failing, change of air,-more ozone to burn up dead tissue and quicken motion; or the ammoniacal atmosphere of gas works, which does about the same thing.

Aitken, a very late English authorithy, states "that smallpox and whooping-cough may co-exist in the same person; and a very common and fatal combination is measles and whoopingcough. Whooping-cough," he goes on to say, "and cow-pock are not unfrequently combined. Indeed, the lower classes erroneously look upon vaccination as in many instances a cure for whooping-cough."

It was "common people" who believed, because they knew from experience, the court of last resort in the profession, that cow-pock protected them from small-pox, and just such men then, as Aitken is now, fought poor Jenner for twenty years, because he had experimented with cow-pock, and demonstrated that the belief of the common people was right, and, therefore, urged vaccination on professional attention. He was hounded out of all medical societies, and almost out of human society, for his alleged heresy. But Jenner still lives, which can hardly be said of any of his persecutors.

Though vaccination has been fully acquiesced in as a com plete protection against variola for half a century, doubts of its efficacy and propriety have recently arisen in the public and professional mind, and it is again up for discussion and settlement at the bar of public and professional opinion. No result has, as yet, been reached, but it is clear that vaccination has materially declined in public estimation within a few years.

But the power of vaccination, under some circumstances, to protect against small-pox is as well established as the law of gravity. Vaccination is a smaller evil, accepted to protect against a greater.

Every mode of force, as the virus of insects and serpents, small-pox, scarlet-fever, measles, vaccination, and in this category, the mode of force producing the phenomena called whooping-cough must be placed, produce these effects in the human body by changing the molecular forms of structures, the duration of the phenomena depending on the velocity of motion

by which this is accomplished, as measured partly by the heat evolved as shown by the thermometer.

And, among their results in the human body, it appears probable, will be found explanations of the so-called idiosyncracies, or individual peculiarities, as well as some peculiarities of mind and morals, manifested later in life as well,-that is to say that the peculiarities of body, as well as of mind, observed in some human beings, before, as well as during adult life, will ultimately be found due to changes of molecular forms of structure by these eruptive and non-eruptive form-changing diseases, some of which, as whooping-cough, are mainly passed through during child-life.

Aside from the results of empirical experience in regard to the so-called curative power of cow-pock over whooping-cough, that result could be predicted by philosophy and molecular science, just as chloral was worked out in the mind of Deibriech, in advance of empirical experiment. Whooping-cough is due to a mode of force whose velocity is very slow, extending over from one and one-half to several months; while cow-pock has a velocity very uniform at all stages of life.

That it should be able to communicate a higher velocity, in fact its own velocity, to whooping-cough, is altogether probable, aside from its repeated demonstration by experience.

Guided by these general principles, it seems not improbable that most of these formidable form-changing modes of force may ultimately be so antagonistic as to materially modify their results in the human body. Prof. Boeck's proposal to treat syphilis by repeated inoculations by the syphilitic virus is strictly philosophical, because, in that way, he communicates a higher velocity to the changes, and secures, in a few months, results which should otherwise be spread over, in most cases, the remainder of life in each individual case. Had he turned his attention to other organic agencies increasing the velocity of motion of syphilis, much greater results might have been reached. This seems all the more probable, as all the recognized successful remedial measures for syphilis have for their end simply increase of motion, both in the interest of repair and waste.

The following clinical cases, treated during the present year, may serve to show that the motion of cow-pock can be successfully employed to increase the motion of whooping-cough, terminating both simultaneously.

