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methods new species of bacilli or bacteria in any materia:he chooses to select .......... The point, therefore, in th(present state of bacteriological researches is not whethe]in any morbid material of the body this or that newspecies is present, but whether in its distribution and itsaction it bears any definite relation to that morbid processNow everyone acquainted with these fundamental con.

ditions will understand that one of the first and essentialconditions would be that a microbe which is to bear anyrelation to scarlet fever must be found in the blood or tissuesin a definite distribution. Examining the desquamatingepidermis and finding a new species of bacteria may meannothing more than this-viz., that to those several speciesalready known to exist in the epidermis, another species hasbeen added, which, in itself, is no doubt an interesting dis-covery, as much as, for instance, is a new species of diatomeor a new beetle in a locality where no one has seen it before.-But this new addition to the list of bacilli in the epidermismay have nothing whatever to do with the scarlet fever.This so-called bacillus of scarlatina is a bacillus whichbelongs to a well-defined group of species which in formeryears would have been considered as bacillus subtilis-viz.,xods of a certain length and thickness, mobile; they havea tendency to form long chains or leptothrix; they growrapidly in broth, and form here on the surface a scum, whichis already well developed after twenty-four hours ; the scumthickens during the next days, and becomes corrugated, thefluid itself remaining clear, butgradually becoming brownish-the more brown the longer time elapses; they liquefyrapidly gelatine, and after some days form also here a scumon the surface; they form in a few days a corrugated scum- on the surface of solid agar-agar mixture; they grow rapidlyin milk which is curdled, and by which a white precipitateis formed, while the fluid, at first turbid, graduallybecomes clear; on its surface there is a thick pellicle.In plate cultivations in gelatine, the bacilli form minute’whitish colonies, at first-i.e., during the first day angular,..after thirty hours ur more gradually liquefying the gelatine,and forming circular colonies of liquefied gelatine with anopaque or slightly granular outline, and a central, whitishspot due to precipitate of masses of bacilli. On potato theygrow rapidly, and form a more or less corrugated layer,gradually turning brownish. Now I know of five differentspecies; all notoriously septic bacilli, which show these,characters besides the Edinburgh bacillus; they show, never-theless, slight differences, and may be considered as differentspecies, but as to those general characters just mentioned,there is no doubt they belong to the same group of organ-isms. To sum up, then, the Edinburgh bacillus, judging byits mode of growth, clearly belongs to a group of species of-bacilli which are notoriously septic bacilla. It has beenfound in a small percentage of cases of scarlet fever inblood taken from a prick of the ’finger; its spores occur inthe epidermis of cases of scarlet fever, amongst other speciesof bacteria; it has no action when the bacilli or spores areinjected subcutaneously, and in a pure state, into animals.You will, I think, agree with me that after such evidence,it would be quite unjustifiable and premature to call thisbacillus the bacillus of scarlet fever. This whole questionof the etiology of scarlet fever is no doubt an extremely,difficult one, and only by combined work on an extensivescale, and by careful and accurate methods, can we hope toget at the truth of the matter; and in these efforts no.criticism should be shunned or objected to, but, on the otherhand, it must be criticism made in an unprejudiced andscientific spirit.

COMPLIMENTARY BANQUET TO SIR ALFREDGARROD, M.D., F.R.S.

ON Tuesday, Dec. 6th, Sir Alfred Garrod was entertained-at a complimentary banquet by the members of the medicalprofession resident in his native town, Ipswich. The chairwas occupied by Dr. Caleb Rose, and the vice-chair by Mr.- George Cordy Edwards, almost every practitioner of thetown being present. The health of the distinguished guestwas given by one of the senior surgeons of the hospital(Dr. Elliston), who referred to the high honour conferredupon Sir Alfred by Her Majesty, in selecting him as one of-the few distinguished physicians who had received the

