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beside the question and wide of the mark. So far as weare aware the Radcliffe Infirmary of Oxford is the onlyhospital in the kingdom where bodies of deceased patientsthe property of the coroner are not viewed by him andthe jury in the mortuary belonging to the hospital ; andMr. Hussey is the only coroner, medical or legal, who hasadopted this practice of ordering their removal to a differentmortuary. In other words, Mr. Hussey’s conduct is singularand without precedent and for these reasons requires amplegrounds for its justification. In his reply to the petition heimplies that the mortuary of the infirmary is unsuitable forits purpose, and he also makes an implication against theofficials as to the treatment of the bodies, but he gives nofacts in support of this latter. Assuming both, however, tobe true, the coroner had his remedy-viz., to point out thedefects of the mortuary and any misconduct of the officialsto the chairman and members of the managing committee,a body of gentlemen who would, we feel sure, have paidevery reasonable attention to him and would also have

promptly removed any abuses so far as lay in their power.Mr. Hassey also complains that the committee have not aidedhim in the discharge of his duties as coroner, but on oneoccasion his conduct towards the resident medical officer ofthe infirmary was, to say the least, inconsiderate. In some

cases we have had to regret that Mr. Hussey has not showna little more of the suaviter in modo and a little less of the

fortiter in re. The Lord Chancellor, in his reply, has conveyeda hint which he will do well to take, since there can be nodoubt that whilst no inconvenience would be the result of his

acting like other coroners-viz., viewing the body in the

mortuary of the infirmary and holding the inquest in or nearit-very great inconvenience must attend what appears to behis present usual practice. Everyone knows the powers whicha coroner possesses. We trust that in future Mr. Husseywill realise the truth of the old saying, As you are strong,be merciful."

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A SCHOOLMASTER’S WATER-SUPPLY.

A CORRESPONDENT has sent us for examination a smallbottle of water taken direct from a tank from which a Sussexschoolmaster and his family are said to obtain their drinking-water, with the request that we would give an opinion uponthe character of it. The repulsive appearance of the wateris sufficient ground for condemning it unhesitatingly. It

swarms (we counted just 100 in four fluid ounces of the

water) with dead animalcule of the kind which infest rottenwood and damp and mouldy corners of a long neglectedtenement. The animalcule measured just one-eighth of aninch in length, was perfectly white and resembled a smallcaterpillar. Probably water is not their habitat ; they weredrowned and were therefore presumably derived from thedirty surroundings of the tank. Besides these objectionableanimal forms there were also present a large specimen (dead)of amphipoda probably gammarus pulex, and a white thread-like transparent insect over half an inch long, also dead.

The water had a repulsive musty smell. It was impossibleto carry out anything like a satisfactory analysis of it, for thequantity did not exceed four and a half fluid ounces. Suffice it

to say, however, that large quantities of ammonia were pre-sent, judging from the intense colour that was produced withNessler’s reagent, whilst the existence of organic matter wasindicated by the rapid reducing effect upon permanganate ofpotash and still further pollution was illustrated by a markedresponse to the test for phosphates. In view of these facts

the water is utterly unfit for drinking purposes and a newsource of supply should be sought at once. We agree withour correspondent that the above is a case quite as serious as,if not more so than, that which formed the subject of an articlein our columns a few weeks ago in which the action of aSchool Board for wrongful dismissal of a teacher, whose onlyoffence was that he had complained of the water supplied for

drinking purposes, was discussed at some length. It is to be

hoped that the schoolmaster in the present instance will notbe deterred from complaining for fear of sharing a similar fate.

SMALL-POX IN SCOTLAND.

IN Montrose, where the disease was understood to be at anend, three new cases have occurred and the patients havebeen sent to hospital. Elsewhere the reports are more

favourable. In Edinburgh there have been three new casesand in Glasgow only two cases occurred last week. In Paisleyone case is recorded.

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THE DRUGGIST AS MEDICAL PRACTITIONER.

THE Western Mail of the 7th inst. gives some account ofan inquest on a poor woman of Trevaughan, Whitland, whodied shortly after taking a mixture supplied by a druggist onthe prescription of another druggist. Druggists are pro-gressing ; they used only to dispense their own prescriptions.There is in this case a druggist who prescribes-Mr. JabezJenkins-and the prescription was taken to be dispensed byanother druggist-Mr. Owen. Mr. Williams of Carmarthenmade a post-mortem examination and found that death wasdue not to the medicine but to heart failure. That doesnot alter the facts that the druggist had no business toprescribe and that had the patient been seen by a properlyqualified medical man the heart might not have failed.

CHOLERA PRECAUTIONS AND IMPERIALSUBVENTIONS.

IT is evident that we have not yet heard the last of thedemand made by port sanitary authorities for a subventionfrom Imperial funds to aid in the expenses which are beingincurred in some ports in anticipation of the re-introductionof cholera from the Continent of Europe. Mr. Heneage andhis friends decline to accept the decision of the Chancellorof the Exchequer and signatures are being obtained fromMembers of Parliament with a view to a more formal applica-tion on the same subject. If the applicants wish to gaintheir end they should limit the terms of their demand

to such effective special measures as they think are imposedon them in view of cholera and not make it appear as if

they wanted a subvention for merely carrying out with alittle extra care their ordinary duties as port sanitaryauthorities.

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WELLINGTON COLLEGE.

The Tiiiies of June 14th announces that the report of thegovernors of Wellington College for the year 1892 has justbeen issued as a Parliamentary paper in accordance with theannual custom. There has been an exceptional and extra-ordinary expenditure, most of which was incurred in con-nexion with the recent sanitary works carried out at the

College and the consequent temporary removal of the schoolto Malvern, creating a large deficiency at the end of theyear of £25,571 17s.4d. Our readers will remember that the

College has been visited not only by the grave outbreak ofillness amongst the pupils which led to the removal of the

school to Malvern, but by serious illness on several previousoccasions. Public confidence was shaken in the management ofthe institution notwithstanding that it had the patronage andsupport of a more distinguished body of governors than anyother school in the kingdom. The annual speech day willtake place to-day (Saturday), instead of on the 18th, the

anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, which this year falls ona Sunday. Parents and friends of the boys and others inte-rested in the institution will, no doubt, assemble in large num-bers on this occasion, which will afford them an opportunityof inspecting the various sanitary improvements carried outunder the direction of Mr. Rogers Field, the well-known

sanitary engineer. They will be able to observe the numerousAA 3