Food Remedies

By
Florence Daniel
 FOOD REMEDIES
PART I.—INTRODUCTORY

While there is Fruit there is hope.

While there is life—and fruit—there is hope. When this truth is realised by

the laity nine hundred and ninety-nine out of every thousand professors of
the healing art will be obliged to abandon their profession and take to fruit-
growing for a living.

Many people have heard vaguely of the "grape cure" for diseases arising
from over-feeding, and the lemon cure for rheumatism, but for the most
part these "cures" remain mere names. Nevertheless it is almost incredible
to the uninitiated what may be accomplished by the abandonment for a
time of every kind of food in favour of fruit. Of course, such a proceeding
should not be entered upon in a careless or random fashion. Too sudden
changes of habit are apt to be attended with disturbances that discourage
the patient, and cause him to lose patience and abandon the treatment
without giving it a fair trial. In countries where the "grape cure" is
practised the patient starts by taking one pound of grapes each day, which
quantity is gradually increased until he can consume six pounds. As the
quantity of grapes is increased that of the ordinary food is decreased, until
at last the patient lives on nothing but grapes. I have not visited a "grape
cure" centre in person, but I have read that it is not only persons suffering
from the effects of over-feeding who find salvation in the "grape cure," but
that consumptive patients thrive and even put on weight under it.

The Herald of Health stated, some few years back, that in the South of France
where the "grape cure" is practised consumptive patients are fed on grapes
alone, and become quite strong and well in a year or two. And I have
myself known wonderful cures to follow on the adoption of a fruitarian
dietary in cases of cancer, tumour, gout, eczema, all kinds of inflammatory
complaints, and wounds that refused to heal.

H. Benjafield, M.B., writing in the Herald of Health, says: "Garrod, the great
London authority on gout, advises his patients to take oranges, lemons,
strawberries, grapes, apples, pears, etc. Tardieu, the great French authority,
maintains that the salts of potash found so plentifully in fruits are the chief
agents in purifying the blood from these rheumatic and gouty poisons....
Dr. Buzzard advises the scorbutic to take fruit morning, noon, and night.
Fresh lemon juice in the form of lemonade is to be his ordinary drink; the
existence of diarrhœa should be no reason for withholding it." The writer
goes on to show that headache, indigestion, constipation, and all other
complaints that result from the sluggish action of bowels and liver can
never be cured by the use of artificial fruit salts and drugs.

Salts and acids as found in organised forms are quite different in their
effects to the products of the laboratory, notwithstanding that the chemical
composition may be shown to be the same. The chemist may be able to
manufacture a "fruit juice," but he cannot, as yet, manufacture the actual
fruit. The mysterious life force always evades him. Fruit is a vital food, it
supplies the body with something over and above the mere elements that
the chemist succeeds in isolating by analysis. The vegetable kingdom
possesses the power of directly utilising minerals, and it is only in this
"live" form that they are fit for the consumption of man. In the
consumption of sodium chloride (common table salt), baking powders, and
the whole army of mineral drugs and essences, we violate that decree of
Nature which ordains that the animal kingdom shall feed upon the
vegetable and the vegetable upon the mineral.

Fruit and the Teeth.

I mention the above because one of the objections that I have heard cited
against the free use of fruit is that "the acids act injuriously upon the teeth."
Until I became a vegetarian I used to visit a dentist regularly every six
months. I had done this for ten years, and nearly every tooth in my gums
had its gold filling. The last time I visited the dentist I told him that I had
become a vegetarian, and he replied that he rather thought my teeth would
decay quicker in future on account of an increased consumption of
vegetable acids. But from that day, now nearly six years ago, to the present
time, I have never been near a dentist. My teeth seem to have taken a new
lease of life. It is a fact that the acids in fruit and vegetables so far from
injuring the teeth benefit them. Many of these acids are strongly antiseptic
and actually destroy the germs that cause the teeth to decay. On the other
hand, they do not attack the enamel of the teeth, while inorganic acids do.
Nothing cleanses the teeth so effectually as to thoroughly chew a large and
juicy apple.

Fruit is a Food.

Until quite recently the majority of English-speaking people have been

accustomed to look upon fruit not as a food, but rather as a sweetmeat, to
be eaten merely for pleasure, and therefore very sparingly. It has
consequently been banished from its rightful place at the beginning of
meals. But fruit is not a "goody," it is a food, and, moreover, a complete
food. All vegetable foods (in their natural state) contain all the elements
necessary to form a complete food. At a pinch human life might be
supported on any one of them. I say "at a pinch" because if the nuts cereals
and pulses were ruled out of the dietary it would, for most people, be
deficient in fat and proteid (the flesh and muscle-forming element).
Nevertheless, fruit alone will sustain life if taken in large quantities with
small output of energy on the part of the person living upon it, as witness
the "grape cure." The percentage of proteid in grapes is particularly high
for fruit.

Those people who desire to make a fruitarian dietary their

daily régime cannot do better than take the advice of O. Hashnu Hara, an
American writer. He says: "Every adult requires from twelve to sixteen
ounces of dry food, free from water, daily. To supply this a quarter of a
pound of shelled nuts and three-quarters of a pound of any dried fruit must
be used. In addition to this, from two to three pounds of any fresh fruit in
season goes to complete the day's allowance. These quantities should be
weighed out ... and will sustain a full-grown man in perfect health and
vitality. The quantity of ripe fresh fruit may be slightly increased in
summer, with a corresponding decrease in the dried fruit."

Objections to Fruit.

Some vegetarians object that it is possible to eat too much fruit, and
recommend caution in the use of it to people of nervous temperament, or
those who seem predisposed to skin ailments. It is true that the
consumption of large quantities of fruit may appear to render the nervous
person more irritable, and to increase the external manifestations of a skin
disease. But in the latter event the fruit is merely assisting Nature to throw
the disease out and off more quickly, while in the former case the real
cause lies not in the fruit but in some nerve irritant, tea, for example, the
effects of which are more acutely felt under the new régime. The nervous
system tends to become much more sensitive upon a vegetarian, especially
fruitarian, diet, and people often attribute their increased nervousness and
irritability to the diet when it is simply that they now react more quickly to
poisons. This is not a bad thing, on the contrary, it shows that the system
has become more alert. Under the old régime we tend to store up poisons
and impurities in the body, but the effect of a vegetable diet, especially
when united with the use of distilled water, is to cause all our diseases and
impurities to be expelled outwards and downwards. Tea is a slow poison,
and so is coffee except under exceptional conditions when it is used as a
medicine, and then it should always be pale-roasted.

Fruit should always be eaten at the beginning of a meal. Again, when the
diet consists of a mixture of cooked and uncooked foods, the uncooked
should always be eaten first. Also when the meal consists of two courses, a
sweet and a savoury dish, sufferers from indigestion should try taking the
sweet course first. I have known several cases where this simple expedient
has resulted in a complete cessation of the discomfort of which the patient
complained.

A Pioneer of Food Remedies.

