00 



" T am, of courso, awnro that in itch the acarns scabiei is safely 

 rnsfoiuHMl at the end of a long- o-allerv wliicli it has burrowed 

 for itself in the skin, and that nnless the remedy bo so applied 

 as to enter the air-holes of the gallery it is comparatively safe, 

 for this reason all g-reasy or oily remedies, by obstructing their 

 spiracles or breathing holes, are rapidly destructive. It has been 

 suggested to suffocate the animalcules with cMornform* Have 

 yon ever seen this remedy tried for scabies ? Would it be possible 

 to use chloroform on a large scale in Transport operations and 

 so dispense with oil, tar, grease, &c. Camphor and musk rubbed 

 together with olive oil has been used successfully as a cure for 

 itch. So also sulphur, which by formation of sulphuretted 

 hydrogen within the skin destroys the parasite. It is known 

 that acarus scabiei has a distaste for scents, as iodoform, which 

 has a very strong offensive odour, has this agent ever been tried 

 in scabies ?t 



" To give you some idea of the quantity of oil necessary for 

 Transport sick lines Avhen scabies appears on a large scale, I 

 explain as follows : — It takes at the very least four gallons of 

 mange dressing to cure a camel of bad scabies ; this is only an 

 ordinary bucket full. 'J'here are 10 lb. in a gallon, hence 40 lb. 

 equals four gallons. In other woi'ds, each camel requires about 

 half a mannd of oil before the scabies can be eradicated. 



" For 1,000 camels this will be 500 maunds. Where on field 

 service can you calculate on getting oil by the oOO maunds ? At 

 Suakim oil costs 10 shillings per gallon ; to dress a camel properly, 

 took four gallons or £2 worth of oil alone, to make no mention of 

 sulphur, &c, For 1,000 camels the expenditure would be £2,000 ! 

 This is why, as above stated, not one-half of the scabied camels 

 were ever dressed. Sheep dip was issued in lieu, but did not 

 prove a success. It seems to be a good preventive as a disin- 

 fectant, but was in some way defective as a cure in bad cases. 



* We have had no experieuce of use of chloroform as suggested in 

 mange ; we fear its cost, volatility, and the consequent difficulty of carriage 

 •and supply would militate against its use on field service. However, 

 theoretically we doubt its efficiency (Eds. Q. J.) 

 fWe fire not awnrn of its havins? been resorted to for this ]-)nrpose ("Rds. 0..T.) 



