360 AGRICULTURAL BACTERIOLOGY 



other places in which there is likely to be a large amount 

 of material, such as manure that contains the harmful or- 

 ganism, the first step in the disinfecting process should be 

 the thorough cleaning of the stable walls and floor, in order 

 to remove as much as possible of the infectious material 

 and allow the disinfectant to come in contact with the bare 

 surface of the walls. Dried manure is not easily pene- 

 trated by the liquids, and the organic matter is likely to 

 combine with the disinfectant used and thus reduce its 

 action. The thorough cleaning will remove most of the 

 organisms. All loose woodwork such as box mangers, etc., 

 should be removed. The walls should be moistened with 

 a solution of corrosive sublimate so as to prevent dust in 

 the subsequent cleaning. The walls and floors should be 

 scraped clean, and the material removed and all litter 

 burned, not thrown into the yard, where animals may have 

 access to it. 



The disinfectant should be applied with a spray-pump 

 that will enable one to reach all parts and to force it into 

 the cracks. If whitewash is used, it should be strained and 

 made thin enough not to clog the pump. The mangers 

 should be well scrubbed with a solution of lye and then with 

 water. A half-hearted job of disinfection is no better than 

 none at all. It gives a fancied but no real security against 

 a recurrence of the disease. 



The disinfection of yards is something that can not be 

 done under ordinary conditions. If a small yard is in- 

 fected, a liberal sprinkling with dry, water-slaked lime is 

 the best that can be accomplished. The disinfection of 

 fields is impossible. Small areas may be limed or burned 

 over, but neither of these methods is likely to be effective 

 in the case of spore-bearing organisms, and all other forms 

 will soon die. One must rely on natural agencies for the 

 destruction of pathogenic organisms that have been brought 