The pioneer, in England, of the treatment of all sorts and conditions of

disease by means of a vegetable (chiefly fruit) dietary was Dr. Lambe, a
contemporary of the poet Shelley. His last book appeared in 1815, and in it
and the one preceding are recorded some wonderful cures, especially in
cases of cancer. It is only fair to add here that in Dr. Lambe's opinion no
system of cure is completely efficacious so long as the patient is allowed to
drink the ordinary tap or well water. Distilled water was the only drink he
advised. But he held it better still not to drink at all if the necessary liquid
could be supplied to the body by means of fresh, juicy fruits. He contended
that man is not naturally a drinking animal; that his thirst is a morbid
symptom, the outcome of a carnivorous diet and other unwholesome
habits. And I think that anyone may prove the truth of this for him or
herself if he or she will adopt a fruitarian dietary and abstain from the use
of salt and other condiments.

I have cited so out-of-date a personage as Dr. Lambe for two reasons. The
first is that I know many of the so-called new and unorthodox ideas are
more likely to appeal to some readers, if it can be shown that they
originated with a duly qualified medical practitioner who recorded the
results of his observations and experiments in black and white. The second
is that the principles and practices of Dr. Lambe are incorporated with
those of the Physical Regeneration Society, a large and ever-increasing
body of enthusiasts having its head-quarters in London, to whose annals I
must refer those readers who desire up-to-date instances of the efficacy of
the use of fruit in disease. Lack of space will not allow me to quote them
here.

The Simple Life.

We hear a great deal about the "Simple Life" and "Returning to Nature"
nowadays, but most of us are so situated that the proposed simplicity
simply spells increased complexity. The "vegetarian chop" costs the
housewife more than double the time and labour involved in preparing its
fleshly namesake. And when it comes to illness some of the systems of
bathing and exercising prescribed by the "naturopath" are infinitely more
troublesome to the patient and his friends than the simple expedient of
sending for the doctor and taking the prescribed doses. I do not want to
be misunderstood here. I am not condemning treatment with water and
exercises. On the contrary, I hope to pass on what I have learnt about these
methods of treatment. But so many people lack the time, help, and
conveniences necessary to carry them out successfully. It is to these that I
would say that the patient's cure may be effected just as surely, if more
slowly, by means of fruit alone.

Fruit or Fasting.

Treatment of disease by fasting has come into fashion of late, and there is
really no lack of proof as to the benefits to be obtained from abstaining
entirely from food for a short period. I know of an elderly man who fasts
for a fortnight every spring, and gains, not loses, weight during the
process! He accounts for this by explaining that certain stored up,
undigested food particles come out and are digested while he fasts.
Whether this is the correct explanation I do not know, but the fact remains,
and it is not by any means a solitary case. Of course, the majority of people
lose weight when fasting, but this is very quickly recovered. Now I do not
think fasting should be undertaken recklessly, but only under competent
direction. But an excellent and safe substitute for a fast is an exclusive fruit
diet.

Acute Illness.

The simplest and quickest method of recovering from attacks of acute

illness, fevers, inflammatory diseases, etc., is to rest quietly in bed in a
warm but well-ventilated room, and to take three meals a day of fresh ripe
fruit, grapes by preference. If the grapes are grown out of doors and
ripened in the sun so much the better. I have found from two to three
pounds of grapes per day sufficient. If there is thirst, barley water
flavoured with lemon juice should be taken between the meals.
 PART II.—FOODS AND THEIR MEDICINAL USES

Almond.

Almond soup is an excellent substitute for beef-tea for convalescents. It is

made by simply blanching and pounding a quarter of a pound of sweet
almonds with half a pint of milk, or vegetable stock. Another pint of milk
or stock is then to be added and the whole warmed. After this add another
pint and a half of stock if the soup is to be a vegetable one, or rice water if
milk has been used.

An emulsion of almonds is useful in chest affections. It is made by well

macerating the nuts in a nut butter machine, and mixing with orange or
lemon juice.

Almonds should always be blanched, that is, skinned by pouring boiling

water on the nuts and allowing them to soak for one minute, after which
the skins are easily removed. The latter possess irritating properties.

Bitter almonds should not be used as a food. They contain a poison

identical with prussic acid.

Apple.

It is hardly possible to take up any newspaper or magazine now a days

without happening on advertisements of patent medicines whose chief
recommendation is that they "contain phosphorus." They are generally
very expensive, but the reader is assured that they are worth ten times the
price asked on account of their wonderful properties as nerve and brain
foods. The proprietors of these concoctions seemingly flourish like green
bay trees and spend many thousands of pounds per annum in advertising.
From which it may be deduced that sufferers from nervous exhaustion and
brain fag number millions. And surely only a sufferer from brain fag
would suffer himself to be led blindly into wasting his money, and still
further injuring his health, by buying and swallowing drugs about whose
properties and effects he knows absolutely nothing. How much simpler,
cheaper, and more enjoyable to eat apples!
The apple contains a larger percentage of phosphorus than any other fruit
or vegetable. For this reason it is an invaluable nerve and brain food.
Sufferers from nerve and brain exhaustion should eat at least two apples at
the beginning of each meal. At the same time they should avoid tea and
coffee, and supply their place with barley water or bran tea flavoured with
lemon juice, or even apple tea.

Apples are also invaluable to sufferers from the stone or calculus. It has
been observed that in cider countries where the natural unsweetened cider
is the common beverage, cases of stone are practically unknown. Food-
reformers do not deduce from this that the drinking of cider is to be
recommended, but that even better results may be obtained from eating the
fresh, ripe fruit.

Apples periodically appear upon the tables of carnivorous feeders in the

form of apple sauce. This accompanies bilious dishes like roast pork and
roast goose. The cook who set this fashion was evidently acquainted with
the action of the fruit upon the liver. All sufferers from sluggish livers
should eat apples.

Apples will afford much relief to sufferers from gout. The malic acid
contained in them neutralises the chalky matter which causes the gouty
patient's sufferings.

Apples, when eaten ripe and without the addition of sugar, diminish
acidity in the stomach. Certain vegetable salts are converted into alkaline
carbonates, and thus correct the acidity.

An old remedy for weak or inflamed eyes is an apple poultice. I am told

that in Lancashire they use rotten apples for this purpose, but personally I
should prefer them sound.

A good remedy for a sore or relaxed throat is to take a raw ripe apple
and scrape it to a fine pulp with a silver teaspoon. Eat this pulp by the
spoonful, very slowly, holding it against the back of the throat as long as
possible before swallowing.
A diet consisting chiefly of apples has been found an excellent cure for
inebriety. Health and strength may be fully maintained upon fine
wholemeal unleavened bread, pure dairy or nut butter, and apples.

Apple water or apple tea is an excellent drink for fever patients.

Apples possess tonic properties and provoke appetite for food. Hence the
old-fashioned custom of eating an apple before dinner.

Apple Tea.

The following are two good recipes for apple tea:—(1) Take 2 sound apples,
wash, but do not peel, and cut into thin slices. Add some strips of lemon
rind. Pour on 1 pint of boiling water (distilled). Strain when cold. (2) Bake 2
apples. Pour over them 1 pint boiling water. Strain when cold.

Asparagus.

