JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
July 7, 1881. ] 
21 
similar that even the best-informed veterinary professors fre¬ 
quently make a serious mistake in characterising these com¬ 
plaints. The consequences of such mistakes under the present 
rules and regulations as to the latter, as issued by the Privy 
Council, are often disastrous to the farmers and others engaged 
in the sale and purchase of sheep. It is no uncommon thing 
for the local authorities in certain districts under the report of the 
veterinary to prevent the movement of stock and declare a dis¬ 
trict infected with foot-and-mouth disease, when there are strong 
reasons for believing that the sheep were merely suffering from 
foot rot aggravated, as it often is, by internal fever, and showing 
not only lameness in the feet, but also similar affections in the 
mouth to that which is observed in the foot-and-mouth disease. 
In our practice and management of sheep we have seen these 
aggravated and fever symptoms of foot rot in the animals many 
years before the great outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 1839 
and 1840, at which time the sheep stock as well as cattle suf¬ 
fered more or less in every district of the kingdom. It was so 
general that the farmers in selecting their sheep for breeding, 
both ewes and rams, had but little choice without breeding 
from infected animals, and thus it has become unfortunately 
hereditary. It has therefore now for many years been difficult 
to avoid breeding from animals suffering from lameness or tainted 
through constitutional or blood diseases ; nor must the home 
farmer be misled by the disappearance of the disease or defect 
during one or two generations, for not only does it appear again 
with all its pristine force in consequence of constitutional or 
hereditary peculiarities, but also by the action of the atmosphere 
and the nature and condition of soils whereon the animals are 
bred and fed. 
So far back as the year 1826 we never could obtain the Dorset 
and Somerset horned sheep direct from their native counties with¬ 
out their being attacked with foot rot on their arrival upon the 
farm for lambing and winter feeding. In our endeavour to avoid 
this we for some years kept no sheep at all between the 1st of May 
and the 1st of October ; but it made no difference, for never in 
any instance did these kind of sheep remain free from lameness 
beyond a fortnight after entry on the farm, thus showing that the 
foot rot—not only appearing in the foot, but also attended with 
fever—had become hereditary in this sort of sheep, although the 
symptoms varied greatly in some seasons. At that period, and 
before the great outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 1839 
and 1840, we always considered that in buying Hampshire Downs, 
South Downs, and other breeds from various counties, except the 
south-western, that we were safe against foot rot attacks, unless 
the stock were brought into contact with flocks infected with that 
complaint. 
Let us contrast that period with the present time, and who 
can say that we are safe from lameness, call it what we will, 
either “ foot rot ” or constitutional and hereditary foot-and-mouth 
disease, appearing in our flocks of sheep? Nor is it confined 
to any particular breed or district, as it was principally before 
1839, showing, in our opinion beyond dispute, that the lameness 
in sheep, with all its varied accompanying symptoms, is quite 
beyond our control as regards the outbreak, but on its appealance 
the symptoms may not only be mitigated, but so far cured as to 
be enabled to feed or fatten both sheep and lambs with profit. 
We now proceed to explain, through our experience and the 
experiments of others, the mode and management necessary to 
avoid the extraordinary disasters which we have known to occur 
under neglect and in the absence of precautionary treatment. 
At the same time we shall take care to allude to the new remedies 
lately advised for use. The precautionary treatment to which we 
refer consists not only in feeding the stock on the driest soils 
during the winter months, but also of using known effectual 
remedies at the earliest appearance of the disease, and at the same 
time to regard the necessity of removal and absolute separation 
of those animals under treatment from the sound and healthy 
portion of the flock. Epizootic foot rot or murrain consists in 
inflammation of the skin connected with the hoof, the formation 
of blisters upon the heels and between the digits, which in three 
or four days break and expose deep red inflamed and tender sur¬ 
faces ; these for a short time discharge a thin serous fluid, in a few 
days ulcers begin to form, and the discharge of a white offensive 
matter commences. The two fore feet are those generally affected, 
frequently, however, extending to the hinder ones, especially when 
neglected. In cases of epizootic foot rot no time must be lost in 
applying a remedy, for the ulcerative stage having commenced the 
groundwork of a disease may be laid that will often require weeks 
or even months to remove. As soon as the sheep appear lame 
our old plan was to immediately remove those animals attacked 
to a dry and clean situation, and after cleansing the foot from 
all dirt to apply with a piece of tow a lotion composed of two 
drams of blue vitriol dissolved in a pint of water, keeping the 
tow in position by twisting one end into yarn and tying it round 
the foot. This remedy is safe, but the sheep should be examined 
daily, dressing the feet of those attacked immediately. 
