HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIF. 



199 



The defendant, gentlemen, is (said to be) a member 

 of the family of " Schizomycetous fungi," — I suppose 

 coeval with all things ; but even his origin has been 

 questioned. To quote the delicious ambiguity of a 

 great authority, he is an organism which requires 

 " tendency of thought ;" certainly, delicate handling. 

 Conceive an inch (a popular measure) divided into 

 '• one hundred thousand parts ; " one part would be 

 more than the dimensions of my client round the 

 waist. Do not accept this from me ; one of his 

 greatest enemies, Billroth, in 1874 measured him, — 

 how, does not appear, but at that time, under the 

 name of Coccobacteria, he was accused of producing 

 "Anthrax, Charbon^ Mitzbrand, and Frustules, the 

 wool-sorters' disease." This allegation seems some- 

 what vague, and insusceptible of proof ; however, 

 it was accepted, even supported, in 1S75, by 

 Kjobenhavn, Mangin, Archer, Ewart, Dallinger, 

 Cienkowski, Roberts, Waldstein, Tieghem, and 

 others. The cases are before me ; you may take my 

 statements unchallenged. About this time the de- 

 fendant found a friend in Livon, who pronounced he 

 was not malicious, poisonous, or even infective. In 

 1877 Klebs impeached him, evidently with the idea 

 of accepting, sifting, and consolidating all opinions 

 in one indictment, — to wit, mischievously concerned 

 with lesions of the lungs, glandular and scrofulous 

 conditions, comprised in the general term "tubercu- 

 losis." Klebs virtually pulled the whole thing 

 together, and went so far as to "cultivate" the 

 defendant by " crushing tubercles " (an obvious act 

 of trespass) and inoculating fluids. I admit the 

 result was an undoubted re-discovery. Klebs was 

 naturally delighted, and then and there gave my 

 client his fatal name, "Bacillus." A complete 

 triumph was not approached. Klebs attempted too 

 much ; for in trying to ' ' cultivate from the juice of a 

 human tubercle," where my client was then in 

 residence, and plant him "through a guinea-pig, 

 into the abdominal cavity of a cat," the experiment 

 (as may be imagined) was not successful ; at all 

 events, the result has never been disclosed. 



Following Klebs, in 1880, SchuUer filtered liquid 

 from a tubercular lung, and inoculated flasks con- 

 taining a "solution of Bergmani" (the recipe is not 

 given) ; but both had to confess their experiments 

 came to nothing, on the plea that the defendant, 

 consequent on the trying ordeal of so many " changes 

 of locality," might have been " weakened and ex- 

 hausted in infective power." Klebs gave up ; Schuller 

 persisted, and eventually succeeded in localising 

 " Micrococci " (the generic term of all the members 

 of the defendant's family) in the ' ' synovial membranes 

 of joints," — not the quietest place to select ! 



At this time, gentlemen, enemies were fast and 

 furious, and consequently opinion differed. In 1S81, 

 Touissant entered for the ' ' cultivation " stakes ; at the 

 same period Aufrecht found the defendant's family in 

 a " centre of tubercles," and attempted a classification 



of three species. How they were discovered, or in 

 what respect they differed, has never yet been 

 disclosed ; but in a burst of confidence, Aufrechl, 

 wandering from, and entirely dropping his tubercle, 

 stated that " all varieties " may be seen in sputum by 

 staining it in a mixture entitled "a half per thousand 

 watery solution of fuchsin." This may appear 

 facetious, but I assure you, gentlemen, every state- 

 ment hitherto or hereafter to be made can be 

 supported by documentary evidence. 



Now approaches a decided phase in the history of 

 my client. In 18S2, Professor Koch caught the idea 

 that the defendant was not only ' ' always present in 

 tubercle in all animals," but that similar conditions 

 might be produced by inoculation. Baumgarten, at 

 this time, made independent observations, corrobo- 

 rating Koch. At this point Touissant revives, and 

 cultivates infusions of " blood serum, taken direct from 

 the heart, with heated scalpels and sealed pipettes," 

 operating also with "phthisical sputum," and with 

 these fluids inoculating and infecting guinea-pigs and 

 kittens, marking them by "clipping their ears." 

 Koch, Baumgarten, and Touissant formed a trium- 

 virate, determined to face the difficulty of absolutely 

 detecting the then pale and ghost-like form of the 

 defendant in nearly every tissue. 



At this critical period the plaintiff Stainer, a 

 common detective with no scientific ability, a colour- 

 able impostor, although he had been previously 

 employed in a tentative way, now proposed to 

 disclose the defendant by a series of experiments 

 unparalleled in the history of persecution. Conceive, 

 gentlemen, any one of yoii, after being hardened in 

 alcohol, immersed for twenty-four hours in "an 

 aniline dye," ah "alkaline solution of methylen 

 blue," or " a watery solution of vesuvin." Even then 

 hope gleamed, the defendant might have escaped ! It 

 occurred to Baumgarten that the mycelia of any 

 fungus — in fact, any vegetative or protoplasmic 

 globule, thread or cell, however minute, or wherever 

 placed — would accept a stain, reveal itself, and under 

 high powers materially interfere with the identity 

 of the defendant ; but after savage persistency he was 

 at last found in tuberculosis, stained, and "spotted," 

 comfortably imbedded round the edges of a bronchus. 

 This was effected after the frightful expedient of 

 using "caustic potash, hardening for twenty-four 

 hours in absolute alcohol, and staining with a 

 solution of safranin." 



Ziehl now made an effort to improve Baumgarten's 

 method, but at this interesting point, when "all the 

 talents" were engaged, the processes employed 

 were unable to again subdue or overcome the 

 defendant's obstinacy or coax him from obscurity. 

 Ehrlich in the effort started a new formula, 

 never yet explained, although, he goes on to say, 

 " so well known as to be universally adopted." In 

 fact, gentlemen, the plaintiff Stainer is nothing more 

 than a picturesque medium. He has created a pro- 



