278 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
time prior to Shakspeare. That poet speaks of 
the shrub 
.‘That 
By moon-shine do the green sour ringlets make 
Whereof the ewe not bites’ Tempest, Act v., Scene I. 
The properties of the sheep-sorrel, ( Rumex 
acelosella) were as well known then, as now 
by your correspondent. Externally the plant has 
been applied in various forms to eruptions and 
ulcerations of the skin, and it has been given 
internally, both in the form of medicine and 
as an article of diet, for scrofulous affections. 
The expressed juice of the leaves, swallowed, 
has produced poisonous effects. But as a 
cure for that formidable disease, the cancer, it 
may be classed with the tlrousand-and-one use¬ 
less, but popular remedies, that have been in vogue 
at various times. The origin of the popularity of 
this, and other remedies, arises from the fact that 
the ‘ laity,'—the unskillful mass of people—are 
accustomed to call all obstinate sores ‘ cancers.’ 
Your correspondent is correct in observing that: 
‘ if the cancer is entirely destroyed the sore will 
heal, otherwise it will not .’ 
Jos. H. Vedder, M, D.” 
Remarks.— The popular fear of “ cancers,” and 
the common faith in self-styled, self-puffed “ can¬ 
cer Doctors,” who abound, the world over, de¬ 
mand a word or two more on this subject. There 
arc comparatively few persons who have not at 
some time been harassed with the idea that either 
themselves, or some of their friends were in 
danger of “ dying of a cancer.” Several years 
since, we had occasion to look into the subject 
somewhat, and we then came to the conclusion 
that a genuine “ cancer ” is one of the rarest hu¬ 
man ailments, and we have since seen no reason 
to change the opinion then formed. We have 
known at least a score of cases ofso-called “can¬ 
cer,” but we have never known more than one 
instance where the sore was a real cancer. We 
have talked with many physicians of long prac¬ 
tice who have never seen a cancer. The truth 
is, there is a class of humbug “ cancer Doctors ” 
who go prying round peoples’ faces, hands, and 
bodies, hunting up sores, and working upon the 
credulity of the community. Every little pimple, 
or sore, is magnified by them into a “ malignant 
cancer the terrified patient is ready to hand 
over his or her last fifty, hundred, or perhaps five 
hundred dollars to the “ cancer Doctorthe 
sore is cured—it would have got well without 
any aid—and the “ Doctor” thereupon heralds his 
wonderful skill, aided by the certificates of the 
grateful patient who verily believes himself or 
herself saved from a yawning grave. This is the 
way the thing works. From all we can gather, 
we believe not one in ten thousand of these cured 
“ cancers ” is a real cancer. Some of the most 
experienced medical men have gravely doubted 
whether a genuine cancer is ever radically cured, 
though in skillful hands (not those of quacks and 
pretenders) this disease has been at least greatly 
alleviated, and life prolonged. 
Our aim in these remarks, is, to allay the anxi¬ 
eties and fears of people who are ever living in 
dread of cancers. There are many cases of ul¬ 
cerous sores, annoying in themselves, and some¬ 
times fatal in result, but we repeat that a cancer 
is one of the rarest of all diseases. As an instruc¬ 
tive example, we are constrained to give a bit of 
personal experience. We formerly lived, for a 
time, in the neighborhood of a “ Doctor ” who had 
a great reputation in those parts for curing “can¬ 
cers,” and indeed gave his whole attention to 
that branch of doctoring—the prevalence of can¬ 
cers in that region was wonderful. Well, while 
at the burning of a building one night, we came 
face to face with the renowned “doctor,” and he 
at once discovered the “ incipient roots of a can¬ 
cer ” on the side of our nose just belpw the left 
eye, and advised immediate attention to prevent 
its further development. He urged us to call on 
him the next morning and let him look at it. We 
laughed at the idea at first, but on going to our 
room and making a close examination at the mir¬ 
ror, we discovered a red spot, not noticed before, 
having certain minute red spider-like “ roots ” 
running out in every direction. We confess to 
have laid awake for a time, picturing to our im¬ 
agination how we would look with nose, eyes, and 
half the face, eaten out by a cancer. We were 
young, unmarried, and had some regard for per¬ 
sonal “looks.” But after an hour or two we fell 
asleep. Our dreams we can not recall. Next 
morning we called upon the sharp-eyed “ Doctor,” 
and he at once went into a lengthy dissertation 
upon cancers in general, and ours in particular, 
and advised, nay, urged, immediate attention to 
it. As it was only in its first stages, and “ con¬ 
sidering our circumstances,” the doctor offered 
to remove it for $50, though “he usually charged 
$100 to $500.” He advised us to delay not a day, 
and named 4 P. M. for us to call and have the 
first “ plaster ” applied. W r e promised to think 
about it and left. Calling upon a regular physi¬ 
cian on our way home, he at once reassured us, 
by pronouncing the statements of the “ cancer 
doctor ” a humbug. On our suggesting the dan¬ 
ger of “ delay ” he offered that should the thing 
ever prove a “ cancer ” he would, at his own ex¬ 
pense, take us to the best medical men in New- 
York, Philadelphia, or Boston, and see it cured. 
