I called on the old gentleman the other day, and persuaded him to give
me a short lecture. The following is the gist of what he said: "First of
all you must know that the elder is good for anything in the world, but
especially for swellings. If you put some of the leaves on your face,
they will cure toothache in five minutes. Then for the nerves there's
nothing like the berries of ivy. Yarrow makes a splendid ointment; and
be sure and remember Solomon's seal for bruises, and comfrey for 'hurts'
and broken bones. Camomile cures indigestion, and ash-tree buds make a
stout man thin. Soak some ash leaves in hot water, and you will have a
drink that is better than any tea, and destroys the 'gravel.'
Walnut-tree bark is a splendid emetic; and mountain flax, which grows
everywhere on the Cotswolds, is uncommon good for the 'innards.' 'Ettles
[nettles] is good for stings. Damp them and rub them on to a 'wapse'
sting, and they will take away the pain directly." On my suggesting that
stinging nettles were rather a desperate remedy, he assured me that
"they acted as a blister, and counteracted the 'wapse.' Now, I'll tell
you an uncommon good thing to preserve the teeth," he went on, "and that
is to _brush_ them once or twice a week. You buys a brush at the
chymists, you know; they makes them specially for it. Oh, 'tis a capital
good thing to cleanse the teeth occasionally!"

He wound up by telling me a story of a celebrated doctor who left a
sealed book not to be opened till after his death, when it was to be
sold at auction. It fetched six hundred pounds. The man who paid this
sum was horrified on opening it to find it only contained the following
excellent piece of advice: "Always remember to keep the feet warm and
the head cool."

As I said good-bye, and thanked him for his lecture, he said: "Those