The discovery of insulin has brought about a renaissance in the study of diabetes; and since the cardinal principle in the treatment of disease is to find the cause and remove it, the etiologic factors of hyperglycemia are now receiving consideration by a number of investigators. That a preceding pancreatitis from which results permanent damage to the islet glands that secrete the hormone now called insulin is usually the direct or predisposing cause of diabetes is now accepted by many clinicians who have had a large experience in treating diabetes. Allen speaks of diabetes as the "vestigium of a burnt out conflagration." He made investigations on animals in which he produced experimental pancreatitis and hyperglycemia, thus proving to his satisfaction that a damaged pancreas is an essential factor in the etiology of diabetes. Those who believe that overeating is the sole cause of diabetes in many cases, and that the