Lord Somerville, in his address to the Board of Agriculture some years ago, states that the ancient laws of Holland “ordained men to be kept on bread alone, _unmixed with salt_, as the severest punishment that could be inflicted upon them in their moist climate: the effect was horrible; these wretched criminals are said to have been _devoured by worms_, engendered in their own stomachs.” In the _Medical and Physical Journal_ (vol. xxxix.) Mr. Marshall tells us of a lady who had a “natural” (I should say unnatural) aversion to salt, and who was afflicted with worms during the whole of her lifetime. Can we imagine anything more horrible or more disgusting than a person, owing to a foolish prejudice, being in such a foul and impure condition? The enjoyment of life was out of the question, and there can be no doubt that she was in a constant state of ill-health; she must have been, if she had any refined feelings, loathsome to herself, and yet, at the present time, there are many in the same plight, who would not touch the smallest particle of salt on any account whatever, or probably would do so with extreme reluctance. There is another very interesting parasite called the _cysticercus cellulosæ_, originating from diseased pork; it is found in subjects of the leuco-phlegmatic temperament; it is met with in the muscles of the thigh, in the muscular tissue of the heart, and in the brain and eye. If the pork containing this parasite is well soaked in strong brine and thoroughly cooked, no harm will accrue; another fact, I must observe, showing the great importance of salt as an edible. The thread-worm, technically termed the _ascaris vermicularis_, generally met with in children, is speedily got rid of if a solution of salt is injected into the rectum, combined with the administration of an anthelmintic and pure diet, with a regular use of salt, and a little attention to cleanliness. While we are upon this question of worms we may with some advantage consider that modern disease—if we may designate parasitical development in muscular tissue as such—which has for some time riveted the attention of scientists, and has all but foiled their endeavours to elucidate; I refer to _trichinosis_, a condition caused by the introduction of a most minute organism, called the _trichina spiralis_ (from its being coiled up in transparent capsules), in various muscles of the body, and particularly in the deltoids and other muscles of the arms. Sporadic outbreaks of this incurable disease have occurred at various times and of variable intensity, but always with the most alarming results.