and in the generality of cases, while ceasing to employ a poisonous agent, he has often the power to prevent the last and dreaded phases of anesthesianamely, collapse of the circulation and of the respiration-in a word, death.— Revue des Sociétés Savantes. June 26th, 1863.

[We have pleasure in bearing testimony to the accuracy and importance of M. Simonin's observations. Our experience, like his, and derived from long research, is that the muscles which raise the lower jaw are the last that collapse under the use of anesthetics. Hence we have seen more dangerous symptoms during profound anesthesia for operations on the mouth, such as extraction of teeth, than under any other circumstances. The exposition of M. Simonin is also in our opinion exceedingly sound and common-sense, and we specially recommend his advice respecting the necessity of observing the contraction of the elevators of the jaw to those who are learning how to administer narcotic vapours with scientific judgment and knowledge.-B.W.R.]

On the Prevention of Danger from the Use of Leaden Pipes for the Conveyance of Water.-A ministerial circular has recently been issued in France relative to the conveyance of water containing only small quantities of lime through leaden pipes, and to the dangers which the apparatus for distilling sea-water, now becoming of common employment in the service, subjects those who afterwards partake of such water. It often happens that these apparati are fitted up with tubes or joints of lead, and the distilled water which passes over has frequently been found so charged with lead as to occasion serious accidents. To meet these dangers, M. Schwartz, of Breslau, proposes to fill the pipes of lead before they are used with a concentrated solution of an alkaline sulphuret, and to prolong the contact of the solution with the pipe for ten or fifteen minutes. In this way, he asserts, a layer of sulphuret of lead is formed on the inner surface of the pipe, which acts as a perfectly protecting varnish and completely prevents every ulterior reaction of the water upon the lead. M. Bouchardat, who briefly comments on the above proposition, states that he has taught for many years past that waters containing traces of sulphuretted hydrogen do not become injurious when held in reservoirs of lead.— Répertoire de Pharmacie, Nov. 1863.

On the Poisonous Properties of Thallium. By M. Lamy.-M. Lamy dissolved five grammes of sulphate of pure thallium in milk, intending to give this to two puppies, each two months old, and each weighing three kilogrammes. After tasting the liquid the animals refused to take any more of it. The next day, in the afternoon, the door of the kennel in which the dogs were shut up was inadvertently left open, and all the milk disappeared, taken doubtless, as the result will prove, by two chickens, six ducks, and a bitch of middle size.

Some hours after the disappearance of the poisoned milk, the bitch became dull, uneasy, and refused to take her food. In the night she was seized with sharp pains, sudden and rapid in their attacks, which made the animal utter unceasing cries. In the morning the pains had neither decreased in frequency nor intensity. The creature refused both drink and food; the expression of her face was changed; her back was curved from the intensity of her sufferings, her sides were compressed, her breathing oppressed, and the saliva abundant. The posterior limbs were first convulsively agitated, and afterwards by degrees partially paralysed. The seat of suffering was evidently the intestines; it was momentarily calmed by pressure or friction of the stomach.

Under the influence of the preconceived idea that thallium in such small quantities could not produce such poisonous effects, M. Lamy did not at first think of administering iodide of potassium as a counter-poison. The whole day elapsed without any apparent diminution of the pains. The next morning paralysis had made great progress; the animal was in a state of perfect

prostration; she still, however, recognised him, and tried to show she was pleased when he went near her. She succumbed on the third day, sixty four hours after having taken the poison. Neither vomiting nor alvine ejections were noticeable during the illness.

In the evening one chicken and six ducks were found either dead or dying. In such of the birds as were alive when the accident was first perceived, paralysis of the posterior limbs in a more or less degree had set in.

The two young dogs which had only tasted the poisoned milk had become quiet, and seemed fatigued; they very soon trembled convulsively, and could with difficulty support themselves on their hind legs; sharp pains then came on, and finally death, four days after the intoxication, and in spite of the efforts which had been made to save these dogs by a normal regimen two days before.

