these experiments, conducted by the hand | constant results and less vague concluof such a master in all that relates to sions concerning the degree of power of syphilis, are more important than a far this mode of treatment and its special greater number would be, detailed by adaptation to certain forms of syphilis. persons of no authority. He employed Above all things, we ought, in this chanthe syringe and solution recommended by nel of absorption as in others, not to limit Liégeois, this last consisting of distilled ourselves to the injection of a mercurial water, 45 grammes; corrosive sublimate, preparation. As is so well known since glycerine, of each 10 centigrammes. Two, the able demonstration of our legislator and sometimes three, injections were in therapeutics, Ricord, we should, acpractised daily, the mean quantity of cording to periods or age of syphilis indisublimate introduced each day amounting cated by this or that lesion, administer to 7 or 8 milligrammes. The back is the mercury to one patient, iodine to another, preferable region for the operation, as the and a combination to a third. Beyond pain is complained of less there; but this rule there is no safety." when the patients inject the solution for themselves, the sides of the chest or the anterior and external parts of the thigh should be selected, alternating these regions, so that the punctures do not succeed each other too rapidly or approach each other too closely. M. Diday felt very well disposed towards the remedy, as he believes that in it we have an opportunity of bringing the specific into action in a far more direct manner than in ordinary modes of treatment. As cases for trial, he selected patients who were somewhat severely affected, and in whom the disease had resisted the ordinary measures. After supplying the chief details of the twelve cases, M. Diday observes

"These results, incoherent and even contradictory as they seem at first sight, cause me, I must admit, great embarrassment in pronouncing an opinion on this new method. In fact, there is no occasion to pronounce any positive opinion on a remedy which has so recently made its appearance. At first, one is struck and seduced by the promptitude of some of the cures which it effects, only to fall again into a state of doubt on observing it powerless in other analogous morbid conditions, or even in such as are less serious in appearance. We must not allow this doubt, without further information, to pass into discouragement. Deeper researches, instituted while varying the formulæ, and only injecting every two or three days, in order to prolong the time necessary for the cure, and perhaps by adding the employment of other agents, etc, will, it is to be hoped, lead to more

M. Diday believes that great advantage is derivable from the injections in the squamous form of syphilides, which is sufficient to prevent our neglecting it as a remedy. He agrees with M. Liégeois and others that it is not only useless, but mischievous (by consecutive ulceration of the punctures) in the ulcerative forms of syphilis. A very great advantage of the hypodermic method is, that it saves the digestive organs, for under it none of those affections of the stomach and intestines, that so often interfere with treatment, occur. In none of M. Diday's patients was the slightest mercurial affection of the mouth produced.-Med. Times and Gaz., Sept. 3, 1870.

Radical Cure of Hydrocele by the Seton.Mr. HENRY SMITH calls attention (Med. Times and Gaz., Nov. 12, 1870) to the ancient practice of Pott as having been attended with good success in his hands; in about thirty cases only two suffering from acute inflammation of the sac following the operation, in one of which it resulted from taking a long walk immediately afterwards. Pott's treatment consisted in the introduction of "ten or twelve strings of candlewick cotton," the fluid in the vaginal sac having been previously drawn off by a trocar and canula. He put his patient to bed, and purged him. Mr. Smith remarks that this plan was without doubt unnecessarily severe, and the mode he adopts is simply to puncture the tumour with a common suture needle, armed with a single thread, and having brought the thread out a dis

tance of one or two inches from the point | counter-irritation, chalybeates, and codof entrance, it is disengaged from the liver oil. The hip-joint fixed, but not needle, and the two ends are lightly tied painful on pressure; slightly flexed on together. He does not tap the hydrocele pelvis over the trochanter major, and infirst, as Pott recommended, for if a pretty volving the upper third of the thigh, was good sized needle be used the fluid readily a large, tense, acutely painful swelling, drains away. The patient may, and and great constitutional disturbance. usually does, go to his ordinary occupa- After deliberation, Dr. Macnab opened tion, and at his visit in forty-eight hours the abscess, from which a pint and a half the part is considerably swollen; or if of healthy pus flowed, and recovery soon this be not the case, inflammation may be followed. excited by moving the threads. In the majority of cases, the threads may be removed in from eight to ten days. In only one instance has Mr. Smith met with a sufficient want of inflammatory reaction to bring about a cure.

