loins, and the upper and lower limbs, and also sometimes in the perineogenital region; 3rd. The eruption, sometimes accompanied by motor disturbances and variations of the temperature, has been variously attributed to vaso-motor pertebations or to excitation of a reflex order; but these hypotheses must be rejected; 4th. That zona in tuberculosis, no matter where seated, may have two causes; it is sometimes connected with tuberculous meningo-myelitis; but in general it is the result of peripheral In this it parenchymatous neurites. approaches nearer to secondary vesicular eruptions in form of herpes, and of trophic origin, than to veritable zona, considered as a morbid entity of infectious origin. It is generally admitted that the peripherial nerves oppose greater resistance to the causes of inflammation than most of the other living tissues. Physiological experiments, to all appearance very exact, and numerous pathological observations, would seem to confirm this view. But on closer examination, the experimental and clinical facts adduced are from confirming the deductions founded upon this theory. A nerve more or less dessicated or impregnated with caustic or irritant solutions is still capable of transmitting electrical stimulation, it does not follow necessarily that it has preserved all its physiological properties and that it would still be able to transmit sensorial impressions or motor phenomena. Nor does it follow, when after these experiments it is left among the living tissues, that it should escape undergoing the nutritive modifications that characterize inflammatory phenomena. Further, because a nerve passes through a purulent or gangrenous focus without losing its exterior form and macroscopic appearance, it does not logically follow that the nervous tubes forming part of the structure of this nerve have preserved their normal structure. Thinking that it would be useful to go over the ground again of the study of the experimental lesions of the peripheral nerves, taking into consideration all causes of error, M. M. Pilies and Vaillard performed over one hundred and fifty experiments, from which they conclude as follows: That the nerves placed in contact with certain reagents, very readily undergo those nutritive and degenerative alterations that are usually considered to be the effects of inflammation. of experiments, At the outset (operating on guinea-pigs) expose one of the nervous trunks of a member easily accessible, generally the sciatic nerve at the thigh, and, using a Pravaz syringe, they injected directly into the interior of the sheath of the nerve exposed to view, a few drops of the substance of which they wished to study the phlogogenic action. The wound being now carefully sewn up, they allowed the animal to survive, in order, on the same and following days, to observe the phenomena taking place in the injected member. standing their apparent simplicity, were singularly complex, and therefore difficult to interpret. The extended incision necessary in order to expose the nerve, the pricking of the nerves trunk, the compression exercised upon the nerves tubes by the forcible introduction of the liquid into the covering, relatively very resistent, formed by the laminated sheaths, might have an important part in producing the functional disturbances afterwards observed and the anatomical alterations revealed by histological examination. In order to avoid these complications, they adoped a simpler method, that of hypodermic injection. Without incising the skin they plunge the canula of a Pravaz syringe between the internal and external muscular masses of the thigh until it has reached the deep connective tissue in the midst of which passes the sciatic nerve, and proceed to inject without considering whether the injected liquid is in direct contact or not with the nerve. Certain substances employed in this manner determined considerable local lesions (edematous tumefaction, abscess, gangrene.) These were: Tincture of iodine, concentrated alcohol, pure chloroform, liquid ammonia, concentrated solution of alcohol, sulphuric and hydrochloric acids at one-tenth, acetate of lead and sulphate of copper at one in 500. We have of course eliminated all experiments in which the local accidents could be ascribed to interstitial injections. tions at one-tenth of borax of soda, of sulphate of magnesia, of bromide of potassium, of chlorate of potash, of sulphate of soda, of bi-carbonate of soda, of salycilate of soda, of bromide of sodium, and of alcohol below ten per cent. In the second group, evident nervous disturbances were observable after injection (anesthesis, motor paralysis, trophic disturbance) and microscopic examination a few days later, revealed undoubted alterations in the corresponding nerves. It has been necessary to separate into two series the experiments of the later group according to the gravity of the symptoms. In the first series the animals presented only disturbances of sensibility and particularly anæsthesis of the two external toes and of the external part of the tarsus. This limitation of the anaesthesis is explained by the fact that the interior toe and internal side of the tarsus are innervated by the networks proceeding from crural nerve. Motility remained intact, there were no trophic disturbances. It is worthy of note that the sensitive functions appear to be more easily and rapidly affected than the motor functions by irritation of the peripheric nerves, Under the microscope the nervous network proceeding from the sciatic trunk or from its terminal branches appeared to be the seat of irritative inflammatory alterations; multiplication of the nuclea, division of the medular substance into balls, interruption and destruction of the cylinder axis. The substances that induced