monas vaginalis, an ovoid flagellate infusorium, not sufficiently well known if one may judge from an incident that occurred some years since. A patient charged her dentist with rape during anææsthesia. At the trial a physician, posing as an expert, testified to finding spermatozoa in the vagina. On this testimony the innocent dentist was found guilty and condemned to a long term, ten years, in the penitentiary, dying before serving out his sentence. Several years after his death the would-be scientific "expert" whilst visiting the university was casually shown a slide of spermatozoa by Dr. Formad. “Are those spermatozoa?" he anxiously inquired. "Why certainly," was the reply. He said no more, left the city at once, and the next heard about him was that he had committed suicide through remorse. The error is one difficult to make except by the multitudinous detective amateur "expert" microscopists.

CHARLATAN dodges of the eighteenth century closely resembled those of the nineteenth. Dr. Smollett thus describes "Ferdinand Count Fathom's" attempt to force himself into practice:

The means used to force a trade, such as ordering himself to be called from church, alarming the neighborhood with knocking at his door at night, receiving messages in places of public resort, inserting his cures by way of news in the daily papers, had been so injudiciously hackneyed by every desperate sculler in physic that they had lost their effect upon the public and therefore were excluded from the plan of our adventurer.

He

should acquire interest enough to erect a hospital, lock, or infirmary by the voluntary subscription of his friends; a scheme which had succeeded to perfection with many of the profession who had raised themselves to notice upon the carcasses of the poor. Yet even this branch was overstocked, insomuch that every street was furnished with one of these charitable receptacles which, instead of diminishing the taxes for the maintenance of the poor, encouraged the vulgar to be idle and dissolute, by opening an asylum to them and their families from the diseases of poverty and intemperance.

It is obvious that abuses of medical charity from which the profession now suffers were already old in the middle of the eighteeth century and were even then regarded by sound sociological thinkers as having pauperizing tendencies dangerous to the body politic.

THE March MEDICAL STANDARD, speaking of the senseless inquisitorial powers exercised by the New York State Lunacy Commission, remarked:

The whole system is clearly an attempt to per vert the New York state insane hospitals. This seems especially probable when it is remembered

t

that the New York county insane hospitals are no troubled by supervision despite the recently demon strated deficiencies in food quantity and quality and the fact that their general superintendent was kicked upstairs into his present place from the Charity Hospital superintendency for giving a suspicious sickness certificate to William M. Tweed, then a convict in the penitentiary.

Since this was written the New York "Herald" has forced an investigation of the New York county insane hospitals, which more than justifies the MEDICAL STANDARD's criticisms. The general superintendent enters a plea of confession and avoidance. He has been "trying for two decades to abolish these evils," has been able to secure extensive powers, greater salary, a costly residence at the expense of the city, but the food of the patients has remained below par. One of his efforts at "improvement" was lobbying against the New York Neurological Society's efforts at reform. The "cruelties" "revealed" by the investigation are the usual insane "fakes" concomitant on all investigations. The bad food,poor supervision, and miserable clothing are clearly facts. The first remedy should be the abolition of the general superintendency; the relegation of the present Tweedite superintendent to private life, and the enforced direct responsibility of the superintendent of each insane-hospital. These reforms will increase the efficiency and humanity of the New York institutions.

HOMEOPATHIC indications are bizarre. The sleep indications are, according to the "Hahnemannian Monthly," as follows: If the patient sleeps with legs apart; give chamomile. If with legs at full length, give pulsatilla. If with one leg drawn up and the other extended, give tin. The "Atlanta Medical and Surgical Journal" states that the May "North American Journal of Homoeopathy" contains a very exhaustive study entitled "Some Peculiar Sweats." The treatment of them is equally as peculiar as the sweats. Thus if only the front part of the body sweats, amanita, phosphorus, etc.; if the back part of the body, sulphur; if only the upper half of the body sweats, nux vomica, opium, etc.; if the lower half, crocus, cyclamen, etc.; if one sweats on the right side, aurum, sodium, etc.; if he sweats on the left side, fluoric acid and jaborandi; if he sweats only on the face, ignatia; and, finally, if he sweats in spots, tellurium. For sweats after coughing, arsenic; for sweats as soon as one sleeps, arsenic; for sweats as soon as he drops into a sound sleep, cinchona; for sweats in the morning, angostura; for sweats while eating,

