THE EFFECTS OF CERTAIN ANTISEPTICS 177 



fourteen minutes, and Delepine's results show that 1 part to 50 

 (equal to '66 per cent, of chlorine) rapidly kills the tubercle 

 bacillus, and 1 part to 10 (equal to 3 '3 per cent.) killed anthrax 

 spores. Klein found that *05 per cent, of chlorine killed most 

 bacterial spores in five minutes. 



Iodine Ter chloride. This is a very unstable compound of 

 iodine and chlorine, and, seeing that the substance only remains 

 as IC1 3 in an atmosphere of chlorine gas, it is open to doubt 

 whether the antiseptic effects attributed to it are not due to a 

 very complicated action of free hydrochloric acid, hydriodic acid, 

 of oxyacids of chlorine and iodine produced by its decomposition, 

 and also, in certain cases, of organic iodine compounds formed 

 from its contact with albuminous material. It is stated that the 

 action is very potent : a 1 per cent, solution is said instantly to 

 kill even anthrax spores, but if the spores be in bouillon, death 

 occurs after from ten to twelve minutes. In serum the necessary 

 exposure is from thirty to forty minutes. A solution of 1-1000 

 will kill the typhoid, cholera, and diphtheria organisms in five 

 minutes. 



Nascent Oxygen. This is chiefly available in two ways firstly, 

 when in the breaking up of ozone the free third atom of the 

 ozone molecule is seeking to unite with another similar atom ; 

 secondly, when peroxide of hydrogen is broken up into water 

 and an oxygen atom is thereby liberated. In commerce the 

 activity of " Sanitas " compounds is due to the formation of 

 ozone by the slow oxidation of the resin, camphor, and thymol 

 they contain. 



Perchloride of Mercury. Of all the salts of the heavy metals 

 this has been most widely employed, and must be regarded as 

 one of the most powerful and useful of known antiseptics. In 

 testing its action on anthrax spores there is no doubt that in the 

 earlier results its potency was overrated from a neglect of the 

 fact already alluded to, that in the spore-case an albuminate of 

 mercury was formed which prevented the contained protoplasm 

 from developing, while not depriving it of life. It has been 

 found, however, that this salt in a strength of 1-100 will kill the 

 spores in twenty minutes, although an hour's exposure to 1-1000 

 has no effect. The best results are obtained by the addition to 

 the corrosive sublimate solution of '5 per cent, of sulphuric acid 

 or hydrochloric acid ; the spores will then be killed by a seventy- 

 minute exposure to a 1-200 solution. When, however, organisms 

 in the vegetative condition are being dealt with, much weaker 

 solutions are sufficient; thus anthrax bacilli in blood will be 

 killed in a few minutes by 1-2000, in bouillon by 1-40,000, and 

 12 



