Microbe Hunters, by Paul de Kruif

Welcome to the Mednansky Institute online library [Index]. Please contact library@minst.org for comments or inquiries.

Microbe Hunters, by Paul de Kruif
Author: M. Crasnier-Mednansky, PhD, DSc
Copyright © 2005, Mednansky Institute, Inc

I intend to pay tribute to bacteriologist Paul de Kruif, author of 'Microbe Hunters', a well-acclaimed book since its publication in 1926. The very thought of reading 'Microbe Hunters' should not be discouraged as it has been solely because of Paul de Kruif's usage of archaic terminology.

Many microbiologists have read 'Microbe Hunters' and those who have not, should. It focuses on the heroic battles against infection and describes the struggle and quest of those who dared fighting infectious diseases. From Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) to Spallanzani (1729-1799), Pasteur (1822-1895), Koch (1843-1910), Roux (1853-1933), Behring (1854-1917), Metchnikoff (1845-1916), Theobald Smith (1859-1934), Bruce (1855-1931), Ross (1857-1932), Grassi (1854-1925), Walter Reed (1851-1902), and Paul Ehrlich (1854-1915), none are omitted.

Paul de Kruif tracks not only the facts but the hunters’ character in a bold and straightforward way, with passion. He praises Leeuwenhoek for his honesty: "He had a sound instinct about the infinite complicatedness of everything -that told him the danger of trying to pick out one cause from the tangled maze of causes which control life". One can feel his admiration for Spallanzani who had "the strange self-forgetting spirit of a few rare men, those curious men to whom truth is more dear than their own cherished whims and wishes". He is astonished by Pasteur: "But one of Pasteur’s most charming traits was his characteristic of a scientific Phoenix, who rose triumphantly from the ashes of his own mistakes". He marvels at Koch’s modesty: "…never…did he seem to realize that he was the leader in the most beautiful and one of the most thrilling battles of men against cruel nature". Dr. Roux, an illustration from the 1926 edition of "Microbe Hunters". Emile Roux dedicated this photograph to Paul de Kruif with a friendly note on October 18, 1923 He overlooks the massacre of the guinea pigs by Roux and Behring because "…they were saviors - and that is noble! - but this drove them sometimes into strange byways far off the road were you find truth…". He is resentful towards Metchnikoff: "But the pitiful waste of this brainy Metchnikoff’s life was that he was always doing experiments to defend an idea, and not to find the hidden truths of nature". He recognizes the pioneer in Theobald Smith: "It was this now nearly forgotten microbe hunting of Theobald Smith that first gave men the right to have visions of a world transformed". He shows respect for David Bruce: "There was something diabolical in the risks he took, and something yet more devilish in the way he could laugh -with a dry humor- and wish other microbe hunters might have died to prove some of his own theories. But he had a right to wish death for others". He is indignant at the Ross and Grassi scuffle: "To listen to these two, you would think each would rather this noble discovery had remained buried than have the other get a mite of credit for it". He has mercy for Walter Reed however his apparent praise conveys disapprobation: "…never was there a good man who thought of more hellish and dastardly tests!". He has sympathy for Paul Ehrlich: "…let us think of the good brave adventurer Paul Ehrlich was and the thousands he has saved".

The reading of 'Microbe Hunters' has triggered, among scientists of notoriety, both passion and dedication toward microbiology, and students and young researchers have found in it a never-ending source of inspiration. But let's revive Paul de Kruif's own confession "…I love these microbe hunters…Not especially for the discovery they have made nor for the boons they have brought mankind. I love them for the men they are. I say they are, for in my memory every man jack of them lives and will survive until this brain must stop remembering". To read Paul de Kruif’s 'Microbe Hunters' is to be steered towards remembrance of these men in an emotional and definitive way. And one must acknowledge the veracity in Paul de Kruif’s description of these pioneers’ human nature and their contribution to mankind.