1882.] 



MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 



235 



who has discovered that all narcotics 

 — opium and its preparations, hash- 

 eesh, etc., as well as tobacco — act in 

 a peculiar manner upon the colored 

 corpuscles of the blood, producing 

 the phenomenon styled crenation ; 

 that is, the margin of the corpuscle, 

 instead of possessing the absolute 

 regularity of margin noticed in the 

 condition of health, presents a series 

 of scallops somewhat irregular in their 

 distribution. When viewed by oblique 

 light under the microscope, this ap- 

 pearance is found to be due to the 

 conversion of the corpuscle into a 

 minute sac, apparently containing 

 some hundreds of spherical bodies 

 about one four-thousandth of a milli- 

 metre in diameter. In a few hours 

 the sac ruptures and the imprisoned 

 germs or organisms escape into the 

 surrounding plasma to form bacteria 

 when the conditions are favorable. 

 A few such crenated corpuscles, in 

 the proportion of one to three hun- 

 dred and fifty, occur in the circula- 

 tion of persons in normal health, not 

 addicted to narcotics, but in the opi- 

 um and tobacco habits, when of long 

 standing, the ratio is sometimes as 

 high as one degenerated corpuscle to 

 ten healthy ones, and often attains 

 the figure of one to twenty-five or 

 thirty * ******* 



" An incident illustrating the sequel 

 of this appearance in the blood oc- 

 curred a few months ago in the office 

 of a manufacturing optician of this 

 city. As the professor of microscopy 

 in one of our medical colleges 

 dropped in, a gentleman of evidently 

 large wealth and finished intellectual 

 culture was just leaving the office 

 with a cigar between his lips. He 

 was a wealthy amateur, and had 

 selected a valuable microscope, using 

 a drop of blood from his own finger 

 as a test object. The instrument was 

 still adjusted and the slide still be- 

 neath the lens. The professor glanced 

 at it ; he moved the slide to and fro, 

 so as to study one field after another ; 

 then counted a few fields, and made 

 a rapid computation. The optician 



looked on in astonishment. ' That, 

 gentleman is one of our best custom- 

 ers,' he said ; 'buys more heavily 

 than half a dozen professors.' ' And 

 this is a drop of his blood ? ' inquired 

 the man of science musingly. The 

 purveyor of lenses assented. * Very 

 well,' replied the professor, * tell your 

 best customer, if you can without 

 impertinence, that unless he stops 

 smoking at once he has not many 

 months to live.' But he did not stop. 

 A few weeks later he went to Europe, 

 thinking a sea voyage might recruit 

 his wasted energies. 



" In a few weeks more his death 

 was announced by telegraph from 

 Paris." 



EDITORIAL. 



Subscriptions. — Remittances for subscrip- 

 tions should be made by post-office or express money- 

 orders, by drafts payable in New York, orin registered 

 letters. Money sent in any other way will be at the 

 sender's risk. A receipt will be immediately given for 

 money received bjjopen mail. 



The Journal is issued on the 15th day of each 

 month. Subscribers who do not receive their copies 

 at the usual time are requested to inform the Pub- 

 lisher of the fact. 



To OUR Readers. — This number 

 completes the third volume of this 

 Journal. To our friends, and to 

 the many constant readers we have 

 throughout the country, we extend 

 our hearty thanks for the assistance 

 they have given to the Journal, 

 during the early and uncertain period 

 of its existence. To their liberality 

 and confidence is due the present 

 standing of this paper. In return we 

 can only say that it is our desire to 

 make the Journal still more worthy 

 of their support and interest during 

 the coming year. 



To all of them we wish a merry 

 Christmas, and a prosperous, happy 

 New Year. 



Exchange-bureau. — There seems 

 to be some misapprehension about 

 the relations of the pubUsher of 

 this paper and" the Exchange-bureau, 



