1 66 



The Coimtry Getitlefnan's Magazine 



VETERINARY DEPARTMENT AND FOOT-AND-MOUTH 



DISEASE. 



THE Report of the Veterinary Depart- 

 ment for the year 187 1 has at length 

 put in a tardy appearance. The figures it 

 gives, with reference to the amount of disease 

 in the country last year, have already been 

 made public, at various times, through the 

 columns of the newspapers. There are several 

 points in the document which we may pro- 

 bably direct attention to on a future occasion. 

 Meanwhile, we notice that Dr Williams does 

 not appear to think that foot-and-mouth 

 disease is, after all, so very serious a matter, 

 which is a very different opinion from that 

 held by the Central Authority of Norfolk, 

 who deem it much more inimical to stock 

 than the rinderpest ever was. Dr Williams 

 also appears, at the time of writing, to have 

 been unaware of the very violent type the 

 disease has now assumed. Dr Williams, as 

 will be seen, does not seem to approve of 

 the stoppage of markets and fairs for a period, 

 as recommended by the Norfolk authorities, 

 in order that the disease might be effectually 

 stamped out. 



^Vith reference to the Act of 1S69, as it 

 relates to foot-and-mouth disease, the head of 

 the Veterinary Department remarks : — 



The general objection made to the present restric- 

 tions by the Chambers of Agriculture and the local 

 authorities is that they are not sufficiently stringent, 

 and that it is necessary that further action should be 

 taken. 



The demand that the Privy Council should take 

 extreme measures in order to check the foot-and-mouth 

 disease is one of very recent origin, and has probably 

 arisen from the representations which have appeared 

 in the public press, containing statements that this 

 disease was a most serious one, and in results nearly 

 as bad as rinderpest. 



That this is not the case is shewn by the following 

 statement, but that its spread and the losses occasioned 

 thereby are very serious cannot be doubted. 



Since the passing of the Contagious Diseases 

 Animals) Act, 1869, up to the end of 1871, we have 



received information of 92,162 outbreaks of foot-and- 

 mouth disease, in which 1,344,625 animals were 

 attacked. Of these, only 1. 136 per cent, died, .327 

 per cent, were killed, and 98.537 per cent, re- 

 covered. The per-centage of deaths as indicated by 

 these returns is very low, but even this is said to be 

 much higher than it should be, on account of the 

 want of proper treatment. 



Contrast this with cattle plague, in which the cattle 

 killed were, in its last visitation, upwards of 36 per 

 cent, of those attacked, the deaths amounted to nearly 

 49 per cent., and only 15 per cent, were recovered 

 for our use. 



It does not appear, however, that anything short of 

 stopping all markets, fairs, exhibitions, and sales of 

 animals, and putting severe restrictions on their move- 

 ments, would eradicate this disease even for a time. 

 To do this effectually would also necessitate the ap- 

 pointment of veterinary surgeons in each district, 

 would entail considerable expense, and would afford 

 no security against futui^e outbreaks. 



Their Lordships were of opinion that these stringent 

 measures, although submitted to for the purpose of 

 stamping out cattle-plague, would not be borne in a 

 disease which is so rarely fatal as foot-and-mouth 

 disease. 



Some farmers indeed do not appear to believe that 

 this disease is spread by contagion, or if so, do not 

 consider it of sufficient importance to take the 

 simplest precautions against its introduction and 

 spread . 



The objections which appeared to apply to placing 

 additional restrictions on the home trade apply equally 

 to the Irish and to the foreign trade ; and the pro- 

 posal to slaughter all foreign cattle at the landing 

 places has the additional objection that, by reducing 

 the price which the cattle would fetch, it is more than 

 probable that such course would have the effect of 

 checking the importation of the comparatively healthy 

 foreign cattle which have formed upwards of 72 per 

 cent, of our total import. 



The objections to quarantine, except when advan- 

 tage may be taken of the detention for the purpose of 

 fattening the animal, appear to be the expense and 

 the interference with trade, both which items would 

 tend to increase the cost of production and therefore 

 the price of it. The tendency of this would be to stop 

 our foreign importation, as it has been stated that a 

 difference in price of from 5s. to los. per head would 

 be sufficient to stop all the foreign cattle from coming 

 to London. 