y restige of knighthood in her Jubilee year, a distinction

which reflected credit upon himself, and redounded to thehonour of the town in which he was born and educated, andreceived his early medical education. The Ipswich schoolwas proud to claim Sir Alfred Garrod as an old boy. Afterleaving school, he was apprenticed to the late Mr. CharlesHammond, one of the then surgeons of the East Suffolk Hos-pital. Thence he proceeded to University College, London,graduated at the University of London in 1843, and becamesuccessively attached to University College and King’sCollege Hospitals as physician. lie was now consultingphysician to .King’s College Hospital, a Fellow of the RoyalSociety, and had for many years been known as a mostsuccessful teacher of materia medica and therapeutics,besides being one of the most actively employed of thephysicians of the day. Dr. Elliston referred to the well-known works of their visitor, and particularly to his treatiseon Gout and Rheumatic Gout, which, he thought, entitledhim to grateful and lasting recognition. Sir Alfred haddone for the elucidation of these allied diseases what Jennerhad done for continued fever. The toast was most warmlyreceived, and Sir Alfred Garrod, in response, spoke of hispleasing recollections of his early life at Ipswich, and of thepleasure he felt in responding to the invitation to visit themafter so many years’ absence. He recalled to memory thenames of many able physicians and surgeons who werethen living and practising, but are all dead, although hewas pleased to see several of their descendants present.

BRITISH NURSES’ ASSOCIATION.

A REPRESENTATIVE gathering of the matrons of the

metropolitan hospitals and infirmaries, and other well-known members of the nursing profession, was held at

Mrs. Bedford Fenwick’s residence on Saturday last, to

discuss the advisability of forming an Association for themutual help of all women engaged in nursing the sick, andfor the advancement generally of their professional useful-ness both to medical men and the public. At this meetingit was pointed out that a heterogeneous Association wasattempting to legislate for the nursing profession, and hadissued regulations for the registration of nurses, which, itwas considered, were degrading to them as a body. Further-more, that there are now about 15,000 nurses in the UnitedKingdom, isolated individuals, who, with their scanty sala-ries, can do little to help themselves or each other ifincapacitated by illness or age from further work. Aftersome discussion, it was unanimously agreed that a BritishNurses’ Association should be formed, having for its ob-jects (1) the obtaining of a charter that will enable theAssociation to examine and register nurses and to conferdegrees; (2) the starting and carrying on of a journal ofthe Association, which shall be exclusively devoted to theinterests of nurses; (3) the devising of schemes for annuitypension, and sick funds for nurses; (4) the formation andmanaging of a convalescent home and holiday house fornurses; (5) the founding and managing of almshousesforsuperannuated nurses; and (6) the organisation of confer-ences on questions relating to the nursing profession. Bye-laws were passed, a general council constituted, and anexecutive committee appointed, on which the followingmatrons at once consented to act: Mrs. Deeble (NetleyHospital), Miss Hogg (Haslar Hospital), Miss Stewart (St.Bartholomew’s Hospital), Miss Jones (GUj’S Hospital), MissThorold (Middlesex Hospital), Miss Wood (Children’s Hos-pital), Miss Suteliff-a (Women’s Hospital), Miss Clarke(Western Fever Hospital), Miss East (National Hospital),Miss 112ollett (Chelsea Infirmary), Miss ClosA (KensingtonInfirmary), Miss Beacbcroft (Lincoln County Hospital), MissRogers (Leicester Infirmary), Miss Gibson (Brownlow HillInfirmary. Liverpool), and Miss Huxley (Sir Patrick Dun’sHospital, Dublin). Mrs. Bedford Fenwick, lately matron ofBartholomew’s Hospital, and five other ladies were alsonominated to act with the above. The movement has,we are informed, been warmly welcomed, and is assuredalready of influential support.

A MEETING of the supporters of the Surgical AidSociety was held on the 7th inst., the Lord Mayor presiding,when satisfactory reports of the progress of the Society werepresented.