It is recounted of Thomas Carlyle that when he heard of the illness of his friend, Henry Taylor, he went off immediately to visit him, carrying with him in his pocket what remained of a bottle of medicine formerly prescribed for an indisposition of Mrs Carlyle's. ...
carrying with him ：带着
what remained of： 剩下的
后置定语 ： formerly prescribed for an indisposition of Mrs Carlyle's
an indisposition of sb.’s ： 强调唯一性
接下来课文...Carlyle was entirely ignorant of what the bottle in his pocket contained, of the nature of the illness from which his friend was suffering, and of what had previously been wrong with his wife, but a Medicine that had worked so well in one form of illness would surely be of equal benefit in another,...
from which ：后置定语
which = illness
suffer from 得病
a Medicine that had worked so well in one form of illness
某种药对一种病疗效如此有效
be of ：具有
be of equal benefit = be beneficial
接下来课文... and comforted by the thought of the help he was bringing to his friend, he hastened to Henry Taylor's house. History does not relate whether his friend accepted his medical help, but in all probability he did. The great advantage of taking Medicine is that it makes no demands on the taker beyond that of putting up for a moment with a disgusting taste, and that is what all patients demand of their doctors-- to be cured at no inconvenience to themselves.