Liebermeister  recommends,  as  soon  as  the  fever  has
declared  itself,  cold  baths  at  68^  Fahr.,  or  75^  for  weakly
patients,  repeated  as  often  as  the  temperature  rises  to  102^ ;
and  so  do  various  Indian  practitioners,  but  I  should  be
sorry  to  pursue  this  practice.  The  advocates  of  the  cold
bath  treatment  caution  that  brandy  should  always  be  at

1  <  On  the  Cold  Bath  Treatment  of  Enteric  Ferer/  Lancet,  March,  1884.
F£V£B.  319

hand  as  a  means  of  preventing  syncope,  and  I  fear  the  risk
incurred  in  the  loajority  of  instances  more  than  counter-
balances the  benefit  derived  in  the  minority.  Therefore,
as  previously  stated,  the  systematic  use  of  the  cold  bath
depends  on  the  clinical  skill  guiding  the  choice  of  remedies,
and  ex  caihedra  rules  cannot  be  laid  down.  The  objections
to  the  cold  bath  are  the  shock  at  first  inducing  internal  con-
^^estions,  followed  by  reaction  inducing  syncope,  and  the  check
it  gives  to  elimination ;  and  it  is  also  stated  relapses  are
more  frequent  after  its  use.  Even  its  advocates  regard  it  as
a  doubtful  remedy  if  the  disease  has  made  much  progress.
