( '-'-^ 



128 



THE ILLINOIS F^HMEH. 



(lard's auction." It has been rcinarkcd before 

 that C. Stoddard reserved nine cattle for himself 

 after the auction — probably the most valuable. 

 Yet, when the Commissioners came to visit his 

 herd in the Spring, they were all condemned as 

 diseased, and, in the last one of the oxen killed, 

 was found a cyst as large as a man's fist — both 

 lungs being alike affected. A portion of one of 

 the iuncs is in my possession, with its cyst and 

 contents and will be alluded to again in another 

 connection. 



The spread of the disease from Leonard Stod- 

 dard's was, if possible, more tragical still. lie 

 kept six or eight oxen which he employed in 

 teaming. He was drawing some lumber, and 

 stopped over night at Mr. Needham's. Need- 

 ham lost his whole herd. Eight or ten died, 

 seven or eight more condemned by the Commis- 

 sioners, and all finally destroyed, in consequence 

 of that one night's stay in his barn of the death- 

 bearing team of Stoddard. To quote from the 

 testimony of Amasa Walker, Esq., one of the 

 Commissioners, in regard to the further spread 

 of the disease: "Mr. Stoddard sold an animal 

 to Mr. Woodis. lie had twenty-three fine cows. 

 It ruined his herd utterly. Seven or eight ani- 

 mals died before the Commissioners got there. 

 Mr. L. Stoddard sold a yoke of rattle to Mr. 

 Olmstcad, one of his neighbors, who had a very 

 good herd of cattle. They stayed only five 

 days in his hands, when they were pa.ssed over 

 ,to Mr. Doane. In those five days they had so 

 infected his herd that it was one of the most se- 

 vere instances of the disease that we have had. 

 The cattle that were passed through Mr. 01m- 

 stead to Doane, were lent to go to the moving of 

 a building from Oakham to North Brookfield. 

 They were put in with twenty-two yoke of cattle 

 and employed a day and a half. It has proved 

 since, that every one of these cattlo took tho 

 contagion. They belonged to eleven different 

 herds, and each one of these has formed a new 

 focus for the spread of the disease." * * * 



"Fortunately this flying pestilence alighted 

 on the spot in tho Union best prepared to stamp 

 it under foot and bury it out of sight. I leave 

 it to imagination to suggest the consequences, if 

 this disease, instead of being set down among 

 the small and enclosed farms in Ma.ssachusetts, 

 had broke out among the vast and ever moving 

 herds that cloud the broad prairies of our Strawns 

 and Dunlaps, our Browns and Alexanders ! 



NATURE OF TUB DISEASE. 



My belief in regard to the essential nature of 

 tho disease may be summed up as follows : 



1. That it is a general fever, of peculiarly 

 subacute nature (asthenic), with a usual tenden- 

 cy to localization in tho lungs, by tho same law 

 of disease under which other general fevers lo- 

 calize themselves as the disease progresses. 



2. That it is propagated — according to tlm 

 lest present light we have — by a contagion as 

 distinct as that of small pox, measles, or scarlet 

 fever; with its regular laws of propagation and 

 incubation, and that it would have its own sclf- 

 lirait, like the above diseases, but for its pul- 

 monic complications. 



3. That distasc of the lungs, although so com- 

 monly found as to constitute the rule, is not 

 necessarily present, but that cases may occur of 

 a fatal character before the stage of the disease 

 is reached in which the lungs begin to suffer, as 

 many cases of scarlatina or small-pox are, under 

 tho same circumstances. 



THE SYMPTOMS. 



