"GKOUSE DISEASE "PATHOLOGY 297 



would seem to allow of intestinal organisms of the colon group to gain 

 entrance into the portal blood. The existence of Coccidiosis of the liver 

 bore no relation to the presence of Bacillus coli in that organ, even the 

 affected bile ducts being sterile. The presence of the nematode, Oxyuris 

 ambigua in the caecum (in moderate numbers) did not appear to have any 

 influence on the passage of bacteria from the intestine into the blood-vessels. 

 We have shown that Bacillus coli is constantly present in the organs 

 of birds whose cseca contain large numbers of Strongyli. and we have shown 

 that the latter are present in far larger numbers in diseased than 

 in healthy birds. It may therefore be assumed that Bacillus coli, c nce 



* ' of Bacilha 



while not invariably absent from the organs of the apparently <mthe 

 healthy bird, is constantly present in those of diseased birds. The 

 small numbers of colonies of Bacillus coli cultivated from the tissues of 

 diseased Grouse indicate that these bacteria do not multiply in the tissues. 

 We therefore do not suggest that " Grouse Disease " is essentially an infection 

 with these bacteria. But the number of colonies which appear on our tubes 

 does not allow us to estimate even approximately the numbers of bacilli 

 which enter the tissues and get killed. If these are really numerous, their 

 products will doubtless exert some amount of harmful influence, but how 

 much we are not at present in a position to say. No bacilli could with 

 certainty be identified either in sections or in smears of the livers of diseased 

 or healthy birds. Many of the cells were filled with large numbers of iron- 

 containing granules, which seemed to be more numerous in diseased than 

 in healthy birds. But the fact that we have not found either by macroscopic 

 or microscopic examination any important lesions in the livers which have 

 yielded cultures inclines us to think that the bacilli play only a secondary 

 part in the causation of death. 



Though this subject is being very fully dealt with by other workers for 

 the "Grouse Disease" Inquiry we feel that it is desirable, in view of the 

 statements we have made, to record our own observations in tabular s easona i 

 form. Though unfortunately we seldom had the opportunity of f 6 t he lence 

 making observations on diseased and healthy birds at the same time, ^'"u^ 1 

 the table shows that Hymenolepis microps occurred in large numbers entozoa - 

 in the great majority of birds examined from the middle of March to the 

 end of May. Very few were present in the thirteen birds examined between 

 the beginning of June and the last week in August. During the last few days 



