The Sun.
London, England, 1844-01-06 00:00:00

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The Amount of Exchequer Bills issued to meet the charge on the Consolidated Fund for the Quarter ended July 5, 1843,
and paid off out of the growing produce of that Fund for the Quarter ended January 5, 1544
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I dated Fund for Supply Services
The Surplus of the Consolidated Fund, Quarter ended January 5, 1844

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January 5, 1814

castor oil the oil of almonds. By this treatment, in
two months he diminished the size of both eyes, and
so much decreased the -opacity of the right eye, that
the pupil made its appearance, and the child began to
see, and to be able to walk alone. After an interval
in attendance, caused by the Doctor's absence from
town, during which nothing was done for her, she
returned in 1842, when the vapour .of the hy-
drocyanic acid was regularly' applied. to both
eyes. This mode of.treatment still further reduced
the size of the left eye, bringing it within the com-
pass of the eyelids, and finally diminished the right
eye to a proper size, besides greatly strengthening its
power of vision. he had attended a school for the
blind, where she learned to read raised letters by
touch ; but now that she is able to see, she reads
equally well by the eye as the fingers. I tried her
both ways, and think the eye had the best of it; she
read passages in a volume which I took from my
pocket with facility and propriety. While the right
ey e had thus far advanced, leaving comparatively little
to, be done to it, the left eye was gradually losing its
whitish opacity; the blue pupil was shining out; and,
supposing the cure to go no farthery, the orb was be•
coming less offensive in its general appearance—a
Matter of some consequence to a face otherwise far
from unpleasing. When I last saw this child, her
health was greatly better than it had been in her days
of total and hopeless blindness.
The removal of sloughs or opacities of the cornea
was shown in various other cases ; a person who had
been blind in the right eye for twenty years, said he
now could see with it. Many entered and left the
room by their own unaided sight, who told me they
could not formerly walk without a guide. At one
time there used to be nearly as many " leaders" in
attendance as blind , people ;. now, few of
..these are
required. AS soon AS one gets a glimmering of sight,
he begins to act as a guide to others, and thus " the
blind leading the blind" is no longer a mere figure in
rhetoric.
That opacities in the external coating of the eye
should be removable by a pungent and active vapour,
is much less surprising than that such applications
should at all affect cases of cataract, which resembles
a pearly matter within the eye, and therefore removed
considerably from the proximate action of the vapour
from the acid. Several cases or this form of blindness