The symptoms of the disease called Pleuro- 

 pneumonia, are as follows : 



If the animal is at pasture it will be found 

 getting apart from the rest of tho herd ; there 

 will be a disinclination on the j)art of the ani- 

 mal to stand on its feet, or if compelled to be on 

 its feet, stands in a leaning attitude, with an 

 arched back and stiffened appearance. When 

 urged to move, it will do so for short distances 

 only, and walks with a staggering gait. Dur- 



ing the middle of tho day the animal appears in 

 better condition, eats more frecl}', and moves 

 about veith greater ease. At this period tho 

 pulse is oppressed, and with less than its usual 

 frequency. The appetite is commonly, but not 

 invariably, poor ; rumination is suspended ; the 

 bowels become costive, and, during tho earlier 

 days of tho disease, tho surface appears cold ; 

 and the skin shrinks and becomes tight over 

 the ribs, and if pressure is made on the spine 

 the animal flinches, as if in pain. In a more ad- 

 vanced stage of the disease, the pulse increases 

 in freciuency and volume, the heat of the body 

 is irregularly distributed, the breathing becomes 

 labored, and, in milch cows, tho secretion of 

 milk is diminished or suspended. At a stage 

 yet more advanced the cough makes its appear- 

 ance, the animal drools at the mouth, protrudes 

 its head forward, as if to draw its breath easier, 

 the eye loses its lustre, and exudes from the 

 lids a viscous matter, which quickly dries into a 

 crust. If, at this time, the ear is applied to the 

 sides of the chest, there will usually be found, 

 on one side or tho other, an absence of the soft 

 breezy murmur that healthy respiration gives 

 to tho car. There will sometimes bo heard a 

 hard blowing sound, occasionally an unusual 

 rattle, and sometimes no sound whatever. — 

 These several sounds indicate that either the 

 air passages are narrowed by disease, or that 

 the air gurgles through deposits of corrupted 

 matter, or else the lung has solidified and of 

 course become wholly useless. In a case thus 

 far advanced, there is probably no remedy, and 

 death is the only result. :(: * * 



ITS TREATMENT. 



With regard to the treatment of tho disease, 

 when it has once made its appearance, it may ho 

 summed in brief .space. The isolation of tM 

 diseascdfroin thesoutul sh&iild he instant and com- 

 plele. No fact is more universally conceded 

 among all scientific men than that the intensity 

 of any contagious emanation is in direct ratio to 

 the multiplication of numbers from which it pro- 

 ceeds ; or, to reduce the idea to illustration, if a 

 herd of cattle should bo invaded, and the infect- 

 ed removed at once, the prospect for saving two- 

 thirds is better than the pro.spect of saving one- 

 third would be if allowed to associate together 

 without restriction. If kept together, the con- 

 tagious matter becomes intensified, and is ren- 

 dered so strong as to break over the constitu- 

 tional power of resistance even in the most ro- 

 bust animals. 



Should the disease ever invade the cattle 

 herds of Illinois, (which Heaven avert !) every 

 considerable farm, or every neighborhood should 

 have its isolating enclosure, in some unfrequen- 

 ted situation, to which diseased animals should 

 bo removed on the very first symptoms of dis- 

 ease. Even in those thus diseased and isolated, 

 I am satisfied, from all the testimony, that the 

 mortality could bo so materially reduced as to 

 convert, what has been in some other countries 

 a wasting scourge, into an ordinary disease, sub- 

 missive to easy remedy. * * * 



The principles of medical treatment that have 

 been adopted are closely similar to those used 

 in the treatment of what is supposed a kindred 

 disease — the pneumonia of the human subject. 

 Bleeding, mild cathartics, and counter-irritation, 

 by means of large mustard seed applications to 

 the chest, are most especially alluded to adopted 

 in such cases as have been subjected to any 

 treatment. ****** 



Notwithstanding tho necessity for all proper 

 restrictive measures, it is still to be hoped that 

 the proposal to exclude cattle from our ensuing 

 State and County Fairs will meet with no favor. 

 The danger is yet a remote one, and not likely 

 to be increased by such gatherings; at least not 

 to a degree to warrant us in robbing thein of 

 their chief element of interest. 



OUR CANADIAN VISITORS. 



THEIR EXOURSION TITROUajT THE NORTS- 

 WEST. 



