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holding public situations, throughthe medium of the press, in com-

parison with which every othercheck’ sinks into insignificance.Unjustifiable experiments shall nolonger be tried on the sick, nor

patients submitted to painful opera-tions, merely to gratify the vanityof the operator, without exposure :both the indolence and incapacity,and the skill and attention, of themedical officers of the differentpublic institutions, shall receivethe fullest publicity, through themedium of TiiE LANCET, withoutthe slightest distinction of friendsor foes.

Rupture of the Heart, by M. A.L. J. BAYLE.

Nervous a-itation during several nights-sudden and unexpected death-perforation of the anterior parietesof the left ventricle.

Madame -, sixty-eight yearsof age, of a lymphatic, sanguineoustemperament, and corpulent habit,had experienced during the revo-lution great reverses of fortune,which she supported with a resigna-tion and strength of mind rarely tobe met with. For a long time pastshe had been in good circumstances,and enjoyed perfect health. Onthe 17th of last June she consulteda physician, in consequence of acold and slight fever, which shehad laboured under for a few daysbefore. Her symptoms at thattime were occasional paroxysms of

cough, with a little expectoration ;slight dyspnea, skin hot; pulsefrom 70 to 80 in the -minute, regu-lar. Percussion afforded a goodsound in every part of the chest, I

and the respiration was to be heardthroughout; the pulsations of theheart presented nothing remark-

able ; the bowels were rathercostive ; the tongue was red at theedges, rather moist, and white at-the root; a few flying pains in theabdomen. The patient had beensubject to an attack of fever in thespring, which left her in nine days,from its first accession; she alsohad a tumour in the right flank,which had existed in that spot formore than twenty-five years. Fora short time-prior to consulting aphysician, this lady suffered; duringthe night, an unusual agitation,which was attended with a -senseof general uneasiness, beatings inthe head and temporal arteries, -with mental agitation ; she couldnot take any rest till morning, whenshe generally fell into a slumbereand afterwards awoke quite re-

freshed. By the 26th of the month(June) the patient was’nearly’re-stored; in the evening of that day,all of a sudden, after-she had beenarranging the things in the room,she was heard to utter a shriek,and at the same instant she fell’down and expired.

Several circumstances preventedthe examination of the body before-,interment. But the physician un-der whose care the lady had been,anxious to know the cause of adeath so unexpected, obtained fromthe proper authorities, with the con-sent of the family,, permission to-disinter the corpse.

Inspectio cadaveris, six daysafter death, and four ’days after’interment.—The body was in astate of putrefaction, and exhaledan extremely fetid odour, whichwas considerably wdiminished by -sprinkling a solution of chlo-ruretof lime- in different parts of theroom. The body was loaded with’a considerable quantity of fat. Theabdomen was first examined. A

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search was made for the tumourwhich the patient had felt for solong a time, but in vain, as it couldnot, be found. It was thereforeconcluded that it must have beena ventral hernia. The left ovarywas red, and swollen ; the neck ofthe uterus was elongated. Thechest was next examined; the pe-ricardium contained two clots ofblood about three ounces in weight;the heart was large; in the anteriorsurface of the left ventricle therewas an opening of an oval or ratherround shape, being aquarter of aninch long and as much in breadth;the edges were ragged, torn, andthe parietes of the heart in the

neighbourhood softer than in otherparts. Internally the perforationwas lined by a fibrinous concretionof a brown colour, and intersectedwith the carneae columnae. Theether organs were not examined.

Reflections.—Although there ison record a certain number of cases

of rupture of the heart, this affec-tion is nevertheless extremely rare,in comparison with the other dis-eases of this organ, which are so free-quent. No mention of this complaintis made in the worksofCoRvisAR-Tand LA EN NEC, which have thrownsuch a lustre on this subject. Mo it-GAGNl appears to be among thefirst who observed this complaint,(vide Lett. Ixiv. No. 14, 15, andhis Adversaria Anatomica.) Bozi-NJUS relates a case of rupture ofthe left ventricle near the origin ofthe aorta, and BONET relates an-other. SENAC (Treatise on theDiseases of the Heart,) quotestwo cases, which did not, how-.ever, come under his own obser-vation. In the l6Temoires del’Academie des Sciences 1732,p. 428, two cases of the, same kindare recorded. In the third edition I

of CORVISART’S work one case-ismentioned which came under theobservation of Dr. FERiiEUS. In1820, two distinguished physicians,BLAND and ROSTAN, publishedin the 7th volume of the Nouveau

Jo?trnal de Médecine, and theother in the 68th Number of the

Bibliotheque Medieale, two in-

teresting papers which contain eachfour cases of this disease. Myfriend Dr. ANDRAL read beforethe Academie Royale de Méde-

cine, in the sitting of the 12thof April, a very curious instance ofthis kind. On the posterior surfaceof the left ventricle of the heartthere were five oblong perfara-tions. In observing what these dif-erent cases -present in common, wesee,

i. That of nineteen cases of rup-ture of the heart, fourteen occu-

pied the left ventricle, and princi-pally its anterior surface near theapex ; three the right -ventricle -one the apex; and another theinter-ventricular septum.

11. That in the majority of casesthe heart was remarkably soft, andin some cases of a brownish colouraround the perforation.

