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Under the head of Nitro-glycerine an admirable accountis given of the preparation, properties, and physiologicalaction of this valuable remedy. It has been used with successin angina pectoris, spasmodic asthma, neuralgia, megrim,gastralgia, and obstinate hiccough, and a trial is suggestedin whooping-cough, laryngismus stridulus, and tetanus."There is much," says Dr. Bartholow, "to be expectedfrom nitro-glycerine in diseases of the nervous system cha-racterised by heightened reflexes. An attack of epilepsymay be aborted by its timely administration. By preventingthe spasm of the vessels and consequent sudden anaemia ofthe brain, the first and most important event in the seriescannot occur." Respecting the dose our author speaks withpraiseworthy discretion. He recommends of the one percent. solution "from one to many minims." He is quiteright; the action of the drug varies so much in differentindividuals that it is impossible to lay down positive ruleson the subject of dosage. Some people suffer intensely froma single dose of a six-hundredth of a grain, whilst others willtake a grain of the pure drug two or three times a day with-out the slightest inconvenience.Muscarine or muscaria, the alkaloid of amanita muscaria,

or fly fungus, has long been known to physiologists, andnow promises to be a valuable addition to our list of rerae-dies. It should be extracted from the fungus, but is fre-quently prepared synthetically, although there is good reasonto believe that the artificial substitute is almost inert. Thebest test of the activity of any given specimen is its power ofarresting the frog’s heart, and of being antagonised byatropine. Dr. Bartholow considers that it is of much valuein the treatment of many disorders of the digestive organs." When constipation is due to paresis of the muscular layer ofthe bowel, and to deficient secretion, this remedy willprobably relieve it. In the treatment of intestinal

torpor and deficient secretion muscaria may be combinedwith other remedies, as atropia and strychnia, whichact on the organs concerned, or with cathartics and

cholagogues: R Muscariæ, gr. iv.; extr. belladonnse, extr.nucis vomicæ, aa gr. iii.; euonymin, 3ss. M. ft. pil.No. xii. Sig. One pill night and morning. When the

digestion of the starches and fats is imperfect it is stronglyindicated." We must confess that we know of no goodclinical evidence that can be adduced in support of thesestatements. Muscarine has recently been introduced as aremedy for the night-sweating of phthisis, but surelyDr. Bartholow is not correct in stating that the fly funguswas commended by Trousseau for this purpose. In the

eighth edition of the "Traite de Therapeutique et deMatiere Medical" of Trousseau and Pidoux an account is

given of the Agaric blanc (Boletus laricis), but we find nomention of the Agaric mouche (Agaricus muscarius), whichis quite a different species.

Resorcin, which of late has attracted considerable atten-tion as an antiseptic and antipyretic, is fully described,special prominence being given to the observations of

Dujardin-Beaumetz, Andeer, Lichtheim, and other recentwriters. It is strongly recommended in the treatment oftyphoid and typhus fevers, erysipelas, septicaemia, anddiphtheria. The ordinary dose is from fifteen to thirtygrains. This may be given with safety, but the largequantities administered by some German authorities shouldbe prescribed with caution. It ought to be remembered thatmuch of the re"orcin met with in this country is impure,being largely contaminated with carbolic acid and perhapswith arsenic. Care should be taken to obtain the drug aspure as possible.The article on Picrotoxine, the active principle of cocculus

indicus, has been entirely rewritten and much extended, soas to include an account of the observations of Planar,Hammond, and others, on the value of the drug in the

treatment of epilepsy, chorea, paralysis agitans, paralysis ofthe sphincters and allied conditions. An account, too, is

given of its use in the treatment of the night-sweating of

phthisis, but no mention is made of its employment as aremedy for the persistent vomiting from which patients inthe last stage of consumption so frequently suffer. Thedose is 1-60th of a grain, and it may be given either insolution or made up with sugar of milk into a pill.A good account is given of pulsatilla, phytolacca, and

several other new remedies, but curiously enough thehamamelis virginica, or American witch hazel, is dismissedin half a dozen lines.Under the head of Apomorphia (p. 551) it is stated that

"as it undergoes important changes when in contact withwater, the solution for hypodermic use should be madewhen required." It would certainly be an advantage if

every solution intended for hypodermic use were freshlyprepared, but no special caution is needed in the case ofapomorphia. The solution speedily assumes a green colourwhen exposed to the light, but its physiological actionremains unaltered. We have frequently employed a

