the poppy opium always disagrees. In such cases, the lettuce opium has sometimes been unjustly accused of being followed by disagreeable consequences.

Since the last observations the Professor published on the lettuce opium, which are annexed to the third edition of his Treatise on Pulmonary Consumption, he has had much experience of the benefit which may be derived from it when the genuine article is exhibited. He has not only found it highly useful in procuring sleep, in many who dread the consequences with which opium in their constitutions is attended, but also in allaying pain in cases of tooth-ache, when externally applied to the gum; and he has particularly found it useful in allaying distressing cough, when used under the form of a lozenge.

Among other cases in which he has found great benefit from the lettuce opium, one occurred in his own family. A grandchild, a healthy, vigorous boy, in the 9th year of his age, went to school on Friday, the 15th of September, 1820, apparently in perfect health: but while he dined with the family that day, he was observed to cough frequently; his cough was without expectoration, but he complained of no pain in the chest; he took his food as usual, and the cough gave him no alarm; during the evening, however, he still continued to cough frequently, but did not go to bed till his usual hour of nine o'clock. He had not been in bed an hour till an elder brother, who slept in the same room with him, came down stairs to inform the Professor that Henry's cough had increased both in severity and frequency, and was now attended with a very peculiar noise. Before he reached the room, he had no doubt, from the peculiar and characterizing sound of the cough, that he was afflicted with the croup-a disease of which he had before had more than one example in his own family. Among these, the boy's father, when nearly about his age, had been in very great danger from it; and to another of his sons, who was subjected to it some years after, it proved fatal. When he reached the room in which his afflicted grandchild slept, his mode of respiration, and every other circumstance, afforded full confirmation of his conjecture, that he laboured under the croup. It may readily be supposed, that he had immediate recourse to the most active measures: blood-letting, the application of a blister, an antimonial emetic, and the inhalation of the steams of warm water, were applied without delay; and he had also recourse to the use of calonel, in the manner recommended for the cure of croup by Dr. James Anderson, of Edinburgh. Under this treatment, the disease soon subsided; and in the space of a few hours, his great alarm was at an end.— The Professor's opinion was, that an inflammation at the head of the windpipe, which produced the croupy cough, as it is called, had been cut short by the active measures employed, and that his disease might be said to be an example not of the croup, but of inflammation of the larynx. In the case of his son who died of the croup about fifteen years ago, the inflammation and consequent inflammatory exudation, was not in the larynx, but entirely in the windpipe; and indubitable evidence was afforded, that the affection extended not only to the under part of the windpipe, but even to its large branches, the bronchia distributed through the lungs.

While the present case had a happy termination under the practice which the Professor has mentioned, it, at the same time, afforded him strong evidence of the benefit which may be derived from the lettuce lo zenges, as a means of allaying a very troublesome and alarming cough: for after the most severe symptoms were removed, particularly the difficulty of breathing and peculiar sound in respiration, he still continued to be affected with frequent croupy cough. For combating this, he had recourse to the lettuce lozenge. The patient was directed to keep one of these constantly melting in his mouth, and from the time that this practice was begun, the frequency of his cough was very much diminished, and it soon entirely left him. Thus in the space of about twelve hours from the attack, he was completely free from the disease. The Professor had no doubt that if, in place of the lettuce lozenges, he had directed the ordinary opium lozenges of the Edinburgh Pharmacopoeia, the same alleviation of cough would have been obtained; and he candidly confesses that he has by no means the same prejudice with some of his brethren against the use of opium in inflammatory affections. He considers opium to be the most valuable medicine that has been discovered. In affections decidedly of the inflammatory kind-as, for example, in acute rheumatism, he is in the daily habit of employing it after blood-letting, not only without any bad effect, but with manifest benefit. If it really does possess what is called a stimulant power, this (says he) is much more than counteracted by its sedative effects and that it is the most powerful sedative we yet possess, is demonstrated beyond all contradiction, by its influence in allaying pain and inducing sleep. When protracted watchfulness is produced by a powerful stiniulant, it is well known, that from the proper use of opium sleep may be obtained, though the stimulating cause still continues to act, as is often exemplified in tooth-ache. But notwithstanding the high opinion he has of opium, he is still far from considering it as free from objection in every case. There are human constitutions with which, from its peculiar narcotic power, it never can be employed with advantage. Of this he had occasion, many years ago, to witness a most deplorable example, in the case of his own father. For many years he laboured under a highly painful disease, a cancerous affection. Opium had with him, as with most others, the effect of producing a temporary alleviation of pain and some sleep: but no sooner had these consequences ended, than some of its secondary effects, particularly sickness at the stomach and vomiting, were highly distressing to him; and after trying it in every form, and in combination with every corrigent with which he was acquainted, he was obliged entirely to desert its use, though urgently required.

