The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1889-08-09
me Hog cnorer:, Germ.


Dr. i. o. Shakespeare, of Philadelphia.
Chairman; Professor Meade Bolton, Of the
University Of South Carolina, and Profess
sor I. j. Burrill, of the University Of Hi
nois, constituting the commission appoint
ed by the United States Government last
December to Investigate hog cholera, have
just completed their report. The commits
sion was appointed in view of the demand
of DIR. Billings, of Nebraska, where the
yearly loss by the plague is 5000, 600
DIR. Billings claimed he had arrived at CON
illusions antagonistic to the discoveries of
the Bureau of Animal Industry and his de-
mand for an independent commission to
investigate, was backed by a great many
Western swine trades associations and con
gressmen.
The committee went to Columbia,
South Carolina, in January, 1889, then to
Lincoln, Nebraska, visiting DR.. Billings
and to various points in the West; TO Lex
ington, Ky, and finally had a number Of
hogs brought to Philadelphia to the Eeter-
mary Department of the University for ex-
periments and study with incubation. Dr.
Shakespeare conducted the experiments
here, and while the members of the COM
mission were working independently, in
April they got notice from the Secretary of
Agriculture informing them that the ap-
preparation for such investigations has
been exhausted. Even after that they
continued to work at their own expense,
and their report, while it doesn't cover all
the work laid out for them by the Govern
ment, deals with DR.. Billings and viii be Of
great interest to swine raisers.
A synopsis of it is that, as claimed by
the authorities of the Bureau Of Animal
Industry at Washington, there were at
least two epidemic diseases causing de-
struction of hogs in this country, and that
these two diseases, named by the bureau
hog cholera and swine plague, while they
so nearly resemble each other in symptoms
and anatomical LESSONS, that they are ex-
tremely difficult to distinguish from each
other by ordinary means practicea by the
veterinary surgeon, yet they can be SO
distinguished by resort to the microscope
and psychological examination. 1t is
shown that each disease is caused By q dis
tinct specific germ, having character and
modes of growth in artificial culture.
which enable them to be readily dissin-
gnished, thus confirming III these partie-
ulars the claims of the Bureau Of Animal
Industry set forth in tile recent annual re-
ports of tie Department Of Agriculture
The commission is also OF the opinion
that DR.. Billings, of Nebraska, has been
studying the disease called by him Swine
plague" but designated By the Bureau of
Authorities as hog cholera, y and further
more that DR.. Billings has found and ex-
perimented with as the cause OF this dis
ease the same germ found by the bureau
as the cause of their socalled sshog clel-
era and named by them the hog cholera
germ.
The commission is further Of the opinion
that methods of research pursued by DR..
Billings are not such as to have enabled
him TO discover the germ Of the disease
called by the Washington authorities
Swine plague and that therefore the
failure of DR.. Billings to recognize this sec
ond disease among the diseased hogs in
Nebraska can not be accepted as evidence
that the disease does not there exit. The
commission is also Of the opinion that Dir.
Billings has been experimenting in the
right direction towards the prevention OF
hog cholera by protective incubation, but
they regard the practice of incubation as
protection against hog cholera by use of
living germs of the disease as surrounded
By many serious objections. They have
found, however that in the artificial cul-
ture CT the hog cholera germ there is q spe-
cihc chemical substance produced which
seems to be capable of causing the same
degree of protection or immunity from the
disease as the living microbes possess, and
they think that there is reason to believe
that subsequent investigators will establish
the fact that prevention of the enormous
losses to the swine-breeders of the country
from hog cholera may be secured by the
use of this chemical product above mem
toned, injected into the hogs By means OF
the hypodermic syringe. They earnestly
advise that thorough and exhaustive ex-
periments in this direction be prosecuted.