1917] VETERINARY MEDICINE. 85 



Some points in connection with the pathology and epidemiologry of swine 

 fever, J. P, M'Gowan (Edinburgh: William Blackwood, d Sons, 1915, pp. 40). — 

 " From investigations conducted on material obtained from three epidemics of 

 swine fever, the view is enunciated here that Bacillus suipestifer may vary con- 

 siderably in its biological reactions, and may even be considered to be a variant 

 of B. suisepticus." 



Paralysis of pigs, H. Wehbbein (Jour. Amer. Yet. Med. Assoc, 49 (1916), 

 No. 2, pp. 238-244< P^s- 2). — A disease, commonly known as paralysis, which has 

 proved to be a polyneuritis parenchymatosa, is endemic in Iowa, where it causes 

 quite considerable losses. " Because of the course and the nature of the disease 

 therapeutic measures are not advised, but prophylactically the elimination from 

 breeding of all animals the offspring of which repeatedly incline to the dis- 

 ease, and of all diseased animals, even when recovered, and the eventual 

 change to dry quarters and proper feed will most likely be successful." 



Parasites of hogs, K. W. Stoudeb and W. E. Simon sen (Iowa State Col. Agr. 

 Ext. Bui. 4S (1916), pp. 8, figs. 2). — A brief popular account of the more im- 

 portant parasites affecting swine. 



Shipping fever of horses, J. R. Mohler (Jour. Amer. Med. Vet. Assoc, 49 

 (1916), No. 2, pp. 109-178). — A review of the present status of knowledge of this 

 disease, including reference to work by the Bureau of Animal Industry of the 

 U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



Experiments by this bureau are said to give support to the view that the 

 Streptococcus equi of Shiitz is the cause of strangles, the filterable virus of 

 Poels the agent of influenza, and the cellular inclusions of Gaffky and Liihrs the 

 causal factors of contagious pneumonia. The bureau's experiments have 

 demonstrated clearly that the filtered blood of influenza cases is capable of 

 reproducing the disease in susceptible horses, while the inoculations of vari- 

 ous bacteria recovered from such cases have thus far proved negative. 



" The preponderance of evidence appears to be in favor of an ultravisible 

 micro-organism as the cause of influenza, the lowered vitality occasioned by this 

 virus paving the way to infection with the colon bacillus, coccobacillus, Bacillus 

 necrophorus, B. pyocyancxis, staphylococcus, pneumococcus, and most important 

 of all the various species of Streptococcus. . . . The action of the bacterial 

 vaccines as used at the present time is chiefly to assist in preventing or con- 

 trolling the secondary infections which are invariably associated with influenza, 

 and this opinion is substantiated by the fact that the influenza vaccines when 

 injected in the early stages of the disease frequently result in a mild type of 

 an attack with shorter duration." 



A new disease in ducklings, F. C. Elfoed (Canada Expt. Farms Rpts. 1915, 

 pp. 1119, 1120). — Numerous complaints were received during the summer of 

 1914 of a disease of ducklings from widely separated districts. One newly 

 established commercial plant lost large numbers of ducklings that had been 

 procured in the United States for foundation stock. The age at which they 

 were shipped did not seem to make any difference, as apparently all were 

 affected in the same manner. 



Investigations showed that the trouble was not confined to ducklings, as 

 growing ducks about six weeks of age were sometimes affected, though in the 

 more mature ducks the symptoms were more pronounced and were often 

 noticeable for some time before death. The disease is characterized by a dis- 

 charge from the eyes and sometimes from the nostrils, and there appears to be 

 an affection of the brain, as the head is thrown back until it touches the 

 shoulders, the duckling often staggering backward until it falls over. In some 

 cases the ducklings seemed to recover, although it was noticeable that under 



