The law of 1887, under which the Cochran Medical Police Force, “the finest in the world," was established, was found not to work smoothly. It made a distinction between "Regular" and “irregular” physicians. The statute was contested in the courts, and convictions refused. The next resort was to "shennannagin." The statute was "codified." Some in New York will remember a statute of “codification," or coddling, which was both a fraud and a playing nakedly into the hands of the Old School. The statute of Alabama was codified and coddled surreptitiously, and set anew in operation. Diplomas, it was declared, would now serve for foot-mats. There were not medical societies in many counties. These had to be organized. The "boodle" to be filched in fees from the hapless candidates for medical honors was scented everywhere, and a mushroom-growth of county medical societies came into existence, and each provided with a board of censors. They were to serve as shingles wherewith to batonade fledgeling doctors. Still the plan worked but ill. The members of many of these boards of censors were too illiterate to handle text-books or cope with graduates of the "irregular" colleges. It was found necessary to create a "supervisor," generally a lawyer or book-learned man, on purpose to make the examinations, prepare the reports in decent legal and literary style, and do such other work as was necessary to devolve upon him. He had ten days or less in which to "pump" the candidate, having a room and all conveniences supplied for the time, and at the expense of the candidate. It was certainly a very convenient inquisitorial machine, with a portable blackmailing attendant. 66 Upon this apparatus depends the integrity of the Old-School medical organization in Alabama. "But for this," says Dr. Cochran, more than half the county societies would never have been organized at all; every effort to organize and discipline the profession of the State would be hopeless; in one word, abolish the county boards of medical examiners, and the majority of our county medical societies would probably fall to pieces." Thus, what is true in Alabama, is doubtless true elsewhere. Except the Old-School medical societies are permitted to police the profession and to bleed applicants, and this extortionately, with the aid of shyster lawyers, they would not hold together. So, then, medical legislation is connived at, and the black laws of the earlier years of the century are fished out of their places of desuetude to be enacted anew, so that the Old School can keep alive and fatten upon the substance of the people. For this our legislatures are besieged, and medical men of little repute and paid lobbymen are maintained at State capitals to procure statutes to regulate the practice of medicine. "Trusts" in business are odious to our people; but Trusts in medicine are a hundred fold worse. We declare against the union of Church and State, and experience has shown that we are right in so doing. But the Union being now consummated between Medicine and the State, has all the same elements to make it a yoke upon the necks of the people, and an oppression, as well as usurpation, which "neither we nor our fathers were able to bear." The Supreme Court of Alabama has, however, broken the yoke off the neck of the people of that State. A Doctor Brooks, disregarding the requirements for a censorial inquisition, procured the registering of his diploma by the judge of probate in the county, and began the practice of medicine. He was duly prosecuted, but the Court decided that he had violated no statute that would subject him to criminal prosecution. This was done, December 17, 1889. The Dagon of Old-School Philistinism fell on his face to the earth, hands and feet off, and only the filthy stumps remaining. None were now so vile as to do him reverence. With judges of similar acumen and probity, most and perhaps all, the statutes interfering with physicians, would be similarly emasculated. The war of All the pagan Of course the Medical conflict will be resumed. Independence is not to be won by a single battle. isms, barbarism and imperialism of the former ages have vital issues at stake; and in this medical issue, they recognize the contest with liberty must be fought to the bitter end. The coming Legislature will be infested with a Doctor's lobby. Our friends in Alabama, have been justly elated at what has been achieved. In language often more forcible than elegant, they have made their exultations heard. One of them has broken out in poetry, which space will not permit us to reproduce. Those who enjoy keen satire would do well to write to Dr. Wm. H. Lamar, Auburn, Ala., for a copy of his versicles upon "The Medico-Legal AN OLD-TIME ECLECTIC. SURGICAL PROGRESS. Treatment of Goitre by Injections of Iodoform.-MosetigMoorhof (Wiener Med. Presse, 1890) recommends the parenchymatous injection of iodoform in all soft goitres (Struma follicularis mollis). This variety of struma has been treated in this way, by the author, for ten years, and he has yet to see any unpleasant results. The injections are made under the strictest antiseptic precautions. Fifteen minims to one drachm of the following solution is used: R Iodoform... Ether.... Olive oil... ... 3 j. 3 v. 3 j. The solution should be freshly prepared, transparent, and of a light yellow color. From five to ten injections are usually needed, depending somewhat on the size of the struma. The injections should not be made oftener than once in from three to eight days. The reaction is usually very slight, and absorption continues some time after the last injection.