LETTERS FROM M. LAVOISIER TO DR. BLACK. 189 



destroy the vitality of ordinary parasitic germs, though it was abundantly 

 manifest that the free nematodes had suffered nothing in consequence. 



As some guarantee for the efficient manner in which the carcass of the ox 

 ■was examined, I may mention that the superficial muscles, with their asso- 

 ciated areolar and aponeurotic coverings, were particularly investigated, 

 portions of certain muscles, such as the scaleni and sterno-maxillaris, being 

 dissected through and through. All the viscera were likewise scrutinized, 

 especially the brain, lungs, liver, bladder, kidneys, paunch, reed, caecum, and 

 other natural divisions of the intestinal canal. The animal was not exces- 

 sively fat, whilst its muscles were well developed and of a deep carneous lustre. 

 84 Wimpole Street, London, T. Spencek Cobbold, M.D., F.E.S. 



July 18, 1871. 



Remarlcs hy the Committee. 



With regard to the examination of the carcass of the ox, which had been 

 fed for twenty-two months on sewaged produce at Breton's Farm, those mem- 

 bers of the Committee who were present and examined it with Dr. Cobbold 

 concur in his statement as to its perfect freedom from internal parasites of 

 all kinds; and they can also subscribe to most of his observations with regard 

 to the possible reasons for this immunity. They wish especially to draw at- 

 tention (1) to the fact, that on this farm there is " a remarkable absence of 

 those molluscan and insect forms of life wliich frequently play the part 

 of intermediary bearers " to entozoal lax-viE : it would appear that the sewage 

 drives these creatures away or kills them ; and (2) to the composition of the 

 " flaky vegetable tufts " collected from the sides of the carriers ; these contained 

 " numerous active free nematodes, but no ova of any true entozoon." 



But the Committee cannot support the opinion expressed by Dr. Cobbold^ 

 that the strong smell of beer which the sewage had (caused of course merely 

 by hop waste) would suggest " the presence of sufficient alcohol to destroy 

 the vitality of ordinary parasitic germs," as the quantity of alcohol which 

 would be necessary for this purpose in so large a bulk of sewage would be 

 enormous, and especially as, as Dr. Cobbold says, " it was abundantly mani- 

 fest that the free nematodes had suffered nothing in consequence." 



It appears, then, that, as far as this one case goes (and it is certainly as con- 

 clusive as a single case could possibly be), there is no evidence that entozoal 

 forms of life are to be found on the farm at all in any stage of their existence, 

 or in the flesh of an animal fed exclusively for twenty-two months on sewaged 

 produce grown on the farm. 



Letters from M. Laa'oisier to Dr. Black. 



[Ordered by tlic General Committee to be printed in the Annual Report.] 



Paris le 19 S'eptembre, 1789. 

 MoxsiEUR, — C'est un membre de I'acadc'mie Royale des Sciences de Paris 

 qui vous c'crit a titre de Confrere : c'est un des plus zeles admirateurs de la 

 profondeur de votre genie et des importantes revolutions que vos decouvertea 

 out occasionnces dans les Sciences, qui profite, pour avoir I'honneur de vous 

 ocrire, de I'occasion de M. de Boullogne qui va fuiir son education a Edim- 

 bourg. Permettez-moi de vous le recommander. II joint a d'heureuses dis- 

 positions un grand desir de s'instruire et il regarde comme un grand bonheur 

 pour lui d'avoir une occasion pour se presenter a vous. II a bien voulu, 

 Monsieur, se charger de vous remettre un exemplaire d'uu ouvrage que je 

 yiens de publier ; vous y trouvercz une partie des idees dont vous avez jette 



