DISINFECTION 405 



factory, has to be employed for their disinfection. As a 

 matter of fact it is found from experience that these articles 

 are most difficult of disinfection at any temperature short 

 of damaging them, for heat penetrates textile fabrics very 

 imperfectly. 



In veterinary hygiene we can employ heat, but ovens are 

 unnecessary. Walls can be burned or clothing boiled, and 

 this is the only disinfection by heat which we shall 

 consider. 



Nothing can approach fire as a thorough disinfectant, 

 and in dealing with an outbreak of infectious disease the 

 destruction of the bedding and contents of manure heap by 

 setting fire to them, is one of the earliest things done. 

 While this is in progress all metal work used in the stable, 

 buckets, pitchforks, shovels, etc., may be passed through 

 the flames. 



Fire can with care be generated in the stable, a certain 

 amount of the bedding being strewn on the floor and set 

 fire to. This can be done a stall or two at a time, excepting 

 in those cases where wooden stall partitions exist. In 

 industrial and army stables where the fittings are iron, no 

 danger whatever need be apprehended from this measure, 

 if conducted with very ordinary care. 



Fire can be applied to all iron work and brick walls, 

 either by means of a plumber's or painter's lamp, or, if gas 

 exists in the stable by using it through a singeing machine. 

 If the flame be passed over every portion of the iron work, 

 brick, and plaster of the stable, absolute safety is ensured. 



Even with woodwork it could be done with the best 

 results, and practically no risk, for no charring is required, 

 and in the case of paint work it simply blisters the surface, 

 which can be easily restored ; in fact, it is the method the 

 painter himself uses in order to take the paint off. 



With care, then, practically very little in a stable need 

 escape the action of heat, and no elaborate apparatus is 

 required. 



Heat may be applied in the form of boiling water, but 

 this is less reliable as the temperature of the water soon 



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