﻿THE 
  CRITERIA 
  OF 
  LIVINGNESS 
  85 
  

  

  what 
  we 
  have 
  already 
  alluded 
  to 
  as 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  remarkable 
  

   differences 
  between 
  the 
  organic 
  and 
  the 
  inorganic 
  Individ- 
  

   uality. 
  We 
  come 
  back 
  to 
  what 
  was 
  said 
  of 
  old 
  : 
  " 
  All 
  flesh 
  

   is 
  not 
  the 
  same 
  flesh 
  : 
  but 
  there 
  is 
  one 
  kind 
  of 
  flesh 
  of 
  men, 
  

   another 
  flesh 
  of 
  beasts, 
  another 
  of 
  fishes, 
  and 
  another 
  of 
  

   birds." 
  

  

  Prof. 
  Charles 
  Richet 
  and 
  other 
  physiologists 
  have 
  of 
  

   recent 
  years 
  devoted 
  much 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  phenomenon 
  that 
  

   dosing 
  an 
  animal 
  with 
  certain 
  poisons 
  may 
  bring 
  about, 
  

   if 
  the 
  animal 
  survives, 
  a 
  peculiar 
  physiological 
  condition, 
  

   called 
  anaphylactic, 
  which 
  make 
  the 
  creature 
  hyper-sensitive 
  

   to 
  subsequent 
  doses. 
  An 
  extract 
  of 
  sea-anemone's 
  tentacles 
  

   is 
  very 
  poisonous 
  to 
  dogs, 
  but, 
  when 
  the 
  dog 
  recovers, 
  a 
  very 
  

   minute 
  second 
  dose 
  a 
  month 
  afterwards 
  may 
  be 
  rapidly 
  fatal. 
  

   The 
  phenomenon 
  of 
  anaphylaxis 
  is 
  extraordinarily 
  subtle; 
  

   thus 
  a 
  man 
  to 
  whom 
  shrimp 
  flesh 
  is 
  poisonous 
  may 
  be 
  un- 
  

   affected 
  by 
  lobster. 
  He 
  is 
  violently 
  poisoned 
  if 
  he 
  eats 
  a 
  

   single 
  shrimp, 
  and 
  yet 
  he 
  is 
  able 
  to 
  enjoy 
  a 
  whole 
  lobster; 
  

   straining 
  at 
  a 
  gnat, 
  he 
  swallows 
  a 
  camel 
  with 
  ease. 
  The 
  

   importance 
  of 
  this 
  is 
  that 
  it 
  points 
  towards 
  the 
  conception 
  

   of 
  the 
  chemical 
  individuality 
  of 
  the 
  living 
  creature. 
  There 
  

   is 
  a 
  specific 
  chemical 
  constitution 
  which 
  is 
  on 
  the 
  whole 
  

   best 
  for 
  the 
  species 
  in 
  question, 
  which 
  makes 
  for 
  stability. 
  

   Those 
  that 
  survive 
  the 
  introduction 
  of 
  a 
  poison, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  

   the 
  result 
  of 
  digesting 
  a 
  particular 
  kind 
  of 
  food, 
  do 
  not 
  

   necessarily 
  mark 
  the 
  surviving 
  type, 
  for 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  killed 
  

   by 
  the 
  anaphylactic 
  violence 
  following 
  a 
  second 
  dose. 
  So 
  

   much 
  the 
  worse 
  for 
  the 
  individual, 
  but 
  so 
  much 
  the 
  better, 
  

   possibly, 
  for 
  the 
  species, 
  which 
  cannot 
  safely 
  admit 
  of 
  any 
  

   compromise 
  with 
  poison. 
  Thus, 
  speaking 
  of 
  man, 
  Richet 
  

   says: 
  " 
  Anaphylaxis 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  an 
  efficacious 
  and 
  ener- 
  

   getic 
  method 
  of 
  maintaining 
  the 
  chemical 
  stability 
  of 
  our 
  

  

  