GENERAL MEDICAL ANNUITY FUND.

together with other alterations, which will probably be resolved on at this meeting, will be required to be worked in mosaic into the present rules and regulations; but as it will be impossible to-day to give that calm attention to the drawing up of the amended rules as such a service requires, you will probably see fit to determine the general plan of operation, leaving the details to be carried out under the direction of a small sub-committee; and in the meantime it may be thought advisable to transmit this statement of your affairs to each subscriber to the fund.

I have the satisfaction of announcing that I have had an interview with Mr. Neison, the author of "Vital Statistics," respecting the Society; and as soon as our rules are matured, he has engaged to examine into their nature and bearing, and he will then be able to determine whether a nominal entrance fee, which should be regulated by the age of the subscriber, could be added to our rules, so that the Society should have the benefit of being enrolled under the Act of Parliament, made and provided for that purpose.

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H. L. Smith, Esq., of Southam, observed that he would not on any account propose anything likely in any way to obstruct the establishment of Mr. Daniell's fund, which he thought admirable; but it had occurred to him that we should even go beyond it, and provide homes for widows and orphans. The expenses of renting a house was often of serious consequence to a poor widow. He should like to see homes for widows and orphans in every county town in England, and conceived that the nobility, clergy, and gentry, would be ready to assist in such a work. The chairman observed that such a thought had struck him, and he believed, in one of his letters (he rather thought to Mr. Estlin, of Bristol,) he had thrown out the idea, but the funds subscribed to this Institution were for an expressed and understood purpose, and could not be diverted from that purpose; he was delighted, however, with Mr. Smith's suggestion, and trusted a time would come when such a project might be entertained.

Dr. Gardner, of London, congratulated Mr. Daniell as to the present prospects of the General Medical Annuity Fund. He felt assured that it must succeed. He admired its simplicity. The calculations could not be otherwise than correct, as four annuities in every hundred subscribers would clearly yield £25 each; and the capital so accumulated in the five years which elapse before annuities would be granted, would form a fund to fall back upon when necessary. He highly approved of the provision. He would be delighted to offer his services as Honorary Local Secretary, and pledged himself to exert all the energy he possessed in the execution of his office.

Wm. Lambert, Esq., of Sowersby, Yorkshire, could not but say that he felt disappointed, for when he first read Mr. Daniell's proposition, he thought the whole medical world would rise simultaneously to support such a project; it appears, however, he was mistaken; still there was enough to encourage perseverance, and he trusted Mr. Daniell would relax nothing, either in spirit or energy, to complete the noble work he had begun. He should therefore propose "that Mr. Daniell's plan for a Medical Annuity Fund be proceeded with, and that the report and suggestions of the Secretary be adopted." He felt the utmost confidence both in the projector and Secretary of the Fund.

It is impossible for me, Sir, within the limits of this report, to detail to the meeting the various suggestions which have been made to Mr. Daniell and myself, as to do so would be only to peruse the pile of letters now lying upon the table. Suffice it to say, that many of the hints have proved of essential service to us in our labours, while, on the other hand, the tendency, though, perhaps, not the actual design, of the writers of others, would be to convert our simple but comprehensive scheme into an ordinary insurance company. But it cannot too often be repeated, that the design of our Institution is to help that class who have not had the power or the disposition to avail themselves of the advantages of Life Insurance Companies. I think that I may be permitted to say, that in conducting the correspondence of this young, but I trust, rising Society, I have spared no labour to detail its objects and its advantages, neither has this been an easy task, for, in a great measure, our Society is sui generis, but not completely so, as there are other Societies in the kingdom established on somewhat similar principles, but merely local in their operations. Indeed we may take as an illustration of our plan, in its development and character, the process adopted in the management of the Art Union of London. It may easily be supposed, that of the thousands who contribute their annual guineas to that Society, some do so with a desire to assist the cultivating of the fine arts, and some with the remote prospect of gaining a prize. Just so it may prove with us; some may contribute their annual guinea upon the principles of the purest philanthropy, some from a pure sense of duty, and some from a remote contingency of receiving its assistance, while none would refuse, or become degraded, by obtaining the prize of an annuity, if the chances of this mortal life rendered such assistance requisite. I trust that I may The Secretary replied, clearly even with our present be permitted to close this tedious report by the ex-numbers, four or six would be granted at the end of pression of my wish, that as that society, from its small beginnings has become a National Society, so may our infant cause come to the stature of a man, and by its manly strength, aid every needy member of the medical profession, cheering the widowed heart, and securing to the orphan that comfort and assistance which the visitation of Almighty God may have laid upon him.

