EXPLANATION BY DR. McMEEKAN

Press, Volume XCV, Issue 28253, 15 April 1957, Page 10

EXPLANATION BY DR. McMEEKAN

Statement Made “Many Times”

(New Zealand Press Association J HAMILTON, April 14.

He was quite sympathetic with the anger of some farmers at the bald newspaper reports of his views on facial eczema, but he was equally angry at the failure of responsible farmer leaders to ask him personally for his reasons before bursting into print, said Dr. C. P. McMeekan, superintendent of Ruakura Animal Research Station, yesterday, when commenting on criticism of his reported remarks.

“Apparently, the Hamilton subprovince of Federated Farmers was concerned about two reported statements: First, that facia] eczema is not a killing disease, and the second, that economically, it is not a significant factor,” said Dr. McMeekan.

The first statement was made by him at meetings of sheepfarmers in recent weeks, said Dr. McMeekan. It had been made by him to audiences of many thousands of sheep farmers throughout the North Island in recent years. It had never been challenged.

The second statement attributed to him was never made, he said. Satisfied with Research

“I have said that facial eczema is not a killing disease because that is a fact; it is not a fantasy of a disordered mind. The term has been used in the sense that the disease does not necessarily kill. Only a portion of the animals afflicted by it die from it. The majority, particularly those slightly affected, recover and can be economically handled.”

Asked how the research was progressing, Dr. McMeekan said that he was extremely satisfied with the progress made during the year. He added that he was quite confident that provided the present team of scientific workers received a reasonable measure of encouragement from the farmers for whom they were working, it /ould not be long before even better methods of control of the disease would be placed in the hands of the farmers in facial eczema-prevalent districts. Continuing uninformed criticism, however, was not conducive to maximum effort, he said.