478 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



of Animal Industry relating to Texas fever are an addi- 

 tional safeguard. The cars having cattle from localities 

 V7here Texas fever exists are placarded ; that is, a placard 

 is tacked upon them, stating that the cattle are from 

 quarantine districts, and that they cannot be yarded in pens 

 used for northern cattle, or driven over runways or roads 

 upon which northern cattle are likely to be driven. These 

 regulations have had the eifect of reducing the danger to 

 Massachusetts cattle from Texas fever very much, com- 

 pared to several years ago. 



Rabies. 



Very few cases of rabies have been reported to the Cattle 

 Commission during the last year. Rabbits were inoculated 

 with material from the brains of three dogs, sent in during 

 the autumn of 1899, which did not develop any symptoms 

 of rabies at the expiration of three months after the 

 beginning of last year; these three dogs, therefore, were 

 not rabid. 



The head of a dog owned in Newton was sent in January 

 8. The dog had bitten two children, and was killed ; it was 

 thouffht advisable to be sure that he was not rabid. A 

 rabbit and guinea pig inoculated January 9 were still 

 healthy April 28 ; the dog, therefore, was free from this 

 disease. 



There were but two other cases of supposed rabies re- 

 ported, and neither of these was verified by inoculating 

 rabbits or guinea pigs. One was reported from Fall River, 

 the other from Weston. It does not seem improbable now 

 that the Weston case may have been one of rabies, as, at 

 the time of preparing this report, an outbreak of rabies was 

 reported among dogs in Watertown, Waltham and Belmont, 

 The Cattle Commission hoped rabies had been practically 

 eradicated from among the dogs in this Commonwealth, as 

 such an interval had elapsed since the occurrence of an 

 authentic case. The last one which was proved to have 

 been true rabies was in March, 1899. It is, therefore, a 

 disappointment to hear of the new outbreak to which we 

 have just alluded. 



