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:society’s hall, &c., stand. It is curious that although theground was bought and the price paid in 1817 no title wasthen or since got. It is whispered that the society are tosell the present premises and move farther west. The lateSir James McGrigor (to whose memory the fine graniteobelisk in Marischal College quadrangle was erected) hadmuch to do with the society in its early days.Dec. 6th.

IRELAND.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS.)

Irish Medical Association.THE Council of the Irish Medical Association held a meet-

ing at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland on Nov. 29th,Sir Thornley Stoker, President of the association, beingin the chair. Dr. Smyth of Naas gave an exposition of thegrievances connected with the administration of the IrishPoor-law medical service, dividing his statement under thefollowing heads: the mode of appointment, the want of,promotion in the service, the issuing of dispensary tickets,the cost of travelling in dispensary districts, leave of absenced’or vacation, and superannuation. A special committee,which included Sir Thornley Stoker, was formed to consider.and prepare a scheme tending towards the improvement ofthe Poor-law medical service.

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.At the examinations for the Fellowship of the Royal College

of Surgeons in Ireland which have just concluded no less than’five candidates, including one lady, were admitted as

Fellows.Royal Hospital for IncurabLes, D2rblin.

The Countess Cadogan opened the annual sale of work atthe Royal Hospital for Incurables, Donnybrook, Dublin, onDec. lst, in the presence of a large number of visitors.Her Excellency was received by the authorities of the

hospital and shown a sort of bazaar or fancy mart where a.great variety of beautiful and useful articles produced by thepatients of the institution were displayed. Her Excellency’expressed much admiration for the patients’ artistic work,’especially the wood carvings.

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty toClildren, Ireland.

The Registrar-General for Ireland, Dr. Grimshaw, presidingat a meeting in connexion with the National Society for thePrevention of Cruelty to Children, held on Dec. 4th,referred to the large extent to which gambling by means ofinsurance on the lives of children existed and emphasised thenecessity for proper supervision by the authorities of placesdn which children were kept at nurse.

The -Royal Victoria Hospital, Be,7fast.At a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Royal

-Victoria Hospital on Dec. 2nd Mr. W. Henman, F.R.I.B.A.,was appointed architect for the new hospital. He is the

.gentleman who designed the Birmingham Hospital. Thebalance-sheet presented by the accountants shows that,taking the sums paid or guaranteed to the building andendowment funds (with the outlay up to date), there remain£102,046 6s. 1d.

The Main Drainage System at Belfast.A very influential deputation of residents and property

owners on the two sides of Belfast Lough appeared beforethe City Corporation on Dec. 1st to solicit their considera-tion of some facts concerning the drainage system of Belfast.and its deleterious effects upon their comfort, health, andproperty. They pointed out that before the present main,drainage .scheme was introduced the shores of the BelfastLough were comparatively inodorous. Now during thesummer months and on to October there is an appallingnauseating stench ever present in the nostrils of thosewho, unhappily, own property and reside in the vicinity’of the Lough, and this stench, the deputation stated,is each year increasing in intensity and extending further- down the Lough and is driving visitors and builders fromthe districts on each side. This disastrous state of affairsthe deputation ascribed to the discharge of sewage intoBelfast Lough without any attempt at filtration or chemicaltreatment and to the growth and decomposition by the sun

and other factors of a certain class of seaweed which is

generated and nourished by this deposit of sewage, andalso owing to the ticlal currents this sewage cannot beremoved. The deputation recommended chemical treat-ment of the sewage and gave an interesting accountof what is being done in this direction in London,Glasgow, Manchester, &c. Finally, the deputation urgedthe corporation to take immediate steps to abate such an

appalling nuisance and preserve the residents of the cityand those living upon the shores of the Lough from aninevitable recrudescence of the epidemic of typhoid feverwhich has so frequently been present in their midst. TheLord Bishop introduced the deputation and Mr. Andrews(chairman of the County Down Railway Company), andDr. Letts (Professor of Chemistry, Queen’s College, Belfast)having spoken the subject was referred to the Improvementand Public Health Committees for consideration.

The Health of Belfast.At the monthly meeting of the corporation held on

Dec. lst it was reported that between Oct. 16th andNov. 19th 600 cases of zymotic disease had been notified,

= 387 of typhoid fever, 98 simple continued fever, 94 scarletfever, 44 diphtheria, 33 erysipelas, 9 membranous croup,and 2 puerperal fever. There were 118 deaths from zymoticdiseases, 75 from phthisis, and 213 from diseases of therespiratory organs. The annual death-rate was 25’9. Thenumber of cases of typhoid fever and the deaths therefrom havematerially diminished, and the disease seems to be assumingits normal condition in the city, but, as the medical officer ofhealth states, "it [typhoid fever] is rarely if ever absentfrom amongst us, and so long as this state of affairs remainsa fresh outbreak may at any time occur ; every care is beingtaken as far as possible to prevent this."

