348 
J. D. HOPKINS. 
The Live Stock Commission of Illinois are making every effort to 
discover what animal introduced the disease. But the lapse of 
time since its introduction, the constant change in ownership of 
horses, and perhaps the interested motives of those engaged in 
horse traffic, renders it difficult to place the responsibility where 
it belongs. 
There is a black Percheron stallion at Clinton, Ill., imported 
in 1882, and at present owned by Joseph Fisher. Last year 
this horse was suffering with maladie dn coit, and was bought by 
his present owner for $300. Mr. Fisher has witnessed this dis¬ 
ease in the u old country,” and under his treatment the horse 
apparently convalesced, and this spring was advertised to stand 
for service, and was actually serving mares, although still suffer¬ 
ing with the disease, when by order of the Live Stock Commis¬ 
sion he was compelled to retire his horse into quarantine. This 
animal, when imported, was branded “ D N ” on the left side of 
the neck, and is believed by many to be the animal that brought 
the disease into this country. 
It is not the custom in Illinois to brand their imported stal¬ 
lions, and we know that in Austria and Prussia (Fleming’s Sani¬ 
tary Science, vol. ii.) it is the custom to brand all stallions affected 
with maladie du coit, on the neck, so as to prevent their use as 
sires. If the Fisher stallion brought the disease from Europe in 
1882, why is it that the disease received no attention until 1885 ? 
A careful examination into the peculiarities of maladie du 
coit shows that a horse suffering with this disease may make an 
apparent recovery, and on returning to the stud have a recur¬ 
rence of the malady brought on by excessive copulation. This 
may explain the lapse of time. 
It is also claimed by some creditable horsemen of De Witt 
County, Ill, that the plague was brought from Texas. It appears 
that in 1885 a large number of mares were brought from Texas 
and stinted to the Percheron horses, and shortly afterwards the 
disease appeared among the stallions who served the mares. 
After much inquiring into this rumor, I am obliged to state that 
1 don’t believe it has any foundation in fact. 
The first accounts we have in veterinary literature of maladie 
