Studies ill Forage Poisoning V. 57 



found dead without having presented noticeable symptoms. 

 In the less acute cases there were noted varying degrees of 

 loss of appetite, stupor, nervous attitude, accelerated and shal- 

 low respiration, subnormal or normal temperature, paralysis 

 of the tongue and pharynx, salivation, slight watery discharge 

 from nostrils, awkward prehension of feed, yawning, chewing, 

 muscular weakness, obstinate constipation, incoordination in 

 walking, decumbency, decubitic ulcers, accompanied by second- 

 ary infection, rapid horizontal movement of the fore feet as 

 in running, with intervals of coma, until death. 



The toxicity of the excreta from apparently healthy 

 chickens that had been fed active B. botulinus toxin (unfil- 

 tered broth cultures) disguised in wholesome feed is made evi- 

 dent in experimental mule No. 89. On December 21st, 1916, 

 this animal was fed, disguised in wholesome feed, 95 gms. of 

 excreta from apparently healthy chickens that had received 

 at intervals in their rations liberal amounts of B. botulinus 

 in broth cultures. The ration for this mule from day to day 

 then consisted of wholesome feed and water. The animal 

 appeared normal until the morning of December 26th, at which 

 time there was observed a marked muscular weakness, pha- 

 ryngeal paralysis, restlessness, braying, olophonia; the tongue 

 was edematous, paralyzed and pendulous (Fig. 4). The pho- 

 tograph was made at 10 a. m. and at 3 p. m. the animal was 

 permanently decumbent. At 7 a. m. the following morning, 

 December 27th, the attendant reported the animal dead. The 

 following gross lesions were observed at autopsy: Meninges 

 slightly injected; slight congestion of lungs; hemorrhagic spots 

 on the heart wall : local areas of ramification on the inner wall 

 of great colon, with scattered punctate hemorrhages; liver 

 engorged with blood; kidneys hyperaemic and capsule in- 

 jected. Macroscopic lesions were not observed in other or- 

 gans. 



B. botulinus was fed direct to other experimental horses 

 and mules with fatal results. The clinical manifestations and 

 gross pathologic changes observed were analogous to a degree. 

 There was a variation in the period of incubation, some ani- 

 mals being fatally afflicted in 3 days, while in one instance a 



