Rochester, Minn., Dec. 6, 1906.
To the Editor:
—I was interested in the report of a broken thermometer in a child's rectum, in The Journal, Dec. 1, 1906, page 1841, and was surprised to read that no other such case was found recorded. A similar case occurred in my practice about twelve years ago.A child about a year and a half old seemed indisposed and the mother proceeded to take the temperature by rectum. The child made a sudden movement and the instrument broke off at the upper constriction, leaving the bulb in the rectum. I reached the house about an hour afterward. The child was evidently in pain, crying and straining ineffectually. An anesthetic was given, and with the aid of a small bivalve ear speculum the bulb was extracted. It was placed somewhat obliquely; the sharp, jagged end had penetrated the mucous membrane, thus probably frustrating the