Sinclair, Sir William J.: Semmelweis. His Life and his Doctrine (Manchester, 1909)
IV. Spread of the Doctrine During the Vienna Period
64 HEBRA’S FIRST ARTICLE friendly terms many years afterwards in his Jugenderinnerungen eines alten Arztes (Youthful memories of an old physician). According to Kussmaul’s recollection, Semmelweis was, in 1847, “more than the medium height, broad and strongly built, his face round with somewhat prominent cheek-bones; his forehead was high and his hair was rather thin for his years; he had remarkably fleshy and dextrous hands. He was of a lively temperament and had great capacity and willingness for work. He had a warm and kindly heart, and was conscientious to an extreme degree.” Semmelweis was at the time of Kussmaul’s visit full of his great and beneficent discovery, and it was the constant subject of conversation between him and his visitors. On Kussmaul and his friend Profesor Klein made the impression that he was a very ordinary sort of practitioner, and that he had ceased to take much interest in his work, either as professor or clinician. Kussmaul and his friend were still frequenting the Clinic when the incidents of the medullary cancer of the uterus, and the caries of the knee-joint occurred. Semmehveis, he said, at once recognised their bearing on the extension of his doctrine of cadaveric poison ; and the practical conclusions to be derived and applied : not only the cadaveric particles adhering to the fingers produce puerperal fever, but the malady may be also produced by any putrid material derived from a living organism. It is therefore necessary to apply the chlorine disinfection to the hands after every examination when putrid material is present: the putrid material must also be chemically destroyed after examination with the same scrupulous exactitude as the cadaveric poison is destroyed before examination. Hebra’s First Article. To Hebra, who was at that time editor of the Journal of the Medical Society of Vienna, the Doctrine appeared to be now sufficiently matured for public notice. He
