THE CATTLE-PLAGUE. 
247 
and an animal which, to all appearance is perfectly healthy when 
put on board of a vessel, may show the disease on the way, or 
after debarkation. 
It has always been claimed, and the commission holds, that 
the disease does not exist west of the Alleghanies. The British 
inspectors claim, however, that they have been able to trace the 
disease to herds of cattle from the west. Either they are mis¬ 
taken or the commission is, and one of the pieces of work 
which the latter has set before itself is to determine definitely 
the exact truth of the matter. To this end it has decided to 
make a searching investigation among the herds of the west, 
paying particular attention to the swill, dairy, and distillery 
cattle, among which it most probably exists, if at all. Until 
that is done, no man can speak with authority sufficient to 
justify Great Britain in removing the embargo on western 
cattle. 
The commission has devised a system of registration and num¬ 
bering by which, if the English authorities will lend their co-oper¬ 
ation, it will be possible to trace every animal landed upon British 
soil to the American farm on which it was fattened. Whether 
or not this co-operation can be secured will be known in a few days. 
The commission has ordered the preparation of a circular to 
be sent to the governors of states, secretaries of agricultural soc¬ 
ieties, and the general public, setting forth the danger of the traffic 
in eastern dairy calves. It is among these and these only that the 
disease is believed to generate. They are cooped up and crowded 
together, and fed on slops, and the disease is known to exist 
all along the coast from New York to Washington, and is grad¬ 
ually being carried by contagion into the interior. The west 
has thus far escaped it, because the only cattle heretofore 
brought from the east were of the finer breeds, which were more 
carefully kept and were not affected. Last year, however, a large 
trade in these dairy-farm calves sprung up, no less than 40,000 of 
them having been sent to various western points through Chicago 
alone. It is the danger of contamination from this source to 
which the commission proposes to call attention. 
It will also make a searching investigation into the sanitary 
