NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 824, 24 May 1910, Page 8

NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA

AN EX-NEW ZEALANDER'S SUCCESS.

Among the residents at Bloomfieid, New Jersey, U S A., is.Dr. G: H: Earp-Thomas, brother of Air. Earp-Thomas.-of this city, and who is now engaged in the commercial production of nitrogen-fixing: bacteria for soil inoculation. •• Dr. EarpThomas- was formerly- a . dentist,; but he took up somo research work in connection with soil bacteria, and ultimately devoted his .whole time to the production of-a preparation which he has put on'thel market .with .successful results. When the value of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria was tast discovered the problem "was how pure cultures could bo produced and delivered to the farmer or gardener in condition to be used on the crops. The transfer of soil from fields where bacteria was Jmown to exist to the land which- it. was desired to inoculate was tried with some success, but thi«. Wav expensm-. and. there was considerable danger of spreading weeds and' destructive, crop' diseases.' Later laigo quantities of the ■ bacteriawere sent out in a dormant state dried on cotton. The results were not satisfactory : as it took from one to four days to' revive the bacteria, and in many cases they remained inactive'. Dr. Earp-Thomas after a series of experiments' adopted a system ot bottling the germs up in ■ a jeliy or food in which they .remain active for long periods of time. In order to discover the most virile and active, of the bacteria ho grew legumes' in small tubes of the jelly, and by breeding aud selection produced large quantities of bacteria of unusual vigour. The bacteria > cannot live for any length of time when the air is excluded, and Dr. Earp-Thomas devised a bottle-stopper which admitted air but, was impervious. to outside germs This .done, the preparation was put in two sizes of bottles. One size contained sufficient bacteria for inoculating an acre, and the larger size sufficient for treatin'' five acres. . Tho prices were two dollars (eight shillings) and nine, dollars (thirtysix shillings) respectively. The best method of treating the seeds is to dilute the preparation with cool water and pour it over tho seeds, which are then allowed to dry, and sown in the ordinary way. The methods of soil inoculation'are attractipg much attention iu America, and Dr. Earp-Thomas's preparation has been very favourably commented on by the directors of many of the United States Government experiment stations.

The value of pens for topping off sheep end lambs is realised in the Willunga district of South Australia (says the "Sydney Morning Herald"). ' One man planted seven acres with peas—two bushels to the acre— with lewt. of superphosphate. ' - When ripe the peas were raked once, and t.he crop carted in, trodden out and cleaned lip, the yield being about 15 bushels to the acre. After this 200 breeding cwes and GO lambs were turned in. They, however, had 20 acres of hay stubble to roam over in addition. The lambs, 'which were forward Stores when put in, were sent to market °good to prime" in tliree weeks, and a {rood proportion of the ewes, wore fat.

BOVINE TUBERCULOSIS. DANGER OF HUMAN INFECTION. Tho question whether bovine tuberculosis is transmissible to human beings is still being made the subject of investigation abroad From observations made in Merlin it would appear, however, that the risk of infection Jroni milk is not as great as is generally supposed. This view is borne out by some recent research reported in the last issue of the "Lancet," which will be received with interest by the dairying community. Tho report in question- states that the Imperial Health Officer at .Berlin has, under Professor Kossl'l, lately carried out collcctivo investigations to determine whether the uso of milk from cows suffering from tuberculosis of the udder is harmful. The investigations were carried out by Government veterinary inspectors, who were asked to find out actual cases in which tho milk oft cows with tuberculous udders had been used by the public. When a case was discovered it was notified to .the ..district officer of health by the veterinary inspector, and with the aid of other medical practitioners investigation was made as to the influence of tho tuberculous milk on the health of tho respective persons. The case was then reported to the Imperial Health Ollicc, which undertook to state by bacteriological investigation whether in the morbid products examined the tubercule baccilli were of the human or the bovine type. In the latter case only could the eventful disease be attributed to the milk. From 1905 to April, 1909, 113 cases of tuberculosis of tlie udder- were reported in coW'S, the milk! ofJwKich.' had been used by G2S people." In 44 cases the milk had been ussd boiled, but irf the remainder in the raw state,, the,.latter category including 69-c&ses'-with';jiiO--consumers. Of these 3GO people only two children in their second were found to have .been infected*- by-, the jnilkr Both had swollen cerra(AL"glands.c6iithining tubercle bacilli of the bovine type. They had taken the milk raw over .-a considerable space of time. .On.re-extfriiination after two and a half and one and a half years respectively' they .were found to be : in good bodily condition. The other mem- : bers of the family,, including children be- | tween four and 12 years of age, who had j likewise used'the«milk> remained healthy. Apart from these two positive instances, there were, a number of suspected cases in which swelling, of. the cervical glands was present, but no' bacteriological examination was made.

It was a, characteristic feature of all these cases that in none of them was there any .progressinjthe,affection of the glands, but, on the contrary, a decrease was found after a" period of several months. . Of 1 3G0 people' who. had taken raw milk from tuberculous cows tliero was evidence of infection in two only, and 12 cases wero suspected; in 31G, of Whom 13G were children, the'milk had proved innocuous. Of 2CB people, including 183 children, Avho had taken the milk boiled, 12 children nnd 1 adult showed swelling of the ccrrieal glands. Professor Kossel concluded that the danger arising from the use of milk of tuberculous, cows is small in l comparison with that arising from persona suffering from tuberculosis of the lungs.