136 THE SUMMERING OF HUNTERS. 



chemist. It should contain no active ingredient 

 whatever besides the cantharides. Tlie best fly 

 blister we know is that of the British Pharma- 

 copoeia. It makes a somewhat harder mass than 

 most, which has this great advantage : in all blister- 

 ing operations the hair has to be clipped off close 

 to the skin of the part to be blistered, and the 

 blister has to be rubbed in with the naked fingers 

 for half or three-quarters of an hour, so that the 

 fingers and the part rubbed get hot by rubbing, 

 and the heat produced melts a softer blister, and 

 enables it to run down over the parts beneath ; 

 whilst the harder blister we recommend is onl}^ 

 softened by the heat, and enables the fingers to rub 

 it Avell into the desired surface a very little at a 

 time. A piece the size of a bean is large enough 

 which will not disappear before it has been rubbed 

 ten minutes. The blister is made as follows : — 



Take of cantharides in powder, 12 ozs. yellow 

 wax and prepared suet, of each, 1\ ozs.; prepared 

 lard, 6 ozs. ; resin, 3 ozs. Liquefy the wax, suet, 

 and lard together by a water-bath, and add the 

 resin, previously melted ; then introduce the can- 

 tharides, mix the whole thoroughly, and continue to 

 stir the mixture while it is allowed to cool. 



The above is a large quantity, but proportionately 

 less can be made, or, what is better, the horseman 

 can ask for the ointment as made according to the 

 British Pharmacopoeia, and as used by doctors. 

 When blistered or fired, the horse should have his 



