362 DISEASES OF OATT1E. 



fecting 5,200 cubic feet of air space. The fumes of chlorine are 

 strongly irritating to the respiratory tract, and therefore all live stock 

 should be removed before the work is started. 



(3) Crude carbolic acid. The ordinary purified carbolic acid is too 

 expensive to be used on a large scale, and- the crude product is a very 

 good substitute. This is made more powerful by mixing with it an 

 equal volume of commercial sulphuric acid. While the sulphuric acid 

 is being added to the crude carbolic acid much heat is evolved, and if 

 the glass jar in which the two are mixed together is placed in cold 

 water, the resulting product is said to have a higher disinfecting power. 

 The mixture is added to enough water to make a 5 per cent solution 

 (about 7 ounces to 4 quarts of water). This is strong enough for all 

 purposes. It may be kept in wood or glass, but not in metal, owing to 

 the corroding action of the acid. It should be used freely on wood- 

 work and on infected floors, and a force pump of the kind used by 

 orchardists will be found very convenient as a means of applying this 

 disinfectant. If the solution is warm when applied, it will penetrate 

 the woodwork better than when it is cold, especially if the spraying 

 is done during cold weather. The addition of air-slaked lime in any 

 quantity that will dissolve in water to the above solution (say Im- 

 pounds of lime to 7 ounces of crude carbolic acid to each gallon of 

 water) is preferred by many, as it makes any neglected places at once 

 visible and leaves a cleauer and purer atmosphere within the build- 

 ings. In most cases where its application becomes desirable — and 

 this rule should apply to all disinfections — the disinfected stables, 

 stalls, etc., should remain vacant as long as possible before cattle are 

 again stabled therein. 



(4) Mercuric chlorid, or corrosive sublimate, is a powerful disin- 

 fectant, but it is likewise very poisonous ; hence its uses are limited. 

 Cattle are especially susceptible to the action of mercuric chlorid 

 and caution must be used in its application. A solution of one-tenth 

 of 1 per cent is usually sufficient (1 ounce to 8 gallons water). Mer- 

 curic chlorid should not be placed in wooden pails, as we have the 

 1 annate of mercury formed, which is a weak antiseptic; nor should 

 expensive metal pails be used, owing to its corrosive action. Agate 

 vessels or tin pails are to be preferred. All solutions should be 

 labeled "poison," and to avoid accidents none should be kept on 

 hand. 



(5) Formalin and formaldehyde gas have been found very effica- 

 cious as sanitary agents. Formalin is the commercial name for the 

 40 per cent solution of formaldehyde gas in water, and is one of the 

 most powerful antiseptics and disinfectants that we possess. Solu- 

 tions of this strength are manufactured by different commercial 

 houses, and sold by the drug trade under the name of "formalose" 

 and "formal." In this connection it should be mentioned that 

 while the 40 per cent solution of formaldehyde gas and formalin are 



