5. =AUTOPSY INSTRUMENTS.= An autopsy can be properly performed with very few instruments; indeed, a knife and a saw, with a needle to close up the body, would suffice for the majority of cases. But there are very great advantages in the use of certain instruments adapted especially to autopsy needs, and these the physician should gradually acquire for his work. It is not advisable to purchase the so-called “postmortem sets” sold by the dealers, but far better to start with two or three of the most necessary instruments and gradually add to these. Surgical instruments as they become discarded can often be made to do good service in the autopsy outfit. In private practice the fewer instruments one can get along with the better, as there is much less trouble in carrying them about and in taking care of them, and it is better to make the performance of the autopsy as inconspicuous as possible. In teaching institutions and in hospitals the number and variety of instruments that can be utilized in autopsy work are limited only by the financial means at disposal, but even under the most favorable conditions in this respect it is better to simplify as much as possible. The list given below will meet all requirements. [Illustration: FIG. 1—Large Section, or Cartilage Knives] [Illustration: FIG. 2—Scalpels] =Knives.= The _large section-_ or _cartilage-knife_ is the most important cutting instrument used in autopsy work. It is a strong, heavy knife 20-22 cms. long, with handle and blade of about equal length. The blade has a heavy back, a bluntly rounded rather than a sharp point (more blunt than appears in the illustration), and bellies at its anterior third, narrowing toward the handle. In its widest part the blade should measure about 1¾ cms. The handle is heavy, 1½ cms. broad, and a little over 1 cm. in thickness toward the blade, gradually diminishing to about ¾ cm. at the posterior third, then increasing to 1 cm. toward the end. This variation in thickness gives a gentle curve to the handle that is of great importance in adapting the latter to the form of the closed hand, so that the knife becomes practically a cutting extension of the fore-arm. With this knife all the chief incisions are made, and it is rarely out of the hands of the operator during the autopsy. The handle or blade may be made shorter or longer according to preference, but the other features of the instrument are most important. =Scalpel.= (See Fig. 2.) A number of _dissecting scalpels_ of varying sizes are needed for finer dissections. They should have a metal handle, and are preferably of one-piece construction. =Long Section- or Brain-Knife.= In place of the broad thin brain-knife usually advised, an _amputation-knife_ can be used to much better advantage in the section of the brain and in making the chief incisions in the large organs. It should have a sharp point rather than a blunt one. [Illustration: FIG. 3—Long Section Knife]