October 25, 1901.] 



SCIENCE. 



633 



salts composed according to analyses of 

 blood-ash. The relationship of degree of 

 alkalinity of blood and the incubation 

 period of infections, as well as the immu- 

 nity enjoyed by the bl.ick races, as also in- 

 stances among the white race, and espe- 

 cially with lower animals compared with 

 man, are hinted at. 



No definite results as a therapeutic 

 measure are claimed, but the author wishes 

 to suggest a new trend of thought which 

 will attack disease at its very foundations, 

 altering the composition of the blood and 

 body juices to make them uninhabitable for 

 germ propagation. Introduction by means 

 of infusion into the veins at the elbow in- 

 stead of subcutaneously is resorted to on 

 account of the pain and possible change of 

 composition in the latter method, 500- 

 1,000 cc. of the 1-per-cent. salt solution are 

 infused at one time, controlled by the con- 

 dition of arteries and heart. With this 

 strength neither a dissolution nor a crena- 

 tion of the corpuscles takes place, as dem- 

 onstrated under the microscope, the isotonic 

 coefiicient of human blood compared with 

 various strengths of this solution varying 

 from .44-.58 per cent. N"o harmful effects 

 have been noticed and venesection, to rid 

 the body of some of its toxines in serious 

 cases, is considered a valuable adjunct to 

 the new form of treatment. 



24. ' Cold as a Causal Factor in the 

 Blood Changes due to High Altitude ': 

 John Weinzirl, Albuquerque, New Mexico. 



Up to the present time no satisfactory 

 explanation of the blood changes due to 

 high altitude has been offered. The more 

 commonly accepted hypothesis that the 

 increased blood counts are due to dimin- 

 ished atmospheric pressure, or that] more 

 red corpuscles are required to furnish suf- 

 ficient oxygen to the tissues when the oxy- 

 gen supply is diminished, has serious objec- 

 tions to it. In the first place, the oxygen 

 absorption by the hemoglobin of the red 



cells is a chemical phenomenon independent 

 of the partial pressure of oxygen. Sec- 

 ondly, it is not at all plain why an in- 

 creased number of red cells should be 

 required to carry a given amount of oxy- 

 gen, for, as Paul Bert has shown, the amount 

 of oxygen actually used by an animal is 

 constant even when the supply is dimin- 

 ished by one-half, or when pure oxygen is 

 respired. Nor are the various other hy- 

 potheses that have been offered more satis- 

 factory than the above. An experiment 

 with common white rabbits, planned to test 

 some of these hypotheses, accidentally 

 revealed the fact that extreme temperature 

 changes or a change from a warm to a cold 

 temperature, produced all the phenomena 

 of high altitude ; and that when the ani- 

 mals were subsequently taken to a higher 

 altitude the usual phenomena did not ensue. 

 That the blood counts made in winter 

 are higher in red cells than those made in 

 summer has been previously observed, and 

 comparative tests by the writer confirm 

 this fact. An important factor in altitude 

 changes is a change in temperature, and 

 since cold is capable of producing phe- 

 nomena of the blood identical with those 

 produced by high altitude, it would ap- 

 pear that cold is an important factor in 

 accounting for the blood changes due to 

 high altitude. That cold is the only factor 

 the writer does not maintain, 



Henry B. Ward, 

 Secretary. 



THE GLASGOW MEETING OF THE BRITISH 

 ASSOCIATION FOB THE ADVANCE- 

 MENT OF SCIENCE. 



The enterprise of the city of Glasgow in 

 holding this year a large and successful 

 industrial exposition attracted to that great 

 commercial center a large number of con- 

 gresses, and among others the British Asso- 

 ciation for the Advancement of Science, 

 which held its sessions under the presi- 



