46 
POPULAR SOIEI^rCE JTEWS. 
[March, 1891. 
to the operation, it is due to the experimenter to 
say that lie lias been in no way, directly or indi- 
rectly, connected with it. With an honest and 
humane purpose of benefiting a liopeless cripple, 
and with a becomingly tender regard for the lower 
animal. Dr. Phelps determined upon a new de- 
parture in surgery, the results of which are given 
elsewhere in our columns. He had, apparently, 
sufflcient grounds, after careful investigation of 
the issues at stake, to warrant a trial of his the- 
ory. Notwithstanding actual union of bone with 
bone did not occur, such a possibility, with ditl'er- 
ent conditions and surroundings, is reasonal)ly 
hopeful. In this, particular instance sufficient 
time was not allowed for the completion of sucli a 
process. An interesting fact, however, was that 
the soft parts promptly responded to the effort, 
and demonstrated not only that tissues of diflerent 
species could be made to unite, but that a circula- 
tion could also be established between animals of 
different species without danger to either. 
The application of the principle to reparative 
surgery is one which maj' open a field for future 
study and experiment, and may result in wide- 
ranged usefulness to liumanity. The possibilities 
in these directions obviously cannot yet be deter- 
mined, until better means and opportunities are 
afforded to secure the end. If, hoping beyond 
this, we can look forward to a corresponding 
union of more solid parts, if bone can be made 
to grow to bone, the advance in the trciitment of 
ununited fracture will be pronounced and radical. 
In view of the good that may accrue from success 
in similar trials, they should not be abandoned 
merely to satisfy the demands of the so-called hu- 
mane societies. The charge of cruelty to animals 
no longer applies to experimentation in these di- 
rections. Even in tlie instance in question, which 
has been so severely and unjustly criticised by the 
sensational press, the operation was earnestly so- 
licited by the patient. The animal from beginning 
to end suffered no pain, nor appreciable discom- 
fort aside from restriction of movements. 
It is true the dog lost a paw, but it was in a 
worthy cause. The value of a dog's leg compared 
with that of a human limb, and possibly a human 
life, should not admit of any argument. If we 
contrast the care for the comfort of the animal 
with the treatment which she might receive upon 
the street, with the ruthless dog-pound at the end 
of her caneer, there can hardly be a question that 
she received the merited reward of a higher and 
nobler mission than that of a simple cur born to be 
kicked, starved, and finally choked. 
MEGALOCEPHALIA, OK SWELLED HEAD. 
The Maryland Medical Journal discusses edi- 
torially the two varieties of this disorder. The 
congenital variety is so well known that it re- 
quires no notice. Concerning the acquired type 
of the disease, it is said that it aft'ects persons of 
moderate abilities who have been suddenly, through 
the Influence of friends, raised to positions of emi- 
nence and responsibility. It is said that cases are 
frequently met with in the health depaitments of 
our cities and states. The brains of tlie uuhappj' 
subjects of this sad complaint were formed and 
educated for the performance of quiet, unexciting 
labor in the small trades, and their possessors did 
well and respectably in such spheres of life. Being 
suddenly elevated, through political or similar 
Influences, to posts of great responsibility for 
which they were in no wise fitted, their brain-cells 
were unequal to the strain, and various unhealthy 
forms of thought and action made their appear- 
ance. The}' began to act as if they were bosses, 
instead of servants, of the public, and as if mere 
perfunctory performance of their duties rendered 
them sacred and above criticism. The prognosis 
in this form is very unfavorable, hopeless in the 
congenital variety, hopeless in the acquired vari- 
ety unless the patient quickly returns to his foi- 
mer sphere and stays there. Apart from this, all 
treatment is useless. 
MEDICAI> MISCELLANY. 
"The Jolly Bacillus." — A coffee-house, with 
pretty waitresses, has opened in Berlin, bearing 
over its portals a sign consisting of Kocli"s por- 
trait, with the inscription, " The Jolly Bacillus." 
The following placard hangs in a Los Angeles 
store window : 
Peppermint lie for 
Hed ake 
BelUe „ 
Tooth „ 
• 
The Reason WAS Apparent.— Lawyer : "On 
what ground do you seek a divorce?" Female 
client : " My husband is an amateur photographer, 
and — " Lawyer: "That will do. We'll have no 
trouble about it. My \a ife has the craze, too, and 
I've been taking my meals at a restaurant for two 
weeks." 
Prevention of Flea Bites.— A writer in the 
British Medical Journal says : In my travelling-bag 
I hal)itually carry a small bottle of carbolic acid, 
on account of the torment which a chance flea in- 
flicts on me. If attacked, I take two or three 
pieces of waste paper, and upon each put a few 
drops of the strong acid, then roll them up and 
place them in diflferent places around me in bed. 
This effectually ends the annoyance. I think the 
pungent "disinfecting'' acid is the most effectual. 
