96 
POPULAR SCIENCE NEWS. 
[June, 1890 , 
THE RELIEF OK DEFORMITY FROM 
PROMINENT EARS. 
The deformity from prominent and projecting 
ears is oftentimes very distressing to the unfortunate 
wearer, and may lend a decidedly asinine effect to 
an otherwise worthy and dignified individual. 
Many a person thus afflicted would be only too 
willing to undergo an operation to remedy the 
defect, if he but knew that such means of relief 
existed. It is true that the deformity is not a 
serious one, objectively speaking, but still it is well 
worthy of attention and treatment. The operation 
required is quite a simple one, and should be almost 
invariably successful if carefully performed. 
The operation seems to have been first performed 
by the late Dr. E. T. Ely, of New York, who re- 
moved an oval piece comprising nearly the whole 
length of the auricle and through its entire thick- 
ness, thus including the skin on its anterior surface. 
This, of course, involved a scar which would always 
be visible from in front. 
Dr. W. W. Keen, of Philadelphia, describes a 
similar operation in the Annals of Surgery, which 
he seems to have originated without knowing that 
anyone had preceded him in the matter. His oper- 
ation is preferable to Ely's, since the only scar left 
is a linear one on the back of the auricle, which is 
usually visible only by standing behind and looking 
carefully for it. 
The operation, as described, is as follows : A 
long oval portion of the skin is removed from the 
posterior surface of the auricle, the cartilage being 
laid bare by its dissection. In the long axis of the 
oval excision of the skin, a long, narrow piece is 
removed from the cartilage itself, V-shaped on cross 
section like the furrow of a plough. Great care 
must be taken not to cut through the skin on the 
anterior surface of the auricle. Stitches of catgut, 
three or four in number, are passed through the 
skin on the sides of the wound so" as to bring it 
together. The edges of the cartilage may also be 
united with a few catgut stitches, and this seems to 
be preferable, though the results have thus far been 
equally satisfactory without them. The excision' is 
attended with free bleeding, which, however, is 
easily controlled. Antisepsis must, of course, be 
observed during the operation and in the dressings. 
The patient may be up and about the next day, 
but unless the stitches drop out they should not be 
removed before the tenth day, in order to secure 
firm union. — Medical Review. 
[Original in Popular Science Xews.] 
MUSIC AS A MEDICINE. 
BY EPHRAIM CUTTER, M. D., LL. D. 
Mr. Thompson, of S. Maw, Son & Thompson, 
London, tells a story of his son Willie, aged six 
years, moribund with typhoid — quite insensible, 
abdomen tympanitic, pulse failing, and said by his 
physicians "not to last the night out." Carbolic 
acid was given with some goed effect, while the 
doctor staid up all night at the bedside; but the 
coma continued. Finally, the father, knowing that 
the boy was intensely fond of music, procured a 
nice, large music-box. He asked his soon if he 
would like to hear it play. No response, and no 
sign of recognition. The music-box was set agoing. 
It was not long before his countenance changed and 
his body became uneasy. After a while he turned 
over on to his side. The box was put behind his 
back. After another tune he turned over to it, and 
became conscious so as to respond to questions. 
"Now see here," said Mr. Thompson, "this is for 
your own use, and shall be called Willie's music- 
box." The boy showed signs of pleasure and 
wished it kept playing. The result was reaction 
continued; he responded to treatment and recov- 
ered. Certainly, music was a medicine in this case. 
MEDICAL MISCELLANY. 
The latest strategy of a Paris paper for attracting 
readers is the engagement of two eminent physi- 
cians to attend gratuitously upon its annual sub- 
scribers. Recently the manager of the paper gave 
notice to one of the physicians "not to prescribe 
for B any more; his subscription has expired." 
The doctor replied : " So also has B." 
The Number of Dentists in Germany. — 
According to Borner's Reichs- Medicinal Kalender, 
there are 16,864 medical men and 514 dentists in 
practice among a population of 46,840,587 inhab- 
itants in the German empire, while the number of 
chemists' shops is 4.671, and of hospitals 2,737. I" 
the face of these figures it may be truly said that the 
dental profession is not overcrowded in the Father- 
land. 
Cocaine Pencils for Use on the Skin. — A 
writer in the British Medical Journal makes a sug- 
gestion which is easily convertible into a capital 
article for a cosmetic "special." It is, in short, a 
pencil, or "stick," for use on the chafed and irri- 
tated skin, or on skins very susceptible to insect 
bites, etc. He says that an addition of two per 
cent, of cocaine to the ordinary cacoa butter pencils 
converts the latter into a cosmetic remedy, which 
gives almost instant relief when rubbed over the 
irritated spot. 
Transplanting Tuberculosis. — The State 
Board of Health of California has been greatly 
exercised over the danger to which it believed 
the State is exposed through the immigration of 
a large number of persons suffering from tubercu- 
losis. It even suggested, in a recent bulletin, the 
advisability of establishing a strict quarantine 
against consumptives until measures of isolation 
and disinfection could be undertaken. The daily 
press of San Francisco has not been slow to take 
up the question, and the result has been a scare and 
a sensation of such magnitude that even the pro- 
posed prize-fight has been for the moment for- 
gotten. 
