N. MATERIA MEDICA, THERAPEUTICS, AND HYGIENE. 645 



cation for about half an hour, although relief is frequently 

 experienced in the course of ten or fifteen minutes. He uses 

 a battery of about ten elements. 12 B^ July 15, 1873, 1. 



PUTRID INFECTIOX. 



Original investigations upon this subject, by Ravitsch, 

 show essentially the following results in transferring a putri- 

 fying liquid obtained by long maceration of meat and hay, 

 to rabbits, sheep, dogs, etc., allowance being made for the dif- 

 ferences of the animals : 1. The local effect consists in the pro- 

 duction of diphtheritis at the point of contact, often with lit- 

 tle influence upon the general condition according to ex- 

 periments with rabbits. 2. The constant anatomical changes 

 are increased, and granular degeneracy of the colorless blood 

 corpuscles, solution of the red corpuscles, with rapid sep- 

 aration of crystals of haemoglobin, granular degeneracy of the 

 muscles of the heart, liver-cells, and epithelium of the kid- 

 neys. 3. The usual symptoms of disease, viz., elevation of 

 temperature, and diminution of consciousness and sensibility ; 

 vomiting and purging, on account of irritation of the mucous 

 membrane, are frequently, but not invariably present; cramps 

 seldom occur. 4. No bacteria or other foreign bodies can be 

 found in the blood of infected living animals, and the putrid 

 infection, therefore, can not consist in the development and 

 multiplication of bacteria. 5. After death an exceedingly 

 rapid decomposition of the blood takes place, and an unusual 

 development of bacteria, and small bodies (microzymes) which 

 develop into bacteria. It also appears, from inoculation and 

 injection with putrifying blood, that it is more active than 

 the liquid from macerated flesh ; and that its energy depends 

 on the amount of it in the body, and whether it is introduced" 

 immediately into the circulation or beneath the skin. Neither 

 does the infection in this case consist in the production or 

 development of bacterides, which always first appear after 

 death, and invariably precede the formation of movable bac- 

 teria. Dried matter is less active than fluid, and putrid mat- 

 ter is not entirely deprived of its activity by boiling, but pro- 

 duces a feverish condition with local irritation. The disease 

 produced by putrid infection can not be transferred by in- 

 oculation ; but the blood of animals that have reached the 

 condition of blood poisoning acts upon sound animals, Just 



