River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1905-11-30

aiiment and restore the sufferer to
health. Other ailments, it is true, have
SO far been conquered. Prof. Behrjng
himself was the chief exponent of the
"antitoxin" cure for diphtheria, a mode
of treatment which has saved many
lives, and especially those of children.
Here the cultivated microbes of the
disease are inoculated into the horse.
They develop in the blood OF the ami
NAL certain principle called an an
titoxin." When this last is injected
into the blood of a suffe- n from the
disease, it has the effect OF causing re-
action, and, by routing the disease MI
crobes, effects cure. 1t is as II the
head of science turned germs to fight
against themselves. Prof. Behripg is a
physician and an investigator whose
words and opinions the world OF
science is bound to listen with respect.
His record in research stands high,
and his caution in advancing the re-
suits of his labors is highly to be COM
mended. He makes no claim at pres
ent that his "cure" is all that he hopes
for. No one knows better than he the
difficulties which attend research OF
the kind in which he has been engaged.
But he thinks it right to announce the
nature of the work he has undertaken
and to indicate the hopes he has
formed regarding it's successful issue.
The nature of Prof. Behring's investl-
cations is somewhat hard to under
stand or rather to define and explain
from a popular standpoint. But the
main features of his line of research
are easily indicated. tuberculosis is
inevitably associated with the presence
of the germ or bacillus discovered ny
DIR. r. Koch Of this fact we might
safely say: mo bacillus. no tubercu-
losis." Now this feature confines the
search for cure within fairly narrow
limits. There are two courses open to
investigators. They may proceed 10
attack the bacillus directly by tie use
Of injections of drugs, or by other
means. represented by the fresh-alr
treatment, directed to improving the
general state of health and thereby I'M
fitting the body as soil to receive ana
harbor the germ as seed. On the
other hand, they may elect Gas in tue
case of diphtheria) to attack the dis
ease through the incubation OF the
blood with some principle or other de-
rived from the culture of the germs
themselves. 1t is in this latter direc-
ton that DR.. Behring has been labor
ing. His aim is to find product or
substance derived from tubercular ma
terial such as will exert on the disease
a modifying and curative effect.
Dealing with Prof. Behring's method
of cure. we may first note that he ex-
presses himself in very decided fash
ION against the practice OF. introducing
living tubercular material (that is,
germs) into the human body under the
idea that it might exert curative ac-
ton. In other words, previous inves-
tigators who may have sought to cure
the disease by the use of actual living
bacilli have their opinions discounted
and their practice condemned Beh-
ring rather follows the lines OF the
diphtneria cure, in that from the bacil-
Ii of tuberculosis he prepares a vac
cine which is essentially similar to that
employed, he adds, in the rendering OF
cattle immune to the attack of the all
ment. FROM the baccilli, or, at least.