VACCINE-THERAPY 109 



coccus tetragenus, etc. The same also may be said of 

 influenza, distemper, and strangles, as we shall see later. 



If one aspirates an infected joint, in our experience, in 

 the early stages, centrifugalizes the fluid, and with the 

 sediment inoculates a culture-tube, no growth may follow, 

 and this rather suggests the fact that the bacteria do not 

 enter the capsule of the joint at the outset, but rather 

 remain in the blood or lymph stream, toxins only filtering 

 through, causing turbidity of the otherwise clear synovia ; 

 but later on, owing to disintegration of the vessel walls, 

 they are liberated, and find their way into the joint cavity. 

 Be this as it may, we have found the longer standing a 

 pyasmic arthritic is, the greater seems to be the degree 

 of bacterial invasion, and vice versa. 



A careful examination of the navel cord should be made. 

 The purulent matter should not be taken from the point of 

 the navel. If the cord is fairly long, the tip must be cut 

 off, the haemorrhage stopped, and a sterile small curette 

 inserted an inch or two into the canal, and a scraping 

 taken from the side of its wall. This should be examined 

 and incubated. 



As already pointed out, mixed infection is rather the 

 rule, and it therefore follows, each case, to obtain the 

 maximum of success, should be treated upon its own 

 merits. 



The most common bacteria the writer has found are — 

 staphylococci (albas and aureus) ; streptococci ; in one 

 case the B. pyocyaneus, in another a microbe resembling 

 the pneumococcus, and showing its characteristics; and 

 lastly we have isolated the B. coli communis from the navel. 

 Considering how readily the navel cord comes in contact 

 with faecal matter, it is really a wonder one does not see 

 more cases of B. coli infection, although such may be so, 

 and have been overlooked in practice. 



It is surprising to find how tolerant young foals are to 

 big doses of vaccine. The writer remembers the first two 

 or three cases he injected, feeling rather anxious as to 