Simulation of Hip-Joint Disease by Suppuration of the Bursa over the Trochanter Major.-Dr. MACNAB gives (Lancet, Nov. 12, 1870) the notes of two cases of this disease, which present features of interest. In one, a strumous boy, aged eleven, received a blow on the trochanter, which produced pain and swelling, the former disappearing, the latter remaining under treatment. Rest, blisters, and iodine externally, and phosphate and iodide of iron with cod-liver oil internally, failed to effect any improvement; and the limb simulated in a marked degree the first stages of morbus coxæ. There is, however, no pain on pressure, or on striking the knee or foot upwards. A splint was applied, and the case looked a doubtful one, originating in periostitic inflammation, and likely to end in caries or necrosis. Two months afterwards, however, the swelling over the hip suddenly became painful. Suppuration occurred; the abscess burst, and speedy recovery followed. In the second case, a married woman, aged twenty-two, without previous injury, became sensible of severe pain in the left hip over the trochanter major. The pain increased and swelling occurred. Opinions were divided as to the nature of the case, some regarding it as one of deep-seated abscess, the result of periostitic disease in the neighbourhood of the trochanter major and upper part of the femur, others holding it to be an undoubted instance of morbus coxæ. She was treated with

Cancer of the Pancreas, simulating Hepatic Abscess.-Mr. JAYAKER, Assist.-Surg. Huttee Singh's Hospital, Ahmedabad, records (India Med. Gaz., Nov. 1, 1870) the following interesting case of primary cancer of the pancreas which is not altogether an uncommon disease, but the circumstances under which it presented itself in this case, were more than likely to lead to a false diagnosis. A large fluctuating tumour occupying the right hypochondrium, epigastrium, and a part of the left hypochondrium, attended with anæmia, and the characteristic diarrhoea of an abscess bursting into the intestines, is strongly suggestive of the existence of a hepatic abscess.

Peera Hakeemjee, an anæmic Fakeer, was admitted into the hospital on the 30th of March, 1870, with the above symptoms. The tumour extended more to the

left, and on exploring with the needle only a few drops of blood escaped, which were the only signs against the supposition of an abscess in the liver. He was treated with stimulants and tonics. but he died, exhausted, on the 1st of April.

On making a post-mortem examination, a large cancerous tumour of the pancreas, apparently about 5 pounds in weight, was found; the liver was quite pushed into the right thoracic cavity from pressure. The other organs were normal, excepting that they were anæmic, and had suffered from the pressure of the tumour.

Temperature in Hæmatemesis.-Dr. EDWARD LONG FOX states (Med. Times and Gaz., Nov. 5, 1870) that in hæmatemesis the thermometer is, to a certain extent,

a guide as to the pathological condition. Gastric hemorrhage will always be accompanied by a temperature more or less elevated if it proceed from ulceration that depends on acute or chronic catarrh of the stomach. A normal temperature may, however, coexist with rather extensive ulceration of the mucous membrane connected with cancer of the stomach.

Cardiac Murmurs in Chorea. The murmur which is not unfrequently heard in choreic patients, Sir WILLIAM JENNER affirms (The Lancet, Nov. 5, 1870), is a mitral regurgitant murmur, due to irregular action of the papillary muscles, sometimes accompanied by irregular contraction of the heart itself. Thus cases are

met with in which there is irregular action of the heart with an occasional murmur, or irregular action with a constant murmur, or regular cardiac action either with a

constant or inconstant murmur; and in all these cases the murmur, and irregular action when present, disappear either shortly before or shortly after the cessation of the choreic movements of the voluntary muscles. Murmurs first detected during a choreic attack may remain after its subsidence, but in these cases there has been at some time inflammation

of the endocardium.

Oil of Peppermint as a Local Anaesthetic. —Dr. A. WRIGHT writes to the editor of the Lancet (Nov. 19, 1870), that "a few years ago I became acquainted with the fact of the natives [Chinese], when suffering with facial neuralgia, using oil of peppermint, which they lightly apply to the seat of pain with a camel-hair pencil. Since then, in my own practice, I in the same way frequently employ oil of peppermint as a local anesthetic, not only in neuralgia, but also in gout, with remarkably good results; indeed, the relief from pain I have found to be almost instantaneous." It is worthy of note that some Chinese pharmaceutists in San Francisco and New York have been selling a remedy for neuralgia, which has gained some repute. It is a liquid put up in very small vials, holding about half a drachm each, which are

sold at an exorbitant price. The liquid has a strong smell of peppermint, and is in all probability the oil of that plant.

Koumiss. This is prepared from mare's milk, a beverage which the nomadic tribes of Bashkirs and Tartars drink in a state of fermentation. Dr. Victor Jagielski, late a physician of the Prussian army, has been led to consider, in common with many physicians of Russia and Germany, that the popular belief of these people, which ascribes their exemption from consumption, bronchitis, and other diseases to the almost exclusive use they make of koumiss, has a considerable foundation in fact. One of the first persons to direct attention to koumiss as a dietetic and therapeutical agent was a Dr. Grieve, F.R.S. Ed., who held the post of physician to the Russian army. The best koumiss is manufactured in the government of Orenburg, especially on the large esin the district of Beleber. tates of Istchoff, in the village of Kilimow,

Koumiss institutions, supported by the Imperial Government of Russia, are now existing in Samara, under Dr. Postinkoff; in Odessa, under Dr. Levenson; and in Moscow, under Dr. Stahlberg. These esfrom mare's milk; but within the last tablishments are preparing their koumiss ten years institutions have been founded nearer to the centre of Europe, where koumiss is prepared from cow's milk, as in Warsaw, under the management of Dr. Przystanski. In St Petersburg, and many other towns of European Russia, there are also institutions where koumiss is prepared from cow's milk by workmen brought expressly from Tartary, as well as in Charlottenberg, near Berlin, and in Ottenstein in Saxony.

