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THE LANCET RELIEF FUND,FOR MEMBERS OF THE MEDICAL PROFESSION

AND THEIR WIDOWS AND ORPHANS

WHEN IN DISTRESS.

THIS week we have the great satisfaction to announcethat, the preliminaries having been fully arranged, andvarious little matters of detail dealt with, THE LANCETFund for Members of the Medical Profession and theirWidows and Orphans when in Distress has been de-

finitely set on foot. The sum of £300 has been paid to thebankers to the account of THE LANCET Relief Fund, andthe almoners are prepared to enter at once on the duty ofadministration. In each copy of the present issue of ourjournal is inserted a form of application to be used in caseson behalf of which the aid of the Fund may be sought, andwill thus be in the hands of seventeen or eighteen thousandof the medical profession in a few hours. It is not neces-

sary to recapitulate the reasons which induced the pro-prietors of THE LANCET to originate and provide the Fund.These will be found to be fully set forth in our impression ofJan. 6th. The need for such a resource in our over-stocked

profession is unfortunately made only too apparent by theappeals which we are constantly being called upon to

publish, to say nothing of the many distressing cases whichdo not come before the public eye. It will be to us a sourceof heartfelt gratification to be able, by means of this Fund,to assist in alleviating, in some slight measure, the pressureof adverse circumstances into which some of the lessfortunate of our professional brethren have been thrown,and, as we said before, to express in this way our sense ofthe support, during a period approaching three-quarters ofa century, that has secured for THE LANCET, as the organof the entire profession, the leading position in the medicalpress.We reproduce a statement of the scope of the Fund, and

an amended list of the regulations by which its operationswill be governed.

Tile Administration of the Fund.

1. The object of this Fund is to afford immediate pecu-niary relief in sudden emergencies to medical men, or, incase of the death of a medical man, to his widow and

orphans or dependent relatives.2. Assistance from the Fund may be bestowed in the

form of gifts of money or necessaries, or of loans, free of

interest, at the discretion of the almoners. In the case of

loans, it shall be permissible, but not obligatory, for thealmoners to take security for the due repayment of advanceamade.

3. The recipients shall be such persons as satisfy thedonors that they possess one or other of the followingqualifications-that is to say: (a) That they hold a

registrable medical qualification, and that they havefallen into pressing’ need of immediate pecuniary relief ; or(b) that they are persons who have been previously to thedate of application made legitimately dependent upon someperson holding a registrable medical qualification, and thatthey have pressing need of immediate pecuniary relief.

4. Un being satisfied as aforesaid, the almoners shall intheir absolute discretion make such loan or gift as theymay think proper out of the funds at their disposal, or

decline to make any at all.5. Applications shall be made in such form and manner

as the almoners may from time to time determine.(L The almoners of the Fund shall be the President for

the time being of the Royal College of Physicians, thePresident for the time being of the Royal College ofSurgeons, the President for the time being of the General

Medical Council), (subject to the consent of the Council),Thomas Wakley, F.It.C.S., and Thomas Wakley, jun.,L.R.C.P. (the latter to be honorary secretary). Sir HenryPitman, M.D. Camb., F.R.C.P., will act as hon. auditor.

7. These regulations may at any time be modified at thewill and by the mutual agreement of the almoners.

Pharmacology and Therapeutics.PHARMACOLOGICAL RESEARCH.

AT the end of a year of work, Mr. Schacht, one of theResearch Committee appointed by the Council of thePharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, has given an

account of the investigations carried out in the ResearchLaboratory, which was founded for the advancement of

pharmacology. For the encouragement of fresh workersthe regulations connected with the laboratory are given indetail, and they evidence a spirit of liberality which willmeet with ready recognition. The record of work hithertoaccomplished shows how much the facilities afforded arealready appreciated. With the exception of an importantpaper upon tartar emetic, all the researches have beendirected to the elucidation of facts connected with thevarious nitrites, such as the preparation of pure ethyl nitrite,the chemistry and pharmacology of the nitrites of the paraffinseries, the comparative effects of "spirits of nitrous ether"and solution of ethyl nitrite, the effect of iso-amyl nitrite,and the physiological action of the nitrites of iso-butyl andamyl. Among those engaged in these investigations may bementioned Dr. Lauder Brunton, Professor Cash, M.D., Pro-fessor Dunstan, Professor Leech, and Mr. T. S. Dymond.Judging by the above results, there can be little doubt thatthe Pharmaceutical Society will feel encouraged to placeupon a permanent basis what they at present regard only inthe light of an experiment. The stringent regulationagainst the prosecution of any inquiry having a direct com-mercial object would probably afford sufficient guarantee ofthe scientific interest prompting the workers, even if suchguarantee were not rendered unnecessary by the names ofthose we have above enumerated.

NITRITE OF ETHYL AND SPIRIT OF NITRE.

Dr. Leech has contributed an interesting article to thePharmaceutical Journal on the comparative effects ofspiritus :etheris nitrosi and solution of nitrite of ethyl.Pharmacological considerations certainly render the prac-tical identity of the two solutions very probable. Aldehyde,alcohol, and nitrite of ethyl are the principal substancespresent in sweet spirit of nitre. Paraldehyde is not presentin sufficient quantity to exert any perceptible physiologicaleffects. Spirit of nitre has long been a popular remedyfor causing an increase in the flow of urine and perspiration,but chiefly in those ailments in which such an increaseoccurs naturally at a certain stage. As diaphoretics thesolution of ethyl is as efficient as the spirit of nitre. Thediureticeffect of both preparations does not appear to be high.In cases of difficulty of breathing due to constriction of thebronchial tubes, and in cases of contraction of the musculararterioles, the spirit and the solution were found to be ofgreat and equal value ; they tend to prevent the onset of theanginal attack, and, by dilating the arterioles, they relievean overloaded heart. Dr. Leech thinks that the popularityof spirit of nitre as a medicine depemls largely on this lasteffect. Even a very small dose of nitrite of ethyl will thusremove discomfort. In spasmodic asthma the presence ofnitrite of ethyl in the sweet spirit of nitre is absolutelynecessary if any good effect is to result. We are disposed toagree with the author in thinking that the introduction ofa fairly stable solution of ethyl nitrite is now called for.Whether the time-honoured spiritus ætheris nitrosi willdisappear from the list of official remedies is perhaps doubt-ful ; but for the rational advance of scientific therapeuticsthere can be no question that its disappearance is desirable.

ALCOHOL IN ERYSII’I,,LAS.

Dr. Henrique de Sai, of Rio de Janeiro, speaks (Bollet.,Rio, October, 1888) very strongly of the advantage of ,

giving alcohol in cases of erysipelas occurring in very younginfants. He prescribes a mixture of some simple syrup and