Excerpt from Statement of Evidence Submitted by the South African Institute for Medical Research to the Low Grade Mines Commission: August, 1919 Length of Survival of the Pneumococcus in Sputum. - The actual period for which the germ of Pneumonia will survive in expectorated material (sputum) has been the subject of recent work by E. G. Still man He has recovered the organism from the dust of dormitory floors, even when the floors were very clean, with great regularity in about 30 per cent. Of the samples examined. This Observation points to the fact that the organism can retain its vitality even after the sputum in which it was originally contained has been reduced by desiccation to the form of dust. The South African Institute has been able to successfully transmit living Pneumococci to New York and to Melbourne in fragments of the dried spleens Of infected animals. This fact again illustrates the capacity of the germ to survive for long periods when its surroundings are thoroughly dry. These considera tions suggest that the observations of Wood, made some years ago as to the survival of the Pneumococcus for only an hour or so will require confirmation and amplification. The Number of Inoculations requisite to protect against Pneumonia. - When the vaccine is prepared in a saline medium three injections at weekly intervals are desirable. A recent advance, however, con sists in substituting an oily medium for the saline, and a vaccine so prepared is termed a' lipovaccine. Among other advantages this lipovaccine enables us to administer a far larger number of bacterial bodies in a. Single dose without serious inconvenience. A possible out come of this improvement will be a reduction Of the necessary inocula tions to two, or perhaps one. The Immunity conferred by an Attack of Pneumonia - The pre valent belief that an attack Of Pneumonia confers no immunity will probably have to be abandoned in the near future. There is strong evidence, derived from investigations of second attacks of Pneumonia, that the type (or group) of the germ causing the second attack is different from that which caused the first. It is probable that the con elusion to he arrived at before long will be that an attack of Pneumonia does confer a definite immunity against subsequent attacks, but only against subsequent attacks by the same group. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.