630 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE. 



and the liquid capped by the characteristic membrane, consisting of 

 the oval bacterium. The four heated tubes remained permanently 

 clear. 



Hog -cholera in Illinois caused by the same Bacterium. 



A herd was found September, 188G, a few miles southwest of Sodorus, 

 Champaign County, Illinois, in which a number of animals had al- 

 ready perished from what was supposed to be hog-cholera. The dis- 

 ease had existed for months, and the affected animals usually lingered 

 for several weeks. 



Two pigs about four months old were chosen from this lot, which 

 were so weak as to be scarcely able to stand or move about, and killed 

 by a blow on the head. Owing to the disadvantages of the situation 

 no thorough autopsy could be made. In what we shall denominate 

 No. 1 the superficial inguinal glands were very much enlarged, 

 purplish. In the thorax the caudal portion of both lungs was com- 

 pletely solidified. On section the hepatization had a variegated pale 

 red appearance. The smaller bronchi were plugged with a white 

 tenacious mass. A few bands loosely attached the lungs to the costal 

 pleura. In the abdominal cavity the various organs seemed of normal 

 size and color. The large intestines were filled with dry hard fecal 

 masses. On opening them about four or five ulcers, i inch across, 

 were found in the csecal portion; the mucous membrane itself was 

 pale, with a few specimens of tiHchocephalus attached to it. _ The 

 stomach was emply, the mucosa pale, and pyloric region bile-stained. 



In No. 2 the lungs were in the same condition, the pleurisy slightly 

 more marked. In the abdomen the spleen was four or five times the 

 normal size, very soft, and gorged with dark blood. In the small 

 intestines lesions caused by echinorhynchi were present. In the 

 intestine, Avhich was empty, the only lesion noticeable was a patch of 

 ulceration involving the mucous crypts at the base of the ileo-csecal 

 valve. Stomach as in No. 1. 



The major portion of the spleen of No. 1 was removed with sterile 

 instruments and transferred to a sterile bottle plugged with cotton 

 wool. Within four or five hours bits of this spleen were carefully ex- 

 cised after thoroughly scorching the surface with a heated platinum 

 spatula, and placed in tubes containing nutrient gelatine. Cover- 

 glass preparations gave negative evidence as regards the presence of 

 bacteria. Within two days minute whitish points could be seen in 

 the depths of the gelatine. The hot weather had liquefied the gel atine 

 and allowed the bit of spleen to sink into it. Small surface patches of 

 a very gelatinous appearance were also present. On returning to the 

 laboratory at Washington the colonies in the four gelatine tubes thus 

 prepared were found to be made up of the oval motile bacterium of 

 hog-cholera, identical with the bacterium described in the preceding 

 report microscopically and in its growth in gelatine and other culture 

 media. There was not even a single differential character by which 

 this germ might be distinguished from the one demonstrated to be the 

 cause of hog-cholera last year. 



In order to test its pathogenic effect on small animals and to make 

 comparisons a number of animals were inoculated simultaneously 

 from the same liquid culture. This was obtained as follows: One of 

 the original gelatine tube cultures was used as the starting-point and 

 from it a liquid culture inoculated. On the following day a gelatine- 

 plate culture was prepared from this, and when the colonies had de- 



