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University of Birmingham, where his premature deathhas left a great gap. Dr. HENRY RADCLIFFE CROCKERwas born in 1845 at Brighton, and was physicianto the Skin Department, University College Hospital. He

had won a very great position as a dermatologist and was animportant supporter of the British Medical Association. SirSTEPHEN MACKENZIE, who died on Sept. 3rd in his sixty-fifth year, was consulting physician to the London Hospitaland the Royal London Ophthalmic Hospital, and had for manyyears occupied a prominent position as a clinical teacherand an original investigator. Dr. JOHN MiLSOM RHODES, whodied on Sept. 25th at Didsbury, was an ardent supporter ofPoor-law reform. Sir THOMAS SMITH died on Oct. lst

at the age of 76. He was honorary serjeant-surgeon to

the King and consulting surgeon to St. Bartholomew’s

Hospital and the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond-street, London, and commanded in his profession, anddeservedly, the greatest affection and respect. Dr. WILLIAMRIVERS POLLOCK, who died on Oct. 5th at the earlyage of 50, was obstetric physician to Westminster Hos-

pital and senior physician to Queen Charlotte’s Hospital.Dr. JOHN HERBERT WELLS, who died on Oct. 16th at

Ditchling at the early age of 30, became accidentally andfatally infected with anthrax. The circumstances of his lifeand death will be remembered by our readers, and a fund whichhas recently been raised as a tribute to his memory is stillopen in our columns. CESARE LOMBIROSO, whose studies inpsychiatry and criminal anthropology are known to the wholeworld, died on Oct. 19th. Mr. HENRY HUGH CLUTTON, whodied on Nov. 9th at the age of 59, was senior surgeon to St.Thomas’s Hospital, London. He was a man of strong characterand lofty aims and a notable teacher. Sir WILLIAM THOMSON,honorary surgeon to the King, late President of the RoyalCollege of Surgeons inj Ireland, and senior surgeon to the

Richmond, Whitworth, and Hardwicke Hospitals, died onNov. 13th. He was born in 1843, made many contributionsto the literature of his profession, and took an active part ineducational work. Mr. ROBERT MARCUS GUNN, who diedon Nov. 29th at the age of 59, was senior surgeon to theRoyal London Ophthalmic Hospital, Moorfields. An accurate

observer and student of nature, he was a recognised masterof his subject. Mr. CHARLES ROBERT BELL KEETLEY was

senior surgeon to the West London Hospital, and made a namefor himself by his practical work in surgery, by his literarylabours, and by his life-long association with the greatHammersmith charity. Dr. WILLIAM BRAMWELL RANSOM,who died on Dec. 9th at the untimely age of 48, wassenior physician to the Nottingham General Hospital andphysician to the Sherwood Forest Sanatorium for Consump-tion. The details of his career were published in THE LANCETtoo recently to need recapitulation.We cannot close this account without referring to the

sad death from an Alpine accident on Jan. 13th of Dr.

JOHN EvAN SPICER and the yet more tragic death of Dr.CAWAS LALCACA, who was assassinated while trying to de-fend the life of Sir CURZON WYLLIE at the Indian receptionon July 1st in London. Lastly, we must record the death ofthe doyen of Irish medicine, Dr. GEORGE ELLIS, who diedon Jan. 26th in his 100th year.

UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD.-The name of Alan E.Taylor, Trinity College, was omitted in the list of successfulcandidates in the examination in pathology for the secondB.M. degree.-In congregation on Dec. 17th the degree ofB.M., B.Ch., was conferred upon D. C. Dobell, Christ

Church; H. G. Butterfield, Wadham College; C. J. Z.

Jessel, University College ; and S. F. Moore, Trinity College.-The Hebdomadal Council has appointed Professor FrancisGotch, M.A., D.Sc., Fellow of Magdalen College, a memberof the committee for the election of honorary medicalofficers to the Radcliffe Infirmary.

Annotations.

A PRESCRIPTION FOR CHRISTMAS.

" No quid nimis."

