238 DICTIONARY OF THE VETERINARY ART. 



farcy are the effect of a specific poison in the blood j but 

 this theory is exploded. The following will show some 

 light on the subject, for which we are indebted to R. 

 Vines, V. S. : '-All the symptoms of disease which constitute 

 glanders and farcy, invariably depend on the unhealthy state 

 of the system into which it is reduced or brought, and not, 

 as is supposed, from a specific poison contained in the blood ; 

 and these symptoms of disease are found to depend on. and 

 arise from, a variety of causes ; whether they occur at the 

 latter states or stages of common inflammatory diseases, such 

 as strangles, common cold, distemper, disease of the lungs, 

 dropsy, &c, or whether they arise independently of such 

 causes ; for when the system is brought into an unhealthy state, 

 and is more or less debilitated, from neglect, or by the improper 

 treatment of any of these diseases, [many of them are im- 

 properly treated, — ] farcy, or glanders, is the result. The 

 diseases of every animal will, therefore, assume a character 

 according to the state of the system." Mr. Percival, V. S., 

 says, " The state of the body, or constitution, will always have 

 considerable influence on the character and tendency of dis- 

 ease. In horses whose bodies are, and have long been, in an 

 unthriving and unhealthy condition, a common swollen leg 

 will occasionally run into farcy ; and a common cold or 

 strangles, or an attack of influenza, be followed by glanders. 

 In other cases, such unfortunate sequels will supervene with- 

 out any ostensible or discoverable cause." The great fault of 

 those who have employed their talents in the investigation of 

 the subject (glanders) is, that they take hold of the wrong end 

 of it : they are engaged in attempting to discover the " specific 

 poison," where none exists, when their time would be more 

 profitably engaged in studying the principles of a system 

 of medication that would rid the system of these early 

 exciting causes, viz., common colds, &c, and thus prevent 

 this great bugbear, glanders. The author can at any time, 

 within a period of a few months, and without the assist- 

 ance of " specific poison," manufacture a case of genuine 

 glanders out of the following materials : A horse would be 



