From MAUNG SAW HLA PRU (2), B.A., B.L., A.T.M., Officiating Secretary
to the Development Commissioner, Burma, to the Secretary to the
Government of Burma, Department of Agriculture, Excise and Forests,—
No. 250—IV.-47, dated the 8th August 1993.

SUBJECT.—Report on the Civil Veterinary Department for the
year ended the 31st March 1923.

I am directed to submit the report on the Civil Veterinary
Department in Burma for the year ended the 31st March 1923. The
report did not reach this office till the 30th July 1923.

2 General Administration.—Towards the end of the year under
report and since its termination the superior staff of the department
has been seriously depleted. Mr. Rennie proceeded on two years
and four months' leave, with effect from the 13th March, while the
services of Captain O'Neill have been dispensed with on account of
his failure to pass the Departmental Examinations.

Mr. Cameron who has been officiating Veterinary Adviser since
Mr. Rennie's departure is shortly proceeding on leave preparatory
to retirement and the department will be entirely depleted of its per-
manent European officers.

To meet this difficult situation Mr. Blake, Chief Veterinary
Officer with the Rangoon Corporation, has been appointed Veterinary
Adviser on a short term engagement, while Maung Pe Than, Deputy
Superintendent, has been promoted to officiate as Superintendent in
place of Captain O'Neill.

3.   Veterinary Instruction.—In March 1923 a Committee of
experts under the chairmanship of the Development Commissioner
met to consider the future organization of the Insein Veterinary
School and its report is under submisson to Government. It is pro-
posed to make the course of training at the School more complete and
to equip it adequately on the hospital side so that animals can be
treated as in-patients while adequate provision will be made for
surgical work and better equipment of laboratories provided. If the
report of the Committee is accepted it should be possible to meet
the requirements of the Province in the way of Veterinary training
for many years to come. It is now some fourteen years since Mr.
MacKenna as Director of Agriculture took up the question of the im-
provement of the School but for various reasons very little progress has
been made. It is to be hoped that early effect will be given to the
recommendations of the Committee so that the present unsatisfactory
conditions under which the School works may be removed with as
little delay as possible.

4.   Treatment of Diseases.—The total number of deaths from
contagious diseases during the year 1922-23 was practically the same
as that in the preceding year, rinderpest, however, showing a reduc-
tion of about 2,000. Mr. MacKenna regrets to note a slight decrease
in the number of cattle inoculated for rinderpest, and infers from
paragraph 11 of the report that so far from there being an improve-
ment in the attitude of cultivators to inoculation there seems to be