PERIODIC OPHTHALMIA. 97 



SO is tlie veterinarian himself apt to be deceived. A certain time 

 after remedies — or rather after means regarded as remedial — have 

 been employed, the eye apparently recovers; but, whether from the 

 treatment adopted or from the disease having run its appointed 

 course, is not easy to determine. Be this as it may, the prudent 

 practitioner finds it necessary to accompany the " cure" of the pa- 

 tient with this advice to his master, — that, since other attacks are 

 likely to follow, either in the same eye or in the opposite one, or 

 possibly in both, and every fresh attack will certainly leave the 

 eye or eyes in a worse condition for vision than they were before, 

 either the animal had better be parted with during the intermission, 

 or, if kept, should as much as possible be preserved from those in- 

 fluences likely to favour a return of his complaint. 



For a disease, one main feature of which is inflammation, we na- 

 turally enough resort to antiphlogistic measures ; and did inflam- 

 mation constitute the essence of the disease, success would not fail 

 to attend such potent remedies of this class as have at one time or 

 other been employed. . 



BLOOD-LErTING, both topical and general, to the extremest de- 

 grees to which it could be carried, has been practised with no 

 other good eflect than that of suspending or temporarily arresting 

 the inflammatory action. Blood has been drawn from the jugular 

 vein of the same side as the affected eye until the animal has quite 

 staggered under the evacuation ; the carotid artery of that side has 

 been stopped by ligature ; nay, the vessels carrying on the inflam- 

 mation, themselves, as they ran upon the cornea, have been severed 

 by scarification and by cauterization, and all to no other purpose 

 than that of checking, or, to appearances, subduing an inflamma- 

 tory action which has been, after a time, sure to return with equal 

 or even with redoubled force. A common inflammation, once fairly 

 conquered, has no power to revive again ; at least, not in its ori- 

 ginal activity : but as for the inflammation of periodic ophthalmia, 

 it will return again and again, after having been, to appearance, 

 overpowered ; and, in very opposition to our most strenuous en- 

 deavours, will march slowly or rapidly on, according as the case 

 happens to be acute or chronic in its character, to the ultimate de- 

 struction of the eye. 



VOL. III. O 



