BY C. J. POUND, F.R.M.S. XIX 



]\Ir. 1']. Stanley, Chief Veterinary Surjjjeon to the Board of 

 Health, Sydney, durin<>- his usual inspection of the saleyards in 

 and around Sydney on one occasion, informed me that he had a 

 splendid case of tuberculosis in the udder of a cow which had 

 been recently consigned for sale from a ladies' college on account 

 of the gradual diminution of the supply of milk. A physical 

 examination revealed the fact that only the right anterior quarter 

 of the mammary gland was sound, while the other three quarters 

 were more or less indurated. The animal was condemned and 

 killed for tuberculosis, and on P.M. examination the original 

 opinion was maintained. Tiie next step was to confirm or 

 otherwise this diagnosis by microscopical examination of the 

 diseased parts of the udder, which work the Board of Health 

 entrusted to me. I worked axsny cutting sections and examining 

 specimens with the microscope for three days, but although I 

 could find all the necessary histological elements of tubercle, I 

 failed to discover a single tubercle bacillus. Mr. Stanley 

 suggesting that the staining reagents inight have deteriorated, I 

 therefore made up another fr.-sh lot of stains, and then prepared 

 another series of specimens, which we, independently, carefully 

 examined, but with the same negative result as before. After 

 this somewhat lengthy and tedious microscopical examination it 

 was resolved as a last resource to cut up into slices that portion 

 of the gland which was intended to be preserved as a museum 

 specimen, with the hope of throwing a little extra light on the 

 nature of what now appeared to be a mysterious disease. My 

 efforts were at last rewarded by the fact that I discovered on 

 the cut surface of two of the slices several little hard, dark- 

 brown coloured grains, each about the size of a pin's head. 

 These grains were placed on a micro-slide, and on adding a little 

 drop of hydrochloric acid they immediately began to effervesce, 

 thus demonstrating their calcarious nature. When the effer- 

 vescence had ceased a little glycerine Avas added, and the 

 specimen examined under the microscope, when to my astonish- 

 ment what was supposed to be a case of tuberculosis now proved 

 to be one of Actinomycosis, for I readily detected the presence of 

 characteristic clubs of the Actinomyces fungus, while the 

 calcarious condition of the little fungus-tufts at once explained 



