parts
of the milk-sugar, powdered. They must be rubbed thoroughly together in
a small mortar for ten. or fifteen minutes, at least. Then a dose of
the mixed powder, ten grains at a time, may be given each night at
bedtime, and each morning, before breakfast ; doing this for three or
four consecutive days, whilst admixing the dose (it being thus for a
child of eight or ten years, but to be somewhat lessened for a younger
child) with a spoonful of milk, or water. The same preparation will
likewise serve to exterminate a tape-worm, probably by first stupefying
the parasite, and then allowing its expulsion by any simple purgative,
such as a glass of some aperient mineral water.
Metallic
Tin has been given in material doses by some modern mediciners, on the
supposition that being insoluble it would travel along the intestinal
canal unaltered, and mechanically pushing before it the bundle of
thread worms, or the larger intruder, and expelling the same finally
by the fundament. But this is altogether a Quixotic proceeding,
needlessly heroic, and summary. The frequent causation of nervous
disorders, as epilepsy, and St. Vitus's dance, by intestinal worms,
first led to such an expulsive measure as giving metallic Tin
medicinally as just described ; but no worms have been found expelled
as a result, and yet these specified nervous attacks have been much
alleviated ; whereby a faith in the Tin medicament as of good
instrinsic service against the said nervous disorders has naturally
sprung up.
The
hardest alloy of tin is a composition of Tin three parts, to one of
lead; the presence of the tin destroys in a great measure the noxious
qualities of the lead. Copper cooking vessels tinned inside with this
mixture are found to be in no respects injurious.
