534 NOTES, COMMENTS, AND ABSTRACTS

THE N.S.P.C.C.

IT comes as a shock to be reminded that 40 years ago nochild in the home who had not reached the age of ten yearswas under the protection of the Crown, and that no onewho wronged him could be brought into the presence ofthe law. It was not until 1889 that the Prevention ofCruelty to and Protection of Children Act was passed, andthe Metropolitan and City Police authorities gaveinstruction that all cases of cruelty to children reported tothem should be handed over to the National Society forthe Prevention of Cruelty to Children to be dealt with bythe Society. Since then much has been done for theemancipation of the child, but the forty-fifth annual report ofthe N.S.P.C.C. shows that much remains to do. In 1928-2940,541 cases were reported, under the following headings :neglect and advice sought, 34,362 ; manslaughter, 1 ;abandonment, 78 ; exposure, 455 ; ill-treatment andassault, 3146 ; begging, 205 ; corruption of morals, 316 ;other wrongs, 1978. These figures show an excess ofnearly 1000 cases over the previous year’s total, but thisis probably due to the wider response of the public to theSociety’s appeal that cases should be reported to it, andto a wider public knowledge of the Society’s object inseeing that every child in the land shall live an endurablelife. It is satisfactory to note that under the heading of" corruption of morals " the figures for 1928-29 show areduction, though a small one, of 14 when compared withthe figures for 1927-28. Increased confidence in the Society Bis shown by the fact that there is a notable increase in thenumber of instances in which parents have sought advice.In the report of the Medical Officer, Dr. L. D. Saunders,emphasis is laid upon the need for after-care where medicaltreatment has been found necessary. Four more inspectorshave been added to the staff during the year. The Society’sCentral Offices are at Victory House, Leicester-square,London, W.C. 2.

THE TREATMENT OF ECZEMA.

IT is recognised that there are many factors which mayhelp to produce the clinical manifestations called " eczema."They include, for instance, disturbances of the alimentaryand endocrine functions, and metabolic disorders, such asgout, obesity, and hyperglycsemia. But the actual cause ofthe eruption is still obscure, and treatment remains corre-

spondingly empirical.Of the internal remedies at present in use C. Bruck 1

will find general agreement in condemning arsenic, exceptin such cases as are anaemic. A similar if less drasticcriticism is applicable to yeast, ichthyol, and sulphur,although the waters of certain sulphur spas are sometimesvaluable, possibly because of their relief of constipationand hepatic torpor, or by a tendency to counter acidosis.Following Kreibich’s work on the nerve relationships ofeczema, modern dermatology aims at reducing the excita-bility of the nervous paths, including the sympathetic, andoften does this with some success by intravenous injectionof sodium bromide, or, recently, by giving magnesiumbromide intramuscularly. In this connexion Bruck findsthe internal administration of antipyrin and pyramidonuseful in acute cases, and he has observed that antipyrinointments have a soothing effect locally, applied in 5-10 percent. cum eucerin aqua base. Care must be taken notto apply this ointment over too large an area, although sofar no ill-effects from absorption have been noted, even inchildren.

There is no specific dietary for eczema, but proper regula-tion of the intake in cases of obesity, gout, and hyper-glycaemia is, of course, often beneficial. When the patientis undernourished, the cutaneous condition will sometimesimprove if cream and butter in excess of the normal intakeare added to the diet. Relative acidosis or alkalosis of theblood suggests possible lines of approach in the neuro-

dermatitis type of eczematous manifestation, and in theexudative diathesis which is associated in some cases.

Ehrmann claims successes for treatment of neurodermatitisby giving hydrochloric acid by mouth-a method based onhis finding that a relatively large proportion of cases showhypochlorhydria. In children with the exudative diathesisand eczema Scheer recommends acidification of the milk,and good results are sometimes obtainable by adding asolution of 20 c.cm. acid. hydrochlor. dil. in 50-150 c.cm.of distilled water to half a litre of milk. The milk must bescalded and cooled before the weak acid solution is added.In cases of relative acidosis, in which the seborrhceic ecze-mata can be grouped, small doses of atophan followed by amixture containing sod. bicar. and mag. carb. ust. seem toassist the local applications.

All in all the bulk of modern opinion favours the viewthat a combination of treatments gives better results thanmere application of the well-tried ointments and lotions.

