ROARING. 107 



opinion as to the cause of the wasting and degeneration of the 

 muscles may fairly be held, because cases of wasted laryngeal 

 muscles have been observed in post-mortem examinations where- 

 in no defect or disease of the nerve which supplies the physiolo- 

 gical stimulus to these particular muscles could be discov^ered; in 

 addition to this negative argument, we cannot overlook the fact, 

 that the degenerative change, described as fatty degeneration, 

 affecting the defective muscles of the larnyx may be brought 

 about by causes altogether independent of nerve force, and this 

 fact renders the possibility of cure or relief all the more promis- 

 ing, as in homoeopathic practice there is at least one remedy that 

 is capable of contracting the diseased condition known as ''fatty 

 degeneration" therefore when this is the cause of roaring, there is 

 reasonably good hope for anticipating the restoration of the lar3'n- 

 geal muscles to a healthy state under its influence, the renewal of 

 the proper physiological functions and the removal of the cause 

 which produced the noise and interfered wnth sound, healthy res- 

 piration, more especially if treatment is commenced as soon as the 

 defective respiration is observable in young horses. It may be 

 desirable to note in passing that several operations have been at- 

 tempted to overcome by surgical measures the defects already re- 

 ferred to, that are due to structural alteration of the larynx, such 

 as the removal of the portion of cartilage which through de- 

 generation of the muscles cannot maintain its normal position and 

 falls inwards; and again a very ingenious operation has been 

 tested by which the recurrent nerve, that by some is considered 

 responsible by reason of atrophy for the muscular degeneration, 

 was severed and joined to another nerve trunk in the hope of 

 supplying the necessary nerve stimulus from a new source and 

 thus restoring the muscles to a healthy state; but neither of these 

 operations has answered expectations, and it may be asserted that 

 from a really practical standpoint they are both absolute failures. 

 Now as to the method of treatment to which we advise a horse 

 to be subjected;, inasmuch as it is most difficult, if not absolutel}'- 

 impossible to positively determine what is the cause of a horse 

 making a noise in the early stage of the disease, which at the 

 same time it is possitively essential in order to effect a cure that 

 treatment should be commenced at that period we consider that 

 the two remedies which have on various occasions afforded 



