those who may be building or about to build would do well to consult the above firm before purchasing heating appliances. A MEDICAL JOURNAL CLIQUE.-In an editorial in the St. Louis Medical and Surgical Journal, appears the following statement: "During the meeting of the American Medical Society in this city last May, a mutual admiration club was organized by the editors and representatives of certain medical journals published in various parts of the country, with the very laudable object of keeping each other well before the reading public. The motto of this club was 'You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours,' and members pledged themselves to copy as much as possible from each other." That such a clique should have been formed is somewhat humiliating; but that it exists cannot be doubted, and it would not be very difficult to name the journals. THE FORUM, which reaches our table monthly, is filled with the very best of material. For the December number, W. S. Lilly, one of the foremost philosophical thinkers and writers of England, has prepared an article which is likely to command wide attention, on "The Present Outlook for Christianity." He holds that the belief of Christendom stands absolutely intact and unassailable from the point of view of science. SUBSTITUTION. The profession in general fails to realize how much injury in done to themselves and their patients by the substitution of spurious, or the so called "just as good," preparations, in place of goods of standard reputation? The following letter from Dr. Springer is a case in point. VAN BUREN, OHIO, Sept. 10th, 1886. Messrs. Battle & Co., St. Louis, Mo. GENTLEMEN :-In the case of "Insomnia," which I reported to you in May last, and wherein it required seven drachm doses (hourly, 1 drachm) to produce sleep by Bromidia brought at a pharmacy in Findalyit required but one drachm, repeated in one hour, to produce a good night's rest, of the sample bottle you sent me. I also use the Bromidia (Battle & Co.) with the best results in "cholera infantum," and in "hysAm satisfied that the article bought at Findlay was "Spurious." GEO. SPRINGER, M. D. DR. R. HARVEY REED recently read a very interesting paper, on Ptomaine poisoning, before the Mansfield Lyceum. The Doctor believes in keeping the people posted on sanitary matters. NEW ETHERIZER.—Dr. D. E. Keefe, of Springfield, Mass., has devised a new etherizer. It consists of a large towel rolled into the form of a hollow cylinder, and stiffened by a cylindrical backing of newspaper. In other words, it is constructed much after the manner of the usual cone, except that the shape is that of a cylinder equally open at each end. In use, ether is poured into the towel and the apparatus placed over the patient's face; as soon as the mucous membranes become accustomed to the ether, which is thus largely diluted with air, the sides of the upper end of the cylinder are brought together, so that air is excluded and only pure ether administered. He claims excellent results. RIO CHEMICAL COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS.-We acknowledge the receipt from this company of a box containing a full line of the articles regularly advertised in this journal. Their Celerina as a nerve tonic, Aletris Cordial, as a uterine tonic and sedative, Acid Mannate as a pleasant aperient, and Extract of Pinus Canadensis as a non-irritating astringent for mucous surfaces, have received the approval not only of ordinary general practitioners but also of many who are eminent in their specialties. WE cannot too strongly urge upon our readers the necessity of subscribing for a family newspaper of the first class--such, for instance, as The Independent, of New York. Were we obliged to select one publication for habitual and careful reading to the exclusion of all others, we should choose unhesitatingly The Independent. It is a newspaper, magazine, and review, all in one. It is a religious, a literary, an educational, a story, an art, a scientific, an agricultural, a financial, and a political paper combined. It has 32 folio pages and 21 departments. No matter what a person's religion, politics or profession may be. no matter what the age, sex, employment or condition may be, The Independent will prove a help, an instructor, an educator. Our readers can do no less than to send a postal for a free specimen copy, or for thirty cents the paper will be sent a month, enabling one to judge of its merits more critically. yearly subscription is $3.00, or two years for $5.00. Address, The Independent, 251 Broadway, New York city. Its The Youth's Companion maintains its reputation for publishing the best Serial and Short Stories, as well as striking stories of adventure. The next volume will contain the eight prize stories selected as the best from over 5,000 manuscripts sent in competition, for which $5,000 has recently been awarded. Narratives of travel by celebrated explorers, biography, history, science, hygiene, recreation-and many more subjects, are represented in it. Its contributors are the most noted writers of this country and of Europe. Among them are W. D. Howells, J. T. Trowbridge, Prof. Huxley, The Duke of Argyle, The Marquis of Lorne and Princess Louise, Archdeacon Farrar, C. A. Stevens, Admiral David Porter, Lieut. Schwatka, and many others. It is no wonder that the Companion, with such contributors, has nearly 400,000 subscribers. It costs but $1.75 a year, and a subscription sent now is credited to January, 1888. The Scientific American, referred to in another column, under the heading of "Patents," is the very best publication in this country for those interested in science, engineering, mechanics, inventions, etc. Literary