American Agriculturist 
THE FARM PAPER THAT PRINTS THE FARM NEWS 
“Agriculture is the Most Healthful, Most Useful and Most Noble Employment of Man.”— Washington 
Reg. U. S. Pat. Off. 
Established 1842 
Volume 113 
For the Week Ending June 14, 1924 
Number 24 
*e We Falling' Down With T ] 
What I Like and Dislike About Present Control Methods 
T O-DAY is Tuesday. I have just talked 
with a farmer who was just having his 
first TB test under the Accredited Herd 
plan. The federal ^veterinarian came to 
the farm while I was there and told the farmer 
that he was there to test his cows for TB. They 
went to the barn where the farmer watched the 
veterinarian as he injected the herd with tuber¬ 
culin for a test by the intradernal or tail method. 
After all were injected the farmer asked when 
he would return and he was told “next Friday,” 
and the federal men went. I asked the farmer why 
he had tested and what was the deciding factor. 
He informed me that he had had the herd tested 
about twelve years before and that there were no 
reactors then, that he had 
purchased but two or three 
heifers during that time 
and the herd sires. All of 
the calves had been raised 
on his own skim milk and 
that he had felt quite safe 
and clean. He had never 
wanted any diseased cows 
in the herd and at a farm 
bureau meeting last winter 
the county agent had 
spoken of the TB work 
going on in the county, 
and after the meeting he 
had signed the application 
for the accredited herd 
method of testing. A 
number of his neighbors 
signed at the same time 
and now all but two farms 
on that road are being 
tested. One of these men 
has about twelve scrub 
cows and the other about 
fifteen good grades. One, 
being a scrub man, objects 
to testing just as a matter 
of principle. The other 
objects because he does 
not see that there is any¬ 
thing to be gained financially. He says that he 
might loose his best producers and that rfo one 
will pay more for milk after he has a clean herd. 
Let us assume that this is a rather typical case 
even though there are more promising prospects 
of having a clean community than many localities. 
What is the exact situation here? In the first 
place the farmer mentioned above did not know 
anything about the tests and all he was interested 
in was being sure that he had a clean herd just as 
soon as possible. When I mentioned to the 
veterinarian that I liked the combination test of 
opthalmic and intradermal so as to be sure and 
get them all at the first if possible, he said that 
he had worked on “a government killing floor” for 
twelve years and had more faith in the intrader¬ 
mal test than any other. What did that prove? 
biniply that he had less faith in the subcutanious 
or temperature test than in the intradermal but it 
did not prove that a combination test was not 
better. It finally developed that the principle 
reason why the combination test was not used was 
because it took so much more time and that in 
order to get the cattle tested the first time it 
seemed necessary to make one test and then on 
By M. C. BOND 
the second test to make a check by the use of a 
combination. No time was taken to explain to 
the farmer anything of the disease, sanitation, 
disinfection, disposal of reactors, progress of the 
work, degree of infection in the community or 
county, or anything of the sort. Maybe that will 
come later but it must come if the work done is to 
be effective for this farmer although he is pro¬ 
gressive and reads quite a good deal, does not 
know much after all about this disease. There are 
many more in this community who know much 
less. 
This brings us to the second point of our an- 
* ' 
. W 1 : 1 ^ V ■ W 
. ' 
' * - .;iv ' , grog*« 
Columbia County, Pennsylvania, Guernsey breeders have become well known for their accredited herd work. 
This bunch of heifers is part of one of their shipments. Buyers from foreign countries have been attracted to 
that section of Pennsylvania for TB free cattle. The animals in the picture were from the herd of J. R. Miller 
alysis, i.e. scattered versus area testing. *The 
principle reason given for not being able to apply 
the combination test was that the work was to 
scattered to make any progress if a combination 
test was used. It seems that every reasonable 
indication points toward the advantage of the 
area work. Make the area as small as is neces¬ 
sary to start the work but include a few herds 
that are together and make it a unit and example 
of a clean up. There is no better way to create 
interest in a community than to tell them that 
they will get a test just as soon as they have a 
certain number or percentage of their dairymen 
signed up to test for TB. They will make it a 
project of community betterment, and there will 
be community pride and spirit and best of all— 
the men who do not read the farm papers 
will learn about the disease and the work of 
eradicating by the contact with the leaders 
that are trying to get the test for the com¬ 
munity. 
I have talked with some farmers and others 
who were interested who live in counties where 
there has been a great drive to clean the county. 
It developed that quite a number of the men 
tested because it did not cost them anything, 
that they did not know about the disease and 
were never informed about disinfection and the 
necessary precautions to prevent reinfection and 
that they were not enough interested in the pro¬ 
ject to continue testing after the drive was over. 
There is always a reaction after any campaign 
of this sort and the result is that some are often 
unnecessarily opposed tp the work and there seems 
to be a period of indifference. On the other hand, 
where the work is carried on through the in¬ 
terest and initiative of local leaders, the farmers 
will be more fully informed, the work will be 
more completely their work, their interest will 
continue much longer, and the accomplishments 
will be their accomplish¬ 
ments. 
Why have not more 
farmers tested their cows 
for tuberculosis ? The first 
and most important rea¬ 
son is that they do not 
fully understand about the 
disease and the method of 
eliminating it. Many of 
the more progressive of 
our farmers have tested 
and these men as a rule 
read our farm papers and 
get much information on 
the up-to-date subjects. 
Those who do read and 
still do not test have been 
confused by the articles 
appearing from time to 
time in some of our papers 
that cast grave doubts on 
the reliability of the tests 
or some other phase of the 
work. Within three months 
one of our breed papers had 
a ^feature article which was 
written to show that the 
test was not reliable 
enough yet to justify test¬ 
ing the cattle. I sent the 
article to our State College of Veterinary Science 
and received a reply that the test is accurate to a 
very decided degree, in fact beyond what would 
be necessary to justify using it as a method of 
detecting the disease and thus disposing of the 
intec ted animals. I also wrote the breed paper 
and asked them to request some AUTHORITY 
to write on the subject so as to clarify the matter 
in the minds of their readers. As yet nothing has 
appeared. However, the number of men that are 
affected by these articles are comparatively few 
and the greater problem is to get the information 
to those who do not read farm papers much and 
even then religiously avoid any article anywhere 
near as long as this one. The only way to get in 
contact with these men is in a personal way. 
You, who are reading this will not find much that 
is new to you in it but you do have a great re¬ 
sponsibility to your neighbor who does not read; 
in carrying to him the information of the day 
that will make him a better farmer and a better 
citizen. It is up to you to help carry on discus¬ 
sions in your Grange meetings, and farmers’ clubs 
that will bring a renewed progressiveness to your 
# (Continued on page 063) 
