A dosing chart for mercury, in a cookbook, next to the puddings.
Used in chronic diseases of the liver and general torpidity of the stomach and bowels; in dropsy, in combination with other medicines. A most dangerous medicine when employed by those who are not aware of its powerful effects. Dose: 1 grain twice a day as an alterative, 4 to 5 grains as an aperient, combined with or followed by some mild vegetable purgative. gists.
The 20th Century Home Cook Book, 1906. Public domain; transcription unaltered.
Calomel is mercurous chloride. It purges because it damages the lining of the gut, and the mercury does not leave when the dose does — it accumulates, and the effects are neurological and permanent.
The book is not hiding this. It says outright that it is dangerous in the hands of anyone unaware of its powerful effects, and then gives the household the numbers.
Don't take our word for it. The complete book is online, free and searchable.
Read the original page →The antidote table's advice for opium and laudanum — emetic draught, vinegar and water, “dashing cold water on chest and face, walking up and down for two or three hours.”
The 20th Century Home Cook Book · 1906
Raw loin beaten in a marble mortar with sweet and bitter almonds and sugar, into a pulp with “a rosy hue, and a very agreeable taste.” Said to keep “even in summer.”
The Dixie Cook-Book · 1883
The home first-aid table treats opium poisoning with “cathartics and stimulants, such as coffee, brandy, and strychnine,” while the patient is walked up and down.
Household Discoveries and Mrs. Curtis's Cook Book · 1914