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35
herd, particulars of which could not be obtained with accuracy from
the owner. Another sample obtained on delivery of the milk in
Croydon, after the changes were affected in the herd, gave a
negative result.
No. 2.—The cows on this farm appeared to be healthy, but
five were old and in somewhat poor condition. Two samples
were obtained, one from the mixed milk of twenty cows and one
from the mixed milk of the five inferior cows ; the sample from the
twenty cows gave a negative result, while that from the five gave a
positive result.
On again visiting the farm, it was found that one of the five
inferior cows had died, one had been slaughtered as the result of
an accident, and a third had been sold. Samples of milk from
the remaining two were taken, Mr. Thrale being of opinion that
all the other cows were healthy. The examination of the two
samples gave a negative result.
No. 3.—On this farm there were fourteen cows, only one of
which appeared at all suspicious. A sample was obtained from
the milk of this cow, and one from the mixed milk of the others.
The sample of mixed milk gave a positive result, the other was
negative. The farm was again visited, and on the recommendation
of Mr. Thrale's assistant five samples were obtained. The result
of the examination of these samples were four negative and one
positive. The cow from which the positive sample was obtained
was sold for slaughter.
The total number of samples was not large, but the general results
confirmed the experience of previous years, namely, that tuberculous
milk is more commonly met with in rural than urban districts. If the
percentage is calculated for the two sets of samples, it will be seen that
one in twenty-five, or 4 per cent., of the borough samples were tuberculous
as compared with three in twenty-one, or rather more than
14 per cent, in the case of milk produced outside the district.
In 1901 the proportion of tuberculous samples was 5 6 for the borough
and nearly 7 per cent. for country milk. As pointed out in previous
reports, the procedure contemplated by the Model Milk Clauses
is cumbersome and to a large extent ineffective. It seems unlikely
that the sale of tuberculous milk can be efficiently dealt with until
measures are adopted which should be applied to the country as a whole.
This should include the frequent inspection of all dairy cows together
with skilled assistance in the selection of tubercle free animals for
breeding. Were this done in the same manner that the Beddington
Farm Committee has recently adopted there would be no insuperable
difficulty in stamping out bovine tuberculosis within the next decade