No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 131 



Conditions similar to those described by Uhlenhuth and his collabora- 

 tors are undoubtedly met with. These experiments are being con- 

 tinued and Avill be published as soon as they are finished. 



A compaiati\e sUidy of the value of several modern serological 

 methods for the standardization of hog cholera serum was under- 

 taken. Extracts of the different organs, particularly those of bone 

 marrow of hogs dead from cholera, Avere made and highly potent 

 sera were tested by the complement deviation test. The results w^ere 

 negative. Fnither investigati(m will be c(mducted to find a method 

 to determine the potency of this serum. 



Investigations concerning the biological character of the virus 



have been undertaken, but this Avork is still in the preliminary 



stage. 



7. TEXAS FEVER 



An oppoitunity was offered to collect blood from an animal suflfer- 

 in<r from Texas fever near Dovlestown. It was inoculated into two 

 animals and in due time they developed Texas fever. After an in- 

 cubation time of tAventy-eight days there Avas a relapse, and in the 

 blood the changes Avhich have been described by Theobald Smith and 

 Kilborne in 1894 as coccus like peripheral bodies on the blood cells 

 were noted. A careful study was made of these bodies to see if we 

 could verify the statement made by Theiler and Sieber that these 

 bodies are of parasitic origin. We Avere unable to confirm the state- 

 ment, and therefore consider the disease as "Pernicious Anemia of 

 Cattle" and not "Anaplasmosis'' as Avas proposed by them. 



A repoit on this inves ligation Avas presented at the meeting of the 

 United vStates Livestock Sanitary Association in Chicago, December, 

 1911, and will be printed in their proceedings. The results will be 

 published also in the "Hand-buchder Pathogenen Mikroorganismen/' 

 by Kolle and ^Vassermann. 



8. FORAGE POISONING 



Autopsies of several cases of Forage Poisoning have been made dur- 

 ing the year, and in several instances a careful histological examina- 

 tion of the brain was carried out to determine Avhether we have the 

 same lesions as have been described by Professor Joest. In studying en- 

 zootic cerebrospinal meningitis Joest found disseminated infiltra- 

 tions of a lymphocytic character, and cell inclusions in the large gang- 

 lion cells of the hippocampus and olfactoric regions of the brain simi- 

 lar to those seen in Rabies. In the specimens submitted for these 

 purposes the reactions or alteiations just described could not be 

 A^erified. Investigations are being continued, which may permit in 

 a few months to express a better opinion on the nature of this 

 disease. 



9. PLANT AND FEED POISONING 



During the year several investigations Avere made on animals which 

 had died of this disease, and in which the lesions are someAvhat similar 

 to those described in hemorrhagic septicemia. We Avere unable to 

 isolate the characteristic bacillus. Interest Avas therefore directed 

 to the possibility that a poisoning, possibly of plant origin may cause 

 the similarity of post mortem lesions. Necessary preparations have 

 been made to study this disease in the field during the next season. 

 The following interesting observations were made on two cases: 



