
158 THE EVOLUTION OF LIFE 
Cest-a-dive faite avec de Teau pure et de la potasse pure, Pune et 
Pautre exemptes de maticres organiques. Si le Dr Bastian veut se 
servir d’une solution de potasse impure, je Cautorise encore parfatte- 
ment a la prendre telle et quelconque, dans le pharmacopée anglaise 
ou atlleurs, trés-diluée ou concentrée, a la seule condition que cette 
solution sera portée préaloblement a 110 degrés pendant vingt 
minutes ou a 130 degrés pendant cing minutes.) 
“C’est assez clair, ce me semble, et M. Bastian me comprendra 
cette fois.” 
On February 12 I replied that I had accepted 
his challenge, and that I had repeated my exper- 
ment first with liquor potassze heated in a tube to 
110 C. for sixty minutes, and then with some which 
had been raised to 110° C. for twenty hours, with 
results similar to those that I had obtained when 
the liquor potassze tubes had been heated only to 
100 C., and added in suitable quantity: that is to 
say, in twenty-four to forty-eight hours the urine was 
in full fermentation and swarmed with Bacteria. 
M. Pasteur thanked me for accepting his challenge, 
and begged the Academy to nominate a Commission 
‘to report upon the fact” which had been under 
discussion between Dr Bastian and himself. And 
in the next number of the Comptes Rendus there 
appeared an announcement that “MM. Dumas, 
Milne Edwards, and Boussingault sont designés pour 
constituer la Commission qui sera appelée a ex- 
primer une opinion sur le fait que est en discussion 
entre M. le Dr Bastian et M. Pasteur.” I wrote to M. 
Dumas on February 27, saying, “If a convenient 
time can be arranged I shall be very happy to come 
to Paris for three days, in order to perform my ex- 
1 All italics as in the original. 
