The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1883-06-21
Atmospheric VenOmOus Life.

derful corpuscles in the air did not
escape the observation of the ancients.
Lucretius has described in elegant verse
the curious spectacle produced by a ray
of sunlight traversing dimly lighted
room; and, in effect, myriad grains of
dust may be seen by any one in the path
of such ray of sunlight, flying in every
direction, but always becoming invisible
the instant the sunbeam is intercepted.
But it remained for modern science to
prove the presence of living organisms
both animal and vegetable, in such
atmospheric dust.
It would still astonish many persons,
no doubt, to inform them that even the
purest country air is peopled with host
of microscopic cOrpuscles, animal and
vegetable, and even with a multitude of
living creatures which enter into our
lungs together with the air which we
breathe, and which come in time to take
up their residence in our own bodies, as
in a we'll furnished house all prepared to
receive them. The surprise would be
greater and even more disagreeable
should we add that the number of these
germs, thus held by the air in srspen-
sion, enormously increases in places
thickly or even constantly inhabited
that there is not q bedroom, a saloon,
even an attic, in which they do not
swarm--that in great cities they multi
ply to fantastic proportions; and that in
Paris the number of these germs within
the circle of the Notifications is, accord
ing to the statistics of photographers,
not less than five thousand billions.
Such is the "pure air" which we
breathe.
1t is needless to say that all the quar-
ters of our modern Babylon are not
equally ''rich" in microscopic life.
Those quarters most populous with
human beings are also most populous
with microbes. The air is ten times
thicker with germs in the heart of Paris
than in the neighborhood of the for.itica.
tons. The proportion also varies &C
cording to seasons; it is greatest in sum-
mer, lower in winter, diminishes in
autumn, There are variations likewise
corresponding to the state of dryness or
dampness of the streets. The air is most
infected during the periods of summer,
when by reason of the scarcity Of water,
the streets are not sprinkled, and the
dust flies everywhere. At such times not
less than 5000 bacteria have been found
W VIC CuUlC uctEC Va aAis ASue WAAAO ~
Paris, even in the rainy season, one must
always reckon upon the germs up in the
interior of dwellings, and daily scattered
to the winds every time that rooms are
cleaned in the country, upon the other
hand, once the atmosphere is well swept
by rain, it remains pure until the winds
again come to lift from the soil the fine
hight dust peopled with living microbes.
II l.. l., ,o,lxy -
etrates into rooms, and that in any city,
few days neglect is sufficiently shown
by the appearance of fine layer OF i'm
palpable aust on marble table, or other
articles of furniture. Well, in one sim
terra have been found. Another expert
ment made in the Rue Monge revealed
the presence of bacteria to the still more
fantastic figure of 2.4OO, 900 in one
gramme of dust which had collected
upon furniture.
These bacteria are invisible germs
eggs, spores. 1t would require ,OOO, 900
OF them to form the thousandth part of q
milligramme. Nevertheless they can be
easily studied under the microscope.
With magnifying power of 1000 diane
ters they appear nearly millimetre IN
thickness.
Little as they are, these beings are by
no means inoffensive; for when we have
absorbed hundreds and thousands by
way of the respiratory mucous men,
brane. or the digestive organs, they give
us typhoid fever, or scarlatina, or small
pox, or diphtheria, ETC., etc., each &C
cording to its kind. It is in the wards of
hospitals that those germs are found in
the greatest quantity. While the atmos'
phere of house in the most thickly set
tied portions of Paris contains from
5000 to 1000 germs to the cubic metre of
air, the atmosphere of hospital wards
contains fran 1000 to 5000 germs per
metre. At the hospital of Da Pitie the
average is II 900 bacteria per metre. IL
the confined air OF one room OF the same
hospital, NJ. Miquet found the sadly elo-
quent number of e, 300 bacteria per
cubic metre.
Our water has been analysed like our
air. To every litre of rain water NJ.
Miquet found Ga 900 microbes, in Seine
water at Bercy, 1890, 900 per litre; in
Seine water at Asmiers, IL. 800 900 per
litre; and in sewer water at Clincy, So
600. 900 per litre.
After reading these figures it seems
wonderful that we dare to breath, or
drink, or eat. Pringle was right it must
be confessed when he uttered the
abhorism: 1.-The air kills more people
than the sword"
American Society.