THE Christmas season undoubtedly has a good tonic effectupon the people which none appreciates more than themembers of our profession. It has come to be regardedas a time for good cheer, and no matter how tiresomethe circumstances may be which are forced upon us

by life’s Ironies, or what painful incidents have in the

past been associated with the season, there is good feelingengendered at this time of joyousness ; routine is for

a while relieved, a certain freshness is given to the dailyround, differences of opinion are sunk, and a charitablespirit prevails. Is it, by the way, hoping for too much thatthe season of good-fellowship should leave some effect uponthe manners and methods of political partizans ? 7 The

country is being compelled to make up its mind in thecourse of a few days as to issues of vast importance.Patriotic and personal feelings are deeply involved. Thereare honest men on both sides ; there are well-wishers of thepeople in each camp. Is it not possible for the politicalorator to remember this, and to infuse into his rampagingsa little of that urbanity which the season calls for ? 7 To doso will be good tactics, for our minds are attuned just nowto such approaches. It may not be easy to trace exactlywhy this sense of exhilaration and well-being comes withthe advent of Christmas, for the psychological factorsconcerned are not simple. But the main point is that the

mental state does everybody good, and the annual festivityis just as excellent an institution as the prescription of thephysician which gives tone and vigour to the struggler inlife’s race. There is no need nowadays, thanks to the goodsense of the people and the counsels of their medical

advisers, to moralise about the evils of a stupid indulgencein food, alcohol, and tobacco on a festive occasion such asthe present. Practically everybody realises the great physio-logical advantages of being wise on a merry occasion andthe disadvantages of being a fool. Many more personsthan formerly feel where use ends and abuse begins, andthey act sensibly accordingly; and so far from its being acrime to make the season festive by enjoying, on a littleextended scale perhaps, the creature comforts of life some

decided good is done to both the mental and physical health ofthe individual. The festive season may, therefore, be welcomedwhich brings cheer to thousands, which induces the generousand charitable desire to help all to share in the season’s joy,which serves to brace the mental and physical functions ofthe community at large, giving it the opportunity of

relinquishing its business and its worries for a time, to startagain refreshed and ready for the trivial round, thecommon task." The prescription "A Merry Christmas " issound so long as the I I signature " of good sense is observed.

DISINFECTION AFTER CANCER.

WE have received a letter from a correspondent urgingthe necessity for careful disinfection of rooms which havebeen inhabited by patients suffering from malignant disease.She points out that few people would be willing knowinglyj0 inhabit a bedroom in which a patient had died fromnalignant disease when no attempt had been made to

lisinfect the room. We think there is something to be said’or the contention of our correspondent ; but it must be re-

nembered that it has never been proved that infection can)ccur in malignant disease. There are many cases recordedvhich are suggestive of this, and it would be unwise to deny

1934

the possibility of such an occurrence when medical science isnot agreed upon any theory of etiology of malignant disease.All will agree that the individual cells of malignant growthare capable in certain circumstances of transference fromone animal to another of the same species, and therefore noone can deny the possibility of infection. In a very similar

position stands tuberculosis. While we possess no directevidence that the presence in a house or a room of a patientsuffering from tuberculosis ever does give rise to the diseasein another person, the whole teaching of hygiene of the

present time is in favour of preventing the dissemination ofthe organism to which tubercle is due. Therefore wecannot but think that it is desirable that the room andthe furniture which have been used by patients dying frommalignant disease should be thoroughly cleansed and disin-fected, and especially should this be done when the malig-nant growth has been situated on a surface so that a

discharge has come from it. It is easy to demand proofs ofthe risk arising from such discharges; it is difficult to

produce them. Nevertheless, we feel that it is only inaccordance with the principles of modern hygiene to

endeavour to the best of our ability to disinfect all dis-

charges from persons who have suffered from malignantdisease. This is not the same as saying that we ought toinsist by legislative enactment that such disinfection shouldbe carried out, but medical thought is tending in a directionwhich would be supported by public sentiment.

TYPHOID CARRIERS IN THE ARMY.

THE Director-General of the Army Medical Service haspresented to Parliament his second report on the Trans-

mission of Enteric Fever by the chronic Carrier in a WhitePaper, which includes a series of charts illustrating the.

progress of the cases under treatment by specific vaccines-The report concludes with the following recommenda-tion of the Advisory Board : " That since arrangementsare now being made for early treatment on discovery ofthese cases, it is desirable that any man ascertained to be acarrier’ should, after a period of observation in Englandnot exceeding three months, be discharged from the service,unless he elects to remain in hospital for treatment. When

any man is discharged the medical officer of health for thedistrict in which he will reside should be notified."

THE METROPOLITAN HOSPITAL SUNDAY FUND.

