On the 1st of this month Pieter Geerolf, from Middelburg in Zeeland, came to me. He had been under carpenter but due to the death of the master carpenter he had been promoted. This person had been on the shore of ShamaGhanaFort St. Sebastian to repair the sloop with his mate. Even though it was forbidden by the captain, he had drunk a lot of palm wine. Because of that he came aboard with malaria with a severe headache and a bad edema in his legs. The edema set itself in the stomach, and it seemed like a bad dropsy would follow it. Some voyages I prescribe pulverized mirabilis jalapa, therefore now also two scruples of pulverized mirabilis jalapa and one scruple of ginger. This made his stomach a lot thinner. Some voyages I had also made the patient vomit using a pulverized emetic, and also now this made it better. I prescribed other things (prescription 18) against the fever, which limited it. He had also a blister in the neck, as well as behind the ears. I gave him some of the elixir (prescription 19), of which he drank a small glass in the morning and in the evening. This made him seem recovered after every drink, but he relapsed constantly. I tried everything to make him recover: laxation through a clyster, bleedings with painkillers. This gave him horrible pains, which made me believe that the Africans had given him something. It lasted like this into the month of November, sometimes he improved, sometimes he relapsed again. Twice I gave him another clyster (prescription 25), which made him lose nothing but slime while the pain remained. Since he could not relief himself, I gave him a laxative twice in a row. He got relief due to the purgatives, which made it seem like he lost all the nastiness and relieved him from pain. I then gave him the painkillers and in the evening two grains of opium. This made him rest all night and it seemed as if the seizures disappeared, after which he seemed recovered the 15th of this month.
Prescription 25: use in case of diarrhea and other stomach problems.
R/ Misce fac enema [mix and make an enema]
- Herba altheae [common marshmellow herb]
- Flores: camomillae [flowers: camomille]: manupulus ß
- Semen anisi [anise seeds]
- [Semen] cumini [cumin seeds]: ana ʒ II
- Coque in sufficienti quantitate aquae communis adde colaturam [boil in a sufficient amount of water and add the extraction]: ℥ VIII
- Mel album [white honey]: ℥ II
- Oleum olivarum [oil from olives]
- Sal communis [table salt]: ana quantum satis
- ℈ scruple = 20 grain, so approximately 1,3 g
- ʒ drachma = 3 scruple, so approximately 4 g
- ℥ uncia = ounce = 8 drachmae, so approximately 31 g
- ß = ½ of the given amount
- āā en ān: and ānn = ana (Gr.) take an equal amount of all
- man: = manupulus = a handful
