486 Abstract Report of Agricultural Discussions. 



operation a niunbcr of causes that must tend to produce disease and 

 render tlie animals susceptible. But, curious to relate, in that j)articular 

 instance, the disease was not more fatal than in the case of pigs which 

 had been managed in the directly opposite manner. It would appear, 

 therefore, so far as his observation went, that susceptibility depended 

 not so much on management as on age. Why young pigs should be 

 susceptible, and old pigs not, he could not say. 



With resjicct to the character of the disease he quite agreed that it 

 was of the nature of typhoid fever ; that was to say, it belonged to that 

 class of diseases which were termed zymotic ; and he also held that it 

 had a close likeness to typhoid fever iu the hmnan subject. Though 

 not identical, they were diseases of the same class and the same family ; 

 they bore as strong a resemblance to each other as one fungus bore to 

 another fungus. As to the duration of the malady, he was inclined 

 to believe that it ran its course far more rai)idly iu the pig than 

 typhoid fever did in the human subject — (Dr. Budd : " Decidedly.") And 

 further, that the disease might have its beginning and ending in the 

 com-se of four or live days — (Dr. Budd : " Clearly.") When, how- 

 ever, they got the disease in that form it was not to be expected, on 

 making a post mortem examination, that large dejiosits would be found 

 on the mucous membranes, or very extensive ulcerations. It would 

 appeal", indeed, that the animals were killed by the large mass of 

 morbilic matter which had entered into their organisms. It was in 

 those cases particularly that the changes of colour in the skin — red 

 here and red there — especially about the ears and the ujiper part of 

 the neck, and also on the back and sides, were seen. In addition 

 to that it would invariably be found that the conjunctival membrane 

 of the eye was intensely reddened. Sometimes, too, though that was 

 more rare, the eye would be~ bloodshot. If a jiost mortem examina- 

 tion were made, a patch of intense intianmiation woidd probably be 

 found in the stomachs as well as in the intestinal canal ; and when 

 that was observable, not luifrcquently there would be a thin layer of 

 lymph of a dirty or yellomsh-whitc colour, spread over it, which, 

 if scraped otf, would disclose the presence of inflammatory action of 

 the most intense nature on that particular sjiot. If the animal had 

 taken a dose of arsenic, or some other mineral or highly-irritating 

 poisonous agent, the inflammatory action could not be gi-eater. 



Frequently, however, there were no deposits, and scarcely any appa- 

 rent change in the mucous membrane. Of this he had seen examides 

 within the last month in some well-managed pigs in Bedfordshire, 

 some of which had died in the early stages of the aflfection, even as 

 soon as the third day. Those cases were marked by effusions of blood 

 here and there, and in one case the capsule of the kidney was thus 

 aifected. More generally the serous membrane of the abdomen and 

 the lining membrane of the left side of the heart were spotted, clearly 

 sho\ving that it was a blood-disease, and that the contaminated blood 

 had left its vessels and produced the petechial spots that had been 

 described. In the case in question the disease was introduced by some 

 store-pigs bought in market. The influence of contagion was thus 

 clearly shown. 



