1441

surface; the left half composed of normal fibres. Nervefibres at inferior surface of right half soon increased in

number, and a small tract of degeneration appeared at theinferior surface of the left half running outwards and alittle upwards. Passing backwards, the degeneration inthe right half gradually diminished and became limited tothe superior surface, whilst normal fibres increased onthe inferior. The band of degeneration in the left halfgradually increased, and then in the posterior part of thechiasma diminished again. 3. Optic tracts : Left smallerthan right. Naked-eye examination revealed a pale areain the centre of right tract, but not in the centre of lefttract. Microscopically, there was an increase of connectivetissue, and a diminution of nerve fibres in the centre of theright tract. In the left tract was a small area at, . he innerhalf of the inferior surface, in which connective tissue wasincreased and nerve fibres scanty. A similar, but muchnarrower, zone extended along the periphery of the inferiorand outer side of the tract. The changes in the tracts

occupied the same position almost up to the external geni-culate bodies.New Growths -Mr. WILLIAM THORBURN showed draw-

ings and described the appearances of a tumour of theanterior lobe of the pituitary body, accomp inied bv a largehaemorrhage, and also exhibited specimen of MelanoticAlveolar Sarcoma taken from the skin of the side of thechest of a boy aged fourteen, and apparently the result of ablow received about) a month before the case was seen.Specimens.-Mr. HERBERT LUND showed two prepara-

tions : (1) Sac from a case of Hernia; (2) Cyst apparentlyOmental in Origin.

NORTHUMBERLAND AND DURHAM MEDICALSOCIETY.

THURSDAY, DEC. 10TH.W. GOWANS, M.D., President, in the chair.

THE PRESIDENT showed two cases in which he had got very good results from Wheelhouse’s operation for stricture.Drs. Hume, Anderson, Benington, and Murphy discussedthe method of treatment.

Dr. HUME showed a girl, aged five and a half years, onwhom three ypars ago he performed Gastrostomy for Stric-ture of the (Esophagus, following the swallowing of liq.potaseae. Since the operation dilatation of the stricturehad been tried, but failed. Dr. Hume also showed a manon whom he had performed inguinal colotomy three yearsand a half ago for Cancer of the Rectum. The patient stillcontinued in good health, and works as a day labourer.-Drs. H. S. BAUMGARTNER, A. E. MORISON, and RUTHER-FORD MORISON related their experience of similar cases.-Dr. OLIVER and Mr. WILLIAMSON showed a man recoveredfrom Suppurating Hydatid of the Liver treated by incisionand drainage.

Dr. VANN showed a large Mulberry Calculus removed bythe supra-pubic method, the patient recovering.-Dr. H. S.BAUMGARTNER showed : (1) a Hand Amputated for Sar-coma, which developed two weeks after patient was con-fined ; (2) a large Solid Ovarian Tumour, which under themicroscope was found to be a fibroma ; (3) Tubes andOvaries removed for old pelvic inflammation.Mr. RUTHERFORD MORISON gave a demonstration of the

uses of Senn’s plates.

NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE CLINICAL SOCIETY.THURSDAY, DEC 17TH.

WALTER RIDLEY, F.R.C.S., President, in the chair.

Lupus of Left Leg.-Spastic Paraplegia. -Antruia ofHighmore.-Locomotor Ataxy.-Dr. H. AITCHISON showeda case in which he had performed amputation atthe hip-joint for extensive Lupus of the Left Leg.The operation had been carried out by means of trans-fixion and the formation of anterior and posteriorflaps. A very good stump was formed.-Dr. GEORGEMURRAY showed a case of Spastic Paraplegia. Therehad been an attack of syphilis eight years ago, ani the symptoms first appeared four years ago. The

patient had weakness of the legs and a typical spasticalt. There was great increase in the myotatic irrita-

bility as shown by exaggerated knee-jerks and the presence

of ankle-clonus and 11 clasp-knife rigidity. The elbow-jerkand wrist-jerk were also increased, though the motor powerof the arms was good. Sensation was only slightly affectedover the outer part of each leg and the dorsum of the foot.He was unable to retain his urine for more than three orfour hours, and had lost sexual power.-Dr. W. RoBERTSOaillustrated the use of the electric light in the diagnosis ofdiseases of the Antrum of Highmore. He showed a caseof double empyema of the antrum, and advocated the treat-ment of such cases by making an opening into the antrumfrom the front for irrigation and drainage.-Mr. MORISONand Dr. COLEY made remarks.-Mr. RICHARDSON showeda case of old Locomotor Ataxy with Charcot’s disease ofthe wrist-joint, which came on some time after an attaekof arthritis in the joint following an injury had subsided.Sloughing had taken place at two different points, with dis-charge of synovial fluid. He also showed a case of old Stib-astragaloid Dislocation.Empyema.-Mr. LYON SMITH read notes of a compli-

cated case of Empyema. This was followed by a discussionon the surgical treatment of empyema, in which Drs. Coley,Morison, Gibson, Aitchison, G. Murray, H. Baumgartner,and Black took part.-Mr. ;SMITH briefly replied.Specimens.-Dr. H. AITCHISON showed a Uterus which

he had removed from a small woman who had suffered fromrickets by Porro’s operation. The stump had been securedby indiarubber tubing and knitting needles as recommendedby Mr. Lawson Tait. The child lived and the mother madean excellent recovery.

Notices of Books.The PathoZogy, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Intras-

cranial Growths. By PHILIP Coolviss KNAPP, A.M.,M.D. (Harvard). Boston : Rockwell and Churchill.-Inthis interesting monograph the author has statisticallycally summed up what we at present know of intra-cranialgrowths in their various phases. The substratum of hiswork is a series of forty cases with necropsies, many ofwhich had come under his own observation, and he hasenriched those observations by numerous references to casesrecorded and to inferences drawn by others ; so that thework forms, as it were, a compendium not only of the statisticsas to the nature, time of occurrence, &c., of intra-cranial

tumours, but also of the symptoms most commonly presentwith tumours in various localities, as well as the conditionsin an equally important class, which is rather charac.terised by an absence of symptoms which could lead toa diagnosis. The book almost in its present form was theFiske Prize Essay, and is divided into various sections,dealing with etiology, pathological anatomy, symptoma-tology, &c., and it forms a most excellent summary of our

knowledge of a subject which, in spite of much recentwork, is still in many of its aspects full of obscurity. The

chapter on treatment is an interesting one, and especiallythe second part, in which an attempt is made to discoverthe probable percentage of those cases in which operativeinterference would be likely to be beneficial. The inferencedrawn is that in a certain percentage of cases the tumour isof such a nature and in such a position that it can withsafety be removed ; and while the percentage of such casesmay seem small, it must be remembered that more correctlocalisation is becoming daily more easy, and that this willnaturally lead to a greater hope of successful surgicalinterference.Medical Publications : Harvard Medical School. 1890.-

This volume is a collection of papers and essays thrown

together to show the character of the original work done bythe instructors of the school, or under their personal super-vision. Only one clinical paper has been included. Prof.

Dwight contributes two careful anatomical papers : one onthe Sternum as an index of sex, height, and age; with anaccount of an extremely interesting case of irregular