172 THE ROYAL OOLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS OF LONDON.

aid of scientific apparatus from England Dr. Nicholls wasable to carry on and complete these investigations on hissubsequent return to Dominica. Some of the results of theseresearches are summed up as follows :-C:A microbe in the form of a micrococcus was found con-stantly in the secretion from the granulomata characteristicof yaws, which was successfully cultivated in nutrient media,and pure cultures were obtained to the third generation.The microbe was discovered in abundance in the affectedtissues of persons suffering from the disease, and no otherpathogenic microbe was found in association with it. In’mo instance was this micro-organism discovered in theblood, although it was successfully multiplied in the serum indrop cultures. It was found and successfully caltivated inAntigua, St, Kitts, and Dominica, and under identical con-ditions in these three islands. Pure cultivations of themicrococcus of yaws showed that its microscopical cha-racters were constant, and that its macroscopical appear-ances differed from those of micrococci already discoveredand described in various works on bacteriology, Thelower animals are probably immune, inoculations givingmegative results, as did also the inoculations from thesecretions of the granulomata. In the absence of the

- concluding proofs of the pathogenesis of the microbe-viz, the production of the disease in healthy animals by’inoculation of pure cultivations and the after discovery of themicro-organism in the fluids or tissues-it cannot yet be Ipositively declared that the micrococcus is the contagium ofthe disease. But Dr. Nicholls and Mr. Watts, in view of theattributes of the disease being clearly indicative of its origin.and causal connexion with a microbe, and of the fact that theywere able to establish that a micrococcus is its constant

accompaniment, as well as of the subsequent discovery by’Dr. Nicholls of the microbe in the lymphatic system and invarious organs of a patient who died from yaws, consider"themselves jastified in inferring that the micrococcusis nevertheless the cause of the disease and that itinvades the system through the lymphatics. It is

important to observe, in connexion with the bearingit has on the mode of propagation of this malady,that the micro organism has been found in the dust on thefloor of rooms in which yaws patients have been living, andthat, as a matter of experiment, it is capable of retaining itsvitality of growth and multiplication for a considerable time,The clinging of the contagion to certain huts and localities,and the occurrence of a sudden outbreak of the disease whenthe heavy rains of a tropical climate moisten the earthenfloors are therefore capable of explanation.We have said enough to show that the results of the latest

investigations, if ratified by subsequent researches, are likelyto throw a new light upon the subject of yaws, and to call fora reconsideration of the views that have been previously heldin respect to it. We may usefully conclude this article byreferring our readers to one that appeared in THE LANCET of- June 21st, 1873, on the disease in question.

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANSOF LONDON.

THE WEBER-PARKES PRIZE AND MEDALS.

WE have received from Dr. Edward Liveing, the Registrarof the College, the following particulars respecting Dr.Hermann Weber’s Friz3 Foundation in the College, and havepleasure in calling the attention of the profession to them.The prize is of the value of C150 or thereabouts, and will

be awarded triennially to the author of the best essay uponsome branch of the subject of Tuberculosis, especially withreference to pulmonary consumption in man. The first awardwill be made in 1897, and the adjudicators have selectedas the subject for the essay " The Means, Prophylacticor Curative. deemed by the author to have value in the’control of Tuberculosis, especial regard being had to theirapplication to Human Tuberculosis." This subject was.selected by Dr. J. E. Pollock, Dr. Thorne Thorne, and Pro-fessor W. S. Greenfield, who were nominated by the Pre-sident of the College, and these gentlemen will have theonus of adjudicating between the essays. The essay mustbe based on original work and observations (experimental orother) of the author, and inubt include a detailed expositionof the methods employed and their mode of application.

The following are the full regulations for the guidance ofintsudiog competitors :-

THE WEBER-PARKES PRIZE AND MEDALS.

Regulatians.1. That the prize founded by Dr. Hermann Weber, in memory of the

late E. A. Parkes, M. D., be termed the " Weber-Parkes Prize.2. That the prize be awarded triennially to the writer of the best

essay upon some subject connected with the etiology, prevention,pathology, or treatment of tuberculosis, especially with reference topulmonary consumption in man; that in making the award theCollege have regard to careful collection of facts and original research.

3. That the value of the prize be 150 guineas, or such sum as theinterest accrued on the capital, after payment of expenses, will permit.

4. That a bronze medal be awarded to the holder of the prize, and asimilar medal, to be distinguished as the second medal, to the essayistwho comes next in order ot merit.

5. That an Adjudication Committee be nominated on each occasionby the President from among the Fellows of the College, and that it bethe duty of such committee to select the particular subject forcompetition.

6. That the same committee which selects the subject shall adjudicateupon the essays sent in upon that subject, the President havingpower to fill up any vacancies which may have occurred meantime inthe committee.

7. That the adjudieation. he made every three years at some timeprevious to St. Luke’s Day, when the prize and medals will be presentedto the winners.

8. If, in the opinion of the judges, no essays are presented of sufficientmerit to deserve either the prize and lirst medal or the second medalrespectively, that the College be at liberty, on the recommendation ofthe judges, to award either one or both to the author or authors of anyoriginal work or works on the subject produced within the precedmgthree years which may be deemed worthy of the same; and in theabsence of such work or works that the corresponding award or awardsbe not made, and the sum assigned for the same be added to the capitalamount.