The Battle of the Clnbs at Cork: : the Present Position.It is now very nearly three years since the battle of the

clubs began at Cork and it is interesting to review some ofthe details of the fight up to date. It will be in the recol-lection of readers of THE LANCET that there were twogrievances which the profession in Cork desired to haverectified. One was the small remuneration paid by theclubs; the other was that owing to the absence ofa wage limit numbers of citizens who could wellafford to pay ordinary fees joined the clubs and privatepractice was rapidly approaching the vanishing-point.Accordingly there was a meeting of the profession and itwas decided that the medical men holding club appointmentsshould resign and that the seniors of the profession shouldunder no circumstances meet in consultation any medicalman who might accept the vacated posts. On this decision

being officially communicated to the various clubs nearlyall of the latter joined together and determined if

possible to defeat the combination of the profession.Advertisements were inserted inviting medical men totake up the appointments and it is regrettable to statethat they found 4 members of the profession readyto come to their assistance. One of those had been

practising in the city for a very short time and was notknown to the majority of the local profession. The 3 otherswere imported from other districts. Club members filled

nearly every post in the local newspaper offices and it ishardly to be wondered at that the editors of those papersespoused the cause of the clubs. The clubs met in solemnconclave and the combination of the medical men wasdenounced in all the moods and tenses. The news-

papers were flooded with correspondence in which vitu-

peration of the medical men was the prevailing note.But the latter calmly pursued the even tenour oftheir way. The mayor, Alderman Meade, who is also

mayor for this year, was anxious to procure a com-

promise and at his instance a deputation from the

profession met a deputation from the clubs. Negotiationsproceeded smoothly till the club deputation announced asa sine quâ non that the medical men-the errant ones-should be taken into the fold of the local profession.The medical deputation at once replied that such a

condition was entirely impossible, but at the urgentrequest of the mayor they decided on bringing the wholematter under the notice of their professional brethren.

Accordingly they did so and the action of the deputa-tion was unanimously and promptly endorsed. The fightwas not long in progress when one of the importedmen died and, later, another left the city. Mean-time two or three of £ the clubs engaged their former

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medical officers on the terms fixed by the professiorand the membership of others diminished by one-half, whilsimany of the well-to-do members owing to the publicity givento their action became ashamed of their position and calledin the assistance of the ordinary practitioners of the city.The two club medical officers met each other in con-

sultation but club patients often realised the incon-venience of being unable to procure the advice of otherpractitioners and these two gentlemen were repeatedlyobliged to submit to the indignity of resigning theircases into the hands of members of the local pro-fession. So things went on till last week, when one ofthe two sent in his resignation of the clubs and announcedhis intention of leaving the city. The clubs state that his

resignation is entirely due to family reasons, but for sometime past it was freely stated that he found his position ofisolation from his professional brethren very irksome. Hewas kept eternally on the move and no doubt time

taught him what was the experience of the medicalmen who had resigned the clubs that club practicein Cork means " much cry and little wool." The clubsnow are in a painfully perplexed condition. One of the

newspapers which had been always a strenuous supporterof the clubs referring to the resignation says: "Like thecase of the ten little nigger boys’ they have dwindled downto one." But no one man can possibly cater for the medicalwants of the clubs of Cork, neither can he hold a con-

sultation with himself. All the newspapers have had leadingarticles holding out the flag of truce and suggesting thatnow is the time for compromise. Be it so. But only onthe terms that a fair day’s work is worth a fair day’s wage.Dec. 6th.

______________

PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

T1’eatment of Tetanus by Intraeerebral Injections of Anti-tetanic 6<?MM.

AT the meeting of the Society of Surgery held on

Nov. 15th a discussion was opened upon the treatment oftetanus by intracerebral injections of antitetanic serum, amethod of treatment which some two months ago seemed to

promise such good results. Statistics brought forward bysundry surgeons, however, gave a most disappointing result.M. Francois Hue had treated a child, aged eleven years, whodeveloped tetanus after a compound fracture of the forearm.Many injections were made but the child died, although thetreatment was commenced immediately on the onset of thetetanic symptoms. M. Quenu had employed the method ofMM. Roux and Barrel in 2 cases without success althoughin 1 case where the tetanic symptoms had only lasted twodays the immediate results of the injections were good but thepatient succumbed from pneumonia on the third day.M. Lucas Championniere had tried the treatment in 2 casesand had had 2 deaths. In one case of chronic tetanus thepatient had recovered after one injection, but it must beremembered that patients do recover from the chronic form oftetanus. One surgeon stated that out of 7 cases he hadseen 4 of the patients get well spontaneously. The resultsobtained by I1IM. Reclus, Chaput, Richelot, Hartmann, andNelaton were all equally unsatisfactory. In all cases treatedby them with antitetanic serum death supervened. M. Peyrotpointed out the difficulty of differentiating tetanus fromcerebro-spinal meningitis and asked whether certain casesof tetanus reported as having been cured were not reallycases of meningitis.