Dr. Gardner seconded the resolution, which was carried unanimously.

H. L. Smith, Esq., observed that there could be no hesitation in carrying out the project, for it was a capital beginning. He then gave instances of very flourishing institutions, the commencement of which were much inferior to this,-nay, some, where the projector had been both Chairman, Secretary, and Committee.

Thomas Parker, Esq., of Woburn, asked when annuities would be granted.

five years.

A discussion ensued upon Dr. Shirley Palmer's project, as detailed in the Medical Times, when the Secretary demonstrated to Dr. Palmer the utter impracticability of his plan, on his present calculations, drawn from the statistical tables.

The meeting was then addressed by Drs. Robertson and Pritchard, of Northampton; R. Martin, Esq., of

Holbrook, Suffolk; Thomas Parker, Esq., of Woburn; &c., and the conclusion was, "That the General Medical Annuity fund proposed by Mr. Daniell be considered established; that the Honorary Local Secretaries be instructed in their duties, and supplied with proper documents, and that a Sub-Committee be appointed to meet at Newport Pagnell for the reorganization of the 'rules,' and the final adjustment of all matters for the working of the same. That the Sub-Committee be composed of the following gentlemen :-Dr. Pritchard, of Northampton; Edward Daniell, Esq., Newport Pagnell; John Rogers, Esq., Newport Pagnell; H. L. Smith, Esq., Southam, Warwickshire; Dr. Barker, Bedford; Thomas Parker, Esq., Woburn; J. G. Leete, Esq., Thrapstone.

part failed. M. Piorry affirms that he has discovered a means of effecting the desired limitation of inflammatory action with great certainty, by applying at the the entire circumference of the inflamed skin, at a commencement of the disease, narrow blisters around distance of an inch or two from its border. He states

that the erysipelatous blush soon reaches the inflamma-
tion arising from the blister, but in more than twenty
cases has not gone beyond it.-Journal de Pharmacie,
SURGERY.

CONTRACTION OF THE @SOPHAGUS CURED BY
TEMPORARY DILATATION.

A man swallowed by mistake a quantity of dilute nitric acid; a considerable portion of it was rejected by vomiting, and the specific poisonous effects of the acid were not produced; but the pharynx and the superior part of the oesophagus were denuded of epithelium, and a superficial ulceration resulted;

Mr. Daniell having read Dr. Jephson's letter under date of the 15th of November, 1845, announcing his intention of presenting a donation of one hundred guineas so soon as the Society was formally established, it was resolved, "That the grateful thanks of this meeting be given to Dr. Jephson for the promise of his very hand-suppuration supervened, this was followed by cicatrizasome donation of one hundred guineas on the establishment of the Society, and the Secretary do inform the Doctor of the formal establishment of the General Medical Annuity Fund." It was further resolved, "That the next general and annual meeting be held at Leamington, at such time as may suit Dr. Jephson's convenience, and that he be requested to preside at the same."

A Financial Report, List of Members, and Honorary Local Secretaries, with new Rules and Regulations, will be published after the 30th of June, the conclusion of the second year. Gentlemen desirous of acting as Local Secretaries will please to signify their intention to Mr. Joseph Staines, Secretary, Newport Pagnell,

Bucks.

[We are requested to state that Dr. Jephson has remitted to Mr. Staines, the Secretary to the Fund, his munificent donation of one hundred guineas.]

General Retrospect.

PRACTICAL MEDICINE.

