opular notions about mercury originated at this period in its history.
It was supposed to make the bones "rot" and the teeth fall out, an idea
which one patient in every ten still entertains and offers as an
objection when told he must take mercury. Insufficiently treated
syphilis is, of course, what makes the bones "rot," and not the mercury
used in treating the disease. Mercury apparently has no effect on the
bones whatever. The influence of the drug on the teeth is more direct
and refers to the symptoms caused by overdoses. No physician who knows
his business ever gives mercury at the present time to the point where
the teeth are in any danger of falling out.

+The Action of Mercury.+--The action of mercury on syphilis is not
entirely clear. The probabilities are that the drug, carried to all
parts of the body by the blood, helps to build up the body's resistance
and stimulates it to produce substances which kill the germs. In
addition, of course, it kills the germs by its own poisonous qualities.
Its action is somewhat slow, and it is even possible for syphilitic
sores containing the germs to appear, especially in the mouth and throat
and about the genitals, while the person is taking mercury. Just as
quinin must be used in malaria for some time after all signs of chill
and fever have disappeared, to kill off all germs lurking in
out-of-the-way corners of the body, or especially resistant to the drug,
so it is necessary to continue the use of mercury long after it has
disposed of all the obvious signs of the disease, like the eruption,
headaches, and other symptoms, in order to prevent a relapse. No matter
in what form it is used, the action of mercury on syphilis is one of the
marvels of medicine. It can clear up the most terrific eruption with
scarcely a scar, and transform a bed-ridden patient into a seemingly
healthy man or woman, able to work, in the course of a few weeks or
months. Symptoms often vanish before it like snow in a thaw. This
naturally makes a decided impression, and often an unfavorable one, on
the patient. It is only too easy to think that a disease which vanishes
under the magic influence of a few pills is a trifle, and that outwardly
cured means the same thing as inwardly cured. Mercury therefore carries
its disadvantages with its advantages, and by its marvelous but
transient effect only too often gives the patient a false idea of his
progress toward cure.

+Methods of Administering Mercury.