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professional sectarianism and declaring against ethicaldifferences of opinion among legally licensed practitionersof other schools. At the annual meeting of the MedicalSociety of the State of New York, held in Albany onJan. 26th, the following motions were unanimouslyadopted :Resolved, that the report of the joint committee of conference be

accepted and that the proposed agreement for the consolidation of theMedical Society of the State of New York and the New York StateMedical Association be and the same is hereby approved, and thepresident of the society is hereby authorised and directed to executethe same in the name and behalf of the society, and the secretary ishereby authorised and directed to affix the corporate seal thereto ; andbe it further resolved that the committee of the society heretoforeappointed for the purpose of bringing about the consolidation-namely,Dr. Henry L. Elsner. Dr. A. Jacobi, Dr. A. Vanderbeer, Dr. GeorgeRyerson Fowler, and Dr. Frank Van Fleet-be and they are hereby con-tinued as such committee with full power and authority to do what-ever may be necessary to carry the agreement into effect.

Action on the adoption of the report of the joint committeeof conference, together with the proposal of motions ratify-ing the action of the State society, will be taken at thestated meeting of the Medical Society of the State of NewYork to be held on Monday, Feb. 29th.

Tenement Children and Tuberculosis.At a recent meeting of the Association for Improving the

Condition of the Poor an appropriation of$15,000 (£3000)was made for the maintenance at the seaside of 50 New Yorktenement children suffering from non-pulmonary forms oftuberculosis. The association wishes to educate the generalpublic to a knowledge of the fact that a large percentage ofchildren known merely as cripples are suffering from tuber-culosis and can be cured. Dr. Hermann Biggs of the NewYork Health Department declares that there are in theNew York tenements alone from 3000 to 4000 children under15 years of age suffering from scrofula and tuberculosis ofthe bones, the joints, and the lymphatic glands. It is, ofcourse, a well-known fact that tuberculosis of the lungsaffects but a relatively small number of children under 15years of age.

Surgeon .7vanted on the Panama Commission.The committee on medical legislation of the American

Medical Association has requested President Roosevelt to

appoint on the Panama Canal Commission a member of themedical profession and has suggested that Colonel William C.Gorgas is well qualified for the position. Colonel Gorgas is asurgeon in the army and is widely known for his researchesin Cuba into the causes of yellow fever. The fact is urgedthat-

Under both the French administrations at the Isthmus the engineer-ing problems themselves, to the chagrin of the medical profession ofthe world, failed of accomplishment largely through the frightful mor-tality among officers and labourers consequent upon lack of authorityon the part of medical officers intrusted with the work of sanitation ;that the same conditions of insalubrity exist now that existed then andthat consequently the sanitary problems are to be recognised as secondin importance, if second at all, only to those connected with theengineering department.

Ne7v York Eye and Ear Infirmary.The board of directors of the New York Eye and Ear

Infirmary has decided to curtail the scope of the work ofthat institution after May lst in the event of sufficient fundsfor its maintenance not being collected. Even after March lstno patients will be received in the part of the hospital knownas Platt Pavilion in which contagious diseases of the eye aretreated. The closing of this wing of the hospital would be amisfortune for many infants living in the very poor districtsof the east side. The infirmary has been in existence for 86years and is considered to be the foremost institution of itskind in the United States.Feb.27th.

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AUSTRALIA.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Quarantine against Small-pox.IN consequence of an outbreak of small-pox in Christ-

church, New Zealand, the various boards of health inAustralia have declared New Zealand to be infected and allvessels from New Zealand ports will be quarantined and nopassengers allowed to land for 15 days unless successfullyvaccinated within the last two years or until pratique is

granted by the health authorities. The necessity of placingquarantine regulations under Federal control as speedily as

possible is again made manifest by the different methods

adopted by the several States in this instance. The firstvessel to arrive from New Zealand at Australian portsafter notification of the outbreak was the Moeraki atHobart. She was allowed to berth and to unship and toship cargo but all passengers were prohibited from land-ing. The Tasmanian passengers were therefore taken onto Melbourne, the next port of call. On arrival at Port

Phillip Heads the Moeraki was boarded by two medicalofficers of the Board of Health. The passengers were

examined and it was found that all who had come fromChristchurch or had passed through that city during the timeof the outbreak of small-pox had been successfully vac.

cinated within the last two years. The names and addressesof all the passengers were taken and on their giving assur.ances to report to the Board of Health in case of illness

they were allowed to land. The 50 passengers for Hobartcan now return there by way of Launceston. The Board ofHealth of New South Wales is quarantining passpngers fromChristchurch only. In Queensland a proclamation has beenissued ordering that all vessels from New Zealand shall bequarantined until granted pmatique by the health authorities.Some uniformity of action is obviously necessary.

Bubonio Plague.Some time ago the Government of West Australia com-

missioned Dr. Anderson to visit India and to inquire into theoccurrence and treatment of bubonic plague. Dr. Andersonhas sent in a report in which he states that plague is not in agreat majority of cases a contagious disease as ordinarilyunderstood and that the discovery of a case in a generalhospital need not necessitate the quarantine of the wholeinstitution. A case of supposed bubonic plague was dis-covered in a coloured seaman on board a steamer at

Williamstown, Melbourne. The steamer was placed inquarantine pending inquiries, the result of which was thatthe case was not plague.

