INFECTION BY MILK lUl 



Indigestion of cows very often leads to a lessening of 

 milk secretion and, at the same time, to a change in its 

 taste and composition. The milk may have a bitter or 

 salty taste and ajipear to be thinner, is sometimes yel- 

 lowish in color and coagulates very easily. When such 

 cliiinges aix' present, or when there is simply a disturb- 

 ance of digestion, the milk should not be mixed with 

 other milk designed foi- sale. The question here is not, 

 lidwevei', one of the contaminating micro-organisms, nor 

 does it relate strictly to the jtassage of a di-easc from 

 cattle to man. 



j. " Calf cholera." It is well known that under this 

 common term are grouped infections of the intestines 

 (usually caused ))y colon bacilli, less often l)y proteus 

 forms) and umbilical infection, with or without local 

 inflammation, (arthritis, ])ya'inic processes, ])aclcri;r- 

 mia) ; the latter infection is souietimes caused by colon 

 forms, sometimes by staphylococci and streptococci and, 

 rarely, b>' iieci-osis bacilli or other bacteria. 



^\n cii<leinic outbreak of these infectiinis discas(>s 

 signifies a great propagation of the causative bacteria 

 in the cow stable and, therefori', it is most probabU' that 

 tlie milk becomes infected while being drawn. There are 

 no i)ositive eases that prove that milk from a farm where 

 calf cholera is prevalent, has caused disease of children 

 or adults, but as no special attention has been given to 

 this matter, it is quite natural that such cases as may 

 occur are not fully understood. Milk from such a herd 

 should lie regarded as suspicious and its sale as " nurs- 

 ery milk " should not be allowed until conditions on the 

 farm ha\e lieen improved. 



A'. Septic metritis. In septic inflammation of the 

 uterus, which is s])ecially prevalent in herds where cows 

 in calf are purchased from dealers, great quantities of 

 ichorous exudate are secreted and expelled from the 



