322 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



often communicated to the human being. One-sixth of all persons 

 who died in Iceland perished from a little creature so small that in its 

 larval state it could scarely be seen. If neither dog nor wolf existed 

 we should get rid of these species altogether. Sand and charcoal ni- 

 ters were of very little use. Paper filters should be employed. All 

 entozoa not preserved for scientific experiments should be destroyed 

 by fire, and under no circumstances should they be thrown aside as 

 harmless refuse : and he advised butchers, knackers, and others not to 

 throw doubtful offal to dogs frequenting their neighborhood. It was 

 gratifying to learn that beer, porter, and fermented drinks, were not 

 sources of entozoa, and were perfectly harmless. Even though im- 

 pure water should have been employed, the boiling of the wort would 

 be alone sufficient to destroy any number of parasites. Unfennented 

 drinks, such as ginger beer, cider, and the like, he could not be per- 

 fectly certain about. All must depend upon the source and supply of 

 water. But it was satisfactory to learn that alcohol added to water 

 was sufficient to destroy parasitical eggs. 



Dangers of the Utilization of Sewage. In addition to the above 

 remarks, Dr. Cobbold has also recently published a pamphlet in Eng- 

 land (which has attracted no little attention), in which he predicts 

 the almost inevitable increase of parasitic diseases in general, if the 

 much talked of utilization of sewage be carried out. In respect to 

 one of the forms of disease which may be thus introduced, he says : 

 In Egypt and apparently throughout Northeastern Africa, at the Cape 

 of Good Hope, Natal, Mauritius, and other places, there exists a more 

 or less constant and formidable endemic disease, the nature of which 

 was first described by Drs. Griesinger and Bilharz. The disorder, or 

 *' helminthiasis," in question is caused by a small parasite or entozoon, 

 which infests the bloodvessels, delighting more especially to take up 

 its abode in the veins connected with the liver and other abdominal 

 viscera; and in these situations it gives rise to very painful symptoms, 

 followed, in the more advanced cases, by excessive prostration and 

 death. Minuter details respecting the peculiar features of the disease 

 itself it is here quite unnecessary for me to adduce, but I cannot pro- 

 ceed without a passing comment on the extraordinary prevalence of 

 the disease in Egypt, which may readily be realized by the fact that 

 out of 363 post-mortem examinations conducted by Dr. Griesinger, 

 these parasites were found in no less than 117 instances. It would, 

 therefore, seem that nearly ot the entire population suffer from this 

 parasitic malady. 



He then goes on to show that the disease in question has already 

 made its appearance in Great Britain, referring for corroboration to a 

 paper in the recently published 48th volume of the, British Medico- 

 Chirurgical Transactions. It would further appear that the disorder 

 is quite as prevalent at the Cape, at Natal, and in the Mauritius, as it 

 is in Egypt. On this he remarks : 



" Have the kindness to observe that every colonist returning from 

 the Cape is liable to bring this parasitic treasure with him as a 'guest' 

 indeed, dwelling in his blood, and feeding on his lifestream. In the 

 advanced stages of the malady, the afflicted individual must frequently 

 evacuate the eggs and their contained embryonic larvae, which are 

 thus conveyed into the ordinary receptacles of such voidings. There 



