Rinderpest Precautions and Remedies. 63 



fields so early, was, like Mr. Davies's, of far too much value to be 

 given up to tlie pole-axe without an effort, and hence, by the 

 advice of Mr. Anthony Hamond, and with the ultimate sanction of 

 the Privy Council and the assistance of Mr. Robert Overman, 

 of Egmere, who had cured six by that agency already, Mr. 

 Aylmer determined to try chloroform. " A friend in need is a 

 friend indeed," and with very occasional absences, Mr. Over- 

 man worked day and night at West Dereham for nearly two 

 months. They commenced on the 12th, when five had gone 

 down, and a staff of seventeen or eighteen men were soon in 

 regular hospital work. 



The cattle were kept as warm as possible, and covered with 

 sheets in their sheds — which were made still more snug by 

 hanging curtains of sailcloth or sacking in front of them — and 

 the disease was always allowed to develope itself in the mouth 

 before the treatment began. They were also kept on as short 

 commons as possible, and their mouths Avere examined the 

 moment their appetites failed. Still there was no exact rule in 

 the matter. Some were heavily smitten and full of mouth- 

 symptoms when the appetite was good and the dew was on the 

 nose. The fat cows were uniformly the worst cases ; and the one 

 ear down, the drooping eyelid, and the nervous twitch of the 

 head, were among the sure and certain symptoms of seizure. 

 Some became quite mad with pain, and broke their horns and 

 tore out their teeth with convulsive rushes at the manger ; when- 

 ever the air lodged in the tissues, and the skin was swollen up 

 some inches from the flesh, nothing could bring them round. 



It was found in practice that the chloroform acted best on an 

 empty stomach, and that it could be applied too soon after 

 the premonitory symptoms. A white steer, among others, which 

 inhaled for seven days, and relapsed at the end of a fortnight, 

 was certainly dealt with too soon. In fact, looking back upon 

 the cases, both Mr. Aylmer and Mr. Overman believe, that with 

 their present experience, they could have saved many more with 

 half the quantity of chloroform. The bulls were as easy to 

 chloroform as the cows, and they were onp and all cast and 

 bound to prevent them breaking their horns. With some young 

 bulls the chloroform acted too severely on the kidneys, and fatal 

 inflammation of the bladder and urinary canal set in. After 

 this, diuretics and alkaline solutions were used to neutralise the 

 salts of the urine, and in two or three cases it had the desired 

 effect. 



Full-grown beasts had an ounce of chloroform administered to 

 them each time, calves a quarter of an ounce, and others in pro- 

 portion to their age. A saturated handkerchief was simply put 

 in a bag, which was hung close under the nostrils, and tied by 



