Evening star., 1924-06-25
IN TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT
BY PAUL y. COLLINS

partment Of Agriculture, determined
to test the effect of commercial
adulterants in foods by feeding them
to men and watching the pois6ns.
He called for volunteers among the
young scientists and explained that
he would feed them poisons whose
nature science had never fully tested.
They might be permanently ruined
in health-they might die, in spite
of all alertness of care. Not once
was his poison squad" lacking in
volunteers. The victims" received
neither great pay nor great glory;
they were eager to advance knowl-
edge which would be useful in saving
human life.
DR.. Walter Reed similarly called
for volunteers who would consent
to be shut up with yellow fever mos
quitoes and be poisonously bitten.
The result is the practical annihila-
tion of yellow fever from the world.
Was ever a cannon hero Drawer than
those who unarmed faced the deadly
mosquito?
Dr. Plateau, a Belgian physician,
some years ago in studying the pow
| seconds at the sun. His eyesight
was burned out. In his blindness.
with the aid of his family, he con-
tinued his tests, which proved OF
great value to oculists and through
the scientists to all humanity. He
retina of what 1t sees. Out of that
! study was evolved the first prin-
ciples of the motion picture.
Progress Of civilization comes
through sacrifice. Anti-vivisection-
lists devote wasted pity upon guinea,
pigs, dogs and rats which are anaes-
| thetized and operated upon expert
| mentally-they forget the amount Of
| human suffering that is thereby pre-
vented or cured. Through such ex-
ne quroarv. has lea ed liter
ally to rebuild human body, re-
place not only diseased glands but
diseased organs. A human kidney
worn out can now be replaced with
| an animal kidney, as also may blind
eyes be renewed with good eyes, so
that they will thrive and perhaps in
a short time may even make the
blind to see. Such achievement is
Vaughan succeed in crossing the
continent in day the first or the
second time he tried.
Dr. Pasteur had scarcely completed
his first tests OF his preventive Of
hydrophobia, through inoculating rab-
bits, before a child which had been
mangled by a mad dog was brought
to him, and the sacrifices Of rabbits
and guinea pigs saved the child from
! horrible death. and since then have
saved hundreds of thousands Of
| hydrophobia victims.
At Walter Reed Hospital there is
today young man whose face was
| blown away by powder explosion
his lower lip, his nose and one ear
gone and all skin and much flesh
Of the face mangled horribly. Be
cause of previous martyrs to skin
grating and plastic surgery, this
young man has new lip, nose and
ear, with complete new facial skin.
There has never been a great for
| ward step in any science which has
not been associated with great sacri-
fice and suffering. What Village
Hampden" has ever rebuk ed tyranny
| without a penalty? What Florence
Nightingale has ever left luxury to
found nursing of wounded and sick
soldiers of battle without bearing
greater burdens than did Tommy
Atkins" himself? What Palissy has
nodded clay without sacrifice? What
Galileo has marked the heavens with
out martyrdom? Damien gave his
life for abandoned lepers. Living
Brown freed the slaves. But they are
Initiated daily by every man or
woman who seizes an opportunity to
help fellow man, whether by show
ing him how to fly above mountains
or by helping him to rise above dis
couragement. Heroes! heroines!
Copyright, 1924, by Paul V. CollinsI