I 



FAILURE OF MEDICAL SCIENCE. 71 



of things which they ought to know, that their confi- 

 dence is weakened in all. They have been blindfolded 

 and led astray so often that they distrust everybody who 

 offers to enlighten and lead them, however much he 

 knows himself to be in the right. But facts should con- 

 vince, and I think I can in every instance produce facts 

 to prove all that I claim. 



I wish this to be distinctly understood. I set no value 

 on theory. My studies have been practical. The ground- 

 work of my discoveries is in observation of Nature. I 

 say nothing which I cannot prove, nothing which is 

 not appreciable to the senses. I rely entirely upon facts 

 to sustain the value of what I have done. I do not claim 

 that the field I have wrought in is untrodden. Thousands 

 of investigators and of the brightest intellects in the 

 world are at work in it. The problem of how to stop 

 fermentation, to destroy fungi, and to prevent the ap- 

 pearance and neutralize the development and operation 

 of microbes is being well handled, but the solution is 

 here. 



We paint our houses not only because they look better 

 painted, but because this process preserves them from 

 decay. The paint checks or stops the development of 

 micro-organisms which find their favorite resting place 

 in wood, brick, or stone, and the best material of that 

 kind is the one which most certainly produces such re- 

 sult. The painter or builder does not stop to inquire the 

 nature of the fungus that threatens him. He does not 

 trouble himself about a scientific investigation. He 

 knows that there is a danger to be met. He knows 

 how to meet it. He understands the remedy to be ap- 

 plied, and he applies it. He is also well aware that the 

 oftener he applies it, and the more effective he makes 

 the application, the better will he preserve his property. 

 One coat of paint is useful, but several are necessary. 

 The matter requires constant attention. The steady 

 repetition of the remedy alone secures all the advantage 

 and makes the protection perfect. 



On the same principle upon which tar and creosote 



