28 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



year 1901. These cases have been found only in the counties of Jasper, 

 Newton, McDonald, Howell. The only infection reported in Howell 

 county is in Thayer township. The infection in Jasper county is found 

 in only three congressional townships, and principally in the vicinity of 

 Joplin, township 27, ranges 33-34. The infection in Newton county is 

 found in ten congressional townships and principally in the vicinity of 

 Neosho. The infection in McDonald county is found in three congres- 

 sional townships and principally in the vicinity of Southwest City and 

 Tiff City. 



The Inspectors have been instructed to be diligent in preventing vio- 

 lators from driving cattle into the State from infested districts, and have 

 been instructed to try and locate every infected field, pasture or range, and 

 to promptly place the same in quarantine. A number of guilty parties 

 have been arrested and the cases are now pending in the courts. The 

 inspection of cattle coming into jMissouri from below the quarantine line 

 has been assumed by the Bureau of Animal Industry, under the pro- 

 visions of the quarantine regulations of the State, and the State Inspectors 

 employed by the Board have been enabled to give all their time to the 

 control of diseases within the State. 



It would be very unwise to discontinue this work of inspection and 

 quarantine and an adequate sum of money should be always at the com- 

 mand of the Board to employ a sufficient number of men to locate and 

 quarantine all infested cattle and pastures and prevent the driving of 

 cattle into this State contrary to quarantine laws and regulations. It 

 takes some time for the inspector to become familiar with the country 

 and the people who are in sympathy with the enforcement of the law, 

 and those who are not in sympathy with the law. The rule that "an 

 ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" applies here. The influ- 

 ence of an active, honest, fearless inspector will prevent many violations. 

 These facts should be taken into consideration when an inspector is em- 

 ployed, and, while it might seem at times that there is no need for an in- 

 spector or a number of inspectors, yet the spread of Texas Fever from 

 a single violation might cause a greater loss to the cattle interests of the 

 State than the expense of maintaining several inspectors the entire year. 

 Owing to the rough and sparsely inhabited country along the boundary 

 between Missouri and Arkansas it is difficult for one man to cover a great 

 deal of country, and it seems to me that it would be wise to have a suf- 

 ficient number of inspectors to visit every portion of the line as often as 

 once each month. 



The report of the veterinarian herewith a])pcn(k(l will give further 

 information. 