1 in 50 solution of chloride of apomorphia prepared at leastthree months previously, and have never failed to induceprompt and copious vomiting by a hypodermic injection offrom two to five minims. It should be remembered thatone of the chief uses of apomorphia is to empty the stomachin cases of narcotic poisoning, and if it were necessary to

prepare the solution at the time, it would soon be super-seded by other and more convenient emetics.Although we have taken objection to certain statements

made by Dr. Bartholow, it must not be supposed that thework is untrustworthy-on the contrary, the very greatestcare has been taken in its preparation, and we have nohesitation in saying that it is one of the best books on thesubject that has yet appeared, and it will undoubtedly addmuch to the author’s already deservedly high reputation.

OUR LIBRARY TABLE.Mechanical Dentistry. By CHAS. HUNTER. Second Edition,

revised,with additions. London: Crosby Lockwood and Co.-It is just as impossible to learn mechanical dentistry "bythe book" as it is to learn anatomy without dissections, andthe Colleges of Surgeons have done well to insist in theircurricula that,candidates for the L.D.S. shall spend threeyears in the actual practice of mechanical dentistry, inaddition to attending lectures on the subject. It is onlyfair to Mr. Hunter to say that he has produced a mostefficient manual, written in clear and graphic style, amplyillustrated and well printed. That it has reached a secondedition in a comparatively short time shows that it is appre-ciated generally; but many of the most modern improve-ments in the manipulation of vulcanite, celluloid, andcontinuous gum are omitted, perhaps because they are stillon their probation. The book does not contain much ofinterest to the medical profession in general, being intendedof course for the dental branch of it; but there is little

doubt, that a surgeon intending to practise in some remotepart of the colonies, where dentists are few and far between,might find it useful to have the knowledge of mechanicaldentistry which this book would furnish. With regard tothe section on the treatment of congenital cleft palate,Mr. Hunter does not insist sufficiently on the great advan-tage which mechanical treatment has over surgical, in themajority of cases, especially when operation has been de-layed unduly. There is no doubt whatever that a properlymade and well-fitted plate will restore the functions of

deglutition and articulation far better tli-in an operation,which puts the soft palate on the stretch, and prevents itreaching the back of the pharynx when necessary. Finally.Mr. Hunterwould also do well to point out the great advantage

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of having a special zinc or pewter tray made for the majorityof cases, instead of only in exceptional ones, as recommendedin his book, and always for taking the impressions of cleft tpalates.

Essentials of the Principles and Practice of Medicine. ByHENRY HARTSHORNE, A.M., M.D. Fifth Edition. London:Smith, Elder, and Co. 1881.-The author of this book seemsto have spared no pains to bring it up to the modern stand-point, for as we turn over its pages we find many subjectsintroduced which have been only lately brought before theprofession. Certainly, amongst books of its class it deservesand has obtained a good position, although we should like tosee some of the pathology rewritten and many of the woodcutsreplaced or wholly removed from the text. There are somematters which are very difficult to illustrate, and no subjectis the clearer for being badly illustrated. Dr. Hartshorne iscareful to quote authorities for many of his statements, and,if anything, errs in being over-scrupulous in this respect, formultiplicity of names in a text-book rather tends to bewilderthe student. On the whole it is a careful and conscientious

piece of work, and may be commended to the notice ofstudents.

Consumption: a Reinvestigation of its Causes. By C: W.DE LACY EVANS, M.R.C.S. London: Baillière, Tindall,and Cox.-The aim of this brochure is to show that We areall wrong as to the cause of the formidable disease uponwhich it treats. The author, arguing from the leadingsymptoms of phthisis, arrives at the conclusion that the

process is due mainly to an excess of atmospheric oxygenacting upon the tissues. This being so complete a reversalof all our " preconceived" notions, and of the teachings ofpathology, we cannot undertake to refute it here; mean-while we refer those who are interested to the book for thecurious therapeutical results that accrue from the adoptionof the writer’s theory.The Sun. By C. A. YOUNG, Ph.D., LL.D., Professor

of Astronomy in the College of New Jersey. London :Kegan Paul, Trench, and Co. 1882.-This volume gives anaccurate and interesting account of what is known about theconstitution of the sun and solar phenomena. The methodsand apparatus, by means of which the results have beenobtained, are also described. The different modes of de.

