were removed, a little lint and Spermaceti ointment applied, and the case was ended. He did not think such satisfactory results would have followed the application of moist dressings. He might add that the perfect comfort of the parts was his guide in leaving the dressings undisturbed; had there been pain he would have removed them earlier.

Dr. WATSON wished to call attention to the value of Conium in tumours of the breast. One case, that of a young girl who had sustained a severe contusion of the left breast, resulting in a swelling freely movable, but hard, the size of a small walnut, was completely cured in fourteen days by Conium in pilules, to his surprise and great gratification, as he feared it might lead to scirrhus. He had also seen scirrhus of the breast removed in an old lady of 71, arising from contusion, by enucleation with Chloride of Zinc and Hydrastis, with perfect success. This case was pronounced scirrhus by the most eminent allopathic surgeon of the day. Dr. Watson had effected a cure of fistula in ano with Iodide of Calcium, and had often proved the value of Hamamelis suppositories in hæmorrhoids.

Dr. DRURY was much pleased to see Dr. Craig at the meeting. It always added much to the value of a paper when the author could read it himself and so do full justice to his subject: Besides this it was always pleasant to see members from the country, a personal acquaintance being in every way an advantage, new friendships were formed, and instead of our knowledge being confined to knowing a man by his writings, a shake of the hand helped to strengthen the tie that bound our body together. He was glad to hear what Dr. Craig had said of Sanguinaria, that being a medicine that he, Dr. Drury, had much confidence in in properly selected cases, while Conium, Hydrastis, and other remedies might each in turn prove serviceable in alleviating the suffering or retarding the progress of cancer. Dr. Drury had heard with regret the manner in which caustics had been spoken of. It was a delusion to speak of them as cures for cancer; he did not believe in the cure of a single case of cancer by such means, but what he particularly wished to protest against was the fact that gentlemen occasionally got up and deliberately recommended an allopathic course of treatment much in the same way as they would do if speaking in an allopathic society, doing so without necessity and quite as a matter of course. Circumstances might justify a departure from strict homœopathic practice, and if the good of the patient demanded it the physician should be as free and fearless in this as anything else, but to persistently select and recommend allopathic practice in a homœopathic society, as a rule, was open to very grave censure. It so happened that some time ago a student from one of the allopathic hospitals was regularly watching his practice in the diseases of children; he invited him to be present at a meeting of the Society. It so happened that it was an evening when it was

desirable that the meeting should terminate early, so that there were not many speakers. One gentleman advocated a regular allopathic line of treatment, which he found most convenient in his own practice. Dr. Drury blamed himself very much for not rising at the time to protest against such teaching, as, unfortunately, the result was that his young friend had entirely ceased attending, feeling, no doubt, that if what he heard was common amongst the homoeopaths, there was nothing to be gained by his forsaking University or King's College.

Dr. BAYES (Vice-President) said that it appeared to him that the expressed object of Dr. Craig's paper had been somewhat overlooked by the gentlemen who had spoken upon it and had been misinterpreted by most. Dr. Craig had brought four very interesting classes of disease under notice, viz. hæmorrhoids, fissured anus, cancer, and ovarian tumour, but he did not bring these diseases forward with the view of discussing their medical treatment, but to show how far specific, i. e. homoeopathic, treatment, even after it had failed to cure the disease, could nevertheless complete the restoration of the patient after surgery had been brought in aid. It was to be assumed that the cases brought forward by Dr. Craig had resisted the curative power of medicine and that he had had recourse to the knife as a last resource, but then specific medicine came in usefully to prevent a recurrence of the ailment. This appeared to be the author's object, especially with regard to cancer, in which disease a return of the malignant tumour was the rule under simple surgery; whereas Dr. Craig had found that no such return of cancer was to be feared if the patient was placed under appropriate specific treatment after the operation. No homœopathic practitioner could doubt that by far the greater number of cases of hæmorrhoids can be cured by homoeopathic medication; such cures are in our constant daily experience, but where no such tendency to cure follows appropriate medication nothing remains but to operate and the operation must not be delayed too long, but after the operation specific medicine may complete the cure by checking all tendency to their new formation. It was singular that none of the speakers had alluded to one of the most powerful means in the cure of hæmorrhoids, viz. the external and internal use of Hamamelis. But in piles the state of the health of the patient demands our first care, as this affection is very generally only an expression of functional disturbance, and is to be removed by restoring functional balance. He (Dr. Bayes) never found it needful to have a case of fissure of the anus operated on. Within the past fortnight it had been his good fortune to see two patients who, had readily recovered from this painful affection and who remained well. He had for a long time adopted a method in some respects similar to those named by Dr. Vaughan-Hughes and Dr. Yeldham. He directed his patients to inject two or three ounces of Olive oil every morning

