One of her lesser known titles, but well worth a read.
Actually, it’s The Real Jane Austen by Paula Byrne. Still well worth a read, and it really does contain a first aid tip by Jane herself. It caught my eye because it was a rather unlikely-sounding home remedy, and one I’d never heard of before.
Writing to her friend Mary Lloyd regarding a stay in Stoneleigh Abbey, she says:
Every part of the house and offices is kept so clean that were you to cut your finger I do not think you could find a cobweb to wrap it up in.
An early picture of Jane Austen applying a spider’s web dressing to Mr Darcy after he cut his hand on an old tin can while climbing out of the lake.
This intrigued me, so I looked into it.
I found that not only was it a genuine traditional method for stopping bleeding, but it has actually been shown to be effective. If you could gather enough cobwebs (as you certainly could in my house), you would make a type of dressing to press against a cut in order to stop the bleeding and promote healing. And spiders’ webs apparently contain vitamin K – often given to new born babies to help bolster their blood clotting ability!
Next week: The Secret Way to the Perfect Six-Pack by Florence Nightingale.
Rambles of a Writer 
When I was quite young I read somewhere that a good housewife leaves one hidden corner full of cobwebs for use if she cuts herself! It’s something I nearly always think of when I see a cobwebby corner.
Hmmm – the more I think about it, the more I suspect that the spiders web cure is a myth propagated by people who hate housework!