oleum animalis; for sweats after unsatisfactory coition, jambos eugenia. If the sweat has a sweet smell, caladium; if it smells sour, natrum phosphas; if it smells like spice, rhododendron; if it smells like horse's urine, nitric acid. The February "Southern Journal of Homœopathy" contains a paper on "Some Peculiar Coughs, "with the indications for each variety. Thus, when the cough occurs every morning at six o'clock, cedron; when it occurs in the day, not at night, ferrum; when it occurs in the night, not in the day, conium; when the cough is worse when lying on belly, baryta; when worse when lying on left side, mercurius; when the cough is aggravated in the presence of strangers, baryta; when aggravated by music, creasote; when it comes from playing on the piano, calcarea; when the cough occurs regularly from February until summer, tin; when involuntary stool occurs with the cough, phosphorus; when involuntary emissions of urine occurs with it, capsicum, bryonia, and others.

THE San Francisco meeting of the American Medical Association was far below the usual standard in any particular. As was anticipated in the May MEDICAL STANDARD, immediate revision of the code was defeated, which is cer

19

the body. The phagocyte theory of Metschnikow is based on the power manifested by leucocytes, of taking up foreign material by virtue of their amoeboid movement. These cells, according to Metschnikow, constitute the guardians of the organism. The ingestion of foreign material remains an established fact, and on the strength of this the experiments above referred to were undertaken. Under as nearly normal circumstances as possible, a small quantity (1⁄41 cm.) of a mixture of lampblack and gum arabic, suspended in normal salt solution, was injected into the abdominal cavities of salamanders. In these animals the abdominal cavity forms a great lymph space; the leucocytes in the lymph ingest the carbon, and then pass into the circulation with the lymph. In six to nine days carbon-laden cells appeared in the blood, and even after the lapse of sixteen days a few scattered ones remained. The microscopical examination of serial sections of the different parts showed the ingested cells to be present in the spleen, kidneys, ureters, liver, lungs, stomach, muscle, and skin. The distribution differed somewhat in these parts. In the liver no ingested cells occurred outside the blood vessels. In the kidneys they were in the blood vessels, urinary tubules, nephrostomes, and

The election of Dr. Maclean of Detroit as president clears the atmosphere of the Association of hidebound preteristic alcoholophobiac cant, which has long been a great incubus. The final agreement between the Association and the Newberry Library places the library where it will do the most good. All friends of the Association and its "Journal" must rejoice at the defeat of the Pennsylvania tools of the Philadelphia publishing house desirous of making the "Journal" its property. The work of the Association in its constitutional amendments for the last few years has once more been rendered chaotic by the way business was done. No amendment was introduced last year abolishing the section executive committees, yet this is summarily done at the present session and entirely new men elected. On the whole the San Francisco meeting evinces decided retrogression for the Association.

DR. CLAYPOLE ("Amer. Medico-Surg. Bull.") recently made some experiments to determine the ultimate fate of leucocytes which pass from the circulation, and what rôle the leucocytes play in the removal of foreign substances from

made of the ureters, close to their entrance into the cloaca, large masses of incested cells were present; in the stomach, lungs, and skin substantially the same distribution existed. The carbon-laden leucocytes were in the blood vessels, in the various tissues of the different organs, in the epithelial and epidermal layers, and finally free in the inner surface of the skin. No trace of free carbon or carbon in any cells besides leucocytes appeared in these parts. The true spleen cells contained carbon scattered about in the cell-body in a peculiar way.

At first sight the carbon appeared to be free in the tissues, but careful examination proved it to be in the spleen cells. By the experiments the following facts were established: No free carbon was anywhere present. All carbon was contained in the leucocytes and true spleenpulp cells. Ingested cells were free on mucous and epidermic surfaces. Ingested cells were in excretory organs with waste products. From these facts it may be concluded that leucocytes are lost from the body in three ways, by wandering out on mucous and epidermic surfaces, by passing away with waste products, by in

gestion by splenic cells. Since the animals experimented upon were kept in normal conditions, and, so far as known, no pathological conditions subsequently supervened, this loss can be considered as a usual occurrence. The removal of the carbon in this way suggests the method of the removal of any foreign material of a like or even of a dissimilar nature that may chance to enter the circulation of the animal. Thus the leucocytes become the true scavengers of the body.

