132 VERDICT IN MRS. CUMMING’S CASE.-THE ANALYTICAL SANITARY COMMISSION.

self and her property, and that she has been so from the lst dayof May, 1846."From the following opinion of Mrs. CUMMING’S counsel,

extracted from the daily papers, it becomes a question of

serious doubt whether that verdict of the jury was not mainlythe result of their adherence to the maxim of Lord ELDON,recommended to them by the Commissioner. Whether, inshort, they have not deduced "unsoundness of mind," whichshould be the antecedent, out of relative incapacity to manageaffairs, which should be traced as springing out of the ante-cedent. The opinions of Mrs. CUMMING’S counsel will certainlyfind many adherents. It is as follows :-

" It having been intimated to us that Mrs. Cumming isdesirous of reversing the decision of the jury, finding her to -be insane since the lst of May, 1846, we are of opinion thatthe verdict given by the jury is so manifestly against the evi-dence, that she is fully justified in instituting all necessaryproceedings to traverse the inquisition, and submit the case toanother jury. "EDWIN JAMES, Q.C.

"CHARLES WTLKINS, S.L."THOMAS SOUTHGATE."

The solicitors of Mrs. CUMMING have accordingly intimatedthat it is her intention to traverse the inquisition.

Altogether the evidence given by the medical men calledfor the defence of Mrs. CUMMING, was perhaps the strongestand most unhesitating ever given in a case of lunacy wherea verdict of insanity was returned. Dr. CONOLLY, Dr. FORBESWINSLOW, Dr. HALE, Dr. BARNES, and Mr. WALTER BRYANT,had all ample opportunities of forming a sound opinion.Every prolonged ingenuity which the practised and reck-less advocate could exert, was applied by Sir F. TsEsiGER to shake the evidence of Dr. FORBES WINSLOW, but in

vain. He had formed a strong opinion upon strong grounds,after a most careful examination, and nothing could shakehim. The lawyer retired before the physician, and con-fessed he had met with more than his match. We must

record one circumstance highly illustrative of the feeling withwhich the medical men entered upon the case. When, onthe specious pretence of expense, Sir F. THESiGER obtained theexclusion of the medical witnesses for the defence, Dr.

CoNOLLT declared he would remain without payment, and hedid remain. After hearing the entire evidence, he gave hisown opinions in the most unreserved manner as to the sanityof Mrs. CUMMING. Subsequently to the conclusion of the trial,he penned the following note, which we lay before our readers.It speaks volumes :-

" Hanwell, Jan. 24th, 1852. ’,

"DEAR SiRS,—On receiving your letter this morning I wentto the Eyre Arms, but found the Court closed. ," I hear the verdict is against Mrs. Cumming. If so, a more

ignorant and unjust verdict was never given by a jury. ,

" If she is again to be dragged into a lunatic asylum, I hopemeasures will be taken to effect her discharge by Habeas ’,Corpus. Any services that I can render to this most per- secuted lady will always be at her command.

"I remain, dear Sirs, very truly,"Your obedient servant,

41 Messrs. Robinson and Haynes." " JOHN CONOLLT.

Inasmuch as further discussion must have the effect of

tending to adjust some of the many vexed qU3stions relating to the medical jurisprudence of insanity, the issue of thistrial will be looked for with unusual interest.

AT the Annual Court of the Governors of the Royal FreeHospital, on Tuesday last, it was resolved, " that in considera-tion of their laborious and indefatigable exertions, one

hundred guineas be presented to each of the physicians andsurgeons of the Hospital, and that for the future they shallreceive each one hundred guineas per annum." This is an

example worthy of being followed.

THE

ANALYTICAL SANITARYCOMMISSION.

RECORDS OF THE RESULTS OF

MICROSCOPICAL AND CHEMICAL ANALYSESOF THE

SOLIDS AND FLUIDSCONSUMED BY ALL CLASSES OF THE PUBLIC.

PICKLES,AND THEIR

ADULTERATIONS.

