THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 1976
Page 4
The first 100 years
Early A&M vet’s fight against tick fever makes histor
i—, mm ^& m-.
Aggie veterinary students in 1910 preoccupied with a Dr. Francis lab practical
By JOHN ADAMS
Contributor
For years the Lone Star State has
been the noted leader in the cattle
industry. Vast herds were de
veloped and shipped to the
railheads of Fort Worth and Kansas
City. Many were responsible for the
success and development of the
Texas cattle industry. None con
tributed more than Dr. Mark Fran
cis whose fight against Texas tick
fever has become veterinary his
tory.
After graduation from Ohio Uni
versity in 1887, he joined the faculty
at Texas A&M on July 31, 1888.
Shortly after arriving, he began re
search on “Texas or “tick” fever,
which was developing into a gigan
tic problem throughout the South
west.
During periods following the
Civil War, cattle from Texas were
shipped into the Southern Cotton
Belt. There these cattle were in
fested with ticks and the fever they
carried. These initial herds of Texas
cattle slowly became resistant to
tick fever. As the tick fever spread
back into Texas, new purebred
strains were not able to combat the
fever. The problem by the early
1890s was very acute. Tackling this
problem head on, Francis, after ex
tensive research, developed a sub
cutaneous injection method of pro
ducing immunity. His efforts were
not without obstacle.
He was subjected to much
ridicule by the press and “city”
politicians who labeled his research
as “wanton waste of public funds.”
At times his efforts seemed fruitless.
One of his associates, in a fit of de
spair, suggested a cow be wired for
electricity and voltage used to kill
the ticks which invested the animal.
Determined to try “every fool
suggestion,” Francis put a steer on
an insulated platform and wired it
for 110 volts. No one had ever taken
the trouble to find out how much
electricity a steer could safely carry.
Francis soon found out. The switch
was thrown, killing the steer in
stantly, and the ticks continued to
crawl about aimlessly.
Notwithstanding these research
delays, Francis by 1900 had per
fected his method of inoculating cat
tle, thus reducing tick fever
mortality of susceptible cattle from
75 per cent to 10 per cent. His
breakthrough was given interna
tional recognition and has made
possible the great herds of
Herefords and other fine breeds so
prominate in the Southwest.
In 1916, a veterinary school was
established at Texas A&M, with
Francis being named its first dean.
He served in this capacity until his
death in 1936. During his twenty
years as dean of the Texas A&M
Veterinary School he improved lab
facilities and expanded research en
deavors.
Francis was veiy popular with the
students. His main hobby was the
collection of animal fossils from pre
historic days. During his half cen
tury of service at Texas A&M, he
roamed the state identifying relics
for his collection. This collection
became so extensive a small
museum was set up in Francis Hall,
named in his honor.
One of the curious items that
found its way into the museum was
an Egyptian mummy. Alter
ing the mummy as a gift, Fn
stood the wrapped five footfigm
the back of his lecture room
dents joked for years the mm
was only a fake. Once X-rayed
proven authentic, Francis pm
lecture companion on permai
museum display.
The mummy’s name was
HR-H3CPJ. The inscription
lid of his coffin contained a foi
for the offering of the dead
preted into modern terms it
“May the deceased by the gr*
the local god, Osiris, who is
such and such districts andwlr
cupies a high place in froi
Amon-Re, the chief god ofEj
receive food, drink and
forever and ever.”
The mummy was on displi
the Texas A&M museum unt
museum was closed in early
Many of the bones were sli;
along with ANH-HR-H3CPJ
Houston Museum of Natural
tory. Part of Francis’ prehistori
lection is on display at the
Valley Museum of Natural Hi
Horses threaten
e
We have no Venezuelan equine
encephalomyelitis (VEE) in our
Texas horse herds now, but if we
don’t keep them protected, we may
have a serious problem in the fu
ture, says Dr. Dennis McIntosh,
Texas Veterinary Medical Associa
tion Public Information Committee
member.
Dr. H.Q. Sibley, Executive Di
rector of the Texas Animal Health
Commission, says that we never
know about the VEE problem just
south of our border in Mexico. The
mosquitoes that carry this dread
disease could move north at any
time, like they did in the summer of
1971. That year, over 2,0(X) horses
died from VEE in the Rio Grande
Valley. This would not have hap
pened if the horse population had
been protected by vaccination. If
VEE moves north again, those
horses that are unprotected
susceptible to this disease.
Sibley recommends thatal
in Texas be vaccinated,
adult horses receive yearly
ters. All horses shipped into
are required to be vaccinated
many states require thatki
shipped from Texas be vacei
for VEE.
Show horses that are
shows are required by most
managements to he vaccinal)
VEE, in addition to othertesl
vaccinations.
Are your health insu
premiums too high? Inter)
in low-cost coverage? Fi
appointment call
Burditt III or Phil Gil
CLU, 822-1550.
_ The Bacardi Driver.
Zippier than a screwdrivei
Easy as 1,2,3-
Pour IVz oz. Bacardi light rum
over ice in a tall glass.
We want you to
have better soun&
Technics
by Panasonic
SL-1300
Turntable and Matching Tonearm. Ultra-loW
speed DC brushless motor. Automatic tone-
arm. Direct-drive system eliminates belts, idl
ers, or other reduction mechanisms. Unique
repeat selector switch lets you repeat a rec
ord up to five times or indefinitely. Feather-
touch damped cueing. Anti-skating. Variable
pitch controls. Low capacitance phono cables
Removable tonearm headshell. Built-in strobe
light. Hinged plexiglass dust cover.
under $300.00
3806-A Old College I
(Next to Triangle Bo' 1
846-3517
Mon., Tues., Wed., Sat
Thurs. & Fri. 11-7
WE WILL BE MOVING
SOON TO 3822 TEXAS
AVENUE
(Across from Burger King)