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101
defendants were sent to prison without the option of a fine. It has
also confiscated more than seven tons of tuberculous meat. I have
no doubt at all that the action of the Public Health Department in
regard to tuberculosis is the main cause of the marked reduction in
the amount of tuberculous meat brought into Finsbury.
Unwholesome Venison.—On March 11th, Inspector
Billing brought for my examination a piece of venison which,
although not showing signs of putrefaction, was, in fact, not wholly
satisfactory. As it seemed to be one of those cases where it is
difficult to form a precise opinion as to quality, and as such conditions
of meat have before now been the cause of disease in persons
•consuming the meat, I thought it desirable to have a careful
bacteriological examination made of it. Accordingly it was submitted
to Mr. Foulerton, Director of the Bacteriological Laboratories
at the Middlesex Hospital. His report is as follows :—
Bacteriological Department,
The Middlesex Hospital, W.
Report on a sample of venison received from Dr. George Newman,
Medical Officer of Health to the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury,
on 11th March, 1904.
The fore-quarter of venison received had a faint smell, not,
however, resembling that of putrefaction.
Various plates and tubes of culture media were inoculated from
portions of meat taken from the interior of the joint; and these
were subsequently incubated under both æerobic and anærobic
conditions. The media incubated under anærobic conditions
remained sterile; on the other media colonies of three different
species of micro-organisms were obtained. These included :
(a) A few colonies of a yellow sarcina.
(b) A few colonies of a coccus, with a growth of white appearance ;
and
(c) Very numerous colonies of a bacillus, corresponding in
character with Bacillus enteritidis of Gaertner.
Further examination showed that organisms (a) and (b), were not
possessed of any actively pathogenic characters. The strain of
Bacillus enteritidis thus isolated was of active virulence, and