MaY. l88'- . THE WEST SHORE.
' FOWL CHOLERA.
The Department of Agriculture bat lately
iaeued an important circular concerning the
poultry disease known m cholera, which oon
Uim explicit information oonoerning the char,
aotor of the malady and it treatment. The
nggettioni may alto be of value in the handling
of some other poultry diseases which are liable
to ipread through the flocks by ooutagion. Dr.
D. E. Salmon, one of the U. 8. Commissioners
on animal diseases, la the author of the oiroular
from which we quote aa follows:
Although the cholera of fowli la an exceed
ingly virulent and fatal diaeaae, destroying vaat
number of birds' of different speeiee, and re
maining on preraiaee for yean after being onoe
introduoed, we are latiitied, after a long eeriee
of experiment, that there are pointa in ite nat
ural history whioh enable nt to oontrol it with
comparative ease and with a considerable degree
of oertainty. These pointa are:
1. The Virus is not Diffusible. That is, the
disease germs are seldom if ever taken up by
the air and otrried any oonaiderable distance to
roauoe me maiauy. The vims remains in the
led form, and ia senarallv. if not !.
taken into the body with the food it is distri
buted over the grounds, feeding places, etc, in
the exorement of affected birds, and the food,
drink and gravel are thus contaminated.
Healthy birds may be kept in oooie within a
few feet of the sick ones for mouths without
contracting the disesse but if the former are
now plaoed in the same inoloaure with the latter
they sicken in a few days.
2. The Vims Must be Carried upon the
Grounds Frequented by Fowls before They
Contract the Disease. It ia not probable that
this disease originates, in any considerable num
ber of oasee, in any other way than by oonta
gion. There ia a possibility that it may origin
ate in oooaaional instances by filthy surroundings
if eloeely confined, or by feeding on decompos
ing substances ; but there are few fauta to sup
port snob a conclusion, and it appears certain
that in the vast majority of oases the disease is
imported and kept np by oontagion alone.
It Is thus brought open farms either (I) with
aick or infected fowls newly arqnired; (2), with
the blood or parts of the bodies of dead birds,
oarriod on the feet of people or brought by dogs
or other animals j (3), with infected manure or
feathers: or (4) possibly by wild birds, animals
(rabbits), or even Insects that have contracted
the disease or have eaten the blood or bodiee of
affected birds recently dead. The origin of the
diaeaae can generally be traced in oountry dis
tricts, where houses are a ooosidsrable distance
apart, to recently acquired poultry. It ia only
in districts more thickly peopled, and than in
exceptional instances, that the germs are carried
by wild birds or animals or by insect),
raxvxmva hkasuies rua ixrxiTau oaounim.
I. Is the Dieeeee Cholera? Fowls frequently
die in considerable numbers from diseases that
are not oontagiooe, and henoe It ia a matter of
primary importance to decide aa to the nature
of the affection when cholera ia suspected. In
my own experience I have found that this might
be done with onmparative oertainty by inspec
tion of the exerementa. With fowls the si ora
tions of the kidneys are Joined in the eloaea
with the undigested part of the food, and both
olid and liquid excrement are oooeequeolly
voided together. They are not mixed to any
Creat extant, however) the part excreted by the
idueyt ie easily distinpiuhed, aa during health
it is of a pore white color, while the bowel dis
chargee are of vartoes knee. The kidney excre
tion will he hereafter referred to aa IU emirs,
and It ia the only part whioh elaima our atten
tion. After a fowl takes the eoatagioa into ita body
the Bret and only reliable symptom la a oolore,
tioa of the aratee. At Brat these have only
faint yellow tint, whioh rapidly changes, how
ever, into a deep yellow oolor j ap to this time
the bird shows no other signs of the disease,
its temperature ia unohangml and its exorement
ol a normal consistency. In one or more dava
alter to is yellow oolor appeara the urates are
greatly increased in quaulity and constitute the
whole or a greater part of the dischargee and an
obstinate diarrhea seta in in a few oasee the
urates now become greenish, and exceptionally
they are of a deep green oolor.
The only lesion seen in post-mortem examina
tions that ia likely to attract the attention of
non-professional observers ia the enlarged liver,
which ia nearly constant it may be of various
shades of color. Besides this the presence of
yellow urates in the oloaoa and ureters is a val
uable sign and is generally present,
2. 8ick llirds Must be Deetroyed.-The ex
oreinents of aick birds are the principal means
of spreading the oontagion, and the tlrst step in
stamping out the disease ia, consequently, to
destroy all which are voiding yellow urates.
Care should be had to make the distinction be
tween the urates and the bowel ilojeotions, for
the latter are frequently of yellow oolor in
health but a little observation will preclude
any mistake of this kind. The killing should
not be by any method which allows the escape
of blood, aa tiiis fluid is even more virulent than
the exorement wringing the neck it a quick
and easy method of destroying ths life. Once
killed the bodies are to be Uken beyond the
limits of the poultry run and deeply buried.
If it is decided to keep the sick birds till they
die or reoover, they should be plaoed in an in
oloaure by themsslvee, aa far aa posaible from
the healthy ones, where they may be oared for
without entering, ao that there will be no dan
ger of carrying rtiolea of the exorement on
the boots and spreading the Infection.
3. Healthy llirds Must be 1'lsced on Diiln
feoted Grounds. If a piooe of laud ia at band
to which the aick birds have not hail aooeas and
which is consequently free from the oontagion,
the healthy birds should be penned upon it I
but if all of the land is infecUd, then a piece is
to be selected and thoroughly disinfected with
the solution mentioned further on in this paper.
