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Engineers, of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Fellowof the Surveyors’ Institute, Member of the Sanitary Institute,and Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society. He wasAssistant Commissioner to the Royal Commission of whichLord Balfour was chairman. The witness handed in a

printed statement of considerable length some of which boreupon the evidence which was given by Sir Alexander Binnie.The tables were, however, not drawn up on exactly the samelines and the CHAIRMAN remarked that it seemed to be apleasure to scientific gentlemen to introduce changes. These

changes did not facilitate a comparison between the state-ments which had been put in by Sir Alexander Binnie andthose of the present witness, who was asked to submit a tableat the next meeting which could be more easily comparedwith those given by Sir Alexander Binnie. There were,however, two tables which the Chairman considered) ofsufficient importance to go on the notes. Of these tables onereferred to the Thames storage reservoirs and the other tothe cost of the work necessary for bringing a supply of waterfrom Wales. These tables should be compared with thosegiven by Sir Alexander Binnie which have already beenpublished in THE LAiNCET.1The next sitting of the Royal Commissioners will be held at

the Guildhall, Westminster, on Monday next, July 25th, at12 midday. It is hoped that after Monday next there willbe an adjournment until some date, not yet fixed, in ’ November.

ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OFENGLAND.

QUARTERLY MEETING OF COUNCIL.A QUARTERLY MEETING of the Council was held on

July 14th, the President, Sir WILLIAM MAC CORMAC, Bart.,being in the chair.The PRESIDENT reported the result of the election of

members of Council, as published in THE LANCET ofJuly 9th, p. 114, and Mr. Richardson Cross, Mr. Morris,and Mr. Langton were introduced, made the declaration inthe terms of the oath prescribed by the Charter of 1800, andtook their seats as members of the Council.The SECRETARY reported the death, at the age of eighty-

one years, of Mr. Henry Lee, a past-member of the Council,and the Council recorded their deep regret at the death ofMr. Henry Lee whom they greatly esteemed both as a

colleague and as a member of the profession and expressedtheir very sincere sympathy with his widow and family intheir bereavement.The Council approved of a sum of money being expended I

upon a series of drawings illustrating the pathogenic bacteriaof man.A report of the Committee of Management was approved :

it was to the effect that, as already approved by the RoyalCollege of Physicians of London, candidates for the secondexamination should be required to dissect for twelve monthsafter having received the instruction necessary for admissionto Parts 1. and III. of the first examination.The Council (on the recommendation of the Nomination

Committee) made the following appointments :—

Hunterian Professors : Mr. Leonard Erskine Hill (subject:Researches on the Influence of Gravity on the Circulation) ;Mr. Frederick Gymer Parsons (subject : Joints of Mammalscontrasted with those of Man) ; and Mr. Charles Stewart(subject not determined). Arris and Gale Lectitrer : Mr.Berkeley G. A. Moynihan (subject: The Anatomy and Surgeryof the Peritoneal Fossœ). Erasmus Wilson Lectorer : Dr.Thomas Grigor Brodie (subject: The Chemical Pathologyof some Infective Diseases).

Mr. Rickman J. Godlee was re-elected a member of theCourt of Examiners and Mr. J. Howard Mummery waselected a member of the Board of Examiners in Dental

Surgery.A letter was read from Mr. Thomas Bryant reporting the

proceedings of the General Medical Council at their latesession, and the best thanks of the Council were given toMr. Bryant for his services as the representative of the

College on the General Medical Council.A letter was read from the Metropolitan Counties Branch

of the British Medical Association thanking the Council for

1 THE LANCET, June 11th, 1898, p. 1644.

allowing the branch to hold a conversazione at the Collegein June last.Mr. Bryant was nominated as representative of the College

on the Council of the Queen Victoria’s Jubilee Institute forNurses.The PRESIDENT reported that the required quorum was not

present on July 7th when a meeting of Fellows had beencalled and therefore no meeting was held.Mr. Thomas Cooke’s school was recognised for the ensuing

year.As already reported in THE LANCET. Sir William

Mac Cormac, Bart., was re-elected President and Mr. T.

