MARCH 237 



they used to be. A well cared-for baby has its little 

 gums wiped out every day with a soft rag, which is then 

 burnt. This plan is safer than the soft little bit of sponge 

 sold for the purpose, as sponges are difficult to keep per- 

 fectly olean, even if well washed and dried. The following 

 is the receipt for the mixture with which this should be 

 done, and which makes the baby smack its lips : Mix 

 one teaspoonful of powdered borax with two teaspoonfuls 

 of cold water, and add three ounces of glycerine. Shake 

 the bottle well, and the mixture is ready for use. In the 

 oase of a baby that has been neglected, and when the 

 mouth has become really bad, it should be washed out 

 with warm water several times a day after food. 



There is still a strong prejudice in England against 

 boiling and sterilising milk ; but, in the face of the recent 

 revelations as regards tuberculosis in cows, I trust this 

 will become less and less. The German patents are to be 

 got at all chemists'. Soxhlet's apparatus is one of the 

 best, I believe, but new sterilisers are constantly being 

 brought out ; and when once understood the process gives 

 no more trouble than any other careful preparation of 

 babies' food. To give children and invalids raw milk does 

 seem a most cruel risk. I know many young people who 

 say they would rather die than drink boiled milk. If 

 they were brought up from babyhood on cooked milk, I 

 am sure that this feeling would disappear. I copy the 

 following extract on this subject of milk-sterilising from 

 a lecture (published in the ' Journal of State Medicine,' 

 January 1899) on ' The Administrative Control of Tubercu- 

 losis,' by Sir Richard Thome Thorne, Medical Officer of 

 the Local Government Board, as it interests and concerns 

 far more people than the mere management and health of 

 cows, although this is the chief point of Sir Richard's 

 clear and admirable lecture. The extract may seem 

 rather long, but I feel compelled to copy it, as it may 



