THIRD ANNUAL REPORT OF THE BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY. REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF THE BUREAU. SIR: As the investigation and suppression of contagious pleuropneumonia or lung plague of cattle is made by the law establishing the Bureau the most prominent and important part of its work, shall, as heretofore, devote the first section of my report to this subject. PROGRESS OF PLEURO-PNEUMONIA AND ACTION TAKEN IN REGARD TO IT. KENTUCKY. At the time my last annual report was submitted the outbreak of pleuro-pneumonia in Kentucky, which began in 1884, was still in progress. A portion of the history of this outbreak is recorded in the reports of the Bureau of Animal Industry for 1884 and 1885. When first discovered the plague was confined to one herd. There was an attempt to maintain quarantine by the force of public opinion in the absence of any specific statutes, but, as was to be expected, it was not successful. The danger of the extension of the contagion was such that, on June 15, 1885, the infected premises were declared in quarantine by authority of the State board of health. At that time an additional herd was found infected and included in the regulations, a copy of which will be found on page 35 of the Report of the Bureau of Animal Industry for 1885. By request of the board, an inspector of the Bureau was stationed at Cynthiana to watch the results of this quarantine. November 16, 1885, he reported that the disease had been found at 6 places in Cynthiana, at 3 places in the Indian Creek neighborhood, 34 miles east of Cynthiana, and at one place near the Pendleton County line, 13 miles north of Cynthiana. Early in March, 1886, the legislature of Kentucky enacted a law authorizing the State board of health to slaughter the infected cattle, and appropriated money to compensate the owners. The slaughter began on March 15, and on March 27 I received official notification that all exposed animals had been slaughtered. I give below a copy of a letter from the secretary of the board to the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, which shows his estimate of the value of the services rendered by this Department in suppressing the malady: BOWLING GREEN, KY., March 27, 1886. SIR: I have the honor to inform you, as Dr. Wray has done in detail, that in the execution of the recently enacted law in relation to contagious and infectious diseases of cattle this board has exterminated contagious pleuro-pneumonia in this State by the slaughter of all animals which have been exposed to that disease and rigidly quarantined all infected premises. In consequence of the foregoing facts, we hope to have the influence of your Department in securing the removal of the restrictions now imposed against Kentucky cattle by most of the Western States. I desire also to call your attention to the inclosed resolution in regard to Dr. Wray, and to add that there is every reason to believe that but for the timely and efficient aid rendered me by your Department during the last year the disease would have made such headway, and the sum of money required for its extirpation would have been so large, that our legislature could not have been induced to extirpate the disease. I inclose a copy of our law and quarantine blanks. Respectfully, yours, Dr. D. E. SALMON, J. N. MCCORMACK, Secretary. Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, Washington, D. C. Resolved, That the thanks of the State board of health of Kentucky be, and are hereby, tendered to Dr. W. H. Wray for the faithful, efficient, and intelligent manner in which he has discharged his important duties in the management of the outbreak of contagious pleuro-pneumonia in Harrison County. A true extract from the proceedings of the board. J. N. McCORMACK, Secretary. Dr. Wray furnished the following statement, showing the number of infected herds and animals in the vicinity of Cynthiana, and the results of the disease at each place: Previous to August 4, 1885, four animals in the Frisbie & Lake herd had died and 14 sick ones had been slaughtered. From and after August 4 the extent of the dis-. ease and the disposition of the animals is seen in the following table: Frisbie & Lake Jos. Stephens. O. Slade 1. N. Slade. P. Barhart J. W. Lang. J. D. Feeback M. Rule. T. J. Moffitt A. Fitzwater A. W. Lydiek. James Brenan. I. T. Martin.. W. E. Slade F. Reynolds.. Total August 4, 1885. Grand total. Owner of herd. Dr. Wray remained at Cynthiana until June 22, or about three months after the last affected animal was slaughtered, and no case of this disease was discovered during that time. I have recently had reliable reports from that vicinity, and I am satisfied that no case of pleuro-pneumonia has occurred since the slaughter of the infected cattle in March. This outbreak in Kentucky by itself indicates the great superiority of a method which secures the prompt extirpation of the contagion over any temporizing measures, the effect of which is to preserve instead of to destroy it. As soon as pleuro-pneumonia was known to exist in this State the other States of