Cases of a similar nature are by no means rare, and in such habits a good substitute for opium, where the alleviation of pain, or the induction of sleep is required, is certainly of very great importance in the practice of medicine. Of all the substitutes the Professor has employed, the henbane, hemlock, the hop, &c. he has found the lettuce opium to be decidedly the best. While it possesses much of the sedative power of the poppy opium, it seems to be almost entirely free from its secondary influence it is therefore a matter of very great importance in the practice of medicine, that the shop of every apothecary

should be supplied with the genuine article. With that view, every country apothecary should have it prepared in his own garden, which would effectually prevent all adulteration, and, according to the plan communicated by Mr. Young to the Horticultural Society, it may with great ease be prepared in any garden in Britain, while every apothecary in Britain, whose residence is not in a very large town, ought, in his opinion, to cultivate a garden for supplying both his kitchen and his shop. Although now far advanced in life, in the seventy-seventh year of his age, the Professor flatters himself with the hope, that he may yet live to see the lettuce opium find a place in the Pharmacopoeias of other colleges, as it has already done in that of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh: and that in the cure or alleviation of disease, others may obtain from it the same benefit that he has done, is his most earnest wish.

ANEURISM.-The modern operation for the cure of aneurism by the application of a single ligature, has lately been very adroitly performed in Oxford, in two instances: one, in which the external iliac artery was tied for an aneurism of the femoral artery, towards the upper part of the thigh; and another, in which the femoral artery was tied for the popliteal aneurism. The first subject, being an old man of 60, in a very weak, emaciated state, promised but small hopes of success: his life, however, in the opinion of surgeon Walker, was preserved by the operation, the aneurism being in a very advanced state; but the circulation was too languid to preserve the leg, which was amputated below the knee; a direct line of separation between the living and dead parts having there taken place.

The latter instance, being in a healthy young man, succeeded completely, without the occurrence of the least untoward circumstance. The ligature became perfectly detached, and was taken away on the twentieth day. The aneurismal tumour is much diminished, and the patient enjoys the perfect use of his limb, which is free from sensations of numbness or coldness.

"I mention," says Mr. Walker, "these cases, occurring in a provincial situation, principally to inculcate additional confidence, if needful, in such operations, being well assured, from my knowledge of operations in general, that in instances of the former kind, provided the subject be a tolerably fair one, the operation being judiciously performed, with due attention afterwards, there can be little doubt of complete success; neither mortification nor loss of blood from ulceration, being to be apprehended. In cases of the latter kind, under the beforementioned favourable circumstances, scarcely any doubt of success."

It unfortunately happens that some persons are particularly predisposed naturally to aneurism; such is the case in the latter instance; there being at the time of the operation an aneurism in a recent state, in the other ham: but this was justly considered no sufficient objection to the operation, which will probably be required at some future time.

"It is well known," observes Mr. W. "that in the old way of operating for the popliteal aneurism, mortification and death were so commonly the consequence, that latterly amputation in the first instance was deemed the better alternative."

CANINE MADNESS.-After an account of the notions that have been entertained of the nature of this disease, Dr. Majendie, of Paris, expresses some doubts of the success of any attempts to cure it by ordinary means, for the following reasons: "The most active substances, the most powerful narcotics, have no action either on man or animals affected with it."

The Doctor does not speak merely of substances introduced into the stomach, the action of which might be prevented or attenuated by so many circumstances, but of substances injected into the veins, the effects of which should be equally prompt and energetic. "For example," says he, "I have several times introduced opium, in large quantities (ten grains), into the veins of mad dogs, without producing the least narcotic influence; whilst a single grain of the aqueous extract passed into the veins of a dog in health, immediately produces sleep, which often continues for eight or ten hours. The same phenomena are observed in our own species. M. Dupuytren and myself have injected about eight grains of the watery extract of opium into the crural vein of a young man having hydrophobia, without any apparent result*. Mad dogs have also supported the introduction of prussic acid in their veins without experiencing an instant of relaxation in the progress of their disease.

