118 THE HORSE 



In another instance I was asked by a neighbor 

 to come and examine a horse that he said " would 

 not eat." I found the horse pitifully nibbling at 

 a little hay, as if he wanted to eat, but immediately 

 dropping it. I guessed at once that his mouth 

 was sore and, on opening it, found the whole in- 

 side entirely raw! Inquiries disclosed the fact 

 that a certain " veterinarian " had been treating 

 the horse for what he called " kidney disease " and 

 the raw mouth was the result of caustic liquids 

 that the ignoramus had been pouring down the 

 poor animal's throat. Of course the horse died, 

 and I could find no reason to suppose he had ever 

 had anything the matter with his kidneys or, in 

 fact, any indisposition whatever, unless, possibly, 

 a slight cold. 



I will spare the reader any further account of 

 such atrocities, although they are of constant 

 occurrence. No one who sees them can help 

 wishing that the fakirs might be treated with 

 some of their own remedies. 



The moral is: Do not meddle with any 

 remedies that you do not understand — nor let any 

 fake veterinarian do the meddling for you. 



