None of the sulphites or hyposulphites have as yet been introduced into the Pharma copceia. We notice them here because their action is supposed to depend upon the libera tion of sulphurous or hypo-sulphurous acid when the salt comes in contact with the acid juices of the stomach. It is mainly to Dr. Polli that we are indebted for the introduc tion of the sulphites and hyposulphites of the alkalies and alkaline earths (soda, potash, and magnesia) into medicine. From the year 1857 to the present time he has devoted almost all his time to the study of these agents. His labors are briefly summed up as follows by Dr. Sanson in an excellent memoir on " The Germs of Cholera, and the Means of their Destruction," published Jan. 22, 1868, in the Medical Press and Circular: " It was found, that animals could, without any apparent ill effects, swallow and absorb large doses of the sulphites. It was then observed that when the animals were killed, they long resisted the putrefactive process. Another series of experiments—and in this series 300 dogs were the basis of the deductions—showed that the sulphites exerted a pro phylactic and curative power when septic poisons were introduced into the economy. Then, as regards the human subject, it was found that the stomach would tolerate large doses of the sulphites of soda or magnesia. They were tried in the various eruptive fevers, intermittent, diphtheria, typhus, typhoid, cholera, and choleraic diarrhea, pytemia, puerperal fever, dissection wounds, malarial infection, etc. The records of cases treated in this way show an extraordinary amount of success." In a paper published by Dr. Polli himself in The British Medical Journal for Nov. 16, 1867, he states that since the promulgation, in 1861, of his views regarding the therapeutic value of the sulphites, no less than 158 papers on the subject have appeared; and with the exception of five or six containing certain criticisms on his tabors, "all the remainder confirm, in the strongest terms, by many hundreds of detailed observations, the value of these remedies." A
scruple of the salt dissolved in a wine-glassful of water flavored with tincture of orange peel is the average dose, and it should be taken every four hours; and in some cases, as in typhoid, a grain of quinine may be advantageously added to each dose. DI. de Ricci (Dublin Quarterly Journal, Nov., 1S66) prefers the sulphite of magnesia on the grounds that it is less unpalatable, and contains a larger proportional quantity of acid, than the soda salt. He predicts (and Dr. Sanson and other physicians of repute agree with him) that eventually the treatment of zymotic diseases by the administration of the sulphites will be as fully recognized as that of ague by cinchona.
In consequence of the powerful antiseptic properties of sulphurous acid, either in the form of gas or gaseous solution in water, and of the sulphites, these substances have been employed for the purpose of preserving meat from putrefaction. A joint of meat or a fowl submitted to a daily sulphur fumigation may be kept fit for use for many weeks. The bisulphite of lime has been found to be the most applicable of the various compounds of this class as a preservative; and Messrs. Medlock and Bailey have pat ented a method of preserving meat by means of a preparation of this salt. In hot a few drops of a strong solution of this salt will serve to keep fresh a pint of soup, jelly, milk, etc. Dr. Dewar patented a method of preserving meats by sulphurous acid, or some of its compounds; but as yet the process has not come into extensive use.