THE GERM THEORY AND COMMON DISEASES 
173 
appeared on the neck of the same person. The same examina¬ 
tion produced the same result, to wit: the development of the 
already-mentioned microbe; and there was, as before, sterility of 
the blood obtained from the general circulation, which this time, 
however, was taken from a point at the base of the furuncle, 
around the inflamed part. 
While making those observations, I had spoken of them to 
Dr. M. Kaynaud, and that gentleman kindly sent me a patient 
who had had furuncles for the last three months, in order to ena¬ 
ble me to still further extend the investigation. On the 13th of 
June, I tried the culture of the pus of one of the furuncles of 
this patient. On the next day a general cloudiness of the liquid 
of culture appeared, still accompanied by the same unique parasite. 
Fourth Observation .—June 14th, the same patient showed me 
an enormous furuncle, forming in the left axilla. The promi¬ 
nence was well marked, together with the redness of the skin, 
but no pus had yet appeared. An incision of the skin on the 
top of the prominence, however, gave exit to some pus, mixed 
with blood, showing an easy culture in twenty-four hours and the 
re-appearance of the same organism. Blood taken from the arm, 
at a distance from the furuncle, remained sterile. June 17th an¬ 
other furuncle appeared in the same individual, giving similar 
results, viz: the development of the same organism in the pure 
state. 
Fifth Observation .—On the 21st of July, Dr. M. Baynaud 
informed me of a woman having multiple furuncles; indeed, her 
back was covered with them, some suppurating, others ulcerated. 
Bus was obtained from those which were not open, and after sev¬ 
eral hours the sowing of the pus gave an abundant growth, 
invariably the same organism, always pure without mixture with 
any other, while the blood taken at the inflamed base of the 
furuncle still remained sterile. 
To resume, it thus seems certain that all furuncles contain an 
serobic, microscopical parasite, and that to this are due the local 
inflammation and the formation of the pus, its legitimate result. 
The liquids of culture of the little organism, inoculated un¬ 
der the skin of rabbits and eobayes, give rise to abscesses, gener- 
