230 



occnpied, to a great extent, the attention of the convention, as influ- 

 encing very largely the rules that were to be adopted. 



It is probably in the neighborhood of the Asiatic dependencies of 

 Kussia that the evil has its home ; but as the precise district has not 

 yet been satisfactorily ascertained, and as the movements of cattle 

 from the Ural Mountains toward the western portion of tbe Empire very 

 frequently disseminated the contagion in the countries they traversed, 

 it was considered expedient by the convention to leave Eussia entirely 

 out of the sanitary agreement, and not to permit the exportation of its 

 cattle except upon certain well-established guarantees. 



The subject of inoculation, as a preventive, in Russia, was care- 

 fully discussed by the convention ; but finally it was concluded that the 

 experiments hitherto made were scarcely sufficient to show a definite 

 measure of beneficial results, and it was agreed that, whatever individ- 

 ual cattle-owners in Russia might prefer to do in the matter, it was not 

 expedient to press upon the governments the enactment of laws on the 

 subject. As to the application of the method to animals of Central and 

 Western Europe, the convention repudiated the idea entirely. The 

 numerous experiments showed that very little impression is made upoa 

 the mortality that would naturally have ensued from the disease with- 

 out such treatment. 



As to the general question of absolutely preventing the importation of 

 cattle from Russia, it was found very easy so far as Germany was con- 

 cerned ; but very difficult for Austria and Hungary, owing to the great 

 extent of the coterminous boundaries of the two countries, and the de- 

 pendence of Austria upon Russia for this source of food. It was, there- 

 fore, recommended that a careful supervision should be exercised, and. 

 that cattle, after crossing the frontier, should be subjected to quaran- 

 tine of ten days before resuming their journey. 



The question being thus settled in regard to the importation of 

 animals from Russia into Austria, the next point that came up for con- 

 sideration was the nature of the conditions that the several governments 

 should impose upon themselves toward doing their share to prevent the 

 introduction or spread of the disease; and the measures concluded on as 

 most essential were : first, the immediate slaughtering of all animals that 

 had come in contact with the plague, as also of those which might be 

 considered as under suspicion of having the disease, in consequence of 

 the influences to which they had been exposed, this being accompanied 

 by a proper comi)ensation to the owners ; secondly, the burial of the 

 dead bodies of all animals affected with the plague, without attempting to 

 utilize them in any way whatever ; thirdly, the utilization of the flesh of 

 sound animals killed under suspicion, but proved after death to have 

 been healthy, this to be permitted only under special conditions rigor- 

 ously determined ; fourtlily, the destruction of the germs of the conta- 

 gion wherever they can be found, in the slaughter-houses, on harness, 

 in pastures, in r.ailway trains, «fec., as also the disinfection of all objects 

 with which they have been brought in contact; fifthly, isolation, as 

 complete as possible, of the places where the plague has been found to 

 exist, so that no animal believed to be capable of carrying the contagion 

 or of receiving it shall be allowed to enter the iufected districts, this 

 isolation to be put in practice on larms and all other localities, and t» 

 be of greater or less extent, according to the extension of the disease ; 

 sixthly, the establishment around the places in which the isolation has 

 been ordered, and which have been declared infected, of a zone where 

 the movements of cattle are forbidden, as well as all commerce in any- 

 thing that may serve as a vehicle of the contagion, such as fodder, dung, 



