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says in his annual report for 1914 : " In an outbreak of anthrax 

 among swine 1 sow died of the disease. The owner asserted 

 that 6 fellow sows, which had an equal opportunity of becoming 

 infected, showed similar symptoms to those displayed by the dead 

 sow, but they recovered after a few days' illness. There was no 

 veterinary evidence in support of the owner's opinion that the 

 6 sows had been infected and recovered. It is, however, not 

 improbable. In another outbreak 7 cows died out of a total 

 of 21 cows grazing in the same meadow. The veterinary surgeon 

 in attendance reported that several of the remaining 14 cows had 

 temperatures up to 107 F. and subsequently recovered." 



The course of the disease varies with the species, the period 

 of visible illness being short in cattle and sheep, the animals often 

 being found dead. In the horse and pig it is more subacute and 

 often lasts several days. The disease being septicaemic the bacilli 

 are innumerably present in the blood at the time of death of cattle 

 and sheep as well as in the excretions of the body before death. 

 Anthrax bacilli can probably be found in the milk in the majority 

 of cases in cows. As pointed out by M'Fadyean,* however, there 

 is little risk of infection of human beings occurring from this, 

 as the bacilli do not pass into the milk until the general blood 

 invasion has taken place, and this does not happen until an hour or 

 two before death. In an outbreak, therefore, it is sufficient to 

 take the temperature of the incontacts before milking and to reject 

 the milk of any animal showing a rise. 



PREVENTIVE MEASURES. It is doubtful if anthrax can ever be 

 entirely stamped out from Great Britain, but a great deal is being 

 done to prevent outbreaks from spreading, and with compulsory 

 notification of all deaths from unknown causes much more might 

 be done. 



Anthrax is a notifiable disease ; disposal of carcases of animals 

 suspected to have died of the disease is under the control of the 

 Local Authority, being supervised by and carried out to the satis- 

 faction of the Veterinary Inspector for the Local Authority. 

 Effective destruction of the infected carcases, soiled litter and dung 

 is of the first importance. Under the Order carcases may be either 

 buried or cremated. If the former method is adopted, the grave 

 must be of such a depth that the carcase is 6 feet below the level of 

 the surrounding soil. It is usually advised that it be thickly covered 

 with lime but this precaution is probably hardly necessary. There 

 is little danger of subsequent infection of other animals if burial 

 is immediate and deep and the carcase has not been mutilated. In 

 *Journ. Comp. Path., 1909, Vol. XXII., p. 148. 



