48 THE GERM THEORY OF DISEASE. 



with the same results. These observations were repeated and 

 corroborated by a very large number of observers, within a 

 short time, and Davaine claims that after twenty-five successive 

 transmissions, he found one-trillionth part of a drop of blood 

 sufficient to cause the disease and produce death. The disease 

 induced, however, was pya3inia. And in these experiments 

 this remained constant, no matter -what disease the patient 

 had from whom the blood was taken. 



The developments of this series of experiments were very 

 curious. It was found that if the blood was filtered, and the 

 serum thus obtained injected, sickness and death resulted, 

 but no pyaBinic abscesses occurred. The disease induced was 

 different. Now, a long time ago, pya3mia was supposed to be 

 caused by the absorption of pus. This was denied, and after 

 much discussion of the subject, there was an effort to abandon 

 this term, which was supposed to misrepresent the facts. 

 Septicaemia was introduced instead. The new name, how- 

 ever, only partially succeeded in displacing the old ; for, when 

 septicaemia occurred, with the formation of abscesses, it was 

 still termed pyaemia, to distinguish this accompaniment. This 

 series of experiments seemed to demonstrate that, in the one 

 case, septicaBmia is caused by absorption of the fluids con- 

 taminated by the effete material of the cocco-bacteria ; while 

 the other, pyremia, is caused by both the absorption of the 

 fluids and the entrance of the cocco-bacteria. 



Recently, however, it has been shown that each .variety is 

 caused by a special form of micro-organism. The organism 

 causing septica3inia being so minute as to get through the 

 filter, had escaped the earlier investigators. Dr. Koch of 

 Berlin, and others, have clearly demonstrated that the fluids 

 deprived of bacteria will produce transient poisoning ; or if 

 in sufficient quantity, will kill; demonstrating its poisonous 

 nature. 



