EDITORIAL OBSERVATIONS. 
533 
The risk attending the exhibition of our unequalled flocks 
and herds, and porcine races, at the various and largely 
increasing meetings of agricultural societies, always great, 
will become fearfully augmented if monopoly is to take the 
place of public duty, and if exhibitors are to be without any 
certainty as to the time of the arrival of the animals at their 
destination. 
It requires but little acquaintance with the proceedings of 
such meetings to see that the success or failure of them must 
mainly depend on the facilities given by the railway companies, 
and we trust that the agricultural community will spare no 
effort to bring the directors to a sense of their neglected duty. 
Nor is it less important that the departure of the stock 
should be better provided for, and that animals, which indi¬ 
vidually are worth hundreds of pounds, should not be left, as 
at present, for hours at a time, waiting in the vicinity of the 
station, deprived of food and rest, before being despatched 
homewards. Experience proves to us that these evils are 
greatly increasing, and consequently it behoves us to give 
free expression to our sentiments on them, as on other things 
which belong to the conservation of the health of our domes¬ 
ticated animals. 
The old adage of prevention being better than cure, belongs 
especially to the science of medicine; and the veterinary 
surgeon knows by sad experience that the most fatal diseases 
among his patients are often to be traced to fatigue and over¬ 
excitement, and especially when these causes are applied to 
animals in a plethoric habit of body, such as those which 
are brought together for public exhibition. 
As a profession, we are also deeply interested in the success 
of agricultural associations, as they are rapidly leading to 
improved stock being kept by farmers throughout the country, 
who, under these altered circumstances, will give more heed to 
the health and well-being of their cattle, and hesitate to send 
less frequently then they now do, for the village cow-leach on 
the occurrence of disease. Besides, there are few of these 
societies which do not publicly recognise the value of our pro¬ 
fession by appointing veterinary surgeons as inspectors at their 
70 
XXXII. 
