I 



attached to the University Laboratory or whether it 

 should be transformed into an independent institution 

 which, at the same time, was to be removed from the 

 University and placed under the Ministry of Justice 

 which is responsible for public health in this country. 

 In June 1898 the Medical Faculty pronounced in fa- 

 vour of the second alternative in a memorandum, from 

 which I am going to quote the following extracts, as 

 they clearly show the points of view from which the 

 State Serum Institute was founded and arranged. 



For several reasons the Faculty considers it most desirable, 

 that the State should continue manufacturing the antidiphtheric serum, 

 carrying on the work that has been done in the Serb-therapeutic 

 Department and, if necessary, extending it so as to enable it to 

 produce the large quantities of serum that the leading doctors of 

 the hospitals are so eagerly asking for in the interest of their 

 patients .... 



The manufacture of serum can only be carried on in an 

 Institute which is provided with an experimental pathological labo- 

 ratory, and it will naturally be the object of the Director of the 

 Institute not only to supply the necessary antidiphtheric serum to 

 the Slate, but also to keep in touch with and work at all subjects 

 of a kindred nature, in short, attend to all investigations which 

 bear upon the use of bacterial poisons and antidotes in the service of 

 Injgiene and therapeutics. Now, experience shows that these inves- 

 tigations (the importance of which for practical medicine, too, is 

 increasing day by day) can only be made in institutions working 

 with an extensive material and relatively great funds. To give up 

 the production in this country really means the same as to entire- 

 ly exclude our medical profession from taking part in this most 

 important work. 



Whereas the Faculty must strongly advise that the State 

 should go on manufacturing antidiphtheric serum to the extent 

 which is wanted to cover the consumption of the country, thus 

 taking care that the production of scrum takes place in a fully 

 equipped experimental pathological institution the Faculty also 

 shares the scruples of the Ministry, as expressed in its letter of the 



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