An Approved Remedy for a Cancer in the breeast (1758 AD)

Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
dry them carefully, and powder them, give from a scruple to half a drachm
every morning and evening in a glass of sack; you must continue taking them
for a month or six weeks, or longer, if the cancer is far gone.

from The Compleat Housewife: or Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion ... by
Eliza Smith



I hope this doesn't offend anyone ...

Mary

On Sat, 11 Aug 2007 20:51:33 +0100, "Mary Fisher"
<mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote:

>Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
>dry them carefully, and powder them, give from a scruple to half a drachm
>every morning and evening in a glass of sack; you must continue taking them
>for a month or six weeks, or longer, if the cancer is far gone.
>
>from The Compleat Housewife: or Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion ... by
>Eliza Smith

>I hope this doesn't offend anyone ...

Not me. What's a stone horse?
--
"It's easier to get forgiveness than permission."
Rear Admiral "Amazing" Grace Hopper

<x{yz}enophil44@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:nuesb350tc7gkliljkb017u7ocb79c7c4b@4ax.com...
> On Sat, 11 Aug 2007 20:51:33 +0100, "Mary Fisher"
> <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote:
>
>>Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
>>dry them carefully, and powder them, give from a scruple to half a drachm
>>every morning and evening in a glass of sack; you must continue taking
>>them
>>for a month or six weeks, or longer, if the cancer is far gone.
>>
>>from The Compleat Housewife: or Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion ...
>>by
>>Eliza Smith
>
>>I hope this doesn't offend anyone ...
>
> Not me. What's a stone horse?

LOL!

An entire horse - not a gelding - one with 'stones' :-) 'Stones' has been
used as a euphemism for testes for centuries, it's died out now, instead we
say 'balls'.

Well, some of us do :-)

Mary

"Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:46bed7a3$0$30922$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet. net...
>
> <x{yz}enophil44@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:nuesb350tc7gkliljkb017u7ocb79c7c4b@4ax.com...
>> On Sat, 11 Aug 2007 20:51:33 +0100, "Mary Fisher"
>> <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote:
>>
>>>Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
>>>dry them carefully, and powder them, give from a scruple to half a drachm
>>>every morning and evening in a glass of sack; you must continue taking
>>>them
>>>for a month or six weeks, or longer, if the cancer is far gone.
>>>
>>>from The Compleat Housewife: or Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion ...
>>>by
>>>Eliza Smith
>>
>>>I hope this doesn't offend anyone ...
>>
>> Not me. What's a stone horse?
>
> LOL!
>
> An entire horse - not a gelding - one with 'stones' :-)


Hunh. And here I was thinking it might be a metaphorical name, maybe for
something like a staddle only with more legs, and the nobs some sort of
lichen or such. Y'know, a saw-horse isn't a -horse- horse, either (and you
Brits probably call them something different anyway <g>).

I'm glad she asked! (Not that we have many of either stallions or
quadrupred staddles in my neighborhood, let alone nobby ones . . . .).

Ann T.
Remove 'dontsendspam' from address to reply by email

At least the "sack" twice a day would have made our Compleat Housewife very
merry.

Otherwise, totally gross and probably (!) not very effective. The
Accomplished Gentlewoman [dec'd] RIP!

María



"Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:46be134a$0$1228$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet.n et...
> Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
> dry them carefully, and powder them, give from a scruple to half a drachm
> every morning and evening in a glass of sack; you must continue taking
> them for a month or six weeks, or longer, if the cancer is far gone.
>
> from The Compleat Housewife: or Accomplished Gentlewoman's Companion ...
> by Eliza Smith
>
>
>
> I hope this doesn't offend anyone ...
>
> Mary
>
>
>

"A.P. Thorsen" <annthorsendontsendspam@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:f9nb93$mkr$1@news.msu.edu...
>>>
>>> Not me. What's a stone horse?
>>
>> LOL!
>>
>> An entire horse - not a gelding - one with 'stones' :-)
>
>
> Hunh. And here I was thinking it might be a metaphorical name, maybe for
> something like a staddle

OK - what's a staddle?

> only with more legs, and the nobs some sort of lichen or such. Y'know, a
> saw-horse isn't a -horse- horse, either (and you Brits probably call them
> something different anyway <g>).

A saw bench, perhaps, but a saw-horse isn't unknown. Well, not among oldies
anyway :-)

Then there's the haorse we had to leap over in gym :-((( (you know, like
the one in the escape from some German POW camp)
>
> I'm glad she asked! (Not that we have many of either stallions or
> quadrupred staddles in my neighborhood, let alone nobby ones . . . .).

You have to look at the date - in 1758 veterinarians weren't thick on the
ground ... at least not the ones who didn't deal in snake oil :-)

Mary

"María" <noemail@xyznothing.me.uk> wrote in message
news:uaSdnZQ-p9SHxCLbnZ2dnUVZ8s6gnZ2d@bt.com...
> At least the "sack" twice a day would have made our Compleat Housewife
> very merry.
>
> Otherwise, totally gross and probably (!) not very effective. The
> Accomplished Gentlewoman [dec'd] RIP!

Probably?

I don't think that's the right word!

