GROWTH OF FAVUS. 187 



to be slow (eight to twelve months) ; and Boeck did not observe any 

 improvement after several months during which he made use of 

 this method hence his working out a new method. The results 

 would, perhaps, be different if scarification were resorted to 

 simultaneously with and after bathing with parasiticidal remedies. 

 I believe that the deed of foundation, which requires that the 

 donations of the hospital should pass over to other institutions 

 if curing by scarification were deviated from, might be eluded 

 by adding douche-baths to scarification. 



Didot recommended quite lately preparations of tannin. So- 

 lutions of tannin should, at all events, be employed after epilation, 

 without which it would be useless. 



APPENDIX. 



Experiments made on the growth and contagiousness of the favi 

 by Remak and others. 



The spores of fresh and dried scabs were found to germinate 

 on slices of an apple. After twenty-four hours the sporidia 

 exhibited short, pale, homogeneous, cylindrical outgrowths, which 

 grew longer and more transparent during the following days, and 

 became limited by pale outlines, whilst they themselves remained 

 dark at those places which did not present any outgrowth. Small 

 oval cavities were observed on the third and fourth days in the 

 outgrowths, not separated by partition walls, which increased in 

 size during the following days. On the sixth day observation 

 became suspended by the luxuriant growth of the Penicillium 

 glaucum, or some other species of mould, which covered entirely 

 the favus-fungus, and, perhaps, their development was altogether 

 stopped by the decomposition of the masses of fungi in consequence 

 of the chemical alteration of the soil. The sporidia of the favus- 

 fungus differ essentially from the simultaneously occurring spores of 

 Penicillium and other fungi, in that they represent a many (three 

 or four) sided germination. The spores of the favus-fungus germi- 

 nate also in solution of sugar, but produce only thallus-threads, and 

 no sporidia-filaments. The latter are formed when the sporidia 

 are exposed to the action of the atmosphere. The mass of scabs 

 crumbles in spring and distilled water without germinating. The 

 spores do not germinate in blood-serum, solution of the white of 

 an egg, muscle, brain, on severed pieces of the skin of man and 

 animals, or on animal fats. They germinated speedily, however, 



