History of Animal Plagues. 301 



mioht happen to arrive on the coast. This happened about tea 

 days before the prohibition by the sheriff and admiral appeared. 

 For eio-ht davs after the Portsoy cattle were buried the inspectors 

 reported 'all the cattle well/ and the most sanguine hopes 

 were entertained that the contagion had entirely subsided ; 

 but, to the unutterable astonishment of everybody, intelligence 

 was brought to Cullen, on the 4th of April, that one of the | 

 cattle of my Lord Findlater's tenant at Dytach, situated at the 

 distance of about two English miles to the east of Cullen, three ^ 

 from Portsoy, and one without the line of circumvallation, was 

 dead, and four more very sick. A meeting of the justices was' 

 held next day at Portsoy, when information was received that 

 some cattle belonging to General Abercromby, of Glasshaugh, 

 were likewise bad. The justices resolved to make one vigorous 

 effort more to root out the infection, by ordering all the Dytach 

 cattle, and all those belonging to the General which were kept in 

 the same place with his sick cattle, to be immediately knocked j 

 on the head, and buried, like those at Portsoy. This resolution 

 was carefully executed on Saturday and Sunday se'nnight. The 

 justices at this meeting likewise resolved to enlarge the circle of 

 inspection, and accordingly appointed inspectors for all the 

 parishes of Cullen, Dcllford, and Fordyce, who were appointed 

 to visit and make report every day of the state of all the cattle 

 within these parishes, which comprise a circuit of eighteen English 

 miles at least. Hitherto no appearance of the infection had been 

 discerned, and people began again to flatter themselves with the 

 hopes that it is at last fundamentally rooted out. In the mean 

 time the vigilance of the justices and of the people in the country 

 is nowise relaxed. A report having prevailed here that the tenant of 

 Dytach intended to discharge some of his servants who had been 

 employed about his oxen, a positive prohibition was sent him 

 not to dismiss, before the expiry of a month, any of his servants, 

 and to keep them within the bounds of his own farm as much 

 as possible. In a word, every precaution has been used thatj 

 seemed in the least conducive to extirpate this very dangerous 

 distemper.^ The malady in consequence quickly disappeared.) 

 An Act received the Royal assent on the i6th of February, 1770,' 

 for indemnifying all persons with respect to advising or carrying 



