Freliminary Note upon the Bacteriology of some 

 Diseases of Sheep. 



The heavy losses suffered by farmers on the west coast of Scotland 

 from the prevalence of certain endemic diseases amongst sheep, led to 

 the appointment by the Board of Agriculture of a Departmental 

 Committee to investigate the aetiology of these diseases. Our investiga- 

 tion is to be regarded as an extension of the work of this Committee and 

 of Professor Hamilton's own researches. (Parliamentary Report of 

 the Departmental Committee, appointed by the Board of Agriculture, 

 1906.) 



The material for this investigation was provided by Professor 

 Hamilton, to whom we are indebted for suggesting the line of the 

 research, as also for the very great help he has given us in the carrying 

 out of the same. Liquid from the peritoneal cavity of sheep which had 

 died from the various diseases had been preserved, and it was from this 

 that the various organisms were isolated and grown. The method of 

 isolation, in almost every case, was as follows : — The medium employed 

 was glucose-bouillon of varying degrees of alkalinity. The surface was 

 covered with olive oil to a depth of one centimetre. The oil allowed the 

 escape of the gases dissolved in the medium during sterilization, and 

 prevented later any further access of air (see Parliamentary Report, 

 Part H., p. 20). 



A tube of bouillon heated to 80° C. was inoculated with a small 

 quantity of the peritoneal liquid (previously incubated for 36 hours) by 

 means of a sterile capillary pipette, and kept at this temperature for 20 

 minutes. It was then rapidly cooled and placed in an incubator at if C. 



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