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under ground. By a statute in the reign ofEdward ill., coroners were not to demandortake any thing for doing their office, whichonly confirmed the ancient law of England,whereby any one concerned in the adminis-tration of justice is restrained from takingany fee or reward for its execution. But byan act of Henry VII., reciting that the officeof coroner had grown into disuse, wherebymanslaying and murder had increased, thecoroner was awarded 13s. 4d. upon every in-

quisition, and fined 5l. for default of makinginquisition and certifying. An act of

George II. allows the coroner 20s. for everyinquisition over and above the 13s. 4d., and9d, for every mile that he shall be obliged totravel. The coroner’s inquest is familiarlytermed "sitting on the body ;" and so

Shakspeare has it in Twelfth Night, on oc-casion of Sir Toby’s drunkenness:-

" Olivia,—What’s a drunken man like,fool ?

" Clown.—Like a drowned man, a fool,and a madman ; one draught above heatmales him a fool, the second mads him, anda third drowns him.

’ Olivia.—Go thou and seek the coronerand let him sit o’ my coz ; for he’s in thethird degree of drink-he’s drowned."And so in Hamlet, the Clowns that dig

Ophelia’s grave discourse thus :-"2d Clown.-The crowner hath sat on

her, and finds it Christian burial."After a rustical roundelay of reasoning

upon the finding, comes a legal conclusion :-"2d Clown.—But is this law? *!’list Clown.—Ay marry, is’t; crowner’s

quest law."To the present day the coroner is popular

among the vulgar as the 11 crowner."The Lord Chief Justice of England is the

sovereign coroner of the whole realm, inperson, wheresoever he abides.The Coroner of the Verg’e, sometimes

filled Coroner of the King’s House, or

household, has exclusive jurisdiction withinthe verge of the couit. By a statute, 33Henry VIII., every inquisition on personsslain in any of the King’s palaces or houses,or any other house wherein His Majestyshall be abiding, is directed to be taken bythe coroner of the King’s household, by theoa!ha of twelve or more of the yeomen-officers of the household. But on the lstof June, 1810, an inquisition was taken byCamuei Thomas Adams, Esq., Coroner ofthe King’s household, on view of the bodyof Joseph Sellis, at the apartments of theDuke oi C’maberland, in the Kitchen-court,St. James’s, and none of the jury summonedRrre otncera of the household, but house-

ers uf the v:cinage, eighteen being re-at Channg-cross, and one in StLane.

there are likewise coroners belonging to

particular corporations and colleges, ap-pointed to act within their precincts, bylicence of their respective charters.The coroner of the city of London is the

Lord Mayor for the time being, or hisdeputy. He takes inquisition of death, asother coroners ; and also concerning foundtreasure, deodands, and wrecks at sea. The

deputy’s gratuity for performing the dutiesof city coroner appears to be according tothe pleasure of the Court of Common Coun-cil. In March, 1751, the court consideredthe petition of John King, Esq., coroner ofthe city, and resolved to allow him £ 100.,in full consideration for his several inquestsin the city gaols, and 13s. 4d. for everyfuture one.

In the Mirrour of Justices, a law bookof great antiquity, edited and largely addedto by Andrew Horne, an ancient Chamber-lain of London, coroners are spoken of underthe reign of Alfred ; but there is groundfor presuming that they existed even earlier.The coroner is peculiar to England, forthere is no trace of such an officer in thejurisprudence of any other country.

An Essay on the Deaf and Dumb; show-ing the Necessity of Medical Treatmentin early Infancy; with Observations onCongenital Deafness. By JOHN HAR-RISON CURTIS, Esq., Surgeon-Aurist tothe King, &c. &c. London: Longmanand Co. 1829. pp.211.

An Essay on the Deaf and Dumb; show-ing the Necessity of Medical Treatmentin early Infancy; ; with Observations onCongenital Deafness. By JOHN HAR-RISON CURTIS, Esq., Surgeon-Aurist tothe King, &c. &c. London: Longmanand Co. 1829. pp. 211.

