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bandages should be put on the legs, and warm sheets on the body, 

 also a pailful of cold water containing a table-spoonful of nitrate of 

 potash, should be placed in the box for the patient to drink. 



508. It is very dangerous to use purgatives in these cases, as great 

 debility soon sets in, and the aperient however slight, — even 8 ounces 

 of linseed oil — may set up superpurgation, which tends to remove the 

 inflammation from the bronchial tubes to the lining membranes of 

 the intestines, causing, in many cases, muco-enteritis and death. Or, 

 perhaps, from the continued purging, the inflammation may again be 

 shifted to the feet, producing laminitis or founder. This shows how very 

 necessary it is to know what the chest affection really is, before attempting to 

 treat it in any way. In all chest diseases there is great danger in giving 

 drenches, as some of the fluid might get into the trachea or bronchial 

 tubes, causing great distress; so, if a drench has to be administered, 

 it must be done with great caution. Half-ounce doses of carbonate of 

 ammonia in a ball, or in the drinking water, every six or eight hours 

 may, however, be given with advantage, and if the cough be trouble- 

 some, one ounce of chlorodyne, mixed with one ounce of glycerine can 

 be given three times a day in mashes of bran or boiled barley, containing 

 a little treacle or sugar, or in hay tea, nearly cold. Many practitioners 

 recommend that blankets which have been rung out of hot water be 

 applied to the chest with a waterproof rug above. In some cases this 

 answers well ; in others it has a very oppressive and relaxing effect, and 

 should not be carried too far. I am more in favour of slightly 

 stimulating both sides of the chest behind the shoulder, with two 

 tablespoonfuls of mustard, well mixed in one pint of cold water, after 

 which a piece of flannel, cotton wool, or wadding should be put round 

 the body, and warm woollen clothing put over all. I also strongly 

 advocate the steaming of the nose and air passages as recommended 

 in Laryngitis (par. 497). Food of an easily digestible nature must be 

 given, such as boiled barley and bran, milk and water, linseed jelly, 

 carrots, potatoes, green food, chopped whins (gorse), &c. It is also a 

 good practice to feed patients (discharging from the nose) from buckets, 

 or troughs, as near to the ground as possible, so as to give an easy 

 means of exit to the discharge. 



