370 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



In 1902 it will be seen by the above table that, compared 

 with the previous year, there is a decrease of 8 in the actual 

 number of cases killed. The total number of cases on record 

 is 1,027, — an increase over 1901 of 119 cases. A larger 

 number of cases have been investigated that have not been 

 killed than in the previous year ; this is chiefly due to the 

 amount of mallein used, a great many horses having been 

 tested in stables where glanders has occurred. 



In dealing with glanders, it seems to be much easier to 

 eradicate it in the smaller cities and towns and in the 

 sparsely settled rural districts than in the larger cities and 

 their surroundings. In the former places, the watering 

 troughs are closed, the blacksmiths urged to whitewash their 

 shops, and any diseased horses killed, their stables disin- 

 fected and suspicious ones kept under observation. But in 

 larger cities, such as Boston, Worcester and Fall River, it is 

 ever-present, and these places serve as centres of infection, 

 to keep the disease from disappearing entirely in surround- 

 ing cities and towns. 



In Worcester and Fall River the horses among which 

 glanders is found are largely owned by the foreign popula- 

 tion, and are kept in small stables or barns, which are very 

 hard to thoroughly disinfect. The lack of understanding 

 on the part of these owners of the seriousness of the matter 

 is another factor that has to be contended with. As these 

 cases are spread over the entire city, it seems that the water- 

 ing troughs must have a large share of the blame for the 

 spreading of the disease. 



In Taunton there has been an outbreak of small size that 

 is interesting, as showing the probable influence of the pub- 

 lic waterino: troughs. 



It was found that a grocer on one side of a square in 

 which there was a public Avatering fountain had a horse 

 killed shortly before, because it had glanders. On the op- 

 posite side was another grocer, with two horses that proved 

 to have glanders. The history of these three grocery horses 

 shows that they had glanders for some weeks, and had been 

 allowed to go to this fountain at will. Six of the 8 horses 

 credited to Taunton (including the grocery horses) and 1 



