THE MODERN HORSE DOCTOR. 225 



them a source of great irritation to the mucous surfaces and sali- 

 vary apparatus of the horse. Some horses, however, will partake 

 of clover without the least inconvenience ; in fact, they "get used 

 to it," as the saying is, and, with the addition of other grain, 

 grow fat and sleek. 



Lobelia and tobacco have about the same effect on some green 

 horses as clover, always inducing an increased flow of saliva. 

 These articles may induce an increased secretion of this fluid in 

 two ways : — 



1. By irritation ; the article coming in direct contact with 

 highly sensitive secretory surfaces, which always pour out their 

 fluids on the application of an irritant, so long as it remains an 

 irritant, and provided the parts retain their normal sensibility. 



2. Through the medium of absorbents : thus calomel affects the 

 salivary glands, and causes them to secrete and pour forth an 

 amount of fluid at times almost incredible. Any irritating body 

 placed within the horse's mouth may produce an increased flow 

 of saliva. It is the custom among horsemen in Hungary, to place 

 on the horse's bit a small piece of corrosive sublimate, or arsenic, 

 and very soon he begins to foam at the mouth, which is considered 

 a mark of high temper ; and, strange to write, his general ap- 

 pearance improves — he gains flesh; the coett lies smooth and 

 sleek ; he is all life and ambition. But the day of reckoning 

 comes; the poison accumulates in the system, and the high- 

 mettled plethoric steed loses all his artificial qualities, so much 

 admired ; his mettle and ambition desert him, his muscles shrink, 

 and he soon becomes food for the ravens and other beasts of prey. 

 The sharp edges of a worn-down tooth, or a tooth in a state of 

 ulceration, may give rise to profuse salivation ; then again, a 

 rough bit, and a hard master may be set down among the direct 

 causes of this complaint. 



on a horse which was the subject of fistulous parotid duct. He found that, 

 while the animal masticated hay, from eight to ten drachms of saliva per minute 

 flowed; but if the jaws were quiet, from six to eight drachms only. Now, if we 

 take the medium at one ounce per minute, and suppose an equal secretion from 

 the opposite gland, it will fall little short of a gallon per hour, in a compara- 

 tively small animal. Adding to this, therefore, the submaxillary, sublingual, 

 &c., secretions, the amount secreted in a given time must be very great. 