THE condition of the deaf and dumb is a

subject of great interest with every humaneman. Milton has described want of visionas " wisdom at one entrance quite shut

out:" the same description forcibly ap-plies to those unfortunate beings who aredevoid of that grand inlet of knowledge-hearing ; and who, as a natural consequence,are likewise destitute of one of the most use-ful attributes of man-speech. It is not

sufficiently considered that hearing is the

grand incentive to speaking; for, if soundsbe not heard and discriminated, they cannotbe imitated. The child, in his early at.

tempts at speech, is guided by the ear,

which leads him to the imitation of vocal

sounds ; it follows, therefore, that thosewho are born deaf, or who are affectedwith deafness before the power of articula-tion is attained, necessarily remain withoutthe power of speech.

Within the last few years great attentionhas been paid to the education of the deaf

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and dumb; the instruction they receive isof a symbolical nature, the eye being ren-dered subservient to the uses of the ear. It

is not necessary for our present purpose toenter into a consideration of the symbolicalmode of education, or to trace it throughits various modifications to the system at

present pursued in this country, in asy-lums for the reception of the deaf and dumb.The highest praise is due to the benevo-lence and ingenuity of the individuals whoinvented, as well as those who perfected, ameasure by which many human beingswho were cut off, and stood isolated from

society, now hold a link of communicationwith it. It is obvious, however, that ad-mirable as the system may be, it can

afford but an imperfect substitute for the

sense of hearing and faculty of speech ; con-sequently it is only applicable to those in-dividuals in whom it has been clearly andsatisfactorily ascertained that neither ofthese powers is present nor can be given.We have read with astonishment, how.

ever, the remarks contained in the pre-face to the work before us, that cases

are admitted into the London Deaf and

Dumb Asylum without inquiry, or any me-dical investigation having been previouslyinstituted; and that children, after admis-sion, are not subjected to any examinationor medical treatment. It seems, that in the

year 1817, Mr. Curtis called the attentionof the governors to what he conceived tobe tt a better system of procedure." He

says,-" I adopted this measure at that time

from a firm persuasion that there exist nu-merous cases in which there is no malfor-mation of the organ of hearing, but merelythat state of its function which admits of

remedy ; and, consequently, that many chil-dren so circumstanced would, under propertreatment, obtain the faculty of speech. Thisopinion has been fully confirmed by subse-quent extensive experience ; and I am happyto perceive that it has received the supportof the eminent and experienced M. Itard,of Paris, who, in one of his memoirs to theMinister of the Interior, states, that abso-lute deafness is comparatively rare, and thatnot more than one-fifth of the cases of deaf-ness and dumbness which have come befoiehim, have presented a total deprivation ofthe sense of hearing.

" When we reflect upon the insufficiencyof institutions for the admission of all, oreven a large portion, of congenital cases ofj

deafness and dumbness-upon the numbeof those cases actually existing in the com.munity-and upon the fact of three, four,five, and in some instances even seven chil.dren in one family * being so afflicted, tLepropriety, nay, the moral necessity, of hav-ing recourse to some enlightened means ofinquiry into the state of particular cases,before admission into these lllstitutions,must become apparent ; and even still mote

apparent must it be, when we consider thatthe education to which applicants, when ad.mitted, are subjected, is not one which willin any way tend to restore the sense of hear.

ing and faculty of speech, but only to fur.nish them with very imperfect substitutesfor both. It was with this view that, on theoccasion alluded to, I recommended, as ameasure of primary importance, a minuteexamination of all deaf and dumb children,and that none should be presented for ad.mission into asylums unless accompaniedwith certificates of such examination bycompetent professional men, stating that

every medical means of restoring or im.proving the sense of hearing had been em.ployed without success.

" If a plan of this kind were resorted to,institutions for the deaf and dumb wouldfulfil the rational objects of their founders-would be appropriated solely to those whoare incurable-and the number of applica.tions would thus be reduced within themeans and legitimate scope of these chari.ties. Another very important advantagewould result, namely, that opportunitieswould be furnished to medical men for ex.perience, and for ascertaining the bestmeanaof administering relief in cases where beee.fit, or a complete cure, is to be hoped for;and patients would not be deemed incur-able, and subjected to all the consequencesof such an unfavourable decision, withouthaving been submitted to a rational mode oftreatment.

