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Page 2
Doctor Samuel Thompson, one of the first to practice homeopathy, led us from use of single herbs to combinations of several synergistic herbs which worked together to balance the system. The friends of the Inglenook Magazine from the farms, homes, and kitchens of nineteenth-century America published many of these remedies. The following tonic recipes were printed in The Inglenook Doctor Book (Elgin, IL: Brethren Publishing House, 1903). Of course, by going to your local health food store, or searching the Internet, you can find prepared combinations of herbs for these various ailments. Reading the instructions for the proper preparation of these various tonics will make you appreciate the convenience of the days we live in.
ASTHMA: Put 4 ounces of pulverized lobelia in a quart of good rum, let it stand nine days, then strain it off. Begin with 2 drops three times a day. Note: Lobelia is toxic in large doses. Pioneers only used a few drops when necessary. BRONCHITIS: Take 2 ounces each of the following dried herbs: elecampane, comfrey, horehound leaves, and ginger. Add a pleurisy root, dried, and grind in coffee mill. Mix well and use one spoonful to make a pint of tea. Drink often. COUGH SYRUP: One handful of hops, one handful of horehound, and one handful of elecampane root, put in two quarts of water, and boil down to one quart. Strain, add one pound of rock candy, one large piece of grated licorice root, and one-half pound of brown sugar. Heat until dissolved. DIARRHEA: Boil purslane in milk and give to drink. Make a tea from calamus (sweet flag) root. The dose for a one-year-old child is one teaspoonful. FEBRILE CONVULSIONS AND EPILEPSY: Black cohosh root can be set in a good whiskey for 14 days. Pound 2 ounces of root for every pint of whiskey. Three or four times daily, give 1 teaspoon in sweetened water for adults and 5 drops for children. Too much will produce vomiting. FEVER: Give a strong tea of catnip blossoms. FEVER and COLD TONIC: This tonic is meant to be taken at the onset of symptoms and repeated every few hours until symptoms abate. It is very safe for children and adults. In 2 cups of boiled water, steep 4 tablespoons spearmint leaves, 1 tablespoon yarrow flowers, 1 tablespoon basil or elder flowers, and 1 tablespoon lemon balm leaves for 15 minutes, covered. Strain and serve warm or cool. Drink half a cup at a time.
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