OF THE ALIMENTARY TRACT 131 



trophozoites failed to survive a similar exposure to 

 0.1% acid for even a few minutes, although the writer 

 has seen it active in gastric content in a state of achlor- 

 hydria. Of course, Chilomastix mesnili and Giardia 

 intestinalis have encysted phases in which they must 

 be more resistant, but it is not unlikely that C. mes- 

 nili in active stage may pass the stomach as well as 

 does Trichomonas hominis, although the former is 

 killed rapidly by water alone. 



Gastric and duodenal ulcers are conditions in which 

 hyperchlorhydria is common. They are also re- 

 lated to early life as contrasted to chronic chole- 

 cystitis, for instance. There w^as a clinical diag- 

 nosis of peptic ulcer in 10% of the flagellate-free but 

 none in the others. 



On the other hand, there was recorded a clinical 

 opinion of chronic cholecystitis, some proven, the 

 majority not, in 38% of the parasitized and 22% of 

 the free. Chronic cholecystitis is a state of disease of 

 later life and is commonly accompanied by lowered 

 gastric acidity, both of w^hich states were shown in 

 definite relation to high flagellate incidence. Chronic 

 cholecystitis is one of the conditions in which a ten- 

 dency has been noted to incriminate intestinal pro- 

 tozoa and, considered separately, these observations 

 could be taken as evidence in favor of such a view. 

 As against such reasoning, however, one has to ac- 

 count for 22% of the flagellate-free who had the same 

 diagndsis. In a debate one could say that it would 

 be equally reasonable to so explain the higher in- 



