experiments were tried with both that and the
nitrous oxide gas; the latter was but
sparingly used in England, and sulphuric ether
soon stood alone, continuing to be used throughout
the country, until the discovery of the
anæsthetic property of chloroform, by Dr. Simpson,
about a year afterwards. The qualities of
chloroform soon caused it to supersede
sulphuric ether, which had a very disagreeable
odour, and was highly inflammable, so much so,
that cases had occurred in which it had ignited,
and had done much hurt to the patient inhaling
it; but chloroform is not inflammable. From
that time up to the present, chloroform has
been used exclusively by English surgeons;
but its use has not been without fatal
accidents, which apparently within these last few
years have increased in number. The per-centage
of fatal cases is not greater than ten years
ago, but where it was administered to one person
then, it is now administered to many scores,
and this for very trifling operations. Other
serious symptoms besides the direct anæsthetic
influence on the system may arise. From the
frequent use of artificial teeth it occasionally
happens, that these are swallowed during the
inhalation of chloroform or ether. In one
instance, a lady who had inhaled ether, was
apparently in a dying state, respiration having
ceased, and the pulse being just perceptible;
this aroused the attention of the surgeon, and
upon passing his fingers down the throat to
admit a current of air to the larynx, he discovered
an entire upper set of artificial teeth, closely
forced down on the glottis. These having been
withdrawn, it was only after persistence in the
use of the usual remedies employed to recover
a person from asphyxia (as in drowning), that
the regular course of respiration and circulation
was restored.

Chloroform is generally administered by means
of a sponge, or flannel, upon which the liquid
is poured, or else the vapour, with a certain
percentage of atmospheric air, is forced into a
bag, from which, by means of a tube, inhalation
is carried on. We have been much indebted
these last few years to the extensive researches
of Dr. Richardson, the inventor of the " Anæsthetic
spray producer." By this instrument a
continual stream of absolute ether is directed
against the part of the body under the
examination of the surgeon, and the rapid evaporation
of the ether from the surface completely
freezes that portion, and renders it insensible
to the knife. If we go back to the discovery
of sulphuric ether, we find that in America, as
in England, that anæsthetic quickly took the
place of the nitrous oxide gas, but not to the
utter exclusion of the nitrous oxide, which still
was given in extremely dangerous cases, as to
persons in the last stage of consumption, &c.,
and where the surgeon feared to risk ether.

In dentistry, too, its use had declined. But
in 1863 it was again brought into active service
by Dr. J. H. Smith, a dentist of Connecticut,
and Mr. Cotton, the gentleman who
delivered the chemical lecture at Hartford 1844,
residing in New York. Its use has been
perfected, and it is found to have such great
advantages for short operations that Mr. Cotton, in
conjunction with Dr. J. Allen, a dentist of New
York, established an anæsthetic institution for
the extraction of teeth, by the use of the gas,
and each person operated upon entered his
name in a register kept of the cases. Up to
January, 1867, the number of names was seventeen
thousand six hundred and one, and in no
single case had the nitrous oxide produced any
alarming symptoms. From Boston the
practice has extended into other large cities, and is
rapidly spreading all over the country. In
surgery, too, nitrous oxide is again used in many
American hospitals. Its condemnation in
England appears to have been premature and
without sufficient cause. Some of the chief dentists
in London have been reviving the experiments
made on its first introduction. The gas has
been administered at the dental hospital by
improved methods, and with great success, the
patients being brought fully under its influence
in about forty seconds, and about the same
time being taken for recovery. The nitrous
oxide gas has one great advantage, which is,
that it does not produce the unpleasant after
symptoms following the use of chloroform or
ether; but this may be compensated by more
serious disadvantages, which experiment will
alone show. The difficulty of preparation will
prevent its use in the army, where chloroform
must continue to be used, on account of its
portability and easy application; but in
hospitals, where these objections are not of such
serious moment – if success attend it – it may
supersede the use of the valuable, but rather
dangerous, anæsthetic chloroform.

      THE NORTHENVILLE ELECTION.

                   OUR SIDE.

I HAVE seen life as an electioneering agent.

This was nearly my first case. One of the
members for the town of Northenville died
suddenly, and a gentleman of the Mauve party,
who had long been anxious to get into parliament,
offered himself to the electors. Not
being able to secure on the spot the services
of a good canvassing agent, he wrote to a
celebrated solicitor in London, who offered me
the job, and gave me my instructions. On my
first interview with the gentleman who was to
be my principal, I learnt what his intentions
and wishes were, and next day began work.

The member who was just dead belonged to
the Carmine party in politics, whereas, as I said
before, the new candidate for the seat was a
Mauve. The Ministry of the day were of the
great Carmine party; the Mauves were decidedly
unpopular in Northenville; and our adversary
had much local influence.

My candidate was very rich, had a popular
manner, and was a director of large iron mines
not very far from Northenville. Our opponent
might promise that he would endeavour to
oblige voters by getting them post office clerk-ships