AM::lTiJmM  s   Disinfectants,  Antiseptics  and  Deodorizers.  179 
escape  of  morbid  particles  when  they  mechanically  enclose  them. 
They  have  neither  antiseptic  nor  azymotic  properties,  since,  accord- 
ing to  Grace  Calvert's  experiments,  charcoal  positively  favors  putre- 
faction and  the  production  of  vibriones. 
Glycerin  and  chloride  of  sodium  may  be  considered  as  antiseptics, 
both  being  practically  used  for  preserving  meat  and^other  animal  sub- 
stances. Neither  of  them  possess  a  notable  influence  on  the  produc- 
tion or  destruction  of  disease  germs,  so  that  they  are  not  true  disin- 
fectants— at  least  not  in  the  restricted  signification  of  the  word — nor 
can  either  of  them  be  ranked  as  a  deodorizer. 
Cresylic  and  carbolic  acids  may  possess  disinfectant,  antiseptic  and 
azymotic  properties  to  an  eminent  degree  ;  but  they  are  certainly  not 
deodorizers,  though  they  frequently  disguise  or  mask  an  unpleasant 
odor  by  their  own  inherent  abominable  stench. 
Superheated  steam,  or  an  elevated  dry  temperature,  is  perhaps  the 
most  reliable  disinfectant  that  we  possess.  Both  are  also  azymotic, 
as  they  destroy  the  vitality  of  the  organic  forms  on  which  fermenta- 
tion depends ;  but  they  have  only  a  very  slight  antiseptic  effect,  un- 
less the  amount  of  moisture,  which  is  requisite  for  putrefaction,  is 
withdrawn  from  the  tissues  by  continued  exsiccation.  Neither  dry 
nor  moist  heat  can  be  regarded  as  deodorizers,  as  they  have  no  influ- 
ence towards  fixing  or  decomposing  offensive  gases. 
We  see  thus  that  the  bodies,  which  are  usually  collectively  called 
disinfectants,  may  possess  but  a  single  one  of  the  four  qualities 
enumerated  above;  more  frequently  they  have  two  of  them  and  some- 
times three,  but  rarely,  if  ever,  the  entire  four. 
A  highly  interesting  series  of  experiments,  made  by  F.  Grace  Cal- 
vert, tends  to  elucidate  this  point  still  more  clearly.  As  his  valuable 
papers  have  a  direct  bearing  on  this  subject,  it  may  prove  profitable 
to  present  a  condensed  abstract  of  them. 
The  experiments  were  conducted  in  small  glass  tubes,  which  had 
been  carefully  cleaned  and  heated  to  redness.  26  grams  of  a  mix- 
ture, consisting  of  4  parts  of  water  to  1  of  egg  albumen,  were  intro- 
duced into  each  of  them.  26  milligrams  of  the  substances  experi- 
mented with  were  subsequently  added,  being  equivalent  to  0  001. 
Immediately  after  the  mixing  a  drop  of  the  liquid,  was  examined 
under  a  microscope  with  a  power  of  800  diameters ;  this  was  repeated 
daily  for  the  succeeding  39  days,  and  occasionally  for  the  following 
80  days. 
