1825.] 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



'yji 



fust mentioned by J. P. De Gruchy, [as above.] He 

 calls it tlie staggfrs, a name very descriptive of the 

 complaint, as the poor animal's contortions arc very vi- 

 olent, running round and round, and frtquently tumb- 

 ling over and squealing violently ; and ns he justly re- 

 marks, it never attacks old hogs, and I believe 1 may ] 

 also remark, never attacks poor ones, but such as are | 

 Su a high state of hsalth and keep; from this circum- j 

 stance 1 suppose the disorder must be occasioned by j 

 pletho-a and costiveness, and have succeeded complete- j 

 ]y in curln" it, l:i'e!y, by giving two table spoonsful! of 

 castor oil, and cutting the end of the tail to make it 

 bleed." 



FOR THE NEW EN<;I.AND FARMER. 



Framingham, Jvhj 2, 1825. 

 Mr Editor — It is almost impossible to be too 

 careful in handling f re-arms. A late accident, 

 perhaps more properly occurrence, in my family 

 bas deeply impressed the above sentiment on 

 my heart, and occasioned the present communi- 

 cation. 



Afo-wUngpiece, which I had loaned to a neigh- 

 bor tor the purpose of kiliingr a hawk, was in 

 my absence returned. I wished lo destroy some i 

 caterjiillars, not otherwise accessible, by shoot- j 

 ing. My gun, on examination, required a newj 

 flint. It is my invari.ible practice on taking np I 

 a gun lo ascertain whether it be loaded, or 

 charged. For this |>iirpo5e I app'v my lips to 

 the muzzle, and by blowing determine w helher 

 there be a free passage ibr my brealb. 1 did so 

 in the present instance, and thought the air es- 

 caped at the b(.tlom of the piece. 1 was how- 

 ever deceived, as many more experienced in 

 (iceustics than mysell" might iiave been. The 

 air passed ihrough an aperture higher. A flint 

 was inserted and the pan primed (or the pur- 

 pose of trial. 31y children were around me. — 

 1 had no more idea of danger from jiointing my 

 gun, than pointing a broomstick at them. It is 

 however my practice always to elevate or de- 

 press my piece 45*^ and carefully examine, 

 whether any object be in its range, that can be 

 injured. I did soon this occasion, and to my as- 

 touishment, the gun was heavily charged. 



Should one valuable life be preserved by the 

 foregoing, the writer will be amply rewarded. 

 I had intended to shoot caterpillars, 1 will here 

 observe these viarauders have completed their 

 canfipaign ; and been relieved by a sort of rose 

 6ugs, who have commenced their tour of duty 

 with great alertness and vigor. 



Will you have the goodness to accommodate 

 \is with the natural history of this little appar- 

 ently contemptible bug, alias fly, which is not 

 only an epicure, but a gormandizer, not only her- 

 bivorous, but carnivorous, as both myself and 

 horse can testify.* The ca/iter -tJorm has also ex- 

 hibited himself in our neighborhood. But as 

 mischievous boys are not permi ted to molest 

 our orchards with their unfeeling sport ; the 

 birds have been our sentinels, and (ireserved the 

 foliage ol our trees. Respectfully VV. B- 



From the Boston Medical Intelligencer. 



*We should be much obliged to any fri. nd or cor- 

 respondent who would give us information with regard 

 to this insect. It is remarkable that none of the books 

 on horticulture, fruit trees, ic. which we have been 

 able to consult, (and we have turned over the leaves 

 }f many) contain any description of, or even mention 



CHOLERA INFANTUM. 

 In our climate this disorder is frequently of a 

 very f.ital nature in the sea-on which is now ap- 

 proaching. From the opportunities wo. have 

 had of obsorviog this coinj'liiint in past seasons, 

 we are (ully convinced i>f the [)ropricty of con- 

 sidering it as a febrile disease, not unlike the 

 bilious letniltent of adults; taking this view of 

 its character, instead of prescribing anodyne and 

 astringent mxttircs for the pur|iosR of lessening 

 the disch.irg's by the bowels, which are proba- 

 bly the effect of the general excitement of the 

 system occasioued by the heat of the season, 

 and occasionally the additional irritation of teeth- 

 ing, we conceive that it is a more rational jirac- 

 tice to employ those remedies which are calcu- 

 lated to aliay the general febrile excitement, 

 and by that means overcome the excessive irri- 

 tations of the alimentary canal. Accordingly, 

 what we believe to be the most successful mode 

 of treatment, is in the first place to empty the 

 slomach and bowels by small doses of ipecacu- 

 anha and rhubarb. Antimonial medicines and 

 calomel may frequently he prescribed with good 

 effect in this stage of the disease. — If the fever 

 continues after the stomach and bowels have 

 been Ihornughly evacuated, small doses of ipe- 

 cacuanlia may still be continued with good ef- 

 fect, to preserve a perspirable action of the skin. 

