FINLAY'S WORK 



277 



of the disease is heightened. From these reports, 

 Dr Finlay advanced his doctrine that the mosquito 

 receives and transmits the germs of the disease : — 



" It was upon the above line of reasoning (in 

 these reports) that I conceived the idea that the 

 yellow-fever germ must be conveyed from the 

 patient to the non-immunes by inoculation, a pro- 

 cess which could be performed in nature only 

 through the agency of some stinging insect whose 

 biological conditions must be identical with those 

 which were known to favour the transmissibility 

 of the disease." 



In 1 88 1 he inoculated himself and six soldiers 

 with infected mosquitoes, and obtained, as he had 

 calculated, mild attacks and subsequent immunity. 

 During the years 1 881-1900, he inoculated by this 

 method 104 persons : — 



" In these inoculations, be it remembered, my 

 principal object was rather to avoid than to seek the 

 development of a severe attack ; in point of fact, 

 only seventeen showed any appreciable patho- 

 genic effects after their inoculation. I felt sure, 

 however, that severe or fatal result might follow 

 an inoculation either with several mosquitoes con- 

 taminated from severe cases of the disease, or 

 from a single insect applied several days or weeks 

 after its contamination ; having come to this last 

 conclusion, in view of the facts connected with the 

 Anne Marie, and the epidemic of Saint Nazaire." 



Dr Finlay's discovery that the mosquito can 

 convey yellow fever, and that the germ of the 



