A STUDY OF SALT SICK CATTLE. 
989 
ment, or from irritating fibrous grasses and we may have stupor 
or convulsions. 
In this condition we often find the spleen wasted away and 
dried up, due to the animal’s starving condition, not being able 
to assimilate properly the food taken. 
These are the conditions found in cattle upon the sickly 
ranges of South Florida. 
The change of affected animals to new ranges or pastures is 
both preventive and curative in effect. Alimentary correctives 
and tonics are suggested as counteracting these conditions. The 
use of lime water, gentian and iron salts, have proven invariably 
beneficial. The question has often been asked—can this con¬ 
dition be prevented ? I will say after a close observation and 
study of this condition that it can be to a large extent—“ An 
ounce of prevention is worth many a pound of cure in this case.” 
In the first place see that the animal has a change of feed ; often 
the change from the sand hills to the low lands will give the 
animal a new lease of life. 
In some sections of the State the stockmen have brought the 
chemicals from the low lands, in the shape of the heavy clay, to 
their stock at home, and given it to them in their drinking water 
or placed it in troughs so that they could help themselves. Now 
these seem to be on the right track, as in these sections there is a 
deficiency of lime. 
Lime is a natural constituent of the animal textures, but 
being present in most articles of food, extra supplies are seldom 
required. But on the sand hills of Florida there is a great de¬ 
ficiency of the lime salts. 
The Need of Lime in Agriculture.—A large amount of the 
agricultural failures in Florida, the small yield, the perishable 
nature of stuff raised, its breaking down on the road and arrival 
in market in bad order, are due to the absence of mineral mat¬ 
ters, especially lime, in the majority of our soils. 
All vegetables, fruits and grains contain an important portion 
of lime when reduced to ashes. Yet what do we find in our 
Florida soils ? Several years ago our Experiment Station 
