BACTERIAL PROTEINS 43 



bacillus has been grown and has been cleaved in 

 vitro. The action of the poison begins to mani- 

 fest itself within a few minutes from five to 

 twenty and it appears in three well marked 

 stages : The first we have designated as that of 

 peripheral irritation. In the guinea-pig, it is 

 manifest by the animal scratching itself, gen- 

 erally first on the nose and then over every part 

 of the body which can be reached by its claws. 

 In man, an erythematous blush, beginning about 

 the point of injection, spreads over the body 

 and may be followed by an urticarial rash with 

 intense itching. This is not always confined to 

 the cutaneous surface, but may extend to the 

 mucous membrane of the mouth, throat and rec- 

 tum. The second stage is one of partial paraly- 

 sis. The guinea-pig lies on its side, with rapid, 

 shallow and difficult breathing. When urged to 

 move, it shows inability to coordinate its move- 

 ments and partial paralysis is evident, especial- 

 ly in the posterior extremities. In man, the 

 breathing becomes distressingly asthmatic. 

 Air-hunger is marked and there is a sense of 

 impending danger. The convulsive stage marks 

 the termination. The convulsions are usually 

 clonic and at first generally involve only the 

 neck muscles, the head being thrown back. The 

 seizures extend over the body, becoming more 



