406 Dr Eck on the Occurrence of Glanders 



tor of the veterinary school in this city, Professor Naumann, 

 and Veterinary surgeon Halbach,* when asked their opinion as 

 to the infectious power of glanders with respect to the human sub- 

 ject, in a suspicious case, which was under the care of Dr Schil- 

 ling in 1821, stated, " That they had not met with any example 

 of this disease in man, from glandered matter received from a 

 living horse, and that none of the veterinary surgeons or grooms 

 who had been occupied with living or dead glandered horses, 

 had ever been infected. On the other hand, however, there 

 were not wanting instances in which persons who had cut them- 

 selves, while making preparations from such bodies, occasionally 

 had bad forms of inflammation, and even mortification affecting 

 the hands and fore-arms." About the same time also, veterina- 

 ry surgeon Major Dietrichs,-f disputed the possibility of the 

 human subject taking infection from a living horse, but admit- 

 ted that he had met with some cases in which men who cut 

 themselves while dissecting the bodies of horses who died of ma- 

 rasmus and glanders, became ill, and mortification of the injured 

 part, which proved fatal. Nay, Surgeon Hallbach was so little 

 afraid of infection from living horses, that he offered to inoculate 

 himself with the matter of glanders. 



The fact of the existence of such opinions among experienced 

 veterinary surgeons, the few opportunities which most practi- 

 tioners have of observing the disease in man, the ignorance of 

 its symptoms among former observers, and the false representa- 

 tion which have been given of cases, will be sufficient to explain 

 the prevalence of the foregoing views among the majority of 

 medical men ; and hence, I have not been much surprised to 

 hear not long since, from medical functionaries, and practical 

 physicians of the first class, similar opinions as to the unproved, 

 or at least hypothetic and improbable noxious qualities of 

 glanders with respect to man. Since 1821, however, a different 

 opinion has prevailed, founded on the experience of hospital, 

 military, provincial, and veterinary surgeons, and has been com- 

 municated to the public in official reports, dissertations, and 

 widely-circulated journals. Among these I may mention the 

 interesting case of an artillery-man named Rennspiess, detailed 



• Rust's Magazin, B. xi. S. 500. t lb. B. xi. S. 510. 



I 



