Annual Report for 1891 of the Consulting Botanist. 847 
Ergot. 
Inquiries have been made as to the cause of abortions in 
cows, mares, and sheep, supposed to be due to ergot. The Rev. C. 
"VVolley Dod, of Edgehill, Malpas, Chesliire, writes, " The greatest 
losses in this neighbourhood generally take place when the cows are 
not turned out, from November to Februaiy. I used to suppose the 
iTgot was in the hay, and that particular parts of the stack, or par- 
ticular meadows, contained it in greater quantity. But observation 
has led me to conclude that there is hardly any ergot at the time 
the hay is cut. It appears here in August, and is most prevalent 
in September. I think nine-tenths of the ergot here grows on 
Loliiua i^erenne, which is not a prevalent grass in the hay meadows." 
It is important to notice that the cases of supposed injury from 
ergot took place in the winter when the stock were being fed in the 
liouse, and chiefly on hay. Mr. Dod's observation agrees with what 
is known of the life of the parasitic fungus. Hay should be cut, 
and as a rule is cut, when the principal grasses are in full flower, 
and when the ergot, if present, would be extremely I'are ; but no 
meadow has all its grasses in flower at the same time, so it is to be 
expected that the earlier grasses which are in fruit at the time of 
cutting may have been attacked by the ergot. If these grasses formed 
a considerable proportion of the hay, ergot on them might be the 
cause of abortion ; but this does not appear to be the case. 
The hay used for food for cows on a farm near Burnham-on- 
Crouch, Essex, was found to contain in a considerable parcel only 
oT^e fragment of ergot, showing the presence of the fungus in the 
hay, but in such small quantity that the abortion could not ])e 
attributed to this fungus. 
Near Tunbridge Wells, Kent, the cows on a certain farm are 
not liable to abortion, but on the same farm several brood mares 
during 1890 and 1891 slipped their young. My correspondent sup- 
poses that the freedom from attack among the coM'S is due to their 
being gi^■en old land hay, in which there is no rye grass. His mares 
were isolated from one another, and the boxes and stables thoroughly 
disinfected, so that it was very improbable that the abortion was due 
to infection or contagion. It was supposed to be due to ergot in the 
hay, but that this was not the case v/as proved by a careful exami- 
nation of portions both of the rye grass and clover hay, and of the 
meadow hay, which showed that they contained no ergot. IMoreover, 
a parcel of the seeds and fragments that had fallen from the rye grass 
in the hayloft was also free from ergot. 
Some sheep at Adisham, near Dover, slipped their lambs in 
March this year. A sample of the hay which formed part of their 
food was examined, and it was found to be free from ergot and 
from any injurious weeds. 
The examination of the grasses in fruit in pastures during 
autumn shows often a large amount of ergot. This is especially the 
case in wet seasons, and in all seasons the ergot is more likely to be 
found on the water grasses, or on those growing in low damp ground. 
