18 
DecemsBer 8th, 1885. 
A large number of members assembled in the Committee Room 
at the Town Hall. The chair was taken by the Rey. A. L. Hussey, 
M.A., who called upon Dr, Tyson to read the following paper 
ON HYDROPHOBIA, 
There are always two difficulties in the way of maintaming a 
society like ours, viz., to find people willing to read papers, and the 
difficulty of choosing a subject amongst those who are willing to 
contribute. I have chosen a not altogether agreeable theme for 
making a few remarks this evening, but one that seemed to me not 
inopportune at the present time. Hydrophobia has been written 
upon, and a paper read some few years ago before the members of 
this society, by our Vice-President (the Rev, A. L. Hussey), but the 
more frequent prevalence of that disease, and the novel method of 
treatment that has been proposed, lead me to treat the subject 
afresh. - 
Hydrophobia is an acute disease produced by the inoculation of a 
specific animal poison, manifesting itself by symptoms due to disturb- 
ance of the central nervous system, and almost invariably proving 
fatal. The above is a good general definition. There are many 
points in connection with the disease which are of an interesting 
character and are not generally known. Some of these I will give. 
The Aitiology. It is never spontaneous in man; the sole cause 
of hydrophobia is inoculation with the poison of a rabid animal, 
almost invariably with the saliva, the inoculation bemg commonly 
effected by a bite. In about nine tenths of the cases the disease is 
contracted from dogs; in most of the remainder from cats ; im very 
few cases from wolves and foxes. In passing I may say that the 
fourth Duke of Richmond, when Governor-General of Canada, died 
six weeks after the bite of a fox from hydrophobia, in 1819. A most 
graphic account of this illness was given in the Morning Post about 
a month ago. : 
The disease has been acquired from a wound received during the 
dissection of a rabid animal. It is probable, although not certain, 
that inoculation with the blood of a rabid animal will produce the 
disease. The poison is not known to be present in any other secre- 
tion than the saliva. Inoculation takes place more certainly by a 
bite on an uncovered part of the body, as on the hands and face, _ 
than by a bite inflicted through the clothes. It has followed the 
scratch of a cat, probably by the animal’s saliva being thus mocu- 
lated. A healthy dog has communicated the disease by a bite given 
immediately after it had been fighting with a rabid animal, the 
saliva of which no doubt was hanging about its jaws. 
