VARIOUS CHEMICAL DISINFECTANTS 61 



infected sputa. A solution containing six ounces of 

 good bleaching powder to the gallon of water will be 

 suitable for ordinary use. By exposure to the air the 

 chloride of lime rapidly deteriorates in quality. It 

 should therefore be kept in air-tight receptacles, and 

 only so much of the disinfecting solution made as is 

 required for immediate use. Owing to its bleaching 

 properties and injurious action upon fabrics of all 

 kinds the chlorinated-lime solution is seldom used for 

 the disinfection of bed-linen and articles of clothing, 

 but it may be employed for washing floors and other 

 woodwork. 



Many of the metallic salts have decided germicidal 

 value, and some of them have been largely used in 

 practical disinfection. Among these the bichloride 

 of mercury, or " corrosive sublimate," has a prominent 

 place. In very dilute solutions this salt is fatal to all 

 known disease germs, and in the proportion of i : 500 

 it will destroy the spores of pathogenic bacteria (an- 

 thrax, tetanus). For ordinary use a standard solu- 

 tion of one part in one thousand parts of water may 

 be used. This will be suitable for washing surfaces 

 and for the disinfection of bed- and body-linen. 

 But owing to the fact that the bichloride of mercury 

 combines with albuminous substances, and is thus 

 rendered practically inert, this salt is not a reliable 

 disinfectant for excreta or expectorated matters. The 



