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POINTS OF INTEREST IN REPORTING MILK EPIDEMICS. 
In reporting milk epidemics some of the points of special interest 
are the following: 
1. The number of cases of the disease existing in the involved ter- 
ritory during the time covered by the epidemic. 
2. The number of houses invaded by the disease. 
3. The number of invaded houses supplied in whole or in part, 
directly or indirectly, by the suspected milk. 
4. The number of cases occurring in invaded houses so supplied. 
5. The number of houses supplied with the suspected mi lk. 
6. The relative proportion of houses so supplied to those supplied 
by other dairies. 
7. The time covered by the epidemic. 
8. The location of the case or cases from which the milk became 
contaminated. 
9. The relation of the original case to the milk. 
10. The time relation of the original case to the epidemic. 
11. The special incidence of the disease among milk drinkers. 
12. The elimination of other common carriers of infection. 
13. The effect upon the epidemic of closing the dairy or taking 
such measures as will eliminate possibility of milk contamination 
from the suspected focus. 
14. The finding of the specific organism in the milk. 
BUSEY AND ROBERTS SUMMARY OF EPIDEMICS. 
Busey and Kober summarized the epidemics compiled by them as 
follows : 
TYPHOID-FEVER EPIDEMICS. 
Mr. E. Hart tabulated 50 epidemics of typhoid fever and we have collected 
88, making a total of 138 epidemics traceable to a specific pollution of the 
milk, the main facts of which are presented in a subjoined table. In 109 in- 
stances there is evidence of the disease having prevailed at the farm or dairy. 
In 54 epidemics the poison reached the milk by soakage of the germs into the 
well water with which the utensils were washed and in 13 of these instances 
(Xos. 5, 24, 39, 45, 70, 89, 90, 98, 99, 103, 111, 116, 124), the intentional dilution 
with polluted water is admitted. In 6 instances (Xos. 10, 74, 104, 107, 112, 
121) the infection is attributed to the cows drinking or wading in sewage-pol- 
luted water. In Three instances (Xos. 118, 123, 131) the infection was spread 
in ice cream prepared in infected premises. In 21 instances the dairy em- 
ployees also acted as nurses (Xos. 1, 6, 12, 16, 17, 24, 30, 37, 38, 41, 46, 52, 
65, 68, 82, 110, 111, 115, 126, 127, 133). In 6 instances (Xos. 101, 102. 113, 
117, 132, 134) the patients while suffering from a mild attack of enteric fever, 
or during the first week or ten days of their illness continued at work, and those 
of us who are familiar with the personal habits of the average dairy boy will 
have no difficulty in surmising the manner of direct digital infection. In one 
instance (Xo. 24) the milk tins were washed with the same dishcloth used 
1414— Bull. 56—09 4 
