§ Mr. O'SHEEasked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland) whether the Report of the Departmental Committee of the Board of Agriculture on Epizootic Abortion will be immediately brought under the notice of the agricultural instructors appointed by county committees in Ireland; whether he is aware that the agricultural instructor of the county Waterford estimates the loss by this disease at £8,000 annually, and that other competent persons estimate it at double that figure; whether he will consider the advisability of making this disease notifiable, and of prohibiting the sale of any cattle suffering from it except for the purpose of slaughter?
§ Mr. T. W. RUSSELLThe Preliminary Report of the Departmental Committee of the Board of Agriculture on Epizootic Abortion is at present being considered by 1063W the Department. The Committee carrying out the experiments do not consider their investigations sufficiently advanced to admit of making any recommendations regarding measures which might usefully be taken for the prevention of this disease. The Department are aware that the agricultural instructor for county Waterford estimates the loss from epizootic abortion at £8,000 per annum, and that other persons in the county estimate it at double that figure. As soon as the special Report promised by the Committee is published a revised leaflet on the subject will be issued by the Department, and will be placed in the hands of every instructor in Ireland for distribution among farmers. The question of including epizootic abortion as a scheduled disease under the Diseases of Animals Acts will depend on the recommendations contained in the Final Report of the Committee.