Schwarzmann [Footnote: Schwarzmann: Zentralbl. f. inn. Med., Aug. 1, 1914.] studied the blood pressure in eighty cases of acute infection, and found that a high diastolic blood pressure during such illness indicates a tendency to paralysis of the abdominal vessels, and hence a sluggish circulation in the vessels of the abdomen. He found that in seriously ill patients this high diastolic pressure is of bad prognosis. He also found that a lower systolic pressure with a lower diastolic pressure is not a sign that the heart is weakening, but only that the visceral tone is growing less. On the other hand, when the diastolic pressure rises while the systolic falls, this is a sign of failing heart. Newburgh and Minot [Footnote: Newburgh, L. H. and Minot, G. II: The Blood Pressure in Pneumonia, Arch. Int. Med., July, 1914, p. 48.] find that the blood pressure course in pneumonia does not suggest that there is a failure of the vasomotor center. They found that "low systolic pressures are not invariably of evil omen." They also found that the systolic pressure in fatal cases is often higher than in those in which the patients recovered, and they found that the rate of the pulse is more important in determining the treatment than the blood pressure measurements. The work which has been described under this section is of interest as indicating the newer experimental work on the physiology of blood pressure. Much of it is new, however, and it is difficult to draw absolute therapeutic conclusions from the evidence offered. THE EFFECT OF DRUGS ON BLOOD PRESSURE Free catharsis is a well established and valuable method of relieving the heart in many cases of broken compensation, and in cases with high blood pressure even while compensation is still good, salines administered once or twice a week assist in elimination, and in the reduction of blood pressure. However, profuse purging in heart disease may be followed by unfavorable symptoms, especially when the systolic blood pressure is low. When there is hypotension, or when the diastolic pressure is high and the venous pressure is high, and when there is edema or effusion, watery catharsis should be caused only after due consideration, and always with a careful watching of the effect on the heart and blood pressure. The blood pressure is lowered by such catharsis, and the heart is often slowed. Neilson and Hyland [Footnote: Neilson, C. H., and Hyland, R. F.: The Effect of Strong Purging on Blood Pressure and the Heart, THE JOURNAL A. M. A., Feb. 8, 1913, p. 436.] studied the effect of purging on the heart and blood pressure, and were inclined to the view that in serious heart conditions brisk purging should not be done. They think that the slowing of the heart after such purging may be, due to an increased viscosity of the blood, or perhaps to a reflex irritation from the purgative on the intestinal canal.