1892.] 



Presents. 



81 



The nerve degeneration is associated with a fatty degeneration of 

 the muscles, which is proportional to the degree of degeneration. 

 The heart, in all cases, shows advanced fatty degeneration. 



Diphtheritic Membrane. — The membrane in diphtheria consists 

 chemically of fibrin, hetero-albumose, proto-, and deutero-albumose, 

 i.e., it is in a state of digestion. From it was obtained an extract 

 which was 3 — 5 times as toxic as the albiimoses removed from the 

 body, producing the same symptoms (fever, paralysis) and the same 

 nerve degeneration. 



This poison is probably the same as that isolated by Roux and 

 Yersin, and is presumably of a ferment nature, the albumoses and 

 organic acid found in the bodies of the patients being the result of 

 the action of the ferment on the proteids of the tissues. 



Diphtheria would, therefore, be, from this point of view, a disease 

 in which the Bacillus diphtherial growing in the membrane excretes 

 a ferment which, being absorbed, digests the proteids of the body, 

 with the formation of albumoses and an organic acid, the action of the 

 former of which is -to produce fever and paralysis dependent on nerve 

 degeneration. 



Presents, March 17, 1892. 



Transactions. 



Hamburg : — Naturhistorisches Museum. Mittheilungen. Jahrg. 



1890-91. 8vo. Hamburg 1891. The Museum. 



Jamaica: — Institute of Jamaica. Journal. Vol. I. No. 2. 8vo. 



Kingston 1892. The Institute. 



London: — Aristotelian Society. Proceedings. Yol. I. No. 1. 



Parti. 8vo. London 1892. The Society. 



British Museum. Catalogue of Arabic Glass Weights. 8vo. 



London 1891 ; Catalogue of the Cuneiform Tablets in the Kou- 



yunjik Collection. 8vo. London 1891 ; Subject Index of the 



Modern Works added to the Library in the Years 1885-90. 



8vo. London 1891. The Trustees. 



Institute of Brewing. Transactions. Vol. V. No. 4. 8vo. 



London 1891. The Institute. 



Victoria Institute. Journal of the Transactions. Vol. XXV. 



No. 97. 8vo. London 1892. The Institute. 



Philadelphia : — American Museum of Natural History. Bulletin. 



Vol. IV. No. 1. 8vo. Philadelphia 1892. The Museum. 

 Stockholm: — Kongl. Vetenskaps- Akademie. Ofversigt. Arg. 48. 



No. 10. 8vo. Stockholm 1891. The Academy. 



Warwick : — Warwickshire Natural History and Archaeological 



Society, Report, 1892. 8vo. Warwick. The Society. 



vol. lt. 



