THE HEAD. 11 



being more liable to disease, and symptomatic of cross 

 blood. I warn you to look well into the eyes, so 

 very many bear the milky marks, the result of inflam- 

 mation. Whenever you find one with a cloudy ap- 

 pearance round the edge and close to the white, or 

 one with white marks streaked across the centre, or 

 one which on a close examination appears a little 

 smaller than the other, or puckered in the lids, de- 

 pend upon it there has been disease, which is likely 

 to return. Recollect a horse's eyes are not placed 

 like a man's : if he is blind with one eye, he is unable, 

 without turning his head round, to see any thing on 

 that side with the other. The slightest derangement 

 in the eye may at times prevent him using his speed 

 to the utmost. Should any speck of white be observ- 

 able near the centre of the eye, it has been caused by 

 some blow or hurt, and may interfere with the passage 

 of the light through the pupil : you should therefore 

 distrust it, for it is a very ugly blemish at all events, 

 and reduces the value considerably. Some few others 

 bear a resemblance to the green glass eye : there is as 

 much difference between the clear, transparent, bright, 

 healthy eye, and this glass eye (which is written as 

 arising from a loss of power in the optic nerve, and 

 generally incurable,) as there is between a polished 

 diamond and a piece of window-glass. Shying is 

 occasionally connected with some little alteration in 

 the organs of vision, imperceptible to us who are not 

 oculists.""' 



* If you blow a soap-sud bladder between your thumb and fore-finger, and 

 hold it up to the light, you will discover a kind of purple variegated streaks 

 on the surface : these colours you will often sec over the horse's eyes by nar- 

 rowly inspecting them, keeping the head in. a greater light than the body, as 

 just within a stable door. I do not know their cause, but imagine they have 

 no business there. 



