288 
F. S. BILLINGS. 
nor in the interstitial tissues surrounding it, nor in the polygonal and 
cylindrical gland cells, which justifies us to consider these tissues as the 
place of suppurative origin. 
Up to the present time there has not been, as far as I know, any 
histological examinations of the mamma of the cow* during inflamma¬ 
tion, and the condition of mastitis of the human subject are very little 
understood, as is proved by the following words of Rindfleisch :f “ The 
histology of mastitis is as good as unknown. We must content our¬ 
selves with the conceptions we have won from inflammatory processes 
on similarly constructed glands, such as the salivaries to the mammary 
gland, and thereby explain the various phenomena of mastitis. 
Fiirstenberg, Ackermann J and others have only described inflam¬ 
mation of the cow’s mamma (mamitis) microscopically. Ackermann’s 
opinion was that cows suffering from perlsucht was of a tuberculose 
nature. It is little understood that catarrh of the lacteal ducts and 
interstitial mastitis have nothing in common with perlsucht, and that 
the same does not happen to cows affected with perlsucht only as an 
accessory complication. The mammary gland of the cow (particularly 
during the period of lactation) is far more subject to inflammation 
than other organs, the latter, therefore, occurs extraordinarily frequent 
by animals free from perlsucht. We can find, therefore, no cogent rea¬ 
son to assign to such processes a tuberculose character. With this 
observation we do not dispute that a mammary gland affected with 
catarrh forms a fruitful ground for the development of disease in other 
organs from metastatis; we have already mentioned that we found in 
our first case lymphosarcomatose nodules in the inflamed mammary 
gland. 
* We (as veterinary surgeons), ought to examine our cases histologically, and so be inaposi 
tion to enlighten the sister profession by our investigations. 
+ Rindfleisch. Lehrbuch der pathologischen Gewebelehre, 1875, p. 478. 
i Ackermann. Jahresbericht f. Jahr, 1875, p. 643. 
