174 
Report on Liver-Rot. 
this locality suffer so seriously, have also died or gone at a 
sacrifice ; a score that were nursed through the winter of 
1879-80 are now dying ; their livers evidently having been 
damaged twelve months ago, a new crop of parasites, taken 
up this summer, is speedily finishing them. Mr. James 
StoJics, of Branston Lodge, farms 300 acres, keeps 150 sheep, 
fully one-third being breeding ewes, worth anywhere 60s. each. 
In 1879 he lost six or eight ; now his death-roll, which dates 
from September, exceeds 40, and in spite of liberal careful 
treatment, it will get bigger. Sixteen of the best of his 87 hoggs 
were sent to keeping on better but wetter land ; these died first. 
On 44 acres, more porous and naturally drier, above his house, 
Mr. Stokes summered 44 ewes, which have as yet withstood 
the disease. 
South of Melton and Belvoir Vale, by Wissendine, Stable- 
ford, Pickwell, and Newbold, away towards Oakham, on the 
flooded pastures and tenacious soil, rot has been generally and 
fatally prevalent, both in 1879 and 1880. In many parishes 
scarcely a sheep is left ; on some farms a second flock, bought 
in to replace that which died, has been carried off. The cattle- 
beasts of all ages are doing indifferently ; a considerable number 
have died with numerous flukes in their livers ; and very few 
killed within the last six months are free from them. 
Nottingham has not suffered so severely or extensively as 
Leicestershire. Many of the large flocks on the red gravel and 
sandy land have escaped. The losses are greater towards 
Trent and around Worksop. Mr. J. Manners Sutton, Kelham, 
Newark, stated, however, that in his parish all the sheep died, 
or have been killed, with flukes. Around Nottingham it has 
spread considerably since the autumn of 1880. On the Duke 
of St. Albans' estate, Bestwood Park, although the land is light 
and tolerably dry, the losses have been serious. Mr. Henry 
Potter, of Bestwood, wrote that the disease was first seen 
in that locality about Christmas, 1879, amongst some ewes 
belonging to J. Oldham, which had been grazed in September 
at Bulwell on low land, regularly flooded by the River Lien. 
They shortly began to die, and not one escaped. They doubt- 
less took the disease from the flooded land. On the farm adjoin- 
ing, 50 Scotch lambs were on turnips, 33 were already dead, 
and the remainder in a sinking state. During their transit 
from fair to fair these Scotch sheep were probably run upon 
some unsound land, and brought the disease with them ; for 
although they are all doomed, the farmer's home-bred flock 
remains perfectly healthy. Mr. Potter continues that, dis- 
believing in the infectious nature of the complaint, he is 
sending his own sheep to the farm where the lambs are dying. 
