Page 151 - Ethel D. Hume - Bešam ili Paster: Izgubljeno poglavlje u istoriji biologije

BfiCHAMP OR PASTEUR?

Pasteur, as we have already said, sprang a surprise upon
the Academy in 1872, a year memorable for the incessant
work undertaken by the School of Montpellier.
To take merely the end of the year, we find on the 7th
October, 1872, an extract read before the Academy from
a Note of Bechamp's, entitled, "Upon the Action of Borax
in the Phenomena of Fermentation." 1 This was of con-
siderable interest at that time and answered certain
questions raised by M. Dumas.
On the 21st October, 1872, Professor Bechamp and
Professor Estor presented a joint Memoir "On the Func-
tion ofthe microzymas during Embryonic Development." 2
This was one of the many highly important treatises upon
striking discoveries and the experiments that substantiated
them.
On the 28th October, 1872, Bechamp read a Memoir
entitled "Researches upon the Physiological Theory of
3
Alcoholic Fermentation by Beer-Yeast."
On the nth November of the same year, he read a
Memoir on "Researches upon the Function and Trans-
formation of Moulds." 4
Some idea of his incessant toil may be gleaned from the
mere titles of these records of his untiring energy. We can,
therefore, picture his astonishment and natural chagrin
when he was roused from his arduous researches by
Pasteur's appropriation of views that he had put forward
years previously.
First of all, on the 7th October, 1872, Pasteur described
to the Academy "Some New Experiments Showing that
the Yeast-Germ that Produces Wine Comes from Outside
the Grape." 5
Here was Bechamp's discovery, published in 1854!
This was too much even for the subservient Members of
the Academy! M. Fremy interrupted, with the object of
exposing the insufficiency of Pasteur's conclusions.
1
Comptes Rendus de VAcadimie des Sciences 75, pp. 837-839.
8
* C. R. 75, pp. 962-966. C. R. 75, pp. 1 036-1 040.
6
* C. R. 75, p. 1 199. C. R. 75, p. 781.