
Another Give the child loaf sugar moisten’d with sallet oyl & apply doses
just melted & spred upon London brown paper to its stomach It cures in 3 days, Good
Dawkins’s child
for a cold eat 2 cloves of garlick at night going to bed
taking care for a day or 2 after of not catching cold. old
Mr Ed Brooks that took great delight in fishing us’d nothing
else old Stephen Hunt


24
A cold or cough. Rx Treacle & ginger in pouder at night
going to bed Robt. Moor. another Rx Half a spoonful of common
treacle & abt 20 drops of sallet oyle at night, mixt well
taking care you do not catch cold the next day This is the best
medicine in the world says my auther augustine Low Potter of
Coleorton moor another Boyl some new milk put butter & pepper & bread
to’t & drink it hot night & morning This & riding cured E.A.’s cold in the
yr 713 when lozenges & other medicines would not. Mr. Whale of Norton
commends syrup of garlic. Salmon says compound balsam of sulphur is
a [????endent] medicine in all diseases of the lungs, it heals ulcers stops coughs
Dispensatory p. 390. An old cold cough & hoarseness & to make
you rear & expectorate & to clear the stomach of plegm 
Rx ale 3 pts pepper in fine pouder zfs boyl it till ½ dis wasted
then take it off the fire & when it is as cold as new milk beat 
the yolk & white of one or 2 new lay’d eggs & add that to’t
& warm it a little when you drink it, & drink a coffee dish
morning & night & oftener This cured David [Jarvase] of the
said distempers having a stoppage at his stomach You may 
make less at 1st to [illegible] how you like it you may add liquorish 
a little boyl’d in’t at 2st It is good for wind. David [Jervase]
It is good for a syrfeit & gripes It will keep a yr in a bottle
close stopt. It will cure an ague & the colick. ibid.
An obstinate cold & cough & hoarseness April 1714 E.A. had
a mighty hoarseness working in his waistcoat catching cold. It was succeeded
by a violent cold & cough when he had taken a great deal of
sweet & oyly medicines in vain he was thus cured. He put on a great
coat & rode out every day for 3 or 4 hours drinking a little burnt
brandy or aqua vitae with a little sugar at night & eating bread & 
butter in the morning E.A. another Robt. Glover my [illegible] having a
 violent cold so that when he cough’d it made the blood fly out of his nose
& out of his mouth, his bones aked & head aked, Some nights he could 
not sleep a wink & he sweat very much a nights was cured by taking
anniseed water a quartern pr. 5.9 treacle ziiii pr. 1 s hony ziiii pr. 5.9 
Let em simber in a pot cover’d by the fire & drink it hot as [illegible] at 
nights going to bed it is best but you may take a 
spoonful or 2 at any time when you cough. This cured many persons
thus afflicted Augt 714. One of the best R’s for a cold or cough
Rx white sugar candy in pouder & oyl of sweet almonds. Rx a little
night & morn or when you cough in a tea spoon. Rx Mr Ed. Stokes



25
Agues
Rx the bottom or thick pt of a glass bottle & heat it red hot in the
fire & quench it in a pint of strong ales just as the fit is coming
& drink it hot & go to bed it will make you sweat. This is a dose for 
a man You must have less for a woman or a child. once taking
cures you must use the glass but once sister Boothby. Another
Rx [aniseed] water a qtr of a pint & the juice of a whole lemon
squeez’d into it & drink it as soon as the fit is come & go
to bed or lie up on the bed & be cover’d warm once taking cures
The Rd Mr Richard Duke another Beat anniseeds cummin seeds to pouder
& mix it with venice turpentine & apply it [platter] wise 
to both wrists a little bigger than ½ a crown an [allum’d] [illegible] before the fit comes let it be on till it is
dry. Mrs Elizth [Basset] These plasters seldom fail, they prevent
a fermentation in the [illegible] & keep the spirits quiet you must apply
them where the pulse beats on the wrists & let them be [serv’d]
on the night before you expect the ague because it comes
often uncertainly therefore let the plaster take possession
before it. other plasters that never fail curing. Rx white copperas,
venice bole & venice turpentine each 1 I mix & 
spread it upon allum & leather to go quite round the wrists let 
em lie on 3 or 4 weeks Mrs Emerson & Mary Gee. Another Rx
Diascordium zfs & drink 3 spoonfuls of plague water or (for want of it)
of anniseed water, an hour before the fit comes going to bed & sweat. Mr
Red Duk. from Dr [L??er] you must take the diascordium an hour
& ½ before the fit is expected. zfs is a dose for a man, zii for a
child. It hath cured when Jesuits pouder could not. Francis Squire
An ague or cold in a womans breast so that the breast is swelld
& hard with it. Warm some of the best brandy (sp. of wine is better)
with a spoon & dab it on the breast with a linnen cloth 6 or 7 
times in a day & leaving always the cloth on the breast, this
cured Mrs [Littalford] in a weeks time [illegible] An ague Rx as much
whip cord as will come twice round the middle pr. 2nd tie
it very straight round the middle of the naked body next the
skin near the navel 2 or 3 hours before the fit comes when
the ague comes it makes the body swell. The whip cord prevents
its swelling & drives it away. This cured may colliers at 



26
Coleoverton & Cornelius Jones the bricklayers wife at
Leicr The thickest whipcord is easiest. You must wear it
till you’ve mist a second fit. C.J. To cure an ague when 
Jesuit’s pouder can’t. Rx the roots of elder miiii or more wash 
& dry em with a cloth scrape em tillyou come to thewood i.e.
till you’ve as much as a man can take up with one hand at once
boyl it in 3 pints of milk till one is consum’d Let a man when
he perceives the fit coming drink the [qt] strain’d blood warm This
is one dose if it does not cure repeat the dose. It is a 
gentle vomit. James Lappington horserider another Rx a cobweb 
roll it up till it is of the bigness of a horse bean, set it in the top of an
apple This cured Wm Biggs my servt. only taking it once. Wm Biggs.
another wear wormwood that is green in the stocking next to the bare
feet & shift it when dry by laying fresh in its place This cured
Frances Clark. another Run till the breast is gone a little before
you expect the fit This cured Jane Tasie of a third day ague when
a great many noted medicines were try’d in vain. Let a man run,
a little before the fit (the finger nails often look black before the
fit comes) till his breath is gone then let him fall a thrashing
till he sweats. This often repeated wears away an obstinate ague 
This cured Anne Tasie’s br. Jn. another Rx ½ a pint of white wine vinegar
set it at one end of a room & set ¼ of a pint of the best brandy
at the other end & walk fro one to the other taking a sup of
one & a sup of the other a little before the fit comes or when you 
feel it coming till you’ve drunk em both up. It will make you 
[illegible] mightily & clears the stomach Let 2 buckets or pots to vomit
in It cured at once Taking an ague of a qr of a yrs standing 
Witness Tho. Smith of Blaby. This cured my servt. Wm Biggs running
all the time he was drinking it in the [illegible] It made him vomit 2 or 3 
times. another Rx the white of 2 new laid eggs wheat flower & the
best soap beat it to a salve. spred it on flaxen rags & apply it to 
the feet lying in the stocking till the ague is gone then [illegible] they cured Tho.
Brooks of Blaby. You must have soap the quantity of a large nutmeg 
& mix it with the white of an egg after it is beaten & beat em 
both together then add wheat flower as much as will make it into a
salve Beat em all together & apply it immediately or it will not spred


27
another Roast a whole nutmeg agt the fire & put it
very hot to 4 or 5 spoonfuls of sack the nutmeg will break 
in pieces which eat & drink the sack after it & walk abt for
a pretty while Do this when you perceive the fit coming. It seldom
fails curing. Sister Boothby. another Spred 2 plasters on 
leather with frankincense very thick and apply em to the wrists after a fit
keep em on sometime after the ague is gon least it return again
This cured old Goody Gregory of Blaby apply’d to the stomach Mrs [Norolove].
an ague on a child moisten a pack hired string in oyl of
camphir & [illegible] about the childs neck let it wear it for a week
or longer if it does not chafe the skin. This will cure a sucking
child. A gypsie & Stephen Hunt. another Rx nine little onions
cut small into four qrs put em into a linnen bag & wear it next
the stomach being fixt to a fillet round the neck put it on abt an 
hour before this fit comes & chew 2 or 3 onions taking only a little
at a time in the mouth & swallowing only the juice & the spittle
This cured Elias Simpson one time & another time only chewing onions
(without hanging any abt his neck) cured him. Elias Simpson
another Quench a rusty horse shoe, heated red hot, in verjuice a qr of a
pint drink it hot & walk after it This cured Joyce Gimson’s mother & br
after many things try’d in vain. J. G. an ague. Infuse tobacco zfs 
in abt a pint of ale [illegible] 8 or 10 hours strain & drink it a little
before the fit It makes you vomit which clears the stomach
& effects the cure This seldom or never fail’d at [illegible]
Jn. [Cates] wife You may boyl em together when the fit is over give a tea spoon of bark
every 4th hour & on the [illegible] after it This cured Joyce [illegible]
another old Bosworth of Enderby a lusty 
man was blooded 16 ou. in the arm which cured him of an ague He had only 
a little grudging of a fit after it. another Mrs Gregory having taken the
Jesuits bark in pouder mixt with water & after that she had more bark infus’d 
in clarret & in w. wine but she found no cure till she was blooded
in the arm. A.G. when the lips break out it is a sign the ague is going
away.
Drinking whey or buttermilk or very cooling liqours or eating fruit in 3
or 4 weeks after the bark has driven an ague away will cause it to 
return. E.A. ague Rx the roots of henbane clean’d but not wash’d
cut em into short pieces & with a needle & thred make a necklace 
wear em abt the neck till they are dry (abt a week) & renew it abt
2 necklases commonly cure Drink night & morning garlic boyl’d 
in milk a porringer full till well. This cured David Jervase of an ague 
almost of 2 yrs standing taught him by a beggar woman


28
a b r a k a d a b r a
a b r a k a d a b r
a b r a k a d a b
a b r a k a d a
a b r a k a d
a b r a k a
a b r a k
a b r a
a b r
a b 
a 
This is a charm for an 
ague or intermitting fever
In Cornelius Agrippa his
natural & occult philosophy
To be ty’d abt the neck. Roll it
up abt a thred or pack thred etc.
sealing it with a piece of wafer in 
3 or 4 places that it may not be read
but torn when open’d Dr Million. This
cured E.A.’s wife July 717 when the bark
& vomiting would not.
an ague. Rx 3 or 4 spoonful of brandy pr. 2 d moisten a little white
bread toast therein eat it & drink the remainder of the brandy after it
a vomit for an ague Mr [Traps] Rx cardius mii or better pr. 1 d one
head of white lilly root as big as an egg white & pull it to pieces viz
into cloves. Boyl em in 6 qts of clear water to 5 or till the roots are
tender then strain & add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of sallet oyl to the water straind
or for want thereof fresh butter. Be sure to boyl enough water at 1st 
as not to want a feather thrust down the throat will make you vomit
Rx this vomit abt 3 or 4 o clock in the after-noon when the ague
fit is not on you Drink burnt clarret or white wine or ale [caudle]
Eat poch’d egg you may go to bed or sit up after it. The same night Rx 
Jesuits bark zi in fine pouder infuse it in a qt of clarret in the
morning shake the bottle & take an ordinary wine glass of it every 4 
hours viz abt ½ a gill when it is all taken fill the bottle again with a qt 
of more clarret let it infuse 12 hours & take that every 4 hours & you
need take it no longer you must not take the bark till the hot & cold
fit is over. an ague [Dr] got a great deal of mony by this Rx in Yorkshire
Mr Traps. another Rx Green savine pound it add currant & 
pound em & lastly add hony & pound em altogether spred it upon
2 pieces of leather & sew em to 2 rags and apply em to the wrists [illegible]
em when dry if this ague does not go away This cured a child of
3 yrs old Mrs Chester Jn Cater another mix conserve of red
roses with Jesuit’s bark spred it upon linnen fold 2 plasters then strew on a 
little of the Peruvian pouder apply em to the wrists This cured Mrs
Hubbard of Raresby & she seeing a maid of her acquaintance going
to London that had an ague took the plasters from her wrists 
& in haste apply’d em to the maids wrists & they cured her too Mrs H.
Dr Pool the mountebank his ague pouder Rx the green pouder of an
herb that grows in the Lady Robinson’s wood near Stamford It is called
It bears a large flower all of a cluster like a bunch of 




29
grapes It grows abt a foot high like emmeny having a
long narrow loaf & antimonium diaphoreticum in 
pouder as much as will lie on a great sugar (pr. 8 d per lb.)
The weight of one dose of the ague pouder for a man or woman is the
weight of a new sixpence & 10 grains. Rx Dr Pool’s pouder for an ague
viz the dose, in ale sweeten’d with treacle, a qr of a pint treated hot til
night going to bed, or in treacle alone as an electuary. The 1st makes you 
the least sick for the wind or stone-colic or gripes. Rx a qr or 4th pt of
the pouder in treacle & ale or treacle at any time. It is best when the
stomach is empty. The quantity of the pouder that will lie on a six pence
in a little loaf sugar given 3 mornings together will kill worms in children
for a third day ague Rx rape oyl a spoonful in D. R. loaf sugar
zii immediately before you take the ague pouder Dr. Pool.
another Rx green walnut tree bark mi dandelion roots no 6 boyl ‘em in 
stale ale a qt till it comes to a pint & ½ or less sweeten’d with sugar or treacle
but the last is apt to make you catch cold. Drink it warm a little before
the ague comes & keep warm Rx it 2 or 3 times. Drink water not
beer during the cure. Danl Pool.
Plasters for the ague Rx aethiops mineralis zi conserve of red roses zii
mix em & keep em in a pot for use plasterwise to be apply’d to the
writs. This was found out accidentally by E.A. [illegible] try’d oftener miss’d than
plaster for the ague. Peel an onion & cut it into two equal pts hollow
each pt. like the top of an eggshel mix gun pouder with venice treacle as
much as will fill the empty places & bind on one to each wrist there
to remain for a month. This cured Hannah Ashby the daughter of cos.
Jn Ashby abt 6 yrs old without making the wrists sore or offering any
injury to the skin. The onion must be so large as to hold abt the quantity
of an hazelnut. Cos. Hannah Ashby [illegible] It will cure when pounded together 
& spred on [illegible]& [illegible] to a [illegible] but it is apt to blister the wrists of them that [illegible] E.A.
an ague Rx Jesuits bark zfs in pouder salt of tartar zi boyl em in a qt
of water til it comes to a pint shake & divide it into four pts Rx one
pt. every third hour on the ague day or night after the sweating (or burning)
fit is over fast all the time & 3 hours after the last dose. Shake it
(unstrain’d) before you take it. a gentlewoman of Withcock in Leicestershire 
divulg’d this Rx aftershe had spent [illegible] in charity on the medicine being
tyred with the expence. Patricius [Bonner] Taylor of Frisby & Br. S.A.
another Rx camphir 1 [illegible] bring it home in a little glass bottle close cork’d then
put it into a rag & sow it to the shirt or shift opposite to the bosom. This 
cured Sam. [Exon] Carpenter
another Rx venice treacle zii pr. 2 [illegible] divide it into 3 pts wrap each pt (when 
you take it) up in cobweb Rx it 3 mornings successively fasting, fast 2 
hours after it. Mrs. Newlove.
another Rx his head of a brush in the shape of a pineapple that grows
on the top of a plant call’d venus’s basin in the middle of the head there 
is a little worm or grub Put it into a [illegible] stop it in [illegible] cork & hang it
between the breasts of a woman or on the bosom of a man This has cured
agues of a yr & half standing Goody Van of Little [illegible] stop when fails curing


30
an ague Rx Black pepper zi in pouder ale a pint drink
it warm as soon as you percive the fit approaching &
go to bed & sweat this has cured agues of a yr standing Sam.
Leaptrough.
an ague (every other day) Rx Jesuits bark zii pr: 6 [illegible] divided
into six papers Rx one every third hour in a little w. wine or clarret
because it doth not mix well in small beer. Fast an hour before
& after taking it drink nothing but soffet drink made of beer & ale
mist & that sparingly. Before you take the bark apply the following
plasters to the wrists or stomach Rx sope the quantity of a hazelnut
saffron a little, tobacco & curranths each a nip pound em in a mortar
& spred em on leather Let em lie on a fortnight They are apt to
fetch off the skin if they lie on long This cured sister Shukbrugh Ashby.
Emplastra oxycroceum cures an ague lay’d to the wrists, Mrs Caulton
The third day ague sometimes it cures the ague joyn’d with a fever
a distemper that reign’d in the yr 1721 Rx a magpie drops her as a chicken 
then chop & break her bones & boyl her with a crust or 2 of white
bread that is old in a galn of water till it is consum’d to 2 pts drink
it warm for the constant drink when that is gone boyl another magpie
as at 1st & drink it as before directed. This seldom fails. This makes
you refrain from malt drink & wine & so makes at alteration in the
whole mass of blood. (Dr. Salmon says the [illegible] of a magpye eaten helps
redness & pain of the eyes & dimness of sight, vertigo, epilepsies, melancholy 
& madness.) Mr James Allen high constable of Whetstone cures 
himself of an ague by binding his wrists & above the knees in the gartering
place & abt the middle with filleting or manchester gartering or
with any thing that will not hurt him very streight & as hard as he can
endure it as soon as he percives the fit approaching when the fit is over
take it off this never failed James Allan
another Rx snakeweed & venice treacle each zii boyl em in spring
water 2 qts till it comes to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish fill 4 times a
day out of a bottle shaking the bottle drink it warm every day
while it lasts. This cured Mrs Elizth Grene Dr Hartop.
another Rx 3 or 4 spoonfuls of [Daffy’s] elixir according as thou art strong or
weak or body over night or in the morn for a gentle purge. If it does not
work by stool the next day by 9 or 10 o clock when taken over night then take
another spoonful the next morn. Intermit a day & repeat the purge apply 
toe the stomach a little plaster of female or soft frankincense spred upon 
allum leather the bigness of a five shilling piece & strew upon it when spred & 
warm a little Jesuits bark in pouder If the brest is hairy you must shave it
first It sometimes draws blisters. Let it lie on as long as it will stick. If you
are violently sick & the ague comes later & later every day & the lips break
out in scabs It will go away. The plaster will make you sweat Bind the wrists
with a fillet very hard before the fit comes you must not loosen em [till] the fit is gone. This
cured Ann Tasie March 5th 721.
Plasters for an ague mix soap, chalk & soot apply em spred on allum leather
to the wrists IT seldom fails apply a little before the third fit Blaby miller & Goody



31
Simons. another That day that you expect the ague to come
in the morning fasting make water & whilst the urine is warm
make a little cake with some of it as much as will knead two
spoonfuls of wheat flower bake it on a brick at some distance
from the fire often turning it when you perceive the ague coming
a man must give it to a bitch, a woman to a dog to eat The dog
will quake & shake & be sick & vomit after he has vomited it up.
The ague leaves the dog This cured Sam. Snape of Glen parva. If it
doth not go away you must make a new cake as at first & give it
again It must be given 3 or 4 times till the ague goes
another Rx walnut tree bark fresh cut off from a grain or [bore] abt
2 [illegible] ½ long 2 [illegible] wide steep it in sharp verjuice 12 hours bind the
inside to both wrists on the pulse. It discolours the skin black This
cured many people in the yr 1721 at [Rasby] of agues Tho.
Fletcher black smith of Rasby
another Rx grains of paradise zii in fine pouder pr. 2 [illegible] brandy 2 [illegible] (or 4 spoonful)
This is a dose for a man or woman ½ the quantity for a child abt 12 yrs
of age. You must give it to a child at twice the same day The 1st time mix
a little beer with it in a spoon It is apt to [fuddle] a child. Let 2 women take the child one
by one arm the other by the other arm 7 walk it abt.This cured old [Exon]
& one of Goody Exon’s daughters Elizth Exon She must not go to bed. She
took it a little before the fit comes. Mrs Freer. If the ague returns you
must take it again.
another Rx the inner bark of mulberry
[tree] mii froth gotten boyl it in ale or strong beer a qt strain it
& drink a draught a little before the fit approaches & the [illegible]
during the fit by a little at a time, till you’ve drank it all. This
hat cured 17 agues successively without being baffled. Burgos of
Dunton & Goody Simons
another Let the patient (an hour 
before the expected time of the fit Rx 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir salutis,
being at that time [illegible] & 2 spoonfuls 6 hours after intermit a day
& take a spoonful at night & 1 at uprising in the morning Let the dose
be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if it agrees with the strength till
it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to exceed. This
cured Mr Marten’s daughter at Leicer another E.A. cured himself of an
ague at spring in the yr 1722 only by eating 3 or 4 sevil oranges, the
meat, kernels & some of the peel from morning to night & changing the
air leaving Blaby & lying one night at Leicer. They took off his fever & 
got him a stomach. E.A. another Rx a new lay’d egg Put the yolk unbroken
with the white into a gill of brandy & drink it off when the fit is on you
This cured a great many & Geo. Simons of Wigston Magna.
another Rx mountain wine a qt put it into a large bottle add to it 2 or 3 handfuls
or more of the inner bark of barbery tree. Let em infuse 48 hours then drink 3 
spoonfuls 1st in the morning & last at night. This cured Mr Jn Wilkins clockmaker of
Liecer having try’d a great many medicines in vain. J.A.
[illegible] Rx 2 or 3 spoonfulls of mustard seed in powder in a pint of 
new ale take it in bed a little before the fitt comes. It made Joseph 


32
Webdale the joyner swell as if he would burst at last
it made him vomit up a cake almost ready to chok’d him he
lay in bed after it. he had had it a month it was almost as 
thick as flower meat. This cured him he was at eas as soon as
the ague-cake was tost up. Joseph Webdale It is a churlish medicine
For an ague first purge the patient thoroly with a purge fit
for the humour, then take good store of plantain & ribwort & 
boyl ‘em in verjuice strain it & bottle it putting sweet salet oyl
on the top of it & so it will keep all the year give of this a good
draught before the fit comes or in the begining of the fit in 2 or 
3 times at the most it will help. Probalum, Mrs Hervet E.A.’s mother.
For a quartan ague or fever. Rx verjuice a galln & seeth
it in 4 or 5 good handfulls of ribwort & plaintain let ‘em 
boyl well together, then strain it & put sugar to it & 
drink off it before the fit comes, ibid
For a quartan ague Rx shell-snails mii bay-salt & mallows
each mi lay it to soles of the foot before the quartan 
fit comes ibid. For an ague
Make a toast of bread and soke it in the [parties] urine and 
give to a dog to eat and it will cure. Goody Smith.


33
For the scurvy & to sweeten the blood
& to correct an ill habit of body Dr Hartop.
to provoke the forms & to cure the green sickness
Rx Electuary of steel the quantity of a nutmeg & a qr of a pint
of bitter decoction after it
(or Rx steel pills v.p. 17) when you’ve left of taking yr steel then Rx dandelion
agrimony sage & [famitory] each mi boyl ‘em in 3 pints of clarify’d
whey to 2 pints drink a quart cold every morning. Prepare it 
over night. To clarifie your whey boyl it & scum it let it stand till
it is almost cool scum it again pour it from the sedemt strain it
thro a hair sieve & boyl it with the herbs when you’ve fresh buttermilk
you may clarifie it with buttermilk pour’d to yr whey run boyling.
Rx this whey all the spring as long as the herbs are to be gotten
green. This cur’d Mrs Theophila Grene that was troubled with a vomiting
had no stomach & her face full of spots with the scurvy Dr H.
Another a dist drink to cure the scurfy & a dry itching & clear
the light when the eyes are rheumatic & dim’d by the scurvy vid.
p. 77. another for the scurvy Mr. Yarwood commends tincture
of antimony. Dr. Coles commends salt of steel.
Mrs Hoppers diet drink to sweeten the blood 
Rx scabius agrimony each mi monks rhubarb the roots & red madder
roots each less [illegible] ziiii aniseeds zii liquorish zi wash & 
scrape the roots & slice them thin, wash the herbs & bruise them
put them all into a bag with a weight to sink them down in four
gallons of midling ale (3 gallons of good malt will make 5 gallons of
ale strong enough) at four days and you may drink of it & the
more you drink the better Mrs M.
A rare water for the scurvy & dropsie.
Rx the leaves of sea scurvy grass & cargen scurvy grass lbvi stamp
them & press out the juice to such add the juice of brookline & 
watercresses each lbifs The roots of broom lbiiii horse radish lbii
winterian bark lb fs 12 lemmons sliced thin with the meat & rind
nutmegs ziiiii Infuse all these 3 days in 8 pints of the best white
wine that you can get, then distill it in a limbeck Rx of this 3 spoonfuls
every morning & every evening as you find occasion. Mrs. S.
for the scurvy & to sweeten the blood. Rx the leaves of [tares] or
vetches before they begin to bear [tares] mii pound em take two 


34
two spoonfuls of the juice in a draught of warm ale 
night & morning for a week or fortnight. M. Burton.
for a dry itch & to sweeten the blood Dr Martin Hartop.
Rx Aeth. mineral zi pulv oc: cancr: coral: rubr: ana zii
misce bene & include. chartis no 20. Take every morning
one of these papers mixt with a little conserve of scurvy-grass 
& drink a draught of whey or milk & water after it, in which
a scruple (i.e. 20 gr. abt as much as will lie on a shilling) of sal-prunella
in pouder hath been dissolv’d: then ride out after it an hour 
or more 20 papers of the pouders pr. 2 s to 10 [illegible] T. Codman apothecary
Conserve of scurvy-grass zii 6 [illegible] sal prunella zi 3 [illegible] [nose] old
conserve of scurvy grass is best because it is the moistest & it is
only a vehicle outward oyntmts says Dr H. stop the pores & will not
cure
for a wet itch Rx the inward bark of elder mi boyl it is ½ a 
pint of cream or better strain it & put to it abt 3 tea spoonfuls
& let it just boyl again. Drink 3 mornings successively, before
you begin to anoint yrself, a teaspoonful of flower of 
brimstone in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of new milk anoint yrself 3 nights
successively agt a good fire then change yr shirt This cured Anne
Tasie that had it almost 3 yrs having soap & brimstones & tobacco
infus’d in ale which had cured a great many & many noted medicines
in vain. A. T.
Dr Ratcliffs letter to Dr Hartop abt E.A.’s dry itching that I perceive that friends
distemper is a [illegible] scurvy arising from scorbutic salts [illegible] in his blood ever
since the small pox time [then] [illegible] the [methods] you mention have been unsuccessful
as [fluxing], [bathes], aethiop. min: etc. I advise the following with contiunual exercise
for otherwise you will find ir very difficult if not impossible to remove ‘em 
I am [illegible] yrs to comd Rx sal mirab. glaub. zii pulv. ocul. cancer,. coral.
superbib. haustu seg: Rx coch. hort. mii hed. ter. mi fol. sals. boraban.
ana mi [ba??]. junip [illegible] aa lbfs lactis vac. q.s. distill org. [illegible] comg
s.a. lbiiii
For a cachexia or ill habit of body or scurvy, a pain in 
the stomach or wind colick
This cured Cos. Hartop’s lady when the Leicr Drs & bath waters could not
Take spring water & the best brandy of each half a pint. Peruvian
bark six drams, coriander seeds two drams; cardamoms & cubebs each 



35
one dram; salt of wormwood a scruple & half (if zfs)
[illegible] let them stand 2 days in a cold infusion shaking em often then strain it off
thro a flannel bag
& take five spoonfuls in a morning fasting & five at five 
o clock in the after-noon. If this is too strong put ½ a pint more
water to it. You may infuse the ingredients a second time 
a gentle purge for a pain in the stomach & colick & scurvy
Rx gum guaiacum one dram in [illegible] every morning for a
week before (you take the precedent medicine) takes more or 
less as there is occasion to purge; if it purges too much
omit a day. Rx it in cold water or cold beer not in any thing
that is hot because it will make the gum clog together Cos.
Elizbth H. had this Rx from a Dr at the bath. The price of the apothecary’s 
drugs at leicr is 3d 3s Mr Cotsman. In other Rxs I 
saw only one scruple of salt of wormwood & the gum guaiacum
to be taken in a spoonful of milk [illegible] to Mrs Brooks.
another to sweeten the blood being a gentle purge used almost
all the yr round by sergeant Lead Rx cowslips, primrose flowers
bottony, sage, eye bright each zi dryed; single peony roots dry’d ziii
rue mfs caraway seeds zi two nutmegs put those in a bag into
three gallons of all. [illegible] another which Dr G. Ashby drinks every morning’
to sweeten the blood & prevent the scurvy Half beer & half ale [warm’d]
together having boyl’d in the alewort buckbean fir or pine tops, sage,
gill, Roman wormwood, each dry mi for 7 or 8 gallons G.A.
another for a dry itching prescrib’d me by Dr Brooks in leaden
rum 69 [illegible]i cape mane & hora somni suberbibe coch. v. jul:
seq. Rx aqua foeniculi zviii paroniae ziii sacchari albi
ziii fiat julapium
Dr Bradly’s Rx for the scurvy Rx 6 gallons of strong ale wort
boyled with these ingredients viz china roots zvi juniper berries bruised
ziii to 4 or 5 gallons work it up without hops with yest when you [illegible] it hot
these following ingredients be hung in it in a bag & at 6 or 7 days and
drink it red sage miii ground ivy Tansy each mni the filings of iron 2 or 4 
ou. drink morning & night ½ a pint or more these herbs dry’d are as good
all winter. Mrs M.


36
A diet drink to sweeten the blood
Rx hysop coltsfoot scabius ground ivy maiden hair, each mi
jujubes figs & dates each [illegible] so raysins ston’d ziiii french barly
zi lignu vitae zfs boyl these in 3 qts of spring water to 2 qts sweeten
it with syrup of maiden hair or with any syrup or sugar or drink it without
in the morning & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed Mrs M.
The itch Rx the roots of sharp pointed dock boyled in vinegar
till they are soft then pulped brimstone wash’d in 
juice of limons each zifs hogs grease often wash’d in scabious
water lbfs oyl of rodium [illegible] zfs white precipitate zfs
make them into an oyntmt in a mortar according to art.
[illegible] without [his] [dock] at Mr [Colsman]
It cures the itch in a short time by anointing & likewise
all other breakings out & deformities of skin, Wm Padmore
To sweeten the blood & to cure a dry itching Rx juice
of brooklime & watercresses each a pint Let em settle abt
12 hours then pour off the clear & mix it with the juice of 2 
sour oranges Bottle it up & drink 5 spoonfuls morning & 
at 4 in the afternoon & at night going to bed refraining
fro salt & sour Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange Dr. Harrington’s
servt. For a dry or inward itching Rx rue ziii
scurvy grass zvi flower of brimstone zfs English rubarb zviii
put all these into 2 gallons of strong ale & boyl em till
it comes to 2 gallon. Bleed one in the arm or foot or any
pt at the full of the moon then drink every morning & 
night going to bed 6 spoonfuls till it be all gone. Purge after
it. Take it every spring till well & longer if you will This cured Rd Mr
Sam. Smally Rd Wood Gardiner at [noneaton] in Warwick-shire. make
the herbs & root (if green) half dry by being placed [near] the fire
to correct their wateryness & put the scurvy grass in when you’ve almost
boyl’d it enough to prevent its vertue fro evaporating E.A.
For the scurvy oft proved & exct. Rx of the biggest leaves of
scurvy-grass n. 12. raisins of the sun ston’d n. 20 shavings of
horse radish roots zifs. Put em in a qt bottle of beer or ale,
after 2 days drink of it for ordinary drink. you may make 
as many bottles as you please, drinking it for a long time. Dr
James Cookes marrow of physick p. 609. an electuary for the scurvy 


37
Rx conser. cochlear zij conserv. berber zi pul. ocul. cancr.
zifs misc. dos. afs at night & morning. ibid.
For a dry itching & to sweeten the blood v. p. 221.
For a dry itching drink in the morning in bed a porringer 
of butter’d ale (or ) having 2 or 3 stone 
bottles fill’d with boyling hot water well cork’d & cover’d with
towels or napkins heated hot agt the fire to keep the bottles
from burning the flesh where they touch, lay on each side
you a bottle or more Thus lie for 3 or 4 hours or longer
& sleep if you can. when you’ve layen till you are tyred
& wou’d rise let a clean warm dry shirt be ready for to
put on. when you are up drink a draught of warm broth,
or ale. Repeat this as oft as you’ve occasion taking
care you do not catch cold after it This surpasses all the
prescriptions of London & country drs E.A. The itch
dress with [?agedenic] water made with m sublimate & lime
water Mr Chiselden. The scurvy a dry itching or leprosie & 
to sweeten the blood. Rx decoctum ulmi a qt in [illegible] Dispensatory. Rx. aethiops
mineralis zij conserve of roses ziiii mix em take the quantity of a 
chestnut on a knife’s point every day for a month drinking a draught of the
decoction of elms bark aforesaid after it at meals drink a little beer as
much as is sufficient to wash down the victuals Dr Smith [illegible] in Coventry
commends this as an extraordinary Rx for the scurvy. A dry itching is cured
also by sweating thrice in a bagnio ibic. This E.A. try’d in vain. another Rx
salt of steel in pouder abt as much as will lie on a silver 2 [illegible] in ½ a glass of
distill’d elder water in a morning fasting for a month, fasting abt an hour
after it. you may encrease the dose as it agrees with you. Do not beat it to pouder 
till you use it. Dr Hely took as much at once as would like on 6 [illegible] when the
month is expir’d Rx after it a brown bolus a purge that is gentle to cleanse 
his blood on a knife’s point pr 6 [illegible] Rx it spring & fall. Keep the salt o f
steel always dry near the fire or it will dissolve to water It will not cure
a wet itch. Dr H says it cured 12 persons troubled with a dry itching prescrib’d
by him. The Rx is in Dr Salmon’s [polygraphice] of painting with the bolus says Dr
T. Hely [Dr] [illegible] avoid [illegible] salt things ibid. E. A. put [illegible] steel zii to eder water a qt 
Drink a little glass more or less as it will agree with you after you’ve eatan a 
mouthful of bread It prevents & corrects this coldness & windiness of the
water. The bolus to sweeten the blood scammony 15 gr. mercurius dulcis [illegible] i 
lenitive electuary zifs pr 6 [illegible] mi [cook] It is too strong a purge for an
ordinary man. E.A. It is an exct. purge ibid.


38
For the itch Rx flower of brimstone zfs & put it
into half a pint of white wine vinegar shake em well together
in a bottle & anoint the places infected & it will certainly
cure says W.P. for a dry itch or any scorbutick outbreak
or itching Rx allum 2.9 Green copperas 2.9 or ziiii
boyl em in a quart of old smitthy water till it is consumed
to a pint when cold bottle it up close & dab it on with a 
rag once a day cold This cured a gentmn of a dry itching
that spring & fall was attended with an out break & scabs that the
Drs could not cure. He gave the poor womn [illegible] for the cure
& Rx. Poor womn of Hinkly & Jo. Warner [farrier] Sour things
as vinegar or stale beer small or strong cause an itching or
[pricking] in the blood inwardly taken [illegible]
for any itching in the blood eat rue chopt small with bread
& butter for 14 or 21 mornings or till it is quite gon Tho. [frees] farrier.
for the itch Rx fresh butter lbi black pepper in fine pouder zi one nutmeg
pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in pouder ginger beaten pr. one farthing cloves & mace pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in 
pouder tyme, savory & sweet marjoram one handful stript & shred small. flower
of brimstone zifs mix & take the quantity of a walnut made into 3 pills
for 3 mornings together & fast one hour & half after them then anoint 
your self 3 mornings with the like ingredients & be sure to ware the shifts
2 or 3 weeks. W. P. Decr 19th 717 Sunday four apprentices to a weaver
in Spittle fields London died under the operation fo some gamboges
which they were advised to by an emperick, for the cure of the itch,
Stamford mercury. The itch in man, womn or child Rx quicksilver 2 [illegible]
flower of brimston zi black pepper in pouder zfs pr. 2 [illegible] cloves 16
in pouder 1 [illegible] ginger in pouder zi hogs lard or hogs grease as much 
as will make it into an oyntmt working em well together with a
knife on a trencher or a bit of board. anoint on the joynt’s viz
armholes & bend of the elbows, wrists, hams, etc. & between the
fingers every night going to bed It will cure in a week Dr Tho.
Holy the [illegible] says there is no better medicine for the itch. you must
shift the cloths when quite well even the gloves viz in abt 8 or 10
days. This cured Wm Headly of Cosby when he had the itch for 3 yrs
having try’d a great many medicines in vain formerly before the
tax upon spice This medicine cost but 6 [illegible] viz mercury 2 [illegible] brimston
cloves ginger pepper each 1 [illegible] this will not cure a dry itching where
there is no breaking out That dry itching is caused by the scurvy.
Dr. Gory the mountebank’s bitter pills for the scurvy cured Wm Headly
for 3 yrs of a dry itching It is worst in a [frost] he took the pills but once W.H.



39
The itch Rx red sage, celandrine, bay leaves, long dock
roots each the like quantity boy em well in butter lbfs & 
when it is boyled put in flower of brimstone zfs a little ginger
& a little chalk to let it boyle up then take it off & anoint the
joynts & down the back to both sides but not before 3 or 4 
times infallibly cures Mrs Caulson of Leicer
for the scurvy Infus in 2 qts of good white wine [sena] zi cleanly 
pickt saffron zi rhubarb zii cinnamon grossly pounded zii
cream of tartar finely pounded zii for 3 days often shaking the
bottle which must be close stops then strain & bottle it. Rx 4 or 5 spoonfuls
in the morning for a fortnight fasting 2 hours after it. ibid.
The itch or any out-break Rx cream ½ pint the juice of butter dock
(i.e. red dock) roots ½ pint boyl em together abt ½ an hour then mix with 
the oyntmt live or black brimstone zii burnt allum in fine pouder zfs
The black brimstone has a strong smell Mrs Caulson. another
Rx mercurius sublimatus ziii bruis’d water 3 pints. Put in the mercury
when the water is hot & boyl it till it is dissolv’d which will be in half
a qr of an hour. Let it stand till it is cool, the pour off the clear into
a pot thro a cloth to strain it. If afterwards any scum swims 
on the top take it off with a feather let it stand abt an hour, decant
the clear pt thro a [tun] dish into a bottle which keep for use observing
that it is rank poyson inwardly taken. use it cold or warm, moisten 
with a rag dipt in’t all the joynts, especially down the back bone. Do
it every other night 4 times dressing cures the worst itch that is, twice
commonly cures. Dr Richd Pool mountebank sells many bottles
another Rx Black pepper zfs pounded to pouder any butter ziiii boyl
em well together when it is lukewarm pound brimstone zi to pouder
& add to it stirring it to an oyntmt anoint only the hams, insteps 
the bend of the elbows & stomach agt the fire 2 nights together cold
shift the sheets & shirtt abt a week after It makes all the scabs fall 
off & heals em. It never fails at twice dressing says Good Ludlam.
To cure the itch. Rx fresh butter lbfs & new hens dung as much as 
will make the butter when melted as thick as a thin pudding let em
boyl pretty well then strain it from the dung & put in a sprig
of rosemary & abt an ounce of ginger finely beaten & [sear] [illegible]
boyle it well again then add brimstone sifted abt 2 ou. stir it till it
is cold then keep it for the use when you use it melt it & rub it
on the usual places of the body agt the fire Mrs Frances Bickerton 
Rx brimstone & hony abt 3 tea spoonfuls every morning for a long
time It has cured an obstinate outbreak or leprosy when the Drs coud not
a ratcatcher & Mrs Caulton another for an outbreak Rx fresh butter without
salt lbfs ale half a pint boyle it to a thick oyntmt anoint it on cold twice a
day at 1st it cured an outbreak abt the neck of a 2 yr old child Mrs [illegible]



40
An oyntmt for scabs v. DR Salmon’s doron modicum p.
736. He says it cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate
esteem it as a jewel  v. infra.
A salve for scabs or any breaking out. Rx sheeps dung dry’d pouder’d
& sifted fine mix it with cream or fresh butter anoint the place
It [illegible] off all scabs. Mrs Caulton.
The leprosie or any outbreak Rx sweetbrier bark & barberry
bark, the middle bark strip it downwards when you get it off.
Reddock root, scraped, wip’d & sliced. Gill run by the ground each mij
rue mi bear-foot mfs. Boyl it in four gallons of small ale wort 
till it comes to three. when cold put in brandy a qr of a pint, a 
spoonful of ginger & one egg beaten. Put it into a can or barrel,
when it has done working take half a pint morning fasting & four
o clock in the afternoon. If it purges too much take less.
The oyntmt Rx hogs lard lbfs best tobacco pouder’d fine zfs simber 
it over the fire. Pound house [illegible] & mouse-ear each mi strain it
& put in the juice. Let it simber up them take it off. Drink the
drink a week to drive out the noxious humers Then anoint with 
the oyntmt every night Mrs Caulton & a traveller
Jn Holt of Great Ashby was thus cured of an obstinate breaking
out in several pts of his face. Having taken glauber sal mirabile
3 times in vain at last he was cured by this poltis in abt 
a fortnight. Rx new milk, white bread, the yolk of an egg a little
saffron & a little oyntmt of camomile to supple the other ingredients
It must lie on night & day bound with a cloth renew’d every 
night as hot as he could abide it being boyled first J. Holt
Boyle [fenugreek] seeds or linseed, this decoction helps scabby heads
Culpeper’s Dispensatory.
Unguentum ad scabiem, an oyntmt for scabs Rx sulphur vive, litharge of
[gold] each zij venice soap, mercurius dulcis each afs prepared niter zfs.
unguentum album camphoratum zi oyl of rhodium gut viii to perfume
it. mix for an oyntmt It cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate.
esteem it as a jewel. Salmon’s Doron.
A special medicine for scabs itch or worms (in a sore)
Gather the water that drops out of the vine when their cut & 
keep it in a vial & wash the sore therewith & it shall mend [illegible]
For the scab & [s?arff] & heat that runeth in the head a scald head
Rx Tar & hony & [cal?ifie] em i.e. boyl’d & scum’d then add deer’s
servet & boyl all together anoint the sore with it till it be whole
Mrs Hervet E.A’s mother. Dr [Cheshire] says a chronic [illegible]
with immoderate itching & large excoriations has been cur’d 
by drinking & bottling in a mineral water in the park of Sr
Nathaniel Curzon at [???stone] when all other remedies have failed
He says he had done great cures with ‘em at a great distance from the spring with 
in 3 weeks from Darby


41
Burnings & Scaldings
Rx Juice of onion 1 pt cream 4 pts mix em cold. It will take away
the pain Mrs Basset. After you’d drest it 2 or 3 times to remove
the pain then anoint it with this following oyntmt & it will 
heal it in a little time. Boyle gill run by the ground & the inner
bark of elder in hogs lard ibid. Mrs Brook’s salve for a burn
Rx white pitch (or resin pouder’d) with bees wax & sallet oyl melt
em to a salve. Mrs M. Another fry some [illegible] bacon in a
frying pan whilst there is any moisture in’t then pour the liquor
being very black into cold water & therewith anoint the sore
cold There is not many medicines can outdo this. [illegible] another
Beat some sallet oyl or [illegible] foot oyl & water together
(with quantity of each you please) with a spoon or knife 
in a pot then scum off a little of the oyl that swims on the 
water & dip a linnen rag in’t & apply it fresh dipt thrice 
a day at first to cook it It will cure any burn or scald
Mrs Elizth Halford a cooling ungt for burns & scalds & all sorts 
of inflammations Rx house leek, plaintain, nightshade & ribwort each
mij violet leaves, strawberry leaves, [illegible], [illegible], adderstongue, purslane
& lettuce each mi bruise these with mutton suet & hogs lard each lbij
in a mortar, then boil it softly ½ an hour, strain it & add of bees wax, linseed
oyl, each lbi sugar of lead zij stir it till it be cold & keep it for
use J.T. another Rx may butter lbi new cow dung sallet oyl a pint
white lead two ounces Boyl em & strain em thro a cloth & put em into a pot tying
a paper over it This must be made in may when the butter & dung receives
the most vertue fro the herbs anoint it on the sore with a feather
& anoint a fine Holland rag or cloth & lay over it dress it twice a
day at 1st It gives ease in an hour & fetches out the fire in 4 
hours & heals without breaking if the [illegible] is only swell’d & not broken. It
will keep 20 yrs good A French Dr. & Mrs Finch. another Robert
hall the glasier when he burns himself with lead he applys soap
& salt & an onion pounded together & bound on with a rag 
to take out the fire but if the blister breaks he heals it with
basilicon R.H. another Rx spirit of wine (or French brandy) & 
linseed oyl each a pint or ½ a pint Shake em together & anoint
therewith dip a linnen rag therein & bind it on if you can. It 
will cure any burn even a burn with gun pouder Dr Arden [Elsmore]
surgeon & Mr Cook apothecary. Shake it before you use it. It [illegible] [illegible]


42
A salve for a burn. Rx mutton suet melted lbij house leek
& gill each mij shred, boyle em over a slow fire
For a burn anoint the sore place with train oyl & hold it agt
the fire to drive it in It takes away the pain immediately then
rub it with tallow melted at a fire or candle E.A.
another anoint with sallet oyl in which a hot iron has been [illegible] then let it rest a little time & beat the
white of an egg & so up to the sore places with a strong feather This cured a
little whelp that fell into a pot of scalding porridge in one nights time
E.A. Good Blackhorn’s salve p. 362 has cured a burn when several
noted medicines have been try’d in vain So has Mrs Holden’s lead
salve ibid. A salve for a scald or burn. Rx sallet oyl a pint
lapis calaminaris in fine pouder 1 [illegible] Bees was lijs deers suet 
1 ou (or sheeps suet) boyl em altogether a qr of an hour then put it
into a pot set the pot in cold water & stir it till it is cold when you use
it spred it then on a cloth S.S. another Rx common white paint made of
white lead & linseed oyl. Cover the sore & when it is dry lay on fresh
S.S. Janry 722 Tho. Kings daughter Ann was scalded on her instep
& ancle with hot water these make a very large blister E.A. clipt the
blister so that abundance of water came from it He drest it with linseed
oyl & sp. v. then apply’d unguentum albu camphoratum sometimes mixt
with [weapon] salve made of bacon grease made of fry’d bacon pourd 
into water This last is good to cure the itching of a sore or wound Sometimes
he drest it with sope & chalk [but he] thought chalk or w. lead in
the ung. albu foul’d the sore then he mixt weapon salve with a little mercury
sublimate workt together on a [trencher] which wrought off the chalk & 
w. lead & cleared the sore then he apply’d basilicon mixt with a little 
oyl of vitriol & sp. v. It began to heal but the girl had a kick on the
ancle done accidentally by her sister passing by her which caused the
foot to swell so that none of the precedent things wou’d cure it
E.A. Healed it thus He bathed it with the drying water made of 
mercury sublimate & lime & healed it with linimantu arcaei & 
basilicon mixt v.p. 340. You may try basilicon mixt with turpentine
the mercury water allay’d the itching of the sore. E.A. The last
plaster used was bees wax & fresh butter without salt equal wright which 
healed it & made a perfect cure E.A. Dr Salmon commends unguentu
populneum oyntmt of poplar buds for burnings & scaldings.
an oyntmt for a scaled or burn Mrs Caulton Rx Gill burdock
poplar loaves hous leek, stonecrop, elder leaves, hemlock, the inner
bark of elm each mi boyl em in hogs lard or hogs grease.
Febry 723 E.A. cured [illegible] ficer’s left leg scalded a long way down
the skin with hot ale. It had been scalded 9 or 10 days before he came
to E.A. then it look’d black & was very painful, he cou’d scarce walk
with a stick or sleep. It was cured thus. Bath it with mercury sublimate
dissolv’d in lime water strain it thro a cap paper bottle it when you
use it pour off the clear into a little pot that will abide the fire with
a fine rag in it dab it on the sore as hot as you can abide the hand
in it. [illegible] this rubbing the sore makes & keeps it clean. Then anoint all round 



43
above & below & every side with oyl of turpentine & 
goose grease or turky grease mixt. This prepares every pt 
& all the humers for healing. Then mix basilicon & tincture
of myrrh & spred it on a long cloth a little longer & broader
than the sore let a roller of linnen be sew’d round the leg to 
keep the plaster tight from slipping & from the stocking which must
be large & too wide, to draw on & off with ease. Let the leg be
drest thus once a day for a week. you may mix horse turpentine
or venice turp. a little with basilicon adding camphorated sp. of
wine or tincture of myrrh 3 or 4 drops or more to the basilicon
every plaster stirring em well before you spred it to incorporate 
scrape off the old salve & spred it with new every dressing Let the
same old plaster last all the time when the sore has done running (the
sore ran very little & was very [illegible]) scrape off the old salve & 
melt fresh butter free from salt 2 pts. & bees wax 1 pt. melt & 
spred this on the old salve cloth to heal it three days after dress
it viz. rub it with lime & mercury water hot that the calous & dead 
skin may come off & the sore appear clean & red. continue this water
& this wax salve till it is quite well & sound & not tender dressing’
it once a week. Eat oatmeal pudding or mallow porridge or drink
treacle & ale or treacle posset at night so as to have one stool or
motion in every 24 hours. This method cured the leg in ten days. E.A.
Dr Radcliff’s pharmacopoeia commends sp. v. camphorated & tincture of myrrh
p.e. another Rx balsam of sulphur zij ointmt of marshmallows 2 ou. mix in burns
of the 2nd degree ibid. Rx unguentu [diasthaae] 1 ou. linseed oil zij for taking off scabs
in burns ibid
Burning with gunpowder. Rx. Fresh butter and the
white of eggs p.e. beat ‘em well together till you bring them
to an ointmt. and anoint the places therewith. It will take out
the fire and heal it immediately.






46



47
Wounds made by a fork tine 49.
Richd Ward of Blaby in the yr 720 being in a pitch hole
of a barn had a fork tine thrust into his leg, it was quickly
cured by a plaster of resin & tallow melted together Another
Richd Hamer a labourer of Blaby being on a corn[mor?] had
a fork tine thrust into his foot The wound was anointed with 
goose grease & oyl of turpentine mixt, agt the fire & one plaster
of vents salve applyd to it cured it E.A. flos unguentoru is
an ext plaster E.A.
Captn Brubenol’s wound drink which will heal any outward or inward
wound, ulcer, fistula. It eateth forth splinters of wood out of
the flesh & scales foul putrified bones which are wasted by any foul sore 
of any long continuance but it must not be taken by any woman
with child for it will play the midwife. In April gather buds of oak
hawthorn & bramble or brier In May & June these herbs following 
dry em in a close room without air or dust. Keep em daily with [turning]
till they be very dry, then put em up into a paper bag & keep em 
in a chamber all the yr. The herbs are bugle comfry daisy roots &
leaves dandelion, agrimony, hony suckles which grow nearest the ground 
are best, mug wort, mint, plantain, ribwort, sanicle, scabies, wild
angelica, wood-betony, white bottles, wormwood Rx of every one
of these herbs a little which in all may make 3 good handfuls. Put an
equal proportion of each sort of herbs in a paper bag by themselves
then for the making of the drink take all the herbs of one bag
you must hold three good handfuls lay them in steep all night in a pot of spring water qt next morn
put a qt of white wine to it & boyl it till almost ½ the liquor is consum’d
then strain the liquor from the herbs & put to it as much hony as will sweeten
it well (a pint) then let it boyl a little & scum it set it by in an
earthen vessel to cool Put it into a glass bottle or stone jug set it in
the sun. Drink the last at night going to bed & the first in the morning
in bed & at 4 in the afternoon 3 spoonfuls. After the drink 
is made it will be more efficacious by putting into every 	t of drink
bezoar stone 2 gr. & unicorns horn 2 gr & some of the filings of rhinoceros
horn if you can get em when you put in these cordials put
in less hony & sugar candy zi in pouder instead of [illegible] other Rx’s leave
out these cordials. The plaster to be used in these cases is made
of red lead 3 qrs of a pound in fine pouder sallet oyl a pint boyled to
a salve on a gentle fire S.S.


48



49
Wounds made by a fork tine or sword
point or any prick of iron to cure.
A man in Nottinghamshire us’d to cure wounds by sympathy
thus & people came to him from 20 miles round abt him
viz Rx a piece of [reez’d] bacon & hold it between a pair
of tongues heated red hot & let it drop into a pot, with this
anoint the iron that made the wound & let the wound be
kept warm till it is well & close from the air Br. G.A. Betty
Coates (mother of H’s maid) cut her self with a rusty hatchet & apply’d 
a plaister to’t she was advis’d to scour the rust off the
hatchet & the wound wou’d heal much faster which she did & 
the heal’d to a miracle with speed Br. S. A. a cook-maid at Quenby 
cut the end of her finger almost of quite thro the nail
so that it hung only by the skin of the fleshy pt of her finger 
Br. G. A. advis’d that the finger end might be sewed to the
finger & a piece of gold beaters skin wrap’d round it to 
keep out the air & it heal’d without anymore ado only by 
the balsamick vertue that is in the blood & the maid cou’d 
afterwards [sere] with that end of her finger Br. G.A. note when
you use tincture of myrrh heat a silver spoon or any other spoon 
that would endure the fire upon a live coal & put a drop or 2 of the
tincture into it & dip a little ling into it & apply it warm to a 
green wound & it will heal it at twice Dressing it will also heal
the old ulcer on the leg mixt with basilicon & apply’d very hot when all
salves & plasters can’t make a cure over the lint lay a plaster of
diaculum to keep the tinctur’d lint to the sore Dress it once a day 
Mr Masson of Little Wigson a surgeon
A balsam exct in all wounds of what that sort soever, bruises
pains, aches, stitches & sprains R. C. Rx yellow rosin & 
pins rosin each ziiii linseed oyl ½ a pint Greek pitch zi
virgins wax zii gum elemni & ammoniacum each zfs oyl of
hypericon & roses amphaline & of turpentine each zifs
myrrh & mastick in pouder each zvi Boyl them together for half
an hour then strain it into a pot R. C.



50
A most exct. plaster for all pains in the limbs,
sciatica & cold gout; it draws out thorns or
splinters gotten into the flesh, under the nails
cures whitloes & ancoms etc.
Rx Rosin of the pine tree lbfs gum galbanum & ammoniacum,
each zi cyprus turpentine ziii myrrh & mastick each
zifs deers suet zii saffron in pouder zfs boyl all to the thickness
of a plaster to spred on leather R. C. Black pitch apply’d
plasterwise will draw a splinter from under the nail very quickly. E. A.
Madam Spark’s wound drink
Rx Southern wood, worm wood, bugless mugwort, wood botony, sanicle,
venice plantane, dandelion, ribwort, white bottles, agrimony, comphry,
wild angelico mint, scabious, strawberry leaves cinquefoil,
violet leaves, daisy roots, hony suckles, hawthorn buds, take 
of each a physick handful & a pettle of white wine & a gallon of 
running water, boyl all these together till half be consum’d then strain 
all the liquor from the herbs & put to it a quart of the best hony & 
boyle it a while then put it when cold into a glass or stone bottle close
stopt & keep it for yr use. Drink 3 spoonfuls every morning fasting 
& the same dose last at night till the cure is done. If it be for 
an old ulcer in any pt of the body apply a plaster or serecloth
for the purpose Mrs S. To cure sore legs vic. p. [illegible]
for a cut or green wound anoint it with oyl of turpentine & bind
some hares wool on’t let it ly on till well or bind hares wool dipt 
in the blood or lay a plaster [deminio] & let it keep on a week or longer
If you let the air come to a green wound it will corrupt then you must
dress it morning & night & make a great deal to do with it before it will
be well but if you apply an innocent thing to’t at first as soon as
it is done to keep out the air The blood will heal it alone E.A. Another
Rx Turpentine ziii bees wax & may butter each [illegible] ou. melt em to a salve. Mrs. Brooks &
Aunt [illegible] does great cure with it
when a wound or sore is grown foul or abounds with proud flesh
wash it twice a day with white wine vinegar apply’d with a rag as 
hot as you can endure it then dress the wound or sore with basilicon & tar spred
on lint and empl. deminio for a defensative on that to keep it on
w. wine vinegar will cleanse a foul wound or sore when precipitate
will not Mrs Hill of Thurcaston Salmon says Barbadoes tar is digestive,
balsamick, anodyne & [defensive] maturative & vulnerary It is a most exct. thing
in curing all manner of wounds & bruises It assuages tumors & sores pains
salv. disp. for a cut beat black rosin to pouder throw it on & bind it up W. P.



51
for wounds & ulcers or sores in the head or
any pt of the body for any cut deep or shallow
Mrs Johnson a school Mrs only spreads a little liniment
of arseus (called linimt of gum elomy or oyntmt of elemi
linimentu e gummi elemi) pr 4 [illegible] per ounce on a little lint & 
use it as a tent where there is a deep wound or only lays it on
an ordinary wound spread on lint & just air’d or warm’d agt the
fire before it is apply’d & then covers it with empl de minio or
bonds salve as a defensative she uses this as a family salve for 
all sores with good success. To stop the bleeding of a [illegible] wound or
the gangrene Mrs Johnson uses the linimt scalding hot ones & 
no more afterwards she uses it only just warm’d 
Balsamum adversus maculam will heal without a [illegible] p. 729 Salmons [doron]
To make weapon salve. Heat a pr of tongues red hot
& hold a piece of reez’d bacon with em lit it drop into a
pot pound some chalk & put to it, dress the weapon or some
twigs dipt in the blood & keep em from dust. Wm Padmore.
a cut or green wound or a burn or scald Rx turpentine ziii
bees wax & may butter each ziiii melt em to a salve melt some 
of this salve & add a little verdigrease in fine pouder stir em together 
& dress with it sometimes to keep a wound clean & free from proud
flesh. You must make a tent of it for a deep wound It is good for 
a wound on the head or any pt of the body or for an old sore & for a sore back of a horse Aunt
[Majes] mother did great cures with it Mrs M.
Warm a linnen cloth very hot & draw it backward & forwards on the sore when almost will 
or nearly heal & it will prevent a scar Dr Pool.
The surgeons say that if you would cure a wound without a
scar you must heal it gradually & take time. Mrs M. Some
say lucutellus balsam will heal without a scar. Scrape the sore
with the back or edge of a pen knife to make it bleed & heal in evry pt alike [illegible]
Mr James Allen of Whetstone cures a wound (as a kick) thus
1st he mixes sope & salt & binds that on for 24 hours
to take out the anguish & venom & prevent a gangrene
then he dresses it with burnt butter & salt till it is well.
J. A. To cure any sore old or new Rx oak bark & boyl it in
spring water to bath the sore with which you must do 5 or 6 times
a day & anoint it with flower of brimstone well mixt. W. Padmore 



52
Proud flesh. strew on it a little red precipitate
or burnt allum which last will dry up a sore or humor or any
out break in the face sooner than precipitate. mercurius sublimatus
corrosivus in fine pouder a very very little will clear a 
sore, eat off the fungus & hard white tough corruption commonly 
at once dressing when the other tow viz praecipitate & allum will 
not. If you add too much it will make the sore swell. [illegible] you 
may disguise it with a little Roman vitriol in pouder Fr. Coltman 
apothecary. Always mix a little precipitate with the salve It will keep a 
sore clean & prevent proud flesh E. A.
To eat away proud flesh to take out the venom of a sore old
or new that is angry or inflam’d or much swell’d & to heal it
in a little time & to give ease in a minute. Rx a shell-snail
brak the shell & bind the snail shell & all upon the sore for 12
hours then add a fresh one every 12 hours till well Mrs Finch.
another mix loaf sugar & burnt allum [illegible] pouder & strow upon proud
flesh or angry fiery heats or outbreaks [illegible] heal em [when] [illegible] [illegible]
surgeon. Oyl of vitriol will eat off proud flesh Mr Jn.
Wilkins clockman of Leicer had a running sore on his leg
for 2 yrs which the surgeons could not cure It was dry’d 
up at last & heal’d by dropping fro a [illegible] one drop 
of oyl of vitriol once a week & applying a plaster of
diaculu upon it abt 3 drops cured it in 3 weeks J. W.
Oyl of vitriol cures an ulceration in the mouth, throat,
uvula or other pts (only by touching the ulcer with the oyl)
for which there is scarce a better medicine, as well to enlarge
the orifice, remove a callous, as to correct & prepare it to
a good healing by touching it with lint dipt therein on the
end of a probe. p. 379 Salmons Dispens.
for a cut or new wound, beat borax to pouder as fine as can
be & fill the orifice of the wound therewith & lay any sticking
plaster over it (as pitch if you’ve nothing else) to keep the
air out & to keep it warme. If it doth not pain you. you
may keep it on a week or till well. once dressing commonly
cures. If it pains you, dress it once in 24 hours. IT will cure an
old sore and proud flesh. This never fail’d James Davis of Croft
Salmon says it cleanses ulcers & hinders proud flesh.


53
The leaves of garden valerian bruis’d are good for slight wounds upon
which account it is called cut finger [illegible] herbal
To make Mr. George Bent a baker of Leicer
his family salve He died abut the yr 1709. It is good for
any green wound, or old sore, nail bruis’d or knockt off
any bruise, or strain, pain, or ach. Sore leg making a tent
with lint dipt in’t melted when there is an hole. The [cramp.]
Rx bees wax zii rosin zii white pitch zii black pitch zii frankincense
& horse turpentine each ziiii melt all these together except
the turpentine which you must not put in till it is
taken off the fire then stir it & pour it into a bowl of
cold water. when it is cold work it well with the hands
& make it into rolls. Henry Smith & Br. Tho. Majer
A salve for a wound or cut or old sore or bruise or pain
in any pot of the body as a corecloth, a bile, a thorn, a sore
throat or [illegible] of the [illegible] swell’d
Rx Burgundy pitch the clearest & softest free from black veins
or specks the quantity of a small walnut, work it near a fire
with the finger & dip it oft in sevil oyl till it will spred with 
the thumb like butter warm the knife a little after you’ve
lay’d it on a linnen cloth or allum’d leather If you let it fry
on a hot knife it diminishes its vertue. It must be thick almost
as wax for a thorn or corn now cut. It will cure a whitlow.
for a wound that is bruis’d Boyl a flaxen rag in new
milk squeese it a little & bind it or wrap it gently abt the wound
as hot as you can endure it let it lie abt 12 hours (use the
[mild] also only once) then lay on the plaster a little warm’d dress
it but once in 24 hours unless there is corruption. You
may use sallet oyl instead of sevil oyl or any oyl of
olives It will keep in a pot cover’d a yr. It will dissolve
or break a swelling cure it Stephen Hunt.
Sam. Exon’s salve for any wound, sore or bile or cut
Rx bees was 3 pts white pitch 1 pt a little hony & as much
may butter without salt as will bring it to the consistence of a salve
It sticks pretty well. This was taught him by Sam Smith. It cured
an outbreak in a girl being apply’d plaster [illegible] in several pts of
her face & body. S. E.



54
Tho. Hall of Armsby leaping over a hedge his belly
fell upon the handle of a hay fork & ran up his short ribs
a great way which was cured in 3 weeks by Mr. Arden Elsmore
[illegible] He made a ly. of green ash ashes boyl’d in water so that he
had 2 pts of ly. He let it settle & kept it every time it was
dropt to syringe it in as hot as he could abide his finger in’t without
scalding it then he belted his salve of a green colour in 
a little ladle till it was scalding hot & dipt his tent in’t & apply’d
it so hot to the wound that he roar’d out every time it was dropt
A salve for a green wound. Rx the best bees was 2 [illegible] yellow
rosin 1 [illegible] The best soap the quantity of an hen egg. Turpentine 2 [illegible]
boyl all together then strain it into fair water when it is cold take it 
out & work it with the hands till all the knots are out & clear
then make it into a roll. It will draw & heal a new or old sore
or cut but it is best for a new sore. scrape some lint & 
melt the salve dip the lint in it & apply it to the sore covering it
with a plaster of the same salve to keep out the air. Dress it morning
& night at 1st, afterwards once a day when the orifice is almost 
healed up. Jn Gilson butcher of Kerby bellows Dr Salmon says
vitriolated spirit of wine (i.e. sp. of vitriol & sp. v. p. e.) or S. V. & sp. of
salt ana. cures all curable wounds at once dressing Salmon’s Disp.
A large ulcer that possessed almost the whole leg & reached almost
to the bone was cured in a scorbutical person only with brooklime
boyl’d in beer & apply’d twice a day p. 26. [Pecney’s] herbal
To cure any sore or wound there is no salve better than basilicon
to make a tent with lint If the matter is thick it is laudable pus but
if it runs then matter mix praecipitate with basilicon or linimentu 
arsaei with basilicon & it will thicken it Mr. Francis Coltman
Dr Elsmore mixt abt to pts Hungary water to 1 pt oyl of turpentine
It was shak’d in a bottle close stopt & mixt with basilicon which 
he dropt Jn. Smith’s hand shot by gunpouder then gun breaking They keep 
down proud flesh. This was not us’d at 1st, using the other medicines.
You can’t dress a green or new wound too seldom nor an old
sore too often Dr Pool [illegible] surgeon. Mr Jn Cooper bonesetter
his salve or corecloth from broken bones or limbs new set or
weak to strengthen or pull of pain to cure em Rx oxycroceum zi
pr 4 [illegible] wt pitch zfs 1 [illegible] sheep suet render’d zij 1 [illegible] made by Mr Sanford
by conjecture Dr Pool the mountebank commends [flos] unguenterum 
as the best of salves for wounds or sores.


55
To cure the itch of wounds, or sores
Unguentum nutritu is cooling drying & anodyne, good agt
inflammations: takes away the itch of wounds cures scabs.
[Tetter] Salmon’s Disp. Goody Simon had a sore leg that itch’d she
scratch’d it & made it look red & claw’d the skin off having try’d
tar & mutton suet one time & [attu] curd another to pacifie the
itching, in vain at last she apply’d a plaster of diacutu cum
gummis & it alay’d the itching & dry’d up & skin’d & heal’d the
sore Anne Simons another Rx the fine soot over a copper or oven
sift it thro a lawn sive mix it with hogs lard (free fro salt & 
pepper) to an oyntmt. Spred it on a silk or flaxen rag It cools
& is good to skin a sore & cure its itching E. A. Unguentum album
cures the itching of a wound in its healing. Salmons Dispensatory
To cure a sore or wound. Mrs Brooks of Croft having tore
her finger sadly [illegible] with a tenter hook Mr Roberts the barber of Leicer
cured it quickly by washing it with Hungary water every time it
was drest viz once a day with lint dipt in’t & bound to’t gently
by a plaster of deminio or diacutu to keep the air fro it Mr
B. another Tho. King of Blaby with a reaping hook having
cut a great gash in his leg cured it by working it only with 
urine 3 or 4 times in a day new made & binding a cloth
dipt in the same to’t T. K. another Put some new or old
human urine into a pot (with a little salt or with out but it is
more drying & healing with it, it prevents a gangrene in
a new wound) then heat an iron red hot & quench it there
in then syringe it very hot unto the sore or wound then
Rx rosin & bees wax each zij black pitch ziiii melt [illegible]
then add horse turpentine ziiii tar a pint al. zviii deers
suet zi melt em This is Jn Smiths salve of Blaby
exct. for any sore or wound or sore leg melt this salve
in a ladle & dip flax [hards] therein & apply it pretty 
hot ready to scald the sore especially at 1st after it has
been syring’d as above directed with hot urine. Dress it
at 1st once a day when it runs Thick corruption once in 
2 or 3 days. If there is any hollow place fill it with the
salve & hards or flax mixt & daub’d with the salve Hemp
hards [poyson] a wound or sore E. A. Verjuice will cure the itching of an
eye or sore Sister [illegible]


56
To scale a bone when a bone looks black it is foul
& when a bone looks white & is rough These 2 want
scaling & will not heal till they are seal’d The cure Put some
quick lime into a pot cover it 3 inches with boyling hot
water let em incorporate 24 or rather 48 hours if you’ve
time then with a syringe draw off abt ½ a little pot full & heat
it in a pan or with an iron that is red hot by quenching it there
in Let the iron have a knob at the end bigger than a large
walnut. Syring the sore with this hot water once a day It
cleans & drys it & seales the bone it self tho it will require
a pretty deal of time to do it make a pledget of flax hards
or flax drawn to a point at one end & being thick & broad
at the head moisten this with basilicon melted at the fgire
or by the warmth of the finger Thrust the point into the sore
to the head then clap some dry flax hardy thereon or you may
moisten em in lime water. If proud flesh arises mix basilicon 
3 pts agyptiacu 1 pt & dress the pledget Remember always 1st 
to syringe it with lime water hot. This cured E. A’s mare brought
mixt with agyptiacu did any good only at 1st they did but they
would not heal this wound the more was bruis’d on her 
side by carrying a side of pork so that it broke & you might
see her bare rib there being no flesh but only her skin
to joyn together It prov’d very difficult It was cur’d at last
(after it had been drest abt 3 months) with several good salves)
with the lime water & m. syring’d warm & lint dipt into the
said water & apply’d to the sore & kept on with white of egg 
& wheat flower & apply’d to the sore spred on leather This
made the sore look very white & run good corruption when 
it was pretty dry & clean It was syring’d as before & pouder
of lime & hony burnt was strew’d on’t to dry it up upon 
which lint dipt in lime water etc. warm was placed on’t & upon 
a plaster of white of egg & wheat flower which was continued
on till it dropt off being it was not sore & did not run. This lime 
water & mercury sublimate is called aqua phagedenica vid. Salmon’s
Disp. another to scale a bone. Syring into the sore oyl of briganu
or oyl of briganu & oyl of turpentine the 1st is best W. P. or oyl
of turpentine it will stop a humer fro [descending] to a sore. W. P. 



57
Dr Colsbatch’s pouder for green wounds & 
old ulcers Rx R. vitriol zi pouder’d very fine
infuse it in a qt of spring water over a gentle fire till
the water is all evaporated then reduce it to fine pouder again
& mix with it as much fine bole as will make it of
a flesh colour (or rather a pale pink) with this dress the
green wounds dissolving a little in water. If you’ve fistulas
to dress put it into some fresh urine & syring em with it
Mr Wm Dilks
Tho. Higgins green oyntmt for sores & wounds Rx hogs
lard zi turpentine zi bees wax zfs melt em then add verdigris
zfs stir well till cold Br. G. A. To scale a bone Put some
mercurius sublimatus corrosivus into a little viol as much 
as will cover the bottom either in pouder or in lumps & put
oyl of turpentine zi to it Let em infuse 24 hours or
longer. If it is a deep hole syringe some into the sore but
if it is not deep then only drop a drop or 2 into or on the
sore You may cover it with a rag moisten’d in the oyl dress it
once in 1 or 2 days This cured E. A.’s more mentione’d P. 56 to be
cured [there] whereas it broke out again & the [illegible] mercury 
water would not cure it. Mr Coltman the apothecary says
camphorated sp. of wine will not scale a bone when the
oyl of turp. is all us’d You may put in more to the same
sublimate no [illegible] will touch a sore for one day drest 
with it I believe there is nothing more healing This has
heal’d a sore when Bents salve allum’d curd, lime water
& sublimate would not W. P. another apply tincture of myrrh 
Mr Gibbards surgeon & bone setter of Coventry another oyl of camphir 
or spirit of camphir both are good to stop a gangrene to cleanse & 
seal rotten bones. p. 136, 137 Salmon on Bates’s Dispensatory another
scrape the bone that is black or foul & strew on it lapis calaminaris 
in fine pouder morning & evening & in 3 or 4 days it will
[scale] clean & easily scrape off Mrs French another Rx Tincture 
of myrrh & tincture of euphorbium p. e. [illegible] make em thus together
Rx myrrh zi euphorbiu zfs (both gums) spirit of wine that will fire gun 
pouder ½ a pint (qt sp that will not fire spoils the tinctures) Put em in a 
qt bottle at 1st cork’d up & ty’d down with a leather Set it in an oven after 
bread with the oven mouth open at 1st or if you can hold the arm in it at full length 
then you may shut up the oven lay sand abt an inch thick for the bottle to [illegible] shake
it after it has been in 2 hours the next day pour all into a [illegible] bottle. [illegible]



58
To eat away proud flesh mix burnt allum & 
bole in pouder & strew upon it aunt D. Boothby.
another To destroy proud flesh or a fungus  & to heal a sore or wound Rx 14 or 16 drops of new
oyl of vitriol (viz that which looks clear & is not turn’d black) put to it
spirit of wind (that will fire gunpouder) zi as much oyl of [illegible] as will make it
so tast on the tongue that you can’t drink it If there is a great fungus make
it sharper Put it into a bottle the 3 [illegible] pt full lest you break it for they will 
permit & heat at 1st set it in the hot sun for 2 or 3 days or longer in sum & it will
[illegible] [illegible] dip lint in it & rub a little over the plast made of w. lead etc. [illegible] Dr Million
To take off an escar or fungus or spungy substance that adheres to a
wound or some like [pith] wax often bred by mercury sublimate, or mercury
sublimate & Roman vitriol mixt or other corrosives, or by exposing the
wound or sore to the cold weather as going with it naked & uncover’d especially 
in frosty weather strew upon the ulcer rosin of scammony & it will clean
it to the bottom tho the bones be foul p. 259 [illegible] family [dictio??]
The cure abt a sore has been poyson’d apply allum curd (i.e. milk & allum
boyl’t to a curd) as hot as ever you can endure it washing it 1st with a rag
dipt in it very hot by dabbing it often then bind on the hot curd 12 hours
It will contract the spungy substance & if you think it will not cure it
you may dissolve & loosen the fungus by applying [stimulant] & [cold] The inward bark
of elder pounded in a mortar & afterwards pounded with sope to a salve
& boyl’d [with] cream apply it 2 times a day warm at 1st If any bone appears black after the fungus 
is eradicated you must scrape it with a pen knife then dress it with tincture
of myrrh (that is best which is made with Hungary water) & basilicon these last
cured Jn. Halfords fungus on his face caus’d by a bruise of a fall & cold 
Tho. Hely [illegible] mercury sublimate the o mixt with oyl of turpentine
[illegible] is too great a corrosive for human flesh. Precipitate is a great
deal safer to eat of proud flesh Tho. Holy [illegible] mercury subl. & most
poysons are apt to foul bones when they touch em ibid Burnt allum is
safer than praecipitate especially near the head or a bone ibid
Tar & fir turpentine p.e. mixt doth digest & ripen far beyond
basilicon p. 96 Gideon Harvey M.D. his family physician Jn. Halfords
wound on his face was cured applying allu posset curd twice very hot
& letting it lie on 3 or 4 days at a dime after the fungus was eaton
off then it was incarnated & heal’d by mixing basilicon with
tincture of myrrh in the palm of the hand with a knife & applying
it with ling cover’d with it & allum & leather spred with Bents 
salve for a defensative to keep it on It was a very obstinate
sore E. A. To take off a fungus. Touch it with R. vitriol then mix precipitat
& burnt allu It will make it corrupt & eat it off, as soon as it turns ot 
corruption m ix em with turpentine or basilicon & turpentine mixt Mr.
Wm. Wilks surgeon another Rx [illegible] or white lead cover it with wine
vinegar a pan then boyl it till it is dry then add sallet oyl to it & boyl it so
a salve [illegible] 2 heal most sores Dr Million or mix white lead with [keen] [alegar]
in an iron ladle [illegible] st over the fire stirring it oft with a stick when it is dry moisten
it again with [alegar] then dry it in the [ladle] again add sallet oyl & boyl it to a salve 


59
To dry up a running humer or an old sore &
to take away pain fro a sore & to cure a whitloe.
Rx [herrif] one good handful salt one oderate handful
running water a pint boyl the herb & water & put in the
salt when it comes from the fire Let the herb remain in it.
It is commonly called Bath it on cold
once a day xtian ponton & a traveller. This cured a 
whitloe on her thumb of 3 yrs standing after a bone
was taken out. Diapalms odorata (an emplaster) applied
for a constancy to an old running sore or ulcer in the legs is
a most exct. medicine & has perform’d a cure when most other things
have been used in vain [illegible] Disp. the lady Curzon’s oyntmt
Rx fresh butter lbfs bees wax zij shred small, horse turpentine
2 [illegible] verdigrise 1 [illegible] poudered zii rosin pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle
fire till it comes to an oyntmt or a soft salve It will be soft as
butter you may use it to the greatest sores both in tents & plasters.
you need not use burnt allum It will fetch out dead flesh in 
lumps. Id cured a leg that was to be cut off the net day & a hand
brought out a piece of rotten flesh & healed the hand. Dress with 
it twice a day at 1st It is good for kings evil sores Lady Curzon.
& sister Boothby. E. A. in the yr 718 cured Tho. Tafte’s leg bitten by 
a dog & after the sores were healed up pimples & itching humers & 
outbreaks appear’d in many pts of the leg near & remote fro the 
places where the sores had been which were cured in a little time only
by washing em with smithy water (i.e. cold trough water) cold once or
twice a day It took away the itching & dry’d up the humers Tho. Tafte
Bath running sores on the legs with human urine heated hot
with a linnen cloth dipt in it every night agt the fire This cured
Jn. Halford’s legs that were troubled with a [lye] water Ann Tasie
To dress sores boyl Roman vitriol zi in ½ a gallon of any fair water
& to disguise it add a little styptick water to change the colour apply 
the water to the sore if swell’d as warm as you can bear it & hold the
hand or foot in it for seven hours together stand in it or dab it with
hot cloths 20 times a day. It cures swellings you may use it cold if
in haste Dr Pool the mountebank doth great cures with this water which have
been given over by other surgeons but it oft requires patience & long
time to perfect the cure He uses excanceration water for healing & fistulas
He uses only a brown salve like deminio He generally rubs off proud
flesh sometimes he consumes it with burnt allum it but seldom D. I.
Strew upon an ulcer rosin of scammony & it will cleanse it to the bottom,
tho the bone be foul vid [kides] in Salmons family dispensatory 


60
Rheumatism
Rx 3 balls of the dung of a stone horse new dropt, steep it
2 or 3 hours in as much new milk as will cover them then strain
it thro a cloth & add abt as much more new milk as will make
it half a pint boyl it and as the skum arises take it off &
drink it warm at night going to bed for a fortnight will make you sweat
& is good taken after any fal or inward bruise. Robt Hall
the glasier of Leicer had a rheumatism caus’d as Dr Benskin told
him by leaving off smoking tobacco the Dr purg’d him a long 
time for it when he was come to his crutches & cured him but he
found great benefit by the horse dung medicine some take it
boyl’d in hale & some sweeten it with treacle but Robt Hall took 
only in milk. another Mrs P. Rx the tops of green wheat before
it hath shot an ear & distill it in a gallon of right brandy in 
a cold still give a quarter of a pint once in 24 hours with 2 
spoonfuls of syrup of clove July flowers. rub the distemper’d
pt with the flower of oyntmt i.e. Mrs. Packers yellow oyntmt
work it in against the fire once a day till the pains cease Mrs P,.
for a rheumatism with a fever al. a reumatick fever 
Rx sassaphras chips & liquorish root each zfs china pr 1 [illegible] & 
srasaparilla pr I [illegible] each zifs shavings of hartshorn 2 [illegible] & ivory 2 [illegible]
orange & lemon peel each zij best sena zij mis em with 
those herbs viz ground dwarf elder ground ivy red sage,
horehound scurvy grass, st. johns wort, buck bean (al. water
trefoil) sanicle, agrimony, fumitory, hartstongue, brooklime,
watercresses, liverwort, fether [fern], each mi. [red]
boyl all the ingredients with four gallons & a half of water
to 4 gallons strain it & put the liquour to the malt & mash
it as you do for beer or ale & put into the wort yest & 
let it work abt 10 hours then run it into a tun can & after 
2 days drink as much as you can for the constant drink. It will
keep in hot weather not above 9 or 20 days This diet drink
prescrib’d by Dr Thomas Perkins of Creyton 2 m. from 
Brixworth in Northamptonshire It cured Richd Walton E.A.’s
[illegible] at Do of a swell’d leg & a rheumatic fever when Dr
Keel & Dr Ashby’s pouder could do no good He lost his leg 
[illegible] [illegible] that [illegible] [illegible] of sickness He began to drink it [illegible]


61
Tuesday before whitsunday & continued it till December
following viz in the yr 1714 & he drank it in 
the spring 715. It purges gently without griping or
making you sick or uneasie tho it may happen to work
29 times successively. Dr Perkins & R S Walton. This cured
R. W. when most more concluded in a dead man.
To take away a sciatica pain; or rheumatic pain from the 
arms, or legs, or shoulder & to ease the gout or any pain
in the limbs Rx oyl a spike & oyl of exeter p.e. anoint
it on agt the fire once a day till the pain ceases. If for a 
rheumatic pain, after you’ve anointed the grieved pts 2 
or 3 days bleed in the arm & boyl mountains, flax the 
thickness of a mans thumb in a qt of ale, or beer & ale
till it comes to a pint. It may give you 2 or 3 stools. Drink 
posset drink or water gruel with it or whey. This has cured
when Br G.A’s rheumatic pouder would not. David Lane of
[Wiston] another the rd Mr. North of Braunston in Rutland his
purge for Ed Bennet (servt. to Br. Boothby) his lameness in his knee
of several yrs standing & pains often all over his body Rx sal
cathartic zi cum crem. tart. zfs He was order’d to take it twice
intermitting seven days betwixt each purge. This is one purge. To 
take buckbean & roman wormwood each mi (the 1st is the most 
material, it will do without the last) & put em in a pitcher & pour
2 pts of warm water to it & cover it & let it infuse one night or
longer & to drink a coffee dish of it every morning fasting but if
that was offensive or disagreeable to mix it with all his beer or
other drink that he commonly drank & to drink no liquid without a 
mixture of it. To make an issue on the lame leg above the knee
& to dry up that below the knee which he then had. Ed. Bennet.
any rheumatick or inward pain in the thigh, back etc. put old rusty
iron lbi or better into a pipkin with ale 3 pts which put into an oven as
soon as you’ve drawn the bread or [illegible] & sit up the oven again & let it 
stand 5 hours. Drink every morn a qr of a pint or ½ a pint warm while it
lasts. Let it stand all the time with the iron in it. It will be of a very 
green colour near the bottom This cured French Gregory Rd Mr Stokes
This will cure a dropsie & swell’d legs ibid Dr Bostocks cordial will
often cure a rheumatism when Br. Geo Ashby’s pouder would not E. A. 


62
A rheumatism Rx mountain flax half a qr of an ounce
ale a pint boyl it on a slow fire to ½ a pint strain it thro
a fine cloth & drink it at night or in the morning fasting 
you may drink either gruel or posset drink when it works. Mrs
Caulton A dist drink for a rheumatism, scurvy, dropsie
(or a rheumatism scorbutical or dropsical) & to sweeten the blood 
Rx nettle seeds a galn gill a galn tansy a pt mustard seed lbfs.
Bruise the seeds & tie em in a bag. Put all these in 4 or 5 galns
of ale. Let it be 3 days old before you drink it. Drin ½ pint 
warm in the morning, & as much at 4 o clock in the afternoon.
Mrs. Caulton. A rheumatism by a soldier Rs Raysins of the sun
lbi stoned & bruis’d figs slit lbi hartshorn shavings pr 2 d liquorish
2 d angelica, foals foot rosemary, balm, spearmint, rock 
rue, maiden hair wood [??tony] wood sorrel, liverwort, gill each
mif boyl all together in [illegible] qts of spring water till ½ is consum’d 
then strain & sweeten it with what you please a traveller & Br S. A.
another anoint the pt pained with oyl of tobacco 2 or 3 several
times E.A. another Rx oyl of easter & oyl of lavender 
p.e. anoint the pained part with it without [heating] only in the
winter hold a warming pan with coles or embers near it anoint
[illegible] & repeat the oyls. Drink cold water from a spring where
the sun shines upon’t or well water that is hard water half a 
pint in a morning for a wash for a man abt 60 or a woman
a young man may drink more David Lane
another for rheumatic paines Rx hearts tongue mviii wood betony
mifs put em in 4 gallons of beer brewed of 2 pecks of malt & 
boyl the liquor with the ingredients in it till it comes to 3 gallons
Let it stand & work 5 days Then drink a pint night & morning till all 
is spent. Put oyl of turpentine 3 drops into each pint. Let a woman
take but 3 qters of a pint night & morning S. S.
a medicine for the rheumatism Rx ale 2 gallons six hundred of
bugloss (it is bugus in the original Rx) al ox tongue) sage mi
rue mi you must bruise the bugus & the herbs together & tie em up in
a cloth & put em in the vessel & let stand five days before you [draw]
it. [illegible] with bugus is. S. S.
another Rx syrup of buckthorn zifs for a woman zij for a man put 2 
nutmegs & 10 cloves bruised steep em in a pint of white wine or ale
the 1st is best 48 hours shaking it 3 or 4 times a day Then pour off one
third of the clear wine & mix it with the dose mifs 2 days & repeat the
purge the third day & so take 3 purges. The remaining [illegible] nutmeg & cloves
will serve for other use afterwards. They connect the griping of the syrup
This cured [springthorp] baker of Leicer tho 1st purge gave ease, the second
made him lay aside his crutches & the third made a perfect cure. Dr. Brooks
& Mrs Finch.


63
a rheumatism any inward pain or stitches, a cold
a pain in the side or back or stomach.
Rx 6 or 7 balls of a stone horse’s new dung reeking hot tie
it up in muslane & put it into a qt of posset drink made
of ale & beer & strained Then let it infuse 2 or 3 hoursor
all day drink a qt of a pint at a time at any time by night
or by day warm. If you take it at night it will cause you to 
sweat. You may drink a qt or 2 in a day. This taken, one time & 
dwarf elder tea a tea cupfull another cured a violent rheumatism
in a man of Oxfordshire confin’d to his bed He was kept fro
meat with water : gruel. He was kept from ale if he ever drank it
his pains returned. He often eat milk porridge. Sometimes it was
3 or 4 weeks before he was well. Mrs. Ann Lathwel. It is more nauseous 
made with [illegible] bd of [illegible]
a rheumatism Rx water trefoyl & archangel make tea very bitter
Drink a draught morning & 4 o clock afternoon. an oyntmt
clarifie beef brine a pint over the fire while it is hot put it
into a stone bottle, add oyl of bays zfs & oyl of turpentine 1 d
anoint where the swelling & pain is, every night till well Mrs
Caulton. Rheumatic pains Drink w. wine & water or only water
that has stood in a mug 6, 8, or 12 hours or longer drink it almost constantly
whey is good with exercise juice of lemon with water is good,
so is lemon tea Rx cinnabar of antimony snake root in pouder
with hony & w. sugar candy in pouder make an electurary  Rx the
quantity of a nutmeg in the morning fasting or less or mor according
as it purges This & drinking water cured E. A. of violent pains
in his back DR Salmon says cinnabar of antimony is a very much
prized remedy in the French disease. It forces sweat cure [illegible] falling
sickness, apoplexie, convulsions. It sweetens the blood & all the
juices being taken for 7 or 8 weeks together morning & evening fro
zfs to [illegible] ii or zi in some convenient vehicle or syrup. Dr Quincy says
it is a powerful alterative in all chronick diseases. Dr Jn. Cheshire
in his treatise on the rheumatism says that it displays its tyranny in 
fixed & sometimes in vagrant aches There is one medicine for it that is
second to none as an alterative after necessary evacuation in the whole
system of physical preparations, that is cinnab. antimon. a medicine of
sterling worth known efficacy & seldom fails of success, if administered
with judgmt verbum sapionti [safest]
for the gout or rheumatism Rx flower of brimston zv native
cinnabar zi gum guaicu, pickled ginger each zij conserve of
Roman wormwood zifs syrup of clove gilliflowers as much as
will make it into an electuary you may add snake root in 
pouder zii a little sugar candy poudered If the stomach is squeamish & 
[illegible] with taking medicines the cinnabar
Mr Boyle infused cinnabar of antimony in rhenish wine & attributes 



64
to it marvellous virutes in contumacious surgical cases
Fullers dispensatory p. 1 Rheumatic pains. Fry briony root 
rasped or grated in grease free from salt. apply it as hot as you 
can abide it. Tho. Juice. A rheumatism Rx ivory shavings
zii boyld in 3 pints of ale till one pint is consumed, strain & drink 
a qr of a pint every morning fasting as much in the evening for 
a pretty long time together. Mrs Frances Winstanly Dr. Quincy
says rasura eboris is much of the same nature with rasura C.C.
shavings of hartshorn. Some think water is as good as ale.
An oyster drink for a rheumatism. Rx oyster shels ½ a peck burn
em as you do lime, then pour water 4 galns scalding hot upon em,
let em stand 24 hours. Pour off the clear & warm the liquor & infuse
therein sassafras 6 ounces liquorish 4 ou. mace zii. Let em infuse
24 hours more; then stain the liquor & vessel it up for use. Dose a 
pint morning and evening.
For the rheumatism or gout. a farmer at upper Brails in Oxfordshire
6 m from Sheepy Norton sells a pouder that cures it for some
time. His directions. Boyl one paper of the pouder pr. 2 s 6 d per 
paper with stone crop mi lavender cotton mi in a at of new milk
till half is boyled away then strain it & put in saffron 3 d keep 
it stirring till cold then put in treacle 4 ou. & crab verjuice a 
pint. Drink it a 4 mornings & 4 evenings fasting before & 
after one hour. The pouder weighs zi [bating] 1 copper farthing
It is made as E.A. conjectures of stone crop (i.e. wall pepper 
[illegible] & elecampane It is very biting to the tongue. It is not
bitter perhaps there may be aristolochea in it. (some think a little
ginger & pepper) Rx it in the morning when you rise & at 4 in the
afternoon of the same day cold. It generally binds but some
times it loosens the body. Gilbert Hollowell horse courser at 
the [Boll] in Little Ashby often took it with benefit
For rheumatic pains or pains in the back, side or shoulder etc. This cured
Geo Florence Fidler when he had a violent pain in the small of his back & side
& could not go without crutches. He was blooded in the foot on the side on 
which he felt the greatest pain & his foot was put into warm water to make it
bleed more freely he bled about 14 ou. Then rx mustard seed bruis’d in a mortar zfs 
steep it all night in all a pint (strong ale is best) In the morning strain it
[hire] a linnen cloth or strain & drink it in the morning for one day & fast 2 
hours after it using exercise as walking or riding if the weather will permit
or go up stairs & down stairs 2 or 4 hours It will bring away a great
deal of gravel if you are troubled with gravel which is often the cause of the
pain of the back Rx it 3 mornings together Half a pint of ale is a dose for  
a little man or woman & if you’ve some left at the bottom of the mug in which 
it is steept it will pour off the [clearer] G. Florence had fresh mustard seed every 
time but it will serve pretty well twice or for 2 doses of all except when you 
are very much afflicted. after you’ve taken one dose anoint the plows most
pained with oil of spike agt the fire twice or thrice a day. but if you are not
much afflicted the mustard ale will cure without bleeding or the oil keep a flannel to it.
[illegible] was [illegible] from [illegible] to [easter] It gives [illegible] G. Florence. 




65
A Pain in the Stomach
Rx Spirit of lavender a little tea spoonful (or 20 drops)
drop’d on a little white sugar when your stomach pains you.
Lady Robinson, this is very good especially when the pain in the 
stomach is caus’d by obstructions of the courses. Pr. George
(that marry’d Qn Anne of England) was cur’d of a pain in the
stomach by drinking a glass of verjuice for a great many
mornings together & walking after it. M. Gee. For a pain 
in the stomach & on one side like a pleurisy caus’d by drinking
small beer when hot. Rx waters of fennel, saxifrage & 
parsly ana zifs sp. of juniper zi tincture of laudanum [illegible] ii
oyl of caraways zfs ens veneria [illegible] i sp. carminativus zi salt
of wormwood zfs syrup of anniseeds zifs mix for a julap
dose is one spoonful morning & noon & 3 spoonfuls at
night going to bed. Thos. Farran the weaver prescribed this to 
Mary Gee Aug. 1707. Farran’s medicine did not good. She found the
greatest benefit by sassafras wood in chips infus’d in water drinking every 
morning & night abt a coffee dishfull. For a pain or wind or 
any sickness at the stomach. Boyl gentian zi & the peel of one sevil 
orange in 5 pints of water til wasted to 3 pings Drink in the morning
fasting & at 4 in the afternoon ½ a coffee dish full MRs Finch or you may 
infuse gentian zi & the peel of a sevil orange rue water balm water rosewater 
fennel water each a qr of a pint Double anniseed water & pint drink a 
spoonful or more till you’ve remov’d the pain. [illegible] For vapours or
wind in the stomach or pain in the stomach Rx tincture of castor 25 drops (a dose for
a woman) in a glass of cold water or beer & apply to the
navel a plaster of galbanum strain’d broader than both the
palmes of your hands. This cured Jeffry Daffern’s wife after a ‘
great many noted medicines had been baffled. Mrs. Elizth Basset.
Another for wind in the stomach. mix elecampane in pouder
with live hony & take a knifes pointfull. It is also good for a
cough & consumption. Butter & honey with bread eaten in a 
morning fasting is very healthful a London Dr eat em daily.
Mrs. [Kenton]. Elecampane & hony is good for a pain in the stomach.
ibid For a pain in the stomach especially if caus’d by worms
& to kill worms in man woman & child Rx mercurius dulcis gr
& jalop let the apothecary direct so much as to purge six times



66
you must keep very warm or it will flux This brought
a great many worms from Goody [Cater] being abt 70 yrs old
Lady Moor Robt Walton’s Br. in law was cured of a pain in his stomach
by drinking all his own urine warm when he had try’d [illegible] things in vain.
For the wind colick or wind in the stomach or gripes
Rx ginger carraway seeds anniseeds each a halfpenny worth
in pouder juniper berries beaten to pouder 1 d aloe succotrina
in pouder 2 d tar as much as will make it into a paste which 
roll up with liquorish pouder in to pills Rx 2 pills at night & 2 
at morning for 3 nights & 3 mornings successively or when
ever you are grip’d begin with 2 pills unless you are grip’d 
but a little then stay till night before you take them go on with
the pills tho you’ve ease till you’ve taken 12 pills a Spanish Dr cur’d [Kg] C. 2 with 
these pills Mary Burton a traveller was cured with these pills for
a great many yrs at once taking They purge gently
unguentum norvinu (an oyntmt for the nerves) expels wind & helps
the cholic p. 762 Salm. Dispensatory. Womens pain in the stomach caus’d
by obstructions. Drink cow piss ½ a pint 3 mornings successively
this cured Mrs Finch or boyle a little saffron in a draught of
posset drink. ibid.
Emplastru stomachicu Rx styracis opt. tacamah: odorifer. ana ziiii
succini cariophyl: n: moschat. mastich: & aloes succotrini a zi cinnamon:
zfs stryacis liquid: q.s.f. empl. J.T. for the stomach
& head Rx castoru & angelica each ziii in pouder with hony  
make an electuary The dose is zfs or [illegible] ii mixt with 4 or 6 ou.
of white wine. Then add stibium finely pouder’d 3 grains let em
stand in a glass bottle 4 or 5 hours shake the mixture & drink it
up. Provide a fat hen boyl her in water with a crust of bread 
only. let the patient drink of the broth as oft as he vomits. Or Rx
a good quantity of ale posset drink (it corroborates the stomach)
& if you do not vomit add to it a little hony. This washes away 
all filth & slime in the stomach which generates all distempers in the
ventricles. This above prescrib’d is in all surfeits an admirable medicine
at night you must take an hypnotic after all catharticks to secure the
exploded spirits ex. gr. Rx aqu. cinnamom: hordeat. zifs aqu. cinnamom:
fort. zfs laud. liquid gutt. 20. syr de macon. zii m. [cape] hora somni
post cathartici operationem. J. T. A bag to comfort the stomach 
Rx mastic red rose leaves, a nutmeg grated or in pouder mace, dry mint mix 
em all in a dish upon a chafing dish of coles Put em hot into a bag & 
hang it abt the neck against the stomach S.S. 


67
This pill is admirable in all distempers of the stomach.
It suffers nothing to putrify in it, it expells all uncleanness & 
cleanes the same, it causeth mirth, strengthens the heart & 
head & cleans the [reins] & womb. Rx white or brown amber
& mastich each zii aloes zv. agani zifs true aristolochia 
zfs. Beat em small & with syrup of worm wood make a mass
for pills from each dram make 6 or 7 of which take 2 or 3 
going to bed. This pill is nulli secunda. J. T.
The distill’d water of camomile flowers is an exct. remedy to 
assuage pain in the stomach dose ziii warm or for want of 
it a decoction of camomile flowers. J. T.
Some people are troubled abt 3 hours before dinner with disorder
in their stomachs as with pain, wind, crudities etc. Rx [illegible]
stomachic every time in a dish of coffee does the cure. J. T.
The tincture of the bark of sassafras wood extracted in 
sp of wine given at the time or repeated several times a day to 
[illegible] spoonfuls dispels wind in the stomach almost in a minute & 
[illegible] of ground ivy drawn with sp. of wine has the same vertue. J. T.
oyl of mint is wonderfully effectual in all stomachic
diseases. J. T. To assuage pain & distress & offending matter Rx
chimical oyl of bees wax, oyl of lilies, [camo???] & sweet almonds
each zi fresh butter & hens grease each zifs to be used outwardly
J. T. Dr. Bradlys tea for wind in the stomach. Rx Red sage
3 pts rosemary flowers 1 pt. bawn 2 pts 5 cloves add a little
of the kind of an orange (if you please) Mrs M. To dispell
the wind downwards out of the stomach or bowels. Rx
the 17 black pepper corns whole alone or in a spoonful
of beer any time of the day you may take it 2 or 3 
days successively till you find the wind wrought off. Stephen
Hunt of Whetstone cures himself by this Rx. Dr Tho.
Farran. Dr. [illegible] [Elizer] that works by sweat will cure the
wind colick or wind in the bowels pr. 6 d at Mr. Martins in 
Leicer. Boyl some cloves of garlick in milk strain & drink it
fasting it dryeth up a [rheum] or moisture in the stomach. Dr Cogan.


68
To procure an appetite, to help digestion, to strengthen
a weak & cure a sick stomach, vapours, melancholy, wind
the biting of a mad dog, quartan agues, fevers especially 
pestilential, the plague, worms in children; to stop [larks], bloody
flux & the [terms], vomiting, & inflammation of the mouth &
throat it hold therein; to provoke sweat & expell all manner
of poysonous & inflections diseases fro the heart. To prevent miscarriage.
Rx Virginian snake-week 15 grains for a man in pouder infuse
it in ½ a pint of cold water 12 hours shake em & drink both
pouder & water cold till you are well pr. 1 s 6 d per ounce at Leicer. The
Rx Mr. Edward Lovell
For wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes Dr Wilson
of Grantham his pacific drops. Rx liquid laudanu zi
oyl of juniper zii (per 1 s 2 d) The dose is fro xv. xx. to 
xxv drops in any vehicle. Begin with 5 drops first &
increase em gradually Take em in ale or beer & [ride]
after em they are diuretic & bring away gravel [illegible]
If they do not cure the wind you  must take an electuary
of [zedony] Mr Wm Cook apothecary These are the ingredients
in the said electuary viz [zadoary] rhubarb salt of
wormwood [illegible] ginger oyl of nutmeg syrup of cloves 
Rx the quantity of a nutmeg of the said electuary roll’d in sugar morning
& night after the morning dose drink gentian tea after the 
night dose drink 15 or 20 [pacific] drops in beer This I try’d in vain.
Bates in his dispensatory commends The electuary of pepper for
the colic & gripes. Unguentu eboloru i.e. oyntmt of danewort or 
dwarf elder is ext in dropsies tumors for if with it the belly & other pts
be anointed it resolves the wind & removes the tumor. [Tis] ext. in 
joynt pains & gout Rx succ rad. ebul. zii [co?] in ol. cham. zviii ad
consump. succ. & cum cor q.s.f. unguent. when you anoint these with
mix it with a little vinegar or wine. p. 293. Cooks [marrow] of chirurgery 
for gripes with a looseness there is scarce any thing better than rice
milk eaten warm E.A. Wind in the stomach swallow 17 pepper
corns for 2 or 3 mornings together & at night going to bed take a spoonful
or 2 of brandy burnt with rosemary & sweeten’d with sugar
keep it in a bottle close stopt The 1st drives the wind out & the 
second prevents its return this cured Stephen Hunts wife when the 
Drs could not S. Hunt.


69
To procure an appetite & to correct
wind in the stomach
Rx wormwood mii shred or cut it, or pound it in a mortar
boyl it in two qts of water till one is consumed then
bottle it close put a little of it (to the palate) in some ale
or beer giving it a shake or stir. It is a gratefull & 
agreeable. Bitter you may try gentian juniper sprigs
or berries, gill, tansies, broom, sage, buckbean, carduus,
centuary, Roman wormwood. Rosemary good for the
head & sight. orange peel, balm, camomile sprigs or
flowers wormseed faenugreek fumetory, rue, cloves, nutmeg
elecampane, sassafras, savory, dale chips or shavings,
feverfern does all a bitter herb can do, says Pochey. white
horehound strengthens the stomach & cures an ill habit of
body. ibid. wormwood in ale or beer breeds a red rich face
but not in water says Dr Hartop. Virginian snakewood mint
carduus seeds A pouder for wind exct. Rx seeds of 
burdock zij aniseeds & liquorish each zi make of all a fine
pouder & mix em with white sugar candy. The dose is zi p. 612 
Cook’s marrow of physick. another smoke a pipe of tobacco
& after you’ve taken 2 or 3 whifts, swallow the spittle
2 or 3 times in one pipe once or twice a day. It is best in a
morning fasting. Stephen Hunt. another burnt a cork that h as
stopt a wine vessel for some yrs to ashes Rx  a knifes pointful in ½
pint of warm ale night & morning Stephen Hunt
For gripes & wind or convulsion fits oft caus’d by wind. Rx 
strong ale one qt hony or treacle lbfs boyl em & when
cold all syrup of damask roses (i.e. syrup of roses solutive)
zi stir em to mix then keep it close stopt in a bottle Rx one
spoonful alone when grip’d or ill or at any time after eating
or mix it with posset drink ½ pint or syllabub drink (viz milking
fro the cow to a little vinegar & sugar) W. Balby another cut dry 
wormwood mi infuse it in a bottle of ale close stopt & 
drink one spoonful of this wormwood ale in the beer at 


70
at any time when you find wind at the stomach or
you are not well. To the precedt Rx you may add 
viz boyl in the ale rosemary & sage strain it then add a 
little saffron with the hony & boyl it a little again before
it is qutie cold add syrup of roses zij They purge gently 
& clear the urine being good for th stone & gravel
the urine when settled in the pot is like rags you may hang
it on a stick. Thus was Jn [Tralby] of Wigson his urine being
abt 21 yrs old & having convulsions fits. Tho. [Heifferd]
of Counterthorp is the author of these 2 last Rxs which were
communicated to E. A. by Wm Tralby [illegible] E.A. made the
addition of rosemary sage & saffron. This upon tryal was good
for nothing. Pain in the stomach caus’d by wind lying heavy like
a wright Rx agrimony (which hath not a hollow stalk) centaury 
each as much as a nosegay gentian root zij wormwood ½ as 
much as of the agrimony picking out the dead leaves boy em
in strong beer or ale in a pint let it stand afterwards all night 
then bottle it close being strain’d & drink at 4 mornings fasting
it clears the stomach & strengthens it & takes away the wind &
pain when the pain is below the stomach after you’ve taken the
said drink Rx ½ a spoonful of mustard seed once a day at any 
time before meals for 2 or 3 days with a little drink in a spoon.
take it whole this cured Mr Thos. Simpkin & Wm Marches wife.
Stephen Hunt Wind in the stomach chew a few sweet
fennel seeds Mr. Baxter another eat some white [pears] after you 
have carry’d em in the pocket or when they are dry or old they will cure
the heartburn caused by wind E. A. Dr Quincy commends tinctura sacra
as a great preserver of the tone of the stomach & to maintain a good digestion,
good for hard drinkers Dispensatory p. 393. To procure a appetite 
to expell wind & prevent & cure the gripes for the grips & wind & to 
amend the tone of the stomach eat salt plentifully with every thing you 
eat strew salt 2 or 3 times on all mutton beef or veal roasting To get a
stomach eat oatmeal pudding with salt & butter & a little vinegar or
verjuice & a little brown sugar or make a posset of milk porridge thus
make some milk porridge put a spoonful of vinegar or [illegible] stir it till it
curdles or turns then add a little brown sugar turn a porringer at a time 
thus & walk or exercise after it E. A. For pain or wind in the stomach 
& to get an appetite Infuse hiera picra zi in a pint of white wine [for]
2or 3 days Pour off one pr 1 s spoonful of the clear & drink it fasting
Joseph Spence farmer on Rx 9 black pepper corns in ½ a spoonful of
sallet oyl whole Rx [em] fasting a week or longer Dr [?atly] & Br. Boothby.


71
A person hurt by a fall
Blood in the arm Take lucatellus balsom inwardly a knifespoint fully presently
after the fall & at night going to bed for [illegible] or 3 nights & 
in the morning fasting for 2 or 3 mornings. If an eye is swell’d
to abate the swelling beat a lump of [roch] allum in an earthen
porringer with the white of 2 eggs moisten some flax in it & 
apply it to the swelling with a linnen cloth one in 2 hours
or as it drys moisten the flax again & again To take away the
blackness & [blueness] of a bruise bath it with spirit of wine
& apply a flannel to it. These things cured Mrs Margaret Wilson 
having a fall from her horse Apr. 1707. A man of Whetstone
being [kickt] on the face was cured with only bathing often with
new milk very hot it took away the blackness another to take
away blackness & [blueness] caus’d by a wound anoint it with
butter cold & chafe it in well may butter is best. Michael Simons
had a kick of a horse on his thigh so that to lay for dead & he
was cured without bleeding only by chafing it presently with
butter Anne Simons. for a bruise or strain apply white of an 
egg & wheat flower plasterwise nothing better Wm Pinch of Aylston
The last Rx Elizth Halford try’d having strain’d her wrist so
that her hand swell’d but it pain’d it & made it swell
more She cured it by boyling soap & brandy & binding
it on spread on cloth EH. A strain in the back Rx 14 
or 17 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught of warm 
ale 3 mornings successively This cured one that could not go
Mrs Finch. A bruise or strain old or new. anoint the place with oyl
of mallows new drawn It will take away the pain & swelling then
[illegible] & dress [suet] p.e. apply it plasterwise till well the
plaster strengthens. If for an old bruise add oyl of [illegible]
to the oyl of swallows & oyl of roses and 1 d the next day apply a 
plaster of paracelsus. Francis Kenton. for any inward bruise
after a fall & drink a glass of cold water. The Rd Mr. Lovell.
Joshua Goodrich was thrown down fro his horse when he gallop’d
& he lay upon his leg which so pain’d him that he could 
not stand on’t he rode home but his leg was not broken,
it look’d black & yellow & he was very lame for 6 weeks 
having a corecloth on’t he was thus cured Rx deers suet 


72
Deers suet 2 pts good brandy 1 pt melt em
together & rub it on warm agt the fire with the hand
morning & evening at 1st then once a day till well. he 
found ease at the first dressing Mr Winstanly prescrib’d
it. Jos. Goodrich. A strain or bruise Rx some linnen
cloth a little bigger than the place you intend to cover, lay
upon that brown paper of the same extent, & upon the 
paper place flax or soft [hards] then having a pr of
tongues heated red hot hold a piece of black pitch in one
hand & melt it agt the tongues so that it may melt & 
cover the hards when you’ve made a surface of pitch
besmear it all over with the white of an egg beaten
lastly sprinkle it all over with salt & apply it cold. It
is very painful for abt 2 days but it’s an exct. medicine
for a strain or a crackt bone Aunt Majer did great good
with it you must let it lie on till it drops off. Mrs M. an inward
bruise by a fall. Drink a quart or 2 of cold water & 
bleed in the arm James Lappington & Anne Tapie. a strain 
boyl brooklime in humane urine (the older the better) with salt
bind it on as hot as you can endure it This cured 2 of Mr Allen
Gregory’s son of a strain in their knees that they could scarce 
go Stephen Hunt. A strain, bruise or old pain or to strong
then a weak limb that sometimes is free fro pain. Rx some
crab verjuice (the older the better) boyl em being made thick
with salt then apply em as hot as you can endure with a red
cloth or flannel bound to it repeat it once in 12 or 24 
hours. This has made the lame to walk, old Tho. [Freer] anoth
Beat some white of an egg & mix verjuice therewith bind it
to the place pain’d with some flax or flax hards dipt there in
& bound on with a linnen cloth repeat it night & morn. This 
cured Mr Simon Barwel that had strain’d his leg abt the ancle
by a fall when Mr. Goodyear & another famous London surgeon
had try’d several medicines in vain one affirming
that one bone the other that 2 bones were out when never a 
bone was dislocated being only a strain & a swelling Mr
S. Barwel. Another Mrs Elizth Basset of Blaby stumbled at a [cus???] 
& fell down & bruis’d her leg a little above her ancle so that it swell’d
mightily & look’d black She thought at 1st her leg was broken 



73
or some bone dislocated which 2 last things were not
true Mr. Wilks the surgeon apply’d linnen dipt in white of
eggs beaten & mixt with vinegar & water to cool & strengthen it
The next dressing [illegible] used camphorated spirits of wine The third
time he apply’d Barbados tar. A cataplasm of the root of Solomon’s
[illegible] is good to take away black & blue marks arising
from contusions [Millers] Herbal vid. p. 75.
A poultis for a swelling or bruise or strain by Tho. Hely. Rx new
milk a pint or for want thereof scum’d milk, oatmeal mi
boyl it till it is as thick as flower meat then add sheeps suet
chopt small zij & let it boyl a little time to melt Then 
take [houseleek] & mallows each a qr of a handful chopt
small put em in & let it boyl 3 or 4 wallops. Apply it
thin & warm as you can endure it at night with a linnen
cloth & a flannel over that or for want of it a double
linnen cloth. you must put in a little handful of oatmeal.
use it twice a day at 1st sitting or lying still. If
you walk abt use it only at night. The same poultis will
serve 2 or 3 times, adding only a little fresh suet & a little
milk to keep the kettle fro burning. If it breaks heal it with 
healing salves If it is only broken a little this poultis will
heal it, being not shifted above once in 2 or 3 days. avoid
salt things & strong drink a qt of small beer is enough
for a man to drink in a day. This poultis is anodyne cooling
& supplying & strengthening oyl of turpentine is often
too hot. A poultis for a swelling, bruise or strain
by Peter King mountebank. Rx flax seed zij in pouder boyl
it in a qt of water till it grows tender or is consum’d then
add hogslard zij & after that is melted wheat flower as much
as will make it into a poultis apply it warm & renew it
every 12 hours at 1st till the pain is abated then once in 24 hours
is disperses & sometimes breaks it. March 715 In Halford driving
plow fell down & a horse trampled on his leg abt 
the ankle which was very much swell’d so that he could not go
but with great pain. there was a little hole like the head of a
nail e.a. apply colebatches pouder dissolv’d in urine & 
a linnen cloth dipt therein: a day or 2 after E. A. apply’d
white of egg beaten & mixt with verjuice then oyl of turpentine


74)
& goose grease. Bents salve & Barrets 
salve. diaculu cum gummis [att] these did little or no
good. at last we used the last poultis which took away the
pain after that had been apply’d 3 or 4 times We heated old
human urine & dipt a linnen cloth therein & apply’d
very warm This was repeated along time at one dressing 
after the urine was dry’d It was anointed with 
unguentu [dialthaea] agt the fire. This took away the pain 
& stiffness a plaster of Jn. Smiths salve was apply’d to 
the place bruis’d by the nail but it never [illegible] corruption
It was poultis’d every night & drest with hot urine & after it
anointed with ungt dialthaea every morning This strengthen’d 
his leg & abated the swelling & made a perfect cure.
The free labourers at Blaby standing upon the shafts & driving
the horses made a sudden turn which threw him down & the wagon
fore wheels ran over him & the hinder wheels drag’d him on it
was empty when he came home fro coles he was blooded & a sheep
skin new taken off was apply’d warm to his side where there was 
a swelling as big as hi fist the wheel went over his middle he
was blooded the skin lay on one night it stank the next morn 
& he took flower of brimstone almost a spoonful in a porringer of new milk from the cow 2 or 3 times 
intermitting a day or 2 He found great ease by taking it. [illegible] a strain 
or swelling boyl a qt. of strong ale to a pint then put in hogs
lard ziiii let it boyl a little again then apply it as hot as
you can endure it. Traveller. To break any swelling white
or red as whitloe i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb felon or ancome i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb. Rx mallow leaves. elder & chickwood all together mi
wash’d & chopt small, put it to a little thick cream, white bread crums 
deers suet zi for want of it sheeps suet, hony a little spoonful boyl
em to a poultis. apply it as hot as you can bear it, with a linnen rag.
Renew it once in 12 hours, especially while it runs. It will both break
& heal [mudden] wheelwright of Rotherby. A poultis to take away 
pain from a swelling or [illegible] or raw sore ore burn Rx new milk mutton
suet chopt & the skins taken out (or for want of it tallow or deers suet)
oatmeal ground & hous leek wash’d & chopt small stir the oatmeal & milk 
cold then boyl em & add the suet & housleek stir em & let em boyl apply it
as flat as you can endure it Mrs Freer of Blaby.


(75
a kick or bruise or swelling. Rx the leaves of rue
& mallow pound em with some reez’d bacon spred it on a linnen
cloth & hold agt the fire a little to warm it Bind it on renew it
night & morn at 1st then once a day This cured Jn Hind when his
leg was bruised by a stone & swell’d so the next day that he could not
go Dr Brown surgeon of Mountsorrel & Jn H.
An in ward strain, or bruise caused by a fall etc.
Rx balsamu capivi 20 or 30 drops in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of
milk old or new in the morning till you’ve taken 12 d old
Tho. Juice of Dunton. It is very good taken in ale caudle
Ec. Underwood falling out of a pear tree Augt 723 found
great benefit by Balsamu capivi. He was blooded & had 
a clyster a day or 2 after he took oyl of turp. in ale & had
some thing give him of poppies to make him sleep. He drank
his own water pint with a spoonful of spirits night & morning
Jn Smith of Blaby showing an unlucky horse he kick’d him on the
knee It made it swell & was so sore & stiff that he could scarce go. He
was cured by bathing it 3 or 4 times with good verjuice Jn Smith.
Tho. Hollowell of Little Ashby was kick’d by a horse on his foot so
that it look’d black & blue It was cured by rubbing it twice with brandy
cold Tho. Hollowell.
Osmund royal al. water fern is esteem’d by some as very 
powerful in dispersing bruis’d blood & taking away the blackness
that arises therefrom quincy.
For an inward bruis’d or strain in man or beast
Rx the best madder zii for a man ziii for a beast; warm it hot [illegible] to boil
(but do not let it boil) In ale half a pint for man, in a qt for a beast
when it is moderately [illegible] give it warm. it is good for the pain in the
bark or any inward pain. Let a maid that hath the green [illegible]
hold her head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [illegible]
[illegible] Dyer at [illegible]
IN april 1739 E.A. had a violent pain in the middle of his back caus’d
perhaps by cold but no corecloth nor camphorated sp. of wine would
take it away at last he took abt 3 pints of sifted oats which were 
put in a frying pan dry  by them selves & cover’d with a pewter dish & 
hung upon [an iron] called by the cooks the housewife or lazy back it hung 
a pretty distance from the fire
Salmon’s Dispensatory says the poplar ointmt cures the pain & heat of
the back. For a decay of the marrow in the back
Rx new milk a pint 20 shell snails one comfrey root sliced & a little isinglass,
boil em all well together, then strain it. Take half of it at
night & the other half in the morning following. It must be repeated
for a fortnight. An ointmt for the same Rx sp. of wine a pint & oil of
amber an ounce, mix em & warm em & rub the backbone night & morning
during the time of taking the above said remedy Mrs Ann Benson & Mrs Hartshorn




(77
For eyes inflam’d that abound with humours
that look red & are sore
apply a blistering plaster to the lower pt of the neck between
the shoulders then dissolve as much Roman vitriol in 
spring water as will give it a pale [blew] tincture to which add 
a little loaf sugar to correct the sharpness of the vitriol drop it
2 or 3 times a day but especially at night going to bed with a [illegible]
moistening only the lower eye lid on the inside when you perceive
it makes the eyes stiff omit dressing for a day or two adding a 
little more water & more sugar E.A. note If you blister for the
eyes when they are not rheumatic & full of humours you will
sink them so will an issue. This cur’d E.A. May th 20th 1707 when
plaster of burgundy pitch & red lead & white copperas water
& other drying waters would do no good.*
Another Rx running water 2 spoonfuls best French brandy [illegible]
wash the eyes there with on the inside & outside the eyelids. Dr. 
[Lowe] & Mr. Tho. Matthews. * not in a weeks time or less my 
eyes grew very rheumatic & sore as before & itch’d very much
for which reason I was bleeded 12 z in the arm which did my eyes
a little good but not very much het in a fortnight or less the
following eye water & diet drink cur’d them. An eye water
Rx waters of fennel white roses & plantane each zfx.
white copperas & saccharum saturni each gr. vi. camphir [illegible]fx
dissolve them near the fire & strain the water & moisten them
3 times a day especially in the morning but not at night
going to bed for then it will make the eyes sore. pr. of
bottle & ingredients 2 d Tho. Farren a weaver. a diet drink
for the scurvy & weak eyes & to strengthen the sight & to 
dry the eyes. Rx water crosses brooklime, scurvy grass,
[fumitory], sorrel, liverwort agrimony each a good handful,
sena zfs. roots of horseradish zii boyl all in six quarts of
good ale wort till they are soft for want of ale wort 
you may boyl em in stale beer which is good against the
scurvy strain out the ingredients when cold & work it
up with yest & let it in a cold place & drink half a pint
or a quarter of a pint every morning & into every dose
you drink drop 16 or 20 drops of the spirit of sulphur.


78)
you may buy ziii of sp. of sulphur at 2 d ½ per dram.
If once taking doth not cure repeat the dose It will cure
also a dry itching & purifie the blood ibid. In a month or
6 weeks time after taking the precedent diet drink my eyes grew
very rheumatic & bloodshot & eye waters would do no good & my 
eyes itch’d violently tho I had bleeded 12 z in the arm a little before
I apply’d a vast great leech to my temple almost one inch 
from the corner of my right eye nearly the hair of my head above the
eye where commonly plasters are lay’d to the temples It sucks
very much & made a great orifice & bled almost all night I setting
the leech on abt 5 o clock in the afternoon in June 1707 When
I lay’d a little salt on’t it spew’d up blood almost as black as ink 
I found the itching of my eyes to cease the next day & the rheum 
to abate I dropt em with tho. Farren’s eye water to strengthen the
sight as I us’d to do before my eyes were very well in 2 or 3 days 
but not I apply’d a plaster to each wrist made of common mallows
celandine, bole & hony stampt abt 4 hours before I us’d 
the leech which alone will often cure a [illegible] or bloodshot eye. I 
remov’d the plaster lay’d on [leather] once in 24 hours for 3 days
which is very cooling. I conclude that the leech did my eyes most good 
letting out the thick black blood so that there was not a right
circulation of the blood & spirits. Bleeding in the arm or behind
the eyars seldom is of much advantage to the eyes some commend
bleeding in the foot for the eyes. Ithing eyes to cure.
wash the outside of the eyelids & the inside of the eyes with 
verjuice for 4 or 4 days It is good too when they are bloodshot [illegible]
It will cure the itching of a [illegible] too Sister Boothby. Rheumatic eyes Rx lapis calaminaris in fine pouder
& plantane water shake the bottle when you dress em which must be 
at the morning fasting & 4 in the afternoon. Mrs Coltman.
Rheumatic & bloodshot eyes Boyl soft water & skum’d milk p.e. with 
a piece of household bread drink it for the constant drink avoiding 
malt drink, wine & cyder wash the eyes often in a day with common
brandy or [illegible] of Hungary’s water which both heal & dry the eyes.
[illegible] smoak the [illegible] tobacco [illegible] especially night & morning These cured 2
A. June 1707.) This following medicine surpasses all the former 
It strengthens the sight cures any pain attending the eye as eyes gum’d 
up in a morning & the congeal’d gum feels like grit or dust in the eye It 
helps a blear eye or any red rheumatic eye drying up the rheum in man 
or horse Rx oyntmt of tobacco that is green melt a little against the fire & with 
a feather or the [illegible] anoint the eyelid that some may enter [illegible] once in 2 days. 


(79
How to dress a sore eye with eye water.
you must dress it in the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in 
the afternoon when the stomach is emptyest is the best time Dr.
Clay. Plantane water is the best liquor for an eye water
better than rosewater etc. for a rheumatic weak eye ibid
when you dress the eye pull down the lower eyelid so that you 
may see the inside of it then take a soft feather as pidgeons or partridge’s
etc. make it naked only just at the point leave a little
feather which moisten in the eye water & touch only the inside
of the lower eyelid note the eye is a tender thing & you 
should not so much as touch it with a feather it will offend it
E.A. Sore red eyes caus’d by hard drinking. Drop some tallow
from a lighted candle in to water & anoint it upon your
eye lids so that some may go into the eyes at night 2 or 3 
times dressing will cure. Wm Bonsher of Wigson a poultis for 
a sore eye to take away the pain Rx a small quantity of red
rose leaves & wet em in plantain water & scald em over a fire
till they are very soft apply em as hot as you can endure it at
night going to bed the next morning take it off & wash the eye with
milk & water warm’d Sister Boothby. Sore & red eyes caus’d by 
the small pox. Rx some hen dung the whitest & newest from the 
henroost & dry it in an oven lay’d on a white paper after bread 
is new drawn then beat it to pouder with a knife on the paper & 
blow a little with a goose quil into the eye holden open once
a day either night or morning. use it for a wash then intermit
a day or 2 Repeat it till the eyes are well. you must gather none
but white dung This cured Jn Gees eyes. It made em smart & 
water when first drest & his eyes would at first grow sore upon 
catching cold. Mary Gee. Another Rx a little bit of old or 
new calico burn it over a pewter dish blow off the ashes then pour
a little breast milk (i.e. womans milk) cold to it & moisten the
end of a clean feather dipt therein & put it into the eye once a 
day, making fresh liquor every time it is drest by burning another piece 
of calico & pouring milk to it. ibid. To dry eyes that water much 
& to strengthen the sight, spread upon a piece of velvet cut round 
a little bigger than a shilling emplastrum deminia & apply to each
temple [illegible] plaster. The velvet keeps the eye war. It is better 
thus apply’d then between the shoulders or to the crown of the 
head. Hannah Licoryse Some rheumatic eyes are much mended by 
applying empl. de mucilaginibus to the temples. not you must
not let these plasters lie on above 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 days at a time 


80)
Things bad for the eyes
Mr. May the famous oculist near Oxford reckons those
things enemies to the eyes viz pease, cabbage hot bread
pepper salt stale beer & things sour & butter wind. much 
drink
note when you apply plasters to the temples as soon as you 
find they incommode or molest the eyes you must take them
off. They dry & repel & are best for rheumatic eyes sometimes
you must not wear em above 1 day at a time intermitting 3 
or 4 or more for the oftener you use them the less benefit you
will find by em & the seldomer the more. E.A.


(81
for blindness or a blear eye or any 
weak, sore eye or bloodshot eye
Rx the shells of snails that grown on their backs nine good hand fuls burn
them well 5 hours in wood embers then beat them with white
sugar candy zii sift it fine & blow a little in a quill into
the eye. Thrust 2 or 3 goose quils one within another & fill
the least end of the quils abt ½ a barly corns length that
must put in more or less according as you have a film
[illegible] or any [illegible] corruption or cataract white or black or
anything that obstructs the sight to work off or remove
Blow into the eye some pouder once in 3 days whether 
it be the eye of a man or horse It will not eat off a [har?]
in a horses eye. It strengthens the sight where the eye
balls are loaded with any corruption or rheum It is a great
dryer because of the allum that is in the sugar candy when
the eyes are bloodshot or look red Rx small beer let it
stand till it is dead then heat a little hot & wash the eyes a qr 
of an hour after the pouder Some eyes are cured in a week 
some in a qr of a yr by the pouder Mrs P. If the beer or pouder
make the eyes ake do not used them The pouder will make 
them smart. The beer for some eyes repels the humours too
forcibly
another Rx loaf sugar 2 pts Roman vitriol 1 pt beat to fine
pouder & blow it into the eye You may if you will mix it
with the white that comes from hen dung dry’d in an over or
in the sun E.A. It is as good or better than the former pouder
of Mrs P. you may add sometimes a little pulvis nephriticus
it will corrode the more hen dung makes it less sharp & 
mollifies it. some say loaf sugar is better than sugar candy, having
more allum in it. E.A. Salmon in his dispensty p. [199] says that
the gall of a corn or ox mixt with breast milk makes an excellent collyris
agt the [har?] or [Pearl] in the eye. fresh butter put into the eyes 
[illegible] them p. 200 ibid for a rheum or pain in the eyes Rx [Barly]
& boyl it in water & lay it poultiswise upon the eyelids at night
going to bed If it be for a hot rheum apply it cold If it be for 
a cold rheum apply it hot for some nights till you find ease.  Sister
Boothby. Plantane water is a great dryer & prefer’d before common 


82)
Water by Aunt Boothby. A water for sore eyes. R.C.
Rx plantane water ½ a pint, white sugar candy zi white
vitriol zi sugar of lead zi Boyl them a little & strain the
water for use. R. C. Another Rx fennel mi white sugar
candy a qr of a pound white vitriol (al white copperas) zi 
boyl these in 2 quarts of spring water till it come to one;
if you put in the juice of celandine it will take away any
[pearl] in the eye. This water cured a boy in Lichfield that
had been blind 3 yrs R. C. This water took a film off the
Kenny’s horses eye at Whetstone.
A purge for the head, which cures the head-ach & take away rheum
from the eyes & is good in all pains whatsoever.
Rx syrup of buckthorn zi magistery of scammony in pouder 10 grains, 
black cherry water zii aqua mirabilis zi mix them & take it fasting
drinking warm gruel as it works. This is a ull dose for a strong
man or woman. R. C. another Rx Daisy roots & the herbs that belong
to them gotten always fresh (that is in the winter) infuse abt
as many as will cover the bottom of a large pewter porringer in as
much rain water as will cover them all night let them infuse cold the
next day pour off the clear & strain it thro a thick cloth let it
settle & pour off the clear again to which add loaf sugar the quantity 
of a little nutmeg & abt ½ so much lapis haematites or a little 
mor or instead thereof venice bole Mrs Emerton cured all eyes
even a blind beggar with this but she used (as Mary Gee that made up 
the water for hen conjectur’d) bole. This is the Lady Clarks famous
Rx the [illegible] at Watford in Northampton the lapis haematites is
good for a blear eye. Salmon’s disp. you must drop some of the water
into the eye at night keep it in a bottle close stopt & shake it before 
you use it. Some shepherds eyes Rx houseleek & penny-wort 
pound & mix em with the white of an egg & a small quantity of
vinegar & plasterwise lay it to the forehead then make a plaster of
bole with a little white of an egg & vinegar & lay it to the temples.
Mrs M. Another white wine alone will cure a rheum in the eye
Dress it 2 or 3 times in a day at first, after sometime but once in 
a day Mrs Clay of Leicer. To strengthen the sight when decay’d smoke
rosemary coltsfoot & [illegible] [.e. This has cured several Mrs. Finch.
Headach snuff up a lilte white [pepper] in fine pouder. [Withabed] [Morer]
of Cosby.



(83
for an eye much swell’d & rheumatic of 
Jeremiah Brandreth Taylor of Quarron 
cur’d by Sr Wm Reed oculist
apply 6 papers of pouder to the nose 1 every night
to be snufft up call’d the pallick pouder It will make
the nose run & heat it as if it was on fire It will
provoke spittle viz ½ a pint or more at night It will
work a full hour In the morning Rx 10 papers of 
pouder 1 ta a time till you’ve taken them all in sage
tea sweeten’d with sugar. Rx these the same time that you 
take the 6 papers of pouder They were of the colour 
of [cap] paper & wrought only by stool. once in six
days Rx purging pill 4 doses viz 5 pills in the pap of 
an apple for one dose intermitting 6 days & omitting 
the pouder when you take the pills. Rx the pills when the weather
is warm & open & keep warm that day & do not stir out 
when you’ve taken the above said pouders Rx 20 papers 
of pouder consisting of a light brown colour mixt with 
filings like filings of gold. Rx 1 paper every morning
in milk pottage or water gruel fasting 1 hour after IT 
makes the urine smell very strong & works only by urine
Every morning & night wash the eyes with an eye water
dropt on a fine Holland rag or a spunge Dab it on the
eye lids leaning the head back that it may soak thro the
eye lids You need not put any into the eye it will 
not molest the eye if any gets into it you may smoak
tobacco if it will make you spit it will do you good, but
if it doth not it will do the eyes harm. apply blistering 
plasters about 3 inches long & 2 inches broad to each wrist 
a little above the pulse It will weaken the eyes so lay it 
on or below the pulse apply fresh blistering plasters once 
in 20 days [illegible] four times or longer spread em on [allu]
leather. If you heat the knife hot when you spread the blisters 



84)
it will make the blisters sorer apply em with [illegible]
lot whilst they will run. you will find the greatest ease
& benefit by blisters. Rx A diet drink to sweeten the
blood Rx hartstongue liverwort dwarf elder each 2 
large handfuls sassafras shavings lbfs guajacu zii liquorish
sliced 7 ounces Boil them all in six gallons of midling
alewort till a gallon is wasted & work it up as other drink
at 5 days old You may drink it for the constant drink. Rx 5 
drops of the elizir in a draught of it in the morning fasting
an hour after it (It is not Daffy’s elizir but is made of some 
strong water & is sweet.) Be sure to abstain from all salt dyet 
& sharp & sour liquor Let this be repeated for the constant drink
till the middle of May & also at the fall of the leaf Frances
Surgeon of Derby advis’d two [issues] to be made on the back to dry 
up rheums in the eye Rx diaculu simpl. lbi [Pius] Burg zii m. f. emplastru
pro fontinali.
Sr Wm Reads prescriptions to Wm Shetton of Willoughby who first
lost his sight by a cold & was a yr under Allibone who lay’d 
plasters to his temples (which dry’d too much the optic nerves)
& made an issue on the sutures of his head
Sr Wm Read’s restorative cephalick spirits to be used as followeth,
only prepared & sold by himself
Drop 6 or 8 drops in the palm of the hand, rub the hands together
& snuff the steam up the nose at night going to bed & 
morning when you rise; at the same time chafe the temples with 
the like quantity. abstain from all windy dist & refrain going
to bed upon a full stomach.
Drop a drop of the red water into the corner of the eye next the
nose every night when you are in bed & drop a drop of the white
water every morning an hour before you rise.
Begin with the papers of pouders as this directs Rx one of them 


(85
every morning fasting in a dish of sage tea sweeten’d
with sugar & hold the eyes over the steam as you drink it & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon Rx another dose. Be punctual in 
the directions so long as all the things last make use of 
the golden tincture as the printed note directs wrapt about it
There is also a printed direction about the cepahlic restorative
pouder There is also directions about the 2 bottles of opthhalmick
water [40] papers of restorative pouder at 6 d each 1 [illegible] – s – d
1 bottle of golden tincture 7 & 6 d Two bottles of ophthalmick
water 5 s total 1 [illegible] 12 s 6 d
moisten the end of a feather so that it may lick up a little
for rheumatic eyes [illegible] Portugal snuff put it in to the eyes
a little before you go to bed intermitting a night or 2 This
cured a man so that he could read without spectacles when 80 
yrs old Sister Boothby. It doth purge & make the eyes water 7 
smart very much but it is most exct. medicine to strengthen the 
sight E.A. Mrs Finch blows Portugal snuff into the eye with a 
quill another to cure a [pearl] or film or wound on the eye. Roll a qr
of a sheet of the best white writing paper round so that it
will stand on one and after it is dry’d at the fire [illegible] light the
upper end at a candle & let the other end on a clean dry 
plate (silver or pewter) & hold it up with a [key] that it may 
not fall down on the plat but may burn so that the smoke
may come out at the bottom of the paper & leave an oyl
on the plate If it doth not leave an oyl the first time you 
must burn paper again & again till there is oyl enough to 
moisten a feather this is oyl of paper at the end of a wing
of a hen you will find a soft sharp pointed feather (especially
before they moulter) moisten this feather in some of 
this oyl & a little before you go to bed let some body hold
with [illegible] fingers & thumb both the eye lids open clap this 
feather just upon the sight of the eye then press [illegible] both eye lids



86)
together & turn the feather round in the eye that oyl may 
come off, then shut the eye for a little while it will pain it
violently for a little time & make it water you must use it
thus every night for a week or fortnight It will strengthen the
sight, dry up a rheum, cure a wound or pain or small pox in the
eye, an old wound or sore Mrs Finch of London. Another for
weak sore eyes smoke colts foot & bottony they have cur’d some 
or let a man when his mouth is full of smoke from a tobacco pipe
blow it into the eye, the eyelids being thrust open with a finger
& thumb or wash the eyes with milk & water ibid (tobacco smoke 
is too hot for most eyes E.A.) an approved medicine for sore
weak eyes. Rx camphir zii The best brandy ½ a pint. shake em 
well together for 3 or 4 days before you use them then wash the
temples & eyelids taking great care that none of it go into 
the eye Mrs. S. for to take away a pearl in the eye & to 
clear the sight Rx the best aloes beaten to pouder (with a drop of
sallet oyl in the mortar) 1 d spring water ¼ of a pint. let it simber
away in a large penny glass viol plac’d at a distance from the fire
till ½ is washed dress it with a feather night & morning till well Mrs 
Clay of Leicer For sore eyes a humor or diffusion of
rheum or a pearl Rx red wine ½ a pint as much white wine vinegar or
burdeaux vinegar if it can be had mix them together in a bottle
[illegible] Rx [lead] beat it as thin as a shilling cut it four square
only longest [one] way making 4 holes at every corner one & 
sew to each corner a piece of paper let the lead be made full 
of holes as small as if made with a pin & take a small piece of
scarlet cut in the same shape as the lead but without any 
holes at the corners or any pt of it sew [tapes] to it as you did
to the lead, let the scarlet be dipt in the above named liquor
every 2 hours & apply’d to the nape of the neck by tying the
scarlet abt the head to fasten it & the lead upon it This hath
taken a pearl away Mrs M. for sore eyes Rx red rose leaves 
[smallage] maiden hair hous leek, ivy, succony, red flannel, [illegible]
celandine each zii wash them & steep them a day & a night in ordinary 
salt then a day & a night in white wine & it will be most
sect. for the eyes It hath recover’d sight lost for the space of [illegible]
yrs you may put into’t the juice of woodbine leaves if you please
Mrs M.


(83
For sore eyes Rx lapis [tulia] prepar’d in fine pouder
zfs white wine half a pint infuse them over a gentle fire
four hours then put it into a strong glass bottle in a shellet 
with straw & water let it stand 4 hours longer morning & 
evening anoint the eye & if need be morning & evening
drop a drop or two into the eye also Mrs M.
To take off a film or pearl & to clear an eye
Blow a little Portugal snuff into the eye & several times in 
a day stroke a little hony with a feather into the eye This cured
a won of Banbury when the Drs could not Mrs Newlove.
Another to take off a pearl beat a little allum to fine pouder
& sift it then beat some loaf sugar (double refin’d is best) & 
sift it & take two pts sugar & one pt allum mix em & blow
a little into the eye with a [illegible] intermit two days & blow a little more
once dressing cured Mrs Jinny [Ings] eye of a pearl. Mrs J. J. 
The said Mrs [Ings] eyes were very sore & cured b y setting a leech 
to a vein behind each ear twice intermitting some days & bleeding
in the arm once & washing the outside of her eyelashes
with cold water her eyes were sore for 9 weeks so that she  could 
scarce see. There’s a famous oculist in Warwickshire that cures
a great many sore eyes by commanding his patients once a 
day to dip only their face in cold water in a large bowl
or basin Mrs [Ing].
For a hot rheum in an eye Rx a garden snail with the shell on 
& with the round knob of the shell make a little hole & prick with
a needle thro the knob keeping in the [head] of the snail It will 
give 5 or 6 drops of [blew] water in a [illegible] or spoon if the
water is red or yellow you must throw it away as not good
dip the ginger in the blew water & apply it to the eye that some
may go in & it will cool & cure the eye M.B. wood betony
smoked with tobacco preserves the sight Wm Finch. For a rheum
in the eye Rx frankincense & put the quantity of a 
small nut on some coles of fire not too brick & 
blowing for them it will burn & flame, it should
smoke you must hold some fine [illegible] or flax over 
it to smoke it then apply it to the hollow pt of the 
nape of the neck (you need not shave it) now smoke 
the same [illegible] thus night & morning till the rheum is dry’d


88)
dry’d up. If you hold your head over the smoke 
it will bring a rheum into your eyes. This cures
a rheum after the small pox Mrs Finch.
For a blood shot eye Rx house leek stamp it & squeeze 
the juice out which boyle in an eggshel then strain it thro 
a fine cloth then put a little into a spoon & lay your
head backward & pour it in it will take away blood
shot & cool the eye Mrs. Finch. Things that dry up a 
rheum in the eyes. Rubbing the crown of your head & 
temples with your own [illegible] or salt a little dissolved in 
water & put into the eye & rub’d on the temples (It 
is a most exct. dryer) or oyl of spike rub’d on the
temples or emplastru do mucilaginibus or de minio, mastick
or burgundy pitch apply’d to the temples or wrists, or 
bistering plasters to the wrists or behind the ears or on the
back are great & good dryers but nose plasters are not
to be us’d long to the temple they are such great dryers
E.A. smoking tobacco or sneezing by looking agt the sun or by 
snuff will dry up rheum in the eyes but when the eyes are dry they do 
em an injury by making em too dry & stiff.
Oyl of turpentine is good for any pain in the eye & to strengthen
the sight & to dry up a rheum in man or horse apply’d to the 
temples or eyelids, it will not hurt if it gets into the eye Jn.
Clark [Gelder] To set off a pear or film on the eye 
& to clear it. Rx the [illegible] of blood red roses dry em & 
beat em to pouder blow a little into the eyes intermit 2 
days & repeat it till it is cured Gordy Simon. To stop a 
rheum & to strengthen the sight Aung Boothby constantly wears plaster
on her temples of linimentu [arsei] To preserve the sight when 
you write or read Let the back be agt the wall in which the window 
is you are to write by & let the window be on the right hand
& turn a little to the light body so that the shade of your body
hand may be on the paper you are writing on which prevents it 
from dazling & striking the eye. E. A. when the eyes are dry anoint
the crown of your head with sallet oyl. E.A. To dry up a rheum in
the eyes break the top of an egg & pour out the yolk & white put a little
white copperas as big as a horse bean with spring water boyl em in the [illegible] [illegible]


(89
Falling sickness or convulsion fits
Rx 3 spoonfuls of white wine vinegar an ordinary thimble
full of gunpouder loaf sugar beaten zfs This is one 
dose to be repeated 3 days before the change & full of
the moon. Mrs. Palmer of Islington cured several with this
medicine uxor mea. another Rx Two goose quils almost full of 
quick silver pr. r d was em up & sew em in a little piece of old 
rag abt your neck so that they may hang upon the pit of the 
stomach wear em for several yrs [?enserving] the quick silver 
when it is almost wasted Aunt Boothby another Rx 2 spoonfuls
of juice of [illegible] in a little new milk for [illegible] mornings
together fasting ibid. for fits of the mother apply galbanum 
prepar’d (a plaster) to the navel. ibid. for convulsion 
fits or the falling sickness approved. Rx the gall of a young black
dog for a man & of a ditch for a woman & mingle the whole gall in 
a spoonful of [zinc] [flower] water (tilia floru aqua) take it in the morning
fasting & fast 4 hours after & so 3 mornings together. It must be
taken 2 days before the full of the moon & the day of the full
& after for 7 days together. Rx the quantity of an hazelnut of methridate 
in a little of the [zinc] flower water every morning fasting & so
continue it monthly for the space of a whole yr Mrs M. another Rx
a [illegible] mold for a won a the mold for a man tie it close in an 
earthen pot alive & bake it in an oven with bread till it is so 
dry as to beat to pouder take as much of the pouder as will like on
a ½ crown in ½ a pint of white wine or ale till all is taken MRs
Abigail Finch. another Rx some of the skull of a man hang’d
up in gibbets (David Jervase cut some of [Lorsby;s] skull with 
a chizel by moon shine when the hair & flesh was quite wasted 
or a man hang’d The skull of the fore head next the brains is
best dry it to pouder after bread in an oven pound it to fine 
pouder Rx as much as will lie on a silver three pence in abt a 
spoonful or more of white wine vinegar in a morning fasting
for 3 or 4 mornings successively. This cured Joseph Ezard shoemaker
of Lutterworth David Jervase’s apprentice he us’d to lie
as if he was dead after a fit & always fell down if he did 
not lie down D. Gerfase had this Rx fro Dr Carter a traveller 


90)
for convulsion fits [L?] Cullen Rx sea horse
pizzle 5 gr in a paper for a woman 3 gr. for a child (you
may buy a pretty deal for 6 d at London) dragon water
a pint mithridate the quantity of two large horse beans
shake em together (Let em infuse if you can 12 hours or more
before you use em) Rx a paper of the pouder in a spoonful of 
this water 2 mornings before the full of the moon & 2 mornings 
after & so before & after The last qr new moon & 
first qr & at any time when you perceive a trembling or
any symptoms of an approaching fit This has cured several
women & children near Marston Aunt Boothby us’d it with great success. [Ld] Cullen & Sister Boothby
oyl of camphir is a noble specific in the [epilepsie] in old
or young but chiefly agt that kind which proceeds fro disaffections
of the mesentery & womb Dose fro gut 2 to 3. p. 138 Salmon
on Bales’s Dispens. Convulsion fits in children Give a drop or 2 
of oil of camphir in a little sugar to a child once a day till it is 2 months old They are
often caused by wind & make the child look black in the face. Aunt
Boothby & Jane Warner al. [Tosie] another oyl of amber made with 
[tiles] beaten to pouder ertc. is a specifick agt fits of the mother & falling
sickness, so is also ambred spirit of wine p. 475 Salmon’s disp.
forfits Rx hips of sweet bryer when full ripe, dry
em in a oven just warm not too hot by no means but put
in several times, keep em dry; & when they are to be used beat
em in a mortar & sift em very fine. Give as much of this
pouder as will lie on a six pence in a spoonful of black
cherry water & give a little black cherry water after it
Repeat this dose 3 mornings successively. To a little of
this when ever you perceive a fit approaching. It may be given
both morning & afternoon. This has cured adult persons as
well as children. Lady Curzon of Kettlesey near Derby.
an ext. Rx for convulsion fits Rx foxgloves [illegible] Mi polypodium
leaves of the oak mi spring water one qt boyl the herbs till it comes
to a pint, strain it & sweeten it with brown sugar candy to the taste.
Give the child 2, 3, or 4 childs spoonfuls when the fit comes & 3 or 4 
times a day you may give as much as it will take. several have 
taken it & have had no more fits Mrs Caulton. A grain of
ambergrise 1 gr given in a spoonful of sack to a new born child 
being the 1st thing it takes prevents all sorts of fits. Grind the 



(91
ambergirse fine & give it cold Mrs Caulton
volatile salt of hartshorn & fixed salt of hartshorn cure
fits of all sorts viz fits of the mother apoplexies, convulsions,
epilepsies, [illegible] salm Dispensatory fits that come by a fright 
Buy a silver ring with mony that is given You gratis & wear it upon 
any finger you must constantly wear it If you pull it off or let it
fall to the ground the fits will return. Goody Exon’s daughter of
Blaby had fits at the sight of old [illegible] that had hang’d himself. She lay
once in a fit from Monday till Friday. Her mother [beg’d] 3 s 2 d [illegible] she 
bought 2 silver rings pr of one was 20 d the other 18 d she [woar] both on
one hand thing a ribbon abt each ring because they were too big. She never
had a fit after she woar the rings Robert Foreman of [illegible] had 
a maid that was cured of fits by wearing a silver ring bought with 
[elemazunary] mony pr 2 d.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Rx southern wood in May, pound & strain it, to a qt of the juice put
abt a pounder & half of sugar pr. 6 d or 7 d per lb boyl it in a syrup Rx
a spoonful night & morning, a child may take a less quantity. Give it 
to a child 2 or 3 times a day. In the winter boyl the [illegible] dry in 
water & make it to a syrup with sugar Mrs. Elizth Caulton
To prevent fits in children. Give one grain of ambergrise in 
a spoonful of sack & water the first thing You give a new born child
prevents all sorts of fits You must grind it five & mix it cold Mrs
Caulton a midwife a lady had [illegible] her children dead of fits till she
tried this Rx afterwards she had 4 that lived ibid.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Chop of the end of a black cats tayl to make it bleed Give 
3 drops of the blood in plague water or beer or ale or water
presently after the fit. This cured a girl of [11] yrs of age that
us’d to fall down in her fits once taking it Mrs Ann Lathwell
another Rx spirit of amber gut iii in a spoonful or 2 of cold
water every morning after a clove of garlic till well. You 
may take the sp. & water at any time when you perceive a fit approaching
This with an elemazunary silver ring worn sometimes
on one finger & sometimes on another because it would
eat into the flesh worn long in one place cured Rachel Halford
that would fall down in her fits she was about 17 yrs of
age when her fits were on her she had a pain in her legs. She
was E. A.’s servt in the yr 723
Histerick fits Mrs Perkins a widow of Marston in Buckington 
Parish abt 4 m. fro Coventry, Warwickshire Rx 20 drops of tincture
of hiera picra in abt a spoonful of warm ale & 2 spoonfuls after it


92)
& walk a qr of an hour after it then she may eat her
breakfast repeat the same at 4 in the afternoon she must
eat her dinner at one continue taking as long as 1 ou. lasts
Rx of these herbs dry 6 doses infus’d in water so as to 
drink 2 [tea] dishes in the morning fasting 3 days before & 3 days after 
the change of the moon after the tincture is taken & Rx 4 more 
doses of herbs made into tea with water 4 or 5 days before or
after new moon
This was directed for Mary Exon abt 16 or 17 yrs of age. Her
illness lies in left side. she extends her legs & screaks out
[wind??es] to her stomach so then she is silent she beats with her
hand her side where her pain lyes.
Mrs Green of Wykin near Coventry has a perfect cure for
fits that seldom fail. The Ld Colins medicine.
Peony seeds help fits of the mother & other such like infirmities
of the womb stop the [terms] & help convulsions [culp?p??]
tincture of amber is good in hysteric fits dose from 15 drops to 30 in 
wine or water oil of amber rectified mixd with sugar then with wine
& given from 3 drops to six is admirable in hysterick distempers Salmon’s
family Dictionary
To prevent & cure convulsion fits in children
Goody Ludlam of Blaby every morning gives her child rue tea
sweeten’d with a little sugar & as oft as it is in a fit [till] it is ten weeks
old. her children till she try’d this [illegible] [illegible] Ludlam
Mr. Ray praises hartstongue given in pouder or a conserve 
of [the] green leaves of the heart, millers herbal
Quincy says pulvis epilepticus pouder agt the falling
sickness is efficacious & to be depended on in childrens 
convulsions & grown persons Rx valerian & piony roots
each 1 ou seeds of rue, myrrh, castor, white amber, each zfs 
native cinnabar 2 ou.
Fits in men, women or children Mrs Orton of [Reasby]
Rx a human [illegible] from a grave man anatomiz’d or hang’d Dry it & beat it to fine pouder & [illegible] 
it a man or woman must take as much of this pouder as will lie
on a shilling in water or beer for a month together in the morning 
fasting & at four o clock in the afternoon This cured MR Barwell’s 
man of Marston Northamptonshire & who also lived with Mr. Orton. He went
apprentice to a dyer at London but was forc’d to leave his trade by 
reason of his fits. He learnt this cure from a traveller & return’d agn
to London. A skull from a grave will not do
Balm, molissa is good for the falling sickness [?eckeys] herbal
Dr Strother on Dr Radcliffs pharmacopoeia says after 2 or 3 doses of an 
infusion of senna & rhubarb, at proper distances I have given mixtures of 
rue & penny royal, balm & mint water [paeony] compound some few drops of
sp. of hartshorn, sweeten’d wth syrup of white poppies successfully p. 252.



(93
Rx The root in pouder before the stalk springs of garden = 
valerian, half a spoonful taken once or twice in wine, water or milk
relieves those that are seiz’d with the falling sickness some say it is more
effectual in this case than the roots of male peony pecheys herbal
Rx the candied roots of Solomon’s seal for the falling sickness ibid.
southern wood cures hysteric fits & the jaundice ibid
several girls abt 16, 17, or 18 yrs old or more as Rachel Halford, Ann
Hovy of Blaby have been cured of fits thus Rx a clove of garlic
swallow it whole, if you can, or you may chew it if you can’t.
take one clove 3 mornings together fasting. Sister Boothby. p 91.
Apply this plaster to the stomach on alum leather in the shape
of an heart the sharp point upwards Rx horse turpentine ½ ou.
ply this to his stomach when you take the garlic it makes it more
powerful E.A. when it is on the stomach lay cap paper to the
back of the plaster to keep it from daubing the linnen ibid.
Dr. Salmon’s Doron commends spirit of hartshorn as ext agt all
sorts of fits, the suffocation of the womb, apoplexies, convulsions, palsies
vertigos & epilepsies does a gut 15 ad 30 in a convenient vehicle. This same
book says Jaber’s epileptic spirit of vitriol dose to [illegible] i in a morning 
fasting for a month at least, in [peony] water or in tincture of peony
flowers purging the body twice in the same month with salt of vitriol 
By this means an absolute cure of the falling sickness will be completed
p. 420 Doron.
convulsion fits. In young women abt 15, 16 or 20 yrs of age or
[lett] the girl [her] [beg] as much money as will buy 2 silver rings of any charitable
[illegible] sons Edwd Underwoods daughter Anne of Blaby 19 or 20 yrs of age gave 4 s 10 d 
to [Mr] [illegible] gold-smith in Leicester for 2 silver rings which she did ware
for the most pt on the midle finger on her right hand It freed her from
her fits imediately with some 4 or 5 times a day & as often in the night
beating herself with her hands on the breast & [took] away her senses & 
made her so weak that she cou’d do no work & wou’d have brought her 
into a consumption if it had continued some time longer
Saml Exon carpender of Blaby had 2 daughters cured of fitts by 
waring each of ‘em 2 silver-rings bought with the money they beg’d of
their neighbors Some gave 1 d some 2 d in copper money & some 6 d 
in silver one daughter wore ‘em 3 yrs together without ever leaving
‘em off & it is now 6 yrs since she left ‘em off & has continued very
well & freed from fits. The rings in time will wear thing by working
them they beg more money & exchange ‘em for new ones They must be 
woren always upon one hand at a time either upon the right or left 
hand & upon any finger but mostly upon the midle finger



94)
convulsion fitts
A travelling clergiman advisd Ann Underwood aforesd haveing fitts to drink
a little tea-dish of lin-seed oyl every other morning till well but it was so
nauseous that she cou’d not take it
Conserve of white briony-roots taken twice a day to the quantity of a 
nutmeg for a long time cures the falling sickness and [illegible] fitts a [illegible] of
root put into the pot the fire [illegible] out of does the same The compound
water of briony is most in use. [Po??ey’s] Herbal
Convulsion fitts in children give [illegible] of [illegible] in a bottle
sugar this cur’d one of Mrs Browns sons a little child that
look’d black in the face Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer
For the falling sickness Rx the powder of hartshorn & drink 
it in wine it helpeth the falling sickness So doth a raven’s
egg drink with the juice of wild rue & the juice of misletoe
Mrs Hewet E.A.’s mother
For convulsion fits or the falling-sickness. Let a 
dog lick up their vomit if they vomit in the fit, if he 
will not lick it up pour to it melted butter or grease but
it is better if he will eat it alone without any thing. Grease 
the mouth of the patient in a fit, let the dock lick the 
froth or spittle of the patient or near his breath, the dog
will dye & the patient will be well. If it be a woman let
a dog lick if a man let a bitch lick. If the dog licks the
vomit it’s a certain cure, the dog will have many 
fits & live a pretty while but dye at last in a fit says
Wm Nyat of Adderston. Mrs Crompton’s Rx to
cure convulsions or hysteric fits Rx the bigness of an egg of shining
woodsoot & as much assafoetida infus’d nine days by the fire
side & shook up frequently in a qt of the best spirit of wine.
This you may give in water or wine & water; for convulsions fro
5 to 100 drops according to the age & strength of the patient.
Tis also very good for gripes in children mix’d with syrup of 
violets & oil of sweet (or bitter) almonds. Drop 60 or 100 
drops into a qr of a pint of this mixture & give a spoonful
at a time from the wood of Costock & Cos. Margt Muxloe
mother of time at wild [or field] time is gave for convulsions & for gripes 
outwardly apply’d it cures headach & giddiness Pechey


(95
for the cramp or crick in the neck.
Rx an old hinge of a coffen & make rings of it wear
it constantly on your finger It cures the cramp & gout & 
crick in the neck Mrs P’s yellow oyntmt will also cure apply’d
cold. this oyntmt cured Mr Fletcher Mr P.
for the cramp Rx an eel skin dry it & rub it soft with wheat
bran with the hands then split it down the middle & sew pt of
it round the leg in the gartering place the inside next the skin
wear it day & night This cured old Wm Wright & many poor people
at Rotherby. another make a ring for any finger of mony that
is given at the sacramt exchanging other mony for it & it will certainly 
cure the cramp wearing it on one of the fingers Dr Million 
The priests in Lanchashire etc. make what money is given on Good Friday
at the sacramt into rings which rings they give away to the
poor which cure the cramp Mr [Traps] a Roman Catholic. another shift
the shoes morning & night always & cross the legs. E.A.
another Rx oil of St. Johns wort & spirit of lavender each zi mix em
very well & with the mixture rub the pt affected p. 42 Dr. Lowes Rx 
Mr. Coltmn apothecary mixes oyl of amber oyl of spike & sp. of lavender
to be rub’d on, but these mixtures are apt to remove the pain fro
the calf of the leg to the huckbone which is a worse place. E. A. 
another Rx oyl of camomile & fanugreek & anoint the place where
the cramp is & it helpeth p. 123. The accomplish’d lady’s delight.
another for the cramp. Rx St. Jns wort in pouder as much as will lie on a 
shilling in w. wine or ale. Rub the joynts with oyl of St. Johns wort,
It is better the oyl of turpentine Dr Pool, the mountebank
another Rub the hams & calves of the legs with their own water night
& morning constantly & it will cure & prevent it. E.A. another Rub
the pained part with oyl of tobacco (not oyntmt of tobacco) E.A.
oyl of euphorbium cures cramps, numbness, stiffness Salmon’s Disp.
a cramp is the contraction of the sinews of any one limb. The
cure. chafe it with vinegar & common oyl then wrap it all over with 
woollen cloaths Sr Wm Hope’s perfect [farrer] another unguentum
ad spasmum nervoru, an oyntmt agt cramps & convulsions p.
767 Salmon’s Disp. another Rx a sprig of Rosemary to bed with you or
Rx the bone in a hance of venison near the pope’s eye call’d the gentleman’s 
bone wear it abt you Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Turn the
soles of the shoes going to bed topsie turvie for a month This cured Mrs Abigail
Finch. Another E. A. freed himself from the cramp by every night
& morning standing upright & pressing the calf of each leg agt the
shin of the other I suppose it puts the spirits & blood into a fresh motion 



96)
Camomile apply’d hot in a bag is ext agt cramps Dr Quincy
For the cramp. Set your shoes with the soles upwards
at night going to bed, when the cramp pains you 
get out of bed and turn your shoes. OR wear an eelskin
for garters near your bare skin above the knees 
Wm Wyat. To cure the cramp or contraction of the sinews 
rub the member contracted with oil olive & [illegible] vinegar p.a.
& bind a double flannel abt it. The Gentlemans Jockey.
another Rx strong ale a qt black soap lbi boil em till they look like
tar with some brandy & anoint the place grieved from the Experienced
farrier


(97
How to flux.
First purge the body with 2 bolus’s from the apothecaries
as the apothecary shall direct intermitting 2 days
Then kill some quick silver by mixing it will with oyl of 
bays & rub the navel & between the shoulder with the same
Rx milk pottage or water gruel all the time warm’d for 
your drink & you may eat any fresh meat you can
you must be nine days in a flux & you must not stir out
till after 3 weeks. The teeth will [fasten] again of themselves
or you may rub them off with cream of tartar, a fortnight
after your flux purg with pilula cochiae twice intermitting
one week two scruples at a time. Mrs. P. use not the
above said method without some Drs advice because medling with 
mercury is medling with an edgetool. E.A.
mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in fine pouder mixt with hony
or treacle is an exct. purge. If it doth not purge it
fluxes & if you catch cold after it viz that day it has
purged it will raise a salivation the tongue will swell
& the teeth will be loose you must then in a day or 
2 take a paragorick purge viz a gentle purge to ease 
pain. E.A. If the gums swell or are sore by taking mercurius
dulcis you must purge it off by [flos] sulphuris Mr. Cook apothecary
Rx some milk scum’d milk will do boil it & add as much flower of brimstone
as when stir’d abt will make it a little yellow & treacle 1 spoonful
Take this in the morning & it will give you 3 or 4 stools If that does
not make the gums well repeat it omitting one day. If you take mercurius
dulcis to purge grind it on a marble 7 gr 	½ is a dose for an ordinary 
man, with flower or brimstone for a long time & at last with treacle
put it to the further pt of the tongue & lett it touch the gums as little
as you can & work the mouth after if with beer If you chew it, it will
make the gums very sore. when the gums are sore with mercury chew
liquorice If that does not cure Rx this drying diet drink Rx sarsaparilla
& guaiacum each zij sassafras zfs hartshorn & ivory shavings 
each zii boil these in a galn of water to 2 qts Drink a pint a day
repeat it till well Mr. Francis Coltman apoethcary pr. [113d]


98)


(99
To make cider Jn. Arrowsmith of Tewksbury in 
Gloucestershire
Let the apples lie in heaps to sweat till they are mellow. Pick out
the rotten & lay em by themselves. You must make spirits of the
rotten & the sedimts of the cider you must but chalk into the
sedimt Grind the apples & squeeze the liquor from the hulls as soon 
as you can that they may not change or grow sour with the same care 
& expedition as you get the alewort from the grains. Tun up the liquor
immediately into the hogshead or lesser vessel you must not stop the 
vessel you may begin to make cyder after michaelmass & continue
making till xtmass work up the [illegible] & the woodcocks & your 
musses (musta) & the moyls & the sweet pippins & London pippins
a choice eating apple the 1st ripe fruit 1st. never gather but shake
down the apples upon the grass & house em immediately Take care 
to shake em down dry & house em dry. Gather only what are for
house use & to eat & to keep long. 2 or 3 days after they are hous’d
turn em over with the hand. Pick out the blew & rotten & lay em in a
cistern for spirits. A blew mould will give the cider an ill taste you 
must not break the kernels for they will give the cider an ill taste
Let the cyder purge & when it is in a [frot] you must not wrack it off.
Let it be in the vessel 2 or 3 months till it has done purging at the
bunghole. In frosty clear weather that is calm wrack it off (not in rainy
or windy weather) pour out the lees for the still or stillers. wash the 
vessel with cold water & pour it out then put in the cider again into the
same vessel or in to a spare vessel The cider men begin with a spare vessel
boyl apple hulls (call’d [comb]) in water & scald all the vessels old or new 
with it twice before you put the cider into em. cider will not do well
after malt drink, but malt drink will do after cider Let the cider after
it is wrackt into the new vessel stand with the bung stopt to keep out
the air but not very close. you must have a little hole with a nail 
[parer] near the bung which you must open in rough weather & lest you 
forget leave it open or it will force & break the h oops of a new or old
vessel unless iron hoop’d. you must have never an hole on the top of the 
vessel cell’ the purge hole because the vessel will not then hold so much 
by 2 or 3 gallns especially if it be an hogshead. always fill the vessel 
full 2 or 3 days after you’ve wrackt it off put in a pint of old 
[?eans] 1 yr old to a hogshead They refine & give it a colour & make 
it flower If it is inclin’d to change Put treacle abt ½ a pint to a 
hogshead whip it with a whisk in a pail or tub with some pt of the cider
& tun it again. Let it stand 5 or 6 days to settle then bottle it off as
soon as you can. Bottle it always in calm clear weather Try the vessel
with a plug at the end of the vessel as soon as it is fine bottle it it 
will keep in bottles a yr or 2 set the bottles sideways in a bin in straw 
or without a bin straw lying betwixt every row of bottles to keep em
from freezing. when you bottle ale put a spoonful of small beer into each
bottle to ripen it winter or summer after cyder is wrackt it looks for  


100)


(101


102)


(103
Pills generally purging all humours as flegm choler
melancholy from all pts of the body, thereby curing
many diseases.
Rx Pilula cochiae majores, pil. aloephanginae & extract of rudius
each one scruple, chymical oyl of nutmegs 1 drop, make them
into 6 pills & take 3 at night going to bed & 3 the next morning
R. C. mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in very fine pouder mixt
with a little hony or tracle is an exct. purge for a man or 
woman v ic. p. 97.


104


105
Emplastrum de minio Rx sevil oil such
as the combers use one quart red lead lbi in fine
powder boil ‘em together till it begins to be brown. White
wine vinegar that that’s sharp, or good alegar ziiiiii,
when that is boil’d a little add bees wax sliced zij and
rosin in powder zi. then let ‘em just simmer then pour
it into cold water and make it up into rolls, your hands
being oiled or anointed with fresh butter. It dries and
heals wonderfully, discusses tumours and coagulated 
humours; it mollifies, expells, and is anodyne; It is
so [illegible] a thing agt all manner of pains, bruises and old
aches the weakness of the back and sinew’s, sprains 
of the joints gouts, old sciatica’s and other inveterate
pains coming of cold that it has scarcely and equal;
esteem it as a jewel.


106)
Artery prickt or wounded.
There is no better think than to apply balsam de chili, or
panicea balsamina upon lint, & lay over it a diapalma
plaster. It commonly cures at one dressing. Salmon.


(107



108)
To take away the pain of any swelling & to cure it
without breaking
p. 72
Rx juice of housleek 2 pts & fresh butter 1 pt mix them together & 
anoint the swelling till well, Mrs M. or shred wormwood (green is best)
small & apply it hot, being fry’d in fresh butter, like a poultis renew it
once in 2 or 3 days. ibid another Rx camomile, wormwood, southernwood
& lavender cotton each mi pounded boyle em in a [illegible] pt of
cream to an oyl strain it warm it in a spoon or agt the fire
rub it on night & morning till you are well Goody [Homes] of
Wigson magna did great cures of aches & swelling with this green
oyntmt. Jn Gamble carpenter his wife was cured of a great swelling 
on her knee as big as a mans fist with it without breaking
The Duke of [Leeds] had a violent swelling & inflammation 
that descended fro his shoulder to his back the Drs & surgeons 
thought it impossible to be cured without cutting an old poor
woman cur’d & took away the pain in a very little time 
only by applying 3 or 4 times a poultis of turnips made
with mutton suet viz. the turnips were pared & boyled in 
water & then mixt with the suet & apply’d warm The Rd
Mr Ed. Lovel. a child abt a yr. old at Leicer had a swelling
that look’d white (which is reckon’d the worst of swellings) abt the 
bigness of a womans fist, it was cured thus by a soldier viz 
he boyled some parsnips (scrap’d) in water to a mash & apply’d
as hot as you can endure it to your cheek or the back of your hand
& it was repeated every 3 hours day & night for 40 hours
& it dissolved without breaking MRs Abigail Finch.
To make oyl of trefoil. Buy some seeds of sweet trefoil (called the
balsam tree) of the seedmen at London & sew em in a [fat] soil in a garden
in April, when it is in the blossom cut it & keep the flowers by themselves
now gotten & dry put em in a glass unchopt with sallet oyl as much
as will cover the herbs set em in the sun for a fort night to incorporate
strain out the oyl & keep it for use. The oyntmt of trevoil is made of
the herb chopt green, dry, & new (gotten or) cut mix it with goose grease 
Set it in an earthen pot in a cool place viz in a cellar or [dary] for a week 
or 10 days to incorporate then boyl it & strain out the herbs & put 
this oyntmt into an earthen pot & when it is quite cold cut a hole from the
surface to the bottom at which drain out the water clean then after a 
batch of bread or any things bak’d set it in the oven till it is entirely
molted so cover it with a paper or board & keep it for use It is good for all
swellings or pains The oyl is esteem’d better than the oyntmt but Mrs. Adderly 
uses only the oyntmt being cheapest. Sister Mayer


(109
To cure a swelling caus’d by a kick or for a bruise
Rx wormwood leaves mi ale ½ a pint boyl em till it is thick
like glew apply it on as hot as you can endure it every 
night bind on the leaves too It gives present ease (when oyl of
turpentine will not) & will heal where only the skin is rub’d
off. James Leppington. unguentu nutritu is cooling drying & 
anodyne, good agt inflamations burnings & scaldings, takes 
away the itch of wounds, cures scabs & [tetters]. Salmons Disp.
To dispense or break a swelling Rx goose grease 10 pts oyl of
turpentine (or oyl of spike) 1 pt E.A. To make oyl of
[fish] for any new swelling Rx the whites of 2 eggs, salt one
spoonful beat em well together then beat with it an equal quantity 
of hony for 2 hours anoint the swelling & a piece of limbers
London brown paper & apply it If the paper stick too fast when you 
would take it off moisten it with warm water. It will keep 7 yrs 
you may make ½ this quantity & keep it in a bottle close stopt
It is good for a swelling caus’d by cold or for an eye swell’d 
up taking care that you put none into the eye Rd Mr Ed. Stokes
oyntmt of roses will discuss a swelling: ibid The swelling of
the cheek caus’d by the toothach is cured by anointing it with sallet 
oyl E.A. A poultis to break & heal any swelling white or red
p. 79. another Rx a penny loaf, slice it, then sooth it in running
water with red rose leaves till they be thick like a poultis then add a
little deers suet apply it as hot to the grieved place as you can endure 
it. Pater [meus]. another for a for a foot strained or wrenched
Rx a little oatmeal & milk & [smallage] mi chopt with a little sheep
suet & boyl em & make a poultis of em & spread it upon a clean
cloth apply it as hot as you can endure it when you go to bed.
I have try’d this to be a singular good medicine says Geo. Ashby
Pater [meus]. Emplastrum podagricum is a useful application in all
tumours attended with sharp pain Quince’s Dispensatory.
A swelling in the stomach or belly in a fever or any rupture or hard
swelling any where. a child & a gentleman that had belly & stomach 
swell’d so that little or no passage & thought to be dying were both recover’d
by this following. Rx St. Jns wort wormwood [scordium] (al. water germander)
camomile flowers [melilot] flowers mallows each mi marshmallow roots
2 ounces linseed zfs juniper berries aniseeds each zi Boyl or infuse em in 
2 galns of water till it comes to one then put in aqua vitae a qt ferment it with 
hot flannels 2 or 3 hours together keeping it as hot as you can bear it DR
Harlap for Mr Johnson of Leicer Mrs Caulton


110)
an oyntmt for any swelling or St. Anthonies fire
[Tetter] or ringworm scale head or any pain or ach
Rx comfry leaves miij may butter lbijfs unsalted aqua
vitae 2 d or the 5th pt of a qt. (pr 20 d per qt) Put the leaves 
unpounded [unsh??d] with the rest of the ingredients in a pipken set em
in an oven with a batch of bread, strain it when it comes out
work it in agt the fire. A woman of Caucot 4 m from Cambridge
doth great cures with it pr 4 d per ounce Tho. Juice
Sam. Exon carpenter ran the point of his knife into his wrist
which made a great wound that bled very much perhaps some of
the sinews were cut working in his shirt when it was almost
well in Febr 4 the cold fell into it which caus’d a violent swelling
in his hand having try’d a great many things nothing
was so effectual to the abating the swelling as salt & water 
bath’d on blood warm agt the fire it out did human urine.
J. Exon E. A. had a [foal] swell’d on each side of its [shop] & on each
buttock. Poplar oyntmt [ripen’d] the swelling so that it was soft & cut with
a pen knife & there came out a great deal of thick corruption which
flow out like blood from a vein Then a slice of bacon dipt in pouder
of pepper was put into each orifice by Tho. Tafte his blacksmith
& the foal did well We thought it was the strangles in its breech
To kill a tetter or ringworm or any kind of [illegible]
Rx sallet oyl & salt [?empar’d] together & anoint the [illegible] [illegible]
& you shall find a cure. Lady Wright
Rub a tetter with Roman vitriol dissolv’d in [illegible] [illegible] 3 or 4 
times a day or rub it with verjuice Mrs Brown of Leicer
Rub a tetter with the fasting spittle of a man that smokes tobacco in a morning
dry it in agt a fire [Joyce] Gimson E. A.’s servt.
moisten a tetter often with white copperas dissolved in spring water. Sister Boothby 


(111



112)



(113
An exct. medicine for the mother or vapours
Rx a gallon of strong alewort, of balm & vervain & pellitory
of the wall each mi anniseeds bruis’d & liquorish ziiii of each
& some wheat bruis’d. Boyle all these till 3 pts be consum’d then strain it
& drink a draught thereof lukewarm morning & evening Mrs M.
another A fit of the mother is vapours in the highest degree.
The mother a diease of women vulvae strangulatic, hysterica
passio. Rx polypody (al oak fern) zi aniseeds & liquorish sliced
each zij raisons of the sun ston’d ziiii epithymum (i.e. dodder of
thyme) zfs sena zifs hysop, penny royal each mi 2 or 3 roots 
of the red dock, leaves of betony, succory mij fennel mi boyl
all the herbs in 3 qts of water till half is consumed then strain it
& put the liquor into a pipkin then add the polypodium raisons, liquorish 
anniseeds Let em boyl half an hour then put in the epithymum
& white wine a pint at the least then add the sena Let it boyl
still on the fire & let it stand on the embers till night then Rx 6 
in the morning 12 or 13 spoonfuls. S. S.
To cleans the mother or womb.
Rx mother wort, mugwort, calamint, each mij savoury, marygolds
fennel, parsley, each a quarter of mi w. wine & running water 
each a quart boyl ‘em alltogether untill half the liquor be wasted
away then strain it, & drink thereof first & last, sweeten’d with 
a little sugar Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother


114)



(115




(117
Hard Drinking or to excess.
Dr Quincy in his Dispensatory commends tincture sacra as a
preserver of the tone of the stomach & a good digestion p. 393.
Sergeant Mundy that was a hard drinker us’d every morning
to drink a pint of cold caudle viz The yolks of 2 eggs 
beaten & mixt with water a pint & sweeten’d with loaf sugar
pounded & mull’d by pouring it out of one mug into another
till the froth rises & stands above the top of the mug. Ann Tasie.
Some people add w. wine & nutmeg to the caudle. ibid.




(119
Madam Sparks’s cordial water
Rx a peck of cowslips the flowers only, one quarte of rosemary
flowers the finest, good nutmegs zi beat & steep ‘em 
in a gallon of good sack 2 or 3 days & then draw it off in a 
still. Mrs S. 
A cordial water for the stomach.
Rx Cinnamon water & damask rose water each half a pint double
refin’d loaf sugar lbfs beaten small & put into a jelly bag
upon which pour the water or let it run abt 20 times through then bottle
it in a glass & put into it abt 20 leaves of leaf gold or as much
as you shall think fit & shake it well together herewith it were good
to mix a quantity of borrage water & water of rosemary flowers 
as much as you shall think fit Mrs Frances Beckerton & Mrs Caulston
A cordial. stone raysins of the sun [less] currants ziiii dates
6 lightly pounded & sliced boyl em in water till they are tender
then pour out the water & strain em very hard Then put liquorish 
pouder 1 d to em aniseed pouder 1 d mace & cloves in pouder each 1 d
saffron 2 d cinnamon 1 d nutmegs 2 d allin pouder sugar in pouder
the same weight as all the pouder Boyl all these a good while together
& with more sugar make it into rolls or cakes. S. S.
A cordial water made by King Charles Rx the best [illegible] brandy
1 galln D. refin’d sugar lbij put to it sp. of saffron zifs [illegible]
ziiii oyl of cloves zi steep em all together 24 hours in a silver or
earthen vessel well glaz’d with in stir em together a little with a silver 
spoon first tie a London brown paper over the top of the earthen
vessel but it is best with a close cover when it has stood 24 hours
stir it a little bottle it & stop the bottles close with corks Tie leather
over em The longer you keep this water the better it will be Be sure to 
stir it always one way when you stir it & let it not near the fire a 
closet which has no fire near it will do best. S. S.



120)
A Diet Drink for Drospie or Tymphany.
Rx Lignum vitae zij sarsaparilla zi sassafras zvi boyl em
in 6 qts of spring water till abt ½ is wasted then strain out the
woods & add to the water 3 qts of strong ale just boy them together
work it up with yest & tun it up & put in a large handful of
green broom a large quantity of ash – ashes tyed up in a cloth
hang em in your drink after 4 days you may drink of it in 
the morning & at 4 o clock in the afternoon. You may add
a good quantity of [millenader] wood lice & a large handful of ale [hoof]
Mrs M. Another Boyl briony roots in conduit water or in ‘
white wine & water drink it, It cures the dropsie Mrs M. Another
Rx guajacum (i.e. lignu vitae) ziiij sassafras & sarsaparilla each zi green
broom mi boyl em in 6 ful qts of spring water till one ½ is wasted
drink ½ a pint in the morning & as much as 3 o clock in the afternoon.
You may add [daucus] seed & bay berries each zfs dry’d sage
mi. It is a perfect cure Mrs M. another Rx mustard seed two spoonfuls
bruis’d in a mortar but not pulveriz’d, infuse it in one
pint of white wine take 2 spoonfuls of the clear mixt in 
all the drink a man or woman drinks viz 2 spoonfuls to be 
mixt with a pint of drink. use it in your constant drink without 
straining or separating the sedemt. This is exct. for aged
people It creates a good digestion & cures swell’d legs. Dr
Anthony Brooks & Mrs Finch. another Drink rue & wormwood
dry & infus’d in strong ale every morning a draught
this cured Mrs Auger of Leicer Elizth Winter another Garlic has
often cured dropsies almost to a miracle. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
another Some have bin cured of tymphanies & dropsical swellings
abt the belly by drinking coffee. Mr Brooks. another Rx Hips
when there red (before they are rotn) & peel em lay the peels in a pot till
they rot then put to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot keep it till
Lady Day near the fire It will be extremely sharp. Drink 3 spoonfuls
of vinegar of hips with a little sugar 3 or 4 times a day It will provoke
urine extremely Dr Pool. A dropsy or sweaty feet. Boyl dwarf
elder (al. danewort) in spring or well water & drink it for 
the constant drink till well or make tea of it. sweaty feet
are often caus’d by a dropsical humour flowing from the
body. Elderly people are most subject to the dropsy. It is
a great purge of watry humours & is very diuretick in [latine]
[ebulus] David [Fane] & Salmn


(121
a diet drink that cureth the dropsy jaundice all itches
green sickness & purifieth the blood.
Rx the roots of monk’s rhubarb & red madder scurvy grass
each lbfs sena ziiii aniseeds & liquorish each zij scabius, agrimony
& maidenhair each mi slice the roots bruise the seeds & 
liquorish. Break the herbs with the hand & put em all to four galns
of ale to steep 3 or 4 days drink for 3 weeks. S. S.
another diet drink to sweeten the blood. Rx sarsaparilla 4 ou.
sassafras 4 ou. China root 4 ou. hartshorn shavings 2 ou. guaiacum
2 ou. raysons of the sun ston’d lbfs liquorish sliced 2 d crude antimony
in [illegible] pouder ½ ou. put all these in to spring water 2 gallons in a new 
pipkin with a cover & boyl it till it comes to 6 qts strain it & put it
into bottles. Drink ½ a pint in the morning fasting & ½ a pint at 4 
in the afternoon. You must put the antimony in a rag tied up & let 
it hang in the liquor whilst boyled & then take it out S.S.
another Rx Red dock root lbi fir lbi broom lbi slice
& chop & hang it in a net in 3 gallons of midling ale S.S.
A wet itch that has taken the blood & been of long standing. Rx
tobacco stalks mi or 4 ou. chop it that it may go into a pan add new 
human urine (because old stinks most) a qt. allum 1 ou. boyl it till a
4th pt. is consumed. strain it & dab it on cold or warm agt a fire
night & morning. 3 or 4 times dressing cured when a great many 
medicines had been try’d in vain & Dr Brooks said he had rather cure the 
pox. This cured Mrs Abigail Finch
Dropsy & swell’d in the body with stiffness in the legs.
Put mustard seed 2 eggshel full to small beer a pint Drink it
constantly when the beer is drank off put more beer to the [illegible]
This cured old Richd Cley shoe maker of Whetstone
A tymphany or when the belly is swell’d like a woman with child
prescrib’d by Mrs Isabella Smith of [Queniboro] It cured Mrs Ann
[illegible] that swell’d abt 3 yrs & she was abt 20 yrs of age.
Rx nine spoonfuls of broom ashes, three of bean stalk ashes & three
of wormwood ashes, three of mustard seed whole, dwarf elder, scrap’d
horse radish & sliced large onions each mi Put all these things into a large
jug mingled well together then pour upon em two qts of boyling spring water
2 qts of white wine to two of brandy. Do not heat the wine nor brandy. Let 
it stand close stopt as near the fire as the jug will bear 3 days & 2 nights, stirring
it up very often with a [illegible] of broom, then let it settle & pour th e
clear off into glass bottles close stopt for use. Dose, in the morning at
four in the afternoon, & at going to bed, the third pt of a pint on an empty 
stomach fasting two hours after it. Mr Wm [Frese] junior
A diet drink to sweeten the blood, a good diuretick & good in cutaneous
eruptions or dry itching by Dr Geo. [Charelden] of Leicer
Rx Guaiacum sassafras each 2 ou. roots of shap pointed docks & roots of [illegible] 
i.e. dropwort, the roots of cynoglossum i.e. hounds tongue each 1 ounce


122)
Geranium Robertianum (ie herb Robert) agrimony each miij
seeds of wild daucus, coriander seeds, each half an ounce, raphanus
sylvestri (i.e. horse radish) 2 ou. sena mundata (pickt clean) zijfs 
millipedes rectify’d i.e. cleans’d with w. wine one pint. Let these be tun’d
up in a canvass or muslans rag in four galns of small ale without hops
After it has been tun’d 3 days drink half a pint morning & ½ a pint at 4 in 
the afternoon, but when the mornings draught gives you a stool or two then
omit it in the afternoon. Rx it dayly till it is all gone it will not keep long
being apt to change. If you find benefit repeat it as you think good
To heal the itch. Boyl sorrel in water & wash the sores
Traveller another wash your hands in frogs spawn water 
& were it itches. ibid. For the itch Rx elecampane roots
wash’d & scraped clean boyl ‘em in running water till they be very
tender then strain ‘em thro’ a course cloth & after they have been boyl’d
in a good quantity of may butter with the same liquor & roots
or other butter without salt then spread some of this upon a 
linnen cloth 4 fingers broad & so wear it about your waste 
& renew it every 3 or 4 days & this will kill it in any place of 
the body, but if the hands being broken or scaby anoint
‘em with this oyntment, or dress a pair of gloves with it
& so wear em upon your hands. If you put some vinegar 
to the roots while they are boyling it will be the better
Mrs HEwet E.A.’s mother
For a young dropsy & for one that has advanced some time
cured by Dr Geo. Cheselden’s prescription as it follows [illegible] Mr Geo.
Basset that keeps an inn at the sign of the feather in Leicer being
abt 40 yrs of age & very fat lusty man, had lost his stomach & 
had both legs very much swell’d Rx summitatum centaurij
minoris pugillum unum, racias gentianae incitae zfs seminis sinapi
ceaturi zij foliorum senae alexandrinae zfs salis tartari zi cineren
genistotum, limaturae calibis ana zifs infundantur simul in vini [albi]
libris tribus frigide; colaturae capiat ziii bis in die viz. mane & hora
tertia post meridiem. He rode out on horse back & drank carduus tea every 
morning for a week & his stomach return’d & he continued well & his
legs ceased to swell G.B.
For the itch Rx [illegible] and flower of brimstone mix’t 3 
tea spoonfulls [9] mornings together to send the humour
out, then dress with sope and flower of brimstone well mixt
together, then when cur’d boil Jamaica pepper zi [ma?]
cinamon and nutmeg and cloves in a pint of water
and mas therewith two or three  times. Thomas Back



(123
For the Itch
Take hogs lard and some quicksilver and [fill] it with the 
lard and mix with it hellebore root and dress therewith the
joints and smell to it. Peter [Netes].


124)


(125
The Kings Evil chaeras. adis. f. scrophula f.
struma.
It is often caus’d byu a bruise or surfeit & is often hereditary
MRs Clay the ironmongers mother of Leicer cures
it by a plaster of tar & by gentle purging with syrup of buckthorn at the end
& after the cure she never fails unless the bone is perish’d
where the evil is Mrs Clay. another [illegible] stones skin’d
& dry’d & pouder’d & taken in white wine, ale, or beer as
much as will lie on a six pence for a week then intermit a
week & take it on till you find benefit. Jn Clark, gelder
another Barly meal boyld with tar, wax oyl & boys urine is
effectual agt the Kings Evil. Salmons Disp. another Rx a qt of 
milk boyl it then take it off the fire & put into it hony
2 spoonfuls when it is dissolv’d set it on the fire & let it
boyl again. Rx ½ a pint of this the 1st think in the morning
& at 10 & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed. use
this as long as you find occasion purge twice a week with 
caryocostinum half an ounce for abt 3 weeks till all the
humours are spent. (Lady Curzon & sister B) Dress the evil sores
with this oyntmt Rx fresh butter lbfi bees wax zij shred small or slic’d
thin horse turpentine 2 d verdigrise pouderd 1 d or zii rosin
pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle fire till it comes to an oyntmt
or soft salves It will be soft as butter you may use it to the
greatest sores both in tents & plasters you need not use burnt allu
It will fetch out dead flesh in lumps (vid p. 59) ibic emplastrum
mammilare is commended in Quinces Dispensatory for the Evil.
another Drink a good draught of cow piss for 3 mornings together
leave off 3 mornings than drink it for six mornings
successively omit 6 mornings & drink it 9 mornings omit 9 
mornings & continue drinking 9 mornings to keep to 9 mornings
till well It cured a [illegible] woman of the evil when she had 9 holes
in one leg. She drank ½ a pint at a time spring & fall when the
surgeons cured the Evil sores they broke out again but cow piss
made a perfect cure. she liv’d at London but went [to] Edmonton
lead sevil oyl & bees wax will cure the Evill
This drink was prescrib’d by a learned physician for a lady afflicted
with the Kings Evil Rx mullein, St Jns wort, agrimony & beteny each
miij shavings of [fir] mvi. Boyl ‘em in ale 6 gallns The drink of it constantly 
Pecheys Herbal.



126)
figwort plaster for the Evil or Kings Evil
Rx the leaves of figwort, hounds tongue & fox glove cut small
each mij oil olive a pint ½ mix boyle the herbs till they are crisp strain
out by pressing & put in the like quantity of fresh herbs which repeat
the third time & till the oyl is very green, then add sheeps suet lbi turpentine
6 ou. bees wax 4 ou rosin 2 ou. fr. verdigrise 1 ou. mix & 
make a plaster, spred it upon leather or new linnen cloth often renewing
it. It assuages the swellings, disperses the humors, not only 
of the Evil but of any other knots, kernels, bunches or wens. Salmons
Family Dictionary & Pecheys Herbal.
Elizth Plat the wife of Wm Plat (a poor man) can cure
the Evil with cole trough water & lays an oak leafe to the
sore she also cures sore eyes & takes off pearls from the eye
she lives at Thurmaston & is sister to Wm Simpkin at the
cannon in Leicer
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory commends emplastru
mammilare for the Evil & says there is nothing equal 
to it vid.
A diet drink for the Kings Evil. Pecheys Herbal.
Rx guaiacum chips cut into small pieces 8 ou. sarsaparilla 6 ou. bark
of walnut tree, roots of figwort & saxifrage each 2 ou. herb Robt
miij raisins of the sun stoned & live millipedes each libi make a bag
for 4 galns of new beer.
The Kings Eviul was thus cured on [nic] Waltons wife when a girl
who had seven sores on the side of her neck & 5 before on her
neck Her husband liv’d at Rotherby in Leicershire she was 
cured by Abraham Wild, gardiner at Kirby bellows to Mr De
la Fountain & St. John [Meers] a Roman Catholic
Rx vervain (verbena) mij bruis’d a little, boil it in white wine
2 qts Rx ½ a pint in the morning before you rise, fasting & so every
morning as long as it lasts. Rx spring water & the [illegible] scum’d
milk p.e. or a pint of each, in this steep vervain mi bruised or unbruised
all night or longer the longer be better then take out a
leaf & lay it to the sore after you’ve bath’d it with the milk & water 
[bin] or sew a cloth on it to make it stick on. You may sometimes apply
a dry leaf use that most that keeps on best. Bath it twice a day with
a fine rag dipt in the milk & water cold. Rx the root of vervain you 
must not scrape or wash it. hang it to the pit of the stomach ty’d
with a long black silk or black ribbon round the neck. the root will
waste away then you must take a new root. you must take great care
not to lose the roots that have been used at the stomach wear em in 
the pocket or keep them in a box or cupboard. you must wear the roots
a yr or longer abut the neck till the sores are wasted or quite dryu’d up
when you have taken the w. wine then take mild ale a qt & steep vervain
mi bruised & Rx ½ a pint in the morning fasting before you rise from 
bed when that ale is gone take more till you are quite well. after you 
are quite well & the sores are dry’d up Rx all the vervain in [illegible] once a fortnight
or 3 weeks for a yr or longer especially at spring & fall Rx
it every day for a week & with the blood itches take it at any 
time to prevent an outbreak. vervain will not cure if you have 



(127
used any salve or plaster. If a woman hath the Evil let her
stroke her sores with the right hand of a man newly dead. If a man
hath the Evil let him [stroke] his sores with the right hand of a dead woman
This stroking with a dead hand caused Nic. Walton’s wife’s sores to cease
running & sooner to mend. uxor Nicolai Walton Ann Walton, she had the
Evil when 7 yrs old & was cured as above mention’d.
Mrs. Bullivant of Coston abt 4 m. beyond Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire
cures the Kings Evil she has reced 100 l for a cure Br S.A.
Bates’s Dispensatory commends unguentum digitalis ointmt of fox
gloves for the Evil. Rx may butter lbiij fresh fox gloves beaten
as much as you can well put into it, insolate for 30 days, then
boil & press out strongly. anoint the places affected with the Kings
Evil therewith morning & evening till you find the affect to cease
for this purpose it has no equal. It dissolves kernels in the neck
or else where & takes away all sorts of scrophulous tumours whatsoever
Salmon says you should purge once a week too with pilulae panchymagoga.
In the Kings Evil the decoction of the leaves
& in winter the roots of the small wild daisy given inwardly 
& a cataplasm of the leaves apply’d outwardly are esteemed
by some as exterordinary remedies. Millers Herbal
Perriwinkle (in latin vinca per vinca) is a famous vulnerary The leaves
of this herb just upon paper that will easily receive moisture & sewed to 
it with fine flas betwixt perfum’d with frankincense cured a scrophulous
tumour in a short time which continued obstinate under the use of
other remedies for the space of a whole year: Pechey’s Herbal.
Can Coats A butcher of Leicer had a daughter that had two 
running sores of the Kings Evil viz one in her arm & 
another in her thigh Sr Geo. [Braum?] had the advice of
the college of physicians at London for her She went to em
it cost Dan 10 l all the charge during her stay there & she 
came to Leicer uncured & Dan afterwards cured her
himself in half a years time only by smoking tobacco
in a morning fasting & spitting & his daughter rubbed
the spittle that came from his mouth on the sores 
with a feather dipt in it agt the fire it was dry’d in 
& it dry’d up the humour & it continued well as long 
as she lived. Dan Coats [rue-leav’d] whitcorn grass or rue whit corn
grass infus’d in small beer & drank for some days cures the Kings Evil without
any sensible evacuations Pechey’s Herbal. Mr Boyle commends the
herb very much for the cure of the Evil & Sr Jn Colebatch in his essay upon 
acids & alkali makes mention of a poor girl at Worcester afflicted with 
scrophulous ulcers that receiv’d great benefit from rue leav’d whitcorn-grass 
[illegible] Herbal. Kings Evil emplastrum ad strumas. Rx black
pitch that is free from dross stone. Pitch is best Bees wax
cut in thin slices hard frankinsence bruis’d each of
these zi camphire zii or abt 3 d and sevil oil 2 spoonfuls
or zifs melt these all but the camphire beat the camphire
with oil and crumble it in as soon as it is taken from the 


and stir it in gradually as soon as it comes from  the fire till it is cold or disolve it in good spt of
wine, and so mix’t with the salve as soon as it comes
off from the fire. it is apply’d to a sore or a sore leg 
melt some of it and dip lint in it and lay a simple
diacuton plaster over it as broad as man’s hand & 
continue it on a long time together
For a toe nail that is cut too short and is painful
dip a bit of lint into the salve and apply it with a 
plaster of the same emplastrum ad strumas tried over
it.







130)


(131
To make in that will not change yellow or 
grow mouldy.
Rx Gum arabick (the clearest) zi steep it 24 hours in a 
pint of any clear water, when the gum is dissolv’d put into
it a sheeps gall, ivory black beaten & sifted 4 d or as much 
as will make it as black as you desire it you may buy it
ready ground at pouder’d with is best. after 24 hours from
the meeting of all the ingredients you may write with it.
stir it always before you use it. Ivory black is the best
black that is in the world. If your ink writes thick put into it
some gum water The frost will not hurt it for as soon as 
this ink is thrown & stirr’d together it is as good as at first.
It writes with a good gloss. Try first ivory black 2 d 
make a little gum water. The sheeps gall gives it a good gloss & 
incorporates the ingredients Mrs Mary Lee a Traveller that [illegible]
to Japan. You may mix ivory black with green copperas & 
turky galls etc. & it will make good ink & much improve it.
E. A.
To make red ink
Rx some red carmine pr. 3d vermillion 2 d mix em with gum
arabick water cold & stir em together & you may write with
it after it hath been mixt one hour as well as if it had been
mixt 7 yrs Red carmine is dear & shop keepers seldom will sell
any under eighteen pennyworth at a time Mrs Mary Lee.
Another Rx small Brazil zi white lead & allum each zij bum 
arabick [illegible] viii urine one pint. shake ‘em often together or mix
vermillion with gum arabick water. The young man’s companion
p. 19s


132) To make black ink. Rx Green copperas & 
gum arabick each zij nut galls zvi spring water
or snow dissolv’d 2 qts Bruise the galls & put them into
the water with the gum & copperas unpounded. Let em infuse
10 or 12 days stir it tiwce a day during that time. Place
the pot in some warm place with in doors. In the summer set
the ink in a [cellar] & at the approach of winter put into
the ink aqua vitae 2 d & place it in some warm place 
during the whole winter. Alexander Hepburn of Burbage.
To make good black ink Mr Tartrey Rx rain water 
a qt. The best nut galls lbfs broken into pieces but not
small. Put em into a glass bottle with a large mouth
then add gum arabick ziiij which must not be int oo small
pieces stir these once or twice a day for a month & 
put in a little of the bark of pomegranate & at the
end of the month add Roman vitriol zi in small pieces
as you take out put in as much rain water & it will 
last many yrs stirring it sometimes Mr Tartrey
To make black ink a pint. Rx blew galls zij break em
in a mortar, gum arabick zi verdigrise zi pomegranate rind
zij The best [indico] the quantity of a little tea, the best alewort
a pint ½ green copperas as one dram Let em stand [sim?ering]
4 hours over a gentle fire or longer The longer it is a making
the better The hot sun is better than a fire. The water that stands in 
the root of an oak lately fell’d is better than ale or white
wine. Take the roots of broad logs & the water that is
in em is very good to boyl in the ink. It sets it extraordinary
& makes it very black. To prevent the ink from 
changing yellow add a spoonful of w. wine or rather aqua
vitae. Stir it while it is making. strain it abt 2 weeks after
it is made. when it is too thick add vinegar to it. you must
put in the verdigrise & gum when it is cold Wm Smith a
Travelling ink-seller, taught by a London book-seller.
To make red ink a pint Rx the best Brazil ground zij
pr. 2.9 allum the quantity of a nutmeg, best ale a pint mild
is better than stale gum arabic zfs pr. 29 dragons blood the
best drops the quantity of ½ a nutmeg bruise it. when the other
ingredients are cold strain em then put in the dragons blood


(133
you must only let the other ingredients simper. If
you boyl em a long time you spoyl it you must let em
simper in a tin or earthen pot, brass or copper spoyls the
colour ibid. To make red ink. Geo. Hill a London dyer 
Rx [archil], ground Brazil, red wood each zij boyl em in wine
vinegar & rain water each a pint. strain it thro a cloth when almost
cold. [archil] is 6 d per lb a weed that is kept close in a bottle
To make black ink, which is good for to write with or to dress 
an hat with Geo. Hill. London dyer & dyer at Hoby. Rx the blew [illegible]
galls beaten into small pieces zfs green copperas zij sum mach
(al sumac) logwood, Roman vitriol in pouder French verdigrise 
in pouder each zi wine vinegar, rain water each a pint. You may 
beat the verdigrise in a mortar with a little water Boyl em a qr
of an hour. strain it thro a linnen cloth when it is almost cold.
Dissolve a little gum arabic in wine vinegar and add to it when you 
design it only for ink you must leave it out when you dress a hat
when you dress a hat with it, it must be boyling hot you must dip 
the brims in it & where the gum & grease appears & brush it with
a hard brush to make it clean placing a wooden crown under the
head To dye hair or a periwig that is weather beaten of a brown
or saddish colour Rx ground fustick zij summach zi madder the
best ziij boyl em in rain water 3 pints a qr of an hour strain it,
& when it is so cold that you can abide the finger in it put the hair
into it & let it remain in it 2 hours (or 12 hours the better) then take
it out & heat the liquor again with green copperas zij when it is moderately 
cool then put in the hair for two minutes till you see it is of
a colour dark enough. If it is not sad enough, heat the liquor again
& add more copperas & put in the hair as before directed. Geo.
Hill dyer To dye a dogs tayl that is white of a blew colour or
the tayl or mane of a white horse or the feathers of a white hen
or cock. Rx Jamaica indico zij (Lahoor is better but the other will do)
Best wood zij Flemmish pot ashes zij best madder zfs creech 
lime or the finest lime that is fallen & like wheat flower zfs heat em
in rain water 2 qts It must not boyl when it is so warm that you can 
endure the finger in it. Hold the dogs tayl in it & squeeze it in the
hand & you will see it turn blew in 3 minutes It will last till he casts
his hair or the hen her feathers This will dye an ivory haft of a knife or 


134)
or a cows horn, or bristles that are white. Geo. Hill dyer
To make black ink much commended & us’d by Dr Jn Million
of Ansley. Rx turky galls ziiij English vitriol (al green copperas) zi 
alum zfs the strongest stalest beer 3 pints. Let all the 3 1st ingredients
be pounded severally & infus’d apart in a sufficient quantity
of the beer for 7 days. Dissolve gum arabick zi in a sufficient
quantity also of the beer; then strain all distinct & the gum likewise
& mix all the ingredients together & keep em close stops for use. J. M.
To make Japan or shining ink. Br Jn Levermore buys ink of 
men that sell it at his door some of it he puts into his standish & 
when it is thick & too dry he adds [aleager] (ale vinegar) & when that
has stood some time to incorporate it will shine upon paper in the
writing most charmingly J. L. If you add a drop or 2 of single anniseed
water to the ink in the inkhorn or inkglass & let it stand a day
to incorporate it will shine like Japan ink but if it shines too much as
not to dry them mix aniseed water (the weakest sort is best) with fair water 
but do not use it in 12 hours after E.A. To make black ink Rx blew
galls bruis’d zi chipt logwood (not ground) zij boyl these 2 things in 
a qt of clear water (soft water is best) to a pint then take it off the fire & 
add Roman vitriol zij pearl lashes zi (you may buy it of Mr Ludlam at
Leicer) Green copperas zi these last ingredients must not be boyled let 
em infuse one week (you need not any gum arabick) then strain keep 
it in a clean bottle close stops from dust you need not shake it after
it is strain’d. when the ingredients are together stir em with a stick once
a day. you need not set it in the sun or near the fire. It will not turn
yellow. you may make ½ pint more of the same ingredients before you 
thrown em away Mr Stubbs dyer of Coventry. In rainy & frosty
weather you must set the ink near the air of the fire or carry 
the inkhorn in the pocket & dry the paper too or it will not
write but sink into the paper unless you pounce it Mr Ward
book seller of Leicer keeps his ink constantly by the fire in the
chimney E. A. 
To make black ink
Rx Green copperas 3 ounces, galls bruised small 4 ou. bum
arabick white & clear 3 ou. Put them to 3 pints of rain water
in a jug or any earthen vessel. Stir it with a stick 2 or 3 times a 
day for 3 weeks or a month then bottle it, & add a spoonful of
salt & another of grandy. You may set the jug by the fire
once or twice a week till it is warm whist you are stirring
it Mr Halford farmer cutler when it is too thick mix white
wine 3 pts sack 1 pt let it incorporate 12 hours or longer E. A.
or when it is too thick add more rain water ibid.
another Rx Rain water 2 qts galls beaten 5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum
arabic 3 ou. sugar candy 2 ou. Stir em together twice or thrice a day for
a fortnight by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.


(135
To prevent ink from sinking into paper
Rx some pounce i.e. gum sandrick in fine pouder
having a little hole in the lid or top of a box that screws on which
the writing masters have on purpose & stop with the hard piece
of a quill at the feather end pr. 1 d strew it on in 3 or 4 places 
then rub it on very hard (or it doth little or no good) with a fine
linnen rag or dimity or piece of clean cap paper Then you may 
rug the same rag or cap paper on a little w. lead or chalk made
into fine pouder with a clean knife on a clean trencher & rub it over
where the pounce had been rub’d It makes the paper look white
preserves the writing. If the ink shines & does not dry readily
you may rub some chalk or w. lead with a rag on cap paper
& apply it to the writing & give it time to dry up the ink then you 
may rub or brush it off.  This is a good way when you prick tunes
in musick. you may try wheat flower pounce alone is best to 
make paper bear ink. E. A.
To make ink Mr. Geo Garnet attorny of North Allerton in 
Yorkshire Rx galls 3 oz gum arabick 2 oz green copperas
1 oz loaf sugar 1 oz indica 1 oz rain water 3 pints. Price of 
the ingredients 5 d or 6 d set it near the fire for 3 or 4 days
so as it may simber & wast abt a pint & shake it daily 3 or 4 
times whilst it stand by the fire. when you ingross you must
have no cotton in the ink glass that thickens the ink. Ink without
cotton flows readily from the pen. G.G. when you take the ink out
of the vessel it is kept in stir it with a stick a little & let the stick be
made with a point so that you may put a drop into the cradle of the
pen holden flat or level then let it from thence drop in to the
inkglass or inkhorn by this means the ink always taken from 
a little distance of the bottom it writes blacker than when taken fro
the top or surface E.A. Red ink Mr [Blunt] a dyer in Darby shire
Boil raspings of Brasil: wood one penny worth in spring water
half a pint untill the water is red which may be the [spate] of a quarter of an
hour then add [illegible] meal in fine pouder two pennyworth Let it
boil a little more then put thereto a little allum & strain it for use Some
use vinegar instead of water Mr Blunt likes water best
Black in Rx galls 4 ou. broken to pieces but not to pouder green
copperas 1 ou. pouder’d gum arabick rose-indico & allum each half
ou. all pouder’d Put all these together to a quart of rain-water
or other soft water in a glass or earthen bottle clos’d stopt & kept 



136)
blood warm for ten days shaking the bottle three or four times a 
day when you use it pour off [illegible] the top & let the ingredients
remain in the bottle that the ink may feed thereon & when you have
used part thereof you may add more water to the ingredients which
still remain good If in sumer it [illegible] to mould add salt
In winter to keep it from freezing add brandy, for after the frost
has taken it it is good for nothing Mr Blunt a dyer E. A. had ink
in a pitcher which was frozen very hard in the yr 1730 he put
some fresh ingredients to it & set it in the sun all sumer following & 
stir’d it often & it was excellent ink.
To make blue ink Geo: [Dill] of [Doby]
Rx wood zii Jamaica indico i.e. dyers indico in powder zii (indico la
hoar is best but dearest) steep it in hot water a qr of an hour then
pound it well then pour off the liquid till all is disolv’d. Steep your
[illegible] 2 hours in a pint of rain water warm not very hot it
must not boyl then strain it through a cloth & put it to the
blue liquor in which you may dissolve a little gum arabick
for two or 3 days shaking the bottle every day setting it 
in the sun or near a fire
To make ink rd in Jn Orton’s way, from Mr Barwells
Rt This [illegible] does Mr Barwells Rt
Rx gum arabic lbfs green copperas lbvs, best galls lbi
bruis’d, infus’d em in w: wine vinegar a qt pr 6 d at the [taverns]
till the gum & copperas is disolv’d, put ‘em in a jug & stir ‘em 
with a stick, twice a day for a week, the put in rain v
abt 2 qts or more till it is of a due consistence for writing 
which you must try if it is too thick, add more rain v but put in
too little water at first. after it is made stir it once a
week constantly, when you use it pour off the clear without
stiring best when you have lately added rain water to thin
it, then stir it before you pour any out keep all the ingredients
in always This will keep good 2 years & more. keep the jug
[cover’d] always with a paper ty’d over it to keep out the dust.
In the hot weather set it for a month or 2 in the sun in freezing
weather set it near the fire. Mr Orton always stirs his ink
twice a day after it is made as long as it lasts. after he has put in
rain water to thin it he doth not use it in 2 or 3 days or more.


(137
To make black ink Mr Blunt dyer at Burrows
ash mill in Darby shire
Rx river [water] a a French indico zfs. 2 d (price 3 d per lb) green
copperas zfs 2 [illegible] allum zfs blue galls of the bigger sort [illegible] 6 or 7.
bruis’d em the clearest gum arabick zii pr 2 g put em in a qt glass
bottle & set it near the fire & shake it every day for 8 or 9 days. It
writes pale at first then turns blue & at last black, it will n ot
turn yellow. If it writes too pale put in a little more copperas If it [illegible]
at the top put in a little salt & it will keep it down. 7 great galls
are zi from an [illegible] man.
To take spotts of ink out of cloth. Rx white starch
& rain water lay it on hot or mix it cold, & lay it in the hot
sun to dry Mr Wilkins Taylor of Leicer
To make very good ink mater mea. Rx the best alewort 2 qts
gum arabick 3 ou. green copperas 4 ou. turky galls 5 ou. beaten
small sugar candy 2 ou. stir them all together once or twice a
day for 7 or 8 days. It must not be very strong alewort, that will make
it write too thick but that for midling ale is best.
To make in the best Rx Mr. Geo Brice bookseller of Leicer His ink
barrel holds ten gallons. He takes rain water [illegible] new or old to which
he puts galls (from Turky) bruis’d in a mortar 7 to pr the darkest
heavy set & soundest, & stirs it every morning for a month then 
he puts in gum arabick (the coursest sort 9 d or 10 d per lb which is of
a box colour pounded in a mortar just only to break it that it may 
sooner dissolve) 5 lb stirring it still every morning for a
month longer. then add new green copperas eight pounds a [illegible]
stir it abt twice a week. It will mould if it is not stir’d once every day.
The ingredients are not strain’d from the liquor but after you 
have made ink twice upon the same ingredients adding new
every time that you make ink you must let the ingredients a [illegible]
that comes from them into the cask agn to make more ink. you must
never put water to the old ingredients, after they’ve been used twice with 
fresh ingredients. It is stirred with a thick broomstaff cut even at
the bottom or end of it when it happens to mould (which is for want 
of stirring) skim it off & throw it away. The ingredients continued 
on twice make the ink the stronger. The vessel hath 5 [hoops]
of wood but iron hoops are better It has a wooden cover but seldom
stands cover’d It stands under a pair of stairs in the summer & 
near the fire in winter


138)
Hands sore with washing in lye.
wash em for a long time in cold water after you’ve 
done washing in lye al. [illegible] & it will take out the
venome of the lye Goody Simon. when you’ve done washing 
wash em with new milk warm from the cow [illegible] or warm’d agt the
fire a little will do, & when you go to bed anoint with adders tongue
oyntmt & lie in an old pair of gloves to keep the sheets clean & fro
hurting the sore hands. Mary Chester To harden the hands the night
before you wash quench and old horse shoe or pr of tongues or any 
iron heated red hot in urine & wash the hands therein & let it dry 
in agt the fire ibid. another for sore or chapt hands. wash the
sore hands & arms in urine & let it dry in agt the fire then spit on
the sore places & drop some tallow on em from a candle & rub it
on agt the fire & lie in a pr of old gloves & they will be well the
next day Goody Foxon. [Gorze] cut betwixt michaelmass & xtmass
& burnt to ashes when new cut will make so sharp a lye that it will 
fetch the skin off & make the hands swell, after they’ve been cut a 
month they are not so sharp in their ashes To qualifie their sharpness
burn egg shells in their ashes or embers or add to the lye. Dead
small beer Anne Tasie another To cure chop in human hands
add mercury sublimate zij to lime water a qt you may make
it stronger for chops in horses heels Mr Jn Penford apothceary.
when you’ve done washing the sope or lye before the hands
are dry take a nip of salt & rub the hands with it let it
dry on & remain on all night This will harden the hands
& prevent chops. Goody [Kt] a washerwoman
Boil burnt alum in water so that it may taste strong of the alum
bath it hot on an obstinate chop & bind a linnen rag, moisten’d
in the same, to the sore Mr [Sachvil] Coy.


(139
To prevent the biting of gnats
Infuse Turky galls (ie. Aleppo galls) in water & wash your
face, it will discolour your skin. This they use in the Indies.
Wm Farmer a packer Another wash your hands & face at night
going to bed with your own urine To cure the swellings
caus’d by their biting wash em with wine vinegar Cos Jn Ashby


140)
A pouder for the toothach. v. 237.
Rx pouder of alibine root (ie. white helebore) snuff
up the quantity of a pins head into each nostril If you 
take too much it will make your nose bleed. sometimes it
is taken 8 or 10 times in a day Taken as snuff it cures
also the headach. M.B. face swell’d with the toothach or cold 
anoint it with oyl of roses at a convenient distance from 
the fire Mrs. [illegible] Halford. Diachlysma ad dolores dentium i.e. 
a mouth water for the toothach. It eases the pain in a moment 
vic. p. [722]. Salmons Dispensatory. The toothach. pound 
3 or 4 cloves of garlic put it into a linnen rag or squeeze 
2 or 3 drops into the contrary ear, lying on one side. W. P.
another mix white pepper in fine pouder with vinegar hold it
to the aching tooth it will give ease & conquer the pain being
often us’d. withabed [merer] of Cosby. another Lay a
plaster of burgundy pitch between both shoulders as broad as the
palm of a mans hand then mix black pepper in pouder with soap
& spred it upon allum’d feather & apply it to the root of the
contrary ear let it lie on till it drops off This is infallible says
Mrs Elizth Halford Cheek swell’d with the toothach anoint it, with
sallet oyl. This cured Jane Tasie. Sarah Halford’s cheek was violently
swell’d with [illegible] she was cured by applying a poultace made of oatmeal & milk & 
hogs lard six nights successively S.H.
The toothach. Dry an old linnen rag agt the fire. roll it up
into a little roll light one end at some flame or at the fire
& hold it in the mouth a little way taking care not to burn
the tongue as oft as it extinguishes you must light & hold it in the
mouth. The heat drives away the pain. Goody Simons.
another. mix a little white [illegible] in very fine pouder with the quantity
of 2 little pea’s of black pitch mix em very well together
by working em soundly if in the winter agt the fire, if in 
the summer the heat of the fingers is sufficient apply one of 
em made into the shape of a pea to the orifice of the aching
hollow tooth 3 or 4 hours or longer provided the pain doth
not cease, if the pain doth not abate then you must apply the
other quantity. You must take care not to swallow the spittle
while it is in the mouth lest you poison the self, if you’ve
occasion to eat you must take it out during the eating or
drinking then apply it again. This will only cure an hollow
tooth. This cured Joyce Gimson, my servant who was very 
little troubled with it afterwards.
If the gum & cheek is swell’d very much hold the strongest brandy 


(141
you can get in the mouth often repeating it till the gum
breaks then rub it with a clean rag & wash it oft with verjuice till
quite well This cured Mrs Abigail at Rotherby E.A. The toothach Rx
myrrh zi best aloes zi saffron 1 d sp. v. ½ a qr. of a pint Put these into a
viol glass & gently beat it till it dissolves then rub the gums with it often W.P.
Tooth rotten & hollow to cure its aking sometimes, never to ach again
drop a drop or 2 of oyl of origanum on a little lint & thrust it into the 
hollow tooth & it is a certain & safe cure W. P To cure the toothach
 Rx a bit of green copperas as big as a bean or a little nut, hold it
to the gum of the aking tooth taking care not to swallow any 
of the spittle but let it run out of the mouth if you use this oft
it will harden the gums & by drawing away the [precant] humours
prevent the toothach white copperas taken inwardly is poyson Mr
R. Baxter schoolmaster you may beat it to pouder & tie it up in a thin
rag when you would disguise it E. A. but green copperas [illegible] white [illegible] fetch the teeth out another Aug 719 E.A. was violently
troubled with the toothach the further great tooth on the nether [illegible]
aching the gum being very sore camphorated Hungary water & bleeding 
& toasted bread etc. would do but little good at last E. A. [illegible] his own
urine (being then accustom’d to drink milk morning & night) in his mouth
2 or 3 times a day but especially night & morn & it gave him ease & 
made a perfect cure in 3 or 4 days E. A. another Ann Tasie E. A. servant
being frequently troubled with the toothach having rotten teeth E.A. 
caus’d the aching gum to be prickt till it bled with a quill & the quill & 
blood that hung on it was immediately into ratsbane or mercury sublimate
in pouder & being cut short it was wrapt up in a paper & then 
a linne rag was sown round it & she constantly wore it in her pocket
& it freed her from the pain & ach for 2 yrs as she told E.A. & perhaps
all her life after she wore the tooth of a dead man in her pocket before
in vain Ann Tasie another wear the forefoot of a mole in 
the pocket constantly [sam.] Pauly borcklayer Toothach caus’d by a 
hollow tooth. Dip a little lint in (ordinary) oyl of vitriol & with a pin put
it into the hollow ooth It burns the nerves os that it seldom returns
Jn Pat a traveller a face swell’d with the toothach as cold
spred conserve of roses spred it on a cloth & bind it on the swelling
& it will cure in a nights time. Mrs Abigail Finch The toothach
dissolve sal armoniac in spring or well water Hold it to the aching
gum without swallowing the spittle Mrs Finch.
a faced swell’d or an inflammation or strain.
Rx camphorated spirits of wine & oyntmt of Peru, mix & warme
it in a spoon. chafe it in agt the fire 2 or 3 times in a day Mrs
Coulton. To cure the toothach & the scurvy int eh gums & 
to eat away the rotten part of teeth & so breed flesh again. Rx sp
of vitriol 15 or 20 drops or 2 d hony of roses zi pr [illegible] tie a rag to 
a stick & rub it on night & morn till the gums bleed. Tho Juice



142)
To cure the toothach
Mrs Ann Lathwell when she was big with child was
violently afflicted with the toothach having try’d a
great many medicines in vain & blister’d behind the
ear without relief was at last cured by putting a great
deal of salt into her mouth on the aching side she fell asleep
& was freed from the toothach for 7 yrs after A.L.
another Put tobacco to the aching gum. ibid.
another Put to half an ounce of hony of roses i.e. syrup of
roses abt 6 or 7 drops of oyl of vitriol or as much as will 
give it an acid taste rub the gums with it It will prevent
their aching if usd for a good time together once a day. It
will kill worms in the teeth. Mr. Rich Wightman.
Camomile is used with good success aft the toothach apply’d hot
in a bag to the cheek It is [ext.] agt cramps. Dr Quincy.
If you’ve a hollow tooth that aches make a pill of opiu
camphir & oyl of mace Put it into the hollow place of the 
tooth. It giveth immediate ease to the tooth & jaw. Mr Orme.
A swelling in Mrs Halfords cheek caus’d by the toothach, when
poultising & a great many oyntmts were try’d in vain, was
cured by hot verjuice done on 2 or 3 times a day.
Mrs Elizth Gee sister Boothby’s maid had an hollow tooth which 
ached & swell’d her cheek & was very painful for 2 or 3 days E. A.
cured her thus He moisten’d a little cotton with Hungary water acidulated
with oyl of vitriol & apply’d it to the aching gum & hollow tooth
at night & apply’d a plaster of Bents salve spread on leather & 
first out to go round ½ the root of the ear, to that pt of the head which
the ear covers. This cured Rachel Halford E.A.s servant having an hollow
tooth that pain’d her (when smoaking tobacco would not cure) having
Aunt Boothby’s corecloth or salve made of sevil oyl red lead & 
bees wax (without rosin) lay’d plasterwise behind the ear. you may 
try emplastru adhaesivum or diaculum cum gumi Elizth Mason’s
black salve will cure the toothach lay’d behind the ear on the same
side with the aching tooth. E. A.
Mr Ralph Wells attorny of Leicer cured himself of the
toothach & freed himself from it for many yrs & perhaps all
his life by chewing tobacco twice a week. R. W.
Pecheys herbal commends oyl of guaiacum as good for the toothach.
swelling caus’d by the toothach etc. in the cheek or neck etc. Rx a piece 
of scarlet or red cloth perhaps any cloth may do fry it in butter
& apply it as hot as you can abide it This cured Mary Taylor E. A.’s
servant of a swelling in his cheek that was not caus’d by the toothach in 
a [illegible] M.T. To give certain ears in the toothach from a collodion 
of Rxs in physic & surgery Rx French [illegible] mithridate & a few
drops of vinegar, beat em to a paste & lay a plaster of it to the 



(143
cheek bone or behind the ear; It will raise a blister, but
rarely fails to cure
To make the tooth white & to preserve the gums from the scurvy
Rx camphorated sp. v. what quantity you please acidulate it with
oil of vitriol so that you can endure it in your mouth (if you put in too
much oil it will eat your gums) when it is too sharp add more sp. v.
rub the teeth & gums 2 or 3 times in a day found out by E.D.
Toothach. Apply the harb boil’d or water or the juice
apply’d to the gums viz arsmart that hath black spots
on it Mrs Dorothy Pickern.
Toothach. Rx urine 2 spoonful and boil it in a ladle and
add pounded or grated ginger and thicken it therewith till
it is a poultis and lay it upon a linnen cloth two fingers
broad and apply under your chin from ear to ear Mr
Tho: Franks 


144)
A Rib broken.
If you happen to break a rib or ribs by any accident you 
must swaddle the self about the broken rib very strait with 
a childs swaddle-band or the like thing that will go 3 or 4  
times round the body. The breath naturally thrusts the rib
outwards & the bandage keeps the body in a narrow compass
so that the breath has less way to extend the rib. Art cannot
make any inward application to rejoyn the rib. You must spred
this plaster following upon sheeps leather & apply it before you 
use the bandage It is good for a bruise or strain & to take away
pain. Rx frankincense (hard of soft) burgundy pitch (the soft
sort) p.e. melt em in a ladle or spoon with as much oyl of turpentine
as will bring it to the consistence of a salve It is a 
good corecloth This cured Sam. Exon’s broken rib Apr. 721 
Jn Headly bricklayer of Corby, his mother broke one of her ribs by a fall she
apply’d Aunt Boothby’s corecloth spread upon sheeps leather. It is made of red
lead sevil oil rosin & bees wax vid. the [Rx]


(145
To fasten teeth mobiles dentes stabilise seltirmare
mix a little vinegar with hony cold & rub the gums often. It 
is good for em when they are bruised by a fall or blos Mrs
Basset Another suck [illegible] [illegible] thro the teeth & rub the
bums with the finger & sometimes rub the teeth with salt E.A.
A decoction to fasten loose teeth & recover decay’d
gums. Rx ½ a glass full of vinegar as much water of
[loatiscus] (i.e. mastic tree) rosemary, myrrh, mastick, boll
the moyster that stilleth out of dragons blood, roch alum
burnt each zi cinnamon zfs spring water three glassfuls
mix & let em boyl with a small fire adding to it
hony lbfs taking away the scum of it Then put to it benjamin 
a little when it has boyled a qr of an hour Rx it from
the fire keep it in a clean vial when cold & wash the
teeth often as well before meat as after & hold it awhile
in the mouth. It is very good for the head & maketh a
sweet breath. This Rx is of great excellence. S. S. [queeze]
what is the moisture of dragons blood
perhaps only dragons blood. To fasten teeth even after
they are loose by salivation. Mix Hungary water with common spring
water hold it oft in the mouth it is good after a tooth is drawn to 
heal the sore gum Mrs Ann Lathwell. another scrape some
horse radish root put it in to small beer after it has stood a little while hold
some in the mouth often ibid.
To fasten teeth & preserve the gums & to prevent & cure the toothach.
Rx the clearest pt of aqua camphorata in the mouth often apply 
it with lint to the aking tooth. There are not many things superior
to this Rx E.A.
To fasten loose teeth & kill the scurvy in the gums
Tx sage leaves & bramble (al brier) leaves each mi alum a qr of an 
ounce mastidi do boil all of em in spring water a qt strain it. Then add
claret half a pint & sweeten it with hony to the taste as soon as it is
strain’d, that the heat may dissolve the hony. This cured Mr Jn Wells of
Wandon (near Woburn) in Buckinghamshire when his teeth were very loose
& his gums eaten away with the scurvy. Mrs Margt. Muxlo.
A gargarism to cure sore mouths Rx bramble tops, leaves of columbine,
cyprus & sage each mi boyl em in water 2 qts wherein 
2 ou. make a gargarism, wherewith wash the mouth often in a day Pechey’s
Herbal. for the scurvy of the gums & teeth & to cleanse & fatten em
mornings & mix the common sp of salt with clarified hony of roses and
rub the teeth & gums. [illegible]



146)
gums scorbutic & sore. Beat borax to pouder
mix it with hony & apply it with rag to the sores 
Do it on 2 or 3 times a day. This cured Tho. Exon a boy when 
his tongue was almost eaten off Traveller & Goody Exon
another Rx southern wood chopt small bole burnt alum & hony boil
em together over a cole. Mr Coy.
x another Mrs Margt Mucloe says borax beaten to pouder & mixt with loaf
sugar in pouder because rougher than white pouder sugar is better but the last will 
do very well It is better than hony. It has cured cankers in children’s
mouths often It cured E.A.’s gums in the yr 729 better than [illegible] & oil of baye
birthwort (aristolochia) doth beautiful cleans & fasten the teeth if
they be often rub’d with the pouder thereof R.D.
another Rx agyptiacum made with verdigrease hony vinegar raw
or burnt allum according to Markham’s masterpiece E. A. [illegible] a 
little aqua camphorata [illegible] sp. v. camphorated sometimes you may 
add oil of vitriol, drop add these last liquids just as you are
more effectual than raw You m ay it sometimes try.
Mr Painter a sea surgeon Rx tinct. myrr zfs [illegible] rosai zi m.
This following is good to cure cankers & sore gums & toothach when other remedies
have failed found out by E.A. Rx verjuice abt 3 or 4 ou. a little fine
bole armonck a little raw & burnt alum & borax & myrrh all in pouder
camphor less quantity than of the rest & R. vitriol a little hony as
much as will allay its nauseousness you may add a little tincture of
myrrh & camphorated sp. of wine
Teeth to fasten & whiten Rub them with [illegible] grass [illegible]
& salt Mrs Brown of Leicer another Rx the best fine boll & burnt 
alum p.e. in fine pouder & moisten a [illegible] [flaxen] with water or the spittle & rub 
[illegible] sore mouth or gums in man or child the teeth 2 or 3 times a day Mr Coy
mix [illegible]: verdigrise in fine powder with hogs lard or fresh butter
spred it on a rag tye an other rag over it then sew it under the 
childs chin or [illegible] & ware it till well.
To fasten teeth 7 cure em of the scurvy Mrs Catherine Ossen.
Rx hony 4 ou. myrrh in pouder zii (2 d roch allum & bole each
zfs rub the teeth & gums with it & the finger often or dip a
rag in it & lay it to the tooth.
For the scurvy in the gums. Burn juniper wood to ashes
& rub the gums with em. Traveller. Toothach boyl tobacco
with some camomile flowers in water & hold a spoonfull
warm in your mouth for 2 hours then spit it out & the 
pain will abate ibid. spirit of sweet nitre a few drops 
mixt with a little spirit of wine or water stops gangrenes taken
away rotten or proud flesh & warts, heals cankers & sores in 
the mouth, legs & other parts, Salmon’s Dispensary. Dragons’ blood 
is very drying & binding It fastens loose teeth & stops the bleeding of
the gums & helps to cure the scurvy in them. Millers Herbal. To fasten teeth Rx [sal]
[illegible]
& mastick p.a. poudered apply a little of it often to teeth which are loose [illegible]
Tho. [illegible] apothecary


(147
The green sickness
Quench the fire [proker] al pur (an iron that stirs up the fire)
in a draught of small beer or ale every morning till well
this cured on that look’d like death Dr Brooks of London
& Mrs Finch. another for the green sickness or for one
that is very weak & inclining to a consumption that looks
pale or for a girl that has injur’d her constitution by 
eating freestone or coles or dry grits. Quench the iron
proker heated red hot in abt ½  pint of ale in which is 
scraped abt 2 spoonfuls of castle soap stir it abt till it
is thick like caudle. This cured Cathering Wilkins the clockmakers
daughter having had very ill health & look’d poor & sickly
for a long time before It mended her constitution & complexion
she offer’d 5 d for this Rx to a Lancashire woman that
cured her but she would not divulge it. You must take it
for nine morning successively Mrs M. another Put abt ½
a pint of smal ale or beer & ale to old rusty iron
zi or zij let it infuse 12 hours drink abt a coffee dishful 
in the morning fasting till well This in a months time 
commonly drives away paleness from the lips & cheeks & 
leaves a lively red in its room. The same iron serves all
the time approv’d by Ruth Winter & Mrs Mary Mayer my 
mother. If you think it too nauseous you may take a 
raysin of the sun or a little sugar after it, but it is better
without m. m. Another steep currans lbfs steel pouder
4 d fro the apothecaries in white wine a qt shake it 
& take 1 spoonful of all the 3 ingredients every morning
(while it lasts) fasting & drinking abt a coffee
dish full of wormwood ale after it immediately, then
walk or stir for abt ½ an hour. This cured my mother 
Mrs Mary Mayer another Rx as much flower of brimstone as
will lie on a shilling in a little treacle every morning for
9 mornings successively It will be abt a spoonful when mixt 



148)
walk or run after it. This cured Ruth Winter &
brought a fresh colour into her cheeks when the former
medicines fail’d. Mrs Finch another Rx gentian, water
trefoil, centaury, scabius sothern wood, rue, penny royal
& wormwood each mi all dry put em
in a bag in 2 qts of strong ale when that is drank add 2 qts
more to the same ingredients drink every morning
abt a qr of a pint & do at 4 o clock in the afternoon
it must infuse 2 days before you begin to drink. you must
walk after it when you begin to mend drink only in the
morning. This cured Ruth Winter a second time. Old Elizth 
Winter another Rx pilule hiera picra with agarick zfs (al 4 drams)
to which add saffron in pouder zi. Divide it into 12 pts or pills & 
take one every morning fasting &Y fast 1 hour after it using
brisk exercise to sweat a little after it for 1 or 2 hours without
observing any rules of diet or confinemt. If this dose
doth not cure repeat half the dose. This has cured hundreds 
Br S.A. another Rx steel pouder 1 d elecampane 1 d
liquorish pouder half a penny worth boll half a penny worth 
flower of brimstone ½ a pennyworth Bayberries ½ a penny 
worth treacle lbfs The six 1st ingredients must be in fine
pouder Rx the quantity of nutmeg on a knifes point fasting
in the morning successively as long as it lasts walk after it
if you are able. this cured a maid that had it 6 or 7 yrs when
confin’d to her bed & not able to go a high lone This never fail’d
Stephen Hunt. another Rx half a spoonful of filings
of steel from the smith in treacle ziiij Take it at two doses
equally divided for morning & night This cured Francis
Clark abt 30 yrs of age that could scarce go a high lone & had
been out of order for a long time Fr. Clark.
Mrs Powels Rx for the green sickness Rx tincture of steel
ziij tincture of saffron zi tincture of coral zij mix them well
together Rx 20 or 30 drops of this in a glass of w. wine night
& morning 2 or 3 days before & after the new & full of the
moon to open obstructions & cure the green sickness Mrs Caulton.
The green sickness Rx fine steel pouder 2 d flower of brimstone
2 d treacle 2 d mix em well Rx the quantity of 2 nutmegs 
every morning fasting till noon or 2 hours you must use exercise
when you take it salt of steel is better than steel pouder you 
may put in 3 d worth. Purge before you begin & after every dose 


(149
you may drink a glass of white wine when you take it
you may purge with cream of tartar or glaubers salt
or Daffy’s elixir Mrs Caulton. Green sickness Rx salt of
steel pr 6 d divide it into six pts Pound one pt every morning
fine [illegible] some pap of an apple or marmalet or any sweet meat
spred & put the salt in the inside round it up like a pill with another
clean knife Give it the maid in the morning fasting for 6 mornings
fast & use exercise after it It is nauseous if not wrapt up
clean. This was used by the daughter of Sister Boothby with success.
A maid was cured of melancholy & the green sickness by the use of this
medicine following. Rx of the conserve of balm 1 ou conserve of [buglass]
& [borage] flowers each zfs confection of [athermes] zi make an 
electuary with the syrup of the 5 opening roots; Rx the quantity of a nutmeg 
morning & evening for a month, being 1st purg’d once or twice. Pecheys
Herbal.
Let a maid that hath the green sickness hold her
head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [cure] her Geo. Hill
Dyer at Hoby
Another steep stub nails in w. wine drink a glass
every morning till well Mrs Brown of Leicer
Green sickness Rx feather few mi boyl’d in ale 1 qt to a pint
take ½ a qr of a pint first & last morning & night for 7
days then intermit 3 or 4 days & take it again it is bitter
as gall put a lump of sugar in the mouth after it take 
steel powder in white or loaf sugar in the middle of
the day all the time or take feather few in pouder with 
sugar widow liquorish another For the green
sickness 7 opening of the stomach Rx w. wine 22 ats 6 branches 
of rosemary, the inner bark of hawthorn, a good mi sugar
ziv boyl em in a stone-jug stopped set it in a kettle of water 
till the 3d part be boyl’d away strain in it & drink a draught of it
every morning till you are cured. Mrs. [Hewet] E. A.’s mother
For the green sickness Rx aethiops mineralis zi in fine
powder and hony one ounce and mix them and take [illegible]
Ten spoonful at night going to bed to be continued
till well This cured Mr [Phyg???] daughter at Leicester
Directed by a London [do?ser]



150
to cure the green sickness, Take a spoonfull of
soot from the mouth of an oven or copper in a qt of a pt of
ale 9 mornings together this has cured m any Jane
Smith.








