SCIENCE 



FRIDAY, JULY 13, 188S. 



No SCIENTIFIC REPORT published by the government this year 

 has been more important than that just made by Dr. J. J. Kinyovvn, 

 assistant surgeon in the Marine Hospital Service, upon the germi- 

 cidal powers of the different methods of disinfection practised under 

 the direction of the Louisiana Board of Health at the quarantine 

 station below New Orleans. The report is important, not only be- 

 cause it shows the degree of protection against the importation of 

 infectious diseases through the important port of New Orleans ; 

 but also, since the methods of disinfection practised at other quar- 

 antine stations are similar to those in use there, the experiments 

 show approximately the efficacy of each mode of disinfection, and 

 suggest changes that should be made in their use. The three 

 methods of disinfection tested were by the use of bichloride-of- 

 mercury solution, the application of dry and moist heat, and fumi- 

 gation with sulphur dioxide. Dr. Kinyown finds the first of these 

 methods defective, because of the difficulty of getting the disinfect- 

 ing-agent into cracks and corners, carpets, rubber goods, the under 

 sides of decks, and into lockers, etc. He discovered in all these 

 localities and articles that the micro-organisms existing before the 

 disinfection had not been destroyed, and he found them as plenti- 

 ful on the floor of the forecastle of one ship, that was exceptionally 

 filthy, after it had been drenched with bichloride of mercury for an 

 hour, as before. Dr. Kinyown recommends, that, in order to make 

 this mode of disinfection more effectual, the bichloride of mercury 

 be applied with a spray produced by a connection with a steam- 

 boiler, and that it be applied after fumigation by sulphur. The re- 

 sults from the application of dry and moist heat were the most sat- 

 isfactory of all. Cultivations of various disease-germs exposed to 

 a dry heat of So° C, and afterwards to steam at a temperature of 

 100" C, were, with few exceptions, destroyed. Dr. Kinyown thinks, 

 that, in order to secure absolute protection, the heat should be 

 made greater and the time of exposure increased. In eleven ex- 

 periments seventy-four disease-germs were placed in vessels among 

 articles to be disinfected by the use of sulphur dioxide, but only 

 sixteen of the whole were destroyed, or less than twenty-two per 

 cent. Dr. Kinyown has very little to say about this method of 

 alleged disinfection, except to recoinmend that the sulphurous 

 fumes be applied in larger quantities, and confined in the compart- 

 ments to be disinfected a longer time. But he reports his experi- 

 inents in full, and lets them speak for themselves. The net result 

 of these tests is to show that some disease-germs escape even when 

 the most effectual modes of disinfection practised at quarantine be- 

 low New Orleans are resorted to, and that less than one-fourth of 

 them are killed when the least effective method is used. We as- 

 sume that quarantine and city health officers everywhere will profit 

 by the suggestions of this report, and that the public will be better 

 protected in the future than in the past. 



At the recent meeting of the Massachusetts Assembly of 

 the Agassiz Association in Boston, Prof. W. O. Crosby called at- 

 tention to the fact that Mr. Harlan H. Ballard, the president of the 

 association, in the ' Three Kingdoms ' and elsewhere, has rightly 

 emphasized the importance of studying the local natural historj-, 

 and explained that this is especially desirable for the department of 

 geology and mineralogy, since the rocks and minerals are in most 



parts of the country, and especially in New England, much more 

 localized than the fauna and flora. Thus, while the animals and 

 plants must always change gradually from place to place, and may 

 be nearly the same for an entire State, the geological features, the 

 rocks and minerals, change very abruptly, and sometimes com- 

 pletely, as we pass from one formation to another ; so that adjoining 

 towns and neighborhoods are sometimes as strongly contrasted in 

 their mineralogy and geology as the most distant parts of the earth. 

 It will be readily seen that where this is true it is particularly desir- 

 able that each chapter should give attention chiefly to its own field ; 

 and interesting results may be expected from the presentation and 

 comparison, at these annual meetings, of the work done in the dif- 

 ferent parts of the State. In this way each chapter will gain not 

 only a valuable training in observation, but also that real and satis- 

 factory knowledge of the local geolog)' which can be obtained only 

 through original study ; while through the interchange of results 

 and ideas the field is broadened, and the methods of work grad- 

 ually improved. Professor Crosby spoke further as follows : 

 " During all the time that I have been conducting the lessons in 

 elementary and determinative mineralogy, I have felt that we should 

 realize more fully the ideal plan of work for the Agassiz Associa- 

 tion, if I could co-operate with meinbers and chapters in the study 

 of their local geology and mineralogy. Of course, it would be pre- 

 posterous for any one to propose to do this for the entire organiza- 

 tion. Not to mention other difficulties, such as the time required, 

 it would be out of the question for any one specialist to have that 

 detailed knowledge of the geology of the entire United States 

 which would be required for the successful operation of such a 

 plan. The organization of the Massachusetts Assembly has, how- 

 ever, suggested to me that I might, perhaps, be of some real as- 

 sistance in this direction to the Massachusetts chapters. But, in 

 offering to assist those who are really in earnest, I have no thought, 

 of course, of pre-empting the field, or excluding other geologists. 

 I simply desire to say that I, for one, shall be glad, so far as my 

 time and ability will permit, to render such assistance as may be 

 needed. I can help you sometimes in the determination of speci- 

 mens ; although it is to be hoped, for your ow-n sakes, that you 

 will heed Mr. Ballard's advice to exhaust your own resources be- 

 fore applying for such aid. I can, perhaps, offer useful suggestions 

 as to the best plans for work in particular localities, and may be 

 able to put you in the way of getting the necessary maps, etc., for 

 the representation of your results. Lastly, though I can imagine 

 that Professor Hyatt would advise me to proceed very slowly here, 

 I can often aid you in finding what has been published on the geol- 

 ogy and mineralogy of the different sections of the State. I shall, 

 however, be very reluctant to do any thing in this direction in ad- 

 vance of good, original work in the field. The literature of your 

 field would at first, in most cases, be only a hinderance to good 

 work. It is to be hoped that every year you will bring your best 

 results to these meetings, not merely brief reports of what you have 

 worked at. but the work itself. Your principal reward will, of 

 course, be the training and knowledge gained, and the satisfaction 

 of having done good work. But it would be very strange indeed 

 if such an exhibit of a year's results did not reveal something new 

 to science, and worthy of publication ; and this is another direc- 

 tion in which we should be glad to lend a hand." No chapter in 

 Massachusetts can afford to neglect so rare an opportunity as Pro- 

 fessor Crosby offers. Will not geologists in other States take a 

 hint from this wise and generous method of encouraging this im- 

 portant branch of study in a practical manner ? 



