206 J. A. Git ruth: 



I'ost-morfe/n Appearances. 



There are no pathological macroscopic changes which are con- 

 stant or in any way characteristic. 



ihe so-called impaction of the omasum, with dry ingesta, which 

 led to the ridiculous term " Dry Bible," observed by some and 

 considered the causa causans oi' the disease, is not constant, and 

 is not greater than may be seen often in long travelled l)ullocks 

 killed at abattoirs, and is not surprising considering the want 

 of food and water, which may have been for a longer period than 

 generally estimated. The brain and spinal cord are quite normal. 

 The meninges may show slight injections, and while in some cases 

 there has been an abnormal quantity of clear meningeal fluid 

 present, though not sufhcient to cause the symptoms noted, in 

 others there was no such excess. The buccal cavity and pharynx are 

 generally quite normal, and in only one instance liave I observed 

 congestion of the phai'yngeal mucosa. Contrary to some observers, 

 1 have never found any food in the pharynx proper, but almost 

 invariably there is to be found a pledget of partially-chewed 

 material situated between the base of the tongue and the soft palate. 

 In addition to this, one may find partially chewed or even unchewed 

 food within the oesophagus, especially the intrathoracic portion. 

 The rumen generally contains matted masses of food, though in one 

 case which had been frequently placed by me in a pond, and had 

 with difficulty by very persistent effort drunk a quantity of water, 

 it was found, when the animal was slaughtered soon afterwards, 

 that this water was almost entirely within the rumen. The 

 aljomasum is invariably empty; the small intestines are in a 

 catarrhal condition, and contain more or less milky mucoid material, 

 particularly the duodenum. The large intestines contain normal 

 contents, though small in (juantity. All other organs are normal, 

 including the bladder, which is generally empty. 



Bacferiolocjirnl I nvesfif)atio7i. 



Microscopical examinations of blood and other body fluids have 

 always given negative results. Injection subcutaneous, intraperi- 

 toneal, and intravenous of other cows with blood, spinal fluid, and 

 even with emulsion of brain and spinal cord (brought to the labora- 

 try preserved in glycerine and normal saline) have invariably 

 given negative results. A cow drenched with a quantity of the 

 catarrhal material found in the small intestines remained normal. 

 The conflusions to be drawn from these experiments are that the 