9. That the subject for the next ensuing competition be selected andadvertised within a period of three months from the last presentation;or, failing any award, from the day on which the prize would havebeen presented had an award been made; and that the competing essaysbe delivered to the Registrar on or before July 1st in the year of theaward.

10. That the competition be open to members of the medical pro-fession in all countries. The essays to be typewritten and in English;or if written in a foreign language to be accompanied by a transtationinto English.

11. That each essay bear a motto, selected by the writer, who shallinsert his name within a sealed envelope having the motto on thecover, the envelope being transmitted with the essay to the Registrar,who shall return the unsuccessful essays to their authors.

12. That the prize essay become the property of the College, and thatthe College may grant its author permission to publish it if lie sodesire.

13. That the medals shall present on the obverse the bust of the ’

founder; on the reverse a design relating to the prevention and treat-ment of pulmonary tuberculosis, with the inscription (exergue),"Prevention and Cure of Tuberculosis," and that the name of therecipient and the date of the award be placed on the edge of the medal.

THE CHEMICAL AND BACTERIOLOGICALEXAMINATION OF DRINKING-WATERFROM THE STANDPOINT OF THEMEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH.

THAT there has within recent years been a decided changein the attitude of the medical officer of health towards thevalue to be attached to chemical analysis few will question,and it is perhaps a debatable point whether the reactionwhich has taken place in favour of the bacteriologist may nothave led to a somewhat exaggerated importance beingaccorded to the results of the bacteriological examination ofwater. In former days the dictum of the chemist in

regard to any given water was accepted as final andthe water stood condemned or absolved according to

the results which the sample submitted yielded. Atthe present time the chemist has to some extent beensuperseded by the bacteriologist, and the dictum ofthe latter is now by some considered to be as conclusiveas was that of the chemist in former days. Under thesecircumstances it is hardly to be wondered at that bacterio-logical methods should be subjected to some criticism at thehands of the chemist. To those who would seek to studythe question from the chemist’s standpoint we would com-mend an able article by Dr. Dupre, F.R S., which appearedrecently in the Analyst, and to those who, like ourselves, areapproaching the subject from the standpoint of the medicalofficer of health we cannot do better than advise the perusalof a paper which appeared also in the Analyst, and whichhas now, together with Dr. Dupre’s paper, been issued inpamphlet form. For the information of our readers we will,

173EVASIONS OF THE ADULTERATION ACTS.

in the first instance, refer briefly to one or two of the salientfeatures of these papers, and in conclusion will offer a fewremarks upon the main question.Chemical analysis shows us, Dr. Dupre contends, in ninety-

nine cases out of a hundred whether a water is polluted bysewage or not, more particularly so if the plan proposed byhimself and Mr. Hehner be adopted of comparing the waterunder examination with one from the same district andformation, which the surroundings show to be unpolluted.This latter proviso seems to us a somewhat importantconcession from the chemist’s standpoint, since it practicallymeans that apart from a study of a water’s environmentchemical analysis may be misleading. As far, however,as we are aware this method adopted by Dr. Dupre isnot a universal one among chemists. By the detectionof pollution the chemist is able, Dr. Dupr6 urges, to

anticipate danger, whereas the bacteriologist is onlyable to discover pathogenic organism after disease hasalready been caused ; or, as he graphically expresses it, thechemist can close the stable door before the steed is stolen,the bacteriologist can only close it after the steed has gone.The answer to this argument is obvious, and Dr. Dapre,anticipating the bacteriologist’s objection that in the bacilluscoli he has as fine an index of pollution as the chemist,replies that chemical analysis stands condemned becauseit is unable to detect pathogenic organisms, and he infersthat on this ground the chemist and bacteriologist mustfight their battle. The estimation of a water’s safetyby reference to a numerical standard of micro-organismis a method for which Dr. Dupré has little sympathy. Arewe to be told, he observes, that the deep-well water ofthe Kent Water Company is an admirable drinking-water asit comes from the well, and absolutely unfit for drinkingone or two days afterwards? For the detection of un-filtered sewage biological examination takes, Dr. Duprethinks, first rank ; but it is, he maintains, not pollution suchas this which either the chemist or the bacteriologist is, as arule, called upon to detect. In the case, for instance, of awell water, many of the micro-organisms may have beenseparated by filtration through the soil and subsoil, and it isin cases such as these that Dr. Dupré would claim forthe chemist an easy victory. Experiment with artificiallypolluted water where a little faecal matter and no urineare added is not, he contends, a fair test, as the condi-tions thus established unduly favour the bacteriologist.The "conveniently small measure " adopted by bacteriologistsfor recording their results is also matter for Dr. Dupré’scriticism. "How beautifully free from impurity," he says,"would most water, or even sewage, appear if we stated ouranalytical results in parts per cubic centimetre instead ofparts per 100,000." And, again, "What would be thoughtof a man who, if he found no fish in, say, ten cubic feet ofsea water, were to pronounce that there are no fish in the sea? " Chemical and bacteriological examination of water Ishould, Dr. Dupre considers, be used in conjunctionwith one another, but if one only is available thatone should be the chemical. This, briefly stated, is thechemist’s view. Dr. Thresh’s paper is one which shouldcertainly be read by every medical officer of health.He refers in a most lucid manner to the difficultieswhich beset the medical officer of health in bis en-

