LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. 



United States Department of Agriculture, 



Bureau of Chemistry, 

 Washington, B.C., March 15, 1912. 

 Sir: The question of the purity of the oyster supplies is one which 

 has engaged the attention of this bureau for many years, and exten- 

 sive investigations have been made of native oyster beds, sewage 

 disposal, and possible contamination of oysters with pathogenic 

 germs. These studies have been extended to many points along 

 the coast and in the coastal rivers, including the inlets of Providence 

 Bay, Long Island Sound, New York Bay, and Chesapeake Bay. 

 Most valuable information has been obtained relating to the areas 

 of infection and the results which have been produced by con- 

 sumption of oysters from infected areas. I beg to offer, therefore, 

 with a recommendation that it be published as Bulletin 156 of the 

 Bureau of Chemistry, the first of a series of reports on this question, 

 embodying the results of actual research in the section of Bacte- 

 riological Chemistry. The publication of these data will not only 

 be of interest to the consuming public, but will also be helpful to 

 the owners of the oyster beds and the aathorities controlling them 

 in securing a speedy betterment of conditions. 

 Respectfully, 



H. W. Wiley, 



Chief of Bureau. 

 Hon. James Vv^ilson, 



Secretary of Agriculture. 

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