^oo HORSE-SHOES AND HORSE-SHOEING. 



erosion of the cartilage of the navicular bone, and the 

 symptoms indicative of this foot disease. And long before 

 this period, contracted hoofs arising from undue paring by 

 the marechal, and lameness resulting therefrom, were, as 

 we have seen, often mentioned. But the unknown author 

 of the ' Grand Marechal, Expert et Fran^ais,' published at 

 Toulouse in 1701, not only gives us this information,, but 

 actually describes the neurotomy operation for the relief of 

 this lameness, the discovery of which in 1 8 16, by Professor 

 Sewell, of London, has almost immortalized his name. 

 Here is the modus operandi : ' Vous coucherez le cheval, 

 ensuite lui ouvrirez la partie ou Ton barre la veine, et 

 en tirerez le nerf avec la petite corne ; apres quoi vous 

 le graisserez-avec du populleum, et il guerira.' 



Osmer continues his discourse on the treatment of the 

 horse's hoof in shoeing. ' The spongy, skin-like substance 

 (of the frog) is not to be cut away till it becomes ragged, 

 because it is the expansion of the skin round the heel, its 

 use being to unite more firmly the foot and its contents, 

 and to keep the cellular part of the heel from growing 

 rigid ; it also surrounds - the coronary ring, and may be* 

 observed to peel and dry away as it descends on the hoof.' 

 This skin-like substance is the coronary frogband Bracy 

 Clark claims the credit of being the first to notice, in 1 809. 



After laying it down as a rule that the crust or wall 

 should only be removed in a degree proportionate to the 

 growth, he goes on to say : 'In all broad fleshy feet, the 

 crust is thin, and should therefore suffer the least possible 

 loss. On such feet the rasp alone is generally sufficient 

 to make the bottom plain, and produce a sound founda- 

 tion, ivithout the use of the desperate .buttress (the French 



