our purpose, as they allow of the detection of the minutest differences which alcohol may produce in any part of the organism in question. "During the course of this research, which has lasted over a period of three years, I sought to investigate the action of alcohol on the resistive power of human red blood-corpuscles. I wished to ascertain whether the resistivity of the red blood-corpuscles in a healthy man could be lowered by the consumption of alcohol. * * * "It may be well for me here to explain that in this lecture I mean by the term 'drinker' a person who has taken alcohol in any quantity whatever. Many of these 'drinkers,' therefore, were in fact most moderate consumers of alcohol. By the term 'abstainer' I mean a person who has never taken alcohol in any quantity worth mentioning. In the course of my investigations I have examined blood from two hundred and twenty-three persons. They were of different classes and ages. There were professors of medicine and other physicians, University fellows, students of both sexes, hospital nurses, school-teachers, waiters, and other men and women belonging to the working-classes." The rest of the lecture as given here is an abstract made by Professor Laitinen:-- "My studies have been directed to an investigation of the following points: "1. I sought to ascertain whether the resistance of human red blood-corpuscles against a heterogeneous normal serum, or an immune serum, can be diminished by the use of alcohol. "2. I have studied the action of alcohol in drinking and abstaining persons on the haemolytic power of blood-serum over heterogeneous red blood-corpuscles (rabbits). I have studied not only the haemolytic power of the human blood-serum, but also its power of precipitation in the presence of rabbit-serum, with a view to ascertain if the reaction between a known dilution of rabbit-serum and a certain dilution of serum of alcohol-users and non-drinking persons is different or not, and if the reaction is more apparent with the former or with the latter. "3. The resisting power of serum obtained both from alcohol-drinking and from non-drinking persons was further tested by human blood, with the object of discovering whether any difference in reaction existed between the same immune serum and the two kinds of human sera above mentioned. "4. I have studied the problem as to whether the haemolytic complement in the blood-serum of alcohol-drinking and non-drinking persons is altered in any way by alcohol. "5. The bactericidal power of blood-serum from both alcohol-drinking and non-drinking persons was determined by some experiments. "The above experiments have given the following results: