On the cattle plague: or, Contagious typhus in horned cattle. Its history, origin, description, and treatment

Note O

Advices from Holland, dated the Hague, Sept. 6, state: "The cattle disease has now been observed in the parishes of Kethel, Delfshaven, Moordrecht, Uaardingen, Averschie, Kvalingen, Nieuwerkerk on the Issel (two hours from Rotterdam), Spykenisse, Schiedam, Herrjansdam, Maasland, Sommelsdyk, and Zevenhuisen. It has spread most at Kethel, where it first broke out among a cargo of cattle not admitted into England. In the other parishes some sixty animals were infected on the 1st inst. The post-mortem examination of the diseased beasts presents the abnormal appearances that have been found in the disease elsewhere, i. e., swollen mucous membranes with red spots, peculiar exudations in the fourth stomach and intestines, &c. The medical commission declares the malady to be the typhus contagiosus bovum of modern veterinary surgery, and recommends that infected animals should be treated with from three to four drachms of muriatic acid, mixed with six ounces of treacle and decoction of linseed. Decoctions of Peruvian bark and osier peelings, with sulphuric ether, are also said to be beneficial to weak animals. The avoidance of all contact of the cattle-tenders with infected beasts is especially enjoined, and ventilation and cleanliness of the stalls strongly recommended. Cattle markets and fairs are suspended until further orders, and extraordinary measures for disinfection are applied upon steamboats and railways."

Note P

The following document has been received at the Foreign Office from her Majesty's Agent and Consul-General at Bucharest: —

(Translation from the Official "Monitoral," No. 173, August 8-20, 1865.)General Direction of the Sanitary Service

From the 1st to the 15th July a typhus epizooty broke out among the large horned cattle in the districts of Ilfov, Jassy, Bolgrad, Falcin, Buzeo, and Roman, which still continues, but is on the decrease. The Direction, in consequence, publishes the above for the information of those concerned.

The Director-General,(Signed) D. Gluch.

Aug. 2-14, 1865.

Note RAugust 14.

