Anthrax. 235 



glands hyperaemic ; serosse congested, petechiated, hemorrhagic ; lesions 

 embolic and like the blood swarm with bacilli. Toxins, ptomaines. Incu- 

 bation I to 6 days. Symptoms : internal cases : hyperthermia, constitu- 

 tional disorder, mucosae dusky, brownish, yellowish, bleeds, bloody urine, 

 rectal mucosa congested, blackish, colics, pharyngeal anthrax.blood difflu- 

 ent, black, broken down red globules, bacilli, abortions, death in 12 to 48 

 hours ; fulminant cases in cattle and sheep. Local (external) anthrax, 

 cutaneous, swellings ; gloss-anthrax ; pharyngeal, hsemorrhoidal ; sheep 

 and goats; horse; swine; dogs ; cats; birds. Differential diagnosis: deductions 

 from symptoms, conditions of blood, animals attacked, environment or con- 

 ditions of life, presence of the bacillus. Examination for bacillus. Post 

 mortem lesions ; gelatinoid, bloody exudate, petechise, blood-gorged spleen, 

 lymph glands, and liver, diffluent blood, bacilli in capillaries. Inoculation 

 intravenously. Cultures. Prognosis. Mortality often 70 per cent. 



Definition. Anthrax is an acute infectious bacteridian disease 

 occurring casually in tlie herbivora and omnivora and, under favor- 

 able conditions, communicable to carnivora, birds and batrachians. 

 Its special features are the presence of the bacillus anthracis in the 

 diseased parts, the destruction of red globules, the arrest of 

 haematosis, the occurrence of capillary embolism, extravasations 

 and exudations, and of necrotic processes in the affected parts, 

 and a sanguineous engorgement of the spleen. 



Synonyms. Malignant pustule ; Splenic apoplexy ; Splenic 

 Fever ; Charbon ; Miltzbrand ; Woolsorter's Disease ; Malignant 

 Carbuncle ; Contagious Carbuncle. 



History and Geographical Distribution. As anthrax prevails 

 in damp, undrained lands where agriculture is backward, it is 

 not wonderful that it can be traced to near the dawn of human 

 history when the whole race lived under primitive conditions. 

 Moses records its ravages on the bottom lauds of the Nile (Ex. 

 ix. 9), Homer, on the plains of Troy (Iliad, Bk. ist), Ovid, 

 Plutarch, Dionysius, Livy, Lucretia, Columella, Virgil, Pliny 

 and the Arabian physicians all show a familiarity with a disease 

 of this nature. I^ater, Heusinger collects evidence of its preva- 

 lence in certain areas in all parts of the world from the equator 

 to the Arctic circle. The mortality was often very high, thus 

 Kirchner records the death of 60,000 people in a single epidemic 

 in 1617, in the vicinity of Naples, Placide- Justin, that of 15,000 

 in St. Domingo in six weeks in 1770, and on the Russian and 

 Siberian Steppes it is not uncommon for hundreds of thousands 



