The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-01-29
no SPONTANEOUS GENERA
TIOS.
Prot. TyndalI's Experiments Ex-
pIOde Tint Hypothesis.

The February number Of the Popular
Siace Monthly contains a very interest
ing paper by Prof.TyndalI on spontane-
Gus Generation, and disposeS OF that
theory in the negative 80 completely that
the disputed question may be considered
ended. We copy an abstract Of the pa.
per, which gives all the points Of his ex-
Periments:
Prof. Tyndall traces the history Of ex-
periments in spontaneous generation, be-
ginning with those Of francesca Redi in
los. This distinguished physician and
eGperimenter had seen the maggots OF
pntrefying flesh. Watching meat in its
progress IRON freshness to decay, he in
vAriably observed flies buEzing about it,
and frequently alighting on it He was
led TO think or guess that the maggots
might be the half.developed progeny Of
these lilies. He therefore covered the
meat, placed in a jar, with paper, and nj.
rewards with fine gauze, and found that
no maggoA were developed. Thus was
Destroyed the belief in the spontaneous
generation Of maggots in meat.
Alter a time came the discovery and
Improvement OF the microscope. II
drought to view a world OF life formed
Of individuals 80 minute-so close as 1t
seemed TO the ultimate particles Of mat
ter "a to suggest an easy passage from
atoms to organism. Animal and vegeta.
BE inIusions exposed TO the air were found
rlOuded and crowded with creatures far
beyond the reach OF unaided vision, but
perfectly visible to m eye strengthened
by the microscope" Leeuwenhoek es-
tinated the population Of a single drop
~OIstagnant water at SOC, 100000 ;probably
The population Of a drop Of a turbid in
iusion Of hay would be this many times
multiplied. Tie obvious difficulty Of as.
signing a germinal origin to existence so
minute furnished the precise condition
necessary to give new play TO the notions
o. heterogeneous or spontaneous genera
ton"
We have not the space to give the de.
tails Of the experiments that began with
The theories Of Button and Needham and
The work Of Spallauzani. Now one side
wa ahead, then the other. The expert
ntnb Of opponents we're subjected to tests
otavery exactiug and apparently crucial
character. They extended over the space
Of years. They were made on the Mer
deGlace and in the I've under the OBJ
i~e'VatOry Of Paris. We pass them all by,
TO come at once to the experiments OF
Fol. Tyndall himself. which are describ.
eli in this article with rare simplicity,
cAndOr, and vividneSs. Those that want
% see a full account OF these, as we'll as
The Intermediate ones, must refer to the
article itself.
Proi. Tyndall had been making in the
decade ending in 1860 some researches
Into radiant heat in relation to the case.
Gus lorm Of matter. He published the
result Of his Investigations in the London
IiHhL and "a u readers haye.been told
on several former occasions he was at
once attacked by DR.. Bastian. "For i've
Jear,," says Prof.. TyndAll, " he plowed
NE held without impeachment from me. y
What wise waiting, what a candid exami.
nation, what painstaking experiments
Ioe' not this remark prove? II only this
dl.c'eet caution, this prudent reserve,
lhls waiting until there Is something
certain to be said, we're the general rule,
nov many useless contentious might be
avoided.
lie then proceeds to detail the expert
nents he subjected turnip water TO. He
took thin turnip slices barely covered
With distilled water at n temperature oil
~ deg. Fair. After standing four or
eIe honrs the liquid was poured of and
Uttered, and a clear infusion vas then OBJ.
tilhed. This was sucked into sixty small
clean empty tasks, With long necks, pro-
ErlIng sideways, by the process Of alter
gaiely heating and cooling the ilasks,
ihe1 the TASKS were plunged into a trough
alIed with oil, and the contents made 70
oai. Finally the neck OF the flask i
se'Sd BY heating the glass, and the TASK
lifted from the oil.bath perfectly seal
Cd dramatically.
The tasks arc 'then taken TO the Alps
IVVO feet above the sea. There six OIL
ieetu are found to be broken, and the In
toiiOn within is found to be muddy. Ali
"a, entered through the broken neckst
aad there is muddiness. Examined With
microscope and the infusion Is full Of
b..