No. 1.] M-EACHRAN — EPIZOOTIC INFLUENZA. 45 



amining her closely, I found that she presented symptoms indica- 

 tive of influenza in which bronchitis was prominent. The gentle- 

 man had bought a pair of carriage horses in Ontario which were 

 both coughing ; but as they did not appear to suffer much, it was 

 supposed to be the result of a slight cold contracted in coming 

 from Toronto here. However, on examination, I found the 

 same indications of influenza as in the mare. 



On the following day four cases occurred in a stable in the 

 same street ; on the 10th, six more in different parts of the city ; 

 and on the 11th as many more. By the 17th scarcely a horse in 

 the city could be said to be free from it. To give an idea of the 

 suddenness of its spread, I may mention that in one stable which 

 I visited on Saturday evening, there was not a single case, but 

 when I was sent for next morning, half the horses were affected, 

 and before night the entire stock of about fifty had the disease. 



Symj^toms. — The period of incubation would seem to be very 

 short ; but I think that I am right in saying that the time which 

 the poison takes to become developed after its introduction into 

 the system is short, say from one to three days. A peculiar deep 

 cough early sets in, and in most cases there was a jcopious dis- 

 charge from the nostrils. The discharge was generally thick and 

 purulent ; in a few cases it had the peculiar orange colour which 

 we find in typhoid fever, but often it was white and curdy. As 

 a rule, however, it was the ordinary muco-purulent discharge 

 seen in catarrhal affections. In old horses, especially in pro- 

 tracted cases, blood was often mixed with it. There was occa- 

 sionally also a purulent discharge from the eyes. The mucous 

 membranes were swollen, soft, and generally of a pale buff colour, 

 though in some old animals they had a distinctly yellow tinge, 

 especially observable in the sclerotic coat and the lining of the 

 eyelids — an indication of hepatic derangement. The throat in 

 all cases was swollen, the thyroid and submaxillary glands slightly, 

 but the mucous membrane of the fauces, posterior nares and epi- 

 glottis considerably. This occasioned difficulty in swallowing, 

 and brought on severe fits of coughing. Quantities of thick 

 gummy sputa were frequently coughed up from the throat, but 

 in several cases became so adhesive that death was occasioned by 

 its obstructing the air passages. 



The typhoid form of fever was a prominent symptom. The 

 mouth was hot, but not dry, being kept moist by the constant 

 secretion from the throat, the pulse seldom over fifty-five to sixty, 



