632 REFORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OP AGRICULTURE. 



kidneys deep rod tlvroughout; glotneruli visible as dark points. Lungs pale, not fully 

 collapsed. Right Jicart llUed A\iUi siemi-coagnlated blood. Liver gorged with blood. 

 Mucosa of stomacii intensely reddened, especially along fundus, and covered with a 

 tliick layer of tenacious ruiicus. Mucous membrane of ileum similarly affected. 

 Peyer's patches exceedingly dark red, shoAving through serous coat. The ekrvated 

 border gives each a shghtly concave boat-shaped appearance. The colon also deeply 

 congested, almost hemorrhagic in patches, filled with a small quantity of semi -liquid 

 feces. The rectum, still fill^ with consiatent masses. The mesenteric glands con- 

 gested. 



Tlie feeding had thus produced a very severe inflammation of the digestive tract, 

 so severe, in fact, that the animal died before the ulceration or necrosis had begun. 

 The diagnosis was further confirmed by obtaining pure liquid cultures from the 

 spleen, the liver, and blood from the heart. The bacteria were not sufficiently 

 numerous in these organs to be detected by the microscope. To make sure that the 

 carbonate of soda had no corrosive effect another animal was treated precisely in 

 the same way by starving and feeding a solution of the salt. No ill effects v.'hat- 

 ever were manifested. 



In order to test the specific pathogenic character of the bacterium obtained from 

 this animal a large rabbit was inoculated subcutaneously with about i" of a liquid 

 cultm-e fi-om the blood. On the sixth day the rabbit was lying on its side; abdom- 

 inal breathing very labored. It was found dead on the next day. Slight thicken- 

 ing of the subcutaneous tissue and fascia covering the thigh muscles at the 

 pomt of inoculation. The muscular tissue covered with minute ecchymoses around 

 the infiltrated patch. Small quantity of serum in the peritoneal cavity. Spleen 

 very large, blackish, exceedingly friable, and crowded with bacteria. Liver en- 

 larged; interlobular tissue pale; the entire parenchyma very soft and brittle. Dot- 

 ting both surfaces of ail the lobes are small grayish-white patches, involving one, 

 two, or three, rarely more, acini, and bounded very sharply by the acini them- 

 selves. Pecuhar figures are thus formed, tlu-ee contiguous ones giving the patch 

 a clover-leaf appearance. On section th.ey are found to extend to the depth of one 

 or several acini into the parenchyma. The great majority of these masses of coag- 

 ulation necrosis involve lobules on or near the surface. Only a few are in the 

 depths of the organ. ^Vlien such a whitish mass is spread on a cover-glass and 

 stained innumerable bacteria of hog-cholera make their appearance. The rest of 

 the tissue iti likewise crowded with them. Beneath the pulmonary pleura are large 

 purplish patciies of extravasation, which on section extend deeply into the paren- 

 chyma. The lung tissue is in general congested. Blood from the heart contained 

 very few bacteria. No cuhjures were made. 



A pipette filled witli heart's olood from pig No. 1 (Sodorus, 111. ) , as de- 

 scribed in the first annual report, and sealed, was opened about three 

 weeks later. Want of time had prevented earlier examination. Two 

 liquid cultures were inoculated from the contents of the pipette, which 

 were dark and firmly'- clotted, without any order whatever. On the 

 following day both were clouded, and contained the motile bacterium 

 of hog-cholera growing on gelatine in the same manner. One of the 

 cultures contained in addition a streptococcus, which was eliminated 

 by making plate cultures and inoculating fresh tubes from a single 

 colony. A second pipette furnished a pure culture of another patho- 

 genic microbe, probably the cause of the lung disease. This will be 

 described in detail farther on. 



From the spleen of No. 2 cultures were made as above. Small 

 pieces were dropped into tubes of gelatine with the usual precaution. 

 One tube remained permanently sterile. In two others liquefaction 

 began after several days. A rather largo bacillus was found in both 

 tubes, in one associated with a microbe to be described later. Pieces 

 of the spleen from the culture containing this bacillus alone were 

 placed beneath the skin of two mice. Both remained well. This 

 bacillus, therefore, had no pathogenic effect upon these animals. It 

 vv^as probably a germ accidentally present in the spleen during life 

 rather than a contamination of the cultures. No further attention 

 was paid to it. 



The bacterium of hog-cholera was not therefore obtained from the 



