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10,000 cases of these diseases with this agent, with thehappiest results. So uniformly successful has it been that ’

I

I have in our very extensive practice here, given up the useof quinine and the cinchona alkaloids for the treatment ofintermittent fever, and have substituted picrate of ammoniafor them. A record was kept of 5000 cases of intermittentfever treated with this agent. Of this number, in nine casesonly did it fail to cure, and in these quinine succeededat once. 1 usually give it in doses of from one-eighthof a grain to a grain and a half four or five times a dayin pill. Half a grain is a fair average dose. Thus giventhe result is soon visible. In the great majority of thecases treated, half-grain doses in the interval prevented therecurrence of the next attack of the fever, while in about20 per cent. of the patients two or three attacks followedbefore the fever ceased. In one case of quartan ague,despite large doses of the salt, the fever recurred for sixperiods, gradually diminishing in intensity, and thenyielded to it. It is equally successful in all the forms ofague, but it is a curious fact that the cases in which it failedto cure were all of the tertian variety. I have also employedthis agent in the treatment of twenty-five cases of malarialneuralgia of various nerves, six cases of malarial headache,and one of malarial colic. In all these instances it curedcompletely and speedily. In remittent fever it does notappear to be of use; six cases of a severe type were treatedwith it without any effect. Neither is the enlarged spleen ofague benefited by it. I have given it in numbers of suchcases in conjunction with ergotine with good results, butsuch results are secured equally by the use of the ergotinealone.

’

My experience leads me to the conclusion that in allvarieties of intermittent fever, and in malarial neuralgias,picrate of ammonia is a valuable antiperiodic, and it is anefficient and perfect substitute for quinia. It has thefollowing advantages over quinine :-1. It is much lessexpensive. This is an important consideration where, as inIndian practice, hundreds of cases of malarial diseases haveto be treated annually. 2. The dose given is very muchsmaller. 3. It does not produce the unpleasant effects thatquinine does-headache, deafness, tinnitus, &c.; nor does itdisorder the digestion or cause nausea, as quinine is apt todo, in the doses in which it has to be given in India.Amritsar, Punjab, Northern India.

CASE OF TRAUMATIC TETANUS; RECOVERY.BY JOHN WELPTON, L.R.C.P.L., M.R.C.S.

IN THE LANCET for 1886 two cases of recovery fromtetanus (traumatic) are referred to. I had myself a shorttime ago a successful case.On Sunday evening, Nov. 7th, I was called to B. B-, a a

tall powerful man about the age of thirty, and found himsuffering from pronounced tetanus, with eyes fixed andstaring, hands clasped behind the neck and quite rigid, andopisthotonus so strong that four people could with difficultykeep him down when the spasms were violent, those of thediaphragm being agonising. I placed him under theinfluence of chloroform, and administered within a shorttime two drachms of bromide of potassium, together withone drachm of chloral hydrate. I remained with him nearlythree hours, when he became quieter and had no morespasms. He was quite well in two or three days. His friend sdid not know of any wound, but the man explained that incutting a corn under the right great toe he had cut painfullyinto the quick three or four days ago. He was a nightwatchihan at that time and much exposed to the weather.Ravensthorpe, Yorks.

CASE OF MELANOTIC SARCOMA.

BY J. N. BREDIN, L.K.Q.C.P.I., &C.

THE patient, a lady, aged fifty-four, first noticed a little

spot on the right heel about the last week in October, 1886,thinking it was merely a chilblain or occasioned by a tightboot; it gradually, however, became troublesome, thoughentirely free from pain, and she then consulted my pre-decessor Mr. Holt, who advised a consultation. Accordingly,Mr. Rivington was called in, and advised an operationwhich was performed on Nov. 29th, and seemed effectually

to remove the mass. I saw the patient on Dec. 2nd.The growth had none of the characters whatever ofmelanosis-in fact, up to this time nothing showed itselffrom October to lead one to be certain. Meanwhile,Mr. Holt and Mr. Rivington suspected melanotic sarcoma.About eight days after the operation several spots of un-mistakable melanosis appeared, first on the outside andsubsequently on the inside of the thigh, and afterwards onthe heel, and was now covering the cicatrix of the wound,which healed without intermission. All these places on thethigh and heel are now becoming confluent and extendingand growing rapidly on the skin, without pain. One spotidentical in character appeared on the head, and a single oneon the back. Neither of these has increased in size, norhave any fresh ones appeared. This is, I presume, a mostinteresting and remarkable case, and may be seen by anymedical man who may appoint an hour with me, as thepatient is most willing to be seen by anyone.Norton Folgate, E.C.

A MirrorOF

HOSPITAL PRACTICE,BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

GUY’S HOSPITAL.SEVEN CONSECUTIVE CASES OF CHARBON TREATED

SUCCESSFULLY BY EXCISION.

(Under the care of Mr. BRYANT.)

