198 



THE MODERN SY&I'EM 



glandered Horse, or wiping off the matter 

 from his nostrils ; or by the Horse himself 

 transferring: glanderous matter from the nose 

 of a diseased Horse, or from the manger, or 

 other part where any matter has been de- 

 posited ; for Horses are very fond of rubbing 

 their noses against the manger or stall ; and a 

 glandered Horse will generally rub off the 

 matter from his nose against the manger, the 

 rack, the stall, or against another Horse ; and 

 if a sound Horse happens to stand by one that 

 is glandered, they will often be seen nabbing, 

 or gently biting each other, or rubbing their 

 noses together. In short, having proved that 

 glanders is thus communicated, we can con- 

 ceive a variety of ways in which a Horse may 

 be accidentally inoculated. 



When a Horse has been twitched, he gene- 

 rally rubs his nose and lips with consider- 

 able force against the manger, and may 

 thus easily inoculate himse'^ with a glandered 

 splinter or nail. Now, the parts where the 

 local farcy first appears, are those most likely 

 to be accidentally inoculated ; that is, the in- 

 side of the hocks and knees, the shanks, the 

 lips, the under-jaw, where grooms are often 

 trimming off the long hair with sharp-pointed 

 scissors, or singeing with a candle, and often 

 causing an itching, which makes the Horse 

 rub the part against the manger. In this way 

 the heels frequently become wounded. Horses 

 that are kept on grains, bad hay, or any kind 

 of bad provender, are liable to itching hu- 

 mours, which make them nab or bite their 

 skin, and scratch the hind leg with the oppo- 

 site foot : and we may often see them bite, 

 rub with the nose, and scratch with the hind 

 foot, alternately the other leg. If we take all 

 the foregoing circumstances into consideration, 

 tliat even from inoculation a month mav 



elapse before the disease makes its apjHior- 

 ance, in all experiments for the production of 

 glanders, at any rate, some days will elapse 

 before any ulcer or chancre is produced ; a 

 week or two before farcy-buds, or corded 

 lymphatics may appear ; and in some cases, 

 probably, a month before the running from 

 the nostrils comes on, except when a young 

 ass is the subject of experiment. If we reflect 

 upon all these circumstances, there will be no 

 difficulty I think of admitting the following 

 positions or references, with their natural 

 conclusions, with respect to glanders, viz. :— 

 That glanders is a ( ontagious disorder, which 

 is communicated by inoculation, or by the 

 effluvia proceeding from a glandered Horse, 

 that may have been kept in a stable with 

 others, when in all probability, the constitu- 

 tion not being sufficiently strong, and debility 

 may arise, creating a greater susceptibility to 

 take on disease, than others of a more robust 

 and strong constitution. It has been also 

 asserted by some clever veterinarians, that 

 swallowing a quantity of the matter made 

 into balls will produce the disease ; but this I 

 never found to be the case, as I have tried it 

 in several instances, both on Horses and Asses ; 

 the Horse's stomach having the power of 

 resisting the impression of poisonous matter, 

 as has been proved in numbers of instances. 

 In doubtful cases ; that is, when there is 

 much difficulty in determining whether the 

 discharge from a Horse's nostril is glanderous 

 or not, and such cases frequently occur, have 

 him removed to a stable to remain by himself. 

 Then, purchase an ass, which may always be 

 obtained for a few shillings, and inoculate him 

 with some of the glandered matter. I iiave 

 generally done it in the inside of the fore le^, 

 on the plate-vein. In two or three days yoa 



