School: Coill an tSrotha (roll number 5352)

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1. Local Cures

   

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   In olden times the people had cures for most diseases.
   When a child had the whooping cough he would be cured by his being passed out between a donkey's legs.
   A person who had the mumps was cured by putting a halter round his neck and then he was lead to a stream from which he took three drops of water. The tootache was cured by putting washing-soda of ginger into the bad tooth. Another cure for that disease was to say one out Father and the apostles' bread in honour of the passion of Christ.
   By taking honey and Borax a child was cured of thrush. On the downland of Ardvatney there is a well and the water, if taken by a person suffering from colic, will cure it. This well is called the Dorín well. A pain in the back was cured by the seventh son of a family walking on the back of the sufferer. A cow having the redwater is cured by giving her a drink of bog water. By giving the juice of boiled whins to a horse with worms in him, he was cured. A cure for the pain in the head is a good cup of tea. A cure for boils is to rub cream on them. Rheumatism is cured by home-made flannel which is made from sheep's wool of the locality. The cure for warts is to rub a black snail several times on it. Water in the hollow of a rock also cures warts. Comfrey Grated is put on to heal wounds. The juice of dandelion root cures a cough. Nettle juice is a cure for measles.

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. activities
      1. medical practice
         1. folk medicine (~11,815)

   Language

   English

   Informant

   James Maguire

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   80

   Address

   Sranagross, Co. Leitrim