St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-01-13
THE MAGIC LYMPH.
Physicians Fear Prematurity-
What DR.. Pasteur Says.

Physicians Fear Prematurity-
What Dr.. Pasteur Says.
DR.. Divide Martel, who has been one
Of the most diligent students OF the IN
oculation theory in certain forms OF
disease, has deprecated what he terms
the hazardous use of the Koch lymph
for cases of lupus or other tubercular
disease on more than one occasion. In
conversation with representative OF
the GLOBE yesterday, he replied. to
question inviting his opinion on local
experiments. by saying that it would
have been better had the lymph beenkept
in the Koch laboratory until study and
experiment had taught what the proper
dose was. The announcement OF the
discovery before it had made even one
indisputabfe cure had been premature.
The sending of lymph all over the globe
was still more premature, and could
only bring discredit on the remedy
which all hoped would, after further ex-
pertinent in the Savant'S laboratory,
prove a reliable and infallible cure
for tubercular diseases. In the
course of the conversation it devel-
oped that DR.. MarteI had succeeded
in securing from M. Pasteur, the
French savant, an expression of opin-
ion as to the merits of the lymph. AS
the pioneer in this class of treatment,
NJ. Pasteur's opinion may prove inter-
esting to those who are watching with
deep interest the experiments now
being carried on in st. Paul. A literal
translation of the letter is as follows:
at is far from my intention to de-
tract in the least degree from the great
effort of DR.. Koch. [ give homage to
him for the wonderful possibilities in
volved with the discovery. but 1T
must be said that up to
authentic cure even of lupus. DR..
Bergman has himself seen a patient
suffering from lupus return to the hos
pital fifteen days after having been dis
charged as cured, serious relapse hag-
ing declared itself III that brief interval.
As a truth. there is no real gertrude in
the consequences of the treatment. The
remedy is of an extreme virulence, and
the reaction from its use is terrible.
There is no reptile poison admins
tered at the same reduced dose two
tenths of a millegramme) which could
have such a result. We have to deal
with toxic of such indomitable energy
that it can introduce in the organism
disorders of which the consequences
cannot be predicted and have not been
studied.
you must have seen report in the
medical papers recently. saying that
traces of alIuminuria and hoematuria
have been found in q patient treated
for tuberculosis with very small doses Of
the LYMPH in fact. it is already demon
strated thatthe kidneys suffer seriously
from the remedy. 1t would certainly
be unjust to render Dr.. Koch RESPONSE
bic for such unexpected results as these,
but what must be said of the German
government for its adoption of quack
methods to keep the secret of the rem
edy in order to trade on it under the
most miserable preteXts. Two of my
coIaborateurs, Drs. Roux and MeDts-
chikof, have been experimenting with
the bacillus of tuberculosis for great
number of years, but we shall never
speak. of the result until we are assured
of success. My advice is to use the
lymph carefully. if at all, until it has
been demonstrated how much maybe
safely administered, and in what partic-
ular stages of disease 1t is beneficial.
- Fan PASTEUR."