were brought under my notice, as having been par-
tially meliorated by the process ; but, on the whole, I
think the Doctor was less successful in this depart-
ment than in others. 'The cure, if 'it be possible, is
evidently tediou ; but •as cataract is -removable by
couching, a want of success with the external applica-
tions is perhaps the less to be regretted.
Some cases of amaurosis interested me not a little.
Amaurosis, it is proper to explain, is that form of
blindness in which the eyes appear sound to an
server, but are really incapable of vision. The defect
arises from paralysis of the optic nerve, or the branches
of the fifth pair of nerves ; or sometimes from disease
rof the brain itself. The restoration of sight in such
cases, particularly if of a confirmed nature, has
hitherto been considered hopeless by the profession.
' Dr. Turnbull entertains a very different opinion. He
believes the complaint to be removable by stimulating
the nerves and the circulation in thc neighbourhood of
the eye. This he.does in'two ways ; first, by apply-
ing the vapour of hydrocyanic acid to the ball of the
eye, in the manner already described; and second,
by the application of essential oils, diluted in alcohol,
to the forehead ; warmth, increased circulation, ab-
sorption, and action, are the consequence. By treat-
ment of this kind, I found several patients so far re-
covered from their amaurosis, as to,be able to read by
sight any book put before them.
Sophia Brown, a milliner, told me she had --b—e7n
quite blind with amaurosis, and had been dismissed
as past remedy by all the medical men to whom she
g 1 '•
applied. But by her Atteilaaj,,c9," Dr;:,.Tuipbull for
seven' rmiriths, is giriduanY gr-"nlih 1/4
she can now see oblecti'', though. nqt,
can walk without rtgiride.• I left her with sight
proving and general health greatly better. Sophia
Townsend, who had been blind with amaurosis in the
left eye, for which nothing could be done of the least
value by the medical men in whose hands she had
been, could now, after three months' applications, see
so well with that eye, as to be able to read with it.
To satisfy myself still
further as to the possibility of
assuaging amaurosis by the external stimulants, I sent
for a person, named John Plunket, formerly an at-
torney s clerk, who for several years had been so
blind with amaurosis, as to be led about by his
children. This man told me that his left eye had been
destroyed by operations, and therefore Dr. Turn-
bull addressed himself only to the right. By re-
peated applications of essential oils to the forehead
his sight in this undestroyed eye gradually recovered.
This recovery took place four years ago, and his sight
was still improving by weekly applications. He read
a book which I produced, and is desirous of employ-
ment as a clerk. This was a very satisfactory case of
recovery from amaurosis, but perhaps not more so
than another, that of Eleanor M`Cartney, a poor Irish-
woman in St. Giles' Workhouse, Holborn. Guided
by Mrs. Bailey, the respectable matron of this Insti-
tution, I was conducted to the couch of this bed-rid
pauper, whose neat and cleanly appearance, as she sat
up in bed, bespoke a declension from better days.
Eleanor told her case in few words. About the year
1829 she became quite blind in the right eye, and
deaf in the right ear, from an attack of paralysis, in
which state she remained till 1835, when Dr. Turn-
bull, by his applications, restored her sight and hear-
ing in a week, and she had retained both ever since.
Mrs. Bailey corroborated all the poor woman said. At
my request she read a few passages with the formerly
blind eye from a devotional work lying by her bed-
side. This quite satisfied me.

In one of my latest visits to Dr. Turnbull's, I saw
for the first time a case of conical eye, a form of dis-
ease which I understand has hitherto been con-
maacutiroonsis(.:.f Inthe thviaspoduisro,rdthee
speck in this case disorder
an obtuse point, with a brilliant
small piece of crystal were laid
was disappearing, and the sight
upon
rekeytdiehneapsfrr
ooji
cornea.nnetc:tusar as if
tbi
ofl
Be
ay a
sthae
coming back.
Sometimes I was permitted to see patients moving in
the higher spheres of life ; but their cases were usually
of a more simple and less painful nature than the others.
One of the most interesting of this class was that of a
gentleman who complained of having ever present in
one of his eyes a small speck, which marred the field
of vision. He mentioned, however, that there was
no actual speck in the organ, that it was a mere
spectrum, which, greatly to his surprise, had been im-
pressed on the retina after he had on one occasion
been looking intently through a telescope, in which a
speck happened to be on one of the lenses. The men-
tion of this remarkable apparition recalled to Dr.
Turnbull's memory some analogous cases which he
recounted. " I remember," said he, a
"on the occa-
sion of the annular eclipse of the sun few years ago,
that several people with weak and over-susceptible
eyes, even although sheltered by smoked glass, re-
ceived impressions which remained for a length of
time. One gentleman called on me to say, that he
could not, night or day, get the eclipse out of his
eye. Wherever he looked, there the bright ring of
the sun, with the !darkened moon in the centre, was
present. I could not, unfortunately, relieve him from
his apparationary tormentor, for I had not then dis-
covered the mode of treatment I now pursue." This
curious case of abiding spectrum was paralleled by
another which was mentioned, that of a gentleman
who, from having one day looked fixedly at a print of
the Lord's prayer the size of a sixpence, received the
impression of it on the retina, where, to his annoy=
once, it remained ever present to his sense of vision.
After a little conversation on the cause of such sin-
gularities, the gentleman who was affected with the
small speck was subjected to the ordinary applica-

Quarters ended Jan. 5.