THE "Medical News" comments as follows anent an ophthalmological abuse similar to "counter-prescribing":

The "Refractionist" is the name of a new "journal of practical ophthalmology," issued from Boston under the, editorial care of Dr. Francis F. Whittier, in association with Drs. R. J. Phillips, W. F. Southard, M. F. Coomes, W. E. Baxter, J. W. Park, E. M. Marbourg. We are glad to see this new journal protesting in a practical way against the custom of opticians prescribing glasses. It announces that its advertising pages will not be open to such opticians. It is time the profession were aware of the injury to the public and to the profession by druggists, opticians, and instrument-makers entering into open competition with physicians in the treatment of disease. Sooner or later that sort of thing must end. Why not sooner?

The "News" is, however, an ardent devotee of the "grand old degenerate jaw," the chief Chicago main stay of these charlatan opticians. Practically he consults with these humbugs in lieu of reputable ophthalmologists. Oh, ethics! how many crimes do the elders commit in thy

name.

PORAK states (“Univ. Med. Jour.") that arsenic, copper, lead, atropine, and phosphorus pass through the placenta, while mercury and alizarine do not. Copper and mercury accumulate in the placenta, while lead is not found there. Poisons are accumulated and become diffused in the fœtus more rapidly than in the mother. This shows that certain abortions are due to the action of these poisons upon the placental circulation or to the effect of the health of the mother upon that of the child. It also explains the mortality of the fœtus by the accumulation of the toxic substance in the placenta, and in the central nervous system.

DEGREES are often conferred by universities with even more recklessness than degrees of medical schools than even by the Buchananistic

factories. The president of the oldest eastern university outside of Massachusetts and New York paid the bill sent him by an illiterate hahnemaniac with an LL. D. A middle state university made a patent pill vender, more noted for the vigor than the purity of his English, an A. M. The University of Pennsylvania, in conferring degrees recently, set a commendable precedent for these academic potentates. The honorary degrees were conferred with due regard to literary training or other qualification. The degree of Sc. D. conferred on Dr. S. H. Stevenson of Chicago was at least merited by scientific contributions to biology, and as it was conferby an eastern university with which Dr. Stevenson was not in affiliation must be regarded as tribute to western science.

THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION met at San Francisco June 4, 1894. Dr G. L. Simmons delivered the welcoming address. President Hibberd delivered his address in which he made the following recommendations:

At every annual meeting the permanent secretary and the treasurer have difficulty in appeasing delegates who are not received because the credentials presented by them have not been issued by a society entitled to representation in the association. The difficulty lies in the fact that some of the state societies are not representative bodies, and consequently the constitutional provision cuts off all delegates from such states except those commissioned by the state society itself. While this is the letter of the law, it is not the spirit that animates the organization of the association. The constitution should be revised in this particular at least. Every county society in each state should be represented in its state society. Every medical man who belongs to any medical society should belong to a county or an equivalent medical society, and every member of a county society should be ipso facto a member of his state society, and this an open sesame to the American Medical Association. An effort should be made by this association to restore a part of the appropriation for the support of the National Medical Library, which was dropped by the last congress. For twenty years the appropriation was $10,000 but the last congress reduced it to $7,000, and the present congress proposes to continue the reduction.

The desirability of supervision of public health by the general government has been recognized by this association for many years and manifested in various ways. Various sanitary organizations have entered congress with petitions asking that the general government be clothed with authority to execute measures to assist in protecting public health. The outlook at this time for securing a bureau of public health during this session of congress is not encouraging. At present there is no measure formulated in this behalf so worthy of support as the New York Academy bill now in congress.

It seems to me the reasonable duty of this association, at this time, is to declare and proclaim its unabated faith in the virtue of vaccine to protect from small-pox, to render persons as immune against variola as an attack of variola itself, and that it is innocent of all mischief when the vaccination is done by a vaccinator who is a competent judge of both the purity of the vaccine and the fitness of the vaccinee.

