1919 .] 
New Zealand Institute Science Congress. 
259 
of Stock were well-trained men, who by the development of the faculty of close obser¬ 
vation were expert in detecting disease and abnormal conditions. 
Veterinarians and Inspectors of Stock made a point of supplying information to 
stockowners as to the nature and causes of the scheduled diseases, particularly of 
methods necessary to prevent their introduction to farms, or their dissemination when 
they had gamed entrance. Advice was also given in regard to diseases such as con¬ 
tagious abortion, contagious mastitis, and parasitic diseases. Lectures on animal 
health and disease were delivered by the Veterinarians and Inspectors of Stock at 
suitable centres, and thus much practical information was conveyed to farmers. It 
was believed that further development of the Department’s work in connection with 
disease-control would be even more of an educational nature, repressive measures being 
still carried out where necessary. 
Control of disease was markedly aided by the work done at the Veterinary Labora¬ 
tory at Wallacevilie, the institution being in charge of a fully qualified bacteriologist 
and pathologist, with skilled assistants. The main features of the laboratory activities 
were research and investigation, examination of disease-specimens and samples of 
milk, also the preparation of vaccines. 
Among specific cases of disease-control work carried out by the Department were 
the following: Anthrax was reported in 1895, and was traced to imported bone 
manure. Regulations were made in 1905 compelling the sterilization of this fertilizer 
at its country of origin before shipment. It was ascertained that all bone manure had 
been imported from Australia and India, and Inspectors were appointed by the New 
Zealand Government at Sydney and Calcutta, their duties involving the supervision 
of the sterilizing process, the issue of licenses to bone-mills to export to New Zealand, 
and issue of certificates of proper sterilization for each consignment. Following these 
regulations, the last case of anthrax occurred in 1909. Swine-fever (hog-cholera) was 
first noticed in 1895. Affected and contact pigs were slaughtered, buildings were 
destroyed, and land on which pigs were running was closed for months, the owners 
being compensated by the State. The last outbreak occurred in 1902. It was never 
ascertained how the disease entered the Dominion. Symptomatic anthrax (blackleg) 
was confined to the Province of Taranaki and a considerable portion of the Auckland 
Province. The affected areas were gazetted, and no cattle under eighteen months could 
be sent from those areas unless they had first been inoculated by a Government officer, 
and branded with a special gazetted brand. Government officers inoculated all calves in 
those areas, the result being that the mortality from that disease had been reduced to 
a minimum, but owing to the vitality of the bacillus in the soil the disease would not 
be stamped out for many years at least. For the year ended 31st March last, 226,100 
doses of vaccine were issued for inoculation purposes in the affected areas. The total 
number of deaths from the disease during the year was only 333. The vaccine was 
prepared at the Wallaceville Laboratory. Bovine tuberculosis was not widely dis¬ 
seminated in New Zealand. The tuberculin test was largely used, but principally for 
diagnostic purposes, especially in dairy herds, though it was still, however, applied to 
complete herds on request. 
A criterion of the value of the results was afforded by the returns of disease dis¬ 
covered at the time of slaughter of cattle under inspection. The percentage of 
affected animals in each year between 1910 and 1*918 ranged between 6-62 and 7-46, the 
last year being 7T0. It might appear that the disease had only been held in check ; 
but that, was true only in a sense, seeing that the number of cattle in the Dominion 
had progressively increased from 1,773,326 in 1908 to 2,869,465 in 1918, and that 
closer settlement and improved farming had brought about a closer segregation of 
the animals, which might be looked upon as conducive to easier dissemination of 
tubercular infection. The fact that the percentage of affected cattle had not in¬ 
creased might be regarded as proof that the work of disease-control in that direction 
had attained some measure of success, especially as during the war the staff had been 
depleted. 
The present dominant position of animal husbandry in New Zealand emphasized 
the importance of a thorough system and methods of control of animal-disease on the 
part of the State, and experience had shown that stringent legislation for the purpose 
of giving effect to that could be effectively administered so long as all entrusted with 
the work acted with fairness, justice, and common-sense, and thereby secured the 
confideuce of stockowners, without which the object aimed at would be much more 
difficult of attainment. 
The Chairman congratulated Dr. Reakes on being appointed to the head of the 
Agricultural Department, and said that it was a good thing for the Dominion that it 
had such a satisfactory scientific outlook as far as animal-diseases were concerned. 