The family of Mr. D. H. K., market-gardener, living five miles down the river, in common with many other families, both in the city and country, contracted whooping-cough early in the summer. It seems to me there were six of the family suffering from it at the same time. The youngest child, a year old, perhaps, became very sick, so much so as to impress the parents with doubts of his recovery. Without seeing it, the emetic, purgative, and anodyne plan of management, so-called, had been prescribed for several weeks. He became so seriously ill that his parents thought it best for me to see him. He was found very unwell, breathing very rapid and short, pulse rapid and thready, and a range of temperature, by thermometer, much above natural, though not recollected, precisely; think it was 105. I gave him 15 drops tinct. ver. veride, and, as no effect was manifest in half an hour, a like dose was repeated. This was given to check motion and procure prompt elimination from his lungs, as well as stomach. The sickness and vomiting lasted about an hour and a half, during which his head was kept very low, so as to facilitate, by gravity, the elimination of the matter with which the lungs seemed materially loaded. The improvement in his breathing and pulse was very marked at the close of vomiting, so that he soon dropped off in a sound sleep. No other treatment was prescribed that day, but a dose of castor-oil when he woke up and nursed. In three days, I went down, expressly to vaccinate Mr. K.'s family. Three of the older children had been vaccinated several years previously. But all suffering from whooping-cough were inoculated; and, strange to say, all had sore arms in due time, those previously vaccinated running through the stages in about a week, while in the remainder the usual two weeks were occupied in getting through with it. When they had recovered from the vaccination, the whooping-cough had disappeared. By a previous arrangement, the children of Mr. J. D., living two miles from

Mr. K., were to meet me there, to be vaccinated for the same purpose, but did not get there until after I had left. Two of them were brought to my office a few days after, and were vaccinated. At a proper time, one of the pocks was ruptured with a common sewing-needle, by the mother, and inserted in the arms of the remaining members of the family. In reporting to me afterwards, the mother said she had no whooping-cough after the children recovered from the vaccination; that they were all very sick, and she thought I had used very good

matter.

Several of her neighbors obtained crusts from her, and used them, and, in all, the whooping-cough and vaccination disappeared together. Quite a number of other cases, isolated, were managed in the same way, and with the same results. This is only the present year's experience, and there were no failures.

In past years cases were so managed, but not so intelligently, and, so far as memory serves, with hardly the same uniform

success.

I conclude, therefore, as well from the results of experience, as philosophical considerations, that in cow-pock we have the means of hurrying a majority, at least, of cases of whoopingcough through its stages within the two weeks occupied by the former; and it is worth while to consider whether vaccination should not always be delayed for the purpose, unless imperatively demanded by other considerations.

And there may be some conditions needful to obtain a large average success, which I have not identified, but which can doubtless be made out, if looked for by competent observers.

TO DETECT URIC ACID IN THE BLOOD.-Dr. Garrod's ingenious plan of detecting uric acid, which is always in great excess in gout, is as follows: It consists in obtaining the crystals of uric acid on a thread placed in a mixture of the serum of the blood, or of the fluid from a blister, with acetic acid, in the proportions of six minims of the acid to each fluid drachm of the serum.-Richmond and Louisville Medical Journal.

ARTICLE XL.

OPIUM IN METRO-PERITONITIS.

BY THEODORE GRIFFIN, M.D., 529 State Street, Chicago.

Appreciating the fact that it is only by recording and giving to our brethren the results of carefully-observed experience in the treatment of disease, that true and reliable progress is made in therapeutics, I offer for consideration my record of the following case of metro-peritonitis, treated with opium.

I present it briefly and without comment, as a link added to the chain of evidence in favor of the use of opium in this fearful disease. I was led to the employment of large doses by the plain indications to be fulfilled, which, I know the physiological effect of opium would meet, bearing in mind this fact, which I think should become an axiom: if indications are scrupulously met in treatment, no drug poisoning, with its disagreeable and dangerous perturbations, will occur, howsoever large the dose of the drug may be. It is a lamentable fact that indications are often more than met, as occurred at the close of this case through the ignorance of the nurse.

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On the 16th day of June, 1870, I attended Mrs. labor. She says that after previous labors, numerous clots of blood were always expelled from the uterus; after this labor, none were expelled.

On the 17th, she complained of severe pain over the region of the uterus, especially upon the right side, describing it as sharp and lancinating. She had, on this day, a severe chill; her tongue was covered with a white fur; her bowels were constipated; her pulse 90, and bounding. She had, also, headache and aching of the limbs. These symptoms, however, yielded to a little mild treatment, and on the evening of 19th, she felt, as she expressed it, and as her symptoms indicated,"quite well."

On the morning of the 20th, at 3 A.M., more lancinating pains began in the uterus and over the abdominal region,