480 EXPERIMENT STATTOX REOORD. 



It is held that tuberculosis is frequently of alimentary origin in children as a 

 result of drinking tuberculous milk or consuming other tuberculous products. 



Cutaneous and conjunctival tuberculin reaction in cattle, Reinecke (Berlin. 

 TienizU. Wchnschr., 1908, No. 18, pp. 313-S18, fig. i).— Of 25 cattle which 

 were subjected to the cutaneous application of tuberculin only one showed a 

 slight reaction. This animal had been inoculated with tubercle bacilli of 

 human origin, but upon slaughter was found to l>e free from tuberculosis. Of 

 the other 24, 6 reacted to subcutaneous reaction of tuberculin and 2 were 

 found to be tuberculous upon post-mortem examination. Of 5 cattle which 

 were tested with tuberculin upon the conjunctiva, 3 showed a slight reddening 

 of the conjunctival mucosa and 2 of these proved to be tuberculous. The author 

 concludes as a result of his investigations that neither a cutaneous nor con- 

 junctival tuberculin test has a value equal to that of the subcutaneous method. 



Report on tuberculosis of domesticated animals (BiiJ. »S'err. Pol. Siniif. Aniui. 

 Dom., 1906, No. 25 B, pp. 291-3 'il). — Extensive statistical data are given regard- 

 ing the results of tuberculin tests on cattle for the purpose of showing the 

 frequency and distribution of tuberculosis in Belgium. With regard to the 

 control of tuberculosis, good results have been obtained in all instances from 

 the use of the Bang method. The application of vaccination by von Behring's 

 method showed that a high degree of resistance against tuberculosis may be 

 produced with a duration of about 1 year. 



The Dresden method of protective vaccination of cattle against tuber- 

 culosis, ^I. Klimmer (Berlin Tioiirzil. Wcltnschr.. 1908, No. I'l. pp. 2'il-2.'i3). — 

 It has been demonstrated that cattle may be immunized against tuberculosis I)y 

 the use of tubercle bacilli from various sources. The immunity thus produced, 

 however, does not last more than about a year. On this account It is necessary 

 to rei^eat the inoculation from year to year in order to keep cattle protected 

 against the disease. Such a process is out of the question in the case of dairy 

 cows, for the reason that the milk might contain tubercle bacilli as a result of 

 inoculation with attenuated bacilli. The author, thei'efore, tested the Aalue of 

 nonvirnleut bacilli especially for use in the case of dairy cows. Satisfactory 

 j-esults were obtained and it is recommended that a hypodermic injection of 

 5 cc. of nonvirulent tubercle bacilli be made hypodermically, that the injection 

 be repeated after 3 months and thereafter at yearly intervals. 



Abortion, C. L. Beach (Connecticut Storrs Sta. Rpt. 1901, pp. 139-1^1). — 

 This disease was introduced into the college herd through the purchase of G 

 pregnant animals. Dining the 3 years following 24 of the 79 calvings were pre- 

 mature. These premature births occurred from 145 to 262 days from time of 

 conceptitm, the average for the 24 cases being 211 days. 



Tlie sire was not the sole means of spreading the disease as the 24 conceptions 

 that tei'minated in premature births were the result of matings with 15 dif- 

 ferent sires, 8 of which were owned by parties remote from the affected herd. 



As it is frequently stated that an aborting cow is usually of little use in the 

 dairy, milk and fat yields following a normal calving were compared with 

 yields between normal calvings, in which the period of abortion was included. 

 The milk yields were found to be 12 per cent less per year during the aborting 

 period. The satisfactory yields are attributed in part to the complete removal 

 of the afterbirth and the thorough disinfection of the animal after abortion, an 

 account of which is given. 



Only one of the 24 animals that experienced a premature birth failed to 

 breed after abortion, and this animal at post-mortem examination showed the 

 presence of an ovarian tumor which may originally have been caused by the 

 treatment administered to induce conception. 



