1888.] Dr Woodhead on ATercuric Salts as Antiseptics. 237 
specimens away in corrosive sublimate solution, has bad ample evid- 
ence of the fact, that a quantity of the albuminate of mercury is 
rapidly formed as a kind of coaguluin. So much is this the case, 
that a large organ put into a saturated sublimate solution will soon 
give up so much albumen to combine with the mercury, that there 
is little or none of the antiseptic material left. This recurs again 
and again, and the organ cannot be satisfactorily preserved unless 
the fluid is changed frequently, and for a considerable period. 
After going carefully into the subject for some little time past, I 
have come to the conclusion that several of the series of experiments 
on the antiseptic properties of bichloride of mercury lose a great 
part of the value claimed for them, for the simple reason that, al- 
though the above conditions have been known, they have been 
ignored, and it has not been borne in mind that the salt has not been 
left in its original condition. 
Whilst working at this salt, and noting that Koch had used with 
such good results the mercuric sulphate and nitrate, the other mer- 
curic salts for which antiseptic properties had been claimed were 
naturally suggested, and I commenced to carry on a series of parallel 
experiments with the biniodide of mercury (red iodide of mercury), 
dissolved in iodide of potassium, and bichloride of mercury. Pro- 
fessor Crum Brown suggested those 6f the cyanide of mercury for a 
similar purpose, but the experiments with that salt are yet incom- 
plete, though I hope to be able to give the results very shortly. 
The following are, briefly, the results of my experiments with the 
two salts used along with materials added to keep them in solu- 
tion : — (In every case ox blood fresh from the abbatoir was used, 
as the albuminous solution. The bichloride and biniodide were 
made up to a strength of 1 to 1000.) The modus operandi was as 
follows : — 50 cc. of the antiseptic fluid was placed in a narrow 
glass jar; to this was added the salt or acid, and then 5 c.c. of 
blood. To test for the mercuric salt remaining after the mixture of 
blood and mercuric salt had been mixed, the mass was filtered, and 
stannous chloride was added to the filtrate. If any mercuric salt was 
left in solution, the characteristic reactions were obtained, a white pre- 
cipitate, gradually turning black, in the case of the bichloride, and 
yellow, turning black on boiling, with the biniodide of mercury. 
On adding 5 c.c. blood to 50 c.c. of corrosive sublimate (1 to 