Note. The Archives of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Pediatrics, New York, series of 1886 just completed, has met with such warm encouragement, the publishers have decided to issue monthly, and commencing January, the parts will so appear, instead of bi-monthly as heretofore. It is published by Leonard & Co., 141 Broadway. COCAINE ADDICTION-MR. EDITOR: If any reader of your journal has met with a case of Cocaine addiction and will send me the fullest details at his command, I'll thank him for the courtesy, reimburse him for any expense incurred, and give him full credit in a coming paper. J. B. MATTISon, M. D., TYPHOID FEVER SPECIMENS :-Dr. James E. Reeves, of Wheeling, W. Va., is making a very thorough microscopical study of typhoid fever, and will be obliged to any members of the profession who will send him the spleen, kidneys, mesenteric glands and a piece of liver, of patients dying of that disease. DR. H. A. TOBEY, of Lima, formerly of the Central Ohio and Dayton Insane Asylums, has just been elected Superintendent of the NorthWestern Ohio Insane Asyium. A better selection could not have been made. Large Collections No. 1. FOR SALE.-House of six rooms, and office neatly arranged. stable, just new. Can insure unusual large practice. Will take $800.00 cash, if offered within a few weeks. Address, DR. F. L. KINSEY, Fort Seneca, Ohio. CORRESPONDENCE. LETTER FROM MR, TAIT. EDITOR OF THE COLUMBUS MEDICAL JOURNAL, SIR :-I have just read in the International Journal of Medical Science, an article by Sir Spencer Wells, in which, speaking of chronic inflammatory disease of the uterine appendages, that distinguished and entitled Surgeon asks the extraordinary question, "Who can diagnosticate the presence of irreparable disease in these out-of-the-way organs?" I hail with delight and satisfaction, an answer in your journal on page 105, from the pen of Dr. Charles A. L. Reed, of Hamilton, Professor of Gynecology at the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery, which shows that in your distant land you are further advanced in the appreciation of modern progress in pelvic surgery than Sir Spencer Wells, in the English metropolis, can claim to be. The details of these cases of Dr. Reed, and the conclusions he arrives at, are eminently satisfactory to me, for they are quite coincident with those which I have already detailed. The obstructive ignorance which is displayed on this subject on this side of the Atlantic, by some men who ought to know better, is perfectly amazing. I am etc., LAWSON TAIT. SOCIETY PROCEEDINGS. THE ASSOCIATION OF SURGEONS TO THE PENNSYLVANIA COMPANY. The Eighth Semi-Annual Meeting of the Association of the Surgeons of the Pennsylvania Company was held October 19th, 1886, at the Seventh Avenue Hotel, in Pittsburgh, Pa. There was a full attendance of the surgeons off of both the Pennsylvania Company's lines and the Pan Handle System, filling the parlors of the hotel to their utmost capacity. Heretofore the Association has only embraced the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago, Cleveland & Pittsburgh, Erie & Pittsburg, North Western Ohio, Ashtabula & Pittsburgh, New Castle & Beaver Valley, New Brighton & New Castle, Alliance, Niles & Ashtabula, Massilon & Cleveland, Indianapolis & Vincennes, and Lawrence railroads; but at this meeting they extended their territory by taking in the entire South West System, or what is popularly known as the Pan Handle System, embracing all of the Pennsylvania lines west of Pittsburgh, amounting in all to 2481 miles of road. This is with perhaps one exception the largest association of railroad surgeons in the world. The Association of Surgeons to the Pennsylvania Company was organized at Crestline, Ohio, October 24, 1882, and at that time was the second organization of its kind in America. The object of its organization was "to increase the efficiency of the surgical service of the Company and to promote an interchange of ideas among its members concerning railroad surgery," and at the same time to secure the best system possible for caring for the company's wounded, with the greatest dispatch, the least amount of pain to the injured, and the smallest expense practicable to the company. At the recent meeting the papers read showed a degree of care in their preparation that at once gave them merit and standing before the Association. A paper on Compound Comminuted Fractures, by Dr. Mont. Linville, of New Castle, Pennsylvania, was short and to the point. Although not strictly advocating antiseptic treatment of the wound, he advocated all possible cleanliness. Dr. R. P. Johnson, of Canton, Ohio, read an interesting paper on 'Anesthetics," which called out quite an extended discussion on the different kinds, and the ways of using them. "Trephining after railroad injuries" was the subject of a carefully prepared paper by Dr. E. W. Lee, of Chicago, who advocated the free use of the trephine, and always under the strictest antiseptic precautions. Dr. A. W. Ridenour, of Massillon, Ohio, reported "A Novel Amputation" of a part of the foot, which under antiseptic dressings resulted in a very satisfactory cure. A decidedly meritorious paper was read by Dr. G. A. Shane, of Steubenville, Ohio, on "Amputation for Mortification following Traumatism." The discussion of the above papers was continued until 2 P. M., when the Association adjourned for dinner, after which the Company took the Surgeons, through the kindness of Dr. Buchanan & Son, in a special car to the West Pennsylvania and Allegheny Hospitals. The Association resumed the further discussion of the papers at 7 P. M., and did not adjourn until 10 P. M., having given 8 solid hours of |