SLAUGHTER-HOUSE INSPECTION. 
537 
along the lymphatic channels rather than to find dissemination 
through the general circulation. Out of several thousand cases 
only two were reported as generalized, and careful inquiry 
showed no involvement of the muscular structures but was con¬ 
fined to the head, neck, glandular structures of the cavities, and 
I question if these cases were not pyaemia coincident with 
actinomycosis. Actinomycosis of the tongue is very r^re. 
When the bony tissues, the parts invaded by the actino- 
myces, the characteristic proliferation of the osseous and perios- 
seous tissues attain dimensions which give it the popular name 
of “ big jaw.” The fungus destroys the bone and its covering, 
supplanting them with a new growth of fibrous tissues, enclos¬ 
ing masses of granular tissue, in which is imbedded small yel¬ 
lowish points of gritty, purulent fluid, the hard grains being 
clumps of the specific micro-organism of actinomycosis. When 
the overlying skin is involved, the surface presents one or more 
granuloma, which surrounds fistulous openings through which 
a purulent fluid escapes. If these growths have not interfered 
with the general health of the animal, sentiment is the most 
tangible reason for condemning the carcass. 
Tuberculosis is found in a small per cent, of the cattle 
slaughtered in the valley of the Missouri, being found princi¬ 
pally in cows over five years old, but is occasionally found in 
calves and young cattle. No structure of the body is entirely 
exempt from disease processes set up by the tubercle bacillus, 
but there is a much greater tendency for the germs to establish 
themselves in the lungs, thoracic glands, and mesenteric glands, 
and then spread to other contiguous organs or tissues, or becom- 
ing generally disseminated throughout the body. The bacilli, 
by their active presence in a tissue, induce a new growth about 
them which, if it be near or on the surface, projects or stands 
out like granules. These growths are called “ tubercles.” They 
are found scattered through the substance of glands and other 
structures, or on their surfaces. This form of development in 
the serous membranes constitutes what is known as “ pearl ” 
disease. Tubercles are often agglomerated into masses from the 