We agreed to wait further developments. 
That was fifteen years ago. We can not now 
exactly fix the location of the “red spot,” and 
expect to live several years before the coroner 
shall report upon our case : “died of a cancer.” 
If that event should happen we will send a line 
back to the Agriculturist through some “ spiritu¬ 
al medium,” and let our readers know the result. 
We have thus given this instance as a warning 
to others. Had it not been for the timely advice 
of a regular physician, we might have carried to 
our grave a scar made by a cancer plaster, and 
the “Doctor” pointed to us as a living example 
of the wonderful effects of his skill—to say noth¬ 
ing of the fifty dollars, a board bill at the “ Doc¬ 
tor’s,” and loss of time. The incident led us to 
study this subject, and our readers have the ben¬ 
efit of our conclusions. 
To get Rid of Moths. 
We know of no infallible method. It is said 
that if certain offensive substances are placed 
where they are wont to lay their eggs, during the 
months of May and June, they will be repelled. 
A few drops of the oil of wormwood sprinkled on 
an old cloth and then laid in a chest of drawers 
will drive off almost all insects. Camphor-gum 
scattered along and under the edges of carpets, 
in the crevices of furniture, and among the folds 
of clothing, is rather disgusting to moths. Where 
they have already burrowed in carpets, sprinkle 
a little water over the infested spots, then lay on 
a sheet of brown paper and apply a hot iron vig¬ 
orously. Vinegar would perhaps be even more 
efficacious than water—but both of these appli¬ 
cations may injure the colors of the carpet. The 
steam generated will be too much for the moths. 
A chamber may be cleaned of vermin, (and 
probably of moths,) in this way : First, remove 
all furniture, bedding and clothing not infested, 
put a little sulphur in an old kettle and set fire to 
it, and set it in the chamber. Close every door 
and window, and keep them shut until the smoke 
has disappeared. Then ventilate the room and 
the vermin will have been repelled. The odors 
of the sulphur will penetrate every crevice of the 
wood-work and the furniture, and every fold and 
seam of clothing, and be a great offense to ver¬ 
min of all sorts. It must be remembered, how¬ 
ever, that the sulphurous acid formed when sul¬ 
phur is burned in the air, has considerable bleach¬ 
ing power, and will often destroy the colors of 
clothing, especially if they happen to be damp. 
We are not certain that the colors on furniture 
may not sometimes be injured. Bonnets and 
hats are bleached white by moistening them, and 
then surrounding them with the fumes of burning 
sulphur. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
Matches—Light. 
BY ANNA HOPE. 
In my travels during the Summer I have seen 
so many marks made by matches that I feel dis¬ 
posed to say to my readers in the Agriculturist: 
Do not scrape matches on the wall. The hab¬ 
it is bad, whether you live in a log-house or in 
one of “ brown-stone.” It may not deface the 
logs, but it may lead you to do the same thing on 
your neighbor's paper, or clean, white walls, or 
perchance to mar your own new house when you 
have one. I well remember the indignation I 
felt when a guest of mine thus injured the 
pretty buff paper on the room he occupied. This 
was not a sin of ignorance, for the matches were 
drawn behind the toilet-table that the marks 
might not be seen. They annoyed me so long as 
I lived in the house, and they are the only un¬ 
pleasant remembrances of that dear little room. 
I suppose they will remain there for years, an 
indication of inexcusable carelessness, if I may 
call it carelessness, in one who knew better. I 
should not have been half so much displeased if 
they had not been behind the toilet, for that look¬ 
ed too much like premeditated injury, A fault of 
ignorance is far less blameworthy than any other, 
and can be much more easily borne. 
Matches should be kept in a box, or a safe, so 
that they need not be scattered about. It is dan¬ 
gerous to have them lying loosely around. I have 
myself known two fires result from their being 
carried away by rats, and I suppose such fires are 
by no means uncommon. The only wonder is 
that they are not more frequent. The round 
wooden match-safes, thoroughly sanded out¬ 
side, and covered with a tin cap, I like better 
than anything else of the kind I have ever used, 
where no great beauty is required. They are al¬ 
ways convenient, and it is more easy to rub the 
match on them, than on anything else. It is a 
good thing to remove temptation as far away 
from us as possible. 
It is well to have a match-safe in every room 
where lights are used, especially in one appropri¬ 
ated to friends. It is often convenient or neces¬ 
sary to use a light in the night, and no visitor 
likes to disturb a family by groping about the 
house for means to procure one. 
A small vase of some kind to receive the burnt 
matches is desirable as a companion to every 
match-safe. It gives an air of untidiness to have 
matches lying about. A shell laid upon the bu¬ 
reau, or suspended near it, makes a very pretty 
receiver. The little tin boxes that contain spices, 
if covered with pretty paper, look well. 
It is desirable to keep a lamp or candle in a 
room occupied by visitors so that they need not 
be obliged to ask for one if they wish it for any 
purpose. It is always pleasant to find a light in 
one’s room in the evening—unless mosquitoes are 
in the neighborhood. 
Tallow candles are not, in these days, much 
