142 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



of the seeds. Department Circular 87, fjivin«j the results of this in- 

 vesti<ration, was jiuUlished. t^everal loco ])lants have been under 

 investigation, and Department Circular SI on Ai<tra<ialufi tetrnpfcrus 

 has been published. Some other plants have l)een definitely proved 

 to be locoes, but the results are not yet ready for publication. A 

 species of Baccliaris occurring in parts of Arizona and New Mexico 

 has been shown to be ])oisonous to livestock, and a preliniinai-y notice 

 in regard to it has been published in the Journal of the American 

 Veterinary Medical Association (vol. 10, n. s., p. 430). 



Field work has been done on the woody aster, which causes losses 

 of sheep in Wyoming. Definite results have been obtained, but they 

 are not j'et in form for pul)lication. Studies on Asclepias gaJloides 

 (whorled millnveed) have been continued and two pui)lications re- 

 garding it have been issued, namely. Department Bulletin 800, pre- 

 senting the work in detail, and Department Circular 101. giving a 

 brief statement of the results. Studies also have been conducted on 

 the other species of whorled milkweed, and the results will be ready 

 for publication in the near future. 



A study of the rajdess goldenrod {Isocoma heteropliylla) , which 

 is common in the Pecos Valley of New Mexico and is popularly sup- 

 posed to cause milk sickness of animals, has been undertaken. Ex- 

 perimental feedings of the seeds of the coffee-bean plant {Dauhen- 

 tonia longifolia) showed that they were A-ery poisonous. Department 

 Circular 82, calling attention to the poisonous properties of this 

 plant and giving some of the main facts in regard to its toxic charac- 

 ter, has been published. 



A i^rogressive decrease in the losses of animals on the western 

 ranges is noted, due. without doubt, in part to the attempts of the 

 Department of Agriculture to convej^ definite information to the 

 stock people, and in part to the fact that the increased value of live- 

 stock has resulted in greater attention being paid to their proper care. 



BRANCH LABORATORIES. 



The branch pathological laboratories at Chicago, Omaha, and 

 Denver have done an increased volume of work, consisting principally 

 in making diagnoses of obscure cases arising in the meat inspection. 

 They have made a large number of examinations of specimens from 

 cattle slaughtered following their reaction to the tuberculin test, and 

 have done some research work. 



BIOCHEMIC DIVISION. 



The Bioc-hemic Division, under Dr. M. Dorset, chief, has continued 

 its work, consisting chiefly of investigations concerning hog cholera, 

 laboratory research work relative to meat products, studies of dips 

 and disinfectants, and the preparation of tuberculin and mallein. 



HOG-CHOLERA INVESTIGATIONS. 



The research work on hog cholera has been carried out under three 

 general projects, as follows: (1) Methods of producing immunity, 

 (2) modes of spread of the disease, and (3) the cause of hog cholera, 

 inrluding related diseases. 



