236 TOKENS OF BROKEN WIND ; [BOOK II. 



the air-bladders, contrary to the state Mr. Law- 

 rence describes." What Lawrence had said was 

 this : " The most common appearance of the lungs 

 in broken-winded horses is a general thickening of 

 their substance, by which their elasticity is in a 

 great measure destroyed, and their weight (i. e. size) 

 specifically increased. On this account air is re- 

 ceived into the lungs with difficulty, but its expul- 

 sion is not so difficult. Thus, in broken-winded 

 horses, inspiration is very slow, expiration sudden 

 and rapid, as may be seen by the flanks returning 

 with a jerk." (P. 123, octavo edition.) And he is 

 correct as to these two motions accompanying the 

 thickened membrane or substance of the lungs ; 

 only we should have termed the disorder thick wind, 

 and not broken wind, when all would have coincided 

 with White's statement, barring his own self-con- 

 tradiction as to the she of the lungs, which Law- 

 rence had mistaken for weight, and which had met 

 with the counter assertion of being " specifically 

 lighter" On this point of their dispute, however, 

 neither the one nor the other could possibly know 

 aught with requisite certainty ; and we, for our 

 part, are inclined to believe, that the lungs of high- 

 bred horses are specifically lighter than those of 

 the cart breed, saving that the whole organs of res- 

 piration are much less muscular in the first kind 

 than in those of the latter, the skirt or border of 

 the midriff in particular. On the other hand, the 

 hearts of blood horses invariably run of a larger 

 size than those of the common English horse. 



