84 Dr. lire on Disinfection. 



part of last winter, but who did not adopt the above precaution, 

 having imbibed through a minute breach of surface on his 

 little finger a portion of this virus, was in a few hours there- 

 after attacked with acute inflammation of the absorbents of the 

 arm, accompanied with high symptomatic fever, which con- 

 fined him to his bed for many weeks, and required the most 

 powerful antiphlogistic measures to subdue the inflammatory 

 symptoms. I could cite instances of my predecessors having 

 suffered from the same cause, but I deem it unnecessary, as 

 the fact is indisputable.' 



A mournful example of the danger of putrefactive effluvia 

 occurred a considerable time ago in the north of Scotland. 

 Two young medical men, desirous of examining a body which 

 had been interred without dissection, in consequence of the 

 prejudices of the relations of the deceased, went in a very dark 

 night to exhume it, but having mistaken the grave, laid open 

 a coffin replete with such noisome corruption, that the gentle- 

 men instantly sickened with the fetor, were hardly able to go 

 home, where they forthwith took to bed with symptoms of 

 malignant fever, and died. MM. Orfila, Leseure, Gerdy, and 

 Hennelle, were employed, about seven years ago, in Paris, to 

 examine the body of an individual who was supposed to have 

 been poisoned, and who had been dead and buried for nearly 

 a month. Had they rashly proceeded to the inspection, they 

 would most probably have fallen victims to their imprudence ; 

 but the smell was intolerable, and the body could hardly be 

 approached; they had, therefore, recourse to chloride of lime, 

 sprinkling a solution of it over the putrid corpse, which pro- 

 duced, after a few aspersions, such a wonderful effect, that the 

 nauseous effluvia were instantly quenched, and the dissection 

 was performed with comparative comfort. 



Chloride of lime has been repeatedly used since with equal 

 efficacy in similar cases ; it has become a familiar anti 

 putrescent agent in the anatomical theatre, and has been ap 

 plied to destroy the stench of bilge-water and common sewers 

 with unfailing efficacy. Its operation on fish so much tainted 

 as to be hardly fit for the table I have myself repeatedly tried, 

 and I have found that a dish of such fish cleaned and opened 

 up, by immersion in a dilute solution of the chloride for a few 



