CHAPTER II 



MICROBES IN THE HUMAN BODY — LIFE WITHOUT MICROBES — 

 THE INTESTINAL FLORA 



Microbes in and on the bodies of animals and man : skin, mucous mem- 

 branes, mouth, stomach, intestine. 



Life without microbes —Pasteur's ideas — Aseptic breeding — The example 

 of the bat, Pteropus. 



The intestinal flora of man : quantity, species, and variations of the 

 microbes. 



Intestinal putrefactions — The flora and diet— Products of putrefaction and 

 auto-intoxication. 



Associations and antagonisms— Cholera — Experiments of Metchnikoff, 

 Bienstock, Tissier- — Principles of intestinal bacteriotherapy — Sour 

 milk ; culture, pure and mixed, of the lactic ferments. 



Is the large intestine useless? — Is the intestine permeable to microbes? — 

 Investigations on anthracosis and tuberculosis — The defensive powers 

 of the mucous membrane. 



The Microbial Flora in Man and Animals. — We 



have seen what innumerable legions of bacteria are at work in 

 the universe. Let us now proceed from the contemplation of 

 the macrocosm to the microcosm, as represented by our own 

 bodies. 



There is scarcely a living being which is not crowded with 

 microbes. Living as we do in a universe where they swarm, 

 how could we avoid having them both within and without ? 



Normally, we enter the world free from microbes. But from 

 the first moment after birth they begin to settle on our skin 

 and on our mucous membranes. Our mother's first touch 

 communicates them to us, even before she has given us the first 

 drops of her milk. They penetrate the nose, the mouth, and. 