-Jour. Am. Med. Asso., July 19, 1890. Treatment of Snake Bites.—Prof. Kaufmann contributes to the Revue Scientifique a paper describing his recent researches and experiments regarding the bites of poisonous snakes. He advises that in the treatment of a bite the injured limb should be tightly bound above the bite, as quickly as possible, with a handkerchief or any other available constrictor, and that then a 1-to-2 solution of chromic acid should be injected deep into the wound, making several similar injections in the neighborhood of the wound. If these directions are carefully followed, the poison will be destroyed before being absorbed. If there is already much swelling of the wound, more injections should be made in various parts of the swelling, which should then be manipulated to bring the acid thoroughly in contact with the poison. The swelling should then be freely lanced and as much as possible of the fluid squeezed out. The skin should be washed with the chromic acid solution, fol lowed by the application of compresses saturated with the solution. If the swelling returns, these procedures should be repeated. This local treatment should be supplemented by the internal administration of alcoholic stimulants and aqua ammonia. Prof. Kaufmann, however, strongly condemns the use of large quantities of alcohol, which, he thinks, paralyze and depress the nervous system.-Indian Med. Gaz., May, 1890. Removal of Breast During Hypnotic Sleep. Dr. Schmeltz, of Nice, has recently (Gazette Médicale de Strasbourgh, July 1) recorded a case in which he removed a sarcomatous breast during anesthesia caused by hypnotism. The patient was a girl, aged 20, who was easily thrown into the hypnotic state. The operation was performed in the presence of Drs. Lauza and Barriera, and the entire organ, together with the aponeurosis of the pectoralis major was removed by the oval incision. Five drainage tubes were inserted and the wound was closed with thirty-two metallic sutures. The operation lasted an hour. The patient remained absolutely insensible, in a condition of the deepest anesthesia, such as is only seen after large doses of chloroform. Dr. Schmeltz says: "I operated very slowly and quite at my ease; the patient even tried to encourage me by her words; she seemed very gay, and laughed loudly from time to time as if to show that she felt no pain. In order to make the operation easier for me, she turned herself about so as to place herself in the most favorable position, keeping her right arm stretched out so that no assistant was required to keep it steady." She was kept under observation the rest of the day, and having been told not to feel pain and to have a good night, she obeyed these instructions in the most docile manner. The wound was completely healed on the fifteenth day. The only symptom worth mentioning, which Dr. Schmeltz observed in the patient during the operation, was great pallor of the countenance, without any dilatation of the pupil or weakening of the pulse. The tumor weighed 2 kilograms.--Brit. Med. Journal. Penetrating Gun-Shot Wounds of Abdomen. Dr. Schachner (Annals of Surgery) says: 1. In view of the uncertainty which attends these injuries, exploratory laparotomy should in every case be boldly but carefully performed. The operator being in readiness to meet any indications that the exigency of the case may demand. 2. Laparotomy in the linea alba is preferable to one performed in the course of the ball, unless there are reasons to believe that the ball became arrested short of the peritoneum, or its track infected, in which case incision and drainage should be employed. 3. Considering the objections against Senn's test as a diagnostic means of determining the necessity of a laparotomy, the possible harm outweighs to such an extent the possible benefit that its general adoption is hardly justifiable. 4. The value of Senn's method in determining at the close of the operation the security of the intestinal tract is questionable, and still sub judice. 5. Large intestinal wounds not involving the mesenteric border, are best treated by partial resections. 6. Intestinal wounds upon the mesenteric border, unless very small require a complete resection. 7. Where several large wounds are situated very close together, a single resection including them all should be considered. 8. Partial resection of the liver, spleen or pancreas are feasible steps and may be required. 9. Suturing of both openings in wounds of the liver and spleen for the arrest of hæmorrhage is advisable. 10. Excepting superficial lesions, nephrectomy is the only procedure in wounds of the kidney. 11. Should obscure symptoms arise pointing to an early peri. tonitis, the use of salines are indicated. 12. If suppurative peritonitis is established, early exploratory incision, drainage and disinfection of the peritoneum should be undertaken.-American Lancet. Lister and Listerism.—A paper read by Sir Joseph Lister at the Tenth International Congress in Berlin was a remarkable one, in consideration of the fact that he mentions changes in his practice in conformity with more extended experience in antisepsis. The point has been made by some that he has repudiated his former position, and that his present position is an acknowledgment of error in the past. This we think is a mistake. It is not an acknowledgment of error but an acknowledgment of advancement. He had given up the spray some years ago; he now considers it of value at most, only for the continuous disinfection of the operator's hands. It might even do harm because the motion of the air produced |