1 Derm. Woch., 1929, p. 262.

APPETISING PREPARATIONS.

Messrs. Frank Cooper, Ltd., of Victoria Buildings, Oxfordsend samples of their " Oxford " marmalade, mint jelly,and horseradish cream. The marmalade, which is wellknown everywhere, was first made on a small scale from adomestic recipe and had its main consumption in Oxford,but for many years it has been manufactured on a commercialscale in response to wide demand. Made without anyobjectionable preservatives it has the Seville orange flavour.The firm send samples also of a mint jelly to be used as asubstitute for mint sauce, and a horseradish cream made offreshly grown horseradish and real cream. These latterrelishes to food are usually liked only by those who alsohave a very distinct idea of how they should be made, sothat to hit off a popular taste will be something of a triumph.

THE "HYGIENIC " LECTURE BOARD.

Dr. S. T. Beggs, Medical Officer of Health for the Boroughof Middleton, Manchester, has called our attention to the" Hygienic " Lecture Board, which is intended to take theplace of the ordinary blackboard. The writing is done on apaper surface which is rolled up and down on, or from sideto side of, the lecture board by means of a hand crank.Obviously this method of exhibiting diagrams and notes ismore hygienic than that of the usual blackboard and chalkmethod, while much time is saved by reason of the fact thatthe diagrams can be permanently preserved and exhibitedas required. The paper is written upon by special black orcoloured crayons, which do not soil its surface when rolledand unrolled ; it is supplied in lengths of 20 yards by 30 incheswide, on a cardboard tube, and the board can be illuminatedby an electric bulb and reflector attached to a flexible arm.The apparatus can be fixed to a wall of the lecture room orused on a portable easel. The makers are Messrs. J. Haldenand Co., Ltd., 8, Albert-square, Manchester.

AURAL DISEASE AND BATHING.

IN an annotation on this subject 1 a plugging materialwas referred to made of wool-fibre and plasticinewhich is sold by chemists as a satisfactory means ofpreventing the entry of water into the ear. Messrs.Frank Eyles of 8, Western-road, Brighton, Sussex, havesent us samples of ear plugs manufactured for this purpose,which are very carefully prepared by hand, the longfibred medicated cotton wool being thoroughly amalgamatedwith the plasticine in order to ensure that no disintegrationof .the plug occurs when it is being extracted from the earThe plugs serve a useful purpose.

THE PRE-SCHOOL CHILD.

THE thesis set out in a recent addition to the " To-day andto-morrow " series,2 which already includes more than 80volumes, is that, under present conditions, the home is not theideal place, nor are parents the ideal people, for the majorpart of child-rearing. The smallness of the modern homeand the absence of domestic help lead to a situation, especiallyafter the arrival of the first-born, in which man and wifehave to seek their pleasures separately, and family life isbroken from the start. The effect on the child of limitedspace and lack of garden is a serious handicap to earlyactivity. Allied to the problem of the cramped house orflat is that " special creation of the present age," the onlychild, a child upon whom the mother tends to lavish all thelove which was meant to be shared by many, with the resultthat, in Mr. Lewis’s telling phrase, " mother love becomessmother love." The solution proposed is an extension ofnursery schools on a national scale for all classes. Mr. Lewis

considers " that the nursery school is as essential to themental slums of Golders Green as to the more materialslums of Deptford." While lauding America for theenthusiasm with which she has set about providing for herpre-school children, he criticises the tendency to use nurseryschools as research laboratories. There is no justification,he says, in creating the abnormal to study the abnormal,neither should the child be sacrificed to make a student’sdegree day. The book consists of five chapters and anintroduction, such matters as play, discipline, and theduties of parenthood being dealt with in an unusually freshand stimulating way. Mr. Lewis is happy alike in his matterand his manner, and has produced an informative andreadable book.

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The Deshell Laboratories, Ltd., manufacturers ofPetrolagar, have changed the name of their company toPetrolagar Laboratories, Ltd., but have not changed theirmanagement or address.

1 THE LANCET, July 27th, p.182.2 Romulus or the Future of the Child. By Robert T. Lewis,

B.A. London: Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trübner and Co., Ltd.,1929. Pp.95. 2s. 6d.