188 
Report Oil the Trade in Animals. 
of the last thirty years has shown that periodical outbreaks of 
the disease in its epizootic form have occasionally occurred. At 
no time was the disease more rife than in 1839-40, or nearly 
three years previously to foreign cattle being allowed to be im- 
ported. In that outbreak, cattle, sheep, and pigs, and also the 
gallinaceous tribe of fowls, suffered equally from the disease as 
during its recent occurrence." 
In the Report of the Governors for 1870 it is stated * that 
" the year 1870 has witnessed one of the most remarkable out- 
breaks of the mouth-and-foot disease on record ; and, at the 
time we write, the disease, although much diminished in many 
parts of Great Britain and Ireland, is far from being extermi- 
nated by the sanitary regulations of ' The Contagious Diseases 
(Animals) Act, 1869."' t 
Unfortunately there are no published statistics which show 
definitely the magnitude of this outbreak of foot-and-mouth 
disease ; but it is stated in the Report of the Veterinary Depart- 
ment of the Privy Council for 1871, that since the passing of 
- 'The Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act, 1869,' up to the end 
of 1871, the department had "received information of 92,162 
outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease, in which 1,344,625 animals 
were attacked. Of these only 1'136 per cent, died, "327 per 
cent, were killed, and 98 537 per cent, recovered." The Report 
does not state whether reliable returns had been received from 
all counties during the whole of the period indicated ; but 
assuming this to be the case, I shall be able to indicate (though 
necessarily by means of particular instances, which are therefore 
not logically conclusive) the cumulative force of the disease by 
its subsequent further extension, and its greater virulence at least 
in some districts. Table I., annexed, shows the progress of the 
disease in Great Britain during 1871. Deducting the 50,577 
animals attacked, but not reported as killed, died, or recovered 
at the end of the year (equal to rather more than the returns of 
animals affected during the previous fortnight), and adding a 
fortnight's returns at the rate prevailing at the commencement 
pf the year (that is to say, between 12,000 and 13,000), the 
percentage of deaths and slaughtered animals to the number 
attacked is 1*21, or somewhat less than that stated in the Report 
of the department, already quoted. 
More recent returns from Cheshire and the West Riding of 
Yorkshire (Tables II, and III.) show that although the number 
of animals attacked decreased at the end of 1871 and beginning 
* Op. cit., Second Series, vol. vii. part II., p. 450. 
t The same Eeport contains the following sentence : — " The regulations of 
' The Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act ' are operating very Leueficially in 
keeping in check the spread of pleuro-pneumonia." 
