78 Proceedings of Societies. [Feb. 



2. — Medical and Physical Society. 

 4th February, 1832. 



Dr. Madden was elected a Member of the Society : and Dr. William Chalmers, 

 of Croydon ; Mr. 0. Walter, Surgeon, of Dover ; and Senor Don Francisco Xavier 

 Lazo, M. D. Secretary of the Medico-chirurgical Society of Cadiz ; were elected 

 corresponding Members. Hugh Guthrie, Esq. Assistant Surgeon, Bengal Service, 

 requested to return to the Society, and have his name replaced on the list of Mem- 

 bers, agreeable to the resolution passed on the 4th April, 1829, which was com- 

 plied with accordingly. Several communications were then laid before the Society. 



1. — A letter from Dr. J. N. Casanova, a corresponding member, stating that, as 

 he had resolved to reside permanently in Calcutta, he was desirous of being ad- 

 mitted a resident member of the Society, for the purpose of contributing his sub- 

 scriptions, and assisting at the meetings ; he was therefore proposed as a member of 

 the Society, by Mr. Egerton and Mr. Twining. 



2. — A letter from Dr. Milne, of Bombay, enclosing his third communication on 

 Dracunculus, with three reports, numbered 4, 5, and 6, in support of his opinions 

 on that subject. 



3. — A communication from Brigadier O'Halloran to the Secretary, accompanied 

 with the root of a plant similar to that presented at the last Meeting from Dr. 

 Robert Tytler, and said to possess the property of preventing the scorpion from 

 stinging. 



4. — A statement from Mr. Boswell, relative to the benefits he had seen follow the 

 employment of venesection in the cold-stage of Intermittent Fevers, while he was 

 employed with the Artillery at Dum-Dum, where he had employed this treatment 

 in obstinate agues, with invariable success, and only in one instance was obliged to 

 repeat the bleeding in the cold stage. 



5. — A letter from H. Guthrie, Esq. with remarks on a native prescription for 

 ring- worm. 



6. — A letter from J. L. Geddes, Esq. Assistant Surgeon, Madras Service ; with 

 the statement of a case in which the Madar had proved remarkably successful in 

 the cure of an obstinate ulcer. 



7. — A letter from Dr. D. Stewart, of Howrah, stating, that during an excursion 

 to Shikarpur, he had been consulted by a native young man, who had suffered for 

 five years from nasal polypi ; whereby his health had become much impaired, and 

 in fact, the patient was reduced to a skeleton. The disease had acquired an enor- 

 mous bulk, pressing down into the posterior fauces and pharynx, so as to prevent 

 the deglutition of any solid food, and to embarrass the respiration exceedingly ; and 

 probably also to affect the circulation, as the patient suffered from distressing head- 

 aches. The disease was effectually removed by ligature and torsion. 



Dr. Smyttan's Treatise on the varieties of East Indian Opium was read and dis- 

 cussed by the Meeting. Dr. S. observes, that the varieties of East Indian Opium 

 seem to be little known or recognised in Europe, and that good Turkey Opium is 

 said to contain nearly three times the quantity of morphine, or narcotic principle, 

 that is found to be procurable from the product of the Bengal provinces. The best 

 produce of the Malwa districts is said to differ from Bengal Opium, both in appear- 

 ance and quality, quite as much as the Turkey Opium does. Dr. Smyttan's opi- 

 nions are formed from extensive observations made while he was Inspector of Opium 

 at Bombay, compared with the records of that office ; and with the experiments 

 made at Calcutta by the late Dr. Jameison in 1821, which are given with a 



