THE WEATHER AND THE STREETS.

1645 who during his attacks of epilepsy became aphasic their municipal authorities to prevent the cruelty, the waste and could not utter a word but whose consciousness of time, and the loss of money which occur from horses remained clear. This patient’s intelligence was so keen either falling down or being unable to drag a heavy load up that he made observations on himself while in this aphasic the hill. We are quite aware that many horses are disgracecondition and found that he could recognise distinctly the fully overloaded and it would be worth the while of the sharps and flats on the violin and that he could play the police to station plain-clothes men in the steep streets on instrument quite as well during the attack as before it. the north of the Strand to take offenders’ names andOn one occasion the aphasia came on while crossing the addresses-we refer to owners not to carters. Atlantic. He made his way to his cabin and attempted to write a note to the ship’s steward in regard to his condition. THE CONTROL OF SMALL-POX IN SURREY. He began it in French but found he could not proceed then in a certain and and stuck German ALTHOUGH the interesting report which Dr. Edward C. point began beyond He finally tried to write in English only Seaton has recently presented to the Surrey County Council at the same point. True epileptic deals largely with the methods adopted in connexion with to fail once more at the crucial point. movements may sometimes be seriously mistaken, adds the limitation of small-pox in Surrey, the writer discusses A child was taken to Dr. Dr. Thompson, for " tricks."" problems which have a general application in relation to the Thompson by the parents who stated that the patient had the control of epidemic small-pox. While Dr. Seaton is a trick of "ducking his headseveral times a day and could vigorous supporter of vaccination and expresses the opinion On examining the child during " that vaccination is essential to us in preventing the spread not be cured of the habit. one of these attacks it was found that the eyes became fixed of small-pox, and that without it we should be in a comand the pupils dilated. A diagnosis of epilepsy was made paratively helpless position," he has been evidently anxious and before long symptoms of mental hebetude appeared, thus in the report before us to do justice to the subsidiary confirming the diagnosis. Dr. W. Spratling, medical super- but not unimportant share which must in these days-’ intendent of the Craig Colony for Epileptics, New York, in the be accorded to sanitary organisation. Dr. Seaton has, discussion following the communication of Dr. Thompson’s we imagine, used this phrase "sanitary organisation"’ paper at the New’York Academy of Medicine, said that advisedly and in order that the machinery to which, although an epileptic seizure was sudden in onset it might he refers may not be confounded with "sanitation," often be preceded for some days by "warnings," such as a term which applies more particularly to drains and irritability and quarrelsomeness of the patient and the nuisances and which has but little bearing upon small-pox. making of trivial and baseless complaints. Dr. Spratling It is unreasonable, Dr. Seaton thinks, to compare the and Dr. Thompson agreed that the mixture of antipyrin and condition of affairs which obtains at the present time with ammonium bromide proposed by Dr. William Wood of that which existed at the time of the pandemic of 1871 Philadelphia many years ago for the treatment of epilepsy when our organisation was of a very primitive character. gave the best results, and also concurred in the view that There is no doubt that, as Dr. Seaton urges, much may be strychnine should not be given as a tonic to epileptic patients now done by means of prompt diagnosis at the home, immesince it increa,ed the nervous excitability. Dr. W. Browning diate notification, isolation, disinfection, and the vaccination " of Brooklyn records in the Journal of Nervous and Mental or revaccination of the " contacts." In all these ways Diseases for October last the occurrence in young children our state now is infinitely superior to what it was below the age of seven years of "pseudo-epilepsies," attacks in 1871. In Dr. Seaton’s views " nothing ever takes of a convulsive character, recurrent, and associated withthe place of good primary vaccination," but we are rickets or similar nutritive disturbances. These cases were not quite in accord with him on this point as efficient reamenable to thyroid treatment, whereas true epilepsy was not vaccination is, in our opinion, a necessary corollary of affected by such treatment even in a person who was once primary vaccination, and we doubt if the people will ever rachitic. be brought to understand the true value of vaccination unless they are shown the results of revaccination. But THE WEATHER AND THE STREETS. differing from Dr. Seaton on this question we are glad to find ourselves in sympathy with much that he says with WITH the commencement of cold weather we desire to to sanitary organisation. We know how much call the attention of the municipal authorities, and more regard excellent work he has recently done in Surrey by placing especially of the city of Westminster, to the very inadequate his long experience in the matter of diagnosis at the provision made for rendering the streets safe for horses. disposal of medical officers of health in the county On Dec. 3rd. at about 9.30 A. m., Regent-street and and he has by his efforts done much to promote the Waterloo-place represented something like a sheet of harmonious cooperation of local authorities. Provision for Two horses had fallen and others were strugice. the isolation of small-pox cases occurring in the county has gling to keep their feet. As we write we notice that the already been procured, but this is apparently a temporary bottom of Bedford-street is extremely slippery and we may measure, and there is a scheme on hand for mapping out the say again, as we have said before, that the portion of this whole county into divisions for small-pox hospital purposes. street between Maiden lane and the Strand appears to be All those who are interested in administration relative to a sort of no man’s land and never either to be sanded or will find Dr. Seaton’s report of interest, and if a If Kensington can gravel the main roads, as small-pox watered. second edition is called for we should like to see a scheme the authorities of that borough do, surely a rich corporasketched out for the supply of the county with vaccine tion like Westminster can do the same. We observe, lymph. however, that Westminster seems addicted to the use of salt for removing ice on the roadway. This is not harmful FRAGILITAS OSSIUM (OSTEOPSATHYROSIS). if the resulting slush is swept away but it still leaves the THE Intercolonial Medical Journal of Australasia for roadway slippery and we consider that at places like the lower end of Bedford-street there should certainly be a October contains a description of two remarkable cases of supply of gravel together with the means of scattering it. fragilitas ossium in a brother and sister, with photographs The street in question has a constant and heavy traffic, and skiagrams, by Dr. David McM. Officer. The first patient chiefly railway vans, and the inhabitants of the street, who was a girl, aged 12 years. She was born with both thighs are rated by no means’ lightly, should certainly call upon broken. During the nursing period the thighs were broken

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