610 SMALLPOX AND VACCINATION 



is stated that the serum when mixed with vaccine lymph acquires 

 the property of deviating complement, and evidence has also been 

 obtained by Prowazek that the serum of monkeys infected 

 subcutaneously contains substances of the nature of anti-bodies, 

 for, when it is mixed with the lymph, the mixture is not 

 capable of originating a vaccine pustule in children. Phenomena 

 of hypersensitiveness on revaccination have also been described. 

 Considerable attention has been devoted to the study of the 

 effects of corneal and cutaneous infection in the rabbit and 

 monkey. Here it has been found that the infection of one 

 cornea protects that eye against re-inoculation but not the other 

 eye. Further, it is stated that while cutaneous vaccination 

 causes the general skin surface after about ten days to become 

 insusceptible, the cornea may still in the monkey be sensitive 

 (this last fact is said not to be true for the rabbit). Again, 

 intraperitoneal infection with lymph is said, not to be followed 

 by cutaneous immunity. Such facts have led some to suppose 

 that smallpox is essentially a disease of the cutaneous tissues. 

 In it we would have another example of local infection such as 

 is found in tubercular leprosy, lupus, and certain other skin 

 infections. Prowazek strongly held that in cutaneous vaccinal 

 infection there is never a distribution of the virus throughout 

 the organs ; but this result has been disputed- by other workers. 

 He also stated that when the virus is injected intraperitoneally 

 it is soon taken up by leucocytes and is not absorbed into the 

 body fluids. 



