For an eyewash, take boracic acid, 1 dram, and pour 4 ounces of boiling water over it.
"Special Report on Diseases of Cattle"
U.S. Department of Agriculture J.R. Mohler
That is the sort of dense-skinned ignorance which makes one unspeakably angry-the ignorance which, because it has heard of or read a letter from some brave-hearted youngster, making light of hardships for his mother's sake, therefore flies to the conclusion that everything written and spoken about the horrors of this war is humbug, and what the Army calls "eyewash"-a big conspiracy to deceive the people who are not there.
"Letters from France"
C. E. W. Bean
Fennel powder may be employed for making an eyewash: half-a-teaspoonful infused in a wineglassful of cold water, and decanted when clear.
"Herbal Simples Approved for Modern Uses of Cure"
William Thomas Fernie