The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1879-04-10

The Professor says: Germany,
Holland, Belgium, France and England
have been treating the victims Of this
plague for nearly half century, but
the result has only been the increase of
disease and death. Our own infected
States have been treating it for a third
OF q century, and to-day it exists over
wider area than ever before. Con-
trast this with the results in Massa-
chusetts and Connecticut, where the
disease has been repeatedly crushed
out at small expense, and there can be
no doubt Is to which is the wisest
course. As all the plaques are alike
in the propagation of the poison in the
bodies of the sick, I may be allowed to
adduce the experience of two adjacent
counties in Scotland when invaded by
the rinderpest. Aberdeen raised fund
of $4,000, and though she suffered sew
eral successive invasions, she speedily
crushed out the poison wherever it ap-
peared by slaughtering the sick beasts
and disinfecting the premises. The
result was that little more than half
the fund was wanted to reimburse the
owners of their losses, and the splendid
herds OF the county were preserved.
Forfar, on the other hand, set herself
to cure the plague, with the result of a
universal infection, the loss of many
thousands of cattle, and the ruin of
hundreds of farmers. Finally the NAL
ady was crushed out in the entire
island by the method adopted by Aber-
deem and other well-advised counties at
the outset"
And again, "Cattle have been inoc-
ula:ed by the tens of thousands in Bel
gium and Holland, and of all Europe
these are the countries now most ex-
tensively infected. France, Prussia,
Italy, Austria and England have each
practiced it on large scale, and each
remains home of the plague. Aus
tralia has followed the practice, and is
now and must continue an infected
country. Our own infected States have
inoculated, and the disease has sur
vived and spread in spite of it, and
even by its aid. Whatever country has
definitively exterminated the plague
Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Holstein,
Mecklenburg, Switzerland: Massachu-
sets and Connecticut), that country
has prohibited incubation and all other
methods that prevail on the principle
of preserving the sick, and has relied
on the slaughter of the infected and the
thorough disinfection of their surround
ings. So will it be with us. If any
State adopts or allows any of these
temporizing measures, that State will
only repeat the experience of the past,
alike in the Old World and the New,
will perpetuate the disease in the coun-
try, will entail great losses on its citi-
zens, will keep up the need for con-
slant watchfulness and great expense
by the adjoining States for their own
protection, and will indefinitely post
pone the resumption of the foreign live
stock trade, which, few months ago,
promised to be one of the most valua-
BILE branches of our International COM
merce."
We are persuaded that the position TAX
en- by Prof. Law, and other similarly
minded veterinary surgeons, is the only
safe one. The disease can be stamped
out now with comparatively small loss.
If trif1ed with, and tolerated, it cannot
but result in great National calamity.
Scientific Anaericcn.