The Question of Infection. – Yesterday afternoon Mr. Alfred Ebsworth, of 11, Trinity-street, Southwark, the medical officer of health for the parish of St. Mary, Newington, attended before the sitting magistrate to make a statement with regard to the condition of the parish from the influx of diseased cattle, and the manner in which they were disposed of. Addressing the magistrate (Mr. Burnham) Mr. Ebsworth said that on that morning he, in his capacity of medical officer of health for the parish of St. Mary, Newington, received an order to attend professionally a man who was seriously ill in Kent-street, within the parish. While paying the visit to the patient his attention had been drawn to the condition of a slaughter-house on the other side of the street, where it was reported to him there were fifteen cows which had been ordered by the Government officer to be destroyed at the Bricklayers' Arms Station, and then to be buried. The animals were accordingly destroyed by the men in the employ of Mr. George Nicholls, the proprietor of the yard in question; and from Mr. Nicholls he had learned that, instead of the carcases of the animals being buried, they were carted through the parish of St. George's to Mitcham, where they were boiled down, and brought back through the parish of St. Mary, Newington, in the shape of cats'-meat. He (Mr. Ebsworth) felt it his duty to come before the magistrate with this complaint, especially when the cattle plague was so prevalent. He had a right to inquire upon what grounds the carcases had not been disposed of on the spot where they had been slaughtered, instead of being carted through the parish he represented, in a way calculated to spread the infection. He could not but regard this as a most iniquitous proceeding, and he attended with a view to prevent a repetition of the practice. Mr. Frederick T. Stanley presented himself, and said that he was a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. He had been appointed an inspector of cattle under the orders issued by the Privy Council. Within the district there were no means of burying the carcases of the diseased and condemned animals, and in the instance referred to they could not have been buried in the cowshed. It was impossible to bury the carcases in the London districts, and hence they were sent to the knacker's yard, where it was supposed they would be disposed of. Mr. Ebsworth: And that, your worship, is what I complain of. Mr. Burcham: You think that the practice to which you have called my attention is calculated to propagate the extension of the disease. Mr. Stanley declared that the skins were disinfected under his especial orders. Mr. Burcham remarked that the animals had been taken to the slaughter-house, not for the purpose of being killed and buried, but that their skins should be taken off and disinfected. Why should they have been taken to Mitcham? Mr. Stanley stated that the disease could not be communicated from a dead animal, and it was conveyed only by inoculation, or through the breath of a living animal upon the dead body of a diseased ox. Mr. Burcham: I do not agree with you in that opinion. I believe that infection may be conveyed by a dead animal. Mr. Ebsworth said that such was his opinion, and, having regard to 28,000 patients in the parish, he had felt it his bounden duty to come forward to make this complaint. He thought such things ought not to occur. Mr. Burcham was of the same opinion, and that such a commodity ought not to be allowed to be conveyed through the public streets in open carts. Just before the magistrate was about to rise, Mr. Stanley introduced to his worship Professor Simonds, and a long colloquy (in private) ensued between them. At its close Professor Simonds retired, and Mr. Burcham said: I wish to state that I wanted to be satisfied that everything was done by Mr. Stanley that could be done under the circumstances by which he was surrounded, in the midst of great difficulty. I have had an interview with Professor Simonds, and he informs me that there are the greatest difficulties, if not impossibilities, in finding any places near London in which the dead carcases of diseased animals can be buried. In the case now before me these animals were slaughtered at the Bricklayers' Arms Station, and were then taken to the slaughter-house in Kent-street, under the notion that the owner of the slaughter-house had the means of boiling them down. It appears that he had no such apparatus, and hence he found it necessary to send the carcases to Mitcham, the nearest place at which he believed the carcases could be buried and disposed of, and the neighbourhood thereby disinfected. Professor Simonds is perfectly sure that this meat when boiled down cannot by any probability cause the infection to spread. It was possible, but not probable, that infection might be introduced by the carcases of the diseased animals on their way to the place where they had to be boiled down; but it appears to me, from what I have just heard, that every precaution has been taken to prevent such an occurrence. It seems that the authorities cannot find a place within a reasonable distance in which the carcases can be buried, and, therefore, they are obliged to have recourse to boiling them down, as the only alternative. It is right that I should add that the conduct of Mr. Stanley, the inspector, has been quite in conformity with the directions he has received, not only under the Orders in Council, but also sanctioned in my presence to-day by Professor Simonds. I trust that this statement will remove from the mind of Mr. Stanley any unfavourable impression he may have entertained; and I will only add my opinion, that the diseased cattle ought to be removed through these populous districts in closed and not in open carts. The conversation then closed, and at an unusually late hour the court adjourned.

Diseased Meat. – At the Thames Police Court yesterday Henry Frost, an old man, was charged with having allowed to be deposited on the premises occupied by him in the rear of the house, No. 13, Sidney-street, Stepney, four quarters of beef prepared for sale and intended for the food of man, but which was unfit for human food. Frost carried on the business of a greengrocer. He asserted that he let the place to other men, who were the actual offenders. It was intimated that the vestry had no disposition to press for a heavy penalty. Mr. Paget fined the prisoner 40s. At Clerkenwell, Mr. Tegg, inspector at the Metropolitan Cattle Market for the City authorities applied to Mr. D'Eyncourt for an order to destroy a quantity of diseased meat which he purposed seizing. Mr. D'Eyncourt said the meat must be actually seized and condemned upon evidence before he could make the order. In the matter of the seizure of 32 quarters of beef, weighing about 3000 lbs., which was found on the premises of a knacker in Pleasant-grove, Belle-isle, Mr. D'Eyncourt dismissed an application made against the defendant under the Nuisances Removal Act. The defence set up was that the meat was recognised as bad and diseased by the killer as soon as the animals were slaughtered.

