Evening star., 1926-11-07

~ found. Unknown TO the meu-
"A ical world up to short time
II \ ago, 1t has been carrying on
countless centuries of warfare
against disease germs OF all xmas.
For the fact that we are alive TO-DAY
each of us can offer thanks 10 the
"Bacteriophage.'
| Bubonic plague. dysentery ana
colon bacillus infection have been
cured by injections of this Bac-
teriophage, according to recent re
pe,ts from France and Vienna. But
| this Is merely a beginning. Only
| few wears ago no one knew that every
nimal on the earth. including man,
carries around all the time 1nnumer
| able billions Of the Bacterlophase:
that this mysterious plant or animal
lives on disease germs and notnlns
else. and that there is no disease
earn n will not attack, given the
| proper conditions. Sausage-nke germ
IT cholera. deadly linked chain OF
MIA sue. or spider-shaped typhold
pla nt-the Bacteriophage plays no
fayorites. Epidemics would never
| end were it not for the BactefiophaSe'
and without 1t the world woulo De I'll
uninhabited desert.
This is not the familiar tale OF tho
| Hoods white corpuscles that soie
times swallow disease germs. Inc &c
tion of the white blood cells, tnouBh
| n has never yet been proved nae
heAn suspected for many years. Inc
history OF the Bacteriophage, on inc
contrary, Is just beginning.
A doctor in India named Hankln
one day back in 1895 was counting
the number Of disease germs III Iiis
water of the Jumfna, wncn loile"
through the plains toward n~
Canees. A sample taken just pelow
tha Town OF Agra showed only 100 TO
~. c,,bic centimeter. Was there
some purifving agent in the wafer
Dr Iankin took some water. III
+arod # through porcelain TO remove
au germs, then divided II !nto wv.
"l,rtatners and added q liberal amount
- oholera germs to each. lie polieo
~. water in one Of the containers.
| nssnite that he found that .ne
oholera germs increased rapioiy.
| cholera germs are very nara " Nh ~
As to the unboiled Water-"en,
course. one would expect the c .sl.,
germs to multiply even more Iaps
| in that. since they hao ho'
the ordeal Of boiling. .h.,
Concv the doctors surprise, tneh'
xhAn he found that the cholera germs
In the unboiled water completely ols
anneared within four hours! EVloeht,
~ some mysterious thing tnat nao
| heen killed by boiling in the otner
water was still lalvie In this containor
and had destroyed the cholera Daclin
without trace. But what could IL De !!
Ia had carefully filtered the water
tbro,Ish porcelain and no germ tnat
J he had ever heard OF couio se'
! through porcelain. oh
The puzzle was evidently TOO mucn
for the doctor, and the subject lapseo
for 20 years. .o
pasteur Institute found q little time
to snare from his arduous duties as
chief Of the laboratory service for the
prenaration of vaccine for the aiiieo
armies. A SQUADRON Of cavalry 10
Gated near Paris was being swept Dy
dysentery. Aided by previous stuoles
made on diseases of the locust, LIT.
d'Herelle discovered the presence OF
an unknown something that seemed
able to check dysentery in the Dooy
and even destroy dysentery germs
outside the body In the laboratory.
! Two years later he announced ten
tatively his results. and today reports
are coming from all over Europe OF
new achievements Of the "bacterio'
pnaee. az u nereio nnahy aN
Invisible discovery-"phage" meaning
literally ito eat up"
1t is q living thing, d'Herelle de-
clares-not just an inorganic poison
Of some sort. If 1t is living, II must
be the smallest atom of life there IL.
II can pass through membrane
whose largest pores measure not more
than one-twenty-f -five- thousandth Of an
inch. DR.. d'Herelle says helplesely
TT will be much more simple 10 ad
NIT that II IL impossible to undef etand
under what aspect Life II preseht IN