St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1886-08-28
CllarbOn and its Cures.
CITY Item,

City Item.
Losses of mules from charbon are re
ported from various parishes OF South
ern Louisiana; and danger from thi
disease will only pass away with sum
mer weather. Sweeping Oft, as char
bon sometimes does, almost the entire
working stock of plantation the
scourge is imminent with calamity tC
the planter, and prevention and cure
are questions of urgent Importance
Probably no malady under the sun has
received more empyric treatment OF
given birth to a greater number OF " IN
failibe remedies" Every plOwman
and stableman and most planters have
{" sure cure," and even the death OF a
patient rarely causes a waning OF conf
dence in the successful treatment. y
As an instance an Otherwise intelligent
planter, not living one hundred miles
| from New Orleans, lost 30 out OF the
% cases on his plantation notwith
standing he highly recommended his
| charbon cure" to neighbOrlng plan
ter a few days after. As this neighbor
had lost only % per cent. instead OF
nearly 100 per cent. of the stock at
tackled. it is needless to say he did not
consider the recipe an nnmltlgated
boon.
Though some contend that the char
bon OF France and that OF this country
are two different and distinct diseases,
Pasteur's incubation remedy should re-
ceive full and critical attention. The
few experiments so far made with this
remedy, while apparently satisfactory
to the gentlemen who tried it, are not
deemed sufficient to conclusively es
tabllsh the value OF incubation.
The best proDhylacties hitherto
known are good water, good dry food,
shelter from flies and sun, and not to
overtask the animal One of these,
good water, receives little attention on
too many plantations the mules over
heated from the plow being driven into
stagnant, Shiny ponds to drink. The
mule gets more rough treatment than
any animal alive, and probably can
stand more, yet in the charbon season
it will pay to look after his diet and
health. Give special attention to these
things, and the chances are the scourge
will be light, if 1t falls at all.
One of the theories on which reme
dies are based would seem to be that
the more you torture the mule the more
efficacious the treatment. 1t is com
mon method to scar wide circles around
the affected parts, tie burning flesh,
kissing and frying as the red hot metal
scores the quivering skin. Applica-
tiOns OF boiling tar, of condensed lye,
of lime into the opened wound and IA
kindred cruelties of this hero
ic surgery are credited with the cure of
the animal if he recovers, and if he
dies-well, it was case that could not
be cured.
Charbon is said to be an erysipelatous
and wateIy. The disease Is so rapidly |
in it's nature that there is
little time for constitutional remedies
to act. Reliance must, therefore. there
fore, chiefly be placed on supporting
the animal by good nourishment, to
withstand the attack, and on local ap-
olications.
According to the most successful
treatment which has come under our
on the first showing of the
swelling, setons should be inserted
through the affected part. These Sc
ons, made of soft strand of lamp
wick, should be moved every few hours,
hat the drip may not be stopped by
:losure. When the leg is the part atfec-
ed, and setons can not be well inserted,
light scarifcatiOn will keep the swell
ing down. The swollen parts should
lso be rubbed with carbolic acid or
to stimulate the dripping and
hereby decrease the swelling. The
lumber OF setOns required would vary :
With the amount of Inflammation, from
Wo or three on small knot to twenty |
r more where almost the whole body
J swollen. This remedy has been re-
eatedly used on a plantation on the t
.6wer Coast, where, in one season, ont
sixteen cases not ore was lost. We.
0 not assume this fact to be conclu
i've proof Of the value of the remedy, |
'r the disease may not have been of
le most virulent type ; but it is verv 9
,rong recommendation for it, and, be-
des, this treatment seems to be found f
] on an intelligent and reasonable
of the disease. 8