Cooley's Cyclopaedia of Practical Receipts Volume Ii Part 102

=OLEO-SAC'CHARUM.= _Syn._ ELaeOSACCHARUM. Sugar aromatised or medicated by being rubbed up with an essential oil. The oleosacchara of aniseed, caraway, cinnamon, peppermint, pennyroyal, and the other like essential oils, are made by rubbing 15 to 20 drops of the respective oils with white sugar, 1 oz.--The Ph. Graeca 1837 prescribes 1 part of oil to 20 parts of sugar.--The Ph. Austr. 1836 and Ph. Bor. order the same proportions, or 3 drops of oil to the dr., and 24 drops to the oz., of powdered sugar. When intended for making extemporaneous distilled waters, 1 dr. of magnesia is a common addition. The oleosacchara of citrons, lemons, oranges, &c., are made from the peels, as follows:--After cleaning off any specks in the outer rind of the fruit, rub a large piece of loaf sugar on it until the yellow rind is completely removed. Those parts of the sugar which are impregnated with the essence are, from time to time, to be cut away with a knife, and put into an earthen pot. The whole being thus taken off, the sugared essence (oleosaccharum) is to be closely pressed down in the pot, tied over with bladder, and preserved in a cool place for use.

=OLIB'ANUM.= _Syn._ OLIBAN, INDIAN OLIBANUM, FRANKINCENSE. A gum resin obtained from _Boswellia thurifera_ or _serrata_. It is stimulant, astringent, and diaph.o.r.etic. It is burnt as incense in the temples of India and in Roman Catholic churches. African or Arabian olibanum is produced by _Boswellia floribunda_. (Royle.) This substance must not be confounded with the resin noticed at page 761.

=Olibanum.= This gum resin is yielded by two varieties of the plant known as _Boswellia_--one the _B. floribunda_, being a native of Africa, the other, the _B. serrata_, growing in Asia. Olibanum occurs in the form of fragments, which are sometimes pale yellow, and at others of a reddish colour; these fragments have a splintery fracture, a mealy surface, a faintly balsamic odour and a bitter taste. "It consists of about 4 or 5 per cent. of a volatile oil, 56 per cent. of a resinous acid, 30 to 36 per cent. of gum, and 6 per cent. of ba.s.sorin."[67] Incense, of which olibanum forms one of the ingredients, owes much of its pleasant balsamic odour when burning to its presence. It is also used in pharmacy.

[Footnote 67: Payen.]

=OL'IVE.= _Syn._ OLEA, OLIVA, L. The _Olea Europaea_ (Linn.), a native of the South of Europe. The unripe fruit is preserved in brine (SPANISH OLIVES, FRENCH OLIVES); the ripe fruit furnishes olive oil; the bark is bitter, astringent, and febrifuge, and has been used as a subst.i.tute for cinchona bark; it yields a gum-like substance (OLIVE GUM), which was formerly reported vulnerary, and contains olivine. The olive tree has in all ages been held in peculiar estimation as the bounteous gift of Heaven to man. Some authors have styled it "a mine on earth." It is remarkable for yielding a fixed oil from the pericarp instead of from the seed.

=OLLIVIER'S BISCUITS.= See PATENT MEDICINES.

=OLIVINE.= _Syn._ CHRYSOLITE. A crystallised double silicate of magnesia and iron, found in basaltic and volcanic rocks, and very frequently in ma.s.ses of meteoric iron. It is sometimes yellow in colour, but mostly green.

=Olivine.= (Dr Landerer.) _Syn._ OLIVINA. _Prep._ Treat olive leaves with acidulated water, concentrate, precipitate with ammonia, re-dissolve the washed precipitate in a diluted acid, purify with animal charcoal, filter, and reprecipitate with ammonia.

=OM'ELET.= _Syn._ OMELETTE, Fr. A variety of pancake or fritter made of eggs and other ingredients. Omelets may contain bacon, ham, herbs, fish, sh.e.l.l-fish, cold meat, cold game, fruit, or anything else at hand at the pleasure of the cook. 'Spirit omelets' are made by pouring a little brandy, rum, or whisky over them on serving them up, and setting it on fire for a moment just before placing the dish on the table. "Where is the man or woman cook but says they know how to make an omelette, and that to perfection? But this is rarely the case. It is related of Sarah, the d.u.c.h.ess of Marlborough, that no one could cook a 'fraise,' as it was then called, for the great duke but herself. The great point is, if in an iron pan, it should be very clean and free from damp which sometimes comes out of the iron when placed on the fire. The best plan is to put it on the fire, with a little fat, and let it get quite hot, or until the fat burns; remove it, and wipe it clean with a dry cloth, and then you will be able to make the omelette to perfection." (Soyer.)

