The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1907-02-08
SPREAD Of TUBERCULOSIS
STATE VETERINARIAN 'KiM SAYS
IT'S SURPRISING.
NEED OF LOCAL INSPECTION
Il Has Been Proven That tuberculosis
Entering Human Stomach In MIX,
Can Get to Lunes-More Danger In
Milk Than In the Air.

News | read an article from the pen
of a Norfolk physician on "How Dis
eases Spread" which he wrote In re-
ply to an interview your reporter must
have had with some state senator. AS
far as the argument Of the senator Is
it's immaterial whether con-
Stunning meat or milk Of tubercular ami
mails produces tuberculosis of the all
mentary tract or of the lungs, the re-
suit to the human being is the same,
sooner or later death. 1t Is probable
the senator may not be aware that
tuberculosis can exist elsewhere than
in the lungs, where 1t is called con-
In veterinary medicine we
do not make use of the term consump
ton.
However, I believe It has been prov
en- quite satisfactorily that the germs
of tuberculosis can find their way
from the alimentary tract, IL intro
duced there through the food, and then
carried by the blood stream or lynn
phatic system and finally find lodge
ment in various organs of the body,
lungs included.
True nature does provide against
the spread Of these germs in the blood"
as 1t does against all germs, and as 1t
does also when they gain entrance into
the lungs, and in the greatest majority
of cases nature wins out, but where
the germ gains entrance in an indi-
vidual who by predisposition or weak
ened in some way, as by cold or re-
cent illness nature is not strong enough
to surround and kill the germ 1t takes
hold and multiplies. II meat was in
all cases thoroughly cooked clear
through the germs would be killed, but
such is not always the case, nor is
milk rarely If ever boiled mot
warmed) before drinking.
I enclose clipping from the New
York Times which please publish with
this. I think 1t corroborates both the
senator's and the contention OF the
qualified veterinarians that it's time
we were paying more attention to the
along with our ordinances against spit
ting in public places, etc. Like Cali
fornia, Kansas is endeavoring to OBJ
tain local inspection of meat and milk
supplies, and I am glad to find some
cities and even towns of Nebraska re-
quire the same l say speed the time
when the state will compel it every
where.
Disease is Spreading.
tuberculosis in swine in Nebraska
is alarmingly on the increase Why?
That's question our state experiment
station and our state veterinary medic
al association have determined to solve
If possible. Is it due to more feeding
Of separator milk, since all farmers
now do their own separating?
Is it due to swine following tubercu-
lar herds Of cattle?
We have proven hogs fed on car
casses of cattle dead from tuberculosis
develop the disease not alone in the
alimentary tract and Emphatic system,
but also in the lungs.
Chas. A. McKim, M. D. c.
Washington, ID. c., Jan. "a report
en- the relation Of tuberculosis LESSONS
to the mode OF infection, submitted to
the secretary OF agriculture by Or. e.
c. Schroeder and w. e. Cotton OF the
bureau Of animal industry, contains in
formation resulting from extensive ex.
perimentation which goes long way
toward upsetting the popular notion
that pulmonary tuberculosis, or con-
sumption, only follows the direct inha-
lat Nf x,,h hoo nl ID "a
sputum directly into the lungs.
tuberculosis was produced In the
lungs Of a calf and three hogs, in the
course Of these experiments, by inocu-
lation near the end Of the tail This
Indicates. in the view of the experts,
that the lungs may readily become the
seat OF tuberculous disease, no matter
through what channels the bacilli gain
entrance to the body, and that the To-
cation of LESSONS In the lungs can no
longer be considered as reliable evi.
dence that the infection entered by
means Of the respiration.
Too much Importance has been at
tached to the agency Of dried sputum
in the study of tuberculous infection,
the investigators say, and too little to
the more serious danger from fresh or
moist tuberculous material, which en-
ters the human food in many ways,
one Of the commonest Of which is at
tributable to the tuberculous dairy
COW. Evidence has been presented to
support the contention that the lungs
OF these cows are more directly ex-
posed to the infection through the
lymph channels and blood current than
in any other way.
In the experiments with cattle and
hogs simultaneous injections Of viru-
lent tubercle bacilli were made as near
the ends of the tails Of the animals as
possible, because this point was the
furthest removed available portion of
the body from the lung, and the loca-
ton from which the infection of the
latter seemed least likely to occur.
Twenty.three days after a healthy
calf had been inoculated with the vir-
ulent preparation the animal died.
Post-mortem examination showed that
the lungs were badly infected, while
the other organs apparently were in