The fowls aro to be restricted to this disinfected
ground for aeveral mnntha, or even a year or
more, if practicable. The drinking vessels and
feeding troughs are to be new, or If used before
they must be snaked for IU hours with the same
solution before being pieced in the new inolosure.
4. Olieervatinns to be Continued to Note the
First lie appearance of tbe Disease. Home of
the fowls, though well at the time of removal
to disinfected quarters, may be infnoted with
the disease, and after the period uf incubation,
which variee from 3 to 20 Java, will sicken. It
is necessary, therefore, to make a careful inspeo
tion of the excrement each morning for at least
three weeks after the separation of the aick
fowl. If yellow aratee are disoovered, the
birds must be watahed until the tick one it de
tected. To facilitate the sarly diaoovery of such
sick fowls and prevent infection of the healthy
ones It ia advisable, where practicable, to aep
erate the birds into lots of two or three each at
the start and thu separatum may always be
practiced aa a last reeort where the disease suo
eeaslully defies our effort for a oonsiderable
time but when thia ie imioeaibls a little pa
tienos will generally enable one to pick out the
sick before any harm has resulted. As soon aa
the aick bird is removed the exorement must be
scraped np and burned, and the run mast lie
again sprinkled with the disinfectant j or, the
well birds may be chewed to fresh ground aa
before. Thia method of management ia to be
continued aa long aa new oaaee of the diaeaae
occur.
Hy a careful observance of these rules one
oao frequently oheuk the diseaee with a lose of
but one or two fowls out of large Hock.
ft. Disinfection. for thi disease we hare
very ebeap and most effective disinfectant It
ia a eoluUoa made by adding three pounds of
solobuno acid to 40 gallons of water (or lb. of
acid to 3) gallon " water) and mixing evenly
by agiuuoa) or stirring. Thia may be applied
to smell surfaces with a oommoa watering pot,
or to larger ground with a barrel mounted on
'39
wheels and arranged like a street sprinkler. In
disinfecting poultry houses the manure must bo
Hrst thoroughly scraped np and removed hevnnd
the reach ol tha fowls a slight sprinkling ia
not sufficient, but tha Doors, roosts and grounda
must be thoroughly saturated with tha solution,
ao that no particle of dust, however small, ss
ospee being wet. It it impossible to thoroughly
disinfeut if tha manure ia not removed from tha
roosting placet.
Sulphurio acid It very cheap, oostlng at retail
not more than 23 cents a pound, and at whole
sale but live or tix rota tha barrel of disin
fecting solution oan, therefore, be made fur leaa
than a dollar and should be thoroughly applisd.
It must be remembered, too, that sulphurio aaid
ia a dangerous drug to handle, aa when undiluted
it destroys olothlng and cauterises tha flesh
wherever it touches, The safest way It, there,
fore, to take a flve-gallon keg nearly full of
water to tha druggist, and have him place the
strong acid In thii the contents of the keg may
then be safely transported and added to tha
barrel of water,
0. Fumigation, In those oasee where the (lis.
ease haa been raging for a onusiderablo time tha
feathers become saturated with the contagion,
aud it it necessary, before placing tha fowls on
the disinfected run, to put them ia a diss build
ing and thoroughly fumigate them with sulphur,
For thia purpose a panuf burning coals ia taken
and flowers of auluiiur thrown Umn them aa
long as the air oan be breathed without danger
of suffocation. When the diaeaae ia recognised
at the outset this is not osoeesary.
The experiment! on which the above ragula.
lions are founded will be detailed in future rs.
port of ths Agricultural Department! they are
sufficiently numerous to be worthy of the fullest
oonlidenoe.
The value of tha method of preventive loocu.
latinn or vaooination disoovsreil by Pasteur haa
not yet been decided, but in view of the com.
paretive ease with whioh the affection may bo
controlled by tha measure detailed above, we
doubt if It oan aver be advantageously adopted
aa a meant of preventing this particular disco.
Wool. Kxnutmmi. For asperating wool
from ootton from mixed goods (wool extract
ing), M. Paul I'.Hilin, of I'arie, hat patented the
employment of the two following solutions In
which the goode are Immersed i First, ohlorldo
of calcium at 20' Its., 4 vnlumeei water, 3 vol.
omes. The chloride of laluiuin at 20" lie. la It
self prepared by dissolving In a mixture of I
volume of muriatic acid at if.' fie., and S vol
umes of water, enough ohalk to saturate It or,
second, solution of I Ih, of salt and 1 ft. muri
atic arid in I gal. of water. Tha solution la
kept boiling by meant of steam for XO or 40
miuutee then ooled and poured on tha gooda
under pressure. Tha rags are washed and dried,
the resides ia pure wool.
Hrawxi) l,ivH.-Ilron two piece of bacon
in a saucepan, add finely out onion, pepper,
corns and maoei simmer fur quarter of aa
houri add liver cut in slices, washed and dried)
simmer again for 20 minutes or half ao hour
till done. Make bread dumpling with it.
Take bread crumb, with a little flour mlid
with an egg and a very little baking powder,
Hrst flavoring with nutmeg, a handful of flaely
chopped persely, a little chopped lemon and
some enet) amalgamate with water or milk ae
yotj like. Now brown the dumplings In butler
or lard, and then Jast let them ateem UiroagH
for lew minutes with the gravy. When served,
thia make an inexpensive laaty dish.
Caaaaim. Chop fine mm good vised wdid
head. To four well beaten egge add four labia,
spoons tweet create, one of eeiery eeed, nearly
on of salt aod ground mustard, one half tea
spoonful blsok pepper, on half eup good vine.
Kr pat on the etove and stir till It jast bm!
If it nooks too long the egg will become lusspyi
poor over the oabbage and mil thoroughly.