144 CANINE DISTEMPER 
the abdominal lymphatic glands. The latter may be 
cedematous or hemorrhagic, but on the whole seem to 
be very little altered. 
Peritoneum.—I have so far encountered no case in 
which peritonitis has played any part, and although it 
has. been: known, it is rare. -Nevertheless, a serous 
straw-coloured exudate is° found not infrequently in 
small quantity in the peritoneal cavity, and this may on 
occasion assume the colour of bitter ale. 
Liver.—The liver is generally found to be normal, but 
where diseased conditions have arisen, they are of the 
nature of hyperzemia (congestion) or parenchymatous 
hepatitis. In the first case a stagnating hypereemia may 
be produced in consequence of the weakening of the 
heart’s action, or of extensive pulmonary disease. The 
liver is then greatly enlarged, very hard, and overfull of 
darkened blood, the cut surface sometimes presenting a 
mottled appearance (nutmeg liver). In hepatitis we find 
the organ large, soft, and friable, no difficulty being 
encountered in pushing one’s finger through its substance. 
Its colour is dark red in the early stages, becoming later 
of a clay tint, and the organ possibly smaller in volume. 
It then looks like liver which has been boiled. or 
macerated. 
Bile Ducts.—W here jaundice has been a complication, the 
mouth of the bile duct is frequently found closed, in con- 
sequence either of catarrh of its mucous membrane, or of 
swelling of the intestines in its immediate vicinity. In 
this contingency the gall-bladder is tensely full and its 
contents thicker than normal, or even semi-solid. Very 
little swelling is required to obstruct the bile ducts, those 
in the dog being so very minute, and when bile is unable 
to flow into the intestines it eventually enters the lym- 
phatic system of the liver and gains the blood stream via 
the thoracic duct. 
