OR CONTRACTED SINEWS. ^6^ 



the captain was a man of great difpatch, he 

 cured an old ftrain in the back finews in half a 

 dozen nights ; and of all things in the world, 

 with greafe and emollient poultices. 



Ofmer, although he has written curioufly 

 and well upon the caufes and cure of thefe 

 maladies, has bewildered and contradided 

 himfelf ftrangely in his endeavours to fupport 

 the abfurd notion that tendons are inelaftic 

 and incapable of ftrain ; St. Bel has gone far- 

 ther, and entered into various reafonings in 

 fupport of this hypothefis, which might be 

 eafily enough refuted in detail, but that any 

 trouble with the fuperftru6lure is totally un- 

 neceflary, fmce the foundation itfelf may be 

 fwept away with a few words. The ten- 

 dons, to be capable of their mufcular a6lion, 

 muft neceffarily be elaftic. In the firft place, 

 let any man make ufe of the extenfor muf- 

 cle of his leg, and extend or point his toe 

 ftraight forward upon the level of his knee, 

 and then clap his fingers upon \h^ Jlexor ten- 

 don juft above his heel, and he will find the 

 faid tendon relaxed and flexile ; let him then 

 elevate his toe, and deprefs his heel, and he 

 will in an inftant feel the tendon firmly con- 

 trafted, and comparatively hard as a bar of 

 fteel. The fame thing precifely he will expe- 

 rience in the leg of a horfe. 



Farther, the dead tendons of a horfe, and of 



every 



