OCR Text |
Show T TFLU FLU BAFFLES MEDICAL SCIENCE I ' Influenza , the scourge of hwnanity humanit hwnanityI hwnanityI humanitythe ; I l this Rinteclaiming v-inter v inter Rinte vinterI vinterclaiming winterclaiming - I the world over , . which v.hich vhich is vinterI I of lives liveshas liveshas , toll of thousands claiming its I has so far baffled baftled medical science , , aI-I aI I aIII aIIthough al alf although al- al al1 - " -1 1 - a war is I " being ImlyiCT _ waged TOdjrerL _ in tTLCQUnt- tTLCQUnt tTLCQUnt1 count- count countless countless - - 1 though L11UU5H * M * - ? - - I f less medical laboratories in an effort to tobring t tobring bring it under control In Great Greatj GreatBritain Grea GreaBritain GreatBritain j , Britain the flu epidemic epidcmlc is especially especiali especiallysevere especiallysevere ; severe The story of the fight being beingI beingl beingwaged bean beingwaged ( I l t twaged waged against the disease in Englancis Englandt Englandlis England Englanc t is interestingly told in the following followin followingarticle followingarticle ( lis article by Reginald Simp"on Simpon Simp'on Simp < " ' on , publlshecin publishedin publlshcdin publlshcd publlshec in the Jan 8 edition cf the Sunday Sunda SundayChronicle SundayChronicle ! Chronicle of London ' Behind the great flu epidemic which whict whictis whichis is sweeping sweepmg Britain lies the story of one oneI oneof one oneof oneof I of the grimmest grunmest battles w " which "hich hich hick science sciencehas sciencehas sciencehas has ever waged Night and day in inlaboratories it itlaboratories inlaboratories laboratories all over the country whitc- whitc white whitcI whitcsmocked whitesmecked white-smocked white smocked - I smocked smecked scientists are wrestling with watt wattthe withthe I Ithe the mastery mystery m stery of this baffling disease diseasewhich diseasewhich II in- in inII industry in industry - which , year after year , paralyses II IIdustry dustry , decimates office staffs , an anc anccosts andI J JI Jcosts I costs the world millions ofax of > [ pounds unds . I II I It is a battle which has been going goingI goingI goingon goingon I I on steadily for 40 years , ever since sinceI sincePfeiffer sincePfeiffer sincePIelffer I Pfeiffer , the gicat gleat great scientist , discovered discoveredI discoverec discoveredthe discoverecthe discoveredthe I the influenza bacillus in 1892And 1892 1892And I IAnd I And it is a bittle b\ttle b ttle b'ittle ' \ ' which-to which to which - to speak speal speakI speakthe speakthe + the blunt , unvarnished truth-shows truth shows truthshowslittle truth - showsI , little signs at a ! . present of ending in A . a atriumphant ! triumphant trlUmphant victory for scienceOnce scienceOnce science scienceOnce Once a year , with feaiful fea1ful fearful andmonotonous and andmOl1oto andmonotonous monotonous mOl1oto ous regularity , the demon flu flust1l1 flustill flustill st1l1 still sets its scourge on the worldToday worldToday world worldToday Today its storm center is Great GreatBnta111 GreatBritain GreatBritain Bnta111 Britain , . where it is claiming claimmg thousandof thousands thousand thousandsof of victims Tomonow Tomorlow Tomorrow victimsTomonow victimsTomorlow victimsTomorrow it may sv sweep . eep across acrossFrance acrossFrance acrossFrance France A fortnight hence it may devastate de- de devastate de devastate - - vastate AmericaScience AmericaScience America AmericaScience Science knows v . weeks eeks ahead when afresh a afresh afresh fresh epidemic may be expected It Itpredicted Itpredicted Itpredicted predicted the greatest flu epidemic of ofallthe ofallthe ofall all-the all the - the dread plague of ot 1918-weeks 1918 weeks 1918weeksbefore 1918weeksbefore 1918 - - weeksbefore before it happened . It predicted the present outbreak outbreakI outbreakfour outbreakfour I four weeks ago , , when people were stIll stIllcongratulating stillcongratulating stillCongratulating [ congratulating themselves on the theastonishing theastonishing theastonishing astonishing mildness of the winter . , But though they knew from their theircharts theirharts theircharts charts harts : and the weather inferences that thatI thatthe thatthe I the 'flu flu ' was coming , the scientISts scientIStsI scientists.ere scientistswere \ .ere ere . ere unable to do anything to stop it itAll itX11 itAll I All X11 they could tell the public was togargle toargle to , gargle , argle frequently