580 
PECULIAR VIEWS FROM A HIGH OFFICIAL. 
should be empowered to muzzle their charges when they deemed 
it expedient to do so in order to prevent them from disgracing 
the office they have the honor to occupy, and to prevent them 
from undoing work that has taken years to accomplish. 
We are not surprised at Major Henry E. Alvord giving utter¬ 
ance to the statements in the enclosed article, for we presume 
the poor man knows no better, but we are surprised that such 
ideas could originate in the brain of a man holding the position 
of Chief of the Dairy Division of the U. S. Bureau of Animal 
Industry. 
This worthy gentleman, in support of his theory or ideas, 
quotes some European authority. We ask you, Mr. Editor, 
what would be the condition of the stock industry in the United 
States at the present day if we had followed the teachings of 
European authorities at the time pleuro-pneumonia contagiosa 
broke out in our Eastern States ? If we adopt similar methods 
for the suppression and eradication of tuberculosis as we did for 
the eradication of pleuro-pneumonia, we shall eventually gain 
control of this devastating plague, but if we follow the teach¬ 
ings of European authorities in regard to tuberculosis we will 
meet no better success than they have done with pleuro-pneu¬ 
monia contagiosa. 
He speaks of isolating diseased cows and keeping them for 
the sole purpose of giving birth annually to a calf. This may 
be all very well on a breeding ranch, but when applied to a 
dairy we fail to see where the profit comes in by keeping an old 
shellback cow for the sole purpose of giving birth annually to a 
calf that at its best is only worth a few dollars. 
Acting on this theory, supposing all tuberculous cows on a 
dairy are quarantined, how can the health authorities convince 
the public that unscrupulous persons will not utilize the pro¬ 
ducts of the isolated animals? 
To the intelligent mind the whole matter is preposterous, 
but coming at this particular time when the ignorant and un¬ 
scrupulous are zealously seeking for obstacles to cast in the road 
of sanitary reform it becomes at once a serious proposition. 
Respectfully, 
Drs. Pierce and Archibald. 
Major Henry E. Alvord, Chief of the Dairy Division of the Bureau of Animal Indus¬ 
try of the Department of Agriculture, held an informal conference with the health author¬ 
ities yesterday on the subject of tuberculous cattle. There were present Bacteriologist 
Spencer, Professor Wenzell, chemist of the Board of Health ; Dr. Morse, Health Officer 
Lovelace, Professor E. J. Wickson of the University of California, F. C. de Long, of the 
California State Board of Agriculture, and Attorney J. B. Reinstein. 
