Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1860-04-24
HIstory Of Tho Uarllo Plague

Il 1t-~NAI " eaN 0AANAN A4Nlt III tuD ONA
World may well excite alarm on its appear
snos in this country. Its rsvsgss have swept
off the cattle Of whole empires. destroying in
the aggregate many millions Of animals.
The State COnmisrionor of Massachusetts,
are taking active and thorough measures TO sx.
terminals the cattle dissase now prevailipg with
such fatality in the towns of North BFOOkfeld
and New Braintrss, Worcester county. The
disorder is found to be Of more extensive
character than was ct first supposed, and a
general slaughter of the herds where the dis>
ease has made its appearance, has been come
meneed Last week los Auimals were killed
valued at 81, 1000. At the farm of Mr.. Alden
Woods, 81 Durham cows and 10 calves were
killed, and at Mr.. Needhsm's farm % ani-
mails were slaughtered. The stock Of Mr..
Stoddsrd, ioEtyseight head, shared the same
fate. The disease is found to be as contagious
a small po1, and the Commissioners, under
the advice Of the surgeons who accompany
them, kill the whole herd where portion are
found to be infected. The appropriation of
$40, 900 made BY the Legislature viii be but a
drop in the bucket of the cost of sxtsrminating
the disease; which is known as Pleuro-pneu-
monia.
As everything on this subject will be inter
ssting to the owners OF cattle, we copy the
following history of the disease from the Ohio
Agricultural Report 1853; 80.
PleurO pneumonia Is a contagious disease of
cattle, which originates spontaneously among
the cattle in the vast Russian stepPes, more es-
pecially Ia the southern and eastern provinces
OF Russia. It disseminates itself very rapidly,
by means of a virus, Wh:h infects all RACES,
sexes, ages and conditions Of cattle, but which
iuiects neither man nor any other animal
For period Of upwards Of fifteen hundred years,
this disease has at times spread desolation
beyond the steppes more especially has itfolloW-
ed in the wake of war and destroyed entire
herds, in the several European countries =
The first account which We have of it, dates
back TO the fourth century. In this instance,
it was undoubtedly carried westward by en-
iRrants from the East, Of Russian provinces. -
From Psnonia, il swept westward through
Moldavih, Gallicia, Moravia. Bohemia into Bel.
eium, on the northern rOuts; ami through
Pennsylvania, Waila,his, Hungary, SelaVonia,
Styria lllyrica, into Austria aud TVrOl Or
eOuut the great destruction OF catt e, it was
at that tune called the "POss," During the
wars Of Char'es the Great, in the Ninth Cen
tury, this plague broke out and DESTROYED
rlniost all the cattle that RTaEsd in the Imper-
ial states Aboui the N ddle Of The same cen.
tury. it literally swept away all the cattle in
Fra ce; after lapse oftwenty year., it again
visited France with uDabated fury, and after
wants visited the eouu tries on the Rhine, aud
ragged throughout Germany. Towards the
middle Of the tenth century, It was very disas
trous In Austria and Italy. From this last
period until the thirtesntA century, there 49,
DO accessible records OF its operations. During
the first half Of the thirteenth century it broke
out in Hungary, and spread over nearly all the
western States of Europe, but was especially
destructive in Austria, Morayia and Elsaz =
Towards the close Of the sixteenth century, it
was very wide spread, and unusually destruc~
tive in Italy and Germany. Its most remark.
able advent, however, was during the eigh,
teenth century; during this period it visited
every portion OF Europe, not excepting isOlated
England, and some portions twice or thrice;
destroying in the aggregate, many millions Of
| cattle, and is known in vet, rinaTys history as
the period of the great cattle plague. IL 1923,
it proved more destructive in BraDdenberR thin
elsewhere; aDd indeed throughout the entire
continuance Of the seven years war it proved
itself an insepatsble companion, and followed
irIesistibly in the footsteps Of the army, caus-
| ing great destruction of cattle in POmerania,
Saxony, Prussia and Livonia- From l7a3 until
| 1915, it followed the armies in all the Rars
which France waged against the eastern Euro
pesn States, and in which Russian steppean
cattle accompanied the armies for the purpose
of beiug slaughtered. During this period,
Littlehausen, Prussia, Ohurmark and Siesia
suffered most, more especially in 1906, by the
retreat of the French amy, and the pursuit of
the allied powers" being followed BY the cat
tie plague, from the steppean cattle which fol-
flowed the army, and which communicated the
contagion so that It was disseminated far and
wide Even at late as 1915 aud 1916, it was
not full extirpated in portions Of France and
Germzny But from tins period, until the de-
claIation Of tle Russian Turkish war in 1928,
it was not heard Of outside the Russian steppes
Immediately afleT the first battle Of the war,
the plague ragged among the cattle with all Its
unabated mortality, and swept with terrible
destruetiVenessI throughout Austria proper,
Galacia and Silesia, bus was checked On the
Prussian borders by ngid municipal regulations,
which were enforced on the non-iHtercourse
principle.
Since tie wars Of 1914 and 1915, Prussia
has escaped with now and then an isolated
case, on the Russian Polish borders, which
were introduced by smuggling, but which was
vsnQuished on the spot; SO that it did not be-
come general even in limited districts. Du-
ring the portion Of the present century which
has already elapsed the plague has been almost
unabated in the stOpPes, to which it was con>
fined by the countries BORDERING, on their
adopting o rigid police systsm; and, it leaped
this boundary only at tAe outbreak Of wars,
which necessitated the Movement Of armies
According to official accounts pIeuro-pneume-
mia ragged in fo-ty seven governments or
departments of 2ussia, during the year 1874
and lS4T, dr5s:sg which period upwaris of q
million and half Of cattle fell victims to it.
In the years 1913 and ls49,it was By no means
abated, but spread over POdOlia, VOlhynia,
Bessarsbia and Poland. z--= -..1
Tne Austrian dominions have suffered nine
invasiOns of this destroyer, during the present
century, and have suffered immense losses Of
cattle IN Consequence. The last two eruPtions
were in lS4s and 1883; tho first Of these con-
tinqed until 1852, and gave the country res>
Pite OF one year only, until the Crimean war
broke out, and thePlague followed as faithful
companion, and devasted the country until the
year 1855, During the latter period, Galieia
and Hungary, together with. tbe military boV-
ders Of Lower Austria, Moravia and Austrian
.lesia, were visited with terrible destructiVe>
ness, and lost over a million Of cattle.
j The swiss-savOy Question.
II