SERVICE RENDERED UNDER THE POULTRY DISEASE ELIMI- 

 NATION LAW. 



The operations of our work in the State up to the present time are conducted in a 

 way not greatly different from the method instituted when the work was first begun 

 in 1915. The program at that time was to locate and identify the infection in various 

 flocks. During the 1920-21 season blood serum from 24,718 birds was examined for 

 the indications of the specific agglutinins elaborated by Bacterium -pxdloruni. 



With the present laboratory workers and field assistants, and the inadequate funds, 

 it has been impossible to do much more than make a diagnosis, and the expression 

 "tested stock" has not necessarily meant that all birds on a poultry plant were free 

 from infection. It may mean that every breeding bird has been tested and all reac- 

 tors removed from the breeding pen, or it may be that the department has applied 

 the test at a given poultry plant and the poultryman holds a record that certain birds 

 have been tested. There are many instances where poultrymen have some breeding 

 birds tested and others not tested, which has led to great confusion between the labo- 

 ratory and field, and has consequently made great difficulties for us in assisting poul- 

 trymen toward the end of eUmination of the disease. 



Work under the poultry disease elimination law cannot be on an entirely sound 

 basis until such time as the difficulties above described are eliminated. Plainly, the 

 law in question requires such form of organization as will enable us to practically 

 get rid of certain diseases in the poultry flocks of the State. In the forthcoming year, 

 therefore, service under this law wiU be given only on the condition that the recipi- 

 ents of the service agree to comply with certain rules and regulations designed to fur- 

 ther the work of eUmination, and agree, furthermore, to refrain from using the fact 

 of the test for advertising purposes until such time as their flocks can be certified as 

 being practically free from contagious white diarrhoea. 



ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE POULTRY DISEASE ELIMINATION 

 LAW DURING THE SEASON ENDING NOV. 30, 1921. 



During the season 1920-21, 24,718 breeding birds have been examined by the 

 macroscopic agglutination test. The following tables ^vill show the geographical 

 distribution of the various breeds tested, the geographical distribution of the infec- 

 tion as determined by the 1920-21 testing work, and the distribution of infection 

 among various breeds, together with the classification of the sizes of flocks tested, 

 and a table showing the number of flocks having certain limits of infection : — 