deavour to find suitable water-supplies for his district ;and he quotes cases where both chemical and bac-teriological examinations have failed to indicate dangerwhere the physical surroundings of the water have demon-strated it, and conversely where chemical analysis con-demned a water when the environment absolved it fromsuspicion. Dr. Thresh approaches the subject as a medicalofficer of health, but in stating the fact it is well toremember that he is also a, distinguished chemist. Withoutunduly deprecating the value of chemical and bacteriologicalanalysis, Dr. Thresh insists upon the paramount importanceof the physical surroundings of a water’s source. Ourexpectations with regard to the value of bacteriologicalanalysis have, Dr. Thresh observes, not altogether beenrealisfd, and its results are as likely to mislead as arethose of chemical analysis. The numerical standard of thebacteriologist he considers as "illogical as the old chemicalstandards; both depend upon quantity, whilst the real issueis quality."We confess that Dr. Thresh’s attitude is one with which

we feel ourselves largely in accord. It seems to us that in

selecting a water to be used for drinking purposes negativeevidence-i.e., failure to find evidence of suspicion-whether

it be afforded by the chemist or the bacteriologist, is of verylittle value. Roughly, the one or the other expert reports,from his point of view, on one day only out of the 365 whichmake up a year. On the other 364 days samples submittedto the one or the other expert might have elicited a verydifferent statement of fact. This being so, it is clearthat the physical circumstances of the water’s source areall-important, since they are. within moderate limits atleast, constant for all the 365 days of the year. On theother hand, still referring to the selection of a water fordrinking purposes, positive evidence against it as afforded bya single testing of the chemist or the bacteriologist is not to,be accepted as absolutely convicting the water. It may bethat the particular water is liable to an occasional andfleeting pollution from a contaminating agency that is noessential condition of its physical circumstances ; and again,therefore, a strict examination of the surrounding circumstances of that particular water might altogether modify theadverse judgment arrived at by the chemist or the bacteriologist. As regards a water suspected of having causedepidemic disease just the same difficulty arises as to the valueof negative evidence, whether chemical or bacteriological.In nineteen cases out of twenty neither chemist nor bacteriologist can speak of the water as it was at the time itwas causing disease ; and here again, therefore, the risk ofspecific pollution as evidenced by the surroundings is theall-important factor.

EVASIONS OF THE ADULTERATION ACTS.

WHILE it is impossible to withhold all sympathy for thoretail dealer who has brought a conviction on himself byneglecting to use "reasonable diligence," we have none forthe man who exercises his utmost ingenuity to deceive.The Sale of Food and Drugs Act legalises the sale of mix-tures of chicory with coffee, and of margarine with butter,.or alone, provided that the seller gives with it "a legiblelabel " to that effect, the practice of taking the samplefrom a mass so labelled not being sufficient, since itis impossible to ensure the latter being in full viewof the purchaser. But in any case the word "legible"is, like all relative terms, unsatisfactory-legibility de-pending on each person’s acuity of vision, on the amountof light, and on the position and arrangement of the lettering.It is not at all unusual to find the qualifying words printedin the smallest type, or placed obliquely in a remote part ofthe label with the evident intention that they shall beunobserved. If the clause be more than a fictionor formality, the words which show that "things arenot what they seem" should be as large and con-

spicuous as those which, taken by themselves, wouldconvey a false impression-in fact, would be untrue.Mr. C. M. Atkinson, stipendiary magistrate at Leeds, ablyargued the question, not of intent to defraud but of thesufficiency of such a label in a case in which a "purchaser P

asking simply for "cheese," and pointing to a piece onthe counter, was served with three pounds cut from itwithout a word of explanation. The label on the mass-was "Valleyfield (finest oleine) Cheese," in three lines,the words "finest oleine" being in small, the others imcapital letters; and the magistrate maintained that the’words "oleine " and 11 cheese should have been equallylegible, if not combined in one. We might add that theword "oleine" does not either scientifically or techniøcally meet the requirements of the Act, for oleine’is a normal constituent of butter fat, and the legaldescription of these added fats is "margarine." Thepublic have learnt the purport of the word ; but in the casein question the purchaser, a labourer acting under thedirection of the inspector, read the word on the label as" Cnrline," and was naturally unable to attach any meaningto it. Nor would he, as the magistrate remarked, have beenmuch wiser if he had read it correctly, and, as he himselfhad done, found it defit1ed in a dictionary as "the thin oilypart of fat." It conveys no suggestion of the additionof foreign matter, whereas "margarine," having beendiscarded from scientific nomenclature, has been happilyappropriated by the Act as a designation for all suchartificial mixtures of extraneous fats. The Sale ofFood and Drugs Act has now been in force for

twenty years, and must be submitted to revision. Not only