210 PROTISTS AND DISEASE 



We cannot advise vaccination against syphilis, the 

 parasite of which may lurk in the tissues for a number of 

 decades without evidence of their presence, and then produce 

 some obvious late lesion. Have the common exanthems 

 sequels corresponding to those of the fever of syphilis ? 

 Looking through the index of any book on diseases we 

 note in addition to cancer and exanthems others of unknown 

 causation. May not some be caused by the parasites of 

 long-past fevers the causal germs of which still live in us ? 



We have specific treatment for syphilis. If we had safe 

 and sure specific remedies for the common specific fevers, 

 we might by their use prevent other diseases including 

 possibly some cases of cancer. 



Virchow. In all its epochs pathology has been befogged 

 by more or less mock-knowledge : we have had our own 

 nebula, " parasyphilis," which a little real knowledge has 

 dispelled. Virchow cleared away a great accumulation of 

 such pseudopathology. He found Schwann's merit to consist 

 in the recognition of the cell as the origin of all tissues and 

 physiological properties. His own instruction reads : " I 

 formulate the doctrine of pathological generation, of neoplasia 

 in the sense of cellular-pathology simply : omnis cellula a 

 celluld." 



Tumours in present-day pathology. Having been no 

 more than an amateur in pathology for 26 years past some 

 important advance may have escaped my notice ; at any 

 rate I can only think of one accepted change that has been 



