The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1873-07-31
remainder OF the herd fro m coming
In contact with fbor, ra

remainder of the herd fro m coming
In contact with them.
When there is the slightest ground
Tor suspicion any newly purchased
animal should be kept separate for q
time sufficient to allow latent germs
OF disease to manifest themselves
The greatest care should be exercis.
ed in cleansing and disinfecting sheds
and places which have be zen used by
affected animals /; and such sheds.
etc., should not be used for healthy
stock for period of three or four
weeks after the disapperance of the
disease. The persons who attend to
the diseased animals should not 90
among the healthy ones for many
diseases are so highly contagious
that they may be easily propagated
by the clothing of the attendants.
| By the steady pursuance, on the part
OF the stock owner, of strict precau-
tlonary measures and by the exercise
OF vlgllant care and attention, many
diseases which are conta gious or in
iectlous and not epizootio may often
be prevented from spreading to any
great extent. Pleuro- p neumonia is
one OF the most fatal of the prevalent
diseases In our country and this is
essentially contagious disease we
Deleve tnere mas never been case
investigated where it was proved to
have originated spontaneously,
though cattle which uncleanliness or
bad feeding have pr edisposed to
take the infection more readily than
healthy stock.
In England, where this disease has
for many years been the chief bug
bear of stock owners, the efficacy of
isolation to prevent its spread has
long been acknowledged "a and many
farmers now, on the appearance
pleuro-pneumonia, slaughter the at
fected animals at once, preferring to
suffer the first loss than to risk the
spread of the disease among their
stock. But previous to the passage
of restrictive laws, certain unprinoi-
pied cattle dealers an d jobbers as
soon as they had cas- e Of disease
among their stock, disp posed in hur-
ry of all their cattle which had been
exposed to the infection, and thus
spread the disease far and wide.
An immense number of live cattle
are imported from Hol and Ger
many into England, q nd those cat
tie were often imported in diseased
state. and, Immediately son landing,
were bought up and battered over
the country. This kept going on
from bad to worse and the losses
from contagious, and therefore, part
ly avoidable, disease g, became
most serious affair. T he climax was
capped in 1868, when the terrible
cattle plague or rinderpest of Central
Prussia was imported. 1t spread
rapidly and was inten nsely tatal-not
more than two or three per cent. of
the animals attacked recovering. In
the dairying districts Of Cheshire and
Somersetshire, whole townships were
swept clear of cattle. Parliament
speedily began to NOV in the mat
ter and acts were hurriedly passed
constituting central and local author
tiles who were empowered to investl.
gate and declare any place to be in
fected with cattle plague and draw
Gordon around it; thereupon, all
movement of cattle therein was alb.
solutely stopped, except 80 far as a
farmer could move his cattle from
one part of his farm to another with.
out crossing road and where no
disease was known to be existing,
farmers were not allowed to move
along the road without license from
an officer appointed to issue them.
All the animals affec cted with the dis
ease or which had been in contact
with affected amin ais were imme-
diately slaughtered and buried in
quick.lime, their hides having previ-
ously been SO slash ed as 10 render
them useless. The farmers whose
cattle were thus uncermouiously
dealt with were compensated for
their loss out of the public funds.
By the time the organization had
got into working order there was
scarcely township in the country
where the disease had not shown it.
self, but such vigorous measures as
above described soon bore fruits and
the weekly list of infected places
grew smaller until the disease was
finally eradicated. AS soon as the
disease was reduc ed into manageable
limits, no fresh o outbreaks occurred
which could not be traced to some
movement Of cattle in violation Of the
law and the offenders in such cases,
when detected, were very heavily
punished.
The rinderpest having been so ef-
fectually stamped out, and such a
perfect organization called into ex-
istence, the Cham bers of Agriculture,
which are the English Farmers
Clubs, began to take up the question
why not, now that the country is
clear of disease, keep it clear ? And
why, if successful with rinderpest,
cannot we be 30 with other diseases
During the time that the movement
of cattle was under restriction on &C.
count of the cattle plague, it was
noticed that the mortality from other
diseases was mu ch less than ever be.
fore. Eventually the law was con.
tinued and enlarged so as to include
in it's operation, in addition TO cattle
plague, pleuro pneumonia, foot and
mouth disease, sheep-pox, sheep.
scab, and glanders. There is now
in every county a local authority
whose duty it is to appoint properly
qualified veteri mary inspectors and
on any case of disease being report
ed to them to Investigate the charac
ter thereof. The owner of the dis
eased animal id then served with no
tice requiring him to keep the dis
eased animal separate, and the farm
is visited weekly by the inspector
who reports on the number of cattle
on the farm, the number affected
etc., to the loc al authority, who il
turn send report of all the cases il
their county to the central authority
who publish 9 nd circulate a weekly
report of the state of the disease
throughout the country. The loca
authorities have the power to order
any diseased animals slaughtered or
compensating the owners of them.
Foreign cattle are only allowed t.
be landed at certain ports and there
they are quarantined for a set perioi
before they are dispersed through