Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-23
SOURCES OF TUBERCULOSIS
RELATION BETWEEN ANIMAL
AND HUMAN CONSUMPTION.
Government Commissions and Pri.
vate Investigations Show Dis
ease Comes From Cattle.

James J. Walsh. in the Independent.
Probably the most interesting certainly
the most practical. question that came
up before the international Congress on
tuberculosis related 10 the sources Of tu-
bercu.osis. There has been a decided
division of opinion among the pathological
authorities OH this dis .ase as TO whether
human tuberculosis was ever derived from
animals or always came from human
sources Until the declaration by Prof.
Koch in the international congress held in
London seven years ago. it was always
considered that tuberculosis in animals
played a large role in The causation Of
human tuberculosis. and stringent laws
and regulations were drawn up 10 pre-
vent human contamina ton from animal
sources. Prof. Koch denied that human
tuberculosis was frequently derived from
animals and suggested that such a mode
of transfer of the disease, far from being
common, was quite unusual.
Needless to say. this expression of the
distinguished German bacterfolOgist, to
whom we owe the original discovery of
the tubercle bacillus and SO many other
important observations in bacteriology.
created a sensation. If human infection
of tuberculosis from animals was rare,
then a good deal of our effort for The
prevention of the disease was being eX-
erted i'm the wrong direction. Our laws
for the prevention OF animal tuberculosis,
lest this should prove a mode of infection
for man, were much more stringent ana
expensive than any that we had been able
to formulate for the prevention OF the
spread of tuberculosis among human be-
ings, and If KOch'S contention were cor
rect, then we were foolins ourselves with
the thought that by gradually reducing
the amount of tuberculosis in animals we
would bring about reduction of the
dangers to which men are liable from the
disease. koch's assertion in the matter
was at once denied by other Psychologists,
and only the respect due TO his great
work kept mon from saying bitter Things
about the inadvisabilty of springinS
sensation of this kind. calculated only to
do harm under such circumstances.
The subject of the relation of human
and animal tuberculosis has been very
faithfully studied since then A British
government and German government
commission have each done a series or
careful experiments i'm the matter. Be-
sides, many private stiga tors, work.
ing in the interest of science, yet thor
oughly conscious that any single step of
real progress in so important a matter
would give them deserved reputation and
bring them honorable fame. have devoted
themselves to it, The question might
seem to the non medical mind to be CON-
paratively simple. 1t has proved eX-
N
work on the part literally Of hundreds of
trained psychologists. with experiments
and observations deliberately directed to
the solution of the problem, we are but
little nearer a definite conclusion than we
were seven Years ago. and the minds or
authorities on the subject as sharply
divided one from another as they have
been at any time since this important sub
ject came up for discussion and reinvest1-
cation. Probably nothing could well
cIH0 hn Nf
problems better than this.
Bovine tuberculosis.
At the suggestion of Prof. Koch a
special conference Of the authorities of
the different countries on tuberculosis
was called just before the end of the
recent International congress for the
purpose of discussing informally the
question of the connection of human and
bovine tuberculosis. This discussion was
opened by Prof Koch himself, who was
followed by Prof. Arloing of Lyons and
Prof. Calmette of Lille, France. who rep
resent the French school and the opposite
pole of opinion on the subject and by
Prof. Sims Woodhead OF England, an
other authority opposed to Koch. and
then by Prof Theobald Smith, our dis
tinguished American investigator on the
subject. who thinks the position taken
ny IIoI. IAOCH IcdSOIldUIGp though Inucn
more study will have to be devoted to
the subject before definite decision can
be reached When I add that the con-
ference was presided over by Prof. Her.
man Biggs of New York and that the dis
cussion was shared by such men of note
as Prof. F'ibiger, Prof. Pearson of Penn
sylvania, Prof. Favenel OF Wisconsin,
Prof. Tendeloe of Leyden, Holland, and
Prof. Adami of Montreal, 1t will be seen
that all shades of opinion were represent
cd and hot fhn
reached. might have been considered
final. Unfortunately, definite conclusions
could not be reached.
The state of mind of those who were
at the conference not necessarily COM
mitted to either side might very we'll be
represented by the words Of the chair
man. Prof. Herman Biggs. at its conclu-
sion. He said:
1T does not seem to me that we are
very far apart. We have human and
bovine tuberculosis, both of which are of
great importance. There is no question
but that the vast majority of cases of
human tuberculosis are due to human
bacilli. There is small proportion
which are due to either the human or the
bovine bacillus. The only difference of
opinion seems to be with regard to the
question as to how large a percentage of
that small residue is due to human in
lection or must be attributed to bovine
Infection
That this statement IS fair can be real
lied from the fact that Prof. Koch has
restated his position to be that bovine
infection of human beings can occasion
ally occur. and he does not wish to be
understood as deprecating the efforts that
are being made against the suppression
OF bovine tuberculosis, If from no other
standpoint than that Of agricultural and
general economic consideration. He does
not think, however. that we are justified
in putting that movement unduly in the
foreground as against efforts for the sup
preston of tuberculosis In human beings.
The government commissions and pri-
vate Investigations of tho last seven years
have shown that certain cases of human
tuberculosis are due to what is known as
the bovine type of tubercle bacilli. evil
IDENTIFY derived from cattle. These cases
occur mainly in children, and the LESSONS
are found practically always in associa-
ton with the digestive tract. 1t is evil
dent that the infection is due TO food
products. especially milk. Just after the
age of two years. as pointed out by Prof.
Woodhead, the number of these infec-
tons that occur runs up very largely,
evidently due to the fact that the chill
dren have been for some time at this
age almost exclusively fed on cows milk.
Intestinal infection Of tuberculosis used
to be considered very rare. The ques-
ton of it's frequency is still in dispute, |
but there is no doubt at all that. as atten-
ton has been concentrated on this point
in recent years, more and more cases Of
intestinal infection have been found, and
the type Of bacilli associated with these
LESSONS is practically always the bovine
or one differing SO markedly from the