History of Animal Plagues. 227 



many died in a short time. On opening the dead bodies, the 

 stomach and other viscera were found diseased, mostly from 

 chronic corruption ; the heart was wasted, the kings full of 

 ulcers, and the omasum was loaded with matters as hard as a 

 stone ; the gall-bladder was a quarter of an ell long, and full of 

 bile; particularly, in all, the liver was observed to be full of 

 hydatids {egeln). Externally, however, it appeared healthy, 

 though internally it had many large cavities enclosed by callous 

 walls, and containing a clear yellow ichor; but in these were 

 no hydatids, they being only found in the substance of that 

 organ/ ^ 



A disease amongst horses prevailed in many countries, 

 especially in Montferrat and Piedmont, in Italy; also in Sicily, 

 in the Morea, and in Pomerania.^ Many hogs died in the coun- 

 try around Cologne. In the same country, and also in the 

 meridional provinces of France, an epizooty of gastro-hron- 

 chitis (or ' distemper^) amongst dogs.^ 



The Cattle Plague had been subdued in the North of Europe ; 

 it continued to rage, however, in Holland, in the north-east of 

 Germany, in some of the Swiss cantons, in Milan, Piedmont, 

 and Lucca, in Italy, and in some districts of France. 



On the 24th of September, the volcano of Taal, in Manilla, 

 caused much devastation by an eruption. The waters of the 

 lake in which it stands were so impregnated with bituminous 

 matter, that all the fish died and were thrown on the shore, where 

 they gave out an insupportable odour for a long time.* 



A.D. 1 7 16. The winter of this year was very severe through- 

 out Europe, and the summer was cold. During the winter the 

 Cattle Plague disappeared in Italy, and only the cold and some 

 less serious maladies caused losses in animals at Vercelli and in 

 the kingdom of Naples. In France, the bovine pest was dying 

 out ; but in Holland, Saxony, Thuringia, and in the whole of 

 Lower Germany — above all, in Westphalia, Hanover, and Bran- 

 denburg, it yet continued to do immense damage. 



' In England, in January, the Thames was frozen many miles, 



> Kauold. Op. cit., p. 261. ■ Ibid. pp. 252, 25S. 



•* Ibid. lireslauer Sainmlung, 17 19. 



* Haussmann. Voyage en Chine, &c., vol. ii. p-,249. 



