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have adopted, as it at once caused a further fall of the blood-pressure, and kept it down nearly
to zero for considerably over a minute. So far from being a dangerous procedure, however,
it saved the dog's life ; and this fact alone is sufficient to upset the hitherto accepted belief
that general lowering of the blood-pressure is dangerous, or that it is due in chloroformisation
to weakening of the heart. The last point to notice with reference to Ludwig tracing III is,
that it is evident that the pulse beats increased in force from the time chloroform w a s
admin-istered at 2h. 53m. 35s. till the commencement of the artificial fall of the blood-pressure at
2h. 56m. 10s., and that at the end of this fall at 2h. 57m, 25s. the pulse tracing was at first
pretty large, and that as the animal's pressure rose during recover y it gradually got smaller
and smaller. If the lowering of the blood-pressure were due to weakening of the heart, the
reverse of this ought to have occurred, the pulse ought to have become smaller and smaller
up to the stop, and afterwards begun by being very small and gradually increased in size as the
animal recovered.
" Finally, with refer e nce to the fall of the blood-pressure in all the tracings exhibited this
evening, it is to be observed that the sudden (unexpected and capricious) falls, which the
Glasgow Committee considered exceptionlly dangerous, did not actually prove to be so in their
experiments (their animals did not die) ; and have been demonstrated in ours to be a safeguard.
If the sudden falls are a safeguard, a fortiori the gradual falls, which occur in normal chloroform
administration, are a safeguard also.
"We have now the proof, why normal chloroform anæthesia is free from danger.
It is because Chlorofarm never, under any circumstances. directly affects the heart,
and that the fall of blood-pressure is due to vaso-motor dilatation, and, so far from being
a risk, is in all cases, it not harmless, a safeguard. I have only one word to add in
conclusion. If you examine the tracings you will see what splendid work was done by Dr.
Bomford for the Commission. Each tracing is a work of art ; but each one was completed by
Dr. Bomford, and everything that occurred was written on it as the drum revolved at the
time of the experiment. Nothing Was added to any one of them after the experiment was over,
so that nothing was trusted to any one's memory . In the second place, Dr. Bomford discovered
the safeguard action of the vagus nerve, and this proved to be the key to the sate
a d m i n i s - t r a t i o n o f c h l o r o f o r m . I n e v e r y t h i n g I h a v e w r i t t e n s i n c e t h e C o m m i s s i o n e n d e d t h e p h y s i o l o g y
is a reproduction of Dr. Bomford's views, generally in his own words ; and I feel proud to think
that work so permanent and lasting as that of the Hyderabad Chloroform Commission was
carried to a successful conclusion mainly through the instrumentalit y of a member of that
Service to which I and so man y of my hearers have the honour and the happiness to
belong—the Indian Medical Service." (Loud applause.)
Dr. Wellington Gray then said he had been for a long time connected with the J. J.
Hospital, and had seen many more than 10,000 administrations of chloroform. Since the
sitting of the Chloroform Commission he had watched the administrations of chloroform with
increased care and interest. No doubt there was much to be discovered, and much to be