To persons unacquainted with the subject, the title of thisreport----, Pickles and their Adulterations," may appear some-what singular ; and they may be disposed to ask-Are notthe girkins, cabbages, beans, &c., which we see in the bottles,what they appear to be ? And are other vegetables thanthose commonly known to us mixed with the ordinary kinds ? To these questions we thus reply :-‘° Girkins," on closeexamination, often turn out to be but shrivelled or slicedcucumbers ; the " young tender beans" to be old and tough ;the " cauliflowers" to have run to seed ; and the " red cab-bage" to be nothing more than white cabbage turned into redby colouring matter, as a dyer would change the colour ofa dress ; further, that amongst the vegetables not unfrequentlyemployed for the purpose of pickle-making, are some whichdo not enter into the calculation of the epicure, as vegetablemarrows,-which,when cut into pieces, form a very respectableimitation of cucumbers,-and sliced turnips, the identificationof which would be apt to puzzle even a botanist, as well ascertainly all those who are uninitiated in the secrets of api ckle -manufactory.But the adulterations to which we more especially allude,

and to the consideration of which our attention will be par-ticularly directed in the following remarks, are those whichrefer to the quality and composition of the vinegar used forpickling, as well as to the means employed for preservingand heightening the colour of green pickles.InAccum’s celebrated work, "Death in the Pot," under the

head POISONOUS PICKLES, we obtain the following informationin relation to the " greening" of pickles :-

" Vegetable substances preserved in the state called picklesby means of the antiseptic power of vinegar, whose salefrequently depends greatly upon a fine lively green colour,and the consumption of which, by seafaring people in parti-cular, is prodigious, are sometimes intentionally coloured bymeans of copper. Girkins, French beans, samphires, thegreen pods of capsicum, and many other pickled vegetablesubstances, oftener than is perhaps expected, are met withimpregnated with this metal. Numerous fatal consequencesare known to have ensued from the use of these stimulants tothe palate, to which the fresh and pleasing hue has beenimparted according to the deadly formulœ laid down in somemodern cookery books ; such as boiling the pickle with half-pence, or suffering them to stand for a considerable period inbrazen vessels."

" Dr. Percival (Medical Transactions, vol. iv. p. 80) has givenan account of " a young lady who amused herself while herhair was dressing with eating samphire pickles impregnatedwith copper. She soon complained of pain in the stomach,and in five days vomiting commenced, which was incessant fortwo days. After this her stomach became prodigiously dis-tended, and in nine days after eating the pickles, death re-lieved her from her suffering."Among many recipes which modern authors of cookery

books have given for imparting a green colour to pickles,the following are particularly deserving of censure ; and it is

133

to be hoped that they will be suppressed in future editions ofthe works :-

" To Pickle Girkins.*—Boil the vinegar in a bell-metal or

copper pot ; pour it boiling hot on your cucumbers.6To make Greening.,-Take a bit of verdigrise the bignessof a hazel-nut, finely powdered, half-a-pint of distilled vinegar,and a bit of alum powder, with a little bay salt. Put all in abottle, shake it, and let it stand till clear. Put a small tea-spoonful into codlings, or whatever you wish to green.

" Mr. E. Raffeld? directs: To render pickles green, boilthem with halfpence, or allow them to stand for twenty-fourhours in copper or brass pans."To detect the presence of copper, it is only necessary to

tnince the pickles, and to pour liquid ammonia dilutedwith an equal bulk of water, over them in a stopped vial : if thepickles contain the minutest quantity of copper, the ammoniaassumes a blue colour."The above remarks and quotations convey a somewhat

fearful picture of the colouring of pickles. It will be our ob-ject to ascertain how far the statements made apply to theirpresent condition.

It will be seen that the same method of analysis, for deter-mining the amount of acetic acid, has been followed, which wasadopted in the Report on Vinegar; and that the sulphuric acidhas in all cases been determined by the quantities of sulphateof baryta formed on the addition of an excess of chloride ofbarium.As the combined sulphuric acid by this process, as well as

that which is free, are thrown down, it becomes necessary toascertain the quantity of sulphuric acid in the state of combi-nation present in genuine vinegar. With this view we haveanalysed three different samples, of 1000 grains each, of purevinegar, and obtained the following amounts of sulphate ofbaryta :-from Kent’s Bordeaux, ’61 ; Kent’s No. 17, .57 ; ;and from Gilbert’s pickling vinegar, ’46 ; the first correspond-ing with ’25 ; the second with ’24 ; and the third with ’19 ofsulphuric acid. In all calculations, therefore, the averagequantity of combined sulphuric acid should be deduced fromthe total amount of that acid present.

