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Notes, Short Comments, and Answersto Correspondents.

A POINT UNDER THE VACCINATION ACTS.

To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-Some months ago I vaccinated a child and subsequently in-spected the arm and found it " good." The father of the child then

informed me that he would bring the certificate for me to fill up, alsosaying that he would pay tor the vaccination and other items, amount-ing to 14s. He has never called. I saw the vaccination officer last on

night who told me that the district medical officer had filled up the rEpaper, so, of course, I do not now expect a visit from the father nor do I expect to get paid voluntarily. Now, Sirs, I should like to know ifthe district medical officer gets the vaccination fee, if the district w

medical officer is within his right in filling up the certificate. Does h

this meet with your approval? I may say that the parents haveremoved from their present address. Thanking you in anticipation,

to

I am, Sirs, yours faithfully, n

Widegate-street, E.C., Oct. 30th, 1903. IsAAc GEORGE. °

** We fear that there may be in this case an attempt on the part of t,the parent to escape payment and perhaps he has discovered that the c

services of the public vaccinator were at his disposal gratuitously, o

We expect that the district medical officer referred to by our corre- o

spondent is also a public vaccinator and that such officer has acted nunder Section 12 of the Vaccination Act of 1871. which provides that "

" where it appears to the public vaccinator of any district uponpersonal examination of any child resident in such district who hasnot been successfully vaccinated by him, that such child has beensuccessfully vaccinated, the public vaccinator may. on the request ofthe parent of such child, grant a certificate to that effect, and suchcertificate shall be transmitted and have the same effect as if it werea certificate of successful vaccination by the public vaccinator whogave the certificate." It has, however, to be noted that there is nostatutory fee for this certificate and that the public vaccinator mustmake his own terms with the parent. The public vaccinator is not ibound to comply with the request of the parent but it is notdesirable except " for very strong reasons that he should refuse. aIt appears to us that in the present case, if we rightly interpret, our r

correspondent’s letter, the public vaccinator, hart he been aware t

of the facts, should have insisted that the parent should complete his 2contract with his private medical attendant. The section which I

really governs the present case is probably Section 7 of the Act of -

1871, part of which enacts that every " medical practitioner as soonas he has ascertained that the operation has been successfully per- tformed shall deliver to the parent causing the child to be vaccinateda certificate of successful vaccination,. in the proper form and dulyfilled up and signed by him." Our correspondent will do well to I

think over all the facts of the case in the light of this section before he risks legal proceedings.-ED. L.

THE ROLE OF SOAP.To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-In THE LANCET of Oct. 17th, p. 1106, I notice under the

heading of " The R61e of Soap " some remarks with regard to a currentcontroversy.

I have read the correspondence in various periodicals and theremarks of some professional men with considerable interest, havingmade a life-long study of soap from the " chemical " as well as fromthe " personal " point of view, but I have never seen anyone referringto what has been the universal practice of the company of which Ihave the honour o be a director in preparing toilet soaps-viz., tofinish the soap so that instead of containing any free alkali-eithercarbonated or hydrated-the soap contains a distinct, though small,proportion of free fatty or oily matter.My theory has always been that it is the free alkali which reduces or

abstracts the natural oil of the skin and that a soap absolutely freefrom this, while removing the dirt from the skin, leaves it still supple,or to use a mechanical expression lubricated, to a valuable extent.

I should be glad to hear the opinions of those who have made a studyof the use of soaps on the skin as to whether my theory is correct orhas been studied in any way.-I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,

S. GODFREY HALL, F.C.S.Oct. 21st, 1903. (EDWARD COOK and Co., Limited.)

INFORMATION TO THE POLICE.

To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-On finding the body of a baby the police of this district sentan officer to every medical practitioner asking if he had lately attendedanyone who might be the mother. Should I, then, happening to havea case which I considered one of recent delivery, be right to tellabout it? I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,Nov. 2nd, 1903. £10,000 DAMAGES.

