“With respect to Erysipelas, Diphtheria, Syphilis, Gonorrhœa, Glanders, and Farcy, local applications are evidently required, and carbolic acid in various degrees of strength, and the metallic salts, are evidently the best measures.
“Cattle Plague. The experiments made by Mr Crookes on the disinfectant treatment of cattle plague with carbolic acid vapour have an important bearing on human disease. Although the observations fall short of demonstration there are grounds for thinking that when the air was kept constantly filled with carbolic acid vapour, the disease did not spread.
“So also euchlorine was employed in Lancashire by Professor Stone of Manchester, with apparent benefit. Dr Moffat employed ozone (developed by exposing phosphorus to the air), and he believes with benefit. As such experiments are very much more easily carried out on the diseases of animals than on those of men, it is much to be wished that the precise effect of the so-called disinfectants should be tested by continuing the experiments commenced by Mr Crookes, not only in cattle plague in the countries where it prevails, but in epizootic diseases generally.
“It may be said, in conclusion, that although positive evidence is so deficient, yet, taking into consideration the decidedly great and known effect of many so-called disinfectants, and air-purifiers on organic matters, and the fact that the infectious organic agencies are certainly easily destroyed in most cases (since free ventilation renders many of them inert, and few of them retain their power very long), it is highly probable that the specific poisons of the so-called zymotic diseases are destroyed by some of these chemical methods, and at any rate the careful and constant use of chemical agents for the destruction of the specific poisons in the excreta and discharges from the body, and when they pass into the air, is not
only warranted, but should be considered comparative.
“Purification of rooms after infectious diseases. In addition to thorough cleansing of all woodwork with soft soap and water, to which a little carbolic acid has been added (1 pint of the common liquid to 3 or 4 gallons of water), and to removal and washing of all fabrics which can be removed, the brushing of the walls, the room should be fumigated for 3 hours with either the fumes of sulphurous or nitrous acids. Both of these are believed to be superior to chlorine, especially in smallpox. All doors and windows, and the chimney being closed, and curtains taken down, the sulphur is ignited as directed in our article Fumigation.
“In white-washed rooms the walls should be scraped, and then washed with hot lime to which carbolic acid is added.
“Mortuaries and dead-houses are best purified with nitrous acid.”
These directions may be supplemented by the following:—The towels, sheets, articles of clothing, &c., should be boiled in water, or plunged in boiling water containing one to two handfuls of soda to the gallon, before being taken from the room, after which treatment they should be steeped in water containing 4 fluid ounces of carbolic acid to a gallon of water.
Fabrics soiled by the discharges, &c., such as rags, bandages, and dressings, if of little value should be immediately consigned to the flames; but if this be not convenient, they may be treated with carbolic acid and water, in the same manner as directed for towels, sheets, &c.