154)



(155
Vapours or hysteric fits.
Vapours are caus’d by great grief (as the loss of a
child or relation of friend) Trouble of fright, long
sickness & weakness & poverty of the blood. They 
attend marry’d women & maids & men too. They can’t
sleep, & yawn often & fancy that they shall die or
go distracted The cure Rx assafoetida a good large pill
as big as a great pea or 3 little ones in butter or the
pap of an apple or without any thing if you can swallow
them It will give you one gentle stooll Rx 3 nights
successively. They attend lying in women mostly for hysteric
fits Rx a pill of assafoetida in a little juice of rue Mrs 
Finch. Vapours sometimes cause sore eyes both which I have known
cured by bleeding in both the jugular veins at once Tho.
Holy. another Rx oyl of camphir 3 or 4 drops in a glass
of wine. Drink it & let the nostrils, temples & wrists at the
beating of the arteries be anointed with the oyl. They 
will defend you from the plague & cure vapours they
penetrate in a moment p. 133 Salmon on Bates.
another Rx 3 drops of spirit of amber in a spoonful of milk
cold at any time when you perceive the fits coming This prevented 
& cured vapours in Thos. Juice’s wife Aunt Boothby & Tho. Juice 
Dr Mead uses cassummuniar as a stomachick, as well as an hystrick
It seems to be a kind of zedoary & is of a bitterish aromatick taste.
quincy. Rectify’d oil of amber mixt with sugar than with wine from 3 to 6 
drops is admirable in hysterical distepmers. Salmon’s Family Dictionary
I have used this composition that follows, with excellent success, in women’s obstructions;
& it is , undoubtedly much better in hysterical diseases, than the [illegible]
compound water of the London Dispensatory. Take of dried briony roots,
beaten to a gross powder, two ounces of the leaves of rue & dried mugwort, each
half a pound; sabino dried, three quarters of an handful; of feather few [illegible]
& penny-royal, dried each half a handful; of the fresh yellow pill of one
orange; of mirrh half an ounce of castor two drams, of the best [nauts] brandy
one quart; put them into a glass, & let them infuse six days in warm washes; then
steam the liquor off & keep it in a glass-bottle; well stopped. The dose is half a 
spoonful to be taken in three ounces of penny-royal water, sweetned with sugar,
morning and evening.



156)
A speedy safe & effectual cure for vapours in women
from [Grubstreet] Journal. My wife after here second 
lying in, was suddenly seized with a lowness of spirits giddiness
in her head, & a defective memory; & I could hear nothing
from morning to night but a repetition of her miseries.
I tried the effect of medicines, but to no purpose. At last she was
ordered by a friend who personated a physician, never to drink
any thing stronger than small-beer; never to go abroad but to 
church; & to be sure to work some hours every day. By this
means she is recover’d & is now as well as any woman in 
the parish.











(157



158



(159
medicines for the eyes given me by the Rd
Mr Isaac Taylor second schoolmaster
at Bosworth in Leicershire
Rx herb chelidon maj. absinth. virid. heder. terrestris an.
mfs stercoris albi gallina pulv. zifs albi ovi optime con
quassati q.s. m. auxilio est suffisionibus & sugillationibus oculoru 
a contusione ortis.
Rx Pomorum dulc. putrid. zi micae panis in lacte coctae
mucilag. sem. psyllij aqu. papav. extract. an zi unguent. tutia
ziij croc [illegible] fs camph. gr. 5. ol. absint. chym. gut. 2as m.
in oculorum inflamattione dolorifica.
Colyrium album. Rx camph gr. 12 [trich] albi rhaph zij aq.
ros. alb. aq: euphr an. ziiij infunde & cola. oculorum inflammationis
rubori, & dolori modetur usurpetar exteriae 
collendo & guttatim instillando singulis matutinis idq ad plusculos
dies. Colyrium armoniacum. Rx calcis limo=pidae zij sac.
saaturni [illegible] fs sal. armon. crudi gr. 6 m. ad acres humorum
fluxiones sistendas; ad rubores & dolores tollendos.
Colyrium saturninu. Rx sac: saturni gr. 8. aquae rosar. alb.
zi. m. maximi refrigerat. colyrium de succis. Rx vitriol
alb. gr. 8. succi cheledon. maj: succ. fanicu. an zfs mel.
zi [illegible] & despuma. praeclaire detergit nebulas sollit; dolere 
aerem, sed cita cessurum excitat. gutta una pro vice instillanda
sufficiat. Diu potest asservari. colyrium vitriolicum. Rx
vitriol. alb. gr. 4. aqua sperm. ranar zi m. refrigerate, siccat,
detergit efficax est ad ophthalmiam, [essiphora] ulcera.
emplastru de majorana Rx pic. burgund. zfs. pul. majoran. zfs
euphorb. gr 5. m. ad catarrhum, dentalgiam, uvula inflammationem,
ophthalmia & cephalagiam. applicatur nucha ve pone
aures. unguentum ophthalmicum. Rx ung. [illegible] zfs boli, lap.
cataminaris an. [illegible] i camph. [illegible] fs ol. rosaru q. s. m. emplastra ophth.
Rx farinae hordei zij croc. zij aq. rosar. & vitelli ove q.s. f. empl. oculo
placide superponendum.


160)
Emplastra ophthalmica
Rx farina hordei zij thur. & olibani an. zfs f empl. pro 
oculis. alisa. Rx medulla panis alb. zi made fiat in aq.
rosarum quibus adde pomorum dulcium zij lact. muliebr.
q. s. f. empl. pro oculis.
Emplastrum [repellens] pro oculis
Rx empl. diapal. zi ol. myrt. zfs acoti zfs. pulv. bol. opt.
zi sang. dracon [illegible] i lap. hamatit zfs. m. coque ad consumtionem
aceti f. empl. addenda ol. myrtillor q.v.
Pulvis ophthalmicus bat.
Rx sumitat. euphrag. ziij sem. faenicul. com zij sem. rut.
zfs mac zij sacch. opth zvi f. pulvis s.a. coch. sum.
ter in die
Frontale fulleri
Rx pulv. mastiches thuris an zij creta, farina fabar. an.
zfs alb. ovi conquass. ol. ros. an zvi. aceti q. s. m. in emplastri
formam. aadhibetur in affectibus oculoru rheumaticis,
idq3 tum praeservationis, tum curationis ergo.
aqua ophthalmica botiana.
Fit [illegible] aqua [e] gum. guiac. (quae fit
nobile colyrium
Rx pomphlogigos zij super lamina ferri novies secandescant
toties qz sesquilibra vini malvatici extinguantur deinde in 
pollinem lavigentur cum ol. mac. misceantur. [cribrab?] tragiciantur,
posthac vitro exceptae ac dicto vino affuso macerentur
sole donae flavescant do instar auri oculis auriliatur inflammatis,
maculas, unguem sigillatione, cicatricos, albugines,
pustulas plagas be abigit.
Pro oculis siccitate laborantibus.
Rx rutae pugil. I fanicu. fusci mi. floru rosimar. botanicae, euphrag.
an. mi mel. q. s. f. elect. a cuspide [cult??] deglutiondum



(161
Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain & blew chamadrys (i.e. Germander)
each ziiij smallage parsly seeds, penny royal, hysop, saxifrage,
juniper berries each zi [stavesaire] seeds zij beat em
small, with hony or sugar make a confection to be used morning & 
evening & you shall see wonders.
Diet drinks
Rx quick lime libj put it into spring water a gallon, let it
stand all night the next morn pour off the clear & strain it
thro a fine cloth then put it into a pot & add to it hartshorn
& ivory shavings, sassafras & red saunders each zi fennel seeds
& gromil (al gromwel) seeds each zfs liquorish bruis’d, juniper 
berries bruis’d each zfs boyl all these in the lime water
till one quart is wasted & at latter and put in 300 mellipedes
(al. sows) let it boyl a little then strain it & put it into bottles.
Drink of it twice a day viz in the morning & at 4 in the 
afternoon.
Rx srasaparil. ziij Chinae, lign. [lentife]. an zi ras. CC. ebor.
an. zfs summit, foenic. euphrag. an mi. fol. rorismar. Beton.
an. pug. ij sem foenicul. coriand & baccar juniperi an. zfs.
glyciriz zifs. infund. in aqua fontan. lb 20 per horas sex loco
calido coquatur ad 3tie partis consumtionem, ad finem decoct.
adde millepodu no. 200 coletur pro usu.
Rx mucigines sem. psyllij & cidonioru extract. in aqua plantaginis
vel rosar. cujus [q?] zij lac. muliebr. zi. trachisc. alb. rhasis [illegible] o m.
Rx Trochise alb. rhasis, sacchar.  saturni, sacchar. Landi alb. an.
[illegible] i vitriol. rom. gr. iij aq. plantag. zvi. m. addi possunt coral.
rub croci vel aloes pro re nata.
For sore eyes, gangrenes, fistulas, ulcers of all sorts,
pearls films, webs, blood-shot eyes, blear eyes etc.
This is mostly used by Mr Taylor being a pale blew al.
of a pearl colour. Rx smiths water 1 qt lime unguento
ziiij let em stand 14 hours stirring em often. Cast off the
water gently from the lime put it into a brass or 


162)
or copper vessel adding sal armoniac ziij Let it
stand till it has acquired a true blew tincture then add
camphir zfs.
Pulvis cibarius in omnibus oculorum morbis
utendus.
Rx summitatu thymi vel rosimarini, euphraginis an.
ziij. sem faeniculi, cinamom. mac. an. zi m. f. pulvis.
adde salis purissimi (vel potius salis gemmae) zviii This
is to be used with all food. It admirably sharpens & preserves
the sight & prevails against suffusions of the
eyes, darkness, hurts of the memory etc.
A pouder for the eyes
Rx dulcify’d vitriol zfs prepar’d [paty] 15 gr sugar candy [illegible] i
make a fine pouder
Cerevisia oxydorica a drink to quicken the sight
Rx rue,s age, vervain, eye bright each mi live [sows] 400,
sweet fennel seeds zi raisins ston’d lbfs rosemary flowers
fresh gather’d mi spiknard ziij yellow of lemon & orange 
flowers each zi. Put em all into a bag for 4 gallons of
new ale. It is to be taken for ordinary drink for dimness
of sight. when you drink it put into each draught 20 drops 
of sp. of sal armoniac. Let the use of it be continued for
3 or 4 whole months or longer for a lesser time will do but
little good. outwardly let the eyes be bath’d with qn. of Hungary
water or wash the eyes themselves 3 or 4 times a day with 
a proper water mixt with an equal quantity of sp. of wine, or 
with this colyrium following Rx white wine lbi camphir
zi rosemary [tops] & eyebright each half a pugil; put em into 
a clean basin of brass or pewter then heat 5 or 6 stones of lapis calaminaris red
hot & twice quench em in the wine etc. If you quench em 6 or 
7 times as Mr Taylors Rx directs they will drink up all the wine
It is admirable for rheum, water, heat, cold, film, fistula,
pearl blindness, dimness etc. This water is much commended
by Mr Taylor. I found it dry’d my eyes very much but I happen’d
to quench a bit of brick in’t instead of lap. calam. by a mistake.



(163
Pilulae de lawne seu pilula ex duobus
Rx colocynth pulveriz. zifs scam [p?p.] ij pilul. coch.
majoris & aggregativae an. zifs ol. cariophil. chym. zifs
m. f. pil. catholic.
Rx hujus pil. cathol. zifs cochiae majoris & aggregativae an. ziij
m. f. pil. cephalica. Dosis a gr. 15 ad [illegible] i vel gr. 25.
[illegible] The first pills are compos’d of pilulae ex duobus They 
must be always given before you undertake to cure sore
eyes It is an exct. head pill & good for the scurvy (& to sweeten
the blood) dropsy, gout, & French pox vid. Salmon’s Disp
They are a universal purge to be used where ever purging 
is necessary. Take em spring & fall to keep you in health.
The second pills are more exct. for the head.
Pilulae. Rx massae pilularu de hiera cum agarico [illegible] fs pil.
luis [illegible] i diagridij gr. ij syr. staechados & euphragiae q. s.
f. p. no. 6. Rx pil. ex duobus a [illegible] i ad zfs. calameli
[illegible] i m. f. p. no quatuor. alias Rx pil. e duobus a
gr. 15 ad [illegible] I vel zfs. alias. Rx scamon. select. pulp.
colocinth. subt. pulv. an. zi f pil. cum l. q. syr. straechados
dos a [illegible] i ad zfs vel [illegible] zij mane.
Pro vulneribus ocuorum
Rx myrrhae, sarcocol. dissolut. in lacte mulebr. an. [illegible] fs
tutiae pp. [illegible] i mellis rosaru paru, cum modica quantitate
album. ov. & aq. rosar. f. linimentu. alisa. sanguis columbae 
ex ala extract. adhuc calens instilletur. vel medulla
panis torefacta & fina rubra infecta applicetur.
Dip a linnen cloth in the warm blood of a pidgeon 
& apply it to the eye & if you instill a drop into it, 
it will not be amiss. If the eye is black & blew by 
an external accident. Chew cummin seeds, fennel seeds
or cloves & the breathing on the eye is exct. or a fomentation
of wine in which hysop has been boyled is very 
successful. or bath the eye with Hungary water. If dust
or any thing hurtfull is got into the eye it is clear’d by blowing 


164)
or sparting in rosewater.
If the eyelids are glew’d together separate em with 
butter, beer or cream by wiping em gently.
The seeds of clary put into the eyes take away motes.
Boyl a bunch of hysop in water or red wine & apply it
to the eye is very good for a bruise on the eye & blooding
immediately is good for a bruise.
A spot in the eye. Rx rosewater q.f. put into it so
much sal armoniac as will make it a little smite the 
tongue, keep it 2 or 3 days in a copper vessel till it has
acquired a true blew tincture Pone aures sanguisugae.
Fontanellae scapulares. emplastru suppedale de pice alba
adversus humorus [defusion??] fumus nicotiana cum 
succino & sem. anisi vel coriandri pulverisati cum mediocri
quant. botanicae ad visus praeservationem. Rx sal.
gem zij in aqua flor. rorismarin. zi dissolut. & recte
philtrat. De catarrho. post strenue per plures dies
expurgatu cerebru, Rx ficunum ping. fermenti aeris an.
lbfs sem. viticis & nasturtij contus an. zi. sem. sinap.
contus. zij empl. de mucilagin. ziiij malaxentur & incorporentur
addendo ol. lauri q.s. formetur emplastru [illegible]
super alutam quod toti capiti impernatur & quotidie marie
renovetur. Hoc omniu capitis humorem eliciet quod [neq?]
cantharides occipitio admatae, [neq?] ulcus sincipiti & commisuorae
cauterio inductum, [neq?] secta in fronte vena affecerit
Rx cortic. pistach. sicciss. zifx. part. lignos. nuc
pineae, cortic. guaiac. ligni junip. vel cedr. lign. aloes vel
sassafr. lign. rhodij cortic. wintera. nuc morschat. cinamom.
an. zifs tabac. a ziiij ad 5, 6, 7 zi. m.
Colyrium
Rx gum tragacanth. zij mucilagi. sem psyllij ziij aq. [rosar??]
& plantaginis an q. s. f. colyrium madido [q?] linteo externe
occludantur oculi.


(165
Electuraria
[illegible] Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain, blew chamedrys,
each ziiij smallage, parsly seeds, penny-royal, hysop,
saxifrage, juniper berries each zi seeds of slaves
acere zij. Beat em small with hony or sugar, make a
confection to be taken morning & evening miranda
videbis.
Another for weakness & dimness of sight Rx fennel seeds
libfs mountain withy lbfs germander zfs celandrine roots
zv aniseeds, smallage, parsly an. zifs pennyroyal, hysop,
flowers of borage & rosemary, juniper berries,
saxifrage an. zifs leaves of betony, rue, eyebright
each mj with clarified honey make an electuary. Dose
zfs mane. Pulvis sternutatorius Rx marjora.
Rorismar. beton. flor. lit. conval. an ziij n. mosc. zij
sal. armoniac. volat. [illegible] i m. f. pulvis. sub t.
masticatoria
Rx mastich. ziij pureth. staphisag. an zij. rad. angel. zfs.
cubeb nuc. m. an zi euphorb. [illegible] fs cera q.s. f. [illegible] ex qua
fiant masticatoria. pulvis cibarius Rx sum. euphrag.
ziij sem. taenicu. cinnam. mac. an zi f. pulvis adde sal
alb. zviii. m. sumatur cum omni cibo.
Dr Atwood Rx ras. guiac sassapt an. zij. cort. interni
jugland. zi coque in cerevis. neu. mediocris cong. 6 ad
4. dein suspend. sequent. Rx herb. marjoran. beton.
euphras. geran. rob. an miiij rad. paeon. majoris lbfs.
raphan. sulv. angelica an zij sumitat. rutae, flor. staecad.
rorismar. an. mij cardamom. bac. junip. an zijfs. m.
praep. sac. S. A. 


166)
Eye-water of salt armoniac cures most distemper
of the eyes, as the pin & web, pearl, film & dimness
of sight, ulcers of the eyes, cancers & burns p. 363 Salmons
Disp. Eye water of crocus metaloru p. 320 ibid.
Eye water of succory cures all diseases of the eyes as pin & web,
mists, suffusion (suffusio i.e. a pin or web in the eye) pearls, inflammations,
redness, bloodshot etc. p. 120 ibid. aqua ophthalmica Salmonis
cures all manner of eyes that are sore fore which it is to be esteemed as
a jewel p. (720) 271 ibid. Balsamu mirabile curat omnes oculorum 
morbor, tertio quoque die guttam i. instillando p. 5. Fullers Disp.
A poultace for the eyes when inflam’d red & swell’d to cool’
& give ease & cure Rx white bread a slice put it into new
milk boyl’d with rose leaves or rose cake & bind it to the
eyes with a linnen cloth lying on your back in bed. [illegible]
another Toast white bread crusts & boyl em in new milk
& apply it with a cloth as hot as you can endure it lying
on your back. This cure done of Cosby. Tho. Hely.


(167



168)



(169
for sore rheumatick eyes
Rx white copperas the quantity of a hazelnut, loaf
sugar & white sugar candy each twice as much spring
water a pint set em in a window where the sun shines
hot to dissolve & incorporate em Wm Coltman the
farrier commends this above all ocular medicines. It
cured his eye that had been long sore by a spark of fire
at first falling into’t [illegible] Lay tacamahac, a gum to 
the temples it will repel defluxions upon the eyes & 
strengthen the sight Mrs M. Mrs Hurst in the forest having
very sore red eyes catching cold at her lying in was thus
cur’d in a little time by E.A. she wash’d her eyes with the copperas
water according to the 1st rt of this page dipping a sparrows
or starlings or any small birds feather therein then she had a 
drying plaster made of the white of one egg & hony verdigrise
& burnt allum each as much as will lie on a [gr?at] in fine
pouder [illegible] bole as much as will discolour it pretty red & wheat
flower as much as will bring it to the consistency of a 
plaster spread it upon allum’d leather let it be sew’d on with 
a cloth for 3 or 4 days. apply to each temple emplastru
de minio & when you take off the 1st wrist plaster apply empl.
de minio to the wrist. One wrist at a time is enough to plaster
E. A. To strengthen the sight & dry up a rheum. Rx [putty] in 
fine pouder 1 d eye bright water & white rose water each 1 d 
double refin’d sugar in fine pouder abt the quantity of a small 
wallnut. shake em & let em stand a little after shaking then
put in a feather & draw it along the eyelashes morning & 
night. Do not put any into the eye with the feather by opening the eyes but only [illegible]
works in between the eyelashes. James Leppington of the
root of elecampane is made a kind of wine which sharpeneth 
the light p. 73. The Haven of Health. Ginger strengthens the
brain & clears the sight Salmons Family Dictionary. For rheums & inflammations
of the eyes. Blister the calves of the legs 1st one calf
then the other & make an issue in one leg Dr H. White of Ashby.


170)
for red sore eyes Rx camphir & borax each zi white
sugar candy zv white vitriol [illegible] i pouder them fine & mingle by
degrees with half a pint of sweet fennel water Jn Pocheys Disp.
for a rheum or redness in the eyes & to take off a pearl strengthen & 
clear the sight. Rx red rose water plantane water each zij
white wine zi [tutty] prepar’d zi white sugar candy zij
best aloes [illegible] ij (i.e. 2 scruples) shake em together & wash the
eyes oft with it. Mrs. Elizth Adderly told E.A. this as a great
secret & to be kept as a jewel. Mrs A. This is an exct. Rx which
you may find in Hartman’s Family Physician p. 73
For the inflammation of the eyes vid Dr Sydenham in 
Practice of Physick lib. 2. cap. 2 when bleeding & purging
how often soever repeated, are still found to be unprofitable,
in this case a resting draught of an ounce of 
syrup of poppies given every night compleats the 
cure with out the help of any other medicines. some
times vomiting will cure inflam’d eyes sometimes washing
the eyes with only common brandy unmixt will stop
the flux of rheum & cure em ibid. pilula lucis majores 
[illegible] quickening the eye sight the greater vid. p. 691 Salmon’s Dispensatory
Mr Grant the London oculist gives pills made of
camphir to be taken daily for a long time to remove humours
from the head offending the optic nerves, which purge little or
not at all. They cured Mr Jo. Simpkin of Little Glen.
Salmon’s family pills clear the sight vid p. 702 Salmon’s Disp
Pilula camphorata or camphir pills viz Rx liquorish pouder sugar & camphir
each two scruples pulverize em & with Venice turpentine make em into pills vid.
Fullers Dispensatory.
To heal the sight of the eye when wounded & lost. moisten a little feather
in oyl of paper & put it under the lower eyelid Mrs Finch.
when the sight or eye is too dry eat keen mustard with apple sauce or
any thing else till the eyes weep. E. A.
An exct eye water communicated to Mr James Cooke surgeon 
of Warwick by Dr Willis. Rx camph. zi incis. [illegible] pon. in
vas. claus. cum succ. limon. stent simul per noct. mane pon omn.
in phlegm. vitriol lbfs in vitr. bene claus. pro usu. when ‘tis
us’d, strain it out, put some in a spoon & warm it dip the finger or
a linnen cloth in it & with it wet the eye, eyelid & temples a pretty 


(171
while night & morning. ‘Tis also good in burns.
p. 616. Cooks Marrow of Chirurgery. An ext pultis for
any contusion abt the eye oft prov’d. Rx the white of an
egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue, stript &
beaten like a conserve; mix em together & apply it on
flax. ibid. The distill’d water of meadow sweet flowers al. qn of the meadow
(culmaria, regina prati, barba capri) helps burning & itching
of the eyes & clears the sight. Salmons Disp. for rheumatic red
eyes dissolve some allum in spring water to that it may taste
pretty strong of the allu & tart moisten a clean rag therein
& squeeze it so that no water may drain from it into the eye
& lay it on the eye all night & lie down in the day 2 or 3  
times till the cloth is dry. An aleman in Shoreditch & Mrs Finch
a gallant pultis for any contusion abt the eye, oft proved.
Rx the white of an egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue,
stript & beaten like a conserve; mix em & apply it on flax.
p. 610. Cook’s Marrow of Physick. The best smoke to clear
the eyes Rx lignum aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber
each zi cut betony zfs rosemary flower or rosemaryu
itself a qr of an ounce & as much tobacco as R. flowers
mix em. Rx it in a pipe when you go to bed or as often
as you please. This is exct to cure coughs, rheums & 
to free the head from any pains Sister H. Ashby brought this
Rx fro the Bath H. A. Hungary water outwardly inwardly taken is
good agt palsies, cramps, convulsions, the falling sickness
vertigo or megrim, lethargy & headach & dimness of sight,
cloudiness of eyes & even blindness itself, where it
proceeds from an inward cause, nor do I believe there is
any better specific in the world agt weakness of the sight
hurts of the optick nerves & palsies, than this water is, but
it ought to be taken every day abt a spoonful at a time
in a glass or pure ale or wine or some other convenient
vehicle, as black cherry water aqua lactis etc. for a qr of
a yr together or more, yea half a yr if need requires p. 16.
Salmon’s Observations on Bates’s Dispensatory.


172)
A pearl in a mans eye. Rx bole, burnt allum,
live hony & sweet hemlock (al. keck or celary) stamp
the hemlock & mix the other ingredients therewith & bind it
to the contrary wrist. Let it lie on 24 hours then remove it till’
the pearl is gs Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713one. Twice or thrice renewing cures. Mrs Leddy
Gilson. Eye sore with a fistula. apply bay salt in a [row]
of flax to the soles of the feet to be worn night & day. Let
conserve of red roses be lay’d to the outside of the eye moisten’d
with plantane water Let the eye be wash’d with clear water made of
green hazel nuts distill’d when you can thrust a pin thro em wear 
bay salt for 3 weeks changing it once a week for fresh. Cos. Elizth 
[Bale] try’d this without a perfect cure. E. Bale. Eilzth White
of Enderby had sad red swell’s sore eyes with a pearl the
small pox made ‘em sore for a yr before she was cured
with this Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713. Rx camphir,
R. vitriol burnt, white copperas, loaf sugar juice of lemmon
& water boyl em & set em in an oven in a glass bottle
when you bake They will [mother] tho they are boyl’d therefore 
try baking. They are best fresh made moisten the eyelids with 
the middle finger thrice twice or or once a day till the eyes mend
It cools & refreshes em. Disguise em with a very little alkanet
or red sanders E. A. stir this water every day will prevent moulding 
another set a leach to the broad pt of one of the nostrils within 
or without, intermit 6 or 7 days & set another leach to 
the other nostril. This bleeding draws a humour from the eyes
as well as most medicines, if not better E. A.
another The distill’d water of white roses is exct
in ophthalmia’s, to cool the eye, comfort & clear the sight.
Salmon’s Dispensatory. Rheumatick eyes. mix bole & 
the white of an egg & bind it to both the wrists spred on 
allum’d leather Renew it once in 24 hours. W. P. another [illegible]
Grey of Enderby had vapours which made her eyes very sore sometimes
they were so dizzy that she was ready to fall down. She was
cured by Tho. Hely bleeding in both jugular veins at once.
The veins are on each side of the neck not under or near the throat
a fillet was ty’d round her neck to make the veins rise, pretty straight.
then a little linnen rag was dipt in cold water & bound to each orifice
with a fillet at night it was taken away & a diaculu plast. apply’d 


(173
she was the next day purg’d with pills made of the best
aloes no 3 as big as a small white pea. Her eyes continued
very well after this except when she caught cold they would
water E. A. 
Anne Baker wbt 60 yrs old widow of Balson in Leicershire having very 
red rheumatic sore eyes of abt a month or 2 standing
was blistering on the wrists, leaching at the temples, & a great many eye water 
viz Mrs Fountains that cured sister B. 
& E. A.’s that cured Elizth White & ophtalmick plasters would 
do not good was at least cured thus. Rx hony the clearest
one drop white sugar candy in very fine pouder a little mix
& put it in with a feather new mixt twice a day. This was 
taught her by a poor woman of Balson. It clear’d & strengthen’d
her eyes. It smarts pretty much at 1st dressing She took 
this purge prescrib’d by Tho. Hely farrier, once a week. Rx
sena zfs. manna zi boyl the sena in abt ½ a pint of water 
with raysins of the sun no 20 stoned when it is abt ½ wasted 
add the manna then strain it the manna being dissolv’d & drink
it in the morning fasting. make oatmeal caudle thus & 
drink it as it purges Boyl water & oat meal then add ale & 
rosemary let it boyl, take it off & sweeten it with sugar 
Pilulae [sureae] Purge & cleanse the head & brain, quicken the
senses, clear the eye sight Salmons Disp. pilula de aloe lota or
aloe rosata. Purge both brain, stomach, bowels & eyes of
putrified humours & strengthens em. Culpepers disp. another
purge for rheumatic eyes. Rx of Dr Lowers paste sold at Mr
Smalley’s in Leicer.


174)
Tincture of olibarnum dropt into the eyes mixt
with a 3rd pt of rose water stops rheums, strengthens
em & takes away clouds & bloodshot. Take poppy water 
ziiij syrup of red poppies zfs tincture of olibanu zifs 
mix for a dose to be taken inwardly agt catarrhs & 
violent fluxes of rheum from the head upon the eyes,
teeth, brest, lungs etc. Salmon in Pharmacopoeia Bateana.
p. 310. Richd Hovy of Blaby having lost his stomach & having 
a dizziness in his head his eyes grow so dim that he could
scarce see E. A. order’d him a vomit of carduus posset drink 
which clear’d his stomach & retriev’d his sight E. A. Mrs Davenport
of Wigson Magna cured a woman of cloudy dark blood
shot eyes by only blowing several times a little liquorish 
pouder from a quill into the eyes Wm [Toalby].
Samuel Leapthrough a stockiner of Blaby had rheumatick red sore
eyes which was thus cured in abt a weeks time. Rx water from a 
spring call’d St Austin’s well (near Mr Watt’s’ house between his
house & Leicer on the left hand near the brook as you go fro
Leicer to Mr Watts’s new house) a qr of a pint, allum the quantity
of a pea (either in pouder or whole) or as much as when dissolv’d
will give the water a weak or little taste of the allum hony abt
as much more as the allum or as much as will scarce give it 
any taste of the hony mix em all cold, but when you use em
which may be 3 or 4 times in a day pour a little into a spoon
(a silver spoon is best but a pewter one will do very well) & 
hold it to the fire to warm it dip a linnen rag in it & apply 
it to the eye lids, being shut, as hot as you can abide it
you may put some into the eye if you will or dress the eye lid
with your finger moisten’d therein cold & it will do good. E. A.
another for rheumatick red sore eyes & to take off gum & to 
strengthen the sight. Boiyl fennel a good handful in a zt of
spring water till it is wasted to a pint. moisten a rag or the finger 
therewith cold & rub it on the eye lids & temples &let some go in
to the eye the oftener you do it the better W. P. says this is the best
eye water he ever try’d W. P. Juice of celandine strain’d thru
a cloth & a drop dropt into the eye every night eat off a [kell]
from the Bradsworth’s eye at the swan in Lecier T. A. another
to eat of a pearl or kell beat crow stone to fine pouder & sift it
blow a little thro a quill or mixt with hony it do. Wm Simon of Wigson



(175
Dimness of sight. The Lady Curzon & sister
Boothby Rx millepedes abt 60 a few raisins of the
sun slit & ston’d, a few red sage leaves Put em into
a tea pot & pour abt a pint of scalding hot spring
water upon em. Let it infuse a qr of an hour before
you take it & drink a coffee dishfull 2 or 3 times a
day To make very good smoke to preserve the
eyes & good agt The apoplexy Mrs Winstanley & 
Sister Boothby. This cured one that had weak eyes to that
he could read a small print at 80 without spectacles.
Rx wood aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber each zij
betony leaves & rosemary flowers each zi Tobacco
zifs (they that are us’d to take tobacco may put in ziij)
beat & slit the drugs very small & cut the rosemary flowers
& betony leaves very small mix em all together Take
a pipe as often as you please It will make you spit
cold flegm from the stomach. Rheumatic sore eyes
moisten the eyelids with the finger wetted with spittle when
you smoke tobacco, Mrs Elizth Halford To take the pain 
away from an eye Rx liquor laudanu, conserve of red roses
& pomatum mix & anoint the outside of the eyelids Mrs
Fountain This [illegible] & sister Boothby. Elizth Felton of Enderby took
off a pearl from her eye by droping live hony 3 or 4 times
in a day into it. a wter for the eyes second to none Rx waters
of fennel & eye bright, each a pint, common salt zvi
prepar’d tutty, white vitriol each zfs let them boil a little
& reserve for use p. 139 The saurus chirurgia by Paul Barbette & Raymundus Mindorus
a Dutchman. a pouder to eat off a pearl Rx dulcified vitriol
zfs prepar’d tutty 15 gr. sugar candy a scruple make it into
a fine pouder & blow a little fro a quill into the eye once a day
ibid. an anodine cataplasm Rx camomile & melilot flowers
each a pugil, rotten apples zij fenugreek seed zi crums of
brown [illegible] bread ziij 2 yolks of eggs, saffron zfs boil em in 
cows milk to the consistence of a poultice another which I’ve oft
found exct in the greatest pain r4x gum tragacanth zij [mussilage]
of the seeds of [???wort] ziiij resoewater & planate water each 


176)
is much as [sufficeth] make it into a collyrium of
an indifferent consistence. let it be instill’d by drops
into the eyes & linnen cloaths wet in it outwardly apply’d
ibid medicines good for the eyes Roots of valerian,
Solomons seal, [or??ie], vervain; herbs, betony, celandine
the great, eye bright, fennel, fumitory, plantan;
flowers of roses, violets; aniseeds, quince seeds, linseeds
pippins boil’d or rotten; camphire, mussilage of linseed 
tragacanth; fresh veal; white of eggs; all sorts of milk 
especially womans; tutty, white & green vitriol; saccharu
saturni; glass of antimony; white troches of rhasis, fresh 
cheese not salted; ung. saturni ibid.
To strengthen the sight. Savid Lane the rasor grinder of
Wistons Spreds a plaster de minio on allum’d leather the
breadth of a man’s hand & lays it on the nape of his
neck a little above his moulders which so strengthens his eyes
that being near 60 he can see to make grind & set rasers & lancets
etc. without spectacles. D. L. another to comfort the eyes Rx sp. v.
3 pts liquid laudanu 1 pt moisten the lids E A.
another Beat the white of an egg & moisten the 
outside of the eye lids therewith it cools & takes away 
an inflamation & strengthens & refreshes the
eye E. A. To take the pain from a sore eye. moisten
conserve of red roses with white or red rose water
& when you are in bed at night cover the eye being shut
with it & bind a cloth on it wipe it off in the morning with
a cloth Repeat it night after night till the pai ceases.
Sister Ekins. a man of Leicer with only blew bottle water 
cured very sore eyes. You may buy it at the apothecaries.
Goody Simons. Dr Pechy says the flowers & the distill’d water
are good for the inflammation of the eyes & the [blearedness] 
of them.
Smoke for the eyes. Take betony colts foot, rosemary
flowers, lavender tops, and sage p. a. cut
small and add thereto tobacco 3 pts to one pt of
the flower Richd Smith esqr of Enderby


(177
To clear an eye Dissolve a little sugar candy 
(white I believe is best but try brown too) in rose water
It will clear an eye sometimes but not always mother
Hewet. mix rose water with white copperas water it
allays its sharpness Sister Ekins & sometimes add a little
while sugar candy or brown to discolour it E. A.
Jonathan Ison wheelwright of [Ansty] had a sore eye with a
great pearl on’t He could not open it & when open’d it lookd
red & inflamd June 1715. IT was thus cured. IT was dresst with 
Mrs Adderly’s eye water to take away the pain. Emplastru de 
minio was apply’d to his back. He washed the eye lid with water
fro St. Austin’s well at Leicer in which hony & allu was dissolv’d
It mended but slowly. Padmore’s charge with cantharides was 
apply’d to his cheek which made it [illegible] well as soon as it swell’d & his
cheek pain’d him very much it [illegible] was remov’d to behind the ear on 
the same side which made a very sore place, drew the humour fro
the eye & did more good than any thing try’d before empl. de
minio was apply’d to heal it. Then cuttle bone in fine pouder 1 
grain was blown into the eye fro a quill 3 or 4 drops intermitted & 
1 gr. more was blow which took off the pearl & cured the eye
copperas water did little or no good but w. copperas water & rose 
water mixt gave Ese. So did sp. v. 3 pts & liquid laudanu 1 pt 
apply’d to the eye lids with the finger liquid laudanu pomatum
& conserve of red roses was bound to his eye at 1st a nights
which gave it ease. He drank whey & roses i.e. infus’d or boyl’d
in the whey which coold & gently purg’d E. A.
Francis Gregory’s sore eyes were cured by white copperas
water & red or white rose water p. e. apply’d to the eyelids by 
the finger E. A.


178)
Mr Tyrvingham Stephens’s eye water
of Leicer
Rx Rhenish wine a pint or for want thereof the best
white wine, put it into an earthen pot Rx a piece of 
lapis calaminaris as big as large walnut, heat it
red hot in a clear red cole fire (smoke will spoil it)
& quench it nine times, covering the pot with a 
plate or board to keep the steam in every time after
it is quench’d. Let it stand till it is quite cold. If you
have quench’d it 9 times over night let it stand till
next morning then filtrate it thro a new white
flannel bag made with a point like a tongue The
flannel wash’d & dry’d will serve a long tie.
one stone will serve twice i. e. to be quench’d twice
nine times or for 2 pints when it is filtrated bottle it
& keep it close stopt It is the keenest & sharpest at 
1st when new made. How to use it. you must
shake the bottle first always before you use it
you must keep a little in a little viol always for
present use moisten the finger with it viz apply 
the end of the fourth finger to the mouth of the 
viol & shake it then stroke that finger agt both eye 
lids shut but so that a little may go in at the corner
of the eye or dip a sparrow or a little birds
feather taken from the wing into the water then 
pull down the lower eyelid & put the end of 
the feather under it Dress it night & morning
a little before bedtime is reckon’d the best time
Mrs Jane Stephens al floxon.
A pearl in the eye Rx gill & pearlwort pound em with bole in 
pouder & hony. Pound the herbs every night fresh for 3 nights
successively to the wrist on the contrary side This cured Elizth Tafte a woman of Armsby.


(179
Eyes too dry. Drink tea made with hot water
put to sage, tyme, rosemary or any one of em with
abt ½ a lemmon cut into slices with the peel E. A. 
Eyes sored & red & to dry up a rheum. Rx gill & ivy leaves
woodbine leaves each mi. white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in pouder
spring water a qt boyl em all together till it is consum’d to a
pint. strain it & pour a little into the ball of the hand cold & 
with a clean finger moisten the eyelashes letting a little go into the
eye just when you are going into bed. Dress it every night till the
eyes are well. This cured a mai that had sore eyes 7 yrs after the 
measels that water’d & ran down her cheeks almost constantly & 
had try’d a great many things in vain to cure em Jn Grovecock’s
wife of Cosby. It makes the eyes smart ibid. you may add white
sugar candy zij E.A. This will cure a thick red eye Mrs French.
To eat off a kell or pearl or to dry up a rheum in the eye
of child, man or beast or to cure a trample on the heel 
or a crack in the thrush. Rx the best roch allum the biggest
lumps are best Burn it in a clean fire shovel or iron ladle
till all the moisture is quite dry’d up when it is cold pound it in
a mortar & sift it thro a lawn sive keep it always dry near
the fire in a chimney because moisture weakens its vertue & 
drying quality or you may carry a little in a paper or box always
in the pocket. Take a small quantity abt as much as will lie
on a silver half penny or penny & lay it upon a pen knife point
drop it into the eye it is better then blowing (for that makes a great [illegible]
flie away & be lost & is a greater surprize & uneasiness to the patient
the pouder beating agt the eye) you must drop it abt an hour before
the child goes to bed & tie his hands behind him ½ n hour
as soon as it is dropt in let man or woman lay the ball of their
hand upon the eyelid & hold it on for ½ an hour. Begin with a smal
quantity & augmt a little gradually in the dressings. Dress it once
a day. Put in the same quantity into a horses eye at 1st & a little more
the next time you dress it when you dress the horses feet for a crack in
the [illegible] or [illegible] you must keep it dry till well Jn Noon of 


180)
of Thus Raston his son’s eye was cured by this pouder
when he had like to have lost [both] his eyes by the small pox Jn
Noon. Burnt allu bound on an anbury or a sheeps
foot or drest once a week will cure it. Xtopher Robinson
shepherd. Burnt allum will cure a sore chopt nipple
at one dressing Let a woman suck the breast at night
then shew it on the nipple It will cause a great pain but it
is a present cure. Mother Majer mix burnt allu in pouder
with sope & a little bole it will kill a canker’d or scab’d
nose in a lamb by being anointed on it once or twice
a day till it is ready to drop off then anoint it with sallet
oyl to heal it Tho. Hely farrier The roots of common fennel
boyled in wine & applied to the eye cured a suffusion i.e. [illegible] or w:[c]
in a monk in the space of 9 days.
Mrs French the warm doctress her eye water for a rheum
in the eye Rx white or damask rose water zij lapis calaminaris
in very fine pouder as much as will lie on a six pence
Shake the bottle when you use it & shake it on the eye lids shut
with a feather Rowland Marlo butcher of Leicer his wife
had sore, red rheumatic eyes after a great many things try’d in 
vain was cured by shaving the nape of her neck & applying
four leeches. another Rx the milt of a sheep new kill’d apply 
it hot betwixt the shoulders with only its natural heat & let
it lie on 24 hours then apply a fresh one if you can get it till
you’ve apply’d 5 milts successively If you can’t get abov e one or
2 milts you must heat em in water & apply em hot you must
bind it on with a cloth & fillet. The milt is apt to stink especially 
in hot weather Ben Garland of Leicer The milts will draw
a [bister] ibid. Dr Russels eye water Rx fennel water or white rose
water 5 pts salt of vitriol, saccharu saturni each ziifs dissolve & digest
therein camphir zv fine aloes choice opiu each ziij let it settle then
decant the clear & filter Joyn these 2 liquors together & add regulus of
antimony or crocus metalloru in very fine pouder zv shake all well
together 3 or 4 times a day for 10 or 12 days then lit it settle & keep 
it quiet on the faces for use This eye water is inferior to no water
yet known in the world W. P.
To make an eye-salve Rx may butter ziiij free from salt white
wax zi melt em together then add white rose water 1 d & stir it
till it is almost cold then put in camphir [illegible] ij grey tutty pouder 
made fine zfs pound the camphir & work em all together well.
anoint the eyes at night or when you please Mrs Coulton.


(181
a very good w. copperas eye water to take off all the rheums fro
his eyes Rx bay salt zij white copperas or w. vitriol zi. Put
[illegible] in 3 pints of spring water Boyl it till it wasts to a qt or
less scuming it all the while, then put it in a pot & let it stand 2 
days. Then decant the clear & put it into a bottle & wash the eyes
therewith night & morning or at any time. Mrs Caulton. sore eyes
or specks in the eye. Rx the white of one egg & as much hony,
clarifie the hony but not in brass, when it is cold put them together
& beat em an hour, then set it on one side & drain the
oyl to one side when you go to bed drop in a drop into tye
& lay the curd betwixt a rag & bind it on the year. Mrs. Caulton.
To make Dr Pool the mountebank his eye water Rx white vitriol
(alias w. copperas) the quantity of a nutmeg & spring or well water
½ a pint mix it cold D.P. Mr Wm Ing of Knighton’s eye water 
to dry up a rheum in man or horse Rx Roman vitriol [illegible] iiij white
copperas zij virgins hony zifs i.e. each one half pennyworth boyl
em all together in a pint of spring water
An eye salve Mrs. Cox of Hoby Rx may butter ziiij fresh
white wax zi melt em together Put thereto one pennyworth
of either white or red rose water & stir it till it be almost
cold then add camphir [illegible] ij pounded & grey tutty zfs work em 
well together afterwards boyl it very well
A rheum in the eye Rx lapis calaminaris in pouder & pouder of white
tutty when mixt as much as will lie on a silver 3 d put it to w. rosewater
1 d shake the bottle when you use it viz moisten a rag & rug the eyelids
Cos. Elizth Freeman another when Goody Simons has a rheum in her
eyes especially in the spring In the beginning of March she gathers elder
buds nettles mallows brooklime watercresses water parsnips & [livers]
chops em & makes water gruel & lets em boyl a litle time, if they boyl 
long they will turn black she eats em morn & night for 3 weeks.
another Rx white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in a lump, heat a pair
of tongs red hot & nip it betwixt em & let it run into a pint
of rain water then quench an heater (such as they use in ironing
cloaths) once or an old horse shoe 2 or 3 times when cold add a
good spoonful or a spoonful & ½ or 2 spoonfuls of wine vinegar moisten the
eye lids & over the middle of the forehead or rather all along 
the edge of the [illegible] & temples & eyebrows with it 2 or 3 
times a day Mrs [illegible] Mrs Caulton you shou’d strain it If any gets into 
the eye it will do no harm but only make it smart let it dry in 
Mr Thompson’s Rx for a pearl in the eye Rx small hemlock mi 
beat it small add to’t as much bole in fine pouder as will lie on a
shilling & ½ a spoonfull of live hony & a little salt beat them well together
spred some of it upon a piece of sheeps leather of the bigness of half
a crown, a good thickness. Lay this to the contrary wrist, where the pulse


182)
beats bind it on with a cloth fast & shift it once
every day for nine days you must not wet the wrists
all the time Mr Bickerton & Mrs Caulton.
The Lady Honywoods ext water for dimness of sight
Curing any skimmy substance or film over the eyes & 
dispersing rheum. Rx a new laid egg make a little hole
at the top take out all they yolk & white fill it with eyebright
water Put into it tutia 12 gr. & white copperas 6 gr. stir them 
well together & set the egg on a slow dull firer let it boyl softly
when you perceive a little of it consumed take it off the fire
strain it thro a lawn put it into a little glass for the use
Twice a day let a little be dropt into the eye you must lie on the
back a qr of an hour after ibid.
Mr. Dumon’s ext for the eyes weak sighted with rheum or
any other infirmity Rx 9 daysie roots leaves & all 9 sows 
(al. millepedes) stamp these together strain em into half a pint
of small beer which drink in [illegible] several potions one in the 
morn 2 hours before you rise The 2 d an hour after dinner 
the 3rd when you go to bed at every one of these times lie an
hour on that side the disorder is & an hour on the other side, thus 
do for 3 days together then cease for nine days & begin again
for 3 days then cease for nine days & begin again for 3 ays & 
cease the course as you shall see cause use this method twice in 
the spring & once in the fall. ibid.
another for the eyes. Put to a pint of celandrine water a pint
& half of bean shells water wash the eyes with it dayly. ibid.
Mrs Tampings Rx for sore eyes.
Rx lapis calaminaris 2 ou. in fine pouder pit it into
a half pint bottle & fill it almost full of the best white
wine, add 3 spoonfuls of damask rose water keep the
bottle close stopt & before you use it shake the bottle
ibid.
Mr [Tonstal’s] Rx for weak eyes. a pouder
Rx the pouder of the dry’d herb call’d eye bright a aquantity, ½ 
as much sugar as the weight of the rest mix them together
Rx a small spoonful of this every morning in a glass of
w. wine or ale fasting after it a while. ibid
A blood shot eye Mrs Wilcocks Put a little saffron into spring
water till it gives it a yellowish tincture moisten the eye therewith
This cured Br. G. A. sore eyes a plaster Rx the strongest hemlocks 
bay salt & the white of an egg to the thicket grounds of human
urine out of the chamber pots (try that which is kept 3 or 4  or 7 
days if the smell will not offend you) stamp all these together 
Lay it to each wrist every morning fresh. Then Rx the white of a
new lay’d egg (beat it to [dye] that is soundly) & bole work em together
like a salve spred it upon leather & apply it to each temple Let
em stick on till they fall off Drop into the eye one drop of the
water & hold the hand a while upon the eye after the drop
of water is dropt into it Mr Dodes & E. A.’s mother


(183
To make ink
Rx Blew galls lbfs bruise & boil em in vinegar
3 qts or stale beer abt q/2 an hour; strain & let the
mixture stand to infuse abt 12 hours then cant off
the clear & by putting to any quantity of it a litle
aqua fortis (as you’ve occasion to use it) kill’d with 
the filings of steel or iron you may make it as black
as you please in a moment Hoc est atramentum
typographica. The curiosity of this Rx depends upon 
the right killing of the aqua fortis. There are several
sorts of A. F. you must take six pennyworth of A.F.
of the 3rd degree in strength (tho I presume you may 
use the strongest the country shops afford) which you may examine
put it into a glass vial. Put some water into a basin, put 
the vial with the A.F. into the basin of water. You must
take care that the glass is not fill’d with A.F. & that the water in 
the basin surmount the A.F. in the glass half an inch. the
bottle must be sufficiently capacious & stand in the basin
uncork’d The water must not run into the bottle
for then it will kill the a.f. too soon. Thus is must stand
where nothing can stir or move it, for the least motion 
makes it fire & it will burn any thing within the reach of
it. as soon as you’ve put the vial with the a.f. into the basin
of water you must critically every hour take up a little of
the filings of steel or iron betwixt your finger & thumb & gently
shake it into the vial; this will make it steam & smoke as if it
boyl’d but when you can’t discern it to steam nor smoke you may be
assured it is kill’d & you may take the vial out of the basin of water
But if when you stir it by taking it out of the basin you find it bubbles
or smokes cast into it a little water or put it into the basin again’
shaking into it a few filings as before; provided you find the filings
have not too much choakt it i.e. made it too thick. note the A.F.
must stand 2 days at least & then the longer it is kept it strikes the
deeper tincture. note At night going to bed you must be sure to 
shake in the same quantity of filings as you did hourly in the day
time. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor


184)
To make black ink Mr Robt Painter [E?risoman]
Rx blue galls ziii gums sonora zii green copperas zi beat al
small in a mortar & difuse in a qt of water int eh sun or warm
place two days tis the best ink that ever he used & the cheapest
much preferable to what he now uses.


(185
Atramenti compositio.
Rx pulv. gum arab. zij [groutely] corevisiae cong. 1 stent
per horas 24 sape agitando, deinde adde gallar. probe trit. ziv
simul stent per horas 24 tunc disolv. Ol virid. lbfs & subinde
agita per sephimanam postea adde sacch. albifs. zij in vini alb.
lbfs. solut. N.B. simmis spissu sit atramentu addas aq.
pluvial. q. s. a duo palmes & doctore Clay. another which will 
not change yellow. Rx half a pint (viz 6 ounces ½) of the blewest
soundest & heaviest (Turky) galls break em in pieces, put em into
an earthen pot with a quart of beer neither too strong nor
small (or ½ beer & ½ ale) let it stand 3 days then strain it fro 
the galls afterwards let it settle & pour off the clear & put 
the sedimt into several drinking glasses & pour off the clear
pt as oft as it clears, to which add Roman vitriol 2 ounces (in lumps 
they will dissolve & gum arabick zi green copperas a qr of an 
ounce or better Let em infuse one or 2 days then set em in a pitcher over
a gentle fire till they begin to boyl. note Roman vitriol & galls
& beer or water will not write black but a kind of a yellow
but a little green copperas added produces a lively black 2) there
being but little copperas in’t prevents it fro changing yellow
3) the deduction of the sedemt prevents it in a great measure
fro writing thick 4) you must avoid a flame & keep that
from the pitcher or pot to prevent its breaking. Brian  Simpson
an [excisemn] & E.A. 5) This ink writes pale it 1st but in a little
time grows blacker & blacker To make ink. the best way.
Put gum araback lgfs to white wine vinegar one qt for 2 or 3 
days till the gum is dissolv’d. Infuse green copperas lbfs in 
3 qts of soft water till the copperas is dissolv’d; bruise the best
galls lbi then add all the said ingredients together in a jug.
Keep em stirring for half an hour, which do for 2 or 3 days
successively till the ink is black. Mr Simon Barwell, attorney.
when it is too thick add a little vinegar to’t or water you must
use none but rain water stir the ingredients 3 or 4 times a day for a
week is enough. Pour off the clear [without] stirring Br S. Barwell.
Another Rx Griffy dam: water five pints It is a mineral water near
Coleorten in Leicershire viz a calibeate water that will turn black 


186)
by the infusion of galls. note any [span] water that
will change black with galls (viz the German span water in Europe)
is to be prefer’d before all other liquids in the composition of
ink It makes it more beautiful & black & more durable less
apt to change yellow than any other liquor Put 5 pints of
span water into an earthen pitcher that is well glaz’d, gum 
arabick ziij stir it with a stick once a day or twice; when the
gum is dissolv’d add Turky galls the blewest & heavest zvi
Roman vitriol zij green copperas a qr of one ounce & [illegible]
allum a qr of an ounce gum sandriac zij pulveriz’d stir it
once a day for a week then set the pitcher over a fire where
there is no flame (which will be apt to crack it) & let all the
ingredients cymber a pretty while till it is ready to boyl
then let it stand a little to cool then strain it thro a linnen
strainer into another clean pitcher having a board with a hole
in the middle thro which put a stick & stir it once a day as
long as it lasts, keeping it from the frost for that spoils it.
Boyling it preserves it from moulding, but if it does mould
& is never stir’d it will write black but the other way, viz to 
boyl & stir is best. whether the frost will spoil ink made of 
 span water I have not experimented. This is the very best Rx
for writing ink in this book E. A. & Mr Jn Wilkins Less green
or ale than when it is span water that is dead 2) Put Roman vitriol zij or
better into the said ingredients & dead span water & they will not change black
with a qr of an ounce of green copperas nor with ½ an ounce 
but with zi they will the ink will be good for nothing E. A. note you must use the calybeate water
presently after they come from their springs. German span water as soon as
you open a flask They will not keep good long after the flask has been once
open’d tho you cork & seal em down immediately. you may try their vertue by 
putting a piece of gall to a little & if the water changes black it is fit to
make ink of otherwise if it does not change black it is not so good as rain or common
water E. A Br Barwels original Rx which was given
him to make ink p. 185. was copperas 4 ounces but 
that did not make so good ink [illegible] copperas 8 ounces.


(187
To make the best ink. Buy a sixpenny paper (viz zij) of 
Holmans ink pouder at any book sellers & add to it a pint of
clear cyder or old verjuice or now verjuice that is clear (either of
these are better than rain water as Holman directs in his [illegible]) This pouder
decayeth not by keeping & is refin’d from that poysonous nature that
causes ink to turn yellow If any writings of this ink lie soaking in 
water a month together it will not alter but remain as long as the
paper or parchmt endures. it is sold by the maker Charles Holman in 
 Red Lyon street agt the White Hart Inn in Southwark, he having his majesty’s
patent under the great seal of England for making the same. The
Rd Mr Jn Laurence of Yelvertoft in Northshire commends cyder or
verjuice before rain water or stale beer. Holmans ink never grows mouldy
To make good black ink Mr Amos Taylor of Stamford
Rx rain water two gallons galls bruis’d lbifs green copperas
12 ounces best gum arabick bruis’d 12 ou. Roman vitriol & 
roch (or clear) allum each zifs white sugar candy in pouder 4 
ounces. Let it infuse in the sun 20 days stir it often then
strain it thro a cloth & put it into a bottle when too thick add
a little rain water or vinegar stirring it a day or 2 before you 
use it To make a less quantity Rx rain water 2 qts galls 6 ounces
pr. 6 d g. copperas 3 ou. pr. [19] gum arabic 3 ou. pr 3 d R. vitriol 
qr ½ of an ounce pr 1 2 ½ allum do pr [19] w. sugar candy 1 ou. pr 2 d 
Total pr [illegible] 1 d stir it well with a stick in a pitcher & it will write well
in 2 days time when you’ve no warm sun set it in an oven 
after bread. To make ink. Rx rain water 2 pts galls beaten
5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum arabick 3 ou. sugar candy 2 
ou. stir them together twice or thrice a day for a fortnight
by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.
To make a very good shining ink far exceeding the common
Rx Blew galls ligs gum arabic three ounces copperas one
ou ½ pomgranate rind & log wood each one ounce Bring 
the ingredients into a gross pouder & infuse them a month in a
qt of stale beer Mr Tho. Hewet of Dunton & Mr Wright an
[exciseman] another Rx the blewest nut galls 3 d
gum arabick 1 d best loaf sugar 29 The whitest copperas
1 d
To clarifie quills according to art. Boyl 2 or 300 quills 
in half a pint of linseed oyl 3 minutes If you intend em 
to be of a yellow colour you must put in English pink 1 d 
ibid. when you make ink dissolve the gum by its self in a little [illegible]
your galls when it is made lay a flannel over your pot & pour your ink thro it to
[clense] all the filth out of it [illegible] [illegible] schoolmaster


188)
To make black ink [illegible] Booth
Rx w: wine 1 at galls ziiij green copperas zii gum=arabick zi
bruise the galls every one into 4 or 5 pieces put em into the wind
& let em stand 3 or 4 days stiring em often then put in your
copperas & your gum being well dissolv’d in a little w: wine keep 
it with stirring 3 or 4 days’ more than it is fit for use.
when the ink is too thick put white wine vinegar to it. It is much
better than any water. Valerius Stephens writing aster at Blaby.
when you make ink dissolve the copperas in water & you will see
a scum on the surface of the water which you must scum off & 
it will improve the ink by throwing it away. You may boil em
together when you are in hast. ibid.


(189
A person bewitch’d or under an ill tongue.
Rx amara dulcis the root miiij boyl it in water 2 qts to a qt
in a bell metal pot, having a cover paste the steam in, over a slow
fire of charcoal or embers for 3 days when cold open it & strain it
Drink 6 spoonfuls 3 times a day. it will cure one drawn on hoops
or one under an ill tongue as country folks call it The mountebank
calls it the wind gout. you may make it into a syrup with syrup of 
roses or buckthorn to keep for a purge & for a blind Dr Pool.


190)


(191
for all sorts of aches & pains 108  211  61
in whatsoever part in old or young; the pt affected 1st 
being anointed with it, warm’d by the fire, work’d in 
by a warm hand & after that chaf’d in with an hot fire
shovel or flat iron. Rx oyl of roses, oyl of worms
(or oyl of camomile if the nerves are most affected) & 
unguentum dialthaea each 1 d Mr Isaac Taylor
unguent alb camphorat. is an exct. cooler in all inflammations.
unguentu dialthaea is an admirable emollient & 
anodyne I. T. A bath for pains or aches. Rx
wormwood, St. Johns-wort, scordiu, camomil flowers
melilot flowers centaury, Roman wormwood each  mi 
long & round aristolochia each zi boyl em in a sufficient 
quantity of water a qr of an hour, remove it fro 
the fire & add brandy a pint. In racking & inveterate
pains you’l find it to be admirable I. T. another
mix oyl of turpentine with goosegrease & anoint therewith 
then lay on Bents salve. If these failput scalding hot water
into 2 or 3 earthen or stone bottles eating butter’d ale
with treacle or drink whey laying on a great many blankets
to make yiu sweat out the [peccant] humours E. A.
Inward aches & pains in the bowels & back caus’d
by catching cold or by lying in damp sheets
Rx mercurius dulcis in fine pouder 20 gr. in the pap of
an apple It makes the ordure black. Take care of 
catching cold with it lest it flux you This cured James
Davis, Smith of Croft. mercurius dulcis if it does not
purge, fluxes viz a great quantity purges, a small one 
fluxes.
Mary Chester of Blaby was cur’d of an inward pain
on her side, a pleuritick pain, by taking garlick boyl’d in 
milk in great quantity & for a long time It cured her when 
she was a mere skelliton. Take it every night.


192)
An inward bruise. Bleed twice in the arm 1st in 
one arm then in the other intermitting 4 or 5 days.
after bleeding in the morning, at night Rx salt of hartshorn
gr. zv. pr. 3 d Venice treacle zi pr. 1 d lucatellus balsam
zi pr. 2 d drink after em rosemary posset drink one large
porringer in bed to sweat Mr Wilks, surgeon.
A sciatica pain or a pain in the hip or back
caused by cold etc. Good for the stone & wind colic
Rx sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls pr. 2 d mace 4 d shred it & 
take 1 spoonful of oyl with its proportion of mace in 
the morning fasting abt noon & at night presently after
supper when you are in bed Rx oyl of turpentine 20 drops
in a 1/2 spoonful of sugar sweetening the mouth with sugar after
it & lie as long as you can on the back viz ½ an hour or 
an hour after it. Boyl the strongest ale a qt with as 
many oats as a man can hold in his hand till almost ½ is 
wasted then strain & boyl it again to the consistence of a 
salve keeping it stirring spred it upon allum’d leather 6
inches broad 9 I long prick’t with a penknife point Lay it
lengthways over the small of the back or where the chief
pain is lay it on as hot as you can abide it when you are
in bed. eat nothing but fennel & parsly shred, the [illegible]
with bread & butter for a week tho you are pretty well sooner
& take the sweet oyl & mace & oyl of turpentine & 
sugar for a week as you did the 1st day. This cured Jonathan 
Simons woolwinder & glover of Wigson Magna when he was
so pained in the small of his back that he could not go nor
dress himself. This made him so well that he went with a
stick & reap’d the next day J. Simons & Tho Heifford of
[Conaltesthorp]. another for a sciatica, rheumatic or any pain
in the limbs v p. 61. Wm Frees of Blaby having a pain 
in his stomach which sometimes remov’d to his back & side
he sweat & was ready to faint away was cured by Tho.
Ferren of Leicer viz Rx water of tyme parsly & of camomile
flowers each zifs sp. of juniper zifs oyl of caraways
zfs tincture of laudanu [illegible] ij Hungary water zij syrup of anniseeds
& poppies each zi mix for a julap. Dose is one spoonfull 


(193
or 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 at night going to bed shake
the bottle when you use it. Rx pilulae ex duobus zfs or [illegible] ij for
one dose. T. Farren wracking pains causing the belly etc. to [swell]
& a pain in the back the cause being stoppage of urine Rx
oyster shels sifted thro a lawn sive in fine pouder one spoonful
at a little at a time in a coffee dish of warm ale or beef
or posset drink till you’ve taken the spoonful Mrs Newlove
Bridget Dawkins Pain in the back caus’d by stooping etc.
or in ay pt of the body anoint with unguentu ari, i.ei. Priest
Fintle al. cuckoo pints oyntmt made with the juice of the
herb & hogs lard free from salt. E. A. another anoint with
oyl of tar pr. 6 d per ou. at the drugsters or chymists at
London. Heat it in with a hot iron It is good for any 
strain new or old. Mr Arden Elsmere surgeon.
Isaac Jackson baker of Wigston Magna was often griped
& had a violent pain in his back & bowels round his girdle
but some in his [???bone] He had all the things in the
shop of [illegible] Orme apothecary in Leicer that he thought requisite 
given [illegible] in vain He was very thirsty & had no stomach
so his [illegible] Mr [illegible] the minister advis’d him to drink spring
or well water one qt cold & as soon as he cou’d every morning 
for six weeks together tasting & to walk or use exercise that wou’d
keep him [warm] for an hour after it [illegible] wou’d chill his stomach 
& kill him In Augt & Septer 719 he took his qt jug & 
walk’d to the spring a little below the town near the place
made for horses to drink at from whence i.e. fro which spring
flows their [illegible] It has a brackish iron taste, but the stones
near it are not of a yellow colour. It felt very cold the
[illegible] morning but [illegible] very agreeable afterwards He found
[illegible] that very day & his stomach began to revive at the end of
6 weeks all his [illegible] were vanish’d & he was perfectly well & 
his thirst extinguished & felt no inconvenience only it made
his feet very tender once or twice he felt a little inconsiderable 
pain in making water which he thought might be the effect
of graves or some smaller stone passing away with it Isaac 
Jackson
Mr Langhornes poultis for an old ach
Rx Tannic parsly feather fern & rosemary tops simber them in 
a pint of strong ale a good while then take a little wheat 
bran & a little oat meal a little [illegible] of muttn the fat boyl
em very thick then add a little wine vinegar [pater meus]



194)
Sciatica pain or hops pained.
Xtian Ponton of Blaby had such violent pain in her
hips that she cou’d scarce go, she rub’d em with camphorated spirt of wine
which gave her immediate ease & drove away the pain. She keeps
it always by her & buys 1 d a t a time. Xtian P. another Aunt
Dorothy Boothby’s cerecloth made of oyl, red lead etc. will
disperse almost any pain from any pt. of the body It will
dissolve cancerous nodes in a sore breast & disperse jelly
that is gotten into the cup or joynt of a joynt that has been 
lately broken or out.
Mrs Frances Bickerton’s green oyntmt Rx the tender leaves
of young bays & rue each lbij wormwood lbij sage lbi
]gather them in a dry day & in the heat of the day & in the
month of June. Shred em very small then mince sheeps suet
very fine lbiij pound them altogether in a stone mortar till they 
are incorporated into one substance as it were then put it
into a pot like a cream pot adding to it best oyl olive 3 pints
mix it well together with your hands Then stop it close & set it
in some cold place ten days then put it into a brass pan & 
let it boyl four hours very gently If you see it bubble
apace abate the fire To know when it is boyled enough you must
drop a drop or 2 into a sauce If it looks grass green
then take it off If not boyle it longer but always have a care of
burning it the way to prevent it is to stir it continually & take
up some of the [illegible] & feel if they begin to be dry take it away
then strain it into a bason when you’ve strain’d it put to it four
ounces of oyl of spike Then put it into gally pots & cover them
close with leather This oyntmt will least seven yrs & be better
than if it was new. It is good agt all kind of aches, swellings,
carbuncles, cramps & such like in man & beast. Mrs Caulton.
A cerecloth for a swelling or ach in the joynts.
Rx virgins waz sij frankincense & olibanum & pine rosin each
zi stone pitch ziiij oyl of mace, oyl of lillies & oyl of roses
each zi melt em all together in a clean pan when they are melted
take ‘em off the fire & pout in mace, saffron in fine pouder each
zi stirring it tilt it be well incorporated. Then dip in fine old
clothes. when you use it warm a piece of the cerecloth & apply 
it to the pained place Pater Meus.
An ext. balm for an ach, bruise, sprain, or wound.
Rx pure sallet oyl a pint, put it into a gally glass with these
flowers viz red rose leaves miij bugle flowers mij centaury
flowers mi celandine flowers mi St. Jns wort flower 
miij to infuse in the sun all summer & harvest Then you must
add half so much turpentine as oyl when the season waxeth 
cold put the glass into water moderately warm It will strain the 


(195
better from the flowers keep it for your use.
A cerecloth for issues. Rx Bees wax zvi Venice turpentine
ziij vermillion zfs red lead zvi orris roots in fine pouder zi
the best musk 3 gr. rosewater four spoonfuls sallet oyl as much
first melt the wax then add the turpentine then the R. lead then the
orris pouder then the rosewater wherein the musk has been steep’d a 
quarter of an hour then the vermillion & oyl Let it not boyl when
you’ve put in the oyle & stir’d em together dip in the cloaths oyl a
knife & smooth the cerecloths as they cool. S. S.
A cerecloth for any pain especially what is caused by cold.
Rx oxycroceu 2 d Venice turpentine 2 d white pitch 2 d 
boyle em together spred it on allum leather This cures Tho.
Allen Pumpmaker of Frolesworth when he goes into a well & 
catches cold in his limbs. F. A.
A pain in the hip or neck. amount the pained place with Bore’s
al Brawn’s grease. This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt.
E. A. was cured of a violent pain in his shoulder by lying ina stone
trough fill’d with so much water that the water could just cover his face & whole
body this he did in the morning early for abt a fortnight in May 729.
Mr Reve a Northamptonshire farmer not far from Rushden
had a pain in his hop which made him very lame He was cured by having 
an issue made in his leg below the knee on the same side & 
Mrs Palmers salve made of soap & rue pounded together was apply’d
to his hip V. E. A.’s green book of Rxs p. 295.
For a sciatica Rx stags-horn saw it so as it may go into
a pot then boyl all or part of it in fair water, when it is cold
& thick like jelly anoint the place with it warm probatum, {m”]
Hewet E. A.’s mother
For an old or new pain in the knee or in any part 
Bath it twice a day with ale-grounds hot with a red
flannel cloth dipt in it wrap another cloth about it
to keep it warm for a day or 3, or put your knee into
the muck of a paunch of a beef new kill’d as hot as can be
or which is a cleanlier way. Lay the bowels i. e. the guts & 
paunch unbroken of a beef or sheep new kill’d upon the knee Wm Wyat
of Adderston. a man that had a pain in h is knee & was lame & had been
under the care of several drs & surgeons to no purpose was at last cured by 
slicing 7, 8 or 9 onions into a pint of ale of which he drank abt ½ a pint in the ay
at several times & ½ pint at night & was cured in a little time Tho. Smith of Blaby


196)
For a sciatica pain. Foment it with burn’t brandy
against the fire and chafe it well with your hand or
beat some flax seed (abt zi) and boil it in a pint of water
a quarter of an hour and strain it and bath the pain’d place
well with it warm. John Berbeck servt to an officer
in the army at Darby.
Sciatica. Rx Oil of turpentine zi, boars grease zfs
and deer’s marrow or for want of it Deers sewet zfs melt 
them together and anoint the place well therewith before the
fire. John Goodwin groom to the Lord Gray, in the room of
boars grease [illegible] the marrow of a hog zfs.
Sciatica Rx Oil of turpentine and oil Exeter p.a. 
and chafe it in well upon the pain’d place then lay
on this plaster. Diaculon zfs and oxycroceum zii
and oil of origanum 10 drops melt ‘em together and
make a plaster and lay it upon the place pain’d. The
landlord at the green man at Darby.
E. A. in the month of January 1729 (when there was a hard frost that lasted 
7 or 8 weeks or longer) was troubled with a scyatica pain in his right
huchbene for which he was dry cupped & wet cupped & same time after a
surgeon with an air pump drew away six ounces of blood from the
pained place of his huchbene. none of those things did him any service
or gave him ease Mr Ross schoolmr stockiner of Leicer his cerecloth made as
[melilot [illegible] [illegible] & camphir be gave ease Out to found most benefit by anointing ]
[once] or twice a day with oil of turpentine This cerecloth is good for scytica pains 
found out by E. A. found some camphor very fine as much as will make the melilot
smell very strong of it melt a roll of melilot salve then take it from the fire & stir in
gradually the camphor in fine powder & stir ‘em well together & pour em into a black pot or stir
like [illegible] you may make it into a roll agn you may buy melilot salve at 2 d per ounce on a [illegible]
of pr 6 d camphor at [illegible] [? d] per ounce at the apothecaries Spread some of this camphor’d melilot 
on hoops [illegible] [illegible] with a feather or the finger end moistend with oil of turpentine once a week you 
may moisten the same [illegible] the oil [illegible] if this cured [Mrs Ward] [illegible] who had a pain in her
side belly before & after child bearing which pain had caused the flesh to be very hard This cerecloth
dissolv’d it try it on a corn E. A. [illegible] huchbene in vain it would not cure his suyatica 
the [illegible] end
IN march 1740 the sciatica pain return’d and the former
remedies prov’d inefectual E. A. found the most benefit by a remedy
in Pharmacopoeia Pauperum which is as followeth. A cataptersim
for the hop gout Rx mustard seed zii white pepper
and ginger each zij mix em together in fine pouder and
keep it in a glass close stop’t and just at the time of using it
make it into a poultis with a sufficient quantity of oxymel 
of squills the leather that you spread it upon must be spread
round its edges with Bents salve or some sticking salves it
draws the humour of the hip. The salve is to keep it on.


(197
To kill rats
Pulverize black hellebore & mix it with fat or tallow.
Rub an apple over a trap it will take away their scent
W. C. another Rx costards or codlings or any juicy apples
whole & unpair’d 2 pts onions whole & unpeel’d 1 pt in 
all i.e. of both together a pint. Put em in an earthen pot & 
ty a brown paper over it & set it in the mouth of the oven.
after the bread is placed & bake it when it is bak’d peel off
the skin of the apples & throw away their cores & peel off
the outward skin of the onions & mix only the pap of both apples 
& onions together with ratsbane zfs in very fine pouder 
[illegible] & set it on a pewter plate (or earthen dish) where the rats resort
viz on a chamber floor etc. Sam. Pauly bricklayer of
Wigston Magna try’d this with good success they eat it all clean up
as if the had lick’d the plate & he made some more & set 
it again but it remain’d untouch’d He found no dead rats 
 but it drove em away & clear’d his ground of em for a 
great many yrs after Sam. Pauly E. A. try’d Sam Pauly’s Rx
Augt 729 with 8 little codlings & 5 midling onions with water
abt ½ a pint to keep the pot from burning.
Another Rx fresh butter mix it with ratsbane a small quantity
in fine pouder Set some on bits of chips or broken rots & 
lay one great lump on a piece of board or on the outside
a coffer or strike turn’d upwards. This was done with
good success by James Allen of Wetston They eat it greedily It drove the rats
quite away for many yrs & he never say any sick or 
dead till he pull’d down pt of his house then he found
a great many of their bones behind the pargine & in 
holes James Allen another Mrs Meadows of Wigston 
Magna had an aunt that boyl’d pippins she peel’d & cored em 
& set the pap mixt only with sugar where the rats frequented
& they eat it up for 3 nights at last she mixt ratsbane in 
fine pouder with it without sugar & a little time after among some 
thorns & in other places they found 3 strikes of rats dead you may 
use codlins instead of pippins Sam. Pauly Bricklayer
another to poyson rats & nice in spite of their cunning. Rats lick their
feet like cats. mix white arsnick beaten very, very fine in a glass mortar 
the apothecaries never sift it zi with hogs lard ziij spred it thin on a 
board where they come or on the side trees. They will lick their feet & 
it will kill em. Try’d by Mr Jn Jenford apothecary.



198)
To kill rats.
Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats or [fulmeres] etc.
then pare an apple & tie or stick it on thro an iron fixt to
the bridge then drop some hony on the apple & set it on the
side tree or wall plate of a barn or where the rats frequent
& you may catch by the tayl or leg Dianah Smith.
another Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats etc. cover
the bridge with a paste made of wheat flower & milk set on
the side tree or on shelves where they haunt a square trap 
is best. Wm Hollins of Rotherby has caught so many with it by 
the leg or tayl that they’ve forsaken the house. W. H.
another Rx a large fall trap that opens at both ends with 2 
doors lay wheat on the bridge Mr. Seal of Narborow caught 
3 rats at one time so Mr Seal. another mix malt-smithu grease,
& sweet ale wort with ratsbane & daub the side trees or places where they haunt 
They will lick their feet & die Tho Clarks wife of Blaby
another Tie a piece of bacon to the bridge of a great fall
trap Lay some bran at the end of the trap & a little in the
trap to entice em in & you may catch a great many ibid.
another Lay a board that will tipe down at once corner when a
rat or mouse stands on’t over a malt cistern & lay some oats
on the middle of the board the cistern being empty & the [illegible]
made to turn on 2 axle pins The rats can’t get out again & you
may catch em alive so, 2 or 3 of a night Wm Glover of Fleckney
another Look at the ridge trees on the top of the thatch’d 
barns or outhouses & where you see the thatch woarn bright
& the cob webs rub’d off which is commonly near one of the ends
Get a ladder & a long fork & turn the tines so that you may thrust
en under the ridge tree prick em in oft & you will see the rats if
there are any creep out & come down & run along the side 
Trees plant a man ready on the top of a ladder leaning agt.
each side arm’d with a beesom (3 men in all upon ladder) to
knock the rats down have in readiness a sharp dog or 2 below on
the barn floor & more companions with broos to catch or 
knock em on the head stop all the holes in the floors or walls
with straw be that none may escape or if any do they will never
return to the house again. when you’ve kill’d any rats cut off the
skin from the fore heads of some of the biggest & oldest & tie a
string abt their middle or necks nail em up that that they may hang high
& they will deter others from approaching or residing with you. you
may throw some rats amongst any loose wood etc. where you think 
they harbour If the barns are slated you may perceive by the cobwebs
bring warn away or by the smoothness of the wood where they
harbour under the ridge tree or laces you must often try with a long
pitching fork under the ridg trees to disturb em especially when the barns 



(199
To kill rats.
are quite or but half empty when the barns are ful try the malt house & 
outhouses. This method in the yr 1719 cleared E A. of rats when
traps of a great many sorts & sizes ratcatchers with poyson & 
baits & snaires & steel-traps cou’d not clear the house tho a great
many were catch’d A good cat that will kill rats as well as mice 
is a valuable jewel to a husband man E. A. 
Tho. Satchwell a ratcatcher of Bedworth in Warwick:shire
4 m from Coventry mixes white armony or a little
white mercury sublimate in fine pouder sifted thro a lawn
sive (as much as will lie on a silver two pence will kill 2 or 3 
rats you  must not put in too great a quantity for then they 
will not eat it) with brown sugar which is better than white for
a moist bate. white is best mixt with pouder for mice & 
pippins scrap’d fine Let this be lay’d on the side tree in three
traps. 2 traps must be placed near the couples especially They
will lik their feet which will kill em Lay mercury sublim. mixt with
loaf sugar & oat meal for mice There is no way to destroy poyson
but by burning it. nothing kills rats like poysonous baits
well made or sooner clears an house of em. If rats do not
take baits in 2 or 3 days after they are lay’d they will never
take em Good apples viz pippins especially at the spring when 
apples are scarce will tempt rats as good as any thing to 
eat poyson. There is no killing rats without poyson Tho. Satchwell
who learnt of Jn Baxter a pudler. In the beginning of
Augt 1720 E. A. sent a letter directed to Tho. Satchwell ratcatcher of Bedworth near
Coventry. He keeps Coventry market but not constantly. He came when 
E. A.’s barns were empty & told him that no apples or pears will do for a bait
for rats but what are mellow, neither codlins nor sweetins till they are
mellow. apples being out of date he brought to Blaby in leather [illegible]
the skins or pearings & make the pap yellow with yellow arsnic in fine
pouder he put in some white arsnic in fine pouder but not above a 4th 
pt nux vomica a little grated fine & mixt with brown sugar so that E. A. cou’d
not discern the nux vomica but he told him there was some in the sugar the
sugar cook’d dirtyer than usual which made S. A.  think that there might be some in 
it. HE made it strong of the poyson because he conjectures more rats are 
kill’d by licking their feet when they run on it than by eating the bait
He lays it thick that it may not dry away quickly. In barns & out houses
he lays it only on the side trees, near the couples, in the middle & on each 
end of the side trees where there is no dust affirming where there is dust
there are no rats He can tell whether rats resort to the side trees by feeling 
on the side trees. Their feet scurry away the dust. He uses no [illegible]
the scent of the apples [illegible] is sufficient [illegible] to draw the rats.


200)
He uses only one little flat trencher & one knife which 
he brings along with him, he keeps his poyson in papers
in a great leathern pouch. T. S. He affirms that rats will seldom
or never take baits out of oyster shells, or pieces of pots. Tho
Satchwell. E. A. found in some wheat straw one great
rat shrunken up & had great live maggots in [illegible] abt a fortnight
after he lay’d [illegible] T. S. you may trie if treacle daub’d
on the side trees near the coller posts or gable ends of a 
barn or stable or malt house will not fright rats away
if you perceive they eat it you mix poyson therewith E. A.
another to kill rats Rx some [illegible] brandy & moisten some white
bread toasts therewith over night Brandy will kill rats & cats.
says my author. Carter Ratcatcher He thinks that the antimonial
paste is made with brandy which some ratcatchers use. ibid.
another Widow Whitworth alewoman at Gelders Hall
kill’d & drove away all the rats by boyling malt 1 pt in water
2 qts & nux vomica 2 d (  ) rasp’d or pounded Lay it on
flat trenches or boards on side trees or where the rats haunt
It is best to lay when there is no corn in the barn. It will kill 
only creatures born blind or dark says my author Wm Cole
son of sheepshead slater sed caveat emptor
another Set live hony i.e. clear hony in pieces of broken pots
or panchions with ratsbane that it may not run abt on side trees or [walplates]
or on shelves or where the rats resort This method killed 14 
set earthen platters with water in em & the rats will drink 
till they die & lie down swell’d by the water Ann Brooks alewoman
of Blaby
another Rx some sweet alewort of the first running mix
some wheat flower with it till it is abt as thick as oat meal pudding
or flower meat add to it ratsbane zi in very fine
pouder mix 2 d mix em well lay abt the quantity of a wallnut in a place 
or on the walplates & side trees them selves without pots etc. If the
rats set their feet on’t It will kill them because they will
lick themselves clean This method kill’d abundance without any 
harm Mr Thornton junior of Blaby The alewort makes it set
& dry hard on in a little time If y ou put on chips or pots
or shels of oysters they will not eat it. mix a little grease or fresh butter
with the alewort to prevent its drying E. A.
To kill rats or mice. Rx some chesnuts of which rats are great loves above most
things roast em & scrape em fine almost to pouder which mix with [illegible] wheat
flower & a little fine ratsbane mix em strew some ratsbane on the edges
Geo Florence [fidler]
another Rasp some nux vomica (al. crow figs) to fine pouder for it is
not be pounded in ordinary mortar & mix it with oatmeal dry Mr
Orme his apothecary has known this kill a great many rats Mr Orme



(201
The Clark of Barwel Aleman & Ann Tasie’s
way of brewing ale
Hard clear water is best for brewing especially for old
ale but it is the longest in clearing, get the water in over
night & brew the next morning. Rain or soft water makes
thick, sick ale. Grind the malt round i.e. just break it but
not small & use it in a day or 2 or it will not make so much
ale because it loses its spirits with keeping long. Boyl the
water before you mash. Let it stand on the mash two hours 
then draw off a bowl full or more till it runs clear & pour
em on the top again & let it stand half an hour more on the
mash after it is clear. Rub the hops very well betwixt your 
hands to part em handful by handful and agt the in side of the bub 
then put em into the tub when you let go boyl the hops in 
the liquor an hour & half then cool it & set it a working put
hops lbv to malt 13 strike north clay hops are the best
keep it 2 days working. Put most of the wort into the working 
vat the 1st day If you put it together too hot it will make
the ale thick & it will never be very clear. when it tasts well 
of the hop & there is a sedimt in the dish, or bowl or hand
then tun it Let it stand in the vessel till it has done purging
& do not stop it up of a week or it will purge agn & never 
be clear if you stop the purge hole too soon it will not be clear.
Stop the bunghole as soon as you have tun’d but you must 
not clay it up till you fill it up. Fill the vessel as full as you 
can keep it ½ a yr or a yr before you broach it. Bottle the
winter ale abt Michaelmass. fill the bottles & let the mouth lie 
down one night to moisten the corks then set em upright this prevents
whites. In winter wrap every bottle in hay putting hay betwixt 
every bottle It keeps it warm & safe from frost & ripens it but use
only a little hay to make the bottles stand upright in the summer
because much hay will make em fly. Let the corks be good & dry 
Lay em near the fire one night to dry em, before you use em. Set
the bottles in a wooden bin winter & summer to save room. Let the
malt be ½ yr old for ale that is to be kept long. Beans in the malt
do but little good. They make the ale high colour’d. always draw with 
a cock. Let the window of the ale cellar stand high that the light may 
descend like a pair of stairs. Set a board or boards against the light of the
window on the inside to keep out the heat of the sun in summer & the
cold in winter Choose velvet corks & pick em one by one tho you 
give 2 d a gross Beat em in with a little wooden mallet. Rack off the bottle’d 
ale with a [illegible] crane having a little pipe fixt a little distance from the 
bottom of it to suck with the mouth or to draw by to set the ale a running
[let] one and touch the bottom of the bottle on the inside Let the bing


202)
Let the bin be a yd high 2 f ½ broad 1 yd 2 f ½ long with 3 
partitions all of boards in this set the bottles one upon another
with their mouths upright upon a little hay at the bottom of each
bottle for it to rest on. Tho. Clark sells his ale at 6 d per bottle. it
is high colour’d & has a treacle taste. He says it seldom or never
makes any man sick. Tho. Clark.
Ann Tasie E. A.’s servant. her way of brewing. when malt is long
ground it is apt to [illegible] and the water will not go thro it. Let
the water stand on the mash 3 hours, more vertue comes out of it 
the last hour then in the other 2 hours, draw off a little tub ful till it
runs clear, then lade it with a bowl again upon the malt. you cannot
make strong ale for [keeping] of less than 16 strikes to a hogshead
unless malt be extraordinary good. [Green hops make bitter & unpleasant
drink, brown hops make the most pleasant & best tasted
ale. Green hops kept long turn white at last Mr Jn Smally of
Leicer. Hops when they are kept 2 yrs lose ½ their vertue & strength 
they will keep one yr goo after the 1st yr you must add to their
weight an allowance for a defect of their vertue E.A.] Put in hops
2 d to six strike or ½ an hogshead i.e. 4 d to an hogshead (you must put
in hops 7 d to keep one yr in the hogshead & one yr in the bottles
called old beer Mr Ed. Stokes.) keep the [ale] besides that day you brew
it on two days & a piece a working. you must tun it on the third day
after brewing. when it is clear in the working tub tun it. Putting in 
[wort] just before you tun is apt to make all that will gripe especially 
if it be drunk now & it is less diuretick. In a cold winter put in to
the work vat the work boyling hot from the fire but if you put it in
only scalding hot (a degree below boyling) it will scald the barm 
& make it settle to the bottom which makes the drink have a bitterish
dead taste. when the barm is scalded take some of the drink that
is fallen in the vat & boyle it & put it into the vat boyling hot as soon
as you can & work it abt with a dish soundly till the froth rises then
cover it up warm & it will work on again. If you’ve more wort add to 
it & keep it working till you tin it It will always have an unpleasant
bitter taste. Let the bottles be wash’d a month before you use em in the
winter & a fortnight in the summer neither dry em by the fire nor
in the sun for those drying are apt to breed whites but dry em in a 
cellar or in a room on a bottle crotch turn’d with their mouths downwards
& you will have no whites. Those bottles are least apt to produce
whites or be murky that are not wash’d in the winter but stand with
the sedimt of the bottles unstopt In March wash the bottles with short & 
cold water tho you’ve a little more trouble. a little mallet with lead
quite thro the middle of it drives the corks in best. Ann Tasie


(203



204)



(205
The yellow jaundice Dr Morton
Dry saffron 1 d rub it to pouder with the fingers take
it with a little sugar or with beer or posset drink
over night in the morning bruise or shred a little
handful of the leaves of artichoaks that grow on the
stalks near the roots put em into ½ a pint of ale & 
let em infuse ½ an hour then drink it fasting. It is a 
great bitter & sometimes purges. Rx the saffron & artichoak
be 3 nights & 3 mornings Mrs M.
The Black Jaundice Rx Ivory shavings zviii boyl’d in new
milk 2 pts till it comes to [illegible] strain it drink ½ a pint fasting Then boyl ground
ivy leaves mij in 2 qts of ale till it comes to one Put in red
sanders zij after the other ingredients are boyl’d then strain
it & drink ½ a pint fasting Wm Padmore.
A Decoction of rosemary in water taken before exercise 
cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine does the
same. Pecheys Herbal. another A seaman that was a hard
drinker was cured of the jaundice by eating every day 
one sevil orange peel & all, sliced & salted & some days 2 
or 3 sevil oranges with salt & drank on [still] during the 
cure Mr Jn Cochrane Lieutent another Rx hempseed
mi bruise it then boyl it in a pint of new milk till ½ is consumed
strain out the hempseed & drink the milk warm in 
the morning fasting for a week together or longer if occasion
requires. Mr. Daly farrier of Higham ferriers & Sister Ekins
another Rx 3 nights going to bed as much rhubarb in pouder
as will lie on a shilling in a spoonfull of w. wine Rx a spoonful
or 2 after it, intermit 3 nights, if it has not effected
a cure repeat it. Lady Curzon. another Rx 3 nights going to 
bed a good draught of ale with saffron 2 d infus’d in it for
a man, 1 d for a child. You may infuse it 6 hours or more in
a little ale & add fresh ale to it when you drink it. you must
throw the first water you make in a morning new made,
into the fire for 3 mornings successively ibid.
A perfect medicine for the yellow & black jaundice
& the colic in the stomach Rx a peck of snails in their 



206)
shels wash em in a great bowl of beer then make
the hearth very clean & pour upon it half a peck of
charcole & set it on fire. when they are kindled with a shovel
make a great hole in the midst of them. Before you put them
into the fire drain the drink from them then pour in the
snails shels & all & scatter the live coles among them & 
so let them roast as long as you hear them make any noise
then take them out & with a knife & course cloth pick & wipe
from them all their green froth very clean then in a stone mortar
bruise them them shells & all. Take a qt of earth worms
slit & scour em with salt very well twice over then roast them
]& put em in a stone mortar & beat them to pieces, then you 
must make the pot very clean upon which you set the limbeck or
still & lay angelico mi in the bottom of the pot & celandine 
mi & lay it upon that. Put in rosemary flowers 2 qts at the
least also bearsfoot dockroots the bark of barbery wood,
sorrel & betony each mij rue mfs fenugreek turmeric each
zi well beaten Then lay the snails & worms upon the top of 
all the herbs & pour in four gallons of the strongest ale
then cover the pot & let it stand all night at least [illegible]
you mean to put the fire under it In the morning you must
put cloves ziij beaten to pouder & of saffron beaten to 
pouder the weight of nine pence & of very good hartshorn
grated or filed to pouder before it be weigh’d zvi you must
stir it after you have put in the hartshorn for fear it
shou’d go to the bottom then set it upon the limbeck & 
stop it fast with a piece of rye dough & so receive the water
in pints as you do any other water you  may receive 6 pints
or more The first is the strongest & must be kept by itself 
& so by degrees the smallest may be made better by some 
of the strongest when it is used. Mrs Frances [Bickersee] & Mrs
Caulton. The yellow or black jaundice. Rx some of the 
sticks or branches new gotten from a barbary tree slip off the
black rind then take the yellow rink (or back) that is next the wood 
& scrape it into a dish. Then scrape some yellow butter dock roots
& slice them thin Rx mi of the slic’d roots & turmeric sliced pr. 3 d 
Put em all into a stone jug & [illegible] 3 of small beer & hang saffron 
1 d in a bag in’t so stop it close for 24 hours Then drink a good
draught every morning & fast till dinner & at 4 of the clock in 
the afternoon drink again. S. S.
The yellow jaundice Rx turmerick 1 d saffron 2 d sugar zifs as much pouder of eg shells
as will lie on 1 s Put all those together in apint of w. wine Rx ¼ of it 
in a morning fasting for 4 mornings together It is an extraordinary 
good Rx & seldom fails curing S. S.
The decoction of rosemary leaves in water (or made like tea) 
& taken before exercise cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine 



(207
does the same Pecheys Herbal. This is entred p. 205
celandine put to the bare feet in your shoes will cure
the jaundice. manuscript book
This is ext in the jaundice Pechey’s Herbal Rx syrup of white horehound
zij oil of tartar per deliquium [illegible] i mix take often of it one
spoonful at a time The tops of white horehound infus’d in white
swine & drunk 3 mornings, is good to provoke the courses & to expel
the secundine & to strengthen the stomach & to cure an ill habit
of body ibid if continued for some time Dr Salmon says horehound opens
obstructions of both liver & spleen, cleanseth the breast & lungs causing
expectoration & by that means takes away old coughs, asthma’s, shortness
of breath, pains of the sides, spitting of the blood, physicks, inflammations
& ulcers of the lungs, it provokes the [?erms] & expels the birth
after birth & helps their watering Mr Wm Hunt a gravier of Braunston
in Leicershire has drank horehound tea with some drops of sal volatile [olecrum]
20 yrs together sweeten’d with sugar every morning.
Quincy says sal volatile olecrum for its preferable fragrancy has almost
excluded the use of spirit of hartshorn & the plain spirit of
sal armoniae It is a most noble cephalic & cordial either to smell
or to take inwardly Its dose is from 10 drops to 100 or upwards in 
wine or water or beer. Some ladies take a tea spoonful in 
water A sal
volatile made with [marium] syriacum according to Quincy’s dispensatory
is wonderful penetrating & serviceable to the head & diluted to a convenient
strength is one of the best sternulatories that can be invented
inwardly used it is of great efficacy in all nervous cases but is apt to 
be adulterated. Parkinson says horehound is good for such as by long
sickness, or a thin rheum falling upon their lungs are wasted & inclin’d
to a consumption the green herb taken with honey & for the [pursie] & short-winded
& promotes spitting taken with the dry’d root of [illegible] It is given
to women that have sore & long travels but it hurteth the bladder & the 
reins It is given to them that have taken poison or are stung or bitten by 
venomous serpents or beasts The leaves used with honey purge foul ulcers 
stay running or creeping sores It helpeth the pains of the sides, the juice with
roses drop’d into the ears easeth their pains A decoction of the herb is good for
those that have itches & running tetters or outbreaks used with vinegar. The green
leaves bruised boil’d with old hogs lard into an ointmt [healeth] the bitings
of dogs the swellings of womens breasts & the pains of pricking thorns The 
decoction of [illegible] in water is a singular help for the whites in women 
if they sit over it while it is warm. the same healeth scabs moist or dry if 
they are bathed therewith the herb stamped & put into new milk & set in a 
place pester’d with fliers will soon destroy em all. syrup of horehound in 
the shops are good for old coughs & old men & others that are asthmatic or
shortwinded to help em to spit & avoid flegm For the jaundice Make
a cake with the party’s urine and put it in the fire iron and
make a fire upon it and burn it and drink some turmerick
in a little warm ale Goody Smith







210)
Speech lost.
Dr Richd Langham gave my grandfather Mr Euseby
Shukbrugh Jan. 17th 1627. The imbecility of the voice is
by the indisposition & weakness of the instrumts of the
voice caused by a defluxion of rheum upon the arteries 
wear a cap a night especially if not day & night cut the
hair short & take the linctus or [lohoc] now & then chew reasins
of the sun (almost continually) spitting away the
stones and cause garlic or onions to be boyl’d in fair
water & salt & a very little wine vinegar make a sauce thereof
with sweet butter sugar & pepper to eat with all the meats the
oftener the better mater med. for streightness of wind.
Rx red sage mii liquorish bruis’d 1 d three parsly roots the
pith taken out one fennel root the pith taken out elecampane
root ziiij maiden hair in pouder 2 spoonfuls, aristolochia one
spoonful liverwort mij Boyl all these in 2 qts of stale ale until
 a pint be boyled away, strain it. Put into the liquor treacle of
jean 3 d aqua vitae 3 d live hony a spoonful brown sugar
candy ziiij one nutmeg finely beaten as much beaten cinnamon
as will lie on a shilling Let it stand & cool awhile then
put in the whites of 2 new layd eggs beaten Rx thereof lukewarm
morning & evening first & last the quantity of 4 or 5 spoonfuls
ibid. Lavender flowers in loss of speech do wonders on e
was cured by drinking a spoonful at a time of an infusion 
of them in sp. of wine The celebrated palsy drops are the 
compound sp. of lavender which are a most noble cephalic & 
cordial medicine but in loss of speech it is much better drpt
upon sugar & gradually dissolved in the mouth than swallow’d
at once Quincy’s Dispensatory. Loss of speech. Eat hot hony
at night going to bed for a pretty time Intermit some nights & repeat
This cured Mrs Ayres at London Mrs Finch. another Pellitory of
Spain the root, scrap’d & hold in the mouth helps the toothach
by drawing [illegible] the cold watery rheum it also helps the
palsy of the tongue & the loss of voice Millers Herbal.
another aqua mirabilis is said to preserve from the apoplexy & 
restore speech lost. Dose a ziij ad zi in rosemary water or rosemary
tea Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The distill’d oyl of peony seed drank in canary or sherrygut 10
or 12 helps the loss of speech. Salmon’s Disp.
An apoplectic (one troubled with an apoplexy) who had lost his speech
was [illegible] [illegible] agn by the use of spirit of castor & sp. of mother
of tyme p. 192 Salmon’s Praxis Medica.
One who had lost his speech was restor’d to it agn by chewing
tobacco. Cos. Waring Ashby Mrs. Ellen Stokes the window of the Rd Mr Ed
Stokes Parson of Blaby had lost her speech for several yrs at last she
happen’d to catch an ague to cure which she took 5 ou. of the Jesuits bark at several
times as is usual to drive it away & it recover’d her speech [illegible] Stokes 


(211
numbness in any lib or joynt
or sinew shrunk
Rx oyl of amber pr. 1 d ½ oyl of almonds pr. 29 mix & 
chafe em in agt the fire Ben. Alsop. another Boyl
4 calfs feet in water with a little oatmeal to a jelly 
when cold. Rub it on as hot as you can endure it from morn 
to night as oft as it drys in ibid. Another Rx tincture
of castor 14 or 15 drops for a man or woman in ale
as oft as they drink at or between meals It will restore
lost speech & cure a [dead] palsie when half the limbs are
taken away Dr Antony Brooks & Mrs Finch. Liquid amber
comforts & warms limbs afflicted by cold diseases & is exct 
in palsies & numbness Salmons Disp. Anne Tasie my servt
had one arm dead so that she could not lift it to her head
the next day she pounded [illegible] nettles & salt together & 
with her handkerchief bound it on her arm 24 hours & it gave
heat, strength & life to her arm & quite cured it. A. T.
A stiffness in the joynts especially after any bone had been 
broken. anoint with oyl of worms It gave Mrs. Freer of
Blaby the use of her arm after it was broken. Mrs Freer
a weakness, coldness, numbness, bruises, old aches, lameness
& straining of the joynts. Rx oyl of spike & oyl of
[exeter] p.e. anoint it on agt a fire David Lane. another
anoint with oyntmt of marshmallows This cured Wm Gimson
that was lame in his knee by falling ona  stump
Henry Gimson bonesetter of Widmarpool. another Rx a qt
of strong ale boyl it to a pint then add hogslard ziiij boyl
it again & apply it warm as you can endure it. This cured
a soldier when his hand was swell’d to black & blew & almost
inensible having running sore in the arm
caus’d by a bullet that was shot thro it. solder James
Edwards that carry’d the Stamford Mercury’s abt Leicershire etc.
had a pain & lameness in his ancle so that sometimes he could
not go some thought it a rheumatism, after having try’d a great
many things in vain was thus cured Rx oyl of spike 


212)
Oyl of Turpentine p.e. or each zfs anoint at
night a little before bedtime & work it in with an
hot iron or hot fire shovel near the fire The next night
do the same again. Try this on an old pain or a [foundred]
horses feet & legs J. Edwards. Oyl of worms & oyl of swallows
mixt p.e. cured a boy that was lame & had one leg shorter than the other
Sister Mary at Shakbrugh Ashby. Mrs Cook’s sister of Blaby had
a lame hand that no oyntmt poultis or plaster could make
well was cured by drinking 2 spoonfuls of juyce of elder
in half a pint of beer & ale nine mornings together 
another that cured Joseph Warner’s sister of lameness Rx oyl of
elder oyl of spike, oyl of lillies, oyl of roses, oyl of junip 
oyl of St. Jns wort, oyl of swallows, oyhl of turpentine
oyl of camomile p. e. anoint therewith fingers numb’d & inflexible
Rx laurel & bay leaves chop & boyl em in [go??] grease Dr Pool
mountebank Salmon’s disp. p. 475. says he recovered a child that
had lost the use of all its limbs only by anointing with oyl of amber
ade with pounder of [tiles] etc. a military officer had a daughter abt
6 or 7 yrs old that had a leg contract so that she could not go
she had been lame abt 3 or 4 months she was cured by being
dipt over head & ears in a tub of cold water 9 mornings successively
& sweating in bed after each dipping & her leg [illegible]
[illegible] & was as long as the other Mr Jn Cochrane. one woman took
her by the head another by the feet she always cry’d bitterly. ibid.
Wither’d limbs or weak joynts anoint with oyntmt of rue, Salmon’s
Disp. A strain mix white of an egg beaten with brandy
with wheat flower spred it upon leather & apply it Let it lie
on a good while David Jervase. another Dip a linnen cloth 
in hot urine apply it agt the fire as hot as you can endure
it then dry it & [illegible] spred Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth upon leather & 
lay it to the griev’d place If it will not stick bind it on with 
a linnen rag sew’d abt it It is made of red lead & oyl E. A.
oyl of St. Jns wort is better than oyl of turpentine for a contracted
or strain’d sinew or nerve or any strain abt. a joynt
or numbness you must rub it often on & keep the part that is lame
or disordered warm by wearing an oyl’d linnen rag & silk over 
it constantly till well. Dr Pool a hand or wrist strain’d by 
reaping corn or mowing with a scythe even when a great knob
arises on the outside the wrist Rx some keen nettles & pound em
soft as pap with salt, bind it on the strain or swelling 12 hours or
longer renew it if the pain doth not begin to cease in 12 hours but
if it doth then anoint it with oyl of St. Jns wort (the newer the oyl
the better) till well. Charles Simons.


(213
a strain. Rx comfry root wash it clean & dry it with
a cloth then scrape or pound it. lay it on a rag & bind it on
shift it once in 24 hours or boyl the roots in spring water 
& apply em hot. It will strengthen & knit a bone new set or
weak or crackt If you apply it to a bone before it is right
set it hurts it so that it will be always out It is good for a 
bone that is apt to be out of joynt This last way cured Mrs 
Caulton. A bathing for lameness Rx sage, rosemary feather fern each
mi wormwood mi boyl all these in a qt of brandy bath the part affected
with cotton dipt therein & let it lie on. Do it once or twice a day for a 
fortnight together Then afterwards fry wormwood in hogs lard & apply 
it to the pt that is troubled every night for a fortnight together S. S. another
Rx small pounded frankincense mix it well with with 3 ou. of the best aqua 
vitae & anoint the joynt or limb pained S. S.
A numbness in a finger or joynt. Rx oyntmt of marshmallows
pr. 29 w. vinegar 10 drops rosewater 14 drops oyl of
turpentine 20 drops Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Sp. of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine oyl of wax or oyl of camomile
allays pains of the gout rheumatism [illegible] nodes, & cures contracted & 
wither’d members. Salmon’s Dispensatory. ale boyl’d to a salve 
helps pains of the sinews & joynts & heals sores old or new Salmon
on Barly.
To cure lame joynts. Culpepers last legacy.
aqua composita mixed with a little oyl of roses helps lame joynts
but let ‘em be well rub’d before with warm cloths & then anointed
another ibid The like effect hath hartshorn boyl’d to jelly in sack 
Jn [Hewet’s] ancle was had upon by a stone colt which bent his foot double
old Mr Ed. Muxlo advised him to stand in a horse trough in cold water a
qr of an hour which he did & was well without doing any thing nore at it
J. H. E.A.’s servt. another Elizth Dawkins formerly had a bruise on
her shin which made her very lame but the skin was not broken she was
cured by Mrs Basset by bathing it night & morning with a linnen cloth
dipt in vinegar & water cold rather the [illegible] vinegar & the cloth bound to the
bruise well with the same liquor she was well in a little time E.D; E.A.’s servt
A wither’d or contracted arm or any limb. Mary Raven doctress at
[D??ford] in Leicershire Rx oil of swallows & oil of worms & oil of camomile
each 1 d flax seed 1 d calfs tongue an herb 1 d at the apothecaries 
Boil the calfs tongue & flax seed in water a qt to a pint or less strain it
Then add the oil stir it well before you use it. Bath it on war 2 or 3 
times a day. This cured a contracted arm. Goody [Ho???and]. [wake] robin
is the same as calfs foot us’d in poltices for the gout Parkins has no calfs 
tongue.
Kate Bingly of Blaby a poor woman that [illegible] collection a widow hat the use
of one side almost taken away being a stroke of a palsy she had a violent
pain in her hip & knee & had lost the use of one hand Mr Tho. Ward surgeon
of [Sison] prescribed this [illegible] for her which did her good & she repeated it 
Rx sp. v. i. ou. sp. of lavender ziij tincture of castor oil ziij pr: 10 d Mr Cook Apothecary


214)
Cos: Geo: Boothby put his knee out by jumping from 
behind a coach when a boy Jn? Gibbords of Coventry set it & 
the sinews of his hair shrunk [illegible] he was [illegible] only
on his toe to the ground. when he began to go [illegible] [illegible]
he could not set his heel to the ground he ordered him to take
oyl of swallows & oyl of worms p. e. to shake ‘em together & to
chafe it in well agt the fire 2 or 3 times a day & in a little time
his sinews extended to a duo length. Sister Boothby
The anodyne balsam an outward application
made of castile soap, camphire, saffron and spt. of
wine digested in a sand heat. It procures sweat and
ease in the most racking extremities of pain by discharging
the [peccans] matter that occasiond it.
Chambers’s Dictionary.
Rheumatick pains. [Antihe?ticum] poterii is very
good against rheumatick pains or chronical distempers
or consumptions after convenient purgations Dr [Benskin]


(215
To make pearch bite
Rx juice of red nettles & five leav’d grass p.e put it
into a deep wide mouth’d bottle that the hook may go
down dip the worm in when you fish Let the worms be
scour’d in moss & fennel in a wollen bag Keep em 3 or 
4 days to scour & toughen em by giving fresh moss & 
fennel every 3 or 4 days, hanging em in a cellar or cool
place & pouring 6 spoonfuls of water that has stood all
day in the sun or pond water. The water washes & refresheth
em & will drain away fro em gradually. Stephen
Hunt. To cath eels Put calfs blood cak’d in a 
piche & put egg shels made small by crumbling
em with the hand & mix em with the blood the
last will draw roach & pike you must lay the
mouth downwards (i.e. the tail to the stream for 
they shoot upwards) under a hollow bank or root 
of a tree out of the stream. ibid.
To make pearch, carp, pench or almost any fish except
pike, bite at a worm, Dip the worm (when you are
going to thro in) in chymical oyl of fennel or chymical
oyl of anniseeds, the 1st is best & any of the fish that smell
it, will bite. you must keep the worms in moss clean wash’d
wash it clean twice a week & squeeze out the wet with your
hands & set em in a pot cover’d in a celler & they will
keep a long time. You must fish at 3 or 4 o clock in a 
morning for carp. Mr Styles of Banbury.
another Rx Ground malt & mix it with cow dung & throw
it in cakes or balls a night or 2 before you angle & 
it will draw fish to the places where you throw it.
Stephen Hunt. To invite perch to a place chop [illegible]
worms & throw em in ibid To make carp come to 
a certain place & how to catch em. Rx wheat flower
juniper berries in pouder (the oldest will the most easily 
pulverize) make em into little balls abt as big as a pea with 
ale wort or ale that is not bitter Bait a place with these 


216)
there for 2 or 3 nights & you may angle with 
success except where they spawn which is twice a 
yr viz in & . Clean a corner of a 
pond of the weeds & bait a place thus 3 or 4 times
then draw a net suddenly over & let it fall into
the water & beat the other side of the pool from the net
where you baited & the carp will strike into’t. Stephen
Hunt in the night at Elmsthorp pool with another man
caught 40 large carp at one draught ibid To make
perch bite Rx a bit of a dew worm that is but a little longer than
the hook place the great end of the worm downward. you 
may break a worm into several pts to be us’d often. This
will catch when a small worm will not. It is good to put some
warm water to wheat or rye bran so as to moisten it that you 
may throw it in by lumps, or grains or ground malt to draw
em together. A soldier & traveller To fox fish Rx [ox] almond al.
nux vomica beat or grate it small wheat flower red lead
make em into a paste with aqua vitae. Then roll em into little
pills like pea’s & throw em into the water roach & chub will
take em it will for em so that you may take em with a net at
the end of a pole. This paste put into some apples or crabs
& thrown under a crab tree or into a thicket where there is a 
crab tree where deer resort They will intoxicate the buck or
doe that eat any of em so that you may break his or her neck
or cut their throats deer are mighty lovers of apples or crabs
ibid. To make almost any sort of fish to bite that
are caught by angling Rx oyl of polypody of the oak
Venice turpentine & live hony p.e. in a thumb bottle 
dip the worm therein & you will catch plenty of fish
even of carp that are difficult to take a soldier & Dr
T. Hely. This E. A. has oft try’d without any success judging it
charmless another abt 9 or 10 o clock at night or later if
you will take a candle & lanthern after rain & look in any fallow
field or ground where the grass is bare or in any garden or
orchard you may gather plenty of dew worms put em in a 
pot with moss or fennel The next morning pinch off their red
heads abt the middle & throw em into the pond or river
where you intend to angle you may throw in ½ a pint 
into one place bait 2 or 3 places in a pond that is pretty large
for 2 days more & night together & fish with the tayl of the
dew worms or any time when you are to angle throw in some
dew worms nipt or cut to pieces tho it is not above 2 or 3 worms
& come an hour after & you will have good sport. fish will bit
better at the tayl of a worm than at the head & tho they will sooner 


(217
bite at a small hook than at a large one & sooner at
a hook [?afted] to a fern hair than a great many yet if you put
2 pretty great hooks to a strong line & tafte the fish will bite
very well May 21st 720 It being a very west time & the water in 
the river muddy E.A. angled in his pond in the piece the wind easterly
& high at 3 o clock in the morn & cou’d not make the fish bite
at last he went round the pond & found a little open place surrounded
with woods where he had but just space for his 2 hooks
to descend & the place was under the wind He caught abt 20 perch
abt 8 o clock (in the morn) in a very little time & many of them
2 at a time E. A.
To make a paste for cap, roch or dace
Rx tallow of a loyn of mutton or limb the skin taken off & new
or old cheese a little white bred Beat em in a [illegible] with a little
good aqua vitae or brandy or aniseed [illegible] beaten with a little white of
egg 1st beaten by itself make it into a stiff paste with a little hony
you may colour it with vermillion or red lead It will do without
colouring & you without white of egg It will keep abt a week 
Ec. Cholmondly a ratcatcher of Staffordshire another rub the [illegible]
with oyl of worms. Perch will bite in muddy water & before a thunder
shower ibid. E. A. try’d the last paste of Cholmondlys & oyl of
worms & the worm dipt in old tar without any success May 
720
when you fish for perch bait the hook with a red worm neither very
big nor very little, dipt in treacle for carp bait with a little
scarlet bright worm bred in bears dung. They are very fond of
it [illegible] a porter in hand ally over agt great turn style in 
Holburn London understands angling very well & can catch carp’
to admiration. at London they that sell worms keep in in a greasie
dish clout. It will make em red, bright & thrive Br. S. A.
Lay a trammel a day or 2 before or after the change of the
moon in a warm dark night & trammel will catch carp but a 
dragnet will not. Put into a [thief] net nosegays i.e. flower white
& red. They draw the fish together they come to admire em. Keep 
the worms in mass often shifted Wm Pinch.
A paste for carp or roch or dace mix wheat flower
with white of an egg & bole in fine pouder make a
longish bate. Bate a place with grains & an hour after
throw a castnet for carp let it lie qr. of an before
you draw it up & they will come out of the mud
Traveller & Tho. Bingly all oyls done to an hook or worm
are insignificant to make any sort of fish bite. Carp will bit in 
a pond that has a gravel or sandy bottom but they will not bite in 


218)
in a marle pit The Rd Mr Andrew Glen of Hatham.
If you stock a pond with perch where there is marle those you 
put in first shall grow to be very large but afterwards they 
will breed & multiply so very fast that the pond will be over stockt
& they will starve & pine one another & never thrive or grow to be
large fish It is like over stocking a ground or close or keeping
your cattle poorly they will not grow but degenerate into runts.
If you can draw the pond often you m ay think the fish so as to 
make increase in [illegible] as well as multiply in number ibid
To take pike or perch or chub with a minnum (or as some call it a pink)
To catch a minnum Rx a very little hook with a tafte of 3 or 4 
hairs cover the hook with a small red worm not much longer than
the hook you must have no float nor cork nor quill but a shot
or 2 abt 2 or 3 inches from the hook the line must be short or
you must tie it up you will see or feel the pink take the worm
but you must stand as much out of sight as you can they bite best
when the wind curdles the water a little. As fast as you catch the pinks
you must put em into a tin watering pot with water in it & often
change the water in summer to keep em alive when you’ve caught abt
6 or 10 then Rx a strong line fasten to it a tafte of 3 or 4 hairs
that if you meet with a large pick the tafte may break to preserve
your line to the tafte you must fix a piece of Indian weed abt 5 
inches long tie em together with a white silk was’d with black shoe
makes wax put betwixt a piece of calves leather or glove leather 
the wax must be made pretty stiff. If the Indian weed is longer the pink
cannot play well with it you must fix two duck shots to the Indian 
weed & you must have a little cork & quil for a float lay 
the pink near the bottom you must have a pretty strong carp 
or perch hook & putt the end of the hook & its beard just under
the fin of the back of the pink that part of the fin nearest the tayl
the hook must go cross the fishes back under the fin taking
but little hold The beard & hook appearing on the outside of the
fish & seeming to take but little hold of the pink. ibid.
A bit for fish (esca. illecabra) Rx a little camphir, aqua vitae
& oul olive bray em together till they come to a soft oyntmt
then put em into a little gally pot or box or glass bottle & anoint
the bait. Geo. Ashby Pater Meus
A paste for carp used by Richd Wheat Ld Stamford’s fisherman
at Grooby Pool Rx wheat flower juniper berries dry’d &
beaten to pouder Red lead in fine pouder p. e. the redder the better
make it into a stiff paste with anniseed water Let the bait be as
big as a white pea made over to cover the point of the hook 
Sam. Exon. Pound the berries in a mortar They may do better than 
in pouder or dry’d E. A.
An infallible way to watch eels Stephen Hunt. Lay at the head
of the pit 6 or 8 baits abt the asunder, fixt to a [troling]
line or whip-cord it [illegible] ly as far as you think the 


(219
ground bard & free from weeds. stake it down. your stake
for the night must be a stick as thick as a man’s thumb
the top must be taper like [breath] with a sharp point you
must bore a hole at the end of a thick staff so that it may 
go easily on & off [illegible] a [?irk] for the line a little below the
tapered part of the breath you must after you have laid
your baite ty’d the line to the stake
put the staff on [illegible] breath & hold it in with the upper
part of the line ty’d to the stake then thrust it into the
ground under water then no body can see it or find it out
without a drag. your bait must be a [menow] you must
tut it open with a penknife & take out the gutts then fill
it full of blood that is cold and congeald & sew it in 
taft a gag abt 1 inch ¾ long on with [horse] hair to a horse 
hair [plat] consisting of 30 hairs this must be fixt to a 
parkthred about half a yd long which must be tyd to 
the mane line. your gag must be of the largest knitting
wire broad & flatt at one end. sharp & taper at the other
you must in tafting observe to [illegible] the hair from the 
middle of the gag towards the broad end within a straws
breadth of the broad end cutting off some of the haire 
as you lap & approach to the end. You must bend the
sharp end a little off from the line you must thrust
the broad end in at the [bent] hole & out at the mouth
till you can thrust the sharp end under the tayl
so that it may appear a little on the back of the fish
& the broad end must lye just out of the mouth 
when you sew up the fish you must leave a hole
to put the gag in at (viz) at the bent hole S. Ld: of
Whetstand
Chymical oyl of any seeds put amongst moss that the
worms are kept in & the hook dip’d in it with the worm
[Francis] [illegible] of Wigston says it is the best of charmes
to make fish bite.
June 23d 1692 The Dalby miller of Brooksby in
Leicer shire caught a carp 25 ½ inches  long from head  


220)
to tail & 14 ¾ inches in the cirumference of
the thickest part in a pych in a flood in the river
Reak It weigh’d 6 ½ good [wtt]
an easy way to catch fish in a pond when the water is frozen hard
make a hole in the ice in what part you think best & put into it ground
malt mi or mij or sweet grains & the fish will come to the hand presently
Mr. Ed. Clark of Stony Stanton.
An ear: wig is an ext bait for roch ibid. another for roach or dore Rx wheat
flower temper’d with saffron [illegible] strong ale & a little sugar & bait your 
hook there with & they will bit apace ibid.
another to [fox] fish Rx the crums of new white bread & [coculus] indy
berries & henbane seeds each zi in fine pouder temper it with good aqua
vitae & make thereof a paste which divide into small pieces a little bigger than 
wheat corns & throw whole handfuls thereof into a still place of the
river where there is plenty of roach & dore & they will swim on the surface
of the water bring intoxicated after eating the baits, which you may then
catch with a little not at the end of a pole ibid.


(221
A consumption p. 137.
A consumptive cough or surfeit.
Rx white wine 3 spoonfuls, the yok of a new lay’d egg,
as much flower of brimstone as will lie on a shilling & the
same quantity of white sugar candy in pouder Rx 2 knife’s
pointfull in the morning one a night as long as it lasts, then 
intermit 3 days & take the following Rx If they do you good repeat em
Rx 3 or 4 heads of garlick, peel & brake em boyl em in a 
pint of spring water till they be dry, then infuse em in a 
pint more of spring water till they be almost dry & boyl it
a little in a qt of white wine vinegar with loaf sugar lbi Rx
3 spoonfuls in the morning & one at night These 2 Rxs cured
a taylor of Evington.
for a consumption cough & to sweeten and cool the blood an itching humour
Rx shel snails 1 qt scour em clean with salt & wash em 
with water then pound em in a bowl with a wooden pestle
gill pickt & wash’d mij viz as much as you can grip
with one hand at twice, Lay the gill at the bottom of
a cold still (i.e. a rose still) & the snails on the gill
pour a gallon of new milk upon em washing the 
bowl with some of the same milk & adding it to the
still. still it off, it commonly affords 2 qts of snail 
water drink abt a coffee dishful or 10 spoonfuls in 
the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in the afternoon
Begin with 5 spoonfuls till it agrees with the stomach drink
it till you are well sweeten’d with sugar This cured Mary Barnet of Barwel
of a violent cough & hereditary consumption
Mrs Adderly & Sister Elizth Mayer when the still is thro
hot keep it with frequent stirring with a spoon or ladle,
This would not cure E. A.’s itching
or it will burn to E. M. another In Spain They cure
consumptions by drinking goats milk & brandy. Tho.
Clark [soulder] an electuary for the [ptisick] (shortness of
breath) & a cough caus’d by hard drinking Rx liquorish
pouder zfs anniseeds zfs caraway seeds zi pounded & 
sifted mastick zi pouder’d conserve of red roses zfs hony ziiij
mix them well on a trencher or slate Rx a knife point full 


222)
at any time when you cough. Wm Harris [slater] of 
Leicer abt the latter end of April 715 E. A. had
a violent cold & cough he took sweet & oyly things 
in vain but at last was cured thus Rx Mr Fr.
Coltmans balsamic electuary which is thus made
Rx lucatellus balsam zij 8 d conserve of red roses
zi 6 d syrupus capillaru zi 3 d Rx the quantity of
a nutmeg 3 or 4 times a day This made me expectorate
& I eat in the night & oft when I cough’d sugar’d almonds
& raysins of the sun The cough hung on me
so long that I thought it would turn to a i
E. A. A cold or cough in man or child or beast.
Rx liquorish sliced zij sage leaves mifz fennel root
slit ziiij currans lbfs stew em over the fire in a qt of
water till ti comes to a pint strain & put it to a qt of
ale for man or beast Let the strain’d liquor be boyling hot
when you put the ale to’t & give it fasting the horse may 
drink 2 hours after you may give it 3 mornings together
It will cure a sucking child of a cold, cough or wind
Rx ½ the ingredients for a child with a pint of white wine
instead of ale. Let the child take a spoonful at a time 3 
mornings successively a man may take ½ a pint or a qr of
a pint 3 mornings together Ld Tho. Barrons of Newsted
Park in Nottingham shire & Fr. Collins of Ayleston, Collins’s
mother did great cures among children with this Rx
A tickling cough or a consumption of which it is
oft a forerunner Rx electuarium corcatu pr 1 d per ounce
a knife pointful at night going to bed or at any time
when you cough drinking often gill or sage tea Mr Wm
Cook apothecary A dry or old cough Rx pippins pare & 
slice em abt ½ a tea pot full, raysins of the sun stoned & liquorish
sliced so as to make it taste a little sweet & tart. Drink a tea pot
full or 2 night & morning or as often as you will. This did Mr. 
Simon Barwel of Leicer more good than any thing.  The countess of
Stamford. You  must drink it without sugar ibid.
A cold cough or consumption Rx one or 2 turnips, pare & slice
em very thin Lay 3 or 4 slices then a flooring of sugar of any sort
as you like it, the finer the pleasanter the courser the more opening
make it over night & it will be ready to be taken the next morning
If you set it one night in the cellar the sugar will sooner all dissolve
you may strew sugar upon every slice if you like it very sweet Rx [illegible]


(223
Rx a tea spoonful at a time as oft as you cough by day or
by night. It will not keep good above 3 or 4 days then renew it. It
is pleasanter than syrup of turnips. Dr Benskin. This cured Mrs Winstanly
of a violent cough at her lying in, & Mrs [Lewin] etc. sister E.B.
a cold or cough. Bring a looseness upon the self by drinking or 
eating buttermilk, or malt pudding bak’d viz made of ½ malt flower & 
½ wheat flower Jn Cater Shepherd. Keep yourself warm ibid. A cold
or a violent running at the nose Rx Portugal snuff at the
nose at night going to bed Ann Tasie. another Drink syrup 
of verjuice It is good also for a sore throat ibid. another
Rx balsamick syrup a little at a time & often It will
raise flegm &make you expectorate Mr Stokes. A cough
Rx elecampane the best sort (or that which is new) flower of brimstone
p. e. hony as much as will bring it to the consistence
of a lambative Mr. James Allen of Whetstone commends
this to the skies. An hacking old cough tending to a 
consumption. Rx flaxseed (al linseed) & balm make tea drink
it as oft as you will sweeten’d with sugar Dr Mane & Sister
Ekins. nothing is better for a cold & cough than liquorish
juice i.e. Spanish juice Mr Cook apothecary. another good 
also for a sore throat Rx vinegar or verjuice a pint sugar
candy ziiij liquorish sliced ziiij boyl em & drink a little
coffee dish night & morning. This medicine was seldom baffled
by a cough or sore throat in the beginning of the yr
719 Aunt Maier Pills for a consumption or surfeit.  Rx of
the pouder of anniseeds, liquorish, elecampane each zi white
sugar candy, conserve of roses each zij lucatellus balsam 
&the best hony each one spoonful. Tar half a spoonful
make em up into pills & take 4 or 4 going to bed & abt the
same number The next morning an hour or 2 before you rise
you need not confine your self to the house nor to any particular
diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Coulton. A violent 
cough & weakness Rx lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d Conserve of
roses pr 2 d mix & take a knife’s pointful night & morning
This cured Tho. Tafte when he was ready to die with coughing
& cou’d scarce draw his legs after him. Tho. Tafte. Salmon
in his Dispensatory p. 587. commends his pectoral infusion to 
the skies. Cold or cough Rxl linseed oyl cold drawn zij diacordium zij



224)
Diacodium is syrup of meconium or poppies
Rx only one spoonful in the morn & one at night
going to bed fast after it an hour Rx it no oftener because
it thickens then the blood too much & dulls the stomach
& spirits Mr Penford apothecary says it is the best
medicine yet found out. This cured E. A. may 719. but not
quite the cure Rx lucatellus balsam & conserve of roses each 
2 d a knifes pointfull night & morn Spanish juice or liquorish as
oft as you cough at last compleat the cure with a [dranken] dose of ale
till you spew & a day or 2 before you drink hard eat 3 or 4 
cloves of garlic abt bedtime S. A. another This cured a 
whole family at Ayleston of a violent cough Rx a little hare’s
wool clip it small with a pr of sissers Dry nettle seeds pound or
rub it to pouder mix em with a little hony. Take a little knifes
pointful often when you cough & night & morn Ch. Chester
A cold or consumption Rx unset hysop & gill each mi a little time & 
rosemary, & penny-royal Bouyl or infuse em in ale or
good beer 3 pints till it is wasted ½ pint or more then add treacle lbfs
& sugar candy ziiij when it is melted take it off the fire when it is cold
squeeze the herbs well out & add oyl of anniseeds 2 d Put it into a 
bottle. shake it when you pour it out. Drink night & morn a draught
hot Mrs Caulton. The purging bitters good for colds or a 
stoppage at the stomach Rx camomile flowers gentian, centaury, each 1 d
sena zi boyl em in 3 pints of water till it wasts to a qt 
Rx ½ pint warm every morning or more as you wou’d have it
work, fasting after it.  If you wou’d not have it pourge leave
out the sena. Mrs Caulton for any cough or chincough, asthma
or short breath or stoppage of the lungs. Rx water a qt garlic 6 
or 8 cloves,  a little unset hysop, infuse em till it comes to a 
pint, then put in a gill of w. wine & hony ziiij let it boyl up
when cold take a good spoonful when going to bed but not at any 
other time except you keep warm. you may boyl it up with good
sugar lbfs (if you do not like hony) & put it in the w. wine when it
is enough & let it just boyl in Mrs Caulton A consumption Rx
The juice of betony 2 spoonfuls in half a pint of milk every 
morning Mrs Caulton. It is best in new milk  warm from the cow,
but in winter you m ay boyl betony in milk. E. A.
Pills for a surfeit or consumption Rx of the pouder of aniseeds,
liquorish, elecampane each zi w. sugar candy, conserve of roses 
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful & hony as much. Tar
½ a spoonful mix & make em put into pills Rx 3 or 4 going to bed
& abt the same number an hour or 2 before you rise in the morning
Mrs Caulton. Dr  Willis says cup-moss is infallible in the chincough
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory


(225
a cold & cough Rx a little black pepper in pouder
in a spoon abt a little silver thimble full Put a little
warm beer or ale to it & swallow it at night going to bed
drinking after it to wash it down, some of the same drink 
repeat it nights together This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt
another Rx one or 2 apples scoop out the [stent] & core then
put in sugar & candy pounded smallish, close up the hole with
the stalk & apple adjoyning to to it, & roast em eat em at night
abt bed time. This cured Mrs Stokes when the Drs & apothecary
could not Mrs Stokes drank liquorish tea at the same
time Mr. Stokes Decer 713 when Mr [Cook] the apothecary could not
cure E. A.’s wife’s cold that was so violent that it was like the chin 
cough she did cough till she vomited & had an ague on her at
the same time after one ounce of bark tane at 12 times every 3rd 
hour she found the greatest benefit by drinking gentian brandy
which is sold at [Penford’s] the strong water [illegible] in Leicer pr 3 d 4 d per qt
3 or 4 times a day or night or as oft as the cough & sometimes 
mixing it with syrup of mulberries raysins of the sun ston’d & 
slit & fill’d with rue chop’d small She eat now & then one several 
times in a day She took the carduus vomit with lilly roots & oyl vid
Mr [illegible] Rx for an ague 2d feeling a great oppressions and sourness
[at her] stomach & [shortness] of breath & want of appetite
the next morning after her vomit she took fasting the quantity of
a nutmeg of Dr Hartops chalibeate electuary made thus Rx conserve
of roses zij filings of iron or steel zfs syrup of clove-
gilliflowers as much as will make into an electuary drinking 5 or 
6 spoonfuls of bitter decoction cold after it make a large [qt] viz Rx water
3 pints gential root 1 d sliced carduus 29 boyl to a qt strain. Rx
the electuary & bitter decoction after it every morning while 
they last fasting 2 hours after em. E. A. A tickling cough Rx the
best sallet oyl ½ a spoonful at night going to bed drinking 3 or 
4 drops of gentian brandy immediately after it This cured M. A.
at one dose E. A. a violent cough Rx 6 or 7 cloves of garlick 
slice or shred em boyl em in a pint of strong ale sweeten it with 
treacle ziiij pr. 1 d drink it all at night going to bed adding cloaths
to provoke sweat This cured Geo. Brooks. Blooding in a vein on the
top of the foot (any vein there) will cure an old cough It draws from the
lungs Dr Pool. A cold or cough Taking many sweet or oyly
things often regard their departure by furring clogging & dulling 
the stomach & vessels abt the lungs Nover 1720 E. A. quickly cured himself 
of both thus he took milk boyl’d & sweeten’d with hony adding
a little w. bread 3 morning successively in the day he rode or walk’d
abroad keeping his head warm at night he ty’d a blew handkercher abt his 




226)
Throat. The 4th day he grated a little [illegible] rhubard to 
which he put abt a spoonful of cheery brandy & drank it
fasting which carry’d off the dregs of his cold & left him well. E. A.
 a cough & consumption & pain at the stomach & weakness
faintness sickness & loss of appetite shortness of breath in Sam. Exon’s wife of
Blaby of ½ a yrs standing was cured by drinking buttermilk
boyl’d as hot as she cou’d with pepper morn & night or as 
oft as she cou’d get it. Goody Exon.
a cough. Rx garlick peel’d, boyl it in two water then bruise it
& put it in vinegar add sugar & juice of lemmon as much as will
boyl it to a syrup. Take a little of it when you go to bed. Pater G. A.
a consumption Rx milk a pint, water 3 pints boyl it till half
be consumed. Drink it 3 times a day ibid.
a cough with a soreness at the stomach very violent. Rx conserve
of rosemary flowers conserve of red roses, lucatellus balsam & 
syrup of diacodium each zij mix & Rx a tea spoonful at night going
to bed & in the night [illegible] when you cough you may add a few
drops of sp. of sulphur if you’ve no dislike to’t It cured without 
Cos. Freeman another for a cough & shortness of breath Rx 
hony 2 or 3 spoonfuls clarifie it i.e. boyl & scum it & Rx a [illegible]
spoonful or 2 at night going to bed as hot as you can This cured
Sister Shuhbrugh Ashby. ibid a cough Rx virgins hony abt 3 spoonfuls
boyl & scum it then slice a fresh lemmon peel & 
all & cut each slice into four qrs or small pieces put em
into a pat & pour the boyl’d hony to em allow em a small
time to incorporate then eat a qr moisten’d with hony
& the juice as oft as you cough boyl’d hony alone will
make you expectorate & clear the stomach of flegm but
it wou’d not stop E. A.’s cough till mixt & assisted with juice
of lemmon March 18th 720 Leave off malt drink & tobacco
as enemies & promoters of the cough. Drink w. wine or
veal broth or thin milk pottage or water cold or warm in 
their stead This E. A. found out you may make a syrup & 
disguise it. To cure a cough in a child or young people
It is dangerous stopping an old cough in old people.
Rx ale (or beer & ale) ½ a pint boyl it then mix a good thimble
full of fine starch with a little cold beer. Put it in let it
boyl up, sweeten it with penny days (penny dice) give it warm 
going to bed Rx it 3 or 4 nights omit & repeat from Nottingha
Mrs Caulton A consumption of the lungs & a cough whereby
the lungs are much affected. Rx 10 shell snails break the shells
a little yet without bruising or killing the snails then wash em
in fair water with some salt in’t Dose in change of water twice 
or thrice without salt then bruise from a little & put all into a
quart of new milk & boyl it to a pint then strain & drink it ibid.


(227
Pills for a cold. Rx pouder of anniseeds liquorish,
elecampane each zi white sugar candy conserve of [roses]
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful as much of the
best hony add to these half a spoonful of tar: make these up
into into pills with liquorish pouder Rx 3 or 4 going to bed & abt
the same number the next morning an hour or [2] before you
rise you need neither confine yourself to the house nor any
particular diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Fr. Bickerton
Mr Fishers lozenges for a cough. Rx flower of brimstone,
zi elecampane zfs liquorish zi in pouder while sugar candy zi
in pouder mix these in conserve of roses & make them into lozenges
ibid.
a consumption Rx conserve of red roses zij
mithridate zi mix em together to an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg 
every morning fasting & 3 or 4 times a day, drinking a little
double aniseed water (single may do better) If you are able to walk
after it. This cured Wm Burstall when the Drs reckon’d him incurable
Mrs Page & Mr Amos Taylor. A consumption beat a quantity 
of white snails in a mortar; then strain em thro a cloth of linnen
or a sive. To a qt. of the liquor put sugar candy lbi & liquorish stick 
sliced thin 3 [illegible] boyl em all together till the liquor comes to a pint or
thereabts when it is cool take a spoonful morning, noon, & night or
[illegible] if need require S. S. For a cough caus’d from a thin rheum 
a cold stomach & a moist brain Rx elecampane roots 4 ou marshmallow
roots 12 ou. quinces 16 ou (if it be at a time when quinces
are not to be gotten then take marmolet or quiddany of quinces) & 
boyl them in fair water with the roots untill they be soft to break then 
beat am all together in a mortar & pass em thro a sive or strainer & 
for every pound of the mixture add hony lbij then boyl them together 
but do not overboyl them & take it from the fire & for every pound 
of the matter add saffron & liquorice each [illegible]i cinnamon zi flower of
sulphur zi Incorporate them well together then it is made but it
ought to be aromatiz’d with musk & rosewater This marvelous electuary
for the cough must be taken in the morn fasting & when you go
to bed. The dose is half a spoonful & more. marshmallows mollifie
wonderfully. Elecampane helpeth digestion & strengtheneth the
stomach quinces are warm & cordial saffron dryeth & digesteth
evil humours cinnamon fortifyeth the stomach Liquorice mollifieth
& digesteth the matter marmolet or quiddany must not be
boyled but only beaten with the roots after they are boyled. This
cured a man 36 yrs old who had the cough 40 yrs S. S.
an obstinate cough Rx Venice treacle or mithridate the quantity
of a hazel nut going to bed drinking ½ pint of warm posset
drink after it to promote a breathing sweat Jn Penford apothecary 


228)
Syrup of sugar candy made with sp. of wine is of
singular use agt violent coughs & colds Salmon’s
Dispensatory p. 172. a violent cough & cold Rx a qr. of a pint
of water sweeten it with a spoonful of hony stir it well together
drink that quantity night & morning cold Mrs Abigail
Finch. A chin cough Rx treacle ziiij water a qt boyl it till the 
treacle is melted which be in a very little time Give it cold for the 
constant drink. ibid
Consumption & surfeit. Rx turnips a galn to mustard seed
a pint pounded Put em into a pipkin bake it with bread strain
the juice out drink a qr of a pint night & morning. This cured one
of a consumption when the Drs had given him over as incurable
old Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Consumption & asthma. Rx a leg of pork abt 9 lb & 
boyl it in water 9 qts when it boyls scum it clean, then put
in a small handfull of grits pounded & hartshorn shavings
2d boyl it till it is wasted to 3 qts or leas abt ½ an hour
before you think it boyl’d enough put in Jamaica pepper 
half an ounce in pouder To know when it is enough Rx a little in a 
porringer Set it by to cool if it turns to a jelly it is enough 
when cold take off the fat Rx abt ½ pint in the morning fasting 
& ½ pint at night going to bed Rx it as hot as you can 
drank it. You must strain it every time you drink it. Mrs. 
Richd Wightman
An asthma & shortness of breath & consumption.
Rx tincture of gum ammoniacum 2 ou. pr. 1[illegible] oxymel of squills
zfs pr. 5 d Rx ½ a spoonful with balsamic syrup or any syrup you 
may add a little sallet oyl to help expectoration. Mr Smith apothecary 
an asthma & cough. Rx syrup of sulphur made according to 
Quincy’s Dispensatory. Dose from zfs to zi.
Balsam of sulphur is good for coughs, colds, asthma’s, wheezings,
hoarseness & phthisicks (i.e. consumptions) or ulcers of the
lungs. Salmon.
an asthma & consumption Tho. Carick a stockiner of Blaby
had an asthma which brought him to a consumption so that he cou’d
not work at his trade had lost his stomach & was [illegible] afflicted
with [illegible] [illegible] he had smoked tobacco & swallow’d his spittle
but found no benefit at last he was advised to buy some leaf
tobacco (by a labourer) at 1 d per ou. which he did & chew’d it & it brought 
his stomach agn corrected the wind there & made a perfect cure in a
little time to a miracle. He put loaf tobacco in the morning as soon
as he rose into his mouth for a cud He spat away his spittle at 1st putting in 
& afterwards swallow’d it. He seldom had more than 2 cuds in a day & 
sometimes he slept with one in his cheek allnight This he did but rarely [illegible]


(229
Dr Ben. Allen in [illegible] of [illegible] chalybeat & purging waters of
England says he has often seen consumptions of 21 to 49 cured by the
dexterous application of chalybeats, chalbeat waters chiefly when their
Drs had try’d in vain to effect a cure.
For a phthisick & stoppage in the breast & to open the pipes
Rx parsley roots, [illegible] roots, succory roots, & seeth ‘em in white
wine & juniper berries, strain it when it is boyl’d & put
pellitory of Spain to it & drink of it morning & evening & it
will help Mrs. Hewet E A.’s mother
To stop a cough & to drive wind down into farts
Rx a little tea spoonful of diascordium an electuary
at night going to bed Mrs M Boothby
This Rx & following cured Mr Richard Potter stockin maker of Nottingham when he
had a cough of 15 or 16t yrs standing from a surfeit
Rx honey ziiij flower of brimstone zi white rosin in fine pouder zfs sallet
oil two large spoonfuls melt the honey by the fire to make it mix with the
other ingredients cold Take the quantity of a large nutmeg night & morning
rather more at night This dose cured Mr. Potter upon taking cold half the quantity
cures him Richard Potter
Take flower of brimstone elecampane and
liquorish both in powder mix them with 
treacle & take a tea spoonfull as often as 
you cough & 2 or 3 times a day & night
& morning penelope traveling madd
woman



230)
To make an issue
mark the place with a pen & ink a little where you 
intend to make an incision with the lancet there thrust
in the lancet & give it a rip up you thrust it in but
a little way to cut thro the skin then apply a pepper
corn dipt in vinegar with a sixpence over it the sixpence
must be sew’d in a bit of cloth or rag & that must be
serv’d to a fillet to prevent its slipping & bound abt 
the arm for 24 hours then take out the pepper corn & 
put an issue pea into its place which has a silk thro the 
middle to extract it by you must thrust into the
ground or molds 3 pea’s for 24 hours to mollifie em
so that a needle may readily penetrate em then dress 
it with white peas & issue cloth on the pea. James Leppington.
You may use a pea made of the pith of 
elder cut in the shape of a pea next the pepper corn It
draws more & makes it run more. ibid
To make an issue without an incision.
but a little orifice in a piece of writing paper that is abt
the bigness of a half crown cover the orifice with 
blistering plaster after it is apply’d to the place you 
allot for the issue the paper sets bounds to the blister.
In 12 hours a blister will be rais’d without & bind on
a pepper corn as above mention’d. Uxor M.A.
Take up the skin and run a lancet a little way 
thro it then apply a pepper corn
 


(231
The whites in women [albae mulierum fluxienes,
fluor albus 293
Rx nutmegs zi prick them full of holes steep em in brest 
milk of a boy & a little red rose water cover them close 
& let em stand 24 hours then bake the nutmegs in a penny 
or 2 penny loaf when they are bak’d beat em to pouder & take
a little pouder of coral & a little white sanders & a little
pouder of white mastick as much as will lie on a farthing
& mingle the [servth] conserve of red roses zi Take as much as 
a nutmeg at night going to bed & next the heart in the morn
Mater Mea.
For the whites. Rx candied roots of Solomon’s seal. It is an 
ext. remedy. Tis also counted good for the falling sickness Pechey.
a conserve of the flowers of white arch-angel is much commended in 
the whites. But the cure of them by the following method is much safer & 
sure. Bleed once & purge thrice with [illegible] ij of pill coch. major: Then Rx Venice
treacle zifs conserve of the yellow pearl of oranges 1 ou. Diascordium 1/2 ou.
candy [illegible] ginger & nutmegs each ziij compound pouder of crabs eyes zifs
outward bark of the pomegranate, root of Spanish angelica, red
coral prepar’d, prochisiae do perra lamnia each zi bole [illegible] ij gum-arabick
zfs with a sufficient quantity of dry’d roses make an electuary. Rx the
quantity of a large nutmeg in the morning, at 5 in the afternoon & at bedtime;
drinking upon it 6 spoonfuls of the following infusion. Rx of
the roots elecampane masterwort, angelica & gentian each zfz; leaves
of Roman wormwood, of white archangel, & the lesser [illegible] & calamint
each mi juniper berries 1 ou. cut em small & infuse em in five
pints of canary; Let em stand in infusion & strain it only as you use it
Pecheys Herbal p. 8. [illegible] says [olibanum] [male] frankincense cures the whites
in women & the gornorrhoea in men taken from one dram to two in jelly of
isinglass.
For the whites from Lady Wright
Rx Cyprus turpentine zfs 2 nutmegs abt 6 d of white
amber beaten very small then work them well together & every
morning take 3 or 4 pills of it
Another by Do Rx nutmegs 1 ou. prick them full of holes & 
steep them in breast milk of a boy & a little red rose water & cover
them close & let them stand 24 hours, then bake the nutmegs in a 
penny or 2 penny loaf & when they are baked beat them to powder
& take a little powder of coral & a little while sanders & as much 
white mastick in powder as will ly upon a farthing & mix 
therewith conserve of red roses 1 ou. & take as much as a nutmeg
at night going to bed & next your heart in the mornings 
[illegible] royal al. Waterfern is most in esteem for restraining the
whites in women & strengthening the womb the roots of
it are only used. Quincy


232)
To remove a callous from a sore 52.
Strew on the callous praecipitate in fine pouder when
the sore begins to heal it will eat it off Dr Million or 
mix sp. of wine (that will fire gunpouder undry’d) zi with
new oyl of vitriol get. 14 moisten therewith It prevents & 
destroys a little callous. Ibid. Aegyptiacum used scalding hot takes away
the callous from fistulas p. 749. Salmon’s Disp. 
To remove a callous or [brawny] substance from the ball of the great toe
heat some water as hot as you can abide the foot in it & hold the foot in it
till  it is almost cold then you may easily cut or peel off the horney
substance, it will come agn but you must take it off the same way agn & agn
till you can find out a better remedy. Try a plaister of white pitch after it
is come off. Cos. Richd Ashby.


(233
To stop the bleeding of any wound
Rx Roman vitriol the quantity of a horse bean, pound it
small & take a little of the wounded persons blood & mix
em together then take the reezest bacon you can get & hold it
over the fire till it sulphurs (i.e. till it changes blew like
inflam’d or burning brimstone) then let it drop into
em mixing em well together This will stop without dressing 
the weapon Bacon a thin slice abt 3 inches long
& 3 broad. some dress the weapon then you must clean it
from rust & dirt & rub it with the aforesaid medicine & bind
a linnen cloth that is clean about it to keep the dust from it 
then let the edge of the weapon pointing to the window
for a week. If you set the back to the window or with
the point downwards or if you let the weapon fall down
it will pain the party wounded. A French man & Wm
Tilly of Cropston. another Scrape a cows horn & apply 
the scrapings or shavings to the wound etc. old Van of Stanton.
Immoderate bleeding at the nose. Bleed in the arm
by way of revulsion Rx some old dry’d mud well pouder’d
(from a [mad wall]) mix it with some of the blood that 
flows from the nose & put it up into the nostrils & 
you will soon find the effect of it. Monsieur D’Ube’s
Poor Man’s Physician. This said pouder & blood reduced 
to the consistency of a glew or paste & apply’d to a
wound stupendiously stops its blood ibid To stop the
bleeding of a wound or any cut or vein or bleeding at
the nose Rx Some of the blood in a brass ladle & hold
it over a fire till the blood is dry’d to pouder & the blood 
abt the wound or nose will immediately thicken & cease to 
flow or drop. If you try it to stop bleeding at the nose
then put the blood so dry’d to pouder on written paper & 
fold it up & let the patient wear it & keep it warm in 
his bosom or pocket for a day or 2 after or longer lest the bleeding
should return. you must take the blood while it is warm. This
stopt a horse blooded in the plate vein immediately & it seem’d quite 


234)
healed up. you must rub the dry’d blood from the nose to
pouder Mr Jn. Day of Shamford in Leicershire & Tho. Tafte
another To stop bleeding at the nose even in the small pox
when Jn Cater of Blaby was a child & had the small pox he 
bled at the nose as if he would bleed to death. Dr. Boss a surgeon 
advis’d her mother to catch some of the blood in an egg shel & set
it so near the fire that it might dry to pouder & then with her finger
thrust some of that pouder up each nostril which she did & it stopt the
bleeding & saved his life Jn Cater Charles Simons of Blaby dy’d
for want of this remedy having the small pox the blood came out
at his fundamt. Bleeding to excess (in the arm 40 ounces) will 
breed a dropsie or a jaundice The cure for the dropsie is to put old
or new iron lbi in ale 2 qts set it in an oven 5 hours after bread
is drawn or pyes Rd Mr Ed. Stokes. To stop the bleeding at the
nose in man or sucking child. Tie a thred wounded several 
times abt the end of the little finger of the child or man
or Rx 2 pledgets of flax made fit for each nostril, dip 
em in vinegar to make em moist then strew or roll em [illegible]
Roman vitriol made into fine pouder & thrust it up each
nostril. Tho. Hely Dr & farrier To stop bleeding at the nose in 
the small pox Set one leech under the ear on the vein in the hollow pt
of the neck adjoyning to the jaw or near it on that side the nostril bleeds
mostly If that will  not stop it bleed in the arm zij if this does not
answer Let the patient rise from bed give sack whey cold as much as
Take Jesuits bark zi at 8 times or pts divided in water
he or she will drink This cured Mrs Anna Mona Stokes without the bark Octr 3. 717 by Dr
Ed. Cheseldens advice. The bark [illegible] the blood To stop bleeding at the nose even in the
small pox or any bleeding of a wound etc. Rx R. vitriol, white 
copperas, Venice bole p.e. all in very fine pouder mix em with 
wine vinegar or sharp aleager or good verjuice the older the 
better dip a rag therein & thrust it up each nostril or the
bleeding nostril or apply it with lint or hairs wool to a 
bleeding wound Dr Tho. Hely farrier To stop any inward bleeding
as of piles or a wound or spitting blood. Drink the juice of milfoil
(i.e. yarrow) or the pouder of burnt garlick. Br. S.A.’s Rx 
To stop bleeding in any pt of the body, of a wound, of a 
wen cut off etc. Rx oyl of sulphur ½ a spoonfull to 3 
or 4 spoonfulls of the styptick water made by Dr Pool the
mountebank mix em cold in a glass & apply it cold to
a wound with a rag, but to kill a cancer cut off the top of
the cancer & as much of it as you can then touch it with a 
feather dipt in the oyl of sulphur alone, & pull out the strings
with a pair of nippers. It will heal of it self. It causes great 



(235
pain for a little time. you may eat mustard & pepper
sometime after it has been drest when it is in the gums or
tongue. Dr Richd Pool & Daniel Pool, his son.
To stop bleeding at the nose. apply oyl of sulphur 3 or 4
drops mixt with Dr Pool’s styptick water a spoonful in cotton
or lint or a linnen rag snuff it up the nose as much as you 
can. one dressing cures. Put some up the bleeding nostril ibid
To make Dr Pool’s styptick water that will cure a cow staling
blood etc. Rx allum ziij water 2 qts red brasil wood ground zi 1 d white
vitriol al w. copperas ziij boyl altogether strain it. It will stop
bleeding inward or outward. Give a cow abt ziij in new milk
½ a pint or a pint only once, adding oyl of sulphur 6 drops 
The mountebanks use no oyl of sulphur but upon an extra ordinary
case or when they will warrant a cow oyl of sulphur a 
large spoonful to a pint of spring water will cure a cow staling 
blood without the styptick water & is easily carry’d in the pocket
or bags & disguis’d perhaps with alkanet etc. oyl of sulphur apply’d
to the tongue is very sharp & will almost make a man made but
it is over in an instant. It is us’d alone to cancers, wens, ruptures
when cut, or any wound to clean it & to stop the bleeding & 
it is very healing. The oyl of sulphur mixt with the styptick water
is call’d the excanceration water by Dr Pool. Dr Pool can’t cure a 
rupture in a man or woman without cutting. D. P. sometimes Dr
Pool toth not colour it but it looks like clear water then he calls it
aqua excancerate which he says you may use to a cancer
in the eye by dipping the end of a quill in it & thrusting it into the 
hole of the cancer. It stops the bleeding of a wound, drys up any humours.
It is good for a fistula or ulcer, a great dryer, Dip a feather in 
it & touch the sore you must touch a sore with it but once a week It is
good for any wound or sore, any running sore. To clean a foul bone 
good for a sharp humour & sore eyes, made weaker. It cures a bloody [urinc]
taken inwardly It is a searching thing. It will not eat the cork of 
a bottle. Dr. P. 
Bleeding at the nose to stop. Dry a toad beat her to pouder & snuff
a little of the pouder up the nose Jn Put a traveller
To stop bleeding in the small pox or vomiting blood at any other time.
Rx opium zi mixt with antimoniu diaphoreticu zi make it into pills 
for one dose for a man or woman. They cause sleep when you wake Rx [illegible]
styptick water 2 spoon ful’s or any mountebanks styptick water Dr Pool.
Speedwell al. [fluellen] at Paul’s betony Veronica will cure a 
cancer in the nose. It brings the scabs in children. Herbal
nose swell’d & scabby anoint with white lead & train oyl E. A.
for scabs & scalded heads Pechey highly comends garden cresses & lard.
To stanch bleeding at the nose Rx a linnen cloth dip it in frogs 


236)
frogs slubber (or spawn) let it dry in the sun. Do
so again 12 or 16 times till it be well incorporated
into it keep it by you & if you exceed in bleeding take
a piece of it & unravell it & put it into the nose or lay it
to a wound. Mrs Fr. Bickerton & Mrs Caulton. To stop the
bleeding of an artery or any other bleeding Rx male frankincense
(olibanum) (the hard sort) & aloes p.e. beaten to pouder
Beat the white of an egg up to a froth & dip some hare’s wool
in it then dip it in the pouder & bind it on. S. S.
To stop the bleeding at the nose Drink abt 3 spoonfuls of the mountebanks
styptick water This cured Ann Tasie It will not do when it has
lost its red colour & is old. another Dip a little fine rage in Dr Collbatche’s 
pouder dissolved in cold water & thrust it up the nostrils Mrs Stokes 
another. Set a leech to the jugular vein (in the neck) This stopt Ann
Tasie’s bellding at the nose abt ½ an hour then it bled again. Uxor Mea
another apply new hog dung to th temples & the outside & end of the nose 
another Dip a linnen rag in a bason of cold water often, & for a 
long time together & give a squeeze & spred it on the outside of the 
whole nose letting hang down a little over the end of the nose & lie on 
untill the rag feels warm then dip it again & sit by the fire. Have
often fresh cold water This cured Ann Tasie April 1722 Wm Colebatche’s 
pouder & a leech (to the neck & most of the above mention’d
remedies (& the styptick water drank) all in vain. Ann Tasie.
[illegible] [illegible] is frequently us’d to stop bleeding of a wound 
v. Pechey’s Dispensatory p. 207.
This is commended for bleeding at the nose Rx of the clarified
juices of stinging nettles & plantain each 6 ou. aqua lactis
[alexiteria] 4 ou. cinnamon water hardeated 3 ou. w. sugar q.s.
mingle & make a julep Rx 4 ounces morn & evening daily for
3 days Pechey’s disp. p. 139.
The leaves & flowers with the unripe fruit of brambles that
bear black berries infus’d in water with a little hony & drank
stay s the bloody flux or any inward bleeding or outward
bleeding being fomented with it. Mrs Caulton
To stop bleeding at the nose or any where else
Rx 2 new pewter dishes or plates that never have been used
place em one upon another Put nothing in em set em on 
boyling hot water wet some lint well in the oyl that
sweats out of them & put it up the nose or lay it where
it bleeds & it will stop the bleeding with Gods blessing
says Mrs Caulton Nose sore & scabby Jaques
Servt. at Quenby had a nose mightily swell’d & scabby for
many yrs together It was cured by dissolving Roman vitriol
in verjuice & dabing it on cold twice & once a day till well
& afterwards spring & fall. Jaques To stop bleeding at the nose
let the blood drop into a fire shovel heated red hot dry the blood & rub it
to pouder stop the nostrils with it, Sister Boothbys




(237
To make a perpetual blister to draw a rheum from 
sore eyes
You must buy at the apothecaries an oyntmt call’d the perpetual
blister you must apply it at night going to bed spred upon a
flaxen rag not very fine a little bigger than a crown piece Do
not spred it quite to the edge of the cloth but leave a little margin Cover this
plaster with a sticking plaster made of bees wax & dicaculu a third pt of an
inch broader than the cloth spred it upon [illegible] writing paper let em both be round when the blistering
plaster has layn on 12 hours you will find that a small blister is drawn,
from which take the skin gently off with a pair of sissers or bodkin then dress
it night & morning for 2 days with a little melilot plaster afterwards
Dress it with the sticking plaster when you find it begins to abate much
in the running use the blistering oyntmt viz a little as big as a 
large pins head rubbed upon the middle of the sticking plaster 7 so repeat
it as often as you find it begins to dry pu. If at any time it is
hot & burning dress it only with melilot plaster till you find it easy,
then go on again with the sticking plaster & oyntmt as above directed 
Mrs Ellen Stokes. E. A. prefers empl. de minio before melilot.
Crows foot bounded the herbs & bound on the place you
would blister raises a painful & strong blister 
another Rx the ashes of the inward bark of green ash burnt on 
live coles to ashes mix it with vinegar & apply it behind
the ears. It will raise an easy blister & cure the toothach.
Goody Fellows of Enderby. Oyl of (white) 
lillies anointed round a blister stops it from spreding 
any further & the humour from flaying as it runs down.
Sister Boothby. To raise a blister in any pt of the body or
on the finger or any joynt. Moisten the pt you assign to blister
with keen aleager or sharp wine vinegar & moisten your blistering
plaster with keen aleager or vinegar & work it in with your
knife point then apply it & keep the pt warm with a flannel layd
or ty’d over the blistering [plaster] let it lie on 24 hours or not so long
when it pains you much or the blister is broken. If you apply a
blistering plaster ready spred from the apothecary that has layn
long & is dry it will rarely blister unless you moisten 1st the plaster
with sharp vinegar By moistening a plastic with vinegar & working
it over with the knife You may raise a blister 2 or 3 times with the same
old plaster & you may raise a blister on the joynt of a finger which is
very difficult to do. If a bile happens vid. bile


238)
when a blister causes the strangury Mrs Margt Muxloe.
make tea of common mallows & sweeten it with hony or take sweet
almonds blanch’d no 12. Boil fr. barly till it is soft, you need not 
fling away the 1st water pour off the clear liquor then beat the almonds
very fine with D. R. Loaf sugar or w. sugar candy a small quantity
then mix em with the clear liquor & drink plentifully of it, the same 
barly will make a 2nd dose. It is called an emulsion. vic. Quincy’s
Edulcerating Emulsion.
Richard Smith Esquire of Enderby had a violent rheum in his eyes
which was cured at London by a perpetual blister lay’d below the
great bone on his neck a little above the shoulder bones It was
oval spred on alum leather 3 Is long 2 Is broad It raisd a blister
at 1st then he drest it with cabbage leaves for 2 or 3 days then with
melilot salve when it ceased to run he had an ointmt from the apothecary
that was mix’d with fr. flies in fine pouder he apply’d a little of 
that & heap’d it blistering & running a qr. of a yr. R. S.
To prevent a blistering plaster from causing the strangury or any pain
in making water. mix camphor in pouder with the blistering salve Dr
Wright surgeon & man midwife & physician at Darby.
when a blistering plaster is taken off apply a cabbage leaf or
melilot salve for 2 days then melt bees wax & tallow p. e.
& apply it spread on linnen [it] cools inflammations & takes away the 
soreness & cures quots, wheals, whelks, & pimples Dr Geo Cheselden prescribes
another for do apply white of egg wheat flour [illegible] [illegible]
Jane Smith of Blaby
For the [illegible] Rx half a pint of new milk and
sweeten it with lbfs of coarse sugar and drink it do
thus two or 3 times this cured a shepherd of Nighton
when above 60 years old. John Halford d Glen
Another drink or draught of whey in a morning or
posset drink at dinner eat gritt’d meat with onion & 
water and salt ect.



(239
A broken shin
Rx the marrow of beef fresh butter & bees wax melt
em to a salve This cured the Ld Stamford when the London
surgeon could not. This was his house keeper salve good
for any sore. Rd Mr Ed. Stokes Dr Salmon commends tar for a
broken [illegible] & to cure sore difficult to heal Family Dictionary
A bed post at a sale of house hold good was unluckily throne
agt Ann Brays legs It broke both her shins they were swell’d
as big as an egg & look’d black & blood, a little lint was
dipt in vinegar & water warmed & lay’d on the rare places & a rag
was dipt in verjuice & layd over the lint & so bound on This 
was done twice a day by Mr. Joseph Wilks the surgeon’s order
& continued till it made scabs She liv’d with Mr Norton
minister of Blaby Mr Jn Woodhouse yet did great cures in 
surgery always wash’d a sore 1st with cold verjuice to clean & 
prepare it for healing before he apply’d his salves etc. Br S. A.
Tho. [Scabior] [illegible] on Ann Brays legs were cured by the inner bark of
elder & gill run by the ground boyl’d in hogs grease or hogs lard to an
ointmt made by Mrs Norton verjuice or for want of it vinegar & 
water would not cure Mrs Sarah Lathwell’s shin was broken agt
a [illegible] It was thus cured at best by E. A. Rub the [illegible] with 
old oil of Turpentine now may do then wipe it with a clean rag or
cap paper then anoint it [illegible] oil of turpentine & spred some of Bents
salve & rub that with oil of turpentine, the next day rub the same
plaster (after the sore is wiped clean & the plaster clean’d) with [vulnerary]
water made of oil of vitriol& Hungary water or for 
want of Hungary water use camphorated sp. of wine but Hungary
water is best & so apply it when it ceases to run corruption
this ran very little anoint the same plaster with old oil of turpentine
grown thick with keeping. This takes away the [illegible] & 
heals.
Sr. Philip Paris’s plaster (which use in the green book made of red
& white lead soap & oil) is good to heal a broken shin
another Rx tar & hony p,. e. sp. v. a little to cover em boil em to incorporate.
It is anodyne, drying, & healing E. A.
another Robt Finly a boy & serv’t to E. A. coming up brick stairs in 
E. A.’s dary fel down the edge of a brick cut his stockin & broke his
shin almost 2 inches long in January 1729 It swell’d in a little time as
big as a pullet’s egg E. A. at that instant rub’d it with tincture of myrrh
then made some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon setting it
upon a live coal & rub’d on the sore with fingers a pretty while the 
boy sitting near the fire crying then he spred a plaster (made of only 
red lead & sallet oil, boyl’d to a salve) on a rag & apply’d it warm’d
& sew’d a cloth over it & the cloth came off in 2 weeks & the plaster in 
3 or 4 It was quite healed & well with only that one dressing It presently 
took away the pain. Mr Young says in his book of turpentine
that oil of turpentine heated verry hot but not to scald will cure a
green wound at once dressing (covering it with a plaster of red lead or
diaculum or the like) another wash it with rum it is better than S. V.
then cover it with red lead plaster or empl. de minio rum is ext for a bruise 
[Mrs Padmore]


240)
Breech gaul’d with riding
Dissolve some roch allum in water wet a linnen cloth
therein & at night going to bed apply it It will cure by 
morning. Mrs Finch another Dissolve a little of Colebatches
pouder in water & once or twice moisten the sore place E. A.
another apply a diaculu plaster Mr. Winstanly
To prevent gauling. moisten the breech night & 
morning for a long time especially before a journey
with your own water it will harden it. E. A. another Rx verjuice
(the older the better) moisten the breech & inside of the thigh, that
touches your saddle & is apt to gaul, therewith the night & morning
before & every night after riding If you find this does not answer
the expectation add some salt to em so as to make em taste
saltish E. S. verjuice will stain linnen another Line your breeches with a fine
thick flannel such as shirts are made & ty up
your shirt when you ride Dr Million another Rx a
piece of [water] [illegible] which the fire [illegible] undrest & dry, [sew] at to the
your neck from gauling with neckcloth. E. A. to prevent or cure gall’d place
emplastru de minia is better than diaculum apply’d before or after
the place is sore. E. A. a galled horse equus defricata cute.
To prevent galling by riding Rx some melted glew to it
thinly on the breech inside of the thighs then clap on each 
buttock & the inside of each thigh a fine piece of Holland Mr 
Orme apothecary To cure galling caus’d by riding
mix some fullers earth with water apply it to the galled sore
lay’d on a rag at night. Mr. Orme
To prevent galling when you ride a journy two or 3 nights
before you intend to travel Rub the breech & the inside
of the thighs with vinegar 3 pts that is very keen & sallet oyl shak’d
together oft in a viol. E. A. To cure galling scrape some
fullers-earth into a pot or plate moisten it with Hungary
water or spirit of wine spread it upon London brown paper
& apply it. It will prevent galling rub’d on a cloth sew’d 
to the breeches Mr. Amos Taylor.
To cure & prevent galling when you ride or the neck chafed. Boyl
Add [illegible] in sallet oyl or the [combear] dye that is sweet & anoint [illegible] EF


(241
Lapis calaminaris sprinkled in pouder upon [gal’d] places in 
children dries & heals em suddenly. Salmon
Heat some vinegar & sope together & stir it with a stick & wash the gall’d
places [Mascal] says it will cure [illegible] gall’d with a halter bath’d on 
twice a day. Mascal of Cattel. It will dry & heal it in 2 or 3 days, ibid
To prevent galling when you ride Rx a knot & a
cross of elder tree the cross must have 4 equal 
lengths, wear it in your pocket, or take 2 bits of
fresh elder wear [1)] in one pocket & the other in the
other when you ride. Wm Wyat.
Another Sew a hares skin in your breeches
with the fur next your breech. ibid.
To cure a gall’d breech. Drop the tallow of a candle
into your own urine & rub it on at night going
to bed. some say the tallow cures without the urine
another Rub on marl or marly clay free from 
gravel or sand. Wm Wyat.
Pulvis desiccativus a drying powder in Salmons Doron
Rx Pomgranate flowers red roses, red sanders each
ziij camphor zfs mix them and make all into a fine
powder. [?drysapany] excorcation or galling immediately
and most speedily takes away the inflammation and pain 
It cures childrens britches when galld
Galling in children Rx Fullers earth in powder and
shew it upon the place. Fullers earth dissolved in the
yolk of an egg and anoint therewith wash with warm 
water large dispensatory



242)
To stop a looseness in children
Rx the dripping of a roasted shoulder or breast of mutton
the last is best. Give a child of ½ a yr or a yr old three of a 
child’s spoonful fresh dropt It must be roasted without salt
It commonly stops at twice taking You may give it twice in 
a day Mrs Finch.
A child sick in the 1st month of its age & to prevent inward
convulsions & fits. Rx sack, sallet-oyl, plantane water
each 2 spoonfuls warm’d with a little double refin’d sugar
Give it as a clyster. In children that are older enlarge the
dose. It has cured when several noted Drs could not nurse at
Whitehall & Mrs Finch. Clysters generally leave the body
costive & stop a lask. ibid
For a man or woman wash a gallon of the leaves of mallows 
& boyl em in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 taking
of the scum before you drink it strain it & when cold enough drink a pint
at a time 2 or 3 times in a day especially at night going to bed
This has cured & eased pains of the bowels when Drs could not.
Mrs Finch. another boyl rice 3 spoonfuls in 3 qts of water till 
it comes to 3 pints with a good piece of cinnamon. You may add one 
glass of clarret & sweeten it with double refin’d sugar & give it a boyl drink 
this for your constant drink till the looseness stops. ibid E. A. has often
try’d the last with good success. note mallows are opening but they 
are healing & ease pain. E. A. Another Rx Bones burnt in the fire & 
pouder’d & sifted fine mix some cinnamon pouder with it. Rx as much 
as will lie on a good knife’s point just before your breakfast & as
much with your supper Mrs Caulton. To stop a looseness or [the]
bloody flux. Rx as much grated rhubarb as will lie on a six 
pence & dry it before the fire add to it a little plantane water
& drink it Pater Meus.
To bind & stop a looseness. Rx 
bean flower & make a cake with cold water Bake it & 
split it in two Rx a little raspberry wine or clarret & 
heat it & dip the cake into it bind half of it to the navel
when that is cold heat the other half & bind that so apply first one
then another interchangeably ibid another make a little 
cake with the white of one egg beaten & mixt with wheat flower bake it
on a brick near the fire or in an oven then eat it. This cured Jn [Cater]
A looseness Rx The white decoction viz Rx Burnt hartshorn
1 ounce beat it fine. boyl it in spring water 2 qts till it comes to 
one Put in some cinamon sweeten it with loaf sugar Drink
it as much as you can for your constant drink. Drink no other
drink. It infallibly cures says Mrs Caulton
Emplastrum & [crusta] [ponis] Crust of bread plaster spred [illegible] & lay’d to the 


(243
stomach or bowels is good to stop vomiting or diarrhoeas Quincy


244)



(245



246)



(247
To harden an ingraver.
Rx a thick piece of lead viz ½ a pound or a pound piece 
or heavier & make a little hole or impression on the 
lead by thrusting the point of the ingraver cool into the
lead then heat the ingraver red hot (It must be but just red 
hot) & immediately thrust it into the little hole in the lead
which cools it & hardens it. You must not serve the ingravers 
so but only when they are soft. James Davis White Smith of
Croft.
To case harden iron, as the bit of a key (al. the face)
viz that part that turns the bolt & is apt to war & 
cover the key or keys all but the bit that you would 
harden with clay, then Rx horse hooves half burnt so that
you may beat em to pouder If it is overburnt it is good 
for nothing viz Hold the hoof to live or flaming coles
with a pr of tongues till it rises in blisters then rasp em
off then burn & rasp em off again & again till the whole hoof
is rasp’d away. You need not beat it to pouder Rx pouder
of hoof 2 pts salt 1 part. Humane urine (the older the
better) as much as will bring it to the consistence of an 
hasty pudding then put this into a woollen cloth, wrap
yup the keys in it & put it into an iron laddle or iron
pan but because it will spoil or eat thro an iron ladle etc.
at twice using & will melt brass, the best way is to lay it
on an old iron-clout that comes from an axle tree stopping
the holes with nails or stubs, or an old plow-share
or cart bush. It must be hollow, because the less flame
comes to it, the harder there heat it red hot, & as soon as it
is red hot immediately quench it in cold water that is
not greasie; then scour the keys or iron with free stone 
or sand & a stick. James Davis White Smith of Croft.
It will last 20 yrs hard ibid
To harden a piece of iron Rub some barm (al yest) all over the 
iron especially on the upper side then cover the upper side thick
with salt lay’d upon the barm & so cover it with live coals & 
make it red hot & it will be so hard a steel [illegible] will not touch it. Tho.
Taft blacksmith


248)
Iron or steel to brighten. Scrape off the rust and rub
it with [tootchwood]


(249
To kill stomach worms.
Steep species hierae pierae in a pint of sack 3 days shaking
it every day strain out five spoonfuls & drink it in the morning
as long as it lasts S. S.
To kill worms Rx bayberries in pouder as much as will lie on 
a shilling for a child of 2, 3, 4 or 5 yrs of age mixt with treacle 
three mornings together a man or woman may take as much 
as will lie on a half crown 3 mornings successively. It will
bring prodigious quantities of worms away & create a fresh 
lively colour in the face & lips. It scarce has its equal. A woman
at London got a great deal of mony by selling it for worm pouder
Mrs Finch. The essential oyl of savine is frequently 
us’d to kill worms in outward applications to the belly Dr
Quincy’s Dispensatory.
To kill worms. Gather dew worms in the night & put em in a 
linnen bag. You must have 5 or 7 or 9. Bind it upon the navel
with a cloth; if they are alive in the morning, the child
hath no worms; If the child hath worms, they will [stink] & 
be like a salve & this will make em void worms that [illegible] Mrs Elizth
Brown of Leicer
Persons that are afflicted with worms have commonly a stinking breath 
troublesome sleep, frightful & terrible dreams, gnashing of the [illegible], an
itching & often picking of the nose, convulsion vits, a violent headach,
all which disorders are instantly eradicated by Dr Richard Roch’s worm
plaster sold by Dr Roch at the hand & face in water: Lane Black [Fryars]
London.
For the worm Mr Clark says it is an ext medicine
Rx 2 or 3 little onions or one great one sliced steep em in water
½ pint all night the next morning drink the water fasting & fast an
hour after it. Probatum est.
For the worms. Rx rhubarb zi [wormf???] ziiij
burnt hartshorn coriander seeds, rue drys with the
flowers on Mr Palmes. All sour things are goo to 
kill worms hence it is that juice of lemon is ordinarily 
given agt em and in ordinary drink a little sp. of vitriol
to sharpen doth wonders zij of hiera picra more or less 
by it’s bitterness kills and expells worms.
Tincture sacra is ext to kill worms and for a pain in the
stomach and wind in the stomach and [Chexials] tinctura
sacra wont keep long except you add Geneva or brandy to 
the wine. Bates and Quincey. Salmon upon Bates say there
is few better purges in the world



250)



(251
To draw pidgeons to a dove coat
Rx some rushes & boyl em in water with assafoetida or
boyl assafoetida in water in a large pan & as soon as
it is taken off the fire put some rushes into it let em infuse
12 hours put some of these rushes into some of 
the holes in the dove coat & lay the rest on the table & 
they will carry em to their holes & make their nests with 
em taking great delight in their scent & stink. This
is such a powerful [illegible] & monopolizer of pidgeons that
it ought not to be practiz’d says my author (without 
having experimented it himself) Mr Geo. Potchin of Wigson 
This must be practiz’d in [benting] time a little before they 
begin to breed G.P. In benting times or a little before
must people take all their young pidgeons out of the coat
& kill em or break their eggs because the old pidgeons
wanting meat will pine their young ones then but Mr
Geo. Potchin from May Day till midsummer or Wm Hay is
mow’d in the fields giveth his pidgeons on a brick table
in his dove coat every day ½ a strike of good sweet oats,
Poland oats are best for em, by which feeding he preserves his 
pidgeons alive which otherwise will frequently die in bending
time, & hath young pidgeons to sell when they are scarce & 
dear viz at 20 d or 13 d per dozen. when grass is mown, they will 
shift for themselves living upon raz grass seeds & other seeds.
G. [?]
Pigeons affect salt much, therefore be not unprovided of a
shallow pot with sandy gravel in it mixt with cummin seeds
bruised & unbruised & with salt & set it in the dove house upon
a plank or table so that they may come at it. Mr Clark of stony 
Stanton. The better to make pigeons to stay & continue in 
the place you provide for them is to secure a pair or 2 or 
more in the dove house or chamber until they have bred & have 
young ones abt a week old you must feed em with beans soked in 
water & water set in a shallow vessel for em to drink out of thanks 
old ones will not forsake their young but be willing to stay with
em ibid
To draw pigeons to a dove coat. Boil a peck of barly
in a good quantity of water when it has boil’d a qr of an hour add
3 qts of salt or more and let it boil ½ an hour longer then pour
away the water and set it in the dove coat whilst it cools when 
it is cold pour the water upon the table in the coat thro a 



252)
sive to save the barly and let it run where it will
on the ground then sweep the ledges by the holes clean and
scatter the barly up and down and strew some on the table
for the pidgeons to eat offal barly that is full of seeds is as
good as the best, you may take with sparrow [illegible] an old
pigeon or two clip one wing of each pigeon that they may 
not fly away and hold some assafoetida to the fire and
when it is ready to melt rub it under the wing of one or more
pigeon Pigeons love the smell of assafoetida. you must
set water in 2 earthen pots or platters for pigeons with the
cut wing to drink at you must anoint with a feather
dipt in oil of spike the edge of the platters that when 
other pigeons smell thereof (which they will do by touching
the edge of the platter with their breast when they drink) 
they may invite and tempt others to the coat you may do
this to the coat. You may do this in pairing time or when they
breed there being but a few pigeons in the coat. But it is
best to do it in benting time and it is necessary then 
to boil a gallon of barly with a qt of salt once in a 
month’s time to draw pigeons. Tho. [illegible]
To stock or encrease a dove coat To make a
salt cat Rx cumminseeds ziiij boil it in water a
quart or more the more the better sand a qt mix all these
together made in the shape of a sugar loaf and set an dry it
in a oven after a batch of bread or a panchion or dish when 
it is dry and cold anoint it over with a fether dipt in oil
of spike 2 d The pigeons smell of this and it draws other
pigeons to the coat Thos. Satchwell. Use it every spring


(253
Vander Hide’s true & faithfull experimts being a
catalogue of those medicamts he sold off his stages during the
time of his 18 yrs travelling in England, Scotland & Ireland
& foreign kingdoms, to the great benefit of poor indigent
people. nihil [absq?] deo.
1) How to make my brown balsom of Paracelsus for cuts
& green wounds, bruises, contusions of aches.
Rx sallet or linseed oyl ½ a pint, yellow rosin lbfs bees
was ziij barrel pitch zi melt all these together then add
fresh butter zij Rx it off the fire & stir to it liquid storax 
zi oyl of amber zi oyl of mace zfs then put the mixture 
into a pot & this is the true balsam that was made by Dr Tousan 
2) How to make the green oyntmt for burns or
scalds. Rx sallet oyl ziiij fresh butter lbfs rosin ziiij plantane
leaves mi houseleek mi cabbage leaves mi boyl all
these together ½ a qr of an hour, then strain it thro a linnen
cloth & put the into a skillet again & put to it bees wax 
zij cut into small pieces & having verdigrise zij dissolv’d in
sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls, put it in the composition. After the
bees wax is melted you must let the composition be cool before 
you add the verdigrise, lest the oyntmt be not green but
brown & this is the true oyntmt that I sell.
3) How to make the vermi-victor or worm-vanquishing pouder 
which if it be thus prepared is the only remedy in the world.
Rx horehound, red sage, tormentile, coriander seed, burnt hartshorn,
salt of wormwood, salt of scurvy-grass & coraline
each zfs finely pulverised; mix all these together Give as much
as will lie on a sixpence to a child & twice the quantity to a 
man or woman; let em take it in a morning fasting & fast
an hour after it.
4) How to make the brown plaster
Rx burgundy pitch rosin, gum amoniack, gum elemy & bees
wax, mastick & sanguis draconis each zij sallet=oyl 2 or 3 spoonfuls
& barrel pitch zi. Put these into a skillet upon the fire melt
em together & stir em well when you see em all melted dip in a
linnen cloth or good cap paper so long & so broad as you wou’d
have the plaster to be This is the true plaster that I use  for any weakness
or pain in the back, to sciatica gout, or pain in any pt of the 


254)
the body or for ruptures or broken bellies.
5) How to make the cephalick purge for the brain,
or pouder for the head. Rx rosemary, sage betony 
angelica-root, juniper berries, curcuma root, Virginia tobacco,
benjamins white hellebore, elecampane & amber, each
grains 20. Beat em all to fine pouder This is the pouder I sell
you for all great pains in the head, with many other distempers 
by snuffing the quantity of a barly corn up the nose at
night going to bed.
6) How to make a familiar & mighty cathartick,
diuretick, purging pill.
Rx rosin of jalop, rosin of scamony, extract of turbeth,
extract of agarick, extract of rhubarb, the cordial pouder
of deahurden, mercurius dulcis, each zi Dry em all very
fine to pouder Rx coloquint zviii beaten to fine pouder & diagridium
zij mix them all together & make them up into a body
with gum tragacant dissolv’d in spirit of wine; when you are
making it up int o a mass mix it with a dram of oyl of
cloves; & when you’ve brought the mass to a hard substance
you may make it into pills. If you wou’d have em coverd 
over with sugar send em to a sugar bakers but I will assure 
you they are as good without If I shou’d nominate every 
particular person that hath found benefit by this pill, a whole 
quire of paper would not contain it. It has done good to most
distempers incident to the body of men or women Let children
from a yer of age to 3 take one from 8 to 16 let em take 2, 
give three to men or women let them take em before supper
eat a light supper after em; they will work abt 10 or 12 hours
after at the same time you may work or play, go abt in the heat
of summer or cold of winter
7) How to make my oleum benedictum for convulsion
fits, falling sickness, stone or gravel or any unsavery
breath, small pox, measles, cough or consumption.
Rx oyul of turpentine zfs or ziiij oyl of amber, oyl of juniper
berries, oyl of anniseeds, oyl of nutmegs, & oyl of mandrake
each zi Jews pitch or mummy let that dissolve in the
oyl of turp. 1st mention’d then mix em all together & let the party
grieved with any of the said distempers take as many drops as they are 
yrs of age in a glass of white wine (or white mountain) morning 
& evening. It is also an infallible remedy for those that are troubled
with agues, by taking half a spoonful in a good large glass
of mull’d sack an hour before the fit comes, & sweat upon it two
hours in bed. You must add oyl of cinnamon zfs to the ingredients which 
was omitted by mistake.



(255
8) How to make a pouder for sore eyes
Rx Tartar vitriol, salt of saturn, each 6 gr. oris pouder 18
gr. white allum 6 gr. [cathanilla] (i.e. cochireel) 10 gr. lapis calaminaris,
sacharu saturni x each 4 gr Beat all these together & 
put em into a pint of running water (x each 4 grains)
9) How to make this antidote pouder call’d the true orvietan
of Rome a cordial.
Rx angelica root, serpentine root, contrayerva root, galangal
root, dietamnus root, aristolochia root, gentian root, orris
root, meum root (i.e. spignel) casamus root (  ) zedaary
root, acorus root, agarick, ginger root, each zi peraterium ziiij
trochisk, flesh of vipers red roses, dictamnus dittany leaves marubiu horehound
leaves, saffron, each 40 gr. seeds of annis, parsly, fennel, caraway
cummin, basie seed, cisilias seed, cubeb, cardamum each 30 gr.
cloves, cinnamon, Gaskins pouder nutmeg, white pepper, coriander
each 40 gr. lemnian earth, storax, calamint, juniper berries, elecampane
each zi curcuma root (i.e. turmerick) ziij sagapeny
opoponax each zi Beat all these to fine pouder & mix it with 
pure hony & it makes the true Roman orvietan.
10) my antiscorbutick diet drink (my last farewel) being 
the usefullest thing in this age for the scurvy, dropsie or
jaundice, being used every spring & fall.
Rx hartstongue brooklime, scabious, red dock roots, parsly 
roots, dwarf elder, tops of broom that is green, white briony
roots, each 6 ounces with 4 ounces of liquorice, sassafras, 
sarsaparilla, rhubarb & the 4 greater cooling seeds, Rx casia
in the cane lbfs, China ziiij let these be all sliced & bruised 
together by the apothecary & boyled in 5 gallons of fine
midling ale, untill one galn be wasted, when it is 4 days old let
the patient drink a pint or as much as their stomach can bear
every morning & at 3 o clock in the afternoon every spring
& fall.
Whilst some do scrible, others stories tell,
The true physicians known by doing well
Experiential docet.






258)


(259
To drive crows from a ground or field
Dig around hole in the ground like a fulmere hole, abt
as big as a man may thrust in his hand leaving some
molds on the outside then dress some feathers of a crow
with assafoetida, flower of brimstone, train oyl, gunpouder 
soot etc. any thing that stinks & dip some of the crows feathers
therein & stick em viz 2 or 3 feathers at the mouth of
the hole & put some feathers of the body into the hole
as if a fulmere had drawn a crow into the hole & this
will fright crows away better than a turf dug up or any thing
abt 3 crows will dress a whole corn field Mr Geo. Potchin 
of Wigson. This E. A. try’d in vain the weather being rainy 
in the yr 713. another Rx grease & soot & the oldest tallow
& most stinking you can get, each lifs gunpouder ziiij
the juice of burdock leaves a spoonful or less may do
Put em all in a pot or pan & warm em & dress the feathers
of a crow when melted & stick em put & down upon the ground 
by 3 in a place or 6 in a place, and dress bunches of feathers
6 in a bunch & ty em to sticks one dressing will last till 
corn is above ground unless a great deal of rain falls then
dress again. This will also keep sparrows from a corn house
or corn in a field or [illegible] The juice of one dock leaf may 
serve but more is better Ed. Manton of Little Brighton 
Northonshire & Francis Car of [Brixwith]
another To drive away crows or any other birds from ground
or hovel in spit of rain. Page of Brixwith Rx assafoetida zi
hard tallow lbij boyl em together & let em stand to cool (you 
must boyl em but a little time) then add verdigrise zi in fine pouder
together then draw the feathers thro it. Fr. Car. of do. This E. A. try’d
in vain. To kill crows or sparrows or to drive em away from 
a place Rasp or rather file with a large rough file nux vomica
the finer it is the better It will not pound. Boyl some barly 
as soft as wheat for frumety when it is cold put the pouder of 
nux vomica in a linnen cloth then add some boyl’d barly & roll
it abt let it dry then strew it in several places after the plow 


260)
& it will kill crows or pidgeons or sparrows or
anything that eats if for it is a strong poyson. To kill
a fox or foxes. Cut off the skin of a young lamb where
the foxes resort & cut several slashes on it & strew 
nux vomica in pouder on em & it will kill all the foxes as that
eat of it. You may catch crows after they’ve eaten the
poyson’d barly tie em up alive by the heels two by two 
to sticks & the crows will take an hatred to the place
or hovel for a long time Dr. Pool.
To drive crows from a hovel. Rx assafoetida 1 d (  ) bacon grease
the quantity of large hazelnut put em in a little black [illegible] set it
on live Coles till the devils dung is dissolv’d then add a little
gun pouder beaten or unbeaten & set the pot having a little bit
broken off to let out the scent under the top of the thatch of
the gable end of a pease or corn hovel covering the pot with 
a piece fo tyle or slate with an hole in’t or a piece of lead or
wood to tie it to as to guard it from rain & wet The crows will
smell it & will not endure to light or settle on the h ovel & 
once dressing will guard it for a qr of a yr old Jn Braumont of
Great Glen.
To drive crows from a hovel or corn or a close new sowed
with corn Jn [Tate] ratcatcher of Loughborow
Shoot six or more crows or kites take their skins off them
Take assafoetida 6 d Gunpouder zij in fine pouder brimstone
in pouder or flower of brimstone zij hemlock (al. 
[illegible]) abt 4 ou. of the tops of the [kechs] Pound em to pouder 
when dry, & pound all together with stinking butter or soft grease
of any sort Rub the oyntmt on the inside & outside of
the skins. Tie em upon sticks & set em in the wind & the 
crows will not abide the scent of em The grease will keep 
the scent in for a month stock the hovels with em to the
windward. it will n to fright pidgeons away. It will h old
good in spite of rain or snow but after rain you must
dry em in the air of a barn or bring em in when it rains & 
set em out when dry. E. A. thinks train oil better than grease
To keep crows from corn or a hovel. Shoot a crow
& stick her bill in the ground & spread her wings with 
stick or lay a stone on em her belly lying on the ground.
Wm March



(261



262)
The stone
Mrs Caulton of Leicer takes every morning
brown sugar candy in pouder mixt with butter the
quantity of a small nutmeg fasting & fasts 2 hours 
after (she eats no breakfast) It made her void 15 or 
16 small stones in a day & freed her for 2 or 3 yrs
& perhaps all her life. she never had a fit of the stone
since nor any pain & once she lay 2 months & was 
given up for dead formerly with a fit she is now
sometimes troubled with gravel but it is very litle
& seldom. she never misses a day in a yr taking
it. Mrs Caulton. another Rx mallows & devils bit each mi
& a leaf or 2 of scabins boyl em in a pt of smal ale posset drink
S. S. the stone or weakness in the back Rx crabs eyes, sal prunellae 
& liquorice each zi in pouder Rx as much Venice turpentine
as will make it roll into pills. Rx 2 or 3 every morning for a 
good while together S. S. To bring away gravel, to prevent
the stone & to cure a violent pain in the back. Put ale a
pint into a pan let it just boyl pour it to common treacle lbfs 
pr 1 d ½ so with 2 pots or mugs pour it backwards & forwards 3 or 4 
times till the treacle is dissolv’d then drink it as hot as you can
& go to bed to sweat or you may ride after it any where in
warm weather or walk in cold within doors. This brought a great
quantity of gravel from Sam. Exon carpenter & cured him of a 
great pain in his back & freed him from both for many yrs & for
ought I know for all his life Sam. Exon.
For the stone & gravel Rx horse stones when colts are gelt which 
it commonly in the latter end of March, in April or the beginning of 
May the yearling colts are gelt dry em in an oven after bread
beat em to powder
For the gravel take as much of the pouder as will lie on a shilling
only at night in common mallow to parsley root tea each mi
will make for 2 or 3 nights. Drink half a pint or more at a time
for abt three weeks or longer if it is for the stone then take as
much as will lie on a half crown & once a wash take one ounce
of epsom salt in whey or posset drink when you take the pouder 
for the gravel or when you take only as much as will lie on a 
shilling then you need not take the salts. The pouder is bitter & 
hot & the salts cool & prevent an inflammation. MR Richard Porter
stockin maker in Chesterfield Lane near the brick church in Nottingham 
was violently afflicted with the stone This pouder & tea & salts dissolve
& carry it off He was cured & continued well & free from pain 
It was half a year after he had taken it when he gave E. A. this acct 
It brought away as much gravel as would fill an ordinary woman’s 
thimble almost every time yet he made water. He made water 
in a white bason 



(263



264)



(265
Tetter or ring worm herpes impetigo.
vinegar of lead will kill tetters [illegible]
Dissolve some Roman vitriol in water moisten the sore
& hold it agt the fire to drive it in or you may moisten
the sore with spittle & often rub it with R. vitriol & 
let the fire dry it. This cured one of Sister Bs daughters.
another unguentu nutritu cured a ringworm on a womans
thumb & took away the itching at Leicer. vid. Salmon’s Family 
Dictionary. Rx fair water at qt white vitriol, roch 
allum each zi mix & dissolve & with this water wash the tetter
2, 3, or 4 times a day for a qr of an hour at a time, as hot
as can be endured In 10 days time it will perfectly cure it
tho it has been of 20 yrs standing ibid of Rx tobacco oyntmt
ziiij turpenthu minerale zi mix & apply it plasterwise ibid
The shingles [Herpes.] Blood in the arm Rx Dock roots that are yellow scrape
& slice em boyl some vinegar pour it on boyling hot & let
it infuse like tea being cover’d by the fire for an hour
or 2 then you may remove it & moisten the spots the next
day there with morning & night drink manna zi dissolv’d in German 
span water half a flask for a man or woman a gentle purge
or infuse zij in a whole flask & take half & intermit 3 
or 4 days & take the other half. after you’ve us’d the vinegar
& docks 2 or 3 days to kill the spots anoint with unguentu album
& lay a plaster thereon made of Agyptian ung. [populreu]
ung. nutritu ung. martiatu dress once a day abstain from
malt drink. Drink white wine & water or whey. Shingles are
little red spots very sore appearing commonly abt the waste
Mother Majers appear’d abt her breast under her arm & on 
the shoulder June 714 & was cured as above mention’d by 
Dr Chiselden. Joseph Large had the shingles & it was 2 
months before he was well ibid. The roots of the sharp 
pointed dock boyl’d in vinegar cure & take off the itch & scabs
(the place being wash’d by the decoction) & the breakings out of 
the skin Salmon


267)
The shingles & tetter or ringbone are almost
all the same The shingles in young people commonly 
encompass the waste in old people they appear
sometimes in the shoulder breast, tongue or eye. Dr
Chiselden. Goody Exon was cured of the shingles by 
anointing em twice a day with the hot blood of a
pidgeon now blooded abt pidgeons cured her. another
a plaster of keen mustard & spred upon paper & lay’d on
is an infallible cure Sister Boothby Some kill the
shingles with cats blood winter darker another Rx a little
old Hay & burn it & hold a hatchet over the smoke till it
doth sweat then rub the shingles with it every night till they 
are gone. Mr Corbet apothecary & W. P. another Pound rue
& mint & rub the juice on the shingles twice a day till well. This 
cured Ch. Chesters daughter Mrs Basset. For the shingles or 
a tetter Rx tar (the best) 4 or 5 good spoonfuls the thickest
cream the same quantity boyl these together till it comes to 
an oyl then anoint with it 2 or 3 times a day which will cure it.
Try this for a mallender E. A. Mrs Caulton. The shingles If
they be just come out the best Fr. brandy rub’d on em will kill
em, but if they be very bad Rx the suet of a loyn of mutton,
render it in silver or any thing but brass. strain it & with 2 bits 
of soft rag putting one in whilst you use the other dab it well on 
as hot as you can bear it for some time & do it 2 or 3 times a day.
It will kill them if never so bad says Mrs Caulton. Jn Groococks wife
of Cosby kill’d & cured a tetter only by washing it with the mountebanks
styptick water twice or thrice a day It being red water such 
as is commonly given to cow that stales blood J. G. The tetter sp.
salis communis will kill a tetter it is apt to cause an inflammation 
therefore abt a qr of an hour after it is apply’d anoint it with train
or sallet oyl Try it on a mallender Mr Cook apothecary oyl of
eggs takes away tetters, ringworms, morpherv & scabs. Salmon’s Disp
Dr Pool commends oleum myrrhae per deliquium mallender Rx B.
pepper in pouder mixt with goose or hogs grease Jn Mot of Rush’d [illegible]
Try whether Jamaica pepper will not do.
a Rx for the shingles or St 
Antonies fire. Rx house leek boyl it in cream
with some juice of five leav’d grass (or ST. Foil) a little plantane Let it
boyl till it comes to an oyntmt. S. S.
another for the same. spred tar on leather & lay it all over the pt
grieved. S. S. another apply allum posset card warm. Goody Simons
Drink flower of Brimston in milk to drive out the shingles ibid
Elizth Gimson was cured of an obstinate Ringworm in her arm with fasting
spittle 1st moisten’d then rub mud all on’t as oft as it itched E. G. or Rx mud
wall in pouder in a pot in the morning spit to it mix & bind it on with a linnen
cloth ibid.


(268
The falling down of the womb
or the bearing down of the mother
Rx white wine half a pint heat it very hot then put to 
it syrup of marsh mallows one ounce Drink it as hot as you can
going to bed once taking comonly cures if not repeat
the dose Mrs Anne Windsor midwife & Mother Majer 
If you can’t hold the water take cinnamon zfs in pouder boyl’d
in a pint of aq. vitae take 3 spoonfuls at night going to 
bed. Aunt Boothby.
The bearing down of the womb. spred a plaster of Mrs Caulton’s
red lead salve al. Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth or Bent’s
salve or diaculum cum gummis abt 8 i long & 5 i broad
cut oval & drawn to a point at each end. Boyl the third pt
of an ou. of isinglass in a pint & ½ of new milk tillit is wasted
almost to a pint eat ½ a pint night & morning till well If it is
too thick add more milk when you warm it a second or third time
Mrs Caulton.
For any pain in the womb caused either by child bearing or
coition attended with pain after making of water & an incontinence
of urine The lips of the matrix being sore & swell’d. Both
the outside & inside with Hungary water & a fine rag as far
at you can conveniently thrust it in 2 or 3 times a day especially 
night & morning or with lime water in which mercury sublimate 
has been dissolv’d according to Mr Boyls Rx adding a small quantity
more of the mercury than the Rx mentions. E. A.
The leaves & bark of lentiscus i.e. the mastick tree help 
the exiture of the womb & fundament Salmons Dispensatory
Salmon’s Dispensatory has a plaster called emplastrum
[metropoptotien] I e a plaster for the falling out of the womb
A decoction made of the leaves & [flowers] of acacia (it
grows in Egypt) & the juice dissolved in it is ext for the falling
of the womb & fundament Pechey’s Herbal acacia Salmon’s Dispensatory 
calls it the Egyptian thorn. the juice of the unripe seed is
put into treacle It is of a cooling, drying binding & glutinating
quality. Quincy says


269)



(270
Rx Pine tops miiij boyl em well in six galns of ale wort then 
tun it into a vessel & when it is purging put in a bag into which pout
dock roots dried ziiij sage, scurvy grass, gill & betony each mi
The peels of four sevil oranges cut when they have been tun’d
a week you must bottle the ale & a week after that it will be ready
to drink. Sr Walter Littleton & Pater Meus G. A.


271)
The gout.
April 714 Mrs Howet my mother having the 
gout in both her feet kept it out of her stomach thus
& the pain & swelling went away without any thing apply’d
to em. Rx as mjuch Gascoin’s pouder as will lie on a six 
pence in a little water or any cordial water at night it is an 
alkali & eat oat meal pudding or poch’d eggs which are alkalis
to destroy the acid of the stomach which is the cause of the gout
when in excess, Venice treacle is good Dr [Horreman] & Br G. A. my 
mother drank posset drink made of ale & milk for her general
drink to keep the gout of her stomach taking sometimes
a little Fr. brandy sometimes a glass of white wine
Mr Jn Wilkins clock-maker of Leicer having the gout in ‘
his stomach & vomiting up every thing that he took being
vert weak & confin’d to his bed was thus cured by Dr
Hartop. Rx clarret one spoonful warm’d at a time then 
2 spoonfuls then a glass with a clove of garlic after it
is 12 hours he drank a bottle which the gout out of his
stomach into his hands which recover’d him. J. A.
Eat no breakfast if you would be free from the
gout (& but little or rather no supper) This long evacuation
of the stomach makes a compleat concoction, prevents
the unnatural heat & fermt of the blood which appears oft 
in the hands sometimes in the foot which creates a dulness 
& lethargy & the gout E. A. another Th Rd Mr Smith of
Shamford in Leicershire freed himself of the gout in the
foot by anointing it with oyl of turpentine.
Another Dr Salmon commends by his own experience emplaster 
of hemlock with ammoniacum for pains of the spleen & of the
gout. Disp. p. 777. another anoint the pt pained by the gout or
rheumatism or by any obstruction with oyl of tobacco (not the oyntmt)
2 or 3 times intermitting 6 or 7 hours. Mr Penford apothecary.
another Eat prunes, sometimes hony & bread & butter E. A.
another anoint with unguentu [comitissed] acidulated with oyl 
of vitriol & cover the pt affected with flannel to make it
sweat The hands or feet must wear flannel muffs at night
after they are anointed This Dr Jackson’s oyntmt found out
b y E. A. another sp of sal armoniac mixt with equal quantity of camphorated
sp. of wine & lay’d in a pledget to the gout, often renoving it, gives
case to a miracle Salmon’s Disp.



(272
The gout in the stomach vid p. 296
The gout or any uncommon burning in the hands or feet or
any pt of the body. Boyl some oat meal with water as for
water gruel with some raysins of the sun ston’d & slit, or eat
raysins & salt E. A.
Mr Simon Stokes attorny at law of Melton Mowbray had the
gout 1st in one foot the 2nd fit It came into his stomach the 3rd 
time it came it seised his head when Dr Hartop told him the gout commonly 
attack’d the weakest pt He was a hard drinker The Dr said never
any man died of the gout till he was past 45 yrs old. He had an
issue made on the inside his leg before the knee & it freed him fro
the gout for four yrs together & he thought it wou’d never return S. S.
It did return after wards He thought it came by drinking small
ale. He freed himself fro it thus In the morn he drank a porringer of water gruel
with only salt in it & a spoonful of [illegible] [illegible] after it was made [illegible] fasted till 3 or 4
MR Wm Welles of Thrussington freed himself of the gout by
smoking tobacco
The powers at the 3 tuns in Adderston inkeeper when he has the gout
in the bunnion of his great toe, he anoints it with oyl of turp.
the he has a brick ready heated red hot in the fire which he quenches
in water till it has done hissing then he puts it into a thick flannel
bag made like a purse & draws it up close with a string & being in 
bed applys it as hot as he can endure it & let it lie to it all night
which causes the pain to sweat out then he drinks ½ a pint of clarret 
or warm ale to keep it out of the stomach This he repeats 3 or 4 nights
till the pain is quite gone Mr Amos Taylor
another Sr Charles Duncomb King James 2ds banker us’d to fry camomile
in fresh butter or hogs lard & apply it to the gouty toe.
ibid. A reservative agt the gout a pint of milk being taken 
in over night & in the morning all the cream scum’d off very clean,
till it comes to near half a pint & put away & as much flowers of
of brimstone as will lie on a half crown being first mixt in a spoonful
or 2 of it after it is a little warm’d & then well mixt with the remainder
& drank, fasting an hour after is an ext preservative agt the gout & 
a purifier of the blood It must be taken several mornings together S. S.
Mr Simon Stokes above mention’d drank water gruel in a morning 
with only salt in it, mixt with one spoonfull of milk after it was 
made when he travell’d to a friends house there he drank chocolate
in a morning instead of water gruel & fasted always 
till 3, 4, 5 or 6 o clock at night. This fasting so long emptied & 
cleared his stomach & whetted it so that he eat anything very
heartily at night & drank wine or stale drink or ale or any 
liquor he fancied, plentifully & was freed from the gout 5 yrs successively
& for ought I ever heard all h is life after Mr. Simon Stokes.


273)
The gout. Mr Orme
To prevent the stone & gout. Drink scum’d milk boyl’d
& mixt with green tea water p.e. sweeten’d with hony every 
morning all the yr round. Tea 1 ou. will serve eight mornings.
Rx tea zi make a pint & put in a spoonfull of hony
This Mr. Orme the apothecary drinks constantly every morning
so as to have one stool every day if it works more
he takes less hony or omits a day. He had his gout & gravel
This method freed him from both those distempers. He says
he has cured several poor people of consumptions by advising
em to drink milk pottage sweeten’d with hony morn & 
night to avoid malt drink. If every body knew the 
virtue of hony it would be 1 d per lb. He eats & drinks nothing
till dinner after his honey’d tea Mr. Tho. Orme drinks
½ pint of milk & ½ pint of tea water every morning. Hony 
is less griping taken thus than after it has been formented
ibid. [illegible] gum ammoniacu in Salmon’s Family Dictionary there
is a plaster of Mr New the surgeon that he says cures the gout in 
any pt of the body
The roots of [illegible] comfrey beaten small fresh taken, spred upon
leather & lay’d upon any place troubled with the gout doth
presently give ease of the pains. Parkinson’s Herbal.
For the gout. Boil a pottle of strong ale till it is very thick like
slime beat saffron ziij to fine pouder & the yolk of two eggs & oil of
roses one spoonful mix all these well together & spred some of it on 
a linnen rag doubled & apply it to the place grieved. Mrs. Howet E. A.’s mother
April 1739 a pain & stifness seized E. A. right hand & fingers like the gout.
he held his hand in hot water almost ready to scald & the pain & stifness vanished
presenter after
Mr Orme that is troubled with the gout once in 5 years
says that purging with rhubarb or any other drug will 
not drive the gout away but only gives ease during the 
working of the purges the gout afterwards returns with 
greater violence. He commended outward unction viz Rx
camphorated spirit of wine, spt of sal amoniae and
alicant sope mixt together let it stand to warm a little
against the fires before it is used. This E.A. try’d several
times at the latter end of March without finding any 
eases or benefit when he had the hip gout
He found the most relief rubing a coarse handkercher & 
a flesh brush by night and by day from his hip down
to his ankles Mr Orme says what cures a rheumatism none
cure the gout.


(274
Chilblaines or kibes.
IF they are only swell’s wash em with uuman urine the older
the better as hot as you can abide it every night beginning
at 1st with a moderate degree of heat & increase gradually
to a greater cover it with diaculu simplex a plaster If
it is swell’d & has holes in it repeat the said medicine only 
after the swelling is abated Bath it only with warm allum posset
drink & apply the curd warm to’t If there is much proud flesh
strew burnt allum on the curd Let it be drest but once with the 
curd in 2 days. It draws it white when it is dry’d & heal’d Bath it with old
urine hot to harden it you may sometimes add a little salt
to the urine a great cure was done thus by Ann Tasie
another If only swell’s a plater made of rosin & tallow will 
cure it but if swell’d & broken & rare with an hole or holes & 
full of pain. apply this poltis to take away the anguish. Rx
new milk & oatmeal stir em together cold to make oatmeal pudding
not very thick let em boyl then add mutton suet skin’d or tallow or
deers suet (you make keep mutton suet rendered for this use) & hous
leek wash’d & chopt small boyl to the consistence of thick oatmeal
pudding bind it on with a cloth as hot as you can endure it Let it
rest 12 hours or longer Heal it with rosin & tallow or diaculum.
a great cure was done thus by Mrs Frear. You may strew burnt
allum sometimes on the diaculum. Ann Tasie. vid. Kibes in Dr Salmons
Family Dictionary. Kibes swell’d Rx allum & white copperas
each one ounce in pouder infuse in water a pint. Bath it on warm agt
the fire Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Boyl a knuckle of veal in water
to make it very tender bath it with 2 rags as one grows cold the other
may heat agt the fire as hot as you can endure it. This takes away the
pain, if the kibes happen to have a kick or bruise It hath cured swell’d
& blister’d legs used 3 or 4 times Mrs Ann Lathwell.
Raw kibes Bath em with camphorated water a rag dipt in it as
hot as you can endure it Then apply a plaster of Aunt Boothby’s
cerecloth made of red lead oyl & bees wax called the red lead salve
Dress it once a day. This has cured a great many Sister Boothby.
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory says unguentum [rubricum] [illegible] siccativu
[illegible] is so much us’d for kibes which children are very subject to
in frosty weather that it is often asked for by the common people
by the name of kibe oyntmt. fir it cools & cicatrizes em very
soon.
To cure the itching of kibed toes or feet. moisten em with brine of
beef or pork & hold em agt the fire to work in, at night. E. A.’s men
servts use this with benefit. another with a lancet make em bleed in
several places or whip em with a holly branch This cures Mr Coy




275)
For kibed [heels] raw
warm some milk by quenching a hot iron in it once 
then bath the sore with the then strew on oister shell powder
to keep the proud flesh down then apply a plaster of
[diaculum] to keep the [stockin] from it & to dry & keep it warm
Dress it once a day. Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer.
For kibed heels or chilblanes broken or whole The paps
of roasted apples are most excellent Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother.
To prevent kibes or chilblaines. Burn oat straw 1st dry’d to ashes
steep em all night in cold water the next day boil the water & 
ashes together & bath the hands or feet in it 3 or 4 times for
3 or 4 days Mr Jn Needham E. A.’s servt
Kibes raw dress em with sallet oil & white lead Joyce Gimson E. A.
servt. The castle soap plaster al Sir Philip Paris’s plaster Wm Mather’s
Young Man’s Companion 3rd edition says will cure chilblains & kibes.
Mather’s same book says p.90 one plaster of burgundy commonly cures
kibes, if you do not bruise the place with your shoes or the lead plaster
al. empl. de minio. Or a dry oak leaf when it is almost well
Kibes heels swell’d and raw. Rx [Fuzballs] the pouder and bind it
to the sore with a linnen rage renew it once a day it will ease the
pain if raw apply the inside skin of the fuzball shift that once
a day washing it in cow piss to allay the itching Mr Laughton.
Kibed heels raw Aunt Boothby Rx the white of an egg & lay 
it on some sheeps wool that is pretty fine & apply it to the kibe.
Renew it once in 24 hours & it will cure it, says Jane smith of
Blaby. To cure the itching of a kibe’d heel or toe that
is not broken. Boil some raw allum in the water as much
as will give a strong tincture of the allum dip a
rag in it and [dap] it with as hot as you can abide
it several times one after another John Hewet
Another moisten some salt with your spittle
and rub the itching part with it a rag being moisten’d
with it then hold it as near the fire as you can endure
it three or 4 times one after another. Joyce Gimson



(276
Immoderate or superfluous evacuation
of the monthly terms.
I can assure you, by my own experience that a cataplasm
made of two whites of eggs with a little bolus,
apply’d to the region of the kidneys has frequently & 
immediately stop the immoderate flux of the menstru
al blood. If the said flux proceeds from a sharp quality’
of the blood, which by its long continuance has dry’d up 
all the moisture of the body. Rx a porringer of fresh cows
milk (which thickening the blood, does by degrees restore the
moisture) every morning for a whole month without
intermission extinguishing a red hot steel in it every 
time you use it. Monsieur D’ube’s Poor Man’s Physician.
another Rx the best rubarb rasp’d or grated as much as will lie
on a shilling or more if the flooding is violent, in a spoonful
or 2 d cherry brandy, aniseed water or common brandy. This cured
Ann T. E. A. for immoderate fluxes of the courses The pouder the
distill’d water the syrup & the conserve of red poppies are in use.
Pecheys Herbal.
This is ext for an immoderate flux of the courses.
Rx plantain water 2 ou. rubarb pouder’d [illegible] ij yellow myrobalans 
pouder’d [illegible] i syrup of dry’d roses zfs mix & give
it in the morning; 2 hours after let some broth be taken
ibid







279)
French pox, morbus gallicus.
Balm of Gilead, balsamu gileadense, balsamu e mecha
Let me discover one secret not yet vulgarly known. This
balm of Gilead has the greatest force of all vegetable productions
in curing the French pox. a word to the wise is enough
It exceeds guaiacu, sassaphras, China etc. Dr Salmon’s Disp.
Pechey’s Herbal says guaiacum i.e. lignum sanctum or packwood
in curing the French pox.



(280
Breast hard & swell’d
Ruth Winter a maid abt 16 yrs old was cured of a hard
swell’d breast thus. Rx white wine a qt in which infuse
stub nails lbi 12 hours or longer Drink ½ a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon one qt commonly gives 
ease & 2 qts cure it. Walk after it Rx Winter keep it in
a bottle close stopt. ibid Mrs Sprigs of [Shearsby] had a hard
swell’d breast not broken when Dr [Hatton] of Harborow had had 40 lb
of her to no purpose Wm Bent farrier cured it only by anointing it with 
linseed oyl cold once a day it dispersed the humour & made it well. W. B.
A cancer or sore breast with knots in it
Rx a piece of new flannel that is soft & warm, & has never been wet 
dip it in a blew wad fat nine times every day or as you’ve opportunity
& wear it all over the breast, shifting it once a month. You 
may dip as much as will serve 2 or 3 times It has cured great knots in
the breasts supposed to be cancers & done cancers good Mrs Caulton.
A breast swell’d or broken
apply Bents salve, often approved by Mrs Elizth Halford.
A poultis for a swelling or a sore breast. Dr Arden Elsmere.
Rx a white lilly root, [smallage] a small handful mallows & chickweed 
each a large handful shred em small together put em in a pint 
of new milk or better with as much oatmeal as will thicken it Boyl
it pretty well then put in hogs lard or sheeps suet 3 ou. the 1st is
best. Boyl it thick & spred it on a cloth. Lay it on as hot as you 
can abide it. shift it twice a day. It will disperse the swelling or
brake it to heal it. Lay Mrs Caulton’s black salve on it when it is broken 
& the poultis on the top of it. If there is a hole in it tent it with basilicon.
Mrs Caulton. It is not good to tent a sore breast it often causes
shooting pains in the breast all the life after Sister Boothby
A milk sore breast swell’d or broken Dr Smith of Findon.
Rx linseed 6 ou. boyl it un bruis’d in a qt of new milk till it is
very thick If you would have it draw more add white bread 
crums a spoonful spred it upon a linnen cloth near an inch
thick to cover all over the breast before you lay it on do it  
all over with a feather dipt in sallet oyl apply it twice a day
as hot as you can abide it to the cheeks It takes away the pain, 
disperses or breaks & heals it. It is good for all hard swellings.
after the breast is well apply a plaster of diaculum over it & 
wear it till it comes off. You need not tent the breast when broken
Dr Arden Elsmere said this was the best of poultices. Sister Boothby
you may eat this poultis if you will. E. A.



281)
A poultis for a swelling and to take away 
pain
Rx green mint and onions each alike quantity
and pound them together and add to them the
same quantity of hony and [illegible] them all together
and apply it cold. Mrs Chamberlane midwife of
Great Glen
To make a poultis Mrs Willcocks of Ouson
Rx new milk and red serge rue, smallage chop
em small and boil ‘em in the milk and then thicken
it up with oatmeal and when it is taken from the fire
add hogs lard and apply it once a day. This was to 
cure Mary Exon of a sore leg when she had been under
Mr [Horse] Pools hands a long time and had one issue
in each arm and one in each leg.
To take away pain out of any sore. Rx red 
dock roots and scrape off the outward bark and 
slice it and pound it or scrape it and take mi of
it and boil it in a quart of scum’d milk till ½ is 
wasted then tickens it up with barly flower
Dress the sore with basilicon and lay this poultis 
upon this plaster 7 it will draw out the humour
Mrs Witcocks of Ouson


(282
To harden the feet that you may endure
travelling & walking without pain.
walk till you are warm then pull off the shoes & stockins
& stand barefoot in the running stream of a brook
for abt ½ a qt of an hour or walk abt in the stream then
put on the shoes but not the stockins for the feet
must touch no woollen thing that night or you may 
put on linnen or thred socks & then the stockins & shoes 
let this be done a little before night got to bed immediately
after you come from the after & keep in 
bed all night without touching any woollen thing with 
the feet. once trying cured Robt Garner a jobber of
Brinkly in Warwickshire when his feet was gall’d & the 
skin off that he could scarce go his feet continued hard
& well for 7 yrs after & perhaps all his life R. G. He walk’d
home in his shoes, without catching any cold ibid.
another to harden feet & cure em when sore or raw with
sweat & heat in the summer as in June & July. Rx sp. of wine
& put so many drops of oyl of vitriol to it that you can 
touch it with the tongue without corroding moisten
the sore & raw places with this liquor night & morning
& moisten a linnen rage in it & apply it dry or wet E.A.
To cure sweaty feet p. 120 Rx bees wax zi (ordinary or common) butter
ziiij red vitriol from the chymists i.e. calcanthum rubefactu
in fine pouder zij Let the bees wax be sliced then boyl it with
the butter & Rx it off the fire & put in the calcanthum pr. 1 d per
ounce spred it upon linnen cloth or rag, the thinner the cloth the
better as muslane, calico, or holland. It must cover the top of the
toes & the bottom & sole of the feet. Take it off as a night wear 
these socks daily all the hot months a pr will last a qr or ½ a yr 
&keep the feet sweet. It draws off the humour & cures swell’d
legs & prevents em from swelling. It will cure a corn Dr Pool 
for a corn approved Rx oysters open them cut out the white pith that groweth to
the inside of the shells. Dry it & pouder it when you cut the corn
pick out as much of the root as you can & put into the hole as
much of this pouder as you can & you may add a very small quantity
of mercury sublimate in very fine pouder mixt well with a little hogs
lard & bind a cloth on it & it will eat away the corn clean by the
roots use not above the quantity of a pins head of sublimate especially 
the 1st time you try it. The Rx says you may use it without grease [Pater Meus]


283)
a corn. cut a hole in a piece of fine woollen
cloth of the bigness of the corn sew several of
them together with woolstead or yarn one above another 
that they may be [easie] to the & make room for the corn to
grow up in It will shute up til lit has spent itself & can 
grow no higher then you may easily pull it up by the
root with your finger & thumb & it will trouble you no more
you may sew it to a linnen cloth & bind it on a hole made
in a piece of hat that will do very well some say better Dr Geo.
Ashby. This method cured his corns another Touch a corn 
after it is cut thin with oyl of vitriol or aqua fortis a [illegible]
being dipt in it It will burn it out Let it take place a little
time then apply Paracelsus plaster or basilicon., Mr Page surgeon 
Mr Penford apothecary his plaster for corns. Rx suet zi rosin
in pouder or small lumps zi wax sliced zij verdigrease in fine
pouder zfs This is in imitation of Mrs Wilcox’s plaster but not
the same. another plaster for corns Rx barm (al. yest) 
that is grown stiff on the tub side & dry’d salt work em together 
on a trencher till the salt is made fine & apply it spred on
leather or a linnen rag Pater Meus another spred black pitch 
on allum leather stone pitch i.e. the hardest clearest pitch free
from dross is best E.A. try’d this without success It gave east at
1st but at last it made it sore. The juice of spurge which looks
white like milk will eat of wharts & corns & the callous a
brawny substance on the ball of the great toe by frequent 
application, if the crust that hardens upon them be pair’d off between
whiles. Dr Quincy & Cos. Jn Ekins. Ointmt of [dialtha] is good
warts. If you rub em with ol. vitrioli or ol. sulphuris it will
certainly destroy em The cure for corns is in paring em off & 
applying red soft wax. Or Rx picis navalis zi empl. diachyl. magn
ziij gum. galban. dissolut in aceta zfs salis ammoniaci [illegible] i misce
or Rx aluminis, vitrioli ungarici adripigment ana port. equal. pulveriz.
& misceantur cum aceto. all which are proper both in the soft or 
hard corns several chirurgical treatises by Richd Wiseman sergeant
chirurgeon 2d edition pr. 12 d. another to dissolve corns or 
nodes quinces emplastru de ranis vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum will waste
by degrees ([ease] & [illegible]) corns on the feet, warts & all such like
crustations. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
2) To cure a corn B. S.A. Rx a little [illegible] yest mix it with salt made fine on
the back of a trencher with a knife or pounded as much salt as yest It is 
best in a very dry time or the salt will be apt to turn the yest to a water
or liquid substance spred it like a plaster or on London brown paper 
& tie it to the corn after it is cut close but not to bleed. apply a new
plaster or spred it fresh on the same leather every day for 3 or 4 days. then
cover it with ink once or twice & the corn will come out rotten by the
roots If this doth not fetch it out burn a little white copperas and beat it to
pouder use it with the yest. E. A. Try burnt salt E.A.


(284
wind in the stomach or bowels (or to cause you to 
fart Rx 9 black pepper corns in a little sallet oyl whole in a spoon in morning fasting)
Rx carduus water ziiij treacle water zfs bezor jovialis
zfs camphir [illegible] is syr. of sulphur zfs tincture of 
laudanu [illegible] vi syr. of woodsorrel with poppies each zi mix
for a julap dose is 1 spoonful for 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 
at night going to bed shake the bottle when you take any or.
1s 8d Dr Tho. Ferran This cured Stephen Hunt junior having an
ague & grip’d. wind attended with gripes, belchings
vomiting & looseness in old Richd Exon carpenter
was quickly cured by taking this medicine following
in abt ½ a pint of ale or small beer It is good for
a blood flux Rx one nutmeg grate
& mix it with as much wheat flower finely sifted as 
the white of an egg will moisten (you must not
put the yolk in) abt the stiffness of dough. Bake 
it so dry as to grate but give no more at once
than what will lie on a six pence Mrs Mary Hall a Jersey combers 
wife in Southgate street Leicer.  This cured her father & 
old Richd Exon. The wind colic with gripes & vomiting 
Dr Bradley It will not cure wet gripes Rx hiera picra 
zfs double anniseed water a pint cochineal [illegible] ij a little beaten
mix them & keep it in a bottle close stopt always ready 
prepar’d & when you use it mix the following ingredients with 
pt of it viz to 3 ounces or spoonfuls of this liquor add salt
of wormwood zfs pr 1 2 ½ liquid laudanu gtt xxx pr. 2 d 
for 1 dose. One dose commonly cures. If it is vomited up
it must be repeated.  Price of the ingredients in the bottle 
is 1 s 3 d you must shake the bottle for 2 or 3 days at 1st 
but when you use it pour off only the clear Dr Bradley & Mr
Cook apothecary. The wind colic or dry gripes Rx liquid laudanu
& elixer proprictatis each from  12 to 16 drops in a glass 
of ale at night going to bed. Wm Vice of Blaby that was often
tormented with inward pains & apt to be costive found great
benefit by this medicine Rd Mr Stokes.


285)
Gripes or wind colic Rx brandy (French brandy is best)
3 spoonfuls burn it then take ½ a spoonful in a spoon make
it thickish with salt a little brandy swimming on the top stir em
with a knife or tea spoon & take it when cool enough Rx a 2 d spoonful
after the same manner as the first then take a 3 d spoonful with 
only burnt brandy Joseph Warner of Harborough [illegible] may 
colour brandy or double aniseed water with alkanet or bole & 
add salt to it. Salt added to grains prevent their griping horses or
cows & brine given to horses when grip’d is reckon’d a good medicine
& cures sometimes. E. A. another Rx new lay’d egg shels dry’d & 
beaten to fine pouder as much as will lie on a shilling mixt thickish
with beer in a spoon at 2 or 3 times an hour after you may drink
water gruel with a little salt in it Wm Laurence Smith. for wind
Rx juice of rue in a little sugar once a day It is good for convulsions
fits in children, they are oft caused by wind Jane Tasie
May 1717 E. A. was cured of gripes & wind colic with a violent
pain in her left side by taking Dr Bostock’s cordial 1 spoonful
over night & 2 in the morning a gentle purge & Dr Bradly’s
mixture p. 284 2 or 3 hours after that the next day after the
purge he drank a qt of new milk-whey warm & rode 2 or 3 
miles after it which clear’d his bowels & made him quite well.
when sucking children or those rear’d by the hand are troubled
with wind give one or 2 & afterwards more whole mustard
seeds in their pap or what they eat It will make em break 
wind Sister Boothby. a pouder for wind. Rx burdock seed zij aniseeds
liquorish each zi in fine pouder mixt with w. sugar candy The dose is zi
w.p. when E. A. had the wind colic June 718 & vomiting he 
did not find that taking vomits did him any good strong water 
made him worse He found that gooseberries train thro a hair
sive & mixt with milk & damask rose water & sugar stay’d
longest in his stomach & he did seldom vomit it up Taking
one slice of lemon & sugar going to bed & one slice in the
night walking much in the air Bostock’s cordial & Dr Bradly’s 
mixture & other purges that us’d to relieve him would
do not good except this following which at present I judge to 
be the very best purge or medicine & most pleasant yet found out for the wind 
colic or gripes or wind in the stomach or bowels [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] Rx rhubarb
sliced zi pr. 2 s 6 d best sena zij pr 1 s aniseeds bruised six
drams pr single aniseed water 3 pints pr 1 s Rx 2 spoonfuls
every other morning or every morning while it lasts
drinking water gruel one or 2 hours after it. It purges the
most at the 1st dose Bates’s Disp. 4th edition & Mr Penford


(286
apothecary in Leicer The aniseeds & aniseed 
water correct the griping of the sena & single aniseed
water is more cooling & pleasant than double aniseed water
ibid This is taken out of Salmon’s annotations on Bates’s Dispensatory
on elixer salutis but it is much contracted You may 
take it every morning at 1st then every other morn & when you
find yourself perfectly recover’d & well You may omit taking
it when it has infus’d 9 or 10 days you may strain the liquid 
from the drugs & keep it by itself close stopt. If you are
subject to wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes. Eat bread & 
butter every morning It opens the body & causes you to fart & vent
wind backwards E. A. a very good remedy for the colic in the
stomach or bowels which has cured them that have had it 2 or 3 
yrs It keeps good, close stopt, 2 or 3 yrs Rx double distill’d aniseed
water a pint cochineal zi pouder’d hiera picra ziij Let em
stand 24 hours in a bottle close stopt. Then Rx 3 spoonfuls every
morning or at night or when ill If it doth not give you a stool or
2 Rx 4 spoonfuls This cured Mrs Gee when the Drs cou’d not having
had it 3 or 4 yrs Some say the single aniseed water is best Mrs
Caulton. [illegible] is the same as Mr Oneby’s Rx another for the
gripes eat oatmeal pudding adding to it Jamaica pepper 
in pouder after it is made & stir em together It must taste
strong of the pepper Eat it night & morning till well E. A.
The colick of either sort by a solder Rx pomegranate shell
2 d gentian 2 d avens mi dry’d all together & beaten to pouder
Rx as much as will lie on a shilling in 2 glasses of white
wine or [juniper] water If it is the stone colick add 4 
drops of the juice of the sharpest onions in every glass
Br S.A. for the cure of all inward pains vid p. 193.
for the gripes or wind or stone colic eat the fat of mutton or
beef the quantity of ½ an egg or more cut 3 or 4 or more little
onions in pieces as big as you can swallow at once rub salt 
on em so that you may eat a pretty deal of salt with every bit 
& eat old cheese without bread lastly drink strong ale abt
a pint after em. This cured E. A. Janry 719. June 720 E. A. had the
wind in his stomach which forc’d him to vomit up every thing he eat or drank
a vomit of ipecacuanah nor Daffy’s elixer would do no good He found
a little benefit by Dr Bradlys mixture for the colic then he try’d Dr
Alibone’s Rx for wind in the stomach viz balm, hysop, sage each mi liquorish
sliced zij boyl e min water 2 qts till one is wasted Drink it instead 



287)
of beer or use it instead of hops brew’d with beer
gripes & wind or rheumatism in the stomach or bowels
Rx The mountebanks styptick water 2 spoonfuls by it self
then walk ½ an hour Then Rx Virginian snake weed root afs 6 d the
root of contrayerva zij pr 6 d Best brandy a pint you may colour
or disguise it with syrup of violets when you give it but it must
not be put into the bottle It doth but little good only it is cooling.
allow 24 hours or longer for the ingredients to incorporate
then take 5 spoonfuls syrup of cloves colours any liquor yellow
syrup of wouldwell or dyers weed makes a fine green. This
Rx helps to stop vomiting. Dr Pool. another milk from a cows bag
to stale beer Ear the card & drink the whey without sugar in the
morning It gets an appetite cleanses the midriff, cures gripes
heals the lungs & stops a consumption ibid Another Rx ants eggs
dry em in a paper & beat em to pouder mix afs of it with brown 
sugar & give it in thicken’d milk. the bigger the eggs the better give
it mixt with carrot to disguise it the carrot dry’d to pouder It swells
the belly at 1st but in a little time it makes you fart & cures belching
& drives the wind downwards. ibid for wind or water in the
stomach Rx antimonium diaphoreticu zi in a glass of strong
claret or good canary every other day. ibid A small white wine
will rather cause than cure the gripes. E. A. Dr Harton’s prescription
Rx pul: rad. serp. virg: zvi cassummuniar zifs (a sort of zedoary)
coq. in q.s. aq. font. ad lbi colat [illegible] (strain) solv. theriac. androm.
zfi fiat apozema June 16th 720. Rx 6 spoonfuls at night going
to bed at 6 at midnight if awake & as much in the morning & 
afterwards 3 spoonfuls every 4th or 5 hours & drink it as hot as
you can Wm Cooke pr. 4d for gripes ro wind causing a pain 
in the stomach or a pain in a rupture Rx the stalks of bitter 
sweet (amara dulcis) as much as you can hold betwixt 2 hands
bruise or twist em in pieces or as much as will make it taste
bitter Boyl it in 3 qts of water to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish morn
fasting & at night going to bed or when you feel pain Jn Summerfield 
of Whetston. another for gripes or wind Rx burdock seed
pound & drink it in ale or smoke it with a little tobacco or without
Goddy Gilbert another Rx mint water 1 or 2 spoonfuls at
a time with sugar ibid or Rx mint water anniseed water syrup of
cloves a good cordial Goody Simons. another eat millipedes 10 or 20 
at a time every day till the gripes are gone ibid another drink new
milk warm from  a cow morn & night & eat bread & butter avoiding
meat & cheese till the stomach is well. This did E. A. the most good when
he vomited & was grip’d & his stomach full of wind & pain for 4 or 
6 weeks in June & July 720. Wind in the stomach or bowels Rx 9 or more
black (or white) pepper corns in a spoonful of sallet oyl [illegible] [Boothby]


(288
for the wind colic or dry gripes or pain in the 
stomach Rx gr of paradise in pouder as much as will ly on a ½ crown in new ale or
beer a half pint from the vat 3 times a day. Take it for a month intermitting a day or two Dr P.
another for Do
Rasp as much of the best rhubarb as will lie on a shilling or
rather mor for a man of bulk or for one that is apt to be costive
Put it to a spoonful & half, or 2 spoonfuls of common brandy
or malt spirits pr 10 d or 12d d per qt Rx it in a morn fasting, fasting
2 hours after it & eat & drink as you use to do at the other times without
observing an rules. Rx the night before camomile flowers 
infus’d in n ear a pint of posset drink & continue ti every night till
the gripes are gone off which is commonly in 3 or 4 nights. Drink the
rhubarb & brandy every morn for abt a fortnight This cured Br S.
A. for 7 yrs or longer without taking it during the y7 yrs on ly at 1st 
pouder of rhubarb in a little milk & drink milk from the cow or warm
after it or in single aniseed water or juniper water only as much as
will wash it down sometimes an hour before dinner or 2 hours or
a little quantity of the pouder in any vehicle at night at or before
bedtime
Rhubarb is an exct medicine, gentle & without danger wherein many 
vertues are compris’d It cleanseth & fortifieth the stomach & liver 
all maladies that proceed from stoppages, as the jaundice, dropsie, swelling 
of the spleen & long fevers. It is good agt spitting of blood & 
stops it. It may be moderately taken at all convenient times without
danger. The chewing of it purges choler & phlegm. It is ext boyled & 
taken in posset drink, before the cold fit of an ague comes, & is extol’d
by all ingenious physitians for the cure of fluxes of the belly
of all kinds, which it does easily, surely & with out any evil symptom 
succeeding it, & therefore is accounted as the most ext of roots that
was ever brought into this nation from any foreign ports. Salmon’s
Family Dictionary. Pontick rhubarb is hot in the 1st dry in the
3rd degree purging & astringent expelling choler, flegm & melancholy
from the stomach & bowels. It opens obstructions of both liver
& spleen, & therefore is of force in curing  the rickets, melancholy
[sabs] itch, jaundice & green sickness. Give of the pouder from zi to
zifs in infusion to zfs. It may be given to women with child, & in 
all fluxes as in dysentaria’s (i.e. bloody fluxes) lyenteria’s (ie a kind
of looseness, where things eaten are voided undigested) & diarrhoea’s
(a gentle flux of the belly or looseness) It is of singular use
because it leaves an astringent or binding quality behind it. The pouder
made into a bole with cassia & turpentine cools & cleanses the [illegible] & 
helps the gonorrhoea Salmon’s Dispensatory. The pouder untoasted leaves
the body open but rhubarb toasted easily beats to pouder & being dry’d by the 


289)
by the fire etc. leaves the body costive E. A. radix R rabarbari
rhubarb. that which comes from the Levant is now accounted
best. It is of a bright yellowish colour, & of a nutmeg
grain if it be good, tho a great deal of the best pieces will be decay’d; 
& therefore when brought into use ought to be rejected
There is some comes fro China & other pts of the E. Indies, but not so 
much esteem’d It is of a darker colour, more fetid in smell & is not
easily pouder’d; tho it is more purgative especially in infusion than 
the other but has not so much of its astringent quality which is so efficacious
in looseness & blood fluxes. That which is accounted the
finest of all is very little pourgative but most astringent &
therefore best in all sort of fluxes. Extreme drying destroys its 
purgative vertue, wherefore it is frequently order’d to be toasted
to make it less purgative & more astringing. It is infus’d from zi to ziij
for a dose; & given in pouder from 10 gr to two scuples It greatly strengthens
the stomach & bowels & is an ext medicine agt cholera & other 
distemper’d contents of the intestinal & mesenterial glands It is accounted
by some to be so great a purger of the liver as to have deserv’d the 
name of cor hepatic or heart of the liver The kidnies do not lie too 
remote for its influence which it discovers in the colour of the urine & is
very good in the obstructions of the [reins] & the ureters. But in the jaundice
it almost passes for infallible Paracelsus [illegible] to a tincture fro 
it which only operated by [illegible] & purg’d away gravel. It is good agt worms
in children. so that its repetition to them can hardly be too frequent IT is 
good in syrup & in tinctures alto none of em are so good as the 
root pouder & given in substance Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory
Carry rhubarb in the pocket in the winter or lay it in a cupboard
near the fire that it may be dry or it will not grate to pouder & mix 
this pouder as much as will lie on 6 d or 1 s begin with little at 1st &
put it to two or 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir the best sort begin
with a little if you wou’d have it purge gently till you find the
strength of the constitution you give it to This is a most ext 
medicine for wind or colic or gripes or any headach or pain [illegible]
It is much better than when mixt with brandy alone E. A.
The gripes & wind eat salt with every thing you eat If salt will 
not cure then take abt 1 spoonful 1/12 of Daffy’s elixir with a little salt 
in’t abt a quarter or ½ an hour after drink new milk from the cow or 
for want of it warm’d milk & the next morn new milk with some salt
It will purge & cure E. A. 
Wind in the stomach or dry gripes Dr Tho. Buckworth (the mad Dr
that cured Mr Wats of Raresby when craz’d or disorder’d in his head.)
Rx [illegible], common fennel seeds, cummin seeds, caraway seeds,
parsly seeds each zfs long pepper zij pounded & sifted thro a fine
hair sive add to the pouder as much hony or treacle on a liquorish
stick or without at any time It is good for a cold or doth gently open 
the body coriander seeds are bad for the head or Rx oyl of turpentine
40 or 50 drops prepar’d with tartar (not salt of tartar) by the 
chymists distill’d you may but it at London drop em into warm ale
abt ½ a pint it turns it white It is good for the colic in the stomach 
or wind or gravel Dr B. another Eat old rich cheese 3 or 4 yrs old
after the meals E. A. Try sage cheese another Rx cloves whole & [daucus]
seed make tea with water sweeten it when you drink It comforts the bowels Dr Bradly



(290
To joyn a broken glass or vessel of
china or earth
Rx a little red lead a knifes pointful boyl it with linseed oyl a qt so that when it
is boyl’d it may appear like mum or of a brown colour
mix a little of this with white lead very well by working it
on a marble or smooth slate with a muller or a knife
You must be sure to incorporate em very fine then 
anoint the edges of the glass or vessel where you 
would joyn em If you can you may press or bind
em hard together & so let em remain untouch’d in
a chamber on a table or shelf for a qr of a yr (or
rather longer than less time) then you may thrown the joyn’d
glass agt the ground & it will break in any pt sooner
than where it is cemented. The Rd Mr Jn Lawrence rector
of Yolverloft in Northshire. It will endure hot or
cold liquor if the vessel will abide it. ibid.
To join a broken panchion or pot together not to hold scalding
water Rx turpentine and rosin p.a. buck finely sifted
boil ‘em and heat the sides of the pot and daub on and crush
‘em together. Rd Mr Samuel Frances.
To stop a crack in a bowl or barrel. Rx tar and fine
hards and thrust ‘em in with the edge of a knife and they 
will harden.


295)



(292
a clyster
Rx mallows, camomile, elder buds, mercury leaves, violet
leaves, strawberry leaves. Seeth all in posset ale. Take a pint 
of the liquor add to it sallet oyl 2 spoonfuls & as much sweet 
butter & hony make it a clyster Give it in the morning. Mater 
Mea another good for the colic or gripes or stone.
Rx mallows, violet leaves strawberry leaves endive, succory
each mi add to these a calfs foot or sheeps head. put em into
a sufficient quantity of water & boyl em well. Then take of the
decoction one pint Put therein two good spoonfuls of brown 
sugar & 3 spoonfuls of sallet oyl. strain it thro a cloth after 
the sugar is dissolv’d Then exhibite it as a clyster a little better
than blood warm. Try whether you can endure the bladder at
the cheek when it is fill’d before you give lest you give it too hot
ibid. another Rx mallows, strawberry leaves, mercury, violet
leaves, succory leaves, borrage, [?ugless] each half a qr of a
handful aniseeds fennel seeds each a qr of an ounce Boyl these
well with a chicken & take the broth of it or else boyl em in posset 
ale. Take half a pint or better of it at a time & put to it
2 spoonful of sallet oyl & one spoonful of sweet butter
salt half a spoonful use this for a clyster ibid
Dr Atkins clyster for the colic & stone
Rx mallows camomile, beets, wormwood, violet leaves each 
mi aniseeds & fennel seeds each a good spoonful bayberries
no 6. Boyl all in rain water from a pint & half to a pint
strain it add to it 2 spoonfuls of hony as much salt as will
lie on a siz pence & 2 ounces of course sugar ibid.