At the post-mortem no lesions, no serious inflammatory processes, were discoverable. The gall bladder of the bitch was extremely distended, and in some ducks various serous membranes, that of the liver in particular, were of a granulated colour.

Spectrum analysis quickly and easily showed the nature of the poison. In fact, when examining with the spectrum some small pieces of the different organs of the dead animals, the thallium was immediately recognisable by its distant and characteristic green streak. The intestines contained the metal in greater abundance than the muscular flesh, and the bones; the white serous membrane of the liver held more than the substance even of that organ. A tooth, as might have been expected, contained no trace of thallium.

Eight days after this accident a second chicken was taken ill; its wings drooped, and it could with difficulty stand on its feet; curiously, when it wanted to eat it could not stretch out its neck sufficiently, and its beak could not reach the food. For three days it languished in the same state. It was then killed, and thallium was found in the intestine; but it was in very small quantities, and in the other organs no traces of it were visible. To be better convinced of the strength of this poison, one decigramme only of sulphate was given to a young dog about the same age as the others; this animal died forty hours after having taken the poison.

The preceding facts show the sulphate of thallium to be an energetic poison, and that the two principal symptoms of poisoning which it excites are, in the first place, pain, the seat of which is in the intestine, and is exhibited in sharp shooting pains, succeeding each other with rapidity, like shocks of electricity; and in the second, by tremblings, and a more or less complete paralysis of the lower members. To these might be added constipation, contraction or depression of the stomach, and the absolute failure of appetite. The two first, however, are the most important symptoms.-Répertoire de Pharmacie, Oct. 1863.

On an Antidote to the Poison of the Viper.-M. Soubeirain has lately made known a new remedy for the bite of the viper: it consists, in all cases, in immediately applying a ligature sufficiently broad to prevent injury to the parts above that are poisoned, but yet so firm as to interrupt all communication between the trunk and the bitten part, and to prevent the absorption of the poison. Suction should be applied to the part, and an endeavour made to excite bleeding; if necessary, scarification should be resorted to, and afterwards a cautery. In addition to these recognised methods M. Soubeirain recommends the use of iodine or bromine, but especially the solution of MM. Broinard and Green, and which is composed of water, iodide of potassium, and pure iodine. This solution should be injected into the wound by means of the flask, with a pointed stopper, invented by M. Viaud-Grand-Marois. At the same time ammoniacal draughts should be administered internally, and the limb and environs of the wound should be rubbed with liniment of ammonia, followed

by the application of a poultice. M. Regimbeau, who writes the report on this subject, remarks, that if the solution of MM. Broinard and Green can exercise a specific action on the poison of the viper, by causing its decomposition independently of any slight caustic power with which it may be endowed, the use of this solution ought to be adhered to rigorously, as iodine and bromine have the property of combining with hydrogen, and may thus also have the power of destroying even the living organic poison. Presuming this to be true, it should follow that the effects of the poison of the viper should be annihilated everywhere. He further observes that the same remedy, on the supposition that it acts in the same way on other organic poisons, should be administered internally in cases of hydrophobia; and he suggests that, in districts where rabid animals exist, places should be set apart, and experiments made on them, to determine if this line of treatment is of any avail.-Ibid., Feb. 1864.

Further Researches on Bibron's Bromine Mixture as an Antidote to Snake Poison. Dr. Charles Hughes contributes a case in support of the value of Von Bibron's solution. The case was that of a German soldier, aged twentytwo, who entered regimental hospital on July 13th, 1863, having been bitten a few hours previously by a genuine specimen of the reptile known in the Western States as the Copperhead. The seat of the bite was the extremity of the little finger of the left hand.

Immediately after the reception of the bite the comrades of the bitten man applied a light ligature around the finger, a little anterior to the metacarpophalangeal articulation, which effectually prevented the venom from mingling with the general circulation, and dosed him with whisky, but not in sufficient quantities to produce intoxication. In this condition he was brought to the hospital, and on the morning of the 14th, the treatment to which his recovery is attributed was instituted.

