FIGHTING TUBERCULOSIS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 304, 17 September 1908, Page 3

FIGHTING TUBERCULOSIS.

It was appropriate—this honoured deration'of the cowshed. It is a-.challenge to the dair.ving world to den)'' that l cowsheds can bo clean.

MODERN PROPOSALS. PROTECTING THE MILK SUPPLY. Captain F.' S. H. Baldrey, F.K.C.V.S., DALH:, I.C.V-.D., has written an exhaustive resume of -recent research on' tjio .subject'of improving the milk supply, ancj'refers specially to Bulletin '41 of the Hygienic Laboratory, U.S.A., in which , scientists. record the results, of their investigations. In. the course of his resume, Captain Baldrey says: — The Danger to ChiltironY^ " Mohler, tin-discussing-the' .wholesome'milk supply,, thinks that, tuberculosis is probably tho.most important diseaso.'in the standard of public health. This .'is borno out by the' fact that the majority of infantile tuberculosis is of an. intestinal nature, which points to grave suspicion" of the milk, and, as Schroeder has shown, although animals may not bo passing tubercle baccilli in the milk, they may do so in the feces, and the dust particles which dry from these may contaminate the milk; to an enormous extent. Tiio Tuberculin Test. "He advocates the application of the tuberculin test for the elimination of tuberculous animals; he also ■ strongly advocates that' this elimination of tuberculosis amongst people should bo aided by the pasteurisation of the milk. It has' been'shown that frozen butter and ■ other dairy products contain tuberculous organisms, ■ and aro therefore dangerous unless they- have been submitted to pasteurisation. Ho "points out also that actinomycosis', . botryomycosis, foot and mouth disease,'rabies and mammitis are all diseases likely to affect' the milk, and that anthrax' has' been' recovered-from the milk ( fourteen- days after it had been taken from'an infected cow. , . i. : Sovere Regulations.. • ■: ■ '■ ' "-He concludes with the following recommendations :— "(1) cows on dairy, farms producing milk for the district* bo marked for. the purposes of identification. - ' " (2) That all milk produced on, such farms shall come from ; cither' tuberculin-tested cattle, which shall be. ro-tested at. least once a year, or bo subjected to pasteurisation if the herd is not tuberculin-tested. .-.

"(3) That no additions to any' herd 'bo made without subjecting the cattle added to the tuberculin test. . " (4) That no licenses bo granted except to applicants having herds free ■of tuberculosis. , " (5) That the milk: of .cattlo showing affections of tho udder, anthrax, rabies, gastro-ent-eritis, septic conditions or clinical symptoms of .tuberculosis shall not be used, even though pasteurised.Milk, both fifteen days before and five days after, parturition, and that from .animals" receiving deleterious medicaments or foodstuffs, shall likewise bo excluded. ",(6) That veterinary inspectors make frequent visits to dairies.. " (7) That laws be-passed granting an appropriate indemnity to all owners of tuberculous cattle, the said animals,to be slaughtered under Government control." ' . FARMERS' UNION. , . LONGBUSH BRANCH. The Lo'ngbush branch'of. tho New Zealand Farmer's' Union . iriet on Tuesday night (writes our Wairafapa correspondent), when there was a large attendance of farmers. Mr. H. Mason presided, while Mr. W. Perry, of Masterton, was in • attendance to give any explanation 1 ' required on the business before the meeting from the Masterton Executive branch.. The meeting was called to consider whether the branch should interest itself as a branch iirtlie political questions of the-day; to approve or otherwise the political questions which were' decided to be submitted to candidates for Parliament by tho Colonial' Conference of. the Union at its meeting recently held in' Wellington, and also to consider the Accommodation Bill now before the House of Parliament. It was decided that it was a right and proper thing for tho _ branch to interest itself in political questions, and the Colonial Conference questions to. candidates were unanimously approved. It was resolved to put t.ho following further questions to political candidates

Repeal of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act; Referendum Bill; abolition of tho picsent Government co-operative labour system ; Government road grants to bo vested in the control of tho local bodies, in whoso "district the money is to be expended. Tho meeting was totally adverso to tho present Shearers' Accommodation Bill, and it was pointed, out that there was a Shearers' Arbitration Court Award, none of the clauses of which had found their way into the proposed Bill. It was contended that tho Bill was an outsiders' measure, and that the shearers were generally well satisfied with tho present conditions. Exception was taken to the mandatory demands of the Government as embodied i" the Bill, when there were thousands of instances that tho State was not prescribing the same Housing for many,

of its own staffs as ifc sought to wring from the farmers, in whose calling the conditions of lifo were altogether different. The meeting also discussed the bccond Ballot Bill, and on the motion of t Mr. J. Strang it was decided that, in the interests of the country, tlio branch was of tho opin-ion-that the'attempt to gag the press and tho public was ill-advised, and in a measure inimical to a Constitution based on freedom of opinion.