"If substances as active as those above mentioned remain without effect, what hopes," says Dr. M. "can reasonably be founded on vegetables which perhaps have no action on the animal economy, even in the state of health?"

These and other reflections led Dr. Majendie to attempt to dilute the blood of the animal with water. With this view, a large dog of the mastiff kind, which had been decidedly mad at least two days, was muzzled and tied down on a table. After taking blood from the jugular vein, to the extent of about a pound, he introduced, by means of a syringe, about 60 ounces of water, at the temperature of 40° centigrade (105° Fahrenheit). Towards the middle of this injection, the vessels were much distended; so, reckoning from this moment to the end of the injection, he suffered the blood to flow from the superior extremity of the vein, while he continued to introduce the water by the inferior. There escaped in this manner about ten or twelve ounces of blood mingled with water.

The injection being finished, the dog was carried to his place; the animal soon became calm; he laid down in a circle, as it were, to sleep, as soon as he was left to himself, which he had not done since the commencement of his disease. He no longer growled; his eyes were calm, and there was nothing menacing in his aspect; he only showed his teeth when attempts were made, by a low stick, to take away the straw upon which he laid. The Doctor watched him for an hour; when he left one of his assistants to take charge of him.

"Dr. Breschet and myself inoculated a dog under the skin of the forehead, with the saliva of this patient, and the animal became mad at the end of about a month. Two dogs who were bitten by this, also be came mad after forty days. The latter bit several other dogs, but without any ill consequences."

When he had terminated this experiment, and had time to reflect respecting its consequences, some degree of regret accompanied the pleasure he felt on seeing the symptoms of the disease so perfectly calmed. He thought that he had introduced too large a quantity of water into the sanguiferous system. "1 knew," says he, "that if the injection had been carried too far, laceration of the pulmonary vessels would take place, and the animal would die from an infarction of the lungs, similar to that which so often causes the death of man." However, he was a little disposed to hope that the great size of the animal would permit bis blood-vessels to contain, without bursting, so large a quantity of fluid. But it was not so: to his great regret, his assistant came, in the course of the day, to inform him that in about five hours after the injection the animal began to suffer great difficulty of respiration, which continued to increase for half an hour, when he died. To this time the dog had been very calm; he had not growled, and he had continued to lie as it were in a state of quiet sleep.

"The dog was dissected with the utmost care. No mischief in the brain or the spinal marrow was discovered; the digestive organs were also in the healthy state, except that the salivary glands were red, and appeared to be enlarged. The lungs were in a state of infarction; that is to say, their tissue was filled with aqueous blood: the bronchia and the trachea were filled with a brownish spume; their mucous membrane seemed to be inflamed."

DR. HASTINGS'S BOOK.-In consequence of the remarks we have made on this production in our 62d number, Dr. Hastings, or a friend, has inserted the following advertisement in a paper, published weekly, in the city, in which the Doctor resides.

"To the Editor of the Worcester Journal.-SIR, Some animadversions upon Dr. Hastings's Work on Inflammation of the Mucous Membrane of the Lungs, inconsistent with the views of just criticism, and totally unworthy of notice except for the false impression which they are calculated to make on the uninformed, having been industriously circulated in this place, I think it but common justice to that gentleman to lay before the public the character of his work given by some of the first medical writers of the present day.

"The editors of the Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal, in their review of this work, speak of it as follows:-" The introduction to the "present volume contains an inquiry into the contractility of the blood"vessels which already, as his inaugural dissertation, when he acquired "the degree of M. D. in this university, has deservedly gained him great reputation." Through the whole of their critique on this introduction they repeatedly express, and in strong terms, their entire approbation, and conclude thus:-"Upon the whole, we are of opinion "that Dr. Hastings has confirmed and established incontrovertibly, that "a considerable share of IRRITABILITY is possessed by the blood"vessels in every part of the system."-" The treatise on inflammation "commences with a preliminary chapter on the general nature of in"flammation; to which we willingly give an equal measure of praise, as to the introduction." After giving some account of the experiments by which Dr. Hastings establishes his own theory, they add, "We cannot conclude this part of our analysis without expressing