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organism which has its habitat in the vagina of nativewomen. In testing the intradermal reaction as an aidto diagnosis, Nicolas, Favre, and Lebeuf 2 experi-mented with two varieties of antigen : (1) a glycerinextract prepared according to Pasteur’s anti-rabiestechnique, and (2) that of the Frei type--diluted andwarmed pus-already described. The former antigengave positive results in 13 out of 14 patients sufferingfrom lymphogranulomatosis inguinale, and in a

syphilitic with an atypical inguinal adenitis and wasnegative in all other control subjects. The latterantigen used in six cases of lymphogranulomatosisinguinale was positive in all of them ; moreover thetwo antigens used simultaneously gave positive results.Recently, H. Lohe and K. Bliimmers 3 have pursuedsimilar investigations and found the intradermalreaction positive in 13 cases of lymphogranulomatosisinguinale and negative in 50 cases of soft chancre.They failed to find any typical primary lesion apartfrom balanitis, and draw attention to the frequencyof a general infection with fever and skin manifesta-tions, and to the condition known as "esthiomenos,"with occasionally a hypertrophic elephantiasis. Thera-peutic measures consist in the administration ofantimonial preparations, such asthetartrate, stibenyl,and neostibosan, but successful treatment by thesemeans is slow and uncertain in its results. Surgicaltreatment by removal of the glandular foci is morerapid, but is often contra-indicated by the bad general- condition of the patients. I

THE STORAGE OF FOOD.

THE problems connected with the delivery to theconsumer of food in the best possible conditionontinue to occupy the attention of the Food Investi-gation Board, which has recently issued its report 4for the year 1929. The staff of the Board maintaincordial relations with those engaged in the variousTbranches of the food industry to which the investiga-tions relate. Not only are urgent problems in this waybrought at once to the notice of those prepared toattempt their solution, but the results of any investi-gation can be communicated without delay to thoseengaged in the commercial undertakings involved.-An example of this cooperation is related in anaccount of experiments carried out to determine thefactors involved in preserving the appearance or

-bloom of frozen mutton and lamb. A series of lambswere slaughtered under supervision and their carcasseswere allowed to hang for 18 hours. They were thencovered with stockinette wraps and frozen at a tem--perature of -10° C. At the end of 24 hours one setof carcasses was wrapped in waxed paper to reproducestorage conditions of high humidity, while the otherswere left in their stockinette wraps. After this theywere all stored for 18 weeks at a temperature of

—9-7° C. at a relative humidity of 80-85 per cent.The carcasses were then sent to Smithfield for theopinion of the trade. Those wrapped in waxed paperhad lost on an average 2’54 per cent. of their weight,while the others had lost 2’7 per cent. The trade wasunanimously of the opinion that the bloom of theprotected carcasses was perfect, while that of the otherswas definitely inferior, especially in the case of a sub-group which had been brought out of the cold storeat intervals and allowed to sweat. This and similarexperiments have proved that the strictest controlover the temperature and air humidity at every stageduring the storage and transport of frozen meat isnecessary if a product of the best quality is to beobtained. The chemical composition of the sur-

rounding atmosphere was found to be not without itseffect on the appearance of meat stored at a lowtemperature. The red colour of fresh meat is duemainly to the haemoglobin present in the muscle-fibres.In the presence of oxygen this haemoglobin becomes

2 Jour. de Méd. de Lyon, May 20th, p. 295.3 Med. Klin., May 30th, p. 807.

4 H.M. Stationery Office, London, 1930 2s. 6d.

slowly oxidised to the brown pigment methaemoglobin.Atmospheric oxygen penetrates the muscle-fibres to adepth of only one or two millimetres and it is only inthis region that methaemoglobin can be formed. Inatmospheres containing larger proportions of oxygenthe depth of penetration is greater. The rate ofmethaemoglobin formation, however, does not dependdirectly on the amount or pressure of oxygen present,for it is found by experiment to be greatest when thepressure of oxygen is considerably less than that in air.Hence, with atmospheres containing high pressures ofoxygen, rapid formation of methaemoglobin takesplace not at the surface where the pressure is highest,but at some considerable distance from the surface,where the pressure is less. Meat exposed to suchatmospheres might still have a red appearancesuperficially, the brown discoloration of the interiordue to methaemoglobin formation not being visiblefrom the surface. At 0° C. the rate of methaemo-globin formation is greatest when the concentra-tion of oxygen in the atmosphere is only 0’5 percent., or less than the concentration found incommercial nitrogen. It is pointed out, therefore,as an interesting theoretical fact, that in order to lessensuperficial discoloration of stored meat by methsemo-globin, and therefore to increase its attractiveness,it would be better to keep the carcass in an atmosphereof pure oxygen rather than attempt to exclude oxygenby storing it in an atmosphere of nitrogen. It isreadily appreciated that the various factors respon-sible for securing the storage of meat in the best possiblecondition are by no means easy to determine. More-over, dairy produce, fruit, and vegetables all presentequally intricate problems which are being ener-

getically tackled. This type of investigation is notonly yielding contributions to pure science, but offersthe prospect of the provision of food of superiorquality at relatively low prices.

IRRADIATION OF THE UTERUS.

I A " multiple-area intra-uterine radium applicator "has been devised by Dr. William Brown 1 of Chicago,for the treatment of cases in which the uterine cavityis enlarged or distorted in conditions of haemorrhage,malignant growths, polypi, endometritis, and fibroids.He claims that it provides more nearly uniformradiation of the corpus than the central uterineapplicators, with tubes in tandem, which are commonlyused in the leading radium clinics. The instrument isarranged to use in the uterus one, two, or three radiumtubes which are commonly 10 mm. long. The radiumis placed inside a brass tube which is fixed at the endof a calibrated carrier. The carrier is attached to theradium by a short length of flexible clock springmaterial, the total length being 27 cm. After thecervix has been dilated, the uterine cavity is soundedand its length is determined. A central tube is then,introduced into the vault, and the lateral tubes areapplied, each being directed to one or other cornu.The three calibrated handles are then brought togetherand a carrier cylinder is-slipped over them. At thecervical end of this cylinder there is a movable disc3-2 cm. in diameter to which radium tubes can beattached ; these rest against the portio and are fixedby a vaginal pack. Knowing the depth of the uterinecavity, the position of the radium tubes in the uteruscan be determined by reading the calibration markson the handles of the carriers. The position of thetubes can be altered during the course of the treatmentwithout disturbing the perineal dressings, and in thisway short radium tubes can be used for irradiationof the whole uterine cavity. The instrument in itspresent form does not recognise the need for placingradium applicators in the vagina as close as possibleto the lateral walls of the pelvis in order to irradiatethe parametria and obtain as wide cross-firing aspossible for cases of cancer in the lower uterine

1 Jour. Amer. Med. Assoc., May 10th, p. 1471.