157 



by Hou. H. J. Jewett, of Ohio, iu relation to the disease among cattle 

 commonly known in this country by the name of black-leg or black- 

 quarter, to which answer was given as follows : 



Department of Agriculture, 



Washington, February 23, 1874. 



Dear Sir : I am in receipt oi your letter of 19th instant, in which you say that iu 

 some parts of the West a disease called black-leg, or black-quarter, is prevailing 

 among cattle, and request information as to the character of the disease, the remedies 

 for it, &c. 



The reports of this Department have, from time to time, related, fiicts concerning 

 the ravages of a disease similarly called, and I have no doubt the same as that to 

 which you refer. However, I think that no special treatise ou the subject has been 

 published, and at the same time those directly interested in the matter have been in- 

 different about communicating facts as to treatment, «&c. 



In view of the importance of the subject, I deem it expedient to be somewhat ex- 

 plicit in replying to your letter. 



I hud this disease referred to in a report of the commissioners appointed to inquire 

 into the origin, nature, &c., of Indian cattle-plagues, published iu Calcutta, 1871. 

 Anthrax fever, locally known as goli, (quarter-ill,) is described as a sudden swelling 

 of one hind-quarter, which extends over the loins, back, and shoulders. When the 

 swelling is pressed it makes a cracking noise like pressing salt. The animal is very 

 lame in the leg attacked. The resijiratiou becomes very much accelerated, and the 

 animal shows great distress, and is evidently in great jjain. The administering of 

 medicines appears now to be of no use. Even firing and cutting of the swelling pro- 

 duce no beneficial effect. When the swelling is cut the blood is all black and thick. 

 When this disease breaks out among the stock the cattle are moved from place to 

 place with a view to giving them exercise and prev^iting the lameness coming on; 

 and by moving them about they have not time to eat too mnch. When they have 

 been driven over ground where the pasturage is scanty there is less chance of the 

 disease continuing among them. This disease does not occur every year, but when 

 the grass is unusually rich and plentiful. If twenty animals are attacked by this dis- 

 ease, for example, they all die, and treatment is of no avail. The only way, says this 

 authority, of preventing the spread of the disease is to keep the yet healthy animals 

 ifloviug al)out, giving them limited pasture. 



In a "Manual of the More Deadly Forms of Cattle Disease in India," Calcutta, 1872, 

 the disease, under the name of anthrax fever, is said to be a blood disease, and in India 

 is said to be contagious, though iu cold climates it is not believed to be so. It is 

 generally accompanied with a swelling uuder some part of the skin, generally on the 

 loins or hind or fore quarters or throat, and sometimes tougue. The disease has been 

 found communicable to other animals, and to man in the form of njalignant pustule. 

 Causes are described as follows : When cattle which have for some time been kept on 

 very poor, bare, or reedy pasture are put on rich grazing grounds they become very 

 often affected. The younger cattle are especially liable to become affected, as in them 

 blood is more rapidly formed than in older animals. The blood not only becomes sud- 

 denly enriched, but also vitiated, and escapes from its vessels iu those soft parts of the 

 body loosely connected. The most thriving animals are the most susceptible, especi- 

 ally those which are rapidly improving after having been in somewhat low condition. 

 Again, at seasons when cattle are not sheltered at night, and the days are very hot 

 and the nights cold, they are more liable to be affected. 



Again, in this manual, it is said that, iu certain badly-drained lands in Great 

 Britain, the disease was wont to occur frequently; but since the lands have been duly 

 drained, the disease is seldom or never met with. In some x^arts of the continent of 

 Europe the disease is always more or less present, at certain seasons, on lands where 

 the drainage is defective. * 



Concerning symptoms, it is said that the attack is very sudden. An animal, seen 

 perfectly well a short time before, may be found in an hour or two afterward to be 

 dull and stiff', and to have a difficulty in moving, and in a few nunutes a swelling will 

 be observed under the skin on some part of the body, generally on the loins, hind- 

 quarters, fore-quarters, or throat and tongue ; sometimes the disease may be located iu 

 the chest or abdomen, or even brain. If tiie throat and lungs are principally involved, 

 then the breathing will be distressed. If the brain is affected, there will be stupor, 

 and when the spleen and other parts of the abdomen become gorged, signs of abdomi- 

 nal pain will be evident. The respiration becomes very much increased, the animal 

 moans, and the pulse is weak and rapid ; the animal's strength soon fails, the external 

 swellings rapidly increase, and death takes place in a few hours. 



Treatment is of no avail when the swellings are large, or when from the distressed 

 breathing it is evident that the lungs are very much gorged with extravasated blood. 

 Preventive measures may be taken. If an animal is' suspected to be attacked, purge 