1843 I ISt

8,266,3433
657,0:0
19,5130

97,fi73
4,59,1: 9
140,000

9,639,885
1,025,824

1 0,6C5,709

2,967,839
1,V1,517

8;241,090
616,801
4,847
217,135
97,!,97
427,852
,291,t,01

9,906,7 z 8
1;231,517

11,13,20.5

3,726,537

1,731,322

5,4(31,859

tions ; but having left town before any decided
melioration was effected, I am unable to say what
was the result.
Here my personal observations may be considered
as having drawn to a close, leaving the conviction on
my mind, that the account given of Dr. Turnbull's
operations on the eye. was substantially correct, and
that by snegfis of the vapour of prussic acid, and other
stimulants applied in the manner I have described,
sight will in many cases be restored, when, as I have
reason to believe, all the ordinary forms of counter-
irritation and stimulus fail. I can at least say that, in
every instance I judged for myself; and entirely with
a reference to the elucidation of truth. I took the
histories of the patients from their own mouths, and
have no reason to suppose they had any intention
to deceive, or were themselves deceived by imaginary
feelings. I could not, indeed, for a moment enter-
tain the idea that they were anything but what they
plainly appeared ; persons, for the most part, in humble
circumstances, eager to be relieved from a great bodily
affliction, and thankful for the relief they had already
experienced.
. Having thus received what I believed to be the
most credible testimony respecting the efficacy, and, I
may add, the simplicity and safety of Dr. Turnbull's
applications to the eye, I felt satisfied that, in copying
the account from the Literary Gazette, these pages
had not been stained by giving currency to anything
like imposture ; at the same time, from the extraor-
dinary unwillingness of the medical world to believe
a single word respecting the powers of prussic
acid to meliorate blindness, I deemed it necessary
to be cautious in making any fresh statement on
the subject. On my arrival in Edinburgh, there-
fore, after a journey on the Continent in the
interval, I submitted my experiences to a medical
friend, Alexander Miller, Esq., Fellow of the Royal
.college of Surgeons, with a request that he would
gratify me by giving Dr. Turnbull's form of applica-
tion a fair trial. Having kindly consented to my
wish, this gentleman first tried the vapour of prussic
in a bottle prepared by Dr. Turnbull for the purpose,
upon one of his patients, a boy, who was affected
with opacity of the cornea in one of his eyes.
Greatly to his delight, and mine also, and much more
so to the parents of the child, the boy, after being
blind, was restored to sight after a few applications.
The following is Mr. Miller's account of the case :-
32, Buccleuch-place, Edinburgh, Nov. 28, 1843.
My dear Sir,—Having, at your desire, undertaken to
ascertain the effect of the application of the vapour
of hydrocyanic acid in certain affections of the eye, I
beg to furnish you with the results I have observed
during the short time I have been engaged with this
important investigation. The first case in which I
employed the vapour is the only one that I will de-
tail at any length, as it is much further advanced
towards recovery than any of the others ; in fact, the
cure may be said to be all but completed. It was a
case of opacity of the cornea. A boy, J. C., set. 7,
of a strumous habit, and of a strumous family, in
the summer of 1842 suffered from an attack of
small-pox, before recovering from which he was
seized with measles. During these attacks both
eves were affected with inflammation, which con-
tinued more or less severe for nearly twelve months,
notwithstanding the constant employment of reme-
dies, the right eye suffering more than the left : when
the inflammation at last yielded, it was found that
no disorganisation of the left eye had taken place,
but that the right one had suffered to a very consi-
derable extent ; the cornea was found opaque to
nearly four-fifths of its whole extent, the greatest
opacity occupying the centre, and gradually diminish-
ing. towards the circumference; the only part not
affected .was the margin, where it joins the sclerotic.
The effect of this opacity of the cornea was to impede
vision completely, so that the boy could not, with the
affected eye, distinguish one object from another;
could too 'Was to stiseersk light from dark-
ness. . Such was the Rate „matters for month's'
previous to the Ist OCtober last, when the hydrocy-
anic acid vapour was first applied. This I ascertained
from personal observation before using the vapour.
The hydrocyanic acid was applied according to the
method recommended by Dr. Turnbull of London,
and by means of the apparatus procured by you from
him. The immediate effect was increased secretion of
tears, redness of the conjunctiva and cornea; these in-
stantly becoming covered with numerous small vessels,
the eyelids also participating in the redness, their
colour contrasting strangely with the surrounding
paleness of the face. The boy declared he
felt no pain, only an agreeable sensation of heat was
produced. The application of the vapour has been re-
peated every second, third, or fourth day, as it was
found convenient, so that in all it has been applied
about twenty different times. The change upon
the cornea has been not only remarkable, but most
satisfactory ; the opacity perceptibly diminishing after
every application, until there now only remains the
slightest haziness, which I am confident will also dis-
appear after a few more applications. There has
likewise been a corresponding improvement in the
vision. From being unable to distinguish the largest
objects, he now can discern the smallest.
Besides the above, I have employed the hydrocyanic
acid vapour in upwards of twelve other eases of various
affections of the eye but in none for such a long period.
They have all come under my care during the last two
or three weeks, and have the disadvantage of being of
much longer standing than the one detailed, and must
necessarily require longer time before the beneficial
effects are produced, many of these being cases of from
fifteen to twenty years' standing. Still, from the im-
provement observed in several of these, where the
affection is opacity of the cornea, I feel confident in
assuring you that I look upon the vapour cf the hy-
drocyanic acid as a most valuable remedy in all such
affections. With regard to its effects in other diseases,
such as amaurosis, cataract, &c., I cannot, as yet,
speak from my own observation and experience. As
I have some cases of these affections under treatment,
I shall be happy to communicate the results to you as
soon as I have given the remedy a fair trial. One
important fact which I have been able to establish is,
that there is not the slightest danger attending the
application of the hydrocyanic acid—providing due
caution is observed in doing so—even in cases of the
Most delicate and feeble constitution; for a more un-
healthy subject could not be found than the boy whose
case I have described.—l am yours truly,
ALEX. MILLER.
_

