152 FISTULA OF THE EYE-PIT. 



this, the pit of the eye would again become filled with that by 

 which it was before distended ; the animal would be sadly incon- 

 venienced by it, and refuse to eat. During a month, the fistula 

 was dressed in this manner, namely, by the occasional introduction 

 of fresh pledgets of tow. Finding the inconvenience that resulted 

 from the passage of the seton into the mouth, I attempted to give 

 it a new direction. I passed the elastic sound into the pit above 

 the eye, and, pressing lightly with my right hand, while I held my 

 left under the angle of the lower jaw, I began to feel the end of 

 the sound at the superior part of the channel. I then determined 

 to pass my probe in this direction ; but, as I had not the instru- 

 ments necessary for the operation, I postponed it until the follow- 

 ing day. 



" The morrow having arrived, I took a long seton needle, but not 

 so large as the sound of which I have spoken. I covered the 

 cutting edge of the needle with several layers of wax, until I had 

 made it for the time a simple sound, that would not cut for itself 

 any false route. The horse being ready, 1 sounded him again, in 

 order to be assured of the direction which T ought to take ; and as 

 soon as I had withdrawn the sound, I passed the needle in pre- 

 cisely the same course. When I began to feel it in the channel 

 between the jaws, I pressed it with some force, and it penetrated 

 through the skin, leaving the wax in the wound. I prolonged the 

 opening longitudinally, and fixed anew my seton in this artificial 

 fistula, having first dressed it with weak spirit, and afterwards with 

 digestive ointment. The animal lost some blood in the operation, 

 but he did not suffer much during it, nor was he seriously incon- 

 venienced afterwards. 



" I thought that the seton passing this way would not be torn by 

 the teeth ; but I was deceived. It suffered the same fate as that 

 which terminated in the mouth. 



" I then took an annealed metallic wire ; I surrounded it with 

 tow, and passed it through the same fistulous opening. In this 

 way my object was at length accomplished, and the fistulous canal 

 was closed. I every day threw detersive injections into the 

 wound, and replaced fresh tow around the wire. The horse now 

 began to eat without difficulty, and acquired condition. 



