MICROPHYTES FOUND IN THE BLOOD. 373 



active principle in vaccine and in glanders is not a living being 

 or living cell. 



M. Bert then exposed some blood from a case of splenic fever 

 (in which were myriads of bacilli) to the action of compressed 

 oxygen, and found that, although the blood had been exposed in 

 very thin layers, it had retained its virulent properties intact, as 

 was proved by its having killed several guinea-pigs inoculated 

 one from the other, but the blood of these animals did not contain 

 bacilli. 



He submitted some other charbon blood containing numerous 

 bacilli to further examination. Some absolute alcohol was very 

 cautiously added to it, drop by drop, until the volume of the 

 original fluid was quadrupled, and the mixture thus obtained 

 was Altered. The coagulum, well washed in alcohol, was rapidly 

 dried in vacuo. A fragment of this dried material, on being in- 

 strted beneath the skin of a guinea-pig, killed the animal in less 

 than twenty-four hours. The blood obtained from this animal 

 proved fatal to another guinea-pig, as also to a dog. Inocula- 

 tions were conducted from one animal to another, but the virulent 

 blood of none of these animals contained bacilli. 



M. Bert went still further. A watery solution was prepared 

 (by exhaustion) of the alcoholic precipitate, and having satisfied 

 himself that this liquid contained the active principle in solution 

 (for, on the addition of more alcohol, a white flocculent precipi- 

 tate was induced), three successive inoculations of guinea-pigs 

 were conducted. This rather severe treatment, however, had 

 manifestly diminished the virulence of the material, as inoculation 

 was not successful beyond the third animal, and the material 

 proved too weak to kill a dog. 



From these observations M. Bert concluded that the blood in 

 splenic fever contains a toxic and virulent principle, which resists 

 the action of compressed oxygen, and can be isolated in the same 

 manner as diastase. 



These observations had been published in an abbreviated form 

 previous to their being submitted to the Academy.^ M. Pasteur 

 had promptly taken up the subject, and, as he himself was not 

 versed in the medical and veterinary arts, had associated himself 

 with M. Joubert, of the College RoUin, for the purpose of more 

 satisfactorily dealing with the matter. Their joint paper- was 

 published a few weeks before the publication of the details of 

 M. Bert's experiments ; it was their remarks, indeed, which led 

 to the latter being published. They obtained charbon blood, and 

 made numerous cultivations of it, transplanting it from vessel to 

 vessel or from animal to animal. Outside the body it was found 



' ' Comptes Reudus de la Societe de Biolop;ie/ January, 1877. 

 - ' Comptes Reudus,' t. kxxiv, p. 900, April, 1877. 



VOL. XIX. NEW SER. B B 