Drs. Lersh, Schwepp, With, and Stahlberg, give a favourable opinion as to its effects as a remedy. When a Russian physician advises his patient to take koumiss, the latter at once conceives the idea that he suffers from consumption; and in fact the belief in the power of koumiss in this disease is said to have taken such root, that patients use it of their own accord, without any appeal to medical advice.-Lancet, Nov. 26, 1870.

Mixed Medical Classes.-We have already noticed (Number for December last, page 177) the efforts at present being made for the instruction of male and female medical students in the same classes, and the attempt is so repugnant to our sense of decency that we are reluctant to again recur to it, but a recent discussion at the conjoint meeting of the Managers and Staff of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, places the subject in so strong and disgusting a light that we may be excused for saying a word more in re

BASHAM ON RENAL DISEASES.

RENAL DISEASES:

A CLINICAL GUIDE TO THEIR DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT.
By W. R. BASHAM, M. D.,

Senior Physician and Lecturer on Medicine to the Westminster Hospital, &c.
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS.

In one very handsome royal 12mo. volume; extra cloth, $2.

This little volume treats, in a plain practical way, of the various disorders to which the kidneys are liable. Part III. takes our fancy especially, as supplying a want felt by many young practitioners. Here we have the various morbid constituents of the urine described, simply, yet practically.-Canada Lancet, Nov. 1870.

The most satisfactory exposition of the subject, in a short space, that we have had the fortune to meet.-Chicago Med. Journal, July, 1870.

The work will, however, be found to be one of real utility, giving a clear and succinct account of the best and most recent pathological views on the subject of renal changes, with an excellent summary of the diagnosis and treatment of the different morbid conditions. We would specially mention an admirable account of the physical, chemical, and morphological characters of the urine which forms the closing chapter of the book. -Dublin Quarterly Journal, Aug. 1870.

CHAMBERS ON INDIGESTIONS.

THE INDIGESTIONS;

OR, DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE ORGANS FUNCTIONALLY TREATED. By THOMAS KING CHAMBERS, M. D.,

Honorary Physician to H. R. H. the Prince of Wales, &c.

Third American Edition, Enlarged and Revised by the Author.
In one very handsome octavo vol. of 382 pp.; extra cloth, $3.

We have been betrayed by the great importance of the subject of which this volume treats, and by the excellence of the work, into a longer notice of it than our space will perhaps justify, and we close by again commending the work to our readers.-Mich. Univ. Med. Journal, Dec. 1870.

It is not often that we can say of a medical treatise that it is as interesting as a novel. We may say this of Dr. Chambers' work without any

disparagement of its matter. It is a book which may be taken up with pleasure when heavier reading would prove tiresome.-Amer. Journal Med. Sci., July, 1870.

A want of space prevents a more extended notice of this valuable work. It contains an immense fund of information that will be useful to the general practitioner.-Richmond and Louisville Med. and Surg. Journ., Sept. 1870.

PAVY ON DIGESTION-Just Issued.

A TREATISE ON THE FUNCTION OF DIGESTION:

ITS DISORDERS AND THEIR TREATMENT.

By F. W. PAVY, M. D., F. R. S.,

of about 250 pp.; extra cloth, $2.

Senior Assistant Physician to, and Lecturer on Physiology at, Guy's Hospital, &c. From the Second London Edition. In one very handsome octavo vol. It is a model of its kind. The author has a happy faculty of entertaining as well as instructing his reader, combining, so to speak, pleasure with profit. Accustomed as a teacher to present salient points, he succeeds admirably in outlining his subject.-N. Y. Med. Record, Sept. 1, 1869.

The work is well worthy careful perusal, and should be in the library of every practitioner.St. Louis Med. Archives, Sept. 1869.

In the field thus defined Dr. Pavy has given us the most satisfactory essay yet published.-N. Y. Med. Gazette, Aug. 28, 1869.

SWAYNE'S OBSTETRIC APHORISMS.

OBSTETRIC APHORISMS: FOR THE USE OF STUDENTS COMMENCING MIDWIFERY PRACTICE. BY JOSEPH GRIFFITHS SWAYNE, M. D., Physician Accoucheur to the British General Hospital. From the Fourth and Revised London Edition. With Additions by E. R. HUTCHINS, M. D. With Illustrations. In one neat vol. small 12mo.: extra cloth, $1 25.

This little volume we feel at liberty to commend heartily, despite its belonging to the class of "remembrancers," to which in general we confess a decided aversion. The young obstetrician will sometimes meet with cases demanding prompt action, but severely taxing his memory of former reading; and while life may depend upon his intelligent intervention, he has no opportunity to consult standard treatises for the best mode of

treatment. It is to aid him in such a dilemma that the book before us has its chief purpose, aud while it does not pretend to take the place of larger works, it contains in as few words as possible, practical directions as to the course to be adopted in almost every emergency. The book is one which we would counsel every clinical student or junior practitioner to possess himself of.-N. Y. Medical Gazette, Nov. 19, 1870.

HENRY C. LEA, Philadelphia.