Lastly, for the detection of the copper the following processeswere adopted :--About 3oz. of the green vegetables of each ofthe pickles, after having been sliced with a glass knife, wereincinerated, care being taken to avoid every source of con-tamination : the white ash having been pulverized, wastreated with 20 drops of pure nitric acid ; 1 oz. of distilledwater, after the lapse of a short time, being added, the solutionwas filtered, and treated with excess of ammonia, it thenbecoming more or less blue, according to the amount of copperpresent.The results obtained by the above method were also, in all

cases, confirmed by a second process.RESULTS OF THE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF TWENTY SAMPLES OF

PICKLES OF DIFFERENT KINDS, PURCHASED OF VARIOUS PICKLE-MAKERS AND OTHER TRADESMEN IN LONDON.

MIXED PICKLES.

1st Sample.Purchased-of E. H. Wood, Italian warehouseman, 88, Oxford-

street..Analysis.—1000 grains of the vinegar in which the pickleswere preserved contain 19’37 parts of acetic acid, or 1’93 percent., and 1’67 of sulphuric acid; pic7oles themselves impreg-nated with a very considerable quantity of copper, evidencedboth by the blue colour of the solution of the ash on the addition of ammonia, as well as by the deposition of avery well-marked coating of copper on a polished rod of iron.

2aad Sample.Purchased-of Timberlake and Priestly, Wax Chandlers and

Pickle-makers, 311, Oxford-street.Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 21°62 parts of

acetic acid, or 216 per cent., and ’58 of sulphuric acid;pickles contaminated with rather much copper, as shownby the ammonia test, as also by the formation of a coatingof the metal on a polished bar of iron.

3rd Sample.Purchased-of S. Fowler, Oilman, 31, Lisle-street, Newport-

market.Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 17-07 parts of* The Ladies’ Library, vol. ii., p. 203.t Modern Cookery; or, the English Housewife, 2nd edition, p. 94.t The English Housekeeper, pp. 352, 354. This book has run through 18

editions.

acetic acid, or 1.70 per cent., and 1°55 of sulphuric acid;pickles impregnated with rather much copper, as shown bythe ammonia test, and also by the deposition of a well-marked crust ofcopper.

4th Sample.Purchased-of Edmonson and Co., Grocers, 29, Tottenham-

court-road. -

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 17’50 parts ofacetic acid, or 1’75 per cent. and 1°00 of sulphuric acid;pickles impregnated with rather nauch copper, as shown bythe ammonia test, and also by the deposition of a well-marked coating of copper.

5th Sample.Purchased-of E. Frost, Grocer, 288, Oxford-street.

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 18’84 parts ofacetic acid, or 1’88 per cent., and ’59 of sulplauric ac°id;pickles contaminated with a small quantity of copper, thesolution of the ash becoming slightly blue on the addition

’, of ammonia, and a very evident deposition of the metal taking’, place on the bar of iron.

6th Sample.Purchased-of Westbrooke and Co., Grocers, 21, Oxford-

street.

Analysis.—1000 grains of the vinegar contain 23°44 parts ofacetic acid, or 2’34 per cent., and ’84 of sulphuric acid;pickles impregnated with a considerable quantity of copper,as shown by the ammonia test, as also by a well-markeddeposition of copper on the polished rod of iron.

7th Sample.Purchased-of S. Levy, Oilman, 3, Crown-street, Soho.Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 21°98 parts of

acetic acid, or 2’19 per cent., and ’57 of sulphuric acid;pickles impregnated with a very considerable quantity ofcopper, evidenced by the ammonia test, as also by thedeposition of a very well-marked coating of copper.

8th Sample.Purchased-of R. Green, Oilman, 32, Little Newport-street.

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 26.07 parts-ofacetic acid, or 2.60 per cent., and 1.03 of sulphuric acid;pickles contaminated with rather much copper, as indicatedby the dmmonia test, and by the formation of a wellmarked metallic coat.

9th Sample.Purchased-of W. G. Nixey, Oilman, 22, Moor-street, Soho.

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 14°65 parts ofacetic acid, or 1’46 per cent., and ’38 of sulphuric acid;pickles contaminated with a very small quantity of copper, asshown by the slight deposition of the metal on the bar of iron.

