207 

 :Stairces the dog hangs over the water, continually lap- 

 ping, though perhaps he ^v/allovvs none. In no in- 

 stance is there any thing like a dread of water dis- 

 coverable, but on the contrary, a violent thirst induces 

 them to take whatever drink comes in their way. 

 How completely erroneous, therefore, must be the 

 opinion formed of madness from the drinking or not 

 drinking, is evident from this ; and it is also as evident, 

 that the term hydrophobia is completely absurd as 

 applied to madness in dogs, and no more applicable 

 to it, as before noticed, than it is to human measles 

 -or small pox. 



Another very popular error prevails with regard 

 «to madness, and which error it is lamentable to see 

 men of genius and information still propagating in 

 ■some lately published works, whose elegance, and 

 the reception they have met with, should not have 

 rendered them the vehicle of such mere traditionary 

 ignorance, that the slightest conversance with the 

 natural history of the animal would have corrected. 

 The error alluded to is, that the removing the worm 

 under the dog's tongue will pre vent iris becoming mad 

 at any future time. Others do not go this length ; 

 hui these are equally certain, that, if he does go mad, 

 he cannot bite when be is so. It is almost contempt- 

 ible to combat so childish and ignorant an opinion, 

 ^nd nothini; hut its widelv extended reception and its 

 baleful influence could make jne consent gravely to 

 .-refute so absurd a notion. There is, in the first place, 

 no such thing as a worm, or any thing like one, in 

 .any part of a dog's mouth. Anatomists all know that 

 most pendulous parts attached to others have ^ 

 deubliag of tiie skin to secure them, technically 



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