293)
The whites
Rx Candied roots of Solomons seal It is an ext remedy
Pecheys Herbal. Ising-glass is of a very glutinous quality
& good in all disorders which arise from too thin & sharp a state of the
fluids. Tis reckon’d very helpful in female weakness & particularly
the whites, as also in all defluxions & haemorrages Quincy. rosin
pills pills of turpentine pills with dragons blood, pills of porra Japonica 
emplastrum [barsals] vid Quincy’d Dispensatory. altho’ the roots of
tormentil is most noted for its strengthening & binding qualities yet it
is ranked also among the [alexi] pharmicks & is in great esteem in malignant
flowers attended with any flux of the bowels or the womb.
Schroder says there is not a better vegetable grown for all such [intentions]
it agrees well with the white drink & much increases its efficacy
in checking a looseness in the measles, small pox or fevers. Quincy
another Rx Rue whitlow grass (an herb) half a handful fry it with 
wheat flower & an egg. Take [it] in the morning fasting, for 2 days This 
cures the whites Pechey’s Herbal


(294
The biting of a mad dog Mr George [Gatacre]
Rx Rus zvi peel’d garlic & London treacle each ziiij or mithridate or Venice treacle
scrap’d tin being shav’d or scrap’d of the outside of a
[illegible] pewter or tin sheet of lattin or tin 4 ounces spoonfuls good strong ale 2/3 qts
pluck the herb from the stalk & shred it & beat the garlic
then mix all & put it in a pot fast cover’d then set that 
pot or vessel in a pot of fair water to boyl on a gentle
fire 3 or 4 hours & of the strain’d liquor give 4 or 6 or 7 
spoonfuls as the patient, or beast or dog can well receive
it. Give it morning or afternoon warm or cold
9 days together. This has cured men, women horses, cattle, 
& dogs. It is commonly call’d the D. of Buckingham’s
Rx. It never fail’d. Br G. A.
The  biting of a mad dog by Dr Troutbeck.
Rx leaves of rue pick’d from the stalks 6 ou. bruised, garlic
peel’d & bruised, best treacle or mithridate, scapings of tin or
pewter each 4 ou. Boyl all these over a gentle fire in 2 qts of 
strong ale till one pint be consumed then strain it from the
dregs & keep it in a bottle close stopt.
Give of this 9 spoonfuls to a man or woman  warm 7 mornings
together fasting: 6 to a beast cold, 3  to a sheep, 6 to a dog
This by gods blessing will not fail, provided it be given with 
in 9 days after the biting. apply some of the dregs or strainings
to the bitten place. This Rx cost Mrs Frances Bickerton’s father
17th of the DR The roots of aristolochia are ext agt all [poison] & 
agt the bitings & stingings of venomous beasts, if it be taken in wine, or layd
upon the wounds or bitings. Dodoen’s Herbal.
an infallible cure for the bite of a mad dog from the Evening
Post.
Rx Rue 6 ou. eleand. pickd & bruis’d red sage mi garlic 4 ou. peeld & bruis’d
Venic treacle 4 ou. filed pewter or scrap’d tin 4 ou. Boil these
in 2 qts of the best ale in a pan cover’d close, over a gentle fire, for
the space of one hour, then strain the ingredients from the liquor. Give
8 or 9 spoonfuls of it warm to a man or woman 3 mornings
fasting, & cold to any beast fasting. 8 or 9 spoonfuls are sufficient
for the strongest, a less quantity to those younger or of a weaker
constitution, as you may judge of their strength. Ten or 12 spoonfuls 
for a horse or bullock. Three, 4, or 5 for a sheep, hog or dog. This
must be given with in 9 days after the bite. It never fails in man
or beast. If you can conveniently bind some of the ingredients on
the wound. Cos. Richd Ashby. Some Rxs say muscadine or [illegible] is better
than ale for a man


295)
For the biting of a mad dog
Rx 2 handfuls of rue 2 spoonfuls of scraped
block tin boyl in 4 quarts of strong ale till
half be wasted then strain 3 penniworth of London
treacle into it and give the party bit 6 spoonfuls
in a morning fasting
A plaster for a bit of a mad dog
Take plantain beat in a mortar with bole armoni
dragons blood, barley meal and whites of eggs
lay it plasterwise on the sore let it ly on 14 hours.
Sometimes it will cure [cornes]
Mr Allen Gregory’s dog of Little Glen that was made
bit Tho: Coleman Joyner of Leicer in the arm & the dog
was [hang’d] the liver was fry’d & he eat it but he dy’d raving
mad afterwards. Eliz Brown of Leicer
Dr Mead for the bit of a mad dog
Rx lichen [cinereus] [terrestris] i.e. ground liverwort zi pouder’d
black pepper in pouder zfs mix em & give ziij every morning
for 3 mornings together in half a pint of cows milk. after this
has been done, let the patient go into a cold spring or river dipping
all over for one minute 3 or 4 times a week for 5 or 6 weeks. from
the Rd Mr Wm Babington & Cos. Shukbrugh Ashby. Perhaps dipping
in a tub of cold water if it be in the winter; may do first dip the
arms head & shoulders then go into it with the legs & breech for a minute
E. A.
Some Rxs for man bitten by a mad dog direct garlic bruis’d
6 cloves, scraped or fil’d pewter the weight of an ordinary pewter
spoon. Common treacle lbfs boyl ‘em all in a quart of strong
ale or strong beer till half is wasted then strain it & take
3 spoonfuls first & last while it lasts. If there is a wound
bind the ingredts strain’d out to the wound, let ‘em ly on 
a day or 2 if you can abide ‘em, when you can abide ‘em no
longer take ‘em off & wash the wound with milk or water
warm, & heat it with any salve. Wm Wyat of Adderston
for the biting of Adders. Dr Danvers anoint the place stinged with the 
juice that comes from shell snails prickt with a pin & bind on a snail unprickt
& drink the juice of plaintain. It is good for the biting of any 
venomous creature.



(296
Belching or wind in the stomach
Decer 1720 E. A. was much troubled with wind in his stomach
which by the pressure of his hand on the outside of his stomach
wou’d come out at h is mouth & vent itself by belching This afflicted
him (after he had cured his wind in the bowels by taking Davvy’s
elixir & grated rhubarb) he had no appetite to food & malt drink 
fill’d him with wind Dr Hartop call’d it the gout in the stomach 
The cure infuse in aniseed water double distill’d snakeweed root, contrayerva
& cinnamon Rx a little of it morn & night abt ½ a spoonful or 
a spoonful, less or more, as it agrees with you. fast 24 hours from
supper to supper without eating or drinking any thing between that
one meal in 24 hours except a little of the said infusion to support 
the spirits & the eating of what apples you will after you’ve warmed
em a little time by carrying em in the pocket when you eat Eat
plenty of mustard with meat drink at night beer & ale warm’d
with red hot iron & mixt which quantity agrees with you use exercise in
the open air walking riding running with fasting in 3 or 4 days 
the stomach will be sharpen’d & return You may take hippocacuana
zfs in fine pouder drinking it abt 3 hours after dinner with a galn
of warm water for a vomit or more Take this vomit before the
infusion drink red mountain wine after the infusion has been try’d
2 or 3 days to strengthen the stomach. Do not drink till the meal
is ended Let the ordinary drink be beer & ale warm’d with 
an hot iron E. A. Go to bed at 1st after exercise that you may 
sleep & fast a good while. Leave off tobacco till the tone of the stomach
is rectify’d & made fit for a right digestion. Eat no bread
with the meat when the stomach is out of order Eat a little bit of
cinnamon or drink a little of the infusion. E. A. To cure belching the
stomach & bowels troubled with wind gripes or colic or to strengthen
the stomach & prevent em. Eat salt with almost every thing 
you eat as milk pottage, butter milk, meat, bread or bread & cheese 
bread & butter verjuice or vinegar with meat & with bacon & eggs
This method by squeezing sevil oranges in the drink will cure when 
the apothecaries drugs will not E.A. Let the bread be masline (middling
fat) 1st with barlys peck. Let the drink be generally good small
beer or beer & ale mixt avoid very strong ale as breeding gout
& stone, if you’d be healthfull E.A.
For the wind colic Rx bay berries in powder zfs cummin
seed zfs in powder in beer and ale and milk or broth this
quantity makes 10 dozes take it morn and night Tho: [Finch]


297)



(298
mouth or gums sore
Roast an egg very hard, take only the yolk mix it
with loaf sugar in pouder & salt to a salve, with which rub
your gums & places that are sore Mrs Mary Grene.
another Rx sp. of wind 1 d as much liquid laudanu as
will make it of a brown color Take a drop or 2 in the
mouth & hold the tongue to the sore places 2 or 3 times
in a day. E. A. another Beat sal prunel to fine pouder 
& rub a canker’d or sore mouth there with pretty often & 
it will cure it. The Rd Mr Chambers. Hold your own urine
often especially night & morning in the mouth & force it thro 
your teeth backwards & forwards It will cure the gums when sore
& often the toothach when 100 medicines have been try’d in vain.
E. A. 
a water for a sore mouth Rx ground
ivy (gill) woodbine leaves, red sage, columbine, rue, cinquefoyl
(i.e 5 leav’d grass.) ribwort or lesser plantane (quinquenervia)
& violet leaves each an equal quantity. put em into water a quart
boyl it to a pint Then strain & add thereto 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the
best vinegar six cloves a little roch allum, as much English hony
as will sweeten it. set it on the fire again. Let them boyl together
3 or 4 Pater noster whiles. Mrs Fr. Bickerton
another Rx Borax & loaf sugar of both in fine pouder
sifted an equal quantity mixt in fresh butter that never had
salt in it. Rx a fine clean rag tyed upon a [illegible] Rub the sore
places soundly therewith Take plantane water sweeten it with hony
of roses & wash the mouth immediately with it cold. ibid.
To cure a canker in the nose, mouth, throat or any defluction
of rheum in any pt of the head or face.
Rx ouyl of days one pennyworth mix it with as much pouder of
bole as will make it of a thickness to spred on London brown
paper of the bigness of half the palm of a great hand Lay
upon the opening of the head (viz the sutures) cutting off the
hair close or shaving it off first (p. 235.) ibid
Cankers in young childrens mouths.
Rx hot hogs dung new fallen put to it oyl of spike mix em well together
apply this in blew paper to the chin & forehead of the
child Mrs Frances Bickerton.



299)
Cankers or sore mouth in man or horse
Rx goosegrease rub it on the forehead, under the chin
& jaws you may disguise it with bole ibid.
another Boyl hony or treacle with 5 or 6 sage leaves & a good
piece of burnt allum in pouder Rub the sores with it. Mrs Finch.
The canker in the mouth
Pound yarrow & strain it mix the juice with live hony & burnt
allum Dress it as oft as there is occasion Mrs Caulton.
another Rx a bit of green copperas wrap it up in a wet paper 
put it in the fire (wood embers are best) till it is red hot Let it cool
pound it fine mix it with goose grease Cut the hair off the crown of
the head Lay it on. Mrs Caulton.
another good for frosts or sore mouths in children or men
Heat a large pr of tongs red hot lay a piece of alum between
the bit of the tongs abt the bigness of a hazelnut set abt 
a little spoonful of hony in a coffee dish then pinch the allum
as hard as you can & let the moisture drop into the hony stir when 
together & rub the gums 2 or 3 times a day therewith This never
failed Sister Margaret Boothby. Keep the remaining dry burnt
alum for any other use.
Aqua camphorata is good to heal sore gums & fasten & preserve the
tooth. E. A.
another Burn a piece of white bread as black as coal, then pound it
in a mortar to pouder rub the sore gums with it dry. This never fail’d Wm
Headly



(300



301)



(302
for a wen.
Rx the foot & loosen some dust on a mud floor
new swept & spit some fasting spittle on the dust
& work em together like mortar & apply it & let 
it dry on. Renew it every morning till the wen comes
out or is wasted or broken so that a core comes out
then heal it with any plaster This cured a wen as big
as a pea on Sister Boothby’s upper eyelid. It came out
& was well without doing any thing at it more. A
blister arose & when prickt there came out a thing
like a pearl Sister Boothby. another Rx black soap
& unquench’d lime p.e. mix em well together spread em upon sheeps
leather apply it to the wen or any hard node or swelling & it will 
consume away by degrees. p: 17 Dr [Lowes] Rx [ceipts] etc.
Mud wall & fasting spittle temper’d together cured a knob upon a childs
eye at Newtown Linford that many people believ’d it would have in time
turn’d to a wen. The child was kin to Joyce Gimson E.A.’s servt It wasted away


303)



(304
Foot-racing.
Put a wheat or oat straw in your mouth when you run. Daily
exercise at running strengthens your legs, & back & improves
your breath Rx Hips before they are rotten & peel em
when they are thoro red. Lay the peels in a pot til they rot, then put
to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot Keep it till Lady Day, It will
be extremely sharp. mix one tea spoonful of this vinegar with a little
butter eat it & you will never want breath when you run Take it when
you eat It prevents heartburn & stitches which often are the cause of
losing a race & procures a good appetite Dr Richd Pool mountebank.
The racers in Stafford-shire eat chiefly roast mutton
they step out as if they were paceing when they walk, & when 
they run up hill they take great steps & pull up more slowly.
Wm Wyat.


305)



(306
The headach
Salmon says he has perfectly cured diseases of the 
head & old headachs of near 20 yrs standing with 
pilulae lunares, The lunar or silver pills p. 281. Salmons
Dispensatory. Decr [725] E.A.’s head aked very violently & 
was cured by eating only butter’d wheat with a little salt 
in’t without sugar or spice or drinking after it that day.
E.A. M.A.’s head had aked 2 or 3 days caused by wind which was
caused by eating fat chine which would not digest She 
was cured by burning 4 or 5 spoonfuls of double aniseed
water with sugar & eating a dry toast of brown 
bread after it to strengthen the stomach & walking 
often up & down a room when coffee & water gruel had
bin try’d in vain Febr. 4 715. E. A. another Mr Jn Edwin
of Baggrave was troubled with a violent headach Mr Coltman
the apothecary with a lancet blooded him in the vein that
goes up abt the middle of his forehead, this bleeding with a
lancet was repeated sometime afterwards once again & 
it made a perfect cure. Mr Coltman says that leeches can
not effect the cure but you may try or shave the head
& you may set leeches thereon. E. A. another Rx Portugal snuff 
at the nose going to bed or any time keeping in the house. Anne
Tasie. In the yr 718 E. A. had a violent pain on the top or crown
of his head especially when every he cough’d or sneez’d. He aply’d Bents
salve, Hungary water etc. in vain; at last Dr T. H. order’d him to shave
the sore place & to apply an emplaster of W. Ditch spred on leather 
which cured him in abt a month E. A. The headach or any stuffing or 
pain in the head. Rx white helebore root in pouder as snuff at night a little
before bed time that you may not take cold. This cured Mrs Hewet 
of Stretton & a maid there of, that had a pain in her head which she thought 
incurable but it made here nose bleed. Sister M.A. another moisten
the end of the little finger with oyl of cloves & thrust it up one or both
nostrils Try one 1st. It will make you sneeze your nose run & sometimes
cause a stool. It revives the spirits E. A. Another oyntmt of
alabaster is a specific for all sorts of headachs anointed on the forehead
temples, nostrils, pulses, soles of the feet & testicles. Salmon’s Disp.
a violent headach. Rx the herb called vervain & hang it abt your neck
Mrs Caulton


307)
The course flower of rie put into a cloth & apply’d
to the head cures inveterate headaches & so apply’d is
good for mad people Pechey’s Herbal.
E.A.’s wife (formerly Mrs Mary Majer) having been troubled with 
an inveterate headach for a long succession of yrs Drs & family
medicines having been try’d in vain was at last cured by applying
leeches two to the little finger & betwixt the little finger
& fourth finger any where they wou’d suck & a third leach to 
the middle finger near the joynt of the hand They caused
the blood to flow plentifully She intermitted a week or so
days having an itching [illegible] there like a tetter or scurvy
she repeated the leaches & bleed again abt the said places then for
a week every night to kill the itch she apply’d hot linnen rags dipt 
in old human urine made as hot as she cou’d endure it & so cur’d
her headach & itching [illegible] which last formerly had troubled her
for many summers Mary Ashby. Headach Rx sp. nitri dulcis 20 
or 30 drops in beer (cold) If it is so violent as to cause a fever
then take 50 or 60 drops in beef a coffee dish full or more
Mr. Geo. Pochin of Wigston Magna. A pain in the head Rx
plantain pound it with the urine of the diseased. make a plaster
& bind it upon the temples Pater Meus G.A. another shave the top
of the head & lay 2 blistering plasters one after another 
upon the [sutors] spred upon allum leather the breadth of a 
mans hand each neither of em draw’d any blister Then apply 
a cabbage leaf. This cured Tho. Allen of [????esworth] pump maker that 
was almost [illegible] with it Tho. Allen.
The juice of the leaves & flowers of cowslips mixt with an equal quantity 
of red cows milk cured an inveterate headach, when other medicines
wou’d do no good. Pechey’s Dispensatory. You may try cowslip tea. E. A. 
Culpeper says vervain made into an oyntmt is a soveraign remedy
for old headaches as also frenzies. It clears the skin & causes 
a lovely colour. Vervain (varbena) is reckon’d a specific for pains of the
head from what causes soever they proceed. Pechey. The distill’d water is apply’d 
outwardly to the head & four ounces are taken inwardly with few drops
of sp. of salt. Forestus says he knew two who were cured of the headach, only
by hanging the green herb abt their necks when many other medicines were
used to no purpose ibid.
For the headach snuff up a little pellitory of Spain in fine
powder dry’d easeth the headach. Traveller
unguentum diaphompholigos smeared upon the temples
causes res & eases the headach. Salmons Disp.
Headach and sore eyes. spread a plaster of burgundy
pitch abt the bigness of an half crown upon a piece of 
leather and shave the hair of the mile of your head and
apply and in a little time you will find ease when you are
well. you may take it off probatum.



(308
The Headach
E. A. when 76 yrs old had a pain in his head so that he could
not lean upon his head & neck to turn himself in bed nor strain
when exonerating in the privy, nor stoops down low with his
head but he felt a violent pain in his head which he thought was
caused by sleeping frequently after dinner He cured himself
by tying a garter or a fillet or Manchester [bending] [illegible] once abt
his head before he slept in the day time, & every night it was
tyed fast round his night cap going a little above his neck 
round his forehead which kept the vapours from ascending
when bleeding in the jugular vein & in the forehead would
not cure. He was very seldom troubled with any pain
in his head till he was so old & used to sleep after dinner
Headach Rx bay salt cummin seeds fennel seeds p.a
pouder them by themselves then make them up with red
rose vinegar to a plaster spread it on sheeps leather apply 
it to the slope of the neck and renew it when it is dry
Mrs Dorothy Pickern.


309)



(310
The Rickets in children.
An oyntmt Rx red sage, mugwort, crosswort, comfry root
or leaves, rue, balm, clary, each mij Pound em with may butter
free from salt lbij or bores grease lbij work it over every third
day for nine days together or make it into 2 balls & work em over
then melt (but not boyl) & strain it thro a cloth or sive. Let it stand
a fortnight then refine it by melting & straining it again & it will 
keep a long time. anoint the child all over every night for a month
by the fire especially the back & joints. Let it wear the same
shirt a month Bury it under ground when you have done You may 
wear an old shirt when you begin to anoint. Richd Kirk of
Kt thorp near Loughborough, a farrier & Jn Put a traveller


311)



(312
A Rupture.
Rx aniseed & sweet fennel seed each in pouder zfs. juniper berries zi
roots of comfry dry, mouse ear each zi starch zi mix & take zij when
you go to bed in a draught of new milk. Ex emplastru ad herniam 
zi empl. ½ bole zfs oyl of myrtles or for want of it oyl of unripe
olives q.s. f. emplastru molle. applicatur ad partem Dr Smith Senior
of Coventry. Tho. Poyner of Blocksage, near Walsal a markt
town in Stafford shire 4 m. beyond Bromingham 18 m. from 
Coventry 6 or 10 m. from Adderston a famous steel truss maker as
any in England pr. 15 d per truss. Wm Proud a Quaker in 
Spon street in Coventry makes steel trusses at 3 s 6 d per
truss. Cranes bill al. doves-foot (Geranium) an herb, dry’d
twice a day dissolves congeal’d blood, glutinates & stops blood,
heals ulcers in the lungs. The pouder of it taken zi at a time in 
red wine 1st & last for 30 or 40 days together cures ruptures
more especially if it be mixt with the pouder of brown or grey red snails.
you may find em in cellars
The eggshel is more effectual. Salmon’s Dispensatory. Cover
the boulster of the truss with long wool pull’d soft or carded & 
it will prevent its chafing especially in hot weather E.A. The
root of rest-harrow (al. cammock) anonidis radix in pouder or 
the essence often taken is good to consume the fleshy rupture called
hernia carnosa & the blind piles Salmon’s Dispensatory.
an oyntmt for a rupture Rx cochineal pr 1 d i.e. zijfs boyl it in
a pint of the strongest & stalest ale the staler the better & let it
gently simmer till it is turn’d to an oyntmt anoint it warm on the 
swelling agt the fire laying the child on its back & putting up
the rupture. you need not used a truss. It knits & contracts the swelling
alone without any help besides what it receives from hartshorn.
It will cure them of a dozen yrs old unless they are born Bursten
Give this strengthening drink boyl hartshorn shavings zfs in a 
qt of new milk till it is thick Let the child drink it constantly & 
anoint every night by the fire till the child is well. a midwife of
Burton 2 m from Kettering in North shire cures a great many children by this Rx Jn
Put a traveller when you are to travel a journey shave or clip off
all the hair abt the rupture & apply empl. de minio spread broad
on leather It is better than diaculum It prevents & cures chafing & 
galling E. A. seasonable coition gives ease to men having a rupture 



313)
A rupture Rx the yolks of 12 eggs & fry em alone
in a frying pan till they are black the miles They must
first be roasted in hot wood embers till the yolks are blew &
very hard. They must be roasted for half an hour & fry’d for
half an hour anoint the oyl (which you must keep for use) in the
morning daily make a plaster of turpentine & diaculum cum gumi
melted together & wear a truss Rx syrup of knotgrass. Drink ale
avoid beer that is very small & going up stairs & riding on a hard
trotting horse. Ly pretty much upon a couch in the day time Rx
juniper berries no 12 or sp of juniper 3 or 4 drops in ale. It is
good to correct wind which often causes a rupture. Rx em for a week or 
longer avoid eating fat meat or fruit or any thing that is windy when 
a rupture comes by a fall it is hard to cure Sister Shukbrugh. you 
may buy oyl of eggs at the apothecaries.
Dr Ed. Green the mountebank his red salve to cure a rupture or corns
Rx bees wax six drams, rosin 2 drams turpentine 1 dram red lead in 
fine pouder half a dram melt em in to a little round cakes or rolls
spred it upon allum leather for a rupture He sells a cake abt as
big as a crown piece but thicker for 6 d This salve cured Jn
[Cater’s] son George of Blaby of a rupture when a great many noted
medicines had been try’d in vain. He was abt 4 or 5 yrs old.
Mr Penford & E. A. It cured for a little time but wou’d not make a perfect
cure
a medicine for a rupture Rx the seeds of parsly, gromwell,
& burdock each zi & cummin seed zi beat all these to fine
pouder Give as much as will lie on a shilling in any liquid
& wear a truss. S. S. 
Doringtons diet drink for a rupture caus’d
by wind. Boyl these things in strong ale (beer & ale E. A.) anniseed
cummin seed caraway seed liquorish pouder coriander seed sweet
fennel seed long pepper & grains of paradiec with a few springs of
old man (al ladslove al southern wood) when these are boyled to the
tast sweeten it with treacle. Let it boyl up strain it out & give it
to the child to drink at any time. You need not fear a [lark], but
if it shou’d happen leave it off 2 days & keep warm. S. A.
a plaster for a rupture or the falling of the womb. Rx Pitch of Spain 2 ou. aloes
succotine red wax henbane each 2 ou. pitch of [shippers], mastick,
incense, galbanu, oppoponax (moline opoponax) gum [srespin]
(al. sagapen) each 4 ou. S. S.
Rupture when the swelling chafes wash it with hot butter milk
& moisten a little fullers earth with water spred it on a 
brown paper or linnen cloth. Drink 20 or 30 drops of balsamu
capivi in a qr of a pint of beer & ale night or morn
Keep the body open Mr Orme apothecary
James Flude of Croft had a great swelling like a rupture in
the privy pts being abt 60 yrs of age. It swell’d & broke & ran 
vastly He was like to have died, but was cured byu making a 
poultice of rose cakes boyled in ale & apply’d as hot as he 
could bear it with a little hogs lard twice a day. It is an ext poultis
for the Kings Evil Sister Boothby.


(314
There is no cure for a rupture without a truss & constant
keeping up. Let the child’s head be always layd low. It must
not eat nor suck too much at a time to fill the rutpure apply
a poultis agt the fire made of oatmeal that is small some children
are cured by rolling with a swathe made of new holland, [illegible]
truss is best. Give a pouder of flag roots & knotgrass apply the
rupture plaster to the broken place. Eat comfry & eggs fry’d
sometimes comfry in gruel. It must be kept dry by drawing 
in fresh rags betwixt the truss & swelling. Some are broken at the
groin & navel too, Put it up at the groin & it will swell at the
navel. Sister Ekins.
Yarrow al milfoil is good for ruptures. Pechey & Millers Herbals.
The starting of the navel has been cured in many children with a
cataplasm made with wine & the herb sanicle & bound close on, comfry
bruis’d being applied to the small of the back at the same time
Pecheys Herbal
Rupture in children cured by a Quaker woman in Nottingham
Rx prepar’d coral in pouder as much as will lie on a silver [groat] twice a
a week & no oftener for a child 3 yrs old in the morning fasting in 
milk or milk pottage, or beer. Continue it for ½ a yr or longer
till the child is well applying emplastru ad herman to the swelling.
Let the child drink mallow leaves & roots boyl’d in water & 
strain’d, for its constant drink except in the mornings when it
drinks milk. It quenches thirst. This cured Mr Tho. Charlton’s
son Tho. of a rupture. Coral is a brown white Cos. Margt Maxlo.
The bark of [elms] boil’d in ale wort & apply’d is good for ruptures
& to consolidate wounds Miller. The water in the bladders on the
leaves of Elms (clears the skin being wash’d with it) helps [burstenness] in 
children clothes being wet in the water & apply’d, but a truss must be kept
on also. Pechey’s Herbal.
A plaster for a rupture by E. A. Rx empl. ad herniam some patch grease from
the currier melt em together to the consistence of a salve Rx it from the fire & 
with a spoon add sp. of wine in which a good deal of camphor has been dissolv’d
& stir it abt till it is cold then spred it upon leather This did no good.
Electuarium ad Hernias An electuary agt ruptures quincy Rx pulp of
comfrey root zfs conserve of red roses zi pouder of blood stone finely
[levigated] zij dragons blood zi sugar of lead & balsam of Peru each zfs 
oul of cinnamon gut vi syrup of coral q.s. so make all into a smoth electuary.
This is a great strengthen & therefore may so draw up & harden the
solids as to reduce ruptures & very much prevent em.
Emplastrum ad herniam Quincy Rx of the glue made with snake skins
boil’d in a lixivium of tartar 4 ou. blood stone sugar of lead burnt tin
each ziij ammoniacum dissolv’d in vinegar 3 ou. [illegible] prodigiously consume


315)
it in all kinds of ruptures but the hydrocele (ie hernia agnosa)
& he says it is an infallible remedy observing a proper dist, which
must be strengthening, restringent, & not breeding flatulences; & it must
be constantly wore with [the] bandage Quincy says mastick plaster
strengthens the reins & sprain’d & luxated parts Try it.
Dr Fullers pouder in an hernia
Rx Solomon’s seal & comfrey roots anniseeds each zi make a pouder
It doth good by expelling wind, easing pains & consolidating the parts
Let a small child take 15 gr. thrice a day Let grown persons Rx zfs or
[illegible] ij with a draught of decoction of yarrow or Dr Fuller’s styptic decoction
Dr Fuller says a cataplasm of baked turnips is
ext for a tumour of the scrotum.
E. A. had a violent fever October 729 (a very sickly time) which caused a tumour
near the scrotum, emplastru ad herniam & several other things with a good
truss were try’d in vain at last he dipt a linnen rag in camphorated
S.V. made very strong of the camphir & apply’d it with a truss & 
ty’d a fillet to the wast band of his breeches & ty’d it abt his neck
to keep em up & it took away all pain & made the tumour abate If 
once a day moistening the rag is the S.V. [illegible] give ease You must [do] it twice a day
found out by E.A. but it would not make a perfect cure
Dr Fullers electuary in a rupture
Rx conserve of St Jns wort flowers 1 ou. pulp of comfry root (baked
in an oven with sugar lain upon loin) zfs The stone haematites (reduced
with S.V. on a marble to an alcohol) zij dragons blood in drops zi.
Sugar of saturn, balsam of Peru each zfs oil of anniseed, of sweet 
fennel seed each 2 drops syrup of cora 1 ou. or q.s. The dose is 2 or 3 drams
Dr Fullers astringent foment for a rupture etc.
Rx oak bark 2 ou. pomegranate peel zfs balaustines, red roses dry’d each
mi boil in [illegible] 2 qts to 1 qt strain & add rough red wine ½ pint so there
may also be added alum zij or zfs It corrugates the [relax’d] [fibres]
strengthens their tone shuts up the external pores & straitens the
internal passages hinders the afflux of humours & repels them It is good
in the beginning of inflamations & in oedematous tumours vomiting,
diarrhoea, immoderate flux of the menses or haemorrhoids, falling out
of the womb or intestines & in ruptures, after the putting back of the
guts ibid
Dr Fullers plaster of balaustines. This elegant salve he says mightily 
corroborates & comforts the head, stomach abdomen & uterus It is good
for a rupture Rx galbanum strain’s zifs pouder’d mastick ziij 1 [ounce]
turpentine zfs hard pitch [illegible] ij work em together in a warm mortar adding
oil of mace 15 gr. pouder’d balaustines 45 gr. Bring all to a plaster artificially
Pomet says common spirit of salt that which is right & good is much used
in hernias apoplexies scurvy of the teeth & gum Dose is from 10 
to 20 or 30 drops in ale or beer & ale or in water
The decoction of the leaves & root of common mouse-ear (auricula muris) drunken 
doth cure & heal all wounds both inward & outward & also ruptures. R. D. & Pechey
says it stops fluxes, is vulnerary & cures childrens ruptures.
The round birthwort (aristolochia) is profitable for all such as are hurt or bursten
inwardly if it be given em to drink with water. R.D.


(316
To kill rats or mice
Rx crow figs at nux vomica (nuces vomica) Hold one at a time 
in a hand vice grate it with a rasp or a tin grater, but the other
is best abt 3 or 4 grated are enough to dress 2 or 3 barns or more
mix it with sugar of six pence per lb with a knife Then Rx good sack
[illegible] brandy & sheep water made of tobacco stalks or dust ratsbane 
& allum & water & salt It must have no brine in’t each a qr of a 
pint The sheep water makes em very thirsty aqua fortis 2 d malmsey 
wine ½ a pint pr 8 d Put the aq. fortis in to the bottle (made of glass
that will hold a qt) with a little sweet ale wort before it is mixt with 
hops Rats hate bitter things & love whatever tastes sweet Rx yellow
arsnic zii pr. 4 d white arsnic al. ratsbane zi pr. 2 d mercury sublimate
zfs pr. 4 d stibium pr. 3 d w. sugar candy zfs pounded with 
the w. arsnic Let all be pouder’d fine Put abt half of the
poysons & pouder to the liquids in the bottle & the rest mix with sugar
6 d per lb & liquor out of the bottle & the finest wheat flower till it 
is as thick as batter for pankakes or thicker that it will not run If it
runs you must add more flower spred it 8 or 9 inches in length
on the side piece & his breadth of the side piece on each side each 
barn & on the wall plates where the corn is below the wall plate
The more sorts & variety of poysons the better They deceive & kill
with more certainty The variety of scents tempts em to taste of it
as a novelty If they run upon it they naturally lick their feet
which kills em They drink & swell & die. They frequent the side trees
more than the wall plates. The Tatham of Enderby & a ratcatcher 
of Newport [Pagriel].
To kill mice mix crow figs grated to pouder with butter & hard
cheese scrap’d & put into a box with a hole at each end for
mice to in & out at so that no dog may get to the poyson,. ibid
Wm [Ellis] ratcatcher of [Scauby] where [illegible] Maltrop justice of
the peace lives 1 m ½ from [Brig] a market town in Lincoln shire
[illegible] [illegible] bate Rx the best baking apples that are of a pleasant pure
taste such as are the best for apple tarts pare & core em Put no sugar
to em weight abt lbfs in a pot after it comes hot out of the oven or
you may stew em in a sauce pan as you do for goose sauce
putting 3 or 4 spoonfuls of water to em (sugar doth harm in poyson
it offends the rats) Rx [roseacre] al [illegible] etc. yellow arnick 
ziiij in fine pouder stir it with a flat stick lay the quantity of a
pea or a horse bean on the wall plates or side [illegible] or spred it
where the runs look black They lick their feet & tayle both which
wipe off the dust & make the wood look black spred the medicine
abt 3 inches broad & abt 2 f long in a place that they cannot jump


317)
jump over it. You must not lay it where there is dust
there they do not come. where the cobwebs are broken
there they come. Rub it abt the holes on the inside on the thatch
If they lick their feet or tayls they die. Sometimes mix it with
mallow pair that is dead rotten Wm Ellis.
To kill rats. make a toast of wheaten bread, dip it in ale
strew it on white fine sugar Let em eat that. The next night
after they have eaten it make anew toast, dip it in ale strew
it on white ratsbane in fine pouder & upon that w. sugar. Take
away what they feed on to keep em hungry. This was lay’d in 
a chamber where their run was. Jn Randle of East Farnham in 
Northampton-shire kill’d 30 rats that he found dead the next day.
He was not troubled for 6 yrs after Yod may divide the toast
into 2 or 3 pts. The toasts were lay’d in March. White arsnick
has the least scent Wm Rost of Blaby.
The root of white helebore in pouder mixt with oat meal or sugar or apples
will kill rats Jn Dawson farrier of Leicer
A malster of Bitterswet drove rats quite away form his malt
house by burning brimstone & assafoetida Jn Mason E. A.’s t’nt.
To kill rats or mice or cats or dogs or hogs or any creature that eats it
Tho. Fardel gardiner of leicer
Rx currans pound or chop em fresh bane that has no salt in it [illegible] oatmeal
sifted with the fine flower brown sugar ratsbane[illegible] pouder mix & work it with a knife like paste, then
lay it in clean oyster shels or on a clean [illegible] board a little in a place where 
the rats haunt or come often. Lay 10 or 20 pieces or separate pts not all in 
one place. He bought ratsbane 2 d & kill’d 200 rats in one house at Harborow
Leicershire. Lay it where cats cannot come for they will eat it.
He lay’d it in 20 pts
another for Do. Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel Rx fresh butter that
has no salt in it mix it with the fine flower of oatmeal sifted mix white
arsnic with it in fine pouder. They will take white sooner than yellow arsnic
another Toast some new milk cheese or fat cream cheese a little to make it
smell a little piece abt the length from the middle joint of the middle finger
to the end crumble it like bread crumbs with white arsnic 2.9 or a [cake]
This kills all rats & mice take care to lay it where no hogs, dogs
cats or children come. You may put it into mice holes. Tho. Goode gardinr
another Roast some apples & mix the pap with some white arsenic & Rx
away all the chees if they be in a cheese chamber & lay it upon a board
one apple is enough for to kill one or 2 rats. The rats eat most of the
pap of an apple & ratsbane made very fine the 1st night lay’d by Ann
Queniborow of [A?ston] Liecershire
another mix [illegible] ratsbane with white sugar perhaps it may be a good
way to pound em in a mortar together Put in but a small quantity
of ratsbane to a good quantity of sugar Lay it in oyster
shels in malt houses of granaries This kill’d so many rats at
Rushden that they stank intolerably when dead. Cos. Tho. Ekins
or Jn [Dahm??] lay ½ ratsbane ½ oat meal on [illegible] [illegible] broken [illegible] ratsbane 1 d
in [illegible] or the [illegible] where the rats come on [illegible] pieces in [illegible] [illegible]
mix w. arsenic with loaf sugar Dr [Banker] 


(318
To set a rasor [a rasor or razor
novacula, culter tonsorius
Rub the stone clean with a cloth then pour a little 
oyl on’t not too much, if in the winter hold it on the 
hone agt the fire to dissolve then move the rasor lay’d
level & lightly on the hone turning it sometimes on
one side & sometimes on the other not observing to harm
or wear each side equally alike till towards the last
that you are preparing to give it a fine round edge which
is the best & most durable edge. The way to get a round
edge is this after you’ve whet the rasor as at 1st draw the 
edge cross the middle of the tumb & you’l feel it
rake agt the nail & move unsteadily which signifies
that the edge has nicks in’t or is threded than you must
whet it again as at st carelessly moving the rasor so that the
edge may move 1st & towards the body moving it round
till the edge lay’d lightly on the middle of the thumb nail
draws smooth without any rub. If it draws rough you must 
set it again & again till it draws smooth when it draws smooth
on the nail then you then you must give it a round edge You
must lean a little more upon the edge then on the back the
back not touching the hone turning it exactly on each side
alternately & draw the back 1st as you do when you set it
on a leather or strop then look with a pr of spectacles on 
each side of the edge of the rasor & you will discover
whether there is any thred on the edge if there is you must
set it again as you did last time for a round edge. At Sheffield
the Prentices when they are almost out of their time 
set rasors & use spectacles to discover the goodness of the 
rasors edge. when you use a strop or leather or hand you must
bear a little or most on the edge which makes the edge round 
& durable & takes off all threds. a hard hand is best It must
be clean & dry & free from oyl & grease. a hard hand is
better than leather If you rub it on the leather or strop, rub
it on the hand last viz the edge on the edge & fleshy pt
of the hand between the little finger & wrist. Let a bad rasor
lie by & be eaton with rust & it will improve it. Rust eats the 


319)
Soft & bad pt of the steel out rasor ginder a
traveller
How to set a rasor James Davis white smith of Croft
Let the back & heel of the rasor move 1st on the hone
laying the rasor flat & lean gently at the beginning & ‘
end of the movemt & heaviest in the middle of the 
movemt either on hone or leather or strop & sometimes
slide the point of the rasor up the stone 1st to the handle of
the rasor & so let the point move 1st back again, keeping the
rasor always flat This cross motion takes & keeps off the
thred well. The last movemt giveth the finest edge. You 
may move the edge 1st at last to finish the edge on the
hone if you will. move the edge of the rasor upon the
hone always 1st & at last move it cross ways i.e. letting
the heel & sometimes move 1st backwards & forwards 3 or 
4 times together Sometimes move the point 1st back wards
& forwards 3 or 4 times together Let the back of the
rasor always touch the hone 1st i.e. before the edge
touches it. you may move the back of the rasor 1st 
at 1st but you must finish the edge with the edge moving
1st on the hone. you must lean gently on the 
stone or leather when you are abt finishing the edge 
To finish an edge make short strokes or movemts at
last either on hone or leather
Oyl a strop or piece of calf’s leather so as to make it
drunk with oyl & oyl it as oft as you use it or grease
it 1st with soft grease at last with oyl. warm the leather
& work the grease in agt the fire till it will drink up
no more & the leather feels very limber & pliable The
older the leather the better a piece of leather like a boot 
garter is better than a strop fixt on wood. warm the leather
when you use it in cold weather Let the back & heel of the 
rasor move first on the leather st fro the left then back
again from the right hand to the left turning the side of
the rasor at the end of each movemt when you’ve done so 3 or 
4 times or often as you think convenient then move the
point & back of the rasor 1st from the left to the right & 
back again 3 or 4 times. move it sometimes with the point 



(320
1st sometimes with the heel 1st but conclude &
finish the edge with the point always 1st The 
leather gives a fine edge then the hone & must be
used after it always. when a rasor wants grinding
(i.e. when the edge will not bend lay’d side ways & prest on the 
thumbnail) tho you set it on the best hones & oyl’d leather
it will not have a good sharp edge to cut well ibid
Thomas Sheth the barber moves the rasor carelessly at
1st in a round motion with the edge first always turning it
lying on its back or the back touching the hone upon 
the turn after a little time he turns each side alternately
the edge moving always 1st but when he thinks he
has set it enough he moves the back 1st for a turn or
2 to take off the thred the back as well as edge always
touching the hone exactly alike except upon the
turn. But no hone will give a fine edge without a rub
or 2 upon an oyl’d leather or hand then you must hold
the back from the leather letting only the edge gently 
touch it alternately This takes off the thred & gives it
a fine smooth edge He commends a piece of buff
rub’d with the leather of the wash ball as the best leather
Richard Chapman barber at Leicer moves the edge of the
rasor always 1st (affirming that drawing the back 1st will not
set it or give it a good edge) he lays the rasor exactly flat
upon the hone so that the edge & back always touch the hone
& he leans equally upon both & equally on both sies he 
moves two strokes on each side before he turns the rasor & 
he says you may shave with a rasor set on an hone without rubbing
on a leather or hand but he generally rubs it on a strop
or buff belt He always scrapes the strop or leather with the
back of the rasor before he sets the edge on it to take off its
glaze or foulness whether it is caus’d by oyl or the leather
of the wash [ball] he makes his wash balls all of sope To set a
rasor on a strop or leather after you’ve scrap’d it clean with the
back keep the edge always to the leather never letting the back


321)
touch the leather & move the back always 1st
or you will cut the leather or strop This takes the
thred from the edge you may hold the middle of the
blade of the rasor in the hand while you 1st it on a
leather sometimes after grinding a rasor doth not come to 
a good edge till it has been on the hone 5 or 6 times Draw the 
rasor edge gently cross the thumbnail breadthwise to take
off the thred.
Burstal lutler & rasor grinder of Leicer that was apprentice
at Burmingham. Lay the rasor flat upon the hone
& move the edge forwards in a kind of a semicircle to 
each side the 1swt stroke for the point the 2nd for the heel
turn the rasor & repeat the same 2 strokes nimbly on the other side
the edge always moving 1st you must not lean at all upon the
rasor its own weight must set it & each side must be turn’d
equally alike that a true wail may go on both side the edge of
the rasor (tho E. A. has seen a good edge tho the wayl has bin bigger
on one side than the other) Burstal applys only the edge 
of the rasor to a strop or leather the back never touching it
he generally only rubs in on his leather apron a stroke or 2 to 
take off the thred. He can see a thred so he seldom draws it cross
his thumbnail. a soft hone is best because quickest but a 
hard hone gives the finest edge
E. A.’s little burnt hone with an hole at the end sets the finest
edge on a rasor of all his hones a London strop the glaze & 
dirt 1st scrap’d off with the back of the rasor gives the finest edge 
of all E. A.’s strops or leathers August 1st 718
when a rasor has a thick dull edge & has not been grun of a long
time. Put some paper abt the little end to h old it streight & steddy
then hold the rasor near the end of the handle without griping it 
hard & move it 10 times on one side (the edge moving forwards) & 
10 times on the other laying it very flat Repeat this 2 or 3 times
then move it 5 times, 4 times, thrice, twice, & once of a side then bear
it on the edge lightly, turning it every time & make it take up some
oyl all along the edge Try it on the hand when it cuts well then apply it
to the strop or leather & draw it gently on the strop bearing a little on
the edge one stroke on a side alternately July 719 E. A. You must bear 


(322
most on the edge of a penknife both on the hone & strop
E. A. To set a rasor move it on the hone with the edge first on 
both sides for a pretty while then draw the back forwards on both
sides alternately letting the edge touch the hone (strop or hand) as 
gently & lightly as ever you can move it thus a good time together
& it will lose its dull edge & put on a very fine smooth cutting
edge which will make it shave with pleasure. Lay the rasor flat to 
touch the hone or strop or hand both back & edge at once but bear
the edge gently let it touch as if it touched not. This is the mystery
of setting a rasor or penknife to carry em lightly (slowly or nimbly)
taking care that the edge touches always. whet the point of the rasor
most because it is most used. September 719. E. A. It is a material article
in setting a rasor to let the back of the rasor touch the hone or strop
first Br. S. A. To whet a rasor on the hand Lay it flat & lean gently 
at the beginning and end of each movemt & lean hard in the middle E.A.
To set a rasor on a strop or leather Lay it flat & draw that end of
the rasor that is next the handle always first turn it & let the back
move 1st always & lean very hard on the rasor on both sides or
turns or movemts with an equal hard pressure of the edge constantly 
agt the strop or leather E. A. This is the reason some men can
shave so long without setting a rasor on a hone ibid.
Sometimes this method will set a dull rasor well on a hone Let the
edge move 1st towards the body & lean lightly & let the edge return
1st back again leaning pretty hard. E. A.
To set a rasor the best way lay the rasor always flat upon the hone
with a gentle even pressure on both sides [illegible] upon the strop but on leather
or fleshy pt of the hand that will yield let only the edge of the rasor touch em the
back being always holden up pretty remote from em & move the rasor always from end to end Tho. Tafte & E. A.
lean hard on the hand or loose leather because they will [play] ibid.
another Rx a pretty long hone let one end rest on a table holding
the other obliquely & exalted with the hand then move the edge of
the rasor (lay’d flat) from the bottom of the hone to the top so that the
edge of the rasor may smooth & carry the oyl along with it apparently
to be seen on the edge Then on the edge of a table place the middle
of the hone & exalt the end of the hone remotest from the hand that
holds the hone & let the edge on the other side of the rasor move back
again ascending so that the edge may take oyl from the hone the rasor
being lay’d exactly flat The mutual elevation of the ends of 
the hone keeps the edge of the rasor always & truly to the hone E. A.
To set a rasor [half??] farmer rasor maker at Leicer Rx Three hones 
the first that you set the rasor on must be very soft & wear the
rasor pretty much the second must be somewhat harder than the 1st 
& the third must be the hardest of all to give the finest edge


323)
You must lean the hardest on the first hone
keeping the rasor always flat so that the back
& the edge may always touch & with an equal pressure
This you must do on all the hones only you must
lean lighter on the second hone than on the first & lightest
of all on the last fine hone that must have only the
weight of the rasor & then you need never use a strop
or leather You must make the rasor’s edge always
move first & turn it on the back that the other side
may return back again with the edge first The cutlers 
& rasor setters use only sevil oyl. always have plenty 
of oyl when you set a rasor on the hones or you can’t
set the rasor well. Let the hones lie on a tine square 
pan with a little edge & a little kind of a box in the
middle to receive the oyl cover’d with tin that has many 
holes in’t for the oyl to run thro. with this oyl the cutlers
oyl their shoes. when you let the rasor on the first 
hone after you’ve whet it a pretty while draw the edge
of the rasor gently agt the edge of the thumbnail whet it again
& do so a second time but no oftener on the 1st hone This takes off the
threds & prepares it for a fine edge Mr Halford farmer draws the
edge of the rasor down the edge of the left thumb during the
setting twice on the 2 first hones sometimes oftener seldom on 
the last hone It doth not dull the edge of the rasor It discovers
nicks & removes threds from the edge The smooth & pleasant running
of the edge of the rasor on the edge of the tumb declares
the goodness of the rasors edge The smoother it runs the better it
will cut. No barber or cutler can set a rasor with only one hone
to give it so sharp & durable an edge as he that sets it on three
hones of different degrees of hardness or softness.
when you are to set a dullish rasor move it 20 times on one side
all together & 20 times on the other all together on the hone
beginning at the point of the rasor whetting only an inch from
the point 1st then whet an inch further & so an inch till all the
rasor is whetted inch by inch 20 times on a side then whet it
10 times inch by inch on a side Lastly turn the rasor alternately 
& draw it the whole length from heel to point leaning gently 
on it move it so gentlhy that hyou may be sure to keep the rasor always 
flat the edge & back to touch exactly alike with the same
weight & pressure.
Rub a little oyl on the inside the edge of the hand after you’ve
set the rasor on the 3 hones drawing the back first on one side
then o n the other an inch at a time from the point laying the rasor
flat till you’ve whetted it inch by inch on both sides This gives the 


(324
rasor a sweet, fine strong pleasing edge much superior to any 
edge the hone can give E. A.
when you are to set a rasor after it is new ground lay it flat
& lean very lightly on the hone & lightly on the hand for
then the edge is thin when it h as been us’d a pretty while lean
a little harder on the rasor when the hone or hand Thomas
Tafte. To make any rasor or penknife cut with a fine edge
If the rasor is very dull let it be ground. If it does not want
grinding then lay it flat on the hone & move it the length
of the hone 1st on one side then on the other turning the rasor 
always on the back This whets both sides equally alike Then
begin at the point of the rasor & move only abt a barly corn’s
length downwards gradually till you come to the handle turning
it on the back alternately, the edge moving always 1st when you
have whetted down to the handle (which must hold the rasor fast with 
a piece of paper or rag) whet back again from the handle to 
the point turning on the back every barly corns length, leaning
lightly. Then whet it on the hand & finger moving the back always 
1st & leaning most on the edge a broad side at one movemt or stroke 
Lastly begin at the point & whet down gradually little by little
keeping the edge to the fleshy pt of the hand & turning the rasor
nimbly on both sides till you come to the handle & so whet it from
the handle to the point gradually back again letting only the edge touch
the hand gently all the time. when you’ve done thus then draw 
the edge on both sides gently agt the soft swelling flesh that
is on the back of the hand betwixt the thumb & forefinger when
squeez’d close together This gives the finest edge that a rasor is capable
of & brings the edge of a penknife to perfection E. A. You may 
get a smith or carpenter to whet the rasor on a hard hand & afterwards
you may whet it on your own soft hand or on a female
hand E. A.
Jn Hacket cutler of Melton Mowbray his way of setting a rasor
Put plenty of sallet oyl on the hone new oyl is better than old fasten the
small end of the rasor with a piece of paper to make it steddy then lay it
flat upon the hone & with a steddy hand without shaking or tattering
draw the rasor back that it may move 1st several times in a round 
motion from one end of the hone to the other almost leaning
very hard on a hone that is sharp & wears away the rasor pretty much
viz on a soft hone then turn the other side & move the back forward
several times in a round motion. Do thus again & again alternately
till it comes to an edge which you may know by trying it agt the skin of
your hand at the ball of hour forefinger Then hold the rasor almost perpendicular
a little on one side & scrape the edge of the handle
to the point agt the nail of the 2nd finger or thumb of the left hand 


325)
one way to thred or turn the edge all along one way
(moving the back always 1st threds the edge & moving
the edge 1st on the hone takes the thred & brings a fine edge
on) after you’ve thred the edge move the rasor lay’d flat
on the hone always 1st in a circular motion abt 6 storkes on
one side then lay it exactly flat again & move the edge on
the other side 1st abt 6 strokes in a circular motion & so alternately
till it is sharp Then upon the fine hard hone move the
edge 1st 3 or 4 strokes on a side Lastly sweeten & round the edge
on the fleshy pt of your left hand below your little finger turning
the edge mostly to the h and one stroke on one side & another on 
the other side vice versa leaning lightly on the hand. Lay the 
narrowest pt of the rasor next the handle flat upon the hone
draw the edge first towards your body the length of the hone
exalting the hand all the way gradually to the point of the rasor
Do the same thing back again the edge moving first from the handle
draw it along the hone to the point raising the rasor all the way & 
move it upon the very point sometimes on both sides This keeps the
edge of the rasor always to the hone & gives it the sweetest & most
durable edge Move the rasor so on the edge of the soft hand the back always
moving first & draw it from the heel to the point & exalting
the hand to make the heel of the rasor rise up gradually to the very point
you may try if the back of the rasor always moved first on the hone
does not finish an edge as well as the edge moving always first 
Thus finish a penknife by drawing it from the handle to the point
& make the stampt or markt end advance gradually to the point as
you draw it on the hone or hand or strop.
Let the rasor be never so well set when you trim if you do not gripe it
hard so as to hold it steddy it will quickly lose its edge
& not trim half so fast nor so close A loose way of holding it
makes it slide over the hair without cutting E.A.
To set a rasor (the best way) Lay it flat upon a hard fine hone
& move it backwards & forwards without turning taking care
to keep the edge to the hone (as well as the back) whetting only one
pt of the edge at a time Then turn the other side laying it flat
& move it forwards & backwards without turning 4 or 5 times together
at 1st leaning hardest at 1st at last turn it every movemt
on the back the edge moving 1st up & down leaning then very 
lightly E. A. Lay the hone flat upon a table laying a paper or rag 
under it to keep it steady. E. A. Jn Kendal a traveller his way to set a 
rasor Put a little oyl on the hone made very clean. Lay the rasor flat leaning
not very hard move the edge always first in a circular motion from 
one end of the hone to the other for a good while together Then remember
this for a rule that you always turn the rasor from the back as often as hyou 
turn it That preserves the edge very much which a little touch awry disturbs 
& dulls Then whet it as much on the other side after the same manner At last
turn it every movement the edge going first Rub it a little gently on your wrist
or hand. Hold a human hair between your left thumb and finger If the rasor will
cut it off a qr of an inch from the end of your thumb on any pt of the edge then the
edge is good. You may over hone a rasor i.e. make the edge too thin Thus whet a
penknife lay it flat move the edge first circularly Turn on the back whet a lancet circularly


(326
A finger prickt with a nail or pin
anoint it with oyl of turpentine or with oyl of 
turp. & goose grease & hold it agt the fire ready 
to burn it. Repeat this thrice in 24 hours. EA. another
almost scaled it in hot water after that squeeze out the
blood & apply Bents salve to’t or de minio. This will cure
a whitloe also. Anne Tasie.


327)



(328
Toe-nail eating into the flesh.
Cut the nail short on that side it eats into the flesh & 
moisten a little lint with tincture of myrrh & thrust
it betwixt the nail & flesh E. A. or cut off the offending
pt of the nail & dead flesh & moisten it with oyl of origanu 
with lint or without E.A. or mix Haines’s salve for a corn
or Dr Pool’s black salve with a little lint E. A. If these dry
too much put tallow to the sore to supple it. ibid. or put hony to 
a little lint and apply it E.A.




(330
nodes, knobs or hard swellings to dissolve.
anoint with oyl of origanum morning & evening, it will take
a splint away, but not presently or prick thro the skin with a 
needle fixt in a stick, in several places then rub oyl of peter
allover it & heat it with a hot fire shovel, do thus 4 or 5 days
together p. 264. The experienc’d farrier


331)



(332
Diabetes
Rx Balm of Gilead 5 or 6 drops in D.R.L. sugar night & morning
This cured a gentlewoman known to Mrs Lathwell.
The water at Bristol is ext to drink
The water in which quick lime has been slacked poured off when it
is clear & drank is an ext sweetener of the blood & is accounted
one of the best remedies in a diabetes Dr Quincy.
swelling in the cod or scrotum. Anoint with ointment of
marshmallows Thomas Mortimore of Narboro


333)
To set a penknife on a hone or to whet it
on a rag or other whetstone
Rx the penknife & hold the back towards you or the
edge upon the hone & whet the left i.e. the markt side
most, letting the edge & back lie flat & both touch the
hone or rag & now & then draw only the edge on the
right or contrary side on the hone to take off the thred 
not suffering the [illegible] at any time to touch the hone & on that
side this gives a round & durable edge Mr Jonathan Buckerfield
writing master & Cos. Tho. Boothby.
To give an ordinary knife as a butchers knife etc. a
fine edge to take off a sheep skin or to cut a feather
whet it upon a thrashold free from nails or a board
with ashes or smith scales This gives it a finer edge than 
a rag or any whetstone but a steel will give it a fine
edge but it is difficult to understand how to whet on
Jn Cater shepherd To whet a knife on a steel. move the
back always 1st taking care to turn the edge so that the edge may 
always touch on both sies 1st on one side then on the other & the
thicker & duller the edge the harder you must lean on it when the edge
is extraordinary thick whet it on a stare or thashold or board to 
thin it. Steel gives a fine edge. Some butchers can’t learn to whet
a knife on a steel some steels cost 3 s 6 d & some but 1 s 2 d Richd Brew
in Butcher
To whet a pen knife Halford farmers way who serv’d his
apprenticeship to a rasor make at London
Bear the back of the knife always from the hone that only the
edge may touch beginning with the point lay’d on the right side & 
push it forwards & backwards [illegible] length till you’ve whetted from the point down 
to the handle as if the knife was to creep down the hone then you must turn
the other side of the knife & move gradually backwards & forwards i.e. whet
it in a straight line to & fro with a short stroke from the handle to the point
again & so from the point to the handle & vice versa till you’ve made
the edge sharp. this short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
the edge sharp. This short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
sides touch the hone. when you’ve done thus then draw the edge after the
same way on the fleshy pt or edge of the hand whetting from the point
to the handle & from the handle to the point on the contrary side Lastly 
draw the edge gently on both sides agt the soft flesh that is on the back
side the hand betwixt the finger & thumb they being both prest together 
this gives the finest edge that is both to rasor & penknife. E.A.


(334
To fix a knife blade in a handle
Beat some brick to fine pouder on a stone or on another
brick with a hammer & bruise some rosin (black or yellow) to
a course pouder then put the pouders mixt (take most brick dust)
& fill the hollow of the handle then heat the tang of the blade
& twist it in to the bottom, as far as it can go Let it rest till
the next day then you may use it. Wm Davis white smith


335)



(336
Things that loosen the body when too costive
Eat one China orange whole viz peel, meat & seed It opens
& cools & is good to carry off gravel perhaps continued for
a week together they may help cure the scurvy E. A. oatmeal 
pudding posset drink especially with mallow leaves boyl’d in
it. new milk whey new made & warm Ride after It is
a great cleanser of the body after a purge or the bark
it carrys away gravel. Comfrey root dry’d & beaten to pouder
take night & morning Mr Traps. Lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d or
ziij mixt with conserve of (red) roses pr. 2 d or zvi Rx a knife’s
pointful night & morning It will gently open the body & is good
for a cough & consumption & a weak or decaying body.  This
cured Tho. Tafte a smith that cou’d scarce go a hightone. To keep
the body soluble. Rx common treacle a [hapworth] abt a spoonfuls
posset drink made of beer & ale as much as you can 
drink at a draught. Pater Meus. A gentle purge Rx sena zfs
rhubarb in pouder as much as will lie on a shilling, raisins of
the sun stoned no 40 fennel seeds & aniseeds bruis’d each
a spoonful, a stick of liquorish sliced, a rase of ginger slicd
abt 6 or 7 cloves. Boyl ale a qt. & scum it then put all
these things into it let em infuse all night Rx it at twice or
thrice ibid a violent cough. Mrs Catharine [Narolove] Rx Raysins
of the sun stoned zij brown sugar candy zi conserve of red roses
zfs spirit of vitriol gut. 12. Tincture of sulphur gut. 6 Beat all these
together into an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg night & morning & 
oftener if you have occasion Another scoop an hole in an apple 
(pretty large) to get out most of the core ift it with brown sugar 
candy & roast it stopping it with some of the same apple that the
scoop brought out, then mix it with clarret like apple & milk.
This cured Mrs Anna Maris Stokes after blooding Dr Cheselden.
A gentle purge Rx flower of brimstone abt ½ a spoonful put
it in a gally pot & just cover it with oyl of turpentine so let it
stand 24 hours or longer you may pour off the oyl if any will
run off for any other use Put the brimstone into a porringer
of new milk from the cow or boyl em together & drink it in
the morning fasting It will give you one stool or 2 E. A. It will
purge with only the oyl of turpentine E. A.
another which it reckon’d the best of purges & the best of medicines.
Hiera picra simplex. Rx cinnamon, mace assarabacca spikenard
mastick saffron each zvi alloes succotrine 12 ou ½ Beat em into fine 


337)
pouder & keep it for your use in a dry place.
Rx 1 ou. ½ of this pouder & put it into a pint of double
(single E.A) anniseed water Put it into a bottle & stop it close
& set it in the sun 10 days shaking it every day when you 
use it Pour off abt 1 ou. of the clear & take it going to bed or
after it S.S. Dr Salman says in affects of the stomach, mesentery, 
liver, womb, head & joynts it is exct if made into 
an electuary with clarified honey lbiv ziij. Dose a zij to iij in 
worm wood, rhenish wine with syrup of mugwort compound
& cure the green sickness. Dr Quincy says its bitterness hinders it
from being taken in the form of a bole & its quantity is too 
much for pills for 1 taking Its use now is only to make the 
tinctura sacra. E. A. thinks the tinctura sacra is best made
without Venice treacle or mithridate only with good w. wine
decanting off only the clear. To open the body Rx milk boyl 
it, add bread household or white cut smallish add ale a little, when
it is in the porringer stir it & eat it. you may take water in which 
maligo raysins have been steept 8 or 10 days without stalks
in stead of ale. E. A.
An ext purge to cleanse the bowels of slime & corruption
Rx Daffy’s elixir (made with single aniseed water) over night one 
spoonful the next morning take 2 spoonfuls mixt with sena zij
pr 3 d in very fine pouder sifted & abt a spoonful or 2 of common
treacle Repeat this intermitting a week betwixt purge & purge
thrice a dose for a man you may take less the 1st time This was found
out by E. A. Rx manna zfs fresh oyl if sweet almonds a sufficient 
quantity dissolve it add rosewater ten drops mix it Let children 
lick of this often to loosen their bellies when there is occasion Pecheys Herbal.
Manna is used to loosen the body 2 or 3 ou. of it being dissolv’d in 
broth or whey Tis a very gentle purge & may be safely given to old
men children & women with child A proper purge for children Rx manna
zifs dissolve it in black cherry water ziifs add to it f the purging syrup
of apple zi spirit of sulphur 3 drops. Half of it may be taken at a time
ibid If a purge doth not work in [3] hours after it is taken and to make it work
gently without griping. Boil some new milk with a sliced onion in it then Rx out
the onion & add the yolk of an egg & w. bread a little when it is off the fire, sweeten
it with treacle you may put in a little nutmeg E.A. via p. 338.
Mr Wm Freer of Blaby September 1730 had a looseness & after that a violent
costiveness with gripes which lasted a week purges that were strong would move 
him nor comon glyster at last Jn Smith of Do. made a suppository of alum 
& oil’d it & thrust it up his [illegible] then set his breech over a close in which 
was a good deal of hot water This gave him a little stool It was repeated
but produced no effect Mr Cook apothecary sent him a very long glyster 
[pipe] & a glyster made of milk oatmeal turpentine mixt with yolk of an
egg oil of turpentine a good quantity which gave him several stools which
smelt very strong of turpentine & he mended quickly


(338
To prevent a purge from griping
Quincy says oil of camomile is chiefly used to correct purges 
& it is sometimes given as a carminative in boles a drop or
2 at a dose * it does often suddenly remove those flatus’s which 
occasion stitches & pains of the side
Dr Fuller’s dispensatory says If powder’d crabs eyes be given
in water gruel during the operation of a purge ‘twill prevent 
griping p. 455. Dissolve a little flakey manna in beer ale or water
& mix it with your purge & it will prevent its griping E. A.


339)



(340
To dry up a sore, especially near a joynt
to prevent the joynt-water
Rx oyl of myrrh )not per deliquium) 3 d per dram or for want thereof tincture
of myrrh (but the oyl is 10 times better) & oyl of turpentine
p.e. mix em in the palm of your hand with haris fire or for want
thereof with lint or cotton & apply it to the sore or wound once 
dressing commonly cures Dr Pool mountebank.
How to dress & cure any sore.
Rx bees wax [4] ounces, (a groats worth) of turpentine horse turp. 3 ou. neatsfoot
oyl & hony of the 3 last a like quantity, but somewhat more 
of the wax than of any of the other things scrape the wax & set em
all on the fire Let em boyl a pretty while then pour em thro a 
course cloth into some clean vessel & put some water
to’t so you may keep it as long as you will
To make allum water Rx allum zij hony ziij sage leaves mij
boyl em in water 3 pints till one is wasted & the water is green
wash the sore well with this water warm after you’ve wash’d it
cast into the sore a good deal of loaf sugar Dress it morning
& evening & by the grace of God it will cure any sore that is
Geo. Ashby (Pater Meus) Mr Penford the apothecary syas sugar does
but little good it is not us’d by the surgeons pouder sugar pr. 8 d
per lb is best he says Venice turpentine is best for a sore but loaf
sugar double refin’d is best to keep down proud flesh because of the allum & lime E.A.
Mrs Davenport of Wigston Magna cured sore legs with this 
Rx following when many surgeons cou’d not.
Rx white vitriol frankincense, bean flower each 2 ounces bole
4 ou. in pouder Boyl em in spring water 3 quarts till a pint is consumed
dress the sore with the water as warm as new milk.
A rare water for a sore Rx camphir zij white copperas zij
beat em in a mortar together then boyl em together in an earthen
pot Let it stand till it be cold close stopt then take it out & 
beat it again with bole zi Then boyl spring water a qt. Put the
above named pouders into it stirring it till it be cold then bottle it
& keep it close stopt for your use. Pater Meus.
To dry up an obstinate sore in the leg Put quick lime lbs into an 
earthen pan or pot Pour upon it rain or river water 3 qts stir it together
when it is slack’d let it settle & decant all the clear water from 
the sedimt & if it is not perfectly clear filtrate it thro cup paper
To a pint of this water put abt [illegible] ij of corrosive sublimate more
or less according as you can bear it when you use it dip a linnen cloth 
2 or 3 times doubled in the water first shaking the bottle & apply it
to the pt affected as often as it grows dry. Dress the sore with this salve


341)
Salve, viz Rx linimt arcai zi basilicon zij mixt S.S.
Mrs Newlove of Blaby had a sore on her leg that the surgeons
could not cure till she took the Jesuits bark then it healed presently 
MRs Newlove
Clem. Brooks labourer of Blaby healed an old sore on his leg with only 
bees wax & butter p. e. boyled together when a great many healing salves 
were bafled & could not make a cure. C. B.
The itching of a sore or [illegible] wound dress it with the mercury lime water
p. 340. or with weapon salve i.e. bacon fry’d & the fat poured into 
water to extract the salt. E. A.
Dr Salmon says tar both drys & heals It draws worms out of the flesh.
It cures a broken skin It cures sores not easie to heal. Family Dictionary.
Widow Tasie of Newtown Linford had a running sore on her leg
with 4 holes in it 1) on the middle of the calf 2) on the skin etc. she
could not rest night nor day Jo. Warner (having marry’d her daughter)
the smith of Narborow, cured it thus. He made allu posset of new milk,
he wash’d it with the whey as hot as she cou’d endure it at night & lay’d
the posset curd on a cloth & that was apply’d to each sore as hot as
she coud abide it The next morning it was drest with unguentum [popul??]
warm’d & tents made of lint dipt in it & at noon with ung. popularum
That it was draft every night with allu posset & every day with the oyntmt 
at first twice a day because it run very much when the sores were dry he drest
em at last with only the oyntmt once a day in was cured in abt 6 weeks
& continues new very well She was then abt 75 yrs old. Jane Tasie.
He apply’d the oyntmt in the morn & again abt noon. ibid
To dry up a sore on the leg. Rx Solomons seal, the leaves, mij 
pound it & take the juice, grease or hogs lard free from salt,
the quantity of four walnuts, bees wax the quantity of 
two little nutmegs. Slice the wax & boyl em a pretty while to 
incorporate. This cured a travellers leg of a sore that had try’d
a great many Drs & surgeons in vain. Clem. Brooks & old
Ann Brooks another Drink cow piss, it has cured
a very sore leg. Drink it in May a good draught ½ a pint 
(or a pint if you can) 9 mornings together omit 9 days & 
drink it again. This cured a sore leg of a person that had spent
[illegible] among surgeons in vain. Sister Boothby. It hath cured 
the Kings Evil when these have been nine holes in one leg
when the surgeons cured the Evil It broke out again but
cow piss made a perfect cure Mrs Lathwell.
Br Geo. Ashby of Quenby had such a great swelling in his legs that 
the flesh did hang over his shoes He was cured by eating one clove
of garlic every morning fasting for a pretty while together G. A.



(342
To draw out a thorn. apply a plaster of turpentine
or Bents salve but these are mighty drawers & 
will not agree with all flesh sometimes they make the legs
swell & uneasie being strong drawers but this happens but
seldom but when it does or to take away the pain of a 
prick of a thorn mix oyl of turpentine & goose grease & 
anoint therewith then apply a plaster of diacutu simplex 
or the last may do alone. vid. The book of the cures
of horses by E. A. Jn Wood of Odeby had a great swelling on 
his hand caus’d by the prick of a thorn having tried many things in 
vain it was cured at last by oyntmt of marshmallows. Dr Hely
commends sope & the June bark of green elder mix together cold & 
apply’d plasterwise to a swelling caus’d by Do Mrs Basset commonly 
sp of wine for Do all these failed The king when the prick of a thorn 
caus’d a great swelling & numbness that he coul’d not bend his finger
It was cured at last by being cut open by a surgeon a plaster of Paracelsus T.K. Dr Salmon
commends emplastru stiticum a plaster agt puncutres, but says Paracelsus
plaster is better Dr Page of Lutterworth cut open T. kings finger to let out the 
congeal’d corruption It was healed with aqua aluminosa warme & cover’d with Paracelsus
savin mixt with hony will cleanse old foul ulcers & is effectual
in curing any running sores Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory.
A boy had a thorn in his thumb which he cou’d not extract. It was swel’d
as big as 3 mens thumbs. Currans & sallet oyl were pounded together in 
a morter to a salve & apply’d & it drew out a great core with the thorn
along with it. He liv’d in Warwickshire 6 m from Banbury Mrs Newlove
for a pricking with a thorn. Markham’s Rx
Stamp groundsel, soothe it with sweet milk till it be thick, then temper it with 
black sope & lay it to the sore.
Let ale be boyled to a salve or rather ale wort boyl’d to a salve then add turpentine
& a little oyl of turpentine & boyl em again This seldom fails drawing
out a thorn with a needle open the orifice abt the thorn I have known
when this has been apply’d 24 hours an emplaster of Bents salve has extracted
the thorn from a finger and so that it was easily pull’d out with a finger 
& thumb. E. A. 
for a pricking of a thorn
Rx violet leaves mi stamp em add wheat bran one handful & bears grease
al Browns grease as much as will make it a poltis when boyl’d apply it as
hot as you can endure it. The accomplisht ladys delight in Physick & Chirurgery.
To draw out a thorn or the like. Culpeper’s Last Legacy p. 222.
a little piece of the tongue of a fox (moisten’d & made soft with vinegar
if it be too dry) applied to the place, draws out a thorn or any thing else
that is gotten deep into the flesh another ibid. Snails with shells or without
beaten with rennet & applied plasterwise will draw out any thorn
or any thing else that is gotten never so deep into the flesh. ibid



343)
To pull out a thorn, splinter, or shiver.
If it may be seen pull it out with a pair of nippers or pick it out with a needle. But if
there be such a swelling that it can’t be seen then Rx wormwood. Pellitory
of the wall, bearsfoot, hogs grease & hony boil em & apply em
as a poltis or plaster, very hot. It is an ext remedy for any swelling
also. So is wine lees, wheat flour & cummin seed bruised & boyl’d together
& when it is at a head lance it. The epistomy of this art of this can dry
To draw out a thorn
Rx a little black soup & chew some nut kernels to mix with the soap & lay it
on the place grieved repeat it till the thorn comes out & you find [ease]. p. 62.
a collection of Rxs in Physick & Surgery.
Some lay gum ammoniack al. ammoniacum in a suppurative & that
it will of itself draw out thorns or splinters Quincy
another Rx Black soap & Venice turpentine perhaps horse turpentine may 
do p.e. mix & work em together near the fire to make em incorporate
Henry Watkinson cow [illegible] of Leicer
Geo. Brooks of Blaby had a thorn struck into one of the sinews or guides
of his finger on the back of his hand It was swell’d very much & pain’d
him mightily having been in a long time Jn Smith the blacksmith there
cured him thus He let him blood on the contrary arm to cool his body & 
to prevent humours flowing to the sore then he cut off the head of the
swelling but could not see the thorn he dry’d up the blood which was but little & rub’d on it
some tincture of myrrh having made a hollow placed with this [lancet] & put some into the place where the thorn was
then he put a little dry [illegible] verdigrise in fine pouder & cover’d it with emplastru
de minio It put him to violent pain The tincture of myrrh which he pourde into the 
hollow place made the verdigrise take more effectually & corrected in some degree its 
corrosive quality It lay on abt 2 days ½ He was resolv’d it should lie on till it
cored the thorn out which it did at last with a great piece of flesh & the thorn sticking
at the end of it then he healed it with his green salve leaving out rosin & tar
& putting in hony & camphorate sp. of wine & a little tincture of myrrh which last
was only used once or twice J. Smith G. B’s hand was poultis’d often before Jn Smith undertook
Jn Knight E. A’s shepherd had a thorn pretty long struck into the fleshy pt of his
thumb Mr Coy cut the skin upon & with a needle pickt out the thorn then he heated
some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon & poured a drop or 2 into the sore
place as hot as he could abide it & wrapt a linnen rag abt it & it was well without
doing any thing more at it at one dressing.
Galbanum doth mollifie & soften & draweth forth thorns, splinters or shivers & cold humours
& is good to be lay’d on all cold tumours & swellings, & it is mixt with all ointmts oils
& plasters that have power or virtue to warm, to digest, to dissolve, to ripen & break [impos???]
& to draw out thorns & splinters R.D.
Birthwort (aristolochia) draweth forth splinters of broken bones, shafts & 
darts, thorns if it be lay’d to the place with pitch or rosin. [illegible] & R. D.
Elizth Hurst E. A’s servt. Apr. 1730 had a thorn struck into her ancle as
she was burning em at a wood fire E. A. could not perceive with a needle that
the thorn remain’d in the ancle but it was a violent pain to her he drest
it with oil of turpentine made very hot & apply’d empl. adhesivum which 
sticks & draws that gave her ease for the present but after an hour or 2 the 
pain return’d, she thought the plaster drew too much It was taken off & drest
with tincture of myrrh & the Italian plaster (a sort of diaculum) that gives cure to a
corn was rub’d with tinct of myrrh & apply’d in vain She went lame at night the ancle
was [rub’d] with oil of turpentine a long time & [illegible] moisten’d in the same [was] lay’d on’t It cured it



(344
To catch moles.
Take a live mole (he or she) sew up the arsehole or anus
with a strong brown thread & put her into the run in the
ground again & she will firk & hunt all the molse out of
the ground which you may easily kill Carter mole catcher & rat
catcher


345)



(346
To provoke sweat.
Rx strong ale a qt or better one nutmeg grated common treacle
lbfs boyl em & drink it al thrice in 3 hours very warm
in bed laying a good many cloaths on you at night or you
may sweat in the morning. You must keep warm one day
after sweating lest you catch cold This try’d but once cured 
Jn Smith of Blaby of a great cold & pain in his thigh.
Jn Smith & Rd Mr Stokes. another Rx a two arm’d cane-chair
& fix a flat pewter or tin callander under the bottom of
it then put into a mortar Fr. brandy a qt having a good fire
in the chimny strip your self stark naked & cover your body & 
head in a blanket [ayred] sit over this brandy set on fire under
the chair & have cloaths to rub you with having brandy or 
cordial waters ready to take when you faint away you may drink
rosemary or sage posset drink made with ale during the sweating
This cured Mr Johnson (the father of Jn Ashby’s wife) of sore
eyes & blindness having been dark for 3 months caused by 
a cold taken by lying in a ground room at Roterdam
where the water came into his bed English Dr & Mrs Ashby.
Carduus is used commonly in posset drink to promote sweating,
& by taking a large quantity the stomach is cleansed by vomiting [illegible]
contrayerva called drakena radix from Sr Francis Drake, is an ext remedy 
agt all poyson except sublimate. It expels worms & cures agues.
This is a sweating medicine & expels malignity. Rx of the pouder of the
roots of contrayerva, Virginian snakeweed, & butter-bur each zi of
cochineal & saffron each zfs mix em & make a pouder The dose is zfs in 
sage posset drink or treacle water or any other convenient vehicle. Pechey’s Herbal
To promote a sweat.
Rx sp. of sal armoniac per se gut 28 or 30 in a glass of any wine,
not in ale. It is better than antimonium diaphoreticum Mr Banker
another Rx antimonium diaphoreticum gr. 4 or 5 mixt with Venice
treacle zi or zifs pr. 1 d at night going to bed cover’d with a weight 
of cloaths with out drinking any thing. The next morning eat
& drink what you will. ibid. Quincy says diaphoretic antimony, may be
given from zfs to zfs at a dose & may be repeated 2 or 3 times in a day
for several days together without hurt. It must be kept close from the air
or it will be emetick. It is given [with] alexiphas [micks] in malignant fevers & 
in the small pox & measles & also in scorbutic & venereal diseases to sweeten 
& cleanse the blood. Febry 1729. My Sister Boothby by having a fever with 
a rash had this compound cordial draught with [gasromis] powder p’scrib’d
her by Dr Cheselden to promote a sweat pr 1 s 6 d Mr Orme appothecary


347)
Rx milk-water treacle water each zifs [illegible] powder [illegible] fs sp:
of lavender 15 drops, syrup of balsam ziii mix & make it into a draught
to promote a sweat.
To cause a man to sweat Let a man take surfeit [illegible]
made with poppies & distill’d from aniseed [illegible] with liquorish [illegible] 3 or 4 
spoonfulls being drank at night with 2 thirds of an ounce of
Venice treacle or methridate going to bed or in bed covering him
self warm. Sister Boothby. A gentlewoman that lived to four [illegible]
every night going to bed drank a spoon full or 2 of 
surfeit water made of poppies for a great many yrs together Sister
Boothby
Dr Cheshire says opium & its preparations in any 
form promotes the operations of sudorificks, rarefies
the blood, allays pains & makes remedies less offensive
to weak & decay’d stomachs: Tho’ I would not be understood 
always to encourage the administration of this
sovereign article to all patients indifferently since I
know that even one drop of laud. liq. given to some
persons shall bring on convulsions & violently 
affect the nervs that periodical histerick disorders 
shall be excited for many days. And under the miserable
circumstances nothing is of more expeditious & 
certain relief than blisters & cupping with scarification 
with a glass of mint=water with 30 drops of 
tincture castor, russ & xv spt. salis. volat. [oleof.] at
proper intervals. If the pains are so very sharp as to 
prevent sleep at night 20 drops of Sydenham’s liquid
laudanum may be taken in a glass of sack or [palm???].
If 20 drops should not be sufficient to procure
rest an advance may be made to 25 or 30 drops at
discretion. But one great inconveniency, which attends
the repeated use of opiates is a loss of appetite;
a misfortune which should if possable be guarded agt
To provoke a sweat to cure a pain in the bones or cold or cough Rx syrup
of saffron 3 d treacle water 3 d when you begin to sweat drink sage
tea white wine possett drink or sack whey. Mr Simon Stokes of [Hinckly]
from Sr Hans [Slone].






(350
a preparation of steel
Rx white wine a qt filings of steel zij (Fuller says 
those of iron are much better) cinnamon zi Rd Mr
Ed Stokes. The dose is 3 spoonfuls when 1st prepar’d
when old take a less quantity in beer, ale or posset
drink ibid


351)



(352
Deafness or ear pained.
Pound the leaves of gill squeeze out the juice then take the most
reezed bacon you can get, toast it agt the fire let it drop
into the juice so that you must have a little more juice than
fat then heat & stir em well together At night going to bed, lie
on the contrary ear & having melted the medicine let 2 or 3 
drops be dropt into the pain’d or deaf ear putting a little black
wool new pull’d from a sheeps belly & moisten’d a little with the
oyntmt be cram’d into the ear, wear it 2 or 3 days repeat it
twice if the ear is not cured It will fetch out ear-was & 
blood This cured Mrs Mason by a Dr at Stamford pr. 2 [guins]
This cured also Nicholas Tasie of Sheepshead N.T. another oyl of
fennel seed dropt in to the ears helps deafness. Salmon’s disp
The almonds of the ears swell’d Rx saffron 2 d lay it on the
hearth to dry & rub it to pouder mix [well] it with as much crown sope
as the quantity of 2 hasel-nuts with a knife, lay it from the root of
the ear to the throat spred on a bit of allum’d leather Mrs Caulton
Rulandus’s balsam of sulphur eases pains in the ears if dropt
into them. Salmon’s Disp. Deafness Rx Black wool from a live
sheeps belly or cod heat a drop or 2 of brandy in a spoon & dip 
the wool in it & put it into the deaf ear as the wool drys moisten it
again once or twice a day & wear it 2 or 3 weeks or longer till well
This cured Jn Coter shepherd after a great many medicines had been 
try’d in vain. Ann Tasie. Cold brandy will disorder the head & oyl
of bitter almonds tho good when heated, used cold often make the
hearing worse. E. A
A pain or noise in the ear Rx a little wool or an old linnen rag
moisten it with oyl of turpentine, you may tie a thred to it to pull
it out by. Thrust it into the year at night going to bed. you may 
take it out when well. Take care of catching cold after it. This cured
Mrs Catherine Newlove & Ann Tasie.
Spirit of castor mixt with oyl of amber & oyl of ben of each
a like quantity helps deafness & thick hearing Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The almonds of the ears swell’d Lay melilot plaster on 
the crown of the head shaved it helps to draw em drink Jews ears
boild in milk very hot stroke them up with your hands Mrs
Eliz Brown of Leicer Ear pain’d Dip some black wool now pul’d from the
sheep in a little aq vita or brandy warm’d in a spoon put it into the ear at night
when you are in bed & ly on the contrary ear Mrs Brown of Leicer


353)
Mr Jn Simson’s wife going crazd swallowd a brass thimble the
open end downwards it stuck in her throat Mr Wilks [surgeon] got it out
with an instrumt but she dy’d the next day Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer


(354
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh
Augt 718 E. A. had a corn cut out with a lancet by a mountebank
which taken up by the roots & cured by one plaster but he cut another
corn on the outside that toe which is next the little toe & half
the corn was left behind when the remainder was drawn out by 
a slave there bred a fungus E. A. try’d sope & the inner rind of 
elder another time mercury sublimate mix with unguentu dialthaea
which tho it lay on but 3 or 4 hours corroded the sore * made it look
black & caused a great pain to ease which E. A. ty’d on fat bacon & 
sometimes ung. dialthaea but it was made easie by Dr Bowles’s
family salve but the fungus was not remov’d (precipitate & 
honey did good) till a feather cut sharp at the point was moisten’d with
clear oyl of vitriol (not that which was black) & streak’d on the fungus & 
a plaster of family salve lay’d on’t which was done twice or thrice
once a day which clear’d the fungus & heal’d it It was touch’d with vitriol 
stone till it look’d blew which caus’d a great pain but wou’d not stir
or diminish the fungus sp. v. & oyl of vitriol wou’d move the fungus
E. A. Scald it with basilicon clip or cut it Mr Cook apothecary mix praecipitate
& burnt allum p.e. with basilicon dress it morn & night E. A
If you once miss dressing till it is clearly eradicated it will grow
foul & encrease again E. A. another bath it with allum posset whey 
very warm with a rag & lay the curd on a cloth & strew on the curd
burnt allum & apply it warm Let it lie on 24 hours. It will keep 
down any proud flesh or strew on diaculum burnt allu Tho. Freer
blacksmith of Desford & Ann Tasie.
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh or to core
out a quitter bone or a great crak in a horses heel
or [illegible] out a core
Rx horse turpentine put it in a pot set it near the fire 
to melt then add some fr. verdigrise in fine pouder
mix ‘em till they are of a fine green colour. Let it lie
on 24 hours or 30 till it cores out clear If you apply 
it to a horse for a crack bind it on with flax [hards]
& beggars [inkle] after it has lay on one night you 
may work the horse at plow when the core is come out
wash it with verjuice Tho. Tafte blacksmith & farrier
another To bring out a core or thick gummy, glewy white corruption
that sticks fast to a sore that often happens to the thumbs or
ends of the fingers & often near their guides that contract 
em They are a sort of sitfasts
Rx flax hards at the end of a [scourer] or probe twisted round it & turn
it round the callous substance it will lick off corruption better than dry
lint or cotton then put some fresh verdigrise in fine pouder a little 


355)
at a time into clean writing paper that is ript in the middle so
that you may shake as much over the core or fungus as will lightly
& thinly cover it Then lay some dry lint upon it & ty a clean rag
over that so let it rest 48 hours or longer till the core or fungus will 
come out clear tho it pains you all the time very much that you can’t sleep 
a nights It is most painful at 1st mixing it with any ointmt or salve destroys its
detersive & loosening virtue Jn Smith black smith & farrier of Blaby
Detersive medicines, medicamenta detersive detersonia such as cleanse the body or a
sore from viscous humours. They are us’d in ulcers that have any fungus, callosity
or any luxuriant flesh in em, which is an impedimt to their cure & when this is taken
away the common balsamicks, digestives, sarcoticks & cicatrizes are to be us’d.
Dr Radcliff’s detersives. agyptiacum ung. apostolorum aq. phagedenica (ex
aq. calc. cum mercur: sublimate mist. Rx crude alum, verdigrease each zij
boil em in 18 ou. of wine make a decoction. Rx white vitriol 2 out. alum, verdigrease
each zij strong vinegar 3 ou. calcine em make a pouder make it up with
unguentum agyptiacum into an ointmt Rx burnt alum zi basilicon q.s. make an
ointmt Rx red precipitate zfs compound ointmt of basilicon q.s. make an ointmt
vid Pharmacopoeia Radcliffiana p. 380.
Precipitate in pouder & dropt on a core or fungus dry & then cover’d with
dry lint will loosen & cleanse it, it is much better & more powerful than burnt
alum. Mr Peter Cheselden surgeon & Mr Coltman apothecary & surgeon for a slight
core or fungus you may mix it with basilicon.
Peak of Keam in Leicershire a famous farrier used nothing but oil 
of origanum to dislodge a fungus or root out a core Dr Cheselden  sometimes
he mixt [illegible] aq. fortis or oil of vitriol with it oil of origanum [qualified] [illegible] [illegible]
Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel says pour basilicon boiling hot on a 
fungur or sitfast & it will core it out if it does not loosen it in 4 or 5 
days you must repeat it It must be us’d thus only to horse flesh, it will be 
too severe for humane flesh to endure
Euphorbium is very useful in surgery in cleansing very foul ulcers & 
exfoliating of carious bones Quincy Rx euphorbium zfs in pouder boil
it in 3 ou. of oil of turpentine then take it off & add [20] drops of oil of
vitriol boil it agn till it is a deep brown colour. Pour off the clear & keep
it close stopt moisten the fungus with it & heat in with a hot iron Try 
this whether it will loosen & cleanse E. A.
Dr Salmon’s pouder for ulcers & to remove a fungus
Rx scammony in pouder 4 ou. aloes in pouder 2 ou. coloquintida in pouder 1 ou.
mix em. It is a powerful thing for the curing of ulcers It diminishes their heat,
drys up their superfluous humidities, quels their cancerous malignity & eases
their pain. It cleanses even contumacious ulcers, as also wounds, removes a fungus
as also dead flesh from them & disposes them to a speedy healing [Ars] Chirurgica
p. 320.
To take off a fungus Rx. basilicon the quantity of a hazelnut oil of turpentine
abt ½ a tea spoonful melt em in a spoon & apply it as hot as
the patient can endure it, if the fungus does not loosen, strew on some 
burn alum in pouder then apply basilicon & oil of turp. Joyce Gimson they
cured Jn Hewets shin hurt by iron [geers] on horseback an unlucky marl carrying
him among a team of horses


(356
Goody Mason of Leir gets off a fungus with her red lead salve done
on as hot as the patient can endure it (but not to scald) & apply’d for a 
long time if that does not do she strews on it burnt alum in pouder dry 
then covers it with her r. lead salve but if burnt alum is not strong enough
then she beats raw alum to pouder & strew’d that on that causes a great pain few
man can endure it above 6 hours, dry burnt alum is painful but not so bad
as the raw alum. You may try raw alum mixt with basilicon & oil of turpentine. 
This red salve mixt with butter that has no salt in it in time will loosen a fungus
keep down all proud flesh from breeding in a sore.
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh burn oyster shels in a 
very hot fire the hotter the better as in a fire of charcoal, sea coal or a 
smith’s fire burn em twice makes em he stronger then beat em to pouder & 
strew a little dry on a fungus or proud flesh & it will eat it away without pain 
It is stronger than lime. It is very probable Goody Blackhorn of Armsby uses
this who is famous for curing sores. Robt Watherig farrier of Burbache.
for a wound or old sore. Br S. A. heat oil of turp. till it begins to smoke
then Rx it from the fire or it will take fire put it into an orifice of a wound or
sore almost scalding hot. It loosens cak’d corruption or a fungus it reaches
to the bottom & cleans a sore
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh or a sitfast
(Goody Ann Blackhorn of Arnsby) without pain.
Rx some oyster shells new are best, scrape & wash em very clean then
steep em in aqua vitae 24 hours or longer then lay em upon wood embers
till they are red hot or very well burnt then take em out of the 
fire & when cold scrape off the outside & pound the remainder to 
pouder which keep in a glass close stopt when you’ve occasion strew a 
little on the sore or fungus or proud flesh & it will clean the sore without 
paining the patient. This & Goody Blackhorn’s salve cured Sam.
Exon’s finger when cut with an axe to the bone & was foul in a little time. She said
dressing the finger end where it was cut with only sp. of wine camphorated
or with spirits would make the finger end drop off.
Richd Brewin butcher of Blaby cut one of his middle fingers to the
bone with a hook carrying it in his hands behind him in harvest time
in the yr 1730 It bled most violently It was stopt by letting the blood 
drop upon r. vitriol in pouder in a pot which stopt the bleeding immediately
& it was cured with E. A.’s red lead salve melted with a little may butter
that never had salt in it hot oil of turpentine would not stop the bleeding 
It never ran any corruption or but very little & 3 plasters cured it
tho the guide of the finger was cut he sometimes put his h and into 
the warm bowels of a sheep new kill’d cured by E. A.


357)


(358
The bleeding piles.
Rx sp. of sulphur 6 or 8 drops in a little sugar every night
when you go to bed till well. Mrs Caulton 2 or 3 times taking
cures ibid
To cure all sorts of piles, if they be never so bad.
Rx houseleek mi skin the leaves, then put them in a pint of
claret. Let em infuse an hour or more by the fire being covered
close. You must beat the houseleek well in a bole
or marble mortar before you put it to the clarret when it hath
infused put it in a close-stool or pot very hot & sit close over
it keeping in all the steam, 2 or 3 times a day till well. Take care
to keep yourself warm that you do not get cold after it. This cures
for ever says Mrs Caulton. The piles Rx the root or leaf or crocus i.e.
the bigger sort of [crowflower] mi pound it in may butter & make
it into a ball Let it stand a fortnight. work it inside outside once in 
2 days then melt & strain & keep it for use. It takes off the pain & swelling 
anointing every night Jn Put a traveller from Rowel. It will blister [illegible] another a gentm
that had been long troubled with piles suppos’d to be caus’d by the
costiveness of his body was advis’d by his Dr to smoke betony 
& swallow his spittle & to lessen the nauseousness he us’d to
put an innocent lozenge in to his mouth which dissolving
there carry’d the spittle into his stomach which open’d
& cool’d his body & cured his piles Rd Mr Ed. Stokes.
another Bath the fundamt evening & morning with linseed 
oul for the piles. Pater Meus. another Rx Box mi boyl it in a pint of 
milk & drink it in the morning You may continue drinking it as long
as you please. S. S. April 1722 E. A. had the piles, he thought
they were caused by drinking cold water when he had a great cold or by 
violently coughing or by eating plenty of sweet things in order to 
cure his cough. E. A. It might be caus’d by riding much.
Mrs Dorothy Boothby of [Retters] Marston her pile oyntmt
Rx mullen, sage, plantane, grounsel each mi boyle em in fresh butter lbi
a pretty while, then strain & stir it till cool. Sister Boothby.
In April 1722 E. A. having the piles found benefit by oyl of turp.
& goose grease when sp. v made too strong of oyl of vitriol would do
no good but oyl of turp. & crab verjuice with a little tincture
of myrrh made without aloes did more good. Such tincture of 
myrrh alone did much good This oyntmt did most good of
all E. A.’s medicines. Rx sope horse turpentine, hony, train oyl, tincture
of myrrh & as much Jamaica pepper in fine pouder as will bring 


359)
is to the consistence of an oyntmt after it has
been made 3 or 4 weeks beat it with a knife or flat
stick in the pot if you have room or on a trancher or marble
or slate & the sope will readily dissolve & be indiscernable
first dip your middle finger in oyl of turp. & verjuice with 
which moisten the outside of the piles & the inside of the anus. stay 
a little time for that to operate then dip the said finger in the brown
oyntmt & moisten the piles & anus within & 2 or 3 times a day without drinking
milk, in which flower of brimstone has been boyled, once or twice
a day. This oyntmt was found out for the piles by E. A. & 
made a cure when oyntmt of mullein sold by the apothecaries Venice
treacle & grease ol. succini, liquid laudanu unguentu populeum 
sal armoniac prescrib’d by Mr Clowes apothecary woud do no
service.
Anthony Daffy’s elixir salutis has cured the piles when given over
a incurable says Daffy’s printed paper Let the first dose be one
spoonful over night & another at uprising in the morning & so let
the dose be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if your strength will
permit till it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to 
exceed, use exercise after it Rx a mess of broth or something warm
an hour after the morning dose. Leave off taking if you find any 
inconvenience
To prevent the pile. anoint sometimes especially when you are to ride with 
mullen oyntmt E. A.
The gravel or piles or when both come together Rx sperma ceti 
sal prunel each zi flower of brimstone zifs pound em together & 
mix em well together Divide it into 9 parts Rx 1 night & morning Mrs
Caulton. A salve for the piles Rx May butter unsalted
clarifie it in the sun taking form it the milk. Rx some of it some 
virgins was boyl em then put in a little lump of sugar double refin’d
dissolv’d in rose water when it is cold put it into a pot you may keep
it as long as hyou please Mrs Caulton & Alice Hollins.
To cure bleeding piles or any inward bleeding
Rx often nettle tea. Dry keen nettles in the summer & keep em for use
in the winter Cos Tho. Ekins.
Dry piles. Rx fullers earth put gold water to it as you do to get out a
spot of grease & apply it often lay’d on a rag or cap paper Mrs Ann Lathwell. mix a little flower of
brimstone with syrup of violets in a spoon almost to fill it eat that in the morning ibid
fotus haemorrhoidalis a fermentation for the hemorroids or piles
Rx hounds tongue plantain, yarrow, elder leaves each miv. pomagranate
peels zi boil in water & rough red wine each 3 pints to 4 In the straind
liquor dissolve alum zfs sugar of lead zij. This not only checks the immoderate
flux of the hemorrhoidal veins, but also an immoderate flux
of the menses. but the following is most serviceable in the dry piles 
Rx onions, linseed each 4 ou. henbane, night shade yarrow, houseleek 
each mij boil in cong. 1 of water to lbiv & in the strain’d liquor dissolve of
the best opiu zij. where there is much heat & pain, if the part is bath’d with 


(360
this pretty warm. it will soon give ease & so supple & relax
the parts, as to breath out a great deal of ill humours by transpiration
& leave them soft & easie. Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory from Fuller.
Linimentum Haemorrhoidale a liniment agt the piles Rx oil of roses
2 ou. empl. de minio zi white eax zfs when they are melted together stir
in [aetiops] mineralis zij opium & saffron each zi & make into a smooth linimt
according to art. Linimentum another Rx unguentum populneum 
zi sugar of lead zi opium [illegible] i oil of amber & anisated balsam of 
sulphur each gut x. ibid.
Cataplasma haemorrhoidale a poltice for the piles. Rx yolks of eggs
boild hard no iv oil of amber [illegilbe] ij linseed oil q.s. This is to cool the pills
when inflam’d & angry. ibid.
Oleum cremoris oil of cream. Rx the inner green bark of elder
fresh gather’d miij the best cream lbij. Boil em well together till the cream
turns to an oil & bol over agn with fresh bark This is taken out of Bates’s Dispensatory.
It is recommended as the best of remedies agt the piles, burnings or
erysipelas or St Anthonies fire & all hot inflamatory tumours, which it both
cools & breathes by transpiration at the same time. ibid.
Have a care of curring the piles a wound there is very hard to 
cure & it often is the cause of a fistula in ano Mr [Holled] Smith surgeon
A glyster with mullein for inward piles Dr Fuller
Rx mullein & elder flowers each mfs herbs hemlock, henbane each mi
boil in Smiths forge water to 12 ou. to the strain’d add the yolk of one egg.
Linseed oyl 2 ou. oil of amber zfs. Balsam of sulphur zij mix. It discusses
the swellings of the internal hemorroids, effectually allays their pains
heals the little ulcers & hinders a further afflux of blood & ill humours.
A vapour for pain of the haemorrhoids. ibid
Rx [mullein]henbane each miiij boil in water 4 to 3 qts Let the vapour 
be reced hot thro a perforated chair or close stool case.
Haemorrhoidal unguent ibid
Rx populeon ointmt zi oil of amber zij mix Dr Fuller
another used inst Thomas’s hospital Mr Holled Smith 
Rx balsamum sulphuris cum oleo olivarum (which you may find in the
London Dispensatory) saccharum saturni ungt sambucinum m. pr. 8 d
p. e. mixt Mr Cook apothecary says it is remedium optimu
but I am of another opinion
Goody Simons of Blaby says there is not a better remedy for the piles than
oyntment of mullein made with May butter in May without salt. The
apothecaries make it with lard or grease which is not half so good It is better than 


361)
Pilewort oyntmt. It will cure piles quickly if apply’d as
soon as they show themselves If they have gotten an head & are
large then you must allow 2 or 3 weeks but it always gives ease
as soon as apply’d It will cure [illegible] kibed, swell’d or raw Ann Simons outwardly used 
in fomentations or fumigations mullein (verbascu) is reckon’d a
specific agt the pains & swelling of the piles Millers Herbal.
Dr Salmon in Doren Medicum says ceratum refrigerans, his cooling
cerecloth which see p. 753 is approved in easing the pain & allaying the
heat of the piles
Dr George Cheselden of Leicer his Rx for inward piles.
Rx decocted pectoralis depurati lbij gum. ammoniac. zi misce.
cap. coch vi mane & hora somni tepide. This cured Barnshaw
of Leicer when most men thought he would have died incurabl. E. A.
The pouder of the dried root of figwort apply’d to the piles dries em up
Pecheys Herbal. oyl of nutmegs by [expression] is good for the piles. Salmon
An approved medicine for the piles Rx water a pint, boyl
therein some camomile flowers & melilot flowers wormwood & St Jns
wort each a good mi when it is half boil’d away strain it, & add a qt of
a pint of aqua vitae make it very hot & dip a double cloth in it & apply 
it hot & hot, wrung out dry. Pater Meus. G: A:
Unguentum diapomphotigos anointed on the reins of the
back stops the piles Salmons Disp:
For the piles or hemorrhoides Rx mussel shells & burn ‘em in the fire 
take the white of em & powder it & mix it with a little hony & lay it
upon a linnen cloth & so lay it upon the sore place E. A.’s moth.?
For the piles Rx oyster-shells wash ‘em clean & dry ‘em
very well & beat ‘em to fine powder & sift ‘em & apply em to the
sore your finger being first moistened with water then sprinkle
the powder upon it & thrust it up the fundament & strew some 
upon a rag & bind it plasterwise to the sore, Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother
pellitory of the wall is good agt burns, St. Antony’s fire with goats suet or for want
of it deers suet & a little sallet oil make an ointmt it is prevalent agt the gout
& piles. Salmon. Pomet says the fumes of olibanum i.e. [illegible] frankincense taken 
up the fundamt cures the piles. 



(364
Another for a pearl, & to strengthen the sight,
Rx Roman vitriol as much as an ordinary cherry-stone put it
into a spoonfull of clear spring water let it ly in it half a qr of
hour then drop one drop into the eye. ibid.
For a pearl or whip or the watering of a horses eye.
Rx The white of an egg & salt a large spoonful or as
much as will lick up the white mix ‘em very well then clear
your fire-shovel from dirt & dust & bake it before the fire 
in to a cake by often turning it to keep it from burning when
it is quite dry rub a little into powder on a trencher or mortar, 
then take as much as will lye on a silver 2 d & put it
into a quill & blow it into a horses eye every other day
blow it in thrice ibid.
For a blear eye or a watering red eye in a man.
Rx white-rose water 1 d lapis calaminaris in fine powder
half penny worth then moisten your eye-brows & eye-lids with
your middle finger 2 or 3 times a day & a night., it will cure
the itching too, you must carry it always about you. If this
will not do make an issue in the arm & use the water. An issue 
in the arm is better than in the leg because the humours flow too 
much to the leg. ibid.
For a wet or dry itch or itching of the nose or without an outbreak
Take the best camphor [illegible] ij vinegar of roses zfs rose water zvi
mix them rub any part where it itches, or upon the nose and dip a
rag in it and let it lie upon the nose all night. From the Latin Fuller
call’d by the title epitheme fontale rosaceum for the head ach
Dr Wm Woodhouse



365)
Ulcer in the bladder
Sympathetick pouder cured a gentm of an ulcer in the 
bladder by mixing it with the matter he voided in his urine. Mrs
Caulton


(366
an oyntmt to cure chopt lips or an chop or scab
or flushing
Rx Diapompholigos ( grey oyntmt) zfs pomatum zfs camphir 1 d
Sperma cet 1 d melt the camphir & sp. ceti till they are
all wasted in the pomatum then add the diapompholigos stir them together
till cold. Mrs Caulton. Chops in the hands fingers lips or
nose & for a cows bag chopt or swell’d. anoint with dogs grease
or oyntmt of marshmallows, or with both mixt. The 1st is bet. Jn
Put a traveller It is good for womens nipples when chopt. ibid.
another anoint with rape oyl pr. 8 d per qt it is good for any bruise
or swelling E. A. an obstinate chop between the thumb & forefinger
boil burnt alum in pouder in water apply it hot with a rag & 
bind the rag on moisten’d with it make it taste of the alum. Mr Coy
Lip chopt Rub it often with raw alum moisten’d with your spittle or
with water to kill the canker or moisten it with your own urine & sometimes with tallow
dropt from a candle into urine E. A.



367)



(368
To dissolve nodes.
mix mercurius sublimatus with w. wine vinegar & sope & you may
apply it to a joynt It may lie on 2 or 3 hours as soon as you take it
off apply conserve or roses to extract the poyson or venom or
you may mix sope & a little green ash bark ashes & mercury subl. in fine
pouder without vinegar vinegar makes it smart. Dr Pool the mountebank 
wash a node with white copperas dissolved in water every night
going to bed for 4 or 5 nights Let it dry on. It will kill a worm
in the face David Lane Emplastru de ranis cum mercurio in Dr
Quincys Dispensatory is an admirable plaster to resolve & discuss
hard tumours & nodes scrophulous or venereal or from any other cause
It is of a blue colour Mr Page apothecary at Lutterworth sells it
at 1 d per ounce. It often eases arthritick pains ibid. & cures corns.
To heal & dissolve rare hard nodes that happen sometimes about the
groin & scrotu. Burn some fresh butter in a spoon or ladle
till it is black pour it into an earthen pot, add to it sp. of 
wine & some drops of oyl of vitriol & some oyl of St
Jns wort Let ‘em near the fire to dissolve & incorporate 
rub it on the nodes 2 or 3 times in a day It will take away 
their itching kill & dry em up. E. A. another Rx some
keen vinegar infuse it in some red cock roots wash’d scapd’ clean
& sliced & cut some white bear foot al helebore in thin
pieces or slices & add to it after they’ve steep’d one night
a day moisten the raw hard nodes 3 or 4 times in 12 hours
& dip a linnen rag & bind it to em It will abate their itching
being good for the itch & shingles & will kill & waste em E. A. 
Spirit of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine, oyl of was & oyl of 
camomile allays pains of the gout, discusses nodes & cures contracted
& wither’d members Salmon’s Dispensatory. Quincys emplastru de ranis
dissolves wonderfully & discusses hard tumors & nodes scrophulous or
venereal or corns vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory. oleum ammoniaci & emplastru
ammoniaci (gummi) so mollfies that it will dissolve hard strong
knobs on the joynts of the fingers & toes etc. Salmon
oyl of nutmegs by expression softens hardness Salmon’s Disp.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum, admirably warms
softens & discusses all indurations & harden’d tumors, such as are [illegible]
scriphulous or venereal. It will ease & waste by degrees cause warts 


369)
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum e cicuta cum ammoniaco. Hemlock plaster with ammoniacu
is a very powerful discussive, dissolves nodes & knotty swellings in what part soever.
Quincy.
A large onion fill’d with Venice turpentine & roasted softens hard
swellings laid plasterwise, & also opens them. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
E. A. had a hard swelling in his skin near his groin caus’d by a 
bruise by riding on horse back It grew bigger & bigger till it was as
big as a horse bean It had a little black speck in the middle He got
it away by healing the best white wine vinegar very hot & diping a
flannel in it & applying it as hot as he could endure it & not to 
scald twice a day morning & evening & sometimes he apply’d it cold
he kept the flannel on all night & sometimes all day for 4 or 5 days
then he found it felt soft & he squeesed it betwixt his finger & thumb 
& out at the top there came thick white stuff resembling the pap of an 
apple or congeal’d corruption squeesing it so once or twice a day 
it empty’d the bag of the node which was something like a ganglion
& made it level with the rest of the skin most of the white stuff squeesed 
out at the first pinching.
Emplastrum diachylon cum gummi (diachylon with the gums) 
softens & suppurates tumors, for which it is in much esteem among 
the surgeons, & for which purpose they spread it very thick because it
gives more warmth to the part apply’d to. It is a great strengthener when 
apply’d to sprain’d sinews or any pt (except where there is a defluxion of 
humors) as frequently to the small of the back. The whole sale dealers
are apt to leave out many of the gums Quincy. It will ripen a bile 
& make it fit for lancing E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling Rub on it oil of origanum made strong with 
aqua fortis Dr Cheselden read it in some book. It will dissolve a blood
spavin E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling on the breath of children which comes before
they are a month old Mrs Wards son Richard at Blaby had such a 
swelling on his breasts almost as big as an egg it is caus’d by the milk
which he had in his breasts Boys are aptest to have it. It was 
cured in a week by a plaster of diaculum simplex Mrs Ward
sometimes the swelling on the breasts of young children in their
1st month is no bigger than a large button & very hard which is
cured by rubbing it with brandy as oft as the child is drest viz
once in 24 hours. Cos. Mary Orton of Reasby.
To dissolve a hard swelling on a woman’s breast caus’d by milk & to take away
the pain Lay a green burdock [leaf] to it & when it is dry apply a fresh leaf. This cured
MRs Blunts breast & dissolved the node there in 2 days, bred after her lying in 
child bed. Cos. Margt Muxloe.




Br. G. Ashby’s directions for the taking his pouder for
a rheumatism. Rx a sixth pt of the largest paper of pouder
in a glass of small ale six mornings together fasting 2 hours
after it Rx the least paper of pouder the 2 first days at 4 in the
afternoon as you took the other in the morning when all these
powders are taken Let the pt grieved be anointed with the oyntmt chafing
it well in agt the fire Infuse buckbean & Roman wormwood in 
cold spring water & drink of that 3 or 4 times a day a coffee dish
full at a time. You must neither bleed nor purge if you expect
benefit etc. Febry 3, 713. [ral.] water Trefoil.


a specific pouder for all sorts of intermitting fevers prepar’d
by (Louis the 14th) king of France his order It cures by being
taken thrice at most all sorts of intermitting fevers without
return, of which he has caused innumerable experimts
to be made for above a yr under the inspection of M.
Fagon his chief physician; his majty has ordered that a sufficient
quantity should be prepar’d to be distributed to the
public; & to the end that every body may be able to purchase
the price is fixed at 10 sols each dose which is pretty near
the cost of preparing it. In each packet are 3 doses severally 
wrap’d in paper for 30 sols, with printed directions 
how to use it. every packet has the kings arms stampt on
it, for preventing counterfeits. This pouder is incorruptible
never losing its virtue. The general office for distributing it
is settled at Paris. The Monthly Mercury for November 713.


Geo Ashby E A’s father was high sheriff of Leicershire in the
year 1667.
one aged abt 30, that could not come forth of his chamber
nor stand, was cured by this simple remedy. Rx rad. armorac. ziij
coq. ex syr. lact. colat. lbij dentur usus. Seven days after being
cured he came & gave thanks. Another who had abundance of 
cold spots in his arms & feet, the spots were very broad & 
near to pustles, was perfectly cured in a few week cum spir.
sal. armon. therewith observing an exact dist p. 558. Cook’s 
Marrow of Physick.
Stephen Adcock of Rasby was cured of a rupture being 20 or 
21 yrs old by taking a green pizzle of a bull dry’d in an oven
in beer for month 3 or 4 times a day with some of the pouder
in it. Stephen Hunt. Some are cured by cutting & taking one
stone out. ibid. you must put 1 spoonful & boyl it in almost a
pint of new milk Take the dose thrice a day as long as it
lasts drinking nothing else while one pizzle lasts unless very 
thirsty then you may drink a draught of beer to quench the
thirst Lay the pizzle upon wet brown paper in an oven with 
bread twice baking commonly dries it enough. Stephen Hunt
Tho. Geo labourer formerly shoemaker of Welford in Northashire was cured of
red sore eyes by holding your finger to the bottle & draw it along
your eyelids 2 or 3 times a day. The bottle must have new
burnt stone in pouder a thimbleful & a half pennyworth of
white rose water It must infuse a week before you use it
you may have it of Mr. Ilyff an apothecary in Lutterworth 
Leicershire
When turning alternately a rasor on each side on the hone or strap
would not give it a good edge, by drawing it twice together on 
each side on [illegible] It has contracted a very good fine edge. E. A.


pr 3 s w.
Mrs P. i.e. Mrs Marianny Packer the travelling doctress
R.C. i.e. Richard Cromwel’s legacy to his country of physical
& chyrurgical receipts He was some time a souldier & chyrurgion
in the late D. of  Monmouth’s army & since of their present 
majesties. He was executed at Leichfield for murder July 23 
1691. The titule of the book is the Happy Sinner pr. 1 d
Mrs M. i.e. Aunt Frances Majors Rts
Mrs S. i.e. Mada Sparks’s Receipts a great doctress in Pater Noster Row
that kept her coach & 6 horse given me by Aunt [Majer]
M. B. i.e. Mary Burton a traveller, the mother of Edmund Horton [illegible]
shows the postures.
I. T. i.e. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor of Bosworth.
S. S. Mr Sherard [Sergent’s] Receipts of Milton.
R.D. Rembert (i.e. Robt) Dodoens History of Plants or Herbal he was physitian to the [emperor]
Birdlime & Venice turpentine is a very good cerecloth the
clock makes when they send clocks beyond sea do it on the
outside the cracks of the box to defend it agt moisture Mr
Jn Wilkins of Leicer
Common iron filings zi to conserve of roses zi iron filings
prepar’d with sulphur zij to conserve of roses zi steel filings
are good for nothing Rx iron filings beat em in a mortar & 
sift em thro a law sive then put em in a crucible with 
brimstone in pouder after it is fired & burnt out beat it again
to pouder & you’ve the best iron pouder sold for steel pouder
Mr Penford apothecary.
mercurius dulcis if it doth not purge fluxes, 20 gr 
purges a man, a much less dose fluxes fr. Coltman apothecary
Health is the very salt of life that seasons & give a relish
to all the other enjoymts of it Rd Mr Richd Duke.






Hogs bristles are 6[illegible] or 8[illegible] [illegible] at Bromingham. The Satchwell.
Note Basilicon is an exct. healing oyntmt. in any fleshy part 
of the body but it is dangerous applying it to or near a bone
because it will perish & destroy a bone. Dr Arden Elsmore.
Barrow grease adeps porcina
To scour Iron Rx the softest brick that is but ½ burnt dry it in an oven
or over the fire & upon a broad [stone] with a stone beat it to fine pouder
& rub yr. andirons etc. [illegible] dry (lor with oyl which is best) & they
will cook very bright if they stand near the fire & are kept dry. [illegible]
[bak?] of [illegible] There is more trouble than pleasure in it. Plus aloes quam
nollis habet juv. Calcanda somol via leti (or lesthi) hor. we must all tread the
path to our grave.
To make good ink mr gud. (it is not the best in for it will change yellowed)
Rx a gallon of rain watr 7 put into it [illegible] galls lbifs beaten small
[let] it stand near the fire or in the sun 8 or 10 days often stirring then 
[put] in allu & dyers indica each zfs green copperas & gum arabick 
[illegible] sonica bruised, a course sort of gum arabick which the shoe-makers use)
[illegible] lbi let it stand a week & it is fit for use. The said ingredients 
[reduc’d] to a less quantity. Rx rain water a pt galls zvi pr. 6 & allum?
[illegible] Note if you make ink of beer or ale & after some 
time is is grown thick & dry? it will not let down but
[illegible] it makes it flow readily & write fast E.A. Choose a kettle
[illegible] brass of a blue black color that has no solder’d place in it [illegible] looks like [illegible] or [illegible]
which you may discern on the inside or outside [illegible] pale [?inker] & [Bra???]
Dr Brooks in [Leaden] Hall street agt the East Indy House cures fits
[illegible] [finch]
These are good boyling herbs to eat viz. muckhill-spinnage (al.
wild spinnage) [illegible] thistle. mercury. garden-spinnage. red shanks.
hoptops. avens. carlock run young. parsly
The Haven of Health by Thomas Cogan chiefly made for the
comfort of students.
Mrs. Crick servt. to Mrs Bridges at Barton [illegible] in Northashire
makes a famous eye water that cures red rheumatic eyes Mrs Crick’s
mother keeps an alehouse at [Hoddingworth] in Leicr
Pills preserving health. p. 702 Salmons Dispensatory.
Mr. Wm Saunders at the Golden Ball in Newgate street (chymist)
London. Saunders’s art of physick & surgery pr. 48 is commended by Drs 


A settled or old cold or cough in a horse
Rx Heather fern (al fever fern) celandine, rosemary & sage each mi.
Boyl ‘em in a quart of ale till it comes to a pint then strain it & add
common treacle zii diapente zfs. Give it warm in a morning fasting
after he hath bin gallop’d till his hair turns, or after hunting.
Let him fast two hours or longer after it, once taking commonly 
cures, but if he is not perfectly cur’d repeat the dose 5 or 6 days 
after. Mr Stephen Alleyne steward to Mr Cook commonly gives his
hunting horse one dos. This was taught him by a tinker.
Ashby. (E)




1
Leg sore or swelled
Dr Cole of Bilsdon cured the Lady Halfords leg that was very much
swell’d (after several Drs & surgeons had try’d their skill in vain)
by putting on the leg a canvas stockin to be laced straight to the leg
to repell the humour & the same time that she laced it hard he order’d
her to take purge of syrup of buckthorn & jalop, to 
intermit some days & to repeat the hard lacing & purging till she
was perfectly well. The cause of this tumor he reckon’d the scurvy
A girl in Saxulby that was lame for 2 yrs or more so that she cou’d not
go but as she was carry’d & her legs began to wast was cured by 
bathing 4 or 5 times in ale wort as hot as she could endure it
Mary Austin of [Asserby] was lame of one leg for abt. 2 yrs so that her
thigh began to wast she found good by blistering pasters lay’d to
the pain’d hip for a little while; but they would not cure. Dr. G.
advis’d her to leave off malt drink & to drink the infusion of
buckbean & Roman wormwood in water & to take his pouder of
broom ashes etc. to thin her blood & to anount the pained place with
balsam of galbanu mixt with oyl of turpentine, this oyntmt increas’d 
her pain.
Sam Halford my servt. [illegible] the [illegible] going to turn a tree over
that lay on the ground with a bar of iron & T. L. Carpenter & A.S. with 
[illegible] one of their [levers] slipt [illegible] the tree as born up & the tree press’d
back on S.H.s bar which broke the great bone of his left leg a
little above his ancle the bystanders heard it crack like a stake 
if it had been a little higher it had been easier to set The bone
did not jut out of the skin but you might persive a white streak
go cross where the bone was parted His leg did not swell of
some hours after, he could stir his toes but could not stand
on that leg he was brought home in a chair. Jn Summerfield a
wheelwright & bone setter ([illegible] to learn his skill from 
the famous Mr Freeman having bones several times broken
& set by him) 4 hours after it was broken set it thus He cut
a piece of an old hat box made of past board (any past board or old
hat will do to splint it) into 4 splints abt 6 inches long & 
2 wide which after they were well beaten he mixt with as much
fine wheat flower till it was a little stiffer than batter then he took 


2
abt. a qr of a stick of nine penny flax ([Hards] would
not do) & lay it spred upon a warming pan of live coles
& poured the white of egg & wheat flower on’t to warm 
& stiffen a little this a bystander helt whilst the bone setter
felt with his finger & thumb on each side the broken place for 
a pretty while which touching pain’d S.H. then he lay’d one hand on 
his instep & another on his heel & pull’d the leg out that he might
place the bones right & opposite to each other then he lay’d one
hand to the bottom of his foot & thrust it upwards that the
bones might unites one man holding his leg up at the knee & 
another at the heel then he wrapt the flax & white of an egg & w.
flower quite round the broken place being about 9 inches broad
then he lay’d on the 4 splints of hot [illegible] at an equal distance
the broad splint being plac’d on the shin bone these splints
were bound abt with an old linnen cloth & that was bound on 
with 3 [fillets] sew’d together beginning at the middle of the
splints & binding upwards & back again a little below the
middle of the cloth it had most liberty downwards lastly the
fillet was sown in 3 or 4 places to prevent its slipping down 
then the same leg was lay’d on a pillow & bolster’d up with several
cloths to keep his leg steddy & a board was fixt with 2 
iron spikes at the end of the bed to the bed post against which 
he sat his foot having a woolen cloth between his foot & the
board. when the bones were thrust together S.H. cry’d out oh my 
poor leg, my poor leg, my poor leg! it pain’d him for 3 or 4 days
His leg swell’d up to his knee & it was anointed 2 or 3 times 
with oyl of roses which assuaged the swelling & gave it ease
after one week the pain was inconsiderable only he complain’d
of his back was tyred with lying. The not stirring the ldg out
of the place after it is set contributes very much to the well 
knitting of the bones, tho he was forc’d to use a urinal & bedpan
he seldom or never stir’d the leg out of its place all the time
It was very cold frosty weather the first week of his lameness which
kept his leg cool & mittigated the pain. The bone setter advis’d him
to eat bread & butter &milk & [frumenty] to keep his body cool
& open to avoid bread & cheese & all meat except veal or chicken


A fam’d elixir for the wind which repels it to admiration, whether
in the stomach or bowels all [illegible] or windy belches or hiccups
from indigestion etc. it removes upon the spot; & cures pains in 
the stomach, gripings in the guts, striches in the sides & the wind
colick to a miracle; being no pretended but real effectual medicine
fit for the yse of old & young. To be had only at Mr. Spoon’s
at the Golden Half Moon in Buckles street in Goodmans fields
near white chappel pr. at 6 [illegible] a bottle with directions. The post [illegible]
Octr 1705. Honorato fornello gent. no physician could hardly
be persuaded to publish his dissolution salt as being laborious
to be made It hath ben abt 9 months made publick. It is a remedy
for the stone & gravel which it totally roots out by dissolving [illegible]
in the kidnies & bladder & carries it away insensibly by urine invisible,
if made in a vial & suffer’d to settle being undeniable that
the stone is dissolv’d. He was cured by it himself, asl also divers [gents]
in London since next God’s blessing none shall have need to be cut 
for the stone whoever will prevent the setling of gravel take 
a dose in 8 or 14 days & continue so the body shall never smart 
for it. It keeps good many yrs you’ve larger [act] & directions with 
it being to be had of Mr Tho. Dowse Perfumer at the sign of 
the plough in Grace Church street London & no where else in all England
pr. 4s the half ounce which is 8 doses.
A pleasant powder for the heartburn being the most infallible [remedy]
for that distemper giving present ease in less than a minute pr. 1s a [illegible]
with directions. sold only by Mr [Best] at Will’s coffee house near the Royal
Exchange in [Cornhil]
Sister H. Ashby’s exct. powder for fits in children is of a [dove] colr
with a little cast of [illegible] it tasts [illegible] a little gritty The weight of the 3 doses 
is [17] gr. Directions for the taking it Rx this powder in 3 doses in some
black cherry water in a morning fasting. It is best to take it 3 mornings
before the full of the moon. Scrape single peony root green & put it
into the childs stockins to be worn till it is dry then remov it.
The anti-rheumatic tincture only prepared by George
Wilson, chymist, in well-yard, by St. Bartholomew’s hospital
in West Smithfield, London. It is put up in bottle, containing
above 2 ounces, at 2 [s] & 6 [s] the bottle. 15 s. the pint. 30 s the qt.



A short & infallible cure for the itch or any itching
humour or scorbutick breaking out whatsoever by a specifick
electuary, it cleanses & rectifies the blood & juices, accomplishes
a cure in 2 or 3 days without trouble or confinemt 
is sold only at Mrs Bradbury’s toy shot at the Golden
Ball in stocks market against the poultry at 3s a pot
with directions. This electuary is good for nothing. E.S. & Dr Brooks. [illegible] stones skin’d & dry’d in an over after
break & then pouder’d as much as will lie on a six pence in 
white wine, or ale, or beer are good for children passing a
[illegible] or ruptures, the stone, gravel or pain in the back caus’d by 
the stone, the kings evil [illegible] clark [gelder] cow pigs (al. horn flower all [illegible water
[water]) ½ a pint in a morning for 9 mornings together for a man or
woman beginning in May if it doth not purge take a larger 
dose It cured aunt Tr. Mayes maid of an ague [illegible] Jesuit’s pouder
would not [Richd] Ward of [illegible] by drinking it cured his sore leg of long standing It cures gout & rheumatism, pain in the stomach, consumption
Dr. Brooks says they that take it spring & fall need not any physitian.
Mrs Finch The dissolution salt of honorato fornello, gout,
[illegible] Gorman) which totally roots out the stone & gravel, by dissolving it
in the kidneys & bladder carrying it away insensibly by urine. It is
a chymical extraction. It is good to prevent the dropsie, scurvy, [stinking]
[illegible] remedy for women’s sickness It’s very friendly to nature
[illegible] the spirits It operates best in warm countries. who
ever takes it being much troubled, does well to purge in the spring & 
fall with [diata???] minsichti to clear the way The dose for a man is a
dram each second day or you may divide zfs into eight doses or you
may take as much as will like on a half-penny. The least quantity sold
½ an ounce which is 8 doses pr. 4 s & may be had of Mr Thomas
Dowse at the Sign of the Plow in Grace Church street, a perfumer
Volatile salt of tartar, he that knows the virtues & use of it is half
a Dr. It will dissolve bone, stone or iron or any thing Dr. Wm. Million of
[??ansty] 4 m. from Coventry in Warwickshire He inns at the White Horse in 
Hinkly every Monday is there by 12 o clock & on fairs earlyer He also
[shops] Coventry market every Friday.


3
After S.H had layen in bed a fortnight viz the 25th by virtue
of warm water his leg was unbound (if cream had been added
to the white of egg & flower it had been much easier to unbind
which a great many bonesetters use & some use only a white
salve or [corecloth] without w. of egg or w. flower) & a corecloth
made of oxycrociu, paracelsus & emp. [deminio] mit & spred thic
on allum’d leather abt 6 inches deep & so long as to encompass 
the leg in the broken pt. was lay’d on & 4 splints of past board
viz that case were serv’d on with a linnen cloth he did not stir out of his
chamber that day but only sat by the bedside or by the fire the next
day his leg swell’s up to his knee it was unbound still the swelling
continued at night it corecloth was taken quik away & old tallow was 
scrap’d from some candles 2 yrs old & melted in a ladle & pour’d 
upon cold water in a bason which was taken off as soon as it cover’d
the surface of the water & more pour’d on then the tallow was 
melted in the ladle & mixt with white lead scraped fine & spred
upon a linnen cloth & bound on the sore place with 4 splints & a 
cloth as afore & his foot was anointed & his knee where it was
swell’d this assuag’d the swelling in a nights time. Wm. Fletcher of [Sison]
had set an arm that was broken & apply’d [Bent’s] salve for a corecloth
which made the arm swell & rise into blisters which was cured with
tallow & white lead. Corecloths that agree with some flesh disagree with 
others, but the bonesetter pull’d off the tallow & white lead & apply’d 
his own corecloth of a dark colour which he said was very strengthening
& he order’d the knee [to] abt the ncle when they swell’d to be
anointd with cream & soot from the mouth of a coper this abated
the swelling for a little time but when he did not keep his
bed his knee swell’d & he was forc’d to lie in bed 2 or 3 days together
the corecloth & splints were kept on & it was a month before
he came below stairs then he went with 2 crutches abt 6 or 7
weeks after his leg was broken he took syrup of buckthorn
to purge him zi in a draught of cold ale 7 when he could go without
his crutches he oft complain’d of a pain his his heel
sp. of wine apply’d to a joynt that is raw causes lameness tho it strengthens
a joynt where the skin is whole Dr [illegible]



4
To knit & strengthen a crackt bone
Rx 2 pts salt & 1 pt butter & burn em i.e. boyl em together till
they cook black spred it on a cloth & bind it on the arm or leg etc.
as hot as you can endure it Dress it night & morning when it
begins to mend & grows strong once a day is enough This cured
Anne Farie’s arm when crackt & the [illegible] contracted she could stir her
arm & make may with it in a weeks time Anne Farie.
Anne Butterworth had a sore leg that look’d very red & full of blisters
Mrs Basset cured it with [illegible] made of ling dipt in basilicon & a green
oyntmt. (made of gill run by th ground & elder bark) mixt laying over
the pledgets emplastru dominio Mrs Basset.
Goody Simons had a sore leg that lookd red with a running sore it was 
caus’d by a bruise She bath’d it as hot as she could endure with new
milk which qualified it very much IT was draft with precipitate & basilicon
to cleanse it & anointed it with the green oyntmt in the former [illegible] & 
it was quickly well A.S. To scale & clean a bone foul’d by an
old sore infuse some camphir in spirit of wine & dab it on
the bone rot or it will [illegible] cold. Dr G. A.
A sore leg or any running sore old or new Rx [illegible] [nettles] [illegible]
em small & pound em with as much salt as [nettles] & lay em on a cloth
for 12 hours it will take out the venom then cross it with a plaster of
paracelsus till well It will cure it in a little time. It is an exct. thing
for any green wound or a wound made with rusty iron The soldiers take
it with with em in their nap sacks or [illegible] when they are to fight Francis [illegible]
It is good for any swelling [ibid] I know this nettle medicne try’d without any 
good success E.A. Elizth Halford & wife of Saml had a sore leg
caus’d by a bruise by falling up stairs the edge of a stair cut 
agt the skin of her leg abt 3 inches above her ancle Mrs.
Elizth Basset try’d with basilicon & gill-oyntmt. & empl. deminio
in vain to cure It had a running sore abt the breadth 
of a shilling on the ancle on the small of her leg It was very 
much swell’d & her thigh was swell’d she cur’d it thus in a fortnight
viz. she lay’d a garter abt 2 fingers broad encircling her
leg above the knee spread with emplast. deminio & another
garter below the knee spread with do as defensitives to prevent
the humers fro flowing down from her body she purg’d twice with
syrup of buckthorn zi for each dose intermitting 4 or 5 days. 


5
her leg was blister’d in several places & lookt very red
she spread a plaster on a linnen cloth of diaculum simplex (6 s
per roll) then she melted tallow or sheeps suet in a spoon & 
pour’d it hot into a porringer or pot of fair water (which takes
out the salt & makes it more cooling) then she drain’d away the
water & melted the tallow again in the spoon & pour’d it on the
diaculum plaster that was spread This she lay’d round her leg over 
the sore & diacumu the tallow on the sore with ling The tallow [supples] the diaculum they both together cool
refresh & strengthen the leg & take away the itching of the sore 
The leg was swaddled with a childs swaddle band or a roller from 
the ancle to the knee very straight in the day tie but a little
slack at night that she might sleep This prevented also the defluxion
of humers she walk’d very little in the day but sate still laying
the sore leg on a stool she draft it twice a day till it was almost
well. when it itches above the sore you may moisten the itching places
with a rag dipt in water in which yellow arsnic has been infus’d
You must boyl the water & pour it hot to the arsnick.
Goody Farie being 70 yrs old of [newtown] Linford had the jaundice
which was cured by taking a little [tot] twice a day of barbery bark boyl’d
in beer for 2 or 3 days but after [illegible] jaundice her legs swell’d so that she
was carry’d from bed & to bed she boyled red dock-roots in cream a qt.
of a pint to an [illegible] strain’d she anointed her legs morning & night for 7
or 14 days & they were quite well afterwards she took a purge viz. Dr
White’s water 2s. i.e. 2 spoonfuls in a morning & continued well. Good
Farie.
Janry 1724 Theopilus Halford E.A.’s servt had a callous
substance like a corn at the bottom of his foot under his little toe
this was cut till it bled & only a rag was apply’d he walked two
miles presently after; the next morn it was swell’d abt his toe
& very painful & in a few days time his pain shot up his leg & he
could not go on it. It was poultic’d a long while together & he seem’d
to be [illegible] if he walk’d on it the humer returned E.A. cut just thro this 
thick callous to make it bleed but it did but little good, when it was
heal’d with [Bonts] or Blackwell’s salve it would break out again. AT last
E.A. gave him 3 purges [illegible] made of crème of tartar zii & jalp zi in
fine pouder each purge pr 3 [illegible] in a little water gruel made over night he took it early 
in the morn kept his room with a fire Each purge gave him abt 6 stools
he intermitted sometimes 2 sometimes but 1 days between purge & 
purge they carry’d the humer off & his leg & foot was quickly well.


6
Leg sore & swell’d Jn [Kt] shepherd at [Blaby] had a leg swell’d &
so sore that he could scarce sleep a nights He thought it was a rheumatic
pain. he bathed it abt 6 times viz [illegible] morning with good [illegible] juice & it
was quite well. Jn Kt Jn smith of Blaby shoeing a horse was kick’d on
his knee by him. It caus’d a swelling & a lameness that he could scarce go
He bath’d it with [verjuice] 2 or 3 times it strenghtn’d his sinews & took away
the pain Jn Smith. Dip any sore as a sore leg etc. or wound in hot water & hold
it in the water a good while made as hot as you can abide it without scalding
(if you can’d do that conveniently then wash the sore or wound with a 
linnen rag dipt in hot water & bath it with it & [illegible] on the sore some time
then apply Robt Beby’s corecloth or salve made with white wine etc.
a London Surgeon says that holding a sore as a sore leg in hot water takes
out the venom or anguish or pain or festering or wrankling or venome & prepares
it for healing It is as good as a poultice & has less trouble & is sooner prepared
It will prevent many a leg from being cut off Cos. Richd Ashby.
In Halford shepherd at Little [illegible] abt 60 yrs old had a hard swelling like a hard
knob on the upper pt of the calf of his leg which pained him very much 
especially when he walked It was thus cured by E.A. & this [illegible] dissolved in 
a little time A corecloth was apply’d anointed over with oil olive in 10 [percent] nutmegs
to a salve then add this things added to Dr Allins corecloth by E.A. in his sixth
book p. 222 Susan Halford his wife abt this same age had a humour fell into
one of her legs which swell’d her leg very much which was thus cured by [Mrs Major] in a little
time it was anointed with [goosegrease] agt the fire & a cabbage loaf was laid over it 
& the humer was disposed & this swelling went away in 2 or 3 times dressing it once a day.
[Smallage] boiled in water & a linnen cloth dipt in it & apply’d several times to 
Jn [Laughton’s] wife’s leg that was swelled with wild fire cured it. Goody Laughton


7
Gravel or sharpness of urine
Turkey egg shells in powder eaten with sugar at any time.
Ex from 5 to 12 drops of oyl of turpentine drops upon a little
white sugar in a spoon Br G.A. If you take abt 12 drops it will give
you a stool or two loosening things are good & astringent are bad for
this distemper. It rages most in hot weather. I prefer this before any 
thing I’ve yet try’d E.A. spirit or oyl of turpentine is a powerful 
diuretick & stone breaker; it opens all obstructions of the loins & passages
of the seed & takes away pain & soreness processing of cold. It 
dissolves all gums better than sp. of wine. Salmon’s Disp.
Stone
Rx from 15 to 30 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught
of white wine. If you are in great pain take 30 drops In 
[Rostale] of [Ledgers] Ashby formerly servt. go Jacob Hall. This
gave Mr Ashby ease in a fit. Another Rx [sallet] oyl & juice
of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls in a spoonfull or a quarter of a pint of
white wine [combin’d] with sugar to make it palatable mix em & drink em when you feel pain. This
forced a stone resembling a little date stone, from Cos. Geo.
Wright it is much commended by St. Nathan Wright. It is
very forcing & dangerous where there is a very great stone 
yet can’t pass. Drink a pint or 2 of small ale abt an hour after it with w. wine. ST. N. Wright. I observed Febr. 1705 yet upon
drinking small ale in which dockroots & gill were boyl’d 
which made this ale very thick & muddy tho it purged me
2 or 3 times a day I was violently troubled with gravel 
& avoided a great quantity with pain several days till I 
left of drinking it tho I took oyl of turpentine & sp.
nitri dulcis famous diureticks to give me ease. from 
whence I concluded the thick liquors especially malt 
drinks abounding with a sediment generate grave & 
the stone & the clear & temperate cooling drinks are
healthful for those that have those distempers E.A.
For the colick & stone Rx nutmegs zfs liquorish pouder zi loaf
sugar lbfs pulverize & make em into pills with venice turpeneine zi Rx
three at a time 3 mornings together before the change of the moon
Roll the pills in liquorish pouder before you take them. Steep penyroyal
overnight in abt half a pint of water so that the water may cover it & strain 



8
it in the morning & toast a piece of brown bread to warm the
water & drink a draught after the pills. This freed Mr Jn Frank
Parson of Queniborough of the stone & colick ever since he took them.
Mr. Rd Pick Eating bread & butter once or twice a day freed E.A. from 
gravel Apr. 706 the weather being very hot, & avoiding cheese which make
the belly costive & at dinner or supper once a day eating victuals with
verjuice or for want there of vinegar. E.A. Another for gravel Rx some
new butter-milk boyl it & make a posset with small beer sweeten it with
hony & drink it & swallow alive abt 10 or 20 millipedes (the round ones
are best) after it you may eat a little fresh bread & butter before you 
drink yr buttermilk posset. Mow any thing with a scythe or exercise with 
a scythe as if you mow’d something, till you sweat. It will make you 
straddle that the gravel may the easier descend from the kidnies into the
bladder This gave E.A. ease may 706 For the stone & gravel Rx 20 or
30 or Dr Stringers drops in a glass of ale warm’d at any time you may 
buy em of Loughborough of Stringer the hatter his father pr. 2 s 6 s per
bottle Mr Cowper the bone setter of Leicr commands them to [exceed] most
other medicines but E.A. cou’d find but little benefit by them. E.A. Or
boyl new whey 3 pints take of the scum let it stand from the fire till a
scum arises again which take off & strain it thro a hair sieve from the sediment
at the bottom & wash the pan & put in the clarify’d whey to which
add agrimony, sage, dandelion, fumitory each mi boyl it till one pint
is wasted drink it in the morning fasting cold & exercise after it. you 
may prepare it overnight & take the quantity of a horse [bean] of turpentine
mixt with liquorish poudr & sugar. This is cooling & opening & carry’d
a good deal of gravel from E.A. June 706. For the stone Rx cassia
now drawn, anniseed [illegible] with oyl of sweet almonds mixt with gr. vi
of salt of tartar vitriolate make a bolus 
Gravel & stone Rx scio turpentine zi [illegible] 681 salm. dispens. for the pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible]
make them up into pills & take five of the pills every night for
a month together. Rx a large onion slice it & put it into a quarter
of a pint of ale. Let it infuse all night in the ale. In the
morning put a quarter of a pint of white wine to it. Rx it
fasting every morning for a month together at the same time
you take the pills at night. This cured a gentlewoman of
the gravel that so afflicted her that she could not go upright making
her void 2 quarts of gravel. Mrs. Basset. Scio turpentine 
is very dry & stiff you may put it into a bladder cut to hold it [illegible]
pocket will warm it & make it pliable to yr fingers moisten’d in
water to prevent it sticking & roll each pill in crabs eyes & make
em up just as you take them. I tis good to ride or walk or mow or 


9
to use some exercise after them. E.A. Another I eating
bread of [masline] ground on the grey stones in June 1707 was much afflicted with
gravel of which I thus cured myself I eat white bread or bread made 
of masline ground on the black stones which is free from grit. I eat
oat meal pudding wihtout butter left off drinking malt drink wine
& cyder & drank only scum’d milk & soft water boyl’d together
with a piece of household bread & rode a horse back once a day & 
I was quickly freed from the gravel. E.A. For the stone & gravel
Mrs P. Rx a thunderbolt (6 or 7 or more) Let it be burnt in
an oven 7 days with only one gorss faggot a day i.e. you must every 
day burn 1 gorss [kid] & let it lie all the time in the embers then 
beat it to a fine pouder & sift it fine. Give the value of two
case knives points full att a time in a glass of warm ale. Let the
patient drink a pint well warm’d after it (Beer & ale or
very small ale is best E.A.) 31 days cure any. Some are cured in
five days. you must take it every day This Mrs P. says is a certain
cure & that it will dissolve the stone but I have not try’d it
I look upon it as [ban??] She gave me [illegible] paper of pulvis [????ticus]
for the same distempers (E.A.) Mrs. P. for the stone cholic
& wind cholic Mrs Anne Windser midwife. Rx balm of gillead [illegible] zi venice
turpentine pr zifs a ½ pennyworth stone call’d [illegible] [illegible] of the vale (a
shining stone) in pouder pr. 1 s 1 pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible] hon or turky
egg shels do (dry yr eggshels aft the fire or in an oven & beat
em to pouder) Crowstone burnt in the fire till it is red hot
& then beaten to pouder Of all the pouders take equal pts If any
of the corwstone is yellow or ill colour’d scrape it off. Sometimes
there will be like glass in the middle of it do not beat that. mix
all those well together & with pouder of liquorish make it up into
six score pills abt the bigness of a little pea’s Rx 5 in the morning & 
5 abt it in the afternoon for abt a week of a fortnight together
at first taking, afterwards only for a day or two drinking
water warm’d with a brown bread toast rub’d with nutmeg drinking
plentifully a belly full. This brought from Mrs. Windser 60 stones
in a little time some as big as small peas or vetches some as little
as pinheads 12 stones in a day would often come away. She found
so much health by drinking water that she continued drinking it for 11
yrs & for ought I know as long as she liv’d. She sometimes drank wine
& wine & water where she had it gratis but she avoided all malt drink Mrs
Windser.


10
The German spaw water drunk abut ½ a pint or a pint once 
a day will commonly ease the cholic It will also cure the
scurvy & sweeten the blood if drunk for a long time ibid.
The [L?] keeper Wright that had been much afflicted with the stone found
most benefit by this medicine drink every morning some sage tea
(i.e. sage infus’d in hot water) mixt with milk & sweeten’d with hony.
For the cholic wear a forefoot of a hare in your pocket many [illegible]
For the wind in the stomach or cholic in man or beast.
Rx one of turpentine (that which is new & clear is best) 5 drops in a
glass of ale the next morning Rx [illegible] drops always an odd drop till you 
come to 17 you may take it at any time. walk or ride after it, it
purges by urine you may give a horse or cow a spoonful in ale 
Thos. Warner a farrier of Norborow. A man that is us’d to tobacco may 
smoke a pipe after it ibid For the stone & gravel eat some 
curds made of whey for a great many mornings in the summer
moisten’d with a little milk they are cooling & opening & drink a
draught of whey once or twice a day using exercise as riding
after it and avoiding wine & malt drink except a draught or 2 
of table beer at meals This freed me from gravel July 1708
To cause gravel to come away & to help the stone stamp radishes
fresh gather’d strain them into white wine & burnt or dry’d turpentine
pouder’d drink it 3 or 4 nights together Mrs M. Another Rx green parsly
mii beat it in a mortar & squeeze out the juice which sweeten with 
loaf sugar & Rx 2 spoonful at night & 2 at morning till you find eas
M.B. for the stone or gravel or stoppage of urine Rx an ordinary
wine glass full of white wine with as much common gunpouder [illegible] as
will lie on a shilling when you are pained or night & morning till you’ve
ease [illegible] the mountebank & [illegible] farmer the linnen [??nter] another
Rx the stones of a horse (when you geld him) the older the better cut off the
outward skin then slitt em in two & lay em on a clean tyle in an oven 
there let em stand till cold then beat em to pouder & take as much as
will lie on 2 shillings in a draught of beer in a morning fasting
for 3 mornings successively walking riding or using some exercise 
after it It is also good for any pain or strain in the back. Ambrose
the Gelder oyl of Benjamin is a powerful diuretick & specifick agt
the stone & gravel p. 300 Quincy’s Dispensatory.


11
For the stone or gravel.
Rx white wine posset drink pretty clear a pt. or 2 boyl in 
it bay berries bruis’d zi camomile flowers mi then sweeten
it with syrup of marshmallows strain it & dry saffron [illegible]
before the fire & crumble it in & drink a good draught
at a time. it never fails of giving ease & commonly fetches
away gravel or a stone. Mrs Finche’s mother finds grate benefit
by this Mrs Finch. Another Rx oyl of amber six penny
worth divide it into 2 pts. take one pt in new milk a qr.
of a pint, if these do not give ease take six penny worth
more. Henry Watkinson cow [leech] for a pain in his bladder
or gravel or stone Boyl agrimony mi in white wine a
pint with a (midling) onion drink 2 or 3 spoonfuls in a morning
fasting. or Rx the juice of burdock leaves in a spoonful in hony
ziiii Rx 2 or 3 knife points any time of the day when the
stomach is empty when you can’t get the juice dry & pound
the seeds of burdock zfs in virgin hony ziiii. Rx the quantity of
a walnut or dry the roots to pouder by grating or pounding
sift it Rx zi in hony ziiii the quantity of a walnut, take
it till you find ease This cures Stephen Hunt for ½ yr L. Hunt
another Rx venice turpentine make it into pills with liquorish pouder
take 4 pills as big a pea in a morning fasting & fast 3 or 4 hours after
it & take 4 more after the 1st sleep in the night It cures stone
& gravel They will keep a yr or longer good. Hop drink is a great enemy
to the stone & gravel. Ben Alsop of Huncot cures himself thus
& hop drink does not hurt him tho he drinks much of it Ben. Alsop.
for gravel & stone Rx white wine a glass, sp. of
turpentine 20 drops for a man, syrup of marsh-mallows zfs
take it morning & bedtime Mrs Basset another Rx mild ale
& stout (i.e. strong march beer or strong old ale) spring water
running towards the sun-rise Deep well water i.e. hard water
rain water each a pint half a lemmon & half a sevile orange


12
Squeez’d into it bottle it up (without any boyling) & drink
half a pint morning & night or when the fit or pain comes
sweeten’d to the palate with brown sugar This cured [Arslin] a 
flower man’s son of Leicr a pretty great boy who had not made
water of a week once taking it in 3 hours brought a 3 corner’d
stone & a smooth one & he made water the best pt of an hour
after em & was at ease a second drinking brought away abt a
thimble full of gravel. He was advis’d to drink it spring & fall
afterwards during his life Stephen Hunt & Wm March the boyd
uncle. Another Rx [??asper] (an herb) root & branch a peck 
wash it clean & chop it as small as you can strain thro a linnen
cloth & bottle it up & stop it close fro the air It will keep one 
yr If you use it presently i.e. as soon as it is fit for use
you must let it stand to settle 12 hours till it is clear. Rx
2 spoonfulls night & morning 2 in a glass of white wine
or for want there of strong ale till you find ease & make
urine clear from gravel Richard Wood Gardiner of [nun eaton]
in Warwickshire. It has freed several persons fro the pain of 
stone & gravel all their lives. Salmon commands balsam of lead R. W. with aniseeds to expel the stone & takes
away pain in [illegible].
Another a large dose of the decoction of [speedevel] (an herb) taken for some
time expell’d a stone fro the kidney of a woman that had been tormented with it
for 15 or 16 yrs vid. Salmons family dictionary.
Another for sharpness of urine, gravel & stone Rx common
mallows roots miii wash’d clean parsly seeds zi bruis’d boyl
em in a gallon of spring water till ¼ is wasted then mix it
with new milk & drink ½ a pint or more at a time as you’ve
occasion for the constant drink till well This taken once freed
for 35 yrs & perhaps all his life after James Leppington horse
rider for the gravel Rx melilot flowers & winter cherries each 
mi boyl em in a qt. of clear beer or white wine not a long
while. Give it at 4 times in the morning fasting. Stephn Hunt &
a traveller sit upon a stool or board seldom or never upon a soft seat.
It puts the blood in the buttocks into a new fermt. ibid. another aqua
comminuens calcula Horsby’s salmon disp. commends highly p. 455
Wind in the kidneys or heat of urine making but little water at a time & that with 
pain the belly being swell’d Rx the seeds of cummin, anise, caraways & [illegible] sach
zi juniper berries zifs gingr zfs make all into fine pouder & with syr. of anniseeds q.s.
morning noon & night this cured Stephen Hunt, Tho. [Farren]. 


13
The colick or gravel Rx senna ziiii guaiacu, roots
of elecampane dry’d, the seeds of annise, caraways, coriander
prepared & liqourish each zii raisins ston’d lbfs. Black
pepper tyme ginger grossly bruised each zii steep em all cold
in 3 qt of aqua vitae for 4 days strain it & when setled bottle
it up for use. The dose is fr 2 to 4 spoonful in the morning
fasting according to the strength & age of the patient It is the
best Rx yet known says Dr Thos. Russel. The stone & gravel
boyl oat meal in water 1st like water gruel then add some ale so that it may 
be 1 pt. ale & 2 pts gruel let it boyl again a little time then sweeten
it with sugar add a little butter drink plentifully another roasted
or boyl’d apples with water & sugar or apples & milk with 
sugar to the palate. Another veal broth made with veal & bacon
boyl’d a good while & let it be strong of the veal as head & 
neck. Drink plentifully This is exct. to drink after physick has
done working. EA. another drink cyder with abt 20 or 30 drops
of oyl of turpentine for want of cyder use w. wine or ale
& beer the 2 last are the worst for scarce any thing in some
people breeds the gravel more than malt drink perhaps the
hops may be one occasion of it. another drink plentifully 
of whey or posset drink riding or walking after it to prevent 
its chilling the stomach. another make tea with sage adding
abt ½ a lemmon peel & [meat] sweeten it with sugar This will
open the body & is an exct preparative taken the night
before physick E.A. another drink a moderate draught of
new milk whey or for want thereof milk & water warm’d or camomile
or sage boyl’d or infus’d in water & after any of em a
draught of beer or ale to prevent em chilling the stomach & use 
exercise as riding, walking erc. E.A. for the stone & gravel SR
Nathan Wright. Rx sallet oyl & juice of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls
or the juice of one lemmon (eat the meat with sugar) w. wine
4 or 5 spoonfuls sugar 1 spoonful or as much as will make it
palatable Take this never but when you are sensible of a fit approaching
or in affect or when you feel pain of gravel for want
of white wine you may use cyder drink ½ a pint of w. wine & 
½ a pint of water or a pint of small ale to wash the loins a little
after you’ve taken the oyl & lemmon & he always finds benefit by 



14
by this but the most by Mrs LIvesy’s colic drink that never
fails giving ease. This was taught him by a Dutch Dr for the stone
gravel, gripes, colic & a cold. Rx Parsly roots sliced mi stonecrop I sal 
prunella zfs boyl em in a pint of new milk Drink it in a morning
warm. It is a dose for 2 mornings. It often provokes a stool or
2. It brought a great quantity of gravel from Stephen Hunt.
Another Rx rosin of turpentine i.e. boyl horse turpentine lbi by itself
in a pot that will endure the fire (you must get a Dutch pot fro London or
Northampton etc.) the older it is the better & will require less boyling you
boyle it a great while then pour it gently into a [panchion] of cold water
laying aside the hat, wig, & neckcloth lest it flys into the face when it
is cold you must try if it will break like rosin or glass then it is rightly 
made, but if it will not break so you must boyle it again & again till it
will break then boyl some butter that is abt 1 or 2 days old is best because
sweetest in an iron ladle or pan or frying pan till it is black which is call’d
burnt butter & put some of the rosin or turp. to the burnt butter viz as
then take as much as will make 15 pills with loaf sugar in pouder take at
one dose any time, then Rx white wine 2 or 3 ounces or spoonfuls in a
glass & light a pipe of tobacco & wrap a doubled paper round the [bole]
& blow the smoke into the white wine till there will appear an oyl upon
it Drink it immediately after it This dose or this dose repeated will
bring stones & gravel from you in great quantity Dr. Richd Pool mountebank 
of Northampton. Another gather abt the beginning of May
sassifras root when it is in flower which is white & like a boll, the roots thse which
are of a brown colour are best but those roots which are white
are good you may pull or dig em pu, there are 3 or 4 clusters
or more abt the root scarce ½ so big as a small cherry stone dry
Rx a scruple of the pouder in a little galss of white wine smoked
with tobacco. ibid. for the colic. Rx marsh or common mallow roots
wash’d & slided mi boyle em in water a pint ½ till ½ is wasted then
put in a qr. of a pint of w. wine; when it is strained sweeten it & drink
it hot. Mrs Caulson of Leicr Pills for the stone or gravel. Rx cyprus
turpentine ziy wash it well in water rhubarb & aloes each [illegible] in pouder zi mix
& work em well together make em into pills [with] liquorish pouder Take 1 or 2 
at night going to bed & 2 or 3 in the morning. They are a good purge & good
for a pain in the back or loyns or any where also or for a pain at the
stomach. you may take em 2 or 3 days & omit one or 2 according as they
work ibid. A gentle purge for gravel Rx damask roses or for want of
them pale roses the leaves of six roses they will keep dry all winter
Infuse em in a qt of whey 3 or 4 times Drink it in 3 or 4 hours It cools &
brings away gravel & makes a man healthful Dr P. drinks it for a months in [illegible] [illegible]


15
Gripes
Drink a glassfull of cold water made very salt with common 
[salt] salt after it take warm water as much as will vomit you. This cured Grace Hollins, sister S.A.’s maid.
Another drink milk sweeten’d with hony hot ibid.
Another drink
single or double
anniseed water very
hot burnt with sugar.
King James [1st] straggling from hunting to his next ale house complained
to the old woman that kept the house (but knew him not) that
he was troubled with the gripes. She advised him to swallow a leaden 
bullet which he did & was presently cured. old Wm [Shaw] of Asserby.
another drink a draught of cold water made milk white with fine
wheat flower. This cured 2 or 3 of the colic it is good also for fits
of the mother.
In the gripes or colic avoid vomiting or take not above one vomit
to clear the stomach for if you vomit often yr stomach will be 
enclin’d to cast up every think it receives & call back the poysonous
tincture that causes the gripes from the bowels to the stomach & the stomach being
made naked & empty’d fills again with new wind Mr. Colemore
of Warwick being advis’d by 2 drs to vomit when he had the
colic said he would 1st consult his own wife that was much afflicted
with it & she dissuaded him from vomiting & he was quickly
well. E. A. being grip’d abt Mich 715 was cured by eating plenty of
salt with roast mutton & some large hazelnuts kernels after it [illegible] [illegible]
stone colic or gripes (almonds may do as [illegible]
Rx Parsly roots, fennel roots scrape em, camomile leaves
& scotch fir boyle em in white wine or mild ale, never drink
stale drink. Jn Rastall of Ledgers Ashby. For the gripes eat
[rue] with bread & butter or swallow a bullet with some goose
shot & drink some brandy after them & stand on yr head. ibid.
Gripes. August the 18th 1705 upon drinking coleorton waters that come
from an iron mineral (they will not bear sope) they filled me full
of wind insomuch that in abt a weeks time I was violently grip’d
I vomited with warm water & clear’d my stomach that was full of
flegm but still my gripes continued the next day & vomited with posset
drink but still the more I vomited the more I was inclin’d to vomit 
I took milk & hony & it rather increas’d my pains & rue alone did
me little or no good, at last I lessen’d my gripes & cured them by 
boyling parsly, rue, sage, mint, fennel & common mallows in all a
good handfull in 3 pints of water to a quart but as soon as the
water hath [illegible] a tincture of the herbs take out 5 or 6 spoonfuls 
& when they are cold mix as much oatmeal with them as will thicken 



16
the quart of water the herbs being taken out then boyl it to water
gruel drink this warm morning noon & night for yr constant
drink till you are well avoiding malt drinks, wine cyder brandys
& milk & milk meats & raw fruits Eating rue & bread butter in a morning & onions
& water with a little salt for sauce to yr meat. Rx venice treacle
a knife’s pointful at night going to be wearing a flannel wastcoat
at night & a breast-piece by day to keep you warm during yr illness
upon eating raw fruit & drinking stale ale my gripes return’d in a 
very short time & then they were so violent that whatever I eat or drank
this it was but water gruel & belch’d & vomited it up & I never was 
at eas but just after vomiting. vomits would do me no good. I was
full of wind as ever I could hold which cast up every thing that came into
my stomach. I took 7 spoonfuls of rhubarb, gentian anniseed water
infus’d together & a clyster abt 3 o clock in the afternoon. The purge
& the clyster wrought not above 3 or 4 little stooles & could not eas
me of the wind. mountaine-sage boyled in ale or beer cures Mrs Holbech
of the wind colick but it did me no kindness. It grows upon rocks & 
hills in the forest of Leicester & on Croft Hill in Leicr shire. I could 
sleep at any time but when my gripes pained me much. Note If you 
take a purge you must make it stronger than what is fit for you to take
at another time or it will not work when you are grip’d & vomits are
of little use to one that is grip’d. I prefer clysters before purges & vomits 
for they cured me Aug. 25th 1705 Mr. Tho. Franks the minister of [Luenniborough]
cures himself of his wind, fits of the stone, colick & gripes by 
this following clyster once twice or thrice administered at the 1st approach
of the pain in his bowels striving all he can to keep it from ascending
from his bowels to his stomach Rx camomile, mallows, (al. mauls) sach
mi shred or cut small anniseeds bruised a half pennyworth, boyl em in almost a
pint of posset drink strain it & put to it two spoonfull of sallet oyl & 
another till he removes the wind. These he prefers before the celebrated
medicines of any Dr he has heard of. The latter end of Septr 1705 
after many returns of the colic & gripes I conquer’d em thus I
took the decoction following with steel pills by Dr Cole’s prescription
Rx the best bright thick cortex grossly beaten zfs pr 9 s Infuse it gently 
in water a large quart boyl’d & pour’d upon it near the fire 24 hours
then strain it out add to a quart of the infusion gentian zi virgin snake
zii pr 2 s white hore-hound & buckbean each zfs coriander or caraway-seeds
zfs infuse ‘em gently near the fire for ½ an hour then strain of [such]
takes a quarter of a pint with 20 drops of tincture of steel dropt into 


17
it This decoction & tincture you must take in the morning fasting
after you’ve taken 5 of the following steel pills & at 1st
for abt a month you must also take the pills & decoction at
4 o clock in the afternoon. To make steel pills Rx steel prepared
with tarter zfs pr 3 s that which is green is best, make it into a mass with
extract of gentian pr. 6 s & gum tragicanth. pr. 1 s each zii dissolve the gum
in one spoonful of water all night make it into a mass & weigh
out one scruple for a dose or 5 little pills to be taken morning & 
evening. Steel is a mighty sweetner & strengthener of the blood it
changes the excremt black. Steel-pills & steel tincture must be taken
together or they will do no good. Rx the steel pills for a month or
6 weeks when you are ill Wm Well Rx em once a gr. for a month but use
em not too often because steel then lose its virtue. use a gentle
purge (viz sal mirabile glauberi zi pr. 6 s dissolved in water over night & 
drank in whey or posset drink or pillula cochiae majoris zi made
into 8 pills pr. 5 s Rx 3 over night & 5 in the morning following.
Rx Bitters often to settle & strengthen the stomach & to destroy the
superfluity of the acids in the stomach. avoid all things that are windy
& griping as milk, apples, wheat, things sweet, salt & sour & whey tho sometimes it doth good as diuretick
Eat things of an easy digestion. meat with gravy to raise the spirits
for dinner or cows or calf’s feet boyl’d. Let yr breakfasts & suppers 
be broth or water gruel or french barly broth. Dr Coles. I
believe these steel pills & decoction did me a great deal of good in
the colic but they would not perfect the cure. I found the most
good by sallet oyl without mixing any thing with it drinking a pint
or more to make the bowels slippery & to carry off the corroding humours
there Rx sal mirabile glauberi zi & repeat yr sallet oyl & 
continue yr gentle purges till you’ve master’d the [illegible] humours when
you are quite well you may eat a great many ripe mellow apples or
live a week upon apple pie They are laxative & will cool & make a 
great alteration in your body but you must use much exercise by
walking or turning a malt-mill or they will chill the stomach. They will
make you belch at first but it will wear off. E.A. Rx the quantity of 
a hazelnut of Markhams balls (such as you give horses made with sallet
oyl) when you are grip’d or for 2 or 3 mornings after you are grip’d
or have the colic. This did me good E.A. Parson Burneby was afflicted with
the colic & vomiting & having try’d Drs in vain was cured by smoking tobacco
very much.


18
For the colic or gripes. Rx hiera piera zi cochinile zfs beaten
put em into a quart of white aniseed water let it stand by the 
fire 24 hours, shake it sometimes. Dose for a man 6 spoonfuls
approved by Mr Robt. Onsby & Cos. Ezekiel Wrighte. If that does doth
not give ease in abt a hours time Rx 1 or 2 spoonfuls more. 6
spoonfuls taken after a qter of a pint of sallet oyl will purge &
carry off the cause of the gripes. E.A. Another Rx Treacle water & 
penny royal water each a quarter of a pint Drink abt 4 spoonfuls as
oft as you feel pain. Mrs Anne Hubbert. Another Rx a clove of garlic
at night going to bed with 4 spoonfuls of good brandy after
it repeat this morning & night & take 2 cloves or more at
a time if you are not well in a day or two This cur’d E.A. July
706. It will be more effectual if for 2 or 3 days or longer you infuse
Roman wormwood or buckbean in yr brandy with it You may keep
some ready infus’d by you & [the] longr it is kept the less bitter
the taste will be. E.A. Broth made with oat meal or without which
a chicken boyled & drunken hot did E.A. a great deal of good 
June 1707 being griped by drinking bottled [flying] cider. A man
was cured of gripes & the colic by swallowing ivy berries 2 or 3 
at a time carrying em in his pocket always & taking em often in 
a day till he remov’d his pain. They cured him after a fortnights griping 
having try’d a great many medicines in vain. Mary Gee. Another
Distill some strong water (al. rack) from ale grounds. fill a still with
stone horse dung & of that strong water add to it what is convenient
according to the quantity you will draw off. Keep the distill’d water
& drink a glassful when you are grip’d or have the colic. It hath no 
ill smell Mr. Benbrook of Lockington’s family use it very much. ibid.
Another. Rx some camomile & almost fill a pipkin with it almost cover
it with water & set it in an oven with bread strain out the liqr & with
suger 6 s per lb boyl it to a syrup drink 2 spoonful in a draught of
warm’d mild ale as soon as you perceive yr pain approaching & it will 
drive it away old Mr. [Oke?ver]. vide p. the 9th for the wind colick 
Rx dryed betony & pouder it & mix it with live hony & make pills of it
as big as a small hazle nut & take two of them at night when you go to
bad R.C. another Rx an equal quantity of mint water fennel water
& the [illegible] of Hungary’s water shake them together in a bottle & drink
it at night going to bed & in the morning 3 spoonfuls in an exct. cure
R.C. Mary Gee being violently grip’d was cured thus boyl some oatmeal


19
in water or good small beer that is not tart when
it hath boyl’d pretty well add ale to it let it boyl again
a little then sweeten it adding sugar & white bread note when
you bouyl yr oatmeal at 1st you may put in rosemary &
mint & balm or cloves & mace abt a qr. of an hour
after this boat some gunpouder abt 2 timble fulls 3 cloves
of garlic, mustard 2 to a spoonfuls cream of tartar
1 to a spoonfull burn a quartern of [best] brandy with
which the garlic bruis’d then take out the garlic & mix the
brandy (or for want of brandy Rx double anniseed water)
with the rest of the ingredients & adding oyl of
turpentine 6 or 7 drops drink it off hot 1 dose cured
M. Gee. compos’d by E.A. note Aug. 1708 I was violently grip’d
having the precedt night drank bottled ale & eaten a late & plentiful supper
I try’d most of my noted medicines in vain at last being mightily swell’d
full of wind I took camomile boyl’d in posset drink plentifully till I vomited
then I took chicken broth & I was at eas the next day & for many
days I eat water gruel made with common mallows shread small which I take 
for an extraordinary good medicine for the gripes & colic I’ve heard of a
man that could never be at ease without it E.A. For the gripes & colic boyl
common mallows 1 gallon in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 pints 
throw the scum away when there is any on it Drink a [porringer] full warm at 
any time when grip’d This cured Mrs Finches husband when the Drs could not It
make him fall asleep & gave him ease & cur’d him Mrs. Finch. Itry’d this medicine
in Augt 1708 & found no benefit by it I drank [Diap?ate[ & smithy wat
mixt cold without any cure or ease I believe mallows boyl’d in milk & water
are better than in [illegible] but best in water gruel E.A. Another. Boyl holly
bark & loaves in beer a pint or more & drink it warm this cured Sam. Smith.
An exct. medicine for the wind colick, the [illegible] or convulsion fits
Rx Coral, amber [?st] of each a little quantity by weight, pulverize them all 
& mix them & take of the pouder the quantity of an hazel nut & put it into
a spoonful of [illegible] or warm broth & take it fasting with 2 or 3 spoonfuls
of the same broth & take as much more if yiou find not ease in 2 
hours after Mrs M. for the colick Rx a pint of good brandy & half a
pint of sallet oyl mix em & drink it at once this cured a woman of
one fit prescrib’d by Dr Lane of Banbury strong liqr in violent pain
affects the head very little Mrs Newlove I cured my wife of a pain & 
wind in her stomach by giving her venice treacle inwardly & laying 
a great plaster of Dr Bents salve spred upon allum leather & afterwards 
rub’d over with oyl of turpentine & apply’d to the navel & 
stomach E.A. Dr Bigs rub’d on a plaster chymical oyl of wormwood or mint with good success



20
For the wind & stone colic & to sweeten the blood.
Rx Balsamu capivy gut 30 in beer or ale for a week
every morning It is diuretic make tea of elder flowers
& drink of it 2 or 3 times a day It cured a gentn of the
colic Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange.
For the wind & gripes Rx mithridate a little knife pointful dissolve
it (by stirring with a knife) in a [illegible] dish or half a pint of
strong ale drink it off often in a day E.A. for the wind colick
beat 2 or 3 acorns to pouder drink in ½ a pint of beer or ale
warmed. It will make you belch wind & give you ease w.p. another
Rx syrup of camomile 2 spoonfuls in abt ½ pint of warm ale Mr
[Okeover] another quench crowstone in a draught of ale [illegible] [illegible]
another Drink sage tea sweeten’d with sugar E.A.
Janry 1708 I cured my self of wind in the stomach & gripes thus having
taken chicken broth in vain viz mustardseed beaten 2 tea spoonful gunpouder
of a large porringerful stir em well together & burn the brandy then add to 
gunpouder & mustard at the bottom of the porringer this will give present ease
[cardius] posset drink to clear my stomach 3 qts & then eat 3 or 4 mackeroons
to strengthen & compose my stomach & so went to bed & found
myself very [illegible] Another Mrs Kenton being so grip’d that she hat fallen
down & lay on her bed & hath been cured several times by drinking brandy
burnt with a little sugar in it. Mrs K. you may add a little mint
in double distill’d anniseed water such is much cheapr than brandy & 
will do as well unless it be french brandy & you may infuse all the
other ingredients & yr medicine will not be so easily discover’d &
it will be always ready You must not give it to a breeding woman
for it will make her miscarry, but for curing gripes or wind colic
no medicine I believe can out do it, It was invented by E.A. another
Rx Cream of tartar 3 qts of an ounce in posset drink or gruel 
is a dose for a man or woman. Intermit 2 days & repeat the dose
This has cur’d inveterate colicks The [illegible] Mr Ed. Stokes Dr [Lowes]
Paste (alias pilula de aloe lota, or aloe rosata) taking 1 pill as big
as a small pea over night & 2 the next morning cures & colic & gripes 
beyond any medicine. It is sold at Mr Smalley’s in Leicr.


21
for the spleen colic or gripes
The latter and of Augt 710 I was violently grip’d & felt
a pain on my left side my garlic & brandy & oyle of turpentine
& would not cure me I took pil. ex duobus & a vomit
of Ipicacuana & found no ease at last glisters gave me
ease but Mr Francis Colsman stopt my vomiting the women
[illegible] Mrs. Smith said it was the spleen colic she advised
me to take a vomit first then to eat pt of a chicken boyl’d 
with capers & parsly for the sauce to eat capers every morning
to carry em abt with me to eat em for my constant
sauce or to eat em alone as you go up & down or with any
fresh meat to avoid salt & salt meats this I [illegible] [illegible] as much gentian
root as will lie on a shilling or rather more & infuse it
one night in a quarter of a pint of running water or spring water 
that will bear soup & drink the water off in the morning Drink this
every morning till you are well you may cut the gentian into
very small pieces This cured of the gripes Tho. Chapman states
eat juniper berries they are good for the gripes buy em of Mr Penford the
distiller ibid Another Grate as much rhubarb as will lie on a 
shilling with a rasp & drink it with abt two spoonfuls of good French 
brandy in the morning fasting It will gently purge & drink camomile posset
drink at night going to bed i.e. camomile flowers or camomile
boyl’d in all posset drink Dr Shukbrugh Ashby This cur’d
the [R?] Mr. Burnby & Mr. Cradock of Belgrave they gook 
the rhubarb morning & night Mr. Burnby advises to leave
off drinking malt drink & to drink white wine or white
wine & water till you are well Mrs. Wrighte commends
water gruel made with oat meal & rice ground & milk pottage
the first in the morn the last at night The Lady Beaumt commends
camomile posset drink & [elizer] [propriatatis] another 
Rx mustard seed whole a gr of a pint or ziiii infuse it in a
bottle of ale & drink abt ½ a qr of a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon it will gently purge you Mrs
Mary Rayson. Another avoid all strong waters Dry some horseradish
root in the chimney & cut a little bit & chew it & swallow it It
is an exct. thing for the scurvy too. Dr Ben Heyrick.


22
Wind colic or gripes
The Rc Mr Jn. Wightman’s wife being with child was thus cur’d
of the wind colic. Over night Rx 10 or 12 drops of the chymical
oyl of anniseeds in a glass of warm ale or sack The next
morning bleed in the arm then take one spoonful of sp. of
wine The 1st gives speedy ease the last things a perfect cure. Dr White for the wind & stone colick Rx Plane brandy, sweet
oyl, syrup of violets [illegible] 3 spoonfuls beat em well together & 
take it when the fit comes Dr Geo. Ashby. violets are good for a
pleurisy & pain in the side for wind int eh stomach & wind
colic Rx Sp. of sal armoniac 4 or 5 drps 
ikn a glass of ale every morning It is a cure for melancholy
& to clear the spirits Dr Leeds of Manchester & Mrs
M. another Mrs Elyth Adderly drinks [illegible] posset drink to prevent
the wind colic & cures it by drinking Virginian snake root in brandy
i.e. the infusion [illegible] A clyster for the wind colic or gripes Rx 
new milk a pint mallows & camomil each mi shred anniseeds
& sweet [illegible] each a large pugil or zii beaten to pouder boyl those &
strain it. Add to the liqr brown sugar one spoonful, & oul of
turpentine 3 or 4 drops. It purges the wind downwards. Mrs 
M. There is an ext confection made of white, black & long pepper
called species [diat???] [piperi??] good for a cold & windy stomach
which may be taken at any time with hony or without. Salmon says diatrion
piperton warms the stomach, expels wind & is powerful agt
the colic. The haven of health written of Thomas Cogan commends
it highly but says that instead of it you may take a few
corns of black pepper grosse beaten in a draught of ale fasting
or take a little of the pouder of any of the 3 sorts together with
meat for nothing is better for wind & flegm p. [207]. Colic. Rx
this following is Salmon’s syrup of [antimony] [illegible]
white wine zvi rose water zii cinnamon zifs pouder of [stibium]
zi Digest a night than decant & with white sugar zviii boyl
it to a syrup. In the most intolerable pain of the colic it
cures in a moment. Dose fro zfs to zi in chicken or veal
broth Wm Padmore for the wind colic or gripes Rx Some of 
Dr Lowers paste viz one pill over night & 2 in morning sold
by Mr [Roger] [Boo??ll] at the Black Boy agt St. Dunstan’s Church in [illegible]



23
To prevent taking cold.
Jn Rastale of Ledgers Ashby that goes into the water in the
winter time to catch fish chews some elecampane before &
after his going into the water & never takes cold upon it
For colds syrup of garlick is good in all colds & stoppages in 
the lungs or stomach or Rx a pint of canary, white sugar candy
ziiii Spanish juice of liquorish zi two ordinary heads of garlick
Let them infuse 6 hours then boyl it gently to a syrup & strain 
it & take 1 spoonfull night & morning. R.C. a cold or stuffing
in the head. moisten some hares wooll or lint in oyl of turpentine 
& stop yr nostrils therewith going to bed. E.A.
for a cold Rx anniseeds, carraway seeds pounded & sifted, elecampane
pouder liquorish pouder & flower of brimstone each 
zfs put it to treacle lbi Rx it morning & night & as often as
you please in this day W.P. for a cold or to stop a great
cough & cure a hoarseness drink a draught of cold water at
night going to bed & in bed when the rheum tickles you & in the
day time It is a speedy & safe cure J.L. For an old cough
drink abt ½ a pint of asses milk new milk’d warm from the ass
in the morning before you rise Mrs Adderly. for a violent cough 
Eat a cold roasted apple at night going to bed IF that does not
cure in 3 or 4 nights then eat one also in the morning fasting Anne Tasie.
A chincough in children Rx sugar dandy ziiii tie it fast in a hogs
bladder for a female, a sows bladder for a male, then tie it to a root
of a tree in running water 24 hours. Let the child take of it often
in a day in the morning fasting an hour after it & at night take
a pretty great quantity. This cured when the dis could not a traveller
& Anne [Tasie]. another Rx wine vinegar ½ a pint running water a pint
or 3 spoonfuls at a time night morning & noon This cured Goody Simon’s 
children. It is good for haust in beasts. Anne Simons.
Another Give the child loaf sugar moisten’d with sallet oyl & apply doses
just melted & spred upon London brown paper to its stomach It cures in 3 days, Good
Dawkins’s child
for a cold eat 2 cloves of garlick at night going to bed
taking care for a day or 2 after of not catching cold. old
Mr Ed Brooks that took great delight in fishing us’d nothing
else old Stephen Hunt


24
A cold or cough. Rx Treacle & ginger in pouder at night
going to bed Robt. Moor. another Rx Half a spoonful of common
treacle & abt 20 drops of sallet oyle at night, mixt well
taking care you do not catch cold the next day This is the best
medicine in the world says my auther augustine Low Potter of
Coleorton moor another Boyl some new milk put butter & pepper & bread
to’t & drink it hot night & morning This & riding cured E.A.’s cold in the
yr 713 when lozenges & other medicines would not. Mr. Whale of Norton
commends syrup of garlic. Salmon says compound balsam of sulphur is
a [????endent] medicine in all diseases of the lungs, it heals ulcers stops coughs
Dispensatory p. 390. An old cold cough & hoarseness & to make
you rear & expectorate & to clear the stomach of plegm 
Rx ale 3 pts pepper in fine pouder zfs boyl it till ½ dis wasted
then take it off the fire & when it is as cold as new milk beat 
the yolk & white of one or 2 new lay’d eggs & add that to’t
& warm it a little when you drink it, & drink a coffee dish
morning & night & oftener This cured David [Jarvase] of the
said distempers having a stoppage at his stomach You may 
make less at 1st to [illegible] how you like it you may add liquorish 
a little boyl’d in’t at 2st It is good for wind. David [Jervase]
It is good for a syrfeit & gripes It will keep a yr in a bottle
close stopt. It will cure an ague & the colick. ibid.
An obstinate cold & cough & hoarseness April 1714 E.A. had
a mighty hoarseness working in his waistcoat catching cold. It was succeeded
by a violent cold & cough when he had taken a great deal of
sweet & oyly medicines in vain he was thus cured. He put on a great
coat & rode out every day for 3 or 4 hours drinking a little burnt
brandy or aqua vitae with a little sugar at night & eating bread & 
butter in the morning E.A. another Robt. Glover my [illegible] having a
 violent cold so that when he cough’d it made the blood fly out of his nose
& out of his mouth, his bones aked & head aked, Some nights he could 
not sleep a wink & he sweat very much a nights was cured by taking
anniseed water a quartern pr. 5.9 treacle ziiii pr. 1 s hony ziiii pr. 5.9 
Let em simber in a pot cover’d by the fire & drink it hot as [illegible] at 
nights going to bed it is best but you may take a 
spoonful or 2 at any time when you cough. This cured many persons
thus afflicted Augt 714. One of the best R’s for a cold or cough
Rx white sugar candy in pouder & oyl of sweet almonds. Rx a little
night & morn or when you cough in a tea spoon. Rx Mr Ed. Stokes



25
Agues
Rx the bottom or thick pt of a glass bottle & heat it red hot in the
fire & quench it in a pint of strong ales just as the fit is coming
& drink it hot & go to bed it will make you sweat. This is a dose for 
a man You must have less for a woman or a child. once taking
cures you must use the glass but once sister Boothby. Another
Rx [aniseed] water a qtr of a pint & the juice of a whole lemon
squeez’d into it & drink it as soon as the fit is come & go
to bed or lie up on the bed & be cover’d warm once taking cures
The Rd Mr Richard Duke another Beat anniseeds cummin seeds to pouder
& mix it with venice turpentine & apply it [platter] wise 
to both wrists a little bigger than ½ a crown an [allum’d] [illegible] before the fit comes let it be on till it is
dry. Mrs Elizth [Basset] These plasters seldom fail, they prevent
a fermentation in the [illegible] & keep the spirits quiet you must apply
them where the pulse beats on the wrists & let them be [serv’d]
on the night before you expect the ague because it comes
often uncertainly therefore let the plaster take possession
before it. other plasters that never fail curing. Rx white copperas,
venice bole & venice turpentine each 1 I mix & 
spread it upon allum & leather to go quite round the wrists let 
em lie on 3 or 4 weeks Mrs Emerson & Mary Gee. Another Rx
Diascordium zfs & drink 3 spoonfuls of plague water or (for want of it)
of anniseed water, an hour before the fit comes going to bed & sweat. Mr
Red Duk. from Dr [L??er] you must take the diascordium an hour
& ½ before the fit is expected. zfs is a dose for a man, zii for a
child. It hath cured when Jesuits pouder could not. Francis Squire
An ague or cold in a womans breast so that the breast is swelld
& hard with it. Warm some of the best brandy (sp. of wine is better)
with a spoon & dab it on the breast with a linnen cloth 6 or 7 
times in a day & leaving always the cloth on the breast, this
cured Mrs [Littalford] in a weeks time [illegible] An ague Rx as much
whip cord as will come twice round the middle pr. 2nd tie
it very straight round the middle of the naked body next the
skin near the navel 2 or 3 hours before the fit comes when
the ague comes it makes the body swell. The whip cord prevents
its swelling & drives it away. This cured may colliers at 



26
Coleoverton & Cornelius Jones the bricklayers wife at
Leicr The thickest whipcord is easiest. You must wear it
till you’ve mist a second fit. C.J. To cure an ague when 
Jesuit’s pouder can’t. Rx the roots of elder miiii or more wash 
& dry em with a cloth scrape em tillyou come to thewood i.e.
till you’ve as much as a man can take up with one hand at once
boyl it in 3 pints of milk till one is consum’d Let a man when
he perceives the fit coming drink the [qt] strain’d blood warm This
is one dose if it does not cure repeat the dose. It is a 
gentle vomit. James Lappington horserider another Rx a cobweb 
roll it up till it is of the bigness of a horse bean, set it in the top of an
apple This cured Wm Biggs my servt. only taking it once. Wm Biggs.
another wear wormwood that is green in the stocking next to the bare
feet & shift it when dry by laying fresh in its place This cured
Frances Clark. another Run till the breast is gone a little before
you expect the fit This cured Jane Tasie of a third day ague when
a great many noted medicines were try’d in vain. Let a man run,
a little before the fit (the finger nails often look black before the
fit comes) till his breath is gone then let him fall a thrashing
till he sweats. This often repeated wears away an obstinate ague 
This cured Anne Tasie’s br. Jn. another Rx ½ a pint of white wine vinegar
set it at one end of a room & set ¼ of a pint of the best brandy
at the other end & walk fro one to the other taking a sup of
one & a sup of the other a little before the fit comes or when you 
feel it coming till you’ve drunk em both up. It will make you 
[illegible] mightily & clears the stomach Let 2 buckets or pots to vomit
in It cured at once Taking an ague of a qr of a yrs standing 
Witness Tho. Smith of Blaby. This cured my servt. Wm Biggs running
all the time he was drinking it in the [illegible] It made him vomit 2 or 3 
times. another Rx the white of 2 new laid eggs wheat flower & the
best soap beat it to a salve. spred it on flaxen rags & apply it to 
the feet lying in the stocking till the ague is gone then [illegible] they cured Tho.
Brooks of Blaby. You must have soap the quantity of a large nutmeg 
& mix it with the white of an egg after it is beaten & beat em 
both together then add wheat flower as much as will make it into a
salve Beat em all together & apply it immediately or it will not spred


27
another Roast a whole nutmeg agt the fire & put it
very hot to 4 or 5 spoonfuls of sack the nutmeg will break 
in pieces which eat & drink the sack after it & walk abt for
a pretty while Do this when you perceive the fit coming. It seldom
fails curing. Sister Boothby. another Spred 2 plasters on 
leather with frankincense very thick and apply em to the wrists after a fit
keep em on sometime after the ague is gon least it return again
This cured old Goody Gregory of Blaby apply’d to the stomach Mrs [Norolove].
an ague on a child moisten a pack hired string in oyl of
camphir & [illegible] about the childs neck let it wear it for a week
or longer if it does not chafe the skin. This will cure a sucking
child. A gypsie & Stephen Hunt. another Rx nine little onions
cut small into four qrs put em into a linnen bag & wear it next
the stomach being fixt to a fillet round the neck put it on abt an 
hour before this fit comes & chew 2 or 3 onions taking only a little
at a time in the mouth & swallowing only the juice & the spittle
This cured Elias Simpson one time & another time only chewing onions
(without hanging any abt his neck) cured him. Elias Simpson
another Quench a rusty horse shoe, heated red hot, in verjuice a qr of a
pint drink it hot & walk after it This cured Joyce Gimson’s mother & br
after many things try’d in vain. J. G. an ague. Infuse tobacco zfs 
in abt a pint of ale [illegible] 8 or 10 hours strain & drink it a little
before the fit It makes you vomit which clears the stomach
& effects the cure This seldom or never fail’d at [illegible]
Jn. [Cates] wife You may boyl em together when the fit is over give a tea spoon of bark
every 4th hour & on the [illegible] after it This cured Joyce [illegible]
another old Bosworth of Enderby a lusty 
man was blooded 16 ou. in the arm which cured him of an ague He had only 
a little grudging of a fit after it. another Mrs Gregory having taken the
Jesuits bark in pouder mixt with water & after that she had more bark infus’d 
in clarret & in w. wine but she found no cure till she was blooded
in the arm. A.G. when the lips break out it is a sign the ague is going
away.
Drinking whey or buttermilk or very cooling liqours or eating fruit in 3
or 4 weeks after the bark has driven an ague away will cause it to 
return. E.A. ague Rx the roots of henbane clean’d but not wash’d
cut em into short pieces & with a needle & thred make a necklace 
wear em abt the neck till they are dry (abt a week) & renew it abt
2 necklases commonly cure Drink night & morning garlic boyl’d 
in milk a porringer full till well. This cured David Jervase of an ague 
almost of 2 yrs standing taught him by a beggar woman


28
a b r a k a d a b r a
a b r a k a d a b r
a b r a k a d a b
a b r a k a d a
a b r a k a d
a b r a k a
a b r a k
a b r a
a b r
a b 
a 
This is a charm for an 
ague or intermitting fever
In Cornelius Agrippa his
natural & occult philosophy
To be ty’d abt the neck. Roll it
up abt a thred or pack thred etc.
sealing it with a piece of wafer in 
3 or 4 places that it may not be read
but torn when open’d Dr Million. This
cured E.A.’s wife July 717 when the bark
& vomiting would not.
an ague. Rx 3 or 4 spoonful of brandy pr. 2 d moisten a little white
bread toast therein eat it & drink the remainder of the brandy after it
a vomit for an ague Mr [Traps] Rx cardius mii or better pr. 1 d one
head of white lilly root as big as an egg white & pull it to pieces viz
into cloves. Boyl em in 6 qts of clear water to 5 or till the roots are
tender then strain & add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of sallet oyl to the water straind
or for want thereof fresh butter. Be sure to boyl enough water at 1st 
as not to want a feather thrust down the throat will make you vomit
Rx this vomit abt 3 or 4 o clock in the after-noon when the ague
fit is not on you Drink burnt clarret or white wine or ale [caudle]
Eat poch’d egg you may go to bed or sit up after it. The same night Rx 
Jesuits bark zi in fine pouder infuse it in a qt of clarret in the
morning shake the bottle & take an ordinary wine glass of it every 4 
hours viz abt ½ a gill when it is all taken fill the bottle again with a qt 
of more clarret let it infuse 12 hours & take that every 4 hours & you
need take it no longer you must not take the bark till the hot & cold
fit is over. an ague [Dr] got a great deal of mony by this Rx in Yorkshire
Mr Traps. another Rx Green savine pound it add currant & 
pound em & lastly add hony & pound em altogether spred it upon
2 pieces of leather & sew em to 2 rags and apply em to the wrists [illegible]
em when dry if this ague does not go away This cured a child of
3 yrs old Mrs Chester Jn Cater another mix conserve of red
roses with Jesuit’s bark spred it upon linnen fold 2 plasters then strew on a 
little of the Peruvian pouder apply em to the wrists This cured Mrs
Hubbard of Raresby & she seeing a maid of her acquaintance going
to London that had an ague took the plasters from her wrists 
& in haste apply’d em to the maids wrists & they cured her too Mrs H.
Dr Pool the mountebank his ague pouder Rx the green pouder of an
herb that grows in the Lady Robinson’s wood near Stamford It is called
It bears a large flower all of a cluster like a bunch of 




29
grapes It grows abt a foot high like emmeny having a
long narrow loaf & antimonium diaphoreticum in 
pouder as much as will lie on a great sugar (pr. 8 d per lb.)
The weight of one dose of the ague pouder for a man or woman is the
weight of a new sixpence & 10 grains. Rx Dr Pool’s pouder for an ague
viz the dose, in ale sweeten’d with treacle, a qr of a pint treated hot til
night going to bed, or in treacle alone as an electuary. The 1st makes you 
the least sick for the wind or stone-colic or gripes. Rx a qr or 4th pt of
the pouder in treacle & ale or treacle at any time. It is best when the
stomach is empty. The quantity of the pouder that will lie on a six pence
in a little loaf sugar given 3 mornings together will kill worms in children
for a third day ague Rx rape oyl a spoonful in D. R. loaf sugar
zii immediately before you take the ague pouder Dr. Pool.
another Rx green walnut tree bark mi dandelion roots no 6 boyl ‘em in 
stale ale a qt till it comes to a pint & ½ or less sweeten’d with sugar or treacle
but the last is apt to make you catch cold. Drink it warm a little before
the ague comes & keep warm Rx it 2 or 3 times. Drink water not
beer during the cure. Danl Pool.
Plasters for the ague Rx aethiops mineralis zi conserve of red roses zii
mix em & keep em in a pot for use plasterwise to be apply’d to the
writs. This was found out accidentally by E.A. [illegible] try’d oftener miss’d than
plaster for the ague. Peel an onion & cut it into two equal pts hollow
each pt. like the top of an eggshel mix gun pouder with venice treacle as
much as will fill the empty places & bind on one to each wrist there
to remain for a month. This cured Hannah Ashby the daughter of cos.
Jn Ashby abt 6 yrs old without making the wrists sore or offering any
injury to the skin. The onion must be so large as to hold abt the quantity
of an hazelnut. Cos. Hannah Ashby [illegible] It will cure when pounded together 
& spred on [illegible]& [illegible] to a [illegible] but it is apt to blister the wrists of them that [illegible] E.A.
an ague Rx Jesuits bark zfs in pouder salt of tartar zi boyl em in a qt
of water til it comes to a pint shake & divide it into four pts Rx one
pt. every third hour on the ague day or night after the sweating (or burning)
fit is over fast all the time & 3 hours after the last dose. Shake it
(unstrain’d) before you take it. a gentlewoman of Withcock in Leicestershire 
divulg’d this Rx aftershe had spent [illegible] in charity on the medicine being
tyred with the expence. Patricius [Bonner] Taylor of Frisby & Br. S.A.
another Rx camphir 1 [illegible] bring it home in a little glass bottle close cork’d then
put it into a rag & sow it to the shirt or shift opposite to the bosom. This 
cured Sam. [Exon] Carpenter
another Rx venice treacle zii pr. 2 [illegible] divide it into 3 pts wrap each pt (when 
you take it) up in cobweb Rx it 3 mornings successively fasting, fast 2 
hours after it. Mrs. Newlove.
another Rx his head of a brush in the shape of a pineapple that grows
on the top of a plant call’d venus’s basin in the middle of the head there 
is a little worm or grub Put it into a [illegible] stop it in [illegible] cork & hang it
between the breasts of a woman or on the bosom of a man This has cured
agues of a yr & half standing Goody Van of Little [illegible] stop when fails curing


30
an ague Rx Black pepper zi in pouder ale a pint drink
it warm as soon as you percive the fit approaching &
go to bed & sweat this has cured agues of a yr standing Sam.
Leaptrough.
an ague (every other day) Rx Jesuits bark zii pr: 6 [illegible] divided
into six papers Rx one every third hour in a little w. wine or clarret
because it doth not mix well in small beer. Fast an hour before
& after taking it drink nothing but soffet drink made of beer & ale
mist & that sparingly. Before you take the bark apply the following
plasters to the wrists or stomach Rx sope the quantity of a hazelnut
saffron a little, tobacco & curranths each a nip pound em in a mortar
& spred em on leather Let em lie on a fortnight They are apt to
fetch off the skin if they lie on long This cured sister Shukbrugh Ashby.
Emplastra oxycroceum cures an ague lay’d to the wrists, Mrs Caulton
The third day ague sometimes it cures the ague joyn’d with a fever
a distemper that reign’d in the yr 1721 Rx a magpie drops her as a chicken 
then chop & break her bones & boyl her with a crust or 2 of white
bread that is old in a galn of water till it is consum’d to 2 pts drink
it warm for the constant drink when that is gone boyl another magpie
as at 1st & drink it as before directed. This seldom fails. This makes
you refrain from malt drink & wine & so makes at alteration in the
whole mass of blood. (Dr. Salmon says the [illegible] of a magpye eaten helps
redness & pain of the eyes & dimness of sight, vertigo, epilepsies, melancholy 
& madness.) Mr James Allen high constable of Whetstone cures 
himself of an ague by binding his wrists & above the knees in the gartering
place & abt the middle with filleting or manchester gartering or
with any thing that will not hurt him very streight & as hard as he can
endure it as soon as he percives the fit approaching when the fit is over
take it off this never failed James Allan
another Rx snakeweed & venice treacle each zii boyl em in spring
water 2 qts till it comes to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish fill 4 times a
day out of a bottle shaking the bottle drink it warm every day
while it lasts. This cured Mrs Elizth Grene Dr Hartop.
another Rx 3 or 4 spoonfuls of [Daffy’s] elixir according as thou art strong or
weak or body over night or in the morn for a gentle purge. If it does not
work by stool the next day by 9 or 10 o clock when taken over night then take
another spoonful the next morn. Intermit a day & repeat the purge apply 
toe the stomach a little plaster of female or soft frankincense spred upon 
allum leather the bigness of a five shilling piece & strew upon it when spred & 
warm a little Jesuits bark in pouder If the brest is hairy you must shave it
first It sometimes draws blisters. Let it lie on as long as it will stick. If you
are violently sick & the ague comes later & later every day & the lips break
out in scabs It will go away. The plaster will make you sweat Bind the wrists
with a fillet very hard before the fit comes you must not loosen em [till] the fit is gone. This
cured Ann Tasie March 5th 721.
Plasters for an ague mix soap, chalk & soot apply em spred on allum leather
to the wrists IT seldom fails apply a little before the third fit Blaby miller & Goody



31
Simons. another That day that you expect the ague to come
in the morning fasting make water & whilst the urine is warm
make a little cake with some of it as much as will knead two
spoonfuls of wheat flower bake it on a brick at some distance
from the fire often turning it when you perceive the ague coming
a man must give it to a bitch, a woman to a dog to eat The dog
will quake & shake & be sick & vomit after he has vomited it up.
The ague leaves the dog This cured Sam. Snape of Glen parva. If it
doth not go away you must make a new cake as at first & give it
again It must be given 3 or 4 times till the ague goes
another Rx walnut tree bark fresh cut off from a grain or [bore] abt
2 [illegible] ½ long 2 [illegible] wide steep it in sharp verjuice 12 hours bind the
inside to both wrists on the pulse. It discolours the skin black This
cured many people in the yr 1721 at [Rasby] of agues Tho.
Fletcher black smith of Rasby
another Rx grains of paradise zii in fine pouder pr. 2 [illegible] brandy 2 [illegible] (or 4 spoonful)
This is a dose for a man or woman ½ the quantity for a child abt 12 yrs
of age. You must give it to a child at twice the same day The 1st time mix
a little beer with it in a spoon It is apt to [fuddle] a child. Let 2 women take the child one
by one arm the other by the other arm 7 walk it abt.This cured old [Exon]
& one of Goody Exon’s daughters Elizth Exon She must not go to bed. She
took it a little before the fit comes. Mrs Freer. If the ague returns you
must take it again.
another Rx the inner bark of mulberry
[tree] mii froth gotten boyl it in ale or strong beer a qt strain it
& drink a draught a little before the fit approaches & the [illegible]
during the fit by a little at a time, till you’ve drank it all. This
hat cured 17 agues successively without being baffled. Burgos of
Dunton & Goody Simons
another Let the patient (an hour 
before the expected time of the fit Rx 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir salutis,
being at that time [illegible] & 2 spoonfuls 6 hours after intermit a day
& take a spoonful at night & 1 at uprising in the morning Let the dose
be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if it agrees with the strength till
it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to exceed. This
cured Mr Marten’s daughter at Leicer another E.A. cured himself of an
ague at spring in the yr 1722 only by eating 3 or 4 sevil oranges, the
meat, kernels & some of the peel from morning to night & changing the
air leaving Blaby & lying one night at Leicer. They took off his fever & 
got him a stomach. E.A. another Rx a new lay’d egg Put the yolk unbroken
with the white into a gill of brandy & drink it off when the fit is on you
This cured a great many & Geo. Simons of Wigston Magna.
another Rx mountain wine a qt put it into a large bottle add to it 2 or 3 handfuls
or more of the inner bark of barbery tree. Let em infuse 48 hours then drink 3 
spoonfuls 1st in the morning & last at night. This cured Mr Jn Wilkins clockmaker of
Liecer having try’d a great many medicines in vain. J.A.
[illegible] Rx 2 or 3 spoonfulls of mustard seed in powder in a pint of 
new ale take it in bed a little before the fitt comes. It made Joseph 


32
Webdale the joyner swell as if he would burst at last
it made him vomit up a cake almost ready to chok’d him he
lay in bed after it. he had had it a month it was almost as 
thick as flower meat. This cured him he was at eas as soon as
the ague-cake was tost up. Joseph Webdale It is a churlish medicine
For an ague first purge the patient thoroly with a purge fit
for the humour, then take good store of plantain & ribwort & 
boyl ‘em in verjuice strain it & bottle it putting sweet salet oyl
on the top of it & so it will keep all the year give of this a good
draught before the fit comes or in the begining of the fit in 2 or 
3 times at the most it will help. Probalum, Mrs Hervet E.A.’s mother.
For a quartan ague or fever. Rx verjuice a galln & seeth
it in 4 or 5 good handfulls of ribwort & plaintain let ‘em 
boyl well together, then strain it & put sugar to it & 
drink off it before the fit comes, ibid
For a quartan ague Rx shell-snails mii bay-salt & mallows
each mi lay it to soles of the foot before the quartan 
fit comes ibid. For an ague
Make a toast of bread and soke it in the [parties] urine and 
give to a dog to eat and it will cure. Goody Smith.


33
For the scurvy & to sweeten the blood
& to correct an ill habit of body Dr Hartop.
to provoke the forms & to cure the green sickness
Rx Electuary of steel the quantity of a nutmeg & a qr of a pint
of bitter decoction after it
(or Rx steel pills v.p. 17) when you’ve left of taking yr steel then Rx dandelion
agrimony sage & [famitory] each mi boyl ‘em in 3 pints of clarify’d
whey to 2 pints drink a quart cold every morning. Prepare it 
over night. To clarifie your whey boyl it & scum it let it stand till
it is almost cool scum it again pour it from the sedemt strain it
thro a hair sieve & boyl it with the herbs when you’ve fresh buttermilk
you may clarifie it with buttermilk pour’d to yr whey run boyling.
Rx this whey all the spring as long as the herbs are to be gotten
green. This cur’d Mrs Theophila Grene that was troubled with a vomiting
had no stomach & her face full of spots with the scurvy Dr H.
Another a dist drink to cure the scurfy & a dry itching & clear
the light when the eyes are rheumatic & dim’d by the scurvy vid.
p. 77. another for the scurvy Mr. Yarwood commends tincture
of antimony. Dr. Coles commends salt of steel.
Mrs Hoppers diet drink to sweeten the blood 
Rx scabius agrimony each mi monks rhubarb the roots & red madder
roots each less [illegible] ziiii aniseeds zii liquorish zi wash & 
scrape the roots & slice them thin, wash the herbs & bruise them
put them all into a bag with a weight to sink them down in four
gallons of midling ale (3 gallons of good malt will make 5 gallons of
ale strong enough) at four days and you may drink of it & the
more you drink the better Mrs M.
A rare water for the scurvy & dropsie.
Rx the leaves of sea scurvy grass & cargen scurvy grass lbvi stamp
them & press out the juice to such add the juice of brookline & 
watercresses each lbifs The roots of broom lbiiii horse radish lbii
winterian bark lb fs 12 lemmons sliced thin with the meat & rind
nutmegs ziiiii Infuse all these 3 days in 8 pints of the best white
wine that you can get, then distill it in a limbeck Rx of this 3 spoonfuls
every morning & every evening as you find occasion. Mrs. S.
for the scurvy & to sweeten the blood. Rx the leaves of [tares] or
vetches before they begin to bear [tares] mii pound em take two 


34
two spoonfuls of the juice in a draught of warm ale 
night & morning for a week or fortnight. M. Burton.
for a dry itch & to sweeten the blood Dr Martin Hartop.
Rx Aeth. mineral zi pulv oc: cancr: coral: rubr: ana zii
misce bene & include. chartis no 20. Take every morning
one of these papers mixt with a little conserve of scurvy-grass 
& drink a draught of whey or milk & water after it, in which
a scruple (i.e. 20 gr. abt as much as will lie on a shilling) of sal-prunella
in pouder hath been dissolv’d: then ride out after it an hour 
or more 20 papers of the pouders pr. 2 s to 10 [illegible] T. Codman apothecary
Conserve of scurvy-grass zii 6 [illegible] sal prunella zi 3 [illegible] [nose] old
conserve of scurvy grass is best because it is the moistest & it is
only a vehicle outward oyntmts says Dr H. stop the pores & will not
cure
for a wet itch Rx the inward bark of elder mi boyl it is ½ a 
pint of cream or better strain it & put to it abt 3 tea spoonfuls
& let it just boyl again. Drink 3 mornings successively, before
you begin to anoint yrself, a teaspoonful of flower of 
brimstone in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of new milk anoint yrself 3 nights
successively agt a good fire then change yr shirt This cured Anne
Tasie that had it almost 3 yrs having soap & brimstones & tobacco
infus’d in ale which had cured a great many & many noted medicines
in vain. A. T.
Dr Ratcliffs letter to Dr Hartop abt E.A.’s dry itching that I perceive that friends
distemper is a [illegible] scurvy arising from scorbutic salts [illegible] in his blood ever
since the small pox time [then] [illegible] the [methods] you mention have been unsuccessful
as [fluxing], [bathes], aethiop. min: etc. I advise the following with contiunual exercise
for otherwise you will find ir very difficult if not impossible to remove ‘em 
I am [illegible] yrs to comd Rx sal mirab. glaub. zii pulv. ocul. cancer,. coral.
superbib. haustu seg: Rx coch. hort. mii hed. ter. mi fol. sals. boraban.
ana mi [ba??]. junip [illegible] aa lbfs lactis vac. q.s. distill org. [illegible] comg
s.a. lbiiii
For a cachexia or ill habit of body or scurvy, a pain in 
the stomach or wind colick
This cured Cos. Hartop’s lady when the Leicr Drs & bath waters could not
Take spring water & the best brandy of each half a pint. Peruvian
bark six drams, coriander seeds two drams; cardamoms & cubebs each 



35
one dram; salt of wormwood a scruple & half (if zfs)
[illegible] let them stand 2 days in a cold infusion shaking em often then strain it off
thro a flannel bag
& take five spoonfuls in a morning fasting & five at five 
o clock in the after-noon. If this is too strong put ½ a pint more
water to it. You may infuse the ingredients a second time 
a gentle purge for a pain in the stomach & colick & scurvy
Rx gum guaiacum one dram in [illegible] every morning for a
week before (you take the precedent medicine) takes more or 
less as there is occasion to purge; if it purges too much
omit a day. Rx it in cold water or cold beer not in any thing
that is hot because it will make the gum clog together Cos.
Elizbth H. had this Rx from a Dr at the bath. The price of the apothecary’s 
drugs at leicr is 3d 3s Mr Cotsman. In other Rxs I 
saw only one scruple of salt of wormwood & the gum guaiacum
to be taken in a spoonful of milk [illegible] to Mrs Brooks.
another to sweeten the blood being a gentle purge used almost
all the yr round by sergeant Lead Rx cowslips, primrose flowers
bottony, sage, eye bright each zi dryed; single peony roots dry’d ziii
rue mfs caraway seeds zi two nutmegs put those in a bag into
three gallons of all. [illegible] another which Dr G. Ashby drinks every morning’
to sweeten the blood & prevent the scurvy Half beer & half ale [warm’d]
together having boyl’d in the alewort buckbean fir or pine tops, sage,
gill, Roman wormwood, each dry mi for 7 or 8 gallons G.A.
another for a dry itching prescrib’d me by Dr Brooks in leaden
rum 69 [illegible]i cape mane & hora somni suberbibe coch. v. jul:
seq. Rx aqua foeniculi zviii paroniae ziii sacchari albi
ziii fiat julapium
Dr Bradly’s Rx for the scurvy Rx 6 gallons of strong ale wort
boyled with these ingredients viz china roots zvi juniper berries bruised
ziii to 4 or 5 gallons work it up without hops with yest when you [illegible] it hot
these following ingredients be hung in it in a bag & at 6 or 7 days and
drink it red sage miii ground ivy Tansy each mni the filings of iron 2 or 4 
ou. drink morning & night ½ a pint or more these herbs dry’d are as good
all winter. Mrs M.


36
A diet drink to sweeten the blood
Rx hysop coltsfoot scabius ground ivy maiden hair, each mi
jujubes figs & dates each [illegible] so raysins ston’d ziiii french barly
zi lignu vitae zfs boyl these in 3 qts of spring water to 2 qts sweeten
it with syrup of maiden hair or with any syrup or sugar or drink it without
in the morning & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed Mrs M.
The itch Rx the roots of sharp pointed dock boyled in vinegar
till they are soft then pulped brimstone wash’d in 
juice of limons each zifs hogs grease often wash’d in scabious
water lbfs oyl of rodium [illegible] zfs white precipitate zfs
make them into an oyntmt in a mortar according to art.
[illegible] without [his] [dock] at Mr [Colsman]
It cures the itch in a short time by anointing & likewise
all other breakings out & deformities of skin, Wm Padmore
To sweeten the blood & to cure a dry itching Rx juice
of brooklime & watercresses each a pint Let em settle abt
12 hours then pour off the clear & mix it with the juice of 2 
sour oranges Bottle it up & drink 5 spoonfuls morning & 
at 4 in the afternoon & at night going to bed refraining
fro salt & sour Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange Dr. Harrington’s
servt. For a dry or inward itching Rx rue ziii
scurvy grass zvi flower of brimstone zfs English rubarb zviii
put all these into 2 gallons of strong ale & boyl em till
it comes to 2 gallon. Bleed one in the arm or foot or any
pt at the full of the moon then drink every morning & 
night going to bed 6 spoonfuls till it be all gone. Purge after
it. Take it every spring till well & longer if you will This cured Rd Mr
Sam. Smally Rd Wood Gardiner at [noneaton] in Warwick-shire. make
the herbs & root (if green) half dry by being placed [near] the fire
to correct their wateryness & put the scurvy grass in when you’ve almost
boyl’d it enough to prevent its vertue fro evaporating E.A.
For the scurvy oft proved & exct. Rx of the biggest leaves of
scurvy-grass n. 12. raisins of the sun ston’d n. 20 shavings of
horse radish roots zifs. Put em in a qt bottle of beer or ale,
after 2 days drink of it for ordinary drink. you may make 
as many bottles as you please, drinking it for a long time. Dr
James Cookes marrow of physick p. 609. an electuary for the scurvy 


37
Rx conser. cochlear zij conserv. berber zi pul. ocul. cancr.
zifs misc. dos. afs at night & morning. ibid.
For a dry itching & to sweeten the blood v. p. 221.
For a dry itching drink in the morning in bed a porringer 
of butter’d ale (or ) having 2 or 3 stone 
bottles fill’d with boyling hot water well cork’d & cover’d with
towels or napkins heated hot agt the fire to keep the bottles
from burning the flesh where they touch, lay on each side
you a bottle or more Thus lie for 3 or 4 hours or longer
& sleep if you can. when you’ve layen till you are tyred
& wou’d rise let a clean warm dry shirt be ready for to
put on. when you are up drink a draught of warm broth,
or ale. Repeat this as oft as you’ve occasion taking
care you do not catch cold after it This surpasses all the
prescriptions of London & country drs E.A. The itch
dress with [?agedenic] water made with m sublimate & lime
water Mr Chiselden. The scurvy a dry itching or leprosie & 
to sweeten the blood. Rx decoctum ulmi a qt in [illegible] Dispensatory. Rx. aethiops
mineralis zij conserve of roses ziiii mix em take the quantity of a 
chestnut on a knife’s point every day for a month drinking a draught of the
decoction of elms bark aforesaid after it at meals drink a little beer as
much as is sufficient to wash down the victuals Dr Smith [illegible] in Coventry
commends this as an extraordinary Rx for the scurvy. A dry itching is cured
also by sweating thrice in a bagnio ibic. This E.A. try’d in vain. another Rx
salt of steel in pouder abt as much as will lie on a silver 2 [illegible] in ½ a glass of
distill’d elder water in a morning fasting for a month, fasting abt an hour
after it. you may encrease the dose as it agrees with you. Do not beat it to pouder 
till you use it. Dr Hely took as much at once as would like on 6 [illegible] when the
month is expir’d Rx after it a brown bolus a purge that is gentle to cleanse 
his blood on a knife’s point pr 6 [illegible] Rx it spring & fall. Keep the salt o f
steel always dry near the fire or it will dissolve to water It will not cure
a wet itch. Dr H says it cured 12 persons troubled with a dry itching prescrib’d
by him. The Rx is in Dr Salmon’s [polygraphice] of painting with the bolus says Dr
T. Hely [Dr] [illegible] avoid [illegible] salt things ibid. E. A. put [illegible] steel zii to eder water a qt 
Drink a little glass more or less as it will agree with you after you’ve eatan a 
mouthful of bread It prevents & corrects this coldness & windiness of the
water. The bolus to sweeten the blood scammony 15 gr. mercurius dulcis [illegible] i 
lenitive electuary zifs pr 6 [illegible] mi [cook] It is too strong a purge for an
ordinary man. E.A. It is an exct. purge ibid.


38
For the itch Rx flower of brimstone zfs & put it
into half a pint of white wine vinegar shake em well together
in a bottle & anoint the places infected & it will certainly
cure says W.P. for a dry itch or any scorbutick outbreak
or itching Rx allum 2.9 Green copperas 2.9 or ziiii
boyl em in a quart of old smitthy water till it is consumed
to a pint when cold bottle it up close & dab it on with a 
rag once a day cold This cured a gentmn of a dry itching
that spring & fall was attended with an out break & scabs that the
Drs could not cure. He gave the poor womn [illegible] for the cure
& Rx. Poor womn of Hinkly & Jo. Warner [farrier] Sour things
as vinegar or stale beer small or strong cause an itching or
[pricking] in the blood inwardly taken [illegible]
for any itching in the blood eat rue chopt small with bread
& butter for 14 or 21 mornings or till it is quite gon Tho. [frees] farrier.
for the itch Rx fresh butter lbi black pepper in fine pouder zi one nutmeg
pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in pouder ginger beaten pr. one farthing cloves & mace pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in 
pouder tyme, savory & sweet marjoram one handful stript & shred small. flower
of brimstone zifs mix & take the quantity of a walnut made into 3 pills
for 3 mornings together & fast one hour & half after them then anoint 
your self 3 mornings with the like ingredients & be sure to ware the shifts
2 or 3 weeks. W. P. Decr 19th 717 Sunday four apprentices to a weaver
in Spittle fields London died under the operation fo some gamboges
which they were advised to by an emperick, for the cure of the itch,
Stamford mercury. The itch in man, womn or child Rx quicksilver 2 [illegible]
flower of brimston zi black pepper in pouder zfs pr. 2 [illegible] cloves 16
in pouder 1 [illegible] ginger in pouder zi hogs lard or hogs grease as much 
as will make it into an oyntmt working em well together with a
knife on a trencher or a bit of board. anoint on the joynt’s viz
armholes & bend of the elbows, wrists, hams, etc. & between the
fingers every night going to bed It will cure in a week Dr Tho.
Holy the [illegible] says there is no better medicine for the itch. you must
shift the cloths when quite well even the gloves viz in abt 8 or 10
days. This cured Wm Headly of Cosby when he had the itch for 3 yrs
having try’d a great many medicines in vain formerly before the
tax upon spice This medicine cost but 6 [illegible] viz mercury 2 [illegible] brimston
cloves ginger pepper each 1 [illegible] this will not cure a dry itching where
there is no breaking out That dry itching is caused by the scurvy.
Dr. Gory the mountebank’s bitter pills for the scurvy cured Wm Headly
for 3 yrs of a dry itching It is worst in a [frost] he took the pills but once W.H.



39
The itch Rx red sage, celandrine, bay leaves, long dock
roots each the like quantity boy em well in butter lbfs & 
when it is boyled put in flower of brimstone zfs a little ginger
& a little chalk to let it boyle up then take it off & anoint the
joynts & down the back to both sides but not before 3 or 4 
times infallibly cures Mrs Caulson of Leicer
for the scurvy Infus in 2 qts of good white wine [sena] zi cleanly 
pickt saffron zi rhubarb zii cinnamon grossly pounded zii
cream of tartar finely pounded zii for 3 days often shaking the
bottle which must be close stops then strain & bottle it. Rx 4 or 5 spoonfuls
in the morning for a fortnight fasting 2 hours after it. ibid.
The itch or any out-break Rx cream ½ pint the juice of butter dock
(i.e. red dock) roots ½ pint boyl em together abt ½ an hour then mix with 
the oyntmt live or black brimstone zii burnt allum in fine pouder zfs
The black brimstone has a strong smell Mrs Caulson. another
Rx mercurius sublimatus ziii bruis’d water 3 pints. Put in the mercury
when the water is hot & boyl it till it is dissolv’d which will be in half
a qr of an hour. Let it stand till it is cool, the pour off the clear into
a pot thro a cloth to strain it. If afterwards any scum swims 
on the top take it off with a feather let it stand abt an hour, decant
the clear pt thro a [tun] dish into a bottle which keep for use observing
that it is rank poyson inwardly taken. use it cold or warm, moisten 
with a rag dipt in’t all the joynts, especially down the back bone. Do
it every other night 4 times dressing cures the worst itch that is, twice
commonly cures. Dr Richd Pool mountebank sells many bottles
another Rx Black pepper zfs pounded to pouder any butter ziiii boyl
em well together when it is lukewarm pound brimstone zi to pouder
& add to it stirring it to an oyntmt anoint only the hams, insteps 
the bend of the elbows & stomach agt the fire 2 nights together cold
shift the sheets & shirtt abt a week after It makes all the scabs fall 
off & heals em. It never fails at twice dressing says Good Ludlam.
To cure the itch. Rx fresh butter lbfs & new hens dung as much as 
will make the butter when melted as thick as a thin pudding let em
boyl pretty well then strain it from the dung & put in a sprig
of rosemary & abt an ounce of ginger finely beaten & [sear] [illegible]
boyle it well again then add brimstone sifted abt 2 ou. stir it till it
is cold then keep it for the use when you use it melt it & rub it
on the usual places of the body agt the fire Mrs Frances Bickerton 
Rx brimstone & hony abt 3 tea spoonfuls every morning for a long
time It has cured an obstinate outbreak or leprosy when the Drs coud not
a ratcatcher & Mrs Caulton another for an outbreak Rx fresh butter without
salt lbfs ale half a pint boyle it to a thick oyntmt anoint it on cold twice a
day at 1st it cured an outbreak abt the neck of a 2 yr old child Mrs [illegible]



40
An oyntmt for scabs v. DR Salmon’s doron modicum p.
736. He says it cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate
esteem it as a jewel  v. infra.
A salve for scabs or any breaking out. Rx sheeps dung dry’d pouder’d
& sifted fine mix it with cream or fresh butter anoint the place
It [illegible] off all scabs. Mrs Caulton.
The leprosie or any outbreak Rx sweetbrier bark & barberry
bark, the middle bark strip it downwards when you get it off.
Reddock root, scraped, wip’d & sliced. Gill run by the ground each mij
rue mi bear-foot mfs. Boyl it in four gallons of small ale wort 
till it comes to three. when cold put in brandy a qr of a pint, a 
spoonful of ginger & one egg beaten. Put it into a can or barrel,
when it has done working take half a pint morning fasting & four
o clock in the afternoon. If it purges too much take less.
The oyntmt Rx hogs lard lbfs best tobacco pouder’d fine zfs simber 
it over the fire. Pound house [illegible] & mouse-ear each mi strain it
& put in the juice. Let it simber up them take it off. Drink the
drink a week to drive out the noxious humers Then anoint with 
the oyntmt every night Mrs Caulton & a traveller
Jn Holt of Great Ashby was thus cured of an obstinate breaking
out in several pts of his face. Having taken glauber sal mirabile
3 times in vain at last he was cured by this poltis in abt 
a fortnight. Rx new milk, white bread, the yolk of an egg a little
saffron & a little oyntmt of camomile to supple the other ingredients
It must lie on night & day bound with a cloth renew’d every 
night as hot as he could abide it being boyled first J. Holt
Boyle [fenugreek] seeds or linseed, this decoction helps scabby heads
Culpeper’s Dispensatory.
Unguentum ad scabiem, an oyntmt for scabs Rx sulphur vive, litharge of
[gold] each zij venice soap, mercurius dulcis each afs prepared niter zfs.
unguentum album camphoratum zi oyl of rhodium gut viii to perfume
it. mix for an oyntmt It cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate.
esteem it as a jewel. Salmon’s Doron.
A special medicine for scabs itch or worms (in a sore)
Gather the water that drops out of the vine when their cut & 
keep it in a vial & wash the sore therewith & it shall mend [illegible]
For the scab & [s?arff] & heat that runeth in the head a scald head
Rx Tar & hony & [cal?ifie] em i.e. boyl’d & scum’d then add deer’s
servet & boyl all together anoint the sore with it till it be whole
Mrs Hervet E.A’s mother. Dr [Cheshire] says a chronic [illegible]
with immoderate itching & large excoriations has been cur’d 
by drinking & bottling in a mineral water in the park of Sr
Nathaniel Curzon at [???stone] when all other remedies have failed
He says he had done great cures with ‘em at a great distance from the spring with 
in 3 weeks from Darby


41
Burnings & Scaldings
Rx Juice of onion 1 pt cream 4 pts mix em cold. It will take away
the pain Mrs Basset. After you’d drest it 2 or 3 times to remove
the pain then anoint it with this following oyntmt & it will 
heal it in a little time. Boyle gill run by the ground & the inner
bark of elder in hogs lard ibid. Mrs Brook’s salve for a burn
Rx white pitch (or resin pouder’d) with bees wax & sallet oyl melt
em to a salve. Mrs M. Another fry some [illegible] bacon in a
frying pan whilst there is any moisture in’t then pour the liquor
being very black into cold water & therewith anoint the sore
cold There is not many medicines can outdo this. [illegible] another
Beat some sallet oyl or [illegible] foot oyl & water together
(with quantity of each you please) with a spoon or knife 
in a pot then scum off a little of the oyl that swims on the 
water & dip a linnen rag in’t & apply it fresh dipt thrice 
a day at first to cook it It will cure any burn or scald
Mrs Elizth Halford a cooling ungt for burns & scalds & all sorts 
of inflammations Rx house leek, plaintain, nightshade & ribwort each
mij violet leaves, strawberry leaves, [illegible], [illegible], adderstongue, purslane
& lettuce each mi bruise these with mutton suet & hogs lard each lbij
in a mortar, then boil it softly ½ an hour, strain it & add of bees wax, linseed
oyl, each lbi sugar of lead zij stir it till it be cold & keep it for
use J.T. another Rx may butter lbi new cow dung sallet oyl a pint
white lead two ounces Boyl em & strain em thro a cloth & put em into a pot tying
a paper over it This must be made in may when the butter & dung receives
the most vertue fro the herbs anoint it on the sore with a feather
& anoint a fine Holland rag or cloth & lay over it dress it twice a
day at 1st It gives ease in an hour & fetches out the fire in 4 
hours & heals without breaking if the [illegible] is only swell’d & not broken. It
will keep 20 yrs good A French Dr. & Mrs Finch. another Robert
hall the glasier when he burns himself with lead he applys soap
& salt & an onion pounded together & bound on with a rag 
to take out the fire but if the blister breaks he heals it with
basilicon R.H. another Rx spirit of wine (or French brandy) & 
linseed oyl each a pint or ½ a pint Shake em together & anoint
therewith dip a linnen rag therein & bind it on if you can. It 
will cure any burn even a burn with gun pouder Dr Arden [Elsmore]
surgeon & Mr Cook apothecary. Shake it before you use it. It [illegible] [illegible]


42
A salve for a burn. Rx mutton suet melted lbij house leek
& gill each mij shred, boyle em over a slow fire
For a burn anoint the sore place with train oyl & hold it agt
the fire to drive it in It takes away the pain immediately then
rub it with tallow melted at a fire or candle E.A.
another anoint with sallet oyl in which a hot iron has been [illegible] then let it rest a little time & beat the
white of an egg & so up to the sore places with a strong feather This cured a
little whelp that fell into a pot of scalding porridge in one nights time
E.A. Good Blackhorn’s salve p. 362 has cured a burn when several
noted medicines have been try’d in vain So has Mrs Holden’s lead
salve ibid. A salve for a scald or burn. Rx sallet oyl a pint
lapis calaminaris in fine pouder 1 [illegible] Bees was lijs deers suet 
1 ou (or sheeps suet) boyl em altogether a qr of an hour then put it
into a pot set the pot in cold water & stir it till it is cold when you use
it spred it then on a cloth S.S. another Rx common white paint made of
white lead & linseed oyl. Cover the sore & when it is dry lay on fresh
S.S. Janry 722 Tho. Kings daughter Ann was scalded on her instep
& ancle with hot water these make a very large blister E.A. clipt the
blister so that abundance of water came from it He drest it with linseed
oyl & sp. v. then apply’d unguentum albu camphoratum sometimes mixt
with [weapon] salve made of bacon grease made of fry’d bacon pourd 
into water This last is good to cure the itching of a sore or wound Sometimes
he drest it with sope & chalk [but he] thought chalk or w. lead in
the ung. albu foul’d the sore then he mixt weapon salve with a little mercury
sublimate workt together on a [trencher] which wrought off the chalk & 
w. lead & cleared the sore then he apply’d basilicon mixt with a little 
oyl of vitriol & sp. v. It began to heal but the girl had a kick on the
ancle done accidentally by her sister passing by her which caused the
foot to swell so that none of the precedent things wou’d cure it
E.A. Healed it thus He bathed it with the drying water made of 
mercury sublimate & lime & healed it with linimantu arcaei & 
basilicon mixt v.p. 340. You may try basilicon mixt with turpentine
the mercury water allay’d the itching of the sore. E.A. The last
plaster used was bees wax & fresh butter without salt equal wright which 
healed it & made a perfect cure E.A. Dr Salmon commends unguentu
populneum oyntmt of poplar buds for burnings & scaldings.
an oyntmt for a scaled or burn Mrs Caulton Rx Gill burdock
poplar loaves hous leek, stonecrop, elder leaves, hemlock, the inner
bark of elm each mi boyl em in hogs lard or hogs grease.
Febry 723 E.A. cured [illegible] ficer’s left leg scalded a long way down
the skin with hot ale. It had been scalded 9 or 10 days before he came
to E.A. then it look’d black & was very painful, he cou’d scarce walk
with a stick or sleep. It was cured thus. Bath it with mercury sublimate
dissolv’d in lime water strain it thro a cap paper bottle it when you
use it pour off the clear into a little pot that will abide the fire with
a fine rag in it dab it on the sore as hot as you can abide the hand
in it. [illegible] this rubbing the sore makes & keeps it clean. Then anoint all round 



43
above & below & every side with oyl of turpentine & 
goose grease or turky grease mixt. This prepares every pt 
& all the humers for healing. Then mix basilicon & tincture
of myrrh & spred it on a long cloth a little longer & broader
than the sore let a roller of linnen be sew’d round the leg to 
keep the plaster tight from slipping & from the stocking which must
be large & too wide, to draw on & off with ease. Let the leg be
drest thus once a day for a week. you may mix horse turpentine
or venice turp. a little with basilicon adding camphorated sp. of
wine or tincture of myrrh 3 or 4 drops or more to the basilicon
every plaster stirring em well before you spred it to incorporate 
scrape off the old salve & spred it with new every dressing Let the
same old plaster last all the time when the sore has done running (the
sore ran very little & was very [illegible]) scrape off the old salve & 
melt fresh butter free from salt 2 pts. & bees wax 1 pt. melt & 
spred this on the old salve cloth to heal it three days after dress
it viz. rub it with lime & mercury water hot that the calous & dead 
skin may come off & the sore appear clean & red. continue this water
& this wax salve till it is quite well & sound & not tender dressing’
it once a week. Eat oatmeal pudding or mallow porridge or drink
treacle & ale or treacle posset at night so as to have one stool or
motion in every 24 hours. This method cured the leg in ten days. E.A.
Dr Radcliff’s pharmacopoeia commends sp. v. camphorated & tincture of myrrh
p.e. another Rx balsam of sulphur zij ointmt of marshmallows 2 ou. mix in burns
of the 2nd degree ibid. Rx unguentu [diasthaae] 1 ou. linseed oil zij for taking off scabs
in burns ibid
Burning with gunpowder. Rx. Fresh butter and the
white of eggs p.e. beat ‘em well together till you bring them
to an ointmt. and anoint the places therewith. It will take out
the fire and heal it immediately.






46



47
Wounds made by a fork tine 49.
Richd Ward of Blaby in the yr 720 being in a pitch hole
of a barn had a fork tine thrust into his leg, it was quickly
cured by a plaster of resin & tallow melted together Another
Richd Hamer a labourer of Blaby being on a corn[mor?] had
a fork tine thrust into his foot The wound was anointed with 
goose grease & oyl of turpentine mixt, agt the fire & one plaster
of vents salve applyd to it cured it E.A. flos unguentoru is
an ext plaster E.A.
Captn Brubenol’s wound drink which will heal any outward or inward
wound, ulcer, fistula. It eateth forth splinters of wood out of
the flesh & scales foul putrified bones which are wasted by any foul sore 
of any long continuance but it must not be taken by any woman
with child for it will play the midwife. In April gather buds of oak
hawthorn & bramble or brier In May & June these herbs following 
dry em in a close room without air or dust. Keep em daily with [turning]
till they be very dry, then put em up into a paper bag & keep em 
in a chamber all the yr. The herbs are bugle comfry daisy roots &
leaves dandelion, agrimony, hony suckles which grow nearest the ground 
are best, mug wort, mint, plantain, ribwort, sanicle, scabies, wild
angelica, wood-betony, white bottles, wormwood Rx of every one
of these herbs a little which in all may make 3 good handfuls. Put an
equal proportion of each sort of herbs in a paper bag by themselves
then for the making of the drink take all the herbs of one bag
you must hold three good handfuls lay them in steep all night in a pot of spring water qt next morn
put a qt of white wine to it & boyl it till almost ½ the liquor is consum’d
then strain the liquor from the herbs & put to it as much hony as will sweeten
it well (a pint) then let it boyl a little & scum it set it by in an
earthen vessel to cool Put it into a glass bottle or stone jug set it in
the sun. Drink the last at night going to bed & the first in the morning
in bed & at 4 in the afternoon 3 spoonfuls. After the drink 
is made it will be more efficacious by putting into every 	t of drink
bezoar stone 2 gr. & unicorns horn 2 gr & some of the filings of rhinoceros
horn if you can get em when you put in these cordials put
in less hony & sugar candy zi in pouder instead of [illegible] other Rx’s leave
out these cordials. The plaster to be used in these cases is made
of red lead 3 qrs of a pound in fine pouder sallet oyl a pint boyled to
a salve on a gentle fire S.S.


48



49
Wounds made by a fork tine or sword
point or any prick of iron to cure.
A man in Nottinghamshire us’d to cure wounds by sympathy
thus & people came to him from 20 miles round abt him
viz Rx a piece of [reez’d] bacon & hold it between a pair
of tongues heated red hot & let it drop into a pot, with this
anoint the iron that made the wound & let the wound be
kept warm till it is well & close from the air Br. G.A. Betty
Coates (mother of H’s maid) cut her self with a rusty hatchet & apply’d 
a plaister to’t she was advis’d to scour the rust off the
hatchet & the wound wou’d heal much faster which she did & 
the heal’d to a miracle with speed Br. S. A. a cook-maid at Quenby 
cut the end of her finger almost of quite thro the nail
so that it hung only by the skin of the fleshy pt of her finger 
Br. G. A. advis’d that the finger end might be sewed to the
finger & a piece of gold beaters skin wrap’d round it to 
keep out the air & it heal’d without anymore ado only by 
the balsamick vertue that is in the blood & the maid cou’d 
afterwards [sere] with that end of her finger Br. G.A. note when
you use tincture of myrrh heat a silver spoon or any other spoon 
that would endure the fire upon a live coal & put a drop or 2 of the
tincture into it & dip a little ling into it & apply it warm to a 
green wound & it will heal it at twice Dressing it will also heal
the old ulcer on the leg mixt with basilicon & apply’d very hot when all
salves & plasters can’t make a cure over the lint lay a plaster of
diaculum to keep the tinctur’d lint to the sore Dress it once a day 
Mr Masson of Little Wigson a surgeon
A balsam exct in all wounds of what that sort soever, bruises
pains, aches, stitches & sprains R. C. Rx yellow rosin & 
pins rosin each ziiii linseed oyl ½ a pint Greek pitch zi
virgins wax zii gum elemni & ammoniacum each zfs oyl of
hypericon & roses amphaline & of turpentine each zifs
myrrh & mastick in pouder each zvi Boyl them together for half
an hour then strain it into a pot R. C.



50
A most exct. plaster for all pains in the limbs,
sciatica & cold gout; it draws out thorns or
splinters gotten into the flesh, under the nails
cures whitloes & ancoms etc.
Rx Rosin of the pine tree lbfs gum galbanum & ammoniacum,
each zi cyprus turpentine ziii myrrh & mastick each
zifs deers suet zii saffron in pouder zfs boyl all to the thickness
of a plaster to spred on leather R. C. Black pitch apply’d
plasterwise will draw a splinter from under the nail very quickly. E. A.
Madam Spark’s wound drink
Rx Southern wood, worm wood, bugless mugwort, wood botony, sanicle,
venice plantane, dandelion, ribwort, white bottles, agrimony, comphry,
wild angelico mint, scabious, strawberry leaves cinquefoil,
violet leaves, daisy roots, hony suckles, hawthorn buds, take 
of each a physick handful & a pettle of white wine & a gallon of 
running water, boyl all these together till half be consum’d then strain 
all the liquor from the herbs & put to it a quart of the best hony & 
boyle it a while then put it when cold into a glass or stone bottle close
stopt & keep it for yr use. Drink 3 spoonfuls every morning fasting 
& the same dose last at night till the cure is done. If it be for 
an old ulcer in any pt of the body apply a plaster or serecloth
for the purpose Mrs S. To cure sore legs vic. p. [illegible]
for a cut or green wound anoint it with oyl of turpentine & bind
some hares wool on’t let it ly on till well or bind hares wool dipt 
in the blood or lay a plaster [deminio] & let it keep on a week or longer
If you let the air come to a green wound it will corrupt then you must
dress it morning & night & make a great deal to do with it before it will
be well but if you apply an innocent thing to’t at first as soon as
it is done to keep out the air The blood will heal it alone E.A. Another
Rx Turpentine ziii bees wax & may butter each [illegible] ou. melt em to a salve. Mrs. Brooks &
Aunt [illegible] does great cure with it
when a wound or sore is grown foul or abounds with proud flesh
wash it twice a day with white wine vinegar apply’d with a rag as 
hot as you can endure it then dress the wound or sore with basilicon & tar spred
on lint and empl. deminio for a defensative on that to keep it on
w. wine vinegar will cleanse a foul wound or sore when precipitate
will not Mrs Hill of Thurcaston Salmon says Barbadoes tar is digestive,
balsamick, anodyne & [defensive] maturative & vulnerary It is a most exct. thing
in curing all manner of wounds & bruises It assuages tumors & sores pains
salv. disp. for a cut beat black rosin to pouder throw it on & bind it up W. P.



