174 
' CUniqiie Veterinaire, January, 1863. 
ORIGIN OF COW-POX. 
and Reviews of Continental 
Veterinary Journals. 
By W. Ernes, M.R.C.V.S., London. 
* 
An important question in medicine remains still undecided. 
That question is the origin of vaccine (cow-pox). A dis¬ 
cussion of the greatest interest has lately taken place at the 
Imperial Academy of Medicine on this subject, which has 
been textually entered in the ^Bulletin^ of the Academy, but 
which it would be necessary to read to be able to appreciate 
I it. The different medical journals have abbreviated and ex- 
; pounded it in various ways; but as veterinarians probably 
I are not subscribers to the ‘ Bulletin^ of the Academy, I will 
reproduce the discussion, and also add some notes which 
arose almost entirely from the extra-academic discussions 
! after the official debates. 
i ' The commission consisted of MM. Prince, Professeur de 
j PEcole Imp. Veterinaire de Toulouse, President; Laforgue, 
! Professeur de PEcole de Medecine de la meme ville; Amen et 
I Batut, Surgeons of the Hospital Cayrel, Vaccinateur du 
I Departement; Lafosse, Professeur de la Clinique Ecole Imp. 
! Veterinaire de Toulouse. 
I M. Bausquet. — Gentlemen, it is in the name of your 
vaccine commission that I take the parole to give you an 
account of the report of which you just heard the title. 
I Everybody here knows that before its introduction into 
\ medical science vaccine was known among the people. It 
jl was a general belief in Gloucestershire that those who had 
p been infected by the disease from the cow were free from the 
[| smallpox. But it is not so generally known that it was the 
i| inoculation of the smallpox which led Jenner to the disco- 
ij very of vaccination. Although it might have cost him his life, 
jl Jenner "was a staunch advocate for the inoculation of smallpox, 
f! introducing it extensively in the county of Berks, where he 
! practised. But he was not a little surprised to find that 
a certain number of patients resisted the effects of the 
inoculation; and as these were farm-servants, generally 
employed in milking the cows, he connected this fact with 
the popular tradition, and pursued his researches. The rest 
