BY DR. OSCAR, KATZ. 729 



It is not known to me that exact experiments, especially on 

 pure cultui'es of pathogenic bacteria, have yet been made Avitli 

 this novel preparation, and as there seems to be a large weekly 

 output of, and a good sale for, this article in some of the Aus- 

 tralian colonies, I thought it worth while to test its alleged 

 efficacy in a few cases. I may mention before-hand that 

 for each series of experiments carried out I used a freshly 

 opened tin, the contents of which showed a greyish or 

 greenish-grey colour (conf. above). It being advisable to submit 

 to the very same tests, and under precisely the same circum- 

 stances, another largely used substance, with the effects of which in 

 regard to disinfection and deodorization those of the " Cattanach 

 preparation" could be compared, I chose the well-known flesh- 

 coloured " Cai'bolic Disinfectant, Antiseptic, and Deodorizing 

 Powder/' which is sold in yellow tins, with black scripture 

 printed on them. 



From a practical point of view it seemed \ery desirable to know 

 what, if any, value the new substance under consideration has, 

 as a germicide for the bacillus of typhoid fever, this disease 

 being the most fatal of infectious human diseases in Australia. 

 It will, I think, not be quite out of place here to point out in 

 a few words that only a few years have elapsed since the time 

 when we became acquainted with pure cultures of the above 

 micro-oz'ganism. A number of investigators have since been at 

 work in the study of this bacillus, and although it has not been 

 proved yet that by transmission of the cultivated micro-organism 

 into either animals or man, it can proliferate and set up the 

 disease, typhoid fever (or, at least, a similar complexion of symp- 

 toms with regard to animals), most observers hold the above 

 bacillus to be the causal excitor of the disease. 



The material to be experimented upon by the " Cattanach 

 Disinfectant and Deodorant " was obtained from a pure culture 



