38 The Lung Plague of Cattle. 



Yvart, estimating for infected herds only, stated the 

 losses in Ave;yron, Cantal and Lozere at 30, 40, 50, 68, 

 and even 77 per cent., the average being at least 35 per 

 cent. 



Gamgee secured records of 88 dairies in the city of 

 Edinburgh for the year 1861-2 and found that with an 

 average holding of 1830 the plague cut of 1075 or over 58 

 per cent. The yearly loss was £14,512 ($70,000). The 

 actual losses in Dublin and other large cities were found 

 to correspond, those of London alone being estimated at 

 £80,000. The losses for the British Isles, computed from 

 agricultural statistics, the records of insurance com- 

 j)auies, etc., were close upon £2,000,000 ($10,000,000) per 

 annum. 



Finlay Dunn shows from the English Cattle Insurauee 

 Co.'s statistics that from 1863 to 1866 the losses from this 

 plague were 50 to 63 per cent, per annum. 



In Holland Sauberg records a yearly loss of 49,661 

 head, while in Wurtenberg it amounted to 39 per cent. 



Mr. Lindley's observations in South Africa show that 

 in that hot, dry climate the disease was most virulent even 

 in cattle kept in the open air, and it was no uncommon 

 thing for entire herds of several hundreds to be carried 

 off by the pestilence. This is precisely in keeping with 

 what we see in the hot summers of New York ; the dis- 

 ease at this season becomes unusually violent, all cases 

 are acute and run a rapid and often fatal course and it is 

 not uncommon to see a whole herd swept off without ex- 

 ception. This is a fact of supreme importance in view of 

 the continued neglect of the plague in the more southern 

 of our infected States. Should it be allowed to spread 

 ffiTther south and west where the semitropical summers 

 v^^iil increase its severity and death rate, we shall have 

 ourselves to blame for the results, and can no longer plead 

 excuse on the ground of ignorance. 