Few other surgeons would have hazarded an attempt to save the finger, but would have removed it at once, and been content with the salvation of the patient's life, considering it cheaply purchased at the expense of simply a finger; the surgeons began with the design, if possible, of not only saving the whole, but of preserving the part also. To fulfil the indications which presented as necessary for the salvation of the finger, they loosened the ligature, incised the finger as for a whitlow, and immersed it in water for twenty-four hours. To this treatment they added an emollient anodyne poultice on the third day, and continued it through the fourth, when simple cerate dressings were daily applied until July 30th, at which time the man returned to duty.

This constituted all the local treatment, except the lancing of sacs of infiltrated blood and serum, and the application of anodyne and astringent lotions to the hand and forearm.

In the part all the customary symptoms of venomous snake bite were manifest. The black and deadened appearance around the bite, the sero-sanguinolent exudation, and the excruciating pain, were all present in the finger from the time the bite was received, and as soon as they loosened the ligature, became apparent in the hand and forearm. Here the swelling was great and the pain intense; the former extending to the elbow, and the latter reaching to the axilla.

Constitutional symptoms were but slightly manifest. They consisted in slight nausea, a little anxiety of countenance, faintness, and rigors, all of which very speedily disappeared as soon as the antidote had taken full effect in the system. The constitutional treatment consisted exclusively of Bibron's antidote, which was commenced soon after the ligature was removed, and the dose repeated, on the first day, every three or four hours, on the second ter die, and on the third pro re nata. In all, about twelve doses were given. No in

ternal anodynes were exhibited, and no other internal remedies, except a copious draught of whisky at bedtime to procure sleep.

The composition of Bibron's antidote, as prepared and furnished to armysurgeons by the medical purveyor of the American army, is as follows:B. Brominii, 3iiss; potass, iodidi, gr.iij; hyd. chl. corrosiv., gr.j; alcohol dilute, 3xxx. Misce. The following directions for administration:—Give a fluid drachm diluted with a tablespoonful of wine or brandy, and repeat it if necessary. The formula given by the discoverer of the antidote, and employed by Drs. Hammond, Gross, Henry, and others in the United States, who have used it successfully, is more concentrated, and not combined with alcohol, but simply mixed with wine or brandy when administered. It is as follows:-B. Potassii iodidi, gr.iv; hyd. chl. corrosiv., gr.ij; brominii, 3v. Misce. Guttæ x. at a dose, repeated if necessary.

Its efficacy is, perhaps, entirely due to the bromine, and it would seem from the size of the dose that can be tolerated when the system is under the influence of the virus, that it acts as a direct antidote or neutralizer of the poison.-American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Jan. 1864.

II. HYGIENE.

On Recruiting in France for the Army.-Among the ancients and moderns of all nations the height of the man has always been one of the principal points for consideration previous to his admission into the army; and a careful examination of the subject shows not only the notions entertained by different nations as to the standard of perfection in stature, but suggests also the existence of a gradual decrease in stature.

M. Boudin, in an essay on the medical history of army recruiting in France and other countries shows that there is a great difference in the height thought to be necessary in the Roman soldier in the time of Valentinian compared with that of the French soldier in the year 1832. According to the law of Valentinian, the minimum height was 1665 mm.; but according to that of France of the 11th of March, 1832, it was 1.560 mm. Why there should be such a difference in the standard heights at these two periods is a natural question, and one into which the French have entered somewhat largely. In so doing, they have supplied a statement of the height, weight, and other particulars of the recruits, conscripts, and others composing the armies of the present day.

In ancient Rome, the age required for military service was seventeen, and the time of service dated from that age, even if the soldier entered the army before attaining it. The height, as before stated, was 1665 mm. The weight of the armour and accoutrements imposed upon him to carry was something enormous; by some authorities it has been estimated at ninety pounds, besides provisions.

