^°M£ch,iStf°'"}    Abstracts  from  the  French  Journals.  141 
every  four  hours  until  pain  has  ceased.  Between  the  attacks  3  doses 
of  1  gm.  each  should  be  taken  daily  with  meals,  and  the  treatment 
should  be  continued  for  several  months  with  interruptions  of  one  or 
two  weeks. — Union  phar,,  Jan.,  1888. 
A  Very  Sexsitite  Reagext  to  the  Salts  of  Copper  consists 
of  a  mixture  of  pyrogallic  acid  with  a  solution  of  sulphate  of  sodium. 
With  traces  of  copper  the  reagent  gives  a  characteristic  vermilion 
color. — Repert  de  Pharm.,  Jan.,  1888. 
Nickel  Baths  for  plating  are  recommended  by  L'Echo  des  Mines 
et  de  la  Metallurgie  in  accordance  with  the  following  formula  :  Sul- 
phate of  nickel,  1  kilo ;  neutral  tartrate  of  ammonium,  725  gm. ;  ether- 
ized tannic  acid,  5  gm.;  water,  20  kilogm.  The  neutral  tartrate  of 
ammonium  is  obtained  by  saturating  a  solution  tartaric  acid  with 
ammonia.  The  nickel  salt  must  be  rigidly  neutralized.  All  is  dis- 
solved in  two  or  three  litres  of  water,  and  boiled  for  about  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  an  amount  of  water  being  afterward  added  to  make  twenty 
litres,  when  the  liquid  is  filtered  or  decanted.  The  Liquor  may  be 
used  indefinitely  by  supplying  the  same  substances  in  the  same  pro- 
portions. Under  a  comparatively  weak  current  of  electricity  it  deposits 
a  thick  coating  of  nickel  upon  all  metals  in  a  very  short  time.  The 
deposit  is  very  white,  ductile  and  homogeneous,  and  makes  a  smooth 
surface,  free  from  scales,  etc.  The  process  will  give  heavy  deposits 
upon  plain  or  polished  castings  at  a  cost  but  a  trifle  greater  than  that 
of  coppering.    The  same  bath  may  be  used  for  nickel  galvanizing. 
Fauxa  of  the  Tomb. — Concerning  this  interesting  but  not  very 
cheerful  subject,  Mr.  P.  Megin  said  at  the  meeting  of  November  14, 
of  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences :  It  is  generally  believed  that  the 
buried  cadaver  is  devoured  by  worms  as  in  the  free  air,  and  that  these 
worms  grow  spontaneously.  We  know,  however,  these  so-called 
worms  are  the  larvse  of  insects  which  arise  from  eggs  deposited  uj^on 
the  cadavers.  They  consist  of  diptera,  coleoptera,  lepidoptera  and 
arachnidse,  and  we  find  that  the  time  chosen  by  these  organisms  for 
the  depositing  of  their  eggs  varies  in  accordance  with  the  degree  of 
decomposition  undergone  by  the  cadaver.  The  time  varies  from  a  few 
minutes  to  two  or  even  three  years  after  death ;  but  the  period  of 
appearance  is  so  regular  and  constant  for  each  species  that  we  may  by 
an  examination  of  the  debris  which  they  leave  decide  upon  the  age  of 
the  cadavers,  that  is,  ascertain  with  exactitude  the  time  of  death. — 
Ifonifeur  Scientifique,  Jan.,  1888. 