Asparagus is said to strengthen and develop the artistic faculties. It also

calms palpitation of the heart. It is very helpful to rheumatic patients on
account of its salts of potash. It should be steamed, not boiled, otherwise
part of the valuable salts are lost.

Banana.

The banana is invaluable in inflammation of all kinds. For this reason it is

very useful in cases of typhoid fever, gastritis, peritonitis, etc., and may
constitute the only food allowed for a time.

Not only does it actually subdue the inflammation of the intestines, but, in
the opinion of at least one authority, as it consists of 95 per cent. nutriment,
it does not possess sufficient waste matter to irritate the inflamed spots.

But great care should be taken in its administration. The banana should
be thoroughly sound and ripe, and all the stringy portion carefully removed.
It should then be mashed and beaten to a cream. In severe cases I think it is
better to give this neat, but if not liked by the patient a little lemon juice,
well mixed in, may render it more acceptable. It may also be taken with
fresh cream.
A friend who has had a very wide experience in illness told me that she
was once hurriedly sent for at night to a girl suffering from peritonitis. Not
knowing what she might, or might not, find in the way of remedies when
she arrived at her destination, my friend took with her some strong barley
water, bananas, and an enema syringe. She found the girl lying across the
bed screaming, obviously in agony. First of all my friend administered a
warm water enema. A pint of plain warm water was injected first, and after
this had come away as much warm water as could be got in was injected
and then allowed to come away. The object of this was to thoroughly wash
out the bowels. Then the barley water was warmed, the bananas mashed,
beaten to cream, and mixed in with the barley water. A soothing nutrient
lotion was thus prepared, and as much as the patient could bear
comfortably was injected in the bowel and retained as long as possible. The
effect was magical. The pain subsided, and the patient ultimately
recovered.

In the absence of perfectly ripe bananas, baked bananas may be used. But,
although better than no fruit at all, cooked fruit is never so valuable as the
fresh fruit, if only the latter be perfectly ripe. Bananas should be baked in
their skins, and the stringy pieces carefully removed before eating. From
twenty minutes to half an hour's slow cooking is required.

Bananas are excellent food for anæmic persons on account of the iron they
contain. A very palatable way of taking them is with fresh orange juice.

A comparatively old-fashioned remedy, for sprained or bruised places that

show a tendency to become inflamed is to apply a plaster of banana skin.

Barley.

Barley is excellent food for the anæmic and nervous on account of its
richness in iron and phosphoric acid. It is also useful in fevers and all
inflammatory diseases, on account of its soothing properties. From the
earliest times barley water has been the recognised drink of the sick.

Barley Water.

When using pearl barley for making barley water it must be well washed.
The fine white dust that adheres to it is most unwholesome. For this reason
the cook is generally directed to first boil the barley for five minutes, and
throw this water away. But in this way some of the valuable properties are
thrown away with the dirt. The best results are obtained by well washing it
in cold water, but this must be done over and over again. Half-a-dozen
waters will not be too many. After the last washing the water should be
perfectly clear.

When barley water is being used for curative purposes it should be strong.
The following recipe is an excellent one. A ½ pint of barley to 2½ pints
water (distilled if possible). Boil for three hours, or until reduced to 2 pints.
Strain and add 4 teaspoonfuls fresh lemon juice. Sweeten to taste with pure
cane sugar.

Fine Scotch barley is to be preferred to the pearl barley if it can be obtained.

Blackberry.

Fresh blackberries are one of the most effectual cures for diarrhœa known.
Mr. Broadbent records the case of a child who was cured by eating an
abundance of blackberries after five doctors had tried all the known
remedies in vain.

Blackberry Tea.

In the absence of the fresh fruit a tea made of blackberry jelly and hot water
(a large tablespoonful of jelly to half a pint water) will be found very
useful. A teacupful should be taken at short intervals.

Blackberry Jelly.

To make blackberry jelly get the first fruit of the season if possible, and see
that it is ripe or it will yield very little juice. Put it into the preserving pan,
crush it, and allow it to simmer slowly until the juice is well drawn out.
This will take from three-quarters to one hour. Strain through a jelly bag, or
fine clean muslin doubled will do. Then measure the juice, and to every
pint allow ¾ lb. best cane sugar. Return to the pan and boil briskly for from
twenty minutes to half an hour. Stir with a wooden spoon and keep well
skimmed. To test, put a little of the jelly on a cold plate, and if it sets when
cold it is done. While still at boiling point pour into clean, dry, and hot jars,
and tie down with parchment covers immediately.

Black Currant.

Black currant tea is one of the oldest of old-fashioned remedies for sore
throats and colds. It is made by pouring half a pint of boiling water on to a
large tablespoonful of the jelly or jam. To make the jelly use the same recipe
as for blackberry jelly.

The fresh juice pressed from the fruit is, of course, better than tea made
from the jelly, but as winter is the season of coughs and colds the fruit is
least obtainable when most needed.

Brazil Nut.

Brazil nuts are excellent for constipation. They are also a good substitute
for suet in puddings. Use 5 oz. nuts to 1 lb. flour. They should be grated in
a nut mill or finely chopped.

Beans, Peas, and Lentils.

Beans, peas, and lentils are tabooed by the followers of Dr. Haig, the gout
specialist, on account of the belief that they tend to increase the secretion of
uric acid. But this evil propensity is stoutly denied by other food-reformers.
For myself I am inclined to believe that their supposed indigestibility, etc.,
arises from the fact that they are generally cooked in hard water. They
should be cooked in distilled or boiled and filtered rain water. The addition
of lemon juice while cooking renders them much more digestible.

According to Sir Henry Thomson haricot beans are more easily digested
than meat by most stomachs. "Consuming weight for weight, the eater feels
lighter and less oppressed, as a rule, after the leguminous dish; while the
comparative cost is greatly in favour of the latter."

Lentils are the most easily digested of all the pulse foods, and therefore the
most suitable for weakly persons. A soup made of distilled water and red
lentils may be taken twice a week with advantage. Lentils contain a good
percentage of iron, and also phosphates.
 Beet.

The red beet is useful in some diseases of the womb, while the white beet is
good for the liver. It is laxative and diuretic. The juice mixed with olive oil
is also recommended to be applied externally for burns and all kinds of
running sores.

Cabbage.

All the varieties of the colewort tribe, including cabbage, cauliflower,

brussels-sprouts, broccoli, and curly greens, have been celebrated from
very ancient times for their curative virtues in pulmonary complaints. And
Athenian doctors prescribed cabbage for nursing mothers. On account of
the sulphur contained in them cabbages are good for rheumatic patients.
They may be eaten steamed, or, better still, boiled in soft water and the
broth only taken. The ordinary boiled cabbage is an indigestible "windy"
vegetable, and should never be eaten.

Caraway Seed.

Caraway seeds sharpen the vision, promote the secretion of milk, and are
good against hysterical affections. They are also useful in cases of colic.
When used to flavour cakes the seeds should be pounded in a mortar,
especially if children are to partake thereof.

When used medicinally 20 grains of the powdered seeds may be taken in a

wineglassful of hot water. But for children half an ounce of the bruised
seeds are to be infused in cold water for six hours, and from 1 to 3
teaspoonfuls of this water given.

