The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1914-11-19

| spectors, aided BY q larger number
OF state officials are doing the actual
work Of stamping out the scourgr.
The first act of this army OF inspect
lors in any infected area is to destroy
all animals which have the disease or
have been directly exposed to It
Trenches at least seven feet deep
are dug, the sick cattle are led to the
edge, and there shot, so that they
will topple into their graves, and in
lection will not be spread by drag
Sing them. Their hides are slashed,
they are covered with quicklime, and
tn. n buried under five feet Of earth.
The owners of the cattle are reim-
bursed at the appraised value Of the
stock, the appraising being done by
a state inspector. and the state and
federal governments sharing the ex-
pense.
When all the infected, animals have
been killed, the next step in the
process Of eradication is the disin-
lection OF the premises they have
occupied. For this work the in
spectors are dressed IN rubber coats,
hats and gloves, and after leaving
eech infected farm, this wearing APP
parel is disinfected by means Of a.
small ftimigating lamp. Various
methods are used In disinfecting
premises, according to local condi-
tons, and the utmost thoroughness
is necessary. Where a large area IS
involved, a tank is usually filed with
a five per cent solution Of chlori-
mated lime, and this is applied by
means Of a force pump operated by
portable steam engine. In disin-
fecting barns, and stables, the wood
work and floors are usually torn out
and burned, and the walls and ceiling
are then thoroughly sprayed. In the
case OF barns where large amounts
of hay and fodder are stored, fumi-
cation is generally used.
By far the largest and most diff
cult task confronting the inspectors
is the disinfecting of the great stock
yards at Chicago, New York and.
Buffalo, where the disease has ap-
peared. Tons Of chloride Of lime and
many barrels OF carbolic acid will
be used at each of these places be-
fore they will be declared safe for
the receiving of shipments Of unins
fected cattle ALI Of the pens, alleys,
troughs, managers and fences must
be soaked with disinfectant, and in
addition these places must be cleared
of rats and pigeons, which might
otherwise harbor the disease after all
the infected cattle had been killed.
In combating the present epidemic,
the department Of agriculture is for
tunate in having had experience with
several milder ones, so that the ofti-
Gals, both state and federal, know
exactly what steps to take in order
to check the disease. In the employ
OF the Bureau of Animal Industry
are number Of trained veterinar-
ians, some OF whom had experience
in the epidemic Of 1903, and they.
are leading in the work Of eradica-
ton.
There have been FIVE epidemics OF
the foot-and-mouth disease in the
United States. The first of these, in
1870, came from Canada, and was ex-
tensive, but the disease appeared in
a mild form. The two succeeding
ones in 1880 and 1884 did not assume
serious proportions. A more alarm
ing epidemic broke out in 1902, and
lasted nearly year, but did COM
paratively little damage. The most
serious outbreak before the present
one occurred in 1908, and spread
through a number of states.
An idea of the amount OF work in
volved in stamping out the disease
may be gained from the fact that
during the 1908 epidemic, inspectors
visited 69,s36 farms in twenty-fourI
counties in the state of Pennsylvania
alone. The work cost the federal
government aboutN 100000, and the
various state governments $113, 900.
The present epidemic is already twice
as widespread as that Of 1908.