124 VETERINARY HOMCEOPATHY. 



Other, but when inflammation sets in, from whatever cause, the- 

 secretion is arrested and the membrane is rendered dry and rough. 

 After a short time this dryness is succeeded by an excess of fluid 

 secretion, (dissimilar in character from the normal, healthy secre- 

 tion,) which is so constituted that in a short period, if not taken 

 up by the vessels again, it forms into organized material of a 

 fibrous character that becomes interwoven, and so the lungs may 

 become actually adherent to the walls of the chest and unable to 

 move with the freedom requisite for comfortable breathing. It is 

 in connection with pleurisy that we get w4iat is commonly known 

 as dropsy of the chest, because of the great quantity of fluid that 

 is poured out it becomes necessary for the allopath to tap the chest, 

 if only to give some relief to the pressure which this excess of 

 fluid produces; unfortunately, however, the mere fact of drawing 

 off a portion of the water on the chest does not do away with the 

 cause which produces it, and hence the cavity of the chest soon 

 refils and the difficulty of breathing is as great as ever; here again 

 Homoeopathy steps in to effect by therapeutical measures what sur- 

 geons fail to realize; the remedies necessar}- for combatting this 

 painful, and while it lasts, distressing condition are few but mar- 

 vellously effective, so much so that if the tendency to form fluid 

 is discovered early, it may be arrested before any serious conse- 

 quences arise, that which is already formed becoming reabsorbed 

 and passed out of the system through the urinary organs. But 

 £rst we must recapitulate the main symptoms; chilliness and. slight 

 shivering usually precede the development of the more character- 

 istic indications, attended by an exalted temperature, rapid, hard 

 pulse and quickened breathing; the difficulty of breathing is ac- 

 centuated by the evident pain caused in the performance of the 

 function; when the horse draws his breath in, he frequently coughs, 

 when he expires or lets it out, the act is frequently effected at 

 twice as it were; that is to say, a pause in expiration takes place; 

 the animal experiences considerable pain in turning round; the 

 breathing is chiefly performed by the abdominal muscles, namely 

 those behind the ribs, with a view, no doubt, to save as much 

 pain as possible to the chest, and in the abdominal locality the ex- 

 ternal muscles are corrugated, especially if one lung is more 

 affected than its fellow; pressure of the finger-point between the 

 intervening spaces of the ribs will cause the patient to wince and 



