PKEFACE. 



Nobody can diagnose, treat and prognose a surgical case 

 intelligently unless thoroughly acquainted with, the scientific 

 principles involved in any particular case. The student is 

 obliged to gain his knowledge of the various surgical 

 ** ologies " by lectures, and after all by the perusal and study 

 of works written for the human practitioner. The former is 

 insufl&cient and the latter obviously wrong. 



The principles applicable to human surgery and those of 

 veterinary surgery, while in a great many instances closely 

 related, nevertheless differ materially. For instance, asepsis, 

 a condition sine qua non to the human surgeon, as a rule 

 exists in veterinary surgery only in theory, although lately 

 some of the leading surgeons in human surgery lean strongly 

 toward antisepsis. In human surgery, periostitis plays an 

 unimportant role, while it is of vital importance to the equine 

 practitioner. Notice the difference in the prognosis and 

 treatment of fractures. How many human surgeons apply 

 the firing iron and blisters ? This work is purely for the 

 veterinarian. As a former teacher of veterinary students, I 

 am fairly conversant with their needs. It has been my most 

 earnest desire and effort to supply a work which, while 

 scientific and modern, is free from matters of doubtful in- 

 terest to the American student. 