Nullaautem eat alia pro certo noscendi via, nisi quamplurimas et mor-borum et dissectionum historias, tum aliorum tum proprias collectashabere, et inter se oomparare.—MoBQA&Nl De Sed. et Caus. Morb.,lib. iv. Prooemium. -

WE are able to publish a series of cases of malignantpustule which have occurred in the wards of Guy’s Hospitalduring the course of the last few months, all of them underthe care of one surgeon, and successfully treated in a similarmanner, by excision, followed in some instances by theapplication of caustic. This disease is one of which duringthe last few years several examples have presented them-selves in London, chiefly at Guy’s and the London Hospitals,and much has been done by the surgeons of these institutionsto advance our knowledge of it. The cases, two of whichwe give this week, will be read with interest, and thedifference in the local and constitutional symptoms carefullynoted.CASE I.-Charbon of right temporal region, 2vith lymphatic

enlargement ; excision skin-graftang cure. (From notesby Messrs. Du Boulay and F. P. Sarjant.)-Chas. A-,aged twenty-nine, a labourer at a hide warehouse, wasadmitted on Jan. 21st, 1885. The patient’s father died ofaneurysm of the heart ; his mother is living and well. Hehas been a hard worker, and steady in his habits. Hadmeasles when a baby, and rheumatic fever when he was aboy (this lasted six weeks). About four years ago he wasruptured, and ever since has been wearing a truss. He hasof late had some palpitation and nervousness. The patient,who works at a hide factory, was sent to the hospital bythe manager (who, he thinks, had the disease himself someyears ago). About Christmas last he came as an out-patientwith a swelling like a boil on his left cheek. This wasopened, and he got well. He was in his usual health up toMonday, the 19th ult., and was at his ordinary occupation,which consisted in handling hides of all kinds, which hadcome from all parts of the world; they were cow, ox, buffalohides, and rabbit and opossum skine. While he was at workhe felt an itching on his left temple, and putting up hishand felt a small pimple about the size of the head of a pin.He felt dull, depressed, and cold that day. On the Tuesdayhe still felt poorly, the pimple had increased to about thesize of a pea, and the surface was black. On the Wednesdayit was blacker and larger. During the whole time he hadfelt cold and unwell, but had kept at work until he wasadmitted into hospital.

Condition on admission.-The patient is a well-built,healthy-looking young man. When placed in bed heshivered and complained of bad headache. Temperature

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998°; respiration 20; pulse 88. The pustule was situatedon the letc temple, about an inch behind the outside of theeyebrow and above the zygoma. The central sloughmeasured one-eighth of an inch in diameter, and wascircular. It was surrounded by a rim of vesicles whoselong diameter-namely, in the horizontal direction--wasthree-eighths of an inch; in their short diameter-thevertical-a quarter of an inch. The vesicles were moremarked above, and at the back there was redness of theskin for about two inches and a half from above down-wards, which faded away gradually; the pustule was notraised above the skin more than one-sixth of an inch. Theglands at the angles of the jaw were enlarged on both sides,particularly on the left. His teeth were bad. There was aswelling on the left side of the face just below the angle ofthe mouth. There was also a pimple on the left side of theback of the neck, about the size of a pea, red like a boil,without perceptible black centre. The patient was unable toopen his mouth very widely.At about 7 P.M. on the day of the man’s admission,

Mr. Du Boulay, by Mr. Bryant’s instructions, removed thepustule. Chloroform was administered in the ward. Askin incision, elliptical in shape, was made behind theeyebrow to about half an inch in front of the ear, extendingin depth to the deep fascia over the zygoma. The skinand tissues beneath, between the incisions, having beendissected away, the raw surface was thoroughly cauterisedall over with Paquelin’s thermo-cautery; the wound wasthen dressed with terebene oil and a pad of lint bandagedover it. The patient took chloroform very well, and wasnot sick after it. He was ordered five grains of sulphate ofquinine every four hours, four ounces of brandy, and fulldiet. ’

Jan. 22nd.-The patient was restless during the night,as he said, from headache and the effects of chloroform.Temperature 972°. He seemed fairly comfortable. Hisbowels were open twice yesterday before his admission.Urine limpid, clear, and of a light straw colour, muchlighter than normal. Sp. gr.10017; slightly alkaline reaction;no albumen, mucus, blood, or pus; on boiling there was aslight whitish precipitate, which disappeared on the additionof nitric acid. At 2 P.M. the patient was much the same;his face was red and puffy, and he had headache, and asinging or buzzing noie in his head. Wound painful.Evening temperature 988°. Wound dressed. No bacillicould be detected in the urine.23rd.-The patient passed a good night and feels com-

fortable. He is better than yesterday. The pimple on theback of the neck is not a charbon. There has been no riseof temperature.24th.-The patient feels only a little soreness about the

wound; slight headache. His bowels have not been opensince his admission. Urine of normal colour ; sp. gr. 1024;no albumen, but some phosphates; slight acid reaction ; nobacilli could be detected, although the examination wasca1’Hful1y made.25th.-The patient passed a fair night. Complains of

increased soreness in the wound and shooting pains acrossthe back. In the evening he seemed worse. Temperature1025°. The quinine was omitted, and ten grains of calomeland colocynth given at night; also twenty grains of salicylateof soda in orange flower water every three hours.26th.-Passed a restless night; has great pain in the head

and across the back and chest; temperature 992°; bowelsopen. Pulse 84; respiration 20. Urine: sp.gr.l025; normalcolour; no albumen; could find no bacilli.27th.-Bowels open this morning. Not much alteration

in patient’s condition.28th.-Passed a good night. Great soreness in the wound.

