of casualties under chloroform will unfortunately show that whatever charm Syme exercised during his life has not survived to his followers, and overdosage with chloroform proves as fatal in the hands of those who hail from beyond the Tweed as well as "down south." A death from chloroform contained in the A.C.E. mixture occurred at the General Hospital, Birmingham, on December 15. The patient, a girl, aged five years and ten months, suffered from hypertrophied tonsils and post-nasal adenoid growths. She was given the A.C.E. mixture by Mr. McCardie, one of the anaesthetists to the institution, and tonsillotomy was performed. As consciousness was returning some chloroform was given to enable Mr. Haslam, the operator, to remove the growths. She died at once from respiratory failure, in spite of restorative measures. A necropsy showed absence of organic disease. The anaesthetist regarded the death as one from cardiac failure due to reflex inhibition by irritation of the vagus. We are not told the posture of the child or the method employed.--The Lancet. [Footnote 1: We are indebted to Mr. Hammond Smith, honorary surgeon to the hospital, and Mr. Edgar Collis for the notes of the case.--Ed. Lancet] * * * * * The resistance of nickel steel to the attack of water increases with the nickel contents. The least expanding alloys, containing about 36 per cent. of nickel, are sufficiently unassailable, and can be exposed for months to air saturated with moisture without being tainted by rust. With a view of testing the expansion of nickel steel, experiments have been carried out by allowing measuring rods to remain in warm water for some hours, according to The Iron and Coal Trades Review. They were not wiped off when taken out, but were exposed for a longer period to hot steam, but the lines traced on the polished surfaces were not altered. The rough surfaces, when exposed to steam, were covered after several days with a continuous, but little adhesive, coat of rust. * * * * * RECENT BOOKS APPLIED MECHANICS. A Treatise for the Use of Students who have time to work Experimental, Numerical, and Graphical Exercises illustrating the subject. By John Perry. With 371 illustrations. 12mo, cloth. 678 pages. London, 1897. $3 50 ARCHITECTURE. Architectural Drawing for Mechanics. By I. P. Hicks. A comprehensive treatise on Architectural Drawing for Building Mechanics, showing the learner how to proceed step by step in every detail of the work. Square 12mo, cloth. 6 illustrations. 94 pages. New York, 1897. $1 00 ARCHITECTURE. The Planning and Construction of High Office Buildings. By W. H. Birkmire. 8vo, cloth. Illustrated. 345 pages. New York, 1898. $3 50