I've heard of lots of different versions. Tobacco juice, chewed or manually ground into a paste, a mat of hairs from a fiddle-head fern, pepper, bacon fat, even a claim you could use large ants to hold the cut closed by tricking them to bite across the laceration, applications of swamp moss got mention, and mustard plasters were all the rage in the late 19th century...

I've never used any of those.

As I understand it the good money advice for lacerations is to clean them out with mild soap and water and/or jets of normal saline or clean water from a syringe, a baggie with a pinhole squeezed works pretty well, and to mechanically keep the wound closed if it won't stay closed on its own.

Sewing shut is a treatment that goes back thousands of years. Using some sort of tape or strapping, possibly with some sort of adhesive, is an alternative. Butterflies, Steri-strips, bands with tincture of benzoin for glue, superglue directly or with bands are all options.

[I, for the record, do Not recommend anyone attempt to close any wound or use any compounds or medications in any manner or way. Do your homework, get training, and educate yourself. It is always best to consult with and use the services of medical professionals.]

On my own hide I've used athletic tape (it is my favorite tape for first-aide kits), Steri-strips, butterflies made from duct tape (is there anything duct tape isn't good for), and stitched myself up with common thread boiled and soaked in Neosporin to make it slippery, and one time, on a rather small but deep cut on my leg that was annoyingly placed and refused to stay closed, with dental floss.

A little topical anesthetic is handy if you have to stitch yourself up but it isn't really that painful without it.

USE AT YOUR OWN RISK AND ONLY AFTER CONSULTING WITH YOUR DOCTOR: Diphenhydramine capsules can be cut open and the powder used as a topical anesthetic. Lasted about an hour last time I used it. Also handy for toothaches and as a last desperate resort for painful or itching insults to the skin. Sprinkling by hand works but you get better coverage per capsule over wider areas if the powder is picked up in and blown through a straw or other tube. Apply it and let it set for a few minutes to allow to gain maximum numbing effect.

I highly advise that you wash your hands after messing with the powder and don't get it in your eyes. It can make vision in that eye wonky and blurred. Eye/s that won't focus might be problematic in a survival situation. Things returned to normal after a couple of hours. On the up side that eye didn't itch for several days and it was high pollen season.

STANDARD WARNING APPLIES: Tetrahydrozoline based eye drop liquid will often slow or stop bleeding if you squirt it into a wound. Don't use this too early, blood helps clean the wound, but stopping the majority of the blood after giving it a reasonable chance to clot and stop on its own does help when trying to stitch it up.

Used to be Betadine and Neosporin was standard, and I sometimes use them, but last I heard there was some doubt as to how much good they do. Ive informally experimented with using A&E ointment, petroleum jelly, and butt creme on cuts and stitches. They all seem to work pretty well on clean wounds. IMHO, based on entirely anecdotal evidence, A&E ointment seemed to speed healing a bit.