448 ON THE CONTAGION OF ITCH Oil MANGE. 
after the last friction, through the aid of the microscope, insects 
in plump condition, and seeming to be torpid ; nor was it until 
we brought them into a larger field of the microscope that we 
discovered they were dead. The eggs did not appear to have 
undergone any alteration. The itching had completely ceased. 
The four patients complain of an insufferable heat of skin, 
obliging them to scratch. At length, an itchy eruption break- 
ing out upon the limbs and trunk, vesicular upon the hands, 
attest that if the sulphur, united with the oil, has proved a 
veritable poison for the insects, it is not without having proved 
a strong irritant to the skin submitted to its contact. The four 
patients took daily bran baths for three days, and, as their re- 
covery appeared questionable, they rubbed themselves with 
the hospital ointment, and went out twelve days after their 
admission. 
C. — Frictions with azotate of potass, 5 ounces; charcoal, 
2 ounces; oil, 10 ounces. Two itched subjects are submitted 
to the action of this ointment, and present, twelve days after the 
second friction, acarus dead and plump. An acute inflamma- 
tion is set up in the regions rubbed ; the topical action is mani- 
fest, without at the same time appearing sufficient to assure the 
cure. Some baths operate favourably upon the artificial irrita- 
tion, and hospital ointment puts the patients out of the reach of 
relapse. 
D. — Frictions with gunpowder, 200 grains, and oil 300 grains. 
The gunpowder, powdered and mixed with the greasy body, has 
often been employed by soldiers on a campaign ; it was, there- 
fore, not without interest that we set about to ascertain the ope- 
ration of a medicament which they have instantly at hand. 
The itch became perfectly cured in five patients submitted to 
frictions with it; but there were heat and eruptions produced 
which tardily yielded to bran baths. 
E. - — Frictions with equal parts of sulphur and gunpowder, 
and five parts of oil, which was also found to be a poison for 
the acarus. 
From these and other experiments, Dr. Bourguignon has come 
to the conclusions, — 1. That a great number of medicaments 
possess in different degrees the property of curing itch, such as 
sulphur, the salts having potass for their base, gunpowder, oil 
of tar, the animal oil of Dippel, and oil of turpentine; 2. That 
three of the principal of these, the ointment of sulphur and gun- 
powder, juniper oil, and the sulphuro-alcaline of Helmerick, are 
superior to the others. Of these, we give the preference to 
juniper oil ( I'huile de ccede). 
The practice of making two general frictions for a quarter of 
