452 Veterinary Medicine. 



The absorption of bile elements and especially of taurocholic 

 acid, which is a solvent of the red blood globules, and would set 

 free their globulin might account for the characteristic condition 

 of the blood. The powerful aspiratory action of the chest, 

 would speedily empty the whole of the liver blood vessels, and 

 lessening their tension below that of the biliary radicals would 

 determine an active absorption of bile or of the more diffusible 

 of the bile elements. A manifest objection to this view is the 

 absence of an icteric tint in the mucous membranes of the affected 

 animals. The visible mucosas are of a brownish red hue, such as 

 might come from haemoglobin dissolved in the blood serum, 

 rather than the yellow tint which might be expected from bile 

 pigment. The theory of poisoning by bile acids therefore, would 

 require an explanation of concurrent suppression or decomposi- 

 tion of the bile pigments. 



Other sources, however, offer solvents for haemoglobin, benzoic 

 acid, which is derived from a cellulose in the fodders, and forms 

 the source of hippuric acid, dissolves red globules (Landois). 

 In the over-fed horse with active digestion, but inactive body and 

 liver, this must accummulate in the liver, spleen and portal sys- 

 tem, and when suddenly drawn into the blood without time for 

 oxidation in the liver it will contribute to the condition of haemo- 

 globinaemia. 



Peptones, being very diffusible, are very rapidly absorbed, but 

 they are not found, in healthy conditions, in the portal vein 

 (Neumeister). These are manifestly transformed into albumen 

 in the intestinal mucosa (Salvioli), or taken up by the very 

 numerous leucocytes and transformed or carried elsewhere (Hoff- 

 meister). But peptones injected into the blood of the dog render 

 it incoagulable, and in large quantity are fatal (Landois). An 

 excess of glycogen dissolves the red globules, and the conditions 

 of heavy feeding and torpid liver, are calculated to produce this 

 in great excess and to store it in the liver cells. 



Under the extra vigorous aspiratory force of the chest, these 

 highly diffusible agents, present in great excess, are likely to be 

 drawn on through the mucosa, into the portal vein, liver and cava, 

 without an opportunity for complete transformation by leucocytes 

 or liver cells. These would tend to rob the blood globules of 

 their normal physiological vigor, would unfit them for maintain- 



