CLEANING AND AIRING THE STABLE. 109 



The free ventilation relieves the eyes and breathing 

 apparatus, and the blood from morphological change. The 

 regularity of feeding and watering at certain or stated 

 times favors and promotes the functions of digestion, and 

 in a great measure prevents windy or flatulent colic, which 

 can often be traced to irregularity of feeding and length of 

 time between the hours chosen for such purposes. In sup- 

 port of the latter distinction, as a cause of colic, we have 

 but to refer to the period before the advent of railroads, 

 and when it was but too common to feed horses twice daily, 

 morning and night. The hunger being excessive, the ani- 

 mal would eat too much and too fast, paralyzing the func- 

 tions of the stomach ; fermentation and the evolution of 

 carbonic acid gas took place, causing colic, often ending 

 fatally. The horse would be found dead in the morning in 

 his stall, without any assignable cause. This could have 

 been averted by giving a smaller feed, or better by allow- 

 ing the hungry horse to eat hay, straw, or some other 

 rough or bulky material, for one or two hours, so as 

 to partly fill the stomach, and in a slow manner, before 

 the more nutritious and concentrated corn or oats were 

 given. 



For horses that through the force of circumstances, can- 

 not be fed at regular intervals, and at short periods, be 

 particular to allow hay for at least one hour before the 

 more solid feed is given. To insure regularity, as far 

 as possible at least, on the part of the groom, he must be 

 a sober person and not given to debauch during the night, 



