No. 4.] CATTLE COMMISSIONERS' REPORT. 417 



of slaughter for food and milk purposes, and without taking 

 into consideration the existence of such diseases, if the animal 

 has been within the State six months continuously prior to its 

 being killed." 



Again, sections 17 to 22 of the law of 1894, which have been 

 fully discussed previously in this report, provide for the inspec- 

 tion of animals which are slaughtered for food. In the case of 

 these inspections, the existence of the disease is pronounced 

 only upon a post-mortem examination of the carcass after death 

 by the local inspectors. If the carcass is found to be tubercu- 

 lous, it is immediately destroyed by the inspector without this 

 Board's examining such carcass to pronounce upon the exist- 

 ence of the disease. AYhile this Board does not, therefore, act 

 directly in the matter, it is true, of course, that the matter of 

 these inspections is conducted under the general supervision of 

 the Board, and in such manner as this Board directs. The 

 owner of all such carcasses destroyed receives no payment from 

 the State for them, although the animal may have been within 

 the State six months prior to its being killed, although it may 

 have been born and bred here, and although the owner may 

 have exercised every precaution and taken every step reasona- 

 ble and proper to ascertain the existence of the disease. Under 

 this section of the act this Board has received the reports of the 

 destruction of two hundred and fifty carcasses as tuberculous. 

 This number is not a fair criterion at all of the number of such 

 carcasses throughout the State, for the reason that the returns 

 of such inspections to the office are very imperfect ; but the 

 comparatively small number of such carcasses destroyed leads 

 the commission to feel that the result of the passage of this por- 

 tion of the act has been satisfactory, and that those persons who' 

 previously have been in the habit of slaughtering tuberculous 

 cattle and selling the meat from the same have been obliged tO' 

 abandon this business. 



This act does not permit the payment for cattle destroyed by 

 order of this commission unless the animal has been within the 

 State six months continuously prior to its being killed. Under 

 this provision the commission have required that before the 

 payment for any such animal should be approved the owner 

 should make oath to the fact of such six months' residence. 

 The form of this oath will be found appended as a part of Form 

 for killing tuberculous cattle. 



