AUTOTHERAPY. 
541 
as of apparently great promise in treating pulmonary phthisis. 
Koch made the same mistakes Lux did. He used the stock prep¬ 
arations or heterologous product. Experience for the past cen¬ 
tury indicates there is no certainty of cure with the heterologous 
product. The greatest care must be exercised in administering 
the autogenous tubercular toxine for it is a weapon that is cap¬ 
able of doing a great deal of harm in the hands of the careless or 
ignorant, but on the other hand it is capable of doing much good 
by its skilled administration. A keen appreciation of the nature 
of the infection and the response of the individual and the stage 
of the disease are the determining factors that must enter into 
its successful administration. The present indications are that 
this new therapeutic proceeding shows great promise. No one is 
interested in what the writer or any one else believes. What the 
profession wants is facts or proof. On the other hand, when we 
review our present knowledge of the tubercular toxin, and what 
we know of auto-inoculation and consider the great improve¬ 
ment of these cases, we see that there is much that points to the 
conclusion that by the writer’s simple therapeutic proceeding, 
pulmonary phthisis has been met squarely on its own ground. 
The results are most encouraging. It may be advisable in some 
cases of clinical tuberculosis to aspirate the infected area to 
obtain the toxic products of the disease for direct inoculating 
purposes. 
The writer was called at 12 p. m. to attend a case of bloody 
dysentery. At least, he diagnosed it as such. A girl of 17 years 
had been complaining for twenty-four hours. When seen her 
temperature was 104 degrees, face red, no water or food was 
retained, constant purging. Stool like thin rice water and some 
blood. The writer took an ounce of her stool, filtered it, and at 
1 a. m. injected about ten drops hypodermically. During the 
night a well-meaning friend gave her some cholera mixture and 
spoiled my demonstration. However, at 9 a. m. her temperature 
was 99. She made an uneventful recovery. The writer does not 
give this as a cure, but to illustrate the possible uses of auto¬ 
therapy. He believes it was the filtrate that cured this case. 
