The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-01-05

the 1nnuencc OF Snail pO1, auu III enAo
way established its protective power.
The story Of Jenner's struggles to
convince his contemporaries of the
value Of his observations forms most
interesting and instructive chapter In
the history Of medical progress. NO
member of the profession ever receiv-
ed more anathcmas or more scurrilous
abuse than did this great apostle Of
vaccination. Undaunted, Jenner kept
bravely at work and by repeated e1-
periments became convinced that by
vaccination perfect protection could
be obtained against small pox. Within
the space Of few years Jenner COM
PEELED the profession to admit his
statements and adopt his practice.
and few years after its recognition,
the practice became fixed therapeutic
procedure, until to-day after standing
the test Of practice for a century, it is
the greatest medical preventive the
world has ever known. There is no
question among the intelligent portion
Of the profession but that vaccination,
properly performed, is perfect pro-
lection against the infection Of small
pex-indeed, it has been authorita-
lively asserted that if person con-
tract the disease after he has been
vaccinated, then the operation has not
been properly performed.
Now what is the relation existing
between small pox and COW pox !?
Jenner was the first to advance the
belief that the two diseases have a
common ancestry, or are identical !;
recent Investigations seem to strength
en- this view, but controversy sill
wages hotly around the question, and
it still awaits definite solution. A
common origin does. seem probable,
since it is not unlikely that small pox
may have departed widely from the
primal type and by successive repro
ductions on man have gained an ex-
alted virulence.
1t is seen that vaccination, like all
active measures for protecting the
public health, has emanated from and
has been fostered by the medical pro-
fession the assertion sometimes made
by ignorant laymen that the profes-
sion has been Influenced in it's efforts
to maintain the practice by motives OF
pecuniary benefit, is so obviously in,
generous as to call for no notice. The
practice stands to-day as one of the
greatest blessings that human thought
and observation have conferred upon
mankind. Formerly, small pox was so
common that according to the philcso-
ply of the times, every person had
either passed through it, or was des-
tined some time to experience an
attack. Now We never hear of an
epidemic, and when sporadic cases
occur the disease is quickly stamped
cut. The facts of all epidemics since
the practice became general bear un-
answerable testimony to the value Of
vaccination. The failing Of vaccina-
tion is largely due to the absence Of
any widespread epidemic Of small pox
within recent years the feeling of
false security thus created has led the
people to put off for the moment the
temporary Inconvenience Of being vac
cinated. When the disease does
threaten to spread in community,
there is rush for vaccination. which,
by straining the local resources to
their limits, renders it difficult to
secure the most efficient protection in
all cases. 1t is important to undergo
the operation before the epidemic ar
rives. for when once the disease is
fully manifested, vaccination is prac
tically without avail, for it is proba-
Bile that immunity does not reach its
maximum until the fourth week after
vaccination. Now, au attack Of small
box does not invariably confer i'm
munity from the disease. Vaccina-
tion efficiently performed in infancy
and repeated in the 18th or l4th year
has shown itself to be almost an abso-
lutte protection against small pox. In
those cases in which small pox occurs
after vaccination, the disease is almost
without exception so far modified that
its identity in its earliest stages is
frequently unrccognized.
1t must not be supposed that vacci
nation. however valuable to the com
munity at large, is not exempt from
that liability to accident which exists
in all human affairs. Operations Of
even trivial nature sometimes prove
fatal. There is an average OF one
death to II, 159 primary vaccinations.
If the virus be carefully selected and