224 ECONOMICS OF EAST COAST FEVER. 



expenditure. The simple statement in itself will indicate suffi- 

 ciently the values involved. 



(a) \n the first place, a wire fence was made from the 

 Natal Border to the Western Border, some hundreds of miles 

 in length. A\'e have already indicated that the fever crossed 

 at the completed end before the fence had been carried to the 

 other terminus, and thus perished the first attempt, and with it 

 all the money needed for so great an undertaking. 



Even after the infection had crossed over the fence, the 

 police arrangements were carefully maintained, at great expense, 

 on the i)r()verbial stable-door princi])le. 



(/') In the second place, it was at one time believed that 

 inoculation was a certain cure for the disease, and a regular cam- 

 paign of inoculation was organised. But the natives opposed 

 this movement to the utmost, and only yielded with the greatest 

 unwillingness ; and the adverse results which followed in not a 

 few cases rendered these difficulties all the greater. A native 

 farmer near to me sent 119 beasts for inoculation, and only six 

 were saved ! Occurrences of that kind, for which not a farth- 

 ing of compensation was forthcoming, certainly did not en- 

 courage other natives to agree to the inoculation of their cattle. 

 Of 158,884 cattle inoculated, it is roughly estimated (very 

 roughly, and perhaps too liberally) that the survivors amounted 

 to about 33 per cent. Those that did survive certainly were 

 immune, but the cure was rather too drastic, and the amounts 

 involved in these ()])erations include not only the loss of the 

 cattle, but also the expenses of the veterinary staff, together witli 

 the expenses of experiments and the advice of experts. 



(c) In the third place, dipping-tanks were erected through- 

 out the length and breadth of the country at a five-mile radius. 

 fn the latest returns I discover that 181 tanks were in use and 

 28 under construction, as at ist January, 1914, and additional to 

 this we have an estimate of £16,193 for construction of tanks 

 in 1913-14, and a rough estimate of £19,600 to be spent in 70 

 tanks to complete the programme. In the estimates, £280* is 

 allowed per tank. We thus have the cost of 209 tanks, -j- 

 £16,193 -|- £19,600. which gives us the total of £94,313. 



The capital cost, however, does not exhaust this item, for 

 a charge is levied of J^^d. per head for the dipping of the cattle, 

 and while at present there seems to be a deficit in the working, 

 yet in time, no doubt, this will be a source of revenue. It was 

 estimated that the fees should yield some £17,740 in 1914. 



It will thus be seen that considerable sums of money are 

 involved in this undertaking, and the economic effects are of no 

 slight importance. 



(d) Finally, it will be realised that all these expedients 

 would cause some strain upon the police arrangements of the 

 Territories. If the fence was to be made an effective barrier, it 



* Some tanks cost twice that amount. 