Pickering Pick and Mr. Howard Marsh were appointed Vice-presidents. Mr. S. G. Shattock was re-elected pathologicalcurator.The next meeting of the Council will be held on Tuesday,

Aue;. 2nd.-

ADDITIONS TO THE MUSEUM.

Every year for two or three days in the week in which theelection to the Council takes place there is an exhibition ofall the specimens which have been added to the Museumduring the preceding year.The new specimens are far too numerous to be mentioned

in detail, but an account must be given of those of the

greatest interest and importance. Mr. Breward Neal haspresented the base of a skull from a case of acromegaly; itshows a greatly enlarged pituitary body. Dr. A. E. Lloydhas given some specimens from a case of diffuse congenitalangeioma of the leg; many phleboliths are shown in thedilated deep veins and the tibia and fibula have had an

irregular deposit on the surface of new periostealbone. A specimen of the tongue and larynx from a

case of leprosy shows well the great amount ofdeformity which may occur in these organs in this t

disease. Almost all the specimens which illustrated Mr.Percy Furnivall’s Jacksonian Prize Essay have been added tothe Museum ; they are twenty-three in number and consist ofmorbid growths from the stomach and intestines and one

specimen shows a section of intestine with a Murphy’s buttonin sit,; this is intended to illustrate the manner in whichthe button unites two pieces of bowel. Professor Rose Brad-ford has presented a specimen which shows the atrophy ofthe kidney following ligature of the ureter when the dilated

pelvis is subsequently drained. Mr. Pearce Gould has givenan example of a horseshoe kidney affected with carcinoma. Aseries of six specimens of molluscum contagiosum on theheads of birds shows well the prevalence of this disease andthe fact that two of the specimens (North American buntingsparrows) were mates is much in favour of the contagiouscharacter of the condition. The first ovarian cyst removedby Sir Spencer Wells (in 1858) is amongst the additions.Marked retroflexion of the uterus in a monkey is shown in aspecimen presented by Dr. W. K. Sibley. Mr. J. Tweedyand Mr. Devereux Marshall have given seven preparationsmounted in glycerine jelly illustrating injuries and diseasesof the eye.

Laennec’s stethoscope (a somewhat ponderous instrument)and the first subcutaneous osteotomy saws used by Mr.William Adams were also on view.The drawings and photographs were very good and espe-

cially must be mentioned one showing hypertrophy of thebreasts presented by Mr. H. H. Clutton, and a skiagramshowing phleboliths in the case of diffuse angeiomaalready mentioned.

Mr. Shattock, the pathological curator, has commencedto prepare a series of specimens illustrating the naked-eyecharacters of cultures of the chief bacteria causing diseasein the human subject; these have been preserved by forma-lin and are to be accompanied by drawings of the micro-scopic appearances of the micro-organisms. A series of

specimens almost equally useful illustrates the effects inanimals of inoculation by pathogenic organisms ; for in-stance, one specimen was part of the back of a rabbit

showing an abscess due to the intramuscular injection ofa broth culture of staphylococcus pyogenes aureus. The

additions to the physiological series are even more numerous.A large number of specimens illustrate the various forms ofI flexible bands intended for union and support. Manyspecimens show the variations which occur in the muscular

systems in animals ; as an instance may be mentioned a

specimen illustrating the fact that in a setter the soleusmuscle is absent. The separation of the two constituent, portions of the suprarenal bodies is shown in a skate (Raiaclavata), in which are (a) a series of small-paired bodies on

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the costal arteries and connected with the sympathetic Inervous system, and corresponding to the medulla ; and (b)

.

an interrenal U-shaped body which corresponds to thecortex of the suprarenal bodies of higher vertebrates.The exquisite dissections, for which the Museum is

unrivalled, are on this occasion numerous, and especiallymay be mentioned dissections showing the sensory and

ampullary canals of the skin ; these are intended to secrete alubricating mucus, but from the presence in them of’’hair cells" like those in the olfactory mucous membraneand the ampullas of the semicircular canals, they are thoughtto be also organs of sense.

