208 INFECTIVE DISEASES. 



Fleming in describing the pathological anatomy of anthrax in the 

 horse, says : " The spleen is double and treble its ordinary volume ; 

 its surface is sometimes bosselated by tumours; its texture is 

 softened and transformed into a viscid reddish-brown or violet mass, 

 and the mesenteric glands are infiltrated. The blood in it has 

 been found to contain bacteridia when examined soon after death." 

 Williams, who says that " anthrax in the horse rarely occurs 

 in this country," adds, that it is prevalent in India, and is 

 there termed " Loodiana disease," and in Africa " Horse-sick- 

 ness." But " Horse-sickness," from recent researches, is certainly 

 not anthrax. Williams described a case which occurred in 1879 as 

 one of anthrax. A carriage-horse died suddenly while in harness ; 

 " a large black tumour was found in the lungs, and the pulmonary 

 arteries were engorged with black tarry blood, which, when micro- 

 scopically examined, was found to contain the bacilli in a most 

 perfect form, and very numerous indeed." In 1884, an outbreak 

 of charbonous fever occurred in Liverpool. Williams proceeded 

 to investigate the outbreak, and found two horses dead on his 

 arrival, one having died only a few hours previously. The bacilli 

 from the blood in this case are figured, and the following statement 

 made : " These bacilli seem to differ from those of splenic fever, being 

 rather smaller in diameter, and so far as my observations go, 

 multiply by fission only, not developing spores." 



On the other hand, the author investigated the blood of a mare 

 which was supposed to have died of anthrax, and on examining 

 cover-glass preparations of the blood, it was found to contain large 

 numbers of bacilli with the characteristic microscopical appearances 

 of anthrax bacilli. To place the question beyond any possible doubt 

 a number of tubes of agar-agar were inoculated. These, after three 

 days in the incubator, produced typical cultivations, and on examina- 

 tion by the ordinary methods and by double-staining, yielded very 

 beautiful preparations of filaments and spores. 



At the same time that the cultivations were prepared, two mice 

 were inoculated at the root of the tail with a trace of the blood. 

 Two days afterwards they were both found dead, and with the 

 characteristic post-mortem appearances, spleen much enlarged, and 

 anthrax bacilli in enormous numbers. 



There can be no doubt that true anthrax occurs in the horse ; 

 and the author, in 1887, recommended that it should be scheduled 

 under the Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act, and equine anthrax 

 has been included in the Anthrax Order of 1895. 



More recently Pemberthy has described cases of equine anthrax 



