Correspondence.

THE PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATIONOF THE COMBINED UNIVERSITIES.

" Audi alteram partem."

To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—Like probably many others, I have received acircular from a self-constituted committee which seems

desirous to appropriate for a Conservative or Unionist theseat in Parliament given to some seven Universities. Allusionto this circular was made on p. 452 of THE LANCET onMarch 23rd.May I venture to urge my co-electors in all the Univer-

sities in question to set their faces like steel against theintroduction of politics, especially of a kind now becomingrapidly obsolete ? 7 That some united action is necessary willbe apparent to all the graduates ; but I would voice a wishthat what we at this juncture require-after a compromisebetween the several Universities concerned and the pro-fessions involved-are candidates keen on social questions-

. whether educational, health, or otherwise-who know theirsubject and who we can support (financially if necessary) atthe election and afterwards in their work.

Will those in authority in these Universities who arerepresentative of the professions involved wake up and givethe graduates an opportunity to crystallise their opinionsand actions before it is too late ? 7

I am, Sir, yours faithfully,E. ROwL4ND FOT]AFRGILL, M.B. Durh., &c.

Hove, April llth, 1918.E. ROWLAND FOTHERGILL, M.B. Durh., &c

ELECTRO-CARDIOGRAPHIC DEPRESSIONPRODUCED BY DIGITALIS.

To the Editor of THE LANCET.SIR,-If Dr. 1. Harris’s interpretation of the depression

between R and T in some electro-cardiograms in patients. under the influence of digitalis in your issue of March 30th

is correct, I agree with the writer that the observation is ofgreat practical value. That the depression was more easilyproduced in " diseased heart muscle " cases tends to confirmthe explanation. The value of the paper would have beenenhanced if the age-groups of the patients had been given.It is well recognised that the distensibility of the chambersof the heart diminishes as age advances, from fibroticchanges in the heart muscle, consequently, with these lessdepression should occur. On the other hand, a fatty heartshould be prone to yield. Perhaps Dr. Harris will continuehis observations and place the cases in two or three seriesaccording to age, &c.

Sir Samuel Wilks in the ’70’s " taught that the slowingeffect on the pulse by digitalis was due to the tonic effect ofthe drug on the heart muscle whereby a number of frequentineffective contractions are replaced by fewer and moreeffective ones. This beneficial effect was seen at its bestin the condition now recognised as auricular fibrillation.

Dr. Harris incidentally raises the question of the relativevalue of large and small doses of digitalis. I suggest thatit is a good rule not to give more of a drug than is necessaryto produce the required result and there is, generallyspeaking, less risk in giving oft-repeated small doses thanmassive ones. When large or repeated doses of digitalisare prescribed it is well that the patient should be kept inbed until the effect of the treatment has been noted. This is

especially important when the patient is not under closeobservation. I am, Sir, yours faithfully,

Harley-street, W., April 10th, 1918. CHARLES W. CHAPMAN.

EPIDEMIC CATARRHAL JAUNDICE IN ENGLAND.

To the Editor of THE LANOET.

Sin,—I was interested in reading Captain G. C. Gray’snote on this subject in THE LANCET of April 6th. BetweenOct. 13th, 1917, and March 31st, 1918, I have attended 15cases of catarrhal jaundice. All my cases have been inchildren from 5 to 16 years, and eight of them were 6 yearsold. There were nine girls and six boys. In one instance

three members of one household were attacked and in twoinstances two, the period of time elapsing between the casesbeing from 10 to 28 days. The symptoms were much thesame in all cases-viz., a mild fever, rarely above 100° F. ; thechild was" off colour," refused food, and complained offeeling sick. About the third or fourth day the child usuallyvomited, and jaundice appeared. In all cases the jaundicewas mild and the child was quite well at the end of a fort-night. There was no enlargement of the liver or spleen inany case. In one case (a girl of 6g) symptoms of acutetuberculosis of left hip-joint set in within a fortnight. Thiswas followed by a psoas abscess and signs of tuberculousperitonitis. I am, Sir, yours faithfully,

S. HARTILL, M.B., B.Ch. Oxon.Abbots Langley, Herts, April 10th, 1918.

S. HARTILL, M.B., B.Ch. Oxon.

AKMY .N EP tlH.IT1.

To the Editor of TH:1!i LANCET.

