DISEASES AND REMEDIES. 495 



— also in Lexington. It proved to be pleuro-pneumonia, and its 

 origin was directly traced to a dealer, and from the sale of cattle 

 by him, to eight different herds. The appropriation ($1,000) 

 was soon exhausted, consequently the Commissioners resigned. 



"The selectmen of several towns were called upon to execute 

 the law, which they (some of them at least,) reluctantly did, yet 

 the disease still prevailed. Accordingly the present board of 

 Commissioners was appointed in April, 1864. 



"It was found that several herds were affected, and that the 

 origin of the disease was in Lexington, or that immediate vicinity. 

 Seventy-four cattle were killed during the year. 



"In 1865, but three herds were found affected with the disease, 

 from which four animals were killed. 



"The Legislature in its last session, in a proviso to the resolve, 

 allowing the sum of twenty thousand dollars to the use of the 

 Commissioners, require them to make investigation and report 

 upon the curability of the disease. 



"No cases of the disease having come before the board the 

 past year, ihey were of course unable to comply with the request, 

 and can only refer, for information on this subject, to the report 

 of last year, on the experiments made by the Commissioners 

 during the years of 1864 and 1865. 



"The uniform course of the present board has been to isolate 

 all herds they have found aft'ected with the disease, and such 

 other cattle as had in any way been exposed to diseased herds, 

 to kill such as they were satisfied had the disease to that extent, 

 as to make them useless to the owners, and, in hut few instances, 

 only such. The result of our action contrasts favorably with that 

 of Great Britain, in the management heretofore of contagious 

 diseases among cattle. 



"In Great Britain, during the past two years, public attention 

 has been diverted from pleuro-pneumonia. to the more terrible 

 disease, rinderpest. 



