AUTOTHERAPY. 
527 
When the bacteria are in the blood stream, (as it is claimed 
bacteria to have been found there in rheumatism,) they develop 
few antibodies, but when injected hypodermically, they, develop 
more antibodies. Injecting animals with vaccine in the laboratory 
to increase the power of the serum in developing anti-toxins 
clearly proves this. 
Let us take some localized toxic disease as appendicitis in the 
interim, or possibly rheumatism. To obtain the fully identified 
vaccine to abort or cure this disease, we might first reduce the 
vitality, if advisable, or lower the resistance to disease in any way 
the physician may deem advisable—the patient’s condition would 
be the best guide as to what method to employ if it is necessary 
to employ any, for the vitality of the patient may be already low¬ 
ered. Then make an artificial point of least resistance to which 
abundant experiments have proven some bacteria will come, we 
now have a means of obtaining the causative identified bacteria 
for the purposes of auto-inoculation. The point of least resistance 
may be made by means of a burn or possibly a blister. The bac¬ 
teria at this time are temporarily more active on account of the 
lowered vitality of the patient. The necrotic tissue of a burn 
will tend to attract the bacteria from their hiding place to it and 
we shall be able to cure the patient now, for we have the causa¬ 
tive micro-organisms, for re-auto-inoculation purposes. 
Making an artificial point of least resistance alone may be suf¬ 
ficient in many infectious diseases, in some it may not be appli¬ 
cable. The burn need not be extensive, but it is desirable that it 
go well through the skin and wide enough to drain Many au¬ 
thorities believe many forms of nervous diseases, and some forms 
of insanity are due to toxic substances, and possibly due to bac¬ 
teria. 
It may appear wise, at times, to establish an artificial point 
of least resistance for an autogenous vaccine, to build up the 
power of the patient’s serum before the operation, as a prophylac¬ 
tic to sepsis. An artificial point of least resistance, from a thera¬ 
peutic point of view, or to obtain an autogenous vaccine, has 
never been attempted; and yet there is absolutely no reason why 
