TREATMENT OF CHOLERA 231 



posed dead animal bodies have for buzzards and crows as well as 

 other birds of prey. The buzzard, especially, is common in the 

 United States, and during cholera outbreaks in the Central West I 

 have seen flocks of them arising from cholera-infected farms which 

 would almost hide the sun from view, so large were their numbers. 



The buzzard, especially able to smell dead carcasses of any 

 kind, will come for miles and miles to perform his duties as scaven- 

 ger. The bird is provided with large and powerful claws, by means 

 of which he is enabled to tear the flesh of the animal from its bony 

 attachments, and it is by means of these same claws that he is 

 enabled to carry disease germs from one farm to another. 



If you leave a dead animal carcass exposed in your feed lots 

 or pastures for a few days you will soon find that there have gath- 

 ered a large flock of buzzards, which have in many cases come 

 directly from some district, perhaps a hundred miles away, where 

 there is an outbreak of hog-cholera. On their claws they carry the 

 infected blood and pieces of the diseased flesh of the last dead hog 

 carcass upon which they feasted. These they scatter about and 

 mix with tlie flesh from the dead horse or cow which lies in your 

 pasture. In this way the flesh from these carcasses which your 

 hogs may eat is thoroughly seasoned with hog-cholera virus, and 

 it is not long to wait for developments in the form of a severe out- 

 break of cholera, which will provide further feed for the hungry 

 buzzard. 



I observed an outbreak of cholera over in McDonough County, 

 Illinois, a few years ago which was undoubtedly brought about in 

 this manner. There had been for several weeks a severe outbreak 

 of cholera raging in the part of the state just south of this county. 

 No cholera had as yet appeared, however, in the locality which I 

 have in mind, and there were no cholera herds, so far as known, for 

 nearly twenty miles. 



One of the stockmen in this district had a herd of cows break 

 into a cane patch one Sunday afternoon, and before he could get 

 them out seven of the herd were so badly poisoned that they died 

 before a veterinarian could reach them. These dead animals 

 were left exposed in the field, as it was a very busy season of the 

 year, and the hogs on the farm were allowed to feed upon them. 

 Seven carcasses coming all in one bunch was a little more than the 



