There is iron in the blood of every man, woman, and child. Whether we ever have too much of it is not certain; but, without doubt, many thin, pale, and weak people have too little of it. The condition of poverty of blood is called, medically, "anæmia." Several preparations of iron are used. The strongest, and also the most convenient to keep and use, is the tincture of the chloride of iron. Dose, ten to thirty drops, in water. The only objection to it is that it has a disposition to stain the teeth brown or yellow. This may be prevented by taking it through a tube of glass, or of two quills put together. All druggists keep glass tubes for such purposes. The tincture of chloride of iron is somewhat astringent; and therefore is useful in hemorrhages.

Syrup of iodine of iron unites the properties and influences of iron and iodine. It is, therefore, an alterative tonic, good in many cases of scrofula and in some other chronic complaints. An alterative medicine is one which tends to change the condition of an organ, or of the whole constitution; setting up its own innocent and transitory action instead of the disturbing and life-shortening action of the disease. Dose, of the syrup of iodide of iron, ten to thirty drops, in water, two or three times daily.

Pill of carbonate of iron (Vallet's mass) is a very good form to make up with quinine in treating obstinate cases of chills (intermittent fever). Three grains of the pill of the carbonate of iron with one grain of quinine, three times a day, taken for a month, after "breaking" the chills, will cure ninetynine cases in a hundred of that troublesome affection.

Other " chalybeates," as preparations of iron used to be called (iron springs are still called chalybeate waters), are: citrate of iron, a pretty red salt, not unpleasant to the taste, dose, five to ten grains; phosphate, a green solid, dose, five to ten grains; solution (liquor) of the nitrate of iron, the most astringent of these preparations, and beneficial in chronic diarrhoea; dose, ten drops in water, thrice daily; solution (liquor) of sub-sulphate of iron, generally called Monsel's solution; a good strong astringent for outward application, to aid in stopping bleeding from any part.