492 QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. [1 Juxx, 1898. 
every eleven inhabitants, and the latter country has the unenviable fame of being 
that in which Echinococcus spreads its worst ravages both in man and beast. 
An excellent authority, a medical officer in Iceland, states that a trace of this 
disease is to be found in more than every fifth sheep; and in one district of 
3,000 inhabitants and 22,000 sheep, the Echinococcus is to be found in every 
adult sheep, and every third adult person is said to have hydatids. 
Climate seems to exert no direct influence upon the spread of the infection, 
for it is curious to note that chilly Iceland and sunny Australia prove equally 
congenial to this ubiquitous parasite. f ‘ 
No information is procurable as to the number of dogs in the colonies, 
but it is certain that their number is far in excess of their usefulness. Some 
of the larger Australian cities have been. obliged to resort to wholesale 
destruction of unclaimed dogs. In 1882 the New South Wales authorities 
spent £162 10s. in destroying 1,300 dogs in Sydney. A Ballarat paper wittily 
observed, in connection with the enormous increase in the canine race, that 
their “number is legion and their breed is mongrel.” 
The writer is of the opinion that the spread of this disease is assisted by 
hunting dogs, as it has been ascertained that in some districts the indigenous 
animals, such as kangaroos, are highly infested with hydatids, and it is common 
to allow the dogs to regale themselves upon the livers of the animals. The 
cystic form is not confined to domestic animals as its “ hosts.’? The following 
have been found to be hosts: Man, the monkey, sheep, ox, pig, deer, camel, the 
horse, kangaroo, &e. 
It has been stated that the principal medium for the conveyance of the 
tapeworm eggs into man or herbiyora is without doubt the drinking water, and 
in most cases of hydatid they occur in swampy country. Dwellers in the bush. 
are often obliged to use water which has been lying stagnant for months, 
‘perhaps, or die of thirst. : 
Although the Queensland hospital returns show that this disease is not so 
prevalent here as in other colonies, it is no reason why we shoul not be made 
aware of the means whereby it may be spread, and also any means known to 
prevent it. 
It is evident that dogs should only be kept when absolutely necessary 
either for the protection of property or station purposes. It is certainly the 
business of the State to see that there are no stray and useless animals in the 
cities. The number of mongrels one sees following aboriginals calls for 
intervention on the part of the powers that be. 
No dog should be allowed to enter slaughter-houses or prowl about offal ~ 
heaps, &c., or feed on any uncooked meat whatever. Itis interesting to know 
that the fact of boiling or otherwise cooking meat destroys not only 
Echinococcus cysts but also germs of other dangerous diseases—Cysticercus 
(measles), for instance. ; 
_ Dogs might be freed from the tapeworm by occasional “ physicking”’; 
but the excreta should be burnt, If they are kept on the chain they should 
have their kennels and the ground around them frequently cleansed with 
boiling water. A very important provision is to keep the water supply 
scrupulously pure from the invasion of dogs. Keep tanks protected from 
dust. All water should be boiled or at least filtered before using, as the most 
sparkling and cleanest-looking water may still contain ehinococeus eggs, 
ReFErences to Hyparm Pras, 
1. Hydatid cyst or tumour from a bullock. After Kubn. 
ii, 2. Mature specimen of Zawnia Echinococcus, procured from stray dog in Adelaide, After 
‘Lhomas. 
3. Head of same, showing suckers and double crown of hooks x 320 diam. After Thomas. 
4. Hooklets, highly magnified. After Thomas. 
5. Dania, natural size. After Thomas. 
_ _ 6. Echinococcus scolex as usually seen, with the circlet of hooks, and the suckers withdrawn 
inside the general body. Drawn from a slide kindly lent to the writer by Dr. John Thomson. 
7. Echinococcus scolex, or head, with the rostellum, circlet of hooks, and suckers protruded. 
Drawn from a slide kindly lent to the writer by Dr. John Thomson, 