Note S

The Orders in Council seemed only to complicate the matter, and how effectually to combat the evil was a most difficult question. Some said the grand remedy was the knife, and others suggested that the diseased animals should be sent to a sanatorium. To destroy the diseased cattle was impossible, except the owner of them or the inspector went round and obtained an order from a magistrate for their destruction. The last meeting was adjourned, among other purposes, in order that the committee might take the opinion of the law officers upon the subject. It so happened, however, that most of the law officers of the Corporation were at present out of town. Fortunately the Common Serjeant was found, and he gave an opinion which confirmed the committee in their view that they had no power to kill, and no power to do anything except in the matter of isolation. Then the committee passed a resolution that another committee ought to be formed to raise the necessary funds for compensating the cattle-owners, and to see that those funds were properly applied, for the money was only intended to apply to the cattle plague, and was not meant to go in the shape of compensation for pleuro-pneumonia, or for the foot diseases. In other words, they were now legislating for the cattle plague or Rinderpest only. He resided at Dulwich, and he found that in the villages adjoining there were many cows, and never in his life had he seen finer cows. Not one of them had been affected by the disease. There was a cowkeeper at Peckham who had 200 cows, and all of them were in the most healthy state. At Brixton Hill a man had 30 cows in the same excellent condition. At Dulwich nearly all the cows were diseased, but there the shed and other accommodation was exceedingly bad. In parts of Peckham Rye some of the cowkeepers had lost their cattle, but there again the places were badly ventilated, and the cows were badly cared for. He believed that the disease might be prevented by the use of proper precautions on the part of those who had the greatest interest in keeping their cows in a healthy state. He believed, too, that this question affected the whole of the metropolitan district quite as much as it did the City itself. There were no fewer than 106 head of diseased cattle lately seized; but, as he said before, they could not be killed without an order from a magistrate, and a magistrate would naturally feel a difficulty in issuing an order to kill so many as 106 head. It was necessary, under such circumstances, that a deputation should wait upon the Home Secretary and ask him to provide a remedy, and tell the authorities what they were to do at such a crisis. If, as it now appeared, the inspectors and the markets' committee had been slaughtering beasts without authority, who was to pay the costs should proceedings against them be commenced? Professor Simonds seemed to think that next session a bill of indemnity would be introduced, and certainly something of this kind was rendered necessary, for cattle were now coming here which were consigned to A., B., and C., and then the owners could not be found, and without the consent of the owners the diseased beasts could not be killed. The next subject in the report had reference to slaughter-houses. As there were no places at present to which cattle in an incipient stage of the disease could be removed from the sheds in which they were placed along with untainted cattle, it was now proposed that slaughter-houses should be established in London for their reception. Then came the question, how were the beasts to be removed from the sheds to the slaughter-houses? It was the opinion of many that they ought to be removed in vans, and not driven through the streets; but, however that might be, slaughter-houses should be erected in the metropolis where the tainted animals might be killed. Then came the question, how was an animal to be dealt with when first stricken with the disease? It was suggested that hospitals or sanatoriums should be provided, to which the beasts should be sent. But this was a matter of great importance, to which the attention of the committee to be appointed and that of the medical men would have to be directed. If the plague went on it would affect all classes, rich and poor alike, and instead of meat being as now at a reasonable rate, it would go up 4d. or 6d. per pound; but he had hopes that the disease might be checked, particularly as Professors Simonds and Gamgee had been more successful in the treatment of it than they had previously been.

Note TAugust 31.

Deputation to the Home Office. – Yesterday afternoon the Lord Mayor proceeded from the Mansion House to the Home Office, and had an interview with Mr. Waddington on the subject of the cattle plague, and the desirability of establishing hospitals or sanatoriums within the metropolitan districts for the reception and medical treatment of diseased cattle. His lordship was accompanied on the occasion by the following deputation from the Markets and Cattle Plague Committees: – Mr. Gibbins (Chairman of the Markets Committee), Mr. Webber, Mr. Gower, Mr. Brewster, Mr. Rudkin, and Dr. Jarvis (the Medical Officer of Health for Bethnal-green). Sir George Grey having left London for Falloden.