51
for wounds & ulcers or sores in the head or
any pt of the body for any cut deep or shallow
Mrs Johnson a school Mrs only spreads a little liniment
of arseus (called linimt of gum elomy or oyntmt of elemi
linimentu e gummi elemi) pr 4 [illegible] per ounce on a little lint & 
use it as a tent where there is a deep wound or only lays it on
an ordinary wound spread on lint & just air’d or warm’d agt the
fire before it is apply’d & then covers it with empl de minio or
bonds salve as a defensative she uses this as a family salve for 
all sores with good success. To stop the bleeding of a [illegible] wound or
the gangrene Mrs Johnson uses the linimt scalding hot ones & 
no more afterwards she uses it only just warm’d 
Balsamum adversus maculam will heal without a [illegible] p. 729 Salmons [doron]
To make weapon salve. Heat a pr of tongues red hot
& hold a piece of reez’d bacon with em lit it drop into a
pot pound some chalk & put to it, dress the weapon or some
twigs dipt in the blood & keep em from dust. Wm Padmore.
a cut or green wound or a burn or scald Rx turpentine ziii
bees wax & may butter each ziiii melt em to a salve melt some 
of this salve & add a little verdigrease in fine pouder stir em together 
& dress with it sometimes to keep a wound clean & free from proud
flesh. You must make a tent of it for a deep wound It is good for 
a wound on the head or any pt of the body or for an old sore & for a sore back of a horse Aunt
[Majes] mother did great cures with it Mrs M.
Warm a linnen cloth very hot & draw it backward & forwards on the sore when almost will 
or nearly heal & it will prevent a scar Dr Pool.
The surgeons say that if you would cure a wound without a
scar you must heal it gradually & take time. Mrs M. Some
say lucutellus balsam will heal without a scar. Scrape the sore
with the back or edge of a pen knife to make it bleed & heal in evry pt alike [illegible]
Mr James Allen of Whetstone cures a wound (as a kick) thus
1st he mixes sope & salt & binds that on for 24 hours
to take out the anguish & venom & prevent a gangrene
then he dresses it with burnt butter & salt till it is well.
J. A. To cure any sore old or new Rx oak bark & boyl it in
spring water to bath the sore with which you must do 5 or 6 times
a day & anoint it with flower of brimstone well mixt. W. Padmore 



52
Proud flesh. strew on it a little red precipitate
or burnt allum which last will dry up a sore or humor or any
out break in the face sooner than precipitate. mercurius sublimatus
corrosivus in fine pouder a very very little will clear a 
sore, eat off the fungus & hard white tough corruption commonly 
at once dressing when the other tow viz praecipitate & allum will 
not. If you add too much it will make the sore swell. [illegible] you 
may disguise it with a little Roman vitriol in pouder Fr. Coltman 
apothecary. Always mix a little precipitate with the salve It will keep a 
sore clean & prevent proud flesh E. A.
To eat away proud flesh to take out the venom of a sore old
or new that is angry or inflam’d or much swell’d & to heal it
in a little time & to give ease in a minute. Rx a shell-snail
brak the shell & bind the snail shell & all upon the sore for 12
hours then add a fresh one every 12 hours till well Mrs Finch.
another mix loaf sugar & burnt allum [illegible] pouder & strow upon proud
flesh or angry fiery heats or outbreaks [illegible] heal em [when] [illegible] [illegible]
surgeon. Oyl of vitriol will eat off proud flesh Mr Jn.
Wilkins clockman of Leicer had a running sore on his leg
for 2 yrs which the surgeons could not cure It was dry’d 
up at last & heal’d by dropping fro a [illegible] one drop 
of oyl of vitriol once a week & applying a plaster of
diaculu upon it abt 3 drops cured it in 3 weeks J. W.
Oyl of vitriol cures an ulceration in the mouth, throat,
uvula or other pts (only by touching the ulcer with the oyl)
for which there is scarce a better medicine, as well to enlarge
the orifice, remove a callous, as to correct & prepare it to
a good healing by touching it with lint dipt therein on the
end of a probe. p. 379 Salmons Dispens.
for a cut or new wound, beat borax to pouder as fine as can
be & fill the orifice of the wound therewith & lay any sticking
plaster over it (as pitch if you’ve nothing else) to keep the
air out & to keep it warme. If it doth not pain you. you
may keep it on a week or till well. once dressing commonly
cures. If it pains you, dress it once in 24 hours. IT will cure an
old sore and proud flesh. This never fail’d James Davis of Croft
Salmon says it cleanses ulcers & hinders proud flesh.


53
The leaves of garden valerian bruis’d are good for slight wounds upon
which account it is called cut finger [illegible] herbal
To make Mr. George Bent a baker of Leicer
his family salve He died abut the yr 1709. It is good for
any green wound, or old sore, nail bruis’d or knockt off
any bruise, or strain, pain, or ach. Sore leg making a tent
with lint dipt in’t melted when there is an hole. The [cramp.]
Rx bees wax zii rosin zii white pitch zii black pitch zii frankincense
& horse turpentine each ziiii melt all these together except
the turpentine which you must not put in till it is
taken off the fire then stir it & pour it into a bowl of
cold water. when it is cold work it well with the hands
& make it into rolls. Henry Smith & Br. Tho. Majer
A salve for a wound or cut or old sore or bruise or pain
in any pot of the body as a corecloth, a bile, a thorn, a sore
throat or [illegible] of the [illegible] swell’d
Rx Burgundy pitch the clearest & softest free from black veins
or specks the quantity of a small walnut, work it near a fire
with the finger & dip it oft in sevil oyl till it will spred with 
the thumb like butter warm the knife a little after you’ve
lay’d it on a linnen cloth or allum’d leather If you let it fry
on a hot knife it diminishes its vertue. It must be thick almost
as wax for a thorn or corn now cut. It will cure a whitlow.
for a wound that is bruis’d Boyl a flaxen rag in new
milk squeese it a little & bind it or wrap it gently abt the wound
as hot as you can endure it let it lie abt 12 hours (use the
[mild] also only once) then lay on the plaster a little warm’d dress
it but once in 24 hours unless there is corruption. You
may use sallet oyl instead of sevil oyl or any oyl of
olives It will keep in a pot cover’d a yr. It will dissolve
or break a swelling cure it Stephen Hunt.
Sam. Exon’s salve for any wound, sore or bile or cut
Rx bees was 3 pts white pitch 1 pt a little hony & as much
may butter without salt as will bring it to the consistence of a salve
It sticks pretty well. This was taught him by Sam Smith. It cured
an outbreak in a girl being apply’d plaster [illegible] in several pts of
her face & body. S. E.



54
Tho. Hall of Armsby leaping over a hedge his belly
fell upon the handle of a hay fork & ran up his short ribs
a great way which was cured in 3 weeks by Mr. Arden Elsmore
[illegible] He made a ly. of green ash ashes boyl’d in water so that he
had 2 pts of ly. He let it settle & kept it every time it was
dropt to syringe it in as hot as he could abide his finger in’t without
scalding it then he belted his salve of a green colour in 
a little ladle till it was scalding hot & dipt his tent in’t & apply’d
it so hot to the wound that he roar’d out every time it was dropt
A salve for a green wound. Rx the best bees was 2 [illegible] yellow
rosin 1 [illegible] The best soap the quantity of an hen egg. Turpentine 2 [illegible]
boyl all together then strain it into fair water when it is cold take it 
out & work it with the hands till all the knots are out & clear
then make it into a roll. It will draw & heal a new or old sore
or cut but it is best for a new sore. scrape some lint & 
melt the salve dip the lint in it & apply it to the sore covering it
with a plaster of the same salve to keep out the air. Dress it morning
& night at 1st, afterwards once a day when the orifice is almost 
healed up. Jn Gilson butcher of Kerby bellows Dr Salmon says
vitriolated spirit of wine (i.e. sp. of vitriol & sp. v. p. e.) or S. V. & sp. of
salt ana. cures all curable wounds at once dressing Salmon’s Disp.
A large ulcer that possessed almost the whole leg & reached almost
to the bone was cured in a scorbutical person only with brooklime
boyl’d in beer & apply’d twice a day p. 26. [Pecney’s] herbal
To cure any sore or wound there is no salve better than basilicon
to make a tent with lint If the matter is thick it is laudable pus but
if it runs then matter mix praecipitate with basilicon or linimentu 
arsaei with basilicon & it will thicken it Mr. Francis Coltman
Dr Elsmore mixt abt to pts Hungary water to 1 pt oyl of turpentine
It was shak’d in a bottle close stopt & mixt with basilicon which 
he dropt Jn. Smith’s hand shot by gunpouder then gun breaking They keep 
down proud flesh. This was not us’d at 1st, using the other medicines.
You can’t dress a green or new wound too seldom nor an old
sore too often Dr Pool [illegible] surgeon. Mr Jn Cooper bonesetter
his salve or corecloth from broken bones or limbs new set or
weak to strengthen or pull of pain to cure em Rx oxycroceum zi
pr 4 [illegible] wt pitch zfs 1 [illegible] sheep suet render’d zij 1 [illegible] made by Mr Sanford
by conjecture Dr Pool the mountebank commends [flos] unguenterum 
as the best of salves for wounds or sores.


55
To cure the itch of wounds, or sores
Unguentum nutritu is cooling drying & anodyne, good agt
inflammations: takes away the itch of wounds cures scabs.
[Tetter] Salmon’s Disp. Goody Simon had a sore leg that itch’d she
scratch’d it & made it look red & claw’d the skin off having try’d
tar & mutton suet one time & [attu] curd another to pacifie the
itching, in vain at last she apply’d a plaster of diacutu cum
gummis & it alay’d the itching & dry’d up & skin’d & heal’d the
sore Anne Simons another Rx the fine soot over a copper or oven
sift it thro a lawn sive mix it with hogs lard (free fro salt & 
pepper) to an oyntmt. Spred it on a silk or flaxen rag It cools
& is good to skin a sore & cure its itching E. A. Unguentum album
cures the itching of a wound in its healing. Salmons Dispensatory
To cure a sore or wound. Mrs Brooks of Croft having tore
her finger sadly [illegible] with a tenter hook Mr Roberts the barber of Leicer
cured it quickly by washing it with Hungary water every time it
was drest viz once a day with lint dipt in’t & bound to’t gently
by a plaster of deminio or diacutu to keep the air fro it Mr
B. another Tho. King of Blaby with a reaping hook having
cut a great gash in his leg cured it by working it only with 
urine 3 or 4 times in a day new made & binding a cloth
dipt in the same to’t T. K. another Put some new or old
human urine into a pot (with a little salt or with out but it is
more drying & healing with it, it prevents a gangrene in
a new wound) then heat an iron red hot & quench it there
in then syringe it very hot unto the sore or wound then
Rx rosin & bees wax each zij black pitch ziiii melt [illegible]
then add horse turpentine ziiii tar a pint al. zviii deers
suet zi melt em This is Jn Smiths salve of Blaby
exct. for any sore or wound or sore leg melt this salve
in a ladle & dip flax [hards] therein & apply it pretty 
hot ready to scald the sore especially at 1st after it has
been syring’d as above directed with hot urine. Dress it
at 1st once a day when it runs Thick corruption once in 
2 or 3 days. If there is any hollow place fill it with the
salve & hards or flax mixt & daub’d with the salve Hemp
hards [poyson] a wound or sore E. A. Verjuice will cure the itching of an
eye or sore Sister [illegible]


56
To scale a bone when a bone looks black it is foul
& when a bone looks white & is rough These 2 want
scaling & will not heal till they are seal’d The cure Put some
quick lime into a pot cover it 3 inches with boyling hot
water let em incorporate 24 or rather 48 hours if you’ve
time then with a syringe draw off abt ½ a little pot full & heat
it in a pan or with an iron that is red hot by quenching it there
in Let the iron have a knob at the end bigger than a large
walnut. Syring the sore with this hot water once a day It
cleans & drys it & seales the bone it self tho it will require
a pretty deal of time to do it make a pledget of flax hards
or flax drawn to a point at one end & being thick & broad
at the head moisten this with basilicon melted at the fgire
or by the warmth of the finger Thrust the point into the sore
to the head then clap some dry flax hardy thereon or you may
moisten em in lime water. If proud flesh arises mix basilicon 
3 pts agyptiacu 1 pt & dress the pledget Remember always 1st 
to syringe it with lime water hot. This cured E. A’s mare brought
mixt with agyptiacu did any good only at 1st they did but they
would not heal this wound the more was bruis’d on her 
side by carrying a side of pork so that it broke & you might
see her bare rib there being no flesh but only her skin
to joyn together It prov’d very difficult It was cur’d at last
(after it had been drest abt 3 months) with several good salves)
with the lime water & m. syring’d warm & lint dipt into the
said water & apply’d to the sore & kept on with white of egg 
& wheat flower & apply’d to the sore spred on leather This
made the sore look very white & run good corruption when 
it was pretty dry & clean It was syring’d as before & pouder
of lime & hony burnt was strew’d on’t to dry it up upon 
which lint dipt in lime water etc. warm was placed on’t & upon 
a plaster of white of egg & wheat flower which was continued
on till it dropt off being it was not sore & did not run. This lime 
water & mercury sublimate is called aqua phagedenica vid. Salmon’s
Disp. another to scale a bone. Syring into the sore oyl of briganu
or oyl of briganu & oyl of turpentine the 1st is best W. P. or oyl
of turpentine it will stop a humer fro [descending] to a sore. W. P. 



57
Dr Colsbatch’s pouder for green wounds & 
old ulcers Rx R. vitriol zi pouder’d very fine
infuse it in a qt of spring water over a gentle fire till
the water is all evaporated then reduce it to fine pouder again
& mix with it as much fine bole as will make it of
a flesh colour (or rather a pale pink) with this dress the
green wounds dissolving a little in water. If you’ve fistulas
to dress put it into some fresh urine & syring em with it
Mr Wm Dilks
Tho. Higgins green oyntmt for sores & wounds Rx hogs
lard zi turpentine zi bees wax zfs melt em then add verdigris
zfs stir well till cold Br. G. A. To scale a bone Put some
mercurius sublimatus corrosivus into a little viol as much 
as will cover the bottom either in pouder or in lumps & put
oyl of turpentine zi to it Let em infuse 24 hours or
longer. If it is a deep hole syringe some into the sore but
if it is not deep then only drop a drop or 2 into or on the
sore You may cover it with a rag moisten’d in the oyl dress it
once in 1 or 2 days This cured E. A.’s more mentione’d P. 56 to be
cured [there] whereas it broke out again & the [illegible] mercury 
water would not cure it. Mr Coltman the apothecary says
camphorated sp. of wine will not scale a bone when the
oyl of turp. is all us’d You may put in more to the same
sublimate no [illegible] will touch a sore for one day drest 
with it I believe there is nothing more healing This has
heal’d a sore when Bents salve allum’d curd, lime water
& sublimate would not W. P. another apply tincture of myrrh 
Mr Gibbards surgeon & bone setter of Coventry another oyl of camphir 
or spirit of camphir both are good to stop a gangrene to cleanse & 
seal rotten bones. p. 136, 137 Salmon on Bates’s Dispensatory another
scrape the bone that is black or foul & strew on it lapis calaminaris 
in fine pouder morning & evening & in 3 or 4 days it will
[scale] clean & easily scrape off Mrs French another Rx Tincture 
of myrrh & tincture of euphorbium p. e. [illegible] make em thus together
Rx myrrh zi euphorbiu zfs (both gums) spirit of wine that will fire gun 
pouder ½ a pint (qt sp that will not fire spoils the tinctures) Put em in a 
qt bottle at 1st cork’d up & ty’d down with a leather Set it in an oven after 
bread with the oven mouth open at 1st or if you can hold the arm in it at full length 
then you may shut up the oven lay sand abt an inch thick for the bottle to [illegible] shake
it after it has been in 2 hours the next day pour all into a [illegible] bottle. [illegible]



58
To eat away proud flesh mix burnt allum & 
bole in pouder & strew upon it aunt D. Boothby.
another To destroy proud flesh or a fungus  & to heal a sore or wound Rx 14 or 16 drops of new
oyl of vitriol (viz that which looks clear & is not turn’d black) put to it
spirit of wind (that will fire gunpouder) zi as much oyl of [illegible] as will make it
so tast on the tongue that you can’t drink it If there is a great fungus make
it sharper Put it into a bottle the 3 [illegible] pt full lest you break it for they will 
permit & heat at 1st set it in the hot sun for 2 or 3 days or longer in sum & it will
[illegible] [illegible] dip lint in it & rub a little over the plast made of w. lead etc. [illegible] Dr Million
To take off an escar or fungus or spungy substance that adheres to a
wound or some like [pith] wax often bred by mercury sublimate, or mercury
sublimate & Roman vitriol mixt or other corrosives, or by exposing the
wound or sore to the cold weather as going with it naked & uncover’d especially 
in frosty weather strew upon the ulcer rosin of scammony & it will clean
it to the bottom tho the bones be foul p. 259 [illegible] family [dictio??]
The cure abt a sore has been poyson’d apply allum curd (i.e. milk & allum
boyl’t to a curd) as hot as ever you can endure it washing it 1st with a rag
dipt in it very hot by dabbing it often then bind on the hot curd 12 hours
It will contract the spungy substance & if you think it will not cure it
you may dissolve & loosen the fungus by applying [stimulant] & [cold] The inward bark
of elder pounded in a mortar & afterwards pounded with sope to a salve
& boyl’d [with] cream apply it 2 times a day warm at 1st If any bone appears black after the fungus 
is eradicated you must scrape it with a pen knife then dress it with tincture
of myrrh (that is best which is made with Hungary water) & basilicon these last
cured Jn. Halfords fungus on his face caus’d by a bruise of a fall & cold 
Tho. Hely [illegible] mercury sublimate the o mixt with oyl of turpentine
[illegible] is too great a corrosive for human flesh. Precipitate is a great
deal safer to eat of proud flesh Tho. Holy [illegible] mercury subl. & most
poysons are apt to foul bones when they touch em ibid Burnt allum is
safer than praecipitate especially near the head or a bone ibid
Tar & fir turpentine p.e. mixt doth digest & ripen far beyond
basilicon p. 96 Gideon Harvey M.D. his family physician Jn. Halfords
wound on his face was cured applying allu posset curd twice very hot
& letting it lie on 3 or 4 days at a dime after the fungus was eaton
off then it was incarnated & heal’d by mixing basilicon with
tincture of myrrh in the palm of the hand with a knife & applying
it with ling cover’d with it & allum & leather spred with Bents 
salve for a defensative to keep it on It was a very obstinate
sore E. A. To take off a fungus. Touch it with R. vitriol then mix precipitat
& burnt allu It will make it corrupt & eat it off, as soon as it turns ot 
corruption m ix em with turpentine or basilicon & turpentine mixt Mr.
Wm. Wilks surgeon another Rx [illegible] or white lead cover it with wine
vinegar a pan then boyl it till it is dry then add sallet oyl to it & boyl it so
a salve [illegible] 2 heal most sores Dr Million or mix white lead with [keen] [alegar]
in an iron ladle [illegible] st over the fire stirring it oft with a stick when it is dry moisten
it again with [alegar] then dry it in the [ladle] again add sallet oyl & boyl it to a salve 


59
To dry up a running humer or an old sore &
to take away pain fro a sore & to cure a whitloe.
Rx [herrif] one good handful salt one oderate handful
running water a pint boyl the herb & water & put in the
salt when it comes from the fire Let the herb remain in it.
It is commonly called Bath it on cold
once a day xtian ponton & a traveller. This cured a 
whitloe on her thumb of 3 yrs standing after a bone
was taken out. Diapalms odorata (an emplaster) applied
for a constancy to an old running sore or ulcer in the legs is
a most exct. medicine & has perform’d a cure when most other things
have been used in vain [illegible] Disp. the lady Curzon’s oyntmt
Rx fresh butter lbfs bees wax zij shred small, horse turpentine
2 [illegible] verdigrise 1 [illegible] poudered zii rosin pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle
fire till it comes to an oyntmt or a soft salve It will be soft as
butter you may use it to the greatest sores both in tents & plasters.
you need not use burnt allum It will fetch out dead flesh in 
lumps. Id cured a leg that was to be cut off the net day & a hand
brought out a piece of rotten flesh & healed the hand. Dress with 
it twice a day at 1st It is good for kings evil sores Lady Curzon.
& sister Boothby. E. A. in the yr 718 cured Tho. Tafte’s leg bitten by 
a dog & after the sores were healed up pimples & itching humers & 
outbreaks appear’d in many pts of the leg near & remote fro the 
places where the sores had been which were cured in a little time only
by washing em with smithy water (i.e. cold trough water) cold once or
twice a day It took away the itching & dry’d up the humers Tho. Tafte
Bath running sores on the legs with human urine heated hot
with a linnen cloth dipt in it every night agt the fire This cured
Jn. Halford’s legs that were troubled with a [lye] water Ann Tasie
To dress sores boyl Roman vitriol zi in ½ a gallon of any fair water
& to disguise it add a little styptick water to change the colour apply 
the water to the sore if swell’d as warm as you can bear it & hold the
hand or foot in it for seven hours together stand in it or dab it with
hot cloths 20 times a day. It cures swellings you may use it cold if
in haste Dr Pool the mountebank doth great cures with this water which have
been given over by other surgeons but it oft requires patience & long
time to perfect the cure He uses excanceration water for healing & fistulas
He uses only a brown salve like deminio He generally rubs off proud
flesh sometimes he consumes it with burnt allum it but seldom D. I.
Strew upon an ulcer rosin of scammony & it will cleanse it to the bottom,
tho the bone be foul vid [kides] in Salmons family dispensatory 


60
Rheumatism
Rx 3 balls of the dung of a stone horse new dropt, steep it
2 or 3 hours in as much new milk as will cover them then strain
it thro a cloth & add abt as much more new milk as will make
it half a pint boyl it and as the skum arises take it off &
drink it warm at night going to bed for a fortnight will make you sweat
& is good taken after any fal or inward bruise. Robt Hall
the glasier of Leicer had a rheumatism caus’d as Dr Benskin told
him by leaving off smoking tobacco the Dr purg’d him a long 
time for it when he was come to his crutches & cured him but he
found great benefit by the horse dung medicine some take it
boyl’d in hale & some sweeten it with treacle but Robt Hall took 
only in milk. another Mrs P. Rx the tops of green wheat before
it hath shot an ear & distill it in a gallon of right brandy in 
a cold still give a quarter of a pint once in 24 hours with 2 
spoonfuls of syrup of clove July flowers. rub the distemper’d
pt with the flower of oyntmt i.e. Mrs. Packers yellow oyntmt
work it in against the fire once a day till the pains cease Mrs P,.
for a rheumatism with a fever al. a reumatick fever 
Rx sassaphras chips & liquorish root each zfs china pr 1 [illegible] & 
srasaparilla pr I [illegible] each zifs shavings of hartshorn 2 [illegible] & ivory 2 [illegible]
orange & lemon peel each zij best sena zij mis em with 
those herbs viz ground dwarf elder ground ivy red sage,
horehound scurvy grass, st. johns wort, buck bean (al. water
trefoil) sanicle, agrimony, fumitory, hartstongue, brooklime,
watercresses, liverwort, fether [fern], each mi. [red]
boyl all the ingredients with four gallons & a half of water
to 4 gallons strain it & put the liquour to the malt & mash
it as you do for beer or ale & put into the wort yest & 
let it work abt 10 hours then run it into a tun can & after 
2 days drink as much as you can for the constant drink. It will
keep in hot weather not above 9 or 20 days This diet drink
prescrib’d by Dr Thomas Perkins of Creyton 2 m. from 
Brixworth in Northamptonshire It cured Richd Walton E.A.’s
[illegible] at Do of a swell’d leg & a rheumatic fever when Dr
Keel & Dr Ashby’s pouder could do no good He lost his leg 
[illegible] [illegible] that [illegible] [illegible] of sickness He began to drink it [illegible]


61
Tuesday before whitsunday & continued it till December
following viz in the yr 1714 & he drank it in 
the spring 715. It purges gently without griping or
making you sick or uneasie tho it may happen to work
29 times successively. Dr Perkins & R S Walton. This cured
R. W. when most more concluded in a dead man.
To take away a sciatica pain; or rheumatic pain from the 
arms, or legs, or shoulder & to ease the gout or any pain
in the limbs Rx oyl a spike & oyl of exeter p.e. anoint
it on agt the fire once a day till the pain ceases. If for a 
rheumatic pain, after you’ve anointed the grieved pts 2 
or 3 days bleed in the arm & boyl mountains, flax the 
thickness of a mans thumb in a qt of ale, or beer & ale
till it comes to a pint. It may give you 2 or 3 stools. Drink 
posset drink or water gruel with it or whey. This has cured
when Br G.A’s rheumatic pouder would not. David Lane of
[Wiston] another the rd Mr. North of Braunston in Rutland his
purge for Ed Bennet (servt. to Br. Boothby) his lameness in his knee
of several yrs standing & pains often all over his body Rx sal
cathartic zi cum crem. tart. zfs He was order’d to take it twice
intermitting seven days betwixt each purge. This is one purge. To 
take buckbean & roman wormwood each mi (the 1st is the most 
material, it will do without the last) & put em in a pitcher & pour
2 pts of warm water to it & cover it & let it infuse one night or
longer & to drink a coffee dish of it every morning fasting but if
that was offensive or disagreeable to mix it with all his beer or
other drink that he commonly drank & to drink no liquid without a 
mixture of it. To make an issue on the lame leg above the knee
& to dry up that below the knee which he then had. Ed. Bennet.
any rheumatick or inward pain in the thigh, back etc. put old rusty
iron lbi or better into a pipkin with ale 3 pts which put into an oven as
soon as you’ve drawn the bread or [illegible] & sit up the oven again & let it 
stand 5 hours. Drink every morn a qr of a pint or ½ a pint warm while it
lasts. Let it stand all the time with the iron in it. It will be of a very 
green colour near the bottom This cured French Gregory Rd Mr Stokes
This will cure a dropsie & swell’d legs ibid Dr Bostocks cordial will
often cure a rheumatism when Br. Geo Ashby’s pouder would not E. A. 


62
A rheumatism Rx mountain flax half a qr of an ounce
ale a pint boyl it on a slow fire to ½ a pint strain it thro
a fine cloth & drink it at night or in the morning fasting 
you may drink either gruel or posset drink when it works. Mrs
Caulton A dist drink for a rheumatism, scurvy, dropsie
(or a rheumatism scorbutical or dropsical) & to sweeten the blood 
Rx nettle seeds a galn gill a galn tansy a pt mustard seed lbfs.
Bruise the seeds & tie em in a bag. Put all these in 4 or 5 galns
of ale. Let it be 3 days old before you drink it. Drin ½ pint 
warm in the morning, & as much at 4 o clock in the afternoon.
Mrs. Caulton. A rheumatism by a soldier Rs Raysins of the sun
lbi stoned & bruis’d figs slit lbi hartshorn shavings pr 2 d liquorish
2 d angelica, foals foot rosemary, balm, spearmint, rock 
rue, maiden hair wood [??tony] wood sorrel, liverwort, gill each
mif boyl all together in [illegible] qts of spring water till ½ is consum’d 
then strain & sweeten it with what you please a traveller & Br S. A.
another anoint the pt pained with oyl of tobacco 2 or 3 several
times E.A. another Rx oyl of easter & oyl of lavender 
p.e. anoint the pained part with it without [heating] only in the
winter hold a warming pan with coles or embers near it anoint
[illegible] & repeat the oyls. Drink cold water from a spring where
the sun shines upon’t or well water that is hard water half a 
pint in a morning for a wash for a man abt 60 or a woman
a young man may drink more David Lane
another for rheumatic paines Rx hearts tongue mviii wood betony
mifs put em in 4 gallons of beer brewed of 2 pecks of malt & 
boyl the liquor with the ingredients in it till it comes to 3 gallons
Let it stand & work 5 days Then drink a pint night & morning till all 
is spent. Put oyl of turpentine 3 drops into each pint. Let a woman
take but 3 qters of a pint night & morning S. S.
a medicine for the rheumatism Rx ale 2 gallons six hundred of
bugloss (it is bugus in the original Rx) al ox tongue) sage mi
rue mi you must bruise the bugus & the herbs together & tie em up in
a cloth & put em in the vessel & let stand five days before you [draw]
it. [illegible] with bugus is. S. S.
another Rx syrup of buckthorn zifs for a woman zij for a man put 2 
nutmegs & 10 cloves bruised steep em in a pint of white wine or ale
the 1st is best 48 hours shaking it 3 or 4 times a day Then pour off one
third of the clear wine & mix it with the dose mifs 2 days & repeat the
purge the third day & so take 3 purges. The remaining [illegible] nutmeg & cloves
will serve for other use afterwards. They connect the griping of the syrup
This cured [springthorp] baker of Leicer tho 1st purge gave ease, the second
made him lay aside his crutches & the third made a perfect cure. Dr. Brooks
& Mrs Finch.


63
a rheumatism any inward pain or stitches, a cold
a pain in the side or back or stomach.
Rx 6 or 7 balls of a stone horse’s new dung reeking hot tie
it up in muslane & put it into a qt of posset drink made
of ale & beer & strained Then let it infuse 2 or 3 hoursor
all day drink a qt of a pint at a time at any time by night
or by day warm. If you take it at night it will cause you to 
sweat. You may drink a qt or 2 in a day. This taken, one time & 
dwarf elder tea a tea cupfull another cured a violent rheumatism
in a man of Oxfordshire confin’d to his bed He was kept fro
meat with water : gruel. He was kept from ale if he ever drank it
his pains returned. He often eat milk porridge. Sometimes it was
3 or 4 weeks before he was well. Mrs. Ann Lathwel. It is more nauseous 
made with [illegible] bd of [illegible]
a rheumatism Rx water trefoyl & archangel make tea very bitter
Drink a draught morning & 4 o clock afternoon. an oyntmt
clarifie beef brine a pint over the fire while it is hot put it
into a stone bottle, add oyl of bays zfs & oyl of turpentine 1 d
anoint where the swelling & pain is, every night till well Mrs
Caulton. Rheumatic pains Drink w. wine & water or only water
that has stood in a mug 6, 8, or 12 hours or longer drink it almost constantly
whey is good with exercise juice of lemon with water is good,
so is lemon tea Rx cinnabar of antimony snake root in pouder
with hony & w. sugar candy in pouder make an electurary  Rx the
quantity of a nutmeg in the morning fasting or less or mor according
as it purges This & drinking water cured E. A. of violent pains
in his back DR Salmon says cinnabar of antimony is a very much
prized remedy in the French disease. It forces sweat cure [illegible] falling
sickness, apoplexie, convulsions. It sweetens the blood & all the
juices being taken for 7 or 8 weeks together morning & evening fro
zfs to [illegible] ii or zi in some convenient vehicle or syrup. Dr Quincy says
it is a powerful alterative in all chronick diseases. Dr Jn. Cheshire
in his treatise on the rheumatism says that it displays its tyranny in 
fixed & sometimes in vagrant aches There is one medicine for it that is
second to none as an alterative after necessary evacuation in the whole
system of physical preparations, that is cinnab. antimon. a medicine of
sterling worth known efficacy & seldom fails of success, if administered
with judgmt verbum sapionti [safest]
for the gout or rheumatism Rx flower of brimston zv native
cinnabar zi gum guaicu, pickled ginger each zij conserve of
Roman wormwood zifs syrup of clove gilliflowers as much as
will make it into an electuary you may add snake root in 
pouder zii a little sugar candy poudered If the stomach is squeamish & 
[illegible] with taking medicines the cinnabar
Mr Boyle infused cinnabar of antimony in rhenish wine & attributes 



64
to it marvellous virutes in contumacious surgical cases
Fullers dispensatory p. 1 Rheumatic pains. Fry briony root 
rasped or grated in grease free from salt. apply it as hot as you 
can abide it. Tho. Juice. A rheumatism Rx ivory shavings
zii boyld in 3 pints of ale till one pint is consumed, strain & drink 
a qr of a pint every morning fasting as much in the evening for 
a pretty long time together. Mrs Frances Winstanly Dr. Quincy
says rasura eboris is much of the same nature with rasura C.C.
shavings of hartshorn. Some think water is as good as ale.
An oyster drink for a rheumatism. Rx oyster shels ½ a peck burn
em as you do lime, then pour water 4 galns scalding hot upon em,
let em stand 24 hours. Pour off the clear & warm the liquor & infuse
therein sassafras 6 ounces liquorish 4 ou. mace zii. Let em infuse
24 hours more; then stain the liquor & vessel it up for use. Dose a 
pint morning and evening.
For the rheumatism or gout. a farmer at upper Brails in Oxfordshire
6 m from Sheepy Norton sells a pouder that cures it for some
time. His directions. Boyl one paper of the pouder pr. 2 s 6 d per 
paper with stone crop mi lavender cotton mi in a at of new milk
till half is boyled away then strain it & put in saffron 3 d keep 
it stirring till cold then put in treacle 4 ou. & crab verjuice a 
pint. Drink it a 4 mornings & 4 evenings fasting before & 
after one hour. The pouder weighs zi [bating] 1 copper farthing
It is made as E.A. conjectures of stone crop (i.e. wall pepper 
[illegible] & elecampane It is very biting to the tongue. It is not
bitter perhaps there may be aristolochea in it. (some think a little
ginger & pepper) Rx it in the morning when you rise & at 4 in the
afternoon of the same day cold. It generally binds but some
times it loosens the body. Gilbert Hollowell horse courser at 
the [Boll] in Little Ashby often took it with benefit
For rheumatic pains or pains in the back, side or shoulder etc. This cured
Geo Florence Fidler when he had a violent pain in the small of his back & side
& could not go without crutches. He was blooded in the foot on the side on 
which he felt the greatest pain & his foot was put into warm water to make it
bleed more freely he bled about 14 ou. Then rx mustard seed bruis’d in a mortar zfs 
steep it all night in all a pint (strong ale is best) In the morning strain it
[hire] a linnen cloth or strain & drink it in the morning for one day & fast 2 
hours after it using exercise as walking or riding if the weather will permit
or go up stairs & down stairs 2 or 4 hours It will bring away a great
deal of gravel if you are troubled with gravel which is often the cause of the
pain of the back Rx it 3 mornings together Half a pint of ale is a dose for  
a little man or woman & if you’ve some left at the bottom of the mug in which 
it is steept it will pour off the [clearer] G. Florence had fresh mustard seed every 
time but it will serve pretty well twice or for 2 doses of all except when you 
are very much afflicted. after you’ve taken one dose anoint the plows most
pained with oil of spike agt the fire twice or thrice a day. but if you are not
much afflicted the mustard ale will cure without bleeding or the oil keep a flannel to it.
[illegible] was [illegible] from [illegible] to [easter] It gives [illegible] G. Florence. 




65
A Pain in the Stomach
Rx Spirit of lavender a little tea spoonful (or 20 drops)
drop’d on a little white sugar when your stomach pains you.
Lady Robinson, this is very good especially when the pain in the 
stomach is caus’d by obstructions of the courses. Pr. George
(that marry’d Qn Anne of England) was cur’d of a pain in the
stomach by drinking a glass of verjuice for a great many
mornings together & walking after it. M. Gee. For a pain 
in the stomach & on one side like a pleurisy caus’d by drinking
small beer when hot. Rx waters of fennel, saxifrage & 
parsly ana zifs sp. of juniper zi tincture of laudanum [illegible] ii
oyl of caraways zfs ens veneria [illegible] i sp. carminativus zi salt
of wormwood zfs syrup of anniseeds zifs mix for a julap
dose is one spoonful morning & noon & 3 spoonfuls at
night going to bed. Thos. Farran the weaver prescribed this to 
Mary Gee Aug. 1707. Farran’s medicine did not good. She found the
greatest benefit by sassafras wood in chips infus’d in water drinking every 
morning & night abt a coffee dishfull. For a pain or wind or 
any sickness at the stomach. Boyl gentian zi & the peel of one sevil 
orange in 5 pints of water til wasted to 3 pings Drink in the morning
fasting & at 4 in the afternoon ½ a coffee dish full MRs Finch or you may 
infuse gentian zi & the peel of a sevil orange rue water balm water rosewater 
fennel water each a qr of a pint Double anniseed water & pint drink a 
spoonful or more till you’ve remov’d the pain. [illegible] For vapours or
wind in the stomach or pain in the stomach Rx tincture of castor 25 drops (a dose for
a woman) in a glass of cold water or beer & apply to the
navel a plaster of galbanum strain’d broader than both the
palmes of your hands. This cured Jeffry Daffern’s wife after a ‘
great many noted medicines had been baffled. Mrs. Elizth Basset.
Another for wind in the stomach. mix elecampane in pouder
with live hony & take a knifes pointfull. It is also good for a
cough & consumption. Butter & honey with bread eaten in a 
morning fasting is very healthful a London Dr eat em daily.
Mrs. [Kenton]. Elecampane & hony is good for a pain in the stomach.
ibid For a pain in the stomach especially if caus’d by worms
& to kill worms in man woman & child Rx mercurius dulcis gr
& jalop let the apothecary direct so much as to purge six times



66
you must keep very warm or it will flux This brought
a great many worms from Goody [Cater] being abt 70 yrs old
Lady Moor Robt Walton’s Br. in law was cured of a pain in his stomach
by drinking all his own urine warm when he had try’d [illegible] things in vain.
For the wind colick or wind in the stomach or gripes
Rx ginger carraway seeds anniseeds each a halfpenny worth
in pouder juniper berries beaten to pouder 1 d aloe succotrina
in pouder 2 d tar as much as will make it into a paste which 
roll up with liquorish pouder in to pills Rx 2 pills at night & 2 
at morning for 3 nights & 3 mornings successively or when
ever you are grip’d begin with 2 pills unless you are grip’d 
but a little then stay till night before you take them go on with
the pills tho you’ve ease till you’ve taken 12 pills a Spanish Dr cur’d [Kg] C. 2 with 
these pills Mary Burton a traveller was cured with these pills for
a great many yrs at once taking They purge gently
unguentum norvinu (an oyntmt for the nerves) expels wind & helps
the cholic p. 762 Salm. Dispensatory. Womens pain in the stomach caus’d
by obstructions. Drink cow piss ½ a pint 3 mornings successively
this cured Mrs Finch or boyle a little saffron in a draught of
posset drink. ibid.
Emplastru stomachicu Rx styracis opt. tacamah: odorifer. ana ziiii
succini cariophyl: n: moschat. mastich: & aloes succotrini a zi cinnamon:
zfs stryacis liquid: q.s.f. empl. J.T. for the stomach
& head Rx castoru & angelica each ziii in pouder with hony  
make an electuary The dose is zfs or [illegible] ii mixt with 4 or 6 ou.
of white wine. Then add stibium finely pouder’d 3 grains let em
stand in a glass bottle 4 or 5 hours shake the mixture & drink it
up. Provide a fat hen boyl her in water with a crust of bread 
only. let the patient drink of the broth as oft as he vomits. Or Rx
a good quantity of ale posset drink (it corroborates the stomach)
& if you do not vomit add to it a little hony. This washes away 
all filth & slime in the stomach which generates all distempers in the
ventricles. This above prescrib’d is in all surfeits an admirable medicine
at night you must take an hypnotic after all catharticks to secure the
exploded spirits ex. gr. Rx aqu. cinnamom: hordeat. zifs aqu. cinnamom:
fort. zfs laud. liquid gutt. 20. syr de macon. zii m. [cape] hora somni
post cathartici operationem. J. T. A bag to comfort the stomach 
Rx mastic red rose leaves, a nutmeg grated or in pouder mace, dry mint mix 
em all in a dish upon a chafing dish of coles Put em hot into a bag & 
hang it abt the neck against the stomach S.S. 


67
This pill is admirable in all distempers of the stomach.
It suffers nothing to putrify in it, it expells all uncleanness & 
cleanes the same, it causeth mirth, strengthens the heart & 
head & cleans the [reins] & womb. Rx white or brown amber
& mastich each zii aloes zv. agani zifs true aristolochia 
zfs. Beat em small & with syrup of worm wood make a mass
for pills from each dram make 6 or 7 of which take 2 or 3 
going to bed. This pill is nulli secunda. J. T.
The distill’d water of camomile flowers is an exct. remedy to 
assuage pain in the stomach dose ziii warm or for want of 
it a decoction of camomile flowers. J. T.
Some people are troubled abt 3 hours before dinner with disorder
in their stomachs as with pain, wind, crudities etc. Rx [illegible]
stomachic every time in a dish of coffee does the cure. J. T.
The tincture of the bark of sassafras wood extracted in 
sp of wine given at the time or repeated several times a day to 
[illegible] spoonfuls dispels wind in the stomach almost in a minute & 
[illegible] of ground ivy drawn with sp. of wine has the same vertue. J. T.
oyl of mint is wonderfully effectual in all stomachic
diseases. J. T. To assuage pain & distress & offending matter Rx
chimical oyl of bees wax, oyl of lilies, [camo???] & sweet almonds
each zi fresh butter & hens grease each zifs to be used outwardly
J. T. Dr. Bradlys tea for wind in the stomach. Rx Red sage
3 pts rosemary flowers 1 pt. bawn 2 pts 5 cloves add a little
of the kind of an orange (if you please) Mrs M. To dispell
the wind downwards out of the stomach or bowels. Rx
the 17 black pepper corns whole alone or in a spoonful
of beer any time of the day you may take it 2 or 3 
days successively till you find the wind wrought off. Stephen
Hunt of Whetstone cures himself by this Rx. Dr Tho.
Farran. Dr. [illegible] [Elizer] that works by sweat will cure the
wind colick or wind in the bowels pr. 6 d at Mr. Martins in 
Leicer. Boyl some cloves of garlick in milk strain & drink it
fasting it dryeth up a [rheum] or moisture in the stomach. Dr Cogan.


68
To procure an appetite, to help digestion, to strengthen
a weak & cure a sick stomach, vapours, melancholy, wind
the biting of a mad dog, quartan agues, fevers especially 
pestilential, the plague, worms in children; to stop [larks], bloody
flux & the [terms], vomiting, & inflammation of the mouth &
throat it hold therein; to provoke sweat & expell all manner
of poysonous & inflections diseases fro the heart. To prevent miscarriage.
Rx Virginian snake-week 15 grains for a man in pouder infuse
it in ½ a pint of cold water 12 hours shake em & drink both
pouder & water cold till you are well pr. 1 s 6 d per ounce at Leicer. The
Rx Mr. Edward Lovell
For wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes Dr Wilson
of Grantham his pacific drops. Rx liquid laudanu zi
oyl of juniper zii (per 1 s 2 d) The dose is fro xv. xx. to 
xxv drops in any vehicle. Begin with 5 drops first &
increase em gradually Take em in ale or beer & [ride]
after em they are diuretic & bring away gravel [illegible]
If they do not cure the wind you  must take an electuary
of [zedony] Mr Wm Cook apothecary These are the ingredients
in the said electuary viz [zadoary] rhubarb salt of
wormwood [illegible] ginger oyl of nutmeg syrup of cloves 
Rx the quantity of a nutmeg of the said electuary roll’d in sugar morning
& night after the morning dose drink gentian tea after the 
night dose drink 15 or 20 [pacific] drops in beer This I try’d in vain.
Bates in his dispensatory commends The electuary of pepper for
the colic & gripes. Unguentu eboloru i.e. oyntmt of danewort or 
dwarf elder is ext in dropsies tumors for if with it the belly & other pts
be anointed it resolves the wind & removes the tumor. [Tis] ext. in 
joynt pains & gout Rx succ rad. ebul. zii [co?] in ol. cham. zviii ad
consump. succ. & cum cor q.s.f. unguent. when you anoint these with
mix it with a little vinegar or wine. p. 293. Cooks [marrow] of chirurgery 
for gripes with a looseness there is scarce any thing better than rice
milk eaten warm E.A. Wind in the stomach swallow 17 pepper
corns for 2 or 3 mornings together & at night going to bed take a spoonful
or 2 of brandy burnt with rosemary & sweeten’d with sugar
keep it in a bottle close stopt The 1st drives the wind out & the 
second prevents its return this cured Stephen Hunts wife when the 
Drs could not S. Hunt.


69
To procure an appetite & to correct
wind in the stomach
Rx wormwood mii shred or cut it, or pound it in a mortar
boyl it in two qts of water till one is consumed then
bottle it close put a little of it (to the palate) in some ale
or beer giving it a shake or stir. It is a gratefull & 
agreeable. Bitter you may try gentian juniper sprigs
or berries, gill, tansies, broom, sage, buckbean, carduus,
centuary, Roman wormwood. Rosemary good for the
head & sight. orange peel, balm, camomile sprigs or
flowers wormseed faenugreek fumetory, rue, cloves, nutmeg
elecampane, sassafras, savory, dale chips or shavings,
feverfern does all a bitter herb can do, says Pochey. white
horehound strengthens the stomach & cures an ill habit of
body. ibid. wormwood in ale or beer breeds a red rich face
but not in water says Dr Hartop. Virginian snakewood mint
carduus seeds A pouder for wind exct. Rx seeds of 
burdock zij aniseeds & liquorish each zi make of all a fine
pouder & mix em with white sugar candy. The dose is zi p. 612 
Cook’s marrow of physick. another smoke a pipe of tobacco
& after you’ve taken 2 or 3 whifts, swallow the spittle
2 or 3 times in one pipe once or twice a day. It is best in a
morning fasting. Stephen Hunt. another burnt a cork that h as
stopt a wine vessel for some yrs to ashes Rx  a knifes pointful in ½
pint of warm ale night & morning Stephen Hunt
For gripes & wind or convulsion fits oft caus’d by wind. Rx 
strong ale one qt hony or treacle lbfs boyl em & when
cold all syrup of damask roses (i.e. syrup of roses solutive)
zi stir em to mix then keep it close stopt in a bottle Rx one
spoonful alone when grip’d or ill or at any time after eating
or mix it with posset drink ½ pint or syllabub drink (viz milking
fro the cow to a little vinegar & sugar) W. Balby another cut dry 
wormwood mi infuse it in a bottle of ale close stopt & 
drink one spoonful of this wormwood ale in the beer at 


70
at any time when you find wind at the stomach or
you are not well. To the precedt Rx you may add 
viz boyl in the ale rosemary & sage strain it then add a 
little saffron with the hony & boyl it a little again before
it is qutie cold add syrup of roses zij They purge gently 
& clear the urine being good for th stone & gravel
the urine when settled in the pot is like rags you may hang
it on a stick. Thus was Jn [Tralby] of Wigson his urine being
abt 21 yrs old & having convulsions fits. Tho. [Heifferd]
of Counterthorp is the author of these 2 last Rxs which were
communicated to E. A. by Wm Tralby [illegible] E.A. made the
addition of rosemary sage & saffron. This upon tryal was good
for nothing. Pain in the stomach caus’d by wind lying heavy like
a wright Rx agrimony (which hath not a hollow stalk) centaury 
each as much as a nosegay gentian root zij wormwood ½ as 
much as of the agrimony picking out the dead leaves boy em
in strong beer or ale in a pint let it stand afterwards all night 
then bottle it close being strain’d & drink at 4 mornings fasting
it clears the stomach & strengthens it & takes away the wind &
pain when the pain is below the stomach after you’ve taken the
said drink Rx ½ a spoonful of mustard seed once a day at any 
time before meals for 2 or 3 days with a little drink in a spoon.
take it whole this cured Mr Thos. Simpkin & Wm Marches wife.
Stephen Hunt Wind in the stomach chew a few sweet
fennel seeds Mr. Baxter another eat some white [pears] after you 
have carry’d em in the pocket or when they are dry or old they will cure
the heartburn caused by wind E. A. Dr Quincy commends tinctura sacra
as a great preserver of the tone of the stomach & to maintain a good digestion,
good for hard drinkers Dispensatory p. 393. To procure a appetite 
to expell wind & prevent & cure the gripes for the grips & wind & to 
amend the tone of the stomach eat salt plentifully with every thing you 
eat strew salt 2 or 3 times on all mutton beef or veal roasting To get a
stomach eat oatmeal pudding with salt & butter & a little vinegar or
verjuice & a little brown sugar or make a posset of milk porridge thus
make some milk porridge put a spoonful of vinegar or [illegible] stir it till it
curdles or turns then add a little brown sugar turn a porringer at a time 
thus & walk or exercise after it E. A. For pain or wind in the stomach 
& to get an appetite Infuse hiera picra zi in a pint of white wine [for]
2or 3 days Pour off one pr 1 s spoonful of the clear & drink it fasting
Joseph Spence farmer on Rx 9 black pepper corns in ½ a spoonful of
sallet oyl whole Rx [em] fasting a week or longer Dr [?atly] & Br. Boothby.


71
A person hurt by a fall
Blood in the arm Take lucatellus balsom inwardly a knifespoint fully presently
after the fall & at night going to bed for [illegible] or 3 nights & 
in the morning fasting for 2 or 3 mornings. If an eye is swell’d
to abate the swelling beat a lump of [roch] allum in an earthen
porringer with the white of 2 eggs moisten some flax in it & 
apply it to the swelling with a linnen cloth one in 2 hours
or as it drys moisten the flax again & again To take away the
blackness & [blueness] of a bruise bath it with spirit of wine
& apply a flannel to it. These things cured Mrs Margaret Wilson 
having a fall from her horse Apr. 1707. A man of Whetstone
being [kickt] on the face was cured with only bathing often with
new milk very hot it took away the blackness another to take
away blackness & [blueness] caus’d by a wound anoint it with
butter cold & chafe it in well may butter is best. Michael Simons
had a kick of a horse on his thigh so that to lay for dead & he
was cured without bleeding only by chafing it presently with
butter Anne Simons. for a bruise or strain apply white of an 
egg & wheat flower plasterwise nothing better Wm Pinch of Aylston
The last Rx Elizth Halford try’d having strain’d her wrist so
that her hand swell’d but it pain’d it & made it swell
more She cured it by boyling soap & brandy & binding
it on spread on cloth EH. A strain in the back Rx 14 
or 17 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught of warm 
ale 3 mornings successively This cured one that could not go
Mrs Finch. A bruise or strain old or new. anoint the place with oyl
of mallows new drawn It will take away the pain & swelling then
[illegible] & dress [suet] p.e. apply it plasterwise till well the
plaster strengthens. If for an old bruise add oyl of [illegible]
to the oyl of swallows & oyl of roses and 1 d the next day apply a 
plaster of paracelsus. Francis Kenton. for any inward bruise
after a fall & drink a glass of cold water. The Rd Mr. Lovell.
Joshua Goodrich was thrown down fro his horse when he gallop’d
& he lay upon his leg which so pain’d him that he could 
not stand on’t he rode home but his leg was not broken,
it look’d black & yellow & he was very lame for 6 weeks 
having a corecloth on’t he was thus cured Rx deers suet 


72
Deers suet 2 pts good brandy 1 pt melt em
together & rub it on warm agt the fire with the hand
morning & evening at 1st then once a day till well. he 
found ease at the first dressing Mr Winstanly prescrib’d
it. Jos. Goodrich. A strain or bruise Rx some linnen
cloth a little bigger than the place you intend to cover, lay
upon that brown paper of the same extent, & upon the 
paper place flax or soft [hards] then having a pr of
tongues heated red hot hold a piece of black pitch in one
hand & melt it agt the tongues so that it may melt & 
cover the hards when you’ve made a surface of pitch
besmear it all over with the white of an egg beaten
lastly sprinkle it all over with salt & apply it cold. It
is very painful for abt 2 days but it’s an exct. medicine
for a strain or a crackt bone Aunt Majer did great good
with it you must let it lie on till it drops off. Mrs M. an inward
bruise by a fall. Drink a quart or 2 of cold water & 
bleed in the arm James Lappington & Anne Tapie. a strain 
boyl brooklime in humane urine (the older the better) with salt
bind it on as hot as you can endure it This cured 2 of Mr Allen
Gregory’s son of a strain in their knees that they could scarce 
go Stephen Hunt. A strain, bruise or old pain or to strong
then a weak limb that sometimes is free fro pain. Rx some
crab verjuice (the older the better) boyl em being made thick
with salt then apply em as hot as you can endure with a red
cloth or flannel bound to it repeat it once in 12 or 24 
hours. This has made the lame to walk, old Tho. [Freer] anoth
Beat some white of an egg & mix verjuice therewith bind it
to the place pain’d with some flax or flax hards dipt there in
& bound on with a linnen cloth repeat it night & morn. This 
cured Mr Simon Barwel that had strain’d his leg abt the ancle
by a fall when Mr. Goodyear & another famous London surgeon
had try’d several medicines in vain one affirming
that one bone the other that 2 bones were out when never a 
bone was dislocated being only a strain & a swelling Mr
S. Barwel. Another Mrs Elizth Basset of Blaby stumbled at a [cus???] 
& fell down & bruis’d her leg a little above her ancle so that it swell’d
mightily & look’d black She thought at 1st her leg was broken 



73
or some bone dislocated which 2 last things were not
true Mr. Wilks the surgeon apply’d linnen dipt in white of
eggs beaten & mixt with vinegar & water to cool & strengthen it
The next dressing [illegible] used camphorated spirits of wine The third
time he apply’d Barbados tar. A cataplasm of the root of Solomon’s
[illegible] is good to take away black & blue marks arising
from contusions [Millers] Herbal vid. p. 75.
A poultis for a swelling or bruise or strain by Tho. Hely. Rx new
milk a pint or for want thereof scum’d milk, oatmeal mi
boyl it till it is as thick as flower meat then add sheeps suet
chopt small zij & let it boyl a little time to melt Then 
take [houseleek] & mallows each a qr of a handful chopt
small put em in & let it boyl 3 or 4 wallops. Apply it
thin & warm as you can endure it at night with a linnen
cloth & a flannel over that or for want of it a double
linnen cloth. you must put in a little handful of oatmeal.
use it twice a day at 1st sitting or lying still. If
you walk abt use it only at night. The same poultis will
serve 2 or 3 times, adding only a little fresh suet & a little
milk to keep the kettle fro burning. If it breaks heal it with 
healing salves If it is only broken a little this poultis will
heal it, being not shifted above once in 2 or 3 days. avoid
salt things & strong drink a qt of small beer is enough
for a man to drink in a day. This poultis is anodyne cooling
& supplying & strengthening oyl of turpentine is often
too hot. A poultis for a swelling, bruise or strain
by Peter King mountebank. Rx flax seed zij in pouder boyl
it in a qt of water till it grows tender or is consum’d then
add hogslard zij & after that is melted wheat flower as much
as will make it into a poultis apply it warm & renew it
every 12 hours at 1st till the pain is abated then once in 24 hours
is disperses & sometimes breaks it. March 715 In Halford driving
plow fell down & a horse trampled on his leg abt 
the ankle which was very much swell’d so that he could not go
but with great pain. there was a little hole like the head of a
nail e.a. apply colebatches pouder dissolv’d in urine & 
a linnen cloth dipt therein: a day or 2 after E. A. apply’d
white of egg beaten & mixt with verjuice then oyl of turpentine


74)
& goose grease. Bents salve & Barrets 
salve. diaculu cum gummis [att] these did little or no
good. at last we used the last poultis which took away the
pain after that had been apply’d 3 or 4 times We heated old
human urine & dipt a linnen cloth therein & apply’d
very warm This was repeated along time at one dressing 
after the urine was dry’d It was anointed with 
unguentu [dialthaea] agt the fire. This took away the pain 
& stiffness a plaster of Jn. Smiths salve was apply’d to 
the place bruis’d by the nail but it never [illegible] corruption
It was poultis’d every night & drest with hot urine & after it
anointed with ungt dialthaea every morning This strengthen’d 
his leg & abated the swelling & made a perfect cure.
The free labourers at Blaby standing upon the shafts & driving
the horses made a sudden turn which threw him down & the wagon
fore wheels ran over him & the hinder wheels drag’d him on it
was empty when he came home fro coles he was blooded & a sheep
skin new taken off was apply’d warm to his side where there was 
a swelling as big as hi fist the wheel went over his middle he
was blooded the skin lay on one night it stank the next morn 
& he took flower of brimstone almost a spoonful in a porringer of new milk from the cow 2 or 3 times 
intermitting a day or 2 He found great ease by taking it. [illegible] a strain 
or swelling boyl a qt. of strong ale to a pint then put in hogs
lard ziiii let it boyl a little again then apply it as hot as
you can endure it. Traveller. To break any swelling white
or red as whitloe i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb felon or ancome i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb. Rx mallow leaves. elder & chickwood all together mi
wash’d & chopt small, put it to a little thick cream, white bread crums 
deers suet zi for want of it sheeps suet, hony a little spoonful boyl
em to a poultis. apply it as hot as you can bear it, with a linnen rag.
Renew it once in 12 hours, especially while it runs. It will both break
& heal [mudden] wheelwright of Rotherby. A poultis to take away 
pain from a swelling or [illegible] or raw sore ore burn Rx new milk mutton
suet chopt & the skins taken out (or for want of it tallow or deers suet)
oatmeal ground & hous leek wash’d & chopt small stir the oatmeal & milk 
cold then boyl em & add the suet & housleek stir em & let em boyl apply it
as flat as you can endure it Mrs Freer of Blaby.


(75
a kick or bruise or swelling. Rx the leaves of rue
& mallow pound em with some reez’d bacon spred it on a linnen
cloth & hold agt the fire a little to warm it Bind it on renew it
night & morn at 1st then once a day This cured Jn Hind when his
leg was bruised by a stone & swell’d so the next day that he could not
go Dr Brown surgeon of Mountsorrel & Jn H.
An in ward strain, or bruise caused by a fall etc.
Rx balsamu capivi 20 or 30 drops in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of
milk old or new in the morning till you’ve taken 12 d old
Tho. Juice of Dunton. It is very good taken in ale caudle
Ec. Underwood falling out of a pear tree Augt 723 found
great benefit by Balsamu capivi. He was blooded & had 
a clyster a day or 2 after he took oyl of turp. in ale & had
some thing give him of poppies to make him sleep. He drank
his own water pint with a spoonful of spirits night & morning
Jn Smith of Blaby showing an unlucky horse he kick’d him on the
knee It made it swell & was so sore & stiff that he could scarce go. He
was cured by bathing it 3 or 4 times with good verjuice Jn Smith.
Tho. Hollowell of Little Ashby was kick’d by a horse on his foot so
that it look’d black & blue It was cured by rubbing it twice with brandy
cold Tho. Hollowell.
Osmund royal al. water fern is esteem’d by some as very 
powerful in dispersing bruis’d blood & taking away the blackness
that arises therefrom quincy.
For an inward bruis’d or strain in man or beast
Rx the best madder zii for a man ziii for a beast; warm it hot [illegible] to boil
(but do not let it boil) In ale half a pint for man, in a qt for a beast
when it is moderately [illegible] give it warm. it is good for the pain in the
bark or any inward pain. Let a maid that hath the green [illegible]
hold her head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [illegible]
[illegible] Dyer at [illegible]
IN april 1739 E.A. had a violent pain in the middle of his back caus’d
perhaps by cold but no corecloth nor camphorated sp. of wine would
take it away at last he took abt 3 pints of sifted oats which were 
put in a frying pan dry  by them selves & cover’d with a pewter dish & 
hung upon [an iron] called by the cooks the housewife or lazy back it hung 
a pretty distance from the fire
Salmon’s Dispensatory says the poplar ointmt cures the pain & heat of
the back. For a decay of the marrow in the back
Rx new milk a pint 20 shell snails one comfrey root sliced & a little isinglass,
boil em all well together, then strain it. Take half of it at
night & the other half in the morning following. It must be repeated
for a fortnight. An ointmt for the same Rx sp. of wine a pint & oil of
amber an ounce, mix em & warm em & rub the backbone night & morning
during the time of taking the above said remedy Mrs Ann Benson & Mrs Hartshorn




(77
For eyes inflam’d that abound with humours
that look red & are sore
apply a blistering plaster to the lower pt of the neck between
the shoulders then dissolve as much Roman vitriol in 
spring water as will give it a pale [blew] tincture to which add 
a little loaf sugar to correct the sharpness of the vitriol drop it
2 or 3 times a day but especially at night going to bed with a [illegible]
moistening only the lower eye lid on the inside when you perceive
it makes the eyes stiff omit dressing for a day or two adding a 
little more water & more sugar E.A. note If you blister for the
eyes when they are not rheumatic & full of humours you will
sink them so will an issue. This cur’d E.A. May th 20th 1707 when
plaster of burgundy pitch & red lead & white copperas water
& other drying waters would do no good.*
Another Rx running water 2 spoonfuls best French brandy [illegible]
wash the eyes there with on the inside & outside the eyelids. Dr. 
[Lowe] & Mr. Tho. Matthews. * not in a weeks time or less my 
eyes grew very rheumatic & sore as before & itch’d very much
for which reason I was bleeded 12 z in the arm which did my eyes
a little good but not very much het in a fortnight or less the
following eye water & diet drink cur’d them. An eye water
Rx waters of fennel white roses & plantane each zfx.
white copperas & saccharum saturni each gr. vi. camphir [illegible]fx
dissolve them near the fire & strain the water & moisten them
3 times a day especially in the morning but not at night
going to bed for then it will make the eyes sore. pr. of
bottle & ingredients 2 d Tho. Farren a weaver. a diet drink
for the scurvy & weak eyes & to strengthen the sight & to 
dry the eyes. Rx water crosses brooklime, scurvy grass,
[fumitory], sorrel, liverwort agrimony each a good handful,
sena zfs. roots of horseradish zii boyl all in six quarts of
good ale wort till they are soft for want of ale wort 
you may boyl em in stale beer which is good against the
scurvy strain out the ingredients when cold & work it
up with yest & let it in a cold place & drink half a pint
or a quarter of a pint every morning & into every dose
you drink drop 16 or 20 drops of the spirit of sulphur.


78)
you may buy ziii of sp. of sulphur at 2 d ½ per dram.
If once taking doth not cure repeat the dose It will cure
also a dry itching & purifie the blood ibid. In a month or
6 weeks time after taking the precedent diet drink my eyes grew
very rheumatic & bloodshot & eye waters would do no good & my 
eyes itch’d violently tho I had bleeded 12 z in the arm a little before
I apply’d a vast great leech to my temple almost one inch 
from the corner of my right eye nearly the hair of my head above the
eye where commonly plasters are lay’d to the temples It sucks
very much & made a great orifice & bled almost all night I setting
the leech on abt 5 o clock in the afternoon in June 1707 When
I lay’d a little salt on’t it spew’d up blood almost as black as ink 
I found the itching of my eyes to cease the next day & the rheum 
to abate I dropt em with tho. Farren’s eye water to strengthen the
sight as I us’d to do before my eyes were very well in 2 or 3 days 
but not I apply’d a plaster to each wrist made of common mallows
celandine, bole & hony stampt abt 4 hours before I us’d 
the leech which alone will often cure a [illegible] or bloodshot eye. I 
remov’d the plaster lay’d on [leather] once in 24 hours for 3 days
which is very cooling. I conclude that the leech did my eyes most good 
letting out the thick black blood so that there was not a right
circulation of the blood & spirits. Bleeding in the arm or behind
the eyars seldom is of much advantage to the eyes some commend
bleeding in the foot for the eyes. Ithing eyes to cure.
wash the outside of the eyelids & the inside of the eyes with 
verjuice for 4 or 4 days It is good too when they are bloodshot [illegible]
It will cure the itching of a [illegible] too Sister Boothby. Rheumatic eyes Rx lapis calaminaris in fine pouder
& plantane water shake the bottle when you dress em which must be 
at the morning fasting & 4 in the afternoon. Mrs Coltman.
Rheumatic & bloodshot eyes Boyl soft water & skum’d milk p.e. with 
a piece of household bread drink it for the constant drink avoiding 
malt drink, wine & cyder wash the eyes often in a day with common
brandy or [illegible] of Hungary’s water which both heal & dry the eyes.
[illegible] smoak the [illegible] tobacco [illegible] especially night & morning These cured 2
A. June 1707.) This following medicine surpasses all the former 
It strengthens the sight cures any pain attending the eye as eyes gum’d 
up in a morning & the congeal’d gum feels like grit or dust in the eye It 
helps a blear eye or any red rheumatic eye drying up the rheum in man 
or horse Rx oyntmt of tobacco that is green melt a little against the fire & with 
a feather or the [illegible] anoint the eyelid that some may enter [illegible] once in 2 days. 


(79
How to dress a sore eye with eye water.
you must dress it in the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in 
the afternoon when the stomach is emptyest is the best time Dr.
Clay. Plantane water is the best liquor for an eye water
better than rosewater etc. for a rheumatic weak eye ibid
when you dress the eye pull down the lower eyelid so that you 
may see the inside of it then take a soft feather as pidgeons or partridge’s
etc. make it naked only just at the point leave a little
feather which moisten in the eye water & touch only the inside
of the lower eyelid note the eye is a tender thing & you 
should not so much as touch it with a feather it will offend it
E.A. Sore red eyes caus’d by hard drinking. Drop some tallow
from a lighted candle in to water & anoint it upon your
eye lids so that some may go into the eyes at night 2 or 3 
times dressing will cure. Wm Bonsher of Wigson a poultis for 
a sore eye to take away the pain Rx a small quantity of red
rose leaves & wet em in plantain water & scald em over a fire
till they are very soft apply em as hot as you can endure it at
night going to bed the next morning take it off & wash the eye with
milk & water warm’d Sister Boothby. Sore & red eyes caus’d by 
the small pox. Rx some hen dung the whitest & newest from the 
henroost & dry it in an oven lay’d on a white paper after bread 
is new drawn then beat it to pouder with a knife on the paper & 
blow a little with a goose quil into the eye holden open once
a day either night or morning. use it for a wash then intermit
a day or 2 Repeat it till the eyes are well. you must gather none
but white dung This cured Jn Gees eyes. It made em smart & 
water when first drest & his eyes would at first grow sore upon 
catching cold. Mary Gee. Another Rx a little bit of old or 
new calico burn it over a pewter dish blow off the ashes then pour
a little breast milk (i.e. womans milk) cold to it & moisten the
end of a clean feather dipt therein & put it into the eye once a 
day, making fresh liquor every time it is drest by burning another piece 
of calico & pouring milk to it. ibid. To dry eyes that water much 
& to strengthen the sight, spread upon a piece of velvet cut round 
a little bigger than a shilling emplastrum deminia & apply to each
temple [illegible] plaster. The velvet keeps the eye war. It is better 
thus apply’d then between the shoulders or to the crown of the 
head. Hannah Licoryse Some rheumatic eyes are much mended by 
applying empl. de mucilaginibus to the temples. not you must
not let these plasters lie on above 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 days at a time 


80)
Things bad for the eyes
Mr. May the famous oculist near Oxford reckons those
things enemies to the eyes viz pease, cabbage hot bread
pepper salt stale beer & things sour & butter wind. much 
drink
note when you apply plasters to the temples as soon as you 
find they incommode or molest the eyes you must take them
off. They dry & repel & are best for rheumatic eyes sometimes
you must not wear em above 1 day at a time intermitting 3 
or 4 or more for the oftener you use them the less benefit you
will find by em & the seldomer the more. E.A.


(81
for blindness or a blear eye or any 
weak, sore eye or bloodshot eye
Rx the shells of snails that grown on their backs nine good hand fuls burn
them well 5 hours in wood embers then beat them with white
sugar candy zii sift it fine & blow a little in a quill into
the eye. Thrust 2 or 3 goose quils one within another & fill
the least end of the quils abt ½ a barly corns length that
must put in more or less according as you have a film
[illegible] or any [illegible] corruption or cataract white or black or
anything that obstructs the sight to work off or remove
Blow into the eye some pouder once in 3 days whether 
it be the eye of a man or horse It will not eat off a [har?]
in a horses eye. It strengthens the sight where the eye
balls are loaded with any corruption or rheum It is a great
dryer because of the allum that is in the sugar candy when
the eyes are bloodshot or look red Rx small beer let it
stand till it is dead then heat a little hot & wash the eyes a qr 
of an hour after the pouder Some eyes are cured in a week 
some in a qr of a yr by the pouder Mrs P. If the beer or pouder
make the eyes ake do not used them The pouder will make 
them smart. The beer for some eyes repels the humours too
forcibly
another Rx loaf sugar 2 pts Roman vitriol 1 pt beat to fine
pouder & blow it into the eye You may if you will mix it
with the white that comes from hen dung dry’d in an over or
in the sun E.A. It is as good or better than the former pouder
of Mrs P. you may add sometimes a little pulvis nephriticus
it will corrode the more hen dung makes it less sharp & 
mollifies it. some say loaf sugar is better than sugar candy, having
more allum in it. E.A. Salmon in his dispensty p. [199] says that
the gall of a corn or ox mixt with breast milk makes an excellent collyris
agt the [har?] or [Pearl] in the eye. fresh butter put into the eyes 
[illegible] them p. 200 ibid for a rheum or pain in the eyes Rx [Barly]
& boyl it in water & lay it poultiswise upon the eyelids at night
going to bed If it be for a hot rheum apply it cold If it be for 
a cold rheum apply it hot for some nights till you find ease.  Sister
Boothby. Plantane water is a great dryer & prefer’d before common 


82)
Water by Aunt Boothby. A water for sore eyes. R.C.
Rx plantane water ½ a pint, white sugar candy zi white
vitriol zi sugar of lead zi Boyl them a little & strain the
water for use. R. C. Another Rx fennel mi white sugar
candy a qr of a pound white vitriol (al white copperas) zi 
boyl these in 2 quarts of spring water till it come to one;
if you put in the juice of celandine it will take away any
[pearl] in the eye. This water cured a boy in Lichfield that
had been blind 3 yrs R. C. This water took a film off the
Kenny’s horses eye at Whetstone.
A purge for the head, which cures the head-ach & take away rheum
from the eyes & is good in all pains whatsoever.
Rx syrup of buckthorn zi magistery of scammony in pouder 10 grains, 
black cherry water zii aqua mirabilis zi mix them & take it fasting
drinking warm gruel as it works. This is a ull dose for a strong
man or woman. R. C. another Rx Daisy roots & the herbs that belong
to them gotten always fresh (that is in the winter) infuse abt
as many as will cover the bottom of a large pewter porringer in as
much rain water as will cover them all night let them infuse cold the
next day pour off the clear & strain it thro a thick cloth let it
settle & pour off the clear again to which add loaf sugar the quantity 
of a little nutmeg & abt ½ so much lapis haematites or a little 
mor or instead thereof venice bole Mrs Emerton cured all eyes
even a blind beggar with this but she used (as Mary Gee that made up 
the water for hen conjectur’d) bole. This is the Lady Clarks famous
Rx the [illegible] at Watford in Northampton the lapis haematites is
good for a blear eye. Salmon’s disp. you must drop some of the water
into the eye at night keep it in a bottle close stopt & shake it before 
you use it. Some shepherds eyes Rx houseleek & penny-wort 
pound & mix em with the white of an egg & a small quantity of
vinegar & plasterwise lay it to the forehead then make a plaster of
bole with a little white of an egg & vinegar & lay it to the temples.
Mrs M. Another white wine alone will cure a rheum in the eye
Dress it 2 or 3 times in a day at first, after sometime but once in 
a day Mrs Clay of Leicer. To strengthen the sight when decay’d smoke
rosemary coltsfoot & [illegible] [.e. This has cured several Mrs. Finch.
Headach snuff up a lilte white [pepper] in fine pouder. [Withabed] [Morer]
of Cosby.



(83
for an eye much swell’d & rheumatic of 
Jeremiah Brandreth Taylor of Quarron 
cur’d by Sr Wm Reed oculist
apply 6 papers of pouder to the nose 1 every night
to be snufft up call’d the pallick pouder It will make
the nose run & heat it as if it was on fire It will
provoke spittle viz ½ a pint or more at night It will
work a full hour In the morning Rx 10 papers of 
pouder 1 ta a time till you’ve taken them all in sage
tea sweeten’d with sugar. Rx these the same time that you 
take the 6 papers of pouder They were of the colour 
of [cap] paper & wrought only by stool. once in six
days Rx purging pill 4 doses viz 5 pills in the pap of 
an apple for one dose intermitting 6 days & omitting 
the pouder when you take the pills. Rx the pills when the weather
is warm & open & keep warm that day & do not stir out 
when you’ve taken the above said pouders Rx 20 papers 
of pouder consisting of a light brown colour mixt with 
filings like filings of gold. Rx 1 paper every morning
in milk pottage or water gruel fasting 1 hour after IT 
makes the urine smell very strong & works only by urine
Every morning & night wash the eyes with an eye water
dropt on a fine Holland rag or a spunge Dab it on the
eye lids leaning the head back that it may soak thro the
eye lids You need not put any into the eye it will 
not molest the eye if any gets into it you may smoak
tobacco if it will make you spit it will do you good, but
if it doth not it will do the eyes harm. apply blistering 
plasters about 3 inches long & 2 inches broad to each wrist 
a little above the pulse It will weaken the eyes so lay it 
on or below the pulse apply fresh blistering plasters once 
in 20 days [illegible] four times or longer spread em on [allu]
leather. If you heat the knife hot when you spread the blisters 



84)
it will make the blisters sorer apply em with [illegible]
lot whilst they will run. you will find the greatest ease
& benefit by blisters. Rx A diet drink to sweeten the
blood Rx hartstongue liverwort dwarf elder each 2 
large handfuls sassafras shavings lbfs guajacu zii liquorish
sliced 7 ounces Boil them all in six gallons of midling
alewort till a gallon is wasted & work it up as other drink
at 5 days old You may drink it for the constant drink. Rx 5 
drops of the elizir in a draught of it in the morning fasting
an hour after it (It is not Daffy’s elizir but is made of some 
strong water & is sweet.) Be sure to abstain from all salt dyet 
& sharp & sour liquor Let this be repeated for the constant drink
till the middle of May & also at the fall of the leaf Frances
Surgeon of Derby advis’d two [issues] to be made on the back to dry 
up rheums in the eye Rx diaculu simpl. lbi [Pius] Burg zii m. f. emplastru
pro fontinali.
Sr Wm Reads prescriptions to Wm Shetton of Willoughby who first
lost his sight by a cold & was a yr under Allibone who lay’d 
plasters to his temples (which dry’d too much the optic nerves)
& made an issue on the sutures of his head
Sr Wm Read’s restorative cephalick spirits to be used as followeth,
only prepared & sold by himself
Drop 6 or 8 drops in the palm of the hand, rub the hands together
& snuff the steam up the nose at night going to bed & 
morning when you rise; at the same time chafe the temples with 
the like quantity. abstain from all windy dist & refrain going
to bed upon a full stomach.
Drop a drop of the red water into the corner of the eye next the
nose every night when you are in bed & drop a drop of the white
water every morning an hour before you rise.
Begin with the papers of pouders as this directs Rx one of them 


(85
every morning fasting in a dish of sage tea sweeten’d
with sugar & hold the eyes over the steam as you drink it & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon Rx another dose. Be punctual in 
the directions so long as all the things last make use of 
the golden tincture as the printed note directs wrapt about it
There is also a printed direction about the cepahlic restorative
pouder There is also directions about the 2 bottles of opthhalmick
water [40] papers of restorative pouder at 6 d each 1 [illegible] – s – d
1 bottle of golden tincture 7 & 6 d Two bottles of ophthalmick
water 5 s total 1 [illegible] 12 s 6 d
moisten the end of a feather so that it may lick up a little
for rheumatic eyes [illegible] Portugal snuff put it in to the eyes
a little before you go to bed intermitting a night or 2 This
cured a man so that he could read without spectacles when 80 
yrs old Sister Boothby. It doth purge & make the eyes water 7 
smart very much but it is most exct. medicine to strengthen the 
sight E.A. Mrs Finch blows Portugal snuff into the eye with a 
quill another to cure a [pearl] or film or wound on the eye. Roll a qr
of a sheet of the best white writing paper round so that it
will stand on one and after it is dry’d at the fire [illegible] light the
upper end at a candle & let the other end on a clean dry 
plate (silver or pewter) & hold it up with a [key] that it may 
not fall down on the plat but may burn so that the smoke
may come out at the bottom of the paper & leave an oyl
on the plate If it doth not leave an oyl the first time you 
must burn paper again & again till there is oyl enough to 
moisten a feather this is oyl of paper at the end of a wing
of a hen you will find a soft sharp pointed feather (especially
before they moulter) moisten this feather in some of 
this oyl & a little before you go to bed let some body hold
with [illegible] fingers & thumb both the eye lids open clap this 
feather just upon the sight of the eye then press [illegible] both eye lids



86)
together & turn the feather round in the eye that oyl may 
come off, then shut the eye for a little while it will pain it
violently for a little time & make it water you must use it
thus every night for a week or fortnight It will strengthen the
sight, dry up a rheum, cure a wound or pain or small pox in the
eye, an old wound or sore Mrs Finch of London. Another for
weak sore eyes smoke colts foot & bottony they have cur’d some 
or let a man when his mouth is full of smoke from a tobacco pipe
blow it into the eye, the eyelids being thrust open with a finger
& thumb or wash the eyes with milk & water ibid (tobacco smoke 
is too hot for most eyes E.A.) an approved medicine for sore
weak eyes. Rx camphir zii The best brandy ½ a pint. shake em 
well together for 3 or 4 days before you use them then wash the
temples & eyelids taking great care that none of it go into 
the eye Mrs. S. for to take away a pearl in the eye & to 
clear the sight Rx the best aloes beaten to pouder (with a drop of
sallet oyl in the mortar) 1 d spring water ¼ of a pint. let it simber
away in a large penny glass viol plac’d at a distance from the fire
till ½ is washed dress it with a feather night & morning till well Mrs 
Clay of Leicer For sore eyes a humor or diffusion of
rheum or a pearl Rx red wine ½ a pint as much white wine vinegar or
burdeaux vinegar if it can be had mix them together in a bottle
[illegible] Rx [lead] beat it as thin as a shilling cut it four square
only longest [one] way making 4 holes at every corner one & 
sew to each corner a piece of paper let the lead be made full 
of holes as small as if made with a pin & take a small piece of
scarlet cut in the same shape as the lead but without any 
holes at the corners or any pt of it sew [tapes] to it as you did
to the lead, let the scarlet be dipt in the above named liquor
every 2 hours & apply’d to the nape of the neck by tying the
scarlet abt the head to fasten it & the lead upon it This hath
taken a pearl away Mrs M. for sore eyes Rx red rose leaves 
[smallage] maiden hair hous leek, ivy, succony, red flannel, [illegible]
celandine each zii wash them & steep them a day & a night in ordinary 
salt then a day & a night in white wine & it will be most
sect. for the eyes It hath recover’d sight lost for the space of [illegible]
yrs you may put into’t the juice of woodbine leaves if you please
Mrs M.


(83
For sore eyes Rx lapis [tulia] prepar’d in fine pouder
zfs white wine half a pint infuse them over a gentle fire
four hours then put it into a strong glass bottle in a shellet 
with straw & water let it stand 4 hours longer morning & 
evening anoint the eye & if need be morning & evening
drop a drop or two into the eye also Mrs M.
To take off a film or pearl & to clear an eye
Blow a little Portugal snuff into the eye & several times in 
a day stroke a little hony with a feather into the eye This cured
a won of Banbury when the Drs could not Mrs Newlove.
Another to take off a pearl beat a little allum to fine pouder
& sift it then beat some loaf sugar (double refin’d is best) & 
sift it & take two pts sugar & one pt allum mix em & blow
a little into the eye with a [illegible] intermit two days & blow a little more
once dressing cured Mrs Jinny [Ings] eye of a pearl. Mrs J. J. 
The said Mrs [Ings] eyes were very sore & cured b y setting a leech 
to a vein behind each ear twice intermitting some days & bleeding
in the arm once & washing the outside of her eyelashes
with cold water her eyes were sore for 9 weeks so that she  could 
scarce see. There’s a famous oculist in Warwickshire that cures
a great many sore eyes by commanding his patients once a 
day to dip only their face in cold water in a large bowl
or basin Mrs [Ing].
For a hot rheum in an eye Rx a garden snail with the shell on 
& with the round knob of the shell make a little hole & prick with
a needle thro the knob keeping in the [head] of the snail It will 
give 5 or 6 drops of [blew] water in a [illegible] or spoon if the
water is red or yellow you must throw it away as not good
dip the ginger in the blew water & apply it to the eye that some
may go in & it will cool & cure the eye M.B. wood betony
smoked with tobacco preserves the sight Wm Finch. For a rheum
in the eye Rx frankincense & put the quantity of a 
small nut on some coles of fire not too brick & 
blowing for them it will burn & flame, it should
smoke you must hold some fine [illegible] or flax over 
it to smoke it then apply it to the hollow pt of the 
nape of the neck (you need not shave it) now smoke 
the same [illegible] thus night & morning till the rheum is dry’d


88)
dry’d up. If you hold your head over the smoke 
it will bring a rheum into your eyes. This cures
a rheum after the small pox Mrs Finch.
For a blood shot eye Rx house leek stamp it & squeeze 
the juice out which boyle in an eggshel then strain it thro 
a fine cloth then put a little into a spoon & lay your
head backward & pour it in it will take away blood
shot & cool the eye Mrs. Finch. Things that dry up a 
rheum in the eyes. Rubbing the crown of your head & 
temples with your own [illegible] or salt a little dissolved in 
water & put into the eye & rub’d on the temples (It 
is a most exct. dryer) or oyl of spike rub’d on the
temples or emplastru do mucilaginibus or de minio, mastick
or burgundy pitch apply’d to the temples or wrists, or 
bistering plasters to the wrists or behind the ears or on the
back are great & good dryers but nose plasters are not
to be us’d long to the temple they are such great dryers
E.A. smoking tobacco or sneezing by looking agt the sun or by 
snuff will dry up rheum in the eyes but when the eyes are dry they do 
em an injury by making em too dry & stiff.
Oyl of turpentine is good for any pain in the eye & to strengthen
the sight & to dry up a rheum in man or horse apply’d to the 
temples or eyelids, it will not hurt if it gets into the eye Jn.
Clark [Gelder] To set off a pear or film on the eye 
& to clear it. Rx the [illegible] of blood red roses dry em & 
beat em to pouder blow a little into the eyes intermit 2 
days & repeat it till it is cured Gordy Simon. To stop a 
rheum & to strengthen the sight Aung Boothby constantly wears plaster
on her temples of linimentu [arsei] To preserve the sight when 
you write or read Let the back be agt the wall in which the window 
is you are to write by & let the window be on the right hand
& turn a little to the light body so that the shade of your body
hand may be on the paper you are writing on which prevents it 
from dazling & striking the eye. E. A. when the eyes are dry anoint
the crown of your head with sallet oyl. E.A. To dry up a rheum in
the eyes break the top of an egg & pour out the yolk & white put a little
white copperas as big as a horse bean with spring water boyl em in the [illegible] [illegible]


(89
Falling sickness or convulsion fits
Rx 3 spoonfuls of white wine vinegar an ordinary thimble
full of gunpouder loaf sugar beaten zfs This is one 
dose to be repeated 3 days before the change & full of
the moon. Mrs. Palmer of Islington cured several with this
medicine uxor mea. another Rx Two goose quils almost full of 
quick silver pr. r d was em up & sew em in a little piece of old 
rag abt your neck so that they may hang upon the pit of the 
stomach wear em for several yrs [?enserving] the quick silver 
when it is almost wasted Aunt Boothby another Rx 2 spoonfuls
of juice of [illegible] in a little new milk for [illegible] mornings
together fasting ibid. for fits of the mother apply galbanum 
prepar’d (a plaster) to the navel. ibid. for convulsion 
fits or the falling sickness approved. Rx the gall of a young black
dog for a man & of a ditch for a woman & mingle the whole gall in 
a spoonful of [zinc] [flower] water (tilia floru aqua) take it in the morning
fasting & fast 4 hours after & so 3 mornings together. It must be
taken 2 days before the full of the moon & the day of the full
& after for 7 days together. Rx the quantity of an hazelnut of methridate 
in a little of the [zinc] flower water every morning fasting & so
continue it monthly for the space of a whole yr Mrs M. another Rx
a [illegible] mold for a won a the mold for a man tie it close in an 
earthen pot alive & bake it in an oven with bread till it is so 
dry as to beat to pouder take as much of the pouder as will like on
a ½ crown in ½ a pint of white wine or ale till all is taken MRs
Abigail Finch. another Rx some of the skull of a man hang’d
up in gibbets (David Jervase cut some of [Lorsby;s] skull with 
a chizel by moon shine when the hair & flesh was quite wasted 
or a man hang’d The skull of the fore head next the brains is
best dry it to pouder after bread in an oven pound it to fine 
pouder Rx as much as will lie on a silver three pence in abt a 
spoonful or more of white wine vinegar in a morning fasting
for 3 or 4 mornings successively. This cured Joseph Ezard shoemaker
of Lutterworth David Jervase’s apprentice he us’d to lie
as if he was dead after a fit & always fell down if he did 
not lie down D. Gerfase had this Rx fro Dr Carter a traveller 


90)
for convulsion fits [L?] Cullen Rx sea horse
pizzle 5 gr in a paper for a woman 3 gr. for a child (you
may buy a pretty deal for 6 d at London) dragon water
a pint mithridate the quantity of two large horse beans
shake em together (Let em infuse if you can 12 hours or more
before you use em) Rx a paper of the pouder in a spoonful of 
this water 2 mornings before the full of the moon & 2 mornings 
after & so before & after The last qr new moon & 
first qr & at any time when you perceive a trembling or
any symptoms of an approaching fit This has cured several
women & children near Marston Aunt Boothby us’d it with great success. [Ld] Cullen & Sister Boothby
oyl of camphir is a noble specific in the [epilepsie] in old
or young but chiefly agt that kind which proceeds fro disaffections
of the mesentery & womb Dose fro gut 2 to 3. p. 138 Salmon
on Bales’s Dispens. Convulsion fits in children Give a drop or 2 
of oil of camphir in a little sugar to a child once a day till it is 2 months old They are
often caused by wind & make the child look black in the face. Aunt
Boothby & Jane Warner al. [Tosie] another oyl of amber made with 
[tiles] beaten to pouder ertc. is a specifick agt fits of the mother & falling
sickness, so is also ambred spirit of wine p. 475 Salmon’s disp.
forfits Rx hips of sweet bryer when full ripe, dry
em in a oven just warm not too hot by no means but put
in several times, keep em dry; & when they are to be used beat
em in a mortar & sift em very fine. Give as much of this
pouder as will lie on a six pence in a spoonful of black
cherry water & give a little black cherry water after it
Repeat this dose 3 mornings successively. To a little of
this when ever you perceive a fit approaching. It may be given
both morning & afternoon. This has cured adult persons as
well as children. Lady Curzon of Kettlesey near Derby.
an ext. Rx for convulsion fits Rx foxgloves [illegible] Mi polypodium
leaves of the oak mi spring water one qt boyl the herbs till it comes
to a pint, strain it & sweeten it with brown sugar candy to the taste.
Give the child 2, 3, or 4 childs spoonfuls when the fit comes & 3 or 4 
times a day you may give as much as it will take. several have 
taken it & have had no more fits Mrs Caulton. A grain of
ambergrise 1 gr given in a spoonful of sack to a new born child 
being the 1st thing it takes prevents all sorts of fits. Grind the 



(91
ambergirse fine & give it cold Mrs Caulton
volatile salt of hartshorn & fixed salt of hartshorn cure
fits of all sorts viz fits of the mother apoplexies, convulsions,
epilepsies, [illegible] salm Dispensatory fits that come by a fright 
Buy a silver ring with mony that is given You gratis & wear it upon 
any finger you must constantly wear it If you pull it off or let it
fall to the ground the fits will return. Goody Exon’s daughter of
Blaby had fits at the sight of old [illegible] that had hang’d himself. She lay
once in a fit from Monday till Friday. Her mother [beg’d] 3 s 2 d [illegible] she 
bought 2 silver rings pr of one was 20 d the other 18 d she [woar] both on
one hand thing a ribbon abt each ring because they were too big. She never
had a fit after she woar the rings Robert Foreman of [illegible] had 
a maid that was cured of fits by wearing a silver ring bought with 
[elemazunary] mony pr 2 d.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Rx southern wood in May, pound & strain it, to a qt of the juice put
abt a pounder & half of sugar pr. 6 d or 7 d per lb boyl it in a syrup Rx
a spoonful night & morning, a child may take a less quantity. Give it 
to a child 2 or 3 times a day. In the winter boyl the [illegible] dry in 
water & make it to a syrup with sugar Mrs. Elizth Caulton
To prevent fits in children. Give one grain of ambergrise in 
a spoonful of sack & water the first thing You give a new born child
prevents all sorts of fits You must grind it five & mix it cold Mrs
Caulton a midwife a lady had [illegible] her children dead of fits till she
tried this Rx afterwards she had 4 that lived ibid.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Chop of the end of a black cats tayl to make it bleed Give 
3 drops of the blood in plague water or beer or ale or water
presently after the fit. This cured a girl of [11] yrs of age that
us’d to fall down in her fits once taking it Mrs Ann Lathwell
another Rx spirit of amber gut iii in a spoonful or 2 of cold
water every morning after a clove of garlic till well. You 
may take the sp. & water at any time when you perceive a fit approaching
This with an elemazunary silver ring worn sometimes
on one finger & sometimes on another because it would
eat into the flesh worn long in one place cured Rachel Halford
that would fall down in her fits she was about 17 yrs of
age when her fits were on her she had a pain in her legs. She
was E. A.’s servt in the yr 723
Histerick fits Mrs Perkins a widow of Marston in Buckington 
Parish abt 4 m. fro Coventry, Warwickshire Rx 20 drops of tincture
of hiera picra in abt a spoonful of warm ale & 2 spoonfuls after it


92)
& walk a qr of an hour after it then she may eat her
breakfast repeat the same at 4 in the afternoon she must
eat her dinner at one continue taking as long as 1 ou. lasts
Rx of these herbs dry 6 doses infus’d in water so as to 
drink 2 [tea] dishes in the morning fasting 3 days before & 3 days after 
the change of the moon after the tincture is taken & Rx 4 more 
doses of herbs made into tea with water 4 or 5 days before or
after new moon
This was directed for Mary Exon abt 16 or 17 yrs of age. Her
illness lies in left side. she extends her legs & screaks out
[wind??es] to her stomach so then she is silent she beats with her
hand her side where her pain lyes.
Mrs Green of Wykin near Coventry has a perfect cure for
fits that seldom fail. The Ld Colins medicine.
Peony seeds help fits of the mother & other such like infirmities
of the womb stop the [terms] & help convulsions [culp?p??]
tincture of amber is good in hysteric fits dose from 15 drops to 30 in 
wine or water oil of amber rectified mixd with sugar then with wine
& given from 3 drops to six is admirable in hysterick distempers Salmon’s
family Dictionary
To prevent & cure convulsion fits in children
Goody Ludlam of Blaby every morning gives her child rue tea
sweeten’d with a little sugar & as oft as it is in a fit [till] it is ten weeks
old. her children till she try’d this [illegible] [illegible] Ludlam
Mr. Ray praises hartstongue given in pouder or a conserve 
of [the] green leaves of the heart, millers herbal
Quincy says pulvis epilepticus pouder agt the falling
sickness is efficacious & to be depended on in childrens 
convulsions & grown persons Rx valerian & piony roots
each 1 ou seeds of rue, myrrh, castor, white amber, each zfs 
native cinnabar 2 ou.
Fits in men, women or children Mrs Orton of [Reasby]
Rx a human [illegible] from a grave man anatomiz’d or hang’d Dry it & beat it to fine pouder & [illegible] 
it a man or woman must take as much of this pouder as will lie
on a shilling in water or beer for a month together in the morning 
fasting & at four o clock in the afternoon This cured MR Barwell’s 
man of Marston Northamptonshire & who also lived with Mr. Orton. He went
apprentice to a dyer at London but was forc’d to leave his trade by 
reason of his fits. He learnt this cure from a traveller & return’d agn
to London. A skull from a grave will not do
Balm, molissa is good for the falling sickness [?eckeys] herbal
Dr Strother on Dr Radcliffs pharmacopoeia says after 2 or 3 doses of an 
infusion of senna & rhubarb, at proper distances I have given mixtures of 
rue & penny royal, balm & mint water [paeony] compound some few drops of
sp. of hartshorn, sweeten’d wth syrup of white poppies successfully p. 252.



(93
Rx The root in pouder before the stalk springs of garden = 
valerian, half a spoonful taken once or twice in wine, water or milk
relieves those that are seiz’d with the falling sickness some say it is more
effectual in this case than the roots of male peony pecheys herbal
Rx the candied roots of Solomon’s seal for the falling sickness ibid.
southern wood cures hysteric fits & the jaundice ibid
several girls abt 16, 17, or 18 yrs old or more as Rachel Halford, Ann
Hovy of Blaby have been cured of fits thus Rx a clove of garlic
swallow it whole, if you can, or you may chew it if you can’t.
take one clove 3 mornings together fasting. Sister Boothby. p 91.
Apply this plaster to the stomach on alum leather in the shape
of an heart the sharp point upwards Rx horse turpentine ½ ou.
ply this to his stomach when you take the garlic it makes it more
powerful E.A. when it is on the stomach lay cap paper to the
back of the plaster to keep it from daubing the linnen ibid.
Dr. Salmon’s Doron commends spirit of hartshorn as ext agt all
sorts of fits, the suffocation of the womb, apoplexies, convulsions, palsies
vertigos & epilepsies does a gut 15 ad 30 in a convenient vehicle. This same
book says Jaber’s epileptic spirit of vitriol dose to [illegible] i in a morning 
fasting for a month at least, in [peony] water or in tincture of peony
flowers purging the body twice in the same month with salt of vitriol 
By this means an absolute cure of the falling sickness will be completed
p. 420 Doron.
convulsion fits. In young women abt 15, 16 or 20 yrs of age or
[lett] the girl [her] [beg] as much money as will buy 2 silver rings of any charitable
[illegible] sons Edwd Underwoods daughter Anne of Blaby 19 or 20 yrs of age gave 4 s 10 d 
to [Mr] [illegible] gold-smith in Leicester for 2 silver rings which she did ware
for the most pt on the midle finger on her right hand It freed her from
her fits imediately with some 4 or 5 times a day & as often in the night
beating herself with her hands on the breast & [took] away her senses & 
made her so weak that she cou’d do no work & wou’d have brought her 
into a consumption if it had continued some time longer
Saml Exon carpender of Blaby had 2 daughters cured of fitts by 
waring each of ‘em 2 silver-rings bought with the money they beg’d of
their neighbors Some gave 1 d some 2 d in copper money & some 6 d 
in silver one daughter wore ‘em 3 yrs together without ever leaving
‘em off & it is now 6 yrs since she left ‘em off & has continued very
well & freed from fits. The rings in time will wear thing by working
them they beg more money & exchange ‘em for new ones They must be 
woren always upon one hand at a time either upon the right or left 
hand & upon any finger but mostly upon the midle finger



94)
convulsion fitts
A travelling clergiman advisd Ann Underwood aforesd haveing fitts to drink
a little tea-dish of lin-seed oyl every other morning till well but it was so
nauseous that she cou’d not take it
Conserve of white briony-roots taken twice a day to the quantity of a 
nutmeg for a long time cures the falling sickness and [illegible] fitts a [illegible] of
root put into the pot the fire [illegible] out of does the same The compound
water of briony is most in use. [Po??ey’s] Herbal
Convulsion fitts in children give [illegible] of [illegible] in a bottle
sugar this cur’d one of Mrs Browns sons a little child that
look’d black in the face Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer
For the falling sickness Rx the powder of hartshorn & drink 
it in wine it helpeth the falling sickness So doth a raven’s
egg drink with the juice of wild rue & the juice of misletoe
Mrs Hewet E.A.’s mother
For convulsion fits or the falling-sickness. Let a 
dog lick up their vomit if they vomit in the fit, if he 
will not lick it up pour to it melted butter or grease but
it is better if he will eat it alone without any thing. Grease 
the mouth of the patient in a fit, let the dock lick the 
froth or spittle of the patient or near his breath, the dog
will dye & the patient will be well. If it be a woman let
a dog lick if a man let a bitch lick. If the dog licks the
vomit it’s a certain cure, the dog will have many 
fits & live a pretty while but dye at last in a fit says
Wm Nyat of Adderston. Mrs Crompton’s Rx to
cure convulsions or hysteric fits Rx the bigness of an egg of shining
woodsoot & as much assafoetida infus’d nine days by the fire
side & shook up frequently in a qt of the best spirit of wine.
This you may give in water or wine & water; for convulsions fro
5 to 100 drops according to the age & strength of the patient.
Tis also very good for gripes in children mix’d with syrup of 
violets & oil of sweet (or bitter) almonds. Drop 60 or 100 
drops into a qr of a pint of this mixture & give a spoonful
at a time from the wood of Costock & Cos. Margt Muxloe
mother of time at wild [or field] time is gave for convulsions & for gripes 
outwardly apply’d it cures headach & giddiness Pechey


(95
for the cramp or crick in the neck.
Rx an old hinge of a coffen & make rings of it wear
it constantly on your finger It cures the cramp & gout & 
crick in the neck Mrs P’s yellow oyntmt will also cure apply’d
cold. this oyntmt cured Mr Fletcher Mr P.
for the cramp Rx an eel skin dry it & rub it soft with wheat
bran with the hands then split it down the middle & sew pt of
it round the leg in the gartering place the inside next the skin
wear it day & night This cured old Wm Wright & many poor people
at Rotherby. another make a ring for any finger of mony that
is given at the sacramt exchanging other mony for it & it will certainly 
cure the cramp wearing it on one of the fingers Dr Million 
The priests in Lanchashire etc. make what money is given on Good Friday
at the sacramt into rings which rings they give away to the
poor which cure the cramp Mr [Traps] a Roman Catholic. another shift
the shoes morning & night always & cross the legs. E.A.
another Rx oil of St. Johns wort & spirit of lavender each zi mix em
very well & with the mixture rub the pt affected p. 42 Dr. Lowes Rx 
Mr. Coltmn apothecary mixes oyl of amber oyl of spike & sp. of lavender
to be rub’d on, but these mixtures are apt to remove the pain fro
the calf of the leg to the huckbone which is a worse place. E. A. 
another Rx oyl of camomile & fanugreek & anoint the place where
the cramp is & it helpeth p. 123. The accomplish’d lady’s delight.
another for the cramp. Rx St. Jns wort in pouder as much as will lie on a 
shilling in w. wine or ale. Rub the joynts with oyl of St. Johns wort,
It is better the oyl of turpentine Dr Pool, the mountebank
another Rub the hams & calves of the legs with their own water night
& morning constantly & it will cure & prevent it. E.A. another Rub
the pained part with oyl of tobacco (not oyntmt of tobacco) E.A.
oyl of euphorbium cures cramps, numbness, stiffness Salmon’s Disp.
a cramp is the contraction of the sinews of any one limb. The
cure. chafe it with vinegar & common oyl then wrap it all over with 
woollen cloaths Sr Wm Hope’s perfect [farrer] another unguentum
ad spasmum nervoru, an oyntmt agt cramps & convulsions p.
767 Salmon’s Disp. another Rx a sprig of Rosemary to bed with you or
Rx the bone in a hance of venison near the pope’s eye call’d the gentleman’s 
bone wear it abt you Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Turn the
soles of the shoes going to bed topsie turvie for a month This cured Mrs Abigail
Finch. Another E. A. freed himself from the cramp by every night
& morning standing upright & pressing the calf of each leg agt the
shin of the other I suppose it puts the spirits & blood into a fresh motion 



96)
Camomile apply’d hot in a bag is ext agt cramps Dr Quincy
For the cramp. Set your shoes with the soles upwards
at night going to bed, when the cramp pains you 
get out of bed and turn your shoes. OR wear an eelskin
for garters near your bare skin above the knees 
Wm Wyat. To cure the cramp or contraction of the sinews 
rub the member contracted with oil olive & [illegible] vinegar p.a.
& bind a double flannel abt it. The Gentlemans Jockey.
another Rx strong ale a qt black soap lbi boil em till they look like
tar with some brandy & anoint the place grieved from the Experienced
farrier


(97
How to flux.
First purge the body with 2 bolus’s from the apothecaries
as the apothecary shall direct intermitting 2 days
Then kill some quick silver by mixing it will with oyl of 
bays & rub the navel & between the shoulder with the same
Rx milk pottage or water gruel all the time warm’d for 
your drink & you may eat any fresh meat you can
you must be nine days in a flux & you must not stir out
till after 3 weeks. The teeth will [fasten] again of themselves
or you may rub them off with cream of tartar, a fortnight
after your flux purg with pilula cochiae twice intermitting
one week two scruples at a time. Mrs. P. use not the
above said method without some Drs advice because medling with 
mercury is medling with an edgetool. E.A.
mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in fine pouder mixt with hony
or treacle is an exct. purge. If it doth not purge it
fluxes & if you catch cold after it viz that day it has
purged it will raise a salivation the tongue will swell
& the teeth will be loose you must then in a day or 
2 take a paragorick purge viz a gentle purge to ease 
pain. E.A. If the gums swell or are sore by taking mercurius
dulcis you must purge it off by [flos] sulphuris Mr. Cook apothecary
Rx some milk scum’d milk will do boil it & add as much flower of brimstone
as when stir’d abt will make it a little yellow & treacle 1 spoonful
Take this in the morning & it will give you 3 or 4 stools If that does
not make the gums well repeat it omitting one day. If you take mercurius
dulcis to purge grind it on a marble 7 gr 	½ is a dose for an ordinary 
man, with flower or brimstone for a long time & at last with treacle
put it to the further pt of the tongue & lett it touch the gums as little
as you can & work the mouth after if with beer If you chew it, it will
make the gums very sore. when the gums are sore with mercury chew
liquorice If that does not cure Rx this drying diet drink Rx sarsaparilla
& guaiacum each zij sassafras zfs hartshorn & ivory shavings 
each zii boil these in a galn of water to 2 qts Drink a pint a day
repeat it till well Mr. Francis Coltman apoethcary pr. [113d]


98)


(99
To make cider Jn. Arrowsmith of Tewksbury in 
Gloucestershire
Let the apples lie in heaps to sweat till they are mellow. Pick out
the rotten & lay em by themselves. You must make spirits of the
rotten & the sedimts of the cider you must but chalk into the
sedimt Grind the apples & squeeze the liquor from the hulls as soon 
as you can that they may not change or grow sour with the same care 
& expedition as you get the alewort from the grains. Tun up the liquor
immediately into the hogshead or lesser vessel you must not stop the 
vessel you may begin to make cyder after michaelmass & continue
making till xtmass work up the [illegible] & the woodcocks & your 
musses (musta) & the moyls & the sweet pippins & London pippins
a choice eating apple the 1st ripe fruit 1st. never gather but shake
down the apples upon the grass & house em immediately Take care 
to shake em down dry & house em dry. Gather only what are for
house use & to eat & to keep long. 2 or 3 days after they are hous’d
turn em over with the hand. Pick out the blew & rotten & lay em in a
cistern for spirits. A blew mould will give the cider an ill taste you 
must not break the kernels for they will give the cider an ill taste
Let the cyder purge & when it is in a [frot] you must not wrack it off.
Let it be in the vessel 2 or 3 months till it has done purging at the
bunghole. In frosty clear weather that is calm wrack it off (not in rainy
or windy weather) pour out the lees for the still or stillers. wash the 
vessel with cold water & pour it out then put in the cider again into the
same vessel or in to a spare vessel The cider men begin with a spare vessel
boyl apple hulls (call’d [comb]) in water & scald all the vessels old or new 
with it twice before you put the cider into em. cider will not do well
after malt drink, but malt drink will do after cider Let the cider after
it is wrackt into the new vessel stand with the bung stopt to keep out
the air but not very close. you must have a little hole with a nail 
[parer] near the bung which you must open in rough weather & lest you 
forget leave it open or it will force & break the h oops of a new or old
vessel unless iron hoop’d. you must have never an hole on the top of the 
vessel cell’ the purge hole because the vessel will not then hold so much 
by 2 or 3 gallns especially if it be an hogshead. always fill the vessel 
full 2 or 3 days after you’ve wrackt it off put in a pint of old 
[?eans] 1 yr old to a hogshead They refine & give it a colour & make 
it flower If it is inclin’d to change Put treacle abt ½ a pint to a 
hogshead whip it with a whisk in a pail or tub with some pt of the cider
& tun it again. Let it stand 5 or 6 days to settle then bottle it off as
soon as you can. Bottle it always in calm clear weather Try the vessel
with a plug at the end of the vessel as soon as it is fine bottle it it 
will keep in bottles a yr or 2 set the bottles sideways in a bin in straw 
or without a bin straw lying betwixt every row of bottles to keep em
from freezing. when you bottle ale put a spoonful of small beer into each
bottle to ripen it winter or summer after cyder is wrackt it looks for  


100)


(101


102)


(103
Pills generally purging all humours as flegm choler
melancholy from all pts of the body, thereby curing
many diseases.
Rx Pilula cochiae majores, pil. aloephanginae & extract of rudius
each one scruple, chymical oyl of nutmegs 1 drop, make them
into 6 pills & take 3 at night going to bed & 3 the next morning
R. C. mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in very fine pouder mixt
with a little hony or tracle is an exct. purge for a man or 
woman v ic. p. 97.


104


105
Emplastrum de minio Rx sevil oil such
as the combers use one quart red lead lbi in fine
powder boil ‘em together till it begins to be brown. White
wine vinegar that that’s sharp, or good alegar ziiiiii,
when that is boil’d a little add bees wax sliced zij and
rosin in powder zi. then let ‘em just simmer then pour
it into cold water and make it up into rolls, your hands
being oiled or anointed with fresh butter. It dries and
heals wonderfully, discusses tumours and coagulated 
humours; it mollifies, expells, and is anodyne; It is
so [illegible] a thing agt all manner of pains, bruises and old
aches the weakness of the back and sinew’s, sprains 
of the joints gouts, old sciatica’s and other inveterate
pains coming of cold that it has scarcely and equal;
esteem it as a jewel.


106)
Artery prickt or wounded.
There is no better think than to apply balsam de chili, or
panicea balsamina upon lint, & lay over it a diapalma
plaster. It commonly cures at one dressing. Salmon.


(107



108)
To take away the pain of any swelling & to cure it
without breaking
p. 72
Rx juice of housleek 2 pts & fresh butter 1 pt mix them together & 
anoint the swelling till well, Mrs M. or shred wormwood (green is best)
small & apply it hot, being fry’d in fresh butter, like a poultis renew it
once in 2 or 3 days. ibid another Rx camomile, wormwood, southernwood
& lavender cotton each mi pounded boyle em in a [illegible] pt of
cream to an oyl strain it warm it in a spoon or agt the fire
rub it on night & morning till you are well Goody [Homes] of
Wigson magna did great cures of aches & swelling with this green
oyntmt. Jn Gamble carpenter his wife was cured of a great swelling 
on her knee as big as a mans fist with it without breaking
The Duke of [Leeds] had a violent swelling & inflammation 
that descended fro his shoulder to his back the Drs & surgeons 
thought it impossible to be cured without cutting an old poor
woman cur’d & took away the pain in a very little time 
only by applying 3 or 4 times a poultis of turnips made
with mutton suet viz. the turnips were pared & boyled in 
water & then mixt with the suet & apply’d warm The Rd
Mr Ed. Lovel. a child abt a yr. old at Leicer had a swelling
that look’d white (which is reckon’d the worst of swellings) abt the 
bigness of a womans fist, it was cured thus by a soldier viz 
he boyled some parsnips (scrap’d) in water to a mash & apply’d
as hot as you can endure it to your cheek or the back of your hand
& it was repeated every 3 hours day & night for 40 hours
& it dissolved without breaking MRs Abigail Finch.
To make oyl of trefoil. Buy some seeds of sweet trefoil (called the
balsam tree) of the seedmen at London & sew em in a [fat] soil in a garden
in April, when it is in the blossom cut it & keep the flowers by themselves
now gotten & dry put em in a glass unchopt with sallet oyl as much
as will cover the herbs set em in the sun for a fort night to incorporate
strain out the oyl & keep it for use. The oyntmt of trevoil is made of
the herb chopt green, dry, & new (gotten or) cut mix it with goose grease 
Set it in an earthen pot in a cool place viz in a cellar or [dary] for a week 
or 10 days to incorporate then boyl it & strain out the herbs & put 
this oyntmt into an earthen pot & when it is quite cold cut a hole from the
surface to the bottom at which drain out the water clean then after a 
batch of bread or any things bak’d set it in the oven till it is entirely
molted so cover it with a paper or board & keep it for use It is good for all
swellings or pains The oyl is esteem’d better than the oyntmt but Mrs. Adderly 
uses only the oyntmt being cheapest. Sister Mayer


(109
To cure a swelling caus’d by a kick or for a bruise
Rx wormwood leaves mi ale ½ a pint boyl em till it is thick
like glew apply it on as hot as you can endure it every 
night bind on the leaves too It gives present ease (when oyl of
turpentine will not) & will heal where only the skin is rub’d
off. James Leppington. unguentu nutritu is cooling drying & 
anodyne, good agt inflamations burnings & scaldings, takes 
away the itch of wounds, cures scabs & [tetters]. Salmons Disp.
To dispense or break a swelling Rx goose grease 10 pts oyl of
turpentine (or oyl of spike) 1 pt E.A. To make oyl of
[fish] for any new swelling Rx the whites of 2 eggs, salt one
spoonful beat em well together then beat with it an equal quantity 
of hony for 2 hours anoint the swelling & a piece of limbers
London brown paper & apply it If the paper stick too fast when you 
would take it off moisten it with warm water. It will keep 7 yrs 
you may make ½ this quantity & keep it in a bottle close stopt
It is good for a swelling caus’d by cold or for an eye swell’d 
up taking care that you put none into the eye Rd Mr Ed. Stokes
oyntmt of roses will discuss a swelling: ibid The swelling of
the cheek caus’d by the toothach is cured by anointing it with sallet 
oyl E.A. A poultis to break & heal any swelling white or red
p. 79. another Rx a penny loaf, slice it, then sooth it in running
water with red rose leaves till they be thick like a poultis then add a
little deers suet apply it as hot to the grieved place as you can endure 
it. Pater [meus]. another for a for a foot strained or wrenched
Rx a little oatmeal & milk & [smallage] mi chopt with a little sheep
suet & boyl em & make a poultis of em & spread it upon a clean
cloth apply it as hot as you can endure it when you go to bed.
I have try’d this to be a singular good medicine says Geo. Ashby
Pater [meus]. Emplastrum podagricum is a useful application in all
tumours attended with sharp pain Quince’s Dispensatory.
A swelling in the stomach or belly in a fever or any rupture or hard
swelling any where. a child & a gentleman that had belly & stomach 
swell’d so that little or no passage & thought to be dying were both recover’d
by this following. Rx St. Jns wort wormwood [scordium] (al. water germander)
camomile flowers [melilot] flowers mallows each mi marshmallow roots
2 ounces linseed zfs juniper berries aniseeds each zi Boyl or infuse em in 
2 galns of water till it comes to one then put in aqua vitae a qt ferment it with 
hot flannels 2 or 3 hours together keeping it as hot as you can bear it DR
Harlap for Mr Johnson of Leicer Mrs Caulton


110)
an oyntmt for any swelling or St. Anthonies fire
[Tetter] or ringworm scale head or any pain or ach
Rx comfry leaves miij may butter lbijfs unsalted aqua
vitae 2 d or the 5th pt of a qt. (pr 20 d per qt) Put the leaves 
unpounded [unsh??d] with the rest of the ingredients in a pipken set em
in an oven with a batch of bread, strain it when it comes out
work it in agt the fire. A woman of Caucot 4 m from Cambridge
doth great cures with it pr 4 d per ounce Tho. Juice
Sam. Exon carpenter ran the point of his knife into his wrist
which made a great wound that bled very much perhaps some of
the sinews were cut working in his shirt when it was almost
well in Febr 4 the cold fell into it which caus’d a violent swelling
in his hand having try’d a great many things nothing
was so effectual to the abating the swelling as salt & water 
bath’d on blood warm agt the fire it out did human urine.
J. Exon E. A. had a [foal] swell’d on each side of its [shop] & on each
buttock. Poplar oyntmt [ripen’d] the swelling so that it was soft & cut with
a pen knife & there came out a great deal of thick corruption which
flow out like blood from a vein Then a slice of bacon dipt in pouder
of pepper was put into each orifice by Tho. Tafte his blacksmith
& the foal did well We thought it was the strangles in its breech
To kill a tetter or ringworm or any kind of [illegible]
Rx sallet oyl & salt [?empar’d] together & anoint the [illegible] [illegible]
& you shall find a cure. Lady Wright
Rub a tetter with Roman vitriol dissolv’d in [illegible] [illegible] 3 or 4 
times a day or rub it with verjuice Mrs Brown of Leicer
Rub a tetter with the fasting spittle of a man that smokes tobacco in a morning
dry it in agt a fire [Joyce] Gimson E. A.’s servt.
moisten a tetter often with white copperas dissolved in spring water. Sister Boothby 


(111



112)



(113
An exct. medicine for the mother or vapours
Rx a gallon of strong alewort, of balm & vervain & pellitory
of the wall each mi anniseeds bruis’d & liquorish ziiii of each
& some wheat bruis’d. Boyle all these till 3 pts be consum’d then strain it
& drink a draught thereof lukewarm morning & evening Mrs M.
another A fit of the mother is vapours in the highest degree.
The mother a diease of women vulvae strangulatic, hysterica
passio. Rx polypody (al oak fern) zi aniseeds & liquorish sliced
each zij raisons of the sun ston’d ziiii epithymum (i.e. dodder of
thyme) zfs sena zifs hysop, penny royal each mi 2 or 3 roots 
of the red dock, leaves of betony, succory mij fennel mi boyl
all the herbs in 3 qts of water till half is consumed then strain it
& put the liquor into a pipkin then add the polypodium raisons, liquorish 
anniseeds Let em boyl half an hour then put in the epithymum
& white wine a pint at the least then add the sena Let it boyl
still on the fire & let it stand on the embers till night then Rx 6 
in the morning 12 or 13 spoonfuls. S. S.
To cleans the mother or womb.
Rx mother wort, mugwort, calamint, each mij savoury, marygolds
fennel, parsley, each a quarter of mi w. wine & running water 
each a quart boyl ‘em alltogether untill half the liquor be wasted
away then strain it, & drink thereof first & last, sweeten’d with 
a little sugar Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother


114)



(115




(117
Hard Drinking or to excess.
Dr Quincy in his Dispensatory commends tincture sacra as a
preserver of the tone of the stomach & a good digestion p. 393.
Sergeant Mundy that was a hard drinker us’d every morning
to drink a pint of cold caudle viz The yolks of 2 eggs 
beaten & mixt with water a pint & sweeten’d with loaf sugar
pounded & mull’d by pouring it out of one mug into another
till the froth rises & stands above the top of the mug. Ann Tasie.
Some people add w. wine & nutmeg to the caudle. ibid.




(119
Madam Sparks’s cordial water
Rx a peck of cowslips the flowers only, one quarte of rosemary
flowers the finest, good nutmegs zi beat & steep ‘em 
in a gallon of good sack 2 or 3 days & then draw it off in a 
still. Mrs S. 
A cordial water for the stomach.
Rx Cinnamon water & damask rose water each half a pint double
refin’d loaf sugar lbfs beaten small & put into a jelly bag
upon which pour the water or let it run abt 20 times through then bottle
it in a glass & put into it abt 20 leaves of leaf gold or as much
as you shall think fit & shake it well together herewith it were good
to mix a quantity of borrage water & water of rosemary flowers 
as much as you shall think fit Mrs Frances Beckerton & Mrs Caulston
A cordial. stone raysins of the sun [less] currants ziiii dates
6 lightly pounded & sliced boyl em in water till they are tender
then pour out the water & strain em very hard Then put liquorish 
pouder 1 d to em aniseed pouder 1 d mace & cloves in pouder each 1 d
saffron 2 d cinnamon 1 d nutmegs 2 d allin pouder sugar in pouder
the same weight as all the pouder Boyl all these a good while together
& with more sugar make it into rolls or cakes. S. S.
A cordial water made by King Charles Rx the best [illegible] brandy
1 galln D. refin’d sugar lbij put to it sp. of saffron zifs [illegible]
ziiii oyl of cloves zi steep em all together 24 hours in a silver or
earthen vessel well glaz’d with in stir em together a little with a silver 
spoon first tie a London brown paper over the top of the earthen
vessel but it is best with a close cover when it has stood 24 hours
stir it a little bottle it & stop the bottles close with corks Tie leather
over em The longer you keep this water the better it will be Be sure to 
stir it always one way when you stir it & let it not near the fire a 
closet which has no fire near it will do best. S. S.



120)
A Diet Drink for Drospie or Tymphany.
Rx Lignum vitae zij sarsaparilla zi sassafras zvi boyl em
in 6 qts of spring water till abt ½ is wasted then strain out the
woods & add to the water 3 qts of strong ale just boy them together
work it up with yest & tun it up & put in a large handful of
green broom a large quantity of ash – ashes tyed up in a cloth
hang em in your drink after 4 days you may drink of it in 
the morning & at 4 o clock in the afternoon. You may add
a good quantity of [millenader] wood lice & a large handful of ale [hoof]
Mrs M. Another Boyl briony roots in conduit water or in ‘
white wine & water drink it, It cures the dropsie Mrs M. Another
Rx guajacum (i.e. lignu vitae) ziiij sassafras & sarsaparilla each zi green
broom mi boyl em in 6 ful qts of spring water till one ½ is wasted
drink ½ a pint in the morning & as much as 3 o clock in the afternoon.
You may add [daucus] seed & bay berries each zfs dry’d sage
mi. It is a perfect cure Mrs M. another Rx mustard seed two spoonfuls
bruis’d in a mortar but not pulveriz’d, infuse it in one
pint of white wine take 2 spoonfuls of the clear mixt in 
all the drink a man or woman drinks viz 2 spoonfuls to be 
mixt with a pint of drink. use it in your constant drink without 
straining or separating the sedemt. This is exct. for aged
people It creates a good digestion & cures swell’d legs. Dr
Anthony Brooks & Mrs Finch. another Drink rue & wormwood
dry & infus’d in strong ale every morning a draught
this cured Mrs Auger of Leicer Elizth Winter another Garlic has
often cured dropsies almost to a miracle. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
another Some have bin cured of tymphanies & dropsical swellings
abt the belly by drinking coffee. Mr Brooks. another Rx Hips
when there red (before they are rotn) & peel em lay the peels in a pot till
they rot then put to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot keep it till
Lady Day near the fire It will be extremely sharp. Drink 3 spoonfuls
of vinegar of hips with a little sugar 3 or 4 times a day It will provoke
urine extremely Dr Pool. A dropsy or sweaty feet. Boyl dwarf
elder (al. danewort) in spring or well water & drink it for 
the constant drink till well or make tea of it. sweaty feet
are often caus’d by a dropsical humour flowing from the
body. Elderly people are most subject to the dropsy. It is
a great purge of watry humours & is very diuretick in [latine]
[ebulus] David [Fane] & Salmn


(121
a diet drink that cureth the dropsy jaundice all itches
green sickness & purifieth the blood.
Rx the roots of monk’s rhubarb & red madder scurvy grass
each lbfs sena ziiii aniseeds & liquorish each zij scabius, agrimony
& maidenhair each mi slice the roots bruise the seeds & 
liquorish. Break the herbs with the hand & put em all to four galns
of ale to steep 3 or 4 days drink for 3 weeks. S. S.
another diet drink to sweeten the blood. Rx sarsaparilla 4 ou.
sassafras 4 ou. China root 4 ou. hartshorn shavings 2 ou. guaiacum
2 ou. raysons of the sun ston’d lbfs liquorish sliced 2 d crude antimony
in [illegible] pouder ½ ou. put all these in to spring water 2 gallons in a new 
pipkin with a cover & boyl it till it comes to 6 qts strain it & put it
into bottles. Drink ½ a pint in the morning fasting & ½ a pint at 4 
in the afternoon. You must put the antimony in a rag tied up & let 
it hang in the liquor whilst boyled & then take it out S.S.
another Rx Red dock root lbi fir lbi broom lbi slice
& chop & hang it in a net in 3 gallons of midling ale S.S.
A wet itch that has taken the blood & been of long standing. Rx
tobacco stalks mi or 4 ou. chop it that it may go into a pan add new 
human urine (because old stinks most) a qt. allum 1 ou. boyl it till a
4th pt. is consumed. strain it & dab it on cold or warm agt a fire
night & morning. 3 or 4 times dressing cured when a great many 
medicines had been try’d in vain & Dr Brooks said he had rather cure the 
pox. This cured Mrs Abigail Finch
Dropsy & swell’d in the body with stiffness in the legs.
Put mustard seed 2 eggshel full to small beer a pint Drink it
constantly when the beer is drank off put more beer to the [illegible]
This cured old Richd Cley shoe maker of Whetstone
A tymphany or when the belly is swell’d like a woman with child
prescrib’d by Mrs Isabella Smith of [Queniboro] It cured Mrs Ann
[illegible] that swell’d abt 3 yrs & she was abt 20 yrs of age.
Rx nine spoonfuls of broom ashes, three of bean stalk ashes & three
of wormwood ashes, three of mustard seed whole, dwarf elder, scrap’d
horse radish & sliced large onions each mi Put all these things into a large
jug mingled well together then pour upon em two qts of boyling spring water
2 qts of white wine to two of brandy. Do not heat the wine nor brandy. Let 
it stand close stopt as near the fire as the jug will bear 3 days & 2 nights, stirring
it up very often with a [illegible] of broom, then let it settle & pour th e
clear off into glass bottles close stopt for use. Dose, in the morning at
four in the afternoon, & at going to bed, the third pt of a pint on an empty 
stomach fasting two hours after it. Mr Wm [Frese] junior
A diet drink to sweeten the blood, a good diuretick & good in cutaneous
eruptions or dry itching by Dr Geo. [Charelden] of Leicer
Rx Guaiacum sassafras each 2 ou. roots of shap pointed docks & roots of [illegible] 
i.e. dropwort, the roots of cynoglossum i.e. hounds tongue each 1 ounce


122)
Geranium Robertianum (ie herb Robert) agrimony each miij
seeds of wild daucus, coriander seeds, each half an ounce, raphanus
sylvestri (i.e. horse radish) 2 ou. sena mundata (pickt clean) zijfs 
millipedes rectify’d i.e. cleans’d with w. wine one pint. Let these be tun’d
up in a canvass or muslans rag in four galns of small ale without hops
After it has been tun’d 3 days drink half a pint morning & ½ a pint at 4 in 
the afternoon, but when the mornings draught gives you a stool or two then
omit it in the afternoon. Rx it dayly till it is all gone it will not keep long
being apt to change. If you find benefit repeat it as you think good
To heal the itch. Boyl sorrel in water & wash the sores
Traveller another wash your hands in frogs spawn water 
& were it itches. ibid. For the itch Rx elecampane roots
wash’d & scraped clean boyl ‘em in running water till they be very
tender then strain ‘em thro’ a course cloth & after they have been boyl’d
in a good quantity of may butter with the same liquor & roots
or other butter without salt then spread some of this upon a 
linnen cloth 4 fingers broad & so wear it about your waste 
& renew it every 3 or 4 days & this will kill it in any place of 
the body, but if the hands being broken or scaby anoint
‘em with this oyntment, or dress a pair of gloves with it
& so wear em upon your hands. If you put some vinegar 
to the roots while they are boyling it will be the better
Mrs HEwet E.A.’s mother
For a young dropsy & for one that has advanced some time
cured by Dr Geo. Cheselden’s prescription as it follows [illegible] Mr Geo.
Basset that keeps an inn at the sign of the feather in Leicer being
abt 40 yrs of age & very fat lusty man, had lost his stomach & 
had both legs very much swell’d Rx summitatum centaurij
minoris pugillum unum, racias gentianae incitae zfs seminis sinapi
ceaturi zij foliorum senae alexandrinae zfs salis tartari zi cineren
genistotum, limaturae calibis ana zifs infundantur simul in vini [albi]
libris tribus frigide; colaturae capiat ziii bis in die viz. mane & hora
tertia post meridiem. He rode out on horse back & drank carduus tea every 
morning for a week & his stomach return’d & he continued well & his
legs ceased to swell G.B.
For the itch Rx [illegible] and flower of brimstone mix’t 3 
tea spoonfulls [9] mornings together to send the humour
out, then dress with sope and flower of brimstone well mixt
together, then when cur’d boil Jamaica pepper zi [ma?]
cinamon and nutmeg and cloves in a pint of water
and mas therewith two or three  times. Thomas Back



(123
For the Itch
Take hogs lard and some quicksilver and [fill] it with the 
lard and mix with it hellebore root and dress therewith the
joints and smell to it. Peter [Netes].


124)


(125
The Kings Evil chaeras. adis. f. scrophula f.
struma.
It is often caus’d byu a bruise or surfeit & is often hereditary
MRs Clay the ironmongers mother of Leicer cures
it by a plaster of tar & by gentle purging with syrup of buckthorn at the end
& after the cure she never fails unless the bone is perish’d
where the evil is Mrs Clay. another [illegible] stones skin’d
& dry’d & pouder’d & taken in white wine, ale, or beer as
much as will lie on a six pence for a week then intermit a
week & take it on till you find benefit. Jn Clark, gelder
another Barly meal boyld with tar, wax oyl & boys urine is
effectual agt the Kings Evil. Salmons Disp. another Rx a qt of 
milk boyl it then take it off the fire & put into it hony
2 spoonfuls when it is dissolv’d set it on the fire & let it
boyl again. Rx ½ a pint of this the 1st think in the morning
& at 10 & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed. use
this as long as you find occasion purge twice a week with 
caryocostinum half an ounce for abt 3 weeks till all the
humours are spent. (Lady Curzon & sister B) Dress the evil sores
with this oyntmt Rx fresh butter lbfi bees wax zij shred small or slic’d
thin horse turpentine 2 d verdigrise pouderd 1 d or zii rosin
pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle fire till it comes to an oyntmt
or soft salves It will be soft as butter you may use it to the
greatest sores both in tents & plasters you need not use burnt allu
It will fetch out dead flesh in lumps (vid p. 59) ibic emplastrum
mammilare is commended in Quinces Dispensatory for the Evil.
another Drink a good draught of cow piss for 3 mornings together
leave off 3 mornings than drink it for six mornings
successively omit 6 mornings & drink it 9 mornings omit 9 
mornings & continue drinking 9 mornings to keep to 9 mornings
till well It cured a [illegible] woman of the evil when she had 9 holes
in one leg. She drank ½ a pint at a time spring & fall when the
surgeons cured the Evil sores they broke out again but cow piss
made a perfect cure. she liv’d at London but went [to] Edmonton
lead sevil oyl & bees wax will cure the Evill
This drink was prescrib’d by a learned physician for a lady afflicted
with the Kings Evil Rx mullein, St Jns wort, agrimony & beteny each
miij shavings of [fir] mvi. Boyl ‘em in ale 6 gallns The drink of it constantly 
Pecheys Herbal.



126)
figwort plaster for the Evil or Kings Evil
Rx the leaves of figwort, hounds tongue & fox glove cut small
each mij oil olive a pint ½ mix boyle the herbs till they are crisp strain
out by pressing & put in the like quantity of fresh herbs which repeat
the third time & till the oyl is very green, then add sheeps suet lbi turpentine
6 ou. bees wax 4 ou rosin 2 ou. fr. verdigrise 1 ou. mix & 
make a plaster, spred it upon leather or new linnen cloth often renewing
it. It assuages the swellings, disperses the humors, not only 
of the Evil but of any other knots, kernels, bunches or wens. Salmons
Family Dictionary & Pecheys Herbal.
Elizth Plat the wife of Wm Plat (a poor man) can cure
the Evil with cole trough water & lays an oak leafe to the
sore she also cures sore eyes & takes off pearls from the eye
she lives at Thurmaston & is sister to Wm Simpkin at the
cannon in Leicer
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory commends emplastru
mammilare for the Evil & says there is nothing equal 
to it vid.
A diet drink for the Kings Evil. Pecheys Herbal.
Rx guaiacum chips cut into small pieces 8 ou. sarsaparilla 6 ou. bark
of walnut tree, roots of figwort & saxifrage each 2 ou. herb Robt
miij raisins of the sun stoned & live millipedes each libi make a bag
for 4 galns of new beer.
The Kings Eviul was thus cured on [nic] Waltons wife when a girl
who had seven sores on the side of her neck & 5 before on her
neck Her husband liv’d at Rotherby in Leicershire she was 
cured by Abraham Wild, gardiner at Kirby bellows to Mr De
la Fountain & St. John [Meers] a Roman Catholic
Rx vervain (verbena) mij bruis’d a little, boil it in white wine
2 qts Rx ½ a pint in the morning before you rise, fasting & so every
morning as long as it lasts. Rx spring water & the [illegible] scum’d
milk p.e. or a pint of each, in this steep vervain mi bruised or unbruised
all night or longer the longer be better then take out a
leaf & lay it to the sore after you’ve bath’d it with the milk & water 
[bin] or sew a cloth on it to make it stick on. You may sometimes apply
a dry leaf use that most that keeps on best. Bath it twice a day with
a fine rag dipt in the milk & water cold. Rx the root of vervain you 
must not scrape or wash it. hang it to the pit of the stomach ty’d
with a long black silk or black ribbon round the neck. the root will
waste away then you must take a new root. you must take great care
not to lose the roots that have been used at the stomach wear em in 
the pocket or keep them in a box or cupboard. you must wear the roots
a yr or longer abut the neck till the sores are wasted or quite dryu’d up
when you have taken the w. wine then take mild ale a qt & steep vervain
mi bruised & Rx ½ a pint in the morning fasting before you rise from 
bed when that ale is gone take more till you are quite well. after you 
are quite well & the sores are dry’d up Rx all the vervain in [illegible] once a fortnight
or 3 weeks for a yr or longer especially at spring & fall Rx
it every day for a week & with the blood itches take it at any 
time to prevent an outbreak. vervain will not cure if you have 



(127
used any salve or plaster. If a woman hath the Evil let her
stroke her sores with the right hand of a man newly dead. If a man
hath the Evil let him [stroke] his sores with the right hand of a dead woman
This stroking with a dead hand caused Nic. Walton’s wife’s sores to cease
running & sooner to mend. uxor Nicolai Walton Ann Walton, she had the
Evil when 7 yrs old & was cured as above mention’d.
Mrs. Bullivant of Coston abt 4 m. beyond Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire
cures the Kings Evil she has reced 100 l for a cure Br S.A.
Bates’s Dispensatory commends unguentum digitalis ointmt of fox
gloves for the Evil. Rx may butter lbiij fresh fox gloves beaten
as much as you can well put into it, insolate for 30 days, then
boil & press out strongly. anoint the places affected with the Kings
Evil therewith morning & evening till you find the affect to cease
for this purpose it has no equal. It dissolves kernels in the neck
or else where & takes away all sorts of scrophulous tumours whatsoever
Salmon says you should purge once a week too with pilulae panchymagoga.
In the Kings Evil the decoction of the leaves
& in winter the roots of the small wild daisy given inwardly 
& a cataplasm of the leaves apply’d outwardly are esteemed
by some as exterordinary remedies. Millers Herbal
Perriwinkle (in latin vinca per vinca) is a famous vulnerary The leaves
of this herb just upon paper that will easily receive moisture & sewed to 
it with fine flas betwixt perfum’d with frankincense cured a scrophulous
tumour in a short time which continued obstinate under the use of
other remedies for the space of a whole year: Pechey’s Herbal.
Can Coats A butcher of Leicer had a daughter that had two 
running sores of the Kings Evil viz one in her arm & 
another in her thigh Sr Geo. [Braum?] had the advice of
the college of physicians at London for her She went to em
it cost Dan 10 l all the charge during her stay there & she 
came to Leicer uncured & Dan afterwards cured her
himself in half a years time only by smoking tobacco
in a morning fasting & spitting & his daughter rubbed
the spittle that came from his mouth on the sores 
with a feather dipt in it agt the fire it was dry’d in 
& it dry’d up the humour & it continued well as long 
as she lived. Dan Coats [rue-leav’d] whitcorn grass or rue whit corn
grass infus’d in small beer & drank for some days cures the Kings Evil without
any sensible evacuations Pechey’s Herbal. Mr Boyle commends the
herb very much for the cure of the Evil & Sr Jn Colebatch in his essay upon 
acids & alkali makes mention of a poor girl at Worcester afflicted with 
scrophulous ulcers that receiv’d great benefit from rue leav’d whitcorn-grass 
[illegible] Herbal. Kings Evil emplastrum ad strumas. Rx black
pitch that is free from dross stone. Pitch is best Bees wax
cut in thin slices hard frankinsence bruis’d each of
these zi camphire zii or abt 3 d and sevil oil 2 spoonfuls
or zifs melt these all but the camphire beat the camphire
with oil and crumble it in as soon as it is taken from the 


and stir it in gradually as soon as it comes from  the fire till it is cold or disolve it in good spt of
wine, and so mix’t with the salve as soon as it comes
off from the fire. it is apply’d to a sore or a sore leg 
melt some of it and dip lint in it and lay a simple
diacuton plaster over it as broad as man’s hand & 
continue it on a long time together
For a toe nail that is cut too short and is painful
dip a bit of lint into the salve and apply it with a 
plaster of the same emplastrum ad strumas tried over
it.







130)


(131
To make in that will not change yellow or 
grow mouldy.
Rx Gum arabick (the clearest) zi steep it 24 hours in a 
pint of any clear water, when the gum is dissolv’d put into
it a sheeps gall, ivory black beaten & sifted 4 d or as much 
as will make it as black as you desire it you may buy it
ready ground at pouder’d with is best. after 24 hours from
the meeting of all the ingredients you may write with it.
stir it always before you use it. Ivory black is the best
black that is in the world. If your ink writes thick put into it
some gum water The frost will not hurt it for as soon as 
this ink is thrown & stirr’d together it is as good as at first.
It writes with a good gloss. Try first ivory black 2 d 
make a little gum water. The sheeps gall gives it a good gloss & 
incorporates the ingredients Mrs Mary Lee a Traveller that [illegible]
to Japan. You may mix ivory black with green copperas & 
turky galls etc. & it will make good ink & much improve it.
E. A.
To make red ink
Rx some red carmine pr. 3d vermillion 2 d mix em with gum
arabick water cold & stir em together & you may write with
it after it hath been mixt one hour as well as if it had been
mixt 7 yrs Red carmine is dear & shop keepers seldom will sell
any under eighteen pennyworth at a time Mrs Mary Lee.
Another Rx small Brazil zi white lead & allum each zij bum 
arabick [illegible] viii urine one pint. shake ‘em often together or mix
vermillion with gum arabick water. The young man’s companion
p. 19s


132) To make black ink. Rx Green copperas & 
gum arabick each zij nut galls zvi spring water
or snow dissolv’d 2 qts Bruise the galls & put them into
the water with the gum & copperas unpounded. Let em infuse
10 or 12 days stir it tiwce a day during that time. Place
the pot in some warm place with in doors. In the summer set
the ink in a [cellar] & at the approach of winter put into
the ink aqua vitae 2 d & place it in some warm place 
during the whole winter. Alexander Hepburn of Burbage.
To make good black ink Mr Tartrey Rx rain water 
a qt. The best nut galls lbfs broken into pieces but not
small. Put em into a glass bottle with a large mouth
then add gum arabick ziiij which must not be int oo small
pieces stir these once or twice a day for a month & 
put in a little of the bark of pomegranate & at the
end of the month add Roman vitriol zi in small pieces
as you take out put in as much rain water & it will 
last many yrs stirring it sometimes Mr Tartrey
To make black ink a pint. Rx blew galls zij break em
in a mortar, gum arabick zi verdigrise zi pomegranate rind
zij The best [indico] the quantity of a little tea, the best alewort
a pint ½ green copperas as one dram Let em stand [sim?ering]
4 hours over a gentle fire or longer The longer it is a making
the better The hot sun is better than a fire. The water that stands in 
the root of an oak lately fell’d is better than ale or white
wine. Take the roots of broad logs & the water that is
in em is very good to boyl in the ink. It sets it extraordinary
& makes it very black. To prevent the ink from 
changing yellow add a spoonful of w. wine or rather aqua
vitae. Stir it while it is making. strain it abt 2 weeks after
it is made. when it is too thick add vinegar to it. you must
put in the verdigrise & gum when it is cold Wm Smith a
Travelling ink-seller, taught by a London book-seller.
To make red ink a pint Rx the best Brazil ground zij
pr. 2.9 allum the quantity of a nutmeg, best ale a pint mild
is better than stale gum arabic zfs pr. 29 dragons blood the
best drops the quantity of ½ a nutmeg bruise it. when the other
ingredients are cold strain em then put in the dragons blood


(133
you must only let the other ingredients simper. If
you boyl em a long time you spoyl it you must let em
simper in a tin or earthen pot, brass or copper spoyls the
colour ibid. To make red ink. Geo. Hill a London dyer 
Rx [archil], ground Brazil, red wood each zij boyl em in wine
vinegar & rain water each a pint. strain it thro a cloth when almost
cold. [archil] is 6 d per lb a weed that is kept close in a bottle
To make black ink, which is good for to write with or to dress 
an hat with Geo. Hill. London dyer & dyer at Hoby. Rx the blew [illegible]
galls beaten into small pieces zfs green copperas zij sum mach
(al sumac) logwood, Roman vitriol in pouder French verdigrise 
in pouder each zi wine vinegar, rain water each a pint. You may 
beat the verdigrise in a mortar with a little water Boyl em a qr
of an hour. strain it thro a linnen cloth when it is almost cold.
Dissolve a little gum arabic in wine vinegar and add to it when you 
design it only for ink you must leave it out when you dress a hat
when you dress a hat with it, it must be boyling hot you must dip 
the brims in it & where the gum & grease appears & brush it with
a hard brush to make it clean placing a wooden crown under the
head To dye hair or a periwig that is weather beaten of a brown
or saddish colour Rx ground fustick zij summach zi madder the
best ziij boyl em in rain water 3 pints a qr of an hour strain it,
& when it is so cold that you can abide the finger in it put the hair
into it & let it remain in it 2 hours (or 12 hours the better) then take
it out & heat the liquor again with green copperas zij when it is moderately 
cool then put in the hair for two minutes till you see it is of
a colour dark enough. If it is not sad enough, heat the liquor again
& add more copperas & put in the hair as before directed. Geo.
Hill dyer To dye a dogs tayl that is white of a blew colour or
the tayl or mane of a white horse or the feathers of a white hen
or cock. Rx Jamaica indico zij (Lahoor is better but the other will do)
Best wood zij Flemmish pot ashes zij best madder zfs creech 
lime or the finest lime that is fallen & like wheat flower zfs heat em
in rain water 2 qts It must not boyl when it is so warm that you can 
endure the finger in it. Hold the dogs tayl in it & squeeze it in the
hand & you will see it turn blew in 3 minutes It will last till he casts
his hair or the hen her feathers This will dye an ivory haft of a knife or 


134)
or a cows horn, or bristles that are white. Geo. Hill dyer
To make black ink much commended & us’d by Dr Jn Million
of Ansley. Rx turky galls ziiij English vitriol (al green copperas) zi 
alum zfs the strongest stalest beer 3 pints. Let all the 3 1st ingredients
be pounded severally & infus’d apart in a sufficient quantity
of the beer for 7 days. Dissolve gum arabick zi in a sufficient
quantity also of the beer; then strain all distinct & the gum likewise
& mix all the ingredients together & keep em close stops for use. J. M.
To make Japan or shining ink. Br Jn Levermore buys ink of 
men that sell it at his door some of it he puts into his standish & 
when it is thick & too dry he adds [aleager] (ale vinegar) & when that
has stood some time to incorporate it will shine upon paper in the
writing most charmingly J. L. If you add a drop or 2 of single anniseed
water to the ink in the inkhorn or inkglass & let it stand a day
to incorporate it will shine like Japan ink but if it shines too much as
not to dry them mix aniseed water (the weakest sort is best) with fair water 
but do not use it in 12 hours after E.A. To make black ink Rx blew
galls bruis’d zi chipt logwood (not ground) zij boyl these 2 things in 
a qt of clear water (soft water is best) to a pint then take it off the fire & 
add Roman vitriol zij pearl lashes zi (you may buy it of Mr Ludlam at
Leicer) Green copperas zi these last ingredients must not be boyled let 
em infuse one week (you need not any gum arabick) then strain keep 
it in a clean bottle close stops from dust you need not shake it after
it is strain’d. when the ingredients are together stir em with a stick once
a day. you need not set it in the sun or near the fire. It will not turn
yellow. you may make ½ pint more of the same ingredients before you 
thrown em away Mr Stubbs dyer of Coventry. In rainy & frosty
weather you must set the ink near the air of the fire or carry 
the inkhorn in the pocket & dry the paper too or it will not
write but sink into the paper unless you pounce it Mr Ward
book seller of Leicer keeps his ink constantly by the fire in the
chimney E. A. 
To make black ink
Rx Green copperas 3 ounces, galls bruised small 4 ou. bum
arabick white & clear 3 ou. Put them to 3 pints of rain water
in a jug or any earthen vessel. Stir it with a stick 2 or 3 times a 
day for 3 weeks or a month then bottle it, & add a spoonful of
salt & another of grandy. You may set the jug by the fire
once or twice a week till it is warm whist you are stirring
it Mr Halford farmer cutler when it is too thick mix white
wine 3 pts sack 1 pt let it incorporate 12 hours or longer E. A.
or when it is too thick add more rain water ibid.
another Rx Rain water 2 qts galls beaten 5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum
arabic 3 ou. sugar candy 2 ou. Stir em together twice or thrice a day for
a fortnight by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.


(135
To prevent ink from sinking into paper
Rx some pounce i.e. gum sandrick in fine pouder
having a little hole in the lid or top of a box that screws on which
the writing masters have on purpose & stop with the hard piece
of a quill at the feather end pr. 1 d strew it on in 3 or 4 places 
then rub it on very hard (or it doth little or no good) with a fine
linnen rag or dimity or piece of clean cap paper Then you may 
rug the same rag or cap paper on a little w. lead or chalk made
into fine pouder with a clean knife on a clean trencher & rub it over
where the pounce had been rub’d It makes the paper look white
preserves the writing. If the ink shines & does not dry readily
you may rub some chalk or w. lead with a rag on cap paper
& apply it to the writing & give it time to dry up the ink then you 
may rub or brush it off.  This is a good way when you prick tunes
in musick. you may try wheat flower pounce alone is best to 
make paper bear ink. E. A.
To make ink Mr. Geo Garnet attorny of North Allerton in 
Yorkshire Rx galls 3 oz gum arabick 2 oz green copperas
1 oz loaf sugar 1 oz indica 1 oz rain water 3 pints. Price of 
the ingredients 5 d or 6 d set it near the fire for 3 or 4 days
so as it may simber & wast abt a pint & shake it daily 3 or 4 
times whilst it stand by the fire. when you ingross you must
have no cotton in the ink glass that thickens the ink. Ink without
cotton flows readily from the pen. G.G. when you take the ink out
of the vessel it is kept in stir it with a stick a little & let the stick be
made with a point so that you may put a drop into the cradle of the
pen holden flat or level then let it from thence drop in to the
inkglass or inkhorn by this means the ink always taken from 
a little distance of the bottom it writes blacker than when taken fro
the top or surface E.A. Red ink Mr [Blunt] a dyer in Darby shire
Boil raspings of Brasil: wood one penny worth in spring water
half a pint untill the water is red which may be the [spate] of a quarter of an
hour then add [illegible] meal in fine pouder two pennyworth Let it
boil a little more then put thereto a little allum & strain it for use Some
use vinegar instead of water Mr Blunt likes water best
Black in Rx galls 4 ou. broken to pieces but not to pouder green
copperas 1 ou. pouder’d gum arabick rose-indico & allum each half
ou. all pouder’d Put all these together to a quart of rain-water
or other soft water in a glass or earthen bottle clos’d stopt & kept 



136)
blood warm for ten days shaking the bottle three or four times a 
day when you use it pour off [illegible] the top & let the ingredients
remain in the bottle that the ink may feed thereon & when you have
used part thereof you may add more water to the ingredients which
still remain good If in sumer it [illegible] to mould add salt
In winter to keep it from freezing add brandy, for after the frost
has taken it it is good for nothing Mr Blunt a dyer E. A. had ink
in a pitcher which was frozen very hard in the yr 1730 he put
some fresh ingredients to it & set it in the sun all sumer following & 
stir’d it often & it was excellent ink.
To make blue ink Geo: [Dill] of [Doby]
Rx wood zii Jamaica indico i.e. dyers indico in powder zii (indico la
hoar is best but dearest) steep it in hot water a qr of an hour then
pound it well then pour off the liquid till all is disolv’d. Steep your
[illegible] 2 hours in a pint of rain water warm not very hot it
must not boyl then strain it through a cloth & put it to the
blue liquor in which you may dissolve a little gum arabick
for two or 3 days shaking the bottle every day setting it 
in the sun or near a fire
To make ink rd in Jn Orton’s way, from Mr Barwells
Rt This [illegible] does Mr Barwells Rt
Rx gum arabic lbfs green copperas lbvs, best galls lbi
bruis’d, infus’d em in w: wine vinegar a qt pr 6 d at the [taverns]
till the gum & copperas is disolv’d, put ‘em in a jug & stir ‘em 
with a stick, twice a day for a week, the put in rain v
abt 2 qts or more till it is of a due consistence for writing 
which you must try if it is too thick, add more rain v but put in
too little water at first. after it is made stir it once a
week constantly, when you use it pour off the clear without
stiring best when you have lately added rain water to thin
it, then stir it before you pour any out keep all the ingredients
in always This will keep good 2 years & more. keep the jug
[cover’d] always with a paper ty’d over it to keep out the dust.
In the hot weather set it for a month or 2 in the sun in freezing
weather set it near the fire. Mr Orton always stirs his ink
twice a day after it is made as long as it lasts. after he has put in
rain water to thin it he doth not use it in 2 or 3 days or more.


(137
To make black ink Mr Blunt dyer at Burrows
ash mill in Darby shire
Rx river [water] a a French indico zfs. 2 d (price 3 d per lb) green
copperas zfs 2 [illegible] allum zfs blue galls of the bigger sort [illegible] 6 or 7.
bruis’d em the clearest gum arabick zii pr 2 g put em in a qt glass
bottle & set it near the fire & shake it every day for 8 or 9 days. It
writes pale at first then turns blue & at last black, it will n ot
turn yellow. If it writes too pale put in a little more copperas If it [illegible]
at the top put in a little salt & it will keep it down. 7 great galls
are zi from an [illegible] man.
To take spotts of ink out of cloth. Rx white starch
& rain water lay it on hot or mix it cold, & lay it in the hot
sun to dry Mr Wilkins Taylor of Leicer
To make very good ink mater mea. Rx the best alewort 2 qts
gum arabick 3 ou. green copperas 4 ou. turky galls 5 ou. beaten
small sugar candy 2 ou. stir them all together once or twice a
day for 7 or 8 days. It must not be very strong alewort, that will make
it write too thick but that for midling ale is best.
To make in the best Rx Mr. Geo Brice bookseller of Leicer His ink
barrel holds ten gallons. He takes rain water [illegible] new or old to which
he puts galls (from Turky) bruis’d in a mortar 7 to pr the darkest
heavy set & soundest, & stirs it every morning for a month then 
he puts in gum arabick (the coursest sort 9 d or 10 d per lb which is of
a box colour pounded in a mortar just only to break it that it may 
sooner dissolve) 5 lb stirring it still every morning for a
month longer. then add new green copperas eight pounds a [illegible]
stir it abt twice a week. It will mould if it is not stir’d once every day.
The ingredients are not strain’d from the liquor but after you 
have made ink twice upon the same ingredients adding new
every time that you make ink you must let the ingredients a [illegible]
that comes from them into the cask agn to make more ink. you must
never put water to the old ingredients, after they’ve been used twice with 
fresh ingredients. It is stirred with a thick broomstaff cut even at
the bottom or end of it when it happens to mould (which is for want 
of stirring) skim it off & throw it away. The ingredients continued 
on twice make the ink the stronger. The vessel hath 5 [hoops]
of wood but iron hoops are better It has a wooden cover but seldom
stands cover’d It stands under a pair of stairs in the summer & 
near the fire in winter


138)
Hands sore with washing in lye.
wash em for a long time in cold water after you’ve 
done washing in lye al. [illegible] & it will take out the
venome of the lye Goody Simon. when you’ve done washing 
wash em with new milk warm from the cow [illegible] or warm’d agt the
fire a little will do, & when you go to bed anoint with adders tongue
oyntmt & lie in an old pair of gloves to keep the sheets clean & fro
hurting the sore hands. Mary Chester To harden the hands the night
before you wash quench and old horse shoe or pr of tongues or any 
iron heated red hot in urine & wash the hands therein & let it dry 
in agt the fire ibid. another for sore or chapt hands. wash the
sore hands & arms in urine & let it dry in agt the fire then spit on
the sore places & drop some tallow on em from a candle & rub it
on agt the fire & lie in a pr of old gloves & they will be well the
next day Goody Foxon. [Gorze] cut betwixt michaelmass & xtmass
& burnt to ashes when new cut will make so sharp a lye that it will 
fetch the skin off & make the hands swell, after they’ve been cut a 
month they are not so sharp in their ashes To qualifie their sharpness
burn egg shells in their ashes or embers or add to the lye. Dead
small beer Anne Tasie another To cure chop in human hands
add mercury sublimate zij to lime water a qt you may make
it stronger for chops in horses heels Mr Jn Penford apothceary.
when you’ve done washing the sope or lye before the hands
are dry take a nip of salt & rub the hands with it let it
dry on & remain on all night This will harden the hands
& prevent chops. Goody [Kt] a washerwoman
Boil burnt alum in water so that it may taste strong of the alum
bath it hot on an obstinate chop & bind a linnen rag, moisten’d
in the same, to the sore Mr [Sachvil] Coy.


(139
To prevent the biting of gnats
Infuse Turky galls (ie. Aleppo galls) in water & wash your
face, it will discolour your skin. This they use in the Indies.
Wm Farmer a packer Another wash your hands & face at night
going to bed with your own urine To cure the swellings
caus’d by their biting wash em with wine vinegar Cos Jn Ashby


140)
A pouder for the toothach. v. 237.
Rx pouder of alibine root (ie. white helebore) snuff
up the quantity of a pins head into each nostril If you 
take too much it will make your nose bleed. sometimes it
is taken 8 or 10 times in a day Taken as snuff it cures
also the headach. M.B. face swell’d with the toothach or cold 
anoint it with oyl of roses at a convenient distance from 
the fire Mrs. [illegible] Halford. Diachlysma ad dolores dentium i.e. 
a mouth water for the toothach. It eases the pain in a moment 
vic. p. [722]. Salmons Dispensatory. The toothach. pound 
3 or 4 cloves of garlic put it into a linnen rag or squeeze 
2 or 3 drops into the contrary ear, lying on one side. W. P.
another mix white pepper in fine pouder with vinegar hold it
to the aching tooth it will give ease & conquer the pain being
often us’d. withabed [merer] of Cosby. another Lay a
plaster of burgundy pitch between both shoulders as broad as the
palm of a mans hand then mix black pepper in pouder with soap
& spred it upon allum’d feather & apply it to the root of the
contrary ear let it lie on till it drops off This is infallible says
Mrs Elizth Halford Cheek swell’d with the toothach anoint it, with
sallet oyl. This cured Jane Tasie. Sarah Halford’s cheek was violently
swell’d with [illegible] she was cured by applying a poultace made of oatmeal & milk & 
hogs lard six nights successively S.H.
The toothach. Dry an old linnen rag agt the fire. roll it up
into a little roll light one end at some flame or at the fire
& hold it in the mouth a little way taking care not to burn
the tongue as oft as it extinguishes you must light & hold it in the
mouth. The heat drives away the pain. Goody Simons.
another. mix a little white [illegible] in very fine pouder with the quantity
of 2 little pea’s of black pitch mix em very well together
by working em soundly if in the winter agt the fire, if in 
the summer the heat of the fingers is sufficient apply one of 
em made into the shape of a pea to the orifice of the aching
hollow tooth 3 or 4 hours or longer provided the pain doth
not cease, if the pain doth not abate then you must apply the
other quantity. You must take care not to swallow the spittle
while it is in the mouth lest you poison the self, if you’ve
occasion to eat you must take it out during the eating or
drinking then apply it again. This will only cure an hollow
tooth. This cured Joyce Gimson, my servant who was very 
little troubled with it afterwards.
If the gum & cheek is swell’d very much hold the strongest brandy 


(141
you can get in the mouth often repeating it till the gum
breaks then rub it with a clean rag & wash it oft with verjuice till
quite well This cured Mrs Abigail at Rotherby E.A. The toothach Rx
myrrh zi best aloes zi saffron 1 d sp. v. ½ a qr. of a pint Put these into a
viol glass & gently beat it till it dissolves then rub the gums with it often W.P.
Tooth rotten & hollow to cure its aking sometimes, never to ach again
drop a drop or 2 of oyl of origanum on a little lint & thrust it into the 
hollow tooth & it is a certain & safe cure W. P To cure the toothach
 Rx a bit of green copperas as big as a bean or a little nut, hold it
to the gum of the aking tooth taking care not to swallow any 
of the spittle but let it run out of the mouth if you use this oft
it will harden the gums & by drawing away the [precant] humours
prevent the toothach white copperas taken inwardly is poyson Mr
R. Baxter schoolmaster you may beat it to pouder & tie it up in a thin
rag when you would disguise it E. A. but green copperas [illegible] white [illegible] fetch the teeth out another Aug 719 E.A. was violently
troubled with the toothach the further great tooth on the nether [illegible]
aching the gum being very sore camphorated Hungary water & bleeding 
& toasted bread etc. would do but little good at last E. A. [illegible] his own
urine (being then accustom’d to drink milk morning & night) in his mouth
2 or 3 times a day but especially night & morn & it gave him ease & 
made a perfect cure in 3 or 4 days E. A. another Ann Tasie E. A. servant
being frequently troubled with the toothach having rotten teeth E.A. 
caus’d the aching gum to be prickt till it bled with a quill & the quill & 
blood that hung on it was immediately into ratsbane or mercury sublimate
in pouder & being cut short it was wrapt up in a paper & then 
a linne rag was sown round it & she constantly wore it in her pocket
& it freed her from the pain & ach for 2 yrs as she told E.A. & perhaps
all her life after she wore the tooth of a dead man in her pocket before
in vain Ann Tasie another wear the forefoot of a mole in 
the pocket constantly [sam.] Pauly borcklayer Toothach caus’d by a 
hollow tooth. Dip a little lint in (ordinary) oyl of vitriol & with a pin put
it into the hollow ooth It burns the nerves os that it seldom returns
Jn Pat a traveller a face swell’d with the toothach as cold
spred conserve of roses spred it on a cloth & bind it on the swelling
& it will cure in a nights time. Mrs Abigail Finch The toothach
dissolve sal armoniac in spring or well water Hold it to the aching
gum without swallowing the spittle Mrs Finch.
a faced swell’d or an inflammation or strain.
Rx camphorated spirits of wine & oyntmt of Peru, mix & warme
it in a spoon. chafe it in agt the fire 2 or 3 times in a day Mrs
Coulton. To cure the toothach & the scurvy int eh gums & 
to eat away the rotten part of teeth & so breed flesh again. Rx sp
of vitriol 15 or 20 drops or 2 d hony of roses zi pr [illegible] tie a rag to 
a stick & rub it on night & morn till the gums bleed. Tho Juice



142)
To cure the toothach
Mrs Ann Lathwell when she was big with child was
violently afflicted with the toothach having try’d a
great many medicines in vain & blister’d behind the
ear without relief was at last cured by putting a great
deal of salt into her mouth on the aching side she fell asleep
& was freed from the toothach for 7 yrs after A.L.
another Put tobacco to the aching gum. ibid.
another Put to half an ounce of hony of roses i.e. syrup of
roses abt 6 or 7 drops of oyl of vitriol or as much as will 
give it an acid taste rub the gums with it It will prevent
their aching if usd for a good time together once a day. It
will kill worms in the teeth. Mr. Rich Wightman.
Camomile is used with good success aft the toothach apply’d hot
in a bag to the cheek It is [ext.] agt cramps. Dr Quincy.
If you’ve a hollow tooth that aches make a pill of opiu
camphir & oyl of mace Put it into the hollow place of the 
tooth. It giveth immediate ease to the tooth & jaw. Mr Orme.
A swelling in Mrs Halfords cheek caus’d by the toothach, when
poultising & a great many oyntmts were try’d in vain, was
cured by hot verjuice done on 2 or 3 times a day.
Mrs Elizth Gee sister Boothby’s maid had an hollow tooth which 
ached & swell’d her cheek & was very painful for 2 or 3 days E. A.
cured her thus He moisten’d a little cotton with Hungary water acidulated
with oyl of vitriol & apply’d it to the aching gum & hollow tooth
at night & apply’d a plaster of Bents salve spread on leather & 
first out to go round ½ the root of the ear, to that pt of the head which
the ear covers. This cured Rachel Halford E.A.s servant having an hollow
tooth that pain’d her (when smoaking tobacco would not cure) having
Aunt Boothby’s corecloth or salve made of sevil oyl red lead & 
bees wax (without rosin) lay’d plasterwise behind the ear. you may 
try emplastru adhaesivum or diaculum cum gumi Elizth Mason’s
black salve will cure the toothach lay’d behind the ear on the same
side with the aching tooth. E. A.
Mr Ralph Wells attorny of Leicer cured himself of the
toothach & freed himself from it for many yrs & perhaps all
his life by chewing tobacco twice a week. R. W.
Pecheys herbal commends oyl of guaiacum as good for the toothach.
swelling caus’d by the toothach etc. in the cheek or neck etc. Rx a piece 
of scarlet or red cloth perhaps any cloth may do fry it in butter
& apply it as hot as you can abide it This cured Mary Taylor E. A.’s
servant of a swelling in his cheek that was not caus’d by the toothach in 
a [illegible] M.T. To give certain ears in the toothach from a collodion 
of Rxs in physic & surgery Rx French [illegible] mithridate & a few
drops of vinegar, beat em to a paste & lay a plaster of it to the 



(143
cheek bone or behind the ear; It will raise a blister, but
rarely fails to cure
To make the tooth white & to preserve the gums from the scurvy
Rx camphorated sp. v. what quantity you please acidulate it with
oil of vitriol so that you can endure it in your mouth (if you put in too
much oil it will eat your gums) when it is too sharp add more sp. v.
rub the teeth & gums 2 or 3 times in a day found out by E.D.
Toothach. Apply the harb boil’d or water or the juice
apply’d to the gums viz arsmart that hath black spots
on it Mrs Dorothy Pickern.
Toothach. Rx urine 2 spoonful and boil it in a ladle and
add pounded or grated ginger and thicken it therewith till
it is a poultis and lay it upon a linnen cloth two fingers
broad and apply under your chin from ear to ear Mr
Tho: Franks 


144)
A Rib broken.
If you happen to break a rib or ribs by any accident you 
must swaddle the self about the broken rib very strait with 
a childs swaddle-band or the like thing that will go 3 or 4  
times round the body. The breath naturally thrusts the rib
outwards & the bandage keeps the body in a narrow compass
so that the breath has less way to extend the rib. Art cannot
make any inward application to rejoyn the rib. You must spred
this plaster following upon sheeps leather & apply it before you 
use the bandage It is good for a bruise or strain & to take away
pain. Rx frankincense (hard of soft) burgundy pitch (the soft
sort) p.e. melt em in a ladle or spoon with as much oyl of turpentine
as will bring it to the consistence of a salve It is a 
good corecloth This cured Sam. Exon’s broken rib Apr. 721 
Jn Headly bricklayer of Corby, his mother broke one of her ribs by a fall she
apply’d Aunt Boothby’s corecloth spread upon sheeps leather. It is made of red
lead sevil oil rosin & bees wax vid. the [Rx]


(145
To fasten teeth mobiles dentes stabilise seltirmare
mix a little vinegar with hony cold & rub the gums often. It 
is good for em when they are bruised by a fall or blos Mrs
Basset Another suck [illegible] [illegible] thro the teeth & rub the
bums with the finger & sometimes rub the teeth with salt E.A.
A decoction to fasten loose teeth & recover decay’d
gums. Rx ½ a glass full of vinegar as much water of
[loatiscus] (i.e. mastic tree) rosemary, myrrh, mastick, boll
the moyster that stilleth out of dragons blood, roch alum
burnt each zi cinnamon zfs spring water three glassfuls
mix & let em boyl with a small fire adding to it
hony lbfs taking away the scum of it Then put to it benjamin 
a little when it has boyled a qr of an hour Rx it from
the fire keep it in a clean vial when cold & wash the
teeth often as well before meat as after & hold it awhile
in the mouth. It is very good for the head & maketh a
sweet breath. This Rx is of great excellence. S. S. [queeze]
what is the moisture of dragons blood
perhaps only dragons blood. To fasten teeth even after
they are loose by salivation. Mix Hungary water with common spring
water hold it oft in the mouth it is good after a tooth is drawn to 
heal the sore gum Mrs Ann Lathwell. another scrape some
horse radish root put it in to small beer after it has stood a little while hold
some in the mouth often ibid.
To fasten teeth & preserve the gums & to prevent & cure the toothach.
Rx the clearest pt of aqua camphorata in the mouth often apply 
it with lint to the aking tooth. There are not many things superior
to this Rx E.A.
To fasten loose teeth & kill the scurvy in the gums
Tx sage leaves & bramble (al brier) leaves each mi alum a qr of an 
ounce mastidi do boil all of em in spring water a qt strain it. Then add
claret half a pint & sweeten it with hony to the taste as soon as it is
strain’d, that the heat may dissolve the hony. This cured Mr Jn Wells of
Wandon (near Woburn) in Buckinghamshire when his teeth were very loose
& his gums eaten away with the scurvy. Mrs Margt. Muxlo.
A gargarism to cure sore mouths Rx bramble tops, leaves of columbine,
cyprus & sage each mi boyl em in water 2 qts wherein 
2 ou. make a gargarism, wherewith wash the mouth often in a day Pechey’s
Herbal. for the scurvy of the gums & teeth & to cleanse & fatten em
mornings & mix the common sp of salt with clarified hony of roses and
rub the teeth & gums. [illegible]



146)
gums scorbutic & sore. Beat borax to pouder
mix it with hony & apply it with rag to the sores 
Do it on 2 or 3 times a day. This cured Tho. Exon a boy when 
his tongue was almost eaten off Traveller & Goody Exon
another Rx southern wood chopt small bole burnt alum & hony boil
em together over a cole. Mr Coy.
x another Mrs Margt Mucloe says borax beaten to pouder & mixt with loaf
sugar in pouder because rougher than white pouder sugar is better but the last will 
do very well It is better than hony. It has cured cankers in children’s
mouths often It cured E.A.’s gums in the yr 729 better than [illegible] & oil of baye
birthwort (aristolochia) doth beautiful cleans & fasten the teeth if
they be often rub’d with the pouder thereof R.D.
another Rx agyptiacum made with verdigrease hony vinegar raw
or burnt allum according to Markham’s masterpiece E. A. [illegible] a 
little aqua camphorata [illegible] sp. v. camphorated sometimes you may 
add oil of vitriol, drop add these last liquids just as you are
more effectual than raw You m ay it sometimes try.
Mr Painter a sea surgeon Rx tinct. myrr zfs [illegible] rosai zi m.
This following is good to cure cankers & sore gums & toothach when other remedies
have failed found out by E.A. Rx verjuice abt 3 or 4 ou. a little fine
bole armonck a little raw & burnt alum & borax & myrrh all in pouder
camphor less quantity than of the rest & R. vitriol a little hony as
much as will allay its nauseousness you may add a little tincture of
myrrh & camphorated sp. of wine
Teeth to fasten & whiten Rub them with [illegible] grass [illegible]
& salt Mrs Brown of Leicer another Rx the best fine boll & burnt 
alum p.e. in fine pouder & moisten a [illegible] [flaxen] with water or the spittle & rub 
[illegible] sore mouth or gums in man or child the teeth 2 or 3 times a day Mr Coy
mix [illegible]: verdigrise in fine powder with hogs lard or fresh butter
spred it on a rag tye an other rag over it then sew it under the 
childs chin or [illegible] & ware it till well.
To fasten teeth 7 cure em of the scurvy Mrs Catherine Ossen.
Rx hony 4 ou. myrrh in pouder zii (2 d roch allum & bole each
zfs rub the teeth & gums with it & the finger often or dip a
rag in it & lay it to the tooth.
For the scurvy in the gums. Burn juniper wood to ashes
& rub the gums with em. Traveller. Toothach boyl tobacco
with some camomile flowers in water & hold a spoonfull
warm in your mouth for 2 hours then spit it out & the 
pain will abate ibid. spirit of sweet nitre a few drops 
mixt with a little spirit of wine or water stops gangrenes taken
away rotten or proud flesh & warts, heals cankers & sores in 
the mouth, legs & other parts, Salmon’s Dispensary. Dragons’ blood 
is very drying & binding It fastens loose teeth & stops the bleeding of
the gums & helps to cure the scurvy in them. Millers Herbal. To fasten teeth Rx [sal]
[illegible]
& mastick p.a. poudered apply a little of it often to teeth which are loose [illegible]
Tho. [illegible] apothecary


(147
The green sickness
Quench the fire [proker] al pur (an iron that stirs up the fire)
in a draught of small beer or ale every morning till well
this cured on that look’d like death Dr Brooks of London
& Mrs Finch. another for the green sickness or for one
that is very weak & inclining to a consumption that looks
pale or for a girl that has injur’d her constitution by 
eating freestone or coles or dry grits. Quench the iron
proker heated red hot in abt ½  pint of ale in which is 
scraped abt 2 spoonfuls of castle soap stir it abt till it
is thick like caudle. This cured Cathering Wilkins the clockmakers
daughter having had very ill health & look’d poor & sickly
for a long time before It mended her constitution & complexion
she offer’d 5 d for this Rx to a Lancashire woman that
cured her but she would not divulge it. You must take it
for nine morning successively Mrs M. another Put abt ½
a pint of smal ale or beer & ale to old rusty iron
zi or zij let it infuse 12 hours drink abt a coffee dishful 
in the morning fasting till well This in a months time 
commonly drives away paleness from the lips & cheeks & 
leaves a lively red in its room. The same iron serves all
the time approv’d by Ruth Winter & Mrs Mary Mayer my 
mother. If you think it too nauseous you may take a 
raysin of the sun or a little sugar after it, but it is better
without m. m. Another steep currans lbfs steel pouder
4 d fro the apothecaries in white wine a qt shake it 
& take 1 spoonful of all the 3 ingredients every morning
(while it lasts) fasting & drinking abt a coffee
dish full of wormwood ale after it immediately, then
walk or stir for abt ½ an hour. This cured my mother 
Mrs Mary Mayer another Rx as much flower of brimstone as
will lie on a shilling in a little treacle every morning for
9 mornings successively It will be abt a spoonful when mixt 



148)
walk or run after it. This cured Ruth Winter &
brought a fresh colour into her cheeks when the former
medicines fail’d. Mrs Finch another Rx gentian, water
trefoil, centaury, scabius sothern wood, rue, penny royal
& wormwood each mi all dry put em
in a bag in 2 qts of strong ale when that is drank add 2 qts
more to the same ingredients drink every morning
abt a qr of a pint & do at 4 o clock in the afternoon
it must infuse 2 days before you begin to drink. you must
walk after it when you begin to mend drink only in the
morning. This cured Ruth Winter a second time. Old Elizth 
Winter another Rx pilule hiera picra with agarick zfs (al 4 drams)
to which add saffron in pouder zi. Divide it into 12 pts or pills & 
take one every morning fasting &Y fast 1 hour after it using
brisk exercise to sweat a little after it for 1 or 2 hours without
observing any rules of diet or confinemt. If this dose
doth not cure repeat half the dose. This has cured hundreds 
Br S.A. another Rx steel pouder 1 d elecampane 1 d
liquorish pouder half a penny worth boll half a penny worth 
flower of brimstone ½ a pennyworth Bayberries ½ a penny 
worth treacle lbfs The six 1st ingredients must be in fine
pouder Rx the quantity of nutmeg on a knifes point fasting
in the morning successively as long as it lasts walk after it
if you are able. this cured a maid that had it 6 or 7 yrs when
confin’d to her bed & not able to go a high lone This never fail’d
Stephen Hunt. another Rx half a spoonful of filings
of steel from the smith in treacle ziiij Take it at two doses
equally divided for morning & night This cured Francis
Clark abt 30 yrs of age that could scarce go a high lone & had
been out of order for a long time Fr. Clark.
Mrs Powels Rx for the green sickness Rx tincture of steel
ziij tincture of saffron zi tincture of coral zij mix them well
together Rx 20 or 30 drops of this in a glass of w. wine night
& morning 2 or 3 days before & after the new & full of the
moon to open obstructions & cure the green sickness Mrs Caulton.
The green sickness Rx fine steel pouder 2 d flower of brimstone
2 d treacle 2 d mix em well Rx the quantity of 2 nutmegs 
every morning fasting till noon or 2 hours you must use exercise
when you take it salt of steel is better than steel pouder you 
may put in 3 d worth. Purge before you begin & after every dose 


(149
you may drink a glass of white wine when you take it
you may purge with cream of tartar or glaubers salt
or Daffy’s elixir Mrs Caulton. Green sickness Rx salt of
steel pr 6 d divide it into six pts Pound one pt every morning
fine [illegible] some pap of an apple or marmalet or any sweet meat
spred & put the salt in the inside round it up like a pill with another
clean knife Give it the maid in the morning fasting for 6 mornings
fast & use exercise after it It is nauseous if not wrapt up
clean. This was used by the daughter of Sister Boothby with success.
A maid was cured of melancholy & the green sickness by the use of this
medicine following. Rx of the conserve of balm 1 ou conserve of [buglass]
& [borage] flowers each zfs confection of [athermes] zi make an 
electuary with the syrup of the 5 opening roots; Rx the quantity of a nutmeg 
morning & evening for a month, being 1st purg’d once or twice. Pecheys
Herbal.
Let a maid that hath the green sickness hold her
head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [cure] her Geo. Hill
Dyer at Hoby
Another steep stub nails in w. wine drink a glass
every morning till well Mrs Brown of Leicer
Green sickness Rx feather few mi boyl’d in ale 1 qt to a pint
take ½ a qr of a pint first & last morning & night for 7
days then intermit 3 or 4 days & take it again it is bitter
as gall put a lump of sugar in the mouth after it take 
steel powder in white or loaf sugar in the middle of
the day all the time or take feather few in pouder with 
sugar widow liquorish another For the green
sickness 7 opening of the stomach Rx w. wine 22 ats 6 branches 
of rosemary, the inner bark of hawthorn, a good mi sugar
ziv boyl em in a stone-jug stopped set it in a kettle of water 
till the 3d part be boyl’d away strain in it & drink a draught of it
every morning till you are cured. Mrs. [Hewet] E. A.’s mother
For the green sickness Rx aethiops mineralis zi in fine
powder and hony one ounce and mix them and take [illegible]
Ten spoonful at night going to bed to be continued
till well This cured Mr [Phyg???] daughter at Leicester
Directed by a London [do?ser]



150
to cure the green sickness, Take a spoonfull of
soot from the mouth of an oven or copper in a qt of a pt of
ale 9 mornings together this has cured m any Jane
Smith.








154)



(155
Vapours or hysteric fits.
Vapours are caus’d by great grief (as the loss of a
child or relation of friend) Trouble of fright, long
sickness & weakness & poverty of the blood. They 
attend marry’d women & maids & men too. They can’t
sleep, & yawn often & fancy that they shall die or
go distracted The cure Rx assafoetida a good large pill
as big as a great pea or 3 little ones in butter or the
pap of an apple or without any thing if you can swallow
them It will give you one gentle stooll Rx 3 nights
successively. They attend lying in women mostly for hysteric
fits Rx a pill of assafoetida in a little juice of rue Mrs 
Finch. Vapours sometimes cause sore eyes both which I have known
cured by bleeding in both the jugular veins at once Tho.
Holy. another Rx oyl of camphir 3 or 4 drops in a glass
of wine. Drink it & let the nostrils, temples & wrists at the
beating of the arteries be anointed with the oyl. They 
will defend you from the plague & cure vapours they
penetrate in a moment p. 133 Salmon on Bates.
another Rx 3 drops of spirit of amber in a spoonful of milk
cold at any time when you perceive the fits coming This prevented 
& cured vapours in Thos. Juice’s wife Aunt Boothby & Tho. Juice 
Dr Mead uses cassummuniar as a stomachick, as well as an hystrick
It seems to be a kind of zedoary & is of a bitterish aromatick taste.
quincy. Rectify’d oil of amber mixt with sugar than with wine from 3 to 6 
drops is admirable in hysterical distepmers. Salmon’s Family Dictionary
I have used this composition that follows, with excellent success, in women’s obstructions;
& it is , undoubtedly much better in hysterical diseases, than the [illegible]
compound water of the London Dispensatory. Take of dried briony roots,
beaten to a gross powder, two ounces of the leaves of rue & dried mugwort, each
half a pound; sabino dried, three quarters of an handful; of feather few [illegible]
& penny-royal, dried each half a handful; of the fresh yellow pill of one
orange; of mirrh half an ounce of castor two drams, of the best [nauts] brandy
one quart; put them into a glass, & let them infuse six days in warm washes; then
steam the liquor off & keep it in a glass-bottle; well stopped. The dose is half a 
spoonful to be taken in three ounces of penny-royal water, sweetned with sugar,
morning and evening.



156)
A speedy safe & effectual cure for vapours in women
from [Grubstreet] Journal. My wife after here second 
lying in, was suddenly seized with a lowness of spirits giddiness
in her head, & a defective memory; & I could hear nothing
from morning to night but a repetition of her miseries.
I tried the effect of medicines, but to no purpose. At last she was
ordered by a friend who personated a physician, never to drink
any thing stronger than small-beer; never to go abroad but to 
church; & to be sure to work some hours every day. By this
means she is recover’d & is now as well as any woman in 
the parish.











(157



158



(159
medicines for the eyes given me by the Rd
Mr Isaac Taylor second schoolmaster
at Bosworth in Leicershire
Rx herb chelidon maj. absinth. virid. heder. terrestris an.
mfs stercoris albi gallina pulv. zifs albi ovi optime con
quassati q.s. m. auxilio est suffisionibus & sugillationibus oculoru 
a contusione ortis.
Rx Pomorum dulc. putrid. zi micae panis in lacte coctae
mucilag. sem. psyllij aqu. papav. extract. an zi unguent. tutia
ziij croc [illegible] fs camph. gr. 5. ol. absint. chym. gut. 2as m.
in oculorum inflamattione dolorifica.
Colyrium album. Rx camph gr. 12 [trich] albi rhaph zij aq.
ros. alb. aq: euphr an. ziiij infunde & cola. oculorum inflammationis
rubori, & dolori modetur usurpetar exteriae 
collendo & guttatim instillando singulis matutinis idq ad plusculos
dies. Colyrium armoniacum. Rx calcis limo=pidae zij sac.
saaturni [illegible] fs sal. armon. crudi gr. 6 m. ad acres humorum
fluxiones sistendas; ad rubores & dolores tollendos.
Colyrium saturninu. Rx sac: saturni gr. 8. aquae rosar. alb.
zi. m. maximi refrigerat. colyrium de succis. Rx vitriol
alb. gr. 8. succi cheledon. maj: succ. fanicu. an zfs mel.
zi [illegible] & despuma. praeclaire detergit nebulas sollit; dolere 
aerem, sed cita cessurum excitat. gutta una pro vice instillanda
sufficiat. Diu potest asservari. colyrium vitriolicum. Rx
vitriol. alb. gr. 4. aqua sperm. ranar zi m. refrigerate, siccat,
detergit efficax est ad ophthalmiam, [essiphora] ulcera.
emplastru de majorana Rx pic. burgund. zfs. pul. majoran. zfs
euphorb. gr 5. m. ad catarrhum, dentalgiam, uvula inflammationem,
ophthalmia & cephalagiam. applicatur nucha ve pone
aures. unguentum ophthalmicum. Rx ung. [illegible] zfs boli, lap.
cataminaris an. [illegible] i camph. [illegible] fs ol. rosaru q. s. m. emplastra ophth.
Rx farinae hordei zij croc. zij aq. rosar. & vitelli ove q.s. f. empl. oculo
placide superponendum.


160)
Emplastra ophthalmica
Rx farina hordei zij thur. & olibani an. zfs f empl. pro 
oculis. alisa. Rx medulla panis alb. zi made fiat in aq.
rosarum quibus adde pomorum dulcium zij lact. muliebr.
q. s. f. empl. pro oculis.
Emplastrum [repellens] pro oculis
Rx empl. diapal. zi ol. myrt. zfs acoti zfs. pulv. bol. opt.
zi sang. dracon [illegible] i lap. hamatit zfs. m. coque ad consumtionem
aceti f. empl. addenda ol. myrtillor q.v.
Pulvis ophthalmicus bat.
Rx sumitat. euphrag. ziij sem. faenicul. com zij sem. rut.
zfs mac zij sacch. opth zvi f. pulvis s.a. coch. sum.
ter in die
Frontale fulleri
Rx pulv. mastiches thuris an zij creta, farina fabar. an.
zfs alb. ovi conquass. ol. ros. an zvi. aceti q. s. m. in emplastri
formam. aadhibetur in affectibus oculoru rheumaticis,
idq3 tum praeservationis, tum curationis ergo.
aqua ophthalmica botiana.
Fit [illegible] aqua [e] gum. guiac. (quae fit
nobile colyrium
Rx pomphlogigos zij super lamina ferri novies secandescant
toties qz sesquilibra vini malvatici extinguantur deinde in 
pollinem lavigentur cum ol. mac. misceantur. [cribrab?] tragiciantur,
posthac vitro exceptae ac dicto vino affuso macerentur
sole donae flavescant do instar auri oculis auriliatur inflammatis,
maculas, unguem sigillatione, cicatricos, albugines,
pustulas plagas be abigit.
Pro oculis siccitate laborantibus.
Rx rutae pugil. I fanicu. fusci mi. floru rosimar. botanicae, euphrag.
an. mi mel. q. s. f. elect. a cuspide [cult??] deglutiondum



(161
Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain & blew chamadrys (i.e. Germander)
each ziiij smallage parsly seeds, penny royal, hysop, saxifrage,
juniper berries each zi [stavesaire] seeds zij beat em
small, with hony or sugar make a confection to be used morning & 
evening & you shall see wonders.
Diet drinks
Rx quick lime libj put it into spring water a gallon, let it
stand all night the next morn pour off the clear & strain it
thro a fine cloth then put it into a pot & add to it hartshorn
& ivory shavings, sassafras & red saunders each zi fennel seeds
& gromil (al gromwel) seeds each zfs liquorish bruis’d, juniper 
berries bruis’d each zfs boyl all these in the lime water
till one quart is wasted & at latter and put in 300 mellipedes
(al. sows) let it boyl a little then strain it & put it into bottles.
Drink of it twice a day viz in the morning & at 4 in the 
afternoon.
Rx srasaparil. ziij Chinae, lign. [lentife]. an zi ras. CC. ebor.
an. zfs summit, foenic. euphrag. an mi. fol. rorismar. Beton.
an. pug. ij sem foenicul. coriand & baccar juniperi an. zfs.
glyciriz zifs. infund. in aqua fontan. lb 20 per horas sex loco
calido coquatur ad 3tie partis consumtionem, ad finem decoct.
adde millepodu no. 200 coletur pro usu.
Rx mucigines sem. psyllij & cidonioru extract. in aqua plantaginis
vel rosar. cujus [q?] zij lac. muliebr. zi. trachisc. alb. rhasis [illegible] o m.
Rx Trochise alb. rhasis, sacchar.  saturni, sacchar. Landi alb. an.
[illegible] i vitriol. rom. gr. iij aq. plantag. zvi. m. addi possunt coral.
rub croci vel aloes pro re nata.
For sore eyes, gangrenes, fistulas, ulcers of all sorts,
pearls films, webs, blood-shot eyes, blear eyes etc.
This is mostly used by Mr Taylor being a pale blew al.
of a pearl colour. Rx smiths water 1 qt lime unguento
ziiij let em stand 14 hours stirring em often. Cast off the
water gently from the lime put it into a brass or 


162)
or copper vessel adding sal armoniac ziij Let it
stand till it has acquired a true blew tincture then add
camphir zfs.
Pulvis cibarius in omnibus oculorum morbis
utendus.
Rx summitatu thymi vel rosimarini, euphraginis an.
ziij. sem faeniculi, cinamom. mac. an. zi m. f. pulvis.
adde salis purissimi (vel potius salis gemmae) zviii This
is to be used with all food. It admirably sharpens & preserves
the sight & prevails against suffusions of the
eyes, darkness, hurts of the memory etc.
A pouder for the eyes
Rx dulcify’d vitriol zfs prepar’d [paty] 15 gr sugar candy [illegible] i
make a fine pouder
Cerevisia oxydorica a drink to quicken the sight
Rx rue,s age, vervain, eye bright each mi live [sows] 400,
sweet fennel seeds zi raisins ston’d lbfs rosemary flowers
fresh gather’d mi spiknard ziij yellow of lemon & orange 
flowers each zi. Put em all into a bag for 4 gallons of
new ale. It is to be taken for ordinary drink for dimness
of sight. when you drink it put into each draught 20 drops 
of sp. of sal armoniac. Let the use of it be continued for
3 or 4 whole months or longer for a lesser time will do but
little good. outwardly let the eyes be bath’d with qn. of Hungary
water or wash the eyes themselves 3 or 4 times a day with 
a proper water mixt with an equal quantity of sp. of wine, or 
with this colyrium following Rx white wine lbi camphir
zi rosemary [tops] & eyebright each half a pugil; put em into 
a clean basin of brass or pewter then heat 5 or 6 stones of lapis calaminaris red
hot & twice quench em in the wine etc. If you quench em 6 or 
7 times as Mr Taylors Rx directs they will drink up all the wine
It is admirable for rheum, water, heat, cold, film, fistula,
pearl blindness, dimness etc. This water is much commended
by Mr Taylor. I found it dry’d my eyes very much but I happen’d
to quench a bit of brick in’t instead of lap. calam. by a mistake.



(163
Pilulae de lawne seu pilula ex duobus
Rx colocynth pulveriz. zifs scam [p?p.] ij pilul. coch.
majoris & aggregativae an. zifs ol. cariophil. chym. zifs
m. f. pil. catholic.
Rx hujus pil. cathol. zifs cochiae majoris & aggregativae an. ziij
m. f. pil. cephalica. Dosis a gr. 15 ad [illegible] i vel gr. 25.
[illegible] The first pills are compos’d of pilulae ex duobus They 
must be always given before you undertake to cure sore
eyes It is an exct. head pill & good for the scurvy (& to sweeten
the blood) dropsy, gout, & French pox vid. Salmon’s Disp
They are a universal purge to be used where ever purging 
is necessary. Take em spring & fall to keep you in health.
The second pills are more exct. for the head.
Pilulae. Rx massae pilularu de hiera cum agarico [illegible] fs pil.
luis [illegible] i diagridij gr. ij syr. staechados & euphragiae q. s.
f. p. no. 6. Rx pil. ex duobus a [illegible] i ad zfs. calameli
[illegible] i m. f. p. no quatuor. alias Rx pil. e duobus a
gr. 15 ad [illegible] I vel zfs. alias. Rx scamon. select. pulp.
colocinth. subt. pulv. an. zi f pil. cum l. q. syr. straechados
dos a [illegible] i ad zfs vel [illegible] zij mane.
Pro vulneribus ocuorum
Rx myrrhae, sarcocol. dissolut. in lacte mulebr. an. [illegible] fs
tutiae pp. [illegible] i mellis rosaru paru, cum modica quantitate
album. ov. & aq. rosar. f. linimentu. alisa. sanguis columbae 
ex ala extract. adhuc calens instilletur. vel medulla
panis torefacta & fina rubra infecta applicetur.
Dip a linnen cloth in the warm blood of a pidgeon 
& apply it to the eye & if you instill a drop into it, 
it will not be amiss. If the eye is black & blew by 
an external accident. Chew cummin seeds, fennel seeds
or cloves & the breathing on the eye is exct. or a fomentation
of wine in which hysop has been boyled is very 
successful. or bath the eye with Hungary water. If dust
or any thing hurtfull is got into the eye it is clear’d by blowing 


164)
or sparting in rosewater.
If the eyelids are glew’d together separate em with 
butter, beer or cream by wiping em gently.
The seeds of clary put into the eyes take away motes.
Boyl a bunch of hysop in water or red wine & apply it
to the eye is very good for a bruise on the eye & blooding
immediately is good for a bruise.
A spot in the eye. Rx rosewater q.f. put into it so
much sal armoniac as will make it a little smite the 
tongue, keep it 2 or 3 days in a copper vessel till it has
acquired a true blew tincture Pone aures sanguisugae.
Fontanellae scapulares. emplastru suppedale de pice alba
adversus humorus [defusion??] fumus nicotiana cum 
succino & sem. anisi vel coriandri pulverisati cum mediocri
quant. botanicae ad visus praeservationem. Rx sal.
gem zij in aqua flor. rorismarin. zi dissolut. & recte
philtrat. De catarrho. post strenue per plures dies
expurgatu cerebru, Rx ficunum ping. fermenti aeris an.
lbfs sem. viticis & nasturtij contus an. zi. sem. sinap.
contus. zij empl. de mucilagin. ziiij malaxentur & incorporentur
addendo ol. lauri q.s. formetur emplastru [illegible]
super alutam quod toti capiti impernatur & quotidie marie
renovetur. Hoc omniu capitis humorem eliciet quod [neq?]
cantharides occipitio admatae, [neq?] ulcus sincipiti & commisuorae
cauterio inductum, [neq?] secta in fronte vena affecerit
Rx cortic. pistach. sicciss. zifx. part. lignos. nuc
pineae, cortic. guaiac. ligni junip. vel cedr. lign. aloes vel
sassafr. lign. rhodij cortic. wintera. nuc morschat. cinamom.
an. zifs tabac. a ziiij ad 5, 6, 7 zi. m.
Colyrium
Rx gum tragacanth. zij mucilagi. sem psyllij ziij aq. [rosar??]
& plantaginis an q. s. f. colyrium madido [q?] linteo externe
occludantur oculi.


(165
Electuraria
[illegible] Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain, blew chamedrys,
each ziiij smallage, parsly seeds, penny-royal, hysop,
saxifrage, juniper berries each zi seeds of slaves
acere zij. Beat em small with hony or sugar, make a
confection to be taken morning & evening miranda
videbis.
Another for weakness & dimness of sight Rx fennel seeds
libfs mountain withy lbfs germander zfs celandrine roots
zv aniseeds, smallage, parsly an. zifs pennyroyal, hysop,
flowers of borage & rosemary, juniper berries,
saxifrage an. zifs leaves of betony, rue, eyebright
each mj with clarified honey make an electuary. Dose
zfs mane. Pulvis sternutatorius Rx marjora.
Rorismar. beton. flor. lit. conval. an ziij n. mosc. zij
sal. armoniac. volat. [illegible] i m. f. pulvis. sub t.
masticatoria
Rx mastich. ziij pureth. staphisag. an zij. rad. angel. zfs.
cubeb nuc. m. an zi euphorb. [illegible] fs cera q.s. f. [illegible] ex qua
fiant masticatoria. pulvis cibarius Rx sum. euphrag.
ziij sem. taenicu. cinnam. mac. an zi f. pulvis adde sal
alb. zviii. m. sumatur cum omni cibo.
Dr Atwood Rx ras. guiac sassapt an. zij. cort. interni
jugland. zi coque in cerevis. neu. mediocris cong. 6 ad
4. dein suspend. sequent. Rx herb. marjoran. beton.
euphras. geran. rob. an miiij rad. paeon. majoris lbfs.
raphan. sulv. angelica an zij sumitat. rutae, flor. staecad.
rorismar. an. mij cardamom. bac. junip. an zijfs. m.
praep. sac. S. A. 


166)
Eye-water of salt armoniac cures most distemper
of the eyes, as the pin & web, pearl, film & dimness
of sight, ulcers of the eyes, cancers & burns p. 363 Salmons
Disp. Eye water of crocus metaloru p. 320 ibid.
Eye water of succory cures all diseases of the eyes as pin & web,
mists, suffusion (suffusio i.e. a pin or web in the eye) pearls, inflammations,
redness, bloodshot etc. p. 120 ibid. aqua ophthalmica Salmonis
cures all manner of eyes that are sore fore which it is to be esteemed as
a jewel p. (720) 271 ibid. Balsamu mirabile curat omnes oculorum 
morbor, tertio quoque die guttam i. instillando p. 5. Fullers Disp.
A poultace for the eyes when inflam’d red & swell’d to cool’
& give ease & cure Rx white bread a slice put it into new
milk boyl’d with rose leaves or rose cake & bind it to the
eyes with a linnen cloth lying on your back in bed. [illegible]
another Toast white bread crusts & boyl em in new milk
& apply it with a cloth as hot as you can endure it lying
on your back. This cure done of Cosby. Tho. Hely.


(167



168)



(169
for sore rheumatick eyes
Rx white copperas the quantity of a hazelnut, loaf
sugar & white sugar candy each twice as much spring
water a pint set em in a window where the sun shines
hot to dissolve & incorporate em Wm Coltman the
farrier commends this above all ocular medicines. It
cured his eye that had been long sore by a spark of fire
at first falling into’t [illegible] Lay tacamahac, a gum to 
the temples it will repel defluxions upon the eyes & 
strengthen the sight Mrs M. Mrs Hurst in the forest having
very sore red eyes catching cold at her lying in was thus
cur’d in a little time by E.A. she wash’d her eyes with the copperas
water according to the 1st rt of this page dipping a sparrows
or starlings or any small birds feather therein then she had a 
drying plaster made of the white of one egg & hony verdigrise
& burnt allum each as much as will lie on a [gr?at] in fine
pouder [illegible] bole as much as will discolour it pretty red & wheat
flower as much as will bring it to the consistency of a 
plaster spread it upon allum’d leather let it be sew’d on with 
a cloth for 3 or 4 days. apply to each temple emplastru
de minio & when you take off the 1st wrist plaster apply empl.
de minio to the wrist. One wrist at a time is enough to plaster
E. A. To strengthen the sight & dry up a rheum. Rx [putty] in 
fine pouder 1 d eye bright water & white rose water each 1 d 
double refin’d sugar in fine pouder abt the quantity of a small 
wallnut. shake em & let em stand a little after shaking then
put in a feather & draw it along the eyelashes morning & 
night. Do not put any into the eye with the feather by opening the eyes but only [illegible]
works in between the eyelashes. James Leppington of the
root of elecampane is made a kind of wine which sharpeneth 
the light p. 73. The Haven of Health. Ginger strengthens the
brain & clears the sight Salmons Family Dictionary. For rheums & inflammations
of the eyes. Blister the calves of the legs 1st one calf
then the other & make an issue in one leg Dr H. White of Ashby.


170)
for red sore eyes Rx camphir & borax each zi white
sugar candy zv white vitriol [illegible] i pouder them fine & mingle by
degrees with half a pint of sweet fennel water Jn Pocheys Disp.
for a rheum or redness in the eyes & to take off a pearl strengthen & 
clear the sight. Rx red rose water plantane water each zij
white wine zi [tutty] prepar’d zi white sugar candy zij
best aloes [illegible] ij (i.e. 2 scruples) shake em together & wash the
eyes oft with it. Mrs. Elizth Adderly told E.A. this as a great
secret & to be kept as a jewel. Mrs A. This is an exct. Rx which
you may find in Hartman’s Family Physician p. 73
For the inflammation of the eyes vid Dr Sydenham in 
Practice of Physick lib. 2. cap. 2 when bleeding & purging
how often soever repeated, are still found to be unprofitable,
in this case a resting draught of an ounce of 
syrup of poppies given every night compleats the 
cure with out the help of any other medicines. some
times vomiting will cure inflam’d eyes sometimes washing
the eyes with only common brandy unmixt will stop
the flux of rheum & cure em ibid. pilula lucis majores 
[illegible] quickening the eye sight the greater vid. p. 691 Salmon’s Dispensatory
Mr Grant the London oculist gives pills made of
camphir to be taken daily for a long time to remove humours
from the head offending the optic nerves, which purge little or
not at all. They cured Mr Jo. Simpkin of Little Glen.
Salmon’s family pills clear the sight vid p. 702 Salmon’s Disp
Pilula camphorata or camphir pills viz Rx liquorish pouder sugar & camphir
each two scruples pulverize em & with Venice turpentine make em into pills vid.
Fullers Dispensatory.
To heal the sight of the eye when wounded & lost. moisten a little feather
in oyl of paper & put it under the lower eyelid Mrs Finch.
when the sight or eye is too dry eat keen mustard with apple sauce or
any thing else till the eyes weep. E. A.
An exct eye water communicated to Mr James Cooke surgeon 
of Warwick by Dr Willis. Rx camph. zi incis. [illegible] pon. in
vas. claus. cum succ. limon. stent simul per noct. mane pon omn.
in phlegm. vitriol lbfs in vitr. bene claus. pro usu. when ‘tis
us’d, strain it out, put some in a spoon & warm it dip the finger or
a linnen cloth in it & with it wet the eye, eyelid & temples a pretty 


(171
while night & morning. ‘Tis also good in burns.
p. 616. Cooks Marrow of Chirurgery. An ext pultis for
any contusion abt the eye oft prov’d. Rx the white of an
egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue, stript &
beaten like a conserve; mix em together & apply it on
flax. ibid. The distill’d water of meadow sweet flowers al. qn of the meadow
(culmaria, regina prati, barba capri) helps burning & itching
of the eyes & clears the sight. Salmons Disp. for rheumatic red
eyes dissolve some allum in spring water to that it may taste
pretty strong of the allu & tart moisten a clean rag therein
& squeeze it so that no water may drain from it into the eye
& lay it on the eye all night & lie down in the day 2 or 3  
times till the cloth is dry. An aleman in Shoreditch & Mrs Finch
a gallant pultis for any contusion abt the eye, oft proved.
Rx the white of an egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue,
stript & beaten like a conserve; mix em & apply it on flax.
p. 610. Cook’s Marrow of Physick. The best smoke to clear
the eyes Rx lignum aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber
each zi cut betony zfs rosemary flower or rosemaryu
itself a qr of an ounce & as much tobacco as R. flowers
mix em. Rx it in a pipe when you go to bed or as often
as you please. This is exct to cure coughs, rheums & 
to free the head from any pains Sister H. Ashby brought this
Rx fro the Bath H. A. Hungary water outwardly inwardly taken is
good agt palsies, cramps, convulsions, the falling sickness
vertigo or megrim, lethargy & headach & dimness of sight,
cloudiness of eyes & even blindness itself, where it
proceeds from an inward cause, nor do I believe there is
any better specific in the world agt weakness of the sight
hurts of the optick nerves & palsies, than this water is, but
it ought to be taken every day abt a spoonful at a time
in a glass or pure ale or wine or some other convenient
vehicle, as black cherry water aqua lactis etc. for a qr of
a yr together or more, yea half a yr if need requires p. 16.
Salmon’s Observations on Bates’s Dispensatory.


172)
A pearl in a mans eye. Rx bole, burnt allum,
live hony & sweet hemlock (al. keck or celary) stamp
the hemlock & mix the other ingredients therewith & bind it
to the contrary wrist. Let it lie on 24 hours then remove it till’
the pearl is gs Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713one. Twice or thrice renewing cures. Mrs Leddy
Gilson. Eye sore with a fistula. apply bay salt in a [row]
of flax to the soles of the feet to be worn night & day. Let
conserve of red roses be lay’d to the outside of the eye moisten’d
with plantane water Let the eye be wash’d with clear water made of
green hazel nuts distill’d when you can thrust a pin thro em wear 
bay salt for 3 weeks changing it once a week for fresh. Cos. Elizth 
[Bale] try’d this without a perfect cure. E. Bale. Eilzth White
of Enderby had sad red swell’s sore eyes with a pearl the
small pox made ‘em sore for a yr before she was cured
with this Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713. Rx camphir,
R. vitriol burnt, white copperas, loaf sugar juice of lemmon
& water boyl em & set em in an oven in a glass bottle
when you bake They will [mother] tho they are boyl’d therefore 
try baking. They are best fresh made moisten the eyelids with 
the middle finger thrice twice or or once a day till the eyes mend
It cools & refreshes em. Disguise em with a very little alkanet
or red sanders E. A. stir this water every day will prevent moulding 
another set a leach to the broad pt of one of the nostrils within 
or without, intermit 6 or 7 days & set another leach to 
the other nostril. This bleeding draws a humour from the eyes
as well as most medicines, if not better E. A.
another The distill’d water of white roses is exct
in ophthalmia’s, to cool the eye, comfort & clear the sight.
Salmon’s Dispensatory. Rheumatick eyes. mix bole & 
the white of an egg & bind it to both the wrists spred on 
allum’d leather Renew it once in 24 hours. W. P. another [illegible]
Grey of Enderby had vapours which made her eyes very sore sometimes
they were so dizzy that she was ready to fall down. She was
cured by Tho. Hely bleeding in both jugular veins at once.
The veins are on each side of the neck not under or near the throat
a fillet was ty’d round her neck to make the veins rise, pretty straight.
then a little linnen rag was dipt in cold water & bound to each orifice
with a fillet at night it was taken away & a diaculu plast. apply’d 


(173
she was the next day purg’d with pills made of the best
aloes no 3 as big as a small white pea. Her eyes continued
very well after this except when she caught cold they would
water E. A. 
Anne Baker wbt 60 yrs old widow of Balson in Leicershire having very 
red rheumatic sore eyes of abt a month or 2 standing
was blistering on the wrists, leaching at the temples, & a great many eye water 
viz Mrs Fountains that cured sister B. 
& E. A.’s that cured Elizth White & ophtalmick plasters would 
do not good was at least cured thus. Rx hony the clearest
one drop white sugar candy in very fine pouder a little mix
& put it in with a feather new mixt twice a day. This was 
taught her by a poor woman of Balson. It clear’d & strengthen’d
her eyes. It smarts pretty much at 1st dressing She took 
this purge prescrib’d by Tho. Hely farrier, once a week. Rx
sena zfs. manna zi boyl the sena in abt ½ a pint of water 
with raysins of the sun no 20 stoned when it is abt ½ wasted 
add the manna then strain it the manna being dissolv’d & drink
it in the morning fasting. make oatmeal caudle thus & 
drink it as it purges Boyl water & oat meal then add ale & 
rosemary let it boyl, take it off & sweeten it with sugar 
Pilulae [sureae] Purge & cleanse the head & brain, quicken the
senses, clear the eye sight Salmons Disp. pilula de aloe lota or
aloe rosata. Purge both brain, stomach, bowels & eyes of
putrified humours & strengthens em. Culpepers disp. another
purge for rheumatic eyes. Rx of Dr Lowers paste sold at Mr
Smalley’s in Leicer.


174)
Tincture of olibarnum dropt into the eyes mixt
with a 3rd pt of rose water stops rheums, strengthens
em & takes away clouds & bloodshot. Take poppy water 
ziiij syrup of red poppies zfs tincture of olibanu zifs 
mix for a dose to be taken inwardly agt catarrhs & 
violent fluxes of rheum from the head upon the eyes,
teeth, brest, lungs etc. Salmon in Pharmacopoeia Bateana.
p. 310. Richd Hovy of Blaby having lost his stomach & having 
a dizziness in his head his eyes grow so dim that he could
scarce see E. A. order’d him a vomit of carduus posset drink 
which clear’d his stomach & retriev’d his sight E. A. Mrs Davenport
of Wigson Magna cured a woman of cloudy dark blood
shot eyes by only blowing several times a little liquorish 
pouder from a quill into the eyes Wm [Toalby].
Samuel Leapthrough a stockiner of Blaby had rheumatick red sore
eyes which was thus cured in abt a weeks time. Rx water from a 
spring call’d St Austin’s well (near Mr Watt’s’ house between his
house & Leicer on the left hand near the brook as you go fro
Leicer to Mr Watts’s new house) a qr of a pint, allum the quantity
of a pea (either in pouder or whole) or as much as when dissolv’d
will give the water a weak or little taste of the allum hony abt
as much more as the allum or as much as will scarce give it 
any taste of the hony mix em all cold, but when you use em
which may be 3 or 4 times in a day pour a little into a spoon
(a silver spoon is best but a pewter one will do very well) & 
hold it to the fire to warm it dip a linnen rag in it & apply 
it to the eye lids, being shut, as hot as you can abide it
you may put some into the eye if you will or dress the eye lid
with your finger moisten’d therein cold & it will do good. E. A.
another for rheumatick red sore eyes & to take off gum & to 
strengthen the sight. Boiyl fennel a good handful in a zt of
spring water till it is wasted to a pint. moisten a rag or the finger 
therewith cold & rub it on the eye lids & temples &let some go in
to the eye the oftener you do it the better W. P. says this is the best
eye water he ever try’d W. P. Juice of celandine strain’d thru
a cloth & a drop dropt into the eye every night eat off a [kell]
from the Bradsworth’s eye at the swan in Lecier T. A. another
to eat of a pearl or kell beat crow stone to fine pouder & sift it
blow a little thro a quill or mixt with hony it do. Wm Simon of Wigson



(175
Dimness of sight. The Lady Curzon & sister
Boothby Rx millepedes abt 60 a few raisins of the
sun slit & ston’d, a few red sage leaves Put em into
a tea pot & pour abt a pint of scalding hot spring
water upon em. Let it infuse a qr of an hour before
you take it & drink a coffee dishfull 2 or 3 times a
day To make very good smoke to preserve the
eyes & good agt The apoplexy Mrs Winstanley & 
Sister Boothby. This cured one that had weak eyes to that
he could read a small print at 80 without spectacles.
Rx wood aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber each zij
betony leaves & rosemary flowers each zi Tobacco
zifs (they that are us’d to take tobacco may put in ziij)
beat & slit the drugs very small & cut the rosemary flowers
& betony leaves very small mix em all together Take
a pipe as often as you please It will make you spit
cold flegm from the stomach. Rheumatic sore eyes
moisten the eyelids with the finger wetted with spittle when
you smoke tobacco, Mrs Elizth Halford To take the pain 
away from an eye Rx liquor laudanu, conserve of red roses
& pomatum mix & anoint the outside of the eyelids Mrs
Fountain This [illegible] & sister Boothby. Elizth Felton of Enderby took
off a pearl from her eye by droping live hony 3 or 4 times
in a day into it. a wter for the eyes second to none Rx waters
of fennel & eye bright, each a pint, common salt zvi
prepar’d tutty, white vitriol each zfs let them boil a little
& reserve for use p. 139 The saurus chirurgia by Paul Barbette & Raymundus Mindorus
a Dutchman. a pouder to eat off a pearl Rx dulcified vitriol
zfs prepar’d tutty 15 gr. sugar candy a scruple make it into
a fine pouder & blow a little fro a quill into the eye once a day
ibid. an anodine cataplasm Rx camomile & melilot flowers
each a pugil, rotten apples zij fenugreek seed zi crums of
brown [illegible] bread ziij 2 yolks of eggs, saffron zfs boil em in 
cows milk to the consistence of a poultice another which I’ve oft
found exct in the greatest pain r4x gum tragacanth zij [mussilage]
of the seeds of [???wort] ziiij resoewater & planate water each 


176)
is much as [sufficeth] make it into a collyrium of
an indifferent consistence. let it be instill’d by drops
into the eyes & linnen cloaths wet in it outwardly apply’d
ibid medicines good for the eyes Roots of valerian,
Solomons seal, [or??ie], vervain; herbs, betony, celandine
the great, eye bright, fennel, fumitory, plantan;
flowers of roses, violets; aniseeds, quince seeds, linseeds
pippins boil’d or rotten; camphire, mussilage of linseed 
tragacanth; fresh veal; white of eggs; all sorts of milk 
especially womans; tutty, white & green vitriol; saccharu
saturni; glass of antimony; white troches of rhasis, fresh 
cheese not salted; ung. saturni ibid.
To strengthen the sight. Savid Lane the rasor grinder of
Wistons Spreds a plaster de minio on allum’d leather the
breadth of a man’s hand & lays it on the nape of his
neck a little above his moulders which so strengthens his eyes
that being near 60 he can see to make grind & set rasers & lancets
etc. without spectacles. D. L. another to comfort the eyes Rx sp. v.
3 pts liquid laudanu 1 pt moisten the lids E A.
another Beat the white of an egg & moisten the 
outside of the eye lids therewith it cools & takes away 
an inflamation & strengthens & refreshes the
eye E. A. To take the pain from a sore eye. moisten
conserve of red roses with white or red rose water
& when you are in bed at night cover the eye being shut
with it & bind a cloth on it wipe it off in the morning with
a cloth Repeat it night after night till the pai ceases.
Sister Ekins. a man of Leicer with only blew bottle water 
cured very sore eyes. You may buy it at the apothecaries.
Goody Simons. Dr Pechy says the flowers & the distill’d water
are good for the inflammation of the eyes & the [blearedness] 
of them.
Smoke for the eyes. Take betony colts foot, rosemary
flowers, lavender tops, and sage p. a. cut
small and add thereto tobacco 3 pts to one pt of
the flower Richd Smith esqr of Enderby


(177
To clear an eye Dissolve a little sugar candy 
(white I believe is best but try brown too) in rose water
It will clear an eye sometimes but not always mother
Hewet. mix rose water with white copperas water it
allays its sharpness Sister Ekins & sometimes add a little
while sugar candy or brown to discolour it E. A.
Jonathan Ison wheelwright of [Ansty] had a sore eye with a
great pearl on’t He could not open it & when open’d it lookd
red & inflamd June 1715. IT was thus cured. IT was dresst with 
Mrs Adderly’s eye water to take away the pain. Emplastru de 
minio was apply’d to his back. He washed the eye lid with water
fro St. Austin’s well at Leicer in which hony & allu was dissolv’d
It mended but slowly. Padmore’s charge with cantharides was 
apply’d to his cheek which made it [illegible] well as soon as it swell’d & his
cheek pain’d him very much it [illegible] was remov’d to behind the ear on 
the same side which made a very sore place, drew the humour fro
the eye & did more good than any thing try’d before empl. de
minio was apply’d to heal it. Then cuttle bone in fine pouder 1 
grain was blown into the eye fro a quill 3 or 4 drops intermitted & 
1 gr. more was blow which took off the pearl & cured the eye
copperas water did little or no good but w. copperas water & rose 
water mixt gave Ese. So did sp. v. 3 pts & liquid laudanu 1 pt 
apply’d to the eye lids with the finger liquid laudanu pomatum
& conserve of red roses was bound to his eye at 1st a nights
which gave it ease. He drank whey & roses i.e. infus’d or boyl’d
in the whey which coold & gently purg’d E. A.
Francis Gregory’s sore eyes were cured by white copperas
water & red or white rose water p. e. apply’d to the eyelids by 
the finger E. A.


178)
Mr Tyrvingham Stephens’s eye water
of Leicer
Rx Rhenish wine a pint or for want thereof the best
white wine, put it into an earthen pot Rx a piece of 
lapis calaminaris as big as large walnut, heat it
red hot in a clear red cole fire (smoke will spoil it)
& quench it nine times, covering the pot with a 
plate or board to keep the steam in every time after
it is quench’d. Let it stand till it is quite cold. If you
have quench’d it 9 times over night let it stand till
next morning then filtrate it thro a new white
flannel bag made with a point like a tongue The
flannel wash’d & dry’d will serve a long tie.
one stone will serve twice i. e. to be quench’d twice
nine times or for 2 pints when it is filtrated bottle it
& keep it close stopt It is the keenest & sharpest at 
1st when new made. How to use it. you must
shake the bottle first always before you use it
you must keep a little in a little viol always for
present use moisten the finger with it viz apply 
the end of the fourth finger to the mouth of the 
viol & shake it then stroke that finger agt both eye 
lids shut but so that a little may go in at the corner
of the eye or dip a sparrow or a little birds
feather taken from the wing into the water then 
pull down the lower eyelid & put the end of 
the feather under it Dress it night & morning
a little before bedtime is reckon’d the best time
Mrs Jane Stephens al floxon.
A pearl in the eye Rx gill & pearlwort pound em with bole in 
pouder & hony. Pound the herbs every night fresh for 3 nights
successively to the wrist on the contrary side This cured Elizth Tafte a woman of Armsby.


(179
Eyes too dry. Drink tea made with hot water
put to sage, tyme, rosemary or any one of em with
abt ½ a lemmon cut into slices with the peel E. A. 
Eyes sored & red & to dry up a rheum. Rx gill & ivy leaves
woodbine leaves each mi. white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in pouder
spring water a qt boyl em all together till it is consum’d to a
pint. strain it & pour a little into the ball of the hand cold & 
with a clean finger moisten the eyelashes letting a little go into the
eye just when you are going into bed. Dress it every night till the
eyes are well. This cured a mai that had sore eyes 7 yrs after the 
measels that water’d & ran down her cheeks almost constantly & 
had try’d a great many things in vain to cure em Jn Grovecock’s
wife of Cosby. It makes the eyes smart ibid. you may add white
sugar candy zij E.A. This will cure a thick red eye Mrs French.
To eat off a kell or pearl or to dry up a rheum in the eye
of child, man or beast or to cure a trample on the heel 
or a crack in the thrush. Rx the best roch allum the biggest
lumps are best Burn it in a clean fire shovel or iron ladle
till all the moisture is quite dry’d up when it is cold pound it in
a mortar & sift it thro a lawn sive keep it always dry near
the fire in a chimney because moisture weakens its vertue & 
drying quality or you may carry a little in a paper or box always
in the pocket. Take a small quantity abt as much as will lie
on a silver half penny or penny & lay it upon a pen knife point
drop it into the eye it is better then blowing (for that makes a great [illegible]
flie away & be lost & is a greater surprize & uneasiness to the patient
the pouder beating agt the eye) you must drop it abt an hour before
the child goes to bed & tie his hands behind him ½ n hour
as soon as it is dropt in let man or woman lay the ball of their
hand upon the eyelid & hold it on for ½ an hour. Begin with a smal
quantity & augmt a little gradually in the dressings. Dress it once
a day. Put in the same quantity into a horses eye at 1st & a little more
the next time you dress it when you dress the horses feet for a crack in
the [illegible] or [illegible] you must keep it dry till well Jn Noon of 


180)
of Thus Raston his son’s eye was cured by this pouder
when he had like to have lost [both] his eyes by the small pox Jn
Noon. Burnt allu bound on an anbury or a sheeps
foot or drest once a week will cure it. Xtopher Robinson
shepherd. Burnt allum will cure a sore chopt nipple
at one dressing Let a woman suck the breast at night
then shew it on the nipple It will cause a great pain but it
is a present cure. Mother Majer mix burnt allu in pouder
with sope & a little bole it will kill a canker’d or scab’d
nose in a lamb by being anointed on it once or twice
a day till it is ready to drop off then anoint it with sallet
oyl to heal it Tho. Hely farrier The roots of common fennel
boyled in wine & applied to the eye cured a suffusion i.e. [illegible] or w:[c]
in a monk in the space of 9 days.
Mrs French the warm doctress her eye water for a rheum
in the eye Rx white or damask rose water zij lapis calaminaris
in very fine pouder as much as will lie on a six pence
Shake the bottle when you use it & shake it on the eye lids shut
with a feather Rowland Marlo butcher of Leicer his wife
had sore, red rheumatic eyes after a great many things try’d in 
vain was cured by shaving the nape of her neck & applying
four leeches. another Rx the milt of a sheep new kill’d apply 
it hot betwixt the shoulders with only its natural heat & let
it lie on 24 hours then apply a fresh one if you can get it till
you’ve apply’d 5 milts successively If you can’t get abov e one or
2 milts you must heat em in water & apply em hot you must
bind it on with a cloth & fillet. The milt is apt to stink especially 
in hot weather Ben Garland of Leicer The milts will draw
a [bister] ibid. Dr Russels eye water Rx fennel water or white rose
water 5 pts salt of vitriol, saccharu saturni each ziifs dissolve & digest
therein camphir zv fine aloes choice opiu each ziij let it settle then
decant the clear & filter Joyn these 2 liquors together & add regulus of
antimony or crocus metalloru in very fine pouder zv shake all well
together 3 or 4 times a day for 10 or 12 days then lit it settle & keep 
it quiet on the faces for use This eye water is inferior to no water
yet known in the world W. P.
To make an eye-salve Rx may butter ziiij free from salt white
wax zi melt em together then add white rose water 1 d & stir it
till it is almost cold then put in camphir [illegible] ij grey tutty pouder 
made fine zfs pound the camphir & work em all together well.
anoint the eyes at night or when you please Mrs Coulton.


(181
a very good w. copperas eye water to take off all the rheums fro
his eyes Rx bay salt zij white copperas or w. vitriol zi. Put
[illegible] in 3 pints of spring water Boyl it till it wasts to a qt or
less scuming it all the while, then put it in a pot & let it stand 2 
days. Then decant the clear & put it into a bottle & wash the eyes
therewith night & morning or at any time. Mrs Caulton. sore eyes
or specks in the eye. Rx the white of one egg & as much hony,
clarifie the hony but not in brass, when it is cold put them together
& beat em an hour, then set it on one side & drain the
oyl to one side when you go to bed drop in a drop into tye
& lay the curd betwixt a rag & bind it on the year. Mrs. Caulton.
To make Dr Pool the mountebank his eye water Rx white vitriol
(alias w. copperas) the quantity of a nutmeg & spring or well water
½ a pint mix it cold D.P. Mr Wm Ing of Knighton’s eye water 
to dry up a rheum in man or horse Rx Roman vitriol [illegible] iiij white
copperas zij virgins hony zifs i.e. each one half pennyworth boyl
em all together in a pint of spring water
An eye salve Mrs. Cox of Hoby Rx may butter ziiij fresh
white wax zi melt em together Put thereto one pennyworth
of either white or red rose water & stir it till it be almost
cold then add camphir [illegible] ij pounded & grey tutty zfs work em 
well together afterwards boyl it very well
A rheum in the eye Rx lapis calaminaris in pouder & pouder of white
tutty when mixt as much as will lie on a silver 3 d put it to w. rosewater
1 d shake the bottle when you use it viz moisten a rag & rug the eyelids
Cos. Elizth Freeman another when Goody Simons has a rheum in her
eyes especially in the spring In the beginning of March she gathers elder
buds nettles mallows brooklime watercresses water parsnips & [livers]
chops em & makes water gruel & lets em boyl a litle time, if they boyl 
long they will turn black she eats em morn & night for 3 weeks.
another Rx white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in a lump, heat a pair
of tongs red hot & nip it betwixt em & let it run into a pint
of rain water then quench an heater (such as they use in ironing
cloaths) once or an old horse shoe 2 or 3 times when cold add a
good spoonful or a spoonful & ½ or 2 spoonfuls of wine vinegar moisten the
eye lids & over the middle of the forehead or rather all along 
the edge of the [illegible] & temples & eyebrows with it 2 or 3 
times a day Mrs [illegible] Mrs Caulton you shou’d strain it If any gets into 
the eye it will do no harm but only make it smart let it dry in 
Mr Thompson’s Rx for a pearl in the eye Rx small hemlock mi 
beat it small add to’t as much bole in fine pouder as will lie on a
shilling & ½ a spoonfull of live hony & a little salt beat them well together
spred some of it upon a piece of sheeps leather of the bigness of half
a crown, a good thickness. Lay this to the contrary wrist, where the pulse


182)
beats bind it on with a cloth fast & shift it once
every day for nine days you must not wet the wrists
all the time Mr Bickerton & Mrs Caulton.
The Lady Honywoods ext water for dimness of sight
Curing any skimmy substance or film over the eyes & 
dispersing rheum. Rx a new laid egg make a little hole
at the top take out all they yolk & white fill it with eyebright
water Put into it tutia 12 gr. & white copperas 6 gr. stir them 
well together & set the egg on a slow dull firer let it boyl softly
when you perceive a little of it consumed take it off the fire
strain it thro a lawn put it into a little glass for the use
Twice a day let a little be dropt into the eye you must lie on the
back a qr of an hour after ibid.
Mr. Dumon’s ext for the eyes weak sighted with rheum or
any other infirmity Rx 9 daysie roots leaves & all 9 sows 
(al. millepedes) stamp these together strain em into half a pint
of small beer which drink in [illegible] several potions one in the 
morn 2 hours before you rise The 2 d an hour after dinner 
the 3rd when you go to bed at every one of these times lie an
hour on that side the disorder is & an hour on the other side, thus 
do for 3 days together then cease for nine days & begin again
for 3 days then cease for nine days & begin again for 3 ays & 
cease the course as you shall see cause use this method twice in 
the spring & once in the fall. ibid.
another for the eyes. Put to a pint of celandrine water a pint
& half of bean shells water wash the eyes with it dayly. ibid.
Mrs Tampings Rx for sore eyes.
Rx lapis calaminaris 2 ou. in fine pouder pit it into
a half pint bottle & fill it almost full of the best white
wine, add 3 spoonfuls of damask rose water keep the
bottle close stopt & before you use it shake the bottle
ibid.
Mr [Tonstal’s] Rx for weak eyes. a pouder
Rx the pouder of the dry’d herb call’d eye bright a aquantity, ½ 
as much sugar as the weight of the rest mix them together
Rx a small spoonful of this every morning in a glass of
w. wine or ale fasting after it a while. ibid
A blood shot eye Mrs Wilcocks Put a little saffron into spring
water till it gives it a yellowish tincture moisten the eye therewith
This cured Br. G. A. sore eyes a plaster Rx the strongest hemlocks 
bay salt & the white of an egg to the thicket grounds of human
urine out of the chamber pots (try that which is kept 3 or 4  or 7 
days if the smell will not offend you) stamp all these together 
Lay it to each wrist every morning fresh. Then Rx the white of a
new lay’d egg (beat it to [dye] that is soundly) & bole work em together
like a salve spred it upon leather & apply it to each temple Let
em stick on till they fall off Drop into the eye one drop of the
water & hold the hand a while upon the eye after the drop
of water is dropt into it Mr Dodes & E. A.’s mother


(183
To make ink
Rx Blew galls lbfs bruise & boil em in vinegar
3 qts or stale beer abt q/2 an hour; strain & let the
mixture stand to infuse abt 12 hours then cant off
the clear & by putting to any quantity of it a litle
aqua fortis (as you’ve occasion to use it) kill’d with 
the filings of steel or iron you may make it as black
as you please in a moment Hoc est atramentum
typographica. The curiosity of this Rx depends upon 
the right killing of the aqua fortis. There are several
sorts of A. F. you must take six pennyworth of A.F.
of the 3rd degree in strength (tho I presume you may 
use the strongest the country shops afford) which you may examine
put it into a glass vial. Put some water into a basin, put 
the vial with the A.F. into the basin of water. You must
take care that the glass is not fill’d with A.F. & that the water in 
the basin surmount the A.F. in the glass half an inch. the
bottle must be sufficiently capacious & stand in the basin
uncork’d The water must not run into the bottle
for then it will kill the a.f. too soon. Thus is must stand
where nothing can stir or move it, for the least motion 
makes it fire & it will burn any thing within the reach of
it. as soon as you’ve put the vial with the a.f. into the basin
of water you must critically every hour take up a little of
the filings of steel or iron betwixt your finger & thumb & gently
shake it into the vial; this will make it steam & smoke as if it
boyl’d but when you can’t discern it to steam nor smoke you may be
assured it is kill’d & you may take the vial out of the basin of water
But if when you stir it by taking it out of the basin you find it bubbles
or smokes cast into it a little water or put it into the basin again’
shaking into it a few filings as before; provided you find the filings
have not too much choakt it i.e. made it too thick. note the A.F.
must stand 2 days at least & then the longer it is kept it strikes the
deeper tincture. note At night going to bed you must be sure to 
shake in the same quantity of filings as you did hourly in the day
time. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor


184)
To make black ink Mr Robt Painter [E?risoman]
Rx blue galls ziii gums sonora zii green copperas zi beat al
small in a mortar & difuse in a qt of water int eh sun or warm
place two days tis the best ink that ever he used & the cheapest
much preferable to what he now uses.


(185
Atramenti compositio.
Rx pulv. gum arab. zij [groutely] corevisiae cong. 1 stent
per horas 24 sape agitando, deinde adde gallar. probe trit. ziv
simul stent per horas 24 tunc disolv. Ol virid. lbfs & subinde
agita per sephimanam postea adde sacch. albifs. zij in vini alb.
lbfs. solut. N.B. simmis spissu sit atramentu addas aq.
pluvial. q. s. a duo palmes & doctore Clay. another which will 
not change yellow. Rx half a pint (viz 6 ounces ½) of the blewest
soundest & heaviest (Turky) galls break em in pieces, put em into
an earthen pot with a quart of beer neither too strong nor
small (or ½ beer & ½ ale) let it stand 3 days then strain it fro 
the galls afterwards let it settle & pour off the clear & put 
the sedimt into several drinking glasses & pour off the clear
pt as oft as it clears, to which add Roman vitriol 2 ounces (in lumps 
they will dissolve & gum arabick zi green copperas a qr of an 
ounce or better Let em infuse one or 2 days then set em in a pitcher over
a gentle fire till they begin to boyl. note Roman vitriol & galls
& beer or water will not write black but a kind of a yellow
but a little green copperas added produces a lively black 2) there
being but little copperas in’t prevents it fro changing yellow
3) the deduction of the sedemt prevents it in a great measure
fro writing thick 4) you must avoid a flame & keep that
from the pitcher or pot to prevent its breaking. Brian  Simpson
an [excisemn] & E.A. 5) This ink writes pale it 1st but in a little
time grows blacker & blacker To make ink. the best way.
Put gum araback lgfs to white wine vinegar one qt for 2 or 3 
days till the gum is dissolv’d. Infuse green copperas lbfs in 
3 qts of soft water till the copperas is dissolv’d; bruise the best
galls lbi then add all the said ingredients together in a jug.
Keep em stirring for half an hour, which do for 2 or 3 days
successively till the ink is black. Mr Simon Barwell, attorney.
when it is too thick add a little vinegar to’t or water you must
use none but rain water stir the ingredients 3 or 4 times a day for a
week is enough. Pour off the clear [without] stirring Br S. Barwell.
Another Rx Griffy dam: water five pints It is a mineral water near
Coleorten in Leicershire viz a calibeate water that will turn black 


186)
by the infusion of galls. note any [span] water that
will change black with galls (viz the German span water in Europe)
is to be prefer’d before all other liquids in the composition of
ink It makes it more beautiful & black & more durable less
apt to change yellow than any other liquor Put 5 pints of
span water into an earthen pitcher that is well glaz’d, gum 
arabick ziij stir it with a stick once a day or twice; when the
gum is dissolv’d add Turky galls the blewest & heavest zvi
Roman vitriol zij green copperas a qr of one ounce & [illegible]
allum a qr of an ounce gum sandriac zij pulveriz’d stir it
once a day for a week then set the pitcher over a fire where
there is no flame (which will be apt to crack it) & let all the
ingredients cymber a pretty while till it is ready to boyl
then let it stand a little to cool then strain it thro a linnen
strainer into another clean pitcher having a board with a hole
in the middle thro which put a stick & stir it once a day as
long as it lasts, keeping it from the frost for that spoils it.
Boyling it preserves it from moulding, but if it does mould
& is never stir’d it will write black but the other way, viz to 
boyl & stir is best. whether the frost will spoil ink made of 
 span water I have not experimented. This is the very best Rx
for writing ink in this book E. A. & Mr Jn Wilkins Less green
or ale than when it is span water that is dead 2) Put Roman vitriol zij or
better into the said ingredients & dead span water & they will not change black
with a qr of an ounce of green copperas nor with ½ an ounce 
but with zi they will the ink will be good for nothing E. A. note you must use the calybeate water
presently after they come from their springs. German span water as soon as
you open a flask They will not keep good long after the flask has been once
open’d tho you cork & seal em down immediately. you may try their vertue by 
putting a piece of gall to a little & if the water changes black it is fit to
make ink of otherwise if it does not change black it is not so good as rain or common
water E. A Br Barwels original Rx which was given
him to make ink p. 185. was copperas 4 ounces but 
that did not make so good ink [illegible] copperas 8 ounces.


(187
To make the best ink. Buy a sixpenny paper (viz zij) of 
Holmans ink pouder at any book sellers & add to it a pint of
clear cyder or old verjuice or now verjuice that is clear (either of
these are better than rain water as Holman directs in his [illegible]) This pouder
decayeth not by keeping & is refin’d from that poysonous nature that
causes ink to turn yellow If any writings of this ink lie soaking in 
water a month together it will not alter but remain as long as the
paper or parchmt endures. it is sold by the maker Charles Holman in 
 Red Lyon street agt the White Hart Inn in Southwark, he having his majesty’s
patent under the great seal of England for making the same. The
Rd Mr Jn Laurence of Yelvertoft in Northshire commends cyder or
verjuice before rain water or stale beer. Holmans ink never grows mouldy
To make good black ink Mr Amos Taylor of Stamford
Rx rain water two gallons galls bruis’d lbifs green copperas
12 ounces best gum arabick bruis’d 12 ou. Roman vitriol & 
roch (or clear) allum each zifs white sugar candy in pouder 4 
ounces. Let it infuse in the sun 20 days stir it often then
strain it thro a cloth & put it into a bottle when too thick add
a little rain water or vinegar stirring it a day or 2 before you 
use it To make a less quantity Rx rain water 2 qts galls 6 ounces
pr. 6 d g. copperas 3 ou. pr. [19] gum arabic 3 ou. pr 3 d R. vitriol 
qr ½ of an ounce pr 1 2 ½ allum do pr [19] w. sugar candy 1 ou. pr 2 d 
Total pr [illegible] 1 d stir it well with a stick in a pitcher & it will write well
in 2 days time when you’ve no warm sun set it in an oven 
after bread. To make ink. Rx rain water 2 pts galls beaten
5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum arabick 3 ou. sugar candy 2 
ou. stir them together twice or thrice a day for a fortnight
by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.
To make a very good shining ink far exceeding the common
Rx Blew galls ligs gum arabic three ounces copperas one
ou ½ pomgranate rind & log wood each one ounce Bring 
the ingredients into a gross pouder & infuse them a month in a
qt of stale beer Mr Tho. Hewet of Dunton & Mr Wright an
[exciseman] another Rx the blewest nut galls 3 d
gum arabick 1 d best loaf sugar 29 The whitest copperas
1 d
To clarifie quills according to art. Boyl 2 or 300 quills 
in half a pint of linseed oyl 3 minutes If you intend em 
to be of a yellow colour you must put in English pink 1 d 
ibid. when you make ink dissolve the gum by its self in a little [illegible]
your galls when it is made lay a flannel over your pot & pour your ink thro it to
[clense] all the filth out of it [illegible] [illegible] schoolmaster


188)
To make black ink [illegible] Booth
Rx w: wine 1 at galls ziiij green copperas zii gum=arabick zi
bruise the galls every one into 4 or 5 pieces put em into the wind
& let em stand 3 or 4 days stiring em often then put in your
copperas & your gum being well dissolv’d in a little w: wine keep 
it with stirring 3 or 4 days’ more than it is fit for use.
when the ink is too thick put white wine vinegar to it. It is much
better than any water. Valerius Stephens writing aster at Blaby.
when you make ink dissolve the copperas in water & you will see
a scum on the surface of the water which you must scum off & 
it will improve the ink by throwing it away. You may boil em
together when you are in hast. ibid.


(189
A person bewitch’d or under an ill tongue.
Rx amara dulcis the root miiij boyl it in water 2 qts to a qt
in a bell metal pot, having a cover paste the steam in, over a slow
fire of charcoal or embers for 3 days when cold open it & strain it
Drink 6 spoonfuls 3 times a day. it will cure one drawn on hoops
or one under an ill tongue as country folks call it The mountebank
calls it the wind gout. you may make it into a syrup with syrup of 
roses or buckthorn to keep for a purge & for a blind Dr Pool.


190)


(191
for all sorts of aches & pains 108  211  61
in whatsoever part in old or young; the pt affected 1st 
being anointed with it, warm’d by the fire, work’d in 
by a warm hand & after that chaf’d in with an hot fire
shovel or flat iron. Rx oyl of roses, oyl of worms
(or oyl of camomile if the nerves are most affected) & 
unguentum dialthaea each 1 d Mr Isaac Taylor
unguent alb camphorat. is an exct. cooler in all inflammations.
unguentu dialthaea is an admirable emollient & 
anodyne I. T. A bath for pains or aches. Rx
wormwood, St. Johns-wort, scordiu, camomil flowers
melilot flowers centaury, Roman wormwood each  mi 
long & round aristolochia each zi boyl em in a sufficient 
quantity of water a qr of an hour, remove it fro 
the fire & add brandy a pint. In racking & inveterate
pains you’l find it to be admirable I. T. another
mix oyl of turpentine with goosegrease & anoint therewith 
then lay on Bents salve. If these failput scalding hot water
into 2 or 3 earthen or stone bottles eating butter’d ale
with treacle or drink whey laying on a great many blankets
to make yiu sweat out the [peccant] humours E. A.
Inward aches & pains in the bowels & back caus’d
by catching cold or by lying in damp sheets
Rx mercurius dulcis in fine pouder 20 gr. in the pap of
an apple It makes the ordure black. Take care of 
catching cold with it lest it flux you This cured James
Davis, Smith of Croft. mercurius dulcis if it does not
purge, fluxes viz a great quantity purges, a small one 
fluxes.
Mary Chester of Blaby was cur’d of an inward pain
on her side, a pleuritick pain, by taking garlick boyl’d in 
milk in great quantity & for a long time It cured her when 
she was a mere skelliton. Take it every night.