The following formula for a plain omelet is by the above culinary authority:--"Break four eggs into a basin, add 1/2 teaspoonful of salt, and 1/4 do. of pepper, and beat them up well with a fork; put into the frying-pan 1-1/2 oz. of b.u.t.ter, lard, or oil, place it on the fire, and, when hot, pour in the eggs, and keep on mixing them quickly with a spoon until they are delicately set; then let them slip to the edge of the pan, laying hold by the handle, and raising it slantways, which will give an elongated form to the omelette; turn in the edges, let it rest a moment to set, turn it over on to a dish, and serve." "It ought to be of a rich-yellow colour, done to a nicety, and as light and delicate as possible." "2 table-spoonfuls of milk and 1 oz. of the crum of bread, cut into thin slices, may be added."

MIXED and FANCY OMELETS are made by simply dropping the ingredients, cut into dice or fragments, into the above. ANCHOVY, OYSTER, and SHRIMP OMELETS are generally prepared by placing a few spoonfuls of the respective sauces in the centre of each when nearly dressed,

=ONGUENT (de la Mere).= A stimulant and digestive ointment, very popular in French pharmacy.

_Prep._ (P. Cod.) Black pitch, 1 part; b.u.t.ter, lard, litharge, suet and yellow wax, 4 parts; olive oil, 8 parts.

=ON'ION.= _Syn._ CEPA, L. The bulb of _Allium cepa_. The onion is diuretic, expectorant, rubefacient, and stimulant. The juice, made into a syrup with sugar (SYRUPUS CEPae), has been given in chronic catarrh, diarrha, croup, dropsy, and calculus. Roasted and split open, onions have been applied as poultices to suppurating tumours, and applied to the p.u.b.es to relieve suppression of urine in children. According to Dr Cullen, "onions are acrid and stimulating, and possess little nutrient power. In bilious const.i.tutions they generally produce flatulence, thirst, headache, and febrile symptoms; but where the temperament is phlegmatic they are of infinite service, by stimulating the system, and promoting the excretions, particularly expectoration and urine." They also possess antis...o...b..tic and soporific properties.

=Onions, To Chop.= "Few persons know how to chop onions properly. In the first place all the dry skin must be removed, then a thin slice off the top and bottom, or they will be bitter, then cut them into thin slices, dividing the onion, and cut crossways to form dice. If a very slight flavour is required and the onion is strong, like in the North of England, for it must be remembered that the further north you go the stronger the flavour of the root, and if French receipt books are exactly copied, it is no wonder complaints are made of the preponderance of the flavour of the onion; in which case, when chopped, put them in the corner of a napkin or cloth, wash them in water, squeeze them dry, then put them back on the board, and chop finer, or sometimes only rubbing the pan or the meat with the onion is quite sufficient." (Soyer.)

=O'NYX.= A sub-species of quartz often wrought into small ornamental articles. Among jewellers, any stone exhibiting layers of two or more colours, strongly contrasted, is called an 'onyx.' A regularly and richly banded agate of this cla.s.s is much prized for cameos. The _Sardonyx_ of the ancients is a variety of onyx. It is so called from _Sard_ or _Sarda_, a rich dark-red variety of carnelian, stripes of which in the stone alternate with white stripes. See GEMS.

=O'PAL.= A mineral allied to agate and chalcedony, but distinguished by its peculiar resinous l.u.s.tre. The variety most admired as a gem is the precious or n.o.ble opal, which is remarkable for its beautiful play of colours. The finest opals come from Hungary, and although usually very small, will, if of good quality, realise as much as 5 each. Their value increases in a much greater ratio than their increase in size. They are also found in Saxony and in North America. The largest known specimen of an opal is that in the Imperial Cabinet at Vienna, the dimensions of which are five inches by two and a half. _Girasol_, _Cacholong_, _Hyalite_, and _Menilite_ are varieties of opal. See GEMS and PASTES.

