42 ON THE NAVICULAR DISEASE. 



tice, which is, that of applying a high patten shoe 

 to the sound foot, for the purpose of compeinng the 

 horse to stand upon the lame one, and which I 

 highly approve as a principle in the treatment of 

 these cases ; but I much doubt whether it answers 

 the intended purpose in the manner it is usually 

 employed. It undoubtedly does oblige the groggy 

 horse to bear more weight on the lame foot than he 

 would have done without such constraint ; but let 

 us see how the suffering animal instinctively dis- 

 poses of this distressing burthen : his coffin bone 

 being sound, and his navicular bone being diseased, 

 and perhaps carious, he will therefore naturally in- 

 cline his weight towards the front of the foot, or 

 fore part of the coffin bone : this will have no ten- 

 dency to depress the heels of that bone, which, in 

 my humble opinion, is of paramount importance. 



On blistering. With regard to the application of blisters to the 

 coronet, I am enabled to assert, that I have radically 

 cured very numerous navicular cases by the afore- 

 mentioned treatment without their aid ; yet cases 

 of this disease do occur in which I consider them 

 important auxiliaries. 



It may probably be expected that I should remark 



Scioning, &c. on frog sctons : I have only to observe, that I do 

 not adopt them ; and I will here state my reasons. 



As the treatment which 1 have recommended 

 tends to restore lost functions to those highly elastic 

 organs which arc placed at the posterior parts of 



