The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-07-17
THE CHOLERA.
An Interview with the Famous DR.,
Koch-Charactertist Remedies
and Hygiene.

All 1hIefNleW Will buo Di3 | r
Observation-Disclosures, Remedies '
and Hygiene.
PARIS, July 1.-THE Gaulois To-
day publishes the following interview
with DR.. Koch:
ToULoN, July 1850 p. map
pended is an extract from an inter
view l had last night with DR.. Koch
and his assistant, Dr.. l.. hertz, OF
Frankfort.
"Are you off to Marseilles, Doctor ?"
Yes, no more for me to do here. l
have quite made up my mind. All
the post mortems / have made confirm
the results of my first investigation,
which put the Asiatic character OF
the scourge beyond question. L have
found the same phenomena as in
the cases which / investigated in In
dia.'
"Were the microbes identical?"
"Precisely. l found numbers in |
the body of that soldier, Bernard,
whose post-mortem l made on Sunday |
evening. Indeed, / found more than |
L had seen in Egypt. Messrs. Strauss |
and RouX, who were standing by, also |
recognized the presence of the Indian
microbe in Egypt, bnt he always seen it
mixed with others, whereas in post
mortems that have made here the
Indian microbes outnumbered the
others immensely"
"Where do you find the microbes in
times of epidemics ?"
"The mlcrobe is rarely met with in
the stomach. The disorders Of the
digestive organs and the gastric dis
orders are not favorably to it, so it
takes refuge in the small intestines,
where it can easily multiply.
What mischief does the microbe do
| in the intestines? ?" the doctor was
asked.
First it's pressure causes diarrhea
and vomiting, leading to thickening
and chilling of the blood. Then it
| secretes an Intoxicating poison, which
| causes the dry, instantaneous cholera
inthe original cholera foudroyant sec
that is cholera without diarrhea."
"With such precise information as
this, doctor, surely one should soon be
ableto destroy the microbe?"
mo doubt, but l have nothing to
do with cures. l am mere observer.
Let others profit by my observations
and suggestions. l have already told
you contamination is not caused by
air, but by absorption of microbes in
fecting food, especially water and
solid food introduced into the diges-
| tive tubes"
81 presume that explains why, this
afternoon. you advised the members
| of the sanitary committee to shut up
the wells, and COUNSEL the people TO
drink boiled water or water from dis
infected places or light mineral
waters 2"
eyes; it also explains the necessity
of taking only well-cooked food, peeled
fruits, vegetables and preserves. Re-
member, microbes die if exposed to a
high and especially to dry tempera-
ture. / hold that microbes are trans
missible only by excrements or objects
soiled by aeXcrementS, consequently
the first precaution to take is to sub
| iect the linen of cholera patients to
heat, hot air, and picnic acid more or
less concentrated. Microbes can not
| live in concentrated solutions of
picnic acid or in dry atmosphere.
| Remember they develop and multiply
in the damp. They have been found
in ponds in cholera countries"
"Would a great storm of wind, as
| the mistral, for instance, destroy mi
crobes in apartments, linen, etc ?'
Eyes, certainly. No soiled object is
the least dangerous once it is dry. for
the microbe has become powerless to
reproduce itself. Indeed, it is dead"
zone more question" said your cor
respondent. 1t is this: "Did the the
DRY of the destruction of the microbes
by dryneSs lead you to advise the clos
ing up and drying of contaminated
apartments for several days? ?"
"Y es, and to pronounce the disin-
fecting of luggage, letters and trave-
Iers Intellectual; l cannot understand |
how any faith was ever put in it."
How about watering streets and |
the boulevards ?"
"The practice is dangerous. 1t fs-
vors the conditions needed for the re-
production and propagation of NIL
crobes."
Then it would be preferable to
leave the streets dry and dusty"
Certainly"
"What is your opinion regarding
the origin of the present epidemic ?"
81 think may say that, considering
the precautions taken by the naval
authorities, cholera was imported in
some merchant ship-probably Eng
fish. They do not scruple on English
vessels TO niue uodIuS WulCu OCCuI Ou
voyages or to falsity logs"
',Of course" said l, "you disapprove
of crowds altogether? ?"
"An public fetes and fairs, and con-
sequently the fete of July IA should
be forbidden.
The Gaulois correspondent adds:
Several French doctors, to whom l
talked of the above conversation,
made the following remarks: The in
oculation of various animals with
Asiatic microbes did not give them
cholera, hence some doctors doubt
whether DR.. Koch's microbe are the
real cause of the cholera. Ii inocu-
lated animals fell i'll, 1t would be easy
to discover the means of killing chol-
era, and the microbe like other insects,
tapeworms, for instance.
Italy is now inaccessible except via
Austria. English passengers by the
Indian mail ran no longer get through
by way OF 81. Gothard as hitherto.
Quarantine is Established from this
morning at Chiese, the only way OF
getting to Italy now is via Vienna.