A poultice of crushed caraway seeds moistened with hot water is good for
sprains.

Caraway seeds are narcotic, and should therefore be used with caution.

Carrot.

Carrots are strongly antiseptic. They are said to be mentally invigorating

and nerve restoring. They have the reputation of being very indigestible on
account of the fact that they are generally boiled, not steamed. When used
medicinally it is best to take the fresh, raw juice. This is easily obtained by
grating the carrot finely on a common penny bread grater, and straining
and pressing the pulp thus obtained.

Raw carrot juice, or a raw carrot eaten fasting, will expel worms. The
cooked carrot is useless for this purpose.

A poultice of fresh carrot pulp will heal ulcers.

Fresh carrot juice is also good for consumptives on account of the large
amount of sugar it contains.

Carrots are very good for gouty subjects and for derangements of the liver.

Celery.

Celery is almost a specific for rheumatism, gout, and nervous indigestion.

The most useful plants for this purpose are small, not too rapidly grown
nor very highly manured.

It may be eaten raw, or steamed, or in soup. Strong celery broth flavoured

with parsley is excellent.

Cresses.

All the cresses are anti-scorbutic, that is, useful against the scurvy. The
ancient Greeks also believed them to be good for the brain.

The ordinary "mustard and cress" of our salads is good for rheumatic
patients, while the water-cress is valuable in cases of tubercular disease.
Anæmic patients may also eat freely of it on account of the iron it contains.
Care should be taken, however, from whence it is procured, as a disease
peculiar to sheep but communicable to man may be carried by it. It should
not be gathered from streams running through meadows inhabited by
sheep.

Chestnut.

Chestnuts, when cooked, are valuable food for persons with weak
digestive powers. They should be put on the fire in a saucepan of cold
water and cooked for twenty minutes from the time the water first boils.
John Evelyn, F.R.S., a seventeenth century writer, says of them: "They are a
lusty and masculine food for rustics at all times, and of better nourishment
for husbandmen than cole and rusty bacon, yea, or beans to boot."

Cinnamon.

Cinnamon is a very old-fashioned remedy for soothing the pain of internal

or unbroken cancer. One prescription is the following: Take 1 lb. of Ceylon
sticks. Simmer in a closed vessel with 1 quart of water until the liquid is
reduced to 1 pint. Pour off without straining, and shake or stir well before
taking. Take half a pint every twenty-four hours. Divide into small doses
and take regularly.

Cinnamon has a powerful influence over disease germs, but care must be
taken to obtain it pure. It is often adulterated with cassia.

Cinnamon tea may be taken with advantage in cases of consumption,

influenza, and pneumonia.

Cocoanut.

Cocoanut is an old and very efficacious remedy for intestinal worms of all
kinds. A tablespoonful of freshly-ground cocoanut should be taken at
breakfast until the cure is complete. The dessicated cocoanut is useless for
curative purposes.

Coffee.

Coffee is a most powerful antiseptic, and therefore very useful as a

disinfectant. It has been used as a specific against cholera with marvellous
results, and is useful in all cases of intestinal derangement. But only the
pale-roasted varieties should be taken, as the roasting develops the
poisonous, irritating properties. There is always danger in the roasting of
grains or berries on account of the new substances that may be developed.

I do not recommend coffee as a beverage, but as a medicine.

 Date.

The nourishing properties of dates are well known. They are easily
digested, and for this reason are often recommended to consumptive
patients.

According to Dr. Fernie half a pound of dates and half a pint of new milk
will make a satisfying repast for a person engaged in sedentary work.

Elderberry.

The elderberry has fallen into neglect of late years, owing to the lazy and
disastrous modern habit of substituting the mineral drugs of the chemist
for the home-made vegetable remedies of our grandmothers. Nevertheless,
the elderberry is one of the most ancient and tried of medicines, held in
such great esteem in Germany that, according to the German folk-lore, men
should take off their hats in the presence of an elder-tree. In Denmark there
is a legend to the effect that the trees are under the protection of a being
known as the Elder-Mother, who has been immortalised in one of the fairy
tales of Hans Andersen.

The berries of the elder-tree are not palatable enough to be used as a

common article of food, but in the days when nearly every garden boasted
its elder-tree few housewives omitted to make elderberry wine in due
season.

It is not permitted to "food-reformers" to make "wine," but those readers

who are fortunate enough to possess an elder-tree might well preserve the
juice of the berries against winter coughs and colds.

Preserved Fruit Juice.

The following is E. and B. May's recipe for preserving fruit juice. Put the
fruit into a preserving-pan, crush it and allow it to simmer slowly until the
juice is well drawn out. This will take about an hour. Press out the juice
and strain through a jelly-bag until quite clear. Put the juice back into the
pan, and to every quart add a quarter of a pound of best cane sugar. Stir
until dissolved. Put the juice into clean, dry bottles. Stand the bottles in a
pan of hot water, and when the latter has come to the boil allow the bottles
to remain in the boiling water for fifteen minutes. The idea is to bring the
juice inside the bottles to boiling point just before sealing up, but not to boil
it. See that the bottles are full. Cork immediately on taking out of thepan, and
then seal up. To seal mix a little plaster of Paris with water and spread it
well over the cork. Let it come a little below the cork so as to exclude all air.

The juice of the elderberry is famous for promoting perspiration, hence its
efficacy in the cure of colds. Two tablespoonfuls should be taken at bed-
time in a tumbler of hot water.

The juice of the elderberry is excellent in fevers, and is also said to promote
longevity.

Elderberry Poultice.

"The leaves of the elder, boiled until they are soft, with a little linseed oil
added thereto," laid upon a scarlet cloth and applied, as hot as it can be
borne, to piles, has been said to be an infallible remedy. Each time this
poultice gets cold it must be renewed for "the space of an hour." At the end
of this time the final dressing is to be "bound on," and the patient "put
warm to bed." If necessary the whole operation is to be repeated; but the
writer assures us that "this hath not yet failed at the first dressing to cure
the disease." If any reader desires to try the experiment I would suggest
that the leaves be steamed rather than boiled, and pure olive oil used in the
place of linseed oil. It must also be remembered that no outward
application can be expected to effect a permanent cure, since the presence
of piles indicates an effort of Nature to clear out some poison from the
system. But if this expulsion is assisted by appropriate means the pain may
well be alleviated by external applications. (Pepper should be avoided by
sufferers from piles.)

A "lump of figs" laid on the boil of King Hezekiah, as recorded in 2 Kings

xx. 7, brought about that monarch's recovery. The figs used were doubtless
ripe figs, not the dried figs of our grocers.

"This fruit," says Dr. Fernie, "is soft, easily digested, and corrective of
strumous disease." The large blue fig may be grown in England, in the
milder parts and under a warm wall. The fresh figs were rarely seen at one
time outside of the large "high-class" fruit shops, but for the last year or
two I have seen them peddled in the streets of London like apples and
oranges in due season.

Green figs (not unripe) were commonly eaten by Roman gladiators, which
is surely a sufficient tribute to the fruit's strength-giving qualities.

