Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1891-07-17
MANS TERRIBLE ENEMY.
The Demon Bacillus Moro Formidable
Than All Other Dangers.

The Demon Bacillus More Formidable |
Than All Other Dangers.
1t is mortifying to human vanity to
reflect that for some six hundred cen
turies, at the shortest computation,
man has been taking all sorts of pains
to protect himself against minor dan
gers in absolute ignorance of the bacil.
lus fiend in his midst Against the
wild beast and the snake he has waged
open warfare. He has covered himself
with armor to protect himself from the
weapons of human foes. He has fur
nished his ships with lifeboats, and has
invented the safety lamp as a protection
for those who work In mines.
He has muzzled the dog in order to
escape the fabulously remote risk OF
hydrophobia, and has laid down strict
regulations to diminish the chances OF
his being blown up by explosives. He
has fenced himself in by sanitary regu.
lations to preserve himself against the
evil effect of foul smells, and has fat
tered himself that by these and many
other precautions he has done what
he could to insure for himself prolonged
life.
And yet all this time the bacillus has
been carrying on his work unsuspected,
laughing, at whatever passes, in his
sleeve, as he yearly sweeps away his
tens of millions of victims. 1t has, in
fact, been a new and terrible illustra-
ton of the saying: "Out of sight, out
Of mind" Proud man, who Stays the
whale for It's oil and the elephant for its
ivory, has been slain by his invisible
foe, the bacillus; and, like soldier
brought down by long-range bullet,
has not even had the satisfaction of
knowing who was his slayer.
The microscope has long since discov.
cred to him the existence of innumera-
BILE creatures, invisible to the naked
eye; he has learnt that the water he
drank teemed with animated atoms;
that many of the rocks were composed
solely of their minute skeletons; that a
layer of them reposed on the depth of
the ocean; that countless numbers were
borne with the dust in the air.
Some of these discoveries caused him
WOullCI anu dtlulIdUiOly ObllcIS d CtItdlH
sense of uneasiness and disgust; but
when he discovered that neither he nor
his ancestors had suffered any material
inconvenience from imbibing these
countless hosts in their drinks, or inhal-
ing them in the atmosphere, he ceased
: to trouble himself about them, and
went on his way regardless of their ex-
, istence
/ The case has been wholly changed by
the discovery of the bacillus, and man
stands aghast alike at the terribly de-
structive and deadly nature of his foe,
i, and at his own impotency to guard HIM
self against its attacks. His feelings
! resemble those of the solitary traveller
! who finds that the forest through which
he is passing Is swarming with desper-
. ate and determined enemies, who are
Q bent upon taking his life.
| 1t needs no great powers of provision
g to perceive that the discovery of the
: bacillus milst lead to an enormous revo
i luton in our methods of life. 1t is not
. mans nature to submit passively to
tyranny and oppression, and now that
: we are beginning to form some idea o1
t the number and deadly nature of our
n foe, mankind will assuredly embark up
i on prolonged and desperate warfare
!. with him. Inventors will, in the first
1 place, devote all their energies to dis
1 covering means of defense agairst his
: attacks.
: We may expect that just as our an
k cestors clad themselves in armor to pro
e tect themselves against the weapon O.
:, man, SO in the future we shall weal
! some sort of covering composed, per
r haps, of extremely thin and flexible
e glass, to prevent the bacillus coming il
& contact with our skin, or we may paint
r ourselves on emerging from our baths
Q with some compound which may be dis
e covered to be lethal to him.
IS The passages to our lungs will doubt
y less be defended by respiratory appa
r. ratus that will filter him out of the ali
g as it passes in. While thus we endeavol
II in every way to defend ourselves agains
5. his attacks, we shall take the offensiv,
l. against him when he succeeds in elud
n ing these precautions and effeeting III
o entrance. Unfortunately, at presen
n the bacillus shows himself to be almos
, invulnerable; but, like Achilles, he ha
G weak spot in his heel. While able, s,
n far as is at present known, to defy al
n drugs and poisons with which he can b
a attacked while dwelling in the human
- frame, he has none of the hardihood o
the cannibal, and is unable to support
diet consisting of infusions of his owl
!. relations A boiled decoction of hi
- grandson is fatal to. him. 1t is upo
= this line that our combat with him
4 likely, at any rate for time, to b
!. fought out.
:. This discovery has thrown luri
~ light upon many ancient and easter
- legends These have hitherto been er
- tirely misunderstood or not understoo
=. at all Saturn was, we know, to be dc
- stroyed by his children; and Arab ste
"A ries abound with instances where it wa
- foretold to princes and rulers that thei
= offspring would be the cause of the
. death, and the children were accort
4 ingly confined in towers and prisons
: prevent the fulfllment of these propl
q ecies. Hitherto, these tales have al
. peared mere fables, originating in h,
a man fancy; but it can now be seen thf
= the ancients and the orientals alike ha
some kind of provision of the bacillu
and that this creature was pre-fgure
in the legends of Saturn and of tn
Arabian rulers.-London Standard.
E. shoe Pockets.
re Since pockets are an impossibility
es the skirts which stylish women cling
u and which cling to them SO PERSISTENT,