III. That of ten patients affectedwith- rupture of the heart, one wasbetween 50 and 60 years of age,another between 60 and 70, sixbetween 70 and 80, and two be-tween 80 and 90.IV. That of the same number of

patients, eight died instantly, oneat the expiration of about two

hours, and another at the end offourteen.

We find in the Journal de Mé-decine et des Sciences accessoires,

of the 15th of August, the followingpaper :

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On the Action of Mercury on the I

.

Bones.Some physicians imagine, that

the pains felt in the bones, nodes,and other affections of these partsin the venereal disease, are owing,not so much to the disease itself,as to the mercury which is em-

ployed in the treatment of it.Dr. Ballingall has attempted to

prove, that mercury alone, howeverlong it may be continued, and to

whatever dose it may be taken,never attacks the bones.

To make this appear, he has

compared the state of the osseoussubstance found in an individual-who fell a victim to a very severeform of syphilis, with the state

in which he has found the samematerial in some hundreds of per-sons who have died ultimately ofchronic inflammation of the liver;a common affection among the

English who have been much inthe Eastern colonies, and for whichtheir physicians employ mercuryunder all its forms and in prodi-gious doses. Yet the bones of thelatter persons have always beenfound healthy.

To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—The reason I address youon this subject may, at first sight,not a little surprise you; but therereally is nothing known to the me-dical profession of hydrophobia,in fact, all our present means aretotally inadequate to cure this dire-ful malady. Two cases, withinthis last week, have occurred to myknowledge; one I had every op-portunity of watching, the otherat Guy’s, which you, no doubt, willnotice. There did not appear, in

either of the above cases, any veryevident diminution of the diseasefrom the treatment employed, andso it has been for ages past, andso will continue, unless somethingbe done or something found out toi overpower this great and deter-mined enemy of the " healing art."But on account of the death of thefirst case (which became, almostdirectly, known in every neigh-bouring part), a man who residesat Wing, in Buckinghamshire, (atthe request of some private indivi-dual in town, who had heard of hisnotoriety, entirely unconnected withthe deceased) came to the friendsof this poor mortal, and declaredthat, had he seen the man a fewhours before his death, he wouldhave cured him. This, of course, wasthought almost too contemptible fornotice; however the man made hisappearance, and I, of course, con-versed with him on the point inquestion, and he declared that hewould venture his life on any case,if he administered his medicine orsaw it administered to the patient.He gave me several cases to read,one where two apothecaries, aftera variety of means, had come tothe determination of bleeding thepatient to death; but some one whohad seen the case, and also know-

ing this man, had him directly sentfor, and the patient was placedunder his treatment and recovered,and is now living, with many othersin that neighbourhood, to attest thefact, where the man has also livedsince his birth. If this, hereafter,should be found correct, what ne-glect and blame will be attached tothe names of these medical men.Think not that I am coming for-ward to espouse the cause of quack-ery, far I assure you no one deteststhe traffic more than myself. But

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here stands the monster which de-fies all our power-the innumerableremedies we have proposed have allproved futile without exception,therefore he who brings forward acure is not only entitled to the high-est encomiums of the medical pro-fesssion but of the world, and Ido think it would be justifiable in

any man’s trying this remedy.I remain, Sir, &c.

Sept. 14th. J. H.

P.S. The man’s name is ThomasNewens.

Notwithstanding the convictionof our correspondent to the contrary,we fear that the assertions of Mr.THOMAS NEWENS are the boast-ings of an interested quack; if theyare not, how can he reconcile it to

his conscience to quietly witnessthe destruction of so many of hisfellow-creatures, when the publica-tion of his remedy might rescue thesufferers from the agonizing tor-

tures of the most terrible of all dis-eases.

HOSPITAL REPORTS.

GUY’S HOSPITAL.

IIYDROPIIOBIA.

A distressing case of Hydropho-bia, and the application of Ma-GE-NDIE’S Remedy, -for the

first time in this country. _

W. D. aetat. 27, a young man ofa muscular, spare habit, was broughtinto Cornelius’ Ward of this Hos-pital about ten o’clock last Sundayevening. i

, On the 22d of Julv last he was

bitten by a dog, just above the

wrist, near Brixton, and was placedunder the care of Mr. HAMMONDof that place, who almost imme-diately excised the part, and after-wards applied caustic to the wound.The dog was at the time suspectedof being mad, and great anxietywas felt for the man’s safety.He showed no symptom, how-

ever, which could be considered

alarming until within the last fewdays. On Friday he complainedfor the first time of an uneasinessand tightness about his throat, ap-peared more irritable than usual,and had a restless night. OnSaturday, he took a cup of coffeefor his breakfast and swallowed itin a great hurry, as if drinkingsomething very unple asant. Hehad to clean his master’s carriageand water his horses, but he couldnot summon resolution to do so,without being able particularly tosay why he objected, and on thefollowing day he could not drinkhis tea; Mr. CALLAWAY wascalled to him, and, considering thenature of the case, thought it betterfor him to be brought to the Hos-pital.He complained of great uneasi-

ness and a feeling of oppressionabout the chest, more particularlyin the region of the diaphragm ; hisbreathing was hurried and inter-rupted by frequent convulsive sighs.His pulse was at this time 90, andvery firm, his skin hot and dry, andhe had also considerable pain inhis head, but answered any ques-tions put to him with great pro-priety. The spasms were strongeron the right side, and the motionsof the right extremities could bewith difficulty restrained. He wasexceedingly restless during the

night and could not bear the least