SiR,-Looking back through my notes I can find nodefinite evidence to corroborate Dr. Reginald Hartley’sinteresting experience (THE LANCET, April 13th) to theeffect that morphia may actually reduce the output ofalbumin in the urine. So far as I could discover, no drughad any directly restraining effect on the evolution of therenal lesion. I am, Sir, yours faithfully,

Clifton, Bristol, April 16th, 1918.C. F. COOMBS,

Major, R.A.M.C.(T.)

Medical News.UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE.—At the examination

in Sanitary Science held recently the following candidatessatisfied the examiners in both parts of the examination :—’Lieutenant-Colonel Dudley William Boswell. R.A.M.C., *Edna Mary

Goffe, James Lackhead Gregory, May Isabella Turner Reid, CaptainAlexander James Hutchison Russell. I.M.S., Jane Stalker, andCaptain Edgar James Tyrrell, R.A.M.C.

* Distinguished in Bacteriology.

UNIVERSITY OF LONDON.-At examinations heldrecently the following candidates were successful :-

SECOND EXAMINATION FOR MEDICAL DEGREES.Part I.-Janet Kerr Aitken and Ruth Mildred Arkwright, London

School of Medicine for Women; John Vincent Armstrong,St. Mary’s Hospital; Helen Rosaline Ashton, London School ofMedicine for Women; Edward Townley Bailey, Middlesex Hos-pital ; Henry Marcus Bird, City of London School; BrianBlakelock, St. Thomas’s Hospital; Mary Hilda Youle Blakeston,Rosalind Bradley, Lorna Phoebe Brown, and Edith KathleenBudden, London School of Medicine for Women; Charles LouisCrawford Burns, St. Thomas’s Hospital; Arthur Nicholas Carter,University College ; Marjorie Frances Cartledge, London School ofMedicine for Women; Kathleen Frances Cawthorne, University

. College; Grace Dorothy Chambers, B.A., London School of Medi-cine for Women ; James Charles Churcher, St. Thomas’s Hospital;Annie Eveline Connan and Gwendolen Coode Cotton, London Schoolof Medicine for Women; Bernard Delchowsky, King’s College;Edward Charles Dodds, Middlesex Hospital; Barsoum Dous, King’sCollege ; Helen Winifred Duncan and Marguerite Elman, LondonSchool of Medicine for Women; Lucy Margaret Elsom, King’sCollege; Doris Kathleen Emery, London School of Medicine forWomen; Frankis Tilney Evans, St. Bartholomew’s Hospital;Vivian Feldman, University College; Emmie Dorothy Fenwick,London School of Medicine for Women; Hugh Scott Forbes,University College ; Dora Janet Fox, Hilda Margaret Garlick, andLena Bella Gayer, London School of Medicine for Women;Dorothy Gibson, Newnham College; Marjory Annie Godfrey andJanet Vera Good, London School of Medicine for Women ; ArthurWilliam Gott and Muriel Dorothea Graham, University of Leeds;Eleanor May Grantham, London School of Medicine for Women;John Fereday Hackwood, St. Thomas’s Hospital; Doris MaryHammond, London School of Medicine for Women; Phoebe BlissHickling, University College; Edith Winifred Wheelton Hind,London School of Medicine for Women ; Donald MethuenHutchinson, University of Sheffield ; Lily Graham Iliff, ErnaHenrietta Jebens, and Eva Mary Johnson, London School ofMedicine for Women; Edmund Mervyn Jones, University College,Cardiff ; Gladys Hilda Emma Harriette Jane Jones, London Schoolof Medicine for Women; Harry Cyril Killingback, St. Bartholo-mew’s Hospital; Alfred Thomas Lock Kingdon, UniversityCollege; Gladys Muriel Lambourne, London School of Medicinefor Women; Henry Dillon Lawson, London Hospital; RuthArminal Mary Leak, King’s College; Ivor Lewis, UniversityCollege, Cardiff; >’David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, St. Bartholomew’sHospital; Alison Nicol Macbeth, University College ; Ivan BaileyMcCann. Guy’s Hospital; Caroline Gordon Lennox MeHardy,Muriel Mackintosh. Phyllis Margaret Manson, Clara Edith Mathias,Merell Philippa Middlemore, and "Enid Marjorie Moore, LondonSchool of Medicine for Women ; Andrew John Morland, UniversityCollege; Olga Mary Naylor, London School of Medicine forWomen; Hubert William Needham, St. Bartholomew’s Hospital;Elizabeth Muriel Nicholson-Smith, London School of Medicine for