248 Ninth Annual Report of the 



particular the invasions of anthrax in the years 1807, 1810, 

 1819 and 1827, from which time a gradual decrease in the disease 

 has taken place. Delafond and Gerlach (1845) investigated 

 ovine anthrax in a very careful manner. Although the conta- 

 giousness of the disease was not recognized by Delafond it was 

 experimentally proved by Gerlach. Heusinger published in 1850 

 a comprehensive treatise on anthrax, especially from an his- 

 torical and geographical point of view. He regarded anthrax 

 as a malaria neurosa. 



" The knowledge of anthrax was greatly advanced during the 

 fifties of this century. In 1855 Pollender, of Wipperfurth, pub- 

 lished the discovery which he had made as early as 1849 — that 

 an innumerable number of extremely fine rods existed in the 

 blood of anthrax-stricken cattle. These rods were indepen- 

 dently observed in 1850 by Davaine (Paris); and in 1857 by 

 Brauell (Dorpat). Brauell found the rods in the blood during 

 life and used them as a diagnostic and prognostic factor, but he 

 denied that they represented the virus of anthrax. It was only 

 in 1863 that Davaine declared that they were the cause of 

 anthrax and were bacteria, against which theory Bouley, Sanson 

 and other authorities at once protested. Cohn was the first to 

 call these rods bacilli, and to suspect the existence of permanent 

 spores. To R. Koch is due the credit of having demonstrated 

 the development of these permanent spores from the rods and 

 the transformation of the spores to bacilli. He also made pure 

 cultivations of the bacilli and clearly explained the biology of 

 the bacillus anthracis. Protective inoculation against anthrax, 

 which was introduced by Toussaint and was widely advanced by 

 Pasteur and others, is also of great scientific and practical inter- 

 est." 



Anthrax very seldom pass direct from one animal to another. 

 The bacilli might adhere to any part of the body, especially the 

 tail, flank and hind legs or any part where it comes in contact 

 with the secretion or excretion. The disease can be conveyed 

 through such bearers as pails, people, water and insects. When 

 the infection occurs in the intestines through the food or water 



