The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1921-12-27

To the Editor, The Washington Herald:
Medical science is too reconcile a
subject for popular discussion. but
unless some one replies to the fool
ish denuncistion and misconcep-
tons that low find lengthy express
sion in the press, physicians may
soon find themselves in the same
position as to vaccination ard
serum treatment that they are now
in. in relation to prescribing beer.
The mob of charlatans may dictate.
All the objections entered have
been answered time without number
Mill and Spencer were great men
but they lacked the experimental
knowledge of modern times. Evils
have attached to vaccination. as to
all other undeveloped sciences. but
these are being slowly eliminated
and the science OF serum treatment
put in a'sounder position than IL
ever was before.
Your Sunday edition gives place
to nearly a full column of what you
head "Anti-Vaccine Broadsides"
will charitably omit the authors
name for he may some day be
ashamed of having written IL. He
tries to present the philosophy Of
S'l UNI NItdin lthl. nul II represents
only his own cruditics of conception,
with feeble attempt at caricature.
Two or three times he refers to
antitoNins as being Synonymous
with the white blood corpuseles. In
one place he says: "A million germs
suddenly enter the blood - and
straightway the antitoNin Cor white
blood corpuscle) glands become
aware" etc. He does not know that
antitoxins are chemicals, and have
no glands" and that glands do
not become aware" in a conscious
sense, even IL they had them. The
leucocytes Cor white blood corpu-
scles) are living active cells, with
out glands or other organs, but,
like amoeba, can make stomach or
feet out of any part of their body.
When bacteria enter the system
living or dead-the chemistry of
their substance causes hydrolysis,
or breaking doHn Of the MOLE
cules of the body. This hydrolysis
likely acts on the leucocytes Also.
causing them to be aware of the
presence of their normal prey. AS
animalcules by tropism rush to oxy-
gen without knowing a reason, so
these find their way to bacteria by
an attraction of their own. 1t 10
as mechanical as the shutting of a
leaf of Venus Ry-trap on a fly. It
is not because the leaf has read the
headlines in newspapers, Swat the
ny'' that IL does this, as the writer
would caricature the germ theory,
but because IL is organized, by mil
lions of years of natural selection
TO mechanically close when the
stimulant Is given. When the MOLE
cuies of the body tissues are broken
down they emit as a necessity of
the rupture antitoxins correspond
ing to the part of the body that has
been attacked. This is also a prod
uct OF natural selection. From the
crown of our heads to the soles of
our feet we are an arsenal of de-
tense against bacterial invasion.
That Is why we have enzymes. tox-
ins, antitoxins, opsonins, anti-bodies,
hormones. leucocyres, etc. within
the system. 1t is the complex re-
action of these that gives immunity.
or course. all this is Greek to the
man on the street. but bacteriolo-
gists and educated physicians are
practically unanimous in the ac-
ceptance Of these facts. for they are
demonstrable. When ! was q youth
one man in about ten bore smallpox
marks on his face. now not one mai
in a thousand can he found. Six