The best way of preparing dried figs for eating is to wash them very
quickly in warm water, and steam for twenty minutes or until tender.

Grape.

The special value of the grape lies in the fact that it is a very quick repairer
of bodily waste, the grape sugar being taken immediately into the
circulation without previous digestion. For this reason is grape juice the
best possible food for fever patients, consumptives, and all who are in a
weak and debilitated condition. The grapes should be well chewed, the
juice and pulp swallowed, and the skin and stones rejected.

In countries where the grape cure is practised, consumptive patients are

fed on the sweeter varieties of grape, while those troubled with liver
complaints, acid gout, or other effects of over-feeding, take the less sweet
kinds.

Dr. Fernie deprecates the use of grapes for the ordinary gouty or rheumatic
patient, but with all due deference to that learned authority, I do not
believe the fruit exists that is not beneficial to the gouty person. One of the
most gouty and rheumatic people I know, a vegetarian who certainly never
over-feeds himself, derives great benefit from a few days' almost exclusive
diet of grapes.

Cream of tartar, a potash salt obtained from the crust formed upon bottles
and casks by grape juice when it is undergoing fermentation in the process
of becoming wine, is often used as a medicine. It has been cited as an
infallible specific in cases of smallpox, but I do not recommend its use, as it
probably gets contaminated with other substances during the process of
manufacture. In any case its value cannot be compared with the fresh, ripe
fruit. I have little doubt but that an exclusive diet of grapes, combined with
warmth, proper bathing, and the absence of drugs, would suffice to cure
the most malignant case of smallpox.
Sufferers from malaria may use grapes with great benefit. For this purpose
the grapes, with the skins and stones, should be well pounded in a mortar
and allowed to stand for three hours. The juice should then be strained off
and taken. Or persons with good teeth may eat the grapes, including the
skins and stones, if they thoroughly macerate the latter.

In the absence of fresh grapes raisin-tea is a restoring and nourishing drink.

Dr. Fernie notes that it is of the same proteid value as milk, if made in the
proportions given below. It is much more easily digested than milk, and
therefore of great use in gastric complaints. Sufferers from chronic gastritis
could not do better than make raisin-tea their sole drink, and bananas their
only food for a time.

Raisin Tea.

To make raisin-tea, take half a pound of good raisins and wash well, but
quickly, in lukewarm water. Cut up roughly and put into the old-fashioned
beef-tea jar with a quart of distilled or boiled and filtered rain water. Cook
for four hours, or until the liquid is reduced to 1 pint. Scald a fine hair sieve
and press through it all except the skins and stones. If desired a little lemon
juice may be added.

Gooseberry.

The juice of green gooseberries "cureth all inflammations," while the red
gooseberry is good for bilious subjects. But it has been said that
gooseberries are not good for melancholy persons.

Gooseberries are an excellent "spring medicine."

Lavender.

It is very much to be regretted that the nerve-soothing vegetable perfumes

of our grandmothers have been superseded, for the most part, by the cheap
mineral products of the laboratory. Scents really prepared from the flowers
that give them their names are expensive to make, and consequently high-
priced. The cheap scents are all mineral concoctions, and their use is more
or less injurious. A penny-worth of dried lavender flowers in a muslin bag
is even cheaper to buy, inoffensive to smell—which is more than can be
said of cheap manufactured scents—and possesses medicinal properties.

Lavender flowers were formerly used for their curative virtues in all
disorders of the head and nerves.

An oil, prepared by infusing the crushed lavender flowers in olive oil, is

recommended for anointing palsied limbs, and at one time a spirit was
prepared from lavender flowers which was known as "palsy drops."

A tea made with hot water and lavender tops will relieve the headache that
comes from fatigue.

Dr. Fernie advises 1 dessertspoonful per day of pure lavender water for
eczema.

The scent of lavender will keep away flies, fleas, and moths.

Lemon.

Lemons are invaluable in cases of gout, malaria, rheumatism, and scurvy.

They are also useful in fevers and liver complaints.

I have found the juice of one lemon taken in a little hot water remove dizzy
feelings in the head, accompanied by specks and lights dancing before the
eyes, consequent upon the liver being out of order, in half an hour.

The juice of a lemon in hot water may be taken night and morning with
advantage by sufferers from rheumatism. In the "lemon cure" for gout and
rheumatism, the patients begin with one lemon per day and increase the
quantity until they arrive at a dozen or more. But I think this is carrying it
to excess. Dr. Fernie recommends the juice of one lemon mixed with an
equal proportion of hot water, to be taken pretty frequently, in cases of
rheumatic fever.

A prescription for malaria, given in the Lancet, is the following: "Take a

full-sized lemon, cut it in thin transverse slices, rind and all, boil these
down in an earthenware jar containing a pint and a half of water, until the
decoction is reduced to half a pint. Let this cool on the window-sill
overnight, and drink it off in the morning."
A Florentine doctor discovered that fresh lemon juice will alleviate the pain
of cancerous ulceration of the tongue. His patient sucked slices of lemon.

A German doctor found that fresh lemon juice kills the diptheria bacillus,
and advises a gargle of diluted lemon juice to diptheric patients. Such a
gargle is excellent for sore throat.

Dr. Fernie recommends lemon juice for nervous palpitation of the heart.

Lemon juice rubbed on to corns will eventually do away with them, and if
applied to unbroken chilblains will effect a cure.

Lemon juice is also an old remedy for the removal of freckles and
blackheads from the face. It should be rubbed in at bedtime, after washing
with warm water.

Lettuce.

Lettuce is noted for its sedative properties, although these are not great in
the large, highly-manured, commercial specimens. It is very easily
digested, and may, therefore, be eaten by those with whom salads disagree
in the ordinary way.

Nettle.

The tender tops of young nettles picked in the spring make a delicious
vegetable, somewhat resembling spinach. They are excellent for sufferers
from gout and skin eruptions.

Fresh nettle juice is prescribed in doses of from 1 to 2 tablespoonfuls for

loss of blood from the lungs, nose, or internal organs.

Nuts.

Nuts are the true substitute for flesh meat. They contain everything in the
way of nourishment that meat contains, minus the poisonous constituents
of the latter. They are very rich in proteid (flesh and muscle former) and
fat. In addition they possess all the constituents that go to make up a
perfect food. Nuts and water form a complete dietary, although I do not
suggest that any reader should try it. If he did so he would probably eat
too many nuts, not realising how great an amount of nourishment is
contained in a concentrated form. No one should eat more than a quarter of
a pound of nuts per day, in addition to other food. A pound per day would
be more than sufficient if no other food were taken. I have little doubt but
that the diet of the future will consist solely of nuts and fresh fruit. After all
it is the food most favoured by monkeys, and our teeth and digestive
apparatus more nearly resemble those of the monkey than the carnivorous
and herbivorous animals so many of us seemingly prefer to imitate.

The chief objection to nuts is supposed to be on account of their

indigestibility. But this has its foundation, not in the nut, but in the manner
of eating it. I recommend all those people who find nuts indigestible to pay
a visit to the Zoo and see how the monkey eats his nuts. He chews and
chews and chews. And after that he chews!