Symbiosis is illustrated by some ants (Coractus intrudens)and portions of the stem of a plant in which they live, andparasitism is exemplified by a dodder (Cuscuta epithymum),which lives on a gorse (Ulex europœus) ; as the dodder doesnot contain chlorophyll it is dependent on its host whom itpierces by special processes. The dissections illustratinghuman anatomy are numerous.

There is only one thing to be regretted about this exhibi-tion and that is the fact that it was open for only two days.We think that if it were possible it would be well to have itopen for at least a week.

VITAL STATISTICS.

HEALTH OF ENGLISH TOWNS.

IN thirty-three of the largest English towns 6411 birthsand 3159 deaths were registered during the week endingJuly 16th. The annual rate of mortality in these towns,which had declined in the three preceding weeks from 15’1to 14’7 per 1000, was last week again 14’7. In London the ratewas 14’1 per 1000, while it averaged 15’1 in the thirty-twoprovincial towns. The lowest death-rates in these towns were8’7 in Portsmouth, 9’0 in Blackburn, 9’2 in Croydon, and9’5 in Derby; the highest rates were 19-0 in Manchester,19-3 in Salford, 22-6 in Bolton, and 22-9 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The 3159 deaths in these towns included 378which were referred to the principal zymotic diseases,against 342 and 330 in the two preceding weeks ; of these,122 resulted from diarrhoea, 83 from whooping-cough, 79from measles, 54 from diphtheria, 24 from scarlet fever,and 16 from "fever" (principally enteric). No fatal caseof any of these diseases occurred last week in Croydon or inBlackburn ; in the other towns they caused the lowestdeath-rates in Sunderland and Brighton, and the highestrates in Plymouth, Salford, Birkenhead, Gateshead, andNewcastle-upon-Tyne. The greatest mortality from measlesoccurred in Plymouth, Norwich, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, andGateshead ; and from whooping-cough in West Ham, Salford,and Gateshead. The mortality from scarlet fever and from" fever " showed no marked excess in any of the large towns.The 54 deaths from diphtheria included 39 in London, 4 inCardiff, and 3 in Leeds. No fatal case of small-pox wasregistered last week in any of the thirty-three largetowns ; and no small-pox patients were under treat-ment in any of the Metropolitan Asylum Hospitals.The number of scarlet fever patients in these hospitalsand in the London Fever Hospital at the end of lastweek was 2314, against 2238, 2205, and 2250 on thethree preceding Saturdays ; 265 new cases were admittedduring the week, against 231, 204, and 237 in the three

preceding weeks. The deaths referred to diseases of the

respiratory organs in London, which had been 162 and 160in the two preceding weeks, rose again to 175 last

week, but were 9 below the corrected average. The causesof 29, or 1-0 per cent., of the deaths in the thirty-threetowns were not certified either by a registered medicalpractitioner or by a coroner. All the causes of death were

duly certified in West Ham, Nottingham, Manchester, Leeds,and in sixteen other smaller towns ; the largest proportionsof uncertified deaths were registered in Birmingham, Liver-pool, and Halifax.

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HEALTH OF SCOTCH TOWNS.

