FOR THE YEAR ENDED THE 31ST MARCH 1928.              5

than Rinderpest from the mortality point of view, often seriously
embarrasses the cultivators by incapacitating their plough bullocks at
the time that they are required for cultivation. The disease is amenable
to curative treatment and the existence of dispensaries would be a boon
to cultivators in this respect. All cultivators should know the curative
treatment to be adopted for this disease, but until dispensaries are
established where the required medicines can be obtained little can be
done. The Veterinary Assistants are supposed to treat it, but obviously
can only deal with a very small proportion of the animals affected.

10.   For the three diseases which are linked together to form one
group. Hæmorrhagic Septicæmia, Black Quarter and Anthrax, the
recorded deaths are 1,598 against 990 for last year. Mr. Mitchell, the
newly recruited Research Officer, is preparing leaflets on Anthrax and
Black Quarter, which it is hoped to distribute widely among cultivators.
He is also working on the production of protective vaccines for these
two diseases. The above figures do not include the mortality among
working elephants which is commented on later in the paragraph
dealing with veterinary research.

                CHAPTER III.—SEGREGATION RULES.

11.  The measures for segregation prescribed under the Cattle
Disease Rules of the Burma Village Act constitute with the Inoculation
Rules the only legislation which exists in this province for the suppres-
sion of cattle disease. Speaking generally Deputy Commissioners, as
in previous years, state that the rules appear to be fairly well under-
stood, but that they are not always carried out. As mentioned in a
previous paragraph much difficulty was experienced in Akyab owing to
villagers throwing carcases of diseased animals into the creeks. The
reason for the rules not being carried out and disease not being
promptly reported is often put down to apathy on the part of the
people. The reasons, however, are really more deep-seated and are
intimately connected with the conditions under which agriculture is
carried on in this province. The difficulties are—

(1)  the village as opposed to the farm system and communal
grazing ;

(2)  the fact that bullocks and buffaloes are the transport animals
of the province ;

(3)  the existence of large herds of cattle in the possession of
Indians who own no land, pay no land revenue and who, as
they often live outside the villages, are not subject to the
discipline of the headmen.

The first two of these conditions make complete isolation and
" stand-still " measures, such as are practised in England, impossible.
The last great outbreak of Rinderpest in the British Isles took place in
the year 1865, in which year between 400,000 to 500,000 head of cattle