A summary of a lecture on matters connected with the life and health of the public / by J.T.C. Nash.

  • Nash, James Thomas Charles, 1865-
Date:
1901
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: A summary of a lecture on matters connected with the life and health of the public / by J.T.C. Nash. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    Professor Gorham has succeeded in extracting from decayed beef steak sufficient illumination to take photographs of the la- boratory apparatus. Ferment Production. Most bacteria produce various kinds of ferments. These fer- ment producing or zymogenic bacteria are of great importance in various directions. The success or non-success of certain of our industries, such as butter and cheese-making, depend in no small measure on the use and control of the fermentative processes, due to the action of certain bacteria. The Essex County Council Bacterio- logical Teaching Laboratory is one of the few institutions in England which has realised the importance of some knowledge of bacterial flora in milk on the part of those engaged in the manufacture of dairy products. The apathy of the Government and of most public bodies in this matter is really very lamentable. In spite of the vast importance of bacteriological knowledge and research, which can only be acquired by patient and long continued observation and experiment in well-equipped up-to-date laboratories, the only substantial support hitherto forthcoming for the advance- ment of this most important branch of science has been from private sources. This should not be so, and I believe it will not be so in the near future. Already there are signs of an awakening, and when once the State and the people have become impressed with their really inti- mate relation to,and dependence upon, science, the present regrettable state of affairs will be changed for the better. There are many great problems of interest and of practical and technical importance and advantage awaiting solution or discovery. But this will necessitate the giving-up of time and thought for patient observation and organ- ised experiment on the part of those best fitted to deal with these problems. Since however, with few exceptions, bacteriology does not pay, how can we expect men who have spent five of the best years of their lives, and about ^1,000 in gaining a medical qualification (not to speak of the additional time and expense in acquiring special techni- cal training) to take up such work unless they have private means ? In consequence many of the best fitted for this kind of work are