10th S’anaple.Purchased-of W. Gilbert, Tallow-chandler, ’64, Tottenham-

court-road.Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 15°49 parts of

acetic acid, or 1*54 per cent., and traces of combined sulphuricacid; pickles contaminated with rather much copper, asshown by the ammonia and galvanic tests.

GIRKINS.

11th Sample.Purchased-of Messrs, Crosse & Blackwell, Pickle Manufac-

turers, 11 King-street, Soho.Analysis—1.000 grains of the vinegar contain 29.11 parts of

acetic acid, or 2’91 per cent., and ’96 of sulphuric acid;pickles contaminated with rather much copper, as shown bythe bluish colour of the solution of the ash when treatedwith ammonia, as well as by theformation of a.well.markedmetallic incrustation,

In reference to the above analysis, we think it right topublish the following remarks relating to the establishmentof Messrs. Crosse and Blackwell, of 21, Soho-square, extractedfrom the supplement to Ure’s " Dictionary of Arts."

" I have examined the apparatus in the great fish-sauce,pickle, and preserved fruit establishment of Messrs. Crosse andBlackwell, Soho-square, and find it arranged on the principlemost conducive to economy, cleanliness, and salubrity; nomaterial employed there is even allowed to come in contactwith copper."

134

12th Sample.Purchased-of W. Bowley, Oilman, 110, Tottenham-court-

road.Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 23°69 parts

of acetic acid, or 2°36 per cent., and 59 of sulphuric acid; pickles contaminated with rather much copl3e)-, as shownby the tests referred to.

13th Sample,.Purchased of J. Oulds, Oilman, Henry-street, Hampstead-

road.Analysis—1000 grains of the vinegar contain 1518 parts of

acetic acid, or 1.51 per cent., and 1.47 of sulphuric* acid;pickles highly impregnated with copper, the solution ofthe ash when treated with ammonia, becoming of a deepblue co/OM)’, and a strong metallic crust being instantlydeposited on the bar of iron.

The pickles in this case contained so large a quantity ofcopper, that they might be pronounced absolutely poisonous.

14th Sample.Purchased—of Messrs. Freeman, Pickle-makers, 3, Wigmore-

street.

Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 28°19 parts ofacetic acid, or 2°81 per cent., and 1°29 of sulphuric acid;pickles impregnated with a very considerable quantity ofcopper, as evinced by the ammonia test, and by theformation of a very well-marked coating of copper on theiron bar.

BEANS.

15th Sample.Purchased of E. Lazenby & Sons, Pickle-makers, 6, Edward-

street, Portman-square.Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 2294 parts of

acetic acid, or 2’29 per cent.,and -76of sulphuric acid ; pickleshighly impregnated with copper, as shown by the decidedblue colour of the solution of the ash, on the addition ofammonia, as well as by the immediate deposition of a strong’crust of the metal, on immersion in the liquid of a brightbar of iron.

With the exception of samples 13 and 16, these pickles con-tained more copper than any of the others.

16th Sample.Purchased - of B. Maiden, Oilman, 226, Tottenham-court-

road. _

Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 25.32 parts ofacetic acid, or 2’53 per cent., and ’70 of sulphuric acid;pickles highly impregnated with copper, the solution of the

ash when treated with ammonia becoming of a deep bluecolour, and a strong metallic crust being instantly depositedon the bar of iron.

The pickles in this case contained a still larger quantity ofcopper than was present in sample 13, and therefore they areto be regarded as still more pernicious than the former.

RED CABBAGE.

I, 17th Sample. ,

Purchased of W. King, Oilman, 17, Marylebone-lane.i, Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 2500 parts ofI acetic acid, or 2’50 per cent., and 2’52 of sulpluric acid.

18th Sample.Purchased—of E. Vezey, Oilman, 1, James-street, Oxford-

screet.

Analysis-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 26.65 parts ofacetic acid, or 2 66 per cent., and 2’52 of sulphuric acid.

The colour of the vinegar in both the samples of pickled redcabbage, was of a bright and madder-like red, very muchbrighter than the bluish-red which we observe in home-madepickled cabbage. We believe that it is common to producethis bright colour by means of beet-root, and we suspect thatthis means has been had recourse to in the present cases. Sopowerful is the colouring matter of beet-root, that white cab-bage steeped for some time in -a strong decoction of it, assumesvery much the appearance of red cabbage ; and we have beeninformed that what is sold as red pickled cabbage is oftennothing more than white cabbage thus artificially coloured.

