Anaesthetics 47 



municated this to Dr. Day, and now publish his 

 answer, the reason will be obvious : 



LETTER FROM DR. JOHN DAY. 



" YARRA STREET, GEELONG, 



" September 14, 1874. 

 " MY DEA.R DR. HALFORD, 



" Many thanks for your communication regarding 

 the spectroscopic appearance of venous blood after the addi- 

 tion of peroxide of hydrogen. 



" I congratulate you on having made the discovery, and 

 consider it to be one of very great importance, whether 

 regarded from a chemical or physiological point of view. 



" I have often noticed on adding peroxide of hydrogen to 

 a solution of blood, that it has given it a bright scarlet colour, 

 but beyond that I have not gone. 



" As you know, Schonbein's theory was, that the colour- 

 ing matter of the blood possessed the property of trans- 

 forming ordinary atmospheric oxygen into ozone. More 

 modern chemists would perhaps say, that the colouring 

 matter of the blood reduces peroxide of hydrogen, and 

 converts it into common oxygen and water, but assuming 

 this to be the case, the oxygen is in a nascent, and con- 

 sequently in an active state. 



" I hope you will bring the matter before the Medical 

 Society, or some other learned body. 



" Yours faithfully, 



"JOHN DAY." 



Chloral Hydrate. 



In May 1871, I began experimenting with chloral 

 hydrate. 



EXPERIMENT. 



Injected slowly forty grains dissolved in warm water 

 into the jugular vein of a lively middle-sized dog. 