For years there has been a feeling among many most excellent and intelligent working members of the guild that the code of ethics did not fairiy accord with the demands of the advanced profession in their intercourse with each other nor with the proper reciprocal relations between the profession and the public. While, on the other hand, many members equally intelligent and devoted to the association have felt that the code of ethics that had guided the association through nearly half a century prosperously and honorably, and is still a reliable guide in every advanced thought and action, cannot be bettered from the present status and should not be disturbed.

On motion of Dr. W. F. Bishop the address was referred to the following committee of five to consider and report: W. T. Bishop, L. B. Todd, R. Beverly Cole, T. W. Mann, and J. E. Woodward.

Dr. I. N. Quinby of New Jersey said that the suggestion made by the president regarding the danger of cutting down the army surgical corps was so important that he would move the appointment of a committee to draw up and present to congress a preamble and resolution on the subject The motion was carried unanimously, and the following were appointed: Drs. I. N. Quinby, J. Copeland of Alabama, J. B. Hamilton of Illinois, E. E. Montgomery of Pennsylvania, and J. M. Dolph of Pittsburg.

The secretary and treasurer then read their reports.

The following nomination committee was announced: Alabama, Goodman; Arkansas, P. O. Hooper; California, J. H. Parkinson; Colorado, T. G. Horn; Connecticut, J. E. Root; District of Columbia, I. J. Huberger; Illinois. J. B. Hamilton; Indiana, W. H. Bell; Iowa, G. H. Jenkins; Kansas, E. T. Rogers; Kentucky, A. D. Price; Maine, J. A. Donovan; Massachusetts, H. O. Macy; Minnesota, E. D. Keys; Missouri, C. G. Chaddock; Nebraska, G. Wilkinson; Nevada, H. Bergstein; New Jersey, I. N. Quinby; New York, E. D. Ferguson; Ohio, C. Scott; Oregon, H. R. Holmes; Pensylvania, J. M. Duff; Tennessee, G. H. Rice; Utah, T. S. Bascombe; Vermont, George Davenport; Virginia, N. M. Walker; Washington, N. T. Essing; Wisconsin, B. O. Reynolds; United States Navy, G. W. Wood; United States Marine Hospital Service, G. Godfrey; Idaho, G. T. Givens; New Mexico, C. E. Winslow; South Carolina, L. C. Stevens.

SECOND DAY.-Dr. C. H. Hughes delivered the address on "General Medicine" and the Pennsylvania resolutions anent the "Journal" were disposed of to the satisfaction of every one except the Pennsylvania publishing house behind them.

THIRD DAY.-Dr. Holton presented the majority report of the committee on revision of the code of ethics. He made an eloquent plea for re form, holding that while eternal principles do not change, their application does not vary with the environment of man. The minority report, which opposed any change whatever, was read by Dr. Didama.

On motion of Dr. Scott of Pennsylvania the minority report was substituted for that of the majority, and on motion of Dr. Ingalls this was laid on the table. The annual papers on "General Surgery" by Dr. L. Place and on "State Medicine" by

Dr. Rohe were read by title and referred to the publication committee.

The committee on nominations, by its chairman, Dr. Cochran, then presented the following full list of officers for the ensuing year, which was adopted without opposition:

President, Donald Maclean of Michigan; vicepresidents-Sterling Love of Ohio, William Watson of Iowa, and W. B. Rogers of Tennessee; treasurer, H. P. Newman of Illinois; secretary, W. B. Atkinson of Pennsylvania; assistant secretary, G. H. Rohe of Maryland; annual address on medicine, W. E. Quine of Illinois; annual address on surgery, C. A. Wheaton of Minnesota; annual address on state medicine, H. D. Holton of Vermont. Physiology and Dietetics-E. H. Woolsey of Oakland, Cal., chairman; C. G. Chaddock, St. Louis, secretary. Surgery and Anatomy-J. Ransohoff, chairman; R. St. Sayre, secretary. Practice of Medicine-E. W. Kollogg, chairman; W. E. Quine, secretary. Neurology and Medical Jurisprudence-D. R. Brower, chairman; W. J. Gavigan, secretary. Obstetrics and Diseases of Women -C. N. Martin, chairman; X. O. Werder, secretary. Ophthalmology-Edward Jackson, chairman; H. V. Wurdemann, secretary. State Medicine-Liston Montgomery, chairman; C. H. Sheppard, secretary. Laryngology and Otology— J. F. Fulton, chairman; T. J. Gallagher, secretary. Diseases of Children-E. H. Small, chairman; G. N. Michel, secretary. Materia Medica and Pharmacy-W. Whelpley, chairman; G. F. Hanson, secretary. Dermatology and Syphilography-A. E. Regensburger, chairman; D. H. Rand, secretary. Dental and Oral Surgery-M. H. Fletcher, chairman; E. S. Talbot, secretary.