The annual rate of mortality in the eight Scotch towns,which had been 21-1 and 20-0 per 1000 in the two precedingweeks, further declined to 18-5 during the week endingJuly 16th, but exceeded by 3-8 per 1000 the mean rate

during the same period in the thirty-three large Englishtowns. The rates in the eight Scotch towns ranged from

17-0 in Aberdeen and 17’7 in Dundee to 23’7 in Greenock and23-8 in Perth. The 559 deaths in these towns included 26which were referred to whooping-cough, 26 to diarrhoea, 23 tomeasles, 9 to scarlet fever, 5 to "fever" (principally enteric),and 4 to diphtheria. In all, 93 deaths resulted from these prin-cipal zymotic diseases, against 119 and 96 in the two precedingweeks. These 93 deaths were equal to an annual rate of 3’1per 1000, which was 1’3 above the mean rate last weekfrom the same diseases in the thirty-three large Englishtowns. The fatal cases of whooping-cough, which hadbeen 35 and 21 in the two preceding weeks, rose againto 26 last week, of which 18 occurred in Glasgow, and 4in Paisley. The 26 deaths from diarrhoea were within one ofthe number in the preceding week, and included 16 in

Glasgow. The fatal cases of measles, which had been 41and 36 in the two preceding weeks, further declined to 23last week, of which 10 occurred in Glasgow, 4 in Edinburgh,and 4 in Dundee. The 9 deaths referred to scarlet fevershowed a slight further increase upon recent weekly numbersand included 4 in Edinburgh, 2 in Glasgow, and 2 inDundee. Of the 5 fatal cases of fever " 4 were recorded inGlasgow, and the 4 deaths from diphtheria included 2 inGreenock. The deaths referred to diseases of the respiratoryorgans in these towns, which had been 101 and 106 in thetwo preceding weeks, declined to 76 last week, but slightlyexceeded the number in the corresponding period of lastyear. The causes of 35, or more than 6 per cent., of thedeaths in these eight towns last week were not certified.

HEALTH OF DUBLIN.

The death-rate in Dublin, which had declined in the threepreceding weeks from 22-8 to 20’3 per 1000, further fell to18’5 during the week ending July 16th, a lower rate thanhas been recorded in any week since September, 1896.During the past four weeks the death-rate in the city hasaveraged 20’9 per 1000, the rate during the same periodbeing 14-4 in London and 19-5 in Edinburgh. The 124deaths registered in Dublin during the week under noticeshowed a decline of 12 from the number in the precedingweek, and included 3 which were referred to the principalzymotic diseases, against 11 and 6 in the two precedingweeks ; of these, 1 resulted from scarlet fever, 1 fromwhooping-cough, and 1 from diarrhoea, but not one eitherfrom small-pox, measles, diphtheria, or "fever," These3 deaths were equal to an annual rate of 0’4 per1000, a lower rate than has been recorded in any week sinceFebruary, 1896. The zymotic death-rate last week was equalto 1-9 per 1000 both in London and in Edinburgh. The124 deaths in Dublin last week included 16 of childrenunder one year of age, and 27 of persons aged upwardsof sixty years ; the deaths both of infants and of elderlypersons showed a decline from the numbers in the precedingweek. Six inquest cases and 4 deaths from violence wereregistered ; and 49, or more than a third, of the deathsoccurred in public institutions. The causes of 5, or more

than 4 per cent., of the deaths in the city last week werenot certified.

THE SERVICES.

NAVAL MEDICAL SERVICE.THE following appointments of Staff - Surgeons are

announced: — Ernest E. Bray to the President, for the

Royal Victoria Yard, Deptford, and George Welch to theBoscanen, for Portland Sick Quarters.

ROYAL ARMY MEDICAL CORPS.

Major W. E. Berryman has been appointed EmbarkingMedical Officer. Southern District, as a temporary measure,in addition to his other duties. Major F. H. Treherne hasassumed charge of the Station Hospital. Brighton. Aspecial Army Order has been issued stating that permissionwill be given to non-commissioned officers ann men belong-ing to the Reserve of the Royal Army Medical Corps(sections B and C) to rejoin the colours, according to theterms of their service, subject to certain conditions. MajorJames E. Nicholson retires from the service receiving agratuity. Surgeon-General W. Taylor has been appointedPrincipal Medical Officer on the staff of Major-GeneralW. F. Gatacre, C.B., in the forthcoming expedition toKhartoum.

’ The Khedive of Egypt has decided tob estow the Order of