before the usual time of evacuating the bowels, and in addition he also ordered an ointment of Hydrastis Canadensis, ten grains. to the ounce. This ointment is to be spread on a narrow strip of lint and introduced by means of a pen-stick within the anus every night, and to be allowed to remain there with the free end hanging out. As to the constitutional treatment of cancer, both Sanguinaria and Hydrastis are most useful. He (Dr. Bayes) had formerly expressed an opinion as to the action of the latter remedy (in a paper read before the Society), which his subsequent experience tended to confirm, viz. that Hydrastis does not exert any specific influence over cancer, but that it induces a healthy functional state in the glands and that this checks the development of cancer and so to say starves the morbid growth. As bearing somewhat on these subjects, Dr. Bayes would again take the opportunity of drawing attention to the power of Sulphocarbolate of Lime in checking the formation of pus and in arresting the development of morbid growths when given in very small doses.

Dr. CRAIG, in replying, thanked the President for reminding the meeting that the object of the paper was not to supplant all attempts at cure by homoeopathic means by immediate recourse to surgical interference, but rather to show the propriety of supplementing the former by the latter when there was need. He reiterated the advice of Dr. Yeldham to all, particularly young practitioners, to institute an examination of the parts in diseases of the rectum, and thus avoid grievous mistakes in diagnosis. He thanked the Society for their kindly acceptance of so simple a paper and for the very suggestive discussion arising thereon.

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CASES FROM THE LONDON HOMEOPATHIC HOSPITAL.

By DR. MACKECHNIE.

THE interest of the following group of cases is greatly increased by their pathological relationship.

The first case, one of "land-scurvy," was manifestly influenced by the medicine employed, for hygienic and dietetic measures alone would not have ensured recovery in so short a space of time. At the same time that medicine would not have obtained a cure without the hygienic means employed is evident enough.

Scorbutus.

E. J—, æt. 20, housemaid, was admitted on October 3rd, 1871, suffering from an eruption all over the body, but especially on the extremities, and accompanied by great languor and debility. The eruption is of a purplish colour in small spots or patches.

On admission we find that her illness has been coming on for some months. She has been living in a house where the kitchen is very dark and close. Has not cared much for her food and has been troubled with frequent heartburn after food. Has eaten little or no vegetable food, chiefly because she found that heartburn was sure to follow the use of potatoes, and there was seldom any other vegetable to be had.

skin to be very for some weeks Upon examinaThe patient is

On inquiry I find she has noticed her liable to bruise from the slightest causes past, and also that the gums bleed readily. tion they look spongy and dark coloured. thin and delicate-looking, with dark marks under the eyes. She complains of dyspnoea in going up stairs. The cata

menia have been occurring about every three weeks, and have been decidedly more profuse than usual, painless, lasting seven days, and followed by much prostration. The pulse is 96, but there is no suspicion of feverishness; hands and feet chilly. She has been troubled much with severe pains in various parts of the body, especially the face (apparently neuralgic in character). The blotches and patches on the skin are purple in colour, and tend to run together. They are accompanied by a good deal of itching after they have been out for a day or two. Sleep is good; rather heavy, but she does not wake refreshed. Sight has been very weak of late, and she is troubled with dizziness and vertigo after she has been exerting herself for a time. Palpitation of heart with any exertion, and frequently with

out. On examination I find some bruit at the cervical veins, not constant, however, most heard when standing. Bowels are very constipated, acting only every third or fourth day with much difficulty. She was ordered first diet with the juice of half a lemon a day. For medicine she had Sulphur p, a drop three times a day.

October 7th.-Reports the skin much the same, some fresh patches having come out, especially on the lower extremities. The bowels are acting once a day, but with difficulty; otherwise much the same.

11th. Decidedly improving, the patches dying away, the itching ceased. Feels herself much more comfortable, Bowels acting every day with moderate ease; spirits greatly improved.

though still rather weak.

There

14th. The eruption almost entirely disappeared. has not been any fresh appearance for a week. The bowels acting moderately well. She feels so much better that she was at her own request dismissed with strict directions as to her regimen and hygiene, and ordered a continuance of the Sulphur.

It seems to me that this case was sufficiently marked, and the recovery was sufficiently rapid, to say that the latter was due to something more than the hygienic and dietetic treatment, which are notoriously slow in their operation; and I am inclined to think that we may attribute it in a great VOL. XXXII, NO. CXXVIII.—APRIL, 1874.

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