THE CATTLE DISEASE. 7 



A concise history of the disease from its first appearance in 

 Mr. Chencry's herd in Belmont to the present time, is deemed 

 of sufficient importance to warrant its insertion in this Report. 



In the latter part of May, 1859, four cattle arrived from Hol- 

 land and were taken to the farm of Mr. Chcncry. Two of them 

 were sick, and in a few days died. Another soon after sickened 

 and died. At the time of the death of the third, three calves 

 were sold to go to North Brookfield, one of which was taken to 

 the herd of a dealer for treatment, being sick. The dealer, 

 trading in cattle, as usual, soon spread the disease far and wide. 



In the following April an Act was passed " to provide for the 

 extirpation of the disease called pleuro-pneumonia among 

 cattle," which gave the commissioners power to cause to be 

 killed all cattle in herds where the disease was known or sus- 

 pected to exist. The disease had, at the time of the passage of 

 the Act, been extensively scattered, and in a short time the 

 appropriation ($10,000,) was absorbed. A larger number of 

 cattle having been exposed than was at first estimated, an extra 

 session of the legislature was called to revise the law, and to 

 provide the means of executing it. A new law was enacted, 

 and received the sanction of the executive on the 12th of June. 



No new outbreak of the disease occurred during that year, 

 nor in that locality, as far as is known, to the present time. 

 The number of cattle killed was nine hundred and thirty-two. 



For more than a year nothing was heard of pleuro-pneumonia. 

 In fact, those most directly interested were confident that the 

 disease was extirpated. Early in the following winter, however, 

 it was reported that it existed in Milton, Dorchester and Quincy. 



A board of commissioners was appointed, who, upon investiga- 

 tion, found the report to be true. A pair of cattle was purchased 

 at Brighton, which were taken to Quincy, and both died. No 

 further history of them could be learned, as it was impossible to 

 identify them ; but the spread of the disease could in every 

 instance be traced to contact with the animals in the herd in 

 which they were at the time of their death, as shown in the 

 report of that year. The number killed during the year was 

 one hundred and fifty-four. 



For several months the commissioners felt confident that the 

 disease was eradicated. In February, 1863, the commissioners 

 were called to examine sick cattle in the north part of Waltham 