Baltimore was chosen as the next place of meeting, and Dr. J. J. Chisholm was made chairman of the committee of arrangements.

A heated discussion ensued over a resolution by Dr. Jackson regarding the admission of alleged objectional advertisements in the pages of the journal of the association. The subject was referred to the judicial council. Dr. Marcy moved to take from the table all questions relating to the proposed revision of the constitution and code of ethics. This was done and the whole subject was disposed of by indefinite postponement. This ends the whole matter for two years at least.

The suggestions contained in President Hibberd's annual address, as already published, were adopted as the sense of the Association.

THE CHICAGO ACADEMY OF MEDICINE met

June 15 at "The Saratoga." Dr. J. B. Murphy was elected chairman. Among those present were Drs. Harriet C. B. Alexander, Appel, A. D. Bevan, Coolidge, E. C. Dudley, Rosa Engelmann, A. Gehrmann, Kiernan, Lagorio, Leahy, G. F. Lydston, Murphy, Pusey, Rumpf, Slayter, Sarah H. Stevenson, Waugh, and W. H. Wilder. committee on the application of Dr. C. A. Oliver for honorary fellowship having reported favorably he was elected. The constitutional and by-law amendments were adopted. The minutes were

The

adopted. Dr. H. Gradle applied for fellowship, endorsed by Drs. Pinckard and Kiernan, which was referred to Drs. Wilder, Wescott, and J. A. Lydston. Dr. H. M. Bannister applied for fellowship, endorsed by Drs. Talbot and Kiernan, which application was referred to Drs. Pusey, Baum, and Coolidge. The application of Dr. S. H. Stevenson, endorsed by Drs. Paoli and Alexander, was referred to Drs. Moyer, Leahy, and G. F. Lydston. The application of Dr. R. W. Hardin, endorsed by Drs. Coolidge and Pinckard, was referred to Drs. Slayter, Cuthbertson, and Ewell. The nomination of Dr. Havelock Ellis for honorary fellowship by the Directors was referred to Drs. Talbot, Lagorio, and Alexander. Dr. E. C. Dudley read a paper on "Myomectomy or Hysterectomy," which was discussed by Drs. Bevan, Stevenson, Slayter, Coolidge, Kiernan, and G. F. Lydston; the discussion being closed by Dr. Dudley. Dr. W. H. Wilder read a paper on "Pulsating Exophthalmus," which was discussed by Drs. Coolidge and Kiernan; the discussion being closed by Dr. Wilder. The Academy then adjourned subject to the call of the Directors. Dr. R. Dewey will read a paper on "Biology of the Sane and Insane," and Dr. Pinckard one on Eye Traumatisms."

The following is the Constitution as amended:

now

Artice 1. The name of this society shall be the Chicago Academy of Medicine.

Article 2. The object of this Academy is the encouragement of pure and applied medical science. Article 3. The executive management of the Academy shall be vested in a board of five directors, who shall be elected annually, in May.

Article 4. Matters other than of a scientific character pertaining to this Academy shall be referred to the board of directors, who may at their discretion refer such matters to the Academy for action.

Article 5. A chairman shall be elected at each meeting.

Article 6. The board of directors shall elect a secretary for one year, who shall be ex-officio secretary and treasurer of the Academy.

Article 7. The fellowship shall be limited to fifty. The board of directors shall nominate to the Academy from those eminent in the medical sciences and non-residents of Chicago twenty-five honorary fellows.

Artical 8. Any special scientist who shall present an acceptable thesis, and shall be otherwise deemed a suitable person by the committee on fellows, shall be eligible to fellowship.

Article 9. Every candidate for fellowship must be endorsed by at least two fellows of this Academy. Article 10. A committee of three shall be appointed by the chair to report upon the eligibility of each candidate, and to this committee shall be