and avoid crowdedI crowdeddaces crowded I ; placesI places daces placesThe dacesThe The plaul plalli plat truth is that aftel after aft l nearly nearlyhalf nearlycalf nearlyi I half calf a 3 . century of research , which has hasengaged hasengaged engaged ngdged some of the best brains in thevorld the theworld theworld world vorld , and In which tens of thoUSands thousandsof thousandsif of if pounds have been spent , , medical medicalknowledge medicalaiowledge medicalknowledge knowledge aiowledge cannot even discover the theca theause thecause ca ; ause u&e ue & of the disease dlsease dlseaseIt diseaseIt diseaseIt It is in m this admission of failurerut faIlure- faIlure faIlurel failure failureI - - l I but rut not of defeat-bes defeat bes defeat-lies lies defeat - - lies the drama ofthe ofhe of | the he great battle which WhlCh science is wag- wag waging wagng wag waging - ing ng against agamst the scourge Time after aftertime afterdme aftertime time dme men like l1ke Knstensen Kristensen in Copen Copen- Copenhagen Copenragen Copenhagen - hagen ragen , , Ledmgham Ledingham in Mesopotamia "Mesopotamiaand Mesopotamiaand " , and end Blake and Cecil have thought thoughtthemselves thoughthemselves thoughtthemselves themselves hemselves on the vel veige verge ge of victory . I thoughtI But the elusive flu germ which whichcheated whichheated whichcheated cheated heated them then is still being bemg soughtor sought soughtfor soughtfor for or with with . , grim grlIIl grin and relentless energy . For the best part of 'Of ' two hours .1 1 I . .1have Jhave Irave have rave stood in one of London's Londons ' largest largestand largestnd largestand and nd best equipped laboratories watch watch- watching watchrig watching - ing rig some SO'11e SO11e so'aie soaie ' ' of the men who are making makingthe makinghe makingthe the he conquest of flu their life hfe workIt workIt work workIt It isa is a room gleaming gleammg with sCientific sCientificInstruments scientificastruments scientificinstruments Instruments astruments , , with the po powerful po'aerful poaerful v . ' erful electric electriclIghts electricIghts electriclights lIghts Ights glinting on rows of test tubes tubeswith , with rlth fearsome looking cultures im- im imI imprisoned imrisoned im imprisoned - - I prisoned risoned in glass bottlesI bottles I II \ I was told by a jvhite-smccked jvhite smccked white.smccked whitesmccked white-smccked white smccked - . mI m- m in- in - I that the great handicap to toinfluenza toinfluenza influenza vestigator rcsea1ch rescaich is the fact that thatlaboratory thatlaboratory toI I animals are not susceptible susceptibleto laboratory is no lack of ofllUamn ofl But there to the disease for- for forward ofI - I readY readytobeinfected to come volunteers l llUamn vu tobeinfectedw w hegermiii hegermiiithe in inthe the germ to tobeinfected tobeinfectedh be infected , with h inI ward \vaiu vaiu \ vu u- u uthe - - - - - I I ITwo the cause of scienceTwo scienceTwo science staff at thismoment this thismoment this'moment thismoment of the laboratory ' moment Two are suffering from flu tlu delib delib- deliberately delib- delib deliberately deliberately - - erately induced in this way Betweenthem Between Betweenthem Betweeni themselvesfour themselvesto themselves have ha\e ha e hate \ subjected subJccted them they sixmonths six sixmonths ' the past , to four attacks during months m \ monthsDespite their con- con conI condlt10n condition con condition - high temperatures Despite I carefullydocumented carefully carefullydccumented carefullydocumented are being bemg dition dlt10n and progress dccumented documented by their own handsFlu handsFlu hands handsFlu carefullyI I research goes at themoment thei themoment the Flu , as far as is believed beheved to be due to a germknown germ i moment | ' is sominute so sominute sol which ' " ' : a "Illter Illter 1i1ter "litter litter passer known as soI I all efforts to tohap totrap totiap minute that it . defies formsof forms formsof formsof serious more hap trap it But in the compli compU- compU compli- complies compUc complicr - the position is disease of the that the bacillus dis- dis discovered discovered dis discovered - - fact es cr c " ted by the covered by Pfeiffer is the micro-organ- micro organ microorganism micro-organ-'ism micro organ 'ism ism - - ' constantly foundI foundInfluenza foundInfluenza found ism Influenza more takes so many differentforms different differenti I | from time to time that the in- in inI investigation In Investigation - I I forms vestigation of Individual cases doesnot does doesnot doesnot far along the theroad theroad theroad not help science scicnce very But when an epidemic arrives . ' , road circumstances ate afie dif- dif different different dif different - - , arrives'las as at present , arrives'l arrivesl ferent ferent ferentThe The scientists fighting the scourgetoday scourgetoday scourge scourgetoday today are perhaps the only people in inthe inthe inthe ofthe of ofthe ofthe welcome the spread the world v.prld vprld 'tiprld tiprld ' . who the present outbreak It gives them a anew anew anew new chance chanco of ot success"We success success"We successI " the bac- bac bacteriologIst bacteriologist bac bacteriologist - - "We We " shall win W111 in the end ends , teriologist told me "But But " when we weshall weshall weshall shall be able to announce annotmce our victory victoryis victoryis is in m the lap of the gods For all we weknow weknow weknow know we may be nearer to it than wethink wethink we | think " of science are alsotrained also alsotrained alsoI j The big guns I trained on the common cold Like fluI fluJ flu fluit it is the cause of millions of pounds poundslost poundslost J lost annually through sickness Like Likeflu Likeflu Likeflu flu , it has its periods penods of sudden viru Vlru- Vlru vim- vim Vlrulence vimlence virulence - " lence And like Uke flu , unfortunately , itIs it itI itis itis I is still baffling the scientists scientistsIn scientIstsI In fact , the question of the commoncold common commoncold commoncold I cold from the scientific point of vipw view vipwI viewIs vipwis moment momentI momentthan momentthan momentthan I is even more uncertain at the than the position positron with regard to mflu-\ mflu mfluenza rnflu- rnflu rnflumm influ influenza - - \ I enza mm No one knows why colds take so soI somany somany somany I many different forms No one knows knowsI knowsexactly knowsexactly knowsexactly exactly the organisms which causethem causethem cause causethem I them themBut But one remarkable fact has emergcd emergled emerg- emerg emerged - ed cd from the countless experimentsthat experiments experimentsthat experimentsI led [ that have been'f beenf been'Cinade beenCinade been ' ' made 1ade It is that after afteran afteran afteran an oldmary ordinary attack of common cold coldI coldthere coldthere I ( there is rs usually a period of immunity immunityfrom immunityfrom Immunityfrom from three to four monthsI monthsMost monthsMost months Most colds occur in 111 October , then thenI thencomes thenTomes thencomes I [ peak peakin peak.n peakin comes Tomes a slight drop with a new I in .n n . Januaiy JanualY January . , February and March MarchI MarchWhenever MarchWhenever MarchWhenever I Whenever the sunshine sunshme falls below the theordinary therdinary theI , ordinary rdinary ) level then up goes the num- num numer num-I num I numII numIber num-ber num ber - ber er of coldsBut coldsBut colds coldsi I i ( But if science has yet to conquer thel thei the thewin i twin win bugbears of humamty-tne humamty tne humanity-tne humanity humanity - tne flu fluI fluand fluand fluand and the common cold-It cold It cold - it can point pomt the theway thevay theway I way vay to avoid themThe themThe them themThe The chief thing thmg is to avoid aVOld rapid rapidchanges rapidhanges rapidchanges changes hanges ; in m temperature by movlnp moving movingaiddenly movingsuddenly ' I [ suddenly aiddenly out of cf a warm atmospheiei atmospherento atmosphe1 atmosphere I into mto nto a cold one Dress rationally raUonally , andlon't and anddon't anddon't anddont don't dont lon't lont ' ' coddle yourself Get plenty of ofI offresh of'resh offresh fresh 'resh resh ' ail air to the skin Breathe deeplyI deeplyAnd deeplyAnd deeply deeplyAnd I And , in m 1n epidemics epldemlCs of flu , gargle fre- fre ffe- ffe frequently ffeuently fre frequently - - quently uently and avoid crowdsThere crowds I IThere , I There the battle against the flu fludemon fluLemon flu'demon fludemon ' demon Lemon 1 icsts rests ests for the moment But ButsCIence Butcience Butscience fluI I ] sCIence cience refuses to acknowledge the theaeanrng thei I meaning meanmg aeanrng of failure Some day-it day it day - it may maye maybe theI I ! ; be e next week or next ne\.t ne.t ne .t t ' \ . year-the year the year - the fightall fight fightMll fightwill Mll all be won I |