The Columbus journal., 1896-06-10

E0vl CAssssa.
About the year 1850 the United States
government undertook the investiga-
ton Of fowl cholera. In the report Of
tho commissioners Of agriculture. d. e.
Salmon. for that year is given . par
tial report Of the result Of tie expert
ments. A part Of this is a. follows:
1T has long been evident that an ex-
ceedingly fatal contagious disease Of
fowls has become distributed over the
whole country. and that It causes en0r-
nous annual losses. This disease II
popularity known AZ chicken cholera.
A similar, II not identical. malady
causes extensive losses among the p0ul-
try of Europe. In France this is also
called cholera cholera des poules).
Some investigations Of its nature were
made some years ago by n. Reynal, and
quite recently 1t has been carefully
studied by NM. Toussaint and Pasteur.
AS long ago as December, 1879. COM
menced investigation Of the epizootic
diseases from which fowls were dying.
At first was unfortunate in fixing my
attention on enzootic diseases evident
ly due to local causes. OF three separate
outbreaks thus Investigated not one
proved to be the result Of inoculable
diseases, and 1t was not till July, 1880.
that | succeeded in obtaining virus Of
what Is undoubtedly the true chicken
cholera, by which 30 many fowls are
swept away. This disease existed at
the house Of Mr.. r. NJ. Miller. who in
formed me that he had lost on his farm
nearly five hundred chickens from It.
during the year. At the time Of my
visit his Plymouth Rocks. which he
kept at his house in the city, were suf-
fering. at once inoculated two spring
chickens with excrement from living
sick birds. and with blood, bile and
pieces Of liver from the dead ones.
After five days they we're still perfect
ly well. The French investigators hav-
ing determined that death occurs with
in three or four days after incubation.
and most frequently within twenty-four
hours, had nearly concluded that our
chicken cholera was not an inoculable
disease. but in order to be absolutely
certain l requested Mr.. Miller to allow
me to bring q hen in the first stages
Of the diseases to my own farm, more
than one hundred miles away. and on
which no contagious disease had ever
existed. This he consented to do, and 1t
was with virus obtained from this bird
that my experiments were made. The
disease proved to be inoculable. and the
period of incubation SO much longer
than with infection as It exists in
France as to explain why the chickens
inoculated at Charlotte did not sicken.
I have not learned If they contracted
the disease later. as l was unable to
bring them with me"
Here follows the relation in detail
OF the various experiments in which
about ninety-five fowls were inoculated.
He found that the disease required a
much longer time for incubation than
in Europe. varying from six days to two
weeks. 1t was also found that germs
were not carried by air, but that the
usual way in which farm fowls are in
Oculated is by means of the excrcment
and food. The hens that recovered from
the disease seemed to be proof against
subsequent attacks. He also finds that
some birds will not take the disease
at all. and from his experiments draws
the conclusions that il one hundred
birds are in0culated seventy-five would
die, seven would take the disease and
recover and eighteen would resist the
disease altogether. This ratio is not
fixed, since some of the groups Of fowls
showed greater number of susceptible
birds than other groups, and this diff
ference was evidently due to the man
ner in which they had been previously
handled by their owners. What these
differences were is not known. In cold
weather the fowls are more susceptible
to the disease than at other times. We
again quote the commissioner:
1T is demonstrated by these expert
ments that we have in the United States
a contagious and inoculable disease of
fowls, popularity known as chicken chol-
era; that this disease is characterized
by a yellow or even greenish colora-
ton of that part of the excrement that
is separated from the blood by the kid
neys: by elevation of temperature, en-
largement and softening of the liver,
congestion or Inflammation of the intes-
tines and mesentary; by diarrhea,
sleepiness, dropping, and early death.
The germs of this disease are probably
spread through the excrement, and are
taken into the body through the food
and drink, and seldom il ever by the
inspired air. Unclean habitations con-
vey the disease nine days at least after
the last case Of sickness. Sometimes
the bird dies within twenty-four hours
after the first yellow coloratiOn of the
urates and when but one or two liquid
objections have occurred. In other
cases life is prolonged three, four or
five days. and occasionally for even two
weeks. The crop is generally distended
with food and loses the ability to force
this onward to be digested. In most
cases the birds are very thirsty
throughout the whole duration of the
disease. Sometimes. however, the
thirst is not more than normal, and in
few cases the birds scarcely drink at
all.-Farmers' Review.
Trees and Soils.-There seems to be
a sure index to the character of the
soil in the manner of the growth of
trees. 1t will be noticed that on hard
clay soil the trees are Of slow growth
irregular. and extremely uneven In
branches. Each years growth is very
small. Frequently even the leaves are
dwarfed. Yet in time trees on such
soil attain an immense development.
We instance scrub oak. The develon.