Oct, 2;, 1887] 



NATURE 



619 



the biting animal were submitted to the treatment, and only the 

 weak inoculations were used. The rabid condition of the 

 biting animal was in all the cases proved either by experiments 

 with the brain of the animals or by post-mortem examina- 

 tions. Out of the 122 patients treated, whose ages varied 

 between fourteen months and sixty-one years, threedied ; the rate 

 of mortality being 2*4 per cent. In fourteen cases the wounds 

 were on the head or in the face. To this series belonged two 

 <leaths ; while in seventy-two cases the upper extremity was the 

 seat of the wound, in which group the third death occurred. As 

 Pasteur had laid great stress on the previous cauterization of the 

 wounds, Dr. Ullmann was carrying out some experiments to 

 examine the influence of cauterization. Animals were infected 

 siibaitaneously with the virus of rabies, and then treated with 

 cauterizations by lapis infernalis or fuming nitric acid. All 

 these animals died from rabies, even when the cauterization was 

 applied immediately after the infection, as could be shown by 

 experimental inoculation with their brains. Only two animals 

 cauterized on the spot with the Paqueline (ferrum candens) 

 remained healthy. The eminent value of the preventive inocu- 

 lations could easily be ascertained by some of the cases treated 

 by Dr. Ullmann. In Rzcszo-m, a Polish village, five persons 

 were bitten by a rabid dog. Three of them were brought to 

 Vienna, where they were treated by Pasteur's inoculations ; they 

 remained healthy, while the two others remaining at ho^ne not 

 inoculated d'ed from hydrophobia after two weeks. Also in 

 some other cases, persons bitten by rabid dogs but not submitted 

 to Pasteur's treatment died, while the inoculated persons bitten 

 by the same animal were not attacked by the disease. These 

 experiments seem to be crucial experiments, proving clearly the 

 usefulness of Pasteur's method. 



It may be also stated that Dr. Ullmann had to defray the 

 expenses of his experiments and of the inoculations from his 

 own pocket, as the Austrian Government refused to grant 

 any subvention for carrying out Pasteur's experiments, " on 

 account of the frequent mishaps" ! It is impossible to say from 

 what source the Government obtained knowledge of these mis- 

 haps, as it did not try to get any information on the matter 

 either in Paris or in Vienna. On the other side, the Hun- 

 garian Government has acknowledged the high merits of 

 M. Pasteur by conferring on him the Order of the Iron Crown. 



Dr. von Frisch criticised the statistical data given by 

 Pasteur and Chamberland. He argued that there should be a 

 decrease of cases of rabies if the method were successful ; but 

 the number of cases has increased. The fixed virus is 

 an inconstant power, the period of incubation after its inocula- 

 tion being a various one, nit restricted to seven or eight 

 days. Inoculation after previous infection does not provide 

 certain immunity. The compulsory inoculation of dogs should 

 be introduced to prevent rabies in man. 



Prof. Metschnikoff, the celebrated Russian biologist, reported 

 on the results obtained at the Bacteriological Station of Odessa. 

 713 persons, bitten by rabid animals, had been treated by 

 Dr. Gamaleia. At first the results obtained were unfavour- 

 able, too weak emulsions having been used for the inocu- 

 lations, as was proved by later experiments. Since July 

 1886, 532 persons were treated by the intensive method. 

 In 137 out of these 532 cases, emulsions weaker than of 

 two-days' incubations were injected ; 9 persons died, the 

 rate of mortality being 6"5 per cent. Of 88 persons inocu- 

 lated once with a two-days' virus, 2 died {i.e. 2 '3 per cent.) ; 

 while among the last 307 cases, treated at least twice with a two- 

 days' emulsion, only 2 deaths (0'6 per cent.) occurred. The 

 average mortality in all these 532 cases was 2*4 per cent. The 

 value of the intensive treatment could easily be understood in 

 the case of persons bitten by rabid wolves. Of 36 persons 

 bitten by rabid wolves, 6 were subjected to the weak treatment, 

 and 2 of them died ; the other 30, inoculated with two-days' virus, 

 remaining healthy. In some cases even the one-day's virus was 

 used with the best results ; e.g. among 5 persons bitten by 

 rabid wolves, inoculated six times with one-day's virus, the out- 

 break of rabies had been prevented. Experiments on 1503 

 animals were carried out by Dr. Bardach, who was able to 

 prove the correctness of Pasteur's statements regarding the 

 seven-days' period of incubation of his fixed virus. In some cases, 

 however, the period of incubation was found to be prolonged ; 

 but the prolongation was caused by some other parasitic diseases 

 of the animals, which will be described by Dr. Bardach in a 

 forthcoming paper. In concluding his report, Prof. MetschnikofT 

 stated that " the results obtained at the Odessa Bacteriological 



Station are very strongly in favour of Pasteur's discoveries, which 

 decidedly must be regarded as epoch-making," 



Dr. De Renzi (Naples), described his experiments on rabbits, 

 in which, by the injecting of brain-emulsion into the blood-vessels, 

 rabies had been produced. But neither by this method nor by 

 subcutaneous injections of the fixed virus was he in every case 

 able to produce rabies in rabbits, which sometimes showed »- 

 munity against this infection. He expressed also the optnioB 

 that no gradual difTerence of the attenuation of the vims seems 

 to exist. 



