THE CHOLERA-GERM. 829 



help or sympathy from others ; and others are many, while self is but 

 one. If, on the other hand, we had found a system of perfect altruism 

 commending itself as best, the acceptance of such a system would be 

 no sacrificing of self to others, but would mean the acceptance of the 

 principle that every one else was bound to assist in all his ways and 

 wishes the accepter of this seemingly altruistic code — to sympathize 

 with him in all his sorrows, and to care for him far more than for 

 themselves. We have not been led to recognize any such abnegation 

 of self on the one hand, or regard for self alone on the other hand, as 

 desirable ; but, in such degree as we have seen a regard for self to be 

 desirable, we have in reality been led to the recognition of the rights 

 of others (since each self is another to all others), while, in such degree 

 as we have seen that each should consider not only the rights but the 

 requirements of others, we have been led in reality to the recognition of 

 the rights of each man to the assistance and sympathy of his fellows. 



THE CHOLEEA-GEEM. 



By E. K. 



AT the present moment, when the Continent has again become the 

 battle-field between cholera and the human race, all questions 

 concerning the cause, diffusion, and prevention of the cholera-virus 

 must take a prominent place in the deliberation on the best sanitary 

 measures to be adopted in combating this insidious foe. Almost all 

 practical preventive measures in this country and on the Continent 

 as regards cholera and other infectious maladies are based on the as- 

 sumption — supported by a good deal of evidence both theoretical and 

 practical — that the virus is particulate, and, as indicated by its self- 

 multiplication within the affected person, is a living organism. But 

 the nature of this supposed organism of cholera has, until quite re- 

 cently, been altogether mysterious. As is well known, Professor 

 Koch and colleagues, sent out last year by the German Government 

 to investigate the cholera in Egypt and India, have ascertained that 

 in the rice-water stools voided by patients suffering from the disease 

 there are present, besides micrococci and bacilli, common to the evacu- 

 ations of other than cholera patients, peculiar curved bacteria, so- 

 called "comma-shaped" bacilli, which Koch has not been able to 

 discover in any cases of diarrhoea. These "comma-shaped" bacilli 

 Koch has succeeded in isolating by artificial culture. Unfortunately, 

 cholera has hitherto not been found transmissible to the lower animals, 

 and therefore the function of these "comma-shaped" bacilli must at 

 present remain unknown. All we can therefore say is that Koch has 

 shown that in cholera evacuations there exist, besides micrococci and 



