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and be pathognomonic in an otherwise obscure case of acuteillness in childhood. Although all these conditions and theirindications are known to many students preparing for examina-tion as well as to practitioners, there is little doubt that they arenot as generally applied as they should be. The ophthalmo-scope is not a difficult instrument on which to acquire asufficient facility for all ordinary purposes ; the question of asuitable light is readily solved by any of the simple and cheapportable electric lamps now available, and in difficult cases

dilatation of the pupil can quickly be obtained by a littleTiomatropine. The opportunities given at hospitals and in

post-graduate courses to learn the use of the ophthalmoscopeare now abundant, and the time and trouble spent in thisway are amply repaid.

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THE PROGRESS OF SCHOOL HYGIENE INPORTUGAL.

A CORRESPONDENT, writing from Lisbon, informs us thatthe Portuguese Government has determined on the medicalinspection of superior upper schools and lyceums until suchtime as it shall be possible to extend the practice to allprimary schools. Medical inspection is further about to be

organised for certain private establishments. An importantmovement also, having for its aim the diff asion of new Imethods of education, which will result in considerable

progress in both public and private teaching, is on the point ofestablishment. The Portuguese Society of Pedagogic Studies,founded Jan. 15th, 1910, has taken the lead in the movementfor making known what are the scientific data and practicalfoundations of a sound educational system. As a beginning,the members of the society will hold a series of publicconferences at which the following subjects will be dis-cussed : the scientific basis of education; the psychologyof the child ; the medical inspection of schools; manualtraining in schools; sexual ethics ; the struggle againstalcoholism in the primary school; psedagogic methods,;the cooperation of the family with the school in educa-

tion ; art in the school; children’s gardens ; inter-

change of school amenities; school febes and excursions.Next April a Congress of Psiagogy—the third in Portugal-organised by the National League for Instruction, willtake place at Lisbon, and its second section will be devotedto school hygiene. The method of primary instruction willbe entirely reformed on a plan to be established, on theproposition of Dr. Ladiblau Piarra, senator, after consulta-tion with the Society of Pedagogic Studies.

ANCIENT HINDOO REMEDIES.

NERVOUS instability, amorousness, and mental fatiguewould seem to be Hindoo characteristics, ’to judge by thenewspaper announcements of the remedies of a certain Mr.

Kaviraj Keshab Lall Roy. These are described as " some ofthe best specifics ever found out in the system of Ayurveda "-i.e., medicine. We ought, perhaps, to accept this statementas being made in good faith. There is, indeed, reason tosuppose that the domestic medicine of Hindustan is stillin the Vedic stage, and that a quack medicine in Indiais probably a traditional one, a descendant, indeed,of the pharmaeopoela of the early Sanscrit philosophers.The ancient Hindoo pharmacy and therapeutics have of lateyears been illustrated by two notable publications. Of these,the first, published in 1905 by the University of Harvard, isWhitney’s translation, with notes by Lanman, of the famous" Atharva-Veda." " The second is the revised translation of Ithe "Bower Mannscript " of the Nâvanîtaka" " (a Sanscritwork on medicine), published in 1909, under the editorship.of Dr. Radolf Hoernle, by the Archselogical Survey ofIndia. The Atharva-Veda. is mainly concerned with prayers,

incantations, and charms. The ’’ Nvanitaka," on the otherband, is a vast handbook for the legitimate practitioner orfor the self-medicating individual. It deals with diseasesknown to antiquity and chiefly prescribes vegetable remediesor simples, such as clarified butter. Thus chyavanaprasa, ormedicated ghee, so called after the famous sage Chyavana,is frequently referred to and perhaps reappears as the

chyavanpras, recommended in cases of debility by Lall Roy.Impotence is for obvious reasons regarded as a particularcalamity in the East, and thus we find an important sectionof the book devoted to aphrodisiacs, some of which are terrificenough. The medicine known as "the Sarasvati ClarifiedButter " is for a Râjarshi who desires to beget a son.

11 juice of Gokshuraka (Tribulus terrestris), clarified butter,and milk of both a goat and a cow, together with one

prasrita of honey, makes a prescription capacitating a

man, &o." " Another simple mixture, made into boluses,increases this capacity, and ensures "favouritism" amongmembers of the other sex Emblic myrobolan creates an eroticmonster, and we are in the region of Orienal exaggeratiodwitha vengeance. Signaturism plays a large part in the concoctionof these mixtures. Thus " sparrow broth " and pig’s fat arefrequently recommended to the voluptuary, as also red rice,goat’s milk, and the flesh of a cock. There is usually, how-ever, some herbal ingredient, such as Ipomoea digitata, in

any given medicine, which probably has a certain efficacy,even though it be only purgative.

THE CARE OF THE COMING RACE.

FEW public duties are of farther reaching importance thanthat of providing for the proper bringing up in sound healthand adequate development of the future citizens of the

Empire. While undoubtedly a considerable part of the

present defective stamina of children, especially among thepoorer classes, is due to unsatisfactory environment, quite alarge part also is dependent on the ignorance of those onwhose care the upbringing of the little ones devolves, an

ignorance of how to make the most of those possibilitiesthey possess, and how to ameliorate existing disadvantageousconditions. It was to combat this ignorance that the

National League for Physical Education and Improve-ment was incorporated in 1905. Among the work done

by this league was the establishment of infant consultationcentres and of schools for mothers. During the past twoyears there has been a rapid increase in this work, andit is thought that the time has come for a further develop-ment of the organisation in relation thereto. We learn,accordingly, that it has been decided to form a specialdepartment to coordinate the work and to promote theformation of new centres. With this end in view, the Asso-ciation of Infant Consultations and Schools for Mothers was

inaugurated recently in a well-attended meeting, the chairbeing taken by Alderman Broadbent, of Huddersfield, whosename is so well known in relation to the cause of infant

upbringing. At this meeting the constitution of the asso-ciation was decided upon, and a strong provisional executivecommittee was formed to carry on the work until the first

meeting of the representative general council can be held.The medical profession has accorded the movement generouscountenance, and is to be represented on the governingbodies in equal numbers with non-medical delegates from the34 affiliated societes. Alderman Broadbent, in his remarks,drew special attention to the happy combination of

municipal and voluntary effort already effected in certain

districts. The attention of the association is directedtowards the establishment of a uniform method of keepingrecords and statistics, a necessary factor in all successful

collaborative work. By this means, newly forming