Tuberculosis,The Victorian Year-book for 1902, which has just made its

belated appearance, includes a contribution by Dr. D. AstleyGresswell, chairman of the Board of Public Health, entitled"The Presence of Tuberculosis in Victoria." He mentionsthat from 1863 to 1887 the death-rate from phthisis andother tuberculous diseases remained fairly constant. In thetriennial period commencing at the latter year the averageyearly rate per 100.000 inhabitants for the metropolitandistricts was 283 and for the extra-metropolitan 119 A steadyimprovement then set in and during the triennial period1899-1901 in the metropolitan districts the average yearlydeaths from phthisis were 144 per 100,000 and those fromother tuberculous diseases were 42 per 100,000. Some fewmonths ago, as mentioned at the time, the Board of Healthof Victoria made tuberculosis a notifiable disease under theprovisions of the Health Act. This procedure has been muchopposed by many members of the medical profession. Inhis annual report to the Board of Health, Dr. Wilkinson,health officer of Preston, referred to the subject and observedthat from a long experience in an isolated district witha settled population he was satisfied of the small riskof contagion and had never seen a case of its occurrence,although for over 20 years he had watched the othermembers of households where one had been attacked withtubercle. On the other hand, the reporting and segregatingof such cases would have inflicted great hardship. Dr. D.Turner, who as examining medical officer to the sanatoriumfor consumptives in Victoria has had exceptional oppor-tunities for observation, has forcibly expressed his dissentfrom the action of the Board of Health. He recordsnumerous instances of the hardship inflicted by the opinionsnow promulgated as to the contagiousness of tubercle-opinions which his experience shows to be exaggeratedgreatly. The plans for the new "Eronheimer" wingfor consumptives at the Austin Hospital have been approved.The building will accommodate 30 beds on each floor,making the total number for consumptives 102, The newwing will not be utilised, however, until the question ofits maintenance has been settled. Like the infectiousdiseases hospital the building will lie idle unless the Gùvern-ment comes to the assistance of the committee which atpresent it absolutely declines to do.

Preservatives in Food.As previously stated in this column 1 the manager of a

1 THE LANCET, Feb. 27th, 1904, p. 618.

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concertrated milk company in Sydney was charged with an soffence against the regulations of the Board of Health inselling milk containing boric acid in a proportion exceeding r-r-C 1-0-uth of a grain per pint. The defendant contended thatthe case should be dismissed on the ground that the regula- (tion was invalid, because unreasonable, and that the (

provision made did not "regulate" as required by theHealth Act but for practical purposes prohibited the use ofboric acid as a preservative. The magistrate decided thatthe regulation was not unreasonable, convicted the defendant, (and fined him in the sum of £2, in default seven days’imprisonment with hard labour. ;

Infantile Mortality.The Victorian Year-book gives some figures respecting

infantile mortality in Australia. The average deaths under one year of age to 100 births for the period 1891-1901 is :Western Australia, 14 5 ; New South Wales, 11’2 ; Victoria,11’1; South Australia, 10’5; Queensland, 10’3; and Tasmania, 9 6. Figures have been published showing thepercentage of children who died before reaching the age of12 months in Victoria during a series of years. From 1866to 1902 the two highest percentages were 12’91 during theperiod 1866-70 and 13-41 in 1898, while the two lowest were10-23 in 1895 and 9 53 in 1900.

Medical Society of Victoria.The annual meeting of the Medical Society of Victoria

was held on Jan. 13th. The report stated that there were290 members and that 23 new members had been electedduring the year. The average attendance at meetingswas 36. The following officers were elected for theyear 1904 :-President : Dr. G. T. Howard. Vice-Presidents : Mr. M. U. O’Sullivan and Dr. A. J. Wood.Treasurer: Dr. C. H. Mollison. Secretary: Dr. L. J.Balfour. Librarians: Mr. A. W. F. Noyes and Dr. H. D.Stephens. Committee : Dr. P. Bennie, Dr. W. Boyd, Dr.Buchanan, Dr. Gault, Dr. Lawrence, Dr. Moore, Mr. F. W.W. Morton, Mr. R. Hamilton Russell, Mr. W. Beattie Smith,and Dr. R. R. Stawell. The retiring president, Mr. Russell,read the annual address, taking a somewhat unusual courseby dealing with the special subject of the Congenital Originof Hernia, a subject which he has discussed on severaloccasions during the last five years.!

