CHAPTER XIII 

 1885—1888 



Pasteur had the power of concentrating his thoughts to 

 such a degree that he often, when absorbed in one idea, became 

 absolutely unconscious of what took place around him. At 

 one of the meetings of the Academie Francaise, whilst the 

 Dictionary was being discussed, he scribbled the following note 

 on a stray sheet of paper — 



" I do not know how to hide my ideas from those who work 

 with me; still, I wish I could have kept those I am going to 

 express a little longer to myself. The experiments have 

 already begun which will decide them. 



" It concerns rabies, but the results might be general. 



"I am inclined to think that the virus which is considered 

 rabic may be accompanied by a substance which, by impregnat- 

 ing the nervous system, would make it unsuitable for the 

 culture of the microbe. Thence vaccinal immunity. If that 

 is so, the theory might be a general one : it would be a 

 stupendous discovery. 



" I have just met Chamberland in the Eue Gay-Lussac, and 

 explained to him this view and my experiments. He was much 

 struck, and asked my permission to make at once on anthrax 

 the experiment I am about to make on rabies as soon as the 

 dog and the culture rabbits are dead. Eoux, the day before 

 yesterday, was equally struck. 



" Academie Francaise, Thursday, January 29, 1885." 



Could that vaccinal substance associated with the rabic virus 

 be isolated? In the meanwhile a main fact was acquired, 

 that of preventive inoculation, since Pasteur was sure of his 

 series of dogs rendered refractory to rabies after a bite. Months 

 were going by without bringing an answer to the question 

 " Why ? " of the antirabic vaccination, as mysterious as the 

 44 Why ? " of Jennerian vaccination. 