The Lord Mayor introduced the deputation to Mr. Waddington, and in doing so, said that their object was to obtain the sanction of Government to the establishment of hospitals or sanatoriums within the metropolitan districts, to which diseased cattle could be conveyed from the cowsheds in order that they might there receive medical treatment, and be, if possible, restored to health. He observed that similar establishments had been formed at Edinburgh and other large towns, and that they had been found to work most satisfactorily, not only in separating the diseased cattle from those which were non-diseased, but in affording facilities to the medical profession to exercise their skill and knowledge under circumstances more favourable to a fair trial of both than they could expect to find in crowded cowsheds, many of which were in a filthy condition and badly ventilated. He pointed out the progress the plague had made, and was still making, in the metropolis, and how its effects upon the high price of meat and milk were affecting all classes of the community. The difficulties, he said, of adequately meeting the necessities of the case were at present very great, and some of these consisted in the alleged illegality of slaughtering diseased animals without an order from a magistrate, and also the illegality of removing those diseased from the cowsheds to the hospitals, supposing the latter to exist. But he hoped the Government, who had no doubt well considered a subject of such vast importance, would speedily do away with those difficulties, and render the fullest aid to the Markets' Committee and Metropolitan Cattle Plague Committee, who were unceasingly devoting their time and attention to mitigate, and, if possible, put an end to the evil. At present, however, the object of the deputation was limited to that of obtaining the sanction of the Government to the establishment of the hospitals or sanatoriums. This was an object which had not only received the general approval of the two committees mentioned, but also of the medical profession, and he might add, what it was by no means unimportant to bear in mind, that the cowkeepers themselves and the salesmen of the Cattle Market were also in favour of it.

Mr. Gibbins and the several members of the deputation corroborated what had fallen from the Lord Mayor, and strongly advocated the necessity of having the hospitals speedily established.

Mr. Rudkin called the attention of Mr. Waddington to the fact that the day before there were fourteen diseased cows seized at the slaughter-house of the Cattle Market, which had been sent there from the cowsheds of the metropolis. He argued that this in itself was a proof that the Order in Council, as at present carried out, was insufficient to prevent diseased cows from being sent from the cowsheds by their owners to be slaughtered for human food.

Mr. Waddington, who listened very attentively to the whole of the statements, said he would take an early opportunity of communicating with Sir George Grey upon the subject. In the first instance, however, he wished the deputation to forward to him their views in writing, and these also would be transmitted to the Home Secretary.

The deputation promised to comply with the suggestion, and thanked Mr. Waddington for the courtesy with which he had received and the patience with which he had listened to them.

Yorkshire. – The plague has extended to this district. The cases reported, however, are extremely few, and precautions are being taken which it is hoped may stop the further progress of the disease. On Tuesday a meeting of the Yorkshire Medical Veterinary Society was held at Leeds, and the question was discussed in all its bearings. It was stated that four cases had occurred in Leeds, and the disease has also appeared in the Skyrack division of the Riding. The general result of the discussion was, that members of the society were recommended, when diseased cattle were submitted, not to order them to be killed, but to place them in a sanatorium for medicinal treatment; the wholesale destruction of the animals being regarded as a blot upon the profession.

Note V

Indeed, information has reached us of the disease existing in Dumfriesshire, but there is some doubt on this point. So long as we hear of infected, or probably infected, cattle being disseminated in large numbers from the great markets of the country, we must have the propagation of the malady. For the welfare of this country, it is deeply to be regretted that our Government cannot deal with this question as Continental authorities do. I regret to say some of our neighbours laugh at our expense. They see us helpless owing to the wretched state of our laws on the subject, and they are not a little amused at the theories of spontaneous development of the disease which some still advocate. The French Emperor has sent over Professor Bouley, who is still in this country, and who telegraphed on his first arrival, about ten days ago, that the ports of France should be instantly closed to British cattle. This has been done, and we may depend upon it the French people will not suffer as we now must. – Gamgee, Lettre du 24 Août.

Note YAugust 16.

