194 
THE PRESENT EPIDEMIC AMONG CATTLE. 
two townships, near here, where not a single case has appeared 
for a long time. The farmers in these parts determined not to 
buy any fresh stock until the disease had subsided, and so far 
they have been successful. 
3. Its first appearance was as I have before stated ; but it raged 
from the beginning of September to December. 
4. The state of the weather was the two extremes of dry and 
wet at intervals, but principally wet and foggy. 
5. By the strictest inquiry, I cannot find one dairy in which I 
am not able to trace the seeds to either a fresh cow, pig, or sheep, 
or the contact of servants, or the master himself having been in 
contact with diseased animals. In one large dairy, the owner 
took every precaution to keep his stock free; but it soon broke 
out amongst them, and twenty-four were affected in one or two 
days. He was quite astonished, and thought nothing could have 
carried the disease to his cattle ; but on my questioning the herds- 
man, he acknowledged he had several times visited and examined 
affected cattle in the neighbourhood. 
(j. As the public roads are very numerous in this district, and 
very much frequented by dealers in cattle, pigs, and sheep, 
between the northern and midland counties, for the supply of 
Manchester and other markets, and also from Ireland, nearly 
all the farmers, &c. are compelled to make use of these roads, 
and consequently did come in contact with infected animals. 
7. I have found in general, that the servants or other persons 
have come in contact with other neighbours’ infected stock, pre- 
vious to their own becoming diseased. 
8. I am of opinion that it is carried or communicated from 
one animal to another by contact, either actual, or conveyed by 
some intervening body in some shape or other, and not by at- 
mospheric influence ; for I have known many cows that have 
been bought, during the last eight months, from farmeis whose 
stock had not been affected, nor have been so since, yet these 
cows after being tied up in stalls where diseased ones had stood 
before, on the next morning had their feet affected, and on the 
next day their mouths, and in a day or two after this, the dis- 
ease was fully developed : yet the remainder of the stocks whence 
these cow's came have remained quite free yet, and which is more 
than four months ago. I also know several farmers who have 
not allowed any person connected with their cattle to go near 
the stock of another farmer where they knew the stock to be or 
to have been affected ; nor any other person to come amongst 
theirs, and certainly all who took such rigid precaution have 
escaped this pestilence. 
9. The earliest symptoms I observed were, a staring coat, with 
