CHAPTER XI 

 STATE HYGIENE 



SECTION I.— INFECTIOUS AND CONTAGIOUS 

 DISEASES. 



LEGISLATION. 



The story of legislation in Great Britain against infectious 

 and contagious animal diseases, is one which inspires very 

 little enthusiasm in the student of history. From begin- 

 ning to end it is marred by that barrier to all progress — 

 viz. ignorant public opinion. It is one long fight between 

 either conservative ignorance or official incompetence. Even 

 now this has not entirely changed, and the Ministers of 

 to-day hesitate and doubt in much the same way as they 

 did forty years ago, not because they have any reasonable 

 doubt in their minds as to the right course to pursue, but 

 because of the probable political effect of their legislation. 



The invasion of England by Cattle Plague, from which 

 may date our modern system of legislation for epizootic 

 diseases, need never have occurred had the Ministry been 

 guided by the advice of a veterinary surgeon who was half 

 a century in advance of his day — viz. John Gamgee. He 

 foresaw and foretold what must happen unless the importa- 

 tion of hve stock was forbidden from the Continent of 

 Europe, where Cattle Plague was then rampant. A deaf 

 ear was turned to this advice, because the representatives 

 of the import cattle trade were too powerful, in spite of the 

 fact that legislative enactments existed without asking any 

 further powers from Parliament. 



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