DIPHTHERIA. 



51 



The milk delivered by this dealer, not great in amount, was 

 not brought to the house before delivery. The cans only were 

 brought there for washing. It was learned that a carpenter 

 employed on the premises had recently recovered from an at- 

 tack of typhoid fever. It is quite possible, too, that the boy 

 who had been delivering milk may have been disseminating 

 infection previous to taking to bed. The dairyman was re- 

 quired to have the can-washing done elsewhere, after which 

 no further trouble was traceable to the dairy. 



Fig. 9. Conditions surroinidins: a case of typhoid fever. 



The milk sold by this dealer was only a fraction of the out- 

 put of a large dairy, the product of which was mostly sold in 

 another city, and it was not practicable to trace it there. A 

 visit to the dairy and inquiry among physicians near there 

 revealed no trouble. 



Diphtheria. Recorded milk-borne epidemics of this disease 

 are less common than in the case of typhoid fever. Trask 

 (32) has collected important data concerning 51 milk-borne 

 epidemics. 



The fact that the common seat of the disease is readily 

 accessible for bacteriological examination, has resulted in the 

 accumulation of exact information regarding the dangers of 

 infection. 



The clinical case of diphtheria, with a well-defined membrane, 

 disseminates infection through any means that permit the trans- 

 fer of saliva. Danger of infection is not confined however to 



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