The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-10-15
LondOn's Medical Papers
Do Not Take Very
Kindly to 1t. 3.
THEY ASSUME a
PESSIMlSTIC TONE
Do Not Think There is Reason.
able Justification to Antici-
pate Any Important Pro-
gress in the Treatment
Of tuberculosis,
Express Hope.

lspecial Cable to The Times Dispatch and
New York 1Icrald) Il,
Copyright by tho New York Herald Co..
LONDON, October 1i.-I.ondon medical
wecklics do not take Kindly to the pro-
nouncement made by Or. Behring at the
recent tuberculosis congress IN Paris In
reference to the discovery or a euro for
consumption.
An article In the British Medical Jour
nal just out declares ut may be pointed
out that as far as the material (which Or.
: Behring has laid before lis is concerned,
there Is no reasonable Justification to an
tlclpatc any. important progress III the
treatment OF tuberculosis. Or. Belring.
failed to convince tho majority or scicn-
fists In Europe that he had done great
work when lie delivered his address In
Casscl. and It Is not TOO much to aayfthat
II It were not for sis4name having be-:
come great In connection with the
5 dphthcria antltoxIn, this work would not
+ have aroused much notice."
Not Been Accepted.
1T has not been accepted and. there
fore, ono. fails to see how this new re-.
search. which is to a certain extent built
up on minimizing experiments, can be
even Professionally accepted. Going q lit
tie further into the Inquiry We are given
to understand that active 1mmunizatton,
which he believed that he had previously
produced. could be substituted by a pas
sIve iInmunlzn ton, and by means OF these
antl-bodies n curative process can be
achieved. This, OF course. applies to
laboratory animals, such AZ guinea pigs
t~te. Az III,
can show later and others can confirm,
his work. that true passive Immunity can
/. be produced on thesc animals, It does, mot.
By any. means follow that tho same ap-
i plies to man: III 55ts.. Il s i
q Tho Lancet says i"Dr. Bchring is a
pathologist OF worldwide reputation,
with n splendid record OF past achlve-
mcnts, and we may hope that his cortl-
dencc. In his own work will again be
justified. None the less. we cannot but
sdcprccaie tho great publicity which has
been given to an investigation which a t
the present time Is very far from COM
plctc
To Give Opportunities.
ut appears to lis that such congresses
as that at which the announcement has
been made have n desgncdly public char
acter. Their role is TO give opportunities
for bringing forward n finished work in
relation to the treatment and prevention
OF tuberculosis. among other diseases and
10 educate public opinion In regard to
these matters.
Such assemblies are certainly not In
tended for the presentation Of an incom-
pleto work or the utterancc Of hoterodox
views as to the pathology OF The dfs-
case.
"To bring forward such ADMINISTRATION
and to allow It to be published In lay
Journals. with all Its complex tcchaicali-
Ties, is to invite Misrepresentation and
Or. Bchring has only himself to thank
II he Is made to say things which he
never intended.
"Another painful aspect OF the publicity
which has been given to his statement is
tsiat Il IS calculated 10 raise hopes, which
cser at best, can only be realized In the
distant future a3it5 5a# .t5 45gs .3 515s,a