Proceedings of a Conference to Consider Means for Combating Foot-and-Mouth Disease (Classic Reprint)

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Excerpt from Proceedings of a Conference to Consider Means for Combating Foot-and-Mouth Disease Pursuant to the following call, a conference to consider means for combating foot-and-mouth disease was held at the La Salle Hotel, Chicago, Ill., November 29 and 30, 1915: Department of Agriculture, Washington. During the recent outbreak of the foot-and-mouth disease the Government had to contend with four extremely serious avoidable difficulties. First a lack of "preparedness" on the part of the Federal, State, and local authorities, owing to the fact that but few veterinarians experienced with foot-and-mouth disease were available to cope with such an extensive outbreak as confronted us from the very beginning. Second, a lack of ready money on the part of State and Federal Governments. Third, lack of proper coordination of efforts between Federal, State, and local authorities and live-stock owners. Fourth, the lack of knowledge on the part of people generally as to the extraordinary infectiousness of this disease. It is greatly to be hoped that this scourge will never again break out on our continent, but while hoping for the best, the Federal Department of Agriculture is already at work preparing to minimize the worst, in case it again should fall to our lot. During the past three months, while stamping out the last sporadic outbreaks of the disease throughout the country, the department has been busily engaged preparing plans and specifications, down to the minutest detail, for promptly combating any future outbreak. In the future it is hoped to take such precautions that no fire department will be in greater readiness for instant action when the alarm sounds than will be the Department of Agriculture when the next call comes to do battle with the foot-and-mouth disease. Form letters, posters, newspaper articles, and minute instructions for meeting every possible emergency are now being prepared, so that they may be ready at all times for instant use throughout the entire United States upon telegraphic order. So much for our new policy of "preparedness." Two other difficulties, however, still confront us: That of properly financing the next campaign against the foot-and-mouth disease and that of properly coordinating the work of Federal and State authorities. These difficulties the Federal department has no power to overcome without the aid of Congress, of State legislatures, and of State live-stock sanitary officials. The Federal Department of Agriculture has decided, therefore, to call a conference of State live-stock sanitary officials, agricultural college experts, practical stockmen, and representatives of live-stock papers, transportation companies, stockyards, county banks, and of the Federal Department of Agriculture for the purpose of discussing ways and means of solving these and other important problems. This conference will be held at Chicago, November 29 and 30, and will be purely advisory. The Federal department hopes at this conference to secure all possible light on the problem under discussion, but with regard to Federal administrative problems it of necessity must be the final judge as to what suggestions are helpful and which are impracticable. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com