464 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



while the percentage is higher, yet it is close enough to con- 

 firm the averages for the year : — 



Jan. 1 to Dec. 23, 1897. 



Number of animals condemned and fomid dis- 

 eased, the autopsies being made at Brighton 

 or by reliable veterinarians, .... 3,590. 



General tuberculosis, 177, or 4.37 per cent. 



The law further provides, in section 29, chapter 491 of 

 the Acts of 1894, that " Every person, except the members 

 of the Board of Cattle Commissioners, who has knowledge 

 of, or has good reason to suspect the existence of, any con- 

 tagious disease among any species of domestic animal within 

 the limits of this Commonwealth, or that any domestic ani- 

 mal is affected with any such contagious disease, whether 

 such knowledge is obtained by personal examination or other- 

 wise, shall immediately give written notice thereof to the 

 board of health of the city or town where such diseased ani- 

 mal or animals are kept." 



During the early part of this year this section of the law 

 had an important bearing on the work of the Board ; for, 

 immediately on the granting of the appropriation for the 

 continuance of the work, the Board began to be deluged 

 with quarantine papers and letters from veterinarians and 

 others, reporting cattle that had reacted to the tuberculin 

 test applied by veterinarians in private practice. 



Under the law, the only thing to be done was either to 

 accept the veterinarian's test or to retest the herd ; this latter 

 was often found to be unsatisfactory, because of the frequent 

 failure of animals to react to a second test. The result was 

 that to a large extent the control of the appropriation was 

 taken out of the hands of the Board ; the money could not 

 be placed where, in the opinion of the Board, it would do 

 the most good, and they further realized that they had no 

 guarantee from the owners that an honest efi'ort would be 

 made by these owners to get rid of the disease. 



In doing voluntary request work and in testing entire 

 herds the Board had always insisted that the owner should 



