576 CASTRATION. 



the dartos, which is very readily done by passing the knife 

 lightly over its fibres ; the testicle, and its covering, the 

 tunica vaginalis, must be taken in the right hand, while the 

 left should be employed in pushing back the scrotum from 

 its attachments ; and, having your assistant ready, as before, 

 with the clam, it must be placed well above the epididymis, 

 and greater pressure is, of course, necessary, as the vaginal 

 covering is included in the clam. 



Mr. Goodwin further observes, that in Russia he has seen 

 hundreds of horses operated on, even after the human 

 fashion, with safety ; and he remarks it certainly produces 

 less pain, the animal loses less flesh and condition, and is 

 sooner recovered than when operated on by the actual 

 cautery. 



Castration by ligature is a painful, barbarous, and very 

 dangerous practice : and consists in enclosing the testicles 

 and scrotum within ligatures until mortification occurs and 

 they drop off. It is practised by some breeders on their 

 young colts, but it is always hazardous, and disgracefully 

 cruel. The substance of the testicle in some countries is 

 also broken down either by rubbing, or otherwise by pres- 

 sure between two hard bodies : this is practised in Algiers 

 instead of excision, and tetanus is a frequent consequence 

 of it. In Portugal they twist round the testicle, and thus 

 stop the circulation of the gland. Division of the vas 

 deferens has been performed, it is said, with success on many 

 animals ; and is proposed as a safe and less painful process 

 than the emasculation of the horse. It consists in a longi- 

 tudinal section through the scrotum, dartos, and vaginal 

 sheath, so as to expose the cord, from which the vas de- 

 ferens is to be separated and severed from the artery vein. 

 There is a certain consent of parts by which the sympathy 

 of an organ remains after its functional offices are apparently 

 destroyed. There can be little doubt but the nervous ex- 

 citement would continue, the vein and artery remaining 

 entire. There are certain nice conditions of the organ 

 necessary for propagation ; thus the horse who retains his 

 testicles within his abdomen, possesses all the riggish quali- 

 ties of him with one perfectly evolved : he is lustful, and 

 can cover, but is seldom fruitful. Of the morbid conse- 

 quences of castration we have little to say : by early evacua- 



