§ Mr. CHARLES BATHURSTasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture whether, in view of the recent increase of anthrax throughout Great Britain and the universally accepted theory that the main source of infection is the association of animal foodstuffs with hides, skins, wool, horsehair, mohair, rags, and other like materials prior to importation, the Board has considered the efficacy and desirability of insisting upon such articles being effectively sterilised at the port of their shipment by some process which will cause no injury to the material or fabric; whether the Board's scientific advisers have, in this connection, considered the efficacy of the process advocated by Mr. Alfred Seymour Jones, of Wrexham, of treating such materials with formic acid and mercuric chloride, and the recent report on the subject submitted by Dr. Constant W. Ponder to the Leather-sellers Company, of London; and, if so, with what result?
§ The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the BOARD of AGRICULTURE (Sir Edward Strachey)The answer to the first and second parts of the question is in the affirmative. The Board do not consider that the investigations made with regard to the process in question are sufficiently complete to justify the Board in advocating its adoption, but the matter will be kept in view.