ON THE LEGS. 537 



arrived at their worfl; ftage, that the horfe ftands 

 and travels in conftant pain, and is very unfafe 

 to ride, all palliatives are fo much time loft; 

 even firing is inefFeftual, as being too fuper- 

 ficial ; and I think in fome cafes even adds to 

 the pain of windgalls, by imparling that jelly, 

 the abforption of which it cannot promote, 

 ftill clofer. As to taking up the veins, you 

 might as well draw the horfe's teeth for a cure. 

 Excifion is then the only remedy, the opera- 

 tion for which. Bracken has improved from the 

 old farriers ; his improvement confifts in mak- 

 ing the incifion deep, and in the ufe of efcharo- 

 tics, with the intent of eradicating the fub- 

 ftance of the cyft or bag, previoufly to healing 

 the wound, without which the cure would be 

 only partial. My experiment of this method 

 is as follows : About fifteen or fixteen years 

 ago, I purchafed at Tatterfal's, exprefsly for 

 the purpofe, a bay hackney mare, got by Bel- 

 mont, ten or twelve years old, havino- the 

 motl windgalls of any horfe I could find, out of 

 a hundred or two. Being of an excellent con- 

 flitution, and the belt temper in the world, flie 

 endured the operation without flinching, or 

 giving us the fmalleft trouble ; and the wounds 

 were fo well conditioned, that they healed fur- 

 prifingly foon, notwithftanding they were 

 moft injudicioufly and dangeroufly expofed, 

 without the leaft covering, an hour or two in a 



dirty 



