16 PATHOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE, HOW [BOOK I. 



time. He will soon perceive that, without this pre- 

 liminary horse-knowledge, he can never hope to 

 undertake the alleviation of any internal disorder, 

 much less to effectuate the cure of horses with the 

 common chances of success ! For we must here ob- 

 serve, that the practice of physic, in any of its de- 

 partments, is but an uncertain art at best ; and that 

 mistakes occur, even, in the human practice, much 

 oftener than we think proper to declare in this place. 

 1 1 . Than this species of examination, we know of 

 nought that can prove so instructive to the rising 

 genius for anatomical research ; nor, certainly, any 

 tiling that so fully contributes to pathological ac- 

 quisition, as the after-death examination of a horse 

 the student himself may have attended during life 

 — in its last illness, and final catastrophe. Of 

 course, we presume he has taken care to keep an 

 account of the symptoms, and their changes from 

 time to time, as well as the treatment he may have 

 thought proper to adopt. If he has further noticed 

 the deceased's peculiarities, the conformation of his 

 bones, their coverings and consequent manner of 

 going — the disease to which his constitution was, 

 more than any other, prone — his manner of feeding 

 — his craving for water — and the particular kind of 

 misusage (as to physic, work, food,) to which the 

 deceased had been subjected ; and then compare 

 these with the appearance of the organs of life — 

 and, we insist, our student will acquire more va- 

 luable information over one such subject, than from 

 opening half a dozen strangers' horses. 



