62 THE MICROSCOPE. April 
and the regulators of movements which have became mor- 
bid. 
Well, the reports of Dr. Koch will have the termination 
of these tentatives concerning the bacillus. Will the mat- 
ter finally result in a summing up similar to that given in 
relation to the floating sticks of the fable? 
“From afar it appeared to be something; near at hand 
it was—nothing.”’ 
Certainly science is a grand thing, but we must guard 
ourselves against such illusions of the microscope as pre- 
vent us from having a clear view of things. 
Speaking of illusions we recall Raspail’s little affair with 
the Paris Academy of Sciences. This learned botanist 
was unfortunately an intransigeant in politics. Anony- 
mously of course, he sent in a thesis on the micrography of 
plants, in competing for the prize of the academy. Well, 
the prize (10,000 francs) was awarded for Raspail’s article. 
But when the committee on prizes learned who the au- 
thor was, they retained the prize and communicated with 
the Government, who decided that Raspail could not have 
ie: 
So Raspail waited awhile and concocted a plan of re- 
venge. He announced finally to the Academy of Sciences, 
that he had discovered the insect while causes psoriasis, 
and was about to demonstrate before the academy the 
truth of his discovery. He tooka psoriasis patient with 
him tothe academy meeting, and, before the assembled 
scientists pretended to remove the insect on the point of a 
needle, from the patient’s skin. In reality, he took upon 
the point of aneedlea minute quantity of fermented cheese 
which he had concealed under his thumb-nail. The acad- © 
emicians crowded around him during this brilliant demon- 
stration, and great was their astonishment when they ob- 
served the wriggling worms in the field of the microscope. 
Well, the Academy published a brilliant account of this 
proceeding, and, on the following day, Raspail published 
his own account in which he stated that what the academi- 
cians so readily took to be the microbes of psoriasis were in 
reality, the worms of cheese.—Dosimetric Medical Review. 
