Evening star., 1926-10-30

By the BookloVer.

DAY lie tnat we OAtcl AOA6 NV
comparatively recent Is our knoWl'
edge of them. 1t was only IN the
7Os that Virchow, Pasteur and Koch
were CARRYING on those researches
which established the microscopical
sources Of disease. DR.. Harvey Cush-
ing in his Life Of Sir William Osler"
says that as late as the international
Medical Congress of 1881 "the edltori'
ais in most Of the British and Cana
dian journals of the time intimate
that NJ. Pasteur saw germs every
where, and his views regarding their
prevalence as a cause of disease were
regarded as rather horrible, II not
mirth-provoking." The proof OF the
germ theory of disease gave scien-
tific basis for medical practice and
sanitary prevention and has saved
countless human lives Through 1t
have come the Pasteur inoculat1on
against hydrophobia, diphtheria and
tetanus antitoxins, the Ehrlich treat
ment for syphilis, the abolition OF
yellow fever and the reduction or
malaria almost to the vanishing point.
II the germ theory has also caused
human beings considerable mental dis
comfort. through its revelation Of the
millions Of variously shaped. often
ganisms which swarm in the food we
eat, the water we drink and the air
we breathe-well that is only one of
the many penalties we are always
paying for the disturbance Of the
ignorance which is bliss.
y r y X
a very popular, rather sensationally
told, but entirely interesting account
Of the various painstaking researches
on the trail of microbes is "Microbe
Hunters" by Paul de Kruif. From
Leeuwenhoek, the Dutch janitor Of
the seventeenth century, who ground
lenses and discovered little animals"
in drop of rain water, down to Paul
Ehrlich, who died about 10 years ago.
after spending his whole life expert
menting With chemical compounds
and their effects on microbes, the
story is a thrilling one. The other
great names in this account o. de
Kruif-of course. there are many
microbe hunters who are not mention
ed here-are Spallanzani, Pasteur,
Koch. Roux, Behring, Metchnikoff.
Theobald Smith, David Bruce, Ronald
Ross, Grassi and Walter Reed. Two
of these microbe hunters were con-
nected with the United States Gov
CA IIAllOIlts 1AlCODdld kollIlIAI was OliO Va
the four members of the staff of 1.-The
then feeble, struggling, insignificant,
financially rather ill-nourished. and, in
general, almost negligible Bureau of
Animal Industry at Washington, "
when he began his studies of Texas
fever, which resulted in the discovery
Of the tick as the carrier of it's germ.
The story of Walter Reed. major in
the United States Army, head of the
Yellow Fever Commission, and what
he and his heroic colleagues did in
Cuba, is known to every one. One
story told by Mr.. de Kruif in con-
nection with the discovery Of the
Stegomyia mosquito as the carrier of
yellow-fever germs gives an amusing
sidelight on scientific skepticism.
Fifteen Solemn bearded physicians
were one day in the mosquito room of
the laboratory at Havana, expressing
wonder at Walter Reeds experiments,
but uttering a warning that "the re.
suits should be weighed and considered
with reserve" "Then the gauze lid
came off a jar Of she-mosquitoes (of
course, it was by accident), and into
the room, with wicked lustful eyes on
those learned scientists, the Stegomyia
buZzed. Alas for skepticism. Away
went all doubts. From the room rush
ed the eminent servants of knowledge!
Down went the screen door with a
crash-such was the vehemence of
their conviction that Walter Reed was
right" CThough it happened that this
particular jar Of mosquitoes was not
contaminated)
x * X *
Many have sung the joys of the
tramp life and the open road and
Gny 70 1fyIy~ nf
their songs. There are George Bor-
rows 'Lavengro" and "Romany Rye
and John M. Synge's 'Tinker's We'd
ding" and Shadow Of the Glen"
Stephen Graham's recent book. 1.-THE
Gentle Art of Tramping," is both a
paean to the woods, fields ana high
ways and a guide to their mastery.
America, Europe and Asia have all
been the tramping ground of Stephen
Graham. He has scaled mountains,
explored forests, cooked and slept out
of doors, and through it all has thor
ougMy enjoyed himself and has
found time for esthetic appreciation
of all that he has seen and expert
enced. The essence Of tramping. he
says, is to have no objective. A
place that must be reached by night
fall, a person that must be met, will
effectually spoil the joy Of the tramp.
X X X
Mexico under the government Of
Obregon. rather similar to Mexico
under other governments, is chosen
by Joseph Hergesheimer for the
scene of his novel, "Tampico." But
it Is not the government which con-
Germs the story. 1t is the Mexico of
competing oil companies, of oil leases,
Of oil wells, of bandits under their
so-called generals, of ransoms and
tribute money, of intrigues, gunmen
and murders, Of night cafes and
dancing girls with knives concealed
in their stockings. 1t recalls the at
mosphere Of THE Bright Shawl. -
Tampico Is one center of intrigue, the
Oil Corporation is another, and Ia.
camixtle, the sorlid and sinister head
quarters of the bandit general, Mel
chor Rayon, is still another. In none
Of these places is life safe for any
one, from the most accomplished in
triguer to the merest nobody, from
Govett Bradier, special agent Of the
Alianza company, to the Chinese cook.
boy OF the drilling camp. Journeys
in a rail car along the company lines
to the different Oil camps are partic.
ularly dangerous. But perhaps the
cafes are the most dangerous places
of all, where plump Soledad and
beautiful Teresita and Chepa and the
horrible Adeline fascinate men in
order to find out their secrets.
Whether it is the Ciudad de Pekin,
the Louisian, the Bolivar or the more
disreputable Union. danger turks be-
hind the bright lights, at the small
tables and in the smiles Of the girls.
1t is only when safely aboard a. pas
senger liner or a tanker, slowly
steaming out into the Gulf, that one
may draw breath of safety.
+ X
The library of the World War is
being rapidly formed. Almost every
month sees the addition of a new