670 APPENDIX. 



cians in general, and also, apparently, so far as the 

 literature seen by me indicates, by those familiar with 

 rabies. For this reason physicians when applying a 

 cautery later than an hour after infection do so largely 

 as a matter of form, for its moral effect on the patient, 

 and so the application is not thorough, and in conse- 

 quence not effectual. There is no evidence to show 

 that this is the case at all; no systematic investigations 

 have been published, so far as we know, to prove the 

 point one way or the other. 



We know that the virus of rabies is not carried into the 

 system by the blood, but through the nervous system. 

 Dr. Follen Cabot carried out an extensive series of 

 experiments in the laboratory upon guinea-pigs which 

 showed : 1. That 91 per cent, of guinea-pigs can be 

 prevented from developing rabies if the wounds be cau- 

 terized with chemically pure nitric acid at the end of 

 twenty-four hours from the time of infection, probably 

 a larger percentage if the cautery be used earlier. 2. 

 That fuming nitric acid is more effectual than the actual 

 cautery or pure nitrate of silver. 3. That some degree 

 of benefit is derived from thoroughly opening and swab- 

 bing out an infected wound within twenty four hours 

 from the time of infection when no cautery is used. 

 I believe that he demonstrated that in cases in which 

 the Pasteur treatment cannot be applied great benefit 

 may be derived from the correct use of cauterization 

 even twenty-four hours after infection, and that even 

 in cases in which the Pasteur treatment can be given, 

 an early cauterization will be of great assistance as a 

 routine practice, and should be very valuable, as the 

 Pasteur treatment is frequently delayed several days, 

 for obvious reasons, and does not always protect. In 