I know, alas! that the majority of people do not possess teeth like the
monkey, and to these I can only suggest that they macerate their nuts in a
nut butter machine. There are several of these machines on the market, and
they are stocked by all large "Food-Reform" provision dealers. They cost
anything from six or seven shillings. The daily allowance of nuts may be
thoroughly macerated and eaten with fruit in the place of cream. Ordinary
people may use a nut-mill, which flakes, not macerates, the nuts. But
people with bad teeth and a weak digestion will do better to invest in a nut
butter machine. I may add that the nuts will not macerate properly unless
they are crisp, and to this end they must be put in a warm oven for a short
time, just before grinding. I have found new, English-grown walnuts crisp
enough without this preparation. But if the nuts are not crisp enough they
will simply clog the machine.

Now to our nuts! Almonds are the most nourishing. Next in order come
walnuts, hazel or cob nuts, and Brazil nuts. The proteid value of these three
does not differ much. After these come the chestnut and cocoanut, and
lastly we have the pine kernel. Speaking very roughly, we may liken
walnuts, hazel nuts, and Brazil nuts to beef for flesh and muscle-forming
value, while pine kernels correspond more nearly to fish. Almonds are
nearly double the value of beef.
 Nut Cream.

Doctor Fernie recommends the following nut-cream for brain-workers.

Pound in a mortar, or mince finely, 3 blanched almonds, 2 walnuts, 2
ounces of pine kernels. Steep overnight in orange or lemon juice.

It should be made fresh daily, and may be used in place of butter.

Oat.

The oat is generally cited as the most nourishing of all the cereals, and a
good nerve food. The fine oatmeal gruel of our grandmothers has gone
almost entirely out of fashion, but its use might be revived with advantage.
Like wheat, it is a complete food. A good preparation of groats (ground
oats from which the husk has been entirely removed) may be taken by
those who find other preparations indigestible.

Some persons seem unable to take oatmeal, its use being followed by a skin
eruption. This is supposed to be due to a special constituent called
"avenin," the existence of which, however, is denied by some authorities.

There is little doubt but that persons of weak digestive powers and
sedentary habits cannot digest porridge comfortably. In any case quickly-
cooked porridge is an abomination.

Olive.

The chief use of the olive, at least in this country, consists in the oil
expressed from it. Unfortunately our so-called olive oil is generally cotton-
seed oil. Captain Diamond of San Francisco, aged 111, and the oldest living
athlete in the world, attributes much of his health to the use of olive oil. But
he lays great stress upon the importance of obtaining it pure. Cotton-seed
oil consists partly of an indigestible gum, and its continued ingestion tends
to produce kidney trouble and heart failure.

A simple test for purity is to use, the suspected sample for oiling floors or
furniture. If pure, it will leave a beautiful polish minus grease. But if it
contains cotton-seed oil, part of it will evaporate, leaving the gummy
portion behind.
When pure olive oil is shaken in a half-filled bottle, the bubbles formed
thereby rapidly disappear, but if the sample is adulterated the bubbles
continue some time before they burst.

Pure olive oil is pale and a greenish yellow.

If equal volumes of strong nitric acid (this may be obtained from any
chemist) and olive oil are mixed together and shaken in a flask the
resulting product has a greenish or orange tinge which remains unchanged
after standing for ten minutes. But if cotton-seed oil is present, the mixture
is reddish in colour, and becomes brown or black on standing.

Olive oil is slightly laxative, and therefore useful to sufferers from

constipation. It is also an excellent vermifuge.

Olive oil has been used with great success in the treatment of gall stones. A
Dr. Rosenberg reported that of twenty-one cases treated by "the ingestion
of a considerable quantity of olive oil, only two failed of complete
recovery."

Onion.

The uses of the onion are many and varied. Fresh onion juice promotes
perspiration, relieves constipation and bronchitis, induces sleep, is good for
cases of scurvy and sufferers from lead colic. It is also excellent for bee and
wasp stings.

Onions are noted for their nerve-soothing properties. They are also
beautifiers of the complexion. But moderation must be observed in their
use or they are apt to disagree. Not everyone can digest onions, although I
believe them to be more easily digested raw than cooked.

A raw onion may be rubbed on unbroken chilblains with good results. If

broken, the onion should be roasted. The heart of a roasted onion placed in
the ear is an old-fashioned remedy for earache.

Raw onions are a powerful antiseptic. They also attract disease germs to
themselves, and for this reason may be placed in a sickroom with
advantage. Needless to say, they should afterwards be burnt or buried.
Culpeper, the ancient herbalist, says that they "draw corruption unto
them." It is possibly for this reason that the Vedanta forbids them to devout
Hindoos.

Garlic possesses the same properties as the onion, but in a very much
stronger degree. Leeks are very much milder than the onion.

Onion Juice.

The following prescription is excellent for sufferers from bronchitis or

coughs: Slice a Spanish onion; lay the slices in a basin and sprinkle well
with pure cane sugar. Cover the basin tightly and leave for twelve hours.
After this time the basin should contain a quantity of juice. Give a
teaspoonful every now and then until relief is afforded. If too much be
taken it may induce headache and vomiting.

Onion Poultice.

An excellent poultice for the chest may be made by placing one or two
English onions in a muslin bag and pounding them to a pulp. This should
be renewed every three or four hours, and the chest washed. I have been
told that, at the age of six weeks old, I was saved from dying of bronchitis
by such an onion poultice applied to the soles of my feet.

Orange.

The orange possesses most of the virtues of the lemon, but in a modified
form. But it has the advantage of being more palatable.

The juice of oranges has been observed to exert such a beneficial influence
on the blood as to prevent and cure influenza. Taken freely while the attack
is on they seemingly prevent the pneumonia that so often follows. By far
the quickest way to overcome influenza is to subsist solely on oranges for
three or four days. Hot distilled water may be taken in addition.

The peel of the bitter Seville orange is an excellent tonic and remedy in
cases of malaria and ague. A drink may be prepared from it according to
the prescription under the heading "Lemon."

The "orange cure" is used with great success for consumptive patients, for
chest affections of all kinds, for asthma, and some stomach complaints.
Oranges are taken freely at every meal. The "navel" kind are generally
used.

Herbalists sell dried orange pips to be crushed to a powder and taken in

the proportion of 1 teaspoonful to a cup of hot water. This is a harmless
sedative, and useful in hysterical affections.

Marmalade Tonic.

A drink made with half a pint of hot water poured over a tablespoonful of
good, home-made marmalade will often give relief in cases of neuralgia
and pains in the head.

Parsley.

Parsley is useful in cases of menstrual obstruction and diseases of the

kidneys. The bruised leaves applied to the breasts of nursing mothers are
said to cure painful lumps and threatened abscess. It may also be taken
with advantage by cancerous patients. In all these cases parsley may be
taken in the form of a soup, in common use among members of the
Physical Regeneration Society, which consists of onions, tomatoes, celery,
and parsley, stewed together in distilled water.

