84 THE EXTERIOR OF THE HORSE. 



throat, behind by the neck, and in front by the temple and the cheek. 

 The external face of the parotid gland is separated from the skin by 

 the parotido-auricularis and cuticularis colli muscles; underneath, it 

 lies against the pharynx, larynx, guttural pouches, blood-vessels, and 

 nerves, and is traversed obliquely from below upward, and from with- 

 out to within, by the jugular vein ; the superior extremity embraces 

 the base of the ear, and the inferior is lodged in the angle of union 

 of the jugular and glosso-facial veins. 



Beauties and Defects. These are purely conventional and vary 

 according to taste. The region, to be beautiful, it is said, should be 

 light and depressed in order that the movements of the head may be 

 free and extensive ; if too much excavated relative to the surrounding 

 parts, the movements will be too easy, the saddle-horse will be able to 

 defend himself against his rider, and the head is mal-attached ; if too 

 salient over the regions which confine it, the horse becomes difficult to 

 guide and direct, the movements are neither free nor extended, and the 

 head is again mal-attached. 



These arguments do not rest on any given physiological rationale. 

 It suffices to recall the anatomical disposition of the articulations and 

 the muscles to understand that these conformations are arbitrary and 

 render the contradictory theories valueless. A moderate depres- 

 sion of the parotid surface is simply agreeable to the eye in that it 

 makes the head appear to be better attached, and, for this reason, 

 deserves the preference accorded to it. 



Diseases and Blemishes. It is of more utility than the preceding to 

 determine the presence or absence of diseases and blemishes. We observe 

 here tumefactions due to melanotic tumors, to alterations in the gland itself, as 

 parotiditis, to diseases of the structures which surround it, as the guttural pouches, 

 or to lesions of the surrounding veins. Parotid abscesses are often compli- 

 cated with salivary fistulse, which allow the escape of saliva and produce mal- 

 nutrition. The hood is again called upon by unscrupulous dealers to hide these 

 conditions. 



Let us also mention denudations, cicatrices, and traces of the cautery, as well 

 as other blemishes which result from the employment of a means of treatment 

 of diseases of the larynx, the gland, or the facial vein. In such cases it is neces- 

 sary to determine whether or not the animal is a roarer or suffers from an oblit- 

 eration of the jugular vein. (See Neck.} 



In conclusion, let us mention the barbarous usage which consisted in com- 

 pression of the parotid region with a farrier's pincers in horses suffering from 

 violent attacks of colic, the cause of which was attributed to pain and engorge- 

 ment of the parotid glands. In similar circumstances it was also the custom to 

 beat and open the glands to quiet the animal. This operation, dangerous as 

 well as absurd, often terminated in gangrene and its inevitable consequence, the 

 death of the patient. We have proof of such an example. 



