THE ALLEGED CATTLE PLAGUE.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume IX, Issue 470, 15 April 1867, Page 3

THE ALLEGED CATTLE PLAGUE.

[Aibury Banner, March 16.] Natubally, and as might be expected, the remarks we made iu a former iszu6 have attracted a large amount of attention with reference to the sup posed 6iist6uc6 of a disease or murrain, particularly in sheep, but incidentally ilTocting cattle on the border of the Murray river at Aibury. Both Victoria and New South Wales have taken prompt measures for report by official weans ; and while it is gratifying to find that good intentions are evinced in behalf of the safety of the health of the general public, still it does not by any means follow that the true stats of things should be warped aud distorted by palpable misrepresentation. We are not at all anxious to have it

thought that our sheep and cattle are Buffering from “ Cumberland ” or any other disease. We would, on the contrary, pray to be delivered and spared from such a plague, or anything approaching it in form or feature. But when there is the slightest intimation of the approach of any calamity, it is the duty of those who gather facts to report them, iu order that prudential! measures may be adopted for publicj safety. It is not a squatters’ question,! or anybody’s question, but, one for the general commonwealth. If sheep die under peculiar circumstances, and if those die who have been associated with them, either in traffic, driving, or handling, either alive or dead, it would be most reprehensible to repress the fact. There may be an object to keep it in the background by certain per sons for an object, but when broad facts Lave to be stated and referred to without the chance of contradiction, the matter assumes another aspect altogether. If there be no disease we shall be as glad to have it settled and determined as any one ; bat so soon as there is a chance of danger we are entitled to call publicity to the fact and demand the best means of protection. If there is even a risk of our daily foodj being dangerous to those who eat itj we at once say it becomes a duty to caution and advise abstinence there-] from. We have heard that pleuro pneumonia affected beef is not likely to convey injuiy to the constitutions] of those who consume it. So it may be with mutt n affected with possibly] the Cumberland disease, but we would decidedly rather have none of either. It is not a sqnafteis’ panic at all, and it is simply absurd and ridiculous to sup-

pose, as the Melb mrae Herald does,\, that tiieir border friends “ would, if ; they could, confiue thtir fellow-colonists ; to the in at ton of their own sheep.” . "What do wo grow beef or mutton for ! but to sell it to Victoria? And if well had no market there the prices would !. go do wu, station property be depre-:. ciated, and a worse than Border Cus-it toms’nuisance be iufiined. To mixj, up all the squatters, I\lr M'Cullcch, ; me Colonial Secretary of Victoria, i Mumbo Jumbo, Shakespeare’s Jew, i Mr I'rancis, the Commissioner of Cus-i toms, and ail the Sydney Solons andj New South Wales mutton with a plain i, statement of facts and the decease of! those whose death has been the result; of admitted and well-known circum-J stances, is not to be passed over without comment. Hut this is not all. Wei have plain facts on the one side which; we should be sorry to exaggerate. We; would rather have not to record them 1 at all. On the other side we find the lads distorted and misrepresented by Government officials, and when we quote aud call attention to the official reports, every one, here at least, will! eee the force of the reasoning. The Victorian Government sent up a gentleman, named Inspector Perry, to report to the Chief Inspector ol Sheep. This gentleman came to Albury last Saturday ; we saw him personally, gave him the facts as they had I come to our knowledge, put him in the way of obtaining more ; and the following is the report laid before the Victorian Parliament:— Copy of Telegram from Sir Inspector Perry, at ’Chiitern, to Chief Inspector of Sheep Result of my Inquiries at Albury respecting' Kelly’s Sheep.—Drs. Hutchison and Baker, of I Albury, attended the late Mr Layton. Both gen-! tlcmen state he suffered from animal poison, but whether from cattle or sheep I believe to he an open question. Dr. Hesker also stated that tvo of the men engaged by the late Kelly in driving •beep came l<i bun for advice, sultering from wounds, showing symptoms of animal poison. No ill elibcts have come under those gentlemen’s notice, nor could I learn of any from eating the meat; although a considerable luirnbsr were Slaughtered and sold there, i’roin information I believe there are reasonable grounds to fear the existence of disease in both sneep and cattle, but bavs failed to trace anything decisive.

