216 Notices respecting New Books. 



Mr. Cx,ARK*s Dissertations and original Experiments on 

 the Foot of the living Horse, exhibiting the Changes pro- 

 duced by Shoeing, and the Causes of the apparent Mystery 

 of this Art. 



[Concluded fr»m p. 47.] 



The extension of science, humanity, and interest, alt 

 combine to give importance to Mr. Clark's discoveries, and 

 render it necessary to make them better known to the 

 public. The author well observes, in defence of the ve- 

 terinary profession, that " there is no art so perplexed and 

 difficult that by human industry and research, steadily and 

 properly exerted, cannot be rendered more clear and prac- 

 ticable." He might have added that the progress of ani- 

 mal is quite equal to that of human medicine, although the 

 latter interests all, the former only a part of mankind. Mr.. 

 C. however, has given another, and, with his professional 

 brethren, very rare example, that of uniting the urbanity of 

 the scholar and the precision of the philosopher in writing 

 on veterinary practice. Formerly the vocabulary of such 

 ■writers was entirely vituperative. ♦' It is indeed," says 

 Mr. C. *' high time the wretched style of declamation and 

 abusive writing on these subjects should give way to a bet- 

 ter taste, that of real investigation and research, as in other 

 objects of a scientific nature, by which alone the art can 

 receive any useful accessions, and mankind and the horse 

 be benefited. The empty verbosity of style alluded to be- 

 gan about the reign of Charles II. or a little earlier, and 

 has continued with few exceptions ever since. It was un- 

 known before that period, and was in reality the natural 

 produce and legitimate oifspring of jockeyism and the race- 

 course." 



The want of scientific terms, and the literal absurdity of 

 many of those now in use, imposed on the author an ar- 

 duous task to make himself intelligible. Such is the word 

 heel, when applied to the foot of a horse, where there is 

 really nothing analogous to the human heel. To remedy 

 this inaccuracy, Mr. C. has used the expressions " lower or 

 horny heels for the parts covered by the shoe; the pos'lerior 

 heels, or back of the frog, and the superior or heels above 

 the hoof, formed by the cartilages." In like manner he 

 shows that the wall of the hoof, as the exterior horn of the 

 foot is called, is not conical but cylindrical, being a very 

 obliquely truncated cylinder. The frog, which is a triangle, 

 of elasuc horn, has the effect of and may be compared to 

 an elastic key-stone received into an elastic arch. This 



structure. 



