218 DISEASES OF THE HEART. 



In my regimental predecessor's time, one of the troop- 

 horses, intended to mount king's guard, from the same cause, 

 "dropped down dead" on the parade. 



Of rupture from ulceration there is a case related by 

 M. Gaullet, in the Recueil de Medecine VetSrinaire, which 

 appears to afford an example: 



A horse, seven years old, had experienced within a short 

 lapse of time three or four fits resembling those of epilepsy, 

 the prominent symptoms of which were: — stiffness of the 

 fore limbs, with spasm and tremor of the muscles of the 

 shoulder and arm; the eyes much turned inwards, the opaque 

 cornea alone being visible; the animal moved with so much 

 difficulty, that, if compelled to stir, he fell and lay for half an 

 hour in a state of rigidity, grinding his jaws ; then arose 

 again, and fed as though nothing had happened. For a 

 month before he died, this horse was treated for pulmonic 

 disease; in the course of which, they took him out for a little 

 walking exercise. In his walk he met with rather a sharp 

 ascent, which, for want of breath, he could not climb. Some 

 days afterwards the same attempt was renewed, but with no 

 better success. An hour after his return to his stable from 

 this last journey, the horse was seized with his former 

 symptoms, fell backwards, and remained down for half an 

 hour, with his neck in a state of tetanic rigidity. Fifteen 

 days after one of these fits, he died. The abdominal viscera, 

 the pleura, and the lungs, were sound. About the middle 

 of the right ventricle of the heart was discovered a small 

 fistulous aperture, with smooth borders, and from one to two 

 lines in diameter, through which issued a pale sanguineous 

 fluid. Within the ventricle, communicating with the 

 aperture, was a longitudinal rent, an inch and a half in 

 extent, but diminishing in breadth towards the opening out- 

 side, which was surrounded by whitish and slight tumidity, 

 half an inch in circumference. 



Along with the above, M. Gaullet communicated an 

 analogous case to the Central Society of Agriculture. The 

 horse experienced great difficulty in moving, with especial 

 inconvenience on the left side, and no one could divine the 