Dr. Fernie remarks that when uncooked parsley has been eaten to excess it
has been observed to produce epilepsy in certain bodily systems. The oil of
parsley has also been found useful in cases of epilepsy. This would
naturally follow on the homeopathic principle of similars.

Pear.

The pear possesses most of the virtues of the apple. But, unlike the latter, it
is credited with producing a constipating effect if eaten without its skin. In
an old recipe book I found the following tribute to Bergamot pears. The
writer says: "I had for some years been afflicted with the usual symptoms
of the stone in the bladder, when meeting with Dr. Lobb's "Treatise of
Dissolvents for the Stone and Gravel," I was induced on his
recommendation to try Bergamot pears, a dozen or more every day with
the rind, when in less than a week I observed a large red flake in my urine,
which, on a slight touch, crumbled into the finest powder, and this was the
same for several succeeding days. It is ten years since I made the
experiment, and I have been quite free from any complaints of that nature
ever since. The pears were of the small sort and full of knots."

Pea Nut.

The pea nut—or monkey nut—is especially recommended as a cure for

indigestion. I have not been able to find out why. As a matter of fact it is
such a highly-concentrated food that, unless taken in very small quantities,
it is liable to upset weak digestions. I suspect the secret to lie in the
chewing. Almost any kind of nut will cure the habitual indigestion induced
by "bolting" the food, if only it be chewed until it is liquid. Hard biscuits
will do instead of nuts, although an uncooked food like the nut is the
better. But whatever is taken must be "Fletcherised," that is, chewed and
chewed and chewed until it is all reduced to liquid.

Pea nuts contain a good deal of oil, and for this reason are recommended
for consumptives. They are the cheapest nuts to buy, for the reason that
they are not really nuts but beans.

Pine-apple.

Pine-apple juice is the specific for diphtheria. This seems to have been first
brought to the notice of Europeans by the fact that negroes living round
about the swamps of Louisiana were observed to use it with great success.
A writer who records this says: "The patient should be forced to swallow
the juice. This fluid is of so pungent and corrosive a nature that it cuts out
the diphtheria mucous and causes it to disappear."

The above direction looks satisfactory enough on paper, and it is eminently

cheering to read of how the pine-apple juice causes the diphtheria mucous
to disappear, but anyone who knows anything about diphtheria knows
that to "force" a diphtheria patient to swallow is more easily written about
than accomplished. Fortunately I have been able to obtain the following
explicit directions from an experienced nurse and mother:

The pine-apple should be cut up and well pounded in a mortar. The juice
must then be pressed out and strained through well-scalded muslin. The
patient's mouth must be washed out with warm water. The juice may now
be given with a silver teaspoon. It is possible that the patient may be quite
unable to swallow any of it. If this be so, the juice will serve as a mouth and
throat wash. It will gradually dissolve the membrane, and enable it to be
scraped gently away with the spoon. The juice should be given, and the
throat scraped as far down as the nurse can reach, as often as the patient
can bear it. The time will come, sooner or later, when the juice is
swallowed. No other food should be given. The nurse may have to work
away for some hours before any juice is swallowed, but my friend assures
me that if the scraping be done gently and skilfully, even children will bear
it patiently. Only a silver or bone spoon should be used, and, needless to
say, it must be well scalded in boiling water in the intervals of using.

It is a remarkable fact that while pine-apple juice exercises this remarkable

corrosive power upon diseased mucous, its effect upon the most delicate,
healthy membrane is absolutely harmless. I have seen sweet pine-apple
juice given to six-months-old babies as a supplement to the mother's milk,
with excellent results.

Dr. Hillier, writing in the Herald of Health in 1897, says "Sliced pine-apples,
laid in pure honey for a day or two, when used in moderation, will relieve
the human being from chronic impaction of the bowels, reestablish
peristaltic motion, and induce perfect digestion."

"A slice of fresh pine-apple," writes Dr. Fernie, "is about as wise a thing as
one can take by way of dessert after a substantial meal." This is because
fresh pine-apple juice has been found to act upon animal food in very
much the same way that the gastric juice acts within the stomach. But
vegetarians should eat fresh fruit at the beginning of meals rather than at
the end.

The pine-apple is useful in all ordinary cases of sore-throat.

One pine-apple of average size should yield half a pint of juice.

Tinned or cooked pine-apple is useless for curative purposes.

 Pine Kernel.

Pine kernels are recommended to those who find other nuts difficult to
digest. They are the most easily digested of all the nuts. They are often
used for cooking in the place of suet, being very oily.

Plum, Prune.

The disfavour with which "stone fruits," especially plums, are generally
regarded owes its being to the fact that they are too often eaten when
unripe. When ripe, they are as wholesome as any other fruit. Unripe they
provoke choleraic diarrhœa.

The prune, a variety of dried plum, has been recommended as a

remedy against viciousness and irritability. An American doctor declares
that there is a certain medicinal property in the prune which acts directly
upon the nervous system, and that is where the evil passions have their
seat. He reports that he tried the experiment of including prunes in the
meals of the vicious, intractable youths of a reformatory, and that by the
end of a week they were peaceable as lambs. Most writers who comment
on this seem to suggest that any fruit which is mildly aperient would
produce the same effect. But the mother of a large family tells me that she
has observed that prunes seem to possess a soothing property that is all
their own.

Prune Tea.

Prune tea is an excellent drink for irritable persons. It is made as follows:

To every pint of washed prunes allow 1 quart of distilled water. Soak the
prunes all night, and afterwards simmer to rags in the same water. Strain,
and flavour with lemon juice if desired.

Potato.

The potato is a cheap and homely remedy against gout, scurvy, and rickets.
Dr. Lambe tells how he cured a case of scurvy solely with raw potatoes.
One of the favourite dishes of that good old doctor was a salad composed
of sliced raw potatoes and olive oil.
In order to preserve the medicinal properties of potatoes when cooked,
they must always be steamed in their jackets. The skin may be removed
before eating, but care should be taken not to allow a particle of the potato
to adhere to it. The valuable potash salts chiefly lie just under the skin.

A raw potato scraped or powdered to a pulp is an excellent remedy for

burns and scalds.

Dr. Fernie recommends the following decoction with which to bathe the
swollen and inflamed joints of rheumatic sufferers. Take 1 lb. potatoes, cut
each into four, but do not peel them. Boil in 2 pints of water until stewed
down to 1 pint. Strain, and use the liquid.

Eaten to excess potatoes are apt to cause dullness and laziness.

Radish.

The radish is commonly cited as indigestible, but for all that it is

commended by old writers as a potent remedy for stone. If not too old, well
masticated, and eaten at the beginning of a meal, I do not think it is more
indigestible than the majority of vegetables.

A syrup made with the juice expressed from pounded radishes and cane
sugar is recommended for rheumatism, bronchial troubles, whooping-
cough, and pustular eruptions.

Dr. Fernie notes that the black radish is especially useful against
whooping-cough, probably by reason of its volatile, sulphureted oil. "It is
employed in Germany for this purpose by cutting off the top, and then
making a hole within the root, which hole is filled with treacle, or honey,
and allowed to stand thus for two or three days; afterwards a teaspoonful
of the medicated liquid is to be given two or three times in the day, with a
dessertspoonful of water, when required."

