EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETINS. 323 



So, although in-bred cattle may apparently possess strong and vigorous constitutions, 

 nevertheless wherever weaknesses exist, they will become magnified, whether visible or 

 invisible. 



This tendency to in-breeding is becoming alarming in some directions because of the 

 strong desire to create characteristics of a special type for dairy work or beef pro- 

 duction. Ideals are before the mind constantly, and everything short of the appear- 

 ance of the type and tlie development of the characteristics are utterly disregarded. 

 It appears most rational that in breeding for specific purposes, a -A'igorous, sound, con- 

 stitution is really more essential than some exaggerated feature, if the welfare of the 

 race is to be maintained. 



The feeding of animals no doubt plays a role of considerable importance. Too 

 much food reduces vitality with the same precision as an insufficient amount. The 

 functional activities of the body are limited, and, if they be crowded, the results mil 

 be noted in the excreta. In a normal body there is an equilibrium established between 

 the constituents which enter the body and those which are excreted. Crowd the fvmc- 

 tional activities by forced feeding or by any undue stimulation and this equilibrium 

 will become abnormal and destroyed. When this condition is reached, the vitality 

 is reduced, then the tubercle bacilli may begin their operations. Should we go farther 

 and analyze this derangement of functional activities we, perhaps, could resolve it into 

 its physical, chemical and physiological bearing. For instance, we may consider 

 the act of drinking a physical factor and that this water provides a solvent and a 

 carrier for many of the constituents of the body as well as a menstruum for all chemi- 

 cal actions. In the chemical aspect it is pertinent to note the transformation of food 

 into tissue and through the metabolism of the cells the excretion of waste products. 

 The physiological aspect introduces us into the life of the cells themselves and gives 

 us an inkling of what life is through its eft'ects. In order to be normal these three 

 elements must work harmoniously. The one must not gain the ascendency over the 

 other and the other must not fail in its powers. Perfect adjustment must exist, for it 

 is through this very adjustment that the equilibrium mentioned above may be main- 

 tained, consequently to unduly exercise the one and not the other is to throw the parts 

 out of harmony and to inevitably produce devitalization. 



It is a peculiar fact that the carniverous animals are practically free from tuber- 

 culosis. There may be something in the fact that a meat diet so alters the conditions 

 of the body tissues that the tubercle bacilli may not be able to gain a foothold. Sir 

 Andrew Clark has said: "When I was a young man I had to choose between gout and 

 phthisis, and I chose gout." A meat diet increases the acidity of the body fluids, 

 while a vegetable diet reduces this acidity. As McClintock puts it: "A vegetarian 

 diet decreases the acidity of the urine, increases the alkalinity of the blood. The 

 blood of herbivora is poorer in hemoglobin than that of the carnivora. Feed a dog 

 on carbohydrates and his hemoglobin decreases. So, too, there is more oxygen con- 

 tained in the blood of carnivora. The arterial blood of dogs contains in one hundred 

 volumes, nineteen to twenty volumes of oxygen, whereas the arterial blood of sheep 

 and rabbits contains from ten to fifteen volumes." This author does not claim that 

 if we were all carnivora our ailments would cease, but that perhaps others would take 

 the place of tuberculosis. 



The above discussion may have some connection with a quite common belief that our 

 best animals are the most likely to contract tuberculosis. It has been the experience 

 in the College herd, and I understand that it is the experience of those who are capable 

 of rendering a fair judgment, that the best milkers and the best beef animals possess 

 a greater susceptibility to the disease. In the case of such animals, it is always the 

 inclination to push them to their utmost, whether unconsciously or purposely. The 

 result is, injudicious feeding and injudicious care are given to these animals. It is 

 true that a cow may be forced to give a greater amount of milk for a short period by 

 increasing the amount of proper kinds of food, and it is possible also to as carefully 

 handle her as a babe in an incubator, yet neither the gorging of food nor the fondling 

 of her as a babe contributes one wliit of energy or vitality to her body, but on the 

 other hand materially diminishes both. 



The lighting and drainage of stables also have a marked influence in determining 

 the health of animals. The obnoxious gases arising from poor drainage, or the dele- 

 terious gases coming as decomposition products from the accumulated organic matter 

 on the floors of stables, must exert no little influence upon the health of the animals 

 enclosed in such stables. Light has a beneficial efl"ect in that it is a strong disinfectant 

 and has the power to reduce the moisture contained in the stable room. It acts also, 

 probably, upon the animal as upon the plant, an essential factor is the sustenance of 

 life. 



