62 CATTLE DISEASES 



" Your Committee have no hesitation in saying that any other 

 course of action would have been most ill advised, and they urge 

 upon all Societies who have not already done so the necessity 

 of passing similar resolutions, and thus showing a united front 

 against this attempt to throw an unreasonable burden upon 

 farmers. If such a warranty is given, it will open the door to 

 many fraudulent transactions, and any agriculturist giving such 

 a warranty may frequently have a claim made against him for 

 some carcase quite different to the one he originally sold. More- 

 over, the number of cases of seizure of tuberculous carcases is 

 so small, except among those of inferior quality, that butchers 

 doing a respectable trade can easily protect themselves against 

 loss by the payment of a very small insurance premium. Mr. 

 W. Coggan has stated that his losses would be amply covered by 

 a premium of twopence per head. 



"It is alleged that butchers are now subject to criminal 

 prosecution if diseased meat is found on their premises, and that 

 in some cases they have been subjected to great hardships in 

 this connection. This may, no doubt, be the case, but your 

 Committee submit that this aspect of the matter in no way 

 affects the question which we are now brought face to face with, 

 namely, the demand of a warranty from the farmer. Parlia- 

 ment will probably so amend the existing law as to remove this 

 specific and apparently well-founded grievance of the butchers, 

 and the Council would be willing to extend its sympathetic 

 co-operation in any such course ; but the question of the warranty, 

 to which your Committee object, would not be touched by such 

 action. 



" The farmer has to buy stock without any guarantee, and he 

 cannot be expected to commit himself by warranting an animal 

 free from disease when he has no means of knowing whether 

 that disease exists or not. 



" Some resolutions received by your Committee express 

 sympathy with the butchers in the possible losses they may 

 sustain through carcases being seized which have been purchased 

 in good faith, and suggest joining hands with the Meat Traders' 

 Federation in urging upon the Government the equity of public 

 funds paying for the protection of public health. Your Com- 

 mittee quite agree that when carcases are confiscated in the 

 public interest compensation ought to be paid out of national 

 funds, and they have, in fact, consistently urged this for many 

 years ; but they cannot recommend any attempt being made to 

 consider joint action in this direction, unless the butchers agree 

 to withdraw their demand pending a conference." 



The Federation proposed the Earl of Northbrook as an 

 independent Chairman of the conference, and the Central 

 Chamber expressed their satisfaction with this suggestion, 

 and invited some thirty other Associations to send repre- 



