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EXAMINATION OF PASTEUR’S DOCTRINES — 109 
sequently, what is necessary is not to alter the liquid, 
but to make the conditions of the experiment as 
regards temperature as exact as possible. In this 
respect Huizinga’s experiment is a confirmation of 
Bastian’s and nothing more.” 
These remarks are perfectly just. From the 
point of view of the interpretation to be given to the 
experiments it was immaterial how many germs were 
in the materials used, the real question’ was, as 
Burdon Sanderson said, whether germs that were 
present would be destroyed by the process of heat- 
ing employed. 
For the present, moreover, we are not con- 
sidering the question of interpretation—we are 
concerned solely with a question of fact, namely, was 
Pasteur right or wrong in proclaiming that fluids 
having an acid reaction, after being boiled for a few 
minutes in glass vessels and subsequently guarded 
from atmospheric contamination, would subsequently 
show no signs of fermentation and reveal no living 
things therein? As regards this question of fact my 
experiments have shown that he was wrong. In 
addition to acid turnip infusions, such as were used 
in some of my experiments with Burdon Sanderson, 
I had obtained similar results with other acid fluids ; 
and I shall have to record many new successful re- 
sults in Chapters xix. and xx., with acid solutions 
containing an ammoniacal and other salts. 
The columns of Mature during 1873 contain much 
discussion concerning these old experiments to which 
we have been referring ; but as the letters and articles 
there to be found had almost solely to do with the 
