=The Administration of Chloroform.=—In administering chloroform the main points to be borne in mind are—1. If the patient is fit to undergo an operation at all he may inhale chloroform. 2. The patient should be fasting; this is the most effectual preventive of sickness. 3. He should be in an easy position, clad in a loose but warm night-dress, which does not interfere with ordinary or artificial respiration, should that be suddenly required. 4. The patient must never inhale more than 4 per cent. of chloroform vapour in the air he respires; on the other hand, the vapour may circulate in the blood without harm for an indefinite time, provided it never pass beyond a certain concentration. 5. Chloroform is a sedative and depressant; the pulse gives the earliest indication of syncope, and the respiration should be constantly watched the whole time chloroform is inhaled. It should be noted that the pulse often fails suddenly at the first flow of blood in an operation. Again, when the patient is deeply narcotised, the jaw may gape and the tongue sink back till it closes the glottis. From this cause respiration sometimes ceases, and danger quickly arises if the chin is not drawn up to raise the epiglottis. In beginning to inhale, the quantity of vapour should be small, and gradually increased. The patient must be cautioned not to talk, to avoid the irritation and coughing chloroform sometimes excites while he is speaking. He should also shut his eyes lest the vapour make them smart. After inhalation has been continued a few minutes the patient is often quiet and inattentive, though easily roused by pain. His condition at this stage should be tested by asking him to give his hand, or by pinching him gently; if no notice be taken of these, the conjunctiva should be touched, and the amount of winking thus excited will enable the chloroformist to judge if the patient will resist when the knife is applied. Patients vary much in the time passed before recovering consciousness; if they remain soundly asleep, breathing freely and with good pulse, it is better to avoid rousing or moving them until they wake spontaneously; such patients suffer less confusion and vomiting than those who are quickly alive to what is going on around them. _Signs of Danger._—Sudden failure or irregularity of the pulse, with pallor and arrested breathing, are of great importance; if these occur, the chloroform must be at once removed, a free supply of fresh air ensured, the tongue drawn gently forward, and if the breathing do not quickly begin, it must be set up artificially (see p. 183) without loss of time, and continued, if necessary, for at least an hour before recovery is despaired of. Stertorous breathing is not alarming unless accompanied by feeble pulse, shallow respiration, and dilatation of the pupils; with these it becomes a sign of a comatose condition.