166 DR. CHASES' RECIPES. 



cutaneously (under the skin), and he has found that in some cases where con 

 vulsions had occurred for some years, a complete cure was effected after about 

 8 to 10 m]eciions.—Deutsc7ie Zeitsch. f. prakt. Med. 1877, No. 9. 



Remarks. — The Curare is one of the newer remedies, and may not be gen- 

 erally kept by druggists; but as this would have to be done by a physician, 

 having a suitable instrument to inject with, he can obtain the remedy with- 

 out trouble to the patient. It will be a grand thing if we have a cure, at last, 

 for this terrible disease. The following, liowever, which came to me in the 

 Medical Summary, of Landsdale, Pa., for December, 1883, long after the above 

 was written, seems to hold out great hopes, with much less trouble, than the 

 foregoing. It was first communicated to the Medical and Surgical Reporter by 

 Edward Vanderpoel, M D., who says : 



" When I commenced practice, in 1833, nitrate of silver was the grand 

 remedy for this complaint. After repeated failures, however, with it, I was 

 told by Dr. Boyd, an octogenarian (one of 80 years, who might have seen 50 or 

 60 years of practice), of our city, that he had no trouble in its cure. He had 

 treated a man successf ulh' who had not earned a dollar in 20 years, and who after- 

 wards supported his family hy his labor. I gladly adopted his practice, and 

 have been successful ever since. The remedy, oxide of zinc. Directions — 

 Begin % gr. dose, 3 times a day, for 24 doses (8 days). Then 1 gr. for 24 doses. 

 Then IJ^ grs. 3 times a day, rubbing the spine with stramonium ointment, 

 morning and evening, and stimulating embrocations (liniments), which I have 

 seen used. Since then I have been successful; never going beyond 5 gr. doses, 

 except in one case of a hard drinker and opium eater who, at the time I com 

 menced with him, had been treated for a year with bromide of potash; impair- 

 ing his memory badly, which was restored with the use of the zinc." 



Remarks. — I have great confidence in this treatment, from the age of the 

 originator and the length of time Dr. Vanderpool had used it, he being in prac- 

 tice for 50 years. (See also " Chorea, or St. Vitus Dance," which is a species of 

 nervous disease, much like epilepsy.) 



PAT PEOPLE— rood to Reduce Their Fleshiness.— The Med- 

 ical Jo^imal, speaking of the plan to reduce fat people, to a reasonably stout 

 and healthy condition, says: " If any reader is growing too fat for comfort, he 

 may, possibly, find the following suggestions valuable: There are three classes 

 of food, the oils, sweets and starches, the special ofiice of which is to support 

 the animal heat and produce fat, having little or no influence in promoting 

 strength of muscle or endurance. If fat people, therefore, would use less fat 

 and more of lean meats, fish and fowl, less of fine flour and more of the whole 

 products of the grains — except the hulls — less of the sweets, particularly in 

 warm weather, and more of the fruit acids, in a mild form, as in the apple; 

 sleep less, be less indolent, and labor more in the open air, the fat would disap 

 pear, to a certain extent at least, with no loss of real health. In food we have 

 almost a perfect control of this matter, far better than we can have in the use 

 of drags. If we have too much fat and too little muscle, we have simply to 

 use less of the fat forming elements and more of the muscle food, such as lean 



