16 



Table sliowing proportion of registered dogs in Victoria to 

 population: — 



DlSCL'SSIOJs-. 



Professor Tate said there was something incompatible in 

 the existence of the disease in the South-East, with the 

 large quantities of water there, and he would rather have 

 expected that it would be found most frequently in the North, 

 where the people for the most part got their water from dams, 

 and towards the Wimmera District. He was also disposed to 

 doubt the localization of the disease by the statistics which 

 had been given, and was rather disposed to think that the 

 reputation of Dr. Jackson, formerly of Mount Gambier Hos- 

 pital, had something to do with the disproportionate number of 

 cases that had been attributed to the South-East. In fact, he 

 thought the Mount Gambier Hospital had drained large dis- 

 tricts of Victoria of hydatid cases. Those acquainted with 

 Mount Gambier knew that the water was always running under- 

 ground and near the surface, sothat it could not be permanently 

 contaminated by dogs, and the water used for domestic purposes 

 was for the most part obtained from wells, the swamp water 

 being rarely used. Then the statistics showed that women and 

 children died from this disease in about the same proportion as- 

 the men, who might be supposed io run greater danger on 

 account of their vocations, clearly indicating that the disease 

 was generated near the homes. For his own part he was dis- 

 posed to think that the disease was largely communicated by 

 means of the uncooked vegetables so generally used in salads. 

 More evidence shoukl be obtained on the point whetlier water 

 was the chief means of conveying the Taenia Echinococcus into 



