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Horse-breeding.—This subject was dealt with in Circular No. 18, dated
25th May 1892, shown as an appendix hereto. The present Resolution will deal
specially with the two other subjects, 'animal-disease' and 'instruction.'
4. Animal-disease—Under this heading are included all matters relating
to the medical treatment of animals suffering from disease, accidents, or other
causes; to the prevention and cure of disease in animals; and to the general
management of them. The term 'animals' will for the purposes of this Resolu-
tion be held to include all animals kept for agricultural or industrial purposes,
such as cattle, sheep, goats, horses, mules or camels.
5. The officer to whom in the Gazette of India, dated 15th October 1892,
the title was accorded of "Superintendent, Bacteriological Survey," has now
been gazetted as "Assistant to the Inspector-General." He will superintend
the animal-disease branch of the central office, and will, under the control of
the Inspector-General, deal with all subjects connected with animal-disease.
He will be permitted to place himself in direct communication with Civil
Veterinary Officers on technical matters of detail. His main duties will be—
(i) to collect, collate, and circulate information and statistics regard-
ing animal-disease. A circular on the subject is under separate
issue;
(ii) to publish from time to time manuals regarding the treatment
of animal-disease and cognate subjects;
(iii) to assist the Imperial Bacteriologist in obtaining such special
information as he may require regarding the more virulent and
contagious diseases, and to procure the assistance of the pro-
vincial veterinary officers in supplying him with specimens
of virus, tissues of diseased animals, etc.;
(iv) to communicate to provincial officers information regarding the
treatment of animals with vaccines, and to instruct them as to
any new methods of treatment, which it may be considered
desirable to introduce;
(v) to visit, with the permission of Provincial Governments, each
province for the purpose of conferring with local veterinary
officers regarding the treatment of animal-disease and cognate
subjects, and of submitting reports and suggestions in connection
with the objects of the Bacteriological Survey and with the treat-
ment of animal-disease for the consideration of the Government
of the province;
(vi) to collect, collate, and circulate information regarding the vari-
ous breeds of cattle and other animals in India, and, if required, to
arrange for the supply of stock cattle for breeding farms,
6. The Government of India will allow each local Government and Adminis-
tration to determine, subject to the following instructions, the duties of the civil
veterinary officers attached to the province, and to decide from time to time
what measures can be adopted or proposed for the prevention of animal-disease.
7. His Excellency the Governor General in Council as at present ad-
vised is disposed to believe that in most provinces it would be premature to
attempt to establish any system of dealing with animal-disease which would
involve coercion or interference with owners of cattle or other animals.
In the hope that for the more virulent and contagious diseases vaccines may
be discovered, which can be employed without offending the prejudices of the
people, it will, in his opinion, be preferable to await the results of the bacterio-
logical investigations now set on foot, and in the meantime to confine action to
distributing information and advice regarding the sanitary or other precautions
which the people can take for themselves.
8. The circumstance must not, however, be overlooked that, independently
of virulent and contagious epidemics, there are numerous diseases and accidents
to which animals are subject, which can be prevented, mitigated, or cured,