the best examples of these irritative neurites are: chloride water, chloroformed water, pure glycerine, iodide of potassium in solution at one-tenth and above, phenic and acetic acids at one-tenth, Van Swieten's liquor, and hydrochloric at one-hundredth. The cases in which the above complications did not take place or were insignificant, the authors separate into two groups. In the first, the only symptom observed was a slight hyperanesthesis, and a few days afterwards the nerve presented a normal appearance under the microscope. The substances that gave these results were: Water, milk sugar and cane sugar in It is necessary to add, that in some concentrated solutions, olive oil, solu- | cases, the alterations were not equally distributed along all the fibres of the injected nerves. Close to bundles or segments deeply attacked were others perfectly healthy. In these cases, the symptoms were much attenuated, and sometimes failed altogether. In the experiments of the second series, immediately after, or a very short time after the injection, the animals presented absolute anesthesis of the two external toes and of the tarsus, and at the same time complete motor paralysis of the muscles of the leg and foot. The substances that produce this immediate paralysis of the nervous functions are: Chloral at 10 per 100 and above, alcohol at 50 per 100 and above, sulphuric ether, iodoformed ether, and bile. Sometimes, but not always, there are on the following days, in addition to these initial symptoms, trophic disorders of the muscles or of the teguments. The toes became the seat of necrosis and separate from the healthy living parts; the muscles of the leg and foot become atrophied. When the nerves are examined some days after the injection, they present their normal aspect, but under the microscope, their interior shows only degenerated fibres, manifestly degenerated, and which have lost their cylinder-axis and their medulla substances. The alterations are not identical at the point where the injection struck the nerve and at other points beyond. At the point of injection, the nerves tubes seem to have undergone a veritable necrosis by their contact with the reagent. From the first hours following the injection, instead of being colored bluish black by osmium (as it is the case with the medulla substance of healthy nerves) they present a coal-black appearance. The nuclei of the inter-annular segments are no longer visible; the cylinder-axis is confounded with the fatty substance contained in the sheath of Schwann, and cannot be distinguished from the medulla covering, even in transversal cuttings. The following days, the necrosed parts become pulverulent and are gradual y reabsorbed. Below the point of injection, the nervous fibres undergo alterations identical with those which take place at the peripheric extremity of the sectional nerves. These nerve lesions do not progress upwards. M. M. Pilies and Vaillard will shortly publish more circumstantial details of the histological character of the irritative and necrosic lesions that they have observed appear after injection of various liquids into the deep cellular tissue of the members. We confine ourselves for the present to the pointing out: 1st, that it is easy and possible to induce experimentally peripherial neuritis by the hypodermic injection of various substances in the neighborhood of nervous trunks; 2nd, that it is easy and possible to produce by this means either the slight neuritis that are accompanied only by disturbance of sensibility, or more serious neuritis that at once abolish the motor and sensitive functions of the nerves. PROCEEDINGS OF THE KEN- Dr. J. A. Lababee, of Louisville, in his report on the progress in Pediatrics before the meeting of the Kentucky State Medical Society at Crab Orchard Springs, gave some excellent points worth rendering. He discussed the frequency and fatality of the nursing bottle and quoted the exclamation of Sully on returning to Rome and seeing his mother and nurse at the gate ready to embrace him. Rushing to his nurse, he said, "She who nurses is greater than she who bears." Artificial foods are presented in such numbers and the bottle is so frequently seen that its use must be very common. While we all agree that the maternal breast is the proper food for a child yet artificial feeding can be carried on so as to do very well. The mother and nurse know too well that the nursing bottle is a very good stopper, and hence the child has this crammed into his mouth whenever it is desireable to stop crying either the result of hunger or of pain. The gastralgia of nursing infants may be made to disappear by diminishing the frequency of nursing. In cow's milk caseine is the great obstacle. He recommended the addition of barley water in equal parts with the milk and the addition of a little salt. Salt is an essential of life and it is very necessary. He used to think that teething had much to do with the summer diarrhea of infants, but is now of a different opinion. He discussed the sterilization of milk and exhibited a machine for accomplishing the same. The practioner of Pediatrics must keep continually in mind the causes of summer complaint, high temperature, over feeding and micro-organisms. Bowel complaints, known as summer complaint, are now liable to attack children during the second summer but not on account of teething. It is due to the introduction of germs to which the child is more subject than when nursing. The great idea in treatment is anti-septics internally, the best of which is Napthaline. All artificially fed babies should have their food sterilized. Opiates and astringents he considers of doubtful value. Should an infant be seized with cholera infantum the doctor should be the first person consulted and not