294 
ANALYSIS OF CONTINENTAL JOURNALS. 
lar manner, and street dogs ought not to be killed to be 
eaten until after they have been submitted to a feculent 
regime. 
THERMOMETRY IN VETERINARY MEDICINE. 
At a reunion of veterinary surgeons at Mecklenburg, in 
1869, Mr. Peters, army veterinary surgeon, delivered a dis- 
course on the variations of internal temperature in the do- 
mesticated animals, and on the mode of appreciating these 
variations. As the value of the thermometer in veterinary 
medicine has been recognised in this country, and the results 
of its employment have been chronicled in the Veterinarian* 
and elsewhere, it may be interesting to reproduce some por- 
tions of this discourse for the benefit of those who employ 
this useful instrument. 
In order properly to appreciate the variations of internal 
temperature, says Herr Peters, it is well to have a thermo- 
meter exactly graduated, though this is not a condition sine 
qua non , as it is sufficient to know exactly the deviations of 
the instrument, and to make the necessary corrections in 
summing up the observations. It is indispensable to use the 
same thermometer for the same animal. The smallness of 
the mercurial bulb allows the modifications of temperature 
to be rapidly noted, but at the expense of the distinctness 
of the graduated scale, as when the reservoir is of small 
dimensions the divisions on the scale into fifths and tenths of 
a degree are so faintly marked that near-sighted persons can 
scarcely see them. It is, therefore, preferable for aged people 
to use a thermometer with a voluminous bulb. It is also 
important to remember that the instrument should always 
be inserted to the same depth in the rectum, for if it is deeply 
introduced it will indicate a higher temperature than when it 
is only projected a short distance; the difference of tempera- 
ture is more marked in cold stables and during the winter. If 
the bulb of the thermometer is not large, the column of mercury 
will have arrived at its maximum in about four minutes; but, 
after allowing it to remain in the rectum for only a minute, 
we may, by observing the rapid displacement of the mercury, 
judge whether we have to deal with a disease accompanied by 
strong febrile reaction or not. The normal temperature 
manifested in the horse by introducing a thermometer to a 
depth of two inches into the rectum, varies between 37*5° and 
38 - 2° (Centigrade) ; most frequently it is 37'8°. In a state of 
health the internal temperature does not appear to be subject 
to great oscillations, but during violent movements it may 
* See Veterinarian for 1868, p. 76. 
