250 
A CONTRIBUTION. 
acute anthrax, and that it is in this manner that we are able to ex¬ 
plain the phenomena, that the blood of the foetus of such animals 
is free from these microparasites. Kassowitz has proven the same 
to be true with regard to the contagium of syphilis. The condi¬ 
tions in the acute exanthemata, variolse, measles, scarlet fever, are 
exactly opposed to the above; the eontagii of the same have the 
ability to infect the foetus of the same. 
For numerous very interesting and confirming cases illustrat¬ 
ing the above, I must refer the reader to the original translation. 
flow does the contagium of vaccine deport itself in this re¬ 
lation ? 
After we know that in the greater number of cases the conta¬ 
gium of variola is in a condition to pass the placental septa, and 
that the blood of vaccinated organisms contain the contagion of 
vaccine, we may a priori assume that the foetus of a successfully 
inoculated grovid organism becomes as a mile also infected. 
When we look for proof for this assumption, we find but one case 
reported in the literature upon which we can depend, and that is 
from Underhill, who vaccinated, and successfully, a woman in the 
eighth month of pregnancy. Six weeks later parturition took 
place, and in the course of three or four months the child was 
very carefully inoculated with fresh lymph, but unsuccessfully. 
According to this example, the young of grovid females can be 
rendered immune against vaccine by inoculation of the grovid 
mother. 
This intra-uterine infection comes to pass, in my opinion, 
much more frequently than we think, and the subject is in every 
way worthy of the most critical and statistical observation. 
Numerous cases are on record confirming our views in regard to 
the ovination of sheep, where the young of ovinated grovid ewes 
have remained immune from infection in every form for a certain 
period. 
Conclusion :—Our considerations have brought us to the 
result that there are only two well characterised and idiopathic 
forms of variola, viz.: variola humana vera and variola ovine. 
By both we are able to prove the (present) origin, the first from 
variola-diseased men, the second from variola-diseased sheep* 
