Report of the governor general of the Philippine Islands. [1908]

58

REPORT OF THE PHILIPPINE COMMISSION.

With the completion of the new stables, which makes possible a
material increase in the size of the serum herd, and with the more
rapid and complete extraction of serum which will be obtained by
the large new centrifuge just installed, it should be possible to produce a good deal more than is required for the ordinary uses of the
government, and the surplus will be sold at reasonable prices to anyone who may desire to purchase it.
ESTABLISHMENT OF A VETERINARY COLLEGE RECOMMENDED.
The undersigned is fully convinced that the first college of the
proposed new university to be established should be a college of veterinary medicine and surgery.
In the past it has always been difficult to obtain a sufficient number
of properly qualified veterinarians from the United States. New
men upon arrival are necessarily compelled to spend a considerable
amount of time familiarizing themselves with tropical animal
diseases and with the methods which have proved most successful
in combating them. They must also learn a good deal of Spanish,
and, in fact, it is not until they have acquired a considerable knowledge of the local native dialects and have had a large amount of
experience in dealing with the people in the provinces that they
reach their maximum usefulness.
Men born and reared in the islands must always have a great
advantage over those brought in from the outside, if equally trained,
and the facilities for giving the best of training can be provided at a
relatively small cost.
The course of study should be of four years' duration. The first
two years can be given in the Philippine Medical School as at present
organized with little or no additional expense. The last two years
can be provided for in connection with the Manila quarantine station,
where a veterinary hospital should in any event be established and
where technical instruction can be given by the veterinarians in
charge. Until such time as conditions greatly improve there should
be a competent veterinarian in every province in the Philippine
Islands, and to this end the government should provide one or more
free scholarships for each province, with the proviso that the beneficiary in each case shall serve the government, at a moderate salary,
for at least four years after graduation. The present arrangement,
which allows but one veterinarian to each four or five provinces or
islands of considerable importance, is highly unsatisfactory.
Heretofore the most serious difficulty in the way of combating
dangerous communicable animal diseases has been the hostile attitude
of the more ignorant people of the islands. The great change which
has now arisen is both gratifying and encouraging. The undersigned
felt that it was certain to come in the end, but did not expect it so
soon, or he would have tried to have the bureau of agriculture better
prepared to meet the largely increased volume of work resulting
from it.
PUBLICATIONS.
With some hesitation the issuing of a monthly publication known
as the " Philippine Agricultural Review " has been entered upon and
5 numbers have appeared. They have been extremely well received,