** In the circumstances set out in our correspondent’s letter there isnothing to demand, or indeed to justify, his giving information tothe police as to any case under his charge which he may consider to

be one of recent delivery. The police are bound to make inquirieswhen they believe crime to have been committed, but no one can he-compelled to answer their questions and to make such inquiries of allthe medical men in a district in order to get a clue is an unusualand a highly undesirable course for the police to adopt. It wouldbe advisable that all the medical men applied to on such an occasionshould answer that they are unable to make any statements to any-one as to matters affecting their patients. This is a general rule towhich there must occasionally be exceptions arising out of the factsof particular cases.-ED. L.

MOTOR-CARS FOR MEDICAL MEN.

To the Editors of THE LANCET.SIRS,-It is now some few years since I first wrote to THE LANCET

on the subject of motor-cars in practice and I venture once again, inresponse to your invitation, to give the profession the results of myfurther experience.

First, I can cordially endorse the recommendation of the gentlemanwho advises that two cars should be kept. For the last two years Ihave had two cars in constant use and no horses. With the two myexpenses for horse hire have been very low and I have always had a carto use; but the occasions on which both were available for a journeymight be counted on the fingers, I had almost said on the fingers ofone hand.

Next, I once again most emphatically beg of my brother practitionersto have nothing whatever to do with pneumatic tyres. They are thecurse of motoring and absolutely and thoroughly unreliable. For an

ordinary round they are all very well. To go to a consultation or an

operation in them is to court disaster. Fortunately the currentnumber of the Atttocar enables me to quote figures in the recent" reliability " trials of six makes of pneumatic tyre :—

One had a percentage of 46’15 "no trouble" runs.One " " 00 " "

One " " 53 62 " "

One " " 23-08 " "

One " " 100 " "

(only one car on these tyres).One " " 66-67 " "

I leave it for any of your readers to estimate the desirability of risk-ing this percentage of trouble and hindrance. Should any of them

, wish to study the necessary labour of removing an outer tyre coverand repairing a punctured tube I can refer them to the section on tyrerepairs in the Badminton Library book on "Motoring." I can assurethem this, that after a most worrying and annoying delay they will be

; about tired out (no pun intended) and too filthy to visit their nextpatient, with dirty shirt-cuffs and probably some other spoilt clothing.

There are some good cars on solid tyres and a considerable numberwhich, in the language of the trade, are " not built to stand solid

. tyres." To sum up. (1) Very few motor-cars are worth having at all;and (2) no car which runs on pneumatic tyres is worth having at all.

r Of course, I speak of cars for professional and regular "work." As

) plaything cars they are another matter. There are some good articlesworth study on modern motoring in recent numbers of the BadmintonMagazine. I am, Sirs, yours faithfully.Stratford-on-Avon, Nov. 2and,1903. HARRY LTIPTON.

To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-I am anxious to start a light motor-car for my practice andshould be glad if any fellow practitioner can help me in the choice ofone. I live in a very hilly part of Cornwall, a few of the gradients

being as steep as 1 in 3. The machine required must therefore be aefirst-rate hill climber above all things. I should like one which would

usually carry two persons but having a removeable back seat whichcould be used if necessary. What horse-power would be required forthe work and how well does a motor-car get on with snow on theground; also can motor-cars be started on a hill without assistance?° I shall be very grateful for any suggestions.** I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,

Oct. 27th, 1903. TRAMITE RECTA.

