784 BXPBEIMENT STATION EECOBD. 



mixing, the chemical reaction between sulphur and caustic soda Is practically 

 complete, so that little or no free caustic soda remains in the liquid. Nonob- 

 servance of the directions may, however, lead to the production of a fluid con- 

 taining considei-able amounts of free caustic soda and little dissolved sulphur. 

 Boiling the correctly mixed fluid causes after a short time the precipitation of 

 sulphur, but unless continued for an hour or more this is not sufficient to 

 weaken the fluid seriously, and in any case free caustic soda is not liberated by 

 the process. Boiling the ingredients for 10 minutes is sufficient to complete 

 the chemical reaction, even when the mixing has been improperly carried out, 

 and is the surest means of producing a fluid of uniform composition. When 

 the mixture is going to be boiled, it is not necessary to employ boiling water 

 for mixing the sulphur paste, and more water may be added than when the 

 mixture is not boiled." 



The camel and its diseases: A review, J. M. Kowalewski (Jour. MM. Y^t. 

 et Zootech., 63 (1912), Aug., pp. J,62-466; Sept., pp. 540-549; Oct., pp. 600-613).— 

 The first part of this work (pp. 462^64) deals briefly with the races of the 

 camel in Russia ; the second part with their diseases, including a preliminary 

 study of bubonic plague in camels made at the bacteriological laboratory at 

 Astrakhan. 



Electrocardiogram of horse, A. D. Waller (Jour. Physiol., 47 (1914), No. 

 6, pp. XXXII-XXXIV, figs. 2). — The author having correlated the electrocardio- 

 gram with the pressure changes finds "that in the horse, as in man, the first 

 and second ventricular waves Vj and Vji (or according to the now prevalent 

 rubric R and T) correspond very nearly with the beginning and end of the 

 ventricular systole, or with the first and second sounds." 



Investigations of the lateral cartilag-es (Cartilag-ines ungulae) of horses, 

 M. LuNGWiTz and H. Erle (Anat. Anz., 43 (1913), No. 12-13, pp. 313-326, figs. 

 8; ahs. in Jour. Roy. Micros. Soc. [London'], 1913, No. 3, p. 280).— The authors' 

 histological studies of the lateral cartilages led to the conclusion that they are 

 always fibrous and not hyaline. 



Researches on the ascarid toxin, M. Weinberg and A. Julien (Hyg. Viande 

 et Lait, 7 (1913), No. 5, pp. 225-244, figs. 2).— This is a report of investigations 

 conducted in continuation of those previously noted (E. S. R., 25, p. 590). 



The instillation of the ascarid (Ascaris megalocephala) toxin into the horse's 

 eye produced a local reaction characterized by edema of the eyelids, congestion 

 of the conjunctiva, and lachiymation in 168, or about 66 per cent, of the 256 

 horses tested. Sometimes the local reaction was accompanied by more serious 

 symptoms, including dyspoena, diarrhea, and profuse perspiration. The ocular 

 reaction appears quickly and lasts from 12 to 24 hours, but the general symp- 

 toms, at times very threatening, disappear in 2 or 3 hours. The action of the 

 toxin following the instillation of the perienteric liquid is variable, some worms 

 having strong toxins while others have weak ones. The ocular reaction may even 

 be produced by the toxin at a dilution of 1 : 5,000. The perienteric liquid is de- 

 pendent for its action upon a series of active substances. According to Flury's 

 investigations « its poisonous action is due to aldehydes, fatty acids, and their 

 esters. The toxin is thermostable, passes the Chamberlain filter, and is par- 

 tially dissolved in alcohol and ether. Its volatile products are also toxic. 



Horses infested by ascarids are immunized by degrees against the action of 

 toxins secreted by these parasites. The instillation of perienteric liquid usually 

 does not produce an ocular reaction in them. The serum of infested horses 

 contains specific antibodies capable of neutralizing in vitro very weak dilutions 

 of the ascarid toxin. Among the other intestinal parasites of the horse the 



•Arch. Expt. Path. u. Pharmkol., 67 (1912), No. 4-5, pp. 275-392. 