TREATMENT OF FEVER BY COLD WATER.

Dr. Jacques (de Lure,) gives a statistical account of an epidemic of typhoid fever, several cases of which he cured by the external and internal use of cold water. The total number of cases enumerated amounts to 492; of these 143 were treated in the manner alluded to, and 349 in various ways, some by purgatives, others by mercury, &c., according to the idea of the practitioner in attendance. Of the 349 cases thus treated, 1 in 4 died; while of the 193 treated by cold water, the deaths were only 1 in 15.-Bulletin de la Societié de Med. de Bezançon, 1846, No. 2.

tion, and a considerable coarctation of the tube. An oesophagus bougie, about the size of the little finger, could be passed to the stomach, but the contraction was sufficient to prevent deglutition, and was still increasing. Fearing that the canal, left to itself, would become the seat of a permanent contraction, M. Blandin acted upon the same principle as in intending to associate with it cauterization, if necessary. strictures of the urethra, by methodical dilatation,

after passing the stricture they were allowed to remain
Some elastic œsophagus sounds were employed;
ten or fifteen minutes; the operation was repeated
twice daily, progressively increasing their size, and
in three weeks the patient was cured.-Journal de
Méd. et de Chirurgie, Fevr., 1847.

TREATMENT OF FISSURE OF THE ANUS BY
CAUTERIZATION.

M. Herpin relates two cases of this painful malady, which were cured by a single application of the nitrate of silver in substance. In one case, the fissure being high up, it was necessary to use the speculum aniEncyclograph des Sciences Médicales, Mars, 1847.

PROGNOSIS OF ILIAC ABSCESS.

Dupuytren did not consider the prognosis in iliac abscess very unfavourable. Grisolle is of a different opinion, for of seventy-three cases twenty were fatal and eleven serious. Of puerperal women so affected, seven died out of seventeen. Of all descriptions of this abscess, the stercoral abscess being always accompanied by gangrene, is incomparably the most serious, for of such cases five in seven were either fatal or resulted in artificial anus. Gangrene is but seldom observed in connection with the more superficial abscess, unless where this succeeds perforative ulceration or mortification of the cæcum or of its appendix, TREATMENT OF ERYSIPELAS BY LINEAR BLISTERS. giving rise to extravasation of fecal matters into the Erysipelas is not a severe disease when it is confined cellular tissue of the vicinity. If, on the contrary, the to a limited part of the body; it is generally its extension, inflammation be seated under the fascia iliaca, this either superficially or in depth that produces the danger. may then produce a true strangulation of the inflamed Attempts have been long made to counteract this ten-parts; and it is common enough to find in these subdency to extension, by the nitrate of silver, solutions of aponeuritic abscesses, the fibres of the iliac muscle sulphate of iron, &c. These methods have for the most blackened, softened, and exhaling a fœtid odour;

GENERAL RETROSPECT.

the practitioner to deliver when timely required, was united, is dissolved by the alcohol; filtration sepawithout, at the same time, making the least demand rates the tannin and the gelatin, and by evaporation upon the already exhausted powers, which is the case the alcohol is dissipated, and the morphine remains, when we have recourse to the manual operation of which may be recognized by the usual re-agents.version and extraction of the child, but it is also a Journal de Chimie et de Toxicologie. powerful general stimulant, and raises the power and action of the heart.

This happy result I have observed in several cases, and the power in question gives to this agent a great superiority over the secale cornutum in such cases.

Dr. Radford, in conclusion, reiterates his expression of confidence in the power of galvanism in uterine hæmorrhage, and promises an early publication of nnmerous cases of its successful application.-Lancet,

REMUNERATION OF MEDICAL PRACTITION-
ERS IN IRELAND FOR PUBLIC SERVICES.

The subjoined memorial, signed by 1050 physicians and surgeons, was presented to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland on the 22nd of this month :

December 5, 1846.—[“ Half-yearly Abstract,” vol. V.] To His Excellency George William Frederick Earl of

Dr. Tyler concludes an essay on this subject as follows:

1. In cases of partial presentation the practitioner should avail himself of the earliest opportunity to rupture the membranes, and evacuate the uterus of its fluid contents.

