Annual  Report  for  1909  of  Royal  Veterinary  College.  329 
even  less.  The  precise  period  at  which  the  blood  invasion 
begins  may  vary,  and  the  time  elapsing  between  the  onset  of 
the  invasion  and  death  may  also  vary,  but  it  is  quite  certain 
that  no  animal  maintains  a normal  temperature  after  the  bacilli 
have  begun  to  multiply  in  the  blood.  It  therefore  appears  to 
be  safe  to  conclude  that  there  is  no  reason  to  anticipate  any 
danger  from  the  milk  of  an  anthrax-infected  cow  unless  the 
disease  has  proceeded  so  far  as  to  cause  visible  illness  or  a 
distinct  rise  of  temperature. 
It  has  sometimes  been  suggested  that,  although  the  bacilli 
may  in  many  cases  have  gained  access  to  the  udder  just  before 
an  attack  of  anthrax  proves  fatal,  the  fact  involves  hardly  any 
danger  to  milk  consumers,  because  the  secretion  of  milk  is 
practically  suppressed  at  this  stage  of  the  illness.  It  is,  how- 
ever, impossible  to  assent  to  that  view,  for  it  is  quite  conceiv- 
able that  the  bacilli  might  escape  into  the  udder  and  mingle 
with  the  milk  accumulated  in  the  milk  cistern  since  the 
previous  milking.  Otherwise  stated,  the  infection  of  the  milk 
might  occur  when  the  udder  is  already  full  of  milk. 
The  foregoing  considerations  suggest  the  precautions  that 
ought  to  be  taken  in  connection  with  the  milk  when  an  out- 
break of  anthrax  occurs  among  cows.  It  is  only  necessary  to 
see  that  for  a week  or  ten  days  after  the  last  preceding  case  the 
temperatures  of  all  the  cows  are  taken  before  each  milking,  and 
to  withhold  the  milk  of  every  cow  that  has  a temperature  above 
normal  or  which  presents  any  other  symptom  of  anthrax  infec- 
tion. To  prohibit  the  sale  of  milk  from  all  the  cows  on  the 
infected  premises  is  to  do  more  than  is  necessary  in  the  inter- 
ests of  public  health.  Moreover,  the  shutting  up  of  an  entire 
dairy  because  one  or  more  of  the  cows  have  died  from  anthrax 
is  not  sanctioned  by  the  Anthrax  Order,  which  contains  only 
one  provision  with  regard  to  milk,  viz.,  that  which  forbids  the 
removal  of  the  milk  of  any  diseased  cow  from  the  place  in 
which  the  cow  is  or  has  been  kept. 
Glanders. 
The  following  Table  shows  the  number  of  outbreaks  and 
individual  cases  of  this  disease  during  the  past  six  years : — 
Year 
Outbreaks 
Animals  attacked 
1904 
1,629 
2,658 
1905 
1,214 
2,068 
1906 
1,066 
2,012 
1907  • 
854 
1,921 
1908 
789 
2,421 
1909 
.536 
1,761 
A fact  in  connection  with  the  above  figures  that  obviously 
stands  in  need  of  explanation  is  the  lack  of  concordance 