Patient says he feels better. Pulse 72. Wound dressed inthe evening.30th.-Patient doing fairly well; bowels open daily. The

wound itches and smarts very much.31ht.—The salicylate of soda ordered three times a day.

Patient much the same; takes his f’1od well. Urine straw-coloured; acid; no albumen; sp. gr. 1021; reaction of salicine.

Feb. 9th.-Has been getting up daily since the 4th, and ismaking good progress; there is still a quantity of dischargefrom the wound. Patient feels fairly well in himself.Ordered fifteen minims of tincture of perchloride of ironthree times a day, with glycerine and chloroform water.

JOth.—Five pieces of skin were grafted.12th.-Three of the above have taken; the skin lookshealthy, and less flabby than it was some days ago.

15th.-Tbree more pieces of skin were grafted to-day andthe wound dressed; the skin is beginning to spread over theupper edge of the wound. Ordered a mixture, with cinchonaas a tonic.24th.-Patient progresses but slowly. The sore is not

much smaller than it was on the 15th ; it looks rather paleand flabby.March 14th.-The patient was discharged to-day; wound

not quite healed.CASE 2. Charbon of face, 2vith enlargement of lymphatic

glands; excision and cautery ; recovery. (From notes byMessrs. Beard and D. T. Jones.)-J. N--, aged thirty, livingat Walthamstow, was admitted on Sept. 5th. On the previousWednesday a small lump appeored on the left cheek; itgradually increased in size. On the Friday following shecalled in a medical man, who told her she was suffering fromblood poisoning. She had had nothing to do with cattle,and she had a baby vaccinated recently.

Condition on admission.-The pustule is half an inch indiameter, with a black depressed centre, surrounded by aring of vesicles containing red serum. There is a brawnyhardness in the surface around for the radius of one inch;there is great swelling in the submaxillary region,where theglands are enlarged and tender.

Sept. 5th.-Urine nearly colourless; no mucus; acid;sp. gr. 1005; no sugar, blood, or albumen.6th.-Mr. Clement Lucas examined the patient, and recom-

mended excision, which was performed this morning byMr. Beard. Two incisions were made, one on each side ofthe pustule from a point about a quarter of an inch abovethe side of the nose down to a point at the lower margin ofthe inferior maxilla about an inch and a half from themedian line ; then, holding the skin at the upper end with atenaculum forceps, the skin within the margins of theincisions and a quantity of muscular substance were cutaway. Two vessels were twisted. The deepest incisionwas near the angle of the mouth, extending at this

point nearly to the mucous membrane. The wound wasoval in shape, three inches long by an inch and a halfbroad ; it was cauterised by Paquelin’s thermo-cautery, andleft, open.7th.-The wound appears fairly healthy; the swelling

in the submaxillary region has decreased in size. Patienthas been ordered a mixture containing iodide of potassium.Urine of a bright yellow transparent colour, containing asmall quantity of flaky mucus; reaction decidedly acid;sp. gr. 1033; no albumen or blood; five grains of sugar tothe ounce.9th.-It should have been remarked that lymph was

running from the arm before the lump appeared. Patient’sbaby is eight months old, and is still suckling. Freshserum was examined for anthrax bacilli, but none werefound. One of the patient’s breasts was beginning to gettender, and a lotion of belladonna and glycerine was applied.The urine is of a dirty yellow opaque colour, containing alarge quantity of mucus, which is of a buff colour;sp. gr. 1031 ; acid ; sugar still present.13th.-The wound was dressed this morning. When the

dressings were taken off one of the vessels began to bleed;this was at once twisted by the dresser. She is allowed toget up an hour every evening after tea.16th.-Ordered a ten-grain aperient pill at night; middle

diet.22nd.-Patient is taking perchloride of iron and cinchona

mixture. She left this afternoon. Wound smaller, andlooking healthy.

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NORTH-EASTERN HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN.A CASE OF ACUTE MENINGITIS IN WHICH COMPLETE

RECOVERY TOOK PLACE.

(Under the care of Dr. C. E. ARMAND SEMPLE.)Fon the following account we are indebted to Mr. C. D.

Green, late house-surgeon.William C--, aged seven years, was admitted, under

Dr. Semple, on May 13th, 1886. The child was said to havebeen quite well until May 10th (three days before admission),when, on returning from school, he vomited and complainedof headache. The following day he was drowsy, and atnight became delirious. The next day (May 12th) he wasbrought to the out-patient department ; he was then some-what drowsy and moved with difficulty; pulse 108°; tem-perature 101°; tongue coated and rather brown. Whilst