VETERINARY SURGEON AND FARRIER. 231 



the defendant is liable to the plaintiff for any mischief 

 that may have resulted from such unskilfulness ; but he is 

 liable only to the extent to which mischief has been pro- 

 duced. The Ride I take to be this, that a person employed 

 for any purpose must bring to the subject-matter a reason- 

 able skill and fitness, and he must exercise that reasonable 

 skill and fitness with due and proj)er care. If he be defi- 

 cient in the requisite skilfulness, and in consequence of 

 that the operation is performed in a bad and bungling 

 manner, or if, having the requisite skilfulness, he fails to 

 bring it to act, he is liable for any mischief which results 

 from that." 



" I need hardly tell you, that an operation of this sort No Insur- 

 cannot be considered in the light of an Insurance. If you ^^nce against 

 apply to a Surgeon or a medical man to cure you of any ^^■I'^^J"- 

 disorder, he is liable if there is any want of skill or proper 

 care ; and I observed that one of you asked whether 

 pricking a Horse was a frequent accident. I think the 

 answer to that immediate question was, that it was not, 

 at all events, very unfrequent ; still it may hai^pen with- 

 out any great degree of unskilfulness attaching to it. 

 The operation most resembles that of shaving. If a man 

 undertakes to shave another, he would not be responsible 

 for every abrasion of the skin that the barber might make ; 

 it requires a degree of skilfulness and care, and it might 

 be hardly possible to operate upon a certain person without 

 something of that sort taking place : and although an 

 accident may happen, such as in this case, it may be that 

 the foot of the Horse was in such a state that it would be 

 difficult to perform the operation of shoeing." 



" Wherever that is the case, you would naturally ex- Peculiar dif- 

 pect some information given that there were those defects Acuities 

 and difficulties, so that the Farrier might be made ac- Mentioned 

 quainted with the risk he was exposing himself to. You 

 will therefore have to judge whether you think there was 

 any want of skill in the operation of shoeing these Horses. 

 I own it appears to me that I think it is impossible to 

 doubt as to the fact that there was an actual pricking." 



" With respect to the man's skill, he may have done Coming at an 

 it on this occasion badly, they coming to him at night to unseasonable 

 insist upon the job being done at an iiTCgular hour; °^^* 

 that was partly suggested at one time. I must say it 

 appears to me as a question of law, that that it is no ex- 

 cuse. If you go to any place, and call in a Surgeon or 

 a Farrier, or any person to perform an operation, if the 



