VIVISECTION.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20343, 16 September 1931, Page 8

VIVISECTION.

TO THE EDITOR OF TUB PRESS , Sir, —If scientists allowed the peculiur "notions and prejudices of antivrvisoetionistfi to determine theii method of approach to physical and ntontal ills, humanity would suffer more in consequence than could ever fall to the lot of the animal in the laboratory. I know by past correspondeiice that it is useless to argue on this subject* with Miss Mackay. When a "fixed idea" is doubly buttressed by the imagination and the feelings, all the logic in the world will not free it from its .adamantine moorings. Vivisection is a '"'fixed idea'' in Miss Mackay's mind, and consequently wo are "treated to periodic outbursts. I must again remind your |correspondent that in the practice of vivisection scientists are not inhuman monsters finding an outlet for vicious and cruel sadistic impulses. And, lastly, that the degree of pain suffered by these animals is no more,. if as much, as they would incur in their own environment. Happily for. suffering humanity, scientists go their way. oblivious to the clamourings of a few misguided people who have projected their own feelings and sentiments into bodies not organised for such feelings and sentiments.—Yours, etc., G.R.B. September 15th, 1931. TO TUB EDITOR OT ?H£ PRESS. Sir, —The following statement of British f rightfulness bv Commander J. W. Kenworthy in "John Bull" (Irondon) will probably shock "Union Jack" ; but the facts should be known: "We British maintain a great poison experimental station at Porton, Salisbury. This year we are spending £170,000 on experiments, not only on horses, cats, goats, and other animals, but on young recruits who are bribed to 'lend themselves as human subjects for the trying out of new gas-masks and the lilie. These young boys receive substantial 'payments for allowing their living bodies to be practised on. so that the effects of the latest poison-gas may be* known and tabulated all ready for the next war. . . What a vile thing to take advantage of theiryouthful innocence and enthusiasm fo? .such foul preparations. . . We all pretend to have forsworn the use Of poison gas. So why continue practising with it?"— Yours, etc.,, VOX. September TO THE EDITOR Of THE PRESS Sir, —I have read with much interest and sympathy the letters of Miss Mackay and Mrs Houston against vivisection; but I do not quite understand the quotation from Professor F. A. Crew. He may, indeed I take Mrs Houston's word for it that he does, condemn some kinds and methods of animal experimentation; but he most Certainly does not condemn such experimentation in toto. He has lately been experimenting with mice, to find ont their rat© of increase in various conditions. He domiciled some pairs separately in large boxes; and then arranged a series, of other large boxes in which mice were placed in varying, numbers, so as to make an ascending scale of density of population, twentyfour to a box, twelve of either sex, being the maximum. Thus he had before him many varieties of social condition, from the monogamous mice living comfortably and respectably in a palace, down to the slum mice in the boxes holding twelve of each sex. Things turned out ill for the slum mice, indeed for 'all thie denser populations. There was a high death-rate, and much fighting among the males, who employed meth-ods-which it would be impolite to enlargo upon. , Professor Crew might say that iie provided board and lodging for his mouse populations, and did not inocu- i late or gas them; and that therefore J he was not cruel, and was within his j rights in denouncing vivisection. But lie certainly can't say that he is guilt- j less of animal -experimentation altogether ; and I can imagaie the slum mice saying that they would have got on better and run up a less disreputable record if they had been left to their own devices, and not placed in conditions of overcrowding by Professor F. A. Crew. Yours, etc., , H. NOUTHCOTE. Redclift's, September 14th, 1931.

TO THR Or TH» PBE33. Sir, —Kindly allow me spa<je to reply to your correspondent "Union'Jaek." I wish really that I could not give the information asked for. Unfortunately there is no doubt about the matter, and I must give facts. The following facts

