56 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



THE PEST OF FOXES IN THE COUNTRY. 



For some time past the farmers at Muckleford and Walmer 

 have been successful in destroying foxes by distributing slices of 

 poisoned apples upon their properties. The robbers have never- 

 theless committed great havoc in the poultry yards, and large 

 numbers of turkeys and fowls are reported to have been killed by 

 foxes within the past few weeks. The pests are also numerous at 

 Sandy Creek, and in the vicinity of Mount Tarrangower, where 

 similiar depredations have been committed upon farmyards. 



Considerable attention is being given to the increase in the 

 number of foxes in the Bacchus Marsh neighbourhood. Opinions 

 are divided as to whether the good they undoubtedly do in 

 destroying young rabbits is not counterbalanced by their destruc- 

 tion of sheep and poultry. At the Ballan Council meeting on 

 Monday the statement was made that ten foxes had been seen 

 bailing up a flock of sheep. The Council approved of the 

 proposal that all shires should be compelled to pay 5s. per scalp 

 for fox scalps. — Argus. 



It is a well-known fact in biology that bacteria and bacilli 

 absorb anilin and are killed by it. Two German observers — 

 Stilling and Wort man — have recently considered the possibility 

 of utilizing this property in medical treatment (Humboldt ). The 

 diffusibility and harmlessness of violet anilin dyes (called, for 

 brevity, " methyl-violet ") without arsenic, in small doses, were 

 first demonstrated on rabbits and guinea-pigs. Then certain 

 eye-disorders were produced in those animals, and treated with 

 anilin solution, the results bein^ excellent. The authors pro- 

 ceeded to operate on the human subject. A skin-ulcer on a 

 scrofulous child, which had been treated for a month with the 

 ordinary antiseptic agents without success, was gradually healed 

 by daily dropping a little anilin solution on the sore ; and similar 

 good results were had with bad cases of eye-disease. It soon 

 appeared that many surgical cases were open to successful 

 treatment in this way ; and that, in general, wounds and sores 

 developing suppuration could be sterilized with anilin. It is 

 also thought that cases of internal inflammation, as in pleuritis 

 and peritonitis, may prove to be not beyond the reach of this 

 order of treatment. — Nature. 



Erratum. — In the July number, p. 36, 1. 34, by a transposition 

 of sentences it is stated that the genus Sternocera is almost con- 

 fined to Australia and Polynesia. It was intended to state that 

 the genus is confined nearly to India and Africa. 



