INTRODUCTION 7 



man,* and later by Conradi and Kurpjuweit,t Rahn,t and Faltin,§ 

 to cite only the more important studies. 



All of these demonstrations of the bacteriolytic process can be re- 

 peated with the greatest ease, and none of them show the shghtest 

 resemblance to bacteriophagy. To even suggest a relationship is im- 

 possible. Indeed, it is but fair to state that none of the authors men- 

 tioned have endeavored to establish such a relationship. Recently 

 Eijkman has conducted some experiments upon bacteriophagy and 

 he states 1 1 that he can not see any possible connection between the 

 phenomenon which he formerly studied and that of bacteriophagy. 

 More recently Hajos^ by the advice of Koranyi, has considered this 

 question again, more particularly to determine if there is any rela- 

 tion between the inhibitory action of filtrates of old cultures and the 

 phenomenon of bacteriophagy. His conclusions are identical with 

 those of Eijkman,^ — the phenomenon of inhibition has no demonstrable 

 connection with that of bacteriophagy. 



These former studies are mentioned here simply because of the fact 

 that certain authors (Pico^^^) have attempted to correlate all of the 

 phenomena in which bacteriolysis represents a phase, establishing thus 

 a certain degree of confusion, and because they are mentioned in the 

 historical discussion of Otto and Munter. 



There are, on the other hand, some experimental observations which 

 may possibly be interpreted as revealing the intervention of the bac- 

 teriophage, but even here it is impossible to definitely affirm this, 

 since some of the findings reported by the authors seem to oppose 

 such a correlation. 



Hankin** stated that the water of certain rivers of India possesses 



* Eijkman, C. — Ueber thermolabile Stoffwechselprodukte als Ursache der 

 natiirlichen Wachstumshemmung der Mikroorganismen. Centralbl. f. Bakt., 

 I. Orig., 1904, 37, 436. 



t Conradi, H., and Kurpjuweit, O. — Ueber spontane Wachstumshemmung 

 der Bakterien infolge Selbstvergiftung. Munchen. med. Wchnschr., 1905, 1761. 



J Rahn, O. — Ueber den Einfluss der Stoffwechselprodukte auf das Wachstum 

 der Bakterien. Centralbl. f. Bakt., I. Orig., 1906, 16, 417; 609. 



§ Faltin, R.- — Studien iiber Hetero- und Isantagonismus, mit besonderer 

 Beriicksichtigung der Verhaltnisse bei infektiosen Erkrankungen der Harnwege. 

 Centralbl. f. Bakt., I. Orig., 1908, 46, 6; 109; 222. 



II Reunion annuelle de la Societie des Bacteriologues Neerlandais, 1923. 



U Haj6s, K. — Beitrage zur Frage der wachstumshemmenden Wirkung von 

 Bouillonkulturen. Centralbl. f. Bakt., I. Orig., 1922, 88, 583. 



** Hankin, E. — L'action bactericide des eaux de la Jumna et du Gange. Ann. 

 Inst. Pasteur, 1896, 10, 511. 