192)
An inward bruise. Bleed twice in the arm 1st in 
one arm then in the other intermitting 4 or 5 days.
after bleeding in the morning, at night Rx salt of hartshorn
gr. zv. pr. 3 d Venice treacle zi pr. 1 d lucatellus balsam
zi pr. 2 d drink after em rosemary posset drink one large
porringer in bed to sweat Mr Wilks, surgeon.
A sciatica pain or a pain in the hip or back
caused by cold etc. Good for the stone & wind colic
Rx sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls pr. 2 d mace 4 d shred it & 
take 1 spoonful of oyl with its proportion of mace in 
the morning fasting abt noon & at night presently after
supper when you are in bed Rx oyl of turpentine 20 drops
in a 1/2 spoonful of sugar sweetening the mouth with sugar after
it & lie as long as you can on the back viz ½ an hour or 
an hour after it. Boyl the strongest ale a qt with as 
many oats as a man can hold in his hand till almost ½ is 
wasted then strain & boyl it again to the consistence of a 
salve keeping it stirring spred it upon allum’d leather 6
inches broad 9 I long prick’t with a penknife point Lay it
lengthways over the small of the back or where the chief
pain is lay it on as hot as you can abide it when you are
in bed. eat nothing but fennel & parsly shred, the [illegible]
with bread & butter for a week tho you are pretty well sooner
& take the sweet oyl & mace & oyl of turpentine & 
sugar for a week as you did the 1st day. This cured Jonathan 
Simons woolwinder & glover of Wigson Magna when he was
so pained in the small of his back that he could not go nor
dress himself. This made him so well that he went with a
stick & reap’d the next day J. Simons & Tho Heifford of
[Conaltesthorp]. another for a sciatica, rheumatic or any pain
in the limbs v p. 61. Wm Frees of Blaby having a pain 
in his stomach which sometimes remov’d to his back & side
he sweat & was ready to faint away was cured by Tho.
Ferren of Leicer viz Rx water of tyme parsly & of camomile
flowers each zifs sp. of juniper zifs oyl of caraways
zfs tincture of laudanu [illegible] ij Hungary water zij syrup of anniseeds
& poppies each zi mix for a julap. Dose is one spoonfull 


(193
or 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 at night going to bed shake
the bottle when you use it. Rx pilulae ex duobus zfs or [illegible] ij for
one dose. T. Farren wracking pains causing the belly etc. to [swell]
& a pain in the back the cause being stoppage of urine Rx
oyster shels sifted thro a lawn sive in fine pouder one spoonful
at a little at a time in a coffee dish of warm ale or beef
or posset drink till you’ve taken the spoonful Mrs Newlove
Bridget Dawkins Pain in the back caus’d by stooping etc.
or in ay pt of the body anoint with unguentu ari, i.ei. Priest
Fintle al. cuckoo pints oyntmt made with the juice of the
herb & hogs lard free from salt. E. A. another anoint with
oyl of tar pr. 6 d per ou. at the drugsters or chymists at
London. Heat it in with a hot iron It is good for any 
strain new or old. Mr Arden Elsmere surgeon.
Isaac Jackson baker of Wigston Magna was often griped
& had a violent pain in his back & bowels round his girdle
but some in his [???bone] He had all the things in the
shop of [illegible] Orme apothecary in Leicer that he thought requisite 
given [illegible] in vain He was very thirsty & had no stomach
so his [illegible] Mr [illegible] the minister advis’d him to drink spring
or well water one qt cold & as soon as he cou’d every morning 
for six weeks together tasting & to walk or use exercise that wou’d
keep him [warm] for an hour after it [illegible] wou’d chill his stomach 
& kill him In Augt & Septer 719 he took his qt jug & 
walk’d to the spring a little below the town near the place
made for horses to drink at from whence i.e. fro which spring
flows their [illegible] It has a brackish iron taste, but the stones
near it are not of a yellow colour. It felt very cold the
[illegible] morning but [illegible] very agreeable afterwards He found
[illegible] that very day & his stomach began to revive at the end of
6 weeks all his [illegible] were vanish’d & he was perfectly well & 
his thirst extinguished & felt no inconvenience only it made
his feet very tender once or twice he felt a little inconsiderable 
pain in making water which he thought might be the effect
of graves or some smaller stone passing away with it Isaac 
Jackson
Mr Langhornes poultis for an old ach
Rx Tannic parsly feather fern & rosemary tops simber them in 
a pint of strong ale a good while then take a little wheat 
bran & a little oat meal a little [illegible] of muttn the fat boyl
em very thick then add a little wine vinegar [pater meus]



194)
Sciatica pain or hops pained.
Xtian Ponton of Blaby had such violent pain in her
hips that she cou’d scarce go, she rub’d em with camphorated spirt of wine
which gave her immediate ease & drove away the pain. She keeps
it always by her & buys 1 d a t a time. Xtian P. another Aunt
Dorothy Boothby’s cerecloth made of oyl, red lead etc. will
disperse almost any pain from any pt. of the body It will
dissolve cancerous nodes in a sore breast & disperse jelly
that is gotten into the cup or joynt of a joynt that has been 
lately broken or out.
Mrs Frances Bickerton’s green oyntmt Rx the tender leaves
of young bays & rue each lbij wormwood lbij sage lbi
]gather them in a dry day & in the heat of the day & in the
month of June. Shred em very small then mince sheeps suet
very fine lbiij pound them altogether in a stone mortar till they 
are incorporated into one substance as it were then put it
into a pot like a cream pot adding to it best oyl olive 3 pints
mix it well together with your hands Then stop it close & set it
in some cold place ten days then put it into a brass pan & 
let it boyl four hours very gently If you see it bubble
apace abate the fire To know when it is boyled enough you must
drop a drop or 2 into a sauce If it looks grass green
then take it off If not boyle it longer but always have a care of
burning it the way to prevent it is to stir it continually & take
up some of the [illegible] & feel if they begin to be dry take it away
then strain it into a bason when you’ve strain’d it put to it four
ounces of oyl of spike Then put it into gally pots & cover them
close with leather This oyntmt will least seven yrs & be better
than if it was new. It is good agt all kind of aches, swellings,
carbuncles, cramps & such like in man & beast. Mrs Caulton.
A cerecloth for a swelling or ach in the joynts.
Rx virgins waz sij frankincense & olibanum & pine rosin each
zi stone pitch ziiij oyl of mace, oyl of lillies & oyl of roses
each zi melt em all together in a clean pan when they are melted
take ‘em off the fire & pout in mace, saffron in fine pouder each
zi stirring it tilt it be well incorporated. Then dip in fine old
clothes. when you use it warm a piece of the cerecloth & apply 
it to the pained place Pater Meus.
An ext. balm for an ach, bruise, sprain, or wound.
Rx pure sallet oyl a pint, put it into a gally glass with these
flowers viz red rose leaves miij bugle flowers mij centaury
flowers mi celandine flowers mi St. Jns wort flower 
miij to infuse in the sun all summer & harvest Then you must
add half so much turpentine as oyl when the season waxeth 
cold put the glass into water moderately warm It will strain the 


(195
better from the flowers keep it for your use.
A cerecloth for issues. Rx Bees wax zvi Venice turpentine
ziij vermillion zfs red lead zvi orris roots in fine pouder zi
the best musk 3 gr. rosewater four spoonfuls sallet oyl as much
first melt the wax then add the turpentine then the R. lead then the
orris pouder then the rosewater wherein the musk has been steep’d a 
quarter of an hour then the vermillion & oyl Let it not boyl when
you’ve put in the oyle & stir’d em together dip in the cloaths oyl a
knife & smooth the cerecloths as they cool. S. S.
A cerecloth for any pain especially what is caused by cold.
Rx oxycroceu 2 d Venice turpentine 2 d white pitch 2 d 
boyle em together spred it on allum leather This cures Tho.
Allen Pumpmaker of Frolesworth when he goes into a well & 
catches cold in his limbs. F. A.
A pain in the hip or neck. amount the pained place with Bore’s
al Brawn’s grease. This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt.
E. A. was cured of a violent pain in his shoulder by lying ina stone
trough fill’d with so much water that the water could just cover his face & whole
body this he did in the morning early for abt a fortnight in May 729.
Mr Reve a Northamptonshire farmer not far from Rushden
had a pain in his hop which made him very lame He was cured by having 
an issue made in his leg below the knee on the same side & 
Mrs Palmers salve made of soap & rue pounded together was apply’d
to his hip V. E. A.’s green book of Rxs p. 295.
For a sciatica Rx stags-horn saw it so as it may go into
a pot then boyl all or part of it in fair water, when it is cold
& thick like jelly anoint the place with it warm probatum, {m”]
Hewet E. A.’s mother
For an old or new pain in the knee or in any part 
Bath it twice a day with ale-grounds hot with a red
flannel cloth dipt in it wrap another cloth about it
to keep it warm for a day or 3, or put your knee into
the muck of a paunch of a beef new kill’d as hot as can be
or which is a cleanlier way. Lay the bowels i. e. the guts & 
paunch unbroken of a beef or sheep new kill’d upon the knee Wm Wyat
of Adderston. a man that had a pain in h is knee & was lame & had been
under the care of several drs & surgeons to no purpose was at last cured by 
slicing 7, 8 or 9 onions into a pint of ale of which he drank abt ½ a pint in the ay
at several times & ½ pint at night & was cured in a little time Tho. Smith of Blaby


196)
For a sciatica pain. Foment it with burn’t brandy
against the fire and chafe it well with your hand or
beat some flax seed (abt zi) and boil it in a pint of water
a quarter of an hour and strain it and bath the pain’d place
well with it warm. John Berbeck servt to an officer
in the army at Darby.
Sciatica. Rx Oil of turpentine zi, boars grease zfs
and deer’s marrow or for want of it Deers sewet zfs melt 
them together and anoint the place well therewith before the
fire. John Goodwin groom to the Lord Gray, in the room of
boars grease [illegible] the marrow of a hog zfs.
Sciatica Rx Oil of turpentine and oil Exeter p.a. 
and chafe it in well upon the pain’d place then lay
on this plaster. Diaculon zfs and oxycroceum zii
and oil of origanum 10 drops melt ‘em together and
make a plaster and lay it upon the place pain’d. The
landlord at the green man at Darby.
E. A. in the month of January 1729 (when there was a hard frost that lasted 
7 or 8 weeks or longer) was troubled with a scyatica pain in his right
huchbene for which he was dry cupped & wet cupped & same time after a
surgeon with an air pump drew away six ounces of blood from the
pained place of his huchbene. none of those things did him any service
or gave him ease Mr Ross schoolmr stockiner of Leicer his cerecloth made as
[melilot [illegible] [illegible] & camphir be gave ease Out to found most benefit by anointing ]
[once] or twice a day with oil of turpentine This cerecloth is good for scytica pains 
found out by E. A. found some camphor very fine as much as will make the melilot
smell very strong of it melt a roll of melilot salve then take it from the fire & stir in
gradually the camphor in fine powder & stir ‘em well together & pour em into a black pot or stir
like [illegible] you may make it into a roll agn you may buy melilot salve at 2 d per ounce on a [illegible]
of pr 6 d camphor at [illegible] [? d] per ounce at the apothecaries Spread some of this camphor’d melilot 
on hoops [illegible] [illegible] with a feather or the finger end moistend with oil of turpentine once a week you 
may moisten the same [illegible] the oil [illegible] if this cured [Mrs Ward] [illegible] who had a pain in her
side belly before & after child bearing which pain had caused the flesh to be very hard This cerecloth
dissolv’d it try it on a corn E. A. [illegible] huchbene in vain it would not cure his suyatica 
the [illegible] end
IN march 1740 the sciatica pain return’d and the former
remedies prov’d inefectual E. A. found the most benefit by a remedy
in Pharmacopoeia Pauperum which is as followeth. A cataptersim
for the hop gout Rx mustard seed zii white pepper
and ginger each zij mix em together in fine pouder and
keep it in a glass close stop’t and just at the time of using it
make it into a poultis with a sufficient quantity of oxymel 
of squills the leather that you spread it upon must be spread
round its edges with Bents salve or some sticking salves it
draws the humour of the hip. The salve is to keep it on.


(197
To kill rats
Pulverize black hellebore & mix it with fat or tallow.
Rub an apple over a trap it will take away their scent
W. C. another Rx costards or codlings or any juicy apples
whole & unpair’d 2 pts onions whole & unpeel’d 1 pt in 
all i.e. of both together a pint. Put em in an earthen pot & 
ty a brown paper over it & set it in the mouth of the oven.
after the bread is placed & bake it when it is bak’d peel off
the skin of the apples & throw away their cores & peel off
the outward skin of the onions & mix only the pap of both apples 
& onions together with ratsbane zfs in very fine pouder 
[illegible] & set it on a pewter plate (or earthen dish) where the rats resort
viz on a chamber floor etc. Sam. Pauly bricklayer of
Wigston Magna try’d this with good success they eat it all clean up
as if the had lick’d the plate & he made some more & set 
it again but it remain’d untouch’d He found no dead rats 
 but it drove em away & clear’d his ground of em for a 
great many yrs after Sam. Pauly E. A. try’d Sam Pauly’s Rx
Augt 729 with 8 little codlings & 5 midling onions with water
abt ½ a pint to keep the pot from burning.
Another Rx fresh butter mix it with ratsbane a small quantity
in fine pouder Set some on bits of chips or broken rots & 
lay one great lump on a piece of board or on the outside
a coffer or strike turn’d upwards. This was done with
good success by James Allen of Wetston They eat it greedily It drove the rats
quite away for many yrs & he never say any sick or 
dead till he pull’d down pt of his house then he found
a great many of their bones behind the pargine & in 
holes James Allen another Mrs Meadows of Wigston 
Magna had an aunt that boyl’d pippins she peel’d & cored em 
& set the pap mixt only with sugar where the rats frequented
& they eat it up for 3 nights at last she mixt ratsbane in 
fine pouder with it without sugar & a little time after among some 
thorns & in other places they found 3 strikes of rats dead you may 
use codlins instead of pippins Sam. Pauly Bricklayer
another to poyson rats & nice in spite of their cunning. Rats lick their
feet like cats. mix white arsnick beaten very, very fine in a glass mortar 
the apothecaries never sift it zi with hogs lard ziij spred it thin on a 
board where they come or on the side trees. They will lick their feet & 
it will kill em. Try’d by Mr Jn Jenford apothecary.



198)
To kill rats.
Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats or [fulmeres] etc.
then pare an apple & tie or stick it on thro an iron fixt to
the bridge then drop some hony on the apple & set it on the
side tree or wall plate of a barn or where the rats frequent
& you may catch by the tayl or leg Dianah Smith.
another Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats etc. cover
the bridge with a paste made of wheat flower & milk set on
the side tree or on shelves where they haunt a square trap 
is best. Wm Hollins of Rotherby has caught so many with it by 
the leg or tayl that they’ve forsaken the house. W. H.
another Rx a large fall trap that opens at both ends with 2 
doors lay wheat on the bridge Mr. Seal of Narborow caught 
3 rats at one time so Mr Seal. another mix malt-smithu grease,
& sweet ale wort with ratsbane & daub the side trees or places where they haunt 
They will lick their feet & die Tho Clarks wife of Blaby
another Tie a piece of bacon to the bridge of a great fall
trap Lay some bran at the end of the trap & a little in the
trap to entice em in & you may catch a great many ibid.
another Lay a board that will tipe down at once corner when a
rat or mouse stands on’t over a malt cistern & lay some oats
on the middle of the board the cistern being empty & the [illegible]
made to turn on 2 axle pins The rats can’t get out again & you
may catch em alive so, 2 or 3 of a night Wm Glover of Fleckney
another Look at the ridge trees on the top of the thatch’d 
barns or outhouses & where you see the thatch woarn bright
& the cob webs rub’d off which is commonly near one of the ends
Get a ladder & a long fork & turn the tines so that you may thrust
en under the ridge tree prick em in oft & you will see the rats if
there are any creep out & come down & run along the side 
Trees plant a man ready on the top of a ladder leaning agt.
each side arm’d with a beesom (3 men in all upon ladder) to
knock the rats down have in readiness a sharp dog or 2 below on
the barn floor & more companions with broos to catch or 
knock em on the head stop all the holes in the floors or walls
with straw be that none may escape or if any do they will never
return to the house again. when you’ve kill’d any rats cut off the
skin from the fore heads of some of the biggest & oldest & tie a
string abt their middle or necks nail em up that that they may hang high
& they will deter others from approaching or residing with you. you
may throw some rats amongst any loose wood etc. where you think 
they harbour If the barns are slated you may perceive by the cobwebs
bring warn away or by the smoothness of the wood where they
harbour under the ridge tree or laces you must often try with a long
pitching fork under the ridg trees to disturb em especially when the barns 



(199
To kill rats.
are quite or but half empty when the barns are ful try the malt house & 
outhouses. This method in the yr 1719 cleared E A. of rats when
traps of a great many sorts & sizes ratcatchers with poyson & 
baits & snaires & steel-traps cou’d not clear the house tho a great
many were catch’d A good cat that will kill rats as well as mice 
is a valuable jewel to a husband man E. A. 
Tho. Satchwell a ratcatcher of Bedworth in Warwick:shire
4 m from Coventry mixes white armony or a little
white mercury sublimate in fine pouder sifted thro a lawn
sive (as much as will lie on a silver two pence will kill 2 or 3 
rats you  must not put in too great a quantity for then they 
will not eat it) with brown sugar which is better than white for
a moist bate. white is best mixt with pouder for mice & 
pippins scrap’d fine Let this be lay’d on the side tree in three
traps. 2 traps must be placed near the couples especially They
will lik their feet which will kill em Lay mercury sublim. mixt with
loaf sugar & oat meal for mice There is no way to destroy poyson
but by burning it. nothing kills rats like poysonous baits
well made or sooner clears an house of em. If rats do not
take baits in 2 or 3 days after they are lay’d they will never
take em Good apples viz pippins especially at the spring when 
apples are scarce will tempt rats as good as any thing to 
eat poyson. There is no killing rats without poyson Tho. Satchwell
who learnt of Jn Baxter a pudler. In the beginning of
Augt 1720 E. A. sent a letter directed to Tho. Satchwell ratcatcher of Bedworth near
Coventry. He keeps Coventry market but not constantly. He came when 
E. A.’s barns were empty & told him that no apples or pears will do for a bait
for rats but what are mellow, neither codlins nor sweetins till they are
mellow. apples being out of date he brought to Blaby in leather [illegible]
the skins or pearings & make the pap yellow with yellow arsnic in fine
pouder he put in some white arsnic in fine pouder but not above a 4th 
pt nux vomica a little grated fine & mixt with brown sugar so that E. A. cou’d
not discern the nux vomica but he told him there was some in the sugar the
sugar cook’d dirtyer than usual which made S. A.  think that there might be some in 
it. HE made it strong of the poyson because he conjectures more rats are 
kill’d by licking their feet when they run on it than by eating the bait
He lays it thick that it may not dry away quickly. In barns & out houses
he lays it only on the side trees, near the couples, in the middle & on each 
end of the side trees where there is no dust affirming where there is dust
there are no rats He can tell whether rats resort to the side trees by feeling 
on the side trees. Their feet scurry away the dust. He uses no [illegible]
the scent of the apples [illegible] is sufficient [illegible] to draw the rats.


200)
He uses only one little flat trencher & one knife which 
he brings along with him, he keeps his poyson in papers
in a great leathern pouch. T. S. He affirms that rats will seldom
or never take baits out of oyster shells, or pieces of pots. Tho
Satchwell. E. A. found in some wheat straw one great
rat shrunken up & had great live maggots in [illegible] abt a fortnight
after he lay’d [illegible] T. S. you may trie if treacle daub’d
on the side trees near the coller posts or gable ends of a 
barn or stable or malt house will not fright rats away
if you perceive they eat it you mix poyson therewith E. A.
another to kill rats Rx some [illegible] brandy & moisten some white
bread toasts therewith over night Brandy will kill rats & cats.
says my author. Carter Ratcatcher He thinks that the antimonial
paste is made with brandy which some ratcatchers use. ibid.
another Widow Whitworth alewoman at Gelders Hall
kill’d & drove away all the rats by boyling malt 1 pt in water
2 qts & nux vomica 2 d (  ) rasp’d or pounded Lay it on
flat trenches or boards on side trees or where the rats haunt
It is best to lay when there is no corn in the barn. It will kill 
only creatures born blind or dark says my author Wm Cole
son of sheepshead slater sed caveat emptor
another Set live hony i.e. clear hony in pieces of broken pots
or panchions with ratsbane that it may not run abt on side trees or [walplates]
or on shelves or where the rats resort This method killed 14 
set earthen platters with water in em & the rats will drink 
till they die & lie down swell’d by the water Ann Brooks alewoman
of Blaby
another Rx some sweet alewort of the first running mix
some wheat flower with it till it is abt as thick as oat meal pudding
or flower meat add to it ratsbane zi in very fine
pouder mix 2 d mix em well lay abt the quantity of a wallnut in a place 
or on the walplates & side trees them selves without pots etc. If the
rats set their feet on’t It will kill them because they will
lick themselves clean This method kill’d abundance without any 
harm Mr Thornton junior of Blaby The alewort makes it set
& dry hard on in a little time If y ou put on chips or pots
or shels of oysters they will not eat it. mix a little grease or fresh butter
with the alewort to prevent its drying E. A.
To kill rats or mice. Rx some chesnuts of which rats are great loves above most
things roast em & scrape em fine almost to pouder which mix with [illegible] wheat
flower & a little fine ratsbane mix em strew some ratsbane on the edges
Geo Florence [fidler]
another Rasp some nux vomica (al. crow figs) to fine pouder for it is
not be pounded in ordinary mortar & mix it with oatmeal dry Mr
Orme his apothecary has known this kill a great many rats Mr Orme



(201
The Clark of Barwel Aleman & Ann Tasie’s
way of brewing ale
Hard clear water is best for brewing especially for old
ale but it is the longest in clearing, get the water in over
night & brew the next morning. Rain or soft water makes
thick, sick ale. Grind the malt round i.e. just break it but
not small & use it in a day or 2 or it will not make so much
ale because it loses its spirits with keeping long. Boyl the
water before you mash. Let it stand on the mash two hours 
then draw off a bowl full or more till it runs clear & pour
em on the top again & let it stand half an hour more on the
mash after it is clear. Rub the hops very well betwixt your 
hands to part em handful by handful and agt the in side of the bub 
then put em into the tub when you let go boyl the hops in 
the liquor an hour & half then cool it & set it a working put
hops lbv to malt 13 strike north clay hops are the best
keep it 2 days working. Put most of the wort into the working 
vat the 1st day If you put it together too hot it will make
the ale thick & it will never be very clear. when it tasts well 
of the hop & there is a sedimt in the dish, or bowl or hand
then tun it Let it stand in the vessel till it has done purging
& do not stop it up of a week or it will purge agn & never 
be clear if you stop the purge hole too soon it will not be clear.
Stop the bunghole as soon as you have tun’d but you must 
not clay it up till you fill it up. Fill the vessel as full as you 
can keep it ½ a yr or a yr before you broach it. Bottle the
winter ale abt Michaelmass. fill the bottles & let the mouth lie 
down one night to moisten the corks then set em upright this prevents
whites. In winter wrap every bottle in hay putting hay betwixt 
every bottle It keeps it warm & safe from frost & ripens it but use
only a little hay to make the bottles stand upright in the summer
because much hay will make em fly. Let the corks be good & dry 
Lay em near the fire one night to dry em, before you use em. Set
the bottles in a wooden bin winter & summer to save room. Let the
malt be ½ yr old for ale that is to be kept long. Beans in the malt
do but little good. They make the ale high colour’d. always draw with 
a cock. Let the window of the ale cellar stand high that the light may 
descend like a pair of stairs. Set a board or boards against the light of the
window on the inside to keep out the heat of the sun in summer & the
cold in winter Choose velvet corks & pick em one by one tho you 
give 2 d a gross Beat em in with a little wooden mallet. Rack off the bottle’d 
ale with a [illegible] crane having a little pipe fixt a little distance from the 
bottom of it to suck with the mouth or to draw by to set the ale a running
[let] one and touch the bottom of the bottle on the inside Let the bing


202)
Let the bin be a yd high 2 f ½ broad 1 yd 2 f ½ long with 3 
partitions all of boards in this set the bottles one upon another
with their mouths upright upon a little hay at the bottom of each
bottle for it to rest on. Tho. Clark sells his ale at 6 d per bottle. it
is high colour’d & has a treacle taste. He says it seldom or never
makes any man sick. Tho. Clark.
Ann Tasie E. A.’s servant. her way of brewing. when malt is long
ground it is apt to [illegible] and the water will not go thro it. Let
the water stand on the mash 3 hours, more vertue comes out of it 
the last hour then in the other 2 hours, draw off a little tub ful till it
runs clear, then lade it with a bowl again upon the malt. you cannot
make strong ale for [keeping] of less than 16 strikes to a hogshead
unless malt be extraordinary good. [Green hops make bitter & unpleasant
drink, brown hops make the most pleasant & best tasted
ale. Green hops kept long turn white at last Mr Jn Smally of
Leicer. Hops when they are kept 2 yrs lose ½ their vertue & strength 
they will keep one yr goo after the 1st yr you must add to their
weight an allowance for a defect of their vertue E.A.] Put in hops
2 d to six strike or ½ an hogshead i.e. 4 d to an hogshead (you must put
in hops 7 d to keep one yr in the hogshead & one yr in the bottles
called old beer Mr Ed. Stokes.) keep the [ale] besides that day you brew
it on two days & a piece a working. you must tun it on the third day
after brewing. when it is clear in the working tub tun it. Putting in 
[wort] just before you tun is apt to make all that will gripe especially 
if it be drunk now & it is less diuretick. In a cold winter put in to
the work vat the work boyling hot from the fire but if you put it in
only scalding hot (a degree below boyling) it will scald the barm 
& make it settle to the bottom which makes the drink have a bitterish
dead taste. when the barm is scalded take some of the drink that
is fallen in the vat & boyle it & put it into the vat boyling hot as soon
as you can & work it abt with a dish soundly till the froth rises then
cover it up warm & it will work on again. If you’ve more wort add to 
it & keep it working till you tin it It will always have an unpleasant
bitter taste. Let the bottles be wash’d a month before you use em in the
winter & a fortnight in the summer neither dry em by the fire nor
in the sun for those drying are apt to breed whites but dry em in a 
cellar or in a room on a bottle crotch turn’d with their mouths downwards
& you will have no whites. Those bottles are least apt to produce
whites or be murky that are not wash’d in the winter but stand with
the sedimt of the bottles unstopt In March wash the bottles with short & 
cold water tho you’ve a little more trouble. a little mallet with lead
quite thro the middle of it drives the corks in best. Ann Tasie


(203



204)



(205
The yellow jaundice Dr Morton
Dry saffron 1 d rub it to pouder with the fingers take
it with a little sugar or with beer or posset drink
over night in the morning bruise or shred a little
handful of the leaves of artichoaks that grow on the
stalks near the roots put em into ½ a pint of ale & 
let em infuse ½ an hour then drink it fasting. It is a 
great bitter & sometimes purges. Rx the saffron & artichoak
be 3 nights & 3 mornings Mrs M.
The Black Jaundice Rx Ivory shavings zviii boyl’d in new
milk 2 pts till it comes to [illegible] strain it drink ½ a pint fasting Then boyl ground
ivy leaves mij in 2 qts of ale till it comes to one Put in red
sanders zij after the other ingredients are boyl’d then strain
it & drink ½ a pint fasting Wm Padmore.
A Decoction of rosemary in water taken before exercise 
cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine does the
same. Pecheys Herbal. another A seaman that was a hard
drinker was cured of the jaundice by eating every day 
one sevil orange peel & all, sliced & salted & some days 2 
or 3 sevil oranges with salt & drank on [still] during the 
cure Mr Jn Cochrane Lieutent another Rx hempseed
mi bruise it then boyl it in a pint of new milk till ½ is consumed
strain out the hempseed & drink the milk warm in 
the morning fasting for a week together or longer if occasion
requires. Mr. Daly farrier of Higham ferriers & Sister Ekins
another Rx 3 nights going to bed as much rhubarb in pouder
as will lie on a shilling in a spoonfull of w. wine Rx a spoonful
or 2 after it, intermit 3 nights, if it has not effected
a cure repeat it. Lady Curzon. another Rx 3 nights going to 
bed a good draught of ale with saffron 2 d infus’d in it for
a man, 1 d for a child. You may infuse it 6 hours or more in
a little ale & add fresh ale to it when you drink it. you must
throw the first water you make in a morning new made,
into the fire for 3 mornings successively ibid.
A perfect medicine for the yellow & black jaundice
& the colic in the stomach Rx a peck of snails in their 



206)
shels wash em in a great bowl of beer then make
the hearth very clean & pour upon it half a peck of
charcole & set it on fire. when they are kindled with a shovel
make a great hole in the midst of them. Before you put them
into the fire drain the drink from them then pour in the
snails shels & all & scatter the live coles among them & 
so let them roast as long as you hear them make any noise
then take them out & with a knife & course cloth pick & wipe
from them all their green froth very clean then in a stone mortar
bruise them them shells & all. Take a qt of earth worms
slit & scour em with salt very well twice over then roast them
]& put em in a stone mortar & beat them to pieces, then you 
must make the pot very clean upon which you set the limbeck or
still & lay angelico mi in the bottom of the pot & celandine 
mi & lay it upon that. Put in rosemary flowers 2 qts at the
least also bearsfoot dockroots the bark of barbery wood,
sorrel & betony each mij rue mfs fenugreek turmeric each
zi well beaten Then lay the snails & worms upon the top of 
all the herbs & pour in four gallons of the strongest ale
then cover the pot & let it stand all night at least [illegible]
you mean to put the fire under it In the morning you must
put cloves ziij beaten to pouder & of saffron beaten to 
pouder the weight of nine pence & of very good hartshorn
grated or filed to pouder before it be weigh’d zvi you must
stir it after you have put in the hartshorn for fear it
shou’d go to the bottom then set it upon the limbeck & 
stop it fast with a piece of rye dough & so receive the water
in pints as you do any other water you  may receive 6 pints
or more The first is the strongest & must be kept by itself 
& so by degrees the smallest may be made better by some 
of the strongest when it is used. Mrs Frances [Bickersee] & Mrs
Caulton. The yellow or black jaundice. Rx some of the 
sticks or branches new gotten from a barbary tree slip off the
black rind then take the yellow rink (or back) that is next the wood 
& scrape it into a dish. Then scrape some yellow butter dock roots
& slice them thin Rx mi of the slic’d roots & turmeric sliced pr. 3 d 
Put em all into a stone jug & [illegible] 3 of small beer & hang saffron 
1 d in a bag in’t so stop it close for 24 hours Then drink a good
draught every morning & fast till dinner & at 4 of the clock in 
the afternoon drink again. S. S.
The yellow jaundice Rx turmerick 1 d saffron 2 d sugar zifs as much pouder of eg shells
as will lie on 1 s Put all those together in apint of w. wine Rx ¼ of it 
in a morning fasting for 4 mornings together It is an extraordinary 
good Rx & seldom fails curing S. S.
The decoction of rosemary leaves in water (or made like tea) 
& taken before exercise cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine 



(207
does the same Pecheys Herbal. This is entred p. 205
celandine put to the bare feet in your shoes will cure
the jaundice. manuscript book
This is ext in the jaundice Pechey’s Herbal Rx syrup of white horehound
zij oil of tartar per deliquium [illegible] i mix take often of it one
spoonful at a time The tops of white horehound infus’d in white
swine & drunk 3 mornings, is good to provoke the courses & to expel
the secundine & to strengthen the stomach & to cure an ill habit
of body ibid if continued for some time Dr Salmon says horehound opens
obstructions of both liver & spleen, cleanseth the breast & lungs causing
expectoration & by that means takes away old coughs, asthma’s, shortness
of breath, pains of the sides, spitting of the blood, physicks, inflammations
& ulcers of the lungs, it provokes the [?erms] & expels the birth
after birth & helps their watering Mr Wm Hunt a gravier of Braunston
in Leicershire has drank horehound tea with some drops of sal volatile [olecrum]
20 yrs together sweeten’d with sugar every morning.
Quincy says sal volatile olecrum for its preferable fragrancy has almost
excluded the use of spirit of hartshorn & the plain spirit of
sal armoniae It is a most noble cephalic & cordial either to smell
or to take inwardly Its dose is from 10 drops to 100 or upwards in 
wine or water or beer. Some ladies take a tea spoonful in 
water A sal
volatile made with [marium] syriacum according to Quincy’s dispensatory
is wonderful penetrating & serviceable to the head & diluted to a convenient
strength is one of the best sternulatories that can be invented
inwardly used it is of great efficacy in all nervous cases but is apt to 
be adulterated. Parkinson says horehound is good for such as by long
sickness, or a thin rheum falling upon their lungs are wasted & inclin’d
to a consumption the green herb taken with honey & for the [pursie] & short-winded
& promotes spitting taken with the dry’d root of [illegible] It is given
to women that have sore & long travels but it hurteth the bladder & the 
reins It is given to them that have taken poison or are stung or bitten by 
venomous serpents or beasts The leaves used with honey purge foul ulcers 
stay running or creeping sores It helpeth the pains of the sides, the juice with
roses drop’d into the ears easeth their pains A decoction of the herb is good for
those that have itches & running tetters or outbreaks used with vinegar. The green
leaves bruised boil’d with old hogs lard into an ointmt [healeth] the bitings
of dogs the swellings of womens breasts & the pains of pricking thorns The 
decoction of [illegible] in water is a singular help for the whites in women 
if they sit over it while it is warm. the same healeth scabs moist or dry if 
they are bathed therewith the herb stamped & put into new milk & set in a 
place pester’d with fliers will soon destroy em all. syrup of horehound in 
the shops are good for old coughs & old men & others that are asthmatic or
shortwinded to help em to spit & avoid flegm For the jaundice Make
a cake with the party’s urine and put it in the fire iron and
make a fire upon it and burn it and drink some turmerick
in a little warm ale Goody Smith







210)
Speech lost.
Dr Richd Langham gave my grandfather Mr Euseby
Shukbrugh Jan. 17th 1627. The imbecility of the voice is
by the indisposition & weakness of the instrumts of the
voice caused by a defluxion of rheum upon the arteries 
wear a cap a night especially if not day & night cut the
hair short & take the linctus or [lohoc] now & then chew reasins
of the sun (almost continually) spitting away the
stones and cause garlic or onions to be boyl’d in fair
water & salt & a very little wine vinegar make a sauce thereof
with sweet butter sugar & pepper to eat with all the meats the
oftener the better mater med. for streightness of wind.
Rx red sage mii liquorish bruis’d 1 d three parsly roots the
pith taken out one fennel root the pith taken out elecampane
root ziiij maiden hair in pouder 2 spoonfuls, aristolochia one
spoonful liverwort mij Boyl all these in 2 qts of stale ale until
 a pint be boyled away, strain it. Put into the liquor treacle of
jean 3 d aqua vitae 3 d live hony a spoonful brown sugar
candy ziiij one nutmeg finely beaten as much beaten cinnamon
as will lie on a shilling Let it stand & cool awhile then
put in the whites of 2 new layd eggs beaten Rx thereof lukewarm
morning & evening first & last the quantity of 4 or 5 spoonfuls
ibid. Lavender flowers in loss of speech do wonders on e
was cured by drinking a spoonful at a time of an infusion 
of them in sp. of wine The celebrated palsy drops are the 
compound sp. of lavender which are a most noble cephalic & 
cordial medicine but in loss of speech it is much better drpt
upon sugar & gradually dissolved in the mouth than swallow’d
at once Quincy’s Dispensatory. Loss of speech. Eat hot hony
at night going to bed for a pretty time Intermit some nights & repeat
This cured Mrs Ayres at London Mrs Finch. another Pellitory of
Spain the root, scrap’d & hold in the mouth helps the toothach
by drawing [illegible] the cold watery rheum it also helps the
palsy of the tongue & the loss of voice Millers Herbal.
another aqua mirabilis is said to preserve from the apoplexy & 
restore speech lost. Dose a ziij ad zi in rosemary water or rosemary
tea Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The distill’d oyl of peony seed drank in canary or sherrygut 10
or 12 helps the loss of speech. Salmon’s Disp.
An apoplectic (one troubled with an apoplexy) who had lost his speech
was [illegible] [illegible] agn by the use of spirit of castor & sp. of mother
of tyme p. 192 Salmon’s Praxis Medica.
One who had lost his speech was restor’d to it agn by chewing
tobacco. Cos. Waring Ashby Mrs. Ellen Stokes the window of the Rd Mr Ed
Stokes Parson of Blaby had lost her speech for several yrs at last she
happen’d to catch an ague to cure which she took 5 ou. of the Jesuits bark at several
times as is usual to drive it away & it recover’d her speech [illegible] Stokes 


(211
numbness in any lib or joynt
or sinew shrunk
Rx oyl of amber pr. 1 d ½ oyl of almonds pr. 29 mix & 
chafe em in agt the fire Ben. Alsop. another Boyl
4 calfs feet in water with a little oatmeal to a jelly 
when cold. Rub it on as hot as you can endure it from morn 
to night as oft as it drys in ibid. Another Rx tincture
of castor 14 or 15 drops for a man or woman in ale
as oft as they drink at or between meals It will restore
lost speech & cure a [dead] palsie when half the limbs are
taken away Dr Antony Brooks & Mrs Finch. Liquid amber
comforts & warms limbs afflicted by cold diseases & is exct 
in palsies & numbness Salmons Disp. Anne Tasie my servt
had one arm dead so that she could not lift it to her head
the next day she pounded [illegible] nettles & salt together & 
with her handkerchief bound it on her arm 24 hours & it gave
heat, strength & life to her arm & quite cured it. A. T.
A stiffness in the joynts especially after any bone had been 
broken. anoint with oyl of worms It gave Mrs. Freer of
Blaby the use of her arm after it was broken. Mrs Freer
a weakness, coldness, numbness, bruises, old aches, lameness
& straining of the joynts. Rx oyl of spike & oyl of
[exeter] p.e. anoint it on agt a fire David Lane. another
anoint with oyntmt of marshmallows This cured Wm Gimson
that was lame in his knee by falling ona  stump
Henry Gimson bonesetter of Widmarpool. another Rx a qt
of strong ale boyl it to a pint then add hogslard ziiij boyl
it again & apply it warm as you can endure it. This cured
a soldier when his hand was swell’d to black & blew & almost
inensible having running sore in the arm
caus’d by a bullet that was shot thro it. solder James
Edwards that carry’d the Stamford Mercury’s abt Leicershire etc.
had a pain & lameness in his ancle so that sometimes he could
not go some thought it a rheumatism, after having try’d a great
many things in vain was thus cured Rx oyl of spike 


212)
Oyl of Turpentine p.e. or each zfs anoint at
night a little before bedtime & work it in with an
hot iron or hot fire shovel near the fire The next night
do the same again. Try this on an old pain or a [foundred]
horses feet & legs J. Edwards. Oyl of worms & oyl of swallows
mixt p.e. cured a boy that was lame & had one leg shorter than the other
Sister Mary at Shakbrugh Ashby. Mrs Cook’s sister of Blaby had
a lame hand that no oyntmt poultis or plaster could make
well was cured by drinking 2 spoonfuls of juyce of elder
in half a pint of beer & ale nine mornings together 
another that cured Joseph Warner’s sister of lameness Rx oyl of
elder oyl of spike, oyl of lillies, oyl of roses, oyl of junip 
oyl of St. Jns wort, oyl of swallows, oyhl of turpentine
oyl of camomile p. e. anoint therewith fingers numb’d & inflexible
Rx laurel & bay leaves chop & boyl em in [go??] grease Dr Pool
mountebank Salmon’s disp. p. 475. says he recovered a child that
had lost the use of all its limbs only by anointing with oyl of amber
ade with pounder of [tiles] etc. a military officer had a daughter abt
6 or 7 yrs old that had a leg contract so that she could not go
she had been lame abt 3 or 4 months she was cured by being
dipt over head & ears in a tub of cold water 9 mornings successively
& sweating in bed after each dipping & her leg [illegible]
[illegible] & was as long as the other Mr Jn Cochrane. one woman took
her by the head another by the feet she always cry’d bitterly. ibid.
Wither’d limbs or weak joynts anoint with oyntmt of rue, Salmon’s
Disp. A strain mix white of an egg beaten with brandy
with wheat flower spred it upon leather & apply it Let it lie
on a good while David Jervase. another Dip a linnen cloth 
in hot urine apply it agt the fire as hot as you can endure
it then dry it & [illegible] spred Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth upon leather & 
lay it to the griev’d place If it will not stick bind it on with 
a linnen rag sew’d abt it It is made of red lead & oyl E. A.
oyl of St. Jns wort is better than oyl of turpentine for a contracted
or strain’d sinew or nerve or any strain abt. a joynt
or numbness you must rub it often on & keep the part that is lame
or disordered warm by wearing an oyl’d linnen rag & silk over 
it constantly till well. Dr Pool a hand or wrist strain’d by 
reaping corn or mowing with a scythe even when a great knob
arises on the outside the wrist Rx some keen nettles & pound em
soft as pap with salt, bind it on the strain or swelling 12 hours or
longer renew it if the pain doth not begin to cease in 12 hours but
if it doth then anoint it with oyl of St. Jns wort (the newer the oyl
the better) till well. Charles Simons.


(213
a strain. Rx comfry root wash it clean & dry it with
a cloth then scrape or pound it. lay it on a rag & bind it on
shift it once in 24 hours or boyl the roots in spring water 
& apply em hot. It will strengthen & knit a bone new set or
weak or crackt If you apply it to a bone before it is right
set it hurts it so that it will be always out It is good for a 
bone that is apt to be out of joynt This last way cured Mrs 
Caulton. A bathing for lameness Rx sage, rosemary feather fern each
mi wormwood mi boyl all these in a qt of brandy bath the part affected
with cotton dipt therein & let it lie on. Do it once or twice a day for a 
fortnight together Then afterwards fry wormwood in hogs lard & apply 
it to the pt that is troubled every night for a fortnight together S. S. another
Rx small pounded frankincense mix it well with with 3 ou. of the best aqua 
vitae & anoint the joynt or limb pained S. S.
A numbness in a finger or joynt. Rx oyntmt of marshmallows
pr. 29 w. vinegar 10 drops rosewater 14 drops oyl of
turpentine 20 drops Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Sp. of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine oyl of wax or oyl of camomile
allays pains of the gout rheumatism [illegible] nodes, & cures contracted & 
wither’d members. Salmon’s Dispensatory. ale boyl’d to a salve 
helps pains of the sinews & joynts & heals sores old or new Salmon
on Barly.
To cure lame joynts. Culpepers last legacy.
aqua composita mixed with a little oyl of roses helps lame joynts
but let ‘em be well rub’d before with warm cloths & then anointed
another ibid The like effect hath hartshorn boyl’d to jelly in sack 
Jn [Hewet’s] ancle was had upon by a stone colt which bent his foot double
old Mr Ed. Muxlo advised him to stand in a horse trough in cold water a
qr of an hour which he did & was well without doing any thing nore at it
J. H. E.A.’s servt. another Elizth Dawkins formerly had a bruise on
her shin which made her very lame but the skin was not broken she was
cured by Mrs Basset by bathing it night & morning with a linnen cloth
dipt in vinegar & water cold rather the [illegible] vinegar & the cloth bound to the
bruise well with the same liquor she was well in a little time E.D; E.A.’s servt
A wither’d or contracted arm or any limb. Mary Raven doctress at
[D??ford] in Leicershire Rx oil of swallows & oil of worms & oil of camomile
each 1 d flax seed 1 d calfs tongue an herb 1 d at the apothecaries 
Boil the calfs tongue & flax seed in water a qt to a pint or less strain it
Then add the oil stir it well before you use it. Bath it on war 2 or 3 
times a day. This cured a contracted arm. Goody [Ho???and]. [wake] robin
is the same as calfs foot us’d in poltices for the gout Parkins has no calfs 
tongue.
Kate Bingly of Blaby a poor woman that [illegible] collection a widow hat the use
of one side almost taken away being a stroke of a palsy she had a violent
pain in her hip & knee & had lost the use of one hand Mr Tho. Ward surgeon
of [Sison] prescribed this [illegible] for her which did her good & she repeated it 
Rx sp. v. i. ou. sp. of lavender ziij tincture of castor oil ziij pr: 10 d Mr Cook Apothecary


214)
Cos: Geo: Boothby put his knee out by jumping from 
behind a coach when a boy Jn? Gibbords of Coventry set it & 
the sinews of his hair shrunk [illegible] he was [illegible] only
on his toe to the ground. when he began to go [illegible] [illegible]
he could not set his heel to the ground he ordered him to take
oyl of swallows & oyl of worms p. e. to shake ‘em together & to
chafe it in well agt the fire 2 or 3 times a day & in a little time
his sinews extended to a duo length. Sister Boothby
The anodyne balsam an outward application
made of castile soap, camphire, saffron and spt. of
wine digested in a sand heat. It procures sweat and
ease in the most racking extremities of pain by discharging
the [peccans] matter that occasiond it.
Chambers’s Dictionary.
Rheumatick pains. [Antihe?ticum] poterii is very
good against rheumatick pains or chronical distempers
or consumptions after convenient purgations Dr [Benskin]


(215
To make pearch bite
Rx juice of red nettles & five leav’d grass p.e put it
into a deep wide mouth’d bottle that the hook may go
down dip the worm in when you fish Let the worms be
scour’d in moss & fennel in a wollen bag Keep em 3 or 
4 days to scour & toughen em by giving fresh moss & 
fennel every 3 or 4 days, hanging em in a cellar or cool
place & pouring 6 spoonfuls of water that has stood all
day in the sun or pond water. The water washes & refresheth
em & will drain away fro em gradually. Stephen
Hunt. To cath eels Put calfs blood cak’d in a 
piche & put egg shels made small by crumbling
em with the hand & mix em with the blood the
last will draw roach & pike you must lay the
mouth downwards (i.e. the tail to the stream for 
they shoot upwards) under a hollow bank or root 
of a tree out of the stream. ibid.
To make pearch, carp, pench or almost any fish except
pike, bite at a worm, Dip the worm (when you are
going to thro in) in chymical oyl of fennel or chymical
oyl of anniseeds, the 1st is best & any of the fish that smell
it, will bite. you must keep the worms in moss clean wash’d
wash it clean twice a week & squeeze out the wet with your
hands & set em in a pot cover’d in a celler & they will
keep a long time. You must fish at 3 or 4 o clock in a 
morning for carp. Mr Styles of Banbury.
another Rx Ground malt & mix it with cow dung & throw
it in cakes or balls a night or 2 before you angle & 
it will draw fish to the places where you throw it.
Stephen Hunt. To invite perch to a place chop [illegible]
worms & throw em in ibid To make carp come to 
a certain place & how to catch em. Rx wheat flower
juniper berries in pouder (the oldest will the most easily 
pulverize) make em into little balls abt as big as a pea with 
ale wort or ale that is not bitter Bait a place with these 


216)
there for 2 or 3 nights & you may angle with 
success except where they spawn which is twice a 
yr viz in & . Clean a corner of a 
pond of the weeds & bait a place thus 3 or 4 times
then draw a net suddenly over & let it fall into
the water & beat the other side of the pool from the net
where you baited & the carp will strike into’t. Stephen
Hunt in the night at Elmsthorp pool with another man
caught 40 large carp at one draught ibid To make
perch bite Rx a bit of a dew worm that is but a little longer than
the hook place the great end of the worm downward. you 
may break a worm into several pts to be us’d often. This
will catch when a small worm will not. It is good to put some
warm water to wheat or rye bran so as to moisten it that you 
may throw it in by lumps, or grains or ground malt to draw
em together. A soldier & traveller To fox fish Rx [ox] almond al.
nux vomica beat or grate it small wheat flower red lead
make em into a paste with aqua vitae. Then roll em into little
pills like pea’s & throw em into the water roach & chub will
take em it will for em so that you may take em with a net at
the end of a pole. This paste put into some apples or crabs
& thrown under a crab tree or into a thicket where there is a 
crab tree where deer resort They will intoxicate the buck or
doe that eat any of em so that you may break his or her neck
or cut their throats deer are mighty lovers of apples or crabs
ibid. To make almost any sort of fish to bite that
are caught by angling Rx oyl of polypody of the oak
Venice turpentine & live hony p.e. in a thumb bottle 
dip the worm therein & you will catch plenty of fish
even of carp that are difficult to take a soldier & Dr
T. Hely. This E. A. has oft try’d without any success judging it
charmless another abt 9 or 10 o clock at night or later if
you will take a candle & lanthern after rain & look in any fallow
field or ground where the grass is bare or in any garden or
orchard you may gather plenty of dew worms put em in a 
pot with moss or fennel The next morning pinch off their red
heads abt the middle & throw em into the pond or river
where you intend to angle you may throw in ½ a pint 
into one place bait 2 or 3 places in a pond that is pretty large
for 2 days more & night together & fish with the tayl of the
dew worms or any time when you are to angle throw in some
dew worms nipt or cut to pieces tho it is not above 2 or 3 worms
& come an hour after & you will have good sport. fish will bit
better at the tayl of a worm than at the head & tho they will sooner 


(217
bite at a small hook than at a large one & sooner at
a hook [?afted] to a fern hair than a great many yet if you put
2 pretty great hooks to a strong line & tafte the fish will bite
very well May 21st 720 It being a very west time & the water in 
the river muddy E.A. angled in his pond in the piece the wind easterly
& high at 3 o clock in the morn & cou’d not make the fish bite
at last he went round the pond & found a little open place surrounded
with woods where he had but just space for his 2 hooks
to descend & the place was under the wind He caught abt 20 perch
abt 8 o clock (in the morn) in a very little time & many of them
2 at a time E. A.
To make a paste for cap, roch or dace
Rx tallow of a loyn of mutton or limb the skin taken off & new
or old cheese a little white bred Beat em in a [illegible] with a little
good aqua vitae or brandy or aniseed [illegible] beaten with a little white of
egg 1st beaten by itself make it into a stiff paste with a little hony
you may colour it with vermillion or red lead It will do without
colouring & you without white of egg It will keep abt a week 
Ec. Cholmondly a ratcatcher of Staffordshire another rub the [illegible]
with oyl of worms. Perch will bite in muddy water & before a thunder
shower ibid. E. A. try’d the last paste of Cholmondlys & oyl of
worms & the worm dipt in old tar without any success May 
720
when you fish for perch bait the hook with a red worm neither very
big nor very little, dipt in treacle for carp bait with a little
scarlet bright worm bred in bears dung. They are very fond of
it [illegible] a porter in hand ally over agt great turn style in 
Holburn London understands angling very well & can catch carp’
to admiration. at London they that sell worms keep in in a greasie
dish clout. It will make em red, bright & thrive Br. S. A.
Lay a trammel a day or 2 before or after the change of the
moon in a warm dark night & trammel will catch carp but a 
dragnet will not. Put into a [thief] net nosegays i.e. flower white
& red. They draw the fish together they come to admire em. Keep 
the worms in mass often shifted Wm Pinch.
A paste for carp or roch or dace mix wheat flower
with white of an egg & bole in fine pouder make a
longish bate. Bate a place with grains & an hour after
throw a castnet for carp let it lie qr. of an before
you draw it up & they will come out of the mud
Traveller & Tho. Bingly all oyls done to an hook or worm
are insignificant to make any sort of fish bite. Carp will bit in 
a pond that has a gravel or sandy bottom but they will not bite in 


218)
in a marle pit The Rd Mr Andrew Glen of Hatham.
If you stock a pond with perch where there is marle those you 
put in first shall grow to be very large but afterwards they 
will breed & multiply so very fast that the pond will be over stockt
& they will starve & pine one another & never thrive or grow to be
large fish It is like over stocking a ground or close or keeping
your cattle poorly they will not grow but degenerate into runts.
If you can draw the pond often you m ay think the fish so as to 
make increase in [illegible] as well as multiply in number ibid
To take pike or perch or chub with a minnum (or as some call it a pink)
To catch a minnum Rx a very little hook with a tafte of 3 or 4 
hairs cover the hook with a small red worm not much longer than
the hook you must have no float nor cork nor quill but a shot
or 2 abt 2 or 3 inches from the hook the line must be short or
you must tie it up you will see or feel the pink take the worm
but you must stand as much out of sight as you can they bite best
when the wind curdles the water a little. As fast as you catch the pinks
you must put em into a tin watering pot with water in it & often
change the water in summer to keep em alive when you’ve caught abt
6 or 10 then Rx a strong line fasten to it a tafte of 3 or 4 hairs
that if you meet with a large pick the tafte may break to preserve
your line to the tafte you must fix a piece of Indian weed abt 5 
inches long tie em together with a white silk was’d with black shoe
makes wax put betwixt a piece of calves leather or glove leather 
the wax must be made pretty stiff. If the Indian weed is longer the pink
cannot play well with it you must fix two duck shots to the Indian 
weed & you must have a little cork & quil for a float lay 
the pink near the bottom you must have a pretty strong carp 
or perch hook & putt the end of the hook & its beard just under
the fin of the back of the pink that part of the fin nearest the tayl
the hook must go cross the fishes back under the fin taking
but little hold The beard & hook appearing on the outside of the
fish & seeming to take but little hold of the pink. ibid.
A bit for fish (esca. illecabra) Rx a little camphir, aqua vitae
& oul olive bray em together till they come to a soft oyntmt
then put em into a little gally pot or box or glass bottle & anoint
the bait. Geo. Ashby Pater Meus
A paste for carp used by Richd Wheat Ld Stamford’s fisherman
at Grooby Pool Rx wheat flower juniper berries dry’d &
beaten to pouder Red lead in fine pouder p. e. the redder the better
make it into a stiff paste with anniseed water Let the bait be as
big as a white pea made over to cover the point of the hook 
Sam. Exon. Pound the berries in a mortar They may do better than 
in pouder or dry’d E. A.
An infallible way to watch eels Stephen Hunt. Lay at the head
of the pit 6 or 8 baits abt the asunder, fixt to a [troling]
line or whip-cord it [illegible] ly as far as you think the 


(219
ground bard & free from weeds. stake it down. your stake
for the night must be a stick as thick as a man’s thumb
the top must be taper like [breath] with a sharp point you
must bore a hole at the end of a thick staff so that it may 
go easily on & off [illegible] a [?irk] for the line a little below the
tapered part of the breath you must after you have laid
your baite ty’d the line to the stake
put the staff on [illegible] breath & hold it in with the upper
part of the line ty’d to the stake then thrust it into the
ground under water then no body can see it or find it out
without a drag. your bait must be a [menow] you must
tut it open with a penknife & take out the gutts then fill
it full of blood that is cold and congeald & sew it in 
taft a gag abt 1 inch ¾ long on with [horse] hair to a horse 
hair [plat] consisting of 30 hairs this must be fixt to a 
parkthred about half a yd long which must be tyd to 
the mane line. your gag must be of the largest knitting
wire broad & flatt at one end. sharp & taper at the other
you must in tafting observe to [illegible] the hair from the 
middle of the gag towards the broad end within a straws
breadth of the broad end cutting off some of the haire 
as you lap & approach to the end. You must bend the
sharp end a little off from the line you must thrust
the broad end in at the [bent] hole & out at the mouth
till you can thrust the sharp end under the tayl
so that it may appear a little on the back of the fish
& the broad end must lye just out of the mouth 
when you sew up the fish you must leave a hole
to put the gag in at (viz) at the bent hole S. Ld: of
Whetstand
Chymical oyl of any seeds put amongst moss that the
worms are kept in & the hook dip’d in it with the worm
[Francis] [illegible] of Wigston says it is the best of charmes
to make fish bite.
June 23d 1692 The Dalby miller of Brooksby in
Leicer shire caught a carp 25 ½ inches  long from head  


220)
to tail & 14 ¾ inches in the cirumference of
the thickest part in a pych in a flood in the river
Reak It weigh’d 6 ½ good [wtt]
an easy way to catch fish in a pond when the water is frozen hard
make a hole in the ice in what part you think best & put into it ground
malt mi or mij or sweet grains & the fish will come to the hand presently
Mr. Ed. Clark of Stony Stanton.
An ear: wig is an ext bait for roch ibid. another for roach or dore Rx wheat
flower temper’d with saffron [illegible] strong ale & a little sugar & bait your 
hook there with & they will bit apace ibid.
another to [fox] fish Rx the crums of new white bread & [coculus] indy
berries & henbane seeds each zi in fine pouder temper it with good aqua
vitae & make thereof a paste which divide into small pieces a little bigger than 
wheat corns & throw whole handfuls thereof into a still place of the
river where there is plenty of roach & dore & they will swim on the surface
of the water bring intoxicated after eating the baits, which you may then
catch with a little not at the end of a pole ibid.


(221
A consumption p. 137.
A consumptive cough or surfeit.
Rx white wine 3 spoonfuls, the yok of a new lay’d egg,
as much flower of brimstone as will lie on a shilling & the
same quantity of white sugar candy in pouder Rx 2 knife’s
pointfull in the morning one a night as long as it lasts, then 
intermit 3 days & take the following Rx If they do you good repeat em
Rx 3 or 4 heads of garlick, peel & brake em boyl em in a 
pint of spring water till they be dry, then infuse em in a 
pint more of spring water till they be almost dry & boyl it
a little in a qt of white wine vinegar with loaf sugar lbi Rx
3 spoonfuls in the morning & one at night These 2 Rxs cured
a taylor of Evington.
for a consumption cough & to sweeten and cool the blood an itching humour
Rx shel snails 1 qt scour em clean with salt & wash em 
with water then pound em in a bowl with a wooden pestle
gill pickt & wash’d mij viz as much as you can grip
with one hand at twice, Lay the gill at the bottom of
a cold still (i.e. a rose still) & the snails on the gill
pour a gallon of new milk upon em washing the 
bowl with some of the same milk & adding it to the
still. still it off, it commonly affords 2 qts of snail 
water drink abt a coffee dishful or 10 spoonfuls in 
the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in the afternoon
Begin with 5 spoonfuls till it agrees with the stomach drink
it till you are well sweeten’d with sugar This cured Mary Barnet of Barwel
of a violent cough & hereditary consumption
Mrs Adderly & Sister Elizth Mayer when the still is thro
hot keep it with frequent stirring with a spoon or ladle,
This would not cure E. A.’s itching
or it will burn to E. M. another In Spain They cure
consumptions by drinking goats milk & brandy. Tho.
Clark [soulder] an electuary for the [ptisick] (shortness of
breath) & a cough caus’d by hard drinking Rx liquorish
pouder zfs anniseeds zfs caraway seeds zi pounded & 
sifted mastick zi pouder’d conserve of red roses zfs hony ziiij
mix them well on a trencher or slate Rx a knife point full 


222)
at any time when you cough. Wm Harris [slater] of 
Leicer abt the latter end of April 715 E. A. had
a violent cold & cough he took sweet & oyly things 
in vain but at last was cured thus Rx Mr Fr.
Coltmans balsamic electuary which is thus made
Rx lucatellus balsam zij 8 d conserve of red roses
zi 6 d syrupus capillaru zi 3 d Rx the quantity of
a nutmeg 3 or 4 times a day This made me expectorate
& I eat in the night & oft when I cough’d sugar’d almonds
& raysins of the sun The cough hung on me
so long that I thought it would turn to a i
E. A. A cold or cough in man or child or beast.
Rx liquorish sliced zij sage leaves mifz fennel root
slit ziiij currans lbfs stew em over the fire in a qt of
water till ti comes to a pint strain & put it to a qt of
ale for man or beast Let the strain’d liquor be boyling hot
when you put the ale to’t & give it fasting the horse may 
drink 2 hours after you may give it 3 mornings together
It will cure a sucking child of a cold, cough or wind
Rx ½ the ingredients for a child with a pint of white wine
instead of ale. Let the child take a spoonful at a time 3 
mornings successively a man may take ½ a pint or a qr of
a pint 3 mornings together Ld Tho. Barrons of Newsted
Park in Nottingham shire & Fr. Collins of Ayleston, Collins’s
mother did great cures among children with this Rx
A tickling cough or a consumption of which it is
oft a forerunner Rx electuarium corcatu pr 1 d per ounce
a knife pointful at night going to bed or at any time
when you cough drinking often gill or sage tea Mr Wm
Cook apothecary A dry or old cough Rx pippins pare & 
slice em abt ½ a tea pot full, raysins of the sun stoned & liquorish
sliced so as to make it taste a little sweet & tart. Drink a tea pot
full or 2 night & morning or as often as you will. This did Mr. 
Simon Barwel of Leicer more good than any thing.  The countess of
Stamford. You  must drink it without sugar ibid.
A cold cough or consumption Rx one or 2 turnips, pare & slice
em very thin Lay 3 or 4 slices then a flooring of sugar of any sort
as you like it, the finer the pleasanter the courser the more opening
make it over night & it will be ready to be taken the next morning
If you set it one night in the cellar the sugar will sooner all dissolve
you may strew sugar upon every slice if you like it very sweet Rx [illegible]


(223
Rx a tea spoonful at a time as oft as you cough by day or
by night. It will not keep good above 3 or 4 days then renew it. It
is pleasanter than syrup of turnips. Dr Benskin. This cured Mrs Winstanly
of a violent cough at her lying in, & Mrs [Lewin] etc. sister E.B.
a cold or cough. Bring a looseness upon the self by drinking or 
eating buttermilk, or malt pudding bak’d viz made of ½ malt flower & 
½ wheat flower Jn Cater Shepherd. Keep yourself warm ibid. A cold
or a violent running at the nose Rx Portugal snuff at the
nose at night going to bed Ann Tasie. another Drink syrup 
of verjuice It is good also for a sore throat ibid. another
Rx balsamick syrup a little at a time & often It will
raise flegm &make you expectorate Mr Stokes. A cough
Rx elecampane the best sort (or that which is new) flower of brimstone
p. e. hony as much as will bring it to the consistence
of a lambative Mr. James Allen of Whetstone commends
this to the skies. An hacking old cough tending to a 
consumption. Rx flaxseed (al linseed) & balm make tea drink
it as oft as you will sweeten’d with sugar Dr Mane & Sister
Ekins. nothing is better for a cold & cough than liquorish
juice i.e. Spanish juice Mr Cook apothecary. another good 
also for a sore throat Rx vinegar or verjuice a pint sugar
candy ziiij liquorish sliced ziiij boyl em & drink a little
coffee dish night & morning. This medicine was seldom baffled
by a cough or sore throat in the beginning of the yr
719 Aunt Maier Pills for a consumption or surfeit.  Rx of
the pouder of anniseeds, liquorish, elecampane each zi white
sugar candy, conserve of roses each zij lucatellus balsam 
&the best hony each one spoonful. Tar half a spoonful
make em up into pills & take 4 or 4 going to bed & abt the
same number The next morning an hour or 2 before you rise
you need not confine your self to the house nor to any particular
diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Coulton. A violent 
cough & weakness Rx lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d Conserve of
roses pr 2 d mix & take a knife’s pointful night & morning
This cured Tho. Tafte when he was ready to die with coughing
& cou’d scarce draw his legs after him. Tho. Tafte. Salmon
in his Dispensatory p. 587. commends his pectoral infusion to 
the skies. Cold or cough Rxl linseed oyl cold drawn zij diacordium zij



224)
Diacodium is syrup of meconium or poppies
Rx only one spoonful in the morn & one at night
going to bed fast after it an hour Rx it no oftener because
it thickens then the blood too much & dulls the stomach
& spirits Mr Penford apothecary says it is the best
medicine yet found out. This cured E. A. may 719. but not
quite the cure Rx lucatellus balsam & conserve of roses each 
2 d a knifes pointfull night & morn Spanish juice or liquorish as
oft as you cough at last compleat the cure with a [dranken] dose of ale
till you spew & a day or 2 before you drink hard eat 3 or 4 
cloves of garlic abt bedtime S. A. another This cured a 
whole family at Ayleston of a violent cough Rx a little hare’s
wool clip it small with a pr of sissers Dry nettle seeds pound or
rub it to pouder mix em with a little hony. Take a little knifes
pointful often when you cough & night & morn Ch. Chester
A cold or consumption Rx unset hysop & gill each mi a little time & 
rosemary, & penny-royal Bouyl or infuse em in ale or
good beer 3 pints till it is wasted ½ pint or more then add treacle lbfs
& sugar candy ziiij when it is melted take it off the fire when it is cold
squeeze the herbs well out & add oyl of anniseeds 2 d Put it into a 
bottle. shake it when you pour it out. Drink night & morn a draught
hot Mrs Caulton. The purging bitters good for colds or a 
stoppage at the stomach Rx camomile flowers gentian, centaury, each 1 d
sena zi boyl em in 3 pints of water till it wasts to a qt 
Rx ½ pint warm every morning or more as you wou’d have it
work, fasting after it.  If you wou’d not have it pourge leave
out the sena. Mrs Caulton for any cough or chincough, asthma
or short breath or stoppage of the lungs. Rx water a qt garlic 6 
or 8 cloves,  a little unset hysop, infuse em till it comes to a 
pint, then put in a gill of w. wine & hony ziiij let it boyl up
when cold take a good spoonful when going to bed but not at any 
other time except you keep warm. you may boyl it up with good
sugar lbfs (if you do not like hony) & put it in the w. wine when it
is enough & let it just boyl in Mrs Caulton A consumption Rx
The juice of betony 2 spoonfuls in half a pint of milk every 
morning Mrs Caulton. It is best in new milk  warm from the cow,
but in winter you m ay boyl betony in milk. E. A.
Pills for a surfeit or consumption Rx of the pouder of aniseeds,
liquorish, elecampane each zi w. sugar candy, conserve of roses 
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful & hony as much. Tar
½ a spoonful mix & make em put into pills Rx 3 or 4 going to bed
& abt the same number an hour or 2 before you rise in the morning
Mrs Caulton. Dr  Willis says cup-moss is infallible in the chincough
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory


(225
a cold & cough Rx a little black pepper in pouder
in a spoon abt a little silver thimble full Put a little
warm beer or ale to it & swallow it at night going to bed
drinking after it to wash it down, some of the same drink 
repeat it nights together This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt
another Rx one or 2 apples scoop out the [stent] & core then
put in sugar & candy pounded smallish, close up the hole with
the stalk & apple adjoyning to to it, & roast em eat em at night
abt bed time. This cured Mrs Stokes when the Drs & apothecary
could not Mrs Stokes drank liquorish tea at the same
time Mr. Stokes Decer 713 when Mr [Cook] the apothecary could not
cure E. A.’s wife’s cold that was so violent that it was like the chin 
cough she did cough till she vomited & had an ague on her at
the same time after one ounce of bark tane at 12 times every 3rd 
hour she found the greatest benefit by drinking gentian brandy
which is sold at [Penford’s] the strong water [illegible] in Leicer pr 3 d 4 d per qt
3 or 4 times a day or night or as oft as the cough & sometimes 
mixing it with syrup of mulberries raysins of the sun ston’d & 
slit & fill’d with rue chop’d small She eat now & then one several 
times in a day She took the carduus vomit with lilly roots & oyl vid
Mr [illegible] Rx for an ague 2d feeling a great oppressions and sourness
[at her] stomach & [shortness] of breath & want of appetite
the next morning after her vomit she took fasting the quantity of
a nutmeg of Dr Hartops chalibeate electuary made thus Rx conserve
of roses zij filings of iron or steel zfs syrup of clove-
gilliflowers as much as will make into an electuary drinking 5 or 
6 spoonfuls of bitter decoction cold after it make a large [qt] viz Rx water
3 pints gential root 1 d sliced carduus 29 boyl to a qt strain. Rx
the electuary & bitter decoction after it every morning while 
they last fasting 2 hours after em. E. A. A tickling cough Rx the
best sallet oyl ½ a spoonful at night going to bed drinking 3 or 
4 drops of gentian brandy immediately after it This cured M. A.
at one dose E. A. a violent cough Rx 6 or 7 cloves of garlick 
slice or shred em boyl em in a pint of strong ale sweeten it with 
treacle ziiij pr. 1 d drink it all at night going to bed adding cloaths
to provoke sweat This cured Geo. Brooks. Blooding in a vein on the
top of the foot (any vein there) will cure an old cough It draws from the
lungs Dr Pool. A cold or cough Taking many sweet or oyly
things often regard their departure by furring clogging & dulling 
the stomach & vessels abt the lungs Nover 1720 E. A. quickly cured himself 
of both thus he took milk boyl’d & sweeten’d with hony adding
a little w. bread 3 morning successively in the day he rode or walk’d
abroad keeping his head warm at night he ty’d a blew handkercher abt his 




226)
Throat. The 4th day he grated a little [illegible] rhubard to 
which he put abt a spoonful of cheery brandy & drank it
fasting which carry’d off the dregs of his cold & left him well. E. A.
 a cough & consumption & pain at the stomach & weakness
faintness sickness & loss of appetite shortness of breath in Sam. Exon’s wife of
Blaby of ½ a yrs standing was cured by drinking buttermilk
boyl’d as hot as she cou’d with pepper morn & night or as 
oft as she cou’d get it. Goody Exon.
a cough. Rx garlick peel’d, boyl it in two water then bruise it
& put it in vinegar add sugar & juice of lemmon as much as will
boyl it to a syrup. Take a little of it when you go to bed. Pater G. A.
a consumption Rx milk a pint, water 3 pints boyl it till half
be consumed. Drink it 3 times a day ibid.
a cough with a soreness at the stomach very violent. Rx conserve
of rosemary flowers conserve of red roses, lucatellus balsam & 
syrup of diacodium each zij mix & Rx a tea spoonful at night going
to bed & in the night [illegible] when you cough you may add a few
drops of sp. of sulphur if you’ve no dislike to’t It cured without 
Cos. Freeman another for a cough & shortness of breath Rx 
hony 2 or 3 spoonfuls clarifie it i.e. boyl & scum it & Rx a [illegible]
spoonful or 2 at night going to bed as hot as you can This cured
Sister Shuhbrugh Ashby. ibid a cough Rx virgins hony abt 3 spoonfuls
boyl & scum it then slice a fresh lemmon peel & 
all & cut each slice into four qrs or small pieces put em
into a pat & pour the boyl’d hony to em allow em a small
time to incorporate then eat a qr moisten’d with hony
& the juice as oft as you cough boyl’d hony alone will
make you expectorate & clear the stomach of flegm but
it wou’d not stop E. A.’s cough till mixt & assisted with juice
of lemmon March 18th 720 Leave off malt drink & tobacco
as enemies & promoters of the cough. Drink w. wine or
veal broth or thin milk pottage or water cold or warm in 
their stead This E. A. found out you may make a syrup & 
disguise it. To cure a cough in a child or young people
It is dangerous stopping an old cough in old people.
Rx ale (or beer & ale) ½ a pint boyl it then mix a good thimble
full of fine starch with a little cold beer. Put it in let it
boyl up, sweeten it with penny days (penny dice) give it warm 
going to bed Rx it 3 or 4 nights omit & repeat from Nottingha
Mrs Caulton A consumption of the lungs & a cough whereby
the lungs are much affected. Rx 10 shell snails break the shells
a little yet without bruising or killing the snails then wash em
in fair water with some salt in’t Dose in change of water twice 
or thrice without salt then bruise from a little & put all into a
quart of new milk & boyl it to a pint then strain & drink it ibid.


(227
Pills for a cold. Rx pouder of anniseeds liquorish,
elecampane each zi white sugar candy conserve of [roses]
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful as much of the
best hony add to these half a spoonful of tar: make these up
into into pills with liquorish pouder Rx 3 or 4 going to bed & abt
the same number the next morning an hour or [2] before you
rise you need neither confine yourself to the house nor any
particular diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Fr. Bickerton
Mr Fishers lozenges for a cough. Rx flower of brimstone,
zi elecampane zfs liquorish zi in pouder while sugar candy zi
in pouder mix these in conserve of roses & make them into lozenges
ibid.
a consumption Rx conserve of red roses zij
mithridate zi mix em together to an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg 
every morning fasting & 3 or 4 times a day, drinking a little
double aniseed water (single may do better) If you are able to walk
after it. This cured Wm Burstall when the Drs reckon’d him incurable
Mrs Page & Mr Amos Taylor. A consumption beat a quantity 
of white snails in a mortar; then strain em thro a cloth of linnen
or a sive. To a qt. of the liquor put sugar candy lbi & liquorish stick 
sliced thin 3 [illegible] boyl em all together till the liquor comes to a pint or
thereabts when it is cool take a spoonful morning, noon, & night or
[illegible] if need require S. S. For a cough caus’d from a thin rheum 
a cold stomach & a moist brain Rx elecampane roots 4 ou marshmallow
roots 12 ou. quinces 16 ou (if it be at a time when quinces
are not to be gotten then take marmolet or quiddany of quinces) & 
boyl them in fair water with the roots untill they be soft to break then 
beat am all together in a mortar & pass em thro a sive or strainer & 
for every pound of the mixture add hony lbij then boyl them together 
but do not overboyl them & take it from the fire & for every pound 
of the matter add saffron & liquorice each [illegible]i cinnamon zi flower of
sulphur zi Incorporate them well together then it is made but it
ought to be aromatiz’d with musk & rosewater This marvelous electuary
for the cough must be taken in the morn fasting & when you go
to bed. The dose is half a spoonful & more. marshmallows mollifie
wonderfully. Elecampane helpeth digestion & strengtheneth the
stomach quinces are warm & cordial saffron dryeth & digesteth
evil humours cinnamon fortifyeth the stomach Liquorice mollifieth
& digesteth the matter marmolet or quiddany must not be
boyled but only beaten with the roots after they are boyled. This
cured a man 36 yrs old who had the cough 40 yrs S. S.
an obstinate cough Rx Venice treacle or mithridate the quantity
of a hazel nut going to bed drinking ½ pint of warm posset
drink after it to promote a breathing sweat Jn Penford apothecary 


228)
Syrup of sugar candy made with sp. of wine is of
singular use agt violent coughs & colds Salmon’s
Dispensatory p. 172. a violent cough & cold Rx a qr. of a pint
of water sweeten it with a spoonful of hony stir it well together
drink that quantity night & morning cold Mrs Abigail
Finch. A chin cough Rx treacle ziiij water a qt boyl it till the 
treacle is melted which be in a very little time Give it cold for the 
constant drink. ibid
Consumption & surfeit. Rx turnips a galn to mustard seed
a pint pounded Put em into a pipkin bake it with bread strain
the juice out drink a qr of a pint night & morning. This cured one
of a consumption when the Drs had given him over as incurable
old Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Consumption & asthma. Rx a leg of pork abt 9 lb & 
boyl it in water 9 qts when it boyls scum it clean, then put
in a small handfull of grits pounded & hartshorn shavings
2d boyl it till it is wasted to 3 qts or leas abt ½ an hour
before you think it boyl’d enough put in Jamaica pepper 
half an ounce in pouder To know when it is enough Rx a little in a 
porringer Set it by to cool if it turns to a jelly it is enough 
when cold take off the fat Rx abt ½ pint in the morning fasting 
& ½ pint at night going to bed Rx it as hot as you can 
drank it. You must strain it every time you drink it. Mrs. 
Richd Wightman
An asthma & shortness of breath & consumption.
Rx tincture of gum ammoniacum 2 ou. pr. 1[illegible] oxymel of squills
zfs pr. 5 d Rx ½ a spoonful with balsamic syrup or any syrup you 
may add a little sallet oyl to help expectoration. Mr Smith apothecary 
an asthma & cough. Rx syrup of sulphur made according to 
Quincy’s Dispensatory. Dose from zfs to zi.
Balsam of sulphur is good for coughs, colds, asthma’s, wheezings,
hoarseness & phthisicks (i.e. consumptions) or ulcers of the
lungs. Salmon.
an asthma & consumption Tho. Carick a stockiner of Blaby
had an asthma which brought him to a consumption so that he cou’d
not work at his trade had lost his stomach & was [illegible] afflicted
with [illegible] [illegible] he had smoked tobacco & swallow’d his spittle
but found no benefit at last he was advised to buy some leaf
tobacco (by a labourer) at 1 d per ou. which he did & chew’d it & it brought 
his stomach agn corrected the wind there & made a perfect cure in a
little time to a miracle. He put loaf tobacco in the morning as soon
as he rose into his mouth for a cud He spat away his spittle at 1st putting in 
& afterwards swallow’d it. He seldom had more than 2 cuds in a day & 
sometimes he slept with one in his cheek allnight This he did but rarely [illegible]


(229
Dr Ben. Allen in [illegible] of [illegible] chalybeat & purging waters of
England says he has often seen consumptions of 21 to 49 cured by the
dexterous application of chalybeats, chalbeat waters chiefly when their
Drs had try’d in vain to effect a cure.
For a phthisick & stoppage in the breast & to open the pipes
Rx parsley roots, [illegible] roots, succory roots, & seeth ‘em in white
wine & juniper berries, strain it when it is boyl’d & put
pellitory of Spain to it & drink of it morning & evening & it
will help Mrs. Hewet E A.’s mother
To stop a cough & to drive wind down into farts
Rx a little tea spoonful of diascordium an electuary
at night going to bed Mrs M Boothby
This Rx & following cured Mr Richard Potter stockin maker of Nottingham when he
had a cough of 15 or 16t yrs standing from a surfeit
Rx honey ziiij flower of brimstone zi white rosin in fine pouder zfs sallet
oil two large spoonfuls melt the honey by the fire to make it mix with the
other ingredients cold Take the quantity of a large nutmeg night & morning
rather more at night This dose cured Mr. Potter upon taking cold half the quantity
cures him Richard Potter
Take flower of brimstone elecampane and
liquorish both in powder mix them with 
treacle & take a tea spoonfull as often as 
you cough & 2 or 3 times a day & night
& morning penelope traveling madd
woman



230)
To make an issue
mark the place with a pen & ink a little where you 
intend to make an incision with the lancet there thrust
in the lancet & give it a rip up you thrust it in but
a little way to cut thro the skin then apply a pepper
corn dipt in vinegar with a sixpence over it the sixpence
must be sew’d in a bit of cloth or rag & that must be
serv’d to a fillet to prevent its slipping & bound abt 
the arm for 24 hours then take out the pepper corn & 
put an issue pea into its place which has a silk thro the 
middle to extract it by you must thrust into the
ground or molds 3 pea’s for 24 hours to mollifie em
so that a needle may readily penetrate em then dress 
it with white peas & issue cloth on the pea. James Leppington.
You may use a pea made of the pith of 
elder cut in the shape of a pea next the pepper corn It
draws more & makes it run more. ibid
To make an issue without an incision.
but a little orifice in a piece of writing paper that is abt
the bigness of a half crown cover the orifice with 
blistering plaster after it is apply’d to the place you 
allot for the issue the paper sets bounds to the blister.
In 12 hours a blister will be rais’d without & bind on
a pepper corn as above mention’d. Uxor M.A.
Take up the skin and run a lancet a little way 
thro it then apply a pepper corn
 


(231
The whites in women [albae mulierum fluxienes,
fluor albus 293
Rx nutmegs zi prick them full of holes steep em in brest 
milk of a boy & a little red rose water cover them close 
& let em stand 24 hours then bake the nutmegs in a penny 
or 2 penny loaf when they are bak’d beat em to pouder & take
a little pouder of coral & a little white sanders & a little
pouder of white mastick as much as will lie on a farthing
& mingle the [servth] conserve of red roses zi Take as much as 
a nutmeg at night going to bed & next the heart in the morn
Mater Mea.
For the whites. Rx candied roots of Solomon’s seal. It is an 
ext. remedy. Tis also counted good for the falling sickness Pechey.
a conserve of the flowers of white arch-angel is much commended in 
the whites. But the cure of them by the following method is much safer & 
sure. Bleed once & purge thrice with [illegible] ij of pill coch. major: Then Rx Venice
treacle zifs conserve of the yellow pearl of oranges 1 ou. Diascordium 1/2 ou.
candy [illegible] ginger & nutmegs each ziij compound pouder of crabs eyes zifs
outward bark of the pomegranate, root of Spanish angelica, red
coral prepar’d, prochisiae do perra lamnia each zi bole [illegible] ij gum-arabick
zfs with a sufficient quantity of dry’d roses make an electuary. Rx the
quantity of a large nutmeg in the morning, at 5 in the afternoon & at bedtime;
drinking upon it 6 spoonfuls of the following infusion. Rx of
the roots elecampane masterwort, angelica & gentian each zfz; leaves
of Roman wormwood, of white archangel, & the lesser [illegible] & calamint
each mi juniper berries 1 ou. cut em small & infuse em in five
pints of canary; Let em stand in infusion & strain it only as you use it
Pecheys Herbal p. 8. [illegible] says [olibanum] [male] frankincense cures the whites
in women & the gornorrhoea in men taken from one dram to two in jelly of
isinglass.
For the whites from Lady Wright
Rx Cyprus turpentine zfs 2 nutmegs abt 6 d of white
amber beaten very small then work them well together & every
morning take 3 or 4 pills of it
Another by Do Rx nutmegs 1 ou. prick them full of holes & 
steep them in breast milk of a boy & a little red rose water & cover
them close & let them stand 24 hours, then bake the nutmegs in a 
penny or 2 penny loaf & when they are baked beat them to powder
& take a little powder of coral & a little while sanders & as much 
white mastick in powder as will ly upon a farthing & mix 
therewith conserve of red roses 1 ou. & take as much as a nutmeg
at night going to bed & next your heart in the mornings 
[illegible] royal al. Waterfern is most in esteem for restraining the
whites in women & strengthening the womb the roots of
it are only used. Quincy


232)
To remove a callous from a sore 52.
Strew on the callous praecipitate in fine pouder when
the sore begins to heal it will eat it off Dr Million or 
mix sp. of wine (that will fire gunpouder undry’d) zi with
new oyl of vitriol get. 14 moisten therewith It prevents & 
destroys a little callous. Ibid. Aegyptiacum used scalding hot takes away
the callous from fistulas p. 749. Salmon’s Disp. 
To remove a callous or [brawny] substance from the ball of the great toe
heat some water as hot as you can abide the foot in it & hold the foot in it
till  it is almost cold then you may easily cut or peel off the horney
substance, it will come agn but you must take it off the same way agn & agn
till you can find out a better remedy. Try a plaister of white pitch after it
is come off. Cos. Richd Ashby.


(233
To stop the bleeding of any wound
Rx Roman vitriol the quantity of a horse bean, pound it
small & take a little of the wounded persons blood & mix
em together then take the reezest bacon you can get & hold it
over the fire till it sulphurs (i.e. till it changes blew like
inflam’d or burning brimstone) then let it drop into
em mixing em well together This will stop without dressing 
the weapon Bacon a thin slice abt 3 inches long
& 3 broad. some dress the weapon then you must clean it
from rust & dirt & rub it with the aforesaid medicine & bind
a linnen cloth that is clean about it to keep the dust from it 
then let the edge of the weapon pointing to the window
for a week. If you set the back to the window or with
the point downwards or if you let the weapon fall down
it will pain the party wounded. A French man & Wm
Tilly of Cropston. another Scrape a cows horn & apply 
the scrapings or shavings to the wound etc. old Van of Stanton.
Immoderate bleeding at the nose. Bleed in the arm
by way of revulsion Rx some old dry’d mud well pouder’d
(from a [mad wall]) mix it with some of the blood that 
flows from the nose & put it up into the nostrils & 
you will soon find the effect of it. Monsieur D’Ube’s
Poor Man’s Physician. This said pouder & blood reduced 
to the consistency of a glew or paste & apply’d to a
wound stupendiously stops its blood ibid To stop the
bleeding of a wound or any cut or vein or bleeding at
the nose Rx Some of the blood in a brass ladle & hold
it over a fire till the blood is dry’d to pouder & the blood 
abt the wound or nose will immediately thicken & cease to 
flow or drop. If you try it to stop bleeding at the nose
then put the blood so dry’d to pouder on written paper & 
fold it up & let the patient wear it & keep it warm in 
his bosom or pocket for a day or 2 after or longer lest the bleeding
should return. you must take the blood while it is warm. This
stopt a horse blooded in the plate vein immediately & it seem’d quite 


234)
healed up. you must rub the dry’d blood from the nose to
pouder Mr Jn. Day of Shamford in Leicershire & Tho. Tafte
another To stop bleeding at the nose even in the small pox
when Jn Cater of Blaby was a child & had the small pox he 
bled at the nose as if he would bleed to death. Dr. Boss a surgeon 
advis’d her mother to catch some of the blood in an egg shel & set
it so near the fire that it might dry to pouder & then with her finger
thrust some of that pouder up each nostril which she did & it stopt the
bleeding & saved his life Jn Cater Charles Simons of Blaby dy’d
for want of this remedy having the small pox the blood came out
at his fundamt. Bleeding to excess (in the arm 40 ounces) will 
breed a dropsie or a jaundice The cure for the dropsie is to put old
or new iron lbi in ale 2 qts set it in an oven 5 hours after bread
is drawn or pyes Rd Mr Ed. Stokes. To stop the bleeding at the
nose in man or sucking child. Tie a thred wounded several 
times abt the end of the little finger of the child or man
or Rx 2 pledgets of flax made fit for each nostril, dip 
em in vinegar to make em moist then strew or roll em [illegible]
Roman vitriol made into fine pouder & thrust it up each
nostril. Tho. Hely Dr & farrier To stop bleeding at the nose in 
the small pox Set one leech under the ear on the vein in the hollow pt
of the neck adjoyning to the jaw or near it on that side the nostril bleeds
mostly If that will  not stop it bleed in the arm zij if this does not
answer Let the patient rise from bed give sack whey cold as much as
Take Jesuits bark zi at 8 times or pts divided in water
he or she will drink This cured Mrs Anna Mona Stokes without the bark Octr 3. 717 by Dr
Ed. Cheseldens advice. The bark [illegible] the blood To stop bleeding at the nose even in the
small pox or any bleeding of a wound etc. Rx R. vitriol, white 
copperas, Venice bole p.e. all in very fine pouder mix em with 
wine vinegar or sharp aleager or good verjuice the older the 
better dip a rag therein & thrust it up each nostril or the
bleeding nostril or apply it with lint or hairs wool to a 
bleeding wound Dr Tho. Hely farrier To stop any inward bleeding
as of piles or a wound or spitting blood. Drink the juice of milfoil
(i.e. yarrow) or the pouder of burnt garlick. Br. S.A.’s Rx 
To stop bleeding in any pt of the body, of a wound, of a 
wen cut off etc. Rx oyl of sulphur ½ a spoonfull to 3 
or 4 spoonfulls of the styptick water made by Dr Pool the
mountebank mix em cold in a glass & apply it cold to
a wound with a rag, but to kill a cancer cut off the top of
the cancer & as much of it as you can then touch it with a 
feather dipt in the oyl of sulphur alone, & pull out the strings
with a pair of nippers. It will heal of it self. It causes great 



(235
pain for a little time. you may eat mustard & pepper
sometime after it has been drest when it is in the gums or
tongue. Dr Richd Pool & Daniel Pool, his son.
To stop bleeding at the nose. apply oyl of sulphur 3 or 4
drops mixt with Dr Pool’s styptick water a spoonful in cotton
or lint or a linnen rag snuff it up the nose as much as you 
can. one dressing cures. Put some up the bleeding nostril ibid
To make Dr Pool’s styptick water that will cure a cow staling
blood etc. Rx allum ziij water 2 qts red brasil wood ground zi 1 d white
vitriol al w. copperas ziij boyl altogether strain it. It will stop
bleeding inward or outward. Give a cow abt ziij in new milk
½ a pint or a pint only once, adding oyl of sulphur 6 drops 
The mountebanks use no oyl of sulphur but upon an extra ordinary
case or when they will warrant a cow oyl of sulphur a 
large spoonful to a pint of spring water will cure a cow staling 
blood without the styptick water & is easily carry’d in the pocket
or bags & disguis’d perhaps with alkanet etc. oyl of sulphur apply’d
to the tongue is very sharp & will almost make a man made but
it is over in an instant. It is us’d alone to cancers, wens, ruptures
when cut, or any wound to clean it & to stop the bleeding & 
it is very healing. The oyl of sulphur mixt with the styptick water
is call’d the excanceration water by Dr Pool. Dr Pool can’t cure a 
rupture in a man or woman without cutting. D. P. sometimes Dr
Pool toth not colour it but it looks like clear water then he calls it
aqua excancerate which he says you may use to a cancer
in the eye by dipping the end of a quill in it & thrusting it into the 
hole of the cancer. It stops the bleeding of a wound, drys up any humours.
It is good for a fistula or ulcer, a great dryer, Dip a feather in 
it & touch the sore you must touch a sore with it but once a week It is
good for any wound or sore, any running sore. To clean a foul bone 
good for a sharp humour & sore eyes, made weaker. It cures a bloody [urinc]
taken inwardly It is a searching thing. It will not eat the cork of 
a bottle. Dr. P. 
Bleeding at the nose to stop. Dry a toad beat her to pouder & snuff
a little of the pouder up the nose Jn Put a traveller
To stop bleeding in the small pox or vomiting blood at any other time.
Rx opium zi mixt with antimoniu diaphoreticu zi make it into pills 
for one dose for a man or woman. They cause sleep when you wake Rx [illegible]
styptick water 2 spoon ful’s or any mountebanks styptick water Dr Pool.
Speedwell al. [fluellen] at Paul’s betony Veronica will cure a 
cancer in the nose. It brings the scabs in children. Herbal
nose swell’d & scabby anoint with white lead & train oyl E. A.
for scabs & scalded heads Pechey highly comends garden cresses & lard.
To stanch bleeding at the nose Rx a linnen cloth dip it in frogs 


236)
frogs slubber (or spawn) let it dry in the sun. Do
so again 12 or 16 times till it be well incorporated
into it keep it by you & if you exceed in bleeding take
a piece of it & unravell it & put it into the nose or lay it
to a wound. Mrs Fr. Bickerton & Mrs Caulton. To stop the
bleeding of an artery or any other bleeding Rx male frankincense
(olibanum) (the hard sort) & aloes p.e. beaten to pouder
Beat the white of an egg up to a froth & dip some hare’s wool
in it then dip it in the pouder & bind it on. S. S.
To stop the bleeding at the nose Drink abt 3 spoonfuls of the mountebanks
styptick water This cured Ann Tasie It will not do when it has
lost its red colour & is old. another Dip a little fine rage in Dr Collbatche’s 
pouder dissolved in cold water & thrust it up the nostrils Mrs Stokes 
another. Set a leech to the jugular vein (in the neck) This stopt Ann
Tasie’s bellding at the nose abt ½ an hour then it bled again. Uxor Mea
another apply new hog dung to th temples & the outside & end of the nose 
another Dip a linnen rag in a bason of cold water often, & for a 
long time together & give a squeeze & spred it on the outside of the 
whole nose letting hang down a little over the end of the nose & lie on 
untill the rag feels warm then dip it again & sit by the fire. Have
often fresh cold water This cured Ann Tasie April 1722 Wm Colebatche’s 
pouder & a leech (to the neck & most of the above mention’d
remedies (& the styptick water drank) all in vain. Ann Tasie.
[illegible] [illegible] is frequently us’d to stop bleeding of a wound 
v. Pechey’s Dispensatory p. 207.
This is commended for bleeding at the nose Rx of the clarified
juices of stinging nettles & plantain each 6 ou. aqua lactis
[alexiteria] 4 ou. cinnamon water hardeated 3 ou. w. sugar q.s.
mingle & make a julep Rx 4 ounces morn & evening daily for
3 days Pechey’s disp. p. 139.
The leaves & flowers with the unripe fruit of brambles that
bear black berries infus’d in water with a little hony & drank
stay s the bloody flux or any inward bleeding or outward
bleeding being fomented with it. Mrs Caulton
To stop bleeding at the nose or any where else
Rx 2 new pewter dishes or plates that never have been used
place em one upon another Put nothing in em set em on 
boyling hot water wet some lint well in the oyl that
sweats out of them & put it up the nose or lay it where
it bleeds & it will stop the bleeding with Gods blessing
says Mrs Caulton Nose sore & scabby Jaques
Servt. at Quenby had a nose mightily swell’d & scabby for
many yrs together It was cured by dissolving Roman vitriol
in verjuice & dabing it on cold twice & once a day till well
& afterwards spring & fall. Jaques To stop bleeding at the nose
let the blood drop into a fire shovel heated red hot dry the blood & rub it
to pouder stop the nostrils with it, Sister Boothbys




(237
To make a perpetual blister to draw a rheum from 
sore eyes
You must buy at the apothecaries an oyntmt call’d the perpetual
blister you must apply it at night going to bed spred upon a
flaxen rag not very fine a little bigger than a crown piece Do
not spred it quite to the edge of the cloth but leave a little margin Cover this
plaster with a sticking plaster made of bees wax & dicaculu a third pt of an
inch broader than the cloth spred it upon [illegible] writing paper let em both be round when the blistering
plaster has layn on 12 hours you will find that a small blister is drawn,
from which take the skin gently off with a pair of sissers or bodkin then dress
it night & morning for 2 days with a little melilot plaster afterwards
Dress it with the sticking plaster when you find it begins to abate much
in the running use the blistering oyntmt viz a little as big as a 
large pins head rubbed upon the middle of the sticking plaster 7 so repeat
it as often as you find it begins to dry pu. If at any time it is
hot & burning dress it only with melilot plaster till you find it easy,
then go on again with the sticking plaster & oyntmt as above directed 
Mrs Ellen Stokes. E. A. prefers empl. de minio before melilot.
Crows foot bounded the herbs & bound on the place you
would blister raises a painful & strong blister 
another Rx the ashes of the inward bark of green ash burnt on 
live coles to ashes mix it with vinegar & apply it behind
the ears. It will raise an easy blister & cure the toothach.
Goody Fellows of Enderby. Oyl of (white) 
lillies anointed round a blister stops it from spreding 
any further & the humour from flaying as it runs down.
Sister Boothby. To raise a blister in any pt of the body or
on the finger or any joynt. Moisten the pt you assign to blister
with keen aleager or sharp wine vinegar & moisten your blistering
plaster with keen aleager or vinegar & work it in with your
knife point then apply it & keep the pt warm with a flannel layd
or ty’d over the blistering [plaster] let it lie on 24 hours or not so long
when it pains you much or the blister is broken. If you apply a
blistering plaster ready spred from the apothecary that has layn
long & is dry it will rarely blister unless you moisten 1st the plaster
with sharp vinegar By moistening a plastic with vinegar & working
it over with the knife You may raise a blister 2 or 3 times with the same
old plaster & you may raise a blister on the joynt of a finger which is
very difficult to do. If a bile happens vid. bile


238)
when a blister causes the strangury Mrs Margt Muxloe.
make tea of common mallows & sweeten it with hony or take sweet
almonds blanch’d no 12. Boil fr. barly till it is soft, you need not 
fling away the 1st water pour off the clear liquor then beat the almonds
very fine with D. R. Loaf sugar or w. sugar candy a small quantity
then mix em with the clear liquor & drink plentifully of it, the same 
barly will make a 2nd dose. It is called an emulsion. vic. Quincy’s
Edulcerating Emulsion.
Richard Smith Esquire of Enderby had a violent rheum in his eyes
which was cured at London by a perpetual blister lay’d below the
great bone on his neck a little above the shoulder bones It was
oval spred on alum leather 3 Is long 2 Is broad It raisd a blister
at 1st then he drest it with cabbage leaves for 2 or 3 days then with
melilot salve when it ceased to run he had an ointmt from the apothecary
that was mix’d with fr. flies in fine pouder he apply’d a little of 
that & heap’d it blistering & running a qr. of a yr. R. S.
To prevent a blistering plaster from causing the strangury or any pain
in making water. mix camphor in pouder with the blistering salve Dr
Wright surgeon & man midwife & physician at Darby.
when a blistering plaster is taken off apply a cabbage leaf or
melilot salve for 2 days then melt bees wax & tallow p. e.
& apply it spread on linnen [it] cools inflammations & takes away the 
soreness & cures quots, wheals, whelks, & pimples Dr Geo Cheselden prescribes
another for do apply white of egg wheat flour [illegible] [illegible]
Jane Smith of Blaby
For the [illegible] Rx half a pint of new milk and
sweeten it with lbfs of coarse sugar and drink it do
thus two or 3 times this cured a shepherd of Nighton
when above 60 years old. John Halford d Glen
Another drink or draught of whey in a morning or
posset drink at dinner eat gritt’d meat with onion & 
water and salt ect.



(239
A broken shin
Rx the marrow of beef fresh butter & bees wax melt
em to a salve This cured the Ld Stamford when the London
surgeon could not. This was his house keeper salve good
for any sore. Rd Mr Ed. Stokes Dr Salmon commends tar for a
broken [illegible] & to cure sore difficult to heal Family Dictionary
A bed post at a sale of house hold good was unluckily throne
agt Ann Brays legs It broke both her shins they were swell’d
as big as an egg & look’d black & blood, a little lint was
dipt in vinegar & water warmed & lay’d on the rare places & a rag
was dipt in verjuice & layd over the lint & so bound on This 
was done twice a day by Mr. Joseph Wilks the surgeon’s order
& continued till it made scabs She liv’d with Mr Norton
minister of Blaby Mr Jn Woodhouse yet did great cures in 
surgery always wash’d a sore 1st with cold verjuice to clean & 
prepare it for healing before he apply’d his salves etc. Br S. A.
Tho. [Scabior] [illegible] on Ann Brays legs were cured by the inner bark of
elder & gill run by the ground boyl’d in hogs grease or hogs lard to an
ointmt made by Mrs Norton verjuice or for want of it vinegar & 
water would not cure Mrs Sarah Lathwell’s shin was broken agt
a [illegible] It was thus cured at best by E. A. Rub the [illegible] with 
old oil of Turpentine now may do then wipe it with a clean rag or
cap paper then anoint it [illegible] oil of turpentine & spred some of Bents
salve & rub that with oil of turpentine, the next day rub the same
plaster (after the sore is wiped clean & the plaster clean’d) with [vulnerary]
water made of oil of vitriol& Hungary water or for 
want of Hungary water use camphorated sp. of wine but Hungary
water is best & so apply it when it ceases to run corruption
this ran very little anoint the same plaster with old oil of turpentine
grown thick with keeping. This takes away the [illegible] & 
heals.
Sr. Philip Paris’s plaster (which use in the green book made of red
& white lead soap & oil) is good to heal a broken shin
another Rx tar & hony p,. e. sp. v. a little to cover em boil em to incorporate.
It is anodyne, drying, & healing E. A.
another Robt Finly a boy & serv’t to E. A. coming up brick stairs in 
E. A.’s dary fel down the edge of a brick cut his stockin & broke his
shin almost 2 inches long in January 1729 It swell’d in a little time as
big as a pullet’s egg E. A. at that instant rub’d it with tincture of myrrh
then made some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon setting it
upon a live coal & rub’d on the sore with fingers a pretty while the 
boy sitting near the fire crying then he spred a plaster (made of only 
red lead & sallet oil, boyl’d to a salve) on a rag & apply’d it warm’d
& sew’d a cloth over it & the cloth came off in 2 weeks & the plaster in 
3 or 4 It was quite healed & well with only that one dressing It presently 
took away the pain. Mr Young says in his book of turpentine
that oil of turpentine heated verry hot but not to scald will cure a
green wound at once dressing (covering it with a plaster of red lead or
diaculum or the like) another wash it with rum it is better than S. V.
then cover it with red lead plaster or empl. de minio rum is ext for a bruise 
[Mrs Padmore]


240)
Breech gaul’d with riding
Dissolve some roch allum in water wet a linnen cloth
therein & at night going to bed apply it It will cure by 
morning. Mrs Finch another Dissolve a little of Colebatches
pouder in water & once or twice moisten the sore place E. A.
another apply a diaculu plaster Mr. Winstanly
To prevent gauling. moisten the breech night & 
morning for a long time especially before a journey
with your own water it will harden it. E. A. another Rx verjuice
(the older the better) moisten the breech & inside of the thigh, that
touches your saddle & is apt to gaul, therewith the night & morning
before & every night after riding If you find this does not answer
the expectation add some salt to em so as to make em taste
saltish E. S. verjuice will stain linnen another Line your breeches with a fine
thick flannel such as shirts are made & ty up
your shirt when you ride Dr Million another Rx a
piece of [water] [illegible] which the fire [illegible] undrest & dry, [sew] at to the
your neck from gauling with neckcloth. E. A. to prevent or cure gall’d place
emplastru de minia is better than diaculum apply’d before or after
the place is sore. E. A. a galled horse equus defricata cute.
To prevent galling by riding Rx some melted glew to it
thinly on the breech inside of the thighs then clap on each 
buttock & the inside of each thigh a fine piece of Holland Mr 
Orme apothecary To cure galling caus’d by riding
mix some fullers earth with water apply it to the galled sore
lay’d on a rag at night. Mr. Orme
To prevent galling when you ride a journy two or 3 nights
before you intend to travel Rub the breech & the inside
of the thighs with vinegar 3 pts that is very keen & sallet oyl shak’d
together oft in a viol. E. A. To cure galling scrape some
fullers-earth into a pot or plate moisten it with Hungary
water or spirit of wine spread it upon London brown paper
& apply it. It will prevent galling rub’d on a cloth sew’d 
to the breeches Mr. Amos Taylor.
To cure & prevent galling when you ride or the neck chafed. Boyl
Add [illegible] in sallet oyl or the [combear] dye that is sweet & anoint [illegible] EF


(241
Lapis calaminaris sprinkled in pouder upon [gal’d] places in 
children dries & heals em suddenly. Salmon
Heat some vinegar & sope together & stir it with a stick & wash the gall’d
places [Mascal] says it will cure [illegible] gall’d with a halter bath’d on 
twice a day. Mascal of Cattel. It will dry & heal it in 2 or 3 days, ibid
To prevent galling when you ride Rx a knot & a
cross of elder tree the cross must have 4 equal 
lengths, wear it in your pocket, or take 2 bits of
fresh elder wear [1)] in one pocket & the other in the
other when you ride. Wm Wyat.
Another Sew a hares skin in your breeches
with the fur next your breech. ibid.
To cure a gall’d breech. Drop the tallow of a candle
into your own urine & rub it on at night going
to bed. some say the tallow cures without the urine
another Rub on marl or marly clay free from 
gravel or sand. Wm Wyat.
Pulvis desiccativus a drying powder in Salmons Doron
Rx Pomgranate flowers red roses, red sanders each
ziij camphor zfs mix them and make all into a fine
powder. [?drysapany] excorcation or galling immediately
and most speedily takes away the inflammation and pain 
It cures childrens britches when galld
Galling in children Rx Fullers earth in powder and
shew it upon the place. Fullers earth dissolved in the
yolk of an egg and anoint therewith wash with warm 
water large dispensatory



242)
To stop a looseness in children
Rx the dripping of a roasted shoulder or breast of mutton
the last is best. Give a child of ½ a yr or a yr old three of a 
child’s spoonful fresh dropt It must be roasted without salt
It commonly stops at twice taking You may give it twice in 
a day Mrs Finch.
A child sick in the 1st month of its age & to prevent inward
convulsions & fits. Rx sack, sallet-oyl, plantane water
each 2 spoonfuls warm’d with a little double refin’d sugar
Give it as a clyster. In children that are older enlarge the
dose. It has cured when several noted Drs could not nurse at
Whitehall & Mrs Finch. Clysters generally leave the body
costive & stop a lask. ibid
For a man or woman wash a gallon of the leaves of mallows 
& boyl em in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 taking
of the scum before you drink it strain it & when cold enough drink a pint
at a time 2 or 3 times in a day especially at night going to bed
This has cured & eased pains of the bowels when Drs could not.
Mrs Finch. another boyl rice 3 spoonfuls in 3 qts of water till 
it comes to 3 pints with a good piece of cinnamon. You may add one 
glass of clarret & sweeten it with double refin’d sugar & give it a boyl drink 
this for your constant drink till the looseness stops. ibid E. A. has often
try’d the last with good success. note mallows are opening but they 
are healing & ease pain. E. A. Another Rx Bones burnt in the fire & 
pouder’d & sifted fine mix some cinnamon pouder with it. Rx as much 
as will lie on a good knife’s point just before your breakfast & as
much with your supper Mrs Caulton. To stop a looseness or [the]
bloody flux. Rx as much grated rhubarb as will lie on a six 
pence & dry it before the fire add to it a little plantane water
& drink it Pater Meus.
To bind & stop a looseness. Rx 
bean flower & make a cake with cold water Bake it & 
split it in two Rx a little raspberry wine or clarret & 
heat it & dip the cake into it bind half of it to the navel
when that is cold heat the other half & bind that so apply first one
then another interchangeably ibid another make a little 
cake with the white of one egg beaten & mixt with wheat flower bake it
on a brick near the fire or in an oven then eat it. This cured Jn [Cater]
A looseness Rx The white decoction viz Rx Burnt hartshorn
1 ounce beat it fine. boyl it in spring water 2 qts till it comes to 
one Put in some cinamon sweeten it with loaf sugar Drink
it as much as you can for your constant drink. Drink no other
drink. It infallibly cures says Mrs Caulton
Emplastrum & [crusta] [ponis] Crust of bread plaster spred [illegible] & lay’d to the 


(243
stomach or bowels is good to stop vomiting or diarrhoeas Quincy


244)



(245



246)



(247
To harden an ingraver.
Rx a thick piece of lead viz ½ a pound or a pound piece 
or heavier & make a little hole or impression on the 
lead by thrusting the point of the ingraver cool into the
lead then heat the ingraver red hot (It must be but just red 
hot) & immediately thrust it into the little hole in the lead
which cools it & hardens it. You must not serve the ingravers 
so but only when they are soft. James Davis White Smith of
Croft.
To case harden iron, as the bit of a key (al. the face)
viz that part that turns the bolt & is apt to war & 
cover the key or keys all but the bit that you would 
harden with clay, then Rx horse hooves half burnt so that
you may beat em to pouder If it is overburnt it is good 
for nothing viz Hold the hoof to live or flaming coles
with a pr of tongues till it rises in blisters then rasp em
off then burn & rasp em off again & again till the whole hoof
is rasp’d away. You need not beat it to pouder Rx pouder
of hoof 2 pts salt 1 part. Humane urine (the older the
better) as much as will bring it to the consistence of an 
hasty pudding then put this into a woollen cloth, wrap
yup the keys in it & put it into an iron laddle or iron
pan but because it will spoil or eat thro an iron ladle etc.
at twice using & will melt brass, the best way is to lay it
on an old iron-clout that comes from an axle tree stopping
the holes with nails or stubs, or an old plow-share
or cart bush. It must be hollow, because the less flame
comes to it, the harder there heat it red hot, & as soon as it
is red hot immediately quench it in cold water that is
not greasie; then scour the keys or iron with free stone 
or sand & a stick. James Davis White Smith of Croft.
It will last 20 yrs hard ibid
To harden a piece of iron Rub some barm (al yest) all over the 
iron especially on the upper side then cover the upper side thick
with salt lay’d upon the barm & so cover it with live coals & 
make it red hot & it will be so hard a steel [illegible] will not touch it. Tho.
Taft blacksmith


248)
Iron or steel to brighten. Scrape off the rust and rub
it with [tootchwood]


(249
To kill stomach worms.
Steep species hierae pierae in a pint of sack 3 days shaking
it every day strain out five spoonfuls & drink it in the morning
as long as it lasts S. S.
To kill worms Rx bayberries in pouder as much as will lie on 
a shilling for a child of 2, 3, 4 or 5 yrs of age mixt with treacle 
three mornings together a man or woman may take as much 
as will lie on a half crown 3 mornings successively. It will
bring prodigious quantities of worms away & create a fresh 
lively colour in the face & lips. It scarce has its equal. A woman
at London got a great deal of mony by selling it for worm pouder
Mrs Finch. The essential oyl of savine is frequently 
us’d to kill worms in outward applications to the belly Dr
Quincy’s Dispensatory.
To kill worms. Gather dew worms in the night & put em in a 
linnen bag. You must have 5 or 7 or 9. Bind it upon the navel
with a cloth; if they are alive in the morning, the child
hath no worms; If the child hath worms, they will [stink] & 
be like a salve & this will make em void worms that [illegible] Mrs Elizth
Brown of Leicer
Persons that are afflicted with worms have commonly a stinking breath 
troublesome sleep, frightful & terrible dreams, gnashing of the [illegible], an
itching & often picking of the nose, convulsion vits, a violent headach,
all which disorders are instantly eradicated by Dr Richard Roch’s worm
plaster sold by Dr Roch at the hand & face in water: Lane Black [Fryars]
London.
For the worm Mr Clark says it is an ext medicine
Rx 2 or 3 little onions or one great one sliced steep em in water
½ pint all night the next morning drink the water fasting & fast an
hour after it. Probatum est.
For the worms. Rx rhubarb zi [wormf???] ziiij
burnt hartshorn coriander seeds, rue drys with the
flowers on Mr Palmes. All sour things are goo to 
kill worms hence it is that juice of lemon is ordinarily 
given agt em and in ordinary drink a little sp. of vitriol
to sharpen doth wonders zij of hiera picra more or less 
by it’s bitterness kills and expells worms.
Tincture sacra is ext to kill worms and for a pain in the
stomach and wind in the stomach and [Chexials] tinctura
sacra wont keep long except you add Geneva or brandy to 
the wine. Bates and Quincey. Salmon upon Bates say there
is few better purges in the world



250)



(251
To draw pidgeons to a dove coat
Rx some rushes & boyl em in water with assafoetida or
boyl assafoetida in water in a large pan & as soon as
it is taken off the fire put some rushes into it let em infuse
12 hours put some of these rushes into some of 
the holes in the dove coat & lay the rest on the table & 
they will carry em to their holes & make their nests with 
em taking great delight in their scent & stink. This
is such a powerful [illegible] & monopolizer of pidgeons that
it ought not to be practiz’d says my author (without 
having experimented it himself) Mr Geo. Potchin of Wigson 
This must be practiz’d in [benting] time a little before they 
begin to breed G.P. In benting times or a little before
must people take all their young pidgeons out of the coat
& kill em or break their eggs because the old pidgeons
wanting meat will pine their young ones then but Mr
Geo. Potchin from May Day till midsummer or Wm Hay is
mow’d in the fields giveth his pidgeons on a brick table
in his dove coat every day ½ a strike of good sweet oats,
Poland oats are best for em, by which feeding he preserves his 
pidgeons alive which otherwise will frequently die in bending
time, & hath young pidgeons to sell when they are scarce & 
dear viz at 20 d or 13 d per dozen. when grass is mown, they will 
shift for themselves living upon raz grass seeds & other seeds.
G. [?]
Pigeons affect salt much, therefore be not unprovided of a
shallow pot with sandy gravel in it mixt with cummin seeds
bruised & unbruised & with salt & set it in the dove house upon
a plank or table so that they may come at it. Mr Clark of stony 
Stanton. The better to make pigeons to stay & continue in 
the place you provide for them is to secure a pair or 2 or 
more in the dove house or chamber until they have bred & have 
young ones abt a week old you must feed em with beans soked in 
water & water set in a shallow vessel for em to drink out of thanks 
old ones will not forsake their young but be willing to stay with
em ibid
To draw pigeons to a dove coat. Boil a peck of barly
in a good quantity of water when it has boil’d a qr of an hour add
3 qts of salt or more and let it boil ½ an hour longer then pour
away the water and set it in the dove coat whilst it cools when 
it is cold pour the water upon the table in the coat thro a 



252)
sive to save the barly and let it run where it will
on the ground then sweep the ledges by the holes clean and
scatter the barly up and down and strew some on the table
for the pidgeons to eat offal barly that is full of seeds is as
good as the best, you may take with sparrow [illegible] an old
pigeon or two clip one wing of each pigeon that they may 
not fly away and hold some assafoetida to the fire and
when it is ready to melt rub it under the wing of one or more
pigeon Pigeons love the smell of assafoetida. you must
set water in 2 earthen pots or platters for pigeons with the
cut wing to drink at you must anoint with a feather
dipt in oil of spike the edge of the platters that when 
other pigeons smell thereof (which they will do by touching
the edge of the platter with their breast when they drink) 
they may invite and tempt others to the coat you may do
this to the coat. You may do this in pairing time or when they
breed there being but a few pigeons in the coat. But it is
best to do it in benting time and it is necessary then 
to boil a gallon of barly with a qt of salt once in a 
month’s time to draw pigeons. Tho. [illegible]
To stock or encrease a dove coat To make a
salt cat Rx cumminseeds ziiij boil it in water a
quart or more the more the better sand a qt mix all these
together made in the shape of a sugar loaf and set an dry it
in a oven after a batch of bread or a panchion or dish when 
it is dry and cold anoint it over with a fether dipt in oil
of spike 2 d The pigeons smell of this and it draws other
pigeons to the coat Thos. Satchwell. Use it every spring


(253
Vander Hide’s true & faithfull experimts being a
catalogue of those medicamts he sold off his stages during the
time of his 18 yrs travelling in England, Scotland & Ireland
& foreign kingdoms, to the great benefit of poor indigent
people. nihil [absq?] deo.
1) How to make my brown balsom of Paracelsus for cuts
& green wounds, bruises, contusions of aches.
Rx sallet or linseed oyl ½ a pint, yellow rosin lbfs bees
was ziij barrel pitch zi melt all these together then add
fresh butter zij Rx it off the fire & stir to it liquid storax 
zi oyl of amber zi oyl of mace zfs then put the mixture 
into a pot & this is the true balsam that was made by Dr Tousan 
2) How to make the green oyntmt for burns or
scalds. Rx sallet oyl ziiij fresh butter lbfs rosin ziiij plantane
leaves mi houseleek mi cabbage leaves mi boyl all
these together ½ a qr of an hour, then strain it thro a linnen
cloth & put the into a skillet again & put to it bees wax 
zij cut into small pieces & having verdigrise zij dissolv’d in
sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls, put it in the composition. After the
bees wax is melted you must let the composition be cool before 
you add the verdigrise, lest the oyntmt be not green but
brown & this is the true oyntmt that I sell.
3) How to make the vermi-victor or worm-vanquishing pouder 
which if it be thus prepared is the only remedy in the world.
Rx horehound, red sage, tormentile, coriander seed, burnt hartshorn,
salt of wormwood, salt of scurvy-grass & coraline
each zfs finely pulverised; mix all these together Give as much
as will lie on a sixpence to a child & twice the quantity to a 
man or woman; let em take it in a morning fasting & fast
an hour after it.
4) How to make the brown plaster
Rx burgundy pitch rosin, gum amoniack, gum elemy & bees
wax, mastick & sanguis draconis each zij sallet=oyl 2 or 3 spoonfuls
& barrel pitch zi. Put these into a skillet upon the fire melt
em together & stir em well when you see em all melted dip in a
linnen cloth or good cap paper so long & so broad as you wou’d
have the plaster to be This is the true plaster that I use  for any weakness
or pain in the back, to sciatica gout, or pain in any pt of the 


254)
the body or for ruptures or broken bellies.
5) How to make the cephalick purge for the brain,
or pouder for the head. Rx rosemary, sage betony 
angelica-root, juniper berries, curcuma root, Virginia tobacco,
benjamins white hellebore, elecampane & amber, each
grains 20. Beat em all to fine pouder This is the pouder I sell
you for all great pains in the head, with many other distempers 
by snuffing the quantity of a barly corn up the nose at
night going to bed.
6) How to make a familiar & mighty cathartick,
diuretick, purging pill.
Rx rosin of jalop, rosin of scamony, extract of turbeth,
extract of agarick, extract of rhubarb, the cordial pouder
of deahurden, mercurius dulcis, each zi Dry em all very
fine to pouder Rx coloquint zviii beaten to fine pouder & diagridium
zij mix them all together & make them up into a body
with gum tragacant dissolv’d in spirit of wine; when you are
making it up int o a mass mix it with a dram of oyl of
cloves; & when you’ve brought the mass to a hard substance
you may make it into pills. If you wou’d have em coverd 
over with sugar send em to a sugar bakers but I will assure 
you they are as good without If I shou’d nominate every 
particular person that hath found benefit by this pill, a whole 
quire of paper would not contain it. It has done good to most
distempers incident to the body of men or women Let children
from a yer of age to 3 take one from 8 to 16 let em take 2, 
give three to men or women let them take em before supper
eat a light supper after em; they will work abt 10 or 12 hours
after at the same time you may work or play, go abt in the heat
of summer or cold of winter
7) How to make my oleum benedictum for convulsion
fits, falling sickness, stone or gravel or any unsavery
breath, small pox, measles, cough or consumption.
Rx oyul of turpentine zfs or ziiij oyl of amber, oyl of juniper
berries, oyl of anniseeds, oyl of nutmegs, & oyl of mandrake
each zi Jews pitch or mummy let that dissolve in the
oyl of turp. 1st mention’d then mix em all together & let the party
grieved with any of the said distempers take as many drops as they are 
yrs of age in a glass of white wine (or white mountain) morning 
& evening. It is also an infallible remedy for those that are troubled
with agues, by taking half a spoonful in a good large glass
of mull’d sack an hour before the fit comes, & sweat upon it two
hours in bed. You must add oyl of cinnamon zfs to the ingredients which 
was omitted by mistake.



(255
8) How to make a pouder for sore eyes
Rx Tartar vitriol, salt of saturn, each 6 gr. oris pouder 18
gr. white allum 6 gr. [cathanilla] (i.e. cochireel) 10 gr. lapis calaminaris,
sacharu saturni x each 4 gr Beat all these together & 
put em into a pint of running water (x each 4 grains)
9) How to make this antidote pouder call’d the true orvietan
of Rome a cordial.
Rx angelica root, serpentine root, contrayerva root, galangal
root, dietamnus root, aristolochia root, gentian root, orris
root, meum root (i.e. spignel) casamus root (  ) zedaary
root, acorus root, agarick, ginger root, each zi peraterium ziiij
trochisk, flesh of vipers red roses, dictamnus dittany leaves marubiu horehound
leaves, saffron, each 40 gr. seeds of annis, parsly, fennel, caraway
cummin, basie seed, cisilias seed, cubeb, cardamum each 30 gr.
cloves, cinnamon, Gaskins pouder nutmeg, white pepper, coriander
each 40 gr. lemnian earth, storax, calamint, juniper berries, elecampane
each zi curcuma root (i.e. turmerick) ziij sagapeny
opoponax each zi Beat all these to fine pouder & mix it with 
pure hony & it makes the true Roman orvietan.
10) my antiscorbutick diet drink (my last farewel) being 
the usefullest thing in this age for the scurvy, dropsie or
jaundice, being used every spring & fall.
Rx hartstongue brooklime, scabious, red dock roots, parsly 
roots, dwarf elder, tops of broom that is green, white briony
roots, each 6 ounces with 4 ounces of liquorice, sassafras, 
sarsaparilla, rhubarb & the 4 greater cooling seeds, Rx casia
in the cane lbfs, China ziiij let these be all sliced & bruised 
together by the apothecary & boyled in 5 gallons of fine
midling ale, untill one galn be wasted, when it is 4 days old let
the patient drink a pint or as much as their stomach can bear
every morning & at 3 o clock in the afternoon every spring
& fall.
Whilst some do scrible, others stories tell,
The true physicians known by doing well
Experiential docet.






258)


(259
To drive crows from a ground or field
Dig around hole in the ground like a fulmere hole, abt
as big as a man may thrust in his hand leaving some
molds on the outside then dress some feathers of a crow
with assafoetida, flower of brimstone, train oyl, gunpouder 
soot etc. any thing that stinks & dip some of the crows feathers
therein & stick em viz 2 or 3 feathers at the mouth of
the hole & put some feathers of the body into the hole
as if a fulmere had drawn a crow into the hole & this
will fright crows away better than a turf dug up or any thing
abt 3 crows will dress a whole corn field Mr Geo. Potchin 
of Wigson. This E. A. try’d in vain the weather being rainy 
in the yr 713. another Rx grease & soot & the oldest tallow
& most stinking you can get, each lifs gunpouder ziiij
the juice of burdock leaves a spoonful or less may do
Put em all in a pot or pan & warm em & dress the feathers
of a crow when melted & stick em put & down upon the ground 
by 3 in a place or 6 in a place, and dress bunches of feathers
6 in a bunch & ty em to sticks one dressing will last till 
corn is above ground unless a great deal of rain falls then
dress again. This will also keep sparrows from a corn house
or corn in a field or [illegible] The juice of one dock leaf may 
serve but more is better Ed. Manton of Little Brighton 
Northonshire & Francis Car of [Brixwith]
another To drive away crows or any other birds from ground
or hovel in spit of rain. Page of Brixwith Rx assafoetida zi
hard tallow lbij boyl em together & let em stand to cool (you 
must boyl em but a little time) then add verdigrise zi in fine pouder
together then draw the feathers thro it. Fr. Car. of do. This E. A. try’d
in vain. To kill crows or sparrows or to drive em away from 
a place Rasp or rather file with a large rough file nux vomica
the finer it is the better It will not pound. Boyl some barly 
as soft as wheat for frumety when it is cold put the pouder of 
nux vomica in a linnen cloth then add some boyl’d barly & roll
it abt let it dry then strew it in several places after the plow 


260)
& it will kill crows or pidgeons or sparrows or
anything that eats if for it is a strong poyson. To kill
a fox or foxes. Cut off the skin of a young lamb where
the foxes resort & cut several slashes on it & strew 
nux vomica in pouder on em & it will kill all the foxes as that
eat of it. You may catch crows after they’ve eaten the
poyson’d barly tie em up alive by the heels two by two 
to sticks & the crows will take an hatred to the place
or hovel for a long time Dr. Pool.
To drive crows from a hovel. Rx assafoetida 1 d (  ) bacon grease
the quantity of large hazelnut put em in a little black [illegible] set it
on live Coles till the devils dung is dissolv’d then add a little
gun pouder beaten or unbeaten & set the pot having a little bit
broken off to let out the scent under the top of the thatch of
the gable end of a pease or corn hovel covering the pot with 
a piece fo tyle or slate with an hole in’t or a piece of lead or
wood to tie it to as to guard it from rain & wet The crows will
smell it & will not endure to light or settle on the h ovel & 
once dressing will guard it for a qr of a yr old Jn Braumont of
Great Glen.
To drive crows from a hovel or corn or a close new sowed
with corn Jn [Tate] ratcatcher of Loughborow
Shoot six or more crows or kites take their skins off them
Take assafoetida 6 d Gunpouder zij in fine pouder brimstone
in pouder or flower of brimstone zij hemlock (al. 
[illegible]) abt 4 ou. of the tops of the [kechs] Pound em to pouder 
when dry, & pound all together with stinking butter or soft grease
of any sort Rub the oyntmt on the inside & outside of
the skins. Tie em upon sticks & set em in the wind & the 
crows will not abide the scent of em The grease will keep 
the scent in for a month stock the hovels with em to the
windward. it will n to fright pidgeons away. It will h old
good in spite of rain or snow but after rain you must
dry em in the air of a barn or bring em in when it rains & 
set em out when dry. E. A. thinks train oil better than grease
To keep crows from corn or a hovel. Shoot a crow
& stick her bill in the ground & spread her wings with 
stick or lay a stone on em her belly lying on the ground.
Wm March



(261



262)
The stone
Mrs Caulton of Leicer takes every morning
brown sugar candy in pouder mixt with butter the
quantity of a small nutmeg fasting & fasts 2 hours 
after (she eats no breakfast) It made her void 15 or 
16 small stones in a day & freed her for 2 or 3 yrs
& perhaps all her life. she never had a fit of the stone
since nor any pain & once she lay 2 months & was 
given up for dead formerly with a fit she is now
sometimes troubled with gravel but it is very litle
& seldom. she never misses a day in a yr taking
it. Mrs Caulton. another Rx mallows & devils bit each mi
& a leaf or 2 of scabins boyl em in a pt of smal ale posset drink
S. S. the stone or weakness in the back Rx crabs eyes, sal prunellae 
& liquorice each zi in pouder Rx as much Venice turpentine
as will make it roll into pills. Rx 2 or 3 every morning for a 
good while together S. S. To bring away gravel, to prevent
the stone & to cure a violent pain in the back. Put ale a
pint into a pan let it just boyl pour it to common treacle lbfs 
pr 1 d ½ so with 2 pots or mugs pour it backwards & forwards 3 or 4 
times till the treacle is dissolv’d then drink it as hot as you can
& go to bed to sweat or you may ride after it any where in
warm weather or walk in cold within doors. This brought a great
quantity of gravel from Sam. Exon carpenter & cured him of a 
great pain in his back & freed him from both for many yrs & for
ought I know for all his life Sam. Exon.
For the stone & gravel Rx horse stones when colts are gelt which 
it commonly in the latter end of March, in April or the beginning of 
May the yearling colts are gelt dry em in an oven after bread
beat em to powder
For the gravel take as much of the pouder as will lie on a shilling
only at night in common mallow to parsley root tea each mi
will make for 2 or 3 nights. Drink half a pint or more at a time
for abt three weeks or longer if it is for the stone then take as
much as will lie on a half crown & once a wash take one ounce
of epsom salt in whey or posset drink when you take the pouder 
for the gravel or when you take only as much as will lie on a 
shilling then you need not take the salts. The pouder is bitter & 
hot & the salts cool & prevent an inflammation. MR Richard Porter
stockin maker in Chesterfield Lane near the brick church in Nottingham 
was violently afflicted with the stone This pouder & tea & salts dissolve
& carry it off He was cured & continued well & free from pain 
It was half a year after he had taken it when he gave E. A. this acct 
It brought away as much gravel as would fill an ordinary woman’s 
thimble almost every time yet he made water. He made water 
in a white bason 



(263



264)



(265
Tetter or ring worm herpes impetigo.
vinegar of lead will kill tetters [illegible]
Dissolve some Roman vitriol in water moisten the sore
& hold it agt the fire to drive it in or you may moisten
the sore with spittle & often rub it with R. vitriol & 
let the fire dry it. This cured one of Sister Bs daughters.
another unguentu nutritu cured a ringworm on a womans
thumb & took away the itching at Leicer. vid. Salmon’s Family 
Dictionary. Rx fair water at qt white vitriol, roch 
allum each zi mix & dissolve & with this water wash the tetter
2, 3, or 4 times a day for a qr of an hour at a time, as hot
as can be endured In 10 days time it will perfectly cure it
tho it has been of 20 yrs standing ibid of Rx tobacco oyntmt
ziiij turpenthu minerale zi mix & apply it plasterwise ibid
The shingles [Herpes.] Blood in the arm Rx Dock roots that are yellow scrape
& slice em boyl some vinegar pour it on boyling hot & let
it infuse like tea being cover’d by the fire for an hour
or 2 then you may remove it & moisten the spots the next
day there with morning & night drink manna zi dissolv’d in German 
span water half a flask for a man or woman a gentle purge
or infuse zij in a whole flask & take half & intermit 3 
or 4 days & take the other half. after you’ve us’d the vinegar
& docks 2 or 3 days to kill the spots anoint with unguentu album
& lay a plaster thereon made of Agyptian ung. [populreu]
ung. nutritu ung. martiatu dress once a day abstain from
malt drink. Drink white wine & water or whey. Shingles are
little red spots very sore appearing commonly abt the waste
Mother Majers appear’d abt her breast under her arm & on 
the shoulder June 714 & was cured as above mention’d by 
Dr Chiselden. Joseph Large had the shingles & it was 2 
months before he was well ibid. The roots of the sharp 
pointed dock boyl’d in vinegar cure & take off the itch & scabs
(the place being wash’d by the decoction) & the breakings out of 
the skin Salmon


267)
The shingles & tetter or ringbone are almost
all the same The shingles in young people commonly 
encompass the waste in old people they appear
sometimes in the shoulder breast, tongue or eye. Dr
Chiselden. Goody Exon was cured of the shingles by 
anointing em twice a day with the hot blood of a
pidgeon now blooded abt pidgeons cured her. another
a plaster of keen mustard & spred upon paper & lay’d on
is an infallible cure Sister Boothby Some kill the
shingles with cats blood winter darker another Rx a little
old Hay & burn it & hold a hatchet over the smoke till it
doth sweat then rub the shingles with it every night till they 
are gone. Mr Corbet apothecary & W. P. another Pound rue
& mint & rub the juice on the shingles twice a day till well. This 
cured Ch. Chesters daughter Mrs Basset. For the shingles or 
a tetter Rx tar (the best) 4 or 5 good spoonfuls the thickest
cream the same quantity boyl these together till it comes to 
an oyl then anoint with it 2 or 3 times a day which will cure it.
Try this for a mallender E. A. Mrs Caulton. The shingles If
they be just come out the best Fr. brandy rub’d on em will kill
em, but if they be very bad Rx the suet of a loyn of mutton,
render it in silver or any thing but brass. strain it & with 2 bits 
of soft rag putting one in whilst you use the other dab it well on 
as hot as you can bear it for some time & do it 2 or 3 times a day.
It will kill them if never so bad says Mrs Caulton. Jn Groococks wife
of Cosby kill’d & cured a tetter only by washing it with the mountebanks
styptick water twice or thrice a day It being red water such 
as is commonly given to cow that stales blood J. G. The tetter sp.
salis communis will kill a tetter it is apt to cause an inflammation 
therefore abt a qr of an hour after it is apply’d anoint it with train
or sallet oyl Try it on a mallender Mr Cook apothecary oyl of
eggs takes away tetters, ringworms, morpherv & scabs. Salmon’s Disp
Dr Pool commends oleum myrrhae per deliquium mallender Rx B.
pepper in pouder mixt with goose or hogs grease Jn Mot of Rush’d [illegible]
Try whether Jamaica pepper will not do.
a Rx for the shingles or St 
Antonies fire. Rx house leek boyl it in cream
with some juice of five leav’d grass (or ST. Foil) a little plantane Let it
boyl till it comes to an oyntmt. S. S.
another for the same. spred tar on leather & lay it all over the pt
grieved. S. S. another apply allum posset card warm. Goody Simons
Drink flower of Brimston in milk to drive out the shingles ibid
Elizth Gimson was cured of an obstinate Ringworm in her arm with fasting
spittle 1st moisten’d then rub mud all on’t as oft as it itched E. G. or Rx mud
wall in pouder in a pot in the morning spit to it mix & bind it on with a linnen
cloth ibid.


(268
The falling down of the womb
or the bearing down of the mother
Rx white wine half a pint heat it very hot then put to 
it syrup of marsh mallows one ounce Drink it as hot as you can
going to bed once taking comonly cures if not repeat
the dose Mrs Anne Windsor midwife & Mother Majer 
If you can’t hold the water take cinnamon zfs in pouder boyl’d
in a pint of aq. vitae take 3 spoonfuls at night going to 
bed. Aunt Boothby.
The bearing down of the womb. spred a plaster of Mrs Caulton’s
red lead salve al. Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth or Bent’s
salve or diaculum cum gummis abt 8 i long & 5 i broad
cut oval & drawn to a point at each end. Boyl the third pt
of an ou. of isinglass in a pint & ½ of new milk tillit is wasted
almost to a pint eat ½ a pint night & morning till well If it is
too thick add more milk when you warm it a second or third time
Mrs Caulton.
For any pain in the womb caused either by child bearing or
coition attended with pain after making of water & an incontinence
of urine The lips of the matrix being sore & swell’d. Both
the outside & inside with Hungary water & a fine rag as far
at you can conveniently thrust it in 2 or 3 times a day especially 
night & morning or with lime water in which mercury sublimate 
has been dissolv’d according to Mr Boyls Rx adding a small quantity
more of the mercury than the Rx mentions. E. A.
The leaves & bark of lentiscus i.e. the mastick tree help 
the exiture of the womb & fundament Salmons Dispensatory
Salmon’s Dispensatory has a plaster called emplastrum
[metropoptotien] I e a plaster for the falling out of the womb
A decoction made of the leaves & [flowers] of acacia (it
grows in Egypt) & the juice dissolved in it is ext for the falling
of the womb & fundament Pechey’s Herbal acacia Salmon’s Dispensatory 
calls it the Egyptian thorn. the juice of the unripe seed is
put into treacle It is of a cooling, drying binding & glutinating
quality. Quincy says


269)



(270
Rx Pine tops miiij boyl em well in six galns of ale wort then 
tun it into a vessel & when it is purging put in a bag into which pout
dock roots dried ziiij sage, scurvy grass, gill & betony each mi
The peels of four sevil oranges cut when they have been tun’d
a week you must bottle the ale & a week after that it will be ready
to drink. Sr Walter Littleton & Pater Meus G. A.


271)
The gout.
April 714 Mrs Howet my mother having the 
gout in both her feet kept it out of her stomach thus
& the pain & swelling went away without any thing apply’d
to em. Rx as mjuch Gascoin’s pouder as will lie on a six 
pence in a little water or any cordial water at night it is an 
alkali & eat oat meal pudding or poch’d eggs which are alkalis
to destroy the acid of the stomach which is the cause of the gout
when in excess, Venice treacle is good Dr [Horreman] & Br G. A. my 
mother drank posset drink made of ale & milk for her general
drink to keep the gout of her stomach taking sometimes
a little Fr. brandy sometimes a glass of white wine
Mr Jn Wilkins clock-maker of Leicer having the gout in ‘
his stomach & vomiting up every thing that he took being
vert weak & confin’d to his bed was thus cured by Dr
Hartop. Rx clarret one spoonful warm’d at a time then 
2 spoonfuls then a glass with a clove of garlic after it
is 12 hours he drank a bottle which the gout out of his
stomach into his hands which recover’d him. J. A.
Eat no breakfast if you would be free from the
gout (& but little or rather no supper) This long evacuation
of the stomach makes a compleat concoction, prevents
the unnatural heat & fermt of the blood which appears oft 
in the hands sometimes in the foot which creates a dulness 
& lethargy & the gout E. A. another Th Rd Mr Smith of
Shamford in Leicershire freed himself of the gout in the
foot by anointing it with oyl of turpentine.
Another Dr Salmon commends by his own experience emplaster 
of hemlock with ammoniacum for pains of the spleen & of the
gout. Disp. p. 777. another anoint the pt pained by the gout or
rheumatism or by any obstruction with oyl of tobacco (not the oyntmt)
2 or 3 times intermitting 6 or 7 hours. Mr Penford apothecary.
another Eat prunes, sometimes hony & bread & butter E. A.
another anoint with unguentu [comitissed] acidulated with oyl 
of vitriol & cover the pt affected with flannel to make it
sweat The hands or feet must wear flannel muffs at night
after they are anointed This Dr Jackson’s oyntmt found out
b y E. A. another sp of sal armoniac mixt with equal quantity of camphorated
sp. of wine & lay’d in a pledget to the gout, often renoving it, gives
case to a miracle Salmon’s Disp.



(272
The gout in the stomach vid p. 296
The gout or any uncommon burning in the hands or feet or
any pt of the body. Boyl some oat meal with water as for
water gruel with some raysins of the sun ston’d & slit, or eat
raysins & salt E. A.
Mr Simon Stokes attorny at law of Melton Mowbray had the
gout 1st in one foot the 2nd fit It came into his stomach the 3rd 
time it came it seised his head when Dr Hartop told him the gout commonly 
attack’d the weakest pt He was a hard drinker The Dr said never
any man died of the gout till he was past 45 yrs old. He had an
issue made on the inside his leg before the knee & it freed him fro
the gout for four yrs together & he thought it wou’d never return S. S.
It did return after wards He thought it came by drinking small
ale. He freed himself fro it thus In the morn he drank a porringer of water gruel
with only salt in it & a spoonful of [illegible] [illegible] after it was made [illegible] fasted till 3 or 4
MR Wm Welles of Thrussington freed himself of the gout by
smoking tobacco
The powers at the 3 tuns in Adderston inkeeper when he has the gout
in the bunnion of his great toe, he anoints it with oyl of turp.
the he has a brick ready heated red hot in the fire which he quenches
in water till it has done hissing then he puts it into a thick flannel
bag made like a purse & draws it up close with a string & being in 
bed applys it as hot as he can endure it & let it lie to it all night
which causes the pain to sweat out then he drinks ½ a pint of clarret 
or warm ale to keep it out of the stomach This he repeats 3 or 4 nights
till the pain is quite gone Mr Amos Taylor
another Sr Charles Duncomb King James 2ds banker us’d to fry camomile
in fresh butter or hogs lard & apply it to the gouty toe.
ibid. A reservative agt the gout a pint of milk being taken 
in over night & in the morning all the cream scum’d off very clean,
till it comes to near half a pint & put away & as much flowers of
of brimstone as will lie on a half crown being first mixt in a spoonful
or 2 of it after it is a little warm’d & then well mixt with the remainder
& drank, fasting an hour after is an ext preservative agt the gout & 
a purifier of the blood It must be taken several mornings together S. S.
Mr Simon Stokes above mention’d drank water gruel in a morning 
with only salt in it, mixt with one spoonfull of milk after it was 
made when he travell’d to a friends house there he drank chocolate
in a morning instead of water gruel & fasted always 
till 3, 4, 5 or 6 o clock at night. This fasting so long emptied & 
cleared his stomach & whetted it so that he eat anything very
heartily at night & drank wine or stale drink or ale or any 
liquor he fancied, plentifully & was freed from the gout 5 yrs successively
& for ought I ever heard all h is life after Mr. Simon Stokes.


273)
The gout. Mr Orme
To prevent the stone & gout. Drink scum’d milk boyl’d
& mixt with green tea water p.e. sweeten’d with hony every 
morning all the yr round. Tea 1 ou. will serve eight mornings.
Rx tea zi make a pint & put in a spoonfull of hony
This Mr. Orme the apothecary drinks constantly every morning
so as to have one stool every day if it works more
he takes less hony or omits a day. He had his gout & gravel
This method freed him from both those distempers. He says
he has cured several poor people of consumptions by advising
em to drink milk pottage sweeten’d with hony morn & 
night to avoid malt drink. If every body knew the 
virtue of hony it would be 1 d per lb. He eats & drinks nothing
till dinner after his honey’d tea Mr. Tho. Orme drinks
½ pint of milk & ½ pint of tea water every morning. Hony 
is less griping taken thus than after it has been formented
ibid. [illegible] gum ammoniacu in Salmon’s Family Dictionary there
is a plaster of Mr New the surgeon that he says cures the gout in 
any pt of the body
The roots of [illegible] comfrey beaten small fresh taken, spred upon
leather & lay’d upon any place troubled with the gout doth
presently give ease of the pains. Parkinson’s Herbal.
For the gout. Boil a pottle of strong ale till it is very thick like
slime beat saffron ziij to fine pouder & the yolk of two eggs & oil of
roses one spoonful mix all these well together & spred some of it on 
a linnen rag doubled & apply it to the place grieved. Mrs. Howet E. A.’s mother
April 1739 a pain & stifness seized E. A. right hand & fingers like the gout.
he held his hand in hot water almost ready to scald & the pain & stifness vanished
presenter after
Mr Orme that is troubled with the gout once in 5 years
says that purging with rhubarb or any other drug will 
not drive the gout away but only gives ease during the 
working of the purges the gout afterwards returns with 
greater violence. He commended outward unction viz Rx
camphorated spirit of wine, spt of sal amoniae and
alicant sope mixt together let it stand to warm a little
against the fires before it is used. This E.A. try’d several
times at the latter end of March without finding any 
eases or benefit when he had the hip gout
He found the most relief rubing a coarse handkercher & 
a flesh brush by night and by day from his hip down
to his ankles Mr Orme says what cures a rheumatism none
cure the gout.


(274
Chilblaines or kibes.
IF they are only swell’s wash em with uuman urine the older
the better as hot as you can abide it every night beginning
at 1st with a moderate degree of heat & increase gradually
to a greater cover it with diaculu simplex a plaster If
it is swell’d & has holes in it repeat the said medicine only 
after the swelling is abated Bath it only with warm allum posset
drink & apply the curd warm to’t If there is much proud flesh
strew burnt allum on the curd Let it be drest but once with the 
curd in 2 days. It draws it white when it is dry’d & heal’d Bath it with old
urine hot to harden it you may sometimes add a little salt
to the urine a great cure was done thus by Ann Tasie
another If only swell’s a plater made of rosin & tallow will 
cure it but if swell’d & broken & rare with an hole or holes & 
full of pain. apply this poltis to take away the anguish. Rx
new milk & oatmeal stir em together cold to make oatmeal pudding
not very thick let em boyl then add mutton suet skin’d or tallow or
deers suet (you make keep mutton suet rendered for this use) & hous
leek wash’d & chopt small boyl to the consistence of thick oatmeal
pudding bind it on with a cloth as hot as you can endure it Let it
rest 12 hours or longer Heal it with rosin & tallow or diaculum.
a great cure was done thus by Mrs Frear. You may strew burnt
allum sometimes on the diaculum. Ann Tasie. vid. Kibes in Dr Salmons
Family Dictionary. Kibes swell’d Rx allum & white copperas
each one ounce in pouder infuse in water a pint. Bath it on warm agt
the fire Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Boyl a knuckle of veal in water
to make it very tender bath it with 2 rags as one grows cold the other
may heat agt the fire as hot as you can endure it. This takes away the
pain, if the kibes happen to have a kick or bruise It hath cured swell’d
& blister’d legs used 3 or 4 times Mrs Ann Lathwell.
Raw kibes Bath em with camphorated water a rag dipt in it as
hot as you can endure it Then apply a plaster of Aunt Boothby’s
cerecloth made of red lead oyl & bees wax called the red lead salve
Dress it once a day. This has cured a great many Sister Boothby.
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory says unguentum [rubricum] [illegible] siccativu
[illegible] is so much us’d for kibes which children are very subject to
in frosty weather that it is often asked for by the common people
by the name of kibe oyntmt. fir it cools & cicatrizes em very
soon.
To cure the itching of kibed toes or feet. moisten em with brine of
beef or pork & hold em agt the fire to work in, at night. E. A.’s men
servts use this with benefit. another with a lancet make em bleed in
several places or whip em with a holly branch This cures Mr Coy




275)
For kibed [heels] raw
warm some milk by quenching a hot iron in it once 
then bath the sore with the then strew on oister shell powder
to keep the proud flesh down then apply a plaster of
[diaculum] to keep the [stockin] from it & to dry & keep it warm
Dress it once a day. Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer.
For kibed heels or chilblanes broken or whole The paps
of roasted apples are most excellent Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother.
To prevent kibes or chilblaines. Burn oat straw 1st dry’d to ashes
steep em all night in cold water the next day boil the water & 
ashes together & bath the hands or feet in it 3 or 4 times for
3 or 4 days Mr Jn Needham E. A.’s servt
Kibes raw dress em with sallet oil & white lead Joyce Gimson E. A.
servt. The castle soap plaster al Sir Philip Paris’s plaster Wm Mather’s
Young Man’s Companion 3rd edition says will cure chilblains & kibes.
Mather’s same book says p.90 one plaster of burgundy commonly cures
kibes, if you do not bruise the place with your shoes or the lead plaster
al. empl. de minio. Or a dry oak leaf when it is almost well
Kibes heels swell’d and raw. Rx [Fuzballs] the pouder and bind it
to the sore with a linnen rage renew it once a day it will ease the
pain if raw apply the inside skin of the fuzball shift that once
a day washing it in cow piss to allay the itching Mr Laughton.
Kibed heels raw Aunt Boothby Rx the white of an egg & lay 
it on some sheeps wool that is pretty fine & apply it to the kibe.
Renew it once in 24 hours & it will cure it, says Jane smith of
Blaby. To cure the itching of a kibe’d heel or toe that
is not broken. Boil some raw allum in the water as much
as will give a strong tincture of the allum dip a
rag in it and [dap] it with as hot as you can abide
it several times one after another John Hewet
Another moisten some salt with your spittle
and rub the itching part with it a rag being moisten’d
with it then hold it as near the fire as you can endure
it three or 4 times one after another. Joyce Gimson



(276
Immoderate or superfluous evacuation
of the monthly terms.
I can assure you, by my own experience that a cataplasm
made of two whites of eggs with a little bolus,
apply’d to the region of the kidneys has frequently & 
immediately stop the immoderate flux of the menstru
al blood. If the said flux proceeds from a sharp quality’
of the blood, which by its long continuance has dry’d up 
all the moisture of the body. Rx a porringer of fresh cows
milk (which thickening the blood, does by degrees restore the
moisture) every morning for a whole month without
intermission extinguishing a red hot steel in it every 
time you use it. Monsieur D’ube’s Poor Man’s Physician.
another Rx the best rubarb rasp’d or grated as much as will lie
on a shilling or more if the flooding is violent, in a spoonful
or 2 d cherry brandy, aniseed water or common brandy. This cured
Ann T. E. A. for immoderate fluxes of the courses The pouder the
distill’d water the syrup & the conserve of red poppies are in use.
Pecheys Herbal.
This is ext for an immoderate flux of the courses.
Rx plantain water 2 ou. rubarb pouder’d [illegible] ij yellow myrobalans 
pouder’d [illegible] i syrup of dry’d roses zfs mix & give
it in the morning; 2 hours after let some broth be taken
ibid







279)
French pox, morbus gallicus.
Balm of Gilead, balsamu gileadense, balsamu e mecha
Let me discover one secret not yet vulgarly known. This
balm of Gilead has the greatest force of all vegetable productions
in curing the French pox. a word to the wise is enough
It exceeds guaiacu, sassaphras, China etc. Dr Salmon’s Disp.
Pechey’s Herbal says guaiacum i.e. lignum sanctum or packwood
in curing the French pox.



(280
Breast hard & swell’d
Ruth Winter a maid abt 16 yrs old was cured of a hard
swell’d breast thus. Rx white wine a qt in which infuse
stub nails lbi 12 hours or longer Drink ½ a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon one qt commonly gives 
ease & 2 qts cure it. Walk after it Rx Winter keep it in
a bottle close stopt. ibid Mrs Sprigs of [Shearsby] had a hard
swell’d breast not broken when Dr [Hatton] of Harborow had had 40 lb
of her to no purpose Wm Bent farrier cured it only by anointing it with 
linseed oyl cold once a day it dispersed the humour & made it well. W. B.
A cancer or sore breast with knots in it
Rx a piece of new flannel that is soft & warm, & has never been wet 
dip it in a blew wad fat nine times every day or as you’ve opportunity
& wear it all over the breast, shifting it once a month. You 
may dip as much as will serve 2 or 3 times It has cured great knots in
the breasts supposed to be cancers & done cancers good Mrs Caulton.
A breast swell’d or broken
apply Bents salve, often approved by Mrs Elizth Halford.
A poultis for a swelling or a sore breast. Dr Arden Elsmere.
Rx a white lilly root, [smallage] a small handful mallows & chickweed 
each a large handful shred em small together put em in a pint 
of new milk or better with as much oatmeal as will thicken it Boyl
it pretty well then put in hogs lard or sheeps suet 3 ou. the 1st is
best. Boyl it thick & spred it on a cloth. Lay it on as hot as you 
can abide it. shift it twice a day. It will disperse the swelling or
brake it to heal it. Lay Mrs Caulton’s black salve on it when it is broken 
& the poultis on the top of it. If there is a hole in it tent it with basilicon.
Mrs Caulton. It is not good to tent a sore breast it often causes
shooting pains in the breast all the life after Sister Boothby
A milk sore breast swell’d or broken Dr Smith of Findon.
Rx linseed 6 ou. boyl it un bruis’d in a qt of new milk till it is
very thick If you would have it draw more add white bread 
crums a spoonful spred it upon a linnen cloth near an inch
thick to cover all over the breast before you lay it on do it  
all over with a feather dipt in sallet oyl apply it twice a day
as hot as you can abide it to the cheeks It takes away the pain, 
disperses or breaks & heals it. It is good for all hard swellings.
after the breast is well apply a plaster of diaculum over it & 
wear it till it comes off. You need not tent the breast when broken
Dr Arden Elsmere said this was the best of poultices. Sister Boothby
you may eat this poultis if you will. E. A.



281)
A poultis for a swelling and to take away 
pain
Rx green mint and onions each alike quantity
and pound them together and add to them the
same quantity of hony and [illegible] them all together
and apply it cold. Mrs Chamberlane midwife of
Great Glen
To make a poultis Mrs Willcocks of Ouson
Rx new milk and red serge rue, smallage chop
em small and boil ‘em in the milk and then thicken
it up with oatmeal and when it is taken from the fire
add hogs lard and apply it once a day. This was to 
cure Mary Exon of a sore leg when she had been under
Mr [Horse] Pools hands a long time and had one issue
in each arm and one in each leg.
To take away pain out of any sore. Rx red 
dock roots and scrape off the outward bark and 
slice it and pound it or scrape it and take mi of
it and boil it in a quart of scum’d milk till ½ is 
wasted then tickens it up with barly flower
Dress the sore with basilicon and lay this poultis 
upon this plaster 7 it will draw out the humour
Mrs Witcocks of Ouson


(282
To harden the feet that you may endure
travelling & walking without pain.
walk till you are warm then pull off the shoes & stockins
& stand barefoot in the running stream of a brook
for abt ½ a qt of an hour or walk abt in the stream then
put on the shoes but not the stockins for the feet
must touch no woollen thing that night or you may 
put on linnen or thred socks & then the stockins & shoes 
let this be done a little before night got to bed immediately
after you come from the after & keep in 
bed all night without touching any woollen thing with 
the feet. once trying cured Robt Garner a jobber of
Brinkly in Warwickshire when his feet was gall’d & the 
skin off that he could scarce go his feet continued hard
& well for 7 yrs after & perhaps all his life R. G. He walk’d
home in his shoes, without catching any cold ibid.
another to harden feet & cure em when sore or raw with
sweat & heat in the summer as in June & July. Rx sp. of wine
& put so many drops of oyl of vitriol to it that you can 
touch it with the tongue without corroding moisten
the sore & raw places with this liquor night & morning
& moisten a linnen rage in it & apply it dry or wet E.A.
To cure sweaty feet p. 120 Rx bees wax zi (ordinary or common) butter
ziiij red vitriol from the chymists i.e. calcanthum rubefactu
in fine pouder zij Let the bees wax be sliced then boyl it with
the butter & Rx it off the fire & put in the calcanthum pr. 1 d per
ounce spred it upon linnen cloth or rag, the thinner the cloth the
better as muslane, calico, or holland. It must cover the top of the
toes & the bottom & sole of the feet. Take it off as a night wear 
these socks daily all the hot months a pr will last a qr or ½ a yr 
&keep the feet sweet. It draws off the humour & cures swell’d
legs & prevents em from swelling. It will cure a corn Dr Pool 
for a corn approved Rx oysters open them cut out the white pith that groweth to
the inside of the shells. Dry it & pouder it when you cut the corn
pick out as much of the root as you can & put into the hole as
much of this pouder as you can & you may add a very small quantity
of mercury sublimate in very fine pouder mixt well with a little hogs
lard & bind a cloth on it & it will eat away the corn clean by the
roots use not above the quantity of a pins head of sublimate especially 
the 1st time you try it. The Rx says you may use it without grease [Pater Meus]


283)
a corn. cut a hole in a piece of fine woollen
cloth of the bigness of the corn sew several of
them together with woolstead or yarn one above another 
that they may be [easie] to the & make room for the corn to
grow up in It will shute up til lit has spent itself & can 
grow no higher then you may easily pull it up by the
root with your finger & thumb & it will trouble you no more
you may sew it to a linnen cloth & bind it on a hole made
in a piece of hat that will do very well some say better Dr Geo.
Ashby. This method cured his corns another Touch a corn 
after it is cut thin with oyl of vitriol or aqua fortis a [illegible]
being dipt in it It will burn it out Let it take place a little
time then apply Paracelsus plaster or basilicon., Mr Page surgeon 
Mr Penford apothecary his plaster for corns. Rx suet zi rosin
in pouder or small lumps zi wax sliced zij verdigrease in fine
pouder zfs This is in imitation of Mrs Wilcox’s plaster but not
the same. another plaster for corns Rx barm (al. yest) 
that is grown stiff on the tub side & dry’d salt work em together 
on a trencher till the salt is made fine & apply it spred on
leather or a linnen rag Pater Meus another spred black pitch 
on allum leather stone pitch i.e. the hardest clearest pitch free
from dross is best E.A. try’d this without success It gave east at
1st but at last it made it sore. The juice of spurge which looks
white like milk will eat of wharts & corns & the callous a
brawny substance on the ball of the great toe by frequent 
application, if the crust that hardens upon them be pair’d off between
whiles. Dr Quincy & Cos. Jn Ekins. Ointmt of [dialtha] is good
warts. If you rub em with ol. vitrioli or ol. sulphuris it will
certainly destroy em The cure for corns is in paring em off & 
applying red soft wax. Or Rx picis navalis zi empl. diachyl. magn
ziij gum. galban. dissolut in aceta zfs salis ammoniaci [illegible] i misce
or Rx aluminis, vitrioli ungarici adripigment ana port. equal. pulveriz.
& misceantur cum aceto. all which are proper both in the soft or 
hard corns several chirurgical treatises by Richd Wiseman sergeant
chirurgeon 2d edition pr. 12 d. another to dissolve corns or 
nodes quinces emplastru de ranis vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum will waste
by degrees ([ease] & [illegible]) corns on the feet, warts & all such like
crustations. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
2) To cure a corn B. S.A. Rx a little [illegible] yest mix it with salt made fine on
the back of a trencher with a knife or pounded as much salt as yest It is 
best in a very dry time or the salt will be apt to turn the yest to a water
or liquid substance spred it like a plaster or on London brown paper 
& tie it to the corn after it is cut close but not to bleed. apply a new
plaster or spred it fresh on the same leather every day for 3 or 4 days. then
cover it with ink once or twice & the corn will come out rotten by the
roots If this doth not fetch it out burn a little white copperas and beat it to
pouder use it with the yest. E. A. Try burnt salt E.A.


(284
wind in the stomach or bowels (or to cause you to 
fart Rx 9 black pepper corns in a little sallet oyl whole in a spoon in morning fasting)
Rx carduus water ziiij treacle water zfs bezor jovialis
zfs camphir [illegible] is syr. of sulphur zfs tincture of 
laudanu [illegible] vi syr. of woodsorrel with poppies each zi mix
for a julap dose is 1 spoonful for 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 
at night going to bed shake the bottle when you take any or.
1s 8d Dr Tho. Ferran This cured Stephen Hunt junior having an
ague & grip’d. wind attended with gripes, belchings
vomiting & looseness in old Richd Exon carpenter
was quickly cured by taking this medicine following
in abt ½ a pint of ale or small beer It is good for
a blood flux Rx one nutmeg grate
& mix it with as much wheat flower finely sifted as 
the white of an egg will moisten (you must not
put the yolk in) abt the stiffness of dough. Bake 
it so dry as to grate but give no more at once
than what will lie on a six pence Mrs Mary Hall a Jersey combers 
wife in Southgate street Leicer.  This cured her father & 
old Richd Exon. The wind colic with gripes & vomiting 
Dr Bradley It will not cure wet gripes Rx hiera picra 
zfs double anniseed water a pint cochineal [illegible] ij a little beaten
mix them & keep it in a bottle close stopt always ready 
prepar’d & when you use it mix the following ingredients with 
pt of it viz to 3 ounces or spoonfuls of this liquor add salt
of wormwood zfs pr 1 2 ½ liquid laudanu gtt xxx pr. 2 d 
for 1 dose. One dose commonly cures. If it is vomited up
it must be repeated.  Price of the ingredients in the bottle 
is 1 s 3 d you must shake the bottle for 2 or 3 days at 1st 
but when you use it pour off only the clear Dr Bradley & Mr
Cook apothecary. The wind colic or dry gripes Rx liquid laudanu
& elixer proprictatis each from  12 to 16 drops in a glass 
of ale at night going to bed. Wm Vice of Blaby that was often
tormented with inward pains & apt to be costive found great
benefit by this medicine Rd Mr Stokes.


285)
Gripes or wind colic Rx brandy (French brandy is best)
3 spoonfuls burn it then take ½ a spoonful in a spoon make
it thickish with salt a little brandy swimming on the top stir em
with a knife or tea spoon & take it when cool enough Rx a 2 d spoonful
after the same manner as the first then take a 3 d spoonful with 
only burnt brandy Joseph Warner of Harborough [illegible] may 
colour brandy or double aniseed water with alkanet or bole & 
add salt to it. Salt added to grains prevent their griping horses or
cows & brine given to horses when grip’d is reckon’d a good medicine
& cures sometimes. E. A. another Rx new lay’d egg shels dry’d & 
beaten to fine pouder as much as will lie on a shilling mixt thickish
with beer in a spoon at 2 or 3 times an hour after you may drink
water gruel with a little salt in it Wm Laurence Smith. for wind
Rx juice of rue in a little sugar once a day It is good for convulsions
fits in children, they are oft caused by wind Jane Tasie
May 1717 E. A. was cured of gripes & wind colic with a violent
pain in her left side by taking Dr Bostock’s cordial 1 spoonful
over night & 2 in the morning a gentle purge & Dr Bradly’s
mixture p. 284 2 or 3 hours after that the next day after the
purge he drank a qt of new milk-whey warm & rode 2 or 3 
miles after it which clear’d his bowels & made him quite well.
when sucking children or those rear’d by the hand are troubled
with wind give one or 2 & afterwards more whole mustard
seeds in their pap or what they eat It will make em break 
wind Sister Boothby. a pouder for wind. Rx burdock seed zij aniseeds
liquorish each zi in fine pouder mixt with w. sugar candy The dose is zi
w.p. when E. A. had the wind colic June 718 & vomiting he 
did not find that taking vomits did him any good strong water 
made him worse He found that gooseberries train thro a hair
sive & mixt with milk & damask rose water & sugar stay’d
longest in his stomach & he did seldom vomit it up Taking
one slice of lemon & sugar going to bed & one slice in the
night walking much in the air Bostock’s cordial & Dr Bradly’s 
mixture & other purges that us’d to relieve him would
do not good except this following which at present I judge to 
be the very best purge or medicine & most pleasant yet found out for the wind 
colic or gripes or wind in the stomach or bowels [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] Rx rhubarb
sliced zi pr. 2 s 6 d best sena zij pr 1 s aniseeds bruised six
drams pr single aniseed water 3 pints pr 1 s Rx 2 spoonfuls
every other morning or every morning while it lasts
drinking water gruel one or 2 hours after it. It purges the
most at the 1st dose Bates’s Disp. 4th edition & Mr Penford


(286
apothecary in Leicer The aniseeds & aniseed 
water correct the griping of the sena & single aniseed
water is more cooling & pleasant than double aniseed water
ibid This is taken out of Salmon’s annotations on Bates’s Dispensatory
on elixer salutis but it is much contracted You may 
take it every morning at 1st then every other morn & when you
find yourself perfectly recover’d & well You may omit taking
it when it has infus’d 9 or 10 days you may strain the liquid 
from the drugs & keep it by itself close stopt. If you are
subject to wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes. Eat bread & 
butter every morning It opens the body & causes you to fart & vent
wind backwards E. A. a very good remedy for the colic in the
stomach or bowels which has cured them that have had it 2 or 3 
yrs It keeps good, close stopt, 2 or 3 yrs Rx double distill’d aniseed
water a pint cochineal zi pouder’d hiera picra ziij Let em
stand 24 hours in a bottle close stopt. Then Rx 3 spoonfuls every
morning or at night or when ill If it doth not give you a stool or
2 Rx 4 spoonfuls This cured Mrs Gee when the Drs cou’d not having
had it 3 or 4 yrs Some say the single aniseed water is best Mrs
Caulton. [illegible] is the same as Mr Oneby’s Rx another for the
gripes eat oatmeal pudding adding to it Jamaica pepper 
in pouder after it is made & stir em together It must taste
strong of the pepper Eat it night & morning till well E. A.
The colick of either sort by a solder Rx pomegranate shell
2 d gentian 2 d avens mi dry’d all together & beaten to pouder
Rx as much as will lie on a shilling in 2 glasses of white
wine or [juniper] water If it is the stone colick add 4 
drops of the juice of the sharpest onions in every glass
Br S.A. for the cure of all inward pains vid p. 193.
for the gripes or wind or stone colic eat the fat of mutton or
beef the quantity of ½ an egg or more cut 3 or 4 or more little
onions in pieces as big as you can swallow at once rub salt 
on em so that you may eat a pretty deal of salt with every bit 
& eat old cheese without bread lastly drink strong ale abt
a pint after em. This cured E. A. Janry 719. June 720 E. A. had the
wind in his stomach which forc’d him to vomit up every thing he eat or drank
a vomit of ipecacuanah nor Daffy’s elixer would do no good He found
a little benefit by Dr Bradlys mixture for the colic then he try’d Dr
Alibone’s Rx for wind in the stomach viz balm, hysop, sage each mi liquorish
sliced zij boyl e min water 2 qts till one is wasted Drink it instead 



287)
of beer or use it instead of hops brew’d with beer
gripes & wind or rheumatism in the stomach or bowels
Rx The mountebanks styptick water 2 spoonfuls by it self
then walk ½ an hour Then Rx Virginian snake weed root afs 6 d the
root of contrayerva zij pr 6 d Best brandy a pint you may colour
or disguise it with syrup of violets when you give it but it must
not be put into the bottle It doth but little good only it is cooling.
allow 24 hours or longer for the ingredients to incorporate
then take 5 spoonfuls syrup of cloves colours any liquor yellow
syrup of wouldwell or dyers weed makes a fine green. This
Rx helps to stop vomiting. Dr Pool. another milk from a cows bag
to stale beer Ear the card & drink the whey without sugar in the
morning It gets an appetite cleanses the midriff, cures gripes
heals the lungs & stops a consumption ibid Another Rx ants eggs
dry em in a paper & beat em to pouder mix afs of it with brown 
sugar & give it in thicken’d milk. the bigger the eggs the better give
it mixt with carrot to disguise it the carrot dry’d to pouder It swells
the belly at 1st but in a little time it makes you fart & cures belching
& drives the wind downwards. ibid for wind or water in the
stomach Rx antimonium diaphoreticu zi in a glass of strong
claret or good canary every other day. ibid A small white wine
will rather cause than cure the gripes. E. A. Dr Harton’s prescription
Rx pul: rad. serp. virg: zvi cassummuniar zifs (a sort of zedoary)
coq. in q.s. aq. font. ad lbi colat [illegible] (strain) solv. theriac. androm.
zfi fiat apozema June 16th 720. Rx 6 spoonfuls at night going
to bed at 6 at midnight if awake & as much in the morning & 
afterwards 3 spoonfuls every 4th or 5 hours & drink it as hot as
you can Wm Cooke pr. 4d for gripes ro wind causing a pain 
in the stomach or a pain in a rupture Rx the stalks of bitter 
sweet (amara dulcis) as much as you can hold betwixt 2 hands
bruise or twist em in pieces or as much as will make it taste
bitter Boyl it in 3 qts of water to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish morn
fasting & at night going to bed or when you feel pain Jn Summerfield 
of Whetston. another for gripes or wind Rx burdock seed
pound & drink it in ale or smoke it with a little tobacco or without
Goddy Gilbert another Rx mint water 1 or 2 spoonfuls at
a time with sugar ibid or Rx mint water anniseed water syrup of
cloves a good cordial Goody Simons. another eat millipedes 10 or 20 
at a time every day till the gripes are gone ibid another drink new
milk warm from  a cow morn & night & eat bread & butter avoiding
meat & cheese till the stomach is well. This did E. A. the most good when
he vomited & was grip’d & his stomach full of wind & pain for 4 or 
6 weeks in June & July 720. Wind in the stomach or bowels Rx 9 or more
black (or white) pepper corns in a spoonful of sallet oyl [illegible] [Boothby]


(288
for the wind colic or dry gripes or pain in the 
stomach Rx gr of paradise in pouder as much as will ly on a ½ crown in new ale or
beer a half pint from the vat 3 times a day. Take it for a month intermitting a day or two Dr P.
another for Do
Rasp as much of the best rhubarb as will lie on a shilling or
rather mor for a man of bulk or for one that is apt to be costive
Put it to a spoonful & half, or 2 spoonfuls of common brandy
or malt spirits pr 10 d or 12d d per qt Rx it in a morn fasting, fasting
2 hours after it & eat & drink as you use to do at the other times without
observing an rules. Rx the night before camomile flowers 
infus’d in n ear a pint of posset drink & continue ti every night till
the gripes are gone off which is commonly in 3 or 4 nights. Drink the
rhubarb & brandy every morn for abt a fortnight This cured Br S.
A. for 7 yrs or longer without taking it during the y7 yrs on ly at 1st 
pouder of rhubarb in a little milk & drink milk from the cow or warm
after it or in single aniseed water or juniper water only as much as
will wash it down sometimes an hour before dinner or 2 hours or
a little quantity of the pouder in any vehicle at night at or before
bedtime
Rhubarb is an exct medicine, gentle & without danger wherein many 
vertues are compris’d It cleanseth & fortifieth the stomach & liver 
all maladies that proceed from stoppages, as the jaundice, dropsie, swelling 
of the spleen & long fevers. It is good agt spitting of blood & 
stops it. It may be moderately taken at all convenient times without
danger. The chewing of it purges choler & phlegm. It is ext boyled & 
taken in posset drink, before the cold fit of an ague comes, & is extol’d
by all ingenious physitians for the cure of fluxes of the belly
of all kinds, which it does easily, surely & with out any evil symptom 
succeeding it, & therefore is accounted as the most ext of roots that
was ever brought into this nation from any foreign ports. Salmon’s
Family Dictionary. Pontick rhubarb is hot in the 1st dry in the
3rd degree purging & astringent expelling choler, flegm & melancholy
from the stomach & bowels. It opens obstructions of both liver
& spleen, & therefore is of force in curing  the rickets, melancholy
[sabs] itch, jaundice & green sickness. Give of the pouder from zi to
zifs in infusion to zfs. It may be given to women with child, & in 
all fluxes as in dysentaria’s (i.e. bloody fluxes) lyenteria’s (ie a kind
of looseness, where things eaten are voided undigested) & diarrhoea’s
(a gentle flux of the belly or looseness) It is of singular use
because it leaves an astringent or binding quality behind it. The pouder
made into a bole with cassia & turpentine cools & cleanses the [illegible] & 
helps the gonorrhoea Salmon’s Dispensatory. The pouder untoasted leaves
the body open but rhubarb toasted easily beats to pouder & being dry’d by the 


289)
by the fire etc. leaves the body costive E. A. radix R rabarbari
rhubarb. that which comes from the Levant is now accounted
best. It is of a bright yellowish colour, & of a nutmeg
grain if it be good, tho a great deal of the best pieces will be decay’d; 
& therefore when brought into use ought to be rejected
There is some comes fro China & other pts of the E. Indies, but not so 
much esteem’d It is of a darker colour, more fetid in smell & is not
easily pouder’d; tho it is more purgative especially in infusion than 
the other but has not so much of its astringent quality which is so efficacious
in looseness & blood fluxes. That which is accounted the
finest of all is very little pourgative but most astringent &
therefore best in all sort of fluxes. Extreme drying destroys its 
purgative vertue, wherefore it is frequently order’d to be toasted
to make it less purgative & more astringing. It is infus’d from zi to ziij
for a dose; & given in pouder from 10 gr to two scuples It greatly strengthens
the stomach & bowels & is an ext medicine agt cholera & other 
distemper’d contents of the intestinal & mesenterial glands It is accounted
by some to be so great a purger of the liver as to have deserv’d the 
name of cor hepatic or heart of the liver The kidnies do not lie too 
remote for its influence which it discovers in the colour of the urine & is
very good in the obstructions of the [reins] & the ureters. But in the jaundice
it almost passes for infallible Paracelsus [illegible] to a tincture fro 
it which only operated by [illegible] & purg’d away gravel. It is good agt worms
in children. so that its repetition to them can hardly be too frequent IT is 
good in syrup & in tinctures alto none of em are so good as the 
root pouder & given in substance Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory
Carry rhubarb in the pocket in the winter or lay it in a cupboard
near the fire that it may be dry or it will not grate to pouder & mix 
this pouder as much as will lie on 6 d or 1 s begin with little at 1st &
put it to two or 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir the best sort begin
with a little if you wou’d have it purge gently till you find the
strength of the constitution you give it to This is a most ext 
medicine for wind or colic or gripes or any headach or pain [illegible]
It is much better than when mixt with brandy alone E. A.
The gripes & wind eat salt with every thing you eat If salt will 
not cure then take abt 1 spoonful 1/12 of Daffy’s elixir with a little salt 
in’t abt a quarter or ½ an hour after drink new milk from the cow or 
for want of it warm’d milk & the next morn new milk with some salt
It will purge & cure E. A. 
Wind in the stomach or dry gripes Dr Tho. Buckworth (the mad Dr
that cured Mr Wats of Raresby when craz’d or disorder’d in his head.)
Rx [illegible], common fennel seeds, cummin seeds, caraway seeds,
parsly seeds each zfs long pepper zij pounded & sifted thro a fine
hair sive add to the pouder as much hony or treacle on a liquorish
stick or without at any time It is good for a cold or doth gently open 
the body coriander seeds are bad for the head or Rx oyl of turpentine
40 or 50 drops prepar’d with tartar (not salt of tartar) by the 
chymists distill’d you may but it at London drop em into warm ale
abt ½ a pint it turns it white It is good for the colic in the stomach 
or wind or gravel Dr B. another Eat old rich cheese 3 or 4 yrs old
after the meals E. A. Try sage cheese another Rx cloves whole & [daucus]
seed make tea with water sweeten it when you drink It comforts the bowels Dr Bradly



(290
To joyn a broken glass or vessel of
china or earth
Rx a little red lead a knifes pointful boyl it with linseed oyl a qt so that when it
is boyl’d it may appear like mum or of a brown colour
mix a little of this with white lead very well by working it
on a marble or smooth slate with a muller or a knife
You must be sure to incorporate em very fine then 
anoint the edges of the glass or vessel where you 
would joyn em If you can you may press or bind
em hard together & so let em remain untouch’d in
a chamber on a table or shelf for a qr of a yr (or
rather longer than less time) then you may thrown the joyn’d
glass agt the ground & it will break in any pt sooner
than where it is cemented. The Rd Mr Jn Lawrence rector
of Yolverloft in Northshire. It will endure hot or
cold liquor if the vessel will abide it. ibid.
To join a broken panchion or pot together not to hold scalding
water Rx turpentine and rosin p.a. buck finely sifted
boil ‘em and heat the sides of the pot and daub on and crush
‘em together. Rd Mr Samuel Frances.
To stop a crack in a bowl or barrel. Rx tar and fine
hards and thrust ‘em in with the edge of a knife and they 
will harden.


295)



(292
a clyster
Rx mallows, camomile, elder buds, mercury leaves, violet
leaves, strawberry leaves. Seeth all in posset ale. Take a pint 
of the liquor add to it sallet oyl 2 spoonfuls & as much sweet 
butter & hony make it a clyster Give it in the morning. Mater 
Mea another good for the colic or gripes or stone.
Rx mallows, violet leaves strawberry leaves endive, succory
each mi add to these a calfs foot or sheeps head. put em into
a sufficient quantity of water & boyl em well. Then take of the
decoction one pint Put therein two good spoonfuls of brown 
sugar & 3 spoonfuls of sallet oyl. strain it thro a cloth after 
the sugar is dissolv’d Then exhibite it as a clyster a little better
than blood warm. Try whether you can endure the bladder at
the cheek when it is fill’d before you give lest you give it too hot
ibid. another Rx mallows, strawberry leaves, mercury, violet
leaves, succory leaves, borrage, [?ugless] each half a qr of a
handful aniseeds fennel seeds each a qr of an ounce Boyl these
well with a chicken & take the broth of it or else boyl em in posset 
ale. Take half a pint or better of it at a time & put to it
2 spoonful of sallet oyl & one spoonful of sweet butter
salt half a spoonful use this for a clyster ibid
Dr Atkins clyster for the colic & stone
Rx mallows camomile, beets, wormwood, violet leaves each 
mi aniseeds & fennel seeds each a good spoonful bayberries
no 6. Boyl all in rain water from a pint & half to a pint
strain it add to it 2 spoonfuls of hony as much salt as will
lie on a siz pence & 2 ounces of course sugar ibid.


293)
The whites
Rx Candied roots of Solomons seal It is an ext remedy
Pecheys Herbal. Ising-glass is of a very glutinous quality
& good in all disorders which arise from too thin & sharp a state of the
fluids. Tis reckon’d very helpful in female weakness & particularly
the whites, as also in all defluxions & haemorrages Quincy. rosin
pills pills of turpentine pills with dragons blood, pills of porra Japonica 
emplastrum [barsals] vid Quincy’d Dispensatory. altho’ the roots of
tormentil is most noted for its strengthening & binding qualities yet it
is ranked also among the [alexi] pharmicks & is in great esteem in malignant
flowers attended with any flux of the bowels or the womb.
Schroder says there is not a better vegetable grown for all such [intentions]
it agrees well with the white drink & much increases its efficacy
in checking a looseness in the measles, small pox or fevers. Quincy
another Rx Rue whitlow grass (an herb) half a handful fry it with 
wheat flower & an egg. Take [it] in the morning fasting, for 2 days This 
cures the whites Pechey’s Herbal


(294
The biting of a mad dog Mr George [Gatacre]
Rx Rus zvi peel’d garlic & London treacle each ziiij or mithridate or Venice treacle
scrap’d tin being shav’d or scrap’d of the outside of a
[illegible] pewter or tin sheet of lattin or tin 4 ounces spoonfuls good strong ale 2/3 qts
pluck the herb from the stalk & shred it & beat the garlic
then mix all & put it in a pot fast cover’d then set that 
pot or vessel in a pot of fair water to boyl on a gentle
fire 3 or 4 hours & of the strain’d liquor give 4 or 6 or 7 
spoonfuls as the patient, or beast or dog can well receive
it. Give it morning or afternoon warm or cold
9 days together. This has cured men, women horses, cattle, 
& dogs. It is commonly call’d the D. of Buckingham’s
Rx. It never fail’d. Br G. A.
The  biting of a mad dog by Dr Troutbeck.
Rx leaves of rue pick’d from the stalks 6 ou. bruised, garlic
peel’d & bruised, best treacle or mithridate, scapings of tin or
pewter each 4 ou. Boyl all these over a gentle fire in 2 qts of 
strong ale till one pint be consumed then strain it from the
dregs & keep it in a bottle close stopt.
Give of this 9 spoonfuls to a man or woman  warm 7 mornings
together fasting: 6 to a beast cold, 3  to a sheep, 6 to a dog
This by gods blessing will not fail, provided it be given with 
in 9 days after the biting. apply some of the dregs or strainings
to the bitten place. This Rx cost Mrs Frances Bickerton’s father
17th of the DR The roots of aristolochia are ext agt all [poison] & 
agt the bitings & stingings of venomous beasts, if it be taken in wine, or layd
upon the wounds or bitings. Dodoen’s Herbal.
an infallible cure for the bite of a mad dog from the Evening
Post.
Rx Rue 6 ou. eleand. pickd & bruis’d red sage mi garlic 4 ou. peeld & bruis’d
Venic treacle 4 ou. filed pewter or scrap’d tin 4 ou. Boil these
in 2 qts of the best ale in a pan cover’d close, over a gentle fire, for
the space of one hour, then strain the ingredients from the liquor. Give
8 or 9 spoonfuls of it warm to a man or woman 3 mornings
fasting, & cold to any beast fasting. 8 or 9 spoonfuls are sufficient
for the strongest, a less quantity to those younger or of a weaker
constitution, as you may judge of their strength. Ten or 12 spoonfuls 
for a horse or bullock. Three, 4, or 5 for a sheep, hog or dog. This
must be given with in 9 days after the bite. It never fails in man
or beast. If you can conveniently bind some of the ingredients on
the wound. Cos. Richd Ashby. Some Rxs say muscadine or [illegible] is better
than ale for a man


295)
For the biting of a mad dog
Rx 2 handfuls of rue 2 spoonfuls of scraped
block tin boyl in 4 quarts of strong ale till
half be wasted then strain 3 penniworth of London
treacle into it and give the party bit 6 spoonfuls
in a morning fasting
A plaster for a bit of a mad dog
Take plantain beat in a mortar with bole armoni
dragons blood, barley meal and whites of eggs
lay it plasterwise on the sore let it ly on 14 hours.
Sometimes it will cure [cornes]
Mr Allen Gregory’s dog of Little Glen that was made
bit Tho: Coleman Joyner of Leicer in the arm & the dog
was [hang’d] the liver was fry’d & he eat it but he dy’d raving
mad afterwards. Eliz Brown of Leicer
Dr Mead for the bit of a mad dog
Rx lichen [cinereus] [terrestris] i.e. ground liverwort zi pouder’d
black pepper in pouder zfs mix em & give ziij every morning
for 3 mornings together in half a pint of cows milk. after this
has been done, let the patient go into a cold spring or river dipping
all over for one minute 3 or 4 times a week for 5 or 6 weeks. from
the Rd Mr Wm Babington & Cos. Shukbrugh Ashby. Perhaps dipping
in a tub of cold water if it be in the winter; may do first dip the
arms head & shoulders then go into it with the legs & breech for a minute
E. A.
Some Rxs for man bitten by a mad dog direct garlic bruis’d
6 cloves, scraped or fil’d pewter the weight of an ordinary pewter
spoon. Common treacle lbfs boyl ‘em all in a quart of strong
ale or strong beer till half is wasted then strain it & take
3 spoonfuls first & last while it lasts. If there is a wound
bind the ingredts strain’d out to the wound, let ‘em ly on 
a day or 2 if you can abide ‘em, when you can abide ‘em no
longer take ‘em off & wash the wound with milk or water
warm, & heat it with any salve. Wm Wyat of Adderston
for the biting of Adders. Dr Danvers anoint the place stinged with the 
juice that comes from shell snails prickt with a pin & bind on a snail unprickt
& drink the juice of plaintain. It is good for the biting of any 
venomous creature.



(296
Belching or wind in the stomach
Decer 1720 E. A. was much troubled with wind in his stomach
which by the pressure of his hand on the outside of his stomach
wou’d come out at h is mouth & vent itself by belching This afflicted
him (after he had cured his wind in the bowels by taking Davvy’s
elixir & grated rhubarb) he had no appetite to food & malt drink 
fill’d him with wind Dr Hartop call’d it the gout in the stomach 
The cure infuse in aniseed water double distill’d snakeweed root, contrayerva
& cinnamon Rx a little of it morn & night abt ½ a spoonful or 
a spoonful, less or more, as it agrees with you. fast 24 hours from
supper to supper without eating or drinking any thing between that
one meal in 24 hours except a little of the said infusion to support 
the spirits & the eating of what apples you will after you’ve warmed
em a little time by carrying em in the pocket when you eat Eat
plenty of mustard with meat drink at night beer & ale warm’d
with red hot iron & mixt which quantity agrees with you use exercise in
the open air walking riding running with fasting in 3 or 4 days 
the stomach will be sharpen’d & return You may take hippocacuana
zfs in fine pouder drinking it abt 3 hours after dinner with a galn
of warm water for a vomit or more Take this vomit before the
infusion drink red mountain wine after the infusion has been try’d
2 or 3 days to strengthen the stomach. Do not drink till the meal
is ended Let the ordinary drink be beer & ale warm’d with 
an hot iron E. A. Go to bed at 1st after exercise that you may 
sleep & fast a good while. Leave off tobacco till the tone of the stomach
is rectify’d & made fit for a right digestion. Eat no bread
with the meat when the stomach is out of order Eat a little bit of
cinnamon or drink a little of the infusion. E. A. To cure belching the
stomach & bowels troubled with wind gripes or colic or to strengthen
the stomach & prevent em. Eat salt with almost every thing 
you eat as milk pottage, butter milk, meat, bread or bread & cheese 
bread & butter verjuice or vinegar with meat & with bacon & eggs
This method by squeezing sevil oranges in the drink will cure when 
the apothecaries drugs will not E.A. Let the bread be masline (middling
fat) 1st with barlys peck. Let the drink be generally good small
beer or beer & ale mixt avoid very strong ale as breeding gout
& stone, if you’d be healthfull E.A.
For the wind colic Rx bay berries in powder zfs cummin
seed zfs in powder in beer and ale and milk or broth this
quantity makes 10 dozes take it morn and night Tho: [Finch]


297)



(298
mouth or gums sore
Roast an egg very hard, take only the yolk mix it
with loaf sugar in pouder & salt to a salve, with which rub
your gums & places that are sore Mrs Mary Grene.
another Rx sp. of wind 1 d as much liquid laudanu as
will make it of a brown color Take a drop or 2 in the
mouth & hold the tongue to the sore places 2 or 3 times
in a day. E. A. another Beat sal prunel to fine pouder 
& rub a canker’d or sore mouth there with pretty often & 
it will cure it. The Rd Mr Chambers. Hold your own urine
often especially night & morning in the mouth & force it thro 
your teeth backwards & forwards It will cure the gums when sore
& often the toothach when 100 medicines have been try’d in vain.
E. A. 
a water for a sore mouth Rx ground
ivy (gill) woodbine leaves, red sage, columbine, rue, cinquefoyl
(i.e 5 leav’d grass.) ribwort or lesser plantane (quinquenervia)
& violet leaves each an equal quantity. put em into water a quart
boyl it to a pint Then strain & add thereto 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the
best vinegar six cloves a little roch allum, as much English hony
as will sweeten it. set it on the fire again. Let them boyl together
3 or 4 Pater noster whiles. Mrs Fr. Bickerton
another Rx Borax & loaf sugar of both in fine pouder
sifted an equal quantity mixt in fresh butter that never had
salt in it. Rx a fine clean rag tyed upon a [illegible] Rub the sore
places soundly therewith Take plantane water sweeten it with hony
of roses & wash the mouth immediately with it cold. ibid.
To cure a canker in the nose, mouth, throat or any defluction
of rheum in any pt of the head or face.
Rx ouyl of days one pennyworth mix it with as much pouder of
bole as will make it of a thickness to spred on London brown
paper of the bigness of half the palm of a great hand Lay
upon the opening of the head (viz the sutures) cutting off the
hair close or shaving it off first (p. 235.) ibid
Cankers in young childrens mouths.
Rx hot hogs dung new fallen put to it oyl of spike mix em well together
apply this in blew paper to the chin & forehead of the
child Mrs Frances Bickerton.



299)
Cankers or sore mouth in man or horse
Rx goosegrease rub it on the forehead, under the chin
& jaws you may disguise it with bole ibid.
another Boyl hony or treacle with 5 or 6 sage leaves & a good
piece of burnt allum in pouder Rub the sores with it. Mrs Finch.
The canker in the mouth
Pound yarrow & strain it mix the juice with live hony & burnt
allum Dress it as oft as there is occasion Mrs Caulton.
another Rx a bit of green copperas wrap it up in a wet paper 
put it in the fire (wood embers are best) till it is red hot Let it cool
pound it fine mix it with goose grease Cut the hair off the crown of
the head Lay it on. Mrs Caulton.
another good for frosts or sore mouths in children or men
Heat a large pr of tongs red hot lay a piece of alum between
the bit of the tongs abt the bigness of a hazelnut set abt 
a little spoonful of hony in a coffee dish then pinch the allum
as hard as you can & let the moisture drop into the hony stir when 
together & rub the gums 2 or 3 times a day therewith This never
failed Sister Margaret Boothby. Keep the remaining dry burnt
alum for any other use.
Aqua camphorata is good to heal sore gums & fasten & preserve the
tooth. E. A.
another Burn a piece of white bread as black as coal, then pound it
in a mortar to pouder rub the sore gums with it dry. This never fail’d Wm
Headly



(300



301)



(302
for a wen.
Rx the foot & loosen some dust on a mud floor
new swept & spit some fasting spittle on the dust
& work em together like mortar & apply it & let 
it dry on. Renew it every morning till the wen comes
out or is wasted or broken so that a core comes out
then heal it with any plaster This cured a wen as big
as a pea on Sister Boothby’s upper eyelid. It came out
& was well without doing any thing at it more. A
blister arose & when prickt there came out a thing
like a pearl Sister Boothby. another Rx black soap
& unquench’d lime p.e. mix em well together spread em upon sheeps
leather apply it to the wen or any hard node or swelling & it will 
consume away by degrees. p: 17 Dr [Lowes] Rx [ceipts] etc.
Mud wall & fasting spittle temper’d together cured a knob upon a childs
eye at Newtown Linford that many people believ’d it would have in time
turn’d to a wen. The child was kin to Joyce Gimson E.A.’s servt It wasted away


303)



(304
Foot-racing.
Put a wheat or oat straw in your mouth when you run. Daily
exercise at running strengthens your legs, & back & improves
your breath Rx Hips before they are rotten & peel em
when they are thoro red. Lay the peels in a pot til they rot, then put
to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot Keep it till Lady Day, It will
be extremely sharp. mix one tea spoonful of this vinegar with a little
butter eat it & you will never want breath when you run Take it when
you eat It prevents heartburn & stitches which often are the cause of
losing a race & procures a good appetite Dr Richd Pool mountebank.
The racers in Stafford-shire eat chiefly roast mutton
they step out as if they were paceing when they walk, & when 
they run up hill they take great steps & pull up more slowly.
Wm Wyat.


305)



(306
The headach
Salmon says he has perfectly cured diseases of the 
head & old headachs of near 20 yrs standing with 
pilulae lunares, The lunar or silver pills p. 281. Salmons
Dispensatory. Decr [725] E.A.’s head aked very violently & 
was cured by eating only butter’d wheat with a little salt 
in’t without sugar or spice or drinking after it that day.
E.A. M.A.’s head had aked 2 or 3 days caused by wind which was
caused by eating fat chine which would not digest She 
was cured by burning 4 or 5 spoonfuls of double aniseed
water with sugar & eating a dry toast of brown 
bread after it to strengthen the stomach & walking 
often up & down a room when coffee & water gruel had
bin try’d in vain Febr. 4 715. E. A. another Mr Jn Edwin
of Baggrave was troubled with a violent headach Mr Coltman
the apothecary with a lancet blooded him in the vein that
goes up abt the middle of his forehead, this bleeding with a
lancet was repeated sometime afterwards once again & 
it made a perfect cure. Mr Coltman says that leeches can
not effect the cure but you may try or shave the head
& you may set leeches thereon. E. A. another Rx Portugal snuff 
at the nose going to bed or any time keeping in the house. Anne
Tasie. In the yr 718 E. A. had a violent pain on the top or crown
of his head especially when every he cough’d or sneez’d. He aply’d Bents
salve, Hungary water etc. in vain; at last Dr T. H. order’d him to shave
the sore place & to apply an emplaster of W. Ditch spred on leather 
which cured him in abt a month E. A. The headach or any stuffing or 
pain in the head. Rx white helebore root in pouder as snuff at night a little
before bed time that you may not take cold. This cured Mrs Hewet 
of Stretton & a maid there of, that had a pain in her head which she thought 
incurable but it made here nose bleed. Sister M.A. another moisten
the end of the little finger with oyl of cloves & thrust it up one or both
nostrils Try one 1st. It will make you sneeze your nose run & sometimes
cause a stool. It revives the spirits E. A. Another oyntmt of
alabaster is a specific for all sorts of headachs anointed on the forehead
temples, nostrils, pulses, soles of the feet & testicles. Salmon’s Disp.
a violent headach. Rx the herb called vervain & hang it abt your neck
Mrs Caulton


307)
The course flower of rie put into a cloth & apply’d
to the head cures inveterate headaches & so apply’d is
good for mad people Pechey’s Herbal.
E.A.’s wife (formerly Mrs Mary Majer) having been troubled with 
an inveterate headach for a long succession of yrs Drs & family
medicines having been try’d in vain was at last cured by applying
leeches two to the little finger & betwixt the little finger
& fourth finger any where they wou’d suck & a third leach to 
the middle finger near the joynt of the hand They caused
the blood to flow plentifully She intermitted a week or so
days having an itching [illegible] there like a tetter or scurvy
she repeated the leaches & bleed again abt the said places then for
a week every night to kill the itch she apply’d hot linnen rags dipt 
in old human urine made as hot as she cou’d endure it & so cur’d
her headach & itching [illegible] which last formerly had troubled her
for many summers Mary Ashby. Headach Rx sp. nitri dulcis 20 
or 30 drops in beer (cold) If it is so violent as to cause a fever
then take 50 or 60 drops in beef a coffee dish full or more
Mr. Geo. Pochin of Wigston Magna. A pain in the head Rx
plantain pound it with the urine of the diseased. make a plaster
& bind it upon the temples Pater Meus G.A. another shave the top
of the head & lay 2 blistering plasters one after another 
upon the [sutors] spred upon allum leather the breadth of a 
mans hand each neither of em draw’d any blister Then apply 
a cabbage leaf. This cured Tho. Allen of [????esworth] pump maker that 
was almost [illegible] with it Tho. Allen.
The juice of the leaves & flowers of cowslips mixt with an equal quantity 
of red cows milk cured an inveterate headach, when other medicines
wou’d do no good. Pechey’s Dispensatory. You may try cowslip tea. E. A. 
Culpeper says vervain made into an oyntmt is a soveraign remedy
for old headaches as also frenzies. It clears the skin & causes 
a lovely colour. Vervain (varbena) is reckon’d a specific for pains of the
head from what causes soever they proceed. Pechey. The distill’d water is apply’d 
outwardly to the head & four ounces are taken inwardly with few drops
of sp. of salt. Forestus says he knew two who were cured of the headach, only
by hanging the green herb abt their necks when many other medicines were
used to no purpose ibid.
For the headach snuff up a little pellitory of Spain in fine
powder dry’d easeth the headach. Traveller
unguentum diaphompholigos smeared upon the temples
causes res & eases the headach. Salmons Disp.
Headach and sore eyes. spread a plaster of burgundy
pitch abt the bigness of an half crown upon a piece of 
leather and shave the hair of the mile of your head and
apply and in a little time you will find ease when you are
well. you may take it off probatum.



(308
The Headach
E. A. when 76 yrs old had a pain in his head so that he could
not lean upon his head & neck to turn himself in bed nor strain
when exonerating in the privy, nor stoops down low with his
head but he felt a violent pain in his head which he thought was
caused by sleeping frequently after dinner He cured himself
by tying a garter or a fillet or Manchester [bending] [illegible] once abt
his head before he slept in the day time, & every night it was
tyed fast round his night cap going a little above his neck 
round his forehead which kept the vapours from ascending
when bleeding in the jugular vein & in the forehead would
not cure. He was very seldom troubled with any pain
in his head till he was so old & used to sleep after dinner
Headach Rx bay salt cummin seeds fennel seeds p.a
pouder them by themselves then make them up with red
rose vinegar to a plaster spread it on sheeps leather apply 
it to the slope of the neck and renew it when it is dry
Mrs Dorothy Pickern.


309)



(310
The Rickets in children.
An oyntmt Rx red sage, mugwort, crosswort, comfry root
or leaves, rue, balm, clary, each mij Pound em with may butter
free from salt lbij or bores grease lbij work it over every third
day for nine days together or make it into 2 balls & work em over
then melt (but not boyl) & strain it thro a cloth or sive. Let it stand
a fortnight then refine it by melting & straining it again & it will 
keep a long time. anoint the child all over every night for a month
by the fire especially the back & joints. Let it wear the same
shirt a month Bury it under ground when you have done You may 
wear an old shirt when you begin to anoint. Richd Kirk of
Kt thorp near Loughborough, a farrier & Jn Put a traveller


311)



(312
A Rupture.
Rx aniseed & sweet fennel seed each in pouder zfs. juniper berries zi
roots of comfry dry, mouse ear each zi starch zi mix & take zij when
you go to bed in a draught of new milk. Ex emplastru ad herniam 
zi empl. ½ bole zfs oyl of myrtles or for want of it oyl of unripe
olives q.s. f. emplastru molle. applicatur ad partem Dr Smith Senior
of Coventry. Tho. Poyner of Blocksage, near Walsal a markt
town in Stafford shire 4 m. beyond Bromingham 18 m. from 
Coventry 6 or 10 m. from Adderston a famous steel truss maker as
any in England pr. 15 d per truss. Wm Proud a Quaker in 
Spon street in Coventry makes steel trusses at 3 s 6 d per
truss. Cranes bill al. doves-foot (Geranium) an herb, dry’d
twice a day dissolves congeal’d blood, glutinates & stops blood,
heals ulcers in the lungs. The pouder of it taken zi at a time in 
red wine 1st & last for 30 or 40 days together cures ruptures
more especially if it be mixt with the pouder of brown or grey red snails.
you may find em in cellars
The eggshel is more effectual. Salmon’s Dispensatory. Cover
the boulster of the truss with long wool pull’d soft or carded & 
it will prevent its chafing especially in hot weather E.A. The
root of rest-harrow (al. cammock) anonidis radix in pouder or 
the essence often taken is good to consume the fleshy rupture called
hernia carnosa & the blind piles Salmon’s Dispensatory.
an oyntmt for a rupture Rx cochineal pr 1 d i.e. zijfs boyl it in
a pint of the strongest & stalest ale the staler the better & let it
gently simmer till it is turn’d to an oyntmt anoint it warm on the 
swelling agt the fire laying the child on its back & putting up
the rupture. you need not used a truss. It knits & contracts the swelling
alone without any help besides what it receives from hartshorn.
It will cure them of a dozen yrs old unless they are born Bursten
Give this strengthening drink boyl hartshorn shavings zfs in a 
qt of new milk till it is thick Let the child drink it constantly & 
anoint every night by the fire till the child is well. a midwife of
Burton 2 m from Kettering in North shire cures a great many children by this Rx Jn
Put a traveller when you are to travel a journey shave or clip off
all the hair abt the rupture & apply empl. de minio spread broad
on leather It is better than diaculum It prevents & cures chafing & 
galling E. A. seasonable coition gives ease to men having a rupture 



313)
A rupture Rx the yolks of 12 eggs & fry em alone
in a frying pan till they are black the miles They must
first be roasted in hot wood embers till the yolks are blew &
very hard. They must be roasted for half an hour & fry’d for
half an hour anoint the oyl (which you must keep for use) in the
morning daily make a plaster of turpentine & diaculum cum gumi
melted together & wear a truss Rx syrup of knotgrass. Drink ale
avoid beer that is very small & going up stairs & riding on a hard
trotting horse. Ly pretty much upon a couch in the day time Rx
juniper berries no 12 or sp of juniper 3 or 4 drops in ale. It is
good to correct wind which often causes a rupture. Rx em for a week or 
longer avoid eating fat meat or fruit or any thing that is windy when 
a rupture comes by a fall it is hard to cure Sister Shukbrugh. you 
may buy oyl of eggs at the apothecaries.
Dr Ed. Green the mountebank his red salve to cure a rupture or corns
Rx bees wax six drams, rosin 2 drams turpentine 1 dram red lead in 
fine pouder half a dram melt em in to a little round cakes or rolls
spred it upon allum leather for a rupture He sells a cake abt as
big as a crown piece but thicker for 6 d This salve cured Jn
[Cater’s] son George of Blaby of a rupture when a great many noted
medicines had been try’d in vain. He was abt 4 or 5 yrs old.
Mr Penford & E. A. It cured for a little time but wou’d not make a perfect
cure
a medicine for a rupture Rx the seeds of parsly, gromwell,
& burdock each zi & cummin seed zi beat all these to fine
pouder Give as much as will lie on a shilling in any liquid
& wear a truss. S. S. 
Doringtons diet drink for a rupture caus’d
by wind. Boyl these things in strong ale (beer & ale E. A.) anniseed
cummin seed caraway seed liquorish pouder coriander seed sweet
fennel seed long pepper & grains of paradiec with a few springs of
old man (al ladslove al southern wood) when these are boyled to the
tast sweeten it with treacle. Let it boyl up strain it out & give it
to the child to drink at any time. You need not fear a [lark], but
if it shou’d happen leave it off 2 days & keep warm. S. A.
a plaster for a rupture or the falling of the womb. Rx Pitch of Spain 2 ou. aloes
succotine red wax henbane each 2 ou. pitch of [shippers], mastick,
incense, galbanu, oppoponax (moline opoponax) gum [srespin]
(al. sagapen) each 4 ou. S. S.
Rupture when the swelling chafes wash it with hot butter milk
& moisten a little fullers earth with water spred it on a 
brown paper or linnen cloth. Drink 20 or 30 drops of balsamu
capivi in a qr of a pint of beer & ale night or morn
Keep the body open Mr Orme apothecary
James Flude of Croft had a great swelling like a rupture in
the privy pts being abt 60 yrs of age. It swell’d & broke & ran 
vastly He was like to have died, but was cured byu making a 
poultice of rose cakes boyled in ale & apply’d as hot as he 
could bear it with a little hogs lard twice a day. It is an ext poultis
for the Kings Evil Sister Boothby.


(314
There is no cure for a rupture without a truss & constant
keeping up. Let the child’s head be always layd low. It must
not eat nor suck too much at a time to fill the rutpure apply
a poultis agt the fire made of oatmeal that is small some children
are cured by rolling with a swathe made of new holland, [illegible]
truss is best. Give a pouder of flag roots & knotgrass apply the
rupture plaster to the broken place. Eat comfry & eggs fry’d
sometimes comfry in gruel. It must be kept dry by drawing 
in fresh rags betwixt the truss & swelling. Some are broken at the
groin & navel too, Put it up at the groin & it will swell at the
navel. Sister Ekins.
Yarrow al milfoil is good for ruptures. Pechey & Millers Herbals.
The starting of the navel has been cured in many children with a
cataplasm made with wine & the herb sanicle & bound close on, comfry
bruis’d being applied to the small of the back at the same time
Pecheys Herbal
Rupture in children cured by a Quaker woman in Nottingham
Rx prepar’d coral in pouder as much as will lie on a silver [groat] twice a
a week & no oftener for a child 3 yrs old in the morning fasting in 
milk or milk pottage, or beer. Continue it for ½ a yr or longer
till the child is well applying emplastru ad herman to the swelling.
Let the child drink mallow leaves & roots boyl’d in water & 
strain’d, for its constant drink except in the mornings when it
drinks milk. It quenches thirst. This cured Mr Tho. Charlton’s
son Tho. of a rupture. Coral is a brown white Cos. Margt Maxlo.
The bark of [elms] boil’d in ale wort & apply’d is good for ruptures
& to consolidate wounds Miller. The water in the bladders on the
leaves of Elms (clears the skin being wash’d with it) helps [burstenness] in 
children clothes being wet in the water & apply’d, but a truss must be kept
on also. Pechey’s Herbal.
A plaster for a rupture by E. A. Rx empl. ad herniam some patch grease from
the currier melt em together to the consistence of a salve Rx it from the fire & 
with a spoon add sp. of wine in which a good deal of camphor has been dissolv’d
& stir it abt till it is cold then spred it upon leather This did no good.
Electuarium ad Hernias An electuary agt ruptures quincy Rx pulp of
comfrey root zfs conserve of red roses zi pouder of blood stone finely
[levigated] zij dragons blood zi sugar of lead & balsam of Peru each zfs 
oul of cinnamon gut vi syrup of coral q.s. so make all into a smoth electuary.
This is a great strengthen & therefore may so draw up & harden the
solids as to reduce ruptures & very much prevent em.
Emplastrum ad herniam Quincy Rx of the glue made with snake skins
boil’d in a lixivium of tartar 4 ou. blood stone sugar of lead burnt tin
each ziij ammoniacum dissolv’d in vinegar 3 ou. [illegible] prodigiously consume


315)
it in all kinds of ruptures but the hydrocele (ie hernia agnosa)
& he says it is an infallible remedy observing a proper dist, which
must be strengthening, restringent, & not breeding flatulences; & it must
be constantly wore with [the] bandage Quincy says mastick plaster
strengthens the reins & sprain’d & luxated parts Try it.
Dr Fullers pouder in an hernia
Rx Solomon’s seal & comfrey roots anniseeds each zi make a pouder
It doth good by expelling wind, easing pains & consolidating the parts
Let a small child take 15 gr. thrice a day Let grown persons Rx zfs or
[illegible] ij with a draught of decoction of yarrow or Dr Fuller’s styptic decoction
Dr Fuller says a cataplasm of baked turnips is
ext for a tumour of the scrotum.
E. A. had a violent fever October 729 (a very sickly time) which caused a tumour
near the scrotum, emplastru ad herniam & several other things with a good
truss were try’d in vain at last he dipt a linnen rag in camphorated
S.V. made very strong of the camphir & apply’d it with a truss & 
ty’d a fillet to the wast band of his breeches & ty’d it abt his neck
to keep em up & it took away all pain & made the tumour abate If 
once a day moistening the rag is the S.V. [illegible] give ease You must [do] it twice a day
found out by E.A. but it would not make a perfect cure
Dr Fullers electuary in a rupture
Rx conserve of St Jns wort flowers 1 ou. pulp of comfry root (baked
in an oven with sugar lain upon loin) zfs The stone haematites (reduced
with S.V. on a marble to an alcohol) zij dragons blood in drops zi.
Sugar of saturn, balsam of Peru each zfs oil of anniseed, of sweet 
fennel seed each 2 drops syrup of cora 1 ou. or q.s. The dose is 2 or 3 drams
Dr Fullers astringent foment for a rupture etc.
Rx oak bark 2 ou. pomegranate peel zfs balaustines, red roses dry’d each
mi boil in [illegible] 2 qts to 1 qt strain & add rough red wine ½ pint so there
may also be added alum zij or zfs It corrugates the [relax’d] [fibres]
strengthens their tone shuts up the external pores & straitens the
internal passages hinders the afflux of humours & repels them It is good
in the beginning of inflamations & in oedematous tumours vomiting,
diarrhoea, immoderate flux of the menses or haemorrhoids, falling out
of the womb or intestines & in ruptures, after the putting back of the
guts ibid
Dr Fullers plaster of balaustines. This elegant salve he says mightily 
corroborates & comforts the head, stomach abdomen & uterus It is good
for a rupture Rx galbanum strain’s zifs pouder’d mastick ziij 1 [ounce]
turpentine zfs hard pitch [illegible] ij work em together in a warm mortar adding
oil of mace 15 gr. pouder’d balaustines 45 gr. Bring all to a plaster artificially
Pomet says common spirit of salt that which is right & good is much used
in hernias apoplexies scurvy of the teeth & gum Dose is from 10 
to 20 or 30 drops in ale or beer & ale or in water
The decoction of the leaves & root of common mouse-ear (auricula muris) drunken 
doth cure & heal all wounds both inward & outward & also ruptures. R. D. & Pechey
says it stops fluxes, is vulnerary & cures childrens ruptures.
The round birthwort (aristolochia) is profitable for all such as are hurt or bursten
inwardly if it be given em to drink with water. R.D.


(316
To kill rats or mice
Rx crow figs at nux vomica (nuces vomica) Hold one at a time 
in a hand vice grate it with a rasp or a tin grater, but the other
is best abt 3 or 4 grated are enough to dress 2 or 3 barns or more
mix it with sugar of six pence per lb with a knife Then Rx good sack
[illegible] brandy & sheep water made of tobacco stalks or dust ratsbane 
& allum & water & salt It must have no brine in’t each a qr of a 
pint The sheep water makes em very thirsty aqua fortis 2 d malmsey 
wine ½ a pint pr 8 d Put the aq. fortis in to the bottle (made of glass
that will hold a qt) with a little sweet ale wort before it is mixt with 
hops Rats hate bitter things & love whatever tastes sweet Rx yellow
arsnic zii pr. 4 d white arsnic al. ratsbane zi pr. 2 d mercury sublimate
zfs pr. 4 d stibium pr. 3 d w. sugar candy zfs pounded with 
the w. arsnic Let all be pouder’d fine Put abt half of the
poysons & pouder to the liquids in the bottle & the rest mix with sugar
6 d per lb & liquor out of the bottle & the finest wheat flower till it 
is as thick as batter for pankakes or thicker that it will not run If it
runs you must add more flower spred it 8 or 9 inches in length
on the side piece & his breadth of the side piece on each side each 
barn & on the wall plates where the corn is below the wall plate
The more sorts & variety of poysons the better They deceive & kill
with more certainty The variety of scents tempts em to taste of it
as a novelty If they run upon it they naturally lick their feet
which kills em They drink & swell & die. They frequent the side trees
more than the wall plates. The Tatham of Enderby & a ratcatcher 
of Newport [Pagriel].
To kill mice mix crow figs grated to pouder with butter & hard
cheese scrap’d & put into a box with a hole at each end for
mice to in & out at so that no dog may get to the poyson,. ibid
Wm [Ellis] ratcatcher of [Scauby] where [illegible] Maltrop justice of
the peace lives 1 m ½ from [Brig] a market town in Lincoln shire
[illegible] [illegible] bate Rx the best baking apples that are of a pleasant pure
taste such as are the best for apple tarts pare & core em Put no sugar
to em weight abt lbfs in a pot after it comes hot out of the oven or
you may stew em in a sauce pan as you do for goose sauce
putting 3 or 4 spoonfuls of water to em (sugar doth harm in poyson
it offends the rats) Rx [roseacre] al [illegible] etc. yellow arnick 
ziiij in fine pouder stir it with a flat stick lay the quantity of a
pea or a horse bean on the wall plates or side [illegible] or spred it
where the runs look black They lick their feet & tayle both which
wipe off the dust & make the wood look black spred the medicine
abt 3 inches broad & abt 2 f long in a place that they cannot jump


317)
jump over it. You must not lay it where there is dust
there they do not come. where the cobwebs are broken
there they come. Rub it abt the holes on the inside on the thatch
If they lick their feet or tayls they die. Sometimes mix it with
mallow pair that is dead rotten Wm Ellis.
To kill rats. make a toast of wheaten bread, dip it in ale
strew it on white fine sugar Let em eat that. The next night
after they have eaten it make anew toast, dip it in ale strew
it on white ratsbane in fine pouder & upon that w. sugar. Take
away what they feed on to keep em hungry. This was lay’d in 
a chamber where their run was. Jn Randle of East Farnham in 
Northampton-shire kill’d 30 rats that he found dead the next day.
He was not troubled for 6 yrs after Yod may divide the toast
into 2 or 3 pts. The toasts were lay’d in March. White arsnick
has the least scent Wm Rost of Blaby.
The root of white helebore in pouder mixt with oat meal or sugar or apples
will kill rats Jn Dawson farrier of Leicer
A malster of Bitterswet drove rats quite away form his malt
house by burning brimstone & assafoetida Jn Mason E. A.’s t’nt.
To kill rats or mice or cats or dogs or hogs or any creature that eats it
Tho. Fardel gardiner of leicer
Rx currans pound or chop em fresh bane that has no salt in it [illegible] oatmeal
sifted with the fine flower brown sugar ratsbane[illegible] pouder mix & work it with a knife like paste, then
lay it in clean oyster shels or on a clean [illegible] board a little in a place where 
the rats haunt or come often. Lay 10 or 20 pieces or separate pts not all in 
one place. He bought ratsbane 2 d & kill’d 200 rats in one house at Harborow
Leicershire. Lay it where cats cannot come for they will eat it.
He lay’d it in 20 pts
another for Do. Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel Rx fresh butter that
has no salt in it mix it with the fine flower of oatmeal sifted mix white
arsnic with it in fine pouder. They will take white sooner than yellow arsnic
another Toast some new milk cheese or fat cream cheese a little to make it
smell a little piece abt the length from the middle joint of the middle finger
to the end crumble it like bread crumbs with white arsnic 2.9 or a [cake]
This kills all rats & mice take care to lay it where no hogs, dogs
cats or children come. You may put it into mice holes. Tho. Goode gardinr
another Roast some apples & mix the pap with some white arsenic & Rx
away all the chees if they be in a cheese chamber & lay it upon a board
one apple is enough for to kill one or 2 rats. The rats eat most of the
pap of an apple & ratsbane made very fine the 1st night lay’d by Ann
Queniborow of [A?ston] Liecershire
another mix [illegible] ratsbane with white sugar perhaps it may be a good
way to pound em in a mortar together Put in but a small quantity
of ratsbane to a good quantity of sugar Lay it in oyster
shels in malt houses of granaries This kill’d so many rats at
Rushden that they stank intolerably when dead. Cos. Tho. Ekins
or Jn [Dahm??] lay ½ ratsbane ½ oat meal on [illegible] [illegible] broken [illegible] ratsbane 1 d
in [illegible] or the [illegible] where the rats come on [illegible] pieces in [illegible] [illegible]
mix w. arsenic with loaf sugar Dr [Banker] 


(318
To set a rasor [a rasor or razor
novacula, culter tonsorius
Rub the stone clean with a cloth then pour a little 
oyl on’t not too much, if in the winter hold it on the 
hone agt the fire to dissolve then move the rasor lay’d
level & lightly on the hone turning it sometimes on
one side & sometimes on the other not observing to harm
or wear each side equally alike till towards the last
that you are preparing to give it a fine round edge which
is the best & most durable edge. The way to get a round
edge is this after you’ve whet the rasor as at 1st draw the 
edge cross the middle of the tumb & you’l feel it
rake agt the nail & move unsteadily which signifies
that the edge has nicks in’t or is threded than you must
whet it again as at st carelessly moving the rasor so that the
edge may move 1st & towards the body moving it round
till the edge lay’d lightly on the middle of the thumb nail
draws smooth without any rub. If it draws rough you must 
set it again & again till it draws smooth when it draws smooth
on the nail then you then you must give it a round edge You
must lean a little more upon the edge then on the back the
back not touching the hone turning it exactly on each side
alternately & draw the back 1st as you do when you set it
on a leather or strop then look with a pr of spectacles on 
each side of the edge of the rasor & you will discover
whether there is any thred on the edge if there is you must
set it again as you did last time for a round edge. At Sheffield
the Prentices when they are almost out of their time 
set rasors & use spectacles to discover the goodness of the 
rasors edge. when you use a strop or leather or hand you must
bear a little or most on the edge which makes the edge round 
& durable & takes off all threds. a hard hand is best It must
be clean & dry & free from oyl & grease. a hard hand is
better than leather If you rub it on the leather or strop, rub
it on the hand last viz the edge on the edge & fleshy pt
of the hand between the little finger & wrist. Let a bad rasor
lie by & be eaton with rust & it will improve it. Rust eats the 


319)
Soft & bad pt of the steel out rasor ginder a
traveller
How to set a rasor James Davis white smith of Croft
Let the back & heel of the rasor move 1st on the hone
laying the rasor flat & lean gently at the beginning & ‘
end of the movemt & heaviest in the middle of the 
movemt either on hone or leather or strop & sometimes
slide the point of the rasor up the stone 1st to the handle of
the rasor & so let the point move 1st back again, keeping the
rasor always flat This cross motion takes & keeps off the
thred well. The last movemt giveth the finest edge. You 
may move the edge 1st at last to finish the edge on the
hone if you will. move the edge of the rasor upon the
hone always 1st & at last move it cross ways i.e. letting
the heel & sometimes move 1st backwards & forwards 3 or 
4 times together Sometimes move the point 1st back wards
& forwards 3 or 4 times together Let the back of the
rasor always touch the hone 1st i.e. before the edge
touches it. you may move the back of the rasor 1st 
at 1st but you must finish the edge with the edge moving
1st on the hone. you must lean gently on the 
stone or leather when you are abt finishing the edge 
To finish an edge make short strokes or movemts at
last either on hone or leather
Oyl a strop or piece of calf’s leather so as to make it
drunk with oyl & oyl it as oft as you use it or grease
it 1st with soft grease at last with oyl. warm the leather
& work the grease in agt the fire till it will drink up
no more & the leather feels very limber & pliable The
older the leather the better a piece of leather like a boot 
garter is better than a strop fixt on wood. warm the leather
when you use it in cold weather Let the back & heel of the 
rasor move first on the leather st fro the left then back
again from the right hand to the left turning the side of
the rasor at the end of each movemt when you’ve done so 3 or 
4 times or often as you think convenient then move the
point & back of the rasor 1st from the left to the right & 
back again 3 or 4 times. move it sometimes with the point 



(320
1st sometimes with the heel 1st but conclude &
finish the edge with the point always 1st The 
leather gives a fine edge then the hone & must be
used after it always. when a rasor wants grinding
(i.e. when the edge will not bend lay’d side ways & prest on the 
thumbnail) tho you set it on the best hones & oyl’d leather
it will not have a good sharp edge to cut well ibid
Thomas Sheth the barber moves the rasor carelessly at
1st in a round motion with the edge first always turning it
lying on its back or the back touching the hone upon 
the turn after a little time he turns each side alternately
the edge moving always 1st but when he thinks he
has set it enough he moves the back 1st for a turn or
2 to take off the thred the back as well as edge always
touching the hone exactly alike except upon the
turn. But no hone will give a fine edge without a rub
or 2 upon an oyl’d leather or hand then you must hold
the back from the leather letting only the edge gently 
touch it alternately This takes off the thred & gives it
a fine smooth edge He commends a piece of buff
rub’d with the leather of the wash ball as the best leather
Richard Chapman barber at Leicer moves the edge of the
rasor always 1st (affirming that drawing the back 1st will not
set it or give it a good edge) he lays the rasor exactly flat
upon the hone so that the edge & back always touch the hone
& he leans equally upon both & equally on both sies he 
moves two strokes on each side before he turns the rasor & 
he says you may shave with a rasor set on an hone without rubbing
on a leather or hand but he generally rubs it on a strop
or buff belt He always scrapes the strop or leather with the
back of the rasor before he sets the edge on it to take off its
glaze or foulness whether it is caus’d by oyl or the leather
of the wash [ball] he makes his wash balls all of sope To set a
rasor on a strop or leather after you’ve scrap’d it clean with the
back keep the edge always to the leather never letting the back


321)
touch the leather & move the back always 1st
or you will cut the leather or strop This takes the
thred from the edge you may hold the middle of the
blade of the rasor in the hand while you 1st it on a
leather sometimes after grinding a rasor doth not come to 
a good edge till it has been on the hone 5 or 6 times Draw the 
rasor edge gently cross the thumbnail breadthwise to take
off the thred.
Burstal lutler & rasor grinder of Leicer that was apprentice
at Burmingham. Lay the rasor flat upon the hone
& move the edge forwards in a kind of a semicircle to 
each side the 1swt stroke for the point the 2nd for the heel
turn the rasor & repeat the same 2 strokes nimbly on the other side
the edge always moving 1st you must not lean at all upon the
rasor its own weight must set it & each side must be turn’d
equally alike that a true wail may go on both side the edge of
the rasor (tho E. A. has seen a good edge tho the wayl has bin bigger
on one side than the other) Burstal applys only the edge 
of the rasor to a strop or leather the back never touching it
he generally only rubs in on his leather apron a stroke or 2 to 
take off the thred. He can see a thred so he seldom draws it cross
his thumbnail. a soft hone is best because quickest but a 
hard hone gives the finest edge
E. A.’s little burnt hone with an hole at the end sets the finest
edge on a rasor of all his hones a London strop the glaze & 
dirt 1st scrap’d off with the back of the rasor gives the finest edge 
of all E. A.’s strops or leathers August 1st 718
when a rasor has a thick dull edge & has not been grun of a long
time. Put some paper abt the little end to h old it streight & steddy
then hold the rasor near the end of the handle without griping it 
hard & move it 10 times on one side (the edge moving forwards) & 
10 times on the other laying it very flat Repeat this 2 or 3 times
then move it 5 times, 4 times, thrice, twice, & once of a side then bear
it on the edge lightly, turning it every time & make it take up some
oyl all along the edge Try it on the hand when it cuts well then apply it
to the strop or leather & draw it gently on the strop bearing a little on
the edge one stroke on a side alternately July 719 E. A. You must bear 


(322
most on the edge of a penknife both on the hone & strop
E. A. To set a rasor move it on the hone with the edge first on 
both sides for a pretty while then draw the back forwards on both
sides alternately letting the edge touch the hone (strop or hand) as 
gently & lightly as ever you can move it thus a good time together
& it will lose its dull edge & put on a very fine smooth cutting
edge which will make it shave with pleasure. Lay the rasor flat to 
touch the hone or strop or hand both back & edge at once but bear
the edge gently let it touch as if it touched not. This is the mystery
of setting a rasor or penknife to carry em lightly (slowly or nimbly)
taking care that the edge touches always. whet the point of the rasor
most because it is most used. September 719. E. A. It is a material article
in setting a rasor to let the back of the rasor touch the hone or strop
first Br. S. A. To whet a rasor on the hand Lay it flat & lean gently 
at the beginning and end of each movemt & lean hard in the middle E.A.
To set a rasor on a strop or leather Lay it flat & draw that end of
the rasor that is next the handle always first turn it & let the back
move 1st always & lean very hard on the rasor on both sides or
turns or movemts with an equal hard pressure of the edge constantly 
agt the strop or leather E. A. This is the reason some men can
shave so long without setting a rasor on a hone ibid.
Sometimes this method will set a dull rasor well on a hone Let the
edge move 1st towards the body & lean lightly & let the edge return
1st back again leaning pretty hard. E. A.
To set a rasor the best way lay the rasor always flat upon the hone
with a gentle even pressure on both sides [illegible] upon the strop but on leather
or fleshy pt of the hand that will yield let only the edge of the rasor touch em the
back being always holden up pretty remote from em & move the rasor always from end to end Tho. Tafte & E. A.
lean hard on the hand or loose leather because they will [play] ibid.
another Rx a pretty long hone let one end rest on a table holding
the other obliquely & exalted with the hand then move the edge of
the rasor (lay’d flat) from the bottom of the hone to the top so that the
edge of the rasor may smooth & carry the oyl along with it apparently
to be seen on the edge Then on the edge of a table place the middle
of the hone & exalt the end of the hone remotest from the hand that
holds the hone & let the edge on the other side of the rasor move back
again ascending so that the edge may take oyl from the hone the rasor
being lay’d exactly flat The mutual elevation of the ends of 
the hone keeps the edge of the rasor always & truly to the hone E. A.
To set a rasor [half??] farmer rasor maker at Leicer Rx Three hones 
the first that you set the rasor on must be very soft & wear the
rasor pretty much the second must be somewhat harder than the 1st 
& the third must be the hardest of all to give the finest edge


323)
You must lean the hardest on the first hone
keeping the rasor always flat so that the back
& the edge may always touch & with an equal pressure
This you must do on all the hones only you must
lean lighter on the second hone than on the first & lightest
of all on the last fine hone that must have only the
weight of the rasor & then you need never use a strop
or leather You must make the rasor’s edge always
move first & turn it on the back that the other side
may return back again with the edge first The cutlers 
& rasor setters use only sevil oyl. always have plenty 
of oyl when you set a rasor on the hones or you can’t
set the rasor well. Let the hones lie on a tine square 
pan with a little edge & a little kind of a box in the
middle to receive the oyl cover’d with tin that has many 
holes in’t for the oyl to run thro. with this oyl the cutlers
oyl their shoes. when you let the rasor on the first 
hone after you’ve whet it a pretty while draw the edge
of the rasor gently agt the edge of the thumbnail whet it again
& do so a second time but no oftener on the 1st hone This takes off the
threds & prepares it for a fine edge Mr Halford farmer draws the
edge of the rasor down the edge of the left thumb during the
setting twice on the 2 first hones sometimes oftener seldom on 
the last hone It doth not dull the edge of the rasor It discovers
nicks & removes threds from the edge The smooth & pleasant running
of the edge of the rasor on the edge of the tumb declares
the goodness of the rasors edge The smoother it runs the better it
will cut. No barber or cutler can set a rasor with only one hone
to give it so sharp & durable an edge as he that sets it on three
hones of different degrees of hardness or softness.
when you are to set a dullish rasor move it 20 times on one side
all together & 20 times on the other all together on the hone
beginning at the point of the rasor whetting only an inch from
the point 1st then whet an inch further & so an inch till all the
rasor is whetted inch by inch 20 times on a side then whet it
10 times inch by inch on a side Lastly turn the rasor alternately 
& draw it the whole length from heel to point leaning gently 
on it move it so gentlhy that hyou may be sure to keep the rasor always 
flat the edge & back to touch exactly alike with the same
weight & pressure.
Rub a little oyl on the inside the edge of the hand after you’ve
set the rasor on the 3 hones drawing the back first on one side
then o n the other an inch at a time from the point laying the rasor
flat till you’ve whetted it inch by inch on both sides This gives the 


(324
rasor a sweet, fine strong pleasing edge much superior to any 
edge the hone can give E. A.
when you are to set a rasor after it is new ground lay it flat
& lean very lightly on the hone & lightly on the hand for
then the edge is thin when it h as been us’d a pretty while lean
a little harder on the rasor when the hone or hand Thomas
Tafte. To make any rasor or penknife cut with a fine edge
If the rasor is very dull let it be ground. If it does not want
grinding then lay it flat on the hone & move it the length
of the hone 1st on one side then on the other turning the rasor 
always on the back This whets both sides equally alike Then
begin at the point of the rasor & move only abt a barly corn’s
length downwards gradually till you come to the handle turning
it on the back alternately, the edge moving always 1st when you
have whetted down to the handle (which must hold the rasor fast with 
a piece of paper or rag) whet back again from the handle to 
the point turning on the back every barly corns length, leaning
lightly. Then whet it on the hand & finger moving the back always 
1st & leaning most on the edge a broad side at one movemt or stroke 
Lastly begin at the point & whet down gradually little by little
keeping the edge to the fleshy pt of the hand & turning the rasor
nimbly on both sides till you come to the handle & so whet it from
the handle to the point gradually back again letting only the edge touch
the hand gently all the time. when you’ve done thus then draw 
the edge on both sides gently agt the soft swelling flesh that
is on the back of the hand betwixt the thumb & forefinger when
squeez’d close together This gives the finest edge that a rasor is capable
of & brings the edge of a penknife to perfection E. A. You may 
get a smith or carpenter to whet the rasor on a hard hand & afterwards
you may whet it on your own soft hand or on a female
hand E. A.
Jn Hacket cutler of Melton Mowbray his way of setting a rasor
Put plenty of sallet oyl on the hone new oyl is better than old fasten the
small end of the rasor with a piece of paper to make it steddy then lay it
flat upon the hone & with a steddy hand without shaking or tattering
draw the rasor back that it may move 1st several times in a round 
motion from one end of the hone to the other almost leaning
very hard on a hone that is sharp & wears away the rasor pretty much
viz on a soft hone then turn the other side & move the back forward
several times in a round motion. Do thus again & again alternately
till it comes to an edge which you may know by trying it agt the skin of
your hand at the ball of hour forefinger Then hold the rasor almost perpendicular
a little on one side & scrape the edge of the handle
to the point agt the nail of the 2nd finger or thumb of the left hand 


325)
one way to thred or turn the edge all along one way
(moving the back always 1st threds the edge & moving
the edge 1st on the hone takes the thred & brings a fine edge
on) after you’ve thred the edge move the rasor lay’d flat
on the hone always 1st in a circular motion abt 6 storkes on
one side then lay it exactly flat again & move the edge on
the other side 1st abt 6 strokes in a circular motion & so alternately
till it is sharp Then upon the fine hard hone move the
edge 1st 3 or 4 strokes on a side Lastly sweeten & round the edge
on the fleshy pt of your left hand below your little finger turning
the edge mostly to the h and one stroke on one side & another on 
the other side vice versa leaning lightly on the hand. Lay the 
narrowest pt of the rasor next the handle flat upon the hone
draw the edge first towards your body the length of the hone
exalting the hand all the way gradually to the point of the rasor
Do the same thing back again the edge moving first from the handle
draw it along the hone to the point raising the rasor all the way & 
move it upon the very point sometimes on both sides This keeps the
edge of the rasor always to the hone & gives it the sweetest & most
durable edge Move the rasor so on the edge of the soft hand the back always
moving first & draw it from the heel to the point & exalting
the hand to make the heel of the rasor rise up gradually to the very point
you may try if the back of the rasor always moved first on the hone
does not finish an edge as well as the edge moving always first 
Thus finish a penknife by drawing it from the handle to the point
& make the stampt or markt end advance gradually to the point as
you draw it on the hone or hand or strop.
Let the rasor be never so well set when you trim if you do not gripe it
hard so as to hold it steddy it will quickly lose its edge
& not trim half so fast nor so close A loose way of holding it
makes it slide over the hair without cutting E.A.
To set a rasor (the best way) Lay it flat upon a hard fine hone
& move it backwards & forwards without turning taking care
to keep the edge to the hone (as well as the back) whetting only one
pt of the edge at a time Then turn the other side laying it flat
& move it forwards & backwards without turning 4 or 5 times together
at 1st leaning hardest at 1st at last turn it every movemt
on the back the edge moving 1st up & down leaning then very 
lightly E. A. Lay the hone flat upon a table laying a paper or rag 
under it to keep it steady. E. A. Jn Kendal a traveller his way to set a 
rasor Put a little oyl on the hone made very clean. Lay the rasor flat leaning
not very hard move the edge always first in a circular motion from 
one end of the hone to the other for a good while together Then remember
this for a rule that you always turn the rasor from the back as often as hyou 
turn it That preserves the edge very much which a little touch awry disturbs 
& dulls Then whet it as much on the other side after the same manner At last
turn it every movement the edge going first Rub it a little gently on your wrist
or hand. Hold a human hair between your left thumb and finger If the rasor will
cut it off a qr of an inch from the end of your thumb on any pt of the edge then the
edge is good. You may over hone a rasor i.e. make the edge too thin Thus whet a
penknife lay it flat move the edge first circularly Turn on the back whet a lancet circularly


(326
A finger prickt with a nail or pin
anoint it with oyl of turpentine or with oyl of 
turp. & goose grease & hold it agt the fire ready 
to burn it. Repeat this thrice in 24 hours. EA. another
almost scaled it in hot water after that squeeze out the
blood & apply Bents salve to’t or de minio. This will cure
a whitloe also. Anne Tasie.


327)



(328
Toe-nail eating into the flesh.
Cut the nail short on that side it eats into the flesh & 
moisten a little lint with tincture of myrrh & thrust
it betwixt the nail & flesh E. A. or cut off the offending
pt of the nail & dead flesh & moisten it with oyl of origanu 
with lint or without E.A. or mix Haines’s salve for a corn
or Dr Pool’s black salve with a little lint E. A. If these dry
too much put tallow to the sore to supple it. ibid. or put hony to 
a little lint and apply it E.A.




(330
nodes, knobs or hard swellings to dissolve.
anoint with oyl of origanum morning & evening, it will take
a splint away, but not presently or prick thro the skin with a 
needle fixt in a stick, in several places then rub oyl of peter
allover it & heat it with a hot fire shovel, do thus 4 or 5 days
together p. 264. The experienc’d farrier


331)



(332
Diabetes
Rx Balm of Gilead 5 or 6 drops in D.R.L. sugar night & morning
This cured a gentlewoman known to Mrs Lathwell.
The water at Bristol is ext to drink
The water in which quick lime has been slacked poured off when it
is clear & drank is an ext sweetener of the blood & is accounted
one of the best remedies in a diabetes Dr Quincy.
swelling in the cod or scrotum. Anoint with ointment of
marshmallows Thomas Mortimore of Narboro


333)
To set a penknife on a hone or to whet it
on a rag or other whetstone
Rx the penknife & hold the back towards you or the
edge upon the hone & whet the left i.e. the markt side
most, letting the edge & back lie flat & both touch the
hone or rag & now & then draw only the edge on the
right or contrary side on the hone to take off the thred 
not suffering the [illegible] at any time to touch the hone & on that
side this gives a round & durable edge Mr Jonathan Buckerfield
writing master & Cos. Tho. Boothby.
To give an ordinary knife as a butchers knife etc. a
fine edge to take off a sheep skin or to cut a feather
whet it upon a thrashold free from nails or a board
with ashes or smith scales This gives it a finer edge than 
a rag or any whetstone but a steel will give it a fine
edge but it is difficult to understand how to whet on
Jn Cater shepherd To whet a knife on a steel. move the
back always 1st taking care to turn the edge so that the edge may 
always touch on both sies 1st on one side then on the other & the
thicker & duller the edge the harder you must lean on it when the edge
is extraordinary thick whet it on a stare or thashold or board to 
thin it. Steel gives a fine edge. Some butchers can’t learn to whet
a knife on a steel some steels cost 3 s 6 d & some but 1 s 2 d Richd Brew
in Butcher
To whet a pen knife Halford farmers way who serv’d his
apprenticeship to a rasor make at London
Bear the back of the knife always from the hone that only the
edge may touch beginning with the point lay’d on the right side & 
push it forwards & backwards [illegible] length till you’ve whetted from the point down 
to the handle as if the knife was to creep down the hone then you must turn
the other side of the knife & move gradually backwards & forwards i.e. whet
it in a straight line to & fro with a short stroke from the handle to the point
again & so from the point to the handle & vice versa till you’ve made
the edge sharp. this short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
the edge sharp. This short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
sides touch the hone. when you’ve done thus then draw the edge after the
same way on the fleshy pt or edge of the hand whetting from the point
to the handle & from the handle to the point on the contrary side Lastly 
draw the edge gently on both sides agt the soft flesh that is on the back
side the hand betwixt the finger & thumb they being both prest together 
this gives the finest edge that is both to rasor & penknife. E.A.