More Seizures of Diseased Meat. – Yesterday Mr. Paget, in the course of the proceedings at the Thames Police Court, was informed that there was a large quantity of meat in a van in the police-yard adjoining, which had been seized that day by Mr. J. Stevens, the sanitary inspector of Mile-end Old Town, and which was described as unfit for human food. The inspector stated, that in consequence of having been informed that there was a quantity of diseased meat at the shop of Mr. Frost, butcher, Sydney-street, Mile-end Old Town, he went there that morning, and found four quarters of beef (two fore and two hind quarters) which were from a diseased beast. He made a seizure of them, and heard that the animal had been sent by a person of the name of Stephens, a cowkeeper in business on Bow-common. The meat was in a very nasty state, and totally unfit for human food. (Mr. Paget went into the police-yard to examine the meat, which was in a very shocking state.) Dr. Freeman, Medical Officer of Health of the Hamlet of Mile-end Old Town, stated that his attention was called to the state of the meat by the sanitary inspector. He examined it, and gave his opinion that it should be destroyed, as it was not only in a diseased condition, but he believed that it had died from some disease. Mr. Paget: Can you state the nature of the disease which caused its death? – Witness: I cannot. Most likely it was the prevailing epidemic; and if it were eaten it would be very injurious. Mr. Paget, after hearing the evidence, ordered that the meat should be immediately destroyed, when the inspector took the van with its contents to a knacker's yard to see the order carried into effect.

Note Z

Nefarious Attempt to spread the Plague. – Yesterday Mr. Gifford, Sanitary Inspector to the parish of Paddington, asked (at Marylebone Police Court) for the magistrate's advice under the following circumstances: – Applicant said that, in consequence of information received, he yesterday went to a cowshed situate on the Maryland Farm, Harrow-road. He found the door fastened. On looking through one of the chinks, he saw a cow which apparently was in the worst stage of the now prevailing disease, and his opinion was verified after he had burst open the door and examined the animal. He subsequently ascertained that the diseased cow had been brought some distance by a man who was at feud with the owner of the Maryland Farm, and surreptitiously placed amongst the healthy cattle. This was the first case where the disease had shown itself in the parish of Paddington. Mr. Yardley referred the applicant to the Order in Council, dated the 24th of July, 1865, under which he thought inspectors of nuisances had power to act summarily.

THE END

1

To assist the researches of other inquirers on this vital subject, now so generally interesting, we may add, that the cattle treatises already referred to – of Malcolm Flemming and Peter Layard – are to be found in the Library of the British Museum, bound together in a single volume, which is certainly worth ten times its weight in gold. It contains, indeed, eight different opuscula, all relating to cattle complaints, which scientific students may consult with real gratification. I will here transcribe the titles of the most important of these treatises, the pregnant expositions of the two English physicians above-named.

That of Malcolm Flemming:

"A Proposal, in order to Diminish the Progress of the Distemper among the Horned Cattle, supported by Facts. London, 1755."

That of Peter Layard:

"An Essay on the Nature, Cause, and Cure of the Contagious Distemper among the Horned Cattle in these Kingdoms. London, 1757."

A great many accounts, treatises, and expositions on the same subject appeared at the same time in France, Holland, Denmark, and Switzerland. One, which appeared in the last of these countries, is entitled:

"Reflexions sur la Maladie du Gros Bétail, par la Société des Médecius de Genève. 1756."

2

We are aware that the transport of cattle is conducted in a different manner during the prevalence of this epizootia. The account given by two German veterinary surgeons of the management of the vessels of the North German Lloyd's, and of the manner in which the animals are treated, is a proof of this; but before the appearance of the epizootia, the transport of animals by land and by sea left much to be desired. This account will be found at the end of this work (Note A); and all documents in support of the facts which have served as the basis of our dissertation, are also in the Appendix, arranged alphabetically in the form of notes.

3

See Notes B, C, D, E.

4

See Note F.

5

On the 15th of September, the thermometer stood at 80° Fahrenheit.

6

See Notes G, J.

7

See Notes K, L.

8

See Note M.

9