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setond person in the empire) with effect, Iwhen the persons so recommended wereunworthy; therefore let us be just in ourCfnsure. 1 owe Sir James no favour, butrather the contrary ; and am only actuatedby a love of justice in troubling you withthese observations.

I am, Sir,Your sincere admirer,

FAIR PLAY.London, Oct. 25, 1830.

SINGULAR RESULT FROM THE EXTERNAL

USE OF CORROSIVE SUBLIMATE.

To the Editor of THE LANCET.SIR,—With the following extraordinary

stdtement you have my name and address,that there may be no doubt as to the correct-ness of the facts related in it.A gentleman, xtat. circ. 26, applied to me

eighteen mouths since, to furnish him withsome remedy for certain disagreeable ani-mals. I directed him to procure a little white

precipitate, to rub it up with spermaceti otnt-ment, and to apply the mixture to the infest-ed neighbourhood. He followed the direc-tions, and became rid of the nuisance. Abouta foruught since, however, he discoveredthat a second invasion had taken place, but,on this occasion, forgetting the words of theprescription, lie obtained a small packet ofcorrosive sublimate. Five grains of this hereduced to powder, united with some oleagi-nous substance, salt butter, I believe, andrubbed the mass briskly in over the wholeof the lower part of the abdomen, the peuis(saving the glans), the scrotum, and the

perineum. lie very soon, as may be sup..posed, suffered the tottures of the damned,and language was hardly adequate to describethe aoouy that he endured during the night,which was then approaching. Being in nosituation to attempt relief, nothing was donefur one or two hours, and then for along’penod a boy was employed, alternately withcold cvater and iiour, to assuage his suffer-ings. By the morning the pain had greatlyessered, and shortly after, a tingling sen-sation onlv remained. The entire cuticle ofthe ocrotu’m desquamated, having first risenall over in small blisters, each about the sizeof a grain of wheat, and filled with a paleyellow, barely fluid, pus. The torment was11J’;,t severe in the testes ; these appeared tobe consuming by exposure to fierce flame.The singular result follows. No further

symptom ensued, and the circumstancemight have been forgotten, but seven days safter the mistake, upon trying to polish then::5 on his hand with one of his fingers, hewas astoaiched at discovering an appearance

of mercury on the gold, and proceeding toburnish the metal all over, he readily co-vered the entire surface with a plating ofquicksilver. The circumstance was imme-

diately made known to a medical gentle-man present, and the discs of three sove-

reigns were also mercurialized. The fol-lowing morning I chanced to see the party,and by rubbing the handle of a gold eye-glass upon the inner surface of the arm,obtained a similar result. A portion of themilled edge of a sovereign was also thusso completely coated with mercury byme. that no plimcse of the gold could beseen through it. I immediately made thestrictest examination into the state of themouth, but not the slightest ptyalism, en-largement, unusual redness, or looseness ofthe teeth, was discoverable, or had for amoment been experienced ! The health wasas usual. There had been no exposure tocold air. The diet had been moderate,with large quantities of warm diluent fluid.The general personal appearance was pre-cisely what it had been for a long time. Myexperiment was made on Thursday the 21stinstant. I simply place these facts on

record, and remain,Sir, most faithfully yours,

M.London, Oct. 25th, 1830.

NOTE FROM MR. KING.

T. KING.

TO the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—Mr. Earle having mentioned tome,that the report of one of my speeches madeon the hustmgs in reply to iBlr. Baker at thelate election for coroner, contains expres-sions which he considers injurious to thecharacter of the hospital surgeons, I lose notime in explaining that I did not intend to

cast any imputation upon their private con-duct. My observations were directed againstthe system of electing medical and surgicalofficers to our hospitals, which 1 consider

unjust, and which, as far as my experiencegoes, they patronise. I shall feel obligedby the immediate insertion of this commu-nication, and have the honour to remain,

Your obedient servant,T. KING.

10, Hanover Street, Hanover Square,, Thursday October 28th.

QUACKERY.

To the Editor of THE LANCET.SIR,—You must not believe that the suc-cess of quackery in the practice of physic is