The Washington herald., 1909-07-04

T The editorial comment on vivisectica
I published In the Outlook Is hardly char
F acterized b. the tolerance that one ex-
poets from an educational medium os ju-
dieiaI pretensions. BY striking incon-
sistency. the article appears in the. very
issue which celebrates the acquisition TO
( the editorial stan OF one whose name Is
generally assumed to be the synonym OF
fair play.
. II would be difficult TO cOndense into q
few words more injustice than Is lodged
In the very title OF the article, The Child
or the Guinea Pig" AS II not 10 leave
4 10 inference the significance Of these
words, IL is bluntly stated that there are
some people who are more concerned for
the comfort OF a guinea pig than for the
life OF a child"
The very intemperance OF this kind OF
scolding renders any reply almost super
fuous- IN this connection. however, Il
may be asked whether the Outlook. IN its
mOnOpOlistic soucitUde for The child. has
ever uttered a word OF protest against
7 the practice Of subjectng children 90 ex-
.psrimentation involving pain, disease. OF
danger 70 life. not for their individual
benefit but FOR scientific purposes?
Experiments on Children.
( For instance. an American physician
publicly related how he had inoculated a
I boy OF eight years, a girl OF four years.
and fourteen other children. with the
virus Of the foot-and-mouth disease. and
. then deliberately subjected them 10 tie
infection Of scarlet fever. Can the Out
look point 20 any dsnUnciation IN its col
umns OF these OF kindred outrages2 And
T Yet some OF the people who are now Try
ing 10 secure justice and mercy for the
dump subjects OF experiments. and who
are, in consequence. derided by that four
nal have for years been trying. through
. legislation. 10 make impossible. except Is
crimes. the Preparation o. such outrages
. upon children
/ The editor attempts 10 draw an analogy
I between legislation in regard 10 expert
ments or animals and legislation with re-
I specr 10 experiments IN physics and bo-
tary- The latter. he thinks. would be
+ absurd. therefore the former IS not 10
. be thought Of But. n point Of fact no
/ real analogy exists. The reason has been
well stated. as follows. by Dr. H J.
B-geiow, professor Of surgery IN Harvard
4 University
Scientific vivisection has al the en-
4 crossing fascination OF other physical
sciences. but the tra1scendent tor-u-s
4 sometimes inflicted has no parallel n
any one OF -nem- The ground for
public supervision IS. that vivisecti0u. i'm
measurably beyond any other pursuit. IN
wolves The infection Of torture 90 little or
no purpose. Every disc0verer 0f
a new truth. or inventor OF the method
which evolves e. makes q dozen. perhaps
nfIy. useless combinations experiments.
or trials for one successful 01e- In the
realm Of electricity or mechanics there IS
no objection 70 this But when such re-
jected failures involve q torture OF AMI
mails, sometimes fearful IN its character.
there IS a distinct objection 20 T. II a
. class OF young men having no special
aptitude for making discove-y-Tc- IN this
particular the chances are very largely
. against any OF Jhem-cre encouraged 10
/ practice themselves IN rs pursuiJ by eX-
plOriug living nerves as they would the
electric coil, IL IS time 20 OBJECT further
The law should interfere There can be
. no doubt thar in this relation there eX-
lists a case OF cruelty % animals far
trsnscenGing in its refinement and in its
horror anything that has been known IN
the history ~ nations"
Horses In SIeet Storm
We yield not 10 the Outlook IN repro
batting the cruelty 20 horses "pracuced
every day there IS sIeet storm IN rhe
streets OF New York" and yet the very
reference IN this discussion 70 such rela-
tiveIy insignificant suffering proves how
completely tie editor falls 20 appreciate
the degree Of pain possible in The phys
i0IogicsI laboratories. which pain. says
DR.. Bigelcw, may be, and sometimes
Intentionally IS, OF the most excruciating
nature possible for human science 10 in
vent - further SAYS
-'Ir IS d statement % be taken literally.
thar a brief death by burning would be
P. considered a happy release by a human
being undergoing the experience OF some
Of the animals who slowly die in
laboratory.
The Outlook derives satisfaction fron
its belief that the present law IS sufi-
cient first. because 70 now confines Lhe
right 10 animal experimeutatton 70 those
who are competent and. secondly. be
cause one who is guilty Of cruelty Gn the
stsr-chaubers OF scienceD may be pro-
4 secuted under the general anti-cTuelty
statutes. As 10 the scientific competency
Of vivisect0rs. there is no question al IS
sue. but u cannot be seriously cOntended
that the law furnishes any guaranty
whatever that vivisection shall be prac-
ticed only by those who are morally com
petent-Which is the point Of present in
terest-
BY way Of Illustration OF the kind OF
competency that IS now insured and
the sort Of protection from cruelty af-
I f0rded by the present law, We beg 20
quote Prof Theophiius Parvfn, n D.. ex-
president OF the American Academy o.
. Medicine
There are some vivisectors who seem.
seeking useless knowledge, 10 be blind 20
the writhing agony. and deaf 70 the
cry Of pain Of their victims, and who
. have been guilty Of the most damnabls
/ crueltIes. without the Genunciation BY the
public and the profession that their wick
edness deserves and demands"
S. r. TABER
Secretary % the Tivisecti1r Reform S0clcty.
Lingerie FrOcLS OF Cotton Crepe.
From Pans Letter 20 ths Chizg' Reo1ri-Herald
Paris says that cotton crepe win make
cha r70S~ 1rv-afr- 1f~ra-fa F-,.l-e hr-r -.