15 APRIL 1938, Page 18

[To the Editor of THE SPECTATOR] Sut,--The sentence that Dr.

A. J. Clark " challenged the accuracy of modern methods to test whether a man is drunk or sober by laboratory methods " in his paper read to the British Medical Association ought not to have been quoted as his actual words, but the implication in the statement is sub- stantially correct, for dealing with the blood test Dr. Clark said : " The measurement of the concentration of alcohol in the blood seams to be a much more accurate and scientific method than the estimation of the degree of intoxication by clinical examination. It is important to note, however, that although the former method may indicate accurately the amount of alcohol that has been taken, it does not indicate the effect produced on the patient, because there is a wide individual variation in regard to alcohol concentration in the blood and intoxication."