THE EXTERMINATION OF THE CATTLE TICK. 
397 
L,et me explain what I mean by disease in this instance. I 
not only include the paroxysm of fever that an animal may 
have, but the changed condition of its system, which permits it 
to raise the ticks with impunity. In this sense a perfectly 
healthy cow for all other purposes might contain blood which at 
any time would disease others under proper conditions. All 
blood for this purpose must be considered in a pathologic condi¬ 
tion ; it is altered from the normal. There is then, so far as is 
yet known, nothing in the climate or soil of the so-called per¬ 
manently infected country which may lead us to believe it so. 
Both history and experiment indicate the contrary. In the 
16th, 17th and 18th centuries this country was colonized by two 
classes of people, who brought their cattle with them. You well 
know that the Spanish colonized the West Indies, Florida, Mex¬ 
ico, Texas, New Mexico and California, and the North European 
nations the thirteen colonies. The Spanish endeavored to push 
northward along the Atlantic coast or, at least, to hold the 
southward advancing pioneers in check. Until the cattle of the 
Spanish began to mingle with those of the English to the north 
those of the latter prospered and multiplied. After that cattle 
died from tick fever and have continued to die in numbers pro¬ 
portional to the movement and number of cattle involved. This 
occurred as early as, if not earlier than the 18th century. I 
believe that Carolina cattle were infected from Florida or Cuban 
cattle. Virginia cattle were certainly infected by Carolina cattle 
and also, I believe, by cattle introduced by coastwise traders, who 
traded in barter, between Cuba and other West Indian Islands and 
Maine. The disease had become so prevalent in your State by 
1750 that special legislation directed against it was necessary. 
This legislation has been re-enacted and revised at intervals un¬ 
til the law of the last session of the legislature. 
As the Spanish cattle spread over Texas, and when the great 
markets of the North in about 1840, or even before, began to re¬ 
quire beef, the Texans were driven over trails northward and 
spread disease along their route. The disease from these centres 
slowly spread unhindered by law or man until it was checked by 