=O'OLITE.= A variety of limestone composed of a number of collections of small round particles, bound together by a calcareous cement. The resemblance the ma.s.s is supposed to bear to the roe of a fish has caused oolite to be called _roestone_. When the grains are of larger dimensions it is called _peastone_. The little spherical bodies of which the stone is composed are mostly formed of concentric layers of carbonate of lime arranged round a grain of sand, a fragment of sh.e.l.l or some other nucleus.

The building stones of Caen, Portland, and Bath are all oolitic limestones. When first quarried they are mostly soft, a circ.u.mstance which admits of their being easily sawn and carved. They harden by exposure to the air.

In _geology_ the term "oolite" has a wider signification, and is applied to an important division of the middle secondary rocks of England, underlying the chalk formation and rich in the interesting fossil remains.

=OPHTHAL'MIA.= _Syn._ OPHTHALMITIS, L. Inflammation of the eye. In ordinary cases this disease is confined to the external membrane of the globe of the eye or to the eyelids; but it occasionally attacks the sclerotica, cornea, choroid coat, and retina.

The common causes of ordinary or conjunctival ophthalmia are the sudden exposure of the organ to a cold easterly wind, to dust, gritty particles, or to any external irritation or injury.

The symptoms are, in part, those common to local inflammation. The eye or eyelids become more or less bloodshot, swollen, and tender, and a sensation resembling that induced by the presence of particles of sand or some gritty substance, accompanied by much heat and a p.r.i.c.king pain, is almost constantly experienced. The secretion becomes yellowish and glutinous, and during the night frequently glues, as it were, the lids together. Sometimes only one eye is attacked, but after two or three days the disease extends to the other.

The treatment of mild cases of conjunctival ophthalmia is extremely simple. In general, it may be relieved by fomentations of warm water or decoction of poppy-heads and the use of aperient medicines, to which leeches and cupping may often be added with advantage.

"To apply a lotion to the eyes," writes Dr Gardner, "the best way is to use a large camel's-hair pencil or brush. Fill it with the lotion, draw down the lower lid, and apply the brush; the fluid will now come out of it into the eye.

"In order to get it well within the upper lid, move the latter up and down, and the whole surface will be wetted. This is important, because the usual way of applying lotions to the inside of the eye is very inefficient, if not entirely useless. The brush should be washed in warm water after using it."[68]

[Footnote 68: 'Household Medicine.' Smith, Elder, & Co.]

In cases where the inflammation is very severe, the pain very acute, or the vision in the slightest degree impaired, as well as in those accompanied by a discharge of matter or pus, no time should be lost in seeking the services of the oculist.

_Animals._--All animals are liable to attacks of catarrhal or common ophthalmia, which may originate from various causes, such as exposure to cold, influenza, or the presence of foreign substances, such as bits of chaff, the husks of oat, small seeds, &c.

In horses, in addition to the above, it may be caused by a blow from the whip. In animals affected by it the eye becomes watery and half closed, the membrane looks thickened, and the eye is frequently bloodshot. If due to the presence of any foreign body this must be removed, either by means of the fingers, a handkerchief, or a camel's-hair brush, or, if necessary, by the forceps.

The treatment consists in bathing the eyes with tepid milk and water, after which an alum or zinc lotion may be applied. A mild physic ball should also be administered.

=Ophthalmia, Purulent.= This dreadful disease, which, like the above, is a form of inflammation of the mucous membrane of the eye, differs from ordinary ophthalmia in being accompanied with a discharge of pus, too frequently terminating in total and irrecoverable blindness of one or both eyes, and in being very contagious.

Purulent ophthalmia is very prevalent in India, Persia, and Egypt, and from the circ.u.mstance that large numbers of our troops were affected with it on their return from the campaign in Egypt, in the beginning of the present century, before which time it was unknown in England, it acquired the name of "Egyptian ophthalmia."

Although of late years its ravages amongst the soldiers of our own as well as of other European nations have considerably abated, the disease is still more or less prevalent in the British, French, Prussian, Austrian, Bavarian, Italian, Spanish, Belgian, Swedish, and Russian armies. Purulent ophthalmia is also by no means uncommon amongst the non-military population, such as the poorer cla.s.ses and their children, and the children in workhouses, asylums, and pauper schools. Dr Parkes says it has evidently been propagated amongst the civil inhabitants by the soldiery.

The following narrative of an outbreak of purulent ophthalmia that occurred on board a vessel freighted with slaves for the West Indies forcibly ill.u.s.trates the character and infectious nature of this disease.