Now, following the words of the report; it is almost needless to say that there is no such persot as Dr. Baker, of Aibury, and that he and Dr. Hutch iusqq could not say that the cause of death was an open question. Mr Lay- .... -- 1.-, U *1,., LUJJ was aUHUUCU ttil Wiv mctuCai faculty in Aibury, and no doubt was] expressed as to the cause of his death.! With regard to no effects arising from eating the meat, or of its being supposed to be unfit for use, we have several instances, although fortunately death has not resulted except from handling in the way of dressing. We have been told of a side of sheep salted down at night being rotten the next day, and of other persons being affected with illness who partook of mutton at

tnat period, amt it does not xouow uiai because a Mr Perry may visit Aibury and not find half the people dead or dying, that his unfaithful report is to be taken as gospel. But to proceed, “ Tiie Secretary to the Local Board of Health at Beeclnvorth writes to the Central Board of Health, that the report referred to was most exaggerated. The simple fact? of the case were that a man named Kelly was driving sheep from Wagga Wagga to Aibury in most inclement weather, and sleeping out in the bush. He took ill and died, and a post mortem examination showed that death resulted from organic disease.” Kelly was not diiving the sheep in most inclement weather, uor was any post-mortem examination held at all, showing that death resulted from or ganic disease. “ Mrs Kelly then went after the sheep, and she too had to sleep out iu stormy weather. She got the sheep to Beechworth, aud there took ill and died ; but a postmortem examination showed that death resulted from organic disease of the kidneys.” This is equally incorrect,! for no post mortem examination was held, but Mrs Kelly was brought to Aibury, and buried quietly by the side

lof her husband without a suspicion at| j die time of anything but death from| inatural causes, until new cimimstanIces arose. The report goes on to say I that “a man named Layton, at Ai j Iniry, bought some of the sheep from (Kelly, lie proceeded to kill them, and it was supposed that some of the (blood must have gained access to Ids; j system, because three days after two! I pustules arose on. ids hand, and his arm) (began to harden from the hand upwards ; j Six days alter he died, and upon a! \poii mortem examination, the Album : doctors were of opinion that death ham occurred from the introduction of some animal poison into the system.” Here again the facts arc misrepresented. Mr Layton skinned the carcase and ! examined the sheep to find the cause ! -f death on Tuesday, and he himsih

died on the Saturday following, so thaij the three days before feeling the effects; and the six days afterwards are; all matters of invention. Nor was there any postmortem examination ini this case at all. lie was buried the) next day, aud the medical science ini | Albury do not hesitate to say that hisi | death resulted from animal poison.; !The true facts are these, and they ,'were amply sufficient to entitle public. ,attention to be called to them. Some (sheep were purchased by Kelly, who! | died suddenly whilst driving them. A | ! shepherd died in the hospital at Waggal 1 Wugga after twenty-four hours’ illness, | land a magisterial enquiry was holder; by Mr Baylis, the police magistrate;; two shepherds who assisted to bring! the th-ck on were attacked with illness, suffered from ulcers and were attended’ jby Dr Hester, who also attended Mr Layton. Mrs Kelly went to Beech-i worth and died, and in all .cases the same symptoms were exhibited, al though fortunately not fatal in all the ! instances. Some of the sheep died on I the road, and curiously enough the (same symptoms exhibited themselves ;n all who were supposed to be affected i.-y the alleged contagion as those experienced by the unfortunate animals. To this we have to add that an inhabitant who was performing one cl the last services to Mr Layton, aud ■' who happened to have a wound on hi? ■hand, was also affected, but taking the 1 matter in time, got medical assistance and recovered. Further than this we J can learn that cattle who Lave been ! grazing on the same ground have died i(since, and therefore it becomes a much gmore serious question than Mr Perry Jor Secretaries nf bnarna mav imeurinp ; 1 _ j - j Xt Luajf bt Cumberland disease or notj those are the plain facts, and without ! wishing to be alarmists on this point

ffu w ait to be protectionists. It is well known that sheep have been (lying in numbers in other parts of the district, ami we know that reports to our own Government, from our own officers, will confirm the statement. The' /i;Lnoo« l uv uuo aucuiuo me ispleen or melt of the animal, causing [it 1 to be gorged with a black watery mucus; indeed, a butcher who bad to do with some of these sheep, and who opened a beast which died afterwards under similar circumstances, expressed his opinion that it was what was known in England as the u black water disease.” All that ,yu Ij p.-Ulj- 2 and if more people are col sufferers it may arise from the caution they have used after a knowledge of these facts on the spot. Beyond this we require protection to public health and propert}(, and we can add that we are by no means sorry that the balance of the flock has gone to a colony where they will be likely to be speedily consumed, and we trust that our Victorian neighbors will enjoy them, and suffer no bad results. More than that, we desire that we may have no more of the same kind to send them, and that the flock iu question will be the end of the danger when disposed of. I