DIAGNOSIS. 279 
and the examination and appearance of the blood taken 
from the tumor in case such lesion is present. 
In both diseases death is liable to occur very suddenly, 
but black leg commonly affects only cattle under two years 
of age, whereas hemorrhagica septicemia affects all ages 
indiscriminately. High temperatures are characteristic of 
black leg, especially early in the history of the cases, where- 
as, in hemorrhagica septiceecia the temperature in my ex- 
perience has been normal or sub-normal until near death, 
and then in some cases rising very rapidly. A pronounced 
swelling of the front or hind quarter is rather characteristic 
of black leg, though in a few cases which died very suddenly 
there may be no noticeable swelling. These cases usually oc- 
cur early in the history of the outbreak, and following them 
there are almost invariably other cases which show the 
characteristic swellings of black leg or black quarter, as it is 
frequently called. Swellings of this kind are not characteris- 
tic of hemorrhagica septicceemia, and when present at all are 
small. 
Blood taken from a black leg tumor is dark, frothy ahd 
with disagreeable odor, whereas the blood taken from a case 
of hamorrhagica septicemia, even from the small swellings 
which sometimes occur, is apparently normal. It reddens. 
on exposure to air, clots readily and does not seem to be 
changed. It should benoted that this is also true of blood 
taken from general circulation in the case of black leg. But 
the important point of difference is the character of the blood 
taken from the swelling in a black leg case, which blood is 
very abnormal. 
There is another point which has some bearing in distin- 
guishing these two diseases. Hzamorrhagica septicaemia 
occurs at any season of the year, whereas black leg is most 
apt to occur in the summer and fall. 
A diagnosis between these two diseases may, as a rule, 
be quite easily made by examination postmortem. Here we 
have in a case of hemorrhagica septicemia the characteris- 
tic hemorrhages which appear as blood-stained or bruise- 
like areas under the skiu; and sharply defined blood-stained 
areas on the internal organs or the linings of the body cavi- 
ties. 