"* CRIPPLED CHILDREN’S CHRISTMAS HAMPERS.e, To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-May I once again ask the courtesy of your columns to remindy your generous readers of the distribution of Christmas hampers to up-r wards of 6000 poor crippled children in the metropolis ? These welcome

gifts are despatched direct from the Guildhall by the Lord Mayorand Sheriffs on the morning of the day when, by permission ofthe Corporation, we entertain some 1200 ragged school children.His Majesty the King has again given a donation to the fund whichit is my privilege to bring to the annual notice of the public.The Right Honourable General Sir Dighton Probyn, keeper of His

Majesty’s Privy Purse, writes me, Oct. 19th: "I am commanded bythe King to send you the inclosed cheque for 210 10s. as a donation

from His Majesty to the Poor Children’s Banquet and Cripples’Christmas Hamper Fund which you so kindly organise on their

11 behalf." I am hoping that this year we shall not only be able to saythat we have denied no deserving applicant, but that we mayhave, as we had last year, a little balance in hand to meet

is those extremely pitiable cases in which a crutch, a cork leg,or the loan of an invalid chair is more welcome even than

.0 the hamper. All through the year the work (by the Ragged

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’School Union) of registration, visitation, and relief continues or we

could not undertake the hamper distribution on such a scale withthe certainty that not one goes astray or falls into undeservinghands. The little cripple entertains the family and on a modestestimate the fund brightened the lives last Christmas of over 30,000 ofthe poor of London. I am in receipt of hundreds of most gratefullyworded letters. Donations may be sent, as heretofore, to me,addressed Little Cripples’ Christmas Hamper Fund, 69, Ludgate-hill,London, E.C. I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,London, E.C., Oct. 31st, 1903. W. P. TRELOAR, Alderman.P.S.-This is the tenth year of my fund and every year I have been

increasingly successful.

BURGUNDY v. CLARET.

To the Editors of THE LANCET.

SIRS,-" A Man of Kent states that no wine can equal Frenchburgundy" to produce "the desired effect either of recuperation or ofblood makirg." I assume he has tested the effects of the best SouthAustralian burgundies and I should like to know why he differs fromthe opinion of other medical men.

I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,H. ALLERDALE GRAINGER,

London, Nov. 3rd, 1903. Agent-General for South Australia.

MEDICAL OFFICERS TO SCHOOL BOARDS.

To the Editors oj THE LANCET.

SIRS,-I should be obliged for any information from medical officersof school boards respecting their duties and more particularly thoseconcerned with special ophthalmic and aural work.

I am, Sirs, yours faithfully,JOHN GRIMSHAW, M.D. Lond., &c.

142, Whetstone-lane, Birkenhead, Nov. 3rd, 1903.

THE GENERAL MEDICAL COUNCIL AND MEDICAL MEMBERSOF PARLIAMENT.

IN reference to a report which appeared in the Evening News ofNov. 3rd stating on the authority of the Liverpool Post that theMedical Council has resolved to invite medical M.P.’s to confer withthe Committee with a view to forming a medical and public healthcommittee in Parliament," we are authorised by the Registrar ofthe General Council of Medical Education and Registration of theUnited Kingdom to announce that there is no truth in the state-ment.

THE BRITISH MEDICAL BENEVOLENT FUND.

THE following sums have been received in response to Sir WilliamBroadbent’s appeal :- ,

£ s. d. £ s. d.Sir William Broadbent, Dr. Mary Thorne ...... 1 1 0Bart....... 50 0 0 Dr Hector Robinson ... 1 1 0

Miss Broadbent ...... 5 0 0 Mr. E. H. Hicks ...... 2 2 0Dr.H.DeTatham ... 25 0 0 Dr. Moon ............ 5 5 0Dr. Edward Martin ... 1 1 0 Dr. Barkett ......... 1 1 0Dr. I. Burney Yeo ... 5 0 0 Dr. R. J. Kerby...... 10 10 0Dr. J. P. Stewart...... 1 1 0 Dr. M. Greenwood...... 1 1 0Mr Thomas Moreton... 2 2 0 Dr. W. Andrews ...... 0 10 0Dr. Price Williams ... 5 0 0 Dr. M. J. Doiaje ...... 1 1 0Mr. M. Cuteliffe ...... 1 0 0 Mr. Rayley Owen ...... 1 1 0

Dr. Satchell offers a donation of ten guineas on condition that 16other donations of £5 each or eight of £10 each are received in

response to the appeal before the end of December. The sumsreceived do but little more than cover the amount alreadygranted in relief and leave little to meet the demands outstandingwhich had to be postponed at the last meeting for want of funds,and make no provision for the applications which have beenreceived since and which will increase in number as the winter

approaches. Further help is urgently needed. Subscriptions anddonations will be thankfully received by the treasurer, Dr. SamuelWest, 15, Wimpole-strtet, W.