Mary
>

Would you repost that in "English", please? How can we be offended if
we can't even translate it?<g

Bea

'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"

"Bea Oo" <pm95sb@webtv.net> wrote in message
news:1925-46C05530-58@storefull-3251.bay.webtv.net...
> Would you repost that in "English", please? How can we be offended if
> we can't even translate it?<g
>
> Bea
>
> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"


OK.

"Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
dry them carefully, and powder them, "

(= desiccate and grind the warts from a stallion's legs to a fine powder)

"give from a scruple to half a drachm "

(= dosage is from .045714268 to .06857141805)

"every morning and evening in a glass of sack;"



To make English Sack (from the same book)

To every quart of water put a sprig of rue, and to every gallon a handful of
fennel-roots; boil these half an hour then strain it out, and to every
gallon of this liquor put three pounds of honey, boil it two hours, and skim
it well; when it is cold pour it off, and turn it into the vessel, or such
cask as is fit for it; keep it a year in the bottle and then bottle it; it
is a very good sack.



So now you know :-)

Might be as well to start making the sack in advance.

By the way, the original was in English ...

Mary

Mary

Maybe that's what modern medicine needs - to give us a good glass of sack
with our chemo!


"Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:46c07346$0$1507$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet.n et...
>
> "Bea Oo" <pm95sb@webtv.net> wrote in message
> news:1925-46C05530-58@storefull-3251.bay.webtv.net...
>> Would you repost that in "English", please? How can we be offended if
>> we can't even translate it?<g
>>
>> Bea
>>
>> 'NO FORWARDS OR SPAM, PLEASE"
>
>
> OK.
>
> "Take off the hard knobs or warts which grow on the legs of a stone-horse;
> dry them carefully, and powder them, "
>
> (= desiccate and grind the warts from a stallion's legs to a fine powder)
>
> "give from a scruple to half a drachm "
>
> (= dosage is from .045714268 to .06857141805)
>
> "every morning and evening in a glass of sack;"
>
>
>
> To make English Sack (from the same book)
>
> To every quart of water put a sprig of rue, and to every gallon a handful
> of fennel-roots; boil these half an hour then strain it out, and to every
> gallon of this liquor put three pounds of honey, boil it two hours, and
> skim it well; when it is cold pour it off, and turn it into the vessel, or
> such cask as is fit for it; keep it a year in the bottle and then bottle
> it; it is a very good sack.
>
>
>
> So now you know :-)
>
> Might be as well to start making the sack in advance.
>
> By the way, the original was in English ...
>
> Mary
>
> Mary
>
>
>

"Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:46bf67bf$0$30922$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet. net...
>
> "A.P. Thorsen" <annthorsendontsendspam@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:f9nb93$mkr$1@news.msu.edu...
>> Hunh. And here I was thinking it might be a metaphorical name, maybe
>> for something like a staddle
>
> OK - what's a staddle?
>

Now that one I'm surprised you don't know! It's a mushroom-shaped stone
thingie used back in the day (say 18th century?) to elevate crop-containing
structures off the ground to keep them dry & keep out mice/rats. It's a
U.K. thing, I think. Dunno if they were used here. Quite, quite fashionable
as antique-y garden ornaments today, much like the antique stone troughs
being used as planters.

Ranging far OT . . . !

Ann T.
Remove 'dontsendspam' from address to reply by email

"R. Fizek" <fizkowie1@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:Xo7wi.45396$SV4.8465@trnddc08...
> Maybe that's what modern medicine needs - to give us a good glass of sack
> with our chemo!

All my medication packages instruct me to avoid alcohol so I do.

Mary
with the ever-growing nose ...

"A.P. Thorsen" <annthorsendontsendspam@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:f9r60v$stv$1@news.msu.edu...
>
> "Mary Fisher" <mary.fisher@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:46bf67bf$0$30922$4c56ba96@master.news.zetnet. net...
>>
>> "A.P. Thorsen" <annthorsendontsendspam@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>> news:f9nb93$mkr$1@news.msu.edu...
>>> Hunh. And here I was thinking it might be a metaphorical name, maybe
>>> for something like a staddle
>>
>> OK - what's a staddle?
>>
>
> Now that one I'm surprised you don't know! It's a mushroom-shaped stone
> thingie used back in the day (say 18th century?) to elevate
> crop-containing structures off the ground to keep them dry & keep out
> mice/rats.

Oh! Of course I knew that but was thinking in equine terms. Thanks, Ann :-)

> It's a U.K. thing, I think. Dunno if they were used here. Quite, quite
> fashionable as antique-y garden ornaments today, much like the antique
> stone troughs being used as planters.

I've not seen staddles in gardens - but I lead a sheltered life. Plenty in
agricultural museums, mostly being used properly.

In Scotland last week I saw several horse troughs, they're not common here
(my city) these days, I only know of one by the side of the road. I suspect
that the City Fathers of old wanted to clear away all the signs of a
pre-motorised age :-( They didn't manage to get rid of all the mounting
steps I'm pleased to say.

Without these things, in situ (i.e. not in museums), children will have no
idea of how we once lived.
>
> Ranging far OT . . . !

Oh, sorry! Mustn't do that <BG>

Mary