exists, unsuspected by the candidate for promotion to the dentist's chair. He casually thrusts a pin into it, breaking down the frail wall of enamel. Hence he concludes that he has made an entrance for decay.

3rd. That the removal of tartar is injurious to the enamel. To dispel this illusion give the inquirer an extracted tooth and invite him to scratch a hole in the sound enamel, with a knife or a scaler. [How did the idea originate,--by the way, that there is danger of scaling off the thin enamel at the line of juncture with the cementum, by a drawing motion with a hooked scaler, when we read that at that line the cementum slightly overlaps the enamel ?]

4th. That in lancing infant's gums, or in extracting a temporary tooth, care should be taken not to injure the germ of the permanent tooth. How can a lancet coming in contact with the erupting face of a temporary tooth, be supposed to endanger its successor lying deep in the alveolar socket at the apex of the root of its predecessor? Then what danger to the permanent tooth is to be apprehended from extracting a temporary tooth? Very little, probably, after the child is three years of age, for by that time the permanent teeth have all become ossified. There is a confusion of ideas here, probably arising from the admonition to use extreme care in applying arsenic to a deciduous pulp. The danger to be apprehended is that the arsenic may be absorbed by the soft tissues in relation with the deciduous pulp, and casily accessible to the arsenic after considerable absorption of the temporary roots has taken place. From this an impression seems to have arisen that it is the permanent germ that requires to be carefully guarded.

EDITORIAL.

OWING to unavoidable delay in arranging for exchanges we are under the necessity, in this second number as in the first number of the JOURNAL, of supplying all the matter with our own pen. From our point of view, this appears open to two objections: first, the reader may possibly tire of one style of writing, (not to mention other features which may be wearisome,) and secondly, the impression may get abroad that the editor has not much of a dental practice, to be able to devote so much time to composition. That's my business, sir," as the old maid said to the census man.

A deciduous pulp may often be destroyed by touching it a few times with a fully saturated tincture of iodine, or with either of Monsel's solutions of iron.— Graretson,

Will the reader, whoever he may be, please regard himself as personally invited to send us a contribution for the next number? or is the editor destined to double his gas bill again, in November?

WE saw a fakir extracting teeth at a county fair, last week. Two negroes sat in a wagon with him, one of whom thrummed a guitar while the other sang, accompanying the operator in his bloody work. The latter seated his patients on a box, using no head-rest or other support, and having swabbed the gum with a mixture that smelled liked chloroform and tinct. capsicum, proceeded without a moment's delay to extract the tooth or teeth, breaking off several, by the bye. His patients made no outcry, although he succeeded in making several of them cringe as if the operation were not altogether as pleasant as a trip to the sea-side. One woman who had a large cuspid extracted replied to our inquiry, no, it did n't hurt," but she afterwards admitted that it did hurt some. As we 'stood and watched him extract teeth for a dozen or more persons, using the same forceps on all, and without washing the beaks, we wondered whether any of them would, later on, become strangely affected with blood disorders. But this itinerant was no more reckless of such possible consequences, than some dentists who have diplomas framed in their offices.

It seems almost superfluous to commend to dental students the perusal of medical journals, since the surgical aspect of dentistry borrows its features from medical science, and at this day, as hitherto, discoveries in etiology, pathology, and therapeutics, as applied to the teeth, are but the special adaptation of principles already familiar to the medical world. But if a special inducement were wanting, to win the attention of the indifferent, it should be regarded as supplied by the fact that a medical department is embraced within these covers, convenient to every reader of our dental department. Many who cannot spare time to read comprehensive medical works, may at least familiarize themselves with the current facts and theories of medical science, by an hour or two each month devoted to a careful reading of this journal's leading department.

ALCOHOL is said to be an excellent germicide,-better than carbolic acid. If this be true, a double significance attaches to the practice of wiping out cavities with alcohol for the purpose of ecuring dryness.

A paper read before the Cincinnati Medical Society, Nov. 17, 1885.

My attention having been of late directed to this branch of practice, I have imagined that an account of the results of my limited experience might not prove uninteresting to the members of this Society, even though I have nothing new to present, unless it be in the nature of a few minor details.

