REPORT. 



To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives. 



The Board of Cattle Commissioners herewith presents its 

 annual report, as required by section 3, chapter 90 of the 

 Revised Laws. 



The Massachusetts Cattle Commission is among the more 

 venerable of the many commissions of the Commonwealth ; 

 its establishment antedates the civil war and the various 

 commissions and organizations that sprung into existence 

 since that time. 



The first Cattle Commission was appointed for the pur- 

 pose of eradicating contagious pleuro-pneumonia among 

 cattle, April (3, 18(>0, its members being Paoli Lathrop, 

 Amasa Walker and Richard S. Fay. Two weeks later 

 Richard S. Fay resigned and Dr. George B. Loring was 

 appointed in his place. An extra session of the Legislature 

 was culled, May 30, 18G0, for further legislation, which re- 

 sulted in increasing the membership of the Board to five 

 members for the time being. Contagious pleuro-pneumonia 

 was introduced into Massachusetts by W. W. Chenery of 

 Belmont, who imported two cows from Holland in June, 

 1859, which were suffering from this disease. As a result 

 of sales from this herd, the disease was carried to Worcester 

 County and also later appeared along the south shore. One 

 of the final reports of the Cattle Commission with reference 

 to stamping out contagious pleuro-pneumonia is dated Dec. 

 28, I860, is signed by E. F. Thayer, Charles P. Preston and 

 F. D. Lincoln, and shows the expense to the Commonwealth 

 to have been $67,511.08. The final report, Dec. 30, 18(37, 

 says no new cases have occurred during the year. 



Contagious pleuro-pneumonia was first brought into the 

 United States in 1843, by a cow that was owned by a sea 

 captain, and landed from the ship at Brooklyn, N. Y., 



