The first sickness in Mr. Bailey's herd occurred May 10. The first cow
affected, Lady Florentia, had been in his stable in Peoria up to this
time, when she was taken to his farm seven miles in the country. This
cow had not been in actual contact with any of Mr. Tripp's cattle, and
the only way in which the disease could be accounted for in her was
that it had been carried by some person going from one stable to the
other. This cow recovered from the disease but several others of the
same herd died within a few days after taking the disease. On August
18, a cow was killed and examined in the presence of Dr. J. H. Rauch,
Secretary of the State Board of Health, and Dr. N. H. Pooren, State
Veterinarian, both of whom had been invited to be present in order that
they might see the disease and be convinced of its nature.
Mr. Epler's place at Virginia, Cass county, Illinois, was visited
August 22. No animals were found showing symptoms of the disease, and
Mr. Epler stated that he had lost none from his original herd since
the sale, but a cow which he had bought at Beardstown, Illinois, and
brought to his place in April or May, which died in June of an acute
lung disease that evidently was pleuro-pneumonia. A cow sold to Porter
Yates, of Springfield, Illinois, at Mr. Epler's sale, was attacked
by the disease and died in April. Another cow sold to E. S. Hodson, of
Springfield, soon after her arrival was treated for a similar disease.
Another cow sold to Frank Gaston, of Normal, Illinois, became sick
April 6, but recovered.
As very many of the cattle sold at the Epler sale soon afterward became
affected with pleuro-pneumonia, and as the mingling of the animals
at the sale was the only means by which many of these herds could be
connected, it became very certain that the disease in Illinois had
been brought to the state with some animals that had been sent to Mr.
Epler. The animals which he had collected for this sale had come from
a number of different herds located at widely separated points. Upon
investigation, it was found that only one of these herds had been
affected with pleuro-pneumonia. That herd belonged to Mr. C. R. C.
Dye, of Troy, Ohio. Mr. Epler had purchased five cows from Mr. Dye on
December 28, 1883. These cows arrived at Mr. Epler's farm at Virginia,
Illinois January 4, 1884. Two of the five cows purchased from Mr. Dye
had been previously bought from the herd of James Lyman, of Downer's
Grove, Illinois, in May, 1883. Mr. Dye had bought cattle from several
farms in the east, but it was decided that the disease had been brought
to his herd by some grade Jerseys which he bought in the vicinity of
Baltimore, Maryland. One of these cows had, apparently, recovered from
the disease, but was still able to communicate the disease which was
afterwards determined.
The steps taken to eradicate the dreadful disease were as follows:
(1) Investigation to determine the existence of pleuro-pneumonia in any
suspected locality in the country.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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