ON THE INGESTS AND EGESTA 17 



disease and its treatment, preventive, curative, and amelio- 

 rative, on a more exact and scientific basis. 



As bearing on the course of modern research, these 

 deductions, moreover, point to the necessity of our 

 primarily possessing an exact knowledge of the pheno- 

 mena embraced within the area of transition from the 

 physiological to the pathological "state of things," in 

 order clearly to apprehend the order and sequence of the 

 events embraced in such disease processes as are now 

 engaging a large proportion of professional and lay atten- 

 tion, as it would thus seem that many of the problems 

 now being regarded as primary in the causation of these 

 diseases are but secondary, and flowing out of or permitted 

 by those of circulatory stasis, or arrestment. Thus cell 

 mitosis, bacterial invasion, the renewal of developmental 

 phenomena by embryonic "survivals," et hoc genus 

 omne^ but represent phenomena, due to pauses, more or 

 less long and complete, in some part or other of the 

 universal process of the human corporeal circulation, with 

 the dependent greater or lesser suspension or modification 

 of the work of organic life and the invulnerability of 

 living tissue substance, due to its maintenance at the 

 normal standard by vital activity with the implied power 

 of vital resistance to the attack of pathological influences 

 and agencies the lapses of which latter constitute the 

 opportunities for the successful initiation and evolution 

 of pathological entities and processes, or disease. The 

 key, therefore, by which to unlock the hiding places of 

 disease generally is an exhaustive knowledge of the 

 phenomena of hindered or arrested circulation within the 

 spheres of influence embraced in the great areas of inges- 

 tion, metabolism, and egestion, with all of pathological 

 change permitted or induced thereby. 



In the title of this study or extract, we have included, 

 in particular, "the process or manner of disposal of the 

 egesta." We, therefore, in addition to what has been 

 already said on the subject, would make a few further 

 observations. The egesta represent the used up and 

 consequently effete and sometimes noxious products of 

 ingestion and metabolism, and begin to collect and to 

 become egestive products on their metabolic or katabolic 



