It  is  unnecessary  in  a  work  of  this  character  to  go  further  into  these
highly  important  questions.  It  is  probable,  however,  that  the  importance
of  the  relationship  of  excessive  protein  putrefaction  in  the  intestine  to
many  of  the  so-called  minor  diseases  can  not  be  overemphasized.  On  the
other  hand,  we  must  be  careful  not  to  attribute  every  sort  of  chronic
condition  to  this  putrefaction.  Toxemia  is  often  a  shibboleth  of  the
profession.  "When  a  chronic  disease  can  not  be  diagnosed,  it  is  put  down
as  a  toxemia.  This,  however,  is  not  medical  science — it  is  medical  shirk-
ing. It  is  certainly  unsafe  at  the  present  time  to  conclude  that  the
ordinary  symptoms  of  senescence,  such  as  hard  arteries  or  increased  blood
pressure,  are  invariably  to  be  attributed  to  this  cause.  It  will  be  re-
membered that  Metchnikoff  is  largely  responsible  for  such  a  view,  and
also  that  he  suggested,  as  the  surest  way  to  ward  off  the  chance  of  such
intoxication,  the  taking  of  buttermilk,  which  would  supply  bacteria
through  whose  growth  in  the  intestine  the  protein-destroying  bacteria
would  not  be  able  to  thrive.  It  is  probable  that  the  same  result  could  be
attained  in  patients  showing  undoubted  signs  of  suffering  from  intestinal
putrefaction  by  a  change  in  diet  in  the  direction  of  giving  more  carbo-
hydrate, for,  as  we  have  seen,  if  there  is  a  plentiful  supply  of  this  food-
stuff in  the  small  intestine,  the  bacteria  do  not  tend  to  attack  the  protein.
Before  leaving  this  subject  it  is  interesting  to  consider  for  a  moment
the  cause  of  the  severe  symptoms  that  follow  intestinal  obstruction.
