VETERINARY SCIENCE AND PRACTICE. 91 



culous, serous fluids do not give a positve reaction, even in the proportion of 1 to 5. 

 As a rule, however, this faihire of the reaction occurs in ca«es of advanced or gener- 

 alized tuberculosis. The agglutinating power of blood is not always equal to that of 

 the serous fluids upon the same animal. It may be more or less, or may be entirely 

 absent, while that of the other serous fluids is quite pronounced. Under favorable 

 conditions the agglutinating power of the blood serum and of other serums can V)e 

 progressively increased. The results obtained from the study of serums of human 

 origin and from other animals gave the same results. It is believed, therefore, that 

 a positive reaction in the jiroportion of 1 to 5 constitutes a reasonably certain diag- 

 nosis (if tulHTculdsis. 



Bacillus tuberculosis piscium and the tuberculosis of frogs caused by this 

 bacillus, Ledoux-Lebard {Ann. Inst. Pasteur, 14 (1900), No. 8, pp. 535-554, pi. 1). — 

 This bacillus develops in the frog under forms more varied than those of the bacillus 

 of Koch in mammals. The cellular reactions vary in different species and to a cer- 

 tain extent in different organs of the same species. Each organ seems to defend 

 itself against the invasion of the bacillus in its own way. In the liver of the frog 

 certain special cells are recognized which differ from ordinary migratory cells and 

 which are pigmented. These cells do not necessarily participate in the formation of 

 tubercles, but under certain conditions they appear to be more numerous and 

 become associated with the tubercles already formed. 



Bovine tuberculosis, E. Nocard [Jour. Agricole [Pan>], 13 (1901), No. 130, pp. 

 5-10). — The author discusses the liability to contagion from this disease and the 

 various methods which have been proposed for preventing the spread of the disease 

 and for controlling the sale of tuberculous meat and milk. 



Outbreaks of anthrax fever traceable to tannery refuse, H. L. Russell ( Wis- 

 consin Sta. Rpt. 1900, pp. 171-184). — During the season of 1899 an outbreak of anthrax 

 occurred on the Black River below Medford, Wis. Bacteriological examination of 

 blood (jbtained from a horse which had died of the disease showed that the organism 

 had all the characteristics of the anthrax bacillus. The disease prevailed for a dis- 

 tance of about 10 miles along the river below a tannery, and the distribution of the 

 cases of anthrax in the affected area indicated the river water as being the carrier of 

 the virus. The wastes of the tannery are discharged into a canal, which in turn 

 empties into the river. The hides received by the tannery came partly from South 

 America and partly from China. The evidence obtained pointed conclusively to 

 these hides as the original source of infection. 



Experiments were made by E. G. Hastings in testing the value of formaldehyde 

 in destroying the anthrax bacillus. Pieces of dried hide were infected with anthrax 

 spores and then placed in solutions of formaldehyde varying in strength from 1: 500 

 to 1: 10,000. The series of experiments was continued for 11 days, and at the end of 

 this period anthrax spores capable of development were still found on the hides 

 which had been immersed in solutions containing from 1: 10,000 to 1: 2,500 parts of 

 formaldehyde. The formaldehyde gradually combined with the materials compos- 

 ing the liide, and after from 8 to 12 days its presence could not be detected in solutions 

 of the strengths just mentioned. The formaldehyde exerted a somewhat injurious 

 effect upon the hides, and subsequent tests showed that the hair did not "sweat off" 

 as readily after being treated with formaldehyde as did the hide which had not been 

 so treated. As a practical disinfection of the hides seems to be impossible, it is 

 reconmiended that the waste from tanneries be disinfected, and that stock raisers 

 should vaccinate stock on areas which are likely to become infected. 



The behavior of anthrax bacillus in the body cavity of guinea pigs, J. B. 

 Van Leent {CeMbl. Bakt. u. Par., 1. Aht., 28 {1900), No. 21, pp. 737-74^').— The 

 author's experiments were conducted on guinea pigs which weighed about 500 gni. 

 and with anthrax bacilli from 24 to 48 hours old, which had been grown on bouillon 

 at a temperature of 28° C The following conclusions are drawn from the experi- 



