The disease occurs about eight or ten days after the beginning of a mercurial course; it is ushered in by heat and itching, first felt about the scrotum, thighs, groin, and bend of the arm. These parts are rough and faintly red. Though the disease spreads over the whole body, yet the lower extremities are usually attacked before the upper; the anterior portion of the body before the posterior. There is some swelling of the parts, frequent pulse, and white tongue. The eruption is vesicular, the vesicles very minute, though in the progress of the disease they attain the size of a pea. When ruptured, they are followed by irritable excoriations, from which a fetid discharge follows. This continues but a few days, when the sores dry up, then blown or black scales form and fall off, leaving a red surface. Sometimes the hair and nails fall off. The disease runs its course in from ten lavs to as many weeks; it rarely proves fatal. It does not seem to depend on the quantity of mercury given. It is sometimes caused by a single small dose of mercury, 12, 171.

Affections of the skin are far from common in acute mercurislismus. Basin has seen but three cases due to the internal administration of the drug, and Kussmaul appears to doubt their dependence on it.

This, however, is a great error, as they present distinct and pathognomonic features, and Fournier has repeatedly diagnosticated them and verified his diagnosis. It is equally certain that mercury is sometimes elimineted the skin, as was shown by Border, in the following manner: A patient suffering from acute mercurialismus was placed in a bath filled with acidulated water. The poles of a galvanic battery were placed upon his skin, and in a short time tie copper plate of the positive pole was covered with a deposit of mercury. Hallopeau.*

* Untersuchuchungen uber den constitutionellen Morcurialismus u. s. w. Wurzburg, 1861, p. 325.

B. Vesicles, 86, 439.

Skin hot and itchy, soon followed by an eruption of red papules resembling rubeola, - sometimes the eruption resembles urticaria, and sometimes vesicles occur. McMullin, 127, '06, 25.

The mercurial preparations applied to the skin, may, according to their degree of solubility or concentration, either produce no irritating effect at all, or may excite inflammatory action of varying degrees of intensity, even leading to the formation of sloughs. Mercurial ointment usually produces little local effect from a single application, but sometimes induces an erythematous or vesicular eruption. This is specially the case in old and rancid preparations, in which case the irritation is produced by the oxide of mercury that is formed under these circumstances, and which com-bines with the fatty acids to form an oleo-stearate of mercury. Some persons. however, are far more susceptible to its effect than others. Hallopeau, op. cit.

Dry papules, erythema, vesicles, pustules, pruritus, 205.

Eczematous eruption, 206.

C. Syphilis.

Eczema and psoriasis, Gubler, 117, 87: 522.

Vesicular and pustular eruptions, 13, 122.

Chronic and rebellious non-syphilitic eruptions, 54, 2: 83.

Important modification of non-syphilitic eruptions follows the use of mercury, in consequence of its action on the secreting organs of the akin, 17, 636. The utility of mercury in the treatment of diseases of the skin is no less incontestable than in the treatment of syphilis, 3, 1: 201. In skin diseases generally, 210.

D. Syphilis.

Chronic eruptions, 13, 123.

Lupus erythematosus (Emplast. Hydrarg.), 97, 2: 323. Elephantiasis, 97, 2: 100. ' Phthiriasis pubis (Ungt. Hydrarg.), 1, 1083.

Herpes, psoriasis, pruritus, acne, pityriasis, chloasma, and parasitic affections, 4, 185.

Remarks

The officinal preparations of mercury are: Hydrargyrum cum Creta; Hydrargyri Chloridum Corrosivum; Hydrargyri Chloridum Mite; Hydrargyri Cyanidum; Hydrargyri Iodidum Rubrum; Hy-drargyri Iodidum Viride; Hydrargyri Sulphas Flava; Hydrargyri Sulphuretum Rubrum; Piluloe Hydrargyri; Emplastrum Hydrargyri; Emplastrum Ammoniaci cum Hydrargyro; Unguentum Hydrargyri; Hydrargyrum Ammoniatum; Unguentum Hydrargyri Ammoniati; Hydrargyri Oxidum Rubrum; Unguentum Hydrargyri Oxidi Rubri; Hydrargyri Oxidum Flavum; Unguentum Hydrargyri Oxidi Flavi;

* Du mercure, action physiologique et th6rapeutique. Paris, 1878.

Ungentum Hydrargyri Iodidi Rubri; Liquor Hydrargyri Nitratis; Unguentum Hydrargyri Nitratis.

The effects ascribed to mercury in the foregoing pages are, of course, not at all due to metallic mercury, but it was necessary to include them under the head of the element in this place, as the authorities cited failed to indicate otherwise. To the host of officinal preparations of this element a number of others are in use, some of which are considered later. This, however, seems a proper place to say a few words concerning a class of pharmaceutical preparations that have, until of late years, been little known and less used by the majority of the profession. I refer to triturations. In former days an ounce of metallic mercury was not an uncommon dose, and much more was sometimes given.* During the latter part of the last century, however, these doses underwent a very decided decrease, and at last it was discovered that a comparatively small quantity of this metal would produce decided constitutional effects, provided it was in a state of minute subdivision. Two preparations of this kind soon became favorites, namely: "blue pill," as it is now called, and mercurial ointment, the former of which is a trituration of mercury with conserve of roses, and the latter a trituration of mercury with a fatty exci-pient (lard and suet in the U. S. Ph.). Plenck, the founder of modern dermatology, made a large number of experiments in this direction, and relates + the results of rubbing mercury with the following substances, namely: mucus from the throat, yolk of an egg, white of an egg, blood and its serum, fresh bile, isinglass, mucilage of acacia, gum tragacanth, mucilage of quince seeds, marshmallow, manna, honey, simple syrup, linseed oil, and fat. Plenck's preference was for mercury triturated with mucilage of acacia (see Formulary ).