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19th Century Medicine If you got sick or injured in the 1850s, you were probably hosed. While the idea of "humors" had long passed, there was still widespread misinformation about how the body and chemicals worked, often to dangerous degrees. The germ theory was still controversial; even the idea of boiling water to purify it wasn't really practiced by most people! The dominant theory about sickness is that it was caused by miasma, bad air generated by rotting organic matter. Others believed that disease was transferred by touch, so they thought it was perfectly okay to hang around sick people as long as you didn't touch them. While the theory of humors was gone there was still a lot of guesswork that went into curing disease, often based around "restoring balance" of some kind or assuming that you had "bad blood". I'm pretty confident that a lot of doctors just started making poo poo up at a certain point and assumed that they were right because they were doctors. When it comes to injuries, basic knowledge like splints and bandaging are present. The bigger problem is that you're often being treated in a dreadfully unsanitary environment and will be likely to suffer gangrene; George Donner died because a minor wound got infected. If you suffered a gunshot wound or similar major injury to a limb, the usual treatment was amputation because there was no way to actually repair the damage. At least you had plenty of painkillers! Many substances that are now illegal or known to be toxic were commonplace in drug stores, from opium and cocaine to mercury and gold-coated pills "to make them easier to swallow" (and coincidentally prevent the contents from being digested).  One of the most popular medicines of the time was laudanum. This is simply a tincture of opium in ethanol, equivalent to 1% of the same amount of morphine. Laudanum was used as a cure-all for just about everything from coughs to insomnia, or used as a painkiller for surgery or serious injury. Many unscrupulous manufacturers mixed in all sorts of material, from mercury to cayenne to belladonna. Didn't matter what you had. You'd be given laudanum. We have a few other medications in our bag. Aloe vera extract is commonly applied topically for burns, rashes, and other skin conditions even today. Alum is a sulfur salt of aluminum and potassium often used for tanning leather that can also be used as an antiseptic or for stopping minor bleeding (such as cutting yourself shaving). Iodine is a good disinfectant that's still in use. Sulfur, peppermint, and other elements or strong-smelling compounds were widely believed to have some form of medical benefit; the Lewis & Clark expedition carried spices simply for use in medicine. And of course, you always have whiskey. Strong liquor was often prescribed as a cure-all.
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May 14, 2019 15:17
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chitoryu12 posted:If you got sick or injured quote:I'm pretty confident that a lot of doctors just started making poo poo up at a certain point and assumed that they were right because they were doctors. Poil fucked around with this message at 15:44 on May 14, 2019 |
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May 14, 2019 15:41
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Well, that sounds encouraging.
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May 14, 2019 17:57
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TheMcD posted:Well, that sounds encouraging. Should’ve eaten more raw meat.
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May 14, 2019 18:19
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There's no way Jimmy lives to reproduce.
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May 14, 2019 20:36
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Pretty sure Captain Freeman is just making things up as he goes along. For that rattlesnake bite, like others mentioned he did just about everything wrong. He put on a tourniquette (but loosely?), cut the wound, and tried to suck out the venom, all of which makes things worse. For most people, they just need the wound splinted and to keep it at a neutral level with the heart and to minimize movement - you only need the antivenin if you start getting weird clotting problems with your blood or if the limb swells up too much. Another interesting thing about snake bites is the "6 Ts of snakebites" rules of thumb which describes who usually gets bitten, at least in the modern US - testosterone, tequila, tattoo, tank top, teasing, and tank. Basically the people who get bitten are usually male (80%), have been drinking, have a tattoo, are unemployed (and wearing a wife beater), were messing with the snake, and the biting snake was a pet. Jimmy likely has a bright future ahead of him in California. Regarding that cholera episode which is tons of watery diarrhea, laudnum actually isn't a bad choice back in the 1800s like someone else mentioned. You can get something similar today for diarrhea over the counter, called loperamide or Imodium. Opiates cause you to become constipated and in the case of cholera may decrease watery secretion in the intestines. Now, for bloody diarrhea giving anti-diarrheals are real bad because in some cases it causes bacterial toxins to stay stuck in the intestines insetad of being passed. For foraging there's also a neat rule we can use when we find berries. Blue/purple/black berries are 90% safe to eat, and berries that are in clusters (aggregate berries), at least where we are on the oregon trails are will always be safe. Red berries are a coin flip, and white or green berries are usually dangerous. I remember a video I saw in a survival course a life time ago recommended watching to see what fruits or vegetables primates would eat if there were any around, and then eating those. And then also eating the primate.
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May 14, 2019 22:17
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Mechanical Ape posted:There's no way Jimmy lives to reproduce.
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May 14, 2019 22:24
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Dong Quixote posted:Pretty sure Captain Freeman is just making things up as he goes along. But how many primates are there on the Oregon trail. Uh... beyond the obvious. There's so much whining if we shoot and eat those. And eating whatever they do might not be a good idea.
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May 14, 2019 23:16
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Poil posted:That's pretty cool. Yeah doesn't work as well in the US seeing as how there's no monkeys, although since there's 150 people in our wagon train, I suppose someone could just watch and see what happens if their buddy eats them.
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May 14, 2019 23:29
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.png) As TheMcD sleeps off his cholera, we reach "the Coast of Nebraska". This is a ridge of sandy hills that separate the Platte Valley from the open prairie that we're now going to be trekking along. A number of grave markers sit along the trail here where emigrants died of disease. .png) The next day we reach Fort Kearny. It's a very new fort, having been founded in 1848. The fort is a major way station, supply depot, and message center for travelers on their way out west. Over its 23-year history it would serve as a Pony Express stop and a telegraph station. At the height of travel down the Oregon Trail, as many as 2000 people would pass through every day. The nearby city of Kearney, NE is named after it (people kept misspelling the name until it became permanent). Anything we want to do here?
