History of Animal Plagues. 399 



also morlnno, has extended to the district of Borgo Taro, on the 

 borders of Parmegiano and Fiaccntino. Should there be ob- 

 served at anytime the slightest sign of lameness, or if the disease 

 should manifest itself along with this symptom, it may be the 

 more readily recognized by a swelling which soon spreads, and 

 in the middle of which is discovered a tumour the size of a nut, 

 soft to the touch, and disappears on pressure;' On the 29th of 

 March, 1759, there is mention of its presence. 'A joint notice 

 has been given to every town and village in the Valley of Telina, 

 and latterly the district of Tirano, that there has manifested 

 itself a disease similar to that of 1732, and which consists in 

 vesicles or ulcers above and below the tono-ue of the cattle, and 

 which maladv is named cancro volante (or flying cancer), be- 

 cause of the velocity with which it travels from one rejiion to 

 another. Should it appear, with the help of Providence it may 

 be made to pass lightly by ; for if not able to prevent its attacks, 

 we may at least, by judicious treatment, cure that which, if 

 neglected, would produce the most sinister effects.' ^ 



The reindeer in Lapland appear to have suffered from a kind 

 of aphthous disease in the feet. ' The reindeer have at this time 

 (July) suffered from a disease which is called ''Slubbo,'' and 

 which showed itself during the whole summer, but not so gen- 

 erally. The feet become enlarged, swollen, and suppurate. The 

 disease is not in itself very deadly, but it is dangerous, inasmuch 

 as the animals are so lame that they cannot escape from the 

 destructive claws of the wolves.'^ 



But at this time, another more deadly pestilence appears t(^ 

 have decimated the herds of these most useful animals, and 

 which there can be no doubt was the Cattle Plague, trausmitted 

 from the bovine to the cervine species, as that contagion was 

 then raging in Sweden and Norway. The coincidence of the 

 two diseases — ekzcmatous fever and Cattle Plao;ue — as we will 

 see hereafter, has been often observed. Among the Lapps, the 

 Plague was named ' Radok tauta' or ' Radok mainc.' It spread 

 over the whole south-western portion of the country, and caused 

 such havoc, that many of the people, who jireviously were very 



' Botlaiii. (Jp. cit., vol. iii. p. 12— 14. 

 ' Weglius. Abhandl. der Schwed. Akad., vol. xi. p. 226. 