As is well known, both Hardaway of St. Louis and Piffard of New York have for years recommended this as a remedial agent for hirsutes, and that its use has since been extended to include the removal of the common wart, nævi, piles, acne, and all of the benign growths of small extent, reports thereon having been made by physicians of most of the larger cities, not, however, including Cincinnati.

The requisite apparatus for ordinary work consists of a galvanic battery of any kind having a sufficient number of cells to produce the necessary electro-motive force and quantity of current; the proper needles, and a needle holder so constructed as to form the negative electrode. I commenced by using a platinum ueedle recommended by Piffard; for a needle holder I remodeled the ordin

ary jeweler's tool holder by connecting the chuck to a hollow brass stem adapted for connection with one of the leads of my battery, and insulating the same with a hard rubber tube. Within the jaws of this instrument I can hold as large a needle as ought to be used in any case, of electrolysis, and as small a one as it is possible to use. As a further convenience, I have mounted on the arm of my operating chair a lens three inches in diameter, held with a ball and socket joint, and adjustable to any required position. Through this last medium I select the hair to be removed, hold it with a pair of small forceps, pass the needle along the course of the hair follicle to the bottom, and then complete the circuit by having the patient touch the dampened sponge fastened to the arm of the opcrating chair and constituting the positive electrode. The current is then allowed to flow from one-half to one minute, according to the quantity present. I prefer a longer time with less quantity, in order to avoid heating the needles, so that the growth may be destroyed by electrolysis instead of galvano-cautery, so productive of pain and unsightly scars.

With a view to shortening the time of operation by increasing the quantity of current, and at the same time avoiding increase of pain and scarring, I was induced to decrease the electrical resistance of the needle by plating the platinum needle before mentioned with silver, and also to employ some made entirely of coin silver. The desired result was obtained. The electrical resistance of platinum is twelve times as great (Bequerrel) as that of silver, or to state the converse, its conductivity is one twelfth of that of silver, the best conductor of electricity known.

The heat produced by a given quantity of current is in direct proportion to the resistance of the conductor (the needle). It is from this principle that galvano cautery and incandescent electric lighting are produced.

As far as I have observed, there has always been a certain amount of pain, and some evidence of inflammatory action, lasting for several hours, with a little discoloration of the skin, around the broken down hair follicle, lasting for several days, but leaving no appreciable scar.

How many of the hairs return I am unable to say; according to written reports, it ranges from 10 per cent. by Fox,* of New York, to 30 per cent. by other writers.

Fox reports a return of only 2 per cent. at the last meeting of tho American Dental Society.

1

I think a great deal depends upon the manual dexterity of the operator, with his tactile sense to pass the needle along the course of the hair follicle, the latter being in many cases very tortuous; also in not producing too great traction with his forceps and drawing out the hair before electrolysis can be complete.

In my own cases at first I was not very successful, but later, aided by the lens, I think about 80 per cent are permanently destroyed.

With regard to the quantity of current and electro-motive force reported to be employed, and the variety of kind and number of cells used, it is only necessary to state that these depend entirely upon: Ist. The specific electro-motive force of the kind of cell used; 2d. Upon the condition of the cell; 3d. Upon the connections; and 4th. Upon the electrical resistance of the patient included in the circuit; this last is extremely variable. To produce electrolysis in a given time, the same given quantity of current is always necessary; to halve the time means to double the quantity, and vice versa.

With a view to obtaining further data upon the subject I have commenced by ascertaining the quantity of current necessary to produce electrolysis in hirsutes in thirty seconds. This was accomplished in the following manner:

The usual method of extracting a hair was pursued with the single exception that a sensitive galvanometer was included in the circuit. The object being to produce complete electrolysis in exactly thirty seconds, several attempts had to be made both to secure the result and to verify it; this accomplished and the deflection of the galvanometer needle noted, a basis to proceed upon was furnished. The next step was to ascertain the value in practical units of the deflection of the needle in the absence of the calibration of the galvanometer.

The practical method of measuring the quantity of electric currents and of calibrating or standardizing galvanometers is by the deposition of metal, commonly known as electro-plating. As is well known, the same quantity of current invariably transfers the same weight of the same metal from the anode to the cathode of a volta meter in the same time.

The circuit was again closed, having included in it the battery, galvanometer, volta meter and a glass of water to represent the electrical resistance of the patient. The anode and cathode of zinc (sulphate of zinc being used as the electrolyte) having been