Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1886-12-31

Whether or not tins disease IS OF tine
same nature as cholera in the human race,
the localities where it is most prevalent APP
pear to be nearly the same in character as
those where the Asiatc cholera was most
fatal 1t is hardly probable that the hog
cholera will ever prevail to any great ex-
tent in New England, though expert veter
inarians say it is liable to become epidemic
wherever there are swine But for the
present, at least, our chief interest in this
disease is in the fact that large quantities of
western pork are consumed by New Eng
Land people, and though it is not pleasant
thing to believe, there is good reason to
suspect, as the paragraph below shows, that
packers do not always consider sailed meat
as capable of having any disease. Conse
quently infected herds, if not too far gone,
may be saved:
Waldo f. Brown met farmer week or
so ago who said cone of my hogs died on
Monday. another the next day, and two the
third. | loaded them ON the cars that night
and had them in the city by morning, but
four were found dead in the car Anoth-
er man who has large farm run by ten
ant said to Mr.. Brown: MY tenant came
to town and said, L believe my hogs have
the cholera | knew he would have hard
work to pay his rent, and | said to him Go
home and load those hogs on a ear tonight.
But he foolishly waited a week before he
sold, and 20 out of 40 died Now, these
are facts which have come to Mr.. Browns
knowledge and he says, i'll the Farmers
Review, that a large per cent. of the hogs
marketed during the last six weeks have
been from herds that were infected.
Certain facts about the hog cholera, ~
says another paper, "have a dsagreeable
interest for others than the rearers of swine.
1t seems to he the practice of pork produc-
ers whenever the infection appears in lot
of hogs to sell them at once The probabil-
ity is that the greater portion of them will
die and therefore they are hurried off to
market to give the butchers knife n chance
to get ahead of the cholera
1t may have a bad effect upon the hog
market to give too much publicity to such
things, but the public are entitled to the
facts, whatever they may be.
Concerning the cause of the disease and
remedies for it, the National Stockman says
after all that scientific investigation has
discovered concerning this disease; after
all that skilled veterinarians have done tc
check it after all that farmers have learn
Cd about it in score of years spent in at
tempting TO fight it ;-after ali this, it re
mains pia, .ically uncomfortable. The points
absolutely known about it amount to about
this, if we ignore the germ theory over
which two eminent veterinarians are nov
pulling each others hair |. 1t is liable
to appear anywhere, although there are
some parts of the country which it has no
NA of hnns * y
eiapt from it if subjected to the chances o
contagion. 3. Though the use of too mucl
heating food is believed to be conducive t,
it. care in this particular is not in all case
adequate to prevent its appearance. 1
Though there are various remedies on tn
market which have more or less of merit IL
them, there is as yet no discovered Patio
logical treatment of the disease upon whcl
absolute reliance can as "A rule be placed.
These things are so well known tina
farmers are absolutely panicky upon tn
subject of hog cholera wherever it is know
to exist Its work is done quickly, thor
oughly, and often almost without warning
When it appears in neighborhood ever
one wants to at once get rid of his hogs
and in some parts of the country it
work has been of such a wholesale na
ture that embarrassing is practically blotte
out as a local industry. Many have com
to believe that their only safe policy, a
though they have in times past found tn
industry most profitable, is to abandon
altogether
"Such are the facts-and what is to |
done sbout it There are no doubt severn
things contributing to this very discourse
ing condition of porcine affairs. One is I'll
system of unreasonable rushing of pigs
market maturity with too heating foo,
Another is the almost total neglect of Il
natural conditions under which swine wei
the most vigorous of domestic animals. Al
other is the tendency to too great precocit
in breeding, wholly ignoring the requir
ments of age and natural development
Another is the excessive in-breeding
which new types of hogs are crowded OF
after another before the public Anoth
is that in aiming to render the hogs life
short as possible constitution has been larg
" overlooked in breeding to a cost whi'
seems to have been wholly left out of Il
calculation.
Eve speak of these things with the pu
pose of asking the many thousands of pra
teal hogmen who read the Stockman to d
cuss them at length in these columns. ~
county cannot spare this great and in Z
main profitable industry How is it to
saved How is confidence in it to be full
restored What changes are necessar
and by what means they be most eas
brought ebout Let us have some prac
- cal answers to these questions.