HOME-MADE MEDICINE.

Kumara Times, Issue 575, 31 July 1878, Page 2

HOME-MADE MEDICINE.

A Rhode Island lady, who was -in the habit of taking large quantities of tincture of iron,- found great benefit from the medicine, but also incurred large bills at the apothecary’s, which her husband found it difficult to meet. Instead of cutting off her medicinal supplies, this ingenious and humane man conceived the plan of manufacturing tincture of iron in the secrecy of his own woodshed. He therefore procured a pail, placed in it two pounds of old iron nails, three drachms of iron barrelhoops, and four scruples of miscellaneous iron. To this be added 6ne gallon of aqua para, and stirred the mixture with a pitchfork three times a day for a week. At the end of that time he drew off the water with a siphon, placed it in pint bottles, and labelled it “ Tinct. ferri. Use as directed.” His wife took this home-made tincture without any suspicions that it was not purchased at the apothecary’s, and derived all the benefit from it which she had derived from the own tincture. Although she had beetl afflicted with extreme weakness, her strength revived under the influence of the tincture to such an extent that at the end of three weeks, when she accideu tally caught her husband in the act of filling her bottle from the pail in the woodshed* she was able to lift a heavy pitchfork, and after wielding it with great vigor for ten minutes, to assist the hir ed man in dragging her husband into the house* she subsequently applied arnica and brown paper to nearly two thirds of his entire surface. This shows us that we need not be absolutely dependant upon apothecaries. If we can prepare tinctureof iron at home at almost no expense* we can probably prepare scores 0! other costly medicines, and achieve the satis* faction of knowing that they are genuine and unadulterated. When we can make our own medicines we shall have made immense progress in emancipating, ourselves frotrf the dominion of doctors doctors’ bills.—New York Times.