[Reports and Appendices] of the Irish Milk Commission, 1911.

  • Great Britain. [Royal] Commission on the Irish Milk Supply.
Date:
1913
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: [Reports and Appendices] of the Irish Milk Commission, 1911. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

    761/1108 (page 323)
    ^Jiss (i. PoEn-O'SHEE.—lal/i July, VJli. that it was while healthy : that would be putting a premium on diseased animals. 25996. One witness suggested to us that owners should set higher compensation for notifying beasts as early as they see anything is wrong, and less given where wast- ing has been allowed to go on un-notified. \\ ould you approve of that?—Au excellent plan, provided the Veterinary Inspector is not a local practitioner, and tlius subject to intolerable local pressure if ho does his full duty to the public. 25996a. Lady Everard.—Then you would have a cen- tral authority for such work?—Yes, central, and no in- spectors sent to be near their native counties-that would be vital. 25997. With reference to the milk supply, is there a difficulty in poor people getting milk?—Yes; there i& a very great difliculty in winter. 25998. Is there any winter dairying done, and, if not, why?—The chief cause of the shortage of milk in winter is that there is practically no winter dairying <lone. It is too costly, and the farmer cannot get reliable labour. 25999. Is there a difficulty experienced in getting milkers?—Yes. It is very difficult to get milkers on •Sundays, holidays, and sports' days, and sometimes the day after. 26000. Is. that due to the working classes being less inclined than formerly to attend at their employers' place, morning and evening, seven days of the week?— Yes. Many farmers just keep as many milch cows as their own families can manage, for it is getting more .and more difficult to procure reliable milkers. We could not get the cows in or milked at home one Sunday evening; all hands had gone to a football match, and at 7 p.m. my brother's children were still crying for their tea. 26001. They prefer the sports and meetings to milking ws—is that the case?—Yes. 26002. You think the children of the poor do not get enough milk?—They do not. The people have got out of drinking milk. It is tea, tea, tea. Even the babies of six months in arms cry for tea. I have myself seen \\lien with the coffee van cliildreu of six months in the arms of tramps refuse milk, and cry for tea. l-'.ven the tramps won't take milk when they are offered it. Sometimes, when I have milk left over at the coliee van, I offer it to them for nothing, and they don't want to take it—fine new, sweet milk. 26003. Miss McNeill.—What do you suggest in the matter of compensation for animals slaughtered-—would you pay full compensation?—I would not pay the price nf a healthy animal. 26004. Don't you think, if you have an inspector, that he would be less likely to enforce the slaughter of the animal if the owner did not get full compensation? —I would give the value of the animal at the time it was slaughtered. If you pay the full value you will have pfople allowing animals to pine away, and then, when tiie last stages of the disease were reached, call- ing in the inspector. 26005. The Chairman.—A point is that it is some- times extremely hard to find out the animals that are infected. The best-looking animals may he infected unknown to the owner; and don't you think it would be hard to penalise him?—I would pay him fair com- pensation, which should be a State charge. The fairest thing would be to pay the value of the animal at the time of slaughter. I would not pay the price of a healthy beast. If an animal was past its use, the owner could not expect full compensation. 26006. You think you could go a long way if you liad compulsory notification?—If you are to stamp out in- fection you must have notification. Of course, some jjeople object to it; but there will always be people who will object to things. ]\Iany of them have false notions as to its effect. Some of them think it would interfere with their children's marriage market, but they would soon find that a delusion. The Commission then adjourned till the 8th Aiujiist to Ennisldllen.