Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-12-17
LIVESTOCK NEWS.
The Annual Report Of the Bureau OF
Animal Industry.
sbout All the Cattle 10 be Shipped TO Market
This Year Now In - Demand for
Steers Improving.

The annual report OF the bureau OF
gress 10y the secretary of agriculture,
contains some important information
concerning Texas or southern fever.
The losses from this disease have been
greatly reduced By the enforcement of
the government regulations, and relief
has been very generally realized. There
were q few outbreaks IN Kansas, how
ever, due to the exceptionally warm
winter. ''Whle it is true, says the
report, tthat the northwestern part OF
the Indian Territory and II considerably
larger part of Texas are free from per-
manent infection, the absence of local
laws preventing free delivery of danger
Gus cattle makes /; unsafe to allow cattle
from such districts TO go into the same
cars and yards of those further north. -
The assertion is made that the Gulf and
Gulf Atlantic states are infected with the
disease TO the same degree as Texas, aud
strict local regulation OF cattle coming
from these states IS advised. In con-
Guiding that portion Of the report re-
Iating 10 Texas fever the secretary says:
''The discovery OF Il germ in the red
corpuscies OF the blood in this disease-a
germ entirely distinct from bacteria, but
belonging TO the protoZoa-wa5 mem
oned III the report of last year. This
notable discovery was ahundnntly con-
firmed by The Investigations of the yenr
just pust, aud an additional point in the
problem has been brought to light.
'.lt has long been suspected by cattle
owners that the appearance of the dis
ease in Northern cattle was i'll some way
connected with the ticks distributed by
Southern cattle. This hypothesis has.
however, been generally discredited 10y
scientific men, and. indeed, the evidence
i'll favor OF it was very slight and lntans-
ible 1t seemed, however, worthy of
investigation, and the result mas been
20 produce indiSputable evidence that the
disease is produced by ticks from South
eru cuttie.
..Ticks taken from Southern animals
and placed in pastures. which could have
been infected i'll no other way, so in
fected these grounds that susceptible
cattle placed upon them contracted the
disease in the same length of time, and
we're as seriously affected Us were other
susceptible cattle placed upon pastures
III company with Southern cattle.
Again, young ticks that were hatched
from the eggs OF large ticks picked from
Southern cattle were placed upon sus-
crptibIe animals and produced the
disease.
"Thrre are, consequently. two factors
in the production Of southern fever Q0
the tick, and o. the proinzonl micro
organism which lives it, and destroys the
red blood corpusclrs of the affected cat
zoon is not yet known, bu: that the
micro organism can he transmitted from
one generation of ticks to another
through the egg liz demonstrated. 1t is
irnportaD: TO learn through how many
generations of ticks the germ can be
transmitted without losing its virulence,
and whether there Is any other means by
which it gains access TO the system of
cutie in addition 10 being introduced by
the punctures made by ticks.
There are ev deutly ticks which do
not harbo- this minute parasite, because
Cattle susceptible to Southern fever are
frequently badly infested with ticks
without showing any marked symptoms
OF disturbed health. On the other hand,
there may be means by which the proto-
zoun gums access to the blood OF cattle
iudppend' ntiy OF the agency of ticks,
but II appears from the investigation
just made that in the majority of eases
cattle are infected 10y means OF tess.
That il, the adult ticks drop from South
ern cattle and lay their eggs upon the
pasturrs. The eggs hatch and the young
ticks get upon susceptible cattle and pro-
duce the disease.
of this supposition is correct il is of
great practical importance. In the first
place, susceptible. cattle taken TO the
South for breeding purposes could be
protected from The fever 10y keeping
them in such g manner that they could
not he infested with ticks, That ia if they
could lie kept III stables not previously
occupied by other cattle, beGied with
cleun straw aid fed upon hay or grass
cut from fields where no cattle had been
for considerable time. In the second
place il would seem that Southern eat
tie might be rendered innoruuus by
washing them with some preparation
mat would destroy the ticks, or 10y
holding them upon Unaffected ground q
sufficient time for the ticks which are
upon them TO mature and drop 10 the
one pasture for the young ticks to hatch
and rrinfect them.
''The probability of reaching i'm
porthut practical results Is such that
these Investigations should be continued
until the subject is thoroughly UNDER
stood. -
The Market.