2. In the same class of cases, after the escape of the liquor amnii, should vigorous uterine action not ensue he should encourage this action by friction over the fundus uteri, the application of a binder, ergot, or galvanism.

3. In complete placental presentation, when the os uteri is rigid and undilated, never attempt to extract the placenta through it in that state, but plug the vagina with a soft sponge dipped in cold vinegar and

water.

4. As soon as the os uteri is sufficiently dilated, to turn.

5. Should there be no doubt of the child being dead, and the head presents, it may be delivered by the perforator and crotchet.

The author, thinking that the cessation of bleeding after extraction of the placenta is due to the evacuation of the fluid contents of the uterus, proposes in some cases to pass a catheter through the placenta, and thus draw off the liquor amnii.-Dubl. Quart. Journ., May, 1847.

MEDICAL JURISPRUDENCE. METHOD OF DETERMINING THE PRESENCE OF MORPHINE IN CASES OF POISONING.

M. Thenard adopts and recommends the following proceeding: The suspected matter, if solid, is care. fully washed in distilled water, acidulated with acetic acid; if fluid, it is diluted with the same. The solution is then to be warmed and filtered, and afterwards evaporated to dryness. The residue is next treated with boiling alcohol, which separates the animal matter. To the alcoholic solution previously filtered, tincture of nut-galls is then added, and maceration is continued for fifteen days, when the morphine is precipitated in combination with the tannin. The solution being again filtered, it is diluted with distilled water, and a solution of gelatin is added in excess, for the purpose of decomposing the tannate of morphine. The morphine having yielded to the gelatin, the tannin with which it

Clarendon, Lord Lieutenant General and General
Governor of Ireland.

MAY IT PLEASE YOUR EXCELLENCY,

We, the undersigned Physicians and Surgeons in Ireland, beg leave respectfully to represent to your Excellency, that the members of the Medical Profession in Ireland are frequently called upon to perform public professional duties for the benefit of the Community at large, and that the zeal and efficiency with which those duties are discharged, together with their importance to the public welfare, eminently entitle that Profession to the protection and support of the Govern

ment.

It is right to draw your Excellency's attention to the fact, that Statistical Returns for upwards of 25 years, exhibit a fearful mortality from Fever among the Medical men of this country, and recent events have shown that from the same cause we have to deplore the loss of many of the best and most efficient Practitioners, who contracted Typhus Fever in the discharge of their duties among the Sick Poor.

We feel that the members of the Medical Profession have reason to complain that they sustain hardship and injustice when employed in the Public Service, as in some instances from the imperfection of existing laws, Medical Practitioners are denied any remuneration whatever for such services, or are constrained to accept sums utterly disproportionate to the duties they are compelled to discharge; while in other cases, where the amount of remuneration is left to the discretion of Government, or to the award of Officers in Public Departments, it is often unjustly and degradingly inadequate.

We most strongly but respectfully protest against the amount of remuneration offered by the Board of Health to Physicians and Surgeons for attending Fever Hospitals during the present epidemic; as, in some instances, Five Shillings per day have been offered by the Board of Health for the discharge of that onerous, responsible, and dangerous duty.

We need not enlarge on the importance and value of the services rendered to the country by the Medical Attendants of Fever Hospitals, neither does it seem necessary to do more than suggest that insufficient and degrading remuneration for professional services cannot fail to injuriously affect the public interests; and we

confidently trust that your Excellency will take such steps as may, in your Excellency's wisdom, seem fit to remove those grievances, and cause such remuneration to be awarded to the Medical Officers of Fever Hospitalssity of Oxford, June 10th:-Doctors in Medicine: and Fever Districts, as may be commensurate with the great value and importance of the duties required of

On Monday, the 21st inst., Mr. Wakley withdrew the Medical Registration Bill for this session, stating at the Waite, St. Peters; A. W. Barclay, D. B. Kendal,