(334
To fix a knife blade in a handle
Beat some brick to fine pouder on a stone or on another
brick with a hammer & bruise some rosin (black or yellow) to
a course pouder then put the pouders mixt (take most brick dust)
& fill the hollow of the handle then heat the tang of the blade
& twist it in to the bottom, as far as it can go Let it rest till
the next day then you may use it. Wm Davis white smith


335)



(336
Things that loosen the body when too costive
Eat one China orange whole viz peel, meat & seed It opens
& cools & is good to carry off gravel perhaps continued for
a week together they may help cure the scurvy E. A. oatmeal 
pudding posset drink especially with mallow leaves boyl’d in
it. new milk whey new made & warm Ride after It is
a great cleanser of the body after a purge or the bark
it carrys away gravel. Comfrey root dry’d & beaten to pouder
take night & morning Mr Traps. Lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d or
ziij mixt with conserve of (red) roses pr. 2 d or zvi Rx a knife’s
pointful night & morning It will gently open the body & is good
for a cough & consumption & a weak or decaying body.  This
cured Tho. Tafte a smith that cou’d scarce go a hightone. To keep
the body soluble. Rx common treacle a [hapworth] abt a spoonfuls
posset drink made of beer & ale as much as you can 
drink at a draught. Pater Meus. A gentle purge Rx sena zfs
rhubarb in pouder as much as will lie on a shilling, raisins of
the sun stoned no 40 fennel seeds & aniseeds bruis’d each
a spoonful, a stick of liquorish sliced, a rase of ginger slicd
abt 6 or 7 cloves. Boyl ale a qt. & scum it then put all
these things into it let em infuse all night Rx it at twice or
thrice ibid a violent cough. Mrs Catharine [Narolove] Rx Raysins
of the sun stoned zij brown sugar candy zi conserve of red roses
zfs spirit of vitriol gut. 12. Tincture of sulphur gut. 6 Beat all these
together into an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg night & morning & 
oftener if you have occasion Another scoop an hole in an apple 
(pretty large) to get out most of the core ift it with brown sugar 
candy & roast it stopping it with some of the same apple that the
scoop brought out, then mix it with clarret like apple & milk.
This cured Mrs Anna Maris Stokes after blooding Dr Cheselden.
A gentle purge Rx flower of brimstone abt ½ a spoonful put
it in a gally pot & just cover it with oyl of turpentine so let it
stand 24 hours or longer you may pour off the oyl if any will
run off for any other use Put the brimstone into a porringer
of new milk from the cow or boyl em together & drink it in
the morning fasting It will give you one stool or 2 E. A. It will
purge with only the oyl of turpentine E. A.
another which it reckon’d the best of purges & the best of medicines.
Hiera picra simplex. Rx cinnamon, mace assarabacca spikenard
mastick saffron each zvi alloes succotrine 12 ou ½ Beat em into fine 


337)
pouder & keep it for your use in a dry place.
Rx 1 ou. ½ of this pouder & put it into a pint of double
(single E.A) anniseed water Put it into a bottle & stop it close
& set it in the sun 10 days shaking it every day when you 
use it Pour off abt 1 ou. of the clear & take it going to bed or
after it S.S. Dr Salman says in affects of the stomach, mesentery, 
liver, womb, head & joynts it is exct if made into 
an electuary with clarified honey lbiv ziij. Dose a zij to iij in 
worm wood, rhenish wine with syrup of mugwort compound
& cure the green sickness. Dr Quincy says its bitterness hinders it
from being taken in the form of a bole & its quantity is too 
much for pills for 1 taking Its use now is only to make the 
tinctura sacra. E. A. thinks the tinctura sacra is best made
without Venice treacle or mithridate only with good w. wine
decanting off only the clear. To open the body Rx milk boyl 
it, add bread household or white cut smallish add ale a little, when
it is in the porringer stir it & eat it. you may take water in which 
maligo raysins have been steept 8 or 10 days without stalks
in stead of ale. E. A.
An ext purge to cleanse the bowels of slime & corruption
Rx Daffy’s elixir (made with single aniseed water) over night one 
spoonful the next morning take 2 spoonfuls mixt with sena zij
pr 3 d in very fine pouder sifted & abt a spoonful or 2 of common
treacle Repeat this intermitting a week betwixt purge & purge
thrice a dose for a man you may take less the 1st time This was found
out by E. A. Rx manna zfs fresh oyl if sweet almonds a sufficient 
quantity dissolve it add rosewater ten drops mix it Let children 
lick of this often to loosen their bellies when there is occasion Pecheys Herbal.
Manna is used to loosen the body 2 or 3 ou. of it being dissolv’d in 
broth or whey Tis a very gentle purge & may be safely given to old
men children & women with child A proper purge for children Rx manna
zifs dissolve it in black cherry water ziifs add to it f the purging syrup
of apple zi spirit of sulphur 3 drops. Half of it may be taken at a time
ibid If a purge doth not work in [3] hours after it is taken and to make it work
gently without griping. Boil some new milk with a sliced onion in it then Rx out
the onion & add the yolk of an egg & w. bread a little when it is off the fire, sweeten
it with treacle you may put in a little nutmeg E.A. via p. 338.
Mr Wm Freer of Blaby September 1730 had a looseness & after that a violent
costiveness with gripes which lasted a week purges that were strong would move 
him nor comon glyster at last Jn Smith of Do. made a suppository of alum 
& oil’d it & thrust it up his [illegible] then set his breech over a close in which 
was a good deal of hot water This gave him a little stool It was repeated
but produced no effect Mr Cook apothecary sent him a very long glyster 
[pipe] & a glyster made of milk oatmeal turpentine mixt with yolk of an
egg oil of turpentine a good quantity which gave him several stools which
smelt very strong of turpentine & he mended quickly


(338
To prevent a purge from griping
Quincy says oil of camomile is chiefly used to correct purges 
& it is sometimes given as a carminative in boles a drop or
2 at a dose * it does often suddenly remove those flatus’s which 
occasion stitches & pains of the side
Dr Fuller’s dispensatory says If powder’d crabs eyes be given
in water gruel during the operation of a purge ‘twill prevent 
griping p. 455. Dissolve a little flakey manna in beer ale or water
& mix it with your purge & it will prevent its griping E. A.


339)



(340
To dry up a sore, especially near a joynt
to prevent the joynt-water
Rx oyl of myrrh )not per deliquium) 3 d per dram or for want thereof tincture
of myrrh (but the oyl is 10 times better) & oyl of turpentine
p.e. mix em in the palm of your hand with haris fire or for want
thereof with lint or cotton & apply it to the sore or wound once 
dressing commonly cures Dr Pool mountebank.
How to dress & cure any sore.
Rx bees wax [4] ounces, (a groats worth) of turpentine horse turp. 3 ou. neatsfoot
oyl & hony of the 3 last a like quantity, but somewhat more 
of the wax than of any of the other things scrape the wax & set em
all on the fire Let em boyl a pretty while then pour em thro a 
course cloth into some clean vessel & put some water
to’t so you may keep it as long as you will
To make allum water Rx allum zij hony ziij sage leaves mij
boyl em in water 3 pints till one is wasted & the water is green
wash the sore well with this water warm after you’ve wash’d it
cast into the sore a good deal of loaf sugar Dress it morning
& evening & by the grace of God it will cure any sore that is
Geo. Ashby (Pater Meus) Mr Penford the apothecary syas sugar does
but little good it is not us’d by the surgeons pouder sugar pr. 8 d
per lb is best he says Venice turpentine is best for a sore but loaf
sugar double refin’d is best to keep down proud flesh because of the allum & lime E.A.
Mrs Davenport of Wigston Magna cured sore legs with this 
Rx following when many surgeons cou’d not.
Rx white vitriol frankincense, bean flower each 2 ounces bole
4 ou. in pouder Boyl em in spring water 3 quarts till a pint is consumed
dress the sore with the water as warm as new milk.
A rare water for a sore Rx camphir zij white copperas zij
beat em in a mortar together then boyl em together in an earthen
pot Let it stand till it be cold close stopt then take it out & 
beat it again with bole zi Then boyl spring water a qt. Put the
above named pouders into it stirring it till it be cold then bottle it
& keep it close stopt for your use. Pater Meus.
To dry up an obstinate sore in the leg Put quick lime lbs into an 
earthen pan or pot Pour upon it rain or river water 3 qts stir it together
when it is slack’d let it settle & decant all the clear water from 
the sedimt & if it is not perfectly clear filtrate it thro cup paper
To a pint of this water put abt [illegible] ij of corrosive sublimate more
or less according as you can bear it when you use it dip a linnen cloth 
2 or 3 times doubled in the water first shaking the bottle & apply it
to the pt affected as often as it grows dry. Dress the sore with this salve


341)
Salve, viz Rx linimt arcai zi basilicon zij mixt S.S.
Mrs Newlove of Blaby had a sore on her leg that the surgeons
could not cure till she took the Jesuits bark then it healed presently 
MRs Newlove
Clem. Brooks labourer of Blaby healed an old sore on his leg with only 
bees wax & butter p. e. boyled together when a great many healing salves 
were bafled & could not make a cure. C. B.
The itching of a sore or [illegible] wound dress it with the mercury lime water
p. 340. or with weapon salve i.e. bacon fry’d & the fat poured into 
water to extract the salt. E. A.
Dr Salmon says tar both drys & heals It draws worms out of the flesh.
It cures a broken skin It cures sores not easie to heal. Family Dictionary.
Widow Tasie of Newtown Linford had a running sore on her leg
with 4 holes in it 1) on the middle of the calf 2) on the skin etc. she
could not rest night nor day Jo. Warner (having marry’d her daughter)
the smith of Narborow, cured it thus. He made allu posset of new milk,
he wash’d it with the whey as hot as she cou’d endure it at night & lay’d
the posset curd on a cloth & that was apply’d to each sore as hot as
she coud abide it The next morning it was drest with unguentum [popul??]
warm’d & tents made of lint dipt in it & at noon with ung. popularum
That it was draft every night with allu posset & every day with the oyntmt 
at first twice a day because it run very much when the sores were dry he drest
em at last with only the oyntmt once a day in was cured in abt 6 weeks
& continues new very well She was then abt 75 yrs old. Jane Tasie.
He apply’d the oyntmt in the morn & again abt noon. ibid
To dry up a sore on the leg. Rx Solomons seal, the leaves, mij 
pound it & take the juice, grease or hogs lard free from salt,
the quantity of four walnuts, bees wax the quantity of 
two little nutmegs. Slice the wax & boyl em a pretty while to 
incorporate. This cured a travellers leg of a sore that had try’d
a great many Drs & surgeons in vain. Clem. Brooks & old
Ann Brooks another Drink cow piss, it has cured
a very sore leg. Drink it in May a good draught ½ a pint 
(or a pint if you can) 9 mornings together omit 9 days & 
drink it again. This cured a sore leg of a person that had spent
[illegible] among surgeons in vain. Sister Boothby. It hath cured 
the Kings Evil when these have been nine holes in one leg
when the surgeons cured the Evil It broke out again but
cow piss made a perfect cure Mrs Lathwell.
Br Geo. Ashby of Quenby had such a great swelling in his legs that 
the flesh did hang over his shoes He was cured by eating one clove
of garlic every morning fasting for a pretty while together G. A.



(342
To draw out a thorn. apply a plaster of turpentine
or Bents salve but these are mighty drawers & 
will not agree with all flesh sometimes they make the legs
swell & uneasie being strong drawers but this happens but
seldom but when it does or to take away the pain of a 
prick of a thorn mix oyl of turpentine & goose grease & 
anoint therewith then apply a plaster of diacutu simplex 
or the last may do alone. vid. The book of the cures
of horses by E. A. Jn Wood of Odeby had a great swelling on 
his hand caus’d by the prick of a thorn having tried many things in 
vain it was cured at last by oyntmt of marshmallows. Dr Hely
commends sope & the June bark of green elder mix together cold & 
apply’d plasterwise to a swelling caus’d by Do Mrs Basset commonly 
sp of wine for Do all these failed The king when the prick of a thorn 
caus’d a great swelling & numbness that he coul’d not bend his finger
It was cured at last by being cut open by a surgeon a plaster of Paracelsus T.K. Dr Salmon
commends emplastru stiticum a plaster agt puncutres, but says Paracelsus
plaster is better Dr Page of Lutterworth cut open T. kings finger to let out the 
congeal’d corruption It was healed with aqua aluminosa warme & cover’d with Paracelsus
savin mixt with hony will cleanse old foul ulcers & is effectual
in curing any running sores Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory.
A boy had a thorn in his thumb which he cou’d not extract. It was swel’d
as big as 3 mens thumbs. Currans & sallet oyl were pounded together in 
a morter to a salve & apply’d & it drew out a great core with the thorn
along with it. He liv’d in Warwickshire 6 m from Banbury Mrs Newlove
for a pricking with a thorn. Markham’s Rx
Stamp groundsel, soothe it with sweet milk till it be thick, then temper it with 
black sope & lay it to the sore.
Let ale be boyled to a salve or rather ale wort boyl’d to a salve then add turpentine
& a little oyl of turpentine & boyl em again This seldom fails drawing
out a thorn with a needle open the orifice abt the thorn I have known
when this has been apply’d 24 hours an emplaster of Bents salve has extracted
the thorn from a finger and so that it was easily pull’d out with a finger 
& thumb. E. A. 
for a pricking of a thorn
Rx violet leaves mi stamp em add wheat bran one handful & bears grease
al Browns grease as much as will make it a poltis when boyl’d apply it as
hot as you can endure it. The accomplisht ladys delight in Physick & Chirurgery.
To draw out a thorn or the like. Culpeper’s Last Legacy p. 222.
a little piece of the tongue of a fox (moisten’d & made soft with vinegar
if it be too dry) applied to the place, draws out a thorn or any thing else
that is gotten deep into the flesh another ibid. Snails with shells or without
beaten with rennet & applied plasterwise will draw out any thorn
or any thing else that is gotten never so deep into the flesh. ibid



343)
To pull out a thorn, splinter, or shiver.
If it may be seen pull it out with a pair of nippers or pick it out with a needle. But if
there be such a swelling that it can’t be seen then Rx wormwood. Pellitory
of the wall, bearsfoot, hogs grease & hony boil em & apply em
as a poltis or plaster, very hot. It is an ext remedy for any swelling
also. So is wine lees, wheat flour & cummin seed bruised & boyl’d together
& when it is at a head lance it. The epistomy of this art of this can dry
To draw out a thorn
Rx a little black soup & chew some nut kernels to mix with the soap & lay it
on the place grieved repeat it till the thorn comes out & you find [ease]. p. 62.
a collection of Rxs in Physick & Surgery.
Some lay gum ammoniack al. ammoniacum in a suppurative & that
it will of itself draw out thorns or splinters Quincy
another Rx Black soap & Venice turpentine perhaps horse turpentine may 
do p.e. mix & work em together near the fire to make em incorporate
Henry Watkinson cow [illegible] of Leicer
Geo. Brooks of Blaby had a thorn struck into one of the sinews or guides
of his finger on the back of his hand It was swell’d very much & pain’d
him mightily having been in a long time Jn Smith the blacksmith there
cured him thus He let him blood on the contrary arm to cool his body & 
to prevent humours flowing to the sore then he cut off the head of the
swelling but could not see the thorn he dry’d up the blood which was but little & rub’d on it
some tincture of myrrh having made a hollow placed with this [lancet] & put some into the place where the thorn was
then he put a little dry [illegible] verdigrise in fine pouder & cover’d it with emplastru
de minio It put him to violent pain The tincture of myrrh which he pourde into the 
hollow place made the verdigrise take more effectually & corrected in some degree its 
corrosive quality It lay on abt 2 days ½ He was resolv’d it should lie on till it
cored the thorn out which it did at last with a great piece of flesh & the thorn sticking
at the end of it then he healed it with his green salve leaving out rosin & tar
& putting in hony & camphorate sp. of wine & a little tincture of myrrh which last
was only used once or twice J. Smith G. B’s hand was poultis’d often before Jn Smith undertook
Jn Knight E. A’s shepherd had a thorn pretty long struck into the fleshy pt of his
thumb Mr Coy cut the skin upon & with a needle pickt out the thorn then he heated
some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon & poured a drop or 2 into the sore
place as hot as he could abide it & wrapt a linnen rag abt it & it was well without
doing any thing more at it at one dressing.
Galbanum doth mollifie & soften & draweth forth thorns, splinters or shivers & cold humours
& is good to be lay’d on all cold tumours & swellings, & it is mixt with all ointmts oils
& plasters that have power or virtue to warm, to digest, to dissolve, to ripen & break [impos???]
& to draw out thorns & splinters R.D.
Birthwort (aristolochia) draweth forth splinters of broken bones, shafts & 
darts, thorns if it be lay’d to the place with pitch or rosin. [illegible] & R. D.
Elizth Hurst E. A’s servt. Apr. 1730 had a thorn struck into her ancle as
she was burning em at a wood fire E. A. could not perceive with a needle that
the thorn remain’d in the ancle but it was a violent pain to her he drest
it with oil of turpentine made very hot & apply’d empl. adhesivum which 
sticks & draws that gave her ease for the present but after an hour or 2 the 
pain return’d, she thought the plaster drew too much It was taken off & drest
with tincture of myrrh & the Italian plaster (a sort of diaculum) that gives cure to a
corn was rub’d with tinct of myrrh & apply’d in vain She went lame at night the ancle
was [rub’d] with oil of turpentine a long time & [illegible] moisten’d in the same [was] lay’d on’t It cured it



(344
To catch moles.
Take a live mole (he or she) sew up the arsehole or anus
with a strong brown thread & put her into the run in the
ground again & she will firk & hunt all the molse out of
the ground which you may easily kill Carter mole catcher & rat
catcher


345)



(346
To provoke sweat.
Rx strong ale a qt or better one nutmeg grated common treacle
lbfs boyl em & drink it al thrice in 3 hours very warm
in bed laying a good many cloaths on you at night or you
may sweat in the morning. You must keep warm one day
after sweating lest you catch cold This try’d but once cured 
Jn Smith of Blaby of a great cold & pain in his thigh.
Jn Smith & Rd Mr Stokes. another Rx a two arm’d cane-chair
& fix a flat pewter or tin callander under the bottom of
it then put into a mortar Fr. brandy a qt having a good fire
in the chimny strip your self stark naked & cover your body & 
head in a blanket [ayred] sit over this brandy set on fire under
the chair & have cloaths to rub you with having brandy or 
cordial waters ready to take when you faint away you may drink
rosemary or sage posset drink made with ale during the sweating
This cured Mr Johnson (the father of Jn Ashby’s wife) of sore
eyes & blindness having been dark for 3 months caused by 
a cold taken by lying in a ground room at Roterdam
where the water came into his bed English Dr & Mrs Ashby.
Carduus is used commonly in posset drink to promote sweating,
& by taking a large quantity the stomach is cleansed by vomiting [illegible]
contrayerva called drakena radix from Sr Francis Drake, is an ext remedy 
agt all poyson except sublimate. It expels worms & cures agues.
This is a sweating medicine & expels malignity. Rx of the pouder of the
roots of contrayerva, Virginian snakeweed, & butter-bur each zi of
cochineal & saffron each zfs mix em & make a pouder The dose is zfs in 
sage posset drink or treacle water or any other convenient vehicle. Pechey’s Herbal
To promote a sweat.
Rx sp. of sal armoniac per se gut 28 or 30 in a glass of any wine,
not in ale. It is better than antimonium diaphoreticum Mr Banker
another Rx antimonium diaphoreticum gr. 4 or 5 mixt with Venice
treacle zi or zifs pr. 1 d at night going to bed cover’d with a weight 
of cloaths with out drinking any thing. The next morning eat
& drink what you will. ibid. Quincy says diaphoretic antimony, may be
given from zfs to zfs at a dose & may be repeated 2 or 3 times in a day
for several days together without hurt. It must be kept close from the air
or it will be emetick. It is given [with] alexiphas [micks] in malignant fevers & 
in the small pox & measles & also in scorbutic & venereal diseases to sweeten 
& cleanse the blood. Febry 1729. My Sister Boothby by having a fever with 
a rash had this compound cordial draught with [gasromis] powder p’scrib’d
her by Dr Cheselden to promote a sweat pr 1 s 6 d Mr Orme appothecary


347)
Rx milk-water treacle water each zifs [illegible] powder [illegible] fs sp:
of lavender 15 drops, syrup of balsam ziii mix & make it into a draught
to promote a sweat.
To cause a man to sweat Let a man take surfeit [illegible]
made with poppies & distill’d from aniseed [illegible] with liquorish [illegible] 3 or 4 
spoonfulls being drank at night with 2 thirds of an ounce of
Venice treacle or methridate going to bed or in bed covering him
self warm. Sister Boothby. A gentlewoman that lived to four [illegible]
every night going to bed drank a spoon full or 2 of 
surfeit water made of poppies for a great many yrs together Sister
Boothby
Dr Cheshire says opium & its preparations in any 
form promotes the operations of sudorificks, rarefies
the blood, allays pains & makes remedies less offensive
to weak & decay’d stomachs: Tho’ I would not be understood 
always to encourage the administration of this
sovereign article to all patients indifferently since I
know that even one drop of laud. liq. given to some
persons shall bring on convulsions & violently 
affect the nervs that periodical histerick disorders 
shall be excited for many days. And under the miserable
circumstances nothing is of more expeditious & 
certain relief than blisters & cupping with scarification 
with a glass of mint=water with 30 drops of 
tincture castor, russ & xv spt. salis. volat. [oleof.] at
proper intervals. If the pains are so very sharp as to 
prevent sleep at night 20 drops of Sydenham’s liquid
laudanum may be taken in a glass of sack or [palm???].
If 20 drops should not be sufficient to procure
rest an advance may be made to 25 or 30 drops at
discretion. But one great inconveniency, which attends
the repeated use of opiates is a loss of appetite;
a misfortune which should if possable be guarded agt
To provoke a sweat to cure a pain in the bones or cold or cough Rx syrup
of saffron 3 d treacle water 3 d when you begin to sweat drink sage
tea white wine possett drink or sack whey. Mr Simon Stokes of [Hinckly]
from Sr Hans [Slone].






(350
a preparation of steel
Rx white wine a qt filings of steel zij (Fuller says 
those of iron are much better) cinnamon zi Rd Mr
Ed Stokes. The dose is 3 spoonfuls when 1st prepar’d
when old take a less quantity in beer, ale or posset
drink ibid


351)



(352
Deafness or ear pained.
Pound the leaves of gill squeeze out the juice then take the most
reezed bacon you can get, toast it agt the fire let it drop
into the juice so that you must have a little more juice than
fat then heat & stir em well together At night going to bed, lie
on the contrary ear & having melted the medicine let 2 or 3 
drops be dropt into the pain’d or deaf ear putting a little black
wool new pull’d from a sheeps belly & moisten’d a little with the
oyntmt be cram’d into the ear, wear it 2 or 3 days repeat it
twice if the ear is not cured It will fetch out ear-was & 
blood This cured Mrs Mason by a Dr at Stamford pr. 2 [guins]
This cured also Nicholas Tasie of Sheepshead N.T. another oyl of
fennel seed dropt in to the ears helps deafness. Salmon’s disp
The almonds of the ears swell’d Rx saffron 2 d lay it on the
hearth to dry & rub it to pouder mix [well] it with as much crown sope
as the quantity of 2 hasel-nuts with a knife, lay it from the root of
the ear to the throat spred on a bit of allum’d leather Mrs Caulton
Rulandus’s balsam of sulphur eases pains in the ears if dropt
into them. Salmon’s Disp. Deafness Rx Black wool from a live
sheeps belly or cod heat a drop or 2 of brandy in a spoon & dip 
the wool in it & put it into the deaf ear as the wool drys moisten it
again once or twice a day & wear it 2 or 3 weeks or longer till well
This cured Jn Coter shepherd after a great many medicines had been 
try’d in vain. Ann Tasie. Cold brandy will disorder the head & oyl
of bitter almonds tho good when heated, used cold often make the
hearing worse. E. A
A pain or noise in the ear Rx a little wool or an old linnen rag
moisten it with oyl of turpentine, you may tie a thred to it to pull
it out by. Thrust it into the year at night going to bed. you may 
take it out when well. Take care of catching cold after it. This cured
Mrs Catherine Newlove & Ann Tasie.
Spirit of castor mixt with oyl of amber & oyl of ben of each
a like quantity helps deafness & thick hearing Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The almonds of the ears swell’d Lay melilot plaster on 
the crown of the head shaved it helps to draw em drink Jews ears
boild in milk very hot stroke them up with your hands Mrs
Eliz Brown of Leicer Ear pain’d Dip some black wool now pul’d from the
sheep in a little aq vita or brandy warm’d in a spoon put it into the ear at night
when you are in bed & ly on the contrary ear Mrs Brown of Leicer


353)
Mr Jn Simson’s wife going crazd swallowd a brass thimble the
open end downwards it stuck in her throat Mr Wilks [surgeon] got it out
with an instrumt but she dy’d the next day Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer


(354
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh
Augt 718 E. A. had a corn cut out with a lancet by a mountebank
which taken up by the roots & cured by one plaster but he cut another
corn on the outside that toe which is next the little toe & half
the corn was left behind when the remainder was drawn out by 
a slave there bred a fungus E. A. try’d sope & the inner rind of 
elder another time mercury sublimate mix with unguentu dialthaea
which tho it lay on but 3 or 4 hours corroded the sore * made it look
black & caused a great pain to ease which E. A. ty’d on fat bacon & 
sometimes ung. dialthaea but it was made easie by Dr Bowles’s
family salve but the fungus was not remov’d (precipitate & 
honey did good) till a feather cut sharp at the point was moisten’d with
clear oyl of vitriol (not that which was black) & streak’d on the fungus & 
a plaster of family salve lay’d on’t which was done twice or thrice
once a day which clear’d the fungus & heal’d it It was touch’d with vitriol 
stone till it look’d blew which caus’d a great pain but wou’d not stir
or diminish the fungus sp. v. & oyl of vitriol wou’d move the fungus
E. A. Scald it with basilicon clip or cut it Mr Cook apothecary mix praecipitate
& burnt allum p.e. with basilicon dress it morn & night E. A
If you once miss dressing till it is clearly eradicated it will grow
foul & encrease again E. A. another bath it with allum posset whey 
very warm with a rag & lay the curd on a cloth & strew on the curd
burnt allum & apply it warm Let it lie on 24 hours. It will keep 
down any proud flesh or strew on diaculum burnt allu Tho. Freer
blacksmith of Desford & Ann Tasie.
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh or to core
out a quitter bone or a great crak in a horses heel
or [illegible] out a core
Rx horse turpentine put it in a pot set it near the fire 
to melt then add some fr. verdigrise in fine pouder
mix ‘em till they are of a fine green colour. Let it lie
on 24 hours or 30 till it cores out clear If you apply 
it to a horse for a crack bind it on with flax [hards]
& beggars [inkle] after it has lay on one night you 
may work the horse at plow when the core is come out
wash it with verjuice Tho. Tafte blacksmith & farrier
another To bring out a core or thick gummy, glewy white corruption
that sticks fast to a sore that often happens to the thumbs or
ends of the fingers & often near their guides that contract 
em They are a sort of sitfasts
Rx flax hards at the end of a [scourer] or probe twisted round it & turn
it round the callous substance it will lick off corruption better than dry
lint or cotton then put some fresh verdigrise in fine pouder a little 


355)
at a time into clean writing paper that is ript in the middle so
that you may shake as much over the core or fungus as will lightly
& thinly cover it Then lay some dry lint upon it & ty a clean rag
over that so let it rest 48 hours or longer till the core or fungus will 
come out clear tho it pains you all the time very much that you can’t sleep 
a nights It is most painful at 1st mixing it with any ointmt or salve destroys its
detersive & loosening virtue Jn Smith black smith & farrier of Blaby
Detersive medicines, medicamenta detersive detersonia such as cleanse the body or a
sore from viscous humours. They are us’d in ulcers that have any fungus, callosity
or any luxuriant flesh in em, which is an impedimt to their cure & when this is taken
away the common balsamicks, digestives, sarcoticks & cicatrizes are to be us’d.
Dr Radcliff’s detersives. agyptiacum ung. apostolorum aq. phagedenica (ex
aq. calc. cum mercur: sublimate mist. Rx crude alum, verdigrease each zij
boil em in 18 ou. of wine make a decoction. Rx white vitriol 2 out. alum, verdigrease
each zij strong vinegar 3 ou. calcine em make a pouder make it up with
unguentum agyptiacum into an ointmt Rx burnt alum zi basilicon q.s. make an
ointmt Rx red precipitate zfs compound ointmt of basilicon q.s. make an ointmt
vid Pharmacopoeia Radcliffiana p. 380.
Precipitate in pouder & dropt on a core or fungus dry & then cover’d with
dry lint will loosen & cleanse it, it is much better & more powerful than burnt
alum. Mr Peter Cheselden surgeon & Mr Coltman apothecary & surgeon for a slight
core or fungus you may mix it with basilicon.
Peak of Keam in Leicershire a famous farrier used nothing but oil 
of origanum to dislodge a fungus or root out a core Dr Cheselden  sometimes
he mixt [illegible] aq. fortis or oil of vitriol with it oil of origanum [qualified] [illegible] [illegible]
Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel says pour basilicon boiling hot on a 
fungur or sitfast & it will core it out if it does not loosen it in 4 or 5 
days you must repeat it It must be us’d thus only to horse flesh, it will be 
too severe for humane flesh to endure
Euphorbium is very useful in surgery in cleansing very foul ulcers & 
exfoliating of carious bones Quincy Rx euphorbium zfs in pouder boil
it in 3 ou. of oil of turpentine then take it off & add [20] drops of oil of
vitriol boil it agn till it is a deep brown colour. Pour off the clear & keep
it close stopt moisten the fungus with it & heat in with a hot iron Try 
this whether it will loosen & cleanse E. A.
Dr Salmon’s pouder for ulcers & to remove a fungus
Rx scammony in pouder 4 ou. aloes in pouder 2 ou. coloquintida in pouder 1 ou.
mix em. It is a powerful thing for the curing of ulcers It diminishes their heat,
drys up their superfluous humidities, quels their cancerous malignity & eases
their pain. It cleanses even contumacious ulcers, as also wounds, removes a fungus
as also dead flesh from them & disposes them to a speedy healing [Ars] Chirurgica
p. 320.
To take off a fungus Rx. basilicon the quantity of a hazelnut oil of turpentine
abt ½ a tea spoonful melt em in a spoon & apply it as hot as
the patient can endure it, if the fungus does not loosen, strew on some 
burn alum in pouder then apply basilicon & oil of turp. Joyce Gimson they
cured Jn Hewets shin hurt by iron [geers] on horseback an unlucky marl carrying
him among a team of horses


(356
Goody Mason of Leir gets off a fungus with her red lead salve done
on as hot as the patient can endure it (but not to scald) & apply’d for a 
long time if that does not do she strews on it burnt alum in pouder dry 
then covers it with her r. lead salve but if burnt alum is not strong enough
then she beats raw alum to pouder & strew’d that on that causes a great pain few
man can endure it above 6 hours, dry burnt alum is painful but not so bad
as the raw alum. You may try raw alum mixt with basilicon & oil of turpentine. 
This red salve mixt with butter that has no salt in it in time will loosen a fungus
keep down all proud flesh from breeding in a sore.
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh burn oyster shels in a 
very hot fire the hotter the better as in a fire of charcoal, sea coal or a 
smith’s fire burn em twice makes em he stronger then beat em to pouder & 
strew a little dry on a fungus or proud flesh & it will eat it away without pain 
It is stronger than lime. It is very probable Goody Blackhorn of Armsby uses
this who is famous for curing sores. Robt Watherig farrier of Burbache.
for a wound or old sore. Br S. A. heat oil of turp. till it begins to smoke
then Rx it from the fire or it will take fire put it into an orifice of a wound or
sore almost scalding hot. It loosens cak’d corruption or a fungus it reaches
to the bottom & cleans a sore
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh or a sitfast
(Goody Ann Blackhorn of Arnsby) without pain.
Rx some oyster shells new are best, scrape & wash em very clean then
steep em in aqua vitae 24 hours or longer then lay em upon wood embers
till they are red hot or very well burnt then take em out of the 
fire & when cold scrape off the outside & pound the remainder to 
pouder which keep in a glass close stopt when you’ve occasion strew a 
little on the sore or fungus or proud flesh & it will clean the sore without 
paining the patient. This & Goody Blackhorn’s salve cured Sam.
Exon’s finger when cut with an axe to the bone & was foul in a little time. She said
dressing the finger end where it was cut with only sp. of wine camphorated
or with spirits would make the finger end drop off.
Richd Brewin butcher of Blaby cut one of his middle fingers to the
bone with a hook carrying it in his hands behind him in harvest time
in the yr 1730 It bled most violently It was stopt by letting the blood 
drop upon r. vitriol in pouder in a pot which stopt the bleeding immediately
& it was cured with E. A.’s red lead salve melted with a little may butter
that never had salt in it hot oil of turpentine would not stop the bleeding 
It never ran any corruption or but very little & 3 plasters cured it
tho the guide of the finger was cut he sometimes put his h and into 
the warm bowels of a sheep new kill’d cured by E. A.


357)


(358
The bleeding piles.
Rx sp. of sulphur 6 or 8 drops in a little sugar every night
when you go to bed till well. Mrs Caulton 2 or 3 times taking
cures ibid
To cure all sorts of piles, if they be never so bad.
Rx houseleek mi skin the leaves, then put them in a pint of
claret. Let em infuse an hour or more by the fire being covered
close. You must beat the houseleek well in a bole
or marble mortar before you put it to the clarret when it hath
infused put it in a close-stool or pot very hot & sit close over
it keeping in all the steam, 2 or 3 times a day till well. Take care
to keep yourself warm that you do not get cold after it. This cures
for ever says Mrs Caulton. The piles Rx the root or leaf or crocus i.e.
the bigger sort of [crowflower] mi pound it in may butter & make
it into a ball Let it stand a fortnight. work it inside outside once in 
2 days then melt & strain & keep it for use. It takes off the pain & swelling 
anointing every night Jn Put a traveller from Rowel. It will blister [illegible] another a gentm
that had been long troubled with piles suppos’d to be caus’d by the
costiveness of his body was advis’d by his Dr to smoke betony 
& swallow his spittle & to lessen the nauseousness he us’d to
put an innocent lozenge in to his mouth which dissolving
there carry’d the spittle into his stomach which open’d
& cool’d his body & cured his piles Rd Mr Ed. Stokes.
another Bath the fundamt evening & morning with linseed 
oul for the piles. Pater Meus. another Rx Box mi boyl it in a pint of 
milk & drink it in the morning You may continue drinking it as long
as you please. S. S. April 1722 E. A. had the piles, he thought
they were caused by drinking cold water when he had a great cold or by 
violently coughing or by eating plenty of sweet things in order to 
cure his cough. E. A. It might be caus’d by riding much.
Mrs Dorothy Boothby of [Retters] Marston her pile oyntmt
Rx mullen, sage, plantane, grounsel each mi boyle em in fresh butter lbi
a pretty while, then strain & stir it till cool. Sister Boothby.
In April 1722 E. A. having the piles found benefit by oyl of turp.
& goose grease when sp. v made too strong of oyl of vitriol would do
no good but oyl of turp. & crab verjuice with a little tincture
of myrrh made without aloes did more good. Such tincture of 
myrrh alone did much good This oyntmt did most good of
all E. A.’s medicines. Rx sope horse turpentine, hony, train oyl, tincture
of myrrh & as much Jamaica pepper in fine pouder as will bring 


359)
is to the consistence of an oyntmt after it has
been made 3 or 4 weeks beat it with a knife or flat
stick in the pot if you have room or on a trancher or marble
or slate & the sope will readily dissolve & be indiscernable
first dip your middle finger in oyl of turp. & verjuice with 
which moisten the outside of the piles & the inside of the anus. stay 
a little time for that to operate then dip the said finger in the brown
oyntmt & moisten the piles & anus within & 2 or 3 times a day without drinking
milk, in which flower of brimstone has been boyled, once or twice
a day. This oyntmt was found out for the piles by E. A. & 
made a cure when oyntmt of mullein sold by the apothecaries Venice
treacle & grease ol. succini, liquid laudanu unguentu populeum 
sal armoniac prescrib’d by Mr Clowes apothecary woud do no
service.
Anthony Daffy’s elixir salutis has cured the piles when given over
a incurable says Daffy’s printed paper Let the first dose be one
spoonful over night & another at uprising in the morning & so let
the dose be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if your strength will
permit till it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to 
exceed, use exercise after it Rx a mess of broth or something warm
an hour after the morning dose. Leave off taking if you find any 
inconvenience
To prevent the pile. anoint sometimes especially when you are to ride with 
mullen oyntmt E. A.
The gravel or piles or when both come together Rx sperma ceti 
sal prunel each zi flower of brimstone zifs pound em together & 
mix em well together Divide it into 9 parts Rx 1 night & morning Mrs
Caulton. A salve for the piles Rx May butter unsalted
clarifie it in the sun taking form it the milk. Rx some of it some 
virgins was boyl em then put in a little lump of sugar double refin’d
dissolv’d in rose water when it is cold put it into a pot you may keep
it as long as hyou please Mrs Caulton & Alice Hollins.
To cure bleeding piles or any inward bleeding
Rx often nettle tea. Dry keen nettles in the summer & keep em for use
in the winter Cos Tho. Ekins.
Dry piles. Rx fullers earth put gold water to it as you do to get out a
spot of grease & apply it often lay’d on a rag or cap paper Mrs Ann Lathwell. mix a little flower of
brimstone with syrup of violets in a spoon almost to fill it eat that in the morning ibid
fotus haemorrhoidalis a fermentation for the hemorroids or piles
Rx hounds tongue plantain, yarrow, elder leaves each miv. pomagranate
peels zi boil in water & rough red wine each 3 pints to 4 In the straind
liquor dissolve alum zfs sugar of lead zij. This not only checks the immoderate
flux of the hemorrhoidal veins, but also an immoderate flux
of the menses. but the following is most serviceable in the dry piles 
Rx onions, linseed each 4 ou. henbane, night shade yarrow, houseleek 
each mij boil in cong. 1 of water to lbiv & in the strain’d liquor dissolve of
the best opiu zij. where there is much heat & pain, if the part is bath’d with 


(360
this pretty warm. it will soon give ease & so supple & relax
the parts, as to breath out a great deal of ill humours by transpiration
& leave them soft & easie. Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory from Fuller.
Linimentum Haemorrhoidale a liniment agt the piles Rx oil of roses
2 ou. empl. de minio zi white eax zfs when they are melted together stir
in [aetiops] mineralis zij opium & saffron each zi & make into a smooth linimt
according to art. Linimentum another Rx unguentum populneum 
zi sugar of lead zi opium [illegible] i oil of amber & anisated balsam of 
sulphur each gut x. ibid.
Cataplasma haemorrhoidale a poltice for the piles. Rx yolks of eggs
boild hard no iv oil of amber [illegilbe] ij linseed oil q.s. This is to cool the pills
when inflam’d & angry. ibid.
Oleum cremoris oil of cream. Rx the inner green bark of elder
fresh gather’d miij the best cream lbij. Boil em well together till the cream
turns to an oil & bol over agn with fresh bark This is taken out of Bates’s Dispensatory.
It is recommended as the best of remedies agt the piles, burnings or
erysipelas or St Anthonies fire & all hot inflamatory tumours, which it both
cools & breathes by transpiration at the same time. ibid.
Have a care of curring the piles a wound there is very hard to 
cure & it often is the cause of a fistula in ano Mr [Holled] Smith surgeon
A glyster with mullein for inward piles Dr Fuller
Rx mullein & elder flowers each mfs herbs hemlock, henbane each mi
boil in Smiths forge water to 12 ou. to the strain’d add the yolk of one egg.
Linseed oyl 2 ou. oil of amber zfs. Balsam of sulphur zij mix. It discusses
the swellings of the internal hemorroids, effectually allays their pains
heals the little ulcers & hinders a further afflux of blood & ill humours.
A vapour for pain of the haemorrhoids. ibid
Rx [mullein]henbane each miiij boil in water 4 to 3 qts Let the vapour 
be reced hot thro a perforated chair or close stool case.
Haemorrhoidal unguent ibid
Rx populeon ointmt zi oil of amber zij mix Dr Fuller
another used inst Thomas’s hospital Mr Holled Smith 
Rx balsamum sulphuris cum oleo olivarum (which you may find in the
London Dispensatory) saccharum saturni ungt sambucinum m. pr. 8 d
p. e. mixt Mr Cook apothecary says it is remedium optimu
but I am of another opinion
Goody Simons of Blaby says there is not a better remedy for the piles than
oyntment of mullein made with May butter in May without salt. The
apothecaries make it with lard or grease which is not half so good It is better than 


361)
Pilewort oyntmt. It will cure piles quickly if apply’d as
soon as they show themselves If they have gotten an head & are
large then you must allow 2 or 3 weeks but it always gives ease
as soon as apply’d It will cure [illegible] kibed, swell’d or raw Ann Simons outwardly used 
in fomentations or fumigations mullein (verbascu) is reckon’d a
specific agt the pains & swelling of the piles Millers Herbal.
Dr Salmon in Doren Medicum says ceratum refrigerans, his cooling
cerecloth which see p. 753 is approved in easing the pain & allaying the
heat of the piles
Dr George Cheselden of Leicer his Rx for inward piles.
Rx decocted pectoralis depurati lbij gum. ammoniac. zi misce.
cap. coch vi mane & hora somni tepide. This cured Barnshaw
of Leicer when most men thought he would have died incurabl. E. A.
The pouder of the dried root of figwort apply’d to the piles dries em up
Pecheys Herbal. oyl of nutmegs by [expression] is good for the piles. Salmon
An approved medicine for the piles Rx water a pint, boyl
therein some camomile flowers & melilot flowers wormwood & St Jns
wort each a good mi when it is half boil’d away strain it, & add a qt of
a pint of aqua vitae make it very hot & dip a double cloth in it & apply 
it hot & hot, wrung out dry. Pater Meus. G: A:
Unguentum diapomphotigos anointed on the reins of the
back stops the piles Salmons Disp:
For the piles or hemorrhoides Rx mussel shells & burn ‘em in the fire 
take the white of em & powder it & mix it with a little hony & lay it
upon a linnen cloth & so lay it upon the sore place E. A.’s moth.?
For the piles Rx oyster-shells wash ‘em clean & dry ‘em
very well & beat ‘em to fine powder & sift ‘em & apply em to the
sore your finger being first moistened with water then sprinkle
the powder upon it & thrust it up the fundament & strew some 
upon a rag & bind it plasterwise to the sore, Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother
pellitory of the wall is good agt burns, St. Antony’s fire with goats suet or for want
of it deers suet & a little sallet oil make an ointmt it is prevalent agt the gout
& piles. Salmon. Pomet says the fumes of olibanum i.e. [illegible] frankincense taken 
up the fundamt cures the piles. 



(364
Another for a pearl, & to strengthen the sight,
Rx Roman vitriol as much as an ordinary cherry-stone put it
into a spoonfull of clear spring water let it ly in it half a qr of
hour then drop one drop into the eye. ibid.
For a pearl or whip or the watering of a horses eye.
Rx The white of an egg & salt a large spoonful or as
much as will lick up the white mix ‘em very well then clear
your fire-shovel from dirt & dust & bake it before the fire 
in to a cake by often turning it to keep it from burning when
it is quite dry rub a little into powder on a trencher or mortar, 
then take as much as will lye on a silver 2 d & put it
into a quill & blow it into a horses eye every other day
blow it in thrice ibid.
For a blear eye or a watering red eye in a man.
Rx white-rose water 1 d lapis calaminaris in fine powder
half penny worth then moisten your eye-brows & eye-lids with
your middle finger 2 or 3 times a day & a night., it will cure
the itching too, you must carry it always about you. If this
will not do make an issue in the arm & use the water. An issue 
in the arm is better than in the leg because the humours flow too 
much to the leg. ibid.
For a wet or dry itch or itching of the nose or without an outbreak
Take the best camphor [illegible] ij vinegar of roses zfs rose water zvi
mix them rub any part where it itches, or upon the nose and dip a
rag in it and let it lie upon the nose all night. From the Latin Fuller
call’d by the title epitheme fontale rosaceum for the head ach
Dr Wm Woodhouse



365)
Ulcer in the bladder
Sympathetick pouder cured a gentm of an ulcer in the 
bladder by mixing it with the matter he voided in his urine. Mrs
Caulton


(366
an oyntmt to cure chopt lips or an chop or scab
or flushing
Rx Diapompholigos ( grey oyntmt) zfs pomatum zfs camphir 1 d
Sperma cet 1 d melt the camphir & sp. ceti till they are
all wasted in the pomatum then add the diapompholigos stir them together
till cold. Mrs Caulton. Chops in the hands fingers lips or
nose & for a cows bag chopt or swell’d. anoint with dogs grease
or oyntmt of marshmallows, or with both mixt. The 1st is bet. Jn
Put a traveller It is good for womens nipples when chopt. ibid.
another anoint with rape oyl pr. 8 d per qt it is good for any bruise
or swelling E. A. an obstinate chop between the thumb & forefinger
boil burnt alum in pouder in water apply it hot with a rag & 
bind the rag on moisten’d with it make it taste of the alum. Mr Coy
Lip chopt Rub it often with raw alum moisten’d with your spittle or
with water to kill the canker or moisten it with your own urine & sometimes with tallow
dropt from a candle into urine E. A.



367)



(368
To dissolve nodes.
mix mercurius sublimatus with w. wine vinegar & sope & you may
apply it to a joynt It may lie on 2 or 3 hours as soon as you take it
off apply conserve or roses to extract the poyson or venom or
you may mix sope & a little green ash bark ashes & mercury subl. in fine
pouder without vinegar vinegar makes it smart. Dr Pool the mountebank 
wash a node with white copperas dissolved in water every night
going to bed for 4 or 5 nights Let it dry on. It will kill a worm
in the face David Lane Emplastru de ranis cum mercurio in Dr
Quincys Dispensatory is an admirable plaster to resolve & discuss
hard tumours & nodes scrophulous or venereal or from any other cause
It is of a blue colour Mr Page apothecary at Lutterworth sells it
at 1 d per ounce. It often eases arthritick pains ibid. & cures corns.
To heal & dissolve rare hard nodes that happen sometimes about the
groin & scrotu. Burn some fresh butter in a spoon or ladle
till it is black pour it into an earthen pot, add to it sp. of 
wine & some drops of oyl of vitriol & some oyl of St
Jns wort Let ‘em near the fire to dissolve & incorporate 
rub it on the nodes 2 or 3 times in a day It will take away 
their itching kill & dry em up. E. A. another Rx some
keen vinegar infuse it in some red cock roots wash’d scapd’ clean
& sliced & cut some white bear foot al helebore in thin
pieces or slices & add to it after they’ve steep’d one night
a day moisten the raw hard nodes 3 or 4 times in 12 hours
& dip a linnen rag & bind it to em It will abate their itching
being good for the itch & shingles & will kill & waste em E. A. 
Spirit of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine, oyl of was & oyl of 
camomile allays pains of the gout, discusses nodes & cures contracted
& wither’d members Salmon’s Dispensatory. Quincys emplastru de ranis
dissolves wonderfully & discusses hard tumors & nodes scrophulous or
venereal or corns vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory. oleum ammoniaci & emplastru
ammoniaci (gummi) so mollfies that it will dissolve hard strong
knobs on the joynts of the fingers & toes etc. Salmon
oyl of nutmegs by expression softens hardness Salmon’s Disp.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum, admirably warms
softens & discusses all indurations & harden’d tumors, such as are [illegible]
scriphulous or venereal. It will ease & waste by degrees cause warts 


369)
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum e cicuta cum ammoniaco. Hemlock plaster with ammoniacu
is a very powerful discussive, dissolves nodes & knotty swellings in what part soever.
Quincy.
A large onion fill’d with Venice turpentine & roasted softens hard
swellings laid plasterwise, & also opens them. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
E. A. had a hard swelling in his skin near his groin caus’d by a 
bruise by riding on horse back It grew bigger & bigger till it was as
big as a horse bean It had a little black speck in the middle He got
it away by healing the best white wine vinegar very hot & diping a
flannel in it & applying it as hot as he could endure it & not to 
scald twice a day morning & evening & sometimes he apply’d it cold
he kept the flannel on all night & sometimes all day for 4 or 5 days
then he found it felt soft & he squeesed it betwixt his finger & thumb 
& out at the top there came thick white stuff resembling the pap of an 
apple or congeal’d corruption squeesing it so once or twice a day 
it empty’d the bag of the node which was something like a ganglion
& made it level with the rest of the skin most of the white stuff squeesed 
out at the first pinching.
Emplastrum diachylon cum gummi (diachylon with the gums) 
softens & suppurates tumors, for which it is in much esteem among 
the surgeons, & for which purpose they spread it very thick because it
gives more warmth to the part apply’d to. It is a great strengthener when 
apply’d to sprain’d sinews or any pt (except where there is a defluxion of 
humors) as frequently to the small of the back. The whole sale dealers
are apt to leave out many of the gums Quincy. It will ripen a bile 
& make it fit for lancing E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling Rub on it oil of origanum made strong with 
aqua fortis Dr Cheselden read it in some book. It will dissolve a blood
spavin E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling on the breath of children which comes before
they are a month old Mrs Wards son Richard at Blaby had such a 
swelling on his breasts almost as big as an egg it is caus’d by the milk
which he had in his breasts Boys are aptest to have it. It was 
cured in a week by a plaster of diaculum simplex Mrs Ward
sometimes the swelling on the breasts of young children in their
1st month is no bigger than a large button & very hard which is
cured by rubbing it with brandy as oft as the child is drest viz
once in 24 hours. Cos. Mary Orton of Reasby.
To dissolve a hard swelling on a woman’s breast caus’d by milk & to take away
the pain Lay a green burdock [leaf] to it & when it is dry apply a fresh leaf. This cured
MRs Blunts breast & dissolved the node there in 2 days, bred after her lying in 
child bed. Cos. Margt Muxloe.




Br. G. Ashby’s directions for the taking his pouder for
a rheumatism. Rx a sixth pt of the largest paper of pouder
in a glass of small ale six mornings together fasting 2 hours
after it Rx the least paper of pouder the 2 first days at 4 in the
afternoon as you took the other in the morning when all these
powders are taken Let the pt grieved be anointed with the oyntmt chafing
it well in agt the fire Infuse buckbean & Roman wormwood in 
cold spring water & drink of that 3 or 4 times a day a coffee dish
full at a time. You must neither bleed nor purge if you expect
benefit etc. Febry 3, 713. [ral.] water Trefoil.


a specific pouder for all sorts of intermitting fevers prepar’d
by (Louis the 14th) king of France his order It cures by being
taken thrice at most all sorts of intermitting fevers without
return, of which he has caused innumerable experimts
to be made for above a yr under the inspection of M.
Fagon his chief physician; his majty has ordered that a sufficient
quantity should be prepar’d to be distributed to the
public; & to the end that every body may be able to purchase
the price is fixed at 10 sols each dose which is pretty near
the cost of preparing it. In each packet are 3 doses severally 
wrap’d in paper for 30 sols, with printed directions 
how to use it. every packet has the kings arms stampt on
it, for preventing counterfeits. This pouder is incorruptible
never losing its virtue. The general office for distributing it
is settled at Paris. The Monthly Mercury for November 713.


Geo Ashby E A’s father was high sheriff of Leicershire in the
year 1667.
one aged abt 30, that could not come forth of his chamber
nor stand, was cured by this simple remedy. Rx rad. armorac. ziij
coq. ex syr. lact. colat. lbij dentur usus. Seven days after being
cured he came & gave thanks. Another who had abundance of 
cold spots in his arms & feet, the spots were very broad & 
near to pustles, was perfectly cured in a few week cum spir.
sal. armon. therewith observing an exact dist p. 558. Cook’s 
Marrow of Physick.
Stephen Adcock of Rasby was cured of a rupture being 20 or 
21 yrs old by taking a green pizzle of a bull dry’d in an oven
in beer for month 3 or 4 times a day with some of the pouder
in it. Stephen Hunt. Some are cured by cutting & taking one
stone out. ibid. you must put 1 spoonful & boyl it in almost a
pint of new milk Take the dose thrice a day as long as it
lasts drinking nothing else while one pizzle lasts unless very 
thirsty then you may drink a draught of beer to quench the
thirst Lay the pizzle upon wet brown paper in an oven with 
bread twice baking commonly dries it enough. Stephen Hunt
Tho. Geo labourer formerly shoemaker of Welford in Northashire was cured of
red sore eyes by holding your finger to the bottle & draw it along
your eyelids 2 or 3 times a day. The bottle must have new
burnt stone in pouder a thimbleful & a half pennyworth of
white rose water It must infuse a week before you use it
you may have it of Mr. Ilyff an apothecary in Lutterworth 
Leicershire
When turning alternately a rasor on each side on the hone or strap
would not give it a good edge, by drawing it twice together on 
each side on [illegible] It has contracted a very good fine edge. E. A.


pr 3 s w.
Mrs P. i.e. Mrs Marianny Packer the travelling doctress
R.C. i.e. Richard Cromwel’s legacy to his country of physical
& chyrurgical receipts He was some time a souldier & chyrurgion
in the late D. of  Monmouth’s army & since of their present 
majesties. He was executed at Leichfield for murder July 23 
1691. The titule of the book is the Happy Sinner pr. 1 d
Mrs M. i.e. Aunt Frances Majors Rts
Mrs S. i.e. Mada Sparks’s Receipts a great doctress in Pater Noster Row
that kept her coach & 6 horse given me by Aunt [Majer]
M. B. i.e. Mary Burton a traveller, the mother of Edmund Horton [illegible]
shows the postures.
I. T. i.e. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor of Bosworth.
S. S. Mr Sherard [Sergent’s] Receipts of Milton.
R.D. Rembert (i.e. Robt) Dodoens History of Plants or Herbal he was physitian to the [emperor]
Birdlime & Venice turpentine is a very good cerecloth the
clock makes when they send clocks beyond sea do it on the
outside the cracks of the box to defend it agt moisture Mr
Jn Wilkins of Leicer
Common iron filings zi to conserve of roses zi iron filings
prepar’d with sulphur zij to conserve of roses zi steel filings
are good for nothing Rx iron filings beat em in a mortar & 
sift em thro a law sive then put em in a crucible with 
brimstone in pouder after it is fired & burnt out beat it again
to pouder & you’ve the best iron pouder sold for steel pouder
Mr Penford apothecary.
mercurius dulcis if it doth not purge fluxes, 20 gr 
purges a man, a much less dose fluxes fr. Coltman apothecary
Health is the very salt of life that seasons & give a relish
to all the other enjoymts of it Rd Mr Richd Duke.






Hogs bristles are 6[illegible] or 8[illegible] [illegible] at Bromingham. The Satchwell.
Note Basilicon is an exct. healing oyntmt. in any fleshy part 
of the body but it is dangerous applying it to or near a bone
because it will perish & destroy a bone. Dr Arden Elsmore.
Barrow grease adeps porcina
To scour Iron Rx the softest brick that is but ½ burnt dry it in an oven
or over the fire & upon a broad [stone] with a stone beat it to fine pouder
& rub yr. andirons etc. [illegible] dry (lor with oyl which is best) & they
will cook very bright if they stand near the fire & are kept dry. [illegible]
[bak?] of [illegible] There is more trouble than pleasure in it. Plus aloes quam
nollis habet juv. Calcanda somol via leti (or lesthi) hor. we must all tread the
path to our grave.
To make good ink mr gud. (it is not the best in for it will change yellowed)
Rx a gallon of rain watr 7 put into it [illegible] galls lbifs beaten small
[let] it stand near the fire or in the sun 8 or 10 days often stirring then 
[put] in allu & dyers indica each zfs green copperas & gum arabick 
[illegible] sonica bruised, a course sort of gum arabick which the shoe-makers use)
[illegible] lbi let it stand a week & it is fit for use. The said ingredients 
[reduc’d] to a less quantity. Rx rain water a pt galls zvi pr. 6 & allum?
[illegible] Note if you make ink of beer or ale & after some 
time is is grown thick & dry? it will not let down but
[illegible] it makes it flow readily & write fast E.A. Choose a kettle
[illegible] brass of a blue black color that has no solder’d place in it [illegible] looks like [illegible] or [illegible]
which you may discern on the inside or outside [illegible] pale [?inker] & [Bra???]
Dr Brooks in [Leaden] Hall street agt the East Indy House cures fits
[illegible] [finch]
These are good boyling herbs to eat viz. muckhill-spinnage (al.
wild spinnage) [illegible] thistle. mercury. garden-spinnage. red shanks.
hoptops. avens. carlock run young. parsly
The Haven of Health by Thomas Cogan chiefly made for the
comfort of students.
Mrs. Crick servt. to Mrs Bridges at Barton [illegible] in Northashire
makes a famous eye water that cures red rheumatic eyes Mrs Crick’s
mother keeps an alehouse at [Hoddingworth] in Leicr
Pills preserving health. p. 702 Salmons Dispensatory.
Mr. Wm Saunders at the Golden Ball in Newgate street (chymist)
London. Saunders’s art of physick & surgery pr. 48 is commended by Drs 


A settled or old cold or cough in a horse
Rx Heather fern (al fever fern) celandine, rosemary & sage each mi.
Boyl ‘em in a quart of ale till it comes to a pint then strain it & add
common treacle zii diapente zfs. Give it warm in a morning fasting
after he hath bin gallop’d till his hair turns, or after hunting.
Let him fast two hours or longer after it, once taking commonly 
cures, but if he is not perfectly cur’d repeat the dose 5 or 6 days 
after. Mr Stephen Alleyne steward to Mr Cook commonly gives his
hunting horse one dos. This was taught him by a tinker.
Ashby. (E)




1
Leg sore or swelled
Dr Cole of Bilsdon cured the Lady Halfords leg that was very much
swell’d (after several Drs & surgeons had try’d their skill in vain)
by putting on the leg a canvas stockin to be laced straight to the leg
to repell the humour & the same time that she laced it hard he order’d
her to take purge of syrup of buckthorn & jalop, to 
intermit some days & to repeat the hard lacing & purging till she
was perfectly well. The cause of this tumor he reckon’d the scurvy
A girl in Saxulby that was lame for 2 yrs or more so that she cou’d not
go but as she was carry’d & her legs began to wast was cured by 
bathing 4 or 5 times in ale wort as hot as she could endure it
Mary Austin of [Asserby] was lame of one leg for abt. 2 yrs so that her
thigh began to wast she found good by blistering pasters lay’d to
the pain’d hip for a little while; but they would not cure. Dr. G.
advis’d her to leave off malt drink & to drink the infusion of
buckbean & Roman wormwood in water & to take his pouder of
broom ashes etc. to thin her blood & to anount the pained place with
balsam of galbanu mixt with oyl of turpentine, this oyntmt increas’d 
her pain.
Sam Halford my servt. [illegible] the [illegible] going to turn a tree over
that lay on the ground with a bar of iron & T. L. Carpenter & A.S. with 
[illegible] one of their [levers] slipt [illegible] the tree as born up & the tree press’d
back on S.H.s bar which broke the great bone of his left leg a
little above his ancle the bystanders heard it crack like a stake 
if it had been a little higher it had been easier to set The bone
did not jut out of the skin but you might persive a white streak
go cross where the bone was parted His leg did not swell of
some hours after, he could stir his toes but could not stand
on that leg he was brought home in a chair. Jn Summerfield a
wheelwright & bone setter ([illegible] to learn his skill from 
the famous Mr Freeman having bones several times broken
& set by him) 4 hours after it was broken set it thus He cut
a piece of an old hat box made of past board (any past board or old
hat will do to splint it) into 4 splints abt 6 inches long & 
2 wide which after they were well beaten he mixt with as much
fine wheat flower till it was a little stiffer than batter then he took 


2
abt. a qr of a stick of nine penny flax ([Hards] would
not do) & lay it spred upon a warming pan of live coles
& poured the white of egg & wheat flower on’t to warm 
& stiffen a little this a bystander helt whilst the bone setter
felt with his finger & thumb on each side the broken place for 
a pretty while which touching pain’d S.H. then he lay’d one hand on 
his instep & another on his heel & pull’d the leg out that he might
place the bones right & opposite to each other then he lay’d one
hand to the bottom of his foot & thrust it upwards that the
bones might unites one man holding his leg up at the knee & 
another at the heel then he wrapt the flax & white of an egg & w.
flower quite round the broken place being about 9 inches broad
then he lay’d on the 4 splints of hot [illegible] at an equal distance
the broad splint being plac’d on the shin bone these splints
were bound abt with an old linnen cloth & that was bound on 
with 3 [fillets] sew’d together beginning at the middle of the
splints & binding upwards & back again a little below the
middle of the cloth it had most liberty downwards lastly the
fillet was sown in 3 or 4 places to prevent its slipping down 
then the same leg was lay’d on a pillow & bolster’d up with several
cloths to keep his leg steddy & a board was fixt with 2 
iron spikes at the end of the bed to the bed post against which 
he sat his foot having a woolen cloth between his foot & the
board. when the bones were thrust together S.H. cry’d out oh my 
poor leg, my poor leg, my poor leg! it pain’d him for 3 or 4 days
His leg swell’d up to his knee & it was anointed 2 or 3 times 
with oyl of roses which assuaged the swelling & gave it ease
after one week the pain was inconsiderable only he complain’d
of his back was tyred with lying. The not stirring the ldg out
of the place after it is set contributes very much to the well 
knitting of the bones, tho he was forc’d to use a urinal & bedpan
he seldom or never stir’d the leg out of its place all the time
It was very cold frosty weather the first week of his lameness which
kept his leg cool & mittigated the pain. The bone setter advis’d him
to eat bread & butter &milk & [frumenty] to keep his body cool
& open to avoid bread & cheese & all meat except veal or chicken


A fam’d elixir for the wind which repels it to admiration, whether
in the stomach or bowels all [illegible] or windy belches or hiccups
from indigestion etc. it removes upon the spot; & cures pains in 
the stomach, gripings in the guts, striches in the sides & the wind
colick to a miracle; being no pretended but real effectual medicine
fit for the yse of old & young. To be had only at Mr. Spoon’s
at the Golden Half Moon in Buckles street in Goodmans fields
near white chappel pr. at 6 [illegible] a bottle with directions. The post [illegible]
Octr 1705. Honorato fornello gent. no physician could hardly
be persuaded to publish his dissolution salt as being laborious
to be made It hath ben abt 9 months made publick. It is a remedy
for the stone & gravel which it totally roots out by dissolving [illegible]
in the kidnies & bladder & carries it away insensibly by urine invisible,
if made in a vial & suffer’d to settle being undeniable that
the stone is dissolv’d. He was cured by it himself, asl also divers [gents]
in London since next God’s blessing none shall have need to be cut 
for the stone whoever will prevent the setling of gravel take 
a dose in 8 or 14 days & continue so the body shall never smart 
for it. It keeps good many yrs you’ve larger [act] & directions with 
it being to be had of Mr Tho. Dowse Perfumer at the sign of 
the plough in Grace Church street London & no where else in all England
pr. 4s the half ounce which is 8 doses.
A pleasant powder for the heartburn being the most infallible [remedy]
for that distemper giving present ease in less than a minute pr. 1s a [illegible]
with directions. sold only by Mr [Best] at Will’s coffee house near the Royal
Exchange in [Cornhil]
Sister H. Ashby’s exct. powder for fits in children is of a [dove] colr
with a little cast of [illegible] it tasts [illegible] a little gritty The weight of the 3 doses 
is [17] gr. Directions for the taking it Rx this powder in 3 doses in some
black cherry water in a morning fasting. It is best to take it 3 mornings
before the full of the moon. Scrape single peony root green & put it
into the childs stockins to be worn till it is dry then remov it.
The anti-rheumatic tincture only prepared by George
Wilson, chymist, in well-yard, by St. Bartholomew’s hospital
in West Smithfield, London. It is put up in bottle, containing
above 2 ounces, at 2 [s] & 6 [s] the bottle. 15 s. the pint. 30 s the qt.



A short & infallible cure for the itch or any itching
humour or scorbutick breaking out whatsoever by a specifick
electuary, it cleanses & rectifies the blood & juices, accomplishes
a cure in 2 or 3 days without trouble or confinemt 
is sold only at Mrs Bradbury’s toy shot at the Golden
Ball in stocks market against the poultry at 3s a pot
with directions. This electuary is good for nothing. E.S. & Dr Brooks. [illegible] stones skin’d & dry’d in an over after
break & then pouder’d as much as will lie on a six pence in 
white wine, or ale, or beer are good for children passing a
[illegible] or ruptures, the stone, gravel or pain in the back caus’d by 
the stone, the kings evil [illegible] clark [gelder] cow pigs (al. horn flower all [illegible water
[water]) ½ a pint in a morning for 9 mornings together for a man or
woman beginning in May if it doth not purge take a larger 
dose It cured aunt Tr. Mayes maid of an ague [illegible] Jesuit’s pouder
would not [Richd] Ward of [illegible] by drinking it cured his sore leg of long standing It cures gout & rheumatism, pain in the stomach, consumption
Dr. Brooks says they that take it spring & fall need not any physitian.
Mrs Finch The dissolution salt of honorato fornello, gout,
[illegible] Gorman) which totally roots out the stone & gravel, by dissolving it
in the kidneys & bladder carrying it away insensibly by urine. It is
a chymical extraction. It is good to prevent the dropsie, scurvy, [stinking]
[illegible] remedy for women’s sickness It’s very friendly to nature
[illegible] the spirits It operates best in warm countries. who
ever takes it being much troubled, does well to purge in the spring & 
fall with [diata???] minsichti to clear the way The dose for a man is a
dram each second day or you may divide zfs into eight doses or you
may take as much as will like on a half-penny. The least quantity sold
½ an ounce which is 8 doses pr. 4 s & may be had of Mr Thomas
Dowse at the Sign of the Plow in Grace Church street, a perfumer
Volatile salt of tartar, he that knows the virtues & use of it is half
a Dr. It will dissolve bone, stone or iron or any thing Dr. Wm. Million of
[??ansty] 4 m. from Coventry in Warwickshire He inns at the White Horse in 
Hinkly every Monday is there by 12 o clock & on fairs earlyer He also
[shops] Coventry market every Friday.


3
After S.H had layen in bed a fortnight viz the 25th by virtue
of warm water his leg was unbound (if cream had been added
to the white of egg & flower it had been much easier to unbind
which a great many bonesetters use & some use only a white
salve or [corecloth] without w. of egg or w. flower) & a corecloth
made of oxycrociu, paracelsus & emp. [deminio] mit & spred thic
on allum’d leather abt 6 inches deep & so long as to encompass 
the leg in the broken pt. was lay’d on & 4 splints of past board
viz that case were serv’d on with a linnen cloth he did not stir out of his
chamber that day but only sat by the bedside or by the fire the next
day his leg swell’s up to his knee it was unbound still the swelling
continued at night it corecloth was taken quik away & old tallow was 
scrap’d from some candles 2 yrs old & melted in a ladle & pour’d 
upon cold water in a bason which was taken off as soon as it cover’d
the surface of the water & more pour’d on then the tallow was 
melted in the ladle & mixt with white lead scraped fine & spred
upon a linnen cloth & bound on the sore place with 4 splints & a 
cloth as afore & his foot was anointed & his knee where it was
swell’d this assuag’d the swelling in a nights time. Wm. Fletcher of [Sison]
had set an arm that was broken & apply’d [Bent’s] salve for a corecloth
which made the arm swell & rise into blisters which was cured with
tallow & white lead. Corecloths that agree with some flesh disagree with 
others, but the bonesetter pull’d off the tallow & white lead & apply’d 
his own corecloth of a dark colour which he said was very strengthening
& he order’d the knee [to] abt the ncle when they swell’d to be
anointd with cream & soot from the mouth of a coper this abated
the swelling for a little time but when he did not keep his
bed his knee swell’d & he was forc’d to lie in bed 2 or 3 days together
the corecloth & splints were kept on & it was a month before
he came below stairs then he went with 2 crutches abt 6 or 7
weeks after his leg was broken he took syrup of buckthorn
to purge him zi in a draught of cold ale 7 when he could go without
his crutches he oft complain’d of a pain his his heel
sp. of wine apply’d to a joynt that is raw causes lameness tho it strengthens
a joynt where the skin is whole Dr [illegible]



4
To knit & strengthen a crackt bone
Rx 2 pts salt & 1 pt butter & burn em i.e. boyl em together till
they cook black spred it on a cloth & bind it on the arm or leg etc.
as hot as you can endure it Dress it night & morning when it
begins to mend & grows strong once a day is enough This cured
Anne Farie’s arm when crackt & the [illegible] contracted she could stir her
arm & make may with it in a weeks time Anne Farie.
Anne Butterworth had a sore leg that look’d very red & full of blisters
Mrs Basset cured it with [illegible] made of ling dipt in basilicon & a green
oyntmt. (made of gill run by th ground & elder bark) mixt laying over
the pledgets emplastru dominio Mrs Basset.
Goody Simons had a sore leg that lookd red with a running sore it was 
caus’d by a bruise She bath’d it as hot as she could endure with new
milk which qualified it very much IT was draft with precipitate & basilicon
to cleanse it & anointed it with the green oyntmt in the former [illegible] & 
it was quickly well A.S. To scale & clean a bone foul’d by an
old sore infuse some camphir in spirit of wine & dab it on
the bone rot or it will [illegible] cold. Dr G. A.
A sore leg or any running sore old or new Rx [illegible] [nettles] [illegible]
em small & pound em with as much salt as [nettles] & lay em on a cloth
for 12 hours it will take out the venom then cross it with a plaster of
paracelsus till well It will cure it in a little time. It is an exct. thing
for any green wound or a wound made with rusty iron The soldiers take
it with with em in their nap sacks or [illegible] when they are to fight Francis [illegible]
It is good for any swelling [ibid] I know this nettle medicne try’d without any 
good success E.A. Elizth Halford & wife of Saml had a sore leg
caus’d by a bruise by falling up stairs the edge of a stair cut 
agt the skin of her leg abt 3 inches above her ancle Mrs.
Elizth Basset try’d with basilicon & gill-oyntmt. & empl. deminio
in vain to cure It had a running sore abt the breadth 
of a shilling on the ancle on the small of her leg It was very 
much swell’d & her thigh was swell’d she cur’d it thus in a fortnight
viz. she lay’d a garter abt 2 fingers broad encircling her
leg above the knee spread with emplast. deminio & another
garter below the knee spread with do as defensitives to prevent
the humers fro flowing down from her body she purg’d twice with
syrup of buckthorn zi for each dose intermitting 4 or 5 days. 


5
her leg was blister’d in several places & lookt very red
she spread a plaster on a linnen cloth of diaculum simplex (6 s
per roll) then she melted tallow or sheeps suet in a spoon & 
pour’d it hot into a porringer or pot of fair water (which takes
out the salt & makes it more cooling) then she drain’d away the
water & melted the tallow again in the spoon & pour’d it on the
diaculum plaster that was spread This she lay’d round her leg over 
the sore & diacumu the tallow on the sore with ling The tallow [supples] the diaculum they both together cool
refresh & strengthen the leg & take away the itching of the sore 
The leg was swaddled with a childs swaddle band or a roller from 
the ancle to the knee very straight in the day tie but a little
slack at night that she might sleep This prevented also the defluxion
of humers she walk’d very little in the day but sate still laying
the sore leg on a stool she draft it twice a day till it was almost
well. when it itches above the sore you may moisten the itching places
with a rag dipt in water in which yellow arsnic has been infus’d
You must boyl the water & pour it hot to the arsnick.
Goody Farie being 70 yrs old of [newtown] Linford had the jaundice
which was cured by taking a little [tot] twice a day of barbery bark boyl’d
in beer for 2 or 3 days but after [illegible] jaundice her legs swell’d so that she
was carry’d from bed & to bed she boyled red dock-roots in cream a qt.
of a pint to an [illegible] strain’d she anointed her legs morning & night for 7
or 14 days & they were quite well afterwards she took a purge viz. Dr
White’s water 2s. i.e. 2 spoonfuls in a morning & continued well. Good
Farie.
Janry 1724 Theopilus Halford E.A.’s servt had a callous
substance like a corn at the bottom of his foot under his little toe
this was cut till it bled & only a rag was apply’d he walked two
miles presently after; the next morn it was swell’d abt his toe
& very painful & in a few days time his pain shot up his leg & he
could not go on it. It was poultic’d a long while together & he seem’d
to be [illegible] if he walk’d on it the humer returned E.A. cut just thro this 
thick callous to make it bleed but it did but little good, when it was
heal’d with [Bonts] or Blackwell’s salve it would break out again. AT last
E.A. gave him 3 purges [illegible] made of crème of tartar zii & jalp zi in
fine pouder each purge pr 3 [illegible] in a little water gruel made over night he took it early 
in the morn kept his room with a fire Each purge gave him abt 6 stools
he intermitted sometimes 2 sometimes but 1 days between purge & 
purge they carry’d the humer off & his leg & foot was quickly well.


6
Leg sore & swell’d Jn [Kt] shepherd at [Blaby] had a leg swell’d &
so sore that he could scarce sleep a nights He thought it was a rheumatic
pain. he bathed it abt 6 times viz [illegible] morning with good [illegible] juice & it
was quite well. Jn Kt Jn smith of Blaby shoeing a horse was kick’d on
his knee by him. It caus’d a swelling & a lameness that he could scarce go
He bath’d it with [verjuice] 2 or 3 times it strenghtn’d his sinews & took away
the pain Jn Smith. Dip any sore as a sore leg etc. or wound in hot water & hold
it in the water a good while made as hot as you can abide it without scalding
(if you can’d do that conveniently then wash the sore or wound with a 
linnen rag dipt in hot water & bath it with it & [illegible] on the sore some time
then apply Robt Beby’s corecloth or salve made with white wine etc.
a London Surgeon says that holding a sore as a sore leg in hot water takes
out the venom or anguish or pain or festering or wrankling or venome & prepares
it for healing It is as good as a poultice & has less trouble & is sooner prepared
It will prevent many a leg from being cut off Cos. Richd Ashby.
In Halford shepherd at Little [illegible] abt 60 yrs old had a hard swelling like a hard
knob on the upper pt of the calf of his leg which pained him very much 
especially when he walked It was thus cured by E.A. & this [illegible] dissolved in 
a little time A corecloth was apply’d anointed over with oil olive in 10 [percent] nutmegs
to a salve then add this things added to Dr Allins corecloth by E.A. in his sixth
book p. 222 Susan Halford his wife abt this same age had a humour fell into
one of her legs which swell’d her leg very much which was thus cured by [Mrs Major] in a little
time it was anointed with [goosegrease] agt the fire & a cabbage loaf was laid over it 
& the humer was disposed & this swelling went away in 2 or 3 times dressing it once a day.
[Smallage] boiled in water & a linnen cloth dipt in it & apply’d several times to 
Jn [Laughton’s] wife’s leg that was swelled with wild fire cured it. Goody Laughton


7
Gravel or sharpness of urine
Turkey egg shells in powder eaten with sugar at any time.
Ex from 5 to 12 drops of oyl of turpentine drops upon a little
white sugar in a spoon Br G.A. If you take abt 12 drops it will give
you a stool or two loosening things are good & astringent are bad for
this distemper. It rages most in hot weather. I prefer this before any 
thing I’ve yet try’d E.A. spirit or oyl of turpentine is a powerful 
diuretick & stone breaker; it opens all obstructions of the loins & passages
of the seed & takes away pain & soreness processing of cold. It 
dissolves all gums better than sp. of wine. Salmon’s Disp.
Stone
Rx from 15 to 30 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught
of white wine. If you are in great pain take 30 drops In 
[Rostale] of [Ledgers] Ashby formerly servt. go Jacob Hall. This
gave Mr Ashby ease in a fit. Another Rx [sallet] oyl & juice
of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls in a spoonfull or a quarter of a pint of
white wine [combin’d] with sugar to make it palatable mix em & drink em when you feel pain. This
forced a stone resembling a little date stone, from Cos. Geo.
Wright it is much commended by St. Nathan Wright. It is
very forcing & dangerous where there is a very great stone 
yet can’t pass. Drink a pint or 2 of small ale abt an hour after it with w. wine. ST. N. Wright. I observed Febr. 1705 yet upon
drinking small ale in which dockroots & gill were boyl’d 
which made this ale very thick & muddy tho it purged me
2 or 3 times a day I was violently troubled with gravel 
& avoided a great quantity with pain several days till I 
left of drinking it tho I took oyl of turpentine & sp.
nitri dulcis famous diureticks to give me ease. from 
whence I concluded the thick liquors especially malt 
drinks abounding with a sediment generate grave & 
the stone & the clear & temperate cooling drinks are
healthful for those that have those distempers E.A.
For the colick & stone Rx nutmegs zfs liquorish pouder zi loaf
sugar lbfs pulverize & make em into pills with venice turpeneine zi Rx
three at a time 3 mornings together before the change of the moon
Roll the pills in liquorish pouder before you take them. Steep penyroyal
overnight in abt half a pint of water so that the water may cover it & strain 



8
it in the morning & toast a piece of brown bread to warm the
water & drink a draught after the pills. This freed Mr Jn Frank
Parson of Queniborough of the stone & colick ever since he took them.
Mr. Rd Pick Eating bread & butter once or twice a day freed E.A. from 
gravel Apr. 706 the weather being very hot, & avoiding cheese which make
the belly costive & at dinner or supper once a day eating victuals with
verjuice or for want there of vinegar. E.A. Another for gravel Rx some
new butter-milk boyl it & make a posset with small beer sweeten it with
hony & drink it & swallow alive abt 10 or 20 millipedes (the round ones
are best) after it you may eat a little fresh bread & butter before you 
drink yr buttermilk posset. Mow any thing with a scythe or exercise with 
a scythe as if you mow’d something, till you sweat. It will make you 
straddle that the gravel may the easier descend from the kidnies into the
bladder This gave E.A. ease may 706 For the stone & gravel Rx 20 or
30 or Dr Stringers drops in a glass of ale warm’d at any time you may 
buy em of Loughborough of Stringer the hatter his father pr. 2 s 6 s per
bottle Mr Cowper the bone setter of Leicr commands them to [exceed] most
other medicines but E.A. cou’d find but little benefit by them. E.A. Or
boyl new whey 3 pints take of the scum let it stand from the fire till a
scum arises again which take off & strain it thro a hair sieve from the sediment
at the bottom & wash the pan & put in the clarify’d whey to which
add agrimony, sage, dandelion, fumitory each mi boyl it till one pint
is wasted drink it in the morning fasting cold & exercise after it. you 
may prepare it overnight & take the quantity of a horse [bean] of turpentine
mixt with liquorish poudr & sugar. This is cooling & opening & carry’d
a good deal of gravel from E.A. June 706. For the stone Rx cassia
now drawn, anniseed [illegible] with oyl of sweet almonds mixt with gr. vi
of salt of tartar vitriolate make a bolus 
Gravel & stone Rx scio turpentine zi [illegible] 681 salm. dispens. for the pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible]
make them up into pills & take five of the pills every night for
a month together. Rx a large onion slice it & put it into a quarter
of a pint of ale. Let it infuse all night in the ale. In the
morning put a quarter of a pint of white wine to it. Rx it
fasting every morning for a month together at the same time
you take the pills at night. This cured a gentlewoman of
the gravel that so afflicted her that she could not go upright making
her void 2 quarts of gravel. Mrs. Basset. Scio turpentine 
is very dry & stiff you may put it into a bladder cut to hold it [illegible]
pocket will warm it & make it pliable to yr fingers moisten’d in
water to prevent it sticking & roll each pill in crabs eyes & make
em up just as you take them. I tis good to ride or walk or mow or 


9
to use some exercise after them. E.A. Another I eating
bread of [masline] ground on the grey stones in June 1707 was much afflicted with
gravel of which I thus cured myself I eat white bread or bread made 
of masline ground on the black stones which is free from grit. I eat
oat meal pudding wihtout butter left off drinking malt drink wine
& cyder & drank only scum’d milk & soft water boyl’d together
with a piece of household bread & rode a horse back once a day & 
I was quickly freed from the gravel. E.A. For the stone & gravel
Mrs P. Rx a thunderbolt (6 or 7 or more) Let it be burnt in
an oven 7 days with only one gorss faggot a day i.e. you must every 
day burn 1 gorss [kid] & let it lie all the time in the embers then 
beat it to a fine pouder & sift it fine. Give the value of two
case knives points full att a time in a glass of warm ale. Let the
patient drink a pint well warm’d after it (Beer & ale or
very small ale is best E.A.) 31 days cure any. Some are cured in
five days. you must take it every day This Mrs P. says is a certain
cure & that it will dissolve the stone but I have not try’d it
I look upon it as [ban??] She gave me [illegible] paper of pulvis [????ticus]
for the same distempers (E.A.) Mrs. P. for the stone cholic
& wind cholic Mrs Anne Windser midwife. Rx balm of gillead [illegible] zi venice
turpentine pr zifs a ½ pennyworth stone call’d [illegible] [illegible] of the vale (a
shining stone) in pouder pr. 1 s 1 pouder of crabs eyes zi pr [illegible] hon or turky
egg shels do (dry yr eggshels aft the fire or in an oven & beat
em to pouder) Crowstone burnt in the fire till it is red hot
& then beaten to pouder Of all the pouders take equal pts If any
of the corwstone is yellow or ill colour’d scrape it off. Sometimes
there will be like glass in the middle of it do not beat that. mix
all those well together & with pouder of liquorish make it up into
six score pills abt the bigness of a little pea’s Rx 5 in the morning & 
5 abt it in the afternoon for abt a week of a fortnight together
at first taking, afterwards only for a day or two drinking
water warm’d with a brown bread toast rub’d with nutmeg drinking
plentifully a belly full. This brought from Mrs. Windser 60 stones
in a little time some as big as small peas or vetches some as little
as pinheads 12 stones in a day would often come away. She found
so much health by drinking water that she continued drinking it for 11
yrs & for ought I know as long as she liv’d. She sometimes drank wine
& wine & water where she had it gratis but she avoided all malt drink Mrs
Windser.


10
The German spaw water drunk abut ½ a pint or a pint once 
a day will commonly ease the cholic It will also cure the
scurvy & sweeten the blood if drunk for a long time ibid.
The [L?] keeper Wright that had been much afflicted with the stone found
most benefit by this medicine drink every morning some sage tea
(i.e. sage infus’d in hot water) mixt with milk & sweeten’d with hony.
For the cholic wear a forefoot of a hare in your pocket many [illegible]
For the wind in the stomach or cholic in man or beast.
Rx one of turpentine (that which is new & clear is best) 5 drops in a
glass of ale the next morning Rx [illegible] drops always an odd drop till you 
come to 17 you may take it at any time. walk or ride after it, it
purges by urine you may give a horse or cow a spoonful in ale 
Thos. Warner a farrier of Norborow. A man that is us’d to tobacco may 
smoke a pipe after it ibid For the stone & gravel eat some 
curds made of whey for a great many mornings in the summer
moisten’d with a little milk they are cooling & opening & drink a
draught of whey once or twice a day using exercise as riding
after it and avoiding wine & malt drink except a draught or 2 
of table beer at meals This freed me from gravel July 1708
To cause gravel to come away & to help the stone stamp radishes
fresh gather’d strain them into white wine & burnt or dry’d turpentine
pouder’d drink it 3 or 4 nights together Mrs M. Another Rx green parsly
mii beat it in a mortar & squeeze out the juice which sweeten with 
loaf sugar & Rx 2 spoonful at night & 2 at morning till you find eas
M.B. for the stone or gravel or stoppage of urine Rx an ordinary
wine glass full of white wine with as much common gunpouder [illegible] as
will lie on a shilling when you are pained or night & morning till you’ve
ease [illegible] the mountebank & [illegible] farmer the linnen [??nter] another
Rx the stones of a horse (when you geld him) the older the better cut off the
outward skin then slitt em in two & lay em on a clean tyle in an oven 
there let em stand till cold then beat em to pouder & take as much as
will lie on 2 shillings in a draught of beer in a morning fasting
for 3 mornings successively walking riding or using some exercise 
after it It is also good for any pain or strain in the back. Ambrose
the Gelder oyl of Benjamin is a powerful diuretick & specifick agt
the stone & gravel p. 300 Quincy’s Dispensatory.


11
For the stone or gravel.
Rx white wine posset drink pretty clear a pt. or 2 boyl in 
it bay berries bruis’d zi camomile flowers mi then sweeten
it with syrup of marshmallows strain it & dry saffron [illegible]
before the fire & crumble it in & drink a good draught
at a time. it never fails of giving ease & commonly fetches
away gravel or a stone. Mrs Finche’s mother finds grate benefit
by this Mrs Finch. Another Rx oyl of amber six penny
worth divide it into 2 pts. take one pt in new milk a qr.
of a pint, if these do not give ease take six penny worth
more. Henry Watkinson cow [leech] for a pain in his bladder
or gravel or stone Boyl agrimony mi in white wine a
pint with a (midling) onion drink 2 or 3 spoonfuls in a morning
fasting. or Rx the juice of burdock leaves in a spoonful in hony
ziiii Rx 2 or 3 knife points any time of the day when the
stomach is empty when you can’t get the juice dry & pound
the seeds of burdock zfs in virgin hony ziiii. Rx the quantity of
a walnut or dry the roots to pouder by grating or pounding
sift it Rx zi in hony ziiii the quantity of a walnut, take
it till you find ease This cures Stephen Hunt for ½ yr L. Hunt
another Rx venice turpentine make it into pills with liquorish pouder
take 4 pills as big a pea in a morning fasting & fast 3 or 4 hours after
it & take 4 more after the 1st sleep in the night It cures stone
& gravel They will keep a yr or longer good. Hop drink is a great enemy
to the stone & gravel. Ben Alsop of Huncot cures himself thus
& hop drink does not hurt him tho he drinks much of it Ben. Alsop.
for gravel & stone Rx white wine a glass, sp. of
turpentine 20 drops for a man, syrup of marsh-mallows zfs
take it morning & bedtime Mrs Basset another Rx mild ale
& stout (i.e. strong march beer or strong old ale) spring water
running towards the sun-rise Deep well water i.e. hard water
rain water each a pint half a lemmon & half a sevile orange


12
Squeez’d into it bottle it up (without any boyling) & drink
half a pint morning & night or when the fit or pain comes
sweeten’d to the palate with brown sugar This cured [Arslin] a 
flower man’s son of Leicr a pretty great boy who had not made
water of a week once taking it in 3 hours brought a 3 corner’d
stone & a smooth one & he made water the best pt of an hour
after em & was at ease a second drinking brought away abt a
thimble full of gravel. He was advis’d to drink it spring & fall
afterwards during his life Stephen Hunt & Wm March the boyd
uncle. Another Rx [??asper] (an herb) root & branch a peck 
wash it clean & chop it as small as you can strain thro a linnen
cloth & bottle it up & stop it close fro the air It will keep one 
yr If you use it presently i.e. as soon as it is fit for use
you must let it stand to settle 12 hours till it is clear. Rx
2 spoonfulls night & morning 2 in a glass of white wine
or for want there of strong ale till you find ease & make
urine clear from gravel Richard Wood Gardiner of [nun eaton]
in Warwickshire. It has freed several persons fro the pain of 
stone & gravel all their lives. Salmon commands balsam of lead R. W. with aniseeds to expel the stone & takes
away pain in [illegible].
Another a large dose of the decoction of [speedevel] (an herb) taken for some
time expell’d a stone fro the kidney of a woman that had been tormented with it
for 15 or 16 yrs vid. Salmons family dictionary.
Another for sharpness of urine, gravel & stone Rx common
mallows roots miii wash’d clean parsly seeds zi bruis’d boyl
em in a gallon of spring water till ¼ is wasted then mix it
with new milk & drink ½ a pint or more at a time as you’ve
occasion for the constant drink till well This taken once freed
for 35 yrs & perhaps all his life after James Leppington horse
rider for the gravel Rx melilot flowers & winter cherries each 
mi boyl em in a qt. of clear beer or white wine not a long
while. Give it at 4 times in the morning fasting. Stephn Hunt &
a traveller sit upon a stool or board seldom or never upon a soft seat.
It puts the blood in the buttocks into a new fermt. ibid. another aqua
comminuens calcula Horsby’s salmon disp. commends highly p. 455
Wind in the kidneys or heat of urine making but little water at a time & that with 
pain the belly being swell’d Rx the seeds of cummin, anise, caraways & [illegible] sach
zi juniper berries zifs gingr zfs make all into fine pouder & with syr. of anniseeds q.s.
morning noon & night this cured Stephen Hunt, Tho. [Farren]. 


13
The colick or gravel Rx senna ziiii guaiacu, roots
of elecampane dry’d, the seeds of annise, caraways, coriander
prepared & liqourish each zii raisins ston’d lbfs. Black
pepper tyme ginger grossly bruised each zii steep em all cold
in 3 qt of aqua vitae for 4 days strain it & when setled bottle
it up for use. The dose is fr 2 to 4 spoonful in the morning
fasting according to the strength & age of the patient It is the
best Rx yet known says Dr Thos. Russel. The stone & gravel
boyl oat meal in water 1st like water gruel then add some ale so that it may 
be 1 pt. ale & 2 pts gruel let it boyl again a little time then sweeten
it with sugar add a little butter drink plentifully another roasted
or boyl’d apples with water & sugar or apples & milk with 
sugar to the palate. Another veal broth made with veal & bacon
boyl’d a good while & let it be strong of the veal as head & 
neck. Drink plentifully This is exct. to drink after physick has
done working. EA. another drink cyder with abt 20 or 30 drops
of oyl of turpentine for want of cyder use w. wine or ale
& beer the 2 last are the worst for scarce any thing in some
people breeds the gravel more than malt drink perhaps the
hops may be one occasion of it. another drink plentifully 
of whey or posset drink riding or walking after it to prevent 
its chilling the stomach. another make tea with sage adding
abt ½ a lemmon peel & [meat] sweeten it with sugar This will
open the body & is an exct preparative taken the night
before physick E.A. another drink a moderate draught of
new milk whey or for want thereof milk & water warm’d or camomile
or sage boyl’d or infus’d in water & after any of em a
draught of beer or ale to prevent em chilling the stomach & use 
exercise as riding, walking erc. E.A. for the stone & gravel SR
Nathan Wright. Rx sallet oyl & juice of lemmons each 2 spoonfuls
or the juice of one lemmon (eat the meat with sugar) w. wine
4 or 5 spoonfuls sugar 1 spoonful or as much as will make it
palatable Take this never but when you are sensible of a fit approaching
or in affect or when you feel pain of gravel for want
of white wine you may use cyder drink ½ a pint of w. wine & 
½ a pint of water or a pint of small ale to wash the loins a little
after you’ve taken the oyl & lemmon & he always finds benefit by 



14
by this but the most by Mrs LIvesy’s colic drink that never
fails giving ease. This was taught him by a Dutch Dr for the stone
gravel, gripes, colic & a cold. Rx Parsly roots sliced mi stonecrop I sal 
prunella zfs boyl em in a pint of new milk Drink it in a morning
warm. It is a dose for 2 mornings. It often provokes a stool or
2. It brought a great quantity of gravel from Stephen Hunt.
Another Rx rosin of turpentine i.e. boyl horse turpentine lbi by itself
in a pot that will endure the fire (you must get a Dutch pot fro London or
Northampton etc.) the older it is the better & will require less boyling you
boyle it a great while then pour it gently into a [panchion] of cold water
laying aside the hat, wig, & neckcloth lest it flys into the face when it
is cold you must try if it will break like rosin or glass then it is rightly 
made, but if it will not break so you must boyle it again & again till it
will break then boyl some butter that is abt 1 or 2 days old is best because
sweetest in an iron ladle or pan or frying pan till it is black which is call’d
burnt butter & put some of the rosin or turp. to the burnt butter viz as
then take as much as will make 15 pills with loaf sugar in pouder take at
one dose any time, then Rx white wine 2 or 3 ounces or spoonfuls in a
glass & light a pipe of tobacco & wrap a doubled paper round the [bole]
& blow the smoke into the white wine till there will appear an oyl upon
it Drink it immediately after it This dose or this dose repeated will
bring stones & gravel from you in great quantity Dr. Richd Pool mountebank 
of Northampton. Another gather abt the beginning of May
sassifras root when it is in flower which is white & like a boll, the roots thse which
are of a brown colour are best but those roots which are white
are good you may pull or dig em pu, there are 3 or 4 clusters
or more abt the root scarce ½ so big as a small cherry stone dry
Rx a scruple of the pouder in a little galss of white wine smoked
with tobacco. ibid. for the colic. Rx marsh or common mallow roots
wash’d & slided mi boyle em in water a pint ½ till ½ is wasted then
put in a qr. of a pint of w. wine; when it is strained sweeten it & drink
it hot. Mrs Caulson of Leicr Pills for the stone or gravel. Rx cyprus
turpentine ziy wash it well in water rhubarb & aloes each [illegible] in pouder zi mix
& work em well together make em into pills [with] liquorish pouder Take 1 or 2 
at night going to bed & 2 or 3 in the morning. They are a good purge & good
for a pain in the back or loyns or any where also or for a pain at the
stomach. you may take em 2 or 3 days & omit one or 2 according as they
work ibid. A gentle purge for gravel Rx damask roses or for want of
them pale roses the leaves of six roses they will keep dry all winter
Infuse em in a qt of whey 3 or 4 times Drink it in 3 or 4 hours It cools &
brings away gravel & makes a man healthful Dr P. drinks it for a months in [illegible] [illegible]


15
Gripes
Drink a glassfull of cold water made very salt with common 
[salt] salt after it take warm water as much as will vomit you. This cured Grace Hollins, sister S.A.’s maid.
Another drink milk sweeten’d with hony hot ibid.
Another drink
single or double
anniseed water very
hot burnt with sugar.
King James [1st] straggling from hunting to his next ale house complained
to the old woman that kept the house (but knew him not) that
he was troubled with the gripes. She advised him to swallow a leaden 
bullet which he did & was presently cured. old Wm [Shaw] of Asserby.
another drink a draught of cold water made milk white with fine
wheat flower. This cured 2 or 3 of the colic it is good also for fits
of the mother.
In the gripes or colic avoid vomiting or take not above one vomit
to clear the stomach for if you vomit often yr stomach will be 
enclin’d to cast up every think it receives & call back the poysonous
tincture that causes the gripes from the bowels to the stomach & the stomach being
made naked & empty’d fills again with new wind Mr. Colemore
of Warwick being advis’d by 2 drs to vomit when he had the
colic said he would 1st consult his own wife that was much afflicted
with it & she dissuaded him from vomiting & he was quickly
well. E. A. being grip’d abt Mich 715 was cured by eating plenty of
salt with roast mutton & some large hazelnuts kernels after it [illegible] [illegible]
stone colic or gripes (almonds may do as [illegible]
Rx Parsly roots, fennel roots scrape em, camomile leaves
& scotch fir boyle em in white wine or mild ale, never drink
stale drink. Jn Rastall of Ledgers Ashby. For the gripes eat
[rue] with bread & butter or swallow a bullet with some goose
shot & drink some brandy after them & stand on yr head. ibid.
Gripes. August the 18th 1705 upon drinking coleorton waters that come
from an iron mineral (they will not bear sope) they filled me full
of wind insomuch that in abt a weeks time I was violently grip’d
I vomited with warm water & clear’d my stomach that was full of
flegm but still my gripes continued the next day & vomited with posset
drink but still the more I vomited the more I was inclin’d to vomit 
I took milk & hony & it rather increas’d my pains & rue alone did
me little or no good, at last I lessen’d my gripes & cured them by 
boyling parsly, rue, sage, mint, fennel & common mallows in all a
good handfull in 3 pints of water to a quart but as soon as the
water hath [illegible] a tincture of the herbs take out 5 or 6 spoonfuls 
& when they are cold mix as much oatmeal with them as will thicken 



16
the quart of water the herbs being taken out then boyl it to water
gruel drink this warm morning noon & night for yr constant
drink till you are well avoiding malt drinks, wine cyder brandys
& milk & milk meats & raw fruits Eating rue & bread butter in a morning & onions
& water with a little salt for sauce to yr meat. Rx venice treacle
a knife’s pointful at night going to be wearing a flannel wastcoat
at night & a breast-piece by day to keep you warm during yr illness
upon eating raw fruit & drinking stale ale my gripes return’d in a 
very short time & then they were so violent that whatever I eat or drank
this it was but water gruel & belch’d & vomited it up & I never was 
at eas but just after vomiting. vomits would do me no good. I was
full of wind as ever I could hold which cast up every thing that came into
my stomach. I took 7 spoonfuls of rhubarb, gentian anniseed water
infus’d together & a clyster abt 3 o clock in the afternoon. The purge
& the clyster wrought not above 3 or 4 little stooles & could not eas
me of the wind. mountaine-sage boyled in ale or beer cures Mrs Holbech
of the wind colick but it did me no kindness. It grows upon rocks & 
hills in the forest of Leicester & on Croft Hill in Leicr shire. I could 
sleep at any time but when my gripes pained me much. Note If you 
take a purge you must make it stronger than what is fit for you to take
at another time or it will not work when you are grip’d & vomits are
of little use to one that is grip’d. I prefer clysters before purges & vomits 
for they cured me Aug. 25th 1705 Mr. Tho. Franks the minister of [Luenniborough]
cures himself of his wind, fits of the stone, colick & gripes by 
this following clyster once twice or thrice administered at the 1st approach
of the pain in his bowels striving all he can to keep it from ascending
from his bowels to his stomach Rx camomile, mallows, (al. mauls) sach
mi shred or cut small anniseeds bruised a half pennyworth, boyl em in almost a
pint of posset drink strain it & put to it two spoonfull of sallet oyl & 
another till he removes the wind. These he prefers before the celebrated
medicines of any Dr he has heard of. The latter end of Septr 1705 
after many returns of the colic & gripes I conquer’d em thus I
took the decoction following with steel pills by Dr Cole’s prescription
Rx the best bright thick cortex grossly beaten zfs pr 9 s Infuse it gently 
in water a large quart boyl’d & pour’d upon it near the fire 24 hours
then strain it out add to a quart of the infusion gentian zi virgin snake
zii pr 2 s white hore-hound & buckbean each zfs coriander or caraway-seeds
zfs infuse ‘em gently near the fire for ½ an hour then strain of [such]
takes a quarter of a pint with 20 drops of tincture of steel dropt into 


17
it This decoction & tincture you must take in the morning fasting
after you’ve taken 5 of the following steel pills & at 1st
for abt a month you must also take the pills & decoction at
4 o clock in the afternoon. To make steel pills Rx steel prepared
with tarter zfs pr 3 s that which is green is best, make it into a mass with
extract of gentian pr. 6 s & gum tragicanth. pr. 1 s each zii dissolve the gum
in one spoonful of water all night make it into a mass & weigh
out one scruple for a dose or 5 little pills to be taken morning & 
evening. Steel is a mighty sweetner & strengthener of the blood it
changes the excremt black. Steel-pills & steel tincture must be taken
together or they will do no good. Rx the steel pills for a month or
6 weeks when you are ill Wm Well Rx em once a gr. for a month but use
em not too often because steel then lose its virtue. use a gentle
purge (viz sal mirabile glauberi zi pr. 6 s dissolved in water over night & 
drank in whey or posset drink or pillula cochiae majoris zi made
into 8 pills pr. 5 s Rx 3 over night & 5 in the morning following.
Rx Bitters often to settle & strengthen the stomach & to destroy the
superfluity of the acids in the stomach. avoid all things that are windy
& griping as milk, apples, wheat, things sweet, salt & sour & whey tho sometimes it doth good as diuretick
Eat things of an easy digestion. meat with gravy to raise the spirits
for dinner or cows or calf’s feet boyl’d. Let yr breakfasts & suppers 
be broth or water gruel or french barly broth. Dr Coles. I
believe these steel pills & decoction did me a great deal of good in
the colic but they would not perfect the cure. I found the most
good by sallet oyl without mixing any thing with it drinking a pint
or more to make the bowels slippery & to carry off the corroding humours
there Rx sal mirabile glauberi zi & repeat yr sallet oyl & 
continue yr gentle purges till you’ve master’d the [illegible] humours when
you are quite well you may eat a great many ripe mellow apples or
live a week upon apple pie They are laxative & will cool & make a 
great alteration in your body but you must use much exercise by
walking or turning a malt-mill or they will chill the stomach. They will
make you belch at first but it will wear off. E.A. Rx the quantity of 
a hazelnut of Markhams balls (such as you give horses made with sallet
oyl) when you are grip’d or for 2 or 3 mornings after you are grip’d
or have the colic. This did me good E.A. Parson Burneby was afflicted with
the colic & vomiting & having try’d Drs in vain was cured by smoking tobacco
very much.


18
For the colic or gripes. Rx hiera piera zi cochinile zfs beaten
put em into a quart of white aniseed water let it stand by the 
fire 24 hours, shake it sometimes. Dose for a man 6 spoonfuls
approved by Mr Robt. Onsby & Cos. Ezekiel Wrighte. If that does doth
not give ease in abt a hours time Rx 1 or 2 spoonfuls more. 6
spoonfuls taken after a qter of a pint of sallet oyl will purge &
carry off the cause of the gripes. E.A. Another Rx Treacle water & 
penny royal water each a quarter of a pint Drink abt 4 spoonfuls as
oft as you feel pain. Mrs Anne Hubbert. Another Rx a clove of garlic
at night going to bed with 4 spoonfuls of good brandy after
it repeat this morning & night & take 2 cloves or more at
a time if you are not well in a day or two This cur’d E.A. July
706. It will be more effectual if for 2 or 3 days or longer you infuse
Roman wormwood or buckbean in yr brandy with it You may keep
some ready infus’d by you & [the] longr it is kept the less bitter
the taste will be. E.A. Broth made with oat meal or without which
a chicken boyled & drunken hot did E.A. a great deal of good 
June 1707 being griped by drinking bottled [flying] cider. A man
was cured of gripes & the colic by swallowing ivy berries 2 or 3 
at a time carrying em in his pocket always & taking em often in 
a day till he remov’d his pain. They cured him after a fortnights griping 
having try’d a great many medicines in vain. Mary Gee. Another
Distill some strong water (al. rack) from ale grounds. fill a still with
stone horse dung & of that strong water add to it what is convenient
according to the quantity you will draw off. Keep the distill’d water
& drink a glassful when you are grip’d or have the colic. It hath no 
ill smell Mr. Benbrook of Lockington’s family use it very much. ibid.
Another. Rx some camomile & almost fill a pipkin with it almost cover
it with water & set it in an oven with bread strain out the liqr & with
suger 6 s per lb boyl it to a syrup drink 2 spoonful in a draught of
warm’d mild ale as soon as you perceive yr pain approaching & it will 
drive it away old Mr. [Oke?ver]. vide p. the 9th for the wind colick 
Rx dryed betony & pouder it & mix it with live hony & make pills of it
as big as a small hazle nut & take two of them at night when you go to
bad R.C. another Rx an equal quantity of mint water fennel water
& the [illegible] of Hungary’s water shake them together in a bottle & drink
it at night going to bed & in the morning 3 spoonfuls in an exct. cure
R.C. Mary Gee being violently grip’d was cured thus boyl some oatmeal


19
in water or good small beer that is not tart when
it hath boyl’d pretty well add ale to it let it boyl again
a little then sweeten it adding sugar & white bread note when
you bouyl yr oatmeal at 1st you may put in rosemary &
mint & balm or cloves & mace abt a qr. of an hour
after this boat some gunpouder abt 2 timble fulls 3 cloves
of garlic, mustard 2 to a spoonfuls cream of tartar
1 to a spoonfull burn a quartern of [best] brandy with
which the garlic bruis’d then take out the garlic & mix the
brandy (or for want of brandy Rx double anniseed water)
with the rest of the ingredients & adding oyl of
turpentine 6 or 7 drops drink it off hot 1 dose cured
M. Gee. compos’d by E.A. note Aug. 1708 I was violently grip’d
having the precedt night drank bottled ale & eaten a late & plentiful supper
I try’d most of my noted medicines in vain at last being mightily swell’d
full of wind I took camomile boyl’d in posset drink plentifully till I vomited
then I took chicken broth & I was at eas the next day & for many
days I eat water gruel made with common mallows shread small which I take 
for an extraordinary good medicine for the gripes & colic I’ve heard of a
man that could never be at ease without it E.A. For the gripes & colic boyl
common mallows 1 gallon in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 pints 
throw the scum away when there is any on it Drink a [porringer] full warm at 
any time when grip’d This cured Mrs Finches husband when the Drs could not It
make him fall asleep & gave him ease & cur’d him Mrs. Finch. Itry’d this medicine
in Augt 1708 & found no benefit by it I drank [Diap?ate[ & smithy wat
mixt cold without any cure or ease I believe mallows boyl’d in milk & water
are better than in [illegible] but best in water gruel E.A. Another. Boyl holly
bark & loaves in beer a pint or more & drink it warm this cured Sam. Smith.
An exct. medicine for the wind colick, the [illegible] or convulsion fits
Rx Coral, amber [?st] of each a little quantity by weight, pulverize them all 
& mix them & take of the pouder the quantity of an hazel nut & put it into
a spoonful of [illegible] or warm broth & take it fasting with 2 or 3 spoonfuls
of the same broth & take as much more if yiou find not ease in 2 
hours after Mrs M. for the colick Rx a pint of good brandy & half a
pint of sallet oyl mix em & drink it at once this cured a woman of
one fit prescrib’d by Dr Lane of Banbury strong liqr in violent pain
affects the head very little Mrs Newlove I cured my wife of a pain & 
wind in her stomach by giving her venice treacle inwardly & laying 
a great plaster of Dr Bents salve spred upon allum leather & afterwards 
rub’d over with oyl of turpentine & apply’d to the navel & 
stomach E.A. Dr Bigs rub’d on a plaster chymical oyl of wormwood or mint with good success



20
For the wind & stone colic & to sweeten the blood.
Rx Balsamu capivy gut 30 in beer or ale for a week
every morning It is diuretic make tea of elder flowers
& drink of it 2 or 3 times a day It cured a gentn of the
colic Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange.
For the wind & gripes Rx mithridate a little knife pointful dissolve
it (by stirring with a knife) in a [illegible] dish or half a pint of
strong ale drink it off often in a day E.A. for the wind colick
beat 2 or 3 acorns to pouder drink in ½ a pint of beer or ale
warmed. It will make you belch wind & give you ease w.p. another
Rx syrup of camomile 2 spoonfuls in abt ½ pint of warm ale Mr
[Okeover] another quench crowstone in a draught of ale [illegible] [illegible]
another Drink sage tea sweeten’d with sugar E.A.
Janry 1708 I cured my self of wind in the stomach & gripes thus having
taken chicken broth in vain viz mustardseed beaten 2 tea spoonful gunpouder
of a large porringerful stir em well together & burn the brandy then add to 
gunpouder & mustard at the bottom of the porringer this will give present ease
[cardius] posset drink to clear my stomach 3 qts & then eat 3 or 4 mackeroons
to strengthen & compose my stomach & so went to bed & found
myself very [illegible] Another Mrs Kenton being so grip’d that she hat fallen
down & lay on her bed & hath been cured several times by drinking brandy
burnt with a little sugar in it. Mrs K. you may add a little mint
in double distill’d anniseed water such is much cheapr than brandy & 
will do as well unless it be french brandy & you may infuse all the
other ingredients & yr medicine will not be so easily discover’d &
it will be always ready You must not give it to a breeding woman
for it will make her miscarry, but for curing gripes or wind colic
no medicine I believe can out do it, It was invented by E.A. another
Rx Cream of tartar 3 qts of an ounce in posset drink or gruel 
is a dose for a man or woman. Intermit 2 days & repeat the dose
This has cur’d inveterate colicks The [illegible] Mr Ed. Stokes Dr [Lowes]
Paste (alias pilula de aloe lota, or aloe rosata) taking 1 pill as big
as a small pea over night & 2 the next morning cures & colic & gripes 
beyond any medicine. It is sold at Mr Smalley’s in Leicr.


21
for the spleen colic or gripes
The latter and of Augt 710 I was violently grip’d & felt
a pain on my left side my garlic & brandy & oyle of turpentine
& would not cure me I took pil. ex duobus & a vomit
of Ipicacuana & found no ease at last glisters gave me
ease but Mr Francis Colsman stopt my vomiting the women
[illegible] Mrs. Smith said it was the spleen colic she advised
me to take a vomit first then to eat pt of a chicken boyl’d 
with capers & parsly for the sauce to eat capers every morning
to carry em abt with me to eat em for my constant
sauce or to eat em alone as you go up & down or with any
fresh meat to avoid salt & salt meats this I [illegible] [illegible] as much gentian
root as will lie on a shilling or rather more & infuse it
one night in a quarter of a pint of running water or spring water 
that will bear soup & drink the water off in the morning Drink this
every morning till you are well you may cut the gentian into
very small pieces This cured of the gripes Tho. Chapman states
eat juniper berries they are good for the gripes buy em of Mr Penford the
distiller ibid Another Grate as much rhubarb as will lie on a 
shilling with a rasp & drink it with abt two spoonfuls of good French 
brandy in the morning fasting It will gently purge & drink camomile posset
drink at night going to bed i.e. camomile flowers or camomile
boyl’d in all posset drink Dr Shukbrugh Ashby This cur’d
the [R?] Mr. Burnby & Mr. Cradock of Belgrave they gook 
the rhubarb morning & night Mr. Burnby advises to leave
off drinking malt drink & to drink white wine or white
wine & water till you are well Mrs. Wrighte commends
water gruel made with oat meal & rice ground & milk pottage
the first in the morn the last at night The Lady Beaumt commends
camomile posset drink & [elizer] [propriatatis] another 
Rx mustard seed whole a gr of a pint or ziiii infuse it in a
bottle of ale & drink abt ½ a qr of a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon it will gently purge you Mrs
Mary Rayson. Another avoid all strong waters Dry some horseradish
root in the chimney & cut a little bit & chew it & swallow it It
is an exct. thing for the scurvy too. Dr Ben Heyrick.


22
Wind colic or gripes
The Rc Mr Jn. Wightman’s wife being with child was thus cur’d
of the wind colic. Over night Rx 10 or 12 drops of the chymical
oyl of anniseeds in a glass of warm ale or sack The next
morning bleed in the arm then take one spoonful of sp. of
wine The 1st gives speedy ease the last things a perfect cure. Dr White for the wind & stone colick Rx Plane brandy, sweet
oyl, syrup of violets [illegible] 3 spoonfuls beat em well together & 
take it when the fit comes Dr Geo. Ashby. violets are good for a
pleurisy & pain in the side for wind int eh stomach & wind
colic Rx Sp. of sal armoniac 4 or 5 drps 
ikn a glass of ale every morning It is a cure for melancholy
& to clear the spirits Dr Leeds of Manchester & Mrs
M. another Mrs Elyth Adderly drinks [illegible] posset drink to prevent
the wind colic & cures it by drinking Virginian snake root in brandy
i.e. the infusion [illegible] A clyster for the wind colic or gripes Rx 
new milk a pint mallows & camomil each mi shred anniseeds
& sweet [illegible] each a large pugil or zii beaten to pouder boyl those &
strain it. Add to the liqr brown sugar one spoonful, & oul of
turpentine 3 or 4 drops. It purges the wind downwards. Mrs 
M. There is an ext confection made of white, black & long pepper
called species [diat???] [piperi??] good for a cold & windy stomach
which may be taken at any time with hony or without. Salmon says diatrion
piperton warms the stomach, expels wind & is powerful agt
the colic. The haven of health written of Thomas Cogan commends
it highly but says that instead of it you may take a few
corns of black pepper grosse beaten in a draught of ale fasting
or take a little of the pouder of any of the 3 sorts together with
meat for nothing is better for wind & flegm p. [207]. Colic. Rx
this following is Salmon’s syrup of [antimony] [illegible]
white wine zvi rose water zii cinnamon zifs pouder of [stibium]
zi Digest a night than decant & with white sugar zviii boyl
it to a syrup. In the most intolerable pain of the colic it
cures in a moment. Dose fro zfs to zi in chicken or veal
broth Wm Padmore for the wind colic or gripes Rx Some of 
Dr Lowers paste viz one pill over night & 2 in morning sold
by Mr [Roger] [Boo??ll] at the Black Boy agt St. Dunstan’s Church in [illegible]



23
To prevent taking cold.
Jn Rastale of Ledgers Ashby that goes into the water in the
winter time to catch fish chews some elecampane before &
after his going into the water & never takes cold upon it
For colds syrup of garlick is good in all colds & stoppages in 
the lungs or stomach or Rx a pint of canary, white sugar candy
ziiii Spanish juice of liquorish zi two ordinary heads of garlick
Let them infuse 6 hours then boyl it gently to a syrup & strain 
it & take 1 spoonfull night & morning. R.C. a cold or stuffing
in the head. moisten some hares wooll or lint in oyl of turpentine 
& stop yr nostrils therewith going to bed. E.A.
for a cold Rx anniseeds, carraway seeds pounded & sifted, elecampane
pouder liquorish pouder & flower of brimstone each 
zfs put it to treacle lbi Rx it morning & night & as often as
you please in this day W.P. for a cold or to stop a great
cough & cure a hoarseness drink a draught of cold water at
night going to bed & in bed when the rheum tickles you & in the
day time It is a speedy & safe cure J.L. For an old cough
drink abt ½ a pint of asses milk new milk’d warm from the ass
in the morning before you rise Mrs Adderly. for a violent cough 
Eat a cold roasted apple at night going to bed IF that does not
cure in 3 or 4 nights then eat one also in the morning fasting Anne Tasie.
A chincough in children Rx sugar dandy ziiii tie it fast in a hogs
bladder for a female, a sows bladder for a male, then tie it to a root
of a tree in running water 24 hours. Let the child take of it often
in a day in the morning fasting an hour after it & at night take
a pretty great quantity. This cured when the dis could not a traveller
& Anne [Tasie]. another Rx wine vinegar ½ a pint running water a pint
or 3 spoonfuls at a time night morning & noon This cured Goody Simon’s 
children. It is good for haust in beasts. Anne Simons.
Another Give the child loaf sugar moisten’d with sallet oyl & apply doses
just melted & spred upon London brown paper to its stomach It cures in 3 days, Good
Dawkins’s child
for a cold eat 2 cloves of garlick at night going to bed
taking care for a day or 2 after of not catching cold. old
Mr Ed Brooks that took great delight in fishing us’d nothing
else old Stephen Hunt


24
A cold or cough. Rx Treacle & ginger in pouder at night
going to bed Robt. Moor. another Rx Half a spoonful of common
treacle & abt 20 drops of sallet oyle at night, mixt well
taking care you do not catch cold the next day This is the best
medicine in the world says my auther augustine Low Potter of
Coleorton moor another Boyl some new milk put butter & pepper & bread
to’t & drink it hot night & morning This & riding cured E.A.’s cold in the
yr 713 when lozenges & other medicines would not. Mr. Whale of Norton
commends syrup of garlic. Salmon says compound balsam of sulphur is
a [????endent] medicine in all diseases of the lungs, it heals ulcers stops coughs
Dispensatory p. 390. An old cold cough & hoarseness & to make
you rear & expectorate & to clear the stomach of plegm 
Rx ale 3 pts pepper in fine pouder zfs boyl it till ½ dis wasted
then take it off the fire & when it is as cold as new milk beat 
the yolk & white of one or 2 new lay’d eggs & add that to’t
& warm it a little when you drink it, & drink a coffee dish
morning & night & oftener This cured David [Jarvase] of the
said distempers having a stoppage at his stomach You may 
make less at 1st to [illegible] how you like it you may add liquorish 
a little boyl’d in’t at 2st It is good for wind. David [Jervase]
It is good for a syrfeit & gripes It will keep a yr in a bottle
close stopt. It will cure an ague & the colick. ibid.
An obstinate cold & cough & hoarseness April 1714 E.A. had
a mighty hoarseness working in his waistcoat catching cold. It was succeeded
by a violent cold & cough when he had taken a great deal of
sweet & oyly medicines in vain he was thus cured. He put on a great
coat & rode out every day for 3 or 4 hours drinking a little burnt
brandy or aqua vitae with a little sugar at night & eating bread & 
butter in the morning E.A. another Robt. Glover my [illegible] having a
 violent cold so that when he cough’d it made the blood fly out of his nose
& out of his mouth, his bones aked & head aked, Some nights he could 
not sleep a wink & he sweat very much a nights was cured by taking
anniseed water a quartern pr. 5.9 treacle ziiii pr. 1 s hony ziiii pr. 5.9 
Let em simber in a pot cover’d by the fire & drink it hot as [illegible] at 
nights going to bed it is best but you may take a 
spoonful or 2 at any time when you cough. This cured many persons
thus afflicted Augt 714. One of the best R’s for a cold or cough
Rx white sugar candy in pouder & oyl of sweet almonds. Rx a little
night & morn or when you cough in a tea spoon. Rx Mr Ed. Stokes



25
Agues
Rx the bottom or thick pt of a glass bottle & heat it red hot in the
fire & quench it in a pint of strong ales just as the fit is coming
& drink it hot & go to bed it will make you sweat. This is a dose for 
a man You must have less for a woman or a child. once taking
cures you must use the glass but once sister Boothby. Another
Rx [aniseed] water a qtr of a pint & the juice of a whole lemon
squeez’d into it & drink it as soon as the fit is come & go
to bed or lie up on the bed & be cover’d warm once taking cures
The Rd Mr Richard Duke another Beat anniseeds cummin seeds to pouder
& mix it with venice turpentine & apply it [platter] wise 
to both wrists a little bigger than ½ a crown an [allum’d] [illegible] before the fit comes let it be on till it is
dry. Mrs Elizth [Basset] These plasters seldom fail, they prevent
a fermentation in the [illegible] & keep the spirits quiet you must apply
them where the pulse beats on the wrists & let them be [serv’d]
on the night before you expect the ague because it comes
often uncertainly therefore let the plaster take possession
before it. other plasters that never fail curing. Rx white copperas,
venice bole & venice turpentine each 1 I mix & 
spread it upon allum & leather to go quite round the wrists let 
em lie on 3 or 4 weeks Mrs Emerson & Mary Gee. Another Rx
Diascordium zfs & drink 3 spoonfuls of plague water or (for want of it)
of anniseed water, an hour before the fit comes going to bed & sweat. Mr
Red Duk. from Dr [L??er] you must take the diascordium an hour
& ½ before the fit is expected. zfs is a dose for a man, zii for a
child. It hath cured when Jesuits pouder could not. Francis Squire
An ague or cold in a womans breast so that the breast is swelld
& hard with it. Warm some of the best brandy (sp. of wine is better)
with a spoon & dab it on the breast with a linnen cloth 6 or 7 
times in a day & leaving always the cloth on the breast, this
cured Mrs [Littalford] in a weeks time [illegible] An ague Rx as much
whip cord as will come twice round the middle pr. 2nd tie
it very straight round the middle of the naked body next the
skin near the navel 2 or 3 hours before the fit comes when
the ague comes it makes the body swell. The whip cord prevents
its swelling & drives it away. This cured may colliers at 



26
Coleoverton & Cornelius Jones the bricklayers wife at
Leicr The thickest whipcord is easiest. You must wear it
till you’ve mist a second fit. C.J. To cure an ague when 
Jesuit’s pouder can’t. Rx the roots of elder miiii or more wash 
& dry em with a cloth scrape em tillyou come to thewood i.e.
till you’ve as much as a man can take up with one hand at once
boyl it in 3 pints of milk till one is consum’d Let a man when
he perceives the fit coming drink the [qt] strain’d blood warm This
is one dose if it does not cure repeat the dose. It is a 
gentle vomit. James Lappington horserider another Rx a cobweb 
roll it up till it is of the bigness of a horse bean, set it in the top of an
apple This cured Wm Biggs my servt. only taking it once. Wm Biggs.
another wear wormwood that is green in the stocking next to the bare
feet & shift it when dry by laying fresh in its place This cured
Frances Clark. another Run till the breast is gone a little before
you expect the fit This cured Jane Tasie of a third day ague when
a great many noted medicines were try’d in vain. Let a man run,
a little before the fit (the finger nails often look black before the
fit comes) till his breath is gone then let him fall a thrashing
till he sweats. This often repeated wears away an obstinate ague 
This cured Anne Tasie’s br. Jn. another Rx ½ a pint of white wine vinegar
set it at one end of a room & set ¼ of a pint of the best brandy
at the other end & walk fro one to the other taking a sup of
one & a sup of the other a little before the fit comes or when you 
feel it coming till you’ve drunk em both up. It will make you 
[illegible] mightily & clears the stomach Let 2 buckets or pots to vomit
in It cured at once Taking an ague of a qr of a yrs standing 
Witness Tho. Smith of Blaby. This cured my servt. Wm Biggs running
all the time he was drinking it in the [illegible] It made him vomit 2 or 3 
times. another Rx the white of 2 new laid eggs wheat flower & the
best soap beat it to a salve. spred it on flaxen rags & apply it to 
the feet lying in the stocking till the ague is gone then [illegible] they cured Tho.
Brooks of Blaby. You must have soap the quantity of a large nutmeg 
& mix it with the white of an egg after it is beaten & beat em 
both together then add wheat flower as much as will make it into a
salve Beat em all together & apply it immediately or it will not spred


27
another Roast a whole nutmeg agt the fire & put it
very hot to 4 or 5 spoonfuls of sack the nutmeg will break 
in pieces which eat & drink the sack after it & walk abt for
a pretty while Do this when you perceive the fit coming. It seldom
fails curing. Sister Boothby. another Spred 2 plasters on 
leather with frankincense very thick and apply em to the wrists after a fit
keep em on sometime after the ague is gon least it return again
This cured old Goody Gregory of Blaby apply’d to the stomach Mrs [Norolove].
an ague on a child moisten a pack hired string in oyl of
camphir & [illegible] about the childs neck let it wear it for a week
or longer if it does not chafe the skin. This will cure a sucking
child. A gypsie & Stephen Hunt. another Rx nine little onions
cut small into four qrs put em into a linnen bag & wear it next
the stomach being fixt to a fillet round the neck put it on abt an 
hour before this fit comes & chew 2 or 3 onions taking only a little
at a time in the mouth & swallowing only the juice & the spittle
This cured Elias Simpson one time & another time only chewing onions
(without hanging any abt his neck) cured him. Elias Simpson
another Quench a rusty horse shoe, heated red hot, in verjuice a qr of a
pint drink it hot & walk after it This cured Joyce Gimson’s mother & br
after many things try’d in vain. J. G. an ague. Infuse tobacco zfs 
in abt a pint of ale [illegible] 8 or 10 hours strain & drink it a little
before the fit It makes you vomit which clears the stomach
& effects the cure This seldom or never fail’d at [illegible]
Jn. [Cates] wife You may boyl em together when the fit is over give a tea spoon of bark
every 4th hour & on the [illegible] after it This cured Joyce [illegible]
another old Bosworth of Enderby a lusty 
man was blooded 16 ou. in the arm which cured him of an ague He had only 
a little grudging of a fit after it. another Mrs Gregory having taken the
Jesuits bark in pouder mixt with water & after that she had more bark infus’d 
in clarret & in w. wine but she found no cure till she was blooded
in the arm. A.G. when the lips break out it is a sign the ague is going
away.
Drinking whey or buttermilk or very cooling liqours or eating fruit in 3
or 4 weeks after the bark has driven an ague away will cause it to 
return. E.A. ague Rx the roots of henbane clean’d but not wash’d
cut em into short pieces & with a needle & thred make a necklace 
wear em abt the neck till they are dry (abt a week) & renew it abt
2 necklases commonly cure Drink night & morning garlic boyl’d 
in milk a porringer full till well. This cured David Jervase of an ague 
almost of 2 yrs standing taught him by a beggar woman


28
a b r a k a d a b r a
a b r a k a d a b r
a b r a k a d a b
a b r a k a d a
a b r a k a d
a b r a k a
a b r a k
a b r a
a b r
a b 
a 
This is a charm for an 
ague or intermitting fever
In Cornelius Agrippa his
natural & occult philosophy
To be ty’d abt the neck. Roll it
up abt a thred or pack thred etc.
sealing it with a piece of wafer in 
3 or 4 places that it may not be read
but torn when open’d Dr Million. This
cured E.A.’s wife July 717 when the bark
& vomiting would not.
an ague. Rx 3 or 4 spoonful of brandy pr. 2 d moisten a little white
bread toast therein eat it & drink the remainder of the brandy after it
a vomit for an ague Mr [Traps] Rx cardius mii or better pr. 1 d one
head of white lilly root as big as an egg white & pull it to pieces viz
into cloves. Boyl em in 6 qts of clear water to 5 or till the roots are
tender then strain & add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of sallet oyl to the water straind
or for want thereof fresh butter. Be sure to boyl enough water at 1st 
as not to want a feather thrust down the throat will make you vomit
Rx this vomit abt 3 or 4 o clock in the after-noon when the ague
fit is not on you Drink burnt clarret or white wine or ale [caudle]
Eat poch’d egg you may go to bed or sit up after it. The same night Rx 
Jesuits bark zi in fine pouder infuse it in a qt of clarret in the
morning shake the bottle & take an ordinary wine glass of it every 4 
hours viz abt ½ a gill when it is all taken fill the bottle again with a qt 
of more clarret let it infuse 12 hours & take that every 4 hours & you
need take it no longer you must not take the bark till the hot & cold
fit is over. an ague [Dr] got a great deal of mony by this Rx in Yorkshire
Mr Traps. another Rx Green savine pound it add currant & 
pound em & lastly add hony & pound em altogether spred it upon
2 pieces of leather & sew em to 2 rags and apply em to the wrists [illegible]
em when dry if this ague does not go away This cured a child of
3 yrs old Mrs Chester Jn Cater another mix conserve of red
roses with Jesuit’s bark spred it upon linnen fold 2 plasters then strew on a 
little of the Peruvian pouder apply em to the wrists This cured Mrs
Hubbard of Raresby & she seeing a maid of her acquaintance going
to London that had an ague took the plasters from her wrists 
& in haste apply’d em to the maids wrists & they cured her too Mrs H.
Dr Pool the mountebank his ague pouder Rx the green pouder of an
herb that grows in the Lady Robinson’s wood near Stamford It is called
It bears a large flower all of a cluster like a bunch of 




29
grapes It grows abt a foot high like emmeny having a
long narrow loaf & antimonium diaphoreticum in 
pouder as much as will lie on a great sugar (pr. 8 d per lb.)
The weight of one dose of the ague pouder for a man or woman is the
weight of a new sixpence & 10 grains. Rx Dr Pool’s pouder for an ague
viz the dose, in ale sweeten’d with treacle, a qr of a pint treated hot til
night going to bed, or in treacle alone as an electuary. The 1st makes you 
the least sick for the wind or stone-colic or gripes. Rx a qr or 4th pt of
the pouder in treacle & ale or treacle at any time. It is best when the
stomach is empty. The quantity of the pouder that will lie on a six pence
in a little loaf sugar given 3 mornings together will kill worms in children
for a third day ague Rx rape oyl a spoonful in D. R. loaf sugar
zii immediately before you take the ague pouder Dr. Pool.
another Rx green walnut tree bark mi dandelion roots no 6 boyl ‘em in 
stale ale a qt till it comes to a pint & ½ or less sweeten’d with sugar or treacle
but the last is apt to make you catch cold. Drink it warm a little before
the ague comes & keep warm Rx it 2 or 3 times. Drink water not
beer during the cure. Danl Pool.
Plasters for the ague Rx aethiops mineralis zi conserve of red roses zii
mix em & keep em in a pot for use plasterwise to be apply’d to the
writs. This was found out accidentally by E.A. [illegible] try’d oftener miss’d than
plaster for the ague. Peel an onion & cut it into two equal pts hollow
each pt. like the top of an eggshel mix gun pouder with venice treacle as
much as will fill the empty places & bind on one to each wrist there
to remain for a month. This cured Hannah Ashby the daughter of cos.
Jn Ashby abt 6 yrs old without making the wrists sore or offering any
injury to the skin. The onion must be so large as to hold abt the quantity
of an hazelnut. Cos. Hannah Ashby [illegible] It will cure when pounded together 
& spred on [illegible]& [illegible] to a [illegible] but it is apt to blister the wrists of them that [illegible] E.A.
an ague Rx Jesuits bark zfs in pouder salt of tartar zi boyl em in a qt
of water til it comes to a pint shake & divide it into four pts Rx one
pt. every third hour on the ague day or night after the sweating (or burning)
fit is over fast all the time & 3 hours after the last dose. Shake it
(unstrain’d) before you take it. a gentlewoman of Withcock in Leicestershire 
divulg’d this Rx aftershe had spent [illegible] in charity on the medicine being
tyred with the expence. Patricius [Bonner] Taylor of Frisby & Br. S.A.
another Rx camphir 1 [illegible] bring it home in a little glass bottle close cork’d then
put it into a rag & sow it to the shirt or shift opposite to the bosom. This 
cured Sam. [Exon] Carpenter
another Rx venice treacle zii pr. 2 [illegible] divide it into 3 pts wrap each pt (when 
you take it) up in cobweb Rx it 3 mornings successively fasting, fast 2 
hours after it. Mrs. Newlove.
another Rx his head of a brush in the shape of a pineapple that grows
on the top of a plant call’d venus’s basin in the middle of the head there 
is a little worm or grub Put it into a [illegible] stop it in [illegible] cork & hang it
between the breasts of a woman or on the bosom of a man This has cured
agues of a yr & half standing Goody Van of Little [illegible] stop when fails curing


30
an ague Rx Black pepper zi in pouder ale a pint drink
it warm as soon as you percive the fit approaching &
go to bed & sweat this has cured agues of a yr standing Sam.
Leaptrough.
an ague (every other day) Rx Jesuits bark zii pr: 6 [illegible] divided
into six papers Rx one every third hour in a little w. wine or clarret
because it doth not mix well in small beer. Fast an hour before
& after taking it drink nothing but soffet drink made of beer & ale
mist & that sparingly. Before you take the bark apply the following
plasters to the wrists or stomach Rx sope the quantity of a hazelnut
saffron a little, tobacco & curranths each a nip pound em in a mortar
& spred em on leather Let em lie on a fortnight They are apt to
fetch off the skin if they lie on long This cured sister Shukbrugh Ashby.
Emplastra oxycroceum cures an ague lay’d to the wrists, Mrs Caulton
The third day ague sometimes it cures the ague joyn’d with a fever
a distemper that reign’d in the yr 1721 Rx a magpie drops her as a chicken 
then chop & break her bones & boyl her with a crust or 2 of white
bread that is old in a galn of water till it is consum’d to 2 pts drink
it warm for the constant drink when that is gone boyl another magpie
as at 1st & drink it as before directed. This seldom fails. This makes
you refrain from malt drink & wine & so makes at alteration in the
whole mass of blood. (Dr. Salmon says the [illegible] of a magpye eaten helps
redness & pain of the eyes & dimness of sight, vertigo, epilepsies, melancholy 
& madness.) Mr James Allen high constable of Whetstone cures 
himself of an ague by binding his wrists & above the knees in the gartering
place & abt the middle with filleting or manchester gartering or
with any thing that will not hurt him very streight & as hard as he can
endure it as soon as he percives the fit approaching when the fit is over
take it off this never failed James Allan
another Rx snakeweed & venice treacle each zii boyl em in spring
water 2 qts till it comes to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish fill 4 times a
day out of a bottle shaking the bottle drink it warm every day
while it lasts. This cured Mrs Elizth Grene Dr Hartop.
another Rx 3 or 4 spoonfuls of [Daffy’s] elixir according as thou art strong or
weak or body over night or in the morn for a gentle purge. If it does not
work by stool the next day by 9 or 10 o clock when taken over night then take
another spoonful the next morn. Intermit a day & repeat the purge apply 
toe the stomach a little plaster of female or soft frankincense spred upon 
allum leather the bigness of a five shilling piece & strew upon it when spred & 
warm a little Jesuits bark in pouder If the brest is hairy you must shave it
first It sometimes draws blisters. Let it lie on as long as it will stick. If you
are violently sick & the ague comes later & later every day & the lips break
out in scabs It will go away. The plaster will make you sweat Bind the wrists
with a fillet very hard before the fit comes you must not loosen em [till] the fit is gone. This
cured Ann Tasie March 5th 721.
Plasters for an ague mix soap, chalk & soot apply em spred on allum leather
to the wrists IT seldom fails apply a little before the third fit Blaby miller & Goody



31
Simons. another That day that you expect the ague to come
in the morning fasting make water & whilst the urine is warm
make a little cake with some of it as much as will knead two
spoonfuls of wheat flower bake it on a brick at some distance
from the fire often turning it when you perceive the ague coming
a man must give it to a bitch, a woman to a dog to eat The dog
will quake & shake & be sick & vomit after he has vomited it up.
The ague leaves the dog This cured Sam. Snape of Glen parva. If it
doth not go away you must make a new cake as at first & give it
again It must be given 3 or 4 times till the ague goes
another Rx walnut tree bark fresh cut off from a grain or [bore] abt
2 [illegible] ½ long 2 [illegible] wide steep it in sharp verjuice 12 hours bind the
inside to both wrists on the pulse. It discolours the skin black This
cured many people in the yr 1721 at [Rasby] of agues Tho.
Fletcher black smith of Rasby
another Rx grains of paradise zii in fine pouder pr. 2 [illegible] brandy 2 [illegible] (or 4 spoonful)
This is a dose for a man or woman ½ the quantity for a child abt 12 yrs
of age. You must give it to a child at twice the same day The 1st time mix
a little beer with it in a spoon It is apt to [fuddle] a child. Let 2 women take the child one
by one arm the other by the other arm 7 walk it abt.This cured old [Exon]
& one of Goody Exon’s daughters Elizth Exon She must not go to bed. She
took it a little before the fit comes. Mrs Freer. If the ague returns you
must take it again.
another Rx the inner bark of mulberry
[tree] mii froth gotten boyl it in ale or strong beer a qt strain it
& drink a draught a little before the fit approaches & the [illegible]
during the fit by a little at a time, till you’ve drank it all. This
hat cured 17 agues successively without being baffled. Burgos of
Dunton & Goody Simons
another Let the patient (an hour 
before the expected time of the fit Rx 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir salutis,
being at that time [illegible] & 2 spoonfuls 6 hours after intermit a day
& take a spoonful at night & 1 at uprising in the morning Let the dose
be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if it agrees with the strength till
it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to exceed. This
cured Mr Marten’s daughter at Leicer another E.A. cured himself of an
ague at spring in the yr 1722 only by eating 3 or 4 sevil oranges, the
meat, kernels & some of the peel from morning to night & changing the
air leaving Blaby & lying one night at Leicer. They took off his fever & 
got him a stomach. E.A. another Rx a new lay’d egg Put the yolk unbroken
with the white into a gill of brandy & drink it off when the fit is on you
This cured a great many & Geo. Simons of Wigston Magna.
another Rx mountain wine a qt put it into a large bottle add to it 2 or 3 handfuls
or more of the inner bark of barbery tree. Let em infuse 48 hours then drink 3 
spoonfuls 1st in the morning & last at night. This cured Mr Jn Wilkins clockmaker of
Liecer having try’d a great many medicines in vain. J.A.
[illegible] Rx 2 or 3 spoonfulls of mustard seed in powder in a pint of 
new ale take it in bed a little before the fitt comes. It made Joseph 


32
Webdale the joyner swell as if he would burst at last
it made him vomit up a cake almost ready to chok’d him he
lay in bed after it. he had had it a month it was almost as 
thick as flower meat. This cured him he was at eas as soon as
the ague-cake was tost up. Joseph Webdale It is a churlish medicine
For an ague first purge the patient thoroly with a purge fit
for the humour, then take good store of plantain & ribwort & 
boyl ‘em in verjuice strain it & bottle it putting sweet salet oyl
on the top of it & so it will keep all the year give of this a good
draught before the fit comes or in the begining of the fit in 2 or 
3 times at the most it will help. Probalum, Mrs Hervet E.A.’s mother.
For a quartan ague or fever. Rx verjuice a galln & seeth
it in 4 or 5 good handfulls of ribwort & plaintain let ‘em 
boyl well together, then strain it & put sugar to it & 
drink off it before the fit comes, ibid
For a quartan ague Rx shell-snails mii bay-salt & mallows
each mi lay it to soles of the foot before the quartan 
fit comes ibid. For an ague
Make a toast of bread and soke it in the [parties] urine and 
give to a dog to eat and it will cure. Goody Smith.


33
For the scurvy & to sweeten the blood
& to correct an ill habit of body Dr Hartop.
to provoke the forms & to cure the green sickness
Rx Electuary of steel the quantity of a nutmeg & a qr of a pint
of bitter decoction after it
(or Rx steel pills v.p. 17) when you’ve left of taking yr steel then Rx dandelion
agrimony sage & [famitory] each mi boyl ‘em in 3 pints of clarify’d
whey to 2 pints drink a quart cold every morning. Prepare it 
over night. To clarifie your whey boyl it & scum it let it stand till
it is almost cool scum it again pour it from the sedemt strain it
thro a hair sieve & boyl it with the herbs when you’ve fresh buttermilk
you may clarifie it with buttermilk pour’d to yr whey run boyling.
Rx this whey all the spring as long as the herbs are to be gotten
green. This cur’d Mrs Theophila Grene that was troubled with a vomiting
had no stomach & her face full of spots with the scurvy Dr H.
Another a dist drink to cure the scurfy & a dry itching & clear
the light when the eyes are rheumatic & dim’d by the scurvy vid.
p. 77. another for the scurvy Mr. Yarwood commends tincture
of antimony. Dr. Coles commends salt of steel.
Mrs Hoppers diet drink to sweeten the blood 
Rx scabius agrimony each mi monks rhubarb the roots & red madder
roots each less [illegible] ziiii aniseeds zii liquorish zi wash & 
scrape the roots & slice them thin, wash the herbs & bruise them
put them all into a bag with a weight to sink them down in four
gallons of midling ale (3 gallons of good malt will make 5 gallons of
ale strong enough) at four days and you may drink of it & the
more you drink the better Mrs M.
A rare water for the scurvy & dropsie.
Rx the leaves of sea scurvy grass & cargen scurvy grass lbvi stamp
them & press out the juice to such add the juice of brookline & 
watercresses each lbifs The roots of broom lbiiii horse radish lbii
winterian bark lb fs 12 lemmons sliced thin with the meat & rind
nutmegs ziiiii Infuse all these 3 days in 8 pints of the best white
wine that you can get, then distill it in a limbeck Rx of this 3 spoonfuls
every morning & every evening as you find occasion. Mrs. S.
for the scurvy & to sweeten the blood. Rx the leaves of [tares] or
vetches before they begin to bear [tares] mii pound em take two 


34
two spoonfuls of the juice in a draught of warm ale 
night & morning for a week or fortnight. M. Burton.
for a dry itch & to sweeten the blood Dr Martin Hartop.
Rx Aeth. mineral zi pulv oc: cancr: coral: rubr: ana zii
misce bene & include. chartis no 20. Take every morning
one of these papers mixt with a little conserve of scurvy-grass 
& drink a draught of whey or milk & water after it, in which
a scruple (i.e. 20 gr. abt as much as will lie on a shilling) of sal-prunella
in pouder hath been dissolv’d: then ride out after it an hour 
or more 20 papers of the pouders pr. 2 s to 10 [illegible] T. Codman apothecary
Conserve of scurvy-grass zii 6 [illegible] sal prunella zi 3 [illegible] [nose] old
conserve of scurvy grass is best because it is the moistest & it is
only a vehicle outward oyntmts says Dr H. stop the pores & will not
cure
for a wet itch Rx the inward bark of elder mi boyl it is ½ a 
pint of cream or better strain it & put to it abt 3 tea spoonfuls
& let it just boyl again. Drink 3 mornings successively, before
you begin to anoint yrself, a teaspoonful of flower of 
brimstone in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of new milk anoint yrself 3 nights
successively agt a good fire then change yr shirt This cured Anne
Tasie that had it almost 3 yrs having soap & brimstones & tobacco
infus’d in ale which had cured a great many & many noted medicines
in vain. A. T.
Dr Ratcliffs letter to Dr Hartop abt E.A.’s dry itching that I perceive that friends
distemper is a [illegible] scurvy arising from scorbutic salts [illegible] in his blood ever
since the small pox time [then] [illegible] the [methods] you mention have been unsuccessful
as [fluxing], [bathes], aethiop. min: etc. I advise the following with contiunual exercise
for otherwise you will find ir very difficult if not impossible to remove ‘em 
I am [illegible] yrs to comd Rx sal mirab. glaub. zii pulv. ocul. cancer,. coral.
superbib. haustu seg: Rx coch. hort. mii hed. ter. mi fol. sals. boraban.
ana mi [ba??]. junip [illegible] aa lbfs lactis vac. q.s. distill org. [illegible] comg
s.a. lbiiii
For a cachexia or ill habit of body or scurvy, a pain in 
the stomach or wind colick
This cured Cos. Hartop’s lady when the Leicr Drs & bath waters could not
Take spring water & the best brandy of each half a pint. Peruvian
bark six drams, coriander seeds two drams; cardamoms & cubebs each 



35
one dram; salt of wormwood a scruple & half (if zfs)
[illegible] let them stand 2 days in a cold infusion shaking em often then strain it off
thro a flannel bag
& take five spoonfuls in a morning fasting & five at five 
o clock in the after-noon. If this is too strong put ½ a pint more
water to it. You may infuse the ingredients a second time 
a gentle purge for a pain in the stomach & colick & scurvy
Rx gum guaiacum one dram in [illegible] every morning for a
week before (you take the precedent medicine) takes more or 
less as there is occasion to purge; if it purges too much
omit a day. Rx it in cold water or cold beer not in any thing
that is hot because it will make the gum clog together Cos.
Elizbth H. had this Rx from a Dr at the bath. The price of the apothecary’s 
drugs at leicr is 3d 3s Mr Cotsman. In other Rxs I 
saw only one scruple of salt of wormwood & the gum guaiacum
to be taken in a spoonful of milk [illegible] to Mrs Brooks.
another to sweeten the blood being a gentle purge used almost
all the yr round by sergeant Lead Rx cowslips, primrose flowers
bottony, sage, eye bright each zi dryed; single peony roots dry’d ziii
rue mfs caraway seeds zi two nutmegs put those in a bag into
three gallons of all. [illegible] another which Dr G. Ashby drinks every morning’
to sweeten the blood & prevent the scurvy Half beer & half ale [warm’d]
together having boyl’d in the alewort buckbean fir or pine tops, sage,
gill, Roman wormwood, each dry mi for 7 or 8 gallons G.A.
another for a dry itching prescrib’d me by Dr Brooks in leaden
rum 69 [illegible]i cape mane & hora somni suberbibe coch. v. jul:
seq. Rx aqua foeniculi zviii paroniae ziii sacchari albi
ziii fiat julapium
Dr Bradly’s Rx for the scurvy Rx 6 gallons of strong ale wort
boyled with these ingredients viz china roots zvi juniper berries bruised
ziii to 4 or 5 gallons work it up without hops with yest when you [illegible] it hot
these following ingredients be hung in it in a bag & at 6 or 7 days and
drink it red sage miii ground ivy Tansy each mni the filings of iron 2 or 4 
ou. drink morning & night ½ a pint or more these herbs dry’d are as good
all winter. Mrs M.


36
A diet drink to sweeten the blood
Rx hysop coltsfoot scabius ground ivy maiden hair, each mi
jujubes figs & dates each [illegible] so raysins ston’d ziiii french barly
zi lignu vitae zfs boyl these in 3 qts of spring water to 2 qts sweeten
it with syrup of maiden hair or with any syrup or sugar or drink it without
in the morning & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed Mrs M.
The itch Rx the roots of sharp pointed dock boyled in vinegar
till they are soft then pulped brimstone wash’d in 
juice of limons each zifs hogs grease often wash’d in scabious
water lbfs oyl of rodium [illegible] zfs white precipitate zfs
make them into an oyntmt in a mortar according to art.
[illegible] without [his] [dock] at Mr [Colsman]
It cures the itch in a short time by anointing & likewise
all other breakings out & deformities of skin, Wm Padmore
To sweeten the blood & to cure a dry itching Rx juice
of brooklime & watercresses each a pint Let em settle abt
12 hours then pour off the clear & mix it with the juice of 2 
sour oranges Bottle it up & drink 5 spoonfuls morning & 
at 4 in the afternoon & at night going to bed refraining
fro salt & sour Dr Tho. Lydall of Horsepool Grange Dr. Harrington’s
servt. For a dry or inward itching Rx rue ziii
scurvy grass zvi flower of brimstone zfs English rubarb zviii
put all these into 2 gallons of strong ale & boyl em till
it comes to 2 gallon. Bleed one in the arm or foot or any
pt at the full of the moon then drink every morning & 
night going to bed 6 spoonfuls till it be all gone. Purge after
it. Take it every spring till well & longer if you will This cured Rd Mr
Sam. Smally Rd Wood Gardiner at [noneaton] in Warwick-shire. make
the herbs & root (if green) half dry by being placed [near] the fire
to correct their wateryness & put the scurvy grass in when you’ve almost
boyl’d it enough to prevent its vertue fro evaporating E.A.
For the scurvy oft proved & exct. Rx of the biggest leaves of
scurvy-grass n. 12. raisins of the sun ston’d n. 20 shavings of
horse radish roots zifs. Put em in a qt bottle of beer or ale,
after 2 days drink of it for ordinary drink. you may make 
as many bottles as you please, drinking it for a long time. Dr
James Cookes marrow of physick p. 609. an electuary for the scurvy 


37
Rx conser. cochlear zij conserv. berber zi pul. ocul. cancr.
zifs misc. dos. afs at night & morning. ibid.
For a dry itching & to sweeten the blood v. p. 221.
For a dry itching drink in the morning in bed a porringer 
of butter’d ale (or ) having 2 or 3 stone 
bottles fill’d with boyling hot water well cork’d & cover’d with
towels or napkins heated hot agt the fire to keep the bottles
from burning the flesh where they touch, lay on each side
you a bottle or more Thus lie for 3 or 4 hours or longer
& sleep if you can. when you’ve layen till you are tyred
& wou’d rise let a clean warm dry shirt be ready for to
put on. when you are up drink a draught of warm broth,
or ale. Repeat this as oft as you’ve occasion taking
care you do not catch cold after it This surpasses all the
prescriptions of London & country drs E.A. The itch
dress with [?agedenic] water made with m sublimate & lime
water Mr Chiselden. The scurvy a dry itching or leprosie & 
to sweeten the blood. Rx decoctum ulmi a qt in [illegible] Dispensatory. Rx. aethiops
mineralis zij conserve of roses ziiii mix em take the quantity of a 
chestnut on a knife’s point every day for a month drinking a draught of the
decoction of elms bark aforesaid after it at meals drink a little beer as
much as is sufficient to wash down the victuals Dr Smith [illegible] in Coventry
commends this as an extraordinary Rx for the scurvy. A dry itching is cured
also by sweating thrice in a bagnio ibic. This E.A. try’d in vain. another Rx
salt of steel in pouder abt as much as will lie on a silver 2 [illegible] in ½ a glass of
distill’d elder water in a morning fasting for a month, fasting abt an hour
after it. you may encrease the dose as it agrees with you. Do not beat it to pouder 
till you use it. Dr Hely took as much at once as would like on 6 [illegible] when the
month is expir’d Rx after it a brown bolus a purge that is gentle to cleanse 
his blood on a knife’s point pr 6 [illegible] Rx it spring & fall. Keep the salt o f
steel always dry near the fire or it will dissolve to water It will not cure
a wet itch. Dr H says it cured 12 persons troubled with a dry itching prescrib’d
by him. The Rx is in Dr Salmon’s [polygraphice] of painting with the bolus says Dr
T. Hely [Dr] [illegible] avoid [illegible] salt things ibid. E. A. put [illegible] steel zii to eder water a qt 
Drink a little glass more or less as it will agree with you after you’ve eatan a 
mouthful of bread It prevents & corrects this coldness & windiness of the
water. The bolus to sweeten the blood scammony 15 gr. mercurius dulcis [illegible] i 
lenitive electuary zifs pr 6 [illegible] mi [cook] It is too strong a purge for an
ordinary man. E.A. It is an exct. purge ibid.


38
For the itch Rx flower of brimstone zfs & put it
into half a pint of white wine vinegar shake em well together
in a bottle & anoint the places infected & it will certainly
cure says W.P. for a dry itch or any scorbutick outbreak
or itching Rx allum 2.9 Green copperas 2.9 or ziiii
boyl em in a quart of old smitthy water till it is consumed
to a pint when cold bottle it up close & dab it on with a 
rag once a day cold This cured a gentmn of a dry itching
that spring & fall was attended with an out break & scabs that the
Drs could not cure. He gave the poor womn [illegible] for the cure
& Rx. Poor womn of Hinkly & Jo. Warner [farrier] Sour things
as vinegar or stale beer small or strong cause an itching or
[pricking] in the blood inwardly taken [illegible]
for any itching in the blood eat rue chopt small with bread
& butter for 14 or 21 mornings or till it is quite gon Tho. [frees] farrier.
for the itch Rx fresh butter lbi black pepper in fine pouder zi one nutmeg
pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in pouder ginger beaten pr. one farthing cloves & mace pr. 1 [illegible] ½ in 
pouder tyme, savory & sweet marjoram one handful stript & shred small. flower
of brimstone zifs mix & take the quantity of a walnut made into 3 pills
for 3 mornings together & fast one hour & half after them then anoint 
your self 3 mornings with the like ingredients & be sure to ware the shifts
2 or 3 weeks. W. P. Decr 19th 717 Sunday four apprentices to a weaver
in Spittle fields London died under the operation fo some gamboges
which they were advised to by an emperick, for the cure of the itch,
Stamford mercury. The itch in man, womn or child Rx quicksilver 2 [illegible]
flower of brimston zi black pepper in pouder zfs pr. 2 [illegible] cloves 16
in pouder 1 [illegible] ginger in pouder zi hogs lard or hogs grease as much 
as will make it into an oyntmt working em well together with a
knife on a trencher or a bit of board. anoint on the joynt’s viz
armholes & bend of the elbows, wrists, hams, etc. & between the
fingers every night going to bed It will cure in a week Dr Tho.
Holy the [illegible] says there is no better medicine for the itch. you must
shift the cloths when quite well even the gloves viz in abt 8 or 10
days. This cured Wm Headly of Cosby when he had the itch for 3 yrs
having try’d a great many medicines in vain formerly before the
tax upon spice This medicine cost but 6 [illegible] viz mercury 2 [illegible] brimston
cloves ginger pepper each 1 [illegible] this will not cure a dry itching where
there is no breaking out That dry itching is caused by the scurvy.
Dr. Gory the mountebank’s bitter pills for the scurvy cured Wm Headly
for 3 yrs of a dry itching It is worst in a [frost] he took the pills but once W.H.



39
The itch Rx red sage, celandrine, bay leaves, long dock
roots each the like quantity boy em well in butter lbfs & 
when it is boyled put in flower of brimstone zfs a little ginger
& a little chalk to let it boyle up then take it off & anoint the
joynts & down the back to both sides but not before 3 or 4 
times infallibly cures Mrs Caulson of Leicer
for the scurvy Infus in 2 qts of good white wine [sena] zi cleanly 
pickt saffron zi rhubarb zii cinnamon grossly pounded zii
cream of tartar finely pounded zii for 3 days often shaking the
bottle which must be close stops then strain & bottle it. Rx 4 or 5 spoonfuls
in the morning for a fortnight fasting 2 hours after it. ibid.
The itch or any out-break Rx cream ½ pint the juice of butter dock
(i.e. red dock) roots ½ pint boyl em together abt ½ an hour then mix with 
the oyntmt live or black brimstone zii burnt allum in fine pouder zfs
The black brimstone has a strong smell Mrs Caulson. another
Rx mercurius sublimatus ziii bruis’d water 3 pints. Put in the mercury
when the water is hot & boyl it till it is dissolv’d which will be in half
a qr of an hour. Let it stand till it is cool, the pour off the clear into
a pot thro a cloth to strain it. If afterwards any scum swims 
on the top take it off with a feather let it stand abt an hour, decant
the clear pt thro a [tun] dish into a bottle which keep for use observing
that it is rank poyson inwardly taken. use it cold or warm, moisten 
with a rag dipt in’t all the joynts, especially down the back bone. Do
it every other night 4 times dressing cures the worst itch that is, twice
commonly cures. Dr Richd Pool mountebank sells many bottles
another Rx Black pepper zfs pounded to pouder any butter ziiii boyl
em well together when it is lukewarm pound brimstone zi to pouder
& add to it stirring it to an oyntmt anoint only the hams, insteps 
the bend of the elbows & stomach agt the fire 2 nights together cold
shift the sheets & shirtt abt a week after It makes all the scabs fall 
off & heals em. It never fails at twice dressing says Good Ludlam.
To cure the itch. Rx fresh butter lbfs & new hens dung as much as 
will make the butter when melted as thick as a thin pudding let em
boyl pretty well then strain it from the dung & put in a sprig
of rosemary & abt an ounce of ginger finely beaten & [sear] [illegible]
boyle it well again then add brimstone sifted abt 2 ou. stir it till it
is cold then keep it for the use when you use it melt it & rub it
on the usual places of the body agt the fire Mrs Frances Bickerton 
Rx brimstone & hony abt 3 tea spoonfuls every morning for a long
time It has cured an obstinate outbreak or leprosy when the Drs coud not
a ratcatcher & Mrs Caulton another for an outbreak Rx fresh butter without
salt lbfs ale half a pint boyle it to a thick oyntmt anoint it on cold twice a
day at 1st it cured an outbreak abt the neck of a 2 yr old child Mrs [illegible]



40
An oyntmt for scabs v. DR Salmon’s doron modicum p.
736. He says it cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate
esteem it as a jewel  v. infra.
A salve for scabs or any breaking out. Rx sheeps dung dry’d pouder’d
& sifted fine mix it with cream or fresh butter anoint the place
It [illegible] off all scabs. Mrs Caulton.
The leprosie or any outbreak Rx sweetbrier bark & barberry
bark, the middle bark strip it downwards when you get it off.
Reddock root, scraped, wip’d & sliced. Gill run by the ground each mij
rue mi bear-foot mfs. Boyl it in four gallons of small ale wort 
till it comes to three. when cold put in brandy a qr of a pint, a 
spoonful of ginger & one egg beaten. Put it into a can or barrel,
when it has done working take half a pint morning fasting & four
o clock in the afternoon. If it purges too much take less.
The oyntmt Rx hogs lard lbfs best tobacco pouder’d fine zfs simber 
it over the fire. Pound house [illegible] & mouse-ear each mi strain it
& put in the juice. Let it simber up them take it off. Drink the
drink a week to drive out the noxious humers Then anoint with 
the oyntmt every night Mrs Caulton & a traveller
Jn Holt of Great Ashby was thus cured of an obstinate breaking
out in several pts of his face. Having taken glauber sal mirabile
3 times in vain at last he was cured by this poltis in abt 
a fortnight. Rx new milk, white bread, the yolk of an egg a little
saffron & a little oyntmt of camomile to supple the other ingredients
It must lie on night & day bound with a cloth renew’d every 
night as hot as he could abide it being boyled first J. Holt
Boyle [fenugreek] seeds or linseed, this decoction helps scabby heads
Culpeper’s Dispensatory.
Unguentum ad scabiem, an oyntmt for scabs Rx sulphur vive, litharge of
[gold] each zij venice soap, mercurius dulcis each afs prepared niter zfs.
unguentum album camphoratum zi oyl of rhodium gut viii to perfume
it. mix for an oyntmt It cures scabs to a wonder even the most inveterate.
esteem it as a jewel. Salmon’s Doron.
A special medicine for scabs itch or worms (in a sore)
Gather the water that drops out of the vine when their cut & 
keep it in a vial & wash the sore therewith & it shall mend [illegible]
For the scab & [s?arff] & heat that runeth in the head a scald head
Rx Tar & hony & [cal?ifie] em i.e. boyl’d & scum’d then add deer’s
servet & boyl all together anoint the sore with it till it be whole
Mrs Hervet E.A’s mother. Dr [Cheshire] says a chronic [illegible]
with immoderate itching & large excoriations has been cur’d 
by drinking & bottling in a mineral water in the park of Sr
Nathaniel Curzon at [???stone] when all other remedies have failed
He says he had done great cures with ‘em at a great distance from the spring with 
in 3 weeks from Darby


41
Burnings & Scaldings
Rx Juice of onion 1 pt cream 4 pts mix em cold. It will take away
the pain Mrs Basset. After you’d drest it 2 or 3 times to remove
the pain then anoint it with this following oyntmt & it will 
heal it in a little time. Boyle gill run by the ground & the inner
bark of elder in hogs lard ibid. Mrs Brook’s salve for a burn
Rx white pitch (or resin pouder’d) with bees wax & sallet oyl melt
em to a salve. Mrs M. Another fry some [illegible] bacon in a
frying pan whilst there is any moisture in’t then pour the liquor
being very black into cold water & therewith anoint the sore
cold There is not many medicines can outdo this. [illegible] another
Beat some sallet oyl or [illegible] foot oyl & water together
(with quantity of each you please) with a spoon or knife 
in a pot then scum off a little of the oyl that swims on the 
water & dip a linnen rag in’t & apply it fresh dipt thrice 
a day at first to cook it It will cure any burn or scald
Mrs Elizth Halford a cooling ungt for burns & scalds & all sorts 
of inflammations Rx house leek, plaintain, nightshade & ribwort each
mij violet leaves, strawberry leaves, [illegible], [illegible], adderstongue, purslane
& lettuce each mi bruise these with mutton suet & hogs lard each lbij
in a mortar, then boil it softly ½ an hour, strain it & add of bees wax, linseed
oyl, each lbi sugar of lead zij stir it till it be cold & keep it for
use J.T. another Rx may butter lbi new cow dung sallet oyl a pint
white lead two ounces Boyl em & strain em thro a cloth & put em into a pot tying
a paper over it This must be made in may when the butter & dung receives
the most vertue fro the herbs anoint it on the sore with a feather
& anoint a fine Holland rag or cloth & lay over it dress it twice a
day at 1st It gives ease in an hour & fetches out the fire in 4 
hours & heals without breaking if the [illegible] is only swell’d & not broken. It
will keep 20 yrs good A French Dr. & Mrs Finch. another Robert
hall the glasier when he burns himself with lead he applys soap
& salt & an onion pounded together & bound on with a rag 
to take out the fire but if the blister breaks he heals it with
basilicon R.H. another Rx spirit of wine (or French brandy) & 
linseed oyl each a pint or ½ a pint Shake em together & anoint
therewith dip a linnen rag therein & bind it on if you can. It 
will cure any burn even a burn with gun pouder Dr Arden [Elsmore]
surgeon & Mr Cook apothecary. Shake it before you use it. It [illegible] [illegible]


42
A salve for a burn. Rx mutton suet melted lbij house leek
& gill each mij shred, boyle em over a slow fire
For a burn anoint the sore place with train oyl & hold it agt
the fire to drive it in It takes away the pain immediately then
rub it with tallow melted at a fire or candle E.A.
another anoint with sallet oyl in which a hot iron has been [illegible] then let it rest a little time & beat the
white of an egg & so up to the sore places with a strong feather This cured a
little whelp that fell into a pot of scalding porridge in one nights time
E.A. Good Blackhorn’s salve p. 362 has cured a burn when several
noted medicines have been try’d in vain So has Mrs Holden’s lead
salve ibid. A salve for a scald or burn. Rx sallet oyl a pint
lapis calaminaris in fine pouder 1 [illegible] Bees was lijs deers suet 
1 ou (or sheeps suet) boyl em altogether a qr of an hour then put it
into a pot set the pot in cold water & stir it till it is cold when you use
it spred it then on a cloth S.S. another Rx common white paint made of
white lead & linseed oyl. Cover the sore & when it is dry lay on fresh
S.S. Janry 722 Tho. Kings daughter Ann was scalded on her instep
& ancle with hot water these make a very large blister E.A. clipt the
blister so that abundance of water came from it He drest it with linseed
oyl & sp. v. then apply’d unguentum albu camphoratum sometimes mixt
with [weapon] salve made of bacon grease made of fry’d bacon pourd 
into water This last is good to cure the itching of a sore or wound Sometimes
he drest it with sope & chalk [but he] thought chalk or w. lead in
the ung. albu foul’d the sore then he mixt weapon salve with a little mercury
sublimate workt together on a [trencher] which wrought off the chalk & 
w. lead & cleared the sore then he apply’d basilicon mixt with a little 
oyl of vitriol & sp. v. It began to heal but the girl had a kick on the
ancle done accidentally by her sister passing by her which caused the
foot to swell so that none of the precedent things wou’d cure it
E.A. Healed it thus He bathed it with the drying water made of 
mercury sublimate & lime & healed it with linimantu arcaei & 
basilicon mixt v.p. 340. You may try basilicon mixt with turpentine
the mercury water allay’d the itching of the sore. E.A. The last
plaster used was bees wax & fresh butter without salt equal wright which 
healed it & made a perfect cure E.A. Dr Salmon commends unguentu
populneum oyntmt of poplar buds for burnings & scaldings.
an oyntmt for a scaled or burn Mrs Caulton Rx Gill burdock
poplar loaves hous leek, stonecrop, elder leaves, hemlock, the inner
bark of elm each mi boyl em in hogs lard or hogs grease.
Febry 723 E.A. cured [illegible] ficer’s left leg scalded a long way down
the skin with hot ale. It had been scalded 9 or 10 days before he came
to E.A. then it look’d black & was very painful, he cou’d scarce walk
with a stick or sleep. It was cured thus. Bath it with mercury sublimate
dissolv’d in lime water strain it thro a cap paper bottle it when you
use it pour off the clear into a little pot that will abide the fire with
a fine rag in it dab it on the sore as hot as you can abide the hand
in it. [illegible] this rubbing the sore makes & keeps it clean. Then anoint all round 



43
above & below & every side with oyl of turpentine & 
goose grease or turky grease mixt. This prepares every pt 
& all the humers for healing. Then mix basilicon & tincture
of myrrh & spred it on a long cloth a little longer & broader
than the sore let a roller of linnen be sew’d round the leg to 
keep the plaster tight from slipping & from the stocking which must
be large & too wide, to draw on & off with ease. Let the leg be
drest thus once a day for a week. you may mix horse turpentine
or venice turp. a little with basilicon adding camphorated sp. of
wine or tincture of myrrh 3 or 4 drops or more to the basilicon
every plaster stirring em well before you spred it to incorporate 
scrape off the old salve & spred it with new every dressing Let the
same old plaster last all the time when the sore has done running (the
sore ran very little & was very [illegible]) scrape off the old salve & 
melt fresh butter free from salt 2 pts. & bees wax 1 pt. melt & 
spred this on the old salve cloth to heal it three days after dress
it viz. rub it with lime & mercury water hot that the calous & dead 
skin may come off & the sore appear clean & red. continue this water
& this wax salve till it is quite well & sound & not tender dressing’
it once a week. Eat oatmeal pudding or mallow porridge or drink
treacle & ale or treacle posset at night so as to have one stool or
motion in every 24 hours. This method cured the leg in ten days. E.A.
Dr Radcliff’s pharmacopoeia commends sp. v. camphorated & tincture of myrrh
p.e. another Rx balsam of sulphur zij ointmt of marshmallows 2 ou. mix in burns
of the 2nd degree ibid. Rx unguentu [diasthaae] 1 ou. linseed oil zij for taking off scabs
in burns ibid
Burning with gunpowder. Rx. Fresh butter and the
white of eggs p.e. beat ‘em well together till you bring them
to an ointmt. and anoint the places therewith. It will take out
the fire and heal it immediately.






46



47
Wounds made by a fork tine 49.
Richd Ward of Blaby in the yr 720 being in a pitch hole
of a barn had a fork tine thrust into his leg, it was quickly
cured by a plaster of resin & tallow melted together Another
Richd Hamer a labourer of Blaby being on a corn[mor?] had
a fork tine thrust into his foot The wound was anointed with 
goose grease & oyl of turpentine mixt, agt the fire & one plaster
of vents salve applyd to it cured it E.A. flos unguentoru is
an ext plaster E.A.
Captn Brubenol’s wound drink which will heal any outward or inward
wound, ulcer, fistula. It eateth forth splinters of wood out of
the flesh & scales foul putrified bones which are wasted by any foul sore 
of any long continuance but it must not be taken by any woman
with child for it will play the midwife. In April gather buds of oak
hawthorn & bramble or brier In May & June these herbs following 
dry em in a close room without air or dust. Keep em daily with [turning]
till they be very dry, then put em up into a paper bag & keep em 
in a chamber all the yr. The herbs are bugle comfry daisy roots &
leaves dandelion, agrimony, hony suckles which grow nearest the ground 
are best, mug wort, mint, plantain, ribwort, sanicle, scabies, wild
angelica, wood-betony, white bottles, wormwood Rx of every one
of these herbs a little which in all may make 3 good handfuls. Put an
equal proportion of each sort of herbs in a paper bag by themselves
then for the making of the drink take all the herbs of one bag
you must hold three good handfuls lay them in steep all night in a pot of spring water qt next morn
put a qt of white wine to it & boyl it till almost ½ the liquor is consum’d
then strain the liquor from the herbs & put to it as much hony as will sweeten
it well (a pint) then let it boyl a little & scum it set it by in an
earthen vessel to cool Put it into a glass bottle or stone jug set it in
the sun. Drink the last at night going to bed & the first in the morning
in bed & at 4 in the afternoon 3 spoonfuls. After the drink 
is made it will be more efficacious by putting into every 	t of drink
bezoar stone 2 gr. & unicorns horn 2 gr & some of the filings of rhinoceros
horn if you can get em when you put in these cordials put
in less hony & sugar candy zi in pouder instead of [illegible] other Rx’s leave
out these cordials. The plaster to be used in these cases is made
of red lead 3 qrs of a pound in fine pouder sallet oyl a pint boyled to
a salve on a gentle fire S.S.


48



49
Wounds made by a fork tine or sword
point or any prick of iron to cure.
A man in Nottinghamshire us’d to cure wounds by sympathy
thus & people came to him from 20 miles round abt him
viz Rx a piece of [reez’d] bacon & hold it between a pair
of tongues heated red hot & let it drop into a pot, with this
anoint the iron that made the wound & let the wound be
kept warm till it is well & close from the air Br. G.A. Betty
Coates (mother of H’s maid) cut her self with a rusty hatchet & apply’d 
a plaister to’t she was advis’d to scour the rust off the
hatchet & the wound wou’d heal much faster which she did & 
the heal’d to a miracle with speed Br. S. A. a cook-maid at Quenby 
cut the end of her finger almost of quite thro the nail
so that it hung only by the skin of the fleshy pt of her finger 
Br. G. A. advis’d that the finger end might be sewed to the
finger & a piece of gold beaters skin wrap’d round it to 
keep out the air & it heal’d without anymore ado only by 
the balsamick vertue that is in the blood & the maid cou’d 
afterwards [sere] with that end of her finger Br. G.A. note when
you use tincture of myrrh heat a silver spoon or any other spoon 
that would endure the fire upon a live coal & put a drop or 2 of the
tincture into it & dip a little ling into it & apply it warm to a 
green wound & it will heal it at twice Dressing it will also heal
the old ulcer on the leg mixt with basilicon & apply’d very hot when all
salves & plasters can’t make a cure over the lint lay a plaster of
diaculum to keep the tinctur’d lint to the sore Dress it once a day 
Mr Masson of Little Wigson a surgeon
A balsam exct in all wounds of what that sort soever, bruises
pains, aches, stitches & sprains R. C. Rx yellow rosin & 
pins rosin each ziiii linseed oyl ½ a pint Greek pitch zi
virgins wax zii gum elemni & ammoniacum each zfs oyl of
hypericon & roses amphaline & of turpentine each zifs
myrrh & mastick in pouder each zvi Boyl them together for half
an hour then strain it into a pot R. C.



50
A most exct. plaster for all pains in the limbs,
sciatica & cold gout; it draws out thorns or
splinters gotten into the flesh, under the nails
cures whitloes & ancoms etc.
Rx Rosin of the pine tree lbfs gum galbanum & ammoniacum,
each zi cyprus turpentine ziii myrrh & mastick each
zifs deers suet zii saffron in pouder zfs boyl all to the thickness
of a plaster to spred on leather R. C. Black pitch apply’d
plasterwise will draw a splinter from under the nail very quickly. E. A.
Madam Spark’s wound drink
Rx Southern wood, worm wood, bugless mugwort, wood botony, sanicle,
venice plantane, dandelion, ribwort, white bottles, agrimony, comphry,
wild angelico mint, scabious, strawberry leaves cinquefoil,
violet leaves, daisy roots, hony suckles, hawthorn buds, take 
of each a physick handful & a pettle of white wine & a gallon of 
running water, boyl all these together till half be consum’d then strain 
all the liquor from the herbs & put to it a quart of the best hony & 
boyle it a while then put it when cold into a glass or stone bottle close
stopt & keep it for yr use. Drink 3 spoonfuls every morning fasting 
& the same dose last at night till the cure is done. If it be for 
an old ulcer in any pt of the body apply a plaster or serecloth
for the purpose Mrs S. To cure sore legs vic. p. [illegible]
for a cut or green wound anoint it with oyl of turpentine & bind
some hares wool on’t let it ly on till well or bind hares wool dipt 
in the blood or lay a plaster [deminio] & let it keep on a week or longer
If you let the air come to a green wound it will corrupt then you must
dress it morning & night & make a great deal to do with it before it will
be well but if you apply an innocent thing to’t at first as soon as
it is done to keep out the air The blood will heal it alone E.A. Another
Rx Turpentine ziii bees wax & may butter each [illegible] ou. melt em to a salve. Mrs. Brooks &
Aunt [illegible] does great cure with it
when a wound or sore is grown foul or abounds with proud flesh
wash it twice a day with white wine vinegar apply’d with a rag as 
hot as you can endure it then dress the wound or sore with basilicon & tar spred
on lint and empl. deminio for a defensative on that to keep it on
w. wine vinegar will cleanse a foul wound or sore when precipitate
will not Mrs Hill of Thurcaston Salmon says Barbadoes tar is digestive,
balsamick, anodyne & [defensive] maturative & vulnerary It is a most exct. thing
in curing all manner of wounds & bruises It assuages tumors & sores pains
salv. disp. for a cut beat black rosin to pouder throw it on & bind it up W. P.



51
for wounds & ulcers or sores in the head or
any pt of the body for any cut deep or shallow
Mrs Johnson a school Mrs only spreads a little liniment
of arseus (called linimt of gum elomy or oyntmt of elemi
linimentu e gummi elemi) pr 4 [illegible] per ounce on a little lint & 
use it as a tent where there is a deep wound or only lays it on
an ordinary wound spread on lint & just air’d or warm’d agt the
fire before it is apply’d & then covers it with empl de minio or
bonds salve as a defensative she uses this as a family salve for 
all sores with good success. To stop the bleeding of a [illegible] wound or
the gangrene Mrs Johnson uses the linimt scalding hot ones & 
no more afterwards she uses it only just warm’d 
Balsamum adversus maculam will heal without a [illegible] p. 729 Salmons [doron]
To make weapon salve. Heat a pr of tongues red hot
& hold a piece of reez’d bacon with em lit it drop into a
pot pound some chalk & put to it, dress the weapon or some
twigs dipt in the blood & keep em from dust. Wm Padmore.
a cut or green wound or a burn or scald Rx turpentine ziii
bees wax & may butter each ziiii melt em to a salve melt some 
of this salve & add a little verdigrease in fine pouder stir em together 
& dress with it sometimes to keep a wound clean & free from proud
flesh. You must make a tent of it for a deep wound It is good for 
a wound on the head or any pt of the body or for an old sore & for a sore back of a horse Aunt
[Majes] mother did great cures with it Mrs M.
Warm a linnen cloth very hot & draw it backward & forwards on the sore when almost will 
or nearly heal & it will prevent a scar Dr Pool.
The surgeons say that if you would cure a wound without a
scar you must heal it gradually & take time. Mrs M. Some
say lucutellus balsam will heal without a scar. Scrape the sore
with the back or edge of a pen knife to make it bleed & heal in evry pt alike [illegible]
Mr James Allen of Whetstone cures a wound (as a kick) thus
1st he mixes sope & salt & binds that on for 24 hours
to take out the anguish & venom & prevent a gangrene
then he dresses it with burnt butter & salt till it is well.
J. A. To cure any sore old or new Rx oak bark & boyl it in
spring water to bath the sore with which you must do 5 or 6 times
a day & anoint it with flower of brimstone well mixt. W. Padmore 



52
Proud flesh. strew on it a little red precipitate
or burnt allum which last will dry up a sore or humor or any
out break in the face sooner than precipitate. mercurius sublimatus
corrosivus in fine pouder a very very little will clear a 
sore, eat off the fungus & hard white tough corruption commonly 
at once dressing when the other tow viz praecipitate & allum will 
not. If you add too much it will make the sore swell. [illegible] you 
may disguise it with a little Roman vitriol in pouder Fr. Coltman 
apothecary. Always mix a little precipitate with the salve It will keep a 
sore clean & prevent proud flesh E. A.
To eat away proud flesh to take out the venom of a sore old
or new that is angry or inflam’d or much swell’d & to heal it
in a little time & to give ease in a minute. Rx a shell-snail
brak the shell & bind the snail shell & all upon the sore for 12
hours then add a fresh one every 12 hours till well Mrs Finch.
another mix loaf sugar & burnt allum [illegible] pouder & strow upon proud
flesh or angry fiery heats or outbreaks [illegible] heal em [when] [illegible] [illegible]
surgeon. Oyl of vitriol will eat off proud flesh Mr Jn.
Wilkins clockman of Leicer had a running sore on his leg
for 2 yrs which the surgeons could not cure It was dry’d 
up at last & heal’d by dropping fro a [illegible] one drop 
of oyl of vitriol once a week & applying a plaster of
diaculu upon it abt 3 drops cured it in 3 weeks J. W.
Oyl of vitriol cures an ulceration in the mouth, throat,
uvula or other pts (only by touching the ulcer with the oyl)
for which there is scarce a better medicine, as well to enlarge
the orifice, remove a callous, as to correct & prepare it to
a good healing by touching it with lint dipt therein on the
end of a probe. p. 379 Salmons Dispens.
for a cut or new wound, beat borax to pouder as fine as can
be & fill the orifice of the wound therewith & lay any sticking
plaster over it (as pitch if you’ve nothing else) to keep the
air out & to keep it warme. If it doth not pain you. you
may keep it on a week or till well. once dressing commonly
cures. If it pains you, dress it once in 24 hours. IT will cure an
old sore and proud flesh. This never fail’d James Davis of Croft
Salmon says it cleanses ulcers & hinders proud flesh.


53
The leaves of garden valerian bruis’d are good for slight wounds upon
which account it is called cut finger [illegible] herbal
To make Mr. George Bent a baker of Leicer
his family salve He died abut the yr 1709. It is good for
any green wound, or old sore, nail bruis’d or knockt off
any bruise, or strain, pain, or ach. Sore leg making a tent
with lint dipt in’t melted when there is an hole. The [cramp.]
Rx bees wax zii rosin zii white pitch zii black pitch zii frankincense
& horse turpentine each ziiii melt all these together except
the turpentine which you must not put in till it is
taken off the fire then stir it & pour it into a bowl of
cold water. when it is cold work it well with the hands
& make it into rolls. Henry Smith & Br. Tho. Majer
A salve for a wound or cut or old sore or bruise or pain
in any pot of the body as a corecloth, a bile, a thorn, a sore
throat or [illegible] of the [illegible] swell’d
Rx Burgundy pitch the clearest & softest free from black veins
or specks the quantity of a small walnut, work it near a fire
with the finger & dip it oft in sevil oyl till it will spred with 
the thumb like butter warm the knife a little after you’ve
lay’d it on a linnen cloth or allum’d leather If you let it fry
on a hot knife it diminishes its vertue. It must be thick almost
as wax for a thorn or corn now cut. It will cure a whitlow.
for a wound that is bruis’d Boyl a flaxen rag in new
milk squeese it a little & bind it or wrap it gently abt the wound
as hot as you can endure it let it lie abt 12 hours (use the
[mild] also only once) then lay on the plaster a little warm’d dress
it but once in 24 hours unless there is corruption. You
may use sallet oyl instead of sevil oyl or any oyl of
olives It will keep in a pot cover’d a yr. It will dissolve
or break a swelling cure it Stephen Hunt.
Sam. Exon’s salve for any wound, sore or bile or cut
Rx bees was 3 pts white pitch 1 pt a little hony & as much
may butter without salt as will bring it to the consistence of a salve
It sticks pretty well. This was taught him by Sam Smith. It cured
an outbreak in a girl being apply’d plaster [illegible] in several pts of
her face & body. S. E.



54
Tho. Hall of Armsby leaping over a hedge his belly
fell upon the handle of a hay fork & ran up his short ribs
a great way which was cured in 3 weeks by Mr. Arden Elsmore
[illegible] He made a ly. of green ash ashes boyl’d in water so that he
had 2 pts of ly. He let it settle & kept it every time it was
dropt to syringe it in as hot as he could abide his finger in’t without
scalding it then he belted his salve of a green colour in 
a little ladle till it was scalding hot & dipt his tent in’t & apply’d
it so hot to the wound that he roar’d out every time it was dropt
A salve for a green wound. Rx the best bees was 2 [illegible] yellow
rosin 1 [illegible] The best soap the quantity of an hen egg. Turpentine 2 [illegible]
boyl all together then strain it into fair water when it is cold take it 
out & work it with the hands till all the knots are out & clear
then make it into a roll. It will draw & heal a new or old sore
or cut but it is best for a new sore. scrape some lint & 
melt the salve dip the lint in it & apply it to the sore covering it
with a plaster of the same salve to keep out the air. Dress it morning
& night at 1st, afterwards once a day when the orifice is almost 
healed up. Jn Gilson butcher of Kerby bellows Dr Salmon says
vitriolated spirit of wine (i.e. sp. of vitriol & sp. v. p. e.) or S. V. & sp. of
salt ana. cures all curable wounds at once dressing Salmon’s Disp.
A large ulcer that possessed almost the whole leg & reached almost
to the bone was cured in a scorbutical person only with brooklime
boyl’d in beer & apply’d twice a day p. 26. [Pecney’s] herbal
To cure any sore or wound there is no salve better than basilicon
to make a tent with lint If the matter is thick it is laudable pus but
if it runs then matter mix praecipitate with basilicon or linimentu 
arsaei with basilicon & it will thicken it Mr. Francis Coltman
Dr Elsmore mixt abt to pts Hungary water to 1 pt oyl of turpentine
It was shak’d in a bottle close stopt & mixt with basilicon which 
he dropt Jn. Smith’s hand shot by gunpouder then gun breaking They keep 
down proud flesh. This was not us’d at 1st, using the other medicines.
You can’t dress a green or new wound too seldom nor an old
sore too often Dr Pool [illegible] surgeon. Mr Jn Cooper bonesetter
his salve or corecloth from broken bones or limbs new set or
weak to strengthen or pull of pain to cure em Rx oxycroceum zi
pr 4 [illegible] wt pitch zfs 1 [illegible] sheep suet render’d zij 1 [illegible] made by Mr Sanford
by conjecture Dr Pool the mountebank commends [flos] unguenterum 
as the best of salves for wounds or sores.


55
To cure the itch of wounds, or sores
Unguentum nutritu is cooling drying & anodyne, good agt
inflammations: takes away the itch of wounds cures scabs.
[Tetter] Salmon’s Disp. Goody Simon had a sore leg that itch’d she
scratch’d it & made it look red & claw’d the skin off having try’d
tar & mutton suet one time & [attu] curd another to pacifie the
itching, in vain at last she apply’d a plaster of diacutu cum
gummis & it alay’d the itching & dry’d up & skin’d & heal’d the
sore Anne Simons another Rx the fine soot over a copper or oven
sift it thro a lawn sive mix it with hogs lard (free fro salt & 
pepper) to an oyntmt. Spred it on a silk or flaxen rag It cools
& is good to skin a sore & cure its itching E. A. Unguentum album
cures the itching of a wound in its healing. Salmons Dispensatory
To cure a sore or wound. Mrs Brooks of Croft having tore
her finger sadly [illegible] with a tenter hook Mr Roberts the barber of Leicer
cured it quickly by washing it with Hungary water every time it
was drest viz once a day with lint dipt in’t & bound to’t gently
by a plaster of deminio or diacutu to keep the air fro it Mr
B. another Tho. King of Blaby with a reaping hook having
cut a great gash in his leg cured it by working it only with 
urine 3 or 4 times in a day new made & binding a cloth
dipt in the same to’t T. K. another Put some new or old
human urine into a pot (with a little salt or with out but it is
more drying & healing with it, it prevents a gangrene in
a new wound) then heat an iron red hot & quench it there
in then syringe it very hot unto the sore or wound then
Rx rosin & bees wax each zij black pitch ziiii melt [illegible]
then add horse turpentine ziiii tar a pint al. zviii deers
suet zi melt em This is Jn Smiths salve of Blaby
exct. for any sore or wound or sore leg melt this salve
in a ladle & dip flax [hards] therein & apply it pretty 
hot ready to scald the sore especially at 1st after it has
been syring’d as above directed with hot urine. Dress it
at 1st once a day when it runs Thick corruption once in 
2 or 3 days. If there is any hollow place fill it with the
salve & hards or flax mixt & daub’d with the salve Hemp
hards [poyson] a wound or sore E. A. Verjuice will cure the itching of an
eye or sore Sister [illegible]


56
To scale a bone when a bone looks black it is foul
& when a bone looks white & is rough These 2 want
scaling & will not heal till they are seal’d The cure Put some
quick lime into a pot cover it 3 inches with boyling hot
water let em incorporate 24 or rather 48 hours if you’ve
time then with a syringe draw off abt ½ a little pot full & heat
it in a pan or with an iron that is red hot by quenching it there
in Let the iron have a knob at the end bigger than a large
walnut. Syring the sore with this hot water once a day It
cleans & drys it & seales the bone it self tho it will require
a pretty deal of time to do it make a pledget of flax hards
or flax drawn to a point at one end & being thick & broad
at the head moisten this with basilicon melted at the fgire
or by the warmth of the finger Thrust the point into the sore
to the head then clap some dry flax hardy thereon or you may
moisten em in lime water. If proud flesh arises mix basilicon 
3 pts agyptiacu 1 pt & dress the pledget Remember always 1st 
to syringe it with lime water hot. This cured E. A’s mare brought
mixt with agyptiacu did any good only at 1st they did but they
would not heal this wound the more was bruis’d on her 
side by carrying a side of pork so that it broke & you might
see her bare rib there being no flesh but only her skin
to joyn together It prov’d very difficult It was cur’d at last
(after it had been drest abt 3 months) with several good salves)
with the lime water & m. syring’d warm & lint dipt into the
said water & apply’d to the sore & kept on with white of egg 
& wheat flower & apply’d to the sore spred on leather This
made the sore look very white & run good corruption when 
it was pretty dry & clean It was syring’d as before & pouder
of lime & hony burnt was strew’d on’t to dry it up upon 
which lint dipt in lime water etc. warm was placed on’t & upon 
a plaster of white of egg & wheat flower which was continued
on till it dropt off being it was not sore & did not run. This lime 
water & mercury sublimate is called aqua phagedenica vid. Salmon’s
Disp. another to scale a bone. Syring into the sore oyl of briganu
or oyl of briganu & oyl of turpentine the 1st is best W. P. or oyl
of turpentine it will stop a humer fro [descending] to a sore. W. P. 



57
Dr Colsbatch’s pouder for green wounds & 
old ulcers Rx R. vitriol zi pouder’d very fine
infuse it in a qt of spring water over a gentle fire till
the water is all evaporated then reduce it to fine pouder again
& mix with it as much fine bole as will make it of
a flesh colour (or rather a pale pink) with this dress the
green wounds dissolving a little in water. If you’ve fistulas
to dress put it into some fresh urine & syring em with it
Mr Wm Dilks
Tho. Higgins green oyntmt for sores & wounds Rx hogs
lard zi turpentine zi bees wax zfs melt em then add verdigris
zfs stir well till cold Br. G. A. To scale a bone Put some
mercurius sublimatus corrosivus into a little viol as much 
as will cover the bottom either in pouder or in lumps & put
oyl of turpentine zi to it Let em infuse 24 hours or
longer. If it is a deep hole syringe some into the sore but
if it is not deep then only drop a drop or 2 into or on the
sore You may cover it with a rag moisten’d in the oyl dress it
once in 1 or 2 days This cured E. A.’s more mentione’d P. 56 to be
cured [there] whereas it broke out again & the [illegible] mercury 
water would not cure it. Mr Coltman the apothecary says
camphorated sp. of wine will not scale a bone when the
oyl of turp. is all us’d You may put in more to the same
sublimate no [illegible] will touch a sore for one day drest 
with it I believe there is nothing more healing This has
heal’d a sore when Bents salve allum’d curd, lime water
& sublimate would not W. P. another apply tincture of myrrh 
Mr Gibbards surgeon & bone setter of Coventry another oyl of camphir 
or spirit of camphir both are good to stop a gangrene to cleanse & 
seal rotten bones. p. 136, 137 Salmon on Bates’s Dispensatory another
scrape the bone that is black or foul & strew on it lapis calaminaris 
in fine pouder morning & evening & in 3 or 4 days it will
[scale] clean & easily scrape off Mrs French another Rx Tincture 
of myrrh & tincture of euphorbium p. e. [illegible] make em thus together
Rx myrrh zi euphorbiu zfs (both gums) spirit of wine that will fire gun 
pouder ½ a pint (qt sp that will not fire spoils the tinctures) Put em in a 
qt bottle at 1st cork’d up & ty’d down with a leather Set it in an oven after 
bread with the oven mouth open at 1st or if you can hold the arm in it at full length 
then you may shut up the oven lay sand abt an inch thick for the bottle to [illegible] shake
it after it has been in 2 hours the next day pour all into a [illegible] bottle. [illegible]



58
To eat away proud flesh mix burnt allum & 
bole in pouder & strew upon it aunt D. Boothby.
another To destroy proud flesh or a fungus  & to heal a sore or wound Rx 14 or 16 drops of new
oyl of vitriol (viz that which looks clear & is not turn’d black) put to it
spirit of wind (that will fire gunpouder) zi as much oyl of [illegible] as will make it
so tast on the tongue that you can’t drink it If there is a great fungus make
it sharper Put it into a bottle the 3 [illegible] pt full lest you break it for they will 
permit & heat at 1st set it in the hot sun for 2 or 3 days or longer in sum & it will
[illegible] [illegible] dip lint in it & rub a little over the plast made of w. lead etc. [illegible] Dr Million
To take off an escar or fungus or spungy substance that adheres to a
wound or some like [pith] wax often bred by mercury sublimate, or mercury
sublimate & Roman vitriol mixt or other corrosives, or by exposing the
wound or sore to the cold weather as going with it naked & uncover’d especially 
in frosty weather strew upon the ulcer rosin of scammony & it will clean
it to the bottom tho the bones be foul p. 259 [illegible] family [dictio??]
The cure abt a sore has been poyson’d apply allum curd (i.e. milk & allum
boyl’t to a curd) as hot as ever you can endure it washing it 1st with a rag
dipt in it very hot by dabbing it often then bind on the hot curd 12 hours
It will contract the spungy substance & if you think it will not cure it
you may dissolve & loosen the fungus by applying [stimulant] & [cold] The inward bark
of elder pounded in a mortar & afterwards pounded with sope to a salve
& boyl’d [with] cream apply it 2 times a day warm at 1st If any bone appears black after the fungus 
is eradicated you must scrape it with a pen knife then dress it with tincture
of myrrh (that is best which is made with Hungary water) & basilicon these last
cured Jn. Halfords fungus on his face caus’d by a bruise of a fall & cold 
Tho. Hely [illegible] mercury sublimate the o mixt with oyl of turpentine
[illegible] is too great a corrosive for human flesh. Precipitate is a great
deal safer to eat of proud flesh Tho. Holy [illegible] mercury subl. & most
poysons are apt to foul bones when they touch em ibid Burnt allum is
safer than praecipitate especially near the head or a bone ibid
Tar & fir turpentine p.e. mixt doth digest & ripen far beyond
basilicon p. 96 Gideon Harvey M.D. his family physician Jn. Halfords
wound on his face was cured applying allu posset curd twice very hot
& letting it lie on 3 or 4 days at a dime after the fungus was eaton
off then it was incarnated & heal’d by mixing basilicon with
tincture of myrrh in the palm of the hand with a knife & applying
it with ling cover’d with it & allum & leather spred with Bents 
salve for a defensative to keep it on It was a very obstinate
sore E. A. To take off a fungus. Touch it with R. vitriol then mix precipitat
& burnt allu It will make it corrupt & eat it off, as soon as it turns ot 
corruption m ix em with turpentine or basilicon & turpentine mixt Mr.
Wm. Wilks surgeon another Rx [illegible] or white lead cover it with wine
vinegar a pan then boyl it till it is dry then add sallet oyl to it & boyl it so
a salve [illegible] 2 heal most sores Dr Million or mix white lead with [keen] [alegar]
in an iron ladle [illegible] st over the fire stirring it oft with a stick when it is dry moisten
it again with [alegar] then dry it in the [ladle] again add sallet oyl & boyl it to a salve 


59
To dry up a running humer or an old sore &
to take away pain fro a sore & to cure a whitloe.
Rx [herrif] one good handful salt one oderate handful
running water a pint boyl the herb & water & put in the
salt when it comes from the fire Let the herb remain in it.
It is commonly called Bath it on cold
once a day xtian ponton & a traveller. This cured a 
whitloe on her thumb of 3 yrs standing after a bone
was taken out. Diapalms odorata (an emplaster) applied
for a constancy to an old running sore or ulcer in the legs is
a most exct. medicine & has perform’d a cure when most other things
have been used in vain [illegible] Disp. the lady Curzon’s oyntmt
Rx fresh butter lbfs bees wax zij shred small, horse turpentine
2 [illegible] verdigrise 1 [illegible] poudered zii rosin pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle
fire till it comes to an oyntmt or a soft salve It will be soft as
butter you may use it to the greatest sores both in tents & plasters.
you need not use burnt allum It will fetch out dead flesh in 
lumps. Id cured a leg that was to be cut off the net day & a hand
brought out a piece of rotten flesh & healed the hand. Dress with 
it twice a day at 1st It is good for kings evil sores Lady Curzon.
& sister Boothby. E. A. in the yr 718 cured Tho. Tafte’s leg bitten by 
a dog & after the sores were healed up pimples & itching humers & 
outbreaks appear’d in many pts of the leg near & remote fro the 
places where the sores had been which were cured in a little time only
by washing em with smithy water (i.e. cold trough water) cold once or
twice a day It took away the itching & dry’d up the humers Tho. Tafte
Bath running sores on the legs with human urine heated hot
with a linnen cloth dipt in it every night agt the fire This cured
Jn. Halford’s legs that were troubled with a [lye] water Ann Tasie
To dress sores boyl Roman vitriol zi in ½ a gallon of any fair water
& to disguise it add a little styptick water to change the colour apply 
the water to the sore if swell’d as warm as you can bear it & hold the
hand or foot in it for seven hours together stand in it or dab it with
hot cloths 20 times a day. It cures swellings you may use it cold if
in haste Dr Pool the mountebank doth great cures with this water which have
been given over by other surgeons but it oft requires patience & long
time to perfect the cure He uses excanceration water for healing & fistulas
He uses only a brown salve like deminio He generally rubs off proud
flesh sometimes he consumes it with burnt allum it but seldom D. I.
Strew upon an ulcer rosin of scammony & it will cleanse it to the bottom,
tho the bone be foul vid [kides] in Salmons family dispensatory 


60
Rheumatism
Rx 3 balls of the dung of a stone horse new dropt, steep it
2 or 3 hours in as much new milk as will cover them then strain
it thro a cloth & add abt as much more new milk as will make
it half a pint boyl it and as the skum arises take it off &
drink it warm at night going to bed for a fortnight will make you sweat
& is good taken after any fal or inward bruise. Robt Hall
the glasier of Leicer had a rheumatism caus’d as Dr Benskin told
him by leaving off smoking tobacco the Dr purg’d him a long 
time for it when he was come to his crutches & cured him but he
found great benefit by the horse dung medicine some take it
boyl’d in hale & some sweeten it with treacle but Robt Hall took 
only in milk. another Mrs P. Rx the tops of green wheat before
it hath shot an ear & distill it in a gallon of right brandy in 
a cold still give a quarter of a pint once in 24 hours with 2 
spoonfuls of syrup of clove July flowers. rub the distemper’d
pt with the flower of oyntmt i.e. Mrs. Packers yellow oyntmt
work it in against the fire once a day till the pains cease Mrs P,.
for a rheumatism with a fever al. a reumatick fever 
Rx sassaphras chips & liquorish root each zfs china pr 1 [illegible] & 
srasaparilla pr I [illegible] each zifs shavings of hartshorn 2 [illegible] & ivory 2 [illegible]
orange & lemon peel each zij best sena zij mis em with 
those herbs viz ground dwarf elder ground ivy red sage,
horehound scurvy grass, st. johns wort, buck bean (al. water
trefoil) sanicle, agrimony, fumitory, hartstongue, brooklime,
watercresses, liverwort, fether [fern], each mi. [red]
boyl all the ingredients with four gallons & a half of water
to 4 gallons strain it & put the liquour to the malt & mash
it as you do for beer or ale & put into the wort yest & 
let it work abt 10 hours then run it into a tun can & after 
2 days drink as much as you can for the constant drink. It will
keep in hot weather not above 9 or 20 days This diet drink
prescrib’d by Dr Thomas Perkins of Creyton 2 m. from 
Brixworth in Northamptonshire It cured Richd Walton E.A.’s
[illegible] at Do of a swell’d leg & a rheumatic fever when Dr
Keel & Dr Ashby’s pouder could do no good He lost his leg 
[illegible] [illegible] that [illegible] [illegible] of sickness He began to drink it [illegible]


61
Tuesday before whitsunday & continued it till December
following viz in the yr 1714 & he drank it in 
the spring 715. It purges gently without griping or
making you sick or uneasie tho it may happen to work
29 times successively. Dr Perkins & R S Walton. This cured
R. W. when most more concluded in a dead man.
To take away a sciatica pain; or rheumatic pain from the 
arms, or legs, or shoulder & to ease the gout or any pain
in the limbs Rx oyl a spike & oyl of exeter p.e. anoint
it on agt the fire once a day till the pain ceases. If for a 
rheumatic pain, after you’ve anointed the grieved pts 2 
or 3 days bleed in the arm & boyl mountains, flax the 
thickness of a mans thumb in a qt of ale, or beer & ale
till it comes to a pint. It may give you 2 or 3 stools. Drink 
posset drink or water gruel with it or whey. This has cured
when Br G.A’s rheumatic pouder would not. David Lane of
[Wiston] another the rd Mr. North of Braunston in Rutland his
purge for Ed Bennet (servt. to Br. Boothby) his lameness in his knee
of several yrs standing & pains often all over his body Rx sal
cathartic zi cum crem. tart. zfs He was order’d to take it twice
intermitting seven days betwixt each purge. This is one purge. To 
take buckbean & roman wormwood each mi (the 1st is the most 
material, it will do without the last) & put em in a pitcher & pour
2 pts of warm water to it & cover it & let it infuse one night or
longer & to drink a coffee dish of it every morning fasting but if
that was offensive or disagreeable to mix it with all his beer or
other drink that he commonly drank & to drink no liquid without a 
mixture of it. To make an issue on the lame leg above the knee
& to dry up that below the knee which he then had. Ed. Bennet.
any rheumatick or inward pain in the thigh, back etc. put old rusty
iron lbi or better into a pipkin with ale 3 pts which put into an oven as
soon as you’ve drawn the bread or [illegible] & sit up the oven again & let it 
stand 5 hours. Drink every morn a qr of a pint or ½ a pint warm while it
lasts. Let it stand all the time with the iron in it. It will be of a very 
green colour near the bottom This cured French Gregory Rd Mr Stokes
This will cure a dropsie & swell’d legs ibid Dr Bostocks cordial will
often cure a rheumatism when Br. Geo Ashby’s pouder would not E. A. 


62
A rheumatism Rx mountain flax half a qr of an ounce
ale a pint boyl it on a slow fire to ½ a pint strain it thro
a fine cloth & drink it at night or in the morning fasting 
you may drink either gruel or posset drink when it works. Mrs
Caulton A dist drink for a rheumatism, scurvy, dropsie
(or a rheumatism scorbutical or dropsical) & to sweeten the blood 
Rx nettle seeds a galn gill a galn tansy a pt mustard seed lbfs.
Bruise the seeds & tie em in a bag. Put all these in 4 or 5 galns
of ale. Let it be 3 days old before you drink it. Drin ½ pint 
warm in the morning, & as much at 4 o clock in the afternoon.
Mrs. Caulton. A rheumatism by a soldier Rs Raysins of the sun
lbi stoned & bruis’d figs slit lbi hartshorn shavings pr 2 d liquorish
2 d angelica, foals foot rosemary, balm, spearmint, rock 
rue, maiden hair wood [??tony] wood sorrel, liverwort, gill each
mif boyl all together in [illegible] qts of spring water till ½ is consum’d 
then strain & sweeten it with what you please a traveller & Br S. A.
another anoint the pt pained with oyl of tobacco 2 or 3 several
times E.A. another Rx oyl of easter & oyl of lavender 
p.e. anoint the pained part with it without [heating] only in the
winter hold a warming pan with coles or embers near it anoint
[illegible] & repeat the oyls. Drink cold water from a spring where
the sun shines upon’t or well water that is hard water half a 
pint in a morning for a wash for a man abt 60 or a woman
a young man may drink more David Lane
another for rheumatic paines Rx hearts tongue mviii wood betony
mifs put em in 4 gallons of beer brewed of 2 pecks of malt & 
boyl the liquor with the ingredients in it till it comes to 3 gallons
Let it stand & work 5 days Then drink a pint night & morning till all 
is spent. Put oyl of turpentine 3 drops into each pint. Let a woman
take but 3 qters of a pint night & morning S. S.
a medicine for the rheumatism Rx ale 2 gallons six hundred of
bugloss (it is bugus in the original Rx) al ox tongue) sage mi
rue mi you must bruise the bugus & the herbs together & tie em up in
a cloth & put em in the vessel & let stand five days before you [draw]
it. [illegible] with bugus is. S. S.
another Rx syrup of buckthorn zifs for a woman zij for a man put 2 
nutmegs & 10 cloves bruised steep em in a pint of white wine or ale
the 1st is best 48 hours shaking it 3 or 4 times a day Then pour off one
third of the clear wine & mix it with the dose mifs 2 days & repeat the
purge the third day & so take 3 purges. The remaining [illegible] nutmeg & cloves
will serve for other use afterwards. They connect the griping of the syrup
This cured [springthorp] baker of Leicer tho 1st purge gave ease, the second
made him lay aside his crutches & the third made a perfect cure. Dr. Brooks
& Mrs Finch.


63
a rheumatism any inward pain or stitches, a cold
a pain in the side or back or stomach.
Rx 6 or 7 balls of a stone horse’s new dung reeking hot tie
it up in muslane & put it into a qt of posset drink made
of ale & beer & strained Then let it infuse 2 or 3 hoursor
all day drink a qt of a pint at a time at any time by night
or by day warm. If you take it at night it will cause you to 
sweat. You may drink a qt or 2 in a day. This taken, one time & 
dwarf elder tea a tea cupfull another cured a violent rheumatism
in a man of Oxfordshire confin’d to his bed He was kept fro
meat with water : gruel. He was kept from ale if he ever drank it
his pains returned. He often eat milk porridge. Sometimes it was
3 or 4 weeks before he was well. Mrs. Ann Lathwel. It is more nauseous 
made with [illegible] bd of [illegible]
a rheumatism Rx water trefoyl & archangel make tea very bitter
Drink a draught morning & 4 o clock afternoon. an oyntmt
clarifie beef brine a pint over the fire while it is hot put it
into a stone bottle, add oyl of bays zfs & oyl of turpentine 1 d
anoint where the swelling & pain is, every night till well Mrs
Caulton. Rheumatic pains Drink w. wine & water or only water
that has stood in a mug 6, 8, or 12 hours or longer drink it almost constantly
whey is good with exercise juice of lemon with water is good,
so is lemon tea Rx cinnabar of antimony snake root in pouder
with hony & w. sugar candy in pouder make an electurary  Rx the
quantity of a nutmeg in the morning fasting or less or mor according
as it purges This & drinking water cured E. A. of violent pains
in his back DR Salmon says cinnabar of antimony is a very much
prized remedy in the French disease. It forces sweat cure [illegible] falling
sickness, apoplexie, convulsions. It sweetens the blood & all the
juices being taken for 7 or 8 weeks together morning & evening fro
zfs to [illegible] ii or zi in some convenient vehicle or syrup. Dr Quincy says
it is a powerful alterative in all chronick diseases. Dr Jn. Cheshire
in his treatise on the rheumatism says that it displays its tyranny in 
fixed & sometimes in vagrant aches There is one medicine for it that is
second to none as an alterative after necessary evacuation in the whole
system of physical preparations, that is cinnab. antimon. a medicine of
sterling worth known efficacy & seldom fails of success, if administered
with judgmt verbum sapionti [safest]
for the gout or rheumatism Rx flower of brimston zv native
cinnabar zi gum guaicu, pickled ginger each zij conserve of
Roman wormwood zifs syrup of clove gilliflowers as much as
will make it into an electuary you may add snake root in 
pouder zii a little sugar candy poudered If the stomach is squeamish & 
[illegible] with taking medicines the cinnabar
Mr Boyle infused cinnabar of antimony in rhenish wine & attributes 



64
to it marvellous virutes in contumacious surgical cases
Fullers dispensatory p. 1 Rheumatic pains. Fry briony root 
rasped or grated in grease free from salt. apply it as hot as you 
can abide it. Tho. Juice. A rheumatism Rx ivory shavings
zii boyld in 3 pints of ale till one pint is consumed, strain & drink 
a qr of a pint every morning fasting as much in the evening for 
a pretty long time together. Mrs Frances Winstanly Dr. Quincy
says rasura eboris is much of the same nature with rasura C.C.
shavings of hartshorn. Some think water is as good as ale.
An oyster drink for a rheumatism. Rx oyster shels ½ a peck burn
em as you do lime, then pour water 4 galns scalding hot upon em,
let em stand 24 hours. Pour off the clear & warm the liquor & infuse
therein sassafras 6 ounces liquorish 4 ou. mace zii. Let em infuse
24 hours more; then stain the liquor & vessel it up for use. Dose a 
pint morning and evening.
For the rheumatism or gout. a farmer at upper Brails in Oxfordshire
6 m from Sheepy Norton sells a pouder that cures it for some
time. His directions. Boyl one paper of the pouder pr. 2 s 6 d per 
paper with stone crop mi lavender cotton mi in a at of new milk
till half is boyled away then strain it & put in saffron 3 d keep 
it stirring till cold then put in treacle 4 ou. & crab verjuice a 
pint. Drink it a 4 mornings & 4 evenings fasting before & 
after one hour. The pouder weighs zi [bating] 1 copper farthing
It is made as E.A. conjectures of stone crop (i.e. wall pepper 
[illegible] & elecampane It is very biting to the tongue. It is not
bitter perhaps there may be aristolochea in it. (some think a little
ginger & pepper) Rx it in the morning when you rise & at 4 in the
afternoon of the same day cold. It generally binds but some
times it loosens the body. Gilbert Hollowell horse courser at 
the [Boll] in Little Ashby often took it with benefit
For rheumatic pains or pains in the back, side or shoulder etc. This cured
Geo Florence Fidler when he had a violent pain in the small of his back & side
& could not go without crutches. He was blooded in the foot on the side on 
which he felt the greatest pain & his foot was put into warm water to make it
bleed more freely he bled about 14 ou. Then rx mustard seed bruis’d in a mortar zfs 
steep it all night in all a pint (strong ale is best) In the morning strain it
[hire] a linnen cloth or strain & drink it in the morning for one day & fast 2 
hours after it using exercise as walking or riding if the weather will permit
or go up stairs & down stairs 2 or 4 hours It will bring away a great
deal of gravel if you are troubled with gravel which is often the cause of the
pain of the back Rx it 3 mornings together Half a pint of ale is a dose for  
a little man or woman & if you’ve some left at the bottom of the mug in which 
it is steept it will pour off the [clearer] G. Florence had fresh mustard seed every 
time but it will serve pretty well twice or for 2 doses of all except when you 
are very much afflicted. after you’ve taken one dose anoint the plows most
pained with oil of spike agt the fire twice or thrice a day. but if you are not
much afflicted the mustard ale will cure without bleeding or the oil keep a flannel to it.
[illegible] was [illegible] from [illegible] to [easter] It gives [illegible] G. Florence. 




65
A Pain in the Stomach
Rx Spirit of lavender a little tea spoonful (or 20 drops)
drop’d on a little white sugar when your stomach pains you.
Lady Robinson, this is very good especially when the pain in the 
stomach is caus’d by obstructions of the courses. Pr. George
(that marry’d Qn Anne of England) was cur’d of a pain in the
stomach by drinking a glass of verjuice for a great many
mornings together & walking after it. M. Gee. For a pain 
in the stomach & on one side like a pleurisy caus’d by drinking
small beer when hot. Rx waters of fennel, saxifrage & 
parsly ana zifs sp. of juniper zi tincture of laudanum [illegible] ii
oyl of caraways zfs ens veneria [illegible] i sp. carminativus zi salt
of wormwood zfs syrup of anniseeds zifs mix for a julap
dose is one spoonful morning & noon & 3 spoonfuls at
night going to bed. Thos. Farran the weaver prescribed this to 
Mary Gee Aug. 1707. Farran’s medicine did not good. She found the
greatest benefit by sassafras wood in chips infus’d in water drinking every 
morning & night abt a coffee dishfull. For a pain or wind or 
any sickness at the stomach. Boyl gentian zi & the peel of one sevil 
orange in 5 pints of water til wasted to 3 pings Drink in the morning
fasting & at 4 in the afternoon ½ a coffee dish full MRs Finch or you may 
infuse gentian zi & the peel of a sevil orange rue water balm water rosewater 
fennel water each a qr of a pint Double anniseed water & pint drink a 
spoonful or more till you’ve remov’d the pain. [illegible] For vapours or
wind in the stomach or pain in the stomach Rx tincture of castor 25 drops (a dose for
a woman) in a glass of cold water or beer & apply to the
navel a plaster of galbanum strain’d broader than both the
palmes of your hands. This cured Jeffry Daffern’s wife after a ‘
great many noted medicines had been baffled. Mrs. Elizth Basset.
Another for wind in the stomach. mix elecampane in pouder
with live hony & take a knifes pointfull. It is also good for a
cough & consumption. Butter & honey with bread eaten in a 
morning fasting is very healthful a London Dr eat em daily.
Mrs. [Kenton]. Elecampane & hony is good for a pain in the stomach.
ibid For a pain in the stomach especially if caus’d by worms
& to kill worms in man woman & child Rx mercurius dulcis gr
& jalop let the apothecary direct so much as to purge six times



66
you must keep very warm or it will flux This brought
a great many worms from Goody [Cater] being abt 70 yrs old
Lady Moor Robt Walton’s Br. in law was cured of a pain in his stomach
by drinking all his own urine warm when he had try’d [illegible] things in vain.
For the wind colick or wind in the stomach or gripes
Rx ginger carraway seeds anniseeds each a halfpenny worth
in pouder juniper berries beaten to pouder 1 d aloe succotrina
in pouder 2 d tar as much as will make it into a paste which 
roll up with liquorish pouder in to pills Rx 2 pills at night & 2 
at morning for 3 nights & 3 mornings successively or when
ever you are grip’d begin with 2 pills unless you are grip’d 
but a little then stay till night before you take them go on with
the pills tho you’ve ease till you’ve taken 12 pills a Spanish Dr cur’d [Kg] C. 2 with 
these pills Mary Burton a traveller was cured with these pills for
a great many yrs at once taking They purge gently
unguentum norvinu (an oyntmt for the nerves) expels wind & helps
the cholic p. 762 Salm. Dispensatory. Womens pain in the stomach caus’d
by obstructions. Drink cow piss ½ a pint 3 mornings successively
this cured Mrs Finch or boyle a little saffron in a draught of
posset drink. ibid.
Emplastru stomachicu Rx styracis opt. tacamah: odorifer. ana ziiii
succini cariophyl: n: moschat. mastich: & aloes succotrini a zi cinnamon:
zfs stryacis liquid: q.s.f. empl. J.T. for the stomach
& head Rx castoru & angelica each ziii in pouder with hony  
make an electuary The dose is zfs or [illegible] ii mixt with 4 or 6 ou.
of white wine. Then add stibium finely pouder’d 3 grains let em
stand in a glass bottle 4 or 5 hours shake the mixture & drink it
up. Provide a fat hen boyl her in water with a crust of bread 
only. let the patient drink of the broth as oft as he vomits. Or Rx
a good quantity of ale posset drink (it corroborates the stomach)
& if you do not vomit add to it a little hony. This washes away 
all filth & slime in the stomach which generates all distempers in the
ventricles. This above prescrib’d is in all surfeits an admirable medicine
at night you must take an hypnotic after all catharticks to secure the
exploded spirits ex. gr. Rx aqu. cinnamom: hordeat. zifs aqu. cinnamom:
fort. zfs laud. liquid gutt. 20. syr de macon. zii m. [cape] hora somni
post cathartici operationem. J. T. A bag to comfort the stomach 
Rx mastic red rose leaves, a nutmeg grated or in pouder mace, dry mint mix 
em all in a dish upon a chafing dish of coles Put em hot into a bag & 
hang it abt the neck against the stomach S.S. 


67
This pill is admirable in all distempers of the stomach.
It suffers nothing to putrify in it, it expells all uncleanness & 
cleanes the same, it causeth mirth, strengthens the heart & 
head & cleans the [reins] & womb. Rx white or brown amber
& mastich each zii aloes zv. agani zifs true aristolochia 
zfs. Beat em small & with syrup of worm wood make a mass
for pills from each dram make 6 or 7 of which take 2 or 3 
going to bed. This pill is nulli secunda. J. T.
The distill’d water of camomile flowers is an exct. remedy to 
assuage pain in the stomach dose ziii warm or for want of 
it a decoction of camomile flowers. J. T.
Some people are troubled abt 3 hours before dinner with disorder
in their stomachs as with pain, wind, crudities etc. Rx [illegible]
stomachic every time in a dish of coffee does the cure. J. T.
The tincture of the bark of sassafras wood extracted in 
sp of wine given at the time or repeated several times a day to 
[illegible] spoonfuls dispels wind in the stomach almost in a minute & 
[illegible] of ground ivy drawn with sp. of wine has the same vertue. J. T.
oyl of mint is wonderfully effectual in all stomachic
diseases. J. T. To assuage pain & distress & offending matter Rx
chimical oyl of bees wax, oyl of lilies, [camo???] & sweet almonds
each zi fresh butter & hens grease each zifs to be used outwardly
J. T. Dr. Bradlys tea for wind in the stomach. Rx Red sage
3 pts rosemary flowers 1 pt. bawn 2 pts 5 cloves add a little
of the kind of an orange (if you please) Mrs M. To dispell
the wind downwards out of the stomach or bowels. Rx
the 17 black pepper corns whole alone or in a spoonful
of beer any time of the day you may take it 2 or 3 
days successively till you find the wind wrought off. Stephen
Hunt of Whetstone cures himself by this Rx. Dr Tho.
Farran. Dr. [illegible] [Elizer] that works by sweat will cure the
wind colick or wind in the bowels pr. 6 d at Mr. Martins in 
Leicer. Boyl some cloves of garlick in milk strain & drink it
fasting it dryeth up a [rheum] or moisture in the stomach. Dr Cogan.


68
To procure an appetite, to help digestion, to strengthen
a weak & cure a sick stomach, vapours, melancholy, wind
the biting of a mad dog, quartan agues, fevers especially 
pestilential, the plague, worms in children; to stop [larks], bloody
flux & the [terms], vomiting, & inflammation of the mouth &
throat it hold therein; to provoke sweat & expell all manner
of poysonous & inflections diseases fro the heart. To prevent miscarriage.
Rx Virginian snake-week 15 grains for a man in pouder infuse
it in ½ a pint of cold water 12 hours shake em & drink both
pouder & water cold till you are well pr. 1 s 6 d per ounce at Leicer. The
Rx Mr. Edward Lovell
For wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes Dr Wilson
of Grantham his pacific drops. Rx liquid laudanu zi
oyl of juniper zii (per 1 s 2 d) The dose is fro xv. xx. to 
xxv drops in any vehicle. Begin with 5 drops first &
increase em gradually Take em in ale or beer & [ride]
after em they are diuretic & bring away gravel [illegible]
If they do not cure the wind you  must take an electuary
of [zedony] Mr Wm Cook apothecary These are the ingredients
in the said electuary viz [zadoary] rhubarb salt of
wormwood [illegible] ginger oyl of nutmeg syrup of cloves 
Rx the quantity of a nutmeg of the said electuary roll’d in sugar morning
& night after the morning dose drink gentian tea after the 
night dose drink 15 or 20 [pacific] drops in beer This I try’d in vain.
Bates in his dispensatory commends The electuary of pepper for
the colic & gripes. Unguentu eboloru i.e. oyntmt of danewort or 
dwarf elder is ext in dropsies tumors for if with it the belly & other pts
be anointed it resolves the wind & removes the tumor. [Tis] ext. in 
joynt pains & gout Rx succ rad. ebul. zii [co?] in ol. cham. zviii ad
consump. succ. & cum cor q.s.f. unguent. when you anoint these with
mix it with a little vinegar or wine. p. 293. Cooks [marrow] of chirurgery 
for gripes with a looseness there is scarce any thing better than rice
milk eaten warm E.A. Wind in the stomach swallow 17 pepper
corns for 2 or 3 mornings together & at night going to bed take a spoonful
or 2 of brandy burnt with rosemary & sweeten’d with sugar
keep it in a bottle close stopt The 1st drives the wind out & the 
second prevents its return this cured Stephen Hunts wife when the 
Drs could not S. Hunt.


69
To procure an appetite & to correct
wind in the stomach
Rx wormwood mii shred or cut it, or pound it in a mortar
boyl it in two qts of water till one is consumed then
bottle it close put a little of it (to the palate) in some ale
or beer giving it a shake or stir. It is a gratefull & 
agreeable. Bitter you may try gentian juniper sprigs
or berries, gill, tansies, broom, sage, buckbean, carduus,
centuary, Roman wormwood. Rosemary good for the
head & sight. orange peel, balm, camomile sprigs or
flowers wormseed faenugreek fumetory, rue, cloves, nutmeg
elecampane, sassafras, savory, dale chips or shavings,
feverfern does all a bitter herb can do, says Pochey. white
horehound strengthens the stomach & cures an ill habit of
body. ibid. wormwood in ale or beer breeds a red rich face
but not in water says Dr Hartop. Virginian snakewood mint
carduus seeds A pouder for wind exct. Rx seeds of 
burdock zij aniseeds & liquorish each zi make of all a fine
pouder & mix em with white sugar candy. The dose is zi p. 612 
Cook’s marrow of physick. another smoke a pipe of tobacco
& after you’ve taken 2 or 3 whifts, swallow the spittle
2 or 3 times in one pipe once or twice a day. It is best in a
morning fasting. Stephen Hunt. another burnt a cork that h as
stopt a wine vessel for some yrs to ashes Rx  a knifes pointful in ½
pint of warm ale night & morning Stephen Hunt
For gripes & wind or convulsion fits oft caus’d by wind. Rx 
strong ale one qt hony or treacle lbfs boyl em & when
cold all syrup of damask roses (i.e. syrup of roses solutive)
zi stir em to mix then keep it close stopt in a bottle Rx one
spoonful alone when grip’d or ill or at any time after eating
or mix it with posset drink ½ pint or syllabub drink (viz milking
fro the cow to a little vinegar & sugar) W. Balby another cut dry 
wormwood mi infuse it in a bottle of ale close stopt & 
drink one spoonful of this wormwood ale in the beer at 


70
at any time when you find wind at the stomach or
you are not well. To the precedt Rx you may add 
viz boyl in the ale rosemary & sage strain it then add a 
little saffron with the hony & boyl it a little again before
it is qutie cold add syrup of roses zij They purge gently 
& clear the urine being good for th stone & gravel
the urine when settled in the pot is like rags you may hang
it on a stick. Thus was Jn [Tralby] of Wigson his urine being
abt 21 yrs old & having convulsions fits. Tho. [Heifferd]
of Counterthorp is the author of these 2 last Rxs which were
communicated to E. A. by Wm Tralby [illegible] E.A. made the
addition of rosemary sage & saffron. This upon tryal was good
for nothing. Pain in the stomach caus’d by wind lying heavy like
a wright Rx agrimony (which hath not a hollow stalk) centaury 
each as much as a nosegay gentian root zij wormwood ½ as 
much as of the agrimony picking out the dead leaves boy em
in strong beer or ale in a pint let it stand afterwards all night 
then bottle it close being strain’d & drink at 4 mornings fasting
it clears the stomach & strengthens it & takes away the wind &
pain when the pain is below the stomach after you’ve taken the
said drink Rx ½ a spoonful of mustard seed once a day at any 
time before meals for 2 or 3 days with a little drink in a spoon.
take it whole this cured Mr Thos. Simpkin & Wm Marches wife.
Stephen Hunt Wind in the stomach chew a few sweet
fennel seeds Mr. Baxter another eat some white [pears] after you 
have carry’d em in the pocket or when they are dry or old they will cure
the heartburn caused by wind E. A. Dr Quincy commends tinctura sacra
as a great preserver of the tone of the stomach & to maintain a good digestion,
good for hard drinkers Dispensatory p. 393. To procure a appetite 
to expell wind & prevent & cure the gripes for the grips & wind & to 
amend the tone of the stomach eat salt plentifully with every thing you 
eat strew salt 2 or 3 times on all mutton beef or veal roasting To get a
stomach eat oatmeal pudding with salt & butter & a little vinegar or
verjuice & a little brown sugar or make a posset of milk porridge thus
make some milk porridge put a spoonful of vinegar or [illegible] stir it till it
curdles or turns then add a little brown sugar turn a porringer at a time 
thus & walk or exercise after it E. A. For pain or wind in the stomach 
& to get an appetite Infuse hiera picra zi in a pint of white wine [for]
2or 3 days Pour off one pr 1 s spoonful of the clear & drink it fasting
Joseph Spence farmer on Rx 9 black pepper corns in ½ a spoonful of
sallet oyl whole Rx [em] fasting a week or longer Dr [?atly] & Br. Boothby.


71
A person hurt by a fall
Blood in the arm Take lucatellus balsom inwardly a knifespoint fully presently
after the fall & at night going to bed for [illegible] or 3 nights & 
in the morning fasting for 2 or 3 mornings. If an eye is swell’d
to abate the swelling beat a lump of [roch] allum in an earthen
porringer with the white of 2 eggs moisten some flax in it & 
apply it to the swelling with a linnen cloth one in 2 hours
or as it drys moisten the flax again & again To take away the
blackness & [blueness] of a bruise bath it with spirit of wine
& apply a flannel to it. These things cured Mrs Margaret Wilson 
having a fall from her horse Apr. 1707. A man of Whetstone
being [kickt] on the face was cured with only bathing often with
new milk very hot it took away the blackness another to take
away blackness & [blueness] caus’d by a wound anoint it with
butter cold & chafe it in well may butter is best. Michael Simons
had a kick of a horse on his thigh so that to lay for dead & he
was cured without bleeding only by chafing it presently with
butter Anne Simons. for a bruise or strain apply white of an 
egg & wheat flower plasterwise nothing better Wm Pinch of Aylston
The last Rx Elizth Halford try’d having strain’d her wrist so
that her hand swell’d but it pain’d it & made it swell
more She cured it by boyling soap & brandy & binding
it on spread on cloth EH. A strain in the back Rx 14 
or 17 drops of oyl of turpentine in a draught of warm 
ale 3 mornings successively This cured one that could not go
Mrs Finch. A bruise or strain old or new. anoint the place with oyl
of mallows new drawn It will take away the pain & swelling then
[illegible] & dress [suet] p.e. apply it plasterwise till well the
plaster strengthens. If for an old bruise add oyl of [illegible]
to the oyl of swallows & oyl of roses and 1 d the next day apply a 
plaster of paracelsus. Francis Kenton. for any inward bruise
after a fall & drink a glass of cold water. The Rd Mr. Lovell.
Joshua Goodrich was thrown down fro his horse when he gallop’d
& he lay upon his leg which so pain’d him that he could 
not stand on’t he rode home but his leg was not broken,
it look’d black & yellow & he was very lame for 6 weeks 
having a corecloth on’t he was thus cured Rx deers suet 


72
Deers suet 2 pts good brandy 1 pt melt em
together & rub it on warm agt the fire with the hand
morning & evening at 1st then once a day till well. he 
found ease at the first dressing Mr Winstanly prescrib’d
it. Jos. Goodrich. A strain or bruise Rx some linnen
cloth a little bigger than the place you intend to cover, lay
upon that brown paper of the same extent, & upon the 
paper place flax or soft [hards] then having a pr of
tongues heated red hot hold a piece of black pitch in one
hand & melt it agt the tongues so that it may melt & 
cover the hards when you’ve made a surface of pitch
besmear it all over with the white of an egg beaten
lastly sprinkle it all over with salt & apply it cold. It
is very painful for abt 2 days but it’s an exct. medicine
for a strain or a crackt bone Aunt Majer did great good
with it you must let it lie on till it drops off. Mrs M. an inward
bruise by a fall. Drink a quart or 2 of cold water & 
bleed in the arm James Lappington & Anne Tapie. a strain 
boyl brooklime in humane urine (the older the better) with salt
bind it on as hot as you can endure it This cured 2 of Mr Allen
Gregory’s son of a strain in their knees that they could scarce 
go Stephen Hunt. A strain, bruise or old pain or to strong
then a weak limb that sometimes is free fro pain. Rx some
crab verjuice (the older the better) boyl em being made thick
with salt then apply em as hot as you can endure with a red
cloth or flannel bound to it repeat it once in 12 or 24 
hours. This has made the lame to walk, old Tho. [Freer] anoth
Beat some white of an egg & mix verjuice therewith bind it
to the place pain’d with some flax or flax hards dipt there in
& bound on with a linnen cloth repeat it night & morn. This 
cured Mr Simon Barwel that had strain’d his leg abt the ancle
by a fall when Mr. Goodyear & another famous London surgeon
had try’d several medicines in vain one affirming
that one bone the other that 2 bones were out when never a 
bone was dislocated being only a strain & a swelling Mr
S. Barwel. Another Mrs Elizth Basset of Blaby stumbled at a [cus???] 
& fell down & bruis’d her leg a little above her ancle so that it swell’d
mightily & look’d black She thought at 1st her leg was broken 



73
or some bone dislocated which 2 last things were not
true Mr. Wilks the surgeon apply’d linnen dipt in white of
eggs beaten & mixt with vinegar & water to cool & strengthen it
The next dressing [illegible] used camphorated spirits of wine The third
time he apply’d Barbados tar. A cataplasm of the root of Solomon’s
[illegible] is good to take away black & blue marks arising
from contusions [Millers] Herbal vid. p. 75.
A poultis for a swelling or bruise or strain by Tho. Hely. Rx new
milk a pint or for want thereof scum’d milk, oatmeal mi
boyl it till it is as thick as flower meat then add sheeps suet
chopt small zij & let it boyl a little time to melt Then 
take [houseleek] & mallows each a qr of a handful chopt
small put em in & let it boyl 3 or 4 wallops. Apply it
thin & warm as you can endure it at night with a linnen
cloth & a flannel over that or for want of it a double
linnen cloth. you must put in a little handful of oatmeal.
use it twice a day at 1st sitting or lying still. If
you walk abt use it only at night. The same poultis will
serve 2 or 3 times, adding only a little fresh suet & a little
milk to keep the kettle fro burning. If it breaks heal it with 
healing salves If it is only broken a little this poultis will
heal it, being not shifted above once in 2 or 3 days. avoid
salt things & strong drink a qt of small beer is enough
for a man to drink in a day. This poultis is anodyne cooling
& supplying & strengthening oyl of turpentine is often
too hot. A poultis for a swelling, bruise or strain
by Peter King mountebank. Rx flax seed zij in pouder boyl
it in a qt of water till it grows tender or is consum’d then
add hogslard zij & after that is melted wheat flower as much
as will make it into a poultis apply it warm & renew it
every 12 hours at 1st till the pain is abated then once in 24 hours
is disperses & sometimes breaks it. March 715 In Halford driving
plow fell down & a horse trampled on his leg abt 
the ankle which was very much swell’d so that he could not go
but with great pain. there was a little hole like the head of a
nail e.a. apply colebatches pouder dissolv’d in urine & 
a linnen cloth dipt therein: a day or 2 after E. A. apply’d
white of egg beaten & mixt with verjuice then oyl of turpentine


74)
& goose grease. Bents salve & Barrets 
salve. diaculu cum gummis [att] these did little or no
good. at last we used the last poultis which took away the
pain after that had been apply’d 3 or 4 times We heated old
human urine & dipt a linnen cloth therein & apply’d
very warm This was repeated along time at one dressing 
after the urine was dry’d It was anointed with 
unguentu [dialthaea] agt the fire. This took away the pain 
& stiffness a plaster of Jn. Smiths salve was apply’d to 
the place bruis’d by the nail but it never [illegible] corruption
It was poultis’d every night & drest with hot urine & after it
anointed with ungt dialthaea every morning This strengthen’d 
his leg & abated the swelling & made a perfect cure.
The free labourers at Blaby standing upon the shafts & driving
the horses made a sudden turn which threw him down & the wagon
fore wheels ran over him & the hinder wheels drag’d him on it
was empty when he came home fro coles he was blooded & a sheep
skin new taken off was apply’d warm to his side where there was 
a swelling as big as hi fist the wheel went over his middle he
was blooded the skin lay on one night it stank the next morn 
& he took flower of brimstone almost a spoonful in a porringer of new milk from the cow 2 or 3 times 
intermitting a day or 2 He found great ease by taking it. [illegible] a strain 
or swelling boyl a qt. of strong ale to a pint then put in hogs
lard ziiii let it boyl a little again then apply it as hot as
you can endure it. Traveller. To break any swelling white
or red as whitloe i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb felon or ancome i.e. a swelling at the end of the finger or
thumb. Rx mallow leaves. elder & chickwood all together mi
wash’d & chopt small, put it to a little thick cream, white bread crums 
deers suet zi for want of it sheeps suet, hony a little spoonful boyl
em to a poultis. apply it as hot as you can bear it, with a linnen rag.
Renew it once in 12 hours, especially while it runs. It will both break
& heal [mudden] wheelwright of Rotherby. A poultis to take away 
pain from a swelling or [illegible] or raw sore ore burn Rx new milk mutton
suet chopt & the skins taken out (or for want of it tallow or deers suet)
oatmeal ground & hous leek wash’d & chopt small stir the oatmeal & milk 
cold then boyl em & add the suet & housleek stir em & let em boyl apply it
as flat as you can endure it Mrs Freer of Blaby.