A large delegation of our Canadian neigh- 

 bors have spent a few days among us, of which 

 we propose to give some account, having trav- 

 eled with them for some days in sight seeing. 



Our readers will recollect that during the 

 very unfavorable season of 1858, the Hon. J. 

 Caird, of Edinburgh, spent some weeks in our 

 State, and on his return wrote a series of letters 

 in relation to the country, more especially as to 

 the value of the lands of the Illinois Central R. 

 R. Company, which were at that time attracting 

 no small attention among British and Canadian 

 farmers. This book met with a most bitter and 

 untruthful review by a prominent Canadian, 

 and has been the means of preventing a large 

 emigration to our State. This review was ably 

 answered in several of tho Canadian papers, but 

 its malignity was not bo easily wiped out. 



To counteract this poison, and to show that 

 the statements of Mr. Caird were truthful, tho 

 Illinois Central and other western roads issued 

 cards of invitation to prominent men, those 

 whoso judgment and discretion would be able 

 to see things as they are, and in whom the 



great mass of the people would place the most 

 implicit reliance. These gentlemen arrived in 

 Chicago on Tuesday evening, the 24th of July, 

 and at 6:30 a.m., of Wednesday left on the reg- 

 ular train, over the Chicago Branch of I. C. R. 

 R. to Loda,a thriving young town, some 80 miles 



south of Chicago. Here they wero taken by 

 teams, volunteered by tho citizens, to the coun- 

 try, and shown tho capacity of the land for 

 cropping. On their return they were served 

 with a splendid dinner, gotten up by the ladies 

 of Lodi. 



They then proceeded south to"" Champaign, 

 (late West Urbanna,) and three and a half miles 

 south of that point, whistled down the brakes, 

 and we stepped on board and met a warm wel- 

 come. It was then near sunset, and another 

 train due, which prevented, as had been con- 

 templated, A general examination of our farm 

 and nursery grounds. Lewis Ellsworth, Presi- 

 dent of our State Agricultural Society, Hon. H. 

 C. John, Ex-President, and II. Van Epps, Vice 

 President, had come from Jacksonville on the 

 G. W. R. R., to meet them at Loda, but tho 

 train not connecting they had spent the day 

 with us, and went on board of the train at the 

 same time. The details of the arrangement and 

 the comforts of the guests were in charge of J. 

 B. Austin, of the Land Department, and most 

 faithfully and ably did he meet all the require- 

 ments on him, of which we shall speak here- 

 after. 



The names of the party now on board, and 

 which constituted the company are as follows : 



Geo. W. Snyder, Editor IngersoU Chronicle, 0. W. 



Wm. Elliott, Barrister, London, and Solicitor to Bank of 

 British North America, C. W. 



T. W. Lawford, Barrister, formerly an extensive land own- 

 er in England, C. W. 



Wm. Boulton, Agriculturist, Toronto, 0. W. 



N. Coones, London, Q. W. 



W. W. Dean, Barrister, Bellevillft, 0. W. 



Wm. Dlvinry, Commission Merchant, London, 0. W. 



Geo. II. Dennison, Merchant, London, 0. W. 



Chaa. Hunt, London, 0. W., Corn Merchant. 



John Bell, London, C. W., Merchant. 



Alex. Graham, London, C. W., Engineer. 



Jas. Barbour, Justice of the Peace, and an extensive Agri- 

 culturist. 



H. B. Bostwlck, Toronto, C. W., correspondent of London 

 Prototype and Quebec Chronicle. 



N. Jarrett, Delaware, 0. W., extensive agriculturist. 



John Lowe, Editor Montreal Gazette. 



Wm. Anderson, London, C. W., extensive Agriculturist. 



W. K. Blxon, London, Produce Merchant. 



Col. Dennlson, Toronto, Treasurer Board of Agriculture. 



J. B. Strathy, Collector Customs, London. 



Sheriff Corbett & Son, of Kingston. 



Sheriff Glass, of London. 



Sheriff Smith, of CoUingwood. 



