The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-09-09
A CONFERENCE.
econtiaued from Page one.l

DR.. Shoenleber, DIR. Rogers, DR.. DyK-
stra, DIR. Burt and Or. Haslum, all of
the veterinary department of the Kan
sas State Agricultural college, and DR..
K w. Shoulder, of the state livestock
department; DR.. Woolf and DR.. Robin
son, of the state veterinary board; DR..
Knisley of Topeka, and DR.. Stroud, Of
Larned.
DR.. Rogers's Theory.
DR.. Burton Rogers believes that he
has solved the epidemic among
Kansas horses and in the conference IN
the governors office this afternoon will
advocate the worm theory" when ne
meets with the expert veterinarians.
Just as the plague of yellow fever
among cattle wass elved by the mos
quito theory, DR.. Rogers believes the
solution to the horse disease is by Inc
elimination of the worms found in the
intestines of the thousands of suffering
horses.
Rogers also offers a solution and a
remedy for the trouble. His method
of disease germs to the brains OF the
horses. In the intestines. the Manhat-
tan man declares, the worms do little
or no harm. But once they reach the
brain, there is serious trouble.
In discussion today of the mysteri-
Gus disease, DR.. Rogers made this
statement:
DIR. Rogers's Theory.
preceding the conference called by
Governor Stubs upon the horse cpl
demic, 1 can only remark, that If the
theory which / shall present this af-
ternoon, and which has already been
published, is proven correct, either then
or later it is possible that it may lead
to a new fundamental principle in pre-
VentiVe medicine, and to a simple So
luton of the mysterious veil which
scientific investigators of human cere-
brospinal meningitis and infantile para
lysis state and admit surrounds the
sources of infection and methods Oh
transmission in ePldemics of those dis
eases. 1t would thus be the means OF
saving thousands of human lives, and
the prevention of future outbreaks of
this fatal and costly horse disease all
over the world. I believe it Will cor
rect a persistent meteorological error in
the human Investigations.
The Worm and the Mosquito:
Fifty years ago man would have
been ridicuIed, had he even suggested
the idea that the bite of certain
mosquito was necessary to produce
yellow fever. Standing water, the ma
larial germ, yellow fever, and the mos
quito alawys existed, but nobody
thought about the also of the mos
quito. Zoologically, there is little diff
ference between the insects or arthro-
poda, and the worms or vermes. One
has legs-the other has none.
N mosquitoes no yetlOW lever. ~
worms, no cerebro-s pinal-meningttis
Kerosene and screens eliminate the
MOSQUITO. Vermicides and vermi-
fuges eliminate the worms. I under
stand the fundamental idea of the
transmission of yellow fever by the
mosquito, followed Investigations by
DR.. Cooper Curtice, a veterinarian
who found that a certain tick trans
mitted the germ causing Texas fever,
a disease of cattle. Conditions are par
allel.
1.-THE good fortune of having been
forced to teach the difficult subject of
animal parasites for six years at Man
haitian resulted in my reeoHecting that
this worm had digestive tract-that
his food existed in the intestines OF the
horse-that the intestines of the horse
had an immense number and variety of
germs
Get Rid of the Worm.
Therefore Mr.. Worm could not help
carrying Mr.. Germ with him to the
brain. Mr. Germ was harmless in the
fluids and irritating. So both were
right, but unconnected.
Il understand two different men at
Manhattan have differed to the kind
a germ they have found causing the
disease, and that in the extensive hui
man Investigations, the germ was not
always found.
None of these things surprise me
now, because the worm may have car
ried one kind of a germ at one time,
and another kind or even none at all at
another time, in other cases Everybody
was right, but they were not sure or
did not think the other fellow was.
However, I recollect that a few
years ago, in a discussion of this worm
with DR.. Schoenleber who had stood
alone and contended that this worm |
was the primary cause Of the hundreds
of outbreaks he has investigated here
and there on individual farms, ever
since he has been in Kansas, but
which were not widespread enough tc
assume the form of an epidemic and |
newspaper comment.
"In this discussion I was skeptical
and ridiculed the idea to some extent |
probably because he did not and could
not at that time satisfactorily explain
to me the fundamental why that /
was always looking for, as the cause i
of their symptoms and death. He final
iy ended the conversation by saying in
substance:
"'All right, doctor, remember what
1 say, some day conditions are going
to be just right in this state AND
SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN
FROM THIS VERY WORM.
81 believe DR.. Schoenleber was right
in his prediction, and that THAT TIME
HAS COME
ST believe DR.. Schoenleber deserves
great credit for his persistent stand in
the face of almost unanimous opposi-
ton, professional and otherwise with
in and without the state and that the
horse and live stock industries of
Kansas and all dependent upon it, will
owe him a debt of gratitude that can
never be repaid and answer one of the |
Horses Prayers