THE Right Hon. Sir John Knill, Bart., the Lord Mayor,presided over the annual general meeting of the MetropolitanHospital Sunday Fund, which was held at the Mansion

House on Dec. 17th. In moving the reception of the report,which was unanimously adopted, Sir John Bell referred tothe loss which the Fund had sustained by the deaths of theRev. Dr. Marks, Sir Stephen Mackenzie, the Rev. Dr. Rigg,Sir Thomas Smith, and Mr. Thomas Wakley. Dr. Rigg wasone of the founders of the Fund. Within the last few weeks

two staunch supporters of the Fund had passed away-namely, Mr. J. Mackrell, who under the pseudonym of

"Delta" had contributed B200 annually for the past 30 years,and Mr. Lewis Mond. During the year about f:70,000 hadbeen divided among infirmaries, hospitals, and institu-

tions. The collections among the various religious bodiesamounted to nearly 40,000. The Rev. Hardy Har-wood, who seconded the motion for the adoption of the

annual report, said that the contributing congregationswere larger than in previous years-namely, 2070. The

Rev. S. Lewis supported the motion. He explained thatthe hospital for which he pleaded last year (the NationalAnti-Vivisection Hospital) had not accepted a grant owingto a misunderstanding as to some non-official remarks

which were made by a speaker at a previous meeting.Hospital Sunday was fixed for June 12th, 1910, andthe Council was re-elected with the addition of Sir

George Wyatt Truscott, Mr. J. H. Morgan, the Rev. MorrisJoseph, and the Rev. D. J. Waller to fill vacancies. TheRev. S. Lewis withdrew a motion to the effect that thecommittee of distribution should be mainly elected by theconstituents of the Fund at the annual meeting, which wasintended as a protest against the suppression of reasonablecriticism on the part of the constituents of the Fund. TheLord Mayor said that the right of criticism was undoubtedand he thought had never been refused.

UNDER the will of the late Dr. Charles Graham, formerlyprofessor of chemical technology at University College,London, the residue of his estate has been left to the Senateof the University of London in trust to form" The CharlesGraham Research Fund." The income therefrom is to be

devoted to the expenses of any approved medical researchundertaken by any teacher or student of the School for

Advanced Medical Studies connected with University CollegeHospital, and in certain instances to the provision of

research scholarships in pathology at that school of <&200 a

year value, tenable for two years.

WE would direct the attention of graduates and students ofthe late Royal University of Ireland to a notice which’

appears in our advertising columns. As the first meeting ofConvocation must take place within six months from the date

: of the dissolution of the Royal University of Ireland, it is. very advisable that application for registration as graduates should be made without delay. All information may be

, obtained from Dr. Joseph McGrath, Registrar of the Uni-. versity, the National University of Ireland, Dublin.

s Dr. R. J. Collie, medical examiner to the London CountyE Council, has issued a report on the health of the employees

for the five years from August, 1904, to August, 1909.____

A TELEGRAM from the Governor of Mauritius to the1 Secretary of State for the Colonies has reported 17 cases of2 plague with 13 deaths during the week ending Dec. 16th.

PROPOSED MEMORIAL TO PROFESSOR D. J.CUNNINGHAM.-Some time ago a circular was issued signedby the Principal of the University of Edinburgh and thePresidents of the Royal Colleges of Physicians and Surgeonsof Edinburgh, stating that it was proposed that steps shouldbe taken to institute some memorial of the life and work ofthe late Professor Cunningham, and calling a meeting to beheld on Dec. 15th. At this meeting it was decided that

Edinburgh should cooperate with Trinity College, Dublin,where steps were also being taken with the same object inview. What was spoken of was a medallion and a medal inanatomy. A small committee was appointed with ProfessorCrum Brown as convener.

ROYAL ALBERT HOSPITAL, DEVONPORT.-Atthe recent annual meeting of the subscribers of the RoyalAlbert Hospital, Devonport, the report stated that for theyear ended Sept. 30th last the in-patients numbered 771, anincrease of 50 compared with the previous 12 months. Inthe casualty department 2696 cases had been treated,against 2413 in the previous year. 943 patients were treatedin the out-patient ophthalmic department, compared with913 in the preceding 12 months. 208 patients were sent tothe Pearn Convalescent Home, being 31 in excess of the

previous year. The financial statement showed the ex-

penditure was 4768, and that an unfavourable balance ofE587 remained. The President (Lord St. Levan) alluded tothe support of the working men, who had subscribed f.615during the past year, and made a strong appeal for increasedfinancial support.