156 ANTHRAX AND ANTHRACOID DISEASES. 



terminate in from six to forty-eight hours after the manifesta- 

 tion of the first symptoms. The ordinary time is from twelve 

 to twenty-fonr hours, unless external eruption eliminates the 

 morbid material from the body. 



In the spring of this year, 1884, a remarkable outbreak of 

 charbonous fever, presenting the salient symptoms of Loodiana 

 disease, occurred in a large stud of cart-horses under the care of 

 Messrs Leather, veterinary surgeons, Liverpool, and which had 

 been, for some time previously, fed on an Indian pea (Pisuvi 

 sativum), called in Liverpool, Indian mutters. Mutur is the 

 Hindustani word for the common pea (Pisuvi sativum), but that 

 brought to Liverpool is different from the ordinary pea of this 

 country, and resembles a lentil more than a pea. It is imported 

 into Glasgow from India in large quantities, I believe, mostly as 

 ballast, and has, I am told, not only been given to horses, but 

 ground and mixed with various cakes for cattle, and with many 

 fatal consequences. 



However, in the outbreak at Liverpool, it appears that 

 horses commenced to die very suddenly some time after the 

 owners had commenced to use the mutters, and for several 

 weeks after they had discontinued to use them they still died. 

 The symptoms were roaring, haemorrhage from the nose, great 

 prostration, swelling of the throat, succeeded in many cases by 

 sudden death. Other horses, however, lived a considerable 

 period ; but none recovered in which roaring had become pro- 

 nounced. 



I saw them in March, and found two dead on my arrival — 

 one having only been dead a few hours ; and from the blood of 

 which I obtained the bacilli shown in the drawing. 



On examining the food everything was found to be of the 

 best and cleanest quality ; but the Indian mutters were very 

 dirty, dusty, and mixed with the excrement of rats: and from 

 this dust bacilli identical with those found in the blood were 

 cultivated ; but in no instance did I succeed in obtaining 

 bacilli from the interior of the grain. From this it may be 

 inferred that the microbes were in the dirt surrounding the 

 grain, but not in the mutters themselves, and that by proper 

 washing and cleaning they might be a safe diet. 



This, however, requires further investigation, as animals have 

 died on the Continent presenting similar spnptoms to those 

 at Liverpool after being fed on the legumen Lathy r us sativus, 

 a bitter legumen, but whether from a vegetable poison contained 

 in the legumen or from bacillar growths has not yet been 

 determined. 



Leguminous plants are often provided with small tuberous 

 roots, and in these roots there occur almost invariably, and in 

 great numbers, peculiar rod-like structures which have been 



