LOUP^NG-ILL. 571 



turned to the College, tins system was carried out. One of the 

 ticked sheep died on 10th May and another on 12th." ^ 



On May 13 ten sheep, out of eleven obtained from Mr. Skir- 

 ving, were sent from Edinburgh to Leithen Hall, as I supposed 

 the ticks would now be more numerous. They safely arrived, 

 were muzzled in the usual way, and remained there until the 

 21st, when they returned apparently healthy. 



The student, Mr. Morgan Williams, who accompanied these 

 sheep, wrote to me as follows : — " The sheep were all muzzled, 

 and examined for seven days, but owing to the early season this 

 year very few ticks were found on the farms, neither were there 

 any sheep affected with louping-ill during the above period. 

 Out of the ten sheep two only were found with ticks on, and, 

 as far as could be seen, there were only three ticks on each. 

 Nothing abnormal was detected on these from the time they 

 came under my charge until they were brought back to the 

 College. Mr. Hamilton informed me that fewer of their sheep 

 were infested this season with ticks, and consequently fewer 

 were affected with louping-ill ; that they were all dipped this 

 season, as recommended by Professor Williams. He also in- 

 formed me that a top-dressing of salt, 10 cwt. to the acre, 

 gratuitously supplied by Mr. Thompson, Y.S., Aspatria, was 

 applied to one park, which had been previously badly infested 

 with ticks ; but since the application of the salt the sheep cannot 

 be kept away from the dressed park. But Mr. Hamilton could 

 not inform me whether this dressing had made any difference as 

 regards the ticks, because, as above stated, the sheep were dipped, 

 and they did not find any on the sheep after the application (dip), 

 irrespective of the part of the farm the sheep were grazed on." 



On their return to the College, 21st May, these ten sheep 

 were carefully examined, but no ticks could be found upon any 

 of them. They were carefully watched, and their temperatures 

 taken daily until 27th May, when four, including the one re- 

 tained at the College, were inoculated with cultivation material 

 from the spinal canal of the ticked sheep which had died on 

 the 12th. The cultivation material was filled with the well- 

 developed organism. One of these sheep died on May 29, 

 having presented very acute symptoms, which we supposed 

 were due to some septic blood-poisoning ; but on making a 

 post-mortem examination, the condition of the spinal cord and 



1 Report by Mr. R. Moir, M.R.C.V.S., who kindly took charge of the sheep. 