Unveiling of tlw Charcot Ion1{ment.On Sunday morning, Dec. 4th, was unveiled the monument

to Charcot on a site in front of the Salpetriere. There were

present M. Leygues (the Minister of Public Instruction),the President of the Academy of Sciences, the Director of theAssistance Publique, the President of the Municipal Council Iof Paris, the Prefect of the Seine, Dr. Jaccoud (the Presi- Ident of the Academy of Medicine), and Professor Brouardel(the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and President of the 1monument committee). Many other scientific notabilities lalso attended the ceremony as well as the members of 1Charcot’s family, of whom the son, Dr. Jean Charcot, 1married the granddaughter of Victor Hugo and is at present sProfessor of Clinical Medicine (chef de cliniq1w) at the 1

Faculty. The statue is by Falguiores and shows Charcot.standing upright with his left hand raised and touching withhis right forefinger the head of a patient in front of him.The monument stands just to the left of the great gate.leading into the hospital. It is in bronze and on the

pedestal, which is perfectly plain, is this simple inscription:"A Charcot. Ses eleves, ses amis.-1898." Orations weredelivered by Dr. Brouardel, by the President of the

Municipal Council, by Professor Raymond (Charcot’ssuccessor at the Salpetriere), and by Dr. Carnil. Dr.

Gombaut, a fellow-worker with Charcot, has received theLegion of Honour.

Nedical Qualifieations in France and the Position of the’ Alien Medical Man.

In answer to your request for an explicit account of theposition of the foreign medical man or foreign medicalstudent I send you the following statement for the benefit ofyour readers :-Until quite recently there were two medicaLdegrees in France-the doctorat en merlecine and the offieiat.de sant&eacute;. The possession of either of these conferred the

right to practise, but there was a difference in the conditionsunder which this right was exercised. Before a studentcould begin to study for the doctorat he had to have:gained the baccalaur&eacute;at es lettres and the baccalaur&eacute;at &egrave;$’sciences. After having graduated as a Doctor of Medicinehe could practise his profession anywhere in France or in anyFrench colony. For the y(CCiat de sante the two bacca-laurgats were unnecessary. The medical studies, however, onlydiffered very slightly, but they were less costly. But theofficier de sant&eacute; could only practise in one department, and ifhe wished to change from one department to another he hadto pass another examination. This distinction has been doneaway with by a regulation passed in November, 1892, and thefaculties of medicine no longer receive students for thedegree of offloiat de sante. Those who took this degree priorto 1893 are, however, still allowed to practise. The passing

successfully through the course of study for the doctorate ofmedicine enables the student to take either of two forms ofthis degree, although there is but one course of study.The student can either take the dipl&ocirc;me d’&eacute;tat, givingthe right to practise anywhere in France or her colonies,or else the diploma d’ [fni1:enit&eacute;, which has exactly thesame scientif]c value but does not authorise the holderto practise outside France herself. This last diploma was:inaugurated to remove certain abuses of privilege by whichforeign students who had finished their studies in Franceunder much easier conditions than natives were accustomedto set up in practice in their adopted country. Formerlyit was much easier for a foreigner to practise medicinein France than for a native, for the French students hadto break off in their medical studies for three years while

going through the prescribed course of military service.The protest to which this state of matters gave rise resultedin a new regulation being made by which foreigners whcrwished to practise in France were allowed to do so as beforeunder easy conditions, but they were only to receive thedipl&ocirc;me d’l1nivcrsit&eacute;. To gain the dipl&ocirc;me d’itat they have-to submit to the same conditions as natives, that is to say,before commencing their medical studies they must pass forthe degree of bachelor (bachelier d’enseignement secondaire-francais), then they have to pass a second examination inphysics, chemistry, and natural sciences. This latterexamination is a new one and without having passedit no one will in future be able to study medicine.To sum up, a foreigner who wishes to pursue hismedical studies in France can choose either of two

diplomas. If he desires the dipl6me d’&eacute;tat giving himthe right to practise in France he must undergo the sameexaminations as a native Frenchman, and before commencing-his medical studies must pass the same preliminary examina--tions, the one for the degree of bachelor (baccala1tr&eacute;at del’examen secondaire classiq1w) and the examination in physicsand chemistry. Nothing excuses him from these examina-tions even though he be the possessor of high degrees in his)wn country. Not even a doctor in medicine of the first-)lass English universities can practise in France unless heaas passed the above-mentioned examinations. If he wisheso obtain the degree of doctor in medicine merely as an-

honour without wishing to practise in France he mustLindergo the same course of study as any other student, but.;here are certain exceptions. Students of foreign univer-iities who can show testamurs from their university dulyranslated into French and properly authenticated are excused