Money Comes Pouring In

MONEY COMES POURING IN

To Prof. Novy Asking For His Formula

OF THE GERMICIDE

He Will Read a Paper in Chicago Next Week on the Antiseptic

Prof. Frederick G. Novy went to Chicago this week to attend the annual meeting of the Society of American Bacteriologists. This association will be in session Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. At one of the sessions Prof. Novy was to read a paper on "Germicide Action of Organic Peroxide." In unofficial language this means that Dr. Novy discussed the merits of his recently discovered intestinal antiseptic, benzozone. He gave a full and detailed description of the discovery of the antiseptic, the experiments which he and Prof. Paul C. Freer carried on last year, and the experiments made on the five sophomore medical students this fall. Furthermore Prof. Novy briefly told what it is hoped can be accomplished with the new remedy.

Chicago doctors are greatly interested in the discovery of benzozone. They admit that the value of an intestinal antiseptic has long been recognized but that the great difficulty has been to find a substance that would kill the germs without at the same time destroying the tissues necessary to the carrying on of the functions of life. This is what, so they understood, benzozone will do.

Dr. Edwin O. Jordan, associate professor of bacteriology in the University of Chicago, said yesterday:

"The value of the discovery of an intestinal antiseptic capable of practical use in a medicinal way is too great to be overestimated. If we could get at and destroy the germs which cause disease in the intestines and stomach we should be a long way toward the solution of the problem of overcoming the present great mortality from such diseases as typhoid fever. One of the great difficulties which has acted as a barrier to the discovery of a stable intestinal antiseptic, is the fact that such substance as we know would destroy the germs would also injure the tissues.

"There is no doubt, however, that a substance might be discovered of such a nature, that while it would kill the germs it would not have an injurious effect on the tissues. If Prof. Novy has succeeded in finding it he has accomplished a great step toward rendering man immune from disease."

Since the announcement of benzozone a few days since Dr. Now has become a hero of great popularity. Every mail brings him a large stock of letters inquiring about the new discovery and congratulations come to him on his success. Not a few of these letters contain bank bills accompanied with requests for the recipe for making benzozone. Some persons don't even wait to write him, but telegraph him to send the formula right on C. O. D. It is presumed that these messages are from people who are suffering from a large number of germs on their insides and are anxious to decimate many times the ranks of these warriors. So many have been the inquiries that have reached Dr. Novy in the last day or two that he has despaired of being able to read all the communications: and he has already ceased to answer them. He is simply trying to get the money back to those sending it, hoping that they will take the hint and not trouble him in the future.