g a multitude of dark,
round, uniform, sharply outlined, movable granules. Besides these, the
protoplasm contains a generally grayish homogeneous nucleus as large
as one or two red blood corpuscles. The protoplasm sends out
pseudopodia (with granules), which sometimes separate and appear as
small delicate pieces of protoplasm. They vary in size, and are often
swallowed by the red blood corpuscles in which they grow, and finally
develop into the above mentioned amoeboid bodies.
Prof. J. Lewis Smith has made a great many autopsies of children dead
from cholera infantum, and almost invariably found the stomach and
liver in a comparatively healthy condition. Ganghen, who has given
this subject considerable study, denies the existence of any specific
germ in the summer diarrhea of infants, but claims to have found three
different germs in the intestines of children suffering from cholera
infantum, each producing a chemical poison which is capable of
producing vomiting, purging, and even death. A great variety of germs
are found in drinking water, and no doubt countless numbers are taken
into the digestive tract, and the principal reason why pathological
conditions do not occur more frequently is on account of the
germicidal qualities of the gastric juice.
The comma bacillus of Koch, and the typhoid fever germ of Eberth, are
especially destroyed in normal gastric juice. When the germs are very
numerous, they run the gauntlet of the stomach (as the gastric juice
is secreted only during digestion); and once in the alkaline
intestinal canal they are capable of setting up disease, other
conditions contributing--ill health, deranged digestion, etc.
Mittnam has made a study of bacteria beneath the nails, and reports,
after examining persons following different occupations, having found
numerous varieties of micro-organisms; which are interesting from a
scientific standpoint relative to the importance of thoroughly
cleansing the hands before undertaking any surgical procedure. He
found, out of twenty-five experiments, 78 varieties of bacteria, of
which 36 were classed as micrococci, 21 diplococci, 18 rods, 3
sarcinae, and 1 yeast. Cooks, barbers, waiters, etc., were examined.
The blood, defibrinated and freshly drawn, has marked germicidal
action; for bacteria its action is decidedly deadly, even hours after
it has been drawn from the body. Especially were anti-germic qualities
noticed upon pathogenic bacteria. Buchner put t
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