1887.] on Etioloyg of Scarlet Fever. 155 



Corfield forwarded to me certain tins of condensed milk, sold under 

 the name of Eose brand. This milk was under suspicion of having 

 produced scarlet fever in a number of persons who had jmrtaken of 

 it. From one out of three tins of this condensed milk I have obtained 

 by cultivation a microbe which in every respect, morj)hologically and 

 in cultures^ is the same as the microbe obtained from the Hendon 

 cows and from human scarlet fever. The action of the microbe of 

 the condensed milk was also tested on animals, calves, and mice, and 

 it was found that it produced the identical disease which was pro- 

 duced by the microbe of human scarlet fever and of the Hendon 

 cows. I may add that this Rose brand of condensed milk is, like all 

 condensed milk, obtained from cows' milk ; the Eose brand is a cheap 

 article, and meant for the poorer classes ; jDrobably it has not been 

 sufficiently heated in the tins before sealing the latter ; that this is 

 probably the case can be deduced from the fact that every tin of this 

 brand which I opened contained some organisms ; thus, for instance, 

 I find that one tin contained the scarlet fever microbe, and another 

 species of micrococcus ; another tin contained a harmless species of 

 micrococcus only, and a third tin opened contained a micrococcus and 

 a species of bacillus.* 



Another piece of interesting evidence concerning the micrococcus 

 scqrlatinse is this. There occurred during the beginning of this year 

 a severe epidemic of scarlet fever in Wimbledon. This epidemic was 

 also traced to milk coming from a particular farm. In one of the 

 houses supplied with this milk there occurred cases of scarlet fever 

 among human beings, and at the same time a pet monkey who also 

 consumed a good deal of the milk became ill ; it died after five days. 

 I had the opportunity to make a posi mortem examination of this 

 animal, and there could be no doubt about its having died of scarlet 

 fever. From the blood of this monkey I obtained by cultivation the 

 same micrococcus as was obtained from human scarlet fever, from the 

 Hendon cows, and from the condensed milk. Experiments made on 

 animals with this micrococcus of the Wimbledon monkey showed that 

 the same disease is produced both by inoculation and by feeding. It 

 having been proved, then, that the cow is susceptible to infection 

 with scarlet fever from man, the next important question is this. 

 How does the milk of such infected cows assume infective power ? 

 Clearly in one of two ways — First, either the milk becomes infected 

 by the milker during the process of milking, particles of contagium 

 being rubbed off the ulcers of the udder or teat ; or, the milk per se 

 is possessed of infective power — that is, it being a secretion of a con- 

 stitutionally diseased animal. From previous and from more recent 

 observations I am inclined to think that both views hold good. 



I now come to the question — How is the spread of scarlet fever by 



* It is well kuowu that no species of micrococci hitherto knowu are capable of 

 surviving a temperature of 212° Fah., i. e. of boiling water ; many of ' 

 killed by an exposure to 180-190° Fah. ^ 



IluIli brar yj^] 



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