The advocate., 1897-10-27
For the Farmer.
CATTLE AT THE AGRIOUL-
TURAL COLLEGE KILLED.

The slaughter Of diseased cattle at the
State Agricultural College farm began
last Wednesday. OF fifty-eight head of
thoroughbred cattle fifteen responded to
the tuberculosis test and were con-
demned. These cattle were tested by the
former Republican professors last win
ter and fourteen responded with one IN
doubt. AT the second test, made Dy
Professors COttrell and Fischer, these
fourteen all responded, as did the doubt
full one. The Board of Regents then
thought 1t advisable ito kill of these
infected animals and stamp out the dis
ease IL possible. Accordingly Doctor Sal
mon. Chief OF the Bureau Of Animal In
dustry. was invited to come to Manhat-
tan and take charge Of the slaughter
but he was unable to come because or
nressure Of work in his department.
Then arrangements were made with Doc
tor Law, of Cornell University. The lat
ter Is an authority on veterinary science
recognized both in this country and Eu-
rope. Doctor Salmon sent out Dr. 4. A.
Geddis, of his department, to witness
the slaughter and report the results.
Before the work began the Board OF
Regents held a conference with Doctors
Law and Geddis and Professors Fischer
and Cottrell and they we're asked II 1t
were possible to gain anything in the
way of experimentation whether any
new information might be secured, 10y
saving the animals for time, but the
unanimous reply was in the negative.
The experts held that abundant expert
ments had already been made and that
no benefit could accrue by allowing the
animals to live and that on the con-
trary it would be both expensive and
dangerous They were then asked II
any commercial gain could be made by
keeplng the animals, and the answer
was no. They said that they were In
durable and they were therefore Of no
value for any purpose. After receiving
a unanimous opinion from the experts
to that effect, the order to begin the
slaughter was given.
The tuberculin tests Is regarded by the
experts as almost infallible. 1t Is con-
Quoted with extreme care and necessi-
tates attention to the minutest details
for about four days time. An animals
temperature Is taken every hour for
twenty-four to forty-eight hours; then
tuberculin, which is the matter taken
from the tubercules or tumOrs properly
treated for the purpose, is injected and
then another hourly record Of tempera-
ture is taken for fifteen to thirty hours,
during which, " the average tempera-
ture rises 2 degrees or more, tubercu-
losis Is known to affect the animal. That
these tests are not guess-work is shown
by the fact that every animal tested and
found to respond was proved to be af-
fected after a post mortem eXamina-
tion. The breeds Of animals killed were
Jersey, Polled Angus, ShOrt-horn and
Holstein. The oldest was ten years and
the youngest about four. The eXamina-
ton after slaughter showed a variety
OF conditions, no one OF which lacked
anything necessary to warrant its classi-
flcatiOn as q clear case OF tuberculosis
Different organs were found to be af-
fected in different animals. In one COW
the udder was a mass OF tubercUles.
calf from this COW which had sucked
her but two days was killed and sutfi'
cient evidence Of the disease was found
to show that 1t was becoming affected
In strong, well-developed, apparently
healthy animal masses Of tuberculou'
matter as large as goose eggs were
found in the lungs. In another the
glands in front OF the shoulder were
found to be much enlarged and rotteI
with tuberculosis. One bull had an i'm
mense growth in the vicinity of the kid
neys. Every animal slaughtered wa
thoroughly infected and beyond all hop'
Of veterinary skill. No one OF then
failed to show conditions which con