I am not acquainted with the "black radish," but mothers might do worse,
in cases of whooping-cough, than give their children the juice of pounded
radishes mixed with pure honey.
 Raspberry.

Raspberries are excellent against the scurvy, and, like the blackberry, good
for relaxed bowels. They are a very wholesome fruit, and should be given
to those who have "weak and queasy stomachs."

Rice.

The chief medicinal value of rice lies in the quickness with which it
is digested. One authority says that "it can be taken four times a day and
the patient still get twenty hours' rest." It is consequently of great value in
digestive and intestinal troubles. But it should be unpolished, otherwise it is
an ill-balanced, deficient food. It should likewise be boiled in only just
enough soft water to be absorbed during the cooking. One cup of rice
should be put on in a double saucepan with three cups of cold water and
tightly covered. When the water is all absorbed the rice will be cooked.

The large-grained, unpolished rice sold at "Food-Reform" stores at 3d. per

lb. absorbs the water and cooks much more easily than a smaller variety
sold at 2d. I have found the latter most unsatisfactory.

Rhubarb.

Rhubarb is a wholesome and cooling spring vegetable, and may well take
the place of cooked fruit when the latter is scarce. But it is
generallyforbidden to rheumatic and gouty patients on account of its oxalic
acid. This oxalic acid is supposed to combine with the lime in the blood of
the gouty person, and to form crystals of oxalate of lime, which are
eliminated by the kidneys. At the same time the general health suffers. "Dr.
Prout," writes Dr. Fernie, "says he has seen well-marked instances in which
an oxalate of lime kidney attack has followed the use of garden rhubarb in
a tart or pudding, likewise of sorrel in a salad, particularly when at the
same time the patient has been drinking hard water. But chemists explain
that oxalates may be excreted in the urine without having necessarily been
a constituent, as such, of vegetable or other foods taken at table, seeing that
citric, malic, and other organic acids which are found distributed
throughout the vegetable world are liable to chemical conversion into
oxalic acid through a fermentation or perverted digestion."
I think the moral of the above is: "Do not drink hard water." Especially do
not cook fruit and vegetables in hard water. They are nearly always
rendered indigestible by such a process, and "vegetarianism," not the hard
water, is often blamed for the sufferings of the consumers.

Rhubarb is apt to be over-valued as a "spring medicine" on account of its

association with the Turkey rhubarb of materia medica. It should be
thoroughly ripe before eating.

I am not recommending Turkey rhubarb.

Sage.

Sage is said to promote longevity, to quicken the senses and memory, and
to strengthen the nerves.

Sage tea is recommended for pulmonary consumption and for excessive

perspiration of the feet. A teaspoonful of dried sage, or rather more if the
fresh leaves be used, is steeped in half a pint of water for twenty-four
hours. A teacupful is to be taken night and morning.

Sage, like so many of the fragrant herbs, is antiseptic.

Strawberry.

The strawberry is exceptionally wholesome on account of its being so easily

digested. It is recommended for gout, rheumatism, and the stone. Also for
anæmic patients on account of the iron it contains.

H. Benjafield, M.B., advises anæmic girls to take 1 quart of strawberries per

day, and when these are not obtainable several ripe bananas.

Spinach.

Professor Bunge declared that iron should never be taken in its mineral
form, but that those who are in need of an iron tonic should take it as it
exists in vegetables and fruit. To this end he especially commends spinach.

Dr. Luff puts spinach first on a list of vegetables recommended to those

who suffer from gouty tendencies.
Spinach is very easily digested, and so juicy that no added water is needed
in which to cook it.

Tomato.

The tomato, according to an American physician, is one of the most

powerful deobstruents (remover of disease particles, and opener of the
natural channels of the body) of the materia medica. It should be used in all
affections of the liver, etc., where calomel is indicated.

The superstition that tomatoes are a cause of cancer is absolutely without

foundation. Vegetarian cancer patients who have recovered after being
given up as "hopeless" by the orthodox faculty eat tomatoes freely. Another
belief, strongly supported by some otherwise "advanced" scientific men, is
that tomatoes are bad for those who suffer from a tendency to gout, or uric
acid disease. But this has been contradicted by others. The evil agency in
the tomato is supposed to be the oxalic salt which it undoubtedly contains.
But it has been shown by experiment how certain chemical compounds as
obtained from plants act quite differently to the same compounds
artificially prepared in the laboratory. So that the contention of those who
assert that the tomato is not only harmless, but even beneficial to gouty
subjects, is not unreasonable. Speaking from experience, I can only say that
one of the goutiest subjects I know eats tomatoes nearly every day of his
life, and continues to progress rapidly towards health.

A tomato poultice is said to cleanse foul ulcers, and promote their healing.
It should be renewed frequently, and applied hot.

Turnip.

Turnips are anti-scorbutic.

An old remedy for chronic coughs was turnip juice boiled with sugar. The
turnips were grated, the juice pressed out, and 2½ ozs. candied sugar were
allowed to 1 pint of juice. This was boiled until it slightly thickened. A
teaspoonful to be taken several times a day.

The green turnip tops, steamed until tender, are a good "spring medicine."
 Thyme.

The common garden thyme, used for flavouring, is credited with many
virtues. It is said to inspire courage and enliven the spirits, and for this
reason should be taken by melancholy persons. It is good against nervous
headache, flatulence, and hysterical affections. It is antiseptic.

Walnuts.

The walnut has been called vegetable arsenic because of its curative value
in eczema. An oil obtained from the kernel has been found of great service
when applied externally in cases of skin diseases. The leaves of the walnut
tree are also used for the same purpose, both externally and internally. One
ounce of the leaves to 12 tablespoonfuls of boiling water make a tea, half a
tea-cup of which may be taken several times a day. The affected parts
should also be washed with it.

Walnuts, to be well masticated, have been given to gouty and rheumatic

patients with great success. About one dozen per day is the quantity
prescribed. It is possible that herein lies the secret of the fact that our
ancestors invariably took walnuts with their wine.

The green, unripe walnut is useful for expelling worms.

Wheat.

Whole wheat is a perfect food. In the form of white flour, however, it is an

imperfect, unbalanced food, on account of its deprivation of the valuable
phosphates which exist in the bran. Rickets and malnutrition generally are
the outcome of the habitual use of white flour, unless the loss of mineral
matter is counter balanced by other foods.

Only the very finest wholemeal, such as "Artox," for example, should be
used for making bread, etc. The ordinary coarse wholemeals are apt to
produce intestinal irritation.

Cracked wheat, soaked overnight in water and boiled for a couple of hours,
is a favourite prescription of American writers for habitual constipation. It
may be obtained at most large "Food-Reform" stores.
 Bran Tea.

Nervous or anæmic persons will derive great benefit from a course of bran
tea. It is made as follows:—To every cup of bran allow 2 cups distilled
water. Well wash the bran in cold water; it is generally full of dust. Put in a
saucepan with the cold distilled water, cover tightly, and boil for thirty
minutes. Strain, and flavour with sugar and lemon juice to taste. Take a
teacupful night and morning.