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May 14, 2019 23:48
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Grab some laudanum. And maybe another clock.
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May 14, 2019 23:50
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See who's around because I'd like to know what it does.
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May 14, 2019 23:51
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Visit the fort, write a postcard to the goons left behind wishing they weren't here etc.
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May 14, 2019 23:51
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Angrymog posted:See who's around because I'd like to know what it does. Ask them if they know Jed
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May 15, 2019 00:01
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See who's around
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May 15, 2019 00:14
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Visit the fort and the supply store, if there is one.
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May 15, 2019 00:45
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.png) Many of the people you meet have only a single line of dialogue. This is most prevalent if you stop on the trail; you'll often get 2 or 3 people who just say "Let's keep going!" .png)  "They're taking advantage of us! If I had the chance to do it all over again, I'd buy more supplies at the beginning of our journey! Well, we might as well get what we need right here. Goodness knows it'll probably be even more expensive down the road!"I wish I could get Fraps to work with this because this woman has the most awful quasi-Canadian accent I've ever heard. When it comes to longer dialogue, most of it is either educational or basic tips like "Supplies will get more expensive the further west you go" or "Maybe you should try caulking and floating the wagon on this river." .png) .png) Unfortunately, there was no laudanum or furniture available. The supplies that each merchant has are randomly generated not just for the game, but when you reload a save. Yes, this means you can save scum until you get the store inventory you want. If you're a little bitch. .png) At the moment, Plum Creek is an unassuming little creek where you can fish and gather water and wild edibles. This would all change in 1864 when a coordinated ambush by Native Americans attacked a freight wagon train and killed 12 people and kidnapped two adults and the 9-year-old son of a teamster, temporarily shutting down traffic along the Oregon Trail. The Plum Creek Massacre led to the Union splitting off soldiers from the Civil War to push back the Indians and reopen the trail. These conflicts out west would continue all the way until 1923. .png)  This is a good example of the kind of terrain we're going to be on for most of the trip. As anyone who's been to Kansas and Nebraska will tell you, it's absolutely flat out there. O'Fallons Bluff still has wagon ruts left from the trail next to I-80, with 8 iron hoops placed in them to symbolize a pair of wagons. .png) A dust storm slows us down temporarily as the trail is coated in deep sand, which also denies our oxen some time to graze until it passes. .png) Yes, the 1.5-foot-deep river might be somewhat difficult.
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May 15, 2019 00:57
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Avenge ourselves on that river and ford away
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May 15, 2019 01:04
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We should have a Ford Fiesta after we cross this.
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May 15, 2019 01:09
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Built Ford tough
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May 15, 2019 01:18
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I dunno about this, maybe we should fashion some makeshift rafts, then put the wagon on THAT, maybe make some water wings for our Goodguy3 fucked around with this message at 01:38 on May 15, 2019 |
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May 15, 2019 01:35
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Holy gently caress, why didn't we buy the rifle that was a foot taller than the shopkeep?
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May 15, 2019 01:39
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By the way, is there any archive of The Taxman's LP of the game that has the images working?
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May 15, 2019 03:12
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Fording isn't an issue. But we're presented with a new problem..png) So named because it's the first major hill emigrants encountered on their way west, California Hill is a climb of 240 feet over slightly under a mile (about 1 foot of elevation per 20 feet of travel). It's not the steepest hill we'll face, but it's the first one that could pose some difficulty. We have a few options here. We can continue as normal and hope everything is fine, double-team the wagons to scramble up, use ropes and chains to pull the wagon up, or lighten the load by dumping some supplies and furniture on the side.
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May 15, 2019 03:26
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I have faith the RNG won't screw us over on the very first hill like it did on the first river! Show no fear, and continue as normal!
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May 15, 2019 03:38
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See who's around.
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May 15, 2019 03:48
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What else does the game tell us about the hill's conditions ?
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May 15, 2019 03:49
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Double your pleasure double the fun!
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May 15, 2019 03:52
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Goodguy3 posted:What else does the game tell us about the hill's conditions ? Yes, roll for Spot check.
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May 15, 2019 03:53
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Might as well play it a tad safe and double-team the wagons. Surely that can handle such a gentle climb.
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May 15, 2019 03:54
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Goodguy3 posted:What else does the game tell us about the hill's conditions ? It changes the text in the message box to how dangerous the hill looks, which is to say, what's on screen right now
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May 15, 2019 04:04
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Double-team!  
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May 15, 2019 04:10
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If I remember this game from my childhood, hills are the devil. Double team.
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May 15, 2019 04:33
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Well why don't we just wait here in that case, then? Until the wind has eroded the hill down to a more manageable grade.
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May 15, 2019 04:36
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.png) Double-teaming gets us up. But what about getting down?
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May 15, 2019 04:59
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Powerslide our way down
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May 15, 2019 05:39
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See who's around to get advice from, then dump all the food to lighten the wagon, then lock the wheels and move along.
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May 15, 2019 05:47
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Let's see what locking the wheels gets us.
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May 15, 2019 06:39
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Hope we brought spare axles because lets lock the wheels
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May 15, 2019 06:48
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Let's try to use ropes or chains to let ourselves down gently. There's gotta be something to tie them to, right?
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May 15, 2019 07:11
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