and figures a.re taken from "The AntiVivisection and Humanitarian Review" of March-Asril, 1929: "Tlio Porton Station is the great testing ground for poison gases. To this place there comes flasks and cylinders containing death in, its most frightful and revolting form. .From the gas factory at Sutton Oak, in Lancashire, they arrive to be tested under every possible condition that could obtain -in actual war—by bomb, by shell, and by winddriven' cloud. Elaborate apparatus lias been devised at Porton for ttis purpose. Each of.these huts and buildings ib a laboratory and a death house in one. Each contains glass fronted chambers surrounded by intricate instruments, glass vessels and tubing. In each of these lethal chambers helpless animals arc placed and slowly tortured to death by streams of. poison vapour at varying concentrations. Every day since tlio middle of the war the experiments have continued. The Armistice did not stop them, nor the Peace Treaty, nor Locarno. From May, 1923, until January, 1926, .2138 animals were subjected to poison gases at Porton. All excepting 345 were either killed by the experiments or had to be destroyed within one month of the test. These animals included 124 cats, 5 horses, 58 goats, 6 monkeys, 1136 rabbits, 406 guinea pigs 4 and many other small animals. Since 1927 figures have been withheld'owing to protests by anti-vivisectionists and others." The letter of protest sent to the lit. Hon. Thomas Shaw, Secretary of State for War, the War Office, Whitehall, by the Animal Defence and Anti-Vivisec-tion Society, London, on January 24th, 1930, is too long to quote here, but I give Mr Shaw's reply:— To Hiss Lind-af-Hagcby, Hon. Director The Animal Defence and Anti-Vivisection Society, War Oflice, Whitehall, S.W.I, 11th February, 1930. Dear Madam,—ln reply to your letter of 24th January, I am desired by the Secretary of State for War to inform you that the experiments on animals, at Porton are carried out strictly in accoYdaneo with the provisions of the law, and that, after careful consideration, he does not see his to order tlieir discontinuance, so long as tbey result in possible benefit to human life and health. In these circumstances be does not consider that any useful purpose would bo served by his receiving a deputation from your Society. Yours faithfully, H. «l. B. OLOUGH, Private Secretary. 1 also give the following authentic information:—Porton and Sutton Oak have cost the nation £1,250,000 since the war. They cost annually £134,000 each to run. A private house for the commandant at Porton cost £5600 to build. I am sure it will ease the mind of "Union Jack" and others of your humane readers to read the following authentic quotation:—"Professor J. B. S. Maldane, Britain's poison gas expert complained in ' liis book 'Callimachus,' that during the war physiologists who worked at Porton had considerable difficulty in working with a good many soldiers, who objected to the infliction of suffering in the experiments on the animals, and who did not conceal their contempt for people who performed them." " "One Who Thinks" will 1 be pleased to know that at least one* religious bodj* in England has entered its protest against vivisectors, viz., the Society of Friends, which it thfc sitting on May 26th, 1931, of its 263 rd yearly meeting, passed a protest against poison gas experiments on animals. The protest which was forwarded to the Government was worded as follows:—"Our attention lias been called to the terrible suffering inflicted upon animals by poison gas and other experiments at Porton, near Salisbury, and at Cambridge, where hundreds of animals, including horses, cats, goats, sheep, ana monkeys, are being used in these experiments. We record our protest as a society,Mn the name of humanity, against these evil practices;"— Yours, etc., (Mrs). A. D. HOUSTON, Dominion President. Humanitarian and Anti-Vivisection Society of New Zealand. September loth. 1931. TO 'I'UE EUITOB OF TilK TUESS Sir,—There are hundreds of names, including many great surgeons of the day, Bishops and clergy of all denominations, and hosts of people whose ■ names are 'known all over the world and of various nationalities,, who have testified to the" cruelty and inefficiency of vivisection. It can be nothing but debasing to those who practise it. To -quote E. Lucas Hughes, M.R.C.S. (Eng.) and L.E.C.P. (London): "When a dog Or any other animal is strapped on a jboard, with a muzzle or gag firmly binding its mouth and its nose, it is impossible to give it an aneesthetic sufficiently strong to prevent great suffering." Sir Frederick Treves, who was SurgeOn-in-Ordinary to H.M. King George and consulting surgeon to the London said: "When I came ~to operate upon man I found I was much hampered by my new experience 4 —that I had everything to unlearn, and that niy experiment had done little but unfit me to deal with the human intestine." All lovers of animals must do their uttermost to preVen.t this ghastly scourge from gaining ground in our own land.—Yours, etc., WATCHMAN. September 15th, 1931. ■