BIOLOGY. 285 



recent raw surface. The patient was a young woman whose 

 chin and lower lip were drawn down by strong bands of cicatrix 

 from an extensive burn, producing a terrible and increasing de- 

 formity. The plan of operation adopted was a combination of 

 the old one by division of cicatrix with the novel feature devised 

 by M. Reverdin. By division of some strong bands and dissection 

 of adherent integuments, the skin about the lower part of the 

 face and upper part of the throat was released, at the expense of 

 2 large raw surfaces, which were now left lower down. It was 

 upon these that Mr. Mason next proceeded to engraft 6 or 8 

 pieces of skin, which he snipped off of the lax abdominal tegu- 

 ment. They were not bigger than the half of a small pea, and 

 they were planted by simply laying them on the raw surface, and 

 retaining them in position by transparent plaster. The hope is 

 that these patches of skin may form centres from which integu- 

 mentary growth may spread in every direction, and thus mate- 

 rially diminish the time which would otherwise be required for the 

 healing of such large surfaces by unaided granulation. Success 

 has attended the process as performed upon old granulating sur- 

 faces ; it remains to be seen whether a, similar result will ob- 

 tain where, as in this instance, the surface which receives the 

 grafted skin is a raw one recently exposed by dissection. We 

 shall watch this interesting case, and report its progress on a 

 future occasion. Lancet, Aug. 27th, 1870. 



A NEW ANTISEPTIC. 



The hydrated chloride of aluminium, to which Mr. John 

 Gamgee has recently drawn the attention of medical men and 

 of the general public, appears to be a valuable antiseptic. 

 It is quite as potent as chloride of zinc or carbolic acid, and is at 

 the same time non-poisonous, and devoid of unpleasant smell of 

 any kind. These qualities will no doubt ensure its being exten- 

 sively used, and at no distant date we may expect it to displace 

 the antiseptics which are at present in vogue. It is somewhat 

 strange that this substance should have been so long overlooked 

 as a possible antiseptic, and Mr. Gamgee certainly deserves credit 

 for suggesting the utilization of it for this purpose. The reason 

 why it has been passed over is probably to be sought in its not 

 being a waste product in any common chemical manufacture. 

 The anhydrous chloride of aluminium, which is manufactured in 

 order to serve for the preparation of metallic aluminium, is far 

 too costly, on a.ccount of the troublesome nature of the process by 

 which it is prepared, to wit, bypassing chlorine at high tempera- 

 tures over a mixture of aluminium and charcoal. By placing the 

 anhydrous chloride of aluminium in water, it is of course con- 

 verted into hydrated chloride. The most economical process for 

 the preparation of the hydrated chloride of aluminium appears to 

 be by double decomposition between sulphate of alumina and 

 chloride of calcium (both of which are cheap commercial prod- 

 ucts). When solutions of these two salts are mixed together, 