(75
a kick or bruise or swelling. Rx the leaves of rue
& mallow pound em with some reez’d bacon spred it on a linnen
cloth & hold agt the fire a little to warm it Bind it on renew it
night & morn at 1st then once a day This cured Jn Hind when his
leg was bruised by a stone & swell’d so the next day that he could not
go Dr Brown surgeon of Mountsorrel & Jn H.
An in ward strain, or bruise caused by a fall etc.
Rx balsamu capivi 20 or 30 drops in 2 or 3 spoonfuls of
milk old or new in the morning till you’ve taken 12 d old
Tho. Juice of Dunton. It is very good taken in ale caudle
Ec. Underwood falling out of a pear tree Augt 723 found
great benefit by Balsamu capivi. He was blooded & had 
a clyster a day or 2 after he took oyl of turp. in ale & had
some thing give him of poppies to make him sleep. He drank
his own water pint with a spoonful of spirits night & morning
Jn Smith of Blaby showing an unlucky horse he kick’d him on the
knee It made it swell & was so sore & stiff that he could scarce go. He
was cured by bathing it 3 or 4 times with good verjuice Jn Smith.
Tho. Hollowell of Little Ashby was kick’d by a horse on his foot so
that it look’d black & blue It was cured by rubbing it twice with brandy
cold Tho. Hollowell.
Osmund royal al. water fern is esteem’d by some as very 
powerful in dispersing bruis’d blood & taking away the blackness
that arises therefrom quincy.
For an inward bruis’d or strain in man or beast
Rx the best madder zii for a man ziii for a beast; warm it hot [illegible] to boil
(but do not let it boil) In ale half a pint for man, in a qt for a beast
when it is moderately [illegible] give it warm. it is good for the pain in the
bark or any inward pain. Let a maid that hath the green [illegible]
hold her head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [illegible]
[illegible] Dyer at [illegible]
IN april 1739 E.A. had a violent pain in the middle of his back caus’d
perhaps by cold but no corecloth nor camphorated sp. of wine would
take it away at last he took abt 3 pints of sifted oats which were 
put in a frying pan dry  by them selves & cover’d with a pewter dish & 
hung upon [an iron] called by the cooks the housewife or lazy back it hung 
a pretty distance from the fire
Salmon’s Dispensatory says the poplar ointmt cures the pain & heat of
the back. For a decay of the marrow in the back
Rx new milk a pint 20 shell snails one comfrey root sliced & a little isinglass,
boil em all well together, then strain it. Take half of it at
night & the other half in the morning following. It must be repeated
for a fortnight. An ointmt for the same Rx sp. of wine a pint & oil of
amber an ounce, mix em & warm em & rub the backbone night & morning
during the time of taking the above said remedy Mrs Ann Benson & Mrs Hartshorn




(77
For eyes inflam’d that abound with humours
that look red & are sore
apply a blistering plaster to the lower pt of the neck between
the shoulders then dissolve as much Roman vitriol in 
spring water as will give it a pale [blew] tincture to which add 
a little loaf sugar to correct the sharpness of the vitriol drop it
2 or 3 times a day but especially at night going to bed with a [illegible]
moistening only the lower eye lid on the inside when you perceive
it makes the eyes stiff omit dressing for a day or two adding a 
little more water & more sugar E.A. note If you blister for the
eyes when they are not rheumatic & full of humours you will
sink them so will an issue. This cur’d E.A. May th 20th 1707 when
plaster of burgundy pitch & red lead & white copperas water
& other drying waters would do no good.*
Another Rx running water 2 spoonfuls best French brandy [illegible]
wash the eyes there with on the inside & outside the eyelids. Dr. 
[Lowe] & Mr. Tho. Matthews. * not in a weeks time or less my 
eyes grew very rheumatic & sore as before & itch’d very much
for which reason I was bleeded 12 z in the arm which did my eyes
a little good but not very much het in a fortnight or less the
following eye water & diet drink cur’d them. An eye water
Rx waters of fennel white roses & plantane each zfx.
white copperas & saccharum saturni each gr. vi. camphir [illegible]fx
dissolve them near the fire & strain the water & moisten them
3 times a day especially in the morning but not at night
going to bed for then it will make the eyes sore. pr. of
bottle & ingredients 2 d Tho. Farren a weaver. a diet drink
for the scurvy & weak eyes & to strengthen the sight & to 
dry the eyes. Rx water crosses brooklime, scurvy grass,
[fumitory], sorrel, liverwort agrimony each a good handful,
sena zfs. roots of horseradish zii boyl all in six quarts of
good ale wort till they are soft for want of ale wort 
you may boyl em in stale beer which is good against the
scurvy strain out the ingredients when cold & work it
up with yest & let it in a cold place & drink half a pint
or a quarter of a pint every morning & into every dose
you drink drop 16 or 20 drops of the spirit of sulphur.


78)
you may buy ziii of sp. of sulphur at 2 d ½ per dram.
If once taking doth not cure repeat the dose It will cure
also a dry itching & purifie the blood ibid. In a month or
6 weeks time after taking the precedent diet drink my eyes grew
very rheumatic & bloodshot & eye waters would do no good & my 
eyes itch’d violently tho I had bleeded 12 z in the arm a little before
I apply’d a vast great leech to my temple almost one inch 
from the corner of my right eye nearly the hair of my head above the
eye where commonly plasters are lay’d to the temples It sucks
very much & made a great orifice & bled almost all night I setting
the leech on abt 5 o clock in the afternoon in June 1707 When
I lay’d a little salt on’t it spew’d up blood almost as black as ink 
I found the itching of my eyes to cease the next day & the rheum 
to abate I dropt em with tho. Farren’s eye water to strengthen the
sight as I us’d to do before my eyes were very well in 2 or 3 days 
but not I apply’d a plaster to each wrist made of common mallows
celandine, bole & hony stampt abt 4 hours before I us’d 
the leech which alone will often cure a [illegible] or bloodshot eye. I 
remov’d the plaster lay’d on [leather] once in 24 hours for 3 days
which is very cooling. I conclude that the leech did my eyes most good 
letting out the thick black blood so that there was not a right
circulation of the blood & spirits. Bleeding in the arm or behind
the eyars seldom is of much advantage to the eyes some commend
bleeding in the foot for the eyes. Ithing eyes to cure.
wash the outside of the eyelids & the inside of the eyes with 
verjuice for 4 or 4 days It is good too when they are bloodshot [illegible]
It will cure the itching of a [illegible] too Sister Boothby. Rheumatic eyes Rx lapis calaminaris in fine pouder
& plantane water shake the bottle when you dress em which must be 
at the morning fasting & 4 in the afternoon. Mrs Coltman.
Rheumatic & bloodshot eyes Boyl soft water & skum’d milk p.e. with 
a piece of household bread drink it for the constant drink avoiding 
malt drink, wine & cyder wash the eyes often in a day with common
brandy or [illegible] of Hungary’s water which both heal & dry the eyes.
[illegible] smoak the [illegible] tobacco [illegible] especially night & morning These cured 2
A. June 1707.) This following medicine surpasses all the former 
It strengthens the sight cures any pain attending the eye as eyes gum’d 
up in a morning & the congeal’d gum feels like grit or dust in the eye It 
helps a blear eye or any red rheumatic eye drying up the rheum in man 
or horse Rx oyntmt of tobacco that is green melt a little against the fire & with 
a feather or the [illegible] anoint the eyelid that some may enter [illegible] once in 2 days. 


(79
How to dress a sore eye with eye water.
you must dress it in the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in 
the afternoon when the stomach is emptyest is the best time Dr.
Clay. Plantane water is the best liquor for an eye water
better than rosewater etc. for a rheumatic weak eye ibid
when you dress the eye pull down the lower eyelid so that you 
may see the inside of it then take a soft feather as pidgeons or partridge’s
etc. make it naked only just at the point leave a little
feather which moisten in the eye water & touch only the inside
of the lower eyelid note the eye is a tender thing & you 
should not so much as touch it with a feather it will offend it
E.A. Sore red eyes caus’d by hard drinking. Drop some tallow
from a lighted candle in to water & anoint it upon your
eye lids so that some may go into the eyes at night 2 or 3 
times dressing will cure. Wm Bonsher of Wigson a poultis for 
a sore eye to take away the pain Rx a small quantity of red
rose leaves & wet em in plantain water & scald em over a fire
till they are very soft apply em as hot as you can endure it at
night going to bed the next morning take it off & wash the eye with
milk & water warm’d Sister Boothby. Sore & red eyes caus’d by 
the small pox. Rx some hen dung the whitest & newest from the 
henroost & dry it in an oven lay’d on a white paper after bread 
is new drawn then beat it to pouder with a knife on the paper & 
blow a little with a goose quil into the eye holden open once
a day either night or morning. use it for a wash then intermit
a day or 2 Repeat it till the eyes are well. you must gather none
but white dung This cured Jn Gees eyes. It made em smart & 
water when first drest & his eyes would at first grow sore upon 
catching cold. Mary Gee. Another Rx a little bit of old or 
new calico burn it over a pewter dish blow off the ashes then pour
a little breast milk (i.e. womans milk) cold to it & moisten the
end of a clean feather dipt therein & put it into the eye once a 
day, making fresh liquor every time it is drest by burning another piece 
of calico & pouring milk to it. ibid. To dry eyes that water much 
& to strengthen the sight, spread upon a piece of velvet cut round 
a little bigger than a shilling emplastrum deminia & apply to each
temple [illegible] plaster. The velvet keeps the eye war. It is better 
thus apply’d then between the shoulders or to the crown of the 
head. Hannah Licoryse Some rheumatic eyes are much mended by 
applying empl. de mucilaginibus to the temples. not you must
not let these plasters lie on above 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 days at a time 


80)
Things bad for the eyes
Mr. May the famous oculist near Oxford reckons those
things enemies to the eyes viz pease, cabbage hot bread
pepper salt stale beer & things sour & butter wind. much 
drink
note when you apply plasters to the temples as soon as you 
find they incommode or molest the eyes you must take them
off. They dry & repel & are best for rheumatic eyes sometimes
you must not wear em above 1 day at a time intermitting 3 
or 4 or more for the oftener you use them the less benefit you
will find by em & the seldomer the more. E.A.


(81
for blindness or a blear eye or any 
weak, sore eye or bloodshot eye
Rx the shells of snails that grown on their backs nine good hand fuls burn
them well 5 hours in wood embers then beat them with white
sugar candy zii sift it fine & blow a little in a quill into
the eye. Thrust 2 or 3 goose quils one within another & fill
the least end of the quils abt ½ a barly corns length that
must put in more or less according as you have a film
[illegible] or any [illegible] corruption or cataract white or black or
anything that obstructs the sight to work off or remove
Blow into the eye some pouder once in 3 days whether 
it be the eye of a man or horse It will not eat off a [har?]
in a horses eye. It strengthens the sight where the eye
balls are loaded with any corruption or rheum It is a great
dryer because of the allum that is in the sugar candy when
the eyes are bloodshot or look red Rx small beer let it
stand till it is dead then heat a little hot & wash the eyes a qr 
of an hour after the pouder Some eyes are cured in a week 
some in a qr of a yr by the pouder Mrs P. If the beer or pouder
make the eyes ake do not used them The pouder will make 
them smart. The beer for some eyes repels the humours too
forcibly
another Rx loaf sugar 2 pts Roman vitriol 1 pt beat to fine
pouder & blow it into the eye You may if you will mix it
with the white that comes from hen dung dry’d in an over or
in the sun E.A. It is as good or better than the former pouder
of Mrs P. you may add sometimes a little pulvis nephriticus
it will corrode the more hen dung makes it less sharp & 
mollifies it. some say loaf sugar is better than sugar candy, having
more allum in it. E.A. Salmon in his dispensty p. [199] says that
the gall of a corn or ox mixt with breast milk makes an excellent collyris
agt the [har?] or [Pearl] in the eye. fresh butter put into the eyes 
[illegible] them p. 200 ibid for a rheum or pain in the eyes Rx [Barly]
& boyl it in water & lay it poultiswise upon the eyelids at night
going to bed If it be for a hot rheum apply it cold If it be for 
a cold rheum apply it hot for some nights till you find ease.  Sister
Boothby. Plantane water is a great dryer & prefer’d before common 


82)
Water by Aunt Boothby. A water for sore eyes. R.C.
Rx plantane water ½ a pint, white sugar candy zi white
vitriol zi sugar of lead zi Boyl them a little & strain the
water for use. R. C. Another Rx fennel mi white sugar
candy a qr of a pound white vitriol (al white copperas) zi 
boyl these in 2 quarts of spring water till it come to one;
if you put in the juice of celandine it will take away any
[pearl] in the eye. This water cured a boy in Lichfield that
had been blind 3 yrs R. C. This water took a film off the
Kenny’s horses eye at Whetstone.
A purge for the head, which cures the head-ach & take away rheum
from the eyes & is good in all pains whatsoever.
Rx syrup of buckthorn zi magistery of scammony in pouder 10 grains, 
black cherry water zii aqua mirabilis zi mix them & take it fasting
drinking warm gruel as it works. This is a ull dose for a strong
man or woman. R. C. another Rx Daisy roots & the herbs that belong
to them gotten always fresh (that is in the winter) infuse abt
as many as will cover the bottom of a large pewter porringer in as
much rain water as will cover them all night let them infuse cold the
next day pour off the clear & strain it thro a thick cloth let it
settle & pour off the clear again to which add loaf sugar the quantity 
of a little nutmeg & abt ½ so much lapis haematites or a little 
mor or instead thereof venice bole Mrs Emerton cured all eyes
even a blind beggar with this but she used (as Mary Gee that made up 
the water for hen conjectur’d) bole. This is the Lady Clarks famous
Rx the [illegible] at Watford in Northampton the lapis haematites is
good for a blear eye. Salmon’s disp. you must drop some of the water
into the eye at night keep it in a bottle close stopt & shake it before 
you use it. Some shepherds eyes Rx houseleek & penny-wort 
pound & mix em with the white of an egg & a small quantity of
vinegar & plasterwise lay it to the forehead then make a plaster of
bole with a little white of an egg & vinegar & lay it to the temples.
Mrs M. Another white wine alone will cure a rheum in the eye
Dress it 2 or 3 times in a day at first, after sometime but once in 
a day Mrs Clay of Leicer. To strengthen the sight when decay’d smoke
rosemary coltsfoot & [illegible] [.e. This has cured several Mrs. Finch.
Headach snuff up a lilte white [pepper] in fine pouder. [Withabed] [Morer]
of Cosby.



(83
for an eye much swell’d & rheumatic of 
Jeremiah Brandreth Taylor of Quarron 
cur’d by Sr Wm Reed oculist
apply 6 papers of pouder to the nose 1 every night
to be snufft up call’d the pallick pouder It will make
the nose run & heat it as if it was on fire It will
provoke spittle viz ½ a pint or more at night It will
work a full hour In the morning Rx 10 papers of 
pouder 1 ta a time till you’ve taken them all in sage
tea sweeten’d with sugar. Rx these the same time that you 
take the 6 papers of pouder They were of the colour 
of [cap] paper & wrought only by stool. once in six
days Rx purging pill 4 doses viz 5 pills in the pap of 
an apple for one dose intermitting 6 days & omitting 
the pouder when you take the pills. Rx the pills when the weather
is warm & open & keep warm that day & do not stir out 
when you’ve taken the above said pouders Rx 20 papers 
of pouder consisting of a light brown colour mixt with 
filings like filings of gold. Rx 1 paper every morning
in milk pottage or water gruel fasting 1 hour after IT 
makes the urine smell very strong & works only by urine
Every morning & night wash the eyes with an eye water
dropt on a fine Holland rag or a spunge Dab it on the
eye lids leaning the head back that it may soak thro the
eye lids You need not put any into the eye it will 
not molest the eye if any gets into it you may smoak
tobacco if it will make you spit it will do you good, but
if it doth not it will do the eyes harm. apply blistering 
plasters about 3 inches long & 2 inches broad to each wrist 
a little above the pulse It will weaken the eyes so lay it 
on or below the pulse apply fresh blistering plasters once 
in 20 days [illegible] four times or longer spread em on [allu]
leather. If you heat the knife hot when you spread the blisters 



84)
it will make the blisters sorer apply em with [illegible]
lot whilst they will run. you will find the greatest ease
& benefit by blisters. Rx A diet drink to sweeten the
blood Rx hartstongue liverwort dwarf elder each 2 
large handfuls sassafras shavings lbfs guajacu zii liquorish
sliced 7 ounces Boil them all in six gallons of midling
alewort till a gallon is wasted & work it up as other drink
at 5 days old You may drink it for the constant drink. Rx 5 
drops of the elizir in a draught of it in the morning fasting
an hour after it (It is not Daffy’s elizir but is made of some 
strong water & is sweet.) Be sure to abstain from all salt dyet 
& sharp & sour liquor Let this be repeated for the constant drink
till the middle of May & also at the fall of the leaf Frances
Surgeon of Derby advis’d two [issues] to be made on the back to dry 
up rheums in the eye Rx diaculu simpl. lbi [Pius] Burg zii m. f. emplastru
pro fontinali.
Sr Wm Reads prescriptions to Wm Shetton of Willoughby who first
lost his sight by a cold & was a yr under Allibone who lay’d 
plasters to his temples (which dry’d too much the optic nerves)
& made an issue on the sutures of his head
Sr Wm Read’s restorative cephalick spirits to be used as followeth,
only prepared & sold by himself
Drop 6 or 8 drops in the palm of the hand, rub the hands together
& snuff the steam up the nose at night going to bed & 
morning when you rise; at the same time chafe the temples with 
the like quantity. abstain from all windy dist & refrain going
to bed upon a full stomach.
Drop a drop of the red water into the corner of the eye next the
nose every night when you are in bed & drop a drop of the white
water every morning an hour before you rise.
Begin with the papers of pouders as this directs Rx one of them 


(85
every morning fasting in a dish of sage tea sweeten’d
with sugar & hold the eyes over the steam as you drink it & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon Rx another dose. Be punctual in 
the directions so long as all the things last make use of 
the golden tincture as the printed note directs wrapt about it
There is also a printed direction about the cepahlic restorative
pouder There is also directions about the 2 bottles of opthhalmick
water [40] papers of restorative pouder at 6 d each 1 [illegible] – s – d
1 bottle of golden tincture 7 & 6 d Two bottles of ophthalmick
water 5 s total 1 [illegible] 12 s 6 d
moisten the end of a feather so that it may lick up a little
for rheumatic eyes [illegible] Portugal snuff put it in to the eyes
a little before you go to bed intermitting a night or 2 This
cured a man so that he could read without spectacles when 80 
yrs old Sister Boothby. It doth purge & make the eyes water 7 
smart very much but it is most exct. medicine to strengthen the 
sight E.A. Mrs Finch blows Portugal snuff into the eye with a 
quill another to cure a [pearl] or film or wound on the eye. Roll a qr
of a sheet of the best white writing paper round so that it
will stand on one and after it is dry’d at the fire [illegible] light the
upper end at a candle & let the other end on a clean dry 
plate (silver or pewter) & hold it up with a [key] that it may 
not fall down on the plat but may burn so that the smoke
may come out at the bottom of the paper & leave an oyl
on the plate If it doth not leave an oyl the first time you 
must burn paper again & again till there is oyl enough to 
moisten a feather this is oyl of paper at the end of a wing
of a hen you will find a soft sharp pointed feather (especially
before they moulter) moisten this feather in some of 
this oyl & a little before you go to bed let some body hold
with [illegible] fingers & thumb both the eye lids open clap this 
feather just upon the sight of the eye then press [illegible] both eye lids



86)
together & turn the feather round in the eye that oyl may 
come off, then shut the eye for a little while it will pain it
violently for a little time & make it water you must use it
thus every night for a week or fortnight It will strengthen the
sight, dry up a rheum, cure a wound or pain or small pox in the
eye, an old wound or sore Mrs Finch of London. Another for
weak sore eyes smoke colts foot & bottony they have cur’d some 
or let a man when his mouth is full of smoke from a tobacco pipe
blow it into the eye, the eyelids being thrust open with a finger
& thumb or wash the eyes with milk & water ibid (tobacco smoke 
is too hot for most eyes E.A.) an approved medicine for sore
weak eyes. Rx camphir zii The best brandy ½ a pint. shake em 
well together for 3 or 4 days before you use them then wash the
temples & eyelids taking great care that none of it go into 
the eye Mrs. S. for to take away a pearl in the eye & to 
clear the sight Rx the best aloes beaten to pouder (with a drop of
sallet oyl in the mortar) 1 d spring water ¼ of a pint. let it simber
away in a large penny glass viol plac’d at a distance from the fire
till ½ is washed dress it with a feather night & morning till well Mrs 
Clay of Leicer For sore eyes a humor or diffusion of
rheum or a pearl Rx red wine ½ a pint as much white wine vinegar or
burdeaux vinegar if it can be had mix them together in a bottle
[illegible] Rx [lead] beat it as thin as a shilling cut it four square
only longest [one] way making 4 holes at every corner one & 
sew to each corner a piece of paper let the lead be made full 
of holes as small as if made with a pin & take a small piece of
scarlet cut in the same shape as the lead but without any 
holes at the corners or any pt of it sew [tapes] to it as you did
to the lead, let the scarlet be dipt in the above named liquor
every 2 hours & apply’d to the nape of the neck by tying the
scarlet abt the head to fasten it & the lead upon it This hath
taken a pearl away Mrs M. for sore eyes Rx red rose leaves 
[smallage] maiden hair hous leek, ivy, succony, red flannel, [illegible]
celandine each zii wash them & steep them a day & a night in ordinary 
salt then a day & a night in white wine & it will be most
sect. for the eyes It hath recover’d sight lost for the space of [illegible]
yrs you may put into’t the juice of woodbine leaves if you please
Mrs M.


(83
For sore eyes Rx lapis [tulia] prepar’d in fine pouder
zfs white wine half a pint infuse them over a gentle fire
four hours then put it into a strong glass bottle in a shellet 
with straw & water let it stand 4 hours longer morning & 
evening anoint the eye & if need be morning & evening
drop a drop or two into the eye also Mrs M.
To take off a film or pearl & to clear an eye
Blow a little Portugal snuff into the eye & several times in 
a day stroke a little hony with a feather into the eye This cured
a won of Banbury when the Drs could not Mrs Newlove.
Another to take off a pearl beat a little allum to fine pouder
& sift it then beat some loaf sugar (double refin’d is best) & 
sift it & take two pts sugar & one pt allum mix em & blow
a little into the eye with a [illegible] intermit two days & blow a little more
once dressing cured Mrs Jinny [Ings] eye of a pearl. Mrs J. J. 
The said Mrs [Ings] eyes were very sore & cured b y setting a leech 
to a vein behind each ear twice intermitting some days & bleeding
in the arm once & washing the outside of her eyelashes
with cold water her eyes were sore for 9 weeks so that she  could 
scarce see. There’s a famous oculist in Warwickshire that cures
a great many sore eyes by commanding his patients once a 
day to dip only their face in cold water in a large bowl
or basin Mrs [Ing].
For a hot rheum in an eye Rx a garden snail with the shell on 
& with the round knob of the shell make a little hole & prick with
a needle thro the knob keeping in the [head] of the snail It will 
give 5 or 6 drops of [blew] water in a [illegible] or spoon if the
water is red or yellow you must throw it away as not good
dip the ginger in the blew water & apply it to the eye that some
may go in & it will cool & cure the eye M.B. wood betony
smoked with tobacco preserves the sight Wm Finch. For a rheum
in the eye Rx frankincense & put the quantity of a 
small nut on some coles of fire not too brick & 
blowing for them it will burn & flame, it should
smoke you must hold some fine [illegible] or flax over 
it to smoke it then apply it to the hollow pt of the 
nape of the neck (you need not shave it) now smoke 
the same [illegible] thus night & morning till the rheum is dry’d


88)
dry’d up. If you hold your head over the smoke 
it will bring a rheum into your eyes. This cures
a rheum after the small pox Mrs Finch.
For a blood shot eye Rx house leek stamp it & squeeze 
the juice out which boyle in an eggshel then strain it thro 
a fine cloth then put a little into a spoon & lay your
head backward & pour it in it will take away blood
shot & cool the eye Mrs. Finch. Things that dry up a 
rheum in the eyes. Rubbing the crown of your head & 
temples with your own [illegible] or salt a little dissolved in 
water & put into the eye & rub’d on the temples (It 
is a most exct. dryer) or oyl of spike rub’d on the
temples or emplastru do mucilaginibus or de minio, mastick
or burgundy pitch apply’d to the temples or wrists, or 
bistering plasters to the wrists or behind the ears or on the
back are great & good dryers but nose plasters are not
to be us’d long to the temple they are such great dryers
E.A. smoking tobacco or sneezing by looking agt the sun or by 
snuff will dry up rheum in the eyes but when the eyes are dry they do 
em an injury by making em too dry & stiff.
Oyl of turpentine is good for any pain in the eye & to strengthen
the sight & to dry up a rheum in man or horse apply’d to the 
temples or eyelids, it will not hurt if it gets into the eye Jn.
Clark [Gelder] To set off a pear or film on the eye 
& to clear it. Rx the [illegible] of blood red roses dry em & 
beat em to pouder blow a little into the eyes intermit 2 
days & repeat it till it is cured Gordy Simon. To stop a 
rheum & to strengthen the sight Aung Boothby constantly wears plaster
on her temples of linimentu [arsei] To preserve the sight when 
you write or read Let the back be agt the wall in which the window 
is you are to write by & let the window be on the right hand
& turn a little to the light body so that the shade of your body
hand may be on the paper you are writing on which prevents it 
from dazling & striking the eye. E. A. when the eyes are dry anoint
the crown of your head with sallet oyl. E.A. To dry up a rheum in
the eyes break the top of an egg & pour out the yolk & white put a little
white copperas as big as a horse bean with spring water boyl em in the [illegible] [illegible]


(89
Falling sickness or convulsion fits
Rx 3 spoonfuls of white wine vinegar an ordinary thimble
full of gunpouder loaf sugar beaten zfs This is one 
dose to be repeated 3 days before the change & full of
the moon. Mrs. Palmer of Islington cured several with this
medicine uxor mea. another Rx Two goose quils almost full of 
quick silver pr. r d was em up & sew em in a little piece of old 
rag abt your neck so that they may hang upon the pit of the 
stomach wear em for several yrs [?enserving] the quick silver 
when it is almost wasted Aunt Boothby another Rx 2 spoonfuls
of juice of [illegible] in a little new milk for [illegible] mornings
together fasting ibid. for fits of the mother apply galbanum 
prepar’d (a plaster) to the navel. ibid. for convulsion 
fits or the falling sickness approved. Rx the gall of a young black
dog for a man & of a ditch for a woman & mingle the whole gall in 
a spoonful of [zinc] [flower] water (tilia floru aqua) take it in the morning
fasting & fast 4 hours after & so 3 mornings together. It must be
taken 2 days before the full of the moon & the day of the full
& after for 7 days together. Rx the quantity of an hazelnut of methridate 
in a little of the [zinc] flower water every morning fasting & so
continue it monthly for the space of a whole yr Mrs M. another Rx
a [illegible] mold for a won a the mold for a man tie it close in an 
earthen pot alive & bake it in an oven with bread till it is so 
dry as to beat to pouder take as much of the pouder as will like on
a ½ crown in ½ a pint of white wine or ale till all is taken MRs
Abigail Finch. another Rx some of the skull of a man hang’d
up in gibbets (David Jervase cut some of [Lorsby;s] skull with 
a chizel by moon shine when the hair & flesh was quite wasted 
or a man hang’d The skull of the fore head next the brains is
best dry it to pouder after bread in an oven pound it to fine 
pouder Rx as much as will lie on a silver three pence in abt a 
spoonful or more of white wine vinegar in a morning fasting
for 3 or 4 mornings successively. This cured Joseph Ezard shoemaker
of Lutterworth David Jervase’s apprentice he us’d to lie
as if he was dead after a fit & always fell down if he did 
not lie down D. Gerfase had this Rx fro Dr Carter a traveller 


90)
for convulsion fits [L?] Cullen Rx sea horse
pizzle 5 gr in a paper for a woman 3 gr. for a child (you
may buy a pretty deal for 6 d at London) dragon water
a pint mithridate the quantity of two large horse beans
shake em together (Let em infuse if you can 12 hours or more
before you use em) Rx a paper of the pouder in a spoonful of 
this water 2 mornings before the full of the moon & 2 mornings 
after & so before & after The last qr new moon & 
first qr & at any time when you perceive a trembling or
any symptoms of an approaching fit This has cured several
women & children near Marston Aunt Boothby us’d it with great success. [Ld] Cullen & Sister Boothby
oyl of camphir is a noble specific in the [epilepsie] in old
or young but chiefly agt that kind which proceeds fro disaffections
of the mesentery & womb Dose fro gut 2 to 3. p. 138 Salmon
on Bales’s Dispens. Convulsion fits in children Give a drop or 2 
of oil of camphir in a little sugar to a child once a day till it is 2 months old They are
often caused by wind & make the child look black in the face. Aunt
Boothby & Jane Warner al. [Tosie] another oyl of amber made with 
[tiles] beaten to pouder ertc. is a specifick agt fits of the mother & falling
sickness, so is also ambred spirit of wine p. 475 Salmon’s disp.
forfits Rx hips of sweet bryer when full ripe, dry
em in a oven just warm not too hot by no means but put
in several times, keep em dry; & when they are to be used beat
em in a mortar & sift em very fine. Give as much of this
pouder as will lie on a six pence in a spoonful of black
cherry water & give a little black cherry water after it
Repeat this dose 3 mornings successively. To a little of
this when ever you perceive a fit approaching. It may be given
both morning & afternoon. This has cured adult persons as
well as children. Lady Curzon of Kettlesey near Derby.
an ext. Rx for convulsion fits Rx foxgloves [illegible] Mi polypodium
leaves of the oak mi spring water one qt boyl the herbs till it comes
to a pint, strain it & sweeten it with brown sugar candy to the taste.
Give the child 2, 3, or 4 childs spoonfuls when the fit comes & 3 or 4 
times a day you may give as much as it will take. several have 
taken it & have had no more fits Mrs Caulton. A grain of
ambergrise 1 gr given in a spoonful of sack to a new born child 
being the 1st thing it takes prevents all sorts of fits. Grind the 



(91
ambergirse fine & give it cold Mrs Caulton
volatile salt of hartshorn & fixed salt of hartshorn cure
fits of all sorts viz fits of the mother apoplexies, convulsions,
epilepsies, [illegible] salm Dispensatory fits that come by a fright 
Buy a silver ring with mony that is given You gratis & wear it upon 
any finger you must constantly wear it If you pull it off or let it
fall to the ground the fits will return. Goody Exon’s daughter of
Blaby had fits at the sight of old [illegible] that had hang’d himself. She lay
once in a fit from Monday till Friday. Her mother [beg’d] 3 s 2 d [illegible] she 
bought 2 silver rings pr of one was 20 d the other 18 d she [woar] both on
one hand thing a ribbon abt each ring because they were too big. She never
had a fit after she woar the rings Robert Foreman of [illegible] had 
a maid that was cured of fits by wearing a silver ring bought with 
[elemazunary] mony pr 2 d.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Rx southern wood in May, pound & strain it, to a qt of the juice put
abt a pounder & half of sugar pr. 6 d or 7 d per lb boyl it in a syrup Rx
a spoonful night & morning, a child may take a less quantity. Give it 
to a child 2 or 3 times a day. In the winter boyl the [illegible] dry in 
water & make it to a syrup with sugar Mrs. Elizth Caulton
To prevent fits in children. Give one grain of ambergrise in 
a spoonful of sack & water the first thing You give a new born child
prevents all sorts of fits You must grind it five & mix it cold Mrs
Caulton a midwife a lady had [illegible] her children dead of fits till she
tried this Rx afterwards she had 4 that lived ibid.
For all sorts of fits in children or grown persons
Chop of the end of a black cats tayl to make it bleed Give 
3 drops of the blood in plague water or beer or ale or water
presently after the fit. This cured a girl of [11] yrs of age that
us’d to fall down in her fits once taking it Mrs Ann Lathwell
another Rx spirit of amber gut iii in a spoonful or 2 of cold
water every morning after a clove of garlic till well. You 
may take the sp. & water at any time when you perceive a fit approaching
This with an elemazunary silver ring worn sometimes
on one finger & sometimes on another because it would
eat into the flesh worn long in one place cured Rachel Halford
that would fall down in her fits she was about 17 yrs of
age when her fits were on her she had a pain in her legs. She
was E. A.’s servt in the yr 723
Histerick fits Mrs Perkins a widow of Marston in Buckington 
Parish abt 4 m. fro Coventry, Warwickshire Rx 20 drops of tincture
of hiera picra in abt a spoonful of warm ale & 2 spoonfuls after it


92)
& walk a qr of an hour after it then she may eat her
breakfast repeat the same at 4 in the afternoon she must
eat her dinner at one continue taking as long as 1 ou. lasts
Rx of these herbs dry 6 doses infus’d in water so as to 
drink 2 [tea] dishes in the morning fasting 3 days before & 3 days after 
the change of the moon after the tincture is taken & Rx 4 more 
doses of herbs made into tea with water 4 or 5 days before or
after new moon
This was directed for Mary Exon abt 16 or 17 yrs of age. Her
illness lies in left side. she extends her legs & screaks out
[wind??es] to her stomach so then she is silent she beats with her
hand her side where her pain lyes.
Mrs Green of Wykin near Coventry has a perfect cure for
fits that seldom fail. The Ld Colins medicine.
Peony seeds help fits of the mother & other such like infirmities
of the womb stop the [terms] & help convulsions [culp?p??]
tincture of amber is good in hysteric fits dose from 15 drops to 30 in 
wine or water oil of amber rectified mixd with sugar then with wine
& given from 3 drops to six is admirable in hysterick distempers Salmon’s
family Dictionary
To prevent & cure convulsion fits in children
Goody Ludlam of Blaby every morning gives her child rue tea
sweeten’d with a little sugar & as oft as it is in a fit [till] it is ten weeks
old. her children till she try’d this [illegible] [illegible] Ludlam
Mr. Ray praises hartstongue given in pouder or a conserve 
of [the] green leaves of the heart, millers herbal
Quincy says pulvis epilepticus pouder agt the falling
sickness is efficacious & to be depended on in childrens 
convulsions & grown persons Rx valerian & piony roots
each 1 ou seeds of rue, myrrh, castor, white amber, each zfs 
native cinnabar 2 ou.
Fits in men, women or children Mrs Orton of [Reasby]
Rx a human [illegible] from a grave man anatomiz’d or hang’d Dry it & beat it to fine pouder & [illegible] 
it a man or woman must take as much of this pouder as will lie
on a shilling in water or beer for a month together in the morning 
fasting & at four o clock in the afternoon This cured MR Barwell’s 
man of Marston Northamptonshire & who also lived with Mr. Orton. He went
apprentice to a dyer at London but was forc’d to leave his trade by 
reason of his fits. He learnt this cure from a traveller & return’d agn
to London. A skull from a grave will not do
Balm, molissa is good for the falling sickness [?eckeys] herbal
Dr Strother on Dr Radcliffs pharmacopoeia says after 2 or 3 doses of an 
infusion of senna & rhubarb, at proper distances I have given mixtures of 
rue & penny royal, balm & mint water [paeony] compound some few drops of
sp. of hartshorn, sweeten’d wth syrup of white poppies successfully p. 252.



(93
Rx The root in pouder before the stalk springs of garden = 
valerian, half a spoonful taken once or twice in wine, water or milk
relieves those that are seiz’d with the falling sickness some say it is more
effectual in this case than the roots of male peony pecheys herbal
Rx the candied roots of Solomon’s seal for the falling sickness ibid.
southern wood cures hysteric fits & the jaundice ibid
several girls abt 16, 17, or 18 yrs old or more as Rachel Halford, Ann
Hovy of Blaby have been cured of fits thus Rx a clove of garlic
swallow it whole, if you can, or you may chew it if you can’t.
take one clove 3 mornings together fasting. Sister Boothby. p 91.
Apply this plaster to the stomach on alum leather in the shape
of an heart the sharp point upwards Rx horse turpentine ½ ou.
ply this to his stomach when you take the garlic it makes it more
powerful E.A. when it is on the stomach lay cap paper to the
back of the plaster to keep it from daubing the linnen ibid.
Dr. Salmon’s Doron commends spirit of hartshorn as ext agt all
sorts of fits, the suffocation of the womb, apoplexies, convulsions, palsies
vertigos & epilepsies does a gut 15 ad 30 in a convenient vehicle. This same
book says Jaber’s epileptic spirit of vitriol dose to [illegible] i in a morning 
fasting for a month at least, in [peony] water or in tincture of peony
flowers purging the body twice in the same month with salt of vitriol 
By this means an absolute cure of the falling sickness will be completed
p. 420 Doron.
convulsion fits. In young women abt 15, 16 or 20 yrs of age or
[lett] the girl [her] [beg] as much money as will buy 2 silver rings of any charitable
[illegible] sons Edwd Underwoods daughter Anne of Blaby 19 or 20 yrs of age gave 4 s 10 d 
to [Mr] [illegible] gold-smith in Leicester for 2 silver rings which she did ware
for the most pt on the midle finger on her right hand It freed her from
her fits imediately with some 4 or 5 times a day & as often in the night
beating herself with her hands on the breast & [took] away her senses & 
made her so weak that she cou’d do no work & wou’d have brought her 
into a consumption if it had continued some time longer
Saml Exon carpender of Blaby had 2 daughters cured of fitts by 
waring each of ‘em 2 silver-rings bought with the money they beg’d of
their neighbors Some gave 1 d some 2 d in copper money & some 6 d 
in silver one daughter wore ‘em 3 yrs together without ever leaving
‘em off & it is now 6 yrs since she left ‘em off & has continued very
well & freed from fits. The rings in time will wear thing by working
them they beg more money & exchange ‘em for new ones They must be 
woren always upon one hand at a time either upon the right or left 
hand & upon any finger but mostly upon the midle finger



94)
convulsion fitts
A travelling clergiman advisd Ann Underwood aforesd haveing fitts to drink
a little tea-dish of lin-seed oyl every other morning till well but it was so
nauseous that she cou’d not take it
Conserve of white briony-roots taken twice a day to the quantity of a 
nutmeg for a long time cures the falling sickness and [illegible] fitts a [illegible] of
root put into the pot the fire [illegible] out of does the same The compound
water of briony is most in use. [Po??ey’s] Herbal
Convulsion fitts in children give [illegible] of [illegible] in a bottle
sugar this cur’d one of Mrs Browns sons a little child that
look’d black in the face Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer
For the falling sickness Rx the powder of hartshorn & drink 
it in wine it helpeth the falling sickness So doth a raven’s
egg drink with the juice of wild rue & the juice of misletoe
Mrs Hewet E.A.’s mother
For convulsion fits or the falling-sickness. Let a 
dog lick up their vomit if they vomit in the fit, if he 
will not lick it up pour to it melted butter or grease but
it is better if he will eat it alone without any thing. Grease 
the mouth of the patient in a fit, let the dock lick the 
froth or spittle of the patient or near his breath, the dog
will dye & the patient will be well. If it be a woman let
a dog lick if a man let a bitch lick. If the dog licks the
vomit it’s a certain cure, the dog will have many 
fits & live a pretty while but dye at last in a fit says
Wm Nyat of Adderston. Mrs Crompton’s Rx to
cure convulsions or hysteric fits Rx the bigness of an egg of shining
woodsoot & as much assafoetida infus’d nine days by the fire
side & shook up frequently in a qt of the best spirit of wine.
This you may give in water or wine & water; for convulsions fro
5 to 100 drops according to the age & strength of the patient.
Tis also very good for gripes in children mix’d with syrup of 
violets & oil of sweet (or bitter) almonds. Drop 60 or 100 
drops into a qr of a pint of this mixture & give a spoonful
at a time from the wood of Costock & Cos. Margt Muxloe
mother of time at wild [or field] time is gave for convulsions & for gripes 
outwardly apply’d it cures headach & giddiness Pechey


(95
for the cramp or crick in the neck.
Rx an old hinge of a coffen & make rings of it wear
it constantly on your finger It cures the cramp & gout & 
crick in the neck Mrs P’s yellow oyntmt will also cure apply’d
cold. this oyntmt cured Mr Fletcher Mr P.
for the cramp Rx an eel skin dry it & rub it soft with wheat
bran with the hands then split it down the middle & sew pt of
it round the leg in the gartering place the inside next the skin
wear it day & night This cured old Wm Wright & many poor people
at Rotherby. another make a ring for any finger of mony that
is given at the sacramt exchanging other mony for it & it will certainly 
cure the cramp wearing it on one of the fingers Dr Million 
The priests in Lanchashire etc. make what money is given on Good Friday
at the sacramt into rings which rings they give away to the
poor which cure the cramp Mr [Traps] a Roman Catholic. another shift
the shoes morning & night always & cross the legs. E.A.
another Rx oil of St. Johns wort & spirit of lavender each zi mix em
very well & with the mixture rub the pt affected p. 42 Dr. Lowes Rx 
Mr. Coltmn apothecary mixes oyl of amber oyl of spike & sp. of lavender
to be rub’d on, but these mixtures are apt to remove the pain fro
the calf of the leg to the huckbone which is a worse place. E. A. 
another Rx oyl of camomile & fanugreek & anoint the place where
the cramp is & it helpeth p. 123. The accomplish’d lady’s delight.
another for the cramp. Rx St. Jns wort in pouder as much as will lie on a 
shilling in w. wine or ale. Rub the joynts with oyl of St. Johns wort,
It is better the oyl of turpentine Dr Pool, the mountebank
another Rub the hams & calves of the legs with their own water night
& morning constantly & it will cure & prevent it. E.A. another Rub
the pained part with oyl of tobacco (not oyntmt of tobacco) E.A.
oyl of euphorbium cures cramps, numbness, stiffness Salmon’s Disp.
a cramp is the contraction of the sinews of any one limb. The
cure. chafe it with vinegar & common oyl then wrap it all over with 
woollen cloaths Sr Wm Hope’s perfect [farrer] another unguentum
ad spasmum nervoru, an oyntmt agt cramps & convulsions p.
767 Salmon’s Disp. another Rx a sprig of Rosemary to bed with you or
Rx the bone in a hance of venison near the pope’s eye call’d the gentleman’s 
bone wear it abt you Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Turn the
soles of the shoes going to bed topsie turvie for a month This cured Mrs Abigail
Finch. Another E. A. freed himself from the cramp by every night
& morning standing upright & pressing the calf of each leg agt the
shin of the other I suppose it puts the spirits & blood into a fresh motion 



96)
Camomile apply’d hot in a bag is ext agt cramps Dr Quincy
For the cramp. Set your shoes with the soles upwards
at night going to bed, when the cramp pains you 
get out of bed and turn your shoes. OR wear an eelskin
for garters near your bare skin above the knees 
Wm Wyat. To cure the cramp or contraction of the sinews 
rub the member contracted with oil olive & [illegible] vinegar p.a.
& bind a double flannel abt it. The Gentlemans Jockey.
another Rx strong ale a qt black soap lbi boil em till they look like
tar with some brandy & anoint the place grieved from the Experienced
farrier


(97
How to flux.
First purge the body with 2 bolus’s from the apothecaries
as the apothecary shall direct intermitting 2 days
Then kill some quick silver by mixing it will with oyl of 
bays & rub the navel & between the shoulder with the same
Rx milk pottage or water gruel all the time warm’d for 
your drink & you may eat any fresh meat you can
you must be nine days in a flux & you must not stir out
till after 3 weeks. The teeth will [fasten] again of themselves
or you may rub them off with cream of tartar, a fortnight
after your flux purg with pilula cochiae twice intermitting
one week two scruples at a time. Mrs. P. use not the
above said method without some Drs advice because medling with 
mercury is medling with an edgetool. E.A.
mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in fine pouder mixt with hony
or treacle is an exct. purge. If it doth not purge it
fluxes & if you catch cold after it viz that day it has
purged it will raise a salivation the tongue will swell
& the teeth will be loose you must then in a day or 
2 take a paragorick purge viz a gentle purge to ease 
pain. E.A. If the gums swell or are sore by taking mercurius
dulcis you must purge it off by [flos] sulphuris Mr. Cook apothecary
Rx some milk scum’d milk will do boil it & add as much flower of brimstone
as when stir’d abt will make it a little yellow & treacle 1 spoonful
Take this in the morning & it will give you 3 or 4 stools If that does
not make the gums well repeat it omitting one day. If you take mercurius
dulcis to purge grind it on a marble 7 gr 	½ is a dose for an ordinary 
man, with flower or brimstone for a long time & at last with treacle
put it to the further pt of the tongue & lett it touch the gums as little
as you can & work the mouth after if with beer If you chew it, it will
make the gums very sore. when the gums are sore with mercury chew
liquorice If that does not cure Rx this drying diet drink Rx sarsaparilla
& guaiacum each zij sassafras zfs hartshorn & ivory shavings 
each zii boil these in a galn of water to 2 qts Drink a pint a day
repeat it till well Mr. Francis Coltman apoethcary pr. [113d]


98)


(99
To make cider Jn. Arrowsmith of Tewksbury in 
Gloucestershire
Let the apples lie in heaps to sweat till they are mellow. Pick out
the rotten & lay em by themselves. You must make spirits of the
rotten & the sedimts of the cider you must but chalk into the
sedimt Grind the apples & squeeze the liquor from the hulls as soon 
as you can that they may not change or grow sour with the same care 
& expedition as you get the alewort from the grains. Tun up the liquor
immediately into the hogshead or lesser vessel you must not stop the 
vessel you may begin to make cyder after michaelmass & continue
making till xtmass work up the [illegible] & the woodcocks & your 
musses (musta) & the moyls & the sweet pippins & London pippins
a choice eating apple the 1st ripe fruit 1st. never gather but shake
down the apples upon the grass & house em immediately Take care 
to shake em down dry & house em dry. Gather only what are for
house use & to eat & to keep long. 2 or 3 days after they are hous’d
turn em over with the hand. Pick out the blew & rotten & lay em in a
cistern for spirits. A blew mould will give the cider an ill taste you 
must not break the kernels for they will give the cider an ill taste
Let the cyder purge & when it is in a [frot] you must not wrack it off.
Let it be in the vessel 2 or 3 months till it has done purging at the
bunghole. In frosty clear weather that is calm wrack it off (not in rainy
or windy weather) pour out the lees for the still or stillers. wash the 
vessel with cold water & pour it out then put in the cider again into the
same vessel or in to a spare vessel The cider men begin with a spare vessel
boyl apple hulls (call’d [comb]) in water & scald all the vessels old or new 
with it twice before you put the cider into em. cider will not do well
after malt drink, but malt drink will do after cider Let the cider after
it is wrackt into the new vessel stand with the bung stopt to keep out
the air but not very close. you must have a little hole with a nail 
[parer] near the bung which you must open in rough weather & lest you 
forget leave it open or it will force & break the h oops of a new or old
vessel unless iron hoop’d. you must have never an hole on the top of the 
vessel cell’ the purge hole because the vessel will not then hold so much 
by 2 or 3 gallns especially if it be an hogshead. always fill the vessel 
full 2 or 3 days after you’ve wrackt it off put in a pint of old 
[?eans] 1 yr old to a hogshead They refine & give it a colour & make 
it flower If it is inclin’d to change Put treacle abt ½ a pint to a 
hogshead whip it with a whisk in a pail or tub with some pt of the cider
& tun it again. Let it stand 5 or 6 days to settle then bottle it off as
soon as you can. Bottle it always in calm clear weather Try the vessel
with a plug at the end of the vessel as soon as it is fine bottle it it 
will keep in bottles a yr or 2 set the bottles sideways in a bin in straw 
or without a bin straw lying betwixt every row of bottles to keep em
from freezing. when you bottle ale put a spoonful of small beer into each
bottle to ripen it winter or summer after cyder is wrackt it looks for  


100)


(101


102)


(103
Pills generally purging all humours as flegm choler
melancholy from all pts of the body, thereby curing
many diseases.
Rx Pilula cochiae majores, pil. aloephanginae & extract of rudius
each one scruple, chymical oyl of nutmegs 1 drop, make them
into 6 pills & take 3 at night going to bed & 3 the next morning
R. C. mercurius dulcis 20 gr. in very fine pouder mixt
with a little hony or tracle is an exct. purge for a man or 
woman v ic. p. 97.


104


105
Emplastrum de minio Rx sevil oil such
as the combers use one quart red lead lbi in fine
powder boil ‘em together till it begins to be brown. White
wine vinegar that that’s sharp, or good alegar ziiiiii,
when that is boil’d a little add bees wax sliced zij and
rosin in powder zi. then let ‘em just simmer then pour
it into cold water and make it up into rolls, your hands
being oiled or anointed with fresh butter. It dries and
heals wonderfully, discusses tumours and coagulated 
humours; it mollifies, expells, and is anodyne; It is
so [illegible] a thing agt all manner of pains, bruises and old
aches the weakness of the back and sinew’s, sprains 
of the joints gouts, old sciatica’s and other inveterate
pains coming of cold that it has scarcely and equal;
esteem it as a jewel.


106)
Artery prickt or wounded.
There is no better think than to apply balsam de chili, or
panicea balsamina upon lint, & lay over it a diapalma
plaster. It commonly cures at one dressing. Salmon.


(107



108)
To take away the pain of any swelling & to cure it
without breaking
p. 72
Rx juice of housleek 2 pts & fresh butter 1 pt mix them together & 
anoint the swelling till well, Mrs M. or shred wormwood (green is best)
small & apply it hot, being fry’d in fresh butter, like a poultis renew it
once in 2 or 3 days. ibid another Rx camomile, wormwood, southernwood
& lavender cotton each mi pounded boyle em in a [illegible] pt of
cream to an oyl strain it warm it in a spoon or agt the fire
rub it on night & morning till you are well Goody [Homes] of
Wigson magna did great cures of aches & swelling with this green
oyntmt. Jn Gamble carpenter his wife was cured of a great swelling 
on her knee as big as a mans fist with it without breaking
The Duke of [Leeds] had a violent swelling & inflammation 
that descended fro his shoulder to his back the Drs & surgeons 
thought it impossible to be cured without cutting an old poor
woman cur’d & took away the pain in a very little time 
only by applying 3 or 4 times a poultis of turnips made
with mutton suet viz. the turnips were pared & boyled in 
water & then mixt with the suet & apply’d warm The Rd
Mr Ed. Lovel. a child abt a yr. old at Leicer had a swelling
that look’d white (which is reckon’d the worst of swellings) abt the 
bigness of a womans fist, it was cured thus by a soldier viz 
he boyled some parsnips (scrap’d) in water to a mash & apply’d
as hot as you can endure it to your cheek or the back of your hand
& it was repeated every 3 hours day & night for 40 hours
& it dissolved without breaking MRs Abigail Finch.
To make oyl of trefoil. Buy some seeds of sweet trefoil (called the
balsam tree) of the seedmen at London & sew em in a [fat] soil in a garden
in April, when it is in the blossom cut it & keep the flowers by themselves
now gotten & dry put em in a glass unchopt with sallet oyl as much
as will cover the herbs set em in the sun for a fort night to incorporate
strain out the oyl & keep it for use. The oyntmt of trevoil is made of
the herb chopt green, dry, & new (gotten or) cut mix it with goose grease 
Set it in an earthen pot in a cool place viz in a cellar or [dary] for a week 
or 10 days to incorporate then boyl it & strain out the herbs & put 
this oyntmt into an earthen pot & when it is quite cold cut a hole from the
surface to the bottom at which drain out the water clean then after a 
batch of bread or any things bak’d set it in the oven till it is entirely
molted so cover it with a paper or board & keep it for use It is good for all
swellings or pains The oyl is esteem’d better than the oyntmt but Mrs. Adderly 
uses only the oyntmt being cheapest. Sister Mayer


(109
To cure a swelling caus’d by a kick or for a bruise
Rx wormwood leaves mi ale ½ a pint boyl em till it is thick
like glew apply it on as hot as you can endure it every 
night bind on the leaves too It gives present ease (when oyl of
turpentine will not) & will heal where only the skin is rub’d
off. James Leppington. unguentu nutritu is cooling drying & 
anodyne, good agt inflamations burnings & scaldings, takes 
away the itch of wounds, cures scabs & [tetters]. Salmons Disp.
To dispense or break a swelling Rx goose grease 10 pts oyl of
turpentine (or oyl of spike) 1 pt E.A. To make oyl of
[fish] for any new swelling Rx the whites of 2 eggs, salt one
spoonful beat em well together then beat with it an equal quantity 
of hony for 2 hours anoint the swelling & a piece of limbers
London brown paper & apply it If the paper stick too fast when you 
would take it off moisten it with warm water. It will keep 7 yrs 
you may make ½ this quantity & keep it in a bottle close stopt
It is good for a swelling caus’d by cold or for an eye swell’d 
up taking care that you put none into the eye Rd Mr Ed. Stokes
oyntmt of roses will discuss a swelling: ibid The swelling of
the cheek caus’d by the toothach is cured by anointing it with sallet 
oyl E.A. A poultis to break & heal any swelling white or red
p. 79. another Rx a penny loaf, slice it, then sooth it in running
water with red rose leaves till they be thick like a poultis then add a
little deers suet apply it as hot to the grieved place as you can endure 
it. Pater [meus]. another for a for a foot strained or wrenched
Rx a little oatmeal & milk & [smallage] mi chopt with a little sheep
suet & boyl em & make a poultis of em & spread it upon a clean
cloth apply it as hot as you can endure it when you go to bed.
I have try’d this to be a singular good medicine says Geo. Ashby
Pater [meus]. Emplastrum podagricum is a useful application in all
tumours attended with sharp pain Quince’s Dispensatory.
A swelling in the stomach or belly in a fever or any rupture or hard
swelling any where. a child & a gentleman that had belly & stomach 
swell’d so that little or no passage & thought to be dying were both recover’d
by this following. Rx St. Jns wort wormwood [scordium] (al. water germander)
camomile flowers [melilot] flowers mallows each mi marshmallow roots
2 ounces linseed zfs juniper berries aniseeds each zi Boyl or infuse em in 
2 galns of water till it comes to one then put in aqua vitae a qt ferment it with 
hot flannels 2 or 3 hours together keeping it as hot as you can bear it DR
Harlap for Mr Johnson of Leicer Mrs Caulton


110)
an oyntmt for any swelling or St. Anthonies fire
[Tetter] or ringworm scale head or any pain or ach
Rx comfry leaves miij may butter lbijfs unsalted aqua
vitae 2 d or the 5th pt of a qt. (pr 20 d per qt) Put the leaves 
unpounded [unsh??d] with the rest of the ingredients in a pipken set em
in an oven with a batch of bread, strain it when it comes out
work it in agt the fire. A woman of Caucot 4 m from Cambridge
doth great cures with it pr 4 d per ounce Tho. Juice
Sam. Exon carpenter ran the point of his knife into his wrist
which made a great wound that bled very much perhaps some of
the sinews were cut working in his shirt when it was almost
well in Febr 4 the cold fell into it which caus’d a violent swelling
in his hand having try’d a great many things nothing
was so effectual to the abating the swelling as salt & water 
bath’d on blood warm agt the fire it out did human urine.
J. Exon E. A. had a [foal] swell’d on each side of its [shop] & on each
buttock. Poplar oyntmt [ripen’d] the swelling so that it was soft & cut with
a pen knife & there came out a great deal of thick corruption which
flow out like blood from a vein Then a slice of bacon dipt in pouder
of pepper was put into each orifice by Tho. Tafte his blacksmith
& the foal did well We thought it was the strangles in its breech
To kill a tetter or ringworm or any kind of [illegible]
Rx sallet oyl & salt [?empar’d] together & anoint the [illegible] [illegible]
& you shall find a cure. Lady Wright
Rub a tetter with Roman vitriol dissolv’d in [illegible] [illegible] 3 or 4 
times a day or rub it with verjuice Mrs Brown of Leicer
Rub a tetter with the fasting spittle of a man that smokes tobacco in a morning
dry it in agt a fire [Joyce] Gimson E. A.’s servt.
moisten a tetter often with white copperas dissolved in spring water. Sister Boothby 


(111



112)



(113
An exct. medicine for the mother or vapours
Rx a gallon of strong alewort, of balm & vervain & pellitory
of the wall each mi anniseeds bruis’d & liquorish ziiii of each
& some wheat bruis’d. Boyle all these till 3 pts be consum’d then strain it
& drink a draught thereof lukewarm morning & evening Mrs M.
another A fit of the mother is vapours in the highest degree.
The mother a diease of women vulvae strangulatic, hysterica
passio. Rx polypody (al oak fern) zi aniseeds & liquorish sliced
each zij raisons of the sun ston’d ziiii epithymum (i.e. dodder of
thyme) zfs sena zifs hysop, penny royal each mi 2 or 3 roots 
of the red dock, leaves of betony, succory mij fennel mi boyl
all the herbs in 3 qts of water till half is consumed then strain it
& put the liquor into a pipkin then add the polypodium raisons, liquorish 
anniseeds Let em boyl half an hour then put in the epithymum
& white wine a pint at the least then add the sena Let it boyl
still on the fire & let it stand on the embers till night then Rx 6 
in the morning 12 or 13 spoonfuls. S. S.
To cleans the mother or womb.
Rx mother wort, mugwort, calamint, each mij savoury, marygolds
fennel, parsley, each a quarter of mi w. wine & running water 
each a quart boyl ‘em alltogether untill half the liquor be wasted
away then strain it, & drink thereof first & last, sweeten’d with 
a little sugar Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother


114)



(115




(117
Hard Drinking or to excess.
Dr Quincy in his Dispensatory commends tincture sacra as a
preserver of the tone of the stomach & a good digestion p. 393.
Sergeant Mundy that was a hard drinker us’d every morning
to drink a pint of cold caudle viz The yolks of 2 eggs 
beaten & mixt with water a pint & sweeten’d with loaf sugar
pounded & mull’d by pouring it out of one mug into another
till the froth rises & stands above the top of the mug. Ann Tasie.
Some people add w. wine & nutmeg to the caudle. ibid.




(119
Madam Sparks’s cordial water
Rx a peck of cowslips the flowers only, one quarte of rosemary
flowers the finest, good nutmegs zi beat & steep ‘em 
in a gallon of good sack 2 or 3 days & then draw it off in a 
still. Mrs S. 
A cordial water for the stomach.
Rx Cinnamon water & damask rose water each half a pint double
refin’d loaf sugar lbfs beaten small & put into a jelly bag
upon which pour the water or let it run abt 20 times through then bottle
it in a glass & put into it abt 20 leaves of leaf gold or as much
as you shall think fit & shake it well together herewith it were good
to mix a quantity of borrage water & water of rosemary flowers 
as much as you shall think fit Mrs Frances Beckerton & Mrs Caulston
A cordial. stone raysins of the sun [less] currants ziiii dates
6 lightly pounded & sliced boyl em in water till they are tender
then pour out the water & strain em very hard Then put liquorish 
pouder 1 d to em aniseed pouder 1 d mace & cloves in pouder each 1 d
saffron 2 d cinnamon 1 d nutmegs 2 d allin pouder sugar in pouder
the same weight as all the pouder Boyl all these a good while together
& with more sugar make it into rolls or cakes. S. S.
A cordial water made by King Charles Rx the best [illegible] brandy
1 galln D. refin’d sugar lbij put to it sp. of saffron zifs [illegible]
ziiii oyl of cloves zi steep em all together 24 hours in a silver or
earthen vessel well glaz’d with in stir em together a little with a silver 
spoon first tie a London brown paper over the top of the earthen
vessel but it is best with a close cover when it has stood 24 hours
stir it a little bottle it & stop the bottles close with corks Tie leather
over em The longer you keep this water the better it will be Be sure to 
stir it always one way when you stir it & let it not near the fire a 
closet which has no fire near it will do best. S. S.



120)
A Diet Drink for Drospie or Tymphany.
Rx Lignum vitae zij sarsaparilla zi sassafras zvi boyl em
in 6 qts of spring water till abt ½ is wasted then strain out the
woods & add to the water 3 qts of strong ale just boy them together
work it up with yest & tun it up & put in a large handful of
green broom a large quantity of ash – ashes tyed up in a cloth
hang em in your drink after 4 days you may drink of it in 
the morning & at 4 o clock in the afternoon. You may add
a good quantity of [millenader] wood lice & a large handful of ale [hoof]
Mrs M. Another Boyl briony roots in conduit water or in ‘
white wine & water drink it, It cures the dropsie Mrs M. Another
Rx guajacum (i.e. lignu vitae) ziiij sassafras & sarsaparilla each zi green
broom mi boyl em in 6 ful qts of spring water till one ½ is wasted
drink ½ a pint in the morning & as much as 3 o clock in the afternoon.
You may add [daucus] seed & bay berries each zfs dry’d sage
mi. It is a perfect cure Mrs M. another Rx mustard seed two spoonfuls
bruis’d in a mortar but not pulveriz’d, infuse it in one
pint of white wine take 2 spoonfuls of the clear mixt in 
all the drink a man or woman drinks viz 2 spoonfuls to be 
mixt with a pint of drink. use it in your constant drink without 
straining or separating the sedemt. This is exct. for aged
people It creates a good digestion & cures swell’d legs. Dr
Anthony Brooks & Mrs Finch. another Drink rue & wormwood
dry & infus’d in strong ale every morning a draught
this cured Mrs Auger of Leicer Elizth Winter another Garlic has
often cured dropsies almost to a miracle. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
another Some have bin cured of tymphanies & dropsical swellings
abt the belly by drinking coffee. Mr Brooks. another Rx Hips
when there red (before they are rotn) & peel em lay the peels in a pot till
they rot then put to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot keep it till
Lady Day near the fire It will be extremely sharp. Drink 3 spoonfuls
of vinegar of hips with a little sugar 3 or 4 times a day It will provoke
urine extremely Dr Pool. A dropsy or sweaty feet. Boyl dwarf
elder (al. danewort) in spring or well water & drink it for 
the constant drink till well or make tea of it. sweaty feet
are often caus’d by a dropsical humour flowing from the
body. Elderly people are most subject to the dropsy. It is
a great purge of watry humours & is very diuretick in [latine]
[ebulus] David [Fane] & Salmn


(121
a diet drink that cureth the dropsy jaundice all itches
green sickness & purifieth the blood.
Rx the roots of monk’s rhubarb & red madder scurvy grass
each lbfs sena ziiii aniseeds & liquorish each zij scabius, agrimony
& maidenhair each mi slice the roots bruise the seeds & 
liquorish. Break the herbs with the hand & put em all to four galns
of ale to steep 3 or 4 days drink for 3 weeks. S. S.
another diet drink to sweeten the blood. Rx sarsaparilla 4 ou.
sassafras 4 ou. China root 4 ou. hartshorn shavings 2 ou. guaiacum
2 ou. raysons of the sun ston’d lbfs liquorish sliced 2 d crude antimony
in [illegible] pouder ½ ou. put all these in to spring water 2 gallons in a new 
pipkin with a cover & boyl it till it comes to 6 qts strain it & put it
into bottles. Drink ½ a pint in the morning fasting & ½ a pint at 4 
in the afternoon. You must put the antimony in a rag tied up & let 
it hang in the liquor whilst boyled & then take it out S.S.
another Rx Red dock root lbi fir lbi broom lbi slice
& chop & hang it in a net in 3 gallons of midling ale S.S.
A wet itch that has taken the blood & been of long standing. Rx
tobacco stalks mi or 4 ou. chop it that it may go into a pan add new 
human urine (because old stinks most) a qt. allum 1 ou. boyl it till a
4th pt. is consumed. strain it & dab it on cold or warm agt a fire
night & morning. 3 or 4 times dressing cured when a great many 
medicines had been try’d in vain & Dr Brooks said he had rather cure the 
pox. This cured Mrs Abigail Finch
Dropsy & swell’d in the body with stiffness in the legs.
Put mustard seed 2 eggshel full to small beer a pint Drink it
constantly when the beer is drank off put more beer to the [illegible]
This cured old Richd Cley shoe maker of Whetstone
A tymphany or when the belly is swell’d like a woman with child
prescrib’d by Mrs Isabella Smith of [Queniboro] It cured Mrs Ann
[illegible] that swell’d abt 3 yrs & she was abt 20 yrs of age.
Rx nine spoonfuls of broom ashes, three of bean stalk ashes & three
of wormwood ashes, three of mustard seed whole, dwarf elder, scrap’d
horse radish & sliced large onions each mi Put all these things into a large
jug mingled well together then pour upon em two qts of boyling spring water
2 qts of white wine to two of brandy. Do not heat the wine nor brandy. Let 
it stand close stopt as near the fire as the jug will bear 3 days & 2 nights, stirring
it up very often with a [illegible] of broom, then let it settle & pour th e
clear off into glass bottles close stopt for use. Dose, in the morning at
four in the afternoon, & at going to bed, the third pt of a pint on an empty 
stomach fasting two hours after it. Mr Wm [Frese] junior
A diet drink to sweeten the blood, a good diuretick & good in cutaneous
eruptions or dry itching by Dr Geo. [Charelden] of Leicer
Rx Guaiacum sassafras each 2 ou. roots of shap pointed docks & roots of [illegible] 
i.e. dropwort, the roots of cynoglossum i.e. hounds tongue each 1 ounce


122)
Geranium Robertianum (ie herb Robert) agrimony each miij
seeds of wild daucus, coriander seeds, each half an ounce, raphanus
sylvestri (i.e. horse radish) 2 ou. sena mundata (pickt clean) zijfs 
millipedes rectify’d i.e. cleans’d with w. wine one pint. Let these be tun’d
up in a canvass or muslans rag in four galns of small ale without hops
After it has been tun’d 3 days drink half a pint morning & ½ a pint at 4 in 
the afternoon, but when the mornings draught gives you a stool or two then
omit it in the afternoon. Rx it dayly till it is all gone it will not keep long
being apt to change. If you find benefit repeat it as you think good
To heal the itch. Boyl sorrel in water & wash the sores
Traveller another wash your hands in frogs spawn water 
& were it itches. ibid. For the itch Rx elecampane roots
wash’d & scraped clean boyl ‘em in running water till they be very
tender then strain ‘em thro’ a course cloth & after they have been boyl’d
in a good quantity of may butter with the same liquor & roots
or other butter without salt then spread some of this upon a 
linnen cloth 4 fingers broad & so wear it about your waste 
& renew it every 3 or 4 days & this will kill it in any place of 
the body, but if the hands being broken or scaby anoint
‘em with this oyntment, or dress a pair of gloves with it
& so wear em upon your hands. If you put some vinegar 
to the roots while they are boyling it will be the better
Mrs HEwet E.A.’s mother
For a young dropsy & for one that has advanced some time
cured by Dr Geo. Cheselden’s prescription as it follows [illegible] Mr Geo.
Basset that keeps an inn at the sign of the feather in Leicer being
abt 40 yrs of age & very fat lusty man, had lost his stomach & 
had both legs very much swell’d Rx summitatum centaurij
minoris pugillum unum, racias gentianae incitae zfs seminis sinapi
ceaturi zij foliorum senae alexandrinae zfs salis tartari zi cineren
genistotum, limaturae calibis ana zifs infundantur simul in vini [albi]
libris tribus frigide; colaturae capiat ziii bis in die viz. mane & hora
tertia post meridiem. He rode out on horse back & drank carduus tea every 
morning for a week & his stomach return’d & he continued well & his
legs ceased to swell G.B.
For the itch Rx [illegible] and flower of brimstone mix’t 3 
tea spoonfulls [9] mornings together to send the humour
out, then dress with sope and flower of brimstone well mixt
together, then when cur’d boil Jamaica pepper zi [ma?]
cinamon and nutmeg and cloves in a pint of water
and mas therewith two or three  times. Thomas Back



(123
For the Itch
Take hogs lard and some quicksilver and [fill] it with the 
lard and mix with it hellebore root and dress therewith the
joints and smell to it. Peter [Netes].


124)


(125
The Kings Evil chaeras. adis. f. scrophula f.
struma.
It is often caus’d byu a bruise or surfeit & is often hereditary
MRs Clay the ironmongers mother of Leicer cures
it by a plaster of tar & by gentle purging with syrup of buckthorn at the end
& after the cure she never fails unless the bone is perish’d
where the evil is Mrs Clay. another [illegible] stones skin’d
& dry’d & pouder’d & taken in white wine, ale, or beer as
much as will lie on a six pence for a week then intermit a
week & take it on till you find benefit. Jn Clark, gelder
another Barly meal boyld with tar, wax oyl & boys urine is
effectual agt the Kings Evil. Salmons Disp. another Rx a qt of 
milk boyl it then take it off the fire & put into it hony
2 spoonfuls when it is dissolv’d set it on the fire & let it
boyl again. Rx ½ a pint of this the 1st think in the morning
& at 10 & at 4 o clock & at night going to bed. use
this as long as you find occasion purge twice a week with 
caryocostinum half an ounce for abt 3 weeks till all the
humours are spent. (Lady Curzon & sister B) Dress the evil sores
with this oyntmt Rx fresh butter lbfi bees wax zij shred small or slic’d
thin horse turpentine 2 d verdigrise pouderd 1 d or zii rosin
pouder’d ziiii set em on a gentle fire till it comes to an oyntmt
or soft salves It will be soft as butter you may use it to the
greatest sores both in tents & plasters you need not use burnt allu
It will fetch out dead flesh in lumps (vid p. 59) ibic emplastrum
mammilare is commended in Quinces Dispensatory for the Evil.
another Drink a good draught of cow piss for 3 mornings together
leave off 3 mornings than drink it for six mornings
successively omit 6 mornings & drink it 9 mornings omit 9 
mornings & continue drinking 9 mornings to keep to 9 mornings
till well It cured a [illegible] woman of the evil when she had 9 holes
in one leg. She drank ½ a pint at a time spring & fall when the
surgeons cured the Evil sores they broke out again but cow piss
made a perfect cure. she liv’d at London but went [to] Edmonton
lead sevil oyl & bees wax will cure the Evill
This drink was prescrib’d by a learned physician for a lady afflicted
with the Kings Evil Rx mullein, St Jns wort, agrimony & beteny each
miij shavings of [fir] mvi. Boyl ‘em in ale 6 gallns The drink of it constantly 
Pecheys Herbal.



126)
figwort plaster for the Evil or Kings Evil
Rx the leaves of figwort, hounds tongue & fox glove cut small
each mij oil olive a pint ½ mix boyle the herbs till they are crisp strain
out by pressing & put in the like quantity of fresh herbs which repeat
the third time & till the oyl is very green, then add sheeps suet lbi turpentine
6 ou. bees wax 4 ou rosin 2 ou. fr. verdigrise 1 ou. mix & 
make a plaster, spred it upon leather or new linnen cloth often renewing
it. It assuages the swellings, disperses the humors, not only 
of the Evil but of any other knots, kernels, bunches or wens. Salmons
Family Dictionary & Pecheys Herbal.
Elizth Plat the wife of Wm Plat (a poor man) can cure
the Evil with cole trough water & lays an oak leafe to the
sore she also cures sore eyes & takes off pearls from the eye
she lives at Thurmaston & is sister to Wm Simpkin at the
cannon in Leicer
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory commends emplastru
mammilare for the Evil & says there is nothing equal 
to it vid.
A diet drink for the Kings Evil. Pecheys Herbal.
Rx guaiacum chips cut into small pieces 8 ou. sarsaparilla 6 ou. bark
of walnut tree, roots of figwort & saxifrage each 2 ou. herb Robt
miij raisins of the sun stoned & live millipedes each libi make a bag
for 4 galns of new beer.
The Kings Eviul was thus cured on [nic] Waltons wife when a girl
who had seven sores on the side of her neck & 5 before on her
neck Her husband liv’d at Rotherby in Leicershire she was 
cured by Abraham Wild, gardiner at Kirby bellows to Mr De
la Fountain & St. John [Meers] a Roman Catholic
Rx vervain (verbena) mij bruis’d a little, boil it in white wine
2 qts Rx ½ a pint in the morning before you rise, fasting & so every
morning as long as it lasts. Rx spring water & the [illegible] scum’d
milk p.e. or a pint of each, in this steep vervain mi bruised or unbruised
all night or longer the longer be better then take out a
leaf & lay it to the sore after you’ve bath’d it with the milk & water 
[bin] or sew a cloth on it to make it stick on. You may sometimes apply
a dry leaf use that most that keeps on best. Bath it twice a day with
a fine rag dipt in the milk & water cold. Rx the root of vervain you 
must not scrape or wash it. hang it to the pit of the stomach ty’d
with a long black silk or black ribbon round the neck. the root will
waste away then you must take a new root. you must take great care
not to lose the roots that have been used at the stomach wear em in 
the pocket or keep them in a box or cupboard. you must wear the roots
a yr or longer abut the neck till the sores are wasted or quite dryu’d up
when you have taken the w. wine then take mild ale a qt & steep vervain
mi bruised & Rx ½ a pint in the morning fasting before you rise from 
bed when that ale is gone take more till you are quite well. after you 
are quite well & the sores are dry’d up Rx all the vervain in [illegible] once a fortnight
or 3 weeks for a yr or longer especially at spring & fall Rx
it every day for a week & with the blood itches take it at any 
time to prevent an outbreak. vervain will not cure if you have 



(127
used any salve or plaster. If a woman hath the Evil let her
stroke her sores with the right hand of a man newly dead. If a man
hath the Evil let him [stroke] his sores with the right hand of a dead woman
This stroking with a dead hand caused Nic. Walton’s wife’s sores to cease
running & sooner to mend. uxor Nicolai Walton Ann Walton, she had the
Evil when 7 yrs old & was cured as above mention’d.
Mrs. Bullivant of Coston abt 4 m. beyond Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire
cures the Kings Evil she has reced 100 l for a cure Br S.A.
Bates’s Dispensatory commends unguentum digitalis ointmt of fox
gloves for the Evil. Rx may butter lbiij fresh fox gloves beaten
as much as you can well put into it, insolate for 30 days, then
boil & press out strongly. anoint the places affected with the Kings
Evil therewith morning & evening till you find the affect to cease
for this purpose it has no equal. It dissolves kernels in the neck
or else where & takes away all sorts of scrophulous tumours whatsoever
Salmon says you should purge once a week too with pilulae panchymagoga.
In the Kings Evil the decoction of the leaves
& in winter the roots of the small wild daisy given inwardly 
& a cataplasm of the leaves apply’d outwardly are esteemed
by some as exterordinary remedies. Millers Herbal
Perriwinkle (in latin vinca per vinca) is a famous vulnerary The leaves
of this herb just upon paper that will easily receive moisture & sewed to 
it with fine flas betwixt perfum’d with frankincense cured a scrophulous
tumour in a short time which continued obstinate under the use of
other remedies for the space of a whole year: Pechey’s Herbal.
Can Coats A butcher of Leicer had a daughter that had two 
running sores of the Kings Evil viz one in her arm & 
another in her thigh Sr Geo. [Braum?] had the advice of
the college of physicians at London for her She went to em
it cost Dan 10 l all the charge during her stay there & she 
came to Leicer uncured & Dan afterwards cured her
himself in half a years time only by smoking tobacco
in a morning fasting & spitting & his daughter rubbed
the spittle that came from his mouth on the sores 
with a feather dipt in it agt the fire it was dry’d in 
& it dry’d up the humour & it continued well as long 
as she lived. Dan Coats [rue-leav’d] whitcorn grass or rue whit corn
grass infus’d in small beer & drank for some days cures the Kings Evil without
any sensible evacuations Pechey’s Herbal. Mr Boyle commends the
herb very much for the cure of the Evil & Sr Jn Colebatch in his essay upon 
acids & alkali makes mention of a poor girl at Worcester afflicted with 
scrophulous ulcers that receiv’d great benefit from rue leav’d whitcorn-grass 
[illegible] Herbal. Kings Evil emplastrum ad strumas. Rx black
pitch that is free from dross stone. Pitch is best Bees wax
cut in thin slices hard frankinsence bruis’d each of
these zi camphire zii or abt 3 d and sevil oil 2 spoonfuls
or zifs melt these all but the camphire beat the camphire
with oil and crumble it in as soon as it is taken from the 


and stir it in gradually as soon as it comes from  the fire till it is cold or disolve it in good spt of
wine, and so mix’t with the salve as soon as it comes
off from the fire. it is apply’d to a sore or a sore leg 
melt some of it and dip lint in it and lay a simple
diacuton plaster over it as broad as man’s hand & 
continue it on a long time together
For a toe nail that is cut too short and is painful
dip a bit of lint into the salve and apply it with a 
plaster of the same emplastrum ad strumas tried over
it.







130)


(131
To make in that will not change yellow or 
grow mouldy.
Rx Gum arabick (the clearest) zi steep it 24 hours in a 
pint of any clear water, when the gum is dissolv’d put into
it a sheeps gall, ivory black beaten & sifted 4 d or as much 
as will make it as black as you desire it you may buy it
ready ground at pouder’d with is best. after 24 hours from
the meeting of all the ingredients you may write with it.
stir it always before you use it. Ivory black is the best
black that is in the world. If your ink writes thick put into it
some gum water The frost will not hurt it for as soon as 
this ink is thrown & stirr’d together it is as good as at first.
It writes with a good gloss. Try first ivory black 2 d 
make a little gum water. The sheeps gall gives it a good gloss & 
incorporates the ingredients Mrs Mary Lee a Traveller that [illegible]
to Japan. You may mix ivory black with green copperas & 
turky galls etc. & it will make good ink & much improve it.
E. A.
To make red ink
Rx some red carmine pr. 3d vermillion 2 d mix em with gum
arabick water cold & stir em together & you may write with
it after it hath been mixt one hour as well as if it had been
mixt 7 yrs Red carmine is dear & shop keepers seldom will sell
any under eighteen pennyworth at a time Mrs Mary Lee.
Another Rx small Brazil zi white lead & allum each zij bum 
arabick [illegible] viii urine one pint. shake ‘em often together or mix
vermillion with gum arabick water. The young man’s companion
p. 19s


132) To make black ink. Rx Green copperas & 
gum arabick each zij nut galls zvi spring water
or snow dissolv’d 2 qts Bruise the galls & put them into
the water with the gum & copperas unpounded. Let em infuse
10 or 12 days stir it tiwce a day during that time. Place
the pot in some warm place with in doors. In the summer set
the ink in a [cellar] & at the approach of winter put into
the ink aqua vitae 2 d & place it in some warm place 
during the whole winter. Alexander Hepburn of Burbage.
To make good black ink Mr Tartrey Rx rain water 
a qt. The best nut galls lbfs broken into pieces but not
small. Put em into a glass bottle with a large mouth
then add gum arabick ziiij which must not be int oo small
pieces stir these once or twice a day for a month & 
put in a little of the bark of pomegranate & at the
end of the month add Roman vitriol zi in small pieces
as you take out put in as much rain water & it will 
last many yrs stirring it sometimes Mr Tartrey
To make black ink a pint. Rx blew galls zij break em
in a mortar, gum arabick zi verdigrise zi pomegranate rind
zij The best [indico] the quantity of a little tea, the best alewort
a pint ½ green copperas as one dram Let em stand [sim?ering]
4 hours over a gentle fire or longer The longer it is a making
the better The hot sun is better than a fire. The water that stands in 
the root of an oak lately fell’d is better than ale or white
wine. Take the roots of broad logs & the water that is
in em is very good to boyl in the ink. It sets it extraordinary
& makes it very black. To prevent the ink from 
changing yellow add a spoonful of w. wine or rather aqua
vitae. Stir it while it is making. strain it abt 2 weeks after
it is made. when it is too thick add vinegar to it. you must
put in the verdigrise & gum when it is cold Wm Smith a
Travelling ink-seller, taught by a London book-seller.
To make red ink a pint Rx the best Brazil ground zij
pr. 2.9 allum the quantity of a nutmeg, best ale a pint mild
is better than stale gum arabic zfs pr. 29 dragons blood the
best drops the quantity of ½ a nutmeg bruise it. when the other
ingredients are cold strain em then put in the dragons blood


(133
you must only let the other ingredients simper. If
you boyl em a long time you spoyl it you must let em
simper in a tin or earthen pot, brass or copper spoyls the
colour ibid. To make red ink. Geo. Hill a London dyer 
Rx [archil], ground Brazil, red wood each zij boyl em in wine
vinegar & rain water each a pint. strain it thro a cloth when almost
cold. [archil] is 6 d per lb a weed that is kept close in a bottle
To make black ink, which is good for to write with or to dress 
an hat with Geo. Hill. London dyer & dyer at Hoby. Rx the blew [illegible]
galls beaten into small pieces zfs green copperas zij sum mach
(al sumac) logwood, Roman vitriol in pouder French verdigrise 
in pouder each zi wine vinegar, rain water each a pint. You may 
beat the verdigrise in a mortar with a little water Boyl em a qr
of an hour. strain it thro a linnen cloth when it is almost cold.
Dissolve a little gum arabic in wine vinegar and add to it when you 
design it only for ink you must leave it out when you dress a hat
when you dress a hat with it, it must be boyling hot you must dip 
the brims in it & where the gum & grease appears & brush it with
a hard brush to make it clean placing a wooden crown under the
head To dye hair or a periwig that is weather beaten of a brown
or saddish colour Rx ground fustick zij summach zi madder the
best ziij boyl em in rain water 3 pints a qr of an hour strain it,
& when it is so cold that you can abide the finger in it put the hair
into it & let it remain in it 2 hours (or 12 hours the better) then take
it out & heat the liquor again with green copperas zij when it is moderately 
cool then put in the hair for two minutes till you see it is of
a colour dark enough. If it is not sad enough, heat the liquor again
& add more copperas & put in the hair as before directed. Geo.
Hill dyer To dye a dogs tayl that is white of a blew colour or
the tayl or mane of a white horse or the feathers of a white hen
or cock. Rx Jamaica indico zij (Lahoor is better but the other will do)
Best wood zij Flemmish pot ashes zij best madder zfs creech 
lime or the finest lime that is fallen & like wheat flower zfs heat em
in rain water 2 qts It must not boyl when it is so warm that you can 
endure the finger in it. Hold the dogs tayl in it & squeeze it in the
hand & you will see it turn blew in 3 minutes It will last till he casts
his hair or the hen her feathers This will dye an ivory haft of a knife or 


134)
or a cows horn, or bristles that are white. Geo. Hill dyer
To make black ink much commended & us’d by Dr Jn Million
of Ansley. Rx turky galls ziiij English vitriol (al green copperas) zi 
alum zfs the strongest stalest beer 3 pints. Let all the 3 1st ingredients
be pounded severally & infus’d apart in a sufficient quantity
of the beer for 7 days. Dissolve gum arabick zi in a sufficient
quantity also of the beer; then strain all distinct & the gum likewise
& mix all the ingredients together & keep em close stops for use. J. M.
To make Japan or shining ink. Br Jn Levermore buys ink of 
men that sell it at his door some of it he puts into his standish & 
when it is thick & too dry he adds [aleager] (ale vinegar) & when that
has stood some time to incorporate it will shine upon paper in the
writing most charmingly J. L. If you add a drop or 2 of single anniseed
water to the ink in the inkhorn or inkglass & let it stand a day
to incorporate it will shine like Japan ink but if it shines too much as
not to dry them mix aniseed water (the weakest sort is best) with fair water 
but do not use it in 12 hours after E.A. To make black ink Rx blew
galls bruis’d zi chipt logwood (not ground) zij boyl these 2 things in 
a qt of clear water (soft water is best) to a pint then take it off the fire & 
add Roman vitriol zij pearl lashes zi (you may buy it of Mr Ludlam at
Leicer) Green copperas zi these last ingredients must not be boyled let 
em infuse one week (you need not any gum arabick) then strain keep 
it in a clean bottle close stops from dust you need not shake it after
it is strain’d. when the ingredients are together stir em with a stick once
a day. you need not set it in the sun or near the fire. It will not turn
yellow. you may make ½ pint more of the same ingredients before you 
thrown em away Mr Stubbs dyer of Coventry. In rainy & frosty
weather you must set the ink near the air of the fire or carry 
the inkhorn in the pocket & dry the paper too or it will not
write but sink into the paper unless you pounce it Mr Ward
book seller of Leicer keeps his ink constantly by the fire in the
chimney E. A. 
To make black ink
Rx Green copperas 3 ounces, galls bruised small 4 ou. bum
arabick white & clear 3 ou. Put them to 3 pints of rain water
in a jug or any earthen vessel. Stir it with a stick 2 or 3 times a 
day for 3 weeks or a month then bottle it, & add a spoonful of
salt & another of grandy. You may set the jug by the fire
once or twice a week till it is warm whist you are stirring
it Mr Halford farmer cutler when it is too thick mix white
wine 3 pts sack 1 pt let it incorporate 12 hours or longer E. A.
or when it is too thick add more rain water ibid.
another Rx Rain water 2 qts galls beaten 5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum
arabic 3 ou. sugar candy 2 ou. Stir em together twice or thrice a day for
a fortnight by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.


(135
To prevent ink from sinking into paper
Rx some pounce i.e. gum sandrick in fine pouder
having a little hole in the lid or top of a box that screws on which
the writing masters have on purpose & stop with the hard piece
of a quill at the feather end pr. 1 d strew it on in 3 or 4 places 
then rub it on very hard (or it doth little or no good) with a fine
linnen rag or dimity or piece of clean cap paper Then you may 
rug the same rag or cap paper on a little w. lead or chalk made
into fine pouder with a clean knife on a clean trencher & rub it over
where the pounce had been rub’d It makes the paper look white
preserves the writing. If the ink shines & does not dry readily
you may rub some chalk or w. lead with a rag on cap paper
& apply it to the writing & give it time to dry up the ink then you 
may rub or brush it off.  This is a good way when you prick tunes
in musick. you may try wheat flower pounce alone is best to 
make paper bear ink. E. A.
To make ink Mr. Geo Garnet attorny of North Allerton in 
Yorkshire Rx galls 3 oz gum arabick 2 oz green copperas
1 oz loaf sugar 1 oz indica 1 oz rain water 3 pints. Price of 
the ingredients 5 d or 6 d set it near the fire for 3 or 4 days
so as it may simber & wast abt a pint & shake it daily 3 or 4 
times whilst it stand by the fire. when you ingross you must
have no cotton in the ink glass that thickens the ink. Ink without
cotton flows readily from the pen. G.G. when you take the ink out
of the vessel it is kept in stir it with a stick a little & let the stick be
made with a point so that you may put a drop into the cradle of the
pen holden flat or level then let it from thence drop in to the
inkglass or inkhorn by this means the ink always taken from 
a little distance of the bottom it writes blacker than when taken fro
the top or surface E.A. Red ink Mr [Blunt] a dyer in Darby shire
Boil raspings of Brasil: wood one penny worth in spring water
half a pint untill the water is red which may be the [spate] of a quarter of an
hour then add [illegible] meal in fine pouder two pennyworth Let it
boil a little more then put thereto a little allum & strain it for use Some
use vinegar instead of water Mr Blunt likes water best
Black in Rx galls 4 ou. broken to pieces but not to pouder green
copperas 1 ou. pouder’d gum arabick rose-indico & allum each half
ou. all pouder’d Put all these together to a quart of rain-water
or other soft water in a glass or earthen bottle clos’d stopt & kept 



136)
blood warm for ten days shaking the bottle three or four times a 
day when you use it pour off [illegible] the top & let the ingredients
remain in the bottle that the ink may feed thereon & when you have
used part thereof you may add more water to the ingredients which
still remain good If in sumer it [illegible] to mould add salt
In winter to keep it from freezing add brandy, for after the frost
has taken it it is good for nothing Mr Blunt a dyer E. A. had ink
in a pitcher which was frozen very hard in the yr 1730 he put
some fresh ingredients to it & set it in the sun all sumer following & 
stir’d it often & it was excellent ink.
To make blue ink Geo: [Dill] of [Doby]
Rx wood zii Jamaica indico i.e. dyers indico in powder zii (indico la
hoar is best but dearest) steep it in hot water a qr of an hour then
pound it well then pour off the liquid till all is disolv’d. Steep your
[illegible] 2 hours in a pint of rain water warm not very hot it
must not boyl then strain it through a cloth & put it to the
blue liquor in which you may dissolve a little gum arabick
for two or 3 days shaking the bottle every day setting it 
in the sun or near a fire
To make ink rd in Jn Orton’s way, from Mr Barwells
Rt This [illegible] does Mr Barwells Rt
Rx gum arabic lbfs green copperas lbvs, best galls lbi
bruis’d, infus’d em in w: wine vinegar a qt pr 6 d at the [taverns]
till the gum & copperas is disolv’d, put ‘em in a jug & stir ‘em 
with a stick, twice a day for a week, the put in rain v
abt 2 qts or more till it is of a due consistence for writing 
which you must try if it is too thick, add more rain v but put in
too little water at first. after it is made stir it once a
week constantly, when you use it pour off the clear without
stiring best when you have lately added rain water to thin
it, then stir it before you pour any out keep all the ingredients
in always This will keep good 2 years & more. keep the jug
[cover’d] always with a paper ty’d over it to keep out the dust.
In the hot weather set it for a month or 2 in the sun in freezing
weather set it near the fire. Mr Orton always stirs his ink
twice a day after it is made as long as it lasts. after he has put in
rain water to thin it he doth not use it in 2 or 3 days or more.


(137
To make black ink Mr Blunt dyer at Burrows
ash mill in Darby shire
Rx river [water] a a French indico zfs. 2 d (price 3 d per lb) green
copperas zfs 2 [illegible] allum zfs blue galls of the bigger sort [illegible] 6 or 7.
bruis’d em the clearest gum arabick zii pr 2 g put em in a qt glass
bottle & set it near the fire & shake it every day for 8 or 9 days. It
writes pale at first then turns blue & at last black, it will n ot
turn yellow. If it writes too pale put in a little more copperas If it [illegible]
at the top put in a little salt & it will keep it down. 7 great galls
are zi from an [illegible] man.
To take spotts of ink out of cloth. Rx white starch
& rain water lay it on hot or mix it cold, & lay it in the hot
sun to dry Mr Wilkins Taylor of Leicer
To make very good ink mater mea. Rx the best alewort 2 qts
gum arabick 3 ou. green copperas 4 ou. turky galls 5 ou. beaten
small sugar candy 2 ou. stir them all together once or twice a
day for 7 or 8 days. It must not be very strong alewort, that will make
it write too thick but that for midling ale is best.
To make in the best Rx Mr. Geo Brice bookseller of Leicer His ink
barrel holds ten gallons. He takes rain water [illegible] new or old to which
he puts galls (from Turky) bruis’d in a mortar 7 to pr the darkest
heavy set & soundest, & stirs it every morning for a month then 
he puts in gum arabick (the coursest sort 9 d or 10 d per lb which is of
a box colour pounded in a mortar just only to break it that it may 
sooner dissolve) 5 lb stirring it still every morning for a
month longer. then add new green copperas eight pounds a [illegible]
stir it abt twice a week. It will mould if it is not stir’d once every day.
The ingredients are not strain’d from the liquor but after you 
have made ink twice upon the same ingredients adding new
every time that you make ink you must let the ingredients a [illegible]
that comes from them into the cask agn to make more ink. you must
never put water to the old ingredients, after they’ve been used twice with 
fresh ingredients. It is stirred with a thick broomstaff cut even at
the bottom or end of it when it happens to mould (which is for want 
of stirring) skim it off & throw it away. The ingredients continued 
on twice make the ink the stronger. The vessel hath 5 [hoops]
of wood but iron hoops are better It has a wooden cover but seldom
stands cover’d It stands under a pair of stairs in the summer & 
near the fire in winter


138)
Hands sore with washing in lye.
wash em for a long time in cold water after you’ve 
done washing in lye al. [illegible] & it will take out the
venome of the lye Goody Simon. when you’ve done washing 
wash em with new milk warm from the cow [illegible] or warm’d agt the
fire a little will do, & when you go to bed anoint with adders tongue
oyntmt & lie in an old pair of gloves to keep the sheets clean & fro
hurting the sore hands. Mary Chester To harden the hands the night
before you wash quench and old horse shoe or pr of tongues or any 
iron heated red hot in urine & wash the hands therein & let it dry 
in agt the fire ibid. another for sore or chapt hands. wash the
sore hands & arms in urine & let it dry in agt the fire then spit on
the sore places & drop some tallow on em from a candle & rub it
on agt the fire & lie in a pr of old gloves & they will be well the
next day Goody Foxon. [Gorze] cut betwixt michaelmass & xtmass
& burnt to ashes when new cut will make so sharp a lye that it will 
fetch the skin off & make the hands swell, after they’ve been cut a 
month they are not so sharp in their ashes To qualifie their sharpness
burn egg shells in their ashes or embers or add to the lye. Dead
small beer Anne Tasie another To cure chop in human hands
add mercury sublimate zij to lime water a qt you may make
it stronger for chops in horses heels Mr Jn Penford apothceary.
when you’ve done washing the sope or lye before the hands
are dry take a nip of salt & rub the hands with it let it
dry on & remain on all night This will harden the hands
& prevent chops. Goody [Kt] a washerwoman
Boil burnt alum in water so that it may taste strong of the alum
bath it hot on an obstinate chop & bind a linnen rag, moisten’d
in the same, to the sore Mr [Sachvil] Coy.


(139
To prevent the biting of gnats
Infuse Turky galls (ie. Aleppo galls) in water & wash your
face, it will discolour your skin. This they use in the Indies.
Wm Farmer a packer Another wash your hands & face at night
going to bed with your own urine To cure the swellings
caus’d by their biting wash em with wine vinegar Cos Jn Ashby


140)
A pouder for the toothach. v. 237.
Rx pouder of alibine root (ie. white helebore) snuff
up the quantity of a pins head into each nostril If you 
take too much it will make your nose bleed. sometimes it
is taken 8 or 10 times in a day Taken as snuff it cures
also the headach. M.B. face swell’d with the toothach or cold 
anoint it with oyl of roses at a convenient distance from 
the fire Mrs. [illegible] Halford. Diachlysma ad dolores dentium i.e. 
a mouth water for the toothach. It eases the pain in a moment 
vic. p. [722]. Salmons Dispensatory. The toothach. pound 
3 or 4 cloves of garlic put it into a linnen rag or squeeze 
2 or 3 drops into the contrary ear, lying on one side. W. P.
another mix white pepper in fine pouder with vinegar hold it
to the aching tooth it will give ease & conquer the pain being
often us’d. withabed [merer] of Cosby. another Lay a
plaster of burgundy pitch between both shoulders as broad as the
palm of a mans hand then mix black pepper in pouder with soap
& spred it upon allum’d feather & apply it to the root of the
contrary ear let it lie on till it drops off This is infallible says
Mrs Elizth Halford Cheek swell’d with the toothach anoint it, with
sallet oyl. This cured Jane Tasie. Sarah Halford’s cheek was violently
swell’d with [illegible] she was cured by applying a poultace made of oatmeal & milk & 
hogs lard six nights successively S.H.
The toothach. Dry an old linnen rag agt the fire. roll it up
into a little roll light one end at some flame or at the fire
& hold it in the mouth a little way taking care not to burn
the tongue as oft as it extinguishes you must light & hold it in the
mouth. The heat drives away the pain. Goody Simons.
another. mix a little white [illegible] in very fine pouder with the quantity
of 2 little pea’s of black pitch mix em very well together
by working em soundly if in the winter agt the fire, if in 
the summer the heat of the fingers is sufficient apply one of 
em made into the shape of a pea to the orifice of the aching
hollow tooth 3 or 4 hours or longer provided the pain doth
not cease, if the pain doth not abate then you must apply the
other quantity. You must take care not to swallow the spittle
while it is in the mouth lest you poison the self, if you’ve
occasion to eat you must take it out during the eating or
drinking then apply it again. This will only cure an hollow
tooth. This cured Joyce Gimson, my servant who was very 
little troubled with it afterwards.
If the gum & cheek is swell’d very much hold the strongest brandy 


(141
you can get in the mouth often repeating it till the gum
breaks then rub it with a clean rag & wash it oft with verjuice till
quite well This cured Mrs Abigail at Rotherby E.A. The toothach Rx
myrrh zi best aloes zi saffron 1 d sp. v. ½ a qr. of a pint Put these into a
viol glass & gently beat it till it dissolves then rub the gums with it often W.P.
Tooth rotten & hollow to cure its aking sometimes, never to ach again
drop a drop or 2 of oyl of origanum on a little lint & thrust it into the 
hollow tooth & it is a certain & safe cure W. P To cure the toothach
 Rx a bit of green copperas as big as a bean or a little nut, hold it
to the gum of the aking tooth taking care not to swallow any 
of the spittle but let it run out of the mouth if you use this oft
it will harden the gums & by drawing away the [precant] humours
prevent the toothach white copperas taken inwardly is poyson Mr
R. Baxter schoolmaster you may beat it to pouder & tie it up in a thin
rag when you would disguise it E. A. but green copperas [illegible] white [illegible] fetch the teeth out another Aug 719 E.A. was violently
troubled with the toothach the further great tooth on the nether [illegible]
aching the gum being very sore camphorated Hungary water & bleeding 
& toasted bread etc. would do but little good at last E. A. [illegible] his own
urine (being then accustom’d to drink milk morning & night) in his mouth
2 or 3 times a day but especially night & morn & it gave him ease & 
made a perfect cure in 3 or 4 days E. A. another Ann Tasie E. A. servant
being frequently troubled with the toothach having rotten teeth E.A. 
caus’d the aching gum to be prickt till it bled with a quill & the quill & 
blood that hung on it was immediately into ratsbane or mercury sublimate
in pouder & being cut short it was wrapt up in a paper & then 
a linne rag was sown round it & she constantly wore it in her pocket
& it freed her from the pain & ach for 2 yrs as she told E.A. & perhaps
all her life after she wore the tooth of a dead man in her pocket before
in vain Ann Tasie another wear the forefoot of a mole in 
the pocket constantly [sam.] Pauly borcklayer Toothach caus’d by a 
hollow tooth. Dip a little lint in (ordinary) oyl of vitriol & with a pin put
it into the hollow ooth It burns the nerves os that it seldom returns
Jn Pat a traveller a face swell’d with the toothach as cold
spred conserve of roses spred it on a cloth & bind it on the swelling
& it will cure in a nights time. Mrs Abigail Finch The toothach
dissolve sal armoniac in spring or well water Hold it to the aching
gum without swallowing the spittle Mrs Finch.
a faced swell’d or an inflammation or strain.
Rx camphorated spirits of wine & oyntmt of Peru, mix & warme
it in a spoon. chafe it in agt the fire 2 or 3 times in a day Mrs
Coulton. To cure the toothach & the scurvy int eh gums & 
to eat away the rotten part of teeth & so breed flesh again. Rx sp
of vitriol 15 or 20 drops or 2 d hony of roses zi pr [illegible] tie a rag to 
a stick & rub it on night & morn till the gums bleed. Tho Juice



142)
To cure the toothach
Mrs Ann Lathwell when she was big with child was
violently afflicted with the toothach having try’d a
great many medicines in vain & blister’d behind the
ear without relief was at last cured by putting a great
deal of salt into her mouth on the aching side she fell asleep
& was freed from the toothach for 7 yrs after A.L.
another Put tobacco to the aching gum. ibid.
another Put to half an ounce of hony of roses i.e. syrup of
roses abt 6 or 7 drops of oyl of vitriol or as much as will 
give it an acid taste rub the gums with it It will prevent
their aching if usd for a good time together once a day. It
will kill worms in the teeth. Mr. Rich Wightman.
Camomile is used with good success aft the toothach apply’d hot
in a bag to the cheek It is [ext.] agt cramps. Dr Quincy.
If you’ve a hollow tooth that aches make a pill of opiu
camphir & oyl of mace Put it into the hollow place of the 
tooth. It giveth immediate ease to the tooth & jaw. Mr Orme.
A swelling in Mrs Halfords cheek caus’d by the toothach, when
poultising & a great many oyntmts were try’d in vain, was
cured by hot verjuice done on 2 or 3 times a day.
Mrs Elizth Gee sister Boothby’s maid had an hollow tooth which 
ached & swell’d her cheek & was very painful for 2 or 3 days E. A.
cured her thus He moisten’d a little cotton with Hungary water acidulated
with oyl of vitriol & apply’d it to the aching gum & hollow tooth
at night & apply’d a plaster of Bents salve spread on leather & 
first out to go round ½ the root of the ear, to that pt of the head which
the ear covers. This cured Rachel Halford E.A.s servant having an hollow
tooth that pain’d her (when smoaking tobacco would not cure) having
Aunt Boothby’s corecloth or salve made of sevil oyl red lead & 
bees wax (without rosin) lay’d plasterwise behind the ear. you may 
try emplastru adhaesivum or diaculum cum gumi Elizth Mason’s
black salve will cure the toothach lay’d behind the ear on the same
side with the aching tooth. E. A.
Mr Ralph Wells attorny of Leicer cured himself of the
toothach & freed himself from it for many yrs & perhaps all
his life by chewing tobacco twice a week. R. W.
Pecheys herbal commends oyl of guaiacum as good for the toothach.
swelling caus’d by the toothach etc. in the cheek or neck etc. Rx a piece 
of scarlet or red cloth perhaps any cloth may do fry it in butter
& apply it as hot as you can abide it This cured Mary Taylor E. A.’s
servant of a swelling in his cheek that was not caus’d by the toothach in 
a [illegible] M.T. To give certain ears in the toothach from a collodion 
of Rxs in physic & surgery Rx French [illegible] mithridate & a few
drops of vinegar, beat em to a paste & lay a plaster of it to the 



(143
cheek bone or behind the ear; It will raise a blister, but
rarely fails to cure
To make the tooth white & to preserve the gums from the scurvy
Rx camphorated sp. v. what quantity you please acidulate it with
oil of vitriol so that you can endure it in your mouth (if you put in too
much oil it will eat your gums) when it is too sharp add more sp. v.
rub the teeth & gums 2 or 3 times in a day found out by E.D.
Toothach. Apply the harb boil’d or water or the juice
apply’d to the gums viz arsmart that hath black spots
on it Mrs Dorothy Pickern.
Toothach. Rx urine 2 spoonful and boil it in a ladle and
add pounded or grated ginger and thicken it therewith till
it is a poultis and lay it upon a linnen cloth two fingers
broad and apply under your chin from ear to ear Mr
Tho: Franks 


144)
A Rib broken.
If you happen to break a rib or ribs by any accident you 
must swaddle the self about the broken rib very strait with 
a childs swaddle-band or the like thing that will go 3 or 4  
times round the body. The breath naturally thrusts the rib
outwards & the bandage keeps the body in a narrow compass
so that the breath has less way to extend the rib. Art cannot
make any inward application to rejoyn the rib. You must spred
this plaster following upon sheeps leather & apply it before you 
use the bandage It is good for a bruise or strain & to take away
pain. Rx frankincense (hard of soft) burgundy pitch (the soft
sort) p.e. melt em in a ladle or spoon with as much oyl of turpentine
as will bring it to the consistence of a salve It is a 
good corecloth This cured Sam. Exon’s broken rib Apr. 721 
Jn Headly bricklayer of Corby, his mother broke one of her ribs by a fall she
apply’d Aunt Boothby’s corecloth spread upon sheeps leather. It is made of red
lead sevil oil rosin & bees wax vid. the [Rx]


(145
To fasten teeth mobiles dentes stabilise seltirmare
mix a little vinegar with hony cold & rub the gums often. It 
is good for em when they are bruised by a fall or blos Mrs
Basset Another suck [illegible] [illegible] thro the teeth & rub the
bums with the finger & sometimes rub the teeth with salt E.A.
A decoction to fasten loose teeth & recover decay’d
gums. Rx ½ a glass full of vinegar as much water of
[loatiscus] (i.e. mastic tree) rosemary, myrrh, mastick, boll
the moyster that stilleth out of dragons blood, roch alum
burnt each zi cinnamon zfs spring water three glassfuls
mix & let em boyl with a small fire adding to it
hony lbfs taking away the scum of it Then put to it benjamin 
a little when it has boyled a qr of an hour Rx it from
the fire keep it in a clean vial when cold & wash the
teeth often as well before meat as after & hold it awhile
in the mouth. It is very good for the head & maketh a
sweet breath. This Rx is of great excellence. S. S. [queeze]
what is the moisture of dragons blood
perhaps only dragons blood. To fasten teeth even after
they are loose by salivation. Mix Hungary water with common spring
water hold it oft in the mouth it is good after a tooth is drawn to 
heal the sore gum Mrs Ann Lathwell. another scrape some
horse radish root put it in to small beer after it has stood a little while hold
some in the mouth often ibid.
To fasten teeth & preserve the gums & to prevent & cure the toothach.
Rx the clearest pt of aqua camphorata in the mouth often apply 
it with lint to the aking tooth. There are not many things superior
to this Rx E.A.
To fasten loose teeth & kill the scurvy in the gums
Tx sage leaves & bramble (al brier) leaves each mi alum a qr of an 
ounce mastidi do boil all of em in spring water a qt strain it. Then add
claret half a pint & sweeten it with hony to the taste as soon as it is
strain’d, that the heat may dissolve the hony. This cured Mr Jn Wells of
Wandon (near Woburn) in Buckinghamshire when his teeth were very loose
& his gums eaten away with the scurvy. Mrs Margt. Muxlo.
A gargarism to cure sore mouths Rx bramble tops, leaves of columbine,
cyprus & sage each mi boyl em in water 2 qts wherein 
2 ou. make a gargarism, wherewith wash the mouth often in a day Pechey’s
Herbal. for the scurvy of the gums & teeth & to cleanse & fatten em
mornings & mix the common sp of salt with clarified hony of roses and
rub the teeth & gums. [illegible]



146)
gums scorbutic & sore. Beat borax to pouder
mix it with hony & apply it with rag to the sores 
Do it on 2 or 3 times a day. This cured Tho. Exon a boy when 
his tongue was almost eaten off Traveller & Goody Exon
another Rx southern wood chopt small bole burnt alum & hony boil
em together over a cole. Mr Coy.
x another Mrs Margt Mucloe says borax beaten to pouder & mixt with loaf
sugar in pouder because rougher than white pouder sugar is better but the last will 
do very well It is better than hony. It has cured cankers in children’s
mouths often It cured E.A.’s gums in the yr 729 better than [illegible] & oil of baye
birthwort (aristolochia) doth beautiful cleans & fasten the teeth if
they be often rub’d with the pouder thereof R.D.
another Rx agyptiacum made with verdigrease hony vinegar raw
or burnt allum according to Markham’s masterpiece E. A. [illegible] a 
little aqua camphorata [illegible] sp. v. camphorated sometimes you may 
add oil of vitriol, drop add these last liquids just as you are
more effectual than raw You m ay it sometimes try.
Mr Painter a sea surgeon Rx tinct. myrr zfs [illegible] rosai zi m.
This following is good to cure cankers & sore gums & toothach when other remedies
have failed found out by E.A. Rx verjuice abt 3 or 4 ou. a little fine
bole armonck a little raw & burnt alum & borax & myrrh all in pouder
camphor less quantity than of the rest & R. vitriol a little hony as
much as will allay its nauseousness you may add a little tincture of
myrrh & camphorated sp. of wine
Teeth to fasten & whiten Rub them with [illegible] grass [illegible]
& salt Mrs Brown of Leicer another Rx the best fine boll & burnt 
alum p.e. in fine pouder & moisten a [illegible] [flaxen] with water or the spittle & rub 
[illegible] sore mouth or gums in man or child the teeth 2 or 3 times a day Mr Coy
mix [illegible]: verdigrise in fine powder with hogs lard or fresh butter
spred it on a rag tye an other rag over it then sew it under the 
childs chin or [illegible] & ware it till well.
To fasten teeth 7 cure em of the scurvy Mrs Catherine Ossen.
Rx hony 4 ou. myrrh in pouder zii (2 d roch allum & bole each
zfs rub the teeth & gums with it & the finger often or dip a
rag in it & lay it to the tooth.
For the scurvy in the gums. Burn juniper wood to ashes
& rub the gums with em. Traveller. Toothach boyl tobacco
with some camomile flowers in water & hold a spoonfull
warm in your mouth for 2 hours then spit it out & the 
pain will abate ibid. spirit of sweet nitre a few drops 
mixt with a little spirit of wine or water stops gangrenes taken
away rotten or proud flesh & warts, heals cankers & sores in 
the mouth, legs & other parts, Salmon’s Dispensary. Dragons’ blood 
is very drying & binding It fastens loose teeth & stops the bleeding of
the gums & helps to cure the scurvy in them. Millers Herbal. To fasten teeth Rx [sal]
[illegible]
& mastick p.a. poudered apply a little of it often to teeth which are loose [illegible]
Tho. [illegible] apothecary


(147
The green sickness
Quench the fire [proker] al pur (an iron that stirs up the fire)
in a draught of small beer or ale every morning till well
this cured on that look’d like death Dr Brooks of London
& Mrs Finch. another for the green sickness or for one
that is very weak & inclining to a consumption that looks
pale or for a girl that has injur’d her constitution by 
eating freestone or coles or dry grits. Quench the iron
proker heated red hot in abt ½  pint of ale in which is 
scraped abt 2 spoonfuls of castle soap stir it abt till it
is thick like caudle. This cured Cathering Wilkins the clockmakers
daughter having had very ill health & look’d poor & sickly
for a long time before It mended her constitution & complexion
she offer’d 5 d for this Rx to a Lancashire woman that
cured her but she would not divulge it. You must take it
for nine morning successively Mrs M. another Put abt ½
a pint of smal ale or beer & ale to old rusty iron
zi or zij let it infuse 12 hours drink abt a coffee dishful 
in the morning fasting till well This in a months time 
commonly drives away paleness from the lips & cheeks & 
leaves a lively red in its room. The same iron serves all
the time approv’d by Ruth Winter & Mrs Mary Mayer my 
mother. If you think it too nauseous you may take a 
raysin of the sun or a little sugar after it, but it is better
without m. m. Another steep currans lbfs steel pouder
4 d fro the apothecaries in white wine a qt shake it 
& take 1 spoonful of all the 3 ingredients every morning
(while it lasts) fasting & drinking abt a coffee
dish full of wormwood ale after it immediately, then
walk or stir for abt ½ an hour. This cured my mother 
Mrs Mary Mayer another Rx as much flower of brimstone as
will lie on a shilling in a little treacle every morning for
9 mornings successively It will be abt a spoonful when mixt 



148)
walk or run after it. This cured Ruth Winter &
brought a fresh colour into her cheeks when the former
medicines fail’d. Mrs Finch another Rx gentian, water
trefoil, centaury, scabius sothern wood, rue, penny royal
& wormwood each mi all dry put em
in a bag in 2 qts of strong ale when that is drank add 2 qts
more to the same ingredients drink every morning
abt a qr of a pint & do at 4 o clock in the afternoon
it must infuse 2 days before you begin to drink. you must
walk after it when you begin to mend drink only in the
morning. This cured Ruth Winter a second time. Old Elizth 
Winter another Rx pilule hiera picra with agarick zfs (al 4 drams)
to which add saffron in pouder zi. Divide it into 12 pts or pills & 
take one every morning fasting &Y fast 1 hour after it using
brisk exercise to sweat a little after it for 1 or 2 hours without
observing any rules of diet or confinemt. If this dose
doth not cure repeat half the dose. This has cured hundreds 
Br S.A. another Rx steel pouder 1 d elecampane 1 d
liquorish pouder half a penny worth boll half a penny worth 
flower of brimstone ½ a pennyworth Bayberries ½ a penny 
worth treacle lbfs The six 1st ingredients must be in fine
pouder Rx the quantity of nutmeg on a knifes point fasting
in the morning successively as long as it lasts walk after it
if you are able. this cured a maid that had it 6 or 7 yrs when
confin’d to her bed & not able to go a high lone This never fail’d
Stephen Hunt. another Rx half a spoonful of filings
of steel from the smith in treacle ziiij Take it at two doses
equally divided for morning & night This cured Francis
Clark abt 30 yrs of age that could scarce go a high lone & had
been out of order for a long time Fr. Clark.
Mrs Powels Rx for the green sickness Rx tincture of steel
ziij tincture of saffron zi tincture of coral zij mix them well
together Rx 20 or 30 drops of this in a glass of w. wine night
& morning 2 or 3 days before & after the new & full of the
moon to open obstructions & cure the green sickness Mrs Caulton.
The green sickness Rx fine steel pouder 2 d flower of brimstone
2 d treacle 2 d mix em well Rx the quantity of 2 nutmegs 
every morning fasting till noon or 2 hours you must use exercise
when you take it salt of steel is better than steel pouder you 
may put in 3 d worth. Purge before you begin & after every dose 


(149
you may drink a glass of white wine when you take it
you may purge with cream of tartar or glaubers salt
or Daffy’s elixir Mrs Caulton. Green sickness Rx salt of
steel pr 6 d divide it into six pts Pound one pt every morning
fine [illegible] some pap of an apple or marmalet or any sweet meat
spred & put the salt in the inside round it up like a pill with another
clean knife Give it the maid in the morning fasting for 6 mornings
fast & use exercise after it It is nauseous if not wrapt up
clean. This was used by the daughter of Sister Boothby with success.
A maid was cured of melancholy & the green sickness by the use of this
medicine following. Rx of the conserve of balm 1 ou conserve of [buglass]
& [borage] flowers each zfs confection of [athermes] zi make an 
electuary with the syrup of the 5 opening roots; Rx the quantity of a nutmeg 
morning & evening for a month, being 1st purg’d once or twice. Pecheys
Herbal.
Let a maid that hath the green sickness hold her
head for 9 mornings over a wood vat & it will [cure] her Geo. Hill
Dyer at Hoby
Another steep stub nails in w. wine drink a glass
every morning till well Mrs Brown of Leicer
Green sickness Rx feather few mi boyl’d in ale 1 qt to a pint
take ½ a qr of a pint first & last morning & night for 7
days then intermit 3 or 4 days & take it again it is bitter
as gall put a lump of sugar in the mouth after it take 
steel powder in white or loaf sugar in the middle of
the day all the time or take feather few in pouder with 
sugar widow liquorish another For the green
sickness 7 opening of the stomach Rx w. wine 22 ats 6 branches 
of rosemary, the inner bark of hawthorn, a good mi sugar
ziv boyl em in a stone-jug stopped set it in a kettle of water 
till the 3d part be boyl’d away strain in it & drink a draught of it
every morning till you are cured. Mrs. [Hewet] E. A.’s mother
For the green sickness Rx aethiops mineralis zi in fine
powder and hony one ounce and mix them and take [illegible]
Ten spoonful at night going to bed to be continued
till well This cured Mr [Phyg???] daughter at Leicester
Directed by a London [do?ser]



150
to cure the green sickness, Take a spoonfull of
soot from the mouth of an oven or copper in a qt of a pt of
ale 9 mornings together this has cured m any Jane
Smith.








154)



(155
Vapours or hysteric fits.
Vapours are caus’d by great grief (as the loss of a
child or relation of friend) Trouble of fright, long
sickness & weakness & poverty of the blood. They 
attend marry’d women & maids & men too. They can’t
sleep, & yawn often & fancy that they shall die or
go distracted The cure Rx assafoetida a good large pill
as big as a great pea or 3 little ones in butter or the
pap of an apple or without any thing if you can swallow
them It will give you one gentle stooll Rx 3 nights
successively. They attend lying in women mostly for hysteric
fits Rx a pill of assafoetida in a little juice of rue Mrs 
Finch. Vapours sometimes cause sore eyes both which I have known
cured by bleeding in both the jugular veins at once Tho.
Holy. another Rx oyl of camphir 3 or 4 drops in a glass
of wine. Drink it & let the nostrils, temples & wrists at the
beating of the arteries be anointed with the oyl. They 
will defend you from the plague & cure vapours they
penetrate in a moment p. 133 Salmon on Bates.
another Rx 3 drops of spirit of amber in a spoonful of milk
cold at any time when you perceive the fits coming This prevented 
& cured vapours in Thos. Juice’s wife Aunt Boothby & Tho. Juice 
Dr Mead uses cassummuniar as a stomachick, as well as an hystrick
It seems to be a kind of zedoary & is of a bitterish aromatick taste.
quincy. Rectify’d oil of amber mixt with sugar than with wine from 3 to 6 
drops is admirable in hysterical distepmers. Salmon’s Family Dictionary
I have used this composition that follows, with excellent success, in women’s obstructions;
& it is , undoubtedly much better in hysterical diseases, than the [illegible]
compound water of the London Dispensatory. Take of dried briony roots,
beaten to a gross powder, two ounces of the leaves of rue & dried mugwort, each
half a pound; sabino dried, three quarters of an handful; of feather few [illegible]
& penny-royal, dried each half a handful; of the fresh yellow pill of one
orange; of mirrh half an ounce of castor two drams, of the best [nauts] brandy
one quart; put them into a glass, & let them infuse six days in warm washes; then
steam the liquor off & keep it in a glass-bottle; well stopped. The dose is half a 
spoonful to be taken in three ounces of penny-royal water, sweetned with sugar,
morning and evening.



156)
A speedy safe & effectual cure for vapours in women
from [Grubstreet] Journal. My wife after here second 
lying in, was suddenly seized with a lowness of spirits giddiness
in her head, & a defective memory; & I could hear nothing
from morning to night but a repetition of her miseries.
I tried the effect of medicines, but to no purpose. At last she was
ordered by a friend who personated a physician, never to drink
any thing stronger than small-beer; never to go abroad but to 
church; & to be sure to work some hours every day. By this
means she is recover’d & is now as well as any woman in 
the parish.











(157



158



(159
medicines for the eyes given me by the Rd
Mr Isaac Taylor second schoolmaster
at Bosworth in Leicershire
Rx herb chelidon maj. absinth. virid. heder. terrestris an.
mfs stercoris albi gallina pulv. zifs albi ovi optime con
quassati q.s. m. auxilio est suffisionibus & sugillationibus oculoru 
a contusione ortis.
Rx Pomorum dulc. putrid. zi micae panis in lacte coctae
mucilag. sem. psyllij aqu. papav. extract. an zi unguent. tutia
ziij croc [illegible] fs camph. gr. 5. ol. absint. chym. gut. 2as m.
in oculorum inflamattione dolorifica.
Colyrium album. Rx camph gr. 12 [trich] albi rhaph zij aq.
ros. alb. aq: euphr an. ziiij infunde & cola. oculorum inflammationis
rubori, & dolori modetur usurpetar exteriae 
collendo & guttatim instillando singulis matutinis idq ad plusculos
dies. Colyrium armoniacum. Rx calcis limo=pidae zij sac.
saaturni [illegible] fs sal. armon. crudi gr. 6 m. ad acres humorum
fluxiones sistendas; ad rubores & dolores tollendos.
Colyrium saturninu. Rx sac: saturni gr. 8. aquae rosar. alb.
zi. m. maximi refrigerat. colyrium de succis. Rx vitriol
alb. gr. 8. succi cheledon. maj: succ. fanicu. an zfs mel.
zi [illegible] & despuma. praeclaire detergit nebulas sollit; dolere 
aerem, sed cita cessurum excitat. gutta una pro vice instillanda
sufficiat. Diu potest asservari. colyrium vitriolicum. Rx
vitriol. alb. gr. 4. aqua sperm. ranar zi m. refrigerate, siccat,
detergit efficax est ad ophthalmiam, [essiphora] ulcera.
emplastru de majorana Rx pic. burgund. zfs. pul. majoran. zfs
euphorb. gr 5. m. ad catarrhum, dentalgiam, uvula inflammationem,
ophthalmia & cephalagiam. applicatur nucha ve pone
aures. unguentum ophthalmicum. Rx ung. [illegible] zfs boli, lap.
cataminaris an. [illegible] i camph. [illegible] fs ol. rosaru q. s. m. emplastra ophth.
Rx farinae hordei zij croc. zij aq. rosar. & vitelli ove q.s. f. empl. oculo
placide superponendum.


160)
Emplastra ophthalmica
Rx farina hordei zij thur. & olibani an. zfs f empl. pro 
oculis. alisa. Rx medulla panis alb. zi made fiat in aq.
rosarum quibus adde pomorum dulcium zij lact. muliebr.
q. s. f. empl. pro oculis.
Emplastrum [repellens] pro oculis
Rx empl. diapal. zi ol. myrt. zfs acoti zfs. pulv. bol. opt.
zi sang. dracon [illegible] i lap. hamatit zfs. m. coque ad consumtionem
aceti f. empl. addenda ol. myrtillor q.v.
Pulvis ophthalmicus bat.
Rx sumitat. euphrag. ziij sem. faenicul. com zij sem. rut.
zfs mac zij sacch. opth zvi f. pulvis s.a. coch. sum.
ter in die
Frontale fulleri
Rx pulv. mastiches thuris an zij creta, farina fabar. an.
zfs alb. ovi conquass. ol. ros. an zvi. aceti q. s. m. in emplastri
formam. aadhibetur in affectibus oculoru rheumaticis,
idq3 tum praeservationis, tum curationis ergo.
aqua ophthalmica botiana.
Fit [illegible] aqua [e] gum. guiac. (quae fit
nobile colyrium
Rx pomphlogigos zij super lamina ferri novies secandescant
toties qz sesquilibra vini malvatici extinguantur deinde in 
pollinem lavigentur cum ol. mac. misceantur. [cribrab?] tragiciantur,
posthac vitro exceptae ac dicto vino affuso macerentur
sole donae flavescant do instar auri oculis auriliatur inflammatis,
maculas, unguem sigillatione, cicatricos, albugines,
pustulas plagas be abigit.
Pro oculis siccitate laborantibus.
Rx rutae pugil. I fanicu. fusci mi. floru rosimar. botanicae, euphrag.
an. mi mel. q. s. f. elect. a cuspide [cult??] deglutiondum



(161
Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain & blew chamadrys (i.e. Germander)
each ziiij smallage parsly seeds, penny royal, hysop, saxifrage,
juniper berries each zi [stavesaire] seeds zij beat em
small, with hony or sugar make a confection to be used morning & 
evening & you shall see wonders.
Diet drinks
Rx quick lime libj put it into spring water a gallon, let it
stand all night the next morn pour off the clear & strain it
thro a fine cloth then put it into a pot & add to it hartshorn
& ivory shavings, sassafras & red saunders each zi fennel seeds
& gromil (al gromwel) seeds each zfs liquorish bruis’d, juniper 
berries bruis’d each zfs boyl all these in the lime water
till one quart is wasted & at latter and put in 300 mellipedes
(al. sows) let it boyl a little then strain it & put it into bottles.
Drink of it twice a day viz in the morning & at 4 in the 
afternoon.
Rx srasaparil. ziij Chinae, lign. [lentife]. an zi ras. CC. ebor.
an. zfs summit, foenic. euphrag. an mi. fol. rorismar. Beton.
an. pug. ij sem foenicul. coriand & baccar juniperi an. zfs.
glyciriz zifs. infund. in aqua fontan. lb 20 per horas sex loco
calido coquatur ad 3tie partis consumtionem, ad finem decoct.
adde millepodu no. 200 coletur pro usu.
Rx mucigines sem. psyllij & cidonioru extract. in aqua plantaginis
vel rosar. cujus [q?] zij lac. muliebr. zi. trachisc. alb. rhasis [illegible] o m.
Rx Trochise alb. rhasis, sacchar.  saturni, sacchar. Landi alb. an.
[illegible] i vitriol. rom. gr. iij aq. plantag. zvi. m. addi possunt coral.
rub croci vel aloes pro re nata.
For sore eyes, gangrenes, fistulas, ulcers of all sorts,
pearls films, webs, blood-shot eyes, blear eyes etc.
This is mostly used by Mr Taylor being a pale blew al.
of a pearl colour. Rx smiths water 1 qt lime unguento
ziiij let em stand 14 hours stirring em often. Cast off the
water gently from the lime put it into a brass or 


162)
or copper vessel adding sal armoniac ziij Let it
stand till it has acquired a true blew tincture then add
camphir zfs.
Pulvis cibarius in omnibus oculorum morbis
utendus.
Rx summitatu thymi vel rosimarini, euphraginis an.
ziij. sem faeniculi, cinamom. mac. an. zi m. f. pulvis.
adde salis purissimi (vel potius salis gemmae) zviii This
is to be used with all food. It admirably sharpens & preserves
the sight & prevails against suffusions of the
eyes, darkness, hurts of the memory etc.
A pouder for the eyes
Rx dulcify’d vitriol zfs prepar’d [paty] 15 gr sugar candy [illegible] i
make a fine pouder
Cerevisia oxydorica a drink to quicken the sight
Rx rue,s age, vervain, eye bright each mi live [sows] 400,
sweet fennel seeds zi raisins ston’d lbfs rosemary flowers
fresh gather’d mi spiknard ziij yellow of lemon & orange 
flowers each zi. Put em all into a bag for 4 gallons of
new ale. It is to be taken for ordinary drink for dimness
of sight. when you drink it put into each draught 20 drops 
of sp. of sal armoniac. Let the use of it be continued for
3 or 4 whole months or longer for a lesser time will do but
little good. outwardly let the eyes be bath’d with qn. of Hungary
water or wash the eyes themselves 3 or 4 times a day with 
a proper water mixt with an equal quantity of sp. of wine, or 
with this colyrium following Rx white wine lbi camphir
zi rosemary [tops] & eyebright each half a pugil; put em into 
a clean basin of brass or pewter then heat 5 or 6 stones of lapis calaminaris red
hot & twice quench em in the wine etc. If you quench em 6 or 
7 times as Mr Taylors Rx directs they will drink up all the wine
It is admirable for rheum, water, heat, cold, film, fistula,
pearl blindness, dimness etc. This water is much commended
by Mr Taylor. I found it dry’d my eyes very much but I happen’d
to quench a bit of brick in’t instead of lap. calam. by a mistake.



(163
Pilulae de lawne seu pilula ex duobus
Rx colocynth pulveriz. zifs scam [p?p.] ij pilul. coch.
majoris & aggregativae an. zifs ol. cariophil. chym. zifs
m. f. pil. catholic.
Rx hujus pil. cathol. zifs cochiae majoris & aggregativae an. ziij
m. f. pil. cephalica. Dosis a gr. 15 ad [illegible] i vel gr. 25.
[illegible] The first pills are compos’d of pilulae ex duobus They 
must be always given before you undertake to cure sore
eyes It is an exct. head pill & good for the scurvy (& to sweeten
the blood) dropsy, gout, & French pox vid. Salmon’s Disp
They are a universal purge to be used where ever purging 
is necessary. Take em spring & fall to keep you in health.
The second pills are more exct. for the head.
Pilulae. Rx massae pilularu de hiera cum agarico [illegible] fs pil.
luis [illegible] i diagridij gr. ij syr. staechados & euphragiae q. s.
f. p. no. 6. Rx pil. ex duobus a [illegible] i ad zfs. calameli
[illegible] i m. f. p. no quatuor. alias Rx pil. e duobus a
gr. 15 ad [illegible] I vel zfs. alias. Rx scamon. select. pulp.
colocinth. subt. pulv. an. zi f pil. cum l. q. syr. straechados
dos a [illegible] i ad zfs vel [illegible] zij mane.
Pro vulneribus ocuorum
Rx myrrhae, sarcocol. dissolut. in lacte mulebr. an. [illegible] fs
tutiae pp. [illegible] i mellis rosaru paru, cum modica quantitate
album. ov. & aq. rosar. f. linimentu. alisa. sanguis columbae 
ex ala extract. adhuc calens instilletur. vel medulla
panis torefacta & fina rubra infecta applicetur.
Dip a linnen cloth in the warm blood of a pidgeon 
& apply it to the eye & if you instill a drop into it, 
it will not be amiss. If the eye is black & blew by 
an external accident. Chew cummin seeds, fennel seeds
or cloves & the breathing on the eye is exct. or a fomentation
of wine in which hysop has been boyled is very 
successful. or bath the eye with Hungary water. If dust
or any thing hurtfull is got into the eye it is clear’d by blowing 


164)
or sparting in rosewater.
If the eyelids are glew’d together separate em with 
butter, beer or cream by wiping em gently.
The seeds of clary put into the eyes take away motes.
Boyl a bunch of hysop in water or red wine & apply it
to the eye is very good for a bruise on the eye & blooding
immediately is good for a bruise.
A spot in the eye. Rx rosewater q.f. put into it so
much sal armoniac as will make it a little smite the 
tongue, keep it 2 or 3 days in a copper vessel till it has
acquired a true blew tincture Pone aures sanguisugae.
Fontanellae scapulares. emplastru suppedale de pice alba
adversus humorus [defusion??] fumus nicotiana cum 
succino & sem. anisi vel coriandri pulverisati cum mediocri
quant. botanicae ad visus praeservationem. Rx sal.
gem zij in aqua flor. rorismarin. zi dissolut. & recte
philtrat. De catarrho. post strenue per plures dies
expurgatu cerebru, Rx ficunum ping. fermenti aeris an.
lbfs sem. viticis & nasturtij contus an. zi. sem. sinap.
contus. zij empl. de mucilagin. ziiij malaxentur & incorporentur
addendo ol. lauri q.s. formetur emplastru [illegible]
super alutam quod toti capiti impernatur & quotidie marie
renovetur. Hoc omniu capitis humorem eliciet quod [neq?]
cantharides occipitio admatae, [neq?] ulcus sincipiti & commisuorae
cauterio inductum, [neq?] secta in fronte vena affecerit
Rx cortic. pistach. sicciss. zifx. part. lignos. nuc
pineae, cortic. guaiac. ligni junip. vel cedr. lign. aloes vel
sassafr. lign. rhodij cortic. wintera. nuc morschat. cinamom.
an. zifs tabac. a ziiij ad 5, 6, 7 zi. m.
Colyrium
Rx gum tragacanth. zij mucilagi. sem psyllij ziij aq. [rosar??]
& plantaginis an q. s. f. colyrium madido [q?] linteo externe
occludantur oculi.


(165
Electuraria
[illegible] Rx fennel seeds, silver mountain, blew chamedrys,
each ziiij smallage, parsly seeds, penny-royal, hysop,
saxifrage, juniper berries each zi seeds of slaves
acere zij. Beat em small with hony or sugar, make a
confection to be taken morning & evening miranda
videbis.
Another for weakness & dimness of sight Rx fennel seeds
libfs mountain withy lbfs germander zfs celandrine roots
zv aniseeds, smallage, parsly an. zifs pennyroyal, hysop,
flowers of borage & rosemary, juniper berries,
saxifrage an. zifs leaves of betony, rue, eyebright
each mj with clarified honey make an electuary. Dose
zfs mane. Pulvis sternutatorius Rx marjora.
Rorismar. beton. flor. lit. conval. an ziij n. mosc. zij
sal. armoniac. volat. [illegible] i m. f. pulvis. sub t.
masticatoria
Rx mastich. ziij pureth. staphisag. an zij. rad. angel. zfs.
cubeb nuc. m. an zi euphorb. [illegible] fs cera q.s. f. [illegible] ex qua
fiant masticatoria. pulvis cibarius Rx sum. euphrag.
ziij sem. taenicu. cinnam. mac. an zi f. pulvis adde sal
alb. zviii. m. sumatur cum omni cibo.
Dr Atwood Rx ras. guiac sassapt an. zij. cort. interni
jugland. zi coque in cerevis. neu. mediocris cong. 6 ad
4. dein suspend. sequent. Rx herb. marjoran. beton.
euphras. geran. rob. an miiij rad. paeon. majoris lbfs.
raphan. sulv. angelica an zij sumitat. rutae, flor. staecad.
rorismar. an. mij cardamom. bac. junip. an zijfs. m.
praep. sac. S. A. 


166)
Eye-water of salt armoniac cures most distemper
of the eyes, as the pin & web, pearl, film & dimness
of sight, ulcers of the eyes, cancers & burns p. 363 Salmons
Disp. Eye water of crocus metaloru p. 320 ibid.
Eye water of succory cures all diseases of the eyes as pin & web,
mists, suffusion (suffusio i.e. a pin or web in the eye) pearls, inflammations,
redness, bloodshot etc. p. 120 ibid. aqua ophthalmica Salmonis
cures all manner of eyes that are sore fore which it is to be esteemed as
a jewel p. (720) 271 ibid. Balsamu mirabile curat omnes oculorum 
morbor, tertio quoque die guttam i. instillando p. 5. Fullers Disp.
A poultace for the eyes when inflam’d red & swell’d to cool’
& give ease & cure Rx white bread a slice put it into new
milk boyl’d with rose leaves or rose cake & bind it to the
eyes with a linnen cloth lying on your back in bed. [illegible]
another Toast white bread crusts & boyl em in new milk
& apply it with a cloth as hot as you can endure it lying
on your back. This cure done of Cosby. Tho. Hely.


(167



168)



(169
for sore rheumatick eyes
Rx white copperas the quantity of a hazelnut, loaf
sugar & white sugar candy each twice as much spring
water a pint set em in a window where the sun shines
hot to dissolve & incorporate em Wm Coltman the
farrier commends this above all ocular medicines. It
cured his eye that had been long sore by a spark of fire
at first falling into’t [illegible] Lay tacamahac, a gum to 
the temples it will repel defluxions upon the eyes & 
strengthen the sight Mrs M. Mrs Hurst in the forest having
very sore red eyes catching cold at her lying in was thus
cur’d in a little time by E.A. she wash’d her eyes with the copperas
water according to the 1st rt of this page dipping a sparrows
or starlings or any small birds feather therein then she had a 
drying plaster made of the white of one egg & hony verdigrise
& burnt allum each as much as will lie on a [gr?at] in fine
pouder [illegible] bole as much as will discolour it pretty red & wheat
flower as much as will bring it to the consistency of a 
plaster spread it upon allum’d leather let it be sew’d on with 
a cloth for 3 or 4 days. apply to each temple emplastru
de minio & when you take off the 1st wrist plaster apply empl.
de minio to the wrist. One wrist at a time is enough to plaster
E. A. To strengthen the sight & dry up a rheum. Rx [putty] in 
fine pouder 1 d eye bright water & white rose water each 1 d 
double refin’d sugar in fine pouder abt the quantity of a small 
wallnut. shake em & let em stand a little after shaking then
put in a feather & draw it along the eyelashes morning & 
night. Do not put any into the eye with the feather by opening the eyes but only [illegible]
works in between the eyelashes. James Leppington of the
root of elecampane is made a kind of wine which sharpeneth 
the light p. 73. The Haven of Health. Ginger strengthens the
brain & clears the sight Salmons Family Dictionary. For rheums & inflammations
of the eyes. Blister the calves of the legs 1st one calf
then the other & make an issue in one leg Dr H. White of Ashby.


170)
for red sore eyes Rx camphir & borax each zi white
sugar candy zv white vitriol [illegible] i pouder them fine & mingle by
degrees with half a pint of sweet fennel water Jn Pocheys Disp.
for a rheum or redness in the eyes & to take off a pearl strengthen & 
clear the sight. Rx red rose water plantane water each zij
white wine zi [tutty] prepar’d zi white sugar candy zij
best aloes [illegible] ij (i.e. 2 scruples) shake em together & wash the
eyes oft with it. Mrs. Elizth Adderly told E.A. this as a great
secret & to be kept as a jewel. Mrs A. This is an exct. Rx which
you may find in Hartman’s Family Physician p. 73
For the inflammation of the eyes vid Dr Sydenham in 
Practice of Physick lib. 2. cap. 2 when bleeding & purging
how often soever repeated, are still found to be unprofitable,
in this case a resting draught of an ounce of 
syrup of poppies given every night compleats the 
cure with out the help of any other medicines. some
times vomiting will cure inflam’d eyes sometimes washing
the eyes with only common brandy unmixt will stop
the flux of rheum & cure em ibid. pilula lucis majores 
[illegible] quickening the eye sight the greater vid. p. 691 Salmon’s Dispensatory
Mr Grant the London oculist gives pills made of
camphir to be taken daily for a long time to remove humours
from the head offending the optic nerves, which purge little or
not at all. They cured Mr Jo. Simpkin of Little Glen.
Salmon’s family pills clear the sight vid p. 702 Salmon’s Disp
Pilula camphorata or camphir pills viz Rx liquorish pouder sugar & camphir
each two scruples pulverize em & with Venice turpentine make em into pills vid.
Fullers Dispensatory.
To heal the sight of the eye when wounded & lost. moisten a little feather
in oyl of paper & put it under the lower eyelid Mrs Finch.
when the sight or eye is too dry eat keen mustard with apple sauce or
any thing else till the eyes weep. E. A.
An exct eye water communicated to Mr James Cooke surgeon 
of Warwick by Dr Willis. Rx camph. zi incis. [illegible] pon. in
vas. claus. cum succ. limon. stent simul per noct. mane pon omn.
in phlegm. vitriol lbfs in vitr. bene claus. pro usu. when ‘tis
us’d, strain it out, put some in a spoon & warm it dip the finger or
a linnen cloth in it & with it wet the eye, eyelid & temples a pretty 


(171
while night & morning. ‘Tis also good in burns.
p. 616. Cooks Marrow of Chirurgery. An ext pultis for
any contusion abt the eye oft prov’d. Rx the white of an
egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue, stript &
beaten like a conserve; mix em together & apply it on
flax. ibid. The distill’d water of meadow sweet flowers al. qn of the meadow
(culmaria, regina prati, barba capri) helps burning & itching
of the eyes & clears the sight. Salmons Disp. for rheumatic red
eyes dissolve some allum in spring water to that it may taste
pretty strong of the allu & tart moisten a clean rag therein
& squeeze it so that no water may drain from it into the eye
& lay it on the eye all night & lie down in the day 2 or 3  
times till the cloth is dry. An aleman in Shoreditch & Mrs Finch
a gallant pultis for any contusion abt the eye, oft proved.
Rx the white of an egg & beat it to an oyl; then take green rue,
stript & beaten like a conserve; mix em & apply it on flax.
p. 610. Cook’s Marrow of Physick. The best smoke to clear
the eyes Rx lignum aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber
each zi cut betony zfs rosemary flower or rosemaryu
itself a qr of an ounce & as much tobacco as R. flowers
mix em. Rx it in a pipe when you go to bed or as often
as you please. This is exct to cure coughs, rheums & 
to free the head from any pains Sister H. Ashby brought this
Rx fro the Bath H. A. Hungary water outwardly inwardly taken is
good agt palsies, cramps, convulsions, the falling sickness
vertigo or megrim, lethargy & headach & dimness of sight,
cloudiness of eyes & even blindness itself, where it
proceeds from an inward cause, nor do I believe there is
any better specific in the world agt weakness of the sight
hurts of the optick nerves & palsies, than this water is, but
it ought to be taken every day abt a spoonful at a time
in a glass or pure ale or wine or some other convenient
vehicle, as black cherry water aqua lactis etc. for a qr of
a yr together or more, yea half a yr if need requires p. 16.
Salmon’s Observations on Bates’s Dispensatory.


172)
A pearl in a mans eye. Rx bole, burnt allum,
live hony & sweet hemlock (al. keck or celary) stamp
the hemlock & mix the other ingredients therewith & bind it
to the contrary wrist. Let it lie on 24 hours then remove it till’
the pearl is gs Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713one. Twice or thrice renewing cures. Mrs Leddy
Gilson. Eye sore with a fistula. apply bay salt in a [row]
of flax to the soles of the feet to be worn night & day. Let
conserve of red roses be lay’d to the outside of the eye moisten’d
with plantane water Let the eye be wash’d with clear water made of
green hazel nuts distill’d when you can thrust a pin thro em wear 
bay salt for 3 weeks changing it once a week for fresh. Cos. Elizth 
[Bale] try’d this without a perfect cure. E. Bale. Eilzth White
of Enderby had sad red swell’s sore eyes with a pearl the
small pox made ‘em sore for a yr before she was cured
with this Rx following by E.A. in the yr 1713. Rx camphir,
R. vitriol burnt, white copperas, loaf sugar juice of lemmon
& water boyl em & set em in an oven in a glass bottle
when you bake They will [mother] tho they are boyl’d therefore 
try baking. They are best fresh made moisten the eyelids with 
the middle finger thrice twice or or once a day till the eyes mend
It cools & refreshes em. Disguise em with a very little alkanet
or red sanders E. A. stir this water every day will prevent moulding 
another set a leach to the broad pt of one of the nostrils within 
or without, intermit 6 or 7 days & set another leach to 
the other nostril. This bleeding draws a humour from the eyes
as well as most medicines, if not better E. A.
another The distill’d water of white roses is exct
in ophthalmia’s, to cool the eye, comfort & clear the sight.
Salmon’s Dispensatory. Rheumatick eyes. mix bole & 
the white of an egg & bind it to both the wrists spred on 
allum’d leather Renew it once in 24 hours. W. P. another [illegible]
Grey of Enderby had vapours which made her eyes very sore sometimes
they were so dizzy that she was ready to fall down. She was
cured by Tho. Hely bleeding in both jugular veins at once.
The veins are on each side of the neck not under or near the throat
a fillet was ty’d round her neck to make the veins rise, pretty straight.
then a little linnen rag was dipt in cold water & bound to each orifice
with a fillet at night it was taken away & a diaculu plast. apply’d 


(173
she was the next day purg’d with pills made of the best
aloes no 3 as big as a small white pea. Her eyes continued
very well after this except when she caught cold they would
water E. A. 
Anne Baker wbt 60 yrs old widow of Balson in Leicershire having very 
red rheumatic sore eyes of abt a month or 2 standing
was blistering on the wrists, leaching at the temples, & a great many eye water 
viz Mrs Fountains that cured sister B. 
& E. A.’s that cured Elizth White & ophtalmick plasters would 
do not good was at least cured thus. Rx hony the clearest
one drop white sugar candy in very fine pouder a little mix
& put it in with a feather new mixt twice a day. This was 
taught her by a poor woman of Balson. It clear’d & strengthen’d
her eyes. It smarts pretty much at 1st dressing She took 
this purge prescrib’d by Tho. Hely farrier, once a week. Rx
sena zfs. manna zi boyl the sena in abt ½ a pint of water 
with raysins of the sun no 20 stoned when it is abt ½ wasted 
add the manna then strain it the manna being dissolv’d & drink
it in the morning fasting. make oatmeal caudle thus & 
drink it as it purges Boyl water & oat meal then add ale & 
rosemary let it boyl, take it off & sweeten it with sugar 
Pilulae [sureae] Purge & cleanse the head & brain, quicken the
senses, clear the eye sight Salmons Disp. pilula de aloe lota or
aloe rosata. Purge both brain, stomach, bowels & eyes of
putrified humours & strengthens em. Culpepers disp. another
purge for rheumatic eyes. Rx of Dr Lowers paste sold at Mr
Smalley’s in Leicer.


174)
Tincture of olibarnum dropt into the eyes mixt
with a 3rd pt of rose water stops rheums, strengthens
em & takes away clouds & bloodshot. Take poppy water 
ziiij syrup of red poppies zfs tincture of olibanu zifs 
mix for a dose to be taken inwardly agt catarrhs & 
violent fluxes of rheum from the head upon the eyes,
teeth, brest, lungs etc. Salmon in Pharmacopoeia Bateana.
p. 310. Richd Hovy of Blaby having lost his stomach & having 
a dizziness in his head his eyes grow so dim that he could
scarce see E. A. order’d him a vomit of carduus posset drink 
which clear’d his stomach & retriev’d his sight E. A. Mrs Davenport
of Wigson Magna cured a woman of cloudy dark blood
shot eyes by only blowing several times a little liquorish 
pouder from a quill into the eyes Wm [Toalby].
Samuel Leapthrough a stockiner of Blaby had rheumatick red sore
eyes which was thus cured in abt a weeks time. Rx water from a 
spring call’d St Austin’s well (near Mr Watt’s’ house between his
house & Leicer on the left hand near the brook as you go fro
Leicer to Mr Watts’s new house) a qr of a pint, allum the quantity
of a pea (either in pouder or whole) or as much as when dissolv’d
will give the water a weak or little taste of the allum hony abt
as much more as the allum or as much as will scarce give it 
any taste of the hony mix em all cold, but when you use em
which may be 3 or 4 times in a day pour a little into a spoon
(a silver spoon is best but a pewter one will do very well) & 
hold it to the fire to warm it dip a linnen rag in it & apply 
it to the eye lids, being shut, as hot as you can abide it
you may put some into the eye if you will or dress the eye lid
with your finger moisten’d therein cold & it will do good. E. A.
another for rheumatick red sore eyes & to take off gum & to 
strengthen the sight. Boiyl fennel a good handful in a zt of
spring water till it is wasted to a pint. moisten a rag or the finger 
therewith cold & rub it on the eye lids & temples &let some go in
to the eye the oftener you do it the better W. P. says this is the best
eye water he ever try’d W. P. Juice of celandine strain’d thru
a cloth & a drop dropt into the eye every night eat off a [kell]
from the Bradsworth’s eye at the swan in Lecier T. A. another
to eat of a pearl or kell beat crow stone to fine pouder & sift it
blow a little thro a quill or mixt with hony it do. Wm Simon of Wigson



(175
Dimness of sight. The Lady Curzon & sister
Boothby Rx millepedes abt 60 a few raisins of the
sun slit & ston’d, a few red sage leaves Put em into
a tea pot & pour abt a pint of scalding hot spring
water upon em. Let it infuse a qr of an hour before
you take it & drink a coffee dishfull 2 or 3 times a
day To make very good smoke to preserve the
eyes & good agt The apoplexy Mrs Winstanley & 
Sister Boothby. This cured one that had weak eyes to that
he could read a small print at 80 without spectacles.
Rx wood aloes, storax, sassafras bark, amber each zij
betony leaves & rosemary flowers each zi Tobacco
zifs (they that are us’d to take tobacco may put in ziij)
beat & slit the drugs very small & cut the rosemary flowers
& betony leaves very small mix em all together Take
a pipe as often as you please It will make you spit
cold flegm from the stomach. Rheumatic sore eyes
moisten the eyelids with the finger wetted with spittle when
you smoke tobacco, Mrs Elizth Halford To take the pain 
away from an eye Rx liquor laudanu, conserve of red roses
& pomatum mix & anoint the outside of the eyelids Mrs
Fountain This [illegible] & sister Boothby. Elizth Felton of Enderby took
off a pearl from her eye by droping live hony 3 or 4 times
in a day into it. a wter for the eyes second to none Rx waters
of fennel & eye bright, each a pint, common salt zvi
prepar’d tutty, white vitriol each zfs let them boil a little
& reserve for use p. 139 The saurus chirurgia by Paul Barbette & Raymundus Mindorus
a Dutchman. a pouder to eat off a pearl Rx dulcified vitriol
zfs prepar’d tutty 15 gr. sugar candy a scruple make it into
a fine pouder & blow a little fro a quill into the eye once a day
ibid. an anodine cataplasm Rx camomile & melilot flowers
each a pugil, rotten apples zij fenugreek seed zi crums of
brown [illegible] bread ziij 2 yolks of eggs, saffron zfs boil em in 
cows milk to the consistence of a poultice another which I’ve oft
found exct in the greatest pain r4x gum tragacanth zij [mussilage]
of the seeds of [???wort] ziiij resoewater & planate water each 


176)
is much as [sufficeth] make it into a collyrium of
an indifferent consistence. let it be instill’d by drops
into the eyes & linnen cloaths wet in it outwardly apply’d
ibid medicines good for the eyes Roots of valerian,
Solomons seal, [or??ie], vervain; herbs, betony, celandine
the great, eye bright, fennel, fumitory, plantan;
flowers of roses, violets; aniseeds, quince seeds, linseeds
pippins boil’d or rotten; camphire, mussilage of linseed 
tragacanth; fresh veal; white of eggs; all sorts of milk 
especially womans; tutty, white & green vitriol; saccharu
saturni; glass of antimony; white troches of rhasis, fresh 
cheese not salted; ung. saturni ibid.
To strengthen the sight. Savid Lane the rasor grinder of
Wistons Spreds a plaster de minio on allum’d leather the
breadth of a man’s hand & lays it on the nape of his
neck a little above his moulders which so strengthens his eyes
that being near 60 he can see to make grind & set rasers & lancets
etc. without spectacles. D. L. another to comfort the eyes Rx sp. v.
3 pts liquid laudanu 1 pt moisten the lids E A.
another Beat the white of an egg & moisten the 
outside of the eye lids therewith it cools & takes away 
an inflamation & strengthens & refreshes the
eye E. A. To take the pain from a sore eye. moisten
conserve of red roses with white or red rose water
& when you are in bed at night cover the eye being shut
with it & bind a cloth on it wipe it off in the morning with
a cloth Repeat it night after night till the pai ceases.
Sister Ekins. a man of Leicer with only blew bottle water 
cured very sore eyes. You may buy it at the apothecaries.
Goody Simons. Dr Pechy says the flowers & the distill’d water
are good for the inflammation of the eyes & the [blearedness] 
of them.
Smoke for the eyes. Take betony colts foot, rosemary
flowers, lavender tops, and sage p. a. cut
small and add thereto tobacco 3 pts to one pt of
the flower Richd Smith esqr of Enderby


(177
To clear an eye Dissolve a little sugar candy 
(white I believe is best but try brown too) in rose water
It will clear an eye sometimes but not always mother
Hewet. mix rose water with white copperas water it
allays its sharpness Sister Ekins & sometimes add a little
while sugar candy or brown to discolour it E. A.
Jonathan Ison wheelwright of [Ansty] had a sore eye with a
great pearl on’t He could not open it & when open’d it lookd
red & inflamd June 1715. IT was thus cured. IT was dresst with 
Mrs Adderly’s eye water to take away the pain. Emplastru de 
minio was apply’d to his back. He washed the eye lid with water
fro St. Austin’s well at Leicer in which hony & allu was dissolv’d
It mended but slowly. Padmore’s charge with cantharides was 
apply’d to his cheek which made it [illegible] well as soon as it swell’d & his
cheek pain’d him very much it [illegible] was remov’d to behind the ear on 
the same side which made a very sore place, drew the humour fro
the eye & did more good than any thing try’d before empl. de
minio was apply’d to heal it. Then cuttle bone in fine pouder 1 
grain was blown into the eye fro a quill 3 or 4 drops intermitted & 
1 gr. more was blow which took off the pearl & cured the eye
copperas water did little or no good but w. copperas water & rose 
water mixt gave Ese. So did sp. v. 3 pts & liquid laudanu 1 pt 
apply’d to the eye lids with the finger liquid laudanu pomatum
& conserve of red roses was bound to his eye at 1st a nights
which gave it ease. He drank whey & roses i.e. infus’d or boyl’d
in the whey which coold & gently purg’d E. A.
Francis Gregory’s sore eyes were cured by white copperas
water & red or white rose water p. e. apply’d to the eyelids by 
the finger E. A.


178)
Mr Tyrvingham Stephens’s eye water
of Leicer
Rx Rhenish wine a pint or for want thereof the best
white wine, put it into an earthen pot Rx a piece of 
lapis calaminaris as big as large walnut, heat it
red hot in a clear red cole fire (smoke will spoil it)
& quench it nine times, covering the pot with a 
plate or board to keep the steam in every time after
it is quench’d. Let it stand till it is quite cold. If you
have quench’d it 9 times over night let it stand till
next morning then filtrate it thro a new white
flannel bag made with a point like a tongue The
flannel wash’d & dry’d will serve a long tie.
one stone will serve twice i. e. to be quench’d twice
nine times or for 2 pints when it is filtrated bottle it
& keep it close stopt It is the keenest & sharpest at 
1st when new made. How to use it. you must
shake the bottle first always before you use it
you must keep a little in a little viol always for
present use moisten the finger with it viz apply 
the end of the fourth finger to the mouth of the 
viol & shake it then stroke that finger agt both eye 
lids shut but so that a little may go in at the corner
of the eye or dip a sparrow or a little birds
feather taken from the wing into the water then 
pull down the lower eyelid & put the end of 
the feather under it Dress it night & morning
a little before bedtime is reckon’d the best time
Mrs Jane Stephens al floxon.
A pearl in the eye Rx gill & pearlwort pound em with bole in 
pouder & hony. Pound the herbs every night fresh for 3 nights
successively to the wrist on the contrary side This cured Elizth Tafte a woman of Armsby.


(179
Eyes too dry. Drink tea made with hot water
put to sage, tyme, rosemary or any one of em with
abt ½ a lemmon cut into slices with the peel E. A. 
Eyes sored & red & to dry up a rheum. Rx gill & ivy leaves
woodbine leaves each mi. white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in pouder
spring water a qt boyl em all together till it is consum’d to a
pint. strain it & pour a little into the ball of the hand cold & 
with a clean finger moisten the eyelashes letting a little go into the
eye just when you are going into bed. Dress it every night till the
eyes are well. This cured a mai that had sore eyes 7 yrs after the 
measels that water’d & ran down her cheeks almost constantly & 
had try’d a great many things in vain to cure em Jn Grovecock’s
wife of Cosby. It makes the eyes smart ibid. you may add white
sugar candy zij E.A. This will cure a thick red eye Mrs French.
To eat off a kell or pearl or to dry up a rheum in the eye
of child, man or beast or to cure a trample on the heel 
or a crack in the thrush. Rx the best roch allum the biggest
lumps are best Burn it in a clean fire shovel or iron ladle
till all the moisture is quite dry’d up when it is cold pound it in
a mortar & sift it thro a lawn sive keep it always dry near
the fire in a chimney because moisture weakens its vertue & 
drying quality or you may carry a little in a paper or box always
in the pocket. Take a small quantity abt as much as will lie
on a silver half penny or penny & lay it upon a pen knife point
drop it into the eye it is better then blowing (for that makes a great [illegible]
flie away & be lost & is a greater surprize & uneasiness to the patient
the pouder beating agt the eye) you must drop it abt an hour before
the child goes to bed & tie his hands behind him ½ n hour
as soon as it is dropt in let man or woman lay the ball of their
hand upon the eyelid & hold it on for ½ an hour. Begin with a smal
quantity & augmt a little gradually in the dressings. Dress it once
a day. Put in the same quantity into a horses eye at 1st & a little more
the next time you dress it when you dress the horses feet for a crack in
the [illegible] or [illegible] you must keep it dry till well Jn Noon of 


180)
of Thus Raston his son’s eye was cured by this pouder
when he had like to have lost [both] his eyes by the small pox Jn
Noon. Burnt allu bound on an anbury or a sheeps
foot or drest once a week will cure it. Xtopher Robinson
shepherd. Burnt allum will cure a sore chopt nipple
at one dressing Let a woman suck the breast at night
then shew it on the nipple It will cause a great pain but it
is a present cure. Mother Majer mix burnt allu in pouder
with sope & a little bole it will kill a canker’d or scab’d
nose in a lamb by being anointed on it once or twice
a day till it is ready to drop off then anoint it with sallet
oyl to heal it Tho. Hely farrier The roots of common fennel
boyled in wine & applied to the eye cured a suffusion i.e. [illegible] or w:[c]
in a monk in the space of 9 days.
Mrs French the warm doctress her eye water for a rheum
in the eye Rx white or damask rose water zij lapis calaminaris
in very fine pouder as much as will lie on a six pence
Shake the bottle when you use it & shake it on the eye lids shut
with a feather Rowland Marlo butcher of Leicer his wife
had sore, red rheumatic eyes after a great many things try’d in 
vain was cured by shaving the nape of her neck & applying
four leeches. another Rx the milt of a sheep new kill’d apply 
it hot betwixt the shoulders with only its natural heat & let
it lie on 24 hours then apply a fresh one if you can get it till
you’ve apply’d 5 milts successively If you can’t get abov e one or
2 milts you must heat em in water & apply em hot you must
bind it on with a cloth & fillet. The milt is apt to stink especially 
in hot weather Ben Garland of Leicer The milts will draw
a [bister] ibid. Dr Russels eye water Rx fennel water or white rose
water 5 pts salt of vitriol, saccharu saturni each ziifs dissolve & digest
therein camphir zv fine aloes choice opiu each ziij let it settle then
decant the clear & filter Joyn these 2 liquors together & add regulus of
antimony or crocus metalloru in very fine pouder zv shake all well
together 3 or 4 times a day for 10 or 12 days then lit it settle & keep 
it quiet on the faces for use This eye water is inferior to no water
yet known in the world W. P.
To make an eye-salve Rx may butter ziiij free from salt white
wax zi melt em together then add white rose water 1 d & stir it
till it is almost cold then put in camphir [illegible] ij grey tutty pouder 
made fine zfs pound the camphir & work em all together well.
anoint the eyes at night or when you please Mrs Coulton.


(181
a very good w. copperas eye water to take off all the rheums fro
his eyes Rx bay salt zij white copperas or w. vitriol zi. Put
[illegible] in 3 pints of spring water Boyl it till it wasts to a qt or
less scuming it all the while, then put it in a pot & let it stand 2 
days. Then decant the clear & put it into a bottle & wash the eyes
therewith night & morning or at any time. Mrs Caulton. sore eyes
or specks in the eye. Rx the white of one egg & as much hony,
clarifie the hony but not in brass, when it is cold put them together
& beat em an hour, then set it on one side & drain the
oyl to one side when you go to bed drop in a drop into tye
& lay the curd betwixt a rag & bind it on the year. Mrs. Caulton.
To make Dr Pool the mountebank his eye water Rx white vitriol
(alias w. copperas) the quantity of a nutmeg & spring or well water
½ a pint mix it cold D.P. Mr Wm Ing of Knighton’s eye water 
to dry up a rheum in man or horse Rx Roman vitriol [illegible] iiij white
copperas zij virgins hony zifs i.e. each one half pennyworth boyl
em all together in a pint of spring water
An eye salve Mrs. Cox of Hoby Rx may butter ziiij fresh
white wax zi melt em together Put thereto one pennyworth
of either white or red rose water & stir it till it be almost
cold then add camphir [illegible] ij pounded & grey tutty zfs work em 
well together afterwards boyl it very well
A rheum in the eye Rx lapis calaminaris in pouder & pouder of white
tutty when mixt as much as will lie on a silver 3 d put it to w. rosewater
1 d shake the bottle when you use it viz moisten a rag & rug the eyelids
Cos. Elizth Freeman another when Goody Simons has a rheum in her
eyes especially in the spring In the beginning of March she gathers elder
buds nettles mallows brooklime watercresses water parsnips & [livers]
chops em & makes water gruel & lets em boyl a litle time, if they boyl 
long they will turn black she eats em morn & night for 3 weeks.
another Rx white copperas zfs pr. 1 d in a lump, heat a pair
of tongs red hot & nip it betwixt em & let it run into a pint
of rain water then quench an heater (such as they use in ironing
cloaths) once or an old horse shoe 2 or 3 times when cold add a
good spoonful or a spoonful & ½ or 2 spoonfuls of wine vinegar moisten the
eye lids & over the middle of the forehead or rather all along 
the edge of the [illegible] & temples & eyebrows with it 2 or 3 
times a day Mrs [illegible] Mrs Caulton you shou’d strain it If any gets into 
the eye it will do no harm but only make it smart let it dry in 
Mr Thompson’s Rx for a pearl in the eye Rx small hemlock mi 
beat it small add to’t as much bole in fine pouder as will lie on a
shilling & ½ a spoonfull of live hony & a little salt beat them well together
spred some of it upon a piece of sheeps leather of the bigness of half
a crown, a good thickness. Lay this to the contrary wrist, where the pulse


182)
beats bind it on with a cloth fast & shift it once
every day for nine days you must not wet the wrists
all the time Mr Bickerton & Mrs Caulton.
The Lady Honywoods ext water for dimness of sight
Curing any skimmy substance or film over the eyes & 
dispersing rheum. Rx a new laid egg make a little hole
at the top take out all they yolk & white fill it with eyebright
water Put into it tutia 12 gr. & white copperas 6 gr. stir them 
well together & set the egg on a slow dull firer let it boyl softly
when you perceive a little of it consumed take it off the fire
strain it thro a lawn put it into a little glass for the use
Twice a day let a little be dropt into the eye you must lie on the
back a qr of an hour after ibid.
Mr. Dumon’s ext for the eyes weak sighted with rheum or
any other infirmity Rx 9 daysie roots leaves & all 9 sows 
(al. millepedes) stamp these together strain em into half a pint
of small beer which drink in [illegible] several potions one in the 
morn 2 hours before you rise The 2 d an hour after dinner 
the 3rd when you go to bed at every one of these times lie an
hour on that side the disorder is & an hour on the other side, thus 
do for 3 days together then cease for nine days & begin again
for 3 days then cease for nine days & begin again for 3 ays & 
cease the course as you shall see cause use this method twice in 
the spring & once in the fall. ibid.
another for the eyes. Put to a pint of celandrine water a pint
& half of bean shells water wash the eyes with it dayly. ibid.
Mrs Tampings Rx for sore eyes.
Rx lapis calaminaris 2 ou. in fine pouder pit it into
a half pint bottle & fill it almost full of the best white
wine, add 3 spoonfuls of damask rose water keep the
bottle close stopt & before you use it shake the bottle
ibid.
Mr [Tonstal’s] Rx for weak eyes. a pouder
Rx the pouder of the dry’d herb call’d eye bright a aquantity, ½ 
as much sugar as the weight of the rest mix them together
Rx a small spoonful of this every morning in a glass of
w. wine or ale fasting after it a while. ibid
A blood shot eye Mrs Wilcocks Put a little saffron into spring
water till it gives it a yellowish tincture moisten the eye therewith
This cured Br. G. A. sore eyes a plaster Rx the strongest hemlocks 
bay salt & the white of an egg to the thicket grounds of human
urine out of the chamber pots (try that which is kept 3 or 4  or 7 
days if the smell will not offend you) stamp all these together 
Lay it to each wrist every morning fresh. Then Rx the white of a
new lay’d egg (beat it to [dye] that is soundly) & bole work em together
like a salve spred it upon leather & apply it to each temple Let
em stick on till they fall off Drop into the eye one drop of the
water & hold the hand a while upon the eye after the drop
of water is dropt into it Mr Dodes & E. A.’s mother


(183
To make ink
Rx Blew galls lbfs bruise & boil em in vinegar
3 qts or stale beer abt q/2 an hour; strain & let the
mixture stand to infuse abt 12 hours then cant off
the clear & by putting to any quantity of it a litle
aqua fortis (as you’ve occasion to use it) kill’d with 
the filings of steel or iron you may make it as black
as you please in a moment Hoc est atramentum
typographica. The curiosity of this Rx depends upon 
the right killing of the aqua fortis. There are several
sorts of A. F. you must take six pennyworth of A.F.
of the 3rd degree in strength (tho I presume you may 
use the strongest the country shops afford) which you may examine
put it into a glass vial. Put some water into a basin, put 
the vial with the A.F. into the basin of water. You must
take care that the glass is not fill’d with A.F. & that the water in 
the basin surmount the A.F. in the glass half an inch. the
bottle must be sufficiently capacious & stand in the basin
uncork’d The water must not run into the bottle
for then it will kill the a.f. too soon. Thus is must stand
where nothing can stir or move it, for the least motion 
makes it fire & it will burn any thing within the reach of
it. as soon as you’ve put the vial with the a.f. into the basin
of water you must critically every hour take up a little of
the filings of steel or iron betwixt your finger & thumb & gently
shake it into the vial; this will make it steam & smoke as if it
boyl’d but when you can’t discern it to steam nor smoke you may be
assured it is kill’d & you may take the vial out of the basin of water
But if when you stir it by taking it out of the basin you find it bubbles
or smokes cast into it a little water or put it into the basin again’
shaking into it a few filings as before; provided you find the filings
have not too much choakt it i.e. made it too thick. note the A.F.
must stand 2 days at least & then the longer it is kept it strikes the
deeper tincture. note At night going to bed you must be sure to 
shake in the same quantity of filings as you did hourly in the day
time. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor


184)
To make black ink Mr Robt Painter [E?risoman]
Rx blue galls ziii gums sonora zii green copperas zi beat al
small in a mortar & difuse in a qt of water int eh sun or warm
place two days tis the best ink that ever he used & the cheapest
much preferable to what he now uses.


(185
Atramenti compositio.
Rx pulv. gum arab. zij [groutely] corevisiae cong. 1 stent
per horas 24 sape agitando, deinde adde gallar. probe trit. ziv
simul stent per horas 24 tunc disolv. Ol virid. lbfs & subinde
agita per sephimanam postea adde sacch. albifs. zij in vini alb.
lbfs. solut. N.B. simmis spissu sit atramentu addas aq.
pluvial. q. s. a duo palmes & doctore Clay. another which will 
not change yellow. Rx half a pint (viz 6 ounces ½) of the blewest
soundest & heaviest (Turky) galls break em in pieces, put em into
an earthen pot with a quart of beer neither too strong nor
small (or ½ beer & ½ ale) let it stand 3 days then strain it fro 
the galls afterwards let it settle & pour off the clear & put 
the sedimt into several drinking glasses & pour off the clear
pt as oft as it clears, to which add Roman vitriol 2 ounces (in lumps 
they will dissolve & gum arabick zi green copperas a qr of an 
ounce or better Let em infuse one or 2 days then set em in a pitcher over
a gentle fire till they begin to boyl. note Roman vitriol & galls
& beer or water will not write black but a kind of a yellow
but a little green copperas added produces a lively black 2) there
being but little copperas in’t prevents it fro changing yellow
3) the deduction of the sedemt prevents it in a great measure
fro writing thick 4) you must avoid a flame & keep that
from the pitcher or pot to prevent its breaking. Brian  Simpson
an [excisemn] & E.A. 5) This ink writes pale it 1st but in a little
time grows blacker & blacker To make ink. the best way.
Put gum araback lgfs to white wine vinegar one qt for 2 or 3 
days till the gum is dissolv’d. Infuse green copperas lbfs in 
3 qts of soft water till the copperas is dissolv’d; bruise the best
galls lbi then add all the said ingredients together in a jug.
Keep em stirring for half an hour, which do for 2 or 3 days
successively till the ink is black. Mr Simon Barwell, attorney.
when it is too thick add a little vinegar to’t or water you must
use none but rain water stir the ingredients 3 or 4 times a day for a
week is enough. Pour off the clear [without] stirring Br S. Barwell.
Another Rx Griffy dam: water five pints It is a mineral water near
Coleorten in Leicershire viz a calibeate water that will turn black 


186)
by the infusion of galls. note any [span] water that
will change black with galls (viz the German span water in Europe)
is to be prefer’d before all other liquids in the composition of
ink It makes it more beautiful & black & more durable less
apt to change yellow than any other liquor Put 5 pints of
span water into an earthen pitcher that is well glaz’d, gum 
arabick ziij stir it with a stick once a day or twice; when the
gum is dissolv’d add Turky galls the blewest & heavest zvi
Roman vitriol zij green copperas a qr of one ounce & [illegible]
allum a qr of an ounce gum sandriac zij pulveriz’d stir it
once a day for a week then set the pitcher over a fire where
there is no flame (which will be apt to crack it) & let all the
ingredients cymber a pretty while till it is ready to boyl
then let it stand a little to cool then strain it thro a linnen
strainer into another clean pitcher having a board with a hole
in the middle thro which put a stick & stir it once a day as
long as it lasts, keeping it from the frost for that spoils it.
Boyling it preserves it from moulding, but if it does mould
& is never stir’d it will write black but the other way, viz to 
boyl & stir is best. whether the frost will spoil ink made of 
 span water I have not experimented. This is the very best Rx
for writing ink in this book E. A. & Mr Jn Wilkins Less green
or ale than when it is span water that is dead 2) Put Roman vitriol zij or
better into the said ingredients & dead span water & they will not change black
with a qr of an ounce of green copperas nor with ½ an ounce 
but with zi they will the ink will be good for nothing E. A. note you must use the calybeate water
presently after they come from their springs. German span water as soon as
you open a flask They will not keep good long after the flask has been once
open’d tho you cork & seal em down immediately. you may try their vertue by 
putting a piece of gall to a little & if the water changes black it is fit to
make ink of otherwise if it does not change black it is not so good as rain or common
water E. A Br Barwels original Rx which was given
him to make ink p. 185. was copperas 4 ounces but 
that did not make so good ink [illegible] copperas 8 ounces.


(187
To make the best ink. Buy a sixpenny paper (viz zij) of 
Holmans ink pouder at any book sellers & add to it a pint of
clear cyder or old verjuice or now verjuice that is clear (either of
these are better than rain water as Holman directs in his [illegible]) This pouder
decayeth not by keeping & is refin’d from that poysonous nature that
causes ink to turn yellow If any writings of this ink lie soaking in 
water a month together it will not alter but remain as long as the
paper or parchmt endures. it is sold by the maker Charles Holman in 
 Red Lyon street agt the White Hart Inn in Southwark, he having his majesty’s
patent under the great seal of England for making the same. The
Rd Mr Jn Laurence of Yelvertoft in Northshire commends cyder or
verjuice before rain water or stale beer. Holmans ink never grows mouldy
To make good black ink Mr Amos Taylor of Stamford
Rx rain water two gallons galls bruis’d lbifs green copperas
12 ounces best gum arabick bruis’d 12 ou. Roman vitriol & 
roch (or clear) allum each zifs white sugar candy in pouder 4 
ounces. Let it infuse in the sun 20 days stir it often then
strain it thro a cloth & put it into a bottle when too thick add
a little rain water or vinegar stirring it a day or 2 before you 
use it To make a less quantity Rx rain water 2 qts galls 6 ounces
pr. 6 d g. copperas 3 ou. pr. [19] gum arabic 3 ou. pr 3 d R. vitriol 
qr ½ of an ounce pr 1 2 ½ allum do pr [19] w. sugar candy 1 ou. pr 2 d 
Total pr [illegible] 1 d stir it well with a stick in a pitcher & it will write well
in 2 days time when you’ve no warm sun set it in an oven 
after bread. To make ink. Rx rain water 2 pts galls beaten
5 ou. green copperas 4 ou. gum arabick 3 ou. sugar candy 2 
ou. stir them together twice or thrice a day for a fortnight
by which time it will be very good ink. S. S.
To make a very good shining ink far exceeding the common
Rx Blew galls ligs gum arabic three ounces copperas one
ou ½ pomgranate rind & log wood each one ounce Bring 
the ingredients into a gross pouder & infuse them a month in a
qt of stale beer Mr Tho. Hewet of Dunton & Mr Wright an
[exciseman] another Rx the blewest nut galls 3 d
gum arabick 1 d best loaf sugar 29 The whitest copperas
1 d
To clarifie quills according to art. Boyl 2 or 300 quills 
in half a pint of linseed oyl 3 minutes If you intend em 
to be of a yellow colour you must put in English pink 1 d 
ibid. when you make ink dissolve the gum by its self in a little [illegible]
your galls when it is made lay a flannel over your pot & pour your ink thro it to
[clense] all the filth out of it [illegible] [illegible] schoolmaster


188)
To make black ink [illegible] Booth
Rx w: wine 1 at galls ziiij green copperas zii gum=arabick zi
bruise the galls every one into 4 or 5 pieces put em into the wind
& let em stand 3 or 4 days stiring em often then put in your
copperas & your gum being well dissolv’d in a little w: wine keep 
it with stirring 3 or 4 days’ more than it is fit for use.
when the ink is too thick put white wine vinegar to it. It is much
better than any water. Valerius Stephens writing aster at Blaby.
when you make ink dissolve the copperas in water & you will see
a scum on the surface of the water which you must scum off & 
it will improve the ink by throwing it away. You may boil em
together when you are in hast. ibid.


(189
A person bewitch’d or under an ill tongue.
Rx amara dulcis the root miiij boyl it in water 2 qts to a qt
in a bell metal pot, having a cover paste the steam in, over a slow
fire of charcoal or embers for 3 days when cold open it & strain it
Drink 6 spoonfuls 3 times a day. it will cure one drawn on hoops
or one under an ill tongue as country folks call it The mountebank
calls it the wind gout. you may make it into a syrup with syrup of 
roses or buckthorn to keep for a purge & for a blind Dr Pool.


190)


(191
for all sorts of aches & pains 108  211  61
in whatsoever part in old or young; the pt affected 1st 
being anointed with it, warm’d by the fire, work’d in 
by a warm hand & after that chaf’d in with an hot fire
shovel or flat iron. Rx oyl of roses, oyl of worms
(or oyl of camomile if the nerves are most affected) & 
unguentum dialthaea each 1 d Mr Isaac Taylor
unguent alb camphorat. is an exct. cooler in all inflammations.
unguentu dialthaea is an admirable emollient & 
anodyne I. T. A bath for pains or aches. Rx
wormwood, St. Johns-wort, scordiu, camomil flowers
melilot flowers centaury, Roman wormwood each  mi 
long & round aristolochia each zi boyl em in a sufficient 
quantity of water a qr of an hour, remove it fro 
the fire & add brandy a pint. In racking & inveterate
pains you’l find it to be admirable I. T. another
mix oyl of turpentine with goosegrease & anoint therewith 
then lay on Bents salve. If these failput scalding hot water
into 2 or 3 earthen or stone bottles eating butter’d ale
with treacle or drink whey laying on a great many blankets
to make yiu sweat out the [peccant] humours E. A.
Inward aches & pains in the bowels & back caus’d
by catching cold or by lying in damp sheets
Rx mercurius dulcis in fine pouder 20 gr. in the pap of
an apple It makes the ordure black. Take care of 
catching cold with it lest it flux you This cured James
Davis, Smith of Croft. mercurius dulcis if it does not
purge, fluxes viz a great quantity purges, a small one 
fluxes.
Mary Chester of Blaby was cur’d of an inward pain
on her side, a pleuritick pain, by taking garlick boyl’d in 
milk in great quantity & for a long time It cured her when 
she was a mere skelliton. Take it every night.


192)
An inward bruise. Bleed twice in the arm 1st in 
one arm then in the other intermitting 4 or 5 days.
after bleeding in the morning, at night Rx salt of hartshorn
gr. zv. pr. 3 d Venice treacle zi pr. 1 d lucatellus balsam
zi pr. 2 d drink after em rosemary posset drink one large
porringer in bed to sweat Mr Wilks, surgeon.
A sciatica pain or a pain in the hip or back
caused by cold etc. Good for the stone & wind colic
Rx sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls pr. 2 d mace 4 d shred it & 
take 1 spoonful of oyl with its proportion of mace in 
the morning fasting abt noon & at night presently after
supper when you are in bed Rx oyl of turpentine 20 drops
in a 1/2 spoonful of sugar sweetening the mouth with sugar after
it & lie as long as you can on the back viz ½ an hour or 
an hour after it. Boyl the strongest ale a qt with as 
many oats as a man can hold in his hand till almost ½ is 
wasted then strain & boyl it again to the consistence of a 
salve keeping it stirring spred it upon allum’d leather 6
inches broad 9 I long prick’t with a penknife point Lay it
lengthways over the small of the back or where the chief
pain is lay it on as hot as you can abide it when you are
in bed. eat nothing but fennel & parsly shred, the [illegible]
with bread & butter for a week tho you are pretty well sooner
& take the sweet oyl & mace & oyl of turpentine & 
sugar for a week as you did the 1st day. This cured Jonathan 
Simons woolwinder & glover of Wigson Magna when he was
so pained in the small of his back that he could not go nor
dress himself. This made him so well that he went with a
stick & reap’d the next day J. Simons & Tho Heifford of
[Conaltesthorp]. another for a sciatica, rheumatic or any pain
in the limbs v p. 61. Wm Frees of Blaby having a pain 
in his stomach which sometimes remov’d to his back & side
he sweat & was ready to faint away was cured by Tho.
Ferren of Leicer viz Rx water of tyme parsly & of camomile
flowers each zifs sp. of juniper zifs oyl of caraways
zfs tincture of laudanu [illegible] ij Hungary water zij syrup of anniseeds
& poppies each zi mix for a julap. Dose is one spoonfull 


(193
or 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 at night going to bed shake
the bottle when you use it. Rx pilulae ex duobus zfs or [illegible] ij for
one dose. T. Farren wracking pains causing the belly etc. to [swell]
& a pain in the back the cause being stoppage of urine Rx
oyster shels sifted thro a lawn sive in fine pouder one spoonful
at a little at a time in a coffee dish of warm ale or beef
or posset drink till you’ve taken the spoonful Mrs Newlove
Bridget Dawkins Pain in the back caus’d by stooping etc.
or in ay pt of the body anoint with unguentu ari, i.ei. Priest
Fintle al. cuckoo pints oyntmt made with the juice of the
herb & hogs lard free from salt. E. A. another anoint with
oyl of tar pr. 6 d per ou. at the drugsters or chymists at
London. Heat it in with a hot iron It is good for any 
strain new or old. Mr Arden Elsmere surgeon.
Isaac Jackson baker of Wigston Magna was often griped
& had a violent pain in his back & bowels round his girdle
but some in his [???bone] He had all the things in the
shop of [illegible] Orme apothecary in Leicer that he thought requisite 
given [illegible] in vain He was very thirsty & had no stomach
so his [illegible] Mr [illegible] the minister advis’d him to drink spring
or well water one qt cold & as soon as he cou’d every morning 
for six weeks together tasting & to walk or use exercise that wou’d
keep him [warm] for an hour after it [illegible] wou’d chill his stomach 
& kill him In Augt & Septer 719 he took his qt jug & 
walk’d to the spring a little below the town near the place
made for horses to drink at from whence i.e. fro which spring
flows their [illegible] It has a brackish iron taste, but the stones
near it are not of a yellow colour. It felt very cold the
[illegible] morning but [illegible] very agreeable afterwards He found
[illegible] that very day & his stomach began to revive at the end of
6 weeks all his [illegible] were vanish’d & he was perfectly well & 
his thirst extinguished & felt no inconvenience only it made
his feet very tender once or twice he felt a little inconsiderable 
pain in making water which he thought might be the effect
of graves or some smaller stone passing away with it Isaac 
Jackson
Mr Langhornes poultis for an old ach
Rx Tannic parsly feather fern & rosemary tops simber them in 
a pint of strong ale a good while then take a little wheat 
bran & a little oat meal a little [illegible] of muttn the fat boyl
em very thick then add a little wine vinegar [pater meus]



194)
Sciatica pain or hops pained.
Xtian Ponton of Blaby had such violent pain in her
hips that she cou’d scarce go, she rub’d em with camphorated spirt of wine
which gave her immediate ease & drove away the pain. She keeps
it always by her & buys 1 d a t a time. Xtian P. another Aunt
Dorothy Boothby’s cerecloth made of oyl, red lead etc. will
disperse almost any pain from any pt. of the body It will
dissolve cancerous nodes in a sore breast & disperse jelly
that is gotten into the cup or joynt of a joynt that has been 
lately broken or out.
Mrs Frances Bickerton’s green oyntmt Rx the tender leaves
of young bays & rue each lbij wormwood lbij sage lbi
]gather them in a dry day & in the heat of the day & in the
month of June. Shred em very small then mince sheeps suet
very fine lbiij pound them altogether in a stone mortar till they 
are incorporated into one substance as it were then put it
into a pot like a cream pot adding to it best oyl olive 3 pints
mix it well together with your hands Then stop it close & set it
in some cold place ten days then put it into a brass pan & 
let it boyl four hours very gently If you see it bubble
apace abate the fire To know when it is boyled enough you must
drop a drop or 2 into a sauce If it looks grass green
then take it off If not boyle it longer but always have a care of
burning it the way to prevent it is to stir it continually & take
up some of the [illegible] & feel if they begin to be dry take it away
then strain it into a bason when you’ve strain’d it put to it four
ounces of oyl of spike Then put it into gally pots & cover them
close with leather This oyntmt will least seven yrs & be better
than if it was new. It is good agt all kind of aches, swellings,
carbuncles, cramps & such like in man & beast. Mrs Caulton.
A cerecloth for a swelling or ach in the joynts.
Rx virgins waz sij frankincense & olibanum & pine rosin each
zi stone pitch ziiij oyl of mace, oyl of lillies & oyl of roses
each zi melt em all together in a clean pan when they are melted
take ‘em off the fire & pout in mace, saffron in fine pouder each
zi stirring it tilt it be well incorporated. Then dip in fine old
clothes. when you use it warm a piece of the cerecloth & apply 
it to the pained place Pater Meus.
An ext. balm for an ach, bruise, sprain, or wound.
Rx pure sallet oyl a pint, put it into a gally glass with these
flowers viz red rose leaves miij bugle flowers mij centaury
flowers mi celandine flowers mi St. Jns wort flower 
miij to infuse in the sun all summer & harvest Then you must
add half so much turpentine as oyl when the season waxeth 
cold put the glass into water moderately warm It will strain the 


(195
better from the flowers keep it for your use.
A cerecloth for issues. Rx Bees wax zvi Venice turpentine
ziij vermillion zfs red lead zvi orris roots in fine pouder zi
the best musk 3 gr. rosewater four spoonfuls sallet oyl as much
first melt the wax then add the turpentine then the R. lead then the
orris pouder then the rosewater wherein the musk has been steep’d a 
quarter of an hour then the vermillion & oyl Let it not boyl when
you’ve put in the oyle & stir’d em together dip in the cloaths oyl a
knife & smooth the cerecloths as they cool. S. S.
A cerecloth for any pain especially what is caused by cold.
Rx oxycroceu 2 d Venice turpentine 2 d white pitch 2 d 
boyle em together spred it on allum leather This cures Tho.
Allen Pumpmaker of Frolesworth when he goes into a well & 
catches cold in his limbs. F. A.
A pain in the hip or neck. amount the pained place with Bore’s
al Brawn’s grease. This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt.
E. A. was cured of a violent pain in his shoulder by lying ina stone
trough fill’d with so much water that the water could just cover his face & whole
body this he did in the morning early for abt a fortnight in May 729.
Mr Reve a Northamptonshire farmer not far from Rushden
had a pain in his hop which made him very lame He was cured by having 
an issue made in his leg below the knee on the same side & 
Mrs Palmers salve made of soap & rue pounded together was apply’d
to his hip V. E. A.’s green book of Rxs p. 295.
For a sciatica Rx stags-horn saw it so as it may go into
a pot then boyl all or part of it in fair water, when it is cold
& thick like jelly anoint the place with it warm probatum, {m”]
Hewet E. A.’s mother
For an old or new pain in the knee or in any part 
Bath it twice a day with ale-grounds hot with a red
flannel cloth dipt in it wrap another cloth about it
to keep it warm for a day or 3, or put your knee into
the muck of a paunch of a beef new kill’d as hot as can be
or which is a cleanlier way. Lay the bowels i. e. the guts & 
paunch unbroken of a beef or sheep new kill’d upon the knee Wm Wyat
of Adderston. a man that had a pain in h is knee & was lame & had been
under the care of several drs & surgeons to no purpose was at last cured by 
slicing 7, 8 or 9 onions into a pint of ale of which he drank abt ½ a pint in the ay
at several times & ½ pint at night & was cured in a little time Tho. Smith of Blaby


196)
For a sciatica pain. Foment it with burn’t brandy
against the fire and chafe it well with your hand or
beat some flax seed (abt zi) and boil it in a pint of water
a quarter of an hour and strain it and bath the pain’d place
well with it warm. John Berbeck servt to an officer
in the army at Darby.
Sciatica. Rx Oil of turpentine zi, boars grease zfs
and deer’s marrow or for want of it Deers sewet zfs melt 
them together and anoint the place well therewith before the
fire. John Goodwin groom to the Lord Gray, in the room of
boars grease [illegible] the marrow of a hog zfs.
Sciatica Rx Oil of turpentine and oil Exeter p.a. 
and chafe it in well upon the pain’d place then lay
on this plaster. Diaculon zfs and oxycroceum zii
and oil of origanum 10 drops melt ‘em together and
make a plaster and lay it upon the place pain’d. The
landlord at the green man at Darby.
E. A. in the month of January 1729 (when there was a hard frost that lasted 
7 or 8 weeks or longer) was troubled with a scyatica pain in his right
huchbene for which he was dry cupped & wet cupped & same time after a
surgeon with an air pump drew away six ounces of blood from the
pained place of his huchbene. none of those things did him any service
or gave him ease Mr Ross schoolmr stockiner of Leicer his cerecloth made as
[melilot [illegible] [illegible] & camphir be gave ease Out to found most benefit by anointing ]
[once] or twice a day with oil of turpentine This cerecloth is good for scytica pains 
found out by E. A. found some camphor very fine as much as will make the melilot
smell very strong of it melt a roll of melilot salve then take it from the fire & stir in
gradually the camphor in fine powder & stir ‘em well together & pour em into a black pot or stir
like [illegible] you may make it into a roll agn you may buy melilot salve at 2 d per ounce on a [illegible]
of pr 6 d camphor at [illegible] [? d] per ounce at the apothecaries Spread some of this camphor’d melilot 
on hoops [illegible] [illegible] with a feather or the finger end moistend with oil of turpentine once a week you 
may moisten the same [illegible] the oil [illegible] if this cured [Mrs Ward] [illegible] who had a pain in her
side belly before & after child bearing which pain had caused the flesh to be very hard This cerecloth
dissolv’d it try it on a corn E. A. [illegible] huchbene in vain it would not cure his suyatica 
the [illegible] end
IN march 1740 the sciatica pain return’d and the former
remedies prov’d inefectual E. A. found the most benefit by a remedy
in Pharmacopoeia Pauperum which is as followeth. A cataptersim
for the hop gout Rx mustard seed zii white pepper
and ginger each zij mix em together in fine pouder and
keep it in a glass close stop’t and just at the time of using it
make it into a poultis with a sufficient quantity of oxymel 
of squills the leather that you spread it upon must be spread
round its edges with Bents salve or some sticking salves it
draws the humour of the hip. The salve is to keep it on.


(197
To kill rats
Pulverize black hellebore & mix it with fat or tallow.
Rub an apple over a trap it will take away their scent
W. C. another Rx costards or codlings or any juicy apples
whole & unpair’d 2 pts onions whole & unpeel’d 1 pt in 
all i.e. of both together a pint. Put em in an earthen pot & 
ty a brown paper over it & set it in the mouth of the oven.
after the bread is placed & bake it when it is bak’d peel off
the skin of the apples & throw away their cores & peel off
the outward skin of the onions & mix only the pap of both apples 
& onions together with ratsbane zfs in very fine pouder 
[illegible] & set it on a pewter plate (or earthen dish) where the rats resort
viz on a chamber floor etc. Sam. Pauly bricklayer of
Wigston Magna try’d this with good success they eat it all clean up
as if the had lick’d the plate & he made some more & set 
it again but it remain’d untouch’d He found no dead rats 
 but it drove em away & clear’d his ground of em for a 
great many yrs after Sam. Pauly E. A. try’d Sam Pauly’s Rx
Augt 729 with 8 little codlings & 5 midling onions with water
abt ½ a pint to keep the pot from burning.
Another Rx fresh butter mix it with ratsbane a small quantity
in fine pouder Set some on bits of chips or broken rots & 
lay one great lump on a piece of board or on the outside
a coffer or strike turn’d upwards. This was done with
good success by James Allen of Wetston They eat it greedily It drove the rats
quite away for many yrs & he never say any sick or 
dead till he pull’d down pt of his house then he found
a great many of their bones behind the pargine & in 
holes James Allen another Mrs Meadows of Wigston 
Magna had an aunt that boyl’d pippins she peel’d & cored em 
& set the pap mixt only with sugar where the rats frequented
& they eat it up for 3 nights at last she mixt ratsbane in 
fine pouder with it without sugar & a little time after among some 
thorns & in other places they found 3 strikes of rats dead you may 
use codlins instead of pippins Sam. Pauly Bricklayer
another to poyson rats & nice in spite of their cunning. Rats lick their
feet like cats. mix white arsnick beaten very, very fine in a glass mortar 
the apothecaries never sift it zi with hogs lard ziij spred it thin on a 
board where they come or on the side trees. They will lick their feet & 
it will kill em. Try’d by Mr Jn Jenford apothecary.



198)
To kill rats.
Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats or [fulmeres] etc.
then pare an apple & tie or stick it on thro an iron fixt to
the bridge then drop some hony on the apple & set it on the
side tree or wall plate of a barn or where the rats frequent
& you may catch by the tayl or leg Dianah Smith.
another Rx a steel trap made on purpose to kill rats etc. cover
the bridge with a paste made of wheat flower & milk set on
the side tree or on shelves where they haunt a square trap 
is best. Wm Hollins of Rotherby has caught so many with it by 
the leg or tayl that they’ve forsaken the house. W. H.
another Rx a large fall trap that opens at both ends with 2 
doors lay wheat on the bridge Mr. Seal of Narborow caught 
3 rats at one time so Mr Seal. another mix malt-smithu grease,
& sweet ale wort with ratsbane & daub the side trees or places where they haunt 
They will lick their feet & die Tho Clarks wife of Blaby
another Tie a piece of bacon to the bridge of a great fall
trap Lay some bran at the end of the trap & a little in the
trap to entice em in & you may catch a great many ibid.
another Lay a board that will tipe down at once corner when a
rat or mouse stands on’t over a malt cistern & lay some oats
on the middle of the board the cistern being empty & the [illegible]
made to turn on 2 axle pins The rats can’t get out again & you
may catch em alive so, 2 or 3 of a night Wm Glover of Fleckney
another Look at the ridge trees on the top of the thatch’d 
barns or outhouses & where you see the thatch woarn bright
& the cob webs rub’d off which is commonly near one of the ends
Get a ladder & a long fork & turn the tines so that you may thrust
en under the ridge tree prick em in oft & you will see the rats if
there are any creep out & come down & run along the side 
Trees plant a man ready on the top of a ladder leaning agt.
each side arm’d with a beesom (3 men in all upon ladder) to
knock the rats down have in readiness a sharp dog or 2 below on
the barn floor & more companions with broos to catch or 
knock em on the head stop all the holes in the floors or walls
with straw be that none may escape or if any do they will never
return to the house again. when you’ve kill’d any rats cut off the
skin from the fore heads of some of the biggest & oldest & tie a
string abt their middle or necks nail em up that that they may hang high
& they will deter others from approaching or residing with you. you
may throw some rats amongst any loose wood etc. where you think 
they harbour If the barns are slated you may perceive by the cobwebs
bring warn away or by the smoothness of the wood where they
harbour under the ridge tree or laces you must often try with a long
pitching fork under the ridg trees to disturb em especially when the barns 



(199
To kill rats.
are quite or but half empty when the barns are ful try the malt house & 
outhouses. This method in the yr 1719 cleared E A. of rats when
traps of a great many sorts & sizes ratcatchers with poyson & 
baits & snaires & steel-traps cou’d not clear the house tho a great
many were catch’d A good cat that will kill rats as well as mice 
is a valuable jewel to a husband man E. A. 
Tho. Satchwell a ratcatcher of Bedworth in Warwick:shire
4 m from Coventry mixes white armony or a little
white mercury sublimate in fine pouder sifted thro a lawn
sive (as much as will lie on a silver two pence will kill 2 or 3 
rats you  must not put in too great a quantity for then they 
will not eat it) with brown sugar which is better than white for
a moist bate. white is best mixt with pouder for mice & 
pippins scrap’d fine Let this be lay’d on the side tree in three
traps. 2 traps must be placed near the couples especially They
will lik their feet which will kill em Lay mercury sublim. mixt with
loaf sugar & oat meal for mice There is no way to destroy poyson
but by burning it. nothing kills rats like poysonous baits
well made or sooner clears an house of em. If rats do not
take baits in 2 or 3 days after they are lay’d they will never
take em Good apples viz pippins especially at the spring when 
apples are scarce will tempt rats as good as any thing to 
eat poyson. There is no killing rats without poyson Tho. Satchwell
who learnt of Jn Baxter a pudler. In the beginning of
Augt 1720 E. A. sent a letter directed to Tho. Satchwell ratcatcher of Bedworth near
Coventry. He keeps Coventry market but not constantly. He came when 
E. A.’s barns were empty & told him that no apples or pears will do for a bait
for rats but what are mellow, neither codlins nor sweetins till they are
mellow. apples being out of date he brought to Blaby in leather [illegible]
the skins or pearings & make the pap yellow with yellow arsnic in fine
pouder he put in some white arsnic in fine pouder but not above a 4th 
pt nux vomica a little grated fine & mixt with brown sugar so that E. A. cou’d
not discern the nux vomica but he told him there was some in the sugar the
sugar cook’d dirtyer than usual which made S. A.  think that there might be some in 
it. HE made it strong of the poyson because he conjectures more rats are 
kill’d by licking their feet when they run on it than by eating the bait
He lays it thick that it may not dry away quickly. In barns & out houses
he lays it only on the side trees, near the couples, in the middle & on each 
end of the side trees where there is no dust affirming where there is dust
there are no rats He can tell whether rats resort to the side trees by feeling 
on the side trees. Their feet scurry away the dust. He uses no [illegible]
the scent of the apples [illegible] is sufficient [illegible] to draw the rats.


200)
He uses only one little flat trencher & one knife which 
he brings along with him, he keeps his poyson in papers
in a great leathern pouch. T. S. He affirms that rats will seldom
or never take baits out of oyster shells, or pieces of pots. Tho
Satchwell. E. A. found in some wheat straw one great
rat shrunken up & had great live maggots in [illegible] abt a fortnight
after he lay’d [illegible] T. S. you may trie if treacle daub’d
on the side trees near the coller posts or gable ends of a 
barn or stable or malt house will not fright rats away
if you perceive they eat it you mix poyson therewith E. A.
another to kill rats Rx some [illegible] brandy & moisten some white
bread toasts therewith over night Brandy will kill rats & cats.
says my author. Carter Ratcatcher He thinks that the antimonial
paste is made with brandy which some ratcatchers use. ibid.
another Widow Whitworth alewoman at Gelders Hall
kill’d & drove away all the rats by boyling malt 1 pt in water
2 qts & nux vomica 2 d (  ) rasp’d or pounded Lay it on
flat trenches or boards on side trees or where the rats haunt
It is best to lay when there is no corn in the barn. It will kill 
only creatures born blind or dark says my author Wm Cole
son of sheepshead slater sed caveat emptor
another Set live hony i.e. clear hony in pieces of broken pots
or panchions with ratsbane that it may not run abt on side trees or [walplates]
or on shelves or where the rats resort This method killed 14 
set earthen platters with water in em & the rats will drink 
till they die & lie down swell’d by the water Ann Brooks alewoman
of Blaby
another Rx some sweet alewort of the first running mix
some wheat flower with it till it is abt as thick as oat meal pudding
or flower meat add to it ratsbane zi in very fine
pouder mix 2 d mix em well lay abt the quantity of a wallnut in a place 
or on the walplates & side trees them selves without pots etc. If the
rats set their feet on’t It will kill them because they will
lick themselves clean This method kill’d abundance without any 
harm Mr Thornton junior of Blaby The alewort makes it set
& dry hard on in a little time If y ou put on chips or pots
or shels of oysters they will not eat it. mix a little grease or fresh butter
with the alewort to prevent its drying E. A.
To kill rats or mice. Rx some chesnuts of which rats are great loves above most
things roast em & scrape em fine almost to pouder which mix with [illegible] wheat
flower & a little fine ratsbane mix em strew some ratsbane on the edges
Geo Florence [fidler]
another Rasp some nux vomica (al. crow figs) to fine pouder for it is
not be pounded in ordinary mortar & mix it with oatmeal dry Mr
Orme his apothecary has known this kill a great many rats Mr Orme



(201
The Clark of Barwel Aleman & Ann Tasie’s
way of brewing ale
Hard clear water is best for brewing especially for old
ale but it is the longest in clearing, get the water in over
night & brew the next morning. Rain or soft water makes
thick, sick ale. Grind the malt round i.e. just break it but
not small & use it in a day or 2 or it will not make so much
ale because it loses its spirits with keeping long. Boyl the
water before you mash. Let it stand on the mash two hours 
then draw off a bowl full or more till it runs clear & pour
em on the top again & let it stand half an hour more on the
mash after it is clear. Rub the hops very well betwixt your 
hands to part em handful by handful and agt the in side of the bub 
then put em into the tub when you let go boyl the hops in 
the liquor an hour & half then cool it & set it a working put
hops lbv to malt 13 strike north clay hops are the best
keep it 2 days working. Put most of the wort into the working 
vat the 1st day If you put it together too hot it will make
the ale thick & it will never be very clear. when it tasts well 
of the hop & there is a sedimt in the dish, or bowl or hand
then tun it Let it stand in the vessel till it has done purging
& do not stop it up of a week or it will purge agn & never 
be clear if you stop the purge hole too soon it will not be clear.
Stop the bunghole as soon as you have tun’d but you must 
not clay it up till you fill it up. Fill the vessel as full as you 
can keep it ½ a yr or a yr before you broach it. Bottle the
winter ale abt Michaelmass. fill the bottles & let the mouth lie 
down one night to moisten the corks then set em upright this prevents
whites. In winter wrap every bottle in hay putting hay betwixt 
every bottle It keeps it warm & safe from frost & ripens it but use
only a little hay to make the bottles stand upright in the summer
because much hay will make em fly. Let the corks be good & dry 
Lay em near the fire one night to dry em, before you use em. Set
the bottles in a wooden bin winter & summer to save room. Let the
malt be ½ yr old for ale that is to be kept long. Beans in the malt
do but little good. They make the ale high colour’d. always draw with 
a cock. Let the window of the ale cellar stand high that the light may 
descend like a pair of stairs. Set a board or boards against the light of the
window on the inside to keep out the heat of the sun in summer & the
cold in winter Choose velvet corks & pick em one by one tho you 
give 2 d a gross Beat em in with a little wooden mallet. Rack off the bottle’d 
ale with a [illegible] crane having a little pipe fixt a little distance from the 
bottom of it to suck with the mouth or to draw by to set the ale a running
[let] one and touch the bottom of the bottle on the inside Let the bing


202)
Let the bin be a yd high 2 f ½ broad 1 yd 2 f ½ long with 3 
partitions all of boards in this set the bottles one upon another
with their mouths upright upon a little hay at the bottom of each
bottle for it to rest on. Tho. Clark sells his ale at 6 d per bottle. it
is high colour’d & has a treacle taste. He says it seldom or never
makes any man sick. Tho. Clark.
Ann Tasie E. A.’s servant. her way of brewing. when malt is long
ground it is apt to [illegible] and the water will not go thro it. Let
the water stand on the mash 3 hours, more vertue comes out of it 
the last hour then in the other 2 hours, draw off a little tub ful till it
runs clear, then lade it with a bowl again upon the malt. you cannot
make strong ale for [keeping] of less than 16 strikes to a hogshead
unless malt be extraordinary good. [Green hops make bitter & unpleasant
drink, brown hops make the most pleasant & best tasted
ale. Green hops kept long turn white at last Mr Jn Smally of
Leicer. Hops when they are kept 2 yrs lose ½ their vertue & strength 
they will keep one yr goo after the 1st yr you must add to their
weight an allowance for a defect of their vertue E.A.] Put in hops
2 d to six strike or ½ an hogshead i.e. 4 d to an hogshead (you must put
in hops 7 d to keep one yr in the hogshead & one yr in the bottles
called old beer Mr Ed. Stokes.) keep the [ale] besides that day you brew
it on two days & a piece a working. you must tun it on the third day
after brewing. when it is clear in the working tub tun it. Putting in 
[wort] just before you tun is apt to make all that will gripe especially 
if it be drunk now & it is less diuretick. In a cold winter put in to
the work vat the work boyling hot from the fire but if you put it in
only scalding hot (a degree below boyling) it will scald the barm 
& make it settle to the bottom which makes the drink have a bitterish
dead taste. when the barm is scalded take some of the drink that
is fallen in the vat & boyle it & put it into the vat boyling hot as soon
as you can & work it abt with a dish soundly till the froth rises then
cover it up warm & it will work on again. If you’ve more wort add to 
it & keep it working till you tin it It will always have an unpleasant
bitter taste. Let the bottles be wash’d a month before you use em in the
winter & a fortnight in the summer neither dry em by the fire nor
in the sun for those drying are apt to breed whites but dry em in a 
cellar or in a room on a bottle crotch turn’d with their mouths downwards
& you will have no whites. Those bottles are least apt to produce
whites or be murky that are not wash’d in the winter but stand with
the sedimt of the bottles unstopt In March wash the bottles with short & 
cold water tho you’ve a little more trouble. a little mallet with lead
quite thro the middle of it drives the corks in best. Ann Tasie


(203



204)



(205
The yellow jaundice Dr Morton
Dry saffron 1 d rub it to pouder with the fingers take
it with a little sugar or with beer or posset drink
over night in the morning bruise or shred a little
handful of the leaves of artichoaks that grow on the
stalks near the roots put em into ½ a pint of ale & 
let em infuse ½ an hour then drink it fasting. It is a 
great bitter & sometimes purges. Rx the saffron & artichoak
be 3 nights & 3 mornings Mrs M.
The Black Jaundice Rx Ivory shavings zviii boyl’d in new
milk 2 pts till it comes to [illegible] strain it drink ½ a pint fasting Then boyl ground
ivy leaves mij in 2 qts of ale till it comes to one Put in red
sanders zij after the other ingredients are boyl’d then strain
it & drink ½ a pint fasting Wm Padmore.
A Decoction of rosemary in water taken before exercise 
cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine does the
same. Pecheys Herbal. another A seaman that was a hard
drinker was cured of the jaundice by eating every day 
one sevil orange peel & all, sliced & salted & some days 2 
or 3 sevil oranges with salt & drank on [still] during the 
cure Mr Jn Cochrane Lieutent another Rx hempseed
mi bruise it then boyl it in a pint of new milk till ½ is consumed
strain out the hempseed & drink the milk warm in 
the morning fasting for a week together or longer if occasion
requires. Mr. Daly farrier of Higham ferriers & Sister Ekins
another Rx 3 nights going to bed as much rhubarb in pouder
as will lie on a shilling in a spoonfull of w. wine Rx a spoonful
or 2 after it, intermit 3 nights, if it has not effected
a cure repeat it. Lady Curzon. another Rx 3 nights going to 
bed a good draught of ale with saffron 2 d infus’d in it for
a man, 1 d for a child. You may infuse it 6 hours or more in
a little ale & add fresh ale to it when you drink it. you must
throw the first water you make in a morning new made,
into the fire for 3 mornings successively ibid.
A perfect medicine for the yellow & black jaundice
& the colic in the stomach Rx a peck of snails in their 



206)
shels wash em in a great bowl of beer then make
the hearth very clean & pour upon it half a peck of
charcole & set it on fire. when they are kindled with a shovel
make a great hole in the midst of them. Before you put them
into the fire drain the drink from them then pour in the
snails shels & all & scatter the live coles among them & 
so let them roast as long as you hear them make any noise
then take them out & with a knife & course cloth pick & wipe
from them all their green froth very clean then in a stone mortar
bruise them them shells & all. Take a qt of earth worms
slit & scour em with salt very well twice over then roast them
]& put em in a stone mortar & beat them to pieces, then you 
must make the pot very clean upon which you set the limbeck or
still & lay angelico mi in the bottom of the pot & celandine 
mi & lay it upon that. Put in rosemary flowers 2 qts at the
least also bearsfoot dockroots the bark of barbery wood,
sorrel & betony each mij rue mfs fenugreek turmeric each
zi well beaten Then lay the snails & worms upon the top of 
all the herbs & pour in four gallons of the strongest ale
then cover the pot & let it stand all night at least [illegible]
you mean to put the fire under it In the morning you must
put cloves ziij beaten to pouder & of saffron beaten to 
pouder the weight of nine pence & of very good hartshorn
grated or filed to pouder before it be weigh’d zvi you must
stir it after you have put in the hartshorn for fear it
shou’d go to the bottom then set it upon the limbeck & 
stop it fast with a piece of rye dough & so receive the water
in pints as you do any other water you  may receive 6 pints
or more The first is the strongest & must be kept by itself 
& so by degrees the smallest may be made better by some 
of the strongest when it is used. Mrs Frances [Bickersee] & Mrs
Caulton. The yellow or black jaundice. Rx some of the 
sticks or branches new gotten from a barbary tree slip off the
black rind then take the yellow rink (or back) that is next the wood 
& scrape it into a dish. Then scrape some yellow butter dock roots
& slice them thin Rx mi of the slic’d roots & turmeric sliced pr. 3 d 
Put em all into a stone jug & [illegible] 3 of small beer & hang saffron 
1 d in a bag in’t so stop it close for 24 hours Then drink a good
draught every morning & fast till dinner & at 4 of the clock in 
the afternoon drink again. S. S.
The yellow jaundice Rx turmerick 1 d saffron 2 d sugar zifs as much pouder of eg shells
as will lie on 1 s Put all those together in apint of w. wine Rx ¼ of it 
in a morning fasting for 4 mornings together It is an extraordinary 
good Rx & seldom fails curing S. S.
The decoction of rosemary leaves in water (or made like tea) 
& taken before exercise cures the jaundice The seed taken in wine 



(207
does the same Pecheys Herbal. This is entred p. 205
celandine put to the bare feet in your shoes will cure
the jaundice. manuscript book
This is ext in the jaundice Pechey’s Herbal Rx syrup of white horehound
zij oil of tartar per deliquium [illegible] i mix take often of it one
spoonful at a time The tops of white horehound infus’d in white
swine & drunk 3 mornings, is good to provoke the courses & to expel
the secundine & to strengthen the stomach & to cure an ill habit
of body ibid if continued for some time Dr Salmon says horehound opens
obstructions of both liver & spleen, cleanseth the breast & lungs causing
expectoration & by that means takes away old coughs, asthma’s, shortness
of breath, pains of the sides, spitting of the blood, physicks, inflammations
& ulcers of the lungs, it provokes the [?erms] & expels the birth
after birth & helps their watering Mr Wm Hunt a gravier of Braunston
in Leicershire has drank horehound tea with some drops of sal volatile [olecrum]
20 yrs together sweeten’d with sugar every morning.
Quincy says sal volatile olecrum for its preferable fragrancy has almost
excluded the use of spirit of hartshorn & the plain spirit of
sal armoniae It is a most noble cephalic & cordial either to smell
or to take inwardly Its dose is from 10 drops to 100 or upwards in 
wine or water or beer. Some ladies take a tea spoonful in 
water A sal
volatile made with [marium] syriacum according to Quincy’s dispensatory
is wonderful penetrating & serviceable to the head & diluted to a convenient
strength is one of the best sternulatories that can be invented
inwardly used it is of great efficacy in all nervous cases but is apt to 
be adulterated. Parkinson says horehound is good for such as by long
sickness, or a thin rheum falling upon their lungs are wasted & inclin’d
to a consumption the green herb taken with honey & for the [pursie] & short-winded
& promotes spitting taken with the dry’d root of [illegible] It is given
to women that have sore & long travels but it hurteth the bladder & the 
reins It is given to them that have taken poison or are stung or bitten by 
venomous serpents or beasts The leaves used with honey purge foul ulcers 
stay running or creeping sores It helpeth the pains of the sides, the juice with
roses drop’d into the ears easeth their pains A decoction of the herb is good for
those that have itches & running tetters or outbreaks used with vinegar. The green
leaves bruised boil’d with old hogs lard into an ointmt [healeth] the bitings
of dogs the swellings of womens breasts & the pains of pricking thorns The 
decoction of [illegible] in water is a singular help for the whites in women 
if they sit over it while it is warm. the same healeth scabs moist or dry if 
they are bathed therewith the herb stamped & put into new milk & set in a 
place pester’d with fliers will soon destroy em all. syrup of horehound in 
the shops are good for old coughs & old men & others that are asthmatic or
shortwinded to help em to spit & avoid flegm For the jaundice Make
a cake with the party’s urine and put it in the fire iron and
make a fire upon it and burn it and drink some turmerick
in a little warm ale Goody Smith







210)
Speech lost.
Dr Richd Langham gave my grandfather Mr Euseby
Shukbrugh Jan. 17th 1627. The imbecility of the voice is
by the indisposition & weakness of the instrumts of the
voice caused by a defluxion of rheum upon the arteries 
wear a cap a night especially if not day & night cut the
hair short & take the linctus or [lohoc] now & then chew reasins
of the sun (almost continually) spitting away the
stones and cause garlic or onions to be boyl’d in fair
water & salt & a very little wine vinegar make a sauce thereof
with sweet butter sugar & pepper to eat with all the meats the
oftener the better mater med. for streightness of wind.
Rx red sage mii liquorish bruis’d 1 d three parsly roots the
pith taken out one fennel root the pith taken out elecampane
root ziiij maiden hair in pouder 2 spoonfuls, aristolochia one
spoonful liverwort mij Boyl all these in 2 qts of stale ale until
 a pint be boyled away, strain it. Put into the liquor treacle of
jean 3 d aqua vitae 3 d live hony a spoonful brown sugar
candy ziiij one nutmeg finely beaten as much beaten cinnamon
as will lie on a shilling Let it stand & cool awhile then
put in the whites of 2 new layd eggs beaten Rx thereof lukewarm
morning & evening first & last the quantity of 4 or 5 spoonfuls
ibid. Lavender flowers in loss of speech do wonders on e
was cured by drinking a spoonful at a time of an infusion 
of them in sp. of wine The celebrated palsy drops are the 
compound sp. of lavender which are a most noble cephalic & 
cordial medicine but in loss of speech it is much better drpt
upon sugar & gradually dissolved in the mouth than swallow’d
at once Quincy’s Dispensatory. Loss of speech. Eat hot hony
at night going to bed for a pretty time Intermit some nights & repeat
This cured Mrs Ayres at London Mrs Finch. another Pellitory of
Spain the root, scrap’d & hold in the mouth helps the toothach
by drawing [illegible] the cold watery rheum it also helps the
palsy of the tongue & the loss of voice Millers Herbal.
another aqua mirabilis is said to preserve from the apoplexy & 
restore speech lost. Dose a ziij ad zi in rosemary water or rosemary
tea Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The distill’d oyl of peony seed drank in canary or sherrygut 10
or 12 helps the loss of speech. Salmon’s Disp.
An apoplectic (one troubled with an apoplexy) who had lost his speech
was [illegible] [illegible] agn by the use of spirit of castor & sp. of mother
of tyme p. 192 Salmon’s Praxis Medica.
One who had lost his speech was restor’d to it agn by chewing
tobacco. Cos. Waring Ashby Mrs. Ellen Stokes the window of the Rd Mr Ed
Stokes Parson of Blaby had lost her speech for several yrs at last she
happen’d to catch an ague to cure which she took 5 ou. of the Jesuits bark at several
times as is usual to drive it away & it recover’d her speech [illegible] Stokes 


(211
numbness in any lib or joynt
or sinew shrunk
Rx oyl of amber pr. 1 d ½ oyl of almonds pr. 29 mix & 
chafe em in agt the fire Ben. Alsop. another Boyl
4 calfs feet in water with a little oatmeal to a jelly 
when cold. Rub it on as hot as you can endure it from morn 
to night as oft as it drys in ibid. Another Rx tincture
of castor 14 or 15 drops for a man or woman in ale
as oft as they drink at or between meals It will restore
lost speech & cure a [dead] palsie when half the limbs are
taken away Dr Antony Brooks & Mrs Finch. Liquid amber
comforts & warms limbs afflicted by cold diseases & is exct 
in palsies & numbness Salmons Disp. Anne Tasie my servt
had one arm dead so that she could not lift it to her head
the next day she pounded [illegible] nettles & salt together & 
with her handkerchief bound it on her arm 24 hours & it gave
heat, strength & life to her arm & quite cured it. A. T.
A stiffness in the joynts especially after any bone had been 
broken. anoint with oyl of worms It gave Mrs. Freer of
Blaby the use of her arm after it was broken. Mrs Freer
a weakness, coldness, numbness, bruises, old aches, lameness
& straining of the joynts. Rx oyl of spike & oyl of
[exeter] p.e. anoint it on agt a fire David Lane. another
anoint with oyntmt of marshmallows This cured Wm Gimson
that was lame in his knee by falling ona  stump
Henry Gimson bonesetter of Widmarpool. another Rx a qt
of strong ale boyl it to a pint then add hogslard ziiij boyl
it again & apply it warm as you can endure it. This cured
a soldier when his hand was swell’d to black & blew & almost
inensible having running sore in the arm
caus’d by a bullet that was shot thro it. solder James
Edwards that carry’d the Stamford Mercury’s abt Leicershire etc.
had a pain & lameness in his ancle so that sometimes he could
not go some thought it a rheumatism, after having try’d a great
many things in vain was thus cured Rx oyl of spike 


212)
Oyl of Turpentine p.e. or each zfs anoint at
night a little before bedtime & work it in with an
hot iron or hot fire shovel near the fire The next night
do the same again. Try this on an old pain or a [foundred]
horses feet & legs J. Edwards. Oyl of worms & oyl of swallows
mixt p.e. cured a boy that was lame & had one leg shorter than the other
Sister Mary at Shakbrugh Ashby. Mrs Cook’s sister of Blaby had
a lame hand that no oyntmt poultis or plaster could make
well was cured by drinking 2 spoonfuls of juyce of elder
in half a pint of beer & ale nine mornings together 
another that cured Joseph Warner’s sister of lameness Rx oyl of
elder oyl of spike, oyl of lillies, oyl of roses, oyl of junip 
oyl of St. Jns wort, oyl of swallows, oyhl of turpentine
oyl of camomile p. e. anoint therewith fingers numb’d & inflexible
Rx laurel & bay leaves chop & boyl em in [go??] grease Dr Pool
mountebank Salmon’s disp. p. 475. says he recovered a child that
had lost the use of all its limbs only by anointing with oyl of amber
ade with pounder of [tiles] etc. a military officer had a daughter abt
6 or 7 yrs old that had a leg contract so that she could not go
she had been lame abt 3 or 4 months she was cured by being
dipt over head & ears in a tub of cold water 9 mornings successively
& sweating in bed after each dipping & her leg [illegible]
[illegible] & was as long as the other Mr Jn Cochrane. one woman took
her by the head another by the feet she always cry’d bitterly. ibid.
Wither’d limbs or weak joynts anoint with oyntmt of rue, Salmon’s
Disp. A strain mix white of an egg beaten with brandy
with wheat flower spred it upon leather & apply it Let it lie
on a good while David Jervase. another Dip a linnen cloth 
in hot urine apply it agt the fire as hot as you can endure
it then dry it & [illegible] spred Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth upon leather & 
lay it to the griev’d place If it will not stick bind it on with 
a linnen rag sew’d abt it It is made of red lead & oyl E. A.
oyl of St. Jns wort is better than oyl of turpentine for a contracted
or strain’d sinew or nerve or any strain abt. a joynt
or numbness you must rub it often on & keep the part that is lame
or disordered warm by wearing an oyl’d linnen rag & silk over 
it constantly till well. Dr Pool a hand or wrist strain’d by 
reaping corn or mowing with a scythe even when a great knob
arises on the outside the wrist Rx some keen nettles & pound em
soft as pap with salt, bind it on the strain or swelling 12 hours or
longer renew it if the pain doth not begin to cease in 12 hours but
if it doth then anoint it with oyl of St. Jns wort (the newer the oyl
the better) till well. Charles Simons.


(213
a strain. Rx comfry root wash it clean & dry it with
a cloth then scrape or pound it. lay it on a rag & bind it on
shift it once in 24 hours or boyl the roots in spring water 
& apply em hot. It will strengthen & knit a bone new set or
weak or crackt If you apply it to a bone before it is right
set it hurts it so that it will be always out It is good for a 
bone that is apt to be out of joynt This last way cured Mrs 
Caulton. A bathing for lameness Rx sage, rosemary feather fern each
mi wormwood mi boyl all these in a qt of brandy bath the part affected
with cotton dipt therein & let it lie on. Do it once or twice a day for a 
fortnight together Then afterwards fry wormwood in hogs lard & apply 
it to the pt that is troubled every night for a fortnight together S. S. another
Rx small pounded frankincense mix it well with with 3 ou. of the best aqua 
vitae & anoint the joynt or limb pained S. S.
A numbness in a finger or joynt. Rx oyntmt of marshmallows
pr. 29 w. vinegar 10 drops rosewater 14 drops oyl of
turpentine 20 drops Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Sp. of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine oyl of wax or oyl of camomile
allays pains of the gout rheumatism [illegible] nodes, & cures contracted & 
wither’d members. Salmon’s Dispensatory. ale boyl’d to a salve 
helps pains of the sinews & joynts & heals sores old or new Salmon
on Barly.
To cure lame joynts. Culpepers last legacy.
aqua composita mixed with a little oyl of roses helps lame joynts
but let ‘em be well rub’d before with warm cloths & then anointed
another ibid The like effect hath hartshorn boyl’d to jelly in sack 
Jn [Hewet’s] ancle was had upon by a stone colt which bent his foot double
old Mr Ed. Muxlo advised him to stand in a horse trough in cold water a
qr of an hour which he did & was well without doing any thing nore at it
J. H. E.A.’s servt. another Elizth Dawkins formerly had a bruise on
her shin which made her very lame but the skin was not broken she was
cured by Mrs Basset by bathing it night & morning with a linnen cloth
dipt in vinegar & water cold rather the [illegible] vinegar & the cloth bound to the
bruise well with the same liquor she was well in a little time E.D; E.A.’s servt
A wither’d or contracted arm or any limb. Mary Raven doctress at
[D??ford] in Leicershire Rx oil of swallows & oil of worms & oil of camomile
each 1 d flax seed 1 d calfs tongue an herb 1 d at the apothecaries 
Boil the calfs tongue & flax seed in water a qt to a pint or less strain it
Then add the oil stir it well before you use it. Bath it on war 2 or 3 
times a day. This cured a contracted arm. Goody [Ho???and]. [wake] robin
is the same as calfs foot us’d in poltices for the gout Parkins has no calfs 
tongue.
Kate Bingly of Blaby a poor woman that [illegible] collection a widow hat the use
of one side almost taken away being a stroke of a palsy she had a violent
pain in her hip & knee & had lost the use of one hand Mr Tho. Ward surgeon
of [Sison] prescribed this [illegible] for her which did her good & she repeated it 
Rx sp. v. i. ou. sp. of lavender ziij tincture of castor oil ziij pr: 10 d Mr Cook Apothecary


214)
Cos: Geo: Boothby put his knee out by jumping from 
behind a coach when a boy Jn? Gibbords of Coventry set it & 
the sinews of his hair shrunk [illegible] he was [illegible] only
on his toe to the ground. when he began to go [illegible] [illegible]
he could not set his heel to the ground he ordered him to take
oyl of swallows & oyl of worms p. e. to shake ‘em together & to
chafe it in well agt the fire 2 or 3 times a day & in a little time
his sinews extended to a duo length. Sister Boothby
The anodyne balsam an outward application
made of castile soap, camphire, saffron and spt. of
wine digested in a sand heat. It procures sweat and
ease in the most racking extremities of pain by discharging
the [peccans] matter that occasiond it.
Chambers’s Dictionary.
Rheumatick pains. [Antihe?ticum] poterii is very
good against rheumatick pains or chronical distempers
or consumptions after convenient purgations Dr [Benskin]


(215
To make pearch bite
Rx juice of red nettles & five leav’d grass p.e put it
into a deep wide mouth’d bottle that the hook may go
down dip the worm in when you fish Let the worms be
scour’d in moss & fennel in a wollen bag Keep em 3 or 
4 days to scour & toughen em by giving fresh moss & 
fennel every 3 or 4 days, hanging em in a cellar or cool
place & pouring 6 spoonfuls of water that has stood all
day in the sun or pond water. The water washes & refresheth
em & will drain away fro em gradually. Stephen
Hunt. To cath eels Put calfs blood cak’d in a 
piche & put egg shels made small by crumbling
em with the hand & mix em with the blood the
last will draw roach & pike you must lay the
mouth downwards (i.e. the tail to the stream for 
they shoot upwards) under a hollow bank or root 
of a tree out of the stream. ibid.
To make pearch, carp, pench or almost any fish except
pike, bite at a worm, Dip the worm (when you are
going to thro in) in chymical oyl of fennel or chymical
oyl of anniseeds, the 1st is best & any of the fish that smell
it, will bite. you must keep the worms in moss clean wash’d
wash it clean twice a week & squeeze out the wet with your
hands & set em in a pot cover’d in a celler & they will
keep a long time. You must fish at 3 or 4 o clock in a 
morning for carp. Mr Styles of Banbury.
another Rx Ground malt & mix it with cow dung & throw
it in cakes or balls a night or 2 before you angle & 
it will draw fish to the places where you throw it.
Stephen Hunt. To invite perch to a place chop [illegible]
worms & throw em in ibid To make carp come to 
a certain place & how to catch em. Rx wheat flower
juniper berries in pouder (the oldest will the most easily 
pulverize) make em into little balls abt as big as a pea with 
ale wort or ale that is not bitter Bait a place with these 


216)
there for 2 or 3 nights & you may angle with 
success except where they spawn which is twice a 
yr viz in & . Clean a corner of a 
pond of the weeds & bait a place thus 3 or 4 times
then draw a net suddenly over & let it fall into
the water & beat the other side of the pool from the net
where you baited & the carp will strike into’t. Stephen
Hunt in the night at Elmsthorp pool with another man
caught 40 large carp at one draught ibid To make
perch bite Rx a bit of a dew worm that is but a little longer than
the hook place the great end of the worm downward. you 
may break a worm into several pts to be us’d often. This
will catch when a small worm will not. It is good to put some
warm water to wheat or rye bran so as to moisten it that you 
may throw it in by lumps, or grains or ground malt to draw
em together. A soldier & traveller To fox fish Rx [ox] almond al.
nux vomica beat or grate it small wheat flower red lead
make em into a paste with aqua vitae. Then roll em into little
pills like pea’s & throw em into the water roach & chub will
take em it will for em so that you may take em with a net at
the end of a pole. This paste put into some apples or crabs
& thrown under a crab tree or into a thicket where there is a 
crab tree where deer resort They will intoxicate the buck or
doe that eat any of em so that you may break his or her neck
or cut their throats deer are mighty lovers of apples or crabs
ibid. To make almost any sort of fish to bite that
are caught by angling Rx oyl of polypody of the oak
Venice turpentine & live hony p.e. in a thumb bottle 
dip the worm therein & you will catch plenty of fish
even of carp that are difficult to take a soldier & Dr
T. Hely. This E. A. has oft try’d without any success judging it
charmless another abt 9 or 10 o clock at night or later if
you will take a candle & lanthern after rain & look in any fallow
field or ground where the grass is bare or in any garden or
orchard you may gather plenty of dew worms put em in a 
pot with moss or fennel The next morning pinch off their red
heads abt the middle & throw em into the pond or river
where you intend to angle you may throw in ½ a pint 
into one place bait 2 or 3 places in a pond that is pretty large
for 2 days more & night together & fish with the tayl of the
dew worms or any time when you are to angle throw in some
dew worms nipt or cut to pieces tho it is not above 2 or 3 worms
& come an hour after & you will have good sport. fish will bit
better at the tayl of a worm than at the head & tho they will sooner 


(217
bite at a small hook than at a large one & sooner at
a hook [?afted] to a fern hair than a great many yet if you put
2 pretty great hooks to a strong line & tafte the fish will bite
very well May 21st 720 It being a very west time & the water in 
the river muddy E.A. angled in his pond in the piece the wind easterly
& high at 3 o clock in the morn & cou’d not make the fish bite
at last he went round the pond & found a little open place surrounded
with woods where he had but just space for his 2 hooks
to descend & the place was under the wind He caught abt 20 perch
abt 8 o clock (in the morn) in a very little time & many of them
2 at a time E. A.
To make a paste for cap, roch or dace
Rx tallow of a loyn of mutton or limb the skin taken off & new
or old cheese a little white bred Beat em in a [illegible] with a little
good aqua vitae or brandy or aniseed [illegible] beaten with a little white of
egg 1st beaten by itself make it into a stiff paste with a little hony
you may colour it with vermillion or red lead It will do without
colouring & you without white of egg It will keep abt a week 
Ec. Cholmondly a ratcatcher of Staffordshire another rub the [illegible]
with oyl of worms. Perch will bite in muddy water & before a thunder
shower ibid. E. A. try’d the last paste of Cholmondlys & oyl of
worms & the worm dipt in old tar without any success May 
720
when you fish for perch bait the hook with a red worm neither very
big nor very little, dipt in treacle for carp bait with a little
scarlet bright worm bred in bears dung. They are very fond of
it [illegible] a porter in hand ally over agt great turn style in 
Holburn London understands angling very well & can catch carp’
to admiration. at London they that sell worms keep in in a greasie
dish clout. It will make em red, bright & thrive Br. S. A.
Lay a trammel a day or 2 before or after the change of the
moon in a warm dark night & trammel will catch carp but a 
dragnet will not. Put into a [thief] net nosegays i.e. flower white
& red. They draw the fish together they come to admire em. Keep 
the worms in mass often shifted Wm Pinch.
A paste for carp or roch or dace mix wheat flower
with white of an egg & bole in fine pouder make a
longish bate. Bate a place with grains & an hour after
throw a castnet for carp let it lie qr. of an before
you draw it up & they will come out of the mud
Traveller & Tho. Bingly all oyls done to an hook or worm
are insignificant to make any sort of fish bite. Carp will bit in 
a pond that has a gravel or sandy bottom but they will not bite in 


218)
in a marle pit The Rd Mr Andrew Glen of Hatham.
If you stock a pond with perch where there is marle those you 
put in first shall grow to be very large but afterwards they 
will breed & multiply so very fast that the pond will be over stockt
& they will starve & pine one another & never thrive or grow to be
large fish It is like over stocking a ground or close or keeping
your cattle poorly they will not grow but degenerate into runts.
If you can draw the pond often you m ay think the fish so as to 
make increase in [illegible] as well as multiply in number ibid
To take pike or perch or chub with a minnum (or as some call it a pink)
To catch a minnum Rx a very little hook with a tafte of 3 or 4 
hairs cover the hook with a small red worm not much longer than
the hook you must have no float nor cork nor quill but a shot
or 2 abt 2 or 3 inches from the hook the line must be short or
you must tie it up you will see or feel the pink take the worm
but you must stand as much out of sight as you can they bite best
when the wind curdles the water a little. As fast as you catch the pinks
you must put em into a tin watering pot with water in it & often
change the water in summer to keep em alive when you’ve caught abt
6 or 10 then Rx a strong line fasten to it a tafte of 3 or 4 hairs
that if you meet with a large pick the tafte may break to preserve
your line to the tafte you must fix a piece of Indian weed abt 5 
inches long tie em together with a white silk was’d with black shoe
makes wax put betwixt a piece of calves leather or glove leather 
the wax must be made pretty stiff. If the Indian weed is longer the pink
cannot play well with it you must fix two duck shots to the Indian 
weed & you must have a little cork & quil for a float lay 
the pink near the bottom you must have a pretty strong carp 
or perch hook & putt the end of the hook & its beard just under
the fin of the back of the pink that part of the fin nearest the tayl
the hook must go cross the fishes back under the fin taking
but little hold The beard & hook appearing on the outside of the
fish & seeming to take but little hold of the pink. ibid.
A bit for fish (esca. illecabra) Rx a little camphir, aqua vitae
& oul olive bray em together till they come to a soft oyntmt
then put em into a little gally pot or box or glass bottle & anoint
the bait. Geo. Ashby Pater Meus
A paste for carp used by Richd Wheat Ld Stamford’s fisherman
at Grooby Pool Rx wheat flower juniper berries dry’d &
beaten to pouder Red lead in fine pouder p. e. the redder the better
make it into a stiff paste with anniseed water Let the bait be as
big as a white pea made over to cover the point of the hook 
Sam. Exon. Pound the berries in a mortar They may do better than 
in pouder or dry’d E. A.
An infallible way to watch eels Stephen Hunt. Lay at the head
of the pit 6 or 8 baits abt the asunder, fixt to a [troling]
line or whip-cord it [illegible] ly as far as you think the 


(219
ground bard & free from weeds. stake it down. your stake
for the night must be a stick as thick as a man’s thumb
the top must be taper like [breath] with a sharp point you
must bore a hole at the end of a thick staff so that it may 
go easily on & off [illegible] a [?irk] for the line a little below the
tapered part of the breath you must after you have laid
your baite ty’d the line to the stake
put the staff on [illegible] breath & hold it in with the upper
part of the line ty’d to the stake then thrust it into the
ground under water then no body can see it or find it out
without a drag. your bait must be a [menow] you must
tut it open with a penknife & take out the gutts then fill
it full of blood that is cold and congeald & sew it in 
taft a gag abt 1 inch ¾ long on with [horse] hair to a horse 
hair [plat] consisting of 30 hairs this must be fixt to a 
parkthred about half a yd long which must be tyd to 
the mane line. your gag must be of the largest knitting
wire broad & flatt at one end. sharp & taper at the other
you must in tafting observe to [illegible] the hair from the 
middle of the gag towards the broad end within a straws
breadth of the broad end cutting off some of the haire 
as you lap & approach to the end. You must bend the
sharp end a little off from the line you must thrust
the broad end in at the [bent] hole & out at the mouth
till you can thrust the sharp end under the tayl
so that it may appear a little on the back of the fish
& the broad end must lye just out of the mouth 
when you sew up the fish you must leave a hole
to put the gag in at (viz) at the bent hole S. Ld: of
Whetstand
Chymical oyl of any seeds put amongst moss that the
worms are kept in & the hook dip’d in it with the worm
[Francis] [illegible] of Wigston says it is the best of charmes
to make fish bite.
June 23d 1692 The Dalby miller of Brooksby in
Leicer shire caught a carp 25 ½ inches  long from head  


220)
to tail & 14 ¾ inches in the cirumference of
the thickest part in a pych in a flood in the river
Reak It weigh’d 6 ½ good [wtt]
an easy way to catch fish in a pond when the water is frozen hard
make a hole in the ice in what part you think best & put into it ground
malt mi or mij or sweet grains & the fish will come to the hand presently
Mr. Ed. Clark of Stony Stanton.
An ear: wig is an ext bait for roch ibid. another for roach or dore Rx wheat
flower temper’d with saffron [illegible] strong ale & a little sugar & bait your 
hook there with & they will bit apace ibid.
another to [fox] fish Rx the crums of new white bread & [coculus] indy
berries & henbane seeds each zi in fine pouder temper it with good aqua
vitae & make thereof a paste which divide into small pieces a little bigger than 
wheat corns & throw whole handfuls thereof into a still place of the
river where there is plenty of roach & dore & they will swim on the surface
of the water bring intoxicated after eating the baits, which you may then
catch with a little not at the end of a pole ibid.


