58 HORSES: 



blood, about the most foolish thing I can conceive is 

 to keep on feeding and administer " condition pow- 

 ders," purgative medicines, or apply a seton to run off 

 the products ; and this is continually being done all 

 over the country. A few days' fast and a sufficiently 

 restricted diet will enable the system to cleanse it- 

 self — to " clean house," so to say — by letting the 

 overtaxed excretories have everything their own 

 way, while the digestive organs obtain, meantime, 

 the rest they so much need. 



IN KIDNEY COMPLAINTS 



— which usually arise from the same cause — the kid- 

 neys are especially taxed in all cases of excessive ali- 

 mentation. Instead of giving these organs more to 

 do by feeding or drugging the patient, cease for a 

 little time ; allow warm water plentifully if there is 

 thirst ; even turn down a few quarts occasionally in 

 any event.* If the kidneys have struck work, they 

 will resume as soon as they have had a little rest. 

 Digitalis and niter would not have to be resorted to 

 but for the continued feeding, and, in any case, they 

 are more likely to do harm than good. 

 I will illustrate in a manner the 



RELATION OF CONDITION TO RESERVED FORCE. 



I have already given the definition of the former 

 term, and will here define the latter. The term 



* " Of all diuretics, pure water is the best," says Dr. Dickinson 

 in his celebrated work on " Bright's Disease " (W. Howship 

 Dickinson, M.D., F.R.C.P., etc.) 



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