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Germany is unhappily now passing has induced the organi-sing committee of the approaching Congress to leave thequestions of its patronage and its honorary presidentshipopen in the meantime; and the business transacted on the12th inst, was chiefly limited to the appointment of workingoffice-bearers. Dr.Reiss was elected president; Drs.Virchowand Bastian, vice-presidents; Drs. Olshausen and Hellmann,general secretaries ; and Drs. Gussfeldt. Stiibel-Dresden,Joest, and J. Ranke, ordinary secretaries; while Dr. Schon-lauk will act as treasurer. These names amply warrant theexpectation that in point of interest and solid achievementthe Congress will maintain, if not enhance, the reputationof its predecessors. -

A BELGIAN PHARMACIST ON DOCTORS WHODISPENSE.

A BELGIAN medical journal publishes an indignant epistleaddressed by a pharmacist to a relief committee, endeavour-ing to show them how improper and injurious it is to allowtheir medical officers to dispense medicines (as in some casesthey do) for the poor. He complains that medical men donot pass through a course of study or examinations fittingthem for compounding and dispensing medicine, that theyare ignorant of the adulterations (falsifications) of drugs,and that where the same person both prescribes and dis-penses there is no guarantee against error, and any mistakeis sure to be undetected or hushed up, so that, in fact,paupers run a serious risk of being poisoned ! Of course,the gist of all this is that the writer wishes for the appoint-ment of dispenser. The medical man who quotes this lettersays that the bureau to whom it was addressed took nonotice of it, and remarks that the writer-who, by the way,sells paints, varnish, &c., as well as drugs-has evidentlystudied the question of falsification to some purpose, for inan account rendered to one relief committee he charged70 fr, for medicines for two months for a pauper before hisdeath, and 20 fr. more for medicines up to a date seven weeksafter his death. At that rate Poor-law pharmacists musthave a very superior position to Poor-law doctors.

FEVER IN LONDON.

THE number of cases of scarlet fever admitted into the

hospitals of the Metropolitan Asylums Board was 92 duringthe week ended Feb. 24th; during the preceding week 110cases were admitted. Two cases of small-pox, 9 of entericfever, and 1 of typhus fever were also received, the small-pox cases coming from Greenwich and St. George’s-in-the-east, and the case of typhus from Woolwich. The numberof deaths from diphtheria in the week ending Saturday,Feb. 18tb, was 18, the corrected average for that week being13’8. There was therefore a diminution of the mortalityrecorded in the preceding week.

BLANK DEATH CERTIFICATES.

THE deputy coroner for Birmingham has referred to theRegistrar-General the statements at an inquest as to the I

way in which the certificate of death was given for a child,who, after a fall, was treated at the General Hospital, andsubsequently by Mr. Bailey. After death a certificate wassent for. The Birmingham Daily Post thus describes how itwas given: " Mr. Bailey was out, and his assistant, Mr.Donald M’Donald, on her (the witness) representing thatshe wasted a certificate at once, filled up a form stating thatthe cause of death was convulsions. Mr. M’Donald saidthat Mr. Bailey put his pignature to a certificate on Fridayand gave it to witness, with instructions to fill it up if re-quired. Two patients were expected to die, but deceasedwas not one of them." It would have been satisfactory if

the deputy coroner had called Mr. Bailey himself. Weventure to believe that he will have some different accountto give of the matter. It is unlikely that a medical manwould leave a blank certificate, any more than a blankcheque. If the account is true, of course we have no excuseto suggest for it, especially after the full condemnation ofsuch practices by the profession and the Medical Council.

DR. BRAMANN.

DR. FRITZ BRAMANN has been gazetted in Berlin as therecipient of the Commander’s Cross of the HohenzollernHouse Order, bestowed by the Emperor as a reward for hisskilful performance of the operation of tracheotomy on theCrown Prince. Dr. Bramann is the eldest son of a still

surviving landed proprietor near Darkemen in East Prussia.,He studied medicine at lionigsberg, and acted as assistantto Dr. Schildner, Professor of Clinical Surgery in that school.In this capacity he earned a high reputation for skill as anoperator, and was specially deputed from Berlin, where hismerits have long been known, to perform tracheotomy, ifoccasion arose, on his Imperial Highness. Dr. Bramann, whois only in his thirty-fifth year, has had to struggle withmany severe illnesses, which wellnigh wrecked his pro-fessional career. He has suffered successively from typhus,from enteric fever, and from diphtheria, and on each occa-sion his life was despaired of by the skilled physicians whowere consulted.

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POLLUTION OF THE THAMES AT STAINES.

THE question as to the liability of the Staines LocalBoard as regards the pollution of the Thames at Staines hasoften been discussed, and, as certain legal questions must bedecided before this liability can be decided, it has now beenagreed that the ancient practice of taking a special verdictshould be followed. The result of this will be that the

points in dispute will be brought before the Court for CrownCases Reserved. The Thames Conservators have power to

prevent drainage into any canal, cut, or watercourse leadingto the Thames, within ten miles of the river; and in viewof the sources of metropolitan water supply, it is most

important that all technical hindrances to their actionshould be removed as speedily as possible.

THE SMALL-POX EPIDEMIC.

SMALL-POX is still extending in various parts of Yorkshire,Lancashire, and North Darbyshire. Several new centres ofinfection are reported from the Chesterfield Rural SanitaryDistrict, the authority for which has for years past postponedthe question of providing means for isolating first cases ofinfectious disease. At Eckington the School Board havebeen requested to close the school in consequence of theproximity of the disease. As to this, we should havethought that vaccination and exclusion of scholars frominfected houses would have been quite as, if not more,efficient; but the responsibility for the needed measuresmust necessarily devolve on the local officials.

THE FRENCH MILITARY MEDICAL DEPARTMENT.

SOMETHING akin to boycotting appears to be now over-taking the French military medical service, for, accordingto La Province Médicale the last batch of probationersurgeons (médecins stagiaires) entering the military medicalschool of Val de Grace being incomplete, it was determinedto hold a fresh competition to fill up the vacancies. Thiswas duly advertised, but no candidates made their appear-ance. The French Government has under its considerationa scheme for the establishment of a new military medical,chool at the seat of one of the great provincial Faculties