In summing up the different views of the speakers Dr. 

 Chamberland was able to state that the high value of Pasteur's 

 discoveries was acknowledged by everybody. 



THE MINERAL WEALTH OF THE UNITED 

 STATES. 



C\^ Saturday, October 8, a lecture on this subject was de- 

 ^^ livered at the American Exhibition by Dr. A. E. Foote, of 

 Philadelphia, who, as Acting Commissioner from Pennsylvania, 

 has exhibited a fine collection illustrating the mineral resources of 

 that great State. The Chairman, Mr. F". W. Rudler, President 

 of the Geologists' Association, congratulated the audience upon 

 being able to listen to one who, from his very extensive and 

 personal observation, was well qualified to treat such a subject. 



Dr. Foote pointed out that the geological formation of a country 

 was the basis of its mineral wealth, and illustrated this by the 

 remarkably fine large geological map of the United States com- 

 piled by Prof. Hitchcock from the work done by the United 

 States and State Geological Surveys. His statistics were mostly 

 based upon Williams's " Mineral Resources," of 1885. 



As a Pennsylvanian he was happy to say that of 95,000,000 of 

 tons of coal mined in that year nearly two-thirds the tonnage, and 

 fully two-thirds the value, was produced in Pennsylvania. Of 

 this amount 34,000,000 of tons was anthracite. The Girard 

 Trust, that noblest of America's educational charities, ex- 

 hibits a mass of anthracite from their mines in Schnylkill 

 County, Pennsylvania, that measures 22^ cubic feet, and 

 weighs 2256 pounds. Coal is now found in workable quanti- 

 ties in thirty States ani Territories. Of iron there was less 

 in value mined in 1884 than the value of the petroleum — 

 ;i^4,ooo,ODO sterling — but with the steady revival of business the 

 production has rapidly increased, until this year it may reach a 

 total of ;^6,ooo,ooo sterling. The iron area is being developed 

 almost as rapidly as the coal. The greatest activity has been 

 manifested in Alabama, near Sheffield and Birmingham. The 

 latter city is the most wonderful example of rapid, solid business 

 development that America has ever seen. Perhaps nowhere 

 else in the world can such a favourable combination of coal, 

 iron, and limestone be found. 



But for the remarkable development of natural gas near 

 Pittsburg, far more of Pennsylvania's capital would have 

 been transferred to this favoured locality. Natural gas 

 was first used for lighting the town of Fredonia, New York, 

 in 1825, and this well, still in operation, was pronounced 

 by Humboldt an eighth wonder of the world. Here, however, 

 it was used simply for lighting, but it is far better suited for 

 heating, owing to the absence of the heavy hydro-carbons. It 

 is principally marsh-gas, ethane, hydrogen, and nitrogen. In 

 October of 1875 ^^ ^^^ first used in the smelting of iron at the 

 mills of Spang, Chalfant, and Co., at Etna, near Pittsburg. The 

 gas was brought 17 miles from the " Harvey," the leading well 

 of the region. When turned into the 6-inch iron pipe the pres- 

 sure was so great that it travelled the entire distance in twenty- 

 two minutes. Mr, Foote visited the works in December 1875, 

 and it was already in full and successful operation, turning out 

 the purest iron, equal to the best Swedish. Its success was so 

 striking that it was almost instantly introduced into all the iron, 

 glass, and other manufactories of this great centre of America's 

 industry. It is also used in all the heating and lighting of the city. 

 The cost is about one-quarter that of coal, and it is estimated that 

 it will this year take the place of coal to the value of ;^6,ooo,ooo 

 steriing. Not the least of its advantages is its freedom from 

 smoke, so that what was once an unbearably dirty city now has air 

 as pure as that of a country village. The enormous waste that has 

 been going on is illustrated by the history of the "Haymaker" 

 Well, No. I, which in five years wasted 2^400,000 worth of gas, 

 or nea'-ly ;^200 daily. There were hundreds of such wells. 



Gold and silver were touched upon very briefly, as others who were 



