456 Chapter XV 



degeneration. Funck^ thought that he was able to confirm the 

 discovery of the sporozoon of vaccinia, but his error was easily 

 demonstrated (Podwyssozki and Mankowski)2. Up to the present, 

 then, we have no knowledge of either the micro-organism of small- 

 pox or of that of vaccinia. We still employ, as formerly, the virus 

 taken from the vaccinal pustule. Even the relations which exist 

 between the two viruses and the two diseases which they have set up 

 have not yet been settled. Several authors believe that the bovine 

 disease is only a modified and attenuated form of human small-pox ; 

 whilst others maintain that we have two very dififerent exanthemata, 

 one of which — cow-pox— is capable of setting up immunity not only 

 against itself but also against small-pox. 



For a long time, in order to vaccinate against small-pox, the con- 

 tents of the vaccinal pustules which formed on the human subject 

 after an original inoculation of the virus of cow-pox were employed. 

 But a number of cases of infection by syphilitic virus and certain 

 other accidents caused this method to be abandoned. A number of 

 years ago, however, there spread throughout Europe and into several 

 countries of other continents another method, which consists in 

 vaccination by "animal lymph," that is to say, by the contents of 

 pustules developed on the skin of the calf This method was first 

 carried out at Brussels in 1868, under the direction of Warlomont, at 

 the Institute founded by the Belgian Government for the preparation 

 of vaccine. The original virus came from a genuine case of cow-pox 

 and has since been kept up by uninterrupted passage from calf to 

 calf The virus is introduced into the shaved skin of the region 

 between the groin and the udder as far forward as the umbilicus. It 

 is inoculated superficially into the epidermis by cuts one centimetre 

 long. At the points of inoculation characteristic pustules develop ; 

 from these the vaccinal content is withdrawn, on the fifth day in 

 summer or the sixth in winter. The contents are removed by 

 pressure and by scraping the pustules. The scrapings are mixed 

 with water and glycerine. The vaccine thus prepared is put into 

 small glass tubes which are sealed at both ends. This method, with 

 slight modifications, has extended to many other countries, and is 

 [479] carried out either in private establishments or in State institutions 

 as in Germany. For the purpose of purifying the vaccine it is 



* Deutsche med. Wchnschr., Leipzig, 1901, S. 130; Brit. Med. Journ.j London, 

 1901, Vol. I, p. 44S. 



2 Deutsche med. Wchtischr., Leipzig, 1901, S. 261. 



