TUMORS IN FOWLS 273 
the intestinal canal. Black patches were present on the gizzard and 
heart. After removing the flesh from the bones, the periosteum was 
observed to be wholly black as were also the cartilages of the joint 
surfaces. After scraping the periosteum the bone was seen to be 
black in places. 
A specimen exhibiting generalized melanosis in a fowl is included 
in the pathological collection of the New York State Veterinary 
College at Cornell University. 
MYXO-SARCOMA 
Tyzzer and Ordway describe a myxo-sarcoma of the thigh of a 
hen in part as follows. The tumor was situated on the outer aspect 
of the thigh of an adult hen, and appeared as a turban-shaped mass 
with a depressed central area and an elevated rounded edge. It 
measured 5 cm. across and 2 cm. in thickness. On section it was 
found to consist chiefly of a translucent, soft tissue almost gelatinous 
in consistence. The tumor is found to be composed of lobules of 
tissue which consist of cells widely separated from one another by a 
relatively large amount of intercellular material. The lobules are 
to a large extent limited by connective tissue which in places forms 
a definite capsule. In certain places, however, the tumor is without 
capsule of any sort and appears to be infiltrating the subcutaneous 
fat. The central portions of many of the lobules are necrotic, and 
the cells in the surrounding tissue are somewhat degenerated. The 
connective tissue around the lobules is loose and vascular in places, 
and, since there is in such places a marked infiltration with leu- 
cocytes, it resembles closely granulation tissue. In it are found 
large numbers of lymphoid and plasma cells, and large phagocytic 
cells. 
The cells of this tumor present the characteristics of connective 
tissue cells, and are associated with intercellular material consisting 
in part of a fibrillar reticulum, in part of a homogeneous substance 
which reacts to staining reagents like mucin. The fibrillar material 
is probably closely related to collagin, although it is stained some- 
what atypically with alum hematoxylin. The tumor is malignant 
in that it is rapidly growing, and in that it infiltrates normal tissues 
such as fat and nerves. Although blood vessels of considerable size 
are found within many of the lobules, the tumor tissue is not every- 
where well vascularized, and is prone to necrosis. No metastases 
were found. 