After receiving such assurances, aniiiesitatiOn to
publish the result of my inquiries seemed to me un-
justifiable and pusillanimous. I now, therefore, submit
the foregoing statements, with a confidence in their
accuracy ; and shall feel gratified if they in any way
prove the means of inducing medical men to examine,
apart from all private or personal considerations, into
the merits of the discoveries and applications in ques-
tion. IV. C.

CHINESE COLLECTION. —The following distin-
guished personages have recently honoured the Chinese Col-
lection by their visits :—His Royal Highness the Duke de
Bordeaux (second visit) and numerous friends, Countess of
Westmoreland and party, Admiral Sir E. Codrington and
party, Earl Stanhope, his Excellency the Count and Countess
St. Aulaire and party, &c. &e.
Two handsome donations have lately been left to
the two alms-houses in Ludlow, 1,0001. to Hosier's alms-house,
and 6001. to Foxe's alms-house, by Miss Phillips, of Bristol,
sister to Wm. Phillips, of Brimfield, near Ludlow.
A Correspondent of The Sun paper, enclosed to the
editor, in a letter from Cowes, Isle of Wight, flowers of all
seasons, indicative of the extreme mildness of the weather,
and, no doubt, as a strong hint, torching the soft loveliness of
the air in the warm south coast of :::..ngland. But we can tell
The Sun's Correspondent (for it is a Sun's affair) that at
Stonehouse, between Devonport and Plymouth, in a garden
behind Messrs. Payne and Wrentmoce's premises, is a tree now
garnished with two hundred apples as large as wallnuts ; not
a confectioner's twelfth night shove, but placed there by
Nature's own sweet and cunning hand. We surpass them at
Cowes, we have had flowers (blossom), and fruit.—Plymouth
journal.