THE BEST CURE FOR A BOIL

THE BEST CURE FOR A BOIL

Juniper is the best thing that you can use for boils. You boils it for three hours, some boils for four hours, then you take off the old black bark and beat it up, hammer or soften it into a poultice. You can't put it right on the boil, you have to put it inside something, like gauze. Put it on and then put it on with another piece of gauze. It heals as it draws everything out.

In 1953 I was trappin' up to Jacobie Lake and I got this boil on the back of me neck and it was gettin' bigger all the time. I had no mirror to look at it so I used two can covers. I could see three yellow places, I tried to pick it but that didn't work so I made a juniper poultice and put it on. I fell asleep and when I woke up everything was drained out of it, what a mess. I still kept using the poultice for a little while to make sure it was goin' to be all right. When you're off like that your clothes is not clean and you're goin' every day and that rubbing against your neck. Rather than having something start again I made sure everything was cleared up.

HAROLD BAIKIE
1988 - NORTH WEST RIVER

Snowblind and Seal Finger...stories of early Labrador Medicine THEM DAYS 1998