I UAH'S i .; . tgig 



NATURE 



465 



mention of the extremi nd kindness shown 



bj the Austi ian ph) si< ists, in particula 

 Din d Prof. Hei 



Mache, and th< other gentlemen associated with this 

 institute, throughoul the period of m) 

 " ginning of the war. 

 stood li\ me through thick and thin, and were nev< r 

 weary in doing what the) could to alleviate the strain 

 of life undei such unusual conditions. Thanl 

 their intervention on m\ behalf, I was given 

 facility for continuing m\ research work in thi insti- 

 tute, and I have been al all times aided and stimu- 

 in m\ work l>v their helpful criticism and 

 encoui aging intei 1 



Robert W. Lav 



iei ton Fi Il"\ v . of the I nh rsit; 

 of Durham. 

 Vienna Radium institute, January 5. 



Ripple Marks due to High Pressure. 



W1111 e in 1 -< in Ion and • nan guns 



in the Mall, I came across one with a bursl shell in 

 its breech, which is probabl) .1 unique curiosit; 

 possibl) ol valui I others w h 



interested in the flow of solids. The shel.l seems to 

 have bursl while being loaded in and, 



although il is well opened out, on >ortion 



is missing. rhe retained pieces are of inten 

 on their inner surfaces the) are covered with .1 largi 

 number of small patches of very tine ripple marks, 

 must have been product' under the intense 

 pressure of t In explosion, for it is well known that 

 the insides of shells an- turned smooth, polished, and 

 varnished. It is, of course, difficult to say whether 

 a stud) oi thesi ripple marks will prove of scientific 

 value, Inn se< ing that th irepn habl) 



si d to the rain, and 1 que ripple marks 



may soon corrode away, 1 should liki to suggest thai 



this particular gun and its shell should be | ted 



-1 further injury by being remo ed to 

 urn, or, perha i , . Servio Institu- 



tion. ( -"- E. Stromi 



Lancefield, 1 sbury, February 6. 



II 1 A' \.:i ROSES AND "MIRACLE 

 ((RES 



IN a London daily paper there appeared recently 

 a dramatic account of a blind Italian soldiei 

 suddenly recovering his sight at the door oi the 



church where his bride awaited him. It is not 

 generally known that similar "miracles" occur 

 in ibis country, and the present writer has been 

 fortunate in witnessing them in considerable 

 number. A briet accounl oi these conditions 

 where the disability is rapidly curable is nol with- 

 out interest, for the wat has produced thousands 

 of such cases, and it is a startling fact thai many 

 sufferers have been discharged from the \rmy as 

 "permanently unfit" who might otherwise be 

 doing useful work. To remedy this state of affairs 

 l neurological hospitals have been estab- 

 lished, where the study and treatment of war 

 neuroses can be carried out. The recognition that 

 Certain disablements are partly or wholly func- 

 tional is of the greatest importance, for what at 

 first might appear a hopeless condition becomes 

 one that is curable, or, at any rate, can be 

 markedly alleviated. Much original work on this 

 subjei t lias been done by Babinski, in Paris, and by 

 XO. 2572, VOL. I02] 



Lt.-Col. Hurst, at Seale Hayne Neurological Hos- 

 pital, Newton Abbot. Some interesting stati 



entl ed al the latter institution. 



It was found thai th 1, ngth ol time 



during which one hundred soldiers bad been com- 

 pleter) in. apai itated owing to d 1 g-s or 

 arms was eleven months, ["hi avi ig< length of 



time taken I.. ,me mnot\-si\ ,,| these was fiftV- 



minutes. Of the remaining four, one took 



one month, two were cured in three weeks, while 



ihc fourth required four days brim, recovery was 



obtained. The rapidity of the cure was <\w to the 



that the disabilities were recognised as being 



nol Organic, bill functional, in ehaiailci b 

 treatment was carried out. 



Tlie origin of a functional disability in a soldier 

 lias both a physical and a psychical foundation. 

 Few, il any, cases have boon recorded as the 

 result of the fighting in South Africa, 1899-1902. 

 The conditions, however, under which the soldier 

 fought in the present war have been wholly 

 different. 



Trench warfare lor prolonged periods under the 

 most adverse climatic conditions, the high ex- 

 plosives causing concussion and burial, profound 

 exhaustion following continued marching and 

 fighting, with all the accompanying revolting 

 sights of war, the strain of responsibility, and the 

 suppression of emotions, are only some of the 

 factors to be borne in mind with regard to the 

 causation of nervous instability. It is worthy of 

 bat there is frequently no history whatever 

 of previous nervous trouble in the soldier who 

 eventual!} succumbs to the stress and strain of 

 military service. The ordeal through which he 

 has pissed tends to make him more impression- 

 able or suggestible, and symptoms of hysteria are 

 liable to supervene. 



At Scale Hayne Hospital the term "hysteria" 

 is used to describe any disability produced by 

 auto- in- hetero-suggestion which is curable by 

 psychotherapy, by which is meant the treatment 

 by explanation to the patient as to how the 

 abnormal condition was brought about, and bow 

 il can be cured. His confidence must be obtained, 

 and the explanation made simple enough for him 

 to understand. This may be followed up, in 

 certain cases, by re-education of muscles, active 

 and passive movements, and persuasion. This 

 definition will be more readily understood if a 

 few cases, or types of cases, frequently met with 

 an very briefly described. 



A soldier sprained his ankle and immediately 

 afterwards was rendered unconscious by the ex- 

 plo on of a shell. On recovering consciousness 

 ind he had lost the power in his legs. The 

 concussion or shock had, for the time, paralysed 

 him, and there may have been some actual 

 damage to his spinal cord. The time came, how- 

 ever, when these organic changes bail passed 

 away; but the patient was convinced in his own 

 mind that he was permanently injured, and had 

 given up trying to walk properly. Eight months 

 after the onset of his symptoms the loss of power 

 and the drop foot were recognised as being func- 



