The Outbreak of Cattle-Plague. 
237 
was of course a very difficult thing in this country to control the movements 
of individuals, but he thought it would be seen it is the only way in which 
foreign Governments have stamped out the disease, and wo have now sufli- 
cient evidence to warrant us in adopting the same course. We may thus be 
saved from the great scourge which ten years ago cost his own county 
hundreds of thousands of pounds, whereas a few thousand pounds spent by 
the Government might free us from the plague. He begged to move 
"That a deputation wait upon the Lord President of the l'rivy Council 
to lay before them the views of the Council." 
Colonel KlNGSCOTE, C.B., M.P., in supporting the views of the previous 
speakers, said it was with the greatest regret that the Council found them- 
selves compelled to go on discussing this dreadful cattle-plague. No words 
of his could add to the gravity of the situation, for he certainly considered 
that the outbreak at Willesden was one of the gravest things which had 
happened for a long time. Only last evening he elicited from Lord Sandon, 
in the House of Commons, the fact that the owner of the diseased cattle at 
Willesden suspected an outbreak of the disease as early as the 3rd of April. 
The local inspector took three days to make up his mind, and the outbreak 
was not reported to the Privy Council until one o'clock on Saturday the 
7th of April. Contagion may or may not have been spread to any part of 
England in consequence. Therefore, he thought it would be seen how im- 
portant it was that the Government should take the matter into their own 
hands, even if an Act of Parliament should be required for the purpose. We 
are told that contagion is conveyed even by milk-cans. Then, again, cans 
sire sent up from the country and back again, and are just as likely to cany 
the disease as anything else; even dogs and cats should be stopped from 
going in or out of an infected district. If Government did not take the 
matter in their own hands, he for one dreaded the consequences. Lord 
Sandon had given notice to move for a Committee to inquire into the out- 
hreak ; but what could a Committee tell us that we did not know already ? 
If they wanted a Committee to tell us how it came here, that was another 
thing. He could not see that the Committee would do the slightest good in 
the world. What was the use of waiting until the Committee had reported, 
.probably about the end of July '? He had great pleasure in seconding the 
motion that a deputation wait upon the Duke of Richmond and Gordon. 
Mr. Ridley, M.P., hoped that the Government did not intend by this 
Committee to shelve immediate action. He could imagine that there is some 
desire on the part of the Government to find a loophole with regard to the 
Importation of live stock into this country ; but what they had to impress 
upon them was to deal with a different subject altogether. He was sure that 
every gentleman present was agreed that, with regard to the Home Counties 
certainly, the Government ought to take the matter into their own hands. 
Let them submit to his Grace that while the Council welcomed the Com- 
mittee in the hopes that it might do some good, they strongly urged the 
Government to supplement the action of the local authority. The deputation 
might supplement the report of the Committee by suggesting that sheep 
should be included in the order. 
Mr. Egerton's motion was then unanimously agreed to. 
On the motion of Colonel KlNGSCOTE, the following noble- 
men and gentlemen were appointed to form the deputation : — 
Lord Skelmersdale (President) ; Sir A. K. Macdonald, Bart. ; 
the Hon. W. Egerton, M.P. ; Mr. Aylmer ; Mr. Booth ; Mr. 
Bowly ; Mr. Dent ; Mr. Brandreth Gibbs ; Mr. Charles Howard ; 
Colonel Kingscote, M.P. ; Mr. Macintosh ; Mr. Leeds ; Mr. 
