St. Louis still has 20,000 privy pits and as many surface wells.  The importation of cholera into St. Louis is well proved for 1832, 1848, 1849, 1854, 1866, and 1873.  Those who used surface well water suffered much more than those who drank Mississippi water, however foul that may have been.  The history of cholera in St. Louis has been better and more accurately written up quite lately by Mr. Robert Moore, civil engineer, than that of any city in this country.  He has kindly given me maps of the city, with every case marked down, with street and number, for all the epidemic.

Hypodermic injections of atropine and morphine have failed sadly in many cases.  Subcutaneous injections of large quantities of salt and water, with some soda, and large rectal injections of tannin and laudanum have been very successful in Italy.  If there is plenty of acid gastric juice in the stomach, the cholera poison and microbes may be swallowed with impunity.  The worst cases of cholera are produced by drinking large quantities of cholera contaminated water, when the stomach is empty and alkaline.  I think it probable that large quantities, as much as the thirst requires, of a weak acid water will prove very beneficial in cholera.  Water slightly acidulated with sulphuric, nitric, or muriatic acid will probably be the best, but it is hoped that phosphoric, acetic, and lactic acids will prove equally good.  Lemon juice and vinegar are merely acetates and citrates of potash, and are not as good.

* * * * *

It seems that the offensive smells noticed in the English Houses of Parliament last session have been traced to their source.  It is found that the main sewer of the House of Commons is very large and out of all proportion to the requirements, is of two different levels, and discharges into the street sewer within eighteen inches of the bottom of the latter drain.  There is thus a constant backflow of sewage.  Another revelation is that the drain connected with the open furnace in the Clock Tower, for the purpose of ventilation, is hermetically closed at its opposite end.

* * * * *

SULPHUROUS ACID AND SULPHIDE OF CARBON.

Much attention has been paid in recent times to disinfecting agents, and among these sulphurous acid and sulphide of carbon must be placed in the list of the most efficient.  Mr. Alf.  Riche has recently summed up in the Journal de Pharmacie et de Chimie the state of the question as regards these two agents, and we in turn shall furnish a few data on the subject in taking the above named scientist as a guide.