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its treatment unsatisfactory, and that much yet remained to Ibe discovered in these directions. IA METHOD OF PHOTOGRAPHING PLATE CULTI-

VATIONS WITHOUT REPRODUCING THESCRATCHES OF THE DISH.

1,N photographing plate cultivations which have been madein scratched dishes the scratches are sometimes only toofaithfully reproduced, interfering very much with the

photographic detail of the cultivation. In valuable culti-

vations this is a source of considerable annoyance. Mr.

Walter A. Mitchell, of the pathological laboratory at

Cambrid-e, avoids the photographic reproduction of the

scratches on the cultivation dish by cutting a drop of cedar-wood oil thinned with zylol on the bottom of the dish afterit has been thoroughly cleanserl with swabs of wool soaked,first, in hydrochloric acid and then in water. The oil is wellrubbed in with the finger-tips. It is important that the oilshould not be too thick and that it should be well rubbedin so that no scratches are visible. The best result is obtainedwhen the oiling is done 20 minutes or so before the photo-graph is taken. We have received for inspection (1) a photo-graph of a gelatin culture in a dish which was purposelybadly scratched and then thoroughly cleansed in the wayindicated ; and (2) a xhot graph of the f-ame dish takenwith the same lens, with the ame stop exposure and lightingarrangement but with one-half of the dish oiled. The aivan-tage of this simple method is obvious from the latter pho10-graph, the scratches being quite eliminated. Every bac-teriologist knows how easily cultivation dishes are scratched,.and in research with mixed culture. it i impossible, as

Mr. Mitchell points out, to r7uplicate a plate should it be

scratched and a photograph of it be desired.

THE TREATMENT OF RELAPSING PLEURALEFFUSIONS BY GASEOUS INJECTIONS.

AT the meeting of the Société Médicale des Hopitaux ofParis on May 23rd M. Vaquez and M. Qui.’erne called atten-tion to the value of gaseous injections in the treatment of

recurring pleural eSusions. Their method is directly derivedfrom that of the late Professor Potain. It consifts in pro-

- ducing an artificial pneumothorax which checks the incessantreproduction of fluid observed in certain case< of chronic

pleurisy. They suppose that the mode of action is purelymechanical. The choice of the ga’- u-ed depend. on its

greater or less absorbability rather than on any antisepticpower. The following case i< an example. In January,1902 a man had been under treatment for left tnber-

- culous pleurisy t-ince May, 1901. Paracentesis had been

performed 12 times, 1000 to 1500 grammes of fluid beingremoved on each occasion and the effusion being repro-duced in from three to five weeks. The general condition ofthe patient was not bad ; he had no fever and took foodwell. He could go about except during the eight or ten dayspreceding paracentesis, when increasing dyspnoea, kept himin bed. On Jan. 7t,h a litre of serous fluid was removed.On the 21-t the effusion was reproduced and a litre of fluidwas again removed, and with the apparatus devised by Pro-fessor Potain about three-quarters of a litre of air were

injected. The pleura was evidently very thick and hard,for it offered great rtsi.-.tance to t.he passage of the trocar.

An hour later the temperature was elevated to 104&deg;F. and

the patient felt ill, but in the evening the temperaturereturned to normal. Immediately after the injection all thesigns of hydro-pneamothorax were present. Pneumothorax

persisted until April 28th-more than three months. Onlya small quantity of fluid at the base of the lungcould be demon-trated. Further intervention does not

seem to be necessary. In another case a man had

tutier- Iculous pleurisy which began in October, 1901. In March,

1902, paracentesis had been performed five times. On

March 27th paracentesis was performed and three-quarters ofa litre of sterilised air were injected. No reaction followed.

Signs of pneumothorax lasted for two weeks. At the end

of April the patient left the hospital greatly improved. For

the injection of ga-! into the pleura a trocar connected

with a Y-shaped indiarubber tube is required. One branch

of the tube is connected with a Potain’s syphon, the otherremains free and is provided with an ampulla of gla"s filled

with sterilised cotton-wool. Before use the tubes are care-

fully boiled. The free branch of the Y is clamped withan artery forceps while the paracente-is thoracis is per-formed. Then the forceps is transferred to the other

arm of the Y and an air pump is connected withthe free arm. Air is injected slowly into the pleuralcavity and is sterilised in passing through the cotton-

wool. If it is desired to injct any other gas thatcan be easily done from a bag filled with it. The quantityof gas to be injected depends on the amount of fluid with-drawn ; in most ca<-es half a litre is s-ufncifnt. The capacityof the pump being known the number of strokes of the pistonshows the quantity injected. As to the question of the gasto be injected air appears to answer very well in the majorityof cases. As shown in the first case it is slowly absorbed.But if the effusion is rapidly reproduced nitrogen,which is very slowly absorbed, may be used. It has beenascertained that after air is injected into a serous cavity onlycarbonic acid and nitrogen remain. The impermeability ofthe pleura to nitrogen is shown by a case of relapsing.taphyloconcio pleurisy under the care of M. Widal. Afterthe injection of air the pneumothorax lasted only 10 days ;after the injection of nitrogen, at least 25 days. M. Vaquezand M. Quiserne xugget that the injection of air into the

pleural cavity may prevent by its mechanical action

certain untoward complications of paracentesis thoracis,such as rapid extension of tuberculosis in the compressedlung after it is released from pressure. 1

MENTAL DISEASE IN ARMIES.

Ix a recent issue of the Allgemeine Zeit,,?chq4ft fiir’syr7iatrie (Heft 4, 1902) Dr. Ewald Stier furni-hes

interesting facts and statistics concerning the graver forms ofnervous and mental disease in armies. In military statistics,writes Dr. Stier, a history of ]ues is almost invariahlyfound to have preceoecl cases of tabes c1or"aJis and of

general paralysis of the insane in officers. This is

especially shown as regards the armies of France.

Germany, and Great Britain. The observations of Dr. Stier

regarding the almost invariable association of syphiliswith general paralysis confirm the conclusions alreadyarrived at by Rieger of Wiirzburg, and in this

country by Dr. W. J. Mickle, concerning the not infre-

quent occurrence of these associated affections in militaryofficers. In many, but not in all cases, adds Dr. Stier,other causes may also be found&mdash;viz , alcoholism and,to a less extent, trauma. Hysteria in males was a rare

occurrence in the armies f Europe a quarter of a centuryago, but now it is not uncommon, especially, according toDr. Stier, in the armies of central Europe. The traumatic

psychoses are found to reach a high proportion only duringwars, the chief causes being cranial and other injuriescaused by shot or shell, accidents, and shocks sustainedin moments of intense cerebral excitement. Thu-, in thecourse of the Franco-German war (1870-1871) the proportionof ca’-e-i of traumatic psychosis in the German army reachedto 13 per cent. of the total number of soldiers engaged infighting. Medical statistics as regards armies are, in Dr.

Stier’s opinion, as yet very inadequately drawn up, but

1 Galliard : Semaine M&eacute;dicale, 1897.