57 
Analysis of Continental Journals. 
By George Fleming, M.R.C.V.S., Royal Engineers. 
CONTAGIOUS PLEURO-PNEUMONIA COMBATED IN THE 
NETHERLANDS BY OCCISION. 
M. E. Dele, Government Veterinary Surgeon at Antwerp, 
has, in a recent number of Annales ,referred to the Netherlands 
having organized a veterinary civil service flaw of January 1st, 
1871) and to the Government of that country undertaking 
the task of combating the contagious pleuro-pneumonia of 
cattle in an efficacious manner by slaughter. 
In a circular, dated December 25th, 1871, the Netherlands 
Government publishes the reasons which have induced it 
to have recourse to this measure, and the resnlts obtained by 
the application of the royal decree of December 4th, 1870. 
The occision of diseased cattle has met with numerous 
opponents in the Netherlands, and even in the Chambers of 
the States General. In the Chambers it has been alleged, 
that the Government, misled by the results obtained by 
slaughter in cattle plague, had foolishly applied this measure 
to pleuro-pneumonia, the contagiousness of which is doubtful, 
and which is a disease native to the country; inoculation, it 
was asserted, was preferable. 
The Government based its decree of slaughter chiefly on 
the almost unanimous declaration of the veterinary authorities 
attending the Zurich congress in 1867, to the effect that 
pleuro-pneumonia is propagated exclusively , in our climate, 
by contagion.* But occision will not he attended with any 
* In a note Professor Thiernesse, director of the ‘Annales ’ says : “The 
question of pleuro-pneumonia was not discussed at the Zurich Congress, 
for want of time, until towards the end, when it was limited to this prac¬ 
tical conclusion —‘In a sanitary police point of view, the epizootic, pleuro¬ 
pneumonia of cattle should he considered as only propagated by contagion. 
This conclusion, which I voted in favour of, certainly does not imply that 
‘ the almost unanimous declaration of the veterinary authorities collected 
in congress at Zurich in 1867, was to the effect that pleuro-pneumonia is 
propagated exclusively in our climate by contagion.’ I am opposed to this 
exclusive and, in my opinion, unjustifiable c declaration.’ ” 
Our experience in this country would go to prove that there is no other 
cause in operation in producing the diffusion of this bovine scourge than 
the presence of a contaginm, 
