ACUTE DIAEEHfflA. ' 347 



and thready, or totally suppressed, or perhaps a single thread- 

 like beat can be felt now and then ; the respirations will be quick 

 and short, at times running from 50 to 60 per minute ; the 

 surface of the body will either be totally suffused with a cold 

 perspiration, or it will be present in large patches upon the 

 body, the neck, the sides, the limbs, and the quarters, and these 

 patches will not be merely damp but the perspiration will be 

 excessive ; the limbs and the ears will be cold ; sometimes con- 

 siderable pain will be present in the bowels ; the animal will roll 

 violently upon the ground, look round at his sides, and the 

 countenance will express great anxiety. In other cases little 

 or no pain is manifested in the bowels, save now and then, as 

 it were, a wandering kind of pain, which is only observed for a 

 few moments. The purging, unless stopped by judicious treat- 

 ment, will continue unabated, and the fseeal matter which is 

 occasionally parted with is almost incredible — the body of the 

 patient literally dissolves away before the eyes of the observer, 

 and from being perhaps a bulky horse, he suddenly becomes 

 thin and sunk exceedingly in his general condition ; the mouth 

 and tongue are covered with a soapy deposit, from which a 

 sour smell is emitted. 



The next stage of the disease is that of delirium ; the eye 

 tates on a wild appearance, he staggers and rolls as though 

 drunk ; the head is held close to the ground, the neck is placed 

 in contact with the bottom of the manger, against which the 

 horse will push with all his strength, at the same time paddling 

 with the hind feet, and every now and then giving vent to wild_ 

 sounding neighs ; the breath will also have become cold, and it 

 is only with the greatest exertion that he can be got into another 

 position. In this state he may continue for an hour or two ; 

 at last he falls, struggles violently for a short time, neighs, 

 and dies. 



