Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1919-08-22
VERMONT COWS FOR FRANCE.
Commission Makes Chester Buying Cen
ter for Southern vermont-The
Regulations

Regulations.
Vermont is one of the localities chos.
en- carly by the government of France
for the purchase of the cattle that are
to provide dairy products for that
republic and are to be the basis of the
rehabilitation of its dairy interests.
Chester has been selected by the French
mission that has charge of New Eng
land for the center of these purchases
for lower Vermont and the representa-
tivcs of the French government arc
now finishing their work of selection
in this town.
Only young grade cows and grade
heifers are accepted and from these
are chosen the cattle that are sufficient
ly healthy and perfect in every re.
spect to prove satisfactory for the i'm.
portant work they are to perform. The
French government has sent these
representatives to such communities
as it deemed best to purchase cat
tie which it will ship to France and
give to the peasants in the sections
of that country recently devastated by
| war.
TO insure the importation of only
such cattle as are suitable, it is first
necessary that the cattle be inspected
by the United States government as to
their condition of health. This work
is supervised by DR.. H. A. De Fissett
of Montpelier, L. S. bureau of animal
industry, who has charge of the work
of eradicating tuberculosis from the
herds of this locality. The cattle
that are found to be healthy are tagged
| by the United States government and
all the others are rejected. After
this such cattle as are passed as to
health are thoroughly examined by tho
representatives of the French govern
mcnt as to all necessary requirements
and those found satisfactory are SO
tagged by that government, accepted
and finally shipped to France in boat
loads from Newport News, Va, about
500 in each load.
The expert of the French govern
ment in charge of the work here is j
Detante, a noted veterinary and for
merly one of the large breeders of
France, whose fine herds and valuable
horses, together with his other prop
erty were taken by the German plum
dcrcrs from these very regions that
he is working to restore. He escaped
with his family to Paris and served
as n lieutenant in the French army
DR.. Detantc's associate is h. Launos
a noted cattle expert who was still
less fortunate than his colleague and
was taken prisoner and held for four
years by the Germans. These OK
pcrts are assisted by Robert Garmer
of New York city, acting as clerk for
the mission, and James Travel of
Trenton, n. j., interpreter. Mr.. Ira
veil, graduate of Yale in 1919, left col
lege to serve in the ambulance corps
before the United States entered the
war and served in both the French and
United States forces.
The buying of the cattle for New
England is in charge of Cassius Way,
veterinary and cattle expert of New
York, who is at present here superin-
tending the buying. He is assisted by
Greer Brothers of Newbury and Henry
G. Wiley of Chester.
Mr.. Way sets aside all fear that Yer
mont and New England are sending
to Europe all or a major part of their
cattle. He assures us that scarcely
any more cattle are taken by the com
mission than are usually taken by
local dealers each month and his stats
ties prove it. In all he estimates that
not more lnan l,oUo neuu Woulu D'
taken from New England by the com
mission. Therefore, Vcrmonters SHOULD
have no fear of scarcity of beef or ;
mill; price of 80 cents Il quart due t.
the work of these men.
Besides the cows and heifers there
are TO be purchased by separat,
commission thoroughbred bulls to thu
extent of four or five per cent of tn,
other cattle purchased. Other commits
sions are looking after the horses an'
other needs for the agriculture of tn
devastated sections.
From Chester the buyers and expert
go to the northern part of the state,