specific and Contagions Diseases. 157 



brane, &:c., yet bloody discharges are common, associated 

 with dropsical swellings of the head and eyes, the mem- 

 brane of the latter being acutely reddened. More or 

 less fever is also present with lung disturbance and a 

 lingering death, the illness in fatal cases extending over 

 several months. Spontaneous recoveries are, however, 

 quite common. 



Measles. — The transmission of this disease from the 

 human subject is set down as quite possible, a case having 

 actually occurred in a pet dog which was allowed to lick 

 the hand of a child affected with measles in a severe 

 form. The animal sickened in twelve days, a discharge 

 from the nose appeared shortly after, and in four days 

 died from resulting congestion of the throat and air 

 passages generally. {^Veterinary Joiirnal^ 1876.) 



Rabies, — From whatever aspect we view this disease, 

 there can be but one, the inevitable conclusion that it is 

 one of the most dangerous and formidable, the possibili- 

 ties of which are fearful to contemplate. The number of 

 human victims who are said to succumb to the effects of 

 the poison is not the only horror which comes of its 

 prevalence, however large the quotation may be. In the 

 minds of those who are called to minister to the sufferer, 

 no description can portray the amount of mental agony 

 and utter dismay they undergo while unable to offer the 

 least assistance calculated to assuage the bodily sufferings, 

 or impart solace to the distracted mind. From this 

 point of view it is not surprising that, by general consent, 

 we regard the mention of rabies as synonymous with 

 general prevalence, the cry of "mad dog" having an 

 electrical effect upon a whole population. Nervous 

 subjects, especially those who know little or indeed 

 nothing of rabies, at the mere mention of the name often 

 work themselves into a fearful state of apprehension, not 

 unfrequently attended with serious consequences. Such 

 being the case, it is high time that all interested in canine 

 pets should become acquainted with the general charac- 

 ters of the disease, the usual mode of origin, possibility 

 of communication to other animals as well as ourselves, 

 in order that means for its delimitation at least may 



