62 Rinderpest Precautions and Remedies. 



as they found her one morning with her back up, her coat staring, 

 and her head and ears drooping ; but Lady Best from the late 

 Mr. Langston's, Minstrel from Holker, Heiress from Mr. Hales's, 

 Cherry Empress from Mr. Logan's, and Water Girl from the 

 late Mr. Anthony Maynard's, soon followed suit. They sickened 

 for three or four days, and on the fourth there was a strong dis- 

 charge from the nose, eyes, and vagina. They could neither lie 

 nor stand ; their legs and heads were never still, and their 

 moanings were sad to hear. They would become feverish, and 

 then shiver like a man in the ague, and theix fceces were quite 

 lax and costive by turns. 



As they were very valuable stock, and Cheshire was at its 

 wit's-end in the hope of discovering some alleviation or remedy, 

 the local committee consented to have them treated, but every- 

 thing was useless except the iodine ointment, a compound of 

 iodine, mercury, and lard, which was recommended by Mr. 

 Lawson, veterinary surgeon of Manchester. His object was to set 

 up a counter-irritation if possible, and the ointment rubbed twice 

 or thrice a day on the chest gave apparent relief. When applied 

 in the early stage it seemed their only chance, but unfortunately it 

 was not thought of till some of the best had died. The climax 

 was generally on the fourth day, and those which died often 

 lingered on about three days more. One old cow of the Towneley 

 blood fought on for upwards of a fortnight. When the turn for 

 the better came, frequent doses of oatmeal-gruel were administered. 

 Up to that point they could not be got to take anything, as their 

 mouths were sore with inflammation, and they did not even notice 

 water. Countess of Barrington and Surmise were never so ill as 

 the others, but they wasted to skin and bone, and it took them 

 and seven others (which had all been treated with iodine oint- 

 ment) several weeks to recover their bloom. None of these nine 

 survivors out of thirty-six were able to carry their calves, but slunk 

 them, a perfect mass of putridity, after which they " came to 

 hand " much quicker. 



Mr. Aylmer, of West Dereham, grounded his treatment entirely 

 on the administration of chloroform. When the plague broke 

 out on this gentleman's farm last April, sixteen store bullocks 

 were immediately slaughtered ; and of his shorthorn herd, which 

 numbered ninety head, five died before treatment, and six were 

 not attacked ; while forty-one recovered, and thirty-eight died 

 under chloroform treatment. On April 4th the disease showed 

 itself by simultaneously attacking Easthorpe Rose in the home 

 shippon, and then Easthorpe Lady in the fen (which is 11 miles 

 distant) ; and, on the 11th, Henrietta was taken ill at the White 

 House Farm, within 300 yards of Mr. Aylmer's residence. The 

 herd, which its owner always regrets having turned into the 



