The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-07-10
The I ubercuiin Test.
TO the Editor of the Press:

| through the papers OF late IN regard to |
the use of tuberculin and its effects upon
COWS, milk and the people using the |
milk, will ask the liberty of using your
columns to reply to some statements
which have recently appeared that are far
from correct.
In your issue of June 10th appeared
letter from Secretary McKeen Of the
Board of Agriculture in regard to the
compulsory testing Of cows. Allow me
to say at once that L think Secretary Nc
Keen a very able gentleman, alive to the
interests of the farmers, and SO far as l
have had any business with him he has
always treated me very courteously, but
upo n certain matters he is evidently Ia
boring under serious misrepresentation
or has bsen sadly misinformed.
In the first place very few people believe
the tuberculin test to be absolutely in
fallible. What is there upon earth that is
infallible? What we do believe is the
tuberculin test is the most reliable and
accurate means of diagnosis we have at
present or ever have had. The tuberculin
test properly applied very seldom fails
to point out disease if it exists and very
seldom indicates disease if none exists.
| The tuberculin test is never harmful if
properly applied and applied to proper
subjects. The tuberculin test is endorsed
by the majority of scientific men both at
home and abroad The tuberculin test is
objected to mostly by people who have
never tested or seen tested any animal,
or by people who suspect disease exists in
their herds and have not sufficiently
high sense of honor or moral obligation to
wish it known or eradicatSd, and an
other class whom I hope and trust are, in
a very decided minority who don't care
whether they spread disease or not so long
as their pocket book is not affected.
AS for the tuberculin test being a fail
ure on account of some people being op
posed to it, 1 consider that one of the
strongest arguments in it's favor. No
great discovery has ever been given to
the world without meeting much adverse
criticism.
When Jenner first advocated the theory
of vaccination to prevent the ravages of
a scourge which frequently would depop-
ulate a town, his fellow students threat
ened to expel him from the medical school
for his theory. Not physician in Lon
don would agree with him. He was even
denounced from the pulpits 1t was
said that vaccinated children became OK
faced and assesses grew out to indicate
horns: that their voices changed to SINH
late the believing of bulls, but did Jenner
stop? Did vaccination die? Well hardly.
No name is today more honored by the
English speaking world than that of Jen-
ner, and his theory and practice have
come into such general use that many a
practicing physician today has never seen
case of small pox (would that we could
say the same of tuberculosis) but proba-
bly, people could still be fonud who don't
believe in vaccination.
The incubation of serum for the pre-
vention or cure of diphtheria, one of the
grandest achievements of science, has
been cried down, cursed, lied about, but
nevertheless it still continues to be used
and saves thousands of lives annually and
many parent calls it blessed.
Calico was put into prison for saying
the earth revolved, nevertheless the truth
prevailed after time, but still probably
people could be found today who are
sufficiently unenlightened to believe the
earth is fiat and that they are in danger
of falling off, if they get too near the
edge.
Secretary McKeen quotes DIR. W. H.
Way who says, "some COWS recover after
the tuberculin test is applied Well
what of it? Suppose they do, does any
body object to their recovering and if DR..
Way had properly studied the history of
tuberculin and Prof Koch's design when
he first made public its use, he would
know that it was intended as a curative
agent and is now being used as such with
gratifying success by DR.. Karl Won Ruck
of the Winyah Sanital ium,. As o lille, N.
c., upon human subjects who are affected
with tuberculosis.
| Dr. way is quoted as saying that che
had no fear of the meat of tuberculous
COW unless she was far gone with the
disease and that the disease only attacked
the parts which were thrown away
The Doctor is welcome to his diet of
| tuberculous meat, but his pathology is
a little rusty or he intends livery wisely
to throw away the whole COW as any
organ or tissue in the animal economy
may be affected with tuberculosis and the
milk may contain the germs of the dis
ease If the udder is not diseased.
Secretary McKeen quotes DR.. Samuel
Dixon of Philadelphia who with a good
deal OF emphasis says he is opposed to
the test because Sin his laboratory he
produced in small animals by large doses
of dead tubercle bacilli and the indus in
which they are grown predisposition to
the disease" What does this provef Alb
solutely nothing. Because a man pro-
duces predisposition to tuberculosis by
inoculating gu nea pig with large