19th Sample.Purchased-of J. Revell, Oilman, 50, James-street, Oxford-

street.

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 26’65 parts ofacetic acid, or 2’66 per cent., and 1.67 of sulphuric acid.

20th Sample.Purchased-of R. Davey, Grocer, 21, Marylebone-lane.

Analysis.-1000 grains of the vinegar contain 20·83 parts ofacetic acid, or 2’08 per cent., and 1’19 of sulphuric acid.

Many of our readers may have noticed, in their visits toCovent-garden Market during the walnut season, the carewith which the shells of the walnuts are preserved. Theseare employed generally to make walnut-ketchup, but some-times are used for pickling, being of course much inferiorfor the purpose to the young walnuts themselves.

The results comprehended in the above analyses are moreclearly brought under review in the annexed table.

TABLE SHOWING THE RESULTS OF THE CHEMICAL ANALYSES OF THE ABOVE

TWENTY PICKLES OF DIFFERENT DESCRIPTIONS.

135

On an attentive consideration of the above table, the fol-lowing general conclusions may be deduced :-

1st. That the vinegar used for pickling is of a very weakdescription, the per-centages of acetic acid ranging between1-48 and 2-91. It will be remembered, that, in our lastReport, we stated that vinegar of good quality ought tocontain from, four to fve per cent. of pure acetic acid.

2nd. That nineteen out of twenty of the vinegars submittedto analysis, poor as they were, yet ozved a portion of theiracidity to sulphuric acid, the amonnt of which varied, inthe different samples, from ’38 to 252 in the 1000 grains;the largest quantity of this acid being detected in thevinegars in which the red cabbages were pickled.

3rd. That in the whole of the sixteen different pickles analyzedfor copper, THAT POISONOUS METAL was discovered in variousamounts : two of the samples contained a small quantity;eight, rather much; one, a considerable quantity three, avery considerable quantity in one, copper was present inhighly deleterious amount; and in two, in poisonousamounts.

4th. It will be observed, that the pickles which contain thelargest quantity of cop_per, are those which consist entirelyof green vegetables, as girkins and beans.

Notwithstanding the statements made in books, some ofwhich we have noticed at the commencement of this Report,when we entered upon these inquiries, we felt convinced thatso poisonous a metal as copper was now rarely, if ever, em-ployed for the mere purpose of heightening and preservingthe colour of green pickles; we are therefore both surprisedand grieved at the really fearful character of the results towhich our investigations have conducted us. We trust, how-ever, now that conclusive evidence of this scandalous practicehas been adduced, and that the public are put upon their guard,a remedy will be found for this great evil.

Pickles, doubtless, when properly prepared, are not verydigestible; but we now see that much of the ill effects sogenerally attributed to their use, must result from their im-pregnation with so poisonous a contamination.

It is not alone in the pickles that this poison is present, for itmay be detected with remarkable readiness and certainty, inthe vinegar in which the pickles are preserved, by the immer-sion in a small quantity of the vinegar-half an ounce is suffi-cient-for a few hours, of a piece of thick iron wire, having asmooth and polished surface. This test is of such ready appli-cation that we recommend the public to make use of it, andso ascertain for themselves whether the pickles they are usingcontain the poison or not. If an exceedingly small quantityof copper be present it will be quickly deposited on the surfaceof the iron.We have ourselves tried this simple proceeding, first with

half an ounce of the vinegars in which the pickles, purchasedof Messrs. Lazenby and Sons, Oulds, and Malden, were con-tained ; in each case, after the lapse of three hours, a well-marked coating of copper had formed upon the iron rod. Wenext tried it with the two vinegars previously ascertained tocontain the smallest quantity of copper-that is, those pur-chased of Messrs. Nixey and Frost ; in these cases also, afterthe lapse of a few hours, an incrustation of copper was formed.Another very simple and efficient method of detecting the

presence of copper in pickles, is the following:-Put three orfour drops of the suspected vinegar on the blade of a knife;add one drop of sulphuric acid, and heat the under surface ofthe knife over the flame of a candle; the vinegar, in evaporat-ing, will deposit the copper upon the iron, if any be present.One of the worst features of this abominable practice is,that the employment of copper is wholly unnecessary, as thecolour of green vegetables may be very Well preserved byother means, as by the use of pure vinegar, and the additionof a proper quantity of salt.- Since then, as we have now proved, pickles are all but con-