MUSICA LÆTITIÆ COMES, MEDICINA DOLORUM.THOSE members of the medical profession who can find time to goto concerts-and there is no greater intellectual relaxation than tolisten to really good music-will generally find their opportunity atQueen’s Hall, Regent’s-street, London, W. On Wednesday, Oct. 28th,Mr. Emil Paur conducted at a concert of which the chief itemswere the C minor symphony of Brahms, and a piano concerto byMr. Emil Sauer, the part for the solo instrument being played bythe composer. On Saturday, Oct. 31st, the first of the SymphonyConcerts took place. A very fine performance was secured by Mr.Wood of Brahms’s symphony in E minor with its masterly finalmovement. Other items were the delightful overture to PeterCornelius’s "Barber of Bagdad," an almost unknown work, twotone poems by Arthur Hervey, and the A minor piano concerto ofSchumann with Miss Adela Verne in the chief part.

F. E. H.-Mild or anomalous cases of scarlet fever, the nature of whichis unrecognised, have usually a large share in the spread of thisdisease during an epidemic. On the facts reported we think thatthe medical officer of health, in his endeavour to deal thoroughlywith the outbreak in the village, was right in desiring to examinethe suspected cases. It would have been better if he had been

! able to make his visits together with the medical practitioner;and we think that an attempt to do this should have Men

made, though in the country appointments for this purposeare difficult to arrange. In the present instance, where the

’

medical officer of health is not in private practice, we donot think that the medical practitioner need object to the patientshaving been examined in his absence for the purpose indicated. Inthe matter of the correct diagnosis the facts are in dispute, and weare unable to give an opinion. In general. we think that theoccasions on which a medical officer of health would be justified inexpressing to parents any doubt which he entertains as to the correct-ness of diagnosis in a case of infectious disease must be extremelyfew.

S. H. S.-A patient has a perfect right to change his or her medicalman. It is courteous of the patient to inform the medical manwho has been superseded of the change but there is no obligationto do so on the part of the patient who, as a layman, is not hound bymedical etiquette. The position of the medical man called in to

replace a brother practitioner is always a delicate one. He shouldnot take over the case until his predecessor has definitely receivedinstructions that his services are to be discontinued, and where hehas been called to a case owing to the usual medical attendant beingaway from home he should explain the temporary nature of hisservices if this is not understood by the patient. But when the

position has been regularised he can hardly refuse save in specialcircumstances, to attend a member of the public requiring hisservices. We do not think that the situation described by our corre-spondent is one that ought to lead to any unpleasantness whateverbetween professional brethren.

R. H.-We do not know whether there is any special printed form ofthe agreement mentioned by our correspondent, but if so we shouldthink that any law stationer would provide one. The agreements inquestion are, however, generally drawn up in manuscript by a

solicitor.

Irish.-Our correspondent might communicate with Mr. William VanPraagh at 11. Fitzroy-square, London, W, or with Mrs. EmilBehnke at 18, Earl’s-court-square, London, S.W.

C.-Some of the works in question were sent to this office. Thoughthey are doubtless well-intentioned we do not think that they aresuitable for general distribution.

W. K., M.B.-There is no proof that the medical man in questionis aware of the use which is being made of his testimonial. Hisattention might be called to it.

X. Y. Z.-There is none so far as we know.

COMMUNICATIONS not noticed in our present issue will receive attentionin our next.

Medical Diary for the ensuing Week.OPERATIONS.

