40
290. The increasing demands on the College laboratories for teaching pur-
poses and diagnostic work point to the necessity of increasing the number of
Pathologists in the Colleges. This recommendation of the Advisory Committee
I should be very glad indeed to carry out, but we have no Officers available
for the purpose. Men are badly wanted in Bombay and Madras.
291. The subordinate Department is reported to have generally worked
very well during the year.
292. Improvement is noticeable in the important duty of checking inocu-
lation work, but the staff employed is very small and much remains to be done
in this direction.
293. An important advance has been made by the Government of India
having taken over the Journal of Tropical Veterinary Science as a Departmental
publication. Sanction has also been given to the publication of two Memoirs
in addition to that containing the research work carried out by the Imperial
Bacteriologist.
294. I welcome the revival of the Indian Veterinary Journal (in Urdu)
which has been produced by Captain Dawson in a quarterly form and is a very
useful publication for the Urdu-speaking Veterinary Assistants, and I consider
that the author deserves great credit for his enterprise.
295. I note that pamphlets on various subjects have been issued in
certain Provinces with a view to instructing the natives. I may say that
my own long experience of the country has not been generally favourable to
this method of endeavouring to get at the people, and I think that, as a rule,
it is a waste of time and money and I am not impressed with its importance
or usefulness. There are many reasons which militate against its success.
296. Reports on the breeds of cattle have been prepared in Madras and the
Central Provinces, and are being published. I have also reports on the cattle
of Mysore and of Rajputana which it is proposed to publish when funds are
available.
297. The collection of biting flies and ticks, which is such a very im-
portant matter, is being carried out by this Department, the insects, as
they are obtained, being forwarded to the Imperial Entomologist at Pusa. I
understand that a great number of flies have been collected in various Pro-
vinces but we have so far received no information whatever regarding them.
The present arrangement is not by any means a good one. The intimate rela-
tion which is recognised as existing between certain insects and the propaga-
tion of diseases in animals, is well recognised. We want work done in this
direction, but the existing staff at Pusa already have their hands full. We
want the flies named, classified and described with life histories so far as pos-
sible. We also require collections of named specimens in all our teaching
institutions. I am hoping that some progress may be made in this direction
in the near future and that the scientific results, including all observations
and experiments, may be published from time to time in our Journal. The
importance of this subject may be gathered from the fact that the Earl of
Crewe has appointed a Scientific Committee of all the most eminent Ento-
mologists in England, to arrange for an enquiry into it in Africa. I think
it is time that the world knew that something is being done in this direction
in India.
298. I have nothing but praise for the work done by the Imperial Veteri-
nary staff during the year, and I think that they have reason to be satisfied
with the results of their labours.
SIMLA;
15th October 1909.
H. T. PEASE, COLONEL,
Inspector General
Civil Veterinary Department.