(SCIENCE FICTION). (MEDICINE). [RAMON Y CAJAL, SANTIAGO.] "DOCTOR BACTERIA." Cuentos de vacaciones.

Proto-Science Fiction by the "Don Quixote of the Microscope"

(SCIENCE FICTION). (MEDICINE). [RAMON Y CAJAL, SANTIAGO.] "DOCTOR BACTERIA." Cuentos de vacaciones. (Madrid: Imprenta de Fortanet, 1905) viii, 238, [2] pp. (200 x 135 mm.) First Edition. Original wrappers printed red and black. With head- and tailpieces. Upper wrapper with ink stamp of Domingo Sanchez of Madrid. Upper joint split at top, spine with a little paper loss, a varnish or glue added to the backstrip to prevent further losses (with a little seepage onto edges of covers), wrappers slightly soiled; contents toned due to paper quality, with just a couple of rough openings and nicks to edges, but this fragile work in very good condition overall.

A rare work of speculative fiction by a Nobel Prize-winning scientist, incorporating microscopes, bacteria, and serums.

This series of short "pseudoscientific narratives," originally written in the 1880s and published here for the first time in 1905, explores the dark side of scientific advancements. Each uncanny tale presents a different ethical or social imperative through the lens of science--particularly the fields of bacteriology and microscopy. In the opening piece, "A secret grievance, a secret revenge," Dr. Forschung, a brilliant but aging bacteriologist, infects his young wife's lover with bovine tuberculosis--and in the process infects his wife as well. He cures her, but her youth and beauty still represent a threat. To make her his equal (and, at least in his mind, prevent further infidelities), our scientist injects his wife with a serum called "seniline," which speeds up the aging process. The true horror comes in the epilogue, in which Dr. Forschung ruminates on how seniline has been successfully tested on criminals and the insane; its calming effects, Dr. Forschung writes, might also be useful for controlling the underprivileged classes, and to aid the evangelization of African tribes. In one of the author's most inventive tales, "The corrected pessimist," a doctor gains the power to use his eyes like a microscope, enabling him to see the minutiae of the world--but not the bigger picture. Ramón y Cajal waited 20 years to publish this work--and even then, distributed it privately to friends and family. First editions are very rare on the market.

Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852-1934) grew up wanting to be an artist but instead went into medicine at the behest of his father. He is best known for his contributions to neuroanatomy and neurology, winning the Nobel Prize together with Camillo Golgi for their work on the structure of the central nervous system. Ramón y Cajal led a remarkably rich and varied life that included writing fiction, making his own scientific drawings, experimenting with photography, and even becoming a bodybuilder as a young man.