Folklore
Irish Folk Cures

• The juice of carrots, boiled down, is good for purifying the blood



• The touch from the hand of a seventh son cures the bite of a mad dog. (also Italian)



• To cure a burn without scarring: Take sheep's suet and the rind of the elder-tree, boil both together, and the ointment will cure a burn without leaving a mark.



• This cure for colds from Dianecht, chief physican of the Tuatha-de-Dannans: A porridge made of hazel-buds, dandelion, chickweed, and wood sorrel. Boil it all together with oatmeal. Porridge should be taken morning and evening, and the cold and trouble will soon disappear. Also, a poultice of yellow baywort tied round the throat is excellent as a cure for throat cats.



• For Contusions: Heat a great stone in the fire, and, when red-hot, throw it into water and bathe the bruise with the liquid. Repeat this treatment twice a day, always first heating the stone, and the cure is certain in a few days.



• An eel's skin tied round the knee alleviates pain.



• For Dysentery: Woodbine and maiden-hair, pounded and boiled in new milk, with oatmeal, and taken three times a day, the leaves to be burned afterwards.



• For Earache: Some wool taken from a black sheep, and worn constantly in the ear, is a sure remedy for earache.



• For Weak Eyes: A decoction of the flowers of daises boiled down is an excellent wash, to be used constantly.



• For fever: To cure a fever, place the patient on the sandy shore when the tide is coming in. The retreating waves will carry away the disease and leave him well.



• For Freckles: The distilled water of walnuts, used as a wash, will make the skin fair and clear.



• For Hip Disease: Take three green stones, gathered from a running brook, between midnight and morning, while no word is said. In silence it must be done. Then uncover the limb and rub each stone several times closely downwards from the hip to the toe, saying...




Wear away, wear away,

There you shall not stay,

Cruel pain - away, away.



• For Inflammation: Nine handfuls of mountain moss, dried on a pan to powder. Nine pinches of it, and nine pinches of the ashes from the hearth, to be mixed in whey, taken every Tuesday and Thursday.



• To cure Jaundice: nine young shoots from the root of an ash tree that had been cut down. These are placed in a bottle, which is then buried in a secluded spot, the patient not being allowed to see it. As long as the bottle remains in the ground, he is safe from disease. However, if it should ever be broken, he will have a relapse and probably die from mental emotion, caused by fear of the result, before many days are over.



• To Improve Memory: The whitest of frankincense beaten fine, and drunk in white wine, wonderfully assists the memory, and is profitable for the stomach, also.



• For Stomach disorders: A bunch of mint tied round the wrist is a sure remedy.



• For a Stye on the Eyelid: Point a gooseberry thorn at it nine times, saying, "Away, away, away!" and the stye will vanish presently and disappear.



• For Toothaches: To avoid a toothache, never shave on Sunday.



• The tooth of a dead horse rubbed over the jaw, will also be found effective to ease the pain of a toothache.



• To Remove warts: On meeting a funeral, take some of the clay from under the feet of the men who bear the coffin and apply it to the wart, wishing strongly at the same time that it may disappear, and so it will be.



• Tie up some pebbles in a bag with a piece of silver money, and throw it on the road. Whoever finds the bag and keeps the money, to him the warts will go, and leave you forever.



• Also, steal a piece of meat and apply it raw to the warts, then bury it in the ground. As the meat decays the warts will disappear. But the charm is no use unless the meat is stolen, and no one should see you either stealing or burying it.



• Rub a dirty washcloth over the warts, saying, "Away, away, away." Bury the dirty washcloth in the ground by the light of the full moon.