the Union quarantined against Kentucky cattle, and the enormous commerce in these animals was prostrated. The local quarantine measures were looked upon by the authorities of other States as an insufficient guarantee of the safety of cattle from Kentucky, and therefore no bovine animals were allowed admittance from there except under rigid and burdensome restrictions. These restrictions, maintained for nearly two years, are estimated to have caused a loss to the cattle-breeders of the State of from $10,000,000 to $12,000,000; a loss which would have been entirely prevented if there had been authority for this Department to cause the prompt destruction of the infected herds when the plague was first discovered. ILLINOIS. In September, 1886, pleuro-pneumonia was found by the State veterinarian to exist among cattle in the city of Chicago and vicinity. It was first discovered on the farm of John Carne, at Ridgeland, near Austin, a station on the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, 6 or 7 miles from Chicago. The diseased animal was killed September 12, and the post mortem examination showed conclusively that it was affected with lung-plague. This cow had been on the premises a long time, but she had recently been exposed to an ailing cow that Mr. Carne had taken for trial with the intention of purchasing. This sick cow was brought on the place by Silas Palmer, a cow dealer, who had pastured her for some time previous on the Harvey farm, near Humboldt Park. It was represented to Mr. Carne that the cow was suffering from bad treatment and would soon recover. After doctoring it for two or three weeks with no success the dealer was notified that it was not wanted, and he removed it. In an attempt to trace the contagion the Harvey farm was visited by the State veterinarian September 15 and 16, and he found there 250 head of cattle, among which were 8 affected with pleuro-pneumonia. These animals were at once quarantined. An investigation of the history of the disease at this farm led to the conclusion that it had been introduced by a herd of 38 cows brought there to pasture by a milkman named Quinn, who had recently removed his animals from the Phoenix Distillery stables. This led to an examination of the cattle in the distillery stables, and to the discovery that many of them were affected with pleuro-pneumonia. The Phoenix stables were quarantined September 19. They contained 1,185 animals, of which 297 were Western steers and bulls which had been placed there by Nelson Morris to fatten September 15. The remainder of the animals were milch cows, belonging to a number of different owners. The stables of the Chicago and Empire Distilleries were quarantined the same day. They contained respectively 496 and 207 animals. The Shufeldt stables contained 985 animals, and were quarantined September 20. A further examination of the cattle of Mr. Carne September 18 showed that another one was sick, and this, together with two exposed ones, was slaughtered. The day before, September 17, two sucking calves were found affected at the Harvey farm and were slaughtered. September 20 two sick cows were killed at the Phoenix and found affected with pleuro-pneumonia. September 22 the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry, in company with the State veterinarian and members of the State Live-Stock Commission, made an investigation at the Phoenix and Shufeldt stables, to satisfy himself as to the nature · of the disease. The examination was made on one animal that had died and two that were killed at the former stable, and upon one that was killed and one found dead at the latter. All were undoubtedly affected with contagious pleuro-pneumonia. The milkmen at first denied the existence of any disease among their cattle, but when the evidence became too strong to be longer contested it was admitted that they had recognized the presence of a lung disease in 1884. They at first attributed it to chemicals used in the mash by the distillers, also to feeding the slop too hot, but they finally concluded it was contagious pleuro-pneumonia, and were practicing inoculation to lessen the mortality. The progress of the plague after quarantine may be seen from the following notes made from day to day by the veterinarians. A part of these were kindly furnished by Dr. Casewell, State veterinarian, and the remainder were collected by Dr. Trumbower, Inspector of the Bureau of Animal Industry. It is to be borne in mind that the mortality was probably lessened by the practice of inoculation: September 23: 1 slaughtered and 1 found dead at the Phoenix; 1 slaughtered and 1 found dead at the Shufeldt. September 24: 2 slaughtered at the Chicago. September 25: 1 slaughtered and 1 found dead at the Phoenix. September 27: 1 slaughtered at the Chicago and 2 found dead at the Phoenix. September 30: 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 2: 2 dead at the Phoenix. October 3: 1 dead at the Phoenix. October 4: 1 dead at the Chicago and 2 dead at the Phoenix. October 5: 3 dead and 1 slaughtered at the Phoenix; 1 dead at the Chicago; 1 dead at the Empire. October 