[Margaret Pilkington]

Katex.....I hope you got your splinter out....I thought I had put that in a previous post. The current Kaolin poultices come in a sort of sachet and you just immerse them in boiling water for about 90 seconds, cut the plastic cover off, put some gauze over the gooey mess....test the heat with the back of your hand...and then you apply to the affected part and the thing stay hot for up to 12 hours. Interestingly, you don't have to use them hot.
They still work at drawing out any infection even if you use them cold......though they aren't nearly as comforting!