304 



PATHOGENIC BACTERIA IN MILK 



the outside farm workers, and two other 

 children in the family had discharging 

 ears. There is no doubt that this 

 family had suffered from scarlet fever, 

 and that the attack in the case of the 

 girl who was peeling, began previous 

 to the time when they were dis- 

 covered. 



Supposed that the infection of the 

 milk arose from the child in question 

 going into the byre, and possibly carry- 

 ing milk pails while her hands were 

 peeling. The milk would appear to 

 have been principally infected during 

 the latter part of the week ending 

 28th March, because the bulk of the 

 cases notified were on 29th March and 

 the three succeeding days. In most 

 cases of Offerton customers who were 

 attacked by scarlet fever at a date later 

 than would have been consistent with 

 the supposition that the disease was 

 caused by milk consumed before 28th 

 March, the explanation was that the dis- 

 ease began in the households by scarla- 

 tinal sore throats, developing in the last 

 two or three days in March or the first 

 one or two days of April, and that these 

 scarlatinal sore throats infected the 



other members of the family and 

 gave rise to true attacks of scarlet 

 fever. 



Probable exciting cause. — Milk in- 

 fected from human source. 



Reporter and reference. — Dr Harold 

 Scurfield. Special Rep., April 1903. 



Milk-borne outbreaks of scarlet fever 

 have also occurred at the following 

 places in the years stated : — 



Penrith, 1867 ; St Andrews, 1867 

 and 1869 ; South Kensington, 1875 ) 

 New Barnet, 1877 ; High Ashurst and 

 Headley, 1878 ; Newcastle-on-Tyne, 

 1879 j Dundee, 1880 ; Bromley, Kent, 

 1881 ; Keswick, 1881 ; Wolverhampton, 



1881 ; Greenock, 1881-82 ; Sunderland, 



1882 ; Kingston-upon-Hull, 1882 ; Wol- 

 borough, 1883; Dundee, 1883; Staple- 

 ton, 1887; Jesmond, Newcastle-on- 

 Tyne, 1888 ; Bristol, 1890 ; Lowell and 

 Lawrence, 1891 ; Card worth, 1891 ; 

 Chicopee Falls, 1892 ; Aston Manor 

 and Handsworth, 1892 ; Richmond, 

 1894; Freemantle, 1894; Blackheath, 

 1894; Wolverhampton, 1894; Shirley, 

 Southampton, 1894 ; Halifax, 1897 ; 

 Kidderminster, 1902 ; Epsom, 1902. 



B. Typhoid Fever 



The first epidemic of typhoid fever which was traced to infected! 

 milk was one occurring at Penrith in 1858 (Taylor). Since that] 

 date there have been a large number of similar outbreaks traced toj 

 milk. Yet but little of material importance has been added to our! 

 knowledge of the mode of conveyance. It was believed then, asj 

 now, that the materia morbi were contained in the alvine discharges] 

 of typhoid patients, and that an outbreak of the disease impliedJ 

 some contact, directly or indirectly, with this poison. ThatJ 

 substantially, is the view still held, although we are able in thej 

 light of modern bacteriology to define with more exactness the 

 real agents of the disease. (For description of the Bacillus typhosusX 

 of Eberth-Gaffky, see p. 434). 



