1122 EXPEKIMENT STATION RECORD. 



to control tills (lis^ease. Statistirs ate prcsciiliMl shdwinir the miiuber of carcasses 

 condciiiiied in the prosecution of imat inspection, and the cansi's for -wliicli condem- 

 nation was made. Certain desira lilt ■ rlianges are suggested in the insjiection law of 

 the colony. 



The work on tuhercnlosis durin;_' tlie }i'ar was largely of a I'outine nature. A gen- 

 eral discussion of the relationshij) of bovine and human tuberculosis is jiresented, in 

 which the position is taken that these two forms of the disease are due to the same 

 organism and are intertransmissil)le. 



An elaborate study was made of hepatic cirrhosis in horses ami cattle. This is a 

 continuation of studies which have been in j)rogress for a iiund)er of years and the 

 author was able to demonstrate clearly that the cause of this disease is SeneciojucolKra. 

 This plant is described and notes are given on its distri})ution in New Zealand and 

 elsewhere. The disease has existed in New Zealand for the past 20 years and has 

 seriously affected both horses and cattle. The symptoms during the whole course of 

 the disease in horses and cattle are described in detail, and notes are given on the 

 pathological changes in the liver. The most characteristic lesions occur in this 

 organ in the form of extravasations of blood, distension of the intralobular veins, 

 coalescenc^e and formation of hepatic giant cells, deposition of brownish-yellow pig- 

 ment in the liver cells, and the accumulation of an interloVmlar fibrillar tissue which 

 causes the characteristic cirrhotic appearance. 



Numerous experiments were made in feeding this plant in various conditions to 

 horses and cattle. During these experiments it was shown that the disease could 

 readily be produced by feeding the plant in a cut and dried condition or in a green 

 condition. Where the plant was allowed to stand on the ground until entirely dead 

 and dry, however, the jwisonous principle seemed to have been lost. The charac- 

 teristic symptoms with fatal outcome were brought about by allowing horses and 

 cattle to feed upon the plant in l>loom in an inclosed field. Sheep withstand the 

 effects of the plant for long periods and apparently relish the weed. Under certain 

 circumstances, however, especially after long-continued grazing upon the plant, 

 cirrhotic conditions are produced in sheep. 



In treating the disease no satisfactory results can be expected after pronounced 

 lesions have developed in the liver. In the early stages of poisoning, however, 

 apparent recovery was brought about by the administration of Barbados aloes in 7 

 dr. doses followed by strychnin in doses of | gr. for 1 month or longer. In some 

 cases of apparent recovery, however, the disease subsecjuently recurred with fatal 

 results. In cattle treatment with strychnin and sodium suljjhate gave the best 

 results. The disease is believed to Ije identical with Pictou disease of Canada and 

 with 1 form of stomach staggers repf)rted from Great Britain. 



Notes are also given on contagious mammitis in cows, anthrax, contagious abortion 

 in cattle, hog cholera, blackleg, verminous pneumonia, various tumors in domestic 

 animals, etc. The cause of 1 outbreak of contagious mammitis was found to be a 

 streptococcus which produced no serious results in guinea pigs, rabl)its, and cattle 

 when inoculated subcutaneously or intravenously, but produced mammitis in cattle 

 when injected into the u<lder. It was shown that the disease was transmitted from 

 1 animal to another on the hands of the milker. Anthrax si)ores were demonstrated 

 in bone fertilizer, and the importance of this fact is emphasized by the author. The 

 careful application of antiseptic measures were successful in eradicating contagious 

 abortion from a num])er of herds. Attention is called to the importance of a serum 

 test in the diagnosis of dou))tful outbreaks resembling hog cholera. It was found 

 that a red coloration observe<l in certain samples of butter was due to the growth of 

 Aspen/illiis nidulans. 



Report of cliief veterinary inspector, J. G. Rutherford (Jipt. Min. Agr. 

 Canada, 1903, j)j). 69-171).— The author calls attention to the organization of the 

 veterinary-inspection service of the Dominion of Canada, with sjiecial reference to 



