[307] These tests were made by Dr. Archibald McNeil, of the Research Laboratory, Department of Health, New York City.
[308] All smears were prepared and examined in duplicate and were stained by Grams method, pure cultures of staphylococci and colon bacilli being used as controls. In one case the smear was positive and the complement fixation test for gonorrhœa was negative, but as a rule antibodies against the gonococcus do not appear in the blood during the acute stage of the disease, so it may frequently happen that we may have positive smears and negative complement fixation tests in recent cases. At a later period, however, the complement fixation test is almost invariably positive.
The complement fixation tests were all performed in duplicate as a check on any possible errors in technique. The anti-sheep hæmolytic system with inactive sera was used with the alcoholic extract guinea pig heart for an antigen in the syphilis tests and an antigen prepared from ten varieties of gonococci was used in the tests for gonorrhœa.
All of the tests were made in sets of twelve, each set being fully controlled.
The blood specimens were unaccompanied by histories and the laboratory results were not in any way influenced by clinical findings.
[309] These percentages were taken from the combined results of the tests made at both incubator and ice box temperature.
[310] That is to say, the only girls who figure in the present study were girls who were before commitment engaged in prostitution in New York City.
[311] New York Tribune Almanac, 1912.
[312] New York City, 290 = 59.20%.
[313] Note: 7 cards, no information.