488 EEPOET OF THE BUEEAtJ OF ANIMAL ESTDUSTEY. 



mainly in the four counties of Worth, Mitchell, Cerro Gordo, and Floyd, especially 

 along the Shellrock River. 



The farms I visited were all in Cerro Gordo County, about 10 miles southeast 

 from Mason City. The first place was Gus. Seidel's farm, where no hogs were found, 

 the last of a herd of about 50 head having died last October. The nearest place to 

 this farm where sick hogs were said to be, was about half a mile distant and owned 

 by A. R. Stilson. Found no signs of disease among his hogs; but during the pre- 

 vious month he had lost 25 head of various ages, all under a year old. Found one 

 dead hog behind a straw stack. It had died about thirty-six hours previously, and 

 was frozen stiff. It was about eight months old. The bottles sent to you, num- 

 bered 1, 2, and 3, contained portions of left and right lung, and the spleen, all of 

 which were as hard as a rock when they were removed from the animal and put 

 into the bottles. 



Mr. Stilson believed that this would be the last hog he would lose, as the disease 

 seemed to be disappearing all around. He said the animals would first appear 

 dumpish and lose their appetite, but remained very thirsty. There was not much 

 coughing. Soon more or less diarrhea would appear, and they would die after about 

 three days' illness. Last winter he lost about the same number of swine with 

 similar symptoms prevailing. During the spring and summer of 188G there was no 

 such disease prevailing in this locality. The animals were well kept and cared for, 

 were not crowded, ran in the straw-yard, were well housed, and there were no wet 

 grounds around, as the country around here is high and undulating. The hogs on this 

 place had access to drinking water which was running from a spring beginning on 

 the farm, at the edge of the pasture, along which it runs a short distance and then 

 leaves this man's land. The spring comes direct from the rock. Never lost hogs 

 before the winter of 1885-'86. Had bought no hogs at all for one year before dis- 

 ease appeared, and then (two years ago) bought only a boar from Owen Dennison's 

 farm, north of Mason City, who Stilson says has lost no hogs, from disease. Stilson 

 feeds his hogs on corn exclusively, except in summer, when they subsist on pastur- 

 age alone, after "which they get green corn until fattened. 



About the first place where hogs were lost in this neighborhood was on the farm 

 of the before-mentioned Gus. Seidel, distant one-half to three-fourths of a mile from 

 the farm of A. R. Stilson. Seidel is said by some to have lost hogs right along from 

 last spring until October, when the last one of an original herd of about 50 head 

 died. The next neighbor of Seidel is F. Bailey, and the hogs of the former could 

 have access to or come in contact with those of the latter. Thus F. Bailey lost 

 during the fall of 1886, 7 or 8 hogs; but has had no more losses since the month of 

 December last. Bailey's farm lies between Seidel's and Stilson's; and Stilson thinks 

 his hogs may have been in contact with Bailey's hogs. From Stilson the disease 

 went to his next neighbor, T. P. Stanberry's hogs, thence to the latter's neighbor, 

 Rial Barney. Stanberry lost about 14 hogs this winter, and says that he has had no 

 disease or further losses lately, or since he began feeding his hogs on oats. The hogs 

 kept in this neighborhood are mainly Poland-China and red hogs, mixed breeding. 

 After careful inquiry I could not learn of any place where there were any sick 

 hogs; so I have seen none but dead ones. 



There is a soap factory at Mason City, to which dead hogs are gathered from all 

 sources ; and the contents of the bottles sent to you, and numbered successively 

 after the first three ones sent, were from hogs opened by me at the said soap factory, 

 which is owned by J. E. Tandro. A hard frost having prevailed, the carcasses were 

 all well preserved and stiff. In this factory I counted some 70 dead hogs piled up. In 

 none of these could I detect any discoloration of the skin. Here were hogs of all 

 ages, from about three months to over a year old, and some piggy ones amongst 

 them. In one part of this place I saw piled up the entrails of more than 100 hogs. 

 In none of these, after careful examination, could I find signs of inflammation or 

 ulceration of the intestinal or digestive organs ; nothing beyond congestion. The 

 kidneys seemed all right. In some, one lung seemed more affected than its mate ; 

 but in all, the lungs and spleen appeared like the specimens sent to you. The liver 

 seemed more or less congested or inflamed in the whole lot examined. 



The owner of the soap factory keeps a number of hogs running around his prem- 

 ises. He says he feeds them, on nothing but the offal or entrails from the dead hogs 

 collected, except what they can pick up in the neighborhood. He also says that he 

 never lost any of his hogs by this kind of feeding. It seems there is a prejudice in 

 the locality against using soap manufactured from hogs that have died from hog 

 cholera ; and he probably keeps these hogs thus for the purpose of convincing peo- 

 ple that since they do not die from this feeding material, or running around the 

 carcasses of the diseased hogs, these collected hogs could not have died from hog 

 cholera. But it may be doubtful whether any of the said hogs die, since they could 

 easily be disposed of on the same premises without the knowledge of outsiders. 



