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die, I feel our best efforts will be of little avail unless we can 

 get the assistance not only of the medical profession, but of 

 the individual members of the community, and we can only 

 hope for this aid by educating the people as to the cause and 

 nature of this disease, and the measures which will prevent 

 it. Let it be known further that it is not only preventable 

 but a curable disease, and I feel confident that with increased 

 knowledge of the nature of tuberculosis we will have a^ 

 greater effort made by the community which will doubtless 

 diminish its prevalence to a great extent. 



Milk and Meat Infection. — It has been stated that 

 about 5 per cent, of all milch eows are affected with tubercu- 

 losis, and it is further estimated that about 16 per cent, of 

 all cattle slaughtered in England and G-ermany are tuber- 

 cular. It is stated to be as prevalent in Australia as in 

 England. I am glad to say that it does not exist in Tas- 

 mania, or if it does it is very rare. 



It follows from what I have already told you that milk 

 from tubercular cows must never be used, because there is 

 risk even if the udder is not affected that the milk may be 

 tainted. No tubercular cow should be allowed to remain in 

 the dairy, because if the udder is not already affected it may 

 become so at any time, and the extreme difficulty of recognis- 

 ing it in the earlier stages warrants the removal of the cow at 

 once. 



Boiling will get rid of any danger, and it is a good rule to 

 boil cill milk, as it will destroy the germs of other diseases as 

 well as of tuberculosis. 



But we must go further and prevent, if possible, the supply 

 of such milk, and, of course, this means that all dairies must 

 be registered and be inspected at regular intervals by a com- 

 petent inspector. 



The recommendations of the Royal Coniiuission went 

 further ; the Commissioners advise " wherever any udder 

 disease the cow must be isolated at once, tlie milk being con- 

 sidered highly dangerous, until the inspector has proved the 

 presence or absence of tuberculosis." 



Meat is not such a dangerous mode of infection as con- 

 taminated milk. Nevertheless it is, as I have explained 

 already, a source of danger, and calls for a rigid inspection of 

 all meat before and after killing. 



Dr. Martin's recommendations to the Royal Commission 

 were that the '* slaughtering and dressing of all animals 

 ought to be done under skilled supervision, with the object of 

 securing the removal and destruction of every part of the 

 carcase that contained any tubercle whatever, and also the 

 destruction of the whole carcase where the animal is found 



