512 HYDROPHOBIA 



vascular lymphatic spaces in the nerve centres has been observed, 

 and in the cells of the anterior cornua of the grey matter in the 

 spinal cord, and also in the nuclei of the cranial nerves, various 

 degenerations have been described. Round the nerve cells in 

 the grey matter of the cord and medulla Babes described 

 accumulations of newly-formed cells, and Van Gehuchten observed 

 a phagocytosis of the cells in the posterior root ganglia and also 

 in the sympathetic ganglia. Both of these conditions were at one 

 time thought to be specific of rabies, but this has been found not 

 to be the case. In the white matter, especially in the posterior 

 columns, swelling of the axis cylinders and breaking up of the 

 myeline sheaths have been noted, and similar changes occur also 

 in the spinal nerves, especially of the part of the body through 

 which infection has come. In the nervous system also some 

 have seen minute bodies which they have considered to be cocci, 

 but there is no evidence that they are really of this nature. The 

 changes in the other parts of the body are unimportant. 



Experimental pathology confirms the view that the nervous 

 system is the centre of the disease by finding in it a special 

 concentration of what, from want of a more exact term, we must 

 call the hydrophobic virus. Earlier inoculation experiments 

 made by subcutaneous injection of material from various parts 

 of animals dead of rabies had not given uniform results, as, 

 whatever was the source of the material, the disease was not 

 invariably produced. Pasteur's first contribution to the subject 

 was to show that the most certain method of infection was by 

 inserting the infective matter beneath the dura mater. He 

 found that in the case of any animal or man dead of the disease, 

 injection, by this method, of emulsions of any part of the central 

 nervous system, of the cerebro-spinal fluid, or of the saliva, 

 invariably gave rise to rabies, and also that the natural period of 

 incubation was shortened. Further, the "identity of the furious 

 and paralytic forms was proved, as sometimes the one, sometimes 

 the other, was produced, whatever form had been present in the 

 original case. Inoculation into the anterior chamber of the eye 

 is nearly as efficacious as subdural infection. Infection with the 

 blood of rabic animals does not reproduce the disease. There is 

 evidence, however, that the poison also exists in such glands as 

 the pancreas and mamma. Subcutaneous infection with part of 

 the nervous system of an animal dead of rabies usually gives 

 rise to the disease. 



In consequence of the introduction of such reliable inoculation 

 methods, further information has been acquired regarding the 

 spread and distribution of the virus in the body. Gaining 



