History of Animal Plagues. 415 



peared suddenly, which they often did, it portended a fatal termin- 

 ation. There was great prostration of the strength; an excessively 

 cold stajie succeeded the early. hot one; the belly became tense; 

 the pain increased along the spine, or it disappeared, either owing 

 to some internal cause or by the effects of remedies ; continual 

 moans preceded death. The dead bodies, when opened, exhibited 

 evident marks of gangrene and putrefaction. The diagnosis of 

 the malady consisted chiefly in the presence of the crepitation 

 along the back, which, although only symptomatic and ac- 

 cidental, formed, nevertheless, a very striking feature, and was 

 sufficient to distino;uish this affection from others of the same 

 class. The absence of mucus discharges from the nostrils and 

 mouth, the high temperature of the ears, the horns, and the 

 mouth, and the presence of tumours, constituted, in the opinion 

 of the authorities of those days, a particular and pestilential 

 disease of the gravest character.^ 



An epizooty of gangrenous sore-throat {angina gavgrcnom) oc- 

 curred in the parish of Mezieux, inDauphine. It affected cattle, 

 horses, and mules, and was very destructive. The llustrious veter- 

 inarian, Bourgelat, founder of the French Veterinary Schools, was 

 deputed to investigate its nature and suggest remedies. The symp- 

 toms as detailed by him were : ^ Refusal of all kinds of food, solid 

 or liquid; the head hanging low and ears drooping; tearful eyes, 

 and hair erect and harsh ; decided constipation ; a painful swelling 

 in theregionof the lower jaw and along the neck; a pulse more firm 

 {concentre) than frequent; and a copious discharge of frothy mucus 

 by the nostrils and mouth of some, were the signs which were 

 exhibited during the first twenty-four hours, and which remained 

 for the space of two, three, or four days, about which time hurried 

 hcavino-s of the flanks and extreme feebleness announced a 



o 



prompt and inevitable death.' The lesions after decease were 

 found to be very marked. Putrefaction set in rapidly, and ' there 

 was manifested in the back part of the throat, in all the muscles 

 of the pharynx and larynx, in the cellular tissue enveloping or 

 separating these, and in the oesophagus and trachea, a great 

 amount of gangrene ; the membrane enveloping the base of the. 



' Memoire de M. Barbcret. 