METROPOLITAN HOSPITALS.MONDAY (9th).-London (2 P.M.), St. Bartholomew’s (1.30 P.M.), St.

Thomas’s (3.30 P.M.), St. George’s (2 P.M.), St. Mary’s (2.30 P.M.),Middlesex (1.30 P.M.), Westminster (2 P.M.), Chelsea (2 P.M.),Samaritan (Gynaecological, by Physicians, 2 P.M.), Soho-square(2 P.M.), Royal Orthopaedic (2 P.M.), City Orthopaedic (4 P.M.),Gt. Northern Central (2.30 P.M.), West London (2.30 P.M.), LondonThroat (9.30 A.M.), Royal Free (2 P.M.), Guy’s (1.30 P.M.).

TUESDAY (10th).-London (2 P.M.), St. Bartholomew’s (1.30 P.M.), St.Thomas’s (3.30 P.M.), Guy’s (1.30 P.M.), Middlesex (1.30 P.M.). West-minster (2 P.M.), West London (2.30 P.M.), University College(2 P.M.), St. George’s (1 P.M.), St. Mary’s (1 P.M.), St. Mark’s(2.30 P.M.), Cancer (2 P.M.), Metropolitan (2.30 P.M.), London Throat(9.30 A.M.), Royal Ear (3 P.M.). Samaritan (9.30 A.M. and 2.30 P.M.),Throat, Golden-square (9.30 A.M.), Soho-square (2 P.M.).

WEDNESDAY (llth).-St. Bartholomew’s (1.30 P.M.), University College(2 P.M.), Royal Free (2 P.M.), Middlesex (1.30 P.M.), Charing Cross(3 P.M.), St. Thomas’s (2 P.M.), London (2 P.M.), King’s College(2 P.M.), St. George’s (Ophthalmic, 1 P.M.). St. Mary’s (2 P.M.),National Orthopaedic (10 A.M.), St. Peter’s (2 P.M.), Samaritan(9.30 A.M. and 2.30 P.M.), Gt. Ormond-street (9.30 A.M.), Gt. NorthernCentral (2.30 P.M.), Westminster (2 P.M.) Metropolitan (2.30 P.M.),London Throat (9.30 A.M.), Cancer (2 P.M.), Throat, Golden-square(9.30 A.M.), Guy’s (1.30 p.M).

THURSDAY (12th).-St. Bartholomew’s (1.30 P.M.), St. Thomas’s(3.30 P.M.), University College (2 P.M.), Charing Cross (3 P.M.), St.George’s (1 P.M.), London (2 P.M.), King’s College (2 P.M.), Middlesex(1.30 P.M.), St. Mary’s (2.30 P.M.), Soho-square (2 P.M.), North-WestLondon (2 P.M.), Chelsea (2 P.M.), Gt. Northern Central (Gynaeco-logical, 2.30 P.M.), Metropolitan (2.30 P.M.), London Throat,(9.30 A.M.), St. Mark’s (2 P.M.), Samaritan (9.30 A.M. and 2.30 P.M.),Throat, Golden-square (9.30 A.M.), Guy’s (1.30 P.M.).

FRIDAY (13th).-London (2 P.M.), St. Bartholomew’s (1.30 P.M.), St.Thomas’s (3.30 P.M.), Guy’s (1.30 P.M.), Middlesex (1.30 P.M.), CharingCross (3 P.M.), St. George’s (1 P.M.), King’s College (2 P.M.), St. Mary’s s(2 P.M.), Ophthalmic (10 A.M.), Cancer (2 P.M.), Chelsea (2 P.M.), Gt.Northern Central (2.30 P.M.), West London (2.30 P.M.), LondonThroat (9.30 A.M.), Samaritan (9.30 A.M. and 2.30 P.M.), Throat,Golden-square (9.30 A.M.), City Orthopaedic (2.30 P.M.), Soho-square(2 P.M.).