PLEUBO-PNEtJMONlA EBYSIPELAT0DES. 
417 
PL EURO-PNEUMONIA ERYSIPELATODES. 
F. S. BILLINGS. 
Continued from Page 325. 
1. What is the nature of the contagium of this disease ? 
In a true sense, can we look upon this disease as an inoculable 
disease, i. e. does inoculation produce an artificial disease which 
renders the inoculated organisinus immured against natural 
infection, and is the course of the artificial disease milder, and 
does it cause less sacrifice cf animal life than the natural ? 
2. What circumstances exert an unfavorable influence upon the 
artificial disease, and are we enabled to offer any security against 
the action of the same ? 
3. Is the artificial-inoculated disease, if not in the localization, 
yet in nature, similar to the natural, i. e. does it render the 
organismus in question, immured against further infection from 
the natural contagion for a period of a variable termination ? 
4. Is inoculation to be recommended ? and when ? Does 
timely inoculation cut short the course of the disease? Does inoc¬ 
ulation exert any influence upon a disease already in progress of 
development, and what influence ? 
5. Does the artificial disease offer to us any pathognomonic 
clinical phenomena, which we may look upon with any degree of 
confidence, so that we can in a grave case, assure ourselves of the 
sufficient action of the inoculated contagium ? 
The contagium of pleuro-joneumonia erysijpelatodes is, in its 
nature, fully as unknown as that against other infectio-conta- 
gious diseases. We simplyknow that the same is bound, not only on 
the gaseous and fluid excrementa of such animals as are the 
subject of its ravages, but that when surrounding objects become 
polluted with the same, they may become vehicles to its further 
distribution. Neither chemical or microscopic investigation is 
capable, however, of demonstrating this fact, so that we can only 
assume its presence when we can, with a certain degree of safety, 
assume that the vehicle in question has been in contact with 
