C S56 ] 



USEFUL PROJECTS. 



Account of a method c/f curing turns 

 and scalds, ly Air. David Cleg- 

 horn, brewer in Edinlur^h, coni- 

 miinicated in three letters to John 

 Hunter, esq. F. R. S. surgcoji-ge- 

 neral to the army, isfc. and by 

 him to Dr. Simmons. From Ale- 

 dical Facts. 



MY first application and most 

 powerful remedy is vinegar. 

 If the injury is on the fingers, 

 hands, or lower parts of the arms, 

 the application may very properly 

 be made by an immersion of the 

 parts. Formerly, I used also to 

 immerse the feet and lower part of 

 the legs, when injured, in a pail 

 containing vinegar : but, although 

 no material bad consequence ensued 

 from this practice, I found that, 

 by placing the legs in a perpendi- 

 cular posture, the sores were mon; 

 apt to swell and inflame, than when 

 they were laid up and supported in 

 an horizontal one. When there- 

 fore the feet or legs are injured, 

 or when the injury falls on the 

 thighs, the body, the face, or head, 

 where immersion would be incon- 

 venient or impracticable, the me- 

 thod I follow, (and which 1 find 

 very effectual) is to pour some vi- 

 negar into a plate or flat-edged 

 di»h, and to dip linen rags in the 

 vinegar, ^nd lay them or let them 



drip on the sores. This operation 

 of alternately dipping the rags and 

 laying them on the parts affected, 

 is repeated so quickly, that the 

 parts are kept constantly wet, or 

 rather overflowing, with the vine- 

 gar, and the plates are placed so as 

 to receive or catch as much of it 

 as possible ; and I continue to use 

 what falls back again into the 

 plates for some time, till it has be- 

 come somewhat vapid, when I 

 throw it out, and pour into the 

 plates a new supply of fresh vine- 

 gar. I have known two English 

 quarts of vinegar used in this way, 

 to a large scald on the legs in four 

 or five hours j and, if the sores 

 have a large surface, and are on 

 the body, under which the plates 

 cannot be so placed as to prevent 

 it from spilling, a larger quantity 

 still of the vinegar will be needed. 

 So cooling and grateful are the ef- 

 fects of this application, while any 

 considerable degree of pain or heat 

 remains, and so immediately does 

 the uneasiness return when it is too 

 early discon.tinued, that the patients 

 themselves seldom fail of giving 

 their active assistance in this ope- 

 ration of wetting the parts affected. 

 In slight or superficial injuries, 

 by which I menu such as are at- 

 tended with no excoriation, but 

 with pain, heat, or inflammation, 



and 



