No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. HI 



The first case reported was by Dr. G. A. Wehr, of Denver, on Oc- 

 tober 29th. He reported a herd belonging to Mr. Amos Hess of 

 Ejjhrata, Lancaster county, as very suspicious. This herd was one 

 of the first to be destroyed. The first case upon which a positive 

 diagnosis was made was in a cow in the Pittsburgh Union Stockyards 

 on October 31st. About the same time Dr. E. W. Newcomer, of Mt. 

 Joy, reported two suspicious herds. A positive diagnosis was made 

 in these cases on November 1st. The positive cases found in Lan- 

 caster county had been through the Lancaster Stockyards a few days 

 previous. An examination was made of the 1,350 head of cattle in 

 the Lancaster yards on November 2nd. No symptoms of foot-and- 

 mouth disease were observed at that time. The yards were quar- 

 antined, however, and no animals permitted to leave them after that 

 date except for immediate slaughter. The animals in the Lancaster 

 Stockyards were feeding cattle and not in prime condition for 

 slaughter. Eighty per cent, ot them had been sold for feeders in the 

 vicinity of Lancaster. At first it appeared unreasonable to hold 

 these animals in quarantine when there were no symptoms of dis- 

 ease in the lot. It was finally decided to hold them in quarantine 

 for twelve days at the expense of the Commonwealth. If no symp- 

 toms occurred iu the meantime, they might be permitted to go to 

 the various purchasers ; should the disease develop, they were to be 

 disposed of under conditions existing at that time. Three days 

 after the quarantine was established, several well-marked cases of 

 the disease appeared in this lot of cattle and spread to about forty 

 head in the next two days. A careful examination was made of each 

 animal and those that showed symptoms of the disease were killed 

 and buried at the yards; the balance were sent to a slaughter house 

 and killed under Federal supervision. 



On November 2, a positive case of foot-and-mouth disease was dis- 

 covered in a cow belonging to Mrs. L. Schutte, of Pittsburgh. This 

 cow had been through the Pittsburgh yards on October 12th. No 

 other source of infection could be discovered for this animal. On 

 the same date, Dr. I. S. Reifsnyder, of Collegeville, reported the dis- 

 ease in the herd of Mr. A. T. Reed, of Royersford, Montgomery 

 county. These animals had been through the Lancaster Stockyards 

 on October 2Sth. It was known at this time that about 40,000 head 

 of cattle had been sold from the Lancaster yards during the period 

 at which infection might have existed in the yards and an ex- 

 tensive spread of the disease was anticipated. 



The Federal Government established a quarantine on the whole 

 'State of Pennsylvania on November 2d. On November 5, the Board 

 established a general quarantine on Allegheny, Delaware, Lancaster, 

 Philadelphia, York, Chester, Montgomery, Franklin, Lebanon, and 

 Berks counties. As soon as the disease broke out in Pennsylvania, 

 the Federal Government and the State Livestock Sanitary Board 

 adopted practically the same plan as was in force in the previous 

 outbreak for handling the disease, except that in the previous out- 

 break the Government paid two-thirds of the indemnity, while the 

 State paid one-third. In the last outbreak it was agreed that each 

 should pay fifty per cent, and do the work as nearly equal as pos- 

 sible. Branch offices were opened promptly and as nearly as possible 



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