 Warm bathing may also at this lime be made use 

 of to great advantage. — In case that the intesti- 

 nal irritations continue after the febrile symp- 

 toms .Tre removed, the chalk julep, with the ad- 

 dition of laudanum or paregorick, may be ad- 

 vantageously prescribed. If there is much di 

 arrhoea and tenesmus, with severe gripings, and 

 the discharges are tinged with blood, small in- 

 jections, composed of starch and laudanum, will 

 be more effectuai in relieving the distresses of 

 the patient, than anodynes administered by the 

 stomach, and less likely to disturb the functions 

 of that organ : in other instances astringents 

 may he indicated to restrain the profuse liquid 

 evacuations from the bowels. 



Among the means of prevention, we cannot 

 enough recommend the use of flannel worn next 

 the skin ; this preserves the action of the vessels 

 on the surface, and while it acts as a nonconduc- 

 tor, it guards the tender infant from the extreme 

 heat and great vicissitudes t'requently experi- 



the rose bug, under that or any other appellation which 

 can enable us to identify it. We liave likewise solicit- 

 ed several experienced and scientific cultivators to fur- 

 nish us with some outlines of the natural history, and 

 some remedy against the depredations of the rose bug. 

 Willi regard to its natural history we have obtained 

 nothing on which we can place any reliance. And the 

 only modes of guarding against the mischief caused by 

 the voracity of the rose bug, which have been pointed 

 out to us, are crushing and pinching their heads off with 

 the thumb and finger, or picking them off from the 

 plants they infest, and throwing them into bowls or ba- 

 sins partly filled with hot water. A gentkman informs 

 us that by giving his children and servant? a small pre- 

 mium for each bowl full of rose bugs, obtained in this 

 way, he succeeded in clearing them from his garden. 

 ffuch means, however, must in many cases prove inad- 

 equate, and if any more efTectual can be pointed out, 

 we should be very happy to publish them. 



enced in the hot months of the year. — Warm 

 bathing, too, at this season, by lessening the ef- 

 fect of excessive heat, and sudden transitions 

 from hot to cold, is extremely useful to all frag- 

 ile constitulions. 



But of all the remedies with which we are 

 acquainted, cither to prevent or remove this 

 disease, wc know of none so effectual for those 

 in the city who maybe attacked by it, as remov- 

 al lo the pure air of the country, particularly 

 near tlie sea shore, where the atmosphere is not 

 nnljfc cooler, but in a particular manner has a 

 tiMidency to restore the appetite and strength of 

 the jialienl. 



SICKNESS CONSEQUENT TO HOT WEATHER. 



Such was the extreme heat in the fore part 

 of June, that complaints of the stomach and 

 bowels have been more frequent, among 

 both adults and children, than we have been ac- 

 customed to witness for some months past. — 

 Such, too, is the excitement occasioned by an 

 inordinate temperature of the atmosphere, that 

 many inflammatory diseases, as of the eyes, 

 brain, liver, and intestines, are likely to be in- 

 duced ; and indeed several cases of apoplexy and 

 cholera morbus, have already come to our 

 knowledge. Many severe afiections of the bow- 

 els have been brought on by the imprudent use 

 of cold water. The distressing irritation and 

 spasms produced by taking cold water to wk- 

 cess, when the body is thus heated, may fr«^ 

 quently bo relieved by the free use of laudanum 

 and brandy given internally, and hot spirituous 

 fomentations applied to the bowels ; in some 

 cases, death has manifestly been hurried on by 

 too early blood-letting. It'should be remember 

 ed that there are two stages in these aflfectionSj 

 which call for different and even opposite modes 

 nf treatment. In the tirst, as in the cold stage 

 of fever, the vital powers are in a measure sus 

 pended, approaching to, and sometimes inducing 

 a complete state of asphyxia, and immediate 

 death. During this state of insensibility, stim 

 uli, both externally and internally, should be 

 freely administered until the action of the heart 

 is renewed, and the sensibility of the system is 

 restored. Until these objects are attained, the 

 use of the lancet is totally madmissible. The 

 second stage displays itself by more or less ar- 

 terial excitement, — occasioning inflammation ot 

 the brain, stomach or intestines. The lancet, 

 cupping, division of the temporal artery, cathar- 

 tics, enemala and blisters, are now called for, to 

 be used with promptness and decision, especial- 

 ly when the patient has too freely indulged in 

 spirituous drinks. 



The distressing nausea and retching which is 

 common in these affections, we have found to be 

 the most readily overcome by the application 

 of hot and moist peppermint leaves to the re- 

 gion of the stomach. They are the most con- 

 veiietit'y afiplied t>y putting a sufficient quanti- 

 ty of the leaves between two pieces of cloth, 

 then pouring upon ih.^m boiling water, and wilh 

 something provided for the purpose, quickly 

 presMug sufficiently dry, to apply to the region 

 of the slomach as hot as the patient can bear. — 

 We have ol"tPn found this simple remedy lo al- 

 lay the most urg'-nt vomiting, when the stomach 

 rejected "pium iiud sedative medicines of £V£i-jr 

 description^ 