In the year 1819 the "Le Roideur," a French vessel, sailed with a cargo of 160 negroes from Bonny, on the coast of Africa, to Guadaloupe. The "Le Roideur's" crew consisted of 22 men, so that the number of human beings on board, including officers, was 182. No epidemic had been observed amongst the natives from whom the slaves had been taken, and further, at the time of sailing the crew were in perfect health, and the slaves were said to be free from disease of any kind.

The wretched Africans were closely packed in the hold of the vessel, the air of which, as may be imagined, soon became frightfully foul; and after about the thirtieth or fortieth day, the drinking water running scarce, their daily allowance was reduced from 8 oz. to half a winegla.s.sful. Then it was that ophthalmia first showed itself amongst the wretched occupants of the hold, the lids of their eyes becoming red and inflamed. The surgeon of the vessel advised that they should breathe in succession the purer air of the deck. But this course had to be relinquished, since it was found that many of the negroes on leaving the hold jumped over the side of the vessel, and purposely drowned themselves. The disease, which was of a most virulent kind, spread rapidly amongst the negroes, and from these to the crew.

A notable fact demonstrating the propagation of purulent ophthalmia by material particles was the circ.u.mstance that the first amongst the crew who was seized was a sailor who guarded the hatch communicating with the hold. The day after another of the crew was attacked, and in three days after this the disease had a.s.sailed the captain, and almost the whole of the crew. The disease continued to spread daily, until at last there remained one only of the whole crew unaffected and with sight intact, and to him was deputed the important task of steering the vessel. Great fear was manifested lest he too might eventually be overtaken with the total or partial blindness that had come to the remainder of the crew.

The "Le Roideur" reached Guadaloupe on the 21st of June, when it was found that thirty more of the negroes had entirely lost their sight (thirty-six of whom had been thrown into the sea, since they were unsaleable), twelve had lost the sight of an eye, and fourteen were more or less blind.

Of the crew, twelve including the surgeon were entirely blind, five were blind of one eye, and four partially so.

Three days after the arrival of the vessel in port the steerer of the vessel was seized with the disease.[69]

[Footnote 69: Blythe.]

About thirty years ago a curious discovery in connection with purulent ophthalmia was made by Dr Loffler, a Prussian army surgeon. Many of the soldiers of his regiment being disabled by this disease, he submitted the eyes of all the men to a rigorous daily inspection, and he discovered in the lining membrane of the eyelids of some of them certain small granular bodies resembling boiled sago grains. Furthermore he noticed that, although those soldiers whose eyelids presented this peculiarity showed then no indications of the disease, they were subsequently invariably attacked by it; whilst those from whose eyelids the sago grains were absent as invariably escaped.

Subsequent investigators, amongst whom may be mentioned Drs Welch and Marston, have confirmed the accuracy of Dr Loffler's observations and the soundness of his conclusions--that the occurrence of the sago grains is always an antecedent condition to an attack of purulent ophthalmia.

As to the nature of the little granular bodies known to pathologists as 'sago grains,' it seems to be generally admitted that they are follicles situated directly beneath the epithelium, which, in a healthy condition of the lining membrane, are not apparent, but which become swollen and enlarged when the membrane itself is in an unhealthy and irritable condition. In this respect they resemble the enlarged glands met with in scrofulous and weakly children.

"In a regiment the p.r.o.neness to the development of sago grains is found to decrease as life advances; that is, to be much greater in young soldiers than in old ones, and by a parity of reasoning it is a.s.sumed to be greater in a community of children than in a community of adults. In any individual, and therefore in any community, the sago grains may disappear without producing mischief; but, as a matter of fact, sources of irritation to the eyes abound in the world, and when these sources of irritation act upon eyelids in which sago grains are already present, they often excite the contagious form of ophthalmia."[70]

[Footnote 70: Brudenell Carter.]

The diffusion into the atmosphere of the purulent discharge accompanying this form of ophthalmia is undoubtedly the means by which the disease is spread.

Hence it is that if one eye be affected the other may be saved from an attack by being hermetically sealed up--a method of prevention sometimes adopted by the ophthalmic surgeon.

Mr Brudenell Carter says "that the secretion pa.s.ses along the tear-pa.s.sages into the nostrils, and is driven out with the expired air at every breath; besides the chances of direct contact that must exist when a child with ophthalmia is perpetually sending into the atmosphere what I may describe as a spray of contagious particles."