Where it is not convenient to separate the stock, especially in 
the case of ewes and lambs whilst folded upon Turnips on arable 
land, we have a catch coop always made ready in the field, to 
which the flock may be driven daily, and receive there the atten¬ 
tion required. By this plan of daily attention and treatment we 
have kept under control the most formidable and difficult cases, 
and for a long series of years have never suffered a loss of &d. 
per head on the flock. In some obstinate cases we have found 
under the most strict and continuous attention that the inflamma¬ 
tion will spread under the hoof, suppuration ensuing, in which 
case the undermined part of the hoof should be carefully removed 
by a sharp hook-shaped knife, with a strong but narrow blade, 
and the vitriolic lotion applied. In case of blood flowing the 
application must be deferred for an hour or two, and the animals 
after the feet have been dressed should be allowed to stand quietly 
in a pen well littered with dry straw for several hours, because if 
they are turned out immediately on the dirty ground the dressing 
will prove ineffectual. 
(To be continued.) 
WORK ON THE HOME FARM. 
Horse Labour .—Some horses will still be required in connection 
with mowing the grass, carting and stacking the hay. Nearly all 
the fallow land intended for roots has now been seeded, for al¬ 
though there are many acres of land to be seeded with common 
Turnips, yet these principally consist of fields which are or have 
been under green crops, such as Trifolium, Vetches. Such crops, 
where grown on the sandy loam or mixed soils, are nearly sure to 
leave a portion of Couch grass after them. If, however, it does not 
amount to more than a bunch here and there it need not hinder the 
ploughing and seeding immediately ; for in case our old system is 
adopted of setting the women to fork out the tufts of Couch either 
before ploughing or after they show up when the land has been 
seeded, it will be easily got rid of. The importance of this plan is 
that the seed time is not delayed; and when the land is ploughed, 
worked down, and seeded the same day a season is secured, for let 
the weather be either very dry or very wet afterwards the best seed 
time has been obtained. The haying time, up to whilst we write, has 
been rather catching, which is very unfortunate considering that the 
crop, whether upon arable or pasture land, is one of the lightest we 
can ever remember. In the event, therefore, of the hay being stained 
and damaged by rain, it should be remembered that even if damaged 
by rain it is not so serious a matter as stacking whilst in a damp 
state, for nothing can retrieve such a mistake. We therefore recom¬ 
mend the home farmer to stack his hay dry without reference to the 
time he has to wait to obtain it in that condition ; for although it 
may be ever so seriously injured by rain, if at the time of stacking it 
is quite dry it will always be valuable fodder if spiced or flavoured 
with some of the articles of which there are many now offering by 
different parties. It is not our province, however, to recommend any 
vendor in particular, but we name Bowick & Co., Simpson’s, Myers’, 
Thorley’s and others. The home farmer has therefore only to use 
them as directed whilst building the rick of hay, and he may calcu¬ 
late upon an improved article which the cattle will eat readily, and 
will pay well for the cost and trouble of applying the spice. It is, 
too, very important as compared with the plan we formerly adopted 
of applying salt to damaged hay, which we must say we found com¬ 
paratively worthless to that treated with the flavouring materials of 
the present day. It is not only in the case of hay which has been 
injured by bad weather that we would apply the spices or flavouring 
materials, but we would also use them in stacking hay the produce 
of poor soils ; for in these we find but little nutriment, and therefore 
these spices, Ac., can be obtained and used for the purpose of im¬ 
proving the feeding value, as well as furnishing an agreeable aroma, 
enticing to the cattle. 
Hand Labour, both of men and women, will now be required in 
connection with the various kinds of work we have just alluded to ; 
but more especially in the cutting of grass and the making of hay in 
the irrigated meadows, where it is difficult to work machinery 
amongst the water-carriers and drawing-trenches. Planting Cab¬ 
bages, Kale, and Broccoli will still be required on the land as fast as 
ploughed after green crops, or the plants may be laid along the 
furrow and ploughed in, if care is taken to employ a trusty man to 
follow, whose business will be to release any plants buried entirely 
and to partially cover those which were not buried deep enough. 
Live Stock .—The sales of rams of the different breeds of sheep 
will soon begin, and the home farmer will have to select his male 
animals for breeding purposes, not only for sheep but for his dairy 
cattle also. We must here tell him that by his own intelligence, or 
through the experience of others, he has both the means and power 
of controlling and modifying the form of all the animals which he 
requires on the farm, because such modified forms can be handed 
down to the progeny. Being departures from the primitive or 
natural type, the form can only be maintained by assiduous attention 
