102 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



stretched, and the sheets arc to be lifted sfrnitnn, and attached by one end 

 lo the cords by means of bent slips of zinc or tinned iron. A very small 

 spare is sufficient to hold a hundred sheets or more. After twenty-four 

 hours or more, it is ready to be taken down. As the sheets are found to be 

 liable to stick to one another, they may be dusted with French chalk, which 

 prevents adhesion. The addition of a little wax and turpentine renders the 

 dusting or any other measure unnecessary. There is only one part in the 

 above process where any manipulatory difficulty may at first be encoun- 

 tered, and that is in spreading, evenly and expeditiously, the dry sheet on 

 the oiled one. This is easily overcome by working the brush freely from, 

 the centre to the circumference of the sheet. 

 The following are its most obvious advantages : 



1. Its extreme cheapness does away with any inducement which might 

 otherwise exist to employ the same piece more than once. A ream, or 480 

 sheets, of paper, costs from 7s. Gd. to 10s., and a gallon of the prepared oil 

 about 3s. ; so that each sheet costs the fraction of a halfpenny. This 

 does not include the cost of manufacture, which would slightly increase the 

 expense. 



2. Its transparency. "When applied over dressings of a stump, or any 

 cut surface, when hemorrhage may be feared, the danger can be seen at 

 once, and obviated. 



3. Its lightness. It adds little to the weight of dressings, and it can 

 cause little or no pressure on a tender surface. It is particularly useful in 

 this respect for covering large burnt surfaces. 



4. Its extreme adaptability. It can be applied with great niceness to any 

 part, so as to give rise to little or no inconvenience. When applied in any 

 particular way, it retains the form impressed upon it. 



5. It can be torn easily in any direction. In this respect it contrasts favor- 

 ably with oiled silk and gutta-percha. 



6. It can be made of any required strength by folding it one, two, three, 

 or more times, without becoming inconveniently thick. 



7. It possesses a certain amount of adhesiveness, which is increased by the 

 heat of the body, and thereby more effectually prevents evaporation from 

 wet applications. 



ANTI-POISONING BOTTLES. 



The following is a description of a new form of bottle, introduced in Eng- 

 land, to avoid liability to accidental poisoning: In shape they are hexan- 

 gular, with deep fluting or grooves running lengthwise along the bottle. 

 To the sight and touch they instantaneously present most striking points of 

 difference to any other kind of bottle. Vessels of this description, made of 

 blue glass, are intended to be used for external applications only. For 

 poisonous and powerful medicines, prepared or not from prescriptions, the 

 dose of which is a teaspoohful and under, bottles similarly shaped and fluted, 

 in white glass, are proposed to be employed. The bottles are provided with 

 an entirely new contrivance, the effect of which is to make it impossible to 

 pour out the contents otherwise than very slowly and gradually almost 

 drop by drop. This is accomplished by a very simple and inexpensive plan 

 of contracting the neck of the bottle at the lower part, by the shoulder, and 

 the mouth being of the usual size, the process of filling is but slightly af- 

 fected by the contraction. The very deliberate and cautious action thus 

 produced, will, it is believed, deter any one from taking over-doses of medi- 



