CONTAGIOUS DISEASES OF DOMESTICATED ANIMALS. 



279 



I 



(1) the report of M. Broiiardel in regard to his inissiou to Ermslebeu, 



(2) the coinmuuication of M. Grancher ou the symptoms aud patholog- 

 ical anatomy of the epidemic of Ermsleben, and (3) a letter from the 

 minister of commerce asking the advice of the academy in regard to the 

 question of trichiniasis. In this report appear the following points of 

 interest : 



A considerable invasion of German rats has been noticed of late years after the 

 freezing of the Rhine, aud M. Brouardel no longer sees the same species of rats at the 

 morgue that he formerly found there. M. Laboulbene and M. Colin had occasion to 

 observe quite a large number of trichinous rats that had been found in the sewers of 

 Paris. Finally, we are also invaded by the trichime which penetrate Frauce with the 

 German hogs, which are infected in the proportion of 1 to 1,000 to 1 to 2,000. 



Without doubt we do not know precisely, scientifically, the degree of activity of 

 the trichime according to the time that they have been encysted in Americau meats, 

 their vigor, the condition of the meat and the stage of the curing — desiderata which 

 future experiments can alone supply. 



The same ignorance exists in regard to our own hogs — are any of them trichinous ? 

 If so, what proportion ? What is the condition of those in the suburban zone sur- 

 rounding Paris which, nourished like the sewer rats, may be trichinous like them? 



It remains for us to speak of the action of American salted meats in the production 

 of the epidemics of trichiniasis in Germany which have been observed at Dusseldorf, 

 Eostock, and Bremen, but our information in this respect is entirely insufficient, aud 

 according to the indications that M. Brouardel has already presented to the academy 

 the exotic origin of these epidemics is denied by several of the principal German 

 savans, and particularly by M. Virchow. Oui* Government might address the German 

 Empire in regard to this in order to have official documents; but the results of such 

 an in(iuiry have for us, from the standpoint now under discussion, an almost secon- 

 dary importance. If in fact we, like the English and the Belgians, have been free 

 iVom epidemics of trichiniasis although we received salted trichinous meats and even 

 fresh or slightly salted pork of German origin more dangerous than that which comes 

 f)om Chicago or Cincinnati, since it had only to cross the Rhine and the Vosges, 

 this is because our culinary habits are entirely different. Let us remark also that in 

 America it is above all the Germans who are affected with trichiniasis — an additional 

 proof of the effect of culinary habits. 



But already we can conclude from the developments which precede that no case of 

 Trichiniasis having been noticed either in France or in England froiA the consumption 

 of American salted pork, the importation of these meats may be authorized in France. 

 This decision has been reached by the commission by a vote of 5 to 1. 



At the same session of the academy M. Lunier presented the follow- 

 ing table, showing the importation of salt-pork products for eight years, 

 in kilograms : 



Year. 



1876 

 1877 

 1878 

 1879 

 1880 

 1881 

 1882 

 1883 



United States. 



3,269,960 

 12, 462, 078 

 28, 102, 290 

 31, 784, 913 

 34, 246, 195 

 17, 123, 767 

 4,611 



England. Germany. 



other coun- 

 tries. 



1, 875, 736 

 1, 889, 905 

 1,454,884 

 1, 107, 601 

 1.233,228 

 686, 525 

 1, 109, 870 



702. 530 

 994, 334 

 921,167 



1, 03P, 673 

 846, 174 

 723, 465 



1, 055, 783 



52,396 1,136,793 



1, 047, 920 

 1, 078, 505 

 1,314,437 

 1, 742, 854 

 2,387,671 

 1, 182, 474 



1, 074, 259 



2, 091, 779 



Total. 



7, 896, 146 

 16, 424, 722 

 31, 792, 778 

 35, 675, 131 

 38, 713, 268 

 19, 716, 231 

 3, 244, 523 

 3, 274, 966 



It follows from this table that the importation of Americau salted meats, which had 

 augmented rapidly from 1676 to 1880, began to diminish in 1881, after the decree of 

 February 18, 1881, which prohibited the importation of salted moats from the United 



