VIII 



BANISHING THE PLAGUES 



" A VERY small, frail man; obviously nervous in 



*\ temperament and doubtless on occasion irri- 

 table, but in our interview most gracious." 



I find this entry in my note book in reference to 

 a recent visit to Paul Ehrlich at his famous laboratory 

 in Frankfort on the Main. As I recall the occasion, 

 the picture of the man that comes to my mind em- 

 phasizes the appearance of alertness, quickness of 

 apprehension, nervous energy of action that charac- 

 terize the great scientific investigator; traits that 

 doubtless account in no small measure for his 

 achievements. 



But there also comes to mind the recollection of 

 a seemingly naive personality no less characteristic 

 of a man whose life has been chiefly spent viewing 

 the world through a microscope and looking beyond 

 the limits of the visible to picture in imagination the 

 activities of unseen molecules and atoms. 



I recall the obvious and open pride, the boyish en- 

 thusiasm, with which the great savant beckoned me 

 to one side of his room to inspect some wax models 

 showing hands of afflicted persons before and after 

 treatment with his newly discovered remedy "606" 

 of which all the world has now heard. 



222 



