The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-10-22

3 boy out into the country Tor his N0cJ ton
/ There is only one variety that we can't
cultivate-the bacflli of leprosy. In fact
1 you're never absolutely positive that
( you've secured it. This culture contains
/ the leprosy germ" He held up the culture
to the light. IL contained n strip of raw
/ potato covered with what looked like fine
sawdust.
Under Suspicion.
Mr. Burgess was asked the purpose of
! the round dishes which one could see
| through the glass doors of the oven-it's
called the "incuba tor by the way. Those
may contain bacilh," he said. If it is
suspected chat they exist in a certain place
several of these round, covered glass
dishes, all of which are smeared iG=ide
with gelatine, are left there. After n
time they are removed, brought here and
| placed in the incubator, which is then
| kept at a temperature of 300 degrees And
the result is-that" He had opened the
door and drawn out one of the plates,
which he held up to the light. 1t looked
as if a charge of small shot had been
fired against it. Evidently the bacini
had been there"
When a London physician Is unable to
diagnose a case which he fears may be in
fectious he is at liberty to forward to the
institute a bit of cotton batting which has
been rubbed ON the throat OF his patient.
! This Is inclosed in glass and sent BY reg
istered mail in an especially prepared en-
] velope, At the institute The cotton is re-
| moved and rubbed carefully on the inside
of Il culture tube already containing che
prepared gelatne The tube is then stop
ped with cotton batting, the top of which
is burned to kill off any germs which
may have rambled off the hands of the
| operator, and which, If not destroyed,
! would work their way down and make
friends with the disease germs. This cul-
| ture tube is placed in the incubator and
/ kept for twelve hours in an atmosphere
maintained at blood heat BY this time
the baciiH will have multiplied to such an
| extent that the fluid thrown off by them
| may be detected above the jelly.
Peculiar bookkeeping.
Every specimen sent in by u physician
| Is entered, with the physicians name and
/ address and these of his patient, in a led
I ser, and examined as soon as possible. If
/ the specimen contains bacili, a printed
red slip is sent to the physician, saying
that the baciin have been isolated" If
the specimen contains no germs, a white
sip is sent stating that the bacini have
not been isolated, whoS means that the
physician need not build a trocha around
his patient.
Mr.. Burgess says t. at there is litla or no
/ danger in handling the bacili Nolhng
worse than breaking one Of the glass cul-
lures could happen, and, if it did, the yer
ator need only wash his hands in carbolic
actd 10 give the happy dispatch to any
germs which may have got loose. They
never have had an accident at the ins titu te.
At one Of the great establishments at
Vienna, however, one of the eXperimenters
got drunk one fine day and managed to
inoculate himself with plague bacill He
grew i'll and was attended by a physician
ana two nurses. The plague had them in
no time, and they in turn passed the dis
ease along to others, so that able-bod-
led epidemic was soon in fun blast. Mr..
Burgess remarked hat by the system en-
ployed at the institute, even should a tube
he broken there would be no danger of
bacili getting into the atmosphere, as the
jelly in which they are EMBEDDED would
have to become dried before that would
be possible
Diseases Not for Sale.
I asked him what was the value of his
germ collection
1T has little value save as a means of
study for US and our pupils" he said.
There is absolutely no truth in the
ports which have been published that re-
markable sums have been paid and are
being paid for germs. The only thing
which makes one germ of greater value
than another is the time occupied in it's
+ growth. Thus the propagation of the
consumption baclli goes on much more
slowly than that of the typhoid baCili,
We always are glad to oblige any person
with whom we are acquainted or who has
an established reputation with specimens
of bacilli, ard, in case any of our bacili
die, we lay IN a fresh stock. The idea that
there is an active and lucrative traffic in
disease germs, however is an utterly mis-
taken one"
Besides the room which serves as a germ
menagerie, the institute contains splendid
ly equipped laboratories without end,
hall where lectures are given, a museum,
a photographing room upon which thous-
ands of dollars have been lavished, the
k.gz Al
prepared. and still another, which has been
leased to the local government board, and
in which the new Clycerinated lymph is
made
In the rear is the crematory, great fur
mace in which everything hat is of no fur
Their use is burned to prevent possible in
lection. To make assurance douby sure,
this is fitted with separate chimney.
They Have BaciIIi for Dinner.
The animal house is almost as remarka-
bic as the bacillus apartment DR. Hew-
lett and ] stepped in, and found ourselves
in The presence of guinea pigs enough to
keep any number of bacilli reasonably
b'~v. There must have been $50 of them
..--. -9ing IN a big pen. They are our
fayorite subjects for incubation" Dr.
Hewlett remarked. "They are cheap
convenient 10 handle and unfortunately
for them, they take almost any disease
readily"
Behlnd the guinea pig room Is larger
one, its walls almost hidden behind piles
of cages filled with pigeons, rabbits dogs
and one cat which the doctors have gath
cred, dispite all the efforts of Chinese
Gordon's sistor-in-law, who is trying to
save London tabbies from contributing to
science. Many of the animals have been
inoculated and cured again, and all seemed
none the worse for having harbored bacilli.
| The institute is not government es-
Enlistment. II was built by private sub
scription entirely, and is designed to be 20
England what the Pasteur Institute Is TO
France. The largest individual gift was
made by the late Richard Berridge and
amounted to S225, 900; the Grocers' Com
pany gave $4,000, and the Duke of West
minister from whom the site was bought.
also was a contributor Others were the
Royal Society, 50 John Lubbock, and
medical graduates all over England, Scot
| land and Ireland. This institute is gov