1880.] 



MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 



137 



perinients, and search for their 

 Bacillus tnalarioB. 



Some of the information about 

 the microscopic constituents of the 

 air may prove interesting. Dr. Stern- 

 berg quotes from Dr. Cunningham, 

 whose work was conducted near 

 Calcutta in 1872, as follows : 



" Distinct infusorial animalculse 

 and their germs or ova, are almost 

 entirely absent from atmospheric 

 dust. 



" Distinct bacteria can hardly ever 

 be detected among the constituents 

 of atmospheric dust, but line mole- 

 cules of uncertain nature are almost 

 always present in abundance. They 

 frequently appear in specimens of 

 rain water collected with all precau- 

 tions to secure purity, and appear 

 in many cases to arise from myce- 

 lium developed from atmospheric 

 spores. 



" Distinct bacteria are frequently 

 found amongst the particles depo- 

 sited from the moist air of sewers. 



" The addition of dry dust, which 

 has been exposed to tropical heat, to 

 putrescible fluids, is followed by a 

 rapid development of fungi and 

 bacteria, although recognizable spe- 

 cimens of the latter are very rarely 

 to be found in it while dry. 



" Spores and other vegetable cells 

 are constantly present in atmospheric 

 dust and usually occur in conside- 

 rable numbers. 



" No connection can be traced 

 between the numbers of bacteria, 

 spores, etc., present in the atmos- 

 phere,, and the occurrence of diar- 

 rhcea, dysentery, cholera, ague or 

 dengue ; nor between the presence 

 or abundance of any special form 

 or forms of cells and the prevalence 

 of these diseases." 



We have never regarded the idea 

 that certain diseases had their origin 

 in specific living germs, as deserving 

 of the prominence which physicians 

 generally have given to it. It is 



merely an hypothesis, which has 

 become popular because it seems to 

 afford an easy explanation of certain 

 phenomena. 



It may surprise many readers to 

 learn that only three or four diseases 

 are known, which are accompanied 

 with Bacteria in the blood under 

 circumstances which indicate that 

 those organisms may have produced 

 the diseases ; but it is not impro- 

 bable that either of these diseases 

 may occur, unaccompanied with the 

 organisms — we know that some of 

 them do occur under such circum- 

 stances. 



With these few possible excep- 

 tions, whenever the germ theory has 

 been subjected to a critical micros- 

 copical examination by competent 

 observers, it has failed of support. 

 Nevertheless, there are those who 

 seem able to discover a specific liv- 

 ing organism for almost every di- 

 sease ; but we cannot be surprised 

 at this, when a physician who has 

 considerable local reputation as a 

 microscopist, expresses the opinion 

 that a blood-corpuscle is affected by 

 a fungns, when any careful observer 

 could see at a glance that the "fun- 

 gus " was nothing more than the 

 corrugated or shrunken appearance 

 of the dried corpuscle. 



It should not be forgotten that 

 very few physicians or microscopists 

 are capable of conducting observa- 

 tions of this character. Medical and 

 microscopical literature is replete 

 with contributions upon this subject 

 from utterly incompetent observers ; 

 and some of their hastily formed 

 conclusions are so absolutely un- 

 founded, that it is surprising that 

 any man would publish them over 

 his signature. 



We do not wish to appear unduly 

 skeptical about the existence of 

 living germs of disease. It is a very 

 difficult subject to investigate, and 

 it is not stranere that so little is 



