What is the "itch"

[sigma]

While searching Shropshire parish records I came across entries for the death of three children, the oldest being twelve. The entry stated that they died after being administered a mercurial potion by an ill informed woman for a cure for the itch.
I suspect that the itch was head lice.
Does anyone have any ideas on this?.

[Quizmonster]

In past times, 'the itch' generally referred to scabies. However, there were other forms with specific names...for example, Norwegian itch meant leprosy.

[Quizmonster]

Click here and look at the section entitled 'God, Mercury and Syphilis', reading the Abstract part headed '1495 - 1550' for the connection between scabies and mercury treatment.

[Peter Pedant]

Date ?

The skin doesnt have many ways of reacting -
flushing, wheals, scaling, oedema, oozing
and after that you are running out of ways the skin can protest

so......eighteenth century itchy skin - hmmmm

what date is this.

Beach - of Bridport marketed a cream
pink - contained mercury and therefore sucessful for any infection
He sold it (!)
but also gave it away free to callers at the back door, which accounts for the pottery lids turning up - everywhere !

I wonder if the old lady made up a soup with a tin of that. Contemporary newspapers would carry the case if if happened in the 1800s.

When Beach died in Bridport - thousands of grateful patients turned up for his funeral - I think it might have been 6000. Basically they had all walked from all over the country. Townsfolk complaininng of course of hawkers and indigents cluttering up the lanes.

Interesting story

[Peter Pedant]

The following :

http://www.westbay.co.uk/bridport/dr-roberts.h tml

gives a slightly different slant
I still think it was Beach

and it even gives the formula for the cream - the lead and mercury would have stopped anything growing.

I remember the pharmacy shop unmodernised as a child - of which there were a few (also Hine's in Beaminster)