0, I referred to an experiment
made by Helmholtz upon himself which strikingly connected hay fever
with animalcular life. About a year ago I received from Professor
Binz of Bonn a short, but important paper, embracing Helmholtz's
account of his observation, to which Professor Binz has added some
remarks of his own. The paper, being mainly intended for English
medical men, was published in English, and though here and there its
style might be amended, I think it better to publish it unaltered.

From what I have observed (says Professor Binz) of recent English
publications on the subject of hay fever, I am led to suppose that
English authorities are inaccurately acquainted with the discovery of
Professor Helmholtz, as far back as 1868, of the existence of uncommon
low organisms in the nasal secretions in this complaint, and of the
possibility of arresting their action by the local employment of
quinine. I therefore purpose to republish the letter in which he
originally announced these facts to myself, and to add some further
observations on this topic. The letter is as follows: [Footnote:
Cf. Virchow's 'Archiv.' vol. xlvi.]

'I have suffered, as well as I can remember, since the year 1847, from
the peculiar catarrh called by the English "hay fever," the speciality
of which consists in its attacking its victims regularly in the hay
season (myself-between May 20 and the end of June), that it ceases in
the cooler weather, but on the other hand quickly reaches a great
intensity if the patients expose themselves to heat and sunshine. An
extraordinary violent sneezing then sets in, and a strongly corrosive
thin discharge, with which much epithelium is thrown off. This
increases, after a few hours, to a painful inflammation of the mucous
membrane and of the outside of the nose, and excites fever with severe
headache and great depression, if the patient cannot withdraw himself
from the heat and the sunshine. In a cool room, however, these
symptoms vanish as quickly as they come on, and there then only
remains for a few days a lessened discharge and soreness, as if caused
by the loss of epithelium. I remark, by the way, that in all my other
years I had very little tendency to catarrh or catching cold, while
the hay fever has never failed during the twenty-one years of which I
have spoken, and has never attacked me earlier or later in the year
than the times named. The condition is extremely troublesome, and
increases,