PLEURISY. 281 



a slightly intermittent pulse is produced, and that state of the constitution should 

 be maintained by a continued exhibition of the medicine. Nitre maybe added 

 as a diuretic, and pulvis antimonialis as a diaphoretic. 



Any tonics here ? Yes, the tonic effect of mild and nutritious food green 

 meat of almost every kind, carrots particularly, mashes, and now and then a malt 

 mash. Nothing further than this ? We may try, but very cautiously, those 

 tonics which stimulate the digestive system, yet comparatively little affect the 

 circulatory one. Small doses of camomile and gentian may be given, but carefully 

 watched and omitted if the flanks should heave more, or the cough be aggravated. 



The treatment of phthisis is a most unsatisfactory subject of consideration as 

 it regards the practice of the veterinarian. If, after the human being has been 

 subjected to medical treatment for a long course of time and at very considerable 

 expense, he so far recovers that life is rendered tolerably comfortable to him, 

 he and his connexions are thankful and satisfied, and he will submit to many a 

 privation in order to ward off the return of a disease, to which he is conscious there 

 will ever be a strong predisposition : but the case is different with the horse ; and 

 this, the scope and bound of the human practitioner's hope, is worthless to the 

 veterinarian. His patient must not only live, but must be sound again. Every 

 energy, every capability must be restored. Can we cause the tubercles of the 

 lungs to be absorbed ? Can we disperse or dispel the hepatization ? Can we 

 remodel the disorganised structure of the lungs ? Our consideration, then, will 

 be chiefly directed to the detection of the disease in its earliest state, and the 

 allaying of the irritation which causes or accompanies the growth of the 

 tubercles. This must be the scope and bound of the veterinarian's practice- 

 always remembering that the owner should be forewarned of the general hope- 

 lessness of the case, and that the continuance of his efforts should be regulated 

 by the wish of the proprietor and the value of the patient. 



PLEURISY. 



The investing membrane of the lungs, and of the thoracic cavity, namely, 

 the pleura, now demands consideration. We are indebted to Mr. John Field, 

 one of the noblest ornaments of the veterinary profession but cut off in the 

 prime of his days for the greater part of our knowledge of this disease, and 

 for the power of distinguishing between it and pneumonia, as readily and as 

 surely as we do between pneumonia and bronchitis and epidemic catarrh. 



The prevailing causes of pleurisy are the same as those which produce pneu- 

 monia exposure to wet and cold, sudden alternations of temperature, partial 

 exposure to cold, riding against a keen wind, immersion as high as the chest in 

 cold water, drinking cold water, and extra work of the respiratory machine. 

 To these may be added, wounds penetrating into the thorax and lacerating the 

 pleura, fracture of the ribs, or violent contusions on the side, the inflammation 

 produced by which is propagated through the parietes of the chest. 



It is sometimes confined to one side, or to one of the pleurae on either 

 side, or even to patches on that pleura, whether pulmonary or costal. The 

 inflammation of the lungs which occasionally accompanies rabies is characterised 

 by a singular patchy appearance. That produced on the costal pleura, arising 

 from violence or other causes, rarely reaches the pulmonary covering ; and that 

 which is communicated to the tunic of the lungs, by means of the intensity of 

 the action within, does not often involve the costal pleura. In some cases, 

 however, it affects both pleurae and both sides, and spreads rapidly from one to 

 the other. 



The first symptom is rigor, followed by increased heat and partial sweats, 

 to these succeed loss of appetite and spirits, and a low and painful cough. 

 The inspiration is a short, sudden effort, and broken off before it is fully 



