If every housekeeper and especially mothers of small children would have a home medicine-chest and fill it with every available help and need for emergencies, there would be a great saving of doctors' bills and also of suffering. If the right remedies are used at just the right moment, they will sometimes do more than the skilled practitioner can accomplish later on.
A small tin can should contain flour and mustard, mixed in equal parts, ready to make into a paste for a mustard plaster. Every mother should have a bottle of peroxid of hydrogen in the chest; it is excellent to bathe wounds, sores, and bruises. No household should be without peppermint. A few drops of the essence on sugar will cure hiccough, and nothing will relieve a burn or bee sting quicker than the application of a little of the oil; a few drops in warm water will often give relief for vomiting and headache. A box of powdered borax is very useful. The best way to keep the face and hands in good condition is to wash them every night in hot suds and then rinse in cold water to which a little borax has been added, as the borax softens the water and helps to keep the skin firm. There is nothing better for weak eyes, sore mouths, and small cuts than a wash of borax and warm water. A good application for a cold in the chest is a salve of equal parts of turpentine and lard. [White vaseline would probably be a better substitute for lard.]
Have two small flannel bags filled with salt ready to use in case of toothache or severe pain of any kind. Heat the bag very hot in the oven before applying, and cover with another soft flannel, and the other bag can be heating while this is in use, and you will find this much better than a hot-water bag, as the salt possesses medicinal and healing qualities. M. A. T.