AUSTRALIA 57 



The best of these bulls are largely purchased for America, 

 where they are used with success, for grazing purposes, and 

 Americans would not use them, with the experience they have 

 had, if they did not pay them. 



The Zebu -Shorthorn cross is immune from tick fever and tick- 

 conveyed diseases, and some interesting information on the 

 subject was recently contributed by Mr. A. Despeissis to the 

 Department of Agriculture in Western Australia. He said : — 



" I was collecting information regarding the purchase and 

 shipment to this State of heavy milking Maltese goats, and 

 while discussing the matter of ' Maltese fever,' which these 

 animals are likely to carry, some interesting experiments, con- 

 sisting of crossing Zebu cattle (Bos indicus), popularly known 

 as ' Brahmans,' with ordinary cattle, were brought to my 

 notice. The object of these experiments was to ascertain 

 whether Zebus themselves or their crosses are immune from 

 ' tick fever,' or ' piroplasmosis,' which is very severe in portions 

 of Algeria. 



" The fact which suggested the experiments was that Mada- 

 gascar, a French colony heavily stocked with humped-back 

 cattle (a strain of Zebu), was free from tick fever, although the 

 tick insects themselves abound there ; moreover, in the South 

 African colonies where the humped-back cattle are not bred, 

 European cattle are severely affected jby ' red water.' 



" One permanent remedy, however, now seems to be sug- 

 gested as the result of the experiments referred to, i.e. the 

 infusion of Zebu blood into ordinary cattle subject to infection. 

 The attention of a landed proprietor near Bona having some 

 years ago been drawn to the fact that a couple of Zebus he 

 possessed and their crosses were always in good condition, 

 whilst the cattle around suffered greatly or died from the 

 attacks of cattle ticks, led to a careful investigation being made, 

 with the result that it was found that Zebus and their crosses 

 are not so susceptible to the attacks of cattle ticks, and 

 although the micro-parasites of the blood may occasionally be 

 seen on microscopical examination, no ill-effects follow. 



" The secretion from the sebaceous glands of their skin has 

 a peculiar odour, which seems repugnant to insect life. The 

 hide, though it may be as thin as in European breeds of cattle, 