Edison's New Phonograph as a Universal 
Acoumeter. — Dr. Lichtwitz, of Bordeaux, (Annales 
des Mai. de I' Oreille et da Larynx), believes that the 
phonograph combines all the requisites of a good 
acoumeter. Its use will enable the otologist to 
measure auditory acuity as accurately as the oculist 
is able to measure visual acuity, and by methods 
quite analogous. An acoumeter, to be satisfactory, 
should possess the power of emitting all sounds 
and noises perceptible to the normal ear, including 
speech with all its varied inflections. It should, at 
will, reproduce sounds with uniform intensity and 
quality, so as to permit a comparison between the 
hearing power of different patients, as also of the 
same patient at different periods. It should always 
be of the same construction, so that aurists of all 
lands may compare their observations. It should 
not occupy much space, nor require much time for 
its employment. It should measure the hearing 
capacity, not only through the medium of the 
external ear, but also through the medium of the 
cranial bones. The new phonograph of Edison, as 
now used, fulfils all these requirements except the 
last. All methods heretofore employed are far in- 
ferior. None of them could furnish a fixed volume 
of sound for purposes of comparison at different 
times and places. The results obtainable from the 
use of a watch, moreover, were never very reliable, 
it being impossible to eliminate accurately the effects 
due to expectant attention and imagination. 
published monthly by the 
Popular Science News Company, 
5 Somerset Street, Boston. 
ONE DOLLAR A YEAR IN ADVANCE. 
SETH C. BASSETT, 
Manager. 
SPECIAL NOTICE. 
The Publishers of the NEWS earnestly request that sub. 
scribers will make their remittances either by draft on Bos- 
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mailed in unregistered letters. 
Remittances will be duly credited on the printed address 
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iate^. If a formal receipt is desired, a two-cent stamp or a 
postal card should be enclosed with the remittance. 
Publislicrs' Colui^ij. 
In considering the wonders accomplished with printers' ink, 
due credit sliould be given to the Esterbrook Steel Pen 
with which the printers* copy was written. 
"Your neck-tie slips up and around under your ear?" 
Walter J. Ball, Townsend, Mass., sends you " Solid 
Comfort" Tie-holder by mail for lo cents. 
TiiK next annual meeting of the American Society of Micro- 
scopists will be held in Louisville, Ky., August 12 to 15, inclu- 
sive. Particulars will be furnished by the local Secretary, Mr. 
Simon Flexner. 
Ridge's Food still maintains its place in the foremost rank 
of the numberless artificial foods which Iiave been placed upon 
the market since its introduction. The fact of its meeting 
competition so successfully is a good proof of its superior 
quality. 
The "Jewel" Gasolene Stoves, advertised in this num- 
ber, are worthy the attention of those desiring such a stove for 
use during the coming summer. These stoves have been 
largely used in the West, and are said to have given the best 
satisfaction. 
The remarkable efficacy of the Buffalo Lithia Water in 
certain affections of the kidneys and bladder is testified to by 
many physicians of the highest standing, and it is well worth a 
trial in cases where other varieties of mineral water have 
proved unsatisfactory. 
We believe that the Chas. II. Phillips Chemical Co. have 
advertised in the Science News for a longer period than any 
other patron of our columns. This is one of the best evidences 
of the standard and reliable character of their medicinal and 
pharmaceutical prei>arattons, which, since their first introduc- 
tion, have been fully appreciated by the medical profession for 
the purity of their materials and the skill with which they are 
combined. 
We can heartily recommend the Whole Wheat Meal 
manufactured at the Arlington Mills, and advertised in this 
number. The entire grain of the wheat contains all the ele- 
ments necessary for the proper nutrition of the body, many of 
which are lost in the process of " bolting." Arlington Meal is 
very different from common graham flour, is extremely palata- 
ble, and those who use it soon learn to jireler it to ordinary fine 
white flour. 
We recently inspected a large Refrigerating Apparatus 
and Ice Machine constructed by David Boyle, oi Chicago, 
for a brewery in Qiiincy, Illinois. It was designed to replace a 
smaller one, from the same manufacturer, which had been in 
use for a number of years and given entire satisfaction. The 
new apparatus will render the brewery entirely independent of 
the uncertain meteorological conditions which affect the supply 
of natural ice. 
From James A. Sewell, A. M., M. D., Dean of the Medical 
Faculty, Laval University, t^icbec : 
I am using a good deal of " Colden's LiqL'in Beef Tonic " 
in my practice, and have every reason to be satisfied with it. I 
have found it particularly useful in the advanced stages of con- 
sumption, and in organic diseases of the liver, when the 
stomach has been very irritable. In pregnant women it has 
been retained, while every other article of diet was rejected. I 
can recommend it as convenient, palatable, and easy of diges- . 
tion. (Signed) James A. Sewell, A.M., M.D. 