Italian Quacks and the Lymph. — An Italian 
correspondent, writing from Milan, states that 
Koch's discovery is there degraded in a highly dis- 
graceful manner. Circulars are sent round by ob- 
scure doctors, announcing that they have just re- 
ceived a sufficient supply of Koch's lymph, with 
which they are prepared to cure consumptive pa- 
tients. T"he lymph is in no case genuine, and yet 
phthisical patients, of whom there are many in 
Milan, flock to fill the coff'ers of those medical chev- 
aliers d'industrie. The authorities have as yet 
taken no step to prevent or punish this abuse. 
The following is a translation of the inscription on 
the signboard of a "dispensary": "Teeth ex- 
tracted, corns cut, and tuberculosis cured after 
Professor Koch's method." — British Medical Jour- 
nal. 
Everyuay Hints for the General Prac- 
titioner. — A Tennessee doctor is credited with 
delivering two children with a pair of shoemaker's 
pincers, using the curved handles as obstetric for- 
ceps. 
An Alabama doctor tells about a patient of his 
with neuralgia, who took a sharp-cornered rock 
and broke a hole through his cranium and poured 
swamp water in to cool off' his brain. 
In a case of double compound fracture of the 
hips, "Country Doctor'' writes us that, not hav- 
ing any apparatus handy, he had the patient 
placed in a plain coffin, which supported the bones 
well and gave good results. 
In a case of severe hemorrhage from the stom- 
ach, in a patient fifteen miles from his office or any 
drug store, the doctor, having no remedies at hand, 
did nothing. The patient immediately began to 
improve, and ultimately made a good recovery. 
A young man suff'ered violently from hiccough 
whenever he ate onions. Our correspondent asks 
for suggestions as to treatment. — Medical Secord. 
The Popular Science News 
Boston Journal of Chemistry. 
A Monthly Journal devoted to the popular 
presentation of all the branches of 
Physical and Natural Science, and 
the results of the latest dis- 
coveries and investigations. 
Popular Science News Company, 
publishers, 
5 Somerset Street, Boston. 
SETH C. BASSETT, - . Manager. 
8UBSCEIPTI0N RATES. 
One Dollar per year, post paid. One Dollar and Twenty- 
five Centa to foreign countries in Postal Union. 
ptiblisl^ei's' ©olun^ij). 
Save us from the critics, but bless the pen, especially If 
ESTEKBEOOK Is Stamped upon it. The stationers furnish 
them. 
SUBSCKIPTIONS are due for 1891. Those who have paid 
will find their address label reads '92. All money received 
to February 26 Is credited on this month's label. 
Physicians, pharmacists, families, and individuals will 
find something of especial interest in the advertisement of 
the Tyer Rubber Co., published in this issue of the 
Science News. 
In 1879 a Boyle Ice Machine was erected at Atlanta, 
on a new plan, making ice from distilled water; and so 
carefully was It designed, that it proved a most perfect suc- 
cess, and has been the model after which all the Boyle Ice 
machines have been built since then. 
The Gbeen Olive Oil Soap, made at the Isle of Zante, In 
the Grecian Archipelago, Is a delightfully pure, clean, and 
fragrant article, and If once tried will be always used. By 
following the directions given in the advertisement, a large 
sample may be obtained at a trifling cost. 
The Arm of T. Metcalf & Co. is one of the oldest and 
best known in Boston, and physicians can always he sure 
of finding at their store the latest pharmaceutical discoveries 
and novelties. They also manufacture a number of special- 
ties, among which Agnine, the new basis for ointments, 
etc., holds a prominent place. 
KiOGE's Pool) has been before the public for so many 
years that it has become a standard article, and hardly 
needs any recommendation other than that of the thousands 
of persons who have used it. The sales are constantly in- 
creasing, and the factory of Messrs. WoOLEICH & Co. Is 
pushed to Its utmost capacity. 
Fkothingham's Aperient is what you need for spring. 
The Excelsior, unlike many other compounds. Is per- 
fectly harmless from any bad effect upon the system. It be- 
ing nourishing and strengthening, and acts directly on the 
blood. By quieting the nervous system, it also secures 
sound sleep at night. See advertisement. 
Phosphorole, as prepared by Billings, Clapp & Co., 
is a most valuable combination of cod liver oil, hypophos- 
phltes, and unoxidized phosphorus. By comblniug the lat- 
ter element wltli the oil, any danger of irritation is reduced 
to a minimum, and the phosphorus is placed In a condition 
perfectly adapted to a rapid assimilation by the system, and 
a prompt production of the desired therapeutical effects. 
Colden's Liquid Bkef Tonic— This excellent prepara- 
tion has become deservedly popular with the medical pro- 
fession in the treatment of diseases where an agreeable ar, 
tide of diet and tonics are required. It Is recommended in 
typhoid and malarial fevers, consumption, loss of appetite, 
and debility induced by any cause, and it is tolerated when 
other forms of animal food are rejected. We invite those 
who have used not it to try it.— Maryland Medical Journal. 
