Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Feb.,  1884. 
Varieties. 
121 
properly  applied,  this  solution  will  effect  a  cure  of  the  gonorrhoea  within 
from  eight  to  ten  days  after  it  has  been  resorted  to. 
Use  of  Milk  Sugar. — Dr.  V.  Poulain  believes  that  the  reason  that 
cow's  milk  so  often  disagrees  with  children  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that 
cane  sugar  is  used  to  sweeten  it.  In  the  British  Med.  Jour.,  June  30,  1883, 
he  says  that  for  thirty-three  years  he  has  used  the  sugar  of  milk  with  the 
best  results. — New  Eng.  Med.  Monthly,  January,  1884,  p.  190. 
Paraldehyde  —  Acetal  —  Cannabindm  Tannicum.  —  Dr.  Eickholt 
contributes  an  article  on  these  drugs  to  the  Deutsche  Med.  Woch.,  Decem- 
ber 5,  1883.  The  two  first  he  does  not  like,  considering  them  uncertain  as 
hypnotics,  and  that  they  possess  injurious  properties  (such  as  deranging 
digestion,  producing  nausea,  and  the  like),  that  more  than  counterbalance 
their  virtues.  Cannabinum  tannicum  (derived  from  Indian  hemp),  in 
doses  of  i  to  1  grain,  he  considers  especially  useful  in  neurasthenic  insom- 
nia, and  in  mild  melancholia  without  delusions,  but  not  in  excitable  con- 
ditions.  It  does  not  derange  digestion  — Med.  and  Surg.  Rep.,  Jan.  19, 1884. 
Artificial  Urea  as  a  Substitute  for  Quinine.— The  Jour,  d' Hy- 
giene reports  that  Dr.  Belvousoff,  of  Charkow,  Russia,  has  used  artificial 
urea  (carbamide)  as  a  remedy  for  intermittent  fever  in  place  of  quinine. 
It  is  almost  tasteless,  and  does  not  depress  the  nervous  system.  In  South- 
ern Russia,  the  peasants  have  used  urine  as  a  febrifuge  for!rcenturies  ;  this 
has  suggested  the  rational  use  of  urea. — Med.  and  Surg.  Rep.,  Jan.  12,  1884. 
Salicylage. — This  is  the  term  applied  to  the  practice  resorted  to  in 
Paris  of  using  salicylic  acid  as  a  preservative  of  food  and  drinks.  The 
question  of  its  injurious  effects  was  recently  referred  by  the  government  to 
Prof.  Brouardel,  who  reports  as  follows  :  1.  The  daily  use  of  even  the 
smallest  dose  of  salicylic  acid  is  unsafe,  its  innocuity  not  having  been  as 
yet  demonstrated.  2.  It  is  certainly  dangerous  for  the  subjects  of  lesions 
of  the  kidneys  or  of  the  liver  from  old  age  or  by  some  degenerative  process. 
3.  The  prohibition  of  salicylage  should  be  strictly  maintained. — Med.  and 
Surg.  Pep.,  Jan.  19,  1884. 
Pilocarpine. — Dr.  James  Murphy  considers  the  §use  of  pilocarpine,  on 
account  of  its  diuretic  and  diaphoretic  properties,  a  valuable  adjuvant  in 
the  treatment  of  puerperal  eclampsia,  as  it  reduces  arterial  tension  at  once, 
and  gives  our  other  remedies  time  to  act.  He  reports  two  cases,  in  which 
it  acted  very  favorably,  in  the  "Am.  Jour.  Obstetrics,"  Dec,  1883.  He  used 
it  hypodermically  in  doses  of  J  of  a  grain. — Med.  and  Surg.  Rep.,  Jan.  12. 
Verbascum  Thapsus.— Dr.  F.  J.  B.  Quinlan  ("Brit.  Med.  Jour.,"  Dec. 
8, 1883)  reports  a  case  of  pre-tubercular  phthisis  in  which  the  patient  gained 
twelve  pounds  in  weight  in  one  month  under  the  use  of  mullein.  He  con- 
siders that  it  possesses  all  the  advantages  and  none  of  the  drawbacks  of 
cod  liver  oil.    (See  also  "Amer.  Jour.  Phar.,"  1883,  pp.  267  and  580.) 
