414     EFFECTS  OF  LIGHTNING— LIQUID  NITROUS  OXIDE  GAS. 
If  by  accident  water  should  get  into  the  pipe  by  which  the  gas  enters 
the  receiver,  it  can  be  drawn  off  by  the  little  screw-plug  at  the  bottom  of 
the  holder. 
EFFECTS  OF  LIGHTNING. 
M.  Becquerel  related  to  the  Academy  the  fact  that  during  the 
violent  storm  of  June  21,  a  workman  who  was  at  some  distance 
from  the  point  struck  by  the  lightning,  underwent  a  violent 
shock,  from  the  effects  of  which  he  did  not  recover  for  two  days. 
All  the  nails  were  torn  out  from  the  sole  of  one  of  his  boots, 
which  M.  Becquerel  exhibited  as  a  proof  of  the  occurrence. 
Several  academicians  cited  similar  facts,  and,  among  others,  M. 
E.  de  Beaumont  an  instance  of  where  the  nails  were  torn  out 
from  the  butt-ends  of  muskets.  M.  Morin  also  alluded  to  a  pile 
of  balls  placed  near  a  powder  depot  that  was  overturned  two 
successive  days  during  two  storms  which  destroyed  the  lightning 
conductor.  Marshall  Vaillant  also  mentioned  the  case  of  a  man 
struck  by  lightning,  one  of  whose  shoes,  picked  up  at  a  great 
distance,  was  found  to  have  had  all  its  nails  drawn.- — Med. 
Times  and  Cf-az.,  July  11,  1868,  in  Medical  News. 
LIQUID  NITROUS  OXIDE  GAS. 
Nitrous  oxide  gas  for  anaesthetic  purposes  has  been  obtained 
in  a  new  form.  Dr.  Evans,  of  Paris,  who  was  one  of  the  first 
experimenters  with  the  gas,  has  brought  over  nitrous  oxide 
liquefied  by  the  combined  agency  of  compression  and  cold.  The 
liquid  nitrous  oxide  is  contained  in  an  hermetically  sealed  vessel, 
in  shape  something  like  a  small  cannon,  made  of  gun  metal.  On 
turning  a  tap  the  fluid  escapes,  and  immediately  volatilizes  with 
intense  cold.  For  anaesthetic  purposes  it  may  be  conveniently 
received  in  a  "  Clover's  bag."  The  gas  thus  liberated  has  been 
administered  by  Mr.  Clover  in  four  dental  cases,  and  in  a  case 
of  strabismus  operated  on  by  Mr.  Haynes  Walton.  Mr.  Clover 
informs  us  that  he  still  retains  his  confidence  in  the  safety  of 
this  agent.  He  has  now  given  it  in  two  hundred  and  fifty  cases 
without  the  slightest  misadventure,  and  he  has  no  reason  to  re- 
gard it  as  specially  dangerous. — Med.  Times  and  Graz.  July  11, 
1868,  in  Medical  News. 
