87 



CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS. 



It will be seen in the foregoing pages which re- 

 late to shoeing, that the reiterations of Mr. Bracy 

 Clark respecting the baneful eifects of nails upon 

 the elastic hoof of the horse have, at last, been re- 

 sponded to in a way which, in some respects at 

 least, cannot be otherwise than highly gratifying 

 to the feelings of this persevering and acute ob- 

 server. Although this intelligent and highly ta- 

 lented author has availed himself of every subtilty 

 of expression in his recent publications on the foot 

 of the horse, to stifle, conceal, and underrate the 

 importance of navicular disease, whilst the works 

 of other authors of the same date, and veterinary 

 lectures, are found to teem with the subject, and 

 have not willingly omitted the name of its promul- 

 gator, Mr. Bracy Clark has almost denied even ,pj^^ j^^ ^^^ 

 the existence of such a disease, under a blind in- fal^difeas^e "^"" 

 fatuation, that by his long continued labours he had "a'ted b> Mr" 

 made the subject of the foot of the horse solely his "*'^^ ^^ ' 

 own, to the utter exclusion of all other veterinary 

 aspirants. Notwithstanding, as a junior veterina- 

 rian, 1 would scorn to withhold the praise which I 

 think due to this scientific veteran. 



