145 



Again, lunrraiii lias been produced m cattle from leeding or inocnlat- 

 ing'^Avith tlie linnian tuberculous matter, and heuce it follows that the 

 tuberculosis is transferable frqpi cattle to man, and it appears highly 

 important that murrainous animals should be carefally watched, and 

 that inspection of their meat should be very strictly attended to. 



Professor Gerlach, of Hanover, has lately prosecuted additional ex- 

 periments u])on murrain, and has established not only its transmissibil- 

 ity by inoculation, but also has shown, by numerous experiments, that 

 tuberculosis can be transferred by feeding with the milk of murrainous 

 cattle. As conclusions from the facts ascertained by him, Professor 

 Gerlach remarks that, u]) to this time, murrain has been looked upon, in 

 a sanitary aspect, as an innocent disease, but that it must hereafter be 

 considered as quite the contrary. In former times, or toward the end 

 of the last century, the murraiii of cattle was considered as a kind of 

 venereal disease, and while this view lasted great caution was observed 

 in regard to the llesh and the milk. Since it has been ascertained, how- 

 ever, that this is PiOt a syphilitic condition, the meat has been consid- 

 ered as wlioiesome. This is nov,' known to be an entirely erroneous as- 

 sumption, and the greatest possible care should be taken to avoid using 

 the meat or the milk in any v^ny. 



Influence of food iiroN poultey and eggs. — The influence of 

 the food of poultry upon the quality and flavor of their flesh and eggs 

 has not generally been taken into consideration ;^but it is now well 

 ascertained that great care should be exercised in regard to this matter. 

 In some instances it has been attempted to ieed poultry on a large scale 

 in France on horse-flesh, and, aUliough they devour this substance very 

 greedily, it has been found to give them a very unpleasant savor. The 

 best fattening material for chickens is said to be Indian corn-meal and 

 milk; and certain large poultry establishments in France ujse this en- 

 tirely, to the advantage both of the flesh and of the eggs. 



Source of nitrogen in plant;^. — It is Avell kuov/n that the quan- 

 tity of nitrogen contained in the crops exceeds in en\)rmous proportion 

 that existing in the manures, the excess undoubtedly being derived 

 from the air. It is now a question wliether this is extracted directly 

 from the air by plants, which would thus have the power of assimilating 

 directly, or if it is first taken from the air by the soil, so as to combine 

 with organic matter, and form an assimilable compound. According to 

 Deherain, oxygen, in the presence of organic matter, coml)ines directly 

 with nitrogen to form a compound analogous to the humus of the earth, 

 or to ulmic acid. To illustrate this he placed in a tube oxygeh, nitro- 

 gen, glucose, and ammonia. On drying the tube and heating it, a black 

 nitrogenLzed matter was left, and a portion of the nitrogen in the tube 

 was found to have disappeared. 



Preferences op CLi3iBiT>7Cr pla'nts. — According to Mr. Henry, cer- 

 tain climbers evince a partiality for some particular species of plants, 

 stretching out their tendrils and branches so as to come in contact with 

 them, while to other species they have as decided an aversion, avoiding 

 them, and never becoming attached to them, though they run up the 

 surface of the wall side by side. 



Powdered coal for unhealthy plants. — In a communication, 

 addressed to the Eevvc EGrticoIe, the vrriter states that he purchased a 

 very fine rose-bush, full of buds, and, after anxiously awaiting their 

 maturing, was greatly disappointed, v;hen this took place, to find the 

 flowers small, insignilicaut in aj)pearance, and of a dull, faded color. 