Hospital Affairs.The sixteenth annual report of the Royal North Shore

Hospital, Sydney, stated that the first portion of the newhospital had been opened and that the institution hadremained practically full ever since. During the 12 monthsthere were 153 patients treated in the old hospital, ofwhom 120 were discharged cured and nine died, while ninewere removed to the new building. In the new hospital340 patients had been treated, of whom 239 were dis-

charged cured, and 30 died, leaving 42 under treatmentat the end of the year. The average daily number residentin the old hospital was 21-65 and in the new 39. Thetotal number of deaths (of which eight occurred within24 hours of admission) was 39, being 8’05 per cent.-The annual report of the Balmain Hospital stated that thenumber of patients treated in the institution last year hadbeen 339 in the indoor department and 2395 in the out-door, as against 341 and 2193 respectively for 1902. The

mortality on the year’s cases had been 5 8 per cent.-Bythe will of the late Mr. Felton, senior partner in the firm ofFelton, Grimwade and Co., wholesale druggists, Melbourne,the hospitals of Melbourne will be very largely benefited.He left between £400,000 and £450,000 to be invested bytrustees and half the income is to be devoted to charities andhalf to the purchase of works of art " calculated to raise orimprove the public taste." With regard to the bequest forthe charities the testator said :Without in any way fettering the discretion of the trustees, I hereby

indicate to them my hope that in the application of such income theywill favourably consider, firstly, charities for children. For example,children’s hospitals and orphanages; secondly, charities for women,such as women’s hospitals; thirdly, such institutions or societies asgeneral hospitals, societies for the relief of the educated poor, and othercharitable institutions of a general character.Some time ago the meèical staff of the Melbourne Hospitalquestiont-d the legal right of the committee of managementto appoint specialists, claiming that under the HospitalAct all patients were to be placed under the physicians and

1 Mr. Russell’s address is published in full on p. 707 of our presentissue.—ED. L.

surgeons who were to be elected by the subscribers. The

specialists already appointed by the committee are der-

matologist, ophthalmologist, aurist, skiagraphist, medicalelectricians, and anaesthetists. The committee has nowobtained counsel’s opinion on the subject which is that thecommittee has not the right to appoint specialists.

. Ne7v Border Medical Association.A conference of medical practitioners from Albury, Corowa,

Wodoi3ga, Rutherglen, Cbiltern, and Wangarratta was re-cently held, when it was decided to form a ’’ Border MedicalAssociation." Dr. Andrews was elected President, Dr. C. F.Harkin Vice-President, and Dr. Lang secretary. Chilternwas selected as the meeting place. It is proposed later toaffiliate the association with the New South Wales branch ofthe British Medical Association.

Ap_pointments.Dr. C. W. Reid, senior medical officer of the Department

of Lunacy, at present acting as port health officer at

Sydney, and visiting medical officer to the ShaftesburyReformatory, has been appointed port health officer ofSydney in the place of Dr. William Peirce who has retired.- Dr. Charles MacLaurin has been appointed a member ofthe Police Medical Board, New South Wales, in the room ofSir H. Normand MacLaurin, M L.C.

A Brave Medical Man.At a recent serious fire at the Wallaroo Mines, South

Australia, heroic work was performed by Dr. H. R. Letcher.Finding that the lives of the men underground were

endangered through want of medical aid Dr. Letcher wentdown and worked in the poisonous air for hours until hewas utterly exhausted.

Obituary.Dr. J. G. Carstairs, one of the oldest practitioners of

Geelong, Victoria, died on Jan. 13th. Dr Carstairs was ason of the late Surgeon W. Carstairs of the East India

Company’s service and was born at Poonab, in the BombayPresidency, India, on June 28th, 1829. He studied medicineat the University of Edinburgh where he graduated as

M.D. in 1850. He commenced practice in Moorahool-street,Geelong, in February, 1854, and soon acquired a largepractice. He was universally respected and was especiallygood to the poor. For many years he was health officerof the city and took a great interest in epidemiologicalquestions, contributing many papers to the local medicalsocieties on influenza. measles, and like subjects, theoccurrences of which he believed were influenced by theamount of ozone in the atmosphere.Feb. 2nd.

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Obituary.ALEXANDER DAVIDSON, M.A., M.D. EDIN.,

F.R.C.P. LOND.,CONSULTING PHYSICIAN TO THE LIVERPOOL ROYAL INFIRMARY.

IT is with much regret that we have to record the deathof Dr. Alexander Davidson, at the age of 66 years, which eventtook place on March 3rd at his residence at 2, Gambier-terrace, Liverpool. He had been in failing health for sometime and in October of last year was confined to his room.He recovered sufficiently to enable him to Jesume a part ofhis professional work but apparently the exertion was morethan he was able to endure as a serious relapse occurredabout four weeks ago from which he never rallied. Dr.Davidson was born in Edinburgh in 1838, being the son ofthe late Rev. Dr. Davidson of that city. He graduated asBachelor of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh in1863 and as Doctor of Medicine in 1872. He waselected a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians ofLondon in 1885, having been admitted to its Membershipin 1874. He was formerly assistant physician to the Liver-pool Infirmary for Children and honorary physician to theLiverpool Northern Hospital and in 1876 was appointedhonorary physician to the Liverpool Royal Infirmary, fromwhich post he retired in the spring of 1897 and was thenappointed consulting physician. He took a leading part inthe reconstruction of the old Liverpool Royal Infirmary Schoolof Medicine which in 1881 became the medical faculty ofUniversity College, Liverpool, and is now the medical faculty