784 OBSERVATIONS ON THE LUNG PLAGUE OF CATTLE. 
central controlling Federal authority that will grapple intelli¬ 
gently with the plague in every state, district and herd simul¬ 
taneously, and thus prevent its spread; or every state bordering 
on an infected one, or having maritime commercial relations 
with it, must impose a three months’ quarantine on all cattle 
from such infected state. The folly of the present system is 
stupendous, and the common markets for store and fat cattle 
from infected and healthy districts, the passage of animals from 
an infected state on a simple examination, and the threats of 
one class of officials of forcing upon their neighbours the stock 
from their infected territory, furnish a spectacle that is a dis¬ 
grace to the intelligence and science of the nineteenth century, 
and a travesty on all National Sanitation. 
Value of Fumigations with Sulphurous Acid. —As a dis¬ 
infectant for Lung Plague no better agent exists than sul¬ 
phurous acid, produced by burning flowers of sulphur in the 
contaminated building. But the value of this agent is perhaps 
even greater as a prophylactic agent, for cattle that have been 
exposed to the contagion. I shall quote but three illustrative 
cases, and refer the reader for further evidence to my f Report 9 
for 1879. 
Timothy Ryan, Ridgewood, L. I., kept on an average 25 
cows, and had lost 20 head within the year. The stables 
were so thoroughly saturated with infecting materials that 
our own inspectors and eminent veterinarians from a distance 
concluded that it would be impossible to disinfect the premises. 
The wooden flooring was replaced by new, a quantity of filth 
was removed from beneath, the soil was sprinkled with quick¬ 
lime, and the building whitewashed with chloride of lime. 
Whitewashing had been resorted to before, but with no good 
result. On June 15th, 1879, he commenced fumigating the 
cows twice daily with sulphurous acid, and although he had some 
fresh and susceptible cows in the stable, not one more contracted 
the plague. 
Patrick Green, West Farms, New York Co., entered infected 
premises in April, and by July had lost by the plague twelve out 
of a herd of thirty-two head. After the sickness appeared the 
cattle were kept at pasture to avoid the infected buildings and 
secure pure air, but, as the plague continued, I now directed him 
to turn the herd into the buildings for half an hour twice a day, 
and make them breathe as much sulphur smoke as they could 
bear without violent coughing. From that time not one more 
case of the plague developed. 
James Cowan, Yonkers, in April, 1879, bought a cow from 
Hog Hill, which infected his herd. By July 12th he had lost 
eight out of a herd of twenty- three, notwithstanding that 