stantly contaminated, and even rendered poisonous, by copper,the only safety for the public is, that all housekeepers shouldtake the matter into their own hands, and become themselvesthe makers of their pickles.In order to arrive at the results detailed in the above

report, it was necessary—1st. To make twenty analyses toascertain the acidifying power of each vinegar, as representedby the quantity of dried carbonate of soda required to satu-rate it ; these quantities being accurately determined bymeans of atomic weights and decimal calculations. 2nd. Toreduce, by other decimal calculations, the soda into acetic

acid. 3rd. To make twenty analyses to determine thedifferent amounts of sulphate of baryta contained in eachvinegar, and to reduce these, by complicated sums, into

sulphuric acid. Lastly. To analyze sixteen of the pickles, bya very troublesome process, for copper. This statement doesnot include the purchase of the samples, the putting togetherin order of the different facts, nor the occasional repetition ofthe analyses, on account of uncertainties, or failures, arisingfrom one cause or another.

The next Report of the Analytical Sanitary Commissionwill be on

SPICES,AND THEIR.

ADULTERATIONS.

Correspondence.

SHOULD CHLOROFORM BE USED IN INSTRU-MENTAL LABOUR?

"Audi alteram partem."

To the Editor of THE LANCET.SiR,—The subject of anaesthesia is one in which the very learned

and excellent professor of midwifery of this university naturallyfeels a strong interest, and takes every means of forcing upon theattention of his students. His last few lectures have been de-voted to that subject, and in the course of to-day’s, he observedthat the use of chloroform had been objected to in instrumentallabour, on the ground that the obstetrician required the aid of hispatient’s feelings, to enable him to apply his forceps correctly andsafely. But this objection, the professor remarked, he wouldmeet by stating, that a woman should not be allowed to suffer forlack of knowledge of the practitioner-in other words, that heconsidered every professional man’s knowledge should be such asto enable him to apply the forceps safely in an anaesthetizedpatient. " What," said Dr. Simpson, "would be thought of’Mr.Syme, if in tying the femoral artery, he required the patient toinform him whether or not he was including the nerve in the liga.ture ?" This, I conceive, was a very unhappy comparison, inas-much as the surgeon has the use of his eyes to guide himin ligature of the femoral, but if the operation of lithotritybe substituted, the comparison will be more in point; and then wehave Dr. Simpson and Mr. Syme, the one for and the otheragainst the use of the drug. Mr. Syme, the other day, in com-paring lithotrity with lithotomy, in a lecture to his clinical class,objected to the former operation on one ground-because of thedanger to the mucous membrane of the bladder from mechanicalinjury; and particularly insisted that chloroform should not beexhibited, as the surgeon had no other guide but the patient’sfeelings, to tell him when he might inadvertently be severing orotherwise injuring the coats of this important viscus.Few men are so highly gifted as Dr. Simpson, and whilst hemay, with the fullest confidence and greatest safety to his patient,apply the forceps under the circumstances alluded to, yet the factof so intelligent and dexterous a surgeon as Mr. Syme objectingto use it, may be held as sufficient caution for men of less experi-ence and tact ; and I humbly conceive that the recommendationof the drug in instrumental labour, should not be given so un-qualifiedly,for with the general use of chloroform there can scarcelybe a doubt that great injury will be occasionally inflicted, andthat too in the hands of obstetricians who are not behind the greatbody of their profession in knowledge and tact.

, I am, Sir, your obedient servant,Edinburgh, Jan. 23, 1852. A SUBSCRIBER.

HOSPITAL FOR INCURABLES.To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SiR,—On attempting so important a step as the establishmentof a new hospital, I consider it due to the profession of which Iam a member, to state the main objects which, it is hoped, willbe effected by such an institution in London.

I have long since learnt, from my experience as a hospitalsurgeon, that the most distressing cases of disease and sufferingare those which derive the least benefit from general hospitals, asat present constituted, the rules of those institutions, in mostinstances, forbidding the admission of cases of an inveteratenature, or requiring their dismissal when they become so.The unfortunate patients who are thus circumstanced, are often

left without any resource but the workhouse, or the gratuitous