362 THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE. 



secutif au modifications des humeurs que cause de 

 celles-ci/ And then he continues : — ^ Les faits d'intro- 

 duction artificielle des spores ne sont pas en contra- 

 diction avec ce qui precede, car la piquer pratiquee 

 pour introduire le mycelium et les spores est suffisante 

 pour determiner ces modifications des humeurs, d'abord 

 localement, puis peu a peu dans toute Teconomie ^.' 

 We know, moreover, that the blood invariably yields 

 an acid reaction by the time that the first organisms 

 appear in it. 



The second point is best established with reference 

 to the phenomena of that fatal epizootic disease amongst 

 cattle, which is commonly known by the name of the 

 ^ blood ' or ^ sang de rate/ The researches of M. Da- 

 vaine in connection with this subject are of the highest 

 value. The malady is characterized by the presence 

 of multitudes of Vibrio-like organisms in the blood, 

 which, however, differ from the Vibriones of ordinary 

 putrefactions. Whilst this affection is always capable of 

 being reproduced in a previously healthy animal by the 

 inoculation of some of the fresh blood of an animal 

 which has recently died of the disease, the blood of such 



^ ' Vegetaux Parasites,' p. 585. Mere contact of the spores with the 

 skin, when the animals are at all predisposed, seems to suffice. General 

 blood-changes are soon induced. Thus, M. Guerin-Meneville rubbed 

 some Botryds, against a chrysalis ; and, on examining the blood of the 

 same animal on its first appearance as an imago, he found multitudes of 

 the characteristic elongated bodies in its blood ; and on its death, several 

 days afterwards, these were observed to have become ramified and much 

 increased in size (p. 580). 



