INFLAMMATORY AFFECTIONS 261 
“Seen but a few hours later, when the swelling caused by 
the hyperemia and outpouring of the inflammatory exudate 
has led to compression of the sensitive structures within 
the horny box, the symptoms presented admit of no mis- 
reading, save by the most casual and careless observer. 
The patient now stands as though fixed to the ground. The 
pulse is hard and frequent, the respirations tremendously 
increased in number, the body wet with a patchy perspira- 
tion, and the countenance indicative of the most acute 
suffering. Only with difficulty, and often only at the 
instigation of the whip, can the animal be induced to move. 
This he does by throwing his weight, so far as he is able, 
on to the heels of the feet affected, and putting the feet 
slowly forward in a shuffling and feeling manner. The feet 
themselves give to the hand a sensation of abnormal heat, 
percussion upon them with the hammer is followed by 
painful attempts at withdrawal, while any effort we may 
make to remove one foot from the ground is useless, so 
great an aversion does the animal show to placing a greater 
weight upon the opposite foot. 
According as the front-feet alone, the hind-feet alone, or 
all four feet are affected, the symptoms will vary. 
With all four feet diseased, the animal stands with the 
two front-feet extended in front of him, while the hind- 
limbs are at the same time propped as far beneath him as 
is possible. The horse is, in fact, standing upon the extreme 
hindermost portions of the feet. 
Why the animal should thus distribute his weight is 
easily explained. Standing in the normal position, the 
body-weight is borne by the sensitive lamine, the sole, of 
course, sharing in the burden, but the lamine taking by 
far the greater part of the pressure thus exerted. With the 
vessels of the laminez gorged with blood, and the laminal 
connective tissue infiltrated with a profuse inflammatory 
exudate, the most excruciating pain is bound to result by 
reason of the compression of the diseased tissues within 
the non-yielding structures. In some little measure the 
suffering animal may afford himseli relief by partly removing 
