REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 63 



DISTRIBUTION OF VACCINE, ETC. 



Over 1,000,000 doses of blackleg vaccine were prepared and sent 

 out during the year by the Bureau of Animal Industry. The neces- 

 sity for immunization against this virulent disease of young cattle 

 is being more thoroughly appreciated by cattle raisers, and the de- 

 partment vaccine is the means of preventing heavy losses. 



Tuberculin and mallein are furnished to State, county, and munici- 

 pal officials for the diagnosis of tuberculosis and glanders, respec- 

 tively. During the past year 422,043 doses of tuberculin and 91,642 

 doses of mallein were sent out. 



The department does not distribute the preventive serum for hog 

 cholera, this work having been taken up by State laboratories, as 

 already mentioned. 



NEEDED LEGISLATION RELATING TO ANIMAL INDUSTRY. 



Further legislation by Congress is urgently needed in order to 

 enable the department to deal more effectively with matters relating 

 to the live-stock industry. 



It is especially desirable that the Secretary of Agriculture should 

 have power to control and supervise the manufacture and importa- 

 tion of vaccines, serums, and like substances used for treatment of 

 animals, so as to insure their purity and potency. Such prepara- 

 tions, when contaminated, have in the past been responsible for the 

 introduction of contagious diseases into the country. The great cost 

 of eradicating these outbreaks should alone be a sufficient reason for 

 granting the authority required. 



Further legislation is also needed for the regulation of live stock 

 in interstate transportation, so as to prevent more effectively the 

 spread of contagious disease and to secure more humane treatment of 

 the animals in transit. 



These matters are discussed more fully and specifically in my re- 

 port for 1910 and in the report of the Chief of the Bureau of Animal 

 Industry for the fiscal year 1911. 



BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. 



There are over 0,300,000 farms in the United States, and the de- 

 mand for help from these farms is growing greater eaoii year. The 

 Bureau of Plant Industry is endeavoring to meet some of these 

 demands, and its activities now extend into many fields, covering 

 research, experiments, and demonstrations. The primary function 

 of the bureau is to develop and encourage constructive agriculture 

 by assisting the farmer to increase the output per acre and at the 

 same time to build up and maintain the fertility of the land. The 