The height of the French soldier in the time of Louis XIV. was required to be 1624 mm.; from 1799 to 1803 it was 1598 mm.; from 1804, 1544 mm. According to the law of March, 1818, it was increased to 1.576 mm.; in December, 1830, it decreased to 1540 mm.; and on the 11th of March, 1832, increased again to 1560 mm. The height of the Belgian soldier is fixed at 1.570 mm.; that of the Prussian at 1.624 mm.; of the English at 1.620 mm.; of the Sepoy at 1650 mm.; and the Sardinian at 1.541 mm.

In M. Boudin's remarks upon the height of individuals, he states the tallest to have been 2.923 mm., or 9 feet; and Pliny mentions an Arab who came to Rome in his time as having been 8 ft. 10 in. high (French measure). Also, in the sixteenth century, a giant of the same height was seen at Rome. Other

examples of great height are quoted by various authors, as well as some of diminutive stature; and of this latter number a dwarf may be mentioned who lived in the reign of Augustus, and whose eyes were so small, that they were represented in the statue erected to his memory, by that monarch, by two diamonds. These, however, are the extremes of nature, and have no place in our statement.

In comparing the returns of the exemptions in France on account of defective stature, a notable diminution in the number rejected is observable during the last thirty years. Out of 10,000 examined in 1831, 929 were under height; whereas in 1860, out of the same number, only 600 were exempted on that account. In four departments of France the height was stationary; it had decreased in 19 departments, and increased in 63. The proportion of young people above the height of 1.732 mm. was below 5 per cent. in 18 departments; it increased more than 10 per cent. in 20 other departments, and varied from 5 to 10 per cent. in 48.

Another result ascertained from the inquiry is, that the stature of a popu lation is in no wise the expression of its prosperity or misery, but simply arises from the race; in other words, height is hereditary. The number of young men of a stature which exceeded 1732 mm. was only 444 out of 10,000 recruits from the departments of Bretagne, but it increased to more than double that number in the departments contiguous to Normandy. The increase of stature in France has been attributed by some to the cessation of the wars of the Republic and of the First Empire, whereby men of tall stature were enabled to stay at home and marry; and from this they had hitherto been excluded in consequence of the levying of the conscription and their being sent out of the country to distant lands. This explanation of the cause of the increase of stature in France corresponds with the fact, that the proportion of exemptions from default of height among individuals born from 1811 to 1816 (classes from 1831 to 1836) has constantly exceeded 800, and has even increased to the enormous amount of 929 out of 10,000 examined, as included in the births of 1811 (class of 1831); whilst, since 1817, one year and a half after the cessation of the war, the proportion of exemptions was often below 800, and even decreased to 600, and less in the two latter classes, respecting which alone official information is possessed. A height exceeding 1895 mm. was only to be found in eighteen departments, and that exceeding 1.922 mm. in only five. In some of the English recruits for the army, the height has been stated to exceed 1.720 mm.: among the Irish, 1.707 out of 10,000; among the English, 1.903; and among the Scotch, 2.317 were found to be of the stature mentioned.

As regards weight, it has been found that 157 men out of 10,000 recruits for English service have weighed less than 45 kilogrammes; each seven-tenths of them weighed from 54 to 63 kilogrammes; and 55 only out of the 10,000 exceeded 77 kilogrammes in weight. The medium weight of a soldier in a Madras regiment of Sepoys was found to be 50.397 kilogrammes; in a Bengal regiment of Sepoys, 58-438 kilogrammes; and in a French regiment of mounted guards, 64.500 kilogrammes. The proportion of exemptions arising from insufficient stature varies in seven of the European States, as will be seen from the following statement: Out of 10,000 examined in France, 9413 were accepted, and 587 exempted; in Belgium, 8660 were accepted, and 1340 exempted; in Austria, 8598 were accepted, and 1402 exempted; in Denmark, 8494 were accepted, and 1506 exempted; in the Sardinian States, 8050 were accepted, and 1950 exempted; in Saxony, 7890 were accepted, and 2110 exempted; and in Prussia, 7626 were accepted, and 2374 exempted. In these same states the fitness for military services is on the same decrease. In France, from 1858 to 1860, out of 1000 young men, only 682 were suitable for the service; in Belgium, from 1842 to 1850, only 630; in the Sardinian States,