the the druggist. Many cases come to the doctor in a moribund condition after having taken a turn at goods in the druggist's shop. The druggist it seems is the only person of sufficient acumen to prescribe without seeing the child. The Kentucky State Medical Society at its 33d annual meeting at Crab Orchard Springs, July 11th to 13th, elected the following officors: President, L. S. McMurtry, Danville; 1st VicePresident, Wm. Bailey, of Louisville; 2nd Vice-President, B. W. Stone, of Hopkinsville; Permanent Secretary, Steed Bailey, of Stanford; Assistant Secretary, S. M. Letcher, of Richmond; Treasurer, John C. Cecil, of Louisville; Librarians, T. E. Greenley, of West Point, Censors H. Brown, Houstonville, II. B. Evans, Riley Station, F. H. Clark, Lexington. Richmond was chosen as the next place of meeting, the second Wednesday in May. Chairman committee of arrangements, J. M. Foster, of Richmond, with power to appoint additional committeemen. The meeting was one of considerable worth, but was marred to a great extent by factional quarrels. The report of the nominating committee was refused adoption the first time and referred back to the committee. They, after being out some time, returned the very same names they had presented before. This time the report was adopted by a majority of seven. This was followed by a number of bitter speeches and several resignations, and matters began to look like a Boulanger-Floquet affair would result, but was suddenly cut short by some gentleman calling for the regular order of the day. This was the result of an unfortunate feud of a chronic nature which has developed into a fight between college faculties in Louisville, where, like many other cities, there is entirely too many colleges. The Board of Health, of N. Y. city, on the 29th of June, appointed fortyone physicians on the special summer service of the Department, which went into operation on the 5th of July. They are engaged for two months at a salary of $100 per month, and each physician is expected to spend at least eight hours a day in visiting the tenement-houses of his district. This work is under the direction and supervision of Dr. Moreau Morris. ABSTRACTS. eminent physicians in New York City just exactly what he would give you if you needed a tonic or were troubled with any of the symptoms below enumerated and went to him for advice. This prescription was given to Mrs. Harriet Hubbard Ayer when she was very ill, as it has been given by the same physician to many other overworked people on the verge of nervous prostration. Mrs. Ayer now offers it to you unchanged in any way, excepting that when Mrs. Ayer commenced to manufacture it for sale, she discovered that one of the ingredients, which is very expensive, is invariably adulterated She went to first hands at once and HARRIET HUBBARD AYER'S NOTORIOUS NOSTRUMS.-In the manufacture of patent medicines there are degrees of baseness just as in every other illegitimate business. The man who puts up a simple tonic costing a few cents per quart and advertises it as a cure for all diseases, is certainly bad enough. He robs the innocent purchaser, to be sure, but only of his money. Of a much greater crime are those guilty who put a deleterious or poisonous drug in their nostrums, for they injure their victims both in health and pocket. But either of these characters are innocent lambs, compared to the one who, under pre-made arrangements for a supply of this tence of curing a victim of the opium or liquor habit puts into his hands as a remedy for his disease a preparation containing the very substance which has caused his downfall. One can hardly find words adequate to describe such a monster, and no exertion should be spared to expose his fraudulent preparations. Only men who are lost to all sense of shame can engage in such nefarious business; and when we find a woman who lends herself to such a trade, what must we be forced to think of her? When women, to whom we turn for aid in our hour of sickness or affiiction, offers us the poisoned cup under the pretext of ministering to our wants, then, indeed, must we ask, "Is not our boasted civilization a failure?" Let us see whether there is anything to condemn in the various preparations of Harriet Hubbard Aye. These preparations appeared quite suddenly upon the market, with lavish advertising accompanied by testimonials from well known men in all walks of life. The following extract from the circular accompanying "Vita Nuova" will show the claims made for this nostrum: "This tonic is nothing more nor less than a wonderful remedy prepared from the prescription of one of the most ingredient, which should be absolutely pure, as she is determined to maintain the quality in every ounce made. Go to the nearest drug store and buy a bottle of Vita Nuova (New Life). You will find that it tastes like a wine thirty years old, while positively free from alcohol or narcotics, and purely vegetable, and without the reactionary ef fects which render many tonics worth less." The circular goes on to say that the medicine is the "best, surest and safest" for any diseases due to an impoverished condition of the blood; and then follows this definite statement: It is a sure specific for the alcohol and opium habit, as the victim, by discontinuing the use of these articles, will, while taking Vita Nuova, escape the uncontrollable desire and longing for these horrible stimulants, and by exercising a little self control for a short. time only, will find himself entirely cured. Here we have direct claims made for the "tonic," that it is absolutely free from alcohol and a sure specific for the alcohol and opium habits. Let us see how these claims are borne out by analysis. A bottle of the Vita Nuova gives, on opening, the characteristic smell of |