termining the sun’s distance and dimensions are explainedwith great clearness, and exceedingly apt illustrations aregiven of the sun’s immensity. The distance of the sun

being determined, its volume and mass are computed, andfrom these its average density is found to be only about onequarter that of the earth. The revelations of the spectroscopeare detailed, and prove that the same elements which arefound on the earth exist in a state of vapour in the solar

atmosphere. This fact and the low density support thesupposition that the sun is composed of incandescent gas,powerfully condensed by pressure at the central part andprevented from liquefaction by the high temperature.The constitution of the photosphere and chromosphere isdiscussed with great precision and lucidity. They are shownto be phenomena which we would expect to observe at thesurface of such a ball of vapour exposed to the cold of space.There seems little doubt that the photosphere is a shell ofclouds formed by the condensation of iron and other metals.The author defines " the photosphere as the shell withinwhich precipitation is taking place, the reversing layer asthat lower region of the sun’s atmosphere which containssensibly all the gases which the spectroscope indicatesto us ; the chromosphere as the region of hydrogen."The remarks on the nature and periodicity of sun spotsand their effects upon the earth are remarkably suggestive,and are characterised by the same clearness of expressionwhich pervades the whole book. The author considers thatthe periodicity and distribution of the spots and the constitu-

tion of the corona are problems still unsolved. This excel.lent work will be of interest and value to those interested inscientific subjects, as well as to those who make science theirspecial study.

The Hair its Treatment in Health, Weakness, andDisecase. By Dr. J. PINCUS, of Perlin. London : Chattoand Windus. 1882.-This cheap but well got-up little workof seventy pages, by one who is well known for his pains.taking labours on diseases of the hair, is evidently addressedmainly to the public, and contains a clear popular outlineof the anatomy and physiology of the hair, followed bydirections for its management, and by some account ofdiseased states and their treatment. The description ofdiseased states is in many cases very meagre-e.g., with

regard to the diseased conditions due to fungus,-and someaffections are not alluded to. Dr. Pincus is very careful to

suggest only such remedies as may be safely adopted by thegeneral public without reference to a medical man, and herepeatedly insists that only a qualified practitioner canproperly carry out further measures. We have only to say,in addition, that the means of treatment recommended byDr. Pincus, like many other of the views expressed, are quiteoriginal and the result of many years’ careful observation.

Ringtvor)2?,, its Diagnosis ancl Treatment. By ALDEFSMITH, M.B. (Lond,), F.R.C.S., Resident Medical Officer,Christ’s Hospital, London. Second Edition, rewritten andenlarged, with illustrations. London : H. K. Lewis. 1882.-The rapid exhaustion of the first edition of this sound,thoroughly practical, and handy little book sufficientlyattests what a troublesome and frequent disease ringwormis, and how much the book is appreciated. In issuing asecond edition, Mr. Smith has by careful revision and therewriting of passages striven hard and successfully to presentthe subject in the most concise, clear, and practical manner,and this is especially the case with regard to the diagnosisand indications for treatment. We almost regret, however,that the book. has been enlarged to double its former size,though we notice this is to some extent owing to the addi.tion of two plates of alopecia stumps, and one of a ringwormhair, to the introduction of many excellent formulae and agood index, and a discussion of some new remedies.

’GENERAL GARIBALDI’S ANKLE-WOUND."To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—In connexion with your very interesting annotationin THE LANCET of last week on the above subject, I maymention one circumstance which is, perhaps, not generallyknown. When, after the failure of Mr. Partridge to detectthe presence of the bullet, M. Nélaton was summoned tosee the wounded General, he left Paris with some mis-

givings as to his being more successful than the well-knownEnglish surgeon. Before- starting, however, on his missionhe went to M. Charrière, and asked him if he could notdevise something with which he could not only detect thepresence of the bullet in the wound, but to show by oculardemonstration that it was there. M. Charrière thereuponset his inventive faculties to work, and I have it on goodauthority that to him is due the idea of the porcelain tippedprobe which M. Nélaton employed with signal success. Imention this circumstance not with the view of detractingfrom the merits of the great surgeon, but I think everyman should have his due, and that we ought to render toCaesar that which is Ceasar’s. The invention of the instru-ment is due to M. Charrière, the great instrument-maker,and its successful application to M. Nelaton, the great sur-geon, both of whom have since retired to their long rest,and so, indeed, have the principal agent and the other actorin the drama.

, The success of M. Nélaton was here looked upon not onlyas a great triumph over British surgery, but as a nationalvictory.-I am, Sir, yours obediently,’ Paris, June 19th, 1882. AN OLD PRACTITIONER.