(221
A consumption p. 137.
A consumptive cough or surfeit.
Rx white wine 3 spoonfuls, the yok of a new lay’d egg,
as much flower of brimstone as will lie on a shilling & the
same quantity of white sugar candy in pouder Rx 2 knife’s
pointfull in the morning one a night as long as it lasts, then 
intermit 3 days & take the following Rx If they do you good repeat em
Rx 3 or 4 heads of garlick, peel & brake em boyl em in a 
pint of spring water till they be dry, then infuse em in a 
pint more of spring water till they be almost dry & boyl it
a little in a qt of white wine vinegar with loaf sugar lbi Rx
3 spoonfuls in the morning & one at night These 2 Rxs cured
a taylor of Evington.
for a consumption cough & to sweeten and cool the blood an itching humour
Rx shel snails 1 qt scour em clean with salt & wash em 
with water then pound em in a bowl with a wooden pestle
gill pickt & wash’d mij viz as much as you can grip
with one hand at twice, Lay the gill at the bottom of
a cold still (i.e. a rose still) & the snails on the gill
pour a gallon of new milk upon em washing the 
bowl with some of the same milk & adding it to the
still. still it off, it commonly affords 2 qts of snail 
water drink abt a coffee dishful or 10 spoonfuls in 
the morning fasting & at 4 o clock in the afternoon
Begin with 5 spoonfuls till it agrees with the stomach drink
it till you are well sweeten’d with sugar This cured Mary Barnet of Barwel
of a violent cough & hereditary consumption
Mrs Adderly & Sister Elizth Mayer when the still is thro
hot keep it with frequent stirring with a spoon or ladle,
This would not cure E. A.’s itching
or it will burn to E. M. another In Spain They cure
consumptions by drinking goats milk & brandy. Tho.
Clark [soulder] an electuary for the [ptisick] (shortness of
breath) & a cough caus’d by hard drinking Rx liquorish
pouder zfs anniseeds zfs caraway seeds zi pounded & 
sifted mastick zi pouder’d conserve of red roses zfs hony ziiij
mix them well on a trencher or slate Rx a knife point full 


222)
at any time when you cough. Wm Harris [slater] of 
Leicer abt the latter end of April 715 E. A. had
a violent cold & cough he took sweet & oyly things 
in vain but at last was cured thus Rx Mr Fr.
Coltmans balsamic electuary which is thus made
Rx lucatellus balsam zij 8 d conserve of red roses
zi 6 d syrupus capillaru zi 3 d Rx the quantity of
a nutmeg 3 or 4 times a day This made me expectorate
& I eat in the night & oft when I cough’d sugar’d almonds
& raysins of the sun The cough hung on me
so long that I thought it would turn to a i
E. A. A cold or cough in man or child or beast.
Rx liquorish sliced zij sage leaves mifz fennel root
slit ziiij currans lbfs stew em over the fire in a qt of
water till ti comes to a pint strain & put it to a qt of
ale for man or beast Let the strain’d liquor be boyling hot
when you put the ale to’t & give it fasting the horse may 
drink 2 hours after you may give it 3 mornings together
It will cure a sucking child of a cold, cough or wind
Rx ½ the ingredients for a child with a pint of white wine
instead of ale. Let the child take a spoonful at a time 3 
mornings successively a man may take ½ a pint or a qr of
a pint 3 mornings together Ld Tho. Barrons of Newsted
Park in Nottingham shire & Fr. Collins of Ayleston, Collins’s
mother did great cures among children with this Rx
A tickling cough or a consumption of which it is
oft a forerunner Rx electuarium corcatu pr 1 d per ounce
a knife pointful at night going to bed or at any time
when you cough drinking often gill or sage tea Mr Wm
Cook apothecary A dry or old cough Rx pippins pare & 
slice em abt ½ a tea pot full, raysins of the sun stoned & liquorish
sliced so as to make it taste a little sweet & tart. Drink a tea pot
full or 2 night & morning or as often as you will. This did Mr. 
Simon Barwel of Leicer more good than any thing.  The countess of
Stamford. You  must drink it without sugar ibid.
A cold cough or consumption Rx one or 2 turnips, pare & slice
em very thin Lay 3 or 4 slices then a flooring of sugar of any sort
as you like it, the finer the pleasanter the courser the more opening
make it over night & it will be ready to be taken the next morning
If you set it one night in the cellar the sugar will sooner all dissolve
you may strew sugar upon every slice if you like it very sweet Rx [illegible]


(223
Rx a tea spoonful at a time as oft as you cough by day or
by night. It will not keep good above 3 or 4 days then renew it. It
is pleasanter than syrup of turnips. Dr Benskin. This cured Mrs Winstanly
of a violent cough at her lying in, & Mrs [Lewin] etc. sister E.B.
a cold or cough. Bring a looseness upon the self by drinking or 
eating buttermilk, or malt pudding bak’d viz made of ½ malt flower & 
½ wheat flower Jn Cater Shepherd. Keep yourself warm ibid. A cold
or a violent running at the nose Rx Portugal snuff at the
nose at night going to bed Ann Tasie. another Drink syrup 
of verjuice It is good also for a sore throat ibid. another
Rx balsamick syrup a little at a time & often It will
raise flegm &make you expectorate Mr Stokes. A cough
Rx elecampane the best sort (or that which is new) flower of brimstone
p. e. hony as much as will bring it to the consistence
of a lambative Mr. James Allen of Whetstone commends
this to the skies. An hacking old cough tending to a 
consumption. Rx flaxseed (al linseed) & balm make tea drink
it as oft as you will sweeten’d with sugar Dr Mane & Sister
Ekins. nothing is better for a cold & cough than liquorish
juice i.e. Spanish juice Mr Cook apothecary. another good 
also for a sore throat Rx vinegar or verjuice a pint sugar
candy ziiij liquorish sliced ziiij boyl em & drink a little
coffee dish night & morning. This medicine was seldom baffled
by a cough or sore throat in the beginning of the yr
719 Aunt Maier Pills for a consumption or surfeit.  Rx of
the pouder of anniseeds, liquorish, elecampane each zi white
sugar candy, conserve of roses each zij lucatellus balsam 
&the best hony each one spoonful. Tar half a spoonful
make em up into pills & take 4 or 4 going to bed & abt the
same number The next morning an hour or 2 before you rise
you need not confine your self to the house nor to any particular
diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Coulton. A violent 
cough & weakness Rx lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d Conserve of
roses pr 2 d mix & take a knife’s pointful night & morning
This cured Tho. Tafte when he was ready to die with coughing
& cou’d scarce draw his legs after him. Tho. Tafte. Salmon
in his Dispensatory p. 587. commends his pectoral infusion to 
the skies. Cold or cough Rxl linseed oyl cold drawn zij diacordium zij



224)
Diacodium is syrup of meconium or poppies
Rx only one spoonful in the morn & one at night
going to bed fast after it an hour Rx it no oftener because
it thickens then the blood too much & dulls the stomach
& spirits Mr Penford apothecary says it is the best
medicine yet found out. This cured E. A. may 719. but not
quite the cure Rx lucatellus balsam & conserve of roses each 
2 d a knifes pointfull night & morn Spanish juice or liquorish as
oft as you cough at last compleat the cure with a [dranken] dose of ale
till you spew & a day or 2 before you drink hard eat 3 or 4 
cloves of garlic abt bedtime S. A. another This cured a 
whole family at Ayleston of a violent cough Rx a little hare’s
wool clip it small with a pr of sissers Dry nettle seeds pound or
rub it to pouder mix em with a little hony. Take a little knifes
pointful often when you cough & night & morn Ch. Chester
A cold or consumption Rx unset hysop & gill each mi a little time & 
rosemary, & penny-royal Bouyl or infuse em in ale or
good beer 3 pints till it is wasted ½ pint or more then add treacle lbfs
& sugar candy ziiij when it is melted take it off the fire when it is cold
squeeze the herbs well out & add oyl of anniseeds 2 d Put it into a 
bottle. shake it when you pour it out. Drink night & morn a draught
hot Mrs Caulton. The purging bitters good for colds or a 
stoppage at the stomach Rx camomile flowers gentian, centaury, each 1 d
sena zi boyl em in 3 pints of water till it wasts to a qt 
Rx ½ pint warm every morning or more as you wou’d have it
work, fasting after it.  If you wou’d not have it pourge leave
out the sena. Mrs Caulton for any cough or chincough, asthma
or short breath or stoppage of the lungs. Rx water a qt garlic 6 
or 8 cloves,  a little unset hysop, infuse em till it comes to a 
pint, then put in a gill of w. wine & hony ziiij let it boyl up
when cold take a good spoonful when going to bed but not at any 
other time except you keep warm. you may boyl it up with good
sugar lbfs (if you do not like hony) & put it in the w. wine when it
is enough & let it just boyl in Mrs Caulton A consumption Rx
The juice of betony 2 spoonfuls in half a pint of milk every 
morning Mrs Caulton. It is best in new milk  warm from the cow,
but in winter you m ay boyl betony in milk. E. A.
Pills for a surfeit or consumption Rx of the pouder of aniseeds,
liquorish, elecampane each zi w. sugar candy, conserve of roses 
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful & hony as much. Tar
½ a spoonful mix & make em put into pills Rx 3 or 4 going to bed
& abt the same number an hour or 2 before you rise in the morning
Mrs Caulton. Dr  Willis says cup-moss is infallible in the chincough
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory


(225
a cold & cough Rx a little black pepper in pouder
in a spoon abt a little silver thimble full Put a little
warm beer or ale to it & swallow it at night going to bed
drinking after it to wash it down, some of the same drink 
repeat it nights together This cured Joyce Gimson E. A.’s servt
another Rx one or 2 apples scoop out the [stent] & core then
put in sugar & candy pounded smallish, close up the hole with
the stalk & apple adjoyning to to it, & roast em eat em at night
abt bed time. This cured Mrs Stokes when the Drs & apothecary
could not Mrs Stokes drank liquorish tea at the same
time Mr. Stokes Decer 713 when Mr [Cook] the apothecary could not
cure E. A.’s wife’s cold that was so violent that it was like the chin 
cough she did cough till she vomited & had an ague on her at
the same time after one ounce of bark tane at 12 times every 3rd 
hour she found the greatest benefit by drinking gentian brandy
which is sold at [Penford’s] the strong water [illegible] in Leicer pr 3 d 4 d per qt
3 or 4 times a day or night or as oft as the cough & sometimes 
mixing it with syrup of mulberries raysins of the sun ston’d & 
slit & fill’d with rue chop’d small She eat now & then one several 
times in a day She took the carduus vomit with lilly roots & oyl vid
Mr [illegible] Rx for an ague 2d feeling a great oppressions and sourness
[at her] stomach & [shortness] of breath & want of appetite
the next morning after her vomit she took fasting the quantity of
a nutmeg of Dr Hartops chalibeate electuary made thus Rx conserve
of roses zij filings of iron or steel zfs syrup of clove-
gilliflowers as much as will make into an electuary drinking 5 or 
6 spoonfuls of bitter decoction cold after it make a large [qt] viz Rx water
3 pints gential root 1 d sliced carduus 29 boyl to a qt strain. Rx
the electuary & bitter decoction after it every morning while 
they last fasting 2 hours after em. E. A. A tickling cough Rx the
best sallet oyl ½ a spoonful at night going to bed drinking 3 or 
4 drops of gentian brandy immediately after it This cured M. A.
at one dose E. A. a violent cough Rx 6 or 7 cloves of garlick 
slice or shred em boyl em in a pint of strong ale sweeten it with 
treacle ziiij pr. 1 d drink it all at night going to bed adding cloaths
to provoke sweat This cured Geo. Brooks. Blooding in a vein on the
top of the foot (any vein there) will cure an old cough It draws from the
lungs Dr Pool. A cold or cough Taking many sweet or oyly
things often regard their departure by furring clogging & dulling 
the stomach & vessels abt the lungs Nover 1720 E. A. quickly cured himself 
of both thus he took milk boyl’d & sweeten’d with hony adding
a little w. bread 3 morning successively in the day he rode or walk’d
abroad keeping his head warm at night he ty’d a blew handkercher abt his 




226)
Throat. The 4th day he grated a little [illegible] rhubard to 
which he put abt a spoonful of cheery brandy & drank it
fasting which carry’d off the dregs of his cold & left him well. E. A.
 a cough & consumption & pain at the stomach & weakness
faintness sickness & loss of appetite shortness of breath in Sam. Exon’s wife of
Blaby of ½ a yrs standing was cured by drinking buttermilk
boyl’d as hot as she cou’d with pepper morn & night or as 
oft as she cou’d get it. Goody Exon.
a cough. Rx garlick peel’d, boyl it in two water then bruise it
& put it in vinegar add sugar & juice of lemmon as much as will
boyl it to a syrup. Take a little of it when you go to bed. Pater G. A.
a consumption Rx milk a pint, water 3 pints boyl it till half
be consumed. Drink it 3 times a day ibid.
a cough with a soreness at the stomach very violent. Rx conserve
of rosemary flowers conserve of red roses, lucatellus balsam & 
syrup of diacodium each zij mix & Rx a tea spoonful at night going
to bed & in the night [illegible] when you cough you may add a few
drops of sp. of sulphur if you’ve no dislike to’t It cured without 
Cos. Freeman another for a cough & shortness of breath Rx 
hony 2 or 3 spoonfuls clarifie it i.e. boyl & scum it & Rx a [illegible]
spoonful or 2 at night going to bed as hot as you can This cured
Sister Shuhbrugh Ashby. ibid a cough Rx virgins hony abt 3 spoonfuls
boyl & scum it then slice a fresh lemmon peel & 
all & cut each slice into four qrs or small pieces put em
into a pat & pour the boyl’d hony to em allow em a small
time to incorporate then eat a qr moisten’d with hony
& the juice as oft as you cough boyl’d hony alone will
make you expectorate & clear the stomach of flegm but
it wou’d not stop E. A.’s cough till mixt & assisted with juice
of lemmon March 18th 720 Leave off malt drink & tobacco
as enemies & promoters of the cough. Drink w. wine or
veal broth or thin milk pottage or water cold or warm in 
their stead This E. A. found out you may make a syrup & 
disguise it. To cure a cough in a child or young people
It is dangerous stopping an old cough in old people.
Rx ale (or beer & ale) ½ a pint boyl it then mix a good thimble
full of fine starch with a little cold beer. Put it in let it
boyl up, sweeten it with penny days (penny dice) give it warm 
going to bed Rx it 3 or 4 nights omit & repeat from Nottingha
Mrs Caulton A consumption of the lungs & a cough whereby
the lungs are much affected. Rx 10 shell snails break the shells
a little yet without bruising or killing the snails then wash em
in fair water with some salt in’t Dose in change of water twice 
or thrice without salt then bruise from a little & put all into a
quart of new milk & boyl it to a pint then strain & drink it ibid.


(227
Pills for a cold. Rx pouder of anniseeds liquorish,
elecampane each zi white sugar candy conserve of [roses]
each zij lucatellus balsam one spoonful as much of the
best hony add to these half a spoonful of tar: make these up
into into pills with liquorish pouder Rx 3 or 4 going to bed & abt
the same number the next morning an hour or [2] before you
rise you need neither confine yourself to the house nor any
particular diet but take the usual liberty Mrs Fr. Bickerton
Mr Fishers lozenges for a cough. Rx flower of brimstone,
zi elecampane zfs liquorish zi in pouder while sugar candy zi
in pouder mix these in conserve of roses & make them into lozenges
ibid.
a consumption Rx conserve of red roses zij
mithridate zi mix em together to an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg 
every morning fasting & 3 or 4 times a day, drinking a little
double aniseed water (single may do better) If you are able to walk
after it. This cured Wm Burstall when the Drs reckon’d him incurable
Mrs Page & Mr Amos Taylor. A consumption beat a quantity 
of white snails in a mortar; then strain em thro a cloth of linnen
or a sive. To a qt. of the liquor put sugar candy lbi & liquorish stick 
sliced thin 3 [illegible] boyl em all together till the liquor comes to a pint or
thereabts when it is cool take a spoonful morning, noon, & night or
[illegible] if need require S. S. For a cough caus’d from a thin rheum 
a cold stomach & a moist brain Rx elecampane roots 4 ou marshmallow
roots 12 ou. quinces 16 ou (if it be at a time when quinces
are not to be gotten then take marmolet or quiddany of quinces) & 
boyl them in fair water with the roots untill they be soft to break then 
beat am all together in a mortar & pass em thro a sive or strainer & 
for every pound of the mixture add hony lbij then boyl them together 
but do not overboyl them & take it from the fire & for every pound 
of the matter add saffron & liquorice each [illegible]i cinnamon zi flower of
sulphur zi Incorporate them well together then it is made but it
ought to be aromatiz’d with musk & rosewater This marvelous electuary
for the cough must be taken in the morn fasting & when you go
to bed. The dose is half a spoonful & more. marshmallows mollifie
wonderfully. Elecampane helpeth digestion & strengtheneth the
stomach quinces are warm & cordial saffron dryeth & digesteth
evil humours cinnamon fortifyeth the stomach Liquorice mollifieth
& digesteth the matter marmolet or quiddany must not be
boyled but only beaten with the roots after they are boyled. This
cured a man 36 yrs old who had the cough 40 yrs S. S.
an obstinate cough Rx Venice treacle or mithridate the quantity
of a hazel nut going to bed drinking ½ pint of warm posset
drink after it to promote a breathing sweat Jn Penford apothecary 


228)
Syrup of sugar candy made with sp. of wine is of
singular use agt violent coughs & colds Salmon’s
Dispensatory p. 172. a violent cough & cold Rx a qr. of a pint
of water sweeten it with a spoonful of hony stir it well together
drink that quantity night & morning cold Mrs Abigail
Finch. A chin cough Rx treacle ziiij water a qt boyl it till the 
treacle is melted which be in a very little time Give it cold for the 
constant drink. ibid
Consumption & surfeit. Rx turnips a galn to mustard seed
a pint pounded Put em into a pipkin bake it with bread strain
the juice out drink a qr of a pint night & morning. This cured one
of a consumption when the Drs had given him over as incurable
old Tho. Juice of Dunton.
Consumption & asthma. Rx a leg of pork abt 9 lb & 
boyl it in water 9 qts when it boyls scum it clean, then put
in a small handfull of grits pounded & hartshorn shavings
2d boyl it till it is wasted to 3 qts or leas abt ½ an hour
before you think it boyl’d enough put in Jamaica pepper 
half an ounce in pouder To know when it is enough Rx a little in a 
porringer Set it by to cool if it turns to a jelly it is enough 
when cold take off the fat Rx abt ½ pint in the morning fasting 
& ½ pint at night going to bed Rx it as hot as you can 
drank it. You must strain it every time you drink it. Mrs. 
Richd Wightman
An asthma & shortness of breath & consumption.
Rx tincture of gum ammoniacum 2 ou. pr. 1[illegible] oxymel of squills
zfs pr. 5 d Rx ½ a spoonful with balsamic syrup or any syrup you 
may add a little sallet oyl to help expectoration. Mr Smith apothecary 
an asthma & cough. Rx syrup of sulphur made according to 
Quincy’s Dispensatory. Dose from zfs to zi.
Balsam of sulphur is good for coughs, colds, asthma’s, wheezings,
hoarseness & phthisicks (i.e. consumptions) or ulcers of the
lungs. Salmon.
an asthma & consumption Tho. Carick a stockiner of Blaby
had an asthma which brought him to a consumption so that he cou’d
not work at his trade had lost his stomach & was [illegible] afflicted
with [illegible] [illegible] he had smoked tobacco & swallow’d his spittle
but found no benefit at last he was advised to buy some leaf
tobacco (by a labourer) at 1 d per ou. which he did & chew’d it & it brought 
his stomach agn corrected the wind there & made a perfect cure in a
little time to a miracle. He put loaf tobacco in the morning as soon
as he rose into his mouth for a cud He spat away his spittle at 1st putting in 
& afterwards swallow’d it. He seldom had more than 2 cuds in a day & 
sometimes he slept with one in his cheek allnight This he did but rarely [illegible]


(229
Dr Ben. Allen in [illegible] of [illegible] chalybeat & purging waters of
England says he has often seen consumptions of 21 to 49 cured by the
dexterous application of chalybeats, chalbeat waters chiefly when their
Drs had try’d in vain to effect a cure.
For a phthisick & stoppage in the breast & to open the pipes
Rx parsley roots, [illegible] roots, succory roots, & seeth ‘em in white
wine & juniper berries, strain it when it is boyl’d & put
pellitory of Spain to it & drink of it morning & evening & it
will help Mrs. Hewet E A.’s mother
To stop a cough & to drive wind down into farts
Rx a little tea spoonful of diascordium an electuary
at night going to bed Mrs M Boothby
This Rx & following cured Mr Richard Potter stockin maker of Nottingham when he
had a cough of 15 or 16t yrs standing from a surfeit
Rx honey ziiij flower of brimstone zi white rosin in fine pouder zfs sallet
oil two large spoonfuls melt the honey by the fire to make it mix with the
other ingredients cold Take the quantity of a large nutmeg night & morning
rather more at night This dose cured Mr. Potter upon taking cold half the quantity
cures him Richard Potter
Take flower of brimstone elecampane and
liquorish both in powder mix them with 
treacle & take a tea spoonfull as often as 
you cough & 2 or 3 times a day & night
& morning penelope traveling madd
woman



230)
To make an issue
mark the place with a pen & ink a little where you 
intend to make an incision with the lancet there thrust
in the lancet & give it a rip up you thrust it in but
a little way to cut thro the skin then apply a pepper
corn dipt in vinegar with a sixpence over it the sixpence
must be sew’d in a bit of cloth or rag & that must be
serv’d to a fillet to prevent its slipping & bound abt 
the arm for 24 hours then take out the pepper corn & 
put an issue pea into its place which has a silk thro the 
middle to extract it by you must thrust into the
ground or molds 3 pea’s for 24 hours to mollifie em
so that a needle may readily penetrate em then dress 
it with white peas & issue cloth on the pea. James Leppington.
You may use a pea made of the pith of 
elder cut in the shape of a pea next the pepper corn It
draws more & makes it run more. ibid
To make an issue without an incision.
but a little orifice in a piece of writing paper that is abt
the bigness of a half crown cover the orifice with 
blistering plaster after it is apply’d to the place you 
allot for the issue the paper sets bounds to the blister.
In 12 hours a blister will be rais’d without & bind on
a pepper corn as above mention’d. Uxor M.A.
Take up the skin and run a lancet a little way 
thro it then apply a pepper corn
 


(231
The whites in women [albae mulierum fluxienes,
fluor albus 293
Rx nutmegs zi prick them full of holes steep em in brest 
milk of a boy & a little red rose water cover them close 
& let em stand 24 hours then bake the nutmegs in a penny 
or 2 penny loaf when they are bak’d beat em to pouder & take
a little pouder of coral & a little white sanders & a little
pouder of white mastick as much as will lie on a farthing
& mingle the [servth] conserve of red roses zi Take as much as 
a nutmeg at night going to bed & next the heart in the morn
Mater Mea.
For the whites. Rx candied roots of Solomon’s seal. It is an 
ext. remedy. Tis also counted good for the falling sickness Pechey.
a conserve of the flowers of white arch-angel is much commended in 
the whites. But the cure of them by the following method is much safer & 
sure. Bleed once & purge thrice with [illegible] ij of pill coch. major: Then Rx Venice
treacle zifs conserve of the yellow pearl of oranges 1 ou. Diascordium 1/2 ou.
candy [illegible] ginger & nutmegs each ziij compound pouder of crabs eyes zifs
outward bark of the pomegranate, root of Spanish angelica, red
coral prepar’d, prochisiae do perra lamnia each zi bole [illegible] ij gum-arabick
zfs with a sufficient quantity of dry’d roses make an electuary. Rx the
quantity of a large nutmeg in the morning, at 5 in the afternoon & at bedtime;
drinking upon it 6 spoonfuls of the following infusion. Rx of
the roots elecampane masterwort, angelica & gentian each zfz; leaves
of Roman wormwood, of white archangel, & the lesser [illegible] & calamint
each mi juniper berries 1 ou. cut em small & infuse em in five
pints of canary; Let em stand in infusion & strain it only as you use it
Pecheys Herbal p. 8. [illegible] says [olibanum] [male] frankincense cures the whites
in women & the gornorrhoea in men taken from one dram to two in jelly of
isinglass.
For the whites from Lady Wright
Rx Cyprus turpentine zfs 2 nutmegs abt 6 d of white
amber beaten very small then work them well together & every
morning take 3 or 4 pills of it
Another by Do Rx nutmegs 1 ou. prick them full of holes & 
steep them in breast milk of a boy & a little red rose water & cover
them close & let them stand 24 hours, then bake the nutmegs in a 
penny or 2 penny loaf & when they are baked beat them to powder
& take a little powder of coral & a little while sanders & as much 
white mastick in powder as will ly upon a farthing & mix 
therewith conserve of red roses 1 ou. & take as much as a nutmeg
at night going to bed & next your heart in the mornings 
[illegible] royal al. Waterfern is most in esteem for restraining the
whites in women & strengthening the womb the roots of
it are only used. Quincy


232)
To remove a callous from a sore 52.
Strew on the callous praecipitate in fine pouder when
the sore begins to heal it will eat it off Dr Million or 
mix sp. of wine (that will fire gunpouder undry’d) zi with
new oyl of vitriol get. 14 moisten therewith It prevents & 
destroys a little callous. Ibid. Aegyptiacum used scalding hot takes away
the callous from fistulas p. 749. Salmon’s Disp. 
To remove a callous or [brawny] substance from the ball of the great toe
heat some water as hot as you can abide the foot in it & hold the foot in it
till  it is almost cold then you may easily cut or peel off the horney
substance, it will come agn but you must take it off the same way agn & agn
till you can find out a better remedy. Try a plaister of white pitch after it
is come off. Cos. Richd Ashby.


(233
To stop the bleeding of any wound
Rx Roman vitriol the quantity of a horse bean, pound it
small & take a little of the wounded persons blood & mix
em together then take the reezest bacon you can get & hold it
over the fire till it sulphurs (i.e. till it changes blew like
inflam’d or burning brimstone) then let it drop into
em mixing em well together This will stop without dressing 
the weapon Bacon a thin slice abt 3 inches long
& 3 broad. some dress the weapon then you must clean it
from rust & dirt & rub it with the aforesaid medicine & bind
a linnen cloth that is clean about it to keep the dust from it 
then let the edge of the weapon pointing to the window
for a week. If you set the back to the window or with
the point downwards or if you let the weapon fall down
it will pain the party wounded. A French man & Wm
Tilly of Cropston. another Scrape a cows horn & apply 
the scrapings or shavings to the wound etc. old Van of Stanton.
Immoderate bleeding at the nose. Bleed in the arm
by way of revulsion Rx some old dry’d mud well pouder’d
(from a [mad wall]) mix it with some of the blood that 
flows from the nose & put it up into the nostrils & 
you will soon find the effect of it. Monsieur D’Ube’s
Poor Man’s Physician. This said pouder & blood reduced 
to the consistency of a glew or paste & apply’d to a
wound stupendiously stops its blood ibid To stop the
bleeding of a wound or any cut or vein or bleeding at
the nose Rx Some of the blood in a brass ladle & hold
it over a fire till the blood is dry’d to pouder & the blood 
abt the wound or nose will immediately thicken & cease to 
flow or drop. If you try it to stop bleeding at the nose
then put the blood so dry’d to pouder on written paper & 
fold it up & let the patient wear it & keep it warm in 
his bosom or pocket for a day or 2 after or longer lest the bleeding
should return. you must take the blood while it is warm. This
stopt a horse blooded in the plate vein immediately & it seem’d quite 


234)
healed up. you must rub the dry’d blood from the nose to
pouder Mr Jn. Day of Shamford in Leicershire & Tho. Tafte
another To stop bleeding at the nose even in the small pox
when Jn Cater of Blaby was a child & had the small pox he 
bled at the nose as if he would bleed to death. Dr. Boss a surgeon 
advis’d her mother to catch some of the blood in an egg shel & set
it so near the fire that it might dry to pouder & then with her finger
thrust some of that pouder up each nostril which she did & it stopt the
bleeding & saved his life Jn Cater Charles Simons of Blaby dy’d
for want of this remedy having the small pox the blood came out
at his fundamt. Bleeding to excess (in the arm 40 ounces) will 
breed a dropsie or a jaundice The cure for the dropsie is to put old
or new iron lbi in ale 2 qts set it in an oven 5 hours after bread
is drawn or pyes Rd Mr Ed. Stokes. To stop the bleeding at the
nose in man or sucking child. Tie a thred wounded several 
times abt the end of the little finger of the child or man
or Rx 2 pledgets of flax made fit for each nostril, dip 
em in vinegar to make em moist then strew or roll em [illegible]
Roman vitriol made into fine pouder & thrust it up each
nostril. Tho. Hely Dr & farrier To stop bleeding at the nose in 
the small pox Set one leech under the ear on the vein in the hollow pt
of the neck adjoyning to the jaw or near it on that side the nostril bleeds
mostly If that will  not stop it bleed in the arm zij if this does not
answer Let the patient rise from bed give sack whey cold as much as
Take Jesuits bark zi at 8 times or pts divided in water
he or she will drink This cured Mrs Anna Mona Stokes without the bark Octr 3. 717 by Dr
Ed. Cheseldens advice. The bark [illegible] the blood To stop bleeding at the nose even in the
small pox or any bleeding of a wound etc. Rx R. vitriol, white 
copperas, Venice bole p.e. all in very fine pouder mix em with 
wine vinegar or sharp aleager or good verjuice the older the 
better dip a rag therein & thrust it up each nostril or the
bleeding nostril or apply it with lint or hairs wool to a 
bleeding wound Dr Tho. Hely farrier To stop any inward bleeding
as of piles or a wound or spitting blood. Drink the juice of milfoil
(i.e. yarrow) or the pouder of burnt garlick. Br. S.A.’s Rx 
To stop bleeding in any pt of the body, of a wound, of a 
wen cut off etc. Rx oyl of sulphur ½ a spoonfull to 3 
or 4 spoonfulls of the styptick water made by Dr Pool the
mountebank mix em cold in a glass & apply it cold to
a wound with a rag, but to kill a cancer cut off the top of
the cancer & as much of it as you can then touch it with a 
feather dipt in the oyl of sulphur alone, & pull out the strings
with a pair of nippers. It will heal of it self. It causes great 



(235
pain for a little time. you may eat mustard & pepper
sometime after it has been drest when it is in the gums or
tongue. Dr Richd Pool & Daniel Pool, his son.
To stop bleeding at the nose. apply oyl of sulphur 3 or 4
drops mixt with Dr Pool’s styptick water a spoonful in cotton
or lint or a linnen rag snuff it up the nose as much as you 
can. one dressing cures. Put some up the bleeding nostril ibid
To make Dr Pool’s styptick water that will cure a cow staling
blood etc. Rx allum ziij water 2 qts red brasil wood ground zi 1 d white
vitriol al w. copperas ziij boyl altogether strain it. It will stop
bleeding inward or outward. Give a cow abt ziij in new milk
½ a pint or a pint only once, adding oyl of sulphur 6 drops 
The mountebanks use no oyl of sulphur but upon an extra ordinary
case or when they will warrant a cow oyl of sulphur a 
large spoonful to a pint of spring water will cure a cow staling 
blood without the styptick water & is easily carry’d in the pocket
or bags & disguis’d perhaps with alkanet etc. oyl of sulphur apply’d
to the tongue is very sharp & will almost make a man made but
it is over in an instant. It is us’d alone to cancers, wens, ruptures
when cut, or any wound to clean it & to stop the bleeding & 
it is very healing. The oyl of sulphur mixt with the styptick water
is call’d the excanceration water by Dr Pool. Dr Pool can’t cure a 
rupture in a man or woman without cutting. D. P. sometimes Dr
Pool toth not colour it but it looks like clear water then he calls it
aqua excancerate which he says you may use to a cancer
in the eye by dipping the end of a quill in it & thrusting it into the 
hole of the cancer. It stops the bleeding of a wound, drys up any humours.
It is good for a fistula or ulcer, a great dryer, Dip a feather in 
it & touch the sore you must touch a sore with it but once a week It is
good for any wound or sore, any running sore. To clean a foul bone 
good for a sharp humour & sore eyes, made weaker. It cures a bloody [urinc]
taken inwardly It is a searching thing. It will not eat the cork of 
a bottle. Dr. P. 
Bleeding at the nose to stop. Dry a toad beat her to pouder & snuff
a little of the pouder up the nose Jn Put a traveller
To stop bleeding in the small pox or vomiting blood at any other time.
Rx opium zi mixt with antimoniu diaphoreticu zi make it into pills 
for one dose for a man or woman. They cause sleep when you wake Rx [illegible]
styptick water 2 spoon ful’s or any mountebanks styptick water Dr Pool.
Speedwell al. [fluellen] at Paul’s betony Veronica will cure a 
cancer in the nose. It brings the scabs in children. Herbal
nose swell’d & scabby anoint with white lead & train oyl E. A.
for scabs & scalded heads Pechey highly comends garden cresses & lard.
To stanch bleeding at the nose Rx a linnen cloth dip it in frogs 


236)
frogs slubber (or spawn) let it dry in the sun. Do
so again 12 or 16 times till it be well incorporated
into it keep it by you & if you exceed in bleeding take
a piece of it & unravell it & put it into the nose or lay it
to a wound. Mrs Fr. Bickerton & Mrs Caulton. To stop the
bleeding of an artery or any other bleeding Rx male frankincense
(olibanum) (the hard sort) & aloes p.e. beaten to pouder
Beat the white of an egg up to a froth & dip some hare’s wool
in it then dip it in the pouder & bind it on. S. S.
To stop the bleeding at the nose Drink abt 3 spoonfuls of the mountebanks
styptick water This cured Ann Tasie It will not do when it has
lost its red colour & is old. another Dip a little fine rage in Dr Collbatche’s 
pouder dissolved in cold water & thrust it up the nostrils Mrs Stokes 
another. Set a leech to the jugular vein (in the neck) This stopt Ann
Tasie’s bellding at the nose abt ½ an hour then it bled again. Uxor Mea
another apply new hog dung to th temples & the outside & end of the nose 
another Dip a linnen rag in a bason of cold water often, & for a 
long time together & give a squeeze & spred it on the outside of the 
whole nose letting hang down a little over the end of the nose & lie on 
untill the rag feels warm then dip it again & sit by the fire. Have
often fresh cold water This cured Ann Tasie April 1722 Wm Colebatche’s 
pouder & a leech (to the neck & most of the above mention’d
remedies (& the styptick water drank) all in vain. Ann Tasie.
[illegible] [illegible] is frequently us’d to stop bleeding of a wound 
v. Pechey’s Dispensatory p. 207.
This is commended for bleeding at the nose Rx of the clarified
juices of stinging nettles & plantain each 6 ou. aqua lactis
[alexiteria] 4 ou. cinnamon water hardeated 3 ou. w. sugar q.s.
mingle & make a julep Rx 4 ounces morn & evening daily for
3 days Pechey’s disp. p. 139.
The leaves & flowers with the unripe fruit of brambles that
bear black berries infus’d in water with a little hony & drank
stay s the bloody flux or any inward bleeding or outward
bleeding being fomented with it. Mrs Caulton
To stop bleeding at the nose or any where else
Rx 2 new pewter dishes or plates that never have been used
place em one upon another Put nothing in em set em on 
boyling hot water wet some lint well in the oyl that
sweats out of them & put it up the nose or lay it where
it bleeds & it will stop the bleeding with Gods blessing
says Mrs Caulton Nose sore & scabby Jaques
Servt. at Quenby had a nose mightily swell’d & scabby for
many yrs together It was cured by dissolving Roman vitriol
in verjuice & dabing it on cold twice & once a day till well
& afterwards spring & fall. Jaques To stop bleeding at the nose
let the blood drop into a fire shovel heated red hot dry the blood & rub it
to pouder stop the nostrils with it, Sister Boothbys




(237
To make a perpetual blister to draw a rheum from 
sore eyes
You must buy at the apothecaries an oyntmt call’d the perpetual
blister you must apply it at night going to bed spred upon a
flaxen rag not very fine a little bigger than a crown piece Do
not spred it quite to the edge of the cloth but leave a little margin Cover this
plaster with a sticking plaster made of bees wax & dicaculu a third pt of an
inch broader than the cloth spred it upon [illegible] writing paper let em both be round when the blistering
plaster has layn on 12 hours you will find that a small blister is drawn,
from which take the skin gently off with a pair of sissers or bodkin then dress
it night & morning for 2 days with a little melilot plaster afterwards
Dress it with the sticking plaster when you find it begins to abate much
in the running use the blistering oyntmt viz a little as big as a 
large pins head rubbed upon the middle of the sticking plaster 7 so repeat
it as often as you find it begins to dry pu. If at any time it is
hot & burning dress it only with melilot plaster till you find it easy,
then go on again with the sticking plaster & oyntmt as above directed 
Mrs Ellen Stokes. E. A. prefers empl. de minio before melilot.
Crows foot bounded the herbs & bound on the place you
would blister raises a painful & strong blister 
another Rx the ashes of the inward bark of green ash burnt on 
live coles to ashes mix it with vinegar & apply it behind
the ears. It will raise an easy blister & cure the toothach.
Goody Fellows of Enderby. Oyl of (white) 
lillies anointed round a blister stops it from spreding 
any further & the humour from flaying as it runs down.
Sister Boothby. To raise a blister in any pt of the body or
on the finger or any joynt. Moisten the pt you assign to blister
with keen aleager or sharp wine vinegar & moisten your blistering
plaster with keen aleager or vinegar & work it in with your
knife point then apply it & keep the pt warm with a flannel layd
or ty’d over the blistering [plaster] let it lie on 24 hours or not so long
when it pains you much or the blister is broken. If you apply a
blistering plaster ready spred from the apothecary that has layn
long & is dry it will rarely blister unless you moisten 1st the plaster
with sharp vinegar By moistening a plastic with vinegar & working
it over with the knife You may raise a blister 2 or 3 times with the same
old plaster & you may raise a blister on the joynt of a finger which is
very difficult to do. If a bile happens vid. bile


238)
when a blister causes the strangury Mrs Margt Muxloe.
make tea of common mallows & sweeten it with hony or take sweet
almonds blanch’d no 12. Boil fr. barly till it is soft, you need not 
fling away the 1st water pour off the clear liquor then beat the almonds
very fine with D. R. Loaf sugar or w. sugar candy a small quantity
then mix em with the clear liquor & drink plentifully of it, the same 
barly will make a 2nd dose. It is called an emulsion. vic. Quincy’s
Edulcerating Emulsion.
Richard Smith Esquire of Enderby had a violent rheum in his eyes
which was cured at London by a perpetual blister lay’d below the
great bone on his neck a little above the shoulder bones It was
oval spred on alum leather 3 Is long 2 Is broad It raisd a blister
at 1st then he drest it with cabbage leaves for 2 or 3 days then with
melilot salve when it ceased to run he had an ointmt from the apothecary
that was mix’d with fr. flies in fine pouder he apply’d a little of 
that & heap’d it blistering & running a qr. of a yr. R. S.
To prevent a blistering plaster from causing the strangury or any pain
in making water. mix camphor in pouder with the blistering salve Dr
Wright surgeon & man midwife & physician at Darby.
when a blistering plaster is taken off apply a cabbage leaf or
melilot salve for 2 days then melt bees wax & tallow p. e.
& apply it spread on linnen [it] cools inflammations & takes away the 
soreness & cures quots, wheals, whelks, & pimples Dr Geo Cheselden prescribes
another for do apply white of egg wheat flour [illegible] [illegible]
Jane Smith of Blaby
For the [illegible] Rx half a pint of new milk and
sweeten it with lbfs of coarse sugar and drink it do
thus two or 3 times this cured a shepherd of Nighton
when above 60 years old. John Halford d Glen
Another drink or draught of whey in a morning or
posset drink at dinner eat gritt’d meat with onion & 
water and salt ect.



(239
A broken shin
Rx the marrow of beef fresh butter & bees wax melt
em to a salve This cured the Ld Stamford when the London
surgeon could not. This was his house keeper salve good
for any sore. Rd Mr Ed. Stokes Dr Salmon commends tar for a
broken [illegible] & to cure sore difficult to heal Family Dictionary
A bed post at a sale of house hold good was unluckily throne
agt Ann Brays legs It broke both her shins they were swell’d
as big as an egg & look’d black & blood, a little lint was
dipt in vinegar & water warmed & lay’d on the rare places & a rag
was dipt in verjuice & layd over the lint & so bound on This 
was done twice a day by Mr. Joseph Wilks the surgeon’s order
& continued till it made scabs She liv’d with Mr Norton
minister of Blaby Mr Jn Woodhouse yet did great cures in 
surgery always wash’d a sore 1st with cold verjuice to clean & 
prepare it for healing before he apply’d his salves etc. Br S. A.
Tho. [Scabior] [illegible] on Ann Brays legs were cured by the inner bark of
elder & gill run by the ground boyl’d in hogs grease or hogs lard to an
ointmt made by Mrs Norton verjuice or for want of it vinegar & 
water would not cure Mrs Sarah Lathwell’s shin was broken agt
a [illegible] It was thus cured at best by E. A. Rub the [illegible] with 
old oil of Turpentine now may do then wipe it with a clean rag or
cap paper then anoint it [illegible] oil of turpentine & spred some of Bents
salve & rub that with oil of turpentine, the next day rub the same
plaster (after the sore is wiped clean & the plaster clean’d) with [vulnerary]
water made of oil of vitriol& Hungary water or for 
want of Hungary water use camphorated sp. of wine but Hungary
water is best & so apply it when it ceases to run corruption
this ran very little anoint the same plaster with old oil of turpentine
grown thick with keeping. This takes away the [illegible] & 
heals.
Sr. Philip Paris’s plaster (which use in the green book made of red
& white lead soap & oil) is good to heal a broken shin
another Rx tar & hony p,. e. sp. v. a little to cover em boil em to incorporate.
It is anodyne, drying, & healing E. A.
another Robt Finly a boy & serv’t to E. A. coming up brick stairs in 
E. A.’s dary fel down the edge of a brick cut his stockin & broke his
shin almost 2 inches long in January 1729 It swell’d in a little time as
big as a pullet’s egg E. A. at that instant rub’d it with tincture of myrrh
then made some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon setting it
upon a live coal & rub’d on the sore with fingers a pretty while the 
boy sitting near the fire crying then he spred a plaster (made of only 
red lead & sallet oil, boyl’d to a salve) on a rag & apply’d it warm’d
& sew’d a cloth over it & the cloth came off in 2 weeks & the plaster in 
3 or 4 It was quite healed & well with only that one dressing It presently 
took away the pain. Mr Young says in his book of turpentine
that oil of turpentine heated verry hot but not to scald will cure a
green wound at once dressing (covering it with a plaster of red lead or
diaculum or the like) another wash it with rum it is better than S. V.
then cover it with red lead plaster or empl. de minio rum is ext for a bruise 
[Mrs Padmore]


240)
Breech gaul’d with riding
Dissolve some roch allum in water wet a linnen cloth
therein & at night going to bed apply it It will cure by 
morning. Mrs Finch another Dissolve a little of Colebatches
pouder in water & once or twice moisten the sore place E. A.
another apply a diaculu plaster Mr. Winstanly
To prevent gauling. moisten the breech night & 
morning for a long time especially before a journey
with your own water it will harden it. E. A. another Rx verjuice
(the older the better) moisten the breech & inside of the thigh, that
touches your saddle & is apt to gaul, therewith the night & morning
before & every night after riding If you find this does not answer
the expectation add some salt to em so as to make em taste
saltish E. S. verjuice will stain linnen another Line your breeches with a fine
thick flannel such as shirts are made & ty up
your shirt when you ride Dr Million another Rx a
piece of [water] [illegible] which the fire [illegible] undrest & dry, [sew] at to the
your neck from gauling with neckcloth. E. A. to prevent or cure gall’d place
emplastru de minia is better than diaculum apply’d before or after
the place is sore. E. A. a galled horse equus defricata cute.
To prevent galling by riding Rx some melted glew to it
thinly on the breech inside of the thighs then clap on each 
buttock & the inside of each thigh a fine piece of Holland Mr 
Orme apothecary To cure galling caus’d by riding
mix some fullers earth with water apply it to the galled sore
lay’d on a rag at night. Mr. Orme
To prevent galling when you ride a journy two or 3 nights
before you intend to travel Rub the breech & the inside
of the thighs with vinegar 3 pts that is very keen & sallet oyl shak’d
together oft in a viol. E. A. To cure galling scrape some
fullers-earth into a pot or plate moisten it with Hungary
water or spirit of wine spread it upon London brown paper
& apply it. It will prevent galling rub’d on a cloth sew’d 
to the breeches Mr. Amos Taylor.
To cure & prevent galling when you ride or the neck chafed. Boyl
Add [illegible] in sallet oyl or the [combear] dye that is sweet & anoint [illegible] EF


(241
Lapis calaminaris sprinkled in pouder upon [gal’d] places in 
children dries & heals em suddenly. Salmon
Heat some vinegar & sope together & stir it with a stick & wash the gall’d
places [Mascal] says it will cure [illegible] gall’d with a halter bath’d on 
twice a day. Mascal of Cattel. It will dry & heal it in 2 or 3 days, ibid
To prevent galling when you ride Rx a knot & a
cross of elder tree the cross must have 4 equal 
lengths, wear it in your pocket, or take 2 bits of
fresh elder wear [1)] in one pocket & the other in the
other when you ride. Wm Wyat.
Another Sew a hares skin in your breeches
with the fur next your breech. ibid.
To cure a gall’d breech. Drop the tallow of a candle
into your own urine & rub it on at night going
to bed. some say the tallow cures without the urine
another Rub on marl or marly clay free from 
gravel or sand. Wm Wyat.
Pulvis desiccativus a drying powder in Salmons Doron
Rx Pomgranate flowers red roses, red sanders each
ziij camphor zfs mix them and make all into a fine
powder. [?drysapany] excorcation or galling immediately
and most speedily takes away the inflammation and pain 
It cures childrens britches when galld
Galling in children Rx Fullers earth in powder and
shew it upon the place. Fullers earth dissolved in the
yolk of an egg and anoint therewith wash with warm 
water large dispensatory



242)
To stop a looseness in children
Rx the dripping of a roasted shoulder or breast of mutton
the last is best. Give a child of ½ a yr or a yr old three of a 
child’s spoonful fresh dropt It must be roasted without salt
It commonly stops at twice taking You may give it twice in 
a day Mrs Finch.
A child sick in the 1st month of its age & to prevent inward
convulsions & fits. Rx sack, sallet-oyl, plantane water
each 2 spoonfuls warm’d with a little double refin’d sugar
Give it as a clyster. In children that are older enlarge the
dose. It has cured when several noted Drs could not nurse at
Whitehall & Mrs Finch. Clysters generally leave the body
costive & stop a lask. ibid
For a man or woman wash a gallon of the leaves of mallows 
& boyl em in 5 pints of new milk till it comes to 3 taking
of the scum before you drink it strain it & when cold enough drink a pint
at a time 2 or 3 times in a day especially at night going to bed
This has cured & eased pains of the bowels when Drs could not.
Mrs Finch. another boyl rice 3 spoonfuls in 3 qts of water till 
it comes to 3 pints with a good piece of cinnamon. You may add one 
glass of clarret & sweeten it with double refin’d sugar & give it a boyl drink 
this for your constant drink till the looseness stops. ibid E. A. has often
try’d the last with good success. note mallows are opening but they 
are healing & ease pain. E. A. Another Rx Bones burnt in the fire & 
pouder’d & sifted fine mix some cinnamon pouder with it. Rx as much 
as will lie on a good knife’s point just before your breakfast & as
much with your supper Mrs Caulton. To stop a looseness or [the]
bloody flux. Rx as much grated rhubarb as will lie on a six 
pence & dry it before the fire add to it a little plantane water
& drink it Pater Meus.
To bind & stop a looseness. Rx 
bean flower & make a cake with cold water Bake it & 
split it in two Rx a little raspberry wine or clarret & 
heat it & dip the cake into it bind half of it to the navel
when that is cold heat the other half & bind that so apply first one
then another interchangeably ibid another make a little 
cake with the white of one egg beaten & mixt with wheat flower bake it
on a brick near the fire or in an oven then eat it. This cured Jn [Cater]
A looseness Rx The white decoction viz Rx Burnt hartshorn
1 ounce beat it fine. boyl it in spring water 2 qts till it comes to 
one Put in some cinamon sweeten it with loaf sugar Drink
it as much as you can for your constant drink. Drink no other
drink. It infallibly cures says Mrs Caulton
Emplastrum & [crusta] [ponis] Crust of bread plaster spred [illegible] & lay’d to the 


(243
stomach or bowels is good to stop vomiting or diarrhoeas Quincy


244)



(245



246)



(247
To harden an ingraver.
Rx a thick piece of lead viz ½ a pound or a pound piece 
or heavier & make a little hole or impression on the 
lead by thrusting the point of the ingraver cool into the
lead then heat the ingraver red hot (It must be but just red 
hot) & immediately thrust it into the little hole in the lead
which cools it & hardens it. You must not serve the ingravers 
so but only when they are soft. James Davis White Smith of
Croft.
To case harden iron, as the bit of a key (al. the face)
viz that part that turns the bolt & is apt to war & 
cover the key or keys all but the bit that you would 
harden with clay, then Rx horse hooves half burnt so that
you may beat em to pouder If it is overburnt it is good 
for nothing viz Hold the hoof to live or flaming coles
with a pr of tongues till it rises in blisters then rasp em
off then burn & rasp em off again & again till the whole hoof
is rasp’d away. You need not beat it to pouder Rx pouder
of hoof 2 pts salt 1 part. Humane urine (the older the
better) as much as will bring it to the consistence of an 
hasty pudding then put this into a woollen cloth, wrap
yup the keys in it & put it into an iron laddle or iron
pan but because it will spoil or eat thro an iron ladle etc.
at twice using & will melt brass, the best way is to lay it
on an old iron-clout that comes from an axle tree stopping
the holes with nails or stubs, or an old plow-share
or cart bush. It must be hollow, because the less flame
comes to it, the harder there heat it red hot, & as soon as it
is red hot immediately quench it in cold water that is
not greasie; then scour the keys or iron with free stone 
or sand & a stick. James Davis White Smith of Croft.
It will last 20 yrs hard ibid
To harden a piece of iron Rub some barm (al yest) all over the 
iron especially on the upper side then cover the upper side thick
with salt lay’d upon the barm & so cover it with live coals & 
make it red hot & it will be so hard a steel [illegible] will not touch it. Tho.
Taft blacksmith


248)
Iron or steel to brighten. Scrape off the rust and rub
it with [tootchwood]


(249
To kill stomach worms.
Steep species hierae pierae in a pint of sack 3 days shaking
it every day strain out five spoonfuls & drink it in the morning
as long as it lasts S. S.
To kill worms Rx bayberries in pouder as much as will lie on 
a shilling for a child of 2, 3, 4 or 5 yrs of age mixt with treacle 
three mornings together a man or woman may take as much 
as will lie on a half crown 3 mornings successively. It will
bring prodigious quantities of worms away & create a fresh 
lively colour in the face & lips. It scarce has its equal. A woman
at London got a great deal of mony by selling it for worm pouder
Mrs Finch. The essential oyl of savine is frequently 
us’d to kill worms in outward applications to the belly Dr
Quincy’s Dispensatory.
To kill worms. Gather dew worms in the night & put em in a 
linnen bag. You must have 5 or 7 or 9. Bind it upon the navel
with a cloth; if they are alive in the morning, the child
hath no worms; If the child hath worms, they will [stink] & 
be like a salve & this will make em void worms that [illegible] Mrs Elizth
Brown of Leicer
Persons that are afflicted with worms have commonly a stinking breath 
troublesome sleep, frightful & terrible dreams, gnashing of the [illegible], an
itching & often picking of the nose, convulsion vits, a violent headach,
all which disorders are instantly eradicated by Dr Richard Roch’s worm
plaster sold by Dr Roch at the hand & face in water: Lane Black [Fryars]
London.
For the worm Mr Clark says it is an ext medicine
Rx 2 or 3 little onions or one great one sliced steep em in water
½ pint all night the next morning drink the water fasting & fast an
hour after it. Probatum est.
For the worms. Rx rhubarb zi [wormf???] ziiij
burnt hartshorn coriander seeds, rue drys with the
flowers on Mr Palmes. All sour things are goo to 
kill worms hence it is that juice of lemon is ordinarily 
given agt em and in ordinary drink a little sp. of vitriol
to sharpen doth wonders zij of hiera picra more or less 
by it’s bitterness kills and expells worms.
Tincture sacra is ext to kill worms and for a pain in the
stomach and wind in the stomach and [Chexials] tinctura
sacra wont keep long except you add Geneva or brandy to 
the wine. Bates and Quincey. Salmon upon Bates say there
is few better purges in the world



250)



(251
To draw pidgeons to a dove coat
Rx some rushes & boyl em in water with assafoetida or
boyl assafoetida in water in a large pan & as soon as
it is taken off the fire put some rushes into it let em infuse
12 hours put some of these rushes into some of 
the holes in the dove coat & lay the rest on the table & 
they will carry em to their holes & make their nests with 
em taking great delight in their scent & stink. This
is such a powerful [illegible] & monopolizer of pidgeons that
it ought not to be practiz’d says my author (without 
having experimented it himself) Mr Geo. Potchin of Wigson 
This must be practiz’d in [benting] time a little before they 
begin to breed G.P. In benting times or a little before
must people take all their young pidgeons out of the coat
& kill em or break their eggs because the old pidgeons
wanting meat will pine their young ones then but Mr
Geo. Potchin from May Day till midsummer or Wm Hay is
mow’d in the fields giveth his pidgeons on a brick table
in his dove coat every day ½ a strike of good sweet oats,
Poland oats are best for em, by which feeding he preserves his 
pidgeons alive which otherwise will frequently die in bending
time, & hath young pidgeons to sell when they are scarce & 
dear viz at 20 d or 13 d per dozen. when grass is mown, they will 
shift for themselves living upon raz grass seeds & other seeds.
G. [?]
Pigeons affect salt much, therefore be not unprovided of a
shallow pot with sandy gravel in it mixt with cummin seeds
bruised & unbruised & with salt & set it in the dove house upon
a plank or table so that they may come at it. Mr Clark of stony 
Stanton. The better to make pigeons to stay & continue in 
the place you provide for them is to secure a pair or 2 or 
more in the dove house or chamber until they have bred & have 
young ones abt a week old you must feed em with beans soked in 
water & water set in a shallow vessel for em to drink out of thanks 
old ones will not forsake their young but be willing to stay with
em ibid
To draw pigeons to a dove coat. Boil a peck of barly
in a good quantity of water when it has boil’d a qr of an hour add
3 qts of salt or more and let it boil ½ an hour longer then pour
away the water and set it in the dove coat whilst it cools when 
it is cold pour the water upon the table in the coat thro a 



252)
sive to save the barly and let it run where it will
on the ground then sweep the ledges by the holes clean and
scatter the barly up and down and strew some on the table
for the pidgeons to eat offal barly that is full of seeds is as
good as the best, you may take with sparrow [illegible] an old
pigeon or two clip one wing of each pigeon that they may 
not fly away and hold some assafoetida to the fire and
when it is ready to melt rub it under the wing of one or more
pigeon Pigeons love the smell of assafoetida. you must
set water in 2 earthen pots or platters for pigeons with the
cut wing to drink at you must anoint with a feather
dipt in oil of spike the edge of the platters that when 
other pigeons smell thereof (which they will do by touching
the edge of the platter with their breast when they drink) 
they may invite and tempt others to the coat you may do
this to the coat. You may do this in pairing time or when they
breed there being but a few pigeons in the coat. But it is
best to do it in benting time and it is necessary then 
to boil a gallon of barly with a qt of salt once in a 
month’s time to draw pigeons. Tho. [illegible]
To stock or encrease a dove coat To make a
salt cat Rx cumminseeds ziiij boil it in water a
quart or more the more the better sand a qt mix all these
together made in the shape of a sugar loaf and set an dry it
in a oven after a batch of bread or a panchion or dish when 
it is dry and cold anoint it over with a fether dipt in oil
of spike 2 d The pigeons smell of this and it draws other
pigeons to the coat Thos. Satchwell. Use it every spring


(253
Vander Hide’s true & faithfull experimts being a
catalogue of those medicamts he sold off his stages during the
time of his 18 yrs travelling in England, Scotland & Ireland
& foreign kingdoms, to the great benefit of poor indigent
people. nihil [absq?] deo.
1) How to make my brown balsom of Paracelsus for cuts
& green wounds, bruises, contusions of aches.
Rx sallet or linseed oyl ½ a pint, yellow rosin lbfs bees
was ziij barrel pitch zi melt all these together then add
fresh butter zij Rx it off the fire & stir to it liquid storax 
zi oyl of amber zi oyl of mace zfs then put the mixture 
into a pot & this is the true balsam that was made by Dr Tousan 
2) How to make the green oyntmt for burns or
scalds. Rx sallet oyl ziiij fresh butter lbfs rosin ziiij plantane
leaves mi houseleek mi cabbage leaves mi boyl all
these together ½ a qr of an hour, then strain it thro a linnen
cloth & put the into a skillet again & put to it bees wax 
zij cut into small pieces & having verdigrise zij dissolv’d in
sallet oyl 3 spoonfuls, put it in the composition. After the
bees wax is melted you must let the composition be cool before 
you add the verdigrise, lest the oyntmt be not green but
brown & this is the true oyntmt that I sell.
3) How to make the vermi-victor or worm-vanquishing pouder 
which if it be thus prepared is the only remedy in the world.
Rx horehound, red sage, tormentile, coriander seed, burnt hartshorn,
salt of wormwood, salt of scurvy-grass & coraline
each zfs finely pulverised; mix all these together Give as much
as will lie on a sixpence to a child & twice the quantity to a 
man or woman; let em take it in a morning fasting & fast
an hour after it.
4) How to make the brown plaster
Rx burgundy pitch rosin, gum amoniack, gum elemy & bees
wax, mastick & sanguis draconis each zij sallet=oyl 2 or 3 spoonfuls
& barrel pitch zi. Put these into a skillet upon the fire melt
em together & stir em well when you see em all melted dip in a
linnen cloth or good cap paper so long & so broad as you wou’d
have the plaster to be This is the true plaster that I use  for any weakness
or pain in the back, to sciatica gout, or pain in any pt of the 


254)
the body or for ruptures or broken bellies.
5) How to make the cephalick purge for the brain,
or pouder for the head. Rx rosemary, sage betony 
angelica-root, juniper berries, curcuma root, Virginia tobacco,
benjamins white hellebore, elecampane & amber, each
grains 20. Beat em all to fine pouder This is the pouder I sell
you for all great pains in the head, with many other distempers 
by snuffing the quantity of a barly corn up the nose at
night going to bed.
6) How to make a familiar & mighty cathartick,
diuretick, purging pill.
Rx rosin of jalop, rosin of scamony, extract of turbeth,
extract of agarick, extract of rhubarb, the cordial pouder
of deahurden, mercurius dulcis, each zi Dry em all very
fine to pouder Rx coloquint zviii beaten to fine pouder & diagridium
zij mix them all together & make them up into a body
with gum tragacant dissolv’d in spirit of wine; when you are
making it up int o a mass mix it with a dram of oyl of
cloves; & when you’ve brought the mass to a hard substance
you may make it into pills. If you wou’d have em coverd 
over with sugar send em to a sugar bakers but I will assure 
you they are as good without If I shou’d nominate every 
particular person that hath found benefit by this pill, a whole 
quire of paper would not contain it. It has done good to most
distempers incident to the body of men or women Let children
from a yer of age to 3 take one from 8 to 16 let em take 2, 
give three to men or women let them take em before supper
eat a light supper after em; they will work abt 10 or 12 hours
after at the same time you may work or play, go abt in the heat
of summer or cold of winter
7) How to make my oleum benedictum for convulsion
fits, falling sickness, stone or gravel or any unsavery
breath, small pox, measles, cough or consumption.
Rx oyul of turpentine zfs or ziiij oyl of amber, oyl of juniper
berries, oyl of anniseeds, oyl of nutmegs, & oyl of mandrake
each zi Jews pitch or mummy let that dissolve in the
oyl of turp. 1st mention’d then mix em all together & let the party
grieved with any of the said distempers take as many drops as they are 
yrs of age in a glass of white wine (or white mountain) morning 
& evening. It is also an infallible remedy for those that are troubled
with agues, by taking half a spoonful in a good large glass
of mull’d sack an hour before the fit comes, & sweat upon it two
hours in bed. You must add oyl of cinnamon zfs to the ingredients which 
was omitted by mistake.



(255
8) How to make a pouder for sore eyes
Rx Tartar vitriol, salt of saturn, each 6 gr. oris pouder 18
gr. white allum 6 gr. [cathanilla] (i.e. cochireel) 10 gr. lapis calaminaris,
sacharu saturni x each 4 gr Beat all these together & 
put em into a pint of running water (x each 4 grains)
9) How to make this antidote pouder call’d the true orvietan
of Rome a cordial.
Rx angelica root, serpentine root, contrayerva root, galangal
root, dietamnus root, aristolochia root, gentian root, orris
root, meum root (i.e. spignel) casamus root (  ) zedaary
root, acorus root, agarick, ginger root, each zi peraterium ziiij
trochisk, flesh of vipers red roses, dictamnus dittany leaves marubiu horehound
leaves, saffron, each 40 gr. seeds of annis, parsly, fennel, caraway
cummin, basie seed, cisilias seed, cubeb, cardamum each 30 gr.
cloves, cinnamon, Gaskins pouder nutmeg, white pepper, coriander
each 40 gr. lemnian earth, storax, calamint, juniper berries, elecampane
each zi curcuma root (i.e. turmerick) ziij sagapeny
opoponax each zi Beat all these to fine pouder & mix it with 
pure hony & it makes the true Roman orvietan.
10) my antiscorbutick diet drink (my last farewel) being 
the usefullest thing in this age for the scurvy, dropsie or
jaundice, being used every spring & fall.
Rx hartstongue brooklime, scabious, red dock roots, parsly 
roots, dwarf elder, tops of broom that is green, white briony
roots, each 6 ounces with 4 ounces of liquorice, sassafras, 
sarsaparilla, rhubarb & the 4 greater cooling seeds, Rx casia
in the cane lbfs, China ziiij let these be all sliced & bruised 
together by the apothecary & boyled in 5 gallons of fine
midling ale, untill one galn be wasted, when it is 4 days old let
the patient drink a pint or as much as their stomach can bear
every morning & at 3 o clock in the afternoon every spring
& fall.
Whilst some do scrible, others stories tell,
The true physicians known by doing well
Experiential docet.






258)


(259
To drive crows from a ground or field
Dig around hole in the ground like a fulmere hole, abt
as big as a man may thrust in his hand leaving some
molds on the outside then dress some feathers of a crow
with assafoetida, flower of brimstone, train oyl, gunpouder 
soot etc. any thing that stinks & dip some of the crows feathers
therein & stick em viz 2 or 3 feathers at the mouth of
the hole & put some feathers of the body into the hole
as if a fulmere had drawn a crow into the hole & this
will fright crows away better than a turf dug up or any thing
abt 3 crows will dress a whole corn field Mr Geo. Potchin 
of Wigson. This E. A. try’d in vain the weather being rainy 
in the yr 713. another Rx grease & soot & the oldest tallow
& most stinking you can get, each lifs gunpouder ziiij
the juice of burdock leaves a spoonful or less may do
Put em all in a pot or pan & warm em & dress the feathers
of a crow when melted & stick em put & down upon the ground 
by 3 in a place or 6 in a place, and dress bunches of feathers
6 in a bunch & ty em to sticks one dressing will last till 
corn is above ground unless a great deal of rain falls then
dress again. This will also keep sparrows from a corn house
or corn in a field or [illegible] The juice of one dock leaf may 
serve but more is better Ed. Manton of Little Brighton 
Northonshire & Francis Car of [Brixwith]
another To drive away crows or any other birds from ground
or hovel in spit of rain. Page of Brixwith Rx assafoetida zi
hard tallow lbij boyl em together & let em stand to cool (you 
must boyl em but a little time) then add verdigrise zi in fine pouder
together then draw the feathers thro it. Fr. Car. of do. This E. A. try’d
in vain. To kill crows or sparrows or to drive em away from 
a place Rasp or rather file with a large rough file nux vomica
the finer it is the better It will not pound. Boyl some barly 
as soft as wheat for frumety when it is cold put the pouder of 
nux vomica in a linnen cloth then add some boyl’d barly & roll
it abt let it dry then strew it in several places after the plow 


260)
& it will kill crows or pidgeons or sparrows or
anything that eats if for it is a strong poyson. To kill
a fox or foxes. Cut off the skin of a young lamb where
the foxes resort & cut several slashes on it & strew 
nux vomica in pouder on em & it will kill all the foxes as that
eat of it. You may catch crows after they’ve eaten the
poyson’d barly tie em up alive by the heels two by two 
to sticks & the crows will take an hatred to the place
or hovel for a long time Dr. Pool.
To drive crows from a hovel. Rx assafoetida 1 d (  ) bacon grease
the quantity of large hazelnut put em in a little black [illegible] set it
on live Coles till the devils dung is dissolv’d then add a little
gun pouder beaten or unbeaten & set the pot having a little bit
broken off to let out the scent under the top of the thatch of
the gable end of a pease or corn hovel covering the pot with 
a piece fo tyle or slate with an hole in’t or a piece of lead or
wood to tie it to as to guard it from rain & wet The crows will
smell it & will not endure to light or settle on the h ovel & 
once dressing will guard it for a qr of a yr old Jn Braumont of
Great Glen.
To drive crows from a hovel or corn or a close new sowed
with corn Jn [Tate] ratcatcher of Loughborow
Shoot six or more crows or kites take their skins off them
Take assafoetida 6 d Gunpouder zij in fine pouder brimstone
in pouder or flower of brimstone zij hemlock (al. 
[illegible]) abt 4 ou. of the tops of the [kechs] Pound em to pouder 
when dry, & pound all together with stinking butter or soft grease
of any sort Rub the oyntmt on the inside & outside of
the skins. Tie em upon sticks & set em in the wind & the 
crows will not abide the scent of em The grease will keep 
the scent in for a month stock the hovels with em to the
windward. it will n to fright pidgeons away. It will h old
good in spite of rain or snow but after rain you must
dry em in the air of a barn or bring em in when it rains & 
set em out when dry. E. A. thinks train oil better than grease
To keep crows from corn or a hovel. Shoot a crow
& stick her bill in the ground & spread her wings with 
stick or lay a stone on em her belly lying on the ground.
Wm March



(261



262)
The stone
Mrs Caulton of Leicer takes every morning
brown sugar candy in pouder mixt with butter the
quantity of a small nutmeg fasting & fasts 2 hours 
after (she eats no breakfast) It made her void 15 or 
16 small stones in a day & freed her for 2 or 3 yrs
& perhaps all her life. she never had a fit of the stone
since nor any pain & once she lay 2 months & was 
given up for dead formerly with a fit she is now
sometimes troubled with gravel but it is very litle
& seldom. she never misses a day in a yr taking
it. Mrs Caulton. another Rx mallows & devils bit each mi
& a leaf or 2 of scabins boyl em in a pt of smal ale posset drink
S. S. the stone or weakness in the back Rx crabs eyes, sal prunellae 
& liquorice each zi in pouder Rx as much Venice turpentine
as will make it roll into pills. Rx 2 or 3 every morning for a 
good while together S. S. To bring away gravel, to prevent
the stone & to cure a violent pain in the back. Put ale a
pint into a pan let it just boyl pour it to common treacle lbfs 
pr 1 d ½ so with 2 pots or mugs pour it backwards & forwards 3 or 4 
times till the treacle is dissolv’d then drink it as hot as you can
& go to bed to sweat or you may ride after it any where in
warm weather or walk in cold within doors. This brought a great
quantity of gravel from Sam. Exon carpenter & cured him of a 
great pain in his back & freed him from both for many yrs & for
ought I know for all his life Sam. Exon.
For the stone & gravel Rx horse stones when colts are gelt which 
it commonly in the latter end of March, in April or the beginning of 
May the yearling colts are gelt dry em in an oven after bread
beat em to powder
For the gravel take as much of the pouder as will lie on a shilling
only at night in common mallow to parsley root tea each mi
will make for 2 or 3 nights. Drink half a pint or more at a time
for abt three weeks or longer if it is for the stone then take as
much as will lie on a half crown & once a wash take one ounce
of epsom salt in whey or posset drink when you take the pouder 
for the gravel or when you take only as much as will lie on a 
shilling then you need not take the salts. The pouder is bitter & 
hot & the salts cool & prevent an inflammation. MR Richard Porter
stockin maker in Chesterfield Lane near the brick church in Nottingham 
was violently afflicted with the stone This pouder & tea & salts dissolve
& carry it off He was cured & continued well & free from pain 
It was half a year after he had taken it when he gave E. A. this acct 
It brought away as much gravel as would fill an ordinary woman’s 
thimble almost every time yet he made water. He made water 
in a white bason 



(263



264)



(265
Tetter or ring worm herpes impetigo.
vinegar of lead will kill tetters [illegible]
Dissolve some Roman vitriol in water moisten the sore
& hold it agt the fire to drive it in or you may moisten
the sore with spittle & often rub it with R. vitriol & 
let the fire dry it. This cured one of Sister Bs daughters.
another unguentu nutritu cured a ringworm on a womans
thumb & took away the itching at Leicer. vid. Salmon’s Family 
Dictionary. Rx fair water at qt white vitriol, roch 
allum each zi mix & dissolve & with this water wash the tetter
2, 3, or 4 times a day for a qr of an hour at a time, as hot
as can be endured In 10 days time it will perfectly cure it
tho it has been of 20 yrs standing ibid of Rx tobacco oyntmt
ziiij turpenthu minerale zi mix & apply it plasterwise ibid
The shingles [Herpes.] Blood in the arm Rx Dock roots that are yellow scrape
& slice em boyl some vinegar pour it on boyling hot & let
it infuse like tea being cover’d by the fire for an hour
or 2 then you may remove it & moisten the spots the next
day there with morning & night drink manna zi dissolv’d in German 
span water half a flask for a man or woman a gentle purge
or infuse zij in a whole flask & take half & intermit 3 
or 4 days & take the other half. after you’ve us’d the vinegar
& docks 2 or 3 days to kill the spots anoint with unguentu album
& lay a plaster thereon made of Agyptian ung. [populreu]
ung. nutritu ung. martiatu dress once a day abstain from
malt drink. Drink white wine & water or whey. Shingles are
little red spots very sore appearing commonly abt the waste
Mother Majers appear’d abt her breast under her arm & on 
the shoulder June 714 & was cured as above mention’d by 
Dr Chiselden. Joseph Large had the shingles & it was 2 
months before he was well ibid. The roots of the sharp 
pointed dock boyl’d in vinegar cure & take off the itch & scabs
(the place being wash’d by the decoction) & the breakings out of 
the skin Salmon


267)
The shingles & tetter or ringbone are almost
all the same The shingles in young people commonly 
encompass the waste in old people they appear
sometimes in the shoulder breast, tongue or eye. Dr
Chiselden. Goody Exon was cured of the shingles by 
anointing em twice a day with the hot blood of a
pidgeon now blooded abt pidgeons cured her. another
a plaster of keen mustard & spred upon paper & lay’d on
is an infallible cure Sister Boothby Some kill the
shingles with cats blood winter darker another Rx a little
old Hay & burn it & hold a hatchet over the smoke till it
doth sweat then rub the shingles with it every night till they 
are gone. Mr Corbet apothecary & W. P. another Pound rue
& mint & rub the juice on the shingles twice a day till well. This 
cured Ch. Chesters daughter Mrs Basset. For the shingles or 
a tetter Rx tar (the best) 4 or 5 good spoonfuls the thickest
cream the same quantity boyl these together till it comes to 
an oyl then anoint with it 2 or 3 times a day which will cure it.
Try this for a mallender E. A. Mrs Caulton. The shingles If
they be just come out the best Fr. brandy rub’d on em will kill
em, but if they be very bad Rx the suet of a loyn of mutton,
render it in silver or any thing but brass. strain it & with 2 bits 
of soft rag putting one in whilst you use the other dab it well on 
as hot as you can bear it for some time & do it 2 or 3 times a day.
It will kill them if never so bad says Mrs Caulton. Jn Groococks wife
of Cosby kill’d & cured a tetter only by washing it with the mountebanks
styptick water twice or thrice a day It being red water such 
as is commonly given to cow that stales blood J. G. The tetter sp.
salis communis will kill a tetter it is apt to cause an inflammation 
therefore abt a qr of an hour after it is apply’d anoint it with train
or sallet oyl Try it on a mallender Mr Cook apothecary oyl of
eggs takes away tetters, ringworms, morpherv & scabs. Salmon’s Disp
Dr Pool commends oleum myrrhae per deliquium mallender Rx B.
pepper in pouder mixt with goose or hogs grease Jn Mot of Rush’d [illegible]
Try whether Jamaica pepper will not do.
a Rx for the shingles or St 
Antonies fire. Rx house leek boyl it in cream
with some juice of five leav’d grass (or ST. Foil) a little plantane Let it
boyl till it comes to an oyntmt. S. S.
another for the same. spred tar on leather & lay it all over the pt
grieved. S. S. another apply allum posset card warm. Goody Simons
Drink flower of Brimston in milk to drive out the shingles ibid
Elizth Gimson was cured of an obstinate Ringworm in her arm with fasting
spittle 1st moisten’d then rub mud all on’t as oft as it itched E. G. or Rx mud
wall in pouder in a pot in the morning spit to it mix & bind it on with a linnen
cloth ibid.


(268
The falling down of the womb
or the bearing down of the mother
Rx white wine half a pint heat it very hot then put to 
it syrup of marsh mallows one ounce Drink it as hot as you can
going to bed once taking comonly cures if not repeat
the dose Mrs Anne Windsor midwife & Mother Majer 
If you can’t hold the water take cinnamon zfs in pouder boyl’d
in a pint of aq. vitae take 3 spoonfuls at night going to 
bed. Aunt Boothby.
The bearing down of the womb. spred a plaster of Mrs Caulton’s
red lead salve al. Aunt Boothby’s cerecloth or Bent’s
salve or diaculum cum gummis abt 8 i long & 5 i broad
cut oval & drawn to a point at each end. Boyl the third pt
of an ou. of isinglass in a pint & ½ of new milk tillit is wasted
almost to a pint eat ½ a pint night & morning till well If it is
too thick add more milk when you warm it a second or third time
Mrs Caulton.
For any pain in the womb caused either by child bearing or
coition attended with pain after making of water & an incontinence
of urine The lips of the matrix being sore & swell’d. Both
the outside & inside with Hungary water & a fine rag as far
at you can conveniently thrust it in 2 or 3 times a day especially 
night & morning or with lime water in which mercury sublimate 
has been dissolv’d according to Mr Boyls Rx adding a small quantity
more of the mercury than the Rx mentions. E. A.
The leaves & bark of lentiscus i.e. the mastick tree help 
the exiture of the womb & fundament Salmons Dispensatory
Salmon’s Dispensatory has a plaster called emplastrum
[metropoptotien] I e a plaster for the falling out of the womb
A decoction made of the leaves & [flowers] of acacia (it
grows in Egypt) & the juice dissolved in it is ext for the falling
of the womb & fundament Pechey’s Herbal acacia Salmon’s Dispensatory 
calls it the Egyptian thorn. the juice of the unripe seed is
put into treacle It is of a cooling, drying binding & glutinating
quality. Quincy says


269)



(270
Rx Pine tops miiij boyl em well in six galns of ale wort then 
tun it into a vessel & when it is purging put in a bag into which pout
dock roots dried ziiij sage, scurvy grass, gill & betony each mi
The peels of four sevil oranges cut when they have been tun’d
a week you must bottle the ale & a week after that it will be ready
to drink. Sr Walter Littleton & Pater Meus G. A.


271)
The gout.
April 714 Mrs Howet my mother having the 
gout in both her feet kept it out of her stomach thus
& the pain & swelling went away without any thing apply’d
to em. Rx as mjuch Gascoin’s pouder as will lie on a six 
pence in a little water or any cordial water at night it is an 
alkali & eat oat meal pudding or poch’d eggs which are alkalis
to destroy the acid of the stomach which is the cause of the gout
when in excess, Venice treacle is good Dr [Horreman] & Br G. A. my 
mother drank posset drink made of ale & milk for her general
drink to keep the gout of her stomach taking sometimes
a little Fr. brandy sometimes a glass of white wine
Mr Jn Wilkins clock-maker of Leicer having the gout in ‘
his stomach & vomiting up every thing that he took being
vert weak & confin’d to his bed was thus cured by Dr
Hartop. Rx clarret one spoonful warm’d at a time then 
2 spoonfuls then a glass with a clove of garlic after it
is 12 hours he drank a bottle which the gout out of his
stomach into his hands which recover’d him. J. A.
Eat no breakfast if you would be free from the
gout (& but little or rather no supper) This long evacuation
of the stomach makes a compleat concoction, prevents
the unnatural heat & fermt of the blood which appears oft 
in the hands sometimes in the foot which creates a dulness 
& lethargy & the gout E. A. another Th Rd Mr Smith of
Shamford in Leicershire freed himself of the gout in the
foot by anointing it with oyl of turpentine.
Another Dr Salmon commends by his own experience emplaster 
of hemlock with ammoniacum for pains of the spleen & of the
gout. Disp. p. 777. another anoint the pt pained by the gout or
rheumatism or by any obstruction with oyl of tobacco (not the oyntmt)
2 or 3 times intermitting 6 or 7 hours. Mr Penford apothecary.
another Eat prunes, sometimes hony & bread & butter E. A.
another anoint with unguentu [comitissed] acidulated with oyl 
of vitriol & cover the pt affected with flannel to make it
sweat The hands or feet must wear flannel muffs at night
after they are anointed This Dr Jackson’s oyntmt found out
b y E. A. another sp of sal armoniac mixt with equal quantity of camphorated
sp. of wine & lay’d in a pledget to the gout, often renoving it, gives
case to a miracle Salmon’s Disp.



(272
The gout in the stomach vid p. 296
The gout or any uncommon burning in the hands or feet or
any pt of the body. Boyl some oat meal with water as for
water gruel with some raysins of the sun ston’d & slit, or eat
raysins & salt E. A.
Mr Simon Stokes attorny at law of Melton Mowbray had the
gout 1st in one foot the 2nd fit It came into his stomach the 3rd 
time it came it seised his head when Dr Hartop told him the gout commonly 
attack’d the weakest pt He was a hard drinker The Dr said never
any man died of the gout till he was past 45 yrs old. He had an
issue made on the inside his leg before the knee & it freed him fro
the gout for four yrs together & he thought it wou’d never return S. S.
It did return after wards He thought it came by drinking small
ale. He freed himself fro it thus In the morn he drank a porringer of water gruel
with only salt in it & a spoonful of [illegible] [illegible] after it was made [illegible] fasted till 3 or 4
MR Wm Welles of Thrussington freed himself of the gout by
smoking tobacco
The powers at the 3 tuns in Adderston inkeeper when he has the gout
in the bunnion of his great toe, he anoints it with oyl of turp.
the he has a brick ready heated red hot in the fire which he quenches
in water till it has done hissing then he puts it into a thick flannel
bag made like a purse & draws it up close with a string & being in 
bed applys it as hot as he can endure it & let it lie to it all night
which causes the pain to sweat out then he drinks ½ a pint of clarret 
or warm ale to keep it out of the stomach This he repeats 3 or 4 nights
till the pain is quite gone Mr Amos Taylor
another Sr Charles Duncomb King James 2ds banker us’d to fry camomile
in fresh butter or hogs lard & apply it to the gouty toe.
ibid. A reservative agt the gout a pint of milk being taken 
in over night & in the morning all the cream scum’d off very clean,
till it comes to near half a pint & put away & as much flowers of
of brimstone as will lie on a half crown being first mixt in a spoonful
or 2 of it after it is a little warm’d & then well mixt with the remainder
& drank, fasting an hour after is an ext preservative agt the gout & 
a purifier of the blood It must be taken several mornings together S. S.
Mr Simon Stokes above mention’d drank water gruel in a morning 
with only salt in it, mixt with one spoonfull of milk after it was 
made when he travell’d to a friends house there he drank chocolate
in a morning instead of water gruel & fasted always 
till 3, 4, 5 or 6 o clock at night. This fasting so long emptied & 
cleared his stomach & whetted it so that he eat anything very
heartily at night & drank wine or stale drink or ale or any 
liquor he fancied, plentifully & was freed from the gout 5 yrs successively
& for ought I ever heard all h is life after Mr. Simon Stokes.


273)
The gout. Mr Orme
To prevent the stone & gout. Drink scum’d milk boyl’d
& mixt with green tea water p.e. sweeten’d with hony every 
morning all the yr round. Tea 1 ou. will serve eight mornings.
Rx tea zi make a pint & put in a spoonfull of hony
This Mr. Orme the apothecary drinks constantly every morning
so as to have one stool every day if it works more
he takes less hony or omits a day. He had his gout & gravel
This method freed him from both those distempers. He says
he has cured several poor people of consumptions by advising
em to drink milk pottage sweeten’d with hony morn & 
night to avoid malt drink. If every body knew the 
virtue of hony it would be 1 d per lb. He eats & drinks nothing
till dinner after his honey’d tea Mr. Tho. Orme drinks
½ pint of milk & ½ pint of tea water every morning. Hony 
is less griping taken thus than after it has been formented
ibid. [illegible] gum ammoniacu in Salmon’s Family Dictionary there
is a plaster of Mr New the surgeon that he says cures the gout in 
any pt of the body
The roots of [illegible] comfrey beaten small fresh taken, spred upon
leather & lay’d upon any place troubled with the gout doth
presently give ease of the pains. Parkinson’s Herbal.
For the gout. Boil a pottle of strong ale till it is very thick like
slime beat saffron ziij to fine pouder & the yolk of two eggs & oil of
roses one spoonful mix all these well together & spred some of it on 
a linnen rag doubled & apply it to the place grieved. Mrs. Howet E. A.’s mother
April 1739 a pain & stifness seized E. A. right hand & fingers like the gout.
he held his hand in hot water almost ready to scald & the pain & stifness vanished
presenter after
Mr Orme that is troubled with the gout once in 5 years
says that purging with rhubarb or any other drug will 
not drive the gout away but only gives ease during the 
working of the purges the gout afterwards returns with 
greater violence. He commended outward unction viz Rx
camphorated spirit of wine, spt of sal amoniae and
alicant sope mixt together let it stand to warm a little
against the fires before it is used. This E.A. try’d several
times at the latter end of March without finding any 
eases or benefit when he had the hip gout
He found the most relief rubing a coarse handkercher & 
a flesh brush by night and by day from his hip down
to his ankles Mr Orme says what cures a rheumatism none
cure the gout.


(274
Chilblaines or kibes.
IF they are only swell’s wash em with uuman urine the older
the better as hot as you can abide it every night beginning
at 1st with a moderate degree of heat & increase gradually
to a greater cover it with diaculu simplex a plaster If
it is swell’d & has holes in it repeat the said medicine only 
after the swelling is abated Bath it only with warm allum posset
drink & apply the curd warm to’t If there is much proud flesh
strew burnt allum on the curd Let it be drest but once with the 
curd in 2 days. It draws it white when it is dry’d & heal’d Bath it with old
urine hot to harden it you may sometimes add a little salt
to the urine a great cure was done thus by Ann Tasie
another If only swell’s a plater made of rosin & tallow will 
cure it but if swell’d & broken & rare with an hole or holes & 
full of pain. apply this poltis to take away the anguish. Rx
new milk & oatmeal stir em together cold to make oatmeal pudding
not very thick let em boyl then add mutton suet skin’d or tallow or
deers suet (you make keep mutton suet rendered for this use) & hous
leek wash’d & chopt small boyl to the consistence of thick oatmeal
pudding bind it on with a cloth as hot as you can endure it Let it
rest 12 hours or longer Heal it with rosin & tallow or diaculum.
a great cure was done thus by Mrs Frear. You may strew burnt
allum sometimes on the diaculum. Ann Tasie. vid. Kibes in Dr Salmons
Family Dictionary. Kibes swell’d Rx allum & white copperas
each one ounce in pouder infuse in water a pint. Bath it on warm agt
the fire Mrs Ann Lathwell. another Boyl a knuckle of veal in water
to make it very tender bath it with 2 rags as one grows cold the other
may heat agt the fire as hot as you can endure it. This takes away the
pain, if the kibes happen to have a kick or bruise It hath cured swell’d
& blister’d legs used 3 or 4 times Mrs Ann Lathwell.
Raw kibes Bath em with camphorated water a rag dipt in it as
hot as you can endure it Then apply a plaster of Aunt Boothby’s
cerecloth made of red lead oyl & bees wax called the red lead salve
Dress it once a day. This has cured a great many Sister Boothby.
Dr Quincy in his dispensatory says unguentum [rubricum] [illegible] siccativu
[illegible] is so much us’d for kibes which children are very subject to
in frosty weather that it is often asked for by the common people
by the name of kibe oyntmt. fir it cools & cicatrizes em very
soon.
To cure the itching of kibed toes or feet. moisten em with brine of
beef or pork & hold em agt the fire to work in, at night. E. A.’s men
servts use this with benefit. another with a lancet make em bleed in
several places or whip em with a holly branch This cures Mr Coy




275)
For kibed [heels] raw
warm some milk by quenching a hot iron in it once 
then bath the sore with the then strew on oister shell powder
to keep the proud flesh down then apply a plaster of
[diaculum] to keep the [stockin] from it & to dry & keep it warm
Dress it once a day. Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer.
For kibed heels or chilblanes broken or whole The paps
of roasted apples are most excellent Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother.
To prevent kibes or chilblaines. Burn oat straw 1st dry’d to ashes
steep em all night in cold water the next day boil the water & 
ashes together & bath the hands or feet in it 3 or 4 times for
3 or 4 days Mr Jn Needham E. A.’s servt
Kibes raw dress em with sallet oil & white lead Joyce Gimson E. A.
servt. The castle soap plaster al Sir Philip Paris’s plaster Wm Mather’s
Young Man’s Companion 3rd edition says will cure chilblains & kibes.
Mather’s same book says p.90 one plaster of burgundy commonly cures
kibes, if you do not bruise the place with your shoes or the lead plaster
al. empl. de minio. Or a dry oak leaf when it is almost well
Kibes heels swell’d and raw. Rx [Fuzballs] the pouder and bind it
to the sore with a linnen rage renew it once a day it will ease the
pain if raw apply the inside skin of the fuzball shift that once
a day washing it in cow piss to allay the itching Mr Laughton.
Kibed heels raw Aunt Boothby Rx the white of an egg & lay 
it on some sheeps wool that is pretty fine & apply it to the kibe.
Renew it once in 24 hours & it will cure it, says Jane smith of
Blaby. To cure the itching of a kibe’d heel or toe that
is not broken. Boil some raw allum in the water as much
as will give a strong tincture of the allum dip a
rag in it and [dap] it with as hot as you can abide
it several times one after another John Hewet
Another moisten some salt with your spittle
and rub the itching part with it a rag being moisten’d
with it then hold it as near the fire as you can endure
it three or 4 times one after another. Joyce Gimson



(276
Immoderate or superfluous evacuation
of the monthly terms.
I can assure you, by my own experience that a cataplasm
made of two whites of eggs with a little bolus,
apply’d to the region of the kidneys has frequently & 
immediately stop the immoderate flux of the menstru
al blood. If the said flux proceeds from a sharp quality’
of the blood, which by its long continuance has dry’d up 
all the moisture of the body. Rx a porringer of fresh cows
milk (which thickening the blood, does by degrees restore the
moisture) every morning for a whole month without
intermission extinguishing a red hot steel in it every 
time you use it. Monsieur D’ube’s Poor Man’s Physician.
another Rx the best rubarb rasp’d or grated as much as will lie
on a shilling or more if the flooding is violent, in a spoonful
or 2 d cherry brandy, aniseed water or common brandy. This cured
Ann T. E. A. for immoderate fluxes of the courses The pouder the
distill’d water the syrup & the conserve of red poppies are in use.
Pecheys Herbal.
This is ext for an immoderate flux of the courses.
Rx plantain water 2 ou. rubarb pouder’d [illegible] ij yellow myrobalans 
pouder’d [illegible] i syrup of dry’d roses zfs mix & give
it in the morning; 2 hours after let some broth be taken
ibid







279)
French pox, morbus gallicus.
Balm of Gilead, balsamu gileadense, balsamu e mecha
Let me discover one secret not yet vulgarly known. This
balm of Gilead has the greatest force of all vegetable productions
in curing the French pox. a word to the wise is enough
It exceeds guaiacu, sassaphras, China etc. Dr Salmon’s Disp.
Pechey’s Herbal says guaiacum i.e. lignum sanctum or packwood
in curing the French pox.



(280
Breast hard & swell’d
Ruth Winter a maid abt 16 yrs old was cured of a hard
swell’d breast thus. Rx white wine a qt in which infuse
stub nails lbi 12 hours or longer Drink ½ a pint in the morn & 
at 4 o clock in the afternoon one qt commonly gives 
ease & 2 qts cure it. Walk after it Rx Winter keep it in
a bottle close stopt. ibid Mrs Sprigs of [Shearsby] had a hard
swell’d breast not broken when Dr [Hatton] of Harborow had had 40 lb
of her to no purpose Wm Bent farrier cured it only by anointing it with 
linseed oyl cold once a day it dispersed the humour & made it well. W. B.
A cancer or sore breast with knots in it
Rx a piece of new flannel that is soft & warm, & has never been wet 
dip it in a blew wad fat nine times every day or as you’ve opportunity
& wear it all over the breast, shifting it once a month. You 
may dip as much as will serve 2 or 3 times It has cured great knots in
the breasts supposed to be cancers & done cancers good Mrs Caulton.
A breast swell’d or broken
apply Bents salve, often approved by Mrs Elizth Halford.
A poultis for a swelling or a sore breast. Dr Arden Elsmere.
Rx a white lilly root, [smallage] a small handful mallows & chickweed 
each a large handful shred em small together put em in a pint 
of new milk or better with as much oatmeal as will thicken it Boyl
it pretty well then put in hogs lard or sheeps suet 3 ou. the 1st is
best. Boyl it thick & spred it on a cloth. Lay it on as hot as you 
can abide it. shift it twice a day. It will disperse the swelling or
brake it to heal it. Lay Mrs Caulton’s black salve on it when it is broken 
& the poultis on the top of it. If there is a hole in it tent it with basilicon.
Mrs Caulton. It is not good to tent a sore breast it often causes
shooting pains in the breast all the life after Sister Boothby
A milk sore breast swell’d or broken Dr Smith of Findon.
Rx linseed 6 ou. boyl it un bruis’d in a qt of new milk till it is
very thick If you would have it draw more add white bread 
crums a spoonful spred it upon a linnen cloth near an inch
thick to cover all over the breast before you lay it on do it  
all over with a feather dipt in sallet oyl apply it twice a day
as hot as you can abide it to the cheeks It takes away the pain, 
disperses or breaks & heals it. It is good for all hard swellings.
after the breast is well apply a plaster of diaculum over it & 
wear it till it comes off. You need not tent the breast when broken
Dr Arden Elsmere said this was the best of poultices. Sister Boothby
you may eat this poultis if you will. E. A.



281)
A poultis for a swelling and to take away 
pain
Rx green mint and onions each alike quantity
and pound them together and add to them the
same quantity of hony and [illegible] them all together
and apply it cold. Mrs Chamberlane midwife of
Great Glen
To make a poultis Mrs Willcocks of Ouson
Rx new milk and red serge rue, smallage chop
em small and boil ‘em in the milk and then thicken
it up with oatmeal and when it is taken from the fire
add hogs lard and apply it once a day. This was to 
cure Mary Exon of a sore leg when she had been under
Mr [Horse] Pools hands a long time and had one issue
in each arm and one in each leg.
To take away pain out of any sore. Rx red 
dock roots and scrape off the outward bark and 
slice it and pound it or scrape it and take mi of
it and boil it in a quart of scum’d milk till ½ is 
wasted then tickens it up with barly flower
Dress the sore with basilicon and lay this poultis 
upon this plaster 7 it will draw out the humour
Mrs Witcocks of Ouson


(282
To harden the feet that you may endure
travelling & walking without pain.
walk till you are warm then pull off the shoes & stockins
& stand barefoot in the running stream of a brook
for abt ½ a qt of an hour or walk abt in the stream then
put on the shoes but not the stockins for the feet
must touch no woollen thing that night or you may 
put on linnen or thred socks & then the stockins & shoes 
let this be done a little before night got to bed immediately
after you come from the after & keep in 
bed all night without touching any woollen thing with 
the feet. once trying cured Robt Garner a jobber of
Brinkly in Warwickshire when his feet was gall’d & the 
skin off that he could scarce go his feet continued hard
& well for 7 yrs after & perhaps all his life R. G. He walk’d
home in his shoes, without catching any cold ibid.
another to harden feet & cure em when sore or raw with
sweat & heat in the summer as in June & July. Rx sp. of wine
& put so many drops of oyl of vitriol to it that you can 
touch it with the tongue without corroding moisten
the sore & raw places with this liquor night & morning
& moisten a linnen rage in it & apply it dry or wet E.A.
To cure sweaty feet p. 120 Rx bees wax zi (ordinary or common) butter
ziiij red vitriol from the chymists i.e. calcanthum rubefactu
in fine pouder zij Let the bees wax be sliced then boyl it with
the butter & Rx it off the fire & put in the calcanthum pr. 1 d per
ounce spred it upon linnen cloth or rag, the thinner the cloth the
better as muslane, calico, or holland. It must cover the top of the
toes & the bottom & sole of the feet. Take it off as a night wear 
these socks daily all the hot months a pr will last a qr or ½ a yr 
&keep the feet sweet. It draws off the humour & cures swell’d
legs & prevents em from swelling. It will cure a corn Dr Pool 
for a corn approved Rx oysters open them cut out the white pith that groweth to
the inside of the shells. Dry it & pouder it when you cut the corn
pick out as much of the root as you can & put into the hole as
much of this pouder as you can & you may add a very small quantity
of mercury sublimate in very fine pouder mixt well with a little hogs
lard & bind a cloth on it & it will eat away the corn clean by the
roots use not above the quantity of a pins head of sublimate especially 
the 1st time you try it. The Rx says you may use it without grease [Pater Meus]


283)
a corn. cut a hole in a piece of fine woollen
cloth of the bigness of the corn sew several of
them together with woolstead or yarn one above another 
that they may be [easie] to the & make room for the corn to
grow up in It will shute up til lit has spent itself & can 
grow no higher then you may easily pull it up by the
root with your finger & thumb & it will trouble you no more
you may sew it to a linnen cloth & bind it on a hole made
in a piece of hat that will do very well some say better Dr Geo.
Ashby. This method cured his corns another Touch a corn 
after it is cut thin with oyl of vitriol or aqua fortis a [illegible]
being dipt in it It will burn it out Let it take place a little
time then apply Paracelsus plaster or basilicon., Mr Page surgeon 
Mr Penford apothecary his plaster for corns. Rx suet zi rosin
in pouder or small lumps zi wax sliced zij verdigrease in fine
pouder zfs This is in imitation of Mrs Wilcox’s plaster but not
the same. another plaster for corns Rx barm (al. yest) 
that is grown stiff on the tub side & dry’d salt work em together 
on a trencher till the salt is made fine & apply it spred on
leather or a linnen rag Pater Meus another spred black pitch 
on allum leather stone pitch i.e. the hardest clearest pitch free
from dross is best E.A. try’d this without success It gave east at
1st but at last it made it sore. The juice of spurge which looks
white like milk will eat of wharts & corns & the callous a
brawny substance on the ball of the great toe by frequent 
application, if the crust that hardens upon them be pair’d off between
whiles. Dr Quincy & Cos. Jn Ekins. Ointmt of [dialtha] is good
warts. If you rub em with ol. vitrioli or ol. sulphuris it will
certainly destroy em The cure for corns is in paring em off & 
applying red soft wax. Or Rx picis navalis zi empl. diachyl. magn
ziij gum. galban. dissolut in aceta zfs salis ammoniaci [illegible] i misce
or Rx aluminis, vitrioli ungarici adripigment ana port. equal. pulveriz.
& misceantur cum aceto. all which are proper both in the soft or 
hard corns several chirurgical treatises by Richd Wiseman sergeant
chirurgeon 2d edition pr. 12 d. another to dissolve corns or 
nodes quinces emplastru de ranis vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum will waste
by degrees ([ease] & [illegible]) corns on the feet, warts & all such like
crustations. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
2) To cure a corn B. S.A. Rx a little [illegible] yest mix it with salt made fine on
the back of a trencher with a knife or pounded as much salt as yest It is 
best in a very dry time or the salt will be apt to turn the yest to a water
or liquid substance spred it like a plaster or on London brown paper 
& tie it to the corn after it is cut close but not to bleed. apply a new
plaster or spred it fresh on the same leather every day for 3 or 4 days. then
cover it with ink once or twice & the corn will come out rotten by the
roots If this doth not fetch it out burn a little white copperas and beat it to
pouder use it with the yest. E. A. Try burnt salt E.A.


(284
wind in the stomach or bowels (or to cause you to 
fart Rx 9 black pepper corns in a little sallet oyl whole in a spoon in morning fasting)
Rx carduus water ziiij treacle water zfs bezor jovialis
zfs camphir [illegible] is syr. of sulphur zfs tincture of 
laudanu [illegible] vi syr. of woodsorrel with poppies each zi mix
for a julap dose is 1 spoonful for 2 in a morning & 3 or 4 
at night going to bed shake the bottle when you take any or.
1s 8d Dr Tho. Ferran This cured Stephen Hunt junior having an
ague & grip’d. wind attended with gripes, belchings
vomiting & looseness in old Richd Exon carpenter
was quickly cured by taking this medicine following
in abt ½ a pint of ale or small beer It is good for
a blood flux Rx one nutmeg grate
& mix it with as much wheat flower finely sifted as 
the white of an egg will moisten (you must not
put the yolk in) abt the stiffness of dough. Bake 
it so dry as to grate but give no more at once
than what will lie on a six pence Mrs Mary Hall a Jersey combers 
wife in Southgate street Leicer.  This cured her father & 
old Richd Exon. The wind colic with gripes & vomiting 
Dr Bradley It will not cure wet gripes Rx hiera picra 
zfs double anniseed water a pint cochineal [illegible] ij a little beaten
mix them & keep it in a bottle close stopt always ready 
prepar’d & when you use it mix the following ingredients with 
pt of it viz to 3 ounces or spoonfuls of this liquor add salt
of wormwood zfs pr 1 2 ½ liquid laudanu gtt xxx pr. 2 d 
for 1 dose. One dose commonly cures. If it is vomited up
it must be repeated.  Price of the ingredients in the bottle 
is 1 s 3 d you must shake the bottle for 2 or 3 days at 1st 
but when you use it pour off only the clear Dr Bradley & Mr
Cook apothecary. The wind colic or dry gripes Rx liquid laudanu
& elixer proprictatis each from  12 to 16 drops in a glass 
of ale at night going to bed. Wm Vice of Blaby that was often
tormented with inward pains & apt to be costive found great
benefit by this medicine Rd Mr Stokes.


285)
Gripes or wind colic Rx brandy (French brandy is best)
3 spoonfuls burn it then take ½ a spoonful in a spoon make
it thickish with salt a little brandy swimming on the top stir em
with a knife or tea spoon & take it when cool enough Rx a 2 d spoonful
after the same manner as the first then take a 3 d spoonful with 
only burnt brandy Joseph Warner of Harborough [illegible] may 
colour brandy or double aniseed water with alkanet or bole & 
add salt to it. Salt added to grains prevent their griping horses or
cows & brine given to horses when grip’d is reckon’d a good medicine
& cures sometimes. E. A. another Rx new lay’d egg shels dry’d & 
beaten to fine pouder as much as will lie on a shilling mixt thickish
with beer in a spoon at 2 or 3 times an hour after you may drink
water gruel with a little salt in it Wm Laurence Smith. for wind
Rx juice of rue in a little sugar once a day It is good for convulsions
fits in children, they are oft caused by wind Jane Tasie
May 1717 E. A. was cured of gripes & wind colic with a violent
pain in her left side by taking Dr Bostock’s cordial 1 spoonful
over night & 2 in the morning a gentle purge & Dr Bradly’s
mixture p. 284 2 or 3 hours after that the next day after the
purge he drank a qt of new milk-whey warm & rode 2 or 3 
miles after it which clear’d his bowels & made him quite well.
when sucking children or those rear’d by the hand are troubled
with wind give one or 2 & afterwards more whole mustard
seeds in their pap or what they eat It will make em break 
wind Sister Boothby. a pouder for wind. Rx burdock seed zij aniseeds
liquorish each zi in fine pouder mixt with w. sugar candy The dose is zi
w.p. when E. A. had the wind colic June 718 & vomiting he 
did not find that taking vomits did him any good strong water 
made him worse He found that gooseberries train thro a hair
sive & mixt with milk & damask rose water & sugar stay’d
longest in his stomach & he did seldom vomit it up Taking
one slice of lemon & sugar going to bed & one slice in the
night walking much in the air Bostock’s cordial & Dr Bradly’s 
mixture & other purges that us’d to relieve him would
do not good except this following which at present I judge to 
be the very best purge or medicine & most pleasant yet found out for the wind 
colic or gripes or wind in the stomach or bowels [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] Rx rhubarb
sliced zi pr. 2 s 6 d best sena zij pr 1 s aniseeds bruised six
drams pr single aniseed water 3 pints pr 1 s Rx 2 spoonfuls
every other morning or every morning while it lasts
drinking water gruel one or 2 hours after it. It purges the
most at the 1st dose Bates’s Disp. 4th edition & Mr Penford


(286
apothecary in Leicer The aniseeds & aniseed 
water correct the griping of the sena & single aniseed
water is more cooling & pleasant than double aniseed water
ibid This is taken out of Salmon’s annotations on Bates’s Dispensatory
on elixer salutis but it is much contracted You may 
take it every morning at 1st then every other morn & when you
find yourself perfectly recover’d & well You may omit taking
it when it has infus’d 9 or 10 days you may strain the liquid 
from the drugs & keep it by itself close stopt. If you are
subject to wind in the stomach or bowels or gripes. Eat bread & 
butter every morning It opens the body & causes you to fart & vent
wind backwards E. A. a very good remedy for the colic in the
stomach or bowels which has cured them that have had it 2 or 3 
yrs It keeps good, close stopt, 2 or 3 yrs Rx double distill’d aniseed
water a pint cochineal zi pouder’d hiera picra ziij Let em
stand 24 hours in a bottle close stopt. Then Rx 3 spoonfuls every
morning or at night or when ill If it doth not give you a stool or
2 Rx 4 spoonfuls This cured Mrs Gee when the Drs cou’d not having
had it 3 or 4 yrs Some say the single aniseed water is best Mrs
Caulton. [illegible] is the same as Mr Oneby’s Rx another for the
gripes eat oatmeal pudding adding to it Jamaica pepper 
in pouder after it is made & stir em together It must taste
strong of the pepper Eat it night & morning till well E. A.
The colick of either sort by a solder Rx pomegranate shell
2 d gentian 2 d avens mi dry’d all together & beaten to pouder
Rx as much as will lie on a shilling in 2 glasses of white
wine or [juniper] water If it is the stone colick add 4 
drops of the juice of the sharpest onions in every glass
Br S.A. for the cure of all inward pains vid p. 193.
for the gripes or wind or stone colic eat the fat of mutton or
beef the quantity of ½ an egg or more cut 3 or 4 or more little
onions in pieces as big as you can swallow at once rub salt 
on em so that you may eat a pretty deal of salt with every bit 
& eat old cheese without bread lastly drink strong ale abt
a pint after em. This cured E. A. Janry 719. June 720 E. A. had the
wind in his stomach which forc’d him to vomit up every thing he eat or drank
a vomit of ipecacuanah nor Daffy’s elixer would do no good He found
a little benefit by Dr Bradlys mixture for the colic then he try’d Dr
Alibone’s Rx for wind in the stomach viz balm, hysop, sage each mi liquorish
sliced zij boyl e min water 2 qts till one is wasted Drink it instead 



287)
of beer or use it instead of hops brew’d with beer
gripes & wind or rheumatism in the stomach or bowels
Rx The mountebanks styptick water 2 spoonfuls by it self
then walk ½ an hour Then Rx Virginian snake weed root afs 6 d the
root of contrayerva zij pr 6 d Best brandy a pint you may colour
or disguise it with syrup of violets when you give it but it must
not be put into the bottle It doth but little good only it is cooling.
allow 24 hours or longer for the ingredients to incorporate
then take 5 spoonfuls syrup of cloves colours any liquor yellow
syrup of wouldwell or dyers weed makes a fine green. This
Rx helps to stop vomiting. Dr Pool. another milk from a cows bag
to stale beer Ear the card & drink the whey without sugar in the
morning It gets an appetite cleanses the midriff, cures gripes
heals the lungs & stops a consumption ibid Another Rx ants eggs
dry em in a paper & beat em to pouder mix afs of it with brown 
sugar & give it in thicken’d milk. the bigger the eggs the better give
it mixt with carrot to disguise it the carrot dry’d to pouder It swells
the belly at 1st but in a little time it makes you fart & cures belching
& drives the wind downwards. ibid for wind or water in the
stomach Rx antimonium diaphoreticu zi in a glass of strong
claret or good canary every other day. ibid A small white wine
will rather cause than cure the gripes. E. A. Dr Harton’s prescription
Rx pul: rad. serp. virg: zvi cassummuniar zifs (a sort of zedoary)
coq. in q.s. aq. font. ad lbi colat [illegible] (strain) solv. theriac. androm.
zfi fiat apozema June 16th 720. Rx 6 spoonfuls at night going
to bed at 6 at midnight if awake & as much in the morning & 
afterwards 3 spoonfuls every 4th or 5 hours & drink it as hot as
you can Wm Cooke pr. 4d for gripes ro wind causing a pain 
in the stomach or a pain in a rupture Rx the stalks of bitter 
sweet (amara dulcis) as much as you can hold betwixt 2 hands
bruise or twist em in pieces or as much as will make it taste
bitter Boyl it in 3 qts of water to 3 pints Rx a coffee dish morn
fasting & at night going to bed or when you feel pain Jn Summerfield 
of Whetston. another for gripes or wind Rx burdock seed
pound & drink it in ale or smoke it with a little tobacco or without
Goddy Gilbert another Rx mint water 1 or 2 spoonfuls at
a time with sugar ibid or Rx mint water anniseed water syrup of
cloves a good cordial Goody Simons. another eat millipedes 10 or 20 
at a time every day till the gripes are gone ibid another drink new
milk warm from  a cow morn & night & eat bread & butter avoiding
meat & cheese till the stomach is well. This did E. A. the most good when
he vomited & was grip’d & his stomach full of wind & pain for 4 or 
6 weeks in June & July 720. Wind in the stomach or bowels Rx 9 or more
black (or white) pepper corns in a spoonful of sallet oyl [illegible] [Boothby]


(288
for the wind colic or dry gripes or pain in the 
stomach Rx gr of paradise in pouder as much as will ly on a ½ crown in new ale or
beer a half pint from the vat 3 times a day. Take it for a month intermitting a day or two Dr P.
another for Do
Rasp as much of the best rhubarb as will lie on a shilling or
rather mor for a man of bulk or for one that is apt to be costive
Put it to a spoonful & half, or 2 spoonfuls of common brandy
or malt spirits pr 10 d or 12d d per qt Rx it in a morn fasting, fasting
2 hours after it & eat & drink as you use to do at the other times without
observing an rules. Rx the night before camomile flowers 
infus’d in n ear a pint of posset drink & continue ti every night till
the gripes are gone off which is commonly in 3 or 4 nights. Drink the
rhubarb & brandy every morn for abt a fortnight This cured Br S.
A. for 7 yrs or longer without taking it during the y7 yrs on ly at 1st 
pouder of rhubarb in a little milk & drink milk from the cow or warm
after it or in single aniseed water or juniper water only as much as
will wash it down sometimes an hour before dinner or 2 hours or
a little quantity of the pouder in any vehicle at night at or before
bedtime
Rhubarb is an exct medicine, gentle & without danger wherein many 
vertues are compris’d It cleanseth & fortifieth the stomach & liver 
all maladies that proceed from stoppages, as the jaundice, dropsie, swelling 
of the spleen & long fevers. It is good agt spitting of blood & 
stops it. It may be moderately taken at all convenient times without
danger. The chewing of it purges choler & phlegm. It is ext boyled & 
taken in posset drink, before the cold fit of an ague comes, & is extol’d
by all ingenious physitians for the cure of fluxes of the belly
of all kinds, which it does easily, surely & with out any evil symptom 
succeeding it, & therefore is accounted as the most ext of roots that
was ever brought into this nation from any foreign ports. Salmon’s
Family Dictionary. Pontick rhubarb is hot in the 1st dry in the
3rd degree purging & astringent expelling choler, flegm & melancholy
from the stomach & bowels. It opens obstructions of both liver
& spleen, & therefore is of force in curing  the rickets, melancholy
[sabs] itch, jaundice & green sickness. Give of the pouder from zi to
zifs in infusion to zfs. It may be given to women with child, & in 
all fluxes as in dysentaria’s (i.e. bloody fluxes) lyenteria’s (ie a kind
of looseness, where things eaten are voided undigested) & diarrhoea’s
(a gentle flux of the belly or looseness) It is of singular use
because it leaves an astringent or binding quality behind it. The pouder
made into a bole with cassia & turpentine cools & cleanses the [illegible] & 
helps the gonorrhoea Salmon’s Dispensatory. The pouder untoasted leaves
the body open but rhubarb toasted easily beats to pouder & being dry’d by the 


289)
by the fire etc. leaves the body costive E. A. radix R rabarbari
rhubarb. that which comes from the Levant is now accounted
best. It is of a bright yellowish colour, & of a nutmeg
grain if it be good, tho a great deal of the best pieces will be decay’d; 
& therefore when brought into use ought to be rejected
There is some comes fro China & other pts of the E. Indies, but not so 
much esteem’d It is of a darker colour, more fetid in smell & is not
easily pouder’d; tho it is more purgative especially in infusion than 
the other but has not so much of its astringent quality which is so efficacious
in looseness & blood fluxes. That which is accounted the
finest of all is very little pourgative but most astringent &
therefore best in all sort of fluxes. Extreme drying destroys its 
purgative vertue, wherefore it is frequently order’d to be toasted
to make it less purgative & more astringing. It is infus’d from zi to ziij
for a dose; & given in pouder from 10 gr to two scuples It greatly strengthens
the stomach & bowels & is an ext medicine agt cholera & other 
distemper’d contents of the intestinal & mesenterial glands It is accounted
by some to be so great a purger of the liver as to have deserv’d the 
name of cor hepatic or heart of the liver The kidnies do not lie too 
remote for its influence which it discovers in the colour of the urine & is
very good in the obstructions of the [reins] & the ureters. But in the jaundice
it almost passes for infallible Paracelsus [illegible] to a tincture fro 
it which only operated by [illegible] & purg’d away gravel. It is good agt worms
in children. so that its repetition to them can hardly be too frequent IT is 
good in syrup & in tinctures alto none of em are so good as the 
root pouder & given in substance Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory
Carry rhubarb in the pocket in the winter or lay it in a cupboard
near the fire that it may be dry or it will not grate to pouder & mix 
this pouder as much as will lie on 6 d or 1 s begin with little at 1st &
put it to two or 3 spoonfuls of Daffy’s elixir the best sort begin
with a little if you wou’d have it purge gently till you find the
strength of the constitution you give it to This is a most ext 
medicine for wind or colic or gripes or any headach or pain [illegible]
It is much better than when mixt with brandy alone E. A.
The gripes & wind eat salt with every thing you eat If salt will 
not cure then take abt 1 spoonful 1/12 of Daffy’s elixir with a little salt 
in’t abt a quarter or ½ an hour after drink new milk from the cow or 
for want of it warm’d milk & the next morn new milk with some salt
It will purge & cure E. A. 
Wind in the stomach or dry gripes Dr Tho. Buckworth (the mad Dr
that cured Mr Wats of Raresby when craz’d or disorder’d in his head.)
Rx [illegible], common fennel seeds, cummin seeds, caraway seeds,
parsly seeds each zfs long pepper zij pounded & sifted thro a fine
hair sive add to the pouder as much hony or treacle on a liquorish
stick or without at any time It is good for a cold or doth gently open 
the body coriander seeds are bad for the head or Rx oyl of turpentine
40 or 50 drops prepar’d with tartar (not salt of tartar) by the 
chymists distill’d you may but it at London drop em into warm ale
abt ½ a pint it turns it white It is good for the colic in the stomach 
or wind or gravel Dr B. another Eat old rich cheese 3 or 4 yrs old
after the meals E. A. Try sage cheese another Rx cloves whole & [daucus]
seed make tea with water sweeten it when you drink It comforts the bowels Dr Bradly



(290
To joyn a broken glass or vessel of
china or earth
Rx a little red lead a knifes pointful boyl it with linseed oyl a qt so that when it
is boyl’d it may appear like mum or of a brown colour
mix a little of this with white lead very well by working it
on a marble or smooth slate with a muller or a knife
You must be sure to incorporate em very fine then 
anoint the edges of the glass or vessel where you 
would joyn em If you can you may press or bind
em hard together & so let em remain untouch’d in
a chamber on a table or shelf for a qr of a yr (or
rather longer than less time) then you may thrown the joyn’d
glass agt the ground & it will break in any pt sooner
than where it is cemented. The Rd Mr Jn Lawrence rector
of Yolverloft in Northshire. It will endure hot or
cold liquor if the vessel will abide it. ibid.
To join a broken panchion or pot together not to hold scalding
water Rx turpentine and rosin p.a. buck finely sifted
boil ‘em and heat the sides of the pot and daub on and crush
‘em together. Rd Mr Samuel Frances.
To stop a crack in a bowl or barrel. Rx tar and fine
hards and thrust ‘em in with the edge of a knife and they 
will harden.


295)



(292
a clyster
Rx mallows, camomile, elder buds, mercury leaves, violet
leaves, strawberry leaves. Seeth all in posset ale. Take a pint 
of the liquor add to it sallet oyl 2 spoonfuls & as much sweet 
butter & hony make it a clyster Give it in the morning. Mater 
Mea another good for the colic or gripes or stone.
Rx mallows, violet leaves strawberry leaves endive, succory
each mi add to these a calfs foot or sheeps head. put em into
a sufficient quantity of water & boyl em well. Then take of the
decoction one pint Put therein two good spoonfuls of brown 
sugar & 3 spoonfuls of sallet oyl. strain it thro a cloth after 
the sugar is dissolv’d Then exhibite it as a clyster a little better
than blood warm. Try whether you can endure the bladder at
the cheek when it is fill’d before you give lest you give it too hot
ibid. another Rx mallows, strawberry leaves, mercury, violet
leaves, succory leaves, borrage, [?ugless] each half a qr of a
handful aniseeds fennel seeds each a qr of an ounce Boyl these
well with a chicken & take the broth of it or else boyl em in posset 
ale. Take half a pint or better of it at a time & put to it
2 spoonful of sallet oyl & one spoonful of sweet butter
salt half a spoonful use this for a clyster ibid
Dr Atkins clyster for the colic & stone
Rx mallows camomile, beets, wormwood, violet leaves each 
mi aniseeds & fennel seeds each a good spoonful bayberries
no 6. Boyl all in rain water from a pint & half to a pint
strain it add to it 2 spoonfuls of hony as much salt as will
lie on a siz pence & 2 ounces of course sugar ibid.


293)
The whites
Rx Candied roots of Solomons seal It is an ext remedy
Pecheys Herbal. Ising-glass is of a very glutinous quality
& good in all disorders which arise from too thin & sharp a state of the
fluids. Tis reckon’d very helpful in female weakness & particularly
the whites, as also in all defluxions & haemorrages Quincy. rosin
pills pills of turpentine pills with dragons blood, pills of porra Japonica 
emplastrum [barsals] vid Quincy’d Dispensatory. altho’ the roots of
tormentil is most noted for its strengthening & binding qualities yet it
is ranked also among the [alexi] pharmicks & is in great esteem in malignant
flowers attended with any flux of the bowels or the womb.
Schroder says there is not a better vegetable grown for all such [intentions]
it agrees well with the white drink & much increases its efficacy
in checking a looseness in the measles, small pox or fevers. Quincy
another Rx Rue whitlow grass (an herb) half a handful fry it with 
wheat flower & an egg. Take [it] in the morning fasting, for 2 days This 
cures the whites Pechey’s Herbal


(294
The biting of a mad dog Mr George [Gatacre]
Rx Rus zvi peel’d garlic & London treacle each ziiij or mithridate or Venice treacle
scrap’d tin being shav’d or scrap’d of the outside of a
[illegible] pewter or tin sheet of lattin or tin 4 ounces spoonfuls good strong ale 2/3 qts
pluck the herb from the stalk & shred it & beat the garlic
then mix all & put it in a pot fast cover’d then set that 
pot or vessel in a pot of fair water to boyl on a gentle
fire 3 or 4 hours & of the strain’d liquor give 4 or 6 or 7 
spoonfuls as the patient, or beast or dog can well receive
it. Give it morning or afternoon warm or cold
9 days together. This has cured men, women horses, cattle, 
& dogs. It is commonly call’d the D. of Buckingham’s
Rx. It never fail’d. Br G. A.
The  biting of a mad dog by Dr Troutbeck.
Rx leaves of rue pick’d from the stalks 6 ou. bruised, garlic
peel’d & bruised, best treacle or mithridate, scapings of tin or
pewter each 4 ou. Boyl all these over a gentle fire in 2 qts of 
strong ale till one pint be consumed then strain it from the
dregs & keep it in a bottle close stopt.
Give of this 9 spoonfuls to a man or woman  warm 7 mornings
together fasting: 6 to a beast cold, 3  to a sheep, 6 to a dog
This by gods blessing will not fail, provided it be given with 
in 9 days after the biting. apply some of the dregs or strainings
to the bitten place. This Rx cost Mrs Frances Bickerton’s father
17th of the DR The roots of aristolochia are ext agt all [poison] & 
agt the bitings & stingings of venomous beasts, if it be taken in wine, or layd
upon the wounds or bitings. Dodoen’s Herbal.
an infallible cure for the bite of a mad dog from the Evening
Post.
Rx Rue 6 ou. eleand. pickd & bruis’d red sage mi garlic 4 ou. peeld & bruis’d
Venic treacle 4 ou. filed pewter or scrap’d tin 4 ou. Boil these
in 2 qts of the best ale in a pan cover’d close, over a gentle fire, for
the space of one hour, then strain the ingredients from the liquor. Give
8 or 9 spoonfuls of it warm to a man or woman 3 mornings
fasting, & cold to any beast fasting. 8 or 9 spoonfuls are sufficient
for the strongest, a less quantity to those younger or of a weaker
constitution, as you may judge of their strength. Ten or 12 spoonfuls 
for a horse or bullock. Three, 4, or 5 for a sheep, hog or dog. This
must be given with in 9 days after the bite. It never fails in man
or beast. If you can conveniently bind some of the ingredients on
the wound. Cos. Richd Ashby. Some Rxs say muscadine or [illegible] is better
than ale for a man


295)
For the biting of a mad dog
Rx 2 handfuls of rue 2 spoonfuls of scraped
block tin boyl in 4 quarts of strong ale till
half be wasted then strain 3 penniworth of London
treacle into it and give the party bit 6 spoonfuls
in a morning fasting
A plaster for a bit of a mad dog
Take plantain beat in a mortar with bole armoni
dragons blood, barley meal and whites of eggs
lay it plasterwise on the sore let it ly on 14 hours.
Sometimes it will cure [cornes]
Mr Allen Gregory’s dog of Little Glen that was made
bit Tho: Coleman Joyner of Leicer in the arm & the dog
was [hang’d] the liver was fry’d & he eat it but he dy’d raving
mad afterwards. Eliz Brown of Leicer
Dr Mead for the bit of a mad dog
Rx lichen [cinereus] [terrestris] i.e. ground liverwort zi pouder’d
black pepper in pouder zfs mix em & give ziij every morning
for 3 mornings together in half a pint of cows milk. after this
has been done, let the patient go into a cold spring or river dipping
all over for one minute 3 or 4 times a week for 5 or 6 weeks. from
the Rd Mr Wm Babington & Cos. Shukbrugh Ashby. Perhaps dipping
in a tub of cold water if it be in the winter; may do first dip the
arms head & shoulders then go into it with the legs & breech for a minute
E. A.
Some Rxs for man bitten by a mad dog direct garlic bruis’d
6 cloves, scraped or fil’d pewter the weight of an ordinary pewter
spoon. Common treacle lbfs boyl ‘em all in a quart of strong
ale or strong beer till half is wasted then strain it & take
3 spoonfuls first & last while it lasts. If there is a wound
bind the ingredts strain’d out to the wound, let ‘em ly on 
a day or 2 if you can abide ‘em, when you can abide ‘em no
longer take ‘em off & wash the wound with milk or water
warm, & heat it with any salve. Wm Wyat of Adderston
for the biting of Adders. Dr Danvers anoint the place stinged with the 
juice that comes from shell snails prickt with a pin & bind on a snail unprickt
& drink the juice of plaintain. It is good for the biting of any 
venomous creature.



(296
Belching or wind in the stomach
Decer 1720 E. A. was much troubled with wind in his stomach
which by the pressure of his hand on the outside of his stomach
wou’d come out at h is mouth & vent itself by belching This afflicted
him (after he had cured his wind in the bowels by taking Davvy’s
elixir & grated rhubarb) he had no appetite to food & malt drink 
fill’d him with wind Dr Hartop call’d it the gout in the stomach 
The cure infuse in aniseed water double distill’d snakeweed root, contrayerva
& cinnamon Rx a little of it morn & night abt ½ a spoonful or 
a spoonful, less or more, as it agrees with you. fast 24 hours from
supper to supper without eating or drinking any thing between that
one meal in 24 hours except a little of the said infusion to support 
the spirits & the eating of what apples you will after you’ve warmed
em a little time by carrying em in the pocket when you eat Eat
plenty of mustard with meat drink at night beer & ale warm’d
with red hot iron & mixt which quantity agrees with you use exercise in
the open air walking riding running with fasting in 3 or 4 days 
the stomach will be sharpen’d & return You may take hippocacuana
zfs in fine pouder drinking it abt 3 hours after dinner with a galn
of warm water for a vomit or more Take this vomit before the
infusion drink red mountain wine after the infusion has been try’d
2 or 3 days to strengthen the stomach. Do not drink till the meal
is ended Let the ordinary drink be beer & ale warm’d with 
an hot iron E. A. Go to bed at 1st after exercise that you may 
sleep & fast a good while. Leave off tobacco till the tone of the stomach
is rectify’d & made fit for a right digestion. Eat no bread
with the meat when the stomach is out of order Eat a little bit of
cinnamon or drink a little of the infusion. E. A. To cure belching the
stomach & bowels troubled with wind gripes or colic or to strengthen
the stomach & prevent em. Eat salt with almost every thing 
you eat as milk pottage, butter milk, meat, bread or bread & cheese 
bread & butter verjuice or vinegar with meat & with bacon & eggs
This method by squeezing sevil oranges in the drink will cure when 
the apothecaries drugs will not E.A. Let the bread be masline (middling
fat) 1st with barlys peck. Let the drink be generally good small
beer or beer & ale mixt avoid very strong ale as breeding gout
& stone, if you’d be healthfull E.A.
For the wind colic Rx bay berries in powder zfs cummin
seed zfs in powder in beer and ale and milk or broth this
quantity makes 10 dozes take it morn and night Tho: [Finch]


297)



(298
mouth or gums sore
Roast an egg very hard, take only the yolk mix it
with loaf sugar in pouder & salt to a salve, with which rub
your gums & places that are sore Mrs Mary Grene.
another Rx sp. of wind 1 d as much liquid laudanu as
will make it of a brown color Take a drop or 2 in the
mouth & hold the tongue to the sore places 2 or 3 times
in a day. E. A. another Beat sal prunel to fine pouder 
& rub a canker’d or sore mouth there with pretty often & 
it will cure it. The Rd Mr Chambers. Hold your own urine
often especially night & morning in the mouth & force it thro 
your teeth backwards & forwards It will cure the gums when sore
& often the toothach when 100 medicines have been try’d in vain.
E. A. 
a water for a sore mouth Rx ground
ivy (gill) woodbine leaves, red sage, columbine, rue, cinquefoyl
(i.e 5 leav’d grass.) ribwort or lesser plantane (quinquenervia)
& violet leaves each an equal quantity. put em into water a quart
boyl it to a pint Then strain & add thereto 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the
best vinegar six cloves a little roch allum, as much English hony
as will sweeten it. set it on the fire again. Let them boyl together
3 or 4 Pater noster whiles. Mrs Fr. Bickerton
another Rx Borax & loaf sugar of both in fine pouder
sifted an equal quantity mixt in fresh butter that never had
salt in it. Rx a fine clean rag tyed upon a [illegible] Rub the sore
places soundly therewith Take plantane water sweeten it with hony
of roses & wash the mouth immediately with it cold. ibid.
To cure a canker in the nose, mouth, throat or any defluction
of rheum in any pt of the head or face.
Rx ouyl of days one pennyworth mix it with as much pouder of
bole as will make it of a thickness to spred on London brown
paper of the bigness of half the palm of a great hand Lay
upon the opening of the head (viz the sutures) cutting off the
hair close or shaving it off first (p. 235.) ibid
Cankers in young childrens mouths.
Rx hot hogs dung new fallen put to it oyl of spike mix em well together
apply this in blew paper to the chin & forehead of the
child Mrs Frances Bickerton.



299)
Cankers or sore mouth in man or horse
Rx goosegrease rub it on the forehead, under the chin
& jaws you may disguise it with bole ibid.
another Boyl hony or treacle with 5 or 6 sage leaves & a good
piece of burnt allum in pouder Rub the sores with it. Mrs Finch.
The canker in the mouth
Pound yarrow & strain it mix the juice with live hony & burnt
allum Dress it as oft as there is occasion Mrs Caulton.
another Rx a bit of green copperas wrap it up in a wet paper 
put it in the fire (wood embers are best) till it is red hot Let it cool
pound it fine mix it with goose grease Cut the hair off the crown of
the head Lay it on. Mrs Caulton.
another good for frosts or sore mouths in children or men
Heat a large pr of tongs red hot lay a piece of alum between
the bit of the tongs abt the bigness of a hazelnut set abt 
a little spoonful of hony in a coffee dish then pinch the allum
as hard as you can & let the moisture drop into the hony stir when 
together & rub the gums 2 or 3 times a day therewith This never
failed Sister Margaret Boothby. Keep the remaining dry burnt
alum for any other use.
Aqua camphorata is good to heal sore gums & fasten & preserve the
tooth. E. A.
another Burn a piece of white bread as black as coal, then pound it
in a mortar to pouder rub the sore gums with it dry. This never fail’d Wm
Headly



(300



301)



(302
for a wen.
Rx the foot & loosen some dust on a mud floor
new swept & spit some fasting spittle on the dust
& work em together like mortar & apply it & let 
it dry on. Renew it every morning till the wen comes
out or is wasted or broken so that a core comes out
then heal it with any plaster This cured a wen as big
as a pea on Sister Boothby’s upper eyelid. It came out
& was well without doing any thing at it more. A
blister arose & when prickt there came out a thing
like a pearl Sister Boothby. another Rx black soap
& unquench’d lime p.e. mix em well together spread em upon sheeps
leather apply it to the wen or any hard node or swelling & it will 
consume away by degrees. p: 17 Dr [Lowes] Rx [ceipts] etc.
Mud wall & fasting spittle temper’d together cured a knob upon a childs
eye at Newtown Linford that many people believ’d it would have in time
turn’d to a wen. The child was kin to Joyce Gimson E.A.’s servt It wasted away


303)



(304
Foot-racing.
Put a wheat or oat straw in your mouth when you run. Daily
exercise at running strengthens your legs, & back & improves
your breath Rx Hips before they are rotten & peel em
when they are thoro red. Lay the peels in a pot til they rot, then put
to the peel lbi water a qt boyling hot Keep it till Lady Day, It will
be extremely sharp. mix one tea spoonful of this vinegar with a little
butter eat it & you will never want breath when you run Take it when
you eat It prevents heartburn & stitches which often are the cause of
losing a race & procures a good appetite Dr Richd Pool mountebank.
The racers in Stafford-shire eat chiefly roast mutton
they step out as if they were paceing when they walk, & when 
they run up hill they take great steps & pull up more slowly.
Wm Wyat.


305)



(306
The headach
Salmon says he has perfectly cured diseases of the 
head & old headachs of near 20 yrs standing with 
pilulae lunares, The lunar or silver pills p. 281. Salmons
Dispensatory. Decr [725] E.A.’s head aked very violently & 
was cured by eating only butter’d wheat with a little salt 
in’t without sugar or spice or drinking after it that day.
E.A. M.A.’s head had aked 2 or 3 days caused by wind which was
caused by eating fat chine which would not digest She 
was cured by burning 4 or 5 spoonfuls of double aniseed
water with sugar & eating a dry toast of brown 
bread after it to strengthen the stomach & walking 
often up & down a room when coffee & water gruel had
bin try’d in vain Febr. 4 715. E. A. another Mr Jn Edwin
of Baggrave was troubled with a violent headach Mr Coltman
the apothecary with a lancet blooded him in the vein that
goes up abt the middle of his forehead, this bleeding with a
lancet was repeated sometime afterwards once again & 
it made a perfect cure. Mr Coltman says that leeches can
not effect the cure but you may try or shave the head
& you may set leeches thereon. E. A. another Rx Portugal snuff 
at the nose going to bed or any time keeping in the house. Anne
Tasie. In the yr 718 E. A. had a violent pain on the top or crown
of his head especially when every he cough’d or sneez’d. He aply’d Bents
salve, Hungary water etc. in vain; at last Dr T. H. order’d him to shave
the sore place & to apply an emplaster of W. Ditch spred on leather 
which cured him in abt a month E. A. The headach or any stuffing or 
pain in the head. Rx white helebore root in pouder as snuff at night a little
before bed time that you may not take cold. This cured Mrs Hewet 
of Stretton & a maid there of, that had a pain in her head which she thought 
incurable but it made here nose bleed. Sister M.A. another moisten
the end of the little finger with oyl of cloves & thrust it up one or both
nostrils Try one 1st. It will make you sneeze your nose run & sometimes
cause a stool. It revives the spirits E. A. Another oyntmt of
alabaster is a specific for all sorts of headachs anointed on the forehead
temples, nostrils, pulses, soles of the feet & testicles. Salmon’s Disp.
a violent headach. Rx the herb called vervain & hang it abt your neck
Mrs Caulton


307)
The course flower of rie put into a cloth & apply’d
to the head cures inveterate headaches & so apply’d is
good for mad people Pechey’s Herbal.
E.A.’s wife (formerly Mrs Mary Majer) having been troubled with 
an inveterate headach for a long succession of yrs Drs & family
medicines having been try’d in vain was at last cured by applying
leeches two to the little finger & betwixt the little finger
& fourth finger any where they wou’d suck & a third leach to 
the middle finger near the joynt of the hand They caused
the blood to flow plentifully She intermitted a week or so
days having an itching [illegible] there like a tetter or scurvy
she repeated the leaches & bleed again abt the said places then for
a week every night to kill the itch she apply’d hot linnen rags dipt 
in old human urine made as hot as she cou’d endure it & so cur’d
her headach & itching [illegible] which last formerly had troubled her
for many summers Mary Ashby. Headach Rx sp. nitri dulcis 20 
or 30 drops in beer (cold) If it is so violent as to cause a fever
then take 50 or 60 drops in beef a coffee dish full or more
Mr. Geo. Pochin of Wigston Magna. A pain in the head Rx
plantain pound it with the urine of the diseased. make a plaster
& bind it upon the temples Pater Meus G.A. another shave the top
of the head & lay 2 blistering plasters one after another 
upon the [sutors] spred upon allum leather the breadth of a 
mans hand each neither of em draw’d any blister Then apply 
a cabbage leaf. This cured Tho. Allen of [????esworth] pump maker that 
was almost [illegible] with it Tho. Allen.
The juice of the leaves & flowers of cowslips mixt with an equal quantity 
of red cows milk cured an inveterate headach, when other medicines
wou’d do no good. Pechey’s Dispensatory. You may try cowslip tea. E. A. 
Culpeper says vervain made into an oyntmt is a soveraign remedy
for old headaches as also frenzies. It clears the skin & causes 
a lovely colour. Vervain (varbena) is reckon’d a specific for pains of the
head from what causes soever they proceed. Pechey. The distill’d water is apply’d 
outwardly to the head & four ounces are taken inwardly with few drops
of sp. of salt. Forestus says he knew two who were cured of the headach, only
by hanging the green herb abt their necks when many other medicines were
used to no purpose ibid.
For the headach snuff up a little pellitory of Spain in fine
powder dry’d easeth the headach. Traveller
unguentum diaphompholigos smeared upon the temples
causes res & eases the headach. Salmons Disp.
Headach and sore eyes. spread a plaster of burgundy
pitch abt the bigness of an half crown upon a piece of 
leather and shave the hair of the mile of your head and
apply and in a little time you will find ease when you are
well. you may take it off probatum.



(308
The Headach
E. A. when 76 yrs old had a pain in his head so that he could
not lean upon his head & neck to turn himself in bed nor strain
when exonerating in the privy, nor stoops down low with his
head but he felt a violent pain in his head which he thought was
caused by sleeping frequently after dinner He cured himself
by tying a garter or a fillet or Manchester [bending] [illegible] once abt
his head before he slept in the day time, & every night it was
tyed fast round his night cap going a little above his neck 
round his forehead which kept the vapours from ascending
when bleeding in the jugular vein & in the forehead would
not cure. He was very seldom troubled with any pain
in his head till he was so old & used to sleep after dinner
Headach Rx bay salt cummin seeds fennel seeds p.a
pouder them by themselves then make them up with red
rose vinegar to a plaster spread it on sheeps leather apply 
it to the slope of the neck and renew it when it is dry
Mrs Dorothy Pickern.


309)



(310
The Rickets in children.
An oyntmt Rx red sage, mugwort, crosswort, comfry root
or leaves, rue, balm, clary, each mij Pound em with may butter
free from salt lbij or bores grease lbij work it over every third
day for nine days together or make it into 2 balls & work em over
then melt (but not boyl) & strain it thro a cloth or sive. Let it stand
a fortnight then refine it by melting & straining it again & it will 
keep a long time. anoint the child all over every night for a month
by the fire especially the back & joints. Let it wear the same
shirt a month Bury it under ground when you have done You may 
wear an old shirt when you begin to anoint. Richd Kirk of
Kt thorp near Loughborough, a farrier & Jn Put a traveller


311)



(312
A Rupture.
Rx aniseed & sweet fennel seed each in pouder zfs. juniper berries zi
roots of comfry dry, mouse ear each zi starch zi mix & take zij when
you go to bed in a draught of new milk. Ex emplastru ad herniam 
zi empl. ½ bole zfs oyl of myrtles or for want of it oyl of unripe
olives q.s. f. emplastru molle. applicatur ad partem Dr Smith Senior
of Coventry. Tho. Poyner of Blocksage, near Walsal a markt
town in Stafford shire 4 m. beyond Bromingham 18 m. from 
Coventry 6 or 10 m. from Adderston a famous steel truss maker as
any in England pr. 15 d per truss. Wm Proud a Quaker in 
Spon street in Coventry makes steel trusses at 3 s 6 d per
truss. Cranes bill al. doves-foot (Geranium) an herb, dry’d
twice a day dissolves congeal’d blood, glutinates & stops blood,
heals ulcers in the lungs. The pouder of it taken zi at a time in 
red wine 1st & last for 30 or 40 days together cures ruptures
more especially if it be mixt with the pouder of brown or grey red snails.
you may find em in cellars
The eggshel is more effectual. Salmon’s Dispensatory. Cover
the boulster of the truss with long wool pull’d soft or carded & 
it will prevent its chafing especially in hot weather E.A. The
root of rest-harrow (al. cammock) anonidis radix in pouder or 
the essence often taken is good to consume the fleshy rupture called
hernia carnosa & the blind piles Salmon’s Dispensatory.
an oyntmt for a rupture Rx cochineal pr 1 d i.e. zijfs boyl it in
a pint of the strongest & stalest ale the staler the better & let it
gently simmer till it is turn’d to an oyntmt anoint it warm on the 
swelling agt the fire laying the child on its back & putting up
the rupture. you need not used a truss. It knits & contracts the swelling
alone without any help besides what it receives from hartshorn.
It will cure them of a dozen yrs old unless they are born Bursten
Give this strengthening drink boyl hartshorn shavings zfs in a 
qt of new milk till it is thick Let the child drink it constantly & 
anoint every night by the fire till the child is well. a midwife of
Burton 2 m from Kettering in North shire cures a great many children by this Rx Jn
Put a traveller when you are to travel a journey shave or clip off
all the hair abt the rupture & apply empl. de minio spread broad
on leather It is better than diaculum It prevents & cures chafing & 
galling E. A. seasonable coition gives ease to men having a rupture 



313)
A rupture Rx the yolks of 12 eggs & fry em alone
in a frying pan till they are black the miles They must
first be roasted in hot wood embers till the yolks are blew &
very hard. They must be roasted for half an hour & fry’d for
half an hour anoint the oyl (which you must keep for use) in the
morning daily make a plaster of turpentine & diaculum cum gumi
melted together & wear a truss Rx syrup of knotgrass. Drink ale
avoid beer that is very small & going up stairs & riding on a hard
trotting horse. Ly pretty much upon a couch in the day time Rx
juniper berries no 12 or sp of juniper 3 or 4 drops in ale. It is
good to correct wind which often causes a rupture. Rx em for a week or 
longer avoid eating fat meat or fruit or any thing that is windy when 
a rupture comes by a fall it is hard to cure Sister Shukbrugh. you 
may buy oyl of eggs at the apothecaries.
Dr Ed. Green the mountebank his red salve to cure a rupture or corns
Rx bees wax six drams, rosin 2 drams turpentine 1 dram red lead in 
fine pouder half a dram melt em in to a little round cakes or rolls
spred it upon allum leather for a rupture He sells a cake abt as
big as a crown piece but thicker for 6 d This salve cured Jn
[Cater’s] son George of Blaby of a rupture when a great many noted
medicines had been try’d in vain. He was abt 4 or 5 yrs old.
Mr Penford & E. A. It cured for a little time but wou’d not make a perfect
cure
a medicine for a rupture Rx the seeds of parsly, gromwell,
& burdock each zi & cummin seed zi beat all these to fine
pouder Give as much as will lie on a shilling in any liquid
& wear a truss. S. S. 
Doringtons diet drink for a rupture caus’d
by wind. Boyl these things in strong ale (beer & ale E. A.) anniseed
cummin seed caraway seed liquorish pouder coriander seed sweet
fennel seed long pepper & grains of paradiec with a few springs of
old man (al ladslove al southern wood) when these are boyled to the
tast sweeten it with treacle. Let it boyl up strain it out & give it
to the child to drink at any time. You need not fear a [lark], but
if it shou’d happen leave it off 2 days & keep warm. S. A.
a plaster for a rupture or the falling of the womb. Rx Pitch of Spain 2 ou. aloes
succotine red wax henbane each 2 ou. pitch of [shippers], mastick,
incense, galbanu, oppoponax (moline opoponax) gum [srespin]
(al. sagapen) each 4 ou. S. S.
Rupture when the swelling chafes wash it with hot butter milk
& moisten a little fullers earth with water spred it on a 
brown paper or linnen cloth. Drink 20 or 30 drops of balsamu
capivi in a qr of a pint of beer & ale night or morn
Keep the body open Mr Orme apothecary
James Flude of Croft had a great swelling like a rupture in
the privy pts being abt 60 yrs of age. It swell’d & broke & ran 
vastly He was like to have died, but was cured byu making a 
poultice of rose cakes boyled in ale & apply’d as hot as he 
could bear it with a little hogs lard twice a day. It is an ext poultis
for the Kings Evil Sister Boothby.


(314
There is no cure for a rupture without a truss & constant
keeping up. Let the child’s head be always layd low. It must
not eat nor suck too much at a time to fill the rutpure apply
a poultis agt the fire made of oatmeal that is small some children
are cured by rolling with a swathe made of new holland, [illegible]
truss is best. Give a pouder of flag roots & knotgrass apply the
rupture plaster to the broken place. Eat comfry & eggs fry’d
sometimes comfry in gruel. It must be kept dry by drawing 
in fresh rags betwixt the truss & swelling. Some are broken at the
groin & navel too, Put it up at the groin & it will swell at the
navel. Sister Ekins.
Yarrow al milfoil is good for ruptures. Pechey & Millers Herbals.
The starting of the navel has been cured in many children with a
cataplasm made with wine & the herb sanicle & bound close on, comfry
bruis’d being applied to the small of the back at the same time
Pecheys Herbal
Rupture in children cured by a Quaker woman in Nottingham
Rx prepar’d coral in pouder as much as will lie on a silver [groat] twice a
a week & no oftener for a child 3 yrs old in the morning fasting in 
milk or milk pottage, or beer. Continue it for ½ a yr or longer
till the child is well applying emplastru ad herman to the swelling.
Let the child drink mallow leaves & roots boyl’d in water & 
strain’d, for its constant drink except in the mornings when it
drinks milk. It quenches thirst. This cured Mr Tho. Charlton’s
son Tho. of a rupture. Coral is a brown white Cos. Margt Maxlo.
The bark of [elms] boil’d in ale wort & apply’d is good for ruptures
& to consolidate wounds Miller. The water in the bladders on the
leaves of Elms (clears the skin being wash’d with it) helps [burstenness] in 
children clothes being wet in the water & apply’d, but a truss must be kept
on also. Pechey’s Herbal.
A plaster for a rupture by E. A. Rx empl. ad herniam some patch grease from
the currier melt em together to the consistence of a salve Rx it from the fire & 
with a spoon add sp. of wine in which a good deal of camphor has been dissolv’d
& stir it abt till it is cold then spred it upon leather This did no good.
Electuarium ad Hernias An electuary agt ruptures quincy Rx pulp of
comfrey root zfs conserve of red roses zi pouder of blood stone finely
[levigated] zij dragons blood zi sugar of lead & balsam of Peru each zfs 
oul of cinnamon gut vi syrup of coral q.s. so make all into a smoth electuary.
This is a great strengthen & therefore may so draw up & harden the
solids as to reduce ruptures & very much prevent em.
Emplastrum ad herniam Quincy Rx of the glue made with snake skins
boil’d in a lixivium of tartar 4 ou. blood stone sugar of lead burnt tin
each ziij ammoniacum dissolv’d in vinegar 3 ou. [illegible] prodigiously consume


315)
it in all kinds of ruptures but the hydrocele (ie hernia agnosa)
& he says it is an infallible remedy observing a proper dist, which
must be strengthening, restringent, & not breeding flatulences; & it must
be constantly wore with [the] bandage Quincy says mastick plaster
strengthens the reins & sprain’d & luxated parts Try it.
Dr Fullers pouder in an hernia
Rx Solomon’s seal & comfrey roots anniseeds each zi make a pouder
It doth good by expelling wind, easing pains & consolidating the parts
Let a small child take 15 gr. thrice a day Let grown persons Rx zfs or
[illegible] ij with a draught of decoction of yarrow or Dr Fuller’s styptic decoction
Dr Fuller says a cataplasm of baked turnips is
ext for a tumour of the scrotum.
E. A. had a violent fever October 729 (a very sickly time) which caused a tumour
near the scrotum, emplastru ad herniam & several other things with a good
truss were try’d in vain at last he dipt a linnen rag in camphorated
S.V. made very strong of the camphir & apply’d it with a truss & 
ty’d a fillet to the wast band of his breeches & ty’d it abt his neck
to keep em up & it took away all pain & made the tumour abate If 
once a day moistening the rag is the S.V. [illegible] give ease You must [do] it twice a day
found out by E.A. but it would not make a perfect cure
Dr Fullers electuary in a rupture
Rx conserve of St Jns wort flowers 1 ou. pulp of comfry root (baked
in an oven with sugar lain upon loin) zfs The stone haematites (reduced
with S.V. on a marble to an alcohol) zij dragons blood in drops zi.
Sugar of saturn, balsam of Peru each zfs oil of anniseed, of sweet 
fennel seed each 2 drops syrup of cora 1 ou. or q.s. The dose is 2 or 3 drams
Dr Fullers astringent foment for a rupture etc.
Rx oak bark 2 ou. pomegranate peel zfs balaustines, red roses dry’d each
mi boil in [illegible] 2 qts to 1 qt strain & add rough red wine ½ pint so there
may also be added alum zij or zfs It corrugates the [relax’d] [fibres]
strengthens their tone shuts up the external pores & straitens the
internal passages hinders the afflux of humours & repels them It is good
in the beginning of inflamations & in oedematous tumours vomiting,
diarrhoea, immoderate flux of the menses or haemorrhoids, falling out
of the womb or intestines & in ruptures, after the putting back of the
guts ibid
Dr Fullers plaster of balaustines. This elegant salve he says mightily 
corroborates & comforts the head, stomach abdomen & uterus It is good
for a rupture Rx galbanum strain’s zifs pouder’d mastick ziij 1 [ounce]
turpentine zfs hard pitch [illegible] ij work em together in a warm mortar adding
oil of mace 15 gr. pouder’d balaustines 45 gr. Bring all to a plaster artificially
Pomet says common spirit of salt that which is right & good is much used
in hernias apoplexies scurvy of the teeth & gum Dose is from 10 
to 20 or 30 drops in ale or beer & ale or in water
The decoction of the leaves & root of common mouse-ear (auricula muris) drunken 
doth cure & heal all wounds both inward & outward & also ruptures. R. D. & Pechey
says it stops fluxes, is vulnerary & cures childrens ruptures.
The round birthwort (aristolochia) is profitable for all such as are hurt or bursten
inwardly if it be given em to drink with water. R.D.


(316
To kill rats or mice
Rx crow figs at nux vomica (nuces vomica) Hold one at a time 
in a hand vice grate it with a rasp or a tin grater, but the other
is best abt 3 or 4 grated are enough to dress 2 or 3 barns or more
mix it with sugar of six pence per lb with a knife Then Rx good sack
[illegible] brandy & sheep water made of tobacco stalks or dust ratsbane 
& allum & water & salt It must have no brine in’t each a qr of a 
pint The sheep water makes em very thirsty aqua fortis 2 d malmsey 
wine ½ a pint pr 8 d Put the aq. fortis in to the bottle (made of glass
that will hold a qt) with a little sweet ale wort before it is mixt with 
hops Rats hate bitter things & love whatever tastes sweet Rx yellow
arsnic zii pr. 4 d white arsnic al. ratsbane zi pr. 2 d mercury sublimate
zfs pr. 4 d stibium pr. 3 d w. sugar candy zfs pounded with 
the w. arsnic Let all be pouder’d fine Put abt half of the
poysons & pouder to the liquids in the bottle & the rest mix with sugar
6 d per lb & liquor out of the bottle & the finest wheat flower till it 
is as thick as batter for pankakes or thicker that it will not run If it
runs you must add more flower spred it 8 or 9 inches in length
on the side piece & his breadth of the side piece on each side each 
barn & on the wall plates where the corn is below the wall plate
The more sorts & variety of poysons the better They deceive & kill
with more certainty The variety of scents tempts em to taste of it
as a novelty If they run upon it they naturally lick their feet
which kills em They drink & swell & die. They frequent the side trees
more than the wall plates. The Tatham of Enderby & a ratcatcher 
of Newport [Pagriel].
To kill mice mix crow figs grated to pouder with butter & hard
cheese scrap’d & put into a box with a hole at each end for
mice to in & out at so that no dog may get to the poyson,. ibid
Wm [Ellis] ratcatcher of [Scauby] where [illegible] Maltrop justice of
the peace lives 1 m ½ from [Brig] a market town in Lincoln shire
[illegible] [illegible] bate Rx the best baking apples that are of a pleasant pure
taste such as are the best for apple tarts pare & core em Put no sugar
to em weight abt lbfs in a pot after it comes hot out of the oven or
you may stew em in a sauce pan as you do for goose sauce
putting 3 or 4 spoonfuls of water to em (sugar doth harm in poyson
it offends the rats) Rx [roseacre] al [illegible] etc. yellow arnick 
ziiij in fine pouder stir it with a flat stick lay the quantity of a
pea or a horse bean on the wall plates or side [illegible] or spred it
where the runs look black They lick their feet & tayle both which
wipe off the dust & make the wood look black spred the medicine
abt 3 inches broad & abt 2 f long in a place that they cannot jump


317)
jump over it. You must not lay it where there is dust
there they do not come. where the cobwebs are broken
there they come. Rub it abt the holes on the inside on the thatch
If they lick their feet or tayls they die. Sometimes mix it with
mallow pair that is dead rotten Wm Ellis.
To kill rats. make a toast of wheaten bread, dip it in ale
strew it on white fine sugar Let em eat that. The next night
after they have eaten it make anew toast, dip it in ale strew
it on white ratsbane in fine pouder & upon that w. sugar. Take
away what they feed on to keep em hungry. This was lay’d in 
a chamber where their run was. Jn Randle of East Farnham in 
Northampton-shire kill’d 30 rats that he found dead the next day.
He was not troubled for 6 yrs after Yod may divide the toast
into 2 or 3 pts. The toasts were lay’d in March. White arsnick
has the least scent Wm Rost of Blaby.
The root of white helebore in pouder mixt with oat meal or sugar or apples
will kill rats Jn Dawson farrier of Leicer
A malster of Bitterswet drove rats quite away form his malt
house by burning brimstone & assafoetida Jn Mason E. A.’s t’nt.
To kill rats or mice or cats or dogs or hogs or any creature that eats it
Tho. Fardel gardiner of leicer
Rx currans pound or chop em fresh bane that has no salt in it [illegible] oatmeal
sifted with the fine flower brown sugar ratsbane[illegible] pouder mix & work it with a knife like paste, then
lay it in clean oyster shels or on a clean [illegible] board a little in a place where 
the rats haunt or come often. Lay 10 or 20 pieces or separate pts not all in 
one place. He bought ratsbane 2 d & kill’d 200 rats in one house at Harborow
Leicershire. Lay it where cats cannot come for they will eat it.
He lay’d it in 20 pts
another for Do. Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel Rx fresh butter that
has no salt in it mix it with the fine flower of oatmeal sifted mix white
arsnic with it in fine pouder. They will take white sooner than yellow arsnic
another Toast some new milk cheese or fat cream cheese a little to make it
smell a little piece abt the length from the middle joint of the middle finger
to the end crumble it like bread crumbs with white arsnic 2.9 or a [cake]
This kills all rats & mice take care to lay it where no hogs, dogs
cats or children come. You may put it into mice holes. Tho. Goode gardinr
another Roast some apples & mix the pap with some white arsenic & Rx
away all the chees if they be in a cheese chamber & lay it upon a board
one apple is enough for to kill one or 2 rats. The rats eat most of the
pap of an apple & ratsbane made very fine the 1st night lay’d by Ann
Queniborow of [A?ston] Liecershire
another mix [illegible] ratsbane with white sugar perhaps it may be a good
way to pound em in a mortar together Put in but a small quantity
of ratsbane to a good quantity of sugar Lay it in oyster
shels in malt houses of granaries This kill’d so many rats at
Rushden that they stank intolerably when dead. Cos. Tho. Ekins
or Jn [Dahm??] lay ½ ratsbane ½ oat meal on [illegible] [illegible] broken [illegible] ratsbane 1 d
in [illegible] or the [illegible] where the rats come on [illegible] pieces in [illegible] [illegible]
mix w. arsenic with loaf sugar Dr [Banker] 


(318
To set a rasor [a rasor or razor
novacula, culter tonsorius
Rub the stone clean with a cloth then pour a little 
oyl on’t not too much, if in the winter hold it on the 
hone agt the fire to dissolve then move the rasor lay’d
level & lightly on the hone turning it sometimes on
one side & sometimes on the other not observing to harm
or wear each side equally alike till towards the last
that you are preparing to give it a fine round edge which
is the best & most durable edge. The way to get a round
edge is this after you’ve whet the rasor as at 1st draw the 
edge cross the middle of the tumb & you’l feel it
rake agt the nail & move unsteadily which signifies
that the edge has nicks in’t or is threded than you must
whet it again as at st carelessly moving the rasor so that the
edge may move 1st & towards the body moving it round
till the edge lay’d lightly on the middle of the thumb nail
draws smooth without any rub. If it draws rough you must 
set it again & again till it draws smooth when it draws smooth
on the nail then you then you must give it a round edge You
must lean a little more upon the edge then on the back the
back not touching the hone turning it exactly on each side
alternately & draw the back 1st as you do when you set it
on a leather or strop then look with a pr of spectacles on 
each side of the edge of the rasor & you will discover
whether there is any thred on the edge if there is you must
set it again as you did last time for a round edge. At Sheffield
the Prentices when they are almost out of their time 
set rasors & use spectacles to discover the goodness of the 
rasors edge. when you use a strop or leather or hand you must
bear a little or most on the edge which makes the edge round 
& durable & takes off all threds. a hard hand is best It must
be clean & dry & free from oyl & grease. a hard hand is
better than leather If you rub it on the leather or strop, rub
it on the hand last viz the edge on the edge & fleshy pt
of the hand between the little finger & wrist. Let a bad rasor
lie by & be eaton with rust & it will improve it. Rust eats the 


319)
Soft & bad pt of the steel out rasor ginder a
traveller
How to set a rasor James Davis white smith of Croft
Let the back & heel of the rasor move 1st on the hone
laying the rasor flat & lean gently at the beginning & ‘
end of the movemt & heaviest in the middle of the 
movemt either on hone or leather or strop & sometimes
slide the point of the rasor up the stone 1st to the handle of
the rasor & so let the point move 1st back again, keeping the
rasor always flat This cross motion takes & keeps off the
thred well. The last movemt giveth the finest edge. You 
may move the edge 1st at last to finish the edge on the
hone if you will. move the edge of the rasor upon the
hone always 1st & at last move it cross ways i.e. letting
the heel & sometimes move 1st backwards & forwards 3 or 
4 times together Sometimes move the point 1st back wards
& forwards 3 or 4 times together Let the back of the
rasor always touch the hone 1st i.e. before the edge
touches it. you may move the back of the rasor 1st 
at 1st but you must finish the edge with the edge moving
1st on the hone. you must lean gently on the 
stone or leather when you are abt finishing the edge 
To finish an edge make short strokes or movemts at
last either on hone or leather
Oyl a strop or piece of calf’s leather so as to make it
drunk with oyl & oyl it as oft as you use it or grease
it 1st with soft grease at last with oyl. warm the leather
& work the grease in agt the fire till it will drink up
no more & the leather feels very limber & pliable The
older the leather the better a piece of leather like a boot 
garter is better than a strop fixt on wood. warm the leather
when you use it in cold weather Let the back & heel of the 
rasor move first on the leather st fro the left then back
again from the right hand to the left turning the side of
the rasor at the end of each movemt when you’ve done so 3 or 
4 times or often as you think convenient then move the
point & back of the rasor 1st from the left to the right & 
back again 3 or 4 times. move it sometimes with the point 



(320
1st sometimes with the heel 1st but conclude &
finish the edge with the point always 1st The 
leather gives a fine edge then the hone & must be
used after it always. when a rasor wants grinding
(i.e. when the edge will not bend lay’d side ways & prest on the 
thumbnail) tho you set it on the best hones & oyl’d leather
it will not have a good sharp edge to cut well ibid
Thomas Sheth the barber moves the rasor carelessly at
1st in a round motion with the edge first always turning it
lying on its back or the back touching the hone upon 
the turn after a little time he turns each side alternately
the edge moving always 1st but when he thinks he
has set it enough he moves the back 1st for a turn or
2 to take off the thred the back as well as edge always
touching the hone exactly alike except upon the
turn. But no hone will give a fine edge without a rub
or 2 upon an oyl’d leather or hand then you must hold
the back from the leather letting only the edge gently 
touch it alternately This takes off the thred & gives it
a fine smooth edge He commends a piece of buff
rub’d with the leather of the wash ball as the best leather
Richard Chapman barber at Leicer moves the edge of the
rasor always 1st (affirming that drawing the back 1st will not
set it or give it a good edge) he lays the rasor exactly flat
upon the hone so that the edge & back always touch the hone
& he leans equally upon both & equally on both sies he 
moves two strokes on each side before he turns the rasor & 
he says you may shave with a rasor set on an hone without rubbing
on a leather or hand but he generally rubs it on a strop
or buff belt He always scrapes the strop or leather with the
back of the rasor before he sets the edge on it to take off its
glaze or foulness whether it is caus’d by oyl or the leather
of the wash [ball] he makes his wash balls all of sope To set a
rasor on a strop or leather after you’ve scrap’d it clean with the
back keep the edge always to the leather never letting the back


321)
touch the leather & move the back always 1st
or you will cut the leather or strop This takes the
thred from the edge you may hold the middle of the
blade of the rasor in the hand while you 1st it on a
leather sometimes after grinding a rasor doth not come to 
a good edge till it has been on the hone 5 or 6 times Draw the 
rasor edge gently cross the thumbnail breadthwise to take
off the thred.
Burstal lutler & rasor grinder of Leicer that was apprentice
at Burmingham. Lay the rasor flat upon the hone
& move the edge forwards in a kind of a semicircle to 
each side the 1swt stroke for the point the 2nd for the heel
turn the rasor & repeat the same 2 strokes nimbly on the other side
the edge always moving 1st you must not lean at all upon the
rasor its own weight must set it & each side must be turn’d
equally alike that a true wail may go on both side the edge of
the rasor (tho E. A. has seen a good edge tho the wayl has bin bigger
on one side than the other) Burstal applys only the edge 
of the rasor to a strop or leather the back never touching it
he generally only rubs in on his leather apron a stroke or 2 to 
take off the thred. He can see a thred so he seldom draws it cross
his thumbnail. a soft hone is best because quickest but a 
hard hone gives the finest edge
E. A.’s little burnt hone with an hole at the end sets the finest
edge on a rasor of all his hones a London strop the glaze & 
dirt 1st scrap’d off with the back of the rasor gives the finest edge 
of all E. A.’s strops or leathers August 1st 718
when a rasor has a thick dull edge & has not been grun of a long
time. Put some paper abt the little end to h old it streight & steddy
then hold the rasor near the end of the handle without griping it 
hard & move it 10 times on one side (the edge moving forwards) & 
10 times on the other laying it very flat Repeat this 2 or 3 times
then move it 5 times, 4 times, thrice, twice, & once of a side then bear
it on the edge lightly, turning it every time & make it take up some
oyl all along the edge Try it on the hand when it cuts well then apply it
to the strop or leather & draw it gently on the strop bearing a little on
the edge one stroke on a side alternately July 719 E. A. You must bear 


(322
most on the edge of a penknife both on the hone & strop
E. A. To set a rasor move it on the hone with the edge first on 
both sides for a pretty while then draw the back forwards on both
sides alternately letting the edge touch the hone (strop or hand) as 
gently & lightly as ever you can move it thus a good time together
& it will lose its dull edge & put on a very fine smooth cutting
edge which will make it shave with pleasure. Lay the rasor flat to 
touch the hone or strop or hand both back & edge at once but bear
the edge gently let it touch as if it touched not. This is the mystery
of setting a rasor or penknife to carry em lightly (slowly or nimbly)
taking care that the edge touches always. whet the point of the rasor
most because it is most used. September 719. E. A. It is a material article
in setting a rasor to let the back of the rasor touch the hone or strop
first Br. S. A. To whet a rasor on the hand Lay it flat & lean gently 
at the beginning and end of each movemt & lean hard in the middle E.A.
To set a rasor on a strop or leather Lay it flat & draw that end of
the rasor that is next the handle always first turn it & let the back
move 1st always & lean very hard on the rasor on both sides or
turns or movemts with an equal hard pressure of the edge constantly 
agt the strop or leather E. A. This is the reason some men can
shave so long without setting a rasor on a hone ibid.
Sometimes this method will set a dull rasor well on a hone Let the
edge move 1st towards the body & lean lightly & let the edge return
1st back again leaning pretty hard. E. A.
To set a rasor the best way lay the rasor always flat upon the hone
with a gentle even pressure on both sides [illegible] upon the strop but on leather
or fleshy pt of the hand that will yield let only the edge of the rasor touch em the
back being always holden up pretty remote from em & move the rasor always from end to end Tho. Tafte & E. A.
lean hard on the hand or loose leather because they will [play] ibid.
another Rx a pretty long hone let one end rest on a table holding
the other obliquely & exalted with the hand then move the edge of
the rasor (lay’d flat) from the bottom of the hone to the top so that the
edge of the rasor may smooth & carry the oyl along with it apparently
to be seen on the edge Then on the edge of a table place the middle
of the hone & exalt the end of the hone remotest from the hand that
holds the hone & let the edge on the other side of the rasor move back
again ascending so that the edge may take oyl from the hone the rasor
being lay’d exactly flat The mutual elevation of the ends of 
the hone keeps the edge of the rasor always & truly to the hone E. A.
To set a rasor [half??] farmer rasor maker at Leicer Rx Three hones 
the first that you set the rasor on must be very soft & wear the
rasor pretty much the second must be somewhat harder than the 1st 
& the third must be the hardest of all to give the finest edge


323)
You must lean the hardest on the first hone
keeping the rasor always flat so that the back
& the edge may always touch & with an equal pressure
This you must do on all the hones only you must
lean lighter on the second hone than on the first & lightest
of all on the last fine hone that must have only the
weight of the rasor & then you need never use a strop
or leather You must make the rasor’s edge always
move first & turn it on the back that the other side
may return back again with the edge first The cutlers 
& rasor setters use only sevil oyl. always have plenty 
of oyl when you set a rasor on the hones or you can’t
set the rasor well. Let the hones lie on a tine square 
pan with a little edge & a little kind of a box in the
middle to receive the oyl cover’d with tin that has many 
holes in’t for the oyl to run thro. with this oyl the cutlers
oyl their shoes. when you let the rasor on the first 
hone after you’ve whet it a pretty while draw the edge
of the rasor gently agt the edge of the thumbnail whet it again
& do so a second time but no oftener on the 1st hone This takes off the
threds & prepares it for a fine edge Mr Halford farmer draws the
edge of the rasor down the edge of the left thumb during the
setting twice on the 2 first hones sometimes oftener seldom on 
the last hone It doth not dull the edge of the rasor It discovers
nicks & removes threds from the edge The smooth & pleasant running
of the edge of the rasor on the edge of the tumb declares
the goodness of the rasors edge The smoother it runs the better it
will cut. No barber or cutler can set a rasor with only one hone
to give it so sharp & durable an edge as he that sets it on three
hones of different degrees of hardness or softness.
when you are to set a dullish rasor move it 20 times on one side
all together & 20 times on the other all together on the hone
beginning at the point of the rasor whetting only an inch from
the point 1st then whet an inch further & so an inch till all the
rasor is whetted inch by inch 20 times on a side then whet it
10 times inch by inch on a side Lastly turn the rasor alternately 
& draw it the whole length from heel to point leaning gently 
on it move it so gentlhy that hyou may be sure to keep the rasor always 
flat the edge & back to touch exactly alike with the same
weight & pressure.
Rub a little oyl on the inside the edge of the hand after you’ve
set the rasor on the 3 hones drawing the back first on one side
then o n the other an inch at a time from the point laying the rasor
flat till you’ve whetted it inch by inch on both sides This gives the 


(324
rasor a sweet, fine strong pleasing edge much superior to any 
edge the hone can give E. A.
when you are to set a rasor after it is new ground lay it flat
& lean very lightly on the hone & lightly on the hand for
then the edge is thin when it h as been us’d a pretty while lean
a little harder on the rasor when the hone or hand Thomas
Tafte. To make any rasor or penknife cut with a fine edge
If the rasor is very dull let it be ground. If it does not want
grinding then lay it flat on the hone & move it the length
of the hone 1st on one side then on the other turning the rasor 
always on the back This whets both sides equally alike Then
begin at the point of the rasor & move only abt a barly corn’s
length downwards gradually till you come to the handle turning
it on the back alternately, the edge moving always 1st when you
have whetted down to the handle (which must hold the rasor fast with 
a piece of paper or rag) whet back again from the handle to 
the point turning on the back every barly corns length, leaning
lightly. Then whet it on the hand & finger moving the back always 
1st & leaning most on the edge a broad side at one movemt or stroke 
Lastly begin at the point & whet down gradually little by little
keeping the edge to the fleshy pt of the hand & turning the rasor
nimbly on both sides till you come to the handle & so whet it from
the handle to the point gradually back again letting only the edge touch
the hand gently all the time. when you’ve done thus then draw 
the edge on both sides gently agt the soft swelling flesh that
is on the back of the hand betwixt the thumb & forefinger when
squeez’d close together This gives the finest edge that a rasor is capable
of & brings the edge of a penknife to perfection E. A. You may 
get a smith or carpenter to whet the rasor on a hard hand & afterwards
you may whet it on your own soft hand or on a female
hand E. A.
Jn Hacket cutler of Melton Mowbray his way of setting a rasor
Put plenty of sallet oyl on the hone new oyl is better than old fasten the
small end of the rasor with a piece of paper to make it steddy then lay it
flat upon the hone & with a steddy hand without shaking or tattering
draw the rasor back that it may move 1st several times in a round 
motion from one end of the hone to the other almost leaning
very hard on a hone that is sharp & wears away the rasor pretty much
viz on a soft hone then turn the other side & move the back forward
several times in a round motion. Do thus again & again alternately
till it comes to an edge which you may know by trying it agt the skin of
your hand at the ball of hour forefinger Then hold the rasor almost perpendicular
a little on one side & scrape the edge of the handle
to the point agt the nail of the 2nd finger or thumb of the left hand 


325)
one way to thred or turn the edge all along one way
(moving the back always 1st threds the edge & moving
the edge 1st on the hone takes the thred & brings a fine edge
on) after you’ve thred the edge move the rasor lay’d flat
on the hone always 1st in a circular motion abt 6 storkes on
one side then lay it exactly flat again & move the edge on
the other side 1st abt 6 strokes in a circular motion & so alternately
till it is sharp Then upon the fine hard hone move the
edge 1st 3 or 4 strokes on a side Lastly sweeten & round the edge
on the fleshy pt of your left hand below your little finger turning
the edge mostly to the h and one stroke on one side & another on 
the other side vice versa leaning lightly on the hand. Lay the 
narrowest pt of the rasor next the handle flat upon the hone
draw the edge first towards your body the length of the hone
exalting the hand all the way gradually to the point of the rasor
Do the same thing back again the edge moving first from the handle
draw it along the hone to the point raising the rasor all the way & 
move it upon the very point sometimes on both sides This keeps the
edge of the rasor always to the hone & gives it the sweetest & most
durable edge Move the rasor so on the edge of the soft hand the back always
moving first & draw it from the heel to the point & exalting
the hand to make the heel of the rasor rise up gradually to the very point
you may try if the back of the rasor always moved first on the hone
does not finish an edge as well as the edge moving always first 
Thus finish a penknife by drawing it from the handle to the point
& make the stampt or markt end advance gradually to the point as
you draw it on the hone or hand or strop.
Let the rasor be never so well set when you trim if you do not gripe it
hard so as to hold it steddy it will quickly lose its edge
& not trim half so fast nor so close A loose way of holding it
makes it slide over the hair without cutting E.A.
To set a rasor (the best way) Lay it flat upon a hard fine hone
& move it backwards & forwards without turning taking care
to keep the edge to the hone (as well as the back) whetting only one
pt of the edge at a time Then turn the other side laying it flat
& move it forwards & backwards without turning 4 or 5 times together
at 1st leaning hardest at 1st at last turn it every movemt
on the back the edge moving 1st up & down leaning then very 
lightly E. A. Lay the hone flat upon a table laying a paper or rag 
under it to keep it steady. E. A. Jn Kendal a traveller his way to set a 
rasor Put a little oyl on the hone made very clean. Lay the rasor flat leaning
not very hard move the edge always first in a circular motion from 
one end of the hone to the other for a good while together Then remember
this for a rule that you always turn the rasor from the back as often as hyou 
turn it That preserves the edge very much which a little touch awry disturbs 
& dulls Then whet it as much on the other side after the same manner At last
turn it every movement the edge going first Rub it a little gently on your wrist
or hand. Hold a human hair between your left thumb and finger If the rasor will
cut it off a qr of an inch from the end of your thumb on any pt of the edge then the
edge is good. You may over hone a rasor i.e. make the edge too thin Thus whet a
penknife lay it flat move the edge first circularly Turn on the back whet a lancet circularly


(326
A finger prickt with a nail or pin
anoint it with oyl of turpentine or with oyl of 
turp. & goose grease & hold it agt the fire ready 
to burn it. Repeat this thrice in 24 hours. EA. another
almost scaled it in hot water after that squeeze out the
blood & apply Bents salve to’t or de minio. This will cure
a whitloe also. Anne Tasie.


327)



(328
Toe-nail eating into the flesh.
Cut the nail short on that side it eats into the flesh & 
moisten a little lint with tincture of myrrh & thrust
it betwixt the nail & flesh E. A. or cut off the offending
pt of the nail & dead flesh & moisten it with oyl of origanu 
with lint or without E.A. or mix Haines’s salve for a corn
or Dr Pool’s black salve with a little lint E. A. If these dry
too much put tallow to the sore to supple it. ibid. or put hony to 
a little lint and apply it E.A.




(330
nodes, knobs or hard swellings to dissolve.
anoint with oyl of origanum morning & evening, it will take
a splint away, but not presently or prick thro the skin with a 
needle fixt in a stick, in several places then rub oyl of peter
allover it & heat it with a hot fire shovel, do thus 4 or 5 days
together p. 264. The experienc’d farrier


331)



(332
Diabetes
Rx Balm of Gilead 5 or 6 drops in D.R.L. sugar night & morning
This cured a gentlewoman known to Mrs Lathwell.
The water at Bristol is ext to drink
The water in which quick lime has been slacked poured off when it
is clear & drank is an ext sweetener of the blood & is accounted
one of the best remedies in a diabetes Dr Quincy.
swelling in the cod or scrotum. Anoint with ointment of
marshmallows Thomas Mortimore of Narboro


333)
To set a penknife on a hone or to whet it
on a rag or other whetstone
Rx the penknife & hold the back towards you or the
edge upon the hone & whet the left i.e. the markt side
most, letting the edge & back lie flat & both touch the
hone or rag & now & then draw only the edge on the
right or contrary side on the hone to take off the thred 
not suffering the [illegible] at any time to touch the hone & on that
side this gives a round & durable edge Mr Jonathan Buckerfield
writing master & Cos. Tho. Boothby.
To give an ordinary knife as a butchers knife etc. a
fine edge to take off a sheep skin or to cut a feather
whet it upon a thrashold free from nails or a board
with ashes or smith scales This gives it a finer edge than 
a rag or any whetstone but a steel will give it a fine
edge but it is difficult to understand how to whet on
Jn Cater shepherd To whet a knife on a steel. move the
back always 1st taking care to turn the edge so that the edge may 
always touch on both sies 1st on one side then on the other & the
thicker & duller the edge the harder you must lean on it when the edge
is extraordinary thick whet it on a stare or thashold or board to 
thin it. Steel gives a fine edge. Some butchers can’t learn to whet
a knife on a steel some steels cost 3 s 6 d & some but 1 s 2 d Richd Brew
in Butcher
To whet a pen knife Halford farmers way who serv’d his
apprenticeship to a rasor make at London
Bear the back of the knife always from the hone that only the
edge may touch beginning with the point lay’d on the right side & 
push it forwards & backwards [illegible] length till you’ve whetted from the point down 
to the handle as if the knife was to creep down the hone then you must turn
the other side of the knife & move gradually backwards & forwards i.e. whet
it in a straight line to & fro with a short stroke from the handle to the point
again & so from the point to the handle & vice versa till you’ve made
the edge sharp. this short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
the edge sharp. This short stroke makes every pt of the edge on both
sides touch the hone. when you’ve done thus then draw the edge after the
same way on the fleshy pt or edge of the hand whetting from the point
to the handle & from the handle to the point on the contrary side Lastly 
draw the edge gently on both sides agt the soft flesh that is on the back
side the hand betwixt the finger & thumb they being both prest together 
this gives the finest edge that is both to rasor & penknife. E.A.


(334
To fix a knife blade in a handle
Beat some brick to fine pouder on a stone or on another
brick with a hammer & bruise some rosin (black or yellow) to
a course pouder then put the pouders mixt (take most brick dust)
& fill the hollow of the handle then heat the tang of the blade
& twist it in to the bottom, as far as it can go Let it rest till
the next day then you may use it. Wm Davis white smith


335)



(336
Things that loosen the body when too costive
Eat one China orange whole viz peel, meat & seed It opens
& cools & is good to carry off gravel perhaps continued for
a week together they may help cure the scurvy E. A. oatmeal 
pudding posset drink especially with mallow leaves boyl’d in
it. new milk whey new made & warm Ride after It is
a great cleanser of the body after a purge or the bark
it carrys away gravel. Comfrey root dry’d & beaten to pouder
take night & morning Mr Traps. Lucatellus balsam pr. 2 d or
ziij mixt with conserve of (red) roses pr. 2 d or zvi Rx a knife’s
pointful night & morning It will gently open the body & is good
for a cough & consumption & a weak or decaying body.  This
cured Tho. Tafte a smith that cou’d scarce go a hightone. To keep
the body soluble. Rx common treacle a [hapworth] abt a spoonfuls
posset drink made of beer & ale as much as you can 
drink at a draught. Pater Meus. A gentle purge Rx sena zfs
rhubarb in pouder as much as will lie on a shilling, raisins of
the sun stoned no 40 fennel seeds & aniseeds bruis’d each
a spoonful, a stick of liquorish sliced, a rase of ginger slicd
abt 6 or 7 cloves. Boyl ale a qt. & scum it then put all
these things into it let em infuse all night Rx it at twice or
thrice ibid a violent cough. Mrs Catharine [Narolove] Rx Raysins
of the sun stoned zij brown sugar candy zi conserve of red roses
zfs spirit of vitriol gut. 12. Tincture of sulphur gut. 6 Beat all these
together into an electuary Rx the q. of a nutmeg night & morning & 
oftener if you have occasion Another scoop an hole in an apple 
(pretty large) to get out most of the core ift it with brown sugar 
candy & roast it stopping it with some of the same apple that the
scoop brought out, then mix it with clarret like apple & milk.
This cured Mrs Anna Maris Stokes after blooding Dr Cheselden.
A gentle purge Rx flower of brimstone abt ½ a spoonful put
it in a gally pot & just cover it with oyl of turpentine so let it
stand 24 hours or longer you may pour off the oyl if any will
run off for any other use Put the brimstone into a porringer
of new milk from the cow or boyl em together & drink it in
the morning fasting It will give you one stool or 2 E. A. It will
purge with only the oyl of turpentine E. A.
another which it reckon’d the best of purges & the best of medicines.
Hiera picra simplex. Rx cinnamon, mace assarabacca spikenard
mastick saffron each zvi alloes succotrine 12 ou ½ Beat em into fine 


337)
pouder & keep it for your use in a dry place.
Rx 1 ou. ½ of this pouder & put it into a pint of double
(single E.A) anniseed water Put it into a bottle & stop it close
& set it in the sun 10 days shaking it every day when you 
use it Pour off abt 1 ou. of the clear & take it going to bed or
after it S.S. Dr Salman says in affects of the stomach, mesentery, 
liver, womb, head & joynts it is exct if made into 
an electuary with clarified honey lbiv ziij. Dose a zij to iij in 
worm wood, rhenish wine with syrup of mugwort compound
& cure the green sickness. Dr Quincy says its bitterness hinders it
from being taken in the form of a bole & its quantity is too 
much for pills for 1 taking Its use now is only to make the 
tinctura sacra. E. A. thinks the tinctura sacra is best made
without Venice treacle or mithridate only with good w. wine
decanting off only the clear. To open the body Rx milk boyl 
it, add bread household or white cut smallish add ale a little, when
it is in the porringer stir it & eat it. you may take water in which 
maligo raysins have been steept 8 or 10 days without stalks
in stead of ale. E. A.
An ext purge to cleanse the bowels of slime & corruption
Rx Daffy’s elixir (made with single aniseed water) over night one 
spoonful the next morning take 2 spoonfuls mixt with sena zij
pr 3 d in very fine pouder sifted & abt a spoonful or 2 of common
treacle Repeat this intermitting a week betwixt purge & purge
thrice a dose for a man you may take less the 1st time This was found
out by E. A. Rx manna zfs fresh oyl if sweet almonds a sufficient 
quantity dissolve it add rosewater ten drops mix it Let children 
lick of this often to loosen their bellies when there is occasion Pecheys Herbal.
Manna is used to loosen the body 2 or 3 ou. of it being dissolv’d in 
broth or whey Tis a very gentle purge & may be safely given to old
men children & women with child A proper purge for children Rx manna
zifs dissolve it in black cherry water ziifs add to it f the purging syrup
of apple zi spirit of sulphur 3 drops. Half of it may be taken at a time
ibid If a purge doth not work in [3] hours after it is taken and to make it work
gently without griping. Boil some new milk with a sliced onion in it then Rx out
the onion & add the yolk of an egg & w. bread a little when it is off the fire, sweeten
it with treacle you may put in a little nutmeg E.A. via p. 338.
Mr Wm Freer of Blaby September 1730 had a looseness & after that a violent
costiveness with gripes which lasted a week purges that were strong would move 
him nor comon glyster at last Jn Smith of Do. made a suppository of alum 
& oil’d it & thrust it up his [illegible] then set his breech over a close in which 
was a good deal of hot water This gave him a little stool It was repeated
but produced no effect Mr Cook apothecary sent him a very long glyster 
[pipe] & a glyster made of milk oatmeal turpentine mixt with yolk of an
egg oil of turpentine a good quantity which gave him several stools which
smelt very strong of turpentine & he mended quickly


(338
To prevent a purge from griping
Quincy says oil of camomile is chiefly used to correct purges 
& it is sometimes given as a carminative in boles a drop or
2 at a dose * it does often suddenly remove those flatus’s which 
occasion stitches & pains of the side
Dr Fuller’s dispensatory says If powder’d crabs eyes be given
in water gruel during the operation of a purge ‘twill prevent 
griping p. 455. Dissolve a little flakey manna in beer ale or water
& mix it with your purge & it will prevent its griping E. A.


339)



(340
To dry up a sore, especially near a joynt
to prevent the joynt-water
Rx oyl of myrrh )not per deliquium) 3 d per dram or for want thereof tincture
of myrrh (but the oyl is 10 times better) & oyl of turpentine
p.e. mix em in the palm of your hand with haris fire or for want
thereof with lint or cotton & apply it to the sore or wound once 
dressing commonly cures Dr Pool mountebank.
How to dress & cure any sore.
Rx bees wax [4] ounces, (a groats worth) of turpentine horse turp. 3 ou. neatsfoot
oyl & hony of the 3 last a like quantity, but somewhat more 
of the wax than of any of the other things scrape the wax & set em
all on the fire Let em boyl a pretty while then pour em thro a 
course cloth into some clean vessel & put some water
to’t so you may keep it as long as you will
To make allum water Rx allum zij hony ziij sage leaves mij
boyl em in water 3 pints till one is wasted & the water is green
wash the sore well with this water warm after you’ve wash’d it
cast into the sore a good deal of loaf sugar Dress it morning
& evening & by the grace of God it will cure any sore that is
Geo. Ashby (Pater Meus) Mr Penford the apothecary syas sugar does
but little good it is not us’d by the surgeons pouder sugar pr. 8 d
per lb is best he says Venice turpentine is best for a sore but loaf
sugar double refin’d is best to keep down proud flesh because of the allum & lime E.A.
Mrs Davenport of Wigston Magna cured sore legs with this 
Rx following when many surgeons cou’d not.
Rx white vitriol frankincense, bean flower each 2 ounces bole
4 ou. in pouder Boyl em in spring water 3 quarts till a pint is consumed
dress the sore with the water as warm as new milk.
A rare water for a sore Rx camphir zij white copperas zij
beat em in a mortar together then boyl em together in an earthen
pot Let it stand till it be cold close stopt then take it out & 
beat it again with bole zi Then boyl spring water a qt. Put the
above named pouders into it stirring it till it be cold then bottle it
& keep it close stopt for your use. Pater Meus.
To dry up an obstinate sore in the leg Put quick lime lbs into an 
earthen pan or pot Pour upon it rain or river water 3 qts stir it together
when it is slack’d let it settle & decant all the clear water from 
the sedimt & if it is not perfectly clear filtrate it thro cup paper
To a pint of this water put abt [illegible] ij of corrosive sublimate more
or less according as you can bear it when you use it dip a linnen cloth 
2 or 3 times doubled in the water first shaking the bottle & apply it
to the pt affected as often as it grows dry. Dress the sore with this salve


341)
Salve, viz Rx linimt arcai zi basilicon zij mixt S.S.
Mrs Newlove of Blaby had a sore on her leg that the surgeons
could not cure till she took the Jesuits bark then it healed presently 
MRs Newlove
Clem. Brooks labourer of Blaby healed an old sore on his leg with only 
bees wax & butter p. e. boyled together when a great many healing salves 
were bafled & could not make a cure. C. B.
The itching of a sore or [illegible] wound dress it with the mercury lime water
p. 340. or with weapon salve i.e. bacon fry’d & the fat poured into 
water to extract the salt. E. A.
Dr Salmon says tar both drys & heals It draws worms out of the flesh.
It cures a broken skin It cures sores not easie to heal. Family Dictionary.
Widow Tasie of Newtown Linford had a running sore on her leg
with 4 holes in it 1) on the middle of the calf 2) on the skin etc. she
could not rest night nor day Jo. Warner (having marry’d her daughter)
the smith of Narborow, cured it thus. He made allu posset of new milk,
he wash’d it with the whey as hot as she cou’d endure it at night & lay’d
the posset curd on a cloth & that was apply’d to each sore as hot as
she coud abide it The next morning it was drest with unguentum [popul??]
warm’d & tents made of lint dipt in it & at noon with ung. popularum
That it was draft every night with allu posset & every day with the oyntmt 
at first twice a day because it run very much when the sores were dry he drest
em at last with only the oyntmt once a day in was cured in abt 6 weeks
& continues new very well She was then abt 75 yrs old. Jane Tasie.
He apply’d the oyntmt in the morn & again abt noon. ibid
To dry up a sore on the leg. Rx Solomons seal, the leaves, mij 
pound it & take the juice, grease or hogs lard free from salt,
the quantity of four walnuts, bees wax the quantity of 
two little nutmegs. Slice the wax & boyl em a pretty while to 
incorporate. This cured a travellers leg of a sore that had try’d
a great many Drs & surgeons in vain. Clem. Brooks & old
Ann Brooks another Drink cow piss, it has cured
a very sore leg. Drink it in May a good draught ½ a pint 
(or a pint if you can) 9 mornings together omit 9 days & 
drink it again. This cured a sore leg of a person that had spent
[illegible] among surgeons in vain. Sister Boothby. It hath cured 
the Kings Evil when these have been nine holes in one leg
when the surgeons cured the Evil It broke out again but
cow piss made a perfect cure Mrs Lathwell.
Br Geo. Ashby of Quenby had such a great swelling in his legs that 
the flesh did hang over his shoes He was cured by eating one clove
of garlic every morning fasting for a pretty while together G. A.



(342
To draw out a thorn. apply a plaster of turpentine
or Bents salve but these are mighty drawers & 
will not agree with all flesh sometimes they make the legs
swell & uneasie being strong drawers but this happens but
seldom but when it does or to take away the pain of a 
prick of a thorn mix oyl of turpentine & goose grease & 
anoint therewith then apply a plaster of diacutu simplex 
or the last may do alone. vid. The book of the cures
of horses by E. A. Jn Wood of Odeby had a great swelling on 
his hand caus’d by the prick of a thorn having tried many things in 
vain it was cured at last by oyntmt of marshmallows. Dr Hely
commends sope & the June bark of green elder mix together cold & 
apply’d plasterwise to a swelling caus’d by Do Mrs Basset commonly 
sp of wine for Do all these failed The king when the prick of a thorn 
caus’d a great swelling & numbness that he coul’d not bend his finger
It was cured at last by being cut open by a surgeon a plaster of Paracelsus T.K. Dr Salmon
commends emplastru stiticum a plaster agt puncutres, but says Paracelsus
plaster is better Dr Page of Lutterworth cut open T. kings finger to let out the 
congeal’d corruption It was healed with aqua aluminosa warme & cover’d with Paracelsus
savin mixt with hony will cleanse old foul ulcers & is effectual
in curing any running sores Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory.
A boy had a thorn in his thumb which he cou’d not extract. It was swel’d
as big as 3 mens thumbs. Currans & sallet oyl were pounded together in 
a morter to a salve & apply’d & it drew out a great core with the thorn
along with it. He liv’d in Warwickshire 6 m from Banbury Mrs Newlove
for a pricking with a thorn. Markham’s Rx
Stamp groundsel, soothe it with sweet milk till it be thick, then temper it with 
black sope & lay it to the sore.
Let ale be boyled to a salve or rather ale wort boyl’d to a salve then add turpentine
& a little oyl of turpentine & boyl em again This seldom fails drawing
out a thorn with a needle open the orifice abt the thorn I have known
when this has been apply’d 24 hours an emplaster of Bents salve has extracted
the thorn from a finger and so that it was easily pull’d out with a finger 
& thumb. E. A. 
for a pricking of a thorn
Rx violet leaves mi stamp em add wheat bran one handful & bears grease
al Browns grease as much as will make it a poltis when boyl’d apply it as
hot as you can endure it. The accomplisht ladys delight in Physick & Chirurgery.
To draw out a thorn or the like. Culpeper’s Last Legacy p. 222.
a little piece of the tongue of a fox (moisten’d & made soft with vinegar
if it be too dry) applied to the place, draws out a thorn or any thing else
that is gotten deep into the flesh another ibid. Snails with shells or without
beaten with rennet & applied plasterwise will draw out any thorn
or any thing else that is gotten never so deep into the flesh. ibid



343)
To pull out a thorn, splinter, or shiver.
If it may be seen pull it out with a pair of nippers or pick it out with a needle. But if
there be such a swelling that it can’t be seen then Rx wormwood. Pellitory
of the wall, bearsfoot, hogs grease & hony boil em & apply em
as a poltis or plaster, very hot. It is an ext remedy for any swelling
also. So is wine lees, wheat flour & cummin seed bruised & boyl’d together
& when it is at a head lance it. The epistomy of this art of this can dry
To draw out a thorn
Rx a little black soup & chew some nut kernels to mix with the soap & lay it
on the place grieved repeat it till the thorn comes out & you find [ease]. p. 62.
a collection of Rxs in Physick & Surgery.
Some lay gum ammoniack al. ammoniacum in a suppurative & that
it will of itself draw out thorns or splinters Quincy
another Rx Black soap & Venice turpentine perhaps horse turpentine may 
do p.e. mix & work em together near the fire to make em incorporate
Henry Watkinson cow [illegible] of Leicer
Geo. Brooks of Blaby had a thorn struck into one of the sinews or guides
of his finger on the back of his hand It was swell’d very much & pain’d
him mightily having been in a long time Jn Smith the blacksmith there
cured him thus He let him blood on the contrary arm to cool his body & 
to prevent humours flowing to the sore then he cut off the head of the
swelling but could not see the thorn he dry’d up the blood which was but little & rub’d on it
some tincture of myrrh having made a hollow placed with this [lancet] & put some into the place where the thorn was
then he put a little dry [illegible] verdigrise in fine pouder & cover’d it with emplastru
de minio It put him to violent pain The tincture of myrrh which he pourde into the 
hollow place made the verdigrise take more effectually & corrected in some degree its 
corrosive quality It lay on abt 2 days ½ He was resolv’d it should lie on till it
cored the thorn out which it did at last with a great piece of flesh & the thorn sticking
at the end of it then he healed it with his green salve leaving out rosin & tar
& putting in hony & camphorate sp. of wine & a little tincture of myrrh which last
was only used once or twice J. Smith G. B’s hand was poultis’d often before Jn Smith undertook
Jn Knight E. A’s shepherd had a thorn pretty long struck into the fleshy pt of his
thumb Mr Coy cut the skin upon & with a needle pickt out the thorn then he heated
some oil turpentine very hot in a silver spoon & poured a drop or 2 into the sore
place as hot as he could abide it & wrapt a linnen rag abt it & it was well without
doing any thing more at it at one dressing.
Galbanum doth mollifie & soften & draweth forth thorns, splinters or shivers & cold humours
& is good to be lay’d on all cold tumours & swellings, & it is mixt with all ointmts oils
& plasters that have power or virtue to warm, to digest, to dissolve, to ripen & break [impos???]
& to draw out thorns & splinters R.D.
Birthwort (aristolochia) draweth forth splinters of broken bones, shafts & 
darts, thorns if it be lay’d to the place with pitch or rosin. [illegible] & R. D.
Elizth Hurst E. A’s servt. Apr. 1730 had a thorn struck into her ancle as
she was burning em at a wood fire E. A. could not perceive with a needle that
the thorn remain’d in the ancle but it was a violent pain to her he drest
it with oil of turpentine made very hot & apply’d empl. adhesivum which 
sticks & draws that gave her ease for the present but after an hour or 2 the 
pain return’d, she thought the plaster drew too much It was taken off & drest
with tincture of myrrh & the Italian plaster (a sort of diaculum) that gives cure to a
corn was rub’d with tinct of myrrh & apply’d in vain She went lame at night the ancle
was [rub’d] with oil of turpentine a long time & [illegible] moisten’d in the same [was] lay’d on’t It cured it



(344
To catch moles.
Take a live mole (he or she) sew up the arsehole or anus
with a strong brown thread & put her into the run in the
ground again & she will firk & hunt all the molse out of
the ground which you may easily kill Carter mole catcher & rat
catcher


345)



(346
To provoke sweat.
Rx strong ale a qt or better one nutmeg grated common treacle
lbfs boyl em & drink it al thrice in 3 hours very warm
in bed laying a good many cloaths on you at night or you
may sweat in the morning. You must keep warm one day
after sweating lest you catch cold This try’d but once cured 
Jn Smith of Blaby of a great cold & pain in his thigh.
Jn Smith & Rd Mr Stokes. another Rx a two arm’d cane-chair
& fix a flat pewter or tin callander under the bottom of
it then put into a mortar Fr. brandy a qt having a good fire
in the chimny strip your self stark naked & cover your body & 
head in a blanket [ayred] sit over this brandy set on fire under
the chair & have cloaths to rub you with having brandy or 
cordial waters ready to take when you faint away you may drink
rosemary or sage posset drink made with ale during the sweating
This cured Mr Johnson (the father of Jn Ashby’s wife) of sore
eyes & blindness having been dark for 3 months caused by 
a cold taken by lying in a ground room at Roterdam
where the water came into his bed English Dr & Mrs Ashby.
Carduus is used commonly in posset drink to promote sweating,
& by taking a large quantity the stomach is cleansed by vomiting [illegible]
contrayerva called drakena radix from Sr Francis Drake, is an ext remedy 
agt all poyson except sublimate. It expels worms & cures agues.
This is a sweating medicine & expels malignity. Rx of the pouder of the
roots of contrayerva, Virginian snakeweed, & butter-bur each zi of
cochineal & saffron each zfs mix em & make a pouder The dose is zfs in 
sage posset drink or treacle water or any other convenient vehicle. Pechey’s Herbal
To promote a sweat.
Rx sp. of sal armoniac per se gut 28 or 30 in a glass of any wine,
not in ale. It is better than antimonium diaphoreticum Mr Banker
another Rx antimonium diaphoreticum gr. 4 or 5 mixt with Venice
treacle zi or zifs pr. 1 d at night going to bed cover’d with a weight 
of cloaths with out drinking any thing. The next morning eat
& drink what you will. ibid. Quincy says diaphoretic antimony, may be
given from zfs to zfs at a dose & may be repeated 2 or 3 times in a day
for several days together without hurt. It must be kept close from the air
or it will be emetick. It is given [with] alexiphas [micks] in malignant fevers & 
in the small pox & measles & also in scorbutic & venereal diseases to sweeten 
& cleanse the blood. Febry 1729. My Sister Boothby by having a fever with 
a rash had this compound cordial draught with [gasromis] powder p’scrib’d
her by Dr Cheselden to promote a sweat pr 1 s 6 d Mr Orme appothecary


347)
Rx milk-water treacle water each zifs [illegible] powder [illegible] fs sp:
of lavender 15 drops, syrup of balsam ziii mix & make it into a draught
to promote a sweat.
To cause a man to sweat Let a man take surfeit [illegible]
made with poppies & distill’d from aniseed [illegible] with liquorish [illegible] 3 or 4 
spoonfulls being drank at night with 2 thirds of an ounce of
Venice treacle or methridate going to bed or in bed covering him
self warm. Sister Boothby. A gentlewoman that lived to four [illegible]
every night going to bed drank a spoon full or 2 of 
surfeit water made of poppies for a great many yrs together Sister
Boothby
Dr Cheshire says opium & its preparations in any 
form promotes the operations of sudorificks, rarefies
the blood, allays pains & makes remedies less offensive
to weak & decay’d stomachs: Tho’ I would not be understood 
always to encourage the administration of this
sovereign article to all patients indifferently since I
know that even one drop of laud. liq. given to some
persons shall bring on convulsions & violently 
affect the nervs that periodical histerick disorders 
shall be excited for many days. And under the miserable
circumstances nothing is of more expeditious & 
certain relief than blisters & cupping with scarification 
with a glass of mint=water with 30 drops of 
tincture castor, russ & xv spt. salis. volat. [oleof.] at
proper intervals. If the pains are so very sharp as to 
prevent sleep at night 20 drops of Sydenham’s liquid
laudanum may be taken in a glass of sack or [palm???].
If 20 drops should not be sufficient to procure
rest an advance may be made to 25 or 30 drops at
discretion. But one great inconveniency, which attends
the repeated use of opiates is a loss of appetite;
a misfortune which should if possable be guarded agt
To provoke a sweat to cure a pain in the bones or cold or cough Rx syrup
of saffron 3 d treacle water 3 d when you begin to sweat drink sage
tea white wine possett drink or sack whey. Mr Simon Stokes of [Hinckly]
from Sr Hans [Slone].






(350
a preparation of steel
Rx white wine a qt filings of steel zij (Fuller says 
those of iron are much better) cinnamon zi Rd Mr
Ed Stokes. The dose is 3 spoonfuls when 1st prepar’d
when old take a less quantity in beer, ale or posset
drink ibid


351)



(352
Deafness or ear pained.
Pound the leaves of gill squeeze out the juice then take the most
reezed bacon you can get, toast it agt the fire let it drop
into the juice so that you must have a little more juice than
fat then heat & stir em well together At night going to bed, lie
on the contrary ear & having melted the medicine let 2 or 3 
drops be dropt into the pain’d or deaf ear putting a little black
wool new pull’d from a sheeps belly & moisten’d a little with the
oyntmt be cram’d into the ear, wear it 2 or 3 days repeat it
twice if the ear is not cured It will fetch out ear-was & 
blood This cured Mrs Mason by a Dr at Stamford pr. 2 [guins]
This cured also Nicholas Tasie of Sheepshead N.T. another oyl of
fennel seed dropt in to the ears helps deafness. Salmon’s disp
The almonds of the ears swell’d Rx saffron 2 d lay it on the
hearth to dry & rub it to pouder mix [well] it with as much crown sope
as the quantity of 2 hasel-nuts with a knife, lay it from the root of
the ear to the throat spred on a bit of allum’d leather Mrs Caulton
Rulandus’s balsam of sulphur eases pains in the ears if dropt
into them. Salmon’s Disp. Deafness Rx Black wool from a live
sheeps belly or cod heat a drop or 2 of brandy in a spoon & dip 
the wool in it & put it into the deaf ear as the wool drys moisten it
again once or twice a day & wear it 2 or 3 weeks or longer till well
This cured Jn Coter shepherd after a great many medicines had been 
try’d in vain. Ann Tasie. Cold brandy will disorder the head & oyl
of bitter almonds tho good when heated, used cold often make the
hearing worse. E. A
A pain or noise in the ear Rx a little wool or an old linnen rag
moisten it with oyl of turpentine, you may tie a thred to it to pull
it out by. Thrust it into the year at night going to bed. you may 
take it out when well. Take care of catching cold after it. This cured
Mrs Catherine Newlove & Ann Tasie.
Spirit of castor mixt with oyl of amber & oyl of ben of each
a like quantity helps deafness & thick hearing Salmon’s Dispensatory.
The almonds of the ears swell’d Lay melilot plaster on 
the crown of the head shaved it helps to draw em drink Jews ears
boild in milk very hot stroke them up with your hands Mrs
Eliz Brown of Leicer Ear pain’d Dip some black wool now pul’d from the
sheep in a little aq vita or brandy warm’d in a spoon put it into the ear at night
when you are in bed & ly on the contrary ear Mrs Brown of Leicer


353)
Mr Jn Simson’s wife going crazd swallowd a brass thimble the
open end downwards it stuck in her throat Mr Wilks [surgeon] got it out
with an instrumt but she dy’d the next day Mrs Eliz Brown of Leicer


(354
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh
Augt 718 E. A. had a corn cut out with a lancet by a mountebank
which taken up by the roots & cured by one plaster but he cut another
corn on the outside that toe which is next the little toe & half
the corn was left behind when the remainder was drawn out by 
a slave there bred a fungus E. A. try’d sope & the inner rind of 
elder another time mercury sublimate mix with unguentu dialthaea
which tho it lay on but 3 or 4 hours corroded the sore * made it look
black & caused a great pain to ease which E. A. ty’d on fat bacon & 
sometimes ung. dialthaea but it was made easie by Dr Bowles’s
family salve but the fungus was not remov’d (precipitate & 
honey did good) till a feather cut sharp at the point was moisten’d with
clear oyl of vitriol (not that which was black) & streak’d on the fungus & 
a plaster of family salve lay’d on’t which was done twice or thrice
once a day which clear’d the fungus & heal’d it It was touch’d with vitriol 
stone till it look’d blew which caus’d a great pain but wou’d not stir
or diminish the fungus sp. v. & oyl of vitriol wou’d move the fungus
E. A. Scald it with basilicon clip or cut it Mr Cook apothecary mix praecipitate
& burnt allum p.e. with basilicon dress it morn & night E. A
If you once miss dressing till it is clearly eradicated it will grow
foul & encrease again E. A. another bath it with allum posset whey 
very warm with a rag & lay the curd on a cloth & strew on the curd
burnt allum & apply it warm Let it lie on 24 hours. It will keep 
down any proud flesh or strew on diaculum burnt allu Tho. Freer
blacksmith of Desford & Ann Tasie.
To eat off a fungus or sitfast or proud flesh or to core
out a quitter bone or a great crak in a horses heel
or [illegible] out a core
Rx horse turpentine put it in a pot set it near the fire 
to melt then add some fr. verdigrise in fine pouder
mix ‘em till they are of a fine green colour. Let it lie
on 24 hours or 30 till it cores out clear If you apply 
it to a horse for a crack bind it on with flax [hards]
& beggars [inkle] after it has lay on one night you 
may work the horse at plow when the core is come out
wash it with verjuice Tho. Tafte blacksmith & farrier
another To bring out a core or thick gummy, glewy white corruption
that sticks fast to a sore that often happens to the thumbs or
ends of the fingers & often near their guides that contract 
em They are a sort of sitfasts
Rx flax hards at the end of a [scourer] or probe twisted round it & turn
it round the callous substance it will lick off corruption better than dry
lint or cotton then put some fresh verdigrise in fine pouder a little 


355)
at a time into clean writing paper that is ript in the middle so
that you may shake as much over the core or fungus as will lightly
& thinly cover it Then lay some dry lint upon it & ty a clean rag
over that so let it rest 48 hours or longer till the core or fungus will 
come out clear tho it pains you all the time very much that you can’t sleep 
a nights It is most painful at 1st mixing it with any ointmt or salve destroys its
detersive & loosening virtue Jn Smith black smith & farrier of Blaby
Detersive medicines, medicamenta detersive detersonia such as cleanse the body or a
sore from viscous humours. They are us’d in ulcers that have any fungus, callosity
or any luxuriant flesh in em, which is an impedimt to their cure & when this is taken
away the common balsamicks, digestives, sarcoticks & cicatrizes are to be us’d.
Dr Radcliff’s detersives. agyptiacum ung. apostolorum aq. phagedenica (ex
aq. calc. cum mercur: sublimate mist. Rx crude alum, verdigrease each zij
boil em in 18 ou. of wine make a decoction. Rx white vitriol 2 out. alum, verdigrease
each zij strong vinegar 3 ou. calcine em make a pouder make it up with
unguentum agyptiacum into an ointmt Rx burnt alum zi basilicon q.s. make an
ointmt Rx red precipitate zfs compound ointmt of basilicon q.s. make an ointmt
vid Pharmacopoeia Radcliffiana p. 380.
Precipitate in pouder & dropt on a core or fungus dry & then cover’d with
dry lint will loosen & cleanse it, it is much better & more powerful than burnt
alum. Mr Peter Cheselden surgeon & Mr Coltman apothecary & surgeon for a slight
core or fungus you may mix it with basilicon.
Peak of Keam in Leicershire a famous farrier used nothing but oil 
of origanum to dislodge a fungus or root out a core Dr Cheselden  sometimes
he mixt [illegible] aq. fortis or oil of vitriol with it oil of origanum [qualified] [illegible] [illegible]
Jn Dawson farrier of Mountsorel says pour basilicon boiling hot on a 
fungur or sitfast & it will core it out if it does not loosen it in 4 or 5 
days you must repeat it It must be us’d thus only to horse flesh, it will be 
too severe for humane flesh to endure
Euphorbium is very useful in surgery in cleansing very foul ulcers & 
exfoliating of carious bones Quincy Rx euphorbium zfs in pouder boil
it in 3 ou. of oil of turpentine then take it off & add [20] drops of oil of
vitriol boil it agn till it is a deep brown colour. Pour off the clear & keep
it close stopt moisten the fungus with it & heat in with a hot iron Try 
this whether it will loosen & cleanse E. A.
Dr Salmon’s pouder for ulcers & to remove a fungus
Rx scammony in pouder 4 ou. aloes in pouder 2 ou. coloquintida in pouder 1 ou.
mix em. It is a powerful thing for the curing of ulcers It diminishes their heat,
drys up their superfluous humidities, quels their cancerous malignity & eases
their pain. It cleanses even contumacious ulcers, as also wounds, removes a fungus
as also dead flesh from them & disposes them to a speedy healing [Ars] Chirurgica
p. 320.
To take off a fungus Rx. basilicon the quantity of a hazelnut oil of turpentine
abt ½ a tea spoonful melt em in a spoon & apply it as hot as
the patient can endure it, if the fungus does not loosen, strew on some 
burn alum in pouder then apply basilicon & oil of turp. Joyce Gimson they
cured Jn Hewets shin hurt by iron [geers] on horseback an unlucky marl carrying
him among a team of horses


(356
Goody Mason of Leir gets off a fungus with her red lead salve done
on as hot as the patient can endure it (but not to scald) & apply’d for a 
long time if that does not do she strews on it burnt alum in pouder dry 
then covers it with her r. lead salve but if burnt alum is not strong enough
then she beats raw alum to pouder & strew’d that on that causes a great pain few
man can endure it above 6 hours, dry burnt alum is painful but not so bad
as the raw alum. You may try raw alum mixt with basilicon & oil of turpentine. 
This red salve mixt with butter that has no salt in it in time will loosen a fungus
keep down all proud flesh from breeding in a sore.
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh burn oyster shels in a 
very hot fire the hotter the better as in a fire of charcoal, sea coal or a 
smith’s fire burn em twice makes em he stronger then beat em to pouder & 
strew a little dry on a fungus or proud flesh & it will eat it away without pain 
It is stronger than lime. It is very probable Goody Blackhorn of Armsby uses
this who is famous for curing sores. Robt Watherig farrier of Burbache.
for a wound or old sore. Br S. A. heat oil of turp. till it begins to smoke
then Rx it from the fire or it will take fire put it into an orifice of a wound or
sore almost scalding hot. It loosens cak’d corruption or a fungus it reaches
to the bottom & cleans a sore
To eat off a fungus or to clear a sore of proud flesh or a sitfast
(Goody Ann Blackhorn of Arnsby) without pain.
Rx some oyster shells new are best, scrape & wash em very clean then
steep em in aqua vitae 24 hours or longer then lay em upon wood embers
till they are red hot or very well burnt then take em out of the 
fire & when cold scrape off the outside & pound the remainder to 
pouder which keep in a glass close stopt when you’ve occasion strew a 
little on the sore or fungus or proud flesh & it will clean the sore without 
paining the patient. This & Goody Blackhorn’s salve cured Sam.
Exon’s finger when cut with an axe to the bone & was foul in a little time. She said
dressing the finger end where it was cut with only sp. of wine camphorated
or with spirits would make the finger end drop off.
Richd Brewin butcher of Blaby cut one of his middle fingers to the
bone with a hook carrying it in his hands behind him in harvest time
in the yr 1730 It bled most violently It was stopt by letting the blood 
drop upon r. vitriol in pouder in a pot which stopt the bleeding immediately
& it was cured with E. A.’s red lead salve melted with a little may butter
that never had salt in it hot oil of turpentine would not stop the bleeding 
It never ran any corruption or but very little & 3 plasters cured it
tho the guide of the finger was cut he sometimes put his h and into 
the warm bowels of a sheep new kill’d cured by E. A.


357)


(358
The bleeding piles.
Rx sp. of sulphur 6 or 8 drops in a little sugar every night
when you go to bed till well. Mrs Caulton 2 or 3 times taking
cures ibid
To cure all sorts of piles, if they be never so bad.
Rx houseleek mi skin the leaves, then put them in a pint of
claret. Let em infuse an hour or more by the fire being covered
close. You must beat the houseleek well in a bole
or marble mortar before you put it to the clarret when it hath
infused put it in a close-stool or pot very hot & sit close over
it keeping in all the steam, 2 or 3 times a day till well. Take care
to keep yourself warm that you do not get cold after it. This cures
for ever says Mrs Caulton. The piles Rx the root or leaf or crocus i.e.
the bigger sort of [crowflower] mi pound it in may butter & make
it into a ball Let it stand a fortnight. work it inside outside once in 
2 days then melt & strain & keep it for use. It takes off the pain & swelling 
anointing every night Jn Put a traveller from Rowel. It will blister [illegible] another a gentm
that had been long troubled with piles suppos’d to be caus’d by the
costiveness of his body was advis’d by his Dr to smoke betony 
& swallow his spittle & to lessen the nauseousness he us’d to
put an innocent lozenge in to his mouth which dissolving
there carry’d the spittle into his stomach which open’d
& cool’d his body & cured his piles Rd Mr Ed. Stokes.
another Bath the fundamt evening & morning with linseed 
oul for the piles. Pater Meus. another Rx Box mi boyl it in a pint of 
milk & drink it in the morning You may continue drinking it as long
as you please. S. S. April 1722 E. A. had the piles, he thought
they were caused by drinking cold water when he had a great cold or by 
violently coughing or by eating plenty of sweet things in order to 
cure his cough. E. A. It might be caus’d by riding much.
Mrs Dorothy Boothby of [Retters] Marston her pile oyntmt
Rx mullen, sage, plantane, grounsel each mi boyle em in fresh butter lbi
a pretty while, then strain & stir it till cool. Sister Boothby.
In April 1722 E. A. having the piles found benefit by oyl of turp.
& goose grease when sp. v made too strong of oyl of vitriol would do
no good but oyl of turp. & crab verjuice with a little tincture
of myrrh made without aloes did more good. Such tincture of 
myrrh alone did much good This oyntmt did most good of
all E. A.’s medicines. Rx sope horse turpentine, hony, train oyl, tincture
of myrrh & as much Jamaica pepper in fine pouder as will bring 


359)
is to the consistence of an oyntmt after it has
been made 3 or 4 weeks beat it with a knife or flat
stick in the pot if you have room or on a trancher or marble
or slate & the sope will readily dissolve & be indiscernable
first dip your middle finger in oyl of turp. & verjuice with 
which moisten the outside of the piles & the inside of the anus. stay 
a little time for that to operate then dip the said finger in the brown
oyntmt & moisten the piles & anus within & 2 or 3 times a day without drinking
milk, in which flower of brimstone has been boyled, once or twice
a day. This oyntmt was found out for the piles by E. A. & 
made a cure when oyntmt of mullein sold by the apothecaries Venice
treacle & grease ol. succini, liquid laudanu unguentu populeum 
sal armoniac prescrib’d by Mr Clowes apothecary woud do no
service.
Anthony Daffy’s elixir salutis has cured the piles when given over
a incurable says Daffy’s printed paper Let the first dose be one
spoonful over night & another at uprising in the morning & so let
the dose be encreas’d by one spoonful each time if your strength will
permit till it comes to 3 spoonfuls which (without good advice) none is to 
exceed, use exercise after it Rx a mess of broth or something warm
an hour after the morning dose. Leave off taking if you find any 
inconvenience
To prevent the pile. anoint sometimes especially when you are to ride with 
mullen oyntmt E. A.
The gravel or piles or when both come together Rx sperma ceti 
sal prunel each zi flower of brimstone zifs pound em together & 
mix em well together Divide it into 9 parts Rx 1 night & morning Mrs
Caulton. A salve for the piles Rx May butter unsalted
clarifie it in the sun taking form it the milk. Rx some of it some 
virgins was boyl em then put in a little lump of sugar double refin’d
dissolv’d in rose water when it is cold put it into a pot you may keep
it as long as hyou please Mrs Caulton & Alice Hollins.
To cure bleeding piles or any inward bleeding
Rx often nettle tea. Dry keen nettles in the summer & keep em for use
in the winter Cos Tho. Ekins.
Dry piles. Rx fullers earth put gold water to it as you do to get out a
spot of grease & apply it often lay’d on a rag or cap paper Mrs Ann Lathwell. mix a little flower of
brimstone with syrup of violets in a spoon almost to fill it eat that in the morning ibid
fotus haemorrhoidalis a fermentation for the hemorroids or piles
Rx hounds tongue plantain, yarrow, elder leaves each miv. pomagranate
peels zi boil in water & rough red wine each 3 pints to 4 In the straind
liquor dissolve alum zfs sugar of lead zij. This not only checks the immoderate
flux of the hemorrhoidal veins, but also an immoderate flux
of the menses. but the following is most serviceable in the dry piles 
Rx onions, linseed each 4 ou. henbane, night shade yarrow, houseleek 
each mij boil in cong. 1 of water to lbiv & in the strain’d liquor dissolve of
the best opiu zij. where there is much heat & pain, if the part is bath’d with 


(360
this pretty warm. it will soon give ease & so supple & relax
the parts, as to breath out a great deal of ill humours by transpiration
& leave them soft & easie. Dr Quincy’s Dispensatory from Fuller.
Linimentum Haemorrhoidale a liniment agt the piles Rx oil of roses
2 ou. empl. de minio zi white eax zfs when they are melted together stir
in [aetiops] mineralis zij opium & saffron each zi & make into a smooth linimt
according to art. Linimentum another Rx unguentum populneum 
zi sugar of lead zi opium [illegible] i oil of amber & anisated balsam of 
sulphur each gut x. ibid.
Cataplasma haemorrhoidale a poltice for the piles. Rx yolks of eggs
boild hard no iv oil of amber [illegilbe] ij linseed oil q.s. This is to cool the pills
when inflam’d & angry. ibid.
Oleum cremoris oil of cream. Rx the inner green bark of elder
fresh gather’d miij the best cream lbij. Boil em well together till the cream
turns to an oil & bol over agn with fresh bark This is taken out of Bates’s Dispensatory.
It is recommended as the best of remedies agt the piles, burnings or
erysipelas or St Anthonies fire & all hot inflamatory tumours, which it both
cools & breathes by transpiration at the same time. ibid.
Have a care of curring the piles a wound there is very hard to 
cure & it often is the cause of a fistula in ano Mr [Holled] Smith surgeon
A glyster with mullein for inward piles Dr Fuller
Rx mullein & elder flowers each mfs herbs hemlock, henbane each mi
boil in Smiths forge water to 12 ou. to the strain’d add the yolk of one egg.
Linseed oyl 2 ou. oil of amber zfs. Balsam of sulphur zij mix. It discusses
the swellings of the internal hemorroids, effectually allays their pains
heals the little ulcers & hinders a further afflux of blood & ill humours.
A vapour for pain of the haemorrhoids. ibid
Rx [mullein]henbane each miiij boil in water 4 to 3 qts Let the vapour 
be reced hot thro a perforated chair or close stool case.
Haemorrhoidal unguent ibid
Rx populeon ointmt zi oil of amber zij mix Dr Fuller
another used inst Thomas’s hospital Mr Holled Smith 
Rx balsamum sulphuris cum oleo olivarum (which you may find in the
London Dispensatory) saccharum saturni ungt sambucinum m. pr. 8 d
p. e. mixt Mr Cook apothecary says it is remedium optimu
but I am of another opinion
Goody Simons of Blaby says there is not a better remedy for the piles than
oyntment of mullein made with May butter in May without salt. The
apothecaries make it with lard or grease which is not half so good It is better than 


361)
Pilewort oyntmt. It will cure piles quickly if apply’d as
soon as they show themselves If they have gotten an head & are
large then you must allow 2 or 3 weeks but it always gives ease
as soon as apply’d It will cure [illegible] kibed, swell’d or raw Ann Simons outwardly used 
in fomentations or fumigations mullein (verbascu) is reckon’d a
specific agt the pains & swelling of the piles Millers Herbal.
Dr Salmon in Doren Medicum says ceratum refrigerans, his cooling
cerecloth which see p. 753 is approved in easing the pain & allaying the
heat of the piles
Dr George Cheselden of Leicer his Rx for inward piles.
Rx decocted pectoralis depurati lbij gum. ammoniac. zi misce.
cap. coch vi mane & hora somni tepide. This cured Barnshaw
of Leicer when most men thought he would have died incurabl. E. A.
The pouder of the dried root of figwort apply’d to the piles dries em up
Pecheys Herbal. oyl of nutmegs by [expression] is good for the piles. Salmon
An approved medicine for the piles Rx water a pint, boyl
therein some camomile flowers & melilot flowers wormwood & St Jns
wort each a good mi when it is half boil’d away strain it, & add a qt of
a pint of aqua vitae make it very hot & dip a double cloth in it & apply 
it hot & hot, wrung out dry. Pater Meus. G: A:
Unguentum diapomphotigos anointed on the reins of the
back stops the piles Salmons Disp:
For the piles or hemorrhoides Rx mussel shells & burn ‘em in the fire 
take the white of em & powder it & mix it with a little hony & lay it
upon a linnen cloth & so lay it upon the sore place E. A.’s moth.?
For the piles Rx oyster-shells wash ‘em clean & dry ‘em
very well & beat ‘em to fine powder & sift ‘em & apply em to the
sore your finger being first moistened with water then sprinkle
the powder upon it & thrust it up the fundament & strew some 
upon a rag & bind it plasterwise to the sore, Mrs Hewet E. A.’s mother
pellitory of the wall is good agt burns, St. Antony’s fire with goats suet or for want
of it deers suet & a little sallet oil make an ointmt it is prevalent agt the gout
& piles. Salmon. Pomet says the fumes of olibanum i.e. [illegible] frankincense taken 
up the fundamt cures the piles. 



(364
Another for a pearl, & to strengthen the sight,
Rx Roman vitriol as much as an ordinary cherry-stone put it
into a spoonfull of clear spring water let it ly in it half a qr of
hour then drop one drop into the eye. ibid.
For a pearl or whip or the watering of a horses eye.
Rx The white of an egg & salt a large spoonful or as
much as will lick up the white mix ‘em very well then clear
your fire-shovel from dirt & dust & bake it before the fire 
in to a cake by often turning it to keep it from burning when
it is quite dry rub a little into powder on a trencher or mortar, 
then take as much as will lye on a silver 2 d & put it
into a quill & blow it into a horses eye every other day
blow it in thrice ibid.
For a blear eye or a watering red eye in a man.
Rx white-rose water 1 d lapis calaminaris in fine powder
half penny worth then moisten your eye-brows & eye-lids with
your middle finger 2 or 3 times a day & a night., it will cure
the itching too, you must carry it always about you. If this
will not do make an issue in the arm & use the water. An issue 
in the arm is better than in the leg because the humours flow too 
much to the leg. ibid.
For a wet or dry itch or itching of the nose or without an outbreak
Take the best camphor [illegible] ij vinegar of roses zfs rose water zvi
mix them rub any part where it itches, or upon the nose and dip a
rag in it and let it lie upon the nose all night. From the Latin Fuller
call’d by the title epitheme fontale rosaceum for the head ach
Dr Wm Woodhouse



365)
Ulcer in the bladder
Sympathetick pouder cured a gentm of an ulcer in the 
bladder by mixing it with the matter he voided in his urine. Mrs
Caulton


(366
an oyntmt to cure chopt lips or an chop or scab
or flushing
Rx Diapompholigos ( grey oyntmt) zfs pomatum zfs camphir 1 d
Sperma cet 1 d melt the camphir & sp. ceti till they are
all wasted in the pomatum then add the diapompholigos stir them together
till cold. Mrs Caulton. Chops in the hands fingers lips or
nose & for a cows bag chopt or swell’d. anoint with dogs grease
or oyntmt of marshmallows, or with both mixt. The 1st is bet. Jn
Put a traveller It is good for womens nipples when chopt. ibid.
another anoint with rape oyl pr. 8 d per qt it is good for any bruise
or swelling E. A. an obstinate chop between the thumb & forefinger
boil burnt alum in pouder in water apply it hot with a rag & 
bind the rag on moisten’d with it make it taste of the alum. Mr Coy
Lip chopt Rub it often with raw alum moisten’d with your spittle or
with water to kill the canker or moisten it with your own urine & sometimes with tallow
dropt from a candle into urine E. A.



367)



(368
To dissolve nodes.
mix mercurius sublimatus with w. wine vinegar & sope & you may
apply it to a joynt It may lie on 2 or 3 hours as soon as you take it
off apply conserve or roses to extract the poyson or venom or
you may mix sope & a little green ash bark ashes & mercury subl. in fine
pouder without vinegar vinegar makes it smart. Dr Pool the mountebank 
wash a node with white copperas dissolved in water every night
going to bed for 4 or 5 nights Let it dry on. It will kill a worm
in the face David Lane Emplastru de ranis cum mercurio in Dr
Quincys Dispensatory is an admirable plaster to resolve & discuss
hard tumours & nodes scrophulous or venereal or from any other cause
It is of a blue colour Mr Page apothecary at Lutterworth sells it
at 1 d per ounce. It often eases arthritick pains ibid. & cures corns.
To heal & dissolve rare hard nodes that happen sometimes about the
groin & scrotu. Burn some fresh butter in a spoon or ladle
till it is black pour it into an earthen pot, add to it sp. of 
wine & some drops of oyl of vitriol & some oyl of St
Jns wort Let ‘em near the fire to dissolve & incorporate 
rub it on the nodes 2 or 3 times in a day It will take away 
their itching kill & dry em up. E. A. another Rx some
keen vinegar infuse it in some red cock roots wash’d scapd’ clean
& sliced & cut some white bear foot al helebore in thin
pieces or slices & add to it after they’ve steep’d one night
a day moisten the raw hard nodes 3 or 4 times in 12 hours
& dip a linnen rag & bind it to em It will abate their itching
being good for the itch & shingles & will kill & waste em E. A. 
Spirit of salt mixt with oyl of turpentine, oyl of was & oyl of 
camomile allays pains of the gout, discusses nodes & cures contracted
& wither’d members Salmon’s Dispensatory. Quincys emplastru de ranis
dissolves wonderfully & discusses hard tumors & nodes scrophulous or
venereal or corns vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory. oleum ammoniaci & emplastru
ammoniaci (gummi) so mollfies that it will dissolve hard strong
knobs on the joynts of the fingers & toes etc. Salmon
oyl of nutmegs by expression softens hardness Salmon’s Disp.
Emplastrum diagalbani, plaster of galbanum, admirably warms
softens & discusses all indurations & harden’d tumors, such as are [illegible]
scriphulous or venereal. It will ease & waste by degrees cause warts 


369)
vid. Quincy’s Dispensatory.
Emplastrum e cicuta cum ammoniaco. Hemlock plaster with ammoniacu
is a very powerful discussive, dissolves nodes & knotty swellings in what part soever.
Quincy.
A large onion fill’d with Venice turpentine & roasted softens hard
swellings laid plasterwise, & also opens them. Salmon’s Family Dictionary.
E. A. had a hard swelling in his skin near his groin caus’d by a 
bruise by riding on horse back It grew bigger & bigger till it was as
big as a horse bean It had a little black speck in the middle He got
it away by healing the best white wine vinegar very hot & diping a
flannel in it & applying it as hot as he could endure it & not to 
scald twice a day morning & evening & sometimes he apply’d it cold
he kept the flannel on all night & sometimes all day for 4 or 5 days
then he found it felt soft & he squeesed it betwixt his finger & thumb 
& out at the top there came thick white stuff resembling the pap of an 
apple or congeal’d corruption squeesing it so once or twice a day 
it empty’d the bag of the node which was something like a ganglion
& made it level with the rest of the skin most of the white stuff squeesed 
out at the first pinching.
Emplastrum diachylon cum gummi (diachylon with the gums) 
softens & suppurates tumors, for which it is in much esteem among 
the surgeons, & for which purpose they spread it very thick because it
gives more warmth to the part apply’d to. It is a great strengthener when 
apply’d to sprain’d sinews or any pt (except where there is a defluxion of 
humors) as frequently to the small of the back. The whole sale dealers
are apt to leave out many of the gums Quincy. It will ripen a bile 
& make it fit for lancing E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling Rub on it oil of origanum made strong with 
aqua fortis Dr Cheselden read it in some book. It will dissolve a blood
spavin E. A.
To dissolve a hard swelling on the breath of children which comes before
they are a month old Mrs Wards son Richard at Blaby had such a 
swelling on his breasts almost as big as an egg it is caus’d by the milk
which he had in his breasts Boys are aptest to have it. It was 
cured in a week by a plaster of diaculum simplex Mrs Ward
sometimes the swelling on the breasts of young children in their
1st month is no bigger than a large button & very hard which is
cured by rubbing it with brandy as oft as the child is drest viz
once in 24 hours. Cos. Mary Orton of Reasby.
To dissolve a hard swelling on a woman’s breast caus’d by milk & to take away
the pain Lay a green burdock [leaf] to it & when it is dry apply a fresh leaf. This cured
MRs Blunts breast & dissolved the node there in 2 days, bred after her lying in 
child bed. Cos. Margt Muxloe.




Br. G. Ashby’s directions for the taking his pouder for
a rheumatism. Rx a sixth pt of the largest paper of pouder
in a glass of small ale six mornings together fasting 2 hours
after it Rx the least paper of pouder the 2 first days at 4 in the
afternoon as you took the other in the morning when all these
powders are taken Let the pt grieved be anointed with the oyntmt chafing
it well in agt the fire Infuse buckbean & Roman wormwood in 
cold spring water & drink of that 3 or 4 times a day a coffee dish
full at a time. You must neither bleed nor purge if you expect
benefit etc. Febry 3, 713. [ral.] water Trefoil.


a specific pouder for all sorts of intermitting fevers prepar’d
by (Louis the 14th) king of France his order It cures by being
taken thrice at most all sorts of intermitting fevers without
return, of which he has caused innumerable experimts
to be made for above a yr under the inspection of M.
Fagon his chief physician; his majty has ordered that a sufficient
quantity should be prepar’d to be distributed to the
public; & to the end that every body may be able to purchase
the price is fixed at 10 sols each dose which is pretty near
the cost of preparing it. In each packet are 3 doses severally 
wrap’d in paper for 30 sols, with printed directions 
how to use it. every packet has the kings arms stampt on
it, for preventing counterfeits. This pouder is incorruptible
never losing its virtue. The general office for distributing it
is settled at Paris. The Monthly Mercury for November 713.


Geo Ashby E A’s father was high sheriff of Leicershire in the
year 1667.
one aged abt 30, that could not come forth of his chamber
nor stand, was cured by this simple remedy. Rx rad. armorac. ziij
coq. ex syr. lact. colat. lbij dentur usus. Seven days after being
cured he came & gave thanks. Another who had abundance of 
cold spots in his arms & feet, the spots were very broad & 
near to pustles, was perfectly cured in a few week cum spir.
sal. armon. therewith observing an exact dist p. 558. Cook’s 
Marrow of Physick.
Stephen Adcock of Rasby was cured of a rupture being 20 or 
21 yrs old by taking a green pizzle of a bull dry’d in an oven
in beer for month 3 or 4 times a day with some of the pouder
in it. Stephen Hunt. Some are cured by cutting & taking one
stone out. ibid. you must put 1 spoonful & boyl it in almost a
pint of new milk Take the dose thrice a day as long as it
lasts drinking nothing else while one pizzle lasts unless very 
thirsty then you may drink a draught of beer to quench the
thirst Lay the pizzle upon wet brown paper in an oven with 
bread twice baking commonly dries it enough. Stephen Hunt
Tho. Geo labourer formerly shoemaker of Welford in Northashire was cured of
red sore eyes by holding your finger to the bottle & draw it along
your eyelids 2 or 3 times a day. The bottle must have new
burnt stone in pouder a thimbleful & a half pennyworth of
white rose water It must infuse a week before you use it
you may have it of Mr. Ilyff an apothecary in Lutterworth 
Leicershire
When turning alternately a rasor on each side on the hone or strap
would not give it a good edge, by drawing it twice together on 
each side on [illegible] It has contracted a very good fine edge. E. A.


pr 3 s w.
Mrs P. i.e. Mrs Marianny Packer the travelling doctress
R.C. i.e. Richard Cromwel’s legacy to his country of physical
& chyrurgical receipts He was some time a souldier & chyrurgion
in the late D. of  Monmouth’s army & since of their present 
majesties. He was executed at Leichfield for murder July 23 
1691. The titule of the book is the Happy Sinner pr. 1 d
Mrs M. i.e. Aunt Frances Majors Rts
Mrs S. i.e. Mada Sparks’s Receipts a great doctress in Pater Noster Row
that kept her coach & 6 horse given me by Aunt [Majer]
M. B. i.e. Mary Burton a traveller, the mother of Edmund Horton [illegible]
shows the postures.
I. T. i.e. The Rd Mr Isaac Taylor of Bosworth.
S. S. Mr Sherard [Sergent’s] Receipts of Milton.
R.D. Rembert (i.e. Robt) Dodoens History of Plants or Herbal he was physitian to the [emperor]
Birdlime & Venice turpentine is a very good cerecloth the
clock makes when they send clocks beyond sea do it on the
outside the cracks of the box to defend it agt moisture Mr
Jn Wilkins of Leicer
Common iron filings zi to conserve of roses zi iron filings
prepar’d with sulphur zij to conserve of roses zi steel filings
are good for nothing Rx iron filings beat em in a mortar & 
sift em thro a law sive then put em in a crucible with 
brimstone in pouder after it is fired & burnt out beat it again
to pouder & you’ve the best iron pouder sold for steel pouder
Mr Penford apothecary.
mercurius dulcis if it doth not purge fluxes, 20 gr 
purges a man, a much less dose fluxes fr. Coltman apothecary
Health is the very salt of life that seasons & give a relish
to all the other enjoymts of it Rd Mr Richd Duke.