6: 1 dead at the Phoenix; 1 dead at the Chicago. October 8: 1 slaughtered at the Chicago. October 10: 1 slaughtered and 1 dead at the Chicago; 1 dead at the Phoenix. October 11: 1 dead at the Phoenix. October 12: 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 13: 2 dead at the Chicago; 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 16: 1 cow and 1 steer dead at the Phoenix (this was the first steer that died of pleuro-pneumonia out of the lot placed in these stables September 15); 1 dead at the Shufeldt; 10 cows were taken at the Shufeldt and slaughtered at the abattoir; lungs found healthy. October 17: 1 slaughtered and 1 dead at the Chicago; 1 cow and 2 bulls from the Phoenix slaughtered, lungs healthy. October 18: 1 cow at the Shufeldt slaughtered, affected; 4 slaughtered from the Phoenix, lungs healthy; 7 slaughtered from the Chicago, lungs healthy. October 19: 2 cows and 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; 1 dead at the Chicago; killed 14 cows from the Phoenix, lungs healthy. October 20: 1 cow and 2 steers dead at the Phoenix, only 1 of the latter affected with lung-plague; 2 healthy cows from the Phoenix slaughtered; 1 dead at the Chicago. October 21: 2 dead at the Shufeldt: 1 dead at the Chicago; 3 dead at the Phoenix; slaughtered 2 healthy cows from the Phoenix. October 22: 2 steers dead at the Phoenix; 1 dead at the Shufeldt; slaughtered 5 affected animals at the Shufeldt. October 23: 1 dead at the Chicago; 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 24: 2 dead at the Chicago and 1 affected animal slaughtered. October 25: Slaughtered 11 at the Chicago, all healthy; 1 cow and 2 steers dead at the Phoenix; slaughtered 16 cows from the Phoenix, all healthy. October 26: 1 steer and 1 cow dead at the Phoenix; slaughtered 24 cows from the Phoenix, 3 affected; 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 27: Slaughtered 14 cows and 2 calves from the Phoenix, lungs healthy; 1 cow and 1 bull dead at the Phoenix. October 28: killed 2 cows at the Shufeldt, 1 affected with pleuro-pneumonia and 1 with chronic indigestion. October 29: 1 dead at the Shufeldt. October 30: 1 affected killed and 1 died from choking at the Shufeldt; 1 affected steer killed and 3 steers dead at the Phoenix. October 31: 1 dead at the Shufeldt; 1 dead at the Phoenix. November 1: Slaughtered 3 at the Shufeldt, lungs healthy; 1 dead at the same place; slaughtered 14 cows from the Phoenix, 5 of which were affected. November 2: 1 dead at the Phoenix. November 3: Slaughtered 18 cows from the Phoenix, 5 affected; 1 steer and 2 cows dead at the Phoenix. November 4: 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt; killed 1 cow, lungs healthy; killed 5 at the Chicago, lungs healthy; 1 steer dead at the Phoenix. November 5: 2 cows and 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt. November 6: 1 steer dead at the Phoenix. November 7: 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt. November 8: 1 slaughtered at the Shufeldt, affected; 1 steer dead at the Phoenix. November 9: Slaughtered 14 from the Shufeldt, 9 affected. November 10: 1 steer and 1 bull dead at the Phoenix; slaughtered 19 from the Shufeldt, 2 affected. November 11: 2 steers dead at the Phoenix. November 12: 1 cow dead at the Phoenix. November 13: 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt; visited Harvey farm and found 2 new cases. November 14: 2 steers dead at the Phoenix; 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt; examined 45 cows, 2 affected. November 15: Slaughtered 2 cows from the Phoenix, both affected; also 11 from the Shufeldt, 4 affected. November 16: 2 cows dead at the Shufeldt; 2 cows dead at the Phoenix. November 17: 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; 1 cow killed at the Chicago, affected. November 18: 1 cow condemned at the Phoenix. November 19: Killed 6 cows from Phoenix, 2 affected; 1 steer dead at same place. November 21: 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt. November 22: 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt. November 24: 1 cow slaughtered from the Shufeldt, lungs healthy. November 25: Slaughtered 1 diseased cow at Ridgeland. November 26: 3 cows dead at the Shufeldt, 1 of which died from choking. November 27: 1 cow dead at the Shufeldt; 1 cow dead at the Chicago; slaughtered 12 cows from the Phoenix, 1 of which was affected. November 30: 1 cow and 1 steer dead at the Phoenix; slaughtered 5 affected steers and bulls at same place. On November 28 slaughtering was begun on a larger scale, in order to empty the distillery stables as soon as possible. The figures given below, which show the proportion of slaughtered animals that were more or less affected with pleuro-pneumonia, are of great interest, because they demonstrate the advisability of slaughtering all animals once exposed to the contagion. Many of the affected cattle presented no symptoms of the disease before slaughter, but the condition of their lungs was such as to make it very certain that they were capable of disseminating the contagion for an indefinite period. The record is as follows: |