— 54 — 



and cold-blooded animals, bacteria, blood, albumen, and milk, as well 

 as upon human beings. He found that the effects of the oil were 

 those common to most essential oils, viz., in the case of animals: in- 

 dications of paralysis, hemolysis, arrestation of bacterial development, 

 precipitation of albumen, acidification of the milk, etc. But all these 

 symptoms were only observed in slight degree, and only when large 

 doses were administered. Special comparative experiments on warm 

 and cold-blooded animals, both normal specimens and others whose 

 reflex- excitations had been increased by the administration of spastic 

 poisons, such as brucine, showed that cypress oil, in both experimental 

 series, causes a reduction, and in certain circumstances a cessation, 

 both of the normal and of the pathologically increased reflex- excitation, 

 and that it allays attacks of paralysis. These effects supplied the 

 author with a reason for the favourable action of inhalation of cypress 

 oil vapour in cases of infantile whooping cough, such as had been 

 observed by him, and, in like manner, at an earlier date by Solt- 

 mann 1 ). Winterseel reports altogether on 14 cases of pertussis of 

 children at ages varying from 5 weeks to 10 years. In all these 

 cases relief was obtained when cypress oil vapour was inhaled for 

 a sufficiently long time. The attacks diminished both in violence and 

 frequency; bleeding from the nose and vomiting were reduced, and 

 the patients' appetite and weight increased. In a few cases the fre- 

 quency of the attacks was reduced by more that one -half within a 

 few days of the commencement of the cypress oil treatment, and 

 after from 2 to 4 weeks they, only occurred sporadically. When the 

 use of the oil was temporarily suspended the frequency of the attacks 

 of coughing increased again, exactly as was observed by Soltmann 

 at the time. With regard to the excellent services rendered by the 

 oil in whooping-cough, Winterseel associates himself entirely with the 

 statements of Soltmann, which he quotes textually. Similar good results 

 have also been observed in other quarters. 



Elemi Oil, Manila. In amplification of previous notes 2 ) we 

 take from a lengthy paper by Bacon 3 ) in the first place the reference 

 to the original publication, in which Merrill finally and definitely 

 recognised Canarium luzonicum (Miq.) A. Gray as the plant from 

 which the Philippine elemi resin is derived 4 ). In opposition to 

 Tschirch, who distinguished three varieties of Manila elemi, viz., hard, 

 soft, and Tacamahac elemi, Bacon declares that Manila elemi in the 

 fresh state, as taken from the tree, is always soft and only becomes 



2 ) Therapie der Gegenw., March 1904; Report April 1904, 36; October 1904, 22. 



2 ) Report April 1907, 41; October 1907, 37- 



8 ) Philippine Journ. of Sc. 4 (1909), A, 93. 



4 ) Gov. Lab. Pub. 29 (1905), 51. 



