tid ABSCESS AND TUMOURS. 



dissolution of the functions of animal life. This is the most dangerous species 

 of disorder, arising from calculous deposit, that I know of 



In the kidney, however, little danger to life is to be apprehended from the 

 (Btonc, unless the animal is put to severe work, so as to produce the symptom 

 of bloody urine before described. They are mostly fat horses that die with 

 stone in the kidney ; in fact, all that I have ever seen or heard of, and these 

 have been numerous ; for I have long made a point of inquiring after such 

 cases of calculus, where they seldom escape notice, viz. the horse-slaughterers' 

 yards, of which it is proverbially and truly said, that not a hair enters but is 

 turned to profit. The probability is, that when the stone detaches itself and 

 descends into the ureter, the fat which partly enveloped it and the residue of 

 the kidney had been withdrawn, through disease or poor living, and the mem- 

 brane which supported both had divided. I once thought Ihad made some ob- 

 servations on this part of my subject which would be worthy of public perusal ; 

 but these are not sufficiently mature to find place in this little volume, devoted 

 as its pages are to matter of fact, and fair deductions therefrom, and wholly 

 exclusive of theoretic speculation. Nevertheless, in aid of what others may 

 think fit to say in any other place (out of a spirit of controversy), I would just 

 add, that only one kidney is affected at a time, or one ureter ; that the calculi 

 found in either of these are invariably of the hardest kind, whilst those of the 

 bladder are softer, and those of the intestines softer still, or Htlle more than 

 concrete earth. Lastly, that none of those horses which I have found troubled 

 with either kind of calculous disorders suffered under a second at one and the 

 same time. 



CHAPTER II. 

 EXTERNAL DISORDERS. 



Abscess and Tumours. 



Swelling, with inflammation of the solids, the glands, or simply pustules 

 on the skin, are all tumours, have been divided into eight classes, and accord 

 in^ to their situation, are termed superficial, or deep seated abscess. Super- 

 ficial are those which appear on the skin, as farcy, &c. — Deep seated are those 

 which more generally are hidden amongst the muscles, ligaments, &c. as poll- 

 evil, fistula, &c. — A few general observations on the remote causes thereof 

 seem necessary to a right understanding of each particular complaint. 



All those disorders in common, together with several others, 1 have no hesi- 

 tation in attributing their remote cause to constitutional defectiveness at least, 

 or incapacity in the function of circulation, better known by the homely ex- 

 pression, "a bad state of the humours," as before insisted upon, principally at 

 pages 53—61. Both series are referable to the same predisposing cause. That 

 epecies of inflammation of the whole system which we have agreed to term 

 fever, frequently terminates by concentrating its latent humours, and deposit 

 ing the same critically in some fleshy part of the carcass or limbs, producing 

 rnattei (or pus,) which, with heat, constitutes the disease. Whether abscess 

 or tumour supervene, both have immediate connexion with blood-vessels of no 

 small^ consideration, though the disorder may have commenced with the finer 

 (capillaries), as insisted upon at the pages above referred to; and hath 



