" BRAXY " SHEEP DISEASE IN AUSTRALIA. 591 



but apparently he never succeeded in securing pure cultures 

 of the organism. All attempts at infection with the bacillus 

 he had cultivated failed " whether food was moistened with 

 cultivations, or the material injected subcutaneously " (Jensen). 

 Pure cultures of the bacillus of Bradsot were, however, later secured 

 by Jensen, who found it as stated by Neilsen anaerobic, growing 

 slowly in ordinary gelatine and agar, but growing rapidly in these 

 media where blood serum is added, also in ordinary broth and blood 

 serum equal parts. He lays stress on the similarity of the growths 

 of this bacillus and those of Blackleg and Mahgnant oedema, and 

 while pointing out certain minor differences, concludes " at the 

 present time I am unable to give final indications for distinguishing 

 between the gelatine and agar cultures of the three bacilli, 

 the differences being slight." He distinguishes the bacillus from 

 that of Blackleg, "which it somewhat resembles in general appear- 

 ance, and of which it reminds one by its ability to produce haemorr- 

 hagic inflammation of the muscular tissues " . . . by its being 

 " pathogenic to swine, mice, pigeons and poultry," and by the fact 

 that a sheep immune to Bradsot succumbed to inoculation with 

 Blackleg virus. Further, Blackleg is said to be unknown in Iceland 

 where Bradsot is common. 



Experiments with cultures proved the bacillus fatal to guinea- 

 pigs in 12 to 16 hours, to pigeons and hens in from 12 to 18 hours, 

 but the doses are not mentioned in the translation at my disposal. 



Three lambs subcutaneously inoculated with serum-gelatine- 

 agar cultures died in from 12 to 15 hours, the post-mortem ap- 

 pearances closely resembling blackleg, e.g., extensive subcutaneous 

 haemorrhagic oedema, with haemorrhage into the musculature of the 

 inoculated limb ; a little blood-stained fluid in the abdominal cavity, 

 slight enlargement of spleen, liver yellowish and degenerated, lungs 

 cedematous, kidneys almost pultaceous, a condition which in spon- 

 taneous Bradsot is regarded as characteristic, but no mention is 

 made of stomach lesions being present. A calf six or seven weeks 

 old inoculated with 2 cc. serum broth culture died in 48 hours, but the 

 muscles were greyish and soft where inoculated and not like those 

 of blackleg infection. A pig six months old died in 36 hours after 

 subcutaneous inoculation. Rabbits were not so susceptible as 

 guineapigs ; of four inoculated only one died, the post-mortem 

 appearances being as those in guineapigs. 



As to vaccination against Bradsot, both Neilsen and Jensen had 

 some success experimentally by employing tissues containing the 

 bacillus, which were dried and pulverised, indeed Neilsen 

 had used this method in his own district with apparent success. 

 Whether such material was simply dried at an ordinary temperature 

 or at very high temperatures as employed in the making of blackleg 

 vaccine is not stated, but the latter is most probable. 



Braxy. — ^As already stated, the bacteriology of braxy proper 

 in Great Britain has only been studied by Hamilton. The bacillus 

 is rod-shaped and varies in length from 2 '8 to 7/i long, and from 



