Page:Science vol. 5.djvu/191

 PBDARr -21. 1885.1

��SCIENCfE.

��Ibe depftrtiDenl employing iinqnalifled men in tliii

An eivninktion wns made to ascertain whether U>a luy u»ed in Kanaas, Missouri, anj llllnola, con- E^ned ergot, and it was fouud lliat several grasses were bad 1; infected wttli it; and a plate is given show- ing infected splbes of ivlld rye, tiiuotby, red-li:ip, and blue grass. It Is atnled that Ilie proportion ot ergot In some spikes of wild rye was ten or twelve per cent of the weight. A chapter is devoteil to the nature, chemical composition, and action of ergot. In this chapter is an account of the ex^ot fungus (Claviceps porpurca), taken from botanical sources, and a plate U gWen showing the microscopical characters of the fungiu. By some oversight, this plate, which is cop- ied front Tulasne, is said to have been drawn from nature by Uonc.

The ten pages devoted to ' invesliRatione of swine- plague' are largely made upof a review of the work of Klein and Paateur upon the same subject, with an insistence upon Dr. Salmon's claim to priority in the discovery of the organism said to he the cause of the illsease, A few additional experiments are given tending to »how that the speclQc cause lies in the action of a micrococcus arranged in pairs; and the sluement is made that 'a large number of similar obtervHtlous have been made,' but they arc not de- tailed.

The main objection to bo made lo the experiments is to the use of Jiuuj-culture media, which may be depended upon to give results, to he sure, but not •Iways tucli as are satisfactory. Solid nutritive materials are by far the easiest in which to detect impurities; and by their use the study of the life-his- tory of any particular bacterium may be carried out wiii much greater precision. We are aware that Dr. Salmon objects to the use of solid media, hut, so far as we have seen, be has not slated the grounds of his

it is impossible to criticise fairly a summary of results without complete knowledge of the experi- ments by which they were reached. It Is stated Ifaat " the first annual report of the Bureau of ani- mal industry, which will contain a detailed state- ment of the investigations made, . . . will be Eiib- mitted ... at Ihe close of the year." We await its publication with interest. In the hope of obtaining tbat detailed statement free from criticism upon others. A direct and simple statement of work done «nd observations actually made is the method of real progress in the study of the bacteria. One's critics ma/ bo traited to discover the merits or faults that tnajr exist In comparison with the works of others,

A good translation by Ht. Theobald Smith, of Hf^nia's TL^eent article on the gape-disease in fowls, and lis accompanying parasite, wlilch follows, will be of very general interest, and can be read with great profit by those inieresled in the general subject In alt portions of the country.

A long report of the doings of an iotemationat veierioary congress, held at Brutscls during Sep- tember. I8S3, by Prof- J. Law, seems rather out of place in Ibe volume, because, of all the subjects con-

��sidered, only one, ' The organization of a veterfnarr service,' could properly be brought to the uiitlce of the commissioner of agriculture. It Is Interesting and instructive as showing how far ahead of us the nations of Europe are, in giving attention to the pro- tection of their animals from disease, and what great resources they have In tbelr state veterinary schools, from which to draw proper material for their stale veterinary service.

Mr. J. H. Saunders's report of his trip to Europe U chiefly valuable and interesting in connection with information which he was able lo gather in France regarding the Percheron horse; and his remarks slionld Ije read by those who contemplate makltig importations of these animals, or of any other breed of French horses. Mr. Saunders went to London, and travelled over the same ground in the veterinary prlvy-conncil office that had been gone over by agents of the agricultural department before, and with the same results; viz., our beef animals would be admit- ted free from the 'slaughtering restrictions' when we could show a clean bill of health, and not before. Also ' foot and mouth disease,' as landed In our cat- tle there, was contracted on board ship during the voyage, the ship having received the infection from British cattle.

Dr. H. J. Detmers gives a very unsatisfactory re- port of invesligallons made by him in Texas, of southern cnttle-Iever. One of his assertions, not in the least proven, however, is, well — new, to say the least; viz., that the virus of this disease is in the saliva of the southern animal. Such assertions, un- less made for good and well-shown reasons, are to be deplored as tending rather to hide, than make clear, the very points for the elucidatiou of which the whole work was ordered done.

A very able paper upon irichiniasis, by Dr. Sal- mon, is reprinted from the report of a special com- mission upon ihesnineUidustijof the United States, and added to the volume, which closes with the usual reports from the unprofessional correspondents of the department conceniing the genera] health of all kinds of farm animals throughout the country.

��THE COAL QUESTION IN ENGLAND.

Thb very serious problem of coal-supply has re- ceived a thorough review In a recent number of Nature. In 1801 the question was considered by Hr. Hull, who estimated that the available coal In Great Britain represented a total amount of 7», 843,000,000 tons, which, consumed at the annual rate of 100,000,- 00(1 tons, would last aljout eight centuries. This es- timate was later proved lo be too high; and in 1871 a commission, appointed to invesUgate the question, reported that in England there wore about 90,207,000,- 000 tons of coal developed, and about 06,273,000,000 yet unopened, making a total of 140.480,000,000 tons of available coal. Subsequent Investigation proved tliis to be somewhat exaggerated. In thwe estimates thin seams leas than a foot thick are not included.

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