Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1893-01-06

this power was ascertained by expert
ment, and. If it be borne in mind that
single drop of the liquid is as much
as can be safely administered to a hui
man adult, it will become obvious that
no physician would have been justified
LII prescribing it until the precise ma
ture Of limitations Of its properties had
been known. 1t Is common to say that
experiments Of this kind are mislead-
ing. because certain medicines act diff
lerenuy upon mankind and upon the
lower animals: but this reasoning is
entlrely fallacious. In nearly every
case the difference of action can he
estimated and allowed for. No emetio
VIII excite vomiting in a rabbit be-
cause the position and relations Of n
rdpht stomach are such that the act
Is impossible. An instructed exne,I.
menter. if he were engaged in q 80,
search upon the action of an emetic
would not employ rabbits. but some
other animals-dogs. for example-ip
which vomiting occurs easily. Again
1t must be borne in mind that the human
body contains structures with which
the bodies of some of the lower ami
mails are more abundantly supplied, or
OF which they are almost wholly made
up: and an experiment which will not
show the action Of drug on the hui
man body rs whole may vet afford
valuable information by showing its
action upon particular structure or
tissue. Experiments upon n moebae
might show what would be the action
OF some agent upon the white cor
puscles Of human blood. and expert
ments upon molluscs might show what
would be Its action upon the ciliated
epithelium Of the human lungs. But
the most readily ineligible expert
ments of the third group are, without
! doubt. those which have been conduct
Ell at llyderabad by DR.. Lauder BrTn-
ton and his assistants, at the instica-
| ton and at the cost of Nizam. for the
, purpose OF studying the conditions III
der which death is produced by tho
inhalation of chlOroform, and with n
! view to render that agent one of uni
versal applicability and safety. The
that the primary source of danger I'm
the use OF chloroform Is always failure
OF the respiration, and never failure
of the heart; and they maintain that,
, If the respiration be watched with pro-
per care during the administration, no
fatal accident will ever occur. 1t would
be premature to represent these con-
clusionS as having been placed beyond
the reach Of doubt; but, if they should
be established by larger and longer
experience. they will entirely take
away the risks which now attend upon
the use Of what is for many surgical
purposes. ircomparably the best anaes-
thetic. although. on account OF the
fatalities which have attended it's en-
ployment, it has been wholly abandoned
by many operators. and even entirely
in some countries. 1t would he impos-
sible to deny the usefulness of any
research by which all danger could be
removed from its employment.
The fourth group includes the social
| cd ''inoculation" and feeding" expert
ments. which have been extensively
| performed In connection with modern
bacteriology, and the main features of
| which have become widely known. II
has been established by these that the
active cause Of many forms Of disease
| Is special micrObe. and that in some
| instances this microbe may be cult
! waited or reared in such nauner as
to diminish the virulenca of its effects,
SO that 1t will confer. wheel introduced
into the body OF man or an animal,
/ Immunity from severe disease by the
production Of mild one. The effect
Of incubation experiments has bucn to
Identify the several microbes Of many
diseases, to prove that they are the
causes OF these diseases. to test the
I! degree In which their effects may be
! diminished by cultivation. and the de-
gree In which these diminished effects
will afford protection against inocula-
ton, accidental or designed. with the
moro ordinary forms. None OF these
facts could be ascert9ined without ex-
pertinent on living animals: and In bao-
teriOlogy, IS ir SO many other branches
of science. II experiments on animals
" ere prohibited, medicine must either
remain stationary or must reach i'm
provement by means Of experiments
upon men and women. To take few
cases out Of many, incubation expert
mems have proved the communicability
of diphtheria to mankind by the I'M
boiled milk of diseased cows, and feed
! ing experiments have proved the com
municability of tubercle by tho con-
sumption Of diseased meat. Moreover,
! by providing security against par
ticu1arly fatal form Of cattle disease.
Known as anthrax" they have probab-
" saved the lives Of many thousands
animals for every one which they have
sacrificed.
| "Miss Oracle" he said, with what