Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-10-19
HUMAN TESTS
FOR TUBERCULOSIS
Claim Dr.. Koch Is Proved
' To Be Entirely
Wrong

Washington, October l.-At the
banquet given tonight by Secretary
Root to the members of the Tubercu.
losis Congress, the chief topic among
the scientists was the surprising re.
suits that have come through the in.
oculation of twelve adults by DR.. Lad.
islas Detre of Budapest. in an effort
TO controvert the reported discoveries
by DR.. Koch, the famous German spe-
cialist
DR.. Koch has insisted before the
congress that bovine tuberculosis can
not be transmitted to human beings.
, To test this the incubation of the
twelve adults. residing in the Wash.
ington tuberculosis Hospital was
done almost secretly. Nothing was
said about the test until tonight, when
1t was triumphantly announced by DR..
Detre's supporters that the tests had
shown eleven Of the patients suffering
from human tuberculosis and one un.
mistakable case OF bovine tuberculo.
sis
Koch Proved Wrong.
This absolute proof that Or. Koch
Is wrong In. his theory has aroused in.
terest among those who have been
accustomed to look on Koch as the
man who says the last word regard.
ing the disease The matter is Ger.
tain to be the subject of some lively
debates at the session tomorrow of
| the congress.
The vaccination with live tuberclc
bacilli for the prevention of tubercu.
| losis Is receiving great attention in
the congress.
The claim of DR.. julius Bartel OF
! Vienna was supported today by three
eminent American doctors-Professor
NJ. a. Barber of the University OF
Kansas, DR.. w. G. Webb of Colorado
Springs. specialists in the disease.
A hot discussion as to the correct.
ness of the theory advanced with con.
fdence by the three physicians of the
West followed the reading Of the pa.
per. That the theory has been pro-
ven In hundreds OF experiments, and
Is the only chance OF immunizing hu.
man beings was stated In the paper,
but there were a score of foreign dele.
gates who arose and contradicted the
theory. Professor Barber said in
part:
Vaccination Possible.
! The possibility of producing free
dom from disease or immunity by the
incubation of living organs till now
has been onIy accomplished in few
diseases. The virus of smallpox,
weakened by passage through the COW.
can safely be inoculated into human
beings, resulting in protection against
smallpox.
The human race possesses in n
varying amount a natural immunity
against tuberculosis. Were 1t not so
the race would long ago have become
extinct. Artificial protection from
tuberculosis has never yet been
achieved for the human race, but that
II IL possibility we believe, mas.
much as II Is now possible by protec.
1--WE incubation by living organisms
OF the human type to protect cattle
from tuberculosis.
""All conceivable METHODS of weak.
ening the tubercle bacillus so that IL
can be safely inoculated. for the pro-
duction OF immunity have up to this
time failed. Trudeau has shown II
possible to produce a certain amount
OF immunity In guinea pigs by the use
OF living bacteria
Dead tubercle bacilli and their
products. known as vaccine and tuber.
culins. when used for incubation have
iailed to produce lasting immunity. al.
though OF distinct value In the treat.
ment Of tuberculosis"