212 APPENDIX 



strength of the dried venom does not vary, this 

 preliminary titration gives a constant standard, 

 which is practically permanent, since one gram of 

 venom suffices for about 5000 complete tests. The 

 standardization is different for infants as compared 

 with adults, for the red corpuscles of infants and 

 young children haemolyze much more readily than 

 those of adults. The cells, however, acquire the 

 same degree of resistance as do those of adults in 

 disease. 



Weil states that the cobra venom reaction appears 

 to have certain advantages over the Wassermann 

 reaction. It is much simpler and the labor much 

 less. Less blood is required, so that a few drops 

 from the lobe of the ear suffice for a reaction; this 

 is of some importance in infants. Cases of scarlet 

 fever and of leprosy do not offer a source of con- 

 fusion. The reaction is more marked in old, 

 apparently dormant cases. The reaction persists 

 much longer after mercurialization, thus offering a 

 further diagnostic and therapeutic test. The reac- 

 tion is possible in cases of jaundice, whereas the 

 Wassermann is not. 



Antitrypsin Determinations. 



We have already pointed out that the animal 

 body responds to the injection of ferments by 

 the production of antiferments. Considerable in- 



