If the patients are nervous a preliminary injection of a one per cent solution of cocain or alypin into the inguinal canal is not contraindicated. To accomplish this the larger needle should be screwed upon the infiltrating syringe and as the needle is pressed into the canal the solution is slowly forced in front of the needle point. If sufficient solution is thrown ahead of the needle the passage of the needle along the inguinal canal is entirely painless. The infiltration of skin or canal being complete the needle must be withdrawn and the syringe emptied and the plunger pressed down so that the empty syringe is attached to the needle through which the paraffin injection is to be made when the operator has assured himself that the needle has been passed as far as desired without traversing or puncturing a vein. THE EFFECT OF PARAFFIN COMPOUNDS UPON THE TISSUES. No matter what precautions are taken, paraffin deposited in the tissues causes an increased flow of blood to the parts. The reaction is in the nature of a distinct active hyperemic state and it is sufficient to cause the proliferation of connective tissue. Even if pure white vaseline alone is injected there will be such connective tissue proliferation and if the paraffin is deposited close along the peritoneal surfaces of the sac sufficient of a circulatory disturbance will be produced to result in the sticking together of the serous surfaces of the sac and such sticking together of the walls will mean an elimination of the patency of the sac, one of the essential features of a radical cure. The paraffin compound number one is of such consistency that it is unlikely to be absorbed and properly placed with discretion it will favor the retention of the hernia by acting as a plug. This plugging action is not likely to be successful if the paraffin is simply thrown in as a mass, as it will be displaced, and when displaced it will make undue traction upon parts with which it is intimately connected so that should the paraffin be thrown in in the form of an irregular mass closing only a small part of the canal and such displacement occur the patient may suffer considerable discomfort. The corking action of the paraffin is not to be disregarded, yet at the same time it must be remembered that the injection must be so diffused that the supporting mass has quite a universal support from all the tissues from the internal ring clear out to the external ring. It must also be remembered that the paraffin thrown into the tissues causes a thickening of the tissues and should the canal be filled with paraffin with the thickening which so rapidly develops the canal will be unduly crowded. If the canal is plugged up tightly and marked pressure is made upon the nerves of the cord at one point it is likely that discomfort will be produced which will last for some time. Object of operator.