" It should be recollected, that to restoreto society one who suffers merely from re-mediable defects, and to render him usefulby the scientific development of his sensesand natural powers in that vocation to Wichhis station in life may introduce him, ismuch more laudable than to lead him through

. * According to the last report of the Lon-

don Deaf and Dumb Asylum, Jan. 12th,1829, it appears that a list of sixty-fourcandidates was presented to the goternofs,out of which they were under the painfulnecessity of electing only twenty-one, tbouchall seemed to have powerful, if not equal,claim to their notice. By the same reportit will be seen, that in seventeen famiies,containing one hundred and thirty-six chil-dren, there are no fewer than seventy-eightdeaf and dumb.

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the indirect and imperfect forms of a sym-belical education, however favourable such

may be with regard to those cases forwhich all practicable resources have been

and have proved unavailing."Congenital deafness, and that which is

observable soon after birth, the author be-believes to be frequently dependent upon casualcircumstances only, and he insists upon thenecessity of treatment in early infancy, be-fore the disease has been confirmed by timeand habit. At the London Deaf and Dumb

Asylum, however, children are not eligiblefmtil nine years of age, and are receivedunder eleven years and a half; the advancedage at which patients are admissible, is ofcourse unfavourable to medical treatment.If we are correctly informed, that illus-

trious individual, Sir William Blizard, isthe consulting surgeon to the Institution.What may we not hope for under his en-

lightened auspices ? Seriously speaking,we deem the foregoing remarks and asser-tions respecting the management of affairsat the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, to be worthyof the most serious and attentive considera-tion. It is in the highest degree lamentable,that individuals, objects of charity too,should remain in a comparatively forlorncondition from a want of proper medical in.

vestigation.After a description of the anatomy of the

ear and of the different parts connected withhearing and speech, illustrated by plates, theauthor proceeds to a consideration of the

probable causes of deafnESS,with consequentdumbness, and the;modes of relief to be pur-sued. Amongst the most frequent causes areenumerated obstructions of the eustachian

tube ; congenital inspissation of cerumen ;

herpetic eruptions, which often occur duringthe progress of teething ; and various affec-tions of the membrana tympani.*An impervious condition of the eustachian

tube, according to the author, often existsm infants, arising from viscid mucus lodgedwithin the canal ; and, in the treatment oftLe affection he strongly recommends thecontinued and regular use of emetics. Se-

ceral cases are related in confirmation of the

* One cause of deafness in children ismentioned on the authority of a Frenchwriter, of which we scarcely know how totreat seriously : it is ° Le commerce sexueipendant la srossesse : ’’

benefits resulting from this plan of treat-ment, from which we select the following :-

,’Miss D-, aged five years, deaf anddumb, the daughter of a merchant in thecity, was brought to me by her mother, ac-companied by her medical attendant, onDec. 22, 1827. It appeared this child hadhad the tympanum perforated twice in bothears, blisters had been applied, she had beenelectrified and galvanised, and had the moxaapplied repeatedly, without effect. The pa-rents of this child were anxious that nothingshould be left undone by them for her relief.As no means had hitherto been of service,however powerful the remedies employed, Iwas at some loss how to conduct mv treat-ment : it occurred to me, however, that thedefect might arise from an obstruction of theEustachian tube, and, guided by this idea, Ilost no time in examining it, which I did bypassing a small probe into its superior part,which did not appear either ossified or unna-tural, but obstructed by viscid secretion.

Considering this a case for my new mode oftreatment, I immediately commenced withpowerful emetics, repeated according to thestrength of the patient. In the course of afew days she began to hear with a trumpet ;and at the expiration of nine months wasmuch improved, and able to talk : she hassince perfectly recovered her hearing andspeech. She was completely cured by theuse of emetics alone."" James Lawlor, a boy about five years

old, was sent to the dispensary, from Ire-land, February 5, 1829 : his mother, whoaccompanied him, informed me that he wasborn deaf and dumb. He was also blind ofone eye. Finding on examination an ob-struction in the eustachian tube, I orderedan emetic : when I saw him three days after-wards, his mother told me that he could dis-tinguish loud sounds. The emetic was con-

stantly repeated, with even greater apparentsuccess than before ; and as he continues

under my care, I anticipate the most favour-able results. I adduce this case as a proofthat slight affections, if early attended to,. may be treated by this curative process with

the fairest prospect of ultimately effectingthe total or partial removal of the malady."

; As respects the congenital inspissationl of cerumen, the treatment as well as the

( disease must be obvious; and we can

scarcely suppose that a child should remaindeaf, where the cause of disease and meansof relief are so palpable. However, the au-- thor relates a case in which a child remained’ deaf and dumb until three years of age, from

this simple cause alone. Sutely, nothingcan more strongly point out the necessity of

strictly examining into the state of the

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organs of hearing, in all cases of real or sup.posed deafness.

Herpetic disease of the ear is characterisedby a vesicular eruption with an inflamed base,to which succeeds ulceration attended by acopious fetid discharge ; and after the dis-ease has existed for some time, the cutis ojthe auricle and meatus becomes so thickenedthat the capacity of the passage is considera-bly diminished. The author is disposed toregard this as a constitutional affection, andof course requiring constitutional treatment;but at the same time local remedies are notto be entirely overlooked. The impuritiesare to be removed from the ear by means ofsyringing with soap and water, and then amild astringent lotion is to be employed.The diseases of the internal ear, as the

author remarks, are more difficult to treatthan those of any other part of the organ,inasmuch as the parts being removed fromsight and touch, disease is not so easily de-tected. But even where we fail to discover

the cause of deafness, and hence infer its

existence in the internal structure of the ear,we are not justified in abandoning such casesas utterly hopeless. The affection may be

dependant upon original malformation, butwe must bear in mind, that it may havearisen from disease, and may, to a certainextent, be remediable. Five cases are re-

lated at the close of the work, in whichchildren, bom deaf and dumb, and in whomthere existed no obvious cause of disease, ac-quired the power of hearing and speech.Two of these patients were seven years ofage, and another was six. Emetics, andblisters applied behind the ears, kept gentlydischarging in the form of an issue, with theconstant practice of well cleansing the ears,are the principal means to be pursued. Whenhearing begins to take place, the constant

use of acoustic tubes is recommended, ofwhich the one lately invented, with twoapertures fitting the mouth and ear, is to bepreferred.We must close our notice of this work by

observing, that Mr. Curtis is entitled to thebest thanks of the public for having drawnattention to the fact, that many cases of

deaf and dumb, hitherto considered hope-less, admit of palliation and cure.

ST. THOMAS’S HOSPITAL.

CASE OF CONGENITAL SCROTAL HERNIA , WITHRECENT DESCENT OF INTESTINE, AND CON-

, SEQUENT INFLAMMATION.—OPERATIONAND DEATH.

JosEpH WALKER, a brewer’s servant, of

spare habit and pallid countenance, aoocttwenty-eiglit years of age, wasbroughtintoSt. Thomas’s Hospital, at noon, on the 25thJune, under the care of Mr. Green, with anold incarcerated hernia of the left side. Wedid not see the patient until the day after

his admission, when, on visiting him, therepresented a tumour of an enormous size,which (as will presently appear) was causedby the descent of large portions of intestinesinto the left side of the scrotum, distendingit to such a degree, that the penis was com.pletely hidden from view. He was very reoluctant to have the bed-clothes removed,and said, that having been pulled about pre.viously by so many of the pupils, he badbeen put to a great deal of unnecessary pain,and requested that we would not increasehis sufferings by handling the tumour.-On desiring him to state where he particu-larly felt pain during the rough handlingbeexperienced, the patient placed his fingersover the external abdominal ring, saying,he felt very little pain or tenderness in thetumour, and still less in the abdomen.The account lie gave of his case was, that

he became ruptured about ten years ago,but on resuming the recumbent position, hadalways been enabled to return the intes-tine without any medical assistance, untilwithin the last four years, since which Ithad remained unreduced, as large as hisdouble fist, (about one-fourth the size of itspresent dimensions,) but not causing himany material inconvenience ; and during thewhole of the period, from the commence-ment of the swelling up to the present time,he has never worn a truss. On Monday,the 22d ult., wllilst engaged in his business,a cask of beer accidentally fell on him,crushing his abdomen between it and the

wall, which was the cause of the presentincrease in the size of the tumour, and onaccount of which he came to the hospitalfor relief. Has not had any vomiting, orsickness at the stomach, nor has he anysensation of constriction across the abdo-men ; neither is there any marked ansieyof countenance, nor indeed any symptom ofstrangulation. Tongue red at the tip andedges, and white upon the dorsum, with ared streak down the middle ; bowels openseveral times ; pulse full and frequent. ltnhis admission, Mr. Green ordered veiiesec.tion to sixteen ounces, and applied the tuu