Aiiirricdii Fisheries Society. Ill 



Q. Has any disease of fish previous to this case been traced 

 definitely to bacteria ? 



A. Well, in Enrope several bacteria have been (Icscril.cd as 

 coming- from fishes. 



Dr. Birge : I know that. 



Mr. Marsh : But the organism has not been proved to be the 

 cause of the disease. They merely mention it in that way. T 

 really do not know of any case where this relation lias been estab- 

 lished, but you see, very little work has been done in that direc- 

 tion. 



Dr. Birge: There was a time when I knew something about 

 this general line of subjects, but since I have been engaged 

 almost exclusively in executive work during the last four or five 

 years, I have not kept so closely in touch with this work as I 

 should have liked to do. Those who look at these matters from a 

 practical rather than a scientific point of view, ought to appre- 

 ciate that this work of Prof. Marsh's is of very great scientific 

 interest. Although a vast number of water bacteria have Ijeen 

 described, yet very few, if any, diseases of water animals have 

 been shown to be attributa1)le to such bacteria. Indeed when I 

 used to keep up witli the literature, the statement used to be 

 made that there were no pathogenic water bacteria afi'ecting 

 water animals, although there were some pathogenic bacteria 

 that could live in water for a certain length of time, but 

 that none of the various diseases that affect fish and other fresh 

 water animals were due to bacteria. On the other hand, that 

 there were many diseases due to the coccidia, a totally diiferent 

 group of organisms, belonging, probabl}', to the animal side. It 

 is quite a triumph for American science to have demonstrated so 

 conclusively as Prof. Marsh has done, the relation between this 

 important disease and l)acteria. It is a hopeless kind of thing, 

 however from the practical side, apparently, to demonstrate, be- 

 cause it seems impossible for us to do anything either to ward ofE 

 the attack or, I siisix'ct, to cure it after it is started. 



Prof. Marsh: 1 \\n\v no hope whatever of a cure, altbough a 

 year ago we tried formalin, l)ut it was of jio use. 



Dr. Birge: How far are the springs in this case from the 

 pond ? 



