374 TIMOTHY RICHARDS LEWIS. 



that almost any fluid adapted to the nourishment of minute 

 organisms was suitable to the cultivation of the bacilli — " one of 

 the best and most easily obtained in a pure state being urine 

 made neutral or slightly alkaline." In this way, it is affirmed, 

 poisonous bacilli could be prepared by the kilogram, if required, 

 in the course of a few hours. When the material was filtered, 

 the clear fluid was found to be inert, even though from ten to 

 eighty drops were taken, whereas a single drop of the same un- 

 filtered proved fatal to the inoculated animal ; hence it is inferred 

 that the organisms were left behind on the filter, and were the 

 cause of their deathJ 



The foregoing paper was followed by another in July, 1877,^ 

 by the same authors, in which it is stated that they had repeated 

 M. Bert's experiments, and found that he was perfectly correct 

 as to the destruction of the bacilli, and of the poisonous property 

 of charbon blood at a certain stage under the influence of com- 

 pressed oxygen, and that, too, even with but a moderate amount 

 of pressure; but that when the bacilli had proceeded to the 

 formation of spores they withstood the heat of boiling water, the 

 prolonged action of absolute alcohol, as also the influence of 

 compressed oxygen (= 10 atmospheres for 21 days). The 

 ' spores,' therefore, are most remarkable organisms, seeing 

 that they withstand influences which are destructive to every 

 other form of vegetable or animal life. True, " invisible germs" 

 are accredited with this marvellous power, but, as yet, these 

 ' spores' are the only visible bodies for which such persistent 

 vitahty has been claimed by eminent authorities. Now, how- 

 ever, that it has been shown by Dr. Cossar Ewart that they are 

 not more exempt from "the tendency to death" than other 

 organisms of a like kind, seeing that they can neither withstand 

 the action of compressed oxygen nor boiling, it is probable that 

 MM. Pasteur, Koch, and their adherents will apply the doctrine 



1 A similar result was obtained by M. Ouimus, but the interpretation 

 was very different. M. Onimus found tliat if tlie blood of an ox, horse, or 

 person suffering from " typhoid fever," be placed in a dialyser, and the 

 latter placed in distilled water at a temperature of 35° C, a prodigious 

 quantity of organisms would appear, identical in appearance with those in 

 the putrefying blood. But whereas all the animals which were inoculated 

 with a drop of the blood contained in the dialyser died in a short time, 

 those which were treated with the dialysed material (though crowded with 

 organisms) were unaffected. The same result followed when putrelying 

 blood from a rabbit was subjected to similar treatment. Hence M. Oninuis 

 infers that the poisonous material is an albuminoid substance, and then tore 

 not dialysable ('Bulletin de la Academic de Medecine,' March, 1873. 

 Cited by M. Ch. Eobin in ' Le9ons sur les Humeurs,' p. 251, lS7-i). 

 Clementi and Thin, Schmitz, Bergmann, and others, have obtained more or 